世界环境资讯4.4

m-a-o-q-i

据CNN报道，周二强烈飓风席卷德克萨斯北部后，救援工作正在达拉斯的废墟中展开，力图找到并营救被困者。据悉有大约13起龙卷风登陆美国，摧毁至少150座房屋。

据《华尔街日报》， 尼泊尔某议会委员会已允许中国三峡集团在塞提河修建耗资16亿美元的水电站。上月中国投资方曾因尼泊尔政府对投标过程提出质疑而威胁撤资。

路透社称，日本鉴于公共安全，虽然面临供电紧缩仍决定延期重启近海核反应堆。能源部长枝野幸男说重开大井(Ohi)核电站仍需时间进行周密考虑。该电站在福岛灾难后首个在全国53个核电站中通过政府实施的压力测试。

另外，路透社援引日本专家的警告称，未来的近海地震可能会引发34米高的海啸，而日本海上防御系统还无法应对这种威胁。两项官方研究发布了极端情况测评修订版，并表示到达日本海岸的巨浪高度可能会超出预计。

《卫报》报道，国际能源机构（IEA）最新整理的数字显示，由于近十年石油价格飞涨，去年撒哈拉以南非洲国家获得的海外援助要少于他们进口石油所投入的资金。国际能源署经济学家法提赫·比罗尔表示，对发展中国家来说这个问题的解决办法是向可再生能源转移。

据BBC报道，英国政府投资10亿英镑再次尝试启动碳捕获产业，根据制定的方案，排放的二氧化碳在发电厂即被收集随后被压入地下。作为国家低碳战略的重要组成部分，此前已有项目着力发展此项技术，然而由于担心成本过高，九家参与公司退出，最终导致该项目搁浅。

路透社报道，法国能源公司道达尔正预备派遣专家队，前往事故所在地北海平台进行评估，并为遏制目前每天20万立方米的巨量天然气泄漏制定具体方案。环保人士警告说，此次泄漏已在海域附近形成极易爆炸性云团。如此一来，苏格兰将更难以达到今年制定的气候目标。

据《独立报》发布的一则报告，马特宏峰是阿尔卑斯山脉上的一座著名山峰，然而由于气候变化的影响，该山峰正面临开裂瓦解。据苏黎世大学的研究人员表示，山体的表面之下已发生微妙的变化，这是由于融水进入裂缝之中，而之后的冻结和解冻轮番周期发生，这已经造成大块的岩石脱落。

楼下英文版

m-a-o-q-i

April 04, 2012



A global environmental update



Rescuers were searching the Dallas area for anyone trapped in the rubble left behind by a string of violent tornadoes that swept through northern Texas on Tuesday,
CNN reported. Up to 13 twisters are believed to have touched down in the US state, destroying at least 150 homes.

A parliamentary committee in Nepal gave the go-ahead for China Three Gorges Corporation to build a US$1.6 billion hydroelectric dam on the Seti River, wrote the Wall Street Journal.The Chinese state-owned company had threatened to pull the plug on its investment last month after the Nepalese government raised concerns over the contract bidding process.

Japan said it would delay a decision on restarting two offline nuclear reactors, as public safety fears compete with concerns over constricted power supplies, Reuters said. Energy minister Yukio Edano said more time was needed to choose a date for switching on reactors at Ohi nuclear plant, the first of 53 sites closed after the Fukushima disaster to pass government-imposed stress tests.
Reuters also reported a warning from Japanese experts that the country’s sea defences are not robust enough to meet the threat of 34-metre high tsunamis, which could be triggered by future offshore earthquakes. Two official studies offered a revised worst-case scenario, and said much higher waves could hit Japan’s coast than previously thought.

New figures compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA), and seen by The Guardian, showed that countries in sub-Saharan Africa received less in overseas aid last year than they paid out for oil imports, following a decade of soaring prices. IEA economist Fatih Birol said the only solution is for developing countries to shift to renewable energy sources.

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French energy company Total was preparing to fly a team of experts to its stricken North Sea platform to assess options for stemming a leak that is spewing out 200,000 cubic metres of gas each day, Reuters said. Environmental campaigners warned the leak, which has formed a highly explosive cloud around the site, will make it harder for Scotland to meet its climate targets this year.

Climate change may be causing the Matterhorn, one of the most celebrated Alpine peaks, to physically disintegrate, a new report covered by The Independent suggested. Researchers at Zurich University said subtle shifts under the surface, triggered by melting water entering cracks and subsequent cycles of freezing and thawing, were causing lumps of rock to fall off the mountain.

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The British government renewed an attempt to kick start the carbon capture industry with a £1bn offer for schemes that will trap carbon dioxide from power stations and pump it underground, the BBC reported. An earlier programme to promote the technology – which is a key part of the country’s low-carbon strategy – collapsed after all nine entrants withdrew, blaming high costs.