Climate change headlines and global warming news for February 2011
February 28 - January Arctic sea ice lowest on
record
The National Snow and Ice Data Center reports arctic sea ice extent
averaged over January 2011 was just 13.55 million square kilometers, the
lowest for January since satellite records began in 1979. The NSIDC also
says Hudson Bay, which usually is frozen by late November, did not
completely freeze over until mid-January. Read
more.
February 27 - ClimateGate researchers cleared..
again
An investigation by the U.S. Commerce department into the researchers
whose emails were leaked, sparking the "ClimateGate" affair, has
found no evidence of unethical behavior or NOAA's climate-change science. Read
more
February 26 - Australia sets carbon price date
The Australian government has announced it intends setting a price on
carbon from 2012. However, in order to achieve the goal, legislation needs
to be passed this year and getting it through could be a very difficult
task; with the opposition framing it as a massive carbon tax that would be
disastrous to families and businesses. Read
more
February 23 - Climate change making tawny owls
browner
A group of scientists in Finland believes grey feathered tawny owls are likely to disappear
as winters become warmer and brown feathered owls the dominant shad - and
it's all about survival and natural selection. Read
more.
February 20 - Rising ocean levels threaten 180 US
cities
A study headed by researchers from the University of Arizona has found rising sea levels could
inundate up to nine percent of the land area in 180 cities in the USA by 2100.
Cities such as Miami, New Orleans and Tampa would be among those worst
affected. Read
more.
February 19 - Power plant emissions jump in the USA
According to a report from the Environmental Integrity Project, based on
the USA EPA's Clean Air Markets database, carbon dioxide emissions
originating from power plants rose over 5% in 2010 compared to 2009, the biggest
jump since the EPA began recording emissions in the mid-1990's. Read
more.
February 17 - Emissions and major rain events linked
Two studies have found greenhouse gas emissions may be linked to heavy
rain events. One study finds extreme rain events and flooding jumped
by 7 per cent in the northern hemisphere in the second half of last
century. The second study replicated conditions leading up to flooding in
the UK in 2000 and found in two out of three cases, human-induced global
warming increased the risk of flooding by more than 90 per cent. Read
more.
February 16 - Warming trend likely not reversible
Researchers from the University of Washington say that even if emissions
were curbed right now, existing greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere
have likely committed the planet to a further warming trend for a long
time to come. Read
more.
February 15 - Taking from fossil fuel, giving to clean energy
The Obama administration's proposed budget for 2012 seeks to eliminate a
dozen tax breaks to oil, gas, and coal companies. The cuts will raise $46
billion over 10 years, with much of it going to the research and
development of clean energy alternatives. Read
more
February 13 - Biomass power production and emissions
While burning biomass such as wood as a means of electricity production is
considered carbon neutral by many, critics say burning forests without
replacing them creates a a net addition of carbon to the atmosphere. Read
more
February 9 - Drought threatens China's wheat crop
China, a nation usually self sufficient when it comes to wheat and the
world's largest producer of the crop, is facing a shortfall this year due
to extreme drought conditions - the worst in 60 years. This poses a
problem not only for China, but for other countries as the shortage could
further impact on already high wheat prices. Read
more.
February 8 - Climate change a factor in record food
prices
UN's Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) has said food prices have reached the highest point
since records began in 1990. Among the causes is climate change,
exacerbating extreme weather events around the world - from heatwaves, to
fires and floods. Read
more.
February 6 - 150 coal plant plans abandoned
The Sierra Club says since the "coal rush" began in 2001, 150 planned coal fired generation facilities have been defeated or abandoned. Director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign says dirty coal being the status quo is no longer acceptable and clean energy is the way of the future.
Read
more
February 5 - Amazon drought turns it into a carbon
emitter
The Amazon has now had two "once in a century" droughts in the
last five years and the region's ability to act as a major carbon sink is
concerning scientists as it is now acting as a carbon source rather than a
carbon sponge. Read
more
February 4 - U.S. endures massive winter storm
A storm stretching for more than 3,000 kilometres across the USA and covering almost a third of the nation was responsible for weather
phenomenon ranging from blizzards to tornadoes. Read
more
February 3 - Catastrophic cyclone heading for
Queensland
A cyclone (hurricane) system nearly the size of the USA will be hitting
the Australian state of Queensland in the next few hours. Packing wind
speeds of 290 kilometres an hour, a link between the event and climate
change has been made as the storm has been fed by high temperatures in the
Coral Sea. Read
more.
February 2 - Natural gas not so emissions friendly
While natural gas is often touted to have far fewer greenhouse gas
emissions than coal, new information, gas may be as little as 25 percent
cleaner than coal - or even less. Read
more
February 2 - UK recession results in emissions drop
An 8% fall in greenhouse gas emissions due to the country's recession has
made the UK's climate change targets for the next five years achievable according to the UK government. However, the Liberal Democrat energy and climate change secretary says "this is no time for back-slapping".
Read more
February 2 - Most British citizens understand
climate threat
According to a recent Guardian poll, 83 percent of Britons consider consider climate change a current or imminent threat
and only 14 percent believe that global
warming poses no threat. 68 percent said human activity was responsible for causing climate change.
Read
more
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