RSS Feed
Archive for October 2nd, 2015
Meet the drought-stricken communities of California’s San Joaquin Valley
Posted by Grist: Laura Bliss on October 2nd, 2015
Grist: Bulmario Tapia Madrigal doesn’t want to shower in a stream of dirt. He doesn’t want to cook with bottled water, haul a bucketful to flush the toilet, or wonder if he has enough water to clean the diabetes wounds on his feet. But since his well went dry three months ago, that’s how life has been.
Some relief is coming for the 70-year-old orange picker. On a dry August afternoon, he zips his motorized wheelchair up and down his driveway, anxiously watching a crew of workers. They’re nearly finished...
Posted in 
Why You Should Care About Climate Change: Part 1
Posted by Huffington Post: Rosaly Byrd on October 2nd, 2015
Huffington Post: Climate change is becoming an issue of rising importance to Americans. According to a Pew Research Center survey, 46 percent of Americans view climate change as a serious issue, up from 33 percent in 2013. Over the past few years President Obama has dedicated much of his time to addressing climate change, calling it a threat to national and global security, while U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has called it one of the world's most fearsome weapon of mass destruction. However, it still seems that...
Ben Carson Says He Doesn’t Believe in Climate Change or Evolution
Posted by EcoWatch: Cole Mellino on October 2nd, 2015
EcoWatch: If it weren`t such an incredibly pressing issue, it would be comical how Republican presidential candidates have responded to the simple question "Do you believe in climate change?"
Ben Carson's Follies: 7 of the Most Stupefying Statements by the GOP's Favorite Neurosurgeon
http://t.co/QR1f4RnunS pic.twitter.com/Pn8gHD0MBX
-- AlterNet (@AlterNet) September 29, 2015
At a campaign event on Wednesday at the University of New Hampshire, Ben Carson was asked: "You don`t believe in evolution...
United Kingdom: ‘Fracking Village’ Gets Green Light to Build Solar Farm
Posted by EcoWatch: Tierney Smith on October 2nd, 2015
EcoWatch: The UK’s clean energy sector got a boost yesterday, as Repower Balcombe, the local energy cooperative born of the 2013 fracking protests, was given the go ahead with its proposed 5 megawatt (MW) solar park in West Sussex. The group has already installed more than 100 solar panels on its village schools and nearly 70 more on a local farm, but today’s planning committee is a significant step for the project. With more than 18,500 panels, it would surpass the co-op’s aim of powering every home in...
Signs of drought in Los Angeles
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 2nd, 2015
Guardian: When more water is being found on Mars than in California, you know the drought is bad. Comedian Jason Saenz created and posted his own signs about the drought around Los Angeles
A new global tinderbox: World’s northern forests
Posted by Yale Environment 360: Ed Struzik on October 2nd, 2015
Yale Environment 360: Ted Schuur has spent the better part of his career making the connection between climate change and wildfires that are burning an increasing amount of land in Alaska and in sub-Arctic and Arctic forests around the world. So the Northern Arizona University scientist wasn’t all that surprised this summer to find his field stations in the interior of Alaska Alaska Fire Service Alaska experienced its second-worst fire season in recorded history this summer. surrounded by fires on three sides. At the...
US Court says BLM lacks authority to regulate fracking
Posted by EnergyWire: Mike Soraghan on October 2nd, 2015
EnergyWire: The Obama administration does not have authority to regulate hydraulic fracturing on public lands, a federal judge decided yesterday.
In a major blow to the Bureau of Land Management and environmentalists who support stricter fracking oversight, the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming enjoined BLM's years-in-the-making fracking rule, blocking enforcement of the new regulation while the court considers industry and state challenges.
"One of the fundamental questions presented in...
California drought consequences are snowballing, so to speak
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 2nd, 2015
LA Times: California is entering its fourth consecutive year of drought, and for the second consecutive year the Legislature will consider emergency drought relief.
Conservation numbers for California come out Thursday. Residents have been seriously saving water in the last few months, spurred by severe drought conditions. The savings have proven a big bright side to a tough year.
So how bad is the drought? Here are some sobering answers.
IT WAS DRY...
The lack of rain and snow hit California water...
For the sake of UN climate talks, put down that burger
Posted by Star-Ledger: Editorial on October 2nd, 2015
Star-Ledger: For the first time in history, every major country except for India has announced new plans to curb carbon emissions, in an effort to fight climate change. This includes China and the United States, the world's two filthiest polluters. It's inspiring to see so many governments, rich and poor, chip in. But before we start throwing around words like "ambitious," it's important to remember: Even with these plans, we're still nowhere near where we should be. With the pledges offered so far — what amounts...
Catastrophic failure’: World’s indigenous communities lack rights 75% their land
Posted by Mongabay: None Given on October 2nd, 2015
Mongabay: The report finds indigenous peoples and local communities have legal rights to just 18 percent of the world's land area.
Lack of indigenous land rights can contribute to poverty, loss of cultural identity, and environmental destruction.
Many countries have the means to extend land rights in the near future.
Around 1.5 billion people worldwide are members of indigenous communities, many of whom depend on the land around them to survive. However, a new analysis published this week finds that...