Author Archives: Emily Holbrook

About Emily Holbrook

Emily Holbrook is a former editor of the Risk Management Monitor and Risk Management magazine. You can read more of her writing at EmilyHolbrook.com.
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Could Hydrofracking Cause Cancer?

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Hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking), or the fracturing of rocks far below the earth’s surface for the recovery of oil and natural gas, has become a hot topic of conversation among conservatives, liberals and environmentalists, to name just a few interested parties. And most would agree — fracking is a controversial issue.

Environmentalists denounce the idea because of the risks posed to not only the environment, but also to humans.

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In fact, a recent Democratic report states that millions of gallons of hazardous chemicals and known carcinogens were injected into wells by leading oil and gas service companies.

Between 2005 and 2009, drillers injected 32 million gallons of fluids containing diesel into wells in 19 states, an investigation by Representative Henry A.

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Waxman (D-Calif.) concludes. Just as it recovers its footing from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the Administration faces a new threat, again involving a risky drilling technology and charges of lax regulation. Obama is “evaluating the need for new safeguards for drilling,” says White House spokesman Clark W. Stevens. “It’s likely that the science is going to say we need to regulate fracking,” says Tyson Slocum, director of the energy program for Public Citizen, a liberal advocacy group.

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“But Obama’s political team is going to say don’t regulate, and I think the political team will win.”

Though the Democratic report may ignite a firestorm, there are some who truly believe in the benefits of fracking. Scientists claim that switching to natural gas, the cleanest of the fossil fuels, could help slow the approach of climate change by cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 17%.

So with growing criticism towards fracking, but staunch supporters of the gas extraction method, we are left to make our own conclusions. Do the risks outweigh the benefits?

Check out the June issue of Risk Management for an in-depth article on the risks fracking presents to the insurance and reinsurance industry.

Deadly Storms Ravage Plains, Move East

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Residents of Oklahoma and Arkansas were met with the wrath of Mother Nature late yesterday as tornadoes ripped through the two states, killing at least five and causing massive damage.

“We have two fatalities and 15 people taken to the hospital with injuries,” said Capt. Jeff Sewell with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. “There’s a tremendous amount of property damage,” he said. “Cars have been blown together. A lot of electric wires are down all over the place. Several houses were totally destroyed.”

Another three fatalities occurred in Arkansas and are being blamed on falling trees. The massive storm is not stopping there; Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee are bracing for severe weather today, while Georgia and the Carolinas will likely see strong storms later this evening and into Saturday.

Severe thunderstorms cause significant destruction and large insured losses, as we can see from this excerpt of the Insurance Information Institute’s website:

This comes just five days after a record-setting 10 tornadoes touched down in Wisconsin. Footage of which can be seen in this video:

RIMS President Urges Members to Give to Japan

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As stated on the RIMS homepage, the Risk and Insurance Management Society’s president, Scott B. Clark, is urging members to give to Japan as the country works to slowly bring itself back to pre-earthquake and tsunami status. Clark was in Japan when the quake hit and felt first-hand the power of mother nature over seemingly helpless humans.

When the earthquake hit, I was in Tokyo, having just arrived to attend the Japan Chapter of RIMS’ annual meeting. My partner, Peter, and I were with Yoshi Hamaji, president of the Japan Chapter, when the quake struck and at the time, we didn’t realize the extent of the tragedy. As we were able to receive news updates and the true extent of the devastation became clear, it was difficult for us, as for the rest of the world, to comprehend.

Experiencing such a tragic event would touch anyone on a personal level, as it has Clark. Feeling the need to do something about it, he has asked each RIMS chapter to match his chapter’s (RIMS Greater Miami) donation of $1,000 to the American Red Cross’ relief efforts in Japan.

Click here to read more of Clark’s writing about his experience in Japan and his call to action.

Click here to go directly to the American Red Cross donation page.

2011 Hurricane Predictions

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It may turn out to be a rough hurricane season ahead if forecasts from the team at Colorado State University prove true. The somewhat famous team (at least in these circles) of Dr. William Gray and Phil Klotzbach, predicted back in December that there would be 17 named storms. Late last week, that prediction was adjusted as the CSU team issued their latest hurricane predictions: 16 named storms, nine hurricanes and five major hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 mph or greater.

“We expect that anomalously warm tropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures combined with neutral tropical Pacific sea surface temperatures will contribute to an active season,” said Phil Klotzbach of the CSU Tropical Meteorology Project. “We have reduced our forecast slightly from early December due to a combination of recent ocean warming in the eastern and central tropical Pacific and recent cooling in the tropical Atlantic.”

Though forecasts were adjusted downward slightly, Dr. Gray issued a warning:

“We remain – since 1995 – in a favorable multi-decadal period for enhanced Atlantic Basin hurricane activity, which is expected to continue for the next 10-15 years or so,” said Gray. “Except for the very destructive hurricane seasons of 2004-2005, United States coastal residents have experienced no other major landfalling hurricanes since 1999. This recent 9 of 11-year period without any major landfall events should not be expected to continue.”

The team’s probabilities for a major hurricane making landfall on U.S. soil breaks down as follows:

  • 72% chance that at least one major hurricane will make landfall on the U.S. coastline in 2011 (the long-term average probability is 52%)
  • A 48% chance that a major hurricane will make landfall on the U.S. East Coast, including the Florida Peninsula (the long-term average is 31%)
  • A 47% chance that a major hurricane will make landfall on the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle west to Brownsville (the long-term average is 30%)
  • 61% chance of a major hurricane tracking into the Caribbean (the long-term average is 42%)

Check out the May issue of Risk Management (available online May 1) for an article on the 2011 hurricane season and the science behind hurricane names.