[TheClimate.Vote] October 11, 2017 - Daily Global Warming News

[Richard Pauli]

/October 11, 2017

/*(video) How did Northern California fires become so devastating? 
<http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/11/us/northern-california-fires-factors/index.htmlhttp://www.cnn.com/2017/10/11/us/northern-california-fires-factors/index.html>
*..authorities point to a perfect storm of factors that have fanned the 
wildfires that began Sunday night, leaving at left 17 people dead, 
forcing 20,000 to evacuate and causing widespread devastation in 
Northern California.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/11/us/northern-california-fires-factors/index.html*
'Public Calamity' As California Wildfires Leave Apocalyptic Scenes In 
Wine Country 
<http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/10/10/556822426/public-calamity-as-california-wildfires-leave-apocalyptic-scenes-in-wine-country>*
"It traveled 16 miles in an instant, it seemed like. It just came 
roaring over the hills, down through some dry brush. [It] hit one of our 
most expensive housing subdivisions in the hills; went through a 
commercial area, burned down a couple of hotels, a couple of nice 
restaurants; hopped over a six-lane freeway; roared through a Kmart 
shopping center; and then into a middle-class section. ... It was 
indiscriminate, and it was very, very fast."
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/10/10/556822426/public-calamity-as-california-wildfires-leave-apocalyptic-scenes-in-wine-country
*Clinton says wildfires are exacerbated by climate change. Research says 
she's right. 
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/10/10/clinton-says-wildfires-are-exacerbated-by-climate-change-research-says-shes-right/>*
“It’s been a tough couple of weeks with hurricanes and earthquakes and 
now these terrible fires,” she said, according to KXTV in Sacramento. 
“So in addition to expressing our sympathy, we need to really come 
together to try to work to prevent and mitigate, and that starts with 
acknowledging climate change and the role that it plays in exacerbating 
such events.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/10/10/clinton-says-wildfires-are-exacerbated-by-climate-change-research-says-shes-right/


*(video report) Not Just Puerto Rico - Climate Disasters Rising Globally 
<https://youtu.be/9O7DIFUs11U>*
Journalist Keith Schneider has reported from across the planet on Energy 
and Climate for decades.  He describes impacts of massive hydrological 
disruptions due to climate change in far flung areas.
https://youtu.be/9O7DIFUs11U


*(Oct 11)  Tonight on PBS and online Frontline will broadcast its new 
film called War on the EPA. 
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/war-on-the-epa/>* In case you 
haven’t seen it yet, the trailer is available HERE. It is an examination 
of what is happening at the EPA and how we got here. Scott Pruitt is 
obviously going to be a central character.
How did Pruitt go from fighting the EPA to running it?  "War on the EPA" 
on 10/11 http://to.pbs.org/2fYvEAa
The ascent of the anti-environmental regulation movement “War on the 
EPA" http://to.pbs.org/2fYvEAa
As the Clean Power Plan is rolled back, “War on the EPA” was waged. Airs 
10/11: http://to.pbs.org/2fYvEAa
-
*(Comment) Scott Pruitt and Donald Trump Further Endanger the Planet 
<https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/scott-pruitt-and-donald-trump-further-endanger-the-planet>*
Pruitt, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, has announced 
that the Administration will repeal the Clean Power Plan.
The Clean Power Plan, as he saw it, had really just been “about picking 
winners and losers”—as if the whole climate-change thing had been 
concocted as the result of a grudge against fossil fuels (Pruitt’s past 
skepticism about climate science suggests that he might believe this) or 
to help China triumph (as his boss has implied). Pruitt complained that 
rules led to things like lawsuits, which slowed down the economy.
https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/scott-pruitt-and-donald-trump-further-endanger-the-planet


*Scientists Scramble to Save 1,000 Primates on Puerto Rico’s “Monkey 
Island” 
<http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/10/scientists-scramble-to-save-1000-primates-on-puerto-ricos-monkey-island/>*
Cayo Santiago, known as “Monkey Island,” has been a crucial resource for 
researchers studying primate behavior, cognition and genetics since the 
1930s, when scientists brought monkeys to the island from southeast 
Asia. Since then, a population of rhesus macaques has thrived there, 
offering scientists a window into the primates’ lives...
Miraculously, the monkeys largely survived the initial impact of 
Hurricane Maria.
But the storm devastated the small island, destroying its lush 
vegetation and wrecking the infrastructure that provided its inhabitants 
with fresh water, according to news releases from Yale University and 
the University of Michigan — two of several institutions now working to 
care for the monkeys...
Researchers are now transporting shipments of food and water to the 
island, and working to rebuild the rainwater cisterns that the storm 
destroyed. They’re also distributing supplies and helping with 
rebuilding efforts in the local community in nearby Punta Santiago, a 
15-minute boat ride from Monkey Island. Many of the staff who work on 
Monkey Island are residents of Punta Santiago...
Two GoFundMe pages are now in place to aid relief efforts for *the 
animals of Monkey Island 
<ttps://www.gofundme.com/cayo-santiago-monkeys-maria-relief>* and for 
the community of Punta Santiago <https://www.gofundme.com/helpcayo>.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/10/scientists-scramble-to-save-1000-primates-on-puerto-ricos-monkey-island/


*London Commits to Take Action on Air Pollution 
<http://sdg.iisd.org/news/london-commits-to-take-action-on-air-pollution/>*
A report has shown that average annual levels in central London are 
almost double the recommended WHO limit for dangerous PM2.5 particles.
London has joined the Breathe Life initiative, a global coalition of 
cities working together to improve air quality, expand monitoring 
efforts, and accelerate solutions.
London will implement a daily UK£10 per day charge on the most polluting 
vehicles in the city from 23 October 2017.
http://sdg.iisd.org/news/london-commits-to-take-action-on-air-pollution/


*CLIMATE CHANGE PREDICTED TO REDUCE SIZE, STATURE OF DOMINANT MIDWEST 
PLANT, COLLABORATIVE STUDY FINDS 
<http://kticradio.com/agricultural/climate-change-predicted-to-reduce-size-stature-of-dominant-midwest-plant-collaborative-study-finds/>*
Big bluestem, or Andropogon gerardii, is a common grass in natural and 
restored prairies across the central Midwestern region that includes 
Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Missouri and Iowa. The grass species is an 
important component of forage for the region’s livestock industry. It 
also is commonly used in grassland restoration of prairies across 
several million acres in the Great Plains region...
“Our results predict that climate change could greatly impact the 
tallgrass prairie as we currently know it, reducing forage for cattle in 
the drier parts of grasslands, in places like Kansas,” Johnson said....
In the Midwest, big bluestem can grow to 4 to 6 feet tall, but the 
researchers found that climate change could reduce its height by up to 
60 percent in the next 75 years. As a result, the form of big bluestem 
that grows in the central Midwest could come to resemble the form that 
currently inhabits eastern Colorado on the edge of the species’ range. 
The tall forms of the Midwest grass could shift to the Great Lakes 
region where big bluestem is currently less common...
The analysis also highlights the effects of climate change on common 
species that typically are not expected to be as vulnerable to 
anticipated climate change. Worldwide, 1 in 5 plants is already on the 
brink of extinction and climate change is only expected to add pressure 
on species struggling to survive. This study indicates that common 
species also may be vulnerable, researchers said.
http://kticradio.com/agricultural/climate-change-predicted-to-reduce-size-stature-of-dominant-midwest-plant-collaborative-study-finds/


*Renewables are Here: Utilities Ignore at Own Risk 
<https://climatecrocks.com/2017/10/10/renewables-are-here-utilities-ignore-at-own-risk/>*
https://climatecrocks.com/2017/10/10/renewables-are-here-utilities-ignore-at-own-risk/


*Philippines Climate Case Could Find Fossil Fuel Companies Violate Human 
Rights 
<https://www.climateliabilitynews.org/2017/10/05/philippines-climate-change-human-rights/>*
...the Philippines, an island nation that ranks third among countries 
most at risk from climate change, will become a testing ground for a 
human rights approach to climate liability.
https://www.climateliabilitynews.org/2017/10/05/philippines-climate-change-human-rights/


*(video + text) Greenland Scientist Rohi Muthyala – Not Content with 
Mere Models 
<https://climatecrocks.com/2017/10/10/greenland-scientist-rohi-muthyala-not-content-with-mere-models/>*
YouTube video https://youtu.be/yGjwpvrCxlM Greenland Hydrologist Rohi 
Muthyala <https://youtu.be/yGjwpvrCxlM>
Muthyala still spends part of her time working with computers, but she 
most certainly gets up from her screen. She spent two weeks last summer 
on the edge of the Greenland ice sheet, trying to understand how 
meltwater gets from the surface of the ice to the ocean.
This understanding is important because there are no good computer 
models of how the melting of Greenland’s ice sheet actually works. 
Hundreds of millions of people around the world live near sea level, and 
meltwater from the Greenland ice sheet contributes to sea level rise. 
Muthyala, fellow student Sasha Leidman, and Rennermalm are trying to 
fill in the details.
Muthyala studies how melting water cuts channels in the ice sheet and 
how those channels and the constant thawing and refreezing of the ice 
sheet’s surface affect the flow of water at the mouth of a river. She 
also wants to know if what she learns about the area she’s studying can 
be scaled up to give her a picture of the entire region of southwestern 
Greenland.
Muthyala’s work can be seen in the video above
https://climatecrocks.com/2017/10/10/greenland-scientist-rohi-muthyala-not-content-with-mere-models/


*Haiti - Environment : 200 young Haitian leaders face climate change 
<http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-22283-haiti-environment-200-young-haitian-leaders-face-climate-change.html>*
Haitilibre.com
Haiti - Environment : 200 young Haitian leaders face climate change ... 
students from the 10 departments of Haiti and the Haitian diaspora will 
have ...
At the 13th Youth Conference (COY 13), 200 young community leaders, 
entrepreneurs, bloggers, journalists, professionals and students from 
the 10 departments of Haiti and the Haitian diaspora will have the 
opportunity to train, exchange and to take concrete initiatives in the 
fight against climate change from 18 to 20 October 2017 at the Campus 
Henry Christophe of Limonade.
On the agenda of these 3 days, lectures and debates will focus on the 
following themes :
Migration and Climate
Green Economy
Health and Climate
Waste Management
Climate Justice
Transport and climate
Youth Participation / Engagement
Spatial Planning and the Sustainable Development Goals
Energy
Sustainable agriculture
Climate Policy
http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-22283-haiti-environment-200-young-haitian-leaders-face-climate-change.html


*Supergirl Season 3 Premiere Takes Shot At Donald Trump Over Global 
Warming 
<http://comicbook.com/dc/2017/10/10/supergirl-donald-trump-global-warming/>*
In the season 3 premiere of Supergirl, former series regular Calista 
Flockhart now finds her character Cat Grant acting as the Press 
Secretary for Lynda Carter's U.S. President Olivia Marsdin. A few 
comments, though, cross the border between the fictional universe of 
National City and modern America, and seemed pretty squarely aimed at 
real-world U.S. President Donald Trump.
During her introduction as Press Secretary, Grant is shown responding to 
a question from the press corps about global warming. She tells them 
that President Marsdin believes in global warming in the same way she 
believes other easily-proven concepts which are accepted as public 
knowledge, and goes on to intimate that people who lack the intelligence 
of an 8-year-old.
http://comicbook.com/dc/2017/10/10/supergirl-donald-trump-global-warming/


*This Day in Climate History October 11, 2000 
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBXoItXHLTM>  -  from D.R. Tucker*
October 11, 2000: In the second Presidential debate between Vice
President Al Gore and Texas Governor George W. Bush, Gore says the US
needs to take the lead in confronting the climate crisis and embracing
clean energy. Bush claims that his environmental record as governor of
Texas is not as bad as has been alleged; Bush also attacks the concept
of a carbon tax and endorses "clean coal" and natural gas as energy
solutions. Gore denies that he supports a carbon tax, but endorses
clean-energy tax incentives. Bush tries to suggest that there's still
a dispute in the scientific community about the causes and severity of
climate change, and denounces the Kyoto Protocol. Gore defends the
scientific consensus on climate, and points out that we need to do
right by future generations; in response, Bush again suggests that
there isn't a real consensus.
(65:00-85:25)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBXoItXHLTM/


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