Climate change and global warming headlines June 2007
June 30 - Gore calls for 90% emissions reduction by 2050
Former US Vice-President and a major driving force behind global warming
awareness, Al Gore has called for a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions from developed nations by 2050. Gore made reference to
research from U.S. climate scientists who state the world has only a
decade to make major changes to avoid worst case scenario climate change
disaster. Read
more
June 30 - 2007 the second warmest year on record
2007 is set to be the second warmest year globally since records started
being kept in the 1860. The recent flooding, freak storms and heatwaves
in many countries are harbingers of worse global warming related events
in store warn experts. Read
more.
June 29 - Desertification - 50 million refugees
A new report from the United Nations warns that desertification poses
one of the "greatest environmental challenge of our times" and
50 million people could be forced from their homes over the next decade.
Read more.
June 29 - Greece swelters and burns in record heatwave
Greece's worst heatwave in over 100 year has killed at least 10 people,
nine dying from heatstroke. Authorities are battling to gain control
over many fires caused by the high temperatures that have destroyed
extensive areas of forest, killed two people and incinerated many
homes. Read
more
June 28 - Carbon taxes not curbing coal usage
Europe carbon emissions taxing system has not discouraged electricity
generators from using coal as the fossil fuel is so cheap, there's still
plenty of profit to be made. In fact, more investment into coal products
than into renewable energy development. Read
more
June 28 - Red tide sparks shellfishing closure
New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services authorities have
banned the taking of shellfish from Atlantic coastal waters due to
elevated levels of PSP toxicity caused by a "red tide" algal
bloom. Red tide conditions are thought to be often caused by human
generated water pollution in conjunction with an increase in sea water temperature.
Read
more
June 27 - Missing lake due to global warming?
A lake in southern Chile that vanished within a space of 2 months could have been a victim of global warming, according to a glaciologist at the Center for Scientific Studies commenting on the disappearance of the 5 acre, 130 foot deep
body of water. Read
more
June 27 - Global warming calls for military planning - UK
The UK's Chief of the Defence Staff has stated that global warming poses such a high security risk that it must be factored in to military forward planning.
Read
more
June 26 - Runaway climate change warning from NASA
The planet is on the brink of runaway climate change according to a new
study from NASA's chief climatologist. He warns that global warming
conditions currently considered "serious" are likely to
escalate to "dangerous" over the next decade. Read
more
June 25 - Big Oil CEO plays down renewable energy potential
The CEO of Royal Dutch Shell has stated that contrary to popular
opinion, renewable energy is not the answer to our problems and that
even with major breakthroughs in technology, renewable energy may only
account for 30 per cent of supply by the middle of the century. Read
more
June 24 - Canada's oil sands exploitation a disaster
Exploitation of Canada's oil sands deposits, which are behind only
Saudi Arabia in terms of petroleum resources, are having a massive
impact on Canadian forests and will double Canda's CO2 emissions by
2015. Al Gore states that for every barrel of oil extracted, four tonnes
of landscape is dug up. Read
more
June 23 - Tropical rainforest carbon sink rethink
New research has found that the tropical rainforests of South East Asia
may be a far more effective carbon dioxide emissions sponge than
previously thought; even more so that the temperate forests of the
northern hemisphere. Read
more
June 23 - Drought raises spectre of war
The dire situation is Darfur, Africa, is an early warning to the rest of
the world regarding increased tensions in regions afflicted by global
warming related drought that may lead to increased armed conflicts
around the world in the near future. Read
more
June 22 - UN says that renewable revolution has arrived.
A flurry of investment and interest in renewable energy over the last
year and a half has prompted the United Nations to predict in their
Global Trends in Sustainable Development annual review that clean energy
might provide almost 25% of the world's electricity by 2030. Read
more
June 22 - China bails up West on CO2 hypocrisy
After the announcement that China is now the world's largest emitter of
carbon dioxide, A Chinese government representative has lashed out
stating that much of those emissions are the result of creating products
for the West. Read
more
June 21 - US & EU collaborate on aircraft emission
reduction
U.S. and European Union officials have announced a collaborative action
plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from aircraft, which includes
optimizing flight paths and reduced engine approaches which have been
demonstrated to provide substantial savings in fuel and reduced carbon
dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions. Read
more.
June 21 - Scientist says sea level rises underestimated
A group of scientists, headed NASA's top climate scientist, Dr. James
Hansen, who recently accused the Bush administration of trying to
silence him on the impact of global warming, states that a UN
panel on climate change has underestimated predicted sea rise
levels and believes the sea level will rise several metres by the end of
this century. Read
more
June 20 - World's largest desalination plant for Australia
After years of catastrophic drought and the prospect of more in the near
future due to climate change, Australia's Victorian Government has
planned to to build the world's largest desalination plant - this will
see water bills for Victorians double over the next 5 years. Read
more.
June 20 - China now largest carbon dioxide emitter
According to the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, China is
now the nation emitting the largest amount of carbon dioxide in terms of
gross output, not per capita. This was not expected to occur until late
this year or early next year. Read
more.
June 19 - Oil industry scaling back refinery expansions
Major oil companies don't foresee a demand for gasoline over the next
decade needed to justify major refinery expansions. They state that this
is due to the push for renewable fuels, but others have suggested that
it's more likely that Big Oil has accepted that the era of Peak Oil has
arrived - that most of the oil that is relatively cheap to extract is
running out. Read
more.
June 19 - Nuclear may not be the answer
In order to curb global warming, 14 nuclear power plants would need to
be built each year for the next 50 years, according to a comprehensive
report "Nuclear Power Joint Fact-Finding." To store the waste
from such a rapid expansion, 10 facilities the size of Yucca Mountain
would be needed.Read
the 108 page report (PDF)
June 18 - Tuvalu to disappear under the waves?
Tuvalu, a nation consisting of nine low-lying coral atolls, no more than
4m above sea level is at risk of disappearing by 2050 due to global
warming related sea level rises according to a campaigner fighting for
his country's survival. Read
more.
June 18 - Britain lashed by torrential rains
Many areas of England have received a month of rainfall in 24 hours,
causing extensive flooding and raising fears that climate change is
responsible and that flooding may become more prevalent in the near
future. Read
more.
June 17 - India's Ganges river drying up
The Gangotri glacier, which provides the majority of the water for
India's Ganges river during the dry season is shrinking at double the
rate of twenty years ago according to scientists; and all the Himalayan
glaciers provide water for the Ganges could disappear by 2030 as a
result of global warming. Read
more
June 17 - Exxon claims it never doubted climate change
In an effort to bolster its rather tarnished, perhaps non-existent green
street cred, oil Goliath Exxon Mobil corp. is stating that it has never
past decade doubted the risk from global warming and its understanding
has been simply evolving. Read
more
June 16 - EU falling behind on Kyoto emission targets
While Britain, Finland, France and Sweden have reached or exceeded their
Kyoto targets, the same can't be said for other EU countries that
ratified the protocol. The European Union has only achieved a 2
per cent emissions reduction since 1997, making the overall 8 percent
reduction target by 2012 a seemingly impossible task. Read
more
June 15 - Nuclear enrichment facility for Australia?
The problems posed by coal fired power generation in terms of global
warming induced climate change have the nuclear industry in Australia
seizing upon the opportunity to push for enrichment facilities in the
country for the purposes of nuclear generated electricitiy. An
Australian company states it will make a submission to the Federal
Government for such a facility, reportedly to be established in either
Queensland or South Australia. Read
more
June 15 - Schwarzenegger warns EPA re: tailpipe emissions.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has issued a warning to the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that legal action over California's
stringent automobile greenhouse gas emissions standards will proceed
unless the EPA stops stonewalling tailpipe emissions regulation.
June 14 - Toxic moth hits England thanks to global warming
Emergency actions have been instigated in the famed Kew Gardens of West
London after the discovery of Oak Processionary Moths in the area.
Usually confined to the Mediterranean; its appearance further north is
thought to be due to warmer weather connected to climate change. Aside
from damage to vegetation, the Oak Moth caterpillar can cause severe
allergic reactions in humans. Read
more
June 13 - 62% of China cities experience air pollution
On a day when a section of a Beijing county was experiencing 8x the
normal level of air pollutants, China's State Environmental Protection
Agency released a report stating that the majority of Chinese cities
suffered from air pollution - Read
more
June 12 - Dengue fever spreading and increasing
Instances and distribution of dengue fever is increasing in some parts
of the world due to longer wet seasons and increasing temperatures;
thought to be the result of global warming. Read
more.
June 12 - Dirty snow contributing to global warming
U.S. scientists have discovered that "dirty snow" is
accelerating global warming. Snow containing carbon particles from
exhausts and forest fires are absorbing the sun's heat. Read
more
June 11 - Glacier National Park glacier-less by 2030
124 of 50 glaciers in Montana's Glacier National Park have
disappeared in the 150 years due to global warming and park officials
predict that all glaciers will have vanished from the park by around
2030. Read
more
June 11 - Computers generate 35 million tons of CO2 in UK
A new study has found that the production and use of computers generate
an estimated 35 million tons of carbon dioxide each year in the UK and
the production process itself is responsible for 1.8 tons of emissions
per unit. Read
more
June 10 - China & India unite on carbon reduction
resistance
China and India are becoming more united in their resistance to emission
caps and Beijing states it should not be pressured to reduce carbon
dioxide emissions drastically when their country's emissions per capita
are 20% of America's. Read
more
June 10 - Jellyfish invade beaches - global warming culprit?
Jellyfish in huge numbers are becoming a more frequent sight on Spanish
beaches and global warming is thought to be in part to blame. Read
more
June 9 - Ethiopia to plant 1.5 million trees
The Ethiopian government has announced plans to plant 1.5 million tree
seedlings over the next couple of months as part of a goal to plant 52
million trees by the end of September. Read
more.
June 9 - Oregon to have 25% renewable energy by 2025
With the signing of a legislation yesterday, Oregon has become
the 24th state in the USA to have set firm targets for the utilization
of renewable energy. Read
more.
June 8 - GreenPeace condemns G8 Leaders
The Climate Accord brokered at the G8 summit is not enough according to
GreenPeace after the failure of G8 leaders to commit to mean temperature rises
being kept below 2 degrees compared to pre-industrial levels. The deal
struck will not "prevent dangerous climate change" says Daniel
Mittler, climate policy advisor of Greenpeace International. Read
more
June 8 - Majority of Chinese & Indians agree to carbon cuts
62% of Chinese and 63% of people surveyed recently stated that they
agreed that their own countries should be restricting carbon dioxide
emissions. In the same survey which was conducted globally, 18% of the
14,000+ people polled believed that USA policy posed the biggest threat
to the world's climate. Read
more.
June 7 2007 - Vietnam under threat from rising oceans
Over 12% of the land area of Vietnam, including a sizeable chunk of its
most productive agricultural land will be submerged if sea levels continue to rise at
the current rate, attendees of a meeting in Da Nang have been told by a
UN representative. Read
more.
June 6 2007 - 42% want action on emissions of companies
According to the results of a recent survey by Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, concerns about climate change have increased dramatically amongst consumers over the last six months, with two in five stating that governments need to force a decrease of
companies’ emissions of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases. Read
more (PDF)
June 5 2007 - Dutch to heavily tax carbon spewing cars
In an effort to stem the purchase of cars that emit high levels of
carbon dioxide, the Dutch government is applying an increased tax of
US$100+ per CO2 gram on models that generate over 240 grams of CO2 per
kilometer. Read
more
June 4 2007 - Canada calls for China and India to step up
Canada is backing the view of some other nations that any climate-change
action settled upon during the G8 summit will need the active
participation of developing countries such as China and India. Read
more
June 4 2007 - Britain, Germany pressures USA
Germany and the UK, while recognizing recent steps by the USA to finally
act on global warming, is pressuring the USA to do a lot more and
sooner. The USA is vigorously opposing plans by Germany to call for a
reduction by greenhouse gas emissions by 50% before 2050. Read
more
June 3 2007 - Malaysian fish species disappearing
Global warming, changing tide and currents combined with a variety of
other human activities have impacted heavily on the Malaysian marine
ecosystem, resulting in the possibility of some favored table species
being extinct within a short time. Read
more
June 3 2007 - Canadians support Kyoto
60% of 4000 Canadians surveyed feel that achieving Canada's Kyoto
targets soon will have positive economic effects in the long term - but
the majority also weren't prepared to pay more for gasoline. Read
more
June 1 2007 - Bush, Howard's global warming initiatives
In separate, but related news stories, USA president George Bush
urged major nations to arrive at an agreement on a global target for reducing greenhouse gases
by the end of 2008. Read
more.
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, is expected to announce
further details regarding the setting up of a national carbon emissions
trading scheme by 2012, but the main opposition party calls it
"foot dragging". Read
more
Editor's note on the above entry - it always amazes me
how our own Prime Minister, John Howard, rarely falls out of step with
George Bush on global warming related issues. It's almost like echo -
Bush announces something, Howard announces similar steps in the same
direction. Howard is very hesitant to leap ahead of the USA. Both these
leaders have been far too ignorant of global warming, carbon dioxide and
other greenhouse gas emission issues - squawking the "it will
damage our economy line". They are doing their best to drag
positive action out for as long as possible, instilling fear into people
of negative economic impact.
Australia and the USA have refused to ratify the Kyoto
protocol based on this false argument. This is the problem with many
political leaders, they can only see as far as the next election. In
order to have a healthy economy, a healthy environment is needed. The
responsible Greening of the West will bring economic prosperity, not
doom.
Both of these men have been well aware of the dangers posed by
global warming for many years. They are slowly moving in the right
direction, but slowly just isn't good enough. A Marshall type plan is
needed - now. Australia needs to follow another leader on climate change
issues; not the USA. Better still, we should become a leader ourselves.
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