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Meet a Cleantech VC Who is Unconvinced of Man-Made Climate Change

January 3, 2012 by David Gold
with 453 views
17

Go ahead -- call me a hypocrite. I claim to be a cleantech venture capitalist yet I tell you here and now that I am not convinced of anthropogenic (human-caused) climate change (aka global warming). And I will audaciously tell you that my convictions on climate change in no way run contrary to my strong belief in the need for a cleantech revolution. [read more]

Feeding 10 Billion in 2050′s Sauna (Part III)

December 23, 2011 by Barry Brook
with 280 views
1

What future for agriculture on a hotter planet? Guest Post by Geoff Russell. Geoff is a mathematician and computer programmer and is a member of Animal Liberation SA. His recently published book is CSIRO Perfidy. His previous article on BNC was: Feeding the billions on a hotter planet (Part II) —————— Welcome to... [read more]

The Durban Climate Deal Inkblot Test

December 13, 2011 by Geoffrey Styles
with 265 views
9

After going into sudden-death overtime, the UN climate conference in Durban, South Africa wrapped up this weekend with an agreement that only a climate diplomat could love. Constituting in effect an agreement to agree to some future agreement, the outcome is open to interpretation. Is this the failure that was widely predicted, the... [read more]

China's Carbon Intensity Makes Long Term Climate Targets Nearly Impossible

October 9, 2011 by Lou Grinzo
with 572 views
5

From Reuters and other sources comes the simply underwhelming news that China climate goals run against growth: report: China, the world’s biggest carbon dioxide emitter, will meet near-term goals to fight climate change but quick economic growth will mean C02 emissions will be higher than previously thought, researchers said on Tuesday... [read more]

Natural Gas, CO2 Emissions and Climate Change

September 19, 2011 by David Hone
with 1,284 views
7

As global natural gas production has risen and shale gas in the US impacts on the energy outlook for that country in particular, there has been increasing discussion about the impact of natural gas on climate change. Several scientific papers have recently been released questioning the carbon dioxide benefits of natural gas over coal in power production. [read more]

Business Titans Urge Lawmakers on Energy Innovation Spending

September 14, 2011 by Teryn Norris
with 231 views
2

On Tuesday, a group of the nation’s most formidable business leaders — including Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Bank of America Chairman Chad Holliday – gathered in Washington, DC to deliver a full-throated warning to lawmakers: increase the federal government’s investment in energy innovation or risk losing out on a $5 trillion global industry. [read more]

The Truth About the Truth About Greenhouse Gases

August 30, 2011 by Michael Tobis
with 255 views
3

I've been asked to comment on William Happer's "The Truth about Greenhouse Gases", and finding no competent discussion of it anywhere on the first three pages of hits have agreed to take it on. To give you an idea of the tenor of the document, it starts off modestly, like this: “The object of the Author in the following pages has been... [read more]

Natural Gas Not the Answer to a Low-Carbon Future

July 17, 2011 by Tyler Bryant
with 613 views
3

A transition to natural gas to achieve a low-carbon energy system is not the least cost pathway. [read more]

Can GeoEngineering Halt Climate Change?

June 17, 2011 by Marc Gunther
with 370 views
0

John LathamIn 1990, a British cloud physicist named John Latham wrote a letter, [PDF, download] to the journal Nature, in which he suggested that injecting tiny droplets of water into marine clouds to increase their reflectivity might be a way “to inhibit or neutralize global warming. And then? “Nothing happened for 10 years... [read more]

A Focus on USA Energy Policy – On Target?

March 24, 2011 by David Hone
with 136 views
0

It was a curious time in Washington DC last week. While the House Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted against three amendments on the validity of climate change science and its potential future impact, some 400 other people were meeting close to the Capitol at the IETA (International Emissions Trading Association) Carbon Forum... [read more]

Energy impacts after Fukushima

March 16, 2011 by David Hone
with 629 views
0

In a country with limited natural energy sources, security of supply has been the traditional energy source consideration, although more recently this has been augmented with greenhouse gas emission targets. In terms of primary energy demand for electricity production, data for 2008 from the IEA shows a 3+ way split – the key components being gas, coal and nuclear. Oil products (e.g. fuel oil) are a further important part, followed by much smaller contributions from renewables, waste, biomass and geothermal. Now, nuclear risk will likely figure as a key issue in determining the national energy mix. [read more]

How Japan Should Impact the US Nuclear Debate

March 16, 2011 by Alex Trembath
with 191 views
4

My thoughts and prayers have been and will continue to be with the people of Japan. Their suffering is both a tragedy and testimony to the fragility of even the most developed infrastructure. It is also a reminder of the sometimes alarming ubiquity of our energy supply system. Almost a year after the Deepwater oil spill began in the... [read more]

Latest CO2 readings

March 9, 2011 by Lou Grinzo
with 435 views
2

The US NOAA has updated its CO2 graphics, via its Trends in Carbon Dioxide page:         And for those wanting the Big Picture:     Maybe I’ve been paying too much attention to the deniers lately, but I can’t quite discern a pattern in any of these. Can someone here toss me a hint? In any case, if you... [read more]

Climate Challenge Hinges on Fueling China with Clean and Cheap Energy

March 3, 2011 by Jesse Jenkins
with 564 views
0

I've said it before and I'll say it again: when it comes to the global climate challenge, as goes China, so goes the world. Driving that aphorism home, co2scorecard.org, a not-for-profit project that closely tracks global greenhouse gas emissions, now reports that China's CO2 emissions increased by 906 million tons in 2009 -- the second... [read more]

December 2010 CO2 numbers

February 8, 2011 by Lou Grinzo
with 410 views
0

The latest CO2 numbers are out from the NOAA. The yearly increase in ppm (parts per million) for 2009 to 2010 was 2.76, the second largest such increase shown on the global data page linked above, which goes back to 1980. Only 1998 was higher, at 2.90. Peat fires in Russia? CO2 loss from the Amazon? Something else? All of the above? [read more]