Recession and renewables cut greenhouse emissions in 2009

EEA, May 31, 2011

Greenhouse gas emissions decreased very sharply in 2009, by 7.1 % in the EU-27 and 6.9 % in the EU-15. These most recent results, compiled by the European Environment Agency (EEA), confirm estimates made by the EEA last year. This decrease was largely the result of the economic recession of 2009, but also sustained strong growth in renewable energy.Read more...

Who's On Board With The Copenhagen Accord?

USCAN


January 31, 2010 marked the deadline for parties to the Copenhagen Accord to submit their respective plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. While the UNFCCC Secretariat has signaled this is not a hard deadline, the inclusion of this date, and countries' reaction to it, will provide an indication of whether the Copenhagen Accord can lead to a fair, ambitious and binding agreement to solve the climate crisis. USCAN is tracking media reports and UNFCCC submissions on how countries are engaging with the accord and associated emissions reduction commitments. Read more...

Green Revolution's diet of big carbon savings

BBC News, June 14, 2010

The Green Revolution of the 1960s raised crop yields and cut hunger - and also saved decades worth of greenhouse gas emissions, a study concludes. US researchers found cumulative global emissions since 1850 would have been one third as much again without the Green Revolution's higher yields.Although modern farming uses more energy and chemicals, much less land needs to be cleared.The study is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read more...

How Meat Contributes to Global Warming

ENN, January 28, 2009

KEY CONCEPTS

Pound for pound, beef production generates greenhouse gases that contribute more than 13 times as much to global warming as do the gases emitted from producing chicken. For potatoes, the multiplier is 57.

Beef consumption is rising rapidly, both as population increases and as people eat more meat.

Producing the annual beef diet of the average American emits as much greenhouse gas as a car driven more than 1,800 miles. Read more...