GoGreenNation.org » Water

BP Tries To Block Release Of Oil Spill Research

Trish Riley — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 20:15:40 +0000

Faced with hundreds of lawsuits and a deep need for experts, BP has been offering some Gulf Coast scientists lucrative consulting contracts that bar them from releasing their findings on the company’s massive oil spill for three years.

Some scientists say the contracts constrain academic freedom. A few signed the agreements, then changed their minds.

via Gulf Oil Spill: BP Tries To Block Release Of Oil Spill Research.

Cave explorer, springs advocate Wes Skiles dies while diving

Trish Riley — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 15:20:52 +0000

Film maker Wes Skiles, who entertained Gainesville Environmental Film Festival attendees with his films, tales and wit last March, died while diving off Boynton Beach, Florida, on Wednesday. Skiles’ death is a great loss, and our thoughts are with his family.

“Photographer and Florida springs advocate Wes Skiles died Wednesday while filming off the coast of Palm Beach County, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.

Based in High Springs with Karst Productions, Skiles, 52, was a former member of the Florida Springs Task Force. During the past 15 years, Skiles produced and directed over a dozen major films on adventure and science. His work included most recently the IMAX film “Journey into Amazing Caves” and a film for National Geographic in Antarctica on exploring the largest iceberg in recorded history. He shot the August National Geographic cover photo of caves in the Bahamas.

via FloridaEnvironments.com: Cave explorer, springs advocate Wes Skiles dies while diving.

Paying the Price of Coexistence with Big Oil – CBS News

Trish Riley — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 04:33:06 +0000

If you live on the Gulf Coast, welcome to the real world of oil — and just know that you’re not alone. In the Niger Delta and the Ecuadorian Amazon, among other places, your emerging hell has been the living hell of local populations for decades.

via Paying the Price of Coexistence with Big Oil – CBS News.

This year, we ought to apologize to the ocean

Trish Riley — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 04:30:39 +0000

“I was in and out of the water until sunset, not getting home until dusk,” Shindo recalled. “I walked (to the beach) at a very brisk clip every morning, but my pace was much slower going home, taking me twice as long as in the morning … . The seas were my childhood itself.” This must have been around the end of the Taisho Period (1912-1926).

The last thing we want is for future generations to reminisce one day, “The ocean was dead when we were children.”

via asahi.com（朝日新聞社）：VOX POPULI: This year, we ought to apologize to the ocean – English.

Scientists from St. Petersburg find high methane readings near oil disaster site – St. Petersburg Times

Trish Riley — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 04:27:28 +0000

“…levels of methane — a particularly potent greenhouse gas — are now 100 times higher than normal, SRI scientists said. They can’;t say for sure it’s from BP, said SRI director Larry Langebrake, but “it is a sign that says there are things going on here that need to be researched.”

via Scientists from St. Petersburg find high methane readings near oil disaster site – St. Petersburg Times.

Photo Gallery of Gulf Oil Spill

Trish Riley — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 02:12:34 +0000

Wondering what the oil spill looks like on the front lines? Lynn Dirk sent us this compelling pictorial:

Photo Gallery « Gulf Oil Spill Facts.

Oil Spill: Gulf Water Sample Explodes When Chemist Tests For Toxicity

Trish Riley — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 23:02:29 +0000

In this video, WKRG News 5 investigates the toxicity levels of local public beaches that have been populated with people swimming and children playing in the water in Alabama. Their search ends with some explosive results.

WKRG teams up with Bob Naman, an analytical chemist with almost 30 years in the field. Naman tested WKRG’s various samples for petroleum,

via Oil Spill: Gulf Water Sample Explodes When Chemist Tests For Toxicity (VIDEO).

Al Gore: Time for renewable energy!

Trish Riley — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 18:03:01 +0000

These are 27,000 potential environmental catastrophes waiting to happen. We need action now – not only to make sure these wells are safe, but also to move away from fossil fuels, so no more wells need to be drilled.

This post originally appeared at Al’s Journal.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-gore/27000-potential-leaks_b_649510.html

The Rich Catch Everyone Else’s Cutback Fever – NYTimes.com

Trish Riley — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 13:39:33 +0000

Okay, let’s review: The economic model has led us to a horribly unsustainable situation whereby we are rapidly gutting our natural resources and polluting the planet with an overflow of junk created largely by poisonous petrochemicals. Creating a sustainable world depends on changing this model. We all need to buy less stuff and businesses need to make less stuff. We need a new economic model that thrives on production of renewable energy, healthy food, and a higher quality lifestyle that is not so dependent on money for survival. Can we get started now? Please?

“Especially at this stage of a recovery, businesses and economists want to see people of all incomes spending more, because the demand for goods and services would in turn encourage companies to hire workers. The American consumer accounts for an estimated 60 percent of the country’s economic activity.”

via The Rich Catch Everyone Else’s Cutback Fever – NYTimes.com.

FDA Calls Antibiotic Use In Farming ‘A Serious Public Health Threat,’ GOP Ignores Mounting Evidence

Trish Riley — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 13:30:25 +0000

Another good reason to eat your vegetables!

“The overuse of antibiotics in farming may have significant health consequences for consumers, according to testimony from the Food and Drug Administration. Now lawmakers are looking to curb the use of antibiotics in raising livestock, a move that puts them at odds with agribusiness interests.”

via FDA Calls Antibiotic Use In Farming ‘A Serious Public Health Threat,’ GOP Ignores Mounting Evidence.