Beavers could be released in 2009

BBC News, December 24, 2007

Plans are in the pipeline for beavers to be released into the Scottish wild for the first time in 500 years. Wildlife bodies have asked the Scottish Government for a licence to allow about 20 beavers to be set free in Argyll in 2009.
Beavers were hunted to extinction in Scotland in the 16th Century. Read more...

No More Free Ride: Global Warming Pollution from Ships Must be Regulated

ENN, December 31, 2007

Consider the following facts:
* Only six countries in the world release more carbon dioxide than the global fleet of marine vessels.
* This fleet releases between 600 and 900 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year, an amount equivalent to emissions from at least 130 million cars -- about the number of cars operated in the United States.
* A single container ship emits more global warming pollution than 2,000 diesel trucks. Read more...

Barcoding An Entire Ecosystem

ENN, December 27, 2007

BERKELEY — In the middle of the South Pacific, about 12 miles west of Tahiti, is a tropical island that soon will emerge as a model ecosystem, thanks to the efforts of a U.S.-French research team led by University of California, Berkeley, biologists. UC Berkeley biologist George Roderick talks about working on the South Pacific island of Moorea and an ambitious project to create a genetic inventory of all non-microbial life in the island's ecosystem. Read more...

Bali paves way for two years of tough negotiations

Euractive, December 17, 2005

The UN climate talks in Bali wrapped up on 15 December, producing a two-year negotiation 'roadmap' to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. New climate change adaptation funds, anti-deforestation mechanisms and technology transfers are seen as Bali's main achievements. Read more...

Arctic summers ice-free 'by 2013'

BBC News, December 12, 2007

By Jonathan Amos Science reporter, BBC News, San Francisco

Scientists in the US have presented one of the most dramatic forecasts yet for the disappearance of Arctic sea ice. Their latest modelling studies indicate northern polar waters could be ice-free in summers within just 5-6 years.
Professor Wieslaw Maslowski told an American Geophysical Union meeting that previous projections had underestimated the processes now driving ice loss. Summer melting this year reduced the ice cover to 4.13 million sq km, the smallest ever extent in modern times. Read more...

Και ξαφνικά συμφωνία στη Διάσκεψη του Μπαλί με στόχο νέο Πρωτοκόλλο έως το 2009

In.gr, 15 Δεκεμβρίου 2007

Συμφωνία στο «παρά πέντε» για τους εκπροσώπους των χωρών που μετείχαν στη Διάσκεψη του Μπαλί για το κλίμα.
Οι «180»χώρες -μεταξύ αυτών και οι ΗΠΑ- αποφάσισαν να υιοθετήσουν έναν «Οδικό Χάρτη», ο οποίος περιλαμβάνει διαπραγματεύσεις δύο ετών με στόχο μία νέα Συνθήκη το 2009. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Banks urged to go "green"

ENN, December 13, 2007

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Banks are contributing to global warming by funding coal and oil exploration, and should adopt policies that cut their negative impact on the environment, according to a report by a network of NGOs. BankTrack, a grouping of civil society organizations and individuals tracking the financial sector, said banks should end support for all new coal, oil and gas extraction and delivery projects, new coal-fired power plants and the most harmful practices in other greenhouse-gas intensive sectors. Read more...

Australian navy may track Japan's whaling fleet

ENN, December 13, 2007

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's new government may send a navy ship to Antarctica to track Japan's whaling fleet and gather evidence to mount a legal challenge, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said on Thursday. Japan's whaling fleet plans to hunt 935 minke whales, 50 fin whales and for the first time in 40 years, 50 humpback whales for research over the Antarctic summer, with the fleet already on its way south followed by anti-whaling activists.
"We take seriously Australia's international obligations on the proper protection of whales," Rudd told reporters on the sidelines of the U.N. environment summit in Bali. Read more...

67% Of Consumers Willing To Pay More For Green Power

Environmental Leader, December 13, 2007

Sixty-seven percent of consumers polled across six countries - Australia, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States - would be more willing to pay for eco-friendly energy, according to Plugging in the Consumer: Innovating utility business models for the future, a report from IBM Global Business Services that forecasts how changes in energy customers’ expectations will impact the utility industry’s business model in the next five to ten years.. Read more...

Rotterdam gives away energy-saving lightbulbs

ENN, December 11, 2007

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The city of Rotterdam will distribute energy-saving light bulbs to all of its more than 300,000 households to cut emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2), it said on Tuesday.
The Dutch city said it will distribute more than 600,000 light bulbs and that the expected savings for its citizens -- 26 million euros ($38 million) over six years from lower electricity bills -- will far outweigh the costs of 4 million euros. The initiative is part of a push by the city of Rotterdam to cut its CO2 emissions by half by the year 2025 compared with 1990 levels. Read more...

Mysterious mammal caught on film

BBC News, December 10, 2007

By Rebecca Morelle Science reporter, BBC News

An "extraordinary" desert creature has been caught on camera for what scientists believe is the first time. The long-eared jerboa, a tiny nocturnal mammal that is dwarfed by its enormous ears, can be found in deserts in Mongolia and China. Read more...

Low faith in biofuels for climate

BBC News, December 11, 2007

By Richard Black Environment correspondent, BBC News website

Campaigners outside the talks have a simple message for delegatesDecision-makers in the climate change field have little faith in biofuels as a low-carbon technology, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) has found. Unveiled at the UN climate convention meeting in Bali, its survey shows professionals have more confidence in bicycles than in biofuels. The findings come as ministers assemble for the final part of the UN talks. Read more...

France suspends commercial GMO seed use, studies safety

ENN, December 7, 2007

By Tamora Vidaillet and Valerie Parent
PARIS (Reuters) - France formally suspended on Thursday the commercial use of genetically modified (GMO) seeds in the country until early February and ordered a biotech safety study.
The future of GMOs has long been the subject of heated debate in France -- Europe's top grain producer -- and the country's reluctance to use GMO crops compares starkly with the United States, which is far more tolerant of the technology. Read more...

Αμαζόνιος SOS: Το 60% των δασών ίσως καταστραφεί έως το 2030

TA NEA, 7 Δεκεμβρίου 2007

ΜΕΧΡΙ και το 60% των δασών του Αμαζονίου μπορεί να έχει καταστραφεί στα επόμενα 23 χρόνια σύμφωνα με έκθεση του Παγκόσμιου Ταμείου για τη Φύση (WWF) που δόθηκε χθες στη δημοσιότητα. Σύμφωνα με την έκθεση, υπολογίζεται ότι η αποψίλωση του Αμαζονίου θα απελευθερώσει από 55,5 έως 96,5 δισ. τόνους διοξειδίου του άνθρακα, ποσότητα που είναι μεγαλύτερη από το σύνολο των σημερινών εκπομπών σε διάστημα δύο χρόνων. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Παρελθόν οι λάμπες πυρακτώσεως στην Ιρλανδία

Καθημερινή, 6 Δεκεμβρίου 2007

H κυβέρνηση της Ιρλανδίας, στα πλαίσια του Εθνικού Ενεργειακού Σχεδιασμού της χώρας, ανακοίνωσε την απαγόρευση των ενεργοβόρων λαμπτήρων πυρακτώσεως από τον Ιανουάριο του 2009.
Με την απόφαση αυτή η Ιρλανδία πρωτοπορεί στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, εφόσον γίνεται το πρώτο κράτος μέλος που κάνει ένα αυτονόητο βήμα για την αντιμετώπιση των κλιματικών αλλαγών: την απόσυρση από την αγορά των ενεργειακά σπάταλων προϊόντων. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Uganda plans to boost forest cover

ENN, December 5, 2007, By Tim Cocks

KAMPALA (Reuters) - Uganda will plant millions of trees in the next four years at a cost of $253 million, as it tries to restore dwindling forest cover to 30 percent of its area from 22 percent, the government said on Wednesday.
Like many African countries, Uganda suffers from rampant deforestation that dries up rivers, triggers soil erosion and threatens wildlife, especially birds and primates. Read more...

Protecting old-growth forests in Poland

ENN, December 5, 2007

Warsaw, Poland – Over 100,000 signatures have been forwarded to the Polish government, calling for the protection of Europe’s last remaining stands of natural forests.
The signature drive is part of a WWF campaign to safeguard ancient woodlands in Poland’s Bialowieza Primaeval Forest from logging and other unsustainable forest activities. Read more...

U.S. says seeks new climate deal, rejects Kyoto

ENN, December 4, 2007, by Alister Doyle, Environment Correspondent

BALI, Indonesia (Reuters) - The United States said on Monday it would seek a new global deal to fight climate change after Australia's move to ratify the Kyoto Protocol isolated it as the only developed nation outside the current U.N. pact.
"We're not here to be a roadblock," U.S. delegation leader Harlan Watson said on the opening day of a December 3-14 meeting of almost 190 nations in Bali, Indonesia, seeking to agree a roadmap to work out a successor to Kyoto which runs to 2012.
"The United States intends to be flexible and work constructively on a Bali roadmap," he said, referring to plans for Bali to launch two years of negotiations on a new U.N.-led deal to fight climate change beyond 2012. "We respect the decision that other countries have made and we would, of course, ask them to respect the decision we have made," Watson told a news conference. Read more...

Australia signs up to Kyoto

The Guardian, December 3, 2007

Australia won applause at the start of UN-led climate change talks in Bali on Monday by agreeing to ratify the Kyoto protocol, isolating the US as the only developed nation outside the pact. Soon after an Australian delegate promised immediate action on Kyoto, the new prime minister in Canberra, Kevin Rudd, took the oath of office and signed the ratification documents, ending his country's long-held opposition to the global climate agreement.

"I think I can speak for all present here by expressing a sigh of relief," the conference host and Indonesian environment minister, Rachmat Witoelar, told the opening session. Read more...

Χρήση ΑΠΕ στα κτήρια που κατασκευάζουν οι Δήμοι

ΕΡΤ Nature, 29 Νοεμβρίου 2007

Μια σημαντική απόφαση για την εξοικονόμηση ενέργειας σε δημόσια κτίρια πήρε ομόφωνα το Διοικητικό Συμβούλιο της Κεντρικής Επιτροπής Δήμων και Κοινοτήτων Ελλάδας. Η ΚΕΔΚΕ δίνει για πρώτη φορά το "πράσινο φως" για σταδιακή αντικατάσταση της χρήσης συμβατικών μορφών ενέργειας στις λειτουργίες και δραστηριότητες της Τοπικής Αυτοδιοίκησης. Η αρχή δρομολογείται με τη χρήση νέων τεχνολογιών ανανεώσιμων πηγών ενέργειας, που θα εξασφαλίζουν την ενεργειακή αυτοδυναμία σε όλα τα κτίρια τα οποία θα κατασκευάζονται εφεξής από τους δήμους της χώρας (δημοτικά κτίρια, αντλιοστάσια, βιολογικούς καθαρισμούς, δημοτικά κολυμβητήρια κ.ά.). Διαβάστε την ανακοίνωση...

Μπαλί: Η 13η σύνοδος του ΟΗΕ για τις κλιματικές αλλαγές

Η Καθημερινή, 3 Δεκεμβρίου 2007

Στον τροπικό «παράδεισο» του Μπαλί, στην Ινδονησία, φιλοξενείται φέτος η 13η σύνοδος των Ηνωμένων Εθνών για τις κλιματικές αλλαγές. «Το νησί των θεών», όπως συχνά αποκαλείται, υποδέχεται την προσέλευση αξιωματούχων και υπουργών περιβάλλοντος από περίπου 200 κυβερνήσεις του κόσμου. Πρωτεύων στόχος της διάσκεψης, η επίτευξη διεθνούς συναίνεσης για συλλογική δράση απέναντι στις κλιματικές αλλαγές. Ωστόσο, οι αναλύσεις, οι έρευνες και τα επιστημονικά τεκμήρια νομιμοποιούν τον χαρακτηρισμό που προσδίδει στη διάσκεψη ο διεθνής Τύπος: «τελευταία ευκαιρία». Διαβάστε περισσότερα...