Tiempo Climate Newswatch
Week ending October 17th 2004
- Newswatch
- Home
- Noticeboard
- Announcements
- Conferences
- Courses
- Mailing lists
- Climate treaty
- Latest news
- Secretariat
- National reports
- IPCC
Featured sites
The Blue Carbon Portal brings together the latest knowledge and resources on the role of oceans as carbon sinks.
WalkIt provides walking routes between user-defined points in selected British cities, with an estimate of the carbon savings.
Joto Afrika is a series of printed briefings and online resources about adapting to climate change in sub-Saharan Africa.
And finally,
The CoolClimate Art Contest presents iconic images that address the impact of climate change.
About the Cyberlibrary
The Tiempo Climate Cyberlibrary was developed by Mick Kelly and Sarah Granich on behalf of the Stockholm Environment Institute and the International Institute for Environment and Development, with sponsorship from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.
While every effort is made to ensure that information on this site, and on other sites that are referenced here, is accurate, no liability for loss or damage resulting from use of this information can be accepted.
|
Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent the Kyoto Protocol to the State Duma for approval. Ratification is near certain as the main pro-Kremlin party has a substantial majority. The Duma will debate ratification on October 22nd. Once Russia ratifies, the Protocol will come into force in 90 days. |
|
The decision to ratify seems to have been triggered by European Union support for Russian membership of the World Trade Organization, and visa-free travel for Russian citizens within the European Union. The United States continues to reject the Protocol, despite Russia's new commitment. Australian Prime Minister John Howard said that his nation would meet its emissions targets under the Kyoto Protocol, but would not ratify the agreement. |
|
More information |
|
|
Small island states warned the United Nations General Assembly in September that the threat of climate change is as urgent as the fight against terrorism. "We have demonstrated remarkable solidarity in the fight against global terrorism," said Kiribati President Anote Tong. "Can we not demonstrate the same in the fight against climate change and sea level rise?" Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, warned that climate change, "if unchecked, could lead in this century to a global human and economic calamity." |
|
Progress in implementing the Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States will be reviewed at an international meeting in Mauritius, January 10-14th 2005. Agreement has yet to be reached on issues such as climate change, trade relations, market access, renewable energy sources and finance. |
|
More information |
|
|
Researchers have linked recent drought in the western United States to climate warming in a study of the past record of aridity and causal mechanisms such as regional climate change. "If warming over the tropical Pacific Ocean promotes drought over the western US, this is a potential problem for the future in a world that is increasingly subjected to global warming," said Ed Cook of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University. |
|
The study was based on proxy climate records, such as tree-ring data, used to reconstruct a long-term record of drought and on modelling studies. The recent four-year drought in the western US "pales in comparison with some of the earlier droughts we see," concludes David Meko of the Laboratory for Tree-Ring Research at the University of Arizona. |
|
More information |
|
Bright Ideas
General Electric plans to cut solar installation costs by half
Project 90 by 2030 supports South African school children and managers reduce their carbon footprint through its Club programme
Bath & North East Somerset Council in the United Kingdom has installed smart LED carriageway lighting that automatically adjusts to light and traffic levels
The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the American Public Gardens Association are mounting an educational exhibit at Longwood Gardens showing the link between temperature and planting zones
The energy-efficient Crowne Plaza Copenhagen Towers hotel is powered by renewable and sustainable sources, including integrated solar photovoltaics and guest-powered bicycles
El Hierro, one of the Canary Islands, plans to generate 80 per cent of its energy from renewable sources
The green roof on the Remarkables Primary School in New Zealand reduces stormwater runoff, provides insulation and doubles as an outdoor classroom
The Weather Info for All project aims to roll out up to five thousand automatic weather observation stations throughout Africa
SolSource turns its own waste heat into electricity or stores it in thermal fabrics, harnessing the sun's energy for cooking and electricity for low-income families
The Wave House uses vegetation for its architectural and environmental qualities, and especially in terms of thermal insulation
The Mbale compost-processing plant in Uganda produces cheaper fertilizer and reduces greenhouse gas emissions
At Casa Grande, Frito-Lay has reduced energy consumption by nearly a fifth since 2006 by, amongst other things, installing a heat recovery system to preheat cooking oil
Tiempo Climate Newswatch
Updated: April 12th 2013