2019 Was a Record Year for Ocean Temperatures, Data Show

Last year was the warmest year on record for the world’s oceans, part of a long-term warming trend, according to a study released Monday. 

Bleached coral in the south Pacific in May.
Rising temperatures contribute to the bleaching.

“If you look at the ocean heat content, 2019 is by far the hottest, 2018 is second, 2017 is third, 2015 is fourth, and then 2016 is fifth,” said Kevin E. Trenberth, a senior scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and an author on the study

The study, published in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, follows an announcement last week by European scientists that Earth’s surface temperatures in 2019 were the second-hottest on record. 

Since the middle of last century, the oceans have absorbed roughly 93 percent of the excess heat caused by greenhouse gases from human activities such as burning coal for electricity. That has shielded the land from some of the worst effects of rising emissions.

Read the story from The New York Times by Kendra Pierre-Louis - “2019 Was a Record Year for Ocean Temperatures, Data Show.”

Scotland planted over 22 million trees last year, smashing goals

The Scottish forestry agency announced on Thursday that the country surpassed its tree planting goals last year, making what it called a “critical contribution to the global climate emergency.”

According to Scottish Forestry, 11,200 hectares, or some 43 square miles, of planting was carried out in Scotland in 2018 — a jump from the government’s yearly planting target of 10,000 hectares, which would be approximately 39 square miles. The Scotsman reported that the planting led to more than 22 million new trees.

Fergus Ewing, the country’s rural economy secretary, called the news “fantastic” in a statement, saying the feat is “testament to the Scottish Government making forestry a priority and investing and helping growing the industry.”

“The whole tree planting effort has truly been a national endeavor with all forestry interests, both large and small, pulling together,” Ewing said.

Read the story from The Hill by Aris Folley - “Scotland planted over 22 million trees last year, smashing goals.”

Global coal use up by third as greenhouse gas emissions rise

Greenhouse gas emissions from energy production rose strongly again last year, according to new data from the International Energy Agency, with a young fleet of coal-fired power plants in Asia accounting for a large proportion of the increase.

 Asia is now responsible for the majority
of coal-fired power generation globally.

Energy demand grew at its fastest pace this decade, with a 2.3% increase globally driving rises in fossil fuel consumption. Coal use in power stations was up by nearly a third, and together gas and coal were responsible for nearly 70% of the growth in energy consumption, and while demand for solar and wind power also increased, it was by much less overall.

Gas consumption in the US leapt by 10%, or the equivalent of the UK’s entire gas consumption in a year. Fracking has been a key driver, and oil production in the US also grew, while the dismantling of government incentives intended to reduce reliance on fossil fuels has continued.

Asia is now responsible for the majority of coal-fired power generation globally, and the average age of power plants there is now just 12 years, meaning they have decades to go before reaching their planned end of production in about 30 to 50 years.

Read the story from The Guardian by Fiona Harvey - “Global coal use up by third as greenhouse gas emissions rise."

10 hot trends shaping Australian clean energy

Last year was a remarkable one for the clean energy industry by any standard, and confidence is high as we enter 2019.

Last year was remarkable in Australia for the clean energy industry.

Between record levels of clean energy and businesses recognising the value of low-cost renewables to cut their operating costs, we are starting to see a whole-of-economy energy transformation taking place.

It’s amazing and inspiring to watch the changes in real time, and below we’ve captured some of the biggest trends and milestones we saw in the year that was.

Read the RenewEconomy story by Kane Thorton - “10 hot trends shaping Australian clean energy.”

Australia’s 2018 in weather: drought, heat and fire

Last year was a time of exceptional weather and record-breaking heat according to the Bureau of Meteorology’s annual climate statement, which was released last night.

Queensland’s ‘unprecedented’ bushfires were part of a year of extremes.

The Bureau issued four Special Climate Statements relating to “extreme” and “abnormal” heat, and reported a number of broken climate records.

One of the headline stories for the year was drought across eastern Australia — centred on New South Wales, but also affecting Victoria, eastern South Australia and southern Queensland.

Read the story from The Conversation by the Climate Scientist with Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Karl Braganza - “Australia’s 2018 in weather: drought, heat and fire.”

It’s official: Bureau of Meteorology confirms 2018 was a scorcher

Last year was Australia's third-warmest year on record, with every state and territory recording above average temperatures in 2018.

Farmers have been hit hard by drought. The Bureau
 of Meteorology says rainfall totals in Australia in 2018
 were the lowest since 2005.

According to the Bureau of Meteorology's annual climate statement, the nation's average temperature last year was 1.14 degrees above the average for 1961-1990, making 2018 slightly warmer than 2017.

Nine of the 10 warmest years on record in Australia have occurred since 2005.

Read the story from The Sydney Morning Herald - “It’s official: Bureau of Meteorology confirms 2018 was a scorcher.”

How Cape Town was saved from running out of water

Late last year, as the South African government faced the prospect of its largest city running out of water, they took an unprecedented gamble.

Township children celebrate Cape Town’s temporary victory over drought.

The government announced “day zero” – a moment when dam levels would be so low that they would turn off the taps in Cape Town and send people to communal water collection points. 

This apocalyptic notion prompted water stockpiling and panic, caused a drop in tourism bookings, and raised the spectre of civil unrest.

It also worked. After years of trying to convince residents to conserve, the aggressive campaign jolted people into action. Water use was (and still is) restricted to 50 litres per person per day. (In 2016, average daily per capita use in California was 321 litres.) Households that exceed the limit face hefty fines, or having a meter installed in their home that shuts off their water once they go over.

Read the story by Krista Mahr from The Guardian - “How Cape Town was saved from running out of water.”

World invested more in solar energy than coal, gas and nuclear combined in 2017, UN report reveals

Global investment in renewable energy shot up last year, far outstripping investment in fossil fuels, according to a UN report.

China was largely responsible for the surge in
 solar energy infrastructure in 2017, accounting
 for nearly half the global investment. 

As the price of clean energy technology plummets, it has become an increasingly attractive prospect for world governments.

China was by far the world’s largest investor in renewable energy in 2017, accounting for nearly half of the new infrastructure commissioned.

This was mainly a result of its massive support for solar power, which globally attracted nearly a fifth more investment than in the previous year. Other countries including Australia, Sweden and Mexico more than doubled the amount of money they pumped into clean energy projects.

Read the story by Josh Gabbatiss from the Independent - “World invested more in solar energy than coal, gas and nuclear combined in 2017, UN report reveals.”

2016 was 2nd warmest year on record for U.S.

Last year will be remembered as warmer than average for much of the nation, and depending on where you live, 2016 was either parched, soggy — or both.

To understand how, here’s our U.S. “climate by the numbers” summary for 2016:

Full year, January through December

The average U.S. temperature in 2016 was 54.9 degrees F (2.9 degrees F above average), which ranked as the second warmest year in 122 years of record-keeping. This is the 20th consecutive year the annual average temperature exceeded the average. Every state in the contiguous U.S. and Alaska experienced above-average annual temperatures, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information.

Precipitation for the year totaled 31.70 inches, ranking as the 24th wettest year. The national drought footprint expanded from about 18 percent in January to about 23 percent by the end of December. At just under 19 percent, the average area of drought in the U.S. for 2016 was the smallest since 2010.

Read the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report - “2016 was 2nd warmest year on record for U.S.”