Libya vet steered Noah's ark of pets to safety
Tripoli (AFP) Oct 23, 2015 -
When evacuated foreigners left hundreds of pets behind at the outbreak of Libya's 2011 revolution, Tripoli vet Jalal Kaal braved missiles, militia checkpoints and long terrifying drives to reunite them with their owners.
"If I had to, I would do it again," says Kaal, a tall, slim 50-year-old man with smiling eyes.
When the popular uprising against longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi broke o ...
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Orange peels to combat mercury contamination
Adelaide, Australia (UPI) Oct 23, 2015 -
Researchers at the Australia's Flinders University have come up with a novel solution to the problem of mercury pollution - a polymer made of industrial waste.
Scientists have found a way to clean up waste with waste.
The polymer is made of sulphur and limonene. Millions of tons of sulphur are produced by the oil and gas industry every year, while thousands of tons of limonene ( ...
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Toxins remain in clothes long after manufacturing
Stockholm, Sweden (UPI) Oct 23, 2015 -
When researchers in Sweden tested dozens of garments from popular clothing lines, they found thousands of chemicals leftover from the manufacturing process.
Hundreds of the chemicals weren't listed by manufacturers. Scientists say these chemicals may be manufacturing byproducts or residues picked up during transport.
"Exposure to these chemicals increases the risk of allergic der ...
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Indonesian haze reaches the Philippines
Manila (AFP) Oct 23, 2015 -
Haze from Indonesian forest fires has spread to the southern and central Philippines, disrupting air traffic and prompting warnings for residents to wear face masks, authorities said Friday.
The large southern Philippine island of Mindanao is more than 1,200 kilometres (745 miles) from the nearest fires but the haze has become a worsening problem across the island over the past week, aviatio ...
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Methane from fracking sites can flow to abandoned wells, new study shows
Burlington VT (SPX) Oct 22, 2015 -
As debate roils over EPA regulations proposed this month limiting the release of the potent greenhouse gas methane during fracking operations, a new University of Vermont study funded by the National Science Foundation shows that abandoned oil and gas wells near fracking sites can be conduits for methane escape not currently being measured.
The study, to be published in Water Resources Res ...
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Greenpeace seeks to take over Vattenfall's German coal operations
Berlin (AFP) Oct 20, 2015 -
Greenpeace applied Tuesday to take over the German coal operations of Swedish energy giant Vattenfall, pledging to close them down to protect the climate.
The environmental group offered no money to the state-owned company, arguing that the lignite mines and power plants in eastern Germany are in fact a liability.
"The brown coal must stay in the ground," said Greenpeace, adding it would ...
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California 2100: More frequent and more severe droughts and floods likely
Richland WA (SPX) Oct 23, 2015 -
In the future, the Pacific Ocean's temperature cycles could disrupt more than just December fishing. A study published in Nature Communications suggests that the weather patterns known as El Nino and La Nina could lead to at least a doubling of extreme droughts and floods in California later this century.
The study shows more frequent extreme events are likely to occur. Other research show ...
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