Climate Change News – December 1,
2006
Brought to you by the
Environmental and Energy Study Institute
Carol Werner, Executive Director
EPA's
Labor Union Calls for Congressional Climate Hearings
This
week, labor leaders representing more than 10,000 Environmental
Protection Agency scientists, engineers, and staff asked
Congress to hold oversight hearings on the agency's own
greenhouse-gas emissions programs. The labor leaders, who are
presidents of the EPA's 22 union locals, sent its petition to
the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate
Environment and Public Works Committee. The petition says the
agency isn't doing enough to encourage the use of current
technology to control carbon-dioxide emissions under the Bush
administration's voluntary approach, calls on lawmakers to
ensure that agency experts are allowed to speak freely and
openly about global warming with the public and Congress
"without fear of reprisal," and asks lawmakers to
"support a vigorous program of enforcement and reduction in
GHG [greenhouse-gas] emissions."
"The
science is too clear and the consequences are too grave" to
continue down the voluntary path the administration is
following, says William Hirzy, an EPA senior scientist and vice
president of the National Treasury Employees Union chapter that
represents employees at EPA headquarters in Washington.
Supreme
Court Hears Massachusetts vs EPA Case on Regulating Carbon
Emissions
On
November 29, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments from
parties to decide whether the US Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) should regulate carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles
under the Clean Air Act (see Climate Change News 10.27.06). The
arguments focused on two issues - whether the plaintiffs,
represented by Assistant Attorney General James R. Milkey of
Massachusetts, had the legal standing to bring the lawsuit to
the federal court; and, whether carbon dioxide is an air
pollutant under the Clean Air Act and EPA has the authority to
regulate it (and if EPA is obliged to exercise its authority).
The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the case in June 2007.
Arctic Showed Signs of Continued Warming During 2000-05,
says NOAA Report
A new National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report entitled
'State of the Arctic' highlights data from 2000-2005 to show
that the Arctic continues to show signs of warming. The extent
of sea ice is decreasing and permafrost temperature is
increasing. "The sea ice extent in September 2005 was the
minimum observed in summer during the satellite era....the sea
ice extent in March 2006 was also the minimum observed in winter
during the satellite era," according to the report.
"There have been regional warming periods before. Now we're
seeing Arctic-wide changes," said James Overland, an
oceanographer at the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and
one of the authors of the report. The temperature was at least 1°C
(1.8°F) above average
over the entire Arctic through the year for each of the last
five years, Overland said. This could have serious consequences
as "the temperature difference between the Arctic and
equator drives all of our weather," explained Overland.
Atmospheric climate patterns are
shifting with the late winter/spring pattern for 2000-05 showing
new hot spots in northeast Canada and East Siberian Sea. More
shrubs are growing on the tundra, while boreal forests are less
green due to drought conditions.
Methane Concentrations Remained Stable During 1998-2005
Atmospheric concentrations of
greenhouse gas methane did not change over the seven year period
from 1998 to 2005. Prior to 1998, the concentration levels had
increased for at least two decades. According to the research
published in the Geophysical Research Letters (November
23), repairing leaks in oil and gas pipelines and storage
facilities, and a decrease or slow-down in emissions from coal
mining, rice fields and natural gas production may have
contributed to the stabilization.
"If one really tightens
emissions, the amount of methane in the atmosphere 10 years from
now could be less than it is today. We will gain some ground on
global warming if methane is not as large a contributor in the
future as it has been in the past century," said Professor
Sherwood Rowland, one of the researchers and a Nobel Prize
recipient.
Australia to Invest Over $45 million in a Carbon Capture
and Storage Project
The Australian government will
contribute A$60 million towards developing a carbon capture and
storage project to reduce emissions from Gorgon Gas project off
the country's west coast. The plan is to bury 125 million tons
of carbon dioxide—two-thirds of what the gas project will emit
in 20 years—1.6 miles underground. The funding, however, will
flow only when the A$11 billion joint venture between Chevron,
Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell has been environmentally
approved.
Click on the following link for the
full news story: TerraDaily
Higher Temperatures Disrupt
World Cup Ski Races
The Alpine skiing World Cup calendar
has been disrupted due to high temperatures in Europe. “It
will very quickly be a big crisis for us if we continue
canceling races in December....We all have to hope for colder
temperatures and snowfall in Europe,” said Atle Skaardal, who
manages the women’s portion of the tour for the International
Ski Federation. Race organizers in Switzerland cancelled races
for December 9-10 because temperatures are too high to make
artificial snow. Races in France scheduled around the same time
may also be cancelled. "We already see this year the
effects of warm weather. We're supposed to be going over to
Europe next week and everything is cancelled," said Ted
Ligety, Olympic gold medallist from Utah. "It's looking
like December's going to totally be lacking snow over there and
this never would have happened 15 years ago. Every year it gets
a little worse."
Warming Oceans May Intensify Global Warming
In a study published in the November
25 issue of Geophysical Research Letters, marine
researchers reported that the upper 1500 meters of the North
Atlantic has warmed by 0.015°C during the seven years from 1999
to 2005. "People might think it doesn't sound like a big
temperature rise but it's very significant," said Neil
Wells of National Oceanography Center, University of
Southampton. Water temperature rise of that magnitude is enough
to warm the atmosphere by almost 9°C. According to the study,
heat stored in oceans could be released to the atmosphere in the
future. Guardian reported that James Lovelock, who
developed the Gaia Theory, warned that such rise in ocean
temperature could stifle marine life and accelerate climate
change.
Incidence of Extreme Rainfall During Indian Monsoon on
the Rise in a Warming Environment
According to a study published in
December 1 issue of Science, researchers used daily
rainfall data from 1951 to 2000 to show that extreme rainfall
events have become more frequent and more intense in India. The
number of extreme rainfall events with more than 150 millimeters
of rain per day has doubled since 1951. Heavy rainfall events
defined as exceeding 100 millimeters per day have shown a 10
percent decadal increase. However, seasonal average for rainfall
has not changed significantly because an increased number of
heavy rainfall incidences have been offset by a decreased number
of moderate rainfall events. The study, based on data from 1800
weather stations across over a million square kilometers of
central India, says that risk of severe droughts and floods may
further increase with global warming.
Click on the following links for the
full news stories: Nature
and Science
EESI
Briefings
DVD’s
Available: Copies of DVD's
are available of EESI's recent climate
briefings: "Agriculture
and Climate Change: Threats and Opportunities," May
24, 2005; "What
Does Climate Change Mean for the Arctic? How is Alaska Being
Affected?,"
March 15, 2005; "Perspectives
on Climate Change: Business Initiatives to Reduce Greenhouse Gas
Emissions," November
18, 2004; “State
and Local Government Climate Change Efforts,” September
28, 2004; “Climate
Change Post 2100,” September 21, 2004; “Abrupt
Climate Change,” September 15, 2004; and
“Discussing Climate Change: A Multi-faceted View of
the Climate Stewardship Act,” June 3, 2004.
The discs are $20
ea. (incl. shipping/handling) plus tax 5.75%
(DC residents only). Click on the following link to order
a DVD: EESI
Climate Change DVD's
Events
December
6, 2006
Climate
and Media Hearing
The
US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works is holding a
full committee hearing on climate change and the media on
Wednesday, December 6, at 9:30 am in room 406 of the Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Washington, DC. Click on the following
link for more information: Senate
EPW Committee
December 13, 2006
State and Federal Green House
Gas Regulation
The American Council On Renewable Energy in collaboration with
the American Bar Association's (ABA) Renewable Energy Resources
Committee will host a teleconference with a panel of experts who
will review the current status of green house gas regulation in
New York State, California and at the federal level and discuss
how such regulation can serve to foster or discourage the
development of renewable energy. The event takes place on
Wednesday, December 13 from 12:00-1:30 pm EDT. There is a
$20 charge for this event. Click on the following link for
more information: ABA
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