Buses and big trucks sold in the United States will have to meet first-of-their-kind greenhouse gas (GHG) and fuel efficiency rules starting in 2014, according to a White House announcement Aug. 9. Heavy trucks and buses currently emit 20 percent of the GHG emissions associated with transportation in the United States, and have an average fuel economy of 6.1 miles per gallon. They have not been subject to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) rules governing automobiles and light trucks. Under the new program, the Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will create specific GHG and fuel efficiency targets for manufacturers to meet based on the type of vehicle and purpose. The rules cover the period of 2014 to 2018. Semi-trucks, for instance, will be required to reduce fuel consumption by 20 percent by 2018. A 10 percent reduction will be required of delivery trucks, buses and certain other trucks. All told, the reduction in fuel consumption during the 2014 to 2018 timeframe is expected to save $50 billion in fuel costs, or 530 billion barrels of oil, and avoid the emission of 270 million metric tons of GHGs.

For additional information see: The Washington Post, The Detroit News

A new lawsuit seeking to compel dozens of fossil fuel companies to pay damages to property owners in Mississippi for the higher insurance premiums they are paying after Hurricane Katrina bears watching, but is unlikely to succeed, legal observers told Greenwire for a story published last week. The original lawsuit was dismissed, but a new complaint was filed in May in federal district court in Mississippi. It claims the companies’ greenhouse gas emissions fueled the destructive hurricane. Its focus on trying to prove a connection between the companies’ emissions and changes in insurance premiums is novel. “This theory of damages based on increased risk, rather than actual harm, bears watching,” J. Wylie Donald of the McCarter and English law firm in Delaware told Greenwire for an Aug. 9 story. However, the case faces many legal hurdles before a judge would weigh the merits of the argument. “It’s very, very unlikely the plaintiffs will succeed,” said William Stewart of Nelson, Levine, de Luca & Horst in Pennsylvania.

For additional information see: The New York Times, Copy of Complaint

A proposal to ratchet down production of a new group of chemicals that harm the ozone layer and contribute to climate change received support from both developed and developing countries at a meeting of the signatories to the Montreal Protocol. The meeting ended Aug. 8 and the proposal to amend the treaty will be discussed again in November. The proposal was developed by a group of low-lying island nations in 2009 that were concerned about rising sea levels. The concept has received support from the United States, Canada and Mexico. It would reduce hydrofluorocarbon production by 85 to 90 percent by 2050, a reduction equivalent to 100 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide. The Montreal Protocol is an international treaty that took effect in 1989 to phase out chemicals that reduce the ozone layer. Reducing use of those chemicals also benefits climate mitigation. Also at the August meeting, the protocol’s financing arm reported that it had granted $265 million to China for eventual cuts in its use of a separate category of gases called hydrochlorofluorocarbons, which also contribute to climate change.

For additional information see: PR Newswire, Environmental News Network, Proposed Treaty Amendment, News Release on China Agreement

The price of carbon offsets traded under the Kyoto Protocol fell to near-record lows in August as the global economy continued to impact the international energy sector. In addition, the United Nations has continued to issue new offsets, despite the slackening of demand for them in the European Union’s carbon market. Developed countries and companies in the developed world can buy offsets to supplement actual cuts in emissions to meet the emissions caps outlined in the Kyoto Protocol. The global financial crisis, however, has led to an oversupply of the offsets on the carbon market. Analysts are concerned about the market’s future viability.

For additional information see: Reuters

A study by a Canadian government agency concluded that developing the nation’s oil sands will more than offset any reductions in the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from other economic sectors such as electricity generation. Called “Canada’s Emissions Trends,” the peer-reviewed report was released in July. It tracked changes in GHG emissions since 2005 and predicted GHG emissions in 2020. The report showed that development of the oil sands will undo progress from transitioning the country’s electricity generation away from coal-fired power plants to cleaner-burning natural gas. GHG emissions from oil sands are projected to triple to 92 million metric tons in 2020. Most of the oil produced is shipped to the United States. “This is the first time we’ve seen just exactly the difference between the different sectors, and just how out of line the oil sands emissions are,” said Simon Dyer of the Pembina Institute of Canada. Canada had agreed to cut GHG emissions by 17 percent by 2020 under the Kyoto Protocol, but the current Conservative government previously had announced that it will not meet the target.

For additional information see: Toronto Globe and Mail, The New York Times, Report

The Australian government has lowered its estimate of the number of greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters that will pay a new carbon tax. Climate Change Secretary Blair Comley told members of Parliament on Aug. 10 that “more like 400” emitters will pay the tax. Earlier, the government estimated the tax would be paid by the top 1,000 sources of GHG emissions. The tax will price carbon dioxide emissions at $23 AUD per metric ton beginning in mid-2012. The change in scope was partially attributed to differences in how liquid fuels and synthetic gases are being handled under the carbon pricing mechanism.

For additional information see: The Sydney Morning Herald

Scientists to Probe Ocean Acidification in Arctic

Scientists are heading to the Arctic Ocean to gather data on ocean acidification to understand how marine life might be affected by climate change. United States Geological Survey (USGS) scientists will spend seven weeks aboard a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker to get as close as possible to the waters around the North Pole. Compared to temperate and tropical waters, little is known about ocean acidification in the Arctic Ocean. Rising atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) from human activities affect the chemical balance of the ocean. About one-quarter of CO2 emissions is absorbed by the world’s oceans, raising the pH level of seawater, making it more acidic. “There might be reduced shell formation in some organisms,” said Lisa Robbins, one of the USGS scientists. “That could hinder the growth of numerous forms of sea life, from plankton on up. It will affect the whole food chain.” The research trip is schedule to depart Aug. 15.

For additional information see: Reuters, USGS News Release

Climate change could weaken trees and make them more susceptible to devastating diseases from fungi, say researchers who studied a mass extinction of prehistoric conifer forests. Today’s trees are facing threats from fungi-related diseases, such as Dutch elm disease and sudden oak death. Scientists are interested in any link between changes in temperature and water availability and the resiliency of trees to disease. The study found that a mass die-off of prehistoric forests was aided by a rapid change in climate that weakened trees and made them less able to fight off attacks from fungi. The study was conducted by a biologist at the University of California-Berkeley and colleagues in Britain and the Netherlands who examined fossil records from around the globe. The study was published online Aug. 5 in Geology.

For additional information see: UC Berkeley News Release, Study Abstract

Climate change may allow a venomous spider to spread north and expand its habitat in the United States, researchers concluded in a recent study. The study, led by a researcher at the University of Kansas, provided another example of how human systems will need to adapt to the changing distribution of animals and plants in a warming world. The brown recluse spider has been found as far north as Flint, Michigan, perhaps because it inadvertently hitched a ride in cargo or a vehicle, according to an Aug. 6 story in the Detroit Free Press. But the spider is likely to be a permanent resident of northern states like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin by 2020, the study found. That poses problems for public health; outside of its endemic habitat, spider bites are routinely misdiagnosed and confused for other serious medical conditions. “These results illustrate a potential negative consequence of climate change on humans and will aid medical professionals in proper bite identification/treatment, potentially reducing bite misdiagnoses,” researchers stated. The study was published online in March by the Public Library of Science.

For additional information see: Detroit Free Press, Study

The Arctic Ocean may be free of sea ice during the summer much earlier than scientists previously believed because the ice is thinning four times faster than computer models have predicted, an Massachusetts Institute of Technology study found. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Fourth Assessment Report, which was issued in 2007, predicted a summer ice-free Arctic by 2100. In a new study, Pierre Rampal of MIT said summer ice will disappear much earlier, probably within a few decades. Thinner ice breaks up more readily, and can get carried on currents through the Fram Strait to warmer waters to the south, enhancing melting. The study will be published in a future edition of Journal of Geophysical Research-Oceans.

For additional information see: The Vancouver Sun, MIT News Release

The Earth’s forests absorb a staggering amount of carbon from the atmosphere each year, an amount equivalent to one-third of annual fossil fuel emissions, according to a new study. The study is the first to clearly identify volumes of greenhouse gases (GHGs) taken up by tropical, temperate and boreal forests. “What this research tells us is that forests play a much larger role as carbon sinks as a result of tree growth and forest expansion,” said study co-author Pep Canadell of CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency. The study also allows scientists to quantify the impact of deforestation, and it’s much bigger than previously thought. Authors say the study shows why re-growing forests and conserving forests are necessary to mitigating GHG emissions. The study was published online in Science.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study Abstract

Other Headlines

Writers: Dave Gershman, Justin Jones and Matthew Johnson

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The House Committee on Foreign Affairs voted to prohibit funding to aid developing countries adapt to climate change or transition to sources of clean energy. The Republican-led committee voted July 21 to strike the funding from an annual spending bill for President Obama’s Global Climate Change Initiative, which is part of the United Nations’ effort to help provide assistance to developing countries. Developed countries have agreed to provide $30 billion between 2010 and 2012 in “fast-track” assistance. Obama’s funding request would commit about $1.3 billion to the climate change initiative. After the vote, Rep. Connie Mack (R-FL) said the committee wanted to “prioritize U.S. tax dollars.” Another member, Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-OH) questioned whether human activity is causing climate change. Democrats said vulnerable island populations would be at risk, and investing in climate adaptation and mitigation would create new markets for U.S. products. Democrats are expected to oppose the cuts in the Senate.

For additional information see: AFP, Business Green

A watershed council in Washington State is promoting projects to adapt a key river to climate change, an example of how a complex partnership of local, state and federal partners can evolve to tackle climate issues on a regional basis. The Nisqually River runs from Mount Rainier to an estuary that feeds Puget Sound. It supports an ecologically and culturally important species, Chinook salmon. The Nisqually River Council was formed in 1989 and provides a forum for Native American groups, and state and federal agencies. With its partners, the council has recognized that climate change will raise the water temperature of the river, decrease its flow, and harm its salmon population. The council has broadened its mission of river restoration to promote climate adaptation. It is promoting the conservation of land farther from wetlands so marshes will have space to move upland as sea levels rise. It is promoting rain gardens to capture runoff. And it is installing logjams to force the river to scour a deeper course to create cooler pools for salmon. Its work is aided by a 2009 executive order signed by President Obama to require federal agencies to integrate climate adaptation into their planning.

For additional information see: The New York Times

The potential effects of climate change could aggravate existing threats to world security, the United Nations Security Council said in a statement after its members debated the council’s role in climate matters. The July 20 discussion was the first in four years on climate change, and the 15-member UN body was sharply divided. Germany had wanted the council to adopt a stronger statement seeking an examination of the effects on world security from rising temperatures and sea levels, and draft scenarios to address refugees and conflicts. Russia, however, opposed that proposal, saying the council should not expand its mission. Temporary security council members India and Brazil also raised concerns. During the negotiations, the United States’ ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, told reporters that the council “has an essential responsibility to address the clear-cut peace and security implications of a changing climate” and should “start now.” The statement adopted by the security council noted that climate change has potential security implications. The security council also requested that the regular reports from the UN Secretary-General note whether climate issues were driving conflict or endangering peace processes.

For additional information see: The Guardian, MSNBC, United Nations News Release

China will test a carbon emissions trading project with an eye to gradually rolling out a carbon emissions trading market, a top Chinese official said. At a conference in the city of Guiyang on July 17, Xie Zhenhua, China’s top economic planner, also announced that the nation plans to establish greater incentive policies for companies to develop energy efficient products and designate greater financial support for renewable energy, among a host of new policies. No timeline was announced for the pilot carbon emissions trading project.

For additional information see: China Daily, Reuters

New cargo vessels will have to abide by energy efficiency standards to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) from international shipping, the international body that regulates shipping ruled. On July 15, the International Maritime Organization adopted a measure to require shipbuilders to meet the new standards, which require steady improvements in fuel efficiency through 2030. Ninety percent of world trade is carried by the global fleet of 50,000 cargo ships, many of which burn a heavily polluting type of fuel oil. Global shipping accounts for about three percent of worldwide CO2 emissions from human activity. “This is a very positive and important first step for a truly global, binding measure to reduce CO2 emissions,” said European Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard. Environmentalists, however, noted that today’s cargo vessels, which will remain on the seas for many years, are not affected. “There will be no change to existing ships, which are currently pumping a billion tons of CO2 each year,” said Jacqueline Savitz of Oceana.

For additional information see: The Washington Post, Business Green

Sustainable forestry practices that provide timber for the building trades can help mitigate the emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), a new study found. One reason is younger trees absorb more CO2 from the atmosphere than mature trees. Another is that cutting trees after their CO2 absorption rates taper provides building materials that can be used instead of steel and concrete, which are created in processes that emit large quantities of CO2. The study was authored by researchers at the University of Washington, Mid Sweden University and the U.S. Forest Service. “While the carbon in the wood stored in forests is substantial, like any garden, forests have limited capacity to absorb carbon from the atmosphere as they age,” said lead author Bruce Lippke, an emeritus professor at the University of Washington. “. . . Like harvesting a garden sustainably, we can use the wood grown in our forests for products and biofuels to displace the use of fossil-intensive products and fuels like steel, concrete, coal and oil.” The study was published in the June issue of Carbon Management.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study Abstract

A new study suggests that sea levels would continue to rise in the coming centuries even if all greenhouse gas emissions were halted today. The study by a University of Arizona-led team of researchers examined the interaction of the atmosphere and ocean during the warmest period of the Last Interglacial Period — roughly 125,000 years ago. At that time, sea levels were roughly 26 feet higher than today. Average ocean temperatures, however, were only 0.7 degrees Celsius warmer than today. “This means that even small amounts of warming may have committed us to more ice sheet melting than we previously thought,” said lead author Nicholas McKay. The oceans warm more slowly than the atmosphere. Water also expands when heated. But the study also found that most of the sea level rise during ancient times was because of melting ice sheets, rather than the thermal expansion of water. The study has been accepted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters.

For additional information see: Science Daily

Warmer global temperatures are likely to fuel dramatic shifts in extreme weather events, a new study found. The study by scientists at Oxford and Leeds universities used modeling and an examination of shells found in deep sea sediments to examine whether El Nino and La Nina occurred during the Pliocene, a period that lasted 5 to 3 million years ago when carbon dioxide levels were similar to today and global mean temperatures were 2 to 3 degrees Celsius warmer than today. El Nino refers to the eastward movement of a warmer pool of water in the Pacific Ocean. La Nina is a cooling of those waters. The two events produce drier-than-normal and wetter-than-normal conditions across different parts of the globe, and occur in a cycle. The study suggested that higher global temperatures will not moderate the swings between El Nino and La Nina. “Until recently it was believed that a warmer Pacific would reduce the climate swings that cause the dramatic weather extremes throughout the region leading to a permanent state of El Nino,” said lead scientist Nick Scroxton of Oxford. “What we didn’t expect was that climatic variability would remain strong under these warmer conditions.” The study was published in Paleoceanography.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study Abstract

Volcanic ash and man-made pollution from burning fossil fuels helped slow the rate of global warming in the past decade, a new study found. Although average global temperatures were higher in the 2000s than during the 1990s and 1980s, the rate at which the planet was warming slowed. Six French and American researchers, including staff at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and scientists at the University of Colorado, found the trend may be explained by an increase in the stratosphere of persistent aerosols that block sunlight. Although no massive volcanic eruptions have occurred since 1991, smaller eruptions occurred in 2006, 2008 and 2009. The addition of the volcanic ash to the haze of man-made pollution in the upper atmosphere was enough to help slow the rate of warming by 20 percent since 1998, according to the study. However, the brake on the rate of warming is only temporary. Eventually, the shading effect will be overwhelmed by greenhouse gases building in the atmosphere. The study provides more information on the interaction of forces shaping the global climate. It was published online July 21 in Science.

For additional information see: The Washington Post, ScienceNOW, Study Abstract

A six-year study of polar bears that tracked their movements found they are swimming longer distances to reach sea ice. The study, conducted by the United States Geological Survey and the World Wildlife Fund, tracked a sample of 68 adult females using global positioning collars around their necks. During the six-year period of the study, the bears were swimming longer distances to reach the sea ice that serves as a platform to hunt seals. Five of 11 mothers who swam with cubs lost the cubs along the way. One bear swam 427 miles to reach sea ice. The bears were listed as a threatened species by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service because of the impact of climate change. An abstract of the study was released July 19.

For additional information see: The New York Times, Study Abstract

Other Headlines

S.1393: On July 20, S.1393 was introduced and referred to Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

Intent: A bill to prohibit the enforcement of a climate change interpretive guidance issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission, and for other purposes.

Previous Action: No previous action.

Sponsor: Sen. Barrasso, John (R-WY)

For more information: S.1393

H.R.2584: Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, FY 2012:

Intent: To provide $27.5 billion in spending, a reduction of $2.1 billion below last year’s level. The bill includes $1.8 billion less for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) than the Obama Administration’s request.

Climate Related Sections:

Sec.426: To require the President to submit a report on all federal funding for climate change programs in fiscal years 2011 and 2012.

Sec.428: To prohibit funding to regulate carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide or methane emissions from biological processes associated with livestock production.

Sec.429: To prohibit funding that would support efforts to require mandatory reporting of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from manure management systems.

Sec.431: To remove EPA regulations on GHGs from stationary sources for one year, and prevent any previously-issued GHG permits from having any legal effect for one year.

Sec.453: To prohibit funding to regulate GHG emissions from motor vehicles made after model year 2016.

Previous Action: On July 12, the House Appropriations Committee reported the bill to the full House by a vote of 28-18.

For more information: H.R.2584

The Department of Defense is rapidly emerging as the leading force in the United States for the development and use of renewable energy technologies. Energy efficiency has emerged as mission essential to the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force. Why? How do these technologies improve national security? How do they make our military more effective? Will renewable energy and energy efficiency save lives and money? And what does the Defense Department’s leadership on “green energy” mean for the rest of the economy? The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI), E3G and Operation Free invite you to a briefing in which top military and civilian experts will answer these questions, and will describe the Defense Department’s renewable energy goals. This event is free and open to the public. No registration is required. The briefing will be held on July 27, 2:00-3:30pm, in the Capitol Visitor Center.

Click on this link for more information.

Writers: Dave Gershman, Justin Jones and Matthew Johnson

Please distribute Climate Change News to your colleagues. Permission for reproduction of this newsletter is granted provided that the Environmental and Energy Study Institute is properly acknowledged as the source. Past issues are available here. Free email subscriptions are available here. We welcome your suggestions, comments, and questions.

EESI’s work, including this free newsletter, is made possible by financial support from people like you. Please help us continue to make it available by making a secure, online donation today by clicking here or mailing a check to Environmental and Energy Study Institute; 1112 16th St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20036. Please contact Susan Williams at (202) 662-1887 or see www.eesi.org/donate to find out more. Thank you for your support!

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) has launched a new weekly newsletter to examine sustainable bioenergy, farm, and forest policy issues. Sustainable Bioenergy, Farms, and Forests is available for free and will be published on Friday mornings. Please click here to subscribe.

A new survey suggests the urgency of climate change can be communicated if the right people engage local constituencies and explain how human activities are impacting local communities. “You can’t talk about preparing for climate change in Seattle the same way you would in Phoenix,” said Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication, which released the survey results on June 27. The survey suggests many people remain uninformed about climate change but there is an opportunity to close the information gap. The survey found 39 percent of people were alarmed or concerned by climate change. On the other hand, 10 percent were dismissive, and may be unreachable because they distrust any source of data. A large sector of the public is in the middle, looking for information from trusted people who can explain why they are certain that humans are responsible for climate change. If more doctors, military officers, businesspeople or labor leaders speak out, the information gap may close. “We take our cues from key trusted individuals and organizations,” said Leiserowitz. “And different groups tend to trust different messengers.”

For additional information see: Reuters, Study

New Hampshire will stay in a regional carbon market after its governor vetoed a bill that would have led to its withdrawal. Gov. John Lynch said leaving the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) would cost the state $16 million that the program raises through its carbon auctions. “I am vetoing this legislation because it will cost our citizens jobs, both now and into the future, hinder our economic recovery, and damage our state’s long-term economic competitiveness,” said Lynch. The 10-state program requires reductions of carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and established the trading market. Power plants can buy allowances to cover their emissions and sell unneeded allowances on the market if they further reduce their emissions. Republican legislators in New Hampshire said leaving the program would lower costs for utilities and reduce electricity rates. RGGI has faced challenges in several states. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announced in May that his state will leave the program later this year.

For additional information see: Reuters

House Republicans are trying another tactic to block the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gases from power plants and oil refineries. Budget writers included a policy rider to the fiscal 2012 spending bill unveiled July 6 that would impose a one-year delay on the EPA’s greenhouse gas regulations, and sharply reduce funding for the agency. “The EPA’s unrestrained effort to regulate greenhouse gases, and the pursuit of an overly aggressive regulatory agenda, are signs of an agency that has lost its bearings,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, an Idaho Republican and chairman of the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee. House Republicans may have enough votes to pass the bill, but it is expected to be blocked in the Senate, where Democrats have a majority. EPA rules that took effect in January regulate greenhouse gas emissions from new and modified large industrial facilities.

For additional information see: The Hill Story 1, The Hill Story 2, Platts

Nearly three-quarters of the residents of British Columbia believe their province’s carbon tax has been good for the environment, or feel neutral about it, according to survey results released June 30. Strategic Communications, Inc. conducted the poll of 830 people. It found 69 percent of residents are worried about climate change. This year, the carbon tax, introduced in 2008, costs $25 per ton for carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of oil, natural gas and coal. Next year, it rises to $30 per ton. Future rate hikes have not been determined; 51 percent of those polled do not support an increase in the carbon tax. Similar taxes apply to jet fuel, diesel, propane and other fuels. Both businesses and consumers pay the tax. The tax adds about $142 a year to the home heating bills of the average homeowner. The province claims the tax is revenue neutral because personal, corporate and small business income taxes were lowered.

For additional information see: Vancouver Sun, British Columbia Carbon Tax Website

African leaders are creating a monetary infrastructure and developing a united front to press the international community to fully fund Africa’s share of the proposed Green Climate Fund. The Green Climate Fund was announced at the United Nations (U.N.) climate talks in Cancun in 2010 and is still being developed. Earlier this year, the U.N. announced the selection of a 40-person committee to design the fund, which would raise money from public and private sources to finance mitigation, adaptation, capacity building and other climate projects in developing countries. When the next round of climate change talks begin in November in South Africa, African leaders will advocate for the bulk of their continent’s funds to be allocated to climate adaptation projects. African nations will be some of the most affected by climate change on the globe because of their susceptibility to drought. African leaders have agreed that the African Development Bank would manage their share of the fund; many African nations lack the knowledge and technology to secure their share of international funding. “We want to use the knowledge and expertise of the African Development Bank in managing ad hoc mechanisms to set up that African Green Fund,” said Ibrahima Dia, a senior U.N. and African Union official.

For additional information see: Reuters

The decade of the 2000s was the hottest on record, but average global temperatures could have been hotter, a new study suggests. Pollution from China’s growing appetite for coal actually helped ease the rate at which global temperatures were rising, but that dampening effect won’t last. Burning coal emits large quantities of carbon dioxide (CO2), a greenhouse gas that causes climate change. But it also emits sulphate aerosol, a cause of acid rain. Researchers say sulphate aerosol helped constrain the increase in temperatures by reflecting solar energy back into space. Chinese coal consumption doubled between 2003 and 2007. China is taking steps to clean up its coal-fired power plants, installing scrubbers to remove particulates from emissions that harm human health. Sulphate aerosol is a relatively short-lived pollutant; it falls out of the atmosphere within a few weeks. CO2, on the other hand, remains in the atmosphere for decades. “What’s going on is, human activities do two things: They cool the planet and they warm the planet. People normally just focus on the warming effect of CO2 (carbon dioxide), but during the Chinese economic expansion there was a huge increase in sulfur emissions,” said Robert Kaufmann of Boston University, the lead author of the study, which was published in the July 4 edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

For additional information see: BBC, Associated Press

U.S. airlines are fighting a European Union (EU) law that would require them to pay for their carbon dioxide emissions when taking off or landing in Europe, beginning in 2012. An industry group and major airlines that include United and Continental made their case before the European Court of Justice on July 5. The 27-member EU voted to extend its emissions trading system to include aviation emissions. The airlines oppose the cost, given the routes are mostly outside EU airspace, and say there’s no firm guarantee the money will be spent on climate projects, as intended. The EU has offered to waive the costs for flights from countries that it judges to have taken “equivalent” steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “We are not thinking at all about the possibility of changing our legislation,” said José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission. “All the world should unite in some kind of directive like this one.”

For additional information see: The New York Times, The Economist

Federal regulators are considering an increase to fuel efficiency standards that would require cars and light trucks to average 56 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2025, the second round of rules aimed at curbing vehicles’ greenhouse gas emissions. Today’s cars must average 30 mpg and light trucks 24 mpg. The proposal by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would apply to model years 2017 through 2025. Federal officials are emphasizing that the proposal would reduce oil use, consumers’ fuel costs, and emissions of other pollutants. Automakers and their allies say jobs are at risk if new cars become more expensive and consumers defer their vehicle purchases. They also say higher fuel efficiency standards may force automakers to produce vehicles that do not suit Americans’ lifestyles.

For additional information see: The Washington Post, The Detroit News

Researchers say the population of an endangered Australian turtle may suffer further declines as the average global temperature increases in the coming decades, another example of climate change’s detrimental impact on biodiversity. University of Queensland scientists who incubated eggs of the Mary River turtle at different temperatures found physiological and behavioral differences among offspring. Offspring incubated at higher temperatures swam poorly and preferred shallow water, two characteristics that increase the likelihood of being eaten by predators. “Whether climate change has already contributed to the decline (of the turtle) is not clear,” said Mariana Micheli-Campbell, one of the researchers. “But these results show it may be a danger to this species in the future.” The Mary River turtle already is listed as endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, a category used to highlight species that face an elevated risk of extinction. The findings were presented at the Society for Experimental Biology Annual conference in Glasgow on July 3.

For additional information see: Science Daily

The great ice sheets of Greenland and the Antarctic will melt faster than previously believed, leading to a one-meter rise in sea level by the end of the century, a new study found. The study by University of Arizona researchers used 19 climate models to propose a new way that global warming will melt ice sheets near the poles. It looked at what will happen to tidewater glaciers as air and water temperatures warm. Tidewater glaciers flow from the land to the sea, with much of their leading edges submerged deep below the surface of the sea. “Ocean warming is very important compared to atmospheric warming because water has a much larger heat capacity than air,” said lead author Jianjun Yin. “If you put an ice cube in a warm room, it will melt in several hours. But if you put an ice cube in a cup of warm water, it will disappear in just minutes.” Greenland’s glaciers, in particular, are being exposed to increasingly warm subsurface water, partly due to the influence of the Gulf Stream. As the seawater warms, it melts the glacier from below, causing the upper portion to crumble into the ocean, and accelerating the rate at which the rest of the glacier flows from the land to the sea. The study was published online in Nature Geoscience.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study

With less snow falling in the Arctic during the summer, sea ice is being deprived of protection from bright sunlight, causing it to melt more rapidly, a new study found. The study examined the cascading effects of rising temperatures in the Arctic, which is warming more rapidly than other parts of the globe. Of course, rising temperatures can directly affect sea ice, but they also have follow-on effects. Summer is typically still a time of significant snowfall in the Arctic. But rising temperatures have led to more of the precipitation falling as rain. Snowfall, in fact, is down 40 percent over the last 20 years. Reductions in snowfall affect sea ice, removing its protective covering and exposing it to sunlight. “Snow is highly reflective and bounces 85 percent of the incoming sunlight back into space,” said James Screen of the University of Melbourne. “Snow on top of ice effectively acts as a sunscreen protecting the ice from the power of the sun rays.” Measurements show the sea ice becoming thinner, and less extensive. The study was published in Climate Dynamics.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study

According to a University of Alberta study, climate change over the past 70 years has pushed the province’s native wildflowers and trees into earlier blooming times, making them more vulnerable to damaging frosts and decreased reproduction. Researchers used phenology, the study of the timing of life cycle events, to determine the historic bloom dates for plant species. The bloom dates for early spring species such as prairie crocuses and aspen trees had advanced by two weeks over the stretch of seven decades, while later-blooming species such as saskatoon and chokecherry bushes pushed ahead by up to six days. The average winter monthly temperature increased considerably over 70 years, with the greatest change noted in February, which warmed by 5.3 degrees Celsius. The study was published in the July issue of the journal Bioscience.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study

Other Headlines

A bill to fund the Department of the Interior, the Environment Protection Agency (EPA), the Forest Service, and various independent and related agencies.

Intent: To provide $27.5 billion in spending, a reduction of $2.1 billion below last year’s level and $3.8 billion below the administration’s budget request. The bill also includes a total cut to climate change programs of $83 million, or 22 percent, from last year, and imposes a one-year prohibition on the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulation of greenhouse gases from large stationary sources such as power plants and oil refineries.

Latest Major Action: On July 7, the subcommittee on interior, environment and related agencies reported the bill to the full appropriations committee.

For more information: Fiscal Year 2012 Interior-Environment Appropriations Bill.

July 12: State and Federal Policy for Biogas

The American Biogas Council will host a webinar to explore federal and state-level policies that affect the development of biogas-producing anaerobic digestion facilities. You will learn from industry legislative experts from: ML Strategies, government relations and consulting experts, Stoel Rives, a leader in energy and renewable litigation, and project developer AgPower Group, a company with hands-on experience dealing with state and federal policy issues. This is your chance to learn from and interact with leading experts. The webinar will take place on Tuesday, July 12, at 12:00 EST. The webinar is free to American Biogas Council members and $100 for non-members. To register for this event, visit American Biogas Council. For more information, contact Josh Lieberman at jlieberman [at] ttcorp.com.

The Alliance for Green Heat invites you to “Scaling Up Residential Biomass Heating: A Stakeholder Symposium” at the U.S. Forest Service. While residential wood heat is the dominant player in residential renewable energy, most wood heat appliances in America are outdated and emit too many particulates. Robust deployment of modern, high efficiency appliances in Europe has succeeded in helping make substantial strides towards its energy independence. This stakeholder symposium will bring together non-profits, industry, government and forestry and air quality experts to explore how America can maximize the renewable energy potential of wood and pellet heat, and minimize associated drawbacks. The symposium will be held July 13, from 2:00-4:00 PM in the Yates Training Room at the USDA Forest Service Building, 201 14th Street SW. It is free but space is limited and advance registration is required. Please register at The Alliance for Green Heat.

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and WIRES (Working group for Investment in Reliable and Economic electric Systems) invite you to a briefing on how the manufacture and construction of electric transmission infrastructure can make a major contribution to reversing the nation’s stagnation in employment and economic activity. The electric transmission system is a critical and strategic asset for our nation. As policymakers focus on infrastructure development as an engine of new jobs and economic activity, this panel is a reminder that electric transmission – developed at the levels that experts project the country will need over the next two decades – can be a center of economic revitalization as more renewable resources are brought online. The briefing will be held on July 15, 10:00-11:30 AM, in Congressional Meeting Room North in the Capitol Visitor Center. This event is free and open to the public. For more information contact Laura Parsons at lparsons [at] eesi.org or (202) 662-1884.

The Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELPC) and Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invite you to a briefing on the energy title of the Farm Bill, with a special focus on the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). Big decisions loom in the next Farm Bill, including for key farm energy programs. REAP incentivizes a broad range of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies for all agricultural sectors across the country. As a result, thousands of rural producers and businesses are slashing energy costs with energy efficiency and renewable energy. They also are earning new income from renewable energy and creating new jobs, income, and wealth across rural America. This briefing will provide an overview of the Farm Bill Energy Title, as well as specific examples of dairy and poultry producers, rural electric cooperatives, and other rural producers and small businesses from across the country that have benefitted from the REAP program. The briefing will be held twice on the same day, July 19. The first briefing will be 10:00-11:30 AM in 1300 Longworth House Office Building. The second briefing will be 2:00-3:30 PM, in 188 Russell Senate Office Building. This briefing is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Ned Stowe at nstowe [at] eesi.org or (202) 662-1885.

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invites you to a briefing on the huge potential for solar-reflective roofs and other “cool-roofing” techniques to lower the surface temperature of buildings and entire cities. Cool roofs improve comfort on hot summer days and reduce the amount of energy used for air-conditioning – thereby reducing energy costs and improving air quality. Whitening flat roofs is a low-cost solution which, if implemented in certain cities across the globe, has been estimated to have the potential to offset the carbon emissions of 300 million automobiles. At this briefing, renowned physicist and energy efficiency expert Arthur Rosenfeld will discuss research at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) that for the first time quantifies the reflective power (albedo) of urban surfaces that would be necessary to mitigate the urban heat-island effect and offset carbon dioxide emissions. Panelists also will discuss insulated and vegetated (“green”) roofs and how different types of cool roofs may be combined or integrated with solar-roofing systems, photovoltaics (PV) and/or solar thermal technology. The briefing will be held on July 21, 2:00-3:30 PM, in the Capital Visitors Center room SVC 212/210. This event is free and open to the public. No RSVP required. For more information contact Ellen Vaughan at evaughan [at] eesi.org or (202) 662-1893.

Please distribute Climate Change News to your colleagues. Permission for reproduction of this newsletter is granted provided that the Environmental and Energy Study Institute is properly acknowledged as the source. Past issues are available here. Free email subscriptions are available here. We welcome your suggestions, comments, and questions.

EESI’s work, including this free newsletter, is made possible by financial support from people like you. Please help us continue to make it available by making a secure, online donation today by clicking here or mailing a check to Environmental and Energy Study Institute; 1112 16th St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20036. Please contact Susan Williams at (202) 662-1887 (202) 662-1887 or see www.eesi.org/donate to find out more. Thank you for your support!

On May 20, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Ernest Goldsmith ruled that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) must put an immediate halt to work on its cap-and-trade program, part of the landmark climate bill A.B.32 which was written into law in 2006, until it completes a review of alternative approaches to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Goldsmith’s opinion said the board violated the California Environmental Quality Act when it began to make rules “without first responding to comments, completing the environmental review process, and approving” the program. The agency filed a notice of appeal on May 23, according to a CARB spokesman. The ruling will not interfere with other aspects of A.B. 32 implementation involving clean cars, renewables and energy efficiency, which can proceed as planned.

For additional information see: NY Times, Reuters, Sacramento Bee, Bloomberg

On May 23, the state of Texas, on behalf of 14 other states, filed an opening brief in a case seeking to overturn the “endangerment finding” announced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2009. The finding stated that greenhouse gases pose a danger to public health and welfare, which gave the EPA the authority to regulate greenhouse gases under the 2007 U.S. Supreme Court ruling EPA v. Massachusetts. Texas is challenging the finding on the grounds that it is “arbitrary and capricious,” words in the U.S. Code that are grounds for a reversal of the decision. The brief stated that the EPA “never provides criteria for determining when [greenhouse gas] emissions or climate change endanger public health or welfare,” as well as the possibility that people might adapt to or even combat the effects of climate change over the extended time period in which it occurs, reducing its effects on health and welfare. The brief was filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

For additional information see: Texas Tribune, Brief

In a report titled “California’s Energy Future: The View to 2050,” scientists from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory concluded that California can meet its goal to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. The report stated that the first 60 percent of emissions reductions could be met by aggressively implementing current technologies, including wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, hydro and offshore marine energy. The remaining 20 percent would be attained through technological advancements in artificial photosynthesis, fusion energy, more efficient and sustainable biofuels, hydrogen fuel, more effective carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), and advanced batteries for both vehicles and grid storage. The report also called for improvements to the electrical grid, to allow it to integrate more intermittent renewable sources and store more energy. In addition to faster development of renewable energy sources, scientists also stated that significant efficiency measures must be taken, retrofitting 1.8 percent of all buildings annually.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Report

Warnings from climate scientists have caused Chicago to begin to prepare for a warming climate. By 2070, the city could expect to receive 35 percent more rain in the winter and spring, but 20 percent less in the summer, according to scientists.The city plans to repave public alleyways with materials that are permeable to water, to reduce runoff when it rains. Sidewalks will be widened to include planted areas with drought-resistant plants, to soak up the excess water and help filter pollutants like de-icing salts. In some areas, the runoff will flow into underground storage tanks to be used later for watering plants or in new decorative fountains. Thermal radar is being used to locate the city’s hottest areas, which will be targets for pavement removal and the addition of vegetated rooftops. The city also plans to remove six of the most common tree species. The warming climate will make them more susceptible to diseases such as emerald ash disease, and many species are expected to become extinct within decades. Hardier trees, such as swamp white oaks and bald cypress, will be used to replace them.

For additional information see: NY Times

Micronesia has mounted an unprecedented legal challenge against the Czech Republic’s plans to expand a coal-fired power station more than 7,000 miles away. They claim the increased greenhouse gas emissions from the plant will contribute to global warming, potentially threatening the country, with many parts that lie just over three feet above sea level. If expanded, the power plant will emit over 40 times as much carbon emissions annually as Micronesia as a whole. Micronesia, along with Greenpeace, want the Czech government to carry out a study, called a Trans-Boundary Environmental Impact Assessment, to assess how pollution from the coal plant will affect the Micronesian archipelago. This type of study usually occurs between countries that share a border, but has never been done between countries from different regions before. The Czech environment ministry is expected to come to a decision regarding Micronesia’s case within two weeks.

For additional information see: Telegraph

On May 20, the U.K. Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) cancelled its Quality Assurance Scheme (QAS) for carbon dioxide offsets, according to Carbon Retirement, a carbon offset provider. The program made sure that the carbon offsets that companies provided were accurately calculated, and were cancelled or retired after being purchased to make sure they were not sold again. According to Jane Burston, founder of Carbon Retirement, the decision would damage consumer confidence because businesses looking to offset their emissions will no longer have the same level of security around the carbon market’s principle uncertainties.

For additional information see: Business Green, Bloomberg

A report issued by Australia’s Climate Commission stated that the evidence for global warming is now ”exceptionally strong and beyond doubt,” and actions this decade will determine the impact of climate change for the rest of the century. The report concluded that the impacts of climate change are already being seen, despite the earth warming less than one degree Celsius so far. The commission addressed the issues of sea level rise and risks to the Great Barrier Reef, and suggested that carbon emissions must peak within the next few years, and then rapidly decline. The report also concluded that the country must end logging in old-growth forests with high carbon storage capacities, stating that it is one of the best ways of making timely cuts to Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions while the slower energy transforming and transport systems unfold. “We need to use whatever means we can to sequester carbon but also start reducing emissions from industry. We need some sort of price on carbon. A price is unavoidable,” said Climate Commission chief, Tim Flannery.

For additional information see: Sydney Morning Herald 1, Sydney Morning Herald 2, Business Green, Report

More than one-third of Indonesia’s forest area will not be covered under the recently signed two-year moratorium on forest clearance permits. The moratorium covered only primary forests and peatland, areas that were already protected under Indonesian law, while 36.6 million hectares of secondary forests, areas that have been partially cleared for agricultural or industrial use, were not covered. According to Giorgio Budi Indrarto, program manager for forest and climate at the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law, the 1999 Forestry Law did not contain any reference to “primary forest” and instead used the terms protected forest, conservation forest and production forest to describe areas where varying degrees of human activity were allowed. “It is only a technical definition which is only used to define the levels of forest degradation and should not be put into context of policy or issuing permits,” said Teguh Surya, head of climate justice at the Indonesian Forum for the Environment.

For additional information see: The Jakarta Globe, AFP

A study published in the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology concluded that increasing ocean acidity, caused by higher concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2), negatively affects the already endangered northern abalone off the coast of British Columbia. Researchers found that increases of CO2 in sea water, from 400 to 1,800 parts per million, killed 40 percent of abalone larvae, decreased the size of larvae that did survive, and increased the rate of shell abnormalities. The current CO2 concentrations in the ocean are around 380 parts per million, but are expected to slowly increase over the next century. According to the study, this information could have implications for abalone species worldwide.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study

A report published in the Proceedings on the National Academy of Sciences concluded that global warming may affect the capacity of trees to store carbon by altering forest nitrogen cycles. The report used data from a seven year study in central Massachusetts, where a section of the forest was artificially heated nine degrees Fahrenheit above ambient conditions, to simulate the potential warming from climate change by the end of the century. The warmer temperatures caused more rapid decomposition of the organic matter in soil, leading to an increase in the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) released. However, the study showed that the warmer temperatures stimulated an increase in the amount of carbon stored in trees as woody tissue, which partially offset the soil carbon loss to the atmosphere. Scientists found that in the seventh year of the study, “warming induced soil carbon losses were almost totally compensated for by plant carbon gains in response to warming.” According to scientists, the increase in carbon storage in the trees is due to more nitrogen being made available to the trees with warmer soil. In addition to CO2, warmer temperatures also cause inorganic forms of nitrogen to be released from the soil. “When trees take up this inorganic nitrogen, they grow faster and store more carbon,” said lead author of the study Jerry Melillo, of the Marine Biological Laboratory.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Study

A new study published in Geophysical Research Letters has found that two of the largest three glaciers in Greenland have lost enough ice if melted to fill Lake Erie. The three glaciers, Helheim, Kangerdlugssuaq, and Jakobshavn Isbrae, contribute as much as one-fifth of the ice flowing out from Greenland into the ocean. The study focused on the rate of new ice being formed on the glaciers compared to the amount of ice lost. Apart from Helheim, which gained a small amount of mass, the other two glaciers have lost a significant amount of ice in the last decade. “Kangerdlugssuaq would have to stop flowing and accumulate snowfall for seven years to regain the ice it has lost,” said Ian Howat, lead author of the study. According to Howat, past estimates of ice loss in Greenland only accounted for short-term changes. “We really need to sample them very frequently or else we won’t really know how much change has occurred,” he stated.

For additional information see: Science Daily

A scientific review conducted by the Royal Horticultural Society has found that gardens can help mitigate the effects of climate change. According to scientists, gardens mitigate the effects of extreme heat and cold by stabilizing urban temperatures, prevent flooding by soaking up excess rainwater, support human health by easing stress and providing physical exercise, and support a number of declining species of birds, mammals and invertebrates. According to Dr. Tijana Blanusa, lead author of the review, people can maximize the positive impact of horticulture by planting vegetation that have many uses, such as trees, which “take up water, capture pollution, offer shade and a habitat for wildlife, and add aesthetic value to the garden.”

For additional information see: Independent, Press Release

A study published by the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture found that climate change will reduce Kenya’s tea production 40 percent by 2050, as suitable farm lands are moved to higher altitude. Scientists presented their findings at the Tea Research Foundation of Kenya in Kericho, organized by the Ethical Tea Partnership and the German International Cooperation. According to the report, the two organizations will aim to increase Kenyan tea producers’ resilience to climate change, secure their livelihoods and make them more environmentally and economically sustainable. Over the next three years, the organizations will train 10,000 Kenyan tea farmers on the most appropriate adaptation techniques. The study recommended crop diversification, and provided several alternatives to tea that would thrive in the region, such as maize, cabbage, peas, passion fruit, and bananas.

For additional information see: Business Daily Africa, Study

Other Headlines

S. 699: Department of Energy Carbon Capture and Sequestration Program Amendments Act of 2011
May 26, 2011 was the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources date of scheduled consideration.
Intent: To authorize the Secretary of Energy to carry out a program to demonstrate the commercial application of integrated systems for long-term geological storage of carbon dioxide, and for other purposes.
Previous Action: Introduced to the Senate on March 31, 2011, and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Sponsor: Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM)
For more information: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:S.699.IS:

S. 757
May 26, 2011 was the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources date of scheduled consideration.
Intent: To provide incentives to encourage the development and implementation of technology to capture carbon dioxide from dilute sources on a significant scale using direct air capture technologies.
Previous Action: Introduced to the Senate on April 7, 2011, and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Sponsor: Sen. John Barrasso (D-WY)
For more information: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:S.757.IS:

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and Water Environment Federation (WEF) invite you to a briefing on innovative, market-based approaches to controlling nutrient pollution in the nation’s waters from agriculture. Fertilizer and manure applications can release excessive amounts of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus into local watersheds. These can degrade water quality, potentially causing human illness and harming aquatic ecosystems. This briefing will focus on innovative agricultural solutions to these issues, including trading programs such as those used for the Long Island Sound and Ohio River Basin, “safe harbor agreements”, and current on-the-ground nutrient management programs. The briefing is free, open to the public, and no RSVPs are required. For more information, contact Laura Parsons at lparsons [at] eesi.org or (202) 662-1884.

On June 16, the Sustainable Energy Coalition—in cooperation with Members of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Caucus—will host the 14th annual Congressional Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency EXPO + Forum. This year’s EXPO will bring together over 50 businesses, sustainable energy industry trade associations, government agencies, and energy policy research organizations to showcase the status and near-term potential of the cross-section of renewable energy (biofuels/biomass, geothermal, solar, water, wind) and energy efficiency technologies. Members of Congress and the Administration will speak from 11:30 – 2:00pm. Afternoon speakers will discuss the role sustainable energy technologies can play in meeting America’s energy needs. The EXPO is free, open to the public, and no RSVPs are required. The events will be held on June 16, 9:30am-4:30pm in 345 Cannon House Office Building (Cannon Caucus Room). For more information contact Ken Bossong at kbossong614 [at] yahoo.com.

Writers: Deep Ghosh and Matthew Johnson

Please distribute Climate Change News to your colleagues. Permission for reproduction of this newsletter is granted provided that the Environmental and Energy Study Institute is properly acknowledged as the source. Past issues are available here. Free email subscriptions are available here. We welcome your suggestions, comments, and questions.

EESI’s work, including this free newsletter, is made possible by financial support from people like you. Please help us continue to make it available by making a secure, online donation today by clicking here or mailing a check to Environmental and Energy Study Institute; 1112 16th St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20036. Please contact Susan Williams at (202) 662-1887 or see www.eesi.org/donate to find out more. Thank you for your support!

On April 25, the Department of the Interior (DOI) released a report for Congress that assesses climate change risks and how these risks could impact water operations, hydro-power, flood control, and fish and wildlife in the western United States. The report, conducted by the DOI’s Bureau of Reclamation (BuRec), projected changes in temperature and precipitation that are likely to impact the timing and quantity of stream flows in all western basins, affecting water availability to farms, cities, hydro-power generation, fish and wildlife, and other recreational uses. According to the report, areas such as the Columbia River Basin in the Pacific Northwest and the Missouri River Basin are expected to become wetter, whereas the Southwest will probably become drier. In California, precipitation and runoff in the Sacramento River watershed may increase by mid-century, and then start to decline. “Impacts to water are on the leading edge of global climate change, and these changes pose a significant challenge and risk to adequate water supplies, which are critical for the health, economy, and ecology of the United States,” said BuRec Commissioner Mike Connor. BeRec has developed the WaterSMART program in an effort to work with water users across the West to implement conservation and recycling measures and promote the efficient use of finite water resources.

For additional information see:LA Times, Press Release, Report

A study published in Sociological Quarterly found that the gap between Democrats and Republicans who believe global warming is happening increased 30 percent between 2001 and 2010, despite the growing scientific consensus that global warming is real. “Instead of a public debate about different policies to deal with global warming, a significant percentage of the American public is still debating the science. As a result, we’re failing to significantly address one of the most serious problems of our time,” said Aaron McCright, primary investigator on the study. McCright and his colleague analyzed 10 years of data from Gallup’s environmental poll, an annual nationally representative telephone survey of at least 1,000 people. In 2001, about 49 percent of Republicans said they believed global warming has already begun, compared to 29 percent in 2010. The percentage of Democrats that believed global warming has already begun, however, rose from 60 percent in 2001 to 70 percent in 2010. According to McCright, the political polarization on climate change is not likely to go away anytime soon, hampering a “civil, science-based discussion on this very serious environmental problem.”.

For additional information see: Science Daily, Report

A new report from the China Energy Group at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab found that, contrary to popular suspicion, China’s carbon emissions will likely plateau after 2030. Researchers contended that the demand for energy intensive appliances like refrigerators and air conditioners will flatten as the market for them saturates while the products themselves become more energy efficient. In addition, roads and infrastructure build out will follow the same leveled path. Mark Levine, director of the China Energy Group, noted that China will begin to focus its energy development on nuclear and renewable energy, in addition to energy efficiency, as it implements the energy intensity and carbon reduction goals contained in its 12th Five Year Plan-adopted in March 2011.

For additional information see: Reuters, NY Times, Abstract, Report

New research from the financial services firm Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) concluded that United Kingdom companies could add over 5-11 percent to their energy bills and face substantial fines if they fail to submit their first Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) reports correctly later this year. Over 3,000 UK companies are expected to be included in the scheme, which imposes fees depending on how much energy a company uses annually. The companies must submit their detailed energy use of electricity, gas, diesel and coal across all of their sites in a CRC annual report by the end of July this year. Firms will be charged 5000 pounds for each late report and an additional 500 pounds for each day the report is late. They will also be charged 40 pounds per ton of carbon over- or under-reported.

For additional information see: Business Green, News Release, Table of Potential Fines

Underwriter Parhelion has launched the first insurance policy to protect the value of carbon credits, in case the projects that generate them are deemed ineligible by regulatory bodies. Parhelion said the program was created in response to increasing worries from customers over regulatory risk in the carbon market. Under the United Nation’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme, countries and companies can purchase credits, or Certified Emission Reductions (CER) to offset their own emissions. Institutional investors can also purchase these credits to sell for a profit. After the European Union outlawed credits from projects that destroy industrial gases like HFC23, the value of those credits dropped significantly and damaged investor willingness to participate in the market. According to Parhelion, their new product will protect the value of credits in these situations, and would improve market liquidity. “Since the carbon market is entirely dependent on regulation, the ability to manage and transfer regulatory risk is key to participants’ success,” said Julian Richardson, chief executive of Parhelion.

For additional information see: Business Green, Announcement

A study published in the journal Biology Letters found that Himalayan villagers’ suspicions that snow cover, water resources and the ecosystem are changing in their region are backed by climate science. According to the authors of the study, this is the first time that subjective perceptions about climate change have been put to a wide scientific test, and that local knowledge can be used as a tool to combat climate change. The study consisted of interviewing 250 people in 10 villages in Singalila National Park, in the Darjeeling Hills of India’s West Bengal state, and in eight villages in the Ilam district of Nepal. Researchers asked the villagers about 18 possible indicators of climate change in the past decade. These interviews were followed by a looser-structured questionnaire in 10 other villages in the area, to cross-check the results. The results were consistent with scientific studies on temperature, rainfall and species carried out in the Himalayas or other regions, according to scientists.

For additional information see: AFP, Study

The coastal Vietnamese city of Quy Nhon has decided to consider the risk of disasters and potential effects of climate change before embarking on a major development program making it a large trading and seaport hub. Using $300,000 from the U.S.-based Rockefeller Foundation, Quy Nhon is conducting a hydrology study to assess how future weather patterns likely to be associated with climate change will affect infrastructure development in the flood-prone area. The city is prone to flooding and saline intrusion, which could be intensified by the effects of climate change, according to scientists. The 18-month study will input data from the 2009 floods of the area into a hydrological model, simulating water flows and predicting how higher sea levels could affect future floods, both with and without urban development.

For additional information see: Thomson Reueters

According to its 2010 progress report, Eastman Kodak reduced its direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions by 49 percent from 2002 to 2010, coming close to a goal of a 50 percent cut by the end of 2012. The company has also reduced energy use 46 percent since 2002, nearing another 50 percent reduction goal by 2012. In 2010, Kodak reduced water use by 10 percent, and has implemented water use tracking at all major sites in an effort to measure its global water footprint. The report also states that 96 percent of all eligible, newly commercialized Kodak products have qualified for the Energy Star standard, approaching its product efficiency goal of 100 percent by 2012. In order to improve the environmental attributes of products throughout their life cycle by 2012, Kodak implemented a streamlined life-cycle assessment process and established baseline environmental performance data for select products, including an ink-jet cartridge recycling program in the United States and parts of Europe that has recycled over four million pounds of material.

For additional information see: Environmental Leader, Report

A recent study by the Environmental Investment Organisation (EIO) showed that less than half of Europe’s top 300 firms are publishing full and verified carbon emission data, with French and Swiss companies ranking worst at greenhouse gas reporting, with only 60 percent of French firms disclosing full emissions data and only 27 percent of Swiss firms providing independently verified information. The EIO developed its Environmental Tracing Europe 300 Carbon Ranking Index, and plans to release future regional and global indexes to provide tools for the investment community to tackle climate change. The study found that European companies still have a long way to go on reporting greenhouse gas emissions, with only 43 percent releasing complete and verified information for their own emissions plus electricity. Spanish companies were the best at reporting emissions, with 92 percent disclosing complete information and 77 percent providing independently verified information.

For additional information see: AFP, Business Green, Ranking Index

A new study found that cuts in carbon emissions by developed countries since 1990 have been cancelled out many times over by increases in imported goods from developing countries. Under the Kyoto Protocol, emissions released during the production of goods are assigned to the country where production takes place, rather than where goods are consumed. Data suggest that developed countries can claim to have reduced their carbon emissions by two percent from 1990 to 2008, but once the carbon emissions from imported goods are taken into account, their actual emissions increased seven percent. China exports more carbon-intensive goods than it imports and is seen as the world’s largest carbon emitter, but its footprint drops by almost one-fifth when its imports and exports are taken into account, putting it behind the United States in carbon emissions. China accounts for 75 percent of the developed world’s offshore emissions, according to the study.

For additional information see: Guardian, Science Daily, Study

Japan’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reached a record low in the year leading to March 2010. Although the country faces an economic slowdown this fiscal year, emissions may still rise if fossil fuels will be used to make up for lost nuclear power due to the earthquake and tsunami last month. Government data showed emissions fell 5.6 percent below the previous fiscal year to 1.209 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), as well as 4.1 percent below the 1990/1991 levels of 1.261 billion tons of CO2. Japan’s goal is to reach an average of 1.186 billion tons of CO2 per year over a five year period ending in March 2013, down six percent from 1990/1991 levels. However, more than half of Japan’s nuclear electricity capacity is currently offline while utility workers conduct maintenance work and check the safety of reactors affected by the earthquake. “One factor boosting emissions is the usage of fossil fuels as an alternative. But we also have to think about the impact of energy saving and of the renewable energy sector, which is growing,” said an official at the environmental ministry.

For additional information see: Reuters

On April 26, the Saskatchewan provincial government has approved a $1.2 billion clean-coal project at SaskPower’s Boundary Dam generating station, which will be the first carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project of its kind in the world. The project has used $180 million of the $240 million granted to it by the federal government several years ago, but the project has been up in the air due to the absence of federal regulations affecting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from coal-fired generating stations. The carbon-capture system is expected to reduce carbon emissions at Boundary Dam by one million tons per year, equivalent to the annual emissions of 200,000 vehicles or approximately one-quarter of the vehicles in the province.

For additional information see: Leader-Post, Business Green

In response to a freedom-of-information (FOI) submission from the Climate Institute, the guardians of Australia’s $70 billion Future Fund said no meeting documents could be found that included the words “climate change” since 2007. According to Julian Poulter, the Climate Institute business director, the Future Fund had stopped participating in the Asset Owners Disclosure Project, a joint initiative between the Climate Institute and the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees, which surveys and assesses super funds’ ability to manage the risks associated with climate change. ”[The Future Fund] is Australia’s largest fund and its sole purpose is to plug a long-term gap on Australia’s future pension fund liabilities. It seems extraordinary that potentially the greatest risk to that portfolio has had no consideration by the board of guardians. Australian taxpayers would expect that $70 billion of its reserves should be well protected from global climate change policy,” said Poulter.

For additional information see: Sydney Morning Herald

A study published in Science found the ozone hole, located over the South Pole, has affected the entire circulation of the Southern Hemisphere all the way to the equator. Although previous studies have shown the ozone hole to affect atmospheric flows in higher latitudes, the new findings show the ozone hole is influencing tropical circulation and increasing rainfall at low latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere as well. According to the authors of the study, international agreements about mitigating climate change cannot be confined to dealing with carbon alone, and must incorporate ozone as well. Over the past half-century, human-made aerosols, particularly chlorofluorocarbons (CFC), have significantly and rapidly depleted the ozone layer, leading to the ozone hole discovered over Antarctica in the 1980s. The Montreal Protocol banned global CFC production in 1989, and scientists now believe the ozone hole will be completely closed by mid-century. “We really want to know if and how the closing of the ozone hole will affect [extreme precipitation events],” said co-author Sarah Kang.

For additional information see: Science Daily, AFP, Study

Other Headlines

Writers: Deep Ghosh and Matthew Johnson

Please distribute Climate Change News to your colleagues. Permission for reproduction of this newsletter is granted provided that the Environmental and Energy Study Institute is properly acknowledged as the source. Past issues are available here. Free email subscriptions are available here. We welcome your suggestions, comments, and questions.

EESI’s work, including this free newsletter, is made possible by financial support from people like you. Please help us continue to make it available by making a secure, online donation today by clicking here or mailing a check to Environmental and Energy Study Institute; 1112 16th St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20036. Please contact Susan Williams at (202) 662-1887 (202) 662-1887 or see www.eesi.org/donate to find out more. Thank you for your support!