In The News

China's Air Pollution Leading to More Erratic Climate for US, Say Scientists

Jonathan Kaiman April 17, 2014
The United States and Canada rank highest in energy consumption per capita, though China has now surpassed the United States in overall greenhouse gas emissions. A team of US researchers suggest that air pollution from China “is leading to more intense cyclones, increased precipitation and more warm air in the mid-Pacific moving towards the north pole,” reports Jonathan Kaiman for the Guardian....

Of Climate and Political Change

Nayan Chanda April 3, 2014
The threat of climate change – which poses an array of economic consequences – is missing from the political debate as Indians prepare for April-May general elections. “The impact of climate change has become more urgent and definitely more evident than it was five years earlier,” suggests Nayan Chanda, YaleGlobal editor, in his column for Businessworld. The “monstrous cyclone Phailin that took...

United Nations: Climate Impacts “Overwhelming”

Matt McGrath March 31, 2014
The impacts of climate change are severe and already underway – with higher risks of flooding, wildfires, food and water shortages, and property damage, suggests a report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of the United Nations. The report is based on more than 12,000 peer-reviewed studies. Researchers anticipate high costs for adaptation and disaster relief. “Humans may be able...

How to Save the Shale Revolution

Robert A. Manning March 11, 2014
Hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling pump water and chemicals into the ground and ease extraction of oil and natural gas. Critics point to the environmental risks, including earthquakes and groundwater contamination; some property owners even urge bans on the technology. Researchers have identified best practices to minimize problems; coordination among regulators could fend off the calls...

Europe Flood Losses to "Increase Fourfold" by 2050

Matt McGrath March 5, 2014
Forecasting models predict flood damage losses could increase fourfold for Europe by 2050. Governments are not engaging in adequate planning. “The scientists believe that the continent's annual flood costs may be 23.5bn euros by the middle of the century,” reports Matt McGrath for BBC News. “Two-thirds of the projected increase in flood damage will be caused by human development, not climate...

America's Energy Edge

Robert D. Blackwill and Meghan L. O'Sullivan February 26, 2014
Discoveries of shale energy throughout the Americas and beyond will upend geopolitics. “The fracking revolution required more than just favorable geology; it also took financiers with a tolerance for risk, a property-rights regime that let landowners claim underground resources, a network of service providers and delivery infrastructure, and an industry structure characterized by thousands of...

Wavier Jet Stream “May Drive Weather Shift”

Pallab Ghosh February 18, 2014
Politicians have long assumed that they have plenty of time to cope with the onslaught of climate change, and scientists claim it is too early to link a wavering jet stream with this winter’s extreme weather in the northern hemisphere. Yet ordinary people should consider that climate change attributed to the burning of coal and other fossil fuels may be less gradual than once thought. A study...