See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/....qQrDG86h.dpufNOAA also reported that the “average lower strastospheric temperature, about six to ten miles above the Earth’s surface, for 2012 was record or near-record cold, -
Fossil fuel divestment goes global
As groups, such as the Carbon Tracker initiative, work to shine light on the dangers of continued investment in fossil fuels, 2013 saw some of the world’s largest public financial institutions move to halt coal investment. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund announced new policies limiting what fossil fuel projects can be funded. The European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the US Ex-Im followed suit.
A host of private sector firms are also moving their investment away from dirty energy, while governments, including in the US, the UK, China and the Nordic countries, are re-assessing the support they will provide coal in the future.
These announcements have run in parallel with a burgeoning divestment movement that started strong in the US and has now moved across Australia and Europe. The movement calls on educational and religious institutions, along with city and state governments to lead the way in divestment and has already seen successes including Providence City Council, San Francisco State University, the United Church of Christ and the Quakers of Britain.
“Not only is fossil fuels a rogue industry, it’s also a bad bet,” said Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org, the organisation leading the divestment campaign. “Those carbon numbers make it clear that the industry sits on a ‘Carbon Bubble’, with €13 trillion worth of fuel it can’t sell if the planet takes even minimal action against climate change.”
- See more at: http://tcktcktck.org/2013/12/year-clima ... 04Ukb.dpuf
remember when it was okay to smoke on a plane?? Getting there with carbon emissons...just not done..“Mother of all risks”: Business wake up to climate threat
In the wake of the IPCC’s latest report, businesses around the world appear to be waking up to the threats of climate change and the opportunities of tackling it.[HILITE] Business leaders PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) urged governments to do much more to tackle the problem, describing it as the “mother of all risks”, while nearly 700 companies signed onto the ‘Climate Declaration’ saying tackling climate change offers “one of America’s greatest economic opportunities.”[/HILITE]
Investors are waking up to the problem too. While the majority have a long way to go in understanding climate risk, one survey of asset owners and managers, responsible for $14 trillion, showed that climate risk analysis is an increasing factor in investment decisions, while[HILITE] investors worth $87 trillion – that’s one third of the World’s invested capital – have called on public companies to report their greenhouse gas emissions and climate change plans.[/HILITE]
[HILITE]Even some of the world’s direst companies have begun pricing carbon into their own long-term planning process[/HILITE], according to a recent report from CDP. That includes the likes of ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillipes, Chevron, BP, Shell and Delta Air Lines.
- See more at: http://tcktcktck.org/2013/12/year-clima ... 04Ukb.dpuf
http://www.weather.com/news/weather-for ... l-20131223The weekend before Christmas proved nightmarish for many travelers and surreal for holiday shoppers, as Winter Storm Gemini tied up air travel and record warmth forced East Coast residents to hang up their coats and don short sleeves instead.
Now, this freakish weather is being etched into the record books. Let's step through some of the highlights, starting with the record warmth.
Historic December Heat
Observed highs on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2013.
Observed highs on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2013.
Persistent southerly winds brought a massive influx of warm air north from the tropics, sending temperatures to record levels in at least 18 states. Dozens of daily records were broken.
More significant, however, are the monthly records that were broken in several large East Coast cities with very long periods of weather record-keeping. The following cities tied or broke all-time record highs for the month of December:
Augusta, Ga.: Saturday's high of 83 broke its all-time December record high of 82 previously set eight times, as early as 1967 and as recently as Dec. 6, 2013.
Norfolk, Va.: Sunday's high of 81 broke its all-time December record high of 80 previously set three times, as early as 1978 and as recently as Dec. 6, 2013.
Jacksonville, Fla.: Sunday's high of 84 tied its all-time December record high previously set eight times, as early as 1956 and as recently as Dec. 9, 2013.
Savannah, Ga.: Sunday's high of 82 tied its all-time December record high previously set four times, as early as 1967 and as recently as Dec. 6, 2013.
All four cities have weather records dating to the 1870s. Notably, in all four cities, the top 10 warmest December days on record have all occurred since 1956, and all four had just tied their December record high a few weeks ago – strong hints that climate change may be upping the odds of balmy December temperatures.
The record warmth wasn't limited to the daytime hours; the tropical air mass also kept nighttime temperatures unusually high. The National Weather Service in Sterling, Va., said Saturday night was "the warmest December night in the recorded history of the Baltimore-Washington metro area" by an impressive margin of six to nine degrees.
Since low-temperature records are measured from midnight to midnight – essentially capturing parts of two nights – the final numbers are not quite that extreme, but at least three major cities still set all-time December records for the warmest calendar-day lows ever observed:
Baltimore: Sunday's low of 62 crushed the previous December record of 59 set Dec. 23, 1990.
New York City: Sunday's low of 61 broke the previous December record of 59 on Dec. 4, 1998.
Philadelphia: Sunday's low of 59 broke the previous December record of 58 set Dec. 23, 1990 and Dec. 5, 1973.
All three of these cities have very long records of weather data dating back to the early 1870s, which means these monthly records are especially significant. Baltimore's record was even more impressive because it is the warmest daily low ever recorded there in all of meteorological winter – the months of December, January, and February.
Despite the exceptional warmth recently, the total number of record highs nationally since Jan. 1 remains slightly lower than the number of record lows. This is a radical departure from 2012, when record highs outnumbered record lows by a 5-to-1 margin, according to statistics compiled by NOAA's National Climatic Data Center.
24-hour rainfall ending 7 a.m. EST Sunday, Dec. 22, 2013. (Image credit: NOAA)
Unprecedented Rainfall
The air mass that brought the record warmth also carried extraordinary amounts of tropical moisture. This was wrung out by a large storm system, leading to a multi-state area of very heavy rainfall. Several locations broke December records for single-day rainfall:
Paducah, Ky.: Saturday's rainfall of 5.26 inches surpassed the previous December one-day record of 4.65 inches set Dec. 3, 1982. Records in Paducah began in 1937.
Pine Bluff, Ark.: Saturday's rainfall of 4.94 inches surpassed the previous record of 4.70 inches set Christmas Day, 1987. Records in Pine Bluff date back to the late 19th century.
Cape Girardeau, Mo.: Saturday's rainfall of 4.12 inches beat the previous record of 3.92 inches set Dec. 24, 1982. Here, the period of record is relatively short, back to only 1960.
In addition, Indianapolis picked up 2.57 inches of rain, second only to the 3.46 inches they saw way back on Dec. 3, 1873. Evansville, Ind., also had its second-wettest December day on record, narrowly missing a record set in 1932.
Not only were daily and monthly records broken, but the heavy rainfall pushed Macon, Ga., to its wettest calendar year on record; with exactly 4 inches of rain Sunday into Monday, the 2013 total of 70.47 inches has obliterated the city's old record of 67.80 inches in 1929.
The exceptionally moist tropical air mass also set all-time December records for total atmospheric moisture ("precipitable water" in meteorological jargon) as recorded by weather balloons at Wilmington, Ohio, and Nashville, Tenn. Saturday evening.
The widespread nature of the heavy rainfall – some of it falling on frozen ground – led to serious flooding from the Ohio Valley to eastern Arkansas, as many rivers quickly rose above flood stage in response to the runoff.
Climate scientists widely agree that the frequency of heavy precipitation events such as this will increase as the average global temperature increases due to climate change.
what was that about global warming isn't real?? :rolleyes:Experts see more freakish hot weather
Date
January 1, 2014
Australia's hottest-ever year, and Canberra's second-hottest year on record, could have been even worse were it not for neutral El Nino conditions and early monsoons, according to weather experts, one of whom described 2013's extremes as "freakish".
And after a hotter and drier-than-usual December, Canberra's fire services are geared up for a potentially dangerous month to come as the outlook for January predicts a higher chance of dry conditions.
For Canberra, 2013 narrowly missed being the city's hottest year on record, with an average temperature across the year of 21.7 degrees - just .05 degrees cooler than the record-breaking 2006.
Around the country, all capital cities recorded temperatures in their top-10 hottest for the year. Sydney and Adelaide sizzled through their hottest years ever. Despite "blitzing" hot weather records, University of NSW climate expert Sarah Perkins said 2013's heat was not a surprise after a pattern of more heat extremes and fewer cold-weather records over the past three decades.
Dr Perkins said the multitude of records broken in 2013 (hottest year, hottest month, hottest day) was made extraordinary by the fact that the El Nino Southern Oscillation index was neutral, with no tendency for the hotter, drier weather typically associated with El Nino summers.
"The last two summers have both fallen as neutral summers, and we've seen quite record-breaking conditions. So if we were to have an El Nino year in one of these two summers it certainly would have seen more amplified extremes," she said. "If it weren't for human-induced climate change, occasionally a record would be broken here or there, but you certainly wouldn't get nearly as many in one year. That's a very freakish thing to have."
Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-new ... z2p7dzNFLK
Yes, it is, but don't worry rEv, you'll get a grip on it someday....rEvolutionist wrote:Some people still haven't grasped science. Amazing and pathetic.
Get a grip on it, well maybe. But what would he do then? I'm betting he'll sniff it, stare at it with a confused look on his face, try to eat it, and then throw it away.Seth wrote:Yes, it is, but don't worry rEv, you'll get a grip on it someday....rEvolutionist wrote:Some people still haven't grasped science. Amazing and pathetic.
EU retreats on global warming while US pushes ahead
EU retreats on global warming while US pushes ahead
12:34 PM 01/14/2014
Michael Bastasch
The European Union is on the verge of rolling back much of its climate agenda, even as the United States is moving full speed ahead.
Europe will likely not require member states to expand renewable energy production beyond 2020, reports the German-based EU-Info News.
“It is becoming obvious that Europe’s unilateral climate policy, the whole green agenda of the last 20 years, has turned into an unmitigated fiasco,” Dr. Benny Peiser, director of the UK-based Global Warming Policy Foundation, told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “Even EU leaders are beginning to accept reality.”
The EU’s climate chief Connie Connie Hedegaard and EU environment commissioner Janez Potocnik remain “isolated in their push for a new target to promote green energy,” according to EU-Info News. Not even Germany’s energy commissioner Günther Oettinger supports expanding renewable energy production.
The European experience with renewable energy has been fraught with high costs and mixed results. In Germany, renewable energy policies are driving up electricity costs, leading one of the country’s foremost newspapers to declare that electricity had become a “luxury good”.
The country was attempting to get 25 percent of its power from renewables by 2050, but skyrocketing power prices have forced Germany to rethink its renewables goals. German consumers already pay the highest power prices in Europe, according to Der Spiegel, and generous renewable energy subsidies cost them about $26 billion in taxes last year.
“The promotion of green electricity costs will cost our citizens ($32.5 billion) next year, which is a lot of money that could otherwise be spent on buying new cars, furniture or on restaurant visits,” said Michael Fuchs, deputy leader of the Christian Democratic Union.
Not only Germans are demanding renewable energy reform, but EU businesses as well. The EU wants to generate 20 percent of its power from renewables by 2020 to fight global warming. But top EU business leaders are saying that renewable energy subsidies are raising power costs and putting the continent at risk for blackouts.
“We’ve failed on all accounts: Europe is threatened by a blackout like in New York a few years ago, prices are shooting up higher, and our carbon emissions keep increasing,” said GDF Suez CEO Gérard Mestrallet.
Committed EU officials want to make sure fighting global warming plays a major policy role in Europe. Currently, the only binding European-wide target on the table is requiring members to cut emissions by 35 or 40 percent by 2030.
EU-Info News reports that “the EU Commission is far removed from the European Parliament. Two committees are promoting three binding climate targets for 2030: 40 percent for CO2 emissions reduction and for improving energy efficiency, and 30 percent for renewable energy.” Though many EU countries reject the idea of Brussels-imposed climate targets.
“The old guard of green EU commissioners, however, are trying to salvage their green legacy before they leave office in the autumn,” Peiser said. “These green bureaucrats will be replaced later this year by a new set of commissioners who almost certainly will be less green and more concerned about Europe’s economic future and competitiveness.”
“The chances of the green lobby to push through any new binding renewables or climate targets are near zero,” he added.
There are still some fools too stupid not to foul their only nest.2013 was Australia's hottest year, warm for much of the world
2013 was Australia's hottest year, warm for much of the world
By Expert Panel | 13.01.2014
By Blair Trewin, Australian Bureau of Meteorology; David Jones, Australian Bureau of Meteorology; Karl Braganza, Australian Bureau of Meteorology; Neil Plummer, Australian Bureau of Meteorology, and Rob Smalley, Australian Bureau of Meteorology
The Bureau of Meteorology has confirmed 2013 as Australia’s hottest year since records began in 1910.
Average temperatures over the continent have been 1.2C above the 1961-1990 average, breaking the previous record set in 2005 by 0.17C. It was also the hottest year on record for South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. The other states - Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania – recorded above-average temperatures that rank in their top four hottest years.
Off to a hot start, and no El Niño
You enjoy being a shill for using the atmosphere as a free sewer ???? Thought libbies encouraged taking responsibility.Environmental work for generations
Sweden was an early adopter of sustainable thinking. Back in the 1960s, it recognised that the rapid loss of natural resources had to be confronted, and took a lead in organising the first UN conference on the environment, held in Stockholm in 1972. Since then it has continued to work actively with environmental issues, both nationally and internationally.
Among other successes, Sweden’s proactive environmental policies have led to a reduction in acidification and eutrophication in bodies of water. Since 1990 the proportion of acidified lakes has been reduced from 17 to 10 per cent, and the downward trend continues.
At present, Sweden has the highest percentage of renewable energy in the EU (over 47 per cent). By 2020, at least half of the country’s energy should be renewable, a target the Government says is within reach.
Sweden has also been held up as a role model in water management. Tap water is drinkable, and in the summer you can swim in central parts of the capital, Stockholm. Although Sweden is a frontrunner in environmental policy, the Government recognises that there is plenty of room for improvement. For 2013-2016, Sweden will allocate approximately SEK 22 billion to environmental measures.
WSJUS Navy planning for less Arctic Ice.
Quote:
Navy officials say the Arctic will give the U.S. its first new ocean to police since the annexation of the Pacific Northwest in 1846. As the ice surrounding the North Pole retreats, officials say, commercial shippers will be able to eventually move goods faster between Asia and Europe. More open seas will also give energy companies greater access to offshore oil and gas in regions controlled by the U.S. and estimated by military officials to be worth $1 trillion.
"The inevitable opening of the Arctic will essentially create a new coast on America's north," said Adm. Jonathan Greenert, the Navy's top officer.
Users browsing this forum: Bing [Bot], Majestic-12 [Bot] and 18 guests
