This not, repeat, NOT, an argument for or against AGW theory. It is about green hypocrisy and double-standards. If we are to follow the corporate money trail, we must follow it wherever it leads, even if it leads to the door of a CBC-annointed demi-god so beloved internationally by those who know him even less than Canadians do.

Heavy rain triggered the slides and swept away roads, leaving the tourists stuck in Aguas Calientes, a small town near the Inca ruins. Peru has the most tropical glaciers in Latin America and has already lost 20 percent of the 2,600 kms of glaciers running through its central and southern Andes in the past 30 years. By the end of the 21st century, the tropical Andes may experience a massive warming on the order of 4.5–5 °C.
(photos courtesy of Wikimedia commons)

New research suggest that just two collapsing West Antarctic glaciers could add another half a metre to sea levels this century making the Victorian and Queensland governments' "upper boundary" sea-level rise estimates of 0.8 metres by 2100 already obsolete.

Article originally published on climatecodered.blogspot.com on 24 jan 10.
See also: How the Murdoch press got it wrong on the Himalayan big melt of 21 Jan 10, A climate con: Analysis of the "Copenhagen Accord" of 24 Dec 09, ...

Recently, the Murdoch press have continued their campaign of climate denial and delay by giving front-page prominence to a five-day-old story attacking the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predictions of glacial melt in the Himalayan-Tibetan ranges by 2035.

Originally published on climateactioncentre.org.
See also: carbonequity.info, climatecodered.blogspot.com, Signs of change in the Himalayas as Copenhagen summit begin in the Guardian of 6 Dec 09, The Tragedy of the Himalayas in Time magazine of 7 Dec 09, Vanishing glaciers jolt smokestack China in The Sunday Times of 8 Nov 09, Himalayan sherpas bugged by the sight of house flies at 5,000m in the Guardian of 12 Oct 09, Tibet most harmed by global warming in the China Daily of 7 May 09, Black soot and the survival of Tibetan glaciers by James Hansen, GISS brief, Dec 09.

The Copenhagen Accord could not be further from what civil society, along with most developing countries sought to achieve at this conference.

Originally published on climatecodered.blogspot.com on 21 Dec 09. See also: carbonequity.info, "The 2009 Copenhagen Conference 'took note' of Accord, but it did not progress beyond a talk fest" of 22 Dec 09, "Question for Climate Change Minister Penny Wong" of 21 Dec 09, "Copenhagen was a deadline without a plan" of 18 Dec 09.
Update: A critical response from Peter Christoff, 25 Dec 09.

The 2009 Copenhagen Conference “took note” of an 'Accord'.

Well, what a hell of an expensive note taking exercise that was!

The full cost of the Copenhagen Conference should be disclosed including all return flights, accommodation, livestock killed and A4 paper printed off, etc. Given that green house gases are their specialty, the conference hosts (the UN) should also disclose the total tonnage of greenhouse gas emissions of this latest Conference of the Parties (COP15). This then must become the decadent standard never to be exceeded in future.

See also: "A climate con: Analysis of the 'Copenhagen Accord' of 21 Dec 09.

David Spratt, co-author of Climate Code Red, shows that the Rudd Government's climate change policies are a hollow pretence at doing what is urgently needed to prevent the looming global catastrophe.

Originally published in the Age of 19 Oct 09. See also: www.carbonequity.info.

Robert Nelson's "Deceptive green of suburban gardens," is another of those insidious articles that keep on coming out of The Age newspaper. Here we are presented with the false dichotomy of the continued existence of the evil - but green - suburbs OR the necessity of greatly increasing population density by destroying them to 'save the environment'. Neither is true; in the article people's private gardens are quite unfairly blamed for our environmental problems and the cause of those intensifying problems is actually presented as if it were a solution.

Long-time environmental and anti-privatisation activist James Sinnamon who, stood for Lord Mayor of Brisbane in 2008, explains why he is standing as an independent candidate against Queensland State Treasurer, Andrew Fraser, what he hopes to achieve and how you can help.

Contents: End privatisation - stop the liquidation of Queensland, End Queensland Government encouragement of population growth, Demand action against homelessness and housing unaffordability, Labor's coal exports - a crime against this and future generations of humanity, Why a vote for me is not be a wasted vote, To intending Labor voters:, To intending Green voters:, To intending Liberal National Party voters:, What you can do.

"I am fast starting to think that all the things that make a house energy inefficient also make it more prone to bush fire destruction." Mike Stasse, Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Consultant, and qualified Building Energy Rating Assessor, writes about the pit-falls of design-fashion in homes. Mike designed and built his own house and is entirely self-sufficient.

See also: "Fire bunkers could have helped in the Victorian fires" of 10 Feb 09

If you don't think there is a health risk involved in kangaroo consumption (for yourself or your pets); think that the solution to livestock-caused greenhouse gases is eating kangaroo meat; haven't considered the reasons why in fact kangaroos could NEVER be farmed; still believe the myth that there are plagues of kangaroos out there that need to be 'culled'; and that it's a humane, well-regulated industry involving no suffering to kangaroos, you need to read this article.....

Whilst the Bligh Government has scrapped the environmentally damaging shale oil mining project in the Whitsundays, a rural community further south faces the threats of an open cut coal-mine and coal-to-liquid plant in their midst. These projects could devastate one of this country’s most beautiful & fertile valleys, pollute the Murray Darling river system, destroy nationally significant populations of rare & endangered species, and produce huge quantities of Greenhouse gases.

See also: www.friendsoffelton.blogspot.com, Qld farmers want new rules for mining in Sunshine Coast Daily of 2 Sep 08.

Earth's Newsdesk argues that major environmental groups like Greenpeace, the Rainforest Action Network should fight to prevent any further logging of ancient old-growth forests rather than focussing merely on establishing a few protected areas, given recent reports which show that these forests have a far greater potential to prevent global warming than had been previously realised.

Discuss this article : forests.org/blog/2008/09/feature-old-growth-carbon-find.asp

Demand that former protest singer and former President of the Australian Conservation Society Peter Garrett use his ministerial powers to prevent the tripling of Australia's coal exports by 2030 and prevent the destruction of Shoalwater Bay.

Why the over-exploitation of krill from Antarctic waters threaten global warming as well as the health of the endangered Minke whale.

Australia's show of concern for forests in the Asia Pacific region, whilst welcomed by Ecological Internet is in stark contrast to its domestic tolerance of the destruction of ancient primary forests.

Originally published on www.rainforestportal.org on 21 August 2008.

Once again Canadian Green Party leader Elizabeth May was wrong in her contention that immigration was a "trivial aspect of the world's and the country's environmental problems", as only 3% of the global population was on the move. So "stop beating up on immigrants." Well this report by the Centre for Immigration Studies reveals that immigration to the United States is putting the whole world, not just the US, in deep trouble. There is a message for Canada and Australia here too.

A public meeting is to be held at Yeppoon Town Hall at 7PM on Wed 30 July to save Shoalwater Bay and fight Queensland Premier Anna Bligh's plans to expand Queensland's climate-changing coal industry.

See also www.cccqld.org.au, About Coal

In a last ditch attempt to rescue NSW Treasurer Michael Costa's electricity privatisation push, the Rudd government has ignored Professor Ross Garnaut's opposition to compensating power stations for the costs of emissions trading, according to Greens NSW MP John Kaye.

NSW Treasurer Michael Costa's misleading attack on climate change reviewer Professor Ross Garnaut's emissions trading proposal is a last-ditch attempt to rescue the Iemma government's electricity privatisation push, according to Greens NSW MP John Kaye.

Economic growth

Australia's contribution to runaway global warming through its accelerating rate of coal exports has been acknowledged in part by the Garnaut report. However, whether this will lead to a reduction, rather than an increase in exports is not yet clear.

The greedy have become greedier. Contracts are signed to dig up and ship out WA’s minerals as fast as possible. …

Carbon trading has been held out by many environmentalists as a panacea for many of our grave environmental threats. However, in the light of the experience of Europe, an environmentalist from Western Australia questions its merit.

Dr. James Hansen, a leading NASA climate scientist in a letter to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on 27 March 2008 called for the phasing out of Australia's currently coal exports in order to halt further damage to our global life support system.

The Newcastle group Rising Tide (www.risingtide.org.au has called) upon Mr. Rudd to respond to Hansen's letter.

Brisbane's Courier Mail newspapers beat-up over lack of facilities for mega-sized luxury cruise ships, such as the Queen Victoria draws an (unpublished) response from Independent Mayoral candidate, James Sinnamon.

State Premiers must recognise that continued economic growth is not sustainable and give precedence to the environment recognising that the size of the economy is bounded by Nature's ability to sustain it, say conservationists in the wake of the Garnaut Report on Climate Change economic impacts.

Not openly discussed at the Bali Climate Summit 2007 is the one factor that will make it hardest to stop increasing greenhouse gas emissions - population growth. (Originally published on Online Opinion on 17 Dec 2007. Read original article and comments on Online Opinion, or read copy on this site.)

Arguing with socialists about population growth or immigration is as futile as debating these issues with the Vatican. Fundamentally, they have no understanding of limits. They would have us believe that growth can go on forever, that we need only manage it and share its fruits equitably, and if driven by the right technology, that we can open our borders to the world without ecological consequences.

"... You can't grow your population by 18% over 17 years and expect as Canada does to cut GHG emissions by 6% over that same period. Tony Blair failed to meet his GHG target for much the same reason. When Australia increased its population by 30% since 1990, its GHG emissions increased by 31%. ..."

Environmental laws don’t apply to mines is the message from Premier Bligh’s promise to pass special laws to override yesterday’s Court decision against Xstrata Coal, said the Greens today.

Mark Diesendorf, ex of Australian Conservation Foundation, now speaking for Greenpeace, tells Australians that Greenhouse gases are proportional to population numbers and advises Australia to reduce immigration (which is now more than 50% of population growth) in order to reduce growth in Greenhouse Gas Emissions