Consequences

Rising sea levels endanger the Delta.

Since the Delta’s coastal cities are built at a very low elevation, a mere 0.5 centimeter rise in sea level could plunge cities like Alexandria, Damietta, Rashid and Port Said underwater, displacing millions of inhabitants from their homes and destroying the region’s thriving agriculture. Al-Masry Al-Youm 11 Jan

The reality of extreme weather, Part 1.

It’s not your imagination. Weather is becoming more “extreme,” leading to prolonged heat waves, heavier precipitation, severe flooding, more powerful hurricanes, and intense snowstorms. Del Mar Times 10 Jan

Officials try to keep south Florida's lush seaside life above the tide.

With its fast-food restaurants, churches and strip malls, the city of Hallandale Beach in southeast Florida looks like much of America. But on a sunny day last month, city official Hector Castro talked about its resemblance to Italy's slowly sinking Venice. ClimateWire 11 Jan

Where the 'live free or die' ethic is being tested by the sea.

In New Hampshire, cities like Portsmouth and its surrounding towns are the front line for adapting to the results of warming temperatures and related rising sea levels, since the state delegates much of the power over land-use management and flood control to municipalities. ClimateWire 10 Jan

Adaptation

Priest calls on government officials to tackle climate change issues.

The challenge in addressing the effects of climate change is getting government officials to implement sustainable adaptive measures, an Augustinian priest said during a mass offered for the protection of the environment. Sun Star 12 Jan

South Florida prepares for higher sea levels.

A battle plan for an anticipated assault by seawater has been drafted by four South Florida counties, attempting to protect one of the nation's most vulnerable regions from the impact of climate change. South Florida Sun-Sentinel 07 Jan

Philippine president urges renewable energy use to tackle climate change.

Philippine President Benigno Aquino III on Thursday called for increased development and use of renewable energy to reduce the impact of climate change on vulnerable countries like the Philippines. Xinhua News Agency 12 Jan

Climate change castaways.

The Maldives warns Australia to prepare for a mass wave of climate refugees. Sydney Morning Herald 06 Jan

Other News

Editorials

TCEQ finally gets it right.

We were heartened this past week to see the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality correct one of its embarrassing misjudgment of altering a scientific report about sea-level rise in Galveston Bay, removing sections about human impact on climate change and sea-level rates in the bay. Houston Chronicle 28 Dec

Adaptation urgent.

Like a broken record, we review similar scenes of rivers overflowing their banks and drowning residents. It happened during Ondoy but the mud-caked cadavers that are now pushing Search and Rescue workers to their limits are most reminiscent of a long-ago incident -- the flooding in Ormoc City in 1991 when thousands died. Davao SunStar 19 Dec

Climate change means statewide change for New York.

Residents from Irene-scarred Mamaroneck to Suffern don't need a 600-page scientific report to convince them that New York is in the crosshairs of climate change. Lower Hudson Valley Journal News 18 Nov

Texans deserve truth about health of Galveston Bay.

The assignment seemed simple enough: A report on the health of Galveston Bay is what the state environmental agency brass ordered. What they got instead was a public argument over climate change with a researcher who is accusing the agency higher-ups of censorship. Austin American-Statesman 23 Oct

TCEQ censorship is out of bounds.

It wasn't really a surprise, but the recent actions of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality hit a new low, which is saying something for a body that repeatedly sides with business interests over environmental concerns. Houston Chronicle 20 Oct

Texans need scientific truth on rising Gulf water level.

If taxpayers were looking for straight talk from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, they have been disappointed. The state agency has censored a long-awaited report on rising water levels in the bay because the author referred to global warming. Beaumont Enterprise 12 Oct

Are we doing enough to fight climate change?

The pollution problem in industrial countries has snowballed into a worldwide crisis over which leaders across the globe are pulling out hairs trying to figure out how to fix. St. Johns Antigua Observer 05 Oct

Rising oceans could wash away revenue.

If the environmental reasons are not enough to get the attention of those who don't believe in the man-made causes of global warming, perhaps the economic reasons will prove convincing. That's critical for those of us along the Orange County coast, where the ocean defines our way of life. Daily Pilot 18 Sep

Opinion

Prioritizing climate change efforts.

There’s no question the scale of climate challenges facing Asia and the Pacific is daunting ― especially since the fallout of regional climate-related calamities can be felt around the world. Seoul Korea Herald 30 Dec

Two-degree global warming limit is called a ‘prescription for disaster.’

A mantra that has driven global negotiations on carbon dioxide emissions for years has been that policy-makers must prevent warming of more than two degrees Celsius to prevent apocalyptic climate outcomes. Scientific American 07 Dec

The Kiribati syndrome.

Kiribati, a small Pacific island nation, is in danger of being invaded by sea water and may be uninhabitable by 2025, but a plea in 2009 to devise a worldwide pact to limit carbon emissions went largely unheaded. Perhaps this is the political wakeup call the environmental movement has been waiting for. Boston Globe 03 Dec

San Francisco plans for sea level rise.

As more warnings go out to coastal communities about sea level rise, the San Francisco Planning + Urban Research Association is facilitating a coordinated effort among multiple agencies to create a "sustainable long-range plan" for San Francisco's shoreline. San Francisco KQED 08 Nov

Straight talk on rising seas in a warming world.

Sea level is a steady indicator of how the whole planet's climate is changing, according to Joshua K. Willis of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. New York Times 07 Nov

Food and fuel insecurity.

By the end of this month the United Nations estimates that the world’s population will reach 7 billion people, growing to 9 billion by mid-century. Lots of people think the more the merrier. That is anything but the case. Norriston Times Herald 31 Oct

Floods and global climate chaos.

The seven billionth human being to occupy the world will be born sometime this week, according to population experts. And he or she will probably be an Asian since this region is the most highly populated. If that birth takes place in Thailand, the seven billionth baby could well be born amidst flood waters. Petaling Jaya Star 31 Oct

Climate change deniers may be washed away by rising seas.

The question becomes, as climate deniers flourish in inverse proportion to the actual evidence, whether there’ll still be enough sand enough left on South Florida’s beaches to bury our collective heads. Miami Herald 26 Oct

Probing sea rise impact.

Large sections of the Bellarine Peninsula, including areas around Point Lonsdale and Barwon Heads, are at risk of being inundated by rising sea waters from climate change. Geelong Advertiser 01 Feb

Repeated drought in east Africa may prompt aid rethink.

Rainfall patterns over east Africa have changed in a way that makes severe droughts more likely - and this means aid agencies need to rethink the way they operate. New Scientist 28 Jan

First report on UK climate impact.

Climate change this century poses both risks and opportunities, according to the first comprehensive government assessment of its type. The report warns that flooding, heatwaves and water shortages could become more likely. But benefits could include new shipping lanes through the Arctic, fewer cold-related deaths in winter and higher crop yields. BBC 28 Jan

Mozambican farmers get help to weather extreme weather events.

Mozambique is among the African countries most vulnerable to extreme weather events. Cyclones, droughts, and floods have destroyed homes and crops. The organization Save the Children has partnered with the government to promote programs aimed at making the local economy less contingent on the weather. Living On Earth 28 Jan

Debate rises on sea levels as businessman brings in experts.

Belmont businessman Jeff McCloy is taking the rising sea debate to another level with three scientific experts to deliver their findings to Lake Macquarie residents. Newcastle Herald 28 Jan

Britain ranks top risks posed by climate change.

Coastlines, working patterns, and even the country's most famous meal are under threat from climate change, Britain said Thursday in its first-ever national assessment of the likely risks. Associated Press 27 Jan

Singapore raises sea defences against tide of climate change.

A 15-km stretch of crisp, white beach is one of the key battlegrounds in Singapore's campaign to defend its hard-won territory against rising sea levels linked to climate change. Reuters 27 Jan

New climate change models for Maldives predict rising sea temperatures.

In a press statement issued on Thursday, the Environment Ministry revealed that present findings suggest that the sea level, sea surface temperature, rainfall and its variations pose future climate risks for Maldives. Minivan News 26 Jan

Bill prepares for one-foot sea level rise by 2050.

Rep. Cynthia Thielen has introduced a bill to require the state and counties to take into account a predicted sea level rise of one foot by 2050 when reviewing applications for development and future county plans. Honolulu KITV 4 25 Jan

Injections could lift Venice 12 inches, study suggests.

Want to save sinking Venice from rising seas? Fight water with water, a new plan suggests. National Geographic News 24 Jan

South Florida climate change plan attacked.

A South Florida plan to prepare for rising sea levels and other consequences of climate change has drawn intense criticism from a small segment of the public who see a conspiracy to weaken the United States. South Florida Sun-Sentinel 21 Jan

Kincardine homes could be underwater in 20 years.

A large swathe of Kincardine and more than 100 homes could be under water within the next 20 years, a report has warned. Dunfermline Press 20 Jan

Climate related flooding poses threat to Helsinki.

According to an Environment Centre report published on Wednesday, floods are the greatest threat to the city of Helsinki posed by the warming climate. Helsingin Sanomat 19 Jan

Sea rise predictions lead Florida researchers to consider adaptation.

A Florida Institute of Technology professor and his students will take part in a $1.5 million study to predict sea-level rise in Cape Canaveral and several other regions on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, and then spell out ways communities can adapt. Melbourne Florida Today 19 Jan

China report spells out grim climate change risks.

Global warming threatens China's march to prosperity by cutting crops, shrinking rivers and unleashing more droughts and floods, says the government's latest assessment of climate change, projecting big shifts in how the nation feeds itself. Reuters 18 Jan

Study: Global warming related sea level rise poses big threat to Washington, D.C.

Global warming-related sea level rise constitutes a major threat to the nation’s capital, with the potential to inundate national monuments, museums, military bases, and parts of the Metro Rail system during the next several decades and beyond. Washington Post 18 Jan

'Time running out' on climate change.

Severe droughts and heatwaves, melting of the polar ice caps, dramatic sea level rise and the displacement of millions of people living in island states or low-lying coastal areas may be the unavoidable consequences of global warming. Abu Dhabi National 18 Jan

Mekong Delta reels under repeated disasters.

Known as the nation's rice basket, blessed with fertile soil and favorable climatic conditions, the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta is now under threat and reeling under the impacts of natural and man-made disasters including climate change. Vietnam News Agency 17 Jan

Florida counties band together to ready for warming's effects.

While U.S. action on climate change remains stalled, four south Florida counties have joined forces to plan for how to deal with the impacts, some of which are already being felt. of rising seas, higher temperatures, and more torrential rains. Yale Environment 360 12 Jan

Viet Nam knuckles down on climate change.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday chaired the first working session of the National Committee on Climate Change, two days after its official establishment. Vietnam News 12 Jan