Bali: Poor countries demand climate change adaptation tech: While it’s important to keep in mind that the US has been, is and will be the biggest roadblock to discussing a post-Kyoto deal with teeth, there are signs that a schism between the developed and developing worlds is emerging at the Bali climate change conference. While the developed world toys with the idea of put together a roadmap for reducing their carbon emissions, poorer countries are arguing that they are already feeling the impacts of climate change, and that they lack the resources to adapt to extreme temperatures and “global weirding.” The Group of 77, which actually represents 132 countries and China, is demanding technology from the rich countries of the world to help themselves adapt to the impacts of climate change. The poor countries have a point. Wired
As oil surges, sone in US turn to biofuel for heat: The yellow furnace in the basement of Richard Grady’s Massachusetts home, puts the retired engineer at the forefront of an environmental revolution. It’s stoked by fuel derived from soybeans. Grady and a growing number of homeowners in the US Northeast are taking a stand against record oil prices, American dependence on Middle East oil, and climate change. Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick is trying to speed up the trend, having proposed a bill on November 5, which needs all home heating oil and diesel fuel contain at least 5% of the cleaner-burning fuel by 2013, a big step in the US Northeast, where 32% of homes use oil to stay warm in winter. Financial Express (India)
Global warming may heat up conflicts, too: To this day, nearly a quarter-century after he left, Loknath Das is afraid to return to the village where he was born. The reason he gives is one heard throughout this corner of India, where Himalayan peaks give way to fertile flood plains: Immigrants from Bangladesh are taking over. It is a visceral fear in India’s Northeast, where people say they feel under siege – their culture, politics, and security threatened by a tide of Bangladeshis who are here illegally. “On the surface there is peace,” says Mr. Das, who says he was forced out of his village through intimidation and murders by immigrants. “But this migration is a tragedy for us.” For now, there is relative calm. But security analysts worry that unrest could flare up again because of a new threat: global warming. Christian Science Monitor
World’s first floating wind turbine launched in Berlin: A floating wind turbine that its makers claim could significantly boost the renewable energy sector was officially launched at a trade show in the German capital on Wednesday. Dutch company Blue H Technologies said its invention, which adapts technology used in offshore oil rigs, was a world first. It will soon go into operation off the coast of Puglia in southern Italy. AFP
Italy to send revised CO2 plan to EU by year’s end: Italy aims to send a revised plan for its carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to Brussels by the end of this year, an environment ministry official said on Wednesday. The European Union’s executive, the European Commission, said in May that Italy must cut emissions from companies covered by the bloc’s emissions trading scheme (ETS) to 195.8 million tonnes a year in 2008-2012, about six percent less than Rome had initially proposed. “Technical experts are still working on finalizing details of the plan. We hope their work will be finished this week or early next week,” the official said. Reuters
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