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Archive for August, 2012
Lack of Warning on Drought Reflects Forecasting Flaws
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 17th, 2012
Climate Central: In May, the U.S. Agriculture Department predicted a record corn yield after farmers planted the largest area of corn and soybeans since 1937. Three months later, after a searing drought engulfed a wide swath of the continental U.S., those crops lie in ruin. Despite all of the resources at forecasters' disposal, the worst drought to strike the U.S. in nearly 50 years came on largely without warning across the fields of the Midwest and High Plains during late spring and early summer. Between May 1...
CO2 emissions in US drop to 20-year low; some experts optimistic on global warming
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 17th, 2012
Associated Press: In a surprising turnaround, the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere in the U.S. has fallen dramatically to its lowest level in 20 years, and government officials say the biggest reason is that cheap and plentiful natural gas has led many power plant operators to switch from dirtier-burning coal.
Many of the world’s leading climate scientists didn’t see the drop coming, in large part because it happened as a result of market forces rather than direct government action against...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on CO2 emissions in US drop to 20-year low; some experts optimistic on global warmingRains come too late to revive drought-stricken U.S. crops
Posted by Reuters: Sam Nelson on August 17th, 2012
Reuters: Dry weather will return to the drought-stricken U.S. Midwest crop region, with corn and soybeans ending their growing season on a negative note after this week's rains proved to be too little too late, an agricultural meteorologist said Friday.
"There were some decent rains in central Illinois and west central Indiana yesterday, but it's too late for corn and too late for most of the bean crop," said Don Keeney, meteorologist for MDA EarthSat Weather.
The worst drought in more than 50 years...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Rains come too late to revive drought-stricken U.S. cropsCarbon emissions dropped to a 20-year low
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 17th, 2012
Washington Post: U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide dropped to a 20-year low in July. “In a surprising turnaround, the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere in the U.S. has fallen dramatically to its lowest level in 20 years, and government officials say the biggest reason is that cheap and plentiful natural gas has led many power plant operators to switch from dirtier-burning coal. Many of the world’s leading climate scientists didn’t see the drop coming, in large part because it happened as...
South-east braced for summer heat while rest of country fears floods
Posted by Guardian: Maev Kennedy on August 17th, 2012
Guardian: The hottest days of the year are forecast for London and the south-east this weekend, with temperatures up to 30C on Saturday and Sunday, even higher in places like central London, while the rest of the country squelches through warnings of torrential rain and possible flooding.
The hottest day so far, in what has mostly been a miserable summer, was 30.7C, recorded on 30 July at St James's Park in London. The Met Office believes that could be beaten with temperatures possibly rising to 32C as...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on South-east braced for summer heat while rest of country fears floodsUnited Kingdom: Full report published on Cumbria nuclear waste burial and local involvement
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 17th, 2012
Guardian: The complicated and contentious issue of burying nuclear waste in Cumbria is heading for a milestone on 11 October when the three local councils which have expressed an interest meet to debate further involvement.
A useful waymarker has now been published in full, based on the views of some 2,300 people and organisations whose submissions, while often very different and sometimes in direct conflict, have led to changes and hesitations, albeit not altering the general approach of cautiously making...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: Full report published on Cumbria nuclear waste burial and local involvementUS drought could spur civil unrest around the world
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 17th, 2012
New Scientist: As prices rise, tempers fray. The US drought has pushed up global food prices and is likely to continue to do so. Some say riots and unrest may follow.
According to the Climate Prediction Center, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, El Niño conditions are likely to develop over the Pacific in August or September, which should affect global weather before the end of the year. This may drive food prices up further if it causes floods or further drought.
US farms are already...
Belo Monte dam construction halted by Brazilian court
Posted by BusinessGreen: Guardian on August 17th, 2012
BusinessGreen: Opponents of the world's biggest new hydroelectric project - the Belo Monte dam in Brazil - notched up a rare victory this week, when a federal appeals court ordered construction to be suspended until indigenous groups are properly consulted about the project.
The judgment on Tuesday may prove only a temporary reprieve but it is seen as a scathing verdict on the government's efforts to rush forward with the Xingu River project in the Amazon, which - despite controversy - is one of the pillars...
Ethanol Quota Debated by Corn Farmers and Meat Industry
Posted by New York Times: John H. Cushman Jr. on August 17th, 2012
New York Times: Three big intertwined but rival agribusinesses — corn farmers, meat and poultry producers, and biofuel refineries — are in a political fight to protect their interests as a drought ravages corn producers and industrial consumers alike. At issue is whether to suspend a five-year-old federal mandate requiring more ethanol in gasoline each year, a policy that has diverted almost half of the domestic corn supply from animal feedlots to ethanol refineries, driven up corn prices and plantings and created...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Ethanol Quota Debated by Corn Farmers and Meat IndustryDrought May Be Leveling Off or Easing, Report Says
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 17th, 2012
New York Times: The worst drought in the United States in decades may be leveling off or even be easing slightly in some places, federal weather forecasters said Thursday in a report of little comfort to farmers and ranchers who already have begun tallying this year’s losses. While the latest forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center calls for the drought to linger in the nation’s breadbasket and parts of some mountain states at least through November, it said...