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Archive for October 26th, 2013
Australia: Climate Council links New South Wales bushfires to climate change
Posted by Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Simon Lauder on October 26th, 2013
Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Scientists say there is a very real link between the recent bushfires in New South Wales and climate change.
As the Federal Government continues to reject claims that recent bushfires are linked with climate change, a report by scientists has stirred the debate further by saying the two are indeed linked.
The Climate Council, which was called the Climate Commission before it was recently de-funded by the Coalition Government, says climate change is increasing the probability of extreme fire...
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Australia: Climate debate must stick to the science: Professor
Posted by Sydney Morning Herald: Heath Aston on October 26th, 2013
Sydney Morning Herald: The author of a report that lays bare the connection between climate change and extreme bushfires has expressed his ''frustration'' with Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Environment Minister Greg Hunt for their refusal to accept scientific consensus on climate change.
Professor Will Steffen, who co-authored the soon-to-be-released bushfire report by the Climate Council, was responding to Mr Abbott's assertion in a newspaper interview with leading climate sceptic Andrew Bolt that drawing a link between...
5 cities doing big things to reduce their risks from extreme weather: Report
Posted by Weather Channel: None Given on October 26th, 2013
Weather Channel: From this September's historic Colorado floods to the upcoming anniversary of Superstorm Sandy, there's been no shortage of extreme weather events over the past year that show why the world's major cities need to become more resilient in the face of climate change.
The Center for American Progress released a report this week on the cities across America that are doing just that, highlighting the steps five major cities are taking after experiencing major natural disasters in the recent past, and...
Climate change could put $6 trillion in fossil fuel reserves at risk
Posted by Quartz: Todd Woody on October 26th, 2013
Quartz: The International Energy Agency last year warned that if humanity is to have any hope of avoiding catastrophic climate change, a third of the world’s fossil fuel reserves must be put off limits until 2050. That prompted HSBC Global Research to estimate that some oil giants could lose up to half their market value. In other words, we’re talking about trillions of dollars in revenues going up in smoke if governments ever get their act together and issue a no-burn order.
Now 70 investors that control...
Mangroves Help Guyana Defend Against Changing Climate
Posted by Inter Press Service: Desmond Brown on October 26th, 2013
Inter Press Service: Theola Fortune can recall how residents of Victoria would ridicule her and others every time they went into the east coast village to warn residents about the importance of mangroves and the need to protect them.
"They would accuse us of breeding mosquitoes in the community," Fortune said. Yet scientists say that mangrove trees, which grow mainly in tropical and subtropical regions, can shield cities and towns from rising seas and storm surges by creating a natural barrier where the ocean meets...
Year After Sandy, Rebuilding for Storms and Rising Seas
Posted by National Geographic: Ben Jervey on October 26th, 2013
National Geographic: When the waters finally receded, Mantoloking, New Jersey, resembled a war zone. All 521 houses in the borough, a seaside enclave on a barrier island about halfway down the state's coast, had suffered damage. Sixty cottages had gone up in flames after natural gas lines ruptured.
A week after Superstorm Sandy struck, when residents were finally bussed back to survey the damage, there was no power or running water. Massive piles of debris filled streets, yards, and patios. Boats from the local yacht...
Weather lessons from Superstorm Sandy
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 26th, 2013
USA Today: It's the most infamous left turn in weather history.
One year ago this weekend, as Hurricane Sandy roared up the East Coast, it was about to make its unprecedented turn to the west, heading for its ferocious and tragic landfall in New Jersey as a "Superstorm" on Oct. 29, 2012.
How unprecedented? "We looked into the tracks of past hurricanes, and there's not a single track like Sandy," according to Peter Hoeppe, head of geo risks research with global insurance firm Munich Re.
In fact, in...
441 new species described in the Amazon rainforest since 2010
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 26th, 2013
Mongabay: Scientists described at least 441 previously unknown species from Amazon rainforest between 2010 and 2013, according a new report from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The species include 258 plants, 84 fish, 58 amphibians, 22 reptiles, 18 birds and one mammal. The list does not include insects and other invertebrates.
WWF periodically tallies the number of newly described species from regions where it works. In recent years it has published similar reports on the Greater Mekong Region in Southeast...