Global warming headlines and climate change news for November 2010
November 30 - 4 degree Celsius temperature rise by 2060?
According to a researcher from the University of Manchester, there is now little to no hope of limiting a rise in global surface temperature at below 2C - the level beyond which would mean catastrophic climate change. Others believe A rise of 4C could be seen as soon as 2060 in a worst case scenario.
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November 28 - Japan to oppose Kyoto protocol extension
While some countries are calling for an extension to the Kyoto pact, Japan is firm in its opposition to that
happening; saying that it was more important to have a framework that all major emitters will participate in.
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November 27 - Cancún climate talks already heating up
They haven't yet started, but the talks at Cancún look like they'll be
full of heated exchanges again on the rich vs. poor issue. Ahead of the
talks, rich nations have already been accused of holding humanity hostage
and Bolivia's ambassador to the UN says that Cancún could become a new
Copenhagen. Read
more
November 26 - World warming faster
According to a Met Office report, global average temperatures for 2010 could be the warmest since records began in the 1850s, exceeding previous peaks in 1998 and 2005. The report says the evidence for anthropogenic climate change has grown even stronger over the last 12 months.
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November 23 - Carbon emissions on the rise again
After somewhat of a respite in 2009 due to the Global Financial Crisis,
carbon emissions may reach record levels in 2010, according to a study led
by the University of Exeter in the UK. Read
more.
November 22 - Hurricane seasons are getting longer
With warm sea surface temperatures continuing to occur in the Caribbean,
at least one more named storm may form this year. Tropical storms are
forming earlier and later each year according to research by Dr. Jim
Kossin of the University of Wisconsin. Read
more
November 21 - Canada's canned climate bill
Green Party of Canada leader Elizabeth May describes the events leading up to the defeat of the Climate Change Accountability Act; a bill Prime Minister Harper called irresponsible.
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November 20 - New York sea level rise causing concern
City and state records show that the seal level of New York Harbor has
increased by approximately 4 to 6 inches since 1960, with a further 2- to
5-inch rise in average sea level by as early as 2020. With some
forecasting a rise of as much as a few feet by the end of the century, New
York officials are beginning to worry about the ramifications. Read
more
November 19 - China considering carbon cap and trade
China is looking at a cap-and-trade system to help cut greenhouse gas emissions, although when and how it will operate isn't clear as yet. Cap and trade differs to a blanket carbon tax by setting limits on emissions can be produced by business. Those that go over the limit need to buy offset credits, while those who come under it are able to sell their excess credits.
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November 18 - Lake Tahoe threatened by major melt
A report from researchers from the University of California says the
northern Sierra Nevada mountains snowpack will decline by 40 to 60 percent
by the end of this century even, under the most optimistic projections.
The massive melt will have major implications for Lake Tahoe, including
the possibility of a potential overload of nutrients that could lead to
major algal growth. Read
more
November 16 - Carbon price "best option" for Australia
The OECD has backed Australia's plans to introduce a carbon price, saying
it is the best option for cutting carbon dioxide emissions and it should
be implemented sooner rather than later. Read
more.
November 15 - Rogue waves - the climate change link
Rogue or freak waves can reach a height of 100 feet or more. Studies in
various parts of the world are finding that wave height is increasing, as
is the prevalence of rogue waves. Possible causes include changing storm
paths, stronger winds and more intense winter storms; which are all
markers of climate change. Read
more
November 14 - USA forests becoming carbon emitters
Forests in the Interior West of the USA may turn from being carbon sinks
into carbon emitters due to fires, bark beetle infestations and disease
outbreaks which has left many trees dead or dying. As these trees
decompose, they will release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Read
more
November 12 - CO2 sequestration could contaminate water
While most carbon capture and storage processes involve injecting carbon
dioxide deep underground, a study has found leakage could pose a risk to
overlying fresh groundwater. Read
more.
November 10 - Scientists prepare for climate change revolt
With an influx of politicians who don't believe in humanity's role in
climate change about to descend upon the U.S. House of Representatives,
climate scientists are steeling themselves to be raked over the coals and
for a hostile investigation of climate science. Read
more
November 9 - Warning on forest carbon schemes
The Australian Council for International Development says without the
necessary safeguards forest carbon schemes in developing countries could
worsen climate outcomes, impact on sustainable development and send
vulnerable communities deeper into poverty. Read
more
November 8 - Biofuels = more emissions than fossil fuels
A proposal to boost the use of biofuels in Europe over the next decade
will need up to 69,000 square kilometres of new land worldwide for crops
and make climate change worse says the European Environmental Bureau. Read
more
November 7 - Climate change threatens China's grain
China's food security is under threat with the nation's grain harvest
projected to fall by 10% over the next two decades due to climate change,
with decreases of up to 37% in its major food crops towards the end of the
century if steps are not taken to rein in greenhouse gas emissions. Read
more
November 6 - Climate change: "people just don't care"
At a recent meeting of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg lamented the fact that most people seem not to care about the impacts of rising greenhouse gas emissions in the future and that the issues need to be geared more towards how people's lives are affected today.
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November 5 - Climate change could reverse sea circulation
A study has found that 20,000 years ago, the flow of deep waters in the
Atlantic was reversed due to changes in global climate and seawater
density. A similar scenario is expected to take place in the North
Atlantic over the next century, which could see another reversal. Read
more.
November 4 - Tropical agriculture carbon intensive
A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
states that food production
in the tropics is carbon emission intensive and produces comparatively low
crop yields; releasing close to double the amount of carbon
while only producing half the yield as agriculture in temperate regions. Read
more
November 4 - 100,000 years to recover from emissions
If the world continues to pump out greenhouse gases at the current rate,
around 5,000 gigatons will be released into the atmosphere over a few
centuries and it could take the planet 100,000 years to repair the damage
done. Read
more
November 3 - USA midterms a threat to climate progress
Republican party leaders are reportedly planning on attacking the EPA's
plan to regulate large greenhouse gas polluters and climate scientists who
say that global warming is a problem. Read
more
November 2 - Californians support climate change laws
California's proposition 23, which would see the state's pioneering
climate change regulations suspended until such time that the unemployment
rate falls below 5.5% for a full year does not appear to have majority
support from Californian voters. A second poll in a week shows most voters
support their current laws and don't want them watered down. Read
more
November 2 - Climate change disinformation a crime?
Guardian journalist says that disinformation about climate change science
could become a new type of crime against humanity and that the
international community should find a way of classifying extraordinarily
irresponsible scientific claims that could lead to mass suffering as a
criminal offence. Read
more.
November 1 - Marshall Islands to build barrier wall
The Marshall Islands, most of which sit a metre or less above the high
tide mark, intends on building a five-kilometre
seawall on the leeward coast of Majuro Atoll for shore protection from
rising seas. The island nation's government has requested an initial USD
$20 million from pledged funding in order to begin the project. Read
more
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