EU ice2sea report offers new estimates of sea level rise

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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The EU’s ice2sea program helps to determine potential future impacts of rising sea levels.

Research focuses on contribution of melting glaciers, ice caps and ice shelves

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — After four years of studies and more than 150 peer-reviewed papers, The EU-funded ice2sea program has concluded that melting ice may not contribute as much to sea level rise as some other studies have suggested.

Under a moderate greenhouse gas emissions scenario, the contribution from continental ice will likely amount to between 3.5 and 36.8 centimeters (1.4 to 14.5 inches) by 2100, the program’s leaders said this week, unveiling a new report that summarizes their research. The report is online at the ice2sea home page.

Some of the ice2sea studies have:

The new report includes several case studies outlining the impacts of sea level rise to specific areas, including economically valuable developed areas like the port of Rotterdam and the Thames Estuary, as well as natural areas with unique natural values, like the Machair ecosystems in Ireland and Scotland that thrive in a delicate balance of land and sea. (more…)

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Climate: New study helps illustrate how CO2 affects Arctic

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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A new study suggests the Earth’s climate system is more sensitive to CO2 changes than assumed by the IPCC’s 2007 global climate report.

Researchers establish longest regional climate record using sediment cores from an Arctic Lake that’s been undisturbed for 3.6 million years

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Sediment cores from a crater lake in Siberia are helping scientists understand how varying concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide affect the Arctic climate.

The sediment cores help establish the longest continuous climate record from the region, showing that the Arctic was a very warm place during a period about 3.5 to 2 million years ago, when CO2 levels were similar to today’s.

The research leads to the conclusion that even small fluctuations in CO2 can result in big changes in the Arctic, according to Julie Brigham-Grette, of the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

The study indicates Arctic may have been much warmer during that era than other climate studies suggest, and that the planet’s climate system is probably more sensitive to CO2 levels than assumed in the 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (more…)

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Summit Voice: Week in review and most-viewed stories

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Will the federal government tolerate marijuana legalization?

FRISCO — Cycling and wrangling over marijuana legalization are both popular topics in Colorado these days, which is reflected by this week’s list of most-viewed stories. Third on the list, surprisingly to me, was a somewhat wonk-oriented story about a conservation bill introduced in Congress — but maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise, since anything that involves bipartisan compromise in Washington, D.C. these days is truly newsworthy.

Two of the Summit Voice photo essays also managed to crack the top-10 list, including some sweet shots of our big spring snowstorm, and, of course, a pair of stories about the deadly Loveland Pass slide were also in the mix. Click “Read More” to see the list, as well as a roundup of headlines. (more…)

Filed under: Arctic, climate and weather, Colorado, Drought, Environment, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Global warming: New report eyes significant Arctic threats

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

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Coordinated planning needed to address major environmental and social challenges

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Increased coastal erosion, bigger and more destructive tundra fires and caribou starvation are just a few of the impacts anticipated in a  major new report on the Arctic.

The report, compiled by an interagency working group, calls for an integrated management strategy for the rapidly changing region, using a coordinated approach that uses the best available science to integrate cultural, environmental and economic factors in decision-making about development and conservation.

“This report chronicles how Arctic residents are dealing with rapid, climate change-induced impacts on their resources and traditional ways of life at the same time that new economic activity and opportunities are emerging — notably oil and gas, marine transportation, tourism and mining,” Deputy Interior Secretary David Hayes. (more…)

Filed under: Arctic, climate and weather, global warming | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Biodiversity: The complex web of Arctic life

Posted on April 28, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Pikas in the Arctic may rely on caterpillars to fertilize grass. Photo courtesy Kim Fenske.

Biologists document biological connection between pikas and Arctic caterpillars

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — With the Arctic warming up at a rapid pace, there’s a good chance that the ecosystems will change drastically at all levels. University of Alberta Researchers tracking those changes said they were surprised when they discovered a previously unknown relationship between pikas and Arctic caterpillars.

Biologist Isabel C. Barrio analyzed how two herbivores, caterpillars and pikas, competed for scarce vegetation in alpine areas of the southwest Yukon. The caterpillars come out of their winter cocoons and start consuming vegetation soon after the snow melts in June.

Weeks later, the pika starts gathering and storing food in its winter den. For the experiment, Barrio altered the numbers of caterpillars grazing on small plots of land surrounding pika dens.

“What we found was that the pikas preferred the patches first grazed on by caterpillars,” said Barrio. “We think the caterpillar’s waste acted as a natural fertilizer, making the vegetation richer and more attractive to the pika.” (more…)

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Climate: Are ice-free Arctic summers coming soon?

Posted on April 13, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

Study compares models to estimate a range of dates

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Scientists explore the melting ice of the Arctic. Photo courtesy NOAA.

By Summit Voice

FRISCO— No matter which you slice it, the Arctic Ocean is likely to almost free of summer ice by mid-century, and possibly within the next couple of decades. according to a new study by federal scientists.

By comparing three different predictive models, the researchers came up with a range of dates when most of the Arctic Ocean ice will melt away for at least a couple of months during the northern hemisphere summer.

The most aggressive models, which weigh recent trends more heavily, suggest ice-free conditions could come as soon as 2020. Under a second group of models that rely on weighing the future probability of “extreme” but random ice-melt events, the ice-free date is pushed back to 2030. The most conservative predictions are based on global climate models that use global climate models to forecast atmosphere, ocean, land, and sea ice conditions over time. (more…)

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Climate: Arctic greening to amplify regional warming

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

New study suggests large-scale northward shift of forests

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Tundra treeline in Siberia.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A massive greening of the Arctic that’s already under way will intensify in the next few decades and speed up the planet’s warming process, according to a new study published this week in Nature Climate Change.

Forested areas in the Arctic could increase by 50 percent, reducing the albedo of the region and speeding up the warming of the Arctic, according to Richard Pearson, lead author on the paper and a research scientist at the American Museum of Natural History’s Center for Biodiversity and Conservation.

“Such widespread redistribution of Arctic vegetation would have impacts that reverberate through the global ecosystem,”  said Pearson, part of a research team including scientists with AT&T Labs-Research, Woods Hole Research Center, Colgate University, Cornell University, and the University of York. (more…)

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Climate: This year’s maximum Arctic sea ice extent was the 6th-lowest on record

Posted on March 26, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Arctic sea ice has already dipped below the extent measured at this time last year, when the icecap ultimately dwindled to a record low.

Trend of dwindling ice continues unabated

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Arctic sea ice extent peaked in mid-March and is now starting to shrink again, according to researchers with the National Snow and Ice Data center, who said that this year’s maximum extent was the sixth-lowest on record. At 5.84 million square miles, it was 283,000 square miles below the 1979 to 2000 average. (more…)

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Report finds serious flaws with Shell’s Arctic drilling program

Posted on March 15, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

Equipment failures, environmental violations and lack of oversight need to be addressed before moving ahead with drilling plans

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Feds tell Shell to rethink Arctic offshore drilling plans.

* More coverage of Shell’s Arctic drilling program

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Eager to exploit the Arctic for fossil fuel resources and to live up to shareholder expectations, Royal Dutch Shell rushed into its offshore drilling program without being “fully prepared in terms of fabricating and testing certain critical systems and establishing the scope of its operational plans,” according to a U.S. Department of Interior report released this week.

Key failures included Shell’s inability to get certification for an oil spill containment system  required to be on site in the event of a loss of well control. The report said the company’s failure to deploy the system was due “to shortcomings in Shell’s management and oversight of key contractors.”

The review was launched after a string of well-publicized problems culminated with a runaway drill rig that ended up running aground on a remote Alaskan island. The company is also under investigation for a string of violations of various environmental requirements. In February, Shell announced a one year pause in its Arctic drilling program to address the shortcomings. (more…)

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Greenland runoff may be a big source of iron

Posted on March 12, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
Runoff from melting Greenland glaciers may be a significant source of iron in the North Atlantic.

Runoff from melting Greenland glaciers may be a significant source of iron in the North Atlantic. Bob Berwyn photo.

Arctic meltdown may have consequences besides raising sea level

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Melting Greenland glaciers may have an unforeseen side effect on ocean biology, as the surging runoff adds iron to the water, potentially fueling more plankton growth.

Glaciers have just recently been identified as a significant source of iron in a study by biogeochemists and glaciologists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The findings suggest that the influx of iron could increase as melting of the Greenland ice sheet escalates under a warming climate.

It’s long been known wind-blown dust and river runoff are source of iron, but meltwater runoff from glaciers and ice sheets was considered too dilute to carry much iron, although previous research has shown a strong correlation between the plankton blooms and the runoff from Greenland ice sheet. (more…)

Filed under: Arctic, climate and weather, global warming | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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