Today’s Essential Reads.
FRACKING:
Pa. Study to Measure Possible Health Impacts
The state will measure baseline public health conditions in northeastern Pennsylvania to help track any future health impact from Marcellus Shale drilling.
Drilling Into New York’s Fracking Report
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation has posted the voluminous draft document laying out how the state plans to regulate the controversial gas drilling method known as fracking.
Bishops, Nuns and Rabbis Debate Gas Fracking
Bishops, nuns and rabbis are joining the environmental and social debate over natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale region, and many are seeking a balance that reflects their congregations.
BP OIL SPILL:
Montana Farmers Fret at Oil Spill’s Impact
Surveying his land that lies in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, farmer Mike Scott states the obvious. “We are in the middle of Montana,” he said. “You don’t expect to have an oil spill.”
Survey Explores Health of Fish in Gulf of Mexico
They’ve all heard the rumors: Sick fish, some with lesions, others with discoloration or deformities, have been pulled from the Gulf of Mexico.
Fishermen Angry as BP Pushes to End Payments for Future Losses
Bruce Guerra has been a crab fisherman in Yscloskey for 25 years. And since the BP oil spill, he began seeing alarming differences in his catch.
NZ Will ‘Lose Out’ from Oil Drilling
Greenpeace’s international head says New Zealand is at risk of environmental catastrophe if plans for deep sea oil drilling go ahead.
What Does the Volatile Past of Natural Gas Tell Us About Its Future?
It wasn’t the first time natural gas had been a thorn in the side of the power sector. Then again, the preceding gas rush wasn’t the last time the fuel would play panacea, either — just read the headlines these days.
RADIATION:
Haste vs. Procrastination on Nuclear Waste
As I noted in Wednesday’s paper, companies that operate nuclear reactors are increasingly turning to dry casks to store nuclear waste as their pools of spent fuel fill up. Some experts suggest that such casks should be used more widely to reduce the amount of fuel in the pools as a safety measure.
A spent fuel pool at a nuclear plant in LaSalle, Ill. Some scientists argue that risks are rising as fuel rods accumulate and the pools become more crowded.
