Protecting world food supplies with salt-tolerant crops

Salt might be great with popcorn and peanuts, but it’s not so good with soil. The U.N. estimates that the world loses at least three hectares of arable land every minute because of soil salinity. Most crops simply can’t cope with too much salt. Which is why a discovery by a team at the University [...]

The next step in the fight against climate change

From Kyoto to Copenhagen: The next step in the fight against climate change

Twelve years ago, while I was serving as an Energy and Climate Change Programme Officer with the United Nations Environment Programme, I was fortunate to have a ringside seat at one of the most important international diplomatic breakthroughs of the modern era.
During the [...]

Turning the Tide to Energy: New Concept Could Harness the Power of Ocean Waves

NASA researchers who developed a new way to power robotic underwater vehicles believe a spin-off technology could help convert ocean energy into electrical energy on a much larger scale. The researchers hope that clean, renewable energy produced from the motion of the ocean and rivers could potentially meet an important part of the world’s demand [...]

EnvironmenT: West Antarctic ice threat revised down

West Antarctic ice threat revised down; still dire
* West Antarctic meltdown less severe than predicted
* Would raise sea levels 3.3 metres, vs 5-6 in past studies
* Impact still severe, U.S. coasts to suffer most

OSLO,  – A meltdown of West Antarctica’s ice sheet would raise sea levels by half as much as previously expected, but the [...]

EnvirO: Polar bears at risk, climate deal needed -Norway

An international plan is needed to rescue polar bears and their icy Arctic habitat but its success will hinge on a U.N. deal to fight global warming due to be agreed in December, Norway said on Tuesday.
“Climate change has overtaken hunting as the most significant threat to the polar bear,” Norway’s Environment and Development Minister [...]

Karakoram Knowledge Highways – Journal

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 Source: Info Shared By Ghulam Ali

Solar panel industry achieves Holy Grail – $1 per watt grid-parity

Arizona based First Solar has achieved a major milestone in reducing the manufacturing cost for solar panels below the $1 per watt price barrier – the target necessary for solar to compete with coal-burning electricity on the grid or grid-parity. Using cadmium telluride (CdTe) technology in its thin-film photovoltaic cells, First Solar claims to have [...]

Bottled water uses 2000 times more energy than tap water

New research from the Pacific Institute estimates that bottled water is up to 2000 times more energy-intensive than tap water. Similarly, bottled water that requires long-distance transport is far more energy-intensive than bottled water produced and distributed locally. Indeed, when all the sums were done, it seems the annual consumption of bottled water in the [...]

Outback Australian town to run on solar power 24 hours a day

Cloncurry, a town of over 4000 people in north-west Australia, is gearing up to produce solar thermal power capable of supplying all of ts electricity needs, 24-hours a day. The technology used will ensure the 10 megawatt Cloncurry solar thermal power station will continue to generate electricity when the sun is not shining and will [...]

Lifeline for endangered albatross

The outlook for endangered seabirds looks better thanks to a scheme that reduces the numbers accidentally killed by the fishing industry.
Three-quarters of albatross species are at risk of extinction, largely due to the way long lines are deployed to catch fish such as tuna.
 
The birds are attracted to the baited lines and can become entangled [...]