Tag Archives: climate change

Earth Talk: Biomass not necessarily better than fossil fuels

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Poughkeepsie Journal 2/12/2013
Excerpt:     “Biomass is plant matter that is burned as a source of energy. Fallen or cut wood that is burned for heat is one primary form of biomass, but another includes plant or animal matter that is converted into biofuels.  According to the International Energy Agency , which was formed during the oil shocks of the early 1970s to help ward off future energy shortages, biomass combustion is a carbon-neutral process because the carbon dioxide released at burning has previously been absorbed by the plants from the atmosphere.  ….”

Read entire article at http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/article/20130212/NEWS04/302120042/Earth-Talk-Biomass-not-necessarily-better-than-fossil-fuels

Climate impact to be felt

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Press Republican 2/10/2013
Excerpt:      “For many of the region’s maple-syrup producers, the 2012 sugaring season was unlike any they’d ever experienced. Several of the smaller producers I spoke with last year told me that it was their worst season ever. A few said it lasted literally one, or less than one week. A few didn’t even bother to tap.

According to the Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service, syrup production in New York State decreased by more than 36 percent, from 564,000 gallons with a value of just over $22 million in 2011 to 360,000 gallons with a value of just under $12.3 million in 2012.  …..”

Read entire article at http://pressrepublican.com/0205_columns/x1746086647/Climate-impact-to-be-felt

Report: Warming bringing big changes to forests

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Associated Press 2/6/2013
Excerpt:          “Big changes are in store for the nation’s forests as global warming increases wildfires and insect infestations, and generates more frequent floods and droughts, the U.S. Department of Agriculture warns in a report released Tuesday.

The compilation of more than 1,000 scientific studies is part of the National Climate Assessment and will serve as a roadmap for managing national forests across the country in coming years.    It says the area burned by wildfires is expected to at least double over the next 25 years, and insect infestations often will affect more land per year than fires.   …”

Read entire article and get link to report at http://www.laramieboomerang.com/articles/2013/02/06/ap-state-wy/us_forests_climate_change.txt

Wolverines Threatened By Climate Change, Officials Propose Endangered Species Act Protection

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Huffington Post 2/1/2013
Excerpt:        “BILLINGS, Mont. — The tenacious wolverine, a snow-loving carnivore sometimes called the “mountain devil,” could soon join the list of species threatened by climate change – a dubious distinction putting it in the ranks of the polar bear and several other animals the government says will lose crucial habitat as temperatures rise.

Federal wildlife officials Friday proposed Endangered Species Act protections for the wolverine in the Lower 48 states. That’s a step twice denied under the Bush administration, then delayed in 2010 when the Obama administration said other imperiled species had priority.    ……”

Read entire article at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/01/wolverines-climate-change_n_2598241.html?ref=topbar&buffer_share=81ada

Report: Climate change a threat to wildlife

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USA Today 1/30/2013
Excerpt:     “From birds in the Plains to bighorn sheep in California to caribou in Alaska and moose in Minnesota, a new study says animals are struggling to adapt to the new climate conditions caused by the burning of fossil fuels, which produces the carbon dioxide that warms the atmosphere.

“Climate change is the biggest threat wildlife will face this century,” says the report released today by the National Wildlife Federation, an environmental group based in Reston, Va.   ….”

Read entire article at http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/01/29/climate-change-wildlife/1875123/

Climate change’s effects on temperate rain forests surprisingly complex

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Environmental Research Letters 1/29/2013
Excerpt:     “Science-based strategies help managers to adapt to general warming trend.

Longer, warmer growing seasons associated with a changing climate are altering growing conditions in temperate rain forests, but not all plant species will be negatively affected, according to research conducted by the U.S. Forest Service’s Pacific Northwest Research Station.   ….”

Read entire article at http://environmentalresearchweb.org/cws/article/yournews/52174

Climate, not beetle-kill, the biggest factor in wildfire equation

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Summit County Voice 1/28/2013
Excerpt:        “SUMMIT COUNTY — While many forest managers and politicians are still broad-brushing the wildfire danger associated with beetle-killed forests, a new report once again suggests that the fire hazard linked with beetle-kill has been overstated.

After reviewing some of the latest research, the authors of the paper concluded that, “To date, the majority of studies have found no increase in fire occurrence, extent, or severity following outbreaks of spruce beetle … and mountain pine beetle … in Colorado, Wyoming, and other areas.”       …”

Read entire article at http://summitcountyvoice.com/2013/01/28/climate-not-beetle-kill-the-biggest-factor-in-wildfire-equation/

How Climate Change Could Wipe Out the Western Forests

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The Atlantic; 1/24/2013
Excerpt:       “If current trends continue, the landscapes of states like New Mexico and Arizona may soon be unrecognizable. ”

The fire that burned through Forest Canyon, a breathtaking stretch of wilderness ringed by snowy peaks in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, started in October and burned long past the end of the fire season. Trees still smoldered in late December, and the smoke mixed with dry snow blowing in the air. Known as the Fern Lake Fire, the blaze tore through 3,500 acres of land the federal government set aside a century ago both to provide public enjoyment and protect it from human destruction.   ……”

Read entire article at http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/01/how-climate-change-could-wipe-out-the-western-forests/267457/

Feds publish candid draft report on global warming

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Summit County Voice 1/14/2013
Excerpt:      “FRISCO — Coming shortly after the National Climatic Data Center reported that 2012 was the warmest year on record for the U.S., a new federal report on global warming doesn’t mince words, starting with the first paragraph of the executive summary:

“Climate change is already affecting the American people. Certain types of weather events have become more frequent and/or intense, including heatwaves, heavy downpours, ain, in some regions, floods and droughts. Sea level is rising oceans are becoming more acidic and glaciers and arctic sea ice are melting.”   ….”

Read entire article at  http://summitcountyvoice.com/2013/01/14/feds-publish-candid-draft-report-on-global-warming/#more-53212

The Public Eye: Environmental group opposes Placer biomass power plant

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Sacramento Bee 1/13/2013
Excerpt:      “An Arizona-based environmental group is challenging Placer County’s plans to build a small power plant near Truckee that would burn forest waste wood, questioning whether such biomass facilities warrant their reputation as producers of green energy.

As government regulators have mandated that more renewable energy sources be used to help combat global warming, the biomass power industry has pitched its power plants to communities as a cleaner, reliable alternative to coal.   …”

Read entire article at http://www.sacbee.com/2013/01/13/5110577/environmental-group-opposes-placer.html