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Politics : The Exxon Free Environmental Thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Land Shark who wrote (5316)	5/9/2010 12:16:47 PM
From: Wharf Rat	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 49139

NOAA: “North American snow cover for April 2010 was the smallest on record.” Go figure! "The anomaly was the largest of any of the 520 months on record." May 8, 2010 Where did all the snow go? I mean, it was here just a minute ago, uber-fodder for the anti-science crowd (see Was the “Blizzard of 2009? a “global warming type” of record snowfall — or an opportunity for the media to blow the extreme weather story (again)? and Massive moisture-driven extreme precipitation during warmest winter in the satellite record — and the deniers say it disproves (!) climate science). Sure the global cooling myth died a while ago, and we saw the Hottest March and hottest Jan-Feb-March on record. And sure the Weather Channel asked, “July in April?” because “in the seven-day period from March 29 through April 4, over 1100 daily record highs were either tied or broken in the nation!” But that’s all just a big coincidence, no? Anyway, even though the record snow storms made headlines around the country for weeks, the amazing factoids headlined above were buried in the monthly “State of the Climate” report from NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center, under the category “Other Items of Note”: According to the Rutgers Snow Lab, North American snow cover for April 2010 was the smallest on record (since 1966). Moreover, the anomaly was the largest of any of the 520 months on record. So I thought I would note it. UPDATE: As I note in the comments, the most important things are the long-term trends. But the blow-out, record-busters are important, too, especially ones that occur over large areas. For an analysis of the trends, see Tamino here. climateprogress.org

To: Land Shark who wrote (5316)	5/10/2010 6:15:25 PM
From: Sam	Respond to of 49139

Sheesh, let's just pave it all. Think what that would do for economic growth. Civilization rules.... UN fears 'irreversible' damage to natural environment Mon May 10, 7:08 am ET news.yahoo.com GENEVA (AFP) – The UN warned on Monday that "massive" loss in life-sustaining natural environments was likely to deepen to the point of being irreversible after global targets to cut the decline by this year were missed. As a result of the degradation, the world is moving closer to several "tipping points" beyond which some ecosystems that play a part in natural processes such as climate or the food chain may be permanently damaged, a United Nations report said. The third "Global Biodiversity Outlook" found that deforestation, pollution or overexploitation were damaging the productive capacity of the most vulnerable environments, including the Amazon rainforest, lakes and coral reefs. "This report is saying that we are reaching the tipping point where the irreversible damage to the planet is going to be done unless we act urgently," Ahmed Djoghlaf, executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, told journalists. Djoghlaf argued that extinction rates for some animal or plant species were at a historic high, up to 1,000 times those seen before, even affecting crops and livestock. The UN report was partly based on 110 national reports on steps taken to meet a 2002 pledge to "significantly reduce" or reverse the loss in biodiversity. Djoghlaf told journalists: "There is not a single country in the world that has achieved these targets, we continue to lose biodioversity at unprecedented rate." Three potential tipping points were identified. Global climate, regional rainfall and loss of plant and animal species were harmed by continued deforestation of the Amazon rainforest, the report said. Many freshwater lakes and rivers were becoming contaminated by algae, starving them of oxygen and killing off fish, affecting local livelihoods and recreation for local populations. And coral reefs were collapsing due to the combined blow of more acid and warming oceans, as well as overfishing, the UN found. UN Environment Programme (UNEP) director general Achim Steiner underlined the economic value and returns of "natural capital" and its role in ensuring the health of soil, oceans and the atmosphere. "Humanity has fabricated the illusion that somehow we can get by without biodiversity or that it is somehow peripheral to the contemporary world," Steiner said. "The truth is we need it more than ever on a planet of six billion heading to over nine billion people by 2050." The report argued that biodiversity was a core concern for society that would help tackle poverty and improve health, meriting as much attention as the economic crisis for only a fraction of the cost of recent financial bailouts. It advocated a new strategy to tackle the loss alongside more traditional steps such as the expansion of protected natural areas and pollution control. They included attempts to regulate land consumption, fishing, increased trade and population growth or shifts, partly through a halt to "harmful" or "perverse" subsidies. The issues raised by the report are due to be discussed at a UN biodiversity meeting in Japan in October.