Climate Media Summary
Climate change media to 23 November 2011
A weekly service of the Climate Centre Melbourne
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PICKS OF THE WEEK •••••••
Why solar parity scares big utilities
http://www.climatespectator.com.au/commentary/why-solar-parity-scares-bi...
Giles Parkinson, Climate Spectator, 21 November 2011
Thursday January 29, 2009, was a big money day for Victoria’s brown coal generators. After a night of uncomfortably warm temperatures, and a dawn reading of 32°C, Victoria’s residents turned to their air-con and pedestal fans in near record numbers.
Greenhouse gases rose to record high in 2010: UN
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-22/greenhouse-gases-rise-to-record-hi...
ABC News, November 22, 2011
The amount of global warming-causing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere rose to a new high in 2010 and the rate of increase has accelerated, the UN weather agency said on Monday.
AND
Level of Heat-Trapping CO2 Reaches New High, Growth Rate Speeds Up, Methane Levels Are Rising Again
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/21/374141/heat-trapping-co2-new-hi...
Hyperwarming climate could turn Earth's poles green
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21228392.300-hyperwarming-climate-...
Michael Marshall, New Scientist, 17 November 2011
An era of ice that has gripped Earth's poles for 35 million years could come to an end as extreme global warming really begins to bite. Previously unknown sources of positive feedback - including "hyperwarming" that was last seen on Earth half a billion years ago - may push global temperatures high enough to send Earth into a hothouse state with tropical forests growing close to the poles.
Rich nations 'give up' on new climate treaty until 2020
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/nov/20/rich-nations-give-up-c...
Fiona Harvey, Guardian, 20 November 2011
Ahead of critical talks and despite pledge for new treaty by 2012, biggest economies privately admit likelihood of long delay
BUT
UN chief slams rich nations' plans to delay climate change treaty
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/nov/23/un-chief-rich-nations-...
Fiona Harvey, Guardian, 23 November 2011
Achim Steiner says reaching an agreement in 2020 instead of at next month's Durban conference would be 'very high risk'
FOCUS ON… IPP EXTREME WEATHER REPORT--------------
Extreme weather: IPCC summary report released
http://www.climatespectator.com.au/commentary/extreme-weather-ipcc-summa...
Matthew Thompson, The Conversation/Climate Spectator, 21 November 2011
Extreme weather events are likely to increase over the coming century, according to the summary of an upcoming IPCC report. Three Australian scientists who contributed to the research explain what this will mean for Australia.
IPCC Extreme Weather Report Is Another Blown Chance to Explain the Catastrophes Coming If We Keep Doing Nothing
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/17/371350/ipcc-extreme-weather-report
Joe Romm, Climate Progress, Nov 17, 2011
Fortunately, the public already understands that global warming makes extreme weather more severe, as new polling reveals.
The IPCC report on extreme climate and weather events
http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2011/11/the-ipcc-report-on...
Real Climate, 19 November 2011
The IPCC recently released the policy-maker’s summary (SREX-SPM) on extreme weather and climate events. The background for this report is a larger report that is due to be published in the near future, and one gets a taste of this in the ‘wordle‘ figure below.
Understanding of Extreme Events: Hansen, Sato, and Ruedy
http://blog.chron.com/climateabyss/2011/11/understanding-of-extreme-even...
John Nielsen-Gammon, chron.com, 17 November 2011
James Hansen and colleagues (HSR) have a new manuscript posted that’s been receiving some attention. It hasn’t been submitted anywhere yet, nor has it been decided whether they’ll turn it into a manuscript for submission.
Spinning uncertainty? The IPCC extreme weather report and the media
http://theconversation.edu.au/spinning-uncertainty-the-ipcc-extreme-weat...
Roger Hones, The Conversation, 23 November 2011
The “reasonable person” would agree that disaster risk is best avoided. Under a changing climate, how exposed people are to risk and how socially and physically vulnerable they are affects how often disasters may happen. The more we know about risk, the better we can avoid it.
ENERGY&INNOVATION--------------
Australia switches to cleaner energy
http://www.theage.com.au/national/australia-switches-to-cleaner-energy-2...
David Wroe, The Age, November 17, 2011
Australia's gradual shift away from coal and towards cleaner energy has begun, according to government figures released yesterday that showed nearly half of new energy investment is in wind, hydro and solar projects.
Coal seam gas may not help climate fight
http://www.smh.com.au/business/coal-seam-gas-may-not-help-climate-fight-...
Paddy Manning, SMH, November 19, 2011
The federal Minister for Energy, Martin Ferguson, is often criticised but he's right about this: the coal seam gas industry has grown too fast.
AND
CSG feels the heat
http://www.climatespectator.com.au/commentary/csg-feels-heat
Kebede, Reuters, 18 Nov 2011
On a recent spring day in the small Australian farming town of Gunnedah, an unlikely protestor takes the microphone to open a rally against the rapidly growing coal-seam gas industry: national radio talk-show host Alan Jones.
AND
Water. Coal. Fracking. Texas. Sanity. One of These Words Does Not Belong
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/20/371975/water-coal-texas-frackin...
Climate Progress, Nov 20, 2011
In one District west of Fort Worth, “the share of groundwater used by frackers was 40% in the first half of 2011, up from 25% in 2010.”
Investments in Renewable Energy to Double by 2020, Reaching $395 Billion Per Year, Says Bloomberg New Energy Finance
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/16/369591/investments-in-renewable...
Stephen Lacey, Climate progress, Nov 16, 20
The good news: renewable energy investments are projected to double over the next eight years and reach $395 billion per year, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. That’s up from $195 billion in 2010.
An electric dream for transport
http://www.climatespectator.com.au/commentary/electric-dream-transport
Giles Parkinson, Climate Spectator, 23 November 2011
Imagine an Australia with fast trains linking the major capital cities, diesel/electric trucks equipped with pantographs following overhead wires like trams in the inner city, electric vehicles dominating the passenger vehicle market, and 40 per cent of our electricity coming from renewable energy.
Big Coal: Children’s Health and Clean Air Are Not Worth Our Spending One Penny of the Billions in Cash We’re Sitting On
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/17/371597/big-coal-childrens-health
Daniel J. Weiss and Matthew Kasper, Climate Progress, 17 November 2011
By December 16 the Environmental Protection Agency will promulgate its final rule requiring coal-fired power plants to reduce their emissions of mercury, arsenic, acid gases, and other toxic chemicals.
POLITICS&POLICY--------------
Researcher says preparedness key to climate change
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-23/research-says-preparedness-key-to-...
ABC Online, 23 November 2011
A scientist attending a climate change conference in Newcastle today says tweaking development guidelines is the key to the region's preparedness for sea level rises.
'Overwhelming response' to pollution petition
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-18/overwhelming-response-to-pollution...
ABC News, 18 November 2011
A petition calling on the Victorian Government to measure whether a brown coal mine and power station are causing air pollution at Anglesea has attracted several hundred signatures.
Frozen Planet has a duty to inspire debate as well as wonder
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/nov/16/frozen-planet-climat...
Susanna Rustin, Guardian, 16 November 2011
The decision not to screen the climate change episode in the US is an injustice to the startling beauty on show during the series.
Plan B needed to halt climate change, says Rudd's former 'muse'
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/plan-b-needed-to-halt-c...
Lenore Taylor, SMH, November 21, 2011
Carbon pricing can deliver incremental reductions in rich countries' greenhouse emissions but will not drive the discovery of cheap sources of clean power that are the only hope of stopping dangerous climate change, a former senior adviser to Kevin Rudd says in a new essay.
THE ESSAY
Man-Made World: Choosing between progress and planet
Andrew Charlton, Quarterly Essay 44
http://www.quarterlyessay.com/issue/man-made-world-choosing-between-prog...
SCIENCE&IMPACTS----------------
Uncertain science provides cold comfort amid climate chaos
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/uncertain-science-p...
Jo Chandler, The Age, November 22, 2011
A couple of years ago, veteran British environment writer Fred Pearce, who has been reporting on climate change science for more than 20 years for New Scientist among other titles, reflected that even as the prognosis for climate change gets worse, the predictions themselves become less certain.
Climate change leading to food crunch
http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-world/climate-change-leading-to-...
AFP/The Age, November 17, 2011
Surging population growth and climate change are driving the planet towards episodes of worsening hunger, which only an overhaul of the food system will fix, a panel of experts says.
Record high greenhouse gases to linger for decades
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/21/us-greenhouse-idUSTRE7AK0NB201...
Tom Miles, Reuters, 22 November 2011
Record high levels of greenhouse gases causing climate change will linger in the atmosphere for decades to come, even if the world manages to stop emissions output today, the United Nations' weather agency said on Monday.
Climate concerns as ‘ozone-friendly’ HFCs use grows
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15818659
Mark Kinver, BBC News, 21 November 2011
A rise in the use of "ozone-friendly" HFCs has prompted experts to voice concerns that the potent greenhouse gases could be a problem in the future.
AND
WMO Bulletin highlights growth in nitrous oxide in atmosphere
http://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/press_releases/pr_934_en.html
WMO, 21 November 2011
The amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached a new high in 2010 since pre-industrial time and the rate of increase has accelerated, according to the World Meteorological Organization’s Greenhouse Gas Bulletin. It focussed special attention on rising nitrous oxide concentrations.
Amphibians facing 'terrifying' rate of extinction
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/nov/16/amphibians-terrifying-...
Camila Ruz, Guardian, 16 November 2011
Researchers say tropical regions of richest diversity are most at risk of losing frogs, toads, newts and salamanders
AND
Study details world's worst die-off: Hell on earth
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/study-details-worlds-worst-di...
Seth Borenstein, AP, November 17, 2011
During the world's biggest mass extinction, Earth seemed pretty close to a description of hell — fiery, smoky and explosive — created by massive volcanic eruptions, according to research dug up in China. In geologic terms, it was surprisingly quick, and it may provide a scary lesson about climate change.
Major storms could submerge New York City in next decade
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/nov/16/climate-change-report-...
Suzanne Goldenberg, Guardian, 16 November 2011
Sea-level rise due to climate change could cripple the city in Irene-like storm scenarios, new climate report claims
AND
Thai floods could be costliest in a decade: Allianz
http://www.climatespectator.com.au/news/thai-floods-could-be-costliest-d...
David Fogarty and Kevin Lim, Reuters, 21 November 2011Insured losses from Thai floods could be in the double-digit billions of dollars and the disaster will lead to a re-assessment of weather risks to industries in Asia, a senior official from global insurer Allianz said.
Air bubbles confirm permafrost CO2 release
http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/11/21/3372042.htm
Stephen Pincock, ABC, 21 November 2011
Permafrost melt Bubbles of air trapped in ice long ago are helping paint a clearer picture of what may happen to atmospheric carbon dioxide levels in the future if climate change melts the northern hemisphere's permafrost, scientists say.
Northwest Oyster Die-offs Show Ocean Acidification Has Arrived
http://e360.yale.edu/feature/massive_oyster_die-offs_show_ocean_acidific...
EWlizabeth Grossman, Yale360, 21 Nov 2011The acidification of the world’s oceans from an excess of CO2 has already begun, as evidenced recently by the widespread mortality of oyster larvae in the Pacific Northwest. Scientists say this is just a harbinger of things to come if greenhouse gas emissions continue to soar.
