Scientists developing giant 'green energy' battery

September 13, 2007
From The Guardian (UK)


Eon UK is developing a giant battery designed to store electricity generated by wind farms and solar panels.

Scientists at the energy group's technology centre in Nottingham aim to build a large-scale prototype that would be able to store one megawatt of electricity for four hours - the equivalent to 10m AA batteries and the same size as four articulated lorry containers.

"Green power is only generated from wind farms when the wind blows and that might not be when the power's needed by customers," said Bob Taylor, managing director of energy wholesale and technology. "By researching and developing this battery we can store the power generated by wind farms any time and then use it when our customers need it the most.

"The storage system will also help the development of localised generation. For example, a school with solar panels can store the power generated at weekends and use it when the kids are back in school."

Eon is already working with small-scale prototypes; it expects the large prototype to be operational by autumn 2009. The project is being supported by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.

"We believe energy storage is a key which will help us unlock a lower-carbon tomorrow and radically change the way we think about energy," Mr Taylor said.

The industry regulator, Ofgem, said the concept was increasingly attractive. "It looked a long way from being deployed but we are seeing good progress here and internationally," said a spokesman.

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China Plans US$265 Bln Renewables Spending by 2020

September 5, 2007
From Planet Ark

China is able to set targets yet have no immediate obligations under the Kyoto protocol (ofcourse they will have future targets they won't be able to meet if they don't start acting now). This is in difference to Australia and the USA who have refused to join Kyoto so they don't have to set targets but have aspirational goals.

BEIJING - China plans to invest 2 trillion yuan (US$265 billion) in renewable energy by 2020, most of it corporate cash, to wean itself off polluting coal as it aims for cleaner growth, a top energy planner said on Tuesday.

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Howard's Kyoto resistance could be costing billion

September 9, 2007
From

THE Howard Government's refusal to sign up to the Kyoto Protocol to reduce greenhouse gases is costing Australian businesses about $3.8 billion a year, a study has found.

The report by respected environmental consultant Cambiar said the country was missing out on economic activity because local businesses could not fully participate in the $37.5 billion global carbon market, which last year alone tripled in value.

"This is the first time this analysis has been done and what we have found was that a significant opportunity has been forgone because we are not participating fully in the Kyoto process," Justin Sherrard, one of the report's authors, told The Sunday Age.

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Record Resource Consumption Depletes a Warming World

September 14, 2007
From Environmental News Service

Some statistics from the Vital Signs report

• In 2006, the world used 3.9 billion tons of oil. Fossil fuel usage in 2005 produced 7.6 billion tons of carbon emissions, and atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide reached 380 parts per million.
  
  
• More wood was removed from forests in 2005 than ever before.
  
  
• Steel production grew 10 percent to a record 1.24 billion tons in 2006, while primary aluminum output increased to a record 33 million tons. Aluminum production accounted for roughly 3 percent of global electricity use.
  
  
• Meat production hit a record 276 million tons (43 kilograms per person) in 2006.
  
  
• Meat consumption is one of several factors driving rising soybean demand. Rapid expansion of soybean plantations in South America could displace 22 million hectares of tropical forest and savanna in the next 20 years.
  
  
• The rise in global seafood consumption comes even as many fish species become scarcer: in 2004, 156 million tons of seafood was eaten, an average of three times as much seafood per person than in 1950.
  
  
• The warming climate is undermining biodiversity by accelerating habitat loss, altering the timing of animal migrations and plant flowerings, and shifting some species toward the poles and to higher altitudes.
  
  
• The oceans have absorbed about half of the carbon dioxide emitted by humans in the last 200 years. Climate change is altering fish migration routes, pushing up sea levels, intensifying coastal erosion, raising ocean acidity, and interfering with currents that move vital nutrients upward from the deep sea.
  
  
• Despite a relatively calm U.S. hurricane season in 2006, the world experienced more weather-related disasters than in any of the previous three years. Nearly 100 million people were affected.
  

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Climate Fight Brings Mega Profits to EU Power Firms

August 27, 2007
From Planet Ark



This is an article about how the Cap and Trade system to manage Greenhouse Gases fails to achieve its aims. The reason is because the amount of pollution companies can emit is given to them as these carbon credits. That is the 'cap'. They then trade this by theoretically reducing the amount of polution and selling what they don't use to other companies. So the rort is that they are paid to pollute. There are other issues, not discussed in this article, where teh amount of pollution is not set until some date in the future. So these countries cut ALL their trees down (causing pollution but that doesn't matter in this cap and trade system) and then get paid through carbon credits by planting trees.

This is the sort of crazy shit that capitalism inflicts on this world. Why can't we just live the "common good"?

LONDON - European power companies are making billions of euros in excess profits in the European Union's battle to beat global warming by cutting emissions of carbon gases, and consumers are paying for it, economists say.


The electricity generators are given, free of charge, permits to emit millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide which are currently worth around 20 euros a tonne, but are then charging consumers as if they had been made to pay for the permits.

Michael Grubb, Chief Economist at the Carbon Trust and Director of Climate Strategies, calculates that this practice which he says is economically justifiable gives the industry windfall profits of some 20 billion euros (US$27.14 billion) a year.

"It is free money," he told Reuters. "It's how you'd expect companies to behave, but politically and morally it is going to be hard to justify making so much money out of a scheme designed to reduce emissions -- with consumers footing the bill."

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Howard 'fails to plan for climate security'

September 25, 2007
From News.com.au



THE Federal Government has left Australia unprepared for global turmoil caused by climate change, which the nation's top police officer has called this century's greatest security risk, Labor said today.
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty said water and food shortages caused by global warming could have disastrous implications, particularly for border security.

Mr Keelty said the world could see a "catastrophic'' decline in the availability of fresh water in populated areas.

"Crops could fail, disease could be rampant and flooding might be so frequent that people en masse would be on the move,'' he said in a speech last night.

"Even if only some, if not all, of this occurs, climate change is going to be the security issue of the 21st century.

"It's not difficult to see the policing implications that might arise in the not-too-distant future.''

Mr Keelty said people in their millions would be attempting to cross oceans and borders to escape their plight.

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute in July said the military would find itself involved in more disaster and relief missions because of climate change and spend more time protecting the nation's borders.

Federal Labor said such threats posed critical questions for the nation's strategic and capability planning.

"Yet the Howard Government is still working off a Defence White Paper developed in the late 1990s and released in the year 2000, which takes no account of the implications of climate change,'' defence spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon said.

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Fished Out: European Union Closes Bluefin Tuna Fishery

September 19, 2007
From

Although not directly related to climate change, this story is about mans' greed, selfishness and short term concerns causing a significant problem. Exactly the same as the cause of global warming.

The European Commission today decided to close the 2007 fishery for bluefin tuna in the Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. On the basis of the catch returns received from the seven European Union countries that fish for bluefin, the 2007 EU quota of 16,780 metric tons has been exhausted, the Commission said.

This closure concerns Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Portugal and Spain. The other two member states involved, Italy and France, already closed their own fisheries earlier this summer.

European Commissioner for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Joe Borg said, "Clearly there are problems both of overfishing a stock already threatened with collapse and of equity between the member states concerned. As is its duty, the Commission will do all it can to address these issues urgently."

The Commission has noted failings in the reporting of catch data necessary to monitor the uptake of the EU quota in real time. Borg said measures against such failings will be put in place in time for the 2008 fishery to prevent the problems experienced this year.

There are two populations of Atlantic bluefin tuna, a smaller western population which spawns in the Gulf of Mexico, and a larger eastern population which returns each May from the all around the North Atlantic Ocean to spawn in the Mediterranean Sea.

Spotter planes and helicopters are waiting for the tuna as they enter the Mediterranean. In an attempt to protect the spawning tuna, the use of spotter aircraft has been illegal in the month of June since 2001. But illegal flights during June have been observed, says WWF Mediterranean, which campaigns for protection of bluefin tuna.

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Exaggeration, Climate Change and the economic cost of climate change

Here is a blog about an article by Clive Hamilton.



I was alerted to the article by Professor Sinclair Davidson (Economics Commentator and Collumnist), who was on Difference Of Opinion (http://abc.net.au/tv/differenceofopinion/) Thurs 20th Sept 2007. Professor Sinclair read the quote from Clive Hamilton in the newspaper article so out of context that it totally changed the meaning. Clive's statement went from meaning that there is a lot of exaggeration about Environmental and social matters and often times exaggeration is done for the sake of a strong emotional response. Clive went on to say that with Climate Change, the exaggeration has been by the Australian Federal government about the cost of tackling Climate Change. Sinclair Davidson used the quote "Environmentalists have often overstated the effects of environmental decline." without presenting the rest of Clive's argument.

This of course is typical of a climate change denier. The issue Clive presents about the Howard government is that not only have they failed to address climate change, but that they have purposely encouraged climate change through denial, policy setting and direct action such as "New Kyoto Protocol" (an excuse to try and distract the rest of the world from the true Kyoto Protocol). Guy Pearce discusses this in his book "High and Dry, John Howard, Climate Change and the Selling of Australia's Future" (see http://www.abc.net.au/ rn/latenightlive/ stories/2007/1967488.htm). And by Clive Hamilton in his book "Scorcher" (http://www.theage.com.au/ news/book-reviews/ scorcher-the-dirty-politics-of-climate-change /2007/05/25/1179601645988.html).

This information highlights that if you care about the environment and climate change, then do not believe any of the lies and green washing that the Howard Government is putting forward in their election campaign. They have some positive actions, but they are too little too late.

BTW, the Difference of Opinion program discussed what the Federal Government (post the election) should do with our large 20 billion surplus. Not is all as it seems! (http://www.abc.net.au/ reslib/200709/ r185236_688864.asx).

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September 09, 2007
From Courier Mail

Article by Clive Hamilton.



In the climate change debate, while the dangers of global warming have been deliberately understated, those opposed to taking action have engaged in absurd exaggeration of the economic costs of cutting emissions.

The Prime Minister, various ministers and the fossil fuel lobby have for years claimed that cutting emissions would be economically ruinous, cause massive job losses and destroy our international competitiveness. None of these claims is backed by credible evidence and can easily be shown to be false.

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Carbon Rationing - becoming reality

Monday September 10 2007
From Guardian (UK)

Rationing project tests government plans to make pollution personal

Plans for the world's first personal carbon trading scheme, in which people buy and sell their rights to produce pollution, are unveiled today.

The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce (RSA) is piloting a project later this year to test whether personal carbon trading could work on a large scale.

The idea, also called carbon rationing, is being considered by the government as a radical way to curb emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide from households and consumers. Matt Prescott, who runs the RSA project, said: "Personal carbon trading is a way to bridge the gap between individual and collective action. It would be a way for the government to give people a sense of purpose in their efforts to reduce their emissions."

Under the initiative, due to start in November, participants will enter details of their energy use into a computer system, which already tracks the emissions of 5,000 RSA volunteers. Each person will be allocated a cap on their carbon dioxide use, and will be forced to buy credits from others if they exceed it.

Within a year, the RSA hopes to link their computer system to the billing procedures of gas and electricity companies, so the energy use of volunteers can be tracked automatically. They are also talking to oil companies about obtaining details of fuel purchases. The society hopes to have tens of thousands of people trading carbon credits for cash within three years.

Officials in the environment department, Defra, are giving carbon rationing serious thought. The RSA project was launched last year by the former environment secretary, David Miliband, who talked of people carrying carbon credit cards to be swiped when they bought fuel or flights. Today's report says the government could introduce compulsory carbon trading by 2013, using the climate change bill to change the law.

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Faster Climate Change Means Bigger Problems

September 2, 2007
From Science Daily

Science Daily — The debate about what constitutes “dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate” has almost exclusively focused on how much the temperature can be allowed to increase. But we have perhaps just as much reason to be concerned about how quickly these changes take place.

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Federal election: Parties Climate Change policies

Here are videos from the various parties discussing their solutions to climate change (or perhaps if they are even doing anything at all).

Greens

Democrats

Labor

A little lacking on real detail to enable a proper assessment of what they are going to do.

These vids are really nice and fluffy. Makes you want to <sigh/>.

Liberals (conservatives)

Too little, too late and in areas that won't make the impacts on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that need to happen. They do not understand the problem. Theoretically maybe, but it isn't in their hearts. Greenwashing essentially.

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More Walk Against Warming 2007

Walk Against Warming: Brisbane

Walk Against Warming: Brisbane - Waters headed the march at Brisbane's Walk Against Warming....green greens global warming walk against bob brown larissa waters march protest climate change activist brisbane.

Walk Against Warming - Bob Brown Speaks

About Global Warming, the destruction of the Great Barrier Reef and what The Greens will do about it....Bob Brown senator walk against warming Brisbane.

Bob Brown Addresses WAW Brisbane

Senator Bob Brown of the Australian Greens addressing the demonstrators of Walk Against Warming in Brisbane on Saturday 25th of August 07.

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Pope Urges, Save The Planet Before It's Too Late

From Environmental News Network

Pope Urges, Save The Planet Before It's Too Late - I wonder if this extends to accepting that the over population of our planet is a serious issue. So much so that some contraception is ok.

The Vatican also recently launched their own airline to fly Catholics around the world to visit holy lands.

It is great though that such a significant organisation has come to the realisation that we are ruining this planet and that changes must be made sooner rather than later.

LORETO, Italy (Reuters) - Pope Benedict, leading the Catholic Church's first 'eco-friendly' youth rally, on Sunday told up to half a million people that world leaders must make courageous decisions to save the planet "before it is too late".

"A decisive 'yes' is needed in decisions to safeguard creation as well as a strong commitment to reverse tendencies that risk leading to irreversible situations of degradation," the 80-year-old Pope said.

Wearing green vestments, he spoke to a crowd of mostly young people sprawled over a hillside near the Adriatic city of Loreto on the day Italy's Catholic Church marks it annual Save Creation Day.

More than 300,000 people had slept on blankets and in tents or prayed during the night. Organizers said they were joined by some 200,000 more who arrived from throughout Italy on Sunday.

"New generations will be entrusted with the future of the planet, which bears clear signs of a type of development that has not always protected nature's delicate equilibriums," the Pope said, speaking from a white stage.

In one of his strongest environmental appeals, Benedict said: "Courageous choices that can re-create a strong alliance between man and earth must be made before it is too late."

The Pope closed the rally with a Sunday morning mass.

It was the first environmentally friendly youth rally, a break from gatherings that have left tonnes of garbage.

Participants had backpacks made of recyclable material, flashlights operated by a crank instead of batteries, and color-coded trash bags so personal garbage could be easily recycled. Meals were served on biodegradable plates.

Tens of thousands of prayer books for Sunday's mass were printed on recycled paper and an adequate number of trees will be planted to compensate for the carbon produced at the event, many in areas of southern Italy devastated by recent brushfires.

Under Benedict and his predecessor John Paul, the Vatican has become progressively "green", installing photovoltaic cells on buildings to produce electricity and hosting a scientific conference to discuss global warming and climate change.

Benedict voiced concern about a breakdown of the traditional family and in his Sunday homily told young people to "go against the current" and challenge "seductive" media messages promoting materialism, consumerism and fleeting pleasures.

Loreto is famous in the Catholic world for the "holy house of the Madonna", a small stone structure purported to be where Mary grew up in the Holy Land and where she was told by an angel she would give birth to Jesus although a virgin.

© Reuters 2007. All rights reserved.

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Arctic sea ice free by 2030, say scientists

20/08/2007
From The Ecologist

Arctic sea ice is melting faster than climate models predicted and there is less sea ice in the Arctic now than at any time since records began, scientists from the US National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC) have discovered.

With one month of the summer melt season remaining, the area covered by Arctic sea ice is already only 2.02 million square miles, less than at any time since records began in the 1970s.

‘This is very strong evidence that we are starting to see an effect of greenhouse warming,’ Mark Serreze, a senior research scientist at the NSIDC, told Associated Press.

At current rates, the Arctic will be sea ice free in summer by 2030. This is faster than some computer climate models predict – they expect that it will be 2070 before Arctic sea ice melts completely during the summer.

Dr Joy Singarayer, a sea ice expert at Bristol University, told the Ecologist:
‘Loss of Arctic sea ice could have consequences for climate and climate variability that are more widespread than the Arctic, as well as for the ecosystems and communities that inhabit the Arctic itself.’

As the sea ice disappears, polar bears face starvation since they depend on sea ice to reach and hunt seals. The Gulf Stream, the current that brings warm water to the west of Europe, could also be affected. It is driven by dense, salty water sinking to the bottom of the ocean near Greenland and, as Arctic sea ice melts and reforms throughout the year, it affects the saltiness of the underlying ocean.

Scientists also believe that declining Arctic sea ice cover could cause decreased rain and snowfall in the American west, and torrential winter rainfall over parts of Europe.

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