Environmental Regulations
Food vs. fuel: Is there surplus land for bioenergy?
October 18, 2012 8:37 am | News | CommentsIncreasing demand for bioenergy feedstock is generating land-use conflicts and food vs. fuel controversies. An team of 11 scientists from seven European countries and the United States have recently published a study that gives scientific background to the debate. It supports a reassessment of the land available for bioenergy feedstock production.
Experts: Some fracking critics use bad science
July 23, 2012 4:58 am | by Kevin Begos, Associated Press | News | CommentsShale gas drilling has attracted national attention because advances in technology have unlocked billions of dollars of gas reserves, leading to a boom in production, jobs, and profits, as well as concerns about pollution and public health. In the debate over natural gas drilling, the companies are often the ones accused of twisting the facts. But scientists say opponents sometimes mislead the public, too.
Can fracking pollute water? Study tries to answer
July 13, 2012 3:51 am | by Kevin Begos, Associated Press | News | CommentsA drilling company in southwestern Pennsylvania has given researchers at National Energy Technology Laboratory access to a commercial drilling site, a move that may provide some of the first solid answers to a controversial question: Can gas drilling fluids migrate and pose a threat to drinking water?
Report: Diesel technologies drastically cut emissions
April 18, 2012 5:34 am | News | CommentsNew research from North Carolina State University shows that federal requirements governing diesel engines of new tractor trailer trucks have resulted in major cuts in emissions of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides—pollutants that have significant human health and environmental impacts.
FDA rejects call to ban BPA from food packaging
April 3, 2012 10:27 am | by Matthew Perrone, AP Health Writer | News | CommentsDespite concern from some scientists who believe exposure to BPA can harm the reproductive and nervous systems of humans, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has turned down a petition from environmentalists that would have banned the plastic-hardening chemical bisphenol-A from all food and drink packaging, including plastic bottles and canned food.
Report: Oil sands pollution comparable to large power plant
February 23, 2012 6:22 am | News | CommentsDrillers require a lot of energy to recover and refine heavy, viscous bitumen from Canada’s oil sands. In the first look at the effect of air pollution from the excavation of oil sands, also called tar sands, scientists used satellites to measure nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide. The effects, they say, are equivalent of a large power plant or a medium-sized city.
Climate conference approves landmark deal
December 12, 2011 8:10 am | by Arthur Max, Associated Press | News | CommentsA U.N. climate conference reached a hard-fought agreement Sunday on a complex and far-reaching program meant to set a new course for the global fight against climate change for the coming decades. The United States was a reluctant supporter, concerned about agreeing to join an international climate system that likely would find much opposition in the U.S. Congress.
Talk of treaty ban on mercury concerns scientists
October 21, 2011 8:20 am | by Maria Cheng, AP Medical Writer | News | CommentsAt the end of October, the United Nations Environment Programme, or UNEP, will conduct the third of five meetings to hammer out a treaty that may involve the comprehensive ban on mercury. The problem, says many health experts, is that a proposed ban might include thiomersal, a mercury compound used to prevent contamination and extend the shelf life of vaccines.
California adopts extensive 'cap-and-trade' plan
October 21, 2011 8:13 am | by Jason Dearen, Associated Press | News | CommentsOn Thursday, California formally adopted the nation's most comprehensive so-called "cap-and-trade" system. The system will be an experiment by the world's eighth-largest economy to provide financial incentives for polluters to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Some businesses claim it will hurt job growth and increase electricity costs; proponents say it will do the opposite.
Report: EPA cut corners on climate finding
September 28, 2011 1:36 pm | by Dina Cappiello, Associated Press | News | CommentsAccording to an internal government watchdog, the Obama administration cut corners before concluding that climate-change pollution can endanger human health. This key finding underpins costly new regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency.
Spin overtaking facts in Marcellus Shale debate
September 27, 2011 8:44 am | by Kevin Begos, Associated Press | News | CommentsFor some, Marcellus Shale natural gas represents a economic boon for America. For others, it’s an ongoing ecological disaster. Scientists worry that as advocates on both sides spin every shred of research to fit their own views, they will ignore the bigger picture.
Natural gas extracted from shale, the green way
September 1, 2011 6:15 am | by Louis Bergeron | News | CommentsMore and more natural gas is being extracted from underground shale deposits, but environmental concerns have been raised. Stanford geophysicist Mark Zoback, who recently served on a Department of Energy panel of experts, says it can be done safely.
U.S. nuke regulators weaken safety rules
June 20, 2011 8:26 am | by Jeff Donn, AP National Writer | News | CommentsAccording to an extensive investigation by the Associated Press, federal regulators have been working closely with the nuclear power industry to keep the nation's aging reactors operating within safety standards by repeatedly weakening those standards. The report claims that nuclear regulatory officials have often decided original regulations are too strict and has argued that safety margins could be eased without peril.
Shale gas: a short history from NETL
May 25, 2011 6:39 am | News | CommentsAfter lying dormant for hundreds of millions of years, shale gas was tapped for the first time in a natural gas well in 1821. Since then, oil has taken the spotlight, but now shale gas is looked to as the energy resource of the present and future. The National Energy Technology Laboratory, which helped pioneer hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, tracks some of the technological developments in shale gas extraction.
How much radioactivity is in the oceans?
May 24, 2011 6:25 am | News | CommentsSome scientists have debated the actual severity of the nuclear power plant incident at Fukushima Dai-ichi, but its impact on the ocean is no question much greater than that of Chernobyl. Now, researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution are starting to build a global database of baseline levels of marine radionuclides so they can be more accurately tracked in the future.
Environmental impacts force changes in fracking
May 10, 2011 6:38 am | by Dina Cappiello, Associated Press, and David B. Caruso, Associated Press | News | CommentsNatural gas drillers have been under intense scrutiny since reports of fouled drinking water emerged several years ago. Now, research is resolving some of the questions surrounding hydraulic fracking, including the actual risk of methane contamination of water wells and the effect of highly-saline wastewater on watersheds.
Asia nuclear reactors face tsunami risk
April 19, 2011 6:21 am | by Margie Mason and Robin McDowell, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe world's most seismically charged region is undergoing a nuclear renaissance as it struggles to harness enough power for its huge populations and booming economies. But China, Taiwan, India and several other countries have made little use of new science to determine whether these areas are safe. At least 32 plants in operation or under construction in Asia are at risk of one day being hit by a tsunami, nuclear experts and geologists warn.
U.S. spent-fuel storage sites are packed
March 23, 2011 7:22 am | by Jonathan Fahey and Ray Henry, The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe nuclear crisis in Japan has laid bare an ever-growing problem for the United States — the enormous amounts of still-hot radioactive waste accumulating at commercial nuclear reactors in more than 30 states. A state-by-state study of numbers obtained by the Associated Press finds that the U.S. has almost 71,862 tons of radioactive waste, now stored at power-plant sites.
Carbon sequestration: the ethanol of the next decade?
August 28, 2009 7:15 am | by Paul Livingstone | Blogs | CommentsThe climate change bill has become the poor cousin of health care this summer, but that may soon change. The Senate will eventually vote on cap-and-trade, and already the technology stream is offering carbon storage solutions. Let’s just get used to it: carbon sequestration, like ethanol, will soon be big business.
Dopant permeation tubes
June 26, 2009 6:20 am | Product Releases | CommentsKin-Tek Laboratories, Inc. manufacturers dopant permeation tubes used in detection systems for trace concentrations of narcotics, explosives, chemical warfare agents (CWAs), and industrial airborne molecular contaminants (AMCs).
Filter robot determines emissions
June 4, 2009 7:10 am | Product Releases | CommentsMettler Toledo has launched the F-A747 Filter Robot, an automated filter weighing solution. The filter robot is a measurement system for particulate matter for the requirements of the automotive industry.
Toxicology Steps Up to Nanotechnology Safety
February 26, 2008 5:40 am | by Justin Teeguarden, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Amit Gupta, Battelle Toxicology Northwest; Patricia Escobar,BioReliance, Corp.; Mark Jackson, Global Lifescience Solutions, LLC | Articles | CommentsAs more nanotechnology products enter the marketplace, they are coming under intense scrutiny by the government, industry, and consumers. The focus of this concern? Human exposure and safety. In the past six months, government agencies, industry, and environmental stakeholders have made recommendations for evaluating the safety of nanomaterials and products.
