Fires may have long-term consequences for California's landscape

The wind-driven infernos that are scarring vast swaths of Southern California's landscape may leave more than just a temporary path of destruction when they are finally extinguished.

Because they have struck some regions still trying to recover from recent burns, the wildfires could leave a legacy of environmental devastation that will be evident for years to come. Some of it may never be reversed.

Scientists say the changes could be profound, especially in areas that have been scorched multiple times in recent years.

Ecology fines port on light-rail project

The state Department of Ecology has fined the Port of Seattle and two contractors $20,000 for water quality violations at Sea-Tac International Airport.

Ecology found that the port, which operates the airport, and the contractors allowed four releases of muddy stormwater from Sea-Tac north expressway project into storm systems that drain to Gilliam Creek and Des Moines Creek.

The violations occurred in November and December 2006, and January and August this year.

UN climate chief urges action on global warming

TOKYO (AFP) — The head of the UN climate panel that shared the Nobel Peace Prize last week said Thursday there was still time for the world to turn around the global warming trend as he visited Japan for talks.

Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), told a press conference the Nobel prize committee's decision showed it believed climate change was a threat to world peace.

"This clearly indicates that they are aware of the fact that if we don't do something about the problem, peace and stability can be threatened," said the Indian scientist.

The climate is right for Al Gore's Nobel Prize

Compared to the U.S. presidency, it might feel like a consolation prize.

But take a bow, Al Gore. You have every right to bust your buttons over this shiny new Nobel.

I know a thing or two about prizes. Like almost anyone who's worked in the news business for 15 minutes or more, I've won an armload of them. Hardly any are worth the brass, glass, crystal or wood they're made of.

Greenpeace Urges Indonesia to Stop Forest Destruction

Indonesia must stop the destruction of its rainforests and commit to a moratorium on conversion of peat swamp forests into farmland, Greenpeace said on Tuesday.
Indonesia had the fastest pace of deforestation in the world between 2000-2005, destroying an area of forest the size of 300 soccer pitches every hour, according to the environment group. The Greenpeace appeal came ahead of a UN climate change summit in December, where participants from 189 countries are expected to gather in Bali to discuss a new deal to fight global warming. The existing pact, the Kyoto Protocol, runs out in 2012.

Climate change disaster is upon us, warns UN

A record number of floods, droughts and storms around the world this year amount to a climate change "mega disaster", the United Nation's emergency relief coordinator, Sir John Holmes, has warned. Sir John, a British diplomat who is also known as the UN's under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said dire predictions about the impact of global warming on humanity were already coming true. "We are seeing the effects of climate change. Any year can be a freak but the pattern looks pretty clear to be honest. That's why we're trying ... to say, of course you've got to deal with mitigation of emissions, but this is here and now, this is with us already," he said.

New global warning on climate change

Average temperatures will rise 1C by 2030 and could increase as much as 5C in Australia by 2070 if global greenhouse emissions are not cut drastically. A major report by the CSIRO and Bureau of Meteorology, released yesterday, warns marine ecosystems, including the Great Barrier Reef, could be damaged beyond repair if temperatures rise more than 3C and alpine ecosystems are at risk from increasing temperatures. The Climate Change in Australia report concedes a 1C temperature rise is inevitable but human activity will dictate increases beyond 2030. Under a low emissions scenario, in which greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are stabilised, temperatures may increase 2.5C by 2070.