Earth ChangesS


Bizarro Earth

Scottish Highlands hit by largest earthquake in 120 years


The Extinction Protocol
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 12:43 UTC
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A 2.4-magnitude earthquake has been recorded in one of the most northerly parts of the UK. It is the largest quake in the area for around 120 years. It was recorded by the British Geological Survey at 4.16 am yesterday, about seven miles (11km) south of the village of Durness, in Sutherland in the Scottish Highlands. Only one resident, who lives near Loch Eriboll, reported feeling a "slight rumbling."

The earthquake is the largest recorded in the region since one on September 26, 1887 which had a magnitude of three. The Richter Magnitude Scale typically ranges from 0 to 9. David Galloway, a seismologist at the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh, said the earthquake was fairly small and went relatively unnoticed by residents because of the time of day it happened.

"We only had one person, who was already awake, report to us that they felt a slight rumbling," he said. "Most people will have been asleep when this happened and we wouldn't expect it to wake anyone up. If it was during the day, and in an area of higher population, we would expect more reports of people having felt it. It is one of five or six recorded in the region within a 30km (19-mile) radius, and the largest since 1887. It is not a region that experiences many earthquakes." No reports of any damage were made. - Herald Scotland
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Bizarro Earth

Earth reeling from eight major earthquakes striking in 5 days


The Extinction Protocol
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 12:28 UTC
An earthquake of magnitude 6.7 struck off the coast of the Solomon Islands (Santa Cruz) in the Pacific Ocean, the U.S. Geological Survey said on Friday. The quake was later downgraded by the USGS to a 6.3 magnitude event. The depth of the quake was 10 km (6.2 miles) and the epicenter was 68 km southwest of Lata. The quake hit at 9:16 a.m. local time on Saturday. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not immediately issue any alerts on its website. This quake was underscored by an even stronger 6.9 magnitude earthquake that just struck the Hokkaido region of East Japan on February 2nd. This is the eighth major earthquake to strike the planet in the last five days. The present cluster of earthquakes began with a 6.0 event in Eastern Kazakhstan on January 28th, following a full moon on January 27, 2013.
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Bizarro Earth

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 6.9 - SW of Obihiro, Japan


US Geological Survey
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 12:11 UTC
Japan_020213
© USGS
Event Time
2013-02-02 14:17:34 UTC
2013-02-02 23:17:34 UTC+09:00 at epicenter

Location
42.812°N 143.078°E depth=103.1km (64.0mi)

Nearby Cities
15km (9mi) SW of Obihiro, Japan
22km (14mi) SSW of Otofuke, Japan
78km (48mi) NE of Shizunai, Japan
82km (51mi) SE of Shimo-furano, Japan
842km (523mi) NNE of Tokyo, Japan

Technical Details
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Sun

Expect higher food prices thanks to the drought


Harvest Public Media
Thu, 31 Jan 2013 10:39 UTC
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© File photo: Grant Gerlock/Harvest Public MediaFarmers all over the Midwest battled dry fields like this one in Stockville, Neb., throughout the summer of 2012.
The drought devastating Midwest farmers and ranchers will fully reach its tentacles from the field to your table this year, according to a recent USDA report. The USDA expects food prices to rise, largely because many Midwestern corn farmers weren't able to grow a full corn crop.

Farmers and ranchers around the country spent the year screaming about the drought ravaging their fields and wrecking their harvests. But thanks to the complex food system in which it often takes months for food to travel from farm to grocery store, consumers didn't feel much of a pinch. The food section of the Consumer Price Index, which measures the relative cost of food, rose only .5 percent in 2012. The USDA expects it to grow 3-4 percent this year, an increase above the historical average.
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Arrow Up

Irish politician calls for inquiry into rising food prices


Farming Life
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 08:45 UTC
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South Down MP Margaret Ritchie has asked the Environment, Food and Rural affairs Select committee in the House of Commons to give immediate consideration to an inquiry into the rising cost of food prices and the consequential impact on the farming community, consumers and wider society.

Miss Ritchie said the report issued earlier this week by the Consumer Council Northern Ireland provides instructive evidence that prices in food have substantially increased in Northern Ireland at a time when local communities have less money to purchase essential commodities such as food.

She added: "At the same time, Government persists in undertaking cost cutting measures in social security benefits, and pension entitlements. Alongside this, there is also the constant threat to public sector salaries, and job losses in the private sector including the closure of retail outlets and the near collapse of the construction industry.
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Attention

U.S. food prices rising sharply: Up 9% from December to January, 15% increase from January 2012

Paul Ausick
24/7 Wall Street
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 02:47 UTC
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported today that January agricultural product prices received by farmers rose 9% in January compared with December prices. Prices were 15% higher than in January 2012. The prices paid index (i.e., the cost of producing the crops) rose 1.4% above the December index and is up 5.2% compared with January 2012.

Producers received higher prices for lettuce, cattle and corn, and lower prices for milk, eggs and wheat. Costs rose for rent, nitrogen fertilizer and other services, while falling for diesel fuel, interest and mixed fertilizer.

Food prices paid by consumers will be going up, due in part to continued drought conditions in some of the country's most productive farmland and due in part to rising costs. The rising farm price index does not predict that inflation will zoom up, but it is one indicator that consumers will be squeezed again to decide whether to buy something to eat or that new electronic gizmo. Food usually wins, and the effect on the economy is (usually temporarily) not good.

Comment: "usually temporarily"?

Oh boy, it's going to be an interesting year!

Clearly we are now in a situation that is anything but 'usual'. With rising food prices globally and continuous weather extremes destroying crops, it is a matter of when, not if, sky-rocketing food prices result in mass social breakdown.

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Bug

Vermin plague expected to follow floods in Australia

Ben Pike
Daily Telegraph, Australia
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 02:41 UTC
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© Nikki Short, The Australian The Clarence River at Grafton at its 8.1m peak this week.
Crippling bushfires followed by an epic flood have punished large swaths of Australia in recent weeks.

Now plagues of disease-infested vermin and insects are threatening a cruel end to a disastrous summer.

Authorities have warned of an explosion in disease, infections and bites because of the perfect storm of high rainfall, fauna dislocation and sewage overflow.

Mosquitoes, rodents, spiders and snakes are the main offenders, while black flies are poised to create a spike in bacterial skin infections and allergic reactions.

NSW Health public health physician Professor David Durrheim said the risks increased as flood waters receded: "On the coast the rain event coincided with high tide and that generally increases the water levels into salt marshes and that's where the salt marsh mosquito breeds."
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Bizarro Earth

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 6.3 - WSW of Lata, Solomon Island


US Geological Survey
Sat, 02 Feb 2013 00:03 UTC
Solomon Quake_010213
© USGS
Event Time
2013-02-01 22:16:36 UTC
2013-02-02 09:16:36 UTC+11:00 at epicenter

Location
10.926°S 165.450°E depth=19.9km (12.4mi)

Nearby Cities
47km (29mi) WSW of Lata, Solomon Islands
542km (337mi) NNW of Luganville, Vanuatu
624km (388mi) ESE of Honiara, Solomon Islands
814km (506mi) NNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
1122km (697mi) N of We, New Caledonia

Technical Details
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Attention

U.S. wildlife officials propose endangered status for wolverines


Guardian
Fri, 01 Feb 2013 15:50 UTC
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© Photograph: Audrey Magoun/APThe 'mountain devil', in its natural habitat
Only 250 to 300 wolverines roam the US, but the species' habitats are threatened by climate change

The tenacious wolverine, a snow-loving carnivore sometimes called the "mountain devil," is being added to the list of species threatened by climate change, a dubious distinction that puts it in the ranks of the polar bear and several other animals that could see their habitats shrink drastically due to warming temperatures.

US wildlife officials on Friday will propose Endangered Species Act protections for the wolverine in the contiguous 48 states, a step denied under the Bush administration.

The Associated Press obtained details of the government's long-awaited ruling on the rare, elusive animal in advance of the announcement.
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Bizarro Earth

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 6.0 - 52km SW of Lata, Solomon Islands


US Geological Survey
Fri, 01 Feb 2013 13:22 UTC
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© USGS
Event Time
2013-02-01 05:36:40 UTC
2013-02-01 16:36:40 UTC+11:00 at epicenter

Location
11.090°S 165.538°E depth=9.3km (5.8mi)

Nearby Cities
52km (32mi) SW of Lata, Solomon Islands
522km (324mi) NNW of Luganville, Vanuatu
638km (396mi) ESE of Honiara, Solomon Islands
793km (493mi) NNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
1103km (685mi) N of We, New Caledonia
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