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Laurent

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #50 on: October 05, 2014, 01:25:24 PM »
The Climate March: Beyond Asking Those Beholden to the Wrong People to Do the Right Thing
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-goldstein/climate-progress-beyond-a_b_5889056.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green

viddaloo

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #51 on: October 05, 2014, 03:46:57 PM »
Very interesting piece, Laurent. Christ Hedges is right IMO. But maybe corporate elites should continue running things, in order to avoid a prolonged collapse, that would almost certainly bring down a larger share of the biosphere along with civilization? Civilization seems doomed in any case, whoever runs things, so the question IMO is how many of the other species we wish to take with us in the coming collapse.
[]

Bob Wallace

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #52 on: October 05, 2014, 06:33:37 PM »
Quote
Civilization seems doomed

If you wear doomer goggles.


AbruptSLR

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #53 on: October 05, 2014, 08:37:28 PM »
Thanks, ASLR.

In the same spirit, I would encourage everybody to read this important letter, from scientists to the US corporate elite (aka "government").

Regarding the importance of this letter, I provide the first attached image (from the IPCC AR5), and associated caption, shows that over a 10-year period the Global Warming Potential for the 2008 emission, was higher for methane than for carbon dioxide; while the second figure (per the Scripps Mauna Loa station) indicates that the since 2008 the atmospheric methane concentration has increased.  I would like to note that the IPCC AR5 projections tend to be conservative.

Image Caption per the IPCC AR 5 Figure TS.8: "Global anthropogenic present-day emissions weighted by the Global Warming Potential (GWP) and the Global Temperature change Potential (GTP) for the chosen time horizons. Year 2008 (single-year pulse) emissions weighted by GWP, which is the global mean radiative forcing per unit mass emitted integrated over the indicated number of years relative to the forcing from CO2 emissions, and GTP which estimates the impact on global mean temperature based on the temporal evolution of both radiative forcing and climate response per unit mass emitted relative to the impact of CO2 emissions. The units are “CO2 equivalents” which reflects equivalence only in the impact parameter of the chosen metric (integrated RF over the chosen time horizon for GWP; temperature change at the chosen point in time for GTP), given as Pg(CO2)eq (left axis) and PgCeq (right axis) (see footnote 5)."
“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”
― Leon C. Megginson

AbruptSLR

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #54 on: October 06, 2014, 02:13:51 AM »
The attached image (and associated caption) are from the IPCC's AR5 and shows the radiative forcing (RF) total from 1750 to 2011, by emitted components.  I have previously discussed how important RF from methane is (second to carbon dioxide); however, I would like to draw attention the very large uncertainty associated with black carbon (BC), which means that while it is shown as the third most important RF, the uncertainty bar means that BC could well be the second most important RF.  The following link also discusses how recent measurement indicate that BC emission from the undeveloped world (which is difficult to regulate) is larger than previously believed.


Caption: "Radiative forcing of climate change during the industrial era shown by emitted components from 1750 to 2011. The horizontal bars indicate the overall uncertainty, while the vertical bars are for the individual components (vertical bar lengths proportional to the relative uncertainty, with a total length equal to the bar width for a ±50% uncertainty). Best estimates for the totals and individual components (from left to right) of the response are given in the right column. Values are RF except for the ERF of aerosol-cloud interactions (ERFaci). An additional rapid adjustment to aerosol-radiation interactions of –0.1 [–0.3 to +0.1] W m–2 is attributable primarily to black carbon (ERFari-RFari in Figure TS.6). CFCs= Chlorofluorocarbons, HCFCs= Hydrochlorofluorocarbons, HFCs=Hydrofluorocarbons, PFCs= Perfluorocarbons, NMVOC= Non-Methane Volatile Organic Compounds, BC= Black Carbon."

See also:
http://www.pri.org/stories/2014-10-01/newly-minted-genius-hopes-stop-pollution-soot-and-smoke
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #55 on: October 06, 2014, 04:40:27 PM »
Energy Efficiency.  It's not just about changing lightbulbs.

Quote
A 40% cut in energy use by 2030 through efficiency measures would increase the UK’s GDP by £62bn and create 40,000 new jobs, according to unpublished EU figures.

Hitting a lower target of 30% would create 13,000 jobs and boost the economy by £17.3bn, says the study by independent consultancy Cambridge Econometrics, obtained by WWF after an access to information request.

The study underlines the impact of engineering the economy to use less energy. “The benefits of energy efficiency are impressive and we need to be ambitious,” said Brook Riley, a spokesman for Friends of the Earth. “GDP gains are three times higher with a 40% reduction target than with 30%. It is significant that the countries which were hardest hit by the financial crisis – Greece, Portugal, Ireland – are among the strongest advocates of going as far as we can.”
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/06/energy-efficiency-target-uk-economy
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Bob Wallace

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #56 on: October 07, 2014, 07:52:07 AM »
Quote
In Australia this week, the $8 billion Local Government Super Fund announced it would divest $25 million of shares in companies that generate more that one-third of their income from “high carbon sensitive” activities, including coal and tar sands mining and coal-fired power generation.

The fund, which invests the retirement savings of 90,000 NSW council employees, said the decision was “largely economical,” driven by the view that governments will soon need to start taking action on climate change, and that this would have “a detrimental effect on heavy carbon emitting companies.”

The Australian Financial Review reported today that the new divestment policy would see some $15 million in AGL Energy and Whitehaven Coal shares sold.

The move by the LGSF follows that of the Australian National University, which last week announced it was dumping stocks linked with oil and resources and re-framing its investment policy along sustainable lines.

And this is just the beginning. As Bloomberg New Energy Finance noted in a report released in August, in the past two years dozens of public and private institutions have announced plans to divest their fossil fuel holdings because of environmental concerns, ethical investment strategies, or worries that assets might become “stranded” by emission regulations.

Last year the World Bank announced it would not fund any new coal power plants “except in exceptional circumstances”, with similar restrictions on new coal generation investments also announced by US, Scandinavian, European and UK development banks.

And at the start of 2014, 17 US philanthropic groups with combined assets of about $US1.8 billion promised to sell their investments in fossil fuel companies and instead put their money into clean-energy technology.

Last month, in the US, the heirs to the Big Oil derived Rockefeller fortune withdrew their funds from oil, gas and coal investments, calling it “astute business.”

In fact, the latest tally says more than 800 global investors – including foundations like the Rockefeller Brothers, religious groups, healthcare organisations, cities and universities – have pledged to withdraw a total of $50 billion from fossil fuel investments over the next five years.

But, as the BNEF report also noted, the $5 trillion global shift out of fossil fuels will be “far from easy,” requiring a massive scale-up of new investment vehicles.

http://reneweconomy.com.au/2014/china-coal-consumption-down-23-as-more-funds-dump-fossil-fuels-40314

Just scale up renewable energy investments.  That should make Maw Nature smile.

Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #57 on: October 08, 2014, 10:07:55 PM »
The EU is poised to agree on a draft of 2030 climate and energy goals that would be binding on all 28 member states.  Cash would be made available to help poorer member states.

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSL6N0S24AB20141007?irpc=932
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #58 on: October 09, 2014, 02:00:36 AM »
US Federal judge to the state of Nebraska: you can't sue over an Environmental Protection Agency law that does not yet exist.
The ruling could affect other US anti-emission-control lawsuits.

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/10/08/3577581/nebraska-epa-climate-lawsuit-dismissed/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #59 on: October 10, 2014, 08:08:29 PM »
Essay by Richard Sennett, saying that the broader needs of climate change adaptation must outweigh the preference of city-states.

Quote
The rebuilding which attempts to push back the sea so that people can return to their homes is very much in the city-state mode, aiming to keep the city together; whereas the adaptation strategy aims to break up much of the city. Adapting to climate change, in other words, means that coherence of the city’s form will alter, due to forces outside human control.
http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/oct/09/why-climate-change-should-signal-the-end-of-the-city-state
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #60 on: October 11, 2014, 03:02:52 AM »
"Efficiency" is officially a thing!

Quote
Since the 1970s, the United States and arguably much of the rest of the world have effectively broken the historical trend of energy consumption increasing in tandem with economic growth. The latter has kept going up while the former has plateaued. That means we’re figuring out how to do more with less; more wealth production for every unit of energy we use.

And because the rebound effect — the tendency of people to consume more energy as it becomes cheaper — tends to be much smaller than the total energy savings, energy efficiency is a crucial tool in reducing humanity’s carbon emissions. In projections IEA laid out for how the world can stay under 2°C of global warming, energy efficiency accounts for 40 percent of the emission reductions — the biggest single contributor.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/10/09/3578113/iea-new-efficiency-report/
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Bob Wallace

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #61 on: October 11, 2014, 04:18:48 AM »
Negawatts, baby!

Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #62 on: October 11, 2014, 02:22:04 PM »
Oil price drop not an issue for Middle Eastern countries in the short-term.  But long-term....
Brief article raises an interesting question (but doesn't answer it).
http://www.cnbc.com/id/102078606
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #63 on: October 11, 2014, 02:23:02 PM »
Why go solar?  Homeowner: "To save money."
Will solar become the next "must-have" technology, like microwave ovens or the latest cell phone?
http://www.cnbc.com/id/102077585
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #64 on: October 11, 2014, 07:10:24 PM »
Hundreds Of Hunting And Fishing Groups Voice Their Support For Action On Climate Change

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/10/10/3578498/hunting-fishing-groups-support-climate-action/

This is interesting because its constituency is typically against Obama, against government regulations... and Republican, one would think.
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Bob Wallace

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #65 on: October 12, 2014, 05:15:49 AM »
And gardeners.

If you haven't see it here's an interesting map that shows changes in plant zones from 1990 to 2006.

http://www.arborday.org/media/mapchanges.cfm


Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #66 on: October 15, 2014, 07:50:11 PM »
Musings on ways to help coal miners in US Appalachia include a universal income.

Quote
Coal-mining areas have it particularly bad, for sure. But I’m not sure I see a clean line between coal miners and the many, many other workers screwed by shifts in the modern economy. In fact …

Helping all workers

My preference would be for universal programs, which are much cleaner and less prone to unaccountability and waste. For instance, rather than target one group of dispossessed workers, why not help all workers with a universal basic income? Even many conservatives are coming around behind the idea, as it’s a way of helping the poor with minimal government bureaucracy or paternalism. Why not institute a carbon tax and use part of the revenue to send checks to poor people? And while I’m dreaming, why not get rid of America’s monstrous, Rube Goldberg healthcare system and replace it with single-payer?
http://grist.org/climate-energy/should-the-feds-bail-out-coal-miners/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #67 on: October 16, 2014, 03:31:13 AM »
**Sigh**
Gallop poll:  Climate Change is the least important issue in US midterm elections.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/178268/voters-give-gop-edge-handling-top-issues.aspx
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #68 on: October 18, 2014, 05:23:21 PM »
Fossil fuel divestment: climate change activists take aim at Australia's banks
Saturday's ‘national day of divestment’ will see more than 1,000 bank customers switch their accounts away from the big four banks.

Quote
“There are many different levers moving at the same time and no individual lever gets the outcome. But consumer action sends a signal. People moving their accounts or pension funds because of climate change is significant.”
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/18/fossil-fuel-divestment-climate-change-activists-take-aim-at-australias-banks
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #69 on: October 18, 2014, 07:20:56 PM »
China allocates money to pay workers unemployed due to a ban on logging.

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China has launched a trial ban on commercial logging in state-owned forests in the vast north-eastern province of Heilongjiang bordering Russia, home to much of the country’s timber industry. Forestry experts have hailed the ban as a major step forward, predicting it will enable timber supplies to recover and shift the industry’s focus towards improved forestry management.

To make the ban stick, the central government has allocated 2.35bn yuan a year to cover forestry workers’ living costs between 2014 and 2020, chinadialogue has learned from the State Forestry Administration (SFA). If the trial ban is successful, the policy may be extended throughout north east China and Inner Mongolia.

Replacement industries

Sheng Weitong, a forestry expert and former advisor to China’s cabinet-level state council, told chinadialogue that some laid-off loggers “will become forest rangers and learn how to manage forests because the vast numbers of young and semi-mature trees in these districts need management. Workers here neglected forest management in the past.”

Others will be encouraged to develop alternative industries such as tourism, growing blueberries, ginseng, edible mushrooms, and flowers, or raising chickens and frogs. Existing laws are thought sufficient to tackle illegal logging.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/17/china-tests-outright-logging-ban-in-state-forests
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #70 on: October 19, 2014, 01:13:36 AM »
The two candidates for the Senate seat from the coal state of Kentucky square off in a debate.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/10/14/3579531/grimes-coal-jobs/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #71 on: October 28, 2014, 06:24:09 PM »
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, is greening areas of the city in creative ways to help deal with increasing storm water runoff.
Quote
Milwaukee's first big upgrade came in 1994 when the city started using a deep tunnel system. Since that tunnel was put in place the district has captured about 98.3 percent of water and wastewater flushed into the system. Overflows to nearby rivers and Lake Michigan dropped from about 60 a year to just a few, Shafer said.

But the city wants to do more – mostly by greening, he said. The district is mandated to add one million gallons of green infrastructure capacity each year. And the goal is to capture the first half-inch of rainfall – the equivalent of 740 million gallons of storm water – using porous pavement, green roofs, rain gardens and barrels by the year 2035.

The plan would cost about $1.3 billion – or about $59 million per year, according to estimates. The sewerage district's current budget is about $100 million annually.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/tdc-newsroom/2014/10/milwaukee-climate-storms
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #72 on: October 28, 2014, 06:29:31 PM »
NOAA left in the dust again....

UK Met Office Awards Cray $128 Million Supercomputer Contract
http://investors.cray.com/mobile.view?c=98390&v=203&d=1&id=1982080
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #73 on: October 29, 2014, 02:32:25 PM »
A majority of Canadians view environmental protection as being more important than energy prices and expect businesses to carry the burden of a carbon tax, according to a recent poll.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-28/most-canadians-say-environment-trumps-energy-prices.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #74 on: October 29, 2014, 04:59:09 PM »
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) is preparing legislation that will put a price on carbon in the US and he plans to introduce it next month. 
Quote
“My legislation will generate significant new federal revenue—perhaps as much as two trillion dollars over the first decade.  Every dollar of this revenue should be returned to the American people,” he added.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/222123-sen-whitehouse-to-push-carbon-price-bill
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #75 on: November 03, 2014, 10:06:35 PM »
What carbon?  Financial service professionals in the U.S. are investing in solar because new models make a great financial investment.

http://www.slate.com/articles/business/the_juice/2014/10/altus_power_america_the_company_that_s_spreading_solar_energy_by_making.1.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #76 on: December 03, 2014, 02:31:46 PM »
Quote
Amid Receipt of 'Alternative Nobel,' McKibben Donates Prize Money to 350.org, Steps Down as Chair
"Don’t worry," author and activist assured members. "I’ll still be there when the time comes to go to jail, or to march in the streets, or to celebrate the next big win on divestment."
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/12/02/amid-receipt-alternative-nobel-mckibben-donates-prize-money-350org-steps-down-chair
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ghoti

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #77 on: December 03, 2014, 07:37:20 PM »
Is this the right place to point to L C Hamilton's latest results about how politics in the US is tied to climate change beliefs?

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09644016.2014.976485#.VH9V9zHF-Sr

Discussed by Chris Mooney:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/12/02/tea-partiers-and-traditional-republicans-are-split-on-science/

Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #78 on: December 04, 2014, 01:50:12 AM »
Quote
The Environmental Protection Agency is reversing course, saying that the independent scientists on its advisory committees may speak freely with representatives of the media.

The new guidance, which the EPA is calling a clarification, follows a notice earlier this year stating that scientists on advisory panels must “refrain from responding in an individual capacity” to questions from the public and media about their participation in the panels.

The EPA now says scientists are free to respond to questions about their scientific work and their work with the agency, though they are still asked not to speak about deliberations of the committees.

“Should a [committee] member receive a press or other inquiry related more generally to their scientific area of expertise or related to their participation in a FAC (other than related to deliberations), they are free to respond to the inquiry in their capacity as a private citizen,” the EPA wrote in a notice posted to its website Monday, though issued in November.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/225706-epa-eases-media-rules-for-scientists
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #79 on: December 04, 2014, 02:15:33 AM »
Quote
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Europe moved a step back towards a plan to stigmatize Canada's tar sands as highly polluting on Wednesday, despite years of Ottawa's lobbying the EU bloc as part of its export drive.
http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN0JH1SG20141203
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #80 on: December 04, 2014, 03:07:14 PM »
Op-Ed: "Most Canadians understand they contribute to the problem (through their own consumption habits) and must therefore take part in solutions."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/theres-now-a-canadian-consensus-its-time-for-action-on-climate-change/article21903984/
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Laurent

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #81 on: December 04, 2014, 05:30:37 PM »
Climate change: UN projects for poorest 'feared frozen'
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-30274813

Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #82 on: December 06, 2014, 07:10:46 PM »
So I'm guessing Modi's push for solar was not due to environmental concerns....   :(

Narendra Modi, Favoring Growth in India, Pares Back Environmental Rules
Quote
To speed up project approvals, the committee recommended scrapping a layer of government inspections; instead, it said, India should rely on business owners to voluntarily disclose the pollution that their projects will generate and then monitor their own compliance, an approach the committee described as “the concept of utmost good faith.”

Environmentalists are worried that the new approach will go beyond cutting red tape and will do away with effective regulation altogether.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/05/world/indian-leader-favoring-growth-sweeps-away-environmental-rules.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #83 on: December 07, 2014, 06:33:52 PM »
Could pollution-shaming move India to greener efforts, following China's example?
Quote
...On Wednesday, [India's] environmental court ordered a series of measures to address Delhi’s severe pollution, including all cars more than 15 years old taken off the city’s roads, air purifiers installed at the crowded markets and a crackdown on the burning of trash, the Guardian reported.

In its ruling the National Green Tribunal criticized Prime Minister Naendra Modi’s government for a lack of action to address Delhi’s dangerous pollution, stating, “nothing substantive has been suggested … for providing and controlling air pollution in Delhi primarily resulting from vehicular pollution and burning of plastics and other materials in (the) open.”
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/11/30/3597632/delhi-air-pollution/
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Bob Wallace

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #84 on: December 07, 2014, 06:51:12 PM »
I feel like India is in the process of turning away from coal and toward renewables. 

It's Australia that needs to receive our scorn.  Not all of it, save some for parts of Canada and the US.

Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #85 on: December 12, 2014, 07:48:29 PM »
A Pacific Coast model for addressing climate change.
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... Last year, our four governments — the states of California, Oregon and Washington and the Province of British Columbia — reached a landmark agreement to align climate and energy strategies for 54 million Americans and Canadians.

The Pacific Coast represents the world's fifth-largest economy, with a GDP of $2.8 trillion. By working together we are transforming our economies and influencing world markets for the better. Our regional model shows that it is possible to take serious action on climate change and simultaneously expand an economy with well-paying jobs. And we believe it can be a blueprint for other regions to take action.

Our agreement, which established the Pacific Coast Action Plan on Climate and Energy, represents a regionwide commitment to air quality, clean fuels, carbon pricing, and clean-energy jobs. But it also respects that we have different approaches to reaching our shared goals. California's carbon pricing program uses an economywide cap-and-trade system, while British Columbia has a revenue-neutral carbon tax program. Oregon is building on existing programs to set a price on carbon emissions. Washington is developing a carbon market program, including consultations with stakeholders.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-1212-brown-west-coast-climate-change-plan-20141212-story.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #86 on: December 14, 2014, 06:27:08 PM »
Seven videos demonstrate climate success stories in different countries.
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The good news is that the decades of international inaction did not forestall climate action on a local scale, and success stories abound even in countries that have yet to make international commitments. Earlier this year, we featured some of these success stories during our 24 Hours of Reality: 24 Reasons for Hope broadcast, but I want to share them again here.
http://ecowatch.com/2014/12/12/climate-action-lima/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #87 on: December 19, 2014, 02:33:20 AM »
The National Hockey League has committed to becoming the first major sports league to go carbon-neutral.
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Under a partnership with the energy-services firm Constellation, the league will work with its 30 teams to slash its carbon emissions and purchase carbon offsets for all its emissions during the current 2014-15 season. The league is estimated to emit 530,000 metric tons of carbon this season through energy use at its arenas and offices, nearly 2 million miles of team air travel, consumption of goods, and other league operations.
http://www.nationaljournal.com/energy/the-national-hockey-league-is-going-carbon-neutral-20141218
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #88 on: December 20, 2014, 02:37:50 PM »
Legal battles for the climate are coming to the fore.
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With every passing year it becomes increasingly clear that climate change is not just an environmental issue. It’s damaging to public health. It’s a drag on the economy. And, more and more, it’s become the foundation for legal battles. As the far-reaching impacts of climate change are more immediately apparent, efforts to increase mitigation and adaptation — and push-back from those that depend on the status quo — are rising correspondingly, and ending up in court.

Here’s a look at some of the year’s biggest climate court cases and the legal battles that await us in 2015:
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/12/19/3604707/4-legal-battles-climate-change/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #89 on: December 21, 2014, 09:37:04 PM »
The White House released guidelines this week aimed at helping hospitals adapt to the impacts of climate change, including increased risk of extreme weather and sea level rise.

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Gundersen health care system, which reached its goal of becoming energy independent in November, also announced a goal this week of reducing its energy consumption by 25 percent. In addition, in order to ensure that there was more of a stockpile of food in its hospitals in the case of an emergency, the system pledged to expand its partnerships with local food producers. And, in an attempt to increase the commute options for employees, the system plans on providing more incentives for employees to walk to work and to invest more in creating biking and walking options for nearby employees. This way, if a disaster shuts down major roadways, some employees have more of a chance of getting to work to care for patients.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/12/16/3604324/hospitals-prepare-for-climate-change/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #90 on: December 25, 2014, 03:02:29 AM »
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While many say consumers are just paying lip service to good intentions, 55 percent of consumers surveyed across the globe say they will pay extra for products and services from companies committed to positive social and environmental impact, according to a Nielsen survey from June. That number is up from 45 percent in 2011.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/102294074
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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #91 on: December 26, 2014, 03:07:36 PM »
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Before heading off to Hawaii for a brief Christmas vacation, President Obama held a press conference in which he used a football analogy to characterize his upcoming final two years in office. “My presidency is entering its fourth quarter,” he said. “Interesting stuff happens in the fourth quarter.”
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-obamas-a-wily-quarterback-20141224-story.html
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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #92 on: December 27, 2014, 03:48:19 PM »
"Green Bonds" help spur climate-friendly programs, helped by established investment standards.
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After implementing this new strategy for funding environmentally friendly investments, the Mexican initiative is on track to reduce CO2 emissions by more than 1 million tons a year for the foreseeable future — the equivalent of cutting the carbon emissions of 217,000 cars annually, according to green bond pioneer World Bank, which issued the instrument.
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/green-bonds-mitigate-climate-change-18480
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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #93 on: December 28, 2014, 12:35:16 AM »
Rebecca Solnit: The Age of Capitalism is over
Rebecca Solnit assesses our poisonous fossil fuel dependency -- and why we're on the verge of a paradigm shift
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“We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings.”
- Ursula K. Le Guin
http://www.salon.com/2014/12/27/rebecca_solnit_the_age_of_capitalism_is_over_partner/
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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #94 on: December 28, 2014, 01:59:28 AM »
Rebecca Solnit: The Age of Capitalism is over
Rebecca Solnit assesses our poisonous fossil fuel dependency -- and why we're on the verge of a paradigm shift
Quote
“We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings.”
- Ursula K. Le Guin
http://www.salon.com/2014/12/27/rebecca_solnit_the_age_of_capitalism_is_over_partner/

Most misleading title of 2014.

The article is about climate change and how we need to get off fossil fuels.

Fine, we understand.

But we won't quit using fossil fuels because someone will erect a guillotine at the Embarcadero, start whacking off the heads of oil and coal CEOs, then lead us into a new age in which people don't expect a return on investments.

We'll quit fossil fuels by continuing to do what we have now started - replacing coal and natural gas with renewable energy and replacing petroleum with electric transportation.  New corporations will grow large and old ones shrink and fade away.

(Now, dealing with our wealth inequality - that's a different issue we need to address.  The Russian/Chinese/Cuban experiment didn't give us the answer.)

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #95 on: December 28, 2014, 08:46:40 AM »
(Now, dealing with our wealth inequality - that's a different issue we need to address.  The Russian/Chinese/Cuban experiment didn't give us the answer.)

Nope, it's the same issue. Both are symptoms of the same cause. The Russian/Chinese/Cuban experiment didn't give any answer because they also strived for limitless growth in a different way. Capitalism is much more successful at that. Maybe it can be tuned to respect limits, but I don't know if it would then still be capitalism.
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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #96 on: December 28, 2014, 09:50:55 AM »
Exactly how are burning fossil fuel and capitalism "symptoms of the same cause"?

That mythical society in which each person is treated equally and no one makes any money from anything they own would still have burned coal and oil for energy until they learned that it was screwing them.

Or do you think there's some idealized society in which everyone is satisfied with one bowl, one spoon, one stool and no more?  And we would have all sat in the dark at night eating simple porridge for the better good?

I'm sorry.  I don't belong to the Very Wide Paintbrush Society. 

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #97 on: December 28, 2014, 10:20:35 AM »
Exactly how are burning fossil fuel and capitalism "symptoms of the same cause"?

Continued fossil fuel use and increasing wealth disparity are symptoms of the same cause, ie the complete domination and adherence to the neoclassical economic theory of endless growth. Capitalism is just the most efficient way to attain that. Communism tried the same, but wasn't efficient enough.

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That mythical society in which each person is treated equally and no one makes any money from anything they own would still have burned coal and oil for energy until they learned that it was screwing them.

Exactly.

Quote
Or do you think there's some idealized society in which everyone is satisfied with one bowl, one spoon, one stool and no more?  And we would have all sat in the dark at night eating simple porridge for the better good?

No, I don't think that society is remotely possible, or something to be wished for. There has to be a difference, there has to be inequality, but there has to be a limit to how large this inequality can grow. There is no such limit in our current set-up.

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I'm sorry.  I don't belong to the Very Wide Paintbrush Society.

Yes, you do. We all do.  ;D
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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #98 on: December 28, 2014, 06:46:59 PM »
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Continued fossil fuel use and increasing wealth disparity are symptoms of the same cause

The places where fossil fuel use is continuing to grow are dominated by China and India.  Those are "catching up" countries.  The wealthier countries of Europe and the US are dropping their GHG emissions.

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There has to be a difference, there has to be inequality, but there has to be a limit to how large this inequality can grow. There is no such limit in our current set-up.

The really wealthy are the 0.1%.  They use more than the average amount of electricity and petroleum.  But there are not that many of them.  We are all responsible for global warming. 

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The International Energy Agency (IEA) [3] has estimated that worldwide lighting is responsible for emissions of approximately 1900 Mt CO2 per year, equivalent to 70% of the emissions from the world’s light passenger vehicles.

Eighty percent of these emissions from lighting are associated with electricity generation, but the IEA estimates that about 20% come from the 1% of global lighting that is produced by the direct combustion of paraffin and oil lamps used by the 1.6 billion people who have no access to electricity [3]. Hence, dramatically improved lighting system efficiency, together with electrification that replaces oil lamps with electric lamps, could make a big contribution to controlling global CO2 emissions. A large literature illustrates the cost-effectiveness of greenhouse gas mitigation through the use of energy efficient technologies such as improved lighting [4]–[13].

http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/sgradeck/DOCS/Transition%20to%20SSL.pdf

Wealth distribution and greenhouse gas emission are separate issues.  Let's make an attempt to understand the actual causes and not muddle things up by trying to create grand causes.


Bob Wallace

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Re: Money and Politics: The Drive for Climate Change Action
« Reply #99 on: December 28, 2014, 09:27:49 PM »
How about we break apart some of the major problems facing humans at the moment?

1. Climate change.
2. Overpopulation.
3. Unbalanced wealth distribution.
4. Political systems which do not serve all equally.

Those are the ones that come to mind at the moment.  They are somewhat interrelated but stand on their own as separate and addressable problems. 

The only one I can see solvable by solving another is climate change and overpopulation.  Were we to take humans down to a few million we could keep on burning coal and petroleum.  But there's no reasonable way to drop population that far fast enough to keep climate change from becoming extreme.