Global Climate Change


City-Dwellers Produce as Much CO2 as Rural Residents Do: Study

More than anything else, CO2 emissions that cause climate change are dependent upon how much goods and services people consume, not where they live.

Huge Wildfires Devastating Forests’ Carbon-Storage Capabilities

Huge Arizona fires making headlines around the globe have destroyed dozens of structures and burned nearly three-quarters of a million acres. They also are contributing to global warming, scientists say, by upsetting the carbon balance while they are burning and for years to come.

Climate Information Crucial to Help Reduce Risk, Limit Disaster Damage: Report

The report details ways in which disaster risk managers can improve their decision making by integrating climate information into their operations.

NASA Sets Sail on Second Leg of Arctic Ocean Research Voyage

Scientists embark this week from Alaska on the second and final campaign of a NASA field campaign to study how changing conditions in the Arctic affect the ocean's chemistry and ecosystems.

Researcher Argues that Climate Change Disasters Are Predictable

Climate change disasters, such as the melting of the Greenland ice sheet, dieback of the Amazon rainforest, or collapse of the Atlantic overturning circulation, could be predicted argues a University of Exeter researcher.

Report: Forest Density, Carbon Storage Capacity Increase Worldwide

Forests in many regions are becoming larger carbon sinks thanks to higher density, U.S. and European researchers say in a new report.

Scientists Seek to Adapt Crops to Climate Change

Throughout history, farmers have adopted new crop varieties and adjusted their practices in tune with environmental change. But as global temperature continues to rise, the pace of change is expected to be unprecedented, and experts are now warning that climate change could trigger a global food crisis as farmers struggle to keep up.

RGGI Auction Yields Maine $769k to Invest in Energy-Efficiency, Renewable Energy

Maine yielded $769,092 of the $25.5 million in investment created by the proceeds from the 10-state cap-and-trade collaborative’s 12th auction of carbon credits. That money will be managed by the Efficiency Maine Trust to fund programs to improve energy efficiency, accelerate the deployment of renewable energy technologies, and provide direct assistance to energy consumers.



Human Activities Release More Carbon Dioxide than Volcanic Eruptions Do

On average, human activities put out in just three to five days the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide that volcanoes produce globally each year according to a new article in Eos, from the American Geophysical Union.

New Biofuel Sustainability Assessment Tool and Greenhouse Gas Calculator Released

Researchers at Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, have together with their colleagues at the Swiss Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) and the HTW Berlin, Germany, developed an online tool to assess the sustainability of biofuel production.

Solar Photovoltaics Poised to Challenge Fossil Fuels: IEEE Solar Experts

Within the next 10 years, solar photovoltaic (PV) systems have the potential to be the most economical form of generating electricity, even compared to traditional fossil fuels, say solar energy experts from IEEE, the world's largest technical professional association.

Scientific Societies Release Official Position on Climate Change

The significance of climate change to the practice of agriculture, soils, and land management has led the 10,000-plus members of the American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), and Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) to develop a position statement on climate change, based on a review of current scientific knowledge and understanding.

UC San Diego Obtains Variance to Avoid Potent GHG in Lab Safety Test

The California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal-OSHA) has dropped a requirement that University of California labs use a potent greenhouse gas in a required laboratory safety test.

Pair of Kenyan Carbon Forestry Projects Are First to Reach CCB Standards

Two carbon forestry projects have reached verification status against the climate, community and biodiversity (CCB) standards, meaning that the projects have been implemented using best practices for community engagement and have generated benefits for local communities and biodiversity as well as for the climate.

Voluntary Carbon Markets Surge to Record Year on Corporate Buying and Forestry

The voluntary carbon market shrugged off policy failures and the closure of the Chicago Climate Exchange in 2010 to post a 34 percent surge in volume to a record 131 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) worth at least $424 million, according to a new report.

Study: Climate Projections Don't Take Soil Carbon Release Into Account

A new study concludes that models may be predicting releases of atmospheric carbon dioxide that are either too high or too low, depending on the region, because they don't adequately reflect variable temperatures that can affect the amount of carbon released from soil.

U.S. Postal Service Downsizes its Carbon Footprint

The U.S. Postal Service reported an 8 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from a fiscal year (FY) 2008 baseline. The reduction of 1,067,834 metric tons of carbon dioxide is an amount equal to the annual emissions of approximately 204,000 passenger vehicles.

C40 and ICLEI to Establish Global Standard for Cities’ GHG Emissions

The two organizations will establish a global standard for accounting and reporting community-scale greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that can be used across multiple platforms.

Study: Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy May be Safe for Soil Animals

A new study has found that an emerging tool for combating climate change may cause less harm to some soil animals than initial studies suggested.

NASA Map Reveals Detailed Patterns of Tropical Forest Carbon Storage

The data are expected to provide a baseline for ongoing carbon monitoring and research and serve as a useful resource for managing the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide.