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Adding more Fuel to the Fire
Topic Started: Dec 31 2013, 05:50 PM (766 Views)
Brewster
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North Dakota train derailment, explosion, prompts evacuation from town


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Authorities urged residents to evacuate a small North Dakota town Monday night after a 1.6-kilometre train carrying crude oil derailed outside of town, shaking residents with a series of explosions that sent flames and black smoke skyward.

The Cass County sheriff's office said it was "strongly recommending" that people in the town of Casselton and anyone living eight kilometres to the south and east evacuate. A shelter has been set up in Fargo, which is about 40 kilometres away. Casselton has about 2,400 residents.

The sheriff's office said the National Weather Service was forecasting a shift in the weather that would push the plume of smoke down, which could increase the risk of potential health hazards.

"That's going to put the plume right over the top of Casselton," Cass County Sheriff Paul Laney said at a news briefing.

Investigators couldn't get close to the blaze about 1.6 kilometres outside of Casselton and official estimates of how many train cars caught fire varied. BNSF Railway Co. said it believes about 20 cars caught fire after its oil train left the tracks about 2:10 p.m. Monday. The sheriff's office said it thinks 10 cars were on fire.

LINK

Add this to the other 45 Fossil Fuel disasters this year as an answer to the question:

What could possibly go wrong?

As greed and short-sightedness carries both countries down to the sewer.


That's nearly a disaster a week, all year long. And this isn't even counting the Climate Change problems from burning the stuff.
Edited by Brewster, Dec 31 2013, 06:52 PM.
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Brewster
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Maybe this is what could go wrong...

Climate Progress
 
Scientists Find 7,300-Mile Mercury Contamination ‘Bullseye’ Around Canadian Tar Sands

Canadian government scientists have found that levels of mercury — a potent neurotoxin which has been found to cause severe birth defects and brain damage — around the region’s vast tar sand operations are up to 16 times higher than regular levels for the region. The findings, presented by Environment Canada researcher Jane Kirk at an international toxicology conference, showed that the 7,500 miles contaminated are “currently impacted by airborne Hg (mercury) emissions originating from oilsands developments.”

The Canadian government touts Alberta’s oil sands as the third-largest proven crude oil reserve in the world, next to Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. The region’s heavy crude oil is mixed with clay, bitumen, and a good deal of sand — hence the name “oil sands.” This makes for a unique and energy-intensive extraction process that some scientists say produces three times the greenhouse gas emissions of conventionally produced oil. Environment Canada has said it expects production emissions from tar sands to hit 104 million tonnes of CO2 by 2020 under current expansion plans.

Giant oil companies across the United States are currently investing in Canada’s tar sands as part of their role in the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry tar sands oil from Alberta all the way to Texas. The pipeline would double imports of tar sands oil into the United States and transport it to refineries on the Gulf Coast and ports for international export. The oil sands industry itself is undergoing a major expansion, powered by $19 billion a year in investments, according to Bloomberg News.

Mercury pollution is just the latest contamination-related environmental woe to hit the tar sands. In May of this year, leaks of the oil started popping up in Alberta, and haven’t yet stopped. In September, the company responsible for the leaks was ordered to drain a lake so that contamination on the lake’s bottom could be cleaned up. By September 11, the leaks had spilled more than 403,900 gallons — or about 9,617 barrels — of oily bitumen into the surrounding boreal forest and muskeg, the acidic, marshy soil found in the forest.

Environment Canada’s research on the mercury pollution reportedly suggested that tar sands development has created a “bullseye” of contamination, with the highest levels of mercury found in the middle. The research also included indications that the toxin was building up in some of the area’s wildlife, with elevated levels being found in some birds’ eggs. Mercury pollution is particularly disconcerting because of its ability to bioaccumulate, meaning it tends to become more concentrated as it moves up the food chain.

The contamination’s reveal comes just one week after it was revealed that the Alberta government would hand over regulatory responsibility for the province’s tar sands industry to a corporation that’s funded entirely by Canada’s oil, coal and gas industry.
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Another answer to the question.

Edited by Brewster, Dec 31 2013, 06:04 PM.
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Brewster
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Or what Could Go Wrong with This?

Climate Progress
 
In The Midst Of Record Oil Boom, Obama Administration Seeks More Oil Production

America produced an average of 7.5 million barrels of crude oil per day in 2013, an increase of one million barrels per day and the biggest one-year jump in the nation’s history, FuelFix reported Thursday. The U.S. Energy Information Association (EIA) estimates production will grow by another one million barrels in 2014 and will peak at a whopping 9.5 million barrels per day in 2016.

And the production surge doesn’t stop at the water’s edge. According to FuelFix, “the Gulf of Mexico also is seeing a boost, with oil production expected to grow to 1.4 million barrels per day in 2014, up by 100,000 barrels.”

Despite the oil boom already well underway, the Associated Press reported this week that the Obama administration was seeking to ‘clean up’ coal by capturing carbon dioxide from coal-fired power plants and using it to force more oil out of the ground.

“Obama has spent more than $1 billion on carbon-capture projects tied to oil fields and has pledged billions more for clean coal,” according to the AP report. While the administration has touted the environmental benefits of carbon-capture, some are skeptical of a plan that seeks to reduce carbon emissions by increasing the production of another fossil fuel — which will only emit more CO2 when burned.

Fueling the criticism, AP notes that “the administration also did not evaluate the global warming emissions associated with the oil production when it proposed requiring power plants to capture carbon.”

And the report cites a 2009 peer-reviewed paper which “found that for every ton of carbon dioxide injected underground into an oil field, four times more carbon dioxide is released when the oil produced is burned.”

The administration counters that the oil would be extracted regardless and will help bolster U.S. energy security by producing more energy domestically. From a climate perspective, however, that logic is less convincing.

As climate change spirals out of control and the need to drastically reduce carbon emissions becomes even more pressing, U.S. production of carbon-emitting fossil fuels is higher than ever. Noting the country’s record high coal exports and the fact that by the time Obama leaves office, the U.S. will be the world’s largest producer of both oil and oil and gas combined, Bill McKibben writes in Rolling Stone that “we are, despite slight declines in our domestic emissions, a global-warming machine: At the moment when physics tell us we should be jamming on the carbon brakes, America is revving the engine.”

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Brewster
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Had Enough Yet?

Climate Progress
 
U.S. Pipeline Safety Agency Says No To Pipeline Safety Improvements

It was the summer of 2011 in south-central Montana when 42,000 gallons of crude oil that was supposed to end up at a ExxonMobil refinery in Billings, Montana, accidentally wound up in the Yellowstone River.

Hundreds of residents along a 20-mile stretch of the Silvertip pipeline spill were evacuated, and an estimated 70 miles of the Yellowstone’s riverbank were contaminated. Property contamination, sick livestock and wildlife, and local health problems eventually spurred those who owned land nearby to sue, claiming the spill could have been avoided. “They should have known long before this happened that this river floods every spring and produces massive erosive forces,” attorney Jory Ruggiero told the Associated Press at the time.

Indeed, the historic spill was the result of what is known in the industry as “scouring.” Scouring occurs when flooding or rapid currents sweep away several feet of the river bed, exposing buried pipelines to potential damage.

Despite this, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has decided not to change its regulations to better protect underground pipelines from scouring, according to a letter reportedly seen by the Wall Street Journal on Nov. 19 and published in a report Sunday.

PHMSA reportedly made its decision just one year after Congress ordered it to evaluate its policies in the wake of incidents like Exxon’s Silvertip pipeline, and the incident just one month later when scouring caused 3,300 barrels of natural gasoline, a gas additive, to spill into the flooded Missouri River basin.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the agency decided more protections were not necessary because, over the past two decades, scouring contributed to just one in every 200 significant hazardous-liquid incidents involving pipelines. PHMSA reportedly noted that its “existing legislative authority is adequate to address the risks of hazardous liquid pipeline failures at major river crossings.”

Though scouring may have only contributed to a few significant incidents, flooding and riverbed erosion has caused pipeline spills that have dumped a total of 2.4 million gallons of crude oil and other hazardous liquids into U.S. waterways over the last 20 years, according to a report released by the Department of Transportation in January.

The protections that PHMSA was considering were requirements to increase the minimum depth at which pipelines can be buried underneath a riverbed. Currently, pipelines only have to be buried four feet underneath the riverbed — a problem, the Wall Street Journal noted, as U.S. Geological Survey data has shown that scour has already deepened the Missouri riverbed by 9 to 41 feet at 27 sites surveyed.

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Is there no Bottom to this Sewer?

Climate Progress
 
BP, Chevron Accused Of Illegally Dumping Toxic Radioactive Drilling Waste Into Louisiana Water

The Louisiana parish of Plaquemines is taking on a group of oil and gas giants including BP and Chevron for allegedly dumping toxic waste — some of it radioactive — from their drilling operations into its coastal waters, according to a lawsuit removed to federal court on Thursday.

Plaquemines Parish is claiming the companies violated the Louisiana State and Local Coastal Resources Management Act of 1978 by discharging oil field waste directly into the water “without limitation.” Worse, the companies allegedly failed to clear, revegetate, detoxify or restore any of the areas they polluted, as required by state law. The oil and gas companies’ pollution, along with their alleged failure to adequately maintain their oilfields, has caused significant coastal erosion and contaminated groundwater, the lawsuit said.

“I think the oil companies have an obligation to self-report, I think the oil companies are to blame and I think the oil companies took advantage of the state,” John Carmouche, on of the lead attorneys for the parish, said in November when the suit originally came out in state court. The lawsuit is just one of nearly 30 that were filed in November by both Plaquemines and Jefferson parishes, targeting dozens of energy companies and their contractors they claim helped destroy and pollute coastal areas.

Plaquemines’ suit says BP and Chevron should have known that the oilfield wastes, referred to as “brine,” contained “unacceptable and inherently dangerous” levels of radioactive materials called Radium 226 and Radium 228. According to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, small amounts of Radium 226 were once used as an additive in toothpaste, hair creams, and even food items due to supposed beneficial health properties. Those products soon “fell out of vogue,” however, after it was discovered that the health effects were exactly the opposite of beneficial.

Long-term exposure to radium also increases the risk of developing several diseases, including lymphoma, bone cancer, leukemia and aplastic anemia, according to the EPA.

Radium emits both alpha and gamma radiation, the former of which is detrimental if taken into the body through inhalation or ingestion — a real concern considering the alleged water contamination. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, about 80 percent of the radium that is swallowed will promptly leave the body through feces, while the other 20 percent enters the bloodstream and accumulates preferentially in the bones. Some of that radium will remain in the bones throughout the person’s lifetime, the EPA said.

Another aspect of the lawsuit against BP and Chevron targets their construction of “unlined earthen waste pits,” which the lawsuit describes as “simply holes, ponds or excavations” that are dug into either the ground or a marsh. Many of those pits were never properly closed, the suit says, adding that BP and Chevron did not even attempt to obtain permits to close them. The lawsuit also alleges that BP has been illegally dredging canals throughout the region for their oil and gas activities, without the necessary permits.
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Edited by Brewster, Dec 31 2013, 06:55 PM.
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And the Southwestern Drought Continues - I Wonder Why?

Climate Progress
 
California Gripped By Driest Year Ever — With No Relief In Sight

As California enters its third consecutive dry winter, with no sign of moisture on the horizon, fears are growing over increased wildfire activity, agricultural losses, and additional stress placed on already strained water supplies.

The city of Los Angeles has received only 3.6 inches of rain this year — far below its average of 14.91 inches, USA Today reported. And San Francisco is experiencing its driest year since recordkeeping began in 1849. As of November, the city had only received 3.95 inches of rain since the year began.

The state is enduring its driest year on record and while a drought emergency has not yet been officially declared, the U.S. National Drought Monitor shows that as of December 24, nearly the entire state is gripped by severe to extreme drought conditions.

The portion of the state currently hit hardest by drought includes the Central Valley, a prime agricultural area, and “a lack of rain and snow this winter could bring catastrophic losses to California agriculture, as water allotments are slashed by state agencies,” USA Today reported.

The lack of precipitation is also extending what’s been a devastating wildfire season in California. According to AccuWeather, fire season usually tapers off in the fall and December marks the beginning of the wet season, which usually extends through March. This year, however, looks to be different. “It will remain dry through February and probably early March in California,” Lead Long-Range Forecaster Paul Pastelok said. “It’s possible that a system or two could reach the state, but not enough to put a dent in the drought.”

As a result, wildfire risk remains high. Mid-December’s Big Sur Fire scorched through more than 900 acres and destroyed dozens of homes before it was contained.

“The cause of the blaze is under investigation, but there was little doubt among firefighters that the rare December inferno is a manifestation of an exceedingly dry year,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Like much of California, the area is experiencing its driest calendar year on record. “Big Sur has received just half an inch of rain since the seasonal calendar began in July, according to the National Weather Service. The area normally receives nearly eight inches by this time.”

The prolonged drought also poses a serious risk to the state’s water supply. Due to a string of warm, dry winters and the declining snowpack that they bring, many of the state’s northern reservoirs have been stuck at precariously low levels this year, some dwindling to just one-third or one-half capacity. “Going forward, continued dry conditions will not build the snowpack critically needed for this year’s water supplies,” the California Department of Water Resources posted on its website this week.

Citing the the abnormal late fire season activity and very low soil moisture, the agency said Gov. Jerry Brown had formed an Interagency Drought Task Force to assess conditions, allocations, and whether a declaration of statewide drought was needed. In recent weeks, several state and federal lawmakers have written to Gov. Brown and President Obama asking them to declare a drought emergency and federal disaster in the state. “This is going to be a very challenging water year for California and a potentially catastrophic year for the Central Valley in particular,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Rep. Jim Costa wrote.
LINK
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Brewster
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The Meaning of Global:

IPS
 
Waiting for the Rains, Zambia Grapples With Climate Change

LUSAKA, Dec 29 2013 (IPS) - It is seven in the morning and Georgina Musende, 56, of Kamanga Township, which just lies east of the Zambian capital Lusaka, is already sweating as she digs into the dry earth. Every time the hoe hits the ground, the dust engulfs her.

But Musende, a single parent who supports her four children and 10 grandchildren, is not concerned about the scorching 35-degree Celsius heat nor the dust. She is worried that the delayed onset of the rainy season will affect her maize production.

“In the past, we knew that the Independence Day [Oct. 24] rainfall marked the beginning of the rainy season, but these days one doesn’t exactly know when the rains will start,” says Musende, who has already paid 90 dollars to rent a field near the township for the season.

“Of course, tilling this hard surface in this heat is tough. But I have to do it now so that when the rains come, I will quickly come and sow the seeds,” she tells IPS, gazing at the sky.

About 15 kms away, 32-year-old Pearson Chola of Libala South Township, leans against a 210-litre drum he has filled with water. He has just collected it from the Lusaka Water Sewerage Company’s Water Works Kiosk. Behind him a woman and a group of four young boys, aged between three and seven years old, roll their drums of water home.

“For sure, the climate is changing. Take this year, for example, the rainy season has delayed a lot. When it’s like this, we suffer a lot, as many people come here to get water,” Chola tells IPS.

Joseph K. Kanyanga, chief meteorologist at the Zambia Meteorological Department, tells IPS that weather patterns in Zambia have changed.

“Temperatures nowadays are higher than the 1950s; both maximum and minimum temperatures are showing a warming trend. As for rainfall, though there is uncertainty. There is an evident shift in the onset and end of the rainy season. The start of the rainy season shows the pronounced shift; at times starting as late as mid-December for most parts of Zambia,” Kanyanga says.

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And Finally...

The Age
 
2013 Australia's hottest year on record

2013 is the year Australia marked its hottest day, month, season, 12-month period and, by December 31, hottest calendar year.

"We're smashing the records," said Andy Pitman, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science at the University of NSW. "We're not tinkering away at them, they're being absolutely blitzed."

Global interest in Australia's weather flared early. In January, when models predicted heat that was literally off the charts, the Bureau of Meteorology added colours to maps - a deep purple and pink - to indicate maximum temperatures of 50-54 degrees.

But for David Jones, head of climate analysis at the bureau, 2013's stand-out event was a month largely overlooked by a media diverted by football finals and federal elections: "From a climate point of view, what happened in September was probably the most remarkable." September's mean temperature soared to be 2.75 degrees above the 1961-90 average, eclipsing the previous record monthly deviation set in April 2005 by 0.09 degrees.

Maximums were 3.41 degrees over the norm, with South Australia's out by 5.39 degrees and NSW's by 4.68. Victoria's mean and minimum temperatures exceeded previous anomalies.

Nationally, the warmth broke the previous September mean record by 1.1 degrees.

January baked, Australia's hottest month in its hottest summer. "January was incredibly hot for such a long time for such a large area," said Jones. "In many ways we were very fortunate not to have had a frontal system like Black Saturday (in 2009) to draw down that hot air into a coastal zone with a gale force wind."

Fires destroyed hundreds of properties in Tasmania in January and a similar number in NSW in October. Hot years are now about 2-3 degrees warmer than cool ones 100 years ago. "It's a very large change," Dr Jones said. "That's the equivalent of moving in the order of 300-400 kilometres closer to the equator."

For Australia, the year to beat for heat was 2005, when national mean temperatures were 1.03 degrees above the long-term average. As of the end of November, the country was at 1.25 degrees above the norm. "As best as we can tell, not a single part of Australia has seen below-average temperatures for this year," Jones said.

So far in 2013, Melbourne's average maximum is 21.4 degrees, third-hottest in more than 150 years of records. Minimums and mean temperatures are the second highest, behind 2007, according to Blair Trewin, a senior climatologist at the bureau.

Global temperatures are rising too. Last month was the hottest November in data going back to the 1880s, the US government said. That puts 2013 on course to be the fourth hottest on record.

Jones dismissed claims regularly aired by climate sceptics that the planet stopped warming in 1998: "Certainly there is no global surface data set which shows 1998 was the warmest on record."

Professor Pitman said 2013's likely rank as the world's fourth hottest year is more remarkable because the most significant driver of climate variation - the El Nino-Southern Oscillation in the Pacific - remains in neutral mode.
LINK

In the meantime, in the Northeastern US, the weather is "Stuck" in snowstorm mode, with warm moist air from the south colliding with an almost permanent flow of cold air from Northern Canada. One more predicted Change - These bad weather month or more at a time "sticking points" seem to be happening somewhere almost constantly now...

So just what could POSSIBLY Go Wrong?
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Banandangees
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Hmm! The North Dakota train derailment! All the more reason not to bring the tar sands oil south via the Keystone Pipeline. It Canada's economy, let them transport it trans Canada west or east, not south through the heartland of the US with chances of polluting the aquifer around MR's homeland.
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Brewster
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The best solution is to leave it in the ground, and use the money wasted on digging transporting, and refining it to develop/install more wind/solar.

As an aside, do you know just how much electricity is used digging that stuff up, liquefying it, pushing it down a pipe, then refining it?

Standard crude uses 6 kWh per gallon of gasoline. A conservative estimate would double that for oilsands dilbit, and that much again to dig it out in the first place. The best figures I can find is that the oilsands are presently shipping 46,000,000 gallons per day.

That makes total electricity consumption 46,000,000*6*2*2=1.104 Billion KWH per day!

That's more than enough power to supply all the people in California and Illinois combined!
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