We Are Already Teetering on the Brink of Tipping Points for Abrupt Climate Change

A December 4, 2013 report indicates that the world is already beginning to pass tipping points for abrupt, catastrophic, and irreversible changes.

According to a new 200-page report released by the US National Academy of Sciences, abrupt climate change, unlike gradual changes such as steadily increasing global temperatures, can cause rapid changes to physical, biological, and human systems in a matter of years or decades, far too fast for humans to properly adapt.

The collapse of Arctic summer sea-ice are already underway and accelerating and the collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet could occur in this century. There is some good news in the report, like the finding that the melting of arctic permafrost is unlikely to occur in this century.

The report concedes that there are significant uncertainties however, they conclude that the world is not doing enough to prepare and anticipate for these types of threats, and calls for more research and the development of an early warning system that could give humanity a few critical years to prepare for the worst impacts of abrupt climate change.

“This should be a wakeup call for the world,” stated Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development. “No amount of continued warming can be considered safe when we have no idea when we’ll pass these thresholds for irreversible and abrupt climate change.”

Click here to see the report (PDF).

© 2013, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

Related Posts
New Study Indicates We Are on the Verge of Tipping Points
Environmental Tipping Points
Melthing Ice Releasing Methane (Tipping Point)
Building Support for Action on Climate Change Before We Reach Tipping Points
The Fifth Global Environmental Outlook Report
Peak Water?
Science and Pernicious Ignorance of Climate Change Denial
The Effects of Global Warming

Read More»

Canada's Best and Worst Green Cities

According to a 2011 index sponsored by Siemens, Vancouver is the greenest city in Canada and Montreal is the least green. The index measured and rated the environmental performance of 27 cities in the US and Canada in nine categories: CO2, energy, land use, buildings, transport, water, waste, air and environmental governance. The index was a project run by the Economist Intelligence Unit, an in-house research unit of the British magazine The Economist. Cities were selected independently rather than through requests from city governments to be included. A panel of global experts in urban environmental sustainability advised the unit in developing methodology for the index.

Vancouver was second overall and first in Canada. Vancouver landed in the top 10 in each of the nine individual categories, ranking first among all cities with the lowest carbon dioxide emissions and best air quality.

Toronto placed ninth overall and second in Canada. The city earned a fourth-place ranking overall in the waste category, the city has a 44 per cent recycling rate which is well above the 26 per cent average. Other waste related initiatives for the city include composting, waste separation and volume-based trash payment, and a public awareness campaign.

Ottawa was twelfth overall and third in Canada. The national capital ranked third in land use and the city boasts the highest percentage of green space in the index.

Calgary was fourteenth overall and fourth in Canada. Calgary was the best on the list in the water category. The city consumes 428 liters of water per person per day compared to the index average of 587. Calgary was also noted for its waste water management.

Montreal was nineteenth overall and last amongst Canada's major cities. Although the city took the fourth overall spot in the transport category with its public transit system deemed one of the best. The report indicated that Montreal has second highest share of non-automobile commuters. Some 29 per cent of workers commute by public transit, bicycle, or on foot — more than double the index average. Montreal scores well in transportation due in part to its cycling infrastructure. Montreal also has low per-capita carbon dioxide emissions due to its reliance on hydro power. However, the city is weak in green building and environmental certification. Montreal has among the fewest per-capita LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified green buildings in the index; we use more energy per capita than the index average; and the carbon and energy efficiency of our local economy is abysmal. For every dollar of local gross domestic product, Montreal uses almost three times more energy than the index average.

© 2012, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

Related Posts
Canada's Green Provincial Report Card
Canada's Clean 50 from Delta Management Group
Best CSR Business Rankings from Miratel Blog
Top Canadian Corporate Citizens (2012)
Canada's Greenest Companies (2011)
Canada's Most Sustainable Businesses (2009)
Canada's GHG Rankings
Canada is a World Leader in GHG Emissions
WWF's Canadian Living Planet Report
The State of Canada's Environment
Canadians Support Efforts to Combat Climate Change
Canadian Government at Odds with the Public on Climate Change
Conservatives Ignore Canadians While Jeopardizing the Environment and the Economy
Canada on Track to be a Dirty Energy Superpower

Read More»

Top 10 Global Sustainability Leaders (Report)

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) research firm EIRIS ranked the global leaders in sustainability in their annual ratings.  The report, titled 'On track for Rio+20? How are global companies responding to sustainability?', analyzes the sustainability performance of 50 of the world's largest companies (by market cap). Several very well known consumer brands did not fare well. Some will be surprised to see Japanese automaker Toyota as being one of the worst companies of the 50 rated in the report. Toyota produces greener cars, but there are concerns about its human-rights and supply chain labor standards. Companies like Apple and Google, both received "D" grades. Not surprisingly oil giants ExxonMobil Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Occidental Petroleum, were all given the lowest ranking. Only 2 percent of US companies got an "A". In the UK 20 percent of companies scored an "A" and 12 percent of mainland European companies received an "A". Only 1 percent of Asian ones made the top grade. Here are the world's sustainability leaders as determined by ESG research firm EIRIS:

Top 10 Global Sustainability Leaders

1: Puma
2: FirstGroup
3: National Australia Bank
4: GlaxoSmithKline
5: Roche
6: Novartis
7: Philips Electronics
8: Deutsche Börse
9: Novo Nordisk
10: Go-Ahead Group

© 2012, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

Related Posts

State of Green Business Report 2012
Energy & Environmental Report
Scientists Defend the Lacey Act with New Report
Air and Water in the OECD Report
State of Green Business Report 2012
Retail Sustainability Leadership Report
A Slowdown for Green Business in 2012
IPCC Report
Report from The Green Economy
Global Carbon Rankings 2011 from the EIO
Clean Tech Job Trends 2010 Report Part 1
Clean Tech Job Trends 2010 Report: Part 2
WWF's Canadian Living Planet Report
Report on the UN's World Water Day Panel
Corporate Sustainability is Driving Green

Read More»