The Lubin Files

V11 countries adopts carbon declaration

The 11-nation group called the V11 issued a challenge yesterday at the Climate Vulnerable Forum, held in the Maldives.  Articles in BBC news online and tcktcktck describe their call for developed nations to pledge 1.5 percent of their Gross Domestic Product for climate action in the developing world.  The V11 will present their declaration at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen next month.

What carbon offsets pay for

Locals in the southeastern part of Brazil are being paid not to cut down trees, according to this article from The Economist.  Inspectors will visit the area to make sure the trees are still alive, and if they are, money will be credited to the debit card accounts of locals.

The funds come from carbon offsets paid by polluters in developed countries.

This strategy is known as “avoided deforestation” or “reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation” (REDD).  The David Lubin Memorial Library's catalogue lists several items on this topic.

Warmer than we thought?

BBC reports on disturbing new findings by the Met Office (the UK's National Weather Service) that the global average temperature could rise by 4°C (7.2°F) by 2060.

The prediction finds variations depending on geographic zone.  For example, it estimates that the temperature in the Arctic could rise by 15°C (27°F) by the end of the century.

The Met Office's projections are based upon an increase in the use of fossil fuels.  Perhaps the dire prediction will assist governments in policymaking and in planning for the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference in December.

Massive dust storm in Australia a manifestation of climate change

A few days ago, Sydney was enveloped in dust.  An enormous dust storm swept over thousands of kilometers in Australia and made the sky appear red.  Longtime drought conditions paired with severe winds to create the storm.

Health department officals declared the air quality to be 20 times the "hazardous" level.

According to this article, an enormous dust storm stripped several millimetres of topsoil from hundreds of square kilometres of farms across New South Wales.  The result will be a loss of soil productivity.

The Australian bureau of meteorology reported that this was the worst dust storm since the 1940s, with particle pollution up to 10 times worse than the previous record.

The swath of dust is impressive in this NASA satellite photo.

If you care to read more about the increase of dust storms due to climate change, the library has this book.

A larger approach to food security and environmental change

A recent editorial in Environmental Science and Policy makes for interesting reading.  The editors call for an integrated food system approach to the relationship between food security and environmental change, as opposed to the usual focus on agricultural practices.

The David Lubin Memorial Library has access to both the print and electronic versions of this publication.

Citation:
Ericksen, Polly J., John S.I. Ingram, and Diana M. Liverman. Food security and global environmental change: emerging challenges. Environmental Science & Policy 12.4 (June 2009): 373-377. Special Issue: Food Security and Environmental Change, Food Security and Environmental Change: Linking Science, Development and Policy for Adaptation. Elsevier Science. Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Plethora of full-text documents on major FAO topics

A library patron requested electronically-available FAO documents on the topics of climate change and food security; bioenergy and climate change, and climate adaptation.

Here is our list:

CLIMATE CHANGE AND FOOD SECURITY:

The State of Food Insecurity in the World (SOFI) High food prices and Food Security, threats and opportunities. http://www.fao.org/docrep/011/i0291e/i0291e00.htm

Climate Change & Food Security: a Framework Document.
http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/k2595e/k2595e00.htm

Climate change and biodiversity for food and agriculture. High Level Conference on World Food Security - Background Paper HLC/08/BAK/3. FAO.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/meeting/013/ai784e.pdf

FAO. 2008. Climate change, water and food security. High Level Conference on World Food Security - Background Paper HLC/08/BAK/2.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/meeting/013/ai783e.pdf

BIOENERGY:

The State of Food and Agriculture 2008. Biofuels: prospects, risks and opportunities: http://www.fao.org/docrep/011/i0100e/i0100e00.htm

High Level Conference on World Food Security:the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy. 
List of documents: http://www.fao.org/foodclimate/conference/doclist/en/?no_cache=1

FAO/IFPRI. 2008. Impact of Climate Change and Bioenergy on Nutrition. http://www.fao.org/ag/AGN/agns/files/HLC2_Food_Safety_Bioenergy_Climate_Change.pdf

The market and food security implications of the development of biofuel production. Background document for the FAO Committee on Commodity Problems 67th session. Rome, 20-22 April 2009.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/meeting/016/k4477e.pdf

Bioenergy, food security and sustainability - towards an international framework. Background document for the High-level Conference on World Food Security: the challenges of climate change and bionergy. Rome, 3-5 June 2008. http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/foodclimate/HLCdocs/HLC08-inf-3-E.pdf

Climate change, bioenergy and food security: options for decision-makers identified by expert meetings Background document for the High-level Conference on World Food Security: the challenges of climate change and bionergy. Rome, 3-5 June 2008.
http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/foodclimate/HLCdocs/HLC08-inf-5-E.pdf

CLIMATE ADAPTATION:

Low Greenhouse Gas Agriculture. Mitigation and adaptation potential of sustainable farming systems.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/010/ai781e/ai781e00.pdf

Climate change adaptation and mitigation in the food and agriculture sector. High Level Conference on World Food Security - Background Paper HLC/08/BAK/1. FAO.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/meeting/013/ai782e.pdf

Climate change adaptation and mitigation: challenges and opportunities in the food sector. High Level Conference on World Food Security - Information Paper HLC/08/INF/2.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/meeting/013/k2545e.pdf

Dryland Pastoral Systems and Climate Change: Implications and Opportunities for Mitigation and Adaptation.
http://www.fao.org/climatechange/media/15537/0/0/

Terrestrial essential climatic variables for climate change monitoring, mitigation and adaptation. Rome, FAO.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/010/a1430e/a1430e.pdf

Climate change and disaster risk management. High Level Conference on World Food Security - Background Paper HLC/08/BAK/5. FAO.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/meeting/013/ai786e.pdf

Research by fire

Researchers are torching sections of Brazilian rainforest.  They seek answers about the survival of tropical forests in an age of more frequent wildfires.  As forests burn down, an increasing occurrence with global warming, grasses sprout, spread, and change the landscape. 

An additional point of this research is to quantify the amount (believed to be significant) of carbon released in such fires.  (From The Economist.)

Agroforestry Congress promotes 'green' agriculture

The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have called for worldwide adoption of sustainable farming practices.  Such practices, they said, would not only combat climate change, but also increase production and provide sustainable timber sources.  The topic will be discussed further at the 2nd World Congress of Agroforestry, to be held in Nairobi from 23-28 August 2009.

Farming's role in climate change

A podcast by David Biello for Scientific American reports on the ways in which farming practices contribute to climate change through soil degradation.  He also describes methods of soil preservation.

Prize-winning solar cooker

A 2-layered box solar cooker that costs about $5 to make has won the Financial Times Climate Change Challenge.  Low-cost Solar cookers are not new, but their design has evolved, and they have caught the attention of those interested in eco-friendly, inexpensive and practical ways to improve public health and environmental conditions in the developing world.

The founder of the prize-winning Kyoto Box, Jon Bøhmer, plans to use the prize money to conduct mass trials of a longer-lasting version of the cooker in 10 countries. 

The benefits of solar cookers are many.  Some include:

-reduced desertification
-reduced deforestation
-reduced emissions from burning fuel
-reduced risk of respiratory illness resulting from inhaling smoke from indoor fires
-reduced risk of gastrointestinal illness from drinking impure water (water can be boiled in the solar cookers)
-reduced risk of attack in certain danger zones (women need not venture far to seek firewood)
-improved standard of living for those without home utilities

Reference: Anonymous. Cardboard box cooker wins prize. (2009). Appropriate Technology, 36(2), 20-21. [available to FAO staff through Proquest database]