Disasters

"A photojournalist charters a flight to see just how close Shell's offshore rig is to the protected Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Turns out a photo is worth a lot more than a bunch of GPS coordinates."

"The floodwaters are swelling, but the resources needed to confront them are shriveling up. That's the frustrating reality that state dam officials face as they confront added stress to the thousands of structures they regulate."

"The South Korean government on Monday designated the area around a chemical spill in the southeastern city of Gumi a special disaster zone, after more than 3,000 people were injured. On 27 September, an explosion at the Hube Globe chemical plant released about eight tonnes of hydrofluoric acid, which can damage lungs and bones and affect the nervous system. The leak killed five workers and injured 18 others, according to the state-run Yonhap news agency."

"Monsoon floods in Pakistan have killed 371 people and affected nearly 4.5 million, the government's disaster relief agency said on Friday."

"Disposed World War II explosives and munitions in the Gulf of Mexico pose a threat to offshore oil drilling, according to Texas oceanographers."

"SALT LAKE CITY -- The operator of the Utah mine that collapsed in 2007, killing nine people, has reached a $949,351 settlement with the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration over safety violations."

"OMAHA, Neb. -- A Nebraska environmental group wants federal regulators to keep the Fort Calhoun nuclear plant shut down because it would be inundated by floodwaters in the unlikely event of a dam failing upstream."

"The Clean Nebraska group said Wednesday that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's own assessment of the flood threat at the plant about 20 miles north of Omaha predicts all major equipment at Fort Calhoun would be flooded if the Oahe dam on the Missouri River failed.

"Energy companies should not drill for crude oil in Arctic waters because the environmental risks are too high, Total SA Chief Executive Officer Christophe de Margerie said in the Financial Times on Wednesday."

"The newspaper described de Margerie's comments as the first time a major oil company has publicly criticised offshore exploration in the Arctic.

The risk of an oil spill in such an environmentally sensitive area was simply too high, according to de Margerie."

"Global grain production is expected to hit record levels this year, despite the drought that gripped most of the Midwest, the Worldwatch Institute said in a report released yesterday."

"Global weather conditions are taking their toll on the artery-clogging guilty pleasure known as bacon. A world pork shortage is now 'unavoidable' says Britain’s National Pig Association (NPA)."