It is evident that the Fukushima disaster is going to persist for some time. TEPCO says 6 to 9 months. The previous Japanese Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, said decades. Now the Japanese government is talking about 30 years. [Whoops, that has now been updated to 40 years.]
And the IAEA is now saying 40 years too.
[Now some people are talking about a century or more. Sealing it in concrete for 500 years.]
We’ll see.
At any rate this situation is not going to be resolved any time soon and deserves its own section.
Meanwhile…
It is very difficult to know for sure what is really going on at Fukushima. Between the company [TEPCO], the Japanese government, the Japanese regulator [NISA], the international monitor [IAEA], as well as independent analysts and commentators, there is a confusing mish-mash of information. One has to evaluate both the content and the source of propagated information.
How knowledgeable are they [about nuclear power and about Japan]?
Do they have an agenda?
Are they pro-nuclear or anti-nuclear?
Do they want to write a good news story?
Do they want to write a bad news story?
Where do they rate on a scale of sensationalism?
Where do they rate on a scale of play-it-down-ness?
One fundamental question I would like to see answered:
If the reactors are in meltdown, how can they be in cold shutdown?

No good news out of Fukushima yet:

2013/11/16: EneNews: Columnist: The truth must be told, Fukushima a major global threat to all living flora and fauna…
2013/11/15: IAEA: Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority Reports on Conditions at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station
2013/11/15: GreenPeace: All the king’s horses and all the king’s men can’t put trust in TEPCO back together again
2013/11/15: GLaden: Removing the #Fukushima Spent Fuel Rods. Or not.
2013/11/15: RT: Some Fukushima fuel rods were damaged before 2011 catastrophe
2013/11/15: EneNews: Photographer: No sign of life in Fukushima exclusion zone, only a few birds (photos)
2013/11/14: EneNews: Fox News: ‘Video points to serious damage’ to Fukushima Reactor No. 1 – Nuclear Expert: Size of leak indicates ‘large damage’ – Caused by explosion? (video)
2013/11/14: EneNews: Damaged fuel rods are cracked and leaking radioactive gases in Fukushima Unit 4 pool; Wire appears trapped in racks – Another assembly bent when “mishandled during a transfer”
2013/11/14: EneNews: US Gov’t Headline: Alaska island “appears to show impacts from Fukushima” – “Significant cesium isotope signature” detected…
2013/11/13: WNN: All systems ready for Fukushima fuel removal
Engineers at Fukushima Daiichi have done final checks before they begin removing fuel from unit 4’s storage pond, the highest priority safety-related task in the site’s decommissioning.
2013/11/13: CDreams: ‘Trust Us’: World’s Most Perilous Nuclear Operation Set To Begin
With effort to remove fuel rods from Fukushima’s Reactor 4 expected any day, few trust TEPCO’s assurances
2013/11/13: EneNews: NHK: Holes near bottom of containment vessel identified for first time at Fukushima plant – “Gushing out” of Reactor No. 1 – Similar damage suspected at Units 2 and 3 (video)
2013/11/13: EneNews: Multiple assemblies ‘deformed’ in Fukushima Unit 4 pool – One “bent at a 90-degree angle” – Tepco: Mistake occurred when handling the fuel… 25 years ago
2013/11/13: RT: Clean-up doubts: Many Fukushima evacuees may never return home
Many of the people who were forced to evacuate after the 2011 triple meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear power plant may never return, Japanese lawmakers admitted, overturning initial optimistic government pledges. A call to admit the grim reality and step back from the ambitious Fukushima decontamination goals came from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s coalition parties. Japan has so far spent $30 billion on the clean-up program, which has proven to be more difficult to carry out than initially expected. The new plan would be for the government to fund relocation to new homes for those who used to live in the most contaminated areas.
2013/11/12: EneNews: Radiation level hits record high at Fukushima plant well…
2013/11/12: Reuters: Japan readies additional $30 billion for Fukushima clean-up: sources
2013/11/12: DD: Fukushima residents may never go home, say Japanese officials…
2013/11/12: Guardian(UK): Fukushima residents may never go home, say Japanese officials
Admission deals blow to government assurances that radiation near the Daiichi nuclear plant can be brought down to safe levels Japanese officials have admitted for the first time that thousands of people evacuated from areas near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant may never be able to return home. A report by members of the governing Liberal Democratic party [LDP] and its junior coalition partner urges the government to abandon its promise to all 160,000 evacuees that their irradiated homes will be fit to live in again. The plan instead calls for financial support for displaced residents to move to new homes elsewhere, and for more state funding for the storage of huge quantities of radioactive waste being removed from the 12-mile evacuation zone around the plant.
2013/11/11: EneNews: Japan Expert: “All I can do is pray nothing goes wrong” at Fukushima Unit 4…
2013/11/10: NYT: Removing Fuel Rods Poses New Risks at Crippled Nuclear Plant in Japan

Post Fukushima, nuclear policies are in flux around the world:

2013/11/16: PeakEnergy: Ex Japanese PM Koizumi Speaks Out Against Restarting Nuclear Power
2013/11/15: TMoS: The Other Fallout from Fukushima
2013/11/14: BBC: Japan slashes climate reduction target amid nuclear shutdown
Japan is to significantly slash its greenhouse gas reduction target in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. It will now aim to achieve a 2020 target of 3.8% below 2005 levels [a 3% rise over 1990s emissions levels]. This replaces a previous commitment to reduce emissions by 25% from 1990 levels. The moves come with all of Japan’s nuclear power plants currently offline – forcing the country to increase its burning of fossil fuels.

The Arctic melt continues to garner attention:

As for the charismatic megafauna:

That Damoclean sword still hangs overhead:

While in Antarctica:

2013/11/17: Xinhuanet: Singapore-sized iceberg breaks away from Antarctica [pix]
2013/11/16: NASA: NASA Begins First Antarctic Airborne Campaign from McMurdo Station
2013/11/15: IOTD: Major Iceberg Cracks off Pine Island Glacier [Oct.28 vs Nov.13]
2013/11/14: CSM: Antarctic iceberg ditches mainland, sets sail
2013/11/14: CNN: City-size [PIG] iceberg drifting away from Antarctica
Iceberg could last in open ocean for a year, researcher says – Sea ice that kept berg close to Antarctica now melting, scientist says – Iceberg separated from glacier in July
2013/11/13: FaGP: Pine Island Glacier 2013 Iceberg Rift update
2013/11/12: BBC: Vast Antarctic [PIG] iceberg ‘could threaten shipping’

The food crisis is ongoing:

2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Farmers told to adapt to climate change
The latest world weather report, indicating the globe is on track to record one of its warmest years, should send a strong message to farmers to plan for climate adaptation, according to an expert in agriculture and climate change.
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Frosts, rain damage vineyards, crops across southern NSW
2013/11/12: PSinclair: Justin Gillis, NYT: A Jolt to Complacency on Food Supply
2013/11/12: FuturePundit: Corn For Ethanol Speeds Topsoil Erosion
2013/11/12: WSWS: Food stamp cuts in US overwhelm anti-hunger agencies

The state of the world’s fisheries is a concern. See also:

2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Experimental restocking of abalone off Mid West coast
The Department of Fisheries hopes an experimental restocking project will eventually lead to the re-opening of the abalone fishery. A heatwave that started in late 2010 increased temperatures off the Mid West coast by up to five degrees, wiping out almost all of the abalone north of Perth.
2013/11/10: Eureka: ‘Saving our fish’ needs more than a ban on discarding

So, are these land grabs Colonialism V2.0?

2013/11/12: Asia Times: Coca-Cola to check Cambodia land-grab claim

Regarding the genetic modification of food:

2013/11/14: CBC: Non-browning Arctic Apple concerns GMO opponents

Regarding labelling GM food:

2013/11/17: al Jazeera: Prayers in Philippines as aid arrives
Survivors gather in ruined churches across devastated regions as country faces up to mammoth rebuilding task.

2013/11/16: DD: Philippines: Number of displaced people increases from 1.9 million to 3 million

2013/11/16: DD: Exodus from hell: Residents flee typhoon-ravaged Tacloban

2013/11/16: CNN: Philippines typhoon disaster: Caring for the living, tending to the dead
Desperation grows as people are without power and shelter for more than a week – The military must avoid swarming people during food drops – U.S. may rotate out USS George Washington once amphibious ships arrive – U.K.’s Royal Navy will arrive Sunday as many British nationals are still missing

2013/11/16: Xinhuanet: UNICEF supplies for Filipino children affected by super typhoon

2013/11/16: IndiaTimes: Asia rivalries play role in aid to the Philippines

2013/11/16: IndiaTimes: Beijing’s meagre typhoon aid is diplomatic misstep: Experts

2013/11/16: BBC: Philippines typhoon: UK commits extra Â£30m in aid

2013/11/16: BBC: British man ‘missing’ after Philippines typhoon

2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Aid pushes through to survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines

2013/11/16: WSWS: Mounting anger at Philippine president’s response to typhoon disaster

2013/11/16: al Jazeera: Philippines typhoon victims finally get aid
Food and supplies reaching remote areas for first time, eight days after superstorm Haiyan hit the country.

2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines begins burying victims in mass graves as UN says nearly 12 million affected

2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Suitcase radio station reaches out to typhoon victims

2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Typhoon Haiyan: Solar-powered radio helps survivors in Philippines
A temporary radio station operating out of a suitcase is helping survivors of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, providing both critical information and a dose of normalcy.

2013/11/16: BBC: Philippines typhoon: Aid effort gathers pace

2013/11/16: BBC: Aid agencies say typhoon shows need for action on climate change
The UK’s Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has urged countries to take urgent action on climate change, as UN talks enter their second week.

2013/11/16: BBC: “A number” of British nationals remain unaccounted for after Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, the UK foreign secretary has said

2013/11/16: CBC: Philippines homeless from typhoon hits 1.9 million

2013/11/15: BBC: Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines death toll up as aid arrives

2013/11/15: CBC: Philippines typhoon leaves 55 Canadians unaccounted for
132 Canadians known to be in affected areas have been located, but others cannot be reached

2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan — how do you rebuild after such destruction?

2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: how the horror unfolded day by day

2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan survivors lack food and water one week on

2013/11/15: CSM: By the numbers: Typhoon Haiyan’s human toll, property damage, and aid pledges

2013/11/15: WFP: Food And Other Aid Flows Into Tacloban As Debris From Typhoon Haiyan Is Cleared And Communities Become Reachable

2013/11/15: UN: Philippines: Newly open roads, airports allow in more aid but fuel shortage remains

2013/11/15: DD: Philippines: Number of displaced people increases from 900,000 to 1.9 million

2013/11/15: ABC(Au): UN admits aid slow to reach typhoon survivors

2013/11/15: CNN: Typhoon Haiyan survivors flee Tacloban misery on navy ship to Cebu
Typhoon survivors arrive in Cebu after 24-hour sea journey from Tacloban – Evacuees received boxes of fried chicken and rice, as well as water – Many survivors were injured; medical teams treated spinal injuries, skin infections – Cars, trucks lined streets to carry survivors to shelters and other parts of the country

2013/11/15: IndiaTimes: US carrier steps up Philippines relief operation

2013/11/15: RT: UN doubles Philippines typhoon death toll

2013/11/15: al Jazeera: Philippines defends typhoon relief response
Minister says in such a situation “nothing is fast enough” as country continues to struggle to reach aid to survivors.

2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Tacloban residents resilient in the face of Haiyan typhoon aftermath

2013/11/14: WFP: WFP Food Reaches Typhoon Survivors In Philippines

2013/11/14: CBC: Typhoon Haiyan relief efforts defended by Philippine government

2013/11/14: CBC: Philippines typhoon: Helicopters may be added to growing DART team

2013/11/14: Guardian(UK): Frustration spreads in Philippines at slow pace of typhoon relief effort

2013/11/14: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines aid effort hampered by lawlessness

2013/11/14: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: China gives less aid to Philippines than Ikea

2013/11/14: Maribo: What does Typhoon Haiyan tell us about adapting to climate change?

2013/11/14: BBC: Typhoon Haiyan: Plight of survivors ‘bleak’ despite aid effort

2013/11/14: BBC: In pictures: Typhoon aid ramps up

2013/11/14: BBC: China’s Philippine aid controversy

2013/11/14: CSM: NASA maps out destruction in the Philippines to aid relief

2013/11/14: ABC(Au): ‘Utterly bleak’: bad weather hampers aid efforts in Tacloban City

2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Philippines government faces criticism over slow typhoon response

2013/11/14: UN: Philippines: UN humanitarian chief [Valerie Amos] appeals for support for typhoon survivors

2013/11/14: Xinhuanet: Typhoon victims in Philippines still hungry, despite arrival of relief goods

2013/11/14: IndiaTimes: Typhoon-struck Philippine city begins mass burial

2013/11/13: SwissInfo: Philippines typhoon – ‘This is not a once in a lifetime event’
With thousands of people dead, missing or injured, typhoon Haiyan is probably the most powerful tropical storm ever to reach land. New climate data shows that with rising temperatures, more extreme weather of this intensity should be expected.

2013/11/13: WFP: WFP Rice Feeds Nearly 50,000 People Driven From Their Homes By Typhoon Haiyan

2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan survivors struggle to make sense of shattered world
Aid is still slow in coming to Guiuan, the first town hit, where most buildings have been destroyed

2013/11/13: CSM: Typhoon Haiyan: Was the government prepared?

2013/11/13: Xinhuanet: Looting in Philippines’ typhoon-hit city under control

2013/11/13: BBC: Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines defends aid response

2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Typhoon Haiyan: Eight killed as mob storms Philippine rice store, official says
Eight people were crushed to death in the Philippines as a crowd of Typhoon Haiyan survivors stormed a rice warehouse in a town near the devastated provincial capital of Tacloban, an official says. The incident in Alangalang, 17 kilometres from Tacloban, came as the situation for millions of people in parts of the Philippines ravaged by the super typhoon becomes more dire.

2013/11/13: CBC: Typhoon-hit Philippines struggles with hunger, violence – 2,275 dead…

2013/11/13: WSWS: The social catastrophe of Typhoon Haiyan

2013/11/13: WSWS: A pittance in international aid for Philippine typhoon victims

2013/11/13: al Jazeera: Desperation grips Philippine storm survivors
Attention shifts to deteriorating security situation as eight people are crushed to death during raid on rice warehouse.

2013/11/13: Xinhuanet: Death toll from Typhoon Haiyan in Philippines rises to 2275

2013/11/13: Xinhuanet: China to provide aid to typhoon-hit Philippines

2013/11/13: Xinhuanet: Eight killed as typhoon victims loot rice warehouse in Philippines

2013/11/13: RT: Deadly clashes rage in typhoon-ravaged Philippines as survivors fight for food

2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Hungry and homeless resort to looting

2013/11/13: EurActiv: EU mobilises extra aid for typhoon-striken Philippines
The European Commission earmarked E10 million yesterday (12 November) to support the Philippines’ reconstruction, adding to the E3 million announced on Sunday, after perhaps the largest storm in a century killed thousands and caused widespread destruction.

2013/11/13: CBC: Canada to deploy 2nd plane to aid typhoon-hit Philippines

2013/11/13: CNN: Typhoon Haiyan: Grief and hunger dominate amid survival struggle
The latest official death toll in the Philippines is 2,344 – U.S. Marines ramp up activity at Cebu airbase as more aid flows in – Still, relief effort “far too slow,” U.N. emergency aid chief says – Debris and devastation continue to hamper relief efforts

2013/11/13: UN: Philippines: aid workers concerned about logistical challenges, ‘incredible despair’ of population

2013/11/13: CCP: Mayor of Haiyan-ravaged Tacloban urges residents to flee — no water, food, gasoline

2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Typhoon Haiyan: Survivors face long wait for aid as Philippines president Benigno Aquino says death toll likely lower than feared

2013/11/12: BBC: Typhoon wreaks havoc on agriculture with over a million farmers affected

2013/11/12: al Jazeera: Stench of death lingers on Philippine island
Frustration at rescue efforts mounts along with body bags in city of Tacloban, ravaged by Typhoon Haiyan.

2013/11/12: al Jazeera: Philippine typhoon relief hampered by delays
UN launches $300m appeal to help victims of Typhoon Haiyan as aid workers scramble to distribute aid.

2013/11/12: RT: The small get it all: $15bn Philippines typhoon more painful than Sandy for US

2013/11/12: Grist: Philippines faces “nightmare” recovery in Haiyan’s wake

2013/11/12: CBC: Philippines typhoon aid not reaching masses as death toll rises

2013/11/12: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: in village after village the plea is the same – please help us!

2013/11/12: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: desperation grows as survivors face fifth day without help
US, British and Japanese troops head to the Philippines but minimal amounts of aid have reached the worst-hit areas

2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Typhoon aid response begins in Cebu

2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Bad weather hampers typhoon recovery in Palau

2013/11/12: WFP: WFP Supports Typhoon Haiyan Relief Efforts: Video And Photo Material

2013/11/12: Xinhuanet: Typhoon Haiyan affects over 1,200 Hainan villages – about 180,000 people

2013/11/12: IndiaTimes: UN to launch major aid appeal for battered Philippines

2013/11/12: BBC: Typhoon Haiyan: Ships head to Philippines amid devastation

2013/11/12: BBC: In pictures: Philippines struggle for survival

2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Curfew in force to end looting in typhoon-hit Philippines town, as checkpoints set up

2013/11/12: CBC: Philippines typhoon [confirmed] death toll climbs to 1,774

2013/11/12: WSWS: Military curfew imposed as humanitarian crisis engulfs Philippines

2013/11/12: al Jazeera: Philippines declares state of calamity
President declares emergency measures as aid trickles in for millions of people worst affected by Typhoon Haiyan.

2013/11/12: al Jazeera: Aerial view of Philippines disaster — Aerial shots of Guiuan show the extent of the destruction

2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Philippines city of death and ruins: Once-vibrant Tacloban transformed into wasteland by Typhoon Haiyan

2013/11/11: WMO: WMO Community Mobilizes for Haiyan (Yolanda)

2013/11/11: WFP: WFP Mounts Logistics Response For People Hit By Typhoon Haiyan

2013/11/11: WFP: Philippines: WFP Dispatches High Energy Biscuits For Typhoon Survivors

2013/11/11: UN: Philippines: UN humanitarian wing announces $25 million for typhoon relief efforts

2013/11/11: DemNow: “Unimaginable” Devastation as Philippines Hit With One of Worst Storms in History

2013/11/11: DerSpiegel: Philippine Typhoon: Germany and Other Nations Pledge Aid
A powerful typhoon devastated parts of the Philippines Friday, killing an estimated 10,000 and leaving stunned survivors searching for food and aid. The catastrophe has “shocked” the German government, which is offering assistance to the region.

2013/11/11: TreeHugger: Typhoon Haiyan: ‘State of calamity’ in the Philippines, 10,000+ feared dead

2013/11/11: BBC: Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines declares state of calamity

2013/11/11: FDL: Typhoon Deaths In Philippines Expected To Be In Thousands

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: we cannot afford to procrastinate on climate action

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines urges action to resolve climate talks deadlock [COP19]

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines prepares climate change plans for worse to come

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan and climate change Q&A

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: survival, loss and humanity in obliterated city of Tacloban

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: thousands dead in the Philippines as storm makes landfall – Monday’s developments

2013/11/11: CDreams: Scenes of ‘Utter Destruction’ as Crisis Grows in Super Typhoon’s Wake
Widespread water and food shortages creating impossible conditions survivors, while relief efforts are slow due to destroyed infrastructure

2013/11/11: CNN: Typhoon Haiyan crushed town ‘like giant hand from the sky’
Ivan Watson toured the typhoon-devastated region by air – Destructive power of storm surge most apparent around city of Tacloban – Seen from the air, forests of palm trees flattened, flooded villages – Red Cross fears death toll could rise when extent of disaster is fully known

2013/11/11: CNN: Typhoon Haiyan: Survivors in Philippines face grim struggle as death toll rises
Philippines’ president declares “state of national calamity” – Authorities are still trying to gauge the scale of the devastation – Some officials estimate as many as 10,000 people are dead across the Philippines – Typhoon Haiyan weakens to become a tropical storm after hitting Vietnam

2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Aid rushed into Philippines as scale of damage becomes clearer
A huge international relief operation is underway tonight in the Philippines in the wake of catastrophic super typhoon Haiyan. […] Countries and organisations around the world are scrambling to provide aid and assistance.

2013/11/11: Xinhuanet: Southern Philippines sets up preparations as another storm [TD Zoraida] looming
Authorities in southern Philippines on Monday ordered the cancellation of classes and evacuation of residents as yet another storm threatens the region. Officials in the provinces of Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental and Compostela Valley also activated disaster teams in their respective areas as Tropical Depression Zoraida sluggishly moved towards the eastern parts of Mindanao.

2013/11/11: al Jazeera: Rescuers struggle in devastated Philippines
Catastrophic damage hampers relief efforts as authorities rush to get food, medicine and tents to thousands in need.

2013/11/10: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: desperate survivors and destruction in flattened city

2013/11/10: Guardian(UK): Typhoon survivors in Tacloban, Philippines – in [14] pictures

2013/11/10: Guardian(UK): Aid efforts begin after typhoon Haiyan kills 10,000 in Philippines – Sunday’s developments

TS Zoraida didn’t help the recovery:

2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Storm Zoraida is hampering typhoon relief efforts

2013/11/12: Xinhuanet: Tropical storm [Zoraida] follows super-typhoon Haiyan in Philippines

2013/11/12: BBerg: Philippines Declares Calamity as New Storm [Zoraida] Makes Landfall

Haiyan is making people wonder:

2013/11/15: CBC:B: Typhoon Haiyan: Sign of what’s to come with climate change?

2013/11/15: WSWS: Climate scientists warn of more super-typhoons

2013/11/14: CSM: Typhoon Haiyan: Is an era of super storms upon us?

2013/11/13: PSinclair: Haiyan: Is This a Trend?

2013/11/12: Google:AFP: Expect increasingly violent cyclones, weather experts warn

2013/11/10: Guardian(UK): [Editorial] Typhoon Haiyan: weather warning
Although expertise in coping with catastrophe is well developed, this is of a different order of magnitude

Subsidiary effects of Haiyan:

2013/11/16: CDreams: Typhoon Haiyan: ‘Early Warning System’

2013/11/14: CPunch: Let’s Take Advantage of Suffering Filipinos!

2013/11/14: BBC: Typhoon could cut Philippines growth by 1% next year

2013/11/13: CSM: US military footprint on Philippines could grow after typhoon Haiyan

In the Arabian Sea, numbered storm 03A zapped Somalia:

2013/11/17: MODIS: Tropical Cyclone Three (03A) off Somalia [on Nov.8]

2013/11/15: al Jazeera: Somali region appeals for aid after cyclone
UN says as many as 30,000 people may need aid after floods triggered by cyclone wash away roads and kill at least 300.

2013/11/13: BBC: Somalia cyclone: 140 confirmed dead in Puntland
A cyclone that hit Somalia’s north-eastern Puntland region at the weekend is known to have killed 140 people, and the number could rise to 300, a government minister has said. The central government has declared a state of emergency in the region, and has appealed for international aid.

2013/11/13: al Jazeera: Deadly cyclone ravages Somalia’s Puntland
Government says as many as 300 people could be dead and hundreds unaccounted for as storm destroys entire villages.

2013/11/13: IndiaTimes: Storm death toll rises to 140 in Somalia’s Puntland

2013/11/12: al Jazeera: Deadly tropical cyclone hits Somalia
A rare storm sweeps in from Arabian Sea, killing at least 100 people.

2013/11/12: NASA: NASA Satellites See Cyclone 03A Make Landfall in Somalia

2013/11/12: IOTD: Rare Tropical Cyclone [03A] Strikes Somalia [on Nov.11]

2013/11/11: DD: Deadliest tropical cyclone in Somalia’s history kills at least 100

2013/11/11: Wunderground: Haiyan Finally Dying; Somalia’s Deadliest Tropical Storm on Record Kills 100

2013/11/11: BBC: Somalis ‘killed in Puntland’ during tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone that hit the north-eastern Somali region of Puntland over the weekend killed up to 100 people, the regional leader has told the BBC. Puntland’s President Abdirahman Farole said thousands of livestock had also died and hundreds of homes had been destroyed.

While elsewhere in the hurricane wars:

2013/11/14: MODIS: Tropical Storm Sonia (18E) over Mexico [on Nov.3]

2013/11/12: NASA: NASA Sees Ex-Tropical Depression 30W Trying to Re-form in Indian Ocean

2013/11/12: AFTIC: Should the Saffir-Simpson scale go beyond 5?

2013/11/11: ERabett: Does the World Need a Category Six For Cyclones?

2013/11/11: RawStory: Expect increasingly violent cyclones, weather experts warn

2013/11/10: GLaden: Should There be a Category 6 for Hurricanes?

This week in notable weather:

2013/11/17: ABC(Au): Damage bill for Queensland coast hailstorms likely to reach millions of dollars
2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Wild weather lashes Sydney, NSW coast
2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Massive hail buckets down on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast
Sunshine Coast residents have been pelted with hail the size of tennis balls today as dangerous thunderstorms hit south-east Queensland. A line of hail storms battered region this afternoon causing widespread damage in Brisbane, the Gold and Sunshine coasts.
2013/11/12: CSM: Snowstorm brings early winter to Michigan
2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Winter temperatures return to ACT and southern NSW
An unexpected winter chill has returned to the ACT and the Snowy Mountains of southern New South Wales. A total of 30 centimetres of snow has been reported at Mount Franklin on the western outskirts of Canberra. The Mount Franklin Road in the Namadgi National Park has been closed at the visitor’s shelter as a precaution. ACT National Parks and Catchments regional manager Brett McNamara says the weather is confusing. “On Friday our rangers were on standby for fire, now on Monday we are closing mountain roads due to snow – it’s quite remarkable,” he said.

This week in the New Normal — extreme weather:

Regarding the solar hypothesis:

Regarding the cosmic ray hypothesis:

Regarding Milankovitch Cycles:

2013/11/11: TSoD: Ghosts of Climates Past – Part Six – “Hypotheses Abound”

As for the temperature record:

Meanwhile in near earth orbit:

And in the paleoclimate:

In the attribution debate:

2013/11/14: FAIR: Typhoon Haiyan and Climate Change: Why ‘We Can’t Say for Sure’ Is Wrong
2013/11/14: FAIR: Attributing Weather Events to Climate Change Is the Easy Part
2013/11/14: P3: Was Typhoon Haiyan caused by climate change? It’s the wrong question and it doesn’t matter.
2013/11/13: RTCC: Typhoon Haiyan more extreme due to climate change, says WMO
2013/11/12: Guardian(UK): Typhoon Haiyan: is climate change to blame?
The Philippines has been hit by 24 typhoons in the past year but the power of Haiyan was off the scale, killing thousands and leaving millions homeless. Is there even worse devastation to come?
2013/11/12: AGU:DWWSJ: Was Haiyan Caused By Climate Change? We Might Know In 30 Years
2013/11/12: HyperGeometric: “Was Haiyan Caused By Climate Change? We Might Know In 30 Years”
2013/11/11: NatureN: Did climate change cause Typhoon Haiyan?
There is limited evidence that warming oceans could make superstorms more likely.
2013/11/10: QuarkSoup: Typhoon Haiyan – Climate Change or Not?

What’s the State of the Oceans?:

2013/11/15: CNN: Jellyfish love the oceans we pollute
Lisa-ann Gershwin: Jellyfish taking over vulnerable seas, displacing other creatures – She says jellyfish can kill off fish-sustaining krill that’s harvested for omega-3 supplements – Gershwin: Jellyfish thrive as oceans get warmer; they eat the eggs and larvae of fish – Gershwin: We need to make industry stop polluting water and prevent global warming
2013/11/12: EarthSky: Virus killing dolphins, and now whales, along U.S. east coast
The disease has spread from New York to Florida, with a total of 753 bottlenose dolphins washed ashore from July 1 until November 3.
2013/11/12: EneNews: Scientists “Especially Worried”: “We don’t know how the pathogen is doing this” – Sea star broke in half, walked away, then turned to goo…
2013/11/12: DD: What’s wiping out starfish on the U.S. West Coast? – ‘We’ve never seen it like this, never’
2013/11/11: MBARI: Feast and famine on the abyssal plain [oceans]

And on the extinction watch:

2013/11/14: TheConversation: Australian endangered species: Lord Howe Long-eared Bat
2013/11/14: BBC: US crushes stockpile of confiscated ivory
More than six tons of confiscated ivory including tusks, carvings and jewellery have been crushed in the US.
2013/11/13: SciAm:EC: How the Western Black Rhino Went Extinct
2013/11/13: Eureka: Largest lake in Britain and Ireland has lost three-quarters of winter water birds
2013/11/13: Grist: No one had seen this funky-looking endangered ox [saola] in the wild for 15 years
2013/11/11: CNN: European bison [wisent] in the crosshairs of conservation battle
2013/11/11: Grist: Someone left 423 protected tortoises on a baggage carousel in Thailand
2013/11/10: SciAm:EC: Sunday Species Snapshot: Sociable Lapwing

The bees and Colony Collapse Disorder are a constant concern. And then, there are the Neonicotinoids:

2013/11/13: TreeHugger: Can smart sensors and citizen science save bees?

Intimations of Overshoot:

2013/11/10: TMoS: Here’s One Way of Looking At It

More GW impacts are being seen:

And then there are the world’s forests:

2013/11/15: Science: (ab$) High-Resolution Global Maps of 21st-Century Forest Cover Change by M. C. Hansen et al.
2013/11/16: IOTD: New Map Yields Better View of Forest Changes [2000 vs, 2012]
2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Global deforestation: 10 hot spots on Google Earth – in pictures
2013/11/15: PLNA: Scientists Make First High-Resolution Global Map of Forest Changes
2013/11/15: RTCC: Russia tops 2000-2012 deforestation charts
Over last 12 years Earth lost approximately 2.3 million square kilometers of forest – an area slightly smaller than Argentina A global satellite map of forest cover presented in this week’s edition of Science shows that between 2000 and 2012, Russia has lost more forest than any other country in the world, single-handedly accounting for 13,6% of net loss in forest area.
2013/11/15: TreeHugger: Google Earth launches high-resolution global deforestation map
2013/11/15: Grist: The world is still losing its forests, and these beautiful satellite maps tally the toll
2013/11/15: al Jazeera: Brazil Amazon destruction rises 28 per cent
Extensive farming and soya-bean production in two states cited as reason for deforestation increase over the past year.
2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Deforestation in Amazon jungle increases by nearly a third in one year
2013/11/14: USGS: Changes in World’s Forests Portrayed in High Definition
Landsat satellite data used to inventory 21st century forest dynamics around the globe
2013/11/14: BBC: Brazil says Amazon deforestation rose 28% in a year
2013/11/14: NASA: NASA-USGS Landsat Data Yield Best View to Date of Global Forest Losses, Gains
2013/11/14: UCSUSA:B: Brazil’s Deforestation Progress Takes a Step Backward
2013/11/14: BBC: Forest change mapped by Google Earth
2013/11/14: Durusau: Global Forest Change
2013/11/12: PLNA: U.S. Activist [Antonia Juhasz] Visits Chevron Polluted Area in Ecuador

Changes in natural cycles are showing up:

2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Climate change making younger birds migrate earlier

Corals are a bellwether of the ocean’s health:

2013/11/15: Eureka: Safety in numbers? Not so for corals

Acidification is changing the oceans:

2013/11/14: IGBP: [links to several pdfs] Ocean Acidification Summary for Policymakers 2013
2013/11/15: ABC(Au): Report finds rate of ocean acidification ‘unprecedented’
2013/11/15: ABC(Au): Oceans becoming more acidic at unprecedented rate: [IGBP] report
2013/11/15: GeoMar: Ocean acidification: Hard to digest
2013/11/14: SciShot: Scientists Warn of Significant Harm From Ocean Acidification
2013/11/14: NatureNB: Ocean acidification could trigger economic devastation
2013/11/14: TP:JR: The Rapid Pickling Of The World’s Oceans Affects More Than Just Shellfish
2013/11/13: Eureka: Expert [Third Symposium on the Ocean in a High CO2 World] assessment: Ocean acidification may increase 170 percent this century
Substantial costs expected from coral reef loss and declines in shellfisheries; Cold water corals also at risk […] The summary will be launched at the UNFCCC climate negotiations in Warsaw, 18 November, for the benefit of policymakers.

Glaciers are melting:

2013/11/11: EPOD: Summer Melt on Okstindan Glacier, Norway

Sea levels are rising:

As for hydrological cycle disruptions [floods & droughts]:

2013/11/17: IndiaTimes: Toll from Vietnam floods rises to 34: Official
2013/11/17: IndiaTimes: Floods hit thousands in South Africa
Cape Town: Widespread flooding after heavy rain in South Africa has affected over 18,000 people — an emergency management official said on Saturday. Weekend rain caused floods that blocked roads, provoked landslides and cut off power to areas around , according to the city’s disaster management spokesman Wilfred Solomons-Johannes.
2013/11/17: BBC: Floods kill many in central Vietnam after heavy rains
Flooding and landslides in central Vietnam have left at least 28 people dead, nine missing and some 80,000 homeless since Friday.
2013/11/17: al Jazeera: Dozens killed in Vietnam floods
More than 30 people are killed and 80,000 are displaced by floods and landslides after heavy rain in central regions.
2013/11/17: al Jazeera: Sydney goes from fires to floods — Torrential rain leads to severe flooding in parts of eastern Australia
2013/11/16: RT: Saudi capital hit with rare floods, residents urged to stay indoors (photos)
2013/11/15: SimpleC: Twin rainfall effects strengthen human climate impact case
2013/11/14: RTCC: Amazon destruction could cut US rainfall by 50%
Over 1.4 billion acres of dense forest make up the Amazon basin producing one quarter of the world’s oxygen supply The total deforestation of the Amazon may reduce rain and snowfall in the western US, resulting in water and food shortages, and a greater risk of forest fires.
2013/11/13: CCP: Western Alaska reels from winter flooding from one record-breaking storm as another bears down
2013/11/12: TP:JR: Climate Change Is Messing With Rainfall Across The Entire Planet
2013/11/12: Grist: California, on track for record dry year, is ready to seed clouds
2013/11/12: TP:JR: California Headed For Driest Year On Record
2013/11/12: FuturePundit: Amazon Deforestation Seen Causing Western USA Drought

On the mitigation front, consider transportation & GHG production:

2013/11/11: PeakEnergy: 300 MPH Maglev Train Could Carry Passengers From Washington D.C. To New York in 60 Minutes

Large scale geo-engineering keeps popping up:

UCL: Public Lecture: ‘A Case for Climate Engineering’ by David Keith
12:30pm, Friday 29 November, 2013 – University College London
2013/11/12: PLoS Biology: Public Engagement with Biotechnologies Offers Lessons for the Governance of Geoengineering Research and Beyond by Jack Stilgoe et al.

What’s new in conservation?

While on the adaptation front:

Meanwhile in the journals:

And other significant documents:

2013/11/14: IGBP: [links to several pdfs] Ocean Acidification Summary for Policymakers 2013
2013/11/14: UNGC: [link to 2.3 meg pdf] New Guide Helps Companies Report Their Climate Policy Positions
First-of-its-Kind Guide Calls on Companies to Align Corporate Sustainability Initiatives and Climate Policy
2013/11/13: PI: [link to 1.6 meg pdf] Booms, busts and bitumen — The economic implications of Canadian oilsands development
2013/11/13: WikiLeaks: WikiLeaks Release of Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP)
Advanced Intellectual Property Chapter for All 12 Nations with Negotiating Positions (August 30 2013 consolidated bracketed negotiating text)
2013/11/12: GermanWatch: [link to 692k pdf] Global Climate Risk Index 2014
Who suffers most from extreme weather events? Weather-related loss events in 2012 and 1993 to 2012

As for miscellaneous science:

2013/11/16: QuarkSoup: Chart of R&D Spending, Number of Scientists
2013/11/15: NASA: NASA-led Firefly Mission to Study Lightning
2013/11/13: NatureN: Global change: Ecology must evolve
Tackling global problems requires a fresh approach, argues Georgina Mace, as the British Ecological Society celebrates its centenary.
2013/11/12: CCP: “Identifying external influences on global precipitation,” by Kate Marvel & Celine Bonfils, PNAS (November 2013); doi: 10.1073/pnas.1314382110
2013/11/12: SciAm:IC: Vestiges of print publication in scientific journals
2013/11/12: NatureN: Social scientists hit back at grant rules — Researchers seek to fend off restrictions on National Science Foundation grant programmes
2013/11/12: V V: Highlights EUMETSAT Data Management Workshop 2013

In the science organizations:

2013/11/12: NatureNB: Australia’s scientists brace for major job losses

What’s new in models?

2013/11/12: P3: On Modeling, Complex and Simple

What developments in the ongoing struggle for Open Science?

2013/11/14: CJR: Openly accessible
The backlash over a Science magazine sting raises questions about the scope of investigative journalism and the rigor of open access publishing
2013/11/14: SkS: Help make our coverage bias paper free and open-access by Kevin C, robert way
2013/11/12: ScienceInsider: New Preprint Server Aims to Be Biologists’ Answer to Physicists’ arXiv
2013/11/12: NatureN: Preprints come to life — A dedicated website for sharing biology papers before peer review leaves journals divided
2013/11/11: OASPA: OASPA’s second statement following the article in Science entitled “Who’s Afraid of Peer Review?”
2013/11/11: ScienceInsider: Open-Access Group Sanctions Three Publishers After Science ‘Sting’

Meanwhile at the UN:

2013/11/14: RTCC: UN sets environmental ‘guidelines’ for business to adopt
The UN Global Compact has today released a set of guidelines to help companies engage in climate policy in a transparent and accountable way that is consistent with their sustainability commitments.
2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): IPCC corrects carbon figures in landmark UN climate report

And on the carbon trading front:

On the international political front, tensions continue as the empire leans on Iran:

2013/11/15: CDreams: Russian Foreign Minister Reveals Amended Draft Circulated at ‘Last Moment’
2013/11/15: AntiWar: US: Iran Deal ‘Quite Possible’ Next Week — Questions Remain, But Growing Momentum Toward Pact
2013/11/14: DerSpiegel: Iran Talks: Stiffer Sanctions Could Torpedo Nuclear Deal
Should sanctions against Tehran be tightened? US Senators believe Iran’s nuclear activities can only be halted by ratcheting up the pressure. But Secretary of State John Kerry fears this hawkish stance will scuttle talks between world powers and Iran.
2013/11/12: FDL: Iran And UN Strike Deal For Increased Monitoring Of Nuclear Sites
2013/11/11: IAEA: Statement by IAEA and Iran Following Technical Talks in Tehran
2013/11/11: AntiWar: Western Backtrack on Uranium Enrichment Killed Iran Deal — US, France Sought to Change Deal at Last Minute
2013/11/11: WSWS: International talks stall on Iran’s nuclear program
Talks in Geneva between Iran and the P5+1 group (the US, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany) broke up in the early hours of Sunday morning without reaching an interim agreement to end the protracted confrontation over Tehran’s nuclear programs. The scheduled two-day talks had been extended to Saturday and the P5+1 foreign ministers flew into Geneva in anticipation that a deal would be reached, but France effectively blocked an agreement.
[…]
Commenting on France’s decision to break ranks, one Western diplomat told the Guardian: “This is about France’s interests in the Gulf and the fact that Hollande is going to Israel later this month and doesn’t want the trip to turn into a nightmare.”

Who is serious about reducing airline carbon emissions?

2013/11/15: EurActiv: EU aviation emissions proposals attacked from all sides
An amended Commission proposal to force airlines to pay a carbon charge on flights within the European Economic Area was slammed by both left- and right-wing MEPs in the Parliament’s transport committee yesterday (15 November).

In the “global competition for natural resources”:

2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Sustainable growth still a distant dream
The previous method of evaluating how sustainable an economy is may be flawed according to international research. Countries working towards ‘sustainable’ use of resources may be further away from their goal than previously thought, according to a study involving researchers from CSIRO and the University of New South Wales. Published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study evaluates 186 countries over the last two decades, mapping the flow of raw materials from source to consumer, thereby measuring the environmental footprint of resource extraction.

Regarding the EU FQD: Fuel Quality Directive:

2013/11/14: EurActiv: Canada attacks EU data labelling tar sands as dirty
Canada on Wednesday (13 November) renewed its attack on the European Union’s plan to classify Canadian tar sands oil as particularly dirty and released a study questioning the data behind the controversial measure.
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Canada attacks EU data labelling tar sands as dirty
Natural Resources minister releases study questioning EU data that classifies tar sands oil as higher carbon than conventional oil
2013/11/13: G&M: Ottawa report takes aim at EU’s plans to target oil sands
2013/11/13: CBC: Ottawa adds detail to fight against fuel quality directive
ICF International report backs argument against EU’s greenhouse gas plan

These ‘free trade’ treaties put the corporation above the nation:

2013/11/13: WikiLeaks: WikiLeaks Release of Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP)
Advanced Intellectual Property Chapter for All 12 Nations with Negotiating Positions (August 30 2013 consolidated bracketed negotiating text)
2013/11/13: WikiLeaks: Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP)
2013/11/15: OpenMedia: What Canadians need to know about the TPP and its Internet Censorship Plan
2013/11/15: FDL: Is TPP Even A Trade Deal?
2013/11/14: DemNow: TPP Exposed: WikiLeaks Publishes Secret Trade Text to Rewrite Copyright Laws, Limit Internet Freedom
2013/11/14: NakedCapitalism: Wikileaks Disclosure of Trade Deal Chapter Shows It Will Kill People and Internet; House Opposition is Widespread
2013/11/14: CDreams: TPP Leak Confirms the Worst: US Negotiators Still Trying to Trade Away Internet Freedoms
2013/11/13: OpenMedia: Leaked documents reveal Canadian government being pressured by US to accept extreme Internet censorship proposals in the TPP
2013/11/13: OpenMedia: Their secret revealed
2013/11/13: NakedCapitalism: House Pushing Back on Trade Deal; More Detail on How Secret Arbitration Panels Undermine Laws and Regulations
2013/11/13: RT: TPP Uncovered: WikiLeaks releases draft of highly-secretive multi-national trade deal
2013/11/13: EFF: TPP Leak Confirms the Worst: US Negotiators Still Trying to Trade Away Internet Freedoms
2013/11/11: DerSpiegel: Trans-Atlantic Free Trade: US Pushes for Deal Despite NSA Scandal
The NSA spying scandal has many in Europe calling for the suspension of negotiations on an EU-US free-trade deal. Officials in Washington are undeterred, and continue to push forward with talks despite growing skepticism this side of the Atlantic.
2013/11/11: RT: EU-US historic trade deal: ‘Putting the corporation above the nation’
2013/11/11: Resilience: How Can the New York Times Endorse an Agreement the Public Can’t Read?
2013/11/10: NakedCapitalism: The TPP, if Passed, Spells the End of Popular Sovereignty for The United States

And in miscellaneous international political jousting:

2013/11/15: EUO: Gazprom warns EU of winter ‘catastrophe’
Gazprom has warned that Ukraine might not have enough gas to feed EU transit customers in the coming winter.
2013/11/14: EUO: Gazprom warns EU on Ukraine transit
2013/11/11: DerSpiegel: Oil Espionage: How the NSA and GCHQ Spied on OPEC
America’s NSA and Britain’s GCHQ are both spying on the OPEC oil cartel, documents from whistleblower Edward Snowden reveal. The security of the global energy supply is one of the most important issues for the intelligence agencies.

The issue of the law and activism is playing out around the world:

What are the activists up to?

2013/11/17: CleanTechnica: Protests Across Australia Against Government Climate Inaction
2013/11/17: ABC(Au): Thousands rally across Australia for National Day of Climate Action
2013/11/16: Guardian(UK): Climate-change activists are playing a dangerous game with their ‘enemy’ narrative
2013/11/16: CBC: Climate change rallies staged across Canada
Rally participants in Vancouver oppose proposed Northern Gateway pipeline. Organizers say more than 130 protests against climate change were staged across Canada Saturday, with the largest gathering held in Vancouver where participants showed their opposition to Enbridge’s proposed Northern Gateway pipeline. The protests were part of a national day of action to “Defend Our Climate.” Outside Vancouver’s Science World, nearly 1,000 participants held colourful signs while chanting and singing slogans, while others pounded on drums and played the bagpipes.
2013/11/16: DeSmogBlog: Rallies Coast to Coast in Canada Today to Defend Our Climate
2013/11/16: CPW: In Ottawa, Hundreds Demand Action To “Defend Our Climate”, Communities
2013/11/16: CDreams: Protests in 263 Cities Around the World as ‘Arctic 30’ Mark 2 Months in Prison
2013/11/16: RTCC: Thousands protest in Warsaw at sluggish UN climate talks
Climate activists registered their anger at a perceived lack of progress at the COP19 talks in a Climate Justice Protest march through the streets of Warsaw earlier today.
2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Top 10: climate change campaigns
2013/11/14: UCSUSA:B: Arizonans Stand Up for Solar Power
2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Sea protest against US oil and gas exploration
The stage is being set for a possible confrontation at sea, as a flotilla leaves New Zealand to protest against deep sea oil and gas exploration in the Tasman. The protesters will be subject to tough new laws which impose a half-kilometre exclusion zone around the exploration ship.
2013/11/11: RTCC: Greenpeace stages Poland coal protest on eve of UN climate talks

Is the Climate Movement anything more than a fantasy?

2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Live chat: how to build a global coalition to end climate change

The move to divest from fossil fuel investments is growing slowly:

Polls! We have polls!

2013/11/15: DD: Overwhelming majority of Americans accept that global warming is real and caused by humans…
2013/11/15: ScienceInsider: Europeans Show Mild Apathy Toward Science
2013/11/14: BLongstaff: Good news and bad news about climate change from Stanford U
2013/11/14: Grist: Denial dries up: Americans finally seeing the light on climate change
2013/11/14: PSinclair: “Vast majority” of Americans Know Climate Change is Real, Caused by Man
2013/11/14: RealEconomics: Texas and Oklahoma citizens are not so crazy
2013/11/13: TP:JR: Most People In Red States Are Not Climate Deniers, New Study Says
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Majority of red-state Americans believe climate change is real, study shows
Study suggests far-reaching acceptance of climate change in traditionally Republican states such as Texas and Oklahoma

Regarding Water Politics and Business; See also:

2013/11/13: UDW: Water Festival of El Carmen de Viboral: Communities Resist Water Privatization and Multinational Mining in Colombia
2013/11/13: TreeHugger: Photo of the Day: The Salton Sea faces an uncertain future
2013/11/13: TreeHugger: The state of water in America? It sucks, says activist Joe Whitworth
2013/11/12: ACS:CEN: Sunlight Helps Turn Salty Water Fresh
Water Purification: Solar-powered forward osmosis desalinates brackish water using a temperature-responsive hydrogel
2013/11/12: USGS: New USGS Study on Chesapeake Bay: Groundwater Delaying the Effects of Some Water Quality Actions
2013/11/12: AllAfrica:SW Radio: Zimbabwe: Gwanda Forced to Introduce Water Rationing Over U.S $4 Million Debt
An estimated $4 million debt owed to the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) has forced the Gwanda Town Municipality to introduce a water rationing regime which is crippling business across the Matabeleland South capital. Sources told SW Radio Africa that the water authority is vowing that it will continue to turn off the taps until a part of the debt is settled. This has in turn forced the council to introduce town wide water rationing. A council statement said water will be cut off daily between 4 pm and 8 am, starting last Thursday.
2013/11/12: al Jazeera: From a barrier to a bridge
The Ethiopian Renaissance Dam can be a trigger for transformed and cooperative relations.
2013/11/11: FuelFix: More oil and gas drillers turn to water recycling
2013/11/11: Grist: Texas attorney general is going to great lengths to water his lawn during drought

And on the groundwater front:

2013/11/16: JFleck: River restoration — it’s all about the groundwater

While in the UK:

2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Cameron links typhoon Haiyan to climate change
Prime minister seemingly endorses stance that global warming is creating more extreme weather patterns
2013/11/12: BBC: Energy bill hikes to last 17 more years – watchdog
2013/11/12: BBC: Biodiversity offsetting plans outlined by the government must be strengthened if they are to “properly protect Britain’s wildlife”, MPs have warned
2013/11/10: Guardian(UK): UK urged to maintain leadership on green issues on eve of Warsaw talks

And in Europe:

2013/11/16: RTCC: Pressure mounts on EU as UN climate talks falter
Pressure is mounting on the European Union to make up for the lack of ambition shown by fellow developed countries Japan, Australia and Canada at UN talks in Poland.
2013/11/15: WSWS: What lies behind the drawn-out coalition talks in Germany?
2013/11/15: OilChange: Poland’s Billion Dollar Bet on Coal
Irony: On the one hand you have the Polish government hosting the UN climate talks in Warsaw, where the talk is all about the emerging climate crisis being driven by fossil fuels. On the other hand, the Polish government is pressing ahead with building a $3.7 billion dirty coal plant which may never be profitable.
2013/11/14: EurActiv: EU can’t afford to step down as climate leader: Think tank
Europe’s abdication from climate leadership would stunt growth in the region and hand a huge economic advantage to China and the United States as they carve out their share of a multi-billion low-carbon market, a German think tank said today (14 November).
2013/11/13: NatureNB: Swedish scientists decry government links to anti-GMO ‘vandals’
2013/11/12: EurActiv: Germany’s CAP subsidies to favour small farmers, greening
Germany is to change the way it distributes the E6.2 billion of farming subsidies it receives every year from the EU, disbursing more towards small and medium-sized enterprises and eco-farming practices. EurActiv Germany reports.

Meanwhile in Australia:

2013/11/15: ABC(Au):TDU: Kevin Rudd drops bombshells until the last
He might have lost his prime ministership twice, but Kevin Rudd never lost his ability to capture the nation’s attention, which makes Bill Shorten the big winner from his resignation, writes Barrie Cassidy.
2013/11/15: ABC(Au): Electoral Commission challenges WA Senate result to bring about fresh election
2013/11/15: BBerg: Western Australia Faces New Senate Election After Ballots Lost
The Australian Electoral Commission asked the nation’s highest court to nullify the election of six senators from Western Australia after more than 1,300 ballot papers went missing.
2013/11/15: JQuiggin: The Rudd-Gillard government: An appreciation
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Refinery operator says coal to gas switch unviable
The operator of major refinery says it is unlikely to reduce its carbon emissions through the Federal Government’s climate change policy. The Prime Minister has introduced legislation laying the groundwork to replace the carbon pricing scheme with the Government’s Direct Action plan.
2013/11/15: ABC(Au): Community to gather for Climate Action Day
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Complaints spur probe of solar panel problems
The Northern Territory Commissioner for Consumer Affairs has launched an investigation after complaints of sub-standard installations of solar panels. Gary Clements says a number of Territory householders have been left with solar panels that do not comply with electrical requirements and cannot be used. He says it seems the head of the company responsible for the work, Nick Ray Electrics, has left the Territory.
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): South Australian Greens have failed to gain support to have coal seam gas extraction banned
2013/11/13: BBC: Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd quits politics
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Former prime minister Kevin Rudd quits federal politics with emotional speech to Parliament
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Kevin Rudd quits federal politics: in quotes
2013/11/13: TP:JR: World Scorns Australian Government For Abandoning Climate Agenda And Cutting Funds For Renewables
2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Farmers fight moves for massive open cut coal mine
A proposal to establish an open cut coal mine in Tasmania’s Derwent Valley is facing local opposition.
2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Moratorium on coal seam gas extraction in Sydney’s drinking water zone
2013/11/12: NatureNB: Australia’s scientists brace for major job losses
2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Questions over whether ANU will begin forced redundancies
[…] ANU management announced earlier this year that it needed to shed 230 professional jobs to help save more than $50 million in lost government funding.
2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Canberra urged to ‘hold its nerve’ in face of public service cuts
ACT Chief Minister Katy Gallagher is urging Canberrans to remain confident and up-beat, in the face of federal public service job cuts. The Abbott Federal Government is planning to cut 12,000 public service jobs, many of which are based in Canberra.
2013/11/11: CleanTechnica: Sydney, Australia, Intends To Go 100% Renewable By 2030
2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Mick Keelty says missing Senate votes ‘highly unusual’, won’t discount foul play
Former federal police commissioner Mick Keelty has conceded he may never get to the bottom of what happened to nearly 1,400 missing WA Senate votes. Mr Keelty has been asked to conduct an urgent inquiry into how the ballots were lost and whether changes are needed to prevent it from happening again. He says the votes disappeared some time between the day after the election and a re-count last month, and when questioned Mr Keelty would not rule out the possibility they had been deliberately lost.

Now we get to watch the suppository of wisdom destroy what little Australia has done to fight climate change:

2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): Australia’s environment laws are ‘suffering death by a thousand cuts’
2013/11/15: ABC(Au): Environmentalists wary of planned law changes
The Federal Government has introduced a bill that would make it harder to challenge Commonwealth environmental approvals in court. In the lead-up to the recent election, it promised to streamline the environmental approval process for mines and other developments. Now the Government has introduced changes to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. But green groups say it’s a shocking decision and the proposed changes would be devastating for threatened species.
2013/11/15: TMoS: Harper’s Enviro-Bum-Buddy Wastes No Time Following in the Great Man’s Path
2013/11/14: ABC(Au):TDU: Nine stray thoughts on the Abbott ascendency
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Climate change: a tale of two speeches
Two speeches at opposite ends of the climate change spectrum were delivered this week. They only serve to remind us of how far we are yet to come. This week two remarkable speeches were given about climate change: one by Filipino diplomat Yeb Sano, the second by Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
2013/11/14: NewAnthropocene: Australia makes a bad start at Warsaw climate change meeting
2013/11/14: TheConversation: Is Australia shirking its international climate commitments?
2013/11/13: RNE: Funding cuts to ARENA confirmed, $435m gone
The Tony Abbott government has confirmed that it will slash funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, completing a clean sweep of climate change and clean energy institutions and initiatives removed or significantly downgraded by the new conservative government.
2013/11/13: RNE: Tony Abbott moves to send renewables to the never never
2013/11/13: JQuiggin: Fiasco
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Tony Abbott denies Indonesia calling shots on asylum seekers amid standoff over boat
2013/11/12: Y2R: Pollie Watch: PM Abbott’s first comments on wind farms, Renewable Energy Target
2013/11/12: WSWS: Refugee standoff heightens Australian-Indonesian tensions
A group of 60 asylum seekers aboard a broken-down wooden boat were subjected to a two-day standoff in treacherous seas between Australia and Indonesia before being transported to Australia’s Christmas Island detention centre last Saturday. The ordeal for the refugees from Afghanistan and Pakistan, which occurred because the Australian government demanded that they be sent back to Indonesia, highlighted the deteriorating relations between the two countries.
2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Labor demands detail on the Federal Govt’s Direct Action plan
2013/11/10: Guardian(UK): Tony Abbott attempts to shift focus to carbon tax as new parliament opens

The fight over the carbon laws began this week in Parliament:

2013/11/15: ABC(Au): Greens: Government’s out of touch with Riverina’s views
The Riverina Greens say the government is out of touch with the community in its views on climate change. Secretary Ray Goodlass says the Coalition’s plan to remove the carbon tax and introduce a direct action policy won’t reduce carbon emissions.
2013/11/14: DD: Australia prime minister abandons carbon emissions reduction target range
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Fact Check – Does the Abbott Government have a mandate to overturn the carbon tax?
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Carbon price repeal looks set for Senate showdown
2013/11/13: BBC: Australia carbon tax: Abbott introduces repeal bill
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has begun steps to scrap the carbon tax, introducing a repeal bill at the first meeting of the new parliament.
2013/11/13: TheConversation: Axing the carbon tax: saving households, costing climate
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Abbott introduces bill to repeal carbon tax, despite opposition
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Question Time Live: Carbon tax repeal, debt limit dominates first day of 44th Parliament business
The Federal Government has used its majority in the Lower House to push through new rules for Question Time.
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Carbon tax and national debt limit on Parliamentary agenda
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Carbon tax repeal stalls as Labor poised to demand four-month inquiry
Senate vote to be delayed when Labor seeks answers about cost and effectiveness of Coalition’s Direct Action climate plan
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Tony Abbott begins dismantling carbon tax: ‘our bill to reduce your bills’
2013/11/12: TheConversation: Backing away from climate funding will further damage Australia’s credentials
2013/11/12: TheConversation: Direct action vs carbon pricing: we can have it all
2013/11/12: ABC(Au): Indian academic ‘disappointed’ in Australia’s carbon policy shift
2013/11/11: ABC(Au): Abbott shouldn’t complain about a carbon tax delay
Prices were never going to plummet in the absence of a carbon tax, so the longer its scrapping is delayed, the longer this reality is kept hidden, writes Mungo MacCallum.
2013/11/11: TheConversation: How the Coalition can keep a carbon price and its election promises

After years of wrangling, the Murray Darling Basin Plan is in place, but the water management fights are far from finished:

2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Drought letter strikes chord in cities
A letter penned by a far north Queensland grazier has put the drought back in the national spotlight and prompted a spike in public donations.
2013/11/13: ABC(Au): Relief water released to quench Carnarvon crops

And in the Indian subcontinent:

2013/11/11: al Jazeera: Food security in India is not doomed after all
Evidence from the field shows that the Food Security Act in India contributes to significant famine alleviation.

While in China:

And in Japan:

While elsewhere in Asia:

In Africa:

2013/11/16: al Jazeera: Libya: on the brink of abyss
Libya’s dangerous slip into anarchy will have serious implications for Africa
2013/11/12: CSM: Oil is tearing Libya apart

And South America:

2013/11/17: BBC: Chile vote: Childhood friends face off in presidential poll
Chile is going to the polls in presidential elections with Socialist candidate Michelle Bachelet predicted to become the first Chilean leader in more than 50 years to serve two terms. Opinion polls give her a substantial lead over her nearest rival – right-wing candidate Evelyn Matthei. But the election could still go to a second round in December.

In Canada, neocon PM Harper, aka The Blight, pushes petroleum while ignoring the climate and ecology:

The Harper gang are putting on a typically embarassing display at Warsaw:

2013/11/17: CBC: Canada’s greenhouse gas stance slammed as COP 19 seeks solutions
Mary Robinson taking issue with Canada’s lack of action curbing greenhouse gas emissions
2013/11/15: CBC: High-five on repealed carbon tax draws criticism for Canada
Critics angered after Canadian MP congratulates Australian PM for repealing carbon tax Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, right, and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott attended a bilateral meeting last month. The Harper government is facing criticism after congratulating the government of Australia for ending its carbon tax. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press) Canada’s Harper government is facing criticism after congratulating the government of Australia for ending its carbon tax. Paul Calandra, parliamentary secretary to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, issued a statement this week commending the move by Australia’s recently elected Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
2013/11/15: P3: Canada doing its part to ensure unmitigated climate change
2013/11/14: WCEL: Canada gutting its international reputation along with its environmental laws
2013/11/14: CDreams: ‘Carbon Cartel’: Canada, Australia Blasted for Fueling Climate Crisis
Green groups outraged as Canadian government heaps praise on Australian PM’s bid to gut carbon tax
2013/11/13: TMoS: Canada Again Seeks to Sabotage Climate Change Action
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Canada reveals climate stance with praise for Australian carbon tax repeal
Canada discourages other industrialised nations from following through on their own climate change commitments
2013/11/11: HillTimes: Canada gutting its international reputation along with its environmental laws
2013/11/11: DeSmogBlog: Will Canada Continue to Fail on Climate at International Talks in Poland?

Looks like we’ll have a good idea how this Elsipogtog confrontation will play out come Monday:

2013/11/15: CBC: Shale gas injunction ruling to come Monday
First Nation seeking court injunction to halt shale gas exploration in Mi’kmaq territory The Elsipogtog First Nation and SWN Resources Canada will learn Monday whether a judge will force the energy company to stop shale gas exploration in a large swath of New Brunswick.
2013/11/14: CensoredNews: Mi’kmaq Human Barricade halts Fracking Trucks — Mi’kmaq and allies turned the fracking trucks around Thursday!
2013/11/14: CBC: Elsipogtog seeks shale injunction, warns of ‘radical elements’
One arrest made as SWN Resources continues exploration work in Kent County The Elsipogtog First Nation is seeking a court injunction to suspend all exploration by SWN Resources, and warns “outside radical elements” are converging on the area where the latest work is being done. The band says in a court application filed Thursday afternoon there’s a real risk of a repeat to clashes between police and protesters near Rexton last month. This comes as anti-shale gas protests erupted along Highway 11 near Laketon on Thursday, with a blockade closing at least part of the roadway for some of the day. The road had reopened by early evening, according to the RCMP. Officers also arrested a 46-year-old woman and accuse her of assaulting an officer and resisting arrest.

The WikiLeaks release of the TPP IP Chapter reveals part of the Canadian ramifications:

The West-East pipeline is suddenly a focus of much dispute:

2013/11/15: PostMedia: Quebec to review Enbridge’s Line 9B pipeline-reversal proposal
Parliamentary commission will hold public consultations from Nov. 26 to Dec. 5 and submit report to the National Assembly
2013/11/12: CCP: The Hub: Saint John end point of ‘Energy East’ readies for crude revolution

The Harper gang continues their black-is-white FQD campaign:

2013/11/14: PI:B: Ottawa’s underwhelming swipe at Europe’s Fuel Quality Directive
2013/11/14: EurActiv: Canada attacks EU data labelling tar sands as dirty
Canada on Wednesday (13 November) renewed its attack on the European Union’s plan to classify Canadian tar sands oil as particularly dirty and released a study questioning the data behind the controversial measure.
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Canada attacks EU data labelling tar sands as dirty
Natural Resources minister releases study questioning EU data that classifies tar sands oil as higher carbon than conventional oil
2013/11/13: G&M: Ottawa report takes aim at EU’s plans to target oil sands
2013/11/13: CBC: Ottawa adds detail to fight against fuel quality directive
ICF International report backs argument against EU’s greenhouse gas plan

There has been a significant coal slurry spill into the Athabasca River:

2013/11/16: CBC: Alberta coal mine spill heading to N.W.T.
The Northwest Territories’ Environment Minister says toxins from a massive coal mine spill in Alberta are making their way north. On Oct. 31, Sherritt International’s Obed Mountain coal mine spilled about 1 billion litres of contaminated water into the Athabasca River. The mine is no longer operating. The spill happened when a retaining wall collapsed, unleashing the equivalent of about 400 Olympic-sized swimming pools of contaminated water. The Alberta government says the contaminated water is now making its way through the Athabasca River and the Peace River. It should reach the Slave River and Great Slave Lake close to the beginning of December.
2013/11/13: TheCanadian: Athabasca River contaminated by Canada’s largest coal slurry spill

The ISA/PRV/IHN/Alpha virus in Canadian waters is potentially disastrous:

2013/11/14: AlexandraMorton: Dear Minister of Health – farmed salmon viruses and toxins

Meanwhile in BC:

2013/11/16: Tyee: Don’t Let BC Gamble Our Climate Future
By pumping up natural gas and sacrificing precious land, Premier Clark keeps loading the dice.
2013/11/15: Tyee: BC’s Ugly Road to Water Scarcity
2013/11/14: Tyee: Something Fishy About BC’s Proposed Water Act
Water for the oil and gas industry? Absolutely. Water for fish? Maybe.
2013/11/14: Tyee: More Arguments for a BC Pipeline Referendum
2013/11/14: TheCanadian: Premier Christy Clark defends LNG industry’s carbon footprint
2013/11/14: TheCanadian: LNG companies change pipeline routes to avoid bear sanctuaries
2013/11/13: TheCanadian: Chinese state-owned oil company joint BC LNG hunt
2013/11/13: TheCanadian: Regulator, Encana sued over fracking, water
2013/11/13: Tyee: Water in BC: Three Ways to Fix Outdated Law
Province’s water is owned by the public, yet that public has no real voice in water governance.
2013/11/11: PostMedia: B.C. gov’t hints at carbon offsets plan to counter massive emissions from LNG plants
Like the underground shale gas that Premier Christy Clark says will pave the way to a debt-free future, British Columbia appears caught between a rock and a hard place in balancing its hunger for a burgeoning liquefied natural gas industry and meeting its ambitious 2007 greenhouse gas pollution-reduction targets.
2013/11/11: TheCanadian: BC struggles to reconcile carbon emissions with “clean” LNG claims
2013/11/10: TheCanadian: Delta Council OK’s Southlands development — proposal now goes to Metro
2013/11/10: TheCanadian: Minister Pat Pimm should resign for meddling in farmland hearing, says group

And in that Mechanical Mordor known as the tar sands:

2013/11/13: PI: [link to 1.6 meg pdf] Booms, busts and bitumen — The economic implications of Canadian oilsands development
2013/11/14: DeSmogBlog: Nobel Women’s Initiative Report Explores Tar Sands Expansion Plans From The Perspective of Local Women
2013/11/13: TP:JR: Censored In Canada, Artist [Franke James] Brings Her Anti-Tar Sands Message To The U.S.
2013/11/13: PI:B: Oilsands boom brings economic risks: report
Governments should do more to mitigate risks and regional disparities associated with rapid oilsands expansion
2013/11/13: CBC: Pembina oilsands report slammed by Alberta government
Rapid pace of oilsands development is creating economic risks, says environmental group
2013/11/11: ETI:RRapier: Oil Sands and the Environment – Part I

Also in Alberta:

2013/11/15: PI:B: Alberta’s new monitoring bill mixes science with politics
2013/11/14: Resilience: Alberta Voices: Somebody…needs to wake up!
2013/11/13: TheCanadian: Athabasca River contaminated by Canada’s largest coal slurry spill
2013/11/08: G&M: Oil industry successfully lobbied Ottawa to delay climate regulations, e-mails show
Canada’s oil industry successfully lobbied against proposed greenhouse gas regulations last spring, arguing a steeply higher carbon cost would drive away investment while doing little to reduce emissions or quell criticism of the oil sands. In e-mails the Alberta government released under Access to Information, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers warns against the province’s proposal that oil-sands companies be forced to gradually cut emissions per barrel by 40 per cent, and pay a $40 levy for every tonne in excess their target. That would add $1 to the cost of producing every barrel.

While in la Belle Province:

2013/11/11: TheCanadian: New hydro project planned for St. Lawrence River

In the North:

2013/11/14: TheCanadian: NWT developing regulatory model for oil fracking before devolution

As for miscellaneous Canadiana:

2013/11/14: TheCanadian: Canada’s largest energy union wants national fracking moratorium

And on the American political front:

2013/11/15: Grist: Bill would promote bogus wind-turbine syndrome lawsuits in Wisconsin
2013/11/15: TP:JR: Arizona Regulators Vote To Keep The Solar Revolution Going
2013/11/15: TP:JR: Colorado Town’s Fracking Ban Results Change: 13 Votes In Favor
2013/11/15: Grist: Anti-fracking activists celebrate victory in a fourth Colorado city
It turns out that it was a clean sweep for opponents of fracking during last week’s elections in Colorado. Voters in the city of Broomfield narrowly approved a five-year moratorium on hydraulic fracturing. The initial vote tally indicated that the ballot measure had failed by 13 votes, but by the end of an exhaustive recount on Thursday it was revealed it had actually succeeded by 17 votes. The result is expected to be legally certified today, but because the vote was so close there may still be one more recount.
2013/11/14: TreeHugger: GMO labeling law defeated in Washington State [after recount]
2013/11/14: PSinclair: “Vast majority” of Americans Know Climate Change is Real, Caused by Man
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Majority of red-state Americans believe climate change is real, study shows
Study suggests far-reaching acceptance of climate change in traditionally Republican states such as Texas and Oklahoma
2013/11/13: CensoredNews: The White House Tribal Nations Conference that isn’t at the White House
2013/11/13: TP:JR: Most People In Red States Are Not Climate Deniers, New Study Says
2013/11/13: Grist: The resurrection of Crist: Could he help save Florida from climate change? [2014 election]
2013/11/13: TP:JR: Top Climate Scientists Call On California Governor To Halt Fracking
2013/11/13: PSinclair: Bloomberg: Green Tea Party Breaks Mold
2013/11/13: CCP: New Reports Expose Right-Wing Pressure Groups Masquerading as Think Tanks in States Across The Country
2013/11/12: TP:JR: Pennsylvania Looks To Double Its Renewable Energy Standard, For Real This Time
2013/11/11: ICN: Tiny Minnesota City Draws a Line in the Frac Sand Boom
Winona will be the first U.S. city to monitor pollution from trucks hauling frac sand en route to fracking operations.
2013/11/11: Grist: Texas attorney general is going to great lengths to water his lawn during drought
2013/11/11: CSM: US energy future is a risk management problem

The Keystone XL wheel grinds slowly. And it grinds woe:

The Mayflower oil spill and its ramifications just keep dragging on:

2013/11/14: ICN: Exxon Overlooked, Masked Safety Threats in Years Before Pegasus Pipeline Burst

With the deficit hawks panicking about things financial, there has been talk of a carbon tax solution:

The GOP War on Women continues. See also:

2013/11/14: CSM: Abortion ‘abolitionists’ cause stir at Texas high schools with graphic photos

The impacts of budgetary sequestration are adding up:

Looking ahead to the 2014 & 2016 elections:

2013/11/13: FDL: Is 2016 Elizabeth Warren’s Year?

The actions of the Obama administration are being watched closely:

2013/11/15: TP:JR: A Balanced Oil And Gas Decision In Utah: Agency Pulls 100,000 Acres From Planned Drilling Auction
2013/11/15: DD: Panel warns of ‘catastrophic’ gap in U.S. weather satellite data
2013/11/15: BBerg: Renewable Fuels Quota to Be Cut in U.S. EPA Change
2013/11/15: TP:JR: Politico: Rahm Emanuel Wanted ‘To Kill’ Steven Chu For Talking About Climate Change
2013/11/15: Grist:Obama’s departed climate chief [Carol Browner] pushed him toward action
2013/11/15: ScienceInsider: Obama Names Energy Science Team
2013/11/15: NOAANews: Obama administration’s National Drought Resilience Partnership to help communities prepare for drought
2013/11/15: UCSUSA: New Renewable Fuel Targets From EPA Are Encouraging, Retain Support For Non-Food Biofuels, Science Group Says
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced its proposed biofuel volume targets for 2014 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The proposal calls for scaling back the overall mandate, including reductions in corn ethanol and advanced biofuels, to account for the slower-than-expected development of cellulosic biofuels and constraints in the fueling infrastructure that make blending more than 10 percent ethanol challenging.
2013/11/15: NatureN: Updated: White House announces Energy Department nominees
2013/11/14: CSW: Obama climate action plus drill baby drill? An “awkward tweet”
2013/11/11: CSW: EPA draft Climate Change Adaptation Implementation Plans for public comment
2013/11/11: Grist: Enviros give a thumbs-up to Obama’s new climate chief
President Obama has picked Dan Utech, an experienced environment and energy wonk, to replace outgoing White House climate adviser Heather Zichal. The role doesn’t require Senate confirmation, so Utech got right to work today.
2013/11/11: Grist: Obama nominates BLM [interim] leader Neil Kornze to lead the BLM

As for what is going on in Congress:

The movement toward a long term ecologically viable economics is glacial:

In nature, there is no garbage:

2013/11/11: PeakEnergy: Phosphorus recycling: From the sewer to the farm, via startup Ostara

IPAT [Impact = Population * Affluence * Technology] raised its head once again:

2013/11/15: Xinhuanet: China to ease one-child policy
Beijing — China will loosen its decades-long one-child population policy, allowing couples to have two children if one of them is an only child, according to a key decision issued on Friday by the Communist Party of China (CPC).
2013/11/15: CNN: China to ease one-child policy, abolish labor camps, report says
2013/11/15: People’s Daily: Authorities dismiss report of one-child policy change
2013/11/15: Guardian(UK): China’s one-child policy to be relaxed as part of reforms package
‘Re-education through labour’ policy and increased mobility for rural population also among new Communist party plans
2013/11/14: ABC(Au): Change imminent for China’s One Child Policy
The Chinese government could begin phasing out its infamous One Child Policy before the end of the year.

Apocalypso anyone?

2013/11/15: CDreams: ‘Sleepwalking to Extinction’: Capitalism and the Destruction of Life and Earth

How do the corporate media measure up?

2013/11/14: CJR: Openly accessible
The backlash over a Science magazine sting raises questions about the scope of investigative journalism and the rigor of open access publishing
2013/11/14: TP:JR: New Moving Billboards In Chicago And New York Demand Better Climate Coverage From CNBC
2013/11/12: KSJT: AP finds new angle to make no news into new news about well-known & foolhardy ‘renewable’: corn ethanol
2013/11/12: GReadfearn: The Australian newspaper open to views of any old non-expert on climate change
2013/11/12: CCP: Mark Hertsgaard demolished Roy Spencer on Piers Morgan; calls out CNN for irresponsible journalistic malpractice on climate reporting
2013/11/12: AFTIC: AP Misreports Haiyan as Category 4

Here is something for your library:

2013/11/15: PSinclair: The Weekend Wonk: Hockey Stick and Climate Wars — Now in Paperback. Documented Here
2013/11/12: QuarkSoup: “Without models, there are no data”
[Excerpt] _A Vast Machine: Computer Models, Climate Data, and the Politics of Global Warming_ by Paul N. Edwards
2013/11/11: Resilience: Jeremy Leggett: “Make no mistake, this is an energy civil war”
[Book Review] _The Energy of Nations: risk blindness and the road to renaissance_ by Jeremy Leggett

And for your film & video enjoyment:

As for podcasts:

Meanwhile among the ‘Sue the Bastards!’ contingent:

2013/11/16: DeSmogBlog: [West Virginia] Hospital Hosting Coal Event Requests Restraining Order Against Local Activists
2013/11/15: Grist:Court upholds California’s cap-and-trade system
2013/11/13: RawStory: Chevron ordered on appeal to pay Ecuador $9.51 billion for environmental damage
The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a 2012 ruling against Texaco, which operated in the South American nation from 1964-1990, but dramatically reduced the amount to be paid in damages to $9.51 billion from $19 billion, the ruling said. Just last month, Chevron was in court in New York trying not to pay the damages.
2013/11/13: TheCanadian: Regulator, Encana sued over fracking, water
2013/11/13: TP:JR: Climate Deniers Must Pay $90,000 For ‘Not Acting Reasonably,’ Court Rules
2013/11/13: NYT: Court Finds Nobody Criminally Responsible for 2002 Oil Spill
2013/11/12: Nola: Jefferson, Plaquemines parishes file wetland damage lawsuits against dozens of oil, gas, pipeline companies
2013/11/11: CCP: Chevron sues Ecuadorian victims of toxic oil spill

Developing a new energy infrastructure is a fundamental challenge of the current generation:

Hey! Let’s contaminate the aquifers for thousands of years! It’ll be a fracking gas!

2013/11/16: CCP: Fracking Industry Dumping Toxic Wastewater Into California Coastal Waters
2013/11/16: TP:JR: Breaking Down The New Proposed Fracking Rules Released In Illinois And California
2013/11/14: TP:JR: The Scariest Real Estate Advertisement On Craigslist
2013/11/14: Resilience: Alberta Voices: Somebody…needs to wake up!
2013/11/14: TheCanadian: Canada’s largest energy union wants national fracking moratorium
2013/11/13: TP:JR: Top Climate Scientists Call On California Governor To Halt Fracking
2013/11/11: ICN: Tiny Minnesota City Draws a Line in the Frac Sand Boom
Winona will be the first U.S. city to monitor pollution from trucks hauling frac sand en route to fracking operations.

On the coal front:

On the gas and oil front:

2013/11/15: BBerg: Closing oil prices Friday
OIL (US$/bbl)
Dated Brent Spot….108.50
WTI Cushing Spot…..93.84
2013/11/16: NBF: Energy Information Administration estimates Bakken will produce over 1 million barrels per day next month
2013/11/14: GreenGrok: The Latest on Earthquakes: Enhanced Oil Recovery Shaking Things Up in U.S.
2013/11/11: OilChange: Shell’s Guilty Silence
Yesterday was the eighteen anniversary of the murder of Ken Saro-Wiwa.

And in pipeline news:

Ships and boats and trains — How to tranport the stuff?

2013/11/14: G&M: Accidents spur U.S. railways to battle for safer tank cars
U.S. railroads on Thursday urged regulators to improve safety standards for tank cars carrying flammable liquids, following a spate of accidents in the booming crude-by-rail industry.
2013/11/13: DeSmogBlog: Oil Train Derailment, Explosion In Alabama Points To Need For Tighter Regulation
2013/11/12: DD: Train in Alabama oil spill was carrying 2.7 million gallons of crude
2013/11/11: Grist: Train loaded with oil derails, explodes, pollutes Alabama wetlands
2013/11/10: CDreams: 300 Foot Flames as Crude Oil Train Derails and Explodes in Rural Alabama
Green groups say accident, reminiscent of Lac MÃ©gantic tragedy, highlights ‘intolerable dangers of fossil fuels’

A rush of American triumphalism pervades the energy independence PR campaign. Think it will last?

Yes we have a peak oil sighting:

Biofuel bickering abounds:

2013/11/16: BBerg: Ethanol Loses as Gas-Price Fears Prompt EPA Reevaluation
For months, lobbyists for refiners such as Valero Corp. (VLO) and Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) have warned that a U.S. law requiring increased use of ethanol would exceed the amount of the fuel they could safely blend into gasoline. While that claim was mocked by executives at renewable fuel producers such as Poet LLC and a joint venture of BP Plc (BP/) and DuPont Co. (DD), yesterday the refiners got their way. The so-called “blend wall” was cited by the Environmental Protection Agency as the key reason to propose the first cut in requirements for renewable fuels since they were mandated by a 2007 law.
2013/11/14: ERW: Oil-palm fuel could be more carbon intensive than diesel
2013/11/13: Guardian(UK): Industry takes aim at AP ethanol investigation
A new Associated Press investigation, which found that ethanol hasn’t lived up to some of the government’s clean-energy promises, is drawing a fierce response from the ethanol industry. In an unusual campaign, ethanol producers, corn growers and its lobbying and public relations firms have criticized and sought to alter the story, which was released to some outlets earlier and is being published online and in newspapers Tuesday.
2013/11/13: BPA: Anti-Ethanol Policy AP Story: “They’re Raping the Land”
2013/11/12: TP:JR: Breaking Down The Numbers On Ethanol: Inside The Associated Press Biofuels Report
2013/11/12: WaPo: AP Investigation: Obama’s green energy drive comes with an unadvertised environmental cost
2013/11/12: RTCC: Unilever to source 100% sustainable palm oil by 2014
Global food and consumer goods giant currently purchases around 3% of the world’s total production of palm oil Unilever has announced a significant move to buy all of its palm oil from traceable sources by the end of 2014.

The answer my friend…

Meanwhile among the solar aficionados:

2013/11/16: ABC(Au): Typhoon Haiyan: Solar-powered radio helps survivors in Philippines
A temporary radio station operating out of a suitcase is helping survivors of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, providing both critical information and a dose of normalcy.
2013/11/15: RTCC: Google reveals new $80 million US solar farm investment
2013/11/13: CleanTechnica: Global Solar PV Installations Will Double, Hit Grid Parity By 2020
2013/11/12: TheCanadian: Solar power already beating coal on job creation, energy cost
2013/11/12: CleanTechnica: 300 MW Of Ethiopian Solar Farms To Be Built By US Companies
2013/11/12: CleanTechnica: 500 MW Solar Energy Project Being Developed In Cholistan, Pakistan
2013/11/10: NYT: Solar Power Begins to Shine as Environmental Benefits Pay Off

The nuclear energy controversy continues:

Nuclear waste storage requires _very_ long term thinking:

2013/11/12: CleanTechnica: New Research Suggests Nuclear Waste Could Be Reduce 90%

Like a mirage, the dream of a Hydrogen Economy shimmers on the horizon:

How are the utilities adjusting (or not)?

2013/11/17: PSinclair: Arizona Solar Skirmish Foreshadows Bigger Battles
2013/11/15: CleanTechnica: SEIA Vows To Continue Efforts To Educate ACC About ‘Value’ Of Solar
2013/11/15: BBerg: Arizona Approves Grid-Connection Fees for Solar Rooftops
Arizona will permit the state’s largest utility to charge a monthly fee to customers who install photovoltaic panels on their roofs, in a closely watched hearing that drew about 1,000 protesters and may threaten the surging residential solar market. The Arizona Corporation Commission, which regulates utilities in the state, agreed in a 3-to-2 vote at a meeting yesterday in Phoenix that Arizona Public Service Co. may collect about $4.90 a month from customers with solar systems.
2013/11/15: RNE: Utilities at the crossroads of the grid edge
2013/11/14: CDreams: In Sunny Arizona, A Crucial Vote on the Future of a Solar-Powered Nation
Are state-level utility companies trying to crush the solar revolution before it goes national?
2013/11/14: CleanTechnica: IEA Sides With Utilities On ‘Free-riding’ Rooftop Solar PV
2013/11/14: BBC: Npower owner RWE to cut 6,750 jobs across Europe
German power giant RWE will cut 6,750 jobs across Europe and reduce costs by another 1bn euros (Â£840m), to help deal with low wholesale prices for energy and an increase in renewable capacity.
2013/11/13: CleanTechnica: Boulder And The Spread Of Community Choice Utilities
2013/11/12: TP:JR: Amidst Major Solar Battle, Arizona’s Largest Utility Quietly Renews ALEC Membership

And then there is the matter of efficiency & conservation:

2013/11/15: SciAm:PI: Photo Friday: Superconducting wires for long-distance electricity transmission
2013/11/12: CBC: Home heat map tool good for wallets, earth: U of C experts
Calgary scientists find some of the homes leaking the most heat are in the newest communities A new online tool could help Calgarians save money on their heating bills while combating climate change. University of Calgary scientist Geoffrey Hay is leading a team of researchers that is building a mapping service that lets people visualize the amount and location of waste heat leaving their homes and neighbourhoods. (CBC) University of Calgary researchers are using infrared thermal imaging to measure heat slipping out of people’s homes, which costs homeowners money and emits greenhouse gases.

Automakers & lawyers, engineers & activists argue over the future of the car:

As for Energy Storage:

The reaction of business to climate change will be critical:

2013/11/14: Guardian(UK): Businesses must engage responsibly on climate policy, says new [UNGC] report
Study says lobbying by business stalls government action on climate change, new report sets out guidelines for a more responsible approach
2013/11/14: Guardian(UK): Georg Kell: companies must send a ‘clear message’ on climate change
Business needs to step up when it comes to tackling climate challenges, writes UN Global Compact director Georg Kell
2013/11/14: RTCC: UN sets environmental ‘guidelines’ for business to adopt
The UN Global Compact has today released a set of guidelines to help companies engage in climate policy in a transparent and accountable way that is consistent with their sustainability commitments.
2013/11/12: DeSmogBlog: Facing the Facts: Climate Change Is Bad For Business

Who’s fielding the FAQs?

2013/11/15: TheConversation: Explainer: why Australia needs biosecurity

What do we have in (weekly) lists?

The carbon lobby are up to the usual:

Note: You may notice my denialist coverage flagging. I am finding it increasingly difficult to give any attention to these people.

2013/11/12: BCLSB: Denier Down: Lindzen Retires
2013/11/12: RawStory: World Bank president: Typhoon Haiyan should end ‘silly’ climate change debate
2013/11/12: QuarkSoup: AGW is False; We Just Lack “Real Evidence”
2013/11/11: RealEconomics: The latest climate change “hoax” roars through the Philippines
2013/11/13: CCP: New Reports Expose Right-Wing Pressure Groups Masquerading as Think Tanks in States Across The Country
2013/11/13: GLaden: Help NCSE Nail Down The Heartland Institute’s Latest Trick
2013/11/15: LoE: How many more must die because of climate change denial?
2013/11/16: Stoat: Their own private reality
2013/11/12: WtD: “To anyone who continues to deny climate change… pay a visit to the Philippines right now”
2013/11/12: OParachute: Have local climate pseudosceptics come to the end of the road?
This from Radio New Zealand today: Climate deniers ordered to pay court costs
2013/11/10: TPL: Tragedies, (Non-Existent) Conversion Errors and Wrestling With Pigs
2013/11/11: Guardian(UK): Denialism: the shifting relationship between science and industry

And in the ‘clean coal’ saga:

2013/11/13: TheCanadian: Athabasca River contaminated by Canada’s largest coal slurry spill

Meanwhile in the greenwashing chronicles:

2013/11/14: Grist: Walmart’s carbon emissions soar despite all that green talk

So why is nothing getting done?

2013/11/11: Monbiot: Why Politics Fails — Nothing will change until we confront the real sources of power

As for climate miscellanea:

And here are a couple of sites you may find interesting and/or useful:

Low Key Plug

My first novel _Water_ was published in May 2007. An Introduction is available.
My most recent novel _The Bottleneck Years_ is being serialized online atmy siteand on AFTIC at Table of Contents
If you want further information, see A Gentle Introduction. If you want a copy, see The Deal.
An overview of my writing is available here.

A Simple Plea

Webmasters, web coders and content providers have mercy on your low bandwidth brethren. Because I am on dial-up, I am a text surfer — no images, no javascript and no flash. When you post a graphic, will you please use the alt text field … and when you embed a youtube/vimeo/flash video, please add some minimal description. Thank you.

<regards>
-het

P.S. Recent postings can be found in the week archive and the ancient postings can be accessed here, which should open to this.

monster index

“The once-in-a-lifetime typhoons are now happening once a year. So the question for us is, is this the new normal for us? And if this is, then what should we do to prepare?”
–Jerry Velasquez, of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)

Last modified November 17, 2013

Published by Coby Beck

View all posts by Coby Beck

Published November 18, 2013

36 thoughts on “Another Week of Anthropocene Antics – November 17, 2013”

Russell says:

November 19, 2013 at 5:29 pm

Next from the Maldives , a report on the coup d’glug following last weeks underwater election.

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Bob says:

November 24, 2013 at 12:41 am

Excellent synopsis, as always, of unfolding climate change news. I come here often as part of an effort to keep on top of an issue that is important to all of us.

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freddy says:

November 25, 2013 at 5:25 pm

bob, did you see also some news that global warming has stopped since at least 15 years?

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Richard Simons says:

November 26, 2013 at 12:39 pm

did you see also some news that global warming has stopped since at least 15 years?

Even using atmospheric temperatures, ignoring oceanic heat content, and a cherry-picked start date (which invalidates the statistics), no-one has demonstrated that the current rate of warming is significantly less than that of the previous decades. The so-called ‘pause’ is just an over-interpretation based on statistical ignorance, by people who have never wondered why there continues to be a disparity between the incoming and outgoing radiation as measured by satellites.

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Craig Thomas says:

November 27, 2013 at 10:08 am

In other words, “freddy”, stop telling lies.

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Wow says:

November 27, 2013 at 10:07 pm

For anyone else listening: the trend since those cherry picked positions, selected solely for their ability to show a zero (some even claim negative) trend, the trend is still 0.03C, and the massive error bars on that figure mean that it does not disprove the IPCC projection average, therefore, EVEN IF you accept the cherry pick,

a) you don’t get a zero, never mind cooling, trend

b) it doesn’t prove AGW false

To manage (b), you need more data. But because of the cherry pick, any extra data disproves the claim even more.

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mandas says:

November 28, 2013 at 4:17 pm

“… did you see also some news that global warming has stopped since at least 15 years?….”

That’s great news freddy! Got a link to a scientific paper so we can have a read?

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freddy says:

November 28, 2013 at 7:47 pm

mandas and the other alarmism fanatics:

study the DATA.(not your ideology please) yourself:

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/2012/13

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/2011/13

and backwards to the 90s when this data coverage of NOAA started

when will you climate church adherents be ready to accept that a flat temperature curve since 15 years is a flat curve and that there is no correlation between atmospheric co2 increase and global temperature.

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Wow says:

November 29, 2013 at 12:10 am

Flat lines don’t curve.

LOL!

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freddy says:

November 29, 2013 at 3:00 am

wow, any substance apart from your BS?

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Wow says:

November 29, 2013 at 4:06 am

FLAT LINES DON’T CURVE!

LOL!

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Richard Simons says:

November 29, 2013 at 9:15 am

when will you climate church adherents be ready to accept that a flat temperature curve since 15 years is a flat curve and that there is no correlation between atmospheric co2 increase and global temperature.

To repeat:

no-one has demonstrated that the current rate of warming is significantly less than that of the previous decades.

Show us a P value if you want to be taken seriously. If it is less than about 0.01 (to make some sort of compensation for the cherry-picked start date) then people may feel there is something of interest, especially if you can explain where the extra energy is going to.

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freddy says:

December 2, 2013 at 12:58 am

@Richard, look yourself, it’s not my concern to do your work.

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Wow says:

December 2, 2013 at 4:49 am

Yeah, Richard, what do you expect kai to do? Work?!?!?

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Debunker says:

December 2, 2013 at 6:56 pm

Good Lord, is Kai/Freddy still around?

I would have expected him to have given up. He has been exposed as a fraud so many times….

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Richard Simons says:

December 3, 2013 at 1:06 am

Richard, look yourself, itâs not my concern to do your work.

I have. But it is you who is trying to convince us that there has been a ‘pause’ and so far all you have done is demonstrate that you likely do not understand basic statistics.

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boris says:

December 6, 2013 at 1:06 am

Richard, wrong! I am not at all trying to convince you or the other climate church pupils. I have pointed to information from NOAA, YOUR climate authority which you hardly dare to oppose as tiny climate subordinate, and expect that you start your learning process by studying the data given. Don’t be so lazy!

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freddy says:

December 6, 2013 at 1:08 am

Richard, wrong! I am not at all trying to convince you or the other climate church pupils. I have pointed to information from NOAA, YOUR climate authority which you hardly dare to oppose as tiny climate subordinate, and expect that you start your learning process by studying the data given. Donât be so lazy!

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Wow says:

December 6, 2013 at 10:43 pm

Oh dear.

Looks like kai has some new socks for christmas!

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Wow says:

December 6, 2013 at 10:43 pm

kai, you’re lying.

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Richard Simons says:

December 7, 2013 at 4:09 pm

expect that you start your learning process by studying the data given.

I’m sorry, but exactly what do you think we should find in the data other than ‘Gee, if I look at the graphs and ignore the information on el Nino/la Nina years, it looks almost as though temperatures have stopped going up’? If you understood any statistics, you would realize it is very easy to be fooled by short-term fluctuations in data. That is why you have to do the stats.

BTW: By the late 1960s I considered it likely that global warming was on its way. Your snide comments comparing acceptance of the physics to a religion just highlights your ignorance of the subject.

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freddy says:

December 7, 2013 at 7:25 pm

Richard, so you are not willing to look at the data because they don’t please you and disturb your devotion to the religious belief of CAGW

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Wow says:

December 7, 2013 at 7:40 pm

He has looked at the data.

It does not show what you claim.

Maybe you can point out where your claim is supported.

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freddy says:

December 8, 2013 at 12:32 am

Wow, it shows, learn to look at what you don’t like!!!!!!

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Richard Simons says:

December 8, 2013 at 2:03 pm

so you are not willing to look at the data because they donât please you and disturb your devotion to the religious belief of CAGW

I’ve looked and seen nothing to make me question my acceptance that AGW is taking place. That is why I asked you to be more specific. I have not the slightest doubt that you will fail to identify anything that gives reasonable hope that AGW will not continue.

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Wow says:

December 8, 2013 at 9:43 pm

I’ve looked.

What you claim isn’t there.

I guess you’re just imagining this, huh?

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freddy says:

December 9, 2013 at 7:20 pm

Any ideas here why AGW blogs implode so terribly at the present time (Deltoid, Stoat etc etc etc) : no readers, no reasonable contents?

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freddy says:

December 9, 2013 at 8:52 pm

Consolation for warmists: current arctic sea ice extent is high (4th highest in the last decade):

The latest value: 11,248,709 km2â(December 8, 2013)

Therefore NO indication for arctic or global warming! It is VERY COLD at the North Pole and in Greenland!

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Richard Simons says:

December 10, 2013 at 5:16 am

no readers, no reasonable contents?

Frivolous arguments from denialists (e.g.).

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freddy says:

December 10, 2013 at 7:47 am

Richard, no, just facts. Look yourself

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Wow says:

December 10, 2013 at 7:50 pm

We did.

The facts do not support your assertion.

Heck, even your statements don’t support your assertion, boris. Soryy, kai. Sorry, freddy.

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Elio says:

December 10, 2013 at 10:20 pm

Wow, they did, but you are not willing to accept to look at data which don’t please your prejudices.

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freddy says:

December 10, 2013 at 10:21 pm

Wow, they did, but you are not willing to accept to look at data which don’t please your prejudices.

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Richard Simons says:

December 11, 2013 at 1:32 am

Still unable to tell us exactly what we should be finding in the NOAA data, I see.

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Wow says:

December 11, 2013 at 2:04 am

Of course not, because it isn’t there.

If it were, there would be no reason to avoid showing it.

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Wow says:

December 11, 2013 at 2:05 am

I did look, kai.

Your claims are not supported by it.

Try not hallucinating what you think ought to be there, dear.

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