Today's Climate: November 12, 2009

China Mulls Emissions Reduction Goal for First Time (China Daily)

China should aim to reduce its carbon intensity by 4 or 5 percent a year if it is to achieve its goal of low-carbon development by 2050, a leading Chinese environmental think tank says. State media describes it as a first.

Clinton Calls Copenhagen Climate Talks a 'Steppingstone' (Greenwire)

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called UN climate talks in Copenhagen a "steppingstone" toward a global, legally binding climate agreement, and spelled out U.S. priorities for the talks.

Australia Reaches Out to India with Climate Aid (Reuters)

Australia said it will invest $50 million to develop green technologies in India, in a sign Canberra was trying to bridge differences with New Delhi over climate change negotiations.

Massey Cited for Coal River Mountain Blasting (Charleston Gazette)

A Massey Energy subsidiary has been cited for using too large of an explosives load in blasting a mountaintop mine on Coal River Mountain, a site where environmental groups have campaigned to put a wind energy facility instead.

New Zealand’s Emissions Up 22% Since Signing Kyoto (Guardian)

As the world prepares for the Copenhagen climate negotiations, it is worth checking out the greenwash that has followed the promises made 12 years ago when the Kyoto protocol was signed.

UN Chief to Link Food, Global Warming at FAO Summit (Space Daily)

UN chief Ban Ki-moon will prod world leaders to step up the fight against global warming and hunger when he attends the UN Food and Agriculture Organization summit in Rome next week, a spokeswoman said.

BP Sued Over Pipeline Through Colombian Farmland (Guardian)

Colombian farmers are suing oil giant BP, claiming a pipeline project damaged soil and groundwater, causing crops to fail, livestock to perish, contaminating water supplies and making fish ponds unsustainable.

Obama in 11th Hour Climate Bid with China, India (AFP)

The world's three most populous nations have all vowed action on climate change but are deeply at odds over the shape of a Copenhagen deal. Their leaders hold face-to-face talks over the next week, first at APEC and then in Washington.

Bangladesh PM says Failure Not Acceptable in Copenhagen (AFP)

Poor nations will not accept failure at a crucial climate change summit next month in Copenhagen, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told global leaders in a video conference.

IEA’s Winners and Losers In the Energy Future (Wall Street Journal)

The IEA’s vision of the next two decades sees wind power and natural gas as the big winners and clean coal and nuclear power playing only a minor role, mostly after 2020.

DOE Hires Venture Capitalist to Run Clean Tech Loan Programs (Earth2Tech)

The idea of modeling government funds after venture capital has swirled around the Obama administration since back in the campaign days.