Climate Change: latest news and comment

31.08.2004 It will take more than a few extra pounds on our gas bills to make us do something about global warming.

27.08.2004 Two offshore platforms linked to Sakhalin Island by pipelines are the next oil development planned for Russia's Far East, but the project is located near the summer feeding grounds of the only known population of critically endangered Western gray whales.

24.08.2004 In a new research that could lead to improvement in crop yield, climate scientists have identified moist soil ‘hotspots’ in the Sahara desert, equatorial Africa, plains of North America and across northern India where evaporation of soil moisture affects rainfall patterns.

19.08.2004 Industrial facilities are getting away with accidental, unplanned air pollution releases, known as upset episodes, in 29 states, according to a fresh analysis of government data by the nonprofit and nonpartisan Environmental Integrity Project released on Wednesday.

19.08.2004 Scientists from 22 institutions around the world are gathered in the Arabian Desert to study tiny airborne particles called aerosols and their effect on weather and climate.

18.08.2004 The governments of Australia and China signed an agreement this week to collaborate on projects that will reduce emissions of gases linked to global warming. The announcement comes ahead of a major workshop in Beijing next month that will be attended by industry, researchers and non-governmental organisations from both countries.

18.08.2004 A new report from European Environment Agency, published today, warns that more frequent and costly storms, floods, droughts and other extreme weather in Europe will result from global warming, threatening agriculture, melting glaciers and leading to rising sea levels for centuries to come.

16.08.2004 The UK Government has sent a letter to the World Bank saying that the bank has not gone far enough to implement recommendations of the Extractive Industries Review - a three year review of the bank's lending for oil, mining and gas projects. The letter was disclosed to Friends of the Earth, which has been lobbying the UK Government, represented on the World Bank Board and a major shareholder of the Bank, to ensure full implementation of the review's recommendations.

13.08.2004 Tropical coral reefs may be less susceptible to climate change than previously thought, according to research published in Nature this week.

13.08.2004 There is a new wave of activism sweeping across college campuses. Student groups are coordinating efforts to reduce fossil-fuel dependency by pushing for more renewable alternatives and putting forth specific goals for their colleges. They're also synchronizing their actions with other campuses across the United States, putting up a united front for cleaner energy.