Earthweek: A Diary of the Planets (July 19, 2013)

Dying for Coal
Chinese living in heavily polluted northern areas of the country have their lives cut by an average of 5 1/2 years by airborne toxins compared to those living in the relatively cleaner south of the country.  A report published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences says that the widespread use of coal in the north is the main cause of the shorter life spams.  Using official data from Chinese sources, an American, an Israeli and two Chinese scholars found that decades of burning coal have led to more deaths from cardio-respiratory diseases for people living north of the Hati River, which is considered the dividing line between northern and southern China.  The use of coal in central heating systems in colder northern climates is the main reason for the high emissions.  Coal has also been used to feed the explosive growth of heavy industry there.
Rat-Free or Fail
U.K. wildlife experts say they could soon eradicate and ecologically damaging rodent brought to the remote South Atlantic island of South Georgia more than 200 years ago by whaling and sealing ships.  The common brown rat has since ravaged native and migratory birds, including ducks, diving petrels and prions.  The world's most ambitious rat-eradication campaign has now laid out toxic bait across 70 percent of the infested island.  Tony Martin, the project's director from the University of Dandee, told the BBC that every single rat must be killed to ensure the population doesn't rebound.  Martin says killing only 99.9 percent would be a failure.  Once the rats are gone, some of the native species can be reintroduced from smaller nearby islands that escaped being infested by the rats.
Injections Quakes
The deep injections into the ground of wastewater byproducts from hydaulic fracturing, or fracking, has caused a significant increase in U.S. earthquakes since the practice has recently become more widespread.  The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reports that there were more than 300 earthquakes above magnitude 3.0 from 2010 to 2012, which is a five-fold increase from the average number of 21 tremors per year measured from 1967 to 2000.  There are now more than 30,000 deep disposal wells in the country,typically injecting leftover fluids from fracking wells used to extract natural gas.  And while the actual practice of fracking has not been found to cause any significant seismic events, the far deeper injections of wastewater from the practice has.  Sometimes the water is pumped into deep, dormant faults.  USGS geologist William Ellsworth says that even faults that have not moved for millions of years can be made to slip.  But he points out that only a few of the approximately 30,000 wastewater wells appear to have caused the increase in tremors.
Ecuadoran Eruption
A violent eruptionof Ecuador's Tungurahua volcano sent a large plume of ash, stones and vapor soaring more than 8 miles into the sky above the Andes.  The explosion was heard across a wide stretch of the country.
Earthquakes
Eleven people were injured when a sharp quake struck near the Algerian capital of Algiers.
*   More than a dozen homes were wrecked by a 6.0 magnitude quake in a remote part of southern Peru.
*   Earth movements were also felt in northern India, Taiwan, the Dominican Republic and southern parts of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Typhoon Soulik
More than 100 people were confirmed dead after Typhoon Soulik unleashed floods and landslides that caused buildings to collapse in eastern China.  Two other fatalities were reported on Taiwan.
*   Tropical Storm Cimaron moved ashore a few days later just south of where Soulik made landfall.
Shark Haven
Marine scientists say the booming shark population inside Fiji's fishing reserve proves conservation efforts can help save the predatory fish from extinction.  Researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the University of Western Australia used baited underwater 3-D video systems to record data at eight sites within the reserve and at eight outside its boundaries.  Marine life was observed at both shallow and deeper depths.  Writing in the journal Coral Reefs, researchers say they found two to four times the number of sharks inside the sanctuary than outside, where fishing is allowed.  The most likely reason for higher shark densities within the reserve is a significantly higher availability of prey fish compared to adjacent, unprotected areas, the researchers said.  Shark populations have recently plunged in many areas of the world, mainly due to the demand for shark fins in Asia cuisine.  "The news from Fiji gives us solid proof that marine reserves can have positive effects on reef shark populations," said Caleb McClennen, director of the WCS Marine Program.