Today, the Earth got a little hotter, and a little more crowded.
Flying frogs glide through dark Asian rainforests. Source www.factzoo.com
The clouded leopard is an inhabitant of Cambodian forests, which are being destroyed for timber, at an alarming rate. Source www.animalspot.net
Forests: the cheapest way to store carbon
OO Alarm Over 'Timber Grab' From Cambodia's Protected Forests -ancient, highly valuable forests are being lost at an "unprecedented" rate, says a new report.
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The good news: bold, brave, dramatic action. The bad news: it isn't enough. Source environmentamerica.org
OO Climate Change: Obama Orders Steeper Cuts From Power Plants - a good start, but we need far more.
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The Coming Coastal Floods:
OO Climate Change 'Triple Threat' Increases
Severe Flooding Risk In Biggest US Cities far more than thought, via sea level rise, storm surges, and heavier rainfall, says a new study.
Related Headlines:
OO Atlantis Awaits:
Melting Ice, Rising Water For Most Coastal Cities Worldwide unless we start protecting our climate NOW.
OO Rain, Storm Surge Combine To Put US Coasts At Risk
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OO 13 Major US Corporations Pledge
$140 billion to Cut Their Carbon Emissions
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Voting for Climate Change Action
Hillary Clinton, reflecting. Credit Brian Snyder at Reuters
OO Hillary Clinton's Climate Change Plan: Not Enough say experts, lacking the ambition and urgency needed for the scale of this massive problem.
Besides solar investment, Clinton must agree to an unsubsidized, honest price on fossil fuels to effect changes needed for dramatic cuts in emissions, say James Hansen and Bill McKibben.
OO Clinton Attacks GOP on Climate,
But Her Plan Is Short On Action - with no specific commitments to cut carbon emissions.
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OO Clean Energy Is A Growing Political Juggernaut In Swing States says a new poll.
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Weather Girl Goes Rogue - at 2 years, an oldie but goodie... whenever the media "news" gets too absurd, go youtube her - her message is, unfortunately, never old, but the execution is hilarious...
Blue skies, puffy white smoke... hey, what's wrong with this picture? Of a coal fired plant. Lots of voters know. Credit Jim Coles at Associated Press
OO Bad News for GOP Climate-Change Denying Candidates:
Voters Want Climate Action - says a new poll, and so does much of the business sector.
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The Answer Is Blowing in the Wind:
OO Extension of Wind Subsidies Reassures Long Term Investors
OO Warming May Boost Wind Energy In Plains States
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National and Health Security:
The military understands how clean energy can prevent costly wars. Source pewenvironment.org
OO Defense Department To Congress:
Global Warming IS A 'Present Security Threat' - not "will be."
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OO Half of India's children are already chronically malnourished Source AP
OO Scientists Predict Climate Change Will Increase Child Malnutrition
OO Health Gains Will Be Lost To Climate Change - as catastrophes and environmental degradation help spread diseases anew and prevent adequate health care for many, says a new medical report.
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Miami is increasingly wet. Source floridatrend.com
OO Rising Risks: Health And Economic Costs
Of Climate Change In Southeastern US - a new report says that by 2050, an extra 4,500 Texans may be dying from heat-related illness annually, and $150+ billion worth of Florida property may be flooded by high tides, among other costs.
Related:
OO Texas Facing Major Climate Change Impacts, study finds.
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Insights:
OO Drought Damages Trees' Longterm Ability To Store Carbon says a new study.
Many trees leave their leaf pores open in drought to absorb carbon dioxide, but moisture also gets sucked out. As water escapes, the resulting tension often collapses the trees' water transport tubes like wet straws. Such damage slows tree growth and carbon uptake up to 4 years after drought.
Like So Many Green Mouths: Pores, aka stomata, on the leaf of a plant - greatly magnified.
This longterm effect is not included in climate models, which may overestimate the ability of ecosystems to store carbon - and underestimate the severity of future climate change.
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"Climate what?" The word still needs to get out. Source blog.crazysinglelife.com
OO 40 % Of Adults Worldwide Have
Never Heard Of Climate Change says a new study.
This must change, because people are more concerned about it if:
- they know it exists
- they know humans cause it
- they persponally experience extreme weather - think heat, droughts, floods, etc.
OO Carbon Emissions From Fertilizing Crops Greater Than Thought says a new study - up to 40% more.
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Natural Repercussions:
OO The Shrinking Lake: Lake Oroville is an icon of the California drought.
OO Thousands Of Salmon Die In Hotter-Than-Usual Northwest Rivers killing nearly half the sockeye salmon migration up the Columbia River.
Toxic algal blooms kill seals and sea lions, too. Source glisa.umich.edu
OO Record Giant Pacific Ocean Toxic Algae Bloom Spreads -
from southern California to Alaska as far as the Aleutian Islands, scientists say. Lethal to marine mammals, which are down.
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OO Coffee In Crisis: The Bitter End Of Our Favorite Drink?
Drought, flooding, disease--climate change is already threatening the source of our caffeine fix.
OO Oil Groups Worldwide Have Shelved $200 Billions in New Projects
as Low Prices Bite - every little cut in emissions is good, folks... now let's rev up clean energy and energy efficiency!
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The Western Fires of Climate Change:
Credit Jim Stimson via CalFire at AP
OO As California Wildfires Rage,
Gov. Jerry Brown Declares State Of Emergency
@@ Northern California Fire Explodes;
Homes Lost, Thousands Threatened check out the gripping videos.
OO Fires In US West Threaten Thousands Of Structures
OO Dry Days Bring A Ferocious Start To The Fire Season - another summer of record-breaking drought and heat in the West, has set off costly destructive wildfires from Southern California to Montana.
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Hot Enough to Fry Eggs and brains. Expect even hotter times under continued climate change.
OO 165 degrees F Heat Index Suffocates Iran City;
Near World Record - In Bandar Mahshahr, the air felt like a searing 165 degrees recently, factoring in the humidity - that just 37 degrees below boiling water - or blood.
OO Newly Adjusted Climate Models Are Even More Accurate - differing only 15% from observed warming.
OO Salt Water Attacking Vietnam's Grain Bowl, The Mekong Delta
As Sea Levels Rise threatening rice fields and farms.
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OO Central Asia: Freakishly High Heat Triggers
Ice Melt, Flooding And Mudslides In Tajikistan
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If we do not grow sustainably,
Our children will die inhumanely.
A poor child looking for food. Source thegoodhuman.com
OO Feeding People On Our Stressed Planet Will Require A "Revolution" too many people consuming too much is a major driver of climate change, and is driving food insecurity. The number of hungry people increases every day.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Talk up the idea of a world campaign to prevent unintended pregnancies.
And there are many more actions you can do, right here.
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SOLAR KEEPS SAILING
OO SolarCity Has 250,000+ Customers,
Reports Record Bookings, Installs
OO SunPower's Global PV Project Pipeline Is 12+ Gigawatts a LOT of installed solar power.
OO Scientists Reshape the Solar Spectrum to Turn Light to Electricity - at the University of California at Riverside, turning unabsorbed sunlight into absorbable light by solar cells, increasing the cells' efficiency.
Check it out here, right now!
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WHY WE SHOULD ACT NOW: RISING RISKS
Daily Climate Change: Global Map of Unusual Temperatures, Oct 12, 2014
How unusual has the weather been? No one event is "caused" by climate change, but global warming, which is predicted to increase unusual, extreme weather, is having a daily effect on weather, worldwide.
Looking above at recent temperature anomalies, much of the US and the waters surrounding it are experiencing warmer than normal temperatures: the eastern Pacific warm spot continues to prevent much rain from reaching California, sending it into further drought.
Much of the areas surrounding the North Pole are experiencing much warmer than normal temperatures - not good news for our Arctic thermal shield of ice. Hotter than usual temperatures continue to dominate human habitats.
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There is, of course, much more news on the consequences and solutions to climate change. To get it, check out this annotated resource list I've compiled, "Climate Change News Resources," at Wordpress.com here. For more information on the science of climate change, its consequences and solutions you can view my annotated list of online information resources here.
To help you understand just what science does and does NOT do, check this out!
Every day is Earth Day, folks, as I was reminded by this dwarf rhododendron I photographed one late summer on the Arctic tundra. Making the U.S. a global clean energy leader will ensure a heck of a lot more jobs, and a clean, safe future. If you'd like to join the increasing numbers of people who want to TELL Congress that they will vote for clean energy candidates you can do so here. It's our way of letting Congress know there's a strong clean energy voting bloc out there. For more detailed summaries of the above and other climate change items, audio podcasts and texts are freely available.
