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Arctic Could See First Ice-Free Summer This Year
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June 27, 2008 - ABC News
| | There is distinct possibility that the North Pole could be free of sea ice for the first time in recorded history. Scientists predict that there is a 50 percent chance that ice at the highest point in the Arctic will melt by the summer's end.
| | | By Bill Blakemore and Tuan C. Nguyen © 2008 ABC News Internet Ventures
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White House Refused to Open Pollutants E-Mail
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June 25, 2008 - New York Times
| | The White House in December refused to accept the Environmental Protection Agency’s conclusion that greenhouse gases are pollutants that must be controlled, telling agency officials that an e-mail message containing the document would not be opened. The document, which ended up in e-mail limbo, without official status, was the E.P.A.’s answer to a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that required it to determine whether greenhouse gases represent a danger to health or the environment. As a result of the White House not opening the email, the E.P.A. is set to respond by releasing a watered-down version of the original proposal. Among the omissions are large sections of the original analysis that supported regulation, including a finding that tough regulation of motor vehicle emissions could produce $500 billion to $2 trillion in economic benefits over the next 32 years.
| | | By Felicity Barringer © The New York Times Company
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Atlas Shows Effects of Climate Change on Africa
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June 11, 2008 - PhysOrg.com
| | The United Nations environment agency unveiled a new 400-page atlas which features over 300 satellite images taken in every African country. The before and after photographs, some of which span a 35-year period, appear to show striking environmental changes across the continent. Although Africa produces only 4 percent of the world's total carbon dioxide emissions, its inhabitants are expected by some officials to suffer most from the consequences of climate change.
| | | By Devon Hayne © 2008 Associated Press © 2003-2008 PhysOrg.com
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US Issues Climate Assessment Forced by Court Order
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May 29, 2008 - Reuters
| | New York -- The Bush administration released a climate change assessment on Thursday -- four years late and pushed forward by a court order -- that said human-induced global warming will likely lead to problems like droughts in the U.S. West and stronger hurricanes. The "Scientific Assessment of the Effects of Global Change on the United States" synthesized previous reports, including those by the government's climate change science program and last year's work by the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. It is intended to give U.S. government agencies and lawmakers in Congress a single document to refer to when forming climate policy. In 2006, the Bush government was accused of censoring its scientists on global warming, such as NASA expert James Hansen, which led to the firing of an official at the space agency.
| | | By Timothy Gardner © 2008
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City Dwellers Have Smaller Carbon Footprint
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May 29, 2008 - redOrbit.com
| | The Brookings Institution has released a report which rates the carbon footprints of US cities. The study examined sources and use of residential electricity, home heating and cooling, and transportation in 2005 in the largest 100 metropolitan areas. Lexington, Ky., had the biggest per capita carbon footprint with 3.81 tons of carbon dioxide in energy use. Honolulu ranked as the best city with 1.5 tons per person.
| | | By H. Josef Herbert © 2002-2008 redOrbit.com
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Man-Made Warming Altering Nature's Clock
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May 14, 2008 - Scientific American
| | In a new analysis which published in Nature, researchers assessed 829 geologic phenomena—including melting glaciers—along with nearly 30,000 changes in plants and animals (from bird migration patterns to plummeting penguin populations), and found that about 90 percent of them are in sync with scientists' predictions about how global warming will alter the planet.
| | | By Adam Hadhazy © 1996-2008 Scientific American Inc.
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Problems Plague Canada’s Emissions Trading Plans
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May 9, 2008 - Climate Action
| | Just as Canada is set to launch a domestic carbon emissions trading scheme in a bid to curb its rising greenhouse gas emissions, a number of issues have surfaced. Some Canadian provinces have introduced provincial carbon taxes or have opted to join a prospective U.S.-based trading scheme, which threatens to throw Canada's federal emissions trading plans into disarray.
| | | © 2008 Reuters © 2008 Sustainable Development International
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Vast Antarctic Ice Shelf on Verge of Collapse
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March 25, 2008 - LiveScience.com
| | A huge iceberg measuring 25 miles by 1.5 miles is on the verge of breaking away from the Wilkins Ice Shelf. The Antarctic Peninsula has warmed faster than anywhere else in the Southern Hemisphere; temperature records show that the region has warmed by nearly 3 degrees Celsius during the past 50 years — several times the global average and only matched in Alaska.
| | | By Andrea Thompson © 2008 Imaginova Corp.
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Curbing Soot Could Blunt Global Warming: Study
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March 23, 2008 - Google News
| | Paris -- Sharply reducing the amount of black carbon, commonly known as soot, in the atmosphere could help slow global warming. According to a new study, black carbon is the second largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide. Black carbon is released into the air when oil, coal, and biofuels such as wood and dung are burned.
| | | © 2008 Agence France Presse © 2008 Google
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'Green' Buildings Could Slash CO2 Emissions: Report
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March 13, 2008 - Google News
| | Vancouver, Canada -- The report, "Green Building in North America: Opportunities and Challenges," finds that basic changes in building design and construction could slash greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent in North America. Currently, less than four percent of new buildings meet stringent new environmental, health and energy-saving goals under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard.
| | | By Deborah Jones © 2008 Agence France Presse © 2008 Google
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24 World Cities in 'Earth Hour' Black-Out
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February 19, 2008 - Google News
| | Sydney -- Twenty-four cities around the world will participate in the "Earth Hour" on March 29. The initiative asks city residents to turn off their lights and appliances for one hour to raise awareness about global warming. The first "Earth Hour" took place in Sydney, Australia last year and an estimated 2.2 million people participated.
| | | © 2008 Agence France Presse © 2008 Google
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Study Finds Profit in Cutting Emissions
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February 14, 2008 - Financial Times
| | Half the cuts in greenhouse gas emissions needed to make the world safe can be achieved at a net profit to the global economy, a study has found. Investing about $170 billion a year worldwide into energy efficiency would yield a profit of about 17 percent, or $29 billion. The energy savings would be equivalent to 64 million barrels of oil a day, while the cost would amount to about 0.4 per cent of GDP. The study also found that the most inefficient sector in the world is heavy industry in China, with the second being residential housing in the US, where homes are large, poorly insulated and equipped with a range of appliances that are often themselves inefficient or poorly used, such as air-conditioning systems left on unnecessarily.
| | | By Fiona Harvey © 2008 The Financial Times Ltd
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Hundreds of Profs Hold Green 'Teach-in'
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January 31, 2008 - Boston.com
| | Portland, Ore. -- Over 1,500 universities, as well as some community colleges and high schools, helped draw attention to the importance of climate change by participating in “Focus the Nation” on January 31. Activities included incorporating climate change issues into lectures, having demonstrations, and at one community college, serving “low carbon” meals all week. Focus the Nation will be holding other events during the month of February.
| | | By Julia Silverman © 2008 Associated Press © 2008 NY Times Co.
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No Major Climate Initiatives From State of the Union
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January 29, 2008 - ABC News
| | During the State of the Union, President Bush announced that $2 billion would be spent to create a global clean technology fund which would help developing nations increase the use of clean energy sources. However, as in 2007, the president mentioned the words "climate change" just once in the speech. He also did not call for any major initiatives to address the growing problems of global warming.
| | | By Clayton Sandell © 2008 ABCNews Internet Ventures
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Dems Press White House on CDC Testimony
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October 26, 2007 - Google News
| | Washington -- Significant deletions were made from congressional testimony given by Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The original 14 page report on global warming and the potential impact on human health was edited by the White House and shortened to just six pages. Included in the deletions were a section titled "Climate Change is a Public Concern" and a paragraph that said with global warming, "forest fires are expected to increase in frequency, severity, distribution and duration."
| | | By H. Josef Herbert © 2007 The Associated Press © 2007 Google
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British Columbia to Set Industry Carbon Caps
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September 28, 2007 - Yahoo! News
| | Vancouver, British Columbia -- British Columbia will become the first Canadian province to put hard caps on greenhouse gas emissions. The province will be a part of a regional carbon credit trading system being set up by California and several western U.S. states and Canadian provinces.
| | | By Allan Dowd © 2007 Reuters Limited © 2007 Yahoo! Inc.
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Britain to Switch Off Energy-Guzzling Light Bulbs
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September 27, 2007 - PhysOrg.com
| | London -- Britain plans to phase out traditional light bulbs by 2012 by replacing them with low-energy compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. In June, the European Commission announced that manufacturers had decided to eliminate traditional light bulbs from the European market by 2015.
| | | © 2007 Agence France Presse © PhysOrg.com 2003-2007
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Giant Ocean-based Pipes Could Curb Global Warming: Scientists
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September 27, 2007 - Google News
| | Paris -- Two British scientists believe that sowing the world's oceans with giant vertical pipes 100-to-200 meters deep could help curb global warming. The pipes would increase the mixing of nutrient-rich waters below the surface with the warmer waters at the ocean's surface. This mixing could promote algal growth and subsequently drawn down carbon dioxide and emit dimethyl sulphide, the precursor of clouds.
| | | © 2007 Agence France Presse © 2007 Google
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DiCaprio Talks About Going Green and "11th Hour"
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August 16, 2007 - ENN
| | Los Angeles -- Leonardo DiCaprio’s movie, The 11th Hour, debuts in major cities on August 17th. The movie shows the challenges that our world will face as a result of environmental damage and climate change and emphasizes what needs to be done to avert these catastrophes.
| | | © 2007 Reuters © 2007 Environmental News Network
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Fla. Gov. Holds Climate Change Summit
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July 12, 2007 - ABC News
| | Florida Gov. Charlie Crist opened a two-day summit on climate change Thursday, promising the state will lower carbon dioxide emissions and make use of alternative energy sources.
| | | By Brendan Farrington © 2007 Associated Press © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
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China Overtakes U.S. As Top CO2 Emitter
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June 20, 2007 - ABC News
| | Beijing -- A new report finds that China is now the leading carbon dioxide gas emitter. China produced 6.2 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2006, whereas the U.S. produced 5.8 billion metric tons. Much of the increase in China’s emissions comes from coal-burning and cement production.
| | | By Audra Ang © 2007 Associated Press © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
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Small Parks Could Cool Big Cities
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May 18, 2007 - LiveScience
| | Green space, such as parks and green roofs, can significantly reduce surface temperatures in cities. British scientists have found that when green spaces collect and retain water, which then later evaporates, the "urban heat island" effect can be minimized.
| | | By Corey Binns © 1999-2007 Imaginova Corp.
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NASA: Eastern U.S. Summers to Get 10 Degrees Hotter
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May 11, 2007 - USA TODAY
| | Washington -- A new NASA study predicts that summers in the Eastern U.S. will be hotter than previously thought. By the mid-2080s, daily highs will be about 10 degrees warmer than in recent years. Instead of daily summer highs in the low to mid 80s, high temperatures will regularly be in the low to mid 90s, the study found.
| | | © 2007 The Associated Press © 2007 USA TODAY
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IBM Vows 7 Pct. Cut in Greenhouse Gases
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March 22, 2007 - ABC News
| | Armonk, N.Y. -- IBM Corp. is pledging that by 2012, it will have reduced its greenhouse gas footprint by 7 percent since 2005. The company has already had a 6.2 percent reduction from 2002 to 2005.
| | | © 2007 The Associated Press © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
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All-Star Global Concerts Come to Aid of Climate
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February 15, 2007 - ABC News
| | Los Angeles -- A worldwide string of concerts will be held on July 7 to promote awareness about global warming. The Live Earth concerts will include performances by Sheryl Crow, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Black Eyed Peas, Bon Jovi, Kelly Clarkson, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, and Snoop Dogg.
| | | By Mary Milliken © 2007 Reuters Limited © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
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Ontario Emissions Down on Fewer Coal Power Plants
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February 15, 2007 - Yahoo! News
| | Los Angeles -- From 2003-2006, power generation from coal plants decreased by 32 percent in the Province of Ontario. As a result, the province’s greenhouse gas emissions have declined by 29 percent and sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions have each declined by about 45 percent.
| | | © 2007 Reuters Limited © 2007 Yahoo! Inc.
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Canada Sets 1.28 Billion Dollars to Fight Climate Change
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February 12, 2007 - Yahoo! News
| | Ottawa -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced that 1.28 billion dollars will be allocated for curbing carbon emissions. Under the Kyoto Protocol Canada has agreed to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions to 6.0 percent less than 1990 levels by 2012.
| | | © 2007 Agence France Presse © 2007 Yahoo! Inc.
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Greenhouse Gas Ocean Burial Can Start Feb 10
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February 9, 2007 - Yahoo! News
| | Oslo -- New international rules allow carbon dioxide to be stored under the seabed. Burying carbon dioxide rather than releasing it into the atmosphere may slow the effects of global warming.
| | | By Alister Doyle © 2007 Reuters Limited © 2007 Yahoo! Inc.
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Scientists Urge Deep - Sea Cure for Climate Change
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August 16, 2006 - Planet Ark
| | Boston -- A process known as carbon sequestration may help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Rather than releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, coal-burning power plants would capture, liquefying, and pump the gas under the sea floor for long term storage.
| | | By Jason Szep © 2006 Reuters Limited © Planet Ark
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Ocean 'Gummy Bears' Fight Global Warming
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July 22, 2006 - LiveScience.com
| | Small ocean creatures called salps may help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The process begins when phytoplankton plants extract carbon dioxide from the air and are then eaten by salps. The salps' waste, which contains carbon, then sinks to the ocean floor where it remains.
| | | By Robin Lloyd © 1999-2006 Imaginova Corp.
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Undersea Gas Could Speed Global Warming - Study
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July 21, 2006 - Planet Ark
| | New York -- Rising ocean temperatures may melt undersea formations called methane hydrates, which could then release methane into the atmosphere. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, so a further warming of the planet would occur.
| | | By Timothy Gardner © 2006 Reuters © Planet Ark
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