Environment Forum
Global environmental challenges
from The Great Debate UK:
BP Gulf of Mexico crisis will transform the oil industry
-Kees Willemse is professor of off-shore engineering, Delft University. The opinions expressed are his own.-
The news that a huge metal cap has been successfully placed over several of the leaking oil vents at the Deepwater Horizon site marks a potential turning point in the Gulf of Mexico crisis.
It is already estimated that each day some 10-15,000 barrels of the oil that are spilling out into the ocean are being captured and diverted to ships on the sea surface.
Despite this engineering success, a complete end to the oil leakage is unlikely until new relief oil wells are completed -- a drilling process that could take most of the summer, and potentially into the autumn. This is because the newly installed metal cap is unlikely, even in the best case scenario, to stop all of the oil spilling out.
from The Great Debate UK:
Bringing a new perspective to World Water Day
- Dr. Ir. Jules B. van Lier is a professor at Delft University. The opinions expressed are his own. -
The international observance of World Water Day, this year on March 22, is an initiative that grew out of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. This year’s theme -- ‘Clean Water for a Healthy World’ -- reflects the fact that population and industrial growth are adding new sources of pollution and increased demand for clean water across the world.
from The Great Debate UK:
Beyond Copenhagen: sub-national solutions are now key
- Julian Hunt is visiting professor at Delft University and formerly director general of the UK meteorological office. Charles Kennel is distinguished professor of atmospheric science, emeritus and senior advisor to the sustainability solutions institute, UCSD. The opinions expressed are their own. -
The non-legally binding "deal" agreed at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen among the U.S., China, Brazil, South Africa and India, has brought to a conclusion what has proved an extraordinarily complex set of negotiations.
