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Climate
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CONTENTS:
(1) Emissions cuts not enough, say campaigners
(2) UN reports stark findings on climate
(3) Feeble efforts to avert climate change
(4) Autumn temperatures hit new high
(5) Desertification threatens 30% of earth's surface
(6) Record summer brings confusion
(7) FoE's case for fighting climate change
(8) Climate and Energy - New Round of Talks
(9) MSP turns up the heat on climate change Bill
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Hull Friends of the Earth Home Page
MSP turns up the heat on climate change Bill
Article courtesy of Scotsman.com News
North and Leith MP Mark Lazarowicz has backed a call for further Westminster legislation to tackle climate change.
Mr Lazarowicz, who had a Private Members Bill on sustainable energy recently passed by Parliament, is one of 380 MPs backing Friends of the Earth's The Big Ask campaign.
It calls for annual year on year cuts of climate change emissions.
He said: "My Bill on climate change and sustainable energy can hopefully play a significant role in promoting small-scale renewable energy, and in turn cut carbon dioxide.
"However, we face a massive task in reducing carbon emissions and attempting to face-off the worst effects of climate change. That's why I'm backing Friends of the Earth's campaign for a climate change Bill.
Friends of the Earth Scotland's chief executive, Duncan McLaren, added: "A climate law will give government and business the framework they need to put the solutions to climate change into practice."
Article dated
September 2006
Climate and Energy - New Round of Talks
Article courtesy of Global Research
By Friends of the Earth International
3 October 2006 – Governments are failing to take the action needed to reach legally binding targets agreed under the Kyoto treaty on climate change, Friends of the Earth International warned ahead of a key meeting of Ministers from 20 of the biggest energy-consuming nations in Monterrey, Mexico.
Some of the proposed ideas to be unveiled in Monterrey are more disturbing than others. Friends of the Earth International condemned as ‘tequila-induced delirium’ an eccentric plan to turn the Amazon rainforest into an international trust and its trees sold, supposedly to protect it from deforestation and thus tackle climate change.
Plans for such a privatisation of the rainforest --to be presented by UK Environment Secretary David Miliband at the gathering in Mexico and reportedly endorsed by Tony Blair – would threaten, among other, the livelihoods and rights of the local communities that depend upon it, as well as the technologies and knowledge they developed for biodiversity use and conservation.
The October 3-4 gathering is the second of the ‘Gleneagles Dialogue on Clean Energy, Climate Change and Sustainable Development’ which was born at the 2005 summit of the group of eight (G-8) richest nations, and sets the stage for crucial United Nations talks on international action to tackle climate change scheduled to take place in Nairobi, Kenya on November 6-17, 2006. As well as mitigation measures, sustainable development and adaptation needs are also due to be discussed. Friends of the Earth International is disappointed that despite requests, civil society participation and contribution is not allowed at the meeting.
According to Friends of the Earth International, existing emission targets under the Kyoto treaty are insufficient to avoid dangerous climate change, with far deeper cuts required. But despite dramatic scientific warnings and substantial evidence that climate change is happening faster than previously predicted, global emissions are still on the rise. [1]
Catherine Pearce, Friends of the Earth International climate campaigner said: “Last year heads of state at the G8 summit in Gleneagles recognised the urgent need for decisive action against climate change whilst ‘eradicating energy poverty’ around the world. But they are still focused on their dependence of fossil fuels. To adequately address climate change this Dialogue must help to build the conditions for the solutions to flourish. A fundamental transformation of our energy use is required. The richest countries in this room could begin the challenge with reversing investment away from fossil fuels and into renewables and energy efficiency technologies. This would also help to build well needed momentum into the formal UN climate negotiations. "[2]
In particular, G8 leaders must commit themselves to strong future actions to combat climate change. These should include increased efforts to meet Kyoto targets, and a clear signal that their commitments will increase after 2012 (when the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol is due to end). Collectively the G8 nations, which represent just 13 per cent of the world’s population, are responsible for 45 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Many external inputs will be received during the meeting, including the International Energy Agency, a presentation from Sir Nick Stern on his findings so far on the economics of climate change, and contributions from the World Bank on their Clean Energy Investment Framework which feeds directly into the Dialogue.
Article dated
October 2006
FoE's case for fighting climate change
Article courtesy of Euractiv.com
Studies make business case for fighting climate change
In Short:
Avoided damage worth trillions of dollars and new business opportunities for the UK - these are the latest in a series of reports on the positive effects of fighting global warming.
The anticipated high economic cost of climate action was the main reason behind the rejection of the Kyoto Protocol by the United States. In Europe, business circles have criticised the EU's CO2 trading scheme for pushing up electricity prices.
Researchers at the Global Development and Environment Institute at Tufts University (United States) say that trillions of dollars of damage could be avoided by the end of the century if resolute action is taken now to reduce global warming.
Meanwhile, other research carried out for oil major Shell for the first time quantified the potential size of the market for businesses that propose technologies or services to combat climate change.
A study commissioned by environmental group Friends of the Earth and published on 13 October looks at the potential costs and benefits of warmer weather around the globe. The Tufts study, "Climate change - the costs of inaction", says possible benefits of global warming such as increased agricultural yields will quickly be offset by the costs of extreme weather events - droughts, floods, powerful storms, heat waves.
"The effects of variable and extreme weather events are bad for everyone, North and South - and outweigh any potential benefits," the researchers write. "Beyond 2° Celsius, all regions will suffer from the worsening average effects of climate change."
Based on the assumption that average global temperatures would rise by 4°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100, the researchers predict that annual economic damages could reach US$20 trillion by 2100, or "6 to 8% of global economic output at that time".
In comparison, they say limiting the temperature increase to 2°C would eliminate more than half of these predicted damages. Citing an estimate by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), they say that, by 2100, this would result in $12 trillion worth of avoided annual damages - something that would be achieved by spending "only" $3 trillion per year on climate protection.
For the researchers, the economic implication is that the cost of reducing the damage is worth more than the cost of reducing emissions of global warming gases.
For Friends of the Earth, the environmental NGO that commissioned the study, the report demonstrates that climate change "will not only be an environmental and social disaster, it will also be an economic catastrophe". It says a key tool that could be used at national and European levels would be to define a certain amount of carbon dioxide that the economy would be allowed to emit over a given period of time. Such a "carbon budget" would differ from Kyoto-style emissions reductions targets in that it would be strictly limited and could not be exceeded without a penalty.
In a separate study carried out for Shell, researchers for the first time quantify the businesses opportunities of developing technologies or services to combat climate change.
The study suggests that demand for these products and services could rise as a result of government action and provide a host of new opportunities for SMEs by the year 2010.
It says the market could reach £30bn for British business over the next ten years. Markets identified in the report include the building sector, renewable electricity, renewable road and transport fuels and energy efficiency.
Shell boss Lord Oxburgh said: "The urgent need to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions offers opportunities to the nimble. There is now scope for a wide range of devices and services, which a decade ago would have made no economic sense, and for which there would have been no demand."
The studies will feed in to a wide review on the economics of climate-change launched in Britain a year ago. The review, headed by Sir Nick Stern, tries to draw a comprehensive understanding of the economic challenges posed by climate change and how they can be met, in the UK and globally.
The review is expected to produce a report to the UK Prime Minister and Chancellor by autumn 2006.
Article dated
October 2006
Record summer brings confusion
Article courtesy of Manchester Evening News
RECORD temperatures this summer have confused wildlife in Greater Manchester.
Leaves are falling off the trees later, blackberries have been appearing earlier and some unusual butterflies have been seen.
But the Met Office has warned that humans are to blame for the warmer weather and Friends of the Earth say more action is needed over climate change.
The warmer weather, which has continued in September and October, has resulted in an increase in the number and diversity of animals and plants spotted in the region.
Martin Walker, from the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and Merseyside, said: "We have seen more population explosions of butterflies and dragonflies that did not used to be associated with this area, such as the humming bird hawk moth.
"Other types, such as the clouded yellow and holly blue butterflies and black-tailed skimmer and broad-bodied chaser dragonflies, are becoming more and more noticeable."
As for plants, Dr Kate Lewthwaite, from the Woodland Trust, said: "While we've had some reports of early blackberries, the later signs of autumn, like leaves changing colour, are actually happening even later.
"With spring arriving earlier and earlier, the seasons are getting more muddled."
This summer - measured as being from May to September - was the longest continuous period of hot weather experienced in this country since records began in 1659.
Met Office figures for Greater Manchester in the first half of October show temperatures have been above the average by up to three degrees centigrade.
John Hammond, from the Met Office, said: "The recent rapid warming is almost certainly due to human influence. This is the first time this has been rigorously identified on such a small geographic scale." Campaigners want more actionto combat climate change. Ali Abbas, from Manchester Friends of the Earth, said: "Thousands of people across Greater Manchester have written to their MPs as part of our Big Ask campaign, calling for a Climate Change Bill with annual emissions targets.
"Next month, Tony Blair has the perfect opportunity to answer our call and show real leadership on climate change by including this Bill in the Queen's Speech."
Article dated
October 2006
Desertification threatens 30% of earth's surface
Article courtesy of Elite News
By Goska Romanowicz
Deserts could expand to cover almost a third of the world's surface by the end of the century under climate change, a study of future global drought conditions has found.
The Met Office study, the first of its kind, predicted an increase in the area affected by the most extreme drought from 3 to 30%, areas of severe drought up from 8 to 40% of total land area, and up to half of the earth's surface affected by moderate drought at any one time.
Scientists from the Met Office used the IPCC's medium high emission scenario to drive a climate model, simulating the complex processes of regional rainfall, evaporation and run-off. They classed the results using the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI), a common method on which the US and other countries base their drought alerts, with extreme drought defined as the top 1% of the PDSI scale and severe drought as the top 10%.
Looking back on the increasing degree of desertification across the world over the last 50 years, scientists found strong evidence to suggest this was caused by man-made global warming. A control run of the model simulating the evolution of a climate free of human emissions showed almost no change to drought conditions.
Dr Eleanor Burke, who carried out the research together with colleagues from the Met Office's Hadley Centre, said: "These results are very sobering but it must be pointed out that further research is required to substantiate what is the first look at this issue.
"However, it does indicate the potential seriousness of future climate change impacts if CO2 emissions continue to increase substantially."
While the model predicted global drought conditions with good accuracy, it had some trouble reproducing regional differences. Further research should fill in some of the detail on which regions will be most affected, the Met Office said.
The results of the study, published in the Journal of Hydrometeorology on Thursday, came in the middle of heated political debate on a "climate change law" that would set binding targets for cutting the UK's carbon emissions.
Chris Huhne MP, environment spokesman for the Liberal Democrats, said in response to the Met Office study: "This is yet more evidence of the chaos we will face if action is not taken on climate change.
"The Government must introduce measures including green taxes to bring about the changes in behaviour needed to halt climate chaos.
"Every day that the Government dithers brings us closer to the point of no return."
Article dated
October 2006
Autumn temperatures hit new high
Article courtesy of Guardian Unlimited
By Matt Weaver
Environment campaigners today issued new warnings about the impact of climate change on Britain's wildlife as figures showed this autumn is almost certain to be the warmest on record.
With only three days left until autumn officially ends, average UK temperatures for September, October and November look set to break the 12C mark for the first time.
The previous highest temperature for autumn in central England was 11.8C, set in 1731.
A spokesman for the Met Office said it is "virtually certain" that this autumn will be the warmest for 300 years, and the forecast for the next few days is for further mild weather.
The last time a seasonal average temperature was broken was in summer 1976, the spokesman added. He said it is "possible" that 2006 could be the warmest year on record, despite the cold spring.
"It needs to be a relatively warm December to make the record, but the long-range forecast is for the mild weather to continue," he said. "It is touch and go at this stage."
The current annual record for average temperatures is 10.63C, recorded in 1990 and 1999.
Nick Rau, the Friends of the Earth energy and climate campaigner, said this year's temperatures were not, on their own, enough to prove global warming was happening.
"All the figures are pointing in the same direction," he added. "The climate is become increasingly chaotic, and we're breaking record after record. "It is causing a worrying impact on the natural world, which is now out of sync with a climate that it has adapted to over millions of years."
Mr Rau said the warmer temperatures were hampering efforts to conserve certain kinds of wildlife in special protection areas, because species were migrating to other parts of the country.
He said more catastrophic changes such as the decline in seabird populations recorded in 2004 when sandeels, their main source of food, were driven away from the UK coast by rising water temperatures, could take place.
Article dated
November 2006
Feeble efforts to avert climate change
Article courtesy of Finfacts
By Finfacts Team
IBEC, the Irish employers' representative body, has given an overall welcome to today’s publication of a suite of energy measures by the European Commission. Environment body Friends of the Earth said that the strategy is largely "good news for the dirty energy industry and bad news for people and the planet."
IBEC Director of Policy, Danny McCoy said, "energy is fundamental to economic performance. Given Ireland’s peripheral location, small size and lack of significant indigenous resources the integration of policy across the EU will have clear benefits".
McCoy said that the importance of energy policy has recently been evidenced by rapidly rising fuel prices, increasing concerns over security of supply and ever more stringent environmental obligations. Today’s announcements will be important in delivering clean, reliable and competitive energy as a fundamental priority for the future. Government must now expedite the publication of its energy White Paper integrating the key components of EU policy while reflecting Ireland’s unique characteristics.
IBEC, however, expressed concern regarding the Commission’s proposal for a unilateral EU 20% emissions reduction target by 2020. Effective and equitable emissions reduction will only succeed through the engagement of the US, Australia, China and other emerging economies in a truly comprehensive global strategy.
In the absence of an international framework, a unilateral EU target is unlikely to drive investment in low carbon technologies in Europe but could result in investment outside the EU. This may lead to higher global emissions and less economic prosperity in Europe.
The Commission's energy package is largely "good news for the dirty energy industry and bad news for people and the planet", according to Friends of the Earth.
FoE says that ignoring its own scientific and economic analysis, the Commission proposes to stick to a business-as-usual energy policy, instead of making a paradigm shift to renewable energies and energy efficiency. The plan aims at improving the functioning of the internal energy markets, but leaves billions of Euros of subsidies for fossil and nuclear energy untouched and fails to address the huge external costs to society of dirty energy.
Article dated
January 2007
UN reports stark findings on climate
Article courtesy of Green Consumer Guide
An upcoming UN meeting on climate change will deliver the ‘starkest findings’ on global warming to date, say green group Friends of the Earth. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will release the Fourth Assessment Report on February 2nd in what is expected to detail the most credible evidence of links between human activities and global warming, and outline the impacts of the issue.
The study has been six years in development, and contains contributions from 2500 scientists from around the world.
“This report will show with unquestionable certainty that we are to blame for the last 50 years of warming. The recorded changes in our climate, which had been predicted to start many years from now are already upon us – and some bleak predictions to come,” said Catherine Pearce, Friends of the Earth’s International Climate Campaigner.
“This report should provoke the UK government to move its plans for action on climate change up a gear, ensuring that the climate change law – which is going through Parliament – delivers the cuts in carbon emissions which are needed.”
Article dated
January 2007
Emissions cuts not enough, say campaigners
Article courtesy of Guardian unlimited
By David Adam
Green campaigners and opposition politicians rounded on the government yesterday for not imposing tighter limits on carbon emissions in its amendment of the climate change bill.
Hilary Benn, the environment secretary, said the bill would retain the requirement for a 60% cut in CO2 emissions by 2050, but would not include pollution from the aviation and shipping industries. He said a new advisory committee would be set up to consider whether the limit should be increased and the industries included, as campaigners and scientists have called for: "The draft bill ... will bind us to legally enforceable emission reduction targets at home, while giving us greater clout at the international negotiating table."
The new Committee on Climate Change, to be created by the bill, would be made more independent of government, and given more powers to compel ministers to follow its advice, added Mr Benn.
Tony Juniper, executive director of Friends of the Earth, welcomed the bill, but added: "The bill needs to be beefed up if it is going to deliver the cuts which science tells us is needed. It is ludicrous that the government intends to set the UK's carbon budget for the next 15 years based on out of date targets."
David Nussbaum, chief executive of WWF-UK, said: "If the UK and other developed nations reduce their emissions by 60%, rather than 80%, the world still faces warming of around 4C, which would have disastrous impacts for people and wildlife. The effectiveness of the climate change bill could be undermined if aviation emissions] are not included."
Article dated
October 2007
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