Whaling worsens carbon release, scientists warn

By Victoria GillScience reporter, BBC News, Portland A century of whaling may have released more than 100 million tonnes – or a large forest’s worth – of carbon into the atmosphere, scientists say. Whales store carbon within their huge bodies and when they are killed, much of this carbon can be released. US scientists revealed […]

Will it be possible to feed nine billion people sustainably?

  By Jeremy Hance, www.mongabay.com January 28, 2010 Sometime around 2050 researchers estimate that the global population will level-out at nine billion people, adding over two billion more people to the planet. Since, one billion of the world’s population (more than one in seven) are currently going hungry—the largest number in all of history—scientists are […]

Graph of the Day: Vegetation and Soil Carbon Removal from Atmosphere, 1850-2100

The free ecosystem service that has been buying us time may not last. Richard Betts, Mike Sanderson, Debbie Hemming, Mark New, Jason Lowe, Chris Jones, 4°C global warming: regional patterns and timing, 4 Degrees and Beyond Conference,  [pdf], p. 9 Technorati Tags: carbon sequestration,carbon dioxide,global warming,climate change

World's last great forest under threat

ScienceDaily (Aug. 25, 2009) — The world’s last remaining “pristine” forest — the boreal forest across large stretches of Russia, Canada and other northern countries — is under increasing threat, a team of international researchers has found. The researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia, Memorial University of Newfoundland in Canada and the National […]

Ozone hole linked to deterioration of Southern Ocean carbon sink

By Noreen Parks In addition to weakening Earth’s natural shield against excessive radiation levels, ozone depletion above Antarctica has significantly dampened the Southern Ocean’s ability to absorb atmospheric CO2 and has accelerated acidification of southern polar waters, according to new research reported online June 20 in Geophysical Research Letters (2009, DOI 10.1029/2009GL038227). Of the atmospheric […]

Southern Ocean carbon sink failing

In the Southern Indian Ocean, climate change is leading to stronger winds, which mix waters, bringing carbon dioxide up from the ocean depths to the surface. As a result, the Southern Ocean can no longer absorb as much atmospheric CO2 as before. Its role as a ‘carbon sink’ has been weakened, and it may now […]

Australia wildfires release tens of millions of tons of carbon

by Asa Wahlquist VICTORIA’S bushfires have released a massive amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere – almost equal to Australia’s industrial emission for an entire year. Mark Adams, from the University of Sydney, said the emissions from bushfires were far beyond what could be contained through carbon capture and needed to be addressed in […]

Hadley Center study warns of “catastrophic” 5-7°C warming by 2100 on current emissions path

From Climate Progress: Dr. Vicky Pope, head of climate change predictions at the Met Office’s Hadley Centre, writes in the UK Times that In a worst-case scenario, where no action is taken to check the rise in Greenhouse gas emissions, temperatures would most likely rise by more than 5°C by the end of the century. […]

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