Thousands evacuated in U.K. as major flooding follows record drought – ‘We have not seen that sort of turnaround before’

LONDON, 29 November 2012 (ClimateWire) – More than 1,100 homes across the United Kingdom have had to be evacuated after being flooded over the past week as persistent and at times torrential rains falling on already sodden ground have followed the country’s wettest summer on record. Four wet weather fronts in a row in just […]

Graph of the Day: OPEC 12 Crude Oil Production, 2002-2012

By Euan Mearns 28 November 2012 Executive summary OPEC is currently pumping at close to near term and historic highs of 31.2 mmbpd of crude oil. Outside of Saudi Arabia, the majority of spare capacity is deemed to lie in Iran and Nigeria. Iran could certainly pump more if permitted to do so by the […]

UN climate scientist: Sandy no coincidence

By KARL RITTER, with contributions from AP Environment Writer Michael Casey27 November 2012 DOHA, Qatar (AP) – Though it’s tricky to link a single weather event to climate change, Hurricane Sandy was “probably not a coincidence” but an example of the extreme weather events that are likely to strike the U.S. more often as the […]

Video: Japan tsunami debris covers Hawaii beach

28 November 2012 (NBC News) – On the Big Island of Hawaii, debris is changing the landscape as thousands of pounds of trash hit Kamilo Beach – much of it from Japan. The refuse is already impacting wildlife such as fish and birds. NBC’s Miguel Almaguer reports. Tsunami debris washes up in Hawaii Technorati Tags: […]

As Great Lakes plummet, towns try to save harbors

By JOHN FLESHER, AP Environmental Writer 27 November 2012 ONEKAMA, Michigan (AP) – For more than a century, easy access to Lake Michigan has made Onekama a popular place for summer visitors and a refuge for boaters fleeing dangerous storms. Now the community itself needs a rescue, from slumping lake levels that threaten its precious […]

Outcry grows as Canada government undermines climate science – ‘We’re hemorrhaging scientists here’

By Katherine Bagley27 November 2012 (InsideClimate News) – The government of Canada’s official position on climate change is that it’s real and requires an “aggressive” response. Despite that, Canada’s ruling Conservative Party government has been leading a slow and systematic unraveling of environmental and climate research budgets, according to local scientists—including shuttering one of the […]

Drought-parched Mississippi River is halting barges

By Alan Bjerga27 November 2012 (Bloomberg) – Mississippi River barge traffic is slowing as the worst drought in five decades combines with a seasonal dry period to push water levels to a near-record low, prompting shippers to seek alternatives. River vessels are cutting loads on the nation’s busiest waterway while railroads sign up new business […]

Rhino poaching for horns rises rapidly in South Africa – At least 588 slaughtered in 2012

By Jon Gambrell   28 November 2012 By the time ranchers found the rhinoceros calf wandering alone in this idyllic setting of scrub brush and acacia, the nature reserve had become yet another blood-soaked crime scene in South Africa’s losing battle against poachers. Hunters killed eight rhinos at the private Finfoot Game Reserve inside the Vaalkop […]

Rising acidity levels threaten ocean food chain, study finds

26 November 2012 (SMH) – The shells of some marine snails in the seas around Antarctica are dissolving as the water becomes more acidic, threatening the food chain, a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience said on Sunday. The tiny snails, known as ‘‘sea butterflies’’, live in the seas around Antarctica and are left […]

Photos reveal destruction of Cameroon rainforest for palm oil

By Jeremy Hance26 November 2012 (mongabay.com) – Newly released photos by Greenpeace show the dramatic destruction of tropical forest in Cameroon for an oil palm plantation operated by SG Sustainable Oils Cameroon (SGSOC), a subsidiary of the U.S. company Herakles Farm. The agriculture company is planning to convert 73,000 hectares to palm oil plantations on […]

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