Archive for the 'Environment' Category
Germany: Nuclear Disaster ‘Will Have Political Impact as Great as 9/11’
March 14th, 2011Via: Der Spiegel: The nuclear accident at Japan’s Fukushima plant following Friday’s earthquake and tsunami has led to anxious questions in Germany about the safety of its own nuclear reactors and is putting the government under intense pressure to rethink its decision to extend plant lifetimes by an average of 12 years. German media commentators […]
EMERGENCY JAPAN: 9.1 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE
March 11th, 2011Rolling Blackouts Begin Monday Via: Reuters: Tokyo Electric Power Co said on Sunday that it would conduct its first-ever rolling blackout from Monday to help prevent an unexpected large-scale power outage after a powerful earthquake shut two nuclear plants indefinitely on Friday. Blackouts will be conducted in turns at five areas in nine prefectures that […]
U.S. Farmers Fear the Return of the Dust Bowl
March 7th, 2011Via: Telegraph: For years the Ogallala Aquifer, the world’s largest underground body of fresh water, has irrigated thousands of square miles of American farmland. Now it is running dry.
Arkansas: Emergency Order Halts Natural Gas Drilling After Fluid Injections Allegedly Caused Hundreds of Small Earthquakes
March 7th, 2011Via: Arkansas Online: Chesapeake Operating Inc. and Clarita Operating LLC both said before a hearing Friday in Little Rock by the state Oil and Gas Commission that they will comply with an emergency request to stop injections of used natural-gas drilling fluid in the two wells in Faulkner County. The drillers made the announcement in […]
New Pathogen Found in Roundup Ready GM Crops Causes Spontaneous Abortions and Infertility in Livestock?
February 24th, 2011Via: Institute of Science in Society: An open letter appeared on the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance founded and run by Judith McGeary to save family farms in the US [1, 2]. The letter, written by Don Huber, professor emeritus at Purdue University, to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, warns of a pathogen “new to […]
New Zealand: Christchurch Earthquake
February 22nd, 2011Update: Christchurch Earthquake Likely to be NZ’s Worst Natural Disaster Via: New Zealand Herald: Civil Defence Minister John Carter has confirmed today’s declaration of a National Emergency is the first time the measure has been invoked, and that reflects the likelihood yesterday’s quake may prove to be New Zealand’s worst natural disaster. While the current […]
Chief British Scientist: Solar Storms Could Create $2 Trillion ‘Global Katrina’
February 21st, 2011Via: Guardian: The threat of solar storms that could wreak havoc on the world’s electronic systems must be taken more seriously, the UK government’s chief scientist has warned. A severe solar storm could damage satellites and power grids around the world, he said, leading to a “global Katrina” costing the world’s economies as much as […]
Florida: State Farm Blames Sinkholes for 28% Rate Hike Request
February 17th, 2011[???] Via: Tampa Bay Online: Citing sinkhole losses and higher operating expenses, State Farm Florida asked state regulators today for a 28 percent premium increase on its homeowners policies. Sinkhole claims, which are approaching $2 billion over the past five years in Florida, have exploded at a great cost to the insurance industry.
Produce Prices Skyrocket with Freeze in Mexico, Southwest
February 14th, 2011Via: KING5: Get ready to pay double or even triple the price for fresh produce in the coming weeks after the worst freeze in 60 years damaged and wiped out entire crops in northern Mexico and the southwestern U.S.
Sugar Shortage Looms as Storm Ruins Australian Crop
February 6th, 2011Via: Bloomberg: World sugar output will probably fall short of demand, said Rabobank, after a cyclone with winds stronger than Hurricane Katrina destroyed homes and smashed crops in Australia, driving prices to 30-year highs. Tropical Cyclone Yasi ripped through northern Queensland, a region growing a third of the country’s cane, cutting output potential in the […]
