April - May 2008

May 9, 2008 (Distribution date)

Even in a globally warming world, not every year is warmer everywhere. Climate modelers attempting to look at short-term prospects find some regions getting cooler, perhaps for several years - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/science/earth/01climate.html . Andy Revkin at DotEarth wonders if such projections will shoot down any chance for the adoption of policies aimed at reducing global warming. The comments are particularly interesting. - http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/can-climate-campaigns-withstand-a-cooling-test/ See also Joseph Romm's informative analysis of the Nature article - http://climateprogress.org/2008/05/02/nature-article-on-cooling-confuses-revkin-media-deniers-next-decade-may-see-rapid-warming/
The US Climate Change Science Program has released its draft report on Abrupt Climate Change. The authors indicate that there has been significant progress in understanding the potential for abrupt climate change since the 2007 IPCC report and the 2002 National Research Council report. Among other possibilities, the authors consider that sea level projections for the end of the century from the 2007 IPCC report are probably too low (probability >90%) and will have to be "substantially" increased. They also note that the likelihood of severe and persist drought in the American West is increasing. Here's a link to the executive summary - http://www.climatescience.gov/Library/sap/sap3-4/public-review-draft/sap3-4prd-ExecSum.pdf
Here's a nice article in The Union Daily Times that grew out of an interview with Steve Moore, our liaison with SCWF - http://www.uniondailytimes.com/articles/2008/05/01/news/news04.txt
Are the electromagnetic fields generated in hybrid cars dangerous to human health? Here's a NYT story long on anecdotes and short on facts - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/automobiles/27EMF.html?pagewanted=print
A Federal judge has ordered the Bush administration to decide - within 16 days - whether or not global warming is endangering polar bears - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24369059/ See also - http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/05/05/8731/print/
Areas of low oxygen concentration in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans appear to be increasing in size as global warming intensifies - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080501/ap_on_sc/dead_zones_3;_ylt=AniBAIAOePrqxY1kUV8ckO5rAlMA
Gen. Hayden, Head of the US CIA, lists population increase as the most serious threat to global security. There is an extensive, informative discussion of the population issue at the NYT DotEarth - http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/cia-chief-lists-population-as-a-top-concern/#more-243. For some facts about family planning & population ("Population is the multiplier of everything we do wrong.") see the fine paper by Martha Campbell - http://www.populationandsustainability.org/papers/campbellagm.pdf
Coming to grips with the climate crisis is going to require innovative thinking and a willingness to entertain unpleasant thoughts, in short "to think outside the box." Here's an article that addresses how to get away from habitual thinking - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/business/04unbox.html
Keeping an eye on the summer extent of Arctic sea ice melt is one of the things we all need to be doing as the climate crisis proceeds apace. Here's an article that stems from a recent meeting where the Arctic sea ice was a topic - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24467774/ And, Andy Revkin at DotEarth has commented on this topic and given lots of good links, including one to a North Pole webcam - http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/07/science-on-shrinking-north-pole-ice/#more-245
Organic foods seem like a good idea, or are they an expensive indulgence? - http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/green-living/the-great-organic-myths-why-organic-foods-are-an-indulgence-the-world-cant-afford-818585.html
Is the US going to duplicate the mistakes of the EU and give away tens of billions of dollars worth of carbon credits to power companies every year? That seems to be part of the Lieberman-Warner bill - http://www.reutersinteractive.com/Carbon/95784 See also http://www.reutersinteractive.com/Carbon/95787
Here's a report suggesting that airline emissions have been significantly underestimated - http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/airline-emissions-far-higher-than-previous-estimates-821598.html
And finally, are you aware of the informative webpage about coastal homeowner's insurance at the SC Insurance News Service website? It's worth a look - http://www.scinsnews.com/resource_detail.php?resourceID=154

April 30, 2008

As the jet stream continues shifting northward, the southeast is expected to stay drier - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24228037/
Lord Nicholas Stern has revised his predictions about the serious consequences of global warming. The situation now looks worse than he first thought - http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/apr/18/climatechange.carbonemissions
Japan, apparently stung by criticism of its reluctance to set GHG emissions targets, has joined the EU in a call for ambitious, binding targets (something like a 25% to 50% reduction by 2020) - http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080423/wl_afp/japaneudiplomacysummit_080423074806;_ylt=Amd7.MCwS54u2ayI3ItAwIRrAlMA
CO2 has reached 385 - 386 ppm in the atmosphere and methane gas concentrations are also up, apparently a result of increased industrial activity in Asia and increased Arctic thawing. Yes, as the Arctic begins to thaw more rapidly due to increased polar warming consequent to loss of Arctic sea ice, more and more methane gas will be released, tipping the globe to warmer and warmer temperatures, etc. Can you spell "p_s_t_v_ f_e_b_c_?" - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/24/science/earth/24brfs-GASESINATMOS_BRF.html See also http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSN2345712720080423
Kerry Emanuel, a climate scientist who was one of the first to predict more frequent and more intense hurricanes due to global warming, has, based on new modeling studies, backed away from his prior claim. Here're links to articles about his change of mind - http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/tech/news/5693436.html# and http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/12/hurricane-expert-reassesses-climate-link/
I've attached a copy of Joe Bastardi's early hurricane forecast for 2008 from Accuweather.
The strong La Nina persists - see http://sealevel.jpl.nasa.gov/elnino/20080401.html - and this may be good news for the approaching hurricane season. Strong easterly winds blow the tops off incipient hurricanes in the Atlantic and also carry Saharan dust over the ocean, which inhibits hurricane formation.
The Post & Courier had an informative article on the sad situation in Asia for shrimp farming. What is astounding to me is the willingness of Americans to poison themselves with imported shrimp - http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/26/the_true_cost_shrimp38697/?print
And, another article on the rising price of oil. Is it just another bubble? - http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/26/oil_bubble_or_reality38698/?print
The NYT has this interesting article about the environmental cost of food being shipped around the world - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/26/business/worldbusiness/26food.html
When will Charleston begin its bicycle-sharing program, I wonder? - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/us/27bikes.html
Can creation of more "green collar" jobs help bridge the racial divide that has plagued environmentalism? - http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=the_green_gap
Meanwhile a Norwegian company is stripping CO2 from natural gas and successfully injecting it into porous rock under the North Sea - http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSL2915061620080429
Could the use of food crops to produce biofuels be considered criminal? - http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSL2915061620080429
And, to close out this post, here're some ways to increase our energy efficiency and reduce GHG emissions - http://www.alternet.org/environment/83800/

April 21, 2008

Millions will be at risk for water due to rapidly melting glaciers in various countries around the globe - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24127215/
So, what was the reaction to President Bush's April 17th speech on ways to reduce GHG emissions? Here are a few - Too little, too late? - http://www.reuters.com/articlePrint?articleId=USL1743760420080417; Bush under fire - http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080417/wl_afp/climatewarmingusemitters_080417193330&printer=1;_ylt=AuNGrVRZJnLy5Q4ivwxOqOuROrgF ; Prescription for disaster? - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/washington/17bush.html?_r=1&oref=slogin; Bush overtaken by events - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/16/AR2008041600337_pf.html
A recent Swiss study, which takes into account changing levels of smog, claims to have gotten a handle on the most accurate estimate of man-made global warming - http://environment.newscientist.com/channel/earth/climate-change/dn13740-clearing-smog-reveals-true-extent-of-global-warming.html
One of the arguments put forth by climate skeptics who doubt that GHGs are causing global warming is that variations in cosmic rays cause changes in low level cloudiness, which, in turn, is the main cause of global warming. A recent study indicates that this is not likely to be true - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24051759/
Financial and technological help for developing countries will probably be necessary if they are to begin fighting climate change - http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/climate_un_dc&printer=1;_ylt=AgixzuCfucsRo65_MlXbeW1g.3QA
Analysts are beginning to look at which utility companies will be hardest hit by a cap-and-trade regime for carbon - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/13/business/13caps.html?_r=1&ref=environment&oref=slogin
Biofuels are being questioned in England, too - http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/biofuel-the-burning-question-808959.html
Here's an article about sea level rising by 1.5 m (almost 5 ft) this century. Sounds like we might want to start thinking of how to move our houses across Hwy 17 - http://www.reuters.com/articlePrint?articleId=USL1577875020080415
One of the issues with solar power is how to store the energy for use when the sun isn't shining. Here's an innovative approach that avoids the use of batteries, which are inherently inefficient - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/15/science/earth/15sola.html?ref=science See also the attached article by Joe Romm, which is copied from a subscribed source.
American Rivers has released their list of the most endangered rivers in the nation. The Catawba-Wateree river is #1 - http://www.commondreams.org/news2008/0417-08.htm
This is something of a repeat, but is worth looking at again. Here're the future worlds - a world of scramble and conflict or a world of blueprints and plans - that Shell Oil Company executives foresee - http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/18/looking-forward-an-energy-scramble-or-a-blueprint/#more-228
Gus Speth, Chairman of the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a personal friend of Sam Watson, has a new book that looks at the question of whether capitalism as we know it is compatible with a sustainable environment. Here's a link to brief description - http://environment.yale.edu/news/5647-book-examines-clash-of-capitalism-and-the/. Another good book along these lines is Bill McKibben's Deep Economy.
The 3rd meeting of the worlds largest economies to hammer out agreements to limit GHG emissions has ended. Andy Revkin has a good article about it at DotEarth - http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/19/divisions-persist-among-greenhouse-giants/#more-234
Doubts are raised in a New Scientist article about whether carbon trading can really be expected to lead to GHG emissions reductions. Its from a subscribed source, so I've attached a copy.
Here's a copy of the original Pacal and Socolow Science article that introduced the idea of "wedges" to bring down CO2 emissions - http://www.carbonsequestration.us/Papers-presentations/htm/Pacala-Socolow-ScienceMag-Aug2004.pdf

April 15, 2008

Joseph Romm has an interesting article about solving global warming and the peak oil problem in one fell swoop. Its from a subscription source, so I've attached a copy.
Studies show that making solar power cells is far less polluting that burning fossil fuels to make energy, resulting in about a 90% reduction - http://www.livescience.com/environment/080227-solar-power-green.html
Here are a couple of articles about "Earth Hour.' A number of US cities joined in. Andrea and I had a nice candlelight dinner. - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/world_lights_out;_ylt=Apl7psk6ETXv1d.UiIGzQwZrAlMA and http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/03/30/7983/
I have trouble understanding the details of a cap and trade system for regulating CO2 emissions. The Pew Center on Global Climate Change has a 12 page description, complete with definition of terms, that has definitely helped me - http://www.pewclimate.org/docUploads/Cap&Trade.pdf
Did you know that 72% of Americans are completely or mostly convinced that global warming is happening? Here's a link to a Yale University/Gallup/Clear Vision poll with very interesting results. The results indicate that progress is being made in educating people about the climate crisis - http://environment.yale.edu/news/5305/american-opinions-on-global-warming/
About 50 College of Charleston students celebrated Fossil Fool's Day on April 1st, focusing on the foolishness of building more "global warming machines," i.e., coal fired electric plants - http://itsgettinghotinhere.org/2008/04/02/foolin-with-south-carolinas-coal-kings/
And, following up on a past link about the EPA declining to issue regulations about CO2 emissions as directed by the Supreme Court, 17 states have just brought suit over its inaction - http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Greenhouse-Gases.html
Oops! Some members of Congress are coming to realize that the rush to biofuels, especially ethanol from food crops, may not have been such a good idea - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/15/business/worldbusiness/15food.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print
And, finally, is it really possible that President Bush wants a "warming legacy" (or does he already have one)? - http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/14/president-appears-to-seek-a-warming-legacy/