Autumn sea-ice thickness from CryoSat 2010–2013 EU–(ENEWSPF)–16 December 2013. Measurements from ESA’s CryoSat satellite show that the volume of Arctic sea ice has significantly increased this autumn. The volume of ice measured this autumn is about 50% higher compared to last year. In October 2013, CryoSat measured about 9000 cubic[Read More…]
Environmental
FDA Moves to Limit Some Antibiotic Uses in Livestock
Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 16, 2013. A new rule published by the Food and Drug (FDA) will limit the ability for food producers to give livestock antibiotics for subtherapeutic purposes. These new regulations come after decades of pressure from environmental and public health groups to limit the nontherapeutic use of these drugs[Read More…]
Remarks by Secretary of State Kerry on Climate Change and the Environment
Mekong Delta, Vietnam–(ENEWSPF)–December 15, 2013. SECRETARY KERRY: I want to thank Dr. Dang Kieu Nhan for – from Can Tho, from the Can Tho University, who just gave me, over the course of our boat ride, a briefing, and before the boat ride, a really eye-opening briefing about the effect[Read More…]
Business-as-Usual Unacceptable on the Colorado River
Sec. Jewell: The river is more than a natural plumbing project for water supply Denver–(ENEWSPF)–December 13, 2013. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell is expected to deliver remarks today to the Colorado River Water Users Association annual conference in Las Vegas. As Lake Powell and Lake Mead plunge to historically[Read More…]
Unregulated Contaminants Found Widespread in U.S. Drinking Water
Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 13, 2013. A recent survey conducted by researchers at the U.S. Geographic Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found traces of 18 unregulated chemicals in drinking water from more than one third of U.S. water utilities. Of the 21 total chemicals found, researchers discovered among[Read More…]
Interior Secretary Jewell Meets with Western Governors to Provide Update on Sage Grouse Conservation Planning, Lauds Unprecedented Federal-State Cooperation
Emphasizes Much Work Still to Be Done Before Deadline on Listing Decision under Endangered Species Act LAS VEGAS, NV–(ENEWSPF)–December 12, 2013. At a meeting with western governors today, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell applauded the unprecedented federal-state cooperation on planning efforts to conserve the greater sage-grouse but emphasized that[Read More…]
Pennsylvania Seeks Permit Allowing Logging That Harms Endangered Bats, Already Devastated by Disease
HARRISBURG, Pa–(ENEWSPF)–December 12, 2013. Pennsylvania is seeking federal permission to kill endangered bats in order to log 3.9 million acres of state lands, increasing the risk of losing two species already devastated by an unchecked fungal disease. Several Pennsylvania and national conservation groups critiqued the permit proposal in a letter[Read More…]
150 Environmental, Health Groups Urge California Coastal Commission to Halt Offshore Fracking
Surfboard-carrying Activists Protest Fracking Outside Commission Meeting SAN FRANCISCO–(ENEWSPF)–December 12, 2013. As the California Coastal Commission meets today in San Francisco, surfboard-carrying activists with the Center for Biological Diversity and other groups will protest to urge commissioners to halt offshore fracking. The protest begins at noon outside the meeting, at[Read More…]
Despite Mounting Threats, Feds Announce Decision to Strip Endangered Species Protections for Yellowstone Grizzlies
MISSOULA, Montana–(ENEWSPF)–December 12, 2013. Ignoring mounting evidence that Yellowstone’s grizzly bears face increased threats from loss of key foods and human-caused deaths, federal and state officials unanimously recommended Wednesday that Endangered Species Act protections be stripped from the region’s iconic bears. Photo courtesy USFWS. “This highly political proposal comes when[Read More…]
Limited Food May be Significantly Changing Great Lakes Ecosystems
Beach at MDOT roadside park, north of Oscoda, MI. Lake Huron. Image credit: Michigan Sea Grant ANN ARBOR–(ENEWSPF)–December 12, 2013. Declines of the food resources that feed lake organisms are likely causing dramatic changes in the Great Lakes, according to a new study. The study, led by the U.S. Geological[Read More…]
