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Increased Mercury Levels Near Tar Sands

Thu, 2013-10-17 21:10 — Kathy Gilbeaux

priceofoil.org - by Andy Rowell - October 15, 2013

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Mercury Trends in Colonial Waterbird Eggs Downstream of the Oil Sands Region of Alberta, Canada

Scientists have released yet another academic study that indicates the growing ecological impact of the tar sands.

They measured the amount of mercury in birds eggs downstream from the tar sands and compared them to eggs some distance away from the polluting region.

What they found was that the eggs of certain species of predatory birds living downstream from the tar sands were found to have “statistically significant increases” of the dangerous heavy metal, mercury.

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Climate Change Will Bring Conditions Outside Historical Variability In Coming Decades

Sun, 2013-10-13 22:10 — Maeryn Obley

Video: A video report on the predicted climate shifts.

huffingtonpost.com - October 9th, 2013 - Andrew Freedman

The mean annual climate of the average location on Earth will slip past the most extreme conditions experienced during the past 150 years and into new territory by between 2047 and 2069, depending on the amount of climate-warming greenhouse gases that are emitted during the next few decades, a new study found. The study, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, used a new index to show for the first time when the climate — which has been warming during the past century in response to manmade pollution and natural variability — will be radically different from average conditions during the 1860-2005 period.

The study shows that tropical areas, which contain the richest diversity of species on the planet as well as some of the poorest countries, will be among the first to see the climate exceed historical limits — in as little as a decade from now — which spells trouble for rainforest ecosystems and nations that have a limited capacity to adapt to rapid climate change.

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Defending an Open, Global, Secure, and Resilient Internet

Sun, 2013-10-06 21:26 — Kathy Gilbeaux

cfr.org - Council on Foreign Relations - June 2013

Overview

This CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force warns that "escalating attacks on countries, companies, and individuals, as well as pervasive criminal activity, threaten the security and safety of the Internet." The number of "state-backed operations continues to rise, and future attacks will become more sophisticated and disruptive," argues the Task Force report, Defending an Open, Global, Secure, and Resilient Internet.

With the ideal vision of an open and secure Internet increasingly at risk, the Task Force urges the United States, with its friends and allies, "to act quickly to encourage a global cyberspace that reflects shared values of free expression and free markets."

(CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, AND TO DOWNLOAD THE REPORT)

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Fracking Produces Annual Toxic Waste Water Enough to Flood Washington DC

Sat, 2013-10-05 22:57 — Kathy Gilbeaux

REPORT - Fracking by the Numbers - Key Impacts of Dirty Drilling at the State and National Level (47 page .PDF report)

CLICK HERE - Fracking by the Numbers - Key Impacts of Dirty Drilling at the State and National Level

CLICK HERE - Fracking by the Numbers - New Report First to Quantify Damage Done by Gas Drilling

Growing concerns over radiation risks as report finds widespread environmental damage on an unimaginable scale in the US

theguardian.com - by Suzanne Goldenberg
October 4, 2013

Fracking in America generated 280bn US gallons of toxic waste water last year – enough to flood all of Washington DC beneath a 22ft deep toxic lagoon, a new report out on Thursday found.

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Reinsurance Association of America's Senate Testimony on Climate Change

Sat, 2013-10-05 17:08 — admin

On July 18, 2013, Frank Nutter, President of the Reinsurance Association of America, testified before the Senate Committee on Environment Protection and Public Works as to the RAAs perspective on weather and climate-related impacts in the United States.

 

Following are excerpts from his report:

"In the 1980’s, the average number of natural catastrophes globally was 400 events per year. In recent years, the average is 1000. Munich Re’s analysis suggests the increase is driven almost entirely by weather-related events. North America has seen a fivefold increase in the number of such events since 1980. In comparison, Europe has seen a twofold increase.

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The Oceans are Heating, Acidifying and Choking

Sat, 2013-10-05 10:28 — Kathy Gilbeaux

newscientist.com - by Fred Pearce - October 4, 2013

CLICK HERE - State of the Ocean Report 2013

We know the oceans are warming. We know they are acidifying. And now, to cap it all, it turns out they are suffocating, too. A new health check on the state of the oceans warns that they will have lost as much as 7 per cent of their oxygen by the end of the century.

The cascade of chemical and biological changes now under way could see coral reefs irreversibly destroyed in 50 to 100 years, with marine ecosystems increasingly taken over by jellyfish and toxic algal blooms.

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(CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION)

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ExxonMobil company charged with fracking-related crimes

Fri, 2013-10-04 23:53 — Maeryn Obley

ExxonMobil's flag flies near an oil refinery.Image: ExxonMobil's flag flies near an oil refinery.

grist.org - September 12th, 2013 - John Upton

ExxonMobil subsidiary XTO Energy is being prosecuted for alleged environmental crimes after it spilled fracking wastewater into a Pennsylvania river in 2010.

The company’s response? It claims the criminal charges could harm the environment.

(VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)

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Tackling Antibiotic Resistance for Greater Global Health Security

Tue, 2013-10-01 22:48 — Kathy Gilbeaux

      

chathamhouse.org - Gemma L. Buckland Merrett, October 2013

DOWNLOAD PAPER HERE (16 page .PDF file)

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IPCC - Climate Change 2013 - The Physical Science Basis

Mon, 2013-09-30 17:10 — Kathy Gilbeaux

ipcc.ch - Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

"Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis" is the contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This comprehensive assessment of the physical aspects of climate change puts a focus on those elements that are relevant to understand past, document current, and project future climate change.

(CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND FOR LINKS TO THE FULL REPORT)

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Nearly One In 10 U.S. Watersheds Is Stressed; Demand For Water Outpacing Supply: CIRES Study

Wed, 2013-09-25 21:31 — Kathy Gilbeaux

      

Nearly one in 10 U.S. watersheds is “stressed,” with demand for water exceeding natural supply, according to a new, CIRES-led analysis of surface water in the United States. This map shows all stressed watersheds in the continental United States (1999-2007), with color indicating increasing levels of stress, from light green to red. (Map – CIRES)

CIRES Study - Sectoral contributions to surface water stress in the coterminous United States

huffingtonpost.com - by Matt Ferner - September 24, 2013

Nearly one in 10 watersheds in the United States is "stressed," with demand for water exceeding natural supply -- a trend that appears likely to become the new normal, according to a recent study.

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