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Marrakech talks pressing on with climate action, despite Mr Trump

The Paris Agreement is now in force after a speedy ratification, the US share of global emissions has declined, and renewable energy is now much cheaper. Many US states, cities and businesses will continue to work towards reducing emissions, and many Republican politicians have let go of their aversion to renewable energy in response to public and business pressure.

In short, much of America and the rest of the world will continue to build momentum under the Paris Agreement, despite the changing of the guard in Washington DC.

Meanwhile, after the initial pause to digest the shock of Trump’s victory, the negotiators at Marrakech have got back down to their business, which is to fill in the implementation details of the Paris Agreement.

The view from Marrakech: climate talks are battling through a Trump tsunami,   https://theconversation.com/the-view-from-marrakech-climate-talks-are-battling-through-a-trump-tsunami-68597 The Conversation, Robyn Eckersley, November 11, 2016  Stunned. Shocked. Speechless. Devastated. Political tsunami. These were the key words rising to the surface of the babble of conversations that took place in the corridors of the climate negotiations in Marrakech on Wednesday 9 November – the day Donald Trump won the US presidency. Continue reading →

November 12, 2016 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

The world is already experiencing dramatic impacts of human-induced climate change

Climate change already dramatically disrupting all elements of nature https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/11/161110115540.htm  Source:  Wildlife Conservation Society

Summary:

Global changes in temperature due to human-induced climate change have already impacted every aspect of life on Earth from genes to entire ecosystems, with increasingly unpredictable consequences for humans, according to a new study.

Global changes in temperature due to human-induced climate change have already impacted every aspect of life on Earth from genes to entire ecosystems, with increasingly unpredictable consequences for humans — according to a new study published in the journal Science.

November 11, 2016 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Paris climate change agreement will not be derailed by Donald Trump

Donald Trump: Paris climate change delegates hopeful presidency will not derail agreement http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-11-10/trump-will-not-derail-paris-climate-agreement-delegates-say/8013386 The World Today  By Katherine Gregory Delegates at annual climate change talks in Morocco are hopeful Donald Trump’s presidency will not derail progress made on action.

Representatives from 200 countries are at the Marrakech summit finalising the details of the Paris Agreement on climate change, which commits governments to keeping a global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius.

Tina Johnson from the US Climate Network said the movement had its work cut out for it now. “I think if we have a scenario where the action that he takes is contrary to where we feel it needs to be going, it will impact us, of course, because it means we have to do more work to make sure that he actually is moving in the direction that we need him to move in,” she said.

Mr Trump is a well-known climate change sceptic and has threatened to remove America from the treaty.

But Australia’s Climate Council CEO Amanda McKenzie said it was going to be difficult for him to do that. “It’s also important to note that the US climate action has come from the states,” Ms McKenzie said. “California has been driving much of the climate action and support for renewable energy in the US.

“As well as [US President Barack] Obama’s work has through regulations — which are very hard to unwind once they’re changed and in place and have impacts on the community.

“So it’s very hard for Trump to wind back international or domestic action on climate change.

“That said, of course it is a blow if he does want to take the US out of the Accord, but we need to remember this agreement is more than just one country.”

Trump says climate change a Chinese hoax

Mr Trump has previously labelled climate change a hoax and conspiracy by the Chinese.

He gave similar comments in July this year when interviewed by Bill O’Reilly from Fox News.

“If you look at what’s going on in China and all these other countries, they talk and laugh behind out back at what we’re doing,” Mr Trump said.

“We want clean air, clean water. I’ve got many environmental awards.” Mr O’Reilly asked him: “OK, but did you ever call climate change a hoax?”

Mr Trump responded: “Well I might have, because when I look at things that are going on.”

“In fact, when you look at Europe, where they had their big summit a couple of years ago, where people were sending out emails, scientists practically calling it a hoax.”

At the Marrakech summit, Greenpeace china policy advisor Li Shuo said Mr Trump’s presidency meant climate change was now a geopolitical battle between the US and China.

“We urge the next US president to take that into consideration and to be mindful of the very delicate agreement it has reached with China, in terms of US and China doing bilateral agreements, and to honour the commitments and the targets it has made with China and also in the Paris Agreement.”

‘It may mean other countries do more’Ms McKenzie said it was now up to other countries to step up to the plate. “Because so many other countries have made a substantial commitments to this, and countries like China, Brazil, the EU, Germany have all been pushing ahead on this, and I think it’s unlikely they will go backwards in their climate action,” she said.

“So it may mean other countries do more and take more leadership.”

Mr Trump has flagged he will stop all US Government funding of clean energy projects and climate change initiatives.

Experts are concerned that may also include dumping Mr Obama’s $US3 billion pledge to the Green Climate Fund, which is supposed to help vulnerable countries like those in the Pacific adapt to climate change.

International climate organisation 350.org‘s Cambell Klose said Australia’s ratifying of the Paris Agreement, albeit late, provided hope on a dark day for the climate change movement.

But he said Mr Trump’s election and the republican control of the US Senate and Congress meant there will be little resistance to any changes he might make.

“We know that he will rescind or get rid of Obama’s executive orders of climate change, which puts caps on emissions on coal stations and saw a lot of coal stations close over the last five years,” Mr Klose said. “He’s flagged he wants to see the coal industry flourish again. “The most disappointing thing is he’s looking to strip as many subsidies from renewable energy as possible and focus on drilling and it seems as though he wants to drill for oil on a lot of federal land and this could include national parks.”

November 11, 2016 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Megadroughts, Extinctions, Water, Air, Fire – the results of climate change

Climate Disruption’s Legacy: Megadroughts, Extinctions, Obituaries for Reefs Sunday, 06 November 2016 00:00By Dahr Jamail, Truthout | Report  “…..September of this year saw Earth pass a dramatic threshold — one that signifies our entrance into a new era of anthropogenic climate disruption (ACD). September 2016 will now be remembered as the month that Earth passed the threshold of 400 ppm of CO2 in the atmosphere permanently, according to scientists.

That means that no one currently alive on the planet will ever again see an atmosphere with less than 400 ppm CO2……

We are watching giant pieces of our planet’s biosphere die before our eyes…….

The Great Barrier Reef obituary is a sign of our times, and we must brace ourselves for more tragedies like it — for coral reefs, glaciers, ice fields, forests, lakes, rivers, and of course, species……

Even in late October, Arctic sea ice hit a new record daily low extent, underscoring the fact that this year’s record low readings are three million square kilometers below the same day readings (October 23) of that day in 1981.

Earth

A recently published report on Earth’s biodiversity revealed that global wildlife numbers have fallen by 58 percent since just 1970. The report — called The Living Planet assessment — produced by the Zoological Society of London and the World Wildlife Fund also said that if trends continue, this decline will likely reach two-thirds among vertebrates in only four more years. The report lists ACD as one of the driving factors of the great dying.

The report confirms what many of us have been watching for a number of years now — that we are bearing witness to the collapse of wildlife. We are so obviously living in the Anthropocene: the era in which humans exert the dominant influence over Earth and its destiny……..

Water

This month, as usual, ACD-fueled dramatic changes in water-related phenomena abound.

A recently published study found that multi-decade megadroughts due to ACD are “virtually certain” across the US Southwest.

Perhaps this has already begun as by late October, over 120 million people (28 percent of the population of the lower 48 states) were experiencing drought. California entered the sixth year of its drought.

Things are looking grim for the Mediterranean region as well, as another study warned that even if the Earth only warmed 2C (which is a laughably low estimate at this point) widespread desertification will overtake huge swaths of this lush region and render the ecosystem there “unrecognizable.”

At the other end of the extreme water event spectrum, Louisiana is struggling to figure out what to do about rising seas.

Air

Evidence that conditions in the atmosphere are worsening continues to unfold.

A study recently published in Nature shows that, thanks to leaks from oil and gas activities around the world being far more persistent and larger than previously believed, methane emissions from that industry are likely 60 percent higher than estimated. Methane is 22 times more potent a greenhouse gas than CO2…….

Fire

Given that this year saw the hottest summer ever recorded, it comes as no surprise that there has been a preponderance of fires, many of which persisted well into the fall season.

Massive fires covering millions of acres across Russia prompted many residents to sign a petition to Vladimir Putin, in which they complained of suffocating from the smoke. According to independent satellite analysis from experts, huge fires across Siberia have burned millions of acres year after year, and have caused a dramatic uptick in the number of fires facing that region.

In Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology recently released a report stating that that country is experiencing more extreme fire weather and hotter days as ACD progresses. Fire season there has been extended by several weeks, according to the agency, and that trend is expected to continue to increase.

In the US, a study recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that ACD is what is behind the recent surge in wildfires across the west, as the research ties them directly to escalating temperatures…..http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/38236-climate-disruption-s-legacy-megadroughts-extinctions-obituaries-for-reefs

November 8, 2016 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Cost of global warming ‘is worse than I feared’ – Nicholas Stern

Nicholas Stern: cost of global warming ‘is worse than I feared’, Guardian, Robin McKie, 6 Nov 16, 

Ten years ago the leading economist warned about climate change in a landmark report – he says while there is cause for optimism, the picture is still grim. lot has happened since Nicholas Stern, then a permanent secretary at the Treasury, produced his landmark review of the impact of climate change 10 years ago. His work was quickly recognised as the definitive account of the economic dangers posed to the planet by global warming.

Since then, global temperatures have risen to record levels. Arctic summer sea ice has continued to shrink, as have many major land-based ice sheets. Carbon dioxide is being pumped into the atmosphere in ever-increasing amounts. At the same time, low-lying coastal areas, such as south Florida and parts of Bangladesh, are experiencing more and more flooding as sea levels have risen. Scientists have begun to link extreme weather events to the planet’s changing climate, while animal and plant species are gradualling moving towards the poles. So, a decade on, is Stern plunged in despair over our prospects? Not quite. While the picture is certainly grim, the world’s top climate economist still believes there are grounds for modest optimism.

“We have been too slow in acting on climate change,” he told the Observer. “In particular, we have delayed the curbing of greenhouse gas emissions for far too long. When we published our review, emissions were equivalent to the pumping of 40-41bn tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere a year. Today there are around 50bn tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. At the same time, science is telling us that impacts of global warming – like ice sheet and glacier melting – are now happening much more quickly than we anticipated.”

In his report, published in October 2006, Stern warned that the cost of inaction would be far greater for future generations than the costs of actions taken today. “With hindsight, I now realise that I underestimated the risks. I should have been much stronger in what I said in the report about the costs of inaction. I underplayed the dangers.”

These are stark remarks. Yet the dramatic success of the Paris climate talks last year, and their subsequent rapid ratification by more than 90 countries, has provided the 70-year-old economist with a sense of hope: “It has taken only 11 months to get the Paris agreement ratified. It took eight years to get its predecessor, the Kyoto protocol, into force. So in a sense, the last 12 months have been encouraging.”

In his review, Stern made a cogent case for the need to make drastic reductions in fossil fuel burning to curb emissions of carbon dioxide, which are heating our atmosphere dangerously. The costs involved – in investing in the development of alternative energy sources, for example – would be far outweighed by the costs of coping with an overheated world afflicted by flooding, soaring temperatures, ruined crops and farmland, lack of food and displaced people, he argued. Most experts responded positively to the review…….

As a counterbalance, Stern points to the fact that in recent years there has been an encouraging increase in the use of sustainable technologies that should help us to wean us of our fossil fuel dependency. Cities like Barcelona and Bogotá have made themselves cleaner and healthier. Coal burning has peaked in China. Hybrid cars and electric vehicles are being sold in increasing numbers and the cost of making solar panels has been reduced by a factor of 20. “We have reached the point where we can now see that the alternative route is not really something that should be regarded as a cost. It is actually a much better way of doing things, even if you had never heard of climate change,” says Stern.

But the message has taken too long to sink in, and as result we are approaching a crunch point, he argues. In the next 20 years, as economies across the globe expand, the planet is likely to build infrastructure – roads, buildings, ports and airports – that will more than double what already exists.

The crucial issue is the nature of that infrastructure. “If it is dirty and high carbon, it will lock us into that technology for a long time. We will be sentenced to live in cities where we cannot breath or move or be productive. If we do it using sustainable technology, however, we could have an extremely attractive future where you have strong growth, poverty is reduced, cities are cleaner and forests are saved. People have not sufficiently understood the importance of the next 20 years. They are going to be the most decisive two decades in human history.”

Last year’s Paris climate deal suggests there is a will to avoid the worst and there is a prospect of further strong agreements being reached at this month’s talks in Marrakech. India, China and the US have all made positive noises. Hillary Clinton is a firm supporter of climate change initiatives ……..

The Paris agreement remains central to Stern’s sense of cautious optimism. “It was the honesty of the delegates’ awareness of the nature of the problem and the speed of the agreement’s ratification that has given me most hope. We have a lot to do to limit carbon emissions to an effective level. I am confident that it is possible to achieve that, though I cannot say that I am confident it will happen.” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/nov/06/nicholas-stern-climate-change-review-10-years-on-interview-decisive-years-humanity

November 6, 2016 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Despite Paris agreement, world is set for a 3.5 degree temperature rise

Paris Agreement comes into force but sets us on course for a 3.5 degree world, says Friends of the Earth International http://reliefweb.int/report/world/paris-agreement-comes-force-sets-us-course-35-degree-world-says-friends-earth  REPORT from Friends of the Earth  03 Nov 2016 On Friday 4 November, just days before the UN climate talks open in Marrakech, the Paris Agreement comes into force. Friends of the Earth International reiterates its concern that without greater ambition and more urgency the Paris Agreement will fail to deliver the scale of fair and drastic action needed to prevent dangerous climate change.

1971 countries have agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to hold the global temperature increase to “well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” and to “pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels.’’ However, even if countries stick to commitments made so far, we can expect at least 3.5°C of warming2.

“After 24 years of negotiations we are hurtling towards a 3.5 degree world, which will be catastrophic for millions across the world,” said Dipti Bhatnagar, Climate Justice and Energy Coordinator for Friends of the Earth International. “Despite all the science-based evidence, rich countries are failing to do their fair share of emissions reductions as well as provide much-needed finance to drive energy transformation in developing countries. The clock is ticking, we have almost no time left to ensure the peoples of Africa are not sacrificed to increasing temperatures.”

“There are 1.2 billion people living with no access to electricity and over half of those people are in Africa,” said Geoffrey Kamese, Senior Programme Officer, Friends of the Earth Uganda / NAPE “Africa-led and people-centred initiatives – such as the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative – must be given support to work for people. However, we’re only seeing more of the same – old and indeed new dirty energy projects – oil, coal, gas and big dams, fracking, even tar sands – continue to devastate communities.

The Paris Agreement’s goal of preventing catastrophic climate change and protecting the world’s poor will be worthless if governments use it to open the door to untested, dangerous geo-engineering (that will also trigger a global land grab for agrofuels), and to focus on discredited solutions such as carbon markets and nuclear energy.

Friends of the Earth International champions the real solutions to the climate crisis: steep and urgent reductions in carbon emissions, in line with each country’s fair share; an end to deforestation; new, public finance and support for clean, sustainable, people-centred power solutions, and a transformation in our food systems. These solutions have long been underway, initiated by people and their communities. Decision-makers must listen to the people, listen to the science, and stop wasting precious time and money on false solutions.

November 5, 2016 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment