Climate change headlines and global warming news for June 2011
June 30 - Climate change can amplify chemical
Drought conditions can change of the natural pH shifts in waterways
dramatically and have the potential to make some chemicals in the environment more toxic
to aquatic life say researchers from Baylor University. Read
June 29 - 2010 one of the warmest on record
Globally, 2010 was one of the two warmest years since official
record-keeping began in the late 19th century according to the NOAA's recently
released 2010 State of the Climate report. The report shows a continuing long term trend over the last 50 years consistent with global climate change.
June 27 - Warming oceans spur major marine
Jellyfish appearing where they haven't before, whales turning up in
strange places, fish species colonizing new regions - all as a result of
changes to our seas and oceans, all in connection to climate change. Read
June 24 - Gore Criticizes Obama on climate change
Al Gore believes U.S. President Barack Obama has failed to make any
substantial progress on addressing climate change and has also criticized
the media for inaccurate reporting on topic; particularly its failure to
communicate the growing consensus among scientists that global warming is
June 23 - Sea levels rising at a rapid rate
The rate at which the sea level is rising along the U.S. Atlantic coast is greater
currently than at any time in the past 2,000 years. The research that
arrived at the conclusion was carried out by scientists from multiple
institutions and be valuable for anticipating sea level rise impact on
coastal systems globally - where nearly half the world's population lives.
June 22 - Australia's carbon tax not a done deal
Contrary to some reports, it seems a deal to see the introduction of a
carbon tax is still some way off. According to Australian Greens leader Bob Brown,
there are still a number of important hurdles that need to be cleared -
and it was still possible there would be no deal at all. Read
June 21 - Oceans headed for major extinction event
The signs are there, the stage is set - our oceans are headed for a major
phase of extinction; partly due to a saturation of carbon dioxide say a
group of marine scientists who are urging "unequivocal action at every
level" to hopefully prevent such a catastrophe from occurring. Read
June 20 - Scientists call for end to misinformation
Leading climate change scientists in Australia are calling on politicians to help stop misinformation in the climate
debate as the hysteria being caused is escalating to the point of threats
being made to their personal safety. Read
June 19 - Sea around Cuba to rise 30 inches.
Scientists in Cuba have estimated median sea levels around the nation will rise
in excess of 30 inches by the end of this century due to the effects of climate change.
A rise of just over ten and a half inches is expected by 2050. Read
June 15 - Climate change could promote plague
A new study has suggested climate change could mean more virulent plagues in parts of the world that become wetter as more vegetation would allow flea bearing rodents carrying the pathogen increased access to food.
June 14 - Climate change threatens Aussie wine
Australia has made quite a name for itself in relation to fine wines, but
the industry is under threat from rapidly changing weather patterns and in
particular, rising temperatures. As vineyards warm up by just a couple of degrees, some of the grape varieties currently being grown may not be viable in just 10 - 15 years from now.
June 13 - Iran president blames climate change on
Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recently stated greed and excess are responsible for climate
change and that the world's capitalists has disrupted the balance of
nature; adding that a handful of countries account for half of the world's pollution.
June 11 - Parts of UK in drought
The use of the term drought in relation to Britain is rather uncommon, but
parts of the country are facing drought after one of the driest springs in
a century. The last major drought in Britain occurred in 1976. Read
June 10 - Rocky Mountains snowpack in decline
Recent flooding in the Rocky Mountains may have created an illusion that
its snowpack is in no danger; but it has actually been declining in recent
decades at a more significant rate than at any other time in the past 1,000 years.
June 9 - Carbon emission rate 10x prehistoric times
Carbon is being released into the atmosphere today nearly 10 times as fast as during
what was the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), nearly 56 million years
ago. The pace of emissions may not allow sufficient time for insects,
plants and animals to adjust warn researchers. Read
June 8 - World must invest billions in forests
A recent UN reports states investment of $40 billion annually is needed for the world to move to a low carbon economy; around 0.034 per cent of global GDP.
June 5 - Presidential hopeful acknowledges climate
U.S. Republicans generally don't see a link between human activity and
climate change, publicly anyway. Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has
performed an about-face, stating in a town hall meeting not only a belief
that the world is getting warmer, but that humans have contributed to the
June 4 - Aussie climate scientists receive death
One of the most emotive issues of our time, the topic of climate change is
causing some unbalanced individuals to go as far as sending death threats
to climate change scientists at the Australian National University. Read
June 3 - Majority of Australians believe in
Climate change skeptics are becoming a rarity in Australia. A survey of
thousands of Australians has found nearly three quarters believe the world's climate is changing and 90 percent
of those believe human activities are partly responsible. Under 6 percent
are "true climate skeptics". Read
June 2 - Ozone related illnesses to increase with
A warming USA could increase respiratory illness due to a boost in ground-level ozone according to a report from the Union of Concerned Scientists. Ground-level ozone is created by nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds interacting with heat and sunlight.
June 2 - Acidic oceans deafen fish
As our oceans become more saturated with carbon dioxide, they are becoming
more acidic. Aside from damage to shellfish, algae and corals through
increased acidity, it appears it may also impact on the hearing of species
of fish according to a study conducted by researchers at U.K. and Australian universities.
June 2 - Climate change to promote invasive weed
An invasive weed called yellow starthistle that is already racking up millions of dollars in damage to pastures in western USA will gain a greater foothold with climate change. The weed apparently grows faster and bigger when exposed to increased levels of carbon dioxide and warmer temperatures.
June 1 - Australian opposition leader "mad as a
A war of words continues in Australia over the nation's government's plans
to introduce a carbon tax, a concept the leader of the opposition, Tony
Abbott, is totally against. The country's former prime minister, the
colorful Bob Hawke, has labelled the Liberal leader "as mad as a cut snake" for
not supporting the initiative. Read