Japan turns off last nuclear reactor amid fears of surge in gas prices

By Phillip Inman and Terry Macalister    15 September 2013 (The Guardian) – Japan will switch off its last nuclear reactor on Monday, amid fears that a growing dependence on gas imports there could push up electricity bills in the UK. Kansai Electric Power’s only functioning reactor was scheduled to be disconnected from the power grid […]

The 5 stages of climate denial are on display ahead of the IPCC report – Antiscience forces running damage control in the media

By Dana Nuccitelli    15 September 2013 (The Guardian) – The fifth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report is due out on September 27th, and is expected to reaffirm with growing confidence that humans are driving global warming and climate change. In anticipation of the widespread news coverage of this auspicious report, climate contrarians appear […]

Typhoon Man-yi dumps ‘unprecedented’ rainfall on Kyoto, hundreds of thousands evacuate

By Mari Yamaguchi16 September 2013 TOKYO (AP) – A powerful typhoon lashed Japan with torrential rain Monday, leaving two dead as it damaged homes and flooded parts of the country’s popular tourist destination of Kyoto, where 260,000 people were ordered to evacuate to shelters. Typhoon Man-yi, packing wind speeds of 100 mph Monday night, was […]

In South Florida, a polluted bubble ready to burst – ‘These coastal estuaries cannot take this. This cannot continue to happen.’

By LIZETTE ALVAREZ8 September 2013 CLEWISTON, Florida (The New York Times) – On wind-whipped days when rain pounds this part of South Florida, people are quickly reminded that Lake Okeechobee, with its vulnerable dike and polluted waters, has become a giant environmental problem far beyond its banks. Beginning in May, huge downpours ushered in the […]

Image of the Day: Satellite view of weather system that caused ‘1000-year flood’ in Colorado, 11 September 2013

By Douglas Main13 September 2013 (LiveScience) – A massive amount of rain has fallen in the region surrounding Boulder, Colo., causing widespread flooding that’s killed at least four people and taken out roads and houses, according to news reports. The event has sent 20-foot “walls of water” rushing down mountainsides, destroying bridges and isolating entire […]

DC judge denies another effort to derail climate scientist’s defamation lawsuit

13 September 2013 (Climate Science Watch) – Moving forward to the discovery stage of Michael Mann’s defamation lawsuit against the National Review and the Competitive Enterprise Institute was expedited when District of Columbia Superior Court judge Weisberg on September 12 denied yet another motion by the defendants that would have created a procedural delay. If […]

Colorado’s ‘Biblical’ flood in line with climate trends – Over 1200 people missing – ‘This is clearly going to be a historic event. The true magnitude is really just becoming obvious now.’

By Andrew Freedman13 September 2013 (Climate Central) – The Boulder, Colo. area is reeling after being inundated by record rainfall, with more than half a year’s worth of rain falling over the past three days. During those three days, 24-hour rainfall totals of between 8 and 10 inches across much of the Boulder area were […]

Global warming may ‘flatten’ rainforests – ‘The initial downward shift in arboreal species will inflate ground densities by 80 percent thus compromising normal ecosystem functions’

12 September 2013 (mongabay.com) – Climate change may push canopy-dwelling plants and animals out of the tree-tops due to rising temperatures and drier conditions, argues a new study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The development may be akin to “flattening” the tiered vegetation structure that characterizes the rainforest ecosystem. The conclusion is […]

Volcanic vents show how ocean acidification threatens marine life

By Craig Welch15 September 2013 NORMANBY ISLAND, Papua New Guinea (Seattle Times) — Katharina Fabricius plunged from a dive boat into the Pacific Ocean of tomorrow. She kicked through blue water until she spotted a ceramic tile attached to the bottom of a reef. A year earlier, the ecologist from the Australian Institute of Marine […]

Ocean species relocate in response to climate change, study finds

By Melissa Pandika13 September 2013 (Los Angeles Times) – As climate change heats our oceans, you’d expect temperature-sensitive marine species to flee poleward to cooler waters. So why have some headed to warmer regions toward the equator? Scientists have solved the puzzle. For the most part, these animals are relocating to cooler waters. But since […]

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