With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 6/19/2012, 2:18pm PT  


TWITTER: @GreenNewsReport
VIA SMART PHONE: Stitcher Radio!

IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: A nuclear re-start for Japan --- but also a solar revolution; Most anti-environment Congress in history, gutting everything --- or at least trying to; Rio+20: UN Sustainability summit gets underway in Brazil; PLUS: Oh really, Donald Trump? OPEC is in the tank for Obama?!? .... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

Listen online here, or Download MP3 (6 mins)...

Link:
Embed:

Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at GreenNews@BradBlog.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): The Great German Energy Experiment; Carbon Capture Fail: Earthquakes caused by process would defeat purpose; Massive Twitter storm against fossil fuel subsidies; Arctic sea ice death spiral 2012; San Onofre nuclear problems caused by faulty models; Global warming's evil twin threatens West Coast fishing grounds; Debunking Fox News' EPA drone lie; EPA: new rules on soot pollution; VA-GOP Fail: Norfolk is sinking; Another virus infects Canada’s salmon farms; CA gov seeks new restrictions on toxic flame retardants ... PLUS: Pollution, Poverty, People of Color: Falling into the 'climate gap' ... and much, MUCH more! ...

STORIES DISCUSSED IN TODAY'S 'GREEN NEWS REPORT'...

'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (Stuff we didn't have time for in today's audio report)...

  • The Great German Energy Experiment (MIT Technology Review):
    Germany has decided to pursue ambitious greenhouse-gas reductions—while closing down its nuclear plants. Can a heavily industrialized country power its economy with wind turbines and solar panels? [Yes.]
  • Researchers say Earthquakes Would Let Stored CO2 Escape: A study by Stanford researchers says seismic risks could undermine large-scale carbon capture. (MIT Technology Review):
    The oil and gas industry already uses techniques that are similar to CCS during resource extraction and wastewater disposal, and these processes are known to induce small earthquakes.
    ...
    Zoback says the risks associated with such quakes can be managed through careful site selection, but large-scale CCS could be more problematic. "You have to be far more restrictive" when choosing a carbon dioxide repository, he explains, since the task is to "keep a buoyant fluid in place for hundreds to thousands of years."
  • Activists hail success of Twitter storm against fossil fuel subsidies:
    High-profile support for #endfossilfuelsubsidies campaign helps it to top trending topic in US and second place globally (Guardian UK)
  • Death Spiral Watch: Arctic Sea Ice Takes A Nosedive (Climate Progress):
    If you want to mislead people into thinking that there is nothing weird going on in the Arctic, you have to do it during winter. In winter things almost look normal on some graphs, with gaps between trend lines and long-term averages not as ridiculously big as during spring and summer.
    ...
    The Arctic is becoming ever more problematic for their life work, ie denying AGW could ever be a problem and thus delaying any meaningful action on mitigating the consequences of AGW. Thank God water still freezes in winter.
  • Faulty computer modeling caused San Onofre equipment problems (LA Times): NRC officials give their first public account of their investigation into the plant's problems. They don't indicate how long it is likely to remain out of service.
  • Global warming's evil twin threatens West Coast fishing grounds (CS Monitor):
    Within the next few decades, ocean acidification – an effect of global warming – could leave sea creatures along the West Coast unable to maintain their protective shells, according to a new study.
  • Reining in the rumor about EPA ‘drones’ (Washington Post) [emphasis added]:
    It was a blood-boiler of a story, a menacing tale of government gone too far: The Environmental Protection Agency was spying on Midwestern farmers with the same aerial “drones” used to kill terrorists overseas.... The only trouble is, it isn’t true.
    ...
    The hubbub over nonexistent drones provides a look at something hard to capture in American politics: the vibrant, almost viral, life cycle of a falsehood.
  • U.S. Proposes Tighter Rules On Soot Pollution (Reuters):
    The Obama administration proposed stricter standards to control harmful soot from heavy industry on Friday, a move expected to save lives but which drew criticism from Republicans and industry worried the costs of compliance will hurt the economy.

    Under a court order, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed tightening exposure to the particulate pollution that threatens the elderly, people with heart disease, and children.

  • VA GOP FAIL: Built on sinking ground, Norfolk tries to hold back tide amid sea-level rise (Washington Post):
    The entire city is worried. Miles of waterways that add to Norfolk’s charm are also a major threat in the era of increased global warming and relative rising sea levels, as well as its odd and unique sinking ground.
  • Sea sick: Another virus crashes Canada’s salmon farms (Grist)
  • California Gov. Brown seeks new regulations for fire retardants (McClatchy News Service):
    "Toxic flame retardants are found in everything from high chairs to couches and a growing body of evidence suggests that these chemicals harm human health and the environment," the Democratic governor said in a prepared statement. "We must find better ways to meet fire safety standards by reducing and eliminating – wherever possible – dangerous chemicals."
  • Poll: Independents — and Even Republicans — are Still Concerned About Global Warming and Overwhelmingly Support Clean Energy Development (Climate Progress)
  • Pollution, Poverty, People of Color: Falling into the 'climate gap' : Communities across the US face environmental injustices (Environmental Health News):
    Climate change is adding a new dimension to the three-decades-old environmental justice movement. As the effects of global warming become more evident, disaster planners and community activists are beginning to acknowledge that class disparities will come with a changing climate here in the United States, just as they will in developing countries.
  • Essential Climate Science Findings:
  • Share article...