‘…In rejecting Keystone, President Obama would not solve the underlying problem, which, as pipeline proponents correctly point out, is consumption. Nor would he halt exploitation of the tar sands. But he would put a brake on the process. After all, if getting tar-sands oil to China were easy, the Canadians wouldn’t be applying so much pressure on the White House. Once Keystone is built, there will be no putting the tar back in the sands. The pipeline isn’t inevitable, and it shouldn’t be treated as such. It’s just another step on the march to disaster. ‘

via Elizabeth Kolbert: Obama’s Keystone Decision : The New Yorker.

‘The news that atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, the most important global warming gas, have hit 400 parts per million for the first time in millions of years increases the pressure on President Obama to deliver on his pledges to limit this country’s greenhouse gas emissions.’

via Climate Warnings, Growing Louder – NYTimes.com.

‘…This work — if it holds up — offers the tantalizing possibility that climate change might be slow and limited enough that human society could adapt to it without major trauma.’

via What Will a Doubling of Carbon Dioxide Mean for Climate? – NYTimes.com.

‘From Hurricane Sandy’s devastating blow to the Northeast to the protracted drought that hit the Midwest Corn Belt, natural catastrophes across the United States pounded insurers last year, generating $35 billion in privately insured property losses, $11 billion more than the average over the last decade.’

via Insurers Stray From the Conservative Line on Climate Change – NYTimes.com.

‘If governments were really committed to limiting the rise in temperatures to 2 degrees, two-thirds of the currently known oil, coal and gas reserves would have to be left in the ground, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).’

via COLUMN-Busting the carbon budget: Kemp | Reuters.

‘The world’s glaciers lost 260 gigatons of water each year between 2003 and 2009, making these rivers of ice responsible for almost a third of sea-level rise in that time, new research finds.’

via Melting Glaciers Cause One-Third of Sea-Level Rise – Yahoo! News.

‘(Reuters) – With a barrage of legal briefs, a coalition of business groups and Republican-leaning states are taking their fight against Obama administration climate change regulations to the U.S. Supreme Court.’

via Analysis: Obama climate agenda faces Supreme Court reckoning | Reuters.

‘The North Pole’s surprise trip toward Greenland is due to Earth’s rapidly melting ice sheets, a new study finds.’

via North Pole Moves as Ice Sheets Melt – Yahoo! News.

‘The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) revised its May 9 reading at the Mauna Loa observatory in Hawaii, saying it remained fractions of a point below the level of 400 ppm, at 399.89.’

via Carbon dioxide in atmosphere did not break 400 ppm at Hawaii site – latimes.com.