Western banks financing illegal south-east Asian land grabs ›
Heartbreaking and absolutely infuriating. Click through for article and video.
Posts tagged cities.
400.
For the first time in human history, carbon dioxide levels reached an average daily level of 400 parts per million, as reported this week. The last time the atmosphere contained this much carbon dioxide was 3 million years ago.
This new data comes from the Mauna Loa observatory and a set of data continuously collected since 1958: The Keeling curve. This represents almost a 50% increase since the beginning of the industrial age. Although there is some seasonal variability (that little jagged edge) due to seasonal vegetation sucking up a bit of the CO2 every year, the trend is clear … and it’s not good.
So what does that mean? The effects are not something to look forward to. The last time the CO2 level was this high, way back when, here’s what the world was like:
Back then, it was a different world. Global average temperatures during the period were between 5.4 and 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit (3 to 4 degrees Celsius) higher than today, and sea level was as much as 131 feet (40 meters) higher in some places.
While the average (which is calculated from levels over the past several days) has since dropped back to 399 (as of today), the saddest part is that both of those numbers are unacceptable. 400 is just a little more catchy. With 401 and beyond right around the corner, what now? We must cut emissions as fast as humanly possible.
Because we are mighty humans, and it is possible.
We need to take care, because we all share this air. Read about the science of our CO2 contribution here. Watch this episode of It’s Okay To Be Smart to gain some hope maybe.
What do you think is the #1 thing we can do to change? What are YOU willing to do?
This milestone got some buzz this week. These articles don’t show the harsh reality that billions of people are going to buy cars, laptops, cell phones, homes with lightswitches, heat, and A/C, and all the luxury goods we westerners enjoy.
Countless tens of millions of miles of roads, power lines, fiber optic cable, drinking water and sewer pipes, gas pipelines, and other infrastructure are slated to be built for decades on end.
There is no way emissions will stop growing. Every projection shows this (see the preeminent IEA’s ‘Fact Sheets’ for some sobering stats).
The question is not, What are you willing to do? No, it’s Who is going to deny billions and billions of people in China, south Asia, Africa, India, South America, and eastern Europeans from accessing these goods and services in the coming years? Who’s going to stop growth?
A zoom in of Marcos Island, Florida, an upscale community on the Gulf Coast side of the state. The city is was built on marshy barrier islands and is susceptible to beach erosion and sea level rise. It’s surrounded by protected conservation land, marine protected coast land, and was, until today, restricted from rapid development and expansion. The Governor of Florida, Rick Scott, is set to reverse the trend by signing a slate of bills that would allow aggressive development in this and other protected areas around the Everglades. Over 20 environmental regulations and decades of environmental and land conservation battles are about to be destroyed at the stroke of a pen. But, if you’re a real estate developer, it sure is a pretty place to bulldoze…
Insurance companies shunning Florida over climate risk, report says - South Florida Business Journal ›
Insurance industry is leaving home and business owners (and cities) in the dust by pulling out of high-storm areas.
A new report by nonprofit environmental coalition Ceres says the insurance industry is shunning Florida markets because of increased storm activity, while insurers have done little to prepare for climate change.
The Ceres report is littered with references to insurers applying special conditions to Florida. Excerpts from the report:
• Several insurers describe screening out securities or real assets from coastal regions (particularly Florida) and arid regions with perceived water scarcity such as the Southwest. Particularly following the spate of destructive storm and drought activity in 2012, these investment screening practices should be noted by real asset owners and bond issuers.
• Already, divestiture from coastal counties and municipalities is a reality. This ranges from simple embargos like that adopted by Hudson Insurance Company (“We have determined not to buy State of Florida bonds,”) to more general policies.
• Torchmark Group said in its survey response, “In response to the potential for major catastrophe losses, the companies have not purchased investments such as Florida Windstorm bonds, Oil Casualty bonds, etc. We continuously monitor conditions in all sectors that are, or could be, affected by future climate developments.”
“Our climate is changing, the weather is becoming more intense…It’s going to cost a lot of money and a lot of lives…The big issue (is) how do we adapt…because it doesn’t look like the people who are in charge are going to do what it takes to really slow down this climate change, so we are going to have to adapt. And adapting is going to be very, very expensive.”
— California Governor Jerry Brown
…in an airplane hangar filled with trucks, airplanes and helicopters used by the state to fight fires.
The Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction will be held May 19-23 in Geneva, Switzerland ›
I’m very tempted to jump on a plane and go to this conference. It’s run by the UNISDR (United Nations Office of Disaster Risk Reduction). It’s basically a conference where politicians, stakeholders, and leaders in DRR gather to discuss and share ideas.
The Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction is now the world’s foremost gathering of stakeholders committed to reducing disaster risk and building the resilience of communities and nations.
Key outcomes:
- A stronger and more sustainable ISDR movement world-wide that leads to increased responsibility for reinforcing resilience to disasters.
- A dynamic and trend-setting forum for decision makers, partners, experts and practitioners to announce initiatives, launch products, share information, promote campaigns, and provide evidence around disaster risk reduction.
- Directions and new alliances for the development and use of new tools and methodologies aimed at understanding and applying the economics and investment in disaster risk reduction.
- A forum to discuss progress and consult over a post-Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA).
- Events that follow-up and progress on the 2011 Global Platform (examples may include an update on disaster loss in schools and hospitals, accounting for disaster losses, the status of National Platforms, and progress of the Children’s Charter for Disaster Risk Reduction).
wnyc:
Cool project to revisit news stories that made a big splash back in the day. First up: a giant floating barge of garbage from 1987.
-Jody, BL Show-
Imagine revisiting a big scandal from the past in video form. That (seems) to be what Retro Report is all about. Fantastic! Want more!
![fotojournalismus:
A dog walks on cracked ground at the Las Canoas dam, some 59 km north of the capital Managua on April 26, 2013.. A large area of the dam has been dry since last February, as most of its water have been used by rice farmers for their crops, affecting around hundreds of peasants living in the area, according to local media.
[Credit : Oswaldo Rivas/Reuters]
Drought.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/7717b14797782ef04f399f88b1121709/tumblr_mm8ogggsJ91r44q44o1_500.jpg)
A dog walks on cracked ground at the Las Canoas dam, some 59 km north of the capital Managua on April 26, 2013.. A large area of the dam has been dry since last February, as most of its water have been used by rice farmers for their crops, affecting around hundreds of peasants living in the area, according to local media.
[Credit : Oswaldo Rivas/Reuters]
Drought.
Phoenix, Arizona hits first 100-degree day of 2013 ›
Metro Phoenix sees first 100-degree day of year,The temperature hit 100 degrees at 1:15 p.m. today for the first time this year.
It’s going to be one heck of a year…
1st Arab Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction ›
Great built environment news from the Middle East. They’re getting into disaster management (and a bit of climate adaptation). The conference was held last month in Aqaba, Jordan. And you can view and download a boatload of power point presentations by the speakers, here.
Not sure how long the resources will be online, so get them while they last!
The conference will provide a forum for Arab politicians, policy makers, planners, academia and development experts to discuss issues and challenges facing the region with regard to disaster risk reduction. This session is being co-organized by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA), the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) and the League of Arab States (LAS).
Would a Ban on Fracking Constitute a Takings? ›
For legal peeps - an interesting regulatory takings theory in play against Gov. Cuomo! Fun stuff.
Communities Work to Hold Back Storm-Swollen Waterways
A tiny, flood-prone community breathed easier after shoring up a makeshift levee holding back the rain-swollen Mississippi River. Other Midwest communities scrambled to fend off waterways that threatened to overflow as more storms marched through the region.
Volunteers hustled earlier this week to shore up weak spots in a levee hastily built last week to stop the Mississippi from overrunning the flood-weary hamlet of Clarksville. At times toiling in heavy rain, crews built a second wall of dirt and sandbags behind the original barrier and now calm has been restored. The Mississippi appeared to be receding, ever so slowly, from the community 70 miles north of St. Louis.
Via: laboratoryequipment
Annual spring floods. Short term approaches.
In Kivalina v ExxonMobil, I and two other students represented ExxonMobil in ‘moot court’ in a climate change law class at Vermont Law School. We won. In fact, my team crushed the environmental law students who represented the impoverished Native Alaskans of the Village Kivalina.
ExxonMobil (and about a dozen other oil companies) was sued by a small island village located along the northern coastline of Alaska called Kivalina. The claim was that the oil companies had altered the earth’s atmosphere so much that its climate changed to the detriment of the village. The village is, as you read this, literally being eaten by the ocean at rates never seen in history. They wanted the oil companies to pay for relocating the villagers. They also sued to expose a conspiracy to mislead the public - the so-called “climate denial” you hear so much about.
Exxon defended itself on several grounds, and easily won the case. Although climate change was not under question, Kivalina could not prove that Exxon et al were the actual cause of their harm. This is called traceability - basically, they couldn’t trace the exact carbon molecules back to the oil companies.
So, the case was thrown out for ‘lack of standing.’ Standing is the first hoop of getting into court - you have to show a clear connection between the harm and the cause. If you can’t make it past this first test, the case is thrown out. None of the ‘merits’ or arguments for or against are even discussed. Such is the law.
Ironically, Kivalina was represented pro-bono (free) by one of the most controversial and powerful attorneys in America, Theodore Olson. Recall, Ted is a conservative-republican, anti-Clintonian who argued and won in Bush v Gore in the Supreme Court. In fact, he’s won 20 out of his 23 SCOTUS cases, almost all for conservative causes.
Olson, strangely, has taken a severe left turn as of late (perhaps to make up for a career of bullying liberals). In addition to representing the poor people of Kivalina, he’s currently the co-lead attorney in the Prop 8 same-sex marriage case that everyone is so stoked about. So the man who wrought George Bush upon the world is now representing core liberal causes, thus demonstrating that America’s cultural memory is astoundingly atrocious.
There are about 400 Native Alaskans (technically Inupiat Eskimos) in Kivalina, and their island is literally eroding away by rising sea levels and melting because much of the land is permafrost - both issues are caused (in part) by a changing climate. Warmer temperatures causes thermal expansion in the ocean, and the temperatures melt glaciers and sea ice. This causes sea levels to rise, and islands and coastal cities have to deal with the impacts (they were originally planned to handle a little bit of sea rise, but not the aggressive rise occurring today).
The above Kickstarter, and the quasi-point of this long post, is for a documentary about the lives of the Kivalinans - it’s about the people, and not about the legal case.
Kivalina People is being directed by a young film maker from Brooklyn named Gina Abatemarco, who decided to film and produce the documentary about 5 years ago.
I’ve been following the plight of the Kivalina for several years, hoping that they’d have their justice, or at least a good day in court. They haven’t. Their island is disappearing, and it will cost tens of millions to move them to new territory. I hope Gina’s documentary is viewed by millions.
One of the most important skills I learned in law school was how to argue - convincingly - the opposing side. I learned that the law is skewed to protect the accused, even in cases where the accused is clearly liable. We won that case in class on a technicality. And in court, technicalities can be cold and cruel son’s a bitches.
The Great Lakes Community Climate Program ›
Interesting project in the Great Lakes. It provides climate adaptation related grants, training, and information for GL residents.
Freshwater Future developed the Great Lakes Community Climate Program to provide training and ongoing support to community groups and citizens to enable them to incorporate climate adaptation into their work.
The program includes three components: training on climate adaptation for community-based groups, a resource toolkit, and a grants program. Freshwater Future partnered with EcoAdapt to offer climate symposia in cities in the Great Lakes region and to develop a Great Lakes Climate Adaptation Toolkit for community use.
Via CAKEX
Climate Adaptation
by Michael Cote
I want to punch climate change in the face.
A blog about the interactions between the built environment, people, and nature.
I'm a climate change consultant specializing in climate adaptation, environmental law, and urban planning based in the U.S. In addition to traveling and hiking, I research, publish, and lecture on how cities can adapt to climate change.
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