Report Says IPCC Needs to Address Melting Permafrost
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) released a report early Tuesday morning that recommended the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) address the impact of warming permafrost and the large volume of methane and carbon dioxide that will be emitted from the ground if permafrost continues to melt.… Read More
Doha Climate Talks: What to Expect
Doha has a special place in the history of diplomacy. Talks started there in 2001 under the World Trade Organisation, aimed at solving trade barriers that penalise the poor. The Doha round dragged on to 2008 without conclusion and is now in limbo. Doha is a byword for stalemate and failure. So when the United Nations chose the Qatari capital as the… Read More
More than 1,000 New Coal Plants Planned Worldwide
More than 1,000 coal-fired power plants are being planned worldwide, new research has revealed. The huge planned expansion comes despite warnings from politicians, scientists, and campaigners that the planet's fast-rising carbon emissions must peak within a few years if runaway climate change is to be avoided and that fossil fuel assets risk … Read More
Doha Talks: EU Weakened Over New Emissions Targets
The European Union will enter crucial global climate talks that begin next week with a weakened bargaining position because it has already met its targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions eight years ahead of time and has no plans to put more ambitious cuts on the table.… Read More
Doha Conference Negotiator: Carbon Cuts Talks Must Wait
The debate on whether the world needs stronger greenhouse gas cuts to keep the planet from warming by 2C should be deferred until next year, according to Brazil's lead negotiator at the upcoming talks in Doha, which begin Nov. 26 and run until Dec. 7, 2012. Ambassador Luiz Alberto Figueiredo says delegates at Qatar – the most important climate neg… Read More
Drought Puts Trees the World Over ‘At the Edge’
As the climate warms, scientists expect an increase in droughts around the world, causing all sorts of problems for water supplies, agriculture, and energy production. Forests will be affected too, naturally, but a new study released Wednesday in Nature shows just how widespread the effects could be. After looking at 226 tree species at 81 … Read More
Amid Energy Boom, Report Warns of Unsustainable Path
The oil and natural gas boom in the U.S. is having far-reaching effects on the global energy landscape, according to the “World Energy Outlook report released by the International Energy Agency (IEA). The report shows that the U.S. is likely to become the largest global oil producer by about 2020, overtaking Saudi Arabia and Russia, although Saudi… Read More
Rising Sea Level May Trigger Groundwater Floods
In a report released Sunday in Nature Climate Change, Kolja Rotzoll and Charles Fletcher predict that in some areas, freshwater bubbling up from underground could more than double the flooding caused by intruding seas alone. “If the underground water table is already close to the surface, it’s going to come out, Rotzoll said.… Read More
