Sipping from the internet firehose...
This weekly posting is brought to you courtesy of H.E.Taylor. Happy reading, I hope you enjoy this week's Global Warming news roundup
- Top Stories:Methane, Forests Sink to Source, Sulphate Geoengineering
- Melting Arctic, Seabed Claims, Antarctica, Saving the Earth, Late Comments
- A Note on the Food Crisis, Food Crisis
- Hurricanes, GHG Stats, Temperatures, ENSO, Glaciers, Sea Levels, Satellites
- Impacts, Forests, Wacky Weather, Floods & Droughts, Food vs. Biofuel, Food Production
- Mitigation, Transportation, Buildings, Sequestration, Geoengineering
- Journals, Misc. Science, Hansen, Pielke
- Kyoto, Kyoto-2, UN/IPCC, Carbon Trade, Optimal Carbon Reduction Strategy
- Politics:International, EU & Japan Conference, IMF, RUSI, America, Britain, Europe, Australia, China, Canada
- Ecological Economics, IPAT, Apocalypso, Media, Courts
- Energy, Solar, Coal, Biofuel, Nukes, Peak Oil, Efficiency, Cars, Business, Greenwashing
- Carbon Lobby, Chapman, The Usual, Useful Links
- Shameless Self Promotion, .sig
- 2008/04/13: SkepticalScience: (cartoon - ?) Cartoon about global warming alarmism
- 2008/04/22: uComics: (cartoon - Toles) Polar Bear Ethics
- 2008/04/22: SeattlePI: (cartoon - Horsey) Gifts for Mother Nature ...
After a ten year hiatus methane levels are up and the rate of CO2 increase is rising. This has the potential to be a major 'Oh Oh' moment:
- 2008/04/25: NOAANews: Carbon Dioxide, Methane Rise Sharply in 2007
- 2008/04/26: GWWatch: Carbon dioxide up 2.4 ppm on last year
- 2008/04/24: NatureTGB: "Gloomy" emissions data shows methane rising
- 2008/04/24: ClimateP: NOAA: Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide, Methane Rise Sharply in 2007
- 2008/04/25: OilChange: Methane Levels Rising Again
- 2008/04/23: Reuters: Carbon dioxide, methane up sharply in 2007-US govt
- 2008/04/25: SMH: Carbon output goes off the chart
- 2008/04/24: SciDaily: Greenhouse Gases, Carbon Dioxide And Methane, Rise Sharply In 2007
- 2008/04/24: NYT: Levels of Carbon Dioxide in Atmosphere Increase
- 2008/04/24: SF Gate: Greenhouse gases growing faster than ever, report says - Increases in methane and carbon dioxide of particular concern
- 2008/04/24: BBC: Hints of methane's renewed rise
Levels of the greenhouse gas methane in the atmosphere seem to be rising having remained stable for nearly 10 years. Data from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the US suggest concentrations rose by about 0.5% between 2006 and 2007. The rise could reflect melting of permafrost, increased industrialisation in Asia or drying of tropical wetlands. The rise in carbon dioxide levels was significantly higher than the average annual increase for the last 30 years. NOAA figures show CO2 concentrations rising by 2.4 parts per million (ppm) from 2006 to 2007. By comparison, the average annual increase between 1979 and 2007 was 1.65ppm - 2008/04/23: CNN: Greenhouse gases gathering at faster pace
Carbon dioxide, methane concentrations rising rapidly, NOAA says - Since 2000, annual increases have been greater than in 1980s - Most scientists worry gas accumulation causing Earth's temperature to rise - 2008/04/23: MongaBay: Carbon dioxide, methane levels rise sharply in 2007
- 2008/04/23: TruthOut: Melting Methane - A storehouse of greenhouse gases is opening in Siberia
- 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: Scientists say accumulation of greenhouse gases accelerating
Since 2000, annual increases of two parts per million or more have been common, compared with 1.5 ppm per year in the 1980s and less than one ppm per year during the 1960s, NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory said - 2008/04/21: SciDaily: Current Spike In Atmospheric Methane Mirrors Early Climate Change Events
Another 'Oh Oh' moment. Canadian research has revealed that pine beetles are turning forests from a CO2 sink into a CO2 source:
- 2008/04/25: ClimateP: Nature on stunning new climate feedback: Beetle tree kill releases more carbon than fires
- 2008/04/24: DeSmogBlog: Climate Change and Pine Beetles
- 2008/04/25: G&M: Tiny [pine] beetle tramps over emission targets
- 2008/04/24: Yahoo: Pine beetle outbreaks turn forests into carbon source
- 2008/04/23: CBC: Pine beetle outbreak adds to greenhouse gas woes
- 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: Beetles may doom Canada's carbon reduction target: study
- 2008/04/23: CBC: Pine beetle outbreak adds to greenhouse gas woes
The mountain pine beetle's infestation in western Canada is turning forests into a new source of greenhouse gases, according to new research to be published Thursday in the journal Nature. Scientists from Natural Resources Canada said the beetle's ravenous spread through pine forests in British Columbia and Alberta is killing trees. The decaying trees are in turn releasing carbon into the atmosphere. The cumulative impact of the beetle outbreak in the region will release 990 megatonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent greenhouse gases from 2000 to 2020, said the NRC's senior research scientist, Werner Kurz. - 2008/04/09: Science: (ab$) The Sensitivity of Polar Ozone Depletion to Proposed Geoengineering Schemes by Simone Tilmes et al.
- 2008/04/24: SciNow: Ozone: Friend or Foe?
- 2008/04/26: TreeHugger: Pumping Sulfate Particles into the Stratosphere: Not Such a Hot Idea After All
- 2008/04/25: NatureTGB: Sulphate science won't stop global warming
- 2008/04/25: MongaBay: Geoengineering solution to global warming could destroy the ozone layer
- 2008/04/24: NewScientist: 'Planetary sunshade' could strip ozone layer by 76%
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: Stratospheric injections to counter global warming could damage ozone layer
- 2008/04/25: DeSmogBlog: Hopeful Climate Fix Bites The Dust
- 2008/04/25: ENN: Plan to reverse global warming could backfire
- 2008/04/25: DymaxionWorld: Your afternoon dose of climate alarmism [geo-eng]
- 2008/04/25: BBC: Climate 'fix' could deplete ozone
Research has cast new doubt on the wisdom of using Sun-blocking sulphate particles to cool the planet. Sulphate injections are one of several "geo-engineering" solutions to climate change being discussed by scientists. But data published in Science journal suggests the strategy would lead to drastic thinning of the ozone layer. - 2008/04/25: CBC: Creating clouds to ease global warming would harm ozone layer: study
- 2008/04/24: Eureka: Stratospheric injections to counter global warming could damage ozone layer
- 2008/04/24: NSF: Injecting Sulfate Particles into Stratosphere Could Have Drastic Impact on Earth's Ozone Layer
- 2008/04/24: AFP: Artificially cooling Earth may prove perilous: study
Radical proposals to inject sulfur particles into the Earth's stratosphere to cool it down and battle global warming could instead badly damage the ozone layer, a study warned Thursday. "Our research indicates that trying to artificially cool off the planet could have perilous side effects," said researcher Simone Tilmes from the National Center for Atmospheric Research. "While climate change is a major threat, more research is required before society attempts global geoengineering solutions." The study, published Thursday in Science Express, warns that injecting sulfate particles into the air at an altitude of some 10 to 50 kilometers (six to 30 miles), could lead to a loss of ozone above the Arctic and delay the recovery of the hole in the ozone layer above Antarctica by decades. - 2008/04/22: CBC: U.S. scientists study Arctic haze for clues to rapid melting in far north
- 2008/04/24: CBC: WWF Canada: climate change hitting arctic faster, harder than first thought
- 2008/04/26: PeakEnergy: Arctic Ice Free In 2008?
- 2008/04/25: TreeHugger: Is it Time to Bid Greenland Farewell?
- 2008/04/25: NewScientist: North Pole could be ice free in 2008
- 2008/04/25: TStar: Arctic forecast: Wet, and getting wetter - Canadian researchers warn of ominous future after finding link between rise in greenhouse gases, increased precipitation
- 2008/04/24: Eureka: Are Ice Age relics the next casualty of climate change? Wildlife Conservation Society launches new study of musk ox
- 2008/04/24: CBC: Man-made greenhouse gases have made Arctic a wetter place: study
- 2008/04/23: KSJT: AP: A closer look at International Polar Year and its scrutiny of Arctic haze
- 2008/04/23: CanWest: Arctic ice melting at alarming rate - Changes scientists didn't expect for another 50 years are happening now, research suggests
- 2008/04/22: NatureCF: Losing Greenland
- 2008/04/22: SciDaily: Arctic Ice More Vulnerable To Sunny Weather, New Study Shows
- 2008/04/22: TStar: Arctic ice melting fast in summer sun
- 2008/04/21: MongaBay: Sunshine worsens Arctic sea ice melt
- 2008/04/21: PhysOrg: Arctic ice more vulnerable to sunny weather, new study shows
- 2008/04/21: TerraDaily: Researchers Warm Up To Melt's Role In Greenland Ice Loss
- 2008/04/21: UCAR: Arctic Ice More Vulnerable to Sunny Weather, New Study Shows
- 2008/04/21: PeakEnergy: Return Of The Shrinking Polar Ice Cap
- 2008/04/21: CBC: Canada's Arctic claim work challenged by ice, logistics
And the posturing:
- 2008/04/24: LMB: Canada's Arctic Sovereignty Continues to be Challenged
Possibly related via the the Law of the Sea Treaty is the recently approved Australian seabed claims:
- 2008/04/21: BBC: Australia extends rights over sea - Australia has increased its share of the seabed by 2.5 million sq km, after the UN agreed an extension
While in the Antarctic:
- 2008/04/21: PhysOrg: The Antarctic deep sea gets colder
- 2008/04/21: AWI: The Antarctic deep sea gets colder
These two stories belong together:
- 2008/04/21: ZNet: Bolivia's President Evo Morales' 10 Commandments to Save Planet
- 2008/04/22: OTF: The Earth Will Be Just Fine, Thank You
The grand myth of environmentalism is that it's all about saving the Earth. It's not. The Earth will be just fine. Environmentalism is all about saving ourselves. - 2008/04/21: EnergyDaily: Scrap capitalism to save the planet : Bolivian president [Evo Morales]
Late comment on Bush's Rose Garden climate plan:
- 2008/04/23: KSJT: Chr. Science Monitor: Internationally, Pres. Bush's latest climate plan goes over like a sock with a lump of coal inside
- 2008/04/23: ClimateP: Global Warming Red Herring
- 2008/04/22: WarmingLaw: Everybody Else vs. the Washington Post (and John Dingell)
- 2008/04/23: CSM: Media survey: Bush's new global-warming plan gets cool reception
- 2008/04/22: NYT: Empty Promises on Warming
- 2008/04/21: CSW: Bush climate speech aligns with disinformation campaign on stonewalling courts and environmental law
- 2008/04/21: TerraDaily: Analysis: EU bashes Bush's climate plan
Late comment on Earth Day:
- 2008/04/22: WorldChanging: The Top Stories, Earth Day 2008
- 2008/04/22: NatureTGB: Earth day divides the planet - April 22, 2008
Some people are really getting into the spirit of Earth Day, the annual environmental awareness day. Some are most definitely not. It's like A Christmas Carol, but with Al Gore as Tiny Tim and maybe Bjorn Lomborg as Scrooge. - 2008/04/21: ClimateP: Let's Dump "Earth Day"
- 2008/04/22: AOLogic: How Many Earth Days Do We Have Left?
Late comment on the Paris Major Economies Meeting:
- 2008/04/23: CarbonFinance: EU, US rift over climate change widens
Late comment on the EGU conference:
- 2008/04/22: RealClimate: Impressions from the European Geophysical Union conference 2008
Late comment on Stern:
- 2008/04/20: MTobis: Nicholas Stern Admits to Error
Late comment on the Huaynaputina volcano:
- 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: 1600 eruption caused global disruption
- 2008/04/23: UCDavis: 1600 Eruption [of Huaynaputina] Caused Global Disruption
A note on the food crisis:
You might wonder at my continuing to include the food crisis among the global warming articles. The current food crisis is caused by several factors.
- Climate change is having an impact. Drought has ravaged crops in Australia and eastern Europe.
- The growing wealth of Asian countries, notably China and India, has triggered a shift toward a western diet containing more meat. More grain is being used to feed poultry and livestock, raising demand and hence prices.
- Arching over all other considerations, the price of oil, besides directly affecting transportation, has driven the cost of fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation through the roof.
- There are always more mouths. The global population is rising at a rate of ~1.1% a year.
- In the background, the IMF's structural adjustments and associated neoliberal policies have had the effect of destroying much local agricultural capability, because local farmers can't compete with subsidized imports.
- With current prices so high, the economy sliding into recession, and the stock market being erratic, there is undoubtably a degree of speculation going on as well.
- To all these factors, the Americans add major subsidies for biofuel which has the effect of tying the world food market to the energy market.
I have no doubt that high prices will motivate farmers to grow more, and the complaints of the hungry will encourage politicians to change misguided policies, but it going to take time and I will continue to track the issue. In the long run, we have here a preview of what will happen as population continues to increase, as the weather becomes more unreliable and as oil becomes more expensive.
The food crisis remains a top story:
- 2008/04/26: BBC: Punjab reaps a poisoned harvest
The governments of many poor nations are alarmed at the rise in food prices. There are even problems in the Indian region of Punjab, where science once seemed to have found answers for a hungry world - 2008/04/27: WaPo: The New Economics of Hunger
A brutal convergence of events has hit an unprepared global market, and grain prices are sky high. The world's poor suffer most. - 2008/04/26: DailyExpress: Rice rationed [in UK] as price rockets 60% in a year
- 2008/04/26: EconTimes: Food vs fuel: Let free markets work
- 2008/04/26: CPunch: A World of Hunger by Ralph Nader
- 2008/04/26: CPunch: Food Riots and Speculators
- 2008/04/25: CPunch: Why Biotech is Betting on Biofuels
- 2008/04/24: CPunch: Politics is Food is Politics
- 2008/04/: FP: Seven Questions: The Silent Tsunami
- 2008/04/24: NatPo: Food-buying panic hits Canadian stores
- 2008/04/25: AlterNet: Food Riots Erupt Worldwide
- 2008/04/25: WSWS: Global food crisis grips Latin America
- 2008/04/22: CanWest: 72-per-cent food-price rise predicted [by IFPRI: International Food Policy Research Institute]
- 2008/04/25: UN: Poor farmers receive $200 million boost from UN [IFAD] to face food crisis
- 2008/04/25: UN: Tackling drought crucial in finding food crisis solution -UN
- 2008/04/24: UN: Soaring food prices jeopardizing UN's ability to feed the world's hungry
- 2008/04/25: GristMill: Sticker shock! What's causing the sudden run-up in food prices?
- 2008/04/24: GristMill: Thinking outside the cereal box - Thoughts on the farm bill and the skyrocketing cost of food
- 2008/04/25: QuarkSoup: Climate Change and the Food Crisis
- 2008/04/23: QuarkSoup: Run on Rice
- 2008/04/25: Time: How to End the Global Food Shortage [Sachs]
- 2008/04/25: CDreams: Nation: The World Food Crisis
- 2008/04/25: CSM: Latin American leftist leaders vow to fight food price hikes
The four countries, joined in a trading bloc called ALBA, said they would step up agricultural production efforts. - 2008/04/24: TP:WonkRoom: Global Food Crisis Hits Home As Retailers Begin To Ration Rice
- 2008/04/25: Xinhuanet: UN food agency [WFP] pushes for solutions to food crisis
- 2008/04/26: Asia Times: Funding the food price fiasco
- 2008/04/25: BBC: The price of wheat has fallen 40% from a record peak set in February on expectations of a bumper harvest
- 2008/04/25: CTV: No rice supply crisis in Canada, industry says
- 2008/04/25: BBerg: Rice Shortage Roils San Francisco Stores, Markets, Food Banks
- 2008/04/25: Yahoo: UN secretary-general calls food price rise a global crisis
- 2008/04/25: VoxEU: Food prices: The need for insurance
Rising food prices are hurting many poor people, but they are helping poor agricultural producers. Food price volatility, on the other hand, is bad for everyone. This column explains poor people's need for food price variability insurance - 2008/04/08: BBC: The cost of food: facts and figures
- 2008/04/25: SMH: US starts rationing food
- 2008/04/24: TreeHugger: World Food Markets in Turmoil, Washington Sleeps
- 2008/04/24: PeakEnergy: Last Tango In Tokyo
- 2008/04/23: CBC: Sam's Club limits rice purchases in U.S.
- 2008/04/24: CBC: [Canadian] Bread prices on the rise, food reps say
- 2008/04/24: CTV: Food crisis could hit Canada, expert warns
- 2008/04/23: EconView: Sign of the Times [rice prices]
- 2008/04/24: BBC: LatAm leaders in food price pact
Four Latin American leaders, meeting in Caracas, have agreed on a $100m (£50m) scheme to combat the impact of rising food prices on the region's poor. The presidents of Bolivia, Nicaragua and Venezuela and Cuba's vice-president also agreed on joint programmes to promote the development of agriculture. - 2008/04/23: Reuters: Wal-Mart's Sam's Club limits rice purchases
- 2008/04/24: SMH: UN cuts school children's meals
A "silent tsunami" unleashed by costlier food is threatening 100million people, the United Nations has warned, revealing that its World Food Program has begun cutting the provision of school meals to some of the world's poorest children as the global food-price crisis worsens. - 2008/04/23: Guardian(UK): Spectre of food rationing hits US
Retailers impose limits on rice and flour sales following bulk purchases by customers alarmed by rocketing global prices for staple foods - 2008/04/24: Guardian(UK): Shops ration sales of rice as US buyers panic
- 2008/04/23: EUO: Global food crisis prompts EU to boost emergency aid
- 2008/04/22: TerraDaily: London summit tackles 'tsunami' of rising food prices
- 2008/04/23: TreeHugger: Food Shortages Drive Global Prices to Record Highs
- 2008/04/23: SciDaily: Widespread Hunger Looms In Wake Of 'Silent Tsunami' From High Food Prices, U.N. Food Agency Warns
- 2008/04/23: Reuters: Chavez says food prices "massacre" of world's poor
- 2008/04/22: TruthOut: Why More Food Is Not the Answer
- 2008/04/23: Scoop: Why More Food Is Not the Answer
- 2008/04/23: RedJenny: On Rising Food Prices
- 2008/04/23: DerSpiegel: Deadly Greed - The Role of Speculators in the Global Food Crisis
- 2008/04/23: DerSpiegel: Super sorghum for the poor - Can Genetic Crops Stop the Food Crisis?
- 2008/04/23: BBC: Rice at fresh peak on supply fear
Rice prices have scaled fresh heights in Asian trade amid concern that export bans by key producers will hit supply. Rough rice for July delivery touched $24.745 per 100lb for the first time, before falling slightly - 2008/04/23: CBC: World Vision cuts aid for 1.5 million people due to rising food costs
- 2008/04/23: BBC: Assessing the global food crisis
"A silent tsunami which knows no borders sweeping the world". That is how [Josette Sheeran] the head of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) summed up the global food shortages. It is certainly a storm that has hit with little warning and has plunged an extra 100 million people into poverty. The crisis has triggered riots in Haiti, Cameroon, Indonesia and Egypt and is deemed a dangerous threat to stability - 2008/04/23: Times(UK): Era of cheap food ends as prices surge
- 2008/04/23: Guardian(UK): WFP cuts school meals as food crisis grows
- 2008/04/22: CNN: U.N. expert: Food crisis 'a silent tsunami'
Prices mean 100 million people could go hungry, U.N. official says - Soaring food prices have triggered violence in some developing countries - Expert says focus on biofuels means less focus on food crop - World Health Organization views hunger as main threat to public health - 2008/04/22: UN: Global food crisis 'silent tsunami' threatening over 100 million people, warns UN
- 2008/04/22: GristMill: Let them eat biofuel - Food vs. fuel debate, German edition
- 2008/04/21: CNN: Starving The Poor By Pandering To Big Ag
- 2008/04/22: CSM: Food for America's famished - With prices skyrocketing for staples such as bread, the poor need more food donations
- 2008/04/22: CSM: Asia limits rice exports as prices and uncertainty rise - Top exporters are trading less of the staple food, hurting countries that rely on imports
- 2008/04/22: CSM: Roots of Asia's rice crisis - Tight supplies reflect population boom and neglect of farming
- 2008/04/22: BBC: UN food chief urges crisis action
The head of the UN World Food Programme has said urgent action is required to stimulate food production and help the poor cope with soaring food prices. Josette Sheeran told the BBC that an additional 100 million people, who did not need assistance six months ago, could not now afford to purchase food. Her warning came ahead of a meeting in London to discuss the rise in prices and an EU policy encouraging biofuels. - 2008/04/22: AFP: UN summit to tackle 'tsunami' of rising food prices
- 2008/04/20: Reuters: Food price rises are "mass murder" - U.N. envoy [Jean Ziegler, U.N. special rapporteur]
- 2008/04/21: TheAge: Japan's hunger becomes a dire warning for other nations
- 2008/04/21: TreeHugger: Rationing Comes to Costco [food]
- 2008/04/21: BBerg: Using Food to Make Fuel Is `Criminal,' Venezuela Says [Venezuela's oil minister, Rafael Ramirez]
- 2008/04/21: CDreams: OneWorld: Food Crisis Set to Get Worse - Experts
- 2008/04/21: CBC: Urgent need to raise worldwide food production: UN chief
- 2008/04/21: SMH: For future peace, step forward for the great agricultural challenge by Achim Steiner
- 2008/04/21: Guardian(UK): Food crisis threatens security, says UN chief
- 2008/04/21: SacBee: Q & A: UC Berkeley professor [David Zilberman] discusses rising food prices
No hurricanes this week, but some chatter:
- 2008/04/23: Wunderground: Second warmest March on record; will La Nina be gone by hurricane season?
- 2008/04/22: TerraDaily: Changing Jet Streams May Alter Paths Of Storms And Hurricanes
- 2008/04/21: SciDaily: Extreme Ocean Storms Have Become More Frequent Over Past Three Decades, Study Of Tiny Tremors Shows
Meanwhile GHGs are still going up:
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: Better regional monitoring of CO2 needed as global levels continue rising
- 2008/04/24: ERabett: Lights, camera, emissions...[IPCC Emission Scenarios]
- 2008/04/24: Eureka: Better regional monitoring of CO2 needed as global levels continue rising
More CO2 observatories needed to quantify progress in emission reductions, say researchers - 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: Canadian greenhouse gases rose [25%] 1990-2005
- 2008/04/22: StatsCanada: Human activity and the environment: Climate change in Canada - 1990 to 2005
Canada's emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), major contributors to climate change, rose 25% between 1990 and 2005. However, without increases in energy efficiency, the increase in emissions would have been even greater. In 2005, human activities released the equivalent of 747 megatonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in Canada. This was up about 25% from emissions of 596 megatonnes in 1990. - 2008/04/23: CanWest: Canada is No. 3 polluter
Gas-guzzling vehicles are one of the key factors behind the notorious environmental record of Canadians who are among the highest per capita polluters in the world, according to figures released Tuesday by Statistics Canada. Each Canadian produces an average of 23 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year, trailing Americans, who create an average of 24.4 tonnes of emissions per year, and Australians, with an average of 27.7 tonnes of emissions per year, according to the federal statistical agency. - 2008/04/22: OilChange: US Emissions Will Still be 25 per Cent over UN Benchmark [1990 level]
- 2008/04/21: WorldChanging: Seeing China's Climate Emissions Clearly
As for the temperature record:
- 2008/04/24: Maribo: Patience, my friends
- 2008/04/24: TerraDaily: Global Temperature Report - March 2008
- 2008/04/22: NatureTGB: Return of the hockey stick
- 2008/04/22: TruthOut: March the Warmest on Record Over World's Land Surfaces
- 2008/04/21: Atmoz: Interannual Divergence in Satellite Temperature Records
- 2008/04/21: Atmoz: Adding NOAA Numbers to AtmozTemp
Besides the geoengineering aspect above, the ozone layer came in for comment:
- 2008/04/24: MongaBay: Ozone-hole recovery may spur Antarctic warming
- 2008/04/24: Eureka: Ozone hole recovery may reshape southern hemisphere climate change
While on the ENSO front:
- 2008/04/24: TerraDaily: Larger Pacific Climate Event [PDO] Helps Current La Nina Linger
- 2008/04/10: NOAA: El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) Diagnostic Discussion -- Synopsis: La Niña is expected to continue for the next 3 months
- 2008/04/22: SciDaily: Larger Pacific Climate Event Helps Current La Nina Linger
- 2008/04/22: PhysOrg: Larger Pacific Climate Event [PDO] Helps Current La Nina Linger
Glaciers are melting:
- 2008/04/24: ABC(Au): Mt Cook glacier melting away: [NZ] scientists
- 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: Tasman Glacier retreat extreme
- 2008/04/22: KSJT: LA Times: In Bhutan's Himalayas, melting glaciers engorge lakes - a budding calamity
- 2008/04/21: Columbian: St. Helens glacier apparently one of few in the world still growing
- 2008/04/17: Times(UK): Alpine guardians try to put treasures on ice
Sea levels are rising:
- 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: Global warming could flood Florida coasts
- 2008/04/22: MTobis: Sea Level in the Daily Press
- 2008/04/21: Guardian(UK): [Letters] Coastal land is only leased from the sea
Meanwhile in near earth orbit:
- 2008/04/24: NatureCF: In the ozone
- 2008/04/24: TerraDaily: ALOS [Advanced Land Observation Satellite] Will Provide Advanced Data To Help Latin America Better Adapt To Climate Threats
More GW impacts are being seen:
- 2008/04/25: TruthOut: Warming Shifts Gardeners' Maps
- 2008/04/24: USAToday: Warming shifts gardeners' maps
- 2008/04/22: SciDaily: Increasing Levels Of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Cause A Rise In Ocean Plankton Calcification
- 2008/04/26: SciDaily: Arctic Marine Mammals On Thin Ice
- 2008/04/25: Yahoo: Narwhals more at risk to Arctic warming than polar bears
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: Are Ice Age relics [musk ox] the next casualty of climate change?
- 2008/04/25: PhysOrg: Narwhals more at risk to Arctic warming than polar bears
- 2008/04/23: PhysOrg: Arctic marine mammals on thin ice
- 2008/04/23: Eureka: Arctic marine mammals on thin ice - Experts outline primary risks of climate change to natives of the Arctic
And then there are the world's forests:
- 2008/04/23: GristMill: Market force of nature - Social concerns complicate an issue that, for scientists, is a no-brainer
Yes we have no wacky weather, except:
- 2008/04/22: People's Daily: Extreme weather hits NW China, costing 5 bln yuan [Sandstorm, snow and freezing]
- 2008/04/21: CanWest: Winter weather sets several records
And speaking of floods & droughts:
- 2008/04/25: CBC: Flood danger begins to move downriver in N.B. - EMO cautions Fredericton area residents to remain on alert
- 2008/04/23: ChinaDaily: Rainstorm causes evacuation, serious damage in Hubei
More than 1,100 people have been displaced and 380,000 affected by rainstorms on Friday and Saturday in central China's Hubei Province, local government said on Wednesday. - 2008/04/24: EUO: EU commission investigates link between biofuels and food crisis
- 2008/04/25: GristMill: Notable quotable(s) - Food vs. fuel edition
- 2008/04/24: Reuters: Brazil: biofuels threaten food production only in U.S.
Brazil's finance minister rejected on Monday the idea that the production of biofuels is driving higher the price of food globally, saying that this is a problem restricted to the United States. "It endangers (food production) here in the United States, but not in Brazil, not in African countries, not in Latin American countries, which have enough land to produce both" food and biofuels, Guido Mantega told journalists in New York. Environmentalists and some government officials of developed countries have partially blamed a recent spike in food prices on the growing production of biofuels... - 2008/04/23: CDreams: Mercury: End Food-to-Fuel Diversion: The World Is Getting Hungry
- 2008/04/25: CanWest: Why biofuels have backfired
- 2008/04/24: FA: How Biofuels Could Starve the Poor
- 2008/04/24: AutoBG: Friends of the Earth: Beware of "sustainable" certified biofuel crops
- 2008/04/22: Guardian(UK): Biofuels starving our people, leaders [of Bolivia and Peru] tell UN
- 2008/04/23: AutoBG: GM CEO Wagoner slams biofuel critics in Beijing
Recent comments by John Powell, the deputy director of the UN World Food Program, have drawn return fire from GM CEO Rick Wagoner at the Beijing Motor Show. Powell blamed biofuels in part for the recent run up in food prices around the world that has resulted in more poor people not being able to afford food. Speaking at the Beijing Motor Show Wagoner called critics "shockingly misinformed" saying that high fuel prices are a much bigger factor in food costs than the diversion of food stocks to fuel production. - 2008/04/22: OilChange: Latin American Leaders: Biofuels ARE a Threat
- 2008/04/22: BBC: Leaders warn on biofuels and food
Two Latin American leaders have issued warnings about the effects of biofuel production on food supplies. Speaking at the UN in New York, Bolivian President Evo Morales said the development of biofuels harmed the world's poorest people. And President Alan Garcia of Peru said using land for biofuels was putting food out of reach for poor people. Meanwhile UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown is hosting a meeting to discuss European policy encouraging biofuels. - 2008/04/21: PhysOrg: Asian Development Bank: Biofuels making food more expensive
And the troubling matter of falling food production is not going away:
- 2008/04/24: CBC: Fertilizer demand sends Potash to record quarter
- 2008/04/23: GristMill: What are GMOs good for, again? Study: transgenic soy brings lower yields than conventional
- 2008/04/23: AFTIC: Why GM crops again?
- 2008/04/20: MSNBC: Amid strong farm economy, some dire signs - Observers see similar situation -- too much debt -- to crash of late 1970s
- 2008/04/22: NYT: Price Volatility Adds to Worry on U.S. Farms
- 2008/04/22: Guardian(UK): Co-op clashes with organic group over CO2 and food miles
- 2008/04/21: TruthOut: Fertilizer Price Hikes Are Pinching Farmers
- 2008/04/21: DotEarth: Dot Earth Diet: In-Vitro Meat, Home-Grown Greens?
- 2008/04/21: PhysOrg: Scientists study how climate change impacts food production
- 2008/04/21: WorldChanging: International Agricultural Assessment: We Need a Paradigm Shift [IAASTD]
- 2008/04/21: Eureka: Carnegie Mellon studies how climate change impacts food production
Elsewhere on the mitigation front:
- 2008/04/23: AfterGutenberg: 14 Wedges
- 2008/04/24: NCL: Technological breakthrough in the fight to cut greenhouse gases [CO2 ==> cyclic carbonates]
- 2008/04/21: ABC(Au): [Former Beatle Paul] McCartney urges vegetarianism to fight climate ills
Consider transportation & GHG production:
- 2008/04/24: BBC: Belgium's Brussels Airlines has announced it is slowing speeds and reducing weight on some of its aircraft in order to reduce fuel costs
- 2008/04/23: IHT: Surging energy costs take a big toll on U.S. airline earnings
- 2008/04/23: PeakEnergy: Emergency Landing For The Airline Industry?
- 2008/04/23: CSM: Swedes weigh global warming versus a better tan
Eco-minded Scandinavians crave winter vacations. Yet the long flights add to greenhouse gases. Should they hit the beach or save the planet? - 2008/04/23: Yahoo: Delta, Northwest report combined $10.5B loss on fuel costs -- Delta posts $6.4 billion loss, Northwest loses $4.1 billion on soaring fuel prices
- 2008/04/22: PhysOrg: Aviation heads to act on climate change, but set no targets
- 2008/04/22: MontgomeryAd: Lifestyle change
Recently, protesting truckers slowed large sections of national highways to a halt. Around the same time, several airlines were closing or cutting operations. Meanwhile, car manufacturers were reporting some of their worst numbers in a generation. A close look reveals that all three of these transportation problems -- and indeed many other non-transportation ones -- are tied together with a common bond, the ever increasing costs of non-renewable fuels such as oil - 2008/04/24: SciDaily: UK's Iconic 1930s Semi-detached House Goes Green
- 2008/04/24: PeakEnergy: Green Buildings In Sydney
- 2008/04/24: Lansner: L.A. adopts mandatory "green building" ordinance
- 2008/04/22: Guardian(UK): E.ON builds energy-efficient semi [a replica 1930s house]
As for carbon sequestration:
- 2008/04/21: PhysOrg: Britain wants to develop CO2 'capture' knowhow: [Energy] Minister [Malcolm Wicks]
Large scale geo-engineering keeps popping up:
- 2008/04/23: NewScientist: Weather control claims put to the test
- 2008/04/23: DenverPost: Scientist's aim: Alter weather
Roelof Bruintjes dismisses the old saw that everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it. The Boulder scientist has made it rain in Australia, Turkey, the Middle East, Africa and Wyoming. [...] Scientists are monitoring more than 150 weather-modification projects in 40 countries, including at least 60 in the Western United States. The projects include wringing additional snow out of clouds for California hydropower and easing droughts in sub-Saharan Africa. Most of the current research on this inexact science is being conducted abroad, since funding for a majority of U.S. efforts dried up in the 1980s. China has 30,000 scientists devoted to weather modification... - 2008/04/25: ACP: The influence of European pollution on ozone in the Near East and northern Africa by B. N. Duncan et al.
- 2008/04/25: ACPD: Validation of OMI tropospheric NO2 column data using MAX-DOAS measurements deep inside the North China Plain in June 2006 by H. Irie et al.
- 2008/04/25: ACPD: The effect of organic compounds on the growth rate of cloud droplets in marine and forest settings by N. C. Shantz et al.
- 2008/04/24: ACPD: Transpacific transport of ozone pollution and the effect of recent Asian emission increases on air quality in North America: an integrated analysis using satellite, aircraft, ozonesonde, and surface observations by L. Zhang et al.
- 2008/04/09: Science: (ab$) The Sensitivity of Polar Ozone Depletion to Proposed Geoengineering Schemes by Simone Tilmes et al.
- 2008/04/25: CPD: Amplification of obliquity forcing through mean-annual and seasonal atmospheric feedbacks by S.-Y. Lee & C. J. Poulsen
- 2008/04/21: CPD: Recent climate change in Japan - spatial and temporal characteristics of trends of temperature by D. Schaefer & M. Domroes
- 2008/04/21: CPD: Monsoon response to changes in Earth's orbital parameters: comparisons between simulations of the Eemian and of the Holocene by P. Braconnot et al.
- 2008/04/24: TCD: Snow melting bias in microwave mapping of Antarctic snow accumulation by O. Magand et al.
- 2008/04/23: ACPD: SO2 emissions from Popocatapetl volcano: emission rates and plume imaging using optical remote sensing techniques by M. Grutter et al.
- 2008/04/22: ACPD: Evaluation of the tropospheric flows to a major Southern Hemisphere stratospheric warming event using NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis data with a PSU/NCAR nudging MM5V3 model by K. Wang
- 2008/04/22: ACPD: Effects of dust storms on microwave radiation based on satellite observation and model simulation over the Taklamakan desert by J. Ge et al.
- 2008/04/21: ACPD: The CCCma third generation AGCM and its extension into the middle atmosphere by J. F. Scinocca et al.
Before we get into politics, there was some science done:
- 2008/04/24: NatureN: Sediment cores reveal Antarctica's warmer past - ANDRILL project discovers that life at the pole wasn't so chilly 16 million years ago.
- 2008/04/25: NatureCF: Antarctica's warmer past revealed [ANDRILL]
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: Researcher to Study Gene Flow 'Hot Spots' in Canola
A University of Arkansas researcher and her colleagues have won a joint grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency to look at the combined effects of global climate change on weed biology, focusing in particular on transgenic hybrid weeds created by cross-pollination with genetically modified crop plants. - 2008/04/25: PhysOrg: Scientists reveal presence of ocean current 'stripes'
- 2008/04/24: Scripps: Scientists Reveal Presence of Ocean Current "Stripes"
- 2008/04/21: People's Daily: Sino-US scientists explore sandstorm causes
- 2008/04/21: TerraDaily: Tiny Tremors Can Track Extreme Storms In A Warming Planet
More on Hansen:
- 2008/04/24: StarTrib: Top scientist objects to coal-based power plant
Dr. James Hansen has asked [Minnesota] Gov. Tim Pawlenty to quash the plant, citing the governor's work to reduce greenhouse gases. But Pawlenty hasn't reached for the "off" switch yet. - 2008/04/23: TruthOut: Timeline for Irreversible Climate Change by James Hansen
- 2008/04/23: ENN: Timeline for Irreversible Climate Change
- 2008/04/21: WorldChanging: James Hansen on Peak CO2 and Big Carbon
And the Pielke fan clubbe:
- 2008/04/26: JFleck: Malaria and Global Warming
- 2008/04/20: MTobis: Pielke Jr vs Romm
- 2008/04/20: DeSmogBlog: Nature throws one-two punch at global warming
Meanwhile on the Kyoto front:
- 2008/04/23: UN: Ten new participants sign on to UN scheme [Climate Neutral Network] to slash emissions
- 2008/04/23: UN: Asia-Pacific countries convene at UN forum [UNESCAP in Bangkok] to share climate change solutions
- 2008/04/22: ENN: Greece suspended from UN Kyoto carbon trading
And on the Kyoto-2 front:
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: China calls for help on climate change
- 2008/04/22: TerraDaily: UN official [UNEP head, Achim Steiner] says climate change pact on troubled path
- 2008/04/23: SciDaily: Researchers Propose Way To Incorporate Deforestation Into Climate Change Treaty
- 2008/04/22: Yahoo: Climate change talks 'heading for trouble'
Governments negotiating a new climate change treaty, due next year, remain far apart on many issues, and this should be a "warning sign" that the world is facing trouble, a top UN environmental official said Tuesday. Talks in Bangkok earlier this month to thrash out firm commitments to battling global warming made little ground and this does not bode well for the 2009 meeting, Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), told reporters. - 2008/04/24: TreeHugger: What's Next for the IPCC?
- 2008/04/22: UN: UN honours seven leaders in the fight against climate change [Champions of the Earth award]
And on the carbon trading front:
- 2008/04/24: NEN: Emissions Trading: What it's all about
The debate over the optimal strategy [carbon trading, carbon offsets, auction vs. allocation, and/or a carbon tax] to use in dealing with GHGs continues:
- 2008/04/24: EnvFin: Cap-and-trade will have 'tiny' impact on US growth - report [0.03% of economic growth by 2030 says EDF]
- 2008/04/26: EconView: Taking a Toll
- 2008/04/23: TP:WonkRoom: Will The Real Jim Rogers Please Step Forward?
- 2008/04/22: G&M: Who's tracking the trackers?
Although standards agencies are moving to bring order to the carbon offset business, it's still an unregulated industry - 2008/04/21: TheHill: [EDF] Study: America can afford cap-and-trade
- 2008/04/21: WSJ:EnvCap: No Problem: Environmental Defense Fund Says Capping Emissions Will Be Cheap
Meanwhile on the international political front:
- 2008/04/23: ABC(Au): UN launches 'international climate index'
The United Nations has launched what it is calling an "international climate index" to make governments more accountable on climate change. Under the plan, countries will be asked to detail how they are preparing their economies to cut pollution and tackle global warming. The indicators declared could include tax incentives for business, introducing carbon efficiencies, or government investment in scientific research. - 2008/04/22: PhysOrg: California to sign UN compact to help China cut emissions
Despite its output, California is leading efforts to curb emissions. The state's top environmental official is in Beijing to sign an agreement with the United Nations to help China's efforts. According to the four-page agreement to be signed Tuesday on Earth Day, the state also would mobilize public agencies and encourage private entities in California to support climate change projects in China - 2008/04/21: Yahoo: Norway gives Tanzania funds [500 million kroner (100 million dollars or 63 million euros)] to fight climate change
The EU and Japan held their yearly conference in Tokyo:
- 2008/04/24: OilChange: Tokyo Summit [European and Japanese leaders] Calls for Climate Targets
- 2008/04/23: Google:AFP: Japan, EU leaders call for 'highly ambitious' climate goals
- 2008/04/23: BBC: Summit calls for climate targets
European and Japanese leaders at their annual summit in Tokyo have called for "ambitious and binding" targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Their statement says curbing climate change will need mobilisation of "unprecedented investments and finance" mainly from the private sector. It accepts that a Japanese plan to explore separate targets for different types of industry is "useful". Leaders hope to take their arguments forward into the July G8 meeting. - 2008/04/21: CPunch: 30 Years Ago Haiti Grew All the Rice It Needed. What Happened? The U.S. Role in Haiti's Food Riots
In the UK, the Royal United Services Institute had harsh words about global warming and security:
- 2008/04/25: TruthOut: Response to Climate Security Threats "Slow and Inadequate": [RUSI] Report
- 2008/04/23: Yahoo: Response to climate security threats 'slow and inadequate'
The international response to security threats posed by climate change has been "slow and inadequate", according to a report published Wednesday. According to the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a British security think tank, a failure to adequately prepare for this is on a par with neglecting the risks of nuclear weapons proliferation or terrorism. - 2008/04/23: OilChange: Climate Change "May Put World at War"
- 2008/04/24: SMH: War alert on climate flux
Climate change could cause global conflicts as large as the two world wars, but lasting for centuries, unless the problem is controlled, a leading defence think tank [Royal United Services Institute] says. - 2008/04/23: ENN: Security risk from climate said underestimated
- 2008/04/23: Telegraph(UK): Climate change 'may put world at war'
And on the American political front:
- 2008/04/24: GristMill: Buckeyes on solar - Renewable energy standard passed in Ohio
- 2008/04/23: HillHeat: Pelosi Allies Release Climate Legislation Principles
- 2008/04/25: WarmingLaw: Arnold to Bush: Another Lawsuit Looms
- 2008/04/25: WarmingLaw: Another Governor Under Fire, and More (Better) News from the States
- 2008/04/24: WarmingLaw: On Earth Day, Sebelius Draws an Even Clearer Line In the Atmosphere
- 2008/04/25: DeSmogBlog: Sweet Dreams From The Birthplace of Rip Van Winkle [poll result US sleeping]
- 2008/04/24: Yahoo: Environment groups target Senate races on climate
U.S. environmental groups joined forces on Thursday to target Senate candidates in Colorado, New Hampshire and New Mexico, aiming to elect a 60-vote majority to deal with global warming. Environmental measures have failed to clear Congress by "a handful of votes in the Senate" in recent years, the groups' leaders said, noting the legislation to fight climate change is set for debate by the full Senate this year. - 2008/04/25: AutoBG: NADA: Dealers support national fuel economy standard
- 2008/04/24: TP:WonkRoom: [Rep. David] Dreier (R-CA) Says Nukes "Cleanest, Safest, Most Cost Effective Energy Source Known To Man"
- 2008/04/24: TreeHugger: Hispanic Voters Overwhelmingly Concerned About Global Warming, Environment
- 2008/04/24: ThinkP: Jeb Bush is a climate change skeptic: I'm "light green."
- 2008/04/23: WorldChanging: Earth Day and the Polling of America
- 2008/04/23: AutoBG: Pelosi commends Bush on 31.6 mpg by 2015 step
- 2008/04/23: CCSP: [RFC] Best practice approaches for characterizing, communicating, and incorporating scientific uncertainty in decisionmaking - Synthesis and Assessment Product 5.2
- 2008/04/22: GristMill: [What] Me, worry? Most Americans don't believe global warming will pose a threat to them
- 2008/04/22: TreeHugger: Greensburg, Kansas: Extraordinary Transformation
- 2008/04/22: TP:WonkRoom: Bush Throws Out Tools To Fight Global Warming Threat
- 2008/04/21: ADN: Global warming demands action, not ill-informed bickering
- 2008/04/21: TruthOut: Governors Unite to Cut Emissions
- 2008/04/21: GristMill: Fortune Brainstorm Green - A discussion of climate policy downplays cap-and-trade
- 2008/04/20: GristMill: Three-point plan - RFK Jr. advocates for cap-and-trade, renewables, smart grids
It is difficult to get good data on the tax breaks, subsidies, tariffs, grants and military support for energy suppliers, however the EIA released a (partial) report:
- 2008/04/09: EIA: Federal Financial Interventions and Subsidies in Energy Markets 2007
- 2008/04/25: WSJ:EnvCap: At the Trough: A Peek at U.S. Energy Subsidies
- 2008/04/23: TruthOut: The Seven Myths of Energy Independence
[...] Where the clean-energy money is - and isn't- Dept. of Energy solar budget, 2008: $168 million
- Venture capital investment in solar, 2006: $264 million
- Dept. of Energy renewable-energy budget, 2008: $1.7 billion
- Venture capital investment in renewable energy, 2006: $2.4 billion
- Federal ethanol subsidies, 2006: $6 billion
- Federal coal subsidies, 2006: $8 billion
- Federal oil and gas subsidies, 2006: $39 billion
- Worldwide investment in renewable energy, 2007: $71 billion
- 2008/04/25: GristMill: Details matter: Small sticks and no carrots - Lieberman-Warner criticism, Part 2
- 2008/04/24: GristMill: Details matter - Lieberman-Warner criticism, Part 1
- 2008/04/25: HillHeat: [Sen. George] Voinovich (R-Ohio) Drafting Climate Counter-Proposal [counter-Lieberman-Warner]
- 2008/04/23: WSJ:EnvCap: [Carl] Pope's Apostasy: Sierra Club Chief Disses Climate Bill This Year
- 2008/04/20: GristMill: Climate policy and purity tests - Enough with the internecine warfare over Lieberman-Warner
Joe Romm is asking Is 450 ppm (or less) politically possible?:
- 2008/04/26: ClimateP: Is 450 ppm (or less) politically possible? Part 0: The alternative is humanity's self-destruction
- 2008/04/24: ClimateP: Is 450 ppm politically possible? Part 2.6: What is the impact of peak oil and peak coal?
- 2008/04/23: ClimateP: Is 450 ppm politically possible? Part 2.5: The fuzzy math of the stabilization wedges
- 2008/04/22: ClimateP: Is 450 ppm (or less) politically possible? Part 2: The Solution
The Bush EPA continues to be embroiled in controversy:
- 2008/04/24: HillHeat: Stephen Johnson, The Environment's Alberto Gonzales
- 2008/04/24: WarmingLaw: DC Circuit Tells EPA It Means Business
- 2008/04/24: WarmingLaw: An Offer He Can't Refuse [EPA's Johnson]
- 2008/04/24: TP:WonkRoom: Stephen Johnson, The Environment's Alberto Gonzales
- 2008/04/23: CSW: EPA releases draft strategy on response to climate change impacts on water resources
A survey of EPA scientists revealed widespread political interference:
- 2008/04/24: TruthOut: Hundreds of EPA Scientists Report Political Interference
- 2008/04/24: AJC: Hundreds of EPA scientists cite political interference
- 2008/04/25: NatureTGB: Scientists "under siege" from political interference
- 2008/04/24: UCSUSA: Interference at the EPA - Science and Politics at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- 2008/04/23: WarmingLaw: EPA Scientists: Don't Tread On Us
- 2008/04/23: DeSmogBlog: EPA scientists drop bombshell in political-interference survey
- 2008/04/23: ThinkP: 60 Percent Of EPA Staff Have "Personally Experienced" "Political Interference"
The Bush EPA tried to sneak a nasty codicil into a recent rules package:
- 2008/04/24: TreeHugger: Bush's New Fuel Economy Rules Look Good... Until You Read All 417 Pages
[...] "Tucked deep into a 417-page 'Notice of Proposed Rulemaking' was language by the Transportation Department stating that more stringent limits on tailpipe emissions embraced by California and 17 other states are 'an obstacle to the accomplishment' of the new federal standards and are 'expressly and impliedly preempted' by federal law." - 2008/04/25: GristMill: Cold CAFE - Governors rally against dirty Bush car plan
- 2008/04/25: LA Times: Governors protest against federal emissions plan
- 2008/04/23: ThinkP: Administration's New Fuel Economy Rules Quietly Smack Down States' Emissions Reduction Efforts
- 2008/04/23: WarmingLaw: For Earth Day, Bush Buys California a Trojan Horse
The Bush administration has a unique response to the world food crisis:
- 2008/04/26: EconView: "Shocking Short-Sightedness"
This probably isn't the best time for the administration to be proposing reduced support for agricultural research... - 2008/04/25: CNBC: Texas Governor Seeks Waiver on Ethanol Rules
Texas Gov. Rick Perry asked the government to cut "skyrocketing" food prices by waiving half of the renewable fuel standard for ethanol made from grain. - 2008/04/25: WSJ:EnvCap: States' Rights: Texas to Fight Feds' Biofuels Mandate?
The Interior Dept. delayed the polar bear decision again. Where have we seen this 'delay, delay, deny' pattern?
- 2008/04/23: CSW: Interior Dept. announces further delay of months in decision on listing of polar bear as threatened
One hears a lot about the campaign(s), not much about climate:
- 2008/04/24: ThinkP: McCain on Hagee's Katrina comments: "It's nonsense, it's nonsense, it's nonsense, it's nonsense, it's nonsense."
- 2008/04/23: GristMill: Unexcused absences - Arizona Republic calls out senator [McCain] for not supporting solar
- 2008/04/22: GristMill: The Pennsyltucky perspective - No difference between McCain and Dems on climate
- 2008/04/22: Denialism: There is no pro-science political party
- 2008/04/23: ThinkP: [Pastor John] Hagee Says Hurricane Katrina Struck New Orleans Because It Was "Planning A Sinful" "Homosexual Rally"
- 2008/04/22: DerSpiegel: Who will capture the green vote? The Candidates and their Climate Change Policies
- 2008/04/22: MSNBC: Climate Change: Comparing the Candidates
The remaining Presidential hopefuls talk of transforming the economy to save the environment. But who would actually get the job done? - 2008/04/22: SeattlePI: How green are the presidential candidates?
- 2008/04/21: GristMill: McCain's climate policy - A conversation with McCain policy adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin
The Gore-apalooza is still bopping along:
- 2008/04/22: TreeHugger: Al Gore Readies Sequel to "An Inconvenient Truth"
- 2008/04/21: ABC(Au): No improvement in climate fight since 2006 film: Gore
- 2008/04/21: ThinkP: Gore: Climate situation "has not improved" since 2006 film
While in the UK:
- 2008/04/24: Guardian(UK): Green v green -- The rejection of the Lewis wind farm this week [Scotland]
- 2008/04/21: BBC: 'Largest' wind farm plan rejected
Plans to construct one of Europe's largest onshore wind farms has been refused by the Scottish Government. It said Lewis Wind Power's (LWP) 181-turbines for Lewis on the Western Isles did not comply with European law protecting sensitive environments. The scheme had the backing of the local authority and business, but attracted almost 11,000 objections. - 2008/04/25: WSJ:EnvCap: Biodiesel Battles: EU Producers Attack U.S. Subsidies
- 2008/04/20: Yahoo: Thousands march in Spain over climate change
Meanwhile in Australia:
- 2008/04/24: ABC(Au): [Latrobe City] Council to form climate change committee
- 2008/04/25: ABC(Au): Conservationists ridicule wood waste power stations
- 2008/04/25: SMH: Carbon tax adds 10c a litre to petrol
- 2008/04/23: ABC(Au): Climate change funding for Vic farmers
The Victorian Government will spend $200-million helping farmers improve productivity and sustainability. Part of the money will be spent on research and development of drought and salt tolerant crops, new technology and disease control. The package also includes funding for marketing, weed management and attracting young people to farming. The Premier, John Brumby says the money will help primary industries cope with the changing environment. - 2008/04/21: ABC(Au): More climate change protests promised
A Newcastle lobby group says it is preparing for more protests against coal exports, despite a large number of arrests during a weekend demonstration on Kooragang Island. Sixteen members of the Rising Tide group were arrested by police on Saturday morning after disrupting construction work on Newcastle's third coal loader. - 2008/04/21: ABC(Au): Farmers pounce on carbon trading scheme
More than 1,000 landholders across Australia have enquired about becoming involved in a carbon trading program being run by Landcare. Under the Carbonsmart scheme, landholders can earn money by agreeing to plant and maintain vegetation on land which is unsuitable for agriculture. Landcare spokesman Matthew Reddy says the Queensland Government is also supportive of the program because of its environmental benefits. - 2008/04/24: ABC(Au): Scientist [Barry Brook] slams spread of climate change 'misinformation'
- 2008/04/24: ABC(Au): Make a stand for good science by Barry Brook
- 2008/04/24: Adelaide: Scientists urged to make a stand on climate change
The Vison 2020 conference drew a round of comment:
- 2008/04/24: TheAge: Here's what 2020 needed to be about
- 2008/04/22: EnergyBulletin: The 2020 Summit - will Rudd's children forgive him?
- 2008/04/23: SMH: Climate change at the helm of Labor's next big idea
- 2008/04/21: JQuiggin: 2020 [Summit]
- 2008/04/21: PeakEnergy: Fossils at the 2020 Summit
- 2008/04/21: SMH: Over to you, Mr Rudd
- 2008/04/21: SMH: Thanks, now it's over to us: PM
- 2008/04/21: SMH: Big ideas to change the nation
- 2008/04/21: SMH: He got the right answer, whatever the question
- 2008/04/21: SMH: Fossil fuel industry dominates
While in China:
- 2008/04/23: WSJ:EnvCap: Catching the Wind: China Plays the Tariff Card to Help its Turbine Industry
In Canada, minority neocon PM Harper, continues his do-nothing policy:
- 2008/04/21: CanWest: Liberals question Conservative link to anti-Kyoto group [FoS]
- 2008/04/21: PRWatch: Audit Reveals the PR Machine Behind Canadian Global Warming Skeptics
- 2008/04/21: CTV: Top native leader wants more action on climate
Phil Fontaine, grand chief of the Assembly of First Nations, will tell a United Nations committee today that the government needs to engage natives more on climate change. - 2008/04/25: TreeHugger: Ontario Gets 407 Megawatts of Solar Power Contracts, Originally Expected 88 Megawatts
- 2008/04/25: CBC: Funding blows in for Wind Energy Institute
Canadian reaction to the world food crisis has been questioned:
- 2008/04/27: TStar: Eat locally, survive globally - National food policy should give priority to local agriculture over globalized agribusiness
- 2008/04/26: G&M: Canada deaf to growing hunger crisis, UN aide [Sachs] says
Scientists and hunters held competing conferences discussing the status of the polar bear:
- 2008/04/26: BBC: Polar bears 'at risk' in Canada
Polar bears in Canada are at risk from climate change but not threatened with extinction, a panel of experts has advised the Canadian government. The government should develop a plan to protect the country's estimated 15,000 polar bears, the panel said. - 2008/04/26: CanWest: More protection sought for polar bear population - Canadian wildlife experts identify northern giant as 'special concern'
- 2008/04/26: ABC(Au): Polar bear extinction threat 'not imminent'
- 2008/04/26: PhysOrg: Canadian panel: Climate change is threat to polar bears
- 2008/04/25: Yahoo: Canadian panel: Climate change is threat to polar bears
- 2008/04/24: CBC: Biologists, hunters differ on cause of thin polar bears
BC is still tweaking their climate policy:
- 2008/04/22: Tyee: [BC] Libs Relent, Open Carbon Trading to Public View - Bills still let govt. 'hand industry a blank cheque,' say critics.
- 2008/04/21: CanWest: Going a different shade of green
Slow down, you're going green way too fast. That's been the message from inside many of Vancouver's boardrooms to Premier Gordon Campbell after he joined California's Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in fighting climate change. It now appears the premier is listening to business and will slow down the implementation of CO2 reduction targets. [...] Specifically, what is happening is that the California-led Western Climate Initiative, which B.C. joined a year ago, is trying to develop a regional consensus on how to set CO2 reduction targets and create a carbon-trading market. But integration of the various economies and interests into such a system is proving exceedingly complex. - 2008/04/19: Reuters: Quebec joins U.S.-Canada group [WCI] to cut emissions
- 2008/04/21: PEF: North American Cap-and-Trade?
In Alberta, Greenpeace had some fun with Premier Ed Stelmach:
- 2008/04/26: RustyIdols: Greenpeace 'bullying' Stelmach?
- 2008/04/25: Daveberta: guess who dropped by for dinner? $telmach: The Best Premier Oil Money Can Buy.
The tricky & difficult question of the tar sands looms:
- 2008/04/24: G&M: Crude prices boost [tar sand oil company] Suncor profit by 23%
[...] For the year, the company -- which also runs refineries and gas stations in Ontario and Colorado -- now expects oil sands output to average 275,000 to 285,000 barrels a day, down from the last target of 275,000-300,000 barrels a day. In the quarter, Suncor earned $708-million, or $1.53 a share, up from year-earlier $576-million, or $1.25 a share. Excluding one-time items, net income was $788-million, or $1.70 per share, up from $567-million, or $1.23 a share. Analysts had expected, on average, $1.60 a share, according to Reuters Estimates. Cash flow, an indicator of its ability to pay for projects, rose 41 per cent to $1.16-billion from $825- million. - 2008/04/24: CBC: Alberta council to create carbon capture roadmap
The movement toward a long term ecologically viable economics is glacial:
- 2008/04/25: DailyReckoning(UK): The Era of Cheap Food, Energy and Credit at an End
Eight years into a new millennium, it feels like the end of an era. The end of the eras of cheap credit, cheap food and cheap energy. Will they be back? Even Pollyanna might swallow hard before giving the nod to that one. - 2008/04/26: Asia Times: Western excess is the Earth killer
- 2008/04/22: NYT:PK: Limits to growth and related stuff
- 2008/04/01: MR: An Age of Transition - The United States, China, Peak Oil, and the Demise of Neoliberalism
- 2008/04/21: NYT:PK: Running Out of Planet to Exploit
IPAT [Impact = Population * Affluence * Technology] raised its head once again:
- 2008/04/26: BobPark: What's New? #2) Global food crisis: Panic puts pressure on ethanol
- 2008/04/22: ENN: As Earth Day Arrives, Population Still the Uneasy Issue
Apocalypso anyone?
- 2008/04/25: CasaubonsBook: Three Mothers and the Fall of Icarus
- 2008/04/22: CasaubonsBook: We regret to inform you ... that what you have imagined to be "civilization" is now falling apart
As for how the media handles the science of climatology:
- 2008/04/22: ClimateP: Dateline NBC: "Whatever the cause -- global warming is a reality."
- 2008/04/21: ClimateP: Slate and the Post are suckered by anti-environmentalist Newt Gingrich
[...] people ask me if the media coverage of the environment and global warming has gotten better. The traditional media has the attention span and historical memory of an erection - 2008/04/21: ClimateP: Time gets the net cost of climate action wrong by a factor of twenty
- 2008/04/21: ClimateP: Energy policy is NOT "perhaps largely irrelevant" to reducing climate impacts, and adaptation is NOT a better or cheaper strategy than mitigation [PFC]
- 2008/04/20: ClimateP: Nick Kristof drinks the tech-breakthrough Kool-Aid -- guess who he's been talking to?
- 2008/04/20: QuarkSoup: Gail Collins Misunderstands Climate Science
Meanwhile among the 'Sue the Bastards!' contingent:
- 2008/04/22: WarmingLaw: New CRS Report Analyzes Climate Litigation
- 2008/04/21: WarmingLaw: State Standing in Global Warming Litigation
And the betting meme rolls on:
- 2008/04/23: BSD: Well I'll be .... Bill Gray says he wants to bet
Wrestling over a new energy infrastructure continues unabated:
- 2008/04/25: TheAge: If you think the oil situation is bad, worse is to come
- 2008/04/27: AFP: Strike hits key British oil refinery
Workers at one of Britain's biggest oil refineries started a two-day strike Sunday, forcing the closure of a major North Sea pipeline and triggering panic-buying of petrol. The walkout by around 1,200 workers began at 6:00 a.m. (0500 GMT) at the Grangemouth refinery, west of Edinburgh, while the neighbouring Forties pipeline was closed down around the same time, operator BP said. The key pipeline brings more than 700,000 barrels of crude oil ashore every day and supplies around 40 percent of Britain's oil and gas plus international markets. It cannot function without power and steam from Grangemouth. - 2008/04/20: FuturePundit: Time To Think About Petroleum Oil Substitutes
- 2008/04/24: FuturePundit: $225 Per Barrel Oil Seen By 2012
- 2008/04/26: FuturePundit: [UC Davis economics historian] Gregory Clark Says Fossil Fuels Substitutes Affordable
- 2008/04/26: CanWest: $200 a barrel oil? $75 is more likely
- 2008/04/26: PeakEnergy: Caltex Australia CEO: $200 oil on the horizon
- 2008/04/22: IR^2: Why Oil Prices Aren't Going Down
- 2008/04/26: TEB: EPRI Analysis Finds Utility Based Energy Efficiency Programs Could Cut Energy Consumption 7-11%
- 2008/04/25: REA: US Researchers Hope to Tap Ocean Flows for Electricity
- 2008/04/24: CanWest: 'Age of scarcity' will drive oil to $225 US a barrel: CIBC
- 2008/04/24: ClimateP: Recycled Energy -- A core climate solution
- 2008/04/25: PhysOrg: On the Energy Trail: Researchers Find New Details Following the Path of Solar Energy During Photosynthesis
- 2008/04/25: Eureka: Carnegie Mellon researchers urge development of low carbon electricity - Low-carbon electricity to power plug-in hybrids
- 2008/04/24: NEN: Canada plans offshore wind
- 2008/04/24: WSJ:EnvCap: Skyrocketing Oil: You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
- 2008/04/22: QuarkSoup: Appell's Theorem - Despite the worst threats to the planet, earthlings will burn whatever it is that keeps them warm
- 2008/04/23: TreeHugger: Wind Power Produces 123% of Residential Energy Demand in Rock Port, Missouri
- 2008/04/23: NewScientist: 'Flammable ice' could be mined for fuel
- 2008/04/24: PeakEnergy: A Geyser Of Geothermal Energy
- 2008/04/23: NEN: High noon in Texas: Wind won't back down
- 2008/04/23: PeakEnergy: Engineers Without Borders Meet Villages Without Power [$100 micro-wind turbines for the developing world]
- 2008/04/21: EnergyBulletin: Saudi King Abdullah drops quiet bombshell; U.S. media sleep through it
- 2008/04/20: FTimes: Saudis put off longer-term oil capacity rise
- 2008/04/22: PeakEnergy: The Saltire Prize [20 million pounds for innovation in clean ocean energy]
- 2008/04/21: CTB: Battery Breakthrough?
- 2008/04/21: TreeHugger: Mother Jones' Energy Issue: The Nuclear Option, Fossil Fools, Poop Power and More
- 2008/04/21: WSJ:EnvCap: Dam: Africa Gets Serious About Hydropower [planned Congo River dam]
- 2008/04/21: AFP: High oil prices here to stay, energy forum hears
- 2008/04/21: BBerg: Emerging Market Oil Use Exceeds U.S. as Prices Rise
Meanwhile among the solar afficionados:
- 2008/04/24: GreenWombat: World's largest solar farm set for California [$1 billion, 550-megawatt PV]
- 2008/04/23: NEN: $10 mil funds affordable solar at MIT
- 2008/04/21: ClimateP: For Nanosolar, the Future Is Municipal Solar Power Plants
- 2008/04/21: NEN: Calif solar power plants get $100 mil funding from Ireland
The arithmetic of coal carbon is striking home:
- 2008/04/24: TruthOut: Europe Turns Back to Coal, Raising Climate Fears
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: European power plants boosting coal use
- 2008/04/24: PeakEnergy: China down to 12 days of coal stocks
- 2008/04/23: KSJT: NYTimes, Casper Star-Tribune: Two tales of coal's immense allure
- 2008/04/23: NewScientist: China down to 12 days of coal stocks
- 2008/04/22: IHT: Europeans switching back to coal
- 2008/04/23: WSJ:EnvCap: Coal'd Truth: European Power Gets Dirtier
- 2008/04/21: EnergyDaily: Multi-Industry Coalition [ABEC=>ACCCE] Advocates Advanced Clean Coal Technologies
Biofuel bickering abounds:
- 2008/04/26: AutoBG: European Biodiesel Board files unfair competition complaint against U.S.
- 2008/04/24: PhysOrg: Brazil launches new diesel biofuel using sugarcane
- 2008/04/23: Eureka: New source for biofuels discovered - Cyanobacteria produce cellulose and sugars for conversion to ethanol and other biofuels
The nuclear energy controversy continues: