Discussing the climate on radio in Geelong

The Sustainable Hour on 94.7 The Pulse on 23 March 2016 marks the World Meteorological Day, a global event organised by the World Meteorological Organization and the worldwide meteorological community with the goal “to contribute to a better understanding of climate variability and climate change, as well as to the development of much needed climate applications to address some of the major challenges of this century.”

We say bring it on: Let’s talk about climate change! Let’s talk about those worrying news about February becoming the hottest month on record on this planet. According to NASA, average temperatures in February were 1.35°C above the norm. You need to take a look at NASA’s graph to understand how dramatic that temperature-jump is.

Inspired by the concerned meteorologists, we launch a survey about Geelong councillors’ personal opinion about climate change, and we talk with Councillor John Irvine about this in the program.

Listen here to the Sustainable Hour - “Geelong’s response to the climate emergency.”

With the champagne gone, now it's the hard work of rolling back emissions

After a champagne moment in Paris, where ministers from around the world crafted a pact to fight perilous climate change, comes the hard part.

Experts are under no illusion that celebrations and high-flown rhetoric are enough when it comes to rolling back greenhouse-gas emissions.

If anything, they say, the divisions that beleaguered the nearly two-week haggle have underscored the political and economic obstacles that now lie ahead.

The deal finally struck on Saturday, a day into extra time, enshrines the goal to cap global warming at two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-industrial levels—and at an even more ambitious 1.5C if possible.

But the bad news is that humanity may already have used up almost 1C of that allocation, the UN's World Meteorological Organization warned last month.

And the emissions-curbing pledges submitted by 185 countries to give the agreement substance, even if fully honoured, set the stage for a 3C warmer world.

Read the Phys.org story - “After Paris: Now what for world climate?”

World's hottest year and yet it is cool today

T

emperatures here in Shepparton today have a distinct wintery sense about them – it’s colder than expected for this time of the year.

What we are experiencing here is, of course, weather as opposed to climate, which is now poised to produce hottest year ever recorded.

EcoWatch reports: “The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced today that 2015 is likely to top the charts as the hottest year in modern observations, with 2011-15 the hottest five-year period on record.

“With two full months still to add in, the global average surface temperature for January to October in 2015 was 0.73C above the 1961-1990 average. This already puts it a long way above 2014, in which average global temperature reached 0.57C above the 1961-1990 average.”

Read the EcoWatch story - “2015 Hottest Year Ever Recorded … Until 2016, UN Weather Agency Reports.”

'Normal', it seems, is no longer normal

“

Normal” in relation to the climate is quickly losing it meaning.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says there is an urgent need to incorporate global warming into decision making.

In a story published on June 1, the WMO said it will introduce a new a two-tier approach to the 30-year baselines for climate data to take into account the rapid pace of climate change as well as the operational needs for up to date climate information.

“Because the climate varies naturally from year to year, climatologists use standard 30-year averages of temperatures, precipitation and other variables to put, for example, the magnitude of a current heatwave or rainstorm into historical context.

“These 30-year historical averages are called “climate normals” and can be calculated at the local, national or global levels,” is reports.

Read the WMO story - “New Two-Tier approach on ‘climate normals’”.

'Too many countries are ignoring the human catastrophe of climate change' - Hanna

“Too many countries are ignoring the human catastrophe of climate change,” according to Dr Liz Hanna.

The Climate and Health Alliance president and Australian National University heat researcher has said both the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and Australia Bureau of Meteorology data have every years painted a more distressing picture of advancing climate change.

In a report released today headed: “Climate disruption is underway: Australia's obstruction on policy putting lives at risk” she said the WMO series of “weather reports from the future” point to catastrophic weather events in 2050.

She warned that despite that looking catastrophic situation, inaction appeared to be the preferred option.

NSW bushfires a product of climate change - no doubt!

Executive Secretary of the UN
Framework Convention on Climate
 Change, Christina Figueres.

Bushfires in New South Wales are the product of climate change.

They are the product of the “doom and gloom” the world may be facing without vigorous action on climate change.

The executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Christina Figueres, says the fires prove the world is “already paying the price of carbon”

"The World Meteorological Organisation has not established the direct link between this wildfire and climate change yet, but what is absolutely clear is that the science is telling us there are increasing heatwaves in Asia, Europe and Australia," she told CNN.

However, some climate scientist claim there is a direct link between the fires and climate change has been established and it is time for action.

A story headed: “UN climate chief Christiana Figueres calls for global action amid NSW bushfires”, notes that the circumstances that resulted in the NSW fires will worsen and become more frequent.