Sea level rising
much faster than predicted
New
estimates of sea level change including the dynamics of
the big ice sheets are way higher than the IPCC 2007 estimate.
14/12/2009 - In an epoch report published in 2007, the UN's
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted
that oceans would rise by 18-59 centimeters in 2100. In
a new report, the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme
estimates the increase to be more than the double.
According
to the Danish daily Politiken, the climate panel underlined
that the estimate did not include rises caused by the disintegration
of Greenland and Antarctica ice sheets.
"Today's
bid is that by 2100, ocean levels are expected to rise by
0.5 to 1.5 meters. It is a dramatic increase in sea level
rising over the next 100 years, and it is something that
upsets us all," writes Professor Dorthe Dahl-Jensen
with the Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen
in the article.
The
study, The Greenland Ice Sheet in a Changing Climate: Snow,
Water, Ice and Permafrost in the Arctic, is presented Monday
at a side event at the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen.
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Rich
countries behind green technology fund
The
White House on Monday announced a new program drawing funds
from international partners to spend 350 million US dollars
over five years to supply developing nations with clean
energy technology.
14/12/2009
- The program will contribute to distribution of solar power
alternatives for homes, including sun-powered lanterns,
supply of cleaner equipment and appliances and a push to
fund and put in place renewable energy systems in the world's
poorer nations.
The
funding plan grew out of the Major Economies Forum (MEF)
established among the world's top economies earlier this
year, with a decision to produce detail plans and spending
at the July summit meeting in L'Aquila, Italy.
The
US share of the program will amount to 85 million US dollars
with the remainder coming from Australia, Britain, Netherlands,
Norway and Switzerland, the White House said in a statement
by spokesman Robert Gibbs.
He
said President Barack Obama had assigned Energy Secretary
Steven Chu to coordinate with partners in the MEF to insure
immediate action on the program.
Do UNFCCC
