Climate Climate & Energy
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Polar warming directly attributed to humans, study says
Warming at both the Earth’s poles has, for the first time, been directly attributed to humans, according to a new study in the journal Nature Geoscience. “[Y]ou see a clear human fingerprint in the observed data,” said researcher Peter Stott. “We really can’t claim anymore that it’s natural variations that are driving these very large […]
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Two new reports detail the enormous toll coal dependence is taking on China
The Chinese government released an official "white paper" today, saying that: global warming is going to wreak havoc on China, reducing grain yields and making it difficult to feed 1.3 billion people; coal is China’s primary contribution to global warming; coal is also China’s cheapest and most abundant fuel; the "coal-dominated energy mix cannot be […]
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Win money to weatherize your home in The Home Depot’s video contest
You can save energy. We can help. Photo: OsCataleptic. If weatherizing makes you complete, consider entering The Home Depot’s “Save Money. Save Energy. Win Big.” contest by submitting a short video about ways you save energy at home. Grand prize is a hefty $5,000 gift card to The Home Depot. At $6.88 for a 4-pack, […]
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The flawed economics of nuclear power
Over the last few years the nuclear industry has used concerns about climate change to argue for a nuclear revival. Although industry representatives may have convinced some political leaders that this is a good idea, there is little evidence of private capital investing in nuclear plants in competitive electricity markets. The reason is simple: nuclear […]
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Umbra on unused fireplaces
Dear Umbra, We have a gas fireplace and a new baby girl, so we have decided to not use the fireplace this winter. What is the best way to keep the cold air from coming in through the fireplace? JeffRochester, N.Y. Dearest Jeff, First of all, congratulations! There are “hearth gates” one can use to […]
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The hidden costs of coal haven’t exactly been a secret
“But under any external-cost scenario, coal’s price advantage erodes. Natural gas becomes a more cost-efficient generating fuel, since it emits less sulfur. More important, renewable resources like geothermal energy, wind, and solar energy, at five to twelve cents per kilowatt hour, suddenly become competitive, because they carry few or none of the external costs associated […]
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New Mother Jones piece flaunts climate starpower, but lacks practical suggestions
Magazines like to tease their readers with headlines that promise answers to seemingly intractable problems. Such seems to be the intent of the lead story of the December 2008 issue of Mother Jones, entitled “How to rescue the economy and save the planet.” Al Gore, Bill McKibben, and Nobel-laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz hold forth, among […]
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Voices in favor of green stimulus spending
I think it kind of disappeared in the rush late last week, so if you haven’t already, check out this op-ed from Chip and me in the Seattle Times. It seems to be part of a growing chorus calling out for green stimulus spending. Here’s Michael Northrop, director of the Sustainable Development Program at the […]
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Study: Water-vapor feedback is ‘strong and positive,’ so we face ‘warming of several degrees C’
A new study in Geophysical Research Letters ($ub. req’d), “Water-vapor climate feedback inferred from climate fluctuations, 2003-2008” analyzed recent variations in surface temperature and “the response of tropospheric water vapor to these variations.” They concluded that the “water-vapor feedback implied by these observations is strongly positive” and “similar to that simulated by climate models.” The […]
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There are simple ways to reduce cargo ship CO2 emissions right now
The International Maritime Organization’s recent decision to adopt tighter emission rules for the global shipping fleet is a step in the right direction for an industry whose emissions have been practically unregulated. Ship emissions are blamed for 60,000 deaths worldwide each year — a serious public health threat. The new rules, however, only address sulfur […]
