Acidifying oceans could dramatically impact the world’s squid species, according to a new study. Because squid are both ecologically and commercially important, that impact may have far-reaching effects on the ocean environment and coastal economies, the researchers report.
“Squid are at the center of the ocean ecosystem — nearly all animals are eating or eaten by squid,” says WHOI biologist T. Aran Mooney, a co-author of the study. “So if anything happens to these guys, it has repercussions down the food chain and up the food chain.”
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The same party that has been screwing over my province for more than a decade won again, and with more power than before. I’m sure there will now be a continuation of their long history of lies and betrayal. =/
The only positive note is that a green party leader did get elected. He is a scientist; a Climatologist at the University of Victoria. Its nice to have more scientists in government especially when climate change has been so put down in politics.
With coastal areas bracing for rising sea levels, new research indicates that cutting emissions of certain pollutants can greatly slow down sea level rise. Reductions in the four pollutants that cycle comparatively quickly through the atmosphere could forestall the rate of sea level rise by roughly 25 to 50 percent.
The research team found that reductions in four pollutants that cycle comparatively quickly through the atmosphere could temporarily forestall the rate of sea level rise by roughly 25 to 50 percent.
“To avoid potentially dangerous sea level rise, we could cut emissions of short-lived pollutants even if we cannot immediately cut carbon dioxide emissions,” says Aixue Hu of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the first author of the study. “This new research shows that society can significantly reduce the threat to coastal cities if it moves quickly on a handful of pollutants.”
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Global warming has caused monthly records for heat to increase fivefold in frequency, according to a study by scientists in Germany and Spain, published on Monday.
In parts of Europe, Africa and southern Asia, the frequency of months with record-breaking heat has surged tenfold, it said.
The evidence comes from an analysis of 131 years of monthly temperature data, monitored at 12,000 points around the world, which are stored in a NASA database.
If man-made warming is stripped out of the equation, 80 percent of the records for hottest-ever months would not have occurred, it said.
“The last decade brought unprecedented heatwaves, for instance in the US in 2012, in Russia in 2010, in Australia in 2009 and in Europe in 2003,” said Dim Coumou of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research near Berlin.
On current trends for global warming, the number of new monthly heat records will be 12 times higher in 30 years than today, the researchers said.
“This doesn’t mean there will be 12 times more hot summers in Europe than today—it actually is worse,” Coumou said in a press release issued by PIK.
“To count as new records, they actually have to beat heat records set in the 2020s and 2030s, which will already be hotter than anything we have experienced to date.”
The study, which was co-authored by scientists at the Complutense University of Madrid, appears in the journal Climatic Change.
(c) 2013 AFP
Polar Bear and global warming. (Credit: © Alexander / Fotolia)
Dec. 16, 2012 — Limiting climate change to target levels will become much more difficult to achieve, and more expensive, if action is not taken soon, according to a new analysis from IIASA, ETH Zurich, and NCAR.
The new paper, published today in Nature Climate Change, explores technological, policy, and social changes that would need to take place in the near term in order to keep global average temperature from rising above 2°C, a target supported by more than 190 countries as a global limit to avoid dangerous climate change. This study for the first time comprehensively quantifies the costs and risks of greenhouse gas emissions surpassing critical thresholds by 2020. The findings of the study are particularly important given the failure of the recent climate negotiations in Doha to decide to increase mitigation action before 2020.
The authors show that the 2°C target could still be reached even if greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced before 2020, but only at very high cost, with higher climate risks, and under exceedingly optimistic assumptions about future technologies. The more emissions are reduced in the near term, the more options will be available in the long run and, by extension, the cheaper it will be to reach international climate targets.
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Kent’s Claim that Canada’s Emissions are “Historically Low” is Bogus
In a statement released today from Doha, Environment Minister Peter Kent claims that Canada’s emissions are historically low. He bases his statement on per capita greenhouse gas (GHG).
“The Minister hopes to distract us from 2011 total emissions which have gone up. According to international reporting published in the prestigious journal Nature Climate Change, Canada’s emissions hit an all time high of 600 million tons in 2011”, said Elizabeth May, Green Party Leader and Member of Parliament for Saanich-Gulf Islands.
“In 1990, Canada emitted 457 million tons. This is a 24% increase since 1990. Canada had committed in Kyoto to reduce its total emissions by 6% between 1990 and 2012. It is a national shame,” added May.
“To talk in terms of per capita numbers is another attempt by Harper’s Conservative to fool Canadians in believing we are on the right track. Total emissions GHG numbers are alarming. Under Stephen Harper as Prime Minister, Canada has cancelled its climate change programmes, continually weakened our targets, repudiated our international obligations, cancelled support for climate science and gagged the scientists who remain. No wonder we are a pariah at international negotiations,” concluded May.
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If you aren’t even going to try to improve the environment, the worst thing you can do is to make it look like you are doing something. You are deceiving the public.
This is not surprising behaviour from the conservatives.
Endangered Coral Reefs Die as Ocean Temperatures Rise and Water Turns Acidic (via PBS)
Good video on climate induced ocean acidification, if you aren’t familiar.
Canada’s position on the world stage of climate change and environmental responsibility:
Yesterday, the government shut down debate so it could ram through bill C-45, the second omnibus budget bill of 2012. This bill removes protection from thousands of waterways – making way for faster industrial development and ignoring the voices of communities.
Last week at the international climate talks in Qatar, Canada was ranked 58th – the worst performer on climate change of any developed nation1. Only Kazakhstan, Iran and Saudi Arabia do less than Canada. It’s shocking. (x)Donate here to allow independent scientists, researchers and policy experts to bring forward solutions and speak out – loudly – for a different future..
Canada trailed only by Kazakhstan, Iran and Saudi Arabia in 2013 climate change performance index
December 3, 2012
(Doha, Qatar) Canada fell to 58th place out of 61 countries analyzed for their policies and action on climate change this year, trailed only by Kazakhstan, Iran, and Saudi Arabia. The annual Climate Change Performance Index is released by Germanwatch and Climate Action Network Europe and is based on an analysis of government climate policy in each country.
“At a time when institutions such as the World Bank and the International Energy Agency are calling for more climate action it is disappointing to have so many countries still being reluctant to move forward. Canada is a strong example of this lack of willingness to improve climate policies,” said Wendel Trio, Director of the European Climate Action Network.
The report examines current emissions levels, development of emissions, renewable energy, efficiency, and climate policy. Canada scores the lowest ranking of ‘very poor’ with respect to current emissions, renewable energy, and climate policy. On efficiency Canada is given a ranking of ‘poor’, and in development of emissions a ranking of ‘good,’ with a strong caveat that it is not cause for celebration if progress in some sectors is completely negated by soaring emissions from the oil and gas sector […]
This year’s peak Arctic ice melt was the greatest since records have been kept, and is thought to be the greatest in a million years. The animation above shows January through September of 2012. The dark area represents the historic daily average. The final frame displays this years minimum of 4 million square kilometers as compared with the average of 7 million.
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