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What A Week It Was: Apocadocuments from

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Species Collapse:	(6)
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This Week's Top Ten Very Scary Tags:
climate impacts ~ global warming ~ carbon emissions ~ holyshit ~ ocean acidification ~ smart policy ~ faster than expected ~ massive die-off ~ technical cleverness ~ contamination ~ ocean warming

ApocaDocuments (47) gathered this week:
Sun, Mar 15, 2009 from Wiley - Blackwell via ScienceDaily: Human-generated Sounds May Be Killing Fish Anthropogenic, or human generated, sounds have the potential to significantly affect the lives of aquatic animals - from the individual animal's well-being, right through to its reproduction, migration and even survival of the species. According to a new study marine animals could suffer detrimental effects ranging from a loss of hearing to increased stressed levels as a result of environmental noise - in ways not dissimilar to humans and land animals. The study also describes some recent well-controlled experimental studies while highlighting areas for future study.... "The detection of the auditory scene plays a critical role in sound detection - along with the detection of communication signals. Anything in the environment that alters the organism's ability to detect and analyze its auditory scene has the potential to cause a detrimental impact on the life of the animal as well as the survival of the species". ...	One way or another... we're gonna wipe 'em out! ApocaDoc permalink
Sun, Mar 15, 2009 from Associated Press: Sick 'downer' cows permanently banned from food supply Washington -- The government on Saturday permanently banned the slaughter of cows too sick or weak to stand on their own, seeking to further minimize the chance that mad cow disease could enter the food supply. The Agriculture Department proposed the ban last year after the biggest beef recall in U.S. history. The recall involved a slaughterhouse in Chino and "downer" cows. The Obama administration finalized the ban Saturday... Those kind of cows pose a higher risk of having mad cow disease. They are also susceptible to infections from bacteria that cause food poisoning, such as E. coli, because the animals wallow in feces. ...	Wallowing around in feces does sound rather like a downer. ApocaDoc permalink
Sun, Mar 15, 2009 from London Times: Artificial trees and brightened clouds may help to cool us down THE threat of devastating climate change is now so great that some scientists say it is time to investigate a Plan B - geo-engineering on a planetary scale. Such methods of altering the world’s climate may become necessary, they say, unless emissions of greenhouse gases fall within five years. Ideas that were once the realm of science fiction - such as creating artificial trees to absorb carbon dioxide, or reflecting sunlight away from the Earth - are coming under serious scrutiny as temperatures and CO2 emissions continue to rise. The issue has become so pressing that the Royal Society, Britain’s national academy of science, is preparing a report on the feasibility of geo-engineering.... One method under detailed analysis is to make clouds brighter – especially in the Pacific where the ocean temperature has great influence on world climate.... Professor Stephen Salter of Edinburgh University is investigating how ships could spray droplets of sea water into the atmosphere where they would evaporate, leaving tiny salt crystals to rise on air currents into the clouds. The crystals would act as “nuclei” around which water vapour could condense and thus increase the reflective power of the clouds, bouncing more of the sun’s energy back into space. ...	I've looked at clouds from both sides now... ApocaDoc permalink
Sun, Mar 15, 2009 from Climate Wire: Scientists are grim, economists more optimistic about climate change's effects COPENHAGEN -- Scientists are gloomy; economists are more upbeat. Such was the bottom line of an epic, three-day international congress of climate change experts that ended here yesterday. At the congress, it seemed that all the scientists had to share with their peers was bad news, but a number of economists saw the climate crisis rather as an historic opportunity to reorganize the world economy and develop new, clean and job-creating activities. At the opening of yesterday's session, Lord Nicholas Stern, former chief economist for the World Bank, added his own dose of gloom by saying that his now-famous report on the risks of global warming, written for the British government in 2006, had underestimated them. "The reason is that emissions are growing faster than we thought, the absorption capacity of the planet is less than we thought, the probability of high temperatures is likely higher than we thought, and some of the effects are coming faster than we thought," he explained. ...	Good Lord! ApocaDoc permalink
Sat, Mar 14, 2009 from London Guardian: Postlethwaite lambasts climate deniers on eve of green film premiere Actor Pete Postlethwaite yesterday denounced climate change deniers as a "negative force" with their "heads in the sand". Ahead of Sunday's premiere of The Age of Stupid, an environmental doomsday docudrama, he compared those who do not accept that human-induced global warming is occurring with Holocaust deniers, and said the evidence for global change is now beyond doubt... In the film, the Oscar-nominated actor stars as a future survivor of the 21st century's climate apocalypse, who looks back on the present through documentary footage and asks why humanity failed to save itself while it could. ...	Hey. Remember, this guy worked for Keyser Soze. ApocaDoc permalink
Sat, Mar 14, 2009 from London Guardian: 'Biochar' goes industrial with giant microwaves to lock carbon in charcoal Giant microwave ovens that can "cook" wood into charcoal could become our best tool in the fight against global warming, according to a leading British climate scientist. Chris Turney, a professor of geography at the University of Exeter, said that by burying the charcoal produced from microwaved wood, the carbon dioxide absorbed by a tree as it grows can remain safely locked away for thousands of years. The technique could take out billions of tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere every year. Fast-growing trees such as pine could be "farmed" to act specifically as carbon traps — microwaved, buried and replaced with a fresh crop to do the same thing again. Turney has built a 5m-long prototype of his microwave, which produces a tonne of CO2 for $65. He plans to launch his company, Carbonscape, in the UK this month to build the next generation of the machine, which he hopes will process more wood and cut costs further. ...	If the pines are okay with this... I'm all for it! ApocaDoc permalink
Sat, Mar 14, 2009 from Living on Earth: CO2-Eating Rocks GELLERMAN: Carbon dioxide has the planet between a rock and a hard place - we get needed energy from fossil fuels, yet burning them produces a greenhouse gas that's causing climate change. But perhaps the answer lies in the problem: put the gas between a rock and a hard place. Not just any rock - but a type called ultramafic. Juerg Matter has investigated this ultra-interesting rock. He's an Associate Research Scientist at the Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory.... MATTER: Yeah, ultramafic rocks are mantle rocks which are usually 25 to 30 miles below surface, and they are rich in magnesium silicate minerals. And actually these magnesium silicate minerals can be used for carbon sequestration. The magnesium is used to carbonate the CO2 into magnesium carbonate minerals.... It changes, you know, the carbon dioxide, which is a gas, into a mineral, which is stable and environmentally benign. ...	Rocks like this ROCK!!! ApocaDoc permalink
Sat, Mar 14, 2009 from New York Times: Scientist: Warming Could Cut Population to 1 Billion COPENHAGEN — A scientist known for his aggressive stance on climate policy made an apocalyptic prediction on Thursday. Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, the director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany, said that if the buildup of greenhouse gases and its consequences pushed global temperatures 9 degrees Fahrenheit higher than today — well below the upper temperature range that scientists project could occur from global warming — Earth’s population would be devastated...“In a very cynical way, it’s a triumph for science because at last we have stabilized something –- namely the estimates for the carrying capacity of the planet, namely below 1 billion people,” said Dr. Schellnhuber... ...	Maybe we should just draw straws now and get it over with. ApocaDoc permalink
Sat, Mar 14, 2009 from London Daily Telegraph: Traffic can cause heart attacks, study claims Researchers found that people were three times more likely to have an attack if they had recently spent time on the roads, possibly because of the exhaust fumes and other pollution they inhaled. Women were more at risk than men - five times more likely than normal to suffer a heart attack if they had been exposed to traffic within the preceeding hour.... "One potential factor could be the exhaust and air pollution coming from other cars," Said Dr Annette Peters, head of the research unit at the Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum Muchen, Germany, who led the study, "but we can't exclude the synergy between stress and air pollution that could tip the balance." ...	All I know is: traffic gives me gridlock lockjaw! ApocaDoc permalink
Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from London Guardian: Severe global warming will render half of world's inhabited areas unliveable, expert warns Severe global warming could make half the world's inhabited areas literally too hot to live in, a US scientist warned today. Parts of China, India and the eastern US could all become too warm in summer for people to lose heat by sweating - rendering such areas effectively uninhabitable. Steven Sherwood, a climate expert at Yale University, told a global warming conference in Copenhagen that people will not be able to adapt to a much warmer climate as well as previously thought. The physiological limits of the human body will begin to render places impossible to support human life if the average global temperature rises by 7C on pre-industrial levels, he said. "There will be some places on Earth where it would simply be impossible to lose heat," Sherwood said. ...	Clearly this guy hasn't seen me sweat! ApocaDoc permalink
Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from Toronto Star: Unstoppable beetles to kill every city ash tree Toronto's ash trees could be gone in as little as 10 years, killed by an unstoppable beetle that is spreading rapidly across the province, the city's forestry czar says. "It's the elimination of a genus from this part of the continent, which is absolutely staggering," said Richard Ubbens, the city's director of urban forestry. "It will wipe out all ash trees." The emerald ash borer beetle, a shimmering blue-green insect native to parts of east and central Asia, has been eroding the ash population of the northeastern United States and southwestern Ontario for years. Larvae eat serpentine pathways just beneath the bark, which slowly cut off the flow of water and nutrients within the tree; death may take years...."There's no point in even trying anymore to eradicate it," Ubbens said of the beetle, noting that by the time an infestation is noticeable, the tree is beyond saving. ...	These badboys sound absolutely demonic! ApocaDoc permalink
Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from Washington Post: Probable Carcinogens Found in Baby Toiletries More than half the baby shampoo, lotion and other infant care products analyzed by a health advocacy group were found to contain trace amounts of two chemicals that are believed to cause cancer, the organization said yesterday. Some of the biggest names on the market, including Johnson & Johnson Baby Shampoo and Baby Magic lotion, tested positive for 1,4-dioxane or formaldehyde, or both, the nonprofit Campaign for Safe Cosmetics reported. The chemicals, which the Environmental Protection Agency has characterized as probable carcinogens, are not intentionally added to the products and are not listed among ingredients on labels. Instead, they appear to be byproducts of the manufacturing process. Formaldehyde is created when other chemicals in the product break down over time, while 1,4-dioxane is formed when foaming agents are combined with ethylene oxide or similar petrochemicals. ...	But it says, right there on the label, safe for babies. ApocaDoc permalink
Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from Telegraph.co.uk: World's leading scientists in desperate plea to politicians to act on climate change In what was described as a watershed moment, more than 2,500 leading environmental experts agreed a statement that called on governments to act before the planet becomes an unrecognisable -- and, in places, impossible -- place to live. At an emergency climate summit in Copenhagen, scientists agreed that "worst case" scenarios were already becoming reality and that, unless drastic action was taken soon, "dangerous climate change" was imminent.... In a strongly worded message that, unusually for academics, appealed directly to politicians, they said there was "no excuse for inaction" and that "weak and "ineffective" governments must stand up to big business and "vested interests".... Steps should be "vigorously and widely implemented", they said, to reduce greenhouse gases. Failure to do so would result in "significant risk" of "irreversible climatic shifts", the statement added... Prof Kevin Anderson, the research director at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research in Manchester, said: "Scientists have lost patience with carefully constructed messages being lost in the political noise. We are now prepared to stand up and say enough is enough." ...	You mean... more study isn't needed? ApocaDoc permalink
Want more context? Try reading our book FREE online: Humoring the Horror of the Converging Emergencies! More fun than a barrel of jellyfish!
Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from Vietnamnet, via Desdemona Despair: Hanoi: massive fish die-off A woman who lives on the bank of the Nhue River, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Sen, on Thanh Binh Street, Ha Dong city, said she had never seen so many dead fish as she has this year. Previously, there was dead river fish on Nhue River, but not this strong species of fish. Fish also die in abundance in many lakes in Hanoi, such as Linh Dam, Dinh Cong and Me Tri. Local residents are very worried about the phenomenon. In Ha Dong, the Nhue River's water has turned black with scum. "Perhaps this is oil scum discharged from factories located in the riverhead," Sen guessed.... "We are working together with local authorities to quickly solve the problem," Binh said. ...	I'm sure the dead fish will appreciate the swift response. ApocaDoc permalink
Fri, Mar 13, 2009 from BusinessGreen: US commits to renewable development The US Department of the Interior (DOI) has announced plans to make the development of renewable energy a central priority of the organisation. In a statement issued this week, secretary of the interior Ken Salazar said he had issued a secretarial order to promote the creation of solar, geothermal and wind energy projects on the one fifth of the country's landmass managed by the department.... According to the DOI, it... has identified about 21 million acres of public land with wind energy potential in western states, and about 29 million acres with solar energy potential in southwestern states. The organisation added that there are also about 140 million acres of public land in western states and Alaska that could be used for geothermal energy. ...	Sing it: that land is your land, that land is my land... ApocaDoc permalink
Thu, Mar 12, 2009 from Associated Press: Space junk threat worries space station The crew of the international space station survived a close call with space junk Thursday. The three crew members took refuge for 11 minutes in the Soyuz escape capsule and then were told to go back into the space station. Officials were worried about a possible collision with a piece of space junk. The debris was was about one-third of an inch in width, said NASA spokesman Josh Byerly. ...	Man.... our shit is everywhere! ApocaDoc permalink
Thu, Mar 12, 2009 from New Scientist: Global warming reaches the Antarctic abyss Even the deepest, darkest reaches of the Antarctic abyss are feeling the heat, according to new results presented at the climate change congress in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Tuesday. Gregory Johnson, of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency, says even he was surprised by the findings. He says the changes could be responsible for up to 20 percent of the observed global sea-level rise.... On average, over the last decade, water at the surface of the oceans has gained 0.35 watts per square metre -- a measure of the amount of heat absorbed from the warming atmosphere. Johnson's measurements in the abyss are, in some regions, nearly three times that. ...	This makes me feel abyssmal. ApocaDoc permalink
Thu, Mar 12, 2009 from New Scientist: 'Nanoball' batteries could recharge car in minutes Byoungwoo Kang and Gerbrand Ceder at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have revealed an experimental battery that charges about 100 times as fast as normal lithium ion batteries. Their battery contains a cathode made up of tiny balls of lithium iron phosphate, each just 50 nanometres across. The balls quickly release lithium ions as the battery charges, which travel across an electrolyte towards the anode. As the battery discharges, the lithium ions move back across the cell to be re-absorbed by the nanoballs.... Bigger batteries for plug-in hybrid electric cars could charge in just 5 minutes -- compared with about 8 hours for existing batteries -- though this would require a very high-powered charger. ...	Big cojones from some nanoballs! ApocaDoc permalink
Thu, Mar 12, 2009 from Science Daily (US): Climate Change Reduces Nutritional Value Of Algae Dutch researchers wanted to know whether an increased CO2 concentration exerted an influence on underwater life. They therefore examined freshwater micro-algae: small, floating and mostly unicellular algae. The experiments were performed in large tanks called limnotrons. These were aerated with ordinary air or with air containing an elevated concentration of CO2. The researchers then examined the ratio between the important elements carbon, nitrogen and phosphorous.... The micro-algae grew faster at a higher CO2 concentration, exactly as the researchers had expected. Yet this growth was also associated with a change in the composition of the algae. The algae cultured at a higher CO2 concentration contained relatively more carbon and relatively less phosphorous. This meant a reduction in the nutritional value, which could have detrimental effects upon the small animals that eat the algae such as water fleas. These in turn form food for fish, for example. As they are the first link in the underwater food chain, the algae ultimately influence the entire ecosystem. ...	C'mon, with all the algal blooms happening, there'll be lots more for the water fleas to eat! ApocaDoc permalink
Thu, Mar 12, 2009 from New York Times: Rise in Ocean Acidity May Lead to Thinner Plankton Shells There's now a good piece of direct evidence that the increasing acidification of the oceans, brought on by rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, is affecting the ability of small marine organisms to create shells.... Andrew D. Moy and William R. Howard of the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Center in Hobart, Tasmania, and colleagues found that the shells of one modern species in the Southern Ocean were lighter than shells of the same species in core samples from the ocean floor. Those core shells predate the industrial age, when CO2 levels started rising and the acidity of the ocean, caused by the absorption of the gas, began to increase. The researchers, who reported on their work in Nature Geoscience, found that the modern shells were 30 to 35 percent lighter than older shells of the same size range. "We actually think the shells are thinner," Dr. Howard said. ...	As if I care about plankton. What have they ever done for me? ApocaDoc permalink
Thu, Mar 12, 2009 from MIT, via EurekAlert: New greenhouse gas identified A gas used for fumigation has the potential to contribute significantly to future greenhouse warming, but because its production has not yet reached high levels there is still time to nip this potential contributor in the bud, according to an international team of researchers. Scientists at MIT, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego and other institutions are reporting the results of their study of the gas, sulfuryl fluoride, this month in the Journal of Geophysical Research. The researchers have measured the levels of the gas in the atmosphere, and determined its emissions and lifetime to help gauge its potential future effects on climate.... Its newly reported 36-year lifetime, along with studies of its infrared-absorbing properties by researchers at NOAA, "indicate that, ton for ton, it is about 4,800 times more potent a heat-trapping gas than carbon dioxide" says Prinn. ...	I wonder if this one has any deniers yet. ApocaDoc permalink
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from Science: Proposal: Make Every Earthling Pay Their Personal Carbon Debt (Sort of) Today, an international team of scientists proposed a new way of deciding who needs to cut what: Set up a scheme in which every person on Earth has the same climate pollution limit— "a global personal emissions cap." The system would work by first setting a global limit for each year—ideally to be determined by the science, said Heleen de Coninck of the Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands. If, for example, negotiators set the global emissions limit for 2030 at 30 billion tons of carbon dioxide emitted, each nation would determine what its citizens' individual responsibilities to cut emissions were to achieve that cut and then add them up. The approach, said de Coninick, could really shake up negotiations. Individual Americans in 2005, for example, were responsible for roughly 19 tons of CO2 each per year on average. China's average was about 4 tons. Under the scientists' proposal, the world limit in 2030 would be 11 tons per person. So negotiators would calculate the per capita emissions cuts that each country would be responsible for. It would be up to individual goverments to decide how to divvy up the cuts, but the end result would be that the average U.S. emitter would have to cut more than the average Chinese. ...	There goes my gas-powered toasterfridge! ApocaDoc permalink
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from Christian Science Monitor: Canada’s carbon sink has sprung a leak Billions of tiny mountain pine beetles are treating Canada’s boreal forest like a 3,000-mile-long salad bar, transforming a key absorber of carbon dioxide greenhouse gas into a CO2 emitter instead. In just a decade, exploding beetle populations and a rise in wildfires have flipped Canada’s boreal forest from its longstanding role as a natural carbon vacuum – sucking up 55 million or more tons of CO2 annually – to that of a giant tailpipe emitting up to 245 million tons of CO2 each year, according to the Canadian Forest Service. That sharp about-face is raising questions about the future of northern forests worldwide that are being hit hard by global warming – including Russia’s massive boreal expanse, where wildfires have risen dramatically. ...	From Dudley Do-Right to Dudley Do-Wrong! ApocaDoc permalink
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from Reuters: Tidal wave of trash threatens world oceans A tidal wave of man-made trash is threatening world oceans, damaging wildlife, tourism and seafood industries and piling additional stress on seas already hit by climate change, conservationists said on Tuesday. A report by U.S.-based Ocean Conservancy detailed what it called a "global snapshot of marine debris" based on itemized records of rubbish collected by nearly 400,000 volunteers in 104 countries and places in a single day in September 2008. Close to 7 million pounds (3.2 million kg) of trash -- the weight of 18 blue whales -- was collected from oceans, lakes, rivers and waterways in the 2008 cleanup, the group said in its report "A Rising Tide of Ocean Debris and What We Can Do About It". It warned of a "tidal wave of ocean debris," calling it a major pollution problem of the 21st century. Topping the list of the 11.4 million items of trash collected were cigarette butts, plastic bags, and food wrappers and containers. In the Philippines alone, 11,077 diapers were picked up and 19,504 fishing nets were recovered in Britain. "Our ocean is sick, and our actions have made it so," Vikki Spruill, president and chief executive of Ocean Conservancy, said in a statement accompanying the report. ...	As the seas rise, our trash will come back to haunt us. ApocaDoc permalink
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from Canada.com: Homeowners fear hazards inside drywall from China Thomas Martin, president of America's Watchdog, says that in the past two weeks about a dozen Lower Mainland callers have all reported experiencing the same nose bleeds, breathing problems and allergy-type symptoms that have affected homeowners across the U.S. Continued exposure could result in severe health problems, the group says. "This type of drywall was produced with materials that emit toxic hydrogen sulphide gas and other sulphide gases," says a copy of one home inspection report obtained Canwest News Service on an affected Florida home where Chinese drywall was installed. "These sulphide gases are also alleged to cause serious health conditions and illnesses, such as shortness of breath, dizziness, headaches, fatigue, insomnia, eye irritations and respiratory difficulties." "It's scary, it's a nightmare. We think we are looking at the worst case of sick houses in U.S. history," Martin said.... The drywall in question was imported from China between 2001 and 2007. ...	I can't smell any problem with my drywall. ApocaDoc permalink
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from Telegraph.co.uk: Fears for ocean life as tanker loses toxic load A ship carrying 60 containers of ammonium nitrate, used for making fertiliser and explosives, has lost an estimated 31 containers overboard and is leaking fuel in rough seas off Australia's northeast coast. Marine experts fear if the missing containers leak, the spill could create algae blooms which would choke marine life in Moreton Bay near the city of Brisbane... Three tonnes of ammonium nitrate spilt on the ship's deck when the containers broke loose.... "The risk of the impact (of the ammonium nitrate) is nitrification, which is algae blooms," Mr Smith told local media. "Ammonium nitrate is very soluble, so once it gets wet, it will dissolve fairly quickly." ...	Algae is so pretty when it blooms. ApocaDoc permalink
You're still reading! Good for you! You really should read our short, funny, frightening book FREE online (or buy a print copy): Humoring the Horror of the Converging Emergencies! We've been quipping this stuff for more than 30 months! Every day! Which might explain why we don't get invited to parties anymore.
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from Telegraph.co.uk: Garden birds suffer worst breeding season ... Only the reed warbler managed a slightly better than average breeding season. And the blackbird, great tit and song thrush saw their productivity drop by more than 30 per cent, with the thrushes witnessing a fall of 38 per cent in the number of young they managed to rear. The CES monitoring is undertaken using mist nets to catch and ring the birds for periods during the breeding season at 120 sites in the UK and Ireland, comparing the number of juvenile birds with adults to analyse breeding success. Last year's problems followed on from 2007's low productivity, with seven species suffering their worst breeding season to date in the wake of the wettest May to July on record. ...	I so wanted to have a songbird's music to accompany this posting. But I couldn't find it. ApocaDoc permalink
Wed, Mar 11, 2009 from New Scientist: Sea level rise could bust IPCC estimate that's the first big message to come from the climate change congress that kicked off in Copenhagen, Denmark, today. Researchers, including John Church of the Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research, presented evidence that Greenland and Antarctica are losing ice fast, contributing to the annual sea-level rise. Recent data shows that waters have been rising by 3 millimetres a year since 1993. ... By 2100, sea levels could be 1 metre or more above current levels, he says. And it looks increasingly unlikely that the rise will be much less than 50 centimetres. In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change forecast a rise of 18 cm to 59 cm by 2100. But the numbers came with a heavy caveat that often went unnoticed by the popular press.... Church says even 50 cm would have a huge effect on flooding events. "Our study on Australia showed that coastal flooding events that today we expect only once every 100 years will happen several times a year by 2100," he says. ...	Do you mean that my coastal condo won't retain its value?! ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from Scitizen.com: Jeffrey Brown and the Net Oil Exports Crisis The genesis of his rather radical views--radical, that is, for a Texas oilman--are a simple question he asked himself several years ago: What happens to oil exports in a world with constrained oil supplies? ... His pondering led to the creation of the the Export Land Model. It goes something like this: A hypothetical oil exporter--let's call it Export Land--has reached its peak in oil production. Assume domestic users consume half of all the oil produced in Export Land at the moment; assume a 5 percent annual decline rate for production; and assume a 2½ percent annual increase in domestic consumption. The result is that Export Land reaches zero exports in an astonishingly short nine years. ...	The ExportLand Emirates will be so sad to lose their buddies in ImportLand. ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from CBC News (Canada): Low salmon run expected on Yukon River again this year "There was no commercial fishery, no domestic fishery, no sport fishery either. And we had a voluntary reduction in the First Nations fishery as well," Frank Quinn, the department's area manager for the Yukon, said Monday. Early-season projections are calling for another poor salmon run this year. Quinn said he expects fishing restrictions will be as tough as they were last year, if not tougher. Quinn said contractors have been hired to speak to people in villages on the Alaska side of the Yukon River, to "let them know that there will be serious conservation measures needed to be taken this year and to allow them to prepare for that." ...	Who's the Saint of Fishes and how do I pray to him? ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from eTaiwanNews: Norwegian monitors show rising methane levels The concentrations of methane gas measured at the remote islands of Svalbard rose by 0.6 percent in 2007 compared to the previous year, according to a statement by the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority. The latest figure was also 1 percent higher than in 2004. A sharp rise in methane levels could dramatically increase global warming, the authority said. Similar increases were noted at other monitoring stations in Ireland and northern Canada. The cause has yet to be determined but preliminary figures suggest the trend continued in 2008, the statement said.... "That is a relatively large increase, especially since methane levels were virtually stable from 1999 until 2005," said Myhre. "The increases being bigger at Svalbard than other areas can be an indication that the source is in the far north." ...	It could also be Santa's reindeers, or something. Let's not jump to conclusions. ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from National Research Council, via EurekAlert: Acknowledging the 'change' in climate change Currently many state and local governments and private organizations are basing decisions -- such as how and where to build bridges or implement zoning laws -- on the assumption that current climate conditions will continue, an assumption that is no longer valid. Informing Decisions in a Changing Climte, new from the National Research Council, recommends principles for federal agencies to follow when conveying climate change information to these decision makers, and assesses whether a larger federal initiative to disseminate such information is needed. ...	You mean we're not done yet with this climate change thing? ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from Christian Science Monitor: Colleges wean off fossil fuels More and more, colleges and universities are not only teaching about environmental issues, they’re “walking the walk” by changing they way they operate. In December 2006, 12 college and university presidents joined together to form the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment. They pledged to set target dates for becoming carbon neutral – reducing the carbon emissions from their heating, cooling, electrical, and transportation needs as much as possible and then buying carbon offsets to complete the task. A little more than two years later, 614 colleges and universities in all 50 states have made the commitment. They represent about one-third of the student body at colleges and universities in the United States. ...	At my frat we pump our own kegs! ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from Mobile Press-Register: EPA: Leave mercury in north Mobile County swamp Federal scientists were unsparing in their criticism of a new EPA plan to leave high levels of mercury on the bottom of Cold Creek Swamp and hope the Mobile River covers it over with a layer of mud as the years go by. Those scientists said the mercury from the north Mobile County swamp may have been spreading to fish and wildlife in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta and Mobile Bay for decades. In 1993, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved a plan to remove or contain the bulk of the contamination at the Stauffer Chemical Superfund site. The company released mercury into the swamp between 1966 and 1974 as a waste product from chlorine production. But the plan was never implemented. Now the EPA has proposed a much more limited cleanup that calls for leaving most of the mercury in the swamp and monitoring it "long term." ...The latest plan ... calls for covering up the mercury in the most contaminated 25-acre area with a layer of clay and monitoring mercury levels in the rest of the swamp. ...	I know when I ignore MY problems, they go away! ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from London Guardian: Carbon emissions creating acidic oceans not seen since dinosaurs Human pollution is turning the seas into acid so quickly that the coming decades will recreate conditions not seen on Earth since the time of the dinosaurs, scientists will warn today. The rapid acidification is caused by the massive amounts of carbon dioxide belched from chimneys and exhausts that dissolve in the ocean. The chemical change is placing "unprecedented" pressure on marine life such as shellfish and lobsters and could cause widespread extinctions, the experts say. The study, by scientists at Bristol University, will be presented at a special three-day summit of climate scientists in Copenhagen, which opens today. The conference is intended to update the science of global warming and to shock politicians into taking action on carbon emissions. The Bristol scientists cannot talk about their unpublished results until they are announced later today. But a summary of the findings seen by the Guardian predicts "dangerous" levels of ocean acidification and severe consequences for organisms called marine calcifiers, which form chalky shells. ...	And in those days, cavemen had no means of recording this phenomenon. ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from Reuters: Climate change accelerates water hunt in U.S. West t's hard to visualize a water crisis while driving the lush boulevards of Los Angeles, golfing Arizona's green fairways or watching dancing Las Vegas fountains leap more than 20 stories high. So look Down Under. A decade into its worst drought in a hundred years Australia is a lesson of what the American West could become. Bush fires are killing people and obliterating towns. Rice exports collapsed last year and the wheat crop was halved two years running. Water rationing is part of daily life. "Think of that as California's future," said Heather Cooley of California water think tank the Pacific Institute. ...	Maybe there ought to be water in that tank instead of thoughts! ApocaDoc permalink
Tue, Mar 10, 2009 from WCSH6 (ME): Shapleigh Passes Ordinance To Protect Groundwater The town of Shapleigh voted Saturday to pass an ordinance that gives the people the right to control the water resources in town. Under the ordinance, groundwater is put in a common trust to be used for the benefit of its residents. The vote was 114 in favor and 66 against. Shapleigh is the first town in Maine to pass such an ordinance. It's a reaction to Poland Spring's interest in extracting town groundwater. ...	I'll drink from my recycled bottle to the rights of nature! ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from IRIN News (UN): Zimbabwe: On the cholera frontline HARARE -- The number of cholera deaths in Zimbabwe has crept past the 4,000 mark and case numbers are receding, but for those on the frontline of the epidemic it is business as usual, and much too soon to talk of victory. The World Health Organisation (WHO) said on 9 March that 4,011 people had succumbed to the waterborne disease since the outbreak began in August 2008, and the total number of cases recorded had reached 89,018. ... "We thought we had gone past the peak of the epidemic, and statistics given indicated a downturn, but judging by the number of patients we have been admitting in the last few days, the storm seems far from over," said the nurse, who declined to give her real name. "There is hardly any clean water throughout the city [Harare] as we speak, and that should explain the renewed spread of cholera." ...	The news of the nondeaths may be postmature. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Macleay Argus (Australia): Planning for the tipping point The overwhelming majority of the world's scientists agree that emissions of global warming gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, are trapping the heat in our atmosphere, destabilising the climatic systems that have prevailed for thousands of years, and ultimately leading to wild weather events involving more frequent storms, floods, droughts and, through the melting of the ice sheets, sea level rise. All of their tracking points to a faster warming than anticipated, such that we will soon reach what scientists call a tipping point. This is a point where forests, soils and the permafrost warm to the point where they begin to release increasing quantities of greenhouse gasses of their own accord, creating a feedback of rapidly accelerating greenhouse emissions and warming that is no longer within our control. At that point, we will be unable to stop the collapse of the Greenland ice sheet and possibly the Antarctic as well. Loss of Greenland will eventually lead to a 7m rise in sea levels. ...	That's a rise too big to surf! ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Register-Herald (WV): Global warming forcing shift in migratory pattern Scientists for the National Audubon Society say "new and powerful" evidence compiled over the last 40 years suggests that nearly 60 percent of the 305 species of birds that winter in North America are shifting their ranges northward due to the impact global warming has on their ecosystems. According to a news release by Audubon officials, their scientists analyzed citizen-gathered data from the past 40 years and concluded the birds have shifted their ranges to the north by an average of 35 miles since 1968. "Movement was detected among species of every type, including more than 70 percent of highly adaptable forest and feeder birds," the release said. ...	Go North, young bird. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Mongabay: Seven new species of deep sea coral discovered In the depths of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, which surrounds ten Hawaiian islands, scientists discovered seven new species of bamboo coral. Supported by the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the discoveries are even more surprising in that six of the seven species may represent entirely new genus of coral. "These discoveries are important, because deep-sea corals support diverse seafloor ecosystems and also because these corals may be among the first marine organisms to be affected by ocean acidification," said Richard Spinrad, NOAA's assistant administrator for Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. ...	"Discovered" just in time to be lost. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Carnegie Institution, via EurekAlert: Coral reefs may start dissolving Stanford, CA— Rising carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the resulting effects on ocean water are making it increasingly difficult for coral reefs to grow, say scientists. A study to be published online March 13, 2009 in Geophysical Research Letters by researchers at the Carnegie Institution and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem warns that if carbon dioxide reaches double pre-industrial levels, coral reefs can be expected to not just stop growing, but also to begin dissolving all over the world. ... Prospects for reefs are even gloomier when the effects of coral bleaching are included in the model. Coral bleaching refers to the loss of symbiotic algae that are essential for healthy growth of coral colonies. Bleaching is already a widespread problem, and high temperatures are among the factors known to promote bleaching. According to their model the researchers calculated that under present conditions 30 percent of reefs have already undergone bleaching and that at CO2 levels of 560 ppm (twice pre-industrial levels) the combined effects of acidification and bleaching will reduce the calcification rates of all the world's reefs by 80 percent or more.... "If we don't change our ways soon, in the next few decades we will destroy what took millions of years to create." ...	Unfortunately, that's what we do every day when we drive in to work. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from New York Times: Skeptics Dispute Climate Worries and Each Other More than 600 self-professed climate skeptics are meeting in a Times Square hotel this week to challenge what has become a broad scientific and political consensus: that without big changes in energy choices, humans will dangerously heat up the planet.... Organizers say the discussions, which began Sunday, are intended to counter the Obama administration and Democratic lawmakers, who have vowed to tackle global warming with legislation requiring cuts in the greenhouse gases that scientists have linked to rising temperatures. But two years after the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded with near certainty that most of the recent warming was a result of human influences, global warmingï¿½s skeptics are showing signs of internal rifts and weakening support. ...	This conference is brought to you by those fine folks at The Flat Earth Society. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Reuters: Rising ocean acidity cutting shell weights - study Acidifying oceans caused by rising carbon dioxide levels are cutting the shell weights of tiny marine animals in a process that could accelerate global warming, a scientist said on Monday. William Howard of the University of Tasmania in Australia described the findings as an early-warning signal, adding the research was the first direct field evidence of marine life being affected by rising acidity of the oceans. Oceans absorb large amounts of CO2 emitted by mankind through the burning of fossil fuels. The Southern Ocean between Australia and Antarctica is the largest of the ocean carbon sinks. But scientists say the world's oceans are becoming more acidic as they absorb more planet-warming CO2, disrupting the process of calcification used by sea creatures to build shells as well as coral reefs. ...	Maybe they can just buy their shells at Shells "R" Us! ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from London Times: Climate scientists warn that world is heading for war of the resources There is a 50-50 chance of temperature rises reaching dangerous levels over the next century, climate scientists have warned. Even with heavy cuts in greenhouse gas emissions of 3 per cent a year from 2015, the chance of preventing the temperature rise from exceeding 2C by 2050 is no more than half. And every decade's delay in reducing emissions will cause temperatures to go up by half a degree. European leaders have made a commitment to limiting rises to 2C because anything above that is expected to damage people's lives and the environment. A 2C increase would in itself cause more heat waves and droughts, many of which could be worse than the 2003 heat wave, which killed thousands of people across Europe. ...	"50-50 chance"? Must be a prediction from Pollyanna Institute. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Der Spiegel: China's Greenhouse Gas Emissions Threaten to Double ...China is already the world's fourth-largest economy. It will continue to expand at a steady pace even though the financial crisis has somewhat tempered its previously booming growth. There will be more city and road construction, infrastructure and transportation projects, as well as expanding industrial production. China opened 47 new airports between 1990 and 2002, and its highway network grew by 800,000 kilometers (500,000 miles) from 1981 to 2002. By 2030, China's population is expected to have grown from 1.3 to 1.5 billion people. More and more urban households will adopt a Western lifestyle by then, complete with air-conditioning, refrigerators, television sets, computers and other appliances. ...	It's starting to feel like the earth's tectonic plates are made of china. ApocaDoc permalink
Mon, Mar 9, 2009 from Forbes: Small-scale, cheap solar BURLINGAME, CALIF.--Imagine a solar panel as affordable as a fancy new bicycle. A panel designed so simply that you can install one (or more) yourself, just outside your windows, in the course of an afternoon. That's the concept behind Oakland, Calif.-based Veranda Solar, a start-up founded last year by Capra J'neva and Emilie Fetscher, recent graduates of the product design program at Stanford University. J'neva and Fetscher dreamed up attractive, flower-shaped solar panels as part of their master's project at the design school. "We created a starter solar system that expands as your budget does," J'neva says. Their plan is to sell Veranda panels at roughly $600 each later this year, provided it raises more funding. The panels snap together, so people will be able to buy just one to start and add more later on if they like. The solar inverter, which converts the direct current (DC) electricity from the panels to alternating current (AC) electricity that can be used in the electric grid, plugs right into a wall socket. ...	Every house a generator -- every human a king. ApocaDoc permalink