AFP – Australian bushfires will become more intense due to climate change, while the number of days each year when there is a high fire danger could soar 300 percent by 2050, a report released Wednesday said.
Australian bushfire risk could rise 300 percent by 2050: report (AFP)
This surprising article from the Center for American Progress is an amazingly well done compilation of 100 articles from major magazines, newspapers and journals across the world. Here are some of the highlights/downfalls:
- Say Goodbye to Baseball – The future of the ash tree—from which all baseball bats are made—is in danger of disappearing, thanks to a combination of killer beetles and global warming. [NY Times]
- Say Goodbye to French Fries – Scientists from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research say warmer temperatures are killing off wild relatives of potato and peanut plants, “threatening a valuable source of genes necessary to help these food crops fight pests and drought.” [AP]
- Say Hello to Bulgarian Hooker Shortages – “Brothel owners in Bulgaria are blaming global warming for staff shortages. They claim their best girls are working in ski resorts because a lack of snow has forced tourists to seek other pleasures.” [Metro UK]
- Farewell to the Arctic Fox – The White Arctic Fox used to rule the colder climes, but as temperatures warm up, its more aggressive cousin, the Red Fox, is moving North and taking over. [Wired]
Read all 100 at: The Top 100 Effects of Global Warming
AP – Ultimately, rising seas will likely swamp the first American settlement in Jamestown, Va., as well as the Florida launch pad that sent the first American into orbit, many climate scientists are predicting. In about a century, some of the places that make America what it is may be slowly erased.
Sea level rise could flood many cities (AP)
The Guatemalan beaded lizard is rumored to be evil, but its venom now used as an effective treatment for diabetes. Too bad there’s only 200 of these mythic lizards left in the wild. Is there still time to save this endangered species so that it can help save us?
Nearly extinct lizard’s venom safely treats diabetes
AFP – Some water restrictions introduced in Australia’s most populous state because of a long-running drought will become permanent because of the threat of global warming, officials said Sunday.
Australia says some water cuts permanent (AFP)
AFP – The 186-nation treaty that protects Earth from the Sun’s dangerous ultraviolet rays fetes its 20th anniversary Sunday, with the US and Europe poised to call for an accelerated timetable for banning ozone-depleting chemicals still in use.
Ozone treaty, rare global success, fetes 20-year mark (AFP)
AP – A study released Thursday predicts more bad air days in the summer for Cleveland, Columbus and eight other eastern U.S. cities if global warming continues unabated.
Study sees cities’ air quality worsening (AP)
Reuters – The Arctic’s Northwest Passage has opened up fully because of melting sea ice, clearing a long-sought but historically impassable route between Europe and Asia, the European Space Agency said.
