Forests in the Amazon Basin are expected to be less vulnerable to wildfires this year, according to the first forecast from a new fire severity model developed by university and NASA researchers. ... read more >>

If the European Commission wants to stimulate "green growth", as its official policy states, then the Emission Trading System (ETS) is the wrong instrument. That's one of the major conclusions of a new study from the prestigious Italian free-market think tank Istituto Bruno Leoni (IBL). The authors, Stefano Clò and Emanuele Vendramin, argue that a carbon tax would be much more suitable to the goa ... read more >>

Scientists from 15 countries are calling for a better political response to the provision of water and energy to meet the challenge of feeding a world of 9 billion people within 30 years. ... read more >>

As state-owned energy enterprises in China continue to have a big say in policy matters, the country's goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions may not necessarily hit Beijing's desired statistical target. The National Energy Administration's recent release of a plan putting coal consumption at 3.9 billion metric tons by 2015 is regarded as a measure of China's attempt to reduce reliance on coal. But ... read more >>

Long-running arguments over who needs to do what to stop the planet from overheating are back in focus this week as rich and poor countries meet in Bonn, Germany, to resume talks on a new global climate treaty. It's the first major round of talks since countries agreed in Durban, South Africa, in December to come up with a binding agreement by 2015 that would take effect five years later. In a we ... read more >>

The photovoltaics industry is booming, and the market for solar farms is growing quickly all over the world. Yet, the task of planning PV power plants to make them as efficient as possible is far from trivial. Fraunhofer researchers, working with Siemens Energy Photovoltaics, have developed software that simplifies conceptual design. The share of renewable energies in the overall energy mix is ri ... read more >>

The biggest uncertainty for the course of this summer’s fire season is whether the monsoon will arrive on schedule — or perhaps even a bit early — to soak Colorado with beneficial rains, and for now, the answer is still uncertain.
The larger Pacific weather patterns are in a transitional phase. With winter’s La Niña officially over, it’s unclear if and how quickly an El Niño might form, or wheth ... read more >>

JUST a few years ago, the future of renewable energy looked as bright and shiny as a white turbine blade coming out of the mold. The federal government was handing out money under the stimulus package, states were approving clean energy mandates, young companies were racing ahead with promising new technologies and big global developers were planting stakes for ambitious, utility-scale projects. ... read more >>

California has a long and productive history as a leader in environmental policy, requiring cleaner cars and power plants and more energy-efficient appliances. The state continued to break new ground last week when it unveiled the country’s first comprehensive, statewide cap-and-trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change. ... read more >>

Global greenhouse gas emissions could rise 50 percent by 2050 without more ambitious climate policies, as fossil fuels continue to dominate the energy mix, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. ... read more >>