A new analysis calculates that vegetation in the world’s tropical regions stores about 229 billion tons of carbon, which is about 21 percent more carbon than previously believed.

Using remote sensing satellite data — including cloud-penetrating LiDAR — and field observations from forests, woodlands and savannas across Africa, Asia, and South America, researchers say they were able to create the first “wall-to-wall” map depicting carbon density.

According to their results, Brazilian rainforests store about 53.2 billion tons of carbon, followed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (22 billion) and Indonesia (18.6). “For the first time we were able to derive accurate estimates of carbon densities using satellite LiDAR observations in places that have never been measured,” said Alessandro Baccini of the Woods Hole Research Center the lead author of the study published in the journal Nature Climate Change.

The results could help improve the accuracy of reporting carbon emissions as part of the UN-based REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) initiative, which provides incentives to developing nations to prevent large-scale deforestation.

Article appearing courtesy Yale Environment 360.

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More than half of the states in the nation have created programs to increase the energy efficiency of homes through a comprehensive approach that looks at all opportunities to save energy, from insulation to upgrading heating and cooling systems. When taxpayer and ratepayer dollars are used, it is essential that these programs are reviewed with a cost-effectiveness test that provides policymakers with adequate knowledge about the programs’ effectiveness. Unfortunately, in many states, the testing system is deeply flawed. The way cost-effectiveness tests are currently applied frequently hinders the design and implementation of residential energy efficiency programs, particularly programs intended to support comprehensive energy efficiency upgrades.

For three decades, the Total Resource Cost (TRC) test has been the principle screening tool that regulators have used to assess the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency programs and make decisions regarding the use of ratepayer dollars to support the programs. Unfortunately, the way the TRC test is applied often leads to support for single-measure programs rather than whole-house retrofits – despite the fact that the whole-house approach actually delivers deeper and more cost-effective energy savings. Because of this, the TRC test, when poorly applied, impedes the realization of significant, cost-effective energy savings through state-run energy efficiency programs.

In general, whole-house programs do not tend to score as well in the TRC test as single-measure programs that encourage highly cost-effective measures, such as lighting. This is due in part to the different ways in which the TRC test is implemented, some of which cause particular difficulties for whole-house programs. The TRC test typically includes participant contributions to the cost of an energy efficiency upgrade, resulting in a poor score for a highly leveraged whole-house program – even if leveraging public dollars with private investment is generally seen as desirable in other contexts. On the flip side, the TRC test fails to capture the full benefits of energy efficiency, such as increased comfort, which are frequently significant, although difficult to quantify. To make matters worse, the TRC is sometimes used to screen each individual measure or project, which might sound cost-effective in practice, but creates confusion about what jobs are eligible, decreases customer interest, and adds to a program’s administrative costs.

New York, which for years has been a leader in home performance programs, recently implemented a rule requiring application of the TRC at the measure-level. As a result, the program’s output is declining after years of steady growth. Elsewhere, the application of the TRC has discouraged the creation of strong whole-house energy efficiency programs, or has forced program administrators to develop create programs designed to pass cost-effectiveness tests, rather than to deliver real energy savings to homeowners.

So what should be done to ensure the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency programs across the country is more accurately evaluated?

Policy-makers and commissioners should adopt a different tool, the Program Administrator Cost (PAC) test, which compares the cost of reducing energy consumption to the cost of supplying an equivalent amount of energy. The Program Administrator Cost test makes sense as the primary screening tool for energy efficiency programs because it is relatively simple to administer, and provides a good measure of whether an energy efficient program delivers savings at a cost comparable to the cost of generating and supplying energy.

If the PAC test is not adopted as the primary test, a set of “best practices” should be used to administer the TRC test. Examples of best practices include testing cost-effectiveness on a program-wide or portfolio basis (not at the level of individual projects or measures), and including all benefits as well as all costs.

It is clear that the current process of evaluating the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency programs needs fundamental change. The existing cost-effectiveness tests, as currently implemented, frequently undermine important public policy goals, such as job creation, carbon reduction, and energy independence. We need to stop undermining these important policy goals and ensure that policymakers have the right information, thanks to the right testing, to help homeowners save energy.

For a more detailed report on these issues, please see the National Home Performance Council’s new report entitled, Getting to Fair Cost-Effectiveness Testing: Using the PAC Test, Best Practices for the TRC Test, and Beyond.

Article by Kara Saul Rinaldi, Executive Director of the National Home Performance Council, a 501(c)(3) dedicated to encouraging improved home energy performance using a whole-house approach.

Article appearing courtesy Energy Efficiency Markets.

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While deforestation is considered a critical factor in global warming since it causes the release of carbon, scientists say that in northern latitudes tree loss may actually have a net cooling effect.

In an analysis of temperature data collected from Florida to Manitoba, researchers from 20 institutions found that in the boreal region — north of 45 degrees latitude — the surface temperatures in open grassy areas were cooler than in adjacent forests because the snow reflected the sun’s rays back into space.

In those areas, researchers say, the darker forests absorbed the sun’s heat. “The cooling effect is linear with latitude, so the farther north you go, the cooler you get with deforestation,” said Xuhui Lee, a professor of meteorology at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and the lead investigator of the study, published in the journal Nature.

For instance, in regions north of Minnesota (45 degrees latitude) temperatures in deforested areas decreased by an average of 1.5 degrees F, while in areas south of North Carolina (35 degrees latitude), deforestation appeared to cause warming.

Article appearing courtesy Yale Environment 360.

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A family trip recently brought me back to China for a few weeks. I was in a small provincial capital — quieter than Beijing or Shanghai and the kind of place that has seen explosive population growth in the past ten years.

I spent some time this trip trying to understand the extent to which Chinese society worries about sustainability. There are several places where China and other so-called “developing countries” have a legacy sustainability advantage over the US. For instance, the Chinese don’t use a lot of air conditioning in their buildings and they heat to a lower temperature in the winter. Their daily food is bought in markets and supermarkets that seem to get most of their supplies directly from local farmers. There are some big milk distributors and a lot of packaged foods on the shelves — but most people’s daily rations come more directly to their table than they do in the U.S. — and come in some cases on bicycles and other lower-carbon transport means!

There seems to be ample (crowded) public transport to supplement bicycles, motor scooters and cars. Intercity travel by air or by private car is possible, but most ordinary people go from one place to another by train or bus. While there are commuting traffic jams, they are mild by comparison to those in a smaller city like Memphis or Columbus — Chinese office workers seem to show up at work when they feel like it and come and go during the day as they wish.

On the other hand, things are changing and the changes seem likely to add pressure in the future to our world’s environment. There is a shift from small, family-tended farms (with stable water use and soil quality) to larger machine-tended farms. These organizations often grow water-intensive and cultivation-intensive crops. Local rivers may no longer fill their beds throughout the year and this causes problems for sewage disposal and drinking water needs.

There has been a massive growth in private housing. From any point of view, a visitor can see eight or ten construction cranes working on tall apartment blocks. These new complexes will simultaneously increase the average living area for city residents and the density of the city’s population. The added living space will create demand for heating and cooling — and for furnishings, cleaning supplies, etc. The increase in density may start to snarl traffic and encourage a shift towards buying in large department stores instead of local shops. In turn, this may further increase purchases of private autos and a resulting shift in travel habits. TV programs (and TV ads) display this lifestyle, with dramas that include expensive dinners, tailored clothing, and other luxuries.

There are signs of interest in sustainable behavior. I took the following shot of a young man wearing a compact fluorescent light bulb outfit. He was part of a Phillips booth that had been put outside a department store. I assume the goal was to convince shoppers to convert from incandescent lights to fluorescents, but I did not see any comparable focus inside the store on “Energy Star” type power-saving appliances or other consumer-facing load reducing programs. Still, I may have missed them amid the throng of shoppers, sellers, and the plethora of goods that are now available to Chinese consumers.

The new pattern of life that these changes create may have positive effects on the daily life for ordinary citizens — at least for a while. But, there may not be enough resources available to move more than a fraction of the China’s population away from their traditional low impact, sustainable lifestyle towards a higher consumption model. Perhaps this hard-working, high-energy society will come up with a new model — something they can teach us? If they don’t, we may see a dramatic increase in competition for our world’s increasingly scarce natural resources.

Article by Bahar Gidwani, Cofounder and CEO of CSRHUB. Formerly, he was the CEO of New York-based Index Stock Imagery, Inc, from 1991 through its sale in 2006. He has built and run large technology-based businesses and has experience building a multi-million visitor Web site. Bahar holds a CFA, was a partner at Kidder, Peabody & Co., and worked at McKinsey & Co. Bahar has consulted to both large companies such as Citibank, GE, and Acxiom and a number of smaller software and Web-based companies. He has an MBA (Baker Scholar) from Harvard Business School and a BS in Astronomy and Physics (magna cum laude) from Amherst College. Bahar races sailboats, plays competitive bridge, and is based in New York City.

Article appearing courtesy 3BL Media.

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Students at Fundação Educacional Inaciana (FEI) in Brazil have developed two car prototypes whose goal is to be light and economical. One of them is made of aluminium, but the one that really caught our attention is a vehicle that can run 300 miles on one liter of gasoline.

The model is called X-16. It is made with 100% carbon, weighs only 38kg and can reach 28 miles per hour.

As experimental prototypes, they are not fit for the mass production market. But that’s not the point, said FEI’s mechanical engineering teacher, Ricardo Bock. “What we want is to train engineers who are different and who have a social awareness.”

Article by Antonio Pasolini, a Brazilian writer and video art curator based in London, UK. He holds a BA in journalism and an MA in film and television.

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The conversion of the planet’s ecosystems into cropland — particularly in tropical rainforests — is stretching the Earth’s ability to store carbon, according to a new study. The demand for new agricultural land is growing most rapidly in the tropics, due to growing populations, changing diets, food security concerns, and a rising demand for biofuels.

But not only is the crop yield weakest in those regions, the clear-cutting of tropical forest results in twice as much carbon released into the atmosphere per unit of land as in temperate regions, since the forests act as massive carbon sinks, according to the study published the Proceedings of the National Academies.

“In terms of balancing the needs of food production and slowing carbon dioxide emissions, this is a tough tradeoff,” said Jonathan Foley, director of the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment and co-author of the study, which researchers call the most comprehensive analysis on the tradeoff between carbon storage and crop production.

Researchers suggest a better alternative to clearing new cropland is more efficient use of existing farmland.

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Putting the word green and carbon together may sound like an oxymoron to most people. But researchers at Rice University in Houston, Texas, working at the new Green Carbon Center, think that instead of being a “villain in the global warming debate”, carbon could be a “boon if the world can learn to use it well”.

And how can that be achieved? “The key is to turn carbon dioxide into a useful material so it’s no longer waste,” says James Tour, a chemistry professor at Rice. “We want the center to partner with energy companies – including oil, natural gas and coal – to make carbon a profitable resource.”

The center is part of Rice’s Richard E. Smalley Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, and will “draw upon the combined knowledge of the university’s nanotechnology experts, for whom the development of clean and plentiful energy is a priority.”

In a paper published by Nature Materials, Tour and colleagues Vicki Colvin and Carter Kittrell state that since fossil fuels will play a major role in the economy for many decades to come, despite the expansion of renewable energy, the center will try to develop the technological expertise to back up what it calls “green carbon” to make a transition to a clean tech future.

One of the processes suggested by the authors is carbon dioxide separated from hydrogen through steam methane reformation, which then could be repurposed immediately as a basic feedstock for chemicals or sequestered temporarily in tapped-out oil wells. They claim that compressed and liquefied carbon could even replace water to enhance oil and gas recovery.

The researchers believe humanity would benefit tremendously if it could develop an efficient catalytic process to convert carbon dioxide back to methanol, formaldehyde or other small molecules. They foresee a market for carbon in dry cleaning to replace harmful chlorocarbons and as a refrigerant to replace materials that are 1,000 times as potent as greenhouse gases.

“The whole idea,” Tour added, “is to lower the carbon dioxide footprint and to show you don’t have to get rid of anybody’s energy source.”

Article by Antonio Pasolini, a Brazilian writer and video art curator based in London, UK. He holds a BA in journalism and an MA in film and television.

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Developing genetically modified trees and plants could capture billions of tons of carbon from the atmosphere annually and reduce the impacts of global warming, a new U.S. study says. In the study, researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory explore methods of enhancing the processes by which plants sequester carbon dioxide from the air and convert it into long-lived forms of carbon that can be stored inside the plants — and, ultimately, in the soil.

The scientists said it could be possible to genetically alter plants and trees so they send more carbon to their roots, where some carbon would be absorbed by the soil, where it could be stored for centuries. Another possibility is making plants better resistant to the stresses of growing on marginal land, which would not only improve plant production for bioenergy and food crops but also increase the carbon the plants can pull from the atmosphere. The study is published in the journal BioScience.

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(Reuters) – About 45 nations met on Thursday to seek ways to raise billions of dollars in aid to help the poor combat climate change as the United Nations warned them of a long haul to slow global warming.

Environment ministers and senior officials in Geneva were reviewing whether rich nations, hit by austerity cuts, are keeping a promise of $30 billion in “new and additional” climate aid for 2010-12 made at the U.N.’s Copenhagen summit.

“The funds are critical” to build trust between rich and poor, Christiana Figueres, the U.N.’s climate chief, told Reuters in an interview.

About 120 countries in Copenhagen also pledged to increase aid for developing nations to $100 billion aid a year from 2020.

Figueres said cash could be a key to unlock progress on other climate problems, such as sharing clean technologies or protecting carbon-storing forests at the next meeting of environment ministers in Cancun, Mexico, from November 29-December 10.

Swiss Environment Minister Moritz Leuenberger told the start of the two-day talks that “the regulation of the financial issues is a key precondition for the successful conclusion of the climate negotiations in Cancun.”

But Figueres predicted there would be no new global treaty to combat climate change in Cancun, even though she said that extreme weather such as floods in Pakistan or Russia’s heat wave were “warning bells” about the risks of inaction.

“I don’t think that governments are considering (a treaty) for Cancun,” she said. A year ago, many nations were hoping that the Copenhagen summit in December would be a “big bang” deal to help solve climate change.

But that didn’t happen and Figueres said it was more realistic to look for gradual progress in solving climate change, adding that there was no “magic bullet.”

Cancun could end up setting a new deadline for working out a more binding deal, perhaps by the end of 2012.

CANCUN

Figueres said it was vital that developed nations be able to point to $10 billion allocated to climate aid for 2010 by the time they meet in Cancun. But she urged developing nations to give leeway in judging if it was truly “new and additional” as agreed in Copenhagen.’

She said that all nations’ 2010 budgets were agreed by national parliaments by the time of the December summit. “There are justifiable reasons to see why 100 percent of this allocation (in 2010) will not be additional,” she said.

The Netherlands plans to launch a new website on Friday to track climate promises.

An overview by Reuters shows that aid promises total $29.8 billion for 2010-12, but it is unclear how much is new. Japan, for instance, has pledged the most aid, at $15 billion, but much of that was decided several years ago.

Figueres told a news conference that the Copenhagen pledge meant $100 billion a year from 2020 was a “minimum” required.

She also said that the world could make progress even if the United States did not pass legislation to curb emissions by 2020 in line what she called a “pledge” by President Barack Obama in Copenhagen. U.S. legislation has stalled in the Senate.

Article by Alister Doyle, edited by Noah Barkin; appearing courtesy Reuters.

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Scientists have compiled the first map detailing the height of forests worldwide, an inventory they hope will provide new insights into global carbon storage. The map — compiled from data collected over seven years using NASA satellite laser technology that can measure vertical “slices” of different tree heights in forests — shows that the tallest forests on Earth are in the Pacific Northwest of North America and across parts of Southeast Asia. Shorter forests predominate across northern Canada and Eurasia.

The tallest canopies are found in temperate conifer forests, which include Douglas fir, redwoods, and sequoias, and can easily reach 131 feet (40 meters) in height; some California redwoods are more than 300 feet tall. In contrast, boreal forests — which include spruce, fir, larch, and pine — have canopies that are typically less than 66 feet. NASA scientists hope the map will help them determine how much of the world’s carbon is stored in forests; which types of forest absorb more carbon than others; where some 2 billion tons of “missing” carbon released by humans annually ends up; and how well the planet can continue to absorb rising CO2 emissions.

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