Climate Change News - September 9, 2013

G20 Countries Join US and China to Support Phasing Down HFC, Under Montreal Protocol

On September 6, President Obama negotiated two separate agreements, one with the G-20 and one with China, to phase down the super greenhouse gases called hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The G-20 Leaders Declaration  announced support for initiatives that are complementary to efforts under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, including using the expertise and institutions of the Montreal Protocol to phase down the production and consumption of HFCs, while retaining HFCs within the scope of the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol for accounting and reporting of emissions. The G20 agreement included Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, and the European Union, as well as Ethiopia, Spain, Senegal, Brunei, Kazakhstan, and Singapore. Previously, Argentina, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia had been unwilling to support the HFC amendment under the Montreal Protocol. “The G20 agreement leaves little if any opposition to the HFC amendment,” stated Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development.  "This is the biggest climate prize available to the world in the next few years, providing mitigation equivalent to 100 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2050 and avoiding up to nearly 1 degree Fahrenheit (0.5 Celsius) in warming by 2100. It also helps build the momentum we need to negotiate a strong climate treaty in 2015 to go into effect in 2020,” added Zaelke. “Climate optimism was resurrected today at the G20.”   The announcement comes on the heels of an agreement reached earlier in the day between the United States and China to open formal negotiations on the details of the amendment to phase down HFCs under the Montreal Protocol.  The agreement took place on the margins of the G20 Summit and builds on an earlier agreement between President Xi Jinping and President Obama (see June 10 issue).  

For additional information see: G20 Leaders' Declaration , White House G20 Press Release , US-China Agreement Press Release , The Washington Post

Secretary Kerry Speaks about Climate Change at the 44th Pacific Islands Forum

On September 2, US Secretary of State John Kerry urged the international community to take action on climate change. "The science is clear," said Secretary Kerry, “it is irrefutable and it is alarming." He warned that "if we continue down our current path, the impacts of climate change will only get worse." Kerry contended that it is not too late for international action to stop some of the worst impacts of climate change. Secretary Kerry's address was broadcast at a climate conference in the Marshall Islands, on the evening before the Pacific Islands Forum. Climate change is an especially critical issue to Pacific Islanders, who face significant land loss as sea levels rise. The Tuvaluan Prime Minister stated that "the situation is dire."  

For additional information see: The Hill , Business Standard , Xinhua Net

GAO Reviews Methods Behind Administration’s Social Cost of Carbon Pollution

The carbon metric introduced by the Administration in 2010, has come under increased scrutiny by lawmakers. On August 19, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) agreed to investigate the recently retooled metric, after requests from Representatives Duncan Hunter (R-Calif), John Culberson (R-Texas) and Senator David Vitter (R-La).  The metric, referred to as the “social cost of carbon,” is an algorithm used to calculate costs to public health, agriculture, environment and other sectors by carbon emissions.  It is also used to demonstrate the benefits of carbon emissions cuts, both to benefit public health and assist in meeting reduction targets to combat climate change.   Earlier this summer, in an update to the energy efficiency standard for microwave ovens, the administration increased the cost estimate of carbon from $21 to $35 per metric ton.  Proponents assert that the change will improve the capability of regulations that reduce air pollutants.  However, legislators on both sides called for transparency in the process used to calculate the new metric, and expressed concern over the potential negative effects it will have on business and consumers.  The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Administrator Howard Shelanski asserted that the calculations are based on accepted peer-reviewed economic and scientific studies. He added that while comments were not sought on the design of the algorithm itself, comments will be accepted on all resulting rules that use the new calculation.  Meanwhile, the House recently voted to prevent the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from using the new carbon metric when writing regulations, unless specifically allowed under federal law.

For additional information see: The Hill: Article 1 , Article 2

EPA Administrator McCarthy Emphasizes Climate Change During Alaska Visit

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy started her trip to Alaska on Monday, August 26 with a visit to Portage Glacier to survey the impacts of climate change. According to the National Climate Assessment, glaciers and Arctic sea ice are melting at an accelerated pace due to global warming.  “The challenge of climate change is not a short-term issue,” said McCarthy, “it is a long-term challenge and one in which we need every level of government and individual to really participate in what the solutions are.”  McCarthy also emphasized how President Obama’s Climate Action Plan addresses climate challenges while fundamentally “addressing sustainable economy for the United States.”

For additional information see: The Cordova Times

Climate and Clean Air Coalition Endorses Montreal Protocol for Fast Climate Mitigation

Efforts to phase down super greenhouse gases called hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, received a boost when the 34 country partners in the Climate & Clean Air Coalition to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants, agreed to “work toward a phasedown in the production and consumption of HFCs under the Montreal Protocol.” The country partners also agreed at their High Level Assembly in Oslo, Norway to “adopt domestic approaches to encourage climate-friendly HFC alternative technologies” and to “work with international standards organizations to revise their standards to include climate-friendly HFC alternatives.”

For additional information see: Communiqué , World Bank G8 Report , Independent European Daily Express , Coalition Press Release , WB Press Release , IGSD Press Release

2013 Federal Funding Depleted for Wildfire Fighting While ‘New Normal’ in Extreme Wildfires Reached

As of September 4, the Yosemite Rim fire had burned 368 square miles and cost $72 million to contain. Researchers from the EPA found that by 2050, wildfire activity will double in most of the West and Midwest, due to multiple stressors presented by climate change. In fact, 2012 was the second worst fire season on record, with 67,700 fires burning a total of 9.3 million acres, three times the average burn areas from a few decades ago. The fire season is now up to two months longer than in previous decades. The U.S. National Climate Assessment predicted that for every 1.8 degree of surface temperature rise, the Western wildfire area may quadruple.

For additional information see: The Washington Post , Climate Central , U.S. Environmental Protection Agency , The Guardian , The LA Times

Hurricane Katrina Anniversary Prompts Calls to Action on Climate Change

On August 24, the 8th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, residents of New Orleans called for action on climate change and the protection of the Louisiana coastline from further degradation.  During an Interfaith Prayer Breakfast at the Treme Community Center, members of the Climate Action Committee of Louisiana reminded guests that Louisiana has lost 1,880 square miles of coastline to sea level rise in the last eight decades and that little has been done to decrease the region’s vulnerability.  An aging public housing stock and lower construction standards makes low-income housing particularly vulnerable to severe storms.  African-American communities in Louisiana have struggled since Katrina, with lower income communities receiving on average $8,000 less than surrounding communities in insurance benefits for home repairs. Differences between housing damage and insurance payments are as high as $75,000 per family in the Lower Ninth Ward.  Eighty percent of residents of the Lower Ninth have still not returned to the neighborhood.  Dr. Beverly Wright of Loyola University in New Orleans noted that the struggles of poor communities in the face of extreme weather events are not unique to New Orleans, remarking that “pre-storm vulnerabilities continue to limit the participation of thousands of disadvantaged communities in after-storm reconstruction, rebuilding, and recovery. In these communities, days of hurt and loss have become years of grief, dislocation, and displacement.”

For additional information see: The Times-Pickayune , Ebony

Project in Long Island Sound Looks at Climate Change Impact

The Sentinel Monitoring for Climate Change in Long Island Sound Program aims to find out how climate change will alter Long Island Sound.  Home to over 120 species of finfish and countless bird species, the estuary brings in an estimated $5.5 billion annually to the regional economy. The project is studying indicators, or “sentinels” of climate change, with the goal of helping the Sound effectively manage climate change.

For additional information see: Long Island Sound Study , The CT Mirror , Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection

Climate Change Threatens Coastal Wildlife Species

On August 23, the United Kingdom National Trust published a list of six coastal species that could be seriously affected by erosion and climate change. Unpredictable weather and changing prey due to overfishing and warming waters threatens puffins. Exceptionally high tides, summer storms, and beach erosion put terns at risk. Conversely, warming water has led to sightings of the native triggerfish outside of its usual range. Matthew Oates, wildlife specialist for the National Trust, stated that “climate change could change the face of our coastal flora and fauna . . . We are likely to see the boom and bust of more specialist plants and animals, as they suffer from increased flooding, salt deposition, or drought stress. Unfortunately there may be more bust than boom.”

For additional information see: BBC News , The Guardian

Ocean Acidification to Negatively Impact Ocean Species

On August 25, the journal Nature Climate Change published a meta-analysis examining how increased acidity will likely impact 153 species of corals, echinoderms, molluscs, crustaceans, and fish. The authors found higher carbon dioxide concentrations will negatively affect all species studied, with the strongest impact on corals, echinoderms, and molluscs. Some of the negative impacts included molluscs taking longer to form shells, altered metabolisms, and behavioral and sensory changes that made fish less afraid of predators. Additionally, species that are less resilient to acidification could be outcompeted by those that are not as affected. Acidification takes decades to occur, so reducing emissions now could help avoid some of the worst effects. However, since the researcher focused only on the effects of ocean acidification, Hans Poertner, co-author and professor of marine biology at the Alfred Wegener Institute, stated that “we cannot give with any certainty the year when people will start to report extinctions due to climate change. It depends on what temperature change and carbon dioxide concentrations we allow.”  

For additional information see: Sydney Morning Herald , The Guardian , Time , Nature Climate Change

New National Wildlife Federation Report Shows Climate Change Threatening Freshwater Ecosystems

The National Wildlife Foundation (NWF) released a report on Wednesday, September 4, detailing the ways global warming is threatening fish habitat.  Freshwater fish are dying off as rising water temperatures and extreme weather caused by climate change increasingly affect their habitats across the United States. NWF found that 37 percent of freshwater animals are at risk from climate change-exacerbated stressors like habitat loss, pollution, disease and invasive species. The declining freshwater populations are also threatening the livelihoods of people who work in the sport fishing industry, which generated $25.7 billion in revenues in the United States during 2011. George Smith, former director of the Sportsmen's Alliance of Maine, has watched the decline of sport fishing in Maine. “Thirty, forty years ago, hundreds of anglers would line the Penobscot River in Bangor. Now they’re gone,” said Smith, attributing the waning fish stocks to rising water temperatures. NWF authors proposed a few necessary steps to halt this alarming trend, including improving water quality through the restoration of upstream forests, wetlands and flood plains. The study also stated that the United States needs to cut the root of the problem: carbon dioxide emissions.

For additional information see: Sea Coast Online , Dispatch , CBS Minnesota , Study

Floods in Australia Linked to Decrease in Sea-Level Rise

On August 19, the National Science Foundation (NSF) stated in a press release that heavy rainfall and floods in Australia in 2010 and 2011 were connected to a drop in sea-level rise during the same time period. Anjuli Bamzai, program director of NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, said, "The scientists conclude that the Outback region in Australia played a crucial role in trapping a large amount of rainfall when widespread floods occurred over the continent.”  The NSF statement concludes that from 2010 - 2011 sea-levels dropped by 7 millimetres.  John Fasullo of the US National Centre for Atmospheric Research and lead scientist on the project said, "It's a beautiful illustration of how complicated our climate system is. The smallest continent in the world can affect sea level worldwide.  Its influence is so strong that it can temporarily overcome the background trend of rising sea levels we see with climate change."

For additional information see: Sydney Morning Herald , The Guardian , Press Release , Abstract

Thursday, September 12, 2013: Energy Infrastructure and Power Pathways: Shared Experiences in the United States and Europe

9:00 AM – 10:30 AM at 562 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) invite you to a briefing highlighting the challenges facing electric power systems in the United States and Europe. The future electric grid must be dynamic and adaptive to adequately respond to a number of game-changing trends: the growth of distributed electricity generation, advances in critical technologies, and the expanding role of real-time data in managing the power sector. However, a clear path has yet to be defined that harnesses these trends for a secure, affordable, and low-carbon energy system.

Monday, September 16, 2013: Fast-Action Climate Mitigation: A Focus on Short-Lived Climate Pollutants

3:00 PM - 4:30 PM, Congressional Meeting Room South (CVC 217) Capitol Visitors Center, Washington DC