Greenhouse emissions reach 'record' level: UN

By Staff WritersGeneva (AFP) Nov 23, 2009 Greenhouse gas emissions have kept increasing, reaching a record level since the pre-industrial era, the UN climate agency warned Monday, just weeks before a crucial climate change summit. “Levels of most greenhouse gases continue to increase,” said the World Meteorological Organisation in a statement. “In 2008, global concentrations […]

Image of the Day: Thermokarst lakes on thawing permafrost soil in northeast Siberia

Thermokarst lakes appear on thawing permafrost soil in northeast Siberia in August 2007. For thousands of years, layers of animal and plant waste have been sealed inside the frozen permafrost. Now climate change is thawing the permafrost and lifting this prehistoric ooze from suspended animation. Russian scientists believe that this organic matter will significantly accelerate […]

Acid in Arctic waters eating away at shellfish

Greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, power stations and industries far to the south are putting shellfish in the Arctic Ocean at risk,  an international team reports in the Nov. 20 edition of the journal Science. Acidification may put “some species at risk,” the researchers said, saying this could have a major impact on the entire […]

Insurance giant warns climate ‘tipping points’ in sight

By James Murray, BusinessGreen, Monday 23 November 2009 at 14:24:00 The world is dangerously close to climatic “tipping points” that could result in catastrophic environmental, social and economic consequences, according to a major new study commissioned by the WWF and global insurance giant Allianz. The report from the UK’s Tyndall Centre warns that, unless carbon […]

Permafrost thaw threatens Russia oil and gas complex: study

MOSCOW (AFP) — Thawing permafrost caused by global warming is costing Russian energy firms billions of dollars annually in damage control and shrinking Russia’s territory, Greenpeace warned in a new study Friday. According to the report by the environmental watchdog, up to 55 billion roubles (1.9 billion dollars) a year is spent on repairs to […]

Fish ‘exhibit a fatal attraction to predators’ in acidified ocean

Fish reared in water acidified by CO2 may become “fatally attracted” to the smell of their predators, say scientists. A team studying the effects of acidification – caused by dissolved CO2 – on ocean reefs found that it leaves fish unable to “smell danger”. Young clownfish that were reared in the acidified water became attracted […]

Graph of the Day: Evolution of Anthropogenic CO2 Sources and Sinks, 1765-2005

This graph shows the evolution of the various sources and sinks of anthropogenic CO2 between ad 1765 and ad 2005. Our results indicate that the terrestrial biosphere was a source of Cant until the 1940s, roughly in line with previous model-based estimates3, 18, after which it turned into a sink of anthropogenic CO2. Taken over […]

Destruction of Indonesia peatlands wreaks as much damage as all the vehicles in the U.S.

TARUNA JAYA, Indonesia – Across a patch of pineapples shrouded in smoke, Idris Hadrianyani battled a menace that has left his family sleepless and sick — and has wrought as much damage on the planet as has exhaust from all the cars and trucks in the United States. Against the advancing flames, he waved a […]

Rising CO2 will cause catastrophic sea level rise finds Antarctic study

Sea levels could rise by up to six metres if the world fails to get pollution under control according to the latest study in the Antarctic.   By Louise Gray, Environment CorrespondentPublished: 1:56PM GMT 18 Nov 2009 The British Antarctic Survey found that during past periods of high carbon dioxide, temperatures in Antarctica were up […]

Grist: We have met the deniers, and they are us

Via reader Gail: By Adam Sacks James Inhofe.Marc Morano.Richard Lindzen.Bjørn Lomborg.George W. Bush. Names of shame, ignominy, criminals against humanity, against planet Earth itself.  Agents of the lethal delays in our response to escalating, accelerating, catastrophic global warming. Yet, as deniers of climate change, they’re amateurs compared to us.  Us activists, environmentalists, scientists, and certainly […]

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