Tag Archives: year

2012 saw the fewest wildfires in a decade — but the second-most acres burned ever

by biglermyrta910 Posted on December 12, 2012

2012 saw the fewest wildfires in a decade — but the second-most acres burned ever

By Philip Bump

This is the most calm the Forest Service’s active fire map has looked all year.

USFS

After all, here was the year 2012 in fires, as compiled by NASA.

NASA/E360

From the description: “Areas of yellow and orange indicate larger and more intense fires, while many of the less intense fires, shown in red, represent prescribed burns started for brush clearing and agriculture and ecosystem management.” Click to embiggen.

Through August, the continental U.S. had seen the most acreage burned by wildfires in history. Happily, that trend didn’t continue. We only came in second.

Data from

National Interagency Fire Center

.

2012 was actually not a bad year for fires as discrete incidents. But notice how few fires did all of that damage. As we noted over the summer, the link between fire intensity and climate change isn’t direct. Clearly, though, the year’s epic drought meant drier conditions — and such drought is strongly correlated to climatic shifts. So it’s not surprising to see that this year’s fires were the most intense in a decade.

Data from

National Interagency Fire Center

.

It’s this acres-burned-per-fire number that we don’t want to see rising in the future. Let’s hope this year is an aberration — particularly those of us who live near wildlands.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Gotta wear shades: Solar installations hit new annual record

by Myrna Posted on December 11, 2012

Gotta wear shades: Solar installations hit new annual record

By Philip Bump

Year-over-year solar installations in the U.S. are up! Again! Up up up!

Greentech Media

Click to embiggen.

From Greentech Media:

[T]he U.S. solar photovoltaics (PV) market installed 684 megawatts in the third quarter (Q3) of 2012, representing 44-percent growth over the same period last year. This quarter marked the third largest on record for the U.S. PV industry and raised the total installed capacity through the first three quarters of the year to 1,992 megawatts — already surpassing 2011’s annual total of 1,885 megawatts.

Cumulatively, there are now 5.9 gigawatts of PV (which converts sunlight directly into electricity) operating in the U.S. from more than 271,000 installations. Combined with concentrating solar power facilities (CSP), which convert the sun’s heat to electricity, there are more than 6.4 gigawatts of solar electric capacity installed in the U.S., enough to power more than one million average American households.

But! Fox News is worried! “California doubles down on solar power, as critics question cost, job results.” Oh no!

Shutterstock

Your internet lesson for the day: This is what is known as “concern trolling.” Fox News is not legitimately worried that perhaps solar power — which it thinks is great, mind you! — is suffering setbacks. No, Fox News wants to see solar power vanish in a gigantic gasoline-fuelled fireball because renewable energy goes against Republican party orthodoxy.

The Fox story contains this paragraph:

Solar also promised to be a cheap source of power, fueled by the sun. What the industry didn’t say is the technology only converts a fraction of the sun’s energy, and the intermittent nature of sunshine does not produce the power promised.

“What the industry didn’t say is the technology only converts a fraction of the sun’s energy.” Saying that was maybe unneccessary? The sun, it turns out, is an incomprehensibly massive, fusion-reaction-powered star. Every second, it buffets the Earth with enough energy to fuel our current demands for thousands of years. So, yeah, solar panels don’t capture all of that energy.

And:

While solar has been painted an environmentally clean power, especially when compared with carbon-based fossil fuels, it is not without impact and growing opposition among preservationists.

I mean, what do you say to that?

Solar power generation and capacity continue to grow in the United States. If you’re unclear on why that’s a good thing, change the channel.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Hundreds of new winter farmers markets open for the season

by Myrna Posted on December 7, 2012

Hundreds of new winter farmers markets open for the season

By Susie Cagle

There are 52 percent more winter farmers markets operating in the U.S. this year compared to last, the Department of Agriculture announced this week. Winter markets now make up a larger share of farmers market sales throughout the year, even if they’re not quite as well stocked with delicious goodies. (I miss you, summer tomatoes.)

But winter’s nice too! Roasty chestnuts and hot apple cider? Yes please! Oh, and I guess I’ll take that kale too.

Susie Cagle writes and draws news for Grist. She also writes and draws tweets for

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The 2012 Arctic report card: We’re going to need some summer school

by Myrna Posted on December 6, 2012

The 2012 Arctic report card: We’re going to need some summer school

By Philip Bump

Each year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration releases a “report card” for how the Arctic is doing. This year, the Arctic gets an incomplete and a notice to be signed by its parents stating that it will require tutoring.

Warning: sad polar bears.

The report focuses on two primary findings. First, that the year’s record ice loss comes despite a relatively unremarkable year, temperature-wise.

A major finding of the Report Card 2012 is that numerous record-setting melting events occurred, even though, with the exception of a few limited episodes, Arctic-wide it was an unremarkable year, relative to the previous decade, for a primary driver of melting — surface air temperatures. From October 2011 through August 2012, positive (warm) temperature anomalies were relatively small over the central Arctic compared to conditions in recent years (2003-2010). Yet, in spite of these moderate conditions, new records were set for sea ice extent, terrestrial snow extent, melting at the surface of the Greenland ice sheet, and permafrost temperature.

A reminder: Here’s how this year’s ice melt compared to the past.

Pettit Climate Graphs

Click to embiggen.

The unusually severe melt despite non-unusual temperatures is in part due to the feedback loop of melt itself.

A major source of this momentum is the fact that changes in the sea ice cover, snow cover, glaciers and Greenland ice sheet all conspire to reduce the overall surface reflectivity of the region in the summer, when the sun is ever-present. In other words, bright, white surfaces that reflect summer sunlight are being replaced by darker surfaces, e.g., ocean and land, which absorb sunlight. These conditions increase the capacity to store heat within the Arctic system, which enables more melting — a positive feedback.

The other main finding is that the melt of ice in the Arctic region is affecting the food chain.

A second key point in Report Card 2012 is that changes in the Arctic marine environment are affecting the foundation of the food web in both the terrestrial and marine ecosystems. …

For instance, new satellite remote sensing observations show the near ubiquity of ice-edge blooms throughout the Arctic and the importance of seasonal sea ice variability in regulating primary production. These results suggest that previous estimates of annual primary production in waters where these under-ice blooms develop may be about ten times too low. At a higher trophic level, seabird phenology, diet, physiology, foraging behavior and survival rates have changed in response to higher water temperatures, which affect prey species.

Changes in the terrestrial ecosystem are exemplified by vegetation and mammals. The tundra continues to become more green and in some locations above-ground plant biomass has increased by as much as 26% since 1982.

That change in surface vegetation has caused the lemming population to drop, which, in turn, has done the same to the Arctic fox, a species near extinction. At the same time, red foxes are migrating north, providing additional competition for shrinking food supplies.

So: That’s grim.

The report is loaded with graphs featuring lines that typically start at the upper left corner and then plummet down and to the right. It also contains interesting graphics like this one, showing the effect that an August storm had on ice breakup and melt near Alaska.

NASA

Click to embiggen.

It’s probably not really accurate to call this document a report card. It’s far more of a crystal ball, sort of an SAT gauging how the future might look. And it doesn’t look very good.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Nearly 50 percent of new electricity generation added in 2012 was renewable

by Myrna Posted on December 5, 2012

Nearly 50 percent of new electricity generation added in 2012 was renewable

By Philip Bump

Every month, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission puts out a report called the “Energy Infrastructure Update” [PDF]. It is done in Microsoft Word by someone whose first priority isn’t aesthetics.

But it does contain interesting information! Among which, this time: From January through October, 46.2 percent of new electricity-generating capacity added in the U.S. was renewable.

From Renewable Energy World:

During the first ten months of 2012, 92 wind projects (5,403 MW), 167 solar projects (1,032 MW), 79 biomass projects (409 MW), seven geothermal projects (123 MW), and 9 water power projects (12 MW) have come on-line. Collectively, these total 6,979 MW or 46.22% of all new generating capacity added since the beginning of the year.

By comparison, new natural gas capacity additions since January 1, 2012 totaled 67 projects (5,702 MW) or 37.8% while three new coal projects added 2,276 MW (15.1%). Nuclear and oil represented just 0.8% and 0.1% of new capacity additions respectively.

For the first 10 months of 2011, renewable energy constituted just under 30 percent of new generation.

The story here is wind, which accounted for 77 percent of all new renewable production capacity.

Earlier this week, we noted that consumption of renewably generated power continues to increase. For that to happen, production must increase too, of course. In that sense, it’s bad news that so much of the new renewable capacity is wind, since wind is also the most at risk as Congress drags its feet on a key tax credit that allows wind to compete with fossil fuels. If it’s not renewed, the pie chart next year might look like this:

And that, Microsoft Word or not, is ugly.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Renewable energy consumption is expected to keep rising in the U.S. — sort of

by Myrna Posted on December 3, 2012

Renewable energy consumption is expected to keep rising in the U.S. — sort of

By Philip Bump

The U.S. Energy Information Administration has what seems, at first blush, like bad news. Renewable energy consumption in the U.S. is expected to drop 2.6 percent this year. Here’s a graph of the dip. (Note: Both the 2012 and 2013 values are estimates.)

Click to embiggen.

But buried in the data is the explanation: The drop is only due to hydropower “[beginning] to return to its long-term average.” Take out hydropower, and you have a 4.2 percent increase.

Click to embiggen.

But there’s another caveat. The estimates are based on two assumptions.

The first is that the wind production tax credit (PTC) is renewed. This is a pretty big “if.” The tax credit, you may remember, is a bolster that allows the wind industry to compete in the rigged production game with fossil fuels. Fossil fuel companies are eager to see the PTC expire as it’s slated to at the end of the month, with one Koch-allied group pushing hard on the issue. If the PTC isn’t renewed, it’s safe to assume that the projections above will prove to be far too optimistic.

That said, there is some good wind news today. The New York Times notes that the government is holding another offshore auction next year — but this time, for wind energy. How much is generated by that auction — in terms of money and electricity — depends on what happens on Capitol Hill by the 31st.

The other caveat in those EIA projections is that solar continues to grow at about 30 percent a year. The solar industry (whose own PTC is expiring at the end of 2013) isn’t sitting on its hands. Over the weekend, the Times reported on how the industry is taking a page from Tupperware in selling its panels.

Environmentalists, government officials and sales representatives have been trying to get Americans to go solar for decades, with limited success. Despite the long push, solar power still represents less than 1 percent of electricity generated in the United States. Home solar panel setups, which typically run $25,000 or more, are considered by many consumers to be the province of the rich or idealistic.

So now solar companies are adhering to a path blazed by Tupperware decades ago, figuring that the best sales people are often enthusiastic customers willing to share their experiences with friends and neighbors — and perhaps earn a referral fee on any sales that result.

It’s a smart strategy: As we’ve noted before, peer pressure shows a demonstrable effect on solar panel adoption.

And, finally, some context. Here’s the breakdown of energy consumption between renewables, nuclear, and fossil fuels.

A 4 percent increase in renewable consumption is better than a decrease. But it will take a whole lot of solar-ware parties before we’re actually making a real dent in our greenhouse gas emissions.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Watch every hurricane that formed during the third-most-active season in history

by Myrna Posted on November 29, 2012

Watch every hurricane that formed during the third-most-active season in history

By Philip Bump

Here, in just shy of four and a half minutes, is the entire 2012 hurricane season. Assuming, that is, that no tropical storms crop up in the next 36 hours or so; hurricane season ends on Nov. 30.

It’s pretty, in its way. Humbling, watching the patterns and the flow of the clouds as they work their way slowly around the ocean. For the planet, Sandy was just another spinning formation, made and gone and forgotten.

For us, Sandy was the capstone to what the Capital Weather Gang notes was tied for the third-most-active hurricane season in history.

In an average season (using 1981-2010 as a baseline), there are 12.1 named storms, 6.4 hurricanes, and 2.7 major hurricanes. This season ended up with 19 named storms, 10 of which became hurricanes, but just 1 of those became a major hurricane (defined as category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale). The 19 named storms ties for the third greatest number of such storms in a season on record. Historically, only about 3 percent of seasons experience 19 or more named storms. As rare as this feat is, it was amazingly the third consecutive season to have 19 named storms!

Despite this year’s large number of named storms, major hurricane activity was minimal. Of all the seasons with at least 19 named storms, the previous lowest number of “major hurricane days” was 3.75. This year, the total was a meager 0.25 days (six hours).

NOAA

Every storm of 2012. Click to embiggen.

There’s another measure by which 2012 was exceptional.

Another metric for evaluating seasonal activity is known as Accumulated Cyclone Energy, or ACE. ACE is basically a wind energy index used to succinctly characterize a season by the intensity and duration of all of the storms. The 2012 season finished up at 126.2, or about 137 percent of an average season. The median value over the period 1951-2010 is 92.4, and any season that exceeds 103 is considered to be “above normal”; however, there must also be at least two major hurricanes to meet the “above normal” criteria. As of now, Michael is 2012’s only major hurricane, but it’s quite possible that Sandy will be upgraded to a major hurricane when it was near Cuba. Nadine, the fifth-longest-lasting storm on record, contributed to 20% of the total ACE, while Sandy contributed to 11% of the total.

So, in short, this year we had an extremely active and highly energetic hurricane season that resulted in billions of dollars of damage on the East Coast and the Caribbean.

If only there were something humans could do to lessen the amount of energy in the atmosphere and prevent future years of similar intensity.

Source

Third most active hurricane season on record (tie) ends Friday, Capital Weather Gang

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Tobacco companies ordered to admit deception. Heads up, coal industry

by Myrna Posted on November 28, 2012

Tobacco companies ordered to admit deception. Heads up, coal industry

By Philip Bump

Yesterday, a federal judge ruled that tobacco companies will have to pay for an advertising campaign admitting that they lied for years about the health impacts of cigarettes.

From Reuters:

[U.S. District Judge Gladys] Kessler’s ruling on Tuesday, which the companies could try to appeal, aims to finalize the wording of five different statements the companies will be required to use.

One of them begins: “A federal court has ruled that the defendant tobacco companies deliberately deceived the American public by falsely selling and advertising low tar and light cigarettes as less harmful than regular cigarettes.”

Another statement includes the wording: “Smoking kills, on average, 1,200 Americans. Every day.”

The effect on consumers will be modest: Anyone who doesn’t yet realize that the tobacco industry spent years obfuscating its role in damaging public health is probably not a terribly productive member of society. But the case is notable both for holding the companies accountable — a very good thing — and for establishing precedent. In case, you know, other industries that wantonly damage public health lie about the effects of their products.

fried dough

The only thing you could ever burn that could damage your health.

On a completely unrelated note, did you know that the coal industry has a number of billboards up in Pennsylvania advertising how great coal is? Look, here are some examples. “Increasingly Green,” one says. “Clean & Green” is a common tagline. I’m not sure how the industry can trumpet coal as being clean, much less green, given that it has a demonstrable track record of being filthy and deadly when burned. The health effects are similar to those caused by tobacco use, in fact: lung disease, acute heart problems. (We’ll update this post in the year 2200 with the full body count from climate change, assuming things have settled down by then.)

The only way coal gets cleaner is if you filter out the pollution, which would be like, say, tobacco companies claiming that it’s safer to smoke cigarettes because of the improved filters they’re using. Coal doesn’t have any built-in filter, any way to be cleaner. Saying coal is cleaner because the EPA is making coal plants better filter the emissions is like tobacco companies saying cigarettes are healthier if you smoke them through a gas mask.

But anyway, the coal industry in Pennsylvania is littering the thruway with billboard after billboard falsely touting how clean its product is. I wonder if there’s any mechanism by which it could be held to account?

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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