Each week, we review the papers, studies, reports, and briefings posted at the “indispensable” RFF Library Blog, curated by RFF Librarian Chris Clotworthy. Check out this week’s highlights below:
Hydraulic Fracturing and Water Stress: Water Demand by the Numbers
America’s oil and gas rush is depleting water supplies in the driest and most drought-prone areas of the country, from Texas to California, new research has found. Of the nearly 40,000 oil and gas wells drilled since 2011, three-quarters were located in areas where water is scarce, and 55% were in areas experiencing drought, the report by the Ceres investor network found. — via The Guardian
Birth Outcomes and Maternal Residential Proximity to Natural Gas Development in Rural Colorado
Pregnant women living in areas with a large number of oil and gas wells within 10 miles of their home are more likely to give birth to children with congenital heart defects compared with women not exposed to any wells, according to a limited new study. — via Environmental Health Perspectives
Implementation Plan for The National Strategy for the Arctic Region
The Obama Administration released the Implementation Plan for the National Strategy for the Arctic Region, itself released in May 2013. The main lines of effort of the Strategy and the Implementation Plan are: (1) to advance US security interests; (2) to pursue responsible Arctic region stewardship, including an increase in scientific research related to the region; and (3) to strengthen international cooperation... — via Green Car Congress
Exploring Climate Finance Effectiveness
Ensuring that climate finance is used effectively will help to maximise its impact. The effectiveness of climate finance can be defined as the extent to which an activity attains its stated aims. These aims can vary, depending on the source of climate finance and how it is channeled. There are therefore different views on what “effective” climate finance is... — via OECD
Oil Sands Emissions Greatly Underestimated: Univ. of Toronto Study
Results from a new modeling assessment of contamination in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) suggest that officially reported emissions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in that region have been greatly underestimated… — via Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
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