News from Elsewhere

East Antarctic glacier melting at 70.8bn tonnes a year due to warm sea water | Antarctica | The Guardian

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East Antarctic glacier melting at 70.8bn tonnes a year due to warm sea water

Denman glacier in remote part of the continent could become unstable, possibly contributing to more sea level rise than predicted
Lisa Cox
The Denman ice shelf in east Antarctica is melting at a rate of 70.8bn tonnes a year, according to researchers from Australia’s national science agency, thanks to the ingress of warm sea water.
The CSIRO researchers, led by senior scientist Esmee van Wijk, said their observations suggested the Denman glacier was potentially at risk of unstable retreat.
The glacier, in remote east Antarctica, sits atop the deepest land canyon on Earth. It holds a volume of ice equivalent to 1.5m of sea level rise.
Until relatively recently, it was thought east Antarctica would not experience the same rapid ice loss that is occurring in the west. But some recent studies have shown warm water is reaching that part of the continent too.

News from Elsewhere

Multimillion-pound UK road scheme facing legal action on climate grounds | Road transport | The Guardian

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Isabella Kaminski

A legal challenge has been launched against a road scheme that opponents say clashes with climate goals.
Changes aimed at improving car journeys between Milton Keynes and Cambridge by upgrading junctions and building a 10-mile dual carriageway on the A428 between Black Cat and Caxton Gibbet were approved in the summer. The scheme, estimated to cost £810m-£950m, is listed in the government’s growth plan for accelerated delivery.
But Transport Action Network (TAN) filed for judicial review at the end of September, arguing the Department for Transport (DfT) was wrong to only assess emissions from the scheme against the national carbon budget.
Instead, the climate campaign group points to professional guidance from the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment, which recommends using sectoral, regional and local carbon budgets to contextualise a project’s greenhouse gas emissions.

News from Elsewhere

Third of Brits want to cycle more, many to cut their fuel spending | road.cc

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Nearly four in 10 adults are planning to cycle more to cut their fuel expenditure, new survey suggestsPlenty of Brits are considering tackling their fuel spending by taking more journeys by bike, with as many as 30 per cent excited to rediscover two-wheeled journeys, according to a study by online cycling retailer Chain Reaction.

The research published in the Independent newspaper saw 2,000 adults surveyed, finding that nearly four in 10 are planning to cut their fuel spend by cycling more of their journeys.
Nearly half (48 per cent) wanted to cycle more than they currently do, with 30 per cent excited to rediscover the joy of cycling, and 44 per cent after more exercise and 40 per cent seeking more fresh air.

News from Elsewhere

Motorists Switching To Bicycle Or Train For One Car Trip Make Big Reduction In Emissions, Say Studies – forbes.com

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Carlton Reid
Switching just one leisure journey per week to train could result in a 28.4% reduction on total journey carbon emissions, reports a study focused on the U.K. produced for train operations company LNER, and across one year could result in a 16.6% reduction of annual leisure travel emissions. 
A separate report from the World Health Organization (WHO) found that if one in five urban residents swapped just one car journey to cycling each day, it would cut emissions from all car travel in Europe by 8%. 
LNER’s report, released October 13, was produced by experts from University College London (UCL) Energy Institute. On average, carbon emissions from cars are three times higher than that of a train, meaning the “collective power of one small change could be a monumental shift,” states LNER. 

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