Headlines
Australia’s Parliament defeats global warming bill
UN official calls for funds for climate change
Moves by U.S., China induce India to do its bit on climate
Global warming threatens China harvests
New evidence of accelerated Arctic warming
Calif dams to feel impact of climate change
EPA delays decision on ethanol blend
The psychology of climate denial
America’s 11 hottest species stressed by climate change
Peak oil: Are we scraping the barrel?
New film: The story of cap & trade
Investor brains target "smart" climate finance
News summaries
Australia’s Parliament defeats global warming bill
Australia’s plans for an emissions trading system to combat global
warming were scuttled Wednesday in Parliament, handing a defeat to a
government that had hoped to set an example at international climate
change talks next week. AP
UN official calls for funds for climate change
Developing countries will need tens of billions of dollars each year to
cope with the effects of climate change such as floods and drought, the
global head of the U.N.’s development arm said. The New York Times
Moves by U.S., China induce India to do its bit on climate
Recent announcements by the United States and China to cut carbon
dioxide emissions are propelling India to make its own commitment to
slow greenhouse gas emissions and go to the upcoming Copenhagen climate
summit with a firm proposal on reductions. The Washington Post
Global warming threatens China harvests
Droughts and floods stoked by global warming threaten to destabilize
China’s grain production, the nation’s top meteorologist has warned,
urging bigger grain reserves and strict protection of farmland and
water supplies. Extreme weather damage can now cause annual grain
output in China, the world’s biggest grain producer, to fluctuate by
about 10 to 20 percent from longer-term averages. Reuters
New evidence of accelerated Arctic warming
Sponsored team of explorers, scientists find evidence Arctic ice melting
faster than previously thought. VOA
UN halts funds to China wind farms
The United Nations body in charge of managing carbon trading has
suspended approvals for dozens of Chinese wind farms amid questions
over the country’s use of industrial policy to obtain money under the
scheme. Financial Times
Calif dams to feel impact of climate change
California’s hydroelectric facilities could generate considerably less
power over the next 40 years as a result of rising temperatures
associated with climate change, according to a recent study by
researchers at the University of California, Davis. Green Inc.
EPA delays decision on ethanol blend
The Environmental Protection Agency said earlier today it will delay
until mid-June a decision on whether to increase the amount of ethanol
allowed to be blended into gasoline to 15% from 10%. Already, the
ethanol industry is chalking it up as a win: the agency all but
foreshadowed a likely approval of higher ethanol content for newer cars
when it cited two recently completed tests favoring the move. Environmental Capital
The psychology of climate denial
The UN’s panel of climate scientists, in a landmark report, described
the proof of global warming as "unequivocal." That was two years ago,
and since then hundreds of other studies have pointed to an
ever-bleaker future, with a potential loss of life numbering in the
tens of millions, if not more. Yet survey after survey from around
world reveals deep-seated doubt among the public…."There is the
individual reluctance to give up our comfortable lifestyles — to
travel less, consume less," said Anthony Grayling, a philosophy
professor at the University of London and a best-selling author in
Britain. While deeply anchored in the West, this resistance also
extends to emerging economies such as China, India and Brazil where a
burgeoning middle class is only today tasting the fruits of a lifestyle
they have waited so long and worked so hard to obtain. AFP
America’s 11 hottest species stressed by climate change
Honeycreepers that sing in Hawaii’s mountain forests, the lynx that
inhabit the snowy Rocky Mountains and New England, and the grizzly
bears of the Rocky mountains are among America’s top 10 threatened
species already suffering from global warming, according to a new
report released today… It focuses on 10 species or groups of related
species that are listed as threatened or endangered under the federal
Endangered Species Act or are candidates for listing. The 11th species,
selected in an online poll, is the polar bear, which is listed as
threatened under the act. The global warming threats to these species
include increased disease, diminished reproduction, lost habitat and
reduced food supply. ENS
Peak oil: Are we scraping the barrel?
Crude is still being discovered; existing fields are not being
exploited to the full. So it’s hard to predict the exact point at which
the world’s dwindling reserves will precipitate a crisis. But it’s
coming . The Guardian
New film: The story of cap & trade
The Story of Cap & Trade is a fast-paced, fact-filled look at the
leading climate solution being discussed at Copenhagen and on Capitol
Hill. Host Annie Leonard introduces the energy traders and Wall Street
financiers at the heart of this scheme and reveals the "devils in the
details" in current cap and trade proposals: free permits to big
polluters, fake offsets and distraction from what’s really required to
tackle the climate crisis. If you’ve heard about cap and trade, but
aren’t sure how it works (or who benefits), this is the film is for
you. Story of Stuff
Investor brains target "smart" climate finance
Smart financing can multiply limited public funds to fight climate
change, say investors targeting a financing gap and a major stumbling
block for the world to agree a new climate deal. Reuters

Headlines
Climate ‘is a major cause’ of conflict in Africa
US will announce target for cutting carbon emissions
Sixty-five leaders to attend climate summit
Nuclear power regains support
Greenhouse gases reach record levels-UN agency
Climate sceptics and lobbyists put world at risk, says top UK adviser
Hacked global warming e-mails – what’s new?
Global warming may be unstoppable, says scientist
Melting icecaps to cause massive damage in port cities: WWF
Can the U.S. learn from Australia’s emissions plan?
Global warming science alarming, say UK climate experts
The price of "zero"
Mysteriously warm times in Antarctica

[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Climate ‘is a major cause’ of conflict in Africa
Climate has been a major driver of armed conflict in Africa, research
shows – and future warming is likely to increase the number of deaths
from war. US researchers found that across the continent, conflict was
about 50% more likely in unusually warm years. Writing in Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), they suggest strife arises
when the food supply is scarce in warm conditions. Climatic factors
have been cited as a reason for several recent conflicts. One is the
fighting in Darfur in Sudan that according to UN figures has killed
200,000 people and forced two million more from their homes…Previous
research has shown an association between lack of rain and conflict,
but this is thought to be the first clear evidence of a temperature
link. "Studies show that crop yields in the region are really sensitive
to small shifts in temperature, even of half a degree (Celsius) or so,"
research leader Marshall Burke, from the University of California at
Berkeley, told BBC News. "If the sub-Saharan climate continues to warm
and little is done to help its countries better adapt to high temperatures,
the human costs are likely to be staggering."BBC News
US will announce target for cutting carbon emissions
The US will announce a target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions
before next month’s UN climate summit, according to a White House
official. The target is expected to be in line with figures contained
in legislation before the Senate – a reduction of about 17-20% from
2005 levels by 2020. The absence of a US target has widely been seen as
the single biggest obstacle to agreement at the summit. BBC News
Sixty-five leaders to attend climate summit
At least 65 world leaders have agreed to attend the Copenhagen summit
on climate change in December, raising the stakes on a deal being
reached and lending “critical mass” to the meeting, according to senior
officials. Financial Times
Nuclear power regains support
Nuclear power — long considered environmentally hazardous — is
emerging as perhaps the world’s most unlikely weapon against climate
change, with the backing of even some green activists who once
campaigned against it. It has been 13 years since the last new nuclear
power plant opened in the United States. But around the world, nations
under pressure to reduce the production of climate-warming gases are
turning to low-emission nuclear energy as never before. The Obama
administration and leading Democrats, in an effort to win greater
support for climate change legislation, are eyeing federal tax
incentives and loan guarantees to fund a new crop of nuclear power
plants across the United States that could eventually help drive down
carbon emissions. The Washington Post
Greenhouse gases reach record levels-UN agency
Concentrations of greenhouse gases, the major cause of global warming,
are at their highest levels ever recorded and are still climbing, the
U.N. World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said on Monday. The head
of the agency, Michel Jarraud, said the trend could be pushing the
world towards the most pessimistic assessments of the rise in
temperatures expected in coming decades and said this underlined the
need for urgent action….The worst-case scenario envisaged by the IPCC
(Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) in a 2007 report was that
temperatures could rise by between 2.4 and 6.4 Celsius by the end of this
century. Jarraud said the data showed "we are actually closer to the pessimistic scenario"
for warming in the coming years. "This reinforces the fact that action
has to be taken as soon as possible," he said. "We are looking
to Copenhagen to come up with a strong decision on greenhouse gases.
The more we delay the decision, the bigger the impact will be." Reuters
Climate change sceptics and lobbyists put world at risk, says top UK adviser
Climate change sceptics and fossil fuel companies that have lobbied
against action on greenhouse gas emissions have squandered the world’s
chance to avoid dangerous global warming, a key adviser to the
government has said. Professor Bob Watson, chief scientist at the
Department for Environment and Rural Affairs, said a decade of inaction
on climate change meant it was now virtually impossible to limit global
temperature rise to 2C. He said the delay meant the world would now do
well to stabilise warming between 3C and 4C…Watson backed
controversial calls for research into geoengineering techniques, such
as blocking the sun, as a way to head off dangerous temperature rise –
one of the most senior figures so far to do so. "We should at least be
looking at it. I would see what the theoretical models say, and ask
ourselves the question: how can we do medium-sized experiments in the
field?" Such an effort could divert attention and funds from efforts to
cut carbon and switch to cleaner technology, he said. "I think it
should be a real international effort, so it isn’t just the UK funding
it." The Guardian
Hacked global warming e-mails – what’s new?
When the news broke that “more than 169 megabytes worth of
global-warming emails and related files were either hacked and/or
leaked from computers at the University of East Anglia’s Climatic
Research Center in Britain and released to the world via the Internet,”
as the Monitor’s Pete Spotts wrote, some reactions were to be expected:
Skeptics of global warming were jubilant because they say the e-mails
prove that human-caused global warming is false, a fraud perpetrated by
scientists. Supporters countered that statements from the e-mails were
taken out of context. But several days later, the story is still unfolding in
several ways (and we’re adding to this post as developments unfold). The Christian Science Monitor
Global warming may be unstoppable, says scientist
According to Tim Garrett, an associate professor of atmospheric
sciences, University of Utah, rising carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions –
the major cause of global warming – cannot be stabilised unless the
world’s economy collapses or society builds the equivalent of one new
nuclear power plant each day. "It looks unlikely that there will be any
substantial near-term departure from recently observed acceleration in
carbon dioxide emission rates," said Garrett. DNAInda.com
Melting icecaps to cause massive damage in port cities: WWF
Flooding in the world’s major port cities caused by melting icecaps
could cause up to 28 trillion dollars (18 trillion euros) in damage in
2050, environmental group WWF said in a report Monday. "If the
temperature rises between 0.5 and 2 degrees (Celsius) between now and
2050, it’s possible that the sea level would progress by half a metre
(nearly two feet) bringing major financial damage,"
Ulrike Saul, in charge of climate and energy for WWF Switzerland, told AFP. AFP
Can the U.S. learn from Australia’s emissions plan?
There are plenty of parallels between the U.S. and Australia. Both
countries are big per-capita emitters of greenhouse gases, though U.S.
emissions are huge in global terms and Australia’s are tiny. Both rely
on lots of coal for electricity. In both countries, the power sector
and vulnerable industries have railed against climate legislation. In
both countries, public support for tough action on climate change has
waned in lockstep with the global recession. So how did Australia get
it done? Largely by modifying the bill to win political support at the
cost of the environmental bits of the plan. Here’s a list of the
official changes; here’s a handy summary. The Wall Street Journal
Global warming science alarming, say UK climate experts
The Royal Society, Met Office, and Natural Environment Research Council
(Nerc) say the science of climate change is more alarming than
ever…They argue that without action there will be much larger changes
in the coming decades, with the UK seeing higher food prices, ill
health, more flooding and rising sea levels. Known or probable damage
across the world includes ocean acidification, loss of rainforests,
degradation of ecosystems and desertification, they said……Lord
Rees, president of the Royal Society, said cutting emissions could
substantially limit the severity of climate change. BBC News
The price of "zero"
Norway, Costa Rica and the Maldives face big problems as they struggle
to stay in the world’s most exclusive club, seeking to cut net greenhouse
gas emissions to zero. Reuters
Mysteriously warm times in Antarctica
A new study of Antarctica’s past climate reveals that temperatures
during the warm periods between ice ages (interglacials) may have been
higher than previously thought. The latest analysis of ice core records
suggests that Antarctic temperatures may have been up to 6 degrees C
warmer than the present day. The findings, reported this week by
scientists from the British Antarctic Survey… This new investigation
shows temperature ‘spikes’ within some of the interglacial periods over
the last 340,000 years. This suggests Antarctic temperature shows a
high level of sensitivity to greenhouse gases at levels similar to
those found today. Terra Daily

Headlines
Copenhagen: No deal, we’re out of time, Obama warns
Obama hobbled in fight against global warming
Delaying an international climate treaty: not as bad as it looks
Pests on move worldwide as climate warms
‘Super greenhouse gas’ deal fails
National security perspective on climate change
Coal star state
Ray Mears: We’ll struggle to survive climate change
Cave study links climate change to California droughts
Under the Chamber’s cyber-skin – editorial
How reputation could save the Earth

[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Copenhagen: No deal, we’re out of time, Obama warns
Barack Obama acknowledged today that time had run out to secure a
legally binding climate deal at the Copenhagen summit in December and
threw his support behind plans to delay a formal pact until next year
at the earliest. The Guardian
Obama hobbled in fight against global warming
[T]his weekend in Singapore, Mr. Obama was forced to acknowledge that a
comprehensive climate deal was beyond reach this year. Instead, he and
other world leaders agreed that they would work toward a more modest
interim agreement with a promise to renew work toward a binding treaty
next year. The admission places Mr. Obama in the awkward position of
being, at least for now, as unlikely to spearhead an international
effort to combat global warming as his predecessor — if for different
reasons… Mr. Obama has found himself limited in his ambitions by a
Congress that is unwilling to move as far or as fast as he would
like…Mr. Obama expressed support on Sunday for a proposal from Prime
Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen of Denmark to pursue a two-step process
at the Copenhagen conference. Under the plan, the 192 nations convening
in the Danish capital would formulate a nonbinding political agreement
calling for reductions in global warming emissions and aid for
developing nations to adapt to a changing climate. The group would also
promise to work to put together a binding global pact in 2010, complete
with firm emissions targets, enforcement mechanisms and specific dollar
amounts to aid poorer nations. The New York Times
Delaying an international climate treaty: not as bad as it looks
Joe Romm points out that the delay offers some needed breathing room.
The sense that the world is waiting will increase pressure on the
Senate to pass a bill (there’s pressure from Brazil and France
already). Conversely, legislation from the U.S. would increase pressure
on China and India to step up to the plate with targets and timetables.
NRDC’s Jake Schmidt notes that the extra time will be beneficial if a)
enough details are settled in Copenhagen and b) world leaders focus on
ironing out a final agreement in the intervening months. That’s a big
if. Nonetheless, if the world’s nations had headed into Copenhagen
expecting a legally binding treaty complete with targets and
timetables, the result would have been disappointment, acrimony, and
worst of all, wasted time. By taking some of the pressure of
Copenhagen, the two-steps agreement has avoided disaster and maintained
momentum. It’s also given the Obama administration time to engage in
more climate diplomacy. Now if something could just be done about the
Senate. Grist
Pests on move worldwide as climate warms
A look at some other pests that are benefiting or could benefit from
global warming: Ticks that transmit Lyme disease are spreading
northward into Sweden. AP
‘Super greenhouse gas’ deal fails
At little noticed talks last week in Port Ghalib, Egypt, climate
advocates were hoping to seal a global agreement for the phase down of
super greenhouse gases and give next month’s Copenhagen climate talks a
can-do running start. But the annual meeting of the 198 nations of the
Montreal Protocol began on a note of contention that five days of
discussions could not overcome. The 22-year-old Montreal Protocol has
delivered an unbroken string of successes in the battle against ozone
depletion, accomplished with comity and cooperation, but now observers
say it has caught the climate virus. Rhetoric trumped getting down to
business, as an agreement to rid the world of HFCs, enormously potent
global warming gases, was postponed for at least another year. The
central issue on the table was what to do about "super greenhouse
gases," a popular term for hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs… it turns out
they are lethal global warming agents, thousands of times more potent
than CO2 at warming the planet. Reuters
National security perspective on climate change
A key conclusion was that climate change is indeed a threat to
America’s national security, and key to that finding is the conclusion
that global warming is a "threat multiplier" for instability in some of
the most volatile regions of the world, and that such volatility will
reach even the most stable regions due to the tensions caused by
climate change. ENN
Coal star state
While America turns away from dirty energy, Texas could soon have
12 new coal-fired power plants. What gives? Texas Observer
Ray Mears: We’ll struggle to survive climate change
I don’t think most people will survive climate change. It will be a
disaster. We have to adapt to survive and take lessons from nature.
Adaptable things do better – the more specialised you become, the more
marginal you are. New Scientist
Cave study links climate change to California droughts
California experienced centuries-long droughts in the past 20,000 years
that coincided with the thawing of ice caps in the Arctic, according to
analysis of stalagmites from a cave in the Sierra Nevada. Science Daily
Under the Chamber’s cyber-skin – editorial
On Oct. 19, the troupe released a statement, purportedly from the
chamber, announcing that it had reversed its position and would support
a bill to cap carbon emissions. The Yes Men also created a fake chamber
website, using the trademarked chamber logo and linking to pages on the
real site, to add verisimilitude to the prank… The chamber then filed
suit against the troupe, saying it had violated federal trademark
protection and anti-cybersquatting laws. The chamber needs to develop
thicker skin. Rather than confusing people about the chamber’s views on
global warming, the "commercial identity theft" at the heart of the Yes
Men’s stunt helped call attention to them. That’s what any good parody
does. The aim of the bogus news conference and website wasn’t to gain a
competitive advantage over the chamber by damaging its brand or
deluding the public, which trademark and cybersquatting laws were
designed to guard against. It was to raise the heat on the chamber to
change its position on cap-and-trade legislation. Granted, the troupe
had a movie to promote, but that’s speech too — in the Michael Moore,
corporate-America-as-villain vein. It’s a message that the chamber may
not like, but one that the Yes Men should be able to deliver without
having to defend themselves in court. Los Angeles Times
How reputation could save the Earth
Have you ever noticed a friend or neighbour driving a new hybrid car
and felt pressure to trade in your gas guzzler? Or worried about what
people might think when you drive up to the office in an SUV? If so,
then you have experienced the power of reputation for encouraging good
public behaviour. In fact, reputation is such an effective motivator
that it could help us solve the most pressing issue we face –
protecting our planet. New Scientist

Headlines
Clinton: No binding climate deal at Copenhagen
U.N. official says climate deal could be put off
Cooling the planet without chilling trade
Industry’s dominance of Hill climate hearings
Fight over carbon-emission permits comes to Senate
Biggest obstacle to a climate bill is rural America
U.S., Japan to call for 80 pct emissions cut
Black carbon: An overlooked climate factor
Texas, leading CO2 emitter, sees drop
Acidification impacts coastal rivers
Greenland ice loss accelerating: study
Global warming a growing threat to Arctic reindeer
Electric cars face obstacles to consumer acceptance

[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Clinton: No binding climate deal at Copenhagen
Next month’s climate change summit in Copenhagen is not likely to
produce a legally binding treaty to cut the greenhouse gas emissions
that are widely blamed for global warming, U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday…. Clinton said the Obama
administration would push instead for a strong ”framework agreement”
that could become a template for an eventual enforceable pact. ”We are
going to go to Copenhagen 100-percent committed to creating a framework
agreement,” she said. ”We doubt that we can get to the legally
binding agreement that everyone wants because too many countries have
too many questions.” The New York Times
U.N. official says climate deal could be put off
The top United Nations climate negotiator Thursday said a global
climate summit in Copenhagen next month could produce an agreement to
reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, but if the U.S. Congress doesn’t pass
climate legislation, a binding international climate deal would be
delayed until late 2010…Without a solid commitment on an emissions
target or financing package, Mr. Levi said it is unlikely China or
other developing nations will make any concrete promises, either.
The Wall Street Journal
Cooling the planet without chilling trade
The two means of "leveling the carbon playing field" in bills before
Congress — imposing additional "border charges" on carbon-intensive
imports and subsidizing domestic producers — are being criticized by
many U.S. trading partners as potential World Trade Organization
violations. These criticisms could lead to WTO challenges that might
undermine climate and trade agreements, or to retaliation that could
escalate to trade wars, choking the global economy. Yet without some
kind of border adjustment mechanisms, even if imposed after a fixed
period, U.S. climate legislation is unlikely to pass. The Washington Post
Industry’s dominance of Hill climate hearings
Energy industry officials have dominated witness tables at hearings on
climate legislation, appearing more often than representatives of any
other groups invested in energy policy, according to a new analysis. Greenwire
Fight over carbon-emission permits comes to Senate
The latest twist: Senators from coal-dependent states are pushing hard
to ease the pain for power companies that rely on coal…It may sound
arcane, but it isn’t. First, easing the pain for coal-heavy power companies
is a way to ease the pain for coal-dependent states, which carry the swing
votes for any climate legislation. But this isn’t just about politics and vote-counting.
There are billions of dollars at stake. Power companies that produce more clean
energy stand to gain from climate legislation under the current
formula; power companies that produce more dirty energy stand to lose.
That’s one reason companies such as Exelon and Duke have been
cheerleading climate legislation: Their bottom lines will bulge. And
it’s one reason fossil-fuel-dependent companies, from coal-heavy
utilities to Exxon, have been opposed to the current legislation.
Environmental Capital
Biggest obstacle to a climate bill is rural America
The US will not pass a cap-and-trade law in time for the global
climate-change summit in Copenhagen next month. To understand why, it
helps to ask a farmer. Take Bruce Wright, for example, who grows wheat
and other crops on a couple of thousand acres near Bozeman, Montana.
His family has tilled these fields for four generations. He loves his
job and the rural way of life. But he fears that higher energy prices
will endanger both….[H]e he cannot see how he could run his farm
without cheap fossil fuels. The Economist
U.S., Japan to call for 80 pct emissions cut
The U.S. and Japanese leaders will call for an 80 percent cut in global
greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 in a post-summit statement on Friday,
but no mid-term target will be mentioned, the Nikkei business daily
reported. U.S. and Japan ties have been strained ahead of President
Barack Obama’s visit to Japan over a planned relocation of a U.S.
Marines base in Japan’s southern island of Okinawa, a key part of a
realignment of the 47,000 U.S. troops in Japan. Reuters
Black carbon: An overlooked climate factor
That soupy brown air is the result of so-called black carbon expelled
into the atmosphere in and around the Indian capital, from the burning
of biomass for cookstoves and of black coal for electricity, and the
incomplete combustion in the old diesel engines that propel most of the
cars and trucks in the city. Breathing here isn’t all that good for you
— there’s a reason the city is home to the "Delhi cough" — and now
scientists are discovering that the sooty air isn’t good for the
climate either. According to some estimates, black carbon may be
responsible for as much as 18% of the planet’s warming, making it the
No. 2 contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide, which
accounts for 40%. "The world could think that we just cut CO2 and the
problem is solved and we all go home, but it’s not," says Veerabhadran
Ramanathan, a climatologist from the Scripps Institution of
Oceanography and an expert on black carbon. "That’s my nightmare." Time
Texas, leading CO2 emitter, sees drop
Texas, the nation’s baddest greenhouse gas hog, is also leading the
U.S. in the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels due
to lower industrial demand and the spread of renewable power. A report
released Thursday by environmental non-profit Environment Texas says
the Lone Star state saw its CO2 output decline 2% between 2004 and
2007. According to official statistics, Texas produces more CO2 than
any other state and even countries like Canada, but the report says the
state posted the second-biggest drop in absolute emissions in the U.S.
The Wall Street Journal
Acidification impacts coastal rivers
Ocean acidification, caused by rising CO2 levels, is affecting not only
coral reefs, but coastal ecosystems by changing everything from the
ability of oysters to adhere to the riverbed to the extent of dead
zones along the U.S. Pacific coast. Cosmos
Greenland ice loss accelerating: study
Greenland’s ice losses are accelerating and nudging up sea levels,
according to a study showing that icebergs breaking away and meltwater
runoff are equally to blame for the shrinking ice sheet…[I]ce losses
quickened in 2006-08 to the equivalent of 0.75 mm (0.03 inch) of world
sea level rise per year from an average 0.46 mm a year for
2000-08..Greenland locks up enough ice to raise world sea levels by 7
meters (23 ft) if it ever all thawed. At the other end of the globe,
far-colder Antarctica contains ice equivalent to 58 meters of sea level
rise, according to U.N. estimates. . Reuters
Global warming a growing threat to Arctic reindeer
For the moment though, reindeer numbers are holding up under the strain
of global warming, but that’s a fact Colman puts down to their very
resilience. AFP
Electric cars face obstacles to consumer acceptance
Nashville is one of a handful of cities in the U.S. targeted to become
an early focal point for electric vehicles, as Nissan plans to start
production of a battery-powered car in Smyrna by 2012 and a program is
launched to build a network of recharging stations. But getting to the
point where electric vehicles are common will take time and work, said
Joe Hoagland, TVA’s vice president for environmental policy, science
and technology. "If every one of us had a car or two in the garage that
was charging every night, could that be handled?" Hoagland said. "I’m
not sure." ENN

Headlines
US pushes for compromise in Copenhagen climate talks
Gore urges Obama to take lead on climate change
Obama may attend
Reducing greenhouse gases may not be enough to slow warming
Group urges protection of northern forests
Winners and losers in the energy future
Warming drives off Cape Cod’s namesake
Climate change bill’s effect on jobs debated
Fresh demands from ‘front-line states’ in climate fight
UN chief to link food, global warming at FAO summit
Lindsey Graham censured by SC county GOP
China confronts global warming dilemma
New technology makes energy production cheaper
Koalas could face extinction
Sleepouts for climate action

News summaries
US pushes for compromise in Copenhagen climate talks
The United States called Wednesday for a compromise at next month’s
global climate talks in Copenhagen and vowed to support a fund to help
developing countries cope with emissions cuts. "We cannot let the
pursuit of perfection get in the way of progress," US Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton told a news conference in Singapore ahead of a
weekend Pacific Rim summit. AFP
Gore urges Obama to take lead on climate change
Gore tells NPR’s Robert Siegel that he hopes President Obama will go to
the conference to send a message. He says that if the Senate passes
legislation on climate change before then, Obama will have a
"strengthened hand." "Unless the United States plays its customary
leadership role, it would be impossible to resolve this crisis. But
with the United States leading in a responsible way, we can." He adds:
"In writing this book over the last 3 1/2 years, I came to the
conclusion that we have all of the tools we need to solve three or four
climate crises — and we only have to solve one. But we have to choose
to do it." NPR
Obama may attend
Barack Obama says he would travel to Copenhagen next month if a climate
summit is on the verge of a deal and his presence there will make a
difference. Reuters
Reducing greenhouse gases may not be enough to slow warming
A new research by a scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology
has determined that reducing greenhouse gases may not be enough to slow
down global warming, and policymakers would need to address the
influence of global deforestation and urbanization on climate change
According to Stone’s research, slowing the rate of forest loss around
the world, and regenerating forests where lost, could significantly
slow the pace of global warming. "The role of land use in global
warming is the most important climate-related story that has not been
widely covered in the media," he added. Economic Times
Group urges protection of northern forests
A coalition of conservation groups are calling on international climate
negotiators in Copenhagen next month to develop land-use policy
incentives designed to encourage governments to protect natural carbon
storehouses — especially those in northern boreal forests and peatlands
found in Canada, Scandinavia and Russia. Green Inc.
Winners and losers in the energy future
In a nutshell, the IEA’s vision of the next two decades would make T.
Boone Pickens crow: Wind power and natural gas are the two big winners
under the IEA’s climate-change scenario. In contrast, clean coal and
nuclear power—battlehorses of the traditional energy business—might
play only a relatively minor role over the next two decades, the IEA
says. Environmental Capital
Warming drives off Cape Cod’s namesake
”How much of that is directly impacted by climate change is hard to
get a handle on,” Dempsey said. ”There are a number of other factors
that have been at play, one being overharvesting in inshore areas and,
subsequently, ecological changes as inshore areas have become dominated
in a lot of areas by spiny dogfish populations.” The New York Times
Climate change bill’s effect on jobs debated
Economists told a Senate panel on Tuesday that legislation to combat
global warming could kill jobs in refining, manufacturing and other
industries, even as union and energy company leaders hailed the promise
of a new “green” workforce trained in renewable power. The comments
came in testimony before the Senate Finance Committee, which was
examining how proposed caps on greenhouse gas emissions blamed for
global warming could bring major changes to the U.S. energy workforce
by shifting jobs away from dirtier oil and natural gas toward wind,
solar and nuclear power. The finance panel — a committee filled with
members from the Midwest, Rust Belt and coal-reliant regions who have
been critical of the leading climate change legislation — will play a
key role in shaping the pending legislation. Houston Chronicle
Fresh demands from ‘front-line states’ in climate fight
The “ climate divide” between countries that are rich and poor,
insulated from climate impacts and vulnerable to them, was on vivid
display in the Maldives over the last few days. Countries that consider
themselves most threatened by human-driven global warming — mainly
places exposed to the sea or reliant on rainfall — concluded a forum
there and issued a declaration of their concerns and demands. Dot Earth
UN chief to link food, global warming at FAO summit
UN chief Ban Ki-moon will prod world leaders to step up the fight
against global warming and hunger when he attends the UN Food and
Agriculture Organization summit in Rome next week,
a spokesperson said Wednesday. Space Daily
Lindsey Graham censured by SC county GOP
Republicans in Charleston County censured their own U.S. Sen. Lindsey
Graham, saying he puts bipartisanship before the party on issues like
climate change. AP
China confronts global warming dilemma
China, the world leader in both economic growth and carbon emissions,
faces the dilemma of how to respond to the challenges of global warming
while not harming its robust economy. The Christian Science Monitor
New technology makes energy production cheaper
The technology, built by Fremont’s Solyndra Inc., uses racks of solar
cells roughly the size and shape of long fluorescent light tubes. The
shape allows the panels to harvest sunlight from any angle, including
what’s reflected from the white rooftops common on large commercial
buildings. The technology promises to cut the cost of solar power. The Sacramento Bee
Koalas could face extinction
Australia’s koalas could be wiped out within 30 years unless urgent
action is taken to halt a decline in population, according to
researchers. Development, climate change and bushfires have all
combined to send the numbers of wild koalas plummeting. ENN
Sleepouts for climate action
Valley climate change activists have been staging sleep-out protests on
campuses and town commons over the past few weeks and on Sunday will be
joined in Boston by environmental author and advocate Bill McKibben. The Daily Hampshire Gazette

Headlines
Key oil figures were distorted by US pressure, says whistleblower
Lugar warns Dems, ‘I don’t see any climate bill … that I can support’
Energy industry well acquainted with Senate lawmakers
Gloomy energy report sets stage for climate talks
Vulnerable countries urge world to cut emissions
Copenhagen climate change summit: The issues
U.N. leader urges Senate to speed up climate effort
US CO2 emissions from fossil fuels seen down
Brazil pledges deep emission cuts
Wind energy in Kansas hampered by lack of power lines
Antarctica’s ice loss helps offset global warming: study
Why giants are fighting for Areva’s power business
Africa’s disappearing wetland – ‘alarming’ greenhouse gas emissions
EPA warns staff lawyers criticizing climate policy
‘Road trains’ get ready to roll in Europe
Solar power to be zapped from space


[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Key oil figures were distorted by US pressure, says whistleblower
The world is much closer to running out of oil than official estimates
admit, according to a whistleblower at the International Energy Agency
who claims it has been deliberately underplaying a looming shortage for
fear of triggering panic buying. The senior official claims the US has played
an influential role in encouraging the watchdog to underplay the rate of decline
from existing oil fields while overplaying the chances of finding new reserves…
A second senior IEA source, who has now left but was also unwilling to give
his name, said a key rule at the organisation was that it was "imperative
not to anger the Americans" but the fact was that there was not as much
oil in the world as had been admitted. "We have [already] entered the ‘peak oil’ zone.
I think that the situation is really bad," he added. The Guardian
Lugar warns Dems, ‘I don’t see any climate bill … that I can support’
One of the key Republican senators involved in the global warming
debate on Capitol Hill said Tuesday the Senate will have to "start from
scratch" in terms of crafting climate legislation. The Washington Post
Energy industry well acquainted with Senate lawmakers
Oil and gas companies and electric utilities over the past two decades
have poured $8 million into the campaign coffers of lawmakers on the
Senate Finance Committee who could now look to shape climate
legislation. All told, those likely to be affected by climate and
energy legislation for the current election cycle have given nearly
$390,000 to Democrats on the Finance Committee and nearly $251,000 to
Republican members, an E&E analysis of campaign contributions
shows. The New York Times
Gloomy energy report sets stage for climate talks
As the world heads for tough negotiations over a global climate deal
next month, an influential forecasting agency said on Tuesday that
current energy policies were not sustainable, and that a vast
transformation of energy use was required to fend off the worst
consequences of global warming. The New York Times
Vulnerable countries urge world to cut emissions
A group of 11 countries vulnerable to adverse effects of global warming
urged world leaders Tuesday to reach a binding agreement at next
month’s global conference on the issue. AP
Copenhagen climate change summit: The issues
The UN meeting is the deadline for thrashing out a successor to the
Kyoto protocol, with the aim of preventing dangerous global warming. It
will run for two weeks from 7 December and is the latest in a series
that trace their origins to the 1992 Earth summit in Rio…Negotiations
held last week in Barcelona were grim: all now acknowledge that no
legal deal is possible in Copenhagen. A miracle is needed for a
triumph. President Barack Obama is the one who could deliver it, but it
is very unlikely. Most likely is a hopeful fudge in which all parties
remain on speaking terms and seal the deal in 2010. A total collapse
would leave 20 years’ of negotiations in tatters and the world
unprotected against the ravages of global warming. It is also unlikely,
but not as unlikely as a miracle. The Guardian
U.N. leader urges Senate to speed up climate effort
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon met with Senate
Republicans and Democrats on Tuesday and urged them to save
international climate talks next month by speeding up work on a climate
and energy bill. McClatchy
US CO2 emissions from fossil fuels seen down
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Tuesday that it expects
the country’s emissions of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil
fuels to fall 5.6% this year. "Changes in energy consumption in the
industrial sector, a result of the weak economy, and changes in
electricity generation sources are the primary reasons for the decline
in CO2 emissions," the EIA said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook Carbon
dioxide emissions are expected to creep back up by 1.5% next year, as
the economy improves and fossil-fuel consumption rises. The Wall Street Journal
Brazil pledges deep emission cuts
Brazil will take proposals for voluntary reductions of 38-42% by 2020
to the Copenhagen climate change conference next month, chief of staff
says. The Guardian
Wind energy in Kansas hampered by lack of power lines
Driving through western Kansas, you’ll see hundreds of whirling wind
turbines. But you won’t see lots of people — or high-voltage power
lines. And that is the big obstacle to realizing the wind-energy
potential of Kansas and the Midwest: You can put up all the towers and
turbines you like, but without more transmission lines, the added
electricity won’t get to the cities that could use it. The Kansas City Star
Antarctica’s ice loss helps offset global warming: study
Global warming has been blamed for the alarming loss of ice shelves
in Antarctica, but a new study says newly-exposed areas of sea are now
soaking up some of the carbon gas that causes the problem. Scientists
led by Lloyd Peck of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said that
atmospheric and ocean carbon is being gobbled up by microscopic marine
plants called phytoplankton, which float near the surface. Terra Daily
Why giants are fighting for Areva’s power business
The battle shaping up over Areva’s transmission division shows just how
big a part of the world’s energy future lies in a crucial, if boring,
corner of the business…Areva’s transmission business makes the
nuts-and-bolts gear for electricity transmission and distribution, and
is one of the three global giants, alongside Siemens and ABB. That’s
the main reason GE, Toshiba, and Alstom want in the game: Transmission
is literally the backbone of the world’s electricity future, and
Areva’s unit is one of the truly big boys. Environmental Capital
Africa’s disappearing wetland – ‘alarming’ greenhouse gas emissions
Wetlands International, has found that Africa is also producing
significant carbon dioxide emissions. But these emissions are not
coming from the continent’s industrial sector. They are produced as a
result of Africa’s vanishing wetlands areas…Wetlands areas, such as peat
bogs, have stored enormous amounts of organic carbon for thousands of
years. But wetlands zones are increasingly drained for agricultural or
logging purposes. The stored carbon then reacts with oxygen, producing
carbon dioxide, one of the most important greenhouse gases contributing
to climate change. VOA
EPA warns staff lawyers criticizing climate policy
The Environmental Protection Agency has directed two of its lawyers to
makes changes to a YouTube video they posted that is critical of the
Obama administration’s climate change policy. The video, titled “The
Huge Mistake,” was produced and posted in September. Ms. Williams and
Mr. Zabel say cap and trade, in which the government sets a limit on
gases that contribute to global warming and then lets companies trade
permits to meet it, can be easily gamed by industry and fail to reduce
the emissions linked to global warming. The New York Times
‘Road trains’ get ready to roll in Europe
Road trains that link vehicles together using wireless sensors could
soon be on European roads. An EU-financed research project is looking
at inexpensive ways of getting vehicles to travel in a ‘platoon’ on
Europe’s motorways. Each road train could include up to eight separate
vehicles – cars, buses and trucks will be mixed in each one. The EU hopes
to cut fuel consumption, journey times and congestion by linking vehicles
together. Early work on the idea suggests that fuel consumption could
be cut by 20% among those cars and trucks travelling behind the lead
vehicle. BBC News
Solar power to be zapped from space
Japan’s government has picked companies and researchers to turn the
multi-billion dollar dream of unlimited clean energy into reality by
2030. The Space Solar Power System involves an array of photovoltaic
dishes reaching across several square miles that hover in geostationary
orbit outside the Earth’s atmosphere. ENN

Headlines
Cost of extra year’s climate inaction $500 billion: IEA
Climate deal to prevent doubling of energy bills
Climate change will harm US economy, economists say
Senate climate battle shifts onto new turf
EPA takes own step toward regulating greenhouse gases
Some utilities push Congress on carbon emissions
U.S. eyes deal with China on climate change monitoring
Copenhagen climate treaty in danger
Merkel: climate deal needed in Copenhagen
The ‘all-in’ bet for the planet
Spain’s new wind-power record
Path to good health, less pollution is the sidewalk: report
Greenpeace seeks Newsweek disclosure of API revenue
Las Vegas gambles with uncertain water future

[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Cost of extra year’s climate inaction $500 billion: IEA
The world will have to spend an extra $500 billion to cut carbon
emissions for each year it delays implementing a major assault on
global warming, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday. At
United Nations climate talks in Barcelona last week negotiators from
developed countries said the world would need an extra six to 12 months
to agree a legally binding, global deal to cut carbon emissions beyond
a planned December deadline. Reuters
Climate deal to prevent doubling of energy bills
A climate change deal is needed not just to ward off global warming,
but to ensure a shift from increasingly costly fossil fuels that could
lead to a doubling of energy bills, the IEA’s chief economist said on
Tuesday…"The world needs to go to the 450 part per million (ppm)
target, not only because of climate change but because of growing
problems within our energy system and its possible implications again
on the economy," Birol said…"..Birol said the oil price was likely to
reach $100 per barrel by 2015 and $190 by 2030. "This means that if we
don’t do anything to our energy system, we will be in difficulty," he
said. Reuters
Climate change will harm US economy, economists say
Almost all 144 top economists surveyed for a New York University School
of Law report agree that climate change threatens the United States
economy and that carbon regulation — whether it’s a carbon tax or a
cap-and-trade system — will drive energy efficiency and innovation. The
report, Economists and Climate Change, finds that 84 percent
of the economists agreed that environmental effects of greenhouse gas emissions “
presents a clear danger” to the United States and the global economy, despite
uncertainties regarding the exact speed and severity of global warming. The study
also finds that the majority of economists (86 percent) believe the agriculture
sector will be hit the hardest, followed by fishing (71.3 percent) and
forestry (66.9 percent). Environmental Leader
Senate climate battle shifts onto new turf
The Senate climate debate shifts into a higher gear this week as
advocates look beyond the partisan gridlock that engulfed the
Environment and Public Works Committee and onto the broader quest of
finding 60 votes for floor passage. ClimateWire
EPA takes own step toward regulating greenhouse gases
Congress might be a long ways from passing legislation to fight climate
change, but the Obama administration appears one step closer to
creating its own regime for controlling greenhouse gases. On Monday,
the Environmental Protection Agency announced it has sent the White
House Office of Management and Budget its proposed finding that
greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare. Adoption of the
so-called endangerment finding is the legal precursor to regulating
greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. Washington Wire
Some utilities push Congress on carbon emissions
Utility executives are stepping up calls for legislation to cap
greenhouse-gas emissions, fearing that if Congress doesn’t act, the EPA
will establish rules that would be costlier and less effective. The
executives’ desire for prompt action is colliding with Washington’s
focus on other issues and growing reluctance to tamper with
power-industry costs during a weak economy….The executives said they
want legislation — and soon — because utilities need to make billions
of dollars of investments in coming years and risk bad choices in a
legislative void. The Wall Street Journal
U.S. eyes deal with China on climate change monitoring
The United States hopes to reach agreement with China during President
Barack Obama’s visit on how to record and monitor countries’ efforts to
fight global warming, a top State Department official said on Tuesday. Reuters
Copenhagen climate treaty in danger
Experts are increasingly doubtful that the Copenhagen climate-change
conference can produce a binding climate treaty, less than a month
before the U.N.-mandated meeting is due to start. The latest round of
negotiations in Barcelona last week revealed the growing frustration
over the slow progress when it comes to stopping global warming. Terra Daily
Merkel: climate deal needed in Copenhagen
Next month’s climate summit in Copenhagen must produce a substantial
agreement, and failure would set back by years efforts to fight global
warming German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday. Merkel said the
European Union has put forward a clear position on fighting climate
change, and "we now expect contributions from the U.S.A. and countries
such as China and India." AP
The ‘all-in’ bet for the planet
This is the consequence of failure at Copenhagen: A marked shift in
scientific effort from solving global warming to adapting to its
consequences, a hodge-podge of uncoordinated local efforts to trim
emissions – none of which deliver the necessary cuts – and an altered
climate. Daily Climate
Lester Brown: ‘We shouldn’t count on Copenhagen to save us’
Americans are in the process of rethinking personal transportation.
This year the number of automobiles will drop by 4 million – 14 million
scrapped and 10 million new sales – a market shrinkage. There are
tougher fuel economy standards and a shrinking fleet – so a
two-dimensional squeeze. Also, over the past couple years, the US has
seen the development of a powerful grassroots movement opposing new
coal fired power plants. It has created a de facto moratorium on new
coal-fired plants. I doubt that anyone is ever going to get a new
license for a coal fired power plant. There are now 22 slated for
closing, and many more next year. The stimulus package and other pieces
of legislation are making renewable energy technologies look more
attractive. One hundred and two new wind farms came on last year,
totalling 8,000 watts of energy – or 8 coal-fired plants. We’ve reduced
carbon emissions in the US 9 per cent in the last two years – the
larger part of that is because of the recession, but a substantial part
is energy efficiency and a shift to renewables. The Ecologist
Spain’s new wind-power record
In the wee hours of Sunday morning, Spain set quite a record: The
country got more than half its electricity from wind farms, a first for
a country long invested in renewable energy… For years, one of the
knocks against wind power is that it can only provide a certain part of
a country’s electricity—25% or so—because wind power is too variable.
So Spain’s windy Sunday seems to make U.S. visions of generating 20% of
the country’s electricity from wind power sound a little less
far-fetched. Environmental Capital
Path to good health, less pollution is the sidewalk: report
Designing towns and cities to make it more appealing and safer to walk
or ride a bike would not only help fight the US obesity epidemic and
improve health but would also reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air
pollution, a report issued by the Surface Transportation Policy
Partnership and Transportation for America said. Currently, no state
spends more than five percent of federal transportation funds on
projects that could improve pedestrian and cyclist safety, such as
building more sidewalks or "zebra crossings," the report said.. AFP
Greenpeace seeks Newsweek disclosure of API revenue
Greenpeace is demanding that Newsweek disclose how much money it has
made selling the oil industry’s biggest lobbying group advertising
deals that included the ability to co-host energy policy forums and
seat the association’s president as a panelist beside members of
Congress. Greenwire
Las Vegas gambles with uncertain water future
Across the United States, water managers are beginning to grapple with
climate change. And it’s changing the way they think about almost
everything. For the utilities that supply the nation’s drinking water,
one of the first casualties is the idea that the conditions of the past
can predict the future. For planners who are used to taking the long
view — constructing expensive infrastructure that’s expected to last
30, 40, 50 years, or even longer — climate change is changing their
rules, introducing new and hard-to-define levels of risk. "You have to
plan decades ahead, in terms of water supply and source water needs,"
said Dan Hartnett, director of legislative affairs for the Association
of Metropolitan Water Agencies. "It’s too late if you wake up one
morning and the tap runs dry." Climate Wire

Headlines
Senate panel approves climate bill without GOP
Climate change on the back burner?
Companies start lobbying group backing climate bill
Top economists agree that we’re better off cutting emissions
US scales down hopes of global climate change treaty
US climate envoy takes aim at developing nations
Climate agreement needed to prevent forced migration: UN
Climate insurance is in the cross hairs
Lawsuits have Shell debating Arctic drilling
FOE attacks carbon trading
China should halve CO2 emissions by 2050: U.S
Coal company destroys last intact mountain in valley
Is climate-change belief a religion?

[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Senate panel approves climate bill without GOP
Okay, so Sen. Barbara Boxer has moved the energy and climate bill out
of the Environment and Public Works Committee and onto the Senate
floor. That doesn’t get the bill any closer to garnering 60 votes, but
as Sen. Boxer said, it can’t get 60 votes while stuck in committee,
either. The chairwoman of the environment committee defended her
decision to pass the bill despite a Republican boycott; usually, Senate
panels require at least a token presence of the minority party. Rules
do allow for a simple majority vote, rules that “are there to be used
when the Majority feels it is in the best interest of their states and
of the nation to act,” Sen. Boxer said. One interesting thing: Climate
change and global warming does seem to be slipping down the list of
Democratic talking points. Environmental Capital
Climate change on the back burner?
Climate change has slipped so far down on the agenda that at least one
key committee chairman has suggested it might have to wait until after
the 2010 elections. ‘Some people are talking about not doing it until
after the 2010 election,’ Commerce Committee Chairman John Rockefeller
(D-W.Va.) said Tuesday. A number of factors are conspiring against the
Senate version of the bill: a Republican boycott on the Environment and
Public Works Committee, a new EPA analysis that could take at least
five weeks and wide-ranging disagreements among six competing Senate
committee leaders who have jurisdiction. Politico
Companies start lobbying group backing climate bill
Several big utilities and other companies that would benefit from
pending U.S. climate-change legislation have formed a lobbying group to
support action to limit greenhouse gases and counter the U.S. Chamber
of Commerce, which has been critical of some Congressional climate
change proposals. The Wall Street Journal
Top economists agree that we’re better off cutting emissions
A tudy shows that top economists tend to agree that climate change
could have grave economic consequences, and the benefits of cutting
greenhouse gas emissions outweigh the costs. New York University’s
School of Law released a survey of the country’s top economists. The
survey found striking agreement that "climate change represents a real
danger to important sectors of the U.S. and global economies."
"Moreover, most believe that significant benefits from curbing
greenhouse gas emissions would justify the costs of action," the study
states. Dallas Morning News
US scales down hopes of global climate change treaty
The US has given up hope of reaching a global climate change treaty at
Copenhagen and is working towards a deal late next year, the Obama
administration said today. The decision ends hopes of a legally binding
deal being sealed next month. "We have to be honest in the process and
deal with the realities that we don’t have time in these four weeks to
put the language together and flesh out every crossed t and dotted i of
a treaty," said John Kerry, who chairs the Senate foreign relations
committee. The Guardian
US climate envoy takes aim at developing nations
Todd Stern, President Barack Obama’s top climate negotiator and envoy
to next month’s international climate summit in Copenhagen, used blunt
language in testimony to Congress when he zeroed in on developing
countries’ participation in talks. Some developing countries are
"hiding behind a misreading" of language in two key climate documents,
the 1992 U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change and the 2007 Bali
Action Plan, which recognize different responsibilities and
capabilities for rich and poor countries, Stern told the House Foreign
Affairs Committee. Reuters
Climate agreement needed to prevent forced migration: UN
The world urgently needs a climate deal out of a summit in Copenhagen
next month to forestall forced migration that is already occurring in
Asia and Africa, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday. "We
are in a critical period," Ban told delegates in Athens at a United
Nations conference on the economic impact of immigration. "Populations
will relocate due to more extreme weather. Terra Daily
Climate insurance is in the cross hairs
Advocates for nations vulnerable to climate change are accusing the
United States of trying to "kill" a prominent global warming provision
that would create a massive insurance program for countries that face
rising destruction from natural disasters. The controversial measure —
which currently is part of the voluminous draft treaty text leading up
to international climate talks in Copenhagen — seeks financial
payments for countries that might slip underwater sometime this
century, as well as for those that increasingly suffer from drought,
floods and cyclones. The program could cost the United States and other
developed nations billions every year, and perhaps amount to an
admission that Americans are largely responsible for warming the world.
That is considered a legal pitfall that might raise questions on the
scale of slavery reparations for African-Americans or financial
apologies to Native Americans, some observers say. Climate Wire
Lawsuits have Shell debating Arctic drilling
Shell, the giant oil company that hopes to open a new petroleum
frontier for Alaska, says it will decide within months whether to risk
sending a large fleet of vessels to drill for oil and gas in the
Beaufort and Chukchi seas next summer.
Scientists say Alaska’s Arctic waters could hide a massive storehouse
for oil and natural gas, estimated to nearly rival the onshore
discoveries of the North Slope. …[T]he oil company has been stymied.
Environmentalists and North Slope governments sounded the alarm about
potential impacts on bowhead whales and the possibility of oil spills.
Both sued successfully to block the drilling during the past two
summers. The Anchorage Daily News
FOE attacks carbon trading
The world’s carbon trading markets growing complexity threatens another
"sub-prime" style financial crisis that could again destabilise the
global economy, campaigners warn today. In a new report, Friends of the
Earth says that to date "cap and trade" carbon markets have done almost
nothing to reduce emissions but have been plagued by inefficiency and
corruption that render them unfit for that purpose. The Guardian
China should halve CO2 emissions by 2050: U.S
China should roughly halve its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 to keep
the world on a safe climate path, the head of the U.S. delegation at
U.N. climate talks in Barcelona said on Thursday. Reuters
Coal company destroys last intact mountain in valley
A subsidiary of Massey Energy has begun mountaintop-removal coal-mining
operations on Coal River Mountain in West Virginia, the only peak in
Coal River Valley that hasn’t been blasted away for mining. Blasting
for the mine is taking place 200 yards from the Brushy Fork coal slurry
impoundment, which holds 8 billion gallons of toxic coal sludge above
the Coal River community. Local and national conservation organizations
including the Center for Biological Diversity are asking the
Environmental Protection Agency and the White House to halt the mining
operation. "It is just plain wrong to blow up the last mountain in
Coal River Valley and to jeopardize the lives of the people living
below the slurry dam. The federal government should intervene and
protect this community," said Tierra Curry, a biologist. ENN
Is climate-change belief a religion?
Actually, yes, at least if you live in the United Kingdom. Freakonomics

Headlines
Boxer: Climate markup will go forward
GOP Senators warn Boxer on climate bill
Poll: Global warming is real, so do something, US voters say
Even E.U. having trouble on climate agreement
Tough global deal on climate unlikely – UN chief
U.S. urged to set climate deal deadline
Obama hosting EU-US summit
RiskMetrics beefs up analysis of enviro risks
Scientists seek ‘Plan B’ for fighting climate change
Forests much more than carbon storage
Sizing up palm oil
Kilimanjaro ice could vanish within 20 years
Religion gets behind fight against climate change


[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
Boxer: Climate markup will go forward
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer
(D-Calif.) will go ahead and mark up climate legislation in her
committee Tuesday, she announced Monday morning, even if the
Republicans try to block her. The Washington Post
GOP Senators warn Boxer on climate bill
Six ranking Republican U.S. senators Monday warned the head of the
environment committee that pushing ahead with a vote on a landmark
climate bill this week would "severely damage" the chances of passing
the legislation. Environment and Public Works Chairwoman Sen. Barbara
Boxer (D., Calif.) has said she’s prepared to begin consideration of
the climate bill Tuesday despite objections by GOP committee members
who want a full economic analysis of the proposal. The six panel
members said they would try to block passage of the bill through
committee by not attending the scheduled markup. Under committee rules,
at least two members of the minority are needed to vote on legislation.
The Wall Street Journal
Poll: Global warming is real, so do something, US voters say
Some 56 percent of likely general-election voters say global warming is
happening now, and a further 21 percent say it will happen in the
future. Christian Science Monitor
Even E.U. having trouble on climate agreement
Negotiations to save the planet from catastrophic climate change are
heading for trouble, five weeks before the U.N. conference. The New York Times
Tough global deal on climate unlikely – UN chief
A legally-binding global climate change deal is looking unlikely after
Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary General, said world leaders will not agree on
targets to cut emissions. The Telegraph
U.S. urged to set climate deal deadline
The U.S. is under pressure to set a 2020 goal for cutting greenhouse
gases to rescue chances for a climate deal due next month in
Copenhagen. Reuters
Obama hosting EU-US summit
President Barack Obama is hosting a summit with European Union leaders
on a range of issues, including climate change. AP
RiskMetrics beefs up analysis of enviro risks
Here’s a sign that whatever happens in the U.S. or overseas with
climate-change gymnastics, big investors are taking the issue
seriously. RiskMetrics Group, the big risk-analysis firm, just snapped
up KLD Research, which specializes in environmental, social, and
governance issues for investors. That basically means that RiskMetrics’
traditional approach to figuring out what risks hang over
companies—from exchange rates to commodity prices–will now include
plenty of emphasis on environmental issues, including climate change.
The tie-up comes as many institutional investors are increasingly
pressing big companies to be more forthright about their exposure to
potential risks (and opportunities) from climate change. Witness the
growth of Ceres. And it comes just after the Securities and Exchange
Commission made it easier for shareholders to ask companies about
social and environmental risks—including climate change. Environmental Capital
Scientists seek ‘Plan B’ for fighting climate change
Many experts said geoengineering could be a planetary "Plan B," an
option to exercise if cutting greenhouse gas emissions can’t stave off
dangerous climate change. The New York Times
Forests much more than carbon storage
The world’s forests and jungles are much more than carbon storage sites
and compensation for greenhouse emissions, experts and activists point
out to governments that are negotiating a new global climate change
treaty. AlertNet
Sizing up palm oil
Palm oil is in everything from fuel to cosmetics. Is it a solution or a
problem? Christian Science Monitor
Kilimanjaro ice could vanish within 20 years
Global warming not local weather variations to blame for loss of up to
17 feet of ice, say scientists. The Guardian
Religion gets behind fight against climate change
Leaders from nine major faiths meet at Windsor Castle on Tuesday in an
exceptional initiative that supporters predict will harness the power
of religion in the fight against climate change. AFP

Headlines
EU strikes climate funding deal
Will U.S. go empty-handed to world climate talks?
Climate hearings proceed in face of new attacks
Could coal lobby chief be probed for perjury?
Chamber chief battles Obama
Farmers fight climate bill, but warming spells trouble for them
Yemen’s water crisis a Mideast warning
N. America autos bottom of ‘world sustainability league’
Aerosols make methane more potent
Save us, [insert techno-fix here], you’re our only hope!
AEP tests coal’s future at its WV plant

[click on link below for articles]
News summaries
EU strikes climate funding deal
EU leaders agree a conditional deal to help other nations fight global
warming, ahead of the Copenhagen climate summit. BBC News
Will U.S. go empty-handed to world climate talks?
Many nations are watching to see whether the Senate will make progress
on a climate and energy bill that would spell out the U.S. national
emissions-reduction plan. Without an offer of such cuts from the
largest source of emissions that are already in the atmosphere, there
won’t be a global deal at the talks in Copenhagen, Denmark. At the same
time, other countries have started to put forward their own plans to
cut emissions. If that momentum builds, it could put pressure on the
Senate to pass the bill, possibly early in 2010, and open the way for
another negotiating round on a global treaty next year. McClatchy
Climate hearings proceed in face of new attacks
U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara
Boxer, (D., Calif.), on Thursday, pressed ahead with a third day of
hearings on climate legislation in the face of new attacks on the
measure. Sen. Jim Inhofe, (R., Okla.), demanded a more thorough
analysis of the legislation before the committee begins the process of
modifying and approving the bill. Sen. George Voinovich, (R., Ohio),
blew up at Boxer, saying that forcing polluters to pay for
greenhouse-gas emissions would result in a massive transfer of wealth
from some parts of the country. Under the Senate bill, greenhouse-gas
emissions would decline 20% below 2005 levels by 2020 and by more than
80% by 2050. Coal-state Democrats such as Baucus, as well as many
businesses, believe the near-term goals are too ambitious and want
Boxer to pull back. The concern is that "clean coal" technologies such
as carbon capture and sequestration will not be commercially available
at a time when deep emissions reductions take hold. Dow Jones Newswires
Could coal lobby chief be probed for perjury?
Staff for the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global
Warming refused Thursday to rule out possible perjury charges against
Steve Miller, the director of the American Coalition for Clean Coal
Electricity (ACCCE), for sworn testimony he gave Thursday. Miller said
the coal lobby group had never opposed House climate legislation,
whereas evidence exists that it had. TPM Muckraker
Chamber chief battles Obama
With President Barack Obama bidding to overhaul the health-care system,
tighten bank oversight and make industries pay for their greenhouse-gas
emissions, some trade-association chiefs have decided to compromise
with the party in power. Not Thomas Donohue. On many of Mr. Obama’s
priorities, the president and chief executive of the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce is working to defeat the administration—delighting some
members, causing some to quit and sparking a furious reaction from the
White House and left-wing activists. In the process, he has made the
Chamber one of Mr. Obama’s most visible opponents. On climate change,
Mr. Donohue’s group says warmer temperatures could help by reducing
deaths related to cold weather. Environmental Capital
Farmers fight climate bill, but warming spells trouble for them
Farm state senators and others soon will get a taste of what their
colleagues from Missouri already have piled high on their desks:
thousands of letters from farmers urging them to vote against the
climate and energy bill…A government report, however, warns of a dire
outlook for farms if rising emissions drive more rapid climate shifts in
the decades ahead. McClatchy
Yemen’s water crisis a Mideast warning
Sanaa may be the first capital city in the world to run out of water.
If that happens, it will be a signpost to the conflicts over shrinking
resources that scientists and sociologists see coming in the decades
ahead. The ancient city, which dates back to the Sabean dynasty of the
6th century B.C., is expected to run out of drinking water as early as
2025 at current consumption levels. UPI
N. America autos bottom of ‘world sustainability league’
The report details how Asian car manufacturers are outperforming their
North American, and many of their European competitors, in using their
environmental and social resources more efficiently. Spacemart
Aerosols make methane more potent
Aerosols’ complicated influence on our climate just got more
threatening: they could make methane a more potent greenhouse gas than
previously realized, say climate modellers. Nature
Save us, [insert techno-fix here], you’re our only hope!
Don t worry about climate change and world hunger"this lady’s got your
back!Watching SuperFreakonomics author Steve Levitt sitting next to Jon
Stewart as they shook their heads in disbelief that everyone wasn’t on
the climate change/geo-engineering bandwagon (It’s easy! it’s cheap! We
know it works!) depressed me no end. It seems like every challenge we
face now has an easy technological silver bullet that will spare us
sacrifice or even change. GMOs will end hunger. Geo-engineering will
solve climate change. A pill will cure obesity. Social Median
AEP tests coal’s future at its WV plant
An American Electric Power Co. plant in New Haven, West Virginia, may
help determine whether the nation’s 1,500 coal-burning power generators
become relics of a dirtier age or can flourish in a low-carbon world. Bloomberg