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Archive for September, 2012
Caribbean Islands Brace for Challenges of Climate Change
Posted by Inter Press Service: Desmond Brown on September 26th, 2012
Inter Press Service: Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas remembers how quiet -- even uneventful - this tiny twin-island federation was for the first four decades of his life.
But over the past 10 years, St. Kitts and Nevis, as well as the rest of the Caribbean, have seen radical climatic shifts. There is no question in Douglas`s mind that these changes are the direct results of climate change.
"Growing up, I knew nothing of hurricanes, (but) in the last decade St. Kitts and Nevis has felt the wrath of hurricanes...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Caribbean Islands Brace for Challenges of Climate ChangeAsia’s business leaders in partnership to reduce risks of disasters
Posted by AlertNet: Thin Lei Win on September 26th, 2012
AlertNet: Some of Asia's business leaders on Tuesday established the first regional partnership to safeguard their companies against disasters, at meeting in the Philippines' capital Manila, said the United Nations.
The Asian Private Sector Partnership on Risk Reduction is composed of more than 30 chief executives from companies across different sectors.
The executives are also adopting business continuity plans to minimise losses from disasters, said UNISDR, the U.N. agency on reducing disaster risks,...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Asia’s business leaders in partnership to reduce risks of disasters100 million to die by 2030 if world fails to act on climate
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 26th, 2012
Reuters: More than 100 million people will die and global economic growth will be cut by 3.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030 if the world fails to tackle climate change, a report commissioned by 20 governments said on Wednesday. As global average temperatures rise due to greenhouse gas emissions, the effects on the planet, such as melting ice caps, extreme weather, drought and rising sea levels, will threaten populations and livelihoods, said the report conducted by humanitarian organization...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on 100 million to die by 2030 if world fails to act on climateClimate change, carbon economy killing 5 million a year – study
Posted by AlertNet: Megan Rowling on September 26th, 2012
AlertNet: Climate change and the world's addiction to polluting fuels are costing nearly 5 million lives each year and lowering global output by some $1.2 trillion annually, demonstrating the need for swift action to stem mounting losses, a study said on Wednesday.
Climate change caused 400,000 deaths in 2010 from hunger and communicable diseases, including diarrhoea and malaria, hitting children in developing countries the hardest, according to the 2012 Climate Vulnerability Monitor. Carbon-intensive energy...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Climate change, carbon economy killing 5 million a year – studyClimate change costs already top $1tr – and are set to spiral
Posted by BusinessGreen: None Given on September 25th, 2012
BusinessGreen: Inaction on climate change already costs the world economy 1.6 per cent of global GDP - approximately $1tr a year - and cost are likely to double to 3.6 per cent of GDP by 2030 if governments and businesses fail to take urgent action, an NGO has warned.
Madrid-based DARA yesterday released a report commissioned by 20 governments that attempts to calculate the economic damage that will be caused through to 2030 by escalating temperatures, rising sea levels and carbon-related pollution.
Entitled...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Climate change costs already top $1tr – and are set to spiralUnited Kingdom: Hundreds forced from their homes after another day of torrential downpour
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 25th, 2012
Independent: A second day of torrential rain drenched much of the country today forcing hundreds of people to flee their homes while road and rail services were severely disrupted leaving passengers and motorists stranded.
Forecasters warned the deluge could continue for another 24 hours bringing the further threat of flooding.
In Scotland the extreme conditions caused the fishing village of Footdee in Aberdeenshire to be engulfed in foam created by the action of wind, sea and sand. Elsewhere heavy winds...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: Hundreds forced from their homes after another day of torrential downpour“Water bankruptcy” a threat in many regions -report
Posted by AlertNet: Thin Lei Win on September 25th, 2012
AlertNet: Many world regions face "water bankruptcy' due to mismanagement of water resources, with implications for food and energy security, experts have warned.
This mismanagement of water and aquatic systems has "led to situations where both social and ecological systems are in jeopardy and have even collapsed,' said the report, Science-Policy Bridges over Troubled Waters - a study of almost 200 major international water-related projects over the past 20 years.
Yet "many in the policy- and decision-...
United States: Shale gas fracking gets legal thumbs up for Delaware river basin
Posted by BusinessGreen: None Given on September 25th, 2012
BusinessGreen: A US district judge has thrown out a case seeking to halt shale gas exploration in New York State's Delaware River Basin.
Yesterday's ruling saw the court side with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other US agencies who had said it was unnecessary to conduct a full environmental review of the controversial hydraulic fracturing technique, also known as fracking.
Shale gas is one of the reasons US natural gas prices have dropped significantly, but environmental campaigners argue...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United States: Shale gas fracking gets legal thumbs up for Delaware river basinJudge dismisses New York’s anti-drilling lawsuit
Posted by Reuters: Jessica Dye on September 24th, 2012
Reuters: A federal judge in Brooklyn dismissed a lawsuit on Monday brought by New York state and environmental groups challenging proposed natural gas drilling in the Delaware River basin.
U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis threw out the action on procedural grounds, saying there was no basis for the lawsuit since the regulations it sought to halt had not yet been finalized.
"The court concludes that this dispute is not currently fit for judicial review," Garaufis wrote. "The harms that plaintiffs...
As Arctic Ice Melts, So Does The Snow, And Quickly
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 24th, 2012
National Public Radio: Arctic sea ice is in sharp decline this year: Last week, scientists announced that it hit the lowest point ever measured, shattering the previous record.
But it turns out that's not the most dramatic change in the Arctic. A study by Canadian researchers finds that springtime snow is melting away even faster than Arctic ice. That also has profound implications for the Earth's climate.
Springtime snowmelt matters a lot: It determines when spring runoff comes out of the mountain to fill our rivers....