RECOMMENDED READING

Scientists Find a Microbe Haven at Ocean’s Surface

"Scientists are now discovering that the top hundredth-inch of the ocean...is home to an unusual menagerie of microbes. 'It’s really a distinct ecosystem of its own,' said Oliver Wurl, of Canada’s Institute of Ocean Sciences...This so-called sea-surface microlayer is important, scientists say, in part because it influences the chemistry of the ocean and the atmosphere...Dr. Cunliffe and his colleagues have identified bacteria in the microlayer that devour important chemicals like methane and carbon monoxide. The microlayer is also crucial to the ocean’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide, a potent greenhouse gas." [New York Times]

Kenya To Build Africa's Biggest Windfarm

"One of the hottest places in the world is set to become the site of Africa's most ambitious venture in the battle against global warming.  Some 365 giant wind turbines are to be installed in desert around Lake Turkana in northern Kenya...creating the biggest windfarm on the continent. When complete in 2012, the £533m project will have a capacity of 300MW, a quarter of Kenya's current installed power and one of the highest proportions of wind energy to be fed in a national grid anywhere in the world." [The Guardian]

Fertile Crescent 'Will Disappear This Century'

"Is it the final curtain for the Fertile Crescent? This summer, as Turkish dams reduce the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to a trickle, farmers abandon their desiccated fields across Iraq and Syria, and efforts to revive the Mesopotamian marshes appear to be abandoned, climate modellers are warning that the current drought is likely to become permanent. The Mesopotamian cradle of civilisation seems to be returning to desert." [New Scientist]

Catholics, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs Fight Global Warming

"As political leaders aim for a momentous climate change conference in Copenhagen in December, religious leaders are rolling up their sleeves as well. This month, Muslim, Catholic, Hindu and Sikh leaders all pledged to build climate change plans for their adherents. Jewish leaders have also promised to build a seven-year climate change plan. The world religions initiative is being organized by the Alliance of Religions and Conservation."  [The Jerusalem Post]

Researchers Project Intense Fire Season in the West

"It will be hot, dry and a bad fire year for much of the West, Forest Service researchers are predicting. Researchers have completed an updated national drought and fire forecast for the next six months saying that 3.66 million acres are expected to burn...Higher-than-normal fire levels are expected in most of Texas, the Southwest, California and the Pacific Northwest this year...with huge fires projected for much of Northern California and the Sierra Nevada range." [Greenwire-New York Times]

LISTS

Green Honor Roll

"We salute the following 15 colleges that received a Green Rating of 99 (the highest score) in our rating tallies this year." [Princeton Review]