Freakish weather disasters — from the sudden October snowstorm in the Northeast U.S. to the record floods in Thailand — are striking more often. And global warming is likely to spawn more similar weather extremes at a huge cost, says a draft summary of an international climate report obtained by The Associated Press.
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Group Says Nuclear Won’t Help Climate Change – WUNC Radio
A Durham-based environmental group warns utility companies are trying to add nuclear capacity without significantly reducing their use of coal power. A report from NC WARN focuses on what they call the “Southeast Five.” That includes both Duke Energy and Progress Energy. Jim Warren is executive director of NC WARN.
Nuclear Revival is Ruining Climate Protection Efforts and Harming Customers, says Watchdog Group – A News Release by NC WARN
Report shows Southeast utilities plan not to replace coal-fired power, but to add nuclear capacity despite falling demand – while jacking up rates and blocking clean energy advances.
See the report, New Nuclear Power is Ruining Climate Protection Efforts and Harming Customers
Listen to the audio from the press conference
Hear Dr. William Schlesinger’s
comments about the report on WUNC Radio
Read Clinging to Dirty Energy in the South – a by-the-numbers look from the Institute of Southern Studies
Heat Waves and Climate Change – The Associated Press
NOAA: In general, both daytime and nighttime temperature increases “are consistent with what we would expect in a greenhouse-warmed world.”
Storm Warnings: Extreme Weather is a Product of Climate Change – Scientific American
In North Dakota the waters kept rising. Swollen by more than a month of record rains in Saskatchewan, the Souris River topped its all time record high, set back in 1881. The floodwaters poured into Minot, North Dakota’s fourth-largest city, and spread across thousands of acres of farms and forests. More than 12,000 people were forced to evacuate. Many lost their homes to the floodwaters.
Study: Rising Global Temperatures Spur Steepest Sea Level Rise In 2,100 Years – Popular Science
The seas are rising at a faster rate right now than at any point since at least the era of Julius Caesar, and there is a direct link between this increase and changes in global surface temperatures, according to a new study. Rising sea levels could have major impacts on not just marine ecosystems, but the entire planet, as coastal areas are swamped by encroaching waters.
Calling on the news media – haywire weather and climate change – A Statement from NC WARN
Last week McClatchy Newspapers published a breakthrough article about scientists seeing the links between severe weather and global warming. More of this strong journalism is urgently needed because very little time is left before climate change becomes self-sustaining.
Worst ever carbon emissions leave climate on the brink – The Guardian
Greenhouse gas emissions increased by a record amount last year, to the highest carbon output in history, putting hopes of holding global warming to safe levels all but out of reach, according to unpublished estimates from the International Energy Agency.
A link between climate change and Joplin tornadoes? Never! – The Washington Post Opinion
By Bill McKibben. Caution: It is vitally important not to make connections. When you see pictures of rubble like this week’s shots from Joplin, Mo., you should not wonder: Is this somehow related to the tornado outbreak three weeks ago in Tuscaloosa, Ala., or the enormous outbreak a couple of weeks before that (which, together, comprised the most active April for tornadoes in U.S. history).
Why have tornadoes become so frequent? – The Philadelphia Inquirer
So far this month, 900 tornado sightings have been reported, according to the government’s Storm Prediction Center.