A human-caused climate change signal emerges from the noise

Livermore, California, 4 December 2012 (SPX) – By comparing simulations from 20 different computer models to satellite observations, Lawrence Livermore climate scientists and colleagues from 16 other organizations have found that tropospheric and stratospheric temperature changes are clearly related to human activities. The team looked at geographical patterns of atmospheric temperature change over the period […]

U.S. House committee leaders deny climate change while extreme weather devastates their states

By Jackie Weidman and Whitney Allen30 November 2012 On November 27th, House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) announced the new and returning House committee chairmen (and yes, they are all men). Some of these congressmen will run committees with jurisdiction over federal climate, energy, and environmental programs.  This includes funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, […]

Climate talks deadlocked in Doha – ‘We are very far behind what science tells us we should be doing’

By Mariette le Roux 3 December 2012 (AFP) – UN climate talks on Monday entered their final week amid rows over the Kyoto Protocol and funding for poorer countries, despite fresh warnings of the peril from greenhouse gases. After six days of wrangling, nearly 200 nations remained far apart on issues vital for unlocking a […]

Carbon pollution up to 2 million pounds a second

By SETH BORENSTEIN AP Science Writer2 December 2012 WASHINGTON (AP) – The amount of heat-trapping pollution the world spewed rose again last year by 3 percent. So scientists say it’s now unlikely that global warming can be limited to a couple degrees, which is an international goal. The overwhelming majority of the increase was from […]

Climate change: Africa is most affected

By Catherine Mwesigwa Kizza30 November 2012 Meeting after meeting, 18 times later, the world’s climate experts are at it once again in Doha, Qatar, to discuss climate change, but the problem continues unabated. “Climate change is the biggest challenge to humanity this century,” says Fanuel Tolo, the director of programmes of Climate Network Africa. He […]

UN climate boss: No support for tough climate deal

By By KARL RITTER30 Nov 2012 DOHA, Qatar (AP) – The United Nations climate chief is urging people not to look solely to their governments to make tough decisions to slow global warming, and instead to consider their own role in solving the problem. Approaching the half-way point of two-week climate talks in Doha, Christiana […]

U.K. floods to cost insurers as much as $800 million, PwC says

By Kevin Crowley27 November 2012 (Bloomberg) – Flooding in the U.K. over the past week will cost insurers as much as 500 million pounds ($800 million), making this year the most expensive for water damage since 2007, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC. Heavy rains have swept through England and Wales in the past week, causing about […]

How will climate change impact on fresh water security?

By Grantham Institute, Imperial College London and Duncan Clark 30 November 2012 (guardian.co.uk) – Fresh water is crucial to human society – not just for drinking, but also for farming, washing and many other activities. It is expected to become increasingly scarce in the future, and this is partly due to climate change. Understanding the […]

Polar ice sheets shrinking worldwide, study confirms

By Christine Dell’Amore29 November 2012 (National Geographic News) – The polar ice sheets are indeed shrinking—and fast, according to a comprehensive new study on climate change. And the effects, according to an international team, are equally clear—sea levels are rising faster than predicted, which could bring about disastrous effects for people and wildlife. Rising seas […]

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 […]

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