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Arctic sea ice falls to fifth lowest level on
record
Arctic sea ice is continuing its 'death spiral', reports the
Guardian, with its winter sea ice maximum falling to its fifth
lowest on the satellite record. The decline in Arctic sea ice has
been particularly noticeable at the end of the summer melt season,
- but it's impossible to know exactly what will happen this
year, Climate
Central reports.
The Guardian
Climate and energy news:
UK Coal mines face closures as insolvency
threatens
UK coal needs £10m in investment, from the private sector or
the government, to prevent the immediate closure of two of the
three remaining deep coal mines in the country. Kellingley in
Yorkshire and Thoresby in Nottinghamshire will both be closed
within 18 months whatever happens, but a cash investment would be
used to create a smoother transition.
BBC News
UK could produce shale gas in 4 years in emergency
- Cuadrilla
Shale gas production in Britain could begin within four
years, argues the chief executive of oil and gas company Cuadrilla
Resources. Cuadrilla is two or three years away from establishing
whether its shale gas operations are commercially viable, but if
the Ukraine crisis worsens dramatically and Britain loosens all
constraints, then he says "it would take two, three or four years
to get up to appreciable production rates".
Reuters
Climate and energy comment:
Tories plan new attack on
windfarms
David Cameron is considering whether to include a promise to
place new restrictions on onshore windfarms in the Tory manifesto,
according to the front page of the Guardian. The story, sourced to
a 'senior source', says this might be achieved through through a
cap on the onshore turbines' output, lower subsidies or tighter
planning restrictions. Renewable energy companies are
worried, reports the FT.
The Guardian
SSE boss attacks 'scaremongering' over energy
competition probe
Energy companies shouldn't 'scaremonger' over the impacts of
the energy competition investigation into the UK's power supply,
says the boss of energy company SSE. Instead he argues the
investigation should be widened to include issues like smart meters
and the costs of new power plants.
Daily Telegraph
IPCC report shows Stern inflated climate change
costs
Global warming of 2.5˚C would cost the equivalent to losing
between 0.2-2.0 per cent of annual income, according to Monday's
IPCC report. But the Stern Review on climate change change found a
loss rate of 5-20 per cent. Stern's number "does not reflect
climate changes' impact in the near term ....but it, by and large,
a prediction based on the worst case scenario of two centuries from
now", argues economist Richard Tol, who has called the latest IPCC
report 'alarmist'.
The Conversation
Wind farms are paid £8.7m in one month to stop
turbines
Wind farms were paid a record £8.7 million last month to
switch off, reports the Times. The figures come from anti-wind farm
thinktank the Renewable Energy Foundation. John Constable, the
foundation's director, says the reason for the high number of
payments is too many windfarms have been built in remote parts of
Scotland, making it difficult to transport the
electricity.
The Times
New climate science:
Coal's medium-run future under atmospheric
greenhouse gas stabilization
A new study looks at the future of coal in a world where we
halt the rise of global temperature. Assuming Carbon Capture and
Storage Technology is available by 2020, the coal industry drops
off sharply to begin with and then rebounds. Under that scenario,
coal production reaches roughly the same level in 2050 as it is
today, the researchers find.
Climatic Change
