Today’s Essential Reads
FRACKING:
EPA: ’Fracking’ Likely Polluted Town’s Water
A controversial method of drilling for oil and natural gas appears to be the cause of groundwater pollution in a central Wyoming town, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday.
Feds: Pay Attention To Drilling In Pa., Elsewhere
The final report from a federal panel on natural gas drilling warns that the industry and the government need to do more to address environmental concerns.
Gas Well Impacts Add Up, But How?
If state officials green-light high-volume hydraulic fracturing, and they probably will, the negative impacts associated with natural gas wells will add up.
EPA’s Pavillion, WY Groundwater Contamination Study A Wake-Up Call
Today’s release of a draft US Environmental Protection Agency study on groundwater contamination around natural gas wells in Pavillion, Wyoming, should be a wake-up call to anyone who thinks public anxiety about shale gas development is overblown and unjustified.
BP OIL SPILL:
BP Cited For Additional Oil Spill Offenses
Federal regulators handed down a second set of citations to BP on Wednesday for violating federal safety regulations in the events leading up to last year’s Gulf oil spill.
Congress Tackling BP Spill Bill
Business owners and officials from Florida and other Gulf Coast states urged Congress Wednesday to quickly approve a measure that could send billions to the region to help repair damage caused by last year’s massive oil spill.
BP Cited for 5 More Alleged Violations
Federal regulators on Wednesday cited BP PLC for a second set of alleged violations stemming from the 2010 well blowout that killed 11 rig workers and caused the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
Obama Opens Oil Floodgate in the Gulf
Every five years, the federal government is required by law to update its leasing program for offshore oil and natural gas development. On November 8th, Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazarannounced the government’s proposed plan for offshore oil drilling for the next five years (2012-2017). The new plan can be summed up pretty easily: Let the oil flow.
RADIATION:
‘Double Tsunami’ Caused Fukushima Disaster
Step aside double rainbow. The massive tsunami which struck Japan in March was a ‘double tsunami’, a rare phenomenon that occurs when two waves merge, doubling their power. NASA satellites that happened to be flying overhead captured the merger of two powerful waves into a single double-high wave. “As it traveled towards land, ocean ridges and undersea mountains pushed the wave fronts together, keeping the tsunami stable even as it hurtled towards the coast.”
