On Our Radar: Brazilian Forest Advocate and Wife Slain

José Cláudio Ribeiro da Silva, a Brazilian rain forest activist, and his wife are shot dead near their home in Para State, in the Amazon. In a speech last year, Mr. da Silva acknowledged that his work battling illegal loggers put him in grave danger. “I will protect the forest at all costs. That is why I could get a bullet in my head at any moment — because I denounce the loggers and charcoal producers,” he said. [The Guardian]

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Middle Eastern nations begin costly and energy-intensive attempts to tap their vast reserves of molasses-thick heavy crude oil. The process, which uses steam to melt the tar-like deposits, requires vast amounts of fresh water and energy to create steam, both in short supply in the region. [The Wall Street Journal]

Statistics show a steep decline in Britain’s carbon dioxide emissions in the last two decades, from 788 million tons in 1990 to 566 million tons in 2009. But when the emissions associated with imported goods are factored in, that decline is far less impressive. [Monbiot.com]