News Roundup
‘Less than a third of governments seeking a global climate agreement have submitted plans for reducing emissions, raising concerns over developing countries’ commitment to a deal months before talks are meant to culminate in Paris.’
via Countries Slow to Pledge Emissions Cuts Ahead of Paris Climate Talks – WSJ.
‘NEW DELHI: India will not announce its peaking (peak emission) year, unlike China, in its ‘climate action plan’ which is to be submitted by the country to the UN body on climate change in September. Instead of specifying any timeline to cap its emission of greenhouse gases, the country will, rather, focus more comprehensively on all five key elements which are identified as vital components of global efforts to fight adverse impacts of climate change’
‘The vast majority of carbon credits generated by Russia and Ukraine did not represent cuts in emissions, according to a new study.’
via Carbon credits undercut climate change actions says report – BBC News.
‘WASHINGTON — President Obama will log more than 14,000 miles on Air Force One over the next 11 days in a climate change tour that will take him from the desert West to the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic Circle.’
‘…Of all the jobs in the world, Figueres’s may possess the very highest ratio of responsibility (preventing global collapse) to authority (practically none). The role entails convincing a hundred and ninety-five countries—many of which rely on selling fossil fuels for their national income and almost all of which depend on burning them for the bulk of their energy—that giving up such fuels is a good idea.’
via The Woman Who Could Stop Climate Change – The New Yorker.
‘Katie Couric recently interviewed Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, and the subject of climate change came up. They discussed it for over four minutes, likely marking the longest any national GOP political figure has spent talking about climate change in the past five years.’
via Carly Fiorina did a 4-minute riff on climate change. Everything she said was wrong. – Vox.
‘HONG KONG — Scientists may have been overestimating China’s emissions of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas driving global warming, by more than 10 percent, because of inaccurate assumptions about the country’s coal-burning, according to a study published on Wednesday.’
via China’s Carbon Dioxide Emissions May Have Been Overstated by More Than 10% – The New York Times.
‘Muslim scholars and environmental advocates from about 20 countries on Tuesday called for a global phase-out of greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century, joining a chorus of religious leaders urging the world to take strong action against global warming.’
‘Most efforts at combating climate change have focused on reducing carbon emissions or trying to eliminate them, but many climate scientists believe we may have already passed the point of no return. That’s why Noah Deich wants to pull carbon out of the air.’
via The controversial quest to stop climate change by pulling carbon out of the air | The Verge.
‘The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday will propose the first-ever federal regulations to cut methane emissions from the nation’s oil and natural-gas industry, according to people familiar with the move, which is part of President Barack Obama’s climate agenda.’
via EPA to propose first methane cuts as part of Obama climate efforts – MarketWatch.