As Japan swings away from nuclear power, higher oil dependency erases greenhouse-gas gains

By Associated Press TOKYO – The Fukushima crisis is eroding years of Japanese efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming, as power plants running on oil and natural gas fill the electricity gap left by now-shuttered nuclear reactors. Before last year’s devastating tsunami triggered meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant, Japan had […]

Aspen chamber severs ties with U.S. Chamber of Commerce over climate change dispute

By Troy Hooper 27 April 2012 Aspen’s chamber of commerce isn’t the first to sever ties with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over political differences. The chamber in Homer, Alaska, made national headlines when it canceled its membership. But Auden Schendler, the Aspen Skiing Co.’s vice president of sustainability, believes the famous Rocky Mountain hamlet’s […]

U.S. CO2 emissions to stay below 2005 levels as coal use shrinks

By Valerie Volcovici24 January 2012 NEW YORK – U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions will be 7 percent lower than their 2005 level of nearly 6 billion metric tons in 2020 as coal’s share of electricity production continues a steady descent over the next two decades, according to new government data. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) released […]

World’s biggest polluters stymie agreement at Durban global warming talks

By Alex Morales and Kim Chipman9 December 2011 China, the U.S. and India, the three biggest polluters, maintained their resistance to a time line leading to a legally-binding climate treaty, threatening efforts to keep up the fight on global warming this year. European Union Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard said she hasn’t yet won backing for […]

U.S. climate stance is ‘blowing negotiations apart’, PNG envoy declares

By Kim Chipman and Alex Morales7 December 2011 The U.S. view that no new global climate deal is possible before 2020 is derailing negotiations aimed at slashing the world’s oil and coal emissions, according to an envoy at the talks. “The present U.S. position of no new agreement until post- 2020 is really blowing negotiations […]

Climate talks open on ever-rising emissions – China ‘not very optimistic’

DURBAN, South Africa, November 28 (AP) – Global warming already is causing suffering and conflict in Africa, from drought in Sudan and Somalia to flooding in South Africa, President Jacob Zuma said Monday, urging delegates at an international climate conference to look beyond national interests for solutions [United Nations Climate Change Conference 2011]. “For most […]

Global warming: The high cost of inaction

By Jim Bouldin14 October 2011 In 2004 Stephen Pacala and Robert Socolow published a paper in Science in which they argued that a pragmatic, but still difficult, way of stabilizing atmospheric CO2 levels over the long term was via the implementation of seven “stabilization wedges” over the next 50 years. The idea was very simple: […]

Thinking the unthinkable: Engineering Earth’s climate

[The usual Desdemona disclaimer: So the leaders of men conceived of their most desperate strategy yet.] 12 October 2011 A U.S. panel has called for a concerted effort to study proposals to manipulate the climate to slow global warming — a heretical notion among some environmentalists. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, Jane C. […]

Steep increase in global CO2 emissions despite reductions by industrialized countries

Paris, France (SPX) Sep 28, 2011 – Global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) – the main cause of global warming – increased by 45% between 1990 and 2010, and reached an all-time high of 33 billion tonnes in 2010. Increased energy efficiency, nuclear energy and the growing contribution of renewable energy are not compensating for […]

Australia public support waning on climate change action

By Bronwyn Herbert 27 June 2011 TONY EASTLEY: Just 41 per cent of Australians think addressing climate change is a serious and pressing issue. The key finding is in the annual Lowy Institute poll, in which 1000 people were interviewed in March. The institute also finds three-quarters of adult Australians believe the Federal Government has […]

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