Alarming Water Loss in Middle East, NASA Study Says
Associated Press/ Fox News
A NASA study found that an amount of freshwater almost the size of the Dead Sea has been lost in parts of the Middle East due to poor management, increased demands for groundwater and the effects of a 2007 drought.
Obama Proposes ‘Meaningful Action’ On Climate Change
Kieran Mulvaney/ Discovery
President Barack Obama called for “meaningful progress” on tackling climate change in his State of the Union speech in Washington, DC on Tuesday night.
Senate Energy Committee Lawmakers Search for ‘Sweet Spot’ on Natural-Gas Exports
Zack Coleman/ The Hill
Republicans on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday said market forces would lead the country to the “sweet spot” for expanding natural-gas exports.
Alan Cowell/ New York Times
The top Iranian atomic energy official was quoted on Wednesday as saying that his country had begun to install more sophisticated enrichment devices at its Natanz nuclear site. The development coincided with the start of a new round of talks with negotiators from the United Nations nuclear watchdog.
Neighbors Prep Militaries After N. Korean Nuclear Test
Foster Klug and Hyung-Jim Kim/ Associated Press
North Korea’s neighbors bolstered their military preparations and mobilized scientists Wednesday to determine whether Pyongyang’s third nuclear test, conducted in defiance of U.N. warnings, was as successful as the North claimed.
U.S. Withdrawing 34,000 Troops From Afghanistan Within a Year
Reuters
President Barack Obama will announce in his State of the Union address on Tuesday that 34,000 troops – about half the U.S. force in Afghanistan – will withdraw by early 2014, a senior administration official said.
EU and US Free-Trade Talk Launched
BBC News
The European Union and the US will begin formal talks on a free-trade agreement, paving the way for the biggest trade deal in history.
ASP Published Today
Arguments About Coal Exports to Europe Miss the Point
Andrew Holland
Recently, there have been a spate of articles in the press saying that Europe’s increasing imports of coal undermines their leadership on climate and their ‘green’ credentials. This shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the European Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) in particular, and the nature of a market-based emissions cap (AKA cap-and-trade) system in general.
On Our Flashpoint Blog
Nuclear Priorities in the State of the Union
Brian Kastner
President Obama, in the State of the Union last night, highlighted some of the nuclear challenges the U.S. faces today.
Climate Change and Energy in the State of the Union
Nick Cunningham
The President spoke at length about climate change and energy in the State of the Union address. Here’s a look.
Matthew Wallin
While much of President Obama’s State of the Union Address focused on issues at home, he did take a moment to explore the importance of the American message.
