By John Parnell
– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to [email protected]
– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)
Friday 2 November
Last updated: 1520
China: Concern about climate change has swelled in China recently , according to a new survey. The study by the Center for China Climate Change Communication and the Statistics Institute of Renmin University found 77.7% of people were worried about climate change and a staggering 93.4% understand the key principles behind climate change. (China.org.cn)
UK: Plans to merge the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) with the National Oceanography Centre have been shelved by the UK Government. The merger was criticised for a number of reasons including a condition in the merger that the BAS would be required to “de-risk” oil and gas exploration in the region. (Guardian)
US: Al Jazeera poses an interesting question as climate change suddenly rushes up the US election agenda, where is the US Green Party in all of this? (Al Jazeera)
UK: A group in England claims to be the largest community owned solar energy project in the world. The Westmill Solar Co-op took ownership of an existing solar farm 5MW solar farm for £16.5m yesterday. It can generate enough electricity for 1500 homes. The group raised £6m in towards the deal in a share offer that was 50% over subscribed.
US: The Republican Mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg has endorsed the Democratic incumbent Barack Obama in the US Presidential election. Bloomberg, who is presiding over the city in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, called on people to “vote for a president who will lead on climate change”. Republican hopeful Mitt Romney has so far stayed silent on climate change. (Guardian)
EU: The EU Energy Commissioner has thrown his weight behind a 2030 CO2 reduction target of “maybe more than 20% or 30%”. Günther Oettinger, who was quoted earlier this year endorsing shale gas, said that a renewable energy target would also be required otherwise “nuclear is better”.
The current target of 20% by 2020 is considered too modest however an agreement on a new goal is unlikely before 2014. (EurActiv)
Iceland: Renewable energy-rich Iceland should export electricity to the UK via a sub-sea cable to help its economic recovery, the consultancy McKinsey has said. The group claims Iceland could make 5% of its GDP from the sales. An agreement between the two governments is already exploring the possibility of installing a cable to bring Iceland’s significant geothermal resources to the UK. (Reuters)