CLIMATE CHANGE

Greenpeace activists hold a mock party opposite the venue where the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP17) is being held, in Durban December 10, 2011.

Durban deal may do little to cool heating planet

The world is forecast to grow hotter, sea levels to rise, intense weather to wreak even more destruction and the new deal struck by governments in Durban to cut greenhouse gas emissions will do little to lessen that damage.
United Nations (UN) Framework Convention on Climate Change Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres speaks with Brazil's Minister of Environment Izabella Teixeira (L) and chief climate envoy Luiz alberto Figueiredo during a plenary session at the Unit

New U.N. Climate Deal Struck, Critics Say Gains Modest

Countries from around the globe agreed on Sunday to forge a new deal forcing all the biggest polluters for the first time to limit greenhouse gas emissions, but critics said the plan was too timid to slow global warming.
More news
Environmental activists demonstrate outside the United Nations Climate Change conference (COP17) in Durban December 3, 2011. The protest march was part of a Global Day of Action to demand a fair climate change deal.

'Big Three' Polluters Oppose Binding Climate Deal

The world's three biggest polluters China, the United States and India refused to move toward a new legal commitment to curb their carbon emissions Tuesday, increasing the risk that climate talks will fail to clinch a meaningful deal this week.
Greenhouse Gases

Global Carbon Emissions Increased to Record in 2010

Carbon dioxide emissions, from the burning of fossil fuels and production of cement, registered record increases last year, according to researchers with the Global Carbon Project, who reported a 5.9 percent increase.
Workers stand atop scaffolding as they work on a building covered in solar panels located near the factory of the Yingli Green Energy Holding Company, also known as Yingli Solar, located in the city of Baoding, Hebei Province June 20, 2011.

U.S. Solar Ruling Smacks of Protectionism: China

China said it was deeply concerned about a preliminary ruling by a U.S. trade body that trade practices by Chinese solar makers are hurting U.S. producers and said the decision underscored a U.S. inclination to trade protectionism.
Russian Permafrost

Thawing Permafrost Makes Global Warming Even Worse

In a cyclical pattern that could increase sea levels and create more intense storms and droughts, the Earth's rapidly thawing permafrost is releasing tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. With more of the greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, the Earth's temperature gradually rises, and causes more permafrost to melt.
Climate Change Conference in Durban

U.N. Climate Talks Unlikely to See Renewal of Koyto Protocol

At stake is the possible dissolution of the Kyoto Accord, whose commitment period expires in 2012. Japan and Russia announced last year in Cancun they are against any extension or renewal of the accord if big green house gas emitters like the United States and China are excluded.
IBTimes Logo

Canada won't confirm it's withdrawing from Kyoto

Canada dismissed the Kyoto Protocol on climate change on Monday as a thing of the past, but declined to confirm a media report it will formally pull out of the international treaty before the end of this year.
Climate Change Conference in Durban

EU says climate pact not enough, wants deal by 2015

The world needs a far more ambitious plan to cut emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases than the Kyoto Protocol, European Union climate negotiators said on Monday, calling for a global deal to be reached by 2015 and in place by 2020.
Gingrich and Clinton

New Front-Runner Gingrich Is 'Being Rewarded for Thinking': Bill Clinton

Newt Gingrich got praise from an unexpected source on Sunday: former President Bill Clinton, who spent much of the 1990s at loggerheads with a Gingrich-led Congress. Clinton pointed to two unconventional positions the latest Republican front-runner took at a national security debate last week and said that independent voters were hungry for ideas that make some sense.
Jon Huntsman

2012 Republican Presidential Campaign: Will There be a Jon Huntsman Surge?

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is the current beneficiary of Republican voters' perpetual search for an alternative to Mitt Romney, and he's enjoying the amplified media attention that accompanies a rise in the polls. If he declines, is Huntsman next? Or is it time to write-off the former Utah governor?

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reach Record High: U.N.

The United Nation's weather agency, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), has released a report that suggests the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached a record high in 2010. The report particularly noted the levels of nitrous oxide.

Pages

IBT Spotlight

We Help Businesses Find B2B Service Providers They Can Trust.