Health and Environment
Washington (CNN) Greenhouse gas emissions pose a threat to public health and welfare, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said Monday. “The overwhelming amount of scientific studies show that the threat is real,” The announcement stems from a Supreme Court ruling which ordered the agency to determine the impact of carbon emissions not only on the environment, but on public health. CONTINUE
A multi-million eco-project stands to transform Florida into the Silicon Valley of solar energy By Jack Fairweather : Apr 21, 2009 Solar power has been, ironically, slow to catch on in the sunshine state. But developers of a new city aim to catapult Florida to the forefront of solar innovation. Babcock Ranch, a new housing and commercial development on a swath of rich swampland outside Fort Myers promises to be. . . CONTINUE
11/20/2009 6:30 PM the wind spires can save an average of $12,000 to $15,000 a year. They cost about $10,000 to install, and can last up to 25 years. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — If you’ve driven down Atlantic Boulevard in the past month, you may have noticed three spinning towers near the intersection of St. Johns Bluff Road. They’re a source of energy rarely seen in Florida. The three wind spires. . . CONTINUE
November 20, 2009 – By VIKAS BAJAJ The Indian cabinet approved a plan on Thursday that sets out to increase energy production from solar technology to 20 gigawatts by 2022, up from six megawatts today. The government will spend about 43 billion rupees ($922 million) in the first of three phases of the program. The total cost for all three phases could approach $20 billion. The government had signaled its. . . CONTINUE
Jay Leno’s 1964 Chrysler Turbine car * Jay’s Jet Mopar Action mag. Feb. 2010 (10-27-2009) by Steve Lehto, an award-winning author from Detroit After World War II, Chrysler launched whole hog into the field of automotive turbines. They hired as many technological experts as they could find – metallurgists, mechanics, engineers, turbine specialists and started refining the technology to put a jet engine into a car and make it practical. . . CONTINUE
Saturday, 10 October 2009 13:02 UK; By Richard Black; Environment correspondent, BBC News website A new historical record of carbon dioxide levels suggests current political targets on climate may be “playing with fire”, scientists say. Researchers used ocean sediments to plot CO2 levels back 20 million years. Levels similar to those now commonly regarded as adequate to tackle climate change were associated with sea levels 80 feet to 130 feet. . . CONTINUE
No, President Bush is no longer in office making decisions. But Obama and Democratic leaders are forced to make many of their decisions based on what they inherited from Bush. Eight years is a long time, and the consequences of Bush’s actions didn’t disappear just because he went back to Texas. Ron Brownstein of the National Journal recently noted what the country is still dealing with, according to recent Census. . . CONTINUE
The Driving Sustainability ’09 conference and an intimate conversation with Icelandic President Olafur Grimsson. September 17, 2009 at 10:25AM by Jim Motavalli The setting was traditionally Icelandic, but the President is quite up to date about the fast-moving efforts–showcased at the “Driving Sustainability ’09” conference, where he spoke–to turn Iceland into a showcase for electric cars. Its unique combination of political will, a concentrated population of just 310,000 people and. . . CONTINUE
Bank urges climate ‘action now’ Tuesday, 15 September 2009 By Richard Black, Environment correspondent, BBC News website Climate change will be a serious barrier to growth in poorer nations and must be curbed, says the World Bank. The bank’s World Development Report (WDR) urges a rapid scaling-up of spending on clean energy research and protection for poorer countries. Even a warming of 2C (3.6F) – the G8’s target – could. . . CONTINUE
Thursday, 3 September 2009, By Richard Black, Environment correspondent, BBC News website Arctic temperatures are now warmer than at any time in the last 2,000 years, research reveals. Changes to the Earth’s orbit drove centuries of cooling, but temperatures rose fast in the last 100 years as human greenhouse gas emissions rose. The result is a “hockey stick”-like sudden 90 degree turn, in which the last decade – 1998-2008 –. . . CONTINUE
By Phil Mercer, BBC News, Sydney; Thursday, 3 September 2009 Australia has experienced its warmest August on record amid soaring winter temperatures. Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology says that August was a “most extraordinary month” with mean temperatures 2.47C above the long-term average. Blair Trewin, from the National Climate Centre, says the past month has brought unprecedented conditions. “Early last week we saw a number of locations in northern New South. . . CONTINUE
Wednesday, 2 September 2009 By Richard Black, Environment correspondent, BBC News Coral reefs do more than look pretty – they are nurseries for many fish [Carnegie Institution’s Department of Global Ecology says that by 2050, 98 percent of today’s coral reefs will be in waters too acidic to support their growth.] Current climate targets are not enough to save the world’s coral reefs – and policymakers urgently need to consider. . . CONTINUE
Aug 12, 2009 FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany’s first offshore wind power park, Alpha Venture in the North Sea, has begun the gradual commissioning of the first three of its total 12 turbines, a spokesman for the venture said on Wednesday. “I had information last night that the three have started running and full test production levels will be reached within days,” said the spokesman for DOTI — a joint venture. . . CONTINUE
