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'Smear campaign' against professor who refused to sign 'sexed up' UN climate report

David Rose
Daily Mail
Sun, 06 Apr 2014 16:15 UTC
Professor Richard Tol
© John Connor Press
Accused: Professor Richard Tol, who said the new report by the UN was 'alarmist' and focused on 'scare stories'
The professor who refused to sign last week's high-profile UN climate report because it was too 'alarmist', has told The Mail on Sunday he has become the victim of a smear campaign.

Richard Tol claims he is fighting a sustained attack on his reputation by a key figure from a leading institution that researches the impact of global warming.

Prof Tol said: 'This has all the characteristics of a smear campaign. It's all about taking away my credibility as an expert.'

Prof Tol, from Sussex University, is a highly respected climate economist and one of two 'co-ordinating lead authors' of an important chapter in the 2,600-page report published last week by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

He has been widely criticised by green campaigners after he claimed that the much shorter 'summary for policymakers' - hammered out in all-night sessions between scientists and government officials over a week-long meeting in Yokohama, Japan - was overly 'alarmist'.

In his view, the summary focused on 'scare stories' and suggestions the world faced 'the four horsemen of the apocalypse'.
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Arrow Down

Mother flees with her baby as huge sinkhole claims house, Kazakhstan

Jill Reilly
Daily Mail, UK
Mon, 07 Apr 2014 14:32 UTC
Image

Ms Tatarnikov's home begins to tip into the sink hole which has emerged next to her home
* Anastasia Tatarnikov, 28, thought she was running from an earthquake

* Massive sinkhole appeared as a result of mining work in the city of Ridder

* 120 homes listed as being at risk and 480 people have been evacuated


A young mother grabbed her newborn baby and fled after her home just seconds before it vanished into a massive hole.

Anastasia Tatarnikov, 28, thought she was running from an earthquake, but according to emergency officials the massive sinkhole had appeared as a result of mining work in the city of Ridder in eastern Kazakhstan.

In total 120 homes have been listed as being at risk and 480 people have been evacuated.
      Read More...
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Large landslide blocks road in Jalisco, Mexico


youtube.com
Sat, 05 Apr 2014 13:44 UTC

Landslide blocks a Road in Jalisco, Mexico on April 5th, 2014.
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Phoenix

New Jersey 'winter wildfire' burns over 1,500 acres - smoke odor reaches New York City - still uncontained - cause unknown


Newsday
Mon, 07 Apr 2014 13:15 UTC
Image
© News 12 New Jersey
A brush fire burns Sunday, April 6, 2014, along Batsto Road in Wharton State Forest in southern New Jersey. The smell of smoke was reported as far north as New York City.
The odor of smoke from a brush fire in southern New Jersey can be smelled as far away as New York City.

The fire has burned more than 1,500 acres, or about 2 square miles, along Batsto Road in Wharton State Forest. The smoke can be seen for miles.

NBC 10 in Philadelphia reports that crews dropped water from airplanes and used backfires to contain the blaze, which broke out Sunday. The cause is under investigation.
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Phoenix

Barely two weeks after snow melts, and with temperatures still cool, wildfire breaks out along Appalachian Trail Maryland


heraldmailmedia.com
Sun, 06 Apr 2014 13:04 UTC
Image
© File photo
A wildfire in the area of the Appalachian Trail northeast of Boonsboro Sunday afternoon scorched about two acres, according to emergency rescue officials.

The fire, which was reported at 12:48 p.m, occurred near Annapolis Rocks, a popular resting spot along the Appalachian Trail that features a camping ground.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control and by 3 p.m., they were "mopping up hot spots," according to a Washington County 911 supervisor.

Six fire companies, Boonsboro's ambulance company and Maryland State Department of Natural Resources' forest rangers responded to the fire, a 911 supervisor said. The fire companies were from Mount Aetna; Boonsboro; Smithsburg; Funkstown; Wolfsville, Md.; and Myersville, Md.

Comment: There was another recent wildfire in Rockingham County, North Carolina... despite there being snow on the ground until last week! This one near Asheville, North Carolina was blamed on lightning, but can that spark a fire in wet, cool conditions?

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Cloud Lightning

Unlike anything seen before: Solomon Islands flash floods kill at least 19 people


The Guardian
Mon, 07 Apr 2014 12:10 UTC
solomon floods
© Rachel Skeates/AFP/Getty Images
People search through the debris on the beach near the Solomon Islands capital of Honiara
Forty people are missing and 49,000 homeless after entire communities washed away following heavy rains

Devastating flash floods in the Solomon Islands have killed at least 19 people, while 40 are still missing and an estimated 49,000 people are homeless.

Entire riverside communities and bridges were washed away when the Matanikau river in Honiara broke its banks on Thursday. The government declared a state of emergency.

Rivers in the north-west, central and north of the island also flooded, destroying homes and displacing communities.There are more than 5,500 people in three of the most populous of the 13 evacuation shelters in Honiara, where aid groups report dengue fever is threatening to spread.
      Read More...
Arrow Down

Flint City plans to mend large sinkhole in local neighborhood, Michigan

Emmy Lucas
abc12.com
Sun, 06 Apr 2014 10:20 UTC
Image
What started out as a small inconvenience, turned into a major problem for some residents in this Flint neighborhood.

Brittney Lewis and her sister say the growing sinkhole is just steps away from their Flint home near the intersection of Dupont and Bagley Streets.

"it's real big now, scary," Brittney said.

It was just a small divot less than a week ago...and now measures over six feet at its widest point. It's no wonder concerns are growing as fast as the sinkhole itself.

"I'm nervous about the kids running back and forth across the street and they might fall down. That's why I tell my little sister, just stay up here by the driveway and the cars," said Brittney.

The school busses. They mostly come down right there. It makes me nervous," said Sterlisha Alexander, who lives across the street from the sinkhole.

While some residents are worried, others have met the situation with a sense of humor and trust Flint will fix it.

"Michigan has brought a little bit of Florida to us and we have our own sinkhole. Flint's trying, but it's going to take some time," said Terry Schlosser who lives in the neighborhood of the sinkhole.
      Read More...
Snowflake Cold

Hundreds of dead and dying palms legacy of big chill in Florida


Pensacola News Journal
Sun, 06 Apr 2014 09:50 UTC
Image
© MARK KULAW
What's up with all the dead palms?

From the towering palms at Pensacola International Airport to backyard cabbage palms, the legacy of this winter's unprecedented freeze in early January left hundreds and hundreds of damaged or dead palm trees.

The harsh cold, which saw temperatures in the teen for an extended period, took a toll on plant life in the area, but palm trees in particular have suffered, leaving folks wondering whether they will come back if pruned or whether they should be removed.

"A lot of the palm trees that you see in the area are not recommended for the zone that we're in," said Carol Lord, an environmental horticultural technician at Escambia County Extension. "So they may not come back."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a Hardiness Zone Map that provides information that helps gardeners determine what plants will grow in their area.
      Read More...
Info

30 Dead dolphins have washed up at Galveston since oil spill


newsfixnow.com
Sun, 06 Apr 2014 11:39 UTC
Image
© AP/Jennifer Reynolds
Gerald Joubert bags oil-soaked sand on the Texas City Dike as crews start the clean-up after the Galveston Bay oil spill.

Just as it seemed the clean-up efforts from last months oil spill under control, there's new evidence washing ashore that proves to the public just how much nearly 168,000 gallons of oil affects wildlife.

The U.S. Coast Guard confirms that 30 dead dolphins have been found in the Galveston area since the wreck, 48 total in March. That's well above average, and very well above last years recovery of only 15.

A high number of dead dolphins is typical during what is called the stranding season from January through March, but so far, 2 have been confirmed to have oil on their bodies and two more are being tested for possible oil exposure.

Though it's not proven that oil is the definite cause of the increase in stranding yet, it's definitely a concern, and until the murky waters are all cleared up, we won't know exactly how much our wildlife will be impacted.
      Read More...
Arrow Down

Sinkhole shuts down Roanoke City roadway in Virginia

Rachel Lucas
wsls.com
Fri, 04 Apr 2014 10:31 UTC
Image
With recent rainfall, a sinkhole has opened up on a Roanoke City roadway.

The sinkhole is about four feet in diameter and about one foot deep.

The sinkhole has closed a portion of Southern Hills Drive in the Southwest portion of the city.

The closure is between the 4200 and 4300 blocks, or from where Southern Hills Drive intersects Van Winkle and Griffin roads. Police say they are advising drivers to take alternate routes.
      Read More...
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