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News Archive 2009 back to archive main page

ENVIRONMENT: Could Food Shortages Bring Down Civilisation? WASHINGTON, Sep 29 (IPS) - In early 2008, Saudi Arabia announced that, after being self-sufficient in wheat for over 20 years, the non-replenishable aquifer it had been pumping for irrigation was largely depleted. See also: Climate change will hit developing world harvests hardest - Nature	30th September 2009
Common environments, Diggers, and Climate Campers Thoughts on the relationship between food issues, rural movements, and Climate Camps. To be more specific: this post mainly compares the distinct focuses and limitations of the Diggers' movement toward agricultural autonomy, and the Climate Campers' rallies and interventions against coal plants, airport expansion projects, and other commercially-driven operations. read more	30th September 2009
'Catastrophic warming in our lifetimes' Study says 4C rise in temperature could happen by 2060 Increase could threaten water supply of half world populationUnchecked global warming could bring a severe temperature rise of 4C within many people's lifetimes, according to a new report for the British government that significantly raises the stakes over climate change.The study, prepared for the Department of Energy and Climate Change by scientists at the Met Office, challenges the assumption that severe warming will be a threat only for future generations, and warns that a catastrophic 4C rise in temperature could happen by 2060 without strong action on emissions.Officials from 190 countries gather today in Bangkok to continue negotiations on a new deal to tackle global warming, which they aim to secure at United Nations talks in December in Copenhagen. See also: The Four Degrees No rainforest, no monsoon: get ready for a warmer world	30th September 2009
"Climate illiterate" U.S. seen risking warming inaction OXFORD, England (Reuters) - U.S. wavering on climate commitment could undermine action to save the planet, the director of Germany's Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research said on the sidelines of a conference on Monday.	30th September 2009
Cassandras of Climate - New York Times New York TimesCassandras of ClimateNew York Times... event can be attributed to global warming. The point, however, is that climate change will make events like that Australian dust storm much more common. ...and more	30th September 2009
Life altering planetary experience - CNews Insurance companies, politicians, and businesspeople often use the expressions natural disaster or act of God to deflect responsibility for events beyond our control. Today, human activity and technology have become so powerful that we are contributing to what were once natural disasters.	30th September 2009
Two meter sea level rise unstoppable: experts OXFORD, England (Reuters) - A rise of at least two meters in the world's sea levels is now almost unstoppable, experts told a climate conference at Oxford University on Tuesday. [The key words are "after temperatures stabilized". - and how is that going to happen?] See also: Sea level rise could lead to 'ghost states'	30th September 2009
On Cathedrals, Dreams and Climate What do cathedrals and climate policy have in common?	30th September 2009
Post-human Earth: How the planet will recover from us If our civilisation collapses, what will happen to the planet itself? The best way to work that out might be like is to look back at the Earth's past See also: Let's Talk Paleoclimatology	30th September 2009
Drought Threatens Ukraine's Winter Crops, Weather Center Says - Bloomberg Sept. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Winter-grain sowing in Ukraine, the world's biggest barley exporter, is under threat because of drought, the state-run Hydrometeorology Center said.	30th September 2009
Kenya's heart stops pumping Kenya's 'paradise' lake vanishes as forests fall See also: East Africa drought in fifth year, millions hungry - Reuters via Yahoo!7 News	30th September 2009
Drought looming Disastrous drought threaten Iraq's farmlands	30th September 2009
India drought 'worst since 1972' - BBC News India suffered its weakest monsoon for nearly 40 years, the country's meteorological department says.	30th September 2009
Climate change will hit developing world harvests hardest - Nature Report quantifies link between global warming and food security.	30th September 2009
Dust storms spread deadly diseases worldwide - Guardian Unlimited Dust storms like the one that plagued Sydney are blowing bacteria to all corners of the globe, with viruses that will attack the human body. Yet these scourges can also help mitigate climate change	30th September 2009
Prolonged Drought and Salinity Threaten Water Supplies in Australian City Portions of Australia's largest river are running so low and have become so salty because of a crippling drought and increased consumption that the nation's fifth-largest city may soon have to deliver bottled water to its residents. Government officials warn that some stretches of the Murray River could be undrinkable by next week, particularly in 11 rural townships east of the city of Adelaide. Salinity levels in parts of the river already are higher than the World Health Organization's recommended drinking water standard. Experts point to population growth, increased agriculture use, and a decade-long drought as contributing factors. See also: The Great Repatriation	30th September 2009
Climate link to rise of parasite - BBC News Vets are warning warmer and wetter weather is leading to an increase of a parasite that can be fatal to livestock.	30th September 2009
The Saviour of Africa - and the Environment? An Exclusive Interview With Nobel Prize-winner Wangari Maathai "As human beings, we are attacking our own life-support system," she says. "And if we carry on like this, we are digging our own grave."	30th September 2009
California establishes nation's first statewide carbon fee - CNews Despite industry objections and threats of lawsuits, California air regulators on Friday approved the nation's first statewide carbon fee on utilities, oil refineries and other polluting industries.	30th September 2009
NIKE Quits Chamber of Commerce Board Over Climate Rift The exodus continues. Nike announced today that the company simply cannot stand by and watch the Chamber of Commerce continue its campaign to derail much-needed action to address climate change. So Nike Just Did It. Here is Nike's statement [PDF copy courtesy of NRDC here]: Nike believes US businesses must advocate for aggressive climate change legislation and that the United States needs to move rapidly into a sustainable economy to remain competitive and ensure continued economic growth.As we've stated, we fundamentally disagree with the US Chamber of Commerce on the issue of climate change and their recent action challenging the EPA is inconsistent with our view that climate change is an issue in need of urgent action.We believe businesses and their representative associations need to take an active role to invest in sustainable business practices and innovative solutions. See also: Strike Three: Exelon Leaves Chamber of Commerce Over Climate Stance	30th September 2009
G20 leaders fail on climate, as civil society challenges them to act It was the week that wasn't at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, at least when it comes to seeing any strong commitment from world leaders on the issue of climate change. read more	30th September 2009
India to launch energy-efficiency trading - Financial Times India plans to launch a domestic energy-efficiency trading scheme as part of its efforts to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and combat climate change.	30th September 2009
A Subsidy By Any Other Name There’s the real world. And then there’s “Daily Telegraph world”, a fantasy mindscape, it seems to me. In yet another piece that seems to be written for the sole purpose of attacking wind power, massaged in under the banner of standing up for the fuel poor :- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/6236920/Taxing-the-fuel-poor-to-bolster-subsidised-companies-is-a-waste-of-energy.html is this outstanding piece of reporting about Atomic Energy in the United Kingdom :- “Nuclear, by contrast, is unsubsidised.” Now, call me picky, but all it takes is a brief history of time to discount this theory. What about all the “re-financing” of British Energy that happened a few years ago ?	30th September 2009
James Hansen on Obama, climate legislation, and the scourge of coal by Nell Greenberg Cross-posted from Earth Island Institute.A recent article in the New York Times pointedly asked whether NASA climate scientist Dr. James Hansen still matters. The subtext to the story was, has Hansen been too vocal and too unconventional in his criticism of Washington's response to climate change to be taken seriously?Hansen, dubbed by some as the father of global warming, has been connecting the dots between science and politics since his groundbreaking 1988 testimony to Congress about the greenhouse effect. In the last year, however, Hansen has gone far beyond talking about climate change.	30th September 2009
EU, U.S. eye green goods tax pact in climate fight NEW YORK (Reuters) - The European Union and the United States are holding talks on forging a pact with OECD countries and China to eliminate duties on green goods as part of incentives to Beijing in a potential global climate deal.	30th September 2009
What Makes Europe Greener than the U.S.? The average American produces three times the amount of CO2 emissions as a person in France. A U.S. journalist now living in Europe explains how she learned to love her clothesline and sweating in summer. BY ELISABETH ROSENTHAL	30th September 2009
We need climate change action, not Kyoto II Climate is too complex an issue to get in one gulp. If Copenhagen can pave the way for practical steps, an agreement can waitThe Copenhagen climate-change negotiations are 10 weeks off, and time has run out to reach a detailed international agreement. Yet failure to reach a comprehensive agreement need not be a cataclysm, if the US, Europe, China, India and a few others take some important practical steps while a new protocol continues to be negotiated.The UN summit on climate change last week, followed by the Pittsburgh G20, made clear the broad global consensus on the seriousness of the climate crisis, and the need to act.	30th September 2009
Asia-Pacific at risk if climate change ignored: ADB BANGKOK (Reuters) - Asia-Pacific countries face food and energy shortages, worsening poverty and declining crop yields if they ignore climate change, according to studies released on Wednesday.	30th September 2009
Engineering giants follow the money to green power SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A green power building spree is on the way, and much of it will be brought to you by the same people who built the nuclear and coal-fired power plants that keep the lights on now.	30th September 2009
World religions plead for action at climate talks - AP via Yahoo! Asia News Adherents of the world's major religions urged political leaders, businessmen and individuals Wednesday to renounce short-term gains and greed, telling a U.N. climate conference in Bangkok that reversing global warming is a moral duty.	30th September 2009

The people's planet: On the road to Copenhagen - Independent Eco-campaigners offer their own solutions to climate change ahead of the UN summit in New York this week – a meeting that holds the key to striking a new 'Kyoto' treaty in Denmark in December.	20th September 2009
China hydropower to near double by 2020: state media - AFP via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News China's hydropower capacity is expected to nearly double to 300,000 megawatts by 2020, state media said, as the nation powers ahead with the development of renewable energy sources. [suppose it's a bit better than coal...]	20th September 2009
Danish Conservative Prepares for Climate Debate - International Herald Tribune Denmark's minister of climate and energy will host United Nation-sponsored global climate treaty negotiations in December.	20th September 2009
Drought-stricken streams threaten California salmon - Greenwich Time California's third year of drought has worsened the already dire outlook for endangered coho salmon, as coastal creeks used for spawning dwindle into disconnected pools where fish get trapped and die.	20th September 2009
SOUTH ASIA: Disunity Hovers over a Region Battling Climate Change KATHMANDU, Sep 20 (IPS) - As the Copenhagen Conference on climate change draws nearer, South Asia, which appears poised for severe threats from the impacts of climate change, faces a stiff challenge on two fronts.	20th September 2009
United States: The great success of a carbon trading failure It happened in Europe earlier this year for the second time. And now it has happened again.	20th September 2009
Research: Climate change a threat to crops worldwide - The Montclarion RALEIGH Even if global temperatures rise slowly, climate change could slash the yields of some of the world's most important crops almost in half, according to a new study co-authored by a North Carolina State University scientist.	20th September 2009
A lot more work needs to be done on climate change: Rudd - Sydney Morning Herald Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has warned there's still a lot of work to be done if the world is to reach agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Copenhagen in December.	20th September 2009
Japan eyes mandatory cap-and-trade in 2011/12-Nikkei - AlertNet Source: Reuters (For more on Japanese politics, click [ID:nPOLJP]) TOKYO, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Japan's new government wants to introduce a compulsory cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gas emissions as early as the ...	20th September 2009
Sarkozy, Merkel want carbon tax on imports - SpaceDaily PARIS, Sept 18 (AFP) Sep 18, 2009 The leaders of France and Germany called Friday for the United Nations to support a carbon tax on imports from countries who fail to back international efforts to fight global warming. See also: U.S. group urges "peace clause" in Senate climate bill	19th September 2009
Climate-Related Business Surges Past Aerospace and Defense Sectors The world s climate-related business sector grew by 75 percent in 2008, with revenues climbing to $530 billion, passing global aerospace or defense industries, HSBC Global Research has reported. By 2020 it could reach $2 trillion, far exceeding a 2006 Stern Review analysis that predicted climate-related revenues reaching $500 billion by 2050. HSBC analysts say revenue has shattered forecasts because more and more businesses are adapting their business models in the face of climate change concerns. Seventy-six percent of revenue occurred in the United States, Japan, France, Germany, and Spain. To reach the projected $2 trillion figure by 2020, the report notes, the climate sector will need continued government support and the world must continue to change the types of energy it produces.	19th September 2009
China’s rearview mirro r Even as China overtakes the US in the dubious category of world s leading greenhouse gas producer, it is also well ahead of the US in developing the technologies and policies to solve the problem and selling those solutions to us at massive profits which could have been ours. On a recent trip, I saw entire Chinese towns powered by farm waste and enough windmills for jousts with ten thousand Don Quixotes. As you read this, China will have just surpassed the US as the leading producer of wind turbines, many of which are exported at very high margins.	19th September 2009
CBS’s Declan McCullagh promotes another false CEI attack on clean energy reform by Brad Johnson Cross-posted from Wonk Room. According to Declan McCullagh, a libertarian blogger who works for CBS Interactive, secret Obama administration documents reveal that the cost of clean energy cap-and-trade legislation would be $1,761 per household despite official estimates from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Congressional Budget Office, and the Energy Information Administration of about a postage stamp a day. Based on Treasury Department documents acquired by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), McCullagh claims that a cap and trade law would cost American taxpayers up to $200 billion a year, the equivalent of hiking personal income taxes by about 15 percent ... See also: U.S. climate bill could cut GDP 3.5 percent by 2050	19th September 2009
Giles Slade: Methane Seeps Into the UN - The Huffington Post Pure methane gas is now bubbling up from underwater vents across our polar regions and escaping into the atmosphere where it adds to global-warming.	19th September 2009
Sea Stars Grow Faster as Water Warms - LiveScience.com via Yahoo! News Climate change will deal clams, mussels, and other marine bivalves a double whammy. Biologists already expect them to have trouble making their shells because elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) levels will acidify seawater. Now it seems they'll also have to contend with brawnier predatory starfish.	19th September 2009
Severe drought affects 1.3 million in Syria - The Christian Science Monitor More than 800,000 people have lost their livelihoods in a four-year dry spell exacerbated by climate change and rising food prices. Almost half of them live in urban makeshift camps.	19th September 2009
Drought in China leads to water shortages - UPI CHONGQING, China, Sept. 19 (UPI) -- A severe drought has led to a shortage of drinking water for 1.5 million people in south and central China, a government spokesman said.	19th September 2009
Kumi Naidoo: Will world leaders hear this global wakeup call? Next week President Obama and more than 100 world leaders gather at the United Nations in New York for the Climate Summit, in what will be an intriguing precursor to December s crucial climate talks in Copenhagen.	19th September 2009
Coal - Sept 17 - Energy Bulletin -World Bank spends billions on coal-fired power stations -EPA moves to block W.Va.'s largest mining permit -"The Coal Nightmare" read more	18th September 2009
Developing countries and global warming A bad climate for development - Economist TreehuggerDeveloping countries and global warming A bad climate for developmentEconomistCounting the cost of global warming is hard because no one really knows how much to attribute to climate change and how much to other factors. ...Poorer Countries Hardest Hit by Climate ChangeVoice of AmericaOp-Ed Contributor The Ice Is MeltingNew York TimesClimate change threat for developing nationsBusiness StandardBNET -Air Options -Treehuggerall 49	18th September 2009
Contraception vital in climate change fight: expert LONDON (Reuters) - Contraception advice is crucial to poor countries' battle with climate change, and policy makers are failing their people if they continue to shy away from the issue, a leading family planning expert said on Friday. See also: POPULATION: Where's Family Planning on Climate Change Radar? Population - Energy Bulletin Sept 17	18th September 2009
NOAA Reports World's Oceans Had Warmest Summer Temperatures on Record Surface temperatures of the world's oceans were warmer this summer than for any Northern Hemisphere summer since records were first kept in 1880, according to data released by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. From June to August, ocean temperatures reached an average of 62.5° F worldwide, about 1.04° warmer than the 20th century average of 61.5°. NOAA s National Climatic Data Center also reported that the average global land and ocean temperature for August was the second-warmest on record, behind only 1998.	18th September 2009
Volcanoes stirred by climate change - Nature Impact of global warming on geological hazards 'poorly understood', experts warn.	18th September 2009
Invasive species on the march: variable rates of spread set current limits to predictability - EurekAlert! ( National Science Foundation ) Whether for introduced muskrats in Europe or oak trees in the United Kingdom, zebra mussels in United States lakes or agricultural pests around the world, scientists have tried to find new ways of controlling invasive species by learning how these animals and plants take over in new environs.	18th September 2009
Almost 4 million Kenyans on food aid as drought deepens - Guardian Unlimited The devastating drought sweeping across Kenya is causing widespread hunger, thirst and, in the case of cattle, death.	18th September 2009
Global Warming - Can Self-interest And Science Save Australia, US And The Planet? By Dr Gideon PolyaThe World is facing a Climate Emergency but you wouldnt think so from the response by governments. Carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration in the atmosphere is 390 parts per million (ppm), well outside the range of 180-300 ppm over the last 600,000 years during which Man (Homo sapiens) finally evolved	18th September 2009
India ready to quantify emission cuts: minister - Gulf Times India is ready to quantify the amount of planet-warming gas emissions it could cut with domestic actions to fight climate change, the environment minister said yesterday, but added it will not accept internationally binding targets.	18th September 2009
A warming world will make love and war minor concerns If documentaries are the new rock and roll, then it's time for the world to face the music about climate change"But didn't Al Gore already make the climate change documentary?" has been a common question over the five years we've been making The Age of Stupid. It never fails to raise a weary smile. Casablanca had already done love, so why bother with Brokeback Mountain? Apocalypse Now did war. What's the point of Three Kings?Love and war will soon become minor concerns, as the full horrors of climate change begin to unfold.When I started my first documentary, McLibel, I never for a moment thought it would have any effect on that immovable corporate mountain called McDonald's.	18th September 2009
Cutting carbon emissions must be highest priority say leading environmental groups - Daily Telegraph Cutting carbon emissions and restoring the natural world must be given the ''highest priority'' by the next government the UK's leading environment groups urged today as they unveiled a manifesto for the coming election.	18th September 2009
US battles for credibility on climate change - INO News (AP:WASHINGTON) With Congress moving slowly on a measure to curb industrial greenhouse gas emissions, the United States may find itself with little sway at the coming international conference to construct a new pact aimed at easing global warming.	18th September 2009
Siberian thaw - BBC News Mercury rising in one of the coldest places on Earth	17th September 2009
Polar bears run riot as ice melts Hungry bears raid towns for food as climate change reduces their hunting season	17th September 2009
Pine beetle infestation continues to spread - Ravalli Republic Montana s mountain pine beetle infestation is continuing to spread steadily and could reach two million acres, according to a preliminary review of information from the Forest Service s summer monitoring flights.	17th September 2009
Arctic ice third smallest on record OSLO (Reuters) - Ice on the Arctic Ocean has started to expand after a summer thaw to the third smallest area on record allowed ships to test a new sea route past north Russia.	17th September 2009
Warming Arctic 'halts migration' Milder winters in the Arctic region means fewer Pacific brants - a species of goose - are migrating southwards, say researchers.	17th September 2009
Sceptics seize on climate cooling model Research suggesting that global temperatures may fall is being used by deniers and sceptics to dismiss the entire canon of climate scienceCould it be true that global temperatures will fall before they rise? That's the thrust of a presentation at last week's World Climate conference. Mojib Latif of Kiel University in Germany suggested that cooling caused by natural factors could suppress global temperatures for several years, after which they will start to rise again.His presentation, first reported by the eagle-eyed Fred Pearce in the New Scientist, has been seized upon by sceptics and deniers all over the blogosphere. It was picked up this morning by the BBC's Today programme, which invited my old friend Philip Stott (who spends his time championing such dubious productions as The Great Global Warming Swindle and Michael Crichton's State of Fear) to raise questions about the global warming thesis.Professor Latif suggested ...	17th September 2009
Global warming may bring tsunami and quakes: scientists LONDON (Reuters) - Quakes, volcanic eruptions, giant landslides and tsunamis may become more frequent as global warming changes the earth's crust, scientists said on Wednesday.	17th September 2009
Q&A: "Climate Change Reinforcing Political Problems" UNITED NATIONS, Sep 16 (IPS) - The negative fallout from climate change, including drought, floods, melting glaciers, mass migration, and sea level rise, is being increasingly viewed as a potential security threat to nation states worldwide.	17th September 2009
Chinese adviser: 2C target unrealistic China's emissions unlikely to fall low enough because 2C target 'does not provide room for developing countries'Don't expect China to keep global warming below 2C, a senior government adviser warned in Beijing today at the launch of an influential report on the nation's prospects for low-carbon growth.Even in a best-case scenario with massive investment in solar energy and carbon capture technology, Dai Yande, deputy chief of the Energy Research Institute, said China's emissions were unlikely to fall low enough to remain below the temperature goal recommended by the G8 and European Union. His prediction will alarm those governments and scientists who warn that a rise more than 2C risks disastrous consequences in terms of food security, migration, sea-level rises and extreme weather events."You should not target China to fulfill the two degree target.	17th September 2009
Economic case flawed, figures show Critics say the new figures show the government's support for the new runway is a 'sham' and have demanded that plans to expand the airport are scrappedThe economic benefits of expanding Heathrow airport will almost entirely be wiped out by the increased costs to the environment, a new analysis shows.The government's own figures suggest that ministers have underestimated by several billion pounds the financial impact of the extra greenhouse gases produced by a third runway at the airport.	17th September 2009
Suddenly, a few reasons to be optimistic about Copenhagen by Geoffrey Lean Suddenly, unexpectedly, there is a ray of hope in the air, hope that a significant global climate deal may yet be struck at December s talks in Copenhagen. It could herald the start of a successful agreement, or it could dissolve just as rapidly into despair. And the coming week will do much to determine which. Key high-level meetings, starting Thursday and running until Friday next week, offer an unprecedented and probably unrepeatable chance to inject political will into the bogged down international negotiations. But back to that rare ray of optimism. The last session of international climate negotiations, in Bonn in August, got virtually nowhere, just like two others before it, leaving 2,500 points of disagreement to be settled in just 15 days of negotiating time before the delegates assemble in the Danish capital.	17th September 2009
Global investors call for binding climate policy NEW YORK (Reuters) - Banks, pension funds and other investment groups representing more than $13 trillion in assets called for a strong global agreement on climate policy on Wednesday, saying it would lead to a flood of investment into the low-carbon economy.	17th September 2009
Offshore energy could cover 10% of Europe's electricity needs: report - Eu Business A new report published by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) predicts that European offshore wind projects - both existing and planned - could soon supply 10% of Europe's electricity. The report, entitled 'Oceans of opportunity', was presented at the European Offshore Wind 2009 conference in Stockholm, Sweden on 14 September.	17th September 2009
New Jersey has best paypack on residential solar in U.S. California may be the Golden State, but it s New Jersey where U.S. residents get the best deal on their solar power systems, new research shows. A survey by Global Solar Centertried to give an apples to apples comparison for the cost of solar power in all 50 states, the center s chairman Jack Hidary told Reuters. The common denominator turned out to be the cash payback, or how many years it would take a residential or commercial customer to recoup their investment and start seeing real savings, Hidary said. That takes into account the cost of the system, the sun at that spot, the incentives of that region, utility rates. See also: Cheap solar? Texan house aims low to win contest	17th September 2009
Schwarzenegger boosts clean energy plan SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California's governor on Tuesday ordered that a third of the state's electricity come from renewable resources by 2020, the same amount as a legislature plan but with promises to let power companies get more electricity from outside the state.	17th September 2009
Asia wants climate deal, Obama crucial: survey SINGAPORE (Reuters) - More than half the people in Asia believe sealing a new climate deal later this year depends on the leadership of U.S. President Barack Obama, according to a survey released on Thursday by conservation group WWF.	17th September 2009
Some Bad Climate News and Some Good - New York Times Senators Barbara Boxer and John Kerry have delayed the introduction of their long-awaited climate change bill until the end of this month - one more sign that Congress will be hard pressed to get a bill to President Obama's desk before the international summit on global warming in Copenhagen in December. The chances of action this year, never all that good, are even slimmer now that the White House and the Senate leadership have pretty much agreed to keep controversial issues and a bill limiting greenhouse gas emissions certainly falls into that category on the back burner until the health care debate is resolved. Though smart politics, it is a disappointment to everyone who hoped that the United States would be able to go to Copenhagen with a clear strategy in hand.	17th September 2009
Car firms disagree about electric future - BBC News The Frankfurt motor show is awash with electric concept cars from carmakers with visions of a future where motoring is emissions free, but scepticism remains. See also: How many electric vehicles??	17th September 2009
US and Europe clash over Copenhagen deal Exclusive: Key differences between the US and Europe could undermine a new worldwide treaty on global warming to replace Kyoto, sources sayEurope has clashed with the US Obama administration over climate change in a potentially damaging split that comes ahead of crucial political negotiations on a new global deal to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.The Guardian understands that key differences have emerged between the US and Europe over the structure of a new worldwide treaty on global warming. Sources on the European side say the US approach could undermine the new treaty and weaken the world's ability to cut carbon emissions.The treaty will be negotiated in December at a UN meeting in Copenhagen and is widely billed as the last chance to save the planet from a temperature rise of 2C or higher, which the EU considers dangerous."If we end up with a weaker framework with less stringent ...	16th September 2009
If Obama doesn't win, our planet is doomed One year on, the world still looks to the US and holds its breath. The fate of a global climate treaty rests in American handsAnyone who cares about the survival of our planet should start praying that Barack Obama gets his way on reforming US healthcare. That probably sounds hyperbolic, if not mildly deranged: even those who are adamant that 45 million uninsured Americans deserve basic medical cover would not claim that the future of the earth depends on it. But think again.Next week, world leaders will attend the first UN summit dedicated entirely to climate change. Their aim will be to plunge a shot of adrenaline into stuttering efforts to draw up a new global agreement on carbon emissions.	16th September 2009
China think-tank bleak on global climate goal BEIJING (Reuters) - An international goal to limit global warming to no more than 2 degrees Celsius appears unreachable even if China embarks on a vast effort to tame its growing greenhouse gas emissions, a Beijing think-tank has said.	16th September 2009
DEVELOPMENT: NGOs Question World Bank's Clean Energy Roadmap WASHINGTON, Sep 15 (IPS) - The World Bank's 2010 World Development Report (WDR), released Tuesday, calls on the developed world to lead global efforts to cut carbon emissions, but some civil society groups remain highly sceptical of the bank's role in brokering climate finance.	16th September 2009
U.S. CO2 Emissions Plan Depends on Unlikely Offsets - Bloomberg Sept. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The cap-and-trade bill for greenhouse gases that passed the U.S. House June 26 depends on an unlikely supply of cheap carbon credits from developing countries, the National Commission on Energy Policy said today.	16th September 2009
China May Need Extra $249 Billion Low Carbon Spending in 2050 - Bloomberg Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) -- China, the world s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, may have to spend an additional 1.7 trillion yuan ($249 billion) in 2050 to shift the country to a low-carbon model of economic growth. See also: FACTBOX-China think-tank energy, CO2 scenarios - AlertNet	16th September 2009
Doctors warn on climate failure Failure to agree a new UN climate deal in December will usher in a "global health catastrophe", according to medical leaders.	16th September 2009
Brixton introduces its own currency Tomorrow the Transition Town movement launches a currency designed to boost local trade and bring communities closer togetherIt has all the makings of a taxing pub quiz question: what links dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson, environmental scientist James Lovelock, black civil rights activist Olive Morris and comedian Chris Morris with David Bowie, the Clash, Harold Macmillan and Sharon Osborne?The canny among you will have spotted that they are all one-time residents of Brixton in south London but the more astute answer is that they have also all been in the running to appear on one of Brixton's new bank notes, a local currency that is officially launched tomorrow night at Lambeth town hall.	16th September 2009
Better world: Generate a feed-in frenzy Paying people who generate green energy and feed it back to the grid is the best way to boost uptake of renewable energy	16th September 2009
Smart thinking - BBC News Changes to energy meters in your home	16th September 2009
EU plans 30 cities to lead world on "smart" energy - Reuters via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News Europe will select 30 cities to pioneer "smart" electricity grids and space-age insulation as it seeks to lead the global race for green technology, a draft European Union document shows.	16th September 2009
Northwestern United States could face more tamarisk invasion by century's end If the future warming trends that scientists have projected are realized, one of the country's most aggressive exotic plants will have the potential to invade more U.S. land area, according to a new study published in the current issue of the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management. The study found that tamarisk -prevalent today in some parts of the region, but generally limited to warm and dry environments -could expand its range into currently uninvaded areas.	16th September 2009
One in six Mediterranean mammals face extinction One in six Mediterranean mammals is threatened with extinction at the regional level, mainly due to the destruction of their habitat from urbanization, agriculture and climate change, nature body IUCN said Tuesday in a new study.	16th September 2009
Protesters target oil sands before Harper meets Obama WASHINGTON/CALGARY (Reuters) - Environmentalists shut down a Canadian oil sands mine on Tuesday in a series of protests on the eve of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's visit with President Barack Obama, aimed at pressing their case that the projects undermine the fight against climate change.	16th September 2009
Climate goals must be achievable: U.S. official VIENNA (Reuters) - Nations aiming to agree on a new global climate deal should focus on achievable greenhouse gas emissions targets, to involve as many nations as possible, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu said on Tuesday.	16th September 2009
Iraq seeks 30-year water plan to fight drought BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq is studying offers from three foreign companies on putting together a strategic 30-year plan for managing its water resources during a lingering and damaging drought, the water resources ministry said on Tuesday.	16th September 2009
China's Hu to unveil new climate proposals to U.N. BEIJING (Reuters) - China's President Hu Jintao will present China's new plans for tackling global warming at a United Nations summit on climate change later this month, the country's senior negotiator said on Tuesday.	16th September 2009
Surviving Kyoto's 'do or die' summit - BBC News The Copenhagen summit is billed as a "do or die" moment for climate negotiators, but there is a way to satisfy all nations.	16th September 2009
China terms carbon tax protectionism - UPI BEIJING, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- China says a proposed carbon tax on imported goods from countries without stringent environmental laws would violate World Trade Organization rules.	16th September 2009
EU researcher: World needs geo-renovating rather than geo-engineering - EurActiv People should not meddle with Earth's complex climate system by experimenting with futuristic geo-engineering options, but softer approaches have the potential to relieve the planet's climate woes, Frank Raes, head of the climate change unit at the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, told EurActiv in an interview.	15th September 2009
Answers Come There None As the Plimer affair shows, climate change deniers are all leaf and no plums	15th September 2009
Time To Decide What Matters Editor's note: the author has just come out with his excellent book Time's Up!, joining the Chelsea Green stable of works on sustainability. How important do you think humans are? For millennia we have been taught that human beings have a vital almost divine role in the Great Chain of Being, and to look around the cities where most of us now live you could indeed be forgiven for thinking that we are ecologically dominant, if not vital to the functioning of life on Earth: I think it's about time this was put into some kind of perspective.	15th September 2009
Report Says Wind Energy Could Meet China 's Energy Needs for Two Decades With steady growth in wind power capacity each of the last five years, China is expected to pass the United States as the fastest-growing market for wind installations this year. But this may only hint at the potential for wind energy in China, according to a new study published in the journal Science. After modeling China s wind availability and profitability, researchers from Harvard University and Tsinghua University in Beijing calculated that wind resources, particularly in the country s northern and western regions, could meet all of China s electricity demands until at least 2030. Specifically, researchers say wind turbines could produce 6.96 trillion kilowatt-hours of energy at a price of 0.516 Chinese yuan, or about 7.5 cents per kilowatt-hour, which is in keeping with the current government-set rates for wind energy.	15th September 2009
Will China's Planned Solar Field Lower the Cost of Alternative Energy? (PhysOrg.com) -- One of the biggest complaints that some have about solar power (and other forms of alternative energy) is that it is so much more expensive than the fossil fuels that are more commonly used today. However, this might change with China's ambitious plans to build a 2-gigawatt solar field in Inner Mogolia.	15th September 2009
Europe's $57 billion plan to put windmills in the ocean - The Christian Science Monitor Though questions remain about how to bring electricity to shore, Europe sees offshore wind power as a crucial component in its effort to reduce carbon emissions.	15th September 2009
A Cheap Fix for Climate: Retrofitting - International Herald Tribune More than one-third of all global energy is consumed by, or in, buildings, which in turn account for about 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.	15th September 2009
Carbon Trust gives a boost to marine power - vnunet.com The Carbon Trust is providing half a million pounds to help two marine energy firms develop technology needed to deploy their systems in the sea. Installation and maintenance currently account for up to 50 per cent of the project costs of wave and tidal energy and could delay more widespread deployment if not reduced. The Carbon Trust is providing £250,000 to help move a 180-metre electricity-generating "sea snake" developed by Pelamis Wave Power onto a mooring many kilometres offshore. The Carbon Trust and Pelamis are investigating a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) that will assist with manoeuvring these giant machines into position. They will also integrate remote control technology into existing systems which will enable deployment in rougher seas. The Pelamis wave power project is sited off the coast of Portugal and consists of a series of semi-submerged hinged cylindrical sections. According to the backers, once the project is complete, it should provide enough energy for about 15,000 Portuguese households and potentially displace about 60,000 tonnes of C02 per year, which would have otherwise been consumed from conventional energy sources.	15th September 2009
Le réchauffement climatique rend l'Arctique méconnaissable Année après année, les symptômes de fièvre de notre planète sont de plus en plus évidents	15th September 2009
Cost of fighting L.A. wildfire tops $92 million - Reuters LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The financial cost of battling a deadly arson fire in the mountains above Los Angeles topped $92 million on Monday, with full containment of the stubborn blaze expected by week's end, fire officials said.	15th September 2009
Birds In Sierra Nevada Seek Out Warmer, Wetter Climate - redOrbit Image 1: This adult male Anna's Hummingbird, Calypte anna, is an urban-adapted species. Unlike many other bird species in the Sierra Nevada mountains, the Anna's Hummingbird did not track its climatic niche. Instead, it moved away from it. Credit: Morgan TingleyImage 2: Here, Morgan Tingley (right) and Pascal Title (left) are conducting a point count in the field for a resurvey of wildlife in ...	15th September 2009
Forest Ecologist Sees Climate Consequences - redOrbit Climate Central's climate characters: Now appearing on TIME.comMany people worry about the link between rising bark-beetle infestations and an increase in western wildfires. But Dr. Susan Prichard, a Research Scientist at the University of Washington, adds another concern: what happens after the fires go out?Prichard's story is the latest in a series of video shorts featured on TIME.com and ...	15th September 2009
Social tensions rise as Mexico suffers worst drought in 60 years - The Scotsman MEXICO is enduring its worst drought in 60 years, with crops drying up in the fields and water being rationed in the capital. See also: Warming may cut risky states' GDP by a fifth: study - Reuters	15th September 2009
Humpback whale found dead in Thames 28ft carcass of juvenile off Gravesend was first ever found in riverA juvenile male humpback whale has been found dead in the Thames near Dartford Bridge, Kent, the first ever to be stranded in the river.The 9.5m (28ft) carcass of the humpback had been spotted by members of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) off Gravesend on Thursday, who had initially guessed it was a minke whale, but no further sightings were reported until the animal was found dead on Saturday. It was subsequently recovered by a Port of London Authority (PLA) patrol boat.A postmortem examination indicated the whale had died of starvation, and was estimated to be about two years old.	15th September 2009
Sink or swim? - BBC News Flooding wreaks havoc in Senegalese capital	15th September 2009
Australia not carbon competitive: report - Live News Australia has ranked among the worst in the developed world for being carbon competitive, potentially threatening future investment.	15th September 2009
Scientists find CO2 link to Antarctic ice cap origin SINGAPORE (Reuters) - A team of scientists studying rock samples in Africa has shown a strong link between falling carbon dioxide levels and the formation of Antarctic ice sheets 34 million years ago.	15th September 2009
California feud breaks out on clean energy plan SAN FRANCISCO/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will veto a bill requiring the state to get a third of its electricity from solar, wind and other renewable sources, his staff said on Monday in a fight that shows the difficulties of addressing climate change fast.	15th September 2009
Amid war, recession and health care debate, politicians loath to mention sacrifice - The Kansas City Star Reversing climate change will create green jobs. Tax cuts spur the economy. Everybody wins when everybody is covered by health insurance. Putting the American military to work in the Middle East could bring democracy to the region and American security in its wake. That s what we re told, what we re sold.	15th September 2009
Weak ETS gives taxes to polluters - Scoop.co.nz By using taxes to subsidise the polluters, New Zealand is going backwards while the rest of the world goes forward, the Green Party said today.	15th September 2009

No power cuts danger - Miliband - BBC News There is "no danger" of mass power cuts in the UK the next decade, Energy Secretary Ed Miliband says.	13th September 2009
Personal carbon trading urged for UK - BigPond News The government in the UK is being warned it may need to introduce personal carbon trading to cut pollution.	13th September 2009
Why France Wants to Introduce A New Tax on Carbon Emissions - Time.com via Yahoo! News Europe already has a cap and trade system in place -- but if the E.U. wants to hit its ambitious targets for carbon emissions reduction it has to do more	13th September 2009
Better world: Tax carbon and give the money to the people Goods should be taxed to reflect the damage they do to the planet, with revenues redistributed to society	13th September 2009
Anti-methane feed for cattle: marine algae - Queensland Country Life SLIMY green algae are usually a sign of something wrong with a river or backyard pool, but a team of James Cook University (JCU) researchers believes these much-villified organisms might have a role to play in reducing methane production in livestock.	13th September 2009
Climate change depresses beer drinkers - New Scientist The quality of hops is falling due to rising temperatures	13th September 2009
Mexico Now Enduring Worst Drought in Years - International Herald Tribune Crops are drying up in the fields and water is being rationed in the capital as Mexico struggles with its worst drought in six decades.	13th September 2009
Meanwhile, nitrous oxide levels have been climbing as a result of increased emissions from agricultural fertilizers ... - Sunday Observer Atmospheric chemist A. R. Ravishankara and his colleagues at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in Boulder, Colorado, have now used a chemical model of stratospheric ozone to calculate the ozone-depleting potential (ODP) of nitrous oxide.	13th September 2009
The last nomads: drought drives Kenya's herders to the brink - Guardian Unlimited In the isolated border lands between Kenya and Somalia, families have always clung to a precarious existence. Now a decade of droughts has tested their endurance	13th September 2009
Senators Drift Apart on Climate - Washington Post After long teaming on warming issues, McCain limits role in debate while Kerry goes full throttle.	13th September 2009
For more news, click here >> News from previous days is below
Better world: Find out if we can cool the planet We need to do our homework rather than simply assume geoengineering can stave off disaster	12th September 2009
UK climate scepticism spreads The British public has become more sceptical about climate change over the last five years, according to a survey.	12th September 2009
Emission impossible? - The New Statesman Would Ed Miliband swap the life of a leading cabinet minister for that of a street activist? There was a revealing moment in New Delhi at the start of this month when he said in an aside that he sometimes had the "fantasy" of doing so.	12th September 2009
Dramatic biological responses to global warming in the Arctic "The Arctic as we know it may soon be a thing of the past," says Eric Post, associate professor of biology at Penn State University. Post leads a large, international team that carried out ecosystem-wide studies of the biological response to Arctic warming during the fourth International Polar Year, which ended in 2008. The team's results will be reported on 11 September 2009 in the journal Science.	12th September 2009
Arctic thaw brings boom in reindeer population - Times Online Climate change may be bad for polar bears but one type of reindeer and several other species are thriving in the rising temperature, according to a comprehensive study of the impact of global warming in the Arctic.	12th September 2009
German ships blaze Arctic trail Two German merchant ships negotiate the North East passage in the Russian Arctic, which was ice-bound until recently.	12th September 2009
Dramatic biological responses to global warming in the Arctic "The Arctic as we know it may soon be a thing of the past," says Eric Post, associate professor of biology at Penn State University. Post leads a large, international team that carried out ecosystem-wide studies of the biological response to Arctic warming during the fourth International Polar Year, which ended in 2008. The team's results will be reported on 11 September 2009 in the journal Science.	12th September 2009
Can he fix it? Sarkozy's carbon-tax plan derided by environmentalists A "carbon" tax on transport, homes and factories, intended to make France a "green" model for other large economies, was unveiled yesterday by President Nicolas Sarkozy.	12th September 2009
Winds of change Wind farms can be self-sustaining, concluded two Northeastern finance professors in a recent journal article. A few measures to increase productivity and decrease equipment costs could reduce the current dependence on government subsidies and incentives designed to make wind farms viable.	12th September 2009
People power key to Copenhagen success A huge show of popular support should empower our political leaders to reach a wise and visionary agreement in CopenhagenWe have reached a defining moment in the global battle against climate change, and the role of the public is now more crucial than ever.There are now less than 100 days until the United Nations climate change conference in Copenhagen in December, which my colleague Nicholas Stern, the former head of the UK Government Economic Service and author of the Stern review has described as "the most important international meeting since the second world war".A strong international agreement on climate change can still be achieved at Copenhagen, which would set the world on a path that avoids the huge risks from "business as usual" emissions of greenhouse gases.	12th September 2009
World must help China shift to clean growth: Stern BEIJING (Reuters) - China will have to retool its engines of economic growth to help the world avoid increasingly dangerous levels of greenhouse gas emissions in coming decades, a leading expert on the economic impact of climate change said. See also: US and China to unveil joint plan to 'take over' cleantech market - Guardian Unlimited	12th September 2009
Five EU states vow to step up climate diplomacy COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Britain, France, Denmark, Sweden and Finland agreed Thursday to intensify "green diplomacy" to rescue an ambitious global climate agreement in Copenhagen in December, officials said.	12th September 2009
Buddhist Bhutan warns felling trees a threat to happiness Bhutan has warned its citizens over cutting down thousands of young trees every year to make prayer flags, a threat to the tiny kingdom's lush scenery and the government's duty to bring "Gross National Happiness". Himalayan Buddhists put up prayer flags for good luck or to help the dead find the right path to their next life. The more flag poles put up for the departed the better, and Buddhist monks say fresh poles must be used each time. Having failed to convince its citizens to switch from wood to steel for prayer flags, the government of the Himalayas' last Buddhist kingdom is growing bamboo, which it hopes will be an attractive alternative.	12th September 2009
Carbon Auction in Northeast Draws Record Low Price - Update3 - Bloomberg Sept. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Carbon dioxide permits in the U.S. Northeast s cap-and-trade program drew a record low price at auction amid the recession and delays in setting up a national greenhouse gas market.	12th September 2009
There Will Be Bells - the Global Climate Wake-Up Call There will be a lot of noise around the world on Sept. 21st when people all over the globe - from New York to Guatemala to Dakar - join together in a Global Climate Wake Up Call. Organized by the amazing folks at Avaaz, Oxfam, Greenpeace and 350.org the Global Wake-Up Call , will see people from all walks of life get together in public places to sound the alarm and urge our political leaders to stand up and take bold action at the Copenhagen Climate Treaty Summit scheduled for December of this year. These will be peaceful, spontaneous "flash mobs" in public places where people will sound the alarms on their mobile phones, flood their governments with phone calls urging climate action, and make a tremendous noise.	12th September 2009
"Dramatic" rise in renewables needed for 2 Celsius goal OSLO (Reuters) - The share of renewable energy will have to rise "dramatically" if the world is to have a chance of limiting global warming to a maximum 2 Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) temperature rise, a leading expert said Wednesday.	10th September 2009
Gwynne Dyer: Emissions must be cut or developing world will pay - The Georgia Straight If the Copenhagen climate summit in December does not make a serious start at getting climate change under control, neo-fascist rhetoric may become mainstream rhetoric in Europe in 20 years time.	10th September 2009
Inside India's Intransigence on Climate Change Talks - Time Magazine If you ask India's climate change negotiators, the December summit in Copenhagen will be not about how to save the planet, but how to accommodate the rights and aspirations of millions of Indians	10th September 2009
Civil Disobedience Against False Climate Bill Press release: MASS CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE TO DEFEAT "FALSE" CLIMATE BILL. (Sept. 8, 2009) Climate SOS, a grassroots network of environmentalists, scientists, and social justice activists, is launching a nationwide car-free tour	10th September 2009
Is the government up for the challenge? - Guardian Unlimited Comment On 15 July, the same day the government set out its ambitious plans for climate-changing emissions reductions, TV broadcasts featured the imminent closure of one of the UK's few wind-turbine manufacturing facilities. Owned by Denmark-based Vestas, the closure of the Isle of Wight turbine blade plant was a tragic blow to the firm's 625 employees. It was also symbolic of the setbacks that ...	10th September 2009
The Right Wing Attack Machine Behind the Van Jones Affair You probably won't be surprised when I tell you that Glenn Beck wasn't the mastermind behind the campaign to remove Van Jones from his position as a special advisor to the White House Council on Environmental Quality... that would be giving Beck way too much credit. Turns out that the attack was orchestrated by a fringe group of free-marketeers called the Americans for Prosperity (AFP) who describe themselves as "grassroots leaders who engage citizens in the name of limited government and free markets on the local, state and federal levels." You can read a complete backgrounder on AFP here.	10th September 2009
Home power plants project unveiled in Germany by Agence France-Presse BERLIN - An ambitious project was unveiled in Germany on Wednesday to install mini gas-fired power plants in people s basements and produce as much electricity as two nuclear reactors within a year. The Hamburg-based renewable energy group Lichtblick and its automaker partner Volkswagen say the plants would produce not only heating and hot water but also electricity, with any excess power fed into the local grid. The two firms said the concept of SchwarmStrom (literally, swarm power ) would allow Germany to abandon nuclear and coal power stations sooner and help compensate for the volatility of renewables like wind and solar power.	10th September 2009
Google plans new mirror for cheaper solar power Google is disappointed with the lack of breakthrough investment ideas in the green technology sector but the company is working to develop its own new mirror technology that could reduce the cost of building solar thermal plants by a quarter or more.	10th September 2009
Scotland's first offshore wind farm starts producing energy - BBC News Scotland's first offshore wind farm development starts producing energy as one of its 60 turbines begins to turn.	10th September 2009
Sarkozy carbon tax to help 'save the human race' - Guardian Unlimited From 2010, France will become the biggest European economy to levy a carbon tax, following other successful schemes introduced by Nordic countries in the 1990s.	10th September 2009
'Sustainable' palm oil campaign banned - Guardian Unlimited Advertorial claimed that controversial oil business was 'green answer' and was important to alleviating poverty A press campaign making environmental claims about the controversial product Malaysian Palm Oil, including that it is "sustainable", has been banned as misleading by the advertising regulator. Palm Oil, which is used in a third of all groceries, has been at the centre of an ...	10th September 2009
Scale Within the span of a couple generations, we abandoned a durable, finely textured, life-affirming set of living arrangements characterized by self-sufficient family farms intermixed with small towns that provided commerce, services, and culture. Worse yet, we traded that model for a coarse-scaled arrangement wholly dependent on ready access to cheap fossil fuels. read more	10th September 2009
Grizzlies starve as salmon disappear As salmon numbers drop, bears are also few and far between along B.C.'s wild central coast - signalling what conservationists say is an unfolding ecological disaster.	10th September 2009
Walruses congregate on Alaska shore as ice melts (AP) -- Thousands of walruses are congregating on Alaska's northwest coast, a sign that their Arctic sea ice environment has been altered by climate change.	10th September 2009
Kenya's elephants dying amid drought - AP via Yahoo! News A drought in Kenya has gotten so bad that it is felling even the giants of the animal kingdom the country's famed elephants which are dying as rivers dry up and grasslands shrivel in parched game reserves.	10th September 2009
German ships navigate Northeast Passage - but is it a good thing? Two German ships have successfully navigated their way through the fabled Northeast Passage on the first commercial journey by a western shipping company on the Northern Sea Route along Russia s Arctic-facing northern shore a new cost-cutting passageway from Asia to Europe made possible by climate change. The MV Beluga Fraternity and the MV Beluga Foresight (pictured above) arrived safely at Novvy Port/Yamburg in Russia at the delta of the river Ob on Monday after a 17-day trip through the icy cold but briefly ice-free Arctic Ocean after departing from Vladivostok on Aug.	10th September 2009
EPA could create U.S. CO2 cap-and-trade: Sierra SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would step in and regulate carbon dioxide emissions by creating a cap-and-trade system or take other measures if Congress fails, but is likely to wait for 2010 elections, the head of the Sierra Club said on Tuesday.	10th September 2009
Leading scientist calls on religious leaders to tackle climate change - Guardian Unlimited President of the British Science Association, Lord May, says faith groups could lead policing of social behaviour Religious leaders should play a frontline role in mobilising people to take action against global warming, according to a leading scientist. Lord May, a former chief scientist to the government, said religious groups could use their influence to motivate believers into reducing the ...	10th September 2009
Drought-hit Indian farmers sell wives to pay debts - AFP via Yahoo! News Drought-hit farmers in northern India are resorting to selling their wives to repay debts to local loan sharks, activists say, as one of the weakest monsoons in years takes its toll.	10th September 2009
Climate Services I recently attended the World Climate Conference-3 (WCC-3), hosted by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in Geneva. Most of the talk was of providing climate services (CS) and coordinating these globally. But what are climate services, and how much of what was envisaged is scientifically doable? Climate services is a fairly new term that involves the provision of climate information relevant for adaptation to climate change and climatic swings, long-term planning, and facilitating early warning systems (EW). CS includes both data describing past and future climate, and usually involves downscaling to provide information on regional and local scales.	10th September 2009
Success of US climate bill hinges on health care reform Partisan division over health care reform could hinder attempts to agree on a climate change bill, says a US senator	10th September 2009
September U.N. summit seen key to climate deal OSLO (Reuters) - A drive to agree a U.N. climate pact in Copenhagen in December risks failure unless world leaders revive bogged-down negotiations at a U.N. summit in New York on September 22, experts say.	10th September 2009
Senate Democrats skeptical about climate bill WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Several U.S. Senate Democrats, including a top leader, on Wednesday questioned whether it would be possible to vote on a climate change bill this year, especially with healthcare reform eating up so much of the lawmakers' time.	10th September 2009
Brazil says U.S. climate goal unacceptable BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil's Environment Minister Carlos Minc said on Wednesday that U.S. targets for greenhouse gas emissions are unacceptably weak and that Brazil will place new restrictions on its huge farm sector to cut deforestation.	10th September 2009
New York City Girds Itself for Heat and Rising Seas By the end of the century, New York's climate could resemble that of present-day Raleigh, North Carolina and its harbor could easily rise by two feet or more. Faced with this very real prospect, the city is among the first urban centers to begin changing the way it builds its infrastructure and the way it thinks about its future. BY BRUCE STUTZ	10th September 2009
Climate advisers urge air fare hikes - Guardian Unlimited Government advisory body on climate change says ticket prices should rise to ensure emissions fall to 2005 levels The cost of air travel must rise to an extent that it deters people from flying and to compensate developing countries for the damage it does to the environment, according to the government's advisory body on climate change. Ticket prices should rise to ensure that carbon dioxide ...	10th September 2009
More oxygen -- colder climate Everybody talks about CO2 and other greenhouse gases as causes of global warming and the large climate changes we are currently experiencing. But what about the atmospheric and oceanic oxygen content? Which role does oxygen content play in global warming?	10th September 2009
Climate Activists Wait for an Obama Speech to Call Their Own - New York Times As President Obama delivered a possible make-or-break speech on health care last night, climate change activists said they we...	10th September 2009
Why We Needed Van Jones On The Inside - CBS News Los Angeles TimesWhy We Needed Van Jones On The InsideCBS NewsConservation and climate-change environmentalism has dominated both federal policy and the national imagination. The local movements were often effective in ...Van Jones resigns: US looses green jobs czar over Labor Day weekendExaminer.comDid Big Oil Swiftboat Van Jones?East Bay ExpressDespite Resignation, Green Jobs Czar Van Jones "Still a Hero"Opposing ViewsGreen Right Now -Reason Onlineall 1,966	10th September 2009
Behaving badly Green concerns mean totems such as GDP have to go	8th September 2009
Last chance to change our behaviour - BBC News Despite a growing awareness of the damage humans are doing to the planet, we still refuse to radically changes our behaviour.	8th September 2009
'Real danger' climate change deal attempt could fail Efforts to secure a new global deal to tackle climate change hang in the balance, with a "real danger" they could fail, Foreign Secretary David Miliband warned today.	8th September 2009
Climate change: no Eden, no apocalypse Rather than placing ourselves in a "fight" against climate change, or lament a lost Eden, we should take the chance to rethink how we live, says Mike Hulme	8th September 2009
Seed variety loss seen hampering climate response LONDON (Reuters) - Farmers in developing countries are losing traditional varieties because of growing corporate control of the seeds they plant, hampering their ability to cope with climate change, a London-based think tank said on Monday.	8th September 2009
Floating challenge World's first full- size floating wind turbine is unveiled	8th September 2009
Scots emissions 'down by fifth' - BBC News Scottish greenhouse gas emissions fell by almost a fifth between 1990 and 2007, new figures suggest.	8th September 2009
New start - BBC News Japan's emission pledge is a clear break with the past	8th September 2009
Implementing the Wedge Approach to Climate Change - World Resources Institute As the world rapidly reaches consensus on the scientific understanding of climate change, policymakers are increasingly looking at how to address the challenge. There is no doubt that new and especially low-carbon technologies will be essential to the effort.	8th September 2009
Japan vows big climate change cut - BBC News Japan's PM-elect Yukio Hatoyama pledges a 25% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020, much more than his predecessor.	8th September 2009
Warmest August to date melts away winter that came early - The New Zealand Herald This year's winter was a season of extremes, starting off early and extra frosty and ending unusually warm. A summary shows the cold season arrived in May and was extra chilly this year, but also ended earlier with the warmest...	8th September 2009
Ozone: Climate change boosts ultraviolet risk for high latitudes Climate change will disrupt Earth's precious ozone layer, boosting ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the deep southern hemisphere and reducing UV in far northern latitudes, a study warned on Sunday.	8th September 2009
Seas 'threaten 20m in Bangladesh' - BBC News Up to 20 million people in parts of Bangladesh are at risk from sea-level rise in the coming decades, says new research.	8th September 2009
SOUTH AMERICA: Glaciers - Going, Going Gone? BUENOS AIRES, Sep 6 (IPS) - South America is perhaps most often associated with the Amazon jungle, the world's largest tropical rainforest. But along its western edge, from Ecuador to southern Chile and Argentina, it also harbours huge glaciers which are rapidly melting due to global warming.	8th September 2009
Methane Gas Could Increase From Oceanic Vents - Environmental News Network New MIT research by Denise Brehm, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy looked at the potential for a compound affect of warming global temperatures on the level of methane being released by oceanic vents. The premise is that rising global temperatures could be accompanied by melting permafrost in arctic regions and that this could initiate ...	8th September 2009
Thoughts on Van Jones’ resignation by David Roberts Van Jones had to resign. It became inevitable when Gibbs offered no support. Much of the blame for this incident lies squarely on the White House. The information used against Jones was freely available on the web. All it took was a search. I thought by hiring Jones they intended to take a chance on a real left progressive, but now it appears they were simply caught flat-footed. Either Valerie Jarrett Jones champion in the upper echelons of the administration didn t know much about him or didn t widely share what she knew. They certainly seemed disinclined to mount a vigorous defense with Glenn Beck gnoshing on his favorite new chew toy and the health care reform battle about to heat up again.	8th September 2009
This is an idiot's version of Naomi Klein's masterpiece he takes the central myth of the right that since the fall of Soviet tyranny, free elections and free markets have marched skipped hand in hand together towards the shimmering sunset of history and shown that it is, simply, a lie	8th September 2009
Climate Denial Crock of the Week/1998 Revisited One of the enduring myths of climate denialism is that global warmingstopped sometime in the last decade. I see it in the blaring headlines of pseudoscience websites, in comments on my videos, even some of our most "distinguished" journalists have been taken in.	8th September 2009
Miliband: India a key climate player - Guardian Unlimited Climate change secretary praises India's renewable targets and 'big ambitions', cementing cordial relations between the countries Ed Miliband, Britain's climate change secretary, hailed India as a potential "deal maker" in the forthcoming talks in Copenhagen for an international treaty to tackle global warming , stating that the country would not face targets to cut its emissions in the near ...	8th September 2009
Van Jones Goes, But His Ideas on Green Jobs Should Stay - Time Magazine Van Jones at a National Clean Energy Summit in August. I met Van Jones , the social activist turned environmental czar, a few times before he joined the Obama Administration, when he was still criss-crossing the country spreading his message: that the creation of green jobs could revitalize America's eroding blue-collar class.	8th September 2009
Climate and dirty-energy groups were busy over summer vacation by Grist National lawmakers did next to nothing about climate change over the August congressional recess, but climate activists and their fossil-fuel foes were busy. Here are highlights from their summer antics: Clean-energy activists at a Maine rally.Photo: 1Sky The climate activists The Alliance for Climate Protection s Repower America campaign and the Blue Green Alliance kicked off a Made in America Jobs Tour to promote the benefits of a clean energy economy. 1Sky organized more than 100 Back to D.C. events during the last week of the congressional recess, pushing lawmakers to pass a strong climate and energy bill ...	8th September 2009
Climate treaty hinges on China and India: Denmark ABERDEEN, Britain (Reuters) - A new global treaty on climate change hinges on China and India agreeing to limit their CO2 emissions but it is unclear whether they will do so, Denmark's climate and energy minister said.	8th September 2009
Prospects for U.N. climate deal brighter: de Boer OSLO (Reuters) - Prospects for a new U.N. climate pact in Copenhagen have brightened but negotiations must speed up to meet a December deadline, the head of the U.N. Climate Change Secretariat said on Tuesday.	8th September 2009
Global climate deal only 50:50 chance: Flannery SYDNEY (Reuters) - The chances of a global agreement to fight climate change at U.N. talks in Copenhagen in December are only 50:50, said Australia's leading environmentalist, who warned of "full climactic destabilization" without a pact.	8th September 2009
Planes 'to reset climate targets' The UK economy may have to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2050 to make space for aviation.	8th September 2009
Climate deal is 'in the balance' There is a "real danger" that a UN climate deal will not be reached this year, says the UK's foreign secretary, as he embarks on a new diplomatic push.	8th September 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: Survival Means Anticipating and Adapting GENEVA, Sep 8 (IPS) - Imagine being able to know months in advance when and where floods or droughts may occur. That is what over 150 countries participating in the third World Climate Conference, which concluded last Friday in Geneva, pledged to achieve through the creation of a Global Framework for Climate Services.	8th September 2009
After Van Jones resignation, Glenn Beck to go after ‘other radicals’ by Joseph Romm Following Van Jones resignation Saturday night, Glenn Beck has released a statement vowing to go after other radicals in the administration. What could be scarier than the nation s clean energy and climate policy being affected by uber-wingnut Glenn Beck. In a January attack on Obama s energy and environment adviser, Carol Browner, Beck said on his national radio show: It s just that almost everyone who does believe in global warming is a socialist. I mean, believes in manmade global warming that now can be fixed and reversed or whatever. And we ve got the tools to fix it.	8th September 2009
Climate change: melting ice will trigger wave of natural disasters - Guardian Unlimited Scientists at a London conference next week will warn of earthquakes, avalanches and volcanic eruptions as the atmosphere heats up and geology is altered. Even Britain could face being struck by tsunamis	6th September 2009
The planet-saver that's still just a pipe dream - Sydney Morning Herald THERE may be a few forced smiles when Martin Ferguson dishes out $2.4 billion in funding for a handful of "flagship" carbon capture and storage projects (CCS), intended to clean up carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power stations. See also: Clean Coal in China Said to Face Staggering Costs - Bloomberg	6th September 2009
World heading for climate 'abyss': UN chief - SpaceDaily GENEVA, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2009 The world is speeding towards a climate catastrophe, UN chief Ban Ki-moon warned on Thursday, urging rapid progress in talks to cut emissions and tackle global warming.	6th September 2009
Current economic growth model is 'immoral', says Prescott With the world's population growing to nine million by 2050, the Britain's former deputy PM predicts far more crucial and complex talks in Copenhagen than in Kyoto. John Prescott, the former UK climate negotiator, called on developed nations today to accept a new model of economic growth that would create a more equitable spread of carbon emissions in the world. Speaking to the Guardian in Beijing, Prescott said talks at Copenhagen would probably not be decided until an 11th-hour crisis, but that no global consensus could be reached without a fairer spread of emissions.Since helping to bang heads together to set the first targets on carbon in Kyoto in 1997, Prescott said the world had started to develop a new model of restraint."The reality is that the world has found a rationing process.	6th September 2009
Climate change funding talks stall at G20 LONDON (Reuters) - Differences between rich and developing countries prevented G20 finance ministers from agreeing measures on Saturday to curb global warming, casting more doubt on U.N. efforts to agree a new climate treaty.	6th September 2009
Obama adviser Van Jones resigns - Guardian Unlimited An adviser to Barack Obama has resigned in a row over past inflammatory statements, the White House said .	6th September 2009
Global warming and bushfires: what to expect In the last week of winter, something strange happened: bushfires raged across New South Wales, with major fires in the Shoalhaven and Eurobodalla in the south of the state.	6th September 2009
Can renewables re-power Australia? "Forget alternative energy it can't work!" That and in almost those exact words was among the messages of an article published in the Rupert Murdoch-owned Weekend Australian on August 8 by journalist Terry McCrann.	6th September 2009
Syria, Turkey, Iraq sign ministerial meeting minutes of cooperation to overcome Drought - MENAFN Syria, Turkey, Iraq sign ministerial meeting minutes of cooperation to overcome Drought	6th September 2009
Study: Greenhouse gases from wildfires damaging - The Press-Enterprise Wildfires raging across California have belched out hundreds of millions of tons of greenhouse gases since the beginning of the century, significantly adding to the problem of global warming, a new study has concluded. State and federal officials have speculated for years that increasingly long and severe fire seasons can be partly attributed to the effects of climate change.	6th September 2009
American Petroleum Institute Astroturf campaign: When Does "Spin" Become a Lie? The New York Times added its voice today to those condemning the American Petroleum Institute's Astroturf campaign to set up phony "citizen" protests that are actually populated by paid energy industry employees. Beyond the fundamental duplicity of API's actions, the NYT complains in its editorial that it finds some elements of the industry campaign "particularly annoying." For example, API says the Waxman-Markey climate legislation will result in $4-a-gallon gasoline, while two very reputable analyses have said the bill will add, at most, 20 cents a gallon. In a world polluted by some of the worst kind of public relations spin, people have grown too ready to accept this kind of dramatic overstatement as "part of the game." Even the NYT finds this exaggeration merely "annoying," even if particularly so.	6th September 2009
Has runaway Arctic warming already begun? Rapid ice-loss may spread climate havoc across the globe in the coming decades, says a new WWF report, but some claim it understates the danger	5th September 2009
Methane gas likely spewing into the oceans through vents in sea floor - w/ Video - PhysOrg Scientists worry that rising global temperatures accompanied by melting permafrost in arctic regions will initiate the release of underground methane into the atmosphere. Once released, that methane gas would speed up global warming by trapping the Earth's heat radiation about 20 times more efficiently than does the better-known greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide.	5th September 2009
Summer Sea Ice in Arctic Could Disappear by 2016, Scientists Say Summer sea ice covering the Arctic Ocean could disappear by 2016 and the thawing of the Greenland ice sheet is occurring so rapidly that the meltwater from Greenland alone could raise sea levels by one meter this century. Meeting in Greenland, scientists from the Danish Meteorological Institute, the Greenland Climate Center, and other organizations said that the thickness and volume of Arctic ice is decreasing at an even more rapid rate than the precipitous decline in ice extent; Arctic Ocean winter ice thinned by 2.2 feet from 2004 to 2008. As a result, the Danish researchers said it is quite likely that much of the Arctic ocean could be NASA ice-free in summer by 2016.	5th September 2009
Arctic 'warmest in 2,000 years' The Arctic region cooled for two millennia, research reveals, before warming abruptly in the last century.	5th September 2009
Australia's warm winter a record Australia records its warmest ever winter - partly caused by climate change - and fears the coming bush fire season.	5th September 2009
Fall colors fade in U.S. west as aspen trees die SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) - The American West is losing its autumn colors as global warming begins to bite and there is far more at stake than iconic scenery.	5th September 2009
Climate will cost much more than UN thinks Adapting to climate change will cost at least two to three times more than claimed by the UN climate change convention, says a new study	5th September 2009
'Climate change is here, it is a reality' As one devastating drought follows another, the future is bleak for millions in east Africa. John Vidal reports from Moyale, KenyaWe met Isaac and Abdi, Alima and Muslima last week in the bone-dry, stony land close to the Ethiopia-Kenya border. They were with five nomad families who have watched all their animals die of star vation this year in a deep drought, and who have now decided their days of herding cattle are over.After three years of disastrous rains, the families from the Borana tribe, who by custom travel thousands of miles a year in search of water and pasture, have unanimously decided to settle down.	5th September 2009
Why coral reefs face a catastrophic future Destroyed by rising carbon levels, acidity, pollution, algae, bleaching and El Niño, coral reefs require a dramatic change in our carbon policy to have any chance of survivalAnimal, vegetable and mineral, a pristine tropical coral reef is one of the natural wonders of the world. Bathed in clear, warm water and thick with a psychedelic display of fish, sharks, crustaceans and other sea life, the colourful coral ramparts that rise from the sand are known as the rainforests of the oceans.And with good reason. Reefs and rainforests have more in common than their beauty and bewildering biodiversity. Both have stood for millions of years, and yet both are poised to disappear.If you thought you had heard enough bad news on the environment and that the situation could not get any worse, then steel yourself.	5th September 2009
Ocean acidification may be trouble for Alaskan fish ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - The waters off Alaska, teeming with enough fish to support more than half the U.S. commercial seafood catch, face a new threat -- increasing acidification from the same atmospheric carbon linked to global warming.	5th September 2009
Interview: Dieter Helm - Nature Anna Barnett Oxford economist Dieter Helm co-edits a new book, The Economics and Politics of Climate Change, due out next month. Anna Barnett caught up with him in London to get his take on a long-term strategy for reducing emissions.	5th September 2009
U.N. climate talks bogged down, need impetus GENEVA (Reuters) - Talks on a U.N. climate pact have become bogged down like "walking in wet sand" but a U.N. summit this month could give impetus for a deal due in December, the head of a key U.N. negotiating group said on Wednesday.	5th September 2009
People won't change lifestyle for planet: straw poll LONDON (Reuters) - People want to save the planet but are unwilling to make radical lifestyle changes like giving up air travel or red meat to reduce the effects of climate change, a straw poll by Reuters showed.	5th September 2009
India emissions 'triple by 2030' - BBC News The amount of greenhouse gases India produces will more than triple by 2030 - but its per-capita rate will remain relatively low, a report says.	5th September 2009
Deep Geothermal Project Suspended in California After Setbacks A $17 million renewable energy project designed to tap into the earth s heat more than 2 miles deep has been suspended because of difficulty drilling through rock formations. The project, run by AltaRock Energy and partially funded by Google, was designed to drill down to about 12,000 feet, fracture rock at the bottom of the hole, and then circulate water to create steam. But the company reported that it had encountered anomalies in the rock that had prevented it from drilling deeper than 4,000 feet. State and federal officials and residents at the Geysers site, not far from San Francisco, also are concerned that the fracturing process could set off local earthquakes, as happened with a similar project in Switzerland.	5th September 2009
The US freezes on climate change The stalled US climate change debate has killed the hope of reaching a final agreement at the Copenhagen summit. The prospects for an international agreement to tackle the causes of climate change are looking slim. They got even slimmer earlier this week, after the leading US senators crafting a climate bill announced that they're pushing back the release of their legislation indefinitely. While Barbara Boxer and John Kerry say the bill "is moving along well" and promise it will be ready for release "later in September", the delay makes the chances of passing it before the looming international negotiations in Copenhagen even less likely.Without concrete action in the Senate, there will not be an actual deal ready to sign in Copenhagen.	5th September 2009
POLITICS: Developing Nations Sceptical of Climate Summit UNITED NATIONS, Sep 3 (IPS) - The 130-member Group of 77, the largest single coalition of developing nations, is at loggerheads with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon over an upcoming one-day global summit on climate change in New York on Sep. 22.	5th September 2009
Widen global warming fight beyond CO2: U.N. GENEVA (Reuters) - The world should widen a fight against global warming by curbing a string of pollutants other than carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas, the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) said on Friday.	5th September 2009
World's climate could cool first, warm later Natural variations in ocean currents could mean we're in for a cool spell before warming from the greenhouse effect takes over	5th September 2009
Wearing thermals won't save the planet Why is the 10:10 campaign, with its pledges to turn off lights and grow more veg, taken more seriously than geo-engineering?It never ceases to amaze me that people who say we can "save the planet" by wearing a jumper or growing our own veg are treated with the utmost seriousness, while those who argue that tackling climate change might require some larger-scale projects such as geo-engineering the Earth are treated as sci-fi freaks who should stick to reading Philip K Dick novels and stop polluting public debate with their insane ideas.When it comes to climate change, the only acceptable debate, it seems, is how we can encourage ordinary people to do less, consume less and fly less. See also: 10:10 vision for the future of planet Earth - Guardian Unlimited	2nd September 2009
Earth experiment could buy precious time - BBC News Cloud whitening must be tested, if we are to find out what options we have in the fight against global warming.	2nd September 2009
Everybody Dance Now ! Dancing with Bicycles. Whenever you hear government ministers or public figures telling the people that technology will save us, remember this : the word technology is synonymous with the word business . Technology is Big Engineering, and this is what is done by large companies and corporations. Large organisations that make profit by selling manufactured products and Energy always have a surplus set aside for their communications budgets, and that includes persuading government people that their business is invaluable and needs promoting. Of course the Big Organisations want to save themselves from Climageddon more than they want to save the planet.	2nd September 2009
Sea levels could rise more than a meter by 2100: WWF GENEVA (Reuters) - The world's seas could rise by more than a meter (3 feet) by 2100 as the melting Arctic has an impact on weather across the planet, the environmental group WWW said in a report on Wednesday. See also: On thinning Arctic ice, U.N.'s Ban urges climate deal	2nd September 2009
India's Economic Growth May Falter as Drought Threatens Crops - Bloomberg Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- India s economic rebound, which last quarter lagged behind recoveries in China and Japan, may falter as a drought threatens to curb harvests and rural incomes. See also: India to Import 30% of Sugar Demand Due to Drought - Bloomberg	2nd September 2009
No rain on roof of the world - Australian Broadcasting Corporation Himalayan nations have held talks about mounting concern over the impact of global warming.	2nd September 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: Earth's Fridge Defrosting, With Dire Results GENEVA, Sep 2 (IPS) - The rapidly warming Arctic region is destabilising Earth's climate in ways science is just beginning to comprehend.	2nd September 2009
87 months and counting Today marks the start of a drive towards Britain making real cuts in carbon emissions. Will the government join in?It could be the premise for a zeitgeist science-fiction thriller about global warming. Secrets, lies, and breathless chases along corporate corridors. Millions of pounds at stake, and ultimately millions of lives too. The UN suspends an auditor at the heart of a mechanism key to the success of the international climate change treaty. In another country, a multimillion carousel fraud in the carbon emissions trading market leads to a swoop on homes in London and the south-east, and multiple arrests.	2nd September 2009
Coal Plant Buries U.S. Taxpayers $1.5 Billion Along With CO2 - Bloomberg Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Interior Secretary Ken Salazar sang the praises of a North Dakota coal plant he visited in May. The Great Plains facility is the world s largest that captures and buries carbon dioxide emissions.	2nd September 2009
UN: Rich countries will suffer unless they help poor on climate change £300bn needed by poor nations to tackle carbon emissions Failure to give could reduce world gross product by 20%.The world's rich countries need to embark on a huge transfer of funds to developing countries in order for both groups to grow richer and reduce their carbon emissions significantly, a United Nations report urges today.Delaying spending on mitigating climate change in the developing world "runs the real danger of locking in dirtier investments for several more decades", says the annual survey from the UN's Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA).Ahead of this weekend's meeting of G20 finance ministers in London, the report estimates that developed countries need immediately to transfer around 1% of world gross product (WGP), or $500-600bn (£300-370bn), to poor countries.	2nd September 2009
Outlook "poor" for Great Barrier Reef: study CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest living organism, is under grave threat from climate warming and coastal development, and its prospects of survival are "poor," a major new report found on Wednesday.	2nd September 2009
Severn Estuary could solve UK s looming energy shortage - icWales THE power of the Severn estuary must be harnessed to prevent millions of families being plunged into darkness through a lack of electricity, it was claimed yesterday.	2nd September 2009
Wildfires could just be tip of iceberg - Albany Times Union LOS ANGELES -- Firefighters reported progress Tuesday against a gigantic blaze on the edge of Los Angeles that might be just a preview of even greater dangers ahead. The peak Southern California fire season hasn't even started yet.	2nd September 2009
India's greenhouse gas pollution to jump - Financial Times NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India expects its greenhouse gas emissions to jump to between 4bn tonnes and 7.3bn tonnes in 2031, a report said on Wednesday. Per capita emissions are estimated to rise to 2.1 tonnes by 2020 and 3.5 tonnes by 2030.	2nd September 2009
US climate change bill faces fresh delays Despite growing support for a change in energy policy, delays over the bill will undermine the US position at the climate change talks in CopenhagenThe Obama administration has reportedly been meeting with clean-technology executives to help flesh out a new energy strategy to be unveiled later this month.The unveiling of the energy strategy, which is expected to coincide with a high-level UN meeting on climate change to be held in New York, will punctuate a set of increasingly bold moves on the part of the Obama administration intended to secure support for the proposed Waxman-Markey climate change bill as it awaits a crucial Senate vote.However, that vote now looks set to face further delays after Senate Democrats announced yesterday that the latest version of the legislation would not be unveiled until "later in September".A Senate vote on the bill, which had originally been passed ...	2nd September 2009
With Clouds Over Health Care, Can Climate Change Fly? - Wall Street Journal Blogs The health care fight is the center of attention as Congress and the president return to the fray. One casualty appears likely to be the climate change legislation that narrowly passed the House of Representatives this spring.	2nd September 2009
We're pumping out CO2 to the point of no return. It's time to alter course Scientists now say peak temperatures will not fall back. Join me in taking the 10:10 pledge – it's the best shot we've got left. See also: The beauty of 10:10 is that it's both achievable and meaningful	1st September 2009
If you’re not worried about melting permafrost, you should be If we lost just 1 percent of the carbon in permafrost today, we d be close to a year s contributions from industrial sources. I don t think policymakers have woken up to this. It s not in their risk assessments. Permafrost expert Chris Burn of Carleton Universiy See also: Identifying Arctic Methane s Climate Risk Factors - redOrbit Our best guess about global warming may be wrong - The Christian Science Monitor	1st September 2009
Astroturf attack on democracy is intentional - and should be illegal adfero-logo.jpg Adfero and Bonner's actions are planned and deliberate You can't convict someone of a crime unless you can prove that the accused was acting with intent - that they did what they did on purpose. By that standard, Astroturfing specialists at the Washington, D.C., PR firms Adfero Group and Bonner & Associates have demonstrated that they are guilty, even if what they are doing is - at this point - not technically a crime. It should be. Because the Astroturfers are subverting democracy. By their own description, the firms are holding the U.S. democratic system up for sale.	1st September 2009
Heatwave burns Qld horticulture - Stock and Land Queensland's heatwave has had a devastating effect on the State's $5.65 billion agricultural sector, The Australian Financial Review reports. Some produce in the middle of their peak season may be in abundance now, but the heat is expected to have brought forward stocks and left many growers struggling to pick their crops.	1st September 2009
Drought cost Mexico 1.5 million tons in food - AP via Yahoo! Finance Mexico's agriculture secretary says drought has cost the country 1.5 million tons of food production, most of it corn. Alberto Cardenas said Friday that crops on at least 313,000 hectares have been ruined because of lack of rain during July and most of August.	1st September 2009
Greenland offers a chilling view 'We all live on the Greenland ice sheet now. Its fate is our fate'It is calving season in the Arctic. A flotilla of icebergs, some as jagged as fairytale castles and others as smooth as dinosaur eggs, calve from the ice sheet that smothers Greenland and sail down the fjords. The journey of these sculptures of ice from glaciers to ocean is eerily beautiful and utterly terrifying.The wall of ice that rises behind Sermilik fjord stretches for 1,500 miles (2,400km) from north to south and smothers 80% of this country. It has been frozen for 3m years.	1st September 2009
California wildfire more than doubles on sixth day LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A massive wildfire roaring through mountains north of Los Angeles forced some firefighters to retreat Monday as it menaced foothill homes and Mount Wilson, a broadcasting hub and site of an historic observatory.	1st September 2009
Human Impacts and Environmental Factors Are Changing the Northwest Atlantic Ecosystem (PhysOrg.com) -- Fish in U.S. waters from Cape Hatteras to the Canadian border have moved away from their traditional, long-time habitats over the past four decades because of fundamental changes in the regional ecosystem, according to a new report by NOAA researchers.	1st September 2009
Hippos Hurt By Kenyan Drought - redOrbit According to an AFP report, Kenya's drought is having an impact on the country's wildlife, causing the Kenya Wildlife Service to feed hippos to keep them alive. In Tsavo West national park hippos are dying in large numbers, and other species are being forced to change their diet.	1st September 2009
Enabling Wind, Sun To Be Our Main Power Supplies: Quest for Storage -- "Holy Grail" of New Energy Economy -- Nears Goal For decades the "Holy Grail" of the New Energy Economy has been to find ways to store wind and solar energy. The answers are here, and they are much more plain and simple than we thought. Like Indiana Jones in his Last Crusade, we need to see the Grail that is right before our eyes. The means to enable solar and wind energy to serve as our primary energy supplies are at hand. read more	1st September 2009
Ups and downs of sea level projections By Stefan Rahmstorf and Martin Vermeer The scientific sea level discussion has moved a long way since the last IPCC report was published in 2007 (see our post back then). The Copenhagen Synthesis Report recently concluded that The updated estimates of the future global mean sea level rise are about double the IPCC projections from 2007 . New Scientist last month ran a nice article on the state of the science, very much in the same vein. But now Mark Siddall, Thomas Stocker and Peter Clark have countered this trend in an article in Nature Geoscience, projecting a global rise of only 7 to 82 cm from 2000 to the end of this century.	1st September 2009
Chinese-made wind turbine prices down 15 pct over the last year - Interfax Baotou. August 31. INTERFAX-CHINA - The average bidding price of Chinese-made wind turbines has fallen by about 15 percent from July 2008 to July 2009, an industry executive said at a forum in Baotou, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on Aug. 28.	1st September 2009
Climate camp protesters stage demo at Treasury Climate camp activists staged a "clean-up" protest outside the Treasury yesterday. Wearing boiler suits and brandishing cleaning equipment they said they wanted to expose the Treasury's "dirty practices", including the use of taxpayers' money to fund fossil fuel extraction despite the Government claiming to be a global leader in the fight against climate change.	1st September 2009
UGANDA: Carbon Trading Scheme Pushing People off Their Land MOUNT ELGON, Uganda, Aug 31 (IPS) - With the world s attention focused on climate change, one of the methods suggested to reduce global carbon emissions is causing the displacement of indigenous persons as western companies rush to invest in tree-planting projects in developing countries.	1st September 2009
Three Months From a Climate Summit, Agreement Far Off - Time Magazine With a new, more eco-friendly U.S. President, there were high hopes for Copenhagen. But little progress has been made toward a meaningful agreement	1st September 2009
Laughing gas is biggest threat to ozone layer Nitrous oxide, produced by the bacterial breakdown of nitrogen, is now the dominant ozone-depleting substance emitted by humans, a new study shows	29th August 2009
Oxfam warning over Nepal climate - BBC News International aid agency Oxfam warns that millions of rural poor in Nepal could face hunger as a result of climate change.	29th August 2009
Climate Wizard of Oz condemns Kansas US bread basket states to be worst hit by global warming, according to a new interactive map created by the Nature Conservancy, says Shanta Barley	29th August 2009
Richard Black Hijacks Debate Environmentalism has trudged a long, winding, often silent road, with many cul-de-sacs of defeat, desperation and despair. In the last few years there has been a raising of the collective consciousness about how many problems are interrelated with an obscure corner of gas chemistry, which offers grave prospects for the whole of Life on Earth. Ecologists and treehuggers of all varieties have started to gather round the camp fire of Climate Change, finding that people will pay attention to the destruction of Nature if they pay attention to their own fate first. A new unity has been forged, centred around the most important problem ...	29th August 2009
Why bicycles are a must-have for modern civil disobedience What is it that makes the bicycle and the demonstration such good companions?When the location of this year's Climate Camp protest was finally revealed on Wednesday, the first activists to arrive were a select group in rented vans, tasked with setting up tripods and fencing off a section of the land at Blackheath, south-east London.But shortly afterwards, the first influx of protesters taking part in the "swoop" on the site from a series of meeting points around the capital was a contingent of around 150 people, all riding bicycles. They with me in tow had spent about 90 minutes pedalling en mass around central London, awaiting word on where the camp would be.It's a fair bet these days that whenever there is an environmentally based protest, particularly in an urban area, a gang of cyclists will be involved somewhere or other.	29th August 2009
Activists seek tough UN climate pact in 100 days OSLO (Reuters) - Activists launched what they called the world's biggest campaign to combat global warming on Friday, urging governments to agree a tough U.N. climate pact at talks in Copenhagen starting in 100 days' time. See also: A Call to Re-Think Expectations For the Climate Summit in Copenhagen	29th August 2009
Radio Ecoshock: Jan Lundberg interviewed by Alex Smith Former oil and gas analyst Jan Lundberg says declining energy and climate ends globalization. It's time to launch the lifeboats of localization and sustainable energy. Why big government can't fix it -- and why do we need big government at all? Lundberg sees an inevitable rebuild from his website culturechange.org. First of his two part interview on the big picture.http://www.ecoshock.net/gn960/gn960_090830_Lundberg_LoFi.mp3).	29th August 2009
A Sometimes Lonely Trek for Global Warming Awareness - New York Times Greta Browne has encountered more than one global warming naysayer since last March, when she began a trek up the Eastern seaboard to draw attention to climate change.	29th August 2009
Scorching heat fuels Los Angeles wildfires LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Firefighters battling four wildfires around Los Angeles saved hundreds of homes in an affluent coastal community but struggled against a larger fire coming down the mountains toward another exclusive suburb.	29th August 2009
Climate hijack - BBC News Has climate change taken over the green agenda?	27th August 2009
Methane seepage heightens pressure for climate treaty - EurActiv Evidence that methane, a dangerous greenhouse gas, is escaping from the warming Arctic seabed makes securing a new international agreement to slash global-warming gas emissions even more urgent, scientists warn.	27th August 2009
Climate protection 'to cost more' Protecting societies against impacts of climate change will be much more expensive than the UN believes, a study concludes.	27th August 2009
Climate tipping point defined for US crop yields When farms start spending too long above 29 °C, yields will nosedive, says a new study	27th August 2009
History can no longer guide farmers, investors: U.N. GENEVA (Reuters) - Climate change has made history an inaccurate guide for farmers as well as energy investors who must rely on probabilities and scenarios to make decisions, the head of a United Nations agency said on Wednesday.	27th August 2009
Water shortage threatens two million people in southern Iraq Electricity supply to Nasiriyah has dropped by 50% because of falling levels of Euphrates river A water shortage described as the most critical since the earliest days of Iraq's civilisation is threatening to leave up to 2 million people in the south of the country without electricity and almost as many without drinking water.An already meagre supply of electricity to Iraq's fourth-largest city of Nasiriyah has fallen by 50% during the last three weeks because of the rapidly falling levels of the Euphrates river, which has only two of four power-generating turbines left working.If, as predicted, the river falls by a further 20cm during the next fortnight, engineers say the remaining two turbines will also close down, forcing a total blackout in the city.Down river, where the Euphrates spills out into the Shatt al-Arab waterway at the north-eastern corner of the Persian Gulf, ...	27th August 2009
Pakistan's cry for water Pakistan is running out of water so fast that the shortage will strangulate all water-based economic activity by 2015, a Pakistani thinktank says. And that pretty much covers 70 percent of the population who are involved in farming. This is not a new warning. In recent months, as this blog itself has noted, experts have painted an increasingly bleak scenario of Pakistan's rivers drying up, the ground water polluted and over-exploited and the whole water infrastructure in a shambles. But Pakistan, as the Islamabad-based Centre for Research and Security Studies says, is not listening. Pakistan has gone from a "water scarce" country to a "water-stressed" country, worse than Ethiopia, the Centre says quoting a 2006 World Bank study.	27th August 2009
It's officially our warmest ever winter - Perth Now WEATHER records have been smashed from one end of the country to the other as Australia swelters through its warmest-ever winter.	27th August 2009
Steamy heat more common in California: study LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Bouts of extreme muggy heat lasting for days, once rare in California, are becoming more frequent and intense due to ocean patterns altered by climate change, scientists said in a study released on Tuesday.	27th August 2009
More natural disasters due to climate change? - Deutsche Welle Natural disasters have become extremely commonplace all over the world. It is not clear if climate change has a role in this but we may have to adapt to catastrophes striking more often, say experts.	27th August 2009
Canadians want action on environment: poll - CNews OTTAWA - Canadians are telling governments not to let the recession become an excuse for easing up on efforts to protect the environment, a new poll suggests.	27th August 2009
Islay to be entirely powered by tides Exclusive: ScottishPower is to build turbines in the Sound of Islay that will generate enough electricity for the island's 3,500 inhabitants and its famous distilleriesScottishPower is planning a tidal energy project that will supply all the electricity for one of Scotland's most famous islands, the Guardian can reveal.The company is close to signing a supply contract with Diageo, the drinks group, to provide electricity from the project to eight distilleries and maltings on Islay including the makers of the renowned Laphroaig and Lagavulin whiskies.The 10MW tidal project, one of the world's largest, will provide enough electricity for Islay's 3,500 inhabitants for 23 hours a day.ScottishPower will submit a planning application in the next couple of months and expects the ten 30-metre underwater turbines to be operational in 2011.	27th August 2009
A breakthrough moment: IPCC's Dr. Pachauri supports 350 target Amazing news just arrived at 350 headquarters. Rajendra Pachauri, the U.N.'s top climate scientist, announced his support for a target of 350 ppm (parts per million of CO2). Dr. Pachauri leads the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which every five years produces the authoritative assessment of climate science. Previously, the IPCC had helped establish a target of 450 ppm. read more	27th August 2009
Chinese legislature passes its first climate change resolution New laws to combat global warming are highly likely, according to the state mediaChina's top legislative body approved its first climate change resolution today and announced plans to draw up new laws to combat global warming, according to the state media.The moves by the rubber-stamp National People's Congress are timed to strengthen China's negotiating position as it prepares a new announcement on emissions policy before the UN climate change talks in Copenhagen in December.Environmentalists welcomed the unusually high degree of attention that the NPC's standing committee paid to the environment during a week-long session in which lawmakers also debated a more ambitious target for renewable energy.Details of the final resolution were not immediately available, but a draft submitted this week called on the government to take further measures to control greenhouse gas emissions and invest more in low carbon technology.But there was tough language ...	27th August 2009
Perfect Storm: China's energy hunger - BBC News The BBC's Quentin Somerville visits China's massive wind farm projects in Inner Mongolia, but finds a new generation of hungry consumers could negate any environmental benefits.	27th August 2009
U.S. chamber wants Scopes trial on climate change The biggest business lobby in the United States wants to hold a public hearing to put the science of global warming on trial, The Los Angeles Times reports. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, trying to drive back major emission limits, wants the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to hold the hearing on evidence that climate change is man-made. Chamber officials say it would be the Scopes monkey trial of the 21st century complete with witnesses, cross-examinations and a judge who would rule, essentially, on whether humans are warming the planet to dangerous effect, the newspaper reported.	27th August 2009
ENVIRONMENT: Ozone Treaty May Hold Key to Halting Climate Change UXBRIDGE, Canada, Aug 25 (IPS) - Will the world take the easy step to phase out "super" greenhouse gases hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) - using the existing Montreal Protocol ozone treaty? Doing so would be equivalent to preventing the release of 118 to 224 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2050, according to a report by the Environmental Investigation Agency.	27th August 2009
New "Grassroots" Pro-Coal Group backed by K-Street PR Firm FACES clean coal.jpg "The Federation for American Coal, Energy and Security (FACES of Coal)." the latest "grassroots" organization to join the public conversation on behalf of the coal industry, appears to be a project of the K-Street public relations firm, the Adfero Group, one of industry's most accommodating voices in Washington, D.C. The FACES website, which includes no contact information, is registered to Adfero. FACES describes itself as "an alliance of people from all walks of life who are joining forces to educate lawmakers and the general public about the importance of coal and coal mining." But Adfero's client list includes Koch Industries and the US Chamber of Commerce, two leaders in the fight to confuse, distort and deny the science of climate change - and especially to block government action that might affect their bottom line.<!--break- ...	27th August 2009
What are big companies not telling you now? - The Christian Science Monitor via Yahoo! News What do human rights abuses associated with oil drilling in Sudan, the nanotechnology used in your suntan lotion, and growing concerns about climate-related water shortages in the southwestern United States have in common?	27th August 2009
'Artificial trees' to cut carbon Engineers launch a plan to start removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere within 10 to 20 years.	27th August 2009
In pictures: London climate camp - BBC News Pictures taken in Blackheath where climate change protesters have set up camp for the week.	27th August 2009
Marine energy promise 'untapped' - BBC News More than 12,000 jobs could be created in Scotland if investment in wave and tidal power is increased, a study finds.	27th August 2009
Oil companies undermining climate partnership - San Francisco Chronicle Early in 2007, a coalition of big companies broke ranks with corporate America and declared that global warming was a real, grave threat. The United States Climate Action Partnership changed the national debate over warming. Executives from member companies... Sponsored Topics: United States - Global warming - Environment - Climate change - US Climate Action Partnership	27th August 2009
Has northern-hemisphere pollution affected Australian rainfall? New research announced at the International Water in a Changing Climate Science Conference in Melbourne 24-28 August, implicates pollution from Asia, Europe and North America as a contributor to recent Australian rainfall changes. Australian scientists using a climate model that includes a treatment of tiny particles - or aerosols - report that the build up of these particles in the northern hemisphere affects their simulation of recent climate change in the southern hemisphere, including rainfall in Australia.	27th August 2009
A crucial climate vote lost with Ted Kennedy's death The push for a climate-change bill in the Senate lost a reliable supporter with the death of Edward Kennedy. From Grist, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkSen. Edward M. Kennedy's environmental legacy was remarkable, wide-ranging, and not all roses. Joe Romm's got an early look at his record.But there's one clear and simple impact of Kennedy's death late Tuesday night: The push for a climate-change bill in the Senate lost a reliable supporter.That push needs absolutely every vote it can get. Check out Grist's running count of Senate votes to see just how close a vote could be.It will take months to get a replacement for Kennedy in the Senate.	27th August 2009
Branson's green claims run on hot air Branson's stunts have earned him a green repuatation. Yet Virgin Atlantic's emissions are higher than most nations in AfricaSir Richard Branson has somehow over the years persuaded us that he and his Virgin empire are green, or at any rate greener than their rivals. One green website calls him an eco-entrepreneur. The Huffington Post advises us to "follow Richard Branson's green example" Even the Sunday Times was at it recently.This is weird. Branson doesn't do greenwash advertising so much as headline-earning stunts and initiatives that build the aura of a cool, progressive, green guy.A cynic would say that his $25m Virgin Earth Challenge prize for a new low-carbon technology is worth the price in free editorial.	27th August 2009
Poor People Gonna Rise Up Talking About a Revolution : Tracy Chapman When are the intellectual and political ranks going to stop trying to apply universal guilt ? The real question to ask is not, how are we going to get average emissions down ? You can t treat all the people in the United Kingdom as one blurred lump. Around 20% of consumers are conscious. Another 20% to 30% are going to be hit directly by any measure designed to put an environmental tax on Carbon, and will have no choice about responding. Climate Change worldwide is affecting the poorest first and hardest an expression used by everyone from Nicholas Stern through to Christian Aid.	27th August 2009
CUBA: El Niño Taming the Hurricanes HAVANA, Aug 27 (Tierramérica) - The cyclical climate phenomenon known as El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the equatorial Pacific Ocean this year is helping weaken cyclone activity in the Northern Atlantic and the Caribbean. But Cuban meteorologists are warning against complacency.	27th August 2009
Perfect storm Will water, energy and food run low worldwide in 2030?	25th August 2009
Plimer's homework assignment - RealClimate Some of you may be aware of George Monbiot s so-far-unsuccessful attempt to pin down Ian Plimer on his ridiculous compendium of non-science. In response to Monbiot s request for explanation and sources for some of Plimer s more bizarre claims, Plimer has responded with a homework assignment that is clearly beyond even his (claimed) prowess. This is quite transparently a device to avoid dealing with Monbiot s questions and is designed to lead to an argument along the lines of Monbiot can t answer these questions and so knows nothing about the science (and by the way, please don t notice that I can t cite any sources for my nonsense or even acknowledge that I can t answer these questions either) .	25th August 2009
Tipping elements remain a 'hot' issue (PhysOrg.com) -- Research published by climate scientists at the University of East Anglia (UEA) has been named one of the most highly-cited in its field in the last two years.	25th August 2009
U.S. needs climate law before Copenhagen: officials WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States needs to have a climate change law in place before international talks on a climate pact begin in December, two top Obama administration officials said on Monday.	25th August 2009
A Dow Jones For Climate: The Case for a Warming Index If a cap-and-trade bill passes Congress this year, it may include weak emissions targets and will likely need to be strengthened in the years to come. One way to guide future policy: create a Global Climate Change Index that could be used to track global warming s impacts. BY DANIEL R. ABBASI	25th August 2009
Are Climate Deniers Crazy? Because the end of the world has never happened before, it s understandable many people have a hard time wrapping their heads around the potential apocalyptic consequences of climate change. Floods, famines, mass-migrations it might be a little too Old Testament for many folks to want to think about. But what about climate deniers? Those people who don't react with honest skepticism or debate, but vitriol and spleen-venting anger? Psychologist Linda Buzzell was wondering the same thing. In an interesting post last week on Huffington, she tried to plum the depths of why some people can t seem to have a civilized conversation about climate science.	25th August 2009
Trees advance in a warming world Trees around the world are colonising new territories in response to higher temperatures, a new global analysis reveals.	25th August 2009
Research finds higher acidity in Alaska waters (AP) -- Erosion threatens to topple coastal Alaskan villages. Melting ice threatens polar bears. Now, a marine scientist says the state's marine waters are turning acidic from absorbing greenhouse gases faster than tropical waters, potentially endangering Alaska's $4.6 billion fishing industry.	25th August 2009
US crop yields could wilt in heat - EurekAlert! Yields of three of the most important crops produced in the United States -- corn, soybeans and cotton -- are predicted to fall off a cliff if temperatures rise due to climate change.	25th August 2009
Dust to dust - BBC News California farms revert to desert as water runs out	25th August 2009
Climate Camp's YouTube letter shows the police's charm offensive has failed It looks as if all the recent efforts by the police to put their best caring-sharing face forward have fallen a little flatIs this really the way to get the police onside? Climate Camp, apparently un-charmed by the police's recent charm offensive, have replied via YouTube to the Met's request for details of this week's camp location. Their reply is not exactly a model of diplomacy: watch the video above.With chintzy background music and a soothing compilation of pictures of happy, smiling activists from earlier Climate Camps, it's clearly a bit of a send-up of infommercial videos.	25th August 2009
Bug power makes salt water sweet A bacterial fuel cell can provide the charge for desalinating seawater - a possible replacement for existing power-hungry plants	25th August 2009
Climate change could swamp Venice's flood defence A new study suggests that sea level rises by the end of the century will mean Venice is inundated up to 250 times a year and flood barriers may not be enough to save it	25th August 2009
Aggravation Mounts in Minn. Over Governor's Shift on Climate - New York Times Minnesota's Republican governor used to make soaring speeches about defusing climate change. Now he's making jokes, and some ...	25th August 2009
We re Toast, John Prescott World leaders must not get bogged down in precise percentages when they negotiate a successor the Kyoto climate change treaty in Copenhagen, Tony Blair has said. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/aug/23/copenhagen-carbon-emissions Carbon targets may be too tough, says John Prescott : Emissions plan may have to be watered down to reach a deal, claims former deputy prime minister ...	25th August 2009
Coal : Burning the Future Here's one for all my States-side buddies, because nobody in Euroland will get to see this for a while (please correct me if I'm mistaken) : the trailer for the film "Burning the Future". It's all about the toxic, dirty nature of Coal Energy :-http://burningthefuture.semkhor.com/page.asp?s=burningthefuture&content_id=14092	25th August 2009
The fallacy of climate activism by Adam D. Sacks In the 20 years since we climate activists began our work in earnest, the state of the climate has become dramatically worse, and the change is accelerating this despite all of our best efforts. Clearly something is deeply wrong with this picture. What is it that we do not yet know? What do we have to think and do differently to arrive at urgently different outcomes?[1] The answers lie not with science, but with culture. Climate activists are obsessed with greenhouse-gas emissions and concentrations. Since global climate disruption is an effect of greenhouse gases, and a disastrous one, this is understandable.	24th August 2009
Minister met BAA chief before Climate Camp to discuss tactics Activists say memos point to culture of collusion Whitehall worked with 'key parties' on 2007 eventA government minister met the chief executive of the UK's largest airport owner in private to discuss how to "limit" the impact of climate change protests directed against the firm, documents obtained by the Guardian reveal.Jim Fitzpatrick, then a transport minister, met the head of BAA a week before Climate Camp protesters held peaceful demonstrations at Heathrow airport.At the time Fitzpatrick was receiving regular "situation reports" about the protesters. In one, he was told: "It is thought that key members of the camp are getting more frustrated as things are not going as they would have liked.	24th August 2009
Early farming methods caused climate change, say researchers - Guardian Unlimited Farmers thousands of years ago cleared land by burning forests and moved to a new area once the yields declined, say scientists Farmers who used "slash and burn" methods of clearing forests to grow crops thousands of years ago could have increased carbon dioxide levels enough to change the climate, researchers claimed today. The US scientists believe that small populations released carbon ...	24th August 2009
"Global starvation imminent as US faces crop failure" - comment by Jan Lundberg Editor's commentary: The above headline and first sentences of a recent report from CommodityOnline.com grab one's attention: "The world faces 'mass starvation' following North America's next major crop failure. And it could even happen before year's end." World leaders and the corporate media don't appreciate the role of petroleum in food production and distribution. On top of that typical error in the report, several other contradictions make for a jaw-dropping reading experience.	24th August 2009
Rainfall needed for NSW crops - BigPond News New figures show about 64 per cent of NSW is still in drought.	24th August 2009
Nile Delta: 'We are going underwater. The sea will conquer our lands' The Nile Delta is under threat from rising sea levels. Without the food it produces, Egypt faces catastropheMaged Shamdy's ancestors arrived on the shores of Lake Burrulus in the mid-19th century. In the dusty heat of Cairo at the time, French industrialists were rounding up forced labour squads to help build the Suez Canal, back-breaking labour from which thousands did not return. Like countless other Egyptians, the Shamdys abandoned their family home and fled north into the Nile Delta, where they could hide within the marshy swamplands that fanned out from the great river's edge.As the years passed, colonial rulers came and went.	24th August 2009
Cattle, crop losses mount in Texas drought DALLAS (Reuters) - A vast swathe of Texas remains in the grip of a scorching drought, which has cost billions of dollars and is cleaving America's largest beef cattle herd.	24th August 2009
Climate change threatens Central American coffee CERRO DE ORO, Guatemala (Reuters) - Scientists expect climate change to dramatically affect coffee production in Central America in the coming decades, but some lowland farmers in Guatemala say they are already feeling the effects.	24th August 2009
Millions at risk in China drought - BBC News More than 4.5m people are short of drinking water in northern China during a severe drought, says state media.	24th August 2009
India to import food amid drought - BBC News India will import food as shortages caused by drought hit up to 700 million people, the finance minister says.	24th August 2009
City farmers - BBC News Organic fruit and veg gives Cubans edge in food crisis	24th August 2009
Climate change doubles tundra plant life - CNews Climate change is already having a dramatic effect on plants in the High Arctic, turning the once rocky tundra a deep shade of green and creating what could be another mechanism speeding up global warming.	24th August 2009
Climate change opens Arctic s Northeast passage Two German ships set off on Friday on the first commercial journey from Asia to western Europe via the Arctic through the fabled Northeast Passage a trip made possible by climate change. Niels Stolberg, president and CEO of Bremen-based Beluga Shipping, said the Northern Sea Route will cut thousands of nautical miles off the ships journey from South Korea to the Netherlands, reducing fuel consumption and emissions of greenhouse gas. I had the chance to ask Stolberg a few questions about the Arctic expedition: Question: What s the status of the voyage? Stolberg: MV Beluga Fraternity and the MV Beluga Foresight have just started to sail from Vladivostok (on Friday) with the destination Novyy Port at the river Ob.	24th August 2009
Billions of beetles, wildfire spread imperil the northern forests of a warmer world - The San Francisco Examiner HAINES JUNCTION, YUKON TERRITORY A veil of smoke settled over the forest in the shadow of the St. Elias Mountains, in a wilderness whose spruce trees stood tall and gray, a deathly gray even in the greenest heart of a Yukon summer.	24th August 2009
World Ocean Temperatures Set Record High in July, U.S. Agency Says The world s oceans were warmer in July than at any time in the 130 years of record-keeping, averaging 62.6 degrees F (17 C), according to the U.S. National Climate Data Center. July s temperature was 1.1 degrees F warmer than the 20th century average. Scientists say the high ocean temperatures are primarily the result of global warming and an El Nino climate cycle in the Pacific, which boosts ocean temperatures. Unusually warm sea temperatures were recorded from the Gulf of Mexico where temperatures hovered near 90 degrees F to the Arctic, where ocean temperatures as much as 10 degrees F above normal were measured in some places.	24th August 2009
Hundreds flee wildfire burning homes near Athens - Reuters ATHENS (Reuters) - Wildfires burned scores of homes and thousands of acres of forest near Athens as flames raged out of control for a second day on Sunday, sending huge clouds of smoke over the Greek capital, authorities said.	24th August 2009
Native Americans to join climate protest Canadian First Nations seek to highlight UK's 'criminal' role in CO2-heavy oil schemesNative Americans are to join the Climate Camp protests in the City of London this week in an attempt to draw attention to corporate Britain's "criminal" involvement in the tar sands of Canada.Five representatives from the Cree First Nations are coming to co-ordinate their campaign against key players in the carbon-heavy energy sector with British environmentalists.Eriel Tchekwie Deranger, from Fort Chipewyan, a centre of Alberta's tar sands schemes, said: "British companies such as BP and Royal Bank of Scotland in partnership with dozens of other companies are driving this project, which is having such devastating effects on our environment and communities."It is destroying the ancient boreal forest, spreading open-pit mining across our territories, contaminating our food and water with toxins, disrupting local wildlife and threatening our way of life," she ...	24th August 2009
Coal aid rides high above wave power Amount invested in marine energy is a drop in the ocean against more than £50m for collieries. The government has spent 20 times more subsidising the coal industry over the past six years than it has put into marine energy, new figures show.Ministers have given away £52.8m of a £60m coal investment aid scheme to extend operations at a range of mines around Britain, including Daw Mill in Warwickshire where energy minister Mike O'Brien is the local MP. This contrasts with the £2.3m handed out from a £50m pot created under the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund, which started in 2004 just 12 months after the launch of the latest coal scheme."At a time when we need to deliver a major expansion in renewable energy, it's astonishing to find that less than 5% of the investment promised to give Britain a lead in ...	24th August 2009
We believed Obama was going to tackle climate change. It isn't that easy Barack Obama might be the most powerful man in the world, but he faces tough opposition from all sides over climate-change legislationAl Gore made a surprise appearance on the sketch comedy programme Saturday Night Live in May 2006, to offer an alternative-universe United States, one in which he'd become president after the 2000 election fiasco. Global warming was so soundly defeated that glaciers stood poised to attack Michigan and Maine. All Americans enjoyed free health care. The rest of the world held the US in such high esteem that Americans were afraid to travel to Europe for fear of being hugged too much.By January of this year, many believed that this liberal fantasy had become liberal promise.	24th August 2009
Africa seeks climate change cash - BBC News The leaders of 10 African countries meet to decide how to pursue their demand for compensation for global warming.	24th August 2009
Climate demo police 'not trusted' - BBC News Activists refuse to reveal the London location of a planned week-long protest camp despite police requests.	24th August 2009
Demand for tariffs in global-warming legislation splits allies - Los Angeles Times Reporting from Perrysburg, Ohio - A group of Midwestern Democrats is pushing for tariffs on products from countries that don't limit greenhouse gas emissions, a controversial step that the legislators say is needed to help American manufacturers survive expected emissions restrictions here.	24th August 2009
Steven Chu, A Political Scientist - Time Magazine Steven Chu, the Nobel-winning Secretary of Energy, says people caused global warming. He also says people, with science's help, can solve it	24th August 2009
A new generation of turbines - Guardian Unlimited Faced with the need to cut fuel costs, an Oxford professor has invented a cheap wind turbine that uses an induction motor Professor John Gregg at the University of Oxford is an international expert in the fields of spin electronics, spintronics and magnetic instrumentation. But he has designed and built something for homeowners facing high energy costs: a new-generation wind turbine. He is ...	24th August 2009
Tony Blair : Uncounting Irresponsibility Climate Change is a problem quintessentially expressed in numbers : how many degrees of warming, how many parts per million of Carbon Dioxide in the air, how much Carbon Dioxide the Oceans, Forests, Rocks, Plants and Soils soak up, how many lives will be affected by drought, famine and sickness, how much Methane could be released from tundra and hydrates, how many species will be lost, perhaps including our own. Science indicates what our targets on Greenhouse Gas Emissions should be, numbers expressed in terms of confidence bands and scenario risks. If we want to prevent the risks we have to follow the numbers.	24th August 2009
Majority of ‘Energy Citizens’ rallies organized by oil-industry lobbyists by Kate Sheppard Here s more evidence that the Energy Citizens rallies against climate legislation are anything but grassroots uprisings. We already knew that the American Petroleum Institute was behind the whole idea. Now it turns out that even the local organizers of individual rallies are oil-industry lobbyists. Grist obtained a copy of API s list of coordinators for the 21 planned rallies, and 15 of them are registered lobbyists, mostly for API or its state-level affiliates. There have already been three Energy Citizens rallies in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday; in Roswell, N.M., on Thursday ...	24th August 2009
Is the methane time bomb about to go off? Methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases. In the atmosphere it has a warming effect more than 20 times that of carbon dioxide.	24th August 2009
Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future Science matters- to politics, the economy, and our future. But do Americans really understand and appreciate that?	24th August 2009
Gas seeps from Arctic sea-bed The powerful greenhouse gas methane is escaping from the sea bed off Norway as the ice it is trapped in melts, scientists say.	21st August 2009
US congress inquiry reveals fake letters from 'voters' opposed to climate bill Bonner Associates, lobbyists hired to campaign against climate change bill, admit letters sent by sacked employeeDon't blame it on granny. A US congressional inquiry has found more than a dozen forged letters to members of Congress purportedly from voters opposed to a climate change bill including a number from old people's homes.The house select committee on energy independence and global warming now says it has confirmed 13 fake letters to members of Congress apparently from old people's centres and Latino and African-American groups opposing climate change legislation.The committee is still investigating 45 other letters sent by the lobbying firm Bonner Associates, which was hired to campaign against the climate change bill.	21st August 2009
Is there any point in fighting to stave off industrial apocalypse? The collapse of civilisation will bring us a saner world, says Paul Kingsnorth. No, counters George Monbiot we can't let billions perishDear GeorgeOn the desk in front of me is a set of graphs. The horizontal axis of each represents the years 1750 to 2000. The graphs show, variously, population levels, CO2 concentration in the atmosphere, exploitation of fisheries, destruction of tropical forests, paper consumption, number of motor vehicles, water use, the rate of species extinction and the totality of the human economy's gross domestic product.What grips me about these graphs (and graphs don't usually grip me) is that though they all show very different things, they have an almost identical shape.	21st August 2009
Firefighters battle wildfires in Portugal, Spain - Channel NewsAsia LISBON : Hundreds of firefighters struggled to control raging wildfires in northern Portugal and Spain Wednesday, as the flames cut off an international train route and sparked the evacuation of a village.	21st August 2009
Lloyd's Assesses Impact of Heat Waves and Wildfires - Insurance Journal The recent series of wildfires that ravaged parts of Spain, France, Greece and Italy in late July may well be symptomatic of the warming trend in global weather patterns according to experts at ...	21st August 2009
China's central government allocates 182 mln yuan for drought relief - People's Daily The central Chinese government has so far allocated 182 million yuan (26.65 million U.S. dollars) as of Wednesday to fight the ongoing drought, the Ministry of Finance said Wednesday. The fund has been allocated to the provincial and regional governments of Liaoning and Jilin provinces and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, according to the ministry. About 182 million mu (12.13 million hectares) ...	21st August 2009
New report shows record drought, heat - KXAN 36 Austin With 60th day of triple-digit heat this summer expected, State Climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon releases a new drought report. Nielsen-Gammon says any place south of Waco, Llano or Del Rio is suffering from severe to exceptional drought. Adding this summer is "one for the history books." Austin area farmers agree.	21st August 2009
Half of India affected by drought - BBC News Nearly half of India's districts have been hit by drought that could affect the production of rice, a minister says.	21st August 2009
Victorian Fires Fanned by Record Heat... - Bloomberg Brisbane TimesVictorian Fires Fanned by Record Heatwave, Panel SaysBloomberg... southeastern state of Victoria were the result of a record heatwave and a failed warning system, a panel examining the causes of the blazes said. ...Protection plans boosted ahead of fire seasonABC OnlineCool heads in Black Saturday studyNEWS.com.auall 383	21st August 2009
Montreal in midst of longest heatwave... - CJAD Montreal in midst of longest heatwave in yearsCJADIf we get just one more day of 30-plus on Tuesday, we will have had the longest unbroken heatwave since august, 2005. Ed figures we'll be more comfortableby ...	21st August 2009
Heatwave sweeps Italy - iAfrica.com iAfrica.comHeatwave sweeps ItalyiAfrica.comA heatwave stifled Italy on Wednesday, with temperatures up to 41 degrees Celsius (106 Fahrenheit) and civil protection authorities issuing warnings for ...and more	21st August 2009
Heatwave drives French into fountains - Sky News Australia Heatwave drives French into fountainsSky News AustraliaFrench citizens and tourists alike are diving into fountains and taking cold showers to try to cope with a heat wave hitting the country. ...and more	21st August 2009
London to enjoy scorching temperature... - the london paper London to enjoy scorching temperatures in one-day heatwavethe london paperA MINI heatwave is set to hit London today as forecasters predict scorching temperatures and wall-to-wall sunshine. The mercury is tipped to reach a ...	21st August 2009
Ocean Temperature Record and Other Clues: What Is Your Response? In this report we look at recent news on global warming, the positioning of denialists (the bad cop) and the more insidious "limited-measure-ists" (the good cop), and lastly the direct action approach. The news on global climate change does not get better, but patterns are emerging right now that may help us cut through the obstacles to acting forthrightly.	21st August 2009
Warming Of Arctic Current Over 30 Years Triggers Release Of Methane Gas - Science Daily The warming of an Arctic current over the last 30 years has triggered the release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from methane hydrate stored in the sediment beneath the seabed. Scientists have found that more than 250 plumes of bubbles of methane gas are rising from the seabed of the West Spitsbergen continental margin in the Arctic.	15th August 2009
Climate change already visible on Greenland - Deutsche Welle Many scientists and governments are talking about what will happen once climate change begins to occur, but on the great island of Greenland global warming isn't just a future problem - it's happening now.	15th August 2009
Trees are going up in the world Trees are living further and further uphill, thanks to warmer winters caused by climate change. It's good news for them, says Michael Marshall, but is it good news for us?	15th August 2009
Deep-fried locust, anyone? Insects may be the answer to our looming food crisis Sustainable and nutritious, it's time insects were seen as another source of protein. The problem is how to make them desirableAs with gingerbread men and gummy bears, the dilemma when served a locust is whether to begin eating it head or legs first. I choose to start with the six little legs (sometimes you need to fold them in a bit because they tend to trail out of your mouth otherwise), then the abdomen and finally (gulp) the head. Crunch, crunch, swallow. Think: bbq prawns, but unshelled.I'll be honest, deep-fried locust is not the most delicious snack I've ever had.	21st August 2009
Asia facing unprecedented food shortage, UN report says Major investment in irrigation systems needed to feed population expected to grow by 1.5 billion over next 40 yearsAsia faces an unprecedented food crisis and huge social unrest unless hundreds of billions of dollars are invested in better irrigation systems to grow crops for its burgeoning population, according to a UN report published today.India, China, Pakistan and other large countries avoided famines in the 1970s and 1980s only because they built giant state-sponsored irrigation systems and introduced better seeds and fertilisers. But the extra 1.5 billion people expected to live on the continent by 2050 will double Asia's demand for food, says the report from the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Bank-funded International Water Management Institute (IWMI).A combination of very little new land left for cultivation, an increasingly unpredictable climate and water supplies stretched to the limit ...	21st August 2009
Almost half of India under drought: Pawar - The Times of India NEW DELHI: With the government declaring that almost half the country is already under drought, the Union cabinet will on Thursday consider a proposal to increase the minimum support price (MSP) for paddy to Rs 1,000 per quintal from the existing rate of Rs 850. The government will also mull whether to increase the support price for arhar (tur) dal from Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,300 and of moong dal from ...	21st August 2009
Drought hastens Argentina's first beef imports - People's Daily Argentina, the biggest beef-consuming nation, may resort to imports for the first time within two years as a drought kills cattle and export controls prompt ranchers to quit the business. Pastures have dried up and forage prices gained so much that farmers are allowing livestock to die in the fields, said Arturo Llavallol, a director of Buenos Aires-based farm group The Rural Society. Ranchers ...	21st August 2009
Indian drought threatens rice, sugar output - AFP via Yahoo! News India said Wednesday it would step up its food distribution programme for the poor as a widening drought threatened to cut rice production by 10 percent and sharply reduce sugar supplies.	21st August 2009
Kenyan farmers hit by drought - AFP via Yahoo! News In Kenya a bruising and recurring drought is driving huge numbers of subsistence farmers away from rural areas, where they are increasingly reliant on hand-outs, into congested slums.	21st August 2009
Mekong Delta may be inundated by rising sea HANOI (Reuters) - More than a third of the Mekong Delta in Vietnam, where nearly half of the country's rice is grown, will be submerged if sea levels rise by 1 meter (39 inches), an environment ministry scenario predicted.	21st August 2009
Met police turns on charm ahead of climate protest Climate Camp will be first big test of policing since G20 Metropolitan police to disseminate information via TwitterScotland Yard is overhauling its tactics for policing protests by reaching out to activists in advance of its first big test since the controversy surrounding the handling of the G20 demonstrations.Senior officers have told representatives from Climate Camp, who are planning to construct a huge campsite next week at an undisclosed location in London, that they will be met with a "community-style" policing operation that will limit the use of surveillance units and stop-and-searches wherever possible.In a further effort to disseminate real-time information, the Metropolitan police has activated an account on Twitter, named CO11MetPolice after its public order unit codename, which will be used to send operational information to protesters taking part in the camp.Separately, a delegation from this year's Climate Camp will be taken ...	21st August 2009
Brazil's former environment minister leaves ruling party over 'destruction of natural resources' Marina Silva is expected to make a 2010 presidential bid and put the environment back on the agendaBrazil's former environment minister, the rainforest defender Marina Silva, has resigned from the ruling Workers' party, paving the way for a 2010 presidential bid, which supporters hope will put the environment back on the political agenda of South America's largest country.For weeks speculation has been growing that Silva, who resigned from government last May after a dispute over the development of the Amazon region, would defect to the Green party in order to dispute the presidential elections next October.Speaking at a press conference in Brasilia earlier today, Silva, who has been a Workers' party member for over 30 years, said politicians had failed to give sufficient attention to the environmental cause.In her resignation letter to the president of the Workers' party, Silva said her decision was an attempt to break ...	21st August 2009
Australian politicians commit to 20% renewable target by 2020 Law would double production of electricity from sun and windAustralia's main political parties struck an agreement today on a new law requiring that 20% of the country's electricity comes from renewable sources such as the sun and wind by 2020, more than twice the current level.The law would quadruple the renewable energy target set by the previous government in 2001 and provide enough clean electricity to power the households of all 21 million Australians.The target matches one set in 2007 by the European Union, which leads the world in green power technology. Many US states also have set renewable energy targets although there is no national goal.But critics argue the Australian target will make electricity more expensive in coal-rich Australia without curbing the amount of climate-warming carbon gases that the nation emits, as overall electricity consumption rises.Currently, 8% of Australia's electricity comes from renewable ...	21st August 2009
Major Solar Project Announced for Mojave Desert First Solar, a maker of thin-film solar cells, has signed an agreement with Southern California Edison to sell the utility 550 megawatts of electricity produced by two massive photovoltaic solar farms in the Mojave Desert. The plants, expected to go online by 2015 and produce enough electricity to power 170,000 homes, would be built on federal land set aside for such solar projects. Analysts say that the First Solar deal is a sign that large arrays of solar photovoltaic panels can produce electricity competitively with so-called solar-thermal plants, which generate electricity by using mirrors to focus sunlight on liquid-filled boilers to produce steam.	21st August 2009
Virtuous cannot afford renewable energy now - Times Online Virtue is never a good selling proposition booze and cigarettes generate better cashflow than good books do.	21st August 2009
FACTBOX-Key facts about Australia's renewable energy law - AlertNet Source: Reuters (For related story, click on [ID:nSYD429219] August 20 (Reuters) - Australia's Senate approved laws on Thursday requiring 20 percent of the country's energy to come from renewable sources by 2020, ...	21st August 2009
Stressed Crops Emit More Methane Than Thought - Science Daily Scientists have found that methane emission by plants could be a bigger problem in global warming than previously thought. They say an uncounted-for source of greenhouse gas could promote global warming.	21st August 2009
It's time for a new economic paradigm - CNews I've heard economists boast that their discipline is based on a fundamental human impulse: selfishness.	21st August 2009
Targeted investments in climate science could present enormous economic savings across the globe Targeted investments in climate science could lead to major benefits in reducing the costs of adapting to a changing climate, according to new research published by scientists from the UK's National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS). Published in the scientific journal, the Bulletin for the American Meteorological Society, the study shows that investments made now, can lead to as much as 10-20% improvement in climate predictions for the UK and Europe in the coming decades, and up to 20% across the rest of the globe.	21st August 2009
Those dog days of August: 3 times the heat by 2050? If you are wilting under the summer heat, consider this: your child may one day think of summer 2009 as "back in the cool old days." To illustrate expected increases in extreme summer heat, scientists at Climate Central have analyzed climate change projections made with global climate models.	21st August 2009
Water in Earth's mantle may be associated with subduction A team of scientists from Oregon State University has created the first global three-dimensional map of electrical conductivity in the Earth's mantle and their model suggests that that enhanced conductivity in certain areas of the mantle may signal the presence of water.	21st August 2009
POLITICS: U.N. Summit on Climate Change Under Fire UNITED NATIONS, Aug 18 (IPS) - A much-ballyhooed U.N. summit on climate change, scheduled to take place on Sep. 22 in New York, is mired in controversy even before it gets off the ground.	21st August 2009
Leading article: Lessons from a Siberian disaster The accident at Russia's largest hydro-electric power station, the Sayano-Shushenskaya plant in Siberia, has so far cost more than 70 lives. The pictures show utter devastation in the cavernous turbine hall. As much as one quarter of the electricity Russia generates by hydro-power has been knocked out. The authorities say repairs will take many months and the expense will run into billions of roubles.	21st August 2009
Our addiction to cheap stuff has become very expensive, new book argues by Vanessa Kerr American retail is riddled with cheap, fall-apart merchandise. We know this. Sales are a ploy to get a shopper to spend, as opposed to a boon for penny pinchers. Right. And how much mileage do we get from that old, overused adage, You get what you pay for ? More than we d like to admit. So why is Ellen Ruppel Shell s new book, Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture, so shocking? Shell deftly weaves a compelling, cautionary tale out of disparate strands: the psychology of manipulating shoppers, the environmental costs of our lust for inexpensive things, the deskilling of the retail industry, and the loss of appreciation for quality. Tracing the history of discount culture from the yesteryear excitement over brown paper packages to today s ambivalence about crammed plastic bags, Shell shows us why we feel we ve ...	21st August 2009
Climate Catastrophe: At Some Point, It Gets Personal It was meeting a family with a mother working through typhoid fever to serve me breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday for two weeks that finally made me realize that the way we North Americans lead our unsustainable lives can not go on without doing unforgivable damage to the world and its people.I was in Nepal, resting after an exhausting three-week trek through the mountains part of a long adventure I took to see the world as I had never known it mid-career.Having spent the previous 12 years managing public relations programs for Fortune 500 technology companies like Intel, IBM and Microsoft, I had quit my job and was in the midst of a trip that included eight months motorcycling across India, two months trekking through the Himalayas and a month each in Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Malaysia.	21st August 2009
Congress Should Expose or Outlaw Astroturfers oil.pump_.jpg The venerable New York Times has reported the discovery of More Fake Letters To Congress by Bonner & Associates, the Astroturf specialists hired by Americans for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCE) to interfere with the vote on the Waxman-Markey bill. As much as Bonner has tried to deny its involvement, the agency was clearly the source of forged letters, purporting to come from charitable organizations opposed to the climate bill. But then, Bonner s record is well-recorded. As William Greider described in his book, Who Will Tell the People, Bonner has operated a "boiler room" that featured "300 phone lines and a sophisticated computer system, resembling the phone banks employed in election campaigns.	21st August 2009
Money Is God, Greed Is King And Corruption Runs The Game By Siv ONeall Civilization is dying. The very notion of civilization is dead. Money has taken over. Money has been the heir apparent for centuries and in the Empires frantic reaching out of its tentacles over the rest of the world, it has already managed to convert a majority of the Western world, and more, to the belief that the Free Market is the solution to global well-being	21st August 2009
China seen looking to bigger climate change steps BEIJING (Reuters) - China appears committed to stronger steps to contain swelling greenhouse gas emissions, the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said after meetings in Beijing, urging practical hopes of climate treaty negotiations.	21st August 2009
Australia government seeks talks on emissions scheme CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's government challenged conservative rivals on Thursday to support deadlocked emissions trade laws after both sides reached agreement on a new national target to sharply lift the use of renewable energy.	21st August 2009
Budget cut to keep Maldives away from U.N. climate talks MALE (Reuters) - The Maldives on Wednesday said a budget crisis will keep its president from attending landmark U.N. climate talks, the results of which could have a huge effect on the future of the low-lying archipelago.	21st August 2009
Ontario to launch wind forecasting service in 2010 VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - The Canadian province of Ontario plans to launch a centralized wind forecasting service next year, its bulk electricity manager said on Tuesday, as it tries to add more wind-generated energy to its grid.	21st August 2009
Heatwave attracts an unwelcome visitor - Independent Heatwave attracts an unwelcome visitorIndependentA combination of calm, sunny weather and high concentrations of nitrate pollutants running into the sea from local farms and ...and more	21st August 2009
Heatwave brings ozone warnings - World Radio Switzerland Heatwave brings ozone warningsWorld Radio SwitzerlandUnusually hot weather in August may be filling up swimming pools around the country, but it's also causing an increase in air pollution. ...	21st August 2009
How psychology can help the planet stay cool Insights from marketing and psychology can encourage us all to do our bit to combat global warming	21st August 2009
Cockroaches future-proofed against climate change The mystery of why the widely loathed insects hold their breath has been solved: it's an adaptation to save water	21st August 2009
Is Cash for Clunkers stalling out? - The Christian Science Monitor The so-called "Cash for Clunkers" program started out as a cash cow, spurring a big increase in automotive sales this summer. Now, the program itself may be turning into a clunker. What's happening is that the people most interested in trading in an old car and getting a generous credit ...	21st August 2009
Carbon emissions trading for dummies - University of Sydney News Emissions Trading for Dummies, hosted by the Institute for Sustainable Solutions.	21st August 2009
Lawmakers weigh views in climate-chan... - Salt Lake Tribune Lawmakers weigh views in climate-change debateSalt Lake TribuneWhile many critics of climate change science and policy contend there's flimsy evidence global warming is happening and humans are behind it, that's not the ...	21st August 2009
BP and Shell warned to halt campaign against US climate change bill - guardian.co.uk BP and Shell are being told to tear up their membership of the American Petroleum Institute (API) in protest at the organisation's attempts to incite a public backlash against Barack Obama's energy and climate change bill. The two oil companies are also being asked to bring a halt to their own political lobbying in Washington in letters sent to their chief executives from Greenpeace and the Platform environmental group.	21st August 2009
Bjørn Lomborg : Climate Joker In his own, special, blond, way, I feel Bjørn Lomborg is as dangerous as Martin Durkin. They both act like incarnations of The Climate Joker in my view, showing different capricious sides to the destructive force of mankind s inhumanity to man (and beast and tree). Martin Durkin directs documentaries and films apparently claiming the authority to speak about Nature and Climate, without any basis in reality. It seems he tries to usurp the public mind, and it is alleged he has a barely-hidden agenda of destroying confidence in Science (and the United Nations). He is in my opinion an arch-propagandist without wide-ranging knowledge, and without an accurate comprehension of what he attempts to speak to. See aslo: Cheap Climate-Change Fix Needed, Lomborg Center Says - Bloomberg	15th August 2009
Climate Lobbyists Overwhelming Washington A total of 1,150 different companies and advocacy organizations have participated so far this year in lobbying Congres on climate change, an increase of more than 30 per cent this year alone. According to records compiled by the Center for Public Integrity, energy interests and heavy industry led the charge, with agri-business coming in with a huge new push to protect or promote the (highly debatable) benefits of biofuels. The Centre for Public Integrity couldn't attach a dollar figure to the over all lobbying effort, but the Associated Press had already reported that oil and gas lobbyists had spent $44.5 million in lobbying in the first quarter alone - a rate of spending that will shatter last year's record-breaking annual total of $129 million.	15th August 2009
Climate Disobedience Is on the Rise and It's Not Just for Radical Activists Anymore An emerging movement is determined to use direct action to combat the depredations of climate change and they've got some big names on board.	15th August 2009
Oil lobby to fund phoney campaign against US climate change strategy Email from American Petroleum Institute outlines plan to create appearance of public opposition to Obama's climate and energy reformThe US oil and gas lobby are planning to stage public events to give the appearance of a groundswell of public opinion against legislation that is key to Barack Obama's climate change strategy, according to campaigners.A key lobbying group will bankroll and organise 20 ''energy citizen'' rallies in 20 states. In an email obtained by Greenpeace, Jack Gerard, the president of the American Petroleum Institute (API), outlined what he called a "sensitive" plan to stage events during the August congressional recess to put a "human face" on opposition to climate and energy reform.After the clamour over healthcare, the memo raises the possibility of a new round of protests against a key Obama issue."Our goal is to energise people and show them that they are not alone," ...	15th August 2009
Opencast coalmine rise 'makes UK a joke' Britain will be a joke at Copenhagen, warns Nasa scientist James Hansen, as government authorises more minesCoal production in Britain has increased sharply after a surge in new opencast coal mines, undermining the government's claim to be a world leader on combating climate change.Dozens of opencast coal mines have been authorised by ministers and local councils across the UK, reversing a decade-long decline in coal production in Britain and often against intense local opposition.As a result, mining companies are now sitting on 71m tonnes of coal in licensed opencast mines, compared with 55m tonnes in 2007. And over the next few months, the industry is likely to win permission to mine another 15m tonnes from across the UK.The rise prompted condemnation from leading Nasa climate scientist Prof James Hansen.	15th August 2009
Climate sceptics and believers unite Australia's Green and Coalition parties have voted down an emissions plan. It's bad news for the environmentIt was a rare moment in the Australian environment this week when two hostile political species, the climate change sceptics and the believers, united to defeat the Labor government's plan to help abate global warming. Normally sworn enemies, the Greens, the conservative Liberal-National coalition and minor parties set aside their environmental differences to vote against the government's carbon emissions trading scheme.Australians, individually, are the worst polluters on the planet but polling consistently shows the vast majority view climate change as a big problem.	15th August 2009
Climate talks risk failure unless they accelerate: U.N. BONN, Germany (Reuters) - U.N. talks on a new climate treaty due to be agreed in December risk failure unless negotiations accelerate, a senior U.N. official said on Friday after a sluggish week-long session involving 180 countries.	15th August 2009
Vulnerable states team up for tougher climate pact BONN, Germany (Reuters) - The world's poorest nations joined small island states on Friday to urge far tougher global goals for fighting climate change, saying their people were at risk from everything from droughts to rising sea levels.	15th August 2009
Senate climate bill to include free permits WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A climate control bill that Democratic leaders hope to move through the U.S. Senate will seek to give companies a substantial number of pollution permits, potentially worth billions of dollars, rather than sell them, an aide to a key Democratic senator said on Friday.	15th August 2009
Rising temperature will affect palm oil, other crops: Experts - Business Times - Malaysia THE world's temperature is intensifying, with climatologists forecasting up to three degree celcius increase by 2050. This will have a serious impact on palm oil and other crops, they told an international conference on palm oil in Serdang, Selangor, yesterday.	15th August 2009
People suffer water shortage as prolonged drought hits NE China - People's Daily More than 362,500 people in northeast China's Liaoning province are suffering from drinking water shortage due to an ongoing drought, local officials said Saturday. The flood control and drought relief headquarters in Liaoning said the daily water shortage is 101,200 tons, causing a drinking water shortage for 362,500 people and 108,700 heads of livestock. The northwestern part of the province ...	15th August 2009
Changes in net flow of ocean heat correlate with past climate anomalies Physicists at the University of Rochester have combed through data from satellites and ocean buoys and found evidence that in the last 50 years, the net flow of heat into and out of the oceans has changed direction three times.	15th August 2009
Wilder, wetter cyclones will hit Japan's economy Subtropical twisters could have a financial impact on Japan before the end of the century but developing countries will be harder hit	15th August 2009
Antarctic glacier 'thinning fast' One of the largest glaciers in Antarctica is thinning four times faster than 10 years ago, according to research seen by the BBC.	14th August 2009
Atlantic hurricanes 'at 1,000-year high' - BBC News Hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean are more frequent than at any time in the last 1,000 years, scientists say.	14th August 2009
Big Dry : Global Drought Update It's not the Polar Bears in a remote, formerly ice-locked location that I'm talking about. It's the humans, in previously luscious fertile parts, now facing extraordinary and continuing drought. Let's do a quick review of some global human habitat locations and see how much good quality rain is no longer falling. Oh yes, there are sometimes storms, hurricanes, typhoons and flash floods, but this is "bad water", running straight off the parched un-absorbing un-receptive land straight back into the waterways.	14th August 2009
Drought costs NZ $2.8 billion - Scoop.co.nz Agriculture Minister David Carter has revealed that the nationwide drought between spring 2007 and autumn 2008 cost the New Zealand economy $2.8 billion. A Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry report outlining the effects of the 2007-2008 drought ...	14th August 2009
Leaked Memo - Oil Lobby's Energy Citizens Astroturf Campaign Exposed Before Launch An internal memo obtained recently by Greenpeace USA details polluting interests plans to launch a nationwide Astroturf campaign attacking climate legislation at public events scheduled throughout the final weeks of recess before the Senate returns to debate the issue in September.The email memo (download a PDF copy), which appears to come from the desk of American Petroleum Institute president Jack Gerard, asks API s member companies to recruit employees, retirees, vendors and contractors to attend Energy Citizen rallies in key Congressional districts nationwide in the closing weeks of the August recess. The campaign plan places a special focus on 21 states picked by API for having a significant industry presence or assets on the ground.	14th August 2009
Carbon Dioxide is not the only Greenhouse Gas The Global Warming Potential, or GWP, of various substances in the atmosphere is an indication as to how much extra heat it will make the Earth system retain from the Sun s light falling on it. The effect of the basket of Greenhouse Gases has to be added to that of soot and other particles and aerosols in the air above us; something which Al Gore neatly summarises as Global Warming Pollution , another GWP, confusingly. I m going to call Global Warming Potential GWPot , and Global Warming Pollution GWPol . The blanket, ovecoat, effect of GWPol is not something that reverses instantly you remove the gases and dust from the air.	14th August 2009
Comment: Australian carbon defeat is bad news for Copenhagen summit - Daily Telegraph The failure to pass new climate change legislation in Australia does not bode well for a global agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol at the end of the year in Copenhagen.	14th August 2009
Climate Change Measure Should Be Set Aside, U.S. Senators Say - Bloomberg Aug. 14 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Senate should abandon efforts to pass legislation curbing greenhouse-gas emissions this year and concentrate on a narrower bill to require use of renewable energy, four Democratic lawmakers say.	14th August 2009
Australia emissions plan rejected - BBC News Australia's Senate votes down a plan to introduce a carbon trading scheme to cut greenhouse gas emissions. See also: Australia government faces "day of reckoning" on carbon plans The defeat of Australia’s climate plan doesn’t bode ill for cap-and-trade	13th August 2009
The Axis of Climate Change Who will be the next Enemy of The States ? This week, the Pentagon have bested their Climate Change report of 2004 (The Hague flooded by 2007, yeah, right) with yet another hard-hitting doom-laden warning. And it looks like the new enemy will be any people from any country afflicted by Climate Change. The world's poor, in other words. See also: Climate Change: Get Smarter: Turbocharging Democracy Online	13th August 2009
A civilizational tipping point by Lester Brown. In recent years there has been a growing concern over thresholds, or tipping points, in nature. For example, scientists worry about when the shrinking population of an endangered species will fall to a point from which it cannot recover. Marine biologists are concerned about the point where overfishing will trigger the collapse of a fishery. We know there were social tipping points in earlier civilizations, points at which they were overwhelmed by the forces threatening them. For instance, at some point the irrigation-related salt buildup in their soil overwhelmed the capacity of the Sumerians to deal with it.	13th August 2009
Gas-guzzling cars top US 'cash for clunkers' trade-ins SUVs and pick-up trucks make up 83% of the 316,189 cars that have been traded under the schemeAre Americans really over their love of big, gas-guzzling automobiles? Not entirely, but there is a chill coming on, as 83% of the top trade-ins under the Obama administration's "cash for clunkers" scheme have been SUVs or pick-up trucks.The two-week-old scheme to boost auto sales has been popular, with 316,189 cars worth $1,326m (£802m) turned in as of 7am today. Statistics provided by the Department of Transport suggest that Americans are now fleeing from SUVs, which reached their peak in popularity in the middle of this decade.Six of the top 10 trade-ins were SUVs, with two mini-vans and two pick-up trucks rounding off the list.	13th August 2009
Is it time to start worrying about Copenhagen? The gap between rich nations and emerging economies over carbon emissions targets is beginning to look unbridgable. From BusinessGreen.com, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkI am starting to get very worried.This week, another round of the UN's climate change talks gets underway in Bonn, Germany and once again all the key factions look as far from reaching a meaningful agreement on carbon emissions targets as they ever were.It is far too early to give up hope on a deal being reached, particularly given that any exercise in international diplomacy is always characterised by the kind of posturing and brinkmanship we can expect to see again over the next five days.	13th August 2009
El Nino scare for drought-hit India - NDTV India staring at a drought, thanks to a delayed and weak monsoon. The crops hardest hit by drought are rice, sugar and soyabean. Trade sources said that India's sugar stocks on July 31 were 60 per cent lower than a year ago. It is a bigger year-on-year decline than the 54 per cent drop a month ago. See also: Drought affect swells as half of monsoon is over - New Kerala	13th August 2009
Will 'Energy Crops' Become the Next Kudzu? - New York Times U.S. policies are subsidizing new energy crops that are likely to spread off the farm and wreak economic and ecological havoc...	13th August 2009
Homes Go From 'Superefficient' to Zero Carbon Emissions in Europe - Environmental News Network With various degrees of urgency, E.U. countries are moving toward requiring new homes to only use clean energy and have zero net carbon emissions, despite some real estate developers' complaints that such homes cost more to build and will be harder to sell.	13th August 2009
UN climate pact seen hinging on deeper CO2 cuts - Reuters BONN (Reuters) - A U.N. climate deal due in December will be a flop unless industrialized nations sharply increase promised cuts in greenhouse gas emissions for 2020, the chair of a key U.N. group said on Wednesday. John Ashe, who leads work at Aug 10-14 U.N. climate talks looking at planned cuts by rich nations, said existing pledges were far short of the range of 25-40 percent below 1990 levels outlined by a U.N. scientific panel as required to avoid the worst of climate change.	13th August 2009
Obama Administration Okays Major Mountaintop Removal Coal Project After vowing to crack down on the controversial practice of leveling the tops of Appalachian mountains to get at the coal seams below, the Obama administration has quietly approved a major mountaintop removal project in West Virginia. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the issuance of a Clean Water Act permit for CONSOL Energy s Peg Fork Surface Mine, an 817-acre project that would permanently bury nearly three miles of Appalachian streams in mining debris. The Peg Fork mine was one of six mountaintop removal projects that Obama's EPA initially said it opposed because they all would result in significant adverse impacts to high-value streams.	13th August 2009
China's great wall to foreign green tech - The Christian Science Monitor Protecting domestic firms from foreign competition in alternative energy only hurts efforts against global warming.	13th August 2009
Alberta oilsands cited in acid rain - CNews Environmentalists want Ottawa to set caps on emissions from Alberta's oilsands that are likely responsible for acid rain falling over northern Saskatchewan's pristine rivers and lakes.	13th August 2009
Ontario: polar bears now a threatened species - CNews TORONTO - Polar bear populations in Ontario's north are on the decline, turning cautious concern for the animal's survival into planned action.	13th August 2009
Vestas confirms closure of Isle of Wight and Southampton factories Turbine maker says closures will balance demand, as boss criticises UK's commitment to wind and hints at redundancy reinstatement for protestersVestas has confirmed the closure of two sites on the Isle of Wight and Southampton with the loss of 425 jobs. Employees at both factories were informed of the decision today.The closures follow a sit-in protest by 11 employees which began on July 20 and ended on August 7 after the company obtained a repossession order and sent in bailiffs to remove the protesters.The protest was hugely embarrassing for the government at a time when it is promoting wind energy and green jobs.	13th August 2009
Greenwash: How a wind farm could emit more carbon than a coal power station | Fred Pearce Building wind farms built on peat bogs, which can release their huge carbon stores when damaged, is not sensibleLet's be clear: Britain needs wind turbines. Lots of them. But just about the worst place to erect them is on top of peat bogs, which are huge stores of carbon that can easily leak carbon dioxide into the air when damaged by the inevitable roads or drains.So there are serious questions about the green credentials of plans to build Europe's largest onshore wind farm on 187 square kilometres of thick peat on the Shetland Islands. The fate of the £800m project will be decided by the Scottish government in the coming weeks.More than half of the wind turbines in Scotland are on highland peat.	13th August 2009
China signals long-term plans to curb greenhouse gases BEIJING (Reuters) - China will make "controlling greenhouse gas emissions" an important part of its development plans, the government said, as pressure on the world's top emitter grows ahead of global talks on tackling climate change.	13th August 2009
Lobbyists elbow for influence on U.S. climate bill NEW YORK (Reuters) - Manufacturers and energy companies sent squads of lobbyists to the U.S. Congress earlier this year to influence the climate bill, an indication the U.S. Senate will face pressure to adjust the legislation ahead of its vote, a nonprofit investigative group said.	13th August 2009
21st Century Climate Blueprints By Andrew GliksonThe severe disturbance of the energy balance of the atmosphere ensuing from the emission of over 320 billion tonnes of carbon since 1750 threatens a shift in the state of the atmosphere/ocean system to ice free greenhouse Earth conditions	13th August 2009
Vast expanses of Arctic ice melt in summer heat (AP) -- The Arctic Ocean has given up tens of thousands more square miles (square kilometers) of ice on Sunday in a relentless summer of melt, with scientists watching through satellite eyes for a possible record low polar ice cap.	12th August 2009
Hundreds of New Species Found in Warming Eastern Himalayas - Environment News Service The world's smallest deer, a new species of monkey, and a flying frog are among the 353 new species that have been identified in the Eastern Himalayas between 1998 and 2008, but conservationists warn that global warming is threatening to alter the native habitats of these unique plants and animals.	12th August 2009
UN chief warns of dire future without climate deal - Reuters SEOUL, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Failure to act quickly on climate change could eventually lead to violence and mass unrest as global weather patterns drastically change, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday. "If we fail to act, climate change will intensify droughts, floods and other natural disasters," Ban said at a forum near Seoul that came weeks ahead of his own conference on climate change in September. "Water shortages will affect hundreds of millions of people. Malnutrition will engulf large parts of the developing world. Tensions will worsen. Social unrest -- even violence -- could follow," Ban said according to a prepared text of his remarks to a global environment forum in Incheon, west of Seoul.	12th August 2009
Climate models confirm more moisture in atmosphere attributed to humans (PhysOrg.com) -- When it comes to using climate models to assess the causes of the increased amount of moisture in the atmosphere, it doesn't much matter if one model is better than the other. See also: Climate Acceleration and Critical Mass	12th August 2009
Ozone depletion reduces CO2 uptake of Southern Ocean - New Kerala Washington, August 9 : In a new research, scientists have determined that depletion in the ozone layer is reducing the atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) uptake of the Southern Ocean.	12th August 2009
The limits of today’s electric car technology We will likely ship a billion new cars worldwide in the next 15 or so years. The key question is not whether hybrid or EV cars/batteries will be successful financially (they probably will), but rather what it will take to get 80% of these billion cars to be low-carbon cars.	12th August 2009
US military engages climate change US military experts have warned that 'climate-induced crises could topple governments, feed terrorist movements or destabilise entire regions'. Lock and load, says Shanta Barley	12th August 2009
Cloud Ships. Yes, But Geoengineering. Sounds great. Treat the Earth like one big motoring machine, get under the hood (bonnet) and tinker with it. But what if actually this is the equivalent of putting the Planet on a life support system ventilator, and the plug could be pulled at any time ? How sustainable are some of the Geoengineering proposals ? Are they guaranteed to work ? Won t they have knock-on side-effects ? Are they reversible if they prove unhelpful ? And how much will they cost ? Attempts to seed clouds have been going on for decades, for the express purpose of creating rain, but this is perhaps the first time this mechanism has been seriously suggested as a way to slow down Global Warming.	12th August 2009
Van Jones explains the “double, triple, quadruple” benefits of clean energy investment by Grist Related Links: Van Jones on a green collar economy Surprisingly popular Cash for Clunkers program raises hopes and questions Green electronics registry goes international	12th August 2009
Zogby Poll Confirms That Americans Want Strong Action on Climate and Energy A new Zogby poll commissioned by the National Wildlife Federation found that 71% of respondents supported the Waxman-Markey energy and climate bill recently passed in the House of Representatives. Only 19% of respondents said they were strongly opposed to the House bill, indicating that polluting industries and their front groups have failed in their grandiose efforts to convince the public that the House bill amounted to a sinister, hidden energy tax . Fifty-four percent of respondents to the Zogby poll agree that the Senate needs to act immediately to pass legislation to fight global warming. "We need a new energy plan right now that invests in American, renewable energy sources like wind and solar, in order to create clean energy jobs, address global warming and reduce our dependency on foreign oil," the 54% agreed.While support for Congressional action is overwhelming, 45% of respondents believe ... See also: Dueling Polls on Support for Climate Change Legislation - BusinessWeek	12th August 2009
What should we be asking world leaders to agree to in Copenhagen? The UN's Copenhagen climate summit in December could be make or break for preventing runaway global warming. We've brought together the demands NGOs and charities are making of the negotiators	12th August 2009
Big Coal Impersonating Charities? dirtycoal.jpg The most sinister PR campaign in history just hit a new ethical low when it was revealed that forged letters appearing to be from charities were sent to lawmakers urging them to vote against the Waxman Markey climate bill. Congressman Tom Perriello was shocked to find that anti climate letters claiming to be from the NAACP and a local Latino non-profit were instead sent by DC lobby firm Bonner & Associates a company apparently subcontracted by Big Coal astroturf group American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE). In total, twelve phony letters have surfaced so far, sent to three freshmen Congress members all representing coal producing districts.	12th August 2009
Gas levels to explode by 2020 Federal prediction - Sydney Morning Herald THE Federal Government is putting more pressure on the Coalition to support its emissions trading legislation, releasing a report estimating Australia's output of greenhouse gases would be 20 per cent above 2000 levels by 2020 if the scheme is rejected.	12th August 2009
Incorrigible Lomborg: Defending the right of rich people to pollute lomborg.jpg The Disingenuous Environmentalist Bjorn Lomborg has once again celebrated a public epiphany on climate change, bringing him. once again, to the conclusion that the globe is warming, that humans are to blame and that we - especially we rich people - shouldn't do anything about it. In Lomborg's latest feint, he suckered some reporter at London's Financial Times into reporting that he has broken common cause with the "climate sceptics" and called for an a global agreement on climate change in this December's Kyoto negotiations in Copenhagen. But if you read the details, his position is the same as ever ...	12th August 2009
Time 'runs short' on climate deal - BBC News The UN's top climate official warns that progress towards a new treaty is "too slow", as talks convene in Bonn.	12th August 2009
A biased economic analysis of geoengineering Guest commentary by Alan Robock Rutgers University Bjorn Lomborg s Climate Consensus Center just released an un-refereed report on geoengineering, An Analysis of Climate Engineering as a Response to Global Warming, by J Eric Bickel and Lee Lane. The consensus in the title of Lomborg s center is based on a meeting of 50 economists last year. The problem with allowing economists to decide the proper response of society to global warming is that they base their analysis only on their own quantifications of the costs and benefits of different strategies. In this report, discussed below, they simply omit the costs of many of the potential negative aspects of producing a stratospheric cloud to block out sunlight or cloud brightening, and come to the conclusion that these strategies have a 25-5000 to 1 benefit/cost ratio.	12th August 2009
PETM Weirdness The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) was a very weird period around 55 million years ago. However, the press coverage and discussion of a recent paper on the subject was weirder still. For those of you not familiar with this period in Earth s history, the PETM is a very singular event in the Cenozoic (last 65 million years). It was the largest and most abrupt perturbation to the carbon cycle over that whole period, defined by an absolutely huge negative isotope spike (> 3 permil in 13C). Although there are smaller analogs later in the Eocene, the size of the carbon flux that must have been brought into the ocean/atmosphere carbon cycle in that one event, is on a par with the entire reserve of conventional fossil fuels at present.	12th August 2009
EXCLUSIVE: Energy bill requires doubling nuke use - The Washington Times To satisfy House Democrats' low-cost solution to global warming, Americans would have to double their reliance on nuclear energy by 2030 - a target the nuclear industry says is unlikely and that many environmentalists and Democrats dislike. That is the conclusion of a new Energy Information Administration report that looked at the House Democrats' global warming bill.	12th August 2009
Climate Disobedience - Middle East Online The idea that now is the right time for more resolute action to address the climate crisis is spreading fast enough to dot the global map with hot spots of disobedience. As it turns out, the Kingsnorth Six are part of a rapidly growing population.	12th August 2009
Global 2008 CO2 emissions rose 2 pct-German institute - AlertNet Source: Reuters FRANKFURT, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Global carbon dioxide emissions in 2008 rose 1.94 percent year-on-year to 31.5 billion tonnes, German renewable energy industry institute IWR said on Monday, based on ...	12th August 2009
The lastest on hydrofluorocarbons - The Christian Science Monitor A new study finds that hydrofluorocarbons could become a significant factor in future warming.	12th August 2009
Forests fall to beetle outbreak MEDICINE BOW NATIONAL FOREST, Wyoming (Reuters) - From the vantage point of an 80-foot (25 meter) tower rising above the trees, the Wyoming vista seems idyllic: snow-capped peaks in the distance give way to shimmering green spruce.	7th August 2009
Earth's Cycles, Once in Concert, Falling Out of Sync - US News & World Report Climate change, land-use patterns are culprits, scientists report.	7th August 2009
B.C. to burn 'until the snow comes': Official - Victoria Times Colonist Though the fight against fires in British Columbia is looking promising, the struggle is far from over, an official said Friday.	7th August 2009
Vanishing Bolivian Glacier Ends Highest Ski Run - Bloomberg Aug. 5 (Bloomberg) -- When the Chacaltaya glacier vanished six years sooner than scientists predicted, a victim of global warming, so too did the world s highest ski run.	7th August 2009
Alaska glaciers shrinking fast: survey ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Three major glaciers in Alaska and Washington state have thinned and shrunk dramatically, clear signs of a warming climate, according to a study released Thursday by the U.S. Geological Survey.	7th August 2009
Global Warming Could Be To Blame For Tick Surge - CattleNetwork.com MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Deer ticks are expanding their range in the Upper Midwest and southern Canada, new ticks are moving into the area and existing ticks are picking up new diseases, increasing the threat of illness to hikers tramping through the region's woods.	7th August 2009
World Forum: Cut CO2 80% by 2020, not 2050 - redOrbit Greenhouse gases must be cut 80 percent by 2020, not by 2050	7th August 2009
Arctic Ocean may be polluted soup by 2070 Without drastic cuts in emissions, the Transpolar Drift, one of the Arctic's most powerful currents and a key disperser of pollutants, is likely to disappear because of global warming	7th August 2009
Psychological barriers hobble climate action WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Psychological barriers like uncertainty, mistrust and denial keep most Americans from acting to fight climate change, a task force of the American Psychological Association said on Wednesday.	7th August 2009
Oil Supplies Are Running Out Fast The first detailed assessment of more than 800 oil fields in the world, covering three quarters of global reserves, has found that most of the biggest fields have already peaked and that the rate of decline in oil production is now running at nearly twice the pace as calculated just two years ago. On top of this, there is a problem of chronic under-investment by oil-producing countries, a feature that is set to result in an oil crunch within the next five years which will jeopardise any hope of a recovery from the present global economic recession	7th August 2009
Sugar Jumps to 28-Year High in N.Y. as Weather Curbs Cane Crops - Bloomberg Aug. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Sugar jumped to a 28-year high in New York as low monsoon rainfall in India threatens to damage cane crops and excess precipitation curbed output in Brazil, prolonging a global production deficit.	7th August 2009
Carbon credits: 'Cure worse than the disease' - Canada.com Carbon credits - to package and trade offsets to greenhouse gas emissions - won't work, says McGill University economist Christopher Green.	7th August 2009
Sick fish may get sicker: Climate change and other stresses expected to affect entire populations of fish Entire populations of North American fish already are being affected by several emerging diseases, a problem that threatens to increase in the future with climate change and other stresses on aquatic ecosystems, according to a noted U.S. Geological Survey researcher giving an invited talk on this subject today at the Wildlife Disease Association conference in Blaine, Wash.	7th August 2009
Ice memory Ice memory Nature Reports: Climate Change91 (2009). doi:10.1038/climate.2009.76 Author: Anna Barnett Ice has become an unequalled resource for studying the Earth's climatic history. Anna Barnett rounds up several new features on our site that pay tribute to the field of paleoclimatology, from the initial discovery of climatic clues in ice through to current efforts to recover a core that stretches back over a million years.	7th August 2009
The Busybody State Why was the Big Green Gathering shut down by the authorities?	7th August 2009
Climate fixes 'pose drought risk' The use of geo-engineering to slow global warming may increase the risk of drought, according to a paper in Science journal.	7th August 2009
The fast and the furious why new rail link will be controversial Secret London to Birmingham line planned in detail Fears of property blight and threat to countrysideThe exact route for the new high-speed rail line from London to Birmingham is being planned in secret to within a few metres, officials behind the project have told the Guardian.Details of the controversial line, which would run from London through protected countryside in the Chilterns, will be made public in December, handing thousands of homeowners an unwelcome Christmas present."We will meet our deadline and produce route alignment with options. In urban areas and pinch points it will be down to a few metres of where it will be and in open countryside 25 metres," said Sir David Rowlands, the project's chairman.	7th August 2009
Drax coal supply disrupted after Scottish mine sabotage The activists damaged a 6.5km conveyor belt which transports 200,000 coal each year from Glentaggart to RavenstrutherClimate protesters today claimed to have disrupted the flow of coal from one of Scotland's largest opencast mines to the Drax power station in north Yorkshire by sabotaging an major coal conveyor belt.The activists who are believed to come from a Climate Camp, which opened earlier this week at Mainshill, the site of a planned opencast coalmine damaged the conveyor belt at Glentaggart late yesterday, forcing the conveyor belt to be entirely closed down.At 6.5km long, the conveyor belt is one of the longest in Europe and transports about 200,000 tonnes of coal each year from the Scottish Coal mine at Glentaggart to a dedicated railway depot at Ravenstruther.	7th August 2009
India sets out ambitious solar power plan to be paid for by rich nations India plans to generate 20GW from sunlight by 2020, putting green energy targets of developed nations in the shadeIndia has decided to push ahead with a vastly ambitious plan to tap the power of the sun to generate clean electricity, and after a meeting chaired by the prime minister, Manmohan Singh, it wants rich nations to pay the bill.Although India has virtually no solar power now, the plan envisages the country generating 20GW from sunlight by 2020. Global solar capacity is predicted to be 27GW by then, according to the International Energy Agency, meaning India expects to be producing 75% of this within just 10 years.Four-hundred million Indians have no electricity and the solar power would help spark the country's development and end the power cuts that plague the nation.	7th August 2009
"Serious" climate talks hinge on U.S. bill: lawmaker CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (Reuters) - The fate of a U.S. climate change bill will send signals to the rest of the world as to whether upcoming global climate talks will be "serious or not," one of the bill's co-authors said on Thursday.	7th August 2009
China keen to see CO2 emissions peak: diplomat BEIJING (Reuters) - China is keen to halt growth in its greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible, but lifting tens of millions out of poverty must remain its primary goal, the country's climate change ambassador said on Wednesday.	7th August 2009
Swiss seek Pope's blessing to stop glacier melting - Reuters ZURICH (Reuters) - After centuries of praying for a local glacier to stop growing, Swiss villagers are now seeking an audience with Pope Benedict to get his blessing for prayers against the global warming that is causing it to recede.	7th August 2009
Team Obama's Environmental Irony Tour Okay, so it's August in Washington. It's hot. Congress has gone home. Even the summer interns are packing up and getting out of town. So it's not surprising that top members of the Obama administration might be ready for a road trip. That's basically what the White House announced in a statement headlined: "Obama Administration Officials Travel America, Talk Clean Energy Economy." President Obama went to Indiana to announce $2.4 billion in funding for advanced battery and electric drive projects; Energy Secretary Steven Chu headed for Minnesota to look at renewable energy projects and North Carolina to announce a big grant to a lithium battery firm, finishing up the week in Massachusetts to talk about clean energy jobs at Harvard ...	7th August 2009
Geoengineering schemes under scrutiny - Nature Researchers divided over the wisdom of climate manipulation.	7th August 2009
Climate experts criticize 'cash for clunkers' - CNews The popular program "Cash for clunkers" could have the same effect on global warming pollution as shutting down the entire country - every automobile, every factory, every power plant - for an hour per year. That could rise to three hours if the program is extended by Congress and remains as popular as it is now.	7th August 2009
Climate change poker: The barriers which are preventing a global agreement As the world's environment ministers, government officials, diplomats and campaigners prepare to attend the COP15 conference in Copenhagen in December 2009 to unite in the battle against climate change in one of the most complicated political deals the world has ever seen, the increasingly complex territory of climate negotiations is being revealed in an article published today, 5 August, 2009, in IOP Publishing's Environmental Research Letters.	7th August 2009
The Oceans Aren't Heating !!! - Quite so fast .... Deniers Water Down Ocean Heating Trends Have a look at the graph at left and ask yourself: does this indicate warming or cooling in the earth's ocean? Or check out this graph: If you said that these images appear to indicate an alarming warming trend, give your head a shake, because the people posting and commenting on these graphs are arguing exactly the opposite.	7th August 2009
Jharkhand farmers despair at drought - BBC News Farmers in Jharkhand battle drought and official apathy, says the BBC's Geeta Pandey in Ranchi	3rd August 2009
Global Warming a Fact in Three Western Countries - Angus Reid (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - A majority of adults in Canada, the United States and Britain believe global warming is a fact and is mostly caused by emissions from vehicles and industrial facilities, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. At least 51 per cent of respondents in the three countries agree with this statement.	3rd August 2009
Huge Bolivian glacier disappears - BBC News Scientists in Bolivia say that one of the country's most famous glaciers has almost disappeared as a result of climate change.	3rd August 2009
Climate change a present threat to Pacific nations Speakers from Micronesia, Kiribati, Tuvalu and the Torres Strait Islands described how climate change affects their everyday lives at meetings of 180 people in Brisbane on July 28 and 170 people in Melbourne on July 30	3rd August 2009
The seven terrors of the world - Sunday Herald A new report highlights the biggest problems now facing the world. It warns that the environmental crisis is deepening every year. Human consumption is now 30% larger than nature s capacity to regenerate.	3rd August 2009
10 x 10 : Cut Carbon 10% by 2010 The Campaign against Climate Change has been running a very thought-provoking extending compendium of ideas on how to reduce British Carbon Emissions by ten percent by (the end of) 2010, to which you are all welcome to contribute	3rd August 2009
Corporate Lobbyist Dick Armey: God Wouldn't Allow Global Warming - ChattahBox Corporate Lobbyist Dick Armey: God Wouldn't Allow Global WarmingChattahBox... novel argument against global warming on Thursday, while appearing on Capitol Hill to testify before a Republican hearing on climate change legislation. ...Lobbyist Dick Armey's Pollution Gospel: 'As An Article Of Faith ...Think Progressall 4 [ ...suppose it depends on which god he means...]	3rd August 2009
Will a warmer world make us sicker? Scientists are piecing together how climate impacts disease, strange patterns are emerging: mosquito outbreaks can follow drought, shorter migrations can make butterflies sick, and more birds (not fewer) can ward off West Nile virus. From Conservation magazine, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkIn the late 1990s, a set of alarming maps created a stir in the scientific community. Based on predictions by a team of Dutch and Australian researchers and initially published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, the maps charted how global warming could increase the risk of malaria in seemingly unlikely locales: northern countries such as Poland, the Netherlands, and Russia.Over the next several years, versions of the maps continued to appear in journals and at scientific meetings as researchers raised the disquieting possibility that climate change could trigger an expansion of disease.	3rd August 2009
Govts 'know climate strategy won't work' - Sydney Morning Herald An international pledge to peg global warming to two degrees is a pipe dream, and most governments know it, says an Australian researcher.	1st August 2009
GERMANY: Nuclear Power Fails, And Nobody Notices BERLIN, Jul 31 (IPS) - Seven German nuclear plants have failed to generate any electricity this month due to technical breakdowns. They have about half the production capacity of Germany's 17 nuclear reactors, but Germany did not suffer any power shortages.	1st August 2009
Alaska's biggest tundra fire sparks climate warning A charred region of the Arctic is pumping large amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere, finds an ecological assessment	1st August 2009
Climate concerns Are monsoon seasons becoming weaker?	1st August 2009
Rodent size linked to human population and climate change You probably hadn't noticed -- but the head shape and overall size of rodents has been changing over the past century. A University of Illinois at Chicago ecologist has tied these changes to human population density and climate change.	1st August 2009
CO2 emissions from deforestation in the Amazon on the rise - New Kerala London, July 30 : A new study has suggested that carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from deforestation in the Amazon are increasing as loggers and land developers move deeper into dense regions of the forest.	1st August 2009
Global poll finds 73% want climate as higher priority Britons among the most enthusiastic about action to stop global warming, while Americans among least willing to put environment first, according to global public opinion pollA majority of peoples around the world want their governments to put action on climate change at the top of the political agenda, a new global public opinion poll suggests.Unfortunately for Barack Obama though, who has put energy reform at the top of his White House to-do list, Americans are not necessarily among them.Only 44% of Americans thought climate change should be a major preoccupation for the Obama administration, the survey co-ordinated by the University of Maryland's Programme on International Policy Attitudes said.	1st August 2009
ENERGY: "Nuclear Steals Billions from Other Technologies" BERLIN, Jul 31 (IPS) - Why is nuclear energy back on the table? See also: Lavish US Lobbying Pushes Nuclear Energy	1st August 2009
Climate change deniers claim they're censored. What hypocrites Anthony Watts, sceptic and scourge of climate change science, has used copyright laws to censor an opponentOne of the allegations made repeatedly by climate change deniers is that they are being censored. There's just one problem with this claim: they have yet to produce a single valid example. On the other hand, there are hundreds of examples of direct attempts to censor climate scientists.Most were the work of the Bush administration. In 2007 the Union of Concerned Scientists collated 435 instances of political interference in the work of climate researchers in the US.Scientists working for the government were pressured by officials to remove the words "climate change" and "global warming" from their publications ...	1st August 2009
A rocket man's view of solar energy After nearly 25 years in the computer science and aerospace industries, including a stint at NASA s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Doug Caldwell decided to pursue a career-long dream of putting his engineering skills to use for the environment. So the Southern California native left his own start-up, a company that builds cameras for spacecraft launch systems, to explore his options. He didn t have to look far, or for very long. Within months Caldwell had landed work on a solar power development project, recruited by an old buddy from his days launching model rockets in the desert. Perhaps more ironic is the company he ended up working for Boeing Co.	1st August 2009
Alcoa Razes Rain Forest in Court Case Led by Brazil Prosecutors - Bloomberg July 31 (Bloomberg) -- For four decades, Edimar Bentes and his family have survived by farming tiny clearings in the jungle near their dirt-floor shack in the state of Para in the Brazilian Amazon.	1st August 2009
How secret US-China 'back channel' lead to climate deal The signing of a memorandum of understanding between the US and China mean the anticipated climate wars may have been averted, says Fred Pearce	1st August 2009
Carbon Capture Needs Decade of Subsidy, Harvard Researcher Says - Bloomberg July 31 (Bloomberg) -- Technology to remove and bury carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants will require at least a decade of government subsidies before becoming economically viable, a Harvard University researcher said.	1st August 2009
Methods for monitoring CO2 emissions have limitations, inadequate for international climate treaty - PhysOrg Current methods for estimating greenhouse gas emissions have limitations that make it difficult to monitor CO2 emissions and verify an international climate treaty, says a new National Research Council letter report to the administrator of NASA, Charles F. Bolden Jr.	1st August 2009
Is That All There Is ? - Jo Abbess For all we know, Professor David Rutledge could be more correct than incorrect. If so, the world has far less in terms of remaining Fossil Fuel resources than most people think. That will create problems if if turns out to be true. However, the most important problem for me is what Professor Rutledge does with the figures he gets. He plugs them into a software program called MAGICC and his conclusion is that Climate Change is no longer a problem if the remaining world Fossil Fuels are as low as he calculates ! I have been in correspondence with him asking about Methane issues, because Carbon Dioxide is not the only Greenhouse Gas. He has been very helpful. Today I have written a further e-mail to him regarding Global Warming. I await his reply...	1st August 2009
We Have Forgotten How Real Political Change Happens When you are just one person sitting on a warming planet, how should you react?	30th July 2009
Arctic tundra hotter, boosts global warming: expert - Reuters OTTAWA (Reuters) - Regions of Arctic tundra around the world are heating up very rapidly, releasing more greenhouse gases than predicted and boosting the process of global warming, a leading expert said on Wednesday.	30th July 2009
World will warm faster than predicted in next five years, study warns - Guardian New estimate based on the forthcoming upturn in solar activity and El Niño southern oscillation cycles is expected to silence global warming scepticsThe world faces a new period of record-breaking temperatures as the sun's activity increases, leading the planet to heat up significantly faster than scientists had predicted over the next five years, according to a new study.The hottest year on record was 1998, and the relatively cool years since have led to some global-warming sceptics claiming that temperatures have levelled off or started to decline. However, the new research firmly rejects that argument.The work is the first to assess the combined impact on global temperature of four factors ...	30th July 2009
Boiling The Frog: Nuclear Optimism Hides True Costs Till It's Too Late There is a well-known story about how to boil a frog. If you try to throw a frog into a pot already boiling, he'll jump out. However, put a frog into a pot and slowly raise the temperature - and you get frog legs for dinner. read more	30th July 2009
US satellites reveal true extent of melting polar summer ice Photos from US spy satellites declassified by the Obama administration provide the first graphic images of how the polar ice sheets are retreating	30th July 2009
Climate change clouds fate of ancient Polish woods BIALOWIEZA, Poland (Reuters) - Europe's last ancient forest, home to its largest herd of bison, faces an uncertain future because of climate change, but residents worry that tougher conservation efforts will damage the local economy.	30th July 2009
Melting hopes Bolivian community fears loss of mountain glaciers	30th July 2009
Lucky find of undersea methane bubbles - Nature While testing equipment off the Californian coast last month, a newly refitted research vessel stumbled across plumes of methane gas rising 1,400 metres from the sea floor.	30th July 2009
Poisonous Portuguese man o' war washed up on Cornish coast Conservationists warn beach-goers in the south-west to look out for jellyfish-like creatures that can deliver potentially deadly stingConservationists are warning beach-goers in the south-west to look out for poisonous Portuguese man o'war that are washing up on beaches on the south coast of Cornwall and Devon.The translucent pink and purple floating creatures, which look like jellyfish, can deliver a painful sting which can potentially trigger a deadly allergic reaction.Tom Hardy, marine conservation officer with the Cornwall Wildlife Trust, said the organisation was still pulling together information of beach sightings. "They are popping up along the south coast of Cornwall," he said.	30th July 2009
Colorado river running on empty by 2050 There is a one-in-two chance of fully depleting reservoir storage by 2050, says University of Colorado study. From the Ecologist, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkThe lifeblood of the American west, the Coloradoc river, is running dry under current usage, according to a study from the University of Colorado.Travelling almost 1,500 miles, the river supplies drinking and irrigation water for about 30 million people from Colorado to the Gulf of California.The study looked at how water supplies would be affected by climate fluctuations and water demand. Reservoirs lowIn 2000 reservoirs fed by the river were at 95 per cent of capacity.	30th July 2009
Global warming pushes up building insurance costs Flash floods and giant hailstones help increase claims by 15% and insurance premiums by 10%Householders face higher building insurance premiums after a sharp increase in property damage blamed on climate change. A rise in insurance claims has been caused by flash floods and storms in areas of Britain previously immune to severe weather events.The AA, which produces an insurance premium index monitoring costs, reports a 15% rise in claims in the first six months of 2009 over the same period in 2008 "in the number and cost of payments for buildings damaged by flash floods and storms in areas with little or no previous record of such claims."It cited one village, Carbrooke in Norfolk, where homes were damaged by giant hailstones during an ice storm in late spring.	30th July 2009
Fertile Crescent 'will disappear this century' Diverting water from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to supply agriculture, alongside a warming climate, means the once-bountiful region is becoming desert	30th July 2009
Spain grain crops hit by fires, concern in Greece - Forexyard Spain grain crops hit by fires, concern in GreeceForexyardMADRID, July 27 (Reuters) - A heatwave stoking forest fires in Spain has done considerable damage to the import-needy country's wheat and ...and more	30th July 2009
Energy efficiency could save U.S. $600 billion WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States could save about $600 billion in energy costs by 2020 if it hiked annual efficiency spending about five-fold, business consultants McKinsey and Co said in a report on Wednesday.	30th July 2009
Infrastructure woes hamper China wind farms' push for profitability Rapid build-out of capacity has caused bottlenecks in connecting turbines to the grid. From BusinessGreen.com, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkChinese wind farm operators are struggling to earn a profit as a lack of wind resources and an insufficient power infrastructure has hampered efforts to provide clean energy to the grid.A report posted earlier this week on the web site of the State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC), a government agency that oversees China's power sector, noted that some wind farms are suffering from a lack of wind, with many recording lower utilisation hours than had been estimated by feasibility studies.The industry is also encountering problems stemming from the government's aggressive plan to expand its wind power capacity, which doubled in 2008 to 12.8GW, up from 6GW the previous year, according to figures from the China Electricity Council (CEC), a government-backed ...	30th July 2009
Why some Russians look forward to global warming Brad Plumer walks through a dispatch from the Abu Dhabi newspaper The National that outlines what Russia stands to gain from a warming climate, and why it may have little interest in curbing greenhouse gas emissions.	30th July 2009
The psychology of change: cultivating resilience at the point of no return In his famous work "The Waking." Michigan poet, Theodore Roethke, offered sage advice for navigating unprecedented transitions and cultivating resilience. Wisely, the Transition Handbook by Rob Hopkins establishes three domains for people who are awake to these transitions as they endeavor to journey through them into a post-industrial world. read more	30th July 2009
A carbon protection racket - The Christian Science Monitor The Waxman-Markey bill's 'international offsets' amount to paying polluting countries not to pollute.	30th July 2009
You Laughed, You Cried Social engineering is simple : if you don t want something to happen, starve it of funding, create lots of dodgy Press, and create artificial divisions between factions. Climate Camp has been a hoot, until an accidental bystander got pushed to his death caught in a kettle formed by Riot Police in London, England in April 2009 on Fossil Fools Day. Some of the protest actions have been daredevil, some truly revolutionary, most have been properly educational. In fact my main interest and energy in the Climate Camp has been the Workshop Programme, trying to increase general awareness, circulating information, encouraging people to lead workshops, bringing research from their diverse fields.	30th July 2009
Australia mulling more coal support in carbon plans CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's government is considering doubling compensation for coal miners under its carbon trade scheme, media reports said on Tuesday, as a new poll found Australians want carbon laws delayed to next year.	30th July 2009
Engineers accused of taking 'tidal reef' idea in Severn estuary competition Decc rejects proposal from Rupert Armstrong-Evans but accepts very similar project from Rolls-Royce and WS AtkinsThe government and two of Britain's biggest engineering companies have been accused of taking the idea of a leading marine engineer who came up with a novel plan to harness vast amounts of tidal energy from the Severn estuary while causing only minimal ecological damage.Rupert Armstrong-Evans, who pioneered renewable energy in Britain and now runs a marine engineering firm in Cornwall, spent 18 months researching the idea of a 12-mile long "tidal reef" for the estuary. His construction, planned to run between Minehead in Somerset and Aberthaw in the Vale of Glamorgan, would be cheaper to build and could generate as much electricity as several nuclear power stations without destroying tens of thousands of hectares of internationally protected wetlands, he claimed.The idea was last year picked up by the ...	30th July 2009
Latest protest leaves UK climate strategy twisting in the wind From Shetland to the Isle of Wight, feelings run high as plans to transform the UK into a low-carbon economy hit further troubleEurope's largest onshore windfarm project has been thrown in severe doubt after the RSPB and official government agencies lodged formal objections to the 150-turbine plan, it emerged today.The setback adds to the problems facing the government's ambition to install 10,000 new turbines across the UK by 2020 as part of its plan to cut the carbon emissions causing climate change.The proposed 550MW windfarm, sprawling across the centre of Shetland's main island, would add almost 20% to existing onshore wind capacity.	30th July 2009
Vestas workers eviction attempt fails Danish owners of wind turbine company unable to force workers out of Isle of Wight factoryWorkers occupying a wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight vowed to continue their protest for another week today after a legal attempt to evict them quickly failed.For the past nine days, about 20 workers have occupied the Vestas Wind Systems plant near Newport, which is due to close tomorrow. The company sought a possession order at Newport county court today in an attempt to remove the workers from the factory, where 625 staff are set to lose their jobs.But, adjourning the hearing until Tuesday, the judge, Graham White, said papers had not been properly served on individuals occupying the property.Papers were served last Thursday to Mark Smith, the one worker that the factory's Danish owners know for certain is occupying the factory.In the court papers, Vestas named 13 individuals ...	30th July 2009
Bush White House was Willfully Blind to Arctic Ice Melt ostrich.jpg During the eight years the Bush Administration denied that climate change was a problem, they were concealing spy satellite images showing the frightening loss of summer artic sea ice. The de-classified images were released last week by the Obama Whitehouse in an effort to build support for the beleaguered Waxman Markey bill now moving through the Senate. The satellite pictures clearly show how rapidly the arctic is vanishing due to climate change. In years such as 2007, more than one million square kilometers of summer ice disappeared and has never recovered. The one-meter resolution images produced by the military spy satellites were far better than anything available to the world s climate scientists.	30th July 2009
Clouds in climate 'vicious cycle' - BBC  Low-level clouds dissipate as the ocean warms, causing a positive feedback in global warming, research suggests.	27th July 2009
Earth bears scars of human destruction: astronaut - CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - A Canadian astronaut aboard the International Space Station said on Sunday it looks like Earth's ice caps have melted a bit since he was last in orbit 12 years ago.	27th July 2009
Caribou populations fall sharply - The Christian Science Monitor Scientists look at why the numbers of caribou are declining.	27th July 2009
Melting Ice Off Baffin Island A rare cloudless day in the Arctic summertime allowed a NASA satellite to capture this image of melting sea ice off the coast of Canada s Baffin Island. Coastal eddies Click to EnlargeNASAIce melt during Arctic summer create the swirling patterns as ice, which clings to the shore during the winter, begins to melt and retreat in the summer sunshine. While this summertime melt, captured by NASA s Terra satellite on July 11, is typical for the season, satellite imagery shows that the extent of Arctic sea ice has declined sharply in recent decades, with this year's Arctic sea ice extent expected to be the second-lowest ever recorded.	27th July 2009
Climate change pact 'needs' China There can be no global climate change agreement without China on board, UN chief Ban Ki-moon says in Beijing.	27th July 2009
People steal meat from wild lions Lions in Cameroon are having their kills stolen from under their noses by hungry villagers, say conservationists.	27th July 2009
Getting a grip How fast is the Greenland Ice Sheet melting?	27th July 2009
A message to Copenhagen Got something to say to those deciding the world's fate? Get your voice heard by sharing your message with our Flickr group, A Message to Copenhagen and we'll feature the best hereThis December, governments meet in Copenhagen to thrash out a successor to the Kyoto Protocol that will hopefully make a historic commitment to cut international greenhouse gas emissions. Governments have already started setting out their stalls. Environmental campaigners have called on world leaders to attend.But what about you? What message do you have for the environment ministers and officials deciding the world's fate this December? Get your voice heard and share your message by adding it to our new Flickr group, A Message to Copenhagen.We want to collect as many photos from Guardian readers and Flickr users as possible, to show governments how people feel about the Copenhagen talks and climate change.We'll feature the ...	27th July 2009
'I am not going to run away' This week, after nine years of leading the Sustainable Development Commission, Jonathan Porritt left his post. So what now for Green party member and Treasury antagonist who was brought into government as a 'critical friend'?When Jonathon Porritt official government green adviser this week left his Whitehall office after nine years trying to crash the gears of the machine of state, his staff of 60 in the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC) didn't just say cheerio; they hired an old ship on the Thames, formed a blues band and sang him out to a Muddy Waters tune:For nine long years this green guru reignedWatching over Whitehall, his eye keenly trainedTree-hugger-in-chief or simply JPHowever you know him you should start to seeHe's a true ninja of sustainabilityPorritt stood to one side of the crooning SDC backing singers, delighted but emotional at his send off.	27th July 2009
Australian carbon plan divides opposition parties CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australian plans for a sweeping carbon trade scheme opened new divisions within the opposition parties on Friday, boosting hopes Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will win approval for his plan and avoid a possible snap election.	27th July 2009
U.S. must move faster on climate change: Sweden ARE, Sweden (Reuters) - Sweden, which currently holds the European Union presidency, urged the United States on Thursday to move faster to tackle climate change ahead of a major environmental summit in Copenhagen later this year.	27th July 2009
Is time running out to seal post-Kyoto climate pact? SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Negotiators face a mammoth task to try to agree by the end of the year on the outlines of broader climate pact to replace the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol.	27th July 2009
Spread of Feed-in Tariffs Will Expand U.S. Renewable Energy Use A popular consumer program that has helped catalyze Germany s solar-power boom is beginning to spread throughout the United States. The policy, known as feed-in tariffs, offers homeowners and other small-scale producers of renewable energy favorable long-term contracts often above market rates when they sell electricity to the central power grid. The New York Times reports that Washington state, Vermont, and cities such as Sacramento, Calif. and Gainesville, Fla. have all adopted feed-in tariff programs. The program approved by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, which serves 1.4 million people, will offer homeowners with solar panels or windmills contracts of up to 20 years to sell electricity to the grid.	27th July 2009
Wind turbine workers continue occupation at axed plant - Daily Mail: World News Workers were last night occupying a wind turbine factory for the sixth day in protest at the imminent closure of the plant.	27th July 2009
Act now on climate change or pay later: expert - Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Climate Change Institute in Canberra has warned that Australia must think beyond the emissions trading scheme, if it wants to have an impact on global warming.	27th July 2009
Revealed: the secret evidence of global warming Bush tried to hide - Guardian Unlimited Photos from US spy satellites declassified by the Obama White House provide the first graphic images of how the polar ice sheets are retreating in the summer.	27th July 2009
Guardian Environment Network: Climate insurance: what kind of deal can be made in Copenhagen? - Guardian Unlimited One key challenge on the climate change agenda is a fairer system to protect the world's poorest farmers from failing crops and extreme weather variations. From Climate Feedback part of Guardian Environment Network As even the staunchest advocates will tell you, climate insurance is by no means a magic bullet. But clearly the tools of modern finance could certainly help make poor nations prepare ...	27th July 2009
Permafrost Could Be Climate's Ticking Time Bomb - LiveScience.com via Yahoo! News This Behind the Scenes article was provided to LiveScience in partnership with the National Science Foundation. The terrain of the North Slope of Alaska is not steep, but Andrew Jacobson still has difficulty as he hikes along the spongy tundra, which is riddled with rocks and masks multitudes of mosquitoes. Jacobson, a professor of earth and planetary sciences at Northwestern University, ...	27th July 2009
Rains fail to curb drought conditions - BigPond News Consistent rain throughout NSW has had little impact, with almost two thirds of the state still in drought.	27th July 2009
Futurist says dollars mean bright future for solar energy Solar power may bring us cleaner air and clearer skies. Nice, yes. But it s money not saving Mother Earth that will catapult solar energy past dirty coal-fueled power plants. That s the theory of Ray Kurzweil, a futurist and inventor. At a technology conference on Friday, Kurzweil said billions are being invested into solar power and new advances in the technology are driving down the cost of powering by the sun. As a result, the amount of solar energy is doubling every year two years, Kurzweil said. But ultimately it will be very inexpensive.	27th July 2009
The unfathomable universe The one thing we know for certain about the universe is that it is unfathomable. We try to come to terms with this fact by telling stories, by creating narratives that are an attempt to abstract general principles from day-to-day events. In fact, making narratives is the primary way in which we transform brute events in our lives into what we call experience. Experience we can remember and reflect upon. Experience is the stuff from which we derive great artistic and scientific expression.The inability to narrate the events of one's life creates a mere jumble of disconnected elements in the mind, a source of mental anguish and even mental illness.	27th July 2009
Friday round-up Two items of interest this week. First, there is an atrocious paper that has just been published in JGR by McLean, de Freitas and Carter that is doing the rounds of the denialosphere. These authors make the completely unsurprising point that that there is a correlation between ENSO indices and global mean temperature something that has been well known for decades and then go on to claim that that all trends are explained by this correlation as well. This is somewhat surprising since their method of analysis (which involves taking the first derivative of any changes) eliminates the influence of any trends in the correlation.	27th July 2009
Global warming may impede eelgrass growth Scientist Ron Thom probably knows more than anyone else about the growth of eelgrass, the humble marine plant commonly found in sheltered bays, inlets and other shallow waters.	27th July 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE-CHINA: Reluctance to Curb Emissions BEIJING, Jul 22 (IPS) - China has welcomed Obama administration s efforts to lead a global movement to curb greenhouse gas emissions, but it has spawned concerns in Beijing that international pressure to cap emissions could mount, thus slowing the pace of economic growth.	27th July 2009
Brown condemned by his green guru Gordon Brown does not see the environment as important and spent years as Chancellor preventing British domestic action on climate change, the Government's chief environmental adviser says today.	27th July 2009
This Year's Model Climate science is not completely dependent on climate models. There are many threads of supporting evidence. Still, it is clear that climate models are telling us something important that we cannot afford to ignore. <!--break-->	27th July 2009
Spotlight on Russia's Role in Climate Control - International Herald Tribune Russia has stayed out of view amid the global hunt for an agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. But that could change.	27th July 2009
The big switch A low-carbon future will only happen with real leadership See also: The Low Carbon Transition #1 : It s Gonna Cost Ya	21st July 2009
Serious About Green Jobs? It's Time to Throw 'Free Trade' out the Window If we want a greener world and green jobs for our citizens, we have to ditch the 'free-trade' ideal -- markets on their own won't do it. See also: China wind turbine makers blow over foreign rivals - vnunet.com	21st July 2009
IPCC chief: Benefits of tackling climate change will balance cost The cost of tackling climate change will be paid for by benefits that would come from better energy security, employment and health, Rajendra Pachauri says ahead of major announcement on 2013 reportsMeasures needed to tackle global warming could save economies more money than they cost, the world's top climate change expert said today.Rajendra Pachauri, the head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), told the Guardian: "The cost could undoubtedly be negative overall." This is because of the additional benefits that reducing greenhouse gas emissions could bring, beyond limiting temperature rises.Until now, estimates of the price of preventing dangerous climate change have all indicated significant costs.	21st July 2009
Britain 'must grow more crops' to avoid global food crisis Britain must not bury its head in the sand over food supplies, warns the environment, food and rural affairs committeeBritain should grow far more fruit, vegetables and cereals to help feed the extra 2.7 billion people there may be in the world within 40 years, said a powerful committee of MPs in a report published today.Michael Jack, who chairs the environment, food and rural affairs (Efra) committee, said: "If people go hungry then political stability goes out of the window. This is a key lesson that government must learn from last year's global food price rises when some countries ran short of food.	21st July 2009
Food products should carry 'water footprint' information, says report The hidden amounts of water used in manufacturing food and drink products should be made known to customers, according to lobby groupsFood and drink products should carry a new label to give consumers more information about their "water footprint" the hidden amount of water used in the manufacturing process two health and food lobby groups will recommend this week. More transparency is needed about the huge volumes of water used to produce food, which most consumers are unaware of, said the joint report by the Food Ethics Council (FEC) and the health and food group Sustain.It is calling for the proposed new label to reflect good practice, by taking into account the extent to which some companies and manufacturers are already working to use water in ways that are fair and environmentally sustainable.Water scarcity is now a fast-growing sustainability problem across the world, the ...	21st July 2009
Scientists plant trees where they don t belong - Corvallis Gazette-Times LOS ANGELES On naked patches of land in western Canada and United States, scientists are planting trees that don t belong there. It s a bold experiment to move trees threatened by global warming into places where they may thrive amid a changing climate.	21st July 2009
Fish Getting Smaller as Their Habitats Become Warmer - Update1 - Bloomberg July 20 (Bloomberg) -- Fish in French rivers and the Baltic Sea are getting smaller as their habitats warm up, more evidence that climate change is forcing species from bacteria to sheep to adapt to a hotter planet, a new study said.	21st July 2009
Bye Bye, Birdie: Global Warming Pushes Migratory Species North - Bloomberg July 21 (Bloomberg) -- My guide risks his fingers and our canoe by reaching into the water and pulling a fat snapping turtle weighing maybe 25 pounds out of the marsh bottom s muck.	21st July 2009
Texas drought losses reach $3.6 billion - Texas A&M AgNews COLLEGE STATION Lack of rainfall and record triple-digit temperatures have scorched crops and rangeland throughout parts of Texas causing drought losses to reach $3.6 billion, Texas AgriLife Extension Service economists reported Monday. By the end of the year, losses could exceed $4.1 billion, the loss estimated in Texas in 2006, if sufficient rainfall isn't received to revive crops and forage, ...	21st July 2009
Western Reservoirs Could Be Dry By 2050 - LiveScience.com via Yahoo! News There's a one-in-two chance that the water reservoirs of the Colorado River will dry up by 2050 if water management practices remain unchanged in our warming world, a new study finds.	21st July 2009
Staff occupy Isle of Wight wind plant in protest against closure Workers staged an occupation of one of Britain's only wind turbine factories last night to protest against the imminent closure of the plant and the loss of hundreds of jobs.About 25 workers entered the administration block of the Vestas Wind Systems factory in Newport, Isle of Wight, at around 7.30pm and vowed to remain there until the government discusses their proposal to save it from closure by nationalising the plant.In April the Danish firm announced that the factory, which employs 525 people, as well as another in Southampton, employing 100 people, would close because of a lack of demand.Vestas, which is the world's biggest wind energy group and recently reported a quarterly sales rise of 59%, up to 1.1bn (£0.95bn), cited a slowdown in demand when it announced the closure of the factory.	21st July 2009
Climate engineering research gets green light Geoengineering schemes to rein in humanity's effect on the climate get the go-ahead for further research, alongside more traditional methods	21st July 2009
Electric cars: Juiced up and ready to go The compact, powerful batteries needed to create viable electric cars are tantalisingly close, but which of the competing options will become the next power player? See also: Lithium: Are “blood batteries” next?	21st July 2009
Malaysian Forests Felled For Massive Rubber Tree Plantations Malaysia s remaining rainforests are rapidly being clear-cut and replaced with plantations of cloned trees that yield latex rubber and can also be harvested for timber, according to a report in The Star in Malaysia. The newspaper says that permanent forest reserves protected areas in which some selective logging is allowed are being converted to monoculture plantations that grow not only the latex-timber clone but also stands of African mahogany, teak, Acacia, and other species. Up to 80 percent of Malaysia s remaining intact rainforests are threatened by the plantations, which harbor a fraction of the biodiversity found in pristine rainforests, the newspaper reported. See also: INTERVIEW-Indonesia forest projects target 13 mln CO2 offsets - AlertNet	21st July 2009
Is Bill Clinton s climate legacy a problem for Obama? Who was president when U.S. greenhouse gas emissions rose most sharply since 1990, the U.N. benchmark year for action to fight climate change? George W. Bush (2001-2007) Bill Clinton (1993-2000) George H.W. Bush (1990-1992) (I m giving presidents responsibility for the full calendar year of their inauguration in January; official U.S. data are only available until 2007) Answer Bill Clinton (by a long way). Many people might have thought the worst scorecard was by George W. Bush, who gave up plans to implement the 1997 Kyoto Protocol for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, signed by the Clinton administration but never submitted to a hostile Senate for ratification.	21st July 2009
India Refuses to Bend to Obama Pressure on Carbon Emission Caps - Bloomberg July 20 (Bloomberg) -- India won t bend to demands from the Obama administration or threats from the U.S. Congress to adopt legally binding caps on its carbon emissions, the country s environment minister told visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton yesterday.	19th July 2009
The big question In 1883 renown Yale professor William Graham Sumner examined the question of what the social classes owe to each other. Sumner was a classical liberal--what we might call a conservative today if only we could find a real one--and his answer to this question can be summarized in one word: Nothing.In 2009 in the grip of advancing climate change and rapidly depleting resources we are confronted with a more radical question: What do the generations owe to each other? The easy answer is to copy Sumner's. And, some people have. (Scroll down to Sam Vaknin and expand his essay.) But given that most people have offspring, we can expect that their sympathies might extend to their children and grandchildren, but not much beyond.	19th July 2009
Carbon emissions trading system 'seriously flawed' - Guardian The system of trading carbon emissions at the heart of the ambitious low-carbon plan announced by the government last week is seriously flawed and close to becoming irrelevant, according to researchers behind a new analysis. So-called "hot air" carbon credits – those which do not result in any actual emissions cuts – could be so numerous that companies covered by the EU Emissions Trading Scheme would not have to make any cuts to their own emissions until 2015, says the report from climate campaign group, Sandbag. The hot air permits result from the over-allocation of emissions allowances and from those going unused as the recession cuts economic activity. The ETS covers 50% of the UK and EU's carbon emissions, mainly in the energy, cement, steel, glass and manufacturing sectors. Companies in these sectors are allocated allowances for the carbon they emit, with the total number shrinking over time, theoretically forcing companies to buy additional permits to pollute if they do not cut their emissions.	19th July 2009
B.C. fire forces 10,000 to evacuate - Toronto Star Firefighters in B.C. were hoping that predictions of dying winds and cooler temperatures today would mean they could get the upper hand in fighting a forest fire that has forced 10,000 to flee their homes.	19th July 2009
At risk from rising seas, Tuvalu seeks clean power OSLO (Reuters) - The Pacific island state of Tuvalu set a goal Sunday of a 100 percent shift to renewable energy by 2020, hoping to set an example to industrialized nations to cut greenhouse gases it blames for rising sea levels.	19th July 2009
Climate change threatens more hunger Zero point eight of a degree of warming may not seem like that much. This is how much average temperatures have risen over the past two centuries as a result of carbon pollution.	19th July 2009
Is China Winning the Clean Energy Race? Industrialized nations may find themselves borrowing and begging for new technologies that China has been busy perfecting all along.	19th July 2009
A Transition Take on the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan After many months of Ed Milliband putting himself out there as a Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change that actually gets climate change, finally his big Plan, the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan was unveiled on Wednesday, in a speech in the House of Commons that namechecked Transition Towns and which is the boldest national vision for a low carbon society yet seen. Many others have since pitched in with their thoughts, I thought it might be useful here to offer an analysis from a Transition perspective. read more	19th July 2009
Green dream runs low on power - Guardian Unlimited The closure of a turbine plant on the Isle of Wight is symbolic of a dangerously becalmed renewables sector.	19th July 2009
AUSTRALIA: Rod Quantock: If you re not scared shitless, you don t understand the science Comedian Rod Quantock launches his new show, Bugger the Polar Bears, This is Serious, in Melbourne on July 21. He spoke to Green Left Weekly s Jay Fletcher about climate change, government inaction and the urgent need to create a global movement to save the planet.	19th July 2009
El Nino threat blows commodity prices higher With the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on the horizon and concerns over food shortages, crops are locked in a bull market.	19th July 2009
G8 CO2 Pledge Falls Short Of Climate Change Needs - IPCC Chief - Nasdaq PARIS (AFP)--The head of the U.N.'s panel of climate-change experts said Friday he was encouraged by climate pledges at last week's G8 summit but warned commitments still fell short of what was required by science. See also: Trapping Carbon Dioxide Or Switching To Nuclear Power Not Enough To Solve Global Warming Problem	17th July 2009
U.S. should pay for carbon content of imported goods: Locke SHANGHAI (Reuters) - To address the serious threat of global warming, Americans should be required to "pay" for the carbon content of goods they consume from countries around the world, a top U.S. official said on Friday.	17th July 2009
Mystery methane belched out by megacities A study of the greenhouse gases from the Los Angeles metropolitan region finds a large amount of methane, which had been previously unaccounted for	17th July 2009
Denmark plans forces for Arctic - BBC News Denmark plans to create an Arctic military command and task force as global warming fuels rivalry in the region.	17th July 2009
U.S. releases unclassified spy images of Arctic ice WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States released more than a thousand intelligence images of Arctic ice to help scientists study the impact of climate change, within hours of a recommendation by the National Academy of Sciences.	17th July 2009
In Montana, The Retreat of Glaciers - CBS News Warmer Temps Mean Glacier National Park May be "Glacier-free by 2030;" Wildlife in Peril	17th July 2009
San Diego menaced by jumbo squid Scuba divers off the Californian city of San Diego report unnerving encounters with large numbers of Humboldt squid.	17th July 2009
World's Ocean Temperatures Reach Warmest on Record for June - Bloomberg By Jim Efstathiou Jr. July 17 (Bloomberg) -- The world s ocean temperature in June rose to the warmest since 1880, breaking the previous record set in 2005, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.	17th July 2009
Sea ice minimum forecasts One of the interesting things about being a scientist is seeing how unexpected observations can galvanize the community into looking at a problem in a different way than before. A good example of this is the unexpectedly low Arctic sea ice minimum in 2007 and the near-repeat in 2008. What was unexpected was not the long term decline of summer ice (this has long been a robust prediction), but the size of 2007 and 2008 decreases which were much larger than any model had hinted at. This model-data mismatch raises a number of obvious questions were the data reliable?	17th July 2009
ENVIRONMENT-BRAZIL: Take the Squeaky Clean Hydro Bus SAO PAULO, Jul 16 (IPS) - The government of the state of Sao Paulo in southern Brazil has launched the first hydrogen-fuelled bus in Latin America - the first step towards environmentally sustainable public transport of the future.	17th July 2009
Pakistanis set tree planting record: 1,800 each a day If you feel proud about having planted a tree sometime to help protect the environment, you may have to think again. Pakistan has apparently set a record for tree plantings, with volunteers planting about 1,800 mangroves each in a day in mud and temperatures of up to 37 Celsius, according to the WWF International conservation group. Maybe such competitions will catch on if a new U.N. climate treaty due to be agreed in Copenhagen in December includes measures to combat deforestation. Trees soak up greenhouse gases as they grow and release them when they burn or rot. According to a WWF statement, 300 volunteers planted 541,176 young mangroves without any mechanical equipment in the Indus River Delta, about 150 km south east of Karachi.	17th July 2009
Real-time 'CO2 intensity' site makes the case for midnight dishwashing The launch of the website Realtime Carbon could change the way we think about the environmental impact of electricityToday sees the launch of Realtime Carbon, a neat website that could change the way we think about the environmental impact of electricity. The purpose of the site is to report the carbon footprint of a unit of power as it changes over time.It may sound geeky but it's hugely significant. Over the course of 24 hours, demand for electricity fluctuates widely. Demand is lowest in the small hours hence energy tariffs such as Economy 7 and highest in the daytime and early evening, when the largest number of appliances and lights are in use.Demand also changes over the course of the year, as there's greater need for electric lighting and heating during dark, cold winter evenings.It goes without saying that the more electricity we consume, the ...	17th July 2009
Activists: we'll 'rush' parliament to pressure Copenhagen climate summit It may not have been the 'summer of rage' that was feared, but environmental activists have big plans for CopenhagenEnvironmental activists last night set up an alternative People's Parliament and called for drastic action to jolt the government into action, even as some of them admitted that the green movement is just temporarily a little "stuck".Beneath a rainy sky in the Old Palace Yard opposite the Houses of Parliament, around a hundred campaigners gathered to berate the government for dragging its feet. While speakers broadly welcomed yesterday's plan for a low carbon Britain, Darren Johnson of the Green Party said he deeply regretted the "dismal failure we've seen from the government," and Colin Challen MP revealed that direct government action since 1990 had cut carbon emissions by a dismal 15%.	17th July 2009
Is the clean energy cashback tariff high enough to stimulate investment? After months of deliberation, the UK government has announced a range of illustrative figures for feed-in tariffs. From Carbon Commentary, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkAfter months of deliberation, the UK government has announced a range of illustrative figures for feed-in tariffs (FITs), which it's calling a Clean Energy Cashback scheme. FITs are fixed payments made to the owners of small generating stations for the electricity that they export to the grid. Micro-generators need high payments to justify their expensive investment in buying and installing green generation.The proposed levels of FIT vary by the type of technology. See also: Home Solar Arrays Expand Rapidly in California	17th July 2009
First 'climate friendly' labels appear on foods Sweden has brought in the stickers in the hope is that consumers will buy greener products but will companies make claims they can't back up? See also: Wal-Mart Labels Will Rate Sustainability of Products	17th July 2009
AIG Closed Climate Change Program Last Month - Environmental News Network Last month American Insurance Group (AIG) closed its climate change program, which included keeping an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions.	17th July 2009
34 Nobel winners write President about the lack of support for Energy R&D in the Climate/Energy Bill Concerned about the lack of stable and specific funding for research and development in the ACES bill, 34 Nobel Prize laureates write to President Obama, asking him to urge Congress to send him a bill that commits to the $15 billion the President originally proposed.	17th July 2009
'Motion Picture' of Past Warming Paves Way for Snapshots of Future Climate Change - Newswise By accurately modeling Earth's last major global warming -- and answering pressing questions about its causes -- scientists led by a University of Wisconsin-Madison climatologist are unraveling the intricacies of the kind of abrupt climate shifts that may occur in the future.	17th July 2009
Shipping emissions plan 'stalls' Plans to reduce rising emissions from global shipping have faltered at a key international meeting.	17th July 2009
Severn tidal power scheme should not go ahead, warns Environment Agency The contentious Weston barrage would be the largest renewable energy project in Europe but comes with a huge ecological costA giant tidal energy scheme which the government is counting on to meet ambitious new green energy targets set this week should not be built because it would be so ecologically destructive, the chair of the Environment Agency has warned ministers.The government's roadmap to a low-carbon UK called for a 34% cut in emissions by 2020, with the power sector contributing the bulk of that saving. The Weston barrage, running 10 miles across the Severn estuary between Weston-super-Mare and Cardiff, is by far the largest of four tidal power schemes being considered by government and would be the centrepiece of the nation's renewable energy plan.It could generate 8.6 gigawatts of zero-carbon electricity from the Severn the equivalent of eight large coal-fired power ...	17th July 2009
Energy bill rises will be tiny Compared with wildly fluctuating wholesale gas and electricity prices, the cost of cutting emissions will scarcely be detectable on future energy billsThe ink isn't dry on the government's low carbon transition plan, and already the whingeing has begun. The talkshows are buzzing with complaints about the impact on energy prices. Some punters suggest that this will be the end of life as we know it: the government's plans will wreck the economy and bankrupt struggling families. There's no doubt that fuel poverty remains an important issue in this country. It still accelerates the deaths of elderly people every winter. Being able to maintain your home at a habitable temperature is a basic human right.	16th July 2009
Low carbon plan An ambitious new road map or yet another dead-end?	16th July 2009
Miliband's manifesto to make Britain a low-carbon economy Thousands more wind turbines, millions of "smart" electricity meters for homes and new cars emitting 40 per cent less pollution than they do now all are on the way in the next decade under ambitious plans to slash CO2 emissions from every sector of the economy.	16th July 2009
Harming the environment is bad for the economy - CNews The argument is that we simply can't afford to protect the environment - that the costs will be so high as to ruin the economy.	16th July 2009
UN tackles 'climate harm' ships The UN discusses rules aimed at cutting the emission of greenhouse gases from shipping.	16th July 2009
Labour orders green energy revolution Miliband takes control of power grid and lays out plan for low-carbon UKThe government seized control of key levers in the energy sector today in an attempt to kickstart a stalling "green energy" revolution and head off the threats of global warming and a rundown in North Sea oil.Ministers plan to take over the allocation of electricity grid connections in order to favour renewable schemes, force the industry regulator, Ofgem, to tackle carbon pollution and pass laws to compel power companies to help poorer families meet rising energy bills.The moves came as Ed Miliband, energy and climate change secretary, set out an ambitious road map for the UK to meet its legally binding target of a 34% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.	16th July 2009
Senators seek climate bill analysis for farmers WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two Republican senators are pressing the administration ahead of an Agriculture Committee hearing next week for a detailed analysis of the impact of climate change legislation on U.S. farmers and ranchers.	16th July 2009
U.S. commerce, energy secretaries highlight co-op with China on climate change - China Economic Net U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, both Chinese Americans, began their China tour by stressing the importance of cooperation between the two nations in slowing global warming.	16th July 2009
Grace Boyle: 'It will take much more than threats of climate change to spur this mighty elephant into action' The following is by Akhila Vijayaraghavan, a friend of mine who works as a campaigner on sustainable agriculture at Greenpeace. She returned to India in March of this year having spent six years studying in Glasgow, and still retains much of the excellent accent. With this perspective, I asked her to write something on her impressions of the Indian attitude to environmentalism. See also: Why Poor Countries Won't Curb Emissions - Forbes	15th July 2009
Taking Shorter Showers Doesn't Cut It: Why Personal Change Does Not Equal Political Change Are we taking the easy route? Dumpster diving wouldn't have stopped Hitler, and composting wouldn't have ended slavery.	15th July 2009
Arctic glacier to lose Manhattan-sized 'tongue' A vast chunk of ice is about to detach from the biggest glacier in the Arctic researchers worry that it could be a result of a warming climate	15th July 2009
Northwest Passage Crew Hopes to Tell Global Warming Tale - Alaska Public Radio Network Sailors like adventures, but some want adventures with a greater purpose. Another sailboat passed through Unalaska recently to attempt the Northwest Passage. This time, the crew of the 40-foot sailboat want to educate people about climate change in the Arctic. Anne Hillman, KUCB - Unalaska Download Audio (MP3)	15th July 2009
Assam declares 14 districts drought-hit - The Times of India The Assam government has declared more than half of the state as drought-hit, saying agriculture was badly hit due to scanty monsoon rains, officials said.	15th July 2009
Cricket replace skylark as sound of English summer - Daily Telegraph The sound of the English summer is changing due to global warming as the song of the skylark is overwhelmed by the chirrup of crickets.	15th July 2009
Dead Heat My two favourite charts are the ones that say the most powerful thing in the most simple way. The Ranking chart which changes its name and content each year is a simple way of comparing the current year to two previously hot years :- And the chart I call the Blob Chart shows in a very non-verbal, non-numerical way just what is happening with Global Warming :- NOAA release their data for June on 15th July.	15th July 2009
Energy strategy boosts wave hub - BBC News A wave energy poject in Cornwall is to receive nearly £30m as part of moves to make the South West of England a world centre for wave and tidal energy.	15th July 2009
Capturing CO2 in a bowl - PhysOrg The accidental discovery of a bowl-shaped molecule that pulls carbon dioxide out of the air suggests exciting new possibilities for dealing with global warming, including genetically engineering microbes to manufacture those CO2 "catchers," a scientist from Maryland reports in an article scheduled for the August 3 issue of ACS' Inorganic Chemistry.	15th July 2009
How to store excess electricity - Guardian For years, the stumbling block for renewable energy has been how to store electricity for days when the sun isn't shining and the wind isn't blowing. But new technologies suggest this goal may be within reach, writes Jon R Luoma from Yale Environment 360, part of the Guardian Environment Network"Why are we ignoring things we know? We know that the sun doesn't always shine and that the wind doesn't always blow." So wrote former U.S. Energy Secretary James Schlesinger and Robert L. Hirsch last spring in the Washington Post, suggesting that because these key renewables produce power only intermittently, "solar and wind will probably only provide a modest percentage of future U.S.	15th July 2009
Marine energy firm gets £8m boost - BBC News An Orkney-based marine energy firm is given £8m funding by the UK Government to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels.	15th July 2009
Sun energy empowers Ethiopian village - BBC News A solar energy project is transforming the lives of people in rural Ethiopia	15th July 2009
The dawn of carbon budgeting: now every tonne counts The government's new climate change strategy should mean greater emphasis on emissions savings rather than trading and shared responsibilityThe publication of the government's climate change strategy tomorrow should herald the beginning of a new era in the fight against climate change. While the public-facing, energy-saving policies may catch the headlines, what is going on behind the scenes is in reality more important.In order to meet the requirement of the Climate Change Act, and the carbon budgets it created, the government has had to adopt a new approach to managing carbon. In this new regime every tonne counts and all government departments with an influence over policies affecting emissions will need to play their part in keeping reductions on track.	15th July 2009
Miliband promises more green jobs but Vestas wind turbine plant is closing - Times Online One of Britain s biggest employers in the green energy industry is to cease production within hours of a government announcement today pledging as many as 400,000 green jobs by 2015.	15th July 2009
UK needs total energy revamp for 2050 carbon goal - Reuters via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News Britain will need completely new transport and energy infrastructure to meet its ambitious carbon emissions target for 2050, the head of the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) said.	15th July 2009
China Will Be Hero If Its Emissions Peak in 2020, Stern Says - Bloomberg July 14 (Bloomberg) -- China will be regarded as a hero should its greenhouse gas output per person peak in 11 years, former World Bank Chief Economist Nicholas Stern said.	15th July 2009
Ed Miliband has his head in the clouds He is the latest politician to fall for the aviation lobby's social class argument but it just doesn't stand up to scrutinyVery interesting and telling words this week from Ed Miliband regarding the so-called "right to fly". The climate change and energy secretary told the Guardian that he didn't "want to have a situation where only rich people can afford to fly", and would therefore not be seeking to include aviation within the government's broad commitment to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by 2050."Where I disagree with other people on aviation is if you did 80% cuts across the board, as some people have called for on aviation, you would go back to 1974 levels of flying," he said.	15th July 2009
HOME documentary - Earth's unsustainable energy and environmental situation - Culture Change The film HOME by Yann Arthus-Bertrand is a beautifully shot panorama of the Earth and the damage done to it by modern humanity. It includes a moving narration about the evolution of the Earth, nature, agriculture, humans, and the crises of habitat destruction, energy depletion, climate disruption, degradation of the environment, health, economic disparity, and more. They are well integrated in the film, but many assumptions in the script make this film hard to recommend unless accompanied by a reality check on energy and the value of traditional ways.	15th July 2009
Swapping technologies fails to address the root causes of climate change The environmental and social crisis that threatens us requires deeper solutions than new technology alone can provideTechnology is part of the solution to climate change. But only part. Techno-fixes like some of those in the Guardian's Manchester Report simply cannot deliver the carbon cuts science demands of us without being accompanied by drastic reductions in our consumption. That means radical economic and social transformation. Merely swapping technologies fails to address the root causes of climate change.We need to choose the solutions that are the cheapest, the swiftest, the most effective and least likely to incur dire side effects. On all counts, there's a simple answer stop burning the stuff in the first place.	15th July 2009
Carbon dioxide forcing alone insufficient to explain Palaeocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum warming - Nature The PalaeoceneEocene Thermal Maximum (about 55 Myr ago) represents a possible analogue for the future and thus may provide insight into climate system sensitivity and feedbacks1, 2. The key feature of this event is the release of a large mass of 13C-depleted carbon into the carbon reservoirs at the Earth's surface, although the source remains an open issue3, 4. Concurrently, global surface temperatures rose by 59 C within a few thousand years5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Here we use published palaeorecords of deep-sea carbonate dissolution10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and stable carbon isotope composition10, 15, 16, 17 along with a carbon cycle model to constrain the initial carbon pulse to a magnitude of 3,000 Pg C or less, with an isotopic composition lighter than -50permil. As a result, atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations increased during the main event by less than about 70% compared with pre-event levels. At accepted values for the climate sensitivity to a doubling of the atmospheric CO2 concentration1, this rise in CO2 can explain only between 1 and 3.5 °C of the warming inferred from proxy records. We conclude that in addition to direct CO2 forcing, other processes and/or feedbacks that are hitherto unknown must have caused a substantial portion of the warming during the PalaeoceneEocene Thermal Maximum. Once these processes have been identified, their potential effect on future climate change needs to be taken into account. See also: Mystery mechanism drove global warming 55 million years ago - AFP via Yahoo! News	14th July 2009
The Spectator Is Hot for Global Warming Denial - Huffington Post If there is any credit due to the monstrous legacy of Britain's Margaret Thatcher it is that she -- with her background in science -- always accepted the reality of man-made global warming. The British Conservative Party never took the route of denial that Republicans in the U.S or the Liberal Party in Australia followed. The same cannot be said, alas, for Britain's predominantly right-wing press which has given a great deal of space to Global Warming time-wasting as it once did to denying the link between HIV and AIDS. This week, the Spectator (a bit like a British counterpart to the National Review) has a front page splash: "Relax: Global Warming is All a Myth" with James Delingpole interviewing Australian denier, Ian Pilmer, publicising his new book. Global warming denial is not a set of scientific ideas -- it's a collection of bogus factoids which have a zombie-like ability to keep returning to life, seeking new brains to feed on no matter how many times they are shot down.	14th July 2009
Pulling Yourself Off the Ground By Your Whiskers - Monbiot Here is the simple mathematical reason why large scale carbon offsets can t work	14th July 2009
Gwynne Dyer: At the G8 Summit, two cheers for two degrees - Georgia Straight This is how the human race does business. What the G8 Summit in Italy decided to do about climate change last week was much less than is necessary, but the very best that a realist could have hoped for. Some tens of millions of people will probably die as a result, or some hundreds of millions if we are really unlucky. But there is still time to avoid the worst. And anyway, it can't be helped: this is the way we do business. If we are lucky, some early disasters that don't kill too many people will frighten the world's countries into accepting tougher cuts in emissions while there is still time to avoid the worst, but this is the best that we are going to get for now. So two cheers for the two-degree limit. See also: 80 Percent of What ?	14th July 2009
Spot The Fatal Flaw #1 : Oil From Algae But, you’ve guessed it from the title of this post, there is a fatal flaw, and it flows from that little mention of “a large source of carbon dioxide”. You see, the birth and growth and death rates of algae in normal atmospheric concentrations of Carbon Dioxide are unlikely to yield more than a trickle of car juice. So more dense flows of CO2 are required. If this method of making liquid fuels takes off and dominates the vehicle fuel market in the future, it would force us to continue to burn Coal and refine Petroleum to create the kind of quantities of Carbon Dioxide-rich gas that the process needs. Put it another way : algal oil will be used as a justification for Coal-fired power plants. “Ah”, the CEOs will say, “algal oil sucks up all that CO2 to make fuel. What a wonderful way to sequester it !” And the driving public will be bowled over. But what will happen when the fuel is burned ? Why, naturally, all that Carbon Dioxide will be released into the air once more. What an omission about emissions ! Yes, algal oil would give us more Energy per tonne of Carbon Dioxide emitted. It will give us a greater Carbon “intensity”, doing more with less, but it won’t halt emissions and it won’t reduce them.	14th July 2009
Iraq's Euphrates River Dries Up, Adding to Drought, NYT Reports - Bloomberg July 14 (Bloomberg) -- The Euphrates River in Iraq is drying up because of upstream dams in Syria and Turkey, adding to a drought that s lasted two years, the New York Times reported , citing local residents and officials.	14th July 2009
Obama team sees jobs growth in health, environment - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Jobs in the healthcare and environmental sectors are growing at a faster rate than those of the U.S. economy as a whole, President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers will say a report to be released on Monday.	14th July 2009
Desert dreams of the solar age - BBC Could Europe be powered from the Sahara Desert? The Desertec project's initial goal is "to produce sufficient power to meet around 15% of Europe's electricity requirements and a substantial portion of the power needs of the producer countries". These will be in North Africa and the Middle East, probably stretching round as far as Jordan, whose Prince Hassan bin Talal declared that "partnerships that will be formed across the regions as a result of the Desertec project will open a new chapter in relations between the people of the EU, West Asia and North Africa". But the dreams are even bigger. Why not power much more of Europe from the region? Why not electrify much of South America from the Atacama desert and the mountain tops of Patagonia? Sydney and Melbourne from the Simpson desert, and western China from the expanding Gobi?	14th July 2009
Exxon to invest $600 million in making fuel from algae - Reuters LONDON (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp has agreed to invest possibly more than $600 million in a venture to develop biofuels from algae, the oil major, which previously dismissed renewable energy as uneconomic, said on Tuesday. BUT - see also: Spot The Fatal Flaw #1 : Oil From Algae	14th July 2009
Scotland could be powered only by renewable energy in 20 years - The Herald A Green Scotland could scrap its fossil fuel power plants and still more than meet all its electricity demands from renewable sources by 2030, according to a major new study seen by The Herald.	14th July 2009
U.S. to press China on tariffs on clean energy trade - Reuters SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The United States will press China this week to lower its tariffs on clean energy technology as one of many steps the two countries can take to fight global warming, U.S. officials said on Monday.	14th July 2009
E.ON and EDF have drawn the battle lines between renewables and nuclear - Guardian Energy bosses don't like the idea that renewable energy delivers power to the people both literally and metaphoricallyIn 2003, the nuclear industry was very nearly killed off in Britain. In 2009, it is so resurgent that captains of the energy industry are arguing it is renewables that should be killed off, or at least kept on a starvation diet.Today, the Confederation of British Industry has thrown its weight behind the nuclear industry's calls for the government to scale back "overambitious" wind power targets in favour of atomic energy. Two foreign-owned energy giants, E.ON and EDF, have recently told the government it must essentially choose between new nuclear and major renewables developments.	14th July 2009
Airline CO2 Cap in EU to Start at 210 Million Tons, Group Says - Bloomberg July 13 (Bloomberg) -- Airlines will probably face a European Union carbon-dioxide limit of about 210 million metric tons when they join the EU s emissions-trading system in 2012, the region s main industry lobby group predicts as regulators prepare to decide on the matter.	14th July 2009
EU approves state aid for British CO2 scheme - Reuters BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission approved on Tuesday state aid involved in a British scheme for trading carbon dioxide emissions, part of the country's effort to fight global warming.	14th July 2009
We will protect air travel for the masses, says Ed Miliband - Guardian Mass air travel will be preserved even in a low-carbon Britain because the government will find deeper emissions cuts in other areas, the climate change secretary Ed Miliband said today. Dismissing demands for punitive sanctions to curb flying, Miliband said the government was determined to ensure that airline travel remains affordable for ordinary people. See also: Ed Miliband : Lost in TV	14th July 2009
Brothel offers 'green' discount - BBC News A German brothel goes green to boost its business, offering customers money off if they arrive by bicycle.	14th July 2009
'Social tariff' to offset cost of green power - Guardian Unlimited The government will soften the blow to hard-up families worried about rising bills to pay for greener power generation with promises of a compulsory "social tariff" as part of an energy white paper to be published on Wednesday. British Gas, npower and others have been told they will no longer be able to choose whether they keep price increases lower for worse-off customers and will instead have to act according to planned new legislation, industry sources say. The government last night declined to comment directly on its plans, but Ed Miliband told the Commons last week that the social tariff system needed reform. "At present, the system tends to be piecemeal - who gets into it and who does not is often an arbitrary process. We shall have more to say about it in the future."	14th July 2009
UK to set out route map for cutting emissions - Reuters LONDON (Reuters) - The British government will set out a route map on Wednesday showing how it plans to meet its 2020 target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 34 percent compared to 1990 levels, a minister said on Sunday. See also: Centrica and npower set to green light huge offshore wind farm projects - Guardian Unlimited Number of wind turbines to quadruple under Renewable Energy Strategy - Times Online Energy policy 'too wind focused' - BBC Gordon Brown: "Britain's green revolution will power economic recovery - Observer" Government rejects claims renewables will add £200 to energy bills - vnunet.com	13th July 2009
Solar power plants planned for Sahara - Financial Times Around a dozen companies are set to launch a renewable energy initiative on Monday that its backers claim could within a decade provide Europeans with electricity generated from the Sahara at a cost of 400bn ($557bn).	13th July 2009
Wild weather ahead, scientists predict - Guardian Climate scientists have warned of wild weather in the year ahead as the start of the global "El Niño" phenomenon exacerbates the impact of global warming. As well as droughts, floods and other extreme events, the next few years are also likely to be the hottest on record, scientists say.In the UK, a Met Office spokesman said yesterday that the El Niño event was likely to cause a hot, dry summer following a warm June, but said it could have other unpredictable effects on weather in Britain and north-west Europe. "Much depends on how much the El Niño deepens in the next few months."El Niño - "the child" in Spanish - was named by fishermen in Peru and Ecuador because the phenomenon arrives there at Christmas.	13th July 2009
Water wars turn deadly as wells run dry - Guardian The monsoon is late, the wells are running dry and in the teeming city of Bhopal, water supply is now a deadly issue. Gethin Chamberlain reportsIt was a little after 8pm when the water started flowing through the pipe running beneath the dirt streets of Bhopal's Sanjay Nagar slum. After days without a drop of water, the Malviya family were the first to reach the hole they had drilled in the pipe, filling what containers they had as quickly as they could. Within minutes, three of them were dead, hacked to death by angry neighbours who accused them of stealing water.In Bhopal, and across much of northern India, a late monsoon and the driest June for 83 years are exacerbating the effects of a widespread drought and setting neighbour against neighbour in a desperate fight for survival.India's vast farming economy is on the verge of crisis.	13th July 2009
Grains and how we get them - Energy Bulletin This post talks about a seldom-mentioned aspect of local sustainable food production: how do we get our carbs? Local and urban fruit and veg production is all very well and needs to be encouraged, but as East Anglia Food Link Coordinator Tully Wakeman says, "...fruit and veg supplies only about 10% of our calories". How and where our grains are grown, and how they can be sustainably transported and processed form the crux of this issue.	13th July 2009
U.S. officials to prod China on climate change WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke visit their ancestral homeland this week to press China to join with the United States in stepped-up efforts to fight global warming.	13th July 2009
Al Gore: carbon bill should pass - The Age Former US vice-president Al Gore has waded into the Australian carbon trading debate, suggesting passing even an imperfect bill this year could help secure a new treaty to cut greenhouse gas emissions.	13th July 2009
EU president Sweden says U.N. climate talks too slow BEIJING (Reuters) - Global climate talks are progressing too slowly and too many countries are demanding action from others rather than acting by themselves, Sweden's Environment Minister Andreas Carlgren said on Monday in Beijing.	13th July 2009
Make your home greener or pay higher council tax, Government says - Daily Mail UK: Householders should face higher council tax and stamp duty if they refuse to make their homes greener, Government advisers say.	13th July 2009

The planet's future: Climate change 'will cause civilisation to collapse' - Independent An effort on the scale of the Apollo mission that sent men to the Moon is needed if humanity is to have a fighting chance of surviving the ravages of climate change. The stakes are high, as, without sustainable growth, "billions of people will be condemned to poverty and much of civilisation will collapse".	12th July 2009
G8 Failure Means Climate Genocide For Developing World - Counter Currents By Dr Gideon Polya The grossly inadequate response of the G8 nations is effectively a statement of climate racism and a declaration of prospective climate genocide	12th July 2009
Developing countries urge G8 to impose 40% emissions cut by 2020 - Guardian Developing nations are prepared to make concessions on climate change targets if the G8 fulfils its side of the bargain in the run-up to the climate change talks in Copenhagen in December, a key negotiator told the Guardian today. The developing countries want the G8 nations to sign up to a 40% cut by 2020, but that figure is off the radar of the EU and, given the unwieldy legislation laboriously passing through the senate, not a possibility for the US. In important forward steps this week, the G8 agreed to cut its emissions by 80% by 2050 and said worldwide emissions should fall 50% by the same date. However, the value of this pledge has been reduced by the lack of an agreed start date from which the emission cuts should be measured, making it a distant promise.	12th July 2009
People paid for supplying power - BBC People that contribute electricity to the National Grid are to receive payments under a new UK government scheme.	12th July 2009
Big Oil/Lundberg Survey Scare Tactics Against Climate Legislation Lundberg Survey is regularly quoted across the U.S. on gasoline prices and related oil industry developments, even though the firm has dwindled from the 1970s and '80s when it was more widely known and called "the Bible of the oil industry." It changed from an independent family business to a 100tool for Big Oil, decrying "burdensome environmental regulations" while the corporation's head says global warming is "political hot air." So how can Lundberg Survey's new study on climate legislation be accepted as credible?	12th July 2009
Climate-change challenge shifts to the US Senate - San Francisco Chronicle Which bothers you more: rising sea levels, shrinking ice caps and global weather twirling out of control - or do you worry about the health of the coal industry, a potential bump in gas prices and jobless rates a year before mid-term elections? If you chose the second set of concerns, you're a prime example of why climate change legislation is in deep trouble. A flawed but worthy plan to cut greenhouse gases barely cleared the House and now faces high hurdles in the Senate, whose members are a far tougher sell.	12th July 2009
Gore backs Rudd on emissions trading - AAP via Yahoo!7 News Climate change guru Al Gore has backed the Rudd government's decision to push ahead with emissions trading legislation before global talks in Copenhagen.	12th July 2009
What We Have Here Is A Failure To Innovate My view is that we know all we need to know about Energy, we just need to apply it. Yes, there will be some efficiency gained with new machines, and there will be price advantages with reconfiguring designs, but the technology will remain the same. You know, harness the wind (various devices); harness the power of the waves and tides; harness the power of the sun. Energy Conservation. Break the back of Energy Demand increases… There’s really no point in spending spiralling sums of money on Research and Development. Demanding public money for technological development is the logic of corporate interest lobbying. The large corporates want to stay in business : continued profit-making in constrained economic times. Management people know a gravy train when they smell one. From “The Road…” : “In most cases innovation is at its greatest when there are strong market incentives and a high level of competition: companies race to be the first to bring new technologies to market.” That could read something like this, if you’re being honest about the limitations of “innovation” and the progress of “technology” : “In most cases marketing spin is at its greatest when there are strong signals of public funding and a high level of corporate lobbying: companies race to be the first to bring new sources of financial return to their shareholders“.	12th July 2009
George Monbiot's Troll Problem - and Ours - DeSmogBlog monbiot.jpg George Monbiot has a great article this week citing DeSmog Blog, regarding the vexing issue of trolls . Not the kind that live under bridges, but those faceless cyberspace monikers that pop up frequently in comment sections of blogs likes this one, to repetitively froth away against the climate science. Are these real people? Or are they operatives in the employ of Big Oil s PR campaign to confuse the public on climate science? Paul S? Phlogiston? I m talking to you. It seems that Monbiot has same problem that we do. On the Guardian website, a small minority of anonymous skeptics often dominate the discussion by regurgitating talking points from well-known climate deniers.	11th July 2009
The New Energy Bill May Create a 'Super Lobby' of Powerful Opposition - Alternet If we don't act now to strengthen the bill, it could create a "super lobby" that will diminish the possibility of achieving future reforms.	11th July 2009
Boxer faces 'challenge of a lifetime' on climate change bill - McClatchy Newspapers via Yahoo! News WASHINGTON If the Senate doesn't pass a bill to cut global warming, Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer says, there will be dire results: droughts, floods, fires, loss of species, damage to agriculture, worsening air pollution and more.	11th July 2009
Cap-and-trade support hinges on economy: survey - Grist NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. manufacturers would be much more likely to support cap-and-trade legislation to limit pollution if they believed the industrial economy was about to improve, according to a survey.	11th July 2009
UK renewable energy plans spark cost fears - Financial Times A huge expansion of renewable energy will be launched by the government next week, when it sets out its plans for meeting its commitments to cut carbon dioxide emissions.	11th July 2009
G8 action without China and India would be pointless - Guardian Developing countries will not surrender trump card for a handshake they want hard cash and firm commitmentsWith barely five months until make-or-break climate talks in Copenhagen, where the world will attempt to agree a new treaty on climate change, how significant are the G8 announcements?Headline writers have drooled over the "historic" agreement to limit the global temperature rise to 2C, to cut world emissions 50% by 2050, and for the G8 to reduce its own pollution 80% by that date.The numbers may sound reassuringly low, large and colossal, respectively, but there is significant political sleight of hand at play here. See also: Full text: Energy and climate declaration - BBC News CLIMATE CHANGE: G8 Declares a Lack of Promise G8 leaders: still around to keep 2050 climate promises?	10th July 2009
The Big Question: Will it really be possible to meet the G8's climate change targets? - Independent Why are we asking this now? Because the leaders of the rich countries, at their meeting in Italy, have just made a great headline-grabbing pledge to cut their emissions of carbon dioxide, in the fight against climate change, by 80 per cent by 2050. See also: The last 20% - David Hone	10th July 2009
Overheated by clean energy - Salon.com As the debate over the Waxman-Markey climate bill rages on, Harvard's top environmental economist sheds some light See also: Obama's drive for climate change bill hits delay	10th July 2009
Survey Shows Gap Between Scientists and the Public - New York Times When it comes to climate change, the teaching of evolution and the state of the nation's research enterprise, there is a large gap between what scientists think and the views of ordinary Americans, a new survey has found.	10th July 2009
Thousands of plant species likely to go extinct in Amazon As many as 4,550 of the more than 50,000 plant species in the Amazon will likely disappear because of land-use changes and habitat loss within the next 40 years, according to a new study by two Wake Forest University researchers.	10th July 2009
Indian monsoon among risks from rapid climate change - Reuters SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Rising seas, a rapid weakening of the Indian monsoon and spiraling costs of adapting to a warmer, drier world are just some of the looming risks from rapid climate change, a report for the Australian government says.	10th July 2009
Domestic wind turbines could 'power 800,000 UK homes' - Guardian Unlimited Small domestic wind turbines could provide enough clean electricity to power more than 800,000 UK homes, according to the Energy Saving Trust (EST). Previous studies have suggested that small turbines in residential areas fail to generate enough power to justify their installation. In total, small-scale wind in domestic properties could supply around 3.1% of the UK's energy demand from homes.	10th July 2009
G-8 Failure Reflects US Failure on Climate Change - Huffington Post The fact is that the climate course set by Waxman-Markey is a disaster course. Their bill is an astoundingly inefficient way to get a tiny reduction of emissions. It's less than worthless, because it will delay by at least a decade starting on a path that is fundamentally sound from the standpoints of both economics and climate preservation. Former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, who died this week, suffered for 40 years -- as did our country -- from his failure to turn back from a failed policy. As grave as the blunders of the Vietnam War were, the consequences of a failed climate policy will be more severe by orders of magnitude. With the Senate debate over climate now beginning, there is still time to turn back from cap-and-trade and toward fee-and-dividend. We need to start now. Without political leadership creating a truly viable policy like a carbon fee, not only won't we get meaningful climate legislation through the Senate, we won't be able to create the concerted approach we need globally to prevent catastrophic climate change.	9th July 2009
Ban criticises G8 climate efforts - BBC UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon criticises G8 nations for not going far enough to combat climate change.	9th July 2009
Climate targets around the world - BBC News The BBC looks at the targets countries and supra-national bodies have already set on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.	9th July 2009
Nasa satellites reveal extent of Arctic sea ice loss - Guardian The Earth is going thin on top. A new study has revealed that the Arctic Ocean's permanent blanket of ice around the North Pole has thinned by more than 40% since 2004. Scientists said the rapid loss was "remarkable" and could force experts to reassess how quickly the Arctic ice in the summer may disappear completely. They blame the loss on global warming, which has driven temperatures in the Arctic to record highs and summer ice extent to recent lows. The study, based on satellite measurements, is among the first to estimate the thickness of the Arctic ice, rather than just its surface area. Ron Kwok, senior research scientist at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, said: "Even in years when the overall extent of sea ice remains stable or grows slightly, the thickness and volume of the ice cover is continuing to decline, making the ice more vulnerable to continued shrinkage."	9th July 2009
Jellyfish are swarming in the warm weather, say marine experts - BBC Marine experts say warm weather has prompted reports of large numbers of jellyfish in the waters around Scotland.	9th July 2009
Global warming shrinks glacier at alarming rate - Daily Telegraph One of the world's largest glaciers on the west coast of Greenland is shrinking at an alarming rate as a result of global warming with potentially dire consequences.	9th July 2009
Warming arctic could teem with life by 2030 - New Scientist An influx of tiny organisms could lead to an Arctic rich with life during the summers in the next few decades, a study of ice cores suggests	9th July 2009
Project to 'grow carbon sinks' - BBC News Ambitious plans to grow 24 million trees to soak up carbon dioxide and restore the rainforest have got underway in Ghana.	9th July 2009
Solar-powered blimp to fly across Channel - Guardian The blimp was designed and built by French students and its first flight will prove that CO2-free air travel is now a reality.	9th July 2009
Climate denial 'astroturfers' should stop hiding behind pseudonyms online - Guardian To stop oil, coal and electricity companies inserting their views into the media by stealth, we need to make blog commenters accountableWhen the Guardian launched its Comment is free threads, it was one of the most exciting developments in journalism I had ever witnessed. Suddenly, everyone could play. Columnists and leader writers were no longer the voice of God: they could be immediately challenged, corrected, held to account. People with something to say could say it, expertise from every field and every part of the world was harnessed. The early discussions were invigorating, fascinating, thrilling. They forced me to smarten up my act, to try to close the gaps in my thinking, to consider the argument more carefully before setting it out.	9th July 2009
Copenhagen climate deal depends on U.S.: analyst - Reuters LONDON (Reuters) - The emergence of a global deal to cut greenhouse gas emissions in Copenhagen in December hinges on the United States passing its own climate bill before then, analysts at Point Carbon said on Wednesday. "The probability that an international agreement with quantative targets will be signed in Copenhagen in December is at least 50 percent," the research group said in a report.	9th July 2009
Greenpeace Unfurls Banner Next to Mount Rushmore - Washington Post Greenpeace activists draped an enormous banner next to the carved stone faces of Mount Rushmore today, calling for more-aggressive action to fight climate change. The banner showed President Obama's face -- Greenpeace said it was an unfinished portrait, implying that Obama's legacy was in question -- and the words "America honors leaders not politicians: Stop Global Warming."	9th July 2009
How much would you pay? - Reuters What s the real cost of global warming? More to the point, how much would you the person reading this blog be comfortable paying to stave off the worse ravages of climate change? A hundred bucks to keep the rising seas out of your back yard? A thousand to replenish mountain snowpack? Maybe a few dollars to put more trees back in the rainforest? Luckily, there s no shortage of estimates of how much each individual in the United States might have to pay to curb the greenhouse emissions that spur climate change. One particularly pertinent estimate was delivered on Capitol Hill by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at a Senate hearing geared to send the message that, yes, the United States Congress is getting serious about tackling the problem.	9th July 2009
Two degrees The countries of the G8 today approved a target of 2° C rise in global average temperature above the natural, preanthropogenic climate, that they resolve should be avoided. The Europeans have been pushing for 2 degrees as a target maximum temperature for several years, but this is something of a development for the Americans. We posted recently on two new papers about what it would take to limit global average warming, finding that it would require fairly strong change in trajectory. About 2° C as a target, we wrote, even a moderate warming of 2°C stands a strong chance of provoking drought and storm responses that could challenge civilized society, leading potentially to the conflict and suffering that go with failed states and mass migrations.	9th July 2009
Nature can't take unrestrained growth: Prince Charles - Reuters LONDON (Reuters) - The quest for unlimited economic growth is unsustainable and could bankrupt the environment through climate change and depleted natural resources, Britain's Prince Charles said on Wednesday.	9th July 2009
US Power Industry Urges Senators To Relax CO2 Targets - Nasdaq WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The U.S.'s largest utility group Wednesday pressed the Senate to modify a landmark climate bill in ways that would lower the cost of transitioning to a lower-carbon economy.	9th July 2009
G8: World leaders fail to agree specific target for climate cuts World leaders, including the developing nations, yesterday committed themselves only to "substantially reducing global emissions by 2050", but failed to agree a specific target, according to a draft of the communique due to be issued later today. The draft states: "We recognise the scientific view that the increase in global average temperature above pre-industrial levels ought not to exceed two degrees centigrade." The draft is due to be issued by the Major Economies Forum under the chairmanship of Barack Obama. The MEF contributes 80% of world emissions. The lack of a substantive agreement, other than the desire to keep global temperatures down, leaves world leaders facing daunting negotiations to reach agreement at the Copenhagen conference in December, which is due to set the entire climate change framework covering the period from 2012 to 2050.	9th July 2009
Greenwash: The Responsible Business Awards defy parody The self-congratulatory masters of greenwash gathered to applaud one other with an audacity that defies beliefThe shortlist read like a who's who of Greenwash over the past few months. Toyota, Coca Cola and EDF for starters.But no, this column has not decided to hand out a set of glittering emerald prizes. Monday night was showtime for the Responsible Business Awards, with Business in the Community (BITC) and its president, Prince Charles handing out the gongs.We've had a go at BITC here before. Well meaning it may be, but it seems to have tipped over from being a promoter of ethical business practice to an apologist for greenwash.	9th July 2009
MoveOn calls on Senate to preserve Clean Air Act in climate bill MoveOn is running full-page ads in D.C.-based publications urging the Senate to maintain the EPA s authority to regulate carbon dioxide.	9th July 2009
Stern Remarks #3 : The Law of Diminishing Energy Returns - JoAbbess Nicholas Stern, and other more bog standard Economists, all seem to believe in the magical power of Innovation. He writes about it in a reverential way in his book A Blueprint for a Safer Planet . Innovation : gleaming, sparkling, wondrous dexterity : if there s a buck to be made from shaving a saving, or fishing for an efficiency, it is assumed the holy Market Economy will be in there, innovating away. Or that s what Economists believe anyway, wholeheartedly, generally, generously, neo-liberally. Innovation is the mother of Technology, but can also shape it and change it, always able to make the good, better and the better, totally awesome.	9th July 2009
Obamas Cap And Trade Carbon Emissions Bill - A Stealth Scheme To License Pollution And Fraud By Stephen Lendman Its to let corporate polluters reap huge windfall profits by charging consumers more for energy and fuel as well as create a new bubble through carbon trading derivatives speculation. It does nothing to address environmental issues, yet on June 26 the House narrowly passed (229 - 212) and sent it to the Senate to be debated and voted on. More on that below	9th July 2009
Ozone, nitrogen change the way rising CO2 affects Earth's water Through a recent modeling experiment, a team of NASA-funded researchers have found that future concentrations of carbon dioxide and ozone in the atmosphere and of nitrogen in the soil are likely to have an important but overlooked effect on the cycling of water from sky to land to waterways.	9th July 2009
Major nations drop goal of halving C02 - Independent Major nations have failed to agree to set a goal halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, according to a draft document ahead of talks tomorrow - a setback to efforts to secure a new UN climate pact.	8th July 2009
Reith lectures: Of markets and morality - Guardian Unlimited If exposing public goods to market forces changes the way that people feel about them, the implications could be profound. Carbon-trading markets, for instance, are designed to encourage the outsourcing of pollution control to places where it is cheapest to do. That should help save the planet. But if the by-product of the western wheeling and dealing in such markets is to encourage the belief that the climate's health is another commodity - rather than something for which we all bear moral responsibility - then these markets could defeat themselves. Cost-benefit analysis - which governments use to mimic the judgment of markets in contexts where no markets exist - can also have nasty results. When bureaucracies price things which should not be priced - endangered species, future generations or even individual lives - they start trading them off against other objectives, instead of appreciating their absolute obligations.	8th July 2009
Green expert sees red over UK climate pledges - Reuters Professor Sir David King, the British government's former top scientific adviser, is no stranger to controversy. He ruffled feathers on both sides of the Atlantic in 2004 when he described climate change as a more serious threat to the world than terrorism. Earlier this year, he said the Iraq war may come to be seen as the world first s resource war , based on oil rather than weapons of mass destruction. Now the South African-born academic risks putting more politicians' noses out of joint. In a speech in Oxford this week, King accused Gordon Brown of talking tough on climate change, but failing to follow his words up with action, mainly due to a lack of public money.	8th July 2009
I Am Not A Campaigner - Jo Abbess As a bright-eyed Gospel-touting young person from a God-fearing Bible-bashing breast-beating Protestant Evangelical Christian family, one-time members of a troubled sect, I was drawn to the victim narrative of the Aid and Development agencies. Those poor people in those dirt-poor countries with their cripplingly poor lifestyles. I needed to be a Campaigner, I reasoned. I needed to tell the World, make some converts to the Poverty and Development cause, draw some attention, create some devotion, raise some cash, raise some banners, wave some placards, get some pledges signed. Not realising that this kind of missionary zeal marked me out as a complete lunatic, I applied to a Famous Development Agency for a job.	8th July 2009
Fish suffering in heatwave - TeleText UK: Efforts are underway to save fish in South Yorkshire which are suffering from the effects of the warm weather. The recent heatwave has been causing problems for fish in watercourses across Yorkshire. A combination of low water flows and high temperatures are thought to have reduced oxygen levels in some areas, making it harder for fish to breathe.	8th July 2009
Italian Power Plants Occupied by Greenpeace Activists - Bloomberg July 8 (Bloomberg) -- Greenpeace activists occupied four Italian coal-fired power plants, demanding action from world leaders to stave off climate change on the opening day of a Group of Eight summit being hosted by Italy.	8th July 2009
Obama makes nuclear compromise to pass clean energy bill - Guardian The Obama administration endorsed a revival of America's nuclear industry yesterday in an effort to build forward momentum for climate change legislation before the Senate. The seal of approval for nuclear power – a cause embraced by Republican senators – came on day one of a full-on lobbying effort by the White House for one of Obama's signature issues. Obama sent four of his top lieutenants to the Senate – his secretaries of energy, interior, agriculture and the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – to try to drum up support for a global warming bill. The PR effort saw direct appeals to the farming and nuclear lobbies – some of the fiercest critics of Obama's clean energy agenda – with Steven Chu, the Nobel-winning energy secretary, calling for new nuclear plants to re-establish America's technological dominance in the world.	8th July 2009
Senate begins push for climate change bill - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in the Senate on Tuesday began a drive to advance climate change legislation, a top Obama administration priority, amid warnings that a bill recently passed by the House of Representatives to reduce carbon emissions would have to be changed.	8th July 2009
Billionaire Pickens Shelves Massive Wind Farm Project in Texas Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens has shelved his plan to build the world s biggest wind farm in Texas, citing a tight credit market, low natural gas prices, and inadequate transmission lines. The ambitious 4,000-megawatt wind farm plan which would have included 100,000 wind turbines and 40,000 miles of transmission lines to large cities was the centerpiece of the Texas oilman s high-profile plan to help break the nation s dependence on foreign oil. The project was estimated to cost $10 billion. Boone still remains committed and focused on developing wind energy in T.	8th July 2009
Two cannot be the only number to fight climate change - UN Dispatch The world's largest carbon emitters, meeting at the tail end of the, er, rather tumultuous G8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, look like they're going to take an unfortunate step backward (or at best sideways) in the rapidly dwindling months before global climate negotiations in Copenhagen begin in December. The promises of these countries have gone from, a year ago, a pledge to reduce emissions by 50% by 2050 -- albeit passing over the very relevant detail of specifying 50% of levels from which year, 1990 or 2005 -- to an agreement to drop all numbers whatsoever from this year's text.	8th July 2009
G8 emissions pledge is 'scientifically illiterate' - New Scientist This week, world leaders are expected to pledge to halve global emissions by 2050, but Fred Pearce argues that the science is moving faster	7th July 2009
Emerging El Nino set to drive up carbon emissions - Reuters via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News Across the globe an emerging El Nino weather pattern threatens to cause droughts and floods and trigger a spike in planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions from burning forests.	7th July 2009
New climate strategy: track the world's wealthiest - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - To fairly divide the climate change fight between rich and poor, a new study suggests basing targets for emission cuts on the number of wealthy people, who are also the biggest greenhouse gas emitters, in a country.	7th July 2009
Subsidising the Climate Crash - Monbiot Why have government agencies been paying to increase the number of flights? Demand for new routes and airports comes not from passengers but unelected, unaccountable development agenciesHere's an odd thing. Air travel to and from the United Kingdom has plummeted. Several small airlines have gone bust; British Airways has deployed its landing gear. In some respects, according to the industry, this descent could be permanent. Yet the government is still planning to double the capacity of our airports by 2030.Between the first quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, the number of people using airports in the UK fell by 6.4 million, or 13%. Convinced that its estimates for the growth of demand were wrong, the airport operator BAA has delayed its plans for a second runway at Stansted.	7th July 2009
The Climate Imperative - Counter Currents By Rajendra Kumar Pachauri Today, international action on climate change is urgent and essential. Indeed, there can no longer be any debate about the need to act, because the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), of which I am chairman, has established climate change as an unequivocal reality beyond scientific doubt	7th July 2009
Gore says climate deal needs more public pressure - Reuters OXFORD (Reuters) - Public awareness about the "catastrophe" of climate change is not high enough to pressure politicians into taking action, former Vice President Al Gore said on Tuesday. See also: Al Gore: climate change battle like that against Nazis - Times Online	7th July 2009
Arctic ice thinned dramatically since 2004: NASA - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Arctic sea ice has thinned dramatically since 2004, with the older, thicker ice giving way to a younger, thinner kind that melts in the northern summer, NASA scientists reported on Tuesday.	7th July 2009
CO2 levels already condemns coral to extinction, warns Attenborough - Guardian Coral is the canary in the cage as damage can be seen most quickly, veteran naturalist tells Royal SocietyDavid Attenborough joined scientists yesterday to warn that carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is already above the level which condemns coral reefs to extinction in the future, with catastrophic effects for the oceans and the people who depend upon them.Coral reefs support a quarter of all marine life including more than 4,000 species of fish. They also provide spawning, nursery, refuge and feeding areas for creatures such as lobsters, crabs, starfish and sea turtles. This makes them crucial in supporting a healthy marine ecosystem upon which more than 1bn people depend for food.	7th July 2009
Central Texas farmers struggle in drought - KVUE-TV Austin	7th July 2009
Drought threat looms over north India - The Times of India	7th July 2009
Assam flooding 'strands 500,000' - BBC News	7th July 2009
Mumbai faces acute water shortage - BBC News	7th July 2009
Benin declares state of emergency over floods - Reuters	7th July 2009
Climate & environment - Energy Bulletin Global Warming May Sap Productivity for Those With Outdoor Jobs With Something for Everyone, Climate Bill Passed Politics-as-Usual While the Planet Burns A House in the Woods, After the Woods Are Gone	7th July 2009
Rethinking food production for a world of 8 billion - Grist While hunger has been disappearing in China, it has been spreading throughout much of the developing world, notably sub-Saharan Africa and parts of the Indian subcontinent.	7th July 2009
A new take on Kyoto - Guardian Obama faces major challenges on carbon emissions at the G8 but the best solution is a new, global system of regulationPresident Obama is facing a problem at this week's G8 meeting in L'Aquila, Italy. Having promised serious action on climate change, the legacy of GW Bush's inaction will be hard for him to overcome. Under the Kyoto protocol, the US should have reduced its emissions by 7% from 1990 levels. But last year it emitted 16% more than in 1990, or almost 25% above its Kyoto target. And to persuade the rest of the world to make meaningful cuts in emissions, the US will need to take on deep cuts for 2020 based on its Kyoto targets, rather than on where it is now.Obama's fear is the US will be unable to cut fast enough.	7th July 2009
EPA: A dollar a day could keep climate change away - AlertNet The average American family would pay at most $1 a day more to fight climate change, the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency told a Senate committee on Tuesday. EPA head Lisa Jackson said carbon-cutting legislation would, on average, amount to a 50-cent per day cost per household in 2020 and edge up for wealthier families, people who drive long distances and those living in states dependent on coal for electricity. But even a doubling of the national average would only cost families $1 per day, Jackson said. "Can anyone honestly say that the head of an American household would not spend a dollar a day to safeguard the well being of his or her children?" Jackson asked the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.	7th July 2009
Rice concrete can cut greenhouse emissions - MSNBC A new way of processing rice husks for use in concrete could lead to a boom in green construction.	7th July 2009
Web & media - July 7 Chat with a peak oil screenwriterTwo pop thinkers and their fight about zeroFormer oil analyst Lundberg on Exxon's continuing to fund climate skeptics read more	7th July 2009
Obama needs to engage GOP on climate bill: expert - Reuters LONDON (Reuters) - Even with the new 60-seat Democrat majority in the U.S. Senate, President Barack Obama needs to cross party lines to gather support for new climate change legislation, a U.S. climate expert said on Tuesday.	7th July 2009
Climate bill won't work without farm role: USDA - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The climate change bill being drafted in the U.S. Senate is unlikely to succeed unless it gives farmers and ranchers a role in locking carbon into the land, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Tuesday.	7th July 2009
Raising the Climatic Stakes - Risk & Insurance This summer's climate change bill increases the chances that insureds will face environmentally based enforcement and civil actions sooner rather than later. See also: Are pension funds ignoring climate risk?	6th July 2009
Gavin Schmidt: a climatologist trying to give out the right signals amid the noise - Guardian Leading Nasa climate scientist says increasing the level of noise is a useful political tactic in interview in The Edge magazineAnyone who follows the climate change debate closely will no doubt have come across Gavin Schmidt and the website he co-founded called RealClimate.org during their online meanderings. Schmidt is a British climatologist and climate modeller based at the Nasa Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York and he says that he helped to establish RealClimate.org to try to "provide context and background on climate science issues that are often missing in popular media coverage". As you can imagine, he's a busy man.Schmidt features in this week's edition of The Edge as the latest interviewee in the online magazine's Third Culture series.	6th July 2009
Millions face climate-related hunger as seasons shift - AlertNet The impact of climate change in poor countries is leading to a shift in seasons that is destroying harvests and causing widespread hunger according to a new report launched today by international agency, Oxfam. The report comes as the UK faces its biggest heat wave in three years and warns that people living in poor countries, particularly outdoor workers and agricultural laborers, are experiencing dramatic losses to their livelihoods and severe impacts to their health as temperatures rise across the globe. The report "Suffering the Science - Climate Change, People and Poverty", is being published ahead of the G8 Summit in Italy, where climate change and food security are high on the agenda. Oxfam hopes that the bulk of human evidence presented in the report will push leaders to deliver a fair and safe climate deal before the end of the year, with emissions cuts of at least 40 per cent from 1990 levels by 2020 and $150 billion per year to fund emissions reduction and adaptation in the developing world.	6th July 2009
Tropical zone expanding due to climate change: study - SpaceDaily MELBOURNE, July 6 (AFP) Jul 06, 2009 Climate change is rapidly expanding the size of the world's tropical zone, threatening to bring disease and drought to heavily populated areas, an Australian study has found.	6th July 2009
Reefs could perish by end of century, experts warn - Reuters LONDON (Reuters) - Increasingly acidic oceans and warming water temperatures due to carbon dioxide emissions could kill off the world's ocean reefs by the end of this century, scientists warned on Monday.	6th July 2009
Explorer sure of climate change after historic trek - China Daily "I'm not a politician. I'm not a scientist. I'm a polar explorer," said Ousland. "So when it comes to the global warming issue, I'm a rough diamond. But I've of course seen the changes and would like to express my concerns about global warming because these beautiful areas are disappearing, and it affects the whole world."	6th July 2009
Incandescent Light Bulbs Live on in New, More Efficient Form - Yale e350 Spurred by U.S. government regulations requiring improved lighting efficiency by 2012, researchers around the country are successfully turning the old, energy-burning incandescent bulb into a more efficient source of light. The New York Times reports that one company has already succeeding in producing incandescent bulbs that are 30 percent more efficient than older bulbs, which have changed little since the days of Thomas Edison and produce far more heat than light. The new generation of incandescent bulbs still does not match the efficiency of compact fluorescent light bulbs, which use 75 percent less energy than old-style bulbs. But researchers say incandescent bulbs might one day become as energy-efficient as compact fluorescent bulbs by using new filaments and reflective coatings that bounce heat back onto the filament and convert that heat into light.	6th July 2009
Chinese to Break Ground On Massive Wind Power Installation - Yale e360 China will break ground this month on a gigantic, $17 billion wind power farm in the northwestern part of the country that will produce 5 gigawatts of power by next year and 20 gigawatts by 2020, according to the official Xinhua news service. The installation in Gansu Province is known as the Three Gorges of Wind Power after the gigantic Three Gorges hydroelectric dam on the Yangtze River. As the Wall Street Journal notes, the Gansu wind power installation is scheduled by 2020 to produce five times the power of T. Boone Pickens proposed wind power project on the U.S.	6th July 2009
Climate protest returns to Kingsnorth - Guardian Unlimited Hundreds of climate protesters will form a human chain at Kingsnorth power station in what will be the biggest test of Kent police tactics since its controversial handling of last year's demonstrations. Protesters from a coalition of groups, including Oxfam, the Women's Institute, Greenpeace, and the RSPB, will form the chain around the parts of the plant that are not subject to court ...	6th July 2009
Starting the Conversation on Our Survival - Culture Change With species extinction now at the highest rate since the disappearance of the dinosaurs, one might assume this crisis is on everyone's mind and discussed widely. One would be wrong. No one knows if it's 100 species a day, many of which have not been named. Massive species loss has been known for many years, but it is "old news" or "boring." Neither are other critical topics discussed enough to match their import:	6th July 2009
Home revolution - BBC Paying people to save energy could curb climate change. Despite almost universal awareness of the threat posed by climate change, households are still left feeling powerless to act, says Paul King. In this week's Green Room, he sets out his vision that he believes would kick-start a "refurbishment revolution".	6th July 2009
Big Coal does not want you to see this film - Grist As a groundbreaking clean energy counterpart to this summer s extraordinary Food, Inc. documentary on the agribusiness, the long-awaited Coal Country film on the cradle-to-grave process of generating our coal-fired electricity will be hitting the theaters this week with the big bang of an ammonium nitrate/fuel oil explosive. And Big Coal ain t happy.	6th July 2009
Ancient Drought And Rapid Cooling Drastically Altered Climate - Science Daily Two abrupt and drastic climate events, 700 years apart and more than 45 centuries ago, are teasing scientists who are now trying to use ancient records to predict future world climate. The events - one, a massive, long-lived drought believed to have dried large portions of Africa and Asia, and the other, a rapid cooling that accelerated the growth of tropical glaciers - left signals in ice cores and other geologic records from around the world.	6th July 2009
Wind power may have its own environmental problems - PhysOrg Wind power generation is expected to be a clean and environmentally friendly natural energy source, but a new kind of environmental problem has surfaced as infrasonic waves caused by windmills are suspected of causing health problems for some people.	6th July 2009
My message to G8 leaders - Guardian Unlimited Ban KiMoon: The summit in Italy is the start of a crucial 12 months. Political co-operation is no longer a mere nicety, but a necessity. Global co-operation was decisive in arresting last year's financial meltdown. While the world's economic situation remains difficult, the benefits of monetary and fiscal cooperation among the major economies is clear. We saw a similarly effective collective response to the H1N1 pandemic. Co-operation works, but we've only just gotten started. Let us now bring the power of global partnership to bear on climate change, poverty reduction and food production. Let us begin an economic recovery that is not only robust, but also just, inclusive and sustainable - lifting the entire world. For if we do not do it now, at a moment of crisis, when will we?	6th July 2009

Transitions - Energy Bulletin Transition movement vs post-carbonistas The Transition Initiative: changing the scale of change, from The Orion magazine Transition Hohenwald: Rural Community Targets Energy Efficiency	28th June 2009
US House supports emissions bill - BBC The US House of Representatives narrowly backs legislation to cut carbon emissions, but the bill now faces a tough Senate battle. See also: One hurdle down for climate bill, 60 more to go - Grist Farm lobby: Shoot the climate bill, but keep the Peterson goodies - Grist China welcomes U.S. climate bill, says more needed - Reuters	28th June 2009
How Confucianism could curb global warming - The Christian Science Monitor via Yahoo! News Now here's a curveball to secular Western policy experts: China's intellectuals are openly debating the role of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism in promoting the Communist Party's vision of a harmonious society and ecologically sustainable economic development.	28th June 2009
Spreading Desertification Affecting Mediterranean, Group Says - Yale e360 Growing depletion of aquifers and climate change are turning parts of Italy, Spain, and France into desert, according to the Italian environmental group, Legambiente. The group said that 11 percent of arable land in Sicily, Sardinia, and sections of southern Italy already shows signs of drying up and could eventually affect the livelihoods of 6.5 million people. The main cause is the depletion of underground aquifers, which can result in seawater intruding into the groundwater, effectively poisoning water supplies, Legambiente said. The group reported that 74 million acres of land in Italy, Spain, and the French Riviera were gradually turning to desert because of overexploitation of water resources, with 20 percent of the Iberian Peninsula already experiencing desertification.	28th June 2009
Climate Most Significant Factor In Fanning Wildfires' Flames, In The Warming West - redOrbit Study finds that climate's influence on production, drying of fuels -- not higher temperatures or longer fire seasons alone -- critical determinant of Western wildfire burned areaThe recent increase in area burned by wildfires in the Western United States is a product not of higher temperatures or longer fire seasons alone, but a complex relationship between climate and fuels that varies among ...	28th June 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: India's Monsoon Predictions More Uncertain - IPS NEW DELHI, Jun 27 (IPS) - Predicting the monsoons - a risky proposition despite the deployment of satellites and supercomputers - appears to have become iffier thanks to climate change.	28th June 2009
Ozone hole has unforeseen effect on ocean carbon sink - News Scientist The Southern Ocean has lost its appetite for carbon dioxide, and now it appears that ozone levels could be partly to blame	28th June 2009
Tea prices tipped to hit a record high after drought - Daily Mail Tea prices tipped to hit a record high after drought	28th June 2009
Brazil's Lula signs Amazon bill - BBC Brazil's president approves a controversial bill allowing Amazon farmers to acquire an area of public land larger than France.	28th June 2009
Bubkes - Realclimate Some parts of the blogosphere, headed up by CEI ("CO2: They call it pollution, we call it life!"), are all a-twitter over an apparently "suppressed" document that supposedly undermines the EPA Endangerment finding about human emissions of carbon dioxide and a basket of other greenhouse gases. Well a draft of this "suppressed" document has been released and we can now all read this allegedly devastating critique of the EPA science. Let's take a look First off the authors of the submission; Alan Carlin is an economist and John Davidson is an ex-member of the Carter administration Council of Environmental Quality.	28th June 2009
Germany at a More Real Climate Crossroads More vital news from Germany: besides the creation of a car free city (Vauban), Chancellor Merkel is holding Obama's feet to the fire to do more to halt greenhouse-gas emissions -- even as she faces domestic protest regarding sacrosanct coal power. Germany's entire society enjoys a better quality of life than the U.S. thanks to generous vacations while using half the energy per capita used by U.S. citizens. But all is not well in Germany due to economic and demographic stress combined with unsustainable energy dependence.	28th June 2009
Leading the world in hot air - Independent UK: Just as New Labour's "new dawn" was giving way to the harsher light of hard work nine years ago, Tony Blair appointed Jonathon Porritt to chair a new Sustainable Development Commission. It was an inspired appointment. Mr Porritt has a remarkable record of a lifetime's commitment to, and technical knowledge of, the green cause. The commission was a visionary idea, albeit labelled with the stodgy concept of "sustainability" a way of describing the central imperative of environmentalism, namely that human activity should not deplete the earth's capacity to sustain future generations.	28th June 2009
The cost of cap-and-trade: What MIT really thinks David Hone The MIT Joint Program on the Science & Policy of Global Change have long been advocates of cap-and-trade as an appropriate policy instrument to drive a reduction in national emissions. They also provide valuable insight into the economic impacts of such an instrument through the economic modelling tools they have at their disposal. As Waxman-Markey races through Congress and might even become legislation this year, both sides of the debate are arming themselves with data to defend or attack the proposal. In recent weeks MIT have found themselves in the middle of this foray as their findings have been somewhat misquoted by those not in favour of a cap-and-trade approach in the USA.	28th June 2009
The Slope of Dysfunction - Culture Change Editor's note: Culture Change has made the claim for almost two decades that collapse of the whole petroleum infrastructure and the economy was closer than any other known oil-industry analysis suggested. For example, we have politely corrected Dr. Colin Cambell's claim that the "second half of the Age of Oil" was going to be the result of peak oil. Now, Dmitry Orlov has made the most clear case yet that petrocollapse is rather imminent. - Jan Lundberg	28th June 2009
Hot summer fridge boost warning - BBC News High summer temperatures are having an effect on the operation of fridges and freezers, leading to increased sales.	28th June 2009
For more news, click here >> News from previous days is below
Miliband: 2020 is year of no return for emissions - Independent The world's emissions of the greenhouse gases causing global warming should peak in 2020 and then start to decline, the British Government is proposing in the run-up to the global climate conference taking place at Copenhagen in December.	26th June 2009
Q&A: Water Scarcity Threatens Half the Planet - IPS ROME, Jun 25 (Tierramerica) - If the world's governments fail to reach an immediate agreement on how to manage water resources by 2030, half the planet's population will not have enough water to survive, scientist Jonathan Baillie told Tierramerica.	26th June 2009
The oil intensity of food - Grist Today we are an oil-based civilization, one that is totally dependent on a resource whose production will soon be falling. This prospect of peaking oil production has direct consequences for world food security, as modern agriculture depends heavily on the use of fossil fuels.	26th June 2009
Mexico's gamble - BBC News Can Mexico have a green energy policy and feed its poor?	26th June 2009
Major economies consider halving world CO2 - Reuters OSLO (Reuters) - Major economies including the United States and China are considering setting a goal of halving world greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 when they hold a summit in Italy next month, a draft document showed.	26th June 2009
Growth of global carbon emissions halved in 2008, say Dutch researchers - Guardian Recession and oil price main drivers behind fall in consumption as developing world emissions rise above 50% for first timeThe growth of global carbon dioxide emissions fell by half in 2008, according to data released today. The global recession and high oil prices played a major role in reducing the rate of emissions. But measures to tackle global warming by cutting emissions such as renewable energy were only partly responsible. The data from the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (NEAA) also show that, for the first time, CO2 emissions from the developing world account for more than half of the global total.Analysis from the NEAA draws on fossil fuel consumption figures published last week by BP.	26th June 2009
UK's Brown proposes $100 bln annual climate fund - AlertNet Source: Reuters (Adds details) LONDON, June 26 (Reuters) - Developed countries must contribute collectively to a $100 billion annual fund to fight climate change in developing countries by 2020, UK Prime ...	26th June 2009
Carbon man shuns Washington trip - BBC News An academic turns down a flight to a US conference to discuss carbon emissions and others follow suit.	26th June 2009
Dolphin 'super pod' shifts north - BBC Environmental charity Earthwatch says a massive migration of short-beaked common dolphins are a sign of climate change.	26th June 2009
Dyson calls on UK government to back environmental engineering projects At the launch of his latest innovation, Dyson accuses UK ministers of being more interested in bailing out banks than fostering entrepreneurs and engineersSir James Dyson today criticised the UK government for its lack of support for entrepreneurs and engineers, accusing ministers of being more interested in bailing out banks than fostering companies that could create money and high-tech jobs.The entrepreneur behind the bagless vacuum cleaner said ministers should be backing large projects that could help tackle environmental problems and also encourage young people to take up engineering.Dyson made the comments at the launch of his latest innovation, an electric motor that spins faster than a jet engine, which will be used in the latest models of Dyson's handheld vacumn cleaners.	26th June 2009
Politicians must champion the 'age of sensible', says science museum boss People more likely to act on climate change if offered positive vision of low-carbon future, says Chris RapleyPoliticians and scientists must adopt a more positive and aspirational message on climate change and "re-think" the current "hair shirt" approach if they are to persuade more people of the importance of action, according to the head of the Science Museum in London.On the eve of the museum's centenary, Professor Chris Rapley, said that people needed to be shown a positive picture of low-carbon future rather than focus on how difficult the global warming problem is. "We have to believe that that's possible otherwise we might as well all give up," he said.In a reference to the title of the hit climate change film The Age of Stupid - which he called "very thought-provoking and very valuable" - he said the museum's climate change exhibit planned ...	26th June 2009
Greenwash: Weee directive is a dreadful missed opportunity to clean up e-waste An EU directive to clean up the electronic waste industry is not being operated or policed properly, and is often ignored completely by manufacturersRemember the charmingly named Weee directive from Brussels? That's Weee as in what to do with waste electronics goods like computers.It is now two years since the waste electrical and electronic equipment directive came into force in the UK. The idea was to stop land-filling all those toxins in computers and to keep the computers in use as long as possible.But the directive has proved to be a dreadful wasted opportunity. In fact, it is worse than that.	26th June 2009
76% of African-Americans Want Delay on Climate Legislation Until Economy Recovers - PR Newswire via Yahoo! News 76% of African-Americans want Congress to make economic recovery, not climate change, its top priority, says a newly released nationwide poll of African-Americans conducted by the National Center for Public Policy Research.	26th June 2009
Big Carbon Cuts Coming http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file50354.pdf Energy trends : March 2009 : URN 09/79a ISSN number: 0308-1222 In the section starting on Page 19 Carbon dioxide emissions and energy consumption in the UK , another document was linked :- http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file50484.xls The last points on the right-hand side of the chart are 34less than the 1990 figure on the left-hand side.	26th June 2009
For the Farm Lobby, Too Much Is Never Enough - Washington Post Washington PostFor the Farm Lobby, Too Much Is Never EnoughWashington Post... hit harder by global warming than agriculture. A report out last week from scientists at 13 government agencies found that climate change is happening ...and more raquo;	26th June 2009
Hot Summers, Calm Seas Are Tipping Point for Tatoosh Island's Red Alga - UBC Faculty of Science Hot Summers, Calm Seas Are Tipping Point for Tatoosh Island's Red AlgaUBC Faculty of Science, Canada"If we take predicted temperature increases related to global warming and apply them to our study system, lethal combinations of environmental conditions which previously occurred only about once per decade will begin to happen once every two to four ...	25th June 2009
Ozone Hole Reduces Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Uptake In Southern Ocean - Science Daily Does ozone have an impact on the ocean s role as a carbon sink ? Yes, according to researchers. Using original simulations, they have demonstrated that the hole in the ozone layer reduces atmospheric carbon uptake in the Southern Ocean and contributes to the increase in ocean acidity. These results should have a considerable impact on future models of the IPCC, which do not currently take ozone ...	25th June 2009
India monsoon rain 'below normal' - BBC Indian officials say that monsoon rains in the country are likely to be "below normal" leading to fears about crop failure and higher food prices.	25th June 2009
Another day, another self-defeating energy bill compromise - Salon.com Stopping climate change won't be easy if everybody who squawks gets a free pass	25th June 2009
Methane controls before risky geoengineering, please - New Scientist Reducing carbon dioxide emissions will be vital in the long run, but we should start by tackling methane, says Kirk Smith	25th June 2009
Offshore wind 'could power 19m homes' - Guardian Offshore wind has the potential to power every home in the UK and provide up to 70,000 jobs, according to the governmentThe UK's seas could provide enough extra wind energy to power the equivalent of 19m homes, according to an assessment by the government.The government's strategic environmental assessment (Sea) confirmed projections that an extra 25GW of electricity generation capacity could be accommodated in UK waters.This would be in addition to the 8GW of wind power already built or planned offshore, bringing the potential total electricity capacity of offshore wind to 33GW enough to power every household in the UK.According to the government, offshore wind has the potential to meet more than a quarter of the UK's electricity needs, provide the UK with up to 70,000 new jobs and generate £8bn a year in revenue.The findings of the Sea mean the crown ...	25th June 2009
Poll: wide support to regulate emissions - UPI WASHINGTON, June 25 (UPI) -- Americans give wide support to regulation of atmospheric release of greenhouse gases from power plants, cars and factories, a poll indicated Thursday.	25th June 2009
Kites flying in high-altitude winds could provide clean electricity - PhysOrg (PhysOrg.com) -- At any moment, the winds in high-altitude jet streams hold roughly 100 times more energy than all the electricity being consumed on Earth, according to a study by Stanford environmental and climate scientists Cristina Archer and Ken Caldeira.	25th June 2009
Company claims 'responsible' destruction of rainforest A British-affiliate company accused of helping fund the imminent destruction of a critical area of Indonesian rainforest says it is acting "responsibly"	25th June 2009
We are what we think: Why the press fails us and how to fix it Why has climate change not galvanized us? Why are there pro and con positions on insuring a livable planet? The press must accept some of the blame.	25th June 2009
Arizona Looks to Outlaw Global Warming Legislation - AnandTech One state looks to ensure its citizens do not have to pay for climate change efforts...	25th June 2009
Todd Stern rejects calls for 40% cut in US emissions - Guardian President Barack Obama's climate envoy has rejected calls for the US and other rich nations to make radical greenhouse gas cuts over the next decade.Speaking at the end of a ministerial level meeting of the world's most polluting countries in Mexico yesterday, Todd Stern dismissed the idea that the US might comply with calls for industrialised nations to cut carbon emissions by 40% below 1990 levels by 2020."In our judgment [this kind of cut is] not necessary and not feasible given where we are starting from," he said.	24th June 2009
China arable land fears end reforestation drive - Reuters BEIJING (Reuters) - China has halted a program of letting marginal farmland return to woodland, because of fears the country's arable land area could fall below a "red line" needed to feed its people, a vice minister said on Tuesday.	24th June 2009
Stop Building Tanks Let s divert the money spent on arms to addressing the real strategic threat.	24th June 2009
The Uprising In The Amazon Is More Urgent Than Iran's - It Will Determine The Future Of The Planet In the depths of the Amazon rainforest, the poorest people in the world have taken on the richest people in the world	24th June 2009
Fatboy Slim And Others Fight Climate Change Until They're Blue In the Face - Ecorazzi Fatboy Slim And Others Fight Climate Change Until They're Blue In ...Ecorazzi, NY... Oxfam is launching Blue in the Face a brand new celebrity summer climate change campaign. The goal is to encourage world leaders at the climate summit in Copenhagen this December to get their asses in gear with this global warming stuff! ...	24th June 2009
Himalayan glaciers feared to be swelling dangerously due to global warming - Smash Hits Himalayan glaciers feared to be swelling dangerously due to global ...Smash Hits, IndiaLondon, June 24 (ANI): Scientists in Nepal have embarked on the first field studies of Himalayan glacial lakes, some of which are feared to be swelling dangerously due to global warming. In May, they completed the field visit to the first location, ...	24th June 2009
Amazon battle Key ruling on land ownership keenly awaited	24th June 2009
Hansen and Hannah arrested in West Virginia mining protest - Guardian Protesters arrested for blocking a road near Massey Energy coal processing plant in Raleigh County, southern West VirginiaActor Daryl Hannah and Nasa climate scientist James Hansen were among 31 people arrested yesterday as they protested against mountaintop removal mining in southern West Virginia.State police sergeant Michael Baylous said all were released after being cited for impeding traffic and obstructing an officer after they blocked a road near a Massey Energy subsidiary's coal processing plant.Another woman, who was among a crowd of mining industry supporters, was charged with misdemeanour battery, Baylous said.The arrests followed a rally involving several hundred protesters outside an elementary school about 90m away from the plant's coal storage silo.	24th June 2009
Climate refugees will not flood rich nations: study LONDON (Reuters) - Migrants uprooted by climate change in the poorest parts of the world are likely to only move locally, contrary to predictions that hundreds of millions will descend on rich countries, a study said on Wednesday.	24th June 2009
MSPs poised to pass climate laws - BBC News Landmark legislation to help Scotland tackle the threat of climate change is expected to be passed at Holyrood.	24th June 2009
Make Poverty Permanent I strongly agree with one central theme from Nicholas Stern s analysis of how to tackle Climate Change. In his book A Blueprint for a Safer Planet , he argues in depth that Climate Change Adaptation strategies for countries in the Global South must be combined with those strategies to beat Poverty and encourage Development. By using the term Global South , I mean mostly undeveloped countries, which just happen to be South of the Earth s Equator. They also happen to be countries where international trade has a heavy drain on their domestic resources and commodities. One could question whether it is right to continue to draw them into the global economy if Sustainable Development cannot be achieved by their integration.	24th June 2009
Coral face 'a stormy future' As global warming whips up more powerful and frequent hurricanes and storms, the world's coral reefs face increased disruption to their ability to breed and recover from damage.	24th June 2009
Peterson gets his way with climate and energy bill Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) on Tuesday surrendered to agriculture interests on a key provision in the massive climate and energy bill he introduced with Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.).	24th June 2009
A Diaspora From African Drylands - New York Times A Diaspora From African DrylandsNew York Times, United StatesThe piece is a close-up view of the global issue of migration driven by climate change. He focuses on Nandom, a town in the poorest part of northern Ghana that has lost half its population.	24th June 2009
Renewable energy: Sunny days ahead - Financial Times It was like the dotcom boom all over again. Everybody wanted to be in on the action. Everyone you met was doing something. It was all people talked about. This is how one energy executive describes the dash to register solar photovoltaic (PV) energy projects in Spain last year, as high incentives triggered a flood of licence applications. The clamour led to a speculative bubble in which investors presented schemes with a total capacity of 1,300 MW – against a government target of 375 MW – in a year in which more than half the new solar PV capacity in the world was installed in Spain. As the surge of applications – many of them containing errors or lacking adequate financial backing – swelled to a torrent, the government was forced to intervene, setting a deadline for registering projects and fixing new ceilings for total capacity.	23rd June 2009
Hot tub technology - Guardian Unlimited A tank with an immersion heater may be just an oversized kettle, but there are thought to be around 19m in Britain's homes, which collectively have the ­capacity to store huge amounts of energy as hot water. And this could be key to achieving an almost wholly renewable electricity supply. Dr Barrett says the heaters could be switched on and off rapidly to compensate for the erratic output of wind turbines and solar panels, each heater controlled by a gadget that responds to signals sent through the electricity grid – a system used since the second world war. "Everybody is always looking for a shiny new silver-bullet solution" says Dr Barrett, "but this idea is cheap, safe, and based on technology that's been around for decades".	23rd June 2009
Supermarket suppliers 'helping destroy Amazon rainforest' - Guardian Meat companies sued over Amazon deforestation Accused firms supplying Tesco, Asda and MSBrazilian authorities investigating illegal deforestation have accused the suppliers of several UK supermarkets of selling meat linked to massive destruction of the Amazon rainforest. Brazilian firms that supply Tesco, Asda and Marks Spencer are among dozens of companies named by prosecutors, who are seeking hundreds of millions of pounds in compensation.The move follows a three-year investigation by Greenpeace into the trade in cattle products such as meat and leather traced to illegal farms across the Amazon region. The Greenpeace report, revealed in the Guardian earlier this month, showed that a handful of major Brazilian processors exported products linked to Amazon destruction to dozens of blue-chip companies across the world.	23rd June 2009
Refrigerants set to spur climate change: study - Reuters OSLO (Reuters) - Greenhouse gases from chemicals used in refrigerants and air conditioning are set to be a bigger than expected spur of climate change by 2050, scientists said.	23rd June 2009
Swiss glaciers melting faster than ever before: study - Reuters ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland's glaciers shrank by 12 percent over the past decade, melting at their fastest rate due to rising temperatures and lighter snowfalls, a study by the Swiss university ETH showed Monday.	23rd June 2009
Is eating soya causing damage to the planet? - Guardian Growing soybeans has serious eco consequences - but they're not what you may think. Time to spill the beans, says Lucy SiegleA number of upset vegetarians and vegans have been in touch to say they've been accused by acquaintances of causing planetary damage through their tofu and soya-milk consumption, given that soya production has become synonymous with deforestation. The first thing I should do is to explain that although Europe imports 39m tonnes of soya a year (imagine it contained in 15 miles' worth of lorries bumper to bumper), 90% is destined for animal feed. It's beef rather than veggie burgers that ate all the soybean.	23rd June 2009
Earth's coastlines after sea-level rise, 4000 AD - New Scientist Even if we could freeze-frame the atmosphere as it is today, sea levels would still rise by 25 metres, says the latest study into the effects of climate change on melting ice sheets	23rd June 2009
A Sea Change in China's Attitude Toward Carbon Capture - New York Times When European and Chinese scientists first agreed to collaborate on capturing carbon dioxide from power plants and storing it underground, China's entire carbon capture and sequestration "team" was composed of two Tsinghua University graduate students. Less than five years later, the landscape is markedly different. China's first near-zero-emissions coal plant won state approval this month -- an apparent formality, since construction already is far under way. Two other pilots are in the works, including one in inner Mongolia that could be the largest sequestration project in the world. Conferences on carbon capture in China now routinely feature high-level government and industry leaders. See also: US draws line with China on climate technology - SpaceDaily	23rd June 2009
American shoppers 'misled by greenwash' - Guardian 98% of supposedly environmentally friendly products in US supermarkets make false or confusing claims, campaigners sayMore than 98% of supposedly natural and environmentally friendly products on US supermarket shelves are making potentially false or misleading claims, Congress has been told. And 22% of products making green claims bear an environmental badge that has no inherent meaning, said Scot Case, of the environmental consulting firm TerraChoice.The study of nearly 4,000 consumer products found "greenwashing" in nearly every product category from a lack of verifiable information to outright lies.Even the experts are confused. Case, whose firm runs its own Ecologo certification programme, admitted he had bought a refrigerator only to find it failed to meet its claims of energy efficiency."My refrigerator used twice as much energy as advertised," he told members of the House of Representatives committee on commerce, trade and consumer protection.	23rd June 2009
Obama's climate change silence The new report on the effects of global warming makes it clear we need to act. But a bill won't pass without a push from ObamaThe top scientific advisers in the Obama administration on Tuesday unveiled a startling new report on what the latest climate science tells us is both already happening and likely to happen in the near future if planet-warming emissions continue unhindered. The report is astounding in the foreseeable future, the United States could witness the submersion of the Florida Keys, up to 100 days of more-than-100-degree heat in places like Texas and the end of a domestic maple syrup industry.For those who were paying attention, these were shocking findings.	23rd June 2009
Australian Senate poised to defeat carbon laws - AlertNet CANBERRA: The Australian parliament's upper-house Senate began debating plans for the government's carbon trading scheme on Monday with little sign the package of 11 bills will pass. The emissions trading system (ETS) is a key element of the government's plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions, blamed for global warming, and was a major promise in the election that swept Labor Prime Minister Kevin Rudd into office in late 2007.	23rd June 2009
Pressing the Case for Geoengineering - New York Times Mr. Victor, the director of Stanford University’s Energy and Sustainable Development Program, is a leading voice in the effort to get governments and policymakers to start thinking seriously about the possibility of technological tinkering with the atmosphere, as a weapon of last resort in the battle against global warming. Geoengineering, he said, needs to be brought in from the mad-scientist fringe. Governments, he said, should finance research, weigh policy options and discuss geoengineering in international climate-change organizations. “It may be we never use this option, but is needs to be ready,” he said. For his part, Mr. Victor declared himself optimistic that technologies to curb emissions — from alternative fuels to carbon capture — will be the long-term answer. But he worries about making it to the long term without environmental disaster, especially during transition years, he said, from 2050 to 2070 or so. “So I think we’ll need to have the geoengineering option,” he said.	23rd June 2009
What will the U.S. and other major economies commit to? - Grist I am outside of Mexico City with delegates from the world s 17 biggest economies who are meeting this week ahead of the next G8 meeting to further negotiate international climate agreements. Issues on the table include funding for forest protection, mid-term and long-term emission reduction targets, and financing for adaption and mitigation. The outcomes from these talks remain in doubt and other questions fester, like to what will the U.S. commit to?	23rd June 2009

A warning from Copenhagen - RealClimate In March the biggest climate conference of the year took place in Copenhagen: 2500 participants from 80 countries, 1400 scientific presentations. Last week, the Synthesis Report of the Copenhagen Congress was handed over to the Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen in Brussels. Denmark will host the decisive round of negotiations on the new climate protection agreement this coming December. The climate congress was organised by a "star alliance" of research universities: Copenhagen, Yale, Berkeley, Oxford, Cambridge, Tokyo, Beijing - to name a few. The Synthesis Report is the most important update of climate science since the 2007 IPCC report. So what does it say?	20th June 2009
Video shows protesters bundled to ground by police Two female protesters who challenged police officers for not displaying their badge numbers were bundled to the ground, arrested and held in prison for four days, according to an official complaint lodged today. The incident was caught on camera, and footage shows officers standing on the women's feet and applying pressure to their necks immediately after the women attempted to photograph a fellow officer who had refused to give his badge number. The images are likely to fuel concern over the policing of protests, which is already subject to a review by the national police inspectorate and two parliamentary inquiries after the G20 demonstrations and the death of Ian Tomlinson. Val Swain, 43, and Emily Apple, 33, both mothers with young children, believe they were deliberately targeted for arrest at last year's climate camp demonstration in Kent because they campaign for Fit Watch, a protest group that opposes police surveillance at demonstrations.	20th June 2009
Floods, heatwaves and withering vines: how scientists see the US in 75 years - Guardian Unlimited Hard-hitting report describes how America will be affected region by region if no action is taken on climate change. See also: Explore how climate change might affect the US	20th June 2009
Warming could cut rice production by 75 percent - The Manila Times RICE production will decline by as much as 75 percent in the Philippines if it is not quick enough to adapt to and put in place safeguards against climate change.The decline starts in 2020, according to a study made by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and released this week during a high level regional meeting on the impact of climate change in Asia and the Pacific.	20th June 2009
Driest spring in 50 years sparks wheat fears in Prairies - National Post The worst drought in 50 years for Western Canada s grain-growing region means farmers will likely reap smaller crops than the Canadian Wheat Board estimated a week ago, the Wheat Board said on Friday.	20th June 2009
Tibet drought worst in 30 years: Chinese state media A drought in Tibet has intensified into the region's worst in three decades, leaving thousands of hectares parched and killing more than 13,000 head of cattle, China's state media said Saturday.	20th June 2009
Our climate hots up but the debate is divided and small-minded - Sydney Morning Herald THE next 30 years will be spent fighting increasingly severe bushfires, even if a new global warming protocol is brokered in Copenhagen later this year, climate change expert Tim Flannery says.	20th June 2009
Vermont farmers cut cows' carbon emissions - CNews Vermont dairy farmers Tim Maikshilo and Kristen Dellert, mindful of shrinking their carbon footprint, have changed their cows' diet to reduce the amount of gas the animals burp - dairy cows' contribution to global warming.	20th June 2009
U.S. Northeast CO2 Permits Fall to Record on Auction - Bloomberg June 19 (Bloomberg) -- Contracts for carbon dioxide permits in the U.S. Northeast s cap-and-trade program fell to a record low today after prices declined in the latest auction of new allowances.	20th June 2009
Uganda forests rapidly disappearing: study Uganda has lost nearly a third of its forest cover since 1990 due to expanding farmlands, a rapidly growing human population and increased urbanisation, a government report said on Friday.	20th June 2009
For more news, click here >> News from previous days is below
Michael mccarthy: What's so depressing is the inevitability of all this - Independent Michael mccarthy: You might think you've heard it all before, and in a sense you have. There are not huge disparities between the core predictions of how climate change will affect the UK, released by the Government yesterday, and the earlier set of forecasts produced seven years ago. The central estimates of temperature rise by the 2080s, for example, are in the same ballpark. But there are three important differences. Firstly, the new figures make a much stronger attempt at qualifying one of the key aspects of any predictions, which is uncertainty. For all the forecasts, there are now not only central figures, representing the best guess at what will actually happen, but also upper and lower estimates, which represent extremes with a 10 per cent chance of occurring. This enables risk to be mathematically quantified and is an essential component of future planning to cope with what global warming may bring. Secondly, for the first time there are regional predictions in quite enormous detail, which will now enable the councillors and officials of Loamshire County Council, and even of Loamchester City Council, to get a feel for exactly what is coming their way in terms of hot, wet and dry – in other words, heatwaves, flooding, water shortages and all the other impacts which climate change is going to bring, and which they have to take into account. But perhaps the most striking (not to say depressing) aspect of these figures is their new emphasis on inevitability. The temperature rises which are forecast for the 2080s might be avoided if the world makes a titanic effort at cutting carbon emissions, beginning in Copenhagen in December, but, even if we do, the Government now admits that by the 2040s a rise of more than two degrees in average summer temperatures is going to happen anyway. For years the whole of British and European Union climate policy has been based on halting any temperature rise at the two degrees line. Does this not mean that the official objective is now unattainable? Asked about this yesterday the Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn, said: "Let's be frank. It's going to be tough." Well, what else can he say? See also:The outlook for the rest of the century: 40C summer days	19th June 2009
The cultural problem that stops us from reaching 'the most ambitious agreement ever negotiated' in Copenhagen? It is not a lack of climate science that holds back action. It is how we respond to the challenge that the science poses, and that is deeply cultural. It is the values that we bring to bear, what we think is good for us, our religious underpinnings, our view of power and opportunity, of what is possible in the world and Australia's place in it. (Speech to National Press Club)	19th June 2009
Rising ocean temperatures near worst-case predictions - The Age The ocean is warming about 50 per cent faster than reported two years ago, according to an update of the latest climate science. A report compiling research presented at a science congress in Copenhagen in March says recent observations are near the worst-case predictions of the 2007 report by the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In the case of sea-level rise, it is happening at an even greater rate than projected - largely due to rising ocean temperatures causing thermal expansion of seawater.	19th June 2009
2.1 Million-Year High Measured for Carbon Dioxide in Atmosphere - Bloomberg June 18 (Bloomberg) -- Carbon dioxide in the earth s atmosphere has risen to its highest level in at least 2.1 million years, according to a new investigation of the greenhouse gas s role in ice ages over the millennia.	19th June 2009
Alaska polar bear numbers declining: U.S. agency - Reuters ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Polar bear populations in and around Alaska are declining due to continued melting of sea ice and Russian poaching, according to reports released Thursday by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.	19th June 2009
Obama to urge direct climate action - Guardian Unlimited Climate impacts report warns of flooding, heat waves, drought and loss of wildlife that will occur if Americans fail to act on global warming	19th June 2009
Is Steven Chu too much of a techno-geek? - Salon.com Rolling Stone accuses the Energy Secretary of having "excessive faith" in technology. But why not?	19th June 2009
Sudden Collapse in Ancient Biodiversity: Was Global Warming the Culprit? Scientists have unearthed striking evidence for a sudden ancient collapse in plant biodiversity. A trove of 200 million-year-old fossil leaves collected in East Greenland tells the story, carrying its message across time to us today.	19th June 2009
China Attacks Kyoto Carbon Trading With Greenpeace Approval - Bloomberg June 19 (Bloomberg) -- The market for trading rights to spew carbon dioxide, created by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to reduce global warming, is under attack by developing countries and environmentalists as negotiators hammer out a sequel treaty. Investors who trade pollution permits are fighting proposals to limit or kill a United Nations program that lets European companies offset requirements to cut emissions by bankrolling low-carbon projects in emerging economies. The process creates credits that the World Bank says accounted for 26 percent of the $126 billion of allowances that traded in the carbon market in 2008. China and Mexico want wealthier governments to subsidize clean-up projects directly, with the Chinese saying investments from Western companies should “not be used to offset” their own cuts. Greenpeace International says the UN system delays rich nations’ response to greenhouse gasses.	19th June 2009
Republicans Cribbing from Big Coal? peabodyenergy.jpg It s a small world after all. Turns out that a PowerPoint being trotted out by House Republicans to undermine the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill was apparently created by none other than dirty fuel giant Peabody Energy. Grist broke this hilarious story by burrowing into the PowerPoint file properties, revealing the author was Peabody CEO Greg Boyce and their communications services manager Chris Taylor was listed as the file manager. Oops. As if Republican clean energy opponents needed another hit to their already battered credibility, it seems the fossil fuel industry is now even writing their talking points for them.	19th June 2009
Europe to offer China help in burying CO2 emissions - Reuters BRUSSELS, June 19 (Reuters) - Europe will next week start moves to help China and India develop technology to trap and bury carbon dioxide underground in the fight against global warming, according to a draft European Commission document. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), a process of burying harmful gases, is seen by some as a potential silver bullet to curb emissions from coal-fired power plants, which are multiplying rapidly worldwide and threaten to heat the atmosphere to dangerous levels.	19th June 2009
How aerosols mask climate change - BBC Uncertainty over exactly how much aerosols impact on the climate has finally been settled, scientists say.	19th June 2009
Waxman-Markey is not nearly good enough China and the developing world are watching the US to see if it is serious about combating climate change. Waxman-Markey, the bill and the legislative process, sends a clear signal: not very. read more	19th June 2009
Banking on China The Circle Line can get a bit stifling in the evening. Not as much as the Central Line, which is often only a few tiers from the fires of Hell itself, but the Circle Line is often clammy in Summer, long after the Rush Hour home. Global Warming ? Global Steamy Clammy Heat ! So, I m trying to maintain my personal cool and composure on the London Underground by not moving very much and reading a self-styled pamphlet I acquired at the 5th June 2009 conference The politics of climate change : from economic crisis to business revolution .	19th June 2009
UK 'must plan' for warmer future - BBC News A hotter, drier south-east and a wetter north-west are among climate changes the UK must prepare for, government says. See also: UK maps climate impacts in detail Why the Mediterranean climate message is all wrong	18th June 2009
Obama targets US public with call for climate action - Guardian Climate impacts report warns of flooding, heat waves, drought and loss of wildlife that will occur if Americans fail to act on global warming. The Obama administration unveiled the most authoritative report to date on the effects of global warming in America today in an effort to persuade the public of the need to act now to prevent the sweeping and life-altering consequences of global warming.Americans have been living with the heavy downpours, rising sea levels, and blistering summer heat waves produced by man-made climate change for 30 years said the report, which was produced by more than 30 scientists working across 13 government agencies.	18th June 2009
Holes seen in U.S. climate bill's consumer shields - Reuters NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. climate bill would not do enough to protect consumers from future energy costs and gives away too many permits to power and natural gas distribution companies to pollute with carbon dioxide, environmental groups said. See also: The Waxman-Markey Bill: A Good Start Or A Non-Starter? Climate Bill That Isn't Perfect Is Worth Passing, Chu Says - Bloomberg Big Coal Using Climate Change Bill To Roll Back Clean Air Act - Huffington Post	18th June 2009
Multinationals eye up lithium reserves beneath Bolivia's salt flats - Guardian Metal deposits may be key to green car revolution but government in La Paz yet to agree deal. Stand in the middle of Salar de Uyuni, the world's greatest salt desert, and the first word that springs to mind is nothing. As far as the eye can see, nothing. Not a shrub or tree, not a hill or valley, just an endless expanse of white. This salt flat in Bolivia, the landlocked heart of South America, is a harsh and eerie landscape, perhaps the closest thing nature has to a void. From the Incas to the present day, humanity has made little impression here. But that may be about to change.	18th June 2009
Climate catastrophe getting closer, warn scientists - SpaceDaily PARIS, June 18 (AFP) Jun 18, 2009 The world faces a growing risk of "abrupt and irreversible climatic shifts" as fallout from global warming hits faster than expected, according to research by international scientists released Thursday.	18th June 2009
African farms becoming too hot to handle - New Scientist Climate change means farmers will soon face growing seasons hotter than any in their experience and must urgently seek viable alternative crops for the future See also: African food security threatened - The Times AFRICA: What will we eat in the future? - Reuters AlertNet	18th June 2009
The Food Crisis And The Global Scramble For Farmlands - CounterCurrents By Sam Urquhart Governments - concerned about future food security - have been furiously signing deals with other governments across the world. Saudi Arabia has tied up 25,000 ha in Sudan to grow corn, soy and wheat, with Jordan and Syria inking similar deals. China has reportedly signed numerous deals, as in Laos , where a state rubber company has acquired 160,000 ha, and Mozambique , where 10,000 settlers are reportedly set to assist in the conversion of thousands of hectares to export crop production. Even tiny Mauritius has agreed a deal with Mozambique to farm 5,000 ha of land in a country where over 50 percent of the people live on less than a dollar a day	18th June 2009
Drought fears on the Prairies prompt call for disaster plan - CBC.ca Canada:  Pressure is mounting on the federal government to come up with some kind of disaster plan in preparation for what some are warning could be a devastating drought in Western Canada. See also: Alberta county declares 'state of agricultural disaster' over drought - CBC.ca	18th June 2009
Rising acidity levels could trigger shellfish revenue declines, job losses - PhysOrg hanges in ocean chemistry -- a consequence of increased carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from human industrial activity - could cause U.S. shellfish revenues to drop significantly in the next 50 years, according to a new study by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.	18th June 2009
Thirsty crops - BBC How will drier summers affect UK farms?	18th June 2009
Food & agriculture - Energy Bulletin Advanced Worm Composting Agriculture Offsets -- a Savior or a Boondoggle? Reality Report: Michael Bomford Interview: Do We Need Fossil Fuels to Feed Ourselves? Crop to Cuisine: Food & Wine Magazine Celebrates Sustainable Food in Aspen	18th June 2009
India Tea Output to Drop on Drought-Like Weather, Board Says - Bloomberg June 18 (Bloomberg) -- Tea production in India, the world s largest grower, may decline at least 5 percent this year after dry weather damaged crops in the nation s main growing region, likely boosting global prices.	18th June 2009
Plan to turn Africa's sunshine into Europe's energy - Guardian Twenty blue chip German companies are pooling their resources with the aim of harnessing solar power in the deserts of north Africa and transporting the clean electricity to Europe. The businesses, which include some of the biggest names in European energy, finance and manufacturing, will form a consortium next month. If successful, the highly ambitious plan could see Europe fuelled by solar energy within a decade. The consortium behind what would be the biggest ever solar energy initiative will first raise awareness and interest among other investors for the project, known as Desertec, which is estimated to cost around €400bn (£338bn).	18th June 2009
Bjørn Lomborg Concedes Defeat - Mongabay Lomborg, a Danish business school professor and author who has riled environmentalists by arguing that addressing climate change should be a lesser priority than global health and nutrition initiatives, is calling for a $7 per ton tax on carbon dioxide emissions, reports the Wall Street Journal. According to the paper, Lomborg says a carbon tax "could address what he calls a 'market failure' in the development of solar-power systems and wind turbines effective enough and cheap enough to compete with fossil fuels." Supporters of a carbon tax say it is a more efficient approach to regulating CO2 emissions than a cap-and-trade system, which they say will be complex and full of loopholes.	18th June 2009
EU eyes more road tolls to curb transport emissions - Reuters BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Road charging should play a bigger role in managing Europe's booming transport industry, European Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani said on Wednesday as he outlined EU transport priorities for the next decade.	18th June 2009
Streetcar launches UK's first plug-in Prius hire scheme - Guardian Car club firm Streetcar has this week launched the UK's first electric car hire scheme, offering Londoners the chance to hire a plug-in hybrid version of Toyota's popular Prius. The modified version of the hybrid car is provided by UK firm Amberjac Projects and features a new lithium ion phosphate battery that can be charged from the mains, allowing the car to travel up to 30 miles without using the conventional engine. According to reports from the Evening Standard, the Amberjac Prius will be available for Streetcar members to hire from £5.95 an hour.	18th June 2009
Pine Beetle Infestation Threatens Water Source for U.S. Southwest - Yale e360 The destruction of 2.5 million acres of Rocky Mountain forest because of a pine beetle infestation could threaten the water supplies of 33 million people, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Rick Cables, chief forester for the Rocky Mountain region, told a congressional committee that the dead and dying forest at the headwaters of the Colorado River could burn extensively and reduce water supplies to residents in Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, and Tucson, Ariz. Roughly 25 percent of the water piped to these cities originates in national forests in the Rockies that have suffered extensive damage from infestations of pine bark beetles, Cables said.	18th June 2009
Australia Senate delays renewable energy laws - Reuters CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australian parliament's upper house Senate on Thursday postponed debate on the government's renewable energy laws until at least August, dashing government hopes of passing the laws by the end of June.	18th June 2009
Anti coal-fired power demo held - BBC News Campaigners opposed to plans to build a coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent stage a demonstration in Chatham.	18th June 2009
Historic climate deal in Copenhagen: dream or reality? French President Nicolas Sarkozy declares nuclear is dead ; Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is taken to hospital suffering from confetti inhalation and hug-related injuries after they agree to a historic U.N. deal to curb greenhouse gases in Copenhagen. At least that s part of the wishful thinking behind a spoof December 19, 2009 edition of the International Herald Tribune (left) showing a beaming German Chancellor Angela Merkel flanked by Sarkozy (left) and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso under the headline heads of state agree historic climate-saving deal . Among other headlines in the 8-page edition sponsored by environmental group Greenpeace.	18th June 2009
Carbon capture plans threaten shutdown of all UK coal-fired power stations - Guardian Radical proposals to require existing plants, including Drax, to fit the technology would force their closure, government admits. All of Britain's coal-fired power stations, including Drax, the country's largest emitter of carbon, could be forced to close down under radical plans unveiled by government today.Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, is proposing to extend his plans to force companies to fit carbon capture and storage technology (CCS) onto new coal plants as revealed by the Guardian to cover a dozen existing coal plants.The consultation published by his Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) conceded that if this happened "we could expect them to close". A spokeswoman said that no decision had yet been made. See also: Clean Coal Capture Economics - Telegraph	18th June 2009
New Carbon Counter in NYC Tracks Greenhouse Gas Emissions - Fox News A new carbon counter in NYC will track greenhouse gas emissions.	18th June 2009
Pinpointing Drought Coast to Coast - USGS Take vast quantities of satellite remote sensing data. Season with time. Mix generously with information about climate, soils, and recent rainfall. These are the ingredients for the Vegetation Drought Response Index. Known to specialists as VegDRI, this computer modeling and monitoring method provides continuous drought information over large regions and supplies finer spatial detail than other commonly used drought indicators. The index is now available at two-week intervals across the conterminous 48 States. See also: the USGS Drought Monitoring viewer and the NDMC VegDRI Web site.	18th June 2009
CO2 higher today than last 2.1 million years Researchers have reconstructed atmospheric carbon dioxide levels over the past 2.1 million years in the sharpest detail yet, shedding new light on its role in the earth's cycles of cooling and warming.	18th June 2009
Sustainable Energy - without the hot air "For anyone with influence on energy policy, whether in government, business or a campaign group, this book should be compulsory reading." See also: Talk of 'kinetic energy plates' is a total waste of energy Switch to renewable energy? If only it were that simple - Financial Times	17th June 2009
U.S. climate report details energy, agriculture harm - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Climate change has already caused "visible impacts" in the United States and poses particular risks to the U.S. agriculture and energy industries, a new government report said on Tuesday. See also: Statement from The Nature Conservancy on the Obama Administration's Climate Study Obama’s voice absent from release of big climate report - Grist	17th June 2009
Climate change will have "severe" impact on Asia: U.N. - Reuters MANILA (Reuters) - Climate change impacts such as lower crop production will have severe effects on Asia and a broader climate pact being negotiated this year is crucial to minimizing the effects, a U.N. official said on Wednesday.	17th June 2009
Oyster Die-Off in Pacific May Be Linked to Ocean Acidification - Yale e360 The oyster industry in parts of Washington state in the Pacific Northwest is experiencing its fifth year of a massive die-off of oyster larvae, a condition that may be linked to increasing acidification of ocean waters from high levels of CO2 in the atmosphere. The Seattle Times reports that the larvae have been dying before they have a chance to attach to hard surfaces, such as rocks or other oyster shells, and grow their own shells made from calcium carbonate. Researchers have noticed periodic drops in the pH of the surrounding ocean waters, apparently linked to upwellings of deep, more acidified water.	17th June 2009
7 American Species Threatened By Global Warming - SLIDESHOW - The Huffington Post Global warming is already starting to have a severe effect on our environment. The Environment Defense Fund has picked seven "ambassador species" -- living plants and animals - who are already struggling to survive.	17th June 2009
Is there hope? - San Francisco Bay Guardian At a press conference after the forum, I asked the two men about the implications of only reducing our fossil fuel consumption by 20 percent. Pope cited impacts ranging from "Florida will be a lot smaller" to severe water rationing in San Francisco. "It's not an acceptable risk to take," he said. O'Reilly didn't disagree, but he avoided specifics, saying, "I do fear that we have to plan for some adaptations." It was a remarkable admission, one that most media coverage buried far beneath angles focusing on the common ground they found. But if the oil industry isn't willing to diligently address the crisis — or worse, if it hinders political efforts to do so, as it has done for decades — does it really matter that it acknowledge the problem? That core conflict created the sharpest exchange of the forum. "This is the 21st century. We can move much faster than we ever have before," Pope said. "Well, if you can get the government to move faster, good luck," O'Reilly replied. "It would help if you would get out of the way," Pope retorted.	17th June 2009
Global sunscreen won't save corals - PhysOrg Emergency plans to counteract global warming by artificially shading the Earth from incoming sunlight might lower the planet's temperature a few degrees, but such "geoengineering" solutions would do little to stop the acidification of the world oceans that threatens coral reefs and other marine life, report the authors of a new study in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The culprit is atmospheric carbon dioxide, which even in a cooler globe will continue to be absorbed by seawater, creating acidic conditions.	17th June 2009
Toronto developers see red over "green" roof law - Reuters VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Toronto's real estate developers are unhappy about a new law mandating "green" rooftops, arguing the city should have instead offered incentives to encourage the planting of grass and shrubs atop large new buildings.	17th June 2009
Three Full-Page Whoppers from the Heartland Institute - DeSmogBlog You can often judge progress by the reaction of those opposed to it. If that's true, we may finally be getting somewhere. The notoriously unethical Heartland Institute is pulling out all the stops and blowing a bundle of cash in an all-out effort to derail climate change legislation moving through Congress. The Heartland folks have never been overly encumbered by either ethics or accuracy and their latest efforts are no exception. Heartland is fronting three full-page ads in the Washington Post, transparently targeted at lawmakers now horse-trading over the draft American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES). See also:Three Full-Page Whoppers from the Heartland Institute - Part Two	17th June 2009
Act Now on Global Warming--Energy after the Kyoto Protocol Expires - Scientific American Global warming is a reality, not an opinion. The U.S. must put the brakes on hard if humanity is to accept the need to slow the emissions of CO2. We urge Congress to set a cap on fossil-fuel production before Copenhagen, phase in a price on carbon at its source and send the proceeds back to the taxpayer. No measure will be perfect, but if we act today, we buy time to tweak the system tomorrow. Let’s not let the best be the enemy of the good.	17th June 2009
World "sleepwalking" into disasters: U.N. aid chief - Reuters GENEVA (Reuters) - The world is 'sleepwalking' toward preventable natural disasters whose effects could be cut significantly with a modest increase in spending on risk reduction, the United Nations aid chief said on Tuesday.	16th June 2009
Slamming the Climate Skeptic Scam - DeSmogBlog ClimateCoverUp.jpg Updated: June 15, 2009 There is a line between public relations and propaganda - or there should be. And there is a difference between using your skills, in good faith, to help rescue a battered reputation and using them to twist the truth - to sow confusion and doubt on an issue that is critical to human survival. And it is infuriating - as a public relations professional - to watch my colleagues use their skills, their training and their considerable intellect to poison the international debate on climate change. That's what is happening today, and I think it's a disgrace.	16th June 2009
World Bank Drops Loan to Brazilian Cattle Giant - Upside Down World Last week the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private lending arm of the World Bank, withdrew the $90 million dollar loan to Brazil’s cattle giant Bertin. The loan was used for the company to further expand into the Amazon region, which was causing destruction of the rainforest and fuelling global climate change. While on one hand Lula’s government was making commitments to reduce deforestation rates in the Amazon, on the other hand the IFC was helping to expand the Brazilian cattle sector which is now the largest single source of deforestation in the world.	16th June 2009
Nine out of ten 'worried' about climate change - The Copenhagen Post Denmark: Nine out of ten people say they are worried to some degree about climate change, according to a new Capacent / DR poll.	16th June 2009
Sunnier times ahead for solar energy as MPs back tariff for photovoltaic power - Guardian Unlimited UK: Last week 240 MPs signed a parliamentary motion supporting the mass rollout of solar photovoltaic (PV) power. The support was the biggest of any such motion introduced in this parliament. Colin Challen MP, who tabled the motion, said: "There is an enormous opportunity to drive forward this technology through the forthcoming feed-in tariffs." Feed-in tariffs (FITs) work by paying a guaranteed, above-market price for any electricity fed into the grid for a period of 20-25 years. They have been designed to offer returns close to 10%, thereby reducing payback times for any household investing in a PV system to 10 years or less.	16th June 2009
World disaster toll faces new threat from global warning: Red Cross - Space Daily Natural and man-made disasters killed nearly a quarter of a million people in 2008 and warnings about looming disasters, particularly climate change, are not being heeded, the Red Cross said Tuesday.	16th June 2009
U.S. faces security threat from climate change: Kerry - Reuters NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global warming threatens U.S. security by leaving important military hubs vulnerable to rising seas and possibly fomenting anti-American sentiment, U.S. Sen. John Kerry said on Monday.	16th June 2009
Climate change divides the Alps down the middle - Independent The dramatic effect of climate change on the Alps comes into focus as never before this week with the publication of a major report which reveals that the mountain range is rapidly dividing into two contrasting climatic zones, each posing new problems.	16th June 2009
Water supply shifts as global climate changes - PhysOrg Many of the world's great rivers are becoming less so. Yet in the Midwest, the wet is getting wetter. So says a study that finds global climate change shifting weather and water patterns around the planet.	16th June 2009
Australia's forests key to fighting global warming CANBERRA (Reuters) - Ancient Australian forests are key to fighting climate change and contain the world's most dense carbon store, eclipsing tropical rainforests as efficient greenhouse gas absorbers, scientists said on Tuesday.	16th June 2009
Asia set to become biggest climate change driver - COP15 Copenhagen Asia's share of global greenhouse gas emissions could rise to more than 40 percent by 2030, making it the world's main driver of climate change. See also: China 'unfairly seen as eco-villain' - BBC News	16th June 2009
Taxpayers 'could pay' for runway - BBC News Taxpayers may end up subsidising the £9bn third runway at Heathrow because of "precarious" finances at BAA, an MP says.	16th June 2009
University of Leicester geologists demonstrate extent of ancient ice age - EurekAlert! Geologists at the University of Leicester have shown that an ancient ice age, once regarded as a brief "blip," in fact lasted for 30 million years.	16th June 2009
New hydrogen car approach debuts A new hydrogen car has been unveiled in London, as well as an unusual business model to bring the car into widespread use.	16th June 2009
What if the techno-optimists and cornucopians are half right? Some days I wake up and wish for the world's techno-optimists and cornucopians (TOCs) to be right. The future would be so much easier for all of us. But perhaps more immediately, the present would become a less worrisome time zone. Those who anguish about peak oil, climate change, water depletion, and the panoply of resource and ecosystem disasters that are already arriving or are in the making would get a pleasant reprieve. And, the vast majority of citizens on the planet who almost never give such things a thought would simply go on as they have been.That this majority should, in my view, give more thought to such matters goes without saying. See also: Stern Remarks #2 : The Unbearable Fragility of Complexity	15th June 2009
Rich countries 'risk wrecking climate deal' - Ekklesia Following the close of the latest UN negotiations in Bonn, Christian Aid has warned that rich countries risk wrecking vitally important international talks on a climate agreement. The aid agency says they have failed to commit to dramatic curbs in their greenhouse emissions or to recgnise the scale of funding poor countries urgently need to cope with the impacts of global warming. There are now just six months to go until the critical UN summit in Copenhagen at which a new climate deal must be agreed to come into force when the first phase of the Kyoto Protocol ends. Christian Aid says it was clear during the Bonn talks that rich countries plan to continue polluting at levels that will make dangerous climate change inevitable. See also: Big Carbon Players Jockey for Advantage - IPS	15th June 2009
Silk Road threatened by melting glaciers - New Scientist Climate change seems to be causing glaciers to retreat in Gansu province, bringing floods now, and if predictions are right chronic water shortages in the future	15th June 2009
Lifestyle melts away with Uganda peak snow cap - PhysOrg In 1906, Mount Speke, one the highest peaks of Uganda's Rwenzori Mountains was covered with 217 hectares (536 acres) of ice, according to the Climate Change Unit at Uganda's ministry of water and environment. In 2006, only 18.5 hectares remained. Uganda's National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) believes that if melting continues at the current rate the ice will be gone by 2023. For the people of Bundibugyo who rely on agriculture to survive, temperature increases have changed their lives dramatically. "I used to be able to plant beans down here at around March," said Nelson Bikalwamuli, 45, referring to his garden at the base of the mountain. "But now it has changed." Beans serve as both a food crop and a crash crop for Bikalwamuli, so he can?t afford to lose them. He?s had to secure a plot of land part way up the mountain, where he says temperatures are still cool enough to yield a descent crop, but the trek up is hard, and competition for space is growing increasingly fierce. "People just keep moving up, up, up," he said. "I fear soon we may be on top of each other."	15th June 2009
McCartney backs 'Meat Free Monday' Former Beatle, Chris Martin and Sheryl Crow launch campaign to reduce meat consumption to tackle climate changeFood blog: Jay Rayner: do high profile food campaigns draw you in or turn you off?Sir Paul McCartney has followed in the footsteps of the world's leading climate scientist and a small Belgian town by calling on people to go meat-free one day a week and cut carbon emissions.Backed by celebrities ranging from Chris Martin to Sheryl Crow, McCartney today launched his Meat Free Monday campaign asking households to cut out meat on Mondays and slow global warming."I think many of us feel helpless in the face of environmental challenges, and it can be hard to know how to sort through the advice about what we can do to make a meaningful contribution to a cleaner, more sustainable, healthier world," said McCartney.	15th June 2009
No surprises in Senate climate reports - Sydney Morning Herald Australia: Two long-awaited Senate committee reports into emissions trading have been handed down - and they contain no surprises. Both sides of politics used the committees to reiterate their own message on climate change and emissions trading. The Government called for its emissions trading scheme to be passed. The Coalition said it should not be passed because it was too rushed and would damage the economy, while the Greens said the scheme was not green enough. The Senate is due to vote on the ETS next week.	15th June 2009
HFCs: Ozone-saving gas targeted for climate effect - Guardian The use of hydrofluorocarbons in cooling systems may save the ozone layer but it will harm the climate. From ClimateChangeCorp, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkThe use of Hydrofluorocarbons in cooling systems may save the ozone layer but it will harm the climateThe Montreal Protocol, set in action in 1987, forced the phase-out of ozone-depleting gases chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and later hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). But the hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) that are replacing them could have an equally negative impact on climate change.HFCs are used as refrigerants and foam-blowing agents and emitted as leakage from air conditioning and refrigeration systems.	15th June 2009
Sainsbury's green power at the checkouts - Guardian Store first in Europe to pioneer green energy system where customers create 30kW an hour by driving over plates in car parkA supermarket chain will open its first "people-powered" store this week using technology that captures energy from vehicles to power its checkouts.In a European first, Sainsbury's will install the invention at its new store in Gloucester, opening this Wednesday.Energy will be captured every time a vehicle drives over "kinetic road plates" in the car park and then channelled back into the store.The kinetic road plates are expected to produce 30 kWh of green energy every hour more than enough energy to power the store's checkouts. See also: Talk of 'kinetic energy plates' is a total waste of energy	15th June 2009

CLIMATE CHANGE: 'We Have Run Out of Time' - IPS CLIMATE CHANGE: 'We Have Run Out of Time'IPS, ItalyScientists agree that the combustion of fossil fuels, which produces high amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, is the main cause of global warming and climate change.	14th June 2009
Home: a film by Yann Arthus-Bertrand - Energy Bulletin Magnificent! From belugas in the Arctic to skyscrapers in Dubai. From glaciers in Himalayas to devastated Easter Island. The images of the Earth captured from above are breathtaking.	14th June 2009
Australians demand climate action - BBC Thousands of demonstrators rally across Australia to demand greater government action on climate change. See also: Stop wasting time and save the planet, Mr Rudd - The Age Thousands rally for 100% renewables by 2020	14th June 2009
How to get involved in the fight against climate change - Grist Wondering what you can do? We ve rounded up good groups with climate campaigns, social networks, and info galore. Step right up!	14th June 2009
Korea moving toward a subtropical climate - Korea Herald Global warming has increased temperature and precipitation and widened regional and seasonal weather differences on the Korea Peninsula, changing it closer to a subtropical climate, the state meteorological agency said yesterday. The Korea Meteorological Administration yesterday released its analysis on climate change that occurred for the past 10 years.	14th June 2009
Jellyfish head for UK in bumper numbers - Daily Telegraph Dangerous and even deadly jellyfish are poised to enter British waters in bumper numbers this summer scientists are warning.	14th June 2009
New signs of climate change: shifting seasons, warmer Antarctica - FOX2now.com The news might seem welcome in the middle of a long, cold winter: Scientists have shown that the start of spring has moved almost two days earlier in the last 50 years. But scientists say the finding, one of two papers released today on climate change, is actually a warning sign. Together, the studies bolster the argument that the planet's temperatures have shifted significantly in the last half-century, with many of the potential consequences likely to be negative. Reporting in the scientific journal Nature, two teams of scientists presented evidence that all seasons are occurring earlier worldwide and that more of Antarctica is showing signs of warming than had been thought.	14th June 2009
Affluenza: the dangerous worldwide pandemic Brand names, corporate logos, behavioral patterns, entrainment of the masses by corporate media - these are the components of a virus that is now driving cultural behavior worldwide, but precious remaining resources necessary for survival are being decimated. The consumerism meme is now infecting the lifestyles of young people in China, where 400 million are now on the path to unsustainable consumerism.	14th June 2009
"Oil and Indians Don't Mix" and Other Observations - Culture Change There's an easy way to find oil. Go to some remote and gorgeous natural sanctuary, say Alaska or the Amazon, find some Indians, then drill down under them. If the indigenous folk complain, well, just shoo-them away. Shoo-ing methods include: bulldozers, bullets, crooked politicians and fake land sales. But be aware. Lately the Natives are shoo-ing back. Last week, indigenous Peruvians seized an oil pumping station, grabbed the nine policemen guarding it and, say reports, executed them. This followed the government's murder of more than a dozen rainforest residents who had protested the seizure of their property for oil drilling. See also: 'We are fighting for our lives' - Guardian	13th June 2009
Greenhouse pledges way too low: UN - The Age Wealthy countries' targets to cut greenhouse emissions fall well short of what's needed to avoid climate change, according to confidential UN analysis.	13th June 2009
US will exempt China from binding greenhouse gas targets - Guardian Developing nations will instead be asked to improve take-up of renewable energy and boost energy efficiency standards, says Obama administrationThe US will not demand that developing countries such as China take on binding targets to cut pollution under a new treaty to fight global warming, a senior official in the Obama administration confirmed today.Jonathan Pershing, head of the US delegation at UN climate talks in Bonn, said developing nations would instead be asked to take certain actions, such as to improve take-up of renewable energy and to boost energy efficiency standards.Only developed nations, including the US, would be expected to meet binding targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, he said.	13th June 2009
ANALYSIS-Dispute on CO2 cuts forms roadblock to Copenhagen - AlertNet BONN, Germany, June 12 (Reuters) - A small reference on page 776 of a mammoth U.N. scientific report to cuts in greenhouse gases far deeper than those on offer by rich nations has become a main roadblock towards a new U.N. climate treaty. The 25 to 40 percent gained wide political prominence when a reference to page 776 and other findings were included as a footnote to a document launching talks on a new treaty at a meeting of more than 190 nations in Bali in 2007. So far, offers on the table by rich nations total cuts of between 8 and 14 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, Hare said. The European Union is offering 20 percent cuts, or 30 if other developed nations join in. And the same page 776 says that developing nations should make a "substantial deviation" by 2020 to slow the rise of their emissions from business as usual. That judgment splits rich and poor into two starkly different camps rather than, for instance, setting a sliding scale of cuts with the richest making the deepest. "Both sides feel they are being asked to do too much," said Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists.	13th June 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: Obama Sounds Too Much Like Bush BONN, Jun 12 (IPS) - A leading global environmental group has accused the United States of holding up UN climate negotiations.	13th June 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: China Rallying South to Defend Right to Development BEIJING, Jun 13 (IPS) - As the December deadline for reaching a global climate deal in Copenhagen approaches, China is claiming leadership - rallying emerging economies to defend their rights to development and strike bargaining positions with rich nations.	13th June 2009
Arctic Sea Ice Extent Trending Below Record 2007 Melt - Daily Green The annual melting of Arctic sea ice is trending toward another record-low. While it's still too early to say whether the 2009 melt will exceed the record 2007 melt -- the annual low-point isn't reached until September -- the trend line for 2009 for the first time has dipped below 2007, according to the latest data from the National Snow and Ice Data Center.	13th June 2009
Lobbyists Battle Over Climate Bill's Escape Hatch on Carbon Penalties - New York Times A provision in the House climate bill that offers a controversial hedge against high costs for curbing carbon is a top target for lobbyists -- with one pack fighting to expand it and another to strip it out. The focus is on emission offsets. Added to the bill at the behest of industry and large environmental groups, offsets let polluters avoid some fines by investing in projects that draw carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.	13th June 2009
Nations may form global CO2 market without U.N. deal - Reuters NEW YORK (Reuters) - Rich countries may act on their own to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by developing a carbon market they hope will lure in poor nations even if U.N. climate talks get bogged down, experts said.	13th June 2009
Climate Change Treaty, to Go Beyond the Kyoto Protocol, Is Expected by the Year s End - New York Times Delegates at a U.N. convention issued a 200-page document that they said would serve as a framework for a new treaty on emissions.	13th June 2009
US Wants a 'Legally Binding Climate Agreement' - Spiegel Online The United Nations wants a global climate change agreement in place by December. SPIEGEL ONLINE spoke with the US deputy climate change envoy Jonathan Pershing about the difficulties of reaching such a deal. The US and China, he claims, are making progress.	13th June 2009
Indonesia forest fires flare, Malaysia hit by haze PEKANBARU, Indonesia (Reuters) - The number of forest fires raging in Indonesia's Sumatra island has increased, with wind blowing choking smoke over parts of Malaysia and slashing visibility, officials said on Friday.	13th June 2009
Depraved Injustice And The Privatization Of The Global Freshwater Commons - CounterCurrents.org As for climate change and the latter’s effect on the world’s water systems, warmer climates will conduce to the desiccation of Himalayan glaciers as soon as 2035, as claimed by many reports. These glaciers are the sources of Asia’s largest river systems, i.e. Ganges, Indus, Brahmaputra, Yangtze, Mekong, Salween, and the Yellow. Roughly 2.4 billion people live in the drainage basin of the Himalayan Rivers. Much trepidation presides over these folks with the morbid knowledge of likely being inundated by glacial melt, and the subsequent disappearance of their sacred, nascent glaciers. Australia, too, faces desperate conditions in the near future. As a result of an epic drought, there is severe ecological damage done to the Murray-Darling basin, which provides for 40 percent of the country’s agricultural produce.	13th June 2009
Australia demands bushfire exemption - Sydney Morning Herald Peat bogs in Germany, New Zealand firs and North American forests will likely allow industrialized countries to lower carbon emissions while still burning coal and oil, according to a draft United Nations document. Australia is demanding that emissions from natural disasters, such as bush fires, not be counted in its tally.	13th June 2009
China says no to greenhouse gas cuts after talks with US - SpaceDaily BEIJING, June 11 (AFP) Jun 11, 2009 China will not accept binding cuts in its greenhouse gas emissions, an official said Thursday, after the United States said it made progress with Beijing in talks here on a global climate pact. See also: CLIMATE CHANGE: Agreement Prospects Slipping Away - IPS	12th June 2009
Rock vs. hard place vs. immovable object - Energy Bulletin Rock, meet hard place. Hard place, meet rock. Rock, over here is known as the economy. Hard place, on the other side, can be described as our energy situation. Because while green shoots might look awfully good to a lot of people who are desperate to have the economy go back to what it was, we should remind ourselves that what it was involved awfully high energy prices. read more	12th June 2009
'Boom and bust' of deforestation Using the Amazon forest for ranches and plantations creates a short economic "boom" and a long "bust", researchers find.	12th June 2009
Climate action must be a first resort Will we need a climate equivalent of a world war to shake leaders out of their complacency? Next month's G8 will tellAs the first signs of "green shoots" start to appear in headlines and the housing market, a rather depressing question keeps nagging at me: "Is the current economic 'shock' big enough?" It might seem an odd question to ask when a crisis is destroying jobs, decimating trade and driving many countries to the brink of insolvency. No one, least of all Oxfam, is hoping for anything but a quick recovery.But crises do not only destroy; they can also create once-in-a-generation opportunities when the world re-examines the way we do things.	12th June 2009
The Global Significance Of The Amazon Protest - Counter Currents By Sam Urquhart The protests in Peru therefore have a global significance - both in terms of resistance against neo-colonial investment laws and in terms of environmental sustainability. The massacre at Bagua speaks to all of us	12th June 2009
Winds of change - RealClimate Gavin Schmidt and Michael Mann There was an interesting AP story this week about possible changes in wind speed over the continental US. The study (by Pryor et al (sub.)), put together a lot of observational data, reanalyses (from the weather forecasting models) and regional models, and concluded that there was some evidence for a decrease in wind speeds, particularly in the Eastern US. However, although this trend appeared in the observational data, it isn't seen in all the reanalyses or regional models, leaving open a possibility that the trend is an artifact of some sort (instrumental changes, urbanization etc.).	12th June 2009
Bird numbers decline 'worrying' - BBC Scotland's seabird numbers plunged by 19%, with the Northern Isles and east coast badly hit, a new report says.	12th June 2009
Reindeer herds in global decline - BBC Reindeer numbers are falling everywhere as they struggle to survive in a warming, developed world, a new survey reveals.	12th June 2009
Abrupt Global Warming Could Shift Monsoon Patterns, Hurt Agriculture - Science Daily At times in the distant past, an abrupt change in climate has been associated with a shift of seasonal monsoons to the south, a new study concludes, causing more rain to fall over the oceans than in the Earth's tropical regions, and leading to a dramatic drop in global vegetation growth.	12th June 2009
When it comes to food, we’re all in this together - Grist Teenagers and nations like to declare independence. But for a long time now, humans have relied on a broad, global, and utterly interdependent genetic and cultural basis for food production.	12th June 2009
How To Boil A Frog - Energy Bulletin REVIEW: A lively film promoting activism via video that is in itself a sophisticated example of the medium. With a personal narrative from author/activist Jon Cooksey, this is a rapid fire account of five problems that are bringing the human race to the brink of disaster due to ecological deterioration of the planet.	12th June 2009
Bravo! Carole James: BC NDP Leader Accepts BC Carbon Tax - DeSmogBlog CANADA: After election defeat, a conscientious shift In a surprising and impressive political about-face, BC New Democratic Party leader Carole James withdrew her party's opposition to the BC carbon tax today - committing to improving the tax, rather than trying to undermine it. James lost a close provincial election only last month, at least in part because an influential group of environmentalists condemned her party's position on the carbon tax and campaigned against her. Given the bitterness that surrounded that debate, you might have expected James and the NDP to dig in even further on the issue, continuing to campaign against the tax.	12th June 2009
British 'Searaser' invention promises green power revolution on the waves - Guardian The 'Searaser' uses the power of the ocean to pump water inland for electricity generation. Mark Anslow reports on the simple invention that could soon be making waves in renewables. From the Ecologist, part of the Guardian Environment NetworkAlvin Smith had his eureka moment not in the bath, but in the swimming pool. 'I was swimming round the pool, making little waves, and it struck me how much power there was in the displacement of the water,' he remembers. 'You think of a 500-tonne boat: a wave comes along, lifts that whole boat, and then drops it down again.	12th June 2009
Palmed off - BBC News Rural workers pay hidden cost of biofuels in Colombia	12th June 2009
Chevron CEO says U.S. 2050 carbon goals too ambitious - Reuters SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The head of oil company Chevron Corp said efforts to cut U.S. carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2050 were unrealistic because so much current energy infrastructure would have to be replaced.	12th June 2009
EU power lines 'too old to deliver 2020 renewables target' - Guardian Europe's electricity grid needs a radical overhaul if it is to distribute the renewable energy capacity that governments have committed to building by 2020, according to Europe's leading science academies. They argue that the continent's ageing grid infrastructure is incapable of transferring energy over the long distances demanded by renewable power stations, which are often built in remote locations, far from population centres. In a report for the European Commission, published today by the the European Academies Science Advisory Council (Easac), experts called on national governments to co-ordinate their grids and invest in new technologies such as high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission lines to better prepare Europe for a future of green electricity.	12th June 2009
World science academies push for G8 climate action - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The world's richest countries and those that are developing fastest need to lead the transition to an energy-efficient and low-carbon economy to stave off the worst effects of climate change, science academies from these nations said on Thursday.	12th June 2009
UN sketches countries with climate risk profile - PhysOrg Disasters caused by climate change will inflict the highest losses in poor countries with weak governments that have dashed for growth and failed to shield populations which settle in exposed areas, a UN report said on Thursday.	12th June 2009
Government 'must back insulation' - BBC The winner of a clean energy prize says government must show much greater urgency in insulating people's homes.	12th June 2009
Climate talks on their own terms - Guardian Powerful global leaders including Obama are still refusing to take proper action to prevent a 2C+ rise in temperatures. To observe the UN climate talks play out here in Bonn is to watch the governments of the world write the biography of my generation in advance. As the assembled delegates trawl over each line in the negotiating text that may eventually become the Copenhagen treaty this December, it's as if every single cultural and economic dispute in the earth's history, each grievance legitimate or otherwise, must be resolved before progress can be made. Stepping into the conference hall, that energetic sense of purpose and urgency which the climate movement outside instils in you, saps away.	10th June 2009
Full climate deal 'unlikely' in Copenhagen - Sydney Morning Herald The UN's top climate official on Wednesday voiced doubt about the prospects for completing a new pact on global warming in Copenhagen by its much-touted December deadline. "I don't think it is possible between now and the end of Copenhagen to finalise every last detail of a post-2012 [accord], of a long-term response to climate change," said Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). "There is going to be work after Copenhagen," he told a press conference at the latest round of UN climate talks here.	10th June 2009
Bold Strokes Needed Now to Save Climate - Scientific American The climate challenge just became a lot more challenging. We know that man-made carbon dioxide emissions are accelerating global warming. But intrepid research has revealed an additional sinister threat: methane. As Sarah Simpson reports, the warming of the Arctic is releasing vast quantities of methane that has been locked away for centuries in formerly frozen soil. Once released, methane traps 25 times more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide does. So it is more imperative than ever to slash greenhouse gases quickly, to slow the venting of methane.	10th June 2009
Carbon price must rise, IEA director says - National Post The price of carbon emissions must rise to US$180 a metric ton by 2030 to meet greenhouse gas reduction targets, the executive director of the International Energy Agency said.	10th June 2009
Coal-To-Liquids, Climate Change, and Energy Security - World Resources Institute On May 2nd, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee marked up the first major energy bill of the new 110th Congress. As of May 13th the bill includes incentives for biofuels, energy efficiency, and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). At one point the Committee considered but ultimately rejected a mandate for coal-to-liquids (CTL) fuels.	10th June 2009
Swedish PM calls for national carbon taxes in Europe - SpaceDaily BRUSSELS, June 9 (AFP) Jun 09, 2009 Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt of Sweden, which will assume the rotating EU presidency next month, called Tuesday for European nations to tax carbon emissions to reduce greenhouse gases. See also: France moves to bring in carbon tax by 2011 - AFP via Yahoo! News	10th June 2009
Waxman-Markey could save $3,900 per household and create 650,000 jobs by 2030 The energy efficiency provisions in the House energy and climate bill (H.R. 2454) could save $750 per household by 2020 and $3,900 per household by 2030, according to an analysis by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. See also: Brookings: Fears that cap and trade will hurt farmers are baseless	10th June 2009
Nokia develops phone that recharges itself without mains electricity - Guardian Prototype harvests radiowaves from TV, radio and other mobiles.	10th June 2009
Jane Lubchenco: “Ocean acidity has increased by 30%” thanks to human emissions Jane Lubchenco Obama s terrific choice for administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) discusses the threat to the ocean from global warming. See also: Scientists: Global warming has already changed oceans - McClatchy Newspapers via Yahoo! News	10th June 2009
Not so windy: Research suggests winds dying down - AP WASHINGTON (AP) — The wind, a favorite power source of the green energy movement, seems to be dying down across the United States. And the cause, ironically, may be global warming — the very problem wind power seeks to address. The idea that winds may be slowing is still a speculative one, and scientists disagree whether that is happening. But a first-of-its-kind study suggests that average and peak wind speeds have been noticeably slowing since 1973, especially in the Midwest and the East. "It's a very large effect," said study co-author Eugene Takle, a professor of atmospheric science at Iowa State University. In some places in the Midwest, the trend shows a 10 percent drop or more over a decade. That adds up when the average wind speed in the region is about 10 to 12 miles per hour.	10th June 2009
African Bird Species Could Struggle To Relocate To Survive Global Warming - Science Daily African bird species could struggle to relocate to survive global warming because natural features of the landscape will limit where they can move to, according to new research.	10th June 2009
Caribbean reefs 'flattened' in just 40 years - New Scientist In just 40 years, spectacular branched Caribbean corals have been replaced by fleshy, stumpy rivals, research reveals and climate change is at least partly to blame	10th June 2009
China alone 'could bring world to brink of climate calamity' - Guardian Business as usual in China would lead to 2.7C rise by 2050 even if all other countries slash emissions, says energy assistant	10th June 2009
U.S. Environmental Groups Call for Stronger Cap-and-Trade Bill A coalition of environmental organizations has written a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging her to reinstate several stronger conservation measures recently removed from a draft carbon cap-and-trade bill now working its way through Congress. The group which includes the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club, and the World Wildlife Fund asked Speaker Pelosi to reinstate a provision that would allow the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate carbon dioxide emissions under the Clean Air Act. That provision was removed as a compromise that the bill s sponsors Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif) and Ed Markey (D-Mass) made with industry.	10th June 2009
U.S. Power Firms Want Free Carbon Permits Until 2040 - Bloomberg June 9 (Bloomberg) -- The Edison Electric Institute, which represents investor-owned utilities, wants the free carbon- dioxide permits under a proposed cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gases to continue for nearly three decades.	10th June 2009
Jon Wellinghoff, Obama's energy futurist - The Christian Science Monitor The chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is committed to renewable energy.	10th June 2009
Japan sets 'weak' climate target Japan's prime minister plans to cut greenhouse emissions by 15by 2020, a target slammed as "appalling" by environmentalists.	10th June 2009
World's Carbon Emissions Climb 1.6% on Chinese Coal - Bloomberg June 10 (Bloomberg) -- World carbon-dioxide emissions from energy use rose last year as China, India and Russia burned more coal, the most polluting of the major fuels, data compiled by BP Plc indicate. Fossil-fuel combustion in power plants, vehicles and heaters around the planet released 31.5 billion metric tons of the greenhouse gas, 1.8 percent more than in 2007, the figures show. China’s coal consumption climbed 7.1 percent, adding 366 million tons of extra emissions, using conversion factors provided by BP, the U.K. oil company.	10th June 2009
France Finds Carousel Tax Fraud in Carbon Emissions Market - Bloomberg June 9 (Bloomberg) -- The French government found evidence of carousel fraud relating to value-added tax on trades of European Union carbon dioxide allowances, according to an official in the nation s budget ministry.	9th June 2009
All Washed Up for Jatropha? - Technology Review The draught-resistant "dream" biofuel is also a water hog.	9th June 2009
ENVIRONMENT-EUROPE: The Light Could Go All Green by 2050 - IPS BERLIN, Jun 9 (IPS) - The EU could meet all its electricity demands from renewable energy sources such as wind and the sun by 2050 if governments take the right decisions now, leading environment and energy experts say.	9th June 2009
Australia wind farm gets go-ahead - BBC News Approval has been given for Australia's biggest wind farm to be built near Broken Hill in New South Wales. See also: Acciona expects 20 pct fall in wind turbine costs - Reuters via Yahoo! Philippines News	9th June 2009
Everything Nuclear - CultureChange Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Nuclear Power* but were afraid to ask The compelling new video, Everything Nuclear, produced by David Weisman and the Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility, is packed with authoritative interviews of experts on the myriad problems of nuclear power. Featured here is a transcription of the highly informative speakers juxtaposed against industry promotional videos and government propaganda videos. See also: Nuclear power plant land for sale - BBC News	9th June 2009
Sir David Attenborough: 'There should be a morality about living' - Guardian Unlimited Sir David talks about the changes in public attitudes to wasting energy and the prospects for mitigating climate change	9th June 2009
Don't Sell Hummer: Kill It - New York Times There has been speculation tracing the fall of Rome to its lead-lined aqueducts. That magnificent water system, the apotheosis of Roman genius and power, might have spread lead poisoning throughout the empire, bringing it to its knees. The restructuring of G.M. gives us a chance to avert the fate of being laid low by our own automobiles, the grand manifestation of America’s industrial might. The first thing we do, let’s kill all the Hummers.	9th June 2009
Can we survive the Anthropocene period? - Stabroek News For the past three centuries, humans’ effects on the global environment have escalated. Most importantly, our emissions of carbon dioxide may cause global climate patterns to depart significantly from their natural course for many millennia to come.	9th June 2009
Train 'can' be worse for climate than plane - Reuters Comparing the "full life-cycle" emissions of different forms of transport reveals that assumptions about which is worst are often right - but that the differences are not as great as you would think.	8th June 2009
A war of water - Guardian Environmental problems in Israel and the Palestinian territories can't wait for the resumption of peace talksThe water spouts from a broken pipe, forming a perfect circle before it is dispersed by the wind and falls on the breaking waves of the Mediterranean sea.It looks like a fountain, but the pipe that runs from the town of Rafah to the sea by Gaza's border with Egypt contains raw sewage. It enters the sea by the Swedish Village, so-called because it was built by Swedish UN soldiers in the 1960s. In the overcrowded village it is impossible to escape the smell of sewage.The discharge is one of at least a dozen which pollutes the sea off Gaza.	8th June 2009
Menaces to oceans: CO2, plastic bags, overfishing - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The world's seas are filled with too much garbage and too few fish with flimsy plastic bags and government subsidies bearing much of the blame, activists and trade officials said Monday on the first U.N. World Oceans Day.	8th June 2009
Canada's Environment Minister: Carbon Capture Won't Solve the Tar Sands - DeSmogBlog it's official. Canadian Environment Minster Jim Prentice fessed up to what experts have been saying all along: that carbon capture and storage (CSS) is close to useless for mitigating the massive emissions from the Alberta tar sands. Canadian Prime Minister Harper is no doubt pissed that his potential leadership rival has gone off message on such an important issue of spin. In an editorial board meeting with Globe and Mail Prentice admitted: "CCS is not the silver bullet in the oil sands." Strange. That not what his boss said when he committed at least $650 million in taxpayer s dollars towards this bitumen boondoggle.	8th June 2009
Peru clashes raise green issues - Reuters Clashes in the Amazon between indigenous protestors and Peru s army that killed some 60 people last week throw some old issues into sharp new relief: development versus the environment and local versus foreign control of natural resources. Indigenous tribes, worried they will lose control over natural resources, have protested since April seeking to force Peru s Congress to repeal new laws that encourage foreign mining and energy companies to invest billions of dollars in huge tracts of pristine rain forest. In the developing world, extractive industries have a bad record of bringing benefits to local people. Prime examples include the oil-rich Niger Delta in Nigeria and mineral-rich South Africa under apartheid.	8th June 2009
Bonn: Tax on rich nations' ships and planes could fund climate aid - Guardian A levy on rich nations' international flights and shipping fuel could fund climate change adaptation in poorer countries under international global warming deal, conference hearsBritain and other rich countries could be asked to accept a levy on international flight tickets to raise billions of dollars to help the world's poorest nations adapt to climate change under an international global warming deal.The suggestions come at the start of the second week in the latest round of UN climate talks in Bonn, where 192 countries are starting to negotiate a global agreement to limit and then reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The issue of funding for adaptation is both critical to success but the hardest to agree.The aviation levy, expected to increase the price of long-haul fares by less than 1%, would raise $10bn a year.	8th June 2009
NY sees clean energy creating up to 50,000 jobs - Reuters NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York could create as many as 50,000 jobs by converting 45 percent of its electricity needs to renewable energy sources by 2015, Governor David Paterson said on Monday as he unveiled plans to reduce the state's reliance on Wall Street.	8th June 2009
UK may be baling up greenhouse gas emissions - Eastern Ontario AgriNews BELLEVILLE He s no expert on the Canadian scene, but a UK civil engineer says that with strong buy-in from the British government, the UK will see an increase in the use of crop-based building materials as it works to reduce its carbon emissions.	8th June 2009
Indian farmers to insure themselves against climate change crop failure - Guardian For more than half a million farmers in rural India the age old fear of crops failing due to bad weather could soon be banished, thanks to an innovative insurance scheme that UN negotiators gathering in Bonn this week are considering as a central component of climate change adaptation measures in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Following a successful trial last month, MicroEnsure, a company specialising in providing insurance to poor communities, plans to launch a scheme next year for up to 600,000 farmers in India's Kolhapur province allowing them to insure against their rice crops failing due to drought or heavy rains during the plants' flowering period.	8th June 2009
Is the daddy-longlegs doomed? Is the humble daddy-longlegs in trouble? The RSPB thinks so, at least in the uplands. Its research suggests that, because of hotter summers, that is to say, because of global warming, the peat bogs are drying out. It is suggested that, since the larvae prefer moist conditions, their numbers are falling, which in turn spells trouble for those birds, such as golden plover, that feed on them.My first memories of daddy-longlegs, or crane flies, are from school: Redcar in the 60s, a gang of us huddled next to the brick wall of the playground, and several daddy-longlegs blundering against the wall.	8th June 2009
Weeds damage homes as the climate warms - Guardian A combination of a warmer climate, increased rainfall and a ban on the use of chemicals has created an epidemic of weeds causing hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of damage to homes and public buildings.Homeowners are facing large bills due to weeds damaging pipes and buildings as climate change produces an explosion in plant life.According to Peter Brownless, horticulturalist at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, long periods of warm and wet weather combined with increasing volumes of detritus in gutters and drains is encouraging plants to grow out of control at a faster rate than ever before."A recent change in European legislation means there are far less herbicides available for local authorities and home gardeners to use to control weeds," he said.According to Brownless many problems are caused by alien species which are thriving in Scotland's increasingly mild climate.	8th June 2009
Jellyfish threaten to 'dominate' oceans - Australian Broadcasting Corporation Giant jellyfish are taking over parts of the world's oceans due to overfishing and other human activities, researchers say.	8th June 2009
An amphibious assault - Globe and Mail Around the world, frogs and toads are falling victim to a loss of habitat, pesticides, pollution and an insidious, quick-acting fungus. And now they are going extinct faster than any other animals since the dinosaurs. We need to deal with every single issue at once: climate change, excessive use of agricultural fertilizers and pesticides, depletion of the ozone layer and, above all, habitat degradation.	8th June 2009
Airlines to achieve CO2-neutral growth by 2020: IATA KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - The world's airlines have committed to achieve carbon neutral growth by 2020, the head of the global aviation body IATA said on Monday.	8th June 2009
Groundhog day - RealClimate Alert readers will have noticed the fewer-than-normal postings over the last couple of weeks. This is related mostly to pressures associated with real work (remember that we do have day jobs). In my case, it is because of the preparations for the next IPCC assessment and the need for our group to have a functioning and reasonably realistic climate model with which to start the new round of simulations. These all need to be up and running very quickly if we are going to make the early 2010 deadlines. But, to be frank, there has been another reason.	8th June 2009
The Nuclear Begging Bowl It has become fashionable, since the Financial Crisis was admitted to publicly, for high net worth individiuals to propagate Public Relations campaigns in support of their industry of choice. Normally the industry that makes all their money for them. In the United States they call this process a “bailout”, making it sound like a worthy rescue of a valued affiliate. In the United Kingdom, it’s called “public support”. It all amounts to the same thing : tax revenue from the public thrown at the private corporations. At the conference “The politics of climate change : From economic crisis to business revolution” on 5th June 2009, I heard an interesting series of remarks from one Vincent de Rivaz (see below). He was essentially trying to argue that Nuclear Power is a Low Carbon form of electrical generation. Well, it possibly is fairly Low Carbon if you just count the emissions from day to day operation. But that excludes the Carbon emissions from the mining and refining of the fuel, the building of the reactors and plant, the maintenance of the plant, backup generation in the event of outages, maintaining security at the plant site, the decommissioning of the plant, and the treatment and storage and guarding of radioactive waste. So, no. Nuclear Power is not Low Carbon in the full “lifecycle”.	8th June 2009

Why Does the Much-Touted Climate Bill Look Like It Was Stolen From the Republican Playbook? The new climate bill exemplifies a Republican approach: Don't tell polluters what to do, bribe them and hope they do what you want. See also: What a bleeping joke - Energy Bulletin Clean Energy Bill Can Be Better - Huffington Post	6th June 2009
Q&A: "I Hope We Are Civilised When Climate Disaster Hits" - IPS TORONTO, Jun 5 (Tierramérica) - "When the first great climate disaster strikes, I hope we will all pull together just as if our nation were being invaded," says British scientist James Lovelock in this exclusive Tierramérica interview. "Let's not forget that the Earth was once nearly entirely forested and those forests were a major part of a living planet's regulatory system. Based on Gaia theory at some point in the future there will be a sudden shift to a new global climate that may be 5 or 6 degrees Celsius warmer on average than today. I have no idea when that shift might happen but my guess is that we may have 20 years to prepare. "	6th June 2009
No neutrality: how the carbon lobby blackens media coverage - Sydney Morning Herald The resource industry's spin on global warming is pervasive. Through lobby groups - the Minerals Council, the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) and the cleverly titled Australian Industry Greenhouse Network, which hopes to accelerate the greenhouse effect - the likes of Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton stop real action on climate change. See also: Newspapers must stop taking advertising from environmental villains	6th June 2009
California's Water Woes Threaten the Entire Country's Food Supply - Alternet Nearly a third of the country's food supply comes from California, but drought there may be a catastrophe for farmers -- and the rest of us.	6th June 2009
Managing World Water - Foreign Policy In Focus With climate change deepening the water crisis, wonky discussions of how to manage our water systems are suddenly attracting increased public attention. "Unlike oil, there's no substitute for fresh water," says Maude Barlow, senior advisor on water to the president of the United Nations General Assembly. "We all need it."	6th June 2009
Strange sights under northern lights - Kitchener - Waterloo Record PANGNIRTUNG, NUNAVUT (Jun 6, 2009) -- The fish changed colour. Different bird species were spotted. Two bridges were wiped out by a once-in-a-lifetime flood that forced villagers to dump sewage into their pristine waters.	6th June 2009
New NSIDC director on “death spiral” Arctic ice I interviewed by email Dr. Mark Serreze, recently named director of The National Snow and Ice Data Center. Partly I wanted him to explain his death spiral metaphor for Arctic ice. And partly I wanted his reaction to the blog WattsUpWithThat, the quintessential victim of anti-science syndrome (ASS), who called his appointment Bad News.	6th June 2009
US urged to abandon ageing flood defences in favour of Dutch system The US must adopt an integrated model of water management like the Netherlands, says New Orleans senator Mary LandrieuAmerica, now entering its hurricane season, was today urged to abandon the outmoded "patch and pray" system of levees whose failure magnified the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and borrow from the Dutch model of dykes and water management.Mary Landrieu, a senator from New Orleans who was brought to tears during a helicopter tour of the destruction of 2005, said America needed to rethink its entire approach to low-lying coastal areas and adopt an integrated model of water management like that of the Netherlands.The US has budgeted $14bn since Katrina to shore up the flood defences of Louisiana and other low-lying areas.	6th June 2009
Soaring temperatures smash records - The Powell River Peak UPDATED JUNE 5, 9:40 AM Summer arrived on BC's south coast this week as an unseasonable heat wave broke records across the province.	6th June 2009
Rainforest is worth more standing Protecting the Indonesian rainforest could raise more money than felling trees for agriculture, according to researchers.	6th June 2009
Floating wind turbine launched - BBC News The world's first floating wind turbine is to be towed out to sea off the coast of Norway this weekend.	6th June 2009
China Rejects $21.5 Billion of Polluting Projects - Bloomberg June 5 (Bloomberg) -- China, the world s second-biggest energy user, rejected 147 billion yuan ($21.5 billion) of project proposals in the past seven months because of concern they will worsen pollution.	6th June 2009
Poor nations need $142 billion a year in climate fight: EU BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Poor countries will need to be given about 100 billion euros ($142 billion) a year by 2020 to help them cut emissions in the fight against climate change, a draft report for European Union finance ministers shows.	6th June 2009
Poor countries could be paid to go nuclear Nuclear power programmes in developing countries could get huge subsidies if a carbon-credit scheme is approved ahead of crucial climate change talks	6th June 2009
El Nino could develop within weeks: U.S. forecaster SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The El Nino weather pattern, which can bring global weather chaos such as droughts and floods, could develop within weeks, the Climate Prediction Center in the United States said.	6th June 2009
Powerful injustice at the Bonn climate talks Over the past few days at the Bonn climate negotiations, the issue of inequity has come up in many different contexts. Today, I am thinking about the ways that inequity rears its head in mundane but powerful ways.	6th June 2009
80 Pct Of Dam Waters Evaporate Due To Global Warming - Bernama ALGIERS, June 4 (Bernama) -- The General Director of the National Agency of Climate Change (ANCC) Kamel Mostefa-Kara said that up to 80 percent of dam waters evaporates due to global warming, will inevitable cause dryness and may pose danger to food security.	5th June 2009
Modest carbon price could save Borneo forests: study - Reuters SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Tropical forests in Borneo under threat of conversion to palm oil plantations could be more profitable left standing if carbon credits were priced between $10 and $33 per tonne, a study has found.	5th June 2009
New Roll-Up Solar Panels - Yale e360 MIT Technology Review reports on an Ohio startup that has succeeded in manufacturing thin-film silicon solar cells that can be mass produced in long rolls and installed on roofs and building facades. The company, Xunlight of Toledo, Ohio, has produced solar film affixed to thin sheets of stainless steel that can be manufactured in rolls 18 feet long and roughly three feet wide. Such amorphous thin-film solar cells are highly inefficient, but Xunlight has boosted their efficiency by using three different materials that absorb energy from different parts of the solar spectrum, the MIT publication said. Still, the efficiency of Xunlight s solar panel sheets is only about 8 percent, compared to the 20 percent efficiency of some conventional solar panels.	5th June 2009
Wars over water? - PakTribune.com According to reports and studies, the scarcity of water in regions like the Middle East is reaching crisis proportions, and some analysts have even warned that full-scale wars could erupt over fresh water resources. A similar scenario is being predicted for the Indian subcontinent, whose main river systems are fed by the Himalayan glacial system. This glacial system is extremely important not only because of the water it supplies to the rivers, but also because it acts as a reflecting mirror which in turn guards against the planet overheating. In fact, some have even termed it the “third pole”.	5th June 2009
UN to study security threat of climate change - PR-Inside.com - Pressemitteilung UNITED NATIONS (AP) - With glaciers melting and oceans rising, the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday expressed deep concern at the adverse impact of climate change and urged U.N. bodies to consider the possible security implications for all countries.	5th June 2009
India threatened by changes to the monsoon: Greenpeace - Economic Times MUMBAI: The Indian monsoon, the country's lifeline, will be significantly affected by climate change, says a report released by the NGO Greenpeace on the eve of World Environment Day. The report, Monsoon Wager: Climate change and the Indian Monsoon, says climate change could bring about significant change to the intensity, geographic distribution and inter seasonal breaks in the monsoon, which would have enormous social consequences.	5th June 2009
Earth 2100 - June 4 Special documentary by ABC - 'Earth 2100': the Final Century of Civilization? Reviews by peak oilers read more	5th June 2009
Gore says carbon capture boom unlikely across China NEW YORK (Reuters) - A carbon capture boom is unlikely near term in China, the world's top greenhouse gas polluter, because its coal-burning plants are inefficient, said global warming activist Al Gore.	5th June 2009
What is Killing Chile's Coastal Wildlife? - Time Magazine There's no explanation for four mysterious die-offs of birds and fish, although suspect causes include industrial pollution and climate change	5th June 2009
Calling Earth from the Air: world release of green movie ‘Home’ - Grist World Environment Day on Friday sees the worldwide release of a movie billed by producers as the greatest green event ever , a high-budget documentary to save the planet from Yann Arthus-Bertrand.	5th June 2009
Inhofe’s plan: Stall climate action until the next president Oklahoma Republican James Inhofe, the Senate s top global-warming denier, brags about his plans to thwart climate action.	5th June 2009
Carbon costs - BBC News UK firms fear they could be hit with a £1.4bn bill	5th June 2009
Pacific islands seek low-cost storm protection - Reuters BONN, Germany, June 4 (Reuters) - Pacific islands are trying low-cost ways to protect crops and coasts from cyclones that are a bigger threat -- for now -- than rising sea levels that could wipe low-lying nations off the map.	5th June 2009
Climate adaptation is not enough - Yale Environment 360 A leading environmentalist explains why drastically reducing carbon dioxide emissions now will be easier, cheaper, and more ethical than dealing with runaway climate destabilization later.	4th June 2009
Coal Industry Inserts Carbon Capture Provision in Climate Bill - Yale 360 A powerful coal-state Democrat has inserted a 24-page provision into the U.S. Congress s proposed cap-and-trade bill that would create a $10 billion Carbon Storage Research Corporation, including up to $500 million in administrative expenses over the next 10 years. The Web site Solve Climate said the institute would be operated by the coal industry and would research methods of storing carbon dioxide underground; it would be funded with a 50-cent-per-month surcharge on the utility bills of all U.S. households. Critics contend that the Carbon Storage Research Corporation is a massive pork barrel project, and say it was included in the so-called Waxman-Markey bill to win the vote of U.S.	4th June 2009
Earth 2100--the reality. Scientists and FEMA prepare for the effects of global warming - Examiner.com Scientists are staying up nights worrying about global warming. FEMA is preparing for the worst.	4th June 2009
Forest carbon market already shows cracks - Reuters LONDON/NUSA DUA, Indonesia (Reuters) - It could save the rainforests of Borneo, slow climate change and the international community backs it. But a plan to pay tropical countries not to chop down trees risks being discredited by opportunists even before it starts.	4th June 2009
Everything you always wanted to know about the Waxman-Markey energy/climate bill—in bullet points - Grist You keep hearing about the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill aka the American Clean Energy and Security Act but what s actually in it? We combed through the 946-page beast so you don t have to.	4th June 2009
Small islands win U.N. vote on climate change security - Reuters UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Small Pacific islands vulnerable to rising sea levels won a symbolic victory at the United Nations on Wednesday with the passage of a resolution recognizing climate change as a possible threat to security.	4th June 2009
Green energy overtakes fossil fuel investment, says UN - Guardian Clean technologies attract $140bn compared with $110bn for gas, coal and electrical powerGreen energy overtook fossil fuels in attracting investment for power generation for the first time last year, according to figures released today by the United Nations.Wind, solar and other clean technologies attracted $140bn (£85bn) compared with $110bn for gas and coal for electrical power generation, with more than a third of the green cash destined for Britain and the rest of Europe.The biggest growth for renewable investment came from China, India and other developing countries, which are fast catching up on the West in switching out of fossil fuels to improve energy security and tackle climate change.	4th June 2009
Giant jellyfish wash up on shores of Wales as temperatures soar - Daily Telegraph Sea bathers are being warned that the hot weather is causing an invasion of dangerous giant jellyfish in Wales.	4th June 2009
Summer arrives early in B.C. with record temperatures - Vancouver Province It's about a month early, but summer will stumble into B.C. with record-breaking temperatures today.	4th June 2009
Bioenergy Makes Heavy Demands On Scarce Water Supplies - Science Daily The ‘water footprint’ of bioenergy, i.e. the amount of water required to cultivate crops for biomass, is much greater than for other forms of energy. The generation of bioelectricity is significantly more water-efficient in the end, however – by a factor of two – than the production of biofuel. By establishing the water footprint for thirteen crops, researchers at the University of Twente were able to make an informed choice of a specific crop and production region. They published their results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) of 2 June.	4th June 2009
Melting ice could lead to massive waves of climate refugees - Grist The International Institute for Environment and Development has analyzed the effect of a 10-meter rise in sea level, providing a sense of what the melting of the world s largest ice sheets could mean. The IIED study begins by pointing out that 634 million people live along coasts at or below 10 meters above sea level. This massive vulnerable group includes one eighth of the world s urban population.	4th June 2009
Australia's Lower House Passes Carbon Reduction Laws -Bloomberg June 4 (Bloomberg) -- Australia's lower house of parliament passed the government's carbon pollution reduction plan, allowing it to proceed to a vote in the less-supportive upper house Senate later this month.	4th June 2009
Carbon Offsets : Dangerous Distraction - JoAbbess If I continue to burn, and I pay you a sum of money to avoid burning the equivalent amount that I burn, that does not make an overall Cut in burning. We have to power down Energy demand whilst also improving Energy efficiency and Energy intensity. We need to power up Renewable Energies. Developed and Developing nations, all. There is no other option.	3rd June 2009
Deep thought - June 3 Apathy threatens humanity, ex-Clinton aide saysTen reasons why population control can t stop climate change'Generation Green' Environmentally Oblivious read more	3rd June 2009
Nicholas Stern’s heresy: conceding the West’s climate burden Breaking ranks with the West s climate talking points, Lord Nicholas Stern says the world s rich nations should shoulder some of the costs of cutting emissions in the rapidly developing world (i.e. China and India).	3rd June 2009
Best practice for biochar The concept is simple: if terra preta or charcoal-enriched soil was re-created globally, as much as 6 billion tonnes of CO2 could be prevented from entering the atmosphere annually, a substantial fraction of the 810 billion tonnes emitted each year by humans. Proponents, who include no small number of world-class climate scientists, say that burying biochar not only would slow the rate of warming, it would enhance soil fertility and the charcoal-making process could produce sustainable biofuels to boot. But despite its astounding potential, caution is warranted in implementing biochar on any sizeable scale. Though re-creating terra preta sounds simple, recent research suggests that modern-day soils may respond less well to the treatment and that the carbon may escape sooner than anticipated. On these questions alone, all of the evidence is not in. Yet we clearly don't have the luxury of time to answer them definitively. The recent exuberance over biochar is reminiscent of the earlier fervour over biofuels, as critics have been eager to highlight (Guardian 24 March 2009). But both face some of the same problems most controversially, the need for land should carbon credits command a high enough price suggesting there is scope here to learn from previous errors. What's now needed is an international code of best practice for biochar that evolves as knowledge comes in. For a start, this would clearly define acceptable land-use policy for plantations, as well as a lower limit on carbon sequestered from those claiming certification. Inclusion in a global climate deal will certainly speed the adoption of biochar, but it can also help ensure that this solution is applied responsibly.	3rd June 2009
The 'end of the line' for world's oceans - Aberdeen Press and Journal OVER-FISHING of the world’s oceans ranks beside climate change as one of the biggest problems facing humans this century. The warning came from journalist Charles Clover, before the launch of his film on fishing, The End of the Line. See also: A place at the table? These are not the mariners of old but pirates who make bureaucrats blanch What we do to the oceans we do to ourselves - Georgia Straight	3rd June 2009
Year of the hungry: 1000000000 afflicted - ZNet The worst is yet to come, taking the number of hungry beyond the one billion mark. As food prices fall, the FAO is reporting signs that farmers in Europe and North America are reducing their plantings for next year's harvest - and the same thing is likely to happen in the Third World as the lack of credit stops its farmers from being able to buy the food and agricultural chemicals they need. So next year's harvest, it is feared, will be smaller, even if the weather remains good. The run of good seasons is unlikely to continue for long, even in the short run. And in the medium to long term, climate change is expected to make harvests dramatically worse. Mr Diouf predicts that, if the world fails to take urgent action to keep global warming beneath 2C, the emerging international target, "the global food production potential can be expected to contract severely" - with harvests dropping by up to 40 per cent in Africa, Asia and Latin America.	3rd June 2009
Climate change models find staple crops face ruin on up to one million square Km of African farmland - EurekAlert! A new study by researchers from the Nairobi-based International Livestock Research Institute and the United Kingdom's Waen Associates has found that by 2050, hotter conditions, coupled with shifting rainfall patterns, could make anywhere from 500,000 to one million square kilometers of marginal African farmland no longer able to support even a subsistence level of food crops. [Possibly biased solution - research sponsored by the International Livestock Research Institute]	3rd June 2009
160 Syrian villages deserted due to climate change: study - Zawya DAMASCUS, Jun 02, 2009 (AFP) - Some 160 villages in northern Syria were deserted of their residents in 2007 and 2008 because of climate change, according to a study released on Tuesday.	3rd June 2009
Green energy goal to boost EU jobs, economy: study BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union will boost economies and create an additional 410,000 jobs if the bloc meets its target of getting one fifth of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, a new report shows.	3rd June 2009
Obama 'to stake political prestige' on US climate bill Congressional leaders working against a six-month deadline to pass a sweeping package of environmental legislation before global climate change talks begin in Copenhagen in DecemberBarack Obama is prepared to stake his own political prestige on getting climate change legislation through Congress, and would be willing to intervene directly to ensure passage of America's first law to reduce the carbon emissions that cause global warming.Nancy Sutley, who is pivotal in setting Obama's green agenda as the chairwoman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, told the Guardian that the president is ready to use his considerable personal popularity to rally Congress behind a sweeping climate change bill."When the bill is further along in the legislative process there are some things where it may make a difference in expressing a strong view," Sutley said in an interview.	3rd June 2009
Heat capture technology could save UK 10m tonnes of carbon a year, says study Heat capture technology on stations such as Kingsnorth would meet 5of the UK's requirements, say engineersThe UK could save 10m tonnes of carbon dioxide every year if the waste heat from some of the country's biggest power stations was diverted to warm homes and offices, according to a study by engineers.They say attaching heat capture technology to stations such as Kingsnorth and Drax would meet 5of the UK's heat requirements. And in future, any new big power stations should be built to capture and distribute heat as well as electricity. In addition, new housing developments should be designed and built with small local combined heat and power (CHP) plants.Heat accounts for around 49of all primary energy needs in the UK.	3rd June 2009
Rwanda: Country to Power Vehicles With Human Waste - AllAfrica.com Kigali With Rwanda's energy bill soaring, some investors are planning to start producing methane gas from human and animal waste. The gas will then be used to power vehicle engines and for cooking.	3rd June 2009
Japanese voters want tough climate goals: survey BONN, Germany (Reuters) - Japanese voters favor the deepest cuts in greenhouse gases under consideration by Prime Minister Taro Aso as part of a new U.N. climate pact, according to opinion poll results on Tuesday.	3rd June 2009
Brazil must save forests in ethanol push: Clinton SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil should worry about ways of stopping and controlling deforestation in order to achieve a broader global market for its cane-based ethanol, former U.S. President Bill Clinton said on Monday.	3rd June 2009
Tackling problem of belching cows - BBC News Belching cows collared	3rd June 2009
Australia may breach Kyoto targets - Daily Telegraph AUSTRALIA is on track to breach the Kyoto protocol by emitting too much greenhouse pollution.	3rd June 2009
WHERE IS YOUR INVESTMENT GOING? - Ekklesia A new poll released today by UK-based international development agency Christian Aid reveals the extent of the British public s concern about climate change, with a majority saying the government needs to show more leadership in tackling global warming.	3rd June 2009
Climate change threatens Mideast stability: study DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Climate change could spark "environmental wars" in the Middle East over already scarce water supplies and dissuade Israel from any pullout from occupied Arab land, an international report said on Tuesday.	3rd June 2009
World's Next Big Climate Pact Begins to Take Shape This week, negotiators from 182 countries meet in Bonn, Germany to lay the groundwork for a post-Kyoto climate regime.	3rd June 2009
Eden Project reveals 'hot rocks' plan Geothermal plant would initially power Eden Project buildings but eventually aims to supply local community and National GridPlans to build the UK's first geothermal plant that would use heat from granite outcrops beneath the Earth's surface to power a small town were unveiled today.Initially the plant would be used to supply the Eden Project in Cornwall but could potentially feed spare carbon-neutral electricity winto the National Grid.Eden and its commercial partner claim, EGS Energy, believe this is the first in a series of projects that could lead to Cornwall's "hot rocks" supplying up to one-tenth of the UK's electricity.The government is watching the plans closely and Ed Miliband, the secretary of state for energy and climate change, attended the launch of the scheme in Westminster.	2nd June 2009
90 months and counting With the clock running in the climate change countdown, post-Enlightenment faith in technological fixes may not be enoughTen months have passed since pointing out that we have, at best, 100 left before a new, far more dangerous phase of global warming begins. The "chatter" of concern is getting louder. But at the same time, the political system in Britain has been wracked and absorbed more by its own inadequacies than by this fundamental threat to civilisation. The fall of the Roman Empire was due to a large extent, writes the historian Adrian Goldsworthy, to a system of government that became inward-looking and weakened by internal dissent.	2nd June 2009
Hurricane barriers floated to keep sea out of NYC - Guardian As a new hurricane season starts Monday, some scientists and engineers are floating an ambitious solution: Barriers to choke off the surging sea and protect flood-prone areas. The plan involves deploying giant barriers and gates that would move into place and in some cases rising out of the water and for storms. One proposal calls for a 5-mile-long barrier between New Jersey and Queens.	2nd June 2009
Shipping not doing enough to curb CO2: UK lawmakers LONDON (Reuters) - The United Nations' shipping agency has not done enough to address carbon emissions from shipping, a panel of British lawmakers said on Monday.	2nd June 2009
Old Wood Is New Coal as Polluters Embrace Carbon-Eating Trees - Bloomberg June 2 (Bloomberg) -- Wood is becoming a hot commodity in a new low-carbon world. Power companies are burning trees because they re renewable and can be cheaper than coal. Wood needs no permit to release carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas blamed for global warming.	2nd June 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: Four Tough Nuts To Crack BONN, Jun 1 (IPS) - The world is on track towards negotiating a solid deal in Copenhagen at the end of this year, Yvo de Boer, the UN's top climate change official, told reporters at the opening of a 12-day conference in Bonn Monday.	2nd June 2009
Carbon Offsetting : Legwarmers and Chiapas In the meantime, there s stacks of money to be made in offsetting, as witnessed by the fact that ClimateCare was snaffled up by no less than J.	2nd June 2009
Science Academies Warn Of Threat From Ocean Acidification Rising carbon dioxide emissions are causing the world s oceans to become dangerously acidic, threatening the health of coral reefs and shellfish, according to a statement from the national science academies of 69 nations. Saying that the rate at which the ocean is turning acidic is faster than at any time since the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, the academies called for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions of 50 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, followed by steeper cuts thereafter. The academies warned that if atmospheric concentrations of CO2 now at 387 parts-per-million and rising rapidly should hit 450 to 500 parts-per-million by mid-century, many of the world s coral reefs and shellfish may have trouble building the shells necessary to their survival.	1st June 2009
UN climate talks grudgingly accept treaty draft - Reuters UK BONN, Germany, June 1 (Reuters) - Rich and poor countries criticised a first draft text of a new United Nations climate treaty on Monday but grudgingly accepted it as the basis for six months of arduous negotiations. "We ... have some dismay about the way it has been structured," Jonathan Pershing, head of the U.S. delegation at the June 1-12 talks among 180 nations in Bonn, said of a 53-page draft outlining ideas from all countries. "This text should contain more balance," said Ibrahim Mirghani Ibrahim of Sudan, speaking on behalf of developing countries including China and India. Despite finding fault, delegates accepted the draft as the starting point for negotiations on a treaty due to be agreed in Copenhagen in December to curb the use of fossil fuels and widen the fight against climate change beyond the existing Kyoto Protocol. "The session here represents a significant new step ... Governments have on the table for the first time real negotiating texts," Yvo de Boer, head of the U.N. Climate Change Secretariat, told a news conference. "Clearly there are some hard nuts still to crack ... We have less than 200 days," he said. Offers so far of greenhouse gas cuts by rich countries, for instance, were not enough, he said.	1st June 2009
Climate of fear - BBC News Dolphins and whales at risk from rising temperatures	1st June 2009
The Dutch strive to make their country 'climate proof' - New York Times AMSTERDAM -- "Can we actually save the Netherlands? Or should we abandon part of the country?" This is the basic question Dutch leaders were asking themselves within the context of global warming after witnessing Hurricane Katrina's devastating blow to New Orleans in 2005.	1st June 2009
Drought in Northeastern China May Worsen, Weather Bureau Says - Bloomberg June 1 (Bloomberg) -- A drought in northeastern China, the nation s top soybean-producing region, may worsen this month, the weather office said. Parts of the Inner Mongolian region and Heilongjiang province had the lowest May rainfall since 1951, and hot, dry weather forecast for June may worsen conditions for farmers, the National Meteorological Center said in a statement on its Web site today.	1st June 2009
Next steps for Waxman-Markey bill The Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill cleared a major hurdle on May 21 when it was approved by the Energy and Commerce Committee. But the bill still has a long road to travel before it can be voted on by the full House.	1st June 2009
Summer of Stupidity From The Times : June 1, 2009 : Government to set clear targets for UK energy mix : Britain is set to turn its back on a wholly liberalised energy market and will return to a more interventionist, state-directed model, according to Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary The market on its own is not going to ensure that we make the transition to low carbon, he said.	1st June 2009
Learning to Live With Climate Change Is Not Enough A leading environmentalist explains why drastically reducing carbon dioxide emissions now will be easier, cheaper, and more ethical than dealing with runaway climate destabilization later. BY DAVID W. ORR	1st June 2009
The Costs of Carbon Legislation - Ludwig von Mises Institute In two of his recent op-eds ( here and here ) for the New York Times , Nobel laureate Paul Krugman has challenged critics of the government's intentions to regulate carbon dioxide emissions, and he has even specifically endorsed the pending Waxman-Markey bill which includes a "cap-and-trade" program.	1st June 2009
Amazon rainforests pay the price as demand for beef soars - Guardian Inquiry highlights concerns over ranching in heartland of Brazil.The cattle business is expanding rapidly in the Amazon, and now poses the biggest threat to the 80% of the original forest that still stands. Where loggers have made inroads to the edge of the forest in the states of Para and Mato Grosso, farmers have followed. A report today from Greenpeace details a three-year investigation into these cattle farms and the global trade in their products, many of which end up on sale in Britain and Europe. Meat from the cattle is canned, packaged and processed into convenience foods. Hides become leather for shoes and trainers. Fat stripped from the carcasses is rendered and used to make toothpaste, face creams and soap. Gelatin squeezed from bones, intestines and ligaments thickens yoghurt and makes chewy sweets. Greenpeace says it has lifted the lid on this trade to expose the "laundering" of cattle raised on illegally deforested land.	31st May 2009
Hypocritical modelers - Resource Insights Oil companies like to use models to estimate their reserves and the potential of unexplored fields. Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest oil company and a longtime supporter of the global warming denial lobby, tells us the following on page 8 of its 2007 annual report: "Using proprietary technologies and tools, including advanced reservoir prediction models and geological data visualization, we have significantly improved our ability to identify, model, and understand oil and gas reservoirs."Exxon and its fossil fuel partners in the denial lobby seem to like models well enough when they use them for their own purposes; but through their hired mouthpieces they decry the use of models for climate change forecasting.	31st May 2009
The seldom-seen devastation of climate change - Salon.com A NASA climatologist explains why global warming is more than starving polar bears, and skeptics are simplistic.	31st May 2009
Why six Britons went to eco war - Guardian When six activists, protesting against climate pollution, scaled a tower at a coal-fired power station in 2007 the resulting court case drew support from the world's leading scientists. Their subsequent acquittal proved historic and changed government policy. Here, the 'Kingsnorth Six' tell their storySix ordinary people. One extraordinary feat of courage and endurance. Twenty thousand tonnes of carbon dioxide belched into the atmosphere in a single day. Twelve members of a jury, reaching a verdict that could change the future of the planet. From these ingredients, Nick Broomfield has fashioned a film that tells the gripping and (the description is unusually literal) life-changing story of the Kingsnorth Six.	31st May 2009
Ranchers driving wind revolution - BBC Wind farms on the US's high plains could eventually help power the country's coastal population centres, experts say.	31st May 2009
Cattle a tough target in Amazon protection fight APYTEREWA INDIGENOUS RESERVE, Brazil (Reuters) - The small plane is gliding over a mesmerizing landscape of green pasture interspersed by patches of forest, but Wayne Lindbergh keeps his eyes firmly glued to his laptop.	31st May 2009
AUSTRALIA: National Climate Emergency Rallies - June 13 If you have thought of taking action on climate change, now is the time. Drought, bush fires, floods and rising seas are already hitting hard. It's an emergency and we need emergency action.	31st May 2009
‘Bali Road Map’ looks for a compass Gruelling efforts to craft a pact on climate change enter a crucial phase on Monday when the 192-nation UN forum takes its first look at a draft text for negotiations.	31st May 2009

'Obama could have been a hero' - Guardian The new executive director of Greenpeace USA talks to Bibi van der Zee about his new role and why he sees little sign of change coming from the White House. "What we haven't seen from Obama is a real leadership role in telling the US congress that he wants real action on global warming. He's essentially sat on the sidelines and hidden behind Congress while coal companies and the politicians that they fund have worked to weaken clean energy and global warming standards in the US." On the issue of climate change, Radford feels that Obama has "not shown integrity. He's always had a moderate stance, but I think he has disappointed people who thought that he was a man of integrity who would do what's right even if it's hard. It's as if we're standing in New Orleans and the president is about to build a 50ft levee to hold off 100ft of floodwater." He says, in fairness: "There are good things happening. The energy information administration have begun to rapidly accelerate green energy delivery. But will President Obama take on oil, coal, and the special interests in congress and say 'No, we need it all to be clean, we're putting an end to dirty energy?'"	30th May 2009
'We know what to do: why don't we do it?' - U.TV In London this week for Prince Charles' climate change meeting with 20 Nobel laureates, Maathai, now nearly 70, cut a lone, if flamboyant, figure: she was the only woman, and with Wole Soyinka, one of only two Africans. Yet, she pointed out, it is women and Africans who must bear the brunt of climate change and pay for the west's profligacy. (About which, she had some interesting points to make. "You must understand that what is happening in the west with the credit crunch has been happening for decades in Africa," she told her audience. "The banks are not regulated. We cannot access money, and only a few people can buy houses. Europe is catching up with Africa. When we were campaigning against African debt we were told that it could not possibly be paid off. Many countries collapsed." As for western democracy, and Britain's parliamentary crisis, "the elites have become predators, self-serving and only turning to people when they need them. We can never all be equal, but we can ensure we do not allow excessive poverty or wealth. Inequality breeds insecurity.") And while the scientists, academics and politicians talked of technological shifts and the need to bring the best brains in the world to bear on the problem, the former professor of biology at University of Nairobi said bluntly that the answers were known. "We all know what to do. Why don't we do it? The question is, how are we to ensure something is done?" The reality, Maathai says, is that of the nine billion people expected to be on the planet in 2050, eight billion will be in what are now developing countries. "Climate change is life or death. We could be accused of being alarmist, but if we have faith in science then something very serious is happening. Climate change and global warming is the new global battlefield. It is being presented is as if it is the problem of the developed world. But it's the developed world that has precipitated global warming. There will be a much greater negative impact on Africa because of its geography. But instead of adapting we are scraping the land, removing the vegetation and losing the soil. We are doing things to make it worse. "Besides, it's in the interests of the rich to help Africa adapt to climate change and preserve its forests. By allowing them to be destroyed a lot of the efforts made in the rich world will be negated and undermined." See also: Climate change huge challenge for Africa: minister	30th May 2009
Climate change could kill 500,000 a year by 2030 Kofi Annan has thrown his weight behind a report which reveals that 90 per cent of climate-related deaths are in the developing world and the numbers are set to climb	30th May 2009
INTERVIEW-Forest-CO2 scheme will draw organised crime: Interpol - AlertNet NUSA DUA, Indonesia, May 29 (Reuters) - Organised crime syndicates are eyeing the nascent forest carbon credit industry as a potentially lucrative new opportunity for fraud, an Interpol environmental crime official said on Friday. Peter Younger, an environmental crimes specialist at the world's largest international police agency, was referring to a U.N.-backed scheme called reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation. REDD aims to unlock potentially billions of dollars for developing countries that conserve and restore their forests. In return, they would earn carbon credits that can be sold for profit to developed nations that need to meet greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. "If you are going to trade any commodity on the open market, you are creating a profit and loss situation. There will be fraudulent trading of carbon credits," he told Reuters in an interview at a forestry conference in Nusa Dua on the Indonesian island of Bali. "In future, if you are running a factory and you desperately need credits to offset your emissions, there will be someone who can make that happen for you. Absolutely, organised crime will be involved."	30th May 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: More Subsidies for Fossil Fuels in Recovery Plans UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 29 (IPS) - Despite the economic slow down, growing numbers of world leaders are calling for urgent action on climate change while many governments used their economic stimulus packages to increase subsidies to the fossil fuel industry.	30th May 2009
Unravelling the myth behind sustainable investing - InvestorDaily A common perception exists that sustainable responsible investment fund managers underperform their conventional counterparts. However, longterm performance figures show this is not the case. Vishal Teckchandani examines the ethical investment sub-sector of the funds management industry.	30th May 2009
How To Save The Planet - Countercurrents By Gideon PolyaThe World is acutely threatened by man-made global warming and many scientists now doubt that we can avoid further damaging temperature increases to over 2C above that in 1900. However resolute global action via an Accountability, Badge and Credo (ABC) protocol may yet save Man and the Biosphere	30th May 2009
Unravelling the myth behind sustainable investing - InvestorDaily A common perception exists that sustainable responsible investment fund managers underperform their conventional counterparts. However, longterm performance figures show this is not the case. Vishal Teckchandani examines the ethical investment sub-sector of the funds management industry.	30th May 2009
How To Save The Planet - Countercurrents By Gideon PolyaThe World is acutely threatened by man-made global warming and many scientists now doubt that we can avoid further damaging temperature increases to over 2C above that in 1900. However resolute global action via an Accountability, Badge and Credo (ABC) protocol may yet save Man and the Biosphere	30th May 2009
How to shut down 93% of coal without building new plants or reducing power supply - Grist A quick analysis shows that the underutilized U.S. natural gas power plant fleet could quickly ramp up to take most coal off-line at fairly low cost. Paging a Mr. Pickens!	30th May 2009
Mysterious green meanies - Financial Times It’s been a strange year in Harlem. The robins didn’t migrate. The hyacinths popped up in the snow. And then tropical intruders took over the garden. This global warming is getting out of control.	30th May 2009
From Watchdog to Lapdog: An Insider's History of the EPA A former EPA analyst explains how the governmental body set up to protect the environment has been undermined by political pressure and industry.	30th May 2009
Climate pressure 'building on US' Climate negotiations begin in earnest in Bonn on Monday with pressure building for the US to deliver deeper cuts in emissions.	30th May 2009
Arctic's minerals threatens global strife Region could contain 30% of the world's gas reserves Fears that study will raise tensions in regionThe battle for the Arctic's hidden mineral riches is likely to intensify after a survey revealing the energy reserves present beneath the ice.A map of potential oil and gas reserves in the region, published today in Science, shows that about 30% of the world's -un-exploited gas and 13% of oil lie under the seas around the north pole. Billions of barrels of oil and trillions of cubic feet of gas lie within the Arctic -circle, where, until now, permanent ice has prevented drilling.The report is likely to further stoke international competition for mineral, tourism and shipping rights in the region.	30th May 2009
Copenhagen must create more buyers for carbon markets Demand for emissions-reducing projects is shrinking. Here's my solution to get supply and demand back in balanceAs I've been reminded at this week's Carbon Expo in Barcelona, carbon markets need more buyers. I've met a large number of people who are eager to get their climate-busting solution funded by selling permits on the carbon trading market. Some want to build windfarms and other renewables, others wish to prevent forests being cut down, others want to bury charcoal fertilising soils and trapping carbon still others want to seed the oceans with micro-nutrients to bring the oceans' ailing biodiversity back to life.But unless something dramatic happens, even if they succeed in gaining entry to the carbon trading club, the party may just end upon their arrival.	30th May 2009
Nobel Panel: Six Years to Change Course or Face Ruin! World carbon emissions must start to decline in only six years if humanity is to stand a chance of preventing unmanageable climate risks , according to a memorandum, signed by 20 Nobel laureates in physics, chemistry, economics, peace and literature.	30th May 2009
New CO2 figures may give geoengineering a boost The amount of carbon dioxide absorbed the world's oceans is far less than previously thought so could ocean seeding make a comeback, asks Phil McKenna	30th May 2009
Earth in the emergency room - Modesto Bee The longer we wait to address climate change, the harder it becomes to fix the problem. Every year's delay compounds the effort, and the danger. Even some lawmakers who accept the unmistakable scientific reality of global warming say we should wait. Congress already has too much on its plate, they say. Let's wait until next year, or until the economy recovers, or after the next election, when we may have more support in the House and Senate. But in Washington, next year often means never, and valuable time is slipping away. Although it often isn't immediately apparent, the effects of global warming are already showing.	30th May 2009
Energy from molten salt? In these green times energy producers are leaving no stone unturned in the hunt for new sources of energy. The Los Angeles Times reports that rocket-builder RocketDyne and a Santa Monica-based renewable energy company, SolarReserve, are planning to build a plant that they say could eventually power 100,000 homes by using solar power and molten salt. The idea, which analysts say is promising, is to use solar power, collected in a huge array of tilting mirrors, to heat up molten salt to over 1,000 degrees Farenheit and use the resulting steam to drive a turbine and generate electricity.	30th May 2009
Carbon trading and cash values on forests cannot curb carbon emissions - Guardian Climate change solutions cannot be created by unfettered markets, despite what business leaders thinkWhen Sir Crispin Tickell had the temerity to suggest that "the business community needs to re-examine the fundamentals of economics" at the recent World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen, his discordant tone was drowned out by a chorus of more than 800 delegates singing the praises of unfettered markets as a means to tackle climate change.The commitment to carry on with business as usual took an almost surreal form at times. Indra Nooyi, the chief executive officer of PepsiCo, proudly proclaimed: "The fact that I flew here for 1 1/2 hours to sit on a panel them I'm flying straight back to the US is an example of our commitment to environmental sustainability."More worryingly, plans for low-carbon technology give the expansion of high-carbon coal power pride of place. See also: Forests and the Planet - New York Times All the carbon counts - PhysOrg	29th May 2009
Carbon emissions must start falling in 2015 to keep warming to 2C ... - The Australian WORLD carbon emissions must start to decline in only six years if humanity is to stand a chance of preventing dangerous global warming, a group of 20 Nobel prize-winning scientists, economists and writers has declared. The United Nations climate summit in Copenhagen in December must agree to halve greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050 to stop temperatures from increasing by more than 2C, the St James's Palace Nobel Laureate Symposium concluded. While even a 2C temperature rise will have adverse consequences, a bigger increase would create "unmanageable climate risks", according to the St James's Palace memorandum, signed by 20 Nobel laureates in physics, chemistry, economics, peace and literature.	29th May 2009
300.org Urges Reduction Of Atmospheric CO2 To 300 ppm - Countercurrents By Dr Gideon Polya Australia-based 300.org was launched in May 2009 and will hopefully expand throughout the World. 300.org exists to inform people about the Climate Emergency and the need to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2 ) concentration to a safe and sustainable level of about 300 ppm	29th May 2009
Counting the real progress on climate action - Grist Progress on climate policy domestically will increase U.S. leverage in these talks, but President Barack Obama should look for additional ways to improve the American negotiating position than what we currently have on the table.	29th May 2009
Poo power to the people - Guardian German town to use cow and horse manure for green energy Biogas network could provide 30-40% of town's needsA German town will become the first in the world to be powered by animal waste when it launches a biogas network this year.Lünen, north of Dortmund, will use cow and horse manure as well as other organic material from local farms to provide cheap and sustainable electricity for its 90,000 residents.Biogas is already used around the world it will power buses in Oslo from September but Lünen claims to be the only town to build a dedicated biogas network.Material such as animal slurry and spoiled crops from local farms will be fed into heated tanks, where natural fermentation will break it down into methane and carbon dioxide the same basic ingredients as natural gas.	29th May 2009
El Nino odds rising with warming Pacific - Reuters SYDNEY (Reuters) - The chances of a 2009 El Nino, a warming of eastern Pacific waters that often brings drought to Australia's farmlands, has risen and is above a 20 percent probability, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology said on Thursday.	29th May 2009
Refugees Join List of Climate-Change Issues - New York Times A debate has begun over the world?s responsibilities to the millions of people likely to be displaced by climate change.	29th May 2009
Emissions traders expect U.S. carbon market soon - Reuters BARCELONA (Reuters) - Carbon market professionals hope speedy U.S. Congressional approval of a federal cap and trade scheme will boost emissions trading, which is threatened by recession and slow U.N. climate talks.	29th May 2009
Carbon capture technology tested - BBC Carbon capture technology is tested for the first time on a working UK power station, at Longannet in Fife.	29th May 2009
Oil firms and loggers 'push indigenous people to brink of extinction' - Guardian 'Uncontacted' tribes forced to flee armed gangs and bulldozers in forests of Peru, Brazil and Paraguay, says Survival InternationalFive "uncontacted" tribes are at imminent risk of extinction as oil companies, colonists and loggers invade their territiories. The semi-nomadic groups, who live deep in the forests of Peru, Brazil and Paraguay, are vulnerable to common western diseases such as flu and measles but also risk being killed by armed gangs, according to a report by Survival International, which identifies the five groups as the most threatened on Earth.Sixty members of the Awá tribe are said to be fleeing from gangs of loggers and ranchers on their land near Maranhão, Brazil.	29th May 2009
Canada hedges on 2010 start for emissions rules - Reuters via Yahoo! Canada News Canada's rules for cutting greenhouse gas emissions may not come into effect by 2010 as had been planned, Environment Minister Jim Prentice said on Thursday.	29th May 2009
The Cato Institute and Patrick Michaels - It's a Small World After All article-31904-3235.jpg It's not often the public gets to follow the money trail, so it was a treat this week when PR Watch revealed the Cato Institute has been bankrolling a consulting company owned by notorious climate denier Patrick Michaels to the tune of $242,900 since April 2006. Michaels is a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute and according to tax documents uncovered by PR Watch for 2006 and 2007, Cato ponyed up almost a quarter million to Michaels' firm New Hope Environmental Services for "environmental policy" services. Small world eh? <!--break--> Both Cato and Michaels have a long and reprehensible history of questioning the link between carbon emissions and climate change.	28th May 2009
Global boiling - San Diego CityBEAT “It’s the terms we’re using that are holding us back with the American people,” says Robert Perkowitz of EcoAmerica. If true, that means Americans are not delving into the problem any further than the name of the problem. It means they hear “global warming” and think, OK, that’s fine. I’m tired of these miserable New York winters anyway. Indeed, the phrase “global warming” doesn’t sound all that bad. It sounds like the globe was attending a patio party and started getting a little chilly, so somebody turned on the propane heaters to warm her up a bit. That’s why EcoAmerica says we should change the term to something more alarming, more doom-inducing. I’m typically opposed to such word manipulation, but now, I wonder.	28th May 2009
Permafrost melt poses long-term threat, says study - France24 Melting permafrost could eventually disgorge a billion tonnes a year of greenhouse gas into the atmosphere, ccelerating the threat from climate change, scientists said Wednesday. "At first, with the plants offsetting the carbon dioxide, it will appear that everything is fine, but this actually conceals the initial destabilisation of permafrost carbon," Schuur said in a press release. "But it doesn't last, because there is so much carbon in the permafrost that eventually the plants can't keep up." Most of the 13 million square kilometres (five million square miles) of permafrost remain frozen, but thawing is already under way around the region's southern fringes and is thought likely to expand this century. In that scenario, the permafrost could release around a billion tonnes a year of carbon, roughly equivalent to the contribution to greenhouse emissions each year by deforestation in the tropics, the paper said. Even as the Arctic greens, the rising loss of older carbon "could make permafrost a large biospheric carbon source in a warmer world," it said.	28th May 2009
U.N.'s Ban says climate change pace "alarming" HELSINKI (Reuters) - The impact of climate change is accelerating at an "alarming" pace and urgent action must be taken, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday.	28th May 2009
Global carbon market doubled in 2008, cut less CO2 BARCELONA (Reuters) - The global market for carbon emissions trading doubled in value last year, but actual realised emissions cuts fell as the global economic slowdown dented clean energy financing, the World Bank said on Wednesday.	28th May 2009
Meters go the distance: smart meters are an essential part of a low-carbon energy system Smart meters are an essential part of a 21st Century low carbon energy system, as the battle against climate change heats up.	28th May 2009
China puts its faith in solar power with huge renewable energy investment By 2020, Chinese government is committed to raising the share of ­renewable energy ­in the energy mix to 6%China is to throw its economic might behind a national solar power plan that could result in it becoming one of the world's biggest harvesters of the sun's energy.The government body responsible for overseeing energy policy has ­finalised a proposal for billions of pounds of ­incentives for solar farms and rooftop panels, which will come from the government's £400bn economic stimulus fund.Once approved by the state ­council, it is expected to give a boost to the ­domestic solar power market, which has lagged behind China's wind, nuclear and hydroelectric power investments.	28th May 2009
Economic impacts of carbon pricing How much will a price on carbon affect power bills? Not much. Big Coal isn't worried about customers, it's worried about its own profits.	28th May 2009
Ont. moving ahead with cap-and-trade: McGuinty - CNews Ontario and Quebec are moving ahead with plans to create a cap-and-trade system to fight climate change because they couldn't wait any longer for the Canadian and U.S. governments to come up with one of their own, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said Wednesday.	28th May 2009
'Winter drought affects food production' - Nepalnews. com A joint assessment by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MoAC), the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has revealed that winter drought has led to a severe drop in crop production in Nepal, placing more than two million people at high risk of food insecurity.	28th May 2009
Melting Greenland ice sheets may threaten Northeast United States ... - PhysOrg.com Melting of the Greenland ice sheet this century may drive more water than previously thought toward the already threatened coastlines of New York, Boston, Halifax, and other cities in the northeastern United States and in Canada, according to new research led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).	28th May 2009
Sarkozy in climate row over reshuffle - Financial Times President Nicolas Sarkozy's desire to appoint an outspoken climate-change sceptic to a new French super-ministry of industry and innovation has drawn strong protests from party colleagues and environmentalists. Claude Allègre argues that global warming is not necessarily caused by human activity. Putting him in charge of scientific research would be tantamount to "giving the finger to scientists", said Nicolas Hulot, France's best-known environmental activist. Mr Sarkozy wants to bring Mr Allègre, 72, a freethinking, former socialist education minister, into the government in a reshuffle after next month's European parliamentary elections. The president appears to reckon that appointing someone from outside his own centre-right party will help to counter perceptions that he is a polarising, sectarian leader who decides everything himself. Several portfolios are already held by figures from the left and centre.	28th May 2009
World CO2 up 39 percent by 2030 without new policy: EIA NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global emissions of the main greenhouse gas carbon dioxide will jump more than 39 percent by 2030 without new policies and binding pacts to cut global warming pollution, the top U.S. energy forecast agency said on Wednesday.	28th May 2009
Energy efficiency standards for appliances should include upstream costs The U.S. Department of Energy should consider gradually changing its system of setting appliance energy-efficiency standards to a full-fuel-cycle measurement, which takes into account both the energy used to operate an appliance, as well as upstream energy costs -- energy consumed in producing and distributing fuels from coal, oil, and natural gas, and energy lost in generating and delivering electric power. This change would offer consumers more complete information on household energy consumption and its environmental impacts, says a new congressionally mandated report from the National Research Council.	28th May 2009
Waxman-Markey giveaways pit consumer protection against climate protection Waxman-Markey supposedly requires a large percent of the savings from free permits to be passed along to consumers. The intent is that they act as protection against price increases rather than a source of profits for large companies. Unfortunately, to the extent this works, it is likely to dampen the price signals that are supposed to help emissions. Equally unfortunately, these provisions are much harder to enforce than appears at first glance.	28th May 2009
Australia threatens rethink on carbon aid - Reuters Australia threatens rethink on carbon aidReutersThe center-left government's plans to curb greenhouse gas emissions by between 5 percent and 25 percent on 2000 levels by 2020 is a key plank of its push to fight global warming. Australia's scheme aims to cover 75 percent of the nation's carbon ...	28th May 2009
Prince Charles: delay on rainforests will have catastrophic consequences Prince appeals to decision-makers to act fast and put monetary value on forests at gathering of Nobel laureatesCatastrophic climate change cannot be avoided unless the world's tropical forests are saved, Prince Charles told 20 Nobel prizewinners, including US energy secretary Steven Chu today.In a passionate speech to the physics, chemistry, peace and literature laureates, Charles appealed to decision-makers to put a monetary value on forests and to act fast."The longer we all argue about minutiae and statistics, the more rainforest disappears. Solving climate change is the precondition to ensuring security and without adequately addressing tropical deforestation we cannot have an answer to climate change.	28th May 2009
The Architect of Contraction & Convergence advises - Jo Abbess Many Climate Change campaigners are framing Climate Change in the language of those poor people in the Global South, how terrible for them. The facts are that Climate Change is hitting the poorest first, and hardest. And we need to take an ethical position on that. But this patronising language of International Development is so clearly an emotional tactic. Some Economists even adopt this language, even that trusted adviser to the UK Government, Nicholas Stern. Some of these apparently caring, benevolent Economists are however hiding an agenda - opening up new markets in Africa to industries in the OECD. Let's be clear. I'm not insinuating that Nicholas Stern is a fake philanthropist. What I'm trying to point out is that emotional arguments about ethics and values are not going to get an international agreement on Climate Safety. Aubrey Meyer makes the point that, if we do the numbers properly, that the only rational approach to Climate Change and Peak Oil is to create a framework of equitable use of the remaining Carbon Energy.	27th May 2009
Leading article: Big business and moral responsibility - Independent Today's court hearing in New York against Shell for complicity in the execution of the Nigerian writer Ken Saro-Wiwa and his fellow Ogoni activists in 1995 is about much more than a single company and one terrible act of violent suppression. Ultimately, it is about the moral responsibilities of multinational companies operating in the developing world. See also: The Video Shell Oil Desperately Doesn't Want You to See Climate change summit hijacked by biggest polluters, critics say	27th May 2009
Playing Roulette with Global Warming - MIT  The most comprehensive modeling yet carried out on the likelihood of how much hotter the Earth's climate will get in this century shows that without rapid and massive action, the problem will be about twice as severe as previously estimated six years ago - and could be even worse than that. The study uses the MIT Integrated Global Systems Model, a detailed computer simulation of global economic activity and climate processes that has been developed and refined by the Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change since the early 1990s. The new research involved 400 runs of the model with each run using slight variations in input parameters, selected so that each run has about an equal probability of being correct based on present observations and knowledge. Other research groups have estimated the probabilities of various outcomes, based on variations in the physical response of the climate system itself. But the MIT model is the only one that interactively includes detailed treatment of possible changes in human activities as well - such as the degree of economic growth, with its associated energy use, in different countries.	27th May 2009
Why the Right to Emit Carbon Dioxide Is Given Away in U.S. Climate Change Bill - Scientific American In order to win the support of legislators from heavy emitting states, allowances under the new American Clean Energy and Security Act had to be given away free	27th May 2009
Russia makes major shift in climate policy - Nature Putin emphasizes the need for action on global warming.	27th May 2009
Why Obama Should Take Notes from Cuba on a Green Energy Revolution Cuba has successfully greened its energy sector over the last few years, and is now exporting its energy revolution.	27th May 2009
Carbon Plan in Ecuador Would Leave Jungle Oil Reserves Untapped - Yale 360 Conservationists are working on a plan that would leave a vast oil deposit in the pristine jungle of the Ecuadorean Amazon undeveloped, in exchange for billions of dollars in payments from governments and companies looking to purchase carbon offsets. The oil fields - which contain about 20 percent of Ecuador's oil reserves - lie under the Yasuni National Park in northeastern Ecuador, an undeveloped area that harbors some of the richest biological diversity on earth. Under the conservation plan, Ecuador would sell certificates on fledgling carbon markets that would allow governments or companies to emit carbon dioxide in amounts equal to the carbon left underground in Yasuni.	27th May 2009
Concentrated solar could generate '25of world's energy' - Guardian Industry groups call for solar thermal technology to expand in 'sun belt' around world as Spain leads the fieldSolar power stations that concentrate sunlight could generate up to one-quarter of the world's electricity needs by 2050, according to a study by environmental and solar industry groups. The technology, best suited to the desert regions of the world, could also create hundreds of thousands of new jobs and save millions of tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.Concentrating solar power (CSP) uses mirrors to focus sunlight onto water. This produces steam that can then turn turbines and generate electricity.	27th May 2009
Cyclone Aila - a grim reminder of climate change - Thaindian.com Kolkata, May 26 (IANS) Cyclone Aila, that hit the east coast of India Monday devastating over 100,000 people in the Sundarbans delta region of crops and lifestock, was a grim consequence of climate change, say experts. NGOs who work in the area said the main dykes in major islands such as Sagar, Patharpratima, Sandeshkhali I and II, Hingalganj, Kultoli, Mousuni and many small islands in the Gosaba area had been breached, and brackish water had entered farmlands and freshwater ponds during the cyclone Monday, ruining the crops and killing the fish. See also: Why global warming means killer storms worse than Katrina and Gustav, Part 1 - Grist	27th May 2009
China on high alert of forest fire - China Daily HARBIN -- China faces a tough test in preventing forest fires, with key wooded areas reporting a surge in blazes during the past month, a forestry official said Monday.	27th May 2009
Jeepers Creepers! Climate Change Threatens Endangered Honeycreepers - USGS Today, native Hawaiian birds face one of the highest rates of extinction in the world. Of 41 honeycreeper species and subspecies known since historic times, 17 are probably extinct, 14 are endangered, and only 3 are in decent shape. Pox and malaria transmission in Hawaii depends on climatic conditions, especially seasonal changes in temperature and rainfall that increase or decrease mosquito populations. “ Although most disease transmission now occurs in these mid-elevation forests, this will change if the projected 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Centigrade) raise in temperature occurs. “With this kind of temperature change, about 60 to 96 percent of the high-elevation disease refuges would disappear,” said Atkinson. For example, available high-elevation forest habitat in the low-risk disease zone would likely decline by nearly 60 percent at Hanawi Natural Area Reserve on Maui to as much as 96 percent at Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge on Hawaii Island. On other islands, such as Kauai, with lower elevations and no low-risk zones even now, predicted temperature changes would likely be catastrophic for remaining honeycreeper species.	27th May 2009
ENVIRONMENT: Extraordinary Abundance of Life in Oceans Past - IPS UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 26 (IPS) - Imagine large pods of mighty blue whales and orcas darkening the waters off Cornwall, England, while closer to shore blue sharks and thresher sharks chase herds of harbour porpoise and dolphins. See also: The critical role of ocean history in the ocean future	27th May 2009
America's new green guru sparks anger over climate change U-turns President Obama's energy secretary, Nobel prize-winner Steven Chu, arrives in Europe this week to discuss global warming. But his recent policy decisions on coal-fired power stations and hydrogen cars have angered many environmentalistsUS energy secretary Steven Chu will fly to Europe this week to begin talks that will be crucial in the global battle against climate change. The 61-year-old physicist will hold key discussions with energy ministers from the G8 nations in Rome before travelling to London to take part in a debate with Nobel prize winners on global warming.The arrival of Chu, himself a physics Nobel laureate, comes as the scientist-turned-politician finds himself attacked by environmentalists over decisions he has made about America's campaign to fight global warming.	27th May 2009
Deforestation 'faster in Africa' - BBC News Africa's forests are disappearing faster than those in other parts of the world because of a lack of land ownership, a report says.	27th May 2009
SCENARIOS-Possible outcomes for Australian carbon trade laws - AlertNet CANBERRA, May 26 (Reuters) - The Australian government's timetable for carbon trading was thrown into doubt on Tuesday when the main opposition Liberal and National parties voted to try to delay a parliamentary decision on the plan. Here are some of the possible options for the government and outcomes for Australia's emissions trading scheme (ETS). See also: Emissions stand-off - Sydney Morning Herald	27th May 2009
Peak Oil Contraction - The Truth is Out There It sometimes seems that truth is not only stranger than fiction, it's out there, somewhere, way beyond our active recall. We all know from our early years education that Petroleum Oil is a finite resource, unless we were home-schooled by Creationists. Baking algae and other dead oceanic gunk at a particular depth under a certain kind of rock formation, following one of a small number of Global Warming life extinctions. This is where and how Petroleum was made. There's only a limited amount, because those conditions have only occurred a few times and in a few general regions in Earth history. See also: Saudis warn of huge rise in oil prices - Guardian Unlimited	27th May 2009
Tories' greenhouse-gas estimates off: commissioner - CNews Canada's environment commissioner says the Conservative government's estimated cuts to greenhouse gases are off by at least half.	27th May 2009
White roofs and 'cool' cars - Obama's US energy secretary gives Prince Charles tips on tackling climate change Reflecting sunlight on buildings and cars among dozens of ideas considered by Steven Chu and the US energy departmentPeople should paint their roofs white and drive "cool" cars on pale-coloured roads to avoid devastating climate change, US energy secretary and Nobel prize-winning physicist Steven Chu has advised Prince Charles and a group of 19 other laureates meeting in London today.The measures, which would reflect sunlight and enable buildings and automobiles to stay cooler and use less energy in summer, are some of dozens that Chu and the US energy department are considering for the "revolution" which he said was needed in the US, Europe and around the world to address global warming."Yes, make people paint their roofs white.	27th May 2009
Spring agricultural fires have large impact on melting Arctic - PhysOrg Scientists from around the world will convene at the University of New Hampshire June 2-5, 2009, to discuss key findings from the most ambitious effort ever undertaken to measure "short-lived" airborne pollutants in the Arctic and determine how they contribute in the near term to the dramatic changes underway in the vast, climate-sensitive region.	27th May 2009
Shetland's Viking wind farm plan - Guardian Unlimited As money from the Sullom Voe oil terminal dries up, Shetland islanders seek a new energy deal	27th May 2009
Brazil floods displace thousands - BBC News Brazilian authorities say 380,000 people cannot return home after floods that began last month in the Amazon basin.	26th May 2009
Brazil floods displace thousands - BBC News Brazilian authorities say 380,000 people cannot return home after floods that began last month in the Amazon basin.	26th May 2009
Climate change amplifying animal disease - PhysOrg Climate change is widening viral disease among farm animals, expanding the spread of some microbes that are also a known risk to humans, the world's top agency for animal health said on Monday.	26th May 2009
Climate change making Everest ascent harder: sherpa - Reuters KATHMANDU (Reuters) - A Nepali sherpa who holds the world record for climbing Mount Everest said on Monday rising temperatures were melting snow and turning the slopes barren, making it even harder to scale the world's tallest peak.	26th May 2009
Top greenhouse emitters meet, U.S. defends cuts PARIS (Reuters) - Top emitters of greenhouse gases tried on Monday to break a deadlock about sharing the burden of cuts in a U.N. climate pact, and Washington rejected charges that it was lagging Europe in fighting global warming.	26th May 2009
Green technology should be shared | Mark Weisbrot - Guardian Unlimited Big Big business is gearing up to fight the use of green technology by developing countries seeking to reduce carbon emissions	26th May 2009
Study says businesses can create clean energy jobs - PhysOrg (AP) -- The organizers of a global business summit on climate change say millions of new jobs would be created in the U.S. alone by relying almost entirely on renewable or low-carbon sources of electricity.	26th May 2009
The Big Question: Is America finally getting real about climate change?	26th May 2009
France and Germany urge more flexible climate pact - Tiscali PARIS (Reuters) - France and Germany suggested on Monday that rich nations should collectively guarantee deep cuts in greenhouse gases by 2020 while giving flexibility to laggards such as the United States to catch up later.	26th May 2009
Racing the clock: Rapid climate change forces scientists to evaluate extreme conservation strategies - PhysOrg Scientists are, for the first time, objectively evaluating ways to help species adapt to rapid climate change and other environmental threats via strategies that were considered too radical for serious consideration as recently as five or 10 years ago. Among these radical strategies currently being considered is so-called "managed relocation." Managed relocation, which is also known as "assisted migration," involves manually moving species into more accommodating habitats where they are not currently found.	26th May 2009
Senate to block carbon trading plan - Adelaide Now KEVIN Rudd's carbon pollution reduction scheme faces defeat in the Senate as the Coalition will seek to defer a vote until next year - providing a possible election trigger.	26th May 2009
Mainstream environmentalists enthusiasm for Waxman-Markey ensures it will get worse - Grist Mainstream environmentalists who take the position that the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill “could be worse” help ensure that it will be.	25th May 2009
US Climate Negotiator: US Won't Speed Up Emissions Cuts - Nasdaq PARIS (AFP)--Domestic politics will not allow the United States to deepen it commitment for cutting carbon pollution over the next decade, despite growing international pressure, Washington's top climate negotiator said Sunday.	25th May 2009
Ban says US climate bill plan "not enough" - Reuters India COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - A draft U.S. climate bill did not go far enough to cut greenhouse gases, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told Reuters on Sunday, three days after the plan won a key Congressional panel vote. Ban applauded President Barack Obama's engagement on global warming but said that other countries were doing more, and added that a new global climate pact meant to be agreed in December could not wait for the United States to pass its domestic rules. "That's what I have been doing and will continue to do," Ban said when asked if he was urging the United States to do more.	25th May 2009
It's climate models or seaweed - Guardian Unlimited MIT scientists forecast a global temperature rise of 5.2C by 2100 - but climate change deniers reject models devised by the world's finest minds. So what do they suggest instead… seaweed?	25th May 2009
Testing the Resolve of Obama on Energy - New York Times COPENHAGEN — The pursuit of independence from imported oil has thwarted every president since Richard M. Nixon. But making that push while also seeking steep reductions in emissions of the heat-trapping gases that cause global warming significantly compounds the degree of difficulty. In the six months before world leaders gather in this city to seek a deal on climate change, President Obama will face a true test of presidential grit as he tries to deliver on his call for transformational policies on energy and the environment.	25th May 2009
Emissions scheme would create 30,000 jobs: report - Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Climate Institute has released a report showing the Federal Government's emissions trading scheme and other environmental policies will create tens of thousands of jobs.	25th May 2009
Solar power could surge by 2050 in deserts: study - Reuters PARIS (Reuters) - Solar power plants in deserts using mirrors to concentrate the sun's rays have the potential to generate up to a quarter of the world's electricity by 2050, a report by pro-solar groups said on Monday.	25th May 2009
NZ 'must prepare for warmer climate' - The New Zealand Herald New Zealand should be stamping out rock snot and stepping up efforts to beat rats and possums to prepare for global warming.	25th May 2009
Appearance of Himalayas are changing due to climate change, garbage - Xinhua KATHMANDU, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The mountainous range of Himalayan nation Nepal are gradually changing their appearance as they are caught with severity of global warming and garbage. Apa Sherpa, also known as Nepal's "Super Sherpa" who had climbed Mt. Qomolangma 8848 meters 19th time beating his own previous record said on Monday, "White part of the Mt. Qomolangma is melting exposing its rocky parts."	25th May 2009
Protecting oceans vital in warming fight - United Press International WASHINGTON, May 24 (UPI) -- Governments seeking to stop global warming must give a higher priority to protecting marine ecosystems, scientists said Sunday in Washington. Meeting at the International Marine Conservation Congress, the scientists stressed that because the oceans act as a vital carbon sink absorbing much of the ever-increasing supply of carbon emissions, maintaining their health is a prerequisite for battling climate change, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, a Swiss environmental group, said in a release.	25th May 2009
Gore, others urge CEOs to back climate change deal - News Tribune Gore, others urge CEOs to back climate change dealCarlisle Sentinel, PAA new global warming treaty would build on the Kyoto treaty's mixed success in requiring that 37 industrialized nations reduce greenhouse gas emissions an average of 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2012. Gore said any of the ambitious treaty goals being ...	25th May 2009
U.N.'s Ban urges business to back climate policies - Reuters COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Industry should play its part in the fight against climate change by persuading governments to aid carbon cuts rather than lobbying against them, the U.N. Secretary-General told a business conference on Sunday.	25th May 2009
Carbon offset arithmetic doesn't add up - Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Clean Development Mechanism has been useful in the first phase of Kyoto but no longer sends the right message, writes Oliver Sartor from the Australian School of Business.	25th May 2009
Australian Greens want quick vote on carbon trade - Reuters CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's Greens called for a quick parliamentary vote to defeat government plans for carbon trading on Monday, a move that could make the issue a trigger for an early general election.	25th May 2009

We must fight CO2 fast - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review All around the world, national governments are trying to finalize their global warming policies, preparing for the United Nations' climate-change conclave in Copenhagen, Denmark, at the end of 2009. And in too many places, the effort seems to be going nowhere. Here, for instance, the government decided to postpone any real action for another year, citing the recession. It weakened major elements of its "emissions trading scheme," bowing to pressure from the coal industry, the country's biggest exporter. In Washington, the Obama administration is valiantly helping to push a bill through Congress that would finally set a cap on U.S. carbon emissions. But it could be watered down with lots of loopholes and compromises. The trouble is, physics and chemistry aren't adjusting their schedule to fit our political and economic convenience. Each week brings new accounts of crashing ice sheets and spreading droughts. But as politics gets slower, global warming speeds up. The problem isn't feckless officials. And the problem isn't that environmental groups aren't working hard enough. The problem is pretty simple: The environmental movement isn't big enough. It's nowhere near big enough to take on the fossil fuel industry, the biggest player in our global economy. It's like sending the Food and Drug Administration to fight the war in Afghanistan.	24th May 2009
Droughts drain northern lakes - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Scientists and property owners say they are worried about the long-term effects of a prolonged drought on fishing and water quality in northern Wisconsin as they've watched some lakes drop to their lowest point in 70 years. As people flock to the north this weekend, drought conditions also are evident in tinder-dry forests that experienced a surge in fires last week.	24th May 2009
Green technology through the ages The Manchester International Festival and the Guardian are inviting submissions for ideas to help tackle climate change. From electric cars in 1919 and solar powered printing presses, to passive houses and wave power, here is a selection of green inventions past and present. Future innovations could be decided by you	24th May 2009
High hopes for high speed - The Christian Science Monitor USA: A $13 billion proposal could lay high-speed tracks in the midwest, California, and Florida.	24th May 2009
Spy On Neighbors' Carbon Footprint With Cisco's Carbon Emissions Map - Fast Company Magazine Let the carbon emissions neighborhood wars begin. Cisco Systems and San Francisco's Department of the Environment announced their collaboration recently on the Urban EcoMap, a free Web-based carbon footprint-tracking tool that breaks down emissions information from energy, waste, and transportation by zip code. Cisco used a number of factors to reach its calculations, including hybrid car ownership, recycling rates, and trash collection.	24th May 2009
AUSTRALIA: Carbon budget blowout Two protesters abseiled from the front of parliament house on May 13 in a dramatic protest against the federal government's policies on climate change.	24th May 2009
For more news, click here >> News from previous days is below

US Climate Legislation Climate change legislation, beyond party and faction - Grist A green Republican reflects on the state of his party when it comes to passing climate and energy legislation this year. U.S. Climate Plan Threatens EU Goal for Global Accord - Bloomberg May 22 (Bloomberg) -- The European Union may have to scale back its goals to reduce global-warming emissions after a less- ambitious plan won initial approval in U.S. Congress. Gore vs. Hansen: - Enviros take sides in debate over House climate bill The Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill is polarizing the environmental community. Longtime climate crusader Al Gore says we should do all we can to get the legislation passed; top climate scientist James Hansen says we should demand a better bill. Activists and environmental groups are picking sides or staking out positions in the middle. Duke Energy, Alcoa, GE Win in Climate Legislation by Signing On - Bloomberg May 22 (Bloomberg) -- Environmental group members and representatives of the world's biggest greenhouse-gas emitters were on edge when they first sat down at the same table, John Mimikakis says. US climate strategies appear to be losing steam - EUActiv US-led talks on strategies for major nations to fight global warming may stop short of setting firm new targets and dates, such as 2050 goals for greenhouse gas emissions, Washington's top climate envoy said on 21 May. Traders See $10 a Ton CO2 Price Floor in Climate Bill - Bloomberg May 22 (Bloomberg) -- The climate-change legislation that cleared a committee of the U.S. House yesterday would set an effective price floor for carbon-dioxide permits of $10 each, according to an emissions trading group. Clean Energy Bill Survives: Political Realists Rejoice, Climate Science Realists Demand More Now the next challenge: how to stop this bill from being weakened as it winds itself through the House and the Senate.

23rd May 2009

New Labour architect attacks government for failing to convince public on climate change urgency - Guardian One of the most important thinkers behind New Labour has attacked the government for failing to convince people that radical action on climate change is needed. Lord Anthony Giddens, the former director of the London School of Economics and a key architect of the New Labour project, said that global warming was such vital issue that a political "revolution" is needed to get to grips with it. He acknowledged that New Labour had been slow to develop serious climate change policies and he criticised the government's current policies on the expansion of Heathrow airport and new coal-fired power stations.	23rd May 2009
Arctic methane rise spurs worry on permafrost thaw - AlertNet OSLO, May 22 (Reuters) - A rise in concentrations of a powerful greenhouse gas over the Arctic after a decade of stability is stirring worries about a possible thaw of vast stores trapped in permafrost, experts said. Levels of methane in the atmosphere rose 0.6 percent in 2008, according to preliminary data from the Zeppelin station on a remote island in the Norwegian Arctic, after a similar 0.6 percent gain in 2007, Norwegian officials said. The 2007 rise outpaced a global rise in methane of 0.34 percent to a new record high after levels had been stable for about a decade. World data for 2008 are not yet available. "The biggest worry is that there are emissions from the permafrost, and also from wetlands in the northern region," said Catherine Lund Myhre, senior scientist at the Norwegian Institute for Air Research.	23rd May 2009
Insurer blames climate change - Sydney Morning Herald AS FLOODS lash northern NSW, insurance companies say they are revising their estimates due to climate change. Damage from severe weather has increased significantly in the past few years, while other forms of natural disasters have remained static, said the head of geo risks research at the global insurance giant Munich Re, Peter Hoeppe. "If you calculate the trends in weather-related natural catastrophes you find a distinct difference in recent years," Dr Hoeppe told the Herald.	23rd May 2009
Data on global warming - Atlanta Journal Constitution If I’m watching a baseball game and the guy in the next seat says “He’s gonna hit to shortstop,” and then the player hits it to shortstop, I’m intrigued. If he gets it right batter after batter, I’m really impressed. And that’s pretty much what climate scientists have achieved.	23rd May 2009
Yosemite's giant trees disappear - BBC News The oldest trees within California's Yosemite National Park are disappearing, and climate change appears to be a cause.	23rd May 2009
Now, you can hear global warming - Economic Times WASHINGTON: A new study has determined that it's now possible to hear the rise of global warming, in the form of more larger and more intense storms , which are signs of climate change.	23rd May 2009
Thousands evacuate Australian floods, one dead SYDNEY (Reuters) - Thousands more people in Australia's flood-hit east were told to leave their homes on Saturday as gale-force winds lashed the coast and emergency services said up to 20,000 people had been cut off.	23rd May 2009
Wales plans for energy self-sufficiency with renewables in 20 years - Guardian Ambitious, legally binding plans 'set an example for the rest of the world to follow', says Jonathan PorrittWales today laid out radical plans to make it one of the most energy- and resource-efficient countries in the world within a generation.The government development plans, which are legally binding, are far in advance of anything planned for England or Scotland and would see it become energy self-sufficient in using renewable electricity within 20 years and reduce waste to zero by 2050.The proposals would make Wales one of only three countries in the world legally bound to develop "sustainably"."We intend to reduce by 80-90% our use of carbon-based energy, resulting in a similar reduction in our greenhouse gas generation," said Jane Davidson, the Welsh environment minister, launching the sustainable development scheme at the Guardian's Hay festival.	23rd May 2009
'Why don't we stop hurting the planet?' Telling our children about climate change could leave them angry, worried or even traumatised. So when and how should we do it, asks Leo Hickman	23rd May 2009
Nuns arrive at eco-convent and leave behind high-carbon habit Move sees convent swap fuel-hungry abbey for new home with solar panels, grass-covered roof and reedbed sewage system.	23rd May 2009
FACTBOX-Australia's forests poised for CO2 trade boom - AlertNet Forests soak up planet-warming carbon dioxide gas as they grow and planting large stands of trees is one strategy that carbon-polluting firms hope will offset emissions from industry and transport. Emissions trading laws before the Australian parliament, if passed in coming weeks, would allow the nation's forestry sector to be the first to operate under the scheme from July 1 next year, giving it a competitive advantage.	23rd May 2009
MPG: The Economics of CAFE, Part Two - Seeking Alpha In the same post I discussed yesterday, Keith Hennessey cites the same NHTSA report – the Final Rule governing CAFE standards for model years 2011-15, issued in January 2008 – to make this point: “The proposal will have a trivial effect on global climate change.” (It’s point 5 in his post, and was also picked up by Alex Tabarrok in his endorsement.) Hennessey cites the NHTSA report accurately, but the report itself is misleading.	23rd May 2009
Crash Landing As BA reports massive losses, isn't it time to scrap the airport expansion programme?	23rd May 2009
Corals upgrade algae to beat the heat - New Scientist The reef-forming animals can swap their symbiotic algae for more heat-resistant strains in hotter waters, raising hopes that more reefs will survive climate change	23rd May 2009
Eco-vandals take on the gas-guzzlers - Independent UK: Police are searching for a gang of radical environmental activists after a series of attacks on 4x4 vehicles. The gang, who claim to have targeted up to 80 vehicles across South Manchester, let down tyres and leave notes accusing the owners of adding to global warming and increasing the chances of road deaths.	23rd May 2009
Mother Nature and Father Greed - Thought Leader Mother Nature and Father Greed have both reached crisis at the same time, environmentalist Monica Graaff told an Institute of Directors breakfast in Cape Town last week.	23rd May 2009
No Stopping the Gravy Train of Car Support? We first present York, UK-based John Whitelegg's recent editorial in the World Transport Policy Practice journal (Volume 15, Number 1). He shows "Investing in the car industry is wrong." Readers of our old incarnation the Auto-Free Times will recall his brilliance. Following Prof. Whitelegg's editorial is Kurt Lesser's Comment in the same edition that challenges us -- with logic so pure you'll laugh in delight -- to stop the madness of throwing more good money after bad: at cars.	23rd May 2009
US CO2 goals 'to be compromised' - BBC Energy Secretary Steven Chu says the US will not be able to cut emissions as much as needed due to domestic opposition.	21st May 2009
Ignore the spin: Coal gasification is a stupid idea - New Scientist Lured by the prospect of "clean coal"? Take note of a US National Academy of Sciences report, says Phil McKenna	21st May 2009
Will mail to Congress influence the outcome of Waxman-Markey? - New York Times While polls continue to show that most people's interest in the climate change issue is fairly tepid, Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-La.) is getting some really hot mail from his constituents. Melancon is one of several moderates who have yet to announce their positions on major climate legislation headed to a vote in the House Energy and Commerce Committee. A review of mail sent to several committee members highlights the pressures they face	21st May 2009
Amazon land giveaway outrages conservationists - Reuters BRASILIA (Reuters) - A law expected to be approved by Brazil's Congress granting 1.2 million people and numerous companies titles to a huge chunk of the Amazon rain forest could provoke a new wave of land-grabbing and deforestation, conservationists warn.	21st May 2009
House panel approves climate change bill - Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A key U.S. House of Representatives committee on Thursday approved legislation to tackle climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, one of President Barack Obama's chief policy goals.	21st May 2009
Eco-home is light years ahead - Guardian The dream of zero-carbon living is being realised on an estate in Denmark. Andrew Purcell takes a tour of the world's first Active HouseSolar panels warm underfloor heating. Fifty square metres of solar cells generate electricity. Computer-controlled windows automatically regulate internal temperature.This is the last place you would expect to find the solar-powered home of the future. Lystrup, a suburb of Denmark's second city, Aarhus, is grey from street to sky. The spring sun, hidden behind a bank of clouds that doesn't break once on my week- long visit, barely seems strong enough to run a pocket calculator, let alone meet the energy needs of a family of four.	21st May 2009
Wings that waggle could cut aircraft emissions by 20 percent - PhysOrg Wings which redirect air to waggle sideways could cut airline fuel bills by 20% according to research funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Airbus in the UK.	21st May 2009
Study: Michigan mammals rapidly migrating north - WTOL Scientists say some of Michigan's mammal species are migrating rapidly northward, probably because of climate change. Researchers studied records of 9 common mammals such as opossums, white-footed mice and eastern chipmunks. They found that species historically from the South are gaining ground in northern Michigan. Meanwhile, historically northern species are declining.	21st May 2009
In Brazil, extreme weather stokes climate worries ILHA GRANDE, Brazil (Reuters) - No one could say they hadn't seen it coming.	21st May 2009
U.S. panel OKs CFTC to regulate carbon derivatives WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. House committee on Thursday agreed to give the U.S. regulator that oversees futures markets, such as the New York Mercantile, jurisdiction over the trading of new derivative contracts based on carbon emissions.	21st May 2009
Planting green moles in corporate America The Environmental Defense Fund is dispatching MBAs to spread the green gospel in Corporate America. Their message: Going green saves green!	21st May 2009
Plastic forests touted as the way to survive climate change - icWales Plastic forests may not sound like the most desirable way to combat global warming. But, as Sally Williams discovers, they stand the best chance of surviving climate change	21st May 2009
Solar Takes a Backseat in National Climate and Energy Bill - RenewableEnergyWorld.com Here we are in May, with Obama’s first 100 days behind him and Congress assiduously debating his clean energy plan. The President's plan includes three major components: global warming policy (cap and trade), a national requirement for utilities to produce a certain percentage of their power from renewables (Renewable Portfolio Standard), and much-needed improvements to our antiquated transmission system. Does this sweeping new plan include provisions to make solar energy, which currently accounts for 1/10th of one percent of our electricity supply, a substantial part of the nation’s energy mix? The accurate answer is nuanced, but the short answer is no.	21st May 2009
Regional Climate Pact's Lesson: Avoid Big Giveaways to Industry As Congress struggles over a bill to limit carbon emissions, a cap-and-trade program is already operating in 10 Northeastern states. But the regional project's mixed success offers a cautionary warning to U.S. lawmakers on how to proceed. BY KEITH SCHNEIDER	21st May 2009
China strikes tough pose for climate talks - FT.com Blogs China adopted a hard line on Thursday ahead of climate change negotiations, calling on rich countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions 40 per cent by 2020 from 1990 levels and help pay for reduction schemes in poorer countries. Beijing reiterated its belief that developing countries, including China, should curb their emissions on a purely voluntary basis, and only if the curbs “accord with their national situations and sustainable development strategies”.	21st May 2009
Price of doing nothing costs the earth MIT scientists forecast a global temperature rise of 5.2C by 2100 - but climate change deniers reject models devised by the world's finest minds. So what do they suggest instead… seaweed?What happens if we do nothing? If, in other words, we do as Vaclav Klaus and many other suggest, and let climate change take its course? Six years ago the climate modellers at MIT suggested that the median probability was a global temperature rise of 2.4C by 2100. Since then they've refined the model. Now the median estimate is 5.2C by 2100. This is another way of saying the end of life as we know it. See also: Global warming could be twice as bad as forecast - Reuters	20th May 2009
POLITICS-US: Lobbyist Ranks Swell with Advent of Climate Bill WASHINGTON, May 20 (IPS) - Nearly 140 new businesses and interest groups have joined in the intense lobbying in Washington on climate change, according to the Centre for Public Integrity (CPI). See also: Climate change lobbying dominated by ten firms - Grist Magazine	20th May 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: 200 Days to Copenhagen UNITED NATIONS, May 20 (IPS) - With exactly 200 days to go before December's crucial climate talks in Copenhagen, progress is steadily, though slowly, being made. Some issues, however - namely financing and the relative roles of industrial and developing countries - are likely to remain on the table until the end of the year. See also: Crucial climate negotiation texts go public UN hopeful about climate change KYOTO2 proposals sent to key people	20th May 2009
Science alone will not save us - Guardian Unlimited Changing behaviour will be as vital as new technologies in tackling climate change. So where is the funding for linguists, anthropologists and sociologists? Tariq Tahir reports	20th May 2009
Largest wind farm to be expanded Europe's largest onshore wind farm is to be expanded further, Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond announces.	20th May 2009
U.S. energy CO2 output drops record 2.8 percent NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. emissions of the main greenhouse gas -- carbon dioxide -- from energy sources, such as gasoline, diesel and coal, fell a record 2.8 percent last year as the recession hit consumer demand for fuel, the government said on Wednesday.	20th May 2009
U.S. lawmakers reject nuclear in renewable power goa l WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers pushing to include greater recognition for existing nuclear power in a national renewable energy standard failed to win new breaks for the industry when a U.S. congressional panel on Wednesday voted down an amendment to a controversial climate change bill.	20th May 2009
House panel to approve climate change bill: Reuters poll WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee have enough votes to approve historic legislation to cap and reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to a Reuters survey of specific lawmakers on the panel. See also: Waxman-Markey: Will Congress Cave to Big Industry and Kill One of Most Important Pieces of Legislation Ever?	20th May 2009
Global warming is sending Britain's moths northwards, experts say - BBC News Britain's moth populations are heading northwards, almost certainly as a result of climate change, according to experts.	20th May 2009
Disappearance of Aral Sea In a dramatic series of satellite photos, NASA has documented one of the great environmental disasters of the last century: the disappearance - and near death - of the Aral Sea in Central Asia. Once the world's fourth-largest lake, the Aral Sea became the victim of a grand Soviet public works project that diverted the water bound for the inland body of water and pumped it into the desert to grow cotton and other crops. By 2000, when the first photograph in this series was taken by NASA's Terra satellite, the Aral Sea had already shrunk by more than half since the diversion projects began in 1960.	20th May 2009
Americans don't agree about global warming - Christian Science Monitor Massachusetts Institute of Technology asked more than 2000 Americans about their beliefs in global warming. Here's a summary of what they found. (You can read the whole thing by clicking here.)	20th May 2009
Republican counter-strategy on climate: Revenge! How much smaller can the climate denial tent get? We're about to find out.	20th May 2009
Politics-as-usual strains sustainable future 22 years after the Brundtland Commission analysed the reasons why society ought to develop in such a way as "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs", we are a very long way from that ideal (see the UN's Geo-4 report for details), and many of the important players appear blissfully ignorant of the reasoning	19th May 2009
CO2 absorption of Europe's forests in jeopardy - Radio Netherlands The economic crisis is disturbing the delicate balance between forestry, felling and planting. If the wood-industry sector disappears, the capacity of the forests to absorb CO2 will be dramatically diminished.	19th May 2009
Armed Forces Community Takes Up Global Warming Cause: It's an Ugrent Matter of National Security Delaying the transition to a sustainable energy economy or to launching an aggressive response to global climate change is a national security threat.	19th May 2009
Chu Calls U.S. House Climate Legislation a 'Good Compromise' - Bloomberg May 18 (Bloomberg) -- Energy Secretary Steven Chu said that legislation being debated in the House Energy and Commerce Committee to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases is a “good compromise.” See also: Good News, There's a Climate Bill -- Bad News, It Stinks	19th May 2009
Bahrain has driest 'rainy season' in 40 years - Trade Arabia Bahrain has driest 'rainy season' in 40 yearsTrade Arabia, Bahrain'We are certain this dry spell can be attributed to the effects of global warming and climate change,' Isa said. 'There have also been high velocity winds at times when they are not supposed to be there.' Isa said the unsettling weather in the last ...	19th May 2009
Your world in maps: climate change edition Incendiary graphic from the The Lancet shows who causes climate change (the North) and who will suffer (Africa and Southeast Asia). read more	19th May 2009
Vancouver has the rainy day blues as it struggles with more precipitation - The Globe and Mail It's not your imagination - it is raining more in Vancouver than it used to.A recent Metro Vancouver report on climate change has found that the average annual rainfall has risen by 20 per cent since the 1930s, when it averaged around 1,000 millimetres.	19th May 2009
NOAA: Fifth Warmest April for Globe - NOAA The combined average global land and ocean surface temperatures for April 2009 ranked fifth warmest since worldwide records began in 1880, according to NOAA's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C.	19th May 2009
As Alaska Glaciers Melt, It's Land That's Rising - The Ledger As Alaska Glaciers Melt, It's Land That's RisingThe Ledger, FLJUNEAU, Alaska - Global warming conjures images of rising seas that threaten coastal areas. But in Juneau, as almost nowhere else in the world, climate change is having the opposite effect: As the glaciers here melt, the land is rising, causing the sea ...	19th May 2009
Obama to propose 30% cut in auto emissions - Detroit Free Press Updated at 2:25 p.m.: WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will lay out plans Tuesday to cut greenhouse gas emissions from new cars and trucks by 30% through 2016, while ending a dispute between the auto industry and California over state-level emissions laws.	19th May 2009
Filmmaker warns of 'world without fish' - Ballard News Tribune Filmmaker warns of 'world without fish'Ballard News Tribune, WAHe said ocean acidification has been overpowered by the concern over global warming and climate change, and scientists are only recently starting to look at it. Huseby himself became aware of and concerned by ocean acidification while reading a 2006 ...	19th May 2009
China and US held secret talks on climate change deal - guardian.co.uk China and US held secret talks on climate change dealguardian.co.uk, UKThe dialogue also challenges the conventional wisdom that George Bush's decision to pull America out of the Kyoto climate change treaty had led to paralysis in the administration on global warming, and that China was unwilling to contemplate emissions ...	19th May 2009
Norway's ruling parties delay oil sands vote OSLO (Reuters) - Norway's center-left government effectively delayed a parliamentary vote on Monday on whether majority state-owned oil and gas producer StatoilHydro should withdraw from a $2 billion Canadian oil sands venture.	19th May 2009
Major Investors Call For Urgent Changes In Global Carbon Market - Nasdaq LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Global carbon markets need urgent changes if they are to encourage investment and support the development of a global low carbon economy, the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change said in a report released Tuesday.	19th May 2009
Republicans plan to offer hundreds of amendments to slow climate bill The House Energy and Commerce Committee kicked off debate on the Waxman-Markey climate bill on Monday, beginning what will likely be a grueling week of work to move the bill forward before Memorial Day.	19th May 2009
Russia's climate policy fails to raise hopes - EUActiv Russia's new climate doctrine hints at Moscow's growing willingness to engage with the international community in fighting climate change, but EU observers are not pinning their hopes on ambitious commitments from their Eastern neighbour to aid the passage of a post-Kyoto climate treaty.	19th May 2009
Nature Has No Agenda - NBC Washington Every day we are reading and hearing more about what scientists are learning about global warming. But science, politics, policy and opinion don't necessarily live together happily ever after.	19th May 2009
Don't miss chance for rapid action on global warming - The Sacramento Bee In a way, it was easy to take stands during the Bush years: The Bushies and their allies in Congress were so determined to move the nation in the wrong direction that one could, with a clear conscience, oppose all the administration's initiatives.	19th May 2009
The freedom lobby - Energy Bulletin If you want the freedom to be thirsty or to be hungry or to be hopelessly flooded out of your home near the ocean, you can join the freedom lobby and enjoy a few more years or perhaps even a decade or two of huffing and puffing at the imaginary enemies of freedom before the real basis of your freedom, an intact and functioning nation and community, starts to degrade inexorably.	18th May 2009
The Age of Entitlement lies rotting. Its polluted patrons can lead us no more - Guardian Bankers and MPs are just the most egregious cases of widespread avarice. A new, green life requires a radical break with the pastIn the MPs' expenses controversy there is plenty to entertain and horrify, but the question that nags away unanswered is a very simple one: how did they feel entitled to make all these claims on the public purse? For a group of politicians who have been meticulously exacting in their calculations of benefit levels or pensions, how on earth did they feel they could extend such largesse to themselves?Entitlement is the word that persists through the parallel story of the role in the financial crisis of the bonuses bankers awarded themselves.	18th May 2009
Betting billions on a carbon show pony - The Age Government funding for CCS technology may lead to disastrous consequences. See also: The Weyburn Warning : Carbon Capture and Enhanced Oil Recovery	18th May 2009
Farmers hit by changing rainfall patterns - Reuters AlertNet PHILIPPINES: Climate change is taking its toll on farming in the Philippines, with more than US$27 million damage done to crops and livestock by typhoons Kujira and Chan-hom. The heavy rains unleashed by the two back-to back-typhoons earlier this month are generally not expected until June. However, according to specialists, climate change will disrupt the planting calendar, affecting the quality of crops and ultimately the economy. "Right now, our mongo should be flowering. It is our big source of additional income after the rice crops are harvested [in April]. It never used to rain like this before. The rains are very unusual. Sad to say, other farmers who planted mongo cannot earn from them. They will die with so much water," Luciano told IRIN. "I have been farming for 20 years. I can feel the changing weather conditions. When it's cold, it's very cold. When it's hot, it's really hot," Luciano added. See also: Starvation making a comeback? - Naples Daily News	18th May 2009
Drought worsening across NSW: data - ABC via Yahoo!7 News New figures show the big dry is getting worse across New South Wales - with 60 per cent of the state being classified as in drought.	18th May 2009
Caroline Lucas Decca Aitkenhead meets Green party leader Caroline Lucas. Caroline Lucas should be the luckiest woman in politics. More than 20 years ago she joined a minor, leftfield party: today its defining issue has become the biggest political issue in the world. Bingo! Only politics, of course, is not that simple. As Winston Churchill famously pointed out, democracy has been described as "the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried", and if you really want to see what he meant, spend an hour with the leader of the Green party.Less than three weeks away from the European elections, the dilemmas facing Lucas are daunting.	18th May 2009
How a B.C. carbon tax rose from Dion's ashes - The Globe and Mail The B.C. and federal elections offer valuable lessons to politicians in Canada and elsewhere. In particular, they show that a carbon tax is neither a political albatross, nor a silver bullet. The mistake is making it the central issue in a campaign. A carbon tax is a very good policy idea, both for the environment and the economy, but it is a means, not an end. It is the larger vision of a green economy, with good jobs and a healthy climate, that leaders must paint to really engage the public and succeed politically.	18th May 2009
Healing or Stealing? - "You are brilliant, and the earth is hiring" When asked if I am pessimistic or optimistic about the future, my answer is always the same: If you look at the science about what is happening on earth and aren’t pessimistic, you don’t understand data. But if you meet the people who are working to restore this earth and the lives of the poor, and you aren’t optimistic, you haven’t got a pulse. What I see everywhere in the world are ordinary people willing to confront despair, power, and incalculable odds in order to restore some semblance of grace, justice, and beauty to this world. The poet Adrienne Rich wrote, “So much has been destroyed I have cast my lot with those who, age after age, perversely, with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world.” There could be no better description. Humanity is coalescing. It is reconstituting the world, and the action is taking place in schoolrooms, farms, jungles, villages, campuses, companies, refuge camps, deserts, fisheries, and slums.	18th May 2009
CO2 release out of control says scientist - New Zealand Herald After first suggesting there could be negative effects from pumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in 1957, the award-winning American scientist - who was in New Zealand last week to speak at a past climates symposium - has turned his attention to taking carbon out of the air and storing it. He believes the world has no chance of getting CO2 emissions under control in time to avoid dangerous global warming. He wants urgent research done to find ways to tuck atmospheric CO2 away until after human production of it has peaked. For New Zealand, he says, this could mean letting the Australians take care of it. Dr Broecker is a fan of a method developed by his friend and workmate at Columbia University, Dr Klaus Lackner, who has found a way to catch carbon using special plastic fibres attached to units the size of shipping containers.	18th May 2009
Op-Ed Columnist The Perfect, The Good, The Planet - New York Times After all the years of denial, after all the years of inaction, we finally have a chance to do something major about climate change. Waxman-Markey is imperfect, it’s disappointing in some respects, but it’s action we can take now. And the planet won’t wait.	18th May 2009
The Race to Harness Hydrates - New York Times Hydrates have long been a costly and dangerous nuisance to the natural gas and oil industries, crystals with an irritating tendency to build up in pipelines deep under the sea or in very cold regions, completely blocking any flow. But lately they have started to be seen in a fresh light, as a new frontier in energy exploitation.	18th May 2009
G20 protesters issue legal threat - BBC London Solicitors representing Climate Camp demonstrators warn the Met Police they may seek a judicial review of the tactics used.	18th May 2009
Kremlin sees energy as new security battleground - Guardian Unlimited The growing struggle for the world's energy reserves could spill over into military clashes, according to a new Kremlin security strategy published today. The paper also identified US missile defence programmes as one of the main challenges facing the country, and named the Arctic as a new area for potential conflict, together with the Middle East, Central Asia and the Caspian Sea. "In a competition for resources, it can't be ruled out that military force could be used for resolving emerging problems," the document said, adding: "The existing balance of forces near the borders of the Russian Federation and its allies can be violated."	18th May 2009

Empire of Carbon - New York Times China cannot continue producing greenhouse emissions at an escalating rate because the planet can't handle the strain.	17th May 2009
Last lull before the storm? - The National Last lull before the storm?The National, United Arab EmiratesNew research suggests that there may not be much more time for mankind to take effective action against global warming. Christopher Furlong / Getty Images Climate change is the most controversial scientific issue of our time – and small wonder, ...	17th May 2009
The End of Socialism - Jo Abbess The rollout of Coal, Petroleum Oil and Natural Gas into the 27 Member States' economies has supported social development unparalleled in history. Whatever social programme you have in mind, the engineers have provided the power for it, with manufactured goods, industrialised machining and electricity on tap. But all that is about to change. And it won't just mean extensive Fuel Poverty, with aid programmes to match. Action to combat Climate Change threatens to undermine Social Democracy in its entirety if the wrong decisions are made.
ENVIRONMENT: Deep CO2 Cuts May Be Last Hope for Acid Oceans UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 15 (IPS) - Ocean acidification offers the clearest evidence of dangers of climate change. And yet the indisputable fact that burning fossil fuels is slowly turning the oceans into an acid bath has been largely ignored by industrialised countries and their climate treaty negotiators, concluded delegates from 76 countries at the World Oceans Conference in Manado, Indonesia.	17th May 2009
Draft U.N. climate texts mark step towards treaty - Reuters.co.uk OSLO (Reuters) - The United Nations took a step toward a new climate treaty on Friday by publishing the first draft negotiating texts outlining widely varying options for rich nations to cut greenhouse gas emissions.	17th May 2009
Environmentalists Attack House Global Warming Compromise - Time Magazine Hopes that a Democratic-controlled legislature would produce strong curbs on greenhouse gases encounter are dashed by industrial and regional interests See also: From a Theory to a Consensus on Emissions - New York Times	17th May 2009
Land clearances turned up the heat on Australian climate - New Scientist Thanks to deforestation by European settlers, Australia's droughts are more extreme than they would be otherwise, models suggest	17th May 2009
Disaster risk increasing, says UN - BBC News Poor disaster planning is increasing the risks of disaster impact around the world, a UN report says.	17th May 2009
Native songbirds under threat - The Cornishman Native songbirds under threatThe Cornishman, UKExperts believe there are two main culprits – intensive land use and global warming. "The way that land is managed is very intensive, such as the cropping regimes how we treat crops with pesticides and fertilisers," said Mr Exley. ...	17th May 2009
Clean Energy Poll: We Want it, We Really Want it - Public News Service Clean Energy Poll: We Want it, We Really Want itPublic News Service, COCheyenne, WY – It will be a long weekend for the US House Energy and Commerce Committee, which is working out details on climate-change and energy-policy legislation scheduled to debut Monday. Wyoming, a top coal-producer, has a lot at stake in such ...	17th May 2009
Say no to Westminster by voting Green From outside the Westminster bubble, there is a positive vision for the future – and some sensible rules on expensesHarriet Harman has said this week that the Westminster expenses row is creating "an anti-politics mood" – which is something of an understatement. As people feel the effects of the global economic collapse in their own pockets, the raw anger directed at the complacency and excess of politicians from all of the Westminster parties reaches fever pitch. Revelations that MPs claimed for mortgages they'd already paid off, or profited directly from properties paid for by the taxpayer, are profoundly incriminating.Then we have the ugly spectacle of Westminster politicians trying to outdo each other in the piety stakes ...	17th May 2009
Flat-screen light bulbs switch on Organic light-emitting diodes outperform fluorescent tubes, bringing closer their promise as the next generation of light bulbs.	17th May 2009
Melting ice could cause gravity shift The melting of one of the world's largest ice sheets would alter the Earth's field of gravity and even its rotation in space so much that it would cause sea levels along some coasts to rise faster than the global average, scientists said yesterday.	17th May 2009
Crisis making EU environment accord harder: Sweden STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - The financial crisis has made it harder for the EU to agree on an internal target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions as part of a global climate change deal, Sweden's environment minister said on Friday.	17th May 2009
Scientists on attack over Rudd emissions plan - Hills News THREE of CSIRO's most eminent climate scientists have told a Senate inquiry that the Prime Minister's targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions will not achieve even a "limited" level of protection against climate change and are "much weaker" than the cuts developed countries need to make.	17th May 2009
Massive California Plant Emerges as Test For Desalination Water officials in California have approved a $320 million desalination plant north of San Diego, an ambitious project that would pump 100 million gallons of seawater daily and become one of the largest plants outside the Middle East. Poseidon Resources' plant, which would be built in Carlsbad, Calif., would provide 50 million gallons of drinking water to nine municipal water agencies - filling 10 percent of San Diego County's drinking water needs - by 2011. Numerous environmental groups, concerned with the potential threats to fish and ocean ecosystems, have challenged the project. But this week, it was approved by the last of four agencies required for permitting.	17th May 2009
Australia to build world's largest solar energy plant: PM SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia plans to build the world's largest solar power station with an output of 1000 megawatts in a A$1.4 billion (US$1.05 billion) investment, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said on Sunday.	17th May 2009
DOE chief announces billions for clean coal development - Baltimore Sun Energy Secretary Steven Chu says he will provide $2.4 billion from the economic recovery package to speed up development of technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and factories that burn coal.	17th May 2009
AUSTRALIA: Geothermal energy - hot promise, tepid response One hundred percent renewable energy in Australia by 2020!” That was the bold call endorsed by members of more than 150 climate action groups at the Climate Action Summit held in Canberra in January.	17th May 2009
Cash-for-clunkers program crashes up against the environment - Los Angeles Times Getting vouchers to turning in your old guzzler for a new guzzler does nothing to promote more efficient cars. The automakers are filling up again at the Capitol Hill bailout pump. The latest idea is "cash for clunkers."	17th May 2009
Democrats Reach Deal on Most Climate Plan Provisions - Bloomberg May 14 (Bloomberg) -- Democrats on a U.S. House panel said they reached an agreement that will let legislation to limit greenhouse-gas emissions win committee backing next week. See also: U.S. power utilities hail carbon bill compromises	15th May 2009
West Antarctic ice threat revised; still dire - Reuters OSLO (Reuters) - A meltdown of West Antarctica's ice sheet would raise sea levels by half as much as previously expected, but the impact would still be catastrophic, especially for U.S. coastal cities, a study showed.	15th May 2009
Will BC Premier's win bring the carbon tax back to life? - Globe and Mail Will BC Premier's win bring the carbon tax back to life?Globe and Mail, CanadaClimate-change experts say Gordon Campbell's victory in British Columbia's election Tuesday, which saw his party not only hold ground but also gain a few seats, is a signal voters are so concerned about global warming that they are ready to embrace a ...	15th May 2009
Australia Tables Carbon Law, Needs Non-Labor Senators' Support - Bloomberg Australia Tables Carbon Law, Needs Non-Labor Senators' SupportBloombergPrime Minister Kevin Rudd's “government accepts the science on the issue of climate change -- increasing concentrations of carbon pollution in our atmosphere are causing global warming,” Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change Greg Combet told ...	15th May 2009
'Rebound effects' of energy efficiency could halve carbon savings, says study Research urges governments and climate policymakers to look beyond simple energy solutions and consider the indirect and economy-wide effects when forming legislationUsing energy more efficiently might not be as effective at tackling climate change as people think, according to a new study. A team of economists has shown that so-called "rebound effects", where efficiency improvements are offset by behaviour changes, such as increasing demands for cheaper energy, could potentially slash future carbon and energy savings by half.The rebound effect was first proposed in the 19th century but, until now, there has been very little research on how significant it might be.	15th May 2009
Second wind - BBC News Greens seek image change and target economy	15th May 2009
The public deserves the full picture on climate change Simplistic stories and cliché pictures of polar bears have failed to engage people in the true debate, says Nasa scientistLike many of the important issues facing society, climate change involves a complex intersection of science, culture and politics, and a huge array of consequences impinging on a wide range of vulnerabilities. Yet on all sides, people are bombarded with simplistic slogans, misleading headlines and soundbites shorn of the caveats that make them valid.The media is the main conduit for people to learn more, but the disconnect between the need for education and the journalistic mission to provide news means that climate stories are often missing the context needed to understand the bigger picture.Similarly, many photographers working in environmental fields have become frustrated at the limited palette of images used to illustrate these stories.	15th May 2009
AFX UK Focus 2009-05-15 00:39 U.S. Gulf gas hydrate find most promising yet -DOE - Interactive Investor By Bruce Nichols	15th May 2009
Who is responsible for averting an asteroid strike? - The Christian Science Monitor Column: It's time to set aside political quibbles and form an international plan.	15th May 2009
Arctic explorers find more evidence of global thaw VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - A team of British adventurers measuring ice conditions in the Canadian Arctic said on Wednesday they did not find the thicker, older ice that scientists expected to be there.	14th May 2009
Cold water ocean circulation doesn't work as expected - EurekAlert! ( Duke University ) The familiar model of Atlantic ocean currents that shows a discrete "conveyor belt" of deep, cold water flowing southward from the Labrador Sea is probably all wet.	14th May 2009
Fallout from climate change 'in our own lifetimes' - Scotsman CLIMATE change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century, experts have warned. A major report lists direct and indirect effects of global warming that could have a major impact on human health. They include changing patterns of infection and insect-borne disease, heat waves, water shortages, malnutrition, extreme weather events such as hurricanes, and inadequate living conditions. The health effects will be felt most severely in poorer countries that have contributed least to carbon emissions, say the University College London authors.	14th May 2009
Bill Clinton in call on climate bill - Financial Times The US Congress must pass a "strong" climate change bill before the global warming summit in Copenhagen this December if it is to have a chance of persuading China and India to sign up to a new treaty, says Bill Clinton. "First of all if we don't adopt a workable but a strong [cap and trade] bill then we can't get them to sign up because we won't have any credibility," Mr Clinton told the Financial Times in an interview yesterday.	14th May 2009
Carbon Tax Wins: Cheap Politics Loses in B.C. Election gordon campbell.jpg The only government in North America to implement a carbon tax to fight climate change has been re-elected handily in British Columbia. Liberal Premier Gordon Campbell introduced a carbon tax in February 2008 and launched it officially in July, regardless that the introduction date coincided with the highest oil prices in history. The Premier, surprisingly, held his ground, The left-leaning (and traditionally environmentally conscious) New Democratic Party on the other hand opted to attack the tax, characterizing it as an unfair effort to pick the pockets of the poor. She campaigned on a promise to "axe the tax." On Tuesday, British Columbians said, loudly, that they couldn't believe her.	14th May 2009
Thames offshore wind farm gets green light from investors Scheme to build the world's biggest offshore project is approved by backers E.ON, Dong Energy and MasdarThe world's largest offshore wind farm is to be built in the Thames estuary after the partners behind the scheme said they had agreed an initial €2.2bn (£2bn) investment.The London Array will be built 12 miles off the Kent and Essex coasts, with the first phase using 175 turbines, each the height of the tower housing Big Ben. Once complete, it could generate enough electricity to power a quarter of the homes in Greater London.The prime minister, Gordon Brown, described the London Array as a "flagship project" in the drive to cut carbon emissions by 80% by 2050.	14th May 2009
Republican lawmakers back carbon tax - yes, that's right - McClatchy Newspapers via Yahoo! News WASHINGTON - Reps. Bob Inglis of South Carolina and Jeff Flake of Arizona on Wednesday became the first Republican lawmakers to introduce legislation imposing a carbon tax on producers and distributors of fossil fuels.	14th May 2009
Seed bank 'saving' for the future - BBC Highlands Journalist Tearlach Quinnell takes a look at a project aimed at collecting and storing seeds in case of future food shortages.	14th May 2009
EU targets transport, power for next climate action - Reuters Eradicating greenhouse gases from power stations and cars, trucks and aviation must be Europe's next policy move to tackle climate change, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Wednesday.	14th May 2009
Highly destructive climate impacts loom for a small number of cities and countries - New York Times Fiercer storm surges brought on by climate change will claim the most land in Latin America, uproot the most people in the Middle East and wreak the greatest economic destruction in East Asia, new research finds. Economists with the World Bank's energy and environment research team say worsening weather threatens 52 million people, more than 29,000 square kilometers of agricultural land, and 9 percent of coastal nations' gross domestic product (GDP) across the globe.	14th May 2009
Robotic battery swappers - the future of filling stations? See video of an automated battery-swapping station that could help crack the problem of the limited battery lives of electric cars	14th May 2009
Waking Up in a Former Empire at the End of the Industrial Age Or: Is It "Mean" to Tell Someone Their House is on Fire? You can never awaken using the same system that put you to sleep in the first place. - Gurdjieff Dearest Ones of Future Generations, I thought you might find it interesting to hear what I'm observing of those people I know about who are just waking up to what the state of the planet is.	14th May 2009
FACTBOX: China's climate change policy - Reuters FACTBOX: China's climate change policyReutersChina says industrialized nations should transfer much more green technology to poorer nations as part of a new climate change pact, and has urged rich nations to commit one percent of their economic worth to help poor nations fight global warming.	14th May 2009
The man who discovered greenhouse gases - New Scientist People were debating the greenhouse effect 150 years ago – until Irish physicist John Tyndall showed conclusively that the effect is real	14th May 2009
Could Food Shortages Bring Down Civilization? - Alternet Finally someone is listening to Lester Brown and his warnings of a collapse in our food supplies, as a new article reveals in Scientific American.	13th May 2009
'Coral triangle' a global emergency - ABC Online Australian scientists are warning of the possibility of a future wave of economic refugees from south-east Asia and the Pacific if one of the world's most important marine ecosystems is devastated by climate change. It is the loss of food stocks that has scientists like Professor Hoegh-Guldberg most concerned. More than 150 million people, many already poor, live on the shores of the coral triangle, relying on its bounty for food. "By the end of the century under the worst case scenario we could see as much as 90 per cent of those food resources having eroded," he said. "You start to see that you are now destabilising human communities through the fact that there is just not enough food. So where do they go? We'll almost invariably see an increased level of pressure on Australia and New Zealand to provide the sort of intake that needs to alleviate these problems."	13th May 2009
Worst drought in decade deepens Somalia crisis: U.N. - Reuters GENEVA (Reuters) - Somalia's worst drought in a decade is pushing growing numbers of children into near-famine conditions and deepening the humanitarian crisis caused by political violence, the United Nations warned Tuesday.	13th May 2009
Swedes to push for CO2 tax at EU helm - EUActiv Sweden wants to push for a tax on CO2 in sectors that do not participate in the EU's emissions trading scheme (EU ETS) upon assuming the EU helm in July, said the country's environment minister, Andreas Carlgren.	13th May 2009
Cities Can Save the Earth - Foreign Policy In Focus The climate crisis won’t be solved by changing light bulbs and inflating your tires more, planting a tree and driving a little less. It’s going to require a truly fundamental shift in how we build our cities and live in them. The key to changing our cities involves the car. Cars dominate cities in the rich countries, and they are increasingly swamping poor countries as well. Big auto companies, are rapidly building car factories and highways in China and India. Many cities, like Berkeley, California where I lived for 30 years, don’t have a single pedestrian street — and their citizens don’t even notice how completely given over to the car their towns are. Only one out of 10 people on the planet actually drives cars, but drivers are causing a vastly disproportionate share of planetary damage through the automobile-sprawl pattern of development. The concepts behind the ecocity are fairly simple. They involve a shift in development toward centers of high diversity	13th May 2009
Cost of solar energy will match fossil fuels by 2013, claims Solarcentury - Guardian Falling production costs for solar panels and increasing nonrenewables electricity costs have brought parity closerSolar energy will fall in price to match the cost of conventional fossil fuel electricity far sooner than previously expected, the UK's largest solar company has claimed in a new report. Solarcentury said British homeowners will see solar achieve "grid parity" – the point where solar electricity rivals or becomes cheaper than conventional nonrenewable electricity – by 2013. Most predictions suggest that technological innovation will not bring the price down far enough until 2020 or later.The company suggested falling production costs for solar panels and increasing conventional electricity costs have brought parity closer.	13th May 2009
Going bananas for energy in Africa - BBC News Scientists have found a way to turn banana skins into a sustainable fuel source for Africa, writes the BBC's Matt McGrath.	13th May 2009
Quebec plans to cut emissions - Montreal Gazette The provincial government is to table a bill today that would make Quebec the first jurisdiction in North America to enforce a cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions.	13th May 2009
Insulation made from corn wins $200,000 prize - New Scientist A student-led team that designed insulation made from corn husks and other agricultural waste has won MIT's $200,000 Clean Energy Prize	13th May 2009
Is empathy the key to fighting climate change? - New Scientist A think tank suggests ways to inspire humanity to start caring more for each other and tackle climate change - but can it work?	13th May 2009
Australian Government Provides A$15 Billion To Cut Carbon Emissions - Nasdaq CANBERRA -(Dow Jones)- The Australian Government has earmarked more than A$15 billion for what Climate Change and Water Minister Penny Wong Tuesday said is a comprehensive and integrated suite of policies and programs aimed to cut carbon dioxide emissions and tackle climate change.	13th May 2009
Dirty energy interests have spent $79 million this year lobbying Congress - Grist The oil, gas, and electricity sectors spent tens of millions more to lobby Congress in the first quarter of 2009 than their renewable-energy counterparts. Big whoop, right? Well, yes.	13th May 2009
UK car emissions exceed forecasts - Financial Times New roads built in the UK since 2002 have led to double the increase in carbon emissions originally forecast by the government. The data, which have not been publicised, could raise questions about official assumptions on road traffic emissions resulting from Heathrow's expansion.	13th May 2009
Palm oil buyers face green scorecard: WWF - Reuters SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Major palm oil buyers face being graded for their green credentials after figures showing they have bought only a fraction of the sustainable palm oil available, environmental group WWF said on Tuesday. See also: Oil’s plans for leadership in palm diesel will drive rainforest destruction and climate change - Teatro Naturale	13th May 2009
Efforts to save salmon may be undone by climate change - PhysOrg The Pacific Northwest has spent two decades retooling dams, rebuilding damaged watersheds and restoring stream flows to keep salmon from disappearing.	13th May 2009
Canada scolded over greenhouse gas estimates VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Canada has overstated how effective its efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions will be, the country's top environmental watchdog said on Tuesday.	13th May 2009
Stress-Testing Biofuels: How the Game Was Rigged - Time Magazine Last week, while the financial world was obsessing over stress tests for fragile banks, the environmental and agricultural worlds were watching the results of the Obama Administration's stress tests for renewable fuels	13th May 2009
Powering our way out of poverty - BBC As we reach the end of the first decade in the 21st Century, about one third of the world's population still has no access to electricity, says Harish Hande. In this week's Green Room, he argues that poor people should be at the centre of sustainable energy policies, not on the end of handouts.	13th May 2009
Dozen wavering Democrats hold key to fate of crucial climate change bill - guardian.co.uk 2,500 lobbyists, $45m on PR – but just 12 views could make or break global carbon deal	13th May 2009
Chevron hires former CNN correspondent to spin report on Amazon destruction The New York Times has a great story about Chevron hiring a former CNN reporter to produce a “news” report to counter a 60 Minutes segment on the oil company's contamination of the Amazon rainforest in Ecuador.	13th May 2009
Letter from Sweden: The State of the End of the World - WorldChanging The topic was climate, ecosystems, and development, and the many ways in which their fates are inseparable. And, potentially, quite bleak. “There is no good news from science right now,” said Johan Rockström. A recent meeting of 2,400 scientists in Copenhagen had concluded that the worst scenarios of the IPCC Fourth Assessment report were being realized. The “Quadruple Squeeze” of human growth, climate change, ecosystem degradation and ever-more-likely “surprises” was making the photo of planet Earth on his presentation slide look wobbly indeed. He named four dilemmas, each with a numerical signature: • The 20/80 dilemma, with the 20% of Earth’s population that is rich causing most of the damage that could prevent the 80% that is poor from achieving their material aspirations. • The 550/450/350 dilemma, where the world seems committed to a 550 ppm atmospheric carbon dioxide level even though 350 — or lower — is what may be necessary to preserve a stable climate. • The 60%-loss dilemma, meaning, the sharp decay of the world’s ecosystems, precisely at the moment when we need strong ecosystems to buffer the shock of a changing/warming climate. • And the 99/1 dilemma, meaning the increasing chance that unlikely things will happen —; unpleasant surprises of various kinds, issuing out of the combined changes in social, economic, and ecological systems (think global food price shocks, times 10).	12th May 2009
'Distributed power' to save Earth - BBC News A sweeping plan to solve both the energy and the economic crises has been presented at a conference in Prague.	12th May 2009
Quebec to play tough with carbon emissions - Montreal Gazette Quebec is poised to become the first jurisdiction in North America to enforce a cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions with the tabling of a new bill Tuesday.	12th May 2009
Scientist issues warning over dying coral reefs - Russian Information Agency Novosti Leading marine biologist Thomas J. Goreau tells RIA Novosti how overfishing and waste dumping have brought the world's largest area of coral reefs to the brink of collapse, with devastating consequences to fish stocks and biodiversity.	12th May 2009
Energy firms seek opt-out on 2025 deadline Power companies to ask the government not to force coal-fired plant closures in 2025 if carbon capture technology is not readyEnergy companies will lobby the government for a get-out clause from the deadline to fully fit carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology to new coal plants by 2025 because they are worried it might not work in time.Companies, including German-owned groups E.ON and RWE npower, want guarantees that they will not be forced to close their coal-fired plants in 2025 if the technology has not been proven by then.They will call on energy and climate change secretary, Ed Miliband, to draw up provisions which would allow them to keep the plants open until 2030, or for an additional number of operating hours.	12th May 2009
Tough powers urged to curb global warming A report commissioned by the British government will call today for an overhaul of global institutions to combat climate change.The report, to be published by the Centre on International Co-operation at New York University, recommends the creation of powerful surveillance and enforcement mechanisms similar to those of the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. The new institutions would ensure countries honour their commitments to cut carbon emissions."This implies a significant pooling of sovereignty, greater coercive powers at international level, and significant investment in surveillance and research," the authors, Alex Evans and David Steven, write. They say that for any new climate deal to be effective, countries that do not join the international effort to curb global warming should face pariah status."It seems inevitable that a long-term climate deal will ultimately require an 'all or nothing' approach to international participation.	12th May 2009
Nature will deal with sceptics - Crikey For climate change sceptics, the dispute is not really about sun spots, hockey stick graphs or the existence of a consensus. It's about defending a set of conservative values and privileges, writes Clive Hamilton .	12th May 2009
Firms Exact Climate Price - TheStreet.com Lawmakers determined to get a deal on climate change are going along with valuable concessions to polluters.	12th May 2009
British cities 'could be up to 10C hotter than countryside by 2100' - Daily Telegraph British cities could experience summer temperatures up to 18F 10C higher than the surrounding countryside by 2100 due to global warming according to Met Office research.	12th May 2009
Scientists: No link cloud coverage and global warming With the U.S. Congress beginning to consider regulations on greenhouse gases, a troubling hypothesis about how the sun may impact global warming is finally laid to rest.	12th May 2009
China outpaces US in cleaner coal-fired plants - CNET News China outpaces US in cleaner coal-fired plantsCNET News, CABy Keith Bradsher TIANJIN, China--China's frenetic construction of coal-fired power plants has raised worries around the world about the effect on climate change. China now uses more coal than the United States, Europe and Japan combined, making it the ...	12th May 2009
Tragedy of the Heavens - Harvard Crimson Tragedy of the HeavensHarvard Crimson, MABy RAÚL A. CARRILLO As President Obama and Congress struggle to pass new energy legislation, we should remember that climate change is more than just an economic issue. It's one of the most challenging moral and cultural dilemmas of our time. ...	12th May 2009

Climate change displacement has begun – but hardly anyone has noticed - Guardian The first evacuation of an entire community due to manmade global warming is happening on the Carteret IslandsJournalists – they're never around when you want one. Two weeks ago a momentous event occurred: the beginning of the world's first evacuation of an entire people as a result of manmade global warming. It has been marked so far by one blog post for the Ecologist and an article in the Solomon Times*. Where is everyone? The Carteret Islands are off the coast of Bougainville, which, in turn, is off the coast of Papua New Guinea. They are small coral atolls on which 2,600 people live.	10th May 2009
Getting Warmer Rapidly - Korea Times It's only early May, but summer is already here, almost one month earlier than in previous years. But summer's early arrival is increasingly becoming the norm. That is, summer is getting longer, while winter is getting shorter. This phenomenon unquestionably stems from climate change driven by global warming. Climate change is taking place at an alarming rate worldwide. But what's more noteworthy is that the pace is much faster in Korea than any other place around the world. According to the National Institute of Meteorological Research, the average temperate on the Korean Peninsula climbed 1.7 degrees Celsius during the 1912-2008 period.	10th May 2009
Severn tidal power shortlist 'biased', campaigners say - Guardian In a new report published today by the leading engineering consultancy Atkins and commissioned by the groups, they said the government shortlist may also have "significantly underestimated" the energy that could be generated from other more ecologically sensitive schemes. The Atkins review of the Severn options also found that the report commissioned by government used out of date figures. Ministers have publicly backed plans for a giant £12bn barrage between Cardiff and Weston-super-Mare, saying it could provide as much as 6% of UK electricity. This would allow Britain to move closer to meeting its target of generating 15% of energy from renewable sources by 2020. But the giant barrage scheme is expected to halve the Severn's tidal range, reducing the amount of land and food for wildlife. Birds could starve and the conditions for breeding would be too poor for them to be successful, the RSPB said.	10th May 2009
U.S. greens worry for B.C.'s carbon tax - Burnaby NewsLeader U.S. environmentalists will closely watch B.C.'s election results Tuesday to track the fate of the continent's first carbon tax. As with many B.C. green groups that back the Liberal-imposed carbon tax and have criticized NDP opposition to it, there's a sense south of the border the policy measure may become politically toxic if the Campbell government falls. The Seattle-based Sightline Institute recently called the tax one of the best climate control policies in the world and said New Democrats have "systematically misrepresented the facts" by claiming it increases taxes for the average B.C. family and won't work to cut greenhouse gas emissions.	10th May 2009
Jesusita Fire likely a sign of things to come - San Francisco Chronicle The wildfire crackling over dry chaparral and engulfing homes in Santa Barbara is an ominous sign for the Bay Area, which experts say is ready to burn after two years of drought.	10th May 2009
To save planet, end capitalism, Morales says - Green Left Weekly To save planet, end capitalism, Morales said the 21st century must be dedicated to stopping environmental destruction and climate change, because “we are strangling the planet — strangling ourselves”. “For us”, said Morales, “what has failed is the model of ‘living better’, of unlimited development, industrialisation without frontiers, of modernity that deprecates history, of increasing accumulation of goods at the expense of others and nature. For that we promote the idea of ‘living well’, in harmony with other human beings and with our Mother Earth.” “The Earth is much more important than the stock exchanges of Wall Street and the world.”	10th May 2009
This epochal crisis requires us to resolve the paradox of capitalism - Guardian Unlimited What do we want to see emerge from the greatest crisis of capitalism for 70 years? If I had to answer in a single phrase, I would say: new models for a sustainable social market economy. This requires us to change as well as our states.	9th May 2009
Police force paid informants £750,000 - Guardian A police force whose undercover officers were secretly recorded attempting to recruit a spy from an environmental protest group today admitted spending more than £750,000 of public money on informants over four years. Strathclyde police officers were last month recorded offering cash payments in return for information from Tilly Gifford, a 24-year-old activist with Plane Stupid, a group opposed to airport expansion. During almost three hours of audio tapes handed to the Guardian, the officers disclosed they were running a network of hundreds of informants inside protest organisations who secretly fed them intelligence in return for cash. They told Gifford she could receive tens of thousands of pounds to pay off her student loans in return for information about individuals within Plane Stupid, but that the money could not be paid into her bank account because it would leave an audit trail. One officer told her: "UK plc can afford more than 20 quid."	9th May 2009
The media's decision to play the stenographer helped opponents of climate action stifle progress - Huffington Post One of the country's leading journalists has written a searing critique of the media's coverage of global warming, especially climate economics.	9th May 2009
Ahead of the McKinsey Curve - Jo Abbess why are we even contemplating new Nuclear and CCS before we've worked out how to offer universal domestic insulation and electric public transportation ?	9th May 2009
Corporate welfare for car companies must stop now - Guardian No 'green new deal', Peter Mandelson's bailout plan for the auto industry is just a retread of old-fashioned nationalisationThe government refuses to renationalise the railways, but it appears to be nationalising the motor industry. It has already laid out £2.3bn in loans and guarantees, a further £300m for its cash-for-clunkers scheme, and £27m to help Land Rover build a new model. The £2.3bn, Peter Mandelson says, is "effectively the same as underwriting the entire vehicle sector's research and development and capital expenditure for a year". Now Mandelson intends, more or less, to run Jaguar Land Rover.	9th May 2009
Interior will keep Bush's polar bear rule - New York Times Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced today that he will retain the Bush administration's controversial rule on polar bear protections, rejecting special authority given to him by Congress and the pleas of Democratic lawmakers, environmentalists and scientists to overturn the regulation.	9th May 2009
U.S. climate bill unlikely to pass this year: experts - Reuters NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. climate change legislation is unlikely to pass this year due to concerns about the recession and contention over the implementation of the program, according to energy and carbon market experts.	9th May 2009
Copenhagen 'the world's last chance' - Dimas - Environmental Data Interactive Exchange European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas has warned of the urgency of tackling climate change, saying that global leaders have one more chance to keep us out of the danger zone when they meet to thrash out a new international climate agreement in Copenhagen later this year.	9th May 2009
Pinko bastion spawns capitalist solution to solar financing - Grist The hotbed of East Bay Bolshevism has become a wellspring of municipal eco-capitalism that's serving as a model for expanding the use of solar power in less leftist locales.	9th May 2009
Cuba And Dealing with Global Pollution - Culture Change Seventeen years ago, in June 1992, 172 governments, including 108 heads of state, met at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. That meeting produced the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the first international agreement that aimed "to achieve stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a low enough level to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system." In particular, the industrialized countries promised to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions below 1990 levels. Like the Kyoto Accord that followed it, that agreement was a failure. The world's top politicians demonstrated their gross hypocrisy and their indifference to the future of humanity and nature by giving fine speeches and making promises -- and then continuing with business as usual. But there was one exception. In Rio one head of state spoke out strongly, and called for immediate emergency action -- and then returned home to support the implementation of practical policies for sustainable, low-emission development. That head of state was Fidel Castro.	9th May 2009
Banner year for wind - and coal - New Scientist Wind power capacity grew by 29% in 2008, but it still generates just 1.5of electricity globally	9th May 2009
Australia government rejects coal compensation report - Reuters CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's government shook off on Friday coal industry warnings that 10,000 jobs would be lost and 16 coal mines forced to close unless a planned national carbon emissions trading scheme was dramatically overhauled.	9th May 2009
Why are cicadas emerging off schedule? - The Indianapolis Star A Cincinnati entomologist suspects global warming sending wrong signals to insects.	9th May 2009
Deadly fire spreads in California - BBC News Firemen in California struggle to contain a raging wildfire that has forced tens of thousands from their homes.	9th May 2009
South Florida now under extreme drought - Sun-Sentinel Because of the lack of significant rain in recent weeks, most of South Florida now is under extreme drought conditions, the National Weather Service in Miami said today.	9th May 2009
Scientists expecting massive iceberg from glacier crack - ABC Online A massive iceberg with enough freshwater in it to fill Sydney Harbour 135 times over is about to break off the Mertz glacier in Antarctica. The iceberg will be 75 kilometres long and contains 750,000 gigalitres of ice which is apparently quite a lot.	9th May 2009
The Climate Debate Heats Up - New York Times A clean energy bill needs to be revised, and quickly, if there is a chance for comprehensive climate change legislation to be passed by this Congress.	9th May 2009
Warning: Sunspot cycle beginning to rise - Physorg (AP) -- When the sun sneezes it's Earth that gets sick. It's time for the sun to move into a busier period for sunspots, and while forecasters expect a relatively mild outbreak by historical standards, one major solar storm can cause havoc with satellites and electrical systems here.	9th May 2009
An outsider's view of Earth - Sacramento News & Review Humanity is clearly at the most important turning point in its history. If this generation is able to create a renewable-energy economy, future humans will properly revere it and those now alive will live on in the grateful memories of their descendants. If it cannot do so, its millions of years of evolution and the struggle of countless human generations for a better life will have ended in disaster. This generation will be cursed by its successors and, eventually, not be remembered at all. Our mission, therefore, could not be more urgent. We may fail to save the human species. But at least we will not have failed to try. This is for us the noblest and highest duty we can undertake—as it is for human beings themselves.	8th May 2009
The tragedy of climate commons Imagine a group of 100 fisherman faced with declining stocks and worried about the sustainability of their resource and their livelihoods. One of them works out that the total sustainable catch is about 20% of what everyone is catching now (with some uncertainty of course) but that if current trends of increasing catches (about 2% a year) continue the resource would be depleted in short order. Faced with that prospect, the fishermen gather to decide what to do. The problem is made more complicated because some groups of fishermen are much more efficient than the others. The top 5 catchers, catch 20% of the fish, and the top 20 catch almost 75% of the fish.	8th May 2009
CLIMATE CHANGE: Snow Cover Turning to Lakes in the Himalayas UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 7 (IPS) - As climate change takes hold, even the mighty Himalayas and Hindu Kush mountain ranges are now losing their snow and ice.	8th May 2009
Brazil drought staunches famed Iguazu falls - AFP via Yahoo! News An acute drought in Brazil has hit the famed horseshoe-shaped Igauzu falls which straddle two countries, cutting back the tumbling waters to reveal the rocky sides.	8th May 2009
Wild fruit trees face extinction - BBC Exploitation is threatening the forests in central Asia, home to the fruit trees that could help secure our future food supply. See also: Biodiversity is the spark of life - BBC News	8th May 2009
Shrimp tuned to ocean temperature - BBC Sensitive shrimp stocks could plummet if the north Atlantic ocean warms up as predicted, say researchers.	8th May 2009
Emissions rise 'good for planet' - The Courier Mail INCREASING Australia's greenhouse gas emissions could be a good idea, Coalition senators say.	8th May 2009
New U.N. climate deal: not much bolder than Kyoto? OSLO (Reuters) - A planned new U.N. climate pact is shaping up to be a mildly tougher version of the existing Kyoto Protocol rather than a bold treaty to save what U.S. President Barack Obama has called a "planet in peril." See also: FACTBOX-Rich nations' 2020 greenhouse cuts: 9-16 pct - AlertNet	8th May 2009
Obama budget still plans C02 permit sale to industry WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's budget still plans for 100 percent of permits in a future greenhouse gas emissions trading system to be sold to industry, a spokesman for the White House Office of Management and Budget said on Thursday.	8th May 2009
Chevron CEO sees smoke and mirrors in cap and trade “If you liked credit derivatives swaps, you're going to love cap-and-trade.” One can presume that Chevron Chief Executive David O'Reilly is not a fan of the current deep worldwide recession - which was worsened by a credit-market lockup blamed in part on hard-to-value securities. And, he made it very clear on Thursday that he is not enamored of the system the Obama administration hopes to use to reduce U.S. emissions of greenhouse gases including carbon dioxide, which are produced through the burning of fossil fuels sold by the No. 2 U.S.	8th May 2009
INTERVIEW-Senior House Republican sees climate bill delay - AlertNet WASHINGTON, May 7 (Reuters) - Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are likely to set aside a controversial climate change bill for a few months, giving them more time to build support and instead concentrate on a healthcare reform effort, a senior Republican said on Thursday. "The pressure is going to build on Chairman Waxman, not to give up on climate change, but to set it aside and let it simmer a while and then go to healthcare," said Representative Joe Barton in an interview.	8th May 2009
U.S. cities take lead on environmental action “Green Cities,” a new report by a thinktank called Living Cities, examines how American cities have taken the lead on environmental issues in the absence of strong federal action.  Based on a survey of 40 of the largest U.S. cities, the report points to progress in mandating more efficient city buildings and promoting recycling but notes that talk of creating “green jobs” has been more talk than action.   Among the main findings: * Four in five big cities say sustainability is among their top five priorities. Only about one in six says it is not. * More than three quarters of big cities have or will soon have detailed plans on how to cut greenhouse gas emissions.	8th May 2009
DO-Tech, NOW-Tech To answer Climate Change we must have strategies for new Low Carbon Energy investment. The technologies we need to deploy are those that are already proven, and can be installed in the fastest possible time. What we can DO, and DO NOW. This is DO-Tech, NOW-Tech : and it effectively rules out new rounds of Nuclear Energy, which is slow-to-grid. It also rules out the almost entirely hypothetical Carbon Capture and Storage. Here follows a continuation of notes taken at the United Nations Association Conference “Thinking Outside the Box : Borderless Strategies to Combat Climate Change”, 30th April 2009 in London.	8th May 2009
UN 'stunned' by scale of bail-out If extra money is not found to tackle climate change, bail-outs could be a "waste of money", UN head of environment warns. The UN's head of environment has been left "stunned" by the billions of dollars pumped into ailing companies following the global financial crisis. Achim Steiner told the BBC One Planet programme that he had fought for years to secure much smaller sums to tackle poverty and climate change. "We waited perhaps a decade to get $5bn ($3.3bn) to accelerate development of renewable energy," he said. We now see $20bn (£13.3bn) paid [to] a car company simply to keep it alive." He said he was surprised that such huge amounts had "suddenly been found" to tackle the crisis.	7th May 2009
How much fossil fuel can we burn? Governments need to cap the amount of coal, gas and oil we extract if they are serious about fighting global warmingTwo papers on carbon emissions published in the scientific journal Nature last week were ground-breaking: they show us how much carbon dioxide we can produce if we're to have a reasonable chance of preventing two degrees of global warming. It's a completely different approach from the UN's and national governments'. They set targets for reductions by a certain date but have nothing to say about the total amount of carbon we can release. One of the papers, by Myles Allen and others, suggests that we can burn, at most, another 400-500 billion tonnes of carbon at any time between now and the extinction of humanity if we want to avoid 2C of warming.	7th May 2009
Cosmic Log: Is nature one mean mother? - MSNBC Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: The "Gaia hypothesis" says bad things happen to us because we mistreat Mother Nature, but the "Medea hypothesis" blames Mom instead.	7th May 2009
The looming ecological credit crunch - Economy News A new report, launched by Lloyd’s and the International Institute of Strategic Studies last week, advised businesses to assess their vulnerability to the increasing scarcity of resources such as fresh water, food and energy triggered by global warming. “Businesses that focus solely on the economic climate rather than the global climate in which we all live and work are in for a big shock,” says Julia Graham, chair of the UK risk management association AIRMIC. “Businesses should be planning for the future and what’s really worrying me is that people are so preoccupied by the current economic environment that many of these other longer term risks are being overlooked,” adds Graham.	7th May 2009
Putting a Price on Carbon: An Emissions Cap or A Tax? The days of freely dumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere are coming to an end, but how best to price carbon emissions remains in dispute. As the U.S. Congress debates the issue, Yale Environment 360 asked eight experts to discuss the merits of a cap-and-trade system versus a carbon tax.	7th May 2009
RSPB embraces wind of change with its very own turbine After years of opposition to wind farms, the conservation group installs its own turbine. After years of barely concealed antipathy, the RSPB and the wind energy industry have today put the symbolic seal on their recent cessation of hostilities with the installation of the first RSPB wind turbine.The small-scale 15kW turbine has been installed at the RSPB's Rainham Marshes visitor centre in Purfleet, Essex, and together with a solar array already located at the site is expected to provide enough energy to meet the centre's requirements, cutting its carbon footprint by 9,000kg a year.Nick Bruce-White, manager of the Rainham Marshes site, said that the installation of the Proven Energy turbine demonstrated both the RSPB's commitment to tackling climate change and its support for appropriately sited renewable energy projects.	7th May 2009
Climate criminal Australia threatens Planet - MWC News Australia - the world’s biggest coal exporter, and the OECD’s worst and one of the world’s worst per capita greenhouse gas (GHG) polluters – has just announced a Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) that will enable continued, “business as usual” (BAU), Planet-threatening Australian GHG pollution.	7th May 2009
Most emissions permits to be free: U.S. Rep. Doyle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Most of the pollution emission permits that industry would need under a climate change bill being negotiated in the U.S. House of Representatives will initially be given to companies, instead of sold to them, Representative Mike Doyle said on Wednesday.	7th May 2009
EPA Rule Would 'Kill Off' Corn Ethanol, Peterson Says - Bloomberg The proposed methods to gauge greenhouse-gas emissions, part of the EPA's implementation of a 2007 energy law, are based on “ideology” and aren't reliable enough to craft policy, Peterson told reporters today outside a congressional hearing in Washington. See also: U.S. House farm chief opposes climate-change bill	7th May 2009
Somebody's gotta do it Hi. My job is trying to save the world, and I'd like to tell you a little about my line of work. read more	7th May 2009
U.N. climate deal to fail without aid money: adviser NEW YORK (Reuters) - The world will fail to agree to control emissions of global warming pollution this year in Copenhagen unless rich countries fund billions of dollars in annual climate aid to poor nations, a U.N. adviser said.	7th May 2009
‘Clunkers’ debunkers attack Democrats’ auto trade-in plan Support “cash for clunkers” as an auto-industry bailout if you must, but don't call it green.	7th May 2009
Joseph Romm: Nobelist Krugman attacks "junk economics" - HuffingtonPost N It's important to understand that just as denials that climate change is happening are junk science, predictions of economic disaster if we try to do anything about climate change are junk economics.	6th May 2009
Time to grasp the reality of climate threat - Guardian The scientific case has been made but politicians and the public are arguing over the facts of global warmingThe good news about the recession is that reduced fossil fuel demand should reduce greenhouse gas emissions, although by how much is not yet observed; the bad news is that the price of carbon allowances in the carbon markets has also been reduced as a result of falling demand. This makes investing in low-carbon technologies harder since they usually start off with higher marginal costs. That then rebounds on the ambitious talk of a "green industrial strategy" to get us out of the recession.	6th May 2009
Sufficient certainty - Nature Certainty is not a prerequisite for action. Dangerous climate change is going to be hard to avoid, and strong action taken in Copenhagen can only bring us closer to achieving that common goal.	6th May 2009
'Anaconda' harnesses wave power - BBC News A rubber "sea snake" that can transform waves into power is tested in a giant shipping tank.	6th May 2009
Bill McKibben on Building A Climate Action Movement Bill McKibben first warned about global warming and its implications for the planet in his 1989 book, The End of Nature. But in the last few years, it has become the focus of his work as a key organizer of 350.org, an advocacy organization promoting global action to tackle climate change. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, McKibben described why he has been working Bill McKibben fulltime on the issue, why he thinks a citizens movement is essential for giving President Obama the “political space” necessary to address climate change, why a “cap-and-dividend” system might offer the most potential, and why he believes the jury is still out on whether the most serious impacts of climate change can be avoided.	6th May 2009
Rules to Limit Emissions in the Making of Ethanol - New York Times The Obama administration moved to help biofuel manufacturers, but it also introduced rules to curb carbon dioxide emissions in ethanol production. See also: Ethanol crops displaces climate-friendly ones, EPA says - CNews	6th May 2009
Pine beetle, snowpack, factors in forest fires - CTV British Columbia The day after 70 Mile House residents were allowed to return to their homes, officials say pine beetle devestation and a low snowpack may be contributing to an early fire season.	6th May 2009
Global warming threatens Tibet railway: report BEIJING (Reuters) - China's controversial railway to the remote and restless mountainous region of Tibet could be threatened by global warming, which may melt the permafrost on which the tracks are built, state media said Wednesday.	6th May 2009
Thousands flee as Calif. wildfires spread - MSNBC Helicopters soaked hillsides in the darkness early Wednesday in an attempt to hold off a wildfire looming in the foothills above the city.	6th May 2009
Brazil's north-east hit by floods - BBC News Weeks of heavy rain drench Brazil's usually arid north-east region, leaving at least 14 dead and thousands homeless, officials say.	6th May 2009
A sensitive subject - Nature Gauging how the planet will respond to rising emissions remains one of the biggest questions in climate science. Mason Inman looks at how close we are to answering it.	6th May 2009
Climate disaster looms despite mega-fixes - StarPhoenix Geoengineering -- the deliberate modification of the environment on a large scale to control climate change -- could be the most hair-brained and dangerous concept ever proposed. But planetary engineering is exactly where we may be headed given the world's governments, with few exceptions, won't do anything to prevent global warming. Deeply in denial, politicians are doing as little as they can get away with on this file.	6th May 2009
Car ads 'should carry climate health warnings' - Guardian MP Colin Challen accuses motor manufacturers of not telling whole truth in green claims. Car adverts should carry prominent climate change "health warnings" akin to those on cigarette packets, according to a Labour MP who is critical of the government's progress on climate change legislation. Colin Challen MP, who is chair of the all-party climate change group, said that government warnings on car ads might force car companies to be more "honest". He said many cars are promoted as being "greener" when they are actually environmentally damaging.He said the car industry was spending £800m a year on UK advertising prior to the recession, while the government's public education campaign ActOnCO2 cost just £12m over three years. See also: Obama, lawmakers agree on "cash-for-clunkers" bill	6th May 2009
U.S. windpower industry eyes government mandate for growth CHICAGO (Reuters) - Lost financing, low prices for natural gas and political uncertainty have stymied a potential boom in the U.S. wind power industry this year.	6th May 2009
Money Can't Buy You Climate Here's a simple thought experiment. If you can see a flaw in it, you're welcome to contradict me. Money is a system of debt, in other words, obligations. Someone is owed money on the basis of their obligation to work. Another person is given money on the basis of their bringing to market raw commodities. Yet another is required to make interest payments on a loan taken out to support an enterprise. Everything has come to have its price : from the use of land owned by someone else, to the trading of fuel to transport and process raw commodities, to the cost of a manufactured product.	4th May 2009
Bolivia's Chacaltaya glacier is gone - MiamiHerald.com CHACALTAYA, Bolivia -- -- If anyone needs a reminder of the on-the-ground impacts of global climate change, come to the Andes mountains in Bolivia. At 17,388 feet above sea level, Chacaltaya, an 18,000 year-old glacier that delighted thousands of visitors for decades, is gone, completely melted away as of some sad, undetermined moment early this year. ''Chacaltaya has disappeared. It no longer exists,'' said Dr. Edson Ramirez, head of an international team of scientists that has studied the glacier since 1991.	4th May 2009
China triples wind power capacity goal: report - PhysOrg China has more than tripled its target for wind power capacity to 100 gigawatts by 2020, likely making it the world's fastest growing market for wind energy technology, state press said.	4th May 2009
Ethanol test for Obama on climate change, science - PhysOrg.com The Environmental Protection Agency is close to proposing ethanol standards. But two years ago, when Congress ordered a huge increase in ethanol use, lawmakers also told the agency to show that ethanol would produce less pollution linked to global warming than would gasoline. So how will the EPA define greenhouse gas emissions from ethanol production and use? Given the political clout of farm interests, will the science conflict with the politics?	4th May 2009
Coalition 'wants to wreck new Kyoto' - Tenterfield Star Australia: THE Opposition is trying to derail a new international agreement on global warming, the Minister for Climate Change, Penny Wong, said last night. She said its lack of support for the emissions trading scheme was tantamount to destroying Australia's bargaining position at climate change talks to be held in Copenhagen at the end of the year. "If Australia falls at this hurdle, we risk being seen as returning to the years of the Howard government Kyoto sceptics, when we were part of the problem, not part of the solution," Senator Wong told the Lowy Institute.	4th May 2009
Australia delays emissions scheme - BBC News The Australian government says it will push back a planned carbon emissions trading scheme by a year until 2011.	4th May 2009
Obama's green promise - Guardian The US president's most important climate change initiative deals with gases far more powerful than carbon dioxide – HFCs See also: Obama Not Seeking Quick Climate Action Under Ozone Treaty - New York Times Blogs	4th May 2009
Hailed as a Miracle Biofuel, Jatropha Falls Short of Hype The scrubby jatropha tree has been touted as a wonder biofuel with unlimited potential. But questions are now emerging as to whether widespread jatropha cultivation is really feasible or whether it will simply displace badly-needed food crops in the developing world.	4th May 2009
Climate change 'cultural genocide' for Aborigines - AFP via Yahoo! Asia News Climate change would force Australia's Aborigines off their traditional lands, resulting in "cultural genocide" and environmental degradation, a human rights watchdog warned on Monday.	4th May 2009
Climate bill is now a longer shot than ‘Mine That Bird’ For people who haven't been paying close attention, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) keeps dropping bigger and bigger hints that President Obama is not going to get a climate bill on his desk this year.	4th May 2009
U.S. House climate control negotiations intensify WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Negotiations in the U.S. House of Representatives on how to cut industrial pollutants that cause global warming reach a critical stage this week as President Barack Obama huddles with key lawmakers on Tuesday and Republicans ready for a fight.	4th May 2009

Green energy gaining favor with investors - The News Journal Revenue from solar, wind power, ethanol and biodiesel fuel grew 50 percent to about $116 billion last year, according to Clean Edge Inc., a research and publishing firm. The spike in green revenue, and the backing of the federal government to explore these energy sources, has excited investors.	3rd May 2009
Natural disasters killed 220000 in 2008 - Canada.com BERLIN — Natural disasters killed over 220,000 people in 2008, making it one of the most devastating years on record and underlining the need for a global climate deal, the world's number two reinsurer said Monday. "This continues the long-term trend we have been observing. Climate change has already started and is very probably contributing to increasingly frequent weather extremes and ensuing natural catastrophes," Munich Re board member Torsten Jeworrek said.	3rd May 2009
All we do now to save salmon could mean nothing - The Idaho Statesman "The only salmon that are going to survive the century mark are the ones in the large populations in the higher elevations that are still going to have snow and cold water," said Jim Martin, a former chief of fisheries for the state of Oregon. But even these runs and those as far north as Alaska would be threatened if the world does not reduce gases like carbon dioxide over the next 50 years.	3rd May 2009
Q&A: Wanted - A Truly Clean Development Mechanism BERLIN, May 2 (Tierramérica) - The Clean Development Mechanism established under the Kyoto Protocol on climate change "should go beyond pure compensation" and produce "a net atmospheric benefit," argues Lambert Schneider, an expert with Germany's Institute for Applied Ecology. The CDM allows industrialised countries to invest in environmental projects in developing nations to compensate for their own emissions of climate changing gases, as a cheaper alternative to a real reduction of emissions in their own national territory. Reducing carbon dioxide emissions, for example, by maintaining forests intact allows a poor country to "sell" carbon credits to the rich country, which in turn allows that country to emit the volume of gases saved. But in order to reverse the process of climate change, such projects must be "additional": the net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions has to be greater than the cuts that would occur anyway without the initiative.	3rd May 2009
Economist Krishna Pendakur says NDP should fix, not scrap, carbon tax - The Georgia Straight Central to both the NDP and Green party election platforms are their responses to the B.C. Liberals' carbon tax. According to SFU economist Krishna Pendakur, the Greens got theirs right, and the NDP got theirs wrong.	3rd May 2009
Monckton's deliberate manipulation - RealClimate Our favorite contrarian, the potty peer Christopher Monckton has been indulging in a little aristocratic artifice again. Not one to be constrained by mere facts or observable reality, he has launched a sally against Andy Revkin for reporting the shocking news that past industry disinformation campaigns were not sincere explorations of the true uncertainties in climate science.	3rd May 2009
Climate Change: How The '2 Degrees Celsius Target' Can Be Reached - Science Daily If CO2 emissions are halved by 2050 compared to 1990, global warming can be stabilised below two degrees. This is shown by two studies by a co-operation of German, Swiss and British researchers in the journal Nature.	3rd May 2009
Laser quest: The scientist with a planet-saving plan straight out of Spider-Man - Independent Staff at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in central California are confident that some time in 2010, they will create a fusion reaction by focusing 192 intense ultra-violet lasers on to a tiny golden pellet, recreating the energy of the sun for a fraction of a second, thereby paving the way to a carbon-neutral future without global warming or nuclear waste. If all goes to plan, the implications would fairly reflect California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's recent description of the project as "monumental". Fusion, we're told, could be mankind's salvation – but what are the chances of translating theory into practice?	3rd May 2009
Wealthy nations must lead on climate change: Economist - Toronto Star The citizens and leaders of rich countries who aren't willing to ditch their SUVs and embrace other facets of a low-carbon lifestyle will sabotage attempts at reaching a global deal for tackling climate change, prominent British economist Lord Nicholas Stern is warning. "This has to be the biggest international collaboration in history if we are to tackle this challenge," Stern told an audience of Toronto's business elite during a speech today at the Economic Club of Canada.	2nd May 2009
"Supertanker earth" can be steered towards safer waters - University of Manchester The global problems of economic collapse, climate change and poverty can be solved, but only if early action is taken, according to one of the world's leading economists. In his new book Professor Mohan Munasinghe from The University of Manchester says traditional models focusing mainly on economic growth have led to the major problems facing the world today. Instead, the co-laureate of the 2007 Nobel Prize for Peace and Vice Chair of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change-AR4 urges world leaders to simultaneously tackle social, environmental as well as economic problems within an integrated framework he calls ‘sustainomics’.	2nd May 2009
'Smart turbine blades' to improve wind power - PhysOrg Researchers have developed a technique that uses sensors and computational software to constantly monitor forces exerted on wind turbine blades, a step toward improving efficiency by adjusting for rapidly changing wind conditions.	2nd May 2009
Texas wind farm pioneers radar technology to protect migrating birds - Guardian US wind farms kill about 7,000 birds a year but radar systems developed for Nasa can prevent fatal collisions by detecting approaching birds and analysing weather conditionsIt could be considered an air traffic control system for birds who have flown perilously off course. A wind farm in southern Texas, situated on a flight path used by millions of birds each autumn and spring, is pioneering the use of radar technology to avoid deadly collisions between a 2,500lb rotating blade and bird.US wind farms kill about 7,000 birds a year, according to a recent study. Other studies of individual wind farms suggest a higher toll on bats and birds, who crash into towers, blades, power lines and other installations.	2nd May 2009
A bad week for U.S. coal projects It was a bad week to be planning a coal-fired power plant in the United States. The industry suffered its second blow of the week on Friday with the cancellation of a plant in Michigan. The move by power plant developer LS Power marks the ninth such plant to be dropped in the United States so far this year, according to a count by environmental group the Sierra Club. The company blamed regulatory uncertainty and the weak economy for the cancellation, which environmentalists cheered because coal-fired power plants are responsible for more than 30 percent of the United States' global warming emissions.	2nd May 2009
Americans Want to Limit Climate Gases, Even If It Raises Costs - Environment News Service Strong, comprehensive climate and energy legislation likely would reduce energy bills, not increase them, finds a new analysis by the Union of Concerned Scientists. Based on a U.S. Department of Energy modeling system, the analysis performed by the Union of Concerned Scientists shows that combining a carbon dioxide cap-and-trade program with energy and transportation policies would result in "dramatic emissions reductions" and net savings for the typical U.S. household of $300 per year in 2020 and $900 per year in 2030.	2nd May 2009
Massive economic and policy reform: Easier than you think - Grist Big change doesn't require removing entire barriers, just a few key bricks.	2nd May 2009
Climate change threatens Lake Baikal's unique biota - PhysOrg Siberia's Lake Baikal, the world's largest and most biologically diverse lake, faces the prospect of severe ecological disruption as a result of climate change, according to an analysis by a joint US-Russian team in the May issue of BioScience.	2nd May 2009
Sea Salt Holds Clues to Climate Change - PhysOrg (PhysOrg.com) -- We know that average sea levels have risen over the past century, and that global warming is to blame. But what is climate change doing to the saltiness, or salinity, of our oceans?	2nd May 2009
To Make Clean Energy Cheaper, U.S. Needs Bold Research Push For spurring the transformation to a low-carbon economy, the federal and state governments, universities, and the private sector must join together to create a network of energy research institutes that could speed development of everything from advanced batteries to biofuels. BY MARK MURO AND TERYN NORRIS	2nd May 2009
Fertilisers 'reducing diversity' Excess fertilisation reduces plant diversity, as fast growing species block some plants' access to sunlight, a study shows.	2nd May 2009
North Sea Rocks Can Store 200 Years of CO2 Output, Study Finds - Bloomberg May 1 (Bloomberg) -- Rocks under the North Sea can store the entire carbon dioxide output of Scotland and northeast England for two centuries, according to a study published today.	2nd May 2009
Sea-floor Sediments Illuminate 53 Million Years of Climate History - PhysOrg (PhysOrg.com) -- The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) drillship JOIDES Resolution is returning to port in Honolulu this week after a two-month voyage to chart detailed climate history in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. The expedition was the first of two back-to-back voyages of a scientific project called Pacific Equatorial Age Transect (PEAT). It was the first international scientific ...	2nd May 2009
Another Weapon Emerges in the Combat Over Global Warming: A Thesaurus - New York Times Another Weapon Emerges in the Combat Over Global Warming: A ThesaurusNew York Times, United States - John M. BroderHe suggested referring to themselves as “conservationists” rather than “environmentalists,” and emphasizing “common sense” over scientific argument. And, Mr. Luntz and Mr. Perkowitz agree, “climate change” is an easier sell than “global warming.”	2nd May 2009
Investigating inactivism - "informedness begets apathy" - not - TPMCafé In which we stumble into spookworld, and re-encounter the American Petroleum Institute spokesman-author of the infamous 1998 "Global Science Communications Action Plan" memo. Remember this from last spring? Global Warming Paradox? By John Tierney If only the masses could understand the science of global warming, they'd be alarmed, right? Wrong, according to the surprising results of a survey of Americans published in the journal Risk Analysis by researchers at Texas A&M University. ... (posted two days before Heartland's "Skeptics Ball" opened in NYC, in spring 2008) or perhaps you saw the finding reported in USA Today, on Instapundit, or at CJR Observatory. It was a near-flawless piece of climate disinformation, but behind the scenes turn out to lie the product defense industry, the author of the infamous 1998 American Petroleum Institute climate-disinformation memo, and some mighty odd connections and players - including, it appears, some from the CIA.	1st May 2009
NASA study says climate adds fuel to Asian wildfire emissions - EurekAlert! ( NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center ) In the last decade, Asian farmers have cleared tens of thousands of square miles of forests to accommodate the world's growing demand for palm oil, an increasingly popular food ingredient. Ancient peatlands have been drained and lush tropical forests have been cut down. As a result, the landscape of equatorial Asia now lies vulnerable to fires, which are growing more frequent and having a serious impact on the air as well as the land. A team of NASA-sponsored researchers have used satellites to make the first series of estimates of carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from these fires -- both wildfires and fires started by people -- in Malaysia, Indonesia, Borneo, and Papua New Guinea. They are now working to understand how climate influences the spread and intensity of the fires. Using data from a carbon-detecting NASA satellite and computer models, the researchers found that seasonal fires from 2000 to 2006 doubled the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) released from the Earth to the atmosphere above the region. The scientists also observed through satellite remote sensing that fires in regional peatlands and forests burned longer and emitted ten times more carbon when rainfall declined by one third the normal amount. The results were presented in December 2008 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.	1st May 2009
US eyes ozone treaty to curb greenhouse gas - msnbc.com Momentum was building Thursday for a novel strategy by the Obama administration to deal in part with global warming: Use the existing U.N. treaty to fix the ozone hole as a way to enact mandatory reductions in a key greenhouse gas — not carbon dioxide but hydrofluorocarbons.	1st May 2009
Potential breakthrough for sun's energy - Guardian New solar thermal technology overcomes a major challenge facing solar power – how to store the sun's heat for use at night or on a rainy day. From Yale Environment 360, part of Guardian Environment NetworkIn the high desert of southern Spain, not far from Granada, the Mediterranean sun bounces off large arrays of precisely curved mirrors that cover an area as large as 70 soccer fields. These parabolic troughs follow the arc of the sun as it moves across the sky, concentrating the sun's rays onto pipes filled with a synthetic oil that can be heated to 750 degrees Fahrenheit.	1st May 2009
We count calories. Why not carbon? - The Christian Science Monitor If we can we list the nutritional value of a pickled egg, surely we can drive a healthier market and planet through system-cost comparison.	1st May 2009
Power to the people - Guardian How did a Cambridge physics professor come to write this year's must-read book about tackling our future energy needs? Leo Hickman went to meet himIt costs £45 in hardback. It has a crashingly dull cover and title. And it has been launched without marketing pizazz. But a new academic book written by David MacKay, a physics professor at the University of Cambridge, is being hailed by some as a "game changer": a text that could revolutionise popular thinking about our future energy needs and how we could supply them.First published online last summer, Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air has gathered fans and accolades from all corners of the energy and climate change debate - politicians, business leaders, environmentalists.	1st May 2009
UK 'will struggle' to meet 2020 renewables goal Coalition of energy and climate scientists reveal scenarios for how lifestyles and energy generation in Britain must change to reach 2050 emission reduction targets	1st May 2009
NASA to measure ocean salinity from space - United Press International The Aquarius satellite, to be launched during May 2010, will be the first National Aeronautics and Space Administration instrument to track sea salinity from space. Sea saltiness today, as it has been for centuries, is measured by samples taken by ships' crews or, more recently, by automated buoys. But there are vast areas of the ocean where salinity has never been measured, NASA said. Although scientists know average sea levels have risen during the past century due to global warming, they don't know what climate change is doing to the salinity of the oceans.	1st May 2009
Ottawa Think-Tank Calls B.C.'s Carbon Tax Canada's "Most Effective" tail-pipe330.jpg British Columbia has the best carbon pricing scheme in Canada. That's the conclusion of a national survey and analysis of climate policies compiled by Sustainable Prosperity, a progressive think tank based at the Univeristy of Ottawa. According to a Globe and Mail report, the authors of the study invested a year speaking with top economic, business and environment leaders across the country before identifying eight key principles of a carbon pricing plan-think tranparency, reach, simplicity, and so on. The group then applied those principals to score Canada's existing carbon laws and proposals. B.C.'s carbon tax, introduced a year ago, scored an 87.	1st May 2009
Seven Weeks to Copenhagen Although December 2009 is more than six months away, in reality the World has seven weeks of further negotiations before the main details of a Global Climate Treaty must be agreed for delivery at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP) in December 2009 in Copenhagen Denmark. This was the news from Yvo de Boer, the United Nations Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, speaking at the conference “Thinking Outside the Box : Borderless Strategies to Combat Climate Change”. Today in a large hall with mindblowingly orange seats at the International Maritime Organisation on the South side of the River Thames in London, overlooking the Houses of Parliament, Yvo told the United Nations Association conference about the four things he needs to get clarity on from the COP15 participants.	1st May 2009

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