Levels of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rose at a record-shattering pace last year, a new report shows, a surge that surprised scientists and spurred fears of an accelerated warming of the planet in decades to come.
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Drought Conditions Wreak Havoc On Latin America — NPR’s Morning Edition
California drought: Drilling deeper in the hunt for water — BBC
8,000 Gallons of Oil Spill Into Ohio River From Duke Energy Coal Plant — EcoWatch
By Anastasia Pantsios This one’s not a big one in the scheme of things. But to those impacted—especially in Ohio, where algae bloom recently caused the water supplying nearly a half million people in the Toledo area to be undrinkable for several days—it’s bad news. Monday morning, reports the Columbus Dispatch, the Coast Guard …
Toxic grounds now part of N.C. landscape — News & Record
Timely cleanup unlikely at state’s hazardous waste sites — WRAL
By sheer numbers, the 14 coal ash ponds spread across North Carolina pale in comparison to the nearly 3,000 various waste sites across the state. That includes decommissioned industrial facilities, abandoned dry cleaners and old landfills. Despite the sometimes active threats to water or air, many of these sites take years or decades to clean up, if they’re cleaned up at all. And the fund to clear out the contamination can’t keep up.
Scientists Warn of Rising Oceans From Polar Melt — The New York Times
A large section of the mighty West Antarctica ice sheet has begun falling apart and its continued melting now appears to be unstoppable. If the findings hold up, they suggest that the melting could destabilize neighboring parts of the ice sheet and a rise in sea level of 10 feet or more may be unavoidable in coming centuries.
Climate change a threat to security, food and humankind – IPCC report — The Guardian
Nasa-funded study: industrial civilization headed for ‘irreversible collapse’? — The Guardian
US polar vortex may be example of global warming — The Guardian
While the ongoing cold snap is breaking records from Minnesota to Florida, it will not go down in history as the most significant Arctic outbreak in U.S. history, not even by a longshot. Scientists said the deep freeze gripping the U.S. does not indicate a halt or reversal in global warming trends, either. In fact, it may be a counterintuitive example of global warming in action.