Coalition Urges Congress to Create a National Weather Commission. With much of the nation mired in drought and economic damages from extreme weather events mounting, a broad stakeholder coalition is calling on Congress to create a National Weather Commission to improve weather forecasting. Backers of the plan, which include private sector companies, professional associations and academic interests, said at a congressional briefing Thursday that such a commission would leverage public and private expertise to better predict extreme weather events, which last year inflicted an estimated $52 billion in damages in the United States alone. Congressional Quarterly

It's Not Too Late for Troubled Fisheries, Experts Say. A study published in Science magazine and co-authored by Bren School Sustainable Fisheries Group (SFG) researchers and their colleagues confirms suspicions that thousands of "data-poor" fisheries, representing some 80 percent of the world's fisheries, are in decline but could recover with proper management. Science Daily

Shell Rejects Total Warning Over Arctic Oil Search. Shell has rejected a plea from its French rival Total that the energy industry should abandon its search for oil in the Arctic on the grounds that a spill would ruin the reputation of any company involved. The Anglo-Dutch company, which was forced to halt its recent drilling operation in the Chukchi Sea after vital safety equipment broke, said it would continue its longer-term work. "At Shell, we believe the Arctic has significant untapped potential and will play an increasingly important role in meeting the energy challenge. It holds great opportunity and that comes with great responsibility," said a spokesman at the London headquarters. "Our experience working in rigorous and challenging conditions in the Arctic means that we are qualified to do the job right - to explore for offshore oil and gas in Alaska in a very safe and careful way," he added. The Guardian

Russia Reasserts Ownership Over the North Pole. A Russian Orthodox bishop has lowered a "holy memorial capsule" into the sea at the North Pole in an attempt to "consecrate" the Arctic and reassert Moscow's claims to the territory. The service was held by Bishop Iakov on the ice alongside the nuclear icebreaker Rossiya during a polar expedition titled "Arctic-2012", organised by the country's Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute. The metal capsule carried the blessings of the church's leader, bearing the inscription: "With the blessing of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the consecration of the North Pole marks 1150 years of Russian Statehood." Business Insider

Project and Protect US Interests in the Arctic. [Opinion] The United States needs to understand the challenges and opportunities in the Arctic, and adapt its policies and capabilities to the demands. The ice is melting in the Arctic, the winters are nasty as ever, the Chinese are courting Greenland, and happy 70th anniversary Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. Add in Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell's adroit inclusion of language last Saturday into the Coast Guard reauthorization bill to prevent decommissioning the Seattle-based Polar Sea icebreaker. All the elements are part of the emerging recognition that U.S. interests in the Arctic need representation and protection. New icebreakers for the Coast Guard are fundamental to that mission. Seattle Times