UPDATE: Stronger winds which have cooled the surface of the Pacific Ocean could explain what is likely to be a temporary slowdown in the pace of global warming this century, researchers said. Last year, scientists on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said the pace of temperature rise at the Earth's surface had slowed over the past 15 years, even though greenhouse gas emissions, widely blamed for causing climate change, have risen steadily. Past research has linked the slowdown in the pace of warming to factors such as a build-up of sun-dimming air pollution in the atmosphere or a decline in the sun's output. Others suggest the deep oceans may be absorbing more heat. A study published in the journal Nature Climate Change on Sunday said stronger Pacific trade winds - a pattern of easterly winds spanning the tropics - over the past two decades had made ocean circulation at the Equator speed up, moving heat deeper into the ocean and bringing cooler water to the surface. The winds have also helped drive cooling in other ocean regions. "We show that a pronounced strengthening in Pacific trade winds over the past two decades is sufficient to account for the cooling of the tropical Pacific and a substantial slowdown in surface warming," said the study, led by scientists from the University of New South Wales in Australia. "The net effect of these anomalous winds is a cooling in the 2012 global average surface air temperature of 0.1-0.2 degrees Celsius, which can account for much of the hiatus in surface warming since 2001." - Yahoo News

Stronger Pacific winds explain global warming hiatus: study - Yahoo News: "COOLING DOWN

The study's authors, including scientists from other research centers and universities in the United States, Hawaii and Australia, used weather forecasting and satellite data and climate models to make their conclusions.

"This hiatus could persist for much of the present decade if the trade winds trends continue, however, rapid warming is expected to resume once the anomalous wind trends abate," the study said.

"If the anomalously strong trade winds begin to abate in the next few years, the model suggests the present hiatus will be short-lived, with rapid warming set to resume soon after the wind trends reverse," it added."



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UPDATE: DELHI, India and Air Pollution Problems. The combination of rapid urbanization, a high density of cars and industrial emissions, and other environmental factors have made the smog in Delhi worse even than Beijing. However, despite India slipping down to a staggering rank of 155 in the global Environmental Performance Index this year, on-the-ground awareness of how bad the air truly is remains low overall. While the thick smog is hard to miss, widespread information linking environmental impacts from pollution to health effects is currently lacking in India. Many Delhi residents are unaware of the growing body of scientific evidence that shows direct links between increasing automobile use and emissions of harmful PM2.5 emissions — the kind of particulate matter (PM) that is so small that it can enter the human bloodstream. The question is, will the international spotlight on the country's air pollution shine through the smog to spark action? Despite low awareness, the serious health effects of Delhi's poor environmental quality are harder to ignore. The dangerous air pollution threatens a literal chokehold on the population as asthma and other respiratory ailments affect two in five Delhi residents, according to the International Harvard Review. But as communities throughout the country can attest, harmful particulates in the air are not just Delhi's problem — air pollution is the sixth biggest killer across India, according to the Lancet Global Health Burden of Disease report. Finding cleaner ways forward, including shifting to energy sources that pollute less than fossil fuels, is key to improving India's air, water and environment, as well as combating the global problem of climate change.- | The Energy Collective

CLICK LINK TO READ ARTICLE: India and Air Pollution Problems | The Energy Collective: "Much remains to be done to mitigate the severe air pollution across India's cities and rural areas. Raising awareness of the often-fatal health impacts of poor air-quality and ways the country can move towards a cleaner future — including through greener transportation fleets, energy efficient buildings and clean energy — are necessary to spark action on all levels. By prioritizing less polluting, renewable energy sources domestically, including wind and solar, India's communities will begin to breathe easier."



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UPDATE: UK: Treasury urged to insulate homes with carbon tax revenues - - A coalition of businesses and NGOs has accused the Treasury of hypocrisy over its refusal to use proceeds from carbon taxes to insulate the UK's housing stock. A new report, authored by an ex-Treasury economist for campaign group Energy Bill Revolution, which is made up of nearly 200 UK charities, businesses, unions, consumer, and health groups, highlights how the Treasury's decision to retain proceeds from emissions trading and the carbon floor price is something of an anomaly. Revenues from other policies classed as environmental taxes are set aside to be reinvested in specific programmes. For example, the Renewables Obligation funds green energy incentives and the London Congestion Charge is reinvested in Transport for London. The report, published on Friday, also highlights 13 countries in the EU that use proceeds from EU emissions trading to finance energy and climate change initiatives, including France and Germany, Italy, Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia and Lithuania. However, the UK government has so far refused to recycle its carbon taxes for environmental initiates because it could reduce spending in other areas.- 10 Feb 2014 - News from BusinessGreen

CLICK LINK TO READ Treasury urged to insulate homes with carbon tax revenues - 10 Feb 2014 - News from BusinessGreen: "Energy Bill Revolution says revenues from carbon taxes could provide an extra £60bn over the next 15 years to help reduce fuel poverty.
"The real reason the Treasury has opposed carbon tax recycling into energy efficiency is because they don't want to reduce their control over public spending and other departments," said Ed Matthew, director of the Energy Bill Revolution in a statement.
"When will they understand that this is not their tax revenue? It belongs to the people and we want it back to warm up our homes. Using carbon tax to make households more energy efficient is by far the best long term solution to both bring down energy bills and end fuel poverty.""



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