Most Popular Global Warming Posts
Skepticism of Global Warming Grows, But Majority Continue to Demand Action
Published October 22, 2009 @ 09:58AM PT
A new poll reveals Americans are increasingly skeptical that there is solid evidence of the earth warming. Fourteen percent fewer than last April. This despite world governments increasingly taking the advice of the world's best scientists to do something, and do something quickly.
Only 36 percent of those polled believe that human activity is to blame. The decline is true across all party lines. However, 57 percent still believe the evidence that earth is warming, and "a majority (56%) of Americans thinks the United States should join other countries in setting standards to address global climate change."
So why are people changing their minds on global warming? They could be sick of all the coverage that climate change is getting, or fear the cost of action. The fact that this a long emergency, one that won't have dramatic and immediately obvious effects in peoples' backyards like December heat-waves may cause some to question the evidence. But there may be other factors at play; Andrew Kohut from Pew explained to the WSJ "we have since the onset of the recession seen people giving lower priority to environmental issues."
A majority still demand action, and the people continue to give President Obama a clear message: Take action. Limit emissions.
The 411 on Geoengineering: Unexciting, Unproven, Reduce Emissions Instead
Published October 21, 2009 @ 06:02PM PT
Geo-engineering shouldn't involve fantastical scheme that involves building giant discs to block the sun. In fact, it shouldn't be required at all. And besides, widespread international technological development simply won't be so fantastical explains Mike Konczal. He says that "All the big massive solutions ... are, effectively, the equivalent of a weight loss plan that is solely 'buy bigger pants.'" I think he's saying that these solutions won't reduce our consumption, and will come back to haunt us when, having spent a lot of money, we're back where we started. He explains that any geo-engineering that we do enact — deliberate manipulation of earth's climate to mitigate climate change — is likely to come from doing things like painting roofs white and planting a lot of trees. Not exciting but more realistic.
The likely political and global problems of giant technological constructions to mitigate climate change will be huge explains Ryan Avent. Who would pay for the massive investment? What if it failed and we made people skeptical of such fixes at the point when they became essential? We should focus on emissions whilst we're still confident that something can be done by simply cutting back.
Nate Silver echoes Konczal's fears that we'd have to continue going back to the drawing board once the earth heats up again. And he agrees with Ryan Advent that "the political hurdles would be massive, arguably larger than the scientific ones. And the larger the scale of the warming problem, the more geoengineering will be required, and therefore the higher the political hurdles will be."
We need to cut emissions and agree that huge geoengineering projects are currently science fiction, and are not a serious way to deal with an immediate threat, especially when we can so easily reduce emissions by putting a price on them.
Google's Impressive Climate Change Response Is More Than Just Kites and Goats
Published October 20, 2009 @ 03:18PM PT
Google is continuing its battle against climate change in the run up to the UN Climate Change conference in Copenhagen which begins December 7. Google.org, Google's charitable arm already receives 1% of all of Google's profits. As well as monitoring the spread of flu, improving access to public services internationally, and investing in small businesses in the developing world, Google.org works to fight climate change.
Google will soon announce details of work with international space agencies to monitor forests by satellite to help fight deforestation. They're also using satellites and Google Earth to raise public awareness of climate change. With the help of Al Gore, they produced a video explaining how we can confront climate change, sharing three additional videos from Conservation International, Greenpeace, and WWF. These Google Earth tours are intended "to explore the potential impacts of climate change on our planet and the solutions for managing it." The COP15 youtube page, presented by CNN, provides further user-generated video.
One of Google.org's key initiatives is to develop renewable energy that's cheaper than coal (RE<C). They're investing in solar thermal plants and kites that tap into the jetstream, and patenting systems to run their data centers on wave energy. They're also working with Energy Inc. to develop in-home electricity meters so that users can see their energy usage, and then cut it, helping save money and energy.
Google don't just talk green, they work green too. For Blog Action Day last week, Google provided a tour of their green HQ: 9,212 solar panels, goats to mow the lawns, and electric vehicles all contribute to reduce their emissions.
Being responsible for massive amounts of energy usage around the world, Google has an obligation to fight climate change. By working on international awareness of climate change, investing in renewables, and helping people save energy through technological innovation, they're leading the way.
Coral Collapse Following Climate Change Threatens Food Supply of 500 Million
Published October 19, 2009 @ 12:00PM PT
Coral makes for an excellent climate change mitigation mascot, considering how much damage its loss will do around the world. Quite simply, coral reefs are on the brink of collapse. Not the scuba-diving type? Well you still have reason to care. Let's talk money. Coral reefs save the world $172 billion a year by acting as natural sea defenses and providing other human welfare benefits. Reefs also earn $30 billion a year for local economies from tourists. If you don't care for such extravagances then consider the 500 million people who depend on the reefs for their food. That's a lot of people who will need to look elsewhere as reefs collapse.
Quite simply: "Climate Change Will Bring Coral Reefs Collapse" isn't so worrying until you realize that we aren't just losing a few acres of coral reef protecting a few dozen clownfish. No: We are at risk of losing truly valuable eco-systems that we won't able to rebuild for free, and who's destruction will cost us greatly if nothing is done.
Beijing Cuts Smog But Adds 1,500 Cars Each Day
Published October 18, 2009 @ 05:24PM PT
Changing attitudes to emissions is a gradual process, with baby steps which should given credit, despite the short length of the stride. China's baby steps are 221 "blue sky days" that indicate pollution in Beijing is down. With the number of days enjoying dangerous levels of pollution down to only two — from 2001's five days — there seems to be a positive trend.
But emissions at the capital, of course, are not indicative of significant progress nationwide — or even in the capital. Many measures enacted in preparation for the Beijing 2008 Olympics games have continued. They continue to ban a portion of cars from the roads one day of the week, cutting traffic by 20% they hope. Yet each day 1,500 new cars join the crush. The Olympics may not have freed Tibet, or forced the government to move on human rights abuses, but it seems life is more livable in Beijing today.
In terms of China tackling climate change, this may be more like Beijing doing the bare minimum to produce a bearable standard of living in its capital, not a climate change measure that'll have any bearing on national emissions. But plans to expand clean-tailpipe requirements from Beijing to the whole country indicates progress. The people are no longer being poisoned — now let's see whether they care so much about the environment.
Developing World Stands Up To Developed Nations
Published October 16, 2009 @ 11:00AM PT
I'm currently on the Greenpeace ship Esperanza in the South Pacific. We're on the Defending Our Pacific tour, which is a campaign to establish a global network of marine reserves, stop overfishing of Pacific fisheries, and support Pacific island nations efforts to stop Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in their waters.
Crewman aboard the Japanese vessel Koyu Maru 3, fishing in Cook Islands waters illegally, haul a tuna onboard. Like climate change, overfishing of the world's fisheries is threatening the livelihood of developing countries who are not contributing significantly to the source of the problem. Image © Paul Hilton/Greenpeace
Last week, we caught the Japanese ship Koyu Maru 3 fishing in Cook Islands waters without a license, which is obviously illegal. When I blogged a bout it on the Greenpeace website, I made the point that this was not just illegal but also immoral. So why is it immoral?
Last week, a new study was released by The Commonwealth that underscores the drastic need for government action on overfishing and climate change in order to stave off a collapse of global fisheries. The report warns that the oceans could soon become “deserts” and goes on to say:
The study reveals that those least responsible for the state of the oceans are most likely to suffer the consequences of poor management and climate change. Small island states in particular are vulnerable to illegal and unfair fishing by foreign fleets and to migration of fish away from warming seas.
The Esperanza has been in the Pacific region since May to support Pacific Island countries on issues ranging from climate change to fisheries collapse and marine conservation. But of course Greenpeace’s history in the Pacific Ocean goes back much further than that — all the way back to the early 1970s when we were protesting the French nuclear blasts at Moruroa. The fallout from these blasts also disproportionately affected those Pacific islanders living downwind from the blast sites — another instance of those not responsible for a problem suffering the most. While there was nothing technically illegal about these blasts, the total disregard for human health and welfare is egregious.
The industrialized commercial fishing vessels that are literally stealing fish from Pacific island nations' waters is just another example of the developed world doing as they please and disregarding the well-being of the people affected by their actions. That's why it’s very encouraging that eight Pacific island nations have come together and are standing up for their rights against these invading international commercial fishing fleets.
Pacific island states are not the only developing nations that are banding together to force the developed world to live up to their other moral obligations: “Africa will demand billions of dollars in compensation from rich polluting nations at a UN climate summit for the harm caused by global warming on the continent, African officials said Sunday.”
Lest we doubt that there is any need for this stand by African nations, even the World Bank, generally no friend to the developing world, is warning of the threats those nations are facing as the climate crisis looms: “The World Bank estimates that the developing world will suffer about 80 percent of the damage of climate change despite accounting for only around one third of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.”
So the real question we must be asking ourselves is: Will the developed world stand up and do the right thing in regard to these moral obligations?
Team Germany Wins 2009 Solar Decathlon
Published October 16, 2009 @ 06:18AM PT
In yesterday's photo essay of the Solar Decathlon action on the National Mall, I was missing one crucial detail: the contest's winner, which had yet to be announced.
So I'm here bright and early today to bring you the breaking news: Team Germany has just been named overall champion of the 2009 Solar Decathlon. The team was in second place yesterday before the engineering competition, which edged them out over University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Third prize goes to Team California.
The house is basically a two-story cube with a big, square living space inside. The walls and roof are entirely coated with solar-collectors that generate two times the energy the house requires. The interior, an undivided multifunctional space, is kept at a comfortable temperature with various cutting-edge insulation techniques.
The 24-member team mostly composed of architecture students took on the philosophy of trying to "push the envelope with as many new technologies as possible" and relied on the advice on the 2007 to help them clobber the competition.
They used single-crystal silicon solar panels on the roof, and lined the sides of the home with thin-film copper indium gallium diselenide. The house has custom-made vacuum insulation structural panes and features phase-change material, namely paraffin in the walls and salt hydrate in the ceiling.
Huh?
Maybe the students can explain it themselves:
Photo courtesy of Department of Energy
