US NOAA http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2013/20130520_shipwrecks.html [From Press Release] NOAA presented to the U.S. Coast Guard today a new report that finds that 36 sunken vessels scattered across the U.S. seafloor could pose an oil pollution threat to the nation’s coastal marine resources. Of those, 17 were recommended for further assessment and potential removal of both fuel oil and … Continue reading »
Tagged with Water Quality …
Full-text of USGS-Duke Paper Finding No Fracking-related Groundwater Damage to the Arkansas River
“Geochemical and isotopic variations in shallow groundwater in areas of the Fayetteville shale development, north-central Arkansas,” / by Warner, N.R., Kresse, T.M., Hays, P.D., Down, A. , Karr, J.D., Jackson, R.B., Vengosh (Applied Geochemistry, Published online May 14, 2013; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2013.04.013) http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883292713001133 [Duke University Nicholas School Green Grok blog] …This week that same Duke team, in collaboration with scientists from the … Continue reading »
H.R. 739, Chesapeake Bay Accountability and Recovery Act of 2013
Congressional Budget Office http://www.cbo.gov/publication/44118 [Summary] As ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on April 24, 2013 H.R. 739 would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop, no later than one year after the bill’s enactment, a management plan for the Chesapeake Bay Program and restoration activities related to the bay. EPA … Continue reading »
China — Bulletin of the First National Census for Water
Ministry of Water Resources | National Bureau of Statistics, P.R. China http://www.mwr.gov.cn/2013pcgb/merge1.pdf Includes: 1. Basic Conditions of River and Lakes 2. Basic Conditions of Water Structures 3. Water Use of the Economy and Society 4. Development and Harnessing of Rivers and Lakes 5. Soil and Water Conservation 6. Capacity Building in the Water Sector In … Continue reading »
Stress Relief: Prescriptions for a Healthier Delta Ecosystem
Public Policy Institute of California / by Ellen Hanak et al. http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1051 California is at a critical juncture on policy for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. This report summarizes the results of a wide-ranging study of cost-effective ways to improve the health of the Delta ecosystem. It highlights the need for science-based, integrated management of the … Continue reading »
Gone for Good: Fracking and Water Loss in the West
Western Organization of Research Councils http://bit.ly/YXwnwE Dickinson Press [North Dakota] A scathing report issued Thursday by the Western Organization of Research Councils says water used in the process of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is reaching a crisis point in Western states. The regional network of organizations’ 37-page report, titled “Gone for Good,” warns of continued … Continue reading »
National Parks and Hydraulic Fracturing: Balancing Energy Needs, Nature and America’s National Heritage
National Parks Conservation Association http://www.npca.org/about-us/center-for-park-research/fracking/ Federal land regulators should take special care to guard against potential harmful effects of hydraulic fracturing on lands surrounding US national parks, according to a report that the National Parks Conservation Association released Thursday. The report, “National Parks and Hydraulic Fracturing: Balancing Energy Needs, Nature and America’s National Heritage,” examines … Continue reading »
Oil Sands: Environmental Monitoring Information Portal
Government of Canada http://www.jointoilsandsmonitoring.ca/ [From a Greenwire article by Nick Juliano, sub. req'd] The Canadian government today is launching a new online information portal collecting data on air and water pollution associated with development of Alberta’s oil sands. The portal unveiled today by environmental regulators with the Canadian and Alberta governments shows a correlation between areas of … Continue reading »
The Next Frontier in United States Unconventional Shale Gas and Tight Oil Extraction: Strategic Reduction of Environmental Impact
Belfer Center, Kennedy School, Harvard Univ / by Meagan Mauter, Vanessa R. Palmer, Yiqiao Tang, A. Patrick Behrer http://hvrd.me/11xwcMi The unconventional fossil fuel extraction industry—in the U.S., primarily shale gas and tight oil—is expected to continue expanding dramatically in coming decades as conventionally recoverable reserves wane. At the global scale, a long-term domestic supply of … Continue reading »
Restoring a Degraded Gulf of Mexico: Wildlife and Wetlands Three Years After the Gulf Oil Disaster
National Wildlife Federation http://bit.ly/10tkrEg [From Press Release] …This report gives a snapshot view of six wildlife species that depend on a healthy Gulf and the coastal wetlands that are critical to the Gulf’s food web. It describes different sources of restoration funding and provides initial suggestions as to how this funding can be used to … Continue reading »
