A round-up of the top climate and energy news stories. Please post other links below.
Letter to the Editor: Your recent editorials on the federal wind-energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) and renewable portfolio standard (RPS) (“Gouged by the Wind,” May 5 and “Windy Republicans,” May 7) are off the mark. The wind-power industry is an American success story that is helping us build our manufacturing base, create jobs, lower energy costs and strengthen our energy security. [Wall Street Journal]
Little by little, Hawaii’s iconic beaches are disappearing. Most beaches on the state’s three largest islands are eroding, and the erosion is likely to accelerate as sea levels rise, the United States Geological Survey is reporting. [New York Times]
Hundreds of species of mammals in the Western Hemisphere may not be able to migrate with the projected speed of climate change, according to a new study released Monday. [USA Today]
In addition to the West, drought conditions are also prevalent in the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, and parts of the Northeast as well, along with a small pocket in the Upper Midwest. [Climate Central]
Global warming could affect everything from national forests and grasslands’ vegetation to their stream flows, and the Forest Service has a comprehensive plan to deal with it. [Herald and News]
Retail giant Walmart said it plans to install solar panels on top of about half of its roughly 50 Massachusetts stores as early as August as part of an expansion of solar power in the state. [Boston Globe]
Long-running arguments over who needs to do what to stop the planet from overheating are back in focus this week as rich and poor countries meet in Bonn, Germany, to resume talks on a new global climate treaty. [Associated Press]
An Australian university has embarked upon an ambitious project – hailed as the first of its kind in the world – to simulate how the environment would cope with runaway climate change. [Guardian]
Mexico, the world’s 14th biggest economy, still punches well below its weight in terms of wind energy, ranking 24th on the planet in installed capacity last year, according to the Global Wind Energy Council. But the market is growing fast. [Reuters]
Previous in TP Climate Progress
Language Intelligence: Lessons on persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga
With the Great Plains and the Mojave Desert, the United States is the Saudi Arabia of clean, renewable energy. Development has been blocked, since our political and business leaders are acting like Saudi princes who decided to stick with goats and religious tourism in the 1950′s.
We are subsidizing fossil fuels in myriad ways, in a sick combination of stupidity and corruption. The people must awaken soon, in a movement led from below.
The major reason many more people do not use net zero and near net zero mobility is because of the extreme danger of transportation systems based on cars; also the major way this extremely destructive method of travel secures its monopoly. This, social justice, and the extreme value of human life — it is truly bizarre that this requires emphasis — is why zero deaths initiatives are so important.
What we are talking about is making manmade vehicles and manmade environments totally safe which is ultimately an easy problem to solve. You just build them safe.
Chicago Aims for Zero Traffic Deaths by 2022
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http://dc.streetsblog.org/2012/05/14/chicago-aims-for-zero-traffic-deaths-by-2022/
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Years ago, I was riding my bicycle on the sidewalk and a squirrel tried to jump through the front wheel. Well, of course it went bump against the spokes. I felt like it was a close call.
Most people who have nicked me with their cars have been truly apologetic. It can be scary on the road sharing with cars.
Additional energy and climate clips beyond Climate Progress’ excellent roundup available at http://www.marcaccicomms.com/news/energy-and-environment-news-roundup-5-15-12/
Coming soon to developed nations,,,
LONDON (AlertNet) – Disaster losses in many low- and middle-income countries are likely to rise faster than economic growth unless governments change their economic policy to take account of increasing disaster risk, warns a new guide from climate experts.
He’s a very Homophobic Governor!
Is there a different link for “Global warming could affect everything from national forests and grasslands’ vegetation to their stream flows, and the Forest Service has a comprehensive plan to deal with it.”
The [Herald and News] link was a case of tree loss and didn’t speak much to a comprehensive plan.
Joan:
I believe this is the story you want:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/global-warming-threatens-pine-forests-forcing-federal-officials-to-shift-strategy/2012/05/13/gIQAEHVXNU_story.html?hpid=z4
See also http://mountainwestnews.org/ which led me to it.
There has definitely been an uptick in this and tornados in unusual places… something to do with windspeed and extra energy in the air…
What’s With All the Waterspouts Lately?
http://www.accuweather.com
Over-water tornadoes have been spotted and videotaped
NOAA reports that April’s global temperature was the 5th warmest on record:
Global Highlights
•The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces for April 2012 was 14.35°C (57.87°F), which is 0.65°C (1.17°F) above the 20th century average of 13.7°C (56.7°F). The margin of error associated with this temperature is ±0.08°C (0.14°F). The global temperature departure from the 20th century average and the monthly rank were the highest since November 2010, near the onset of first back-to-back La Niñas in 2010.
•The global land surface temperature was 1.39°C (2.50°F) above the 20th century average of 8.1°C (46.5°F), making this the second warmest April, behind 2007. The margin of error is ±0.11°C (0.20°F).
•For the ocean, the April global sea surface temperature was 0.38°C (0.68°F) above the 20th century average of 16.0°C (60.9°F)—the 11th warmest April on record. The margin of error is ±0.04°C (0.07°F).
Unlike March 2012, where extremely cool and warm temperatures engulfed much of the Northern Hemisphere land surfaces, most of the world’s land areas experienced warmer-than-average temperatures during April 2012. The most notable warmth was observed across Russia, the United States, Alaska, and parts of the Middle East and western Europe. After experiencing very warm March temperatures, parts of western Europe experienced cooler-than-average temperatures, and in some locations the April 2012 temperatures were cooler than the March 2012 temperatures. Other areas that experienced cooler-than-average conditions during the month include southern South America, southeastern Africa, and northern Australia. Globally, the April 2012 land-only surface temperature was 1.39°C (2.50°F) above the 20th century average of 8.1°C (46.5°F)—the second warmest April in the 133-year record, behind 2007. This was also the warmest land-only monthly temperature departure from the 20th century average since November 2010 and the 137th consecutive month with global land temperatures above the 20th century average. The last time land-only worldwide temperatures were below average was November 2000 (0.02°C/0.04°F below average). Of note, the Northern Hemisphere land surface temperature was 1.74°C (3.13°F) above the 20th century average, marking the warmest April since records began in 1880.
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/2012/4