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Archive for January 15th, 2013
Federal Forecast for Climate Change: It’s Getting Hot in Here
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 15th, 2013
Time Magazine: Spring came early to Walden Pond in 2012. Scientists -- both amateur and professional -- have kept records of flowering times for plants in Walden Pond, near the Massachusetts town of Concord, since Henry David Thoreau began doing it in 1852. The result is one of the best continuous datasets of nature in the U.S, which has made Thoreau`s retreat an excellent lab for testing the effects of manmade climate change on the environment. In a new paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy...
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Guyana investing too little in climate adaptation – experts
Posted by AlertNet: None Given on January 15th, 2013
AlertNet: Guyana is pushing forward on protecting its rich inland forests as a source of income but is investing too little money in helping its low-lying coastal regions prepare for and adapt to climate change, national and international experts say.
A study published last year by researchers from the University of Western Ontario in Canada says that massive adaptation investment is needed if the South American nation is to stave off flooding and salt contamination of agricultural land as a result of rising...
François Hollande: invest in renewable energy to avert ‘catastrophe’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 15th, 2013
Guardian: The world is headed for an environmental "catastrophe" if countries do not invest in renewable energy, François Hollande warned on Tuesday.
Speaking at a green energy conference in Abu Dhabi, the French president said that people had an obligation to protect the planet for future generations.
"If we don't act, if we don't do anything, if we don't invest anything, we can be sure that we will have a catastrophe very soon. We have to have confidence to invest in the new energy. We can act together...
Hitachi UK nuclear plans edge forward with reactor design assessment
Posted by BusinessGreen: None Given on January 15th, 2013
BusinessGreen: Plans for a new fleet of nuclear power stations took a step forward today, after Ministers ordered an official assessment of the nuclear reactors that developer Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy plans to use at its recently acquired sites in the UK.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) confirmed Ministers had instructed the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency to carry out a Generic Design Assessment (GDA) on the Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWRs) Hitachi hopes to...
A 4°c Warmer World ‘Will Be Catastrophic’ for Forest Biodiversity – Expert
Posted by AlertNet: None Given on January 15th, 2013
AlertNet: Global temperatures may be climbing at a rate too fast for our forests and its biodiversity to adapt, a scientist with the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) warned after the World Bank predicted a 4°C warming of the planet if policymakers continue to be apathetic about greenhouse gas emissions. "The long-term effects will undoubtedly be catastrophic," said Terry Sunderland, CIFOR principal scientist specialising in biodiversity. "Everything will become unbalanced and whole ecosystems...
Australia: Climate change will force farmers to adapt: CSIRO
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 15th, 2013
Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Australia's farmers will need to adapt to cope with a potentially hotter and drier continent as the effects of climate change take hold, scientists say.
As the UN's chief science body meets in Hobart today to update the latest climate modelling, the CSIRO says forecasts show Australia will have to cope with less rainfall, longer dry periods and crops struggling to grow in changing conditions.
CSIRO climate applications scientist Steve Crimp says the nation's agricultural sector will likely...
Protecting livelihoods in the Congo basin rainforest – in pictures
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 15th, 2013
Guardian: Many people living in rural communities in the Congo basin depend on the rainforest – the second-largest in the world – for food, often bushmeat, and income from selling timber. However, the forest is being cleared at a rapid rate because of global demand for minerals and wood. The Centre for International Forestry Research (Cifor) is working in Congo basin countries to analyse the threats facing the forests and its communities
Scientists: Keystone XL Would ‘Undermine’ Obama’s Climate Legacy
Posted by The Hill: Ben Geman on January 15th, 2013
The Hill: A group of prominent climate scientists say President Obama’s legacy is on the line as he mulls whether to approve the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline.
“We hope, as scientists, that you will demonstrate the seriousness of your climate convictions by refusing to permit Keystone XL; to do otherwise would be to undermine your legacy,” the 18 scientists wrote in a public letter to Obama released Tuesday.
Scientists signing the letter include James Hansen of Columbia University and NASA, Stanford...
Draft Federal Report Sees Big U.S. Impacts from Global Warming
Posted by New York Times: Andrew C. Revkin on January 15th, 2013
New York Times: If global emissions of greenhouse gases remain high, many parts of the United States will see a big rise in the number of days with temperatures hotter than 100 degrees, a draft government analysis concludes. Click here for large version. Justin Gillis has filed a post on the Green Blog summarizing the main points in a new and voluminous draft federal report on current and anticipated impacts from greenhouse-driven global warming on the United States. (Yes, the Green Blog, thankfully, is still up...