By Leonardo Benassatto BARAO DE COCAIS, Brazil (Reuters) - It was bad enough for Paulo de Morais when he was expelled in early February from the house where he lived for 22 years, in the shadow of a mining dam at risk of collapse. De Morais was evacuated with about 450 of his neighbours under orders from Brazil's mining agency, which feared a repeat of the catastrophe at Brumadinho 65 kilometres (40 miles) away. A dam collapse there in late January unleashed a wave of toxic mud that buried alive more than 240 Vale SA employees and neighbours. "From one day to the next everything changed," said Morais, who lived with his wife and two children in a red house he built himself just behind a 300-year-old church in the now-abandoned Brazilian community of Socorro. "Suddenly within five minutes we were ripped out by Vale. Ripped out, expelled from our homes," he said, leaning against a shack on a coffee farm where he moved after the evacuation. Morais now fears he will lose that home too. A … [Read more...] about Anger mounts at Vale in Brazil town at risk for new dam burst
Best dam segway tours
Oroville Dam: Two years after the mass evacuation, here’s where we are
After two years and more than $1 billion, the Oroville Dam spillway nears completion Jan. 24. Work continues on the concrete cap below the emergency spillway weir at the site in Oroville. (Kelly M. Grow — California Department of Water Resources) The controlled spillway is seen with very little water flowing Friday Jan. 27, 2017. (Bill Husa — Enterprise-Record) Sound The gallery will resume inseconds The Lake Oroville Dam controlled spillway has sustained erosion damage seen here Tues. Feb. 7, 2017. (Bill Husa — Enterprise-Record) DWR performed a 20,000 cfs test on the damaged Oroville Dam spillway on Feb. 8, 2017. (Bill Husa — Enterprise-Record) As more water makes it’s way down the damaged spillway, mud and debris spray and tumble as they find a new path to the Feather River at the Oroville Dam Spillway Wednesday Feb. 8, 2017. (Bill Husa — Enterprise-Record) Debris and muddy water flow out of the hole as DWR … [Read more...] about Oroville Dam: Two years after the mass evacuation, here’s where we are
Group finalizes endangered orcas proposals with ban on tours
Updated 3:29 pm PST, Friday, November 16, 2018 FILE - In this July 31, 2015 file photo, an orca leaps out of the water near a whale watching boat in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands, Wash. A Washington state task force on critically endangered Northwest orcas has offered its full slate of recommendations to Gov. Jay Inslee ahead of the next legislative session. The group advising the governor wants to temporarily suspend whale-watching boat tours focused on those whales, one of three dozen recommendations to save a population that is at its lowest in over 30 years. less FILE - In this July 31, 2015 file photo, an orca leaps out of the water near a whale watching boat in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands, Wash. A Washington state task force on critically endangered ... more Photo: Elaine Thompson, AP … [Read more...] about Group finalizes endangered orcas proposals with ban on tours
The White House is wooing tech workers to do tours of duty in government
WASHINGTON -- The White House is urging technology giants including Amazon.com, Google, Microsoft and IBM to make it easier for their workers to leave behind their big paychecks and snazzy office perks and do brief tours of duty in government. For the Trump administration, the hope is that private companies might encourage employees to take leaves of absence to help modernize state and federal agencies -- bringing a Silicon Valley sensibility to challenges like improving veterans' health care and combating cybersecurity threats. "The country benefits when patriotic citizens with technical expertise choose to serve at the federal, state or local level," said Christopher Liddell, deputy chief of staff for policy coordination.Attracting new tech talent always has been tricky for the federal government, given the slow process of hiring, the sensitive nature of background checks and security clearances, and the reality that public service pays far less than companies such as Google. But … [Read more...] about The White House is wooing tech workers to do tours of duty in government
White House wooing tech workers to do ‘tours of duty’ in government
By The Washington Post | | PUBLISHED: October 22, 2018 at 3:12 pm | UPDATED: October 22, 2018 at 3:31 pm By Tony Romm, The Washington Post The White House plans to convene technology giants including Amazon.com, Google, Microsoft and IBM on Monday and urge them to make it easier for their workers to leave behind their big paychecks and snazzy office perks and do brief tours of duty in government. For the Trump administration, the hope is private companies might encourage employees to take leaves of absence to help modernize state and federal agencies – bringing a Silicon Valley sensibility to challenges like improving veterans’ health care and combating cybersecurity threats. “The country benefits when patriotic citizens with technical expertise choose to serve at the federal, state or local level,” said Christopher Liddell, deputy chief of staff for policy coordination. Attracting new tech talent always has been tricky for the federal government, given the … [Read more...] about White House wooing tech workers to do ‘tours of duty’ in government