In The News

Coffee Rust Reaches New Heights in Central America

Moises Castillo and Marcos Aleman June 9, 2014
Rising temperatures and climate change have put the Central American coffee industry into crisis mode with economic repercussions for the region, reports the Associated Press. A fungus called “coffee rust” is destroying coffee plants. So far, there is no known cure. Farmers manage harvests by spraying or replacing infected trees. Disease-resistant plants have been developed, but planting new...

China Plan to Cap CO2 Emissions Seen as Turning Point in Climate Talks

Kathy Chen and Stian Reklev June 4, 2014
China, the world’s leading contributor to carbon emissions, has announced plans to set a cap on pollution levels, notably just a day after the US pledged to reduce its own global footprint: “[T]he fact that the two biggest emitters of greenhouse gases made unprecedented announcements on climate within 24 hours of each other sparked optimism among observers hoping to see the decades-old deadlock...

How Climate Change Will Destroy Your Country's Credit Rating

Todd Woody May 27, 2014
It is a bitter irony that rising seas, severe drought and violent storms associated with climate change will slam the world’s poorest nations that consume the least energy per capita. Changing weather patterns will also hit national credit ratings, raising borrowing costs for investment in infrastructure like dams or post-disaster rebuilding, notes a report from Standard & Poor’s. “S&P...

Deforestation: Carving Up the Amazon

Barbara Fraser May 22, 2014
Roads allow human access to remote lands but often result in habitat destruction. Networks of roads in the Amazon and the rapid deforestation add to jobs and economic growth with agriculture development, as well as ranching, mining and land speculation, explains Barbara Fraser for Nature. “So far, most [roads] have encroached on forest around the edges of the basin, but they are increasingly...

A Black Mark in the Waiting

Nayan Chanda May 21, 2014
Coal provides about a third of the globe’s primary energy needs, according to the World Coal Association, and India ranks third in coal production and consumption, after China and the United States. China produced six times as much coal than India in 2012, but is acting to reduce its reliance and develop alternatives. “It is ironic that while global public discussion is increasingly about ways to...

New Species of Metal-Eating Plant Has “Great Potential” for Green Technology

Philip Ross May 14, 2014
Researchers at the University of the Philippines, Los Baños, suggest the plant Rinorea niccolifera absorbs nickel, 18,000 parts per million, in its leaves, about 1000 times more metal than present in most other plants. The study was published in the journal PhytoKeys. Researchers expect such properties, available in about 1 percent or less of all plants, could aid in the development of green...

Climate Change: We Have No Solution Yet

Robert J. Samuelson May 13, 2014
Any report warning of global warming or climate change should carry the disclaimer, “we now lack the technologies to stop it,” argues Robert J. Samuelson in the Washington Post. The economics column reflects the widespread impatience over scientific research and response on a complex problem that affects every industry and every part of the globe. Samuelson accepts that climate change is real,...