Crowd-Sourced Map of NYC’s Bike Share Stations Unveiled
Here's a first look at where New York City's 600 incoming bike sharing stations will go.
Here's a first look at where New York City's 600 incoming bike sharing stations will go.
Study Shows ‘Clear Indications’ That Climate Change Is Impacting European Fish Stocks
Rising ocean temperatures are driving major changes in fisheries throughout western Europe, bringing warm water species typically seen in the Mediterranean to the coast of the United Kingdom.
A new report card issued by European marine researchers details the ecological and economic impact that climate change is having on fisheries in the UK and Scotland — concluding that there are “clear indications that climate change is affecting fish stocks” in the region.
The report card features a map of changes currently underway. In southwest England, there are increases in blue fin tuna, triggerfish, thresher sharks, stingrays, and ocean sunfish; In the North Sea, fisherman are catching far more squid, shifting from a traditional focus on haddock and cod; and on the coast of eastern England, fisherman are seeing major declines in cod due to overfishing and changing temperatures.
A rise in ocean temperatures could have mixed results in Europe, wiping out some fish stocks and making others more abundant. But the net impact would be unquestionably bad, warn the researchers:
Projected global redistributions of fish will affect different parts of the world unequally. By 2050, tropical regions could experience significant declines in landings with gains in some high latitudes. The overall cost of adaptation of the fisheries sector worldwide in response to climate change is predicted to be large and could lead to losses in gross fisheries revenues of $10–31 billion by 2050.
If ocean temperatures rise by 1 degree Celsius, the report predicts that mussel harvests could fall by half, while increasing storms could damage salmon farms — potentially introducing new predators or causing farmed salmon to escape in the wild and hybridize wild stocks.
The report card was put together by Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership, a group of scientists from government agencies and NGOs. While some of the long-term predictions for fisheries are sketchy, the impacts today are already being seen: “There are clear changes in the depth, distribution, migration and spawning behaviours of fish – many of which can be related to warming sea temperatures.”
A Mother’s Day Without Pollution
Moms everywhere want mercury safeguards to protect their families - help stop the attacks on EPA.
Amory Lovins Wants us to ‘Reinvent Fire’ with 50-Year Energy Plan
Amory Lovins shares with us his multi-decade energy roadmap to get us off oil and coal and switch to sustainable sources.
Tesla Model S Electric Sedan has Greater Driving Range than Expected (320 Miles)
The Tesla Model S sedan, which should be delivered to the first customers in about a month, will be available with three different sizes of battery packs (40kWh, 60kWh and 85kWh). Tesla's goal was to achieve a 300 miles driving range.
Study Compares Energy Sources From ‘Cradle-to-Grave’
No form of energy really emits zero emissions, and that's a point that's both missed by casual advocates and overstated by strident critics.
Europeans Look To China For Renewable Energy Expansion
by Jeffrey Cavanagh
Even in the midst of an economic crisis, most European countries are staying committed to deploying renewable energy. But with demand starting to lag due to fiscal constraints, the region’s leaders are looking to large developing countries as growth markets for European companies.
A leaked version of the European Commission’s latest energy strategy shows how much importance leaders are putting on emerging markets: “All in all, renewable energy export opportunities will strongly depend on the elimination of trade barriers in and free access to key emerging renewable energy markets such as in China, India and Brazil.”
China is a growth market with the most potential for Europe.
Last week, energy ministers from all 27 EU member countries met with Chinese ministers and energy policy counterparts in Brussels to discuss energy security, sustainable urban development, and electricity market reform. The two sides agreed to set up an energy partnership and work toward more open market access and transparency.
During EU Commission President José Manuel Durão Barroso’s speech to Chinese leaders, Barroso expressed his strong support for a cooperative energy partnership between Europe and China:
The European Union and China are two of the global economy’s main actors, indeed the EU as the largest single market with a value of 12.6 trillion euros and China as the second largest economy in the world with national income of 5.2 trillion euros, respectively…We are both global stakeholders. Although we have had very different pasts, one thing is clear: We share to a large extent a common future, a future which will be determined by the manner in which we use the resources of our planet.
Leaders from both sides stressed the importance of Sino-EU relations, a partnership that recorded a record high trade volume of $567 billion in 2011. This represented more than $1.5 billion in daily trade.
China has accelerated its renewable energy investments, investing over $45 billion in the sector in 2011. This represented a 95 percent increase over the previous five years. China’s 12th Five Year Plan similarly calls for aggressive renewable energy spending and development, opening up the largest market for renewable energy in the world.
Barroso pressed China to give European companies more competitive access to Chinese markets. An effective energy relationship, he noted, requires “guaranteeing a ‘level playing field,’ including open and non-discriminatory access to our respective markets.” The Obama Administration has expressed similar needs to leaders in Beijing in order to give American companies easier access to Chinese consumers.
In an op-ed penned by Li prior to his trip, the Vice-Premier offered unequivocal support for European integration, and presented an optimistic outlook for future Sino-EU relations. Europe, Li writes, is a “strategic partner,” and China is ready “to work with Europe to ensure … China and Europe can progress and develop together.”
Developing together also means working through some sticky disagreements — most notably over Europe’s emissions trading scheme that would penalize Chinese airlines flying into the region. China is a vocal opponent of the EU ETS and has even threatened retaliatory measures.
Another issue is how to finance the Green Climate Fund. The planned global relief fund was launched during last year’s climate change summit in Durban, and would provide $100 billion per year in adaptation and mitigation funding by 2020. It was a key bargaining chip for China to consider future negotiations over binding carbon-reduction targets. But financial problems have left European countries unsure how they’re going to fulfill commitments to the fund after 2013.
There are a lot of moving parts to a clean energy relationship between Europe and China. But ultimately, the economic potential for both parties is too great to avoid pursuing.
Jeffrey Cavanagh is an intern on the energy team at the Center for American Progress.
Offshore Wind: Making an American Industry, Part 1
Positioned between the affluent of Martha's Vineyard to the east and the well-heeled of The Hamptons to the west, Block Island has always been more of a casual paradise, a place for blue collar workers to make summertime memories and sea-loving residents to enjoy the solitude of the other three seasons.
Additional Offshore Technology Fund
It looks as though the UK will meet its renewable energy targets by the year 2020 and the government aims to do this with the launch of a new £35 million fund to help small businesses demonstrate low-carbon technologies.
Out of this £35 million, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, in conjunction with the Technology Strategy Board, has launched a £5million fund to assist with new technology developments for offshore wind.
The fund will cover innovations in turbines greater than 5MW, foundations, installations, connections and operations and maintenance.
Allen & York specialise in renewable energy jobs. Current job opportunities include:
Salary: £60k-£70k
Location: London
Cyclists and Pedestrians Keep Getting Killed By Trucks When The Solution Is Easy: Mandatory Side Guards
Looking at trucks in Europe, one sees that the arguments against Side Guards are specious.
