17 January 2016, Climate News Network, Grasses’ growing role for American cars. Second-generation biofuel made from natural grass species challenges ethanol derived from maize crops as the US seeks to reduce its fossil fuel use. In tomorrow’s world, it won’t be just the corn on the great American plains that is as high as an elephant’s eye. It will be the elephant grass as well. To deliver on US promises to reduce fossil fuel use, American motorists in future will drive on miscanthus − as elephant grass is also known – and prairie switchgrass. Researchers led by Evan DeLucia, professor of biology at the University of Illinois, report in a new journal, Nature Energy, that to exploit biofuels – which recycle carbon already in the atmosphere, and are therefore technically “carbon-neutral” – Americans will have to think again about how they manage the change away from fossil fuels. Right now, the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standards foresee that by 2022 American motorists will start up their cars with 15 billion gallons (57 billion litres) of ethanol from corn. But this could be augmented by 16 billion gallons (60 billion litres) of biofuel derived from perennial grasses. Energy source The switch to the prairie’s native switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) andEurasian elephant grass (Miscanthus giganteus) will be necessary because there are problems with corn as a source of energy. One is that, in an increasingly hungry world, it reduces the overall levels of food available. The second is that corn requires annual planting, fertilising and harvesting. Perennial grasses simply grow, and can be mown once a year. So by turning over surplus land to swift-growing grasses, and at the same time reducing the levels of carbon dioxide released from cultivation, the US could meet its target of a 7% reduction in its annual transportation emissions by 2022. If farmers went on gradually to switch from corn to the grasses, the reduction could get as high as 12%. Read More here
Monthly Archives: January 2016
16 January 2016, Climate News Network, Giant boost for south polar waters. Massive icebergs more than 18km long are feeding vital nutrients into the Southern Ocean and helping to increase its carbon storage capacity. British scientists have identified the monsters that fertilise the Southern Ocean and help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Giant icebergs drifting northwards could be responsible for storing up to a fifth of all the carbon that sinks into the south polar waters. Geographers at the University of Sheffield report in Nature Geoscience journal that they analysed 175 satellite images of ocean colour – an indicator ofphytoplankton activity. They learned that each huge iceberg, as it breaks off the ice shelf and begins to float away, also begins to cascade iron and other vital mineral nutrients in its melting waters. This is enough to stimulate ferocious plankton productivity for up to a month in its wake. The icebergs are not small − the researchers define “giant” as at least 18 kilometres in length − and nor can they be very frequent. Area of influence “We detected substantially enhanced chlorophyll levels, typically over a radius of at least four to 10 times the iceberg’s length,” says Grant Bigg, Professor in Earth Systems Science, who led the research. “The evidence suggests that carbon export increases by a factor of five to 10 over the area of influence, and up to a fifth of the Southern Ocean’s downward carbon flux originates with giant iceberg fertilisation. “If giant iceberg calving increases this century, as expected, this negative feedback on the carbon cycle may become more important than we previously thought.” The guess is that the Southern Ocean accounts for perhaps 10% of the ocean’s absorption of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Research such as this is part of the global process of understanding all theintricacies of the carbon cycle − in turn, an important part of modelling future climate change as a consequence of rising levels of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, driven by human combustion of fossil fuels. Read More here
15 January 2016, Common Dreams, Ultra-Rich ‘Philanthrocapitalist’ Class Undermining Global Democracy: Report. As foundations and wealthy individuals funnel money into global development, what “solutions” are they pursuing? From Warren Buffett to Bill Gates, it is no secret that the ultra-rich philanthropist class has an over-sized influence in shaping global politics and policies. And a study (pdf) just out from the Global Policy Forum, an international watchdog group, makes the case that powerful philanthropic foundations—under the control of wealthy individuals—are actively undermining governments and inappropriately setting the agenda for international bodies like the United Nations. The top 27 largest foundations together possess assets of over $360 billion, notes the study, authored by Jens Martens and Karolin Seitz. Nineteen of those foundations are based in the United States and, across the board, they are expanding their influence over the global south. And in so doing, they are undermining democracy and local sovereignty. Notably, foundation spending on global development is skyrocketing, jumping from $3 billion per year over a decade ago to $10 billion today. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation leads the way, giving $2.6 billion in 2012, the report notes. In addition, the Gates Foundation is the largest non-state funder of the World Health Organization. Meanwhile, many of the wealthiest people on the planet are individually jumping into the fray, with 137 billionaires from 14 countries last year pledging large sums to philanthropy. Some among them, like former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Facebook CEOMark Zuckerberg, have been criticized for abusing their power and influence in pursuit of questionable policies. Read More here
15 January 2016, Renew Economy, Australia snubs 1st major post-Paris summit after killing renewables target. ABU DHABI: Australia has chosen not to send any government representatives to the first major post Paris climate change conference, as new data confirms how the Coalition government has effectively killed the renewable energy target as an effective policy mechanism. In 2015, the world invested a record $US329 billion in renewable energy. But in Australia, the RET – the country’s primary policy mechanism – has attracted just $15 million in investment in nearly two years. The data, from Bloomberg New Energy Finance, confirms that since the Abbott government announced its review into the RET in early 2014, the scheme has been at a standstill. That remains the case – even though renewable energy certificates have jumped to record levels of $74/MWh – because utilities and financiers refuse to sign contracts, due to the lack of policy certainty and because they believe that the Coalition could change the target again. Indeed, more than half Australia’s investment in renewable energy in 2015 (of $A4.1 billion) comes from households and businesses, who spent $2.2 billion in 2015 adding rooftop solar PV to their home and commercial premises. Read More here
