November 2011 climate change headlines and global warming news

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111130215740.htm

November 30 - Southern Ocean heating up
The Southern Ocean is not only getting hotter, but carbon dioxide levels in it are building up so fast, if the current trend continues the waters will be corrosive to some shellfish by 2030 according to researchers from Tasmania's Antarctic Climate and Ecosystem centre. Read more.

November 28 - All eyes on Durban climate talks
Representatives from 194 nations are gathering in Durban, South Africa, this week to try and reach some agreement on a global response climate change - and the usual challenges and disagreements may once again stand in the way. Read more

November 27 - UK digs deep for Africa climate change aid
The UK government will spend up to £1 billion to help African countries fight and cope with climate change. Among the projects to be funded are solar initiatives and changes to farming practices. The investments will be funded from the recently established International Climate Fund. Read more.

November 26 - Climategate 2 ... meh.
The release of a further 5,000 emails illegally accessed from the University of Anglia appears to have had nowhere near the effect of the original release two years ago. The latest batch, timed just prior to crucial climate talks in Durban has been somewhat of a non-event; probably due in part to climate scientist being cleared of any wrongdoing previously. Read more.

November 25 - Shale gas threatens UK climate targets
Extracting just one-fifth of Lancashire's shale gas resources could result in the UK failing to meet its emissions targets according to a report from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Research. Read more.

November 24 - UN blasts planned climate action delay
The United Nations' environment chief Achim Steine has criticised plans by rich nations to put off a global treaty on climate change from next month's conference in Durban to 2020, stating the strategy was "very high risk". Read more.

November 23 - Billions spent to prevent climate action
A new report from Greenpeace International states some companies claiming to support action on climate change, are also supporting bodies that are seeking to undermine progress. Greenpeace also says industry stakeholders are investing about $3.5 billion per year to lobby the U.S. government and finance others to prevent action being taken. Read more.

November 22 - UN sounds alarm on HFC gases
Carbon dioxide has been portrayed as the major villain of the greenhouse gases, but other compounds are playing their role in climate change. HFCs, a replacement for the ozone-destroying HCFC and CFCs previously used in refrigerants and other applications, are making a marked impact. Read more.

November 19 - IPCC releases report for policy makers
The latest report from the IPCC states the weather in many parts of the word will only grow more hotter and wetter as carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels such as oil and coal continue to rise. A press release accompanying the report says that under a high emissions scenario, the frequency of hot days will increase by a factor of 10 in most regions. Read more (pdf).

November 18 - Carbon sequestration project begins
The first  million-tonne demonstration of carbon sequestration in the U.S. has begun in Illinois, with the Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium commencing injection of carbon dioxide a mile below the earth's surface. Read more.

November 17 - A hotter, wetter New York
A 600-page report predicts average annual temperatures in New York state will rise by 4 to 9 degrees by 2080 and precipitation will rise by 5 to 15 percent. Sea levels in the region could rise by as much as 37 to 55 inches by the 2080s. Read more.

November 15 - Coal Seam Gas emissions report buried    
According to an Australian renewable energy think-tank, a report dismissing the claim coal seam gas (CSG) is "clean energy" has been suppressed by the company that compiled it. Read more.

November 14 - Annual Greenhouse Gas Index peaks - again
The Annual Greenhouse Gas Index, compiled by the NOAA, shows greenhouse gases in the atmosphere in 2010 had a heating impact 29 percent higher than in 1990. The NOAA says global carbon dioxide levels rose to an average of 389 parts per million in 2010, compared with around 280 ppm in the 1880's. Read more.

November 12 - Alaska's diminished ice ups storm threat
A freakish storm has hit the western coast of Alaska and damage in some areas may be more extreme due to the lack of ice in those regions acting as a buffer. Read more.

November 11 - Fragmented forests = more emissions
Tree mortality at the edge of forests in areas where deforestation has occurred increases given changes in temperature and microclimate, which in turn boosts carbon emissions when the dead trees decompose according to researchers. Read more

November 10 - Time is running out - IEA
The International Energy Agency's latest World Energy Outlook paints a bleak future based on current energy trends and while it says there is still time to avoid a carbon soaked future dramatically affected by climate change, big changes must occur soon. Read more.

November 9 - Australia's carbon tax becomes law
Australia's Clean Energy legislation was passed in the Senate yesterday, which included a carbon tax to be implemented next year. The Australian Government says the Clean Energy plan will slash carbon pollution by at least 160 million tonnes a year in 2020. Read more.

November 8 - Brits turn their back on climate change
Britain's carbon emissions are growing and many of the nation's citizens have higher priorities than climate change given the tough economy. As a result, there's a real danger the country will miss legally binding targets on reducing emissions. Read more.

November 7 - Microbes awaken
As permafrost thaws out, microbes will become more active and their feeding will generate methane and carbon dioxide; perhaps in levels enough to further fuel global warming. Read more.

November 5 - Emissions outpacing worst case scenario
According to new data from the USA's Department of Energy, carbon emissions are now rising more rapidly than the worst-case scenarios outlined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its 2007 report. Read more.

November 4 - Climate change's impact on ants
Research conducted on ants has found if temperature within ant chambers increases by just a half a degree Celsius, the most important seed-dispersing ants dramatically decrease their activity. Read more

November 3 - Rising seas threaten Guyana
Guyana, a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America, has most of its population and economic activity occurring in coastal areas; a worrying situation given rising sea levels threaten these areas. Read more.

November 2 - A repeat of the Dust Bowl?
Climate models indicate the USA's Southwest will get drier in the coming decades, creating conditions like those experienced during the 1930s Dust Bowl and the multi-year droughts of the 1950s - and this shift may be the new "normal". Read more.

November 2 - Trees struggling to adapt to climate change
While it was thought trees and other plants may initially benefit from increased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and species may migrate to survive, a recent study of the forests in the eastern U.S. found this "migration" is not happening as effectively as was once believed.  Read more.

November 1 - Rising temperatures shorten Mayfly life span
Insects can be coal mine canaries when it comes to environmental changes, and one such canary is the mayfly. The mayfly has an incredibly short lifespan under the best of conditions, but it appears the insect’s life cycle is being accelerated further by rising temperatures. Read more.

November 1 - White roofs contribute to temperature rises?
White rooftops are promoted as a way of reflecting heat and lessening energy consumption in terms of air-conditioning. By reducing electricity demand, less carbon emissions are created. However, Stanford University researchers have found the total climate response to white roofs and other urban surfaces may indicate these surfaces actually contribute to increasing temperatures.