US study seeks to build support for climate action
News
Climate change makes extreme weather more likelyto hit UK
Catastrophic floods such as those that southern Britainexperienced earlier this year are now more likely, owing to climatechange caused by greenhouse-gas emissions. Simulations presentedlast week at the annual assembly of the European Geosciences Unionin Vienna show that the risk of extremely wet winters in the regionhas increased by about 25% compared to the pre-industrialera.
Climate and energy comment:
China fertile ground for green progress:report
China’s massive pollution problems have given rise to a newforce of environmental campaigners, different politically frommiddle class activists in the West and potentially more effectivein tackling climate change, new research finds. Some 64 percent ofChinese identify themselves as environmentalists, more than doublethat of Europe and the United States, a report published onWednesday by Dutch research agency Motivaction finds.
Green lobby splits in fight againstfracking
A split has emerged in the green movement over fracking,with two influential groups refusing to join a campaign to helplandowners to block access to shale deposits under their property,the Times claims. The National Trust and the Campaign to ProtectRural England decided not to join Greenpeace and other groups whichhave written to David Cameron objecting to his plan to change thelaw to make it easier for fracking companies to drillwells.
G7 calls for clean tech-focused “step change” inenergy security
Energy Ministers from across the G7 yesterday underlinedtheir commitment to low carbon technologies as a means of bothtackling climate change and enhancing energy security, in responseto mounting fears that the security crisis in Ukraine could causemajor disruption to the global energy market.
Isle of Man fears wind farm plan will hit ferrylink
Offshore wind farms have recently been cancelled because ofsea birds, rocky ground and basking sharks. But the latest claim isthat they could threaten the economic lifeline of an entire island.The Isle of Man government and business community are trying toprevent turbines being built in the Irish Sea, which they say wouldendanger the world’s longest continuous ferry service and create aradar black spot for flights.
US failing to adapt to climate change threats,says report
The US is not doing enough to adapt to climate change, whichis already affecting every corner of America and threatening itssupplies of water, food and electricity, according to a report forthe White House. As President Barack Obama seeks to build moresupport for action on climate change, which he wants to be part ofhis legacy, a comprehensive assessment blamed it for more extremeheat, wildfires, torrential rains and seasonal allergies.The Guardian has liveblogged therelease of the report –twice- and the BBCalso carries the story.The Independentcalls it “America’swake-up call”.
Climate Change in the U.S. in 8 CompellingCharts
Eight charts that explore the regional impacts of climatechange in the US – from average temperature change toprecipitation.
National Climate Report Is a Study inExtremes
An in-depth look at the US National Climate Assessment. Thisarticle says it’s much easier to understand – and much bolder thanthe UN’s recent batch of climate change assessments – and ithighlights the extremes the US is already suffering: heat waves,extreme cold, torrential rain and droughts.
UK ‘has already approved enough green energy tohit targets’
Britain has already approved enough renewable energyprojects to hit its EU targets, rendering all 1,000 projects stillin the planning system surplus to requirements, anti-windorganisation the Renewable Energy Foundation claims. Governmentfigures show that 35 gigawatts of renewable capacity – mainly windand solar farms and wood-burning biomass plants – is already built,under construction or has planning consent.
Video: Do dissenting Russian views cloud globalclimate talks?
A look at Russia’s agenda ahead of climate talks in Parisnext year. Russian negotiators have asked for stronger rules toavoid last-minute decisions and for countries to set their ownemissions caps.
Did Indira Gandhi’s 1972 speech create aneast-west divide on climate change?
As part of the Guardian’s series looking at defining momentsof climate change, this article examines a speech by the lateIndian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi. Her warning thatenvironmental issues are a distraction from problems like war andpoverty set a foundation stone for much of the cooperation,disagreement and politics that would develop around climate change,it argues.
New climate science:
Hotspots of climate change impacts in sub-SaharanAfrica and implications for adaptation anddevelopment
Overlapping impacts of climate change such as drought orflooding, declining crop yields or ecosystem damages createhotspots of risk in specific parts of Africa, according to newresearch. While parts of Sudan and Ethiopia, lake Victoria, and thevery southeast of the continent are most at risk, Ethiopia and thetropical forests of the Congo are likely to be less affected, saythe researchers.
Encountering climate change: ‘seeing’ is more than’believing’
A new paper reviews the evidence on how far people’s directexperience of climate change influences their perception of risk,their acceptance of climate science, certainty and distress – allof which may ultimately lead to psychological and behaviouralchanges. But how far do responses to such encounters reflectalready-held beliefs and motivated reasoning?
The Randolph Glacier Inventory: a globallycomplete inventory of glaciers
Put side by side, the world’s glaciers would cover an areaabout three times the size of the UK, a new global inventory shows.Of the area covered by the world’s 198,000 glaciers, 44 per cent isin the Arctic, 18 per cent is in the Antarctic, 16 per cent in HighMountain Asia and 12 per cent is in Alaska, the studyshows.