Today’s Essential Reads
FRACKING:
Labour Wants Inquiry Into Fracking
Southland’s fracking future could depend on which party forms the Government after November 26.
Federal Water Tap, November 7: “Land Grabs” and Fracking
A United Nations committee working to establish guidelines for land rights has negotiated and agreed to about 70 percent of the items on its working list, according to the U.S. Agency for International Development. The U.S. government is chairing the committee, which is seeking to bring some order to what critics call “land grabs”—foreign companies or governments acquiring large tracts of agricultural land in countries with tenuous property rights laws.
State Rep. Brandon Dillon Calls for New Environmental Protections Against ‘Fracking’
State Rep. Brandon Dillon is among several Democratic legislators who have teamed up with West Michigan environmentalists, hoping to push House Republicans into supporting bills that restrict “fracking” at natural gas wells.
Scientists Puzzled by Recent Seismic Activity After Biggest Earthquake in Oklahoma History
Clouds of dust belched from the corners of almost every room in Joe Reneau’s house as the biggest earthquake in Oklahoma history rocked the two-story building.
BP OIL SPILL:
Oil-Spill Workers Sought for Study
Federal researchers will visit Terrebonne Parish this week in search of cleanup workers willing to participate in a study into the long-term health effects of last year’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
BP Oil Spill Documentary Begins Playing in New Orleans
A controversial documentary about the BP oil spill began playing in New Orleans’ theaters this weekend and will debut in other cities in the next few weeks.
Is BP’S Macondo Reservoir Leaking More Oil?
The Gulf Coast is reeling from reports that fresh oil rising from BP’s Macondo Reservoir – ground zero of last year’s massive spill – is coming ashore, again. Scientists have confirmed the existence of a “second wave” of BP oil fouling Gulf waters and beaches, poisoning marine life and wildlife, and posing a grave public health risk.
77 More Oil-Spill Claims Against BP
Seventy-one boat owners have joined the thousands of Gulf Coast residents who’ve sued BP, claiming it owes them money for chartering their boats in its Vessels of Opportunity clean-up. And six Florida police officers filed complaints against BP and Halliburton, saying they lost their jobs because their salaries were funded by tourism, which was devastated by the oil spill.
RADIATION:
Tepco Losses As Business Plan Approved
The Japanese government has approved a special business plan put forward by Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) that will release government funds to compensate those affected by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident.
