New research by a Swiss institute has thrown doubt on the widespread assumption that the melting of Alpine glaciers began with the onset of industrialization in the middle of the 19th century.
Researchers from the Paul Scherrer Institute have found that a deeper analysis of soot levels within the ice itself throws this assumption into doubt.
Thus, according to the researchers, the so-called Little Ice Age (c. 1300-1870), during which Alpine glaciers reached their peak volume, likely came to an end as a result of natural climatic variations rather than being precipitated by human interference. —Swiss Info, 21 October 2018
Current climate change predictions in the UK and parts of Europe may be inaccurate, a study conducted by researchers from the University of Lincoln, UK, and the University of Liège, Belgium, suggests. Existing computer model simulations have failed to properly include air pressure changes that have occurred in the Greenland region throughout the past 30 years. Over the last three decades, the simulations suggested a drop in summertime air pressure in the Greenland region. In reality, the air pressure in the area has gone up. —The University Network, 18 October 2018
The plastics recycling industry is facing an investigation into suspected widespread abuse and fraud within the export system amid warnings the world is about to close the door on UK packaging waste, the Guardian has learned. —The Guardian, 19 October 2018
Australia has rejected a call by scientists to phase out coal use by 2050 to prevent the world overshooting targets in the Paris Climate Change agreement with potentially disastrous consequences. —Financial Times, 9 October 2018
Japan’s ambassador to Australia has confirmed Tokyo will defy calls by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to phase out coal by mid-century as part of a scientific appeal to limit global temperature increases to 1.5C. —The Australian, 19 October 2018
China will speed up efforts to ensure its wind and solar power sectors can compete without subsidies and achieve “grid price parity” with traditional energy sources like coal, according to new draft guidelines issued by the energy regulator. —Reuters, 17 October 2018
Not long ago, Germany was seen as a model of climate responsibility. No more. It will fail to reach its 2020 emissions targets despite spending hundreds of billions on renewable energy. —Handelsblatt, 19 October 2018
Stricter CO2 emission limits imposed by the EU are pushing Europe’s car industry to the “brink of collapse,” Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess has warned. —GWPF & Spiegel Online, 18 October 2018
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, campaigning for her Christian Democrats (CDU) to retain control of the crucial state of Hesse in next Sunday’s election, promised legislation to ward off the threat of air pollution leading to driving bans. —Reuters, 21 October 2018
