GREENHOUSE WARMING NEWS

GREENHOUSE WARMING NEWS GREENHOUSE WARMING NEWS
from July 1, 06 to year-end

Skip down to "The News".
See the news from 05, here.
See the news from before that, here.

Greenhouse Timeline:
. . 1750: Before Industrial Revolution, atmosphere holds 280 parts per million of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, later research determines.
. . 1898: Swedish scientist Svante Ahrrenius warns carbon dioxide from coal and oil burning could warm the planet.
. . 1955: U.S. scientist Charles Keeling finds atmospheric carbon dioxide has risen to 315 parts per million.
. . 1988: NASA scientist James Hansen tells U.S. Congress global warming "is already happening now."
. . 1992: Climate treaty sets voluntary goals to lower carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.
. . 1995: U.N.-organized scientific panel says evidence suggests man-made emissions are affecting climate.
. . 1997: Treaty parties approve Kyoto Protocol mandating emission cuts by industrial nations, an approach rejected in advance by U.S. Senate.
. . 1998: Warmest year globally since record-keeping began in mid-19th century.
. . 2001: U.N. scientific panel concludes most warming likely due to man-made emissions; President Bush renounces Kyoto Protocol.
. . 2004: Carbon dioxide reaches record 379 parts per million; Russia gives crucial ratification to Kyoto Protocol.
. . 2005: Kyoto Protocol takes effect on Feb. 16.

An older item I'll keep on top a while.... July 19, 05: The Southwest has been gripped by a deadly heat wave. A new high for the date was set y'day in Las Vegas: 116 degrees. In Phoenix, where eight deaths have been blamed on the heat, the mercury hit 116 Sunday, eclipsing the date's previous record of 114 set in 1936. In Bullhead City, Arizona, the thermometer climbed to 124 on Sunday. Death Valley topped out at 128 degrees Monday, a level not reached for many decades. A similar high was expected Tuesday. Over the past few years, overnight lows in Phoenix have been climbing. This time of year, the coolest part of the early morning is sometimes still in the 90s. New York state, sticky-hot today, had its warmest June on record. In Wisconsin, Michigan and Vermont it was the second warmest June.

. . A puzzling general pattern, seen the past three decades, persisted: The most significant warming occurred in the Arctic, where the ice cap is shrinking at an alarming pace. Since November 1978, the Arctic atmosphere has warmed seven times faster than the average warming trend over the southern two-thirds of the globe, based on data from NOAA satellites. "It just doesn't look like global warming is very global."

. . Scientists agree the planet is warming. Ground in the Northern Hemisphere that's been frozen since the last Ice Age is melting and collapsing. Over the past 27 years, since the first temperature-sensing satellite was launched, the overall global temperature has risen 0.63 degrees Fahrenheit, while the hike in the Arctic has been 2.1 degrees. "The computer models consistently predict that global warming due to increasing greenhouse gases should show up as strong warming in the tropics", Christy said. Yet the tropical atmosphere has warmed by only about 0.3 degrees F in 27 years.

Jan 24, 06: Last year was the warmest recorded on Earth's surface, and it was unusually hot in the Arctic, NASA said today. All five of the hottest years since modern record-keeping began in the 1890s occurred within the last decade, according to analysis by NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies. In descending order, the years with the highest global average annual temperatures were 2005, 1998, 2002, 2003 and 2004.
. . "Using indirect measurements that go back farther, I think it's even fair to say that it's the warmest in the last several thousand years. That very anomalously warm year (1998) has become the norm. The rate of warming has been so rapid that this temperature that we only got when we had a real strong El Nino now has become something that we've gotten without any unusual worldwide weather disturbance."
. . Over the past 30 years, Earth has warmed by 0.6 degrees C (1.08 degrees F), NASA said. Over the past 100 years, it has warmed by 0.8 degrees C (1.44 degrees F).
. . Shindell, in line with the view held by most scientists, attributed the rise to emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and ozone, with the burning of fossil fuels being the primary source. The 21st century could see global temperature increases of 3 to 5 degrees C, Shindell said. "That will really bring us up to the warmest temperatures the world has experienced probably in the last million years", he said.

Jan 24, 06: Last year was the warmest in a century, nosing out 1998, a federal analysis concludes. Researchers calculated that 2005 produced the highest annual average surface temperature worldwide since instrument recordings began in the late 1800s, said James Hansen, director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies. More important, he said, is that 2005 reached the warmth of 1998 without help of the "El Nino of the century" that pushed temperatures up in 1998.
. . They stack up as follows: the warmest was 2005, then 1998, 2002, 2003 and 2004.
. . Over the past 30 years, the Earth has warmed by 0.6° C or 1.08° F. Over the past 100 years, it has warmed by 0.8° C or 1.44° F.

. THE NEWS:

Sept 14, 06: The first eight months of 2006 was the warmest in the continental United States since record-keeping began in 1895, NOAA officials said today. The period of June through August was the second warmest on record.
. . The average June-August 2006 temperature for the contiguous United States, based on preliminary data, was 2.4 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th century average of 72.1 degrees.

Burning one gallon of gasoline produces 19 pounds of CO2!

May 26, 2006 Al Gore in NYC: "We're operating the planet like a business in liquidation."

Nov 29, 06: LONDON -Gaia Scientist James Lovelock Predicts Planetary Wipeout. The earth has a fever that could boost temperatures by 8 degrees Celsius, making large parts of the surface uninhabitable and threatening billions of peoples' lives, he said. a traumatized earth might only be able to support less than a tenth of its 6.1 billion people.
. . "We are not all doomed. An awful lot of people will die, but I don't see the species dying out", he told a news conference. "A hot earth couldn't support much over 500 million." "Almost all of the systems that have been looked at are in positive feedback ... and soon those effects will be larger than any of the effects of carbon dioxide emissions from industry and so on around the world", he added.
. . Scientists say that global warming due to carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels for power and transport could boost average temperatures by up to 6C by the end of the century causing floods, famines and violent storms. But they also say that tough action now to cut carbon emissions could stop atmospheric concentrations of CO2 hitting 450 parts per million --equivalent to a temperature rise of 2C from pre-industrial levels-- and save the planet.
. . Lovelock said temperature rises of up to 8C were already built in and while efforts to curb it were morally commendable, they were wasted. "It is a bit like if your kidneys fail you can go on dialysis --and who would refuse dialysis if death is the alternative. We should think of it in that context", he said. "But remember that all they are doing is buying us time, no more. The problems go on."
. . In London to give a lecture on the environment to the Institution of Chemical Engineers, he said the planet had survived dramatic climate change at least seven times. "In the change from the last Ice Age to now we lost land equivalent to the continent of Africa beneath the sea", he said. "We are facing things just as bad or worse than that during this century. There are refuges, plenty of them. 55 million years ago ... life moved up to the Arctic, stayed there during the course of it and then moved back again as things improved. I fear that this is what we may have to do."
. . Lovelock said the United States, which has rejected the Kyoto Protocol on cutting carbon emissions, wrongly believed there was a technological solution, while booming economies China and India were out of control. China is building a coal-fired power station a week to feed rampant demand, and India's economy is likewise surging.
. . If either suddenly decided to stop their carbon-fuelled development to lift their billions of people out of poverty, they would face a revolution, yet if they continued, rising CO2 and temperatures would kill off plants and produce famine, he said. "If climate change goes on course ... I can't see China being able to produce enough food by the middle of the century to support its people. They will have to move somewhere and Siberia is empty and it will be warmer then."

Jan 4, 07: 2006 is set to be the hottest on record worldwide due to global warming and the El Nino weather phenomenon, Britain's Meteorological Office said. The Met Office said the combination of factors would likely push average temperatures this year above the record set in 1998. 2006 is set to be the sixth warmest on record. globally.
. . The world's 10 warmest years have all occurred since 1994 in a temperature record dating back a century and a half, according to the UN weather agency.

Dec 29, 06: Global warming could spell the end of the world's largest remaining tropical rain forest, transforming the Amazon into a grassy savanna before end of the century, researchers said.
. . Jose Marengo, a meteorologist with Brazil's National Space Research Institute, said that global warming, if left unchecked, will reduce rainfall and raise temperatures substantially in the ecologically rich region. "The worst case scenario sees temperatures rise by 5 to 8 degrees until 2100, while rainfall will decrease between 15 and 20%. This setting will transform the Amazon rain forest into a savanna-like landscape." That scenario supposes no major steps are taken toward halting global warming and that deforestation continues at its current rate.
. . The more optimistic scenario supposes governments take more aggressive actions to halt global warming. It would still have temperatures rising in the Amazon region by 3 to 5 degrees Celsius and rainfall dropping by 5 to 15%.
. . Sprawling over 1.6 million square miles, the Amazon covers nearly 60% of Brazil. Largely unexplored, it contains one-fifth of the world's fresh water and about 30% of the world's plant and animal species —-many still undiscovered. About 20% of the rain forest has already been cut down and while the rate of destruction has slowed in recent years, environmentalists say it remains alarmingly high.
. . Destroying trees through burning contributes to global warming, releasing about 370 million tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere every year —-about 5% of the world total-— scientists say.

Dec 28, 06: Scientists in Antarctica spent Christmas Day finishing work that may show the effects of global warming —-drilling for clues about how massive ice sheets responded to past temperature changes. The project will be vital to creating a map of how the Earth may react to higher temperatures, scientists say.
. . One hundred scientists from four countries are working on the Antarctic Geological Drilling Program, or ANDRILL. They gather rock core from deep below the Antarctic sea floor, then analyze it.
. . So far, the cores show a dynamic ice sheet that advanced and retreated more than 50 times over 5 million years. Some of the ice shelf's disappearance was probably during times when the planet was 2 degrees C to 3 degrees C warmer than it is today — "much like it will be in the next 50 to 100 years", said Tim Naish, a lead scientist on the project.

Dec 28, 06: Researchers studying plants and trees near Yellowstone National Park's thermal vents hope to glean an indication of how rising CO2 emissions could affect vegetation worldwide a century from now. Plants near the vents are exposed to nearly twice as much CO2 as is normal.
. . But if CO2 emissions from power plants and cars keep increasing at current rates, the amount of CO2 at the vents now will become the worldwide norm in 100 years. Plants and trees near the vents get about 30% of their CO2 from the vents.
. . Leaves from plants near the vents, meanwhile, tended to contain less protein. Williams said that means they had less nutritional value for animals that eat those plants. "If you see the same response in the forage species, that is going to have implications for how the large herbivores interact with the vegetation", Williams said. "They'll have to eat more to sustain themselves." The plants nearer the vents also didn't use water as efficiently.
. . "What we're finding is that the plants photosynthesize less effectively in presence of high CO2, which is contrary to what other studies have shown", Williams said. "The little pores in their leaves are opening up more and likely losing more water."

Dec 27, 06: Using fire scars on nearly 5,000 tree stumps dating back 450 years, scientists have found that extended periods of major wildfires in the West occurred when the North Atlantic Ocean was going through periodic warming.
. . When El Nino is strong, the Northwest typically has drought and severe fire seasons, and the Southwest has rain. When the cycle reverses, known as La Nina, the South Pacific cools, the Northwest has more rain, and the Southwest has drought and fires.
. . Less well understood are two other climate drivers, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, known as the PDO, centered in the North Pacific, which typically changes every 10 to 20 years, and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation, or AMO, which is marked by warming and cooling periods of 20 to 60 years in the North Atlantic.
. . El Nino-La Nina is thought to be the most influential cycle, but the Atlantic and Pacific oscillations can magnify or diminish those effects when strong phases of the three cycles come together, Swetnam said.
. . McCabe said. "More and more people are starting to see there is something there. We do know the tropical Pacific (home to the ocean warming condition known as El Nino) is a key player in global climate. But on longer time scales it looks like the Atlantic also has some influence."

Dec 27, 06: Fifteen years of warm winter weather is beginning to change the Washington area's landscape —-with Southern species like crape myrtles having an easier time and northern types feeling less welcome, according to findings by the National Arbor Day Foundation.
. . The foundation has revised its map of "hardiness zones" —-with each of the nine zones showing a range of average annual low temps that help serve as a guide for gardeners and others.
. . One big change was that the entire Washington area was reclassified in the same zone as parts of Texas and North Carolina. "You could say D.C. is the new North Carolina."
. . Fifteen years ago, a section of the Washington area fell into Zone 6, an area from Massachusetts to Kansas where the lows were between zero and 10 degrees below. The other part was in Zone 7, which spans the upper South, where temperatures were between zero and 10 degrees.
. . Now, all the Washington area now lies in Zone 7, which has taken over parts of the District and suburbs in Virginia and Maryland. Zone 7 has crept northward to take in most of Tennessee and Virginia as well as parts of North Carolina, Arkansas and Oklahoma.
. . The National Arbor Day Foundation uses the same format and the same source of climate data as the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which last put out its hardiness-zone map in 1990. Since then, the foundation has provided its own updates.
. . The warming trend here was also taking place in other parts of the country. In sections of Michigan, the weather was warm enough to suit southern magnolia trees, said Arbor Day Foundation spokesman.

Dec 22, 06: Global warming threatens to intensify natural disasters and water shortages across China, driving down the country's food output, the Chinese government has warned, even as its seeks to tame energy consumption. A forthcoming official assessment of the effects of global climate change on China will warn of worsening drought in northern China and increasing "extreme weather events."
. . A deputy director of the National Climate Center, Luo Yong, was blunt about the risks for China's food production. "The most direct impact of climate change will be on China's grain production."
. . The official assessment concludes that hotter weather and increased evaporation will outweigh greater rain and snowfall. In the country's south, heavier rainfalls could trigger more landslides and mudslides, it also warns. Luo indicated that by 2030-2050, China's potential grain output could fall by 10%, unless crop varieties and practices adapt to the increasingly turbulent climate.
. . China should use price, tax and other financial measures to promote energy saving and curb wasteful use, Hu told a top party meeting, according to state media. Industries that consume excessive energy and pollute should be shut down.
. . China, the world's fourth-largest economy and second biggest energy user, has set a goal to cut energy consumption per unit of national income by 20% by 2010. But with coal-fired stations providing over 80% of China's electricity supply, China is on course to overtake the United States by 2009 as the largest emitter of CO2.

Dec 27, 06: U.S. weighs listing polar bear as threatened species. Polar bears may be facing extinction and should be on the U.S. endangered species list, the Bush administration said, in a decision that raised questions about the president's skeptical stance on global warming.

Dec 24, 06: The drought in Australia has lasted for more than five years. The worry for some is that this could be the start of a protracted period of low rainfall that could go on for decades. "The really scary thing is last time we had a drought of this intensity that lasted about five years - it lasted for about 50 years", cautioned Professor Andy Pitman
. . Australian Prime Minister John Howard, who refused to sign the Kyoto Protocol insisting it would damage the economy, now believes, however, that serious environmental trouble is brewing.
. . Professor Andy Pitman says the drought has forced politicians to look at the bigger picture. "The Australian government has absolutely jumped on greenhouse bandwagon in the last three or four months", he said. "Although it won't sign Kyoto, it's now saying it wants to lead the drive for greenhouse gas emissions globally in a very aggressive leadership way."

Dec 21, 06: Rising sea levels have submerged two islands in the Sunderbans, where tigers roam through mangrove forests in the Ganges River delta, and a dozen more islands are under threat, scientists say. A six-year study of the impact of future climate change on the world natural heritage site that India shares with Bangladesh came up with alarming results.
. . Fifty-two of the islands are inhabited with a population of more than 1.8 million people. "Two islands, Suparibhanga and Lohacharra, which have gone under water could not be sighted in satellite imagery. The (disappearance of the) two islands have rendered over 10,000 people homeless. Nearly 100,000 people will have to be evacuated from the islands in the next decade." He blames global warming and the depletion of mangrove areas for the rising sea levels in the world's biggest delta.
. . The islands, separated by a complex network of hundreds of tidal rivers and creeks, form an important buffer shielding millions from cyclonic storms and tidal waves in the Bay of Bengal.
. . The temperature of the group of islands has risen by over one degree C" since 1965. The number of cyclones has fallen, but they are more intense now due to global warming, and this means more coastal flooding, erosion and more saline water moving in on the islands.
. . The relative mean sea level in the Bay of Bengal is rising at a rate of 3.14 mm a year due to global warming.
. . But a new study by Stefan Rahmstorf, professor of ocean physics at Potsdam U, said rising temperatures could boost sea levels by .5 - 1.4 meters by 2100 --almost twice the rate previously forecast. Climatologists so far agree that sea levels will increase 9-88 cm over 1990 levels by the end of the century.

Dec 21, 06: Around 50,000 people have been forced to evacuate their flooded homes in southern Malaysia as the region suffered its heaviest rainfall in a century, news reports said.

Dec 20, 06: Britain's barnacles, limpets and seaweeds are moving north and east in response to climate change. A four-year research project, funded by a number of government agencies, mapped 57 species across the British Isles. Comparing current sightings with data from 50 years ago shows that many have moved, some by over 150km.

Dec 20, 06: Airlines operating in the EU should pay for any increase in their CO2 emissions above current levels, the European Commission has proposed. Commissioners called on the industry to make a "fair contribution" to the fight against climate change. The commissioners' idea is to bring internal EU flights inside the bloc's emissions trading scheme from 2011, with other flights following in 2012.
. . The aviation industry generally welcomed the plan. But environmentalists said the measures were too weak to make much difference.

Dec 20, 06: This year is on track to be the warmest on record in Spain, a country which was already hot before global warming set in, the government said.

Dec 20, 06: Southern Malaysia has been hit by the heaviest rains in 100 years this week, and resultant flooding has forced about 30,000 people to flee their homes.

Dec 18, 06: A regional environmental group released a comprehensive "climate change roadmap" to reduce pollution linked to global warming by 75% in the northeastern US and eastern Canada.
. . Environment Northeast said the proposals included in the 275-page plan draw from many of the best practices already found within the region, including Quebec's commitment to wind generation and Maine's requirement that new state buildings exceed energy codes by 20%.
. . The group's executive director, Daniel Sosland, said the 10 priorities spelled out in the roadmap would put the region on the path toward 75% lower emissions by 2050, a goal that would stave off the worst impact of global warming.
. . The 10 priorities, broken down into energy, transportation and carbon storage, would reduce greenhouse gas pollutants by least 35 million to 40 million metric tons by 2020. The group said it plans to present its plan to industry and government officials in hopes of triggering discussion about how to make policy changes that would meet greenhouse gas targets while strengthening the economy.

Dec 18, 06: It looks as if Al Gore may become the Rachel Carson of global warming. His movie, "An Inconvenient Truth", is the third highest-grossing documentary ever. According to a recent Massachusetts Institute of Technology poll, nearly half of Americans now consider global warming the nation's top environmental problem --up from 20% in 2003.

Dec 18, 06: Admire the can-do spirit of more than 300 mayors, including big-city ones, who have pledged to reduce greenhouse gases. But they're succeeding on a very small scale. Last year, 70 cities reported total reductions in carbon-dioxide emissions of 23 million tons - yet the US would have to cut such emissions by more than 1.6 billion tons if it were to meet Kyoto treaty targets.
. . Some governors, too, are paying attention, and they can magnify the efforts of mayors. Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has mandated carbon reductions in California. And in Texas, GOP Gov. Rick Perry is working with utilities to create a 7,000-megawatt wind farm - equal to about a dozen coal-fired power plants.
. . Wal-Mart aims to reduce its carbon footprint by 20% in seven years. In 2004, Home Depot rolled out its "Eco Options" label to identify 2,000 lower enviro-impact items.

Dec 18, 06: European environment ministers have warned that the pace of international negotiations on climate change need to be "accelerated considerably" in 2007. They said greater momentum was needed if international measures to combat climate change were to succeed.
. . Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said the EU had to show leadership if it was to convince other nations that schemes like carbon trading worked. Commissioners hope to propose a new EU-wide emissions target in January. He added that a successful system would also help persuade other nations, such as the US and Australia, to consider joining a global carbon trading scheme.
. . Day after tomorrow, the EU is expected to decide whether the aviation sector will be included in the ETS. A number of reports published by campaigners today said that airlines would make billions of pounds in profits if emissions from commercial aircraft were to be included in the scheme.

Dec 18, 06: Planting forests to combat global warming may be a waste of time, especially if those trees are at high latitudes, new research suggests. Scientists say the benefits that come from trees reducing atmospheric CO2 can be outweighed by their capacity to trap heat near the ground.
. . Computer modelling indicates that trees only really work to cool the planet if they are planted in the tropics. "What we have found is in the so-called mid-latitude region where the United States is located and majority of European countries are located, the climate benefits of planting will be nearly zero", said ecologist Govindasamy Bala of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. "[In] the seasonally snow-covered regions [at even higher latitudes], planting new trees could be actually counter-productive."
. . Their analysis indicates that three key factors are involved:
. . * forests can cool the planet by absorbing the greenhouse gas CO2 during photosynthesis
. . * they can also cool the planet by evaporating water to the atmosphere and increasing cloudiness; a deck of white clouds reflects incoming solar radiation straight back out into space
. . * trees can also have a warming effect because they are dark and absorb a lot of sunlight, holding heat near ground level

"Our study shows that tropical forests are very beneficial to the climate because they take up carbon and increase cloudiness, which in turn helps cool the planet."

Dec 18, 06: The first Adelie penguin chicks of the season --black fluffballs small enough to hold in the hand-- started hatching this month, and the simple fact that there are more of them in the south and fewer of them further north is a sign of global warming, scientists say.
. . Smaller than the more majestic Emperor penguins, the Adelies have some 193 colonies that have a total population of 2.5 million breeding pairs.
. . As the northern sea ice vanishes and penguin populations decrease, southern penguin colonies flourish as the sea ice loosens, making it easier for them to dive and fish, he said. Adelies and Emperors are the two species of penguin that live on sea ice; all other penguins dwell in open water. Adelies can hold their breath for six minutes at a time and Emperors can go without a breath for 20 minutes at a time, allowing both species to forage for food underneath the ice. They eat fish, squid and tiny creatures called krill.
. . When asked whether there is any doubt that this is a consequence of human-fuelled global warming, Ainley offered a flat "No".
. . His team band hundreds of the new chicks and insert bar code identifying chips under the skin near the shoulders of the adults. "You'd never be able to collect any meaningful data without these techniques", he explained, noting that you might be able to weigh a certain penguin once, but it would be virtually impossible to identify that penguin again for a repeat weighing. As it is, scientists have constructed a weigh bridge that acts as a scale when penguins waddle across it.

Dec 15, 06: US scientists have reconstructed a 40,000-year record of wind conditions at the South Pole. They assembled the climate data by measuring the distribution of dust layers seen in two ice boreholes. The researchers then used this "proxy" to assess the probable strength of wind needed to produce those features.

Dec 14, 06: Former Vice President Al Gore said today there was a "temptation" to suppress scientific findings that don't agree with policy and urged scientists to take a more active role in communicating research with the public.
. . Gore was greeted with a standing ovation. Without specifically naming the Bush administration, Gore lamented at a gathering of earth and space scientists that policymakers used to take science into account in their decision-making, but not anymore.
. . Earlier this year, prominent NASA climate scientist James Hansen accused the Bush administration of trying to silence him after a speech he gave on global warming. Two federal agencies last month launched an investigation into whether the administration tried to prevent government scientists from speaking freely about climate change.

Dec 14, 06: The nation set a record for wildfires this year and climate experts say 2006 will probably end as the third warmest year on record for the contiguous US.
. . Drought and hot conditions contributed to the record wildfire season, with more than 9.5 million acres burned through early December, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The annual climate report, released today by the National Climatic Data Center, says 2006 will most likely be the third warmest year there on record, trailing only 1998 and 1934.
. . For the world as a whole, 2006 is expected to end as the sixth warmest year on record.
. . Notable weather in 2006, according to the U.S. climate center, included:
. . • The nation's residential energy demand was approximately 9% less during the relatively mild winter, and 13% higher during the hot summer.
. . • Summer included a heat wave that peaked during the last half of July. All-time records were set in a number of locations across the central and western United States.
. . • For the contiguous US, five of the first seven months of the year were drier than average. Combined with unusually warm temperatures, drought conditions persisted in much of the country. By late July, half of the contiguous United States was in moderate to exceptional drought.
. . • Above average rainfall from August through November helped end drought in many areas, although in places such as western Washington, record rainfall in November led to extensive flooding.
. . • related to El Nino, the Eastern Pacific hurricane season showed a sharp increase in activity compared to the below-normal levels seen since 1998. Through early December, 19 named storms had formed, with three making landfall along the Pacific coast of Mexico, including major Hurricane Lane.
. . • The extent of Arctic sea ice was second lowest on record in September, which is the time of year with sea ice coverage. This was only slightly higher than the record low extent measured in 2005.

Dec 14, 06: The world's oceans may rise up to 140 cms (~4 ft 7 in) by 2100 due to global warming, a faster than expected increase that could threaten low-lying coasts from Florida to Bangladesh, a researcher said
. . Stefan Rahmstorf of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research wrote in the journal Science. His study, based on air temperatures and past sea level changes rather than computer models, suggested seas could rise by 50-140 cms by 2100, well above the 9-88 cms projected by the scientific panel that advises the United Nations. A rise of one meter might swamp low-lying Pacific islands such as Tuvalu, flood large areas of Bangladesh or Florida and threaten cities from New York to Buenos Aires. "The computer models underestimate the sea level rise that has already occurred." Rahmstorf said they'd risen about 20 cms since 1900.
. . Almost all climate scientists reckon the world is warming because of emissions of greenhouse gases from human use of fossil fuels in factories, power plants and cars.
. . Coastal cities in the North Atlantic --from New York to London-- could be especially vulnerable because a possible slowdown of ocean currents could also raise sea levels in the North Atlantic and lower them in the southern hemisphere. "Any time you change ocean currents you change the sea surface...if you slow down the North Atlantic current you get a rise in the North Atlantic", Rahmstorf said.

Dec 13, 06: Africa has experienced a significant drying in the past three years, new satellite data reveals. The volume of water lost from the land amounts to 334 cubic km, which is almost as much as all Africans have consumed over the period.
. . The data comes from Nasa spacecraft that can detect changes in gravity caused by water as it cycles between the sea, the atmosphere and the land. Scientists have been doing this for more than 50 major drainage basins that cover most of Earth's land area.
. . Several African basins show significant drying over the study period --locations such as the Congo, Zambezi and the Nile. The Congo's decrease was equivalent to 260 cu km of water, and was almost certainly the result of reservoirs being let down; it was a consequence of human management of water resources.
. . The Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer is set to launch from Russia towards the end of 2007.

Dec 14, 06: Television naturalist Sir David Attenborough has called for a "moral change" among energy consumers to cut waste and reduce pollution. "What we can do is make the situation deteriorate less than it's going to." Sir David said "a general moral view" that wasting energy was wrong --such as there had been over wasting food during the Second World War-- was needed.
. . Sir David, whose series include Life on Earth, The Blue Planet and Planet Earth, said: "I'm hopeful that there's a real change taking place in moral attitudes that it's not to do with saving pennies here and there but it's morally wrong to waste energy because we are putting at risk our grandchildren."

Dec 14, 06: Scientists drilling ocean sediments off Canada have discovered methane ices at much shallower depths than expected. The finding has important implications for climate studies, they believe.
. . The melting of hydrates, as they are known, is a suspected contributor to past and present increases in atmospheric methane, a greenhouse gas. If shallow ices are destabilized in a warming world, it could have a positive feedback effect and drive temperatures even higher, the researchers warned.
. . "The rate of increase in the Earth's atmosphere for methane is much faster than that for CO2", said Timothy Collett, the co-chief scientist of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP). "The source of this methane is uncertain, but there are a number of scientists who have looked at gas hydrates as contributing to this recent change."
. . Hydrates are a frozen mixture of water and gas, primarily methane. They form under the frigid temperatures and high pressures found in ocean sediments and under the permafrost on land. In the ocean, hydrates exist in a "zone of stability" under the seafloor in locations where water depths exceed 500m.
. . The pressurized cores pulled back on to the ship had copious hydrate deposits --and at a level in the stability zone that was much higher than expected. We found anomalous occurrences of high concentrations of gas hydrate at relatively shallow depths, 60-100m below the seafloor."
. . Vast reserves of the ices are thought to exist. One calculation suggests some 10,000 billion tons of carbon is stored in the form of gas hydrate around the world. That is twice the volume stored in all known reserves of fossil fuels --oil, coal and natural gas.
. . "If you start looking at this as a carbon sink --the amount of carbon that could be available to climate change and to altering the atmosphere and its chemistry-- this could be a very significant contribution", explained Dr Collett.
. . Hydrates have naturally excited the attention of mineral companies, and a number of them are now investing considerable sums of money in trying to exploit the resource. BP will begin an exploratory program to drill hydrates under the Alaskan permafrost in the New Year.

Dec 14, 06: Asia's greenhouse gas emissions will treble over the next 25 years, according to a report commissioned by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The report provides detailed analysis of the link between transport and climate change in Asia. It says that its estimate of future levels of greenhouse gas could even be an optimistic assessment. Air pollution and congestion will seriously hamper the ability to move people and goods effectively, it warns.
. . The report, Energy Efficiency and Climate Change: Considerations for On-Road Transport in Asia, says that Asia currently has low levels of personal motorized transport, which in many cases are motorcycles. But it says that these levels are likely to increase significantly as incomes in these countries grows and the urban population becomes bigger.
. . The report points out that China is already the world's fourth largest economy, and the number of cars and utility vehicles could increase by 15 times more than present levels to more than 190 million vehicles over the next 30 years.
. . In India, traffic growth is likely to increase by similar levels over the same time period, the report says.
. . CO2 emissions from vehicles could rise 3.4 times for China and 5.8 times for India.

Dec 14, 06: 2006 is set to be the sixth warmest worldwide since records began, stoked by global warming linked to human activities, the British Meteorological Office and the University of East Anglia said. "The top 10 warmest years have all occurred in the last 12 years", it said, adding that 2006 could have been warmer but for La Nina, a cooling of parts of the Pacific Ocean.
. . This year saw the highest average temperature recorded since the Central England Temperature (CET) series began in 1659. "The rise above the average is significantly higher than that for the two hottest years we have experienced", Phil Jones, of the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit, said. The autumn has already been declared the warmest on record.

Dec 14, 06: While India is not required under the Kyoto Protocol to cut emission levels at this stage, experts say its emissions are rising due to its rapid economic development and could become a significant contributor to global warming.
. . But the country's environment minister told parliament India's emissions were insignificant compared to those of richer nations which should take the lead in curbing greenhouse gases. But according to a World Bank survey in May, carbon emissions from two of the world's fastest growing economies, China and India, rose steeply over the past decade. India increased CO2 emissions by 33% between 1992 and 2002, said the bank's "Little Green Data Book", a survey of mankind's global environmental impact.
. . New Delhi says it must use more energy to lift its population from poverty. The Indian subcontinent is expected to be one of the most seriously affected regions in the world by global warming, which will mean more frequent and more severe natural disasters such as floods and droughts, more disease and poor crop yields.
. . Officials say India is taking steps to use energy more efficiently and is curbing the use of pollutants which harm the atmosphere, but it needs more financial resources and the transfer of new technologies to achieve this.

Dec 13, 06: Britain set out plans today to help tackle global warming by making all new housing "zero carbon" within a decade. From 2016, green new homes should generate from renewable or low carbon sources at least as much electricity as they use, local government secretary Ruth Kelly told a news conference. Homes produce some 40 million tons of CO2 a year or about one quarter of Britain's greenhouse gases, making them the third largest emitter after business and transport.
. . Kelly, announcing a "green star" rating for new homes, said top rated houses would be energy efficient and use renewables like solar panels, rooftop wind turbines, wood pellets, mini combined heat and power stations. She also said regulations would be tightened to ensure all new buildings were environmentally friendly, and promised tax breaks to encourage home buyers to opt for green homes.

Dec 11, 06: Alpine ski resorts are churning out artificial snow, daisies are flowering by the Kremlin in Moscow and retailers are fretting that Europeans are simply too warm to go Christmas shopping with a record mild winter. One historian says that Europe has just had its warmest autumn in 500 years.
. . Butterflies have been seen in Denmark, some Nordic golf courses --usually frozen for the winter-- have reopened and many farmers worry that crops are sprouting far too early and could be killed by frost.
. . In Russia, record December temperatures have kept bears from hibernating and flowers such as daisies and purple violets have been seen in and around the capital. Usually gripped by ice, Moscow basked at a record 7.7 Celsius (45.86F) on December 7. "Muscovites are smiling: they don't have to wear hats, and the grass is green," wrote daily Moskovsky Komsomolets, adding that Siberia would become the world's granary if temperatures stayed warm.
. . In the Netherlands, the Dutch meteorological institute KNMI said 2006 was likely to be the warmest year in three centuries, and linked the record with global warming that many scientists fear will bring more floods, droughts and higher seas.
. . German asthma sufferers are complaining of pollen and Sweden has suffered rare December floods.

Dec 11, 06: A report said 2006 had the warmest autumn since around the time Columbus sailed the Atlantic, about 2C (3.6F) warmer than the long-term average. This autumn beat the record-warm autumns of 1772, 1938 and 2000.

Dec 11, 06: Corn ethanol and soybean biodiesel are "carbon positive", meaning they add CO2 to the atmosphere. The researchers even say that producing fuels from prairie grasses growing on 'degraded' land —-not suitable for agriculture-— could reduce worldwide CO2 emissions by 15%. Other experts are skeptical.
. . Based on 10 years of research at Cedar Creek Natural History Area, the study shows that degraded agricultural land planted with highly diverse mixtures of prairie grasses and other flowering plants produces 238% more bioenergy on average, than the same land planted with various single prairie plant species, including monocultures of switchgrass.
. . If you take into account the greenhouse gas emissions produced by growing, harvesting, transporting and converting plants into fuel —-along with the CO2 produced by eventually burning that fuel-— and weigh this against the amount of CO2 sucked up by plants during growth, prairie comes out 6-16 times better than corn grain ethanol or biodiesel.
. . Growing mixtures of plants on 500,000,000 hectares of degraded land worldwide could displace about 13% of global petroleum consumption, and sequester about 15% of CO2 emissions.

The methane emitted worldwide every year: 17 million metric tons.

Dec 11, 06: Some of the scientists who first advanced the controversial "nuclear winter" theory more than two decades ago have come up with another bleak forecast: Even a regional nuclear war would devastate the environment. The study was described as the first to document in detail the climatic effects of a nuclear war on a regional scale.
. . Using modern climate and population models, researchers estimated that a small-scale nuclear conflict between two warring nations would cause 3 million to 17 million immediate casualties and lead to a marked cooldown of the planet that could lead to crop failures and further misery.
. . As dire as the predictions seem, they fall short of nuclear winter. That theory says that smoke and dust from an atomic war between the superpowers would blot out the sun, plunge the Earth into the deep freeze and cause mass starvation, wiping out 90% of the Earth's population, or billions of people.
. . Some climate experts not connected with the research questioned some of the assumptions made in the studies. For example, the studies assume that smoke is mostly made up of soot. But other organic particles could cause smoke to scatter and not stay aloft in the atmosphere as long, lessening the impact, said scientist Steve Ghan
. . The late astronomer Carl Sagan and four colleagues developed the nuclear winter theory, calculating in 1983 the possible effects of an all-out nuclear attack between the United States and the former Soviet Union. Other scientists have disputed the degree of damage to the Earth.
. . The superpowers' nuclear stockpiles have shrunk considerably since the end of the Cold War. But some of the scientists behind the nuclear winter theory — including Brian Toon of the University of Colorado at Boulder and Richard Turco of the University of California, Los Angeles — decided to revisit the topic in light of more recent world tensions.
. . The researchers say black soot from the fires would linger in the atmosphere, blocking the sun's rays and causing average global surface temperatures to drop about 2 degrees Fahrenheit in the first three years. Although the planet would see a gradual warming within a decade, it would still be colder than it was before the war, the scientists said.
. . The cooldown would shorten the growing season by about a month in parts of North America, Europe and Asia. Normal rainfall patterns such as summer monsoons in Africa and Southeast Asia would be disrupted, possibly causing huge crop failures.
. . In addition, the ozone layer, which keeps out harmful ultraviolet radiation, would shrink more than 20%, with the poles seeing a 70% reduction.
. . Human increases in CO2 emissions are thinning the Earth's outer atmosphere, making it easier to keep the space station aloft but prolonging the life of dangerous space debris, scientists said.

Dec 11, 06: Scientists are literally fishing for clues to global warming's impact on earthly life by drilling holes in the Antarctic ice. In these frigid waters under the ice at the bottom of the world, fish and water-dwelling invertebrates have lived with very little change in their environment for perhaps 11 million years.
. . That is likely to change as global warming raises water temperatures, at the same time that greenhouse gas emissions, especially carbon dioxide, alter the water's acidity.

Dec 8, 06: Global warming and a rise in sea levels could dramatically affect South Carolina's coast, according to scientists and environmental officials meeting at a conference in Charleston. The rising ocean is "going to shave off a ton of landscape along the coast," which could drown marshes that act as buffers for storm surge, raising the likelihood of major flooding when the next hurricane hits, said Jim Morris, marine studies professor.
. . The state's beach management law calls for a gradual retreat of new development from the seashore, but building pressures continue from Cherry Grove to Hilton Head Island. That could be dangerous, with scientists warning the ocean could extend 100 feet or more inland in the next century. Water temperatures also are rising, and that could bring additional problems to South Carolina's coastal waters.

Dec 8, 06: Putting his money where his environmentalist mouth is, Prince Charles is swapping gas-guzzling private planes and helicopters for commercial flights, train journeys and biodiesel cars.

Dec 5, 06: Studies have shown that dams cause significant global warming because of the breakdown of organic matter in their reservoirs. Dams account for about 20% of the methane produced by human activity, and dam reservoirs now cover 1% of the land area of the planet.
. . Emissions from the 250-megawatt Balbina Dam in the middle of the Amazon basin in Brazil are exceptionally high: some 25-38 times higher than a modern coal plant of similar megawatt capacity.

Dec 5, 06: Pollution-laden clouds may be partly to blame for India's dwindling rice harvests by reducing sunlight and rainfall, according to research. They discovered that elevated levels of greenhouse gases also reduced yields.
. . These layers of air pollution, which contain soot and other fine particles, are primarily created from burning fossil fuels and other organic matter. The clouds interfere with the local climate by blocking the Sun's radiation from reaching the ground, leading to cooler and dimmer conditions. Recent research has revealed the polluted haze can also reduce rainfall.
. . "We found if there had been no atmospheric brown clouds between 1985 and 1998, the annual rice harvest yield would have been 11% higher than it was." He said while the cooler night-time temperatures caused by the clouds were beneficial for the rice, the negative impact of the decreasing rainfall outweighed these benefits.

Dec 5, 06: Europe's Alpine region is going through its warmest period in 1,300 years, the head of an extensive climate study said.

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a more potent greenhouse gas than CO2, and is released when fertilizer breaks down. Scientists with Cimmyt and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (Ciat) have developed a hand-held sensor using light and infra-red radiation which can tell farmers whether plants need more fertilizer or not; less fertilizer use means less N2O produced.

Dec 4, 06: At the annual meeting in Washington, the global network of agricultural research centers warns that famines lie ahead unless new crop strains adapted to a warmer future are developed. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) says yields of existing varieties will fall. New forecasts say warming will shrink South Asia's wheat area by half.
. . CGIAR is announcing plans to accelerate efforts aimed at developing new strains of staple crops including maize, wheat, rice and sorghum.
. . "We're talking about large scale human migration and the return to large-scale famines in developing countries, something which we decided 40 or 50 years ago was unacceptable and did something about."
. . The most significant impact of climate change on agriculture is probably changes in rainfall. Some regions are forecast to receive more rain, others to receive less; above all, it will become more variable.
. . But increasing temperatures can also affect crops. Photosynthesis slows down as the thermometer rises, which also slows the plants' growth and capacity to reproduce. Research published two years ago shows rice yields are declining by 10% for every degree Celsius increase in night-time temperature.
. . A study from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (Cimmyt) in Mexico, yet to be published, projects a major decline in South Asia's wheat yield. The vast Indo-Gangetic plain produces about 15% of the world's wheat --but the area suitable for growing is forecast to shrink by about half over the next 50 years, even as the number of mouths to feed increases. "The livelihoods of billions of people in developing countries, particularly those in the tropics, will be severely challenged as crop yields decline due to shorter growing seasons", said Robert Zeigler, Director General of the International Rice Research Institute (Irri), a CGIAR affiliate.
. . Conversely, rising temperatures will open up areas of the world which are currently too cold for crop cultivation, in regions such as Siberia and northern North America. And the same Cimmyt study forecasts that wheat will become viable in parts of Alaska.
. . One of the most exciting initiatives aims to make a fundamental modification to rice so it becomes more efficient at using the Sun's energy. Rice is a so-called C3 plant. Other crops, including maize, use a better photosynthesis mechanism called C4, and Irri scientists aim to develop rice strains which also use the C4 mechanism. "Boosting the photosynthetic efficiency of rice by changing it from C3 to C4 photosynthesis will be like supercharging a car's engine by fitting a new fuel injection system", said Irri's John Sheehy.
. . CGIAR scientists will also be detailing approaches to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from farming. One simple method which is proven, but which by no means all farmers are aware of, is no-till or minimum-till agriculture, where fields are ploughed and disturbed as little as possible. This keeps carbon in the soil rather than sending it into the air as CO2.

Dec 4, 06: A swath of Amazon rain forest the size of Alabama was placed under government protection toay in a region infamous for violent conflicts among loggers, ranchers and environmentalists. Known as the Guayana Shield, the 57,915-square-mile area contains more than 25% of the world's remaining humid tropical forests and the largest remaining unpolluted fresh water reserves in the American tropics. The protected areas will link to existing reserves to form a vast preservation corridor eventually stretching into neighboring Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana.
. . Still, it's far from clear how much the new reserves will do to stall Amazon destruction, since most of the deforestation is taking place along the rain forest's southern border. "If any tropical rain forest on Earth remains intact a century from now, it will be this portion of northern Amazonia", Conservation International President Russell Mittermeier said. "The region has more undisturbed rain forest than anywhere else."
. . The Amazon region covers 60% of Brazil and 20% of its forest — 1.6 million square miles — already has been destroyed by development, logging and farming. Over the past four years, an area larger than South Carolina has been cut down.
. . The protections are all the more surprising coming out of Para, a state twice the size of France long known for ruthlessly cutting down the rain forest and where ranchers often gun down those who try to stop it. The 2005 murder of American nun Dorothy Stang is only the most notorious killing of forest defenders in the largely lawless jungle frontier.
. . Two of the new protected areas, covering 22,239 square miles, would place the land completely off limits to the general public and only be accessible to researchers. Together, these two areas are believed to contain up to 54.1% of all bird, animal and plant species found in the Amazon, Conservation International said. They also are home to several endangered animal species, including the northern bearded saki monkey, jaguars, giant anteaters, the giant armadillo and the ariranha, or giant Amazon otter.
. . The remaining areas have been declared sustainable use protected areas, allowing local communities to manage the natural resources and permitting limited logging under strict management. The creation of the new reserves places about 55.4% of Para state either under some form of government protection or on an Indian reservation.

Dec 3, 06: The new leader of Canada's Liberal Party pledged today to honor the country's commitment to the Kyoto protocol if he unseats Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper in an election expected next year.

Dec 3, 06: Urgent action is needed to make sure a warming climate doesn't slash crop yields, heighten the risk of famine and deepen poverty for the world's most vulnerable, international experts said. The group brings together experts from 15 agricultural research centers around the world funded by states, international organizations and private foundations.
. . They said warming could bring more drought and shorter growing seasons to places like Tanzania and Mozambique, increase flooding in coastal areas of countries including Bangladesh, and reduce crop yields in countries like Colombia.
. . Experts said the first step to countering the looming threat is further research that will produce weather and crop forecasts than can inform policymakers' decisions.
. . Development of hardier "climate-ready" crops that can withstand warmer climates and resist water and salt is also needed, they said. Climate-sensitive management, including more efficient use of water, will also help.

Dec 3, 06: The average temperature in 2006 is likely to be amongst the hottest since records began nearly 150 years ago, giving what seems another example of global warming, experts said.
. . Autumn and early winter temperature records have been set from the Alps to Moscow this year, hurting ski resorts but extending growing seasons. Arctic sea ice shrank to near record lows in the summer. "This year is likely to be in the top five, probably about the fifth warmest worldwide", said David Viner, senior climate scientist at the British University of East Anglia.
. . Arctic ice was 6% smaller in 2005 and 2006 than the average over the past 26 years, according to NASA. As ice recedes, darker ground and sea absorbs ever more heat.

Dec 1, 06: Although the auto industry is concerned about the case currently before the Supreme Court that seeks to require the federal government (via the EPA) to set greenhouse gas emission standards. But in reality, even a victory for the environmentalists shouldn't worry auto execs, as changes to their vehicles probably won't be mandated to begin for many model years, given the current administration.
. . Until now, the EPA hasn't considered CO2 and other greenhouse gases pollutants, and so it has not issued any regulations. If the Supreme Court rules that the EPA should start regulating greenhouse gas emissions, the Bush Administration could choose to "intensively study" the issue for the remainder of his presidency and leave any decisions to the next administration Or, the EPA could set minimal requirements that the auto industry is expected to achieve anyway, which it has a history of doing.
. . In the extremely unlikely event that the EPA comes up with meaningful greenhouse gas controls, the auto industry would have its attorneys tie up the process with countersuits and appeals into the next decade.
. . Although the conservative-leaning court may be more apt to rule against the dozen states who want the government to deal with global warming, a faction of conservatives support the lawsuit, which may be enough to sway Roberts et al. Several evangelical groups are concerned about our abuse of the environment and support greenhouse gas regulations.

"Water Vapor is the biggest greenhouse gas. Between 80-95% of it, not counting clouds. There are 12,750Gt of water, and 750Gt of CO2."
. . but...
How does water vapor get into the atmosphere? Evaporation.
And how do you increase the rate of evaporation? Increase the temperature.
Water vapor is not a driving force behind climate change; it is an amplifier.

Dec 1, 06: The mild 2006 Atlantic hurricane season closed without a single hurricane striking the United States — a stark contrast to the record-breaking 2005 season that killed more than 1,500 people and left thousands homeless along the Gulf Coast.
. . Nine named storms and five hurricanes formed this season, and just two of the hurricanes were considered major. That is considered a near-normal season — and well short of the rough season government scientists had forecast. But this is a one-season type break", said Gerry Bell, lead seasonal hurricane forecaster for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
. . This year, a warm-water trend known as El Nino developed more quickly than expected in the Pacific, squashing the formation of storms in the Atlantic and creating crosswinds that can rip hurricanes apart. At the same time, upper-level air currents pushed most hurricanes out to sea, away from the U.S. mainland. Only two storms, Tropical Storms Alberto and Ernesto, hit the U.S. mainland in 2006. Neither caused significant damage.
. . A moderate "El Nino" event has taken hold in the tropical Pacific, threatening to trigger further weather disruption into the first quarter of 2007, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said.

Dec 1, 06: India's monsoon rains have intensified over the last half-century as average temperatures have risen, and more severe weather could be in store if global warming continues, scientists reported.
. . Heavy rains come more frequently and are more severe now than they were in 1951, the researchers wrote. At the same time, moderate rains --the kind that are more easily absorbed-- decreased, leaving the mean rainfall record about the same as it was five decades ago. "The extreme events are so damaging because they pour in a large amount of rainfall over a small area in a very short time, leading to flash floods and landslides."
. . If this trend continues, the number of extreme rain events could reach 100 per year, more than double the 45 or so such events common in the 1950s in central India, he wrote. The researchers defined an extreme rain event as one where at least 100 mm of rain fell.

Nov 30, 06: Some southern Arizona black bears may not sleep through the hibernation season because they may not have gotten enough to eat beforehand, a wildlife official says. It's possible some bears around the Huachuca Mountains might be in a circumstance where they either would stay in the den and starve, or go back out and forage for food.

Nov 30, 06: Global warming has emerged as a top New York environmental issue, with accumulated scientific data showing a hotter atmosphere and projecting more radical changes over the next century from automobile and power plant emissions, according to a report.
. . New York temperatures rose an average of 1.13 degrees F from 1900 to 1999, and two projection models indicate increases from 5 to 9.5 degrees over the next century, with implications for heat-related illnesses, coastal flooding, wildlife losses and insurance costs, said David Gahl, who wrote the report for Environmental Advocates of New York.
. . Gov.-elect Eliot Spitzer has already called global warming the most important environmental issue facing this generation, noting as attorney general he's party to the lawsuit now before the U.S. Supreme Court trying to require federal regulators to treat CO2 as a pollutant. "I support state regulations that would regulate CO2 as a pollutant."
. . Among other things, his report recommends:
. . _Tighter statewide caps from each sector with an overall goal of up to 85% emission reduction by mid-century.
. . _Requiring utilities to achieve a certain levels of energy efficiency in their territories.
. . _Reducing vehicle travel through insurance and registration pay-as-you-drive pricing.
. . _Establishing a permanent climate change commission.
. . _Retooling New York's planned power plant emission allowances under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

Nov 30, 06: Giant kangaroos and wombats bigger than cars which once roamed Australia were killed by climate change and not human hunters, Australian scientists said. The report comes as the country struggles with what could be its worst drought in 1,000 years, affecting more than half its farmlands.
. . Known as megafauna, the huge animals were driven into extinction by a steady warming of Australia's climate, which in turn saw a once-lush outback region turn to red desert and grasslands.
. . Scientists have said that Australia must brace itself for long-term climate change and water shortages due to the accelerating pace of global warming.

Nov 29, 06: Farm animals are responsible for almost a fifth of the pollution blamed for global warming, a UN report said today, warning that the livestock sector posed a growing environmental threat. Gases from manure and flatulence, deforestation to make grazing land, and the energy used in farming meant livestock produced 18% of the greenhouse gases that trapped heat in the atmosphere, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said.
. . In its report, "Livestock's long shadow", the FAO said a projected doubling of global meat production to 465 million tons in 2050 and a similar rise in milk output would mean the sector would have to address its effect on climate. While producing a relatively small proportion --about 9%-- of the main greenhouse gas, CO2, livestock was responsible for large quantities of other important greenhouse gases.

Nov 29, 06: The European Commission sharpened its main weapon for fighting climate change, drawing fire from EU governments after demanding cuts in their CO2 emissions plans for 2008-2012. The move set up a fight with some EU member states, while the rest of the world watched what is a possible model for a future worldwide carbon market.
. . German Economy Minister Michael Glos said the decision was "totally unacceptable" and would push up electricity prices. Germany is Europe's biggest polluter. France withdrew its plan at the last minute after indications it too faced rejection.
. . The scheme's first phase from 2005-2007 came close to collapse when 2005 data showed governments gave industry more emissions permits than needed and carbon prices crashed. The Commission tried to restore lost credibility, demanding a nearly 7% cut in the total allowance that 10 EU countries proposed for 2008-2012.
. . Lithuania, facing a halving of its planned emission, said it was "very upset." Slovakia called its new cap too small. France questioned Brussels' methods of setting targets. German industry group VDEW, which represents 750 power firms, said the new targets could hinder new power generation projects and discourage industry.
. . But some green groups were disappointed.

Nov 29, 06: The biodiversity and productivity of seas around the UK could already be suffering the consequences of climate change, a report has concluded. It says damaging storms have become more frequent, and rising sea surface temperatures have led to an apparent northward shift of warm-water plankton. "There has been a greater incidence of severe winds and increasing wave heights in western and northern UK territorial waters over the past 50 years."
. . Looking at future projections, it added: "Different modelling approaches project different scales of change but indicate that wind strength and wave heights will increase."

Nov 29, 06: Electricity prices could double in Europe if power firms are to meet emissions reduction targets under the Kyoto protocol, says a report. Carbon prices are set to surge, and firms might pass this rise on to the wholesale market, says a report by consultancy Global Energy Decision. The report said European nations, such as France and Germany, will find it ever harder to meet emissions targets. The carbon market is deemed a key tool under Kyoto to reduce emissions. The report argues that forward carbon prices will be between 40 and 80 euros per metric ton --more than double current levels.
. . One obvious way for firms in the power sector to reduce their emissions is to switch the type of energy they use, for example from inefficient coal-fired power stations to efficient gas. It would be impossible to completely cease using coal-fired power stations --especially in Germany-- because of a lack of alternative capacity.

Nov 29, 06: The European Union has established carbon limits for the second phase of the carbon trading scheme, a key step in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. The European Trading Scheme (ETS) aims to cut emissions by 8% of 1990 levels. The EU set allowances for the 2008-2012 period to an average of 7% below the levels proposed by member states. "Today's decisions send a strong signal that Europe is fully committed to achieving the Kyoto target and making the ETS a success."
. . By creating a market for carbon, firms are meant to have a financial motive to cut emissions. Heavy polluters, notably power firms, are obliged to own the right for each metric ton of CO2 they produce. Depending on their needs, they can buy or sell permits. Trading carbon is meant to enable firms to cut emissions at the lowest price.
. . Critics say that nations involved in the scheme had set their carbon allowance levels too high, and have not been aggressive enough in cuts.

Nov 29, 06: [The US missed hurricanes, but...] Eight typhoons and tropical storms have hit the Philippines so far this year. In October, typhoon Xangsane, the strongest in more than 10 years, slammed into Manila and Luzon, leaving as many as 200 people dead or missing and cutting power off to several provinces for weeks.

Nov 28, 06: The rate at which humans are pumping CO2 into the atmosphere has more than doubled since the 1990s, according to Australian research, the latest report warning about the high rate of emissions accumulating in the atmosphere.
. . Findings published by Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization also showed that 2005 marked the fourth-consecutive year of increased CO2 emissions. "To have four years in a row of above-average CO2 growth is unprecedented."
. . The study analyzed a 30-year record of air samples collected at an Australian Bureau of Meteorology observation station on the southern island state of Tasmania.
. . Mike Raupach, a scientist with the organization, said that from 2000 to 2005, the growth rate of CO2 emissions was more than 2.5% per year, whereas in the 1990s it was less than 1% per year. Raupach, who is also co-chairman of the Global Carbon Project, said 7.85 billion tons of carbon passed into the atmosphere last year, compared to 6.67 billion tons in 2000.
. . About half of all CO2 emissions remain trapped in the atmosphere, and the rest are absorbed by the land and oceans.
. . Earlier this month, the World Meteorological Organization reported the level of CO2 in the atmosphere reached 379.1 ppm in 2005, more than 35% higher than in the late 18th century.

Nov 27, 06: An unusually warm autumn in Germany is wreaking havoc in the normal behavior patterns of the country's wildlife, keeping birds from flying south for the winter and frogs from sleeping, experts have said.
. . With November temperatures in some areas hovering around the 20-degrees-C mark in some regions, biologists have observed major disruptions to nature's normal rhythms. Migratory birds such as cranes appeared to have "no desire" to head south due to the balmy temperatures. Because they continue to find food on the ground in harvested cornfields, there is little impulse to leave.
. . And while crocuses are shooting out of warm soil months ahead of schedule, animals that normally bed down for the winter such as frogs, newts and bats appear confused. "The animals are completely stressed out", Schuetz said. He said that if the spring-like temperatures continued and then a sudden cold snap hit, the animals could be threatened because they have not had time to lay on a layer of fat to see them through the winter. The prematurely blooming flowers, too, would freeze.

Nov 27, 06: UK Conservatives are planning a carbon tax on British businesses, shadow chancellor George Osborne has said. This would raise more money than the existing climate change levy, he told the CBI conference, and would be "offset" by tax cuts elsewhere. "We want to shift the tax burden away from income and investment and onto pollution."

Nov 27, 06: The rise in humanity's emissions of CO2 has accelerated sharply, according to a new analysis. The Global Carbon Project says that emissions were rising by less than 1% annually up to the year 2000, but are now rising at 2.5% per year.
. . It says the acceleration comes mainly from a rise in charcoal consumption and a lack of new energy efficiency gains. The global research network released its latest analysis at a scientific meeting in Australia.
. . Dr Mike Rapauch of the the Australian government's research organisation CSIRO, who co-chairs the Global Carbon Project, told delegates that 7.9 billion tons (gigatons, Gt) of carbon passed into the atmosphere last year; in 2000, the figure was 6.8Gt. "From 2000 to 2005, the growth rate of CO2 emissions was more than 2.5% per year, whereas in the 1990s it was less than 1% per year", he said.
. . The finding parallels figures released earlier this month by the World Meterorological Organization showing that the rise in atmospheric concentrations of CO2 had accelerated in the last few years.
. . There have been suggestions that as temperatures rise, carbon sinks --natural systems which absorb CO2-- may become less efficient; but Professor Le Quere said there is no evidence that this is happening systematically. "The land sink has been very much affected by recent droughts, especially in the northern hemisphere", she said, "but the ocean sink looks relatively stable and it doesn't seem there is a global trend."

Nov 27, 06: The federal government's mission to avoid regulating vehicle and industrial emissions that affect global warming may have run out of gas. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear a case that will decide whether or not greenhouse gases are pollutants, which the Bush Administration denies.
. . Per the San Francisco Chronicle: The ultimate issue in the case is whether the federal government must regulate vehicle emissions of greenhouse gases under the provision of the Clean Air Act mandating regulation of pollutants that "may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare."
. . The EPA has tried to escape regulating greenhouse gas emissions stating they are not pollutants, which is the limit of the federal government's authority. It's time to wake up and smell the warming folks. Of course this administration will likely create a set of toothless guidelines (see Clear Skies and Freedom Car Initiatives) to appease the auto and energy industries, so the burden of regulating the stuff that comes out tailpipes and chimneys will like remain with the states and municipalities.
. . If the Court sides with the EPA, it will be further proof that the judicial branch of government is out of step with the populace.

Nov 27, 06: Ten years ago, the ecological footprint of the average Indian was 0.4 hectares, equating to emissions of 0.81 tons of CO2 per person per year. Admittedly this has risen to 1.34 tons, but still doesn't really compare with the average 11.01 tons per UK citizen or a spectacular 28 tons from those Kyoto opt-out Australians.

Nov 27, 06: Scientists are peering into the clouds near the top of the world, trying to solve a mystery and learn something new about global warming. The mystery is the droplets of water in the clouds. With the North Pole just 1100km away, they should be frozen, yet more of them are liquid than anyone expected. So the scientists working out of a converted blue cargo container are trying to determine whether the clouds are one of the causes —or effects— of Earth's warming atmosphere.
. . "Much to our surprise, we found that Arctic clouds have got lots of super-cooled liquid water in them. Liquid water has even been detected in clouds at temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees C. "If a cloud is composed of liquid water droplets in the Arctic, instead of ice crystals, then that changes how they will interact with the earth's surface and the atmosphere to reflect, absorb and transmit radiation. It's a new science, driven by the fact that everybody doing climate predictions says that clouds are perhaps the single greatest unknown factor in understanding global warming."
. . The American and Canadian scientists at the Eureka Weather Station in the northern Canadian territory of Nunavut, like the Inuit who are seeing their native habitat thaw, are beyond questioning the existence of climate change.
. . "For a couple of decades, we have known that super-cooled liquid water droplets could exist in clouds", Uttal said. "But the prevalence of it in Arctic clouds was not really known until these specialized sensors starting operating in the Arctic about eight years ago."
. . "The really exciting thing", she said, will be the ability to track an aerosol layer or an Asian dust cloud from their source and measure their effect on a cloud. Uttal noted that water clouds are more likely to warm the Arctic atmosphere than ice clouds, since the liquid clouds retain more heat radiated by the Earth's surface. "This means that the ice-to-water ratios in clouds may be very important in controlling the Arctic surface temperatures and how it melts", she said.
. . In Nunavut, the melting is keenly felt. "In the old days, we used to have 10 months of winter; now it's six", said Simon Awa, an Inuit leader and deputy minister for the environment of Nunavut who was on the trip to Eureka. "Every year we're getting winter later and later." For these 155,000 people of Canada, Greenland, Russia and the United States, it means less time to hunt caribou, walrus and polar bear. Studies show that average winter temperatures have increased as much as 7 degrees in the Arctic over the last 50 years. The permafrost —-ground that is continually frozen for at least two years-— is thawing, imperiling polar bears and forcing other animals to migrate farther north.

Nov 24, 06: A small white gull with an ordinary name had bird watchers flocking to the Salton Sea for what they call a "mega-rarity." A Ross' gull was first seen there a week ago. The appearance of the arctic bird nearly 150km east of San Diego would be the first reported in California and would place it hundreds of miles farther south than it had ever been seen.
. . The gull, which normally breeds in Siberia or Greenland, rarely appears south of Alaska, and is only spotted in even the northern part of the lower 48 states every few years.

Nov 23, 06: A leading Hong Kong think-tank has released the first study examining the likely impact of climate change on Hong Kong and the Pearl River delta. The Civic Exchange study concludes that even small water-level rises combined with extreme weather could cause flooding across the low-lying delta. The Pearl River delta is southern China's manufacturing and trade center.

Nov 23, 06: A growing number of scientists are thinking more aggressively, developing incredibly ambitious technical fixes to cool the planet. These efforts to remedy the accidental experiment of climate change with intentional, megascale experimentation are called geoengineering. Thus far, ideas include reflecting sunlight with gazillions of orbiting featherweight mirrors or by saturating the stratosphere with sulfur, or increasing the volume of microbes that eat CO2 by fertilizing the oceans with iron.
. . Harebrained? Well, maybe. But somebody has to save the world. Typically, sober environmentalists have looked askance at geoengineering. In fact, they mostly think it's nuts. All the ideas on the table reek of foolhardiness. We have only one Earth, and it is a system of unparalleled complexity (in other words, no one knows exactly how it works). What if we muck it up? "If you go down the path of geoengineering, it leads to taking ever-increasing environmental risk, and, eventually, you'll be unlucky", says Ken Caldeira, a climatologist at Stanford University.
. . What's more, many greens worry that just talking about geoengineering could deflect funding and focus from the task of cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
. . The real worst-case scenario is some kind of Bruce Willis-movie scheme deployed at the eleventh hour, after the climate shift has already hit the fan. [!]

Nov 23, 06: A scheme designed to help companies measure the total amount of carbon emissions from their goods and services has been launched by the Carbon Trust. The "cradle-to-grave" initiative will provide businesses with a profile of products' pollution, from the sourcing of raw materials through to disposal. The carbon audits aim to identify ways firms can cut energy use and emissions.
. . A recent poll by the Trust showed that 66% of people asked wanted to know the "carbon footprint" of their purchases. "Cutting carbon in the supply chain is the next critical stage in the business contribution to reduce emissions to tackle climate change, "said Carbon Trust chief executive Tom Delay.
. . The new scheme's "carbon investigations" will look at the amount of carbon being emitted at each stage of a product's life; from the supply of raw materials and production, through to delivery, consumption and disposal. This approach is also known as a "lifecycle assessment" or "cradle-to-grave" analysis.

Nov 20, 06: Levels of atmospheric methane, a greenhouse gas, have flattened in recent years after decades of growth, scientists say. The development, according to researchers from the U of California and the American Geophysical Union, could be an encouraging sign that the world can control at least one contributor to global warming.
. . "If one really tightens emissions, the amount of methane in the atmosphere 10 years from now could be less than it is today", Sherwood Rowland, a professor at UC Irvine, said. (Rowland received the 1995 Nobel Prize for helping discover that chlorofluorocarbons released by aerosol sprays were damaging the ozone layer.)
. . The main ingredient of natural gas, methane has been a global-warming threat since the Industrial Revolution began in the late 1700s, when activities like fossil-fuel extraction contributed to its rise. Since that time, concentration levels of methane have doubled, also because of cattle ranching and landfills. The emissions warm the atmosphere because of the greenhouse effect and also help form ozone, a component of smog.
. . But scientists consider methane less threatening than CO2, the chief greenhouse gas produced by burning fossil fuels for energy and transportation. Methane stays in the Earth's atmosphere for about eight years [& is far smaller], while CO2 remains for up to a century.
. . "If CO2 levels were the same today as they were in 2000, the global warming discussion would leave the front page", Rowland said. "But to stabilize this greenhouse gas, we would have to cut way back on emissions."
. . To conduct their study, scientists in Rowland's laboratory used canisters to collect sea-level air in locations around the world. They measured the amount of methane in each canister and calculated a global average.
. . The scientists traced an 11% rise in methane levels from 1978 to 1987, a more than 1% increase each year, followed by a period of slight decreases. The levels climbed again in the 1990s because of natural events like wildfires, which they believe contribute to atmospheric methane. From 1998 to 2005, the scientists detected near-zero growth.
. . They attributed lower methane concentrations to possible precautions taken within the oil and gas industry. For example, preventing leaks in oil pipelines and storage facilities--which release methane into the air--could be a contributor, along with decreases in emissions from coal mining and natural gas production, they said.

Nov 18, 06: Next year will be crucial if political inertia is not to have a potentially catastrophic effect on efforts to battle global warming, British Environment Minister David Miliband said.
. . Fresh from inconclusive talks in Nairobi on how to take forward the Kyoto Protocol on cutting emissions of greenhouse gases, which expires in 2012, Miliband said political will was seriously lagging scientific knowledge. "The politics is moving more slowly than the science or the economics globally. We have got to inject new momentum into the politics", he told the Environment Agency's annual conference. "If there is a gap after 2012 ... the carbon market ... will collapse. To avoid that you basically have to start negotiations in a year's time", he said.
. . A report last month by former World Bank chief economist Nicholas Stern said that while action now to curb carbon emissions would cost some 1% of world economic output, delay could push the price up to 20%.

Nov 18, 06: The UN climate talks in Nairobi have ended with agreement reached on all outstanding matters. The most difficult issue, a review of the Kyoto Protocol, was settled to the advantage of developing countries. There is no deal on another round of mandatory cuts in emissions to follow the Kyoto Protocol, and no firm timetable for negotiating cuts.
. . Environment and development groups say the measures presented here do not match the scale of the problem. "Ministers are simply not reflecting the urgency which is being felt in the real world", said Catherine Pearce, international climate campaigner with Friends of the Earth UK. "We are still not seeing the bold leadership which is needed here." The next round of talks will be in Bali next December.

Nov 18, 06: Climate change and its threat to Asia-Pacific economies grabbed attention at a regional trade summit in Vietnam where some leaders pressed for urgent action against greenhouse gas emissions.

Nov 18, 06: This week's U.N. climate talks kept a plan for fighting global warming on track for expansion beyond 2012, but breakthroughs look unlikely before U.S. President George W. Bush steps down, experts said.

Nov 17, 06: An iceberg has been spotted from the New Zealand shore for the first time in 75 years, one of about 100 that have been drifting south of the country. Last year, icebergs were seen in the country's waters for the first time in 56 years. But the last time one was visible from the New Zealand shore was June 1931.

Nov 17, 06: A late El Nino this year confounded hurricane forecasters' predictions for the Atlantic storm season, which turned out to be much quieter than normal, hurricane expert William Gray's team said.

Nov 16, 06: If the sun warms the Earth too dangerously, the time may come to draw the shade. The "shade" would be a layer of pollution deliberately spewed into the atmosphere to help cool the planet. This over-the-top idea comes from prominent scientists, among them a Nobel laureate. The reaction here at the U.N. conference on climate change is a mix of caution, curiosity and some resignation to such "massive and drastic" operations, as the chief U.N. climatologist describes them.
. . The Nobel Prize-winning scientist who first made the proposal is himself "not enthusiastic about it. It was meant to startle the policy makers", said Paul J. Crutzen, of Germany's Max Planck Institute for Chemistry. "If they don't take action much more strongly than they have in the past, then in the end we have to do experiments like this."
. . Serious people are taking Crutzen's idea seriously. This weekend, NASA's Ames Research Center, hosts a closed-door, high-level workshop on the global haze proposal and other "geoengineering" ideas for fending off climate change.
. . The Dutch climatologist, awarded a 1995 Nobel in chemistry for his work uncovering the threat to Earth's atmospheric ozone layer, suggested that balloons bearing heavy guns be used to carry sulfates high aloft and fire them into the stratosphere. While CO2 keeps heat from escaping Earth, substances such as sulfur dioxide, a common air pollutant, reflect solar radiation, helping cool the planet.
. . The huge volcanic eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991 shot so much sulfurous debris into the stratosphere that it is believed it cooled the Earth by .9 degrees for about a year.
. . Wigley ran scenarios of stratospheric sulfate injection —-on the scale of Pinatubo's estimated 10 million tons of sulfur-— through supercomputer models of the climate, and reported that Crutzen's idea would, indeed, seem to work. Even half that amount per year would help.
. . A massive dissemination of pollutants would be needed every year or two, as the sulfates precipitate from the atmosphere in acid rain. He said experts must more closely study the feasibility of the idea and its possible effects on stratospheric chemistry.

Nov 16, 06: The U.S. Senate's most vocal global warming skeptic, James Inhofe, dismissed a U.N. meeting on climate change as a "brainwashing" session. Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican who will step down as chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee in January, told a news conference, "The idea that the science (on global warming) is settled is altogether wrong."

Nov 16, 06: "Green technology is not a one trick pony", Sridhar said. "If we wave a magic wand and global warming goes away, there are still a billion people coming out of poverty and 2 billion without electricity. We don't have the resources to address that."
. . "All academics agree that to 2050, we are going from 2 to 6 billion people moving to urban areas, mostly in Southeast Asia, China. The urbanization of those people will determine whether we pollute and poison this planet", Doerr concluded.

Nov 16, 06: Climatologists have worried for years that forest fires would worsen global warming by adding CO2 to the atmosphere. Now, there is an indication that the fires could have a regional cooling effect.
. . Fires in northern forests do release greenhouse gases that contribute to climate warming. But they also cause changes in the forest canopy that result in more sunlight reflected back into space during spring and summer for many decades after the fire, said James T. Randerson, associate professor of earth system science at the University of California, Irvine. "The net effect of fire is close to neutral when averaged globally, and in northern regions may lead to slightly colder temperatures", said Randerson, lead author of a study.
. . Brian Stocks, an expert on fires and climate change who recently retired from Canada's forest service, was cautious about the finding. "I wouldn't want readers to get the impression that we don't have to worry about this so much anymore, and I'm sure that was not their intention", Stocks said.
. . The study focused on a single fire, and Stocks said he would feel more comfortable with the conclusion if the report included 10 or more fires under a variety of conditions. Even if that is correct, however, it would be far too small to reduce overall global warming, said Overpeck.
. . They found a lot of CO2 was indeed released in the fire, there were increases in ozone levels and ash fell on icy areas, causing more light to be absorbed. But the following spring, the land was brighter than before the fire because fewer trees shaded the ground. Snow was more exposed and reflected more light back into space.
. . The dark spruce trees of the forest were replaced by lighter-colored deciduous trees such as aspen and birch. When these trees lost their leaves in winter, more snow was exposed. The younger trees also take in CO2 faster than the older conifers, the researchers said. It took some 80 years before the dark conifers dominated the forest again, they reported.

Nov 16, 06: The Arctic is warmer the past six years than at any time on record, with more green shrubs, less sea ice and rising temperatures in the frozen earth known as permafrost, scientists reported. An international team of researchers found that conditions in the Arctic varied regionally, but generally showed an unprecedented warming.
. . The extent of sea ice keeps decreasing, with September 2005 showing the least amount of Arctic summer sea ice since satellite observation started in 1979. Winter sea ice levels were at their minimum in March 2006, the report said. The Arctic tundra turned green, mostly due to an abundance of shrubs, the scientists found, but at the same time forest vegetation was less green, possibly because of drought. Permafrost temperatures continued to climb, the report said, though data on how thick the permafrost is were less conclusive.
. . Around the world, 2005 was the warmest year since instrumental record-keeping began, and the Arctic warming trend played a large role in this, the report said.

Nov 15, 06: A climate change bill will make the UK government's long-term goal of a 60% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2050 a legally binding target.
. . The bill, outlined in the Queen's Speech, will also establish a "Carbon Committee" to ensure the target is met. But it makes no reference to annual CO2 reductions targets, which opposition parties and environmentalists deem necessary to tackle global warming. However, ministers said that they would "consider appropriate interim targets".
. . Announcing the government's planned legislation for the forthcoming parliamentary session, the Queen told MPs and peers: "My government will publish a bill on climate change as part of its policy to protect the environment, consistent with the need to secure long-term energy supplies."
. . The legislation will be centered around "four pillars":
. . * placing the target to cut CO2 emissions by 60% from 1990 levels by 2050 on to the statute books
. . * establishing an independent "Carbon Committee" to work with ministers to deliver reductions "over time and across the economy"
. . * creating new powers to ensure the 2050 target is achieved
. . * improving the way CO2 reductions are monitored and reported, including to Parliament.

Nov 15, 06: The United States, the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, staunchly defended its record on battling global warming, as the U.N. chief lamented a "frightening lack" of international leadership on climate change.
. . U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the conference that those who would deny global warming or delay taking action against it are "out of step" and "out of time. Let no one say we cannot afford to act", Annan declared, in a clear reference to those, such as the Bush administration, who say reducing global warming gases would set back economies.
. . He predicted rising seas, droughts and other climate disruptions could cost between 5% and 20% of global gross domestic product each year. "It is increasingly clear it will cost far less to cut emissions now than to deal with the consequences later", Annan said.
. . He also noted "a frightening lack of leadership" in fashioning the next steps to reduce global emissions. "I would want leaders around the world to really show courage and to know that if they do, their people and the voters will be with them."
. . According to one estimate, 5 million people may be displaced by rising seas in low-lying Bangladesh. At best, however, the conference may simply set a timetable for talks into next year. Many think real negotiations will come only after the Bush administration leaves office.

Nov 15, 06: Insomniac bears are roaming the forests of southwestern Siberia scaring local people as the weather stays too warm for the animals to fall into their usual winter slumber. The furry mammals escape harsh winters by going to sleep in October-November for around six months, but in the snowless Kemerovo region where the weather is unseasonably warm, bears have no desire yet to hibernate.
. . Russian media reported that in the Kemerovo region and other areas, normally cold and snowy by now, there are fresh buds on trees and some flowers have blossomed for the second time this year.

STATS: Forests cover 30% of the world's total land area.
. . Deforestation rate: 13m hectares per year.
. . Iceland has three native tree species, Brazil has 7,780.
. . The world's trees store 283 gigatons of carbon, 50% more than there is in the atmosphere.

Nov 14, 06: The U.S. Air Force has begun a two-week effort to haul scientists, supplies and equipment from this base for global warming research in Antarctica. A group of 20 people arrived Sunday in Christchurch, New Zealand, en route to McMurdo Station in Antarctica for Operation Deep Freeze, the military's annual mission to support U.S. research on the ice-clad continent.

The Gulfstream has slowed by 30% in the last 12 years --that's 6 million tons/second.

Nov 13, 06: SCOTLAND is on track to become a global leader in tackling climate change, environmentalists said, as new figures showed a marked drop in greenhouse gas emissions. Net emissions fell by just over 5% in 2004 compared to the previous year and are now 16% below levels in 1990.
. . However, the figures partly reflect the decline in Scotland's heavy industries and the positive effect of our growing forests - along with a reduction in greenhouse gases from coal-fired power stations and increasing carbon-free sources of energy from wind farms and other renewable schemes.
. . While Scotland has seen a steady decline over this period, European Union states as a whole have seen emissions rise.

Nov 14, 06: Global warming could stoke ferocious wildfires that will be more difficult and costly to fight and might drastically alter the environment in parts of the world, some scientists warn. Approximately 1,000 scientists and forestry officials who gathered in San Diego for an international wildfire meeting urged policymakers to consider the effects of global warming when managing wildfires.
. . The wildfire season that just ended in the U.S. was the most severe --and expensive-- on record with more than 89,000 fires scorching 9.5 million acres, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The U.S. Forest Service spent $1.5 billion fighting those fires —about $100 million over budget.
. . Wildfire season typically peaks in late summer and early fall. Climate change is already being blamed for a longer fire season and some even predict the possibility of a year-round fire season. Future fires, the scientists warned, could drastically alter the land and convert vegetation from one type to another. That, in turn, could put native animals and plants at risk of extinction.
. . Increased wildfires also could adversely affect the planet. Wildfires emit tons of CO2 into the atmosphere, contributing to planet-warming greenhouse gases --a viscious circle. Scientists say an explosion of wildfires will increase fire costs and that old techniques may have little effect in controlling fires. "With the types of fires that we're going to be seeing, it's not going to be humanly possible to put all of them out."

Nov 14, 06: Driven by climate change, weather disasters could cost as much as a trillion dollars in a single year by 2040, financial experts warned at the UN's conference on global warming.
. . "Most insurance and re-insurance companies have no doubt that the rising tide of losses from weather-related disasters is linked with climate change", said Thomas Loster of German reinsurance giant Munich Re.
. . "The possibility of a one-trillion-dollar-loss year is one scenario out of many, but whatever the precise figures the losses are already large and set to increase." The trillion-dollar projection comprises total losses --as compared with only insured losses-- from droughts, storm surges, hurricanes and floods. It is sketched as a peak year in a scenario stretching until 2040 and is based on the calculation that the long-term costs from extreme natural disaster events are doubling every 12 years.
. . In 2002, insurance firms considered 150 billion dollars to be the likely maximum annual cost. But this estimate has had to be massively revised.
. . "Katrina was the first (weather event) to create climate refugees", said Loster. He noted that the cost of this storm could have been even higher, as the wealthiest parts of New Orleans had been largely spared from the flood.
. . Andlug Consulting's scenario noted that so-called great disasters appear in clusters every three years. In fact, since so much development is taking place in coastal zones, the figure may arrive considerably before 2040", the report warned.

Nov 11, 06: Global climate change talks in Nairobi this week may be nowhere more relevant than a nearby settlement where water shortages a year ago sparked clashes which saw 25 people speared, clubbed or chopped to death.
. . And: This is likely to be another rough week for embattled Canadian Environment Minister Rona Ambrose, who must explain to a summit on global warming why Ottawa has effectively abandoned the Kyoto protocol on climate change.

Nov 11, 06: Aboriginal communities in Ontario's far north are becoming increasingly isolated as rising temperatures melt their winter route to the outside world and impede their access to supplies. "The ice doesn't have its solid blue color any more", said Stan Beardy, the grand chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation, which represents Ontario's remote First Nations. "It's more like Styrofoam now, really brittle."
. . During the coldest months between January and March, "winter roads" are cleared on the frozen network of rivers and lakes to let trucks deliver bulk supplies like fuel and building materials. But average temperatures have warmed over the past decade, weakening the ice and shrinking the bulk-shipping season by several weeks.
. . About 20,000 status Indians live in the remote reservations and rely on winter shipments of heating oil, gasoline, and diesel fuel to power generating stations. The fragile ice has forced them to hire more trucks to carry lighter loads.
. . In the past 60 years, regional temperatures have increased by an average of 0.8 degrees Celsius in the winter, and by 1.3 degrees C in spring. That change has been more pronounced in the far north, where average winter temperatures have jumped 4.4 degrees Celsius over the same time. Indeed, warming has speeded up since 1998, after which, temps in Canada have consistently been "above-normal".

Nov 11, 06: A long-awaited report by an international scientific network will offer much stronger evidence of how man is changing Earth's climate, & should prompt balky governments into action against global warming, the group's chief scientist said.
. . The upcoming, multi-volume U.N. assessment —on melting ice caps and rising seas, with authoritative new data on how the world has warmed— "might provide just the right impetus to get the negotiations going in a more purposeful way."
. . _Greenland's ice mass has melted at what NASA calls a "dramatic" rate of 170 cubic km per year, far surpassing the gain of 58 cubic km per year from snowfall.
. . _The levels of oceans, expanding from warmth and from land-ice runoff, have risen at a rate of about 2 mm a year between 1961 and 2003, and by more than 3 mm a year in 1993-2003.
. . Pachauri said increasingly powerful supercomputers allow scientists to run more accurate models of future climate. The match between what the computer models have predicted and what is actually happening to the climate has become "much, much sharper," he said. This has allowed his panel to narrow its range of scenarios for 21st-century climate.

Nov 11, 06: Kenyan children led a march by hundreds of people through the capital Nairobi on Saturday to call for rich nations to do more to fight global warming.

Nov 10, 06: Environmentalists complained today that negotiators for industrial nations are moving too slowly at a U.N. conference to set controls on global-warming gases after the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012.

Nov 9, 06: Photographs taken from space can track deforestation in developing nations and could be used along with cash incentives to safeguard trees and combat global warming, experts say.

Nov 8, 06: New ice cores from the deep Antarctic show a direct and millennia-old relationship between climate changes in the northern and southern hemispheres, scientists said. They found that even short and small temperature changes in the south were connected to fast changes in the north by the changing Atlantic currents. The MOC carries warm water from the southern hemisphere northwards bringing heat to northern climes. (meridional overturning circulation (MOC)) When the warm water current meets the Greenland ice sheet it cools and sinks, heading south again and driving the conveyor belt process.
. . "Our data shows that the degree of warming in the south is linearly related to the duration of cold periods in the North Atlantic", Fischer said, describing the process as a "bipolar seesaw." Antarctica warmed several times between 20,000 and 55,000 years ago while the north was cold and export of warm water from the southern ocean was reduced. By contrast, Antarctica started to cool every time more warm water started to flow into the north Atlantic during warm events in the north.

Nov 7, 06: The United Nations and Africa's Nobel laureate, environmentalist Wangari Maathai, launched a project today to plant a billion trees worldwide to help fight climate change and poverty.

Nov 8, 06: Scores of icebergs have floated to within about 300 km of New Zealand, with the largest measuring about 1.8 km in length and standing some 120 meters above water.

Nov 8, 06: The unusual warming of water in the Pacific Ocean known as El Nino is expected to continue into winter, affecting weather in North America, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said today.
. . The federal Climate Prediction Center said the result could be warmer than normal temperatures over western and northern United States and western and central Canada. In addition, in a typical El Nino conditions would be wetter than normal in the U.S. Gulf Coast and Florida and drier than average in the Ohio Valley and Pacific Northwest.

Nov 8, 06: Nations must make plans to help tens of millions of "sea level refugees" if climate change continues to ravage the world's oceans, German researchers said today.
. . Waters are rising and warming, increasing the destructive power of storms, they said, and seas are becoming more acidic, threatening to throw entire food chains into chaos. "In the long run, sea level rises are going to be the most severe impact of global warming on human society", said Professor Stefan Rahmstorf, presenting a report by German scientists at a major UN climate change meeting.
. . Warming could melt ice sheets and raise water levels, and the report said nations should already be considering making a "managed retreat" from the most endangered areas, including low-lying island states, parts of Bangladesh or even the U.S. state of Florida.
. . A report by international scientists who advise the U.N. has predicted a sea level rise of up to 88 cm between 1990 and 2100. he situation was worsened, the German team said today, by the increasing frequency of extreme storms whipped up by warming sea surface temperatures --meaning many would flee coastal areas hit by hurricanes.
. . Many of the world's biggest cities, from Tokyo to Buenos Aires, are by the coast. Some rich nations might be able to build ever higher dikes, such as in the Netherlands, but poor nations were destined to be swamped. The low-lying Pacific island nation of Tuvalu has already agreed a deal for New Zealand to take about half its 10,000 people to work in agriculture if it becomes swamped by rising sea levels.
. . Rahmstorf said their data did not conclusively prove warmer seas created more storms, but that there was a clear link between rising temperatures and hurricanes' power. "Since 1980 we've seen a strong rise up to unprecedented levels of hurricane energy."
. . The report's authors, the German Advisory Council on Global Change, said about a third of that CO2 was being absorbed by the world's oceans, making them more acidic. If not checked, it said, that would have profound effects on marine organisms --hindering everything from tiny shrimps to lobsters from forming their calcite shells-- with disastrous results for ocean food chains, and on human communities depending on sea life to survive.
. . Coral reefs that attract fish and protect coasts from storms and erosion are also threatened by acidity, and CO2 emissions meant they could all be dead by 2065, Rahmstorf said.

Nov 8, 06: Immediate steps are needed to avert a potential catastrophe as climate change dries up water resources in drought affected areas, hitting poor farmers, a UN report said today. "Climate change threatens to intensify water insecurity on an unparalleled scale."
. . The vast majority of the world's malnourished people, estimated at about 830 million people, are small farmers, herders and farm laborers, pointing to devastating effects from global warning and requiring a tripling of yearly farming aid to poor countries.
. . Projections for rain-fed areas in East Africa --already suffering damaging drought and hunger-- point to potential productivity losses of up to 33% in maize and more than 20% for sorghum.
. . Accelerated glacial melt would lead to rising sea levels and loss of river delta systems, which coupled with low rainfall, would threaten major food systems in South Asia and Egypt.
. . "We estimate that in the next 25 years, the number of people living in water-stressed countries will up from around 800 million to 3 billion people", the report's author Kevin Watkins told reporters. "We argue that we are heading for an entirely predictable humanitarian catastrophe", Watkins said.

Nov 8, 06: Plans to bury greenhouses gases under the sea should only be an emergency solution and guarantees must be sought that deposits are safely contained for thousands of years, German scientists said.
. . "Storing CO2 under the sea floor can only be an emergency solution for a transitional period", WGBU said. "Permits for such measures should only be granted if they meet strict criteria ...(on) technical safety and above all the permanence of storage and its low environmental impact."
. . The world's only commercial gas platform separating CO2 and reinjecting it under the seabed is operated in the North Sea by Norway's oil and gas group Statoil. Other projects are under way in nations including Canada and Algeria. Statoil's Sleipner platform has buried about one million tons of CO2 a year since 1996 in the Utsira reservoir, some 1,000 meters below the seabed. The carbon dioxide-free gas is piped to Norway and Europe for sale.
. . Statoil, Norway's biggest firm, has said it would like to be paid to bury CO2 produced by heavy industry in European countries that want to cut their emissions of greenhouse gases.
. . Rahmstorf said the retention period for CO2 such deposits should be at least 10,000 years. "We are talking in time frames almost like those of nuclear waste." Statoil says there have been no sign of leaks from Sleipner --and that natural gas has stayed below ground for millions of years.
. . In a study titled "The Future Oceans — Warming Up, Rising High, Turning Sour", Rahmstorf and eight other scientists warned that the world is witnessing, on a global scale, problems similar to the acid rain phenomenon of the 1970s and 1980s.

Nov 6, 06: The chief U.S. climate negotiator today defended Washington's stand against compulsory caps on global-warming emissions, and said the Bush administration was unlikely to change its policy.

Nov 6, 06: More and more of us fly every year. As we do so, the political pressure to act to curb greenhouse gas emissions from planes is rising. Now a team of researchers in Britain and the US has come up with a revolutionary new aircraft design that could make a dramatic contribution to curbing climate change.
. . The SAX-40, which has been developed by the Cambridge-MIT Institute, is a radically different shape of aircraft. Officially, it is what is known as a "blended wing". It has a tailless wedge-shaped body with two bat-wings.
. . The Silent Aircraft Initiative (SAI) team has succeeded in coming up with a radically quieter plane. Crucially, the SAX-40 is also 35% more fuel-efficient than any airliner currently flying. With increasing concern over climate change, we could see a radical shift in aircraft design. This would be more likely if airlines had to pay "green" taxes on their airliners' emissions of greenhouse gases.
. . Even if this design gets the thumbs-up from the manufacturers, we won't be queuing up to board planes like the SAX-40 before 2030 at the earliest.

Nov 4, 06: UK: Most voters believe "green taxes" are more about raising money than helping the environment, a BBC poll suggests. All three main parties say they want to use the tax system to encourage more environmentally-friendly behavior.
. . But the Populus poll suggests they may have a fight on their hands convincing voters there is not a hidden agenda. Some 62% of those polled said they thought green taxes were just a revenue-raising measure and nearly half were against the idea altogether.
. . Nearly 70% said green taxes would unfairly hit poor people, while the rich would continue to drive and fly as much as before. Some flights could be included under green tax plans.

Nov 4, 06: California's polluting greenhouse gas emissions rose more than 14% between 1990 and 2004, a report issued this week by the California Energy Commission showed.

Nov 4, 06: Thousands of people rallied in London to call for world leaders to take urgent action on climate change.
. . And more than 20,000 protesters rallied in London, ahead of international talks on climate change in Kenya, demanding that world leaders act to curb global warming.

Nov 3, 06: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said CO2 levels were likely to keep rising unless emissions were slashed. The atmospheric concentration of CO2 rose by about .5% last year. The most common greenhouse gas is water vapor, followed by CO2 nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane.
. . The WMO said quantities of CO2 were measured at 379.1 parts per million (ppm), up 0.53% from 377.1 ppm in 2004. Concentrations of nitrous oxide (N2O) reached 319.2 ppm in 2005, an annual increase of 0.2%. Levels of methane, another so-called greenhouse gas, remained stable.
. . The U.N. says 2005 set a greenhouse gas record. There is 35.4% more CO2 since the late 18th century, primarily because of human burning for fossil fuels.

Nov 2, 06: UK Green (carbon) taxes account for a lower share of the UK's total tax take than when the government came to power in 1997, according to a report. The share of national income derived from green tax receipts in 2005 hit its lowest level since 1993, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) claimed. Green tax receipts peaked in 1999 but have fallen since then.
. . Chancellor Gordon Brown has said raising green taxes is just one way of tackling carbon emissions. Endorsing the recent Stern Review into the potentially devastating impact of climate change, Mr Brown has said action was needed on all fronts. A similar line was taken in the Treasury's response to the IFS report.

There is a global lack of political will on preparing for natural disasters, according to a report by British MPs. The International Development Committee says donors are unwilling to fund preventative and protective measures. And it says the government's aim of spending 10% of disaster response funds on preventing future damage should be extended to all humanitarian budgets. The report says two-thirds of natural disasters relate to climatic changes.

Nov 2, 06: Two federal agencies are investigating whether the Bush administration tried to block government scientists from speaking freely about global warming and censor their research, a senator said. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., said he was informed that the inspectors general for the Commerce Department and NASA had begun "coordinated, sweeping investigations of the Bush administration's censorship and suppression" of federal research into global warming. He said the investigations "will uncover internal documents and agency correspondence that may expose widespread misconduct." He added, "Taxpayers do not fund scientific research so the Bush White House can alter it."
. . In February, House Science Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y., and other congressional leaders asked NASA to guarantee scientific openness. They complained that a public affairs officer changed or filtered information on global warming and the Big Bang.
. . The officer, George Deutsch, a political appointee, had resigned after being accused of trying to limit reporters' access to James Hansen, a prominent NASA climate scientist, and insisting that a Web designer insert the word "theory" with any mention of the Big Bang.
. . A report last month in the scientific journal Nature claimed administrators at the Commerce Department's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration blocked the release of a report that linked hurricane strength and frequency to global warming. Hansen had said in February that NOAA has tried to prevent researchers working on global climate change from speaking freely about their work.
. . Environmentalists asked a federal judge Wednesday to overturn the Bush administration's rules for managing the country's 155 national forests, arguing that the regulations illegally weaken protections for wilderness and wildlife.
. . Lawyers for the environmentalists told U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton that the rules do not include the safeguards for endangered wildlife and forests that federal law requires. The rules allowed forest management plans to be revised without environmental studies and repealed a requirement for forests to maintain "viable" populations of native wildlife.
. . A 2005 study by Anthony Leiserowitz, published in Risk Analysis, found that while most Americans are moderately concerned about global warming, the majority—68%—believe the greatest threats are to people far away or to nonhuman nature. Only 13% perceive any real risk to themselves, their families, or their communities. As Leiserowitz points out, this perception is critical, since Americans constitute only 5% of the global population yet produce nearly 25% of the global carbon dioxide emissions.
. . Science shows that we are born with powerful tools for overcoming our perilous complacency. We have the genetic smarts and the cultural smarts. We have the technological know-how. We even have the inclination. The truth is we can change with breathtaking speed, sculpting even "immutable" human nature. Forty years ago many people believed human nature required blacks and whites to live in segregation; 30 years ago human nature divided men and women into separate economies; 20 years ago human nature prevented us from defusing a global nuclear standoff. Nowadays we blame human nature for the insolvable hazards of global warming.
. . Eiserowitz's STUDY OF risk perception found that Americans fall into "interpretive communities"—cliques, if you will, sharing similar demographics, risk perceptions, and worldviews. On one end of this spectrum are the naysayers: those who perceive climate change as a very low or nonexistent danger. Leiserowitz found naysayers to be "predominantly white, male, Republican, politically conservative, holding pro-individualism, pro-hierarchism, and anti-egalitarian worldviews, anti-environmental attitudes, distrustful of most institutions, highly religious, and to rely on radio as their main source of news." This group presented five rationales for rejecting danger: belief that global warming is natural; belief that it's media/environmentalist hype; distrust of science; flat denial; and conspiracy theories, including the belief that researchers create data to ensure job security.
. . We might wonder how these naysayers, who represent only 7% of Americans yet control much of our government, got to be the way they are. A study of urban American adults by Nancy Wells and Kristi Lekies of Cornell University sheds some light on environmental attitudes. Wells and Lekies found that children who play unsupervised in the wild before the age of 11 develop strong environmental ethics. Children exposed only to structured hierarchical play in the wild—through, for example, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, or by hunting or fishing alongside supervising adults—do not. To interact humbly with nature we need to be free and undomesticated in it. Otherwise, we succumb to hubris in maturity. The fact that few children enjoy free rein outdoors anymore bodes poorly for our future decision-makers.

Nov 2, 06: After repeatedly blocking domestic carbon trading, Australia said today it would now push for Asia-wide emissions trading to combat global warming as part of a planned "new-Kyoto" pact. Environment Minister Ian Campbell said Australia wanted to forge a "New Kyoto" out of a six-nation alliance of the world's biggest polluters --China, India, the United States, Australia, South Korea and Japan.
. . The turn-around by Australia, which refuses to sign the Kyoto Protocol to reduce greenhouse gases, comes as an opinion poll showed most Australians believe the government should sign Kyoto.
. . A British report on climate change this week warned of an environment-wrought global depression unless action was taken now to combat global warming. Using calculations in the British report, Australia exported A$61 billion ($52 billion) worth of climate change every year in the form of coal exports totaling 233 million tons, or nearly a third of the world total.
. . A Newspoll done for environmental groups, including Greenpeace, showed 79% of Australians wanted their conservative government to sign Kyoto. Nine in 10 people wanted a shift from coal-fired power to renewable energy.
. . Kyoto obliges about 40 nations to cut emissions by at least 5.2% below 1990 levels by 2008-12. Australia negotiated a rise in emissions, setting a Kyoto target of limiting emissions to 108% of 1990 levels.
. . Australia, which has failed to ratify Kyoto, is already feeling the brunt of global warming with the worst drought in 100 years eating into economic growth.

Oct 31, 06: U.N. climate talks in Kenya next week will hunt for new ways to fight global warming, stung by a warning that long-term inaction may trigger a cataclysmic economic downturn.

Oct 31, 06: The industrialized world's emissions of greenhouse gases are growing again, despite efforts under the Kyoto Protocol to cap them and stave off global warming, the UN reported.
. . Emissions of CO2 and other heat-trapping gases declined in the 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet bloc and the shutdown of polluting factories and power plants in eastern Europe. But now those economies are rebounding, contributing to a 2.4% rise in emissions by 41 industrialized nations between 2000 and 2004.

Oct 30, 06: Spaniards who use "excessive" amounts of water may have to pay more for it in the future, the government said, seeking ways to curb water use after two years of drought.

Oct 30, 06: Britain issued a call for urgent action on climate change after a hard-hitting report painted an apocalyptic picture of the economic and environmental fallout from further global warming.
. . The report said failure to tackle climate change could push world temperatures up by 5 degrees Celsius (9 F) over the next century, causing severe floods and harsh droughts and uprooting as many as 200 million people.
. . But the author, former World Bank chief economist Nicholas Stern, said that if action was taken now the benefits of determined worldwide steps to tackle global warming would massively outweigh the economic and human costs. "The Stern review has done a crucial job. It has demolished the last remaining argument for inaction in the face of climate change", British Prime Minister Tony Blair said.

Oct 28, 06: Global warming could cut the world's annual economic output by as much as 20%, an influential report by Sir Nicholas Stern is expected to say.
. . While that is a worst case scenario, the report claims that at the very best the cost of tackling global warming would be 1% of annual economic output. It is important because it looks at economic, not environmental, arguments. According to BBC business correspondent Hugh Pym, the report will carry weight because
. . Sir Nicholas, a former World Bank economist, is seen as a neutral figure. Unlike earlier reports, his conclusions are likely to be seen as objective and based on cold, hard economic fact, our correspondent said. It also may help win over sceptics in the US, where climate change has often been accused of being based on shoddy science.
. . Analysts said that they expect the Stern Review to argue that economists have under-estimated the costs that climate change will impose and over-estimated the costs of cutting emissions.

Oct 26, 06: Measurements from a network of monitors stretching across the Atlantic Ocean could offer an early warning of "sudden climate change", scientists said. Underwater instruments measuring the temperature and salinity of seawater will detect any change to currents that regulate Europe's climate, they said.
. . A UK-led team of researchers said the data offered the most detailed picture of the ocean's circulation patterns. The array of moorings reaches across the ocean from Africa to the US. Each mooring consists of a wire up to 5,000m long that stretches from the sea floor to about 15m below the surface. An assortment of instruments are attached to the wire at fixed depths, taking a reading every 15 minutes. The data is stored until it is uploaded by researchers when the moorings are recovered after 12 months at sea.
. . The moorings are positioned in three locations: off the coast of west Africa, just south of the Canary Islands; the mid-Atlantic ridge; and to the east of the Bahamas.
. . "We have had a decrease... in the order of 10% of the overturning circulation in the past 25 years."

Oct 25, 06: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who recently signed a sweeping law to cut greenhouse gas emissions in California, complained in a letter to President Bush that there is no coherent federal policy to stop global warming.
. . The Republican governor wrote that the state's request for a federal waiver to set vehicle emissions standards has been "ignored with no explanation" despite an earlier letter from the governor to Bush. He calls the fight against global warming one of the most important issues of modern times.
. . At a recent campaign stop in San Diego, Schwarzenegger boasted of the steps he had taken to fight global warning and cut reliance on Mideast oil by promoting alternative energy. "The sad story is that, nationally, we don't have great leadership on that."

Oct 25, 06: A deadly fungal disease linked to climate change is wiping out huge numbers of amphibians in Spain and could push some species to the brink of extinction, researchers said. The infectious illness that has already killed entire populations of frogs in Central and South America has now been spotted in Europe.
. . "We have found an association between increasing temperatures and amphibian disease in a mountain region in Spain", said Dr Matthew Fisher of Imperial College in London. "This is a global emerging amphibian pathogen which is one of the worst vertebrate infectious diseases found so far. It is causing a huge amount of extinction and disease within amphibian populations."
. . More than 100 species of amphibians are known to be affected by the disease known as BD. Some are very susceptible and die quickly while others which are more resistant are carriers of the pathogen. BD, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, infects the skin of amphibians such as frogs, toads, salamanders and newts and interferes with their ability to absorb water.
. . Fisher, who reported the findings in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, said climate change could be worsening the impact of the disease in one of two ways. Global warming, which is blamed on burning fossil fuels, could be decreasing the amphibians' ability to mount a successful immune response to the fungus. Amphibians are cold-blooded so their ability to respond to a pathogen could change along with the external temperature. "Or, on the other hand, global warming could be increasing the fungus' ability to grow faster on the amphibian and cause more disease."
. . The Global Amphibian Assessment survey published earlier this year warned that a third of the world's amphibian species are in danger of extinction, many because of BD.

Oct 25, 06: As the rising Pacific Ocean laps at their doorsteps, tiny Tuvalu and Kiribati fear becoming environmental refugees and said major greenhouse gas emitters Australia and the US have a moral obligation to help. Aid and scientific groups have warned that millions in the Asia-Pacific region may be made homeless by sea level rises of up to 50 cm (19.7 inches) by 2070.
. . But Tuvalu, a speck of nine islands with 10,000 inhabitants, says their predicament is even more urgent as the ocean inexorably rises and threatens to engulf their palm-fringed homes. "Our islands are very flat, as flat as a table", Paani Laupepa, a Tuvalu delegate at the Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji, said. Tuvalu is upset that regional heavyweight Australia, a major aid donor but also one of the biggest per capita emitters of the greenhouse gases responsible for global warning, has so far spurned advances to help resettle their people.
. . It is also angry that Australia, already accused of being a regional bully over a diplomatic spat with the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea, was unable to arrange even a short meeting between Prime Minister John Howard and his Tuvaluan counterpart Apisai Ielemia. "Howard has no commitment. We are very frustrated", Laupepa said.
. . Kiribati, a nation of 33 coral atolls straddling the Equator and of 105,00 people, is in the same boat. President Anote Tong said Kiribati had experienced unusually high tides in the past two weeks and fears small, low-lying nations like his will be swamped within 50 years. "If we are talking about our island states submerging in 10 years' time, we simply have to find somewhere else to go", Tong told reporters at the start of the forum. Kiribati, Tuvalu, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and parts of Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu are considered at greatest risk.
. . A climate change report by Australia's leading scientific research body released two weeks ago found that Micronesia had experienced an annual sea level rise of 21.4 mm since 2001. It said a sea level rise of 30-50 cm would affect hundreds of millions of people across the Asia-Pacific region, slashing economic output, inundating large areas of Bangladesh, India and Vietnam and reducing Kiribati, Fiji and the Maldives to a small fraction of their current land area. It also called on Australia, which is not a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol to cut greenhouse gases, to do more to combat climate change and to be more open to environmental refugees.
. . Laupepa said the responsibility for taking in those made homeless by rising sea levels rests squarely with the major greenhouse gas emitters. New Zealand, which already has a large population of Pacific Islanders, announced a plan to accept up to 5,000 seasonal workers from island states to work in agriculture. Howard has said he is "disinclined" to implement similar schemes and said Australia would instead fund a series of technical colleges around the Pacific to help raise skills.

Environmentalist David Suzuki, best known for his television programs on nature and the environment, is ready to step out of spotlight and live the simple life. He has written more than 40 books, and set up the David Suzuki Foundation.
. . The second installment of his autobiography begins with the racism that Suzuki experienced when he and his family were forced to live in an internment camp in Canada during World War II.
. . Releasing what he insists is his "very last book", a second installment to his autobiography, the 70-year-old Japanese-Canadian says he is looking forward to spending more time in the Canadian wilderness, carving wood and fishing.
. . He regrets that after decades of campaigning for everything from cleaner air to sustainable farming, his work has not had more impact. "I feel like we are in a giant car heading for a brick wall at 100 miles an hour and everyone in the car is arguing where they want to sit. For God's sake, someone has to say put the brakes on and turn the wheel."
. . He expresses regret that most people still live out of step with nature. "We are intelligent, so we create our own habitat and we don't need nature except as entertainment or for the extraction of resources," he said. "We still don't get it, that the simple acts of eating a pizza reverberates around the world."

Oct 24, 06: Carbon trading can be used to protect endangered rainforests by compensating nations that avoid deforestation, the World Bank said. It has suggested that industrial states offset their carbon emissions by funding projects designed to reduce deforestation in developing countries. The report said 5% of the world's rainforest is lost each decade. According to the World Bank, deforestation contributes to 20% of global carbon dioxide emissions.
. . The forest was more valuable if left to store carbon dioxide emissions than if cleared for pasture, it argued. Deforested land that is worth $200-500 as pasture could be worth $1,500-$10,000 if left as forest and used to offset --or trade against - carbon emissions in the industrial world. Carbon trading is a market mechanism intended to tackle global warming.

Oct 24, 06: Two environmentalists spent about four hours today perched on a ledge over an entrance to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration building to protest what they said is the agency's suppression of information on global warming.

Oct 24, 06: The United States and the European Union met today in Helsinki to seek ways to curb greenhouse gases and promote clean energies, setting aside years of disputes over the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol which caps emissions.

Oct 23, 06: POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -Mayor John Rayson has seen powerful storm winds toss his boat into the trees. He's noted the fish he catches are smaller and less plentiful. He worries about a home perched just above sea level as ocean levels rise.
. . And so, he will go before his city commission and ask for building code changes that would provide incentives for putting up environmentally friendly structures and reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that this city of 100,000 emits. It's one of a number of earth-friendly measures under way here, from reused water irrigating lawns and parks, to a new library powered by renewable energy.
. . Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels launched the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement initiative last year and Rayson and more than 300 other mayors have followed his lead, promising to strive to meet Kyoto targets in their own communities. Nickels started the mayors' effort after Kyoto took effect without U.S. participation. At the same time, he said he was experiencing climate change first hand, as Seattle was tracking decreased snow mass in the mountains, a concern because the melted snow contributes to the city's water and power supplies.
. . Lincoln, Neb., is now running its public buses on biodiesel, has begun operating wind turbines at its electric utility and has established miles of bike and pedestrian trails. Lexington, Ky., has replaced incandescent traffic signal bulbs with more energy-efficient LED ones, added hybrid cars to its municipal fleet and began picking up trash just once a week to trim vehicle emissions. In Salt Lake City, stricter guidelines aimed at making public buildings green have been passed and wind energy is being more widely used.

Oct 23, 06: Global warming will force changes to Australia's A$4.8 billion ($3.6 billion) wine export industry, threatening the very existence of some varieties as temperatures rise, a scientist said.
. . With Australia in the grip of its worst recorded drought and heading into a searing summer, the country's biggest science organization, the CSIRO, said wine growers needed to re-think plans to cope with climate change or face possible ruin. Webb said temperatures in most Australian wine regions were projected to rise by as much as 1.7 degrees C by 2030. That, in turn, would reduce grape quality in some regions by 12 to 57%, with the temperamental Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc grape varieties, as well as some Chardonnay varieties, almost disappearing from Australia's mainland.

Oct 20, 06: The world -—especially the Western United States, the Mediterranean region and Brazil—- will likely suffer more extended droughts, heavy rainfalls and longer heat waves over the next century because of global warming, a new study forecasts. But the prediction of a future of nasty extreme weather also includes fewer freezes and a longer growing season.
. . In a preview of a major international multiyear report on climate change that comes out next year, a study out of the National Center for Atmospheric Research details what nine of the world's top computer models predict for the lurching of climate at its most extreme. "It's going to be a wild ride, especially for specific regions", said study lead author Claudia Tebaldi, a scientist at the federally funded academic research center.
. . Tebaldi pointed to the Western U.S., Mediterranean nations and Brazil as "hot spots" that will get extremes at their worst What he called the scariest results had to do with heat waves and warm nights. Everything about heat waves —their intensity, length and occurrence— worsens.
. . The measurement of warm nights saw the biggest forecast changes. Every part of the globe is predicted to experience a tremendous increase in the number of nights during which the low temperature is extremely high. This is crucial because Chicago's 1995 heat wave demonstrated that after three straight hot nights, people start dying.
. . Similarly, the days when the temperature drops below freezing will plummet worldwide. That's not necessarily a good thing, because fewer frost days will likely bring dramatic change in wildlife, especially bug infestation, Tebaldi said. "It's a disruption of the equilibrium that's been going for many centuries." But he noted that a lengthier growing season in general is good.
. . Tebaldi's assessment jibes with the National Climatic Data Center's tracking of extreme events in the United States, said David Easterling, chief of the center's scientific services. Easterling's group has created a massive climate extreme index that measures the weather in America. Last year, the United States experienced the second most extreme year in 95 years; the worst year was in 1998.

Oct 20, 06: Climate change threatens supplies of water for millions of people in poorer countries, warns a new report from the Christian development agency Tearfund. Recent research suggests that by 2050, five times as much land is likely to be under "extreme" drought as now.
. . Areas where people are already on the move to avoid climate excesses include, the report says:
. . * Brazil, where one in five people born in the arid northeast region relocates to avoid drought
. . * China, where three provinces are seeing the spread of the Gobi desert
. . * Nigeria, where about 2,000 sq km is becoming desert each year

Oct 20, 06: Canada's government introduced legislation that would cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050, a target date that prompted critics to declare that Ottawa has effectively abandoned the international Kyoto accord on climate change.
. . The proposed Clean Air Act, intended to counter claims that Prime Minister Stephen Harper is soft on the environment, sets no short-term targets for cutting greenhouse emissions. In the long term, it says the government would seek to cut emissions 45 to 65% by 2050.
. . The legislation, which must be passed by the House of Commons, is certain to get a rough ride from opposition parties who say the Act is far too weak and makes no reference to Canada's commitments under the Kyoto treaty.
. . Under the Kyoto accord, Canada pledged to cut its emissions by 6% from 1990 levels by 2012. The country's emissions are now 30% above 1990 levels.

Oct 17, 06: Britain will not be able to meet its goals on climate change without curbing the demand for air travel, according to an Oxford University report.
. . The government is aiming for a 60% cut in CO2 emissions by 2050. But the report's authors say the UK is becoming "air dependent" and government policies on increasing air travel contradict that stated aim. CO2 emissions from aviation doubled during the 1990s while those from the rest of the economy fell.
. . Currently, aircraft produce about 5.5% of UK emissions. The report says that without new policies, they will account for about a quarter of the national total in 2050.

Oct 17, 06: The world urgently needs a long-term post-Kyoto agreement to fight global warming to provide security for investors and raise more funding, the U.N.'s top climate official said today.
. . Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, told a conference in Amsterdam that governments had so far failed to generate enough funding to tackle climate change, especially in poor countries.
. . Many environmentalists, and some governments, want a new pact on cutting greenhouse emissions agreed by 2008 to give businesses and investors time to adapt to new rules after the U.N. Kyoto Protocol's first period ends in 2012. "There has to be a value for the carbon beyond 2012 in order to drive the changes necessary ... The time to act is now", said Graeme Sweeney, Executive Vice President of Renewables, Hydrogen and CO2 at oil giant Royal Dutch Shell.
. . ABN AMRO's sustainable development director Richard Burrett agreed: "A lot of the technologies we are talking about have economic lives of 15-20-30 years. There is no way people will commit to invest with a scheme that runs out in 2012. That's why it's important to take action now. We cannot afford to wait until 2009-2010, otherwise there will be a stagnation in activity that we see now."

Oct 16, 06: Gov. Schwarzenegger is taking his green initiatives to the other side of the country. The governor was to announce an executive order Monday in New York that joins California's landmark global warming law with the Northeast's program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
. . The order is the first step in creating a system that helps California's biggest manufacturers comply with stricter environmental regulations, a Schwarzenegger administration official said. "Gov. Schwarzenegger wants to build a large, robust carbon trading market that will dramatically reduce emissions."
. . The Northeast system involves seven states that plan to reduce CO2 emissions at power plants beginning in 2009. It allows power plants to trade emissions credits as a way to reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions in the region. Linking California to that program could help California power plants meet their obligations under the state's new global warming law.

Oct 16, 06: Scientists said today that they had found the first direct evidence linking the collapse of an ice shelf in Antarctica to global warming. The chunk that collapsed into the Weddell Sea in 2002 was 3,250 sq kms, bigger than Luxembourg or the U.S. state of Rhode Island.
. . Shifts in winds whipping around the southern Ocean, tied to human emissions of greenhouse gases, had warmed the Antarctic peninsula jutting up toward South America and contributed to the break-up of the Larsen B ice shelf in 2002, they said. "This is the first time that anyone has been able to demonstrate a physical process directly linking the break-up of the Larsen Ice Shelf to human activity", said Gareth Marshall, lead author of the study at the British Antarctic Survey.
. . The British and Belgian scientists said there was evidence that global warming and a thinning of the ozone layer over Antarctica, caused by human chemicals, had strengthened winds blowing clockwise around Antarctica. The peninsula's chain of mountains, about 2,000 meters high, used to shield the Larsen ice shelf on its eastern side from the warmer winds. "If the westerlies strengthen, the number of times that the warm air gets over the mountain barrier increases quite dramatically."
. . There is evidence from sediments on the seabed --which differ if covered by ice or open water-- that the Larsen ice shelf had been in place for 5,000 years. The collapse of the Larsen B ice shelf did not raise world sea levels because the ice was floating. [However, most of the rise comes from warming the water, which *will happen to that water now.]

Oct 14, 06: The American West is becoming warmer faster on average than the rest of the world, a climate researcher says.

Oct 12, 06: A new survey of coral reefs along Madagascar's southwestern coast found massive damage from coral bleaching caused by rising sea temperatures, researchers said. Scientists also discovered several small reefs with corals that appeared to be resilient to rising sea temperatures and that could be used to reseed damaged reefs.
. . Algae called zooxanthellae live within the coral, give it its brilliant reds, oranges and browns and through photosynthesis provide 98% of the coral's food. Warmer sea temperatures block the photosynthesis and cause the coral to shed the algae, leaving the coral white and possibly leading to the death of the coral.
. . Sea temperatures in many tropical areas have been rising over the past 100 years and coral bleaching has become common. The survey in southwest Madagascar found that some reefs had lost up to 99% of their coral cover.

Oysters exposed to heated water and a common heavy metal are unable to obtain enough oxygen to fuel bodily processes, a new study shows.

Oct 12, 06: Failing to fight global warming now will cost trillions of dollars by the end of the century even without counting biodiversity loss or unpredictable events like the Gulf Stream shutting down, a study said. But acting now will avoid some of the massive damage and cost relatively little, said the study commissioned by Friends of the Earth.
. . The study said the cost of inaction by governments and individuals could hit 11 trillion pounds a year by 2100, or 6 to 8% of global economic output then. Spending just 1.6 trillion pounds a year now to limit temperature rises to two degrees could avoid annual economic damage of around 6.4 trillion pounds, the Tufts report said.
. . "For business, tackling climate change is both a necessity and a huge opportunity. We have to step up to the challenge", Shell UK chairman James Smith said.
. . The British government is in the closing stages of a ground-breaking global study of the economic costs of climate change which is expected to be published within the next two weeks stressing the massive costs of inaction. During a debate in parliament, Environment Minister David Miliband said the problem was worse than previously thought and the sternest challenge faced by mankind.

Oct 12, 06: A rare early October snowstorm left parts of the Great Lakes and Midwest blanketed with 2 feet of snow, October 13. The system brought snow, high winds and gusts, and cold temperatures to the region beginning on Wednesday. By Friday, many cities saw snow records broken.

Oct 13, 06: Firefighters in four Australian states battled bushfires fanned by soaring temperatures and strong winds, as worsening drought pitched bone-dry rural Australia into recession, its riverbeds cracked and empty.

Oct 12, 06: Australian Prime Minister John Howard has said that the country's worsening drought could hit economic growth. Mr Howard said the drought, which some experts have described as one of the worst on record in Australia, would "affect our GDP growth". Global wheat prices surged to 10-year highs earlier this week after Australian officials warned the country's harvest could be cut in half.
. . Eastern Australia has had five years of below average rainfall, and more than 90% of New South Wales, which contains Sydney, is said to be suffering from drought. Reports said that farmers have abandoned crops in South Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales.

Oct 12, 06: Cows produce as much as 500 liters of methane per day. e.g. there are more than two million in the UK. They are the UK's biggest single source of methane --a gas 23 times more potent than carbon dioxide when it comes to global warming. In fact, cattle are responsible for about 3% of all Britain's greenhouse gases. Reduce that and experts say you not only make farming greener and more efficient, it could help Britain achieve its commitments under the Kyoto agreement.
. . "Cows don't ruminate anymore", concludes Professor David Beever, an expert on nutrition with feed producer Richard Keenan and Co. He believes that their food is not chewy enough, so they do not break it down in their mouths before it gets to their rumen. It is inefficient and produces more methane. Part of his solution is to cut their silage feed to make it longer or chewier - "it's like adjusting the carburetor". "Instead of perhaps 35 liters of methane per liter of milk, it could be as low as 25 or 20." Elsewhere in labs and farm yards, scientists are trying out inoculations, microbes or even extracts of garlic.
. . "Methane's a short-lived gas in the atmosphere. So if we can reduce our methane emissions now, that will allow us to buy time for technologies to come in place to reduce our carbon dioxide emissions."

Oct 12, 06: The world's top polluting nations agreed new energy-generating technologies are needed to curb global warming and developing countries asked rich states for training and know-how, a World Bank official said.
. . Energy and environment ministers from the 20 biggest polluting countries met behind closed doors for two days last week and vowed to work faster to control greenhouse gases as scientists told them each year wasted would cost them dearly.
. . Time is running out to avoid a more than 2 degrees Celsius average global temperature rise over pre-industrial revolution levels and technology agreements should urgently be explored, said a copy of the meeting's findings.
. . Two-thirds of the growth in energy demand in the next 25 years will be from developing countries --mainly for transport-- as renewable energy ramps up but oil, gas and coal are still likely to fuel 83% of energy use in 2030.
. . Renewable energy sources, from solar generators in Sri Lanka to wind turbines in China and geothermal generators in Kenya, have grown to supply about 4% of world demand.
. . The next meeting of energy and environment ministers to coordinate a global action plan to combat global warming is set for mid-2007 in Germany with the plan due to be set in 2008.

Oct 7, 06: A volcanic eruption on the Papua New Guinea island of New Britain today caused panicked residents to flee homes and sent ash plumes 18 km into the air. [That cools the Earth for a couple years (particles), then warms it for a century (CO2).]

Oct 5, 06: Climate talks between the world's top 20 polluters have ended with an unusual level of agreement on the urgent need to tackle greenhouse gas emissions. But delegates at the Mexico talks also stressed the massive gap between the politics and science of climate change.
. . There was a clear message from the International Energy Agency (IEA) and British government-backed economist Sir Nicholas Stern that it was better --and cheaper-- to cut greenhouse gas emissions now than to wait for the climate to change then try to adapt. But Bank representatives made it clear that there was no sign of the $20 billion (£10.6bn) investment program heralded by the UK Chancellor Gordon Brown.
. . The US, which was present at the talks, is objecting to parts of the proposal. The Under-Secretary of State for Global Affairs, Paula Dobriansky, told the BBC that the US was now acting urgently to tackle greenhouse gases --then later admitted that the country's emissions would continue to rise.
. . Another US delegate agreed that the world would face inevitable sea level rise because of climate change. But when informally asked if the US opposition to mandatory CO2 cuts had changed in any way in response to a surge in concern over recent science of climate change, economically replied "no".
. . The Indians despatched only their concerned environment minister, instead of their unconcerned energy minister who has far more sway over India's emissions. So, for all the positive mood of the meeting in this spectacular northern Mexican city, surrounded by towering limestone mountains, it is hard to be optimistic.

The Eocene was a period of intense warming, and a lot of people believe it was due to greenhouse effects. A new estimate of Eocene CO2-level is based on the discovery of the rare sodium carbonate mineral nahcolite in two large deposits that date to the Eocene. Crucially, nahcolite is only expected to crystallize from salty water when the atmosphere contains 1,125 ppm or more of carbon dioxide. "That's the lowest it could have possibly been," says geologist Tim Lowenstein. [Methane too, was probably high. And cud crystallization differ in a higher air pressure? ]

Oct 4, 06: In some regions, climate change models predict new rainfall patterns that may affect how leaves on forest floors decompose. Entomologists from the U of Kentucky report that low rainfall leads to a series of events that result in faster decomposition. Drought usually slows down the fungi's ability to decompose plants --after all, fungi do not like dryness and grow more slowly. But they've discovered that decomposition actually occured faster during a drought than during excessive rains.
. . Wandering spiders, it seemed, were helping out. In times of drought, springtails overgraze on the fungi and reduce their numbers. But no matter the weather, the spiders feed on the springtails. When spiders gobble up those bugs during a drought, it takes pressure off the fungi, allowing the latter to grow and quickly cycle nutrients back to the plants despite the drought.

Oct 4, 06: One of the world's most prominent business leaders has expressed his fears over the "daunting" challenge of preventing dangerous climate change. Rick Samans, head of the Davos-based World Economic Forum, said the global effort to tackle the problem was beginning 10-15 years late. He said politicians had to act fast and set targets to cut CO2 emissions.
. . Mr Samans made his comments at a conference of the world's top 20 polluting nations in Mexico.

Oct 4, 06: A UK-commissioned study on the economics of climate change will advocate taking action to combat global warming as soon as possible, seeing the costs of such action as manageable, Britain's Treasury said today.
. . The review's author Nicholas Stern, former World Bank chief economist, presented his findings to energy and environment ministers of the world's top 20 polluters at a meeting in Mexico.
. . Stern contrasted the economic costs of the damage caused by uncontrolled climate change --saying these were potentially much higher then previously expected-- with the costs of taking action now to cut greenhouse gas emissions. "Action is urgent --the earlier we start, the greater the chance we will have of limiting the risks of dangerous climate change", the Treasury said in its statement summarizing Stern's analysis. "The costs of action are manageable if policies are well designed."

Sept 29, 06: In a challenge to the Conservative prime minister, Canada's independent environment commissioner called for stepping up the country's efforts to combat global warming.
. . In a hard-hitting report, Federal Environment Commissioner Johanne Gelinas also criticized the former Liberal government's attempts to curb greenhouse gases and called for a massive increase in Canada's efforts to combat and prepare for climate change. "The government urgently needs a believable, clear and realistic plan to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions", said the report. "It must establish and commit to short-and long-term national goals. The current government has announced that Canada cannot realistically meet its Kyoto target. If so, then new targets should take its place."
. . Under the terms of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, Canada is committed to a 6% cut in greenhouse emissions from 1990 levels by 2012. Canada's emissions are now 30% above 1990 levels.
. . Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Environment Minister Rona Ambrose are working on a new environment plan, Green Plan 2, but their comments to date suggest they intend to focus on smog rather than global warming.
. . The commissioner came down hard on the oil sector, saying its greenhouse emissions have increased more than 50% since 1990 and that emissions from Canada's oil sands projects in Alberta could double by 2015, countering efforts to cut emissions in other sectors unless new technologies are adopted.

Sept 27, 06: People "should be scared" about global warming --and be ready to take action to help tackle the problem, says British Environment Secretary David Miliband. Mr Miliband later said the government was putting £10m into a scheme to boost use of renewable energy, particularly wind power.
. . Mr Miliband told BBC Radio 4's Today program that if a million people switched to low-energy light bulbs, the effect would be the same as taking 70,000 cars off Britain's roads. He said he wanted to give incentives to power companies to encourage householders to switch to greater energy efficiency.
. . "People say there should be a debate about global warming. But I tell you the debate is over; the reckoning has begun. The truth is staring us in the face. Climate change is here, in our country; it is an issue for our generation as well as future generations; and those who deny it are the flat-earthers of the 21st century", he said.

Sept 27, 06: A team of international scientists has discovered why levels of methane, the second most important greenhouse gas, have stabilized in recent years but they warned today that the trend may not last.
. . Reduced and more efficient use of natural gas in the Northern Hemisphere in the 1990s had helped methane levels in the atmosphere to stabilize. Rising emissions from fossil fuel use in north Asia since 1999 have threatened to push up atmospheric levels but this has been balanced by lower emissions from wetlands as they dry up.
. . If the drying trend of wetlands is reversed and emissions from them return to normal levels, atmospheric methane will increase again and could worsen global warming, according to the authors.

Sept 26, 06: The energy output from the Sun has increased significantly during the 20th century, according to a new study. They examined meteorites that had fallen to Earth over the past 240 years. By analyzing the amount of titanium 44, a radioactive isotope, the team found a significant increase in the Sun's radioactive output during the 20th century. Over the past few decades, however, they found the solar activity has stabilized at this higher-than-historic level.
. . Prior research relied on measurements of certain radioactive elements within tree rings and in the ice sheets covering Greenland and Antarctica, which can be altered by terrestrial processes, not just by solar activity. The isotope measured in the new study is not affected by conditions on Earth.
. . The average global temperature at Earth's surface has risen by about 1 degree Fahrenheit since 1880. Some scientists debate whether the increase is part of a natural climate cycle or the result of greenhouse gases produced by cars and industrial processes.
. . The Sun's impact on climate has only recently been investigated. Recent studies show that an increase in solar output can cause short-term changes in Earth's climate, but there is no firm evidence linking solar activity with long-term climate effects.
. . The rise in solar activity at the beginning of the last century through the 1950s or so matches with the increase in global temperatures, Usoskin said. But the link doesn't hold up from about the 1970s to present. "During the last few decades, the solar activity is not increasing."
. . He suspects even if there were a link between the Sun's activity and global climate, other factors must have dominated during the last few decades, including the increase of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Sept 26, 06: Scientists could soon predict when and where monster waves generated by hurricanes will strike, thanks to new computer models and data from a seven-year study that involved researchers flying into the center of the violent tempests.
. . From 1998 to 2005, NASA flew a device called a Scanning Radar Altimeter (SRA) into hurricanes and tropical storms. NOAA is designing its own SRA-type instrument, which should be ready for the 2007 hurricane season.
. . How high ocean waves get during hurricanes depend on numerous factors, including the storm's wind speed, how far the reach of its winds extend and how fast the hurricane is moving. Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 generated waves over 12 meters tall. In September 2004, scientists with the Naval Research Laboratory in Mississippi measured a record-sized 91-foot wave when the eye wall of Hurricane Ivan passed over sensors in open water over the Gulf of Mexico.

Sept 25, 06: Earth may be close to the warmest it has been in the last million years, especially in the part of the Pacific Ocean where potentially violent El Nino weather patterns are born, climate scientists reported today.
. . This doesn't necessarily mean there will be more frequent El Ninos --which can disrupt normal weather around the world-- but could well mean that these wild patterns will be stronger when they occur, said James Hansen of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies. El Ninos can push temperatures higher than they might ordinarily be. This happened in 1998 when a so-called "super El Nino" helped heat the Earth to a record high. What is significant, the scientists wrote, is that 2005 was in the same temperature range as 1998, and probably was the warmest year ever, with *no* sign of the warm surface water in the eastern equatorial Pacific typical of an El Nino.
. . Overall, Earth is within 1 degree C of its highest temperature levels in the past million years, Hansen and the others wrote. They noted a recent steep rise in average temperatures.
. . The Earth has been warming at a rate of 0.36 degree F per decade for the last 30 years, according to the research team led by James Hansen of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York. That brings the overall temperature to the warmest in the current interglacial period, which began about 12,000 years ago.
. . "If further global warming reaches 2 or 3 degrees Celsius, we will likely see changes that make Earth a different planet than the one we know. The last time it was that warm was in the middle Pliocene, about 3 million years ago, when sea level was estimated to have been about 25 meters (80 feet) higher than today", Hansen said.
. . The warm outlook, after the mildest winter on record last year, is due to uncertainty over the El Nino --a warming of Pacific waters around the equator that can drive weather patterns around the globe.
. . The planet's warming that has begun to affect plants and animals, researchers report in today's issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The researchers noted that a report found that 1,700 plant, animal and insect species moved poleward at an average rate of about 6km per decade in the last half of the 20th century.

Sept 25, 06: Hooded seals that normally prefer to live on ice in the Arctic region have been spotted farther south in increasing numbers, puzzling biologists. In a typical year, 25 to 35 hooded seals might venture to the U.S. Northeast Coast and get stranded, typically in winter. Seldom are they ever spotted off the Southeast coast.
. . But this year, 47 have become stranded in the Northeast and eight in the Southeast. Oddly, the majority of the strandings occurred during summer. The seals have been spotted as far south as the U.S. Virgin Islands this year.
. . Hooded seals are so-named because they have an inflated air sac, or hood, atop their noses. Pups are typically born in March or April. After about five days, a pub is left by its mother to fend for itself. They are very solitary except when breeding and are known to migrate large distances. Most of the strandings have involved juveniles. "The animals coming ashore are severely dehydrated, suffering from heat exhaustion, sunburn and often alopecia (hair loss)."
. . A similar spike in southern strandings occurred in 2001. Scientists don't know what's going on, but they speculated Friday that thinning pack ice that breaks up early could be to blame, or perhaps the juveniles head farther south during years with high birth rates.

Sept 24, 06: Scientists have issued their strongest warning so far this year that unusually warm Caribbean Sea temperatures threaten coral reefs that suffered widespread damage last year in record-setting heat. Waters have reached 85 degrees around the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico —-temperatures at which coral can be damaged if waters do not cool after a few weeks. The water was not expected to become as warm as last year, when sea temperatures in the territories hovered near 86 degrees for months at a time and as much as 40% of the coral died around the U.S. Virgin Islands.
. . The warning issued by NOAA urges scuba-dive operators and underwater researchers in the U.S. Caribbean territories to look for coral damage and use caution around the fragile reefs, which are easily damaged by physical contact.
. . Coral, which provide a sheltered habitat for fish, lobsters and other animals, die from prolonged bleaching, when the water temperature gets so high that it kills the algae that populate and build the reefs.

And yet, overall: Sept 21, 06: Despite the long term warming trend seen around the globe, the oceans have cooled in the last three years, scientists announced today. The temperature drop, a small fraction of the total warming seen in the last 48 years, suggests that global warming trends can sometimes take little dips.
. . Study co-author Josh Willis, a researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "This cooling is probably natural climate variability. The oceans today are still warmer than they were during the 1980s, and most scientists expect the oceans will eventually continue to warm in response to human-induced climate change."
. . The rising of sea level occurs due to the thermal expansion of the oceans from the heating and chunks and runoff from melting ice sheets and glaciers. "The recent cooling episode suggests sea level should have actually decreased in the past two years," Willis said. "Despite this, sea level has continued to rise. This may mean that sea level rise has recently shifted from being mostly caused by warming to being dominated by melting. This idea is consistent with recent estimates of ice-mass loss in Antarctica and accelerating ice-mass loss on Greenland."
. . Study co-author John Lyman of NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory. "Other studies have shown that a similar rapid cooling took place from 1980 to 1983. But overall, the long-term trend is warming. The capacity of Earth's oceans to store the sun's energy is more than 1,000 times that of Earth's atmosphere. It's important to measure upper ocean temperature, since 84% of the heat absorbed by Earth since the mid-1950s has gone toward warming the ocean. Measuring ocean temperature is really measuring the progress of global warming."
. . Researchers have not yet identified the cause of ocean cooling in the last three years but hope that further studies will clarify this anomaly. Some say it could be due to events such as volcanic eruptions.

Sept 20, 06: European scientists voiced shock as they showed pictures which showed Arctic ice cover had disappeared so much last month that a ship could sail unhindered from Europe's most northerly outpost to the North Pole itself.
. . Perennial sea ice --thick ice that is normally present year-round and is not affected by the Arctic summer-- had disappeared over an area bigger than the British Isles, ESA said. Vast patches of ice-free sea stretched north of Svalbard, an archipelago lying midway between Norway and the North Ple, and extended deep into the Russian Arctic, all the way to the North Pole.

Sept 20, 06: Business leaders must tackle climate change now before it is too late and not leave the issue to the environmental lobby, an executive at one of Germany's leading utilities told a conference.
. . Speaking at a meeting to explore what businesses can do to minimize the negative effects of climate change, Juergen Hogrefe, senior executive at Germany's third-largest power supplier, said businesses needed to be much more pro-active. His calls were echoed by David King, chief scientific advisor to the British government, who said business leaders and politicians needed to work together to ensure that industry does all it can to reduce its environmental impact.

Sept 20, 06: Greenland's massive ice sheet is melting much quicker than scientists had estimated and the pace has accelerated lately, according to new research. An analysis of satellite observations shows the rate of ice loss rose 250% between the periods April 2002 to April 2004 and May 2004 to April 2006, most of it in southern Greenland.
. . The ice sheet is now shrinking by about 248 cubic kilometers each year, which is equivalent to a rise in sea level around the world of 0.5 millimeters. Los Angeles County uses about one cubic kilometer a year.
. . Greenland's ice sheet is so huge that if it melted entirely, sea levels across the world would rise by about 7 meters.

Sept 20, 06: California sued six of the world's largest automakers over global warming on Wednesday, charging that greenhouse gases from their vehicles have caused billions of dollars in damages.
. . The lawsuit is the first of its kind to seek to hold manufacturers liable for the damages caused by their vehicles' emissions, state Attorney General Bill Lockyer said. It also comes less than a month after California lawmakers adopted the nation's first global warming law mandating a cut in greenhouse gas emissions.
. . It noted that California is spending millions to deal with reduced snow pack, beach erosion, ozone pollution and the impact on endangered animals and fish.

Jonathan Freedland: The stand-out case is that of Philip Cooney, a former lobbyist for the US oil industry, who wound up —despite no scientific training— as chief of staff of the White House's environment office. From that perch, he set about rewriting papers by government scientists, turning firm conclusions into doubtful possibilities. He literally got out his pen and changed "is" to "may". He was caught and left the Bush Administration, taking a job at ExxonMobil. But Cooney is just an unusually blatant example of what is a continuing campaign by Big Oil to cast doubt over climate change.
. . Gore notes that of 928 peer-reviewed scientific papers on the topic in the past decade, the percentage that express doubt over the cause of global warming is zero.

Sept 19, 06: Temperatures in central England are about 1C higher than in the 1950s, and humanity's greenhouse gas emissions are the reason, a new study indicates. Researchers at the Meteorological Office analyzed temperature records going back almost 350 years. In 1950, the average temperature was about 9.4C; now it is about 10.4C.
. . Computer models of climate demonstrate that the warming observed over the past 50 years is extremely unlikely to be part of a natural cycle. The probability was, they calculated, less than 5%.
. . Recent studies show British animals migrating northwards, and spring arriving earlier right across Europe.

Sept 19, 06: A warm-water Atlantic triple fin fish has for the first time been caught off the coast of Britain, in another sign of species migrating north as global temperatures rise, experts have said.
. . The triple fin fish is usually found off the coasts of Africa, South America and the Mediterranean. The .6 meter mature adult was handed in to the National Museum of Wales, where expert Julian Carter said that its discovery was another indication of the warming of British waters.
. . In August, a fisherman looking for salmon off the northeast coast of England caught a large swordfish far away from its natural habitat in the Mediterranean, experts said.
. . In July, scientists reported that a shoal of sunfish --the world's largest bony fish-- had been spotted in the waters off Cornwall, south west Britain, despite normally being found thousands of miles away. The sunfish, which is considered a warm water species, is a flat oval beast weighing up to two tons and growing up to three meters long. They have migrated from the warmer waters of the equatorial Atlantic Ocean to feed on the mass of jellyfish attracted to British waters by high temperatures.

Sept 18, 06: Oxygen taken from tree rings could help settle the question of whether hurricanes are getting stronger and more frequent, U.S. researchers said. They had used the method to reconstruct a 220-year history of cyclone activity for southern Georgia. Their findings confirmed the recent hurricane record and suggest a way to track the weather record going farther back in time.
. . "Recent studies suggest a sharp increase in hurricane activity and intensity since the mid-1990s", they wrote in their report. The researchers found evidence of three big storms in the 1870s, for instance. "Other decades of apparent activity include the 1840 and 1850 decades, 1800-1820 decades, and 1770s decade."

Sept 18, 06: With a steady stream of bleak predictions that "water wars" will be fought over dwindling supplies in the 21st century, battles between two Sumerian city-states 4,500 years ago seem to set a worrying precedent.
. . But the good news, many experts say, is that the conflict between Lagash and Umma over irrigation rights in what is now Iraq was the last time two states went to war over water. Down the centuries since then, international rivals sharing waters such as the Jordan River, the Nile, the Ganges or the Parana have generally favored cooperation over conflict. So if history can be trusted, things may stay that way.
. . "The simple explanation is that water is simply too important to fight over", said Aaron Wolf, a professor at Oregon State University. "Nations often go to the brink of war over water and then resolve their differences."
. . The English word "rival" even comes from the Latin "rivalis" meaning "someone sharing a river."
. . Planting extra crops to produce biofuels and global warming --which could bring more erosion, droughts and floods-- could add new pressures, the report said. But it added that there was enough water to go around, with better planning.
. . The academics' view is not shared everywhere. "If we don't address the water issue in the Middle East in a coherent way there will be a war. There's scarcity and when it comes to water it's a matter of life", said Shadad Attilik, a Palestinian who conducts water negotiations with Israel. He said vital aquifers in the Gaza Strip were being polluted and causing health problems.
. . Experts note that violence over water often breaks out within countries --over rivers, lakes, oases or wells. In Kenya, dozens of people died early this year in fighting between nomadic tribes over scant water and grazing rights. Tamil Tiger rebels were accused of shutting off sluices in Sri Lanka in August in their separatist war with government forces.
. . Steiner said countries most vulnerable to water scarcity included already conflict-prone Chad, Sudan and Somalia, as well as Ethiopia, parts of Pakistan, south India and China.
. . Among signs of cooperation, Israel and Jordan held secret talks about managing the Jordan River from the 1950s, even when they were technically at war. The Indus River commission kept going despite wars between India and Pakistan.
. . Among military acts, Israel in the 1960s destroyed Syrian construction on the headwaters of the Jordan River which was part of a project to divert waters for an "all-Arab" water plan.
. . But those predicting future "water wars" should also consider another problem: how do you secure victory? "If you conquer territory to gain control over a river you still have to provide water to people living there", said Anders Jaegerskog of the Stockholm International Water Institute. "It's very difficult to imagine how you win a water war."

Sept 18, 06: Australia is the driest continent, but chronic water problems in its cities and rural areas are the result of poor management rather than water scarcity, a new report said. As Australia braces for another searing summer and a worsening drought, a report for a business lobby group said rather than restrict water use, governments should fix water supply flaws, which would boost the economy by as much as A$9 billion.
. . Since 2002, Australians have endured one of the worst droughts in recorded history, with governments imposing restrictions on householders watering their gardens and banning people from using hoses to wash their cars.
. . The long dry spell has given rise to multi-billion dollar proposals to "turn the rivers around" and pipe water thousands of kilometers from the wet tropical north to the drought-affected southeast where most of Australia's 20 million people live.
. . The country's weather bureau is now predicting a drier and hotter than average spring from September to November, with a possible drought-inducing El Nino in its early stages.
. . Visiting Australia last week, Al Gore warned Australia had more to fear from global warming than almost any other nation. Water expert Peter Cullen from the University of Canberra said "Much of what is happening now we were not expecting to see until 2050."

Sept 16, 06: Mayors from 32 U.S cities were urged today to be leaders in slowing global warming by taking steps in their communities. "We need to find the leadership in this country", said Mayor Rocky Anderson of Salt Lake City at a conference on climate change. "If it's not going to come from the top down. ... We need to push from the bottom up."

Sept 14, 06: El Nino conditions have developed in the tropical Pacific and are likely to continue into early 2007, scientists announced today.
. . El Nino is marked by warmer water in the Pacific off the coast of South America. It alters weather patterns in the United States and throttles hurricane formation in the Atlantic by pumping energy high into the atmosphere and fueling wind currents that cross the Americas and shear the tops off some Atlantic storms before they can develop into hurricanes. The shift helps explain why this Atlantic hurricane season has been less active than was previously expected.
. . If El Nino continues to hold, the United States should expect wetter-than-average conditions over portions of the Gulf Coast and southeastern states in the first three months of 2007, and warmer-than-average conditions would likely settle in over the West, the northern Great Plains and the upper Midwest.

Sept 13, 06: A leading U.S. climate researcher said today the world has a 10-year window of opportunity to take decisive action on global warming and avert a weather catastrophe.
. . NASA scientist James Hansen, widely considered the doyen of American climate researchers, said governments must adopt an alternative scenario to keep carbon dioxide emission growth in check and limit the increase in global temperatures to 1 degree Celsius. If the world continues with a "business as usual" scenario, Hansen said temperatures will rise by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius and "we will be producing a different planet."
. . On that warmer planet, ice sheets would melt quickly, causing a rise in sea levels that would put most of Manhattan under water. The world would see more prolonged droughts and heat waves, powerful hurricanes in new areas and the likely extinction of 50% of species.
. . Hansen, who heads NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, has made waves before by saying that Pres Bush's administration tried to silence him and heavily edited his and other scientists' findings on a warmer world.
. . He iterated that the United States "has passed up the opportunity" to influence the world on global warming. Hansen praised California for taking the "courageous" step of passing legislation on global warming last month that will make it the first U.S. state to place caps on greenhouse gas emissions. He said the alternative scenario he advocates involves promoting energy efficiency and reducing dependence on carbon burning fuels.

Sept 13, 06: Rich nations must do far more to help poor countries cope with the consequences of climate change, an influential report is expected to say. The author, former World Bank chief economist Sir Nicholas Stern, will say it is cheaper to act now rather than try to deal with the problem later.
. . UK Chancellor Gordon Brown commissioned Sir Nicholas to examine the economics of climate change and its impacts. Mr Brown and the UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair, hope the findings will end a long-running debate between economists about the best way to deal with the problem.
. . Sir Nicholas will say that the West will also have to pay far more to help poor nations cope with the problems caused by carbon emissions.
. . Bangladesh is one nation that experts believe will be hardest hit by a warming world. Between 10-30 million people could be forced from their homes by the end of the century, say Bangladeshi government officials.
. . Sir Nicholas is expected to present his conclusions to the leaders of the world's wealthiest nations at a G8 climate meeting in Mexico at the beginning of October.

Sept 13, 06: Variation in the brightness of the Sun is NOT the major factor behind the unusual warming the Earth has experienced over the past few centuries, a new study suggests. Researchers traced changes in our parent star's energy output back to the 17th century, and found that solar cycles, peaking nearly every 11 years, did not play a significant role in contributing to global warming.
. . Earth's warming trend, which climate reconstructions show began in the 17th century, has accelerated in the last 100 years. Most studies reveal that this temperature rise could be attributed to the increase of greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere.
. . "Our results imply that, over the past century, climate change due to human influences must far outweigh the effects of changes in the Sun's brightness", said study co-author Tom Wigley of the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

Sept 13, 06: The increasingly urgent need to combat climate change will probably spawn U.S. policies to impose fossil fuel charges and so dramatically favor nuclear power, Citigroup said in a research note today.
. . Burning fossil fuels such as coal and oil is one of the biggest sources of the greenhouse gas emissions that scientists fear are leading to dangerous climate change.
. . In response, a carbon market in Europe already charges heavy industry to emit carbon dioxide (CO2) above a certain limit --requiring companies to buy tradeable carbon credits-- and some U.S. states are set to adopt similar schemes.
. . This will sort winners from losers in power markets, with nuclear especially seen benefiting from increases in power prices driven by carbon charging, as zero-carbon emitters facing none of the costs of having to buy carbon credits.

Sept 11, 06: European and Asian leaders pledged today to keep cutting greenhouse gases after the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012. But delegates at the two-day summit stopped short of setting new targets beyond the Kyoto agreement, reflecting Asian concerns that sharp emissions cuts could sap the strength of energy-hungry developing economies.
. . German Chancellor Angela Merkel said "In comparison to 10 years ago, now all countries recognize that climate change is an important issue, that we must continue Kyoto, that the time after 2012 must be in our sights and that we must do everything possible to improve energy efficiency and, at the same time, facilitate economic growth."
. . In a joint declaration, the leaders at the summit recognized that developing countries have "legitimate priority needs" to develop their economies and lift millions out of poverty.
. . "We are committed to enhancing energy efficiency and scaling up new and renewable energy, adapted to local circumstances", they said, such as oil and gas. But in the longer term, the only real answers are technological breakthroughs, they agreed. Leaders promised to push this forward, by working with international financing and development institutions to encourage investment in clean energy.
. . European and other governments will step up efforts to draw the United States back into the framework of mandatory cuts in carbon dioxide, methane and other emissions blamed for global warming.
. . The US is the world's biggest greenhouse-gas emitter, and the Clinton administration was instrumental in negotiating the treaty protocol initialed in 1997 in Kyoto, Japan —-a pact the Senate subsequently refused to ratify.

Sept 12, 06: Former US vice president Al Gore called on fast-growing China and India to step up their efforts to tackle climate change. He's in Hong Kong to promote his environmental documentary "An Inconvenient Truth", said he noticed thick smog in the territory, mostly due to factories in China's booming Pearl River Delta region. Local coal-burning power stations and diesel-powered buses are also major contributors to the poor air quality.
. . "But it happens to every nation. Every nation must be a part of the solution, including China. The wealthier industrial countries that have done the most to create the problem should go first and begin to solve the crisis", he said, also calling on China, India and other developing economies to make efforts. "There is no doubt that the climate crisis is the most serious crisis we have ever faced in the history of human civilization", he added.
. . China, which is already the second largest polluter behind the US, increased its emissions by 33% between 1992 and 2002. India's emissions grew 57% in the same period.

Sept 13, 06: Thousands of plant species are being pushed to the brink of extinction by global warming, and those already at the extremes are in the greatest danger, a leading botanist said today.
. . Paul Smith, head of Britain's Millennium Seed Bank, said the drylands of the world which cover 40% of the earth's surface and are home to more than 1/3 of the population faced the bleakest future. "In the southern hemisphere the plants can either go up or south. But in South Africa's Cape they can't do either, so the 8,000 unique species of fijnbos (indigenous vegetation) there are a real worry."
. . Smith's team is on target to have sorted and stored seeds from 10% of the world's plant species by 2010 in a race against time as global temperatures rise due to burning fossil fuels for transport and power.
. . "The trouble is that when we started collecting, it was generally agreed that there were 242,000 plant species. But now some people believe it could be as high as 400,000. "We really need to find out just what is out there before it has gone forever."
. . But it is not just in the southern hemisphere that climate change is creating radical changes in the environment as warm weather expends steadily northwards, bringing with it new species and threatening the local vegetation.
. . In England, not only had the climate already changed to favor drought-resistant Mediterranean plant and tree species, it had brought with it insect pests that were previously unknown there because they would not have survived the winter frosts.

Sept 11, 06: The Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew has issued a "position paper" saying that man-made global warming is changing the outlook for plants and trees worldwide. It says four species on its own lands are flowering earlier each year.
. . Kew's conservation scientists say other human activities such as the expansion of cities are also hurting plants, some which poorer societies depend on. It advises gardeners in Britain to adopt water-conserving techniques such as mulching and composting.
. . "We [see] extinctions at about 1,000 times the natural rate. What's behind them isn't always clear --it can be climate, overgrazing, overpopulation-- but the fact is they are happening, and the reasons are likely to be anthropogenic."
. . It is publishing evidence that oak, rowan, box and cow parsley are all flowering between nine and 15 days earlier in the year than they were a few decades ago.

Sept 11, 06: Hurricanes feed on warm water, and a study released today shows a link between warmer ocean temperatures and human use of fossil fuels, challenging skeptics who blame them on natural climate cycles.
. . "Our paper suggests that it's human-induced burning of fossil fuels that have altered the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that have led to this warming in regions where Atlantic and Pacific hurricanes form", said Benjamin Santer, a climate scientist and co-author of an article in this week's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
. . Santer and his colleagues focused on these hurricane zones, and used computer models to figure out what the world would have been like if the Industrial Revolution had never happened. The scientists estimated an 84 percent chance that at least two-thirds of the sea surface temperature increase were due to human activity. The 22 computer models in the laboratory's international archive were necessary, since it is impossible to directly observe what Earth's climate might be without modern industry, he said.

Sept 8, 06: The Earth was hotter in the late 20th Century than it had been in the last 400 or possibly 1,000 years, a report requested by the US Congress concludes. It backs some of the key findings of the original study that gave rise to the iconic "hockey stick" graph. The diagram, which shows a sharp upturn in temperatures in recent decades, has been a prime target for groups who doubt humans are warming the planet.
. . These skeptics had challenged the way the hockey stick data was assembled. They argued it had been massaged to produce the distinctive shape. The fall-out culminated in one US politician demanding to see financial and research records from the three scientists who had put the data together: Michael Mann, Raymond Bradley, and Malcolm Hughes (sometimes referred to simply as MBH).
. . The new report, carried out by a panel of the US-based National Research Council (NRC), largely vindicates the researchers' work, first published in 1998. The review looked at large-scale surface temperature reconstructions from different research groups, together with instrumental records, to try to establish the Earth's surface temperature over the last 2,000 years
. . Professor Phil Jones, director of the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia, UK, and a collaborator with Professor Mann,said: "I am mostly happy with the report, but there wasn't much need for it amongst palaeoclimatologists. The vast majority believe we are at our warmest temperature levels for at least 1,000 years.

Sept 8, 06: Climate change is "potentially the most serious threat there has ever been" to security and prosperity, according to Britain's new climate ambassador. [Well, maybe not bigger than the KT hit... maybe.] John Ashton says climate change must be tackled "whatever it costs". He argues that the costs of not solving it will inevitably be larger.
. . Environmentalists welcomed Mr Ashton's appointment, but warned the UK position is undermined by its rising emissions. Greenhouse gas production is increasing in virtually every country, and it is this that Mr Ashton believes makes climate change a real and urgent threat in Britain and around the globe
. . "We need to treat climate change not as a long term threat to our environment, but as an immediate threat to our security and prosperity", he writes. "We need to see the pursuit of a stable climate as an imperative to be secured whatever it costs through the urgent construction of a low carbon global economy, because the cost of not securing it will be far greater."
. . As special representative on climate change for the British foreign secretary, John Ashton's main role is to build a new international consensus on climate change. He believes that climate change, if it is not tackled effectively, will bring conflict through its impacts on societies and economies.
. . According to Felix Dodds, co-editor of the recent book Human Environmental Security - an Agenda for Change, diplomatic failure on climate change may well lead to conflict. "John Ashton is right in his analysis, and international discussions are critical to solving this issue", he said, "because the alternative is you do end up with military solutions. There is a time window, and that window is 10 to 15 years --if we don't deal with it now, the reality is we will have to use military means to secure water, food, and energy security."

Sept 7, 06: For the second year in a row, Earth's northern ice cap has shrunk alarmingly —-closely following the record-setting ice losses last year, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
. . Slightly cooler temperatures in August may keep the melting of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean from breaking the 2005 sea ice minimum record, say experts. In 2005 the ice shrank to an area of about 2 million square miles. Right now it's at less than 2.5 million square miles, and still shrinking,
. . There is a laundry list of ways global warming can melt sea ice. Among them are 1) by simply warming winter air temperatures, 2) opening up more water, which absorbs more sunlight than ice and then melts more ice, 3) those same open waters leading to thinner, more easily melted ice in winter, 4) all of that thinner ice melting in the summer, 5) broad changes in seasonal wind patterns (also known as the Arctic Oscillation) that can flush out older, thicker and more durable ice, and 6) warmer waters from the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans seeping into the Arctic Ocean.
. . Most researchers believe it’s shifting combinations of these factors.

Sept 7, 06: Right across Britain, animals are on the march, moving northwards and going to higher ground as the climate warms, experts have told a major conference.
. . The scientists have studied how the ranges of more than 300 species --from small mammals to insects-- have changed over the past 25 years. About 80% of them have extended the northern margin of their domains, with an average shift of 30-60km. "Species are moving north, they're climbing mountains, they're retreating at their southern boundaries."
. . As well as the northward migration, some 70% of species shifted the elevations at which they commonly live, climbing on average by between five and 10 meters per decade.

Sept 7, 06: Global warming over the coming century could mean a return of temperatures last seen in the age of the dinosaur and lead to the extinction of up to half of all species, a scientist said today. Not only will CO2 levels be at the highest levels for 24 million years, but global average temperatures will be higher than for up to 10 million years, said Chris Thomas of the University of York.
. . Between 10 and 99% of species will be faced with atmospheric conditions that last existed before they evolved, and as a result from 10-50% of them could disappear. "We may very well already be on the breaking edge of a wave of mass extinctions", Thomas told the annual meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. "We are starting to put these things into a historical perspective. These are conditions not seen for millions of years, so none of the species will have been subjected to them before", he added.
. . Thomas said scientific observations had already found that --as predicted by the climate models-- 80% of species had already begun moving their traditional territorial ranges in response to the changing climatic conditions. "That is an amazingly high correlation. It is a clear signature of climate change", he said.
. . Not only had the animals, birds and insects started to react, but there was evidence vegetation was also on the move. For example, climate-triggered fungal pathogen outbreaks had already led to the extinction of more than 1% of the planet's amphibian species, Thomas said.
. . Not only would some species simply find no suitable space to live anymore, but there would be confrontations with invasive species being forced to move their territory. This would produce not just wipe-outs but species' mixtures never seen before.
. . And the changes would all happen at a faster rate than ever before in evolution. "In geological terms, 100 years is effectively instantaneous", Thomas noted.

Sept 6, 06: Shrinking glaciers are causing tons of rock to break loose from one of Switzerland's most famous mountains, the Eiger, and crash into the valley below. On the east face of the Eiger, two million cubic meters of rock, enough to build two Empire State Buildings, is gradually splitting away from the main mountain.
. . Until recently, the rock was held in place by the ice of the lower Grindelwald glacier, but now the ice has melted, revealing a mass of unstable limestone. The boulders are crashing down into an uninhabited gorge. Once a favorite tourist attraction, it is now closed, and the air is thick with the dust from fallen rock.
. . In June, July and August, more than half the water in the Rhine is glacial melt water. Falling river levels would threaten crop irrigation, and obstruct freight traffic on Europe's waterways.

Sept 6, 06: Global warming gases trapped in the soil are bubbling out of the thawing permafrost in amounts far higher than previously thought and may trigger what researchers warn is a climate time bomb.
. . Methane —-a greenhouse gas 23 times more powerful than CO2-— is being released from the permafrost at a rate five times faster than thought, according to a study in the journal Nature. The findings are based on new, more accurate measuring techniques.
. . Scientists worry about a global warming vicious cycle that was not part of their already gloomy climate forecast: Warming already under way thaws permafrost, soil that has been continuously frozen for thousands of years. Thawed permafrost releases methane and CO2. Those gases reach the atmosphere and help trap heat on Earth in the greenhouse effect. The trapped heat thaws more permafrost and so on.
. . "The higher the temperature gets, the more permafrost we melt, the more tendency it is to become a more vicious cycle", said Chris Field, director of global ecology at the Carnegie Institution of Washington, who was not part of the study. "That's the thing that is scary about this whole thing. There are lots of mechanisms that tend to be self-perpetuating and relatively few that tend to shut it off." Some scientists say this vicious cycle is already under way, but others disagree.
. . Most of the methane-releasing permafrost is in Siberia. Another study earlier this summer in the journal Science found that the amount of carbon trapped in this type of permafrost —called yedoma— is much more prevalent than originally thought and may be 100 times the amount of carbon released into the air each year by the burning of fossil fuels.
. . It won't all come out at once or even over several decades, but if temperatures increase, then the methane and CO2 will escape the soil, scientists say.
. . Most of the yedoma is in little-studied areas of northern and eastern Siberia. What makes that permafrost special is that much of it lies under lakes; the carbon below gets released as methane. Carbon beneath dry permafrost is released as CO2. Using special underwater bubble traps, Walter and her colleagues found giant hot spots of bubbling methane that were never measured before because they were hard to reach.
. . Scientists aren't quite sure whether methane or CO2 is worse. Methane is far more powerful in trapping heat, but only lasts about a decade before it dissipates into CO2 and other chemicals.

Sept 4, 06: Air from the oldest ice core confirms human activity has increased the greenhouse gas CO2 in the atmosphere to levels not seen for hundreds of thousands of years, scientists said today.
. . Bubbles of air in the 800,000-year-old ice, drilled in the Antarctic, show levels of CO2 changing with the climate. But the present levels are out of the previous range. "It is from air bubbles that we know for sure that CO2 has increased by about 35% in the last 200 years. Before the last 200 years, which man has been influencing, it was pretty steady", he added. The mode level of CO2 over most of the past 800,000 years has been 180-300 parts per million by volume (ppmv) of air. But today, it is at 380 ppmv.
. . "The most scary thing is that CO2 today is not just out of the range of what happened in the last 650,000 years but already up 100% out of the range." Wolff added that measurements of carbon isotopes showed the extra CO2 coming from a fossil source, due to increased human activity.
. . The ice core record showed it used to take about 1,000 years for a CO2 increase of 30 ppmv. It has risen by that much in the last 17 years alone.
. . "We really are in a situation where something is happening that we don't have any analog for in our records. It is an experiment that we don't know the result of", he added.
. . Professor Peter Smith, of the U of Nottingham in England, said the study showed more needed to be done. "There is an urgent need to find innovative technologies to reduce the impact we are having on our climate."

Sept 4, 06: Climate change is inevitable, and policies to help societies adapt to a warmer future are badly needed. That is the message from the President of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA), Frances Cairncross, at the BA annual festival.
. . She will tell delegates that even maximal deployment of the best technology cannot stop climate change. She will also say that improving scientific literacy would raise public understanding of environmental issues. "One of the most thorough reports was done by the International Energy Agency in the summer, and that suggested that even if we threw at climate change all we had at the moment, even if we put it all in place, we would still see a rise in the concentration of emissions. "[So] although we've got to continue taking steps to slow it down, we've also got to realise we're going to live in a warmer world."
. . She will urge countries to consider measures such as developing new crops, constructing flood defences, and banning building close to sea level.

Sept 4, 06: [sea-levels have risen drastically before...] Much of the Hudson Canyon was formed during the last Ice Age, over 10,000 years ago, when the sea level was about 125 meters lower and the mouth of the Hudson River was near the edge of the continental shelf, about 150km east of its present site. The features of the Hudson Canyon have been largely hidden beneath hundreds of meters of water.

Sept 4, 06: Britain can expect more tropical-style rainfall as climate change gathers pace, according to research carried out by Newcastle University.
. . Scientists said extreme conditions that are likely to lead to flooding have become more common and intense over the last 40 years. They found that rainstorms have doubled in intensity in places like eastern Scotland and north-east England. Storms are also becoming more intense in autumn, threatening flood defences.
. . "One solution could be to build storage facilities such as small reservoirs close to rivers to catch the excess water following extreme rainfall events. This could also help alleviate the potential for flooding as well as solve the water shortage crisis we are likely to experience in the summer months."

Sept 1, 06: The worst drought to hit southwest China in more than a century is spreading to neighboring provinces with temperatures reaching record highs, state media said.

Aug 30, 06: The amount of carbon absorbed by plant plankton in large segments of the Pacific Ocean is much less than previously estimated, researchers say. US scientists said the tiny ocean plants were absorbing up to two billion tons less CO2 because their growth was being limited by a lack of iron. Iron deposits provide nutrients for the microbes, which in turn grow by absorbing atmospheric CO2.
. . About 50 billion tons of CO2 was estimated to be absorbed by the world's oceans, so the reduction could mean up to 4% less CO2 being sequestered than previously thought.
. . Phytoplankton (tiny plants) play a key role in the world's carbon cycle, as they are involved in about half the Earth's photosynthesis; along with zooplankton (tiny animals), they form the base of the whole ocean food web.
. . The paper's lead author Michael Behrenfeld, from Oregon State University, said that when stressed by a lack of iron, the phytoplankton created additional pigments that glowed green, unlike normal pigments. But satellite imagery used to monitor the oceans' plankton blooms could not distinguish the difference, he said: "That green colour was not an indication of health, it was an indication of stress from the lack of iron."
. . "Windstorms blowing sand and dust off large deserts are a major source of iron for the world's ocean."
. . The researchers identified three large areas of the Pacific where phytoplankton appeared to be suffering from a lack of iron - the southern ocean around Antarctica, the sub-arctic north below Alaska, and a vast area in the tropical Pacific centerd on the equator.
. . Professor Behrenfeld has also been involved in previous experiments in which iron was added to the ocean in an attempt to boost productivity. The studies showed that it did boost phytoplankton growth, but it did not deliver the results that models had predicted. Professor Behrenfeld said introducing iron was complex: "When you first do it, there is an explosion of growth.
. . "Then you add a bit more iron, and the phytoplankton respond a bit more", he said. "But at the same time you are promoting plankton growth, the grazers that feed on them come to life because they suddenly have a more abundant food supply." [But wait... the grazers are still holding the carbon...]

Aug 31, 06: California made a bold move to curb global warming by passing today the first bill in the United States to cap man-made greenhouse gas emissions, an action state leaders hope will be copied across the country.
. . Aug 30, 06: California is set to introduce tough new legislation to cut greenhouse gas emissions under a deal reached by Governor Schwarzenegger. It would make California the first US state to impose a cap on expulsion of CO2 and other gases. He reached a deal with the Democrats who control the state legislature, defying the opposition of his fellow Republicans. The bill is due to go before a vote in the state assembly and senate before the legislative session closes tomorrow before elections to be held in November.
. . Under the plan, major industries would be required to cut their output of greenhouse gases, and would be able to trade emissions credits. Overall, California's emissions should be cut by 25% by 2020. The state, the most populous in the US, is the world's 12th largest emitter of greenhouse gases.
. . Last month, he signed an accord with British Prime Minister Tony Blair establishing joint research into cleaner-burning fuels and technologies. But the governor's commitment to emissions caps puts him at odds with the White House.

Aug 30, 06: A well-known resort town in a Canadian Pacific rain forest must shutter its hotels and businesses this week because a prolonged drought has slashed water supplies, officials said.

Aug 30, 06: Freshwater pouring into northern oceans is slowly turning high-latitude waters less salty. Shrinking ice sheets and melting glaciers are partly responsible for the freshening effect, a review has confirmed. If salinity levels continue to drop, dramatic changes to the North Atlantic currents could occur.
. . But more work is needed to be sure that rising global temperatures are to blame, say the authors. "For the last 50 years, oceanographers have been cruising seas at northern latitudes taking vertical profiles of salinity, and they have observed gradual declines. The salt water, although still very salty, is getting fresher."
. . The volume of fresh water is a good match for the amount which rivers, precipitation, sea-ice melt and glacier melt are producing. Run-off from these sources must be creating the dilution effect, the researchers conclude.
. . In the north, the warm water arriving via surface currents sinks and flows back to warmer climes through the deep ocean. Because fresher water is less dense, it does not sink so far as salty water would at the same temperature. "The organisms in the oceans are affected by the distribution of sea ice, and by temperatures and salinity fields, and all of these would change. Changes in these currents would have tremendous impact for fisheries and other species important to man."

Aug 29, 06: A 30-mile maze of canyons in Antarctica was carved out of bedrock by the catastrophic draining of subglacial lakes during global warming between 12 million and 14 million years ago, according to university researchers who warn a similar event today could have serious environmental consequences.
. . Although scientists have previously theorized that the Labyrinth region in southern Victoria Land was created by water released from lakes that had formed under glaciers, researchers at Syracuse University and Boston University say they found geological evidence to bracket the timing of the last major flooding and link it to a global warming trend at the time. The scientists pinpointed the timing of the last subglacial flood by dating volcanic ash preserved on bedrock surfaces.
. . The Labyrinth is a network of ice-free bedrock channels and scoured terrain emerging from beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. It is one of a series of large channel networks that cross the Transantarctic Mountains. Some of the chasms are up to 800 feet deep and thousands of feet wide. Scientists have long speculated that the volume of water required to create the channels was far more than that produced by melting glaciers.
. . Webb said it appeared the subglacial flooding was not continuous but episodic, and likely lasted days or months at a time. Webb and her colleagues estimated the flood raged with approximately 1,000 times the volume of water flowing over Niagara Falls.
. . Subglacial lakes in Antarctica were first identified in the 1960s, some sealed beneath up to 2 1/2 miles of ice. Since then, more than 150 have been discovered. But it is thought thousands may exist. The largest is Lake Vostok, similar in size to Lake Ontario. Another is the size of Rhode Island.
. . Baldwin and her colleagues believe there must be a more complete investigation of how a similar catastrophic release might alter the present-day environment. Such a massive release of fresh water from the subglacial lakes would affect the stability of the East Antarctic ice sheet, the circulation of water in the Southern Ocean, and global weather patterns, all of which could change the balance of the Earth's ecosystems, she said.
. . Hodgson, who has written extensively about global warming and its impact on Antarctica, said some lake water discharges are contemporary. One such rapid discharge occurred in 1997-1998 when a one-mile-square lake emptied into two other downstream lakes under the ice sheet over a period of 16 months. "It is very unlikely that the volume of these discharges would equal those of the Miocene (epoch), when the Labyrinth formed, because the ice sheet then was much more dynamic and temperate and therefore likely contained —-and discharged-— substantially greater volumes of subglacial meltwater", Hodgson said.

Aug 29, 06: The World Bank put together the largest greenhouse gas deal ever, where European and Asian companies and others will pay two Chinese chemical companies $1.02 billion to reduce output of gases believed to cause global warming.
. . In the deal, European and Asian companies bound by the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol to tackle climate change, will pay the Chinese chemical companies to reduce and destroy emissions of HFC23, a heat-trapping gas 11,700 times stronger than CO2. The deal will reduce emissions by about 19 million tons of CO2 equivalent annually.
. . About 75% of the money to purchase the reductions came from private capital, it said. Additional participants included entities in World Bank managed funds including the Danish Carbon Fund, the Italian Carbon Fund, Deutsche Bank, Mitsui & Co and two entities of Natsource LLC, which calls itself the world's largest greenhouse gas asset manager.
. . As a developing country, China, the world's No. 2 producer of greenhouse gases, is not required to reduce emissions of heat trapping gases in the first phase of the international global warming pact the Kyoto Protocol, which runs from 2008 to 2012.

Aug 29, 06: Latin America and the Caribbean face a greater risk of more natural disasters because of environmental degradation and climate change, campaigners warn. A report by a coalition of environment and aid groups said the region's weather was becoming less predictable and often more extreme.
. . Evidence showed many areas were more vulnerable because depleted ecosystems were struggling to adapt, they argued. The groups said efforts to end poverty were being undermined as a result.
. . The report, Up in Smoke? Latin America and the Caribbean, presented evidence it said showed that the livelihoods of millions of people in the region were at risk, including:
. . * Increased storm intensity -
. . * the 2005 hurricane season was "one of the most active and destructive in history"Water shortages -
. . * changes to glacier melt in the Andes were affecting river flows and threatening water supplies, leading to a greater risk of disputes.
. . * Illegal logging and deforestation -linked to increased carbon emissions, and leaves area prone to a greater risk of flooding.

Aug 29, 06: European and Asian auto makers must do more to meet voluntary targets to reduce CO2 (CO2) emissions from new cars or face possible legislative action, the European Union's executive arm said.

Aug 29, 06: Flood levels recede in India's desert state. Relief workers in India's flood-affected western state of Rajasthan stepped up efforts to rescue thousands of stranded villagers, as water levels began to recede.

Aug 25, 06: The impact of climate change is likely to be more severe in major cities, with the elderly most at risk, according to a study commissioned for the Greater London Authority.
. . The predicted rise in temperatures in the coming decades will be exacerbated by what scientists call the "urban heat island effect", in which temperatures during heatwaves can be 6-7C higher in cities than in surrounding areas.
. . The researchers have devised a Heat Vulnerability Index --a highly detailed map plotting the areas of London where the highest temperatures have been recorded and where there are the highest proportions of residents who are elderly or living alone, the categories of people seen as most vulnerable.
. . According to research by Britain's Hadley Center for Climate Prediction, heatwaves of that scale are predicted to become far more common in the decades ahead.

Aug 25, 06: An unusually large number of tropical fish have been spotted this summer in Rhode Island waters by divers, fishermen and environmentalists. The fish being seen are normally found in the warm waters off the southern states, just like the Portuguese men-of-war that invaded southern New England waters earlier in the summer and the manatee that was spotted this week in Warwick and North Kingstown.
. . Scientists said a change in the pattern of the Gulf Stream is likely a major reason for the number of warm-water visitors this summer. The Gulf Stream moves north from Florida along the East Coast before turning east toward Europe. Scientists say the turn is usually south of Delaware, but this year it's a more north than usual.

Aug 25, 06: Ice Age evidence confirms that a doubling of greenhouse gases could drive up world temperatures by about 3 Celsius (5.4 Fahrenheit), causing havoc with the climate, a study showed today. Temperatures have already risen by 0.6 Celsius.
. . The researchers made a novel check of computer climate forecasts about the modern impact of heat-trapping gases, widely blamed on use of fossil fuels, against ice cores and marine sediments from the last Ice Age which ended 10,000 years ago. "A doubling of CO2 concentrations would cause a global temperature increase of around 3 Celsius", said Thomas Schneider of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research who led the report.
. . The findings broadly back up other Potsdam forecasts about the effects of a build-up of CO2 emitted by power plants, cars and factories. Some skeptics dismiss such models as exaggerations.
. . The Potsdam scientists worked out 1,000 climate model versions, each with different assumptions of the behavior of clouds, ocean currents and other factors. They then checked the likelihood of the scenarios against climate shifts at the end of the Ice Age --CO2 trapped in air bubbles in ice and the chemical makeup of marine sediments which gives clues to temperatures.
. . Schneider said the study, published in the journal Climate Dynamics, indicated that the outer ranges of likely temperature rises were 1.2-4.3 Celsius if CO2 levels doubled.

Aug 23, 06: It may be too late to keep within a European Union threshold to avoid dangerous climate change, said the Head of the International Energy Agency Claude Mandil. The EU says to avoid dangerous interference with the climate global average temps should not exceed 2 degrees Celsius (3.6F) above pre-industrial levels. But even the most ambitious plans to reduce greenhouse gases, explored in depth in a recent IEA report, might not be enough to stop such warming, said Mandil.

Aug 21, 06: CFCs destroy ozone, the atmospheric layer that helps protect against the sun's most harmful rays, and trap the earth's heat, contributing to a rise in average surface temperatures.
. . In theory, the ban should have helped both problems. But the countries that first signed the Montreal Protocol 17 years ago failed to recognize that CFC users would seek out the cheapest available alternative. The chemicals that replaced CFCs are better for the ozone layer, but do little to help global warming. These chemicals, too, act as a reflective layer in the atmosphere that traps heat like a greenhouse.
. . That effect is at odds with the intent of a second treaty, drawn up in Kyoto, in 1997 by the same countries behind the Montreal pact. In fact, the volume of greenhouse gases created as a result of the Montreal agreement's phaseout of CFCs is two times to three times the amount of global-warming CO2 the Kyoto agreement is supposed to eliminate!
. . Some of the replacement chemicals whose use has grown because of the Montreal treaty --hydrochloroflourocarbons, or HCFCs, and their byproducts, hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs-- decompose faster than CFCs because they contain hydrogen. But, like CFCs, they are considered potent greenhouse gases that harm the climate --up to 10,000 times worse than CO2 emissions.
. . Use of HCFCs and HFCs is projected to add the equivalent of 2 billion to 3 billion tons of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere by 2015, U.N. climate experts said in a recent report. The CFCs they replace also would have added that much.
. . The U.N. report says the atmosphere could be spared the equivalent of 1 billion tons of CO2 emissions if countries used ammonia, hydrocarbons, CO2 or other ozone-friendly chemicals, rather than HCFCs and HFCs, in foams and refrigerants. Such alternatives are more common in Europe.
. . However, industry representatives cite safety and energy efficiency problems with the use of ammonia and hydrocarbons, which mainly involves propane gas. "If it's going to increase the amount of energy used to operate a piece of equipment, you're actually worse off because you're going to be pumping more CO2 into the atmosphere." [because the energy wasted must be created by burning something.]
. . Under the Montreal treaty, industrial countries have until 2030 and developing countries until 2040 to quit using HCFCs and HFCs.

Aug 21, 06: Using less electricity and driving less are often recommended by climatologists to reduce carbon emissions. But Paul Crutzen, a director at the Max Planck Institute, has a very different idea: He recommends injecting massive amounts of sulfur into the upper atmosphere so less sun will penetrate it. He won the 1995 Nobel prize in chemistry for his work on the ozone layer.
. . Stanford ecologist Ken Caldeira, who has investigated similar climate-modification strategies, thinks Crutzen's clout will drive this seemingly off-the-wall project forward. Efforts to manipulate the environment fall under a category known as geoengineering.
. . When sulfur particles are released into the Earth's atmosphere, they reflect solar radiation back into space much as large ice sheets in the Arctic do. Crutzen envisions lofting sulfur into the stratosphere on small balloon crafts, which will use artillery guns to release their smelly payload. "The preferred way to resolve this dilemma is to lower the emissions of greenhouse gases", he said in the Climatic Change editorial. "However, so far, attempts in that direction have been grossly unsuccessful. Our entire energy economy is dependent on burning fossil fuel, and that's not going to stop anytime soon. We need a stopgap solution."
. . When Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines erupted in 1991, it sprayed millions of tons of sulfur into the atmosphere. Much to scientists' surprise, the sulfur reflected so much sun that the Earth’s surface cooled by almost one full degree F in the year following the eruption.
. . But Schwartz cautions that sulfur-spraying would not enable the international community to shelve measures like the Kyoto Protocol. The sulfur solution would not be permanent, since the element lingers in the atmosphere for only a couple of years. CO2, on the other hand, stays around for more than a century.
. . In addition, says John Latham, an atmospheric scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the ecological domino effect of shooting sulfur into the stratosphere is unpredictable. "Many species of plants, for instance, depend on specific amounts of sunlight to complete their normal growth cycles", he said. "If sulfur clouds blot this light out, even slightly, the ecosystems these plants belong to could be irrevocably altered."
. . Still, Latham believes the consequences of doing nothing could be grave. A few years ago, he proposed his own artificial global-warming fix: Spray droplets of ocean water into the air to encourage formation of clouds that would bounce solar rays back into space.

Aug 21, 06: As wildfires grow in number and strength worldwide, they are unleashing mercury that has polluted wetlands in the north since at least the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. These infernos in the north of North America are releasing mercury at levels up to 15 times greater than fires elsewhere in the continent. The key, researchers note, is that climate change is making northern wetlands more vulnerable to burning.
. . Mercury can damage the brain and lead to birth defects. Normally, atmospheric circulation carries mercury spewed from industry northward, where it settles down, for instance, in cold wet soils in Alaska and Canada. "We're talking about mercury that has been relatively harmless, trapped in peat for hundreds of years, rapidly being spewed back into the air", Turetsky said. "There is a massive amount of mercury stored in northern peat lands that could soon be mobilized."
. . Over the past few decades, forest fires are burning more frequently and intensely. In 2004 and 2005, Alaska and western Canada saw the largest wildfire seasons in recorded history. Increasingly, northern forests and wetlands also are growing drier due to climate change, Turetsky said, leaving them more vulnerable to fires.

Aug 21, 06: South American "Red Devil" squid found off Alaska and jellyfish plaguing the Mediterranean may point to vast disruptions in the seas linked to global warming, pollution or over-fishing, experts say.
. . Fish such as salmon and mackerel have also been spotted in the Arctic, far north of their normal ranges, in a possible vanguard of wrenching billion-dollar shifts in world fish stocks this century caused by warming oceans.
. . "There will be some places where ocean productivity will increase", said Ron O'Dor, senior scientist of the Census of Marine Life, a 10-year project in more than 70 nations to map the diversity of the oceans.
. . Warmer oceans are likely to add to older marine threats such as pollution and over-fishing and upset the habitats of everything from crabs and Mediterranean jellyfish to "Red Devil" squid and whales. As species shift, tropical regions, or almost enclosed seas such as the Mediterranean where fish cannot swim far if the water gets uncomfortably warm, may be among the most vulnerable.
. . "Areas close to the equator will most likely be the losers while the northern or southern areas might be the winners." said Harald Loeng, head of research in oceanography and climate at the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research. "It's most likely that some of the species in the North Sea like cod will move north ... and be replaced by anchovies and sardines. As you remove the really big predatory fish like the big tuna and the marlin and the swordfish, there are no predators in the water that can eat something as big as a 40 kg squid, except a few whales."
. . Humboldt or "Red Devil" squid, which can weigh 40-50 kg (88-110 lb) and originated off Peru, were caught off Alaska for the first time last year after sweeping north.
. . A jellyfish boom could be linked to a decline of predators such as turtles because of pollution --turtles sometimes choke on plastic bags which they apparently mistake for billowing jellyfish floating in the water.
. . And salmon have been caught north of the Bering Straits between Russia and the United States in recent years. They have also swum from the north Atlantic to once icy seas off northern Canada.

Aug 21, 06: Tropical coral reefs could die off in warmer waters. Many reefs, often known as "nurseries of the seas" are struggling with higher temperatures.
. . U.N. studies project that global sea levels could rise by 9 to 88 cm (3.5 to 34.6 inches) by 2100. That could cut the amount of sunlight reaching slow-growing corals, which co-exist with light-dependent algae.
. . Meanwhile, a slightly more acid sea linked to a build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere could make it harder for creatures like lobsters or oysters to form shells. They might end up too soft and vulnerable to predators.

Aug 21, 06: Malaysia's scramble for rich country status threatens its mangroves unless the government puts teeth in its plans to protect the rich wetlands that offer a home to marine life and help block extreme weather.

Aug 20, 06: In an experiment where carbon dioxide levels were elevated to those predicted for 2050, one and a half times today's levels, scientists found that loblolly pines were able to withstand ice storms much better than those growing under current carbon dioxide levels.

Aug 19, 06: Hot weather and a severe drought have left over 18 million people short of drinking water, damaged millions of hectares of cropland and reduced water supplies for millions of livestock, Xinhua news agency said.

Aug 18, 06: Scientists have launched a multi-million dollar project to reduce flatulence in cows, hoping that a drop in gas can help in the fight against global warming. The project aims to breed more efficient cows that convert their food into more milk and less methane, one of the greenhouse gases blamed for rising temperatures across the planet.
. . "We're looking at feed conversion efficiency", said Dieter Adam, a manager at New Zealand's Livestock Improvement Corporation. "We want fuel-efficient cows. There is some scientific evidence indicating that if cows are more efficient milk producers, they produce less methane."
. . In 2003, the New Zealand government attempted to impose a methane tax on farmers because their livestock was responsible for more than half the country's greenhouse gas emissions. But the so-called "fart tax" was dropped after protests from farmers.

Aug 18, 06: Bluetongue, a viral infection, has been found in sheep in the southern Netherlands, and the Dutch agriculture ministry banned exports of live cows, goats and sheep. A ministry spokeswoman told Dutch news agency ANP that it was surprising that the disease, which is transmitted by insects, had appeared in the Netherlands, adding it was the first time it had broken out so far in the north.

Aug 17, 06: California is forging ahead with the most aggressive U.S. program to reduce global warming --a plan that pits Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger against fellow Republican George W. Bush.
. . Both the governor and his state's Democratic-led legislature want to make California --the world's eighth largest economy-- a model to follow with caps in greenhouse gas emissions that the U.S. president rejects. State politicians still are hammering out differences over the proposed Global Warming Solutions Act. If passed, it is likely to play a role in November's vote for governor and in national politics for years to come.
. . He became an overnight hero for environmentalists a year ago by setting a goal to cut California's emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. More recently, he accused fellow Republicans in Washington of lacking leadership on the environment as he signed a global warming accord with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
. . California is an environment-savvy state where being green wins votes. But it is also the world's 12th largest emitter of heat-trapping gases like CO2. It faces environmental and health disasters with warmer temperatures.
. . Meanwhile, the population is projected to grow from 35 million today to 55 million in 2050.
. . Bill co-sponsor and Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, who is working for the election of Schwarzenegger's opponent Phil Angelides, denied playing politics with the environment by putting the incumbent on the spot before the election.
. . "We will send a bill he can sign, and we want to champion it across the country", said Nunez, who predicted no Republican member of the California legislature would vote in favor. And that momentum, Nunez said, could help the Democrats in 2008. "I think the 2008 presidential election will be won or lost on environmental degradation and new thinking on the environment", said Nunez.

Aug 15, 06: Climate change could be slowed by burying greenhouse gases blamed for global warming deep below the ocean floor under thick, cold sediment that would trap it for thousands of years, said a team of Harvard-led scientists.
. . The seafloor along the U.S. east and west coast is vast enough to store almost unlimited CO2 emissions from U.S. coal-fired plants, said Daniel Schrag, director of Harvard's Center for the Environment. They propose capturing CO2 from power plants, liquefying the gas, pumping it about 2 miles under water and then injecting it below the sea floor.
. . Many governments and firms are already exploring ways to pump CO2 under land or directly into the sea --a process known as carbon sequestration-- to meet emissions caps set by the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol for 35 industrial nations.
. . But such schemes will only help if the gas stays below the ground or the sea for hundreds of years, and studies and experiments to date indicate it may eventually leak. Schrag said burying the gas under seafloor sediments of sand, silt and clay hundreds of meters thick at depths of 3,000 meters and very low temps would guarantee it would stay denser than the water above. The cold temperatures and high pressures found deep below the ocean's surface would transform CO2 into a solid that is stable enough to withstand even the most severe earthquakes, the researchers said
. . Greenpeace said it was skeptical of the benefits and urged the development of less expensive and swifter solutions to global warming such as renewable energy and conservation.
. . A 2005 U.N. report said CO2 storage may provide 15-55% of all the cuts in greenhouse gas emissions needed until 2100 --probably a bigger contribution than from renewable energies or from any revival of nuclear power. But it would also likely raise the cost of generating electricity from a coal-fired power plant by at least 50% to $0.06-$0.10 per kilowatt hour from $0.04-$0.05 on a power plant with no filters.
. . "The downsides are that nobody has ever injected into those kinds of formations at those kinds of depths", said Ken Caldeira, a climate scientist at Stanford University. "There are engineering hurdles to overcome and it might not be that cheap", he said.

Aug 15, 06: Global warming is affecting the intensity of Atlantic hurricanes, according to a new study by a university professor in Florida who says his research provides the first direct link between climate change and storm strength.
. . James Elsner of Florida State U said he set out to perform a statistical analysis of the two theories in a raging debate within the scientific community: Whether recent intense hurricanes are the result of climate change or natural ocean warming and cooling cycles.
. . Elsner looked at 135 years of records to examine the statistical connection between Atlantic sea surface temperatures and air temperatures near the sea surface, and then compared them to records of hurricane intensities. He found that average air temperatures during hurricane season between June and November were useful in predicting sea surface temperatures, but not the other way around. "It appears that atmospheric warming comes before sea warming", he said, indicating that hurricane damage will be likely to continue increasing because of greenhouse warming.
. . Many hurricane researchers say the Atlantic basin moved into a period of increased hurricane activity about a decade ago and predicted it could last 25 to 40 years. Some say it is due to a natural fluctuation in sea surface temperatures called the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation.
. . But a growing body of research indicates human-induced global warming --driven by heat-trapping gases in air pollution from cars and factories-- could be heating sea water, which in turn fuels stronger hurricanes.

Aug 14, 06: More disasters' for warmer world: A warmer world could make wildfires more frequent, research shows. Rising temperatures will increase the risk of forest fires, droughts and flooding over the next two centuries, UK climate scientists warned.
. . Even if harmful emissions were cut now, many parts of the world would face a greater risk of natural disasters, a team from Bristol University said. The projections are based on data from more than 50 climate models looking at the impact of greenhouse gas emissions.
. . Areas that would experience the worst forest loss would include Eurasia, eastern China, Canada and the Amazon. Areas of western Africa, southern Europe and eastern US states were at most risk from dwindling freshwater supplies and droughts as a result of rising temperatures. The data also showed that any temperature increase of more than 3C could result in land "carbon sinks" (permafrost, etc) releasing their stored carbon into the atmosphere, a global warming viscious circle.
. . "We used as many models as we could and did not rely on any one study. We looked at 52 simulations and the probabilities of dangerous climate change these models showed. ...if we wait for the perfect model we will be too late."

Aug 11, 06: Pockmarked muck blots this formerly lush marsh on Cape Cod, and a creek carves off eroded chunks along its edges. Dead plant roots jut from barren mud once covered with wavy mats of marsh hay.
. . New England scientists began to notice dead patches like this one near Lieutenant Island four years ago and call it sudden wetland dieback. Ecologists warn that saltwater marshes from Maine to Connecticut are suddenly and inexplicably dying, leaving behind land resembling honeycombs, Swiss cheese or an eroded desert landscape. Few scientists can explain it or recommend what to do. Even skeptics concede something unusual is happening.
. . After marshes in Louisiana died, researchers there pinned some of the blame on a drought and chemical changes, Warren said. Seawater contains sulfate, which washes into marshes where bacteria convert it into rotten-egg scented sulfide. A drought, however, allows oxygen to penetrate deeper into the soil. That oxygen allows different bacteria to turn sulfide into sulfuric acid, which weakens the plants.
. . Weak plants may become susceptible to fusarium, a family of related fungi. One research team even found a fusarium strain in Louisiana that originated in Sudan.

Aug 11, 06: [everything's moving north.] Rare bird spotted in Texas valley: Birders from around the country have been coming to the Rio Grande Valley to catch sight of a Northern Jacana that is far north of normal range.

Aug 11, 06: The meltdown of Greenland's ice sheet is speeding up! (as expected) Data from a NASA satellite show that the melting rate has accelerated since 2004. If the ice cap were to completely disappear, global sea levels would rise by 6.5 meters. Most of the ice is being lost from eastern Greenland.
. . These measurements came from the US space agency's Grace (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) satellite, launched in 2002. Once the influence of the atmosphere and the oceans was removed, the variations mostly reflect changes in the mass of ice sheets and of water stored in the ground.
. . Estimated monthly changes in the mass of Greenland's ice sheet suggest it is melting at a rate of about 239 cubic km per year. This figure is about three times higher than an earlier estimate of the mass loss from Greenland made using the first two years of Grace measurements.

Aug 10, 06: There is a 50% chance a weak El Nino will develop this year.

Aug 10, 06: A dry spell has lowered the water level dramatically in the Okefenokee Swamp, hindering motor boats and canoes, raising the danger of wildfires and forcing alligators to crowd into the deeper pools in search of fish. Normally, three or four alligators hang out around the park's boat basin, but on several recent nights as many as 75 have slithered in.

Aug 10, 06: Super Typhoon Saomai, the strongest to threaten China in 50 years, slammed into the southeast coast today after forcing more than 1.5 million people from their homes. They graded Saomai a category five "super" typhoon --its highest category-- but reduced it to category 4 once it came ashore. It brought winds as high as 184 kph over land.
. . Tropical storm Bilis killed more than 600 in China last month and typhoon Prapiroon killed about 80 last week. Tropical storm Bopha fizzled to the south of Taiwan this week and another veered toward the east of Japan.

Aug 9, 06: Stronger hurricanes forecast for the next few decades could flood major cities including Miami and New Orleans, environmental scientists said.
. . And storm surges --huge domes of water up to 10 meters high pushed ashore by hurricanes -- could pose a higher risk to coastal areas than the threat of rising seas tied to global warming. "What we think will actually be a more immediate risk to coastal areas ... is the threat of storm surge, which is actually exacerbated by sea level rise due to these growing-intensity storms. As Hurricanes Katrina and Rita showed, the 9,546 square miles of land close to sea level (in Louisiana) are especially vulnerable to storm surges.

Aug 9, 06: Swollen rivers swamped thousands of villages and towns across India's south and west today, forcing 4.5 million from their homes as rescuers struggled to bring them food and drinking water, officials said. India's annual monsoon rains --vital for the country's agriculture-driven economy-- have triggered floods across at least five states since the weekend, killing at least 311 people, submerging villages and causing widespread damage to crops.

Aug 7, 06: With signs that the world is warming, even Inuit peoples of the far north are ordering air conditioning.

Aug 7, 06: Storing CO2 under the sea-bed could help to reduce global warming, according to US scientists. The proposals involve pumping the gas miles underground then injecting it under the sea floor. There is enough space for almost unlimited carbon emissions, a US team reports.
. . The latest idea involves pumping CO2 gas down to a depth of 3,000m and injecting it below the sea floor. The high pressure and the low temperatures would turn the carbon gas into a liquid that is denser than the water around it, says a joint Harvard and Columbia University team.
. . Experiments suggest that ice-like compounds would be formed in which the water molecules act like cages, trapping the CO2 molecules within. According to the researchers, this would ensure that the gas remains trapped in the sediment and would be secure enough to withstand even the most severe earthquakes.
. . The storage capacity is enormous, they add. In the US alone, annual emissions of CO2 could be contained in just 80 square km of seafloor.

Aug 7, 06: Louisiana is mining a new type of black gold: Mississippi River mud. A pilot project at the river mouth shows how the hurricane-ravaged state may be able to rebuild its vanishing coast with fertile river bottom soil now dumped by dredges into the ocean.
. . Louisiana continuously clears the bottom of the Mississippi River to aid navigation, then dumps far offshore sediment that the river carries from tributaries in more than 30 states. But recently a dredge clearing a few miles of the river moved the mud into nearby shallow water, rather than dumping it off the continental shelf in the Gulf of Mexico. The result: New terra, though not quite firma.
. . At the spot where the dredged sediment is being dumped, a roughly 1.3-square-km patch of land has risen and a few wisps of green are struggling to take hold. The dredge has poured a combination of dark soil and river water through a pipeline to a monster version of a garden hose that releases the mess into the shallow brackish water.
. . Rebuilding such wetlands could help New Orleans absorb the blow of a future storm like Hurricane Katrina which devastated the city last year. Congress is considering bills that could pour a few billion dollars into coastal restoration in the state.
. . Louisiana's predicament is urgent. The state, which has 30% of the continental U.S. coastal marshes, is losing a football-field-sized piece of land to salt water every 38 minutes.
. . A two-year survey of enormous interstellar dust clouds has turned up eight organic molecules in two different regions of space. One is a stellar nursery awash in light while the other is a cold, starless void.

Aug 7, 06: In the heat of summer, all sorts of tourists head north to cooler climes. This year, a manatee has joined the crowd, cruising past the nightclubs of Manhattan and continuing north.

Just in one day... Half a million homeless in India floods, Mumbai hit
Nearly 200 dead in Ethiopian floods, and hundreds more missing
More than 800 killed or missing from N.Korea floods
Up to 15 metric tons of dead fish have surfaced at the Pacific Ocean mouth of a river near Taipei, leaving local officials puzzled.

Aug 6, 06: Where Did That Video Spoofing Gore's Film Come From?
. . The video's maker is listed as "Toutsmith", a 29-year-old who identifies himself as being from Beverly Hills in an Internet profile.
. . Computer routing information contained in an email sent from Toutsmith's Yahoo account indicate it didn't come from an amateur working out of his basement. Instead, the email originated from a computer registered to DCI Group, a Washington, D.C., public relations and lobbying firm whose clients include oil company Exxon Mobil Corp.
. . One politically charged issue has drawn dueling YouTube videos recently: whether phone giants should be able to charge Internet companies for speedier delivery of their content. One of the videos features a slide show and tinny voiceover, and takes the side of phone companies. At the end, it directs viewers to go to www.netcompetition.org, a Web site backed by AT&T Inc. and other phone and cable companies with a stake in the issue. On the other side are consumer groups, one of whose YouTube videos features musician Moby warning of the dangers of a two-tier Internet.
. . For its part, AT&T says its affiliation with the group is clearly listed on netcompetition.org, just a few clicks away.
. . DCI is no stranger to the debate over global warming. Partly through Tech Central Station, an opinion Web site it operates, DCI has sought to raise doubts about the science of global warming and about Mr. Gore's film, placing skeptical scientists on talk-radio shows and paying them to write editorials.
. . Nancy Snow, a communications professor at California State University, Fullerton, viewed the penguin video and calls it a lesson in "Propaganda 101." It contains no factual information, but presents a highly negative image of the former vice president, she says.

Aug 4, 06: World leaders have been urged to put more money into developing new energy technologies to tackle global warming.
. . Royal Society president Martin Rees wants a publicly funded international research program. Lord Rees describes a "worrisome lack of determination" among world leaders. "Their joint communique included many important commitments, but it omitted one crucial pledge --a significant increase in their governments' investments in R&D (research and development) for energy technologies." Lord Rees suggests money for research could be raised through methods such as carbon taxes, levied initially on the countries with the largest greenhouse emissions.
. . Public funding for energy research across the world has halved in real terms since 1980, and in the UK it is now one-tenth of what it used to be.

Aug 4, 06: Taller Mountains Blamed on Global Warming: Heavy glaciers cause the Earth's crust to flex inward slightly. When glaciers disappear, the crust springs back and the overlaying mountains are thrust skyward, albeit slowly.
. . The European Alps have been growing since the end of the last little Ice Age in 1850 when glaciers began shrinking as temperatures warmed, but the rate of uplift has accelerated in recent decades because global warming has sped up the rate of glacier melt.
. . The conclusion is based on a new computer model that assumes that over timescales of a few years to thousands of years, the surface of the Earth behaves like a very thick fluid. This effect is well studied and it occurs in North America, too.
. . The region where the most uplift is occurring is in the French Alps near Mount Blanc, the tallest mountain in Western Europe. The mountains in this region are growing at a rate of about .035 inches per year. In 50 years, they will be about 45mm taller than today. The average maximum growth for the rest of the Alps is a more modest .33mm per year.
. . Glacier shrinkage accounts for half of the observed increase, while other geological factors, such as active shifting of the Earth's tectonic plates, drainage and erosion, are responsible for the rest, the researchers say.
. . Glaciers have shrunk almost continuously since 1850, but the process has sped up in recent decades because of global warming. If temperatures increase by 5 C, the Alps will be almost completely ice-free by century's end.

Lightning killed at least 14 people in the United States during the second half of July, a pace twice as deadly as in a typical year for the same two weeks.

Aug 4, 06: With the brutal heat wave in the Northeast expected to ease tonight, New York was the only power grid still forecasting electricity usage would reach record levels for the third day in a row.
. . The French government said 112 people had died due to the heat in the hottest July since 1950.
. . Heavy rain drenched large parts of South Africa's southern areas on Thursday, flooding roads and damaging houses in devastating storms, while deep snow forced mountain passes to close.

Aug 2, 06: America in recent years has been sweltering through three times more than its normal share of extra-hot summer nights, government weather records show. And that is a particularly dangerous trend.
. . During heat waves, like the one that now has a grip on much of the East, one of the major causes of heat deaths is the lack of night cooling that would normally allow a stressed body to recover.
. . A top federal research meteorologist said he "almost fell out of my chair" when he looked over U.S. night minimum temperature records over the past 96 years and saw the skyrocketing trend of hot summer nights.
. . Each of the past eight years has been far above the normal 10%. During the past decade, 23% of the nation has had hot summer nights. During the past 15 years, that average has been 20%. By comparison, from 1964 to 1968 only 2% of the country on average had abnormally hot nights.
. . But it is not surprising because climate models, used to forecast global warming, have been predicting this trend for more than 20 years, said Jerry Mahlman, a climate scientist at National Center for Atmospheric Research and a top federal climate modeler.
. . It is a telltale sign of global warming, Mahlman said: "The smoking gun is still smoking; it's not shooting people yet."

July 31, 06: "The AC in my office is at full blast right now [and] that requires a lot of energy", said a new study's co-author. Temperatures are reaching triple digits across the country and air conditioners are working overtime. They are also injecting additional carbon into the air.
. . However, Blasing and colleagues also found that the northern parts of the country will use less energy by 2025 because those regions will actually require less heating in winter. The extra carbon emissions from the higher air-conditioning needs in the South and West offsets the decrease of emissions from reduced heating needs in the north.
. . Air conditioners are run on electricity. And most electricity is generated at coal-fired power plants. "You have to burn a lot of coal to keep me cool", Blasing said.
. . The simulated carbon emissions attributed to AC usage accounts for less than half a percent of the nation's total. However, on a regional basis the effects are expected to be greater, and overall the net result, though small, will be more carbon emissions.

July 31, 06: Dozens of new all-time high records have been set in recent weeks across the United States, and weather officials said today the month could become the warmest since official record-keeping began in 1895.
. . * Woodland Hills, near Los Angeles, reported a new record of 21 days with maximum temperatures exceeding 100 degrees. The old record was 15 days. The city also set an all-time record high of 119 on July 22.
. . * On July 23, the Redding Airport north of Sacramento reported a new record for the date of 114 degrees. The old record was 109, set in 2003.
. . * On July 23, the minimum temperature in Sacramento was 84 degrees, which exceeded the previous record of 79, set just the day before.

Separately, a study released today said extreme heat waves could grow worse as the planet warms, fueling increased use of air conditioners that would pump more planet-warming greenhouse gases into the air.

Aug 1, 06: As temperatures in California last week soared to 118 degrees F, some 54,000 Angelenos were left without power. Around 50 died. Similar conditions prevailed in Europe. It was spookily reminiscent of 2003, when almost 30,000 Europeans died as a direct result of extreme summer temperatures.

Aug 1, 06: Rare, mother-of-pearl colored clouds caused by extreme weather conditions above Antarctica are a possible indication of global warming, Australian scientists said.
. . Known as nacreous clouds, the spectacular formations showing delicate wisps of colors. Klekociuk said the rarely seen clouds, also known as polar stratospheric clouds, were more than just a curiosity. "They reveal extreme conditions in the atmosphere, and promote chemical changes that lead to destruction of vital stratospheric ozone."
. . Klekociuk said temperatures in the stratosphere, between 8 and 50 km above Earth, would be expected to drop as global warming increases. Data collected over the past 25 years had reflected this.

Aug 1, 06: British Prime Minister Tony Blair and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced an agreement y'day to bypass the Bush administration and work together to explore ways to fight global warming. "We see that there is not great leadership from the federal government when it comes to protecting the environment", Schwarzenegger said. "We know there is global warming, so we should stop it."
. . Addressing business leaders during an earlier panel discussion, Blair called global warming "long-term, the single biggest issue we face."
. . Craig Noble of the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, said the pact had symbolic value, but that "the time for talk is over. The bottom line is, voluntary is not enough." He urged passage of a proposal, pending in the state Legislature, that would make California the first state to limit greenhouse gas emissions from industrial sources.

Aug 1, 06: Thousands of earthworms guzzle metric tons of scrap food left over from the tables of the rich and famous at South Africa's plush Mount Nelson hotel, quietly doing their bit to save the planet. The project may also help South Africa work toward a goal of stopping waste going to landfill sites by 2022 by encouraging people to find other ways to deal with refuse.
. . Cape Town's oldest and most famous hotel --a pink temple to pampering where visiting celebrities are welcomed by doormen in traditional colonial-era pith helmets-- has its own worm farm to help slash waste and, ultimately, tackle climate change. "If we think really big ... if everybody took their organic waste and processed it through vermiculture or worm farms and we stopped organic waste going to landfill sites, it would have a dramatic impact on climate change. It's incredible. They reduce waste by 70% (and) there is no smell here." Under the right conditions, two worms can become a million in just one year.
. . The worms neutralize harmful bacteria, such as Ecoli, and produce beneficial bacteria while increasing the levels of nitrogen and potassium in the soil --elements that help vegetables grow. Organic waste on rubbish dumps releases carbon dioxide and methane, greenhouse gases that trap heat in the atmosphere, adding to global warming.

The 2006 Atlantic hurricane season will not be as active as initially projected, due in part to a cooling of ocean temperatures this summer, private forecaster WSI Corp. said in its updated tropical weather outlook on Monday.

July 28, 06: A swarm of slimy invaders is menacing beachgoers on North Carolina's southern coast. Jellyfish have stung so many people around Wrightsville Beach and Carolina Beach that the Health Department issued an alert today. Reports of stings have been gradually increasing over the past couple of weeks, and at least 75 people were stung by sea nettles and other jellyfish over 4 days.
. . Sea nettles, a type of jellyfish, began arriving at Wrightsville Beach in mid-July, a few weeks ahead of schedule. Now they're bombarding Carolina Beach, where so many were in the water on Thursday that lifeguards posted red flags.

July 28, 06: In Fresno, the morgue is full of victims from a California heat wave. A combination of heat and power outages killed a dozen people in Missouri. And in parts of Europe, temperatures are hotter than in 2003 when a heat wave killed 35,000 people. Get used to it. For the long-term future, the world will see more and worse killer heat waves because of global warming, scientists say.
. . But what global warming has done is make the nights warmer in general and the days drier, which help turn merely uncomfortably hot days into killer heat waves, Trenberth said.
. . Much of global warming science concentrates on average monthly and yearly temperatures, but recent studies in the past five years show that climate change is at its most dangerous during extreme events, such as high temperatures, droughts and flooding, he said. "These (heat) events always occur. What global warming does is push it up another notch." One 126 degrees in Death Valley last week; Sacramento had 11 days at or above 100, their old record was nine days.

July 28, 06: Newly discovered gardens of colorful corals, which bloom about 300 meters underwater off Alaska's Aleutian Islands and in the Gulf of Alaska, will get special protection starting today. Sweltering temperatures sweeping Europe have brought a plague of jellyfish to Spain's eastern seashores, forcing holidaymakers to stay out of the sea, the Red Cross said.

July 27, 06: Injecting sulfur into the second atmospheric layer closest to Earth would reflect more sunlight back to space and offset greenhouse gas warming, according to Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Germany and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego.
. . Crutzen suggests carrying sulfur into the atmosphere via balloons and using artillery guns to release it, where the particles would stay for up to two years. The results could be seen in six months.
. . Nature does something like this naturally. When Mount Pinatubo erupted in the Philippines in1991, millions of tons of sulfur was injected into the atmosphere, enhancing reflectivity and cooling the Earth’s surface by an average of 0.9 degrees F in the year following the eruption.

July 27, 06: Coal-burning utilities are passing the hat for one of the few remaining scientists skeptical of the global warming harm caused by industries that burn fossil fuels.
. . Pat Michaels --Virginia's state climatologist, a University of Virginia professor and senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute-- told Western business leaders last year that he was running out of money for his analyzes of other scientists' global warming research. So last week, a Colorado utility organized a collection campaign to help him out, raising at least $150,000 in donations and pledges. The Intermountain Rural Electric Association of Sedalia, Colo., gave Michaels $100,000 and started the fund-raising drive.
. . Some top scientists and environmental advocates call it a clear conflict of interest. "These people are just spitting into the wind", said John Holdren, president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. "The fact is that the drumbeat of science and people's perspectives are in line that the climate is changing." Holdren, a Harvard environmental science and technology professor, said skeptics such as Michaels "have had attention all out of proportion to the merits of their arguments."
. . Frank O'Donnell, president of Clean Air Watch, a Washington advocacy group, said: "This is a classic case of industry buying science to back up its anti-environmental agenda."
. . Donald Kennedy, an environmental scientist who is former president of Stanford University and current editor-in-chief of the peer-reviewed journal Science, said skeptics such as Michaels are lobbyists more than researchers.
. . Other scientific fields, such as medicine, are more careful about potential conflicts of interests than the energy, environmental and chemical fields, where it doesn't raise much of an eyebrow, said Penn State University bioethicist Arthur Caplan.
. . Three top climate scientists said they don't accept money from private groups. The same goes for the Web site realclimate.org, which has long criticized Michaels. "We don't get any money; we do this in our free time."

July 26, 06: UK: This summer's heatwave is set to give a record fruit crop, but the grain harvest is likely to be badly hit. The hot weather has helped growing conditions for fruit, with supermarkets reporting high demand.
. . Shortages of crops such as wheat could result in higher prices for consumers. Some crops, like barley, have benefited from the heatwave, but wheat has wilted in the intense conditions. Most arable farmers are in the middle of harvest, which is thought to be the earliest since 1976.

July 26, 06: A deadly heatwave gripping central Europe has raised fears of forest fires in Poland, sent electricity prices rocketing in Germany and caused the suspension of shipping on major rivers as water levels dwindle. "This will probably be the hottest July for Germany since our nationwide records began in 1900."
. . Some nuclear power plants operating with river water cooling systems had to cut electricity output by up to 40%. In order to protect their fragile ecosystems, rivers in Germany have limits on how warm water returning from power stations can be. Hotter rivers also mean soaring electricity prices.
. . Europe's shops and supermarkets are facing a shortage of vegetables later this year.

July 25, 06: Global warming puts 12 of the most famous U.S. national parks at risk, environmentalists said. All 12 parks are located in the American West, where temperatures have risen twice as fast as in the rest of the United States over the last 50 years, said Theo Spencer of the Natural Resources Defense Council.
. . The report released by the council and the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization stressed the connection between global warming and environmental damage at the parks, including the loss of specific wildlife, and called on the U.S. government to cut greenhouse gas emissions significantly in 10 years.
. . Bears feed on whitebark pine seeds, but global warming has encouraged beetles to infest whitebark trees that grow at high altitudes where grizzlies feed; cold weather would normally kill the beetles but this has not occurred in recent years. This in turn forces the bears to move to lower altitudes to look for food to fatten up for the winter, making them more likely to move into areas where there are people and that leads to an increase in grizzly mortality.
. . Glaciers and ice caves have melted in North Cascades and Mt. Rainier parks, and mountaintops in Western parks could be snow-free in summer within decades.

July 25, 06: The genetic code of an important group of methane-producing microbes has been sequenced by German scientists. The researchers believe the study could lead to ways to control the microbes.
. . The archaea are probably the major source of methane emanating from rice fields, contributing up to a quarter of global emissions of the gas. "But whether this really leads to a total reduction of methane emission in the rice paddy soil, it is very difficult to predict."
. . The world's rice fields in 2004 covered some 1,532,570 sq km --an area equivalent to more than six United Kingdoms.
. . Rice paddies give off substantial quantities of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. The archaea live in the soil, in amongst the root system of the rice plant. Methanogens are strictly anaerobic organisms --they live in an oxygen-free environment. But in rice paddies, small amounts of oxygen (O2) will dissolve in the water and get into the soil. When this happens, it will be lethal to most of the methanogens.
. . But the RC-I microbes have evolved a set of antioxidant enzymes that protect them from the toxic effects of O2. They can also switch their metabolism in a neat trick that not only rids them of oxygen but gains them energy in the process.

July 25, 06: Sensors in space have recorded the dramatic increases in land temps and air pollution as the UK swelters in record-breaking July heat. "Moreover, current climate change predictions for the UK suggest that the frequency of the these extreme periods of high temperature and pollution will increase."

July 25, 06: Around 40 people in France, mostly elderly, have died in a heatwave over the past week and the Netherlands is poised to record its hottest July since records began. July 2006 is on track to be the hottest month in the Netherlands since temperatures were first measured in 1706.

July 25, 06: The worst drought in 20 years has reduced South America's Iguazu falls to a trickle and tourists may have to wait until October to see water gushing over the cliffs again, officials said.

July 21, 06: Swarms of lowly thumb-sized ocean creatures that often resemble chains of transparent Gummy Bears play a critical role in transporting a greenhouse gas deep into the deep sea, scientists report.
. . The semi-transparent barrel-shaped creatures, called salps, emerge by the billions in groups that occupy as much as 38,600 square miles of the sea surface (about the size of the state of Indiana), Laurence Madin of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution wrote in a newly published study.
. . Madin and his colleagues have now estimated that "hotspots" of salps could spell a dead-end for carbon, transporting tons of it daily from the ocean surface to the deep sea and preventing it from re-entering the atmosphere and contributing again to the greenhouse effect and possibly to global warming.
. . Salps are among the larger creatures that eat phytoplankton, consuming up to 74% of them from the surface water in a day. The salps then defecate, and their sinking pellets transport up to 4,000 tons of carbon daily to deeper water.
. . Previous research showed that these salps swim to dark, deep ocean recesses by day, usually around 600 to 750 meters deep, and back up to the surface at night --something called vertical migration. Salps release fecal pellets in deep water, where few animals consume them, making them efficient transporters of carbon away from the atmosphere. Salp pellets can sink almost a km per day. And when they die, salp bodies take carbon down with them, sink rapidly up to 1/3 km a day.
. . Scientists still don't know how often salp swarms emerge, but it is clear that they can quickly take advantage of sudden blooms of phytoplankton, efficiently feeding on them with their mucus membrane filters and growing rapidly. Swarms can emerge in just a few weeks, to the point where they interfere with fishing, Madin said.

July 21, 06: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, an authoritative U.N.-sponsored network of scientists, has long predicted that summer drying and droughts would worsen forest fires, which in many regions are primarily set by humans.
. . Global temperatures rose an average 1 degree F in the 20th century, and warming will continue as long as manmade "greenhouse gases", mostly CO2 from fossil-fuel burning, accumulate in the atmosphere, the panel says. "The change is much more rapid than initially forecast 10 or 15 years ago."
. . The Scripps study was unique in collating detailed data from 34 years of U.S. western wildfires with temperature, snowmelt and streamflow records. Wildfire frequency varies widely from year to year, but the California researchers found a clear trend: The average number of large fires almost quadrupled between the first and second halves of that period.
. . Warming in high northern latitudes is expected to generate more lightning, igniting more forest fires. Forest and peat fires release CO2 into the atmosphere, adding to climate warming, which in turn will intensify forest fires, further worsening warming in a planetary feedback loop.
. . "This is a carbon bomb", Goldammer said of the northern forest. "It's sitting there waiting to be ignited, and there is already ignition going on."

July 21, 06: Scientists worldwide are watching temperatures rise, the land turn dry and vast forests go up in flames.
. . In the Siberian taiga and Canadian Rockies, in southern California and Australia, researchers find growing evidence tying an upsurge in wildfires to climate change, an impact long predicted by global-warming forecasters.
. . A team at California's Scripps Institution, in a headline-making report this month, found that warmer temperatures, causing earlier snow runoff and consequently drier summer conditions, were the key factor in an explosion of big wildfires in the U.S. West over three decades, including fires now rampaging east of Los Angeles.
. . Researchers previously reached similar conclusions in Canada, where fire is destroying an average 6.4 million acres a year, compared with 2.5 million in the early 1970s. And an upcoming U.S.-Russian-Canadian scientific paper points to links between warming and wildfires in Siberia, where 2006 already qualifies as an extreme fire season, sixth in the past eight years. Far to the south in drought-stricken Australia, meanwhile, 2005 was the hottest year on record, and the dangerous bushfire season is growing longer.
. . Southern Siberia's average winter temperatures in the 1980-2000 period were 2 to 4 degrees Celsius (3.6 to 7.2 degrees F) warmer than the pre-1960 norm.

July 20, 06: As a heat wave baked the capital, global warming dominated a number of conversations in and around the government today.
. . _The House Government Reform Committee began an inquiry into allegations that White House officials edited reports on global warming to play down the threat it poses.
. . _Retiring Sen. Jim Jeffords, I-Vt., announced his last hurrah, a bill to reverse the U.S. growth in heat-trapping "greenhouse" gases from burning coal and transportation fuels. He spoke at an indoor rally. The air conditioning was on.
. . _The U.S. Public Interest Research Group, an advocacy group, predicted that energy companies' plans to build more than 150 new coal-fired power plants will increase U.S. CO2 emissions by 25% above 2004 levels.
. . "The fact that we don't have a plan is really disturbing", said Judith Curry, head of Georgia Institute of Technology's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences.

July 19, 06: The first six months of 2006 were the warmest, on average, since the United States started keeping records in 1895, and global warming is a contributing factor, a U.S. climate expert said today.
. . July, August and September are forecast to continue the hot trend over most of the United States, including the vast area of the country west of the Mississippi River, as well as New England, Florida and southern Alaska. "In January, we did not have intrusions of arctic air to the extent that we usually get. ... The very cold air was shut off and we had temperatures that were two degrees above normal", Lawrimore said. "And that goes for the other months as well."
. . Yet another reason for the extended record-high average warmth is the jet stream's path, he said. This upper-atmosphere pattern typically moves from west to east in a zigzag pattern that carries cool air down from the north to the continental United States. This year, the jet stream looks like a nearly straight line hovering somewhere north of the Canadian border.

July 18, 06: Japan is planning ultra long-range 30-year weather forecasts that will predict typhoons, storms, blizzards, droughts and other inclement weather.

July 17, 06: UK scientists have traced the history of wildfires by studying lumps of ancient charcoal from around the world. The fossils show the incidence of fires through time is closely related to the level of atmospheric oxygen.
. . Andrew Scott and Ian Glasspool say huge swathes of the planet were ablaze when concentrations of the gas peaked some 275 million years ago. "Look at it under a microscope and you see that it has beautiful anatomical preservation", said geologist Professor Scott, University of London. "In other words, the charcoal retains information not just about the fire but about the type of plants that were being burned. This means we can tell whether the fires moved through surface plants or big trees." Charcoal is almost pure carbon, and is left virtually unchanged in the fossilization process.
. . Scott and Glasspool, who is affiliated to Chicago's Field Museum, examined charcoal residues preserved from about 440 to roughly 250 million years ago. It covers the period when scientists believe plants first got a strong foothold on land and spread rapidly across the surface. The team found that fires were rare and localized for the first 50 million years of plant evolution but then they increased in frequency as the levels of oxygen in the atmosphere rose.
. . From around 365 million years ago, severe fires became widespread across the planet. Oxygen levels peaked at 30% 275 million years ago, in comparison with only 21% today. In this period, even damp vegetation would have ignited easily, causing many more fires.
. . "Fire sustains certain systems. If more carbon is bound up and buried as charcoal, you are taking CO2 out of the atmosphere, which changes the climate. "In the time we looked at, we had the 'global ice house' (a period of worldwide cooling) and a fall in sea levels; you have therefore more area to be colonized by plants which can burn. And as the oxygen levels rise, you can burn more and more of the wetter material. So, you get various feedbacks."

July 17, 06: Power consumption across the U.S. and parts of Canada soared with scorching temperatures to new record highs on Monday, but blackouts were unlikely unless there were major equipment failures. "It's very unusual to see records being set all across North America."
. . Last summer was the second-warmest on record in the Northeast and the 17th warmest nationwide, according to the National Climatic Data Center, which has been compiling data for 111 years. Total generation in the U.S. is 892,621 MW.

Monday, July 17, 06: The mile-high city of Denver had two straight days of record highs, hitting 103 on Sunday and 101 Saturday.
. . South Dakota posted some of the nation's highest temperatures with a reading Saturday of 115 at Pierre, the state capital, and an unofficial report of 120 outside the town of Usta in the state's northwest corner.

July 14, 06: Ms Lavery, who works on flood risk management for the Thames Estuary 2100 project, points out that should a flood hit the capital it could cause up to £80bn of damage. That is, if nothing is done to upgrade current infrastructure around the Thames Barrier, and further down river.
. . About a sixth of London's population, well over a million people are at risk from flooding, according to the project. Kent and Essex also face massive disruption by the end of the century, if things are left as they stand now.
. . In the meantime, the Thames Barrier is already feeling the effects of global warming. When it first came on stream in the 1980s it was raised on average every couple of years. In 2003, it was raised 19 times.
. . But planning for the worst is already under way. Sarah Lavery is working on the basis that the Thames Barrier will offer "good service" up until 2030, and beyond. But steps have to be taken now to develop defences that will protect London from flooding from 2030 up until the end of this century.

July 14, 06: The average temperatures of the first half of 2006 were the highest ever recorded for the continental United States, NOAA scientists announced today. Temperatures for January through June were 3.4 degrees F above the 20th-century average. Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and Missouri experienced record warmth for the period, while no state experienced cooler-than-average temperatures.
. . Scientists have previously said that 2005 was the warmest year on record for the entire globe. Last month the United States experienced the second warmest June since weather record keeping began in 1895.
. . This warming coupled with less than average precipitation caused moderate to extreme droughts in almost 45% of the contiguous United States. However, some areas, such as the Northeast of the country experienced record rainfalls and severe floods. According to one study, the amount of land damaged by rising temperature-induced droughts more than doubled in the last 30 years.
. . Meanwhile, dry conditioned have contributed to more than 50,000 wildfires in the first half of this year, an unusually high number. A study earlier this month suggests climate change has in recent years contributed to more wildfires in the Western United States.
. . Other studies suggest that warmer oceans and increased moisture could make for stronger hurricanes for many years to come.

July 13,06: Only the Sahara has more desert than Australia, whose red center has long been thought uninhabitable by modern man. But while Australia's central deserts are now seen as benign and are starting to yield fruit, salination is turning once productive farmland into lifeless dirt tracts and threatening the country's A$30 billion (US $22 billion) agriculture export industry, one of the biggest in the world. Around 2 million hectares (5 million acres) of land is now officially salt-affected, half of that in southwest Western Australia. The amount of saline land could rise to 6 million hectares in 50 years, but that would be the upper limit.
. . The outback deserts are also growing, due to climate change. Officially, lowland arid regions cover 3.6 million square km (1.4 million sq miles) of Australia's heart. "Central Australia will get drier. And the periods of drought are likely to get more ferocious", says Professor Mike Archer, a longtime desert enthusiast and dean of science at the University of New South Wales.
. . Feral predators, tourists, grazing animals and big fires are all adding to pressures on Australia's deserts, after already making 20 or more mammal species extinct.
. . A growing love affair with Australia's deserts is pushing the CSIRO and others to develop a potentially lucrative bush tucker (native food) industry, new medicines from desert plants, salt-tolerant wheat and genetically engineered tomatoes, as well as sustainable harvesting of kangaroos and native plants.
. . One Western Australian farmer is growing ocean perch in salty ponds on his saline land.

July 8, 06: Corals can alter their skeleton to match the changing chemistry of seawater, making them the only known animals to achieve such a feat, according to a new study.
. . Coral reefs are made from calcium carbonate secreted by coral polyps over millions of years. Corals generally use aragonite, a carbonate material, to make the calcium carbonate. But the new study shows that when there is a decrease in the ratio of magnesium to calcium in the seawater, corals can switch to calcite for producing calcium carbonate.
. . "This is particularly significant given recently observed and predicted future changes in the temperature and acidity of our oceans via global warming and rising atmospheric [CO2], respectively—that will presumably have a significant impact on corals' ability to build their skeletons and construct their magnificent reefs."

July 7, 06: "An Inconvenient Truth, the former vice president's sobering documentary about radical climate change, foretells the coming ecological catastrophe if something isn't done, and now, to reverse the effects of global warming. The scientific fraternity, in growing numbers, agrees with him.
. . Ebell, a bogeyman to environmentalists, was a lobbyist (in the early '90s) for a coalition of grassroots property rights groups1 and is now serving as director of energy and global warming policy for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a conservative Washington think tank that receives generous funding from the oil and gas industry. Not surprisingly, he sees it differently.
. . Even if it's not 100% certain that we're rushing headlong toward some kind of ecological tipping point --even if there's room for argument-- why argue at all?!
. . Look. Something is happening out there. What matters here is the planet, not whose economic system prevails. Can an unfettered free market settle things? Great, use it. Would heavy regulation of private industry be more effective? Then do that. Do what it takes to get the job done. We may get only one shot. I'm not willing to put all my chips on 32 red."

July 5, 06: The increase in the number of large western wildfires in recent years may be a result of global warming, researchers say. An analysis of data going back to 1970 indicates the fires increased "suddenly and dramatically" in the 1980s and the wildfire season grew longer, according to scientists.
. . Beginning about 1987, there was a change from infrequent fires averaging about one week in duration to more frequent ones that often burned five weeks or more, they reported. The length of the wildfire season was extended by 78 days. The researchers said the changes appear to be linked to annual spring and summer temperatures, with many more wildfires burning in hotter years than in cooler years.
. . They also found a connection between early arrivals of the spring snowmelt in the mountainous regions and the incidence of large forest fires. An earlier snowmelt, they said, can lead to an earlier and longer dry season, which provides greater opportunities for large fires.
. . "I see this as one of the first big indicators of climate change impacts in the continental United States. Lots of people think climate change and the ecological responses are 50 to 100 years away. But it's not 50 to 100 years away —it's happening now."

July 5, 06: Corals and other marine creatures are threatened by chemical changes in the ocean caused by the CO2 from burning fossil fuels, a panel of scientists warned.
. . Already blamed for a greenhouse effect warming of the climate, much of this added CO2 is dissolving in the oceans, making them more acid. Such a change can damage coral and other shells and sealife, according to the panel of researchers.
. . "In the oceans, pH is a relatively constant property and it has not changed over time scales of hundreds of thousands and probably even millions of years", Kleypas said. "The pH changes that are occurring in the ocean today are truly extraordinary", she added. The oceans are normally slightly alkaline. Their average surface pH was 8.2 in 1800 and is headed for a predicted 7.9 by the middle of this century, she said.
. . The researchers estimated that between 1800 and 1994 the world's oceans absorbed 118 billion metric tons of carbon, reducing the natural alkalinity of seawater.
. . Richard Feely, an oceanographer at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle, said "this is leading to the most dramatic changes in marine chemistry in at least the past 650,000 years."
. . Chris Langdon at the University of Miami said studies show that coral calcification consistently decreases as the oceans become more acidic. That means these organisms will grow more slowly, or their skeletons will become less dense, a process similar to osteoporosis in humans. That threatens reefs because corals may be unable to build reefs as fast as erosion wears away the reefs.

July 3, 06: The BBC is to gather expert evidence this week on whether human-induced climate change is a crisis for planet Earth, as James Lovelock believes. The originator of the Gaia concept wrote in his recent book "...the fever of global heating is real and deadly". He says nuclear power is the only short-term way to provide enough energy without causing more climatic harm. July 3, 06: The BBC has commissioned a panel of scientists to review Professor Lovelock's evidence and opinions. Panel members include top British experts on the Antarctic, climate modelling, interactions between oceans and atmosphere, and sustainable development.
. . The Revenge of Gaia, published earlier this year, is the latest in a series of books in which James Lovelock has developed the Gaia theory. The key idea is that the segment of Earth from the bottom of its crust to the top of its atmosphere acts as a self-regulating being, keeping conditions suitable for life. A subtitle for Gaia theory is "the science of planetary medicine"; and in The Revenge of Gaia, James Lovelock argues that the planetary patient is seriously unwell. "It was a deeply gloomy picture; but for me the gloomiest of all things was the detached, almost academic, air with which the grim predictions were presented --almost as if we were discussing some other planet, not the Earth."
. . What should we make of his contention that renewable energy and the traditional concept of sustainable development are misguided? Is he right to say that nuclear fission is the only way to provide humanity with the energy it needs until technologies such as nuclear fusion and tidal power can be introduced to a substantial extent? Does "a lack of constraint on the growth of population" lie at the root of modern environmental problems?
. . James Lovelock's genius has perhaps been to bring such threads together into a logical whole. "He is a superb scientist, an originator of the view of the Earth, including its life, as a complete interacting system and an all-round free thinker", said Professor Brian Hoskins of Reading University who will chair the panel.
. . Professor Lovelock is adamant that his book and his thesis is not defeatist, as some observers have suggested. "Only those lacking imagination would take the book as a counsel for despair", he said.
. . Birds that migrate long distances have adapted to the world's changing climate in unexpected ways, a study shows. As the planet warms, and spring arrives earlier in Europe, birds are being forced to change their migration patterns.
. . It had been thought that birds travelling long distances from Africa to Europe would be unable to adapt. But a study in Science suggests they have evolved in response to climate change and are returning earlier. The need for migratory birds to time their arrival at breeding grounds with plentiful food supplies is a known evolutionary pressure.

July 3, 06: Climate change provides many new opportunities for British farmers, like tea and energy crops, but also poses challenges including the threat of new insects and diseases, a British government minister said. "We want to see farmers seize opportunities for new crops that a changing climate is going to bring", junior environment minister Ian Pearson said.
. . Pearson, however, said climate change also posed major challenges. "The significant decrease in cold snaps in Britain, together with an overall warmer climate and wetter winters, increase risks of new pests and diseases", he noted. Pearson described climate change as the biggest long-term challenge to the human race and said Britain must do more to help tackle it.
. . Pearson noted that Britain was not on course to meet its own target of a 20% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2010, noting latest figures indicated a 16.2% cut would be achieved. He said there was a need to reach an international agreement on climate change with key countries such as the United States, China and India.

July 3, 06: China's "claims...are wildly optimistic, unreasonable and unproven", said Daniel Breed, a scientist at the U.S. National Center for Atmospheric Research who works on a cloud seeding project in Wyoming. He said China had some good scientists but that "they have not produced any --or very little-- credible evidence."

July 3, 06: Several massive vessels have run aground on Michigan's Saginaw River this shipping season, caught in shallow waters a few miles from Lake Huron.

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