Environment

The Big Picture on coal : how it is simply killing us

My friend and fellow French blogger Olivier Jacquemet twitted me earlier this month about a series of photographies showing the truly horrible side of coal, the most polluting and emitting fossil fuels. Boston.com’s big picture series show how it is literally destroying lives and engulfing cities. After watching these pictures you will never wonder why […]

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Another reason to fight CO2 : ocean acidification

If climate change, rising sea levels and the threats to global peace and food production weren’t enough to you, here is another reason to fight carbon dioxide : ocean acidification. To Mongabay : ” Emissions of carbon over the last two centuries have raised the acidity of the oceans to the highest levels in 21,000

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Air pollution costs billions to the European Union

Here is my latest post on Cleantechies :  “The European Environment Agency published in November a report on the cost, the toll, of air pollution due to industrial facilities to the European Union. “ ” And the costs are staggering as the 10,000 facilities induced up to 102 and 169 billion euros in 2009 alone.

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Russia is warming at double the world pace

According to RIA Novosti – the Russian state-owned news agency – quoting the local emergencies ministry : ” Temperatures in Russia in the past century rose at twice the rate of warming in the rest of the world “ The article goes further : ” (…) In addition, as compared to the 100-year trend, the

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Climate change : China faces a grim future

To Reuters quoting a local scientific report : ” Global warming threatens China’s march to prosperity by cutting crops, shrinking rivers and unleashing more droughts and floods. “ “China faces extremely grim ecological and environmental conditions under the impact of continued global warming and changes to China’s regional environment,” Given how the situation is dire

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Bee problem nearing a ‘critical point’

Bees are a critical element of global ecosystems and thus, to our survival. Didn’t Albert Einsteim himself stated that ” If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live. “ Most unfortunately, those great insects are endangered by Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). To a

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China to increase – again – its efforts

The situation is critical in the People’s Republic of China as everyday it is becoming more and more evident than business-as-usual scenario would doom the country, and the world. As the air pollution in Beijing is reaching truly horrifing levels the local government has called to ” reduce emissions of “major pollutants” by as much

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The too many little oil spills of Russia

Here is something we never heard about before. To the Associated Press : ” Environmentalists estimate at least 1 percent of Russia’s annual oil production, or 5 million tons, is spilled every year. That is equivalent to one Deepwater Horizon-scale leak about every two months. Crumbling infrastructure and a harsh climate combine to spell disaster

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Amazon deforestation at its lowest. Can this last ?

I noted last year that Amazon deforestation was at its lowest. Well it decreased again. To Grist : ” a study on deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon found that the number of square kilometers disappearing each year has hit a record low. “ However, these good news might be only temporary. Originally Grist was mentioning

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UNEP : Twelve billion trees have been planted

Yes, you read that right : twelve (12!) billion trees have been planted within the UNEP Billion Tree Campaign. The landmark was reached in November in Kenya. (Was it an homage to Wangari Maathai ?) To the official website : ” China is the leading participating country, having planted a total of 2.8 billion trees under

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