The Washington Post reports on changing rules in the European Union on the regulation of chemicals. The E.U. has flipped the old equation and put the burden of proof on the regulated, rather than the regulator. Basically, this means that it is a chemical producer's job to prove that its chemicals are not dangerous. This has greatly displeased chemical manufacturers in the United States and the Bush administration, both of which have fought hard to push the American approach, where chemical products are essentially innocent until proven guilty.

There are a couple of interesting factors to note in the E.U. move here, the first of which is the ability to use market power to lead the way in policy. This is usually called the "California effect" in the U.S., since that is the state most prone to using its market power to improve regulation, particularly environmental standards. At 27 countries and around 500 million people, the European Union represents the largest market in the world, and if U.S. manufacturers want to sell their products in that market, they've got to be up to European standards. In this way, Europe is able to take the mantle of environmental leadership and essentially force U.S. and other international manufacturers to comply.

The second point of note is why the E.U. would do this when it obviously costs manufacturers a lot of money. The reason is that European Policy is bound at its foundation to comply with the "precautionary principle," the idea that perhaps it is not best to wait until a product is harming the population before investigating its properties. By checking the risks of products before they enter the market, the level of safety for consumers and the environment is obviously elevated. As the Post article points out, many Americans are shocked to learn that this is not the case in their country, and that only about one quarter of one percent of all chemicals on the U.S. market have actually been closely examined by the EPA--that's one in 400 of about 80,000 chemicals on the market.

This is a very positive move by Europe. Though prices of some items may go up, it moves the market closer to pricing that reflects the true costs of a product by including externalities that otherwise reap their costs on human and environmental health. The patchwork of regulation by U.S. states and municipalities on the issue doesn't really work to anyone's benefit, so kudos to Europe for taking a bold step and upending the status quo on a global scale.

I guess it's about time to start calling environmental leadership through economic power the "Europe Effect."

Via FP Passport, I discovered a fascinating resource in understanding the effects of our changing world climate. It's UNEP's "Atlas of Our Changing Environment." As the FP Passport article points out, the amount of change occurring in Africa is absolutely astounding, especially in the sub-Saharan regions.

Though not all change is due directly or entirely to global warming (some is due to refugee population movements and other unsustainable situations), this atlas makes unmistakably clear the effect humans can have on the planet. After looking at a few examples from the map, the need to move more quickly toward sustainability becomes obvious. I strongly encourage people from every point on the political spectrum to check this out.

Look out hybrid owners, there's a new eco-car in town. This Summer, Honda will release its new "FCX Clarity" hydrogen fuel cell vehicle for lease in parts of Japan and Southern California. It boasts improvements over older models, including a much smaller fuel cell that gives the car ample interior space as well as a lithium ion battery to store excess energy for later use and improve the car's overall efficiency. In case you haven't heard of this technology, the fuel cell basically mixes hydrogen and oxygen to create water and uses the energy from that process to power the vehicle. So the vehicle's byproduct, rather than CO2, is a much friendlier 2-letter 1-number combination: H2O.

The reason the car is being released in such a limited capacity is because the car doesn't use gasoline, so in order to refuel it, you need special refueling station. In parts of Southern California, Honda has created a "home energy station" that would put your gauge back on "F" while the car is in the garage. And though it would be quite cool to always set out on the open road with your car already fueled up, these stations produce hydrogen using natural gas, which is less than ideal. For now, hydrogen refueling stations are not widespread in the United States, but given high gas prices and the fact that the car itself zero emissions and--in my opinion--pretty sporty, maybe they will be soon.

I hope everyone had fun breaking out the organic snacks and the biodegradable party hats for Earth Day yesterday. I noticed that the public sphere was plastered with green-tinted news, content and advertisements. For one day, at least, everything was green, grün, verde, vert, or even lu se.

But in the green hangover following the ephemeral appreciation of that infinitely complex and awe-inspiring system that is our planet, I am reminded of something I read in the Economist back in December of 2007.

"Whilst chlorophyll is, without doubt, hugely significant to life on this planet, the anthropocentric, terrestrialist view of the world that dubs those that care as "green" needs to be challenged."

Indeed, this is referred to as "The Blue Planet" and not the green one. The Economist goes on to explain that we have consumed 90% of the world's large fish, destroyed much of the coral and created state-sized blooms of algae. There is also an ocean warming problem that will have numerous effects that we have not even begun to think about yet. Even beyond the obvious scale of any ocean-related disasters that are brewing are the disturbing implications of problems associated with fresh water. Fresh water disasters will lead to even further complications with our beloved green-scape.

So, this year, as you put away your bright green organic hair dye and face paint, remember that being "green" is really less than 30% of a commitment to the planet. Because yesterday was "Earth Day" and not "Land Day", I want to remind everyone that going green is great, but without adding a lot of blue, blau, azul, bleu or lan se to our palette of awareness and activity, we could be destined to serve the agenda of less favorable colors.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told participants at the World Economic Forum that the United Nations will take action to address the shortage of water resources in the context of reaching global anti-poverty targets.

"Our experiences tell us that environmental stress, due to lack of water, may lead to conflict, and would be greater in poor nations...Population growth will make the problem worse. So will climate change. As the global economy grows, so will its thirst. Many more conflicts lie just over the horizon."

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During Ban Ki-moon's visit to Antarctica, the UN Secretary General said warming temperatures on the continent mark dangers of climate change.

"It is here where our work, together, comes into focus...We see Antarctica's beauty – and the danger global warming represents, and the urgency that we do something about it."

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Al Gore speaks out at a press conference on his recently announced Nobel Prize win.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has hailed the awarding of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize to Al Gore, noting Gore's "exceptional commitment and conviction, as an example of the crucial role that individuals and civil society can play in encouraging multilateral responses to global issues."

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The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) has started a 'carbon-neutral' environment conference in Belgrade.

"Ministers and other high-level representatives will discuss environmental policy, including measures to tackle global warming. But they will not have contributed to climate change by meeting in Belgrade," the Commission said.

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More than 180 young people from 85 different countries will meet in Germany next week to discuss the ways in which technology can be used to promote environmental protection.

UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Achim Steiner said, "Our hope is that on the basis of discussions at this Conference, 180 young people will return to their communities and nations and become beacons of activities and also motivators for many others to play a part in addressing environmental challenges."

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The UN Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), which promotes socially and environmentally sustainable housing, has launched a new worldwide alliance with water operators to improve to clean water and basic sanitation.

The new Global Water Operators Partnership Alliance is designed to strengthen the capacities of the public water operators that provide more than 90 per cent of water and sanitation services in developing nations.

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A new report from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) reports that environmental degradation is among the root causes of decades of conflict in Sudan.

Achim Steiner, Executive Director of UNEP, says the report "has shown clearly that peace and people's livelihoods in Darfur as well as in the rest of Sudan are inextricably linked to the environmental challenge."

"Just as environmental degradation can contribute to the triggering and perpetuation of conflict, the sustainable management of natural resources can provide the basis for long-term stability, sustainable livelihoods, and development."

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UNEP's Plant for the Planet: Billion Tree Campaign met its goal--to plant a billion trees worldwide this year--seven months early after Senegal unveiled a pledge to plant 20 million trees.

The campaign, announced at the recent climate change convention conference held in Nairobi, Kenya, now switches to turning those pledges into one billion actual plantings by the end of 2007.

Senegal made its announcement on the International Day on Biological Diversity, which this year has a special focus on the relationship between biodiversity and climate change.

The campaign was inspired by 2004 Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai of the Green Belt Movement in Kenya.

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United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has named Special Envoys for Climate Change: the first woman Prime Minister of Norway, the former President of Chile, and the President of the 56th Session of the UN General Assembly.

The three envoys--Norwegian ex-Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, President Ricardo Lagos Escobar of Chile, and former GA President Han Seung-soo--are also prominent in international environmental affairs, says Ban's spokesperson, Michele Montas.

"The Secretary-General looks forward to working with these three highly respected international figures on a matter which is of highest importance to the future of the planet," Ms. Montas said.

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Kicking off the 15th session of the Commission on Sustainable Development, delegates in New York proposed a wide range of measures to bring modern energy services to the poor, reduce energy waste and cut climate change-causing greenhouse gases.

"We need a major policy push to promote energy efficiency, to generate new energy technologies, and to promote advanced and cleaner technologies," said Jose Antonio Ocampo, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, in an opening address to the two-week session.

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Last week, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with former United States Vice President Al Gore to discuss climate change.

In his meeting, Ban said he was "very much encouraged by his firm commitment, as well as voluntary willingness to help the cause of the United Nations" regarding global warming. Ban also noted that he hopes to work closely with Gore to mobilize countries and "enhance the awareness of the international community with this issue."

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Actress Daryl Hannah was among the awardees.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) recognized seven winners for its 'Champions of the Earth Award' at a ceremony in Singapore.

UNEP chief Achim Steiner, who presented the awards, said "If we are to shape a new partnership between human-kind and the natural environment upon which all life ultimately depends then we need leaders, we need champions - champions in public life, champions in business and champions in our communities."

For a list of the winners, click here.

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After negotiations throughout the night in Brussels, the second installment of the report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is ready for publication. The Financial Times offers a good summary of the panel's findings:

Spring is occurring earlier all around the world, and glaciers are melting. The polar ice caps are also melting, sea levels are gradually rising, and wildlife are migrating.

Mr Pachauri [the Panel's Chair] said one of the most important aspects of the report was the "equity dimension" – that poor countries, which are least able to cope with climate change and which are least responsible for past emissions, are likely to be most affected by it.

Read More.

A new report released by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) says that the right mix of government regulation, energy saving technologies and behavioral change can reduce global-warming carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the building sector. The building sector, the report notes, accounts for 30 to 40 per cent of total energy use.

"The savings that can be made right now are potentially huge and the costs to implement them relatively low if sufficient numbers of Governments, industries, businesses and consumers act," UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Achim Steiner said of the measures that range from revamping ventilation systems to replacing the traditional incandescent light bulb.

"By some conservative estimates, the building sector worldwide could deliver emission reductions of 1.8 billion tonnes of C02. A more aggressive energy efficiency policy might deliver over 2 billion tonnes or close to three times the amount scheduled to be reduced under the Kyoto Protocol," he added, referring to the pact setting legally binding emission reduction targets for 35 industrialized countries in the 2008-2012 period.

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Today the world observes World Water Day, a moment dedicated to a widespread, but often-overlooked issue. The UN's 2007 World Water Day website delivers some sobering statistics:

In an industrialized city with plenty of water, flushing the toilet in an average household can send up to 50 litres of water down the drain every day. Yet more than one in six people worldwide -- 1.1 billion -- don't have access to 20-50 litres of safe freshwater daily, the minimum range suggested by the UN to ensure each person's basic needs for drinking, cooking and cleaning. Two people in five lack proper sanitation facilities, and every day, 3,800 children die from diseases associated with a lack of safe drinking water and proper sanitation.

Both water use and the world population are growing, which means that water will only grow more scarce. And, the implications of that scarcity are not limited to humanitarian concerns, though those concerns are great (guaranteeing water security is central to achieving the Millennium Development Goals).

It is a vital resource, and there isn't enough to go around. As such, nations and groups will take action to ensure access. For example, this Guardian article gives an overview of water as a central security issue and a vital component of posturing in the Middle East. Two of the issue's many facets:

[R]elinquishing control of the [Golan] Heights could cost Israel about one-third of its fresh water if the flow into the Sea of Galilee becomes contaminated, deliberately or otherwise.
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The Palestinians accuse Israel not only of plundering their water but polluting it. Some Jewish settlements pump raw sewage into the streams of neighbouring Palestinian villages, contaminating water once used for drinking, cooking and irrigation.

For those of you who are interested, our sister site, The People Speak, is hosting a video contest, asking for submissions focusing on water conservation.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the European Union decision to establish targets for energy efficiency in the battle against global warming.

"In the face of rising greenhouse gas emissions, committing to a substantial decrease for the next decade is ambitious...but ambition and leadership are just what is needed to respond to climate change, one of the greatest challenges facing humankind."

The EU agreement, made on Friday, that would make Europe the world's leader in the fight against climate change.

Issuing a challenge to the United States, China and India to match European ambitions in the battle against global warming, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany called on the world to follow the European Union's commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent from 1990 levels by the year 2020. She said the bloc's 27 members would commit to a 30 percent reduction if other nations followed suit.

The plan goes beyond the 35-nation Kyoto Protocol, which requires industrial nations to reduce the emission of global-warming gases by an average of 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2012. Major European Union economies had already committed to do better than that, promising to decrease greenhouse gases by 8 percent in that time.

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At the United Nations on Friday, Brazil, China, India, South Africa, the United States and the European Commission launched a new project to promote the sustained use and production of Biofuels. According to news reports, the International Biofuels Forum will meet regularly to help set industry standards and, eventually, work toward the commoditization of biofuels so one day they may be traded, like oil, on the open market.

This seems to be a step in the right direction. So far, biofuels account for only 2% of the world's energy stock. Coordinating the development of these new fuel sources is a worthy endeavor for the world's largest energy consumers. For his part, President Bush traveled to Brazil to promote cooperation on the production of ethanol, one of the more promising sources of Biofuel.

The two countries are the top global producers of ethanol, but because of investments decades ago, Brazil's ethanol usage is by far the highest in the world. When oil prices rose sharply in the 1970s, Brazil invested heavily on the production of sugar cane for ethanol. Today, sales of "flex" cars that can run on ethanol blends or gasoline have surpassed sales of gasoline-only automobiles. Part of this success can be attributed to the fact that ethanol is much cheaper than gas and is carried ubiquitously by gas stations in Brazil's cities.

Brazil is clearly proof that large energy consuming countries can transition toward a biofuels future. If the world's key players bring that kind of determination to the global stage, the International Biofuels Forum holds great promise.

The United Nations Foundation (UN Foundation) and Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society, released today "Confronting Climate Change: Avoiding the Unmanageable and Managing the Unavoidable," the final report of the Scientific Expert Group on Climate Change and Sustainable Development. The report, prepared as input for the upcoming meeting of the UN's Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), outlines a roadmap for preventing unmanageable climate changes and adapting to the degree of change that can no longer be avoided.

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Watch this BBC coverage of the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report.

(And of course, don't forget to check out the IPCC Facts website.)

Since the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its report concluding (with 90% certainty) that human activity causes global warming, skeptics have come out in droves to undermine this conclusion. Some of these empirically-challenged pundits come from the Exxon-Mobilfunded American Enterprise Institute. Still others can be found in the pages of rightwing magazines like the National Review and similar refuges of fantasy.

For those of us in the reality-based community, the United Nations Foundation has set up a new website, IPCC Facts, that helps distill the IPCC report in language accessible to non-scientists like myself. With its "myths" page, the site is a particularly useful resource for those with the unfortunate task of having to debate climate change with the flat-earth people. Check it out.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said yesterday that it is poor countries that will suffer the most from global warming.

In a message to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Governing Council in Nairobi, Ban said, "The world has reached a critical stage in its efforts to exercise responsible environmental stewardship...It is also becoming increasingly clear, in North and South alike, that there is an inextricable, mutually dependent relationship between environmental sustainability and economic development." More

Following the release of the IPCC report on global warming, top UN officials called for international action to reverse environmental damage.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, "Protecting the global environment is largely beyond the capacity of individual countries...This assault on the global environment risks undermining the many advances human society has made in recent decades. It is undercutting our fight against poverty. It could even come to jeopardize international peace and security."

General Assembly President Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa also noted, "We need clear objectives and strong ecological governance at the global level, a concept that continues to elude us...Without radical change, we will all ultimately find ourselves in a situation of generalized precariousness." More

As mentioned earlier on this blog, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - a body composed of hundreds of scientists from around the world - released its much awaited report on the causes and consequences of global warming.

Today's report is the group's fourth report on global warming since the United Nations established the IPCC in 1988. However, the newest report is the first assessment in which the group has stated with near full confidence (they say "90% certainty") that human activities are the main cause of global warming. From now on, when one hears the term "overwhelming scientific evidence" in a discussion about human activities and global warming, this report will be the point of reference.

Of course, the idea that humans cause global warming should be of little surprise to most people. But there are still some outfits that would like you to believe otherwise. Politically, the report is groundbreaking precisely because it should put to rest, once and for all, unhelpful debates over whether or not humans cause global warming. (Think: Galileo's scientific confirmation of Copernicus' theories about the earth and the sun.)

On the United Nations Foundation website, Richard Moss, director of the Climate Change program at the United Nations Foundation, discusses the significance of the just-released IPCC report. From 2000-2006, Moss directed the interagency US Climate Change Science Program Office, which was established to coordinate President Bush's Climate Change Research Initiative. Earlier in his career, Moss worked with the IPCC, editing and authoring several reports. He is, briefly stated, one of the country's foremost experts on climate change and public policy. You can listen to his podcast below.

Podcast:
Climate expert Richard Moss on the new UN IPCC Report

The much anticipated report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is now available. Click here for the report's 20 page summary for policy-makers.

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) announced the 10 finalists for one of five Supporting Entrepreneurs for Environment and Development (Seed) Awards yesterday.

Achim Steiner, Executive Director of UNEP, said, "As we meet in Davos and Nairobi to discuss scaling up sustainable solutions, the Seed Initiative is again offering inspiring examples of local level entrepreneurs in all parts of the world who are setting up new partnerships and using 'global/local' networks to address sustainable development challenges with a business-case approach."

The winners of the Seed Awards will be announced in May 2007. More

Reuters: "The United States is the biggest source of greenhouse gases, mainly from burning fossil fuels, and Bush's decision to reject caps under the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol discourages involvement by other big-polluting outsiders such as China and India.

After two weeks of talks, about 70 environment ministers in Nairobi agreed on Friday to a 2008 review of Kyoto as a possible prelude to deeper emission cuts by rich nations beyond 2012 and steps by developing countries to brake rising emissions....

Several senior delegates at the U.N. talks say 2010 now looks the most likely date for a new global pact to replace Kyoto. "We'd love a deadline of 2008 or 2009 but that looks unlikely unless Bush has a change of heart," one said.

Environmentalists want a 2008 deadline. "Technically it's still not impossible," said Hans Verolme, climate director of the WWF conservation group. "The planet cannot wait."

Developing countries say rich states must lead the way -- China told Kyoto nations to makes pledges to cut their emissions in 2008 or 2009." More

"They are dubbed the 'climate canaries' - the people destined to become the first victims of world climate change. And as government ministers sit down in Nairobi at [the] UN Climate Conference, the people most likely to be wiped out by devastating global warming will be only a few hundred miles away from their deliberations.

Those people, according to research commissioned by the charity Christian Aid, will be the three million pastoralists of northern Kenya, whose way of life has sustained them for thousands of years but who now face eradication. Hundreds of thousands of these seasonal herders have already been forced to forsake their traditional culture and settle in Kenya's north eastern province following consecutive droughts that have decimated their livestock in recent years." More

"A campaign to plant a billion trees within a year was launched at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Nairobi, Kenya, today in a bid to encourage all sectors of society, from concerned citizens to philanthropic corporations, to take small but practical steps to combat what is probably the key challenge of the 21st century.

"Action does not need to be confined to the corridors of the negotiation halls," UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Achim Steiner said, noting that intergovernmental talks on tackling climate change can often be difficult, protracted and sometimes frustrating, especially for those looking on." More

"Global warming is threatening archaeological sites from Peru to Egypt as well as natural wonders such as the Caribbean's largest coral reef, a U.N. report said on Tuesday.

Heritage sites linked to thousands of years of civilization "may by virtue of climate change very well not be available to future generations," said Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environment Program." More

"Africa could suffer greater effects from global warming than previously feared, the United Nations said yesterday, with the risk of widespread coastal flooding, substantial loss of animal habitat and lower cereal yields all likely in coming decades.

In a report published on the eve of a key climate change conference opening in Nairobi today, environmentalists gave warning that the continent needed help in dealing with a problem created by the industrialised world." Full story

Read more about the UN's climate conference here

And here:

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