As Britain reels from rainfall of unprecedented intensity [news search], a new scientific study found that heavier rainfall is caused by global warming [more | more2]. The study in the journal Nature found that "more intense rainstorms across parts of the northern hemisphere are being generated by man-made global warming". Meteorologists agree that the miserably wet British summer of 2007 has generally been caused by a southward shift towards Britain of the jetstream. The new study does not purport to blame any given rain event on climate change (should it?), but it supports the general finding that global warming caused by human emissions is causing increased rainfall [search] -- by showing that in recent decades rainfall has increased over several areas of the world, including the mid-latitudes of the northern hemisphere.

This sort of extreme weather response to global heating has long been predicted, but this the first time this link has been made directly. Given an unprecedented string of weather related catastrophes, anyone that does not acknowlege climate change must be a dullard or have investments in fossil fuels. What good is climate science if it preducts climate change produce extreme weather phenomena, but there are no specific events that can be considered as a direct result of the warming? Humanity and the Earth are facing a new type of problem for which they are ill-prepared. By the time there is 100% proof positive that climate change is causing extreme weather, it may well be too late to do anything about it. We need to exercise the precautionary principle and act on the greater than 90% probability it is.

Posted by Dr. Glen Barry | Permalink | Comments (8) | More on climate change flooding

TAKE ACTION: Let Ugandan Government know rainforests and their ecological services including water, climate and biodiversity are more important than sugar which can be grown elsewhere

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni continues to pursue legally dubious plans to destroy large areas of the Mabira Forest Reserve [search], Uganda's most important intact and protected rainforest, to produce sugar for biofuels. Some one-third of the reserve, about 7,000 hectares of an area which has been protected since 1932, will lose its protection for sugar cane production by the Mehta Group of India's "Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited" (Scoul). Earlier indications had been that the project was to be reviewed and cancelled, illustrating once again that no rainforest is protected for long... What is so exciting is that this cyber-protest is in support of one of Africa's first grassroots modern ecological protest campaigns - with local peoples organizing boycotts against Scoul sugar company, setting up cyber-petitions and text messaging via cell phones to organize protests. A dramatic discussion is being held in Ugandan society and in the media regarding the legitimacy of giving away forest reserves to private business interests. Efforts to save Mabira rainforest are a spontaneous, home-grown rainforest conservation protest that deserves the international community's continued support... Please contact the entire Mehta Group below; as well as the Ugandan parliament, ministries and embassies, and insist that plans to produce sugar as a biofuel in Mabira protected forest by Mehta Group's Scoul sugar be abandoned. Let them know rainforest destruction for biofuel production [search] is unacceptable, and the Mehta Group will be held accountable if the project proceeds. TAKE ACTION

Posted by Dr. Glen Barry | Permalink | Comments (3) | More on Uganda Mabira

This blog regularly bashes President Bush and his political counterparts for criminally negligent obstruction of vital climate change policy responses. Bush reneged on first term campaign promises to regulate carbon dioxide [search], withdrew from Kyoto, and has just generally impeded crucial international cooperative measures. Frankly, regardless of good deeds after leaving office, the Clinton-Gore team was not able to achieve much either. They dropped the ball on a BTU based carbon tax, never tried seriously to get Kyoto ratified, and generally wasted the booming 90s as a decade to get out ahead of the climate change problem. I consider myself a green independent though given the current Republican neo-conservatism, the current regime naturally repels me. The point of the matter is that all political parties in the United States including the greens (such as they are) have failed the Planet and her citizens. Into this dreadful dearth of climate leadership has stepped Governor Schwarzenegger of California [search] and several other high profile state politicians including other Republicans such as Governor Crist of Florida -- who recently unveiled rigorous climate policies [more] for his state. Given, Arnold's greenness is open to debate, nonetheless he has hit it on the head: the Republican party as well as the states can and must lead on climate. I disagree with statements by Gore and others that climate change is apolitical -- anything this important in regard to resource allocation has a major political element. I do not really care which political philosphy latches onto the need to restrain growth and consumption to save the Earth's climate, just that it happens. The need to avert climate change is deeply conservative while the response will require liberal change. No political philosphy has all the answers to climate change.

Posted by Dr. Glen Barry | Permalink | Comments (3) | More on climate change politics

Insists can 'protect' ancient forests & climate while actively promoting their first time 'certified' logging

By Ecological Internet's Climate Ark and Rainforest Portal
http://www.climateark.org/ and http://www.rainforestportal.org/
July 6, 2007

Greenpeace International has confirmed astonishing allegations by Ecological Internet that they actively promote and support the logging of ancient forests, at great expense to the Earth's climate. In their statement Greenpeace acknowledges they are "committed to protecting the world’s remaining ancient forests" yet support "the FSC as the only credible global certification system." What? Has Greenpeace become certifiably insane?

Greenpeace and other logging apologists such as WWF and the Rainforest Action Network want to have it both ways: against ancient forest logging, but for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) which actively logs ancient forests. This comes as FSC is accused of a string of failed and corrupt certifications from Guyana to Indonesia to Russia.

"Greenpeace says they will protect ancient forests by promoting their industrial certified logging. Given a Greenpeace staff member chairs the international Forest Stewardship Council board, one would think they would realize that a large portion of current and expected growth in FSC logging takes place in primary and old-growth forests," notes Dr. Glen Barry.

Sadly, Greenpeace yet again refuses to substantively respond to criticisms of certified logging of ancient forests. Despite years of international concern regarding their stance, Greenpeace is yet to present their scientific and experiential basis for asserting first time logging of ancient forests -- some of which are millions of years old -- protects them.

"Given concerns regarding abrupt run-away climate change and loss of terrestrial ecosystems and species, the myth of environmental responsibility of certified industrial logging of primary forests must be revealed. This approach has been tried for a decade and a half and it simply is not working. Given trends in emerging climate change impacts and soaring public concern, why not embrace the moment and call for an end to industrial ancient forest logging? This would significantly protect both life giving forests and the climate."

As the world comes together with Live Earth, proclaiming there is a climate crisis and looking for sufficient responses, environmental bureaucracies such as Greenpeace and WWF will have to do better than claiming a non-ambitious, reformist forest conservation policy will be adequate to protect our last intact large forests, to stop climate change, and to achieve global ecological sustainability.

Members of WWF, Greenpeace and other ancient forest logging apologists are encouraged to cancel their memberships. Doing otherwise means you too have ancient forest blood on your hands. Requirements for sustainability of global climate and terrestrial ecosystems demand an immediate end to ancient forest logging.

###

Ecological Internet's current action alert targeting Greenpeace for their support of ancient forest logging can be found at:
http://www.rainforestportal.org/shared/alerts/send.asp?id=greenpeace

Greenpeace's short and incomplete response is posted at:
http://www.rainforestportal.org/issues/2007/06/alert_greenpeace_come_clean_an.asp#comments

For more information:
Dr. Glen Barry
President
Ecological Internet, Inc.
P.O. Box 433
Denmark, WI 54208
USA
GlenBarry@EcologicalInternet.org
+1 920 776 1075 phone

Ecological Internet's projects include:
EcoEarth.Info -- http://www.EcoEarth.Info/
Climate Ark -- http://www.climateark.org/
Forests.org -- http://forests.org/
Water Conserve -- http://www.waterconserve.org/
Rainforest Portal -- http://www.rainforestportal.org/
Ocean Conserve -- http://www.oceanconserve.org/
My.EcoEarth.Info -- http://My.EcoEarth.info/

Posted by Dr. Glen Barry | Permalink | Comments (14) | More on climate ancient forest logging