Entries by Nadya Ivanova

The Stream, August 15: Cholera Spreads in Somalia

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A cholera epidemic is spreading in drought- and famine-hit Somalia, Reuters reported, citing the World Health Organization. Although seasonal cholera outbreaks are not unusual for the country, the number of cases is two to three times higher than last year. Pollution Authorities in China’s northeastern city of Dalian ordered the immediate shutdown of a chemical […]

The Stream, August 12: DOE Advisory Panel Releases Natural Gas Report

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A draft report by the U.S. Energy Department’s natural gas advisory subcommittee urged regulators to require natural gas drillers to release more information about the environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing, even though the risk of water pollution from the technique is “remote,” Reuters reported. Meanwhile, scientists from 22 universities have questioned the integrity of the […]

The Stream, August 11: Australia’s Climate Change Debate

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Climate-change wrangling in Australia has descended into death threats and extreme insults, New Scientist argues, and the science is being drowned out. What’s fueling Australia’s long-standing climate debate? Philadelphia is looking to become America’s greenest city while preparing for a hotter, wetter future, according to Climate Central. New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli has proposed establishing […]

The Stream, August 10: Toxins in Drinking Water

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There are about 6,000 toxins that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has not got around to regulating in municipal drinking water systems, according to Forbes. While EPA has begun to develop regulations to remove these chemicals from tap and bottled water, the industry has made efforts to delay or prevent their implementation. Hydropower Despite calls […]

The Stream, August 9: Liquid Water on Mars?

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The effects of a nine-month drought in Texas extend far beyond water restrictions into bursting water pipelines, buckling house foundations and splitting asphalt roads, The Texas Tribune reported. New photos by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter suggest that there could be liquid water flowing on Mars, according to The Economist. Space.com explains why the discovery could […]

The Stream, August 8: Water Trading Around The World

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Are markets in water rights likely to evolve as a rising population leads to shortages and climate change disrupts patterns of rain and snowfall? Reuters highlights some of the major water trading schemes in the world. The withdrawal of rebel forces from Somalia’s capital may offer citizens some relief from a famine that threatens almost […]

China to Cap Energy Use by 2015 in National Low-Carbon Plan

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The energy target will be the highlight of a document to come later this year, as well as a cornerstone of China’s efforts to curb soaring greenhouse gas emissions, which currently stand at a quarter of the global total. Cutting coal consumption will inevitably also cut water use, as coal is China’s largest industrial user of water.

The Stream, August 5: Food Aid for Africa

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Support for farmers in Africa dried up long before Somalia’s famine, The Atlantic argues, when international donors walked away from long-term agricultural-development efforts in the continent. Meanwhile, the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos said the famine in two areas of southern Somalia could spread throughout the region unless the humanitarian response grows soon. […]

The Stream, August 4: The Debt Deal and the Environment

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The debt deal reached by the White House and the U.S. Congress will likely slash the funding for many energy and environmental programs for years to come, including those dealing with fuel cells, wind and nuclear energy, as well as drinking water and pollution monitoring efforts, according to Yale Environment 360. Mother Jones gives more […]

United Nations Urges Ethiopia to Suspend Gibe III Dam Construction

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In June, a committee concluded that the construction of the dam endangered the existence of Lake Turkana, the largest desert lake in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Stream, August 3: Of Food and Conflict

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The Shabab Islamist insurgent group in Somalia is blocking starving people from fleeing the country and forcing out many Western aid organizations amid a famine that has already killed thousands of Somalis and left more than 500,000 children on the brink of starvation, The New York Times reported. The world’s food assistance pact is desperately […]

The Stream, August 2: Shrinking Glaciers and Growing Deserts

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There are only 25 glaciers in the Glacier National Park now, compared to 150 in the 19th century, Grist reported. By 2020, even these will be gone, according to the park’s coordinator of climate change and glacial geology. The Financial Times verdict on Kenya’s drought: the country has failed to manage its food crisis, which […]