Today's Climate: January 7, 2010

Experts: Cold Snap Doesn't Disprove Global Warming (AP)

Scientists say the current cold snap worldwide doesn't disprove global warming at all — it's just part of natural variability and will weaken in a week or two.

FTSE 100 Firms on Track For CO2 Target (Reuters)

Companies in the FTSE 100 are on track to meet Britain's 2020 carbon emissions targets, despite lax commitments from the heaviest polluters, a report showed on Thursday.

Four Nations Notify Support for Climate Accord; Cuba Is Opposed (Bloomberg)

So far, Australia, Canada, Papua New Guinea and the Maldives have notified the UNFCCC of
their support for the Copenhagen Accord. Cuba is the only nation to say it doesn't want to be associated with the plan.

China 2009 Power Output from Majority Plants Up 6.7% (Reuters)

China's electricity output by power generators with capacity of 6,000 kilowatts or above increased 6.7% from a year earlier to 3,596.4 billion kilowatt hours in 2009, the China Electricity Council (CEC) said.

U.S. Vehicle Fleet Shrank 2% Last Year (Greenwire)

Americans scrapped 4 million more cars and trucks last year than they purchased, the first significant drop in the U.S. auto fleet in more than four decades, according to a new report.

Yahoo, IBM Win Stimulus Money For Energy Projects (Dow Jones)

Yahoo, IBM and Hewlett-Packard have won some $20 million from the U.S. stimulus package to fund energy-efficiency projects, the Energy Department said.

Town Halls Begin on Tester Forest Plan (AP)

U.S. Sen. Tester is pitching the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act as a consensus-driven balance between preserving the environment and creating new jobs with a source of timber. And yet, opposition is still coming from both sides of the debate.

Officials Push Cape Wind Project Along in Bid for Subsidies (Boston Herald)

Massachusetts State Energy Secretary Ian Bowles has been twisting arms for months to speed approval of Cape Wind so the project can meet a key 2010 deadline to grab a half a billion dollars in federal subsidies.

Lawsuit Filed Over Coal Dust Near Alaska Town (AP)

Two green groups are going to court to try to force the Alaska Railroad and an energy company to clean up the coal dust dirtying a scenic tourist town.

Denmark Releases Four "Red Carpet" Climate Activists (Reuters)

Danish police released four Greenpeace activists on Wednesday who were detained 20 days ago for sneaking into a gala dinner for heads of state to protest against what they deemed failed UN climate talks.

Ottawa Orders Study into Environmental, Health Effects of Making Renewable Fuels (Canadian Press)