By John Parnell
– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
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– Updates from our team at the UN Convention in Biological Diversity summit in Hyderabad
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– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)
Monday 15 October
Last updated: 1645
US: Algae oil is gaining momentum with another US firm, Sapphire Energy beginning production, but can the industry get price competitive with fossil fuels and just how sustainable are algae farms anyway? (Yale Environment 360/The Guardian)
India: The Indian Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath has said he expects the country to have 600m people living in its cities within the next ten years. Nath stressed that the government was committed to keeping this growth “sustainable” and “inclusive”. (Deccan Herald)
UK: A survey by the responsible investment NGO EIRIS has found that there is currently £11bn in green and ethical funds. The figure was £4bn in 2002. “Over the last decade we’ve seen sustained growth in green and ethical finance, largely driven by consumer interest in issues like climate change, fair trade, human rights and more recently, executive pay,” said Mark Robertson, EIRIS spokesperson. (easier.com)
Maldives: The Environment Minister of the Maldives has pledged that the country will continue to aim for carbon neutrality. Former President Mohamed Nasheed made the pledge to highlight the island nation’s own vulnerability to climate change. Nasheed was removed from power earlier this year. Minister Mariyam Shakeela has promised that the country will “give it its best shot” despite the political unrest. (Minivan News)
CBD COP11 in Hyderabad: Geoengineering could have a negative impact on biodiversity and should not be used to reduce the effects of climate change until full impact assessments have been conducted. A panel of researchers reporting to COP11 said techniques such as reducing the amount of sunlight reaching the Earth’s surface by creating artificial clouds, could negatively impact vegetation. (Times of India)
UK: A new advertising campaign promoting the green economy has hit UK billboards and London’s tube stations. The posters, issued by a group of NGOs including WWF, Greenpeace and Oxfam, claim “One third of the UK’s economic growth is from green business”. The statistic is taken from a report by the Confederation of Business and Industry (CBI).
India: There are rumours that India’s state-run oil and gas company is set to buy a 10% in Canada’s controversial Athabasca oil sands project. Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) is interested in buying half Marathon Oil’s 20% share of the project. Oil sands have become particularly unpopular with environmentalists given the high carbon intensity of both its extraction and its use. (Reuters)
Australia: A carbon price of A$29 by 2015 has been deemed “not implausible” by the head of the Australian Climate Change Department. The estimate for the value per tonne of traded CO2 in Australia is three times higher than the EU level. The two carbon trading markets will be linked in 2015 and there are fears in Canberra that the estimated value of $29 is wildly optimistic. (WA Today)
South Korea: Hot on the heels of an increase in emission reduction cuts by Germany, South Korea has announced a doubling of its own targets. The country has raised the bar for big industrial emitters in 2013 as it looks to improve efficiency ahead of the 2015 start date of its domestic carbon trading system. (Reuters)