Weird winds to blame for Greenland's huge water patch

Although last winter did see unusually warm temperature spikes in the Arctic, researchers say the cause for the big pool of open water in the middle of the ice—known as a polynya—was strong surface winds triggered by a dramatic warming in Earth’s upper atmosphere, known as a “sudden stratospheric warming.” The region normally has sea ice well into the spring.  https://www.futurity.org/greenland-winds-sea-ice-temperature-1942022-2/
Article courtesy of Futurity by Hannah Hickey-UW

80 percent of mountain glaciers in Alberta, B.C. and Yukon will disappear within 50 years: report

Combination of less snow and rapid melt causing glaciers to recede at dramatic rate, researchers say.   https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/western-glaciers-disappear-50-years-1.4959663

Article coutesy of CBC News

Miami's affluent 'climate refugees' seek higher ground

Climate change is prompting Miami's rich to abandon the oceanfront and head for the hills. That's bad news for the people of Little Haiti, a ridge-top immigrant community suddenly sitting on hot property.  https://www.dw.com/en/miamis-affluent-climate-refugees-seek-higher-ground/a-46602384
Article courtesy of DW.COM

Life after carbon: The next global transformation of cities

Building resilience in cities means preparing for nature's power—but also addressing the social vulnerability of specific people due to climate changes.  https://www.dailyclimate.org/life-after-carbon-the-next-global-transformation-of-cities-2622938016.html?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1
Article courtesy of The Daily Climate by Peter Plastrik and John Cleveland

Will Norway’s Electric-Vehicle Boom Outlast Its Incentives?

No other country on Earth has bet as big on electric vehicles as Norway, and it’s finally paying off. Half of all new cars sold to Norwegians are either fully electric or hybrid, making the country of 5.3 million the biggest per-capita market for EVs.  https://www.citylab.com/environment/2018/12/norway-electric-vehicle-models-incentives-car-free-oslo/578932/
Article courtesy of CITYLAB by Tracey Lindeman

These Major US Airports Could Be Damaged By Climate Change By 2100

Climate change is creeping onto the list of airport miseries, with rising seas and storm surges threatening some of the nation’s busiest runways over the next century.  https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zahrahirji/airport-flooding-climate-change
Aricle courtesy of BussFeed New by Zahra Hirji

The Next Climate Frontier: Predicting a Complex Domino Effect

Motivated by events like Hurricane Harvey, researchers are trying to determine how climate change interacts with agriculture, energy, transportation and other human systems.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-next-climate-frontier-predicting-a-complex-domino-effect/
Article courtesy of Scientific American by Annie Sneed

NASA’s Osiris-Rex Arriving at Asteroid Bennu After a Two-Year Journey

The spacecraft will begin its close study of the primitive space rock, seeking clues to the early solar system.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/03/science/osiris-rex-bennu-asteroid-arrival.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=sectionfront
Article courtesy of the New York Times by Kenneth Chang

Crunch time for the climate at the COP24 global warming conference

There's a lot at stake at the UN climate conference in Poland. Delegates will be scrambling to save the 2015 Paris climate agreement — and prevent the worst effects of a warming world.  https://www.dw.com/en/crunch-time-for-the-climate-at-the-cop24-global-warming-conference/a-46510378
Article courtesy of DW.com

Antarctic scientists begin hunt for sky’s ‘detergent’

To understand how the sky cleanses itself, a team of Australian and US researchers is heading to Antarctica to track down the atmosphere’s main detergent. By drilling deep into polar ice, the scientists hope to determine how the sky’s capacity to scrub away some ozone-depleting chemicals and potent greenhouse gases has changed since the Industrial Revolution — information that could help to improve global-warming projections.  https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07422-w
Article courtesy of Nature-International Journal of Science

Scientists find large amounts of methane being released from Icelandic glacier

Scientists have discovered that Iceland’s Sólheimajökull glacier, which covers the active volcano, Katla, is releasing up to 41 tons of methane every day through its meltwater during the summer months — equal to the methane produced by more than 136,000 belching cows.  https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?rinli=1&pli=1&blogID=356744216134226621#editor/src=sidebar
Article Courtesy of Yale Environmental 360 by 

Why "Flammable Ice" could be the future of energy

Last year, Japan succeeded in extracting an untapped fuel from its ocean floor – methane hydrate, or flammable ice. Proponents argue that it will offset energy crises, but what are the environmental risks?
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20181119-why-flammable-ice-could-be-the-future-of-energy
Article courtesy of BBC Future Now by Martha Henriques

Uber Wants to Resume Self-Driving Car Tests on Public Roads

Nearly eight months after one of its autonomous test vehicles hit and killed an Arizona pedestrian, Uber wants to resume testing on public roads.  https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Uber-Wants-to-Resume-Self-Driving-Car-Tests-on-Public-Roads-499511181.html
Article courtesy of NBC Bay Area News-Tech Now by Tom Krisher

Massive crater under Greenland’s ice points to climate-altering impact in the time of humans

Hidden beneath Hiawatha is a 31-kilometer-wide impact crater, big enough to swallow Washington, D.C., Kjær and 21 co-authors report today in a paper in Science Advances. The crater was left when an iron asteroid 1.5 kilometers across slammed into Earth, possibly within the past 100,000 years.  https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/11/massive-crater-under-greenland-s-ice-points-climate-altering-impact-time-humans
Article courtesy of Science by Paul Voosen

Warming hurting shellfish, aiding predators, ruining habitat

Valuable species of shellfish have become harder to find on the East Coast because of degraded habitat caused by a warming environment, according to a pair of scientists that sought to find out whether environmental factors or overfishing was the source of the decline.  https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/wireStory/warming-hurting-shellfish-aiding-predators-ruining-habitat-59119047
Article courtesy of ABC News by Patrick Whittle Associated Press

The remote Arctic town that is melting away

As the Arctic loses ice at dramatic rates, people in Qaanaaq, the northernmost town in Greenland, are finding their homes, livelihoods, customs and very survival at risk.
http://www.bbc.com/future/gallery/20181109-qaanaaq-greenland-is-melting-away-from-climate-change

Article courtesy of BBC Future by Anna Filipova

Can Better Photosynthesis Help Feed the World?

In June, Bill Rutherford and his team at Imperial College London discovered that photosynthesis using near infrared light — the type found in heavy shade — is possible, and even widespread, in cyanobacteria. This finding contributes to a growing body of research in the field of photosynthesis engineering, which aims to improve crop yields by using genetic techniques to improve a plant’s ability to capture sunlight and produce sugar.  https://undark.org/article/can-better-photosynthesis-help-feed/

        Article courtesy of UNDARK, Truth, Beauty, Science by Erin Zimmerman

Taking the Oceans’ Temperature, Scientists Find Unexpected Heat

Climate change is rapidly warming the world’s oceans, killing off aquatic organisms — like coral reefs and kelp forests — that anchor entire ecosystems. The warmer waters also cause sea levels to rise and make extreme weather events like hurricanes more destructive.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/31/climate/ocean-temperatures-hotter.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=2&pgtype=sectionfront
Article courtesy of The New York Times by Kendra Pierre-Louis

A Vault of Glass and the Deepest Volcanic Eruption Ever Detected

Close to the Mariana Trench and nearly three miles below sea level, scientists found evidence of an underwater eruption that was only months old.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/30/science/deep-sea-volcano.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=2&pgtype=sectionfront
Courtesy of The New York Time by Robert George Andrews

How a warmer Arctic could lead to more extreme weather

Climate experts are concerned we may soon start to see more extreme weather events in the Northern Hemisphere. The culprit? A warmer Arctic, which could potentially disrupt the polar jet stream.  https://www.dw.com/en/how-a-warmer-arctic-could-lead-to-more-extreme-weather/a-46107835
Article courtsey of DW.com

Prince of Wales: I warned of plastic danger 40 years ago but was dismissed as 'out of touch'

The Prince of Wales said he warned about the dangers of plastic 40 years ago but was dismissed as ‘out of touch’ and ‘anti-science’  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/10/31/prince-wales-warned-plastic-danger-40-years-ago-dismissed-touch/
Article courtesy of The Telegraph by Sarah Knapton

Elon Musk to build 125 mph underground transit line serving Chicago O’Hare

Elon Musk has taken on a task perhaps more challenging than launching rockets into space: getting passengers from Chicago’s O’Hare airport to the Loop in 12 minutes, roughly three to four times as fast as the current taxi journey.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/06/14/tesla-in-a-tunnel-elon-musk-to-build-125-mph-underground-transit-line-from-ohare/?utm_term=.753484134c8f
Article courtesy of The Washington Post by Fred Barbash

Climate change: Five cheap ways to remove CO2 from the atmosphere

As well as rapidly reducing the carbon dioxide that we humans are pumping into the atmosphere in huge amounts, recent scientific assessments of climate change have all suggested that cutting emissions alone will not be enough to keep global temperatures from rising more than 1.5 or 2 degrees.    https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45967215 
Article courtesy of the BBC by Matt McGrath

Sucking CO2 out of the atmosphere, explained

In its most recent assessment, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that we may have as little as 12 years to cut our greenhouse gas emissions in half compared to today’s levels to limit average global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a benchmark to avoid some of the worst impacts of climate change. It also reports that every scenario for doing this requires pulling carbon dioxide out of the air, also known as “negative emissions.”  https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2018/10/24/18001538/climate-change-co2-removal-negative-emissions-cdr-carbon-dioxide
Article courtesy of VOX by Umair Irfan

Paris Gets to Keep Its Car Ban

In Paris, the Seine Quays can stay closed to cars after all. That’s the verdict today from Paris’s Administrative Court, which has ruled that the city’s pedestrianization of the roads along its central river can remain in place.  https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2018/10/paris-car-ban-seine-mayor-anne-hidalgo/574021/
Article courtesy of CityLab by Feargus O'Sullivan

Hurtigruten orders third ice-strengthened hybrid-battery ship

Hurtigruten CEO Daniel Skjeldam says the new vessel will sail to the most spectacular areas of the planet in a more sustainable and eco-friendly way than ever seen before.
Among the innovative green features on the new ship are substantially larger battery packs to make expedition voyages sail even greener. The new hybrid-powered ship is expected to be delivered before the Arctic summer season 2021.  https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/travel/2018/10/hurtigruten-orders-third-ice-strengthened-hybrid-battery-ship
Article courtesy of The Barents Observer by Thomas Nilsen

Costs increase for biodigester turning Founders beer waste into energy

The city commission approved this week a $39.7 million bid package for the Water Resource Recovery Facility's biodigester, which will convert waste from Founders Brewing Co. and other local businesses into renewable energy. https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2018/10/costs_climb_for_biodigester_th.html
Article courtesy of MLive Michigan by Justin P. Hicks

How A Technology From Iceland Is Fighting Climate Change

 Carbon Recycling International (CRI) utilizes electricity and carbon dioxide emissions from the country's geothermal plants to produce methanol, which they produce and sell into the European fuel market. Their product is trademarked as Vulcanol.  https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2018/10/16/how-a-technology-from-iceland-is-fighting-climate-change/#739bb14e24bd
Article courtesy of Forbes by Robert Rapier

Here Are the Mediterranean Sites That Will Be Swallowed by the Sea

As waters rise across the world, they will swamp and destroy the things we humans have made. Bones will be disinterred from graveyards; buildings will rot and fall; ancient settlements will vanish.  https://www.citylab.com/environment/2018/10/here-are-mediterranean-sites-will-be-swallowed-sea/573235/
Article courtesy of City Lab by Jessica Leigh Hester

Never mow another lawn! Ten steps you can take to combat global warming.

Americans produce an average of 21 tons of carbon a year, about four times the global average, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. The decisions you make each day can make a difference, but there is a lot of noise out there that can make it hard to know where to start. How effective is forgoing the straw in your soda or carrying a reusable coffee cup in your car in a battle as massive as climate change?  https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2018/10/17/never-mow-another-lawn-ten-steps-you-can-take-combat-global-warming/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.176f7fa54f90
Article courtesy of The Washington Post by Tara Bahrampour

USA's infamous 'Tornado Alley' may be shifting east

The USA's infamous "Tornado Alley" may be shifting to the east, a new study reports.

Over the past four decades, researchers found that tornadoes have increased over a large swath of the Midwest and Southeast, including what's been referred to as "Dixie Alley." https://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2018/10/17/tornado-alley-shifting-east/1660803002/

Article courtesy of USA Today by Doyle Rice

Bill Gates launches effort to help the world adapt to climate change

In Bangladesh, low-lying and vulnerable to yearly flooding, farmers are shifting from raising chickens to raising ducks. Ducks can swim.

In the Philippines, where half the mangrove forests have been lost to development, biologists are replanting the trees to recreate nature’s protective coastal shield against deadly typhoons. The gnarled tangle of mangrove roots slows the movement of tidal waters, reducing the impact of storm surges and waves.  https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2018/10/bill-gates-world-bank-launch-climate-change-adaptation-fund/

Article courtesy of National Geographic by Laura Parker

Clean Water Act dramatically cut pollution in U.S. waterways

The 1972 Clean Water Act has driven significant improvements in U.S. water quality, according to the first comprehensive study of water pollution over the past several decades, by researchers at UC Berkeley and Iowa State University.  http://news.berkeley.edu/2018/10/08/clean-water-act-dramatically-cut-pollution-in-u-s-waterways/
Article courtesy of The Berkley New by Kara Manke

Combating Climate Change Can Produce Economic Gain

Countries that take ambitious action against climate change can benefit macroeconomically—if they prioritize the most economically efficient measures for mitigating emissions.  http://www.reverejournal.com/2018/10/05/combating-climate-change-can-produce-economic-gain/#
Article courtesy of The Revere Journal by journal staff

Solar on water, robots, and 2-sided panels, oh my: solar tech’s near future

In some growing solar markets, especially in East Asia, land is becoming a constraint. Much of the flat land is taken for agriculture. The land in and around cities is densely populated. Finding room for solar will only get more difficult.

One solution: Put it on the water! PV panels can be mounted on pontoons that float on freshwater lakes and reservoirs.

Floating PV has a few advantages: it can be built without traditional site preparation, pile driving, or fence and road construction; there’s less competition for the “land”; the panels stay cooler, which boosts efficiency; and floating systems can often be built closer to loads. 

Article courtesy of VOX by David Roberts

The ocean is brown, the crabs are dead and the smell is unbearable. Welcome to Florida

That’s our new reality and people are living it in this beach town. Naples beaches are known as some of the state’s best for their tidy white sands and pristine waters, but the toll of the toxic red tide invasion is relentless. No, the environmental disaster that appeared last fall — and kept us away all summer — hasn’t gone away even though your friends may be posting on social media pretty sunset pictures.  https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/fabiola-santiago/article219330305.html
Article courtesy of Miami Herald by Fabiola Santiago

Bangladesh kids turn the tide on climate change aboard floating schools

But seven-year-old Mosammat is learning her ABCs aboard a boat fitted with a classroom and play equipment that is helping children thrive even as climate change alters the world around them.
"We can attend classes even during the rainy season, when our homes are barely above water," the seven-year-old told AFP aboard the vessel in Chalan Beel, some 175 kilometres (around 110 miles) northwest of Dhaka'
https://www.afp.com/en/news/205/bangladesh-kids-turn-tide-climate-change-aboard-floating-schools-doc-18y8y81
Article courtesy of AFP by Munir Uz Zaman.

Utilities have a problem: the public wants 100% renewable energy, and quick

Renewable energy is hot. It has incredible momentum, not only in terms of deployment and costs but in terms of public opinion and cultural cachet. To put it simply: Everyone loves renewable energy. It’s cleaner, it’s high-tech, it’s new jobs, it’s the future.  https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2018/9/14/17853884/utilities-renewable-energy-100-percent-public-opinion
Article courtesy of VOX by David Roberts

Will climate change turn Miami into a ‘future Atlantis’? Oct 3, 2018 6:30 PM EDT

The floodwaters are still receiving from Hurricane Florence. And the damage, which could total well over $20 billion, is still being assessed.

The flooding was far worse than the winds from this storm. And it has prompted a larger conversation once again about what could happen to other coastal cities.  https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/will-climate-change-turn-miami-into-a-future-atlantis

Article courtesy of PBS News Hour by  Judy Woodruff

Paris global warming targets could be exceeded sooner than expected because of melting permafrost, study finds

The world is on course to exceed global warming limits set out in the Paris climate agreement much earlier than previously thought, scientists have warned, following the first comprehensive study of the impact of melting permafrost.  https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change-paris-agreement-permafrost-melting-carbon-emissions-a8541686.html
Article courtesy of Independent by Tom Batchelor

World's first hydrogen train rolls out in Germany

Commuters in Germany now have a chance to ride the world's first hydrogen train as the country moves to replace old diesel-powered engines. Instead of exhaust fumes, hydrogen trains produce only water.  https://www.dw.com/en/worlds-first-hydrogen-train-rolls-out-in-germany/a-45525062
Article courtesy of DW.com

Guilt-Free on the Sea?

Western Norway’s rustic port village of Flåm, a remote goat-farming hamlet and summer escape set deep among the region’s icy fjords and towering, snow-capped peaks, seems an unlikely launch site for the future of sustainable nautical travel.  https://www.hakaimagazine.com/features/guilt-free-sea/

Article courtesy of Hakai Magazine by Paul Hockenos

Norfolk company's flood sensors could help save people, property

Jim Gray has seen too many cars enter flooded underpasses in Hampton Roads. The reason, he says, is often because drivers don’t know how deep the water really is. When they attempt it, the vehicle stalls, becomes stuck and ends up totaled.

So, in an effort to save both people and property, Gray founded Green Stream, a Norfolk company that aims to provide residents with real-time data of water inundating streets. https://pilotonline.com/news/local/environment/article_17f0c17e-ba90-11e8-9097-4fce90d35d67.html

Article courtesy of The Virginian Pilot by Peter Coutu

Hospitals Take Aim At ‘The Greatest Health Threat Of The 21st Century’

One of the larger themes at this week’s massive Global Climate Action Summit taking place in San Francisco is the relationship between climate change and human health.

“Health is the best way to relate to human beings on the issue,” former EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said Friday during a session titled “Health is where climate change hits home.” “Let’s put a face on climate.” https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hospitals-take-aim-at-the-greatest-health-threat-of-the-21st-century_us_5b9fc42de4b013b0977d3080

Article courtesy of The Huffington Post by Justine Calma Grist

How Self-Driving Cars Could Ruin the American City

Earlier this summer, I went to Mountain View, California, to visit the headquarters of Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company that spun off from Google, and get driven around in one of its cutting-edge cars. The model waiting for me in the parking lot was deceptively fuddy-duddy: a white Chrysler Pacifica, outwardly distinguished from the typical minivan by a small black dome on the roof, which houses a family of cameras, sensors, radars, and lasers. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/09/how-self-driving-cars-could-ruin-the-american-city/569518/
Article courtesy of The Atlantic by Derek Thompson

Large wind and solar farms in the Sahara would increase heat, rain, vegetation

Wind and solar farms are known to have local effects on heat, humidity and other factors that may be beneficial—or detrimental—to the regions in which they are situated. A new climate-modeling study finds that a massive wind and solar installation in the Sahara Desert and neighboring Sahel would increase local temperature, precipitation and vegetation. Overall, the researchers report, the effects would likely benefit the region.

Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-09-large-solar-farms-sahara-vegetation.html#jCp
Article courtesy of Phys.org Provided by: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Giant Trap Is Deployed to Catch Plastic Littering the Pacific Ocean

The 2,000-foot-long unmanned structure was the product of about $20 million in funding from the Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit that aims to trap up to 150,000 pounds of plastic during the boom’s first year at sea. Within five years, with the creation of dozens more booms, the organization hopes to clean half of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.   https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/09/science/ocean-cleanup-great-pacific-garbage-patch.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience
Article courtesy of The New York Times by Christina Caron

Scientists Are Retooling Bacteria to Cure Disease

In a study carried out over the summer, a group of volunteers drank a white, peppermint-ish concoction laced with billions of bacteria. The microbes had been engineered to break down a naturally occurring toxin in the blood.   https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/04/health/synthetic-biology-pku.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=2&pgtype=sectionfront

Article courtesy of the New York Times by Carl Zimmer

Hundreds of Seals Have Died in Maine

Since July 1, more than 460 dead seals have washed up on beaches and islands in Maine, New Hampshire, and northern Massachusetts. Another 137 coughing, sneezing, and sick seals have stranded themselves, overwhelming marine animal rescuers.  https://www.hakaimagazine.com/news/hundreds-of-seals-have-died-in-maine/
Article courtesy of Hakai Magazine by Dan Zukowski

Indonesia, a top plastic polluter, mobilizes 20,000 citizens to clean up the mess

Indonesia is the world’s second-largest plastic polluter, after China. It produces 3.2 million tonnes of mismanaged plastic waste a year, 1.29 million tonnes of which ends up in the sea.  https://news.mongabay.com/2018/09/indonesia-a-top-plastic-polluter-mobilizes-20000-citizens-to-clean-it-up/
Article courtesy of Mongabay adapted by Cory Rogers

A Pipeline To Capture Carbon Dioxide And Store It Underground

Capturing carbon emissions and locking them away deep underground could be a viable means of beginning to combat climate change. But, the industry needs a little help, researchers find.  http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2018/09/04/carbon-capture-sequestration-storage-pipeline/#.W5EZ9M5KjIU
Article courtesy of Discover by Natanial Scharping

Cruise ships: A dirty kind of luxury

Environmental organizations have criticized the luxury cruise liner industry for years for the amount of air pollution it spews out. The results of a new survey on cruise ship pollution don't exactly inspire confidence.   https://www.dw.com/en/cruise-ships-a-dirty-kind-of-luxury/g-45190968
Article courtesy of DW media Center

'Apocalyptic threat': dire climate report raises fears for California's future

City heatwaves could lead to two to three times as many deaths by 2050, the report says. By 2100, without a reduction in emissions, the state could see a 77% increase in the average area burned by wildfires. The report also warns of erosion of up to 67% of its famous coastline, up to an 8.8F (4.9C) rise in average maximum temperatures, and billions of dollars in damages. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/aug/27/california-climate-change-report-wildfires-jerry-brown
Article courtesy of The Guardian by Carla Green

Thousands of Staten Island homes could vanish into the rising ocean tide

By the end of the century, hundreds of thousands of New York homes will be at risk from tidal flooding, according to a recent study released by the Union of Concerned Scientists. 

The study anticipates that as sea levels rise and tides inch higher, high-tide floods are becoming more frequent and reaching farther inland  https://www.silive.com/expo/news/erry-2018/08/ed08f10c39929/thousands-of-island-homes-coul.html#incart_2box

Article courtesy of Silive.com by Sydney Kashiwagi

Colorado aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions with fuel efficiency push

Colorado air quality officials on Thursday launched a push ordered by Gov. John Hickenlooper to ensure ever-more-efficient gas-powered vehicles — calculated to cut heat-trapping greenhouse pollution by 2 million tons a year of carbon dioxide.

Then the state air commissioners went a step further and committed to consider requirements on the auto industry aimed at accelerating a shift toward zero-emission electric vehicles.  https://www.denverpost.com/2018/08/16/colorado-push-for-less-pollution-from-gas-powered-vehicles

Article courtesy of The Denver Post by Bruce Finley

Mineral created in lab that can remove CO2 pollution from atmosphere

Scientists have found a way to produce a mineral, known as magnesite, in a lab that can absorb CO2 from the atmosphere, offering a potential strategy for tackling climate change.  https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/mineral-removes-co2-magnesite-carbon-dioxide-pollution-climate-change-global-warming-a8491746.html
Article courtesy of The Independent by Jos Gabbetiss

Nitrogen pollution is a problem as big as climate change. Science might have a fix.

Some think nitrogen pollution may be the greatest danger we face. The Stockholm Resilience Center, an organization that examines the largest threats to natural life-support systems, considers our overuse of nitrogen a more extreme risk to life on Earth than climate change.

But a new paper, published in the journal Nature this week, uncovered a way that we could keep millions of tons of nitrogen fertilizer from evaporating into  the atmosphere and running into the oceans.  https://grist.org/article/nitrogen-pollution-is-a-problem-as-big-as-climate-change-science-might-have-a-fix/

Article courtesy of Grist by Nathanael Johnson

22h Fusion start-ups think they can revolutionize energy in the coming decades

A group of start-up companies hopes to capitalize on the potential of nuclear fusion to turn abundant fuels into carbon-neutral energy.  https://cen.acs.org/energy/nuclear-power/Fusion-start-ups-hope-revolutionize/96/i32
Article courtesy of C & EN by Katherine Bourzac

German winegrowers harvesting early due to heatwave

LOERZWEILER, Germany (Reuters) - While many German farmers fret about the sweltering heat which has damaged their crop, wine growers are harvesting early thanks to the hot and dry weather. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-weather-germany/german-winegrowers-harvesting-early-due-to-heatwave-idUSKBN1KR1SX
Article courtesy of Reuters by Reuters Staff 

Fukushima’s Nuclear Imprint Is Found in California Wine (Drinkers, Don’t Panic)

In a new study, the researchers report testing 18 bottles of California rosé and cabernet sauvignon from 2009 onward and finding increased levels of radioactive particles in the wine produced after the Fukushima disaster. In the case of the cabernet, the levels of the radioactive materials doubled.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/20/science/fukushima-radiation-levels-california-wine-nyt.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=7&pgtype=sectionfront
Article courtesy of The New York Times by Mihir Zaveri

Radioactive Boars in Fukushima Thwart Residents’ Plans to Return Home

They descend on towns and villages, plundering crops and rampaging through homes. They occasionally attack humans. But perhaps most dangerous of all, the marauders carry with them highly radioactive material.  https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/09/world/asia/radioactive-boars-in-fukushima-thwart-residents-plans-to-return-home.html
Article courtesy of The New York Times by Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura

U.S. intel chief warns of devastating cyber threat to U.S. infrastructure.

Cybersecurity attacks could take down parts or all of the utility grid, or other important components of a country's infrastructure, including in the United States. A few days without grid would be tolerable, but some plausible scenarios involve weeks or months—or longer—down times. Check out Ted Koppel's book "Lights Out."

A few weeks without a functioning grid would be devastating. Consider what the Hurricane Maria did to health, water supply, food security and more on Puerto Rico.  https://www.dailyclimate.org/u-s-intel-chief-warns-of-devastating-cyber-threat-to-u-s-infrastructure-reuters-2587910755.html

Article courtesy of The Daily Climate by Douglas Fischer

This Power Plant Has Cracked Carbon Capture

A company called NET Power,at their 50-megawatt demonstration plant outside Houston,  is testing a way of drawing power from natural gas that (they say) is at least as cheap as traditional methods—and captures 100 percent of the resulting carbon emissions. Instead of using steam to push a turbine, as in a traditional power plant, Net Power uses pressurized CO2, which increases efficiency while keeping the CO2 contained.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-03/this-power-plant-has-cracked-carbon-capture
Article courtesy of Bloomberg by Alan Jeffries

Rising seas will erode the Jersey shore real estate market | Editorial

Here's something to ponder if you have just acquired a 30-year mortgage for a beachfront property in Lavallette, Long Beach, Little Egg Harbor or a few dozen other New Jersey towns: That house is likely to be underwater by the time you pay it off.  https://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2018/06/rising_seas_will_erode_the_jersey_shore_real_estat.html

Article courtesy of NJ.com true by Star--Ledger Editorial Board eletters@starledger.com

Oregon ‘Mega-Dairy’ Loses Waste Management Permit

With contamination seeping into the soil from overfilled lagoons, the second largest dairy in Oregon, Lost Valley Farm, has only 60 days to remove 13,000 cows and clean their manure management system. After failing to comply with multiple violations, the operation now faces an uncertain future with the state revoking their waste management permit.  https://www.dairyherd.com/article/oregon-mega-dairy-loses-waste-management-permit.
Article courtesy of Dairy Herd Management by Taylor Leach

Jennifer Wilcox: A new way to remove CO2 from the atmosphere

Our planet has a carbon problem -- if we don't start removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, we'll grow hotter, faster. Chemical engineer Jennifer Wilcox previews some amazing technology to scrub carbon from the air, using chemical reactions that capture and reuse CO2 in much the same way trees do ... but at a vast scale. This detailed talk reviews both the promise and the pitfalls.  https://www.ted.com/talks/jennifer_wilcox_a_new_way_to_remove_co2_from_the_atmosphere
Article courtesy of TED Ideas worth spreading by Jennifer Wilcox

Red-hot planet: All-time heat records have been set all over the world during the past week

From the normally mild summer climes of Ireland, Scotland and Canada to the scorching Middle East, numerous locations in the Northern Hemisphere have witnessed their hottest weather ever recorded over the past week.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2018/07/03/hot-planet-all-time-heat-records-have-been-set-all-over-the-world-in-last-week/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.350f8fcfa848
Article courtesy of The Washington Post by Jason Samenow

Global Warming in South

Climate change could sharply diminish living conditions for up to 800 million people in South Asia, a region that is already home to some of the world’s poorest and hungriest people, if nothing is done to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, the World Bank warned Thursday in an ominous new study.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/06/28/climate/india-pakistan-warming-hotspots.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate
Article courtesy of the New York Times by Somini Sengupta and Nadja Popovich

NOAA won't drop climate and conservation from its mission, agency says

The United States' top weather, climate and ocean science agency - NOAA - will not drop "climate" from its mission statement nor will it de-emphasize research into climate change and resource conservation, the agency said Monday.  https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/06/25/noaa-wont-drop-climate-and-conservation-its-mission-agency-says/731304002/
Article courtesy of USA Today by Doyle Rice

Coastal communities at significant risk of chronic flooding

Billions of dollars of property are at risk of chronic flooding in the coming decades, according to a new study from the Union of Concerned Scientists, a science-based advocacy organization. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/2018-06-25/coastal-communities-at-significant-risk-of-chronic-flooding-study?int=98f508
Article courtesy of US News/ Best States by Zoe Chevalier

15h A huge stretch of the Arctic ocean is rapidly turning into the Atlantic. That’s not a good sign

Scientists studying one of the fastest-warming regions of the global ocean say changes in this region are so sudden and vast that in effect, it will soon be another limb of the Atlantic Ocean, rather than a characteristically icy Arctic sea.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2018/06/26/a-huge-stretch-of-the-arctic-ocean-is-turning-into-the-atlantic-right-before-our-eyes/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.9c85ddf10049
Article courtesy of The Washington Post by Chris Mooney

Atlanta charts a path to 100 percent renewable electricity

A City Council committee is considering three proposals. The goals: Make this Southern city a leader in renewable power and fight climate change.

   https://insideclimatenews.org/news/25062018/atlanta-city-council-renewable-energy-100-percent-clean-power-climate-change

Article courtesy of Inside Climate News by James Bruggers

THE BIKE SHARE WAR IS SHAKING UP SEATTLE LIKE NOWHERE ELSE

Ofo's business is dockless bike sharing, and it was about to launch its US operations in Seattle. Dockless bike share is just the latest of a dozen new approaches to urban mobility in increasingly congested cities. Ride-hailing services, app-powered carpools, on-demand car rentals, electric bikes, scooters, and even self-driving taxis are all jockeying for riders on the streets of American cities. Together they are reinventing the way we navigate urban environments, reducing private car usage, improving traffic and commute times, and cutting emissions.  https://www.wired.com/story/the-bike-share-war-is-shaking-up-seattle-like-nowhere-else/
Article courtesy of Wired by Mark Harris

How Melting Arctic Ice Could Cook the Tropics

Every good horror movie needs a sequel, and the follow-up to the real-life 2015 disaster the Blob is coming soon. But this time, the deadly warming in the eastern Pacific Ocean is being produced by the Arctic.

Sea ice is disappearing from the Arctic Ocean, raising the alarm for scientists working in the region. They predict that by the middle of this century, parts of the Arctic Ocean will periodically be entirely ice-free in summer, drastically altering northern marine and terrestrial ecosystems. https://www.hakaimagazine.com/news/how-melting-arctic-ice-could-cook-the-tropics/

Article courtesy of Hakai Magazine by Gloria Dickie

Deadly tensions rise as India’s water supply runs dangerously low

SHIMLA, India — The people of Shimla haven’t agreed on much lately. A drought in the Himalayan resort has had residents blaming farmers, the tourism industry and one another for depleting the strained water supplies.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/17/world/asia/shimla-india-drought-water.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=second-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news
Article courtesy of the New York Times By Maria Abi-Habib and Hari Kumar

Ireland will become leader on climate change, claims Taoiseach

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Ireland has a longer journey to travel in tackling climate change than many other countries, but Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has reiterated his intention that the country will become a global leader in protecting the planet and making it “healthy and great again”.  https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/ireland-will-become-leader-on-climate-change-claims-taoiseach-1.3538665

Article courtesy of The Irish Times by Kevin O'Sullivan