Tuesday 2 April, 2013. The Green Piece Column. MORE

president, Donald Trump, is working to eradicate every Obama policy to limit the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change. Having variously called the science behind climate change a "Chinese plot" to hurt the U.S. emissions Politics EPA energy policy greenhouse gas climate change Donald TrumpThe new U.S. and referred to it using an expletive for bovine excrement, this shouldn't come as a surprise. He pledged to do. MORE

It was clear well before November's election that candidate Donald Trump did not believe in the accepted science of climate change. Scientists around the world and the majority of Americans accept the science of climate change, but. Environmental Politics EPA climate change Donald TrumpHe referred to it using an excremental epithet, and also claimed that it was a Chinese hoax created to hurt the U.S. MORE

climate policy. Trump has repeatedly denied the science of climate change, calling it a "hoax" at times. Prior to his Tuesday election victory, he also named a top climate-science denier to head his Environmental Protection. EPA energy policy White House climate changeIt didn't take long for the country to get its first indication of what a Donald Trump Administration could mean for U.S. MORE

Carbon Footprint emissions global warming climate change carbon dioxide wells to wheels Union of Concerned ScientistsThe question is a reasonable one: electric cars may be zero-emission, but what about the electricity to recharge them? While renewable energy is growing globally, burning fossil fuels is still the source of most electric power today. The good news is that in most areas of the U.S., the "wells to wheels" carbon-dioxide emissions associated with. MORE

to support use of data-based science to set government policy on climate change. Environmental Protection Agency removed detailed climate data and scientific information because it appeared to conflict with the "beliefs" of the Trump. Politics EPA global warming climate change carbon dioxide science Donald TrumpOn Saturday, tens of thousands of people joined a Science March in Washington, D.C., MORE

emissions climate change Study renewable energy solar wind energyOver the past few years, the cost of electricity generation from renewable-energy sources has decreased dramatically. So much so, that renewable energy may have just hit an important milestone, according to one study. In the U.S., wind and solar power are now cheaper sources of electricity than natural gas—even without subsidies. DON'T MISS. MORE

But the need to curtail climate change is at the root of many of these There are many reasons that automakers sell electric cars. Cars that plug in to travel on batteries charged from the electric grid respond to perceived customer demand for more-efficient transportation, and they help companies comply with tightening global emissions standards. MORE

Today, find out whether it's worth buying a used electric car, why some car dealers may support Tesla's direct-sales model, and what California legislators want to do to combat climate change. All this and more on Green Car Reports. It turns out that not all car dealers hate Tesla's direct-sales model. A new report claims some large dealer chains. Today in Car News MORE

efforts to combat climate change. Climate-science deniers in the current administration include Trump himself. Environmental emissions climate change Fuel EconomyGiven the current political landscape in Washington, it's not unreasonable to worry about the future of U.S. The Trump Administration has embarked on an explicit mission to undo all Obama Administration efforts to reduce carbon emissions. MORE

Hell, they won’t even allow Communities for a Better Environment to come into the front line community schools to talk to the kids about environmental health, never mind about climate change and global warming. MORE

But science has shown that continuing to do so on a large scale for even a short while longer could bring on disastrous climate change. And now a new study suggests the effects of climate change could last much longer than. Environmental emissions oil climate change fossil fuelsCompared to the lifespan of Planet Earth, human beings have burned fossil fuels for only an extremely brief period of time. MORE

California has by far the most aggressive climate-change policies in the nation, and the state is a global leader in plans to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions. emissions global warming California CO2 climate change carbon dioxide Zero Emission Vehicle state lawsIt's also the world's eighth-largest economy, with a growing population, soaring economic output, and a resolutely progressive legislature. While its zero-emission vehicle policies may get. MORE

global warming jobs climate change renewable energy solar wind energy Donald TrumpHere's a little quiz on a topic much discussed over the past couple of years: jobs. How many people work in the U.S. coal industry? Not just miners, but office staff, too. And, how many people work for solar-energy companies in the U.S.? DON'T MISS: Clean energy provides far more U.S. jobs than fossil fuels: analysis Coal mining was a mainstay of. MORE

It will be much harder and more expensive for Australia to do its fair share on climate change without a carbon pricing scheme, according to the final report of the Garnaut Climate Change Review – Update 2011, Australia in the Global Response to Climate Change. In November 2010, the Australian Government commissioned Garnaut to provide an independent update to his 2008 Climate Change Review. Australia Climate Change Emissions Policy MORE

Politics global warming Efficiency climate change carbon dioxide renewable energy fossil fuels Donald TrumpWhile the news headlines on President Donald Trump mostly address potential scandals, his administration has also lagged significantly in appointing top-level officials to run government agencies. Those that have been appointed often have an adversarial relationship to the missions of the agencies they run. Scott Pruitt, for example, is now. MORE

The current EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt, does not accept the scientific consensus on human contribution to climate change, though he has given some contradictory statements on that matter. emissions government EPA global warming climate change carbon dioxide science Donald Trump MORE

Mexico is officially joining the cadre of nations seeking to limit climate change, with a formal promise to cut its greenhouse-gas emissions. global warming energy policy mexico greenhouse gas climate change The country is one of the first to issue a plan for emissions reduction as part of a cooperative international effort that is being coordinated by the United Nations. MORE: U.S. And China Agree To Curb. MORE

global warming energy policy natural gas jobs climate change fossil fuelsThe "war on coal" has long been a talking point of politicians running for elected office in the state of Kentucky. The state was once home to a booming coal industry that has floundered over the years as cheaper fracked natural gas has supplanted coal for electricity generation. The state's coal industry job losses have thus been due to the surge. MORE

Eco-activists often indict air travel as a carbon-spewing threat to the global climate. Carbon Footprint emissions greenhouse gas climate change transportation policy air pollutionWorldwide, commercial jets pour an estimated 700 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year, leading to headlines like this one in The New York Times not long ago: “Your Biggest Carbon Sin May Be Air Travel.” ” But it turns out that. MORE

efforts to address climate change. jobs climate change solar clean energy energy Sierra Club wind energy fossil fuels Donald TrumpYesterday, U.S. president Donald J. Trump signed an executive order to begin the process of rolling back pretty much every vestige of U.S. In both his campaigning and since his inauguration, Trump has claimed that his government and its actions focus on creating or bringing back jobs for working-class Americans. MORE

A new report from the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change shows the importance of all major nations taking part in global efforts to reduce emissions—and in particular, finds China’s role to be crucial. The report—titled “The Role of China in Mitigating Climate Change” and published in the journal Energy Economics , compares the impact of a stringent emissions reduction policy with and without China’s participation. MORE

Following the removal of all mentions of climate change from the White House website, the new administration has apparently trained its sites on the U.S. The EPA and a handful of other government agencies are now reportedly under gag orders: employees are forbidden to discuss ongoing changes, post new material on. Politics EPA global warming climate change science Donald Trump MORE

joined the rest of the world and took a leading role in global efforts to avert irreversible climate change. But that seems unlikely to continue under the Trump administration, which has nominated climate-science deniers to numerous key positions. China government energy policy climate change transportation policy Donald TrumpUnder the administration of President Barack Obama, the U.S. MORE

As seemed likely from the day Donald Trump was elected president of the United States, the country will pull out of the global Paris Climate Agreement to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. The move had been signaled even before the election by the new president's choice of noted climate-science denier Myron Ebell as head of his EPA transition team. Politics climate change carbon dioxide Donald Trump MORE

The Premier of Québec, Jean Charest; the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks, Pierre Arcand; and the Minister of Transport Pierre Moreau unveiled the Canadian province’s 2013-2020 Action Plan on Climate Change (PACC 2020). The planned actions are intended to contribute significantly to achieving the objective of Québec’s climate change to reduce GHG emissions 20% below 1990 levels by 2020. MORE

emissions sales climate change plug-in carsAdvocates have long suggested that electric vehicles will begin to take over daily driving duties, slowly but surely, from the internal-combustion engine. Now, even oil companies are starting to acknowledge that there may be reality in that dream of the future. France's Total SA, one of the world's largest oil producers, released its future. MORE

On Friday, September 11, the California Senate approved SB 350, the Clean Energy and Reduction Act--by far the most far-reaching climate change legislation enacted in the U.S. oil California climate change electric utilities state lawsLet's call this one a good news, bad news, good news story. The bill's provisions codify Governor Jerry Brown's goals of generating half the energy used in the state from. MORE

the distribution of black carbon in the atmosphere and determine its role in the climate system. Accounting for all of the ways black carbon can affect climate, it is believed to have a warming effect of about 1.1 Synthesis of black carbon climate forcing terms. MORE

emissions Politics California climate change state lawsCalifornia continues to lead the way in all things green, now with new legislation that calls for dramatic cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions over the next few decades. Bills passed by the state Senate seek to formalize energy-efficiency goals set by Governor Jerry Brown in his inaugural address earlier this year. They include targets for reductions. MORE

emissions Politics EPA climate change carbon dioxide regulation Donald TrumpThese do not appear to be the best of times for President Donald J. Trump, but his agenda of eliminating regulations and promoting fossil fuels continues to roll out. This week, Trump appeared at the EPA to sign an executive order that directed the agency to reopen and reassess its Clean Power Plan for reducing carbon emissions from generating. MORE

But potential changes to the EPA do not come solely from the Executive Branch. Environmental government EPA congress climate change fossil fuels scienceSince the election of Donald Trump, considerable attention has focused on how a candidate who campaigned on promoting fossil fuels would treat the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies charged with regulating those industries. Over the past few. MORE

Beginning in the 1970s, Exxon conducted research that confirmed the occurrence of climate change, and that the burning of fossil fuels is a major contributor to it. Then it spent the better part of two decades funding groups that denied the science of climate. emissions oil research climate change Exxon science MORE

This week, representatives from world governments are meeting in Paris for the much-anticipated United Nations summit on climate change. Ahead of those talks--which are intended to create a global strategy for radically reducing carbon emissions--some of the world's richest people announced their own plan to slow climate change. emissions energy policy climate change plug-in cars Bill Gates clean energy MORE

can still meet the reductions set forth in the Paris climate treaty. Carbon Footprint global warming energy policy climate change carbon dioxide electric utilitiesFormer New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has gone on record saying publicly what most analysts have discussed privately: the notion that Washington can direct the energy market back towards coal is wrong. In fact, Bloomberg is willing to go further: he believes that the U.S. MORE

He has also called climate science a "hoax" created by China to hurt. emissions government EPA History climate change regulation air pollutionIt can be argued that the current presidential administration appears to lack interest in the traditional mission of the Environmental Protection Agency. As a candidate, Donald Trump advocated wholesale repeal of environmental regulations and increased production of fossil fuels. MORE

How much faith do you have that climate change is a reality? The proportion of adults describing climate change as “definitely” a reality fell from 44 per cent to 31 per cent over the last 12 months. Tags: Global warming Latest news BBC climate change climate change doubts climate change questions global warming cynicism Ipsos Mori UK According to a new poll by Ipsos Mori, belief in global warming is falling in the UK. MORE

As the United Nations COP21 climate-change talks continue in Paris, a group of local and national governments plans drastic reductions in vehicle emissions over the next 35 years. emissions zero emissions California greenhouse gas climate change plug-in cars transportation policyMembers of the International ZEV Alliance have committed to making all new cars in their jurisdictions emission-free by 2050. The Alliance was first announced in. MORE

It's mixed news these days for those concerned about continuing manmade climate change. On the one hand, global carbon emissions were flat for the third year in a row, increasing numbers of global corporations have lined up to support climate-change reduction efforts, and electric power is getting cleaner as coal slowly ebbs as a fuel despite the. global warming climate change science Donald Trump Polls MORE

Imagine appointing a lifelong pacifist, who believes it is never justifiable to take up arms against any man, to run the U.S. armed forces. The appointment of Scott Pruitt as the administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency could perhaps be viewed in a similar light. In his former position as Oklahoma attorney general, he sued the. emissions government EPA regulation Donald Trump MORE

emissions Politics government EPA global warming climate change carbon dioxide fossil fuels Donald TrumpDuring President Donald J. Trump's half-hour meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican yesterday, the pope gave the president a copy of his 2015 encyclical calling for urgent, drastic cuts in fossil-fuel emissions. It is unclear whether the U.S. president will peruse the document. Back at home, however, his administration is continuing unabated in. MORE

policy on climate change would change drastically under President Donald Trump, it should have been laid to rest shortly after noon yesterday. Politics global warming energy policy climate change Donald TrumpIf there were any doubt that U.S. Following inauguration ceremonies for the 45th president of the United States, the Obama White House website was replaced with an entirely new site for the Trump White. MORE

Exhaust emissions from gasoline and diesel cars get a lot of attention from policymakers attempting to combat climate change. Environmental emissions greenhouse gas climate change Methane foodBut another very large source of carbon emissions has nothing to do with transportation. Emissions of methane have increased dramatically over the past few years, with livestock raised for human food as the largest source. MORE