WASHINGTON (Map, News) - With concerns about global warming rising along with the planet’s temperature, the head of the federal agency in change of weather research and forecasting is proposing creation of a new National Climate Service.

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Mary Claypool: Green-collar jobs likely to increase
Monterey County The Herald (California), Mary Claypool, 5.13.08

Take note because the color of your job just may be changing. We are all familiar with the terms white-collar jobs, which include salaried professionals and clerical workers, and blue-collar jobs which involve manual labor.

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Seed giants see gold in climate change
Asia Times, Hope Shand, 5.15.08

First the biotech industry promised that its genetically engineered seeds would clean up the environment. Then they told us biotech crops would feed the world. Neither came to pass. Soon we’ll hear that genetically engineered climate-hardy seeds are the essential adaptation strategy for crops to withstand drought, heat, cold, saline soils and more.

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United Nations Has A Tree-mendous Goal
Washington Post, 5.14.08

The United Nations is leading an effort to plant 7 billion trees worldwide — to help protect the environment and slow climate change — by the end of next year.

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First, I urge people to examine the record of George Schultz. As I’ve said, he’s a long-time supporter of cap & trade.

Then, I point to the chairman of Townhall.com, Doug Wilson. He’s blogged for us here at Terra Rossa as a strong supporter of new energy innovation and cap & trade. Today, Doug is leading a major conference in California on new energy. With backing from the New Majority California Energy Task Force and the Milken Institute, today’s meeting is a real sign of energy and action, as Californians follow Gov. Schwarzenegger’s lead and get serious about the upsides and even the pitfalls. See Doug’s take on the pitfalls of price caps (I call them “government price controls” while supporters call it a “safety valve”) at Fox & Hounds.

And be proud that the birthplace of Reaganism is helping this country reinvent itself for the care of creation, for our national security, and economic opportunity.

International Paper, RR Donnelly Challenged to Address Climate Change
Fox Business/Business Wire, 05.09.08

International Paper and the printing company RR Donnelley face upcoming shareholder votes on climate change resolutions filed by Domini Social Investments

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Polar Bears Threatening to Deliver Us $200 Oil
Bloomberg, Kevin Hassett, 05.12.08

Protecting the environment is a noble cause, although the consequences can be costly.

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Brazil, India Have Greenest Consumers, US Trails
Pakistan Daily Times, 05.12.08

Inhabitants of Brazil and India have the world’s most and Americans have the least, according to a new study tracking global attitudes towards consumption and the environment.

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Climate Change Key to Future Food Crisis
The Economic Times (India), Nidhi Nath Srinivas, 05.11.08

Is this a price blip? No. A food shortage? Not that either. Farmers across the world produced a record 2.3 billion tonnes of grain in 2007, up 4% on the previous year. Since 1961, the world’s cereal output has tripled, while the population has doubled. Stocks are at their lowest level in 30 years, it’s true, but the bottomline is that there is enough food produced in the world to feed the population.

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The U.S. aviation industry has cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 13% since 2000, even as the amount of flying has reached record levels, government data show.

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Survey: U.S. consumers aren’t going green
The Miami Herald, Queenie Wong, 05.09.08

Americans rank last in a new National Geographic-sponsored survey released Wednesday that compares environmental consumption habits in 14 countries.

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Naming names: Heartland ‘outs’ climate doubters; they beg to differ
The Wall Street Journal (Environmental Capital blog), Keith Johnson, 05.08.08

The Heartland Institute, a New York-based non-profit that disputes the idea of man-made global warming, has raised hackles by publishing a list of 500 scientists who research climate changes throughout history. Heartland said its list is a growing who’s-who of scientists who question reigning climate-change orthodoxy. Problem is, many of them don’t—and they are steamed to be included in a list of global-warming skeptics.

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Is global warming to blame for Burma cyclone?
USA Today – AP, Michael Casey, 05.08.08

It was Asia’s answer to Hurricane Katrina. Packing winds upwards of 120 mph, Cyclone Nargis became one of Asia’s deadliest storms by hitting land at one of the lowest points in Myanmar and setting off a storm surge that reached 25 miles inland.

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Prominent evangelicals urged Christian conservatives Wednesday to support ”an expansion of our concerns beyond single-issue politics,” angering some leaders on the religious right who have been closely allied with the Republican Party.

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China says Beijing Olympics “basically” carbon neutral
Reuters, 05.08.08

This summer’s Beijing Olympics will be “basically” carbon neutral thanks to a series of energy saving measures such as the use of solar power and an afforestation program, a senior official said on Thursday.

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Broad climate fight best, not just gas cuts: study
Reuters, Alister Doyle, 05.08.08

An assault on climate change on many fronts makes good economic sense but will be money badly spent if the world focuses exclusively on cutting greenhouse gas emissions, a study said on Thursday.

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Petrify, liquefy: new ways to bury greenhouse gas
Reuters, Alister Doyle, 05.07.08

Turn greenhouse gases to stone? Transform them into a treacle-like liquid deep under the seabed?

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Today, I want to leave climate change aside, and talk about a second reason for wanting to reduce carbon emissions – in my mind, the most important reason – developing alternative energy sources. Like most Americans, I think that the time has come to make a serious effort towards decreasing this country’s dependence on fossil fuels. But in order to make realistic steps toward achieving this goal, we need to increase our investments in new energy technologies. And we don’t need to just play around with it—we need a focused, concerted effort to help bring cost-competitive wind and solar alternatives to the mass-market. I think a carbon cap would send a clear signal to American industries and investors that the country is serious about developing these technologies, and not just paying lip-service to the alternative energy crowd. President Bush can say “America is addicted to oil,” and get cheers. But this is meaningless rhetoric without action to back it up.

A crucial component to this is the expansion of nuclear energy. Nuclear is a clean, affordable energy source that is viable right now, and something that our country needs to make better use of. I think that one of the most immediate benefits of a carbon cap would be the approval of new nuclear power plants, and the increased use of nuclear energy. But does anyone think, for one second, that nuclear power will be expanded if Democrats control this debate? I sure don’t. And that’s another reason to make sure conservatives have a seat at the table on this issue.

The argument against this is that it will cost too much. And I don’t deny that there will be significant costs involved. But I think the old axiom that “you have to spend money to make money” applies here, and America can afford this investment. Over the long-term, I think it will pay huge dividends for our country, and the world at-large.

Next week, I’ll talk about a related issue, which is the importance of reducing our dependence on foreign oil. In the meantime, I’d like to hear our readers’ ideas on how a carbon cap might stimulate the development of new energy technologies.

Green energy means more work for lobbyists
The Politico, Jeanne Cummings, 05.05.08

Congressional leaders and all three presidential contenders are talking about spurring the economy by pumping money into renewable fuel research and creating green jobs.

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Senate GOP wants halt to ethanol expansion
CBS News, 05.05.08

Senate Republicans on Monday asked environmental regulators to use their power to halt the country’s ethanol output expansion plans amid rising food prices.

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States get in on calls for a gas tax holiday
The New York Times, Damien Cave, 05.06.08

Slocomb, Ala. — Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida has been fighting to cut 10 cents from the state’s gasoline tax for two weeks in July. Lawmakers in Missouri, New York and Texas have also proposed a summer break from state gas taxes, while candidates for governor in Indiana and North Carolina are sparring over relief ideas of their own.

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Alliance to make fuel-economy appeal
Schwarzenegger to hear of difficulties
Detroit Free Press, Justin Hyde,05.06.08

Officials with several U.S. automakers, including Detroit’s three companies and Toyota Motor Co., are to meet Thursday with California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who told Detroit last year to “get off your butt” and hit California’s fuel-economy standards.

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This is pretty cool technology. There’s plenty of research into hydrogen fuel cells happening in my home state of South Carolina at the Center for Hydrogen Research in Aiken and the South Carolina Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance in Columbia, which recently collaborated to produce a hydrogen-powered Chevy Silverado. Speaking of SC ties, there’s the BMW Hydrogen 7 – wow. And Ford is developing a hydrogen fuel cell electric plug-in hybrid in addition to the fleet of 30 hydrogen fuel cell-powered Focus vehicles it’s currently road testing. Unfortunately, much of this research isn’t yet commercially viable – GM’s Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles, for example, currently cost about a quarter-million dollars each to produce, and GM confesses it wouldn’t mind a few government incentives to help make the vehicles more affordable for consumers.

I commend GM and other groups taking the bold leap to research hydrogen fuel cell technology. Rather than a reliance on tax dollars, I’d like to see market incentives like those made possible under cap & trade help these and other emerging clean energy innovations come to the marketplace.

G.M. invests in second ethanol process
The New York Times, Matthew L. Wald, 05.02.08

The General Motors Corporation announced on Thursday that it was hedging its bets on how best to make ethanol from non-grain sources, and making an investment in a second company with technology that might do that job cost-effectively.

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Dollars in details: Climate bill boon to some utilities, bust to others
The Wall Street Journal (Environmental Capital blog), Keith Johnson, 05.01.08

The climate-change bills Congress is mulling will create winners and losers—in the utility business and in industry. Who and how much they win depends on how the game is played.

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Governor Patrick: clean energy a ‘better idea’
The Boston Globe, Stephanie Ebbert & Matt Viser, 05.01.08

Governor Deval Patrick this morning called on business leaders to embrace his vision for the state’s emerging clean energy industry, both to reduce their own costs and to boost the state’s economy by capitalizing on a growing field.

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Green taxes are just cynical ploy to boost revenue, say majority of Britons
The Daily Mail, Steve Doughty, 05.02.08

Most people hate green taxes, such as the 4×4 levy and London’s congestion charge
Nearly three quarters of the population do not want to pay green taxes, a poll found today.

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Prominent green group to help buyout firm
Is private equity going green?
The New York Times, Felicity Barringer & Andrew Ross Sorkin, 05.01.08

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company, the giant buyout firm, is planning to announce on Thursday a new partnership with the Environmental Defense Fund, an advocacy group, to help it improve the environmental performance of the dozens of businesses it owns.

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Kleiner Fund will target ‘green’ firms
The Wall Street Journal, Rebecca Buckman, 05.01.08

Venture-capital heavyweight Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers has raised $500 million to target large companies pursuing “green” ventures, a twist on a trend that is taking many Silicon Valley investment firms away from their roots in computer-related start-ups.

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In a new climate model, short-term cooling in a warmer world
The New York Times, Andrew C. Revkin, 05.01.08

After decades of research that sought, and found, evidence of a human influence on the earth’s climate, climatologists are beginning to shift to a new and similarly daunting enterprise: creating decade-long forecasts for climate, just as meteorologists routinely generate weeklong forecasts for weather.

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Congress’ ethanol affair is cooling
The Washington Times, Stephen Dinan, 05.01.08

One of the things that made the first Earth Day stand out was that it cut across political lines. On that day Republicans and Democrats both spoke out on the need to confront major environmental problems. In today’s political environment, that may seem like a relic from the distant past.

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