July 31, 2014

AX NEARLY IMPALES WOMAN IN CAR ON HIGHWAY

TOPSFIELD, Mass. (KFSN) -- It was a scary moment on a highway north of Boston when an ax smashed through the windshield of a car.

Massachusetts State Police say the ax bounced out of a landscaper's dump truck at about 11 a.m. Wednesday on southbound Interstate 95 in Topsfield. They released a photo showing the ax with a corner of its blade stuck in the passenger side of the car's dashboard. The handle was sticking through the windshield.

Police say the car's passenger was "shaken up" but not hurt.

The truck driver, from Peabody, Massachusetts, was cited for failing to secure the ax, which carries a $200 fine.

Police say it could have been worse if the car's driver hadn't been obeying the 65 mph speed limit.

http://abc30.com/news/ax-nearly-impales-woman-in-car-on-highway/228840/



This picture comes courtesy of the Massachusetts State Police

July 25, 2014

Russia threatens to hit British companies in 'retaliation' for sanctions

Source: The Telegraph

Putin could seize assets of British oil companies, Russian diplomat warns, as war of words over sanctions intensifies

Russia has issued a threat to seize the assets of British companies including BP and Shell as a retaliation against David Cameron’s demand for tough sanctions.

In a mounting war of words, a senior diplomatic source claimed Moscow would “fight back” against any industry-wide EU sanctions by putting British companies working in Russia oil on the frontline.

“We want friendly relations. We will go along as far as we can. Then we will retaliate,” the figure said.

The official measures will include seizing the assets of British firms, adding: “BP and Shell have a lot of assets in Russia.”

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/10989627/Russia-threatens-to-hit-British-companies-in-retaliation-for-sanctions.html

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President Vladimir Putin (R) and Defence minister Sergei Shoigu (L) watching military exercises in the Pacific Ocean near the Sakhalin island Photo: AFP/Getty Images

July 16, 2014

Report: Industry proposes to phase out older tank cars

The oil industry and the railroad companies responsible for transporting crude oil, have offered U.S. regulators a plan that would phase out the type of older tanks cars connected to recent fiery derailments.

The proposal comes after pressure on Capitol Hill and in states impacted by crude-by-rail crashes has increased, raising expectations that regulators will update standards for the oil tankers transporting the product.

The plan also requires slightly thicker walls for new cars to protect them from punctures, according to people close to the proposal, Bloomberg reports.

All parties agreed to trash thousands of DOT-111s tank cars within three years if manufacturers say they can replace or retrofit the cars in that timeframe.

More: http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/212249-report-industry-proposes-to-phase-out-older-tank-cars

July 16, 2014

Brave duo attempts to schlep across Eurasia in solar-powered tuk-tuk

If you were going on a 6,200-mile road trip with a friend, you probably wouldn’t select a vehicle with a top speed of 25 mph. And you’d probably search for something with a lot of elbow and leg room. But Naveen Rabelli isn’t your average road tripper.

He’s devoted to sustainable living and wants to raise awareness for the potential of solar-powered vehicles. Rabelli plans to drive his tuk-tuk, a motorized rickshaw, to London. For an estimated 100 days, Rabelli and a companion will be locked in a very cozy passenger cabin.

“It will be quite challenging for both of us to fit in this tuk-tuk and to travel 10,000 kilometers, but I think that’s a whole part of the journey to understand the problems and make flexible solutions,” Rabelli explained in a video promoting his trip.

Raoul Kopacka was selected as his partner in part because his short stature makes it possible to sleep in the rear of the tuk-tuk.

More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/07/15/brave-duo-attempts-to-schlep-across-eurasia-in-solar-powered-tuk-tuk/

July 16, 2014

Texas judge upholds $3 million fracking verdict

A Texas judge upheld a $3 million jury verdict by ruling in favor of a family who claimed that oil and gas drilling near their land made them sick, in a landmark case hailed as a victory by anti-fracking activists.

Last week's ruling, confirmed by lawyers on Tuesday, is the latest step in a three-year case that began when Bob and Lisa Parr filed suit against a handful of oil companies claiming that fumes from drilling around their 40-acre (16-hectare) ranch exposed them and their livestock to hazardous gases and industrial chemicals.

Some of the initial claims related to hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, operations were settled out of court or dismissed, leaving the couple, who have a young daughter, to face Aruba Petroleum in a jury trial in Dallas County Court.

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The Parrs' case is one of the first complaints of its kind to make it in front of a jury. The family was featured in the anti-fracking documentary "Gasland Part II" by filmmaker Josh Fox

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101839316



Getty Images
Pump jacks and wells are seen in an oil field on the Monterey Shale formation where gas and oil extraction using hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is on the verge of a boom on March 23, 2014 near McKittrick, Calif.

July 14, 2014

New York Won't Keep Oil Train Details Secret

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York's homeland security agency is refusing requests from freight railroads to further restrict public information about their crude oil shipments, concluding it's not sensitive security information and will be given to local emergency planners.

Federal officials reached a similar conclusion in June, ordering railroads to give state officials details about oil-train routes and volumes so emergency responders can be better prepared for their duties.

Railroads sought to keep the information secret, arguing that information on oil train routes and volumes are security sensitive. The issue followed a string of fiery accidents. A derailment and explosion in Quebec last July killed 47 people.

Jerome Hauer, Homeland Security and Emergency Services commissioner, told CSX Transportation and Canadian Pacific Railway that New York won't adopt special non-disclosure agreements.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/12/new-york-oil-trains-secret_n_5579391.html


In this April 15, 2014 file photo, an oil-tank train with crude oil from the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota travels near Staples, Minn. (AP Photo/Mike Cronin,File) | ASSOCIATED PRESS

July 14, 2014

Seven small earthquakes rattle Oklahoma

This is the latest swarm in a state where a recent upsurge in seismic activity which may be linked to fracking

The U.S. Geological Survey has recorded seven small earthquakes shaking central Oklahoma in a span of just about 14 hours.

<snip>

Those follow four other quakes, including a 4.3-magnitude temblor near Langston recorded shortly after noon Saturday. The other Saturday morning quakes ranged in magnitude from 2.9 to 3.2.

Residents in central Oklahoma have said they want to know whether the surge in earthquake activity in the region is caused by oil and gas drilling operations in the area. Last month, Oklahoma City’s KOCO news reported that Oklahoma has had nearly double the number of earthquakes as California, local news reported after five earthquakes on Thursday morning rattled an area of the state where oil and gas drilling is prevalent.

At the Seismological Society of America’s annual meeting in May, scientists said that underground disposal of vast amounts of wastewater generated by fracking likely induce earthquakes by changing the state of stress on existing faults.

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/7/13/seven-earthquakesoklahoma.html

July 14, 2014

Who is shaping the nation's railroad safety rules?

WASHINGTON • A string of fiery train derailments across the country has triggered a high-stakes but behind-the-scenes campaign to shape how the government responds to calls for tighter safety rules.

Billions of dollars are riding on how these rules are written, and lobbyists from the railroads, tank car manufacturers and the oil, ethanol and chemical industries have met 13 times since March with officials at the White House and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

Their universal message: Don't make us pay for increased safety because that's another industry's problem.

<snip>

Since 2008, there have been 10 significant derailments in the U.S. and Canada in which crude oil has spilled from ruptured tank cars, often resulting in huge fireballs. A year ago this month, a runaway train with 72 tank cars of crude en route from the Bakken to a refinery in Canada hurtled into the Quebec town of Lac-Megantic, exploded and killed 47 people.

http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/who-is-shaping-the-nation-s-railroad-safety-rules/article_87cfc631-3db4-595f-b0f1-a3e02058820f.html



FILE - This July 6, 2013 file photo shows smoke rising from railway cars carrying crude oil after derailing in downtown Lac Megantic, Quebec. A string of fiery train derailments across the country has triggered a high-stakes and behind-the-scenes campaign to shape how the government responds to calls for tighter safety rules. Billions of dollars are riding on how these rules are written, and lobbyists from the railroads, tank car manufacturers and the oil, ethanol and chemical industries have met more than a dozen times since mid-May 2014 with officials at the White House and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Their universal message: Don’t make us pay for increased safety _ that’s another industry’s problem. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Paul Chiasson, File)

July 12, 2014

Tepco Says Fukushima Reactors Undamaged by 6.8 Magnitude Quake

Source: Bloomberg

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (9501)’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power station, crippled by a tsunami in March 2011, was undamaged by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of the area today.

Inspections and monitoring showed “no abnormality” at the power facilities including reactors and workers were safe, the company said in an e-mailed statement. The earthquake triggered a tsunami of about 30 centimeters (1 foot), it said.

The quake struck at 4:22 a.m. local time and its epicenter was about 140 kilometers (87 miles) off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture at a depth of about 10 kilometers, Japan’s Meteorological Agency said on its website.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-12/tepco-says-fukushima-reactors-undamaged-by-6-8-magnitude-quake.html?

July 11, 2014

Major New Study Says Obamacare Is Working — Even For Republicans

The Affordable Care Act has been successful at achieving some major goals in the first year of its full implementation, according to a new study from The Commonwealth Fund.

There are three important findings from the study: The uninsured rate is dropping, most people like their new insurance plans (even Republicans!), and most people are finding it easy to visit a doctor.

The study found the uninsured rate in the U.S. declined by one-quarter over the last nine months, which included the law's first, six-month open-enrollment period in which individuals could sign up for private insurance plans through exchanges established by the law.

From the July-to-September 2013 period to the April-to-June 2014 period, the uninsured rate of people between the ages of 19-64 dropped from 20% to 15%, according to the study. The research found 9.5 million people gained insurance, either through the exchanges or through the law's expansion of the federal Medicaid program.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/study-obamacare-reduces-uninsured-rate-2014-7#ixzz378RZASv1

The findings show the law has been successful at reducing the uninsured rate among the poor — which was, of course, one of its main goals: