Flash floods hit southern Spain

Guardian: Eight people have been killed and hundreds evacuated from their homes after extreme weather and flash floods hit southern Spain on Friday. The flooding, caused by torrential rain after months of drought, hit areas around Murcia and Almería in the south-east and Málaga in the south. A 52-year-old British woman is believed to be missing in Almería, according to a government official. The weather brought down a motorway bridge and cars were swept away. Officials in the region said at least...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/sep/29/flash-floods-hit-southern-spain
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/9/29/1348927856400/Spanish-floods-009.jpg

US polar bear researcher Charles Monnett cleared of scientific misconduct

Guardian: The Obama administration has wound up its controversial investigation of a government polar bear researcher without finding any evidence of scientific wrongdoing, campaign groups said late Friday. However, the scientist, Charles Monnett, who was the first to draw attention to the dangers to polar bears in a warming Arctic, was reprimanded for forwarding official email to a local government official and a fellow researcher at the University of Alaska without prior authorisation. Campaign groups...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/sep/29/us-polar-bear-researcher-cleared
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Environment/Pix/columnists/2010/11/26/1290784771333/Week-in-wildlife--Polar-b-006.jpg

Rules to Curb Use of Paper and Plastic Shopping Bags

New York Times: Bill Hoffman, owner of Aptos Jewelers in Aptos, Calif., sells bracelets, rings and pendants for thousands of dollars each. He balks at the notion of charging customers an extra 10 cents for a shopping bag, but Mr. Hoffman has no choice. It is the law. Not just in Santa Cruz County, where Aptos is, but similar rules apply in more than two dozen California cities. Grocery stores, pharmacies and sometimes other retailers are no longer allowed to use plastic shopping bags and must charge customers for...

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/business/energy-environment/communities-curb-use-of-paper-and-plastic-shopping-bags.html
Enclosure: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/09/29/business/29bags-span/29bags-span-articleLarge.jpg

Youths Fight Climate Change

Herald: The East and Southern African Youth Climate Change Alliance in collaboration with Common Market for East and Southern Africa is conducting a strategic workshop in Harare to devise ways to combat climate change and its adverse effects. The week-long meeting, which began on Monday, is being attended by youths drawn from member countries in Comesa, Sadc and the East African Community. Participants in the workshop said it was time that youths, who are over 60 percent of the continent's population, are...

URL: http://allafrica.com/stories/201209290005.html

The Arctic's changing climate first hand

Channel 4 News: After days of drizzle, this morning it started to snow in Northern Greenland. By the last days of September the ground would normally be white and the sea would be starting to freeze in the more sheltered bays and fjords. But this hasn't been a normal year in the arctic - and as if to reinforce the point this morning's snow is melting as soon as it falls. Earlier this month the amount of sea ice in the arctic ocean reached its minimum extent since records began. Though it still envelops...

URL: http://www.channel4.com/news/the-arctics-changing-climate-first-hand

Climate Change Takes a Bite Out of Global Food Supply

Inter Press Service: Humanity`s ability to feed itself is in serious doubt as climate change takes hold on land in the form of droughts and extreme weather, as well as on the world`s oceans. Less well known to many is the fact that emissions from burning oil, coal and gas are both heating up the oceans and making them more acidic. That is combining to reduce the amount of seafood that can be caught, according to a new report released here. Seafood is a primary source of protein for more than a billion of the poorest...

URL: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/09/climate-change-takes-a-bite-out-of-global-food-supply/
Enclosure: http://ipsnews-net.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/Library/2012/09/pakistani_fisherman_640-629x420.jpg

Climate Change is Already Damaging Global Economy

Guardian: Climate change is already contributing to the deaths of nearly 400,000 people a year and costing the world more than $1.2 trillion, wiping 1.6 percent annually from global GDP, according to a new study. The impacts are being felt most keenly in developing countries, according to the research, where damage to agricultural production from extreme weather linked to climate change is contributing to deaths from malnutrition, poverty, and their associated diseases. Air pollution caused by the use of...

URL: http://www.climatecentral.org/news/climate-change-is-already-damaging-global-economy-report-finds-15048
Enclosure: http://daraint.org/climate-vulnerability-monitor/climate-vulnerable-forum/

United Kingdom: Now climate experts warn that every house in the country is at risk of flooding

Independent: The flood waters may finally be receding across parts of Britain lashed this week by the worst autumn storm in 30 years.But as home and business owners begin the long, demoralising task of clearing up the filth left in their wake, it has emerged that increasing numbers of flood victims are completely unaware that they were ever at risk from rising water levels. Of the 5,000 properties damaged in the extreme weather events of this summer and autumn, more than half were hit not by overflowing rivers...

URL: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/now-climate-experts-warn-that-every-house-in-the-country-is-at-risk-of-flooding-8190500.html

Green deal is too complicated for saving energy

Guardian: While we clearly all have a responsibility to control our energy usage, there are a number of potential problems with the government's green deal. The initiative is designed to help businesses and encourage homeowners to employ more green technologies in their homes. The idea is simple; install them into your property with no upfront outlay. You pay back the costs through your energy bill over a period. This is unlike a conventional loan, because if you move the bill stays with the property...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/sep/28/green-deal-too-complicated-saving-energy

Scientists Debate Climate Change Impacts on Tropical Diseases

Inter Press Service: More intense rainfall, rising temperatures and climate-driven migration of human and animal populations due to repeated drought all affect the spread of tropical diseases. These changes, already the focus of study by climatologists, are now also a challenge increasingly taken up by health experts and officials. The impact of climate change on human health generated debate among the experts attending the 18th International Congress on Tropical Medicine and Malaria, held Sept. 23-27 in Rio de Janeiro....

URL: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/09/scientists-debate-climate-change-impacts-on-tropical-diseases/
Enclosure: http://ipsnews-net.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/Library/2012/09/Mosquito.jpg

Clinton urged to back 'Robin Hood tax' to fight climate change

Sydney Morning Herald: Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace joined 61 other charities, unions and campaign groups to urge US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to support a financial transaction tax to help fund the fight against climate change. A transaction levy, or "Robin Hood Tax," could help fund $US100 billion of climate change aid that developed countries have pledged by 2020, and extend to health care and education as well, the 63 groups said in a letter yesterday to Clinton that was emailed today by Friends...

URL: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/clinton-urged-to-back-robin-hood-tax-to-fight-climate-change-20120929-26rmz.html

Conflicting reports fuel fracking debate tied to Wyoming town

Reuters: Government testing of a drinking water aquifer near a tiny Wyoming town has shown concentrations of gases like ethane and propane and diesel compounds, but a natural gas company said it did not cause the contamination. A report by the U.S. Geological Survey showed petroleum-based pollutants in samples from a monitoring well in the aquifer adjacent to Pavillion, Wyoming, which is at the center of a national debate over hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. A draft study released in December by...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/29/us-usa-fracking-wyoming-idUSBRE88S00020120929?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Scientist Cleared In Polar Bear Controversy

National Public Radio: A long, controversial investigation of a polar bear scientist has ended with his government employer saying it does not look like he engaged in any scientific misconduct. Charles Monnett is a wildlife researcher with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, part of the Department of the Interior. He and a colleague, Jeffrey Gleason, wrote an influential 2006 report describing apparently drowned polar bears floating in the Arctic, which they saw during a routine aerial survey of whales. Those...

URL: http://www.npr.org/2012/09/28/161987243/scientist-cleared-in-polar-bear-controversy?ft=1&f=1025
Enclosure: http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2012/09/28/polarbears-89b7138298b59f30306a954ed3985edd462712cc-s4.jpg

Obama and Romney find little common ground on energy production

LA Times: No matter who wins the 2012 election, the next president will take office as the United States faces vast new opportunities in energy production and profound challenges to environmental protection. After decades of growing dependence on imported oil, the U.S. is moving to energy self-sufficiency, thanks to greater domestic supplies of oil and natural gas and reduced demand. Coal, which once fired most American power plants, is being edged out by natural gas, renewable energy and stricter efforts...

URL: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-election-energy-20120929,0,7774789.story?track=rss
Enclosure: http://www.trbimg.com/img-50662e73/turbine/la-1100995.jpg-20120928/600

Desert Climate In Western US Influenced By Ancient Water Cycle

redOrbit: The climate change we are currently experiencing, while disconcerting and increasingly uncomfortable, is not unprecedented when viewed through the historical prism of life on Earth. A study led by researchers from Texas A&M University`s Department of Oceanography looks back at the water cycle that affected the Western United States in an era dating back some 20,000 years. Focusing on the deserts of Utah and Nevada, the team is seeking to learn more about the large inland lakes that once covered...

URL: http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112702892/desert-climate-in-west-us-affected-by-ancient-water-cycle-092812/
Enclosure: http://www.redorbit.com/media/uploads/2012/09/DesertClimate_092812-617x416.jpg

Food Security, Grain Production, and Climate Change

Worldwatch Institute: Global grain production is expected to reach a record high of 2.4 billion tons in 2012, an increase of 1 percent from 2011 levels, according to new research conducted by the Worldwatch Institute's Nourishing the Planet project (www.worldwatch.org) for the Institute's Vital Signs Online service. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the production of grain for animal feed is growing the fastest--a 2.1 percent increase from 2011. Grain for direct human consumption...

URL: http://www.enn.com/climate/article/45005?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ClimateChangeNews-Enn+%28Climate+Change+News+-+ENN%29

Researchers Link Early Evolution Of Animals To Climate Change And Oxygen Levels

redOrbit: Geochemists from the University of California, Riverside teamed up with an international team of scientists to uncover new evidence linking together extreme climate change, elevation of oxygen levels and early animal evolution. Scientists have long speculated that a dramatic rise in atmospheric oxygen levels was the trigger for early animal evolution. The direct cause-and-effect relationships between environmental and animal evolution, however, has been the subject of heated debates, and a lack...

URL: http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112702935/early-evolution-linked-to-climate-change-and-oxygen-092812/
Enclosure: http://www.redorbit.com/media/uploads/2012/09/EarlyEvolution_092812.jpg

Was climate change responsible for the Mongol hordes?

Washington Post: Was climate change responsible for the Mongol hordes? First scientists told us that a "distinct drying' during the third century might have encouraged the fall of the Roman Empire, prompting critics to decry the idea as the "latest global warming scare tactic.' Now the journal Science is highlighting similar speculations that wet and warm conditions in the central Asian steppe in the 13th century help explain the exceptionally rapid expansion of the imfamously cruel Mongols under Genghis Khan....

URL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/post/was-climate-change-responsible-for-the-mongol-hordes/2012/09/28/33405d1c-0994-11e2-858a-5311df86ab04_blog.html

'Carmaheaven': Closure of 405 in 2011 Improved Los Angeles Area Air Quality Up to 83 Percent

ScienceDaily: Take the time to enjoy a deep breath next weekend when the 405 freeway in the Los Angeles, California area closes for Carmageddon II. If it's anything like last year, the air quality is about to get amazing. In study findings announced Sept. 28, UCLA researchers report that they measured air pollutants during last year's Carmageddon (July 15-17) and found that when 10 miles of the 405 closed, air quality near the shuttered portion improved within minutes, reaching levels 83 percent better than...

URL: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120928103754.htm
Enclosure: http://images.sciencedaily.com/2012/09/120928103754-large.jpg?1348847170

Obama blocks Chinese firm's purchase of four US wind farms

Guardian: Barack Obama has revoked a Chinese company's acquisition of four wind farms, citing national security for the first time in two decades against a foreign investor. The executive order from the White House on Friday, against the privately held Ralls Corporation, follows accusations from Mitt Romney that Obama has failed to stand up to Chinese businesses. The president said in the executive order he had "credible evidence" that Ralls "might take action that threatens to impair the national security...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/sep/28/obama-blocks-chinese-firm-wind-farm
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/audio/video/2012/9/28/1348866548019/Wind-farm.-008.jpg

Death by Climate Change?

Huffington Post: The recent headline that 100 million people will die by 2030 if climate change is not addressed doubtlessly had people around the world imagining doomsday catastrophes. Don't panic just yet, as this figure is perhaps a textbook example of how to lie with statistics. DARA, the Spain-based humanitarian NGO that released the report on the economic and health consequences of climate change, counted not just climate change but also all other impacts of carbon fuel usage in its calculation of the expected...

URL: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sam-bakkila/climate-change-conditions_b_1922719.html
Enclosure: http://images.huffingtonpost.com/2012-09-28-sbakkila_mortality_chart.PNG

Uganda: Four Kids Sue Govt for Lax Climate Change Role

New Vision: Four kids have sued Government, "in public interest", for failing to institute enough measures to control devastating effects of climate change in the country. They made the move together with the non-governmental environmental advocacy group, Greenwatch. In the suit filed on September 20 at the High Court in Kampala, Nisi Mbabazi, Jonathan Aruho, Matayo Natumanya, and Kind David Tandeka are demanding that Government meets its public trust duty and ensure a habitable environment. Their concern...

URL: http://allafrica.com/stories/201209281556.html

North India, Himalayas to be worst hit by climate change: Report

Times of India: Northern parts of the country and the Himalayan region will be the worst hit by climate change in India and warming will be greater over land than sea, according to a latest report. "In the 2020s, the projected warming is of the order of 0.5-1.5 degree Celsius , by the 2050s, 3 degree celsius and by the 2080s, around 4 degree Celsius. Warming will be greater over land than sea and it is projected over northern parts of the Indian landmass and over the Himalayas," says a joint India-UK report on...

URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/global-warming/North-India-Himalayas-to-be-worst-hit-by-climate-change-Report/articleshow/16588014.cms

Organized crime trade in illegal timber responsible for up to 90% of tropical deforestation

Bikya Masr: Between 50 to 90 percent of logging in key tropical countries of the Amazon basin, Central Africa and South East Asia is being carried out by organized crime threatening efforts to combat climate change, deforestation, conserve wildlife and eradicate poverty. Globally, illegal logging now accounts for between 15 and 30 per cent of the overall trade, according to a new report from the UN Environment Program (UNEP) and INTERPOL. Forests worldwide bind Carbon Dioxide and store it – known as Green...

URL: http://www.bikyamasr.com/78556/organized-crime-trade-in-illegal-timber-responsible-for-up-to-90-of-tropical-deforestation/

Australia: Rio Tinto acknowledges climate change

Brisbane Times: Climate change is occurring and is largely caused by human activities, miner Rio Tinto's head of coal in Australia, Bill Champion told a Brisbane conference this morning. In a speech on sustainable development and mining, Mr Champion said the "scale of the necessary emissions reductions and the need for adaptation, coupled with the world's increasing requirements for secure, affordable energy, create large challenges which require worldwide attention". Rio Tinto has factored a carbon price...

URL: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/business/rio-tinto-acknowledges-climate-change-20120928-26pr8.html

Biodegradable Electronics Could Lessen Environmental Impact of Digital Devices

Yale Environment 360: A team of U.S. scientists says it has developed a class of biodegradable electronics technology that could be utilized for a wide range of products -- from consumer devices to medical implants -- and that University of Illinois and Tufts University An integrated circuit dissolves in water. ultimately would dissolve completely, leaving no environmental impacts. Drawing on techniques that enable the production of systems using ultrathin sheets of silicon that dissolve in liquids, the so-called "transient...

URL: http://e360.yale.edu/digest/biodegradable_electronics_could__lessen_environmental_impact_of_devices/3646/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YaleEnvironment360+%28Yale+Environment+360%29

Planon ploughs into sustainability software space

BusinessGreen: Planon is poised to become the latest software developer to offer a dedicated sustainability management application designed to help companies track and reduce their environmental impacts. The company is one of the world's leading providers of specialist real estate and facilities management software, with annual sales of around EUR40m and a global client base of over 1,800 clients, including big names such as Shell, Unilever, Boots and Nike. However, from this November the company will also offer...

URL: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2213223/exclusive-planon-ploughs-into-sustainability-software-space?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=Exclusive%3A+Planon+ploughs+into+sustainability+software+space

Namibia's Offer to Host Green Climate Fund Sectretariat

AllAfrica: At a recently held African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) in Arusha, Tanzania, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism used the platform to present their offer to host the Green Climate Fund Sectretariat. The African Ministerial Conference on the Environment, comprising of 53 member states, provides a permanent forum for African Environment Ministers to discuss matters relevant to the environment of the African continent. The objectives of the session were to provide a platform...

URL: http://allafrica.com/stories/201209281256.html

(At Least) Three Things Are Wrong With This Window Installation

Subtitle:&nbsp_place_holder;

The answers to last week's 'What's Wrong With This Picture?' game

Images:&nbsp_place_holder;

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/least-three-things-are-wrong-window-installation)

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/least-three-things-are-wrong-window-installation)

Last week, GBAGreenBuildingAdvisor.com [published a photo of a recently installed window in an new house](https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/what-s-wrong-window-installation) under the headline, "What's Wrong With This Picture?"

The photo showed the window from the interior. Some of the flexible flashing material was visible on the rough sill and the rough jamb.

The list of problems outlined below was prepared by James Steacy of IBACOS.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/least-three-things-are-wrong-window-installation

Australia joins UN-led climate coalition

Reuters: Australia on Friday announced it will join the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, a U.N.-led initiative to cut short-lived climate pollutants such as soot and methane. The initiative, launched in February this year, targets emissions that contribute to climate change and cause local air pollution that can threaten human health. "The science suggests that acting quickly to reduce short-lived climate pollutants, which are more potent than carbon dioxide, has the potential to slow down warming by...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/28/us-australia-climate-idUSBRE88R0ZQ20120928

Water shortages ahead across US as drought lingers

Reuters: The worst drought in more than half a century baked more than two thirds of the continental United States this summer and its harsh effects continue to plague the parched cities and towns of the Great Plains. Ask the 94,000 people of San Angelo, Texas, who are running out of water. Fast. The city -- once known as "the oasis" of dry west Texas -- now says it only has enough water supplies to last one more year. On Oct. 16, it will enforce its highest level of emergency measures to save its water...

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49210903/ns/weather/
Enclosure: http://msnbcmedia4.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/120928_drought-texas.grid-6x2.jpg

New Climate Change Study Proves Climate Change Will Cause 6 Million Annual Deaths by 2030

PolicyMic: DARA International, representing 20 nations, has released a new report on climate change estimating 6 million annual deaths and 3.2% of GDP lost from climate change by 2030. The news is lighting up with reports about this study, some critiquing it as alarmist, some welcoming it as speaking truth. Granted, these numbers seem pretty outrageous, but the numbers are not the most important part of this report. What's most important is the general relationship of impacts to each other, the approximate...

URL: http://www.policymic.com/articles/15470/new-climate-change-study-proves-climate-change-will-cause-6-million-annual-deaths-by-2030
Enclosure: http://media1.policymic.com/site/articles/15470/photo.jpg

Shell rejects Total warning over Arctic oil search

Guardian: Shell has rejected a plea from its French rival Total that the energy industry should abandon its search for oil in the Arctic on the grounds that a spill would ruin the reputation of any company involved. The Anglo-Dutch company, which was forced to halt its recent drilling operation in the Chukchi Sea after vital safety equipment broke, said it would continue its longer-term work. "At Shell, we believe the Arctic has significant untapped potential and will play an increasingly important role...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/sep/28/shell-rejects-warning-arctic-oil
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/9/28/1348847966979/Greenpeace-activists-targ-008.jpg

Rio shift on climate change

Sydney Morning Herald: RIO Tinto's language on climate change has shifted, with the company now recognising that global warming is ''largely caused by human activities''. Previously, Rio had accepted that human activities were making ''a contribution'' to climate change. In a speech yesterday, Rio's head of coal in Australia, Bill Champion, said the company recognised the value of action on climate change. ''The scale of the necessary emissions reductions and the need for adaptation, coupled with the world's increasing...

URL: http://www.smh.com.au/business/rio-shift-on-climate-change-20120928-26qxl.html
Enclosure: http://images.smh.com.au/2012/09/28/3674145/mine-20120928194733268831-300x0.jpg

Did Evangelicals Change the Climate Change Conversation?

ChristianityToday: Katharine Wilkinson has been interested in the environment and religion's role in culture since her undergraduate years at Sewanee: The University of the South. So when the Rhodes Scholar began studying for a Ph.D. in environmental studies at Oxford University, she paired the two to study the evangelical community's discussions of climate change. Wilkinson's published dissertation, Between God and Green: How Evangelicals Are Cultivating a Middle Ground on Climate Change (Oxford University Press),...

URL: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2012/september-web-only/did-evangelicals-change-climate-change-conversation.html

Fires And Invasive Grass Threaten American West

National Public Radio: Cheatgrass, an invasive weed, is choking out native sagebrush in the Great Basin—and setting the stage for hotter, more catastrophic fires there. Jen Pierce, an expert on ancient fires, and Mike Pellant, of the Great Basin Restoration Initiative, talk about how fires are reshaping landscapes in the American West.

URL: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=161955791&ft=1&f=1025

Asia–Pacific Analysis: The slow road to green energy

SciDevNet: More Asia--Pacific countries need to embrace renewable energy and follow the first tentative steps of some governments, says Crispin Maslog. The South-East Asia and Pacific region is blessed with abundant sources of 'green' energy -- including sun, wind, water, biomass and geothermal -- but governments are still not doing enough to harness them. The 30 countries in this part of the world are sitting just a few degrees below and above the equator, and enjoy an estimated 300 days of sunshine...

URL: http://www.scidev.net/en/climate-change-and-energy/opinions/asia-pacific-analysis-the-slow-road-to-green-energy-1.html?utm_source=link&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=en_climatechangeandenergy

Fracking Suspense Cuts Into Second-Home Sales

New York Times: As I report in the real estate section of The Times, many would-be buyers are deferring purchases of second homes in upstate New York out of concern that hydraulic fracturing might be allowed nearby. For now, no one knows whether Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo`s administration will allow this controversial natural gas drilling process to go forward. So far, officials in the Cuomo administration have indicated that the drilling might initially be limited to five New York counties above the Pennsylvania state...

URL: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/28/fracking-suspense-cuts-into-second-home-sales/
Enclosure: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/09/28/blogs/frack/frack-blog480.jpg

EDF, Dong Energy Boost Europe's Wind Power to 100 Gigawatts

 The European Union has reached 100 gigawatts of installed wind-energy capacity, equivalent to the output of 62 coal-fired power stations, the European Wind Energy Association said.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/edf-dong-energy-boost-europes-wind-power-to-100-gigawatts?cmpid=rss

First Solar May Supply Panels for Biggest Solar Project

 First Solar Inc. (FSLR), the world's largest maker of thin-film panels, may win a contract to supply NextEra Energy Inc. (NEE) for what would be the world's biggest solar farm.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/first-solar-may-supply-panels-for-biggest-solar-project?cmpid=rss

How We Use and Save Energy

 When I picked up a gallon of milk at the store today, I looked at it in a new way. I was buying energy. This insight came courtesy of the US Energy Information Administration's recent  'Today in Energy' article about industrial energy consumption. It turns out that we use about 30 percent of our energy for industrial processes, according to the fed

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/09/how-we-use-and-save-energy?cmpid=rss

WTO to Probe U.S. Anti-Subsidy Duties on Chinese Imports

 The World Trade Organization will decide whether U.S. anti-subsidy duties affecting $7.3 billion of Chinese products such as solar panels, thermal paper, wind towers and steel wire violate global commerce rules.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/wto-to-probe-u-s-anti-subsidy-duties-on-chinese-imports?cmpid=rss

What Happened to the Solar Renewable Energy Credit Market in New Jersey?

 Earlier this summer, New Jersey policymakers tried to fix the solar renewable energy credit (SREC) market that had helped the state to become one of the largest solar energy producers in the country. Is the legislative solution working? Not so much, said a solar project developer at the Renewable Energy Finance Forum in San Francisco on Thursday.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/new-jerseys-fix-for-solar-energy-credit-market-isnt-working?cmpid=rss

China Gets Serious on Solar Energy

 After talking for much of the past year about plans to develop its solar power industry, Beijing may finally be starting to transform its words into action based on the latest signals coming from mid-sized panel maker JA Solar (Nasdaq: JASO) and an unusual move by leading US manufacturer First Solar (Nasdaq: FSLR). These two developments are intere

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/09/china-gets-serious-on-solar-energy?cmpid=rss

Obama Versus Romney: Everything You Need to Know About Where the Candidates Stand on Energy Policy

 Clean energy is an important part of the economy of Colorado, which is the location of the first presidential debate on October 3rd.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/obama-versus-romney-everything-you-need-to-know-about-where-the-candidates-stand-on-energy-policy?cmpid=rss

Mega-Turbines Poised for Serial Production

 What are the challenges involved in serial production of the new generation of huge offshore wind turbines? So far nobody really knows, as Vestas' plans for a 7 MW turbine are on hold until 2014, and Siemens' 6 MW SWT-6.0 and Alstom's 6 MW Haliade 150 are both still in the testing phase. After winning the French tender for 1.43 GW, Alstom plans to roll out its monster turbine by scaling up its prototype manufacturing facility in St Nazaire, France using lessons learned from automotive manufacturing.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/mega-turbines-poised-for-serial-production?cmpid=rss

The case for expanding UK airports is based on fallacy

Guardian: When politicians say that we need more runways and more airports, they invariably claim that "the economy" depends on them. They seldom specify what they mean by this, but in most cases they seem to have business flights in mind. Both Tim Yeo and George Osborne – two of the people within the Conservative party who have been pushing hardest for expansion – suggest that the main economic benefit of greater airport capacity will be more business flights. In the article in which he asked David Cameron...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/georgemonbiot/2012/sep/28/expanding-uk-airports-runways
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/9/27/1348764744282/Planes-queuing-for-takeof-006.jpg

UK shale gas is more lead balloon than silver bullet

Guardian: With the UK government expected to give the go-ahead for shale gas exploitation "soon", it's a good time to re-enter the smoke and mirrors world of fracking. There are plenty of people bubbling with excitement at the prospect of the drilling beginning. They argue that shale gas has been the biggest cause of carbon dioxide emission cuts in the US recently, thanks to the replacement of coal. It's cheap too, they say, again pointing again to the US, and there's a vast amount under our feet here in...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2012/sep/28/shale-gas-fracking-uk-carbon-energy
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Environment/Pix/columnists/2012/4/17/1334672731980/Fracking-for-shale-gas-in-007.jpg

American Wind Manufacturers Lay Off 1, 100 Workers In One Month, Citing Expiring Wind Tax Credit

 In just over one month, wind manufacturers in the U.S. have announced layoffs of more than 1,130 workers around the country. The layoffs come in states such as Colorado, Florida, and Iowa that are considered "battlegrounds" in national elections.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/american-wind-manufacturers-lay-off-1100-workers-in-one-month-citing-expiring-wind-tax-credit?cmpid=rss

Romney's Climate Reversal

Harvard Crimson: In 2010, at the height of his transition from failed primary candidate to Republican Party nominee, Mitt Romney released "No Apology." The book, part memoir and part policy platform, offers--in light of profound skepticism on the right--a moderately progressive stance on climate change. "I believe that climate change is occurring," Romney wrote. "I also believe that human activity is a contributing factor. I am uncertain how much of the warming, however, is attributable to man and how much is attributable...

URL: http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/9/28/harvard-climate-romney/

Our survival depends on fighting climate change

High Country News: I am 88 and have seen a lot of change over the decades, but I do not think anyone living now has ever faced a more serious threat to life than the threat of global climate change. As President Obama said recently, "More droughts and floods and wildfires are not a joke. They're a threat to our children's future." I come from a far different time. Born in a coal-mining town, I was raised on a ranch five miles out of Lander, Wyo., just two miles from where my mother was born, in 1901. I went to one-room...

URL: http://www.hcn.org/hcn/wotr/our-survival-depends-on-fighting-climate-change

Indonesia's Aceh revokes palm permit after legal challenge

Reuters: Indonesia's Aceh province has revoked a controversial permit issued to a palm oil firm accused of breaching a ban on forest clearing, a spokesman said on Friday, in a rare climbdown following a legal challenge by environmental groups. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has set a goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by saving Indonesia's dwindling tropical rainforests, the world's third-largest, a pledge that won the promise of $1 billion from Norway should he succeed. But the effort is...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/28/us-indonesia-forests-palm-idUSBRE88R09T20120928?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Reports: Sharp Solar's Wrexham plant to close as company exits Europe

BusinessGreen: Sharp reportedly plans to end production and sales of solar photovoltaic products in Europe and the US as early as next year. Several news outlets carry reports today suggesting the company will concentrate production in Japan as part of a turnaround plan approved by banks yesterday. The deal could also see the sale of three Japanese manufacturing plants. The company was planning to shift its European headquarters from Germany to Wrexham, North Wales, as recently as June, but now the site looks...

URL: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2213123/reports-sharp-solars-wrexham-plant-to-close-as-company-exits-europe?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=Reports%3A+Sharp+Solar%27s+Wrexham+plant+to+close+as+company+exits+Europe

Species loss, climate change linked

United Press International: Species loss and reduced biodiversity make nature more sensitive to climate change, Swedish researchers say. This is especially true for species that sustain important functions such as water purification and crop pollination in a changing environment, they said. Scientists at the University of Gothenberg say high biodiversity acts as an insurance policy as it increases the likelihood at least some species will be sufficiently resilient to sustain those important functions. Experiments with...

URL: http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2012/09/26/Species-loss-climate-change-linked/UPI-61141348690230/?spt=hs&or=sn

Action on climate change crucial to water and food security, Ban stresses at UN event

UN: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called again for urgent and concrete action on climate change, as high-level officials gathered at the United Nations to discuss the growing global concern over the impacts of the phenomenon on food and water security. "Action on climate change remains a major piece of unfinished business," Mr. Ban told an event hosted by Qatar on the sidelines of the General Debate of the 67th session of the General Assembly. Last December, Member States agreed to reach...

URL: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?Cr=climate+change&Cr1=&NewsID=43082#.UGVjYCI4Fsw
Enclosure: http://www.un.org/News/dh/photos/large/2012/August/27-08-fao.jpg

Death toll from climate change estimated at 400000. In 2010

Philadelphia Inquirer: A report released last week on the human costs of climate change estimates that 400,000 people on our planet died from its consequences in 2010. That number is expected to rise to almost 700,000 by 2030. Sadly, climate change denialists are likely to ignore these new findings. But they do so at their own peril. Deaths from diarrheal disease, hunger, meningitis, illnesses related to heat and cold or carried by insects, not to mention a plethora of environmental disasters (flooding, hurricanes) are...

URL: http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/public_health/Death-toll-from-climate-change-estimated-at-400000-In-2010.html
Enclosure: http://media.philly.com/images/UN+Climate+Change+Image.JPG

Caught Between Quarries and Sea Erosion

Inter Press Service: After more than a century of fighting sea erosion by massively dumping granite boulders along the beaches of southern Kerala state, environmentalists and administrators are beginning to see that this has been a costly and ineffective solution. Since 1890 when granite blocks were first used to construct a 1.5 km sea wall near the pilgrim town of Varkala, entire hills have vanished and vast pits gouged out to extract a mineral that is also in high demand by the construction industry. Ajayakumar...

URL: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/09/caught-between-quarries-and-sea-erosion/
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Cheap coal, EU rules threaten British energy crunch

Reuters: Britain could face an energy supply crunch this decade as cheap coal encourages plant operators to race through generation hours before new EU environmental rules come into force, then shutter generating capacity ahead of schedule next year. High gas prices and lack of clarity on incentives for investment in renewable energy are meanwhile seen hampering plans to replace about a fifth of the country's electricity generation with cleaner alternatives over the next 10 years. Nine UK-based coal...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/28/us-power-generation-britain-idUSBRE88R0NQ20120928?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Ethiopia turns to wind power to boost energy security

AlertNet: Ethiopia is venturing into large-scale wind power generation for the first time as it embarks on an ambitious plan to increase its electrical capacity four-fold by 2015 to meet rising domestic demand and gain export revenues. While hydroelectric power will remain a predominant energy source, the country is looking to diversify its production of renewable power. Hydro power is vulnerable to the effects of climatic change, and non-renewable fuels such as gasoline and charcoal are polluting and expensive....

URL: http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/ethiopia-turns-to-wind-power-to-boost-energy-security

Changing Calif. climate a threat to crops

San Francisco Chronicle: Farmers have always been gamblers, long accustomed to betting on the probabilities of the weather. But for the Napa Valley, where temperatures have been ideal for the wine industry, shifts in the Earth's climate could be a game-changer. "They're used to rolling the dice every year," said Stuart Weiss, a conservation biologist and chief scientist at the Creekside Center for Earth Observation in Menlo Park, which assists growers and municipalities dealing with the disruptions caused by the changing...

URL: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Changing-Calif-climate-a-threat-to-crops-3901021.php
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Davey: 20 new gas power plants in the pipeline for the UK

BusinessGreen: Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey has given the clearest indication yet that he expects gas to continue to play a major role in the UK's energy mix for at least the next two decades, revealing 20 new gas-fired power plants are likely to built over the next few years. Speaking to the Guardian, Davey said the government was planning 20GW of new gas capacity by 2030, but insisted that the surge in new gas capacity would not crowd out investment in renewables, nor lead to the UK breaking...

URL: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2213148/davey-20-new-gas-power-plants-in-the-pipeline-for-the-uk?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=Davey%3A+20+new+gas+power+plants+in+the+pipeline+for+the+UK

Flooding in north-east England leaves homes needing to be demolished

Guardian: Residents of a block of flats near Newcastle have been told their homes will have to be demolished after their foundations were washed away by heavy floodwaters earlier this week. Dramatic pictures of the damage to the flats in Spencer Court, Newburn, showed the building looking perilous after the torrent left it in danger of collapsing. The pilings holding up the four-storey development were exposed by the flood, which was reportedly caused by a collapsed culvert. Residents moved out after...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/sep/28/flooding-north-east-england-homes-demolished
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/9/28/1348830527564/Spencer-Court-Newcastle-010.jpg

Air Leakage Degrades the Thermal Performance of Walls

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No surprises here — but testing by the Building Science Corporation begins to quantify the problem

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For the past five years, researchers at the Building Science Corporation (BSC) in Massachusetts have been testing the thermal performance of a variety of wall assemblies as part of an ambitious project to develop a new metric to replace R-valueMeasure of resistance to heat flow; the higher the R-value, the lower the heat loss. The inverse of U-factor. . (I last reported on the project in my August 2011 article, [A Bold Attempt to Slay R-Value](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/musings/bold-attempt-slay-r-value).)

BSC researchers recently released information on the multi-year project:

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URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/musings/air-leakage-degrades-thermal-performance-walls

Why the UN Still Matters on Climate Change

Huffington Post: John Bolton, the former U.S. Ambassador to the UN, once quipped: "There is no United Nations. There is an international community that occasionally can be led by the only real power left in the world -- that's the United States -- when it suits our interests and when we can get others to go along." The failure of the UN to reach a comprehensive global agreement on climate change in recent years has turned many Americans into Boltonites. Disenchanted by the inefficiencies of the UN process and all...

URL: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/evan-juska/united-nations-climate-change_b_1920300.html

Report shows climate change behind the current drought and summer wild fires

Examiner: Tuesday the House Committee on Natural Resources and Energy Minority staff released a new report which concludes the current drought and last summer's wildfires are in part due to climate change. This is the second of a three-part series on that Report. The first article reported evidence that our nation is getting warmer. In this article, we examine excerpts from the Report that connect the current drought and last summers wildfires to global warming. Drought "As of early September, 64%...

URL: http://www.examiner.com/article/report-shows-climate-change-behind-the-current-drought-and-summer-wild-fires
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Despite Record Drought, Farmers Expect Banner Year

National Public Radio: After one of the driest summers on record, recent rains have helped in some parts of the country. But overall, the drought has still intensified. The latest tracking classifies more than a fifth of the contiguous United States in "extreme or exceptional" drought, the worst ratings. In some parts of the Lower Midwest, water-starved crops have collapsed, but the farmers have not. Farmers across the country are surviving, and many are even thriving. This year, despite the dismal season, farmers stand...

URL: http://www.npr.org/2012/09/27/161893233/despite-record-drought-farmers-expect-banner-year?ft=1&f=1025
Enclosure: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=161893233&m=161893634

Continuing Carbon Emissions Could Have Devastating Impacts on Poor Countries

Huffington Post: Populations and livelihoods -- mostly in developing countries -- will suffer as average global temperatures continue to rise. This is according to a study, conducted by the humanitarian organization DARA, which found climate change could cost the world more than $1.2 trillion annually and contribute to the deaths of more than 100 million people if action against climate change isn't taken. Together, the cost of air pollution and climate change could rise to 3.2 percent of the global GDP by 2030,...

URL: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tim-profeta/the-climate-post-continui_b_1920532.html

Agriculture causes 80% of tropical deforestation

Mongabay: Agriculture is the direct driver of roughly 80 percent of tropical deforestation, while logging is the biggest single driver of forest degradation, says a new report funded by the British and Norwegian governments. The report, authored by Gabrielle Kissinger of Lexeme Consulting in Vancouver and Martin Herold and Veronique De Sy of Wageningen University in the Netherlands, presents an overview of drivers of deforestation to inform policymakers involved in developing the REDD+ mechanism, an international...

URL: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/0927-drivers-of-deforestation.html
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Drought-hit hog producers face tough choice: struggle or fold

Reuters: With the worst drought in half a century driving feed prices sky high, pork producers are facing an untenable choice: drain their savings and gamble on a better future, or sell off their herd and get out of the business altogether. A disappointing corn harvest has forced the slaughter of sows - adult female hogs that are the building blocks of a herd - at record rates, swelling pork supplies and sending prices plunging. As a result, consumers could be treated to cheap pork this fall but would...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/27/us-usa-drought-pork-producers-idUSBRE88Q1H220120927?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29
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Oxfam Warns Climate Change And Extreme Weather Will Cause Food Prices To Soar

ThinkProgress: A report from Oxfam warns that global warming and extreme weather will combine to create devastating food price shocks in the coming decades. Oxfam had previously warned that corn or maize would see a 177% rise in price by 2030 due to climate change and other factors (see Oxfam: Extreme Weather Has Helped Push Tens of Millions into "Hunger and Poverty" in "Grim Foretaste" of Warmed World). Further modeling the impact of warming-driven extreme weather shocks leads Oxfam to conclude corn prices...

URL: http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/09/27/795811/oxfam-warns-climate-change-and-extreme-weather-will-cause-food-prices-to-soar/?mobile=nc
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A Bipartisan Vote Against European Air Fines

New York Times: Approved unanimously on Saturday before Congress adjourned for a fall campaign hiatus, the Senate bill drew relatively little attention. It was the "European Union Emissions Trading Scheme Prohibition Act of 2011," the latest attempt to exempt American airlines from paying fees imposed by the European Union to cover the greenhouse gases their planes emit while flying to and from European airports. The House passed a somewhat tougher bill last October. Because the bills have some differences, the...

URL: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/27/a-bipartisan-vote-against-european-air-fines/

Solar Power International 2012: The Best Place to be an Installer?

 Solar Power International may be the best place in the country to be a solar installer. Hundreds of companies spent tens of thousands of dollars on booths, presentations, parties, and message crafting, all to get a consumer to use their product. The conference was an international product and service showcase, and installers were some of the most popular people there.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/solar-power-international-2012-the-best-place-to-be-an-installer?cmpid=rss

Another Week Brings More Pessimistic Drought News

Climate Central: As has been the case throughout the month of September, the latest weekly drought update shows that drought conditions have tightened their grip on the Plains States and Western U.S., and the overall drought footprint expanded to encompass 65.45 percent of the lower 48 states, up from 64.8 percent on Sept. 18. This represents the highest areal coverage in the 12-year history of the Drought Monitor analysis, topping last week's record. As of Sept. 25, the worst categories of drought -- extreme...

URL: http://www.climatecentral.org/news/drought-conditions-grow-more-severe-in-plains-and-midwest-15053?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed
Enclosure: http://www.climatecentral.org/images/sized/images/uploads/news/9-27-12-Andrew-DroughtMonitor925-500x362.jpg

Farming for an Uncertain Future

New York Times: Nearly 40 years ago, while teaching environmental studies at California State University in Sacramento, Wes Jackson began reflecting that something about the country's agricultural practices wasn't quite right. Soon that instinct grew into a powerful itch. "The source of that itch was things like, my golly, do we want to be putting those chemicals out here? And my golly, look at that soil erosion. Don't we have a conservation service, or aren't they paying attention? And my golly, look at the...

URL: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/27/q-and-a-farming-for-an-uncertain-future/
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Focus on climate change resilience of tuber crops

The Hindu: Agricultural scientists across the country are joining hands in a research project to assess the potential of tuber crops like tapioca and yam to withstand climate change. Scientists from 18 States are being equipped to take up the project. As many as 35 delegates representing different agricultural universities are participating in a training programme on germplasm conservation, climate change mitigation and e-networking which began at the Central Tuber Crop Research Institute (CTCRI) here on...

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/focus-on-climate-change-resilience-of-tuber-crops/article3941398.ece

UK renewable energy output jumps by 42%

Guardian: The government has today released its latest quarterly energy statistics, confirming that the UK's renewable energy sector is continuing to expand rapidly, while also fuelling concerns that high gas prices are forcing energy companies to switch to more polluting coal power. The statistics from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) show renewable electricity output during the second quarter of 2012 rose 6.5 per cent year-on-year to 8.13TWh, while capacity soared 42.4 per cent to 14.2GW,...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/sep/27/uk-renewable-energy-output-jumps
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Environment/Pix/columnists/2012/2/24/1330095821890/Thanet-Offshore-Wind-Farm-005.jpg

PM for legally-binding deal by all countries

Financial Express: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday stressed immediate crafting of a legally-binding agreement by all countries based on equity and common but differentiated responsibilities to face the climate change challenges to avert uncertain future for the humanity. "The climate change challenges are formidable, but unfortunately our response due to lack of determination has so far been inadequate. If this trend continues, we will cause irrevocable damage to our planet and an uncertain future for...

URL: http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/index.php?ref=MjBfMDlfMjdfMTJfMV8xXzE0NDg3Mw==

View: Renewable Energy Too Important to be Dismissed

 The LA Times article "Taxpayers, Ratepayers will Fund California Solar Plants" took on the world of solar policy in a totally irresponsible way and got it all wrong. Renewable energy and distributed generation are too important to LA, the U.S. and the world to be dismissed so flippantly.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/view-renewable-energy-too-important-to-be-dismissed?cmpid=rss

Summer's over, but drought persists; most of Lower 48 affected

MSNBC: You'd think the end of summer would mean the end -- or at least beginning of the end -- of this year's drought, but the nation's official stat keepers on Thursday revealed otherwise. With the Midwest corn harvest in full swing, the worst U.S. drought in decades actually worsened: 65.45 percent of the lower 48 states was in some form of drought on Tuesday, up from 64.82 percent a week earlier, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The 65.45 percent is a new record in the 12-year index tracked...

URL: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/27/14124426-summers-over-but-drought-persists-two-thirds-of-contiguous-us-affected?lite
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Full Planet, Empty Plates: The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity

Earth Policy Institute: "The U.S. Great Drought of 2012 has raised corn prices to the highest level in history. The world price of food, which has already doubled over the last decade, is slated to climb higher, ushering in a new wave of food unrest," says Lester R. Brown, author of Full Planet, Empty Plates: The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity (W.W. Norton & Company). "This year's corn crop shortfall will accelerate the transition from the era of abundance and surpluses to an era of chronic scarcity," notes Brown,...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/full-planet-empty-plates/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/FullPlanetEmptyPlates.jpg

Study: $20 carbon tax could halve US deficit

BusinessGreen: Introducing a national carbon tax of $20 per metric ton could more than halve the United States' spiralling budget deficit over the next 10 years, research by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) said today. The CRS report calculates such a tax could raise about $88bn in 2012, rising to $154bn in 2021. This return could reduce the deficit from a projected $2.3tr in 2020 to $1.1tr. If the deficit rises to the maximum extent projected by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) -- some $10tr...

URL: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2208845/study-usd20-carbon-tax-could-halve-us-deficit?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=Study%3A+%2420+carbon+tax+could+halve+US+deficit

Merkel denies misleading public over nuclear dump

Reuters: German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday denied she had lied to the public about the suitability of a permanent location for the country's central nuclear waste dump when she was environment minister in the 1990s. In a rare five-hour appearance before a parliamentary inquiry, Merkel rebutted allegations that the then government had put political considerations before scientific findings when it decided to focus the search for a waste dump only in Gorleben in northern Germany. "I deny any...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/27/us-germany-merkel-nuclear-idUSBRE88Q13U20120927?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29
Enclosure: http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20120927&t=2&i=657422124&w=460&fh=&fw=&ll=&pl=&r=CBRE88Q16OE00

Texas Tar Sands Tree-Sit Launches to Halt Keystone XL Indefinitely

Truthout: Shannon Bebe and Benjamin Franklin locked themselves to construction equipment working nearly 300 yards away from a tree village blocking construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. (Photo: Tar Sands Blockade) I've known some of the sitters for years. We started off organizing small rallies and protests at the University of North Texas - the usual, a forum here, a documentary screening there. Now some of my best friends are sitting in trees to halt construction of the Keystone XL pipeline in Winnsboro,...

URL: http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/11797-texas-tar-sands-tree-sit-launches-to-halt-keystone-xl-indefinitely
Enclosure: http://truth-out.org/images/092612tar_.jpg

As Temperatures Climb, Salt Marshes Curb Climate Change

redOrbit: With only 6 days separating us from the third-hottest summer on record, the warnings of climate scientists are increasingly being taken with more than just a grain of salt. Many climate scientists are of the opinion that if we haven't passed a tipping point already, then that time is rapidly approaching. Carbon dioxide, one of the most prevalent of our greenhouse gases, acts as a sort of blanket in our atmosphere by trapping in the Earth's heat. As carbon dioxide accumulates, it has the ability...

URL: http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112702077/salt-marshes-increase-carbon-capture-in-warming-temperature-092612/
Enclosure: http://www.redorbit.com/media/uploads/2012/09/SaltMarshCarbonCapture_092712-617x416.jpg

Climate Change, Pollution to Wipe 3.2% From Global GDP by 2030

Environmental Leader: Climate change is already stripping 1.6 percent annually from global GDP, amounting to $1.2 trillion, a figure that will double to 3.2 percent by 2030 as temperatures escalate and carbon-related pollution continues, according to a DARA report. The Spain-based NGO`s report, "Climate Vulnerability Monitor: A Guide to the Cold Calculus of a Hot Planet," estimates climate change causes 400,000 deaths on average each year, primarily due to hunger and communicable diseases. Separately, fossil fuels...

URL: http://www.environmentalleader.com/2012/09/27/climate-change-pollution-to-wipe-3-2-from-global-gdp-by-2030/

U.S. states struggle with water woes amid drought

Reuters: The worst drought in more than half a century baked more than two thirds of the continental United States this summer and its harsh effects continue to plague the parched cities and towns of the Great Plains. Ask the 94,000 people of San Angelo, Texas who are running out of water. Fast. The city -- once known as "the oasis" of dry west Texas -- now says it only has enough water supplies to last one more year. On October 16, it will enforce its highest level of emergency measures to save its...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/27/us-usa-drought-shortages-idUSBRE88Q1A820120927?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Drought area widens in U.S., farmers frustrated

Reuters: More than 65 percent of the contiguous United States was under at least "moderate" drought as of September 25, up from 64.82 percent a week earlier, according to the Drought Monitor, a weekly compilation of data gathered by federal and academic scientists. The portion of the United States under "exceptional" drought - the most dire classification - rose to 6.12 percent from 5.96 percent a week earlier. Conditions were most severe in the High Plains, with severe or worse drought levels covering...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/27/us-usa-drought-idUSBRE88Q1BI20120927?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

California farmers examine climate change issues

Fresno Bee: New science and research has San Joaquin Valley farmers taking a harder look at the effect that climate change may have on their industry. If researcher's predictions hold true, the Valley's multi-billion dollar agriculture industry will be hit with longer stretches of hot temperatures, fewer colder days and shrinking water supplies. What that means for agriculture is potentially lower yields, a loss of revenue and fewer acres being farmed. Farmers and industry leaders say that while there...

URL: http://www.thenewstribune.com/2012/09/27/2312297/california-farmers-examine-climate.html

Another journalist attacked in Cambodia for covering illegal logging

Mongabay: Two weeks after an environmental journalist was found murdered in the trunk of his car, another journalist has been brutally attacked in Cambodia. Ek Sokunthy with the local paper Ta Prum says he was beaten in his home by three assailants by a pistol and a stick. The attack follows swiftly after the high-profile murder of 44-year-old forest journalist Hang Serei Oudom. Ta Prum's Phum Chesda told the Phnom Penh Post that Sokunthy had written an article on illegal logging last month. Sokunthy received...

URL: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/0927-hance-journalist-attack.html

New Website Demands Obama, Romney Address Climate Change

Friends of the Earth: As the first debates approach, President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney have remained virtually silent on the most urgent global threat to the American dream: fossil-fueled climate change. Today, an aggressive social media campaign launches to mobilize Americans to demand that the candidates tell voters where they stand on climate change and how they would address it. ClimateSilence.org, a project of Forecast the Facts and Friends of the Earth Action, urges voters to sign a petition to Obama...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/new-website-demands-obama-romney-address-climate-change/
Enclosure: http://climatesilence.org/

Worst flood for decades uproots 10,000 in central Nigeria

Reuters: Nigeria's worst flooding in decades has displaced more than 10,000 people in the centre of the country over the past week and stranded some villagers on rooftops, emergency services said on Thursday. At least 140 people have been killed around Nigeria and tens of thousands have been forced to abandon their homes since the beginning of July, officials say. The flooding has been the worst for more than 50 years, according to Yushua Shuaib, a spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/27/us-nigeria-flood-idUSBRE88Q12U20120927?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29
Enclosure: http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20120927&t=2&i=657416133&w=460&fh=&fw=&ll=&pl=&r=CBRE88Q15WP00

United Kingdom: Scattering moss can restore key carbon sink

New Scientist: "Save the bogs" isn't as catchy as "save the whales", but the cause is just as worthwhile. UK peat bogs damaged by 150 years of pollution are to be restored with a scattering of tiny mosses. The rebuilt bogs should improve water quality and could slow climate change. In the future, they might even be used to geoengineer a cooler climate by storing carbon dioxide. Peat bogs depend on a protective layer of sphagnum moss that traps the peat layers, as well as providing the raw material for new peat....

URL: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn22313-scattering-moss-can-restore-key-carbon-sink.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=climate-change
Enclosure: http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/dn22313/dn22313-1_300.jpg

Environmentalists get vocal on Obama, Romney silence on climate change

The Hill: A handful of environmental groups are amplifying calls Thursday for President Obama and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney to speak up on climate change after a summer of devastating drought, fires, storms and heat. Friends of the Earth and Forecast the Facts debuted a website Thursday called ClimateSilence.org that asks visitors to sign a petition asking Obama and Romney how they would address climate change if elected. The website, which features photos of Obama and Romney with their mouths...

URL: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/258961-enviros-get-vocal-on-obama-romney-climate-change-silence

Updated Encyclopedia Page on Photovoltaic Systems

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Since the price of solar electric panels is dropping sharply, it was time to update the GBA Encyclopedia

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[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/updated-encyclopedia-page-photovoltaic-systems)

Only a few years ago, the installed cost of a grid-connected photovoltaic(PV) Generation of electricity directly from sunlight. A photovoltaic cell has no moving parts; electrons are energized by sunlight and result in current flow. (PVPhotovoltaics. Generation of electricity directly from sunlight. A photovoltaic (PV) cell has no moving parts; electrons are energized by sunlight and result in current flow.) system was about $7 per watt. Now that inexpensive PV modules are widely available, the price has been cut in half (to about $3.50 per watt) in many areas of the U.S.

As architect Jesse Thompson pointed out in his GBAGreenBuildingAdvisor.com guest blog, [PV Systems Have Gotten Dirt Cheap](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/guest-blogs/pv-systems-have-gotten-dirt-cheap), falling PV prices are a game-changer.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/updated-encyclopedia-page-photovoltaic-systems

U.K. Seeks to Use Climate Funds to Spur Kenyan Geothermal

 The U.K. government plans to spur use of Britain's green technology and financial expertise for geothermal and wind power projects in Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania by tapping billions of pounds of state funds.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/u-k-seeks-to-use-climate-funds-to-spur-kenyan-geothermal?cmpid=rss

First Solar Policy in Andhra Pradesh, India Cuts Taxes, Waives Fees

 India's Andhra Pradesh state introduced its first solar-energy policy, offering tax benefits to projects and exemptions from power-transmission fees as the local government seeks investment to curb electricity shortages.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/first-solar-policy-in-andhra-pradesh-india-cuts-taxes-waives-fees?cmpid=rss

Three Take-Away Solar Messages from Hamm, Resch, and Clinton at SPI

 Solar Power International 2012 has ended, yet there are still three core marketing-related messages that have stayed with me almost three weeks later from SPI's keynote speakers, Julia Hamm, Rhone Resch, and former President Bill Clinton. Of course, all of these insights apply to other positions in our industry, especially those in leadership rolls

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/09/three-take-away-solar-messages-from-spi-from-hamm-resch-and-clinton?cmpid=rss

Renewable U: College Campuses Invest in Renewable Energy

 Over the summer, crews at Rutgers University's Livingston Campus began transforming a 32-acre, 3,500-spot parking lot into one of the largest solar canopy arrays in the nation. The array will have a capacity of 8 megawatts, enough to power 1,000 homes.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/renewable-u-college-campuses-invest-in-renewable-energy?cmpid=rss

Organised crime behind up to 90 percent of tropical deforestation - report

AlertNet: Organised crime trade worth billions of dollars is responsible for 50 to 90 percent of illegal logging in parts of the Amazon basin, Central Africa and Southeast Asia, with implications for deforestation, climate change and the well-being of indigenous people, said a report released Thursday. "Green Carbon: Black Trade,' by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and INTERPOL, said illegal logging is now worth $30 to $100 billion annually and accounts for 15 to 30 percent of the overall...

URL: http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/organised-crime-behind-up-to-90-percent-of-tropical-deforestation-report
Enclosure: http://dev.grida.no/logging/layout/RRAlogging_english_scr.pdf

Drainline Heat Exchangers

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This simple system for recovering heat from wastewater makes a lot of sense — especially for homes and commercial buildings that use a lot of hot water

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[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/energy-solutions/drainline-heat-exchangers)

Over the past few weeks I've written about various strategies to produce hot water efficiently. We've seen that tankless water heaters are more efficient than storage water heaters (though are not without their drawbacks), and we've learned that heat-pump water heaters produce two to three times as much heat per unit of electricity consumed as electric water heaters that rely on electric resistance heat.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/energy-solutions/drainline-heat-exchangers

Canada needs flexible policy to cut carbon emissions

Globe and Mail: Rapid oil and gas development poses environmental challenges. Notably, the oil and gas sector's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have been steadily rising since 2005, with IISD forecasting a 50 per cent increase by 2020 over 2005 levels. This means 25 per cent of Canada's total GHG emissions are likely to come from the oil and gas sector by 2020. Recognizing that reducing oil and gas emissions is central to achieving Canada's GHG target of 17 per cent below 2005 levels, the federal government is...

URL: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/canada-needs-flexible-policy-to-cut-carbon-emissions/article4571375/?cmpid=rss1&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheGlobeAndMail-Front+%28The+Globe+and+Mail+-+Latest+News%29
Enclosure: http://beta.images.theglobeandmail.com/1aa/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/article4571374.ece/ALTERNATES/w220/oil-sands.jpg

Dow Corning and LG Electronics Team Up for PV System Installation, Efficiency Testing

 South Korea's Seowon University is going solar, and you'll never guess who's lending their considerable assistance to help bring that about – Dow Corning and LG Electronics. In a first-of-its-kind collaboration between the silicon tech giant and the electronics megalith, Dow Corning and LG are joining forces and technologies to install a photovoltaic (PV) array on the roof of Seowon University's campus in Chung-ju.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/dow-corning-and-lg-electronics-team-up-for-pv-system-installation-efficiency-testing?cmpid=rss

The Question Day 1: What is the Most Difficult Issue Facing the Solar Industry?

 It's been a year of both continued expansion and mounting challenges for the global solar industry. RenewableEnergyWorld asked solar industry executives to share their thoughts and insights on one burning question:

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/09/the-question-day-1-what-is-the-most-difficult-issue-facing-the-solar-industry?cmpid=rss

New Yorkers Call on Gov. Cuomo to Save Seneca Lake from LNG Fracking

EcoWatch: More than 100 people and close to a dozen businesses came together to celebrate the Seneca Lake Scenic Byway today, while also bringing attention to the fact that fracking and Inergy`s proposed natural gas and NGL (natural gas liquids) storage facility threaten the Scenic Byway and local tourism. Participants held a press conference calling on Gov. Cuomo, the NY Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and State Legislature to protect the Scenic Byway and surrounding region from the economic...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/save-seneca-lake-from-fracking/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/lpg1.jpg

Protecting the people, not the polluters, says Greenpeace

Mongabay: Greenpeace is dedicated to ending deforestation and preventing catastrophic climate change. We are often recognized for putting our lives and freedoms on the line to accomplish these goals. In the U.S. alone, Greenpeace is campaigning to save ancient forests, speaking out against the coal industry; mobilizing millions tosave the arctic from new oil drilling; and pushing key industries to commit to renewable energy. We are willing to forgo corporate and government funding to do our work, believing...

URL: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/0926-greenpeace-vs-nepstad.html
Enclosure: http://www.greenpeace.org/international/outsourcing-hot-air

UK Seeks to Use Climate Funds to Spur Kenyan Geothermal

Bloomberg: The U.K. government plans to spur use of Britain's green technology and financial expertise for geothermal and wind power projects in Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania by tapping billions of pounds of state funds. Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said he will head a trade delegation, including 30 executives from 19 U.K. companies, to the East African countries from Oct. 1 to 5. The markets have the potential to develop more than 15,000 megawatts of geothermal power, as well as wind and...

URL: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-09-26/u-dot-k-dot-seeks-to-use-climate-funds-to-spur-kenyan-geothermal

Factbox: Carbon trading schemes around the world

Reuters: Carbon trading schemes are emerging all over the world as governments try to meet greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets in the fight against climate change. Thailand and Vietnam this week announced plans to launch emissions trading schemes. The European Union has agreed to link its own carbon market with Australia's scheme in 2018 and has struck a deal with China to help with the design and implementation of its emissions trading schemes. These moves are encouraging small steps towards...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/26/us-carbon-trading-idUSBRE88P0ZN20120926

Loss of species makes nature more sensitive to climate change, study finds

ScienceDaily: When we wipe out the most sensitive species, human beings reduce the resilience of ecosystems to climate change, reveals a new study from biologists at the University of Gothenburg, published in the journal Ecology Letters. High biodiversity acts as an insurance policy for nature and society alike as it increases the likelihood that at least some species will be sufficiently resilient to sustain important functions such as water purification and crop pollination in a changing environment. "It's...

URL: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120926104301.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29

Climate Change: Can Marine Life Adapt to More Acidic Seas?

KQED: Scientists are concerned about the future of marine speices on the California coast, like this mussel bed. Marine scientists from around the world are gathering in Monterey this week to discuss what is sometimes a little-noticed climate change problem: ocean acidification. The oceans have become about 30 percent more acidic since the start of the Industrial Revolution – the result of soaking up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Today, oceans absorb about a million tons of carbon an hour....

URL: http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/2012/09/26/scientists-grapple-with-local-impacts-of-globally-acidifying-seas/
Enclosure: http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/files/2012/09/musselbed.jpg