[GWSG] Nelson & slr; El Nino; Hansen talk; anti-RPS; seawalls weaken; Fierce Greens; waves; snails; Honda house; ev impact?

[Tilley, Al]

1.  Florida Senator Bill Nelson is holding a series of talks on sea level rise.  The estimates of future rise used in the story are conservative indeed (and would be so if doubled, for the most part), but it is politically intrepid to broach the topic in this state, and an interesting way to begin a run for governor.  Thanks to Brian Paradise for the item.  http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/22/us-usa-florida-sealevel-idUSBREA3L1R120140422

2.  An especially strong El Niño seems to be cooking.  If you need reminding as I do about what that means, this Think Progress article and its links will help.  http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/04/22/3429380/el-nino-global-warming-temperature-record/

3.  James Hansen testifies to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on energy and climate in this seven minute video.  http://www.c-span.org/video/?c4487288/statement-dr-james-e-hansen   He responded to Chairman Menendez’s questions on the costs and feasibility of nuclear power.  http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/mailings/2014/20140417_MenendezQuestionsToHansen.pdf

4.  The campaign to reverse renewable portfolio standards at the state level and to combat EPA regulations on fossil fuel emissions is running into effective opposition, even in Kansas, home of Koch Industries.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/a-battle-is-looming-over-renewable-energy-and-fossil-fuel-interests-are-losing/2014/04/25/24ed78e2-cb23-11e3-a75e-463587891b57_story.html

5.  The Manhattan seawall is 20 times more likely to fail to prevent flooding than it was in 1844.  Both sea level and storm surges are rising.  http://news.sciencemag.org/signal-noise/2014/04/risk-manhattan-flooding-increases-20-fold

6.  “A Fierce Green Fire” is a one hour history of environmental activism from the formation of the Sierra Club through climate actions.  If you missed the PBS special, it is available on line.  Surprisingly substantive and well worth your time.  http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/a-fierce-green-fire/watch-the-film/2924/

7.  Wave power on a commercial scale has failed to develop.  We may not yet have come up with a successful design, which may be specific to a wave environment.  http://e360.yale.edu/feature/why_wave_power_has_lagged_far_behind_as_energy_source/2760/

8.  Ocean acidity has risen 30%.  An article in PNAS finds that it is already dissolving the shells of marine snails off the US West Coast, with implications of broader damage.  http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_25664175/climate-change-pacific-ocean-acidity-dissolving-shells-key

9.  With the help of UC Davis, Honda has built a net-zero pilot home which came with its own FIT electric vehicle.  The 5 minute video describes several green features of the home.  http://climatecrocks.com/2014/04/30/why-honda-is-building-net-zero-homes/

10.  If we all began driving electric cars, what would be the effect on energy demand?  The question is more complex than it looked to me at first and the answer (whatever it is) likely to be less intimidating.  http://cleantechnica.com/2014/04/27/cars-us-electric-much-electricity-demand-increase/?utm_source=Cleantechnica+News&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=1250ef129b-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_term=0_b9b83ee7eb-1250ef129b-331994013
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