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News
- -01-07-06 America Exporting Pollution? (ABC News)
"Americans bought an estimated $125 billion worth of consumer electronics — computers, monitors, cell phones, televisions — this past year. With hundreds of millions of them becoming obsolete every year in this country, what happens to all the stuff we don't want any more?" 01-06
- -01-10-06 Ministerial Meeting (BBC News)
"The first ministerial meeting of a controversial alliance promising economic growth with low carbon emissions has opened in Sydney."
"The Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate aims to develop and promote technologies such as "clean coal", nuclear and renewables." 01-06
- -01-28-06 Warming Debate Shifts to "Tipping Point" (MSNBC News)
"Now that most scientists agree human activity is causing Earth to warm, the central debate has shifted to whether climate change is progressing so rapidly that, within decades, humans may be helpless to slow or reverse the trend."
"There are three specific events that these scientists describe as especially worrisome and potentially imminent, although the time frames are a matter of dispute: widespread coral bleaching that could damage the world's fisheries within three decades; dramatic sea level rise by the end of the century that would take tens of thousands of years to reverse; and, within 200 years, a shutdown of the [Atlantic thermohaline] ocean current that moderates temperatures in northern Europe." 01-06
- -02-04-06 Reality Check on President's Oil Reduction Plan (Christian Science Monitor)
"With Americans concerned about rising gasoline prices and dependence on imported oil, the president wants to cut 75 percent of US oil imports from the region by 2025 - and he provided a new energy plan to help do it."
"A bipartisan proposal in Congress - the 'Vehicle and Fuel Choices for American Security Act' - advocates a 7-million-barrel cut over 20 years, nearly double Bush's proposal and eliminating the need for any Middle Eastern oil." 02-06
- -02-16-06 Melting Glaciers Could Produce "Runaway Effects" (ABC News)
"In only five years, the amount of freshwater the melting glaciers have dumped into the Atlantic has nearly doubled, which has caused many scientists to conclude that current projections of how fast sea levels will rise have been too low."
"Scientists also worry about the effect all this fresh-melt water will have on the Atlantic's Gulf Stream 'conveyor belt' currents. These currents have long kept the northeastern United States, Britain and northwestern Europe relatively warm for their northern latitudes by transporting heat up from the tropics. Too much freshwater slows these currents, said scientists."
"A few weeks ago, scientists announced a surprising discovery — currents have slowed by 30 percent in recent years."
"This is the latest confirmation that global warming is now accelerating and involving interconnected 'positive feedback' effects in which the warming in different earth systems reinforces overall warming, and it is all now happening faster than scientists recently thought possible, according to the report." 02-06
- -02-21-06 Bush Promotes Alternative Energy (MSNBC News)
"The president has proposed a 22 percent increase in funding for clean-energy technology research at the Energy Department. He wants to change the way the nation fuels its vehicles and powers homes and businesses by focusing on nuclear, solar and wind power as well as better batteries to power hybrid-electric autos and hydrogen-fueled cars."
"Eben Burnham-Snyder, a spokesman for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said this year’s energy efficiency and renewable energy portion of the budget is slightly smaller than that in the last year of the previous administration. When inflation is factored in, it amounts to a decrease of more than $130 million, he said." 02-06
- -02-24-06 Chromium Risks May Have Been Withheld (MSNBC News)
"Worried about stricter regulations, the chromium industry withheld key data from the government involving the health risks of workers exposed to the carcinogenic metal, according to a study released Thursday."
"Currently, OSHA regulations cap chromium levels at work to 52 micrograms per cubic meter. It supports restricting levels to 1 microgram per cubic meter, which is slightly lower than 'intermediate' exposure levels of 1.5 to 16.0, according to the paper." 02-06
- -03-13-06 Carbon Levels Accelerating (BBC News)
"US climate scientists have recorded a significant rise in the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, pushing it to a new record level."
" 'We don't see any sign of a decrease; in fact, we're seeing the opposite, the rate of increase is accelerating,' Dr Pieter Tans told the BBC." 03-06
- -03-21-06 Rewriting Science (CBS News)
"Hansen is arguably the world's leading researcher on global warming. He's the head of NASA's top institute studying the climate. But this imminent scientist tells correspondent Scott Pelley that the Bush administration is restricting who he can talk to and editing what he can say. Politicians, he says, are rewriting the science." 3-06
- -03-23-06 Climate Model Predicts Submerged Cities (Scientific American)
"Now a refined climate model is predicting, among other things, sea level rises of as much as 20 feet, according to research results published today in the journal Science."
"Such a sea level rise would permanently inundate low-lying lands like New Orleans, southern Florida, Bangladesh and the Netherlands. Already sea level rise has increased to an inch per decade, thanks to melting ice and warm water expansion, according to Overpeck."
" 'We need to start serious measures to reduce greenhouse gases within the next decade," Overpeck says. 'If we don't do something soon, we're committed to [13 to 20 feet] of sea level rise in the future.' " 03-06
- -04-13-06 European Rivers Hit Record Highs (MSNBC News)
"The Danube reached record high levels in Romania, Serbia and Bulgaria on Thursday, flooding fertile farmland as authorities in southeastern Europe considered ordering evacuations." 04-06
- -04-14-06 British Top Scientist Gives Grim Warning (TimesOnline.com)
"The Government's chief scientist today gave his starkest warning yet about the world's increasing carbon emissions saying that even the best-case scenario put millions of lives at risk by the end of the century." 04-06
- -04-18-06 Rolling Blackouts in Texas (USA Today)
"Power companies throughout the state had to impose rolling blackouts Monday because of unseasonably hot weather and a shortage of electricity. Thousands of people were caught without electricity for short periods of time as highs reached into the low 100s." 04-06
- -05-11-06 Conservationist Wins Gold Award (BBC News)
"A conservationist who has spent 25 years trying to protect Peru's marine wildlife has won a top UK environment prize, the Whitley Gold Award."
"Patricia Majluf researched and then campaigned against the impact of anchovy fishing off the Peruvian coast."
"High catches have affected dolphins, sealions and birds such as pelicans." 05-06
- -05-11-06 Texas Plans Largest Off Shore Wind Farm (USA Today)
"The nation's largest offshore wind farm will be built off the Padre Island seashore in South Texas, a critical migratory bird flyway, Texas land commissioner Jerry Patterson said Thursday." 05-06
- -08-23-06 Ocean Is Too Noisy (ABC News)
"But there's no question that the ocean has changed through pollution, over-fishing, and now, we know, noise."
"It wasn't a pristine environment in the 1960s," when the Navy monitored the area, Hildebrand says. "So there's probably another 10 decibels or so to get back to the primordial state. So it's 20 decibels above the conditions that these animals evolved in, and that's a big number." 08-06
- -09-03-06 Steve Irwin "Crocodile Hunter" Is Killed (MSNBC News)
"Steve Irwin, the Australian television personality and environmentalist known as the 'Crocodile Hunter,' was killed Monday by a stingray during a diving expedition, Australian media said. He was 44." 09-06
- -09-04-06 Steve Irwin "Crocodile Hunter" Is Killed (MSNBC News)
"Steve Irwin died doing what he loved best, getting too close to one of the dangerous animals he dedicated his life to protecting with an irrepressible, effervescent personality that propelled him to global fame as television’s 'Crocodile Hunter.' " 09-06
- -09-21-06 Branson Commits $3 Billion to Fight Global Warming (USA Today)
"British business mogul Richard Branson said Thursday he would invest about $3 billion to combat global warming over the next decade."
"Branson's announcement comes one day after the Bush administration said it was committing $3 billion to climate technology research and development. Climate experts and members of Congress criticized the administration's plan as long-delayed and inadequate." 09-06
- -10-04-06 Experts Challenge EPA's Position on Air Pollution (PBS News)
"Pollution experts have 'serious scientific concerns' that newly unveiled U.S. air quality standards may pose risks to human health and welfare, according to a letter made public on Tuesday."
"The experts, all charter members of a key advisory panel to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, questioned the agency's decision to keep annual standards for fine soot particles at the same level they have been since 1997." 10-06
- -11-12-06 U.N. Climate Conference Starts (MSNBC News)
"An annual U.N. climate conference kicked off here Monday, with the United States defending its record and many of the 5,000 delegates mulling a new U.N. report that the continent of Africa is more vulnerable than earlier feared when it comes to warming." 11-06
- -11-12-06 U.N.: 2005 Set Record for Greenhouse Gases (MSNBC News)
"Greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere reached a high in 2005 and are still increasing, the U.N. weather agency said Friday." 11-06
- -11-14-06 Report: USA, China, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia Are the Worst Offenders (CBS News)
"Sweden, Britain and Denmark are doing the most to protect against climate change, but their efforts are not nearly enough, according to a report released Monday by environmental groups."
"The United States — the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases — ranked at 53, with only China, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia doing worse." 11-06
- -11-14-06 Tragedy: Birds Collide into Urban Glass Towers (ABC News)
"Between 100 million and one billion birds are killed every year in the United States when they crash into glass windows. And even one billion deaths might be a conservative estimate, says ornithologist Daniel Klem Jr. of Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa." 11-06
- -11-20-06 Tidal Turbines for Sale (MSNBC News)
"In the quest for oil-free power, a handful of small companies are staking claims on the boundless energy of the rising and ebbing sea." 09-06
- -11-23-06 States Are Starting to Require Clean Energy Sources (USA Today)
"In Washington state, voters approved a measure Nov. 7 mandating that 15% of electrical power come from renewable sources by 2020."
"That makes 20 states and the District of Columbia with such requirements, according to the Department of Energy. Two others states — Illinois and Vermont — have non-binding goals on using renewable energy sources." 11-06
- -11-29-06 Supreme Court to Hear Pivotal Global Warming Case (MSNBC News)
"The Supreme Court hears arguments this week in a case that could determine whether the Bush administration must change course in how it deals with the threat of global warming." 11-06
- -12-28-06 New Type of Battery for Hybrid Cars (USCar.org)
"USABC awarded the contract in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop lithium iron phosphate battery technology for hybrid-electric vehicle applications. The contract is for 36 months with a focus on systems that are high-power, abuse-tolerant and cost effective."
Editor's Note: These batteries are designed to replace nickle-metal-hydride batteries currently used in hybrid cars with lithium batteries. Current lithium batteries, such as those used in cameras, cannot be used in hybrids because of overheating problems and cost. 12-06
- -12-29-06 Ancient Ice Shelf Breaks Free (MSNBC News)
"A giant ice shelf has snapped free from an island south of the North Pole, scientists said Thursday, citing climate change as a 'major' reason for the event." 12-06
- Biggest Oil Spill on Alaska's North Slope (MSNBC News)
"An estimated 201,000 to 267,000 gallons of crude oil spilled in the North Slope pipeline leak discovered March 2, state officials announced Friday." 03-06
- Green Machines (MSNBC News)
Provides stories on the newest environmentally friendly machines. 11-06
- Polar Caps Melting Fast (Time.com)
"The climate is crashing, and global warming is to blame. Why the crisis hit so soon--and what we can do about it" 08-06
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