Author: postMigrator

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I didn’t expect to see things happen this quickly.
The ice shelf is hanging by a thread – we’ll know
in the next few days or weeks what its fate will be.”
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EurekAlert! — AAAS

Public release date: 25-Mar-2008
British Antarctic Survey

Contact: Athena Dinar
a.dinar@bas.ac.uk
44-122-322-1414

Antarctic Ice Shelf ‘Hangs By a Thread’

British Antarctic Survey has captured dramatic
satellite and video images of an Antarctic ice
shelf that looks set to be the latest to break
out from the Antarctic Peninsula. A large part of
the Wilkins Ice Shelf on the Antarctic Peninsula
is now supported only by a thin strip of ice
hanging between two islands. It is another
identifiable impact of climate change on the
Antarctic environment.

Scientists monitoring satellite images of the
Wilkins Ice Shelf spotted that a huge (41 by 2.5
km) km2 berg the size of the Isle of Man appears
to have broken away in recent days – it is still
on the move.

Glaciologist Ted Scambos from the University of
Colorado alerted colleagues Professor David
Vaughan and Andrew Fleming of the British
Antarctic Survey (BAS) that the ice shelf looked
at risk. After checking daily satellite pictures,
BAS sent a Twin Otter aircraft on a
reconnaissance mission to check out the extent of
the breakout.

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Kansas Governor Vetoes Plan For Coal Power Plants
by Tom Doggett

WASHINGTON – In a big win for environmentalists, the Democratic governor of Kansas on Friday vetoed legislation that would have allowed a huge coal-fired power plant to expand in the state and spew 11 million more tons of greenhouse gas emissions a year.0324 09

The bill, approved by the Republican-dominated Kansas legislature, would have allowed Sunflower Electric Power Corp to add two 700-megawatt units at a facility in western Kansas.

Under the bill, lawmakers sought to strip the authority of the Kansas health and environment secretary, who turned down the $3.6 billion project last year because it would have produced more carbon dioxide emissions that cause global warming.

However, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius vetoed the bill, saying federal regulations of greenhouse gas emissions emitted by coal-powered electric generating plants will likely be implemented in the next several years.

“We know that greenhouse gases contribute to climate change,” Sebelius said in a statement. “As an agricultural state, Kansas is particularly vulnerable. Therefore, reducing pollutants benefits our state not only in the short term — but also for generations of Kansans to come.”

Environmental groups hope Kansas will influence more states to reject new coal-fired power plants.

Sunflower said it was disappointed by the governor’s decision. “If not resolved, this veto will unnecessarily raise electric rates for Kansas families and punish our Kansas workers and industries,” Sunflower President Earl Watkins said.

“We are experiencing significant growth on the Sunflower system and we must add new coal generation to support our existing natural gas and wind generation assets,” he said.

Sunflower represents six electric cooperatives, among 66 electric cooperatives and 10 Kansas cities that will own power produced by the coal-fired units.

In addition to the veto, Sebelius issued an executive order creating an energy and environmental policy advisory group make recommendations to the governor on how to reduce Kansas’ greenhouse gas emissions. She named Jack Pelton, chairman of Cessna Aircraft Co, to head the advisory group.

Additional reporting by Carey Gillam; Editing by Bill Trott

© 2008 Reuters

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“The Japanese beetle, as the name suggests, is a relatively recent
arrival in Illinois soybean fields. It is causing considerable damage
now but this study suggests that its ability to inflict damage will
only increase over time.”
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Public release date: 24-Mar-2008
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Contact: Diana Yates
diya@uiuc.edu
217-333-5802

Insects take a bigger bite out of plants in a higher CO2 world

Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are rising at an alarming rate, and
new research indicates that soybean plant defenses go down as CO2
goes up. Elevated CO2 impairs a key component of the plant’s defenses
against leaf-eating insects, according to the report.

The University of Illinois study appears this week online in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels have significantly
increased carbon dioxide levels since the late 18th century, said
plant biology professor and department head Evan DeLucia, an author
of the study.

“Currently, CO2 in the atmosphere is about 380 parts per million,”
DeLucia said. “At the beginning of the Industrial Revolution it was
280 parts per million, and it had been there for at least 600,000
years – probably several million years before that.”

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