Climate Crisis Update 5-21-07: Look to the Cities for Leadership Now, or Catastrophe Later -- News Worsens, Focus on Greening Cities Intensifies; Meanwhile, Bush-Cheney Denial Impacts Everything from G-8 to Smithsonian
By Richard Power
The news worsens --
The earth's ability to soak up the gases causing global warming is beginning to fail because of rising temperatures, in a long-feared sign of "positive feedback," new research reveals today. Independent UK, 5-18-07
A team of NASA and university scientists has found clear evidence that extensive areas of snow melted in west Antarctica in January 2005 in response to warm temperatures. This was the first widespread Antarctic melting ever detected with NASA`s QuikScat satellite and the most significant melt observed using satellites during the past three decades. Combined, the affected regions encompassed an area as big as California. Mercosur Press, 5-16-07
World leaders have just five years to save the planet from a climate change disaster - but it can be done, according to a new report.
The document, Climate Solutions: WWF`s Vision For 2050, shows that the world can produce more than enough sustainable energy to curb climate change, but only if key decisions are made by 2012. Mercosur Press, 5-15-07
Those with understanding are working to capture the attention of the world --
Noah's Ark, built to save humanity and the animal kingdom in the face of a great flood, is being reconstructed in model form on Mount Ararat as a warning to mankind to act now to prevent global warming. ... "This is directed mainly at the politicians of this earth, to world leaders who are primarily responsible for the climate catastrophe which is taking place and for the solution," said Wolfgang Sadik, campaign leader for Greenpeace, which is behind the project. Reuters, 5-23-07
Meanwhile, those entrenched in denial seek to drag the rest of humanity down with them --
Last year, the “Smithsonian Institution toned down an exhibit on climate change in the Arctic for fear of angering Congress and the Bush administration, says a former administrator at the museum.” Think Progress, 5-21-07
In the wake of reports stating that the U.S. is trying to weaken the language of a G8 climate change declaration to be released at next month’s G8 summit, 15 House chairmen issued a letter today to President Bush urging him not to weaken the declaration. Think Progess, 5-18-07
Despite the iron girders, concrete blocks and thick plates of glass, cities are fragile and their inhabitants vulnerable.
Cities are really intricate webs of promises and assumptions. You are promised there will be electricity, water, sanitation, food supplies, safety in your homes, and you assume those promises will be kept.
You rarely question those promises, you rarely challenge the assumptions you base on them. But it wouldn't take very much for this intricate web to be shredded in New York or Los Angeles. It wouldn't be too long before the flow of city life dissolved into chaos and anarchy.
When we think of climate change, we think of the melting of the polar ice caps, the shrinking of the lakes, the shriveling of the rivers and the bleaching of the coral reefs; but, if global warming is left to run its course unchecked, it is in the cities that its most devastating impact will be felt.
When we think of contributing factors, we see the exhaust pipes of automobiles in our minds, we see our own hands on the gas pump, but it is city life itself which is the greatest single contributing factors.
The great cities of the world are on the frontlines of the global struggle to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
Look to the cities for leadership now, or catastrophe later --
A leading United Nations climate adviser said ... the world's largest cities should get independent scientific guidance about every two years to help them fight global warming. ... large cities are emerging as a force in sharing ideas on cutting heat-trapping gases and may need more frequent scientific assessments to gauge how well their actions are working, Cynthia Rosenzweig, head of climate impacts at New York's NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, said in a interview. Reuters, 5-16-07
Fifteen cities around the world will begin cutting carbon emissions by renovating city-owned buildings with green technology under a program spearheaded by former President Clinton's foundation. ... Major global banking institutions have committed $1 billion to finance the upgrades of municipal buildings in participating cities, which include New York, Chicago, Houston, Toronto, Mexico City, London, Berlin and Tokyo. Associated Press, 5-17-07
While it is hard not to dwell on the toll inflicted by the very rare F5 tornado, thoughts immediately turn to rebuilding. While no one questions whether Greensburg should be rebuilt, everyone should take a moment to question how. ... What would we do if we had the opportunity to do it all over? This is the question Greensburg can answer. What will the Greensburg of tomorrow look like? What could rural America look like? The Governor's instincts are right on. She wants to make Greensburg the most sustainable, efficient, well-designed town in the whole country. Laurie David, Putting the Green in Greensburg, 5-20-07
Here are excerpts from some of the news and analysis cited, with links to the full texts:
The earth's ability to soak up the gases causing global warming is beginning to fail because of rising temperatures, in a long-feared sign of "positive feedback," new research reveals today.
Climate change itself is weakening one of the principal "sinks" absorbing carbon dioxide - the Southern Ocean around Antarctica - a new study has found.
As a result, atmospheric CO2 levels may rise faster and bring about rising temperatures more quickly than previously anticipated. Stabilising the CO2 level, which must be done to bring the warming under control, is likely to become much more difficult, even if the world community agrees to do it.
The news may give added urgency to the meeting in three weeks' time between the G8 group of rich nations and the leading developing countries led by China, at Heiligendamm in Germany, when an attempt will be made to put together the framework of a new world climate treaty to succeed the current Kyoto protocol. Michael McCarthy, Earth's Natural Defenses Against Climate Change "Beginning to Fail," Independent UK, 5-18-07
A team of NASA and university scientists has found clear evidence that extensive areas of snow melted in west Antarctica in January 2005 in response to warm temperatures.
This was the first widespread Antarctic melting ever detected with NASA`s QuikScat satellite and the most significant melt observed using satellites during the past three decades. Combined, the affected regions encompassed an area as big as California. …
The observed melting occurred in multiple distinct regions, including far inland, at high latitudes and at high elevations, where melt had been considered unlikely. Evidence of melting was found up to 900 kilometres inland from the open ocean, farther than 85 degrees south (about 500 kilometres from the South Pole) and higher than 2,000 meters above sea level. Extensive snow areas of west Antarctica suffered melting, Mercosur Press, 5-16-07
World leaders have just five years to save the planet from a climate change disaster - but it can be done, according to a new report.
The document, Climate Solutions: WWF`s Vision For 2050, shows that the world can produce more than enough sustainable energy to curb climate change, but only if key decisions are made by 2012.
The report goes beyond the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change`s recent conclusions that the world could successfully use new technologies to limit carbon emissions enough to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, and shows how this can be done using only sustainable, environmentally friendly energy sources.
"Climate Solutions" also shows that the necessary cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved without resorting to the nuclear option. Five years to save planet from climate change disaster, Mercosur Press, 5-15-07
A leading United Nations climate adviser said on Wednesday the world's largest cities should get independent scientific guidance about every two years to help them fight global warming.
The U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change produces a series of reports every five or six years. Drawn on the work of 2,500 scientists, they assess the causes of climate change, describe its impacts and ways to fight it.
But large cities are emerging as a force in sharing ideas on cutting heat-trapping gases and may need more frequent scientific assessments to gauge how well their actions are working, Cynthia Rosenzweig, head of climate impacts at New York's NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, said in a interview.
"Cities are efficient, they take things on more quickly," she said.
Urban areas consume 75 percent of the world's energy and produce 80 percent of its greenhouse gas emissions. …
Rosenzweig said cities are well placed to cut greenhouse gases in ways that also help people adapt to the expected rise in heat waves, flooding and droughts that could be brought about by heat-trapping gases already emitted.
Roofs covered with vegetation instead of steel or blacktop that are popular in Chicago, Berlin and Portland, Oregon, are an example of something that can both cut emissions and help people cope with climate change, she said.
Widespread so-called green roofs could help combat the urban heat island effect that makes cities several degrees warmer in summer and would also cut emissions by reducing the need for air conditioning.
Cities in developed countries could also learn from ones in developing countries, she said. Cities in Bangladesh, which are at greater risk of flooding from climate change, have already taken more action than coastal cities like New York, she said.Timothy Gardner, UN climate adviser seeks fast guidance for cities, Reuters, 5-16-07
Fifteen cities around the world will begin cutting carbon emissions by renovating city-owned buildings with green technology under a program spearheaded by former President Clinton's foundation. … Major global banking institutions have committed $1 billion to finance the upgrades of municipal buildings in participating cities, which include New York, Chicago, Houston, Toronto, Mexico City, London, Berlin and Tokyo. The makeovers will include replacing heating, cooling and lighting systems with energy-efficient networks; making roofs white or reflective to deflect more of the sun's heat; sealing windows and installing new models that let more light in; and installing sensors to control more efficient use of lights and air conditioning. Clinton's foundation said the planned changes have the potential to reduce energy use by 20 percent to 50 percent in those buildings. The reduction could mean a significant decrease in heat-trapping carbon emissions, as well as cost savings on utility bills. Buildings often represent a city's worst culprits in contributing to emissions. In New York, for example, the consumption of electricity, natural gas, fuel oil and steam needed to operate buildings generates 79 percent of the city's total carbon count. Ira Magaziner, chairman of the Clinton Climate Initiative, said cities and private building owners would like to build and renovate with more energy efficiency, but often cannot afford initial costs. The partnership with Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG, JPMorgan Chase & Co., UBS AG, and ABN Amro will make that possible and benefits everyone involved, he said. SARA KUGLER, 15 city skylines to get green makeover to cut carbon emissions, Associated Press, 5-17-07
As severe weather events become more and more frequent, we are constantly reminded of what we can lose in the blink of an eye. Last week, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius shared with me her eerie feelings upon seeing the footprint of an entire town erased in a matter of moments, and also the heartbreaking stories of the Greensburg residents who lost everything.
While it is hard not to dwell on the toll inflicted by the very rare F5 tornado, thoughts immediately turn to rebuilding. While no one questions whether Greensburg should be rebuilt, everyone should take a moment to question how.
I mean, think about it. If we could start over, what would we do differently? Would we take into consideration the cost of global warming in the shape of more and more extreme weather events? Would we make our cities and towns more sustainable? Would we make our homes and businesses more energy efficient so that every homeowner pays less on their bills every month? Would we make commutes as short as possible so that people can walk or bike if they choose? What would we do if we had the opportunity to do it all over?
This is the question Greensburg can answer. What will the Greensburg of tomorrow look like? What could rural America look like? The Governor's instincts are right on. She wants to make Greensburg the most sustainable, efficient, well-designed town in the whole country. And Greensburg is the perfect place to set the example. The town has only around 1,500 residents, roughly 1,000 homes, 50 commercial businesses, 3 churches, 2 schools, and 1 hospital. It is in the heartland of the United States. And the town already has the perfect name -- it's GREENsburg, for goodness sake! Laurie David, Putting the Green in Greensburg, 5-20-07
Want to wake people up to the US mainstream news media's complicity in misinforming the public on global warming and climate change? Click here for Media Matters' compilation of "Myths and Falsehoods about Global Warming".
Want to participate in the effort to mitigate the impact of global warming? Download "Ten Things You Can Do"
There is a powerful magic in personal commitment.
RECENT GLOBAL WARMING POSTS:
Climate Crisis Update 5-16-07: Business & Government Must Be Compelled to Accept Responsibility, But So Must Each Individual
Climate Crisis Update 5-9-07 - Desmond Tutu and Sheryl Crow Challenge Denial, Environmental Groups Warn Against Reliance on Biofuels
Climate Crisis Update 5-4-07: Is Glenn Beck Going John-Hickley-Jr.? 7 Stories CNN Could Have Aired Instead of Beck's Eco-Nazi Conspiracy Theory
Hard Rain Journal 4-30-07: Climate Crisis Update -- Media Matters in the Struggle Against Global Warming
Hard Rain Journal 4-22-07: Climate Crisis -- Sheryl Crow Confronts Karl Rove, Mother Nature Confronts John Howard; This Earth Day is The Turning Point
Hard Rain Journal 4-15-07 -- Climate Crisis Update: Eleven Retired Admirals and Generals Concur -- Global Warming IS A National Security Issue
Hard Rain Journal 4-10-07: Climate Crisis Update -- April could be the Turning Point for the USA -- Step It Up to Save the Planet
Hard Rain Journal 4-4-07: The Twisted Link Between Peak Oil and Global Warming
Hard Rain Journal 4-1-07: Hartmann & Gelbspan Debunk the Swindle that is "The Great Global Warming Swindle"
Richard Power is the founder of GS(3) Intelligence and Words of Power. His work focuses on the inter-related issues of security, sustainability and spirit, and how to overcome the challenges of terrorism, cyber crime, global warming, health emergencies, natural disasters, etc. You can reach him via e-mail: richardpower@wordsofpower.net. For more information, go to www.wordsofpower.net
Global Warming, Energy Security, Environmental Security, Alternate Energy, Sustainability, Green Power, Renewable Resources, Climate Change, Weather, Al Gore, An Inconvenient Truth, UN, Stop Global Warming!, IPCC, Laurie David,Greenburg, Kansas, Greenpeace, NASA, Kathleen Sebelius, Bill Clinton,Clinton Climate Initiative, Cynthia Rosenzweig, Antartica, G-8,Smithsonian, Richard Power, Words of Power
