Climate Change Attorney Blog

In a report released on February 1, 2010 the Department of Defense outlined strategic issues related to Climate Change. The Quadrennial Defense Review of the Department of Defense devotes a section to the potential security impacts of Climate Change.

The report notes in part:

"Climate change will affect DoD in two broad ways. First, climate change will shape the operating environment, roles, and missions that we undertake. The U.S. Global Change Research Program, composed of 13 federal agencies, reported in 2009 that climate-related changes are already being observed in every region of the world, including the United States and its coastal waters....While climate change alone does not cause conflict, it may act as an accelerant of instability or conflict, placing a burden to respond on civilian institutions and militaries around the world. In addition, extreme weather events may lead to increased demands for defense support to civil authorities for humanitarian assistance or disaster response both within the United States and overseas."

The Securities and Exchange Commission issued interpretive guidance on the application of existing regulations to the need to disclose the impacts of climate change on business. In a press release issued on January 27th the SEC provided examples of instances in which climate change or regulations related to climate change may trigger disclosure requirements, noting the guidance highlighted:

" *Impact of Legislation and Regulation: When assessing potential disclosure obligations, a company should consider whether the impact of certain existing laws and regulations regarding climate change is material. In certain circumstances, a company should also evaluate the potential impact of pending legislation and regulation related to this topic.

*Impact of International Accords: A company should consider, and disclose when material, the risks or effects on its business of international accords and treaties relating to climate change.

*Indirect Consequences of Regulation or Business Trends: Legal, technological, political and scientific developments regarding climate change may create new opportunities or risks for companies. For instance, a company may face decreased demand for goods that produce significant greenhouse gas emissions or increased demand for goods that result in lower emissions than competing products. As such, a company should consider, for disclosure purposes, the actual or potential indirect consequences it may face due to climate change related regulatory or business trends.

*Physical Impacts of Climate Change: Companies should also evaluate for disclosure purposes the actual and potential material impacts of environmental matters on their business."

-Steven Silverberg

The United Nation Food and Agriculture Organization has released a report which finds that proper use of grassland can assist in reducing carbon dioxide and therefore aid in combating Climate Change. In a summary of the report, Constance Neely, co-author of the report, is quoted as saying: "Grasslands represent the majority of the world's agricultural area and they hold an enormous amount of the soil carbon, so we have a fantastic potential to have both better livelihoods and a better natural resource base while mitigating and adapting to climate change,"

The report goes on to claim that if between 5 and 10 percent of all grazing lands were placed under carbon sequestration management by 2020, the result could be the storage of 184 million metric tons of carbon a year.

-Steven Silverberg

A study released today discusses the impact of Climate Change on water resources and ultimately across border conflicts over those resources. The study issued by the Pacific Institute notes that 40% of the world's population obtains its water from shared resources.

As a result of the impacts of climate change the study suggests that international conflicts over water resources will increase. As noted in a press release accompanying the study: "Most existing treaties and agreements are based on the outdated assumption that future water supply and quality will not change. Adapting to climate change is going to require changes in the institutions and policies that have been put in place under international treaties.”

-Steven M. Silverberg

A study released this week predicts an average shift in climate belts of a quarter of a mile per year requiring ecosystems to adapt at a more rapid pace than may be sustainable. As reported by the Carnegie Institution which participated in the study:

"Plants and animals that can tolerate a wide range of temperatures may not need to move. But for the others, survival becomes a race."

The Copenhagen Climate Change Conference ended with a draft "Accord" addressing some of the issues faced by the conference but disappointing many. The text of the draft Accord makes several statements about the need for the implementation of actions to address climate change and then states:

"9. To this end, a High Level Panel will be established under the guidance of and accountable to the Conference of the Parties to study the contribution of the potential sources of revenue, including alternative sources of finance, towards meeting this goal.
10. We decide that the Copenhagen Green Climate Fund shall be established as an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the Convention to support projects, programme, policies and other activities in developing countries related to mitigation including REDD-plus, adaptation, capacity-building, technology development and transfer.
11. In order to enhance action on development and transfer of technology we decide to establish a Technology Mechanism to accelerate technology development and transfer in support of action on adaptation and mitigation that will be guided by a country-driven approach and be based on national circumstances and priorities.
12. We call for an assessment of the implementation of this Accord to be completed by 2015, including in light of the Convention’s ultimate objective. This would include consideration of strengthening the long-term goal referencing various matters presented by the science, including in relation to temperature rises of 1.5 degrees Celsius."

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued endangerment findings today formally declaring greenhouse gases (GHGs) to be a threat to public health and the environment. In a press release issued with the findings the EPA stated:

"EPA’s endangerment finding covers emissions of six key greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride – that have been the subject of scrutiny and intense analysis for decades by scientists in the United States and around the world.

Scientific consensus shows that as a result of human activities, GHG concentrations in the atmosphere are at record high levels and data shows that the Earth has been warming over the past 100 years, with the steepest increase in warming in recent decades. The evidence of human-induced climate change goes beyond observed increases in average surface temperatures; it includes melting ice in the Arctic, melting glaciers around the world, increasing ocean temperatures, rising sea levels, acidification of the oceans due to excess carbon dioxide, changing precipitation patterns, and changing patterns of ecosystems and wildlife."

The British Antarctic Survey released what it has called the "first comprehensive review" of the Antarctic climate. In a press release describing the report it is noted that the findings include information on the "impact and consequences of rapid warming of the Antarctic Peninsula and the Southern Ocean; rapid ice loss in parts of Antarctica and the increase in sea ice around the continent; the impact of climate change on Antarctica’s plants and animals; the unprecedented increase in carbon dioxide levels; the connections between human-induced global change and natural variability; and the extraordinary finding that the ozone hole has shielded most of Antarctica from global warming."

The Global Carbon Project issued its "Carbon Budget 2008" yesterday which concludes, among other things, that carbon dioxide emissions have increased by 29% since 2000. In addition, the emissions are 41% above 1990 levels, which is the Kyoto reference year.

The summary of the report also notes that coal is the largest source of carbon dioxide emissions and that 90% of the increase in emissions from coal are the result of increased use of coal by China and India.

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) released a study on Friday of millions of readings, going back as far as 1950, from 1800 weather stations throughout the United States, which show a significant increase of record high temperatures in relation to record low temperatures. As noted in a press release about the findings: "[I]f temperatures were not warming, the number of record daily highs and lows being set each year would be approximately even."

Instead, the study shows that record highs are outpacing the record low temperatures by roughly 2 to 1. The authors of the study cite this as a clear indication of climate change, which will continue if greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced.

A report by the Catlin Arctic Survey and the World Wildlife Fund based upon an expedition to the Arctic this summer predicts significant loss of summer ice within ten years and the disappearance of ice during the summers within as little as 20 years. The report details the findings and implications from the loss of summer ice in the Arctic.

The Executive Summary to the report notes in part"

"In addition to the regional consequences of arctic climate change are its global impacts. Acting as the Northern Hemisphere’s refrigerator, a frozen Arctic plays a central role in regulating Earth’s climate system. A number of critical arctic climate feedbacks affect the global climate system, and many of these are now being altered in a rapidly warming Arctic....Recent observations strongly suggest that climate change may soon push some systems past tipping points, with global implications. For example, the additional heat absorbed by an increasingly ice-free Arctic Ocean in summer is already accelerating local and regional warming and preventing sea ice from recovering."

In a statement posted by the Catlin Arctic Survey Dr. Martin Sommerkorn from WWF International Arctic Program is quoted as noting that among the impacts of these finding:

“Such a loss of Arctic sea ice cover has recently been assessed to set in motion powerful climate feedbacks which will have an impact far beyond the Arctic itself – self perpetuating cycles, amplifying and accelerating the consequences of global warming. This could lead to flooding affecting one-quarter of the world’s population, substantial increases in greenhouse gas emissions from massive carbon pools and extreme global weather changes."

In a press release issued today, the Department of Energy and Climate Change announced that the London Conference of the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) had concluded their meeting with agreement on a number of issues related to Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)Technology.

The primary conclusions of the conference are cited as:

"- agreement that more than 20 industrial scale CCS demonstrations could be needed by 2020, including in developing countries, with knowledge sharing between projects.

- support for capacity building to enable developing countries to host demonstrations and for rapid CCS deployment once it's proven.

- the strongest signal yet, from developed and developing countries alike, that CCS must be incentivised as part of a global climate deal in Copenhagen this December."