Environmental Must-Reads – July 3, 2013

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Disputes over environmental impact of ‘fracking’ obscure its future

Carol French still has the canning jar full of cloudy and gelatinous water that came out of her well right before her daughter got sick and some of her 40 milk cows developed a rash. She agrees that this jar, by itself, proves nothing about the environmental impact of “fracking,” the drilling technology largely responsible for America’s boom in oil and gas production. You can’t determine the environmental effects of drilling and fracking from one person’s Mason jar full of water.

Cuomo: Natural gas is ‘effective,’ but fracking questions persist

Natural gas can be “effective” as a fuel but questions remain about whether it can be developed safely with hydraulic fracturing, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.

NC Senate backs bill with fracking fluid limits

A bill restricting what the public could know about the chemicals that energy companies use to extract natural gas in North Carolina has received initial Senate approval.

Farmers Unite With Hydro-Fracking Activists

As the G8 Summit began in Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, a group of farmers drove 60 tractors in a ‘go-slow’, bringing a 24-kilometre stretch of road to a halt. The 16 June action opposed hydraulic fracturing – fracking – which could take place on both sides of the Irish border. It was followed by statements against fracking from the major farmers’ unions in the Republic of Ireland and in Northern Ireland.

Toxic Fossil Fuels Are Invading Everyday Products, From Water Bottles To Kids’ Toys, Experts Warn

Armed with colorful plastic tubes brandished like swords, youngsters at Manhattan’s Tinker Tree day care center took swipes at a towering, cylindrical puppet named the “Fracked Gas Pipeline Monster.” The cardboard beast, emblazoned with evil red eyes, teetered and tottered with each enthusiastic blow until a final strike sent it toppling to the floor.

C.E.H. Report –Toxic & Dirty Secrets: The Truth about Fracking and Your Family’s Health

All around the country people are finding that hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, is dangerous, destructive, and harmful to human health. Contaminated water and harmful air pollution are just a few of the all-too-real side effects associated with unconventional oil and natural gas development.

Josh Fox Talks Gasland 2, Natural Gas Fracking, Methane Leakage, & More On The Daily Show

Below is a wonderful interview with Josh Fox on The Daily Show. It’s split into 3 parts. I recommend watching all of them. Under each one are some key quotations I think are worth noting.

Alaska keeps pressure on TransCanada over gas pipeline

The state is trying to keep the pressure on a Canadian company as it seeks to advance efforts to build a major natural gas pipeline in Alaska.

Fracking the Streets of London

The madness surrounding Britain’s fracking frenzy reached new heights this morning when London’s Conservative Mayor argued that fracking could take place on the streets of London.

Former FBI Director Louis Freeh to probe BP oil spill settlement fund allegations

Former FBI Director Louis Freeh was appointed Tuesday to investigate alleged misconduct by a lawyer who helped run BP’s multibillion-dollar settlement fund.

Former FBI director to probe BP misconduct in Gulf oil spill payouts

Former FBI Director Louis Freeh will investigate possible misconduct by a lawyer involved in making payments to settle claims by people and businesses affected by the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, the judge in the spill damages case said on Tuesday.

Tar mats prompt La to close small area off island

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has closed an area off East Grand Terre Island to all but recreational rod and reel fishing because tar mats were removed from the area.

BP compensation fund for Gulf oil spill victims at risk of running out

BP could soon run out of cash in the compensation fund set up for victims of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, unless it is successful in a legal challenge that will be heard in court next week.

The company has been fighting the compensation formula drawn up to pay businesses and individuals harmed by the 2010 spill, ahead of a court hearing in New Orleans on July 8.

Sickened by Exxon Oil Spill, Victims Face Confusion of Officials and Doctors

When Diane Wilson complained of headaches and coughs after an oil pipeline ruptured in Mayflower, Ark., her doctor treated her for allergies.

When Genieve Long came down with nausea, rashes and a fever, her doctor couldn’t provide a diagnosis.

When Ann Jarrell’s 6-month-old grandson began wheezing, a doctor sent him home with asthma medication.

All three families live within a few hundred yards of the March 29 oil spill that sent more than 200,000 gallons of heavy Canadian crude oil through Mayflower

Shell Decries Rising Oil Spills in Rivers

Barely one week after Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) joint venture shut the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP), one of the two major pipelines in the Eastern Niger Delta, following an explosion, the company Tuesday said it recorded eight crude oil theft and sabotage related spill incidents at the Adibawa field also in Eastern Niger Delta between January and June this year.

Opponents of Keystone XL pipeline turn to local governments as federal decision looms

Frustrated with state and federal officials, opponents of the Keystone XL pipeline are turning to low-level county commissions and zoning boards in a new attempt to slow a project that has become a focal point of national battle over climate change.

Russian oil spills damaging impact on local wildlife and the environment

Denis Sinyakov, who covered Greenpeace’s expedition to the Rosneft’s oil fields, is a Moscow-based Russian photographer, who worked as a photo editor and a staff photographer at Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

Corporate Climate Campaign Demands Divestment from Dirty Tar Sands

Fifty eight organizations, led by the Sierra Club and ForestEthics, released an open letter today demanding that companies take climate action. The letter calls on U.S. corporations with trucking fleets join 19 leading companies in avoiding fuel from refineries that take Canadian tar sands. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, tar sands release as much as 37 percent more carbon pollution than oil from conventional crude.

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Stuart H. Smith is an attorney based in New Orleans fighting major oil companies and other polluters.
Cooper Law Firm

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