Kevin Grandia at Desmogblog writes me urgently:

Right wing bloggers (the organized bunch that they are) have been pushing the votes for this year’s Weblog Awards and if nothing changes by midnight tonight, a climate denial site called Climate Audit will win for the “Best science blog” site.

Not good – please email everyone you know and ask them to vote for the second running site “Bad Astronomy” right away — we only need about 500 votes and if each of us sends it to 10 people, we’re well on our way.

Here’s the voting link.

For more info, read Kevin’s post: The “Vast Right Wing Conspiracy” beating “Vast Left Wing” Voting for Best Science Weblog.

Looks like Gore and Hansen and Climate Progress were right, all along. We must reverse our energy path in the next decade or suffer the consequences, according to a new report by the International Energy Agency. Indeed, the headline comes from their dire press release.

The New York Times reports the story this way:

China’s and India’s surging fuel consumption poses a growing challenge to the world’s energy systems and, unless curbed, will strain global oil trade, push up prices and lead to substantially higher carbon dioxide emissions in coming decades, according to a report by an influential energy organization scheduled for release today.

In unusually urgent tones, the International Energy Agency, which provides policy advice to industrial nations, urged advanced economies to work with China and India to cut overall growth in energy consumption.”

[Note to IEA and world: Duh!]

“There is a need for an electroshock,” said Fatih Birol, the agency’s chief economist and the lead author of its flagship publication, The World Energy Outlook [WEO]. “We have to act immediately and boldly.”

Birol told the Financial Times: “We want more action, instead of more targets and more meetings and more talks.”

Finally, someone talking sense! Back to the New York Times:

“This is a very worrying message,” Mr. Birol said. “China and India are transforming our energy markets. We have a window of opportunity of 5 to 10 years before it becomes unsustainable and irreversible.”

The IEA does acknowledge the benefits of China’s and India’s growth:

Read more

Climate change could diminish drinking water more than expected - Innovations Report. “As sea levels rise, coastal communities could lose up to 50 percent more of their fresh water supplies than previously thought, according to a new study from Ohio State University.” The problem–saltwater intrusion is more complicated than scientists first realized.

The Carbon Calculus – New York Times. A good overview of the economics of carbon pricing that is comprehensive without being too technical.

Climate change ‘could bring an end to globalisation’ – EurActiv.com. “Climate change could bring globalisation to an end by 2040, according to a new report from leading national security experts — with nations turning inwards to save resources as new climate-related conflicts arise.” The article notes: “The Age of Consequences” report, produced by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in the US, predicts that scarcity of resources may “dictate the terms of international relations” for years to come as rich countries could “go through a 30-year process of kicking [the poor] away from the lifeboat”. More coverage of the CSIS report can be found on Climate Progress earlier this week.

By about 2 o’clock in the afternoon, not many national papers had picked up the story that was all over Detroit. After waiting out the wildfires, California finally sued the EPA today, in an effort to force a decision on whether the state can obtain a waiver to enforce strict greenhouse gas regulations on vehicle tailpipes.

The announcement has been a long-time coming. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger threatened to sue over three months ago, knowing that the EPA is going to stall its decision as long as possible. California is going after tailpipes as part of AB32, the state’s global warming bill coming into effect soon.

Benjamin Goldstein from the Center for American Progress just posted his assessment of the events building up to big Arnold’s legal move and an explanation of how this delay is a replica of the Administration’s denial and delay tactics.

In the EPA’s case, it’s truly “unprecedented obstructionism.” Goldstein writes, “The EPA has approved 50 full waivers and 40 waiver amendments since 1968. There have only been five occasions on which the EPA has denied a request, and the last time was in 1975.”

To reiterate one of Climate Progress’ earlier points on the EPA’s procrastination:

“This is like saying we’re going to have a meeting next year about getting Osama bin Laden.” – Rep Jay Inslee (D-WA)

The post, “The Top 100 Effects of Global Warming,” has for several weeks running been the most popular post on the American Progress website. So I thought I would link to it (again). Here are some more interesting effects:

Farewell to Frogs
An estimated two-thirds of the 110 known species of harlequin frog in Central and South America have vanished since the 1980s due to the outbreak of a deadly frog fungus … brought on by global warming. Scientist J. Allen Pound: “Disease is the bullet killing frogs, but climate change is pulling the trigger.” [National Geographic]

Say Goodbye to Guacamole
Scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory predict hotter temps will cause a 40 percent drop in California‘s avocado production over the next 40 years. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab]

Say Hello to Poison Ivy
You’re gonna need an ocean of calamine lotion. Increased CO2 levels cause poison ivy and other weeds to grow “taller, lusher, and more resilient.” [LA Times]