We all know about global warming, and we all want to save the planet. The average person on the planet is responsible for about four tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year, for a total [...]
Tag Archives | greenhouse gas emissions
Sugarcane bioethanol: Environmental implications
Researchers have long promoted biofuels produced from crop biomass as an environmentally sustainable source of renewable energy. A recent study questions whether the potential climate benefit of sugarcane ethanol is diminished when emissions from la…
Berkeley scientists highlight challenges of meeting state energy goals by 2050
California is showing the way for the rest of the nation in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, having set an ambitious goal to reduce these emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2050. Given that energy demand is projected …
Measuring methane
MADISON, WI, MARCH 1, 2011 — Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas. Wetlands, gas hydrates, permafrost, termites, oceans, freshwater bodies, non-wetland soils, are all natural sources of atmospheric methane; however, the majority of methan…
Hotspots of carbon confusion in Indonesia threaten to warm the world more quickly
Indonesia has promised to become a world leader in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In 2009, the president committed to a 26% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 to below ‘business-as-usual’ levels. Of this total, 14% would have to com…
AAAS news briefs from UC Davis
Researchers from the University of California, Davis, will present these findings at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 17-21.
Presentation: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions …
Tip sheet: Caltech researchers presenting at AAAS
At this year’s American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting in Washington, D.C., February 17 to 21, Caltech researchers will present topics ranging from solar and renewable energy solutions to the latest advancements in bioengi…
If greenhouse gas emissions stopped now, Earth still would likely get warmer
While governments debate about potential policies that might curb the emission of greenhouse gases, new University of Washington research shows that the world is already committed to a warmer climate because of emissions that have occurred up to no…
Rising seas will affect major US coastal cities by 2100
Rising sea levels could threaten an average of 9 percent of the land within 180 U.S. coastal cities by 2100, according to new research led by University of Arizona scientists.
The Gulf and southern Atlantic coasts will be particularly hard hi…
Ocean fertilization summary for policymakers published
Failure to tackle rising greenhouse gas emissions effectively has led to intensifying debate on geoengineering – deliberate large-scale schemes to slow the rate at which Earth is heating up. The public debate often mixes opinion with fact so scie…
The undead may influence biodiversity, greenhouse gas emissions
EAST LANSING, Mich. — It’s commonly known, at least among microbiologists, that microbes have an additional option to living or dying — dormancy.
Dormant microbes are less like zombies and more like hibernating bears. What isn’t known, howev…
RAND study: No direct military benefit from use of alternative fuels by armed forces
If the U.S. military increases its use of alternative fuels, there will be no direct benefit to the nation’s armed forces, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
Any benefits from investment in alternative fuels by the U.S. Department of Def…
Big city life may make residents lean toward green, study says
EAST LANSING, Mich. — The downsides of China’s explosive urbanization — like pollution and greenhouse gas emissions — now are joined by an upside: Better environmental citizens.
It’s the first time scientists have weighed employment …
Electricity pricing policies may make or break plug-in hybrid buys
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – California policies aimed at reducing electricity use and curbing greenhouse gas emissions have the unintended consequence of making new plug-in hybrid vehicles uneconomical, according to a Purdue University economist.
W…
How does your green roof garden grow?
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA — Growing plants on rooftops is an old concept that has evolved from simple sod roofing to roof gardens and new, lightweight “extensive green roofs”. Modern green roofs have environmental and social benefits; they can reduce sto…
Dodds contributes to new national study on nitrogen water pollution
MANHATTAN, KAN. — A Kansas State University professor is part of a national research team that discovered that streams and rivers produce three times more greenhouse gas emissions than estimated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
T…
Polar bears: On thin ice? Extinction can be averted, scientists say
Polar bears were added to the threatened species list nearly three years ago when their icy habitat showed steady, precipitous decline because of a warming climate.
But it appears the Arctic icons aren’t necessarily doomed after all, according to …
New study about Arctic sea-ice, greenhouse gases and polar bear habitat
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Sea-ice habitats essential to polar bears would likely respond positively should more curbs be placed on global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new modeling study published today in the journal, Nature.
The study,…
CMU’s research finds large uncertainty in carbon footprint calculating
PITTSBURGH — How much is that new computer server contributing to your company’s carbon footprint? What about the laptop you bought your child for Christmas? As it turns out, answering those questions may be more difficult than you might think.
…
Developing countries can cut greenhouse gas emissions and help the poor
In the developing world, reducing greenhouse gas emissions is often seen as being in conflict with alleviating poverty, since improving the standard of living is usually associated with increased energy use.
A clean energy development initiative i…
Doomsday messages about global warming can backfire, new study shows
Dire or emotionally charged warnings about the consequences of global warming can backfire if presented too negatively, making people less amenable to reducing their carbon footprint, according to new research from the University of California, Berk…
Leaking underground CO2 storage could contaminate drinking water
DURHAM, N.C. — Leaks from carbon dioxide injected deep underground to help fight climate change could bubble up into drinking water aquifers near the surface, driving up levels of contaminants in the water tenfold or more in some places, according …
Global warming reduces available wind energy
Washington, D.C. (November 9, 2010) — A switch to wind energy will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions — and reduce the global warming they cause. But there’s a catch, says climate researcher Diandong Ren, a research scientist at the University o…
Drought may threaten much of globe within decades
The United States and many other heavily populated countries face a growing threat of severe and prolonged drought in coming decades, according to results of a new study by National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) scientist Aiguo Dai.
…
Population change: Another influence on climate change
Changes in the human population, including aging and urbanization, could significantly affect global emissions of carbon dioxide over the next 40 years, according to research results published this week.
The research, results of which appear in …
Electric cars hold greater promise for reducing emissions and lowering US oil imports
Electric cars hold greater promise for reducing emissions and lowering U.S. oil imports than a national renewable portfolio standard, according to research conducted by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. This assessment is among [...]
Avoiding dangerous climate change: An international perspective
The world will need to make substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions below current levels over the next few decades if the worst impacts of dangerous climate change are to be avoided. This was a key conclusion from UK and US climate scient…
Fuel-efficiency formula needs cars wired with better brainpower, less vroom
ANN ARBOR, Mich.—A University of Michigan researcher says it’s possible to triple fuel economy in gasoline-powered cars by 2035, but it’ll mean getting our automotive kicks from smart electronic technology and other forms of virtual performance rat…
Geo-engineering and sea-level rise over the 21st century
Scientific findings by international research group of scientists from England, China and Denmark just published suggest that sea level will likely be 30-70 centimetres higher by 2100 than at the start of the century even if all but the most aggr…
MIT study: Hydrogen car no environmental panacea
Even with aggressive research, the hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle will not be better than the diesel hybrid (a vehicle powered by a conventional engine supplemented by an electric motor) in terms of total energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by 2020, says a study recently released by MIT’s Laboratory for Energy and the Environment (LFEE). And while hybrid vehicles are already appearing on the roads, adoption of the hydrogen-based vehicle will require major infrastructure changes to make compressed hydrogen available. If we need to curb greenhouse gases within the next 20 years, improving mainstream gasoline and diesel engines and transmissions and expanding the use of hybrids is the way to go.