TOP STORY
Disturbing reports describe how precious water supplies are reacting to continued human abuse and climate change. Water resources are Drying, Drying, Disappearing.... "Lake Chad was bigger than Israel less than 50 years ago. Today its surface area is less than a tenth of its earlier size, amid forecasts the lake could disappear altogether within 20 years." The disappearance of this lake will impact the livelihoods of 30 million people, cause more hunger and pose a "massive threat to peace and stability."
From just the past few days, common themes in climate change news include how deniers continue to lie while politicians bicker or offer counterproductive proposals as a new study shows literally the speed of climate change spreading globally. Meanwhile, a power company thinks it is rational to strip mine a river to obtain coal.
Back in the U.S., Regional lake study points to surface water temps rising 2 times faster than regional air temps.
Lake Tahoe, Clear Lake and four other large lakes in Northern California and Nevada are warming faster than the surrounding atmosphere, suggesting climate change may affect aquatic environments faster and sooner.
...The other lakes in the study are Lake Almanor and Mono Lake in California, and Pyramid Lake and Walker Lake in Nevada.
Even though water supplies are drying up globally, creating a water crisis, the need for coal reserves in 3 years threatens community water supplies in Zimbabwe national park. A main power plant wants to dig for new coal that lies underneath a river in a national park after "de-watering the adjacent rivers in the area." No matter that this river supplies local towns, the Victoria falls and "thousands of endangered animals."
Another study found that atmospheric carbon dioxide that is absorbed by oceans not only causes acidification, but also affects low-frequency sound, which is used by marine mammals to locate food and mates.
An op-ed in the New York Times says it well: To Save the Planet, Save the Seas.
Few people may realize it, but in addition to producing most of the oxygen we breathe, the ocean absorbs some 25 percent of current annual carbon dioxide emissions. Half the world’s carbon stocks are held in plankton, mangroves, salt marshes and other marine life. So it is at least as important to preserve this ocean life as it is to preserve forests, to secure its role in helping us adapt to and mitigate climate change.
Sea-grass meadows, for example, which flourish in shallow coastal waters, account for 15 percent of the ocean’s total carbon storage, and underwater forests of kelp store huge amounts of carbon, just as forests do on land. The most efficient natural carbon sink of all is not on land, but in the ocean, in the form of Posidonia oceanica, a species of sea grass that forms vast underwater meadows that wave in the currents just as fields of grass on land sway in the wind.
CLIMATE CHANGE & ENERGY
- Economists Warn of a Climate Trade War. Sen. Kerry stated at Copenhagen that the U.S. and China must accept binding targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to ensure that U.S. workers do not lose jobs to India and China. Now, "Western politicians are getting more open with threats to make the most CO2-intensive imports more expensive -- with the help of punitive tariffs." Experts warn that eco-punitive tariffs would not "substantially alter the demand in the West for goods from China," yet provide risks for the U.S. Decreased imports from China "would likely weaken" our economy. And China could " -- in theory -- squander US Treasury securities and make the country's economy vulnerable."
- Green Technologies dependent on elements called rare earths that "come almost entirely from China."
Some of the greenest technologies of the age, from electric cars to efficient light bulbs to very large wind turbines, are made possible by an unusual group of elements called rare earths. The world’s dependence on these substances is rising fast.
Western capitals have suddenly grown worried over China’s near monopoly, which gives it a potential stranglehold on technologies of the future.
- Scientists describe the "velocity of climate change" or the "speed of Earth's shifting climatic zones" as climatic zones move away from Equator and toward the poles: Plants and animals race for survival as climate change creeps across the globe: Species will need to move ¼ mile each year to keep pace with changing temperatures.
Species that can tolerate only a narrow range of temperatures will need to move as quickly if they are to survive. Wildlife in lowland tropics, mangroves and desert areas are at greater risk than species in mountainous areas, the study suggests.
They found that mountainous areas will have the lowest velocity of temperature change, meaning that animals will not need to move very far to stay in the temperature range of their natural habitat. However, much larger geographic displacements are required in flatter areas such as flooded grasslands, mangroves and deserts, in order for animals to keep pace with their climate zone. The researchers also found that most currently protected areas are not big enough to accommodate the displacements required.
- Generating Solar Power After Dark.
Solar farms that would serve two Western utilities are planning to use technology that will generate electricity after the sun goes down, a move that could be a potential game-changer for the industry.
The two farms being planned by SolarReserve of Santa Monica, Calif., would store the sun’s energy in molten salt, releasing the heat at night when it could be used to drive a turbine and generate electricity.
- Toyota Industries Corp. Develops Solar Charging Station for EVs and PHEVs.
Toyota Industries Corp (TIC) has developed a solar charging station for plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHVs) and electric vehicles (EVs). The municipal government of Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture plans to build 21 such stations at 11 locations such as the municipal office and branch offices. Full operation of the stations will begin in April, with 20 Prius Plug-In Hybrids.
CLIMATE CHANGE POLITICS
WILDLIFE & ENDANGERED SPECIES