Abstracts: Oil Pipeline Protests, Flood Risk, and More
• Today, the Justice Department put a halt to construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline near the Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s land, which they say will threaten their water supply. (Washington Post)
• According to researchers working with NOAA, the chances of major floods along the Gulf Coast have increased by at least 40 percent since 1990 due to climate change. (Slate)
• According to a new report, auditors have “concerns” about how the Oregon Department of Energy issued $347 million in energy tax credits to large businesses. The audit did not find evidence of fraud, but did find “circumstantial evidence of suspicious behavior.” (Oregonian)
• Last week, President Obama traveled to Midway Atoll and discussed his successes and failures in combatting climate change as president. (New York Times)
• Astronauts going up into space face a number of health effects, including the impact of radiation and weightlessness on their minds. Studies suggest the space travel may dull us mentally. (Nautilus)
• Research done deep in the jungle of the highest mountains in the Philippines not only identified 28 new species, but overturned a basic tenant of biology — that as elevation goes up, the number of species must go down. (Atlantic)
• The drought in Massachusetts has gotten so bad that the state’s governor has announced a loan fund to assist small farms and businesses. (Boston Globe)
• In a heated election year, Zika is becoming a political tool — even as Congress refused to commit any money to combat Zika for the third time. (Miami Herald)
• And finally, according to the CDC, in 2014, Alabama was the least precise state in reporting drug overdoses; only 48 percent of death certificates from Alabama overdose victims listed the drugs involved. (Sun Herald)