News

Climate change measuring instruments are on life support | John Abraham

Programs to measure climate changes may be heading for declines due to budget cuts. Scientists have adopted basic rules of management, such as: "You can't manage what you can't measure." This is a truism in climate science. In order to understand where our climate is headed, we need to know where it has been in the past, and where it is now. »

Obama vows US 'will do more' to battle climate change

President Barack Obama on Wednesday pledged that the United States "will do more" to tackle the threat of climate change and said the world must do likewise before it is too late. »

Scuppered barges plug dyke to hold back German flood

Extreme weather called for extreme remedies to staunch the flow of the river Elbe in Germany on Sunday    . »

More must be done to prepare pacific small islands for droughts, UN official warns

With thousands of people in the Marshall Islands without access to safe drinking water, the head of the United Nations office for disaster risk reduction today warned that Pacific small islands are threatened by drought and need to incorporate mitigation measures into their national planning and risk assessments. »

Small global warming rise would have 'alarming' impact: World Bank

Much of Bangkok could flood within the next two decades if global warming stays on its current trajectory, as sea levels rise and cyclones intensify, the World Bank said in a new report on Wednesday. »

World's poorest will feel brunt of climate change, warns World Bank

Droughts, floods, sea-level rises and fiercer storms likely to undermine progress in developing world and hit food supply. Millions of people around the world are likely to be pushed back into poverty because climate change is undermining economic development in poor countries, the World Bank has warned. »

The energy bill debate is distorted by climate contrarians

Ministers give license to those threatening to derail Europe's efforts to tackle the world's most difficult environmental problem. The parliamentary debate on the energy bill resumes in the Lords on Tuesday and is set to be distorted by a small but influential group of global warming contrarians. »

Citizens Climate Lobby pushes for a carbon tax and dividend | Dana Nuccitelli

Citizens Climate Lobby aims to organize the public to create pressure behind a carbon fee and dividend system. Although a majority of Americans support taking action to address the threat of climate change, thanks mainly to opposition from conservative elected officials, US Congress has failed to implement climate legislation. »

U.S. states, greens delay lawsuit, await Obama climate plan

Environmental groups and a dozen states and cities said Monday they will delay planned legal action against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, saying they will wait to see if the White House soon unveils a climate policy strategy. »

Study identifies travel choices for a smaller carbon footprint

The study, published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology by researchers at IIASA and Center for International Climate and Environmental Research (CICERO) calculates the climate impact for passenger trips of 500-1000 km-typical distances for business or holiday trips. »

Is sustainability a key part of education? | Katherine Portilla

Downplaying the discussion of climate change and sustainability in UK education may be a mistake. On 11 June, the UK's education secretary Michael Gove revealed the draft new syllabus for the geography GCSE exam: it mentions climate change once. »

UN General Assembly set to explore impacts of ocean acidification

The United Nations General Assembly will begin today its consideration of the impacts that the increasing acidification of the world's oceans will have on the marine environment and on people. »

Religions seen slow to go green; Pope has chance to inspire

Few religious communities have gone as far in fighting climate change as a church in Queensland, Australia, which has 24 solar panels bolted to the roof in the shape of a Christian cross. »

Beyond NYC: Other places adapting to climate, too

From Bangkok to Miami, cities and coastal areas across the globe are already building or planning defenses to protect millions of people and key infrastructure from more powerful storm surges and other effects of global warming. »

Carbon Trading with Chinese Characteristics

On June 18 China’s pioneering city of Shenzhen is set to notch up another first. From that day 635 companies in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone--which in 1979 became the vanguard for China’s capitalist revolution--will start using the markets to help meet greenhouse gas emissions targets. »

Climate science debate has cost precious time, expert warns

Commission report says evidence of rapidly changed climate has strengthened. Floods, bushfires and this year's scorching summer heatwave have raised awareness of the dangers of climate change, but an "infantile" debate over the validity of the science has cost Australia precious time, according to a key Climate Commission expert. »

Climate talk shifts from curbing CO2 to adapting

Efforts to curb global warming have quietly shifted as greenhouse gases inexorably rise. The conversation is no longer solely about how to save the planet by cutting carbon emissions. It's becoming more about how to save ourselves from the warming planet's wild weather. »

Climate Change Getting Worse by the Minute

What goes up and doesn't come down? Greenhouse gas emissions, apparently. The world set another record in 2012, spewing some 31.6 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, methane , hydrofluorocarbons and other greenhouse gases into the air. »

This week in climate news (16 June 2013)

The most popular articles from the past week. »

Obama leaves climate change-fighting tool on shelf for now

President Barack Obama has vowed to tackle climate change in his second term, but so far has not acted to strengthen a tool that does not require backing from Congress - the National Environmental Policy Act. »