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3/11/2011 Does climate change mean more tsunamis?
Update: The intent of this piece isn’t to attribute today’s tragedy to climate change. Apologies to those whom I misled with the headline. It was meant literally, as in: Tsunamis are inundations of shorelines and therefore have impacts that resemble storm surges, which are one of the most immediate threats of a warmer planet. In addition, climate change may cause tsunamis directly, so it’s possible we’ll someday see more images like this as a result.

Update 2: Changed the headline (it originally read “Today’s tsunami: This is what climate change looks like”) and updated the text to reflect the discussion of the science and the framing in the comments. Thanks to Tom Yulsman for holding my feet to the fire on this. * * *

So far, today’s tsunami has mainly affected Japan—there are reports of up to 300 dead in the coastal city of Sendai—but future tsunamis could strike the U.S. and virtually any other coastal area of the world with equal or greater force, say scientists. In a little-heeded warning issued at a 2009 conference on the subject, experts outlined a range of mechanisms by which climate change could already be causing more earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic activity, albeit of a scale and nature quite different from Friday’s tragedy. A 2009 paper by Bill McGuire, professor at University College London, says “observations suggest that the ongoing rise in global average temperatures may already be eliciting a hazardous response from the geosphere.” It’s important to note that this response has nothing to do with Friday’s tsunami, which is a ‘subduction zone earthquake,’ whereas the tsunamis discussed by scientists cited here would be the product of catastrophic events—collapse of methane hydrate deposits at the bottom of the ocean on the continental shelf, for example—for which a tsunami would be but one of many negative impacts. (Grist)
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posted: 3/31/11                   0       6
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keywords: Australia, Bill Mcguire, Canada, Chile, China Meteorological Administration, Climate Change, David Pyle, Earthquakes, Japan, Methane, New York City, New Zealand, Reuters, Sendai, Tom Yulsman, Tsunamis, United States, University College London, Volcanoes Add New Keyword To Link



2/25/2011 Can geoengineering put the freeze on global warming?
Scientists call it "geoengineering," but in plain speak, it means things like this: blasting tons of sulfate particles into the sky to reflect sunlight away from Earth; filling the ocean with iron filings to grow plankton that will suck up carbon; even dimming sunlight with space shades. Each brings its own set of risks, but in a world fretting about the consequences of global warming, are these ideas whose time has come? With 2010 tying as the world's warmest year on record and efforts to slow greenhouse gas emissions looking stymied, calls are rising for research into engineering our way out of global warming — everything from launching solar shade spacecraft to genetically engineering green deserts. An international consortium of 12 universities and research institutes on Tuesday, for example, announced plans to pioneer large-scale "ocean fertilization" experiments aimed at using the sea to pull more greenhouse gases out of the sky. (USA Today)
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posted: 3/6/11                   0       9
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9/30/2010 Climate change: a summary of the science
Changes in climate have significant implications for present lives, for future generations and for ecosystems on which humanity depends. Consequently, climate change has been and continues to be the subject of intensive scientific research and public debate. 2 There is strong evidence that the warming of the Earth over the last half-century has been caused largely by human activity, such as the burning of fossil fuels and changes in land use, including agriculture and deforestation. The size of future temperature increases and other aspects of climate change, especially at the regional scale, are still subject to uncertainty. Nevertheless, the risks associated with some of these changes are substantial. It is important that decision makers have access to climate science of the highest quality, and can take account of its findings in formulating appropriate responses. 3 In view of the ongoing public and political debates about climate change, the aim of this document is to summarise the current scientific evidence on climate change and its drivers. It lays out clearly where the science is well established, where there is wide consensus but continuing debate, and where there remains substantial uncertainty. The impacts of climate change, as distinct from the causes, are not considered here. This document draws upon recent evidence and builds on the Fourth Assessment Report of Working Group I of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), published in 2007, which is the most comprehensive source of climate science and its uncertainties. (The Royal Society)
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posted: 10/4/10                   0       19
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7/29/2010 A Critical Examination Of Matt Simmons' Hyperbolic Claims On The Deepwater Spill
Matt Simmons, author of Twilight in the Desert, has long been one of the most famous and influential voices on the subject of peak oil. After the release of his book, Simmons rose to fame as Saudi Arabian oil production declined and global oil prices skyrocketed. However, Simmons has lately been making hyperbolic claims related to the deepwater spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Based on the scenarios Simmons has outlined, he argues for responses such as using a nuclear explosion to seal the well and evacuating 20 million people from the Gulf Coast. Extraordinary responses such as these would impact a great many people, so The Oil Drum staff felt that a critical look at some of Simmons’ claims was in order. (Business Insider)
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posted: 8/18/10                   0       7
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1/22/2010 IPCC List of Greenhouse Gases
This is a list of LLGHG (long-lived greenhouse gases) greenhouse gases as used by the IPCC TAR. Gases relevant to radiative forcing only (per IPCC documentation) (Wikipedia)
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posted: 7/4/10                   0       6
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1/1/2010 Greenhouse gases
...are gases in an atmosphere that absorb and emit radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The main greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. In our solar system, the atmospheres of Venus, Mars and Titan also contain gases that cause greenhouse effects. Greenhouse gases greatly affect the temperature of the Earth; without them, Earth's surface would be on average about 33 °C (59 °F) colder than at present. The burning of fossil fuels since the beginning of the Industrial revolution has substantially increased the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. (Wikipedia)
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posted: 7/5/10                   0       6
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1/1/2010 Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum
The Paleocene/Eocene boundary, 55.8 million years ago, was marked by the most rapid and significant climatic disturbance of the Cenozoic Era. A sudden global warming event, leading to the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM, alternatively "Eocene thermal maximum 1" (ETM1), and formerly known as the "Initial Eocene" or "Late Paleocene Thermal Maximum", (IETM/LPTM)), is associated with changes in oceanic and atmospheric circulation, the extinction of numerous deep-sea benthic foraminifera, and a major turnover in mammalian life on land which is coincident with the emergence of many of today's major mammalian orders. The event saw global temperatures rise by around 6°C (11°F) over 20,000 years, with a corresponding rise in sea level as the whole of the oceans warmed. Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations rose, causing a shallowing of the lysocline. Regional deep water anoxia may have played a part in marine extinctions. The event is linked to a negative excursion in the δ13C isotope record, which occurs in two short (~1,000 year) pulses. These probably represent degassing of clathrates ("methane ice" deposits), which accentuated a pre-existing warming trend. The release of these clathrates, and ultimately the event itself, may have been triggered by a range of causes. However, an alternative mechanism has also been proposed. (Wikipedia)
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posted: 7/15/10                   0       3
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12/12/2008 As More Eat Meat, a Bid to Cut Emissions
The cows and pigs dotting these flat green plains in the southern Netherlands create a bucolic landscape. But looked at through the lens of greenhouse gas accounting, they are living smokestacks, spewing methane emissions into the air.

But such fledgling proposals are part of a daunting game of catch-up. In large developing countries like China, India and Brazil, consumption of red meat has risen 33 percent in the last decade. It is expected to double globally between 2000 and 2050. While the global economic downturn may slow the globe’s appetite for meat momentarily, it is not likely to reverse a profound trend. Of the more than 2,000 projects supported by the United Nations’ “green” financing system intended to curb emissions, only 98 are in agriculture. There is no standardized green labeling system for meat, as there is for electric appliances and even fish. (New York Times)
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posted: 5/4/09                   2       12
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keywords: Australia, Bent Claudi Lassen, Brazil, California, Carbon Dioxide, China, Claes Johansson, Climate Change, Danish Bacon And Meat Council, Denmark, Environment Ministry, Environmental Protection Agency, Food Ethics Council, Germany, Greenhouse Gases, India, Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change, International Meat Secretariat, John Horrevorts, Laurence Wrixon, Methane, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nitrous Oxide, Philip Gurnsey, Pigs, Poland, Poznan, Rajendra Pachauri, South America, Sterksel Project, Sweden, UN Food And Agriculture Organization, United Kingdom, United Nations, United States Add New Keyword To Link



12/1/2008 Farmers Panic About a 'Cow Tax'
The comment period for the Environmental Protection Agency’s exploration of greenhouse gas regulation ended last Friday, with farmers lobbying furiously against the notion of a “cow tax” on methane, a potent greenhouse gas emitted by livestock. The New York Farm Bureau issued a statement last week (PDF) saying it feared that a tax could reach $175 per cow, $87.50 per head of beef cattle and upward of $20 for each hog. Such a tax would represent a “massive hit on our industry here in New York,” said Peter Gregg, a spokesman for the farm bureau, in an interview. “You could take all of our cows together and they probably wouldn’t have the same effect on the atmosphere than the average traffic jam on the Tappan Zee Bridge,” he added. Farm officials from Texas to Alabama also sounded the alarm, and Mr. Gregg said that the response in New York among farmers was “almost a panic.” The hysteria may be premature, however. The E.P.A. indeed issued an “advanced notice of proposed rulemaking” this summer that called for public comments on the idea of regulating greenhouse gas emissions from cars, as well as “stationary sources” — which, yes, would include cows and other livestock. (New York Times)
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posted: 5/4/09                   3       12
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keywords: Alabama, Carbon Dioxide, Climate Change, Cows, Environmental Protection Agency, Estonia, Felicity Barringer, Greenhouse Gases, Methane, New York Farm Bureau, New Zealand, Peter Gregg, Stephen Johnson, Tappan Zee Bridge, Texas, US Department Of Agriculture, United States Add New Keyword To Link



8/28/2008 Carbon tax a threat to farming viability
Hororata farmer Gavin King would rather slaughter his sheep and cattle than pay an estimated $168,000 a year in carbon tax for belching and farting livestock. He said few farmers seemed to realise the full implications for their farm business of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) to reduce global warming. Many farms would fall over depending on the final tax rate and it would severely hurt service industries, he said. "We could survive, but I am not going to pay carbon tax on my animals farting and burping. "I will kill all of them before I do that if it goes to that level, too right." King said he was prepared to pay carbon tax for greenhouse emissions from fuel used on the farm, but not for livestock emissions of methane and nitrous oxide. "I cannot accept a tax on animals doing a natural thing," he said. (Stuff.co.nz)
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posted: 5/4/09                   2       12
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keywords: Carbon Dioxide, China, Cows, Don Nicolson, Emissions Trading Scheme, Federated Farmers, Jim Anderton, Meat & Wool New Zealand, Methane, New Zealand, Nitrous Oxide, Russia, Sheep Add New Keyword To Link



12/28/2006 ‘Historically, CO2 never caused temperature change’ -- Not so
There are also events in geological history when sharp rises in temperature were initiated and driven by large spikes in greenhouse gases -- not unlike the fossil-fuel-emissions spike today. The Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum is such a case. Roughly 55 million years ago, ocean pH levels dropped drastically and global temperatures rapidly rose over 5oC. The resolution of available proxy records indicates that this occurred in a period of time no longer than 5K years; it's not possible to know if it happened even faster. The likely cause was massive releases of methane from the ocean floors, perhaps due to some smaller warming or changes in sea level. It took over 100K years for the ocean, atmosphere, and temperatures to return to their previous state. The result was a mass extinction event that took millions of years to recover from. We can also look at the formation of the Deccan Traps. In this case, a massive and sustained volcanic action altered atmospheric chemistry and caused a drastic climate change, one that lead to the extinction of the dinosaurs. And Snowball Earth theories involve the build-up of greenhouse gases as the mechanism by which the earth eventually escaped its frozen state. In short, it is simply untrue that history lacks precedent for greenhouse-gas-driven warming. The precedents are there, as are the dire warnings. (CO2 Lags Temperature) (Grist)
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posted: 7/15/10                   0       3
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11/18/2003 Crimes Against Nature: Bush is sabotaging the laws that have protected America's environment for more than thirty years
George W. Bush will go down in history as America's worst environmental president. In a ferocious three-year attack, the Bush administration has initiated more than 200 major rollbacks of America's environmental laws, weakening the protection of our country's air, water, public lands and wildlife. Cloaked in meticulously crafted language designed to deceive the public, the administration intends to eliminate the nation's most important environmental laws by the end of the year. Under the guidance of Republican pollster Frank Luntz, the Bush White House has actively hidden its anti-environmental program behind deceptive rhetoric, telegenic spokespeople, secrecy and the intimidation of scientists and bureaucrats. The Bush attack was not entirely unexpected. George W. Bush had the grimmest environmental record of any governor during his tenure in Texas. Texas became number one in air and water pollution and in the release of toxic chemicals. In his six years in Austin, he championed a short-term pollution-based prosperity, which enriched his political contributors and corporate cronies by lowering the quality of life for everyone else. Now President Bush is set to do the same to America. After three years, his policies are already bearing fruit, diminishing standards of living for millions of Americans. I am angry both as a citizen and a father. Three of my sons have asthma, and I watch them struggle to breathe on bad-air days. And they're comparatively lucky: One in four African-American children in New York shares this affliction; their suffering is often unrelieved because they lack the insurance and high-quality health care that keep my sons alive. My kids are among the millions of Americans who cannot enjoy the seminal American experience of fishing locally with their dad and eating their catch. Most freshwater fish in New York and all in Connecticut are now under consumption advisories. A main source of mercury pollution in America, as well as asthma-provoking ozone and particulates, is the coal-burning power plants that President Bush recently excused from complying with the Clean Air Act. (Rolling Stone)
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posted: 11/28/10                   0       4
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keywords: 9/11, Abraham Lincoln, Adirondacks, Alcoa, Alternative Energy, Aluminum, Aluminum Company Of America, American Enterprise Institute, American Petroleum Institute, American-indian Tribes, Andrew Card, Anne Gorsuch, Appalachian Mountains, Arctic, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona, Austin, Bears, Big Oil, Bill Clinton, Bracewell, California, Carbon Dioxide, Chevron, Christine Todd Whitman, Christopher Shays, Civil War, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Cleveland, Climate Change, Coal, Colorado, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Connecticut, Cuyahoga River, Delaware River, Denver, Dick Cheney, Dominion Resources, Don Evans, Dow Chemical, Duke Energy, Dupont, Edison Institute, Endangered Species Act, Enron, Entergy, Environmental Protection Agency, Eric Schaeffer, Exxon Mobil, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Federal Trade Commission, Federalist Society, Fish, Florida, Food And Drug Administration, Frank Luntz, Franklin D Roosevelt, Fred Palmer, Freedom Of Information Act, Gale Norton, General Electric, General Motors, George Orwell, George W Bush, Germany, Gladys Kessler, Gray Davis, Greenhouse Gases, Haley Barbour, Halliburton, Heritage Foundation, Houston, India, Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change, International Biosphere Reserve, Iowa, Italy, J Steven Griles, James Zahn, Jamess Watt, Jeff Ruch, Jerry Falwell, Joe Allbaugh, John Graham, John Mccain, John Pemberton, Joseph Coors, Joseph Lieberman, Karl Rove, Ken Lay, Kentucky, Klamath River, Koch Industries, Kyoto Protocol, Lake Erie, Los Angeles Times, Magna Carta, Mammoth Cave National Park, Marc Himmelstein, Marc Racicot, Marshall Institute, Martin Marietta, Mercury, Methane, Michael Oppenheimer, Middle East, Mike Kelly, Mike Leavitt, Mississippi, Monsanto, Montana, Mountain States Legal Foundation, National Academy Of Sciences, National Aeronautics And Space Administration, National Energy Policy Development Group, National Environmental Strategies, National Marine Fisheries, National Mining Association, National Research Council, Natural Resources Defense Council, New Delhi, New Mexico, New York, Newt Gingrich, Nitrogen Oxide, Nuclear Energy Institute, Oregon, Panthers, Pat Robertson, Patterson, Paul O'neill, Peabody Energy, Pentagon, Police, Pollution, Powder River, Reason Foundation, Reliant Energy, Rita Lavelle, Riverkeeper, Robert Burford, Robert Watson, Rome, Ron Arnold, Ronald Reagan, Sagebrush Rebellion, Salmon, Sierra Club, Smithfield Foods, Spain, Spencer Abraham, Steven Griles, Sulfur Dioxide, Swans, Terrorists, Texaco, Texas, The New York Times, Tom Brown Inc, Tom Delay, Trees, Txu, US Army Corps Of Engineers, US Bureau Of Land Management, US Congress, US Department Of Agriculture, US Department Of Justice, US Department Of The Interior, US Government Accountability Office, US Public Interest Research Group, Unesco, United Kingdom, United Nations, United States, United States Energy Association, Utah, Waterkeeper Alliance, Wayne Valis, West Virginia Coal Association, Westar Energy, White House, William Raney, Wise Use, World Trade Center, Wyoming, Yellowstone Add New Keyword To Link



10/23/2003 New evidence of global warming in Earth's past supports greenhouse climate theory
Scientists have filled in a key piece of the global climate picture for a period 55 million years ago that is considered one of the most abrupt and extreme episodes of global warming in Earth's history. The new results from an analysis of sediment cores from the ocean floor are consistent with theoretical predictions of how Earth's climate would respond to rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

"This event is the best example of greenhouse warming in the geologic record, and for the first time we have been able to document the climate response on a relatively broad planetary scale, from the tropics to polar latitudes," Zachos said. The temperature estimates were derived from chemical analyses of the shells of microscopic plankton preserved in the seafloor sediments. The chemical composition of the plankton's calcite shells reflects the temperature of the water in which they were formed. A key measurement examined in this study was the ratio of magnesium to calcium, which increases exponentially with the temperature at which the shells formed. "The ratio of magnesium to calcium in seawater is relatively constant over the timescale of this event, so the ratio in the shells is really only sensitive to one variable, the calcification temperature," Zachos said. ODP Leg 198 and a complementary drilling expedition in the Atlantic earlier this year (ODP Leg 208) were designed to test the leading explanation for the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, which attributes it to a massive release of methane. Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, accumulates in frozen deposits known as clathrates found in the deep ocean near continental margins and also in the Arctic tundra. For reasons that remain unclear, the clathrates suddenly began to decompose, releasing an estimated 2,000 gigatons (2 trillion tons) of methane. Once released, the methane would have reacted with dissolved oxygen in the ocean to produce carbon dioxide, another greenhouse gas. Large amounts of both carbon dioxide and methane would have entered the atmosphere, raising temperatures worldwide. (University of California - Santa Cruz)
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posted: 7/22/10                   0       3
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