Climate Change News
Below are news items on climate change – many with relevance to aviation
Monthly climate data from NOAA for July 2009 to February 2011
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Chris Huhne gets European support to toughen EU climate targets
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“Increased air traffic may be a factor in climate change” (USA)
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UK public asked to record aircraft contrails for Met Office climate survey
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The EU ETS: The great carbon trading scandal
The European market for carbon allowances is worth about €90bn per year. Companies that use a lot of energy are obliged to own allowances for each tonne of CO2 they produce. Carbon allowances are now worth €14. There have been many recent cases where carbon allowance have been stolen or disappeared, through fraud. Over the past 2 years carbon allowance fraud escalated into an organised crime depriving taxpayers of €5bn in revenue. Aviation joins the ETS in 2012.
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The extreme cold in the UK right now really could be a result of global warming – Monbiot
There is now strong evidence to suggest that the unusually cold winters of the past 2 years in the UK are the result of heating elsewhere. While some areas like the UK and much of Europe are several degrees colder than the 1951 to 1980 average, other areas are many degrees hotter. The UK gets warm south westerly winds when there is the right balance of pressure between the Arctic Low and the Azores High. But if the balance is different, we get cold Arctic air.
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The aviation industry fears the spectre of being the source of climate finance
The wider Cancun agreement includes the setting up of a Green Climate Fund that will aim to raise $100 billion a year by 2020 to help developing countries mitigate climate change impacts. With most of the funding expected to come from private rather than public finance, ICAO and the aviation industry may well have to marshal forces as attention turns in 2011 to identifying possible sources, with aviation suggested as a potential easy earner. (GreenAir)
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NASA explains how Europe can be so cold amidst the hottest November and hottest year on record
The cold anomaly in Northern Europe in November has continued into December. Combined with the unusual cold winter of 2009-2010 in Northern Hemisphere mid-latitudes, this regional cold spell has caused commentary that global warming has ended, which is NOT the case. Elsewhere it is hotter than usual. November 2010 is the warmest November in the NASA GISS record. Globally 2010 is likely to be the hottest year on record. NASA has theories on why we are cold here.
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Cancún climate change summit: Deal is reached. Update and comments
The Cancun deal has been hailed as restoring faith in the multilateral UN process but will not reduce temperatures which may rise by 4C, and it pushes many of the most important decisions to future negotiations. It clearly says that there should be reductions from developing countries. Greenpeace said we saved the process but did not save the climate. No date was included by when countries must "peak" their emissions, which is essential for the future.
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Cancun: UN climate conference OKs deals overriding Bolivia’s objection
The Cancun conference has agreed a "green fund" for developing countries, but does not show how the money will be raised. It also takes other small steps to address global warming. It hopes to cut emissions from developed countries by between 25 and 40% by 2020, but it deferred debate on a larger pact till the Durban 2011 conference. Bolivia does not agree, and is adamant that it is not strong enough to prevent large global temperature rise.