Here's a roundup of some of the week's major news on climate change:

• In his first post-election speech on global warming, President-elect Barack Obama promised on Tuesday to "confront this challenge once and for all" with a combination of investments in clean energy technology and a cap-and-trade market to raise the cost of carbon emissions. 
• Obama's call to action won widespread praise. The head of the U.N. Climate Change Secretariat said his pledge was a "huge signal" of encouragement to countries that negotiating a new accord to replace the Kyoto protocol on climate change. 
• Members of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, which includes several leading environmental organizations and utilities, including Pacific Gas and Electric Co., also endorsed Obama's statement. PG&E's chairman and CEO, Peter Darbee, welcomed the president-elect's commitment as "an opportunity to spur a wave of new investment in the technology and infrastructure needed to create a low carbon economy while at the same time providing a badly needed shot of economic adrenaline."
• A new United Nations report indicates that emissions of greenhouse gases by industrialized countries leveled off in 2006 for the first time in six years. That's the good news. The bad news is the study didn't measure emissions from India and China, two of the world's largest and fastest growing sources of carbon dioxide.
• In the meantime, global warming continues to wreak devastation on some ecosystems.  According to the New York Times, prolonged droughts and mild winters have promoted widespread infestations of mountain pine beetles that are killing millions of acres of forests from New Mexico to British Columbia.
• Physical scientists who wonder why their findings have not spurred the world to more decisive action may find answers in the social sciences--including the fields of behavioral decision making, risk analysis, and evolutionary psychology. According to an interesting new analysis of human risk perception, "The way we're psychologically wired and socially conditioned to respond to crises makes us ill-suited to react to the abstract and seemingly remote threat posed by global warming." 
  

The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) yesterday released a new report on California's readiness to deal with the impact of climate change.

Moving quickly from studies on how to address and help slow the effects of climate change, to actually preparing ourselves against those effects, it feels like we are now staring climate change square in the face -- a chilling thought.

The report examines California's readiness to face the challenges presented by climate change in six particularly vulnerable areas -- water resources, electricity, coastal resources, air quality, public health and ecosystem resources. According to the study, many aspects of the state's society, economy and natural environment are vulnerable to the impact of climate change.

The PPIC report finds that institutions such as power utilities have a significant role investing in and managing those resources that can help potentially vulnerable populations adapt (e.g. tools for staying cool and hydrated). Since the 2001 energy crisis, utilities have worked to improve reliability, reduce load during peak periods and add renewables. As California's population and sea level continue to rise, such measures will only become more important.

In order to face these challenges head on, the PPIC recommends that California policymakers implement policies that seek to both slow climate change and protect against its effects at the same time. PG&E will continue our work alongside these policymakers and others to help fight climate change -- and help the state mitigate its effects.

The week brought plenty of news keeping climate change on the front burner of public discussion:

• As Congress ponders what steps to take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, two UC Berkeley experts have issued a new report reminding us of the economic stakes to California. If no action is taken, report economist David Roland-Holst and his colleague Fredrich Kahrl, the combined cost to the state's energy, tourism, recreation, real estate, agriculture, forestry, fisheries and transportation sectors and to public health could range from $7 billion to $46 billion annually. In addition, trillions of dollars of assets are in jeopardy, mainly real estate at risk from fires or flooding.
• Japan, the country that hosted the Kyoto accords on greenhouse gas emissions, is at risk of missing its own emissions targets over the next four years, in part because an earthquake closed one of its biggest nuclear power plants last year. Japan must find ways of cutting CO2 emissions by 13.5 percent by 2012 to meet its target.
• More than 130 global investors, which collectively hold more than $6 trillion in assets, urged policymakers worldwide to implement measures that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions 50 to 80 percent by 2050. "As institutional investors, we are concerned with the risks presented by climate change to the global economy and to our diversified portfolios," said Mike Taylor, chief executive of London Pensions Fund Authority.
• 10 scientists from the United States, England and France reported in a new study that the world should aim for even lower CO2 levels in order to avert climate disasters. According to lead author James Hansen of Columbia University, "Following a path that leads to a lower CO2 amount, we can alleviate a number of problems that had begun to seem inevitable, such as increased storm intensities, expanded desertification, loss of coral reefs, and loss of mountain glaciers that supply fresh water to hundreds of millions of people."
• US defense and intelligence officials increasingly view climate change as a national security threat, according to the Washington Times. Among the many threats to U.S. personnel, equipment and installations is the danger of storm surges flooding 63 coastal military facilities and several nuclear reactors.

This week brought more alarming reports from scientists about climate change, and more calls to action by government officials from around the world:

• Cornell University researchers studying oceans in the northern hemisphere say "the rate of warming we are seeing is unprecedented in human history" and is causing a "major ecosystem reorganization" in the North Atlantic. Their findings appear in the November 2008 issue of the journal Ecology.
• Global warming is apparently responsible for the rapid disappearance of Norwegian lemmings. These hamster-sized rodents traditionally exploded in numbers every three to five years, often requiring snowplows to clear their squashed bodies from the roads. Changing snow patterns have apparently disrupted their habitats, slashing their population and forcing predators like foxes and owls to find other species to hunt.
• At a climate conference opening today in Beijing, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao declared that "Developed countries shoulder the duty and responsibility to tackle climate change and should alter their unsustainable lifestyle." China is the world's largest emitter of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.
• At the same conference, the top United Nations climate official, Yvo de Boer, expressed hope that the incoming Obama administration will tackle the challenge of climate change: "Obama is committed to the issue, is committed to developing a strong domestic policy, is committed to engaging in the international negotiations,'' he said. "Leadership from the U.S. on this issue can have a huge impact on the dynamics of these negotiations.''

Scientists this week issued a number of disturbing new reports about climate change, but the news brought glimmers of hope as well:

• Millions of tons of methane, an extremely potent greenhouse gas, entered the Earth's atmosphere in 2007 for reasons yet unknown, MIT scientists reported. Methane, which traps about 25 times much heat as carbon dioxide, today accounts for about a fifth of human-caused global warming. Sources of methane include rice paddies and wetlands, the oil and gas industries, and cattle.
• Frogs and salamanders are dying out in Yellowstone National Park at a frightening pace due to global warming, according to Stanford researchers. High temperatures and droughts are drying up the ponds they need for reproduction.
• Walden Pond, made famous by writer and philosopher Henry David Thoreau as a natural haven, has in the past century and a half lost more than a quarter of the species documented by Thoreau, according to a report in the latest Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Another 36 percent of species that existed in his time are in danger of disappearing. The culprit appears to be temperatures that have warmed an average of more than 4 degrees Fahrenheit over the past century.
• Within four decades, Sydney's famous beaches, coastal homes and other infrastructure may be eroded or inundated by rising sea levels triggered by global warming, according to an Australian government-sponsored study.
• Can you spare a dollar a day to save the planet? Another Australian government study--this time by the Treasury--concludes that greenhouse gas emissions can be rolled back through carbon trading schemes at a cost to households of only $7 a week more for electricity and gas. Real disposable income would continue growing about 1 percent per year. "What this modelling absolutely shows is there is a way ahead which is both pro-growth and pro-jobs," the Treasurer said. "The Australian economy will continue strong growth while reducing emissions. The earlier Australia acts, the cheaper the cost of action, and many of Australia's industries will become more, not less, competitive."
• More and more American businesses are beginning to acknowledge the material significance of climate change risks. After a deal brokered by former US Vice President Al Gore and New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Houston-based Dynegy announced it would provide information on its carbon footprint and related risks in its annual reports. Dynegy, which operates power plants in 13 states, is reportedly one of the largest consumers of coal in the United States.

Bakersfield, California, sometimes called "the city that oil built," yesterday celebrated its commitment to what may well become the 21st century's leading rival to fossil-fuel energy: solar power.

At a Bakersfield ceremony attended by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and PG&E Chairman, CEO and President Peter Darbee, Palo Alto-based Ausra, Inc. unveiled the first solar thermal energy plant built in California in nearly 20 years.

The 5-megawatt (MW) Kimberlina demonstration plant, with its thousand-foot long mirrors, uses the same core technology that Ausra plans to install a couple of years from now in a 177-MW plant east of San Luis Obispo that will serve tens of thousands of PG&E customers.

Ausra's Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) solar technology focuses heat from the sun's rays to create steam to power steam turbine generators, much like traditional power plants, but without use of fossil fuels or harmful emissions.

PG&E's Darbee called the opening of the Kimberlina plant "an important step on the path to commercialization of this new technology."

He also underscored the importance of making continued investments in clean energy projects, despite the nation's difficult economic straits, in order to fight the enormous challenge of climate change.

"I want to restate our commitment as PG&E . . . that we will not take our eye off the ball, that we will continue to pursue energy efficiency, we will continue to pursue demand management, we will continue to pursue renewables," Darbee said.

Commenting on the financial risks that could delay new investments in clean energy projects, Darbee added, "PG&E stands ready, as we were before, to take on the challenge of financing renewables, to work with people collaboratively to move renewable generation forward."

Climate change remained a hot topic in the news this week:

• The worldwide meltdown of financial markets called into question the political will to enact cap-and-trade legislation or other curbs on carbon emissions. "The truth is there is a very large question mark hanging over the idea that Congress would take economywide action on global warming with the economy in such anemic shape," said Frank O'Donnell, president of Clean Air Watch. In Europe, one expert said, "The Germans are giving up and the Italians are getting ready to follow."
• California Gov. Schwarzenegger doesn't buy the calls for caution. "We all know we're going through tough economic times right now, but that's no reason to slow down when it comes to protecting our environment and investing in clean, green technologies," Schwarzenegger said while dedicating a new solar facility at Applied Materials in Sunnyvale.
• EU Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso rejected the go-slow crowd as well. Speaking to European leaders on Tuesday, he said "Climate change does not disappear because of the financial crisis. Tackling climate change is central to Europe's future prosperity and to preserve the quality of life on our planet." UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon issued a similar declaration to the European Union today.
• At least the British government doesn't appear to be shrinking from the challenge. It plans to issue legally binding targets in a new climate change bill that will require the UK to cut its carbon emissions by 80 per cent from 1990 levels by 2050.
• According to Johan Eliasch, the UK's Special Representative on Deforestation, major reforms in world forestry practices will be an essential part of any program to address climate change. "Without action on deforestation, avoiding the worst effects of climate change will be next to impossible, and could lead to additional climate change damages of $1 trillion a year by 2100," he said.
• Meantime, scientists say air temperatures in the Arctic have reached record levels, as the loss of sea ice reduces the amount of sunlight reflected back into space.
  

Here's a roundup of some of the week's major news on climate change:

• The director of the U.N. University's Institute on the Environment and Human Security warned this week that environmental damage caused by climate change, including flooding and desertification, could displace 200 million people by 2050.
• As many as three-quarters of major Antarctic penguin colonies could be damaged or killed if global temperatures are allowed to climb by more than two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), according to a report released by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
• Keeping world temperatures from rising beyond that level will require cutting greenhouse gas emissions about 60 percent below current levels, according to Britain's independent Climate Change Committee. For Great Britain, that will mean eliminating nearly all use of fossil fuels to produce electric power.
• A new report by health experts at the Wildlife Conservation Society cites 12 deadly diseases that could spread into new regions as a result of climate change, putting human health at risk. The "deadly dozen" include plague, Ebola, tuburculosis, cholera, and avian flu. Sleep well on that tonight.
• Enough bad news. While most of the world is warming, one part of south-eastern Spain has actually been cooling an average of 0.3 °C per decade since 1983. The secret is the region's 26,000 hectares of greenhouses. According to a Spanish researcher, the white structures reflect so much sun that they cool the earth!
  

With new warnings about the perils of global warming emerging almost daily, most experts agree on the urgency of finding ways to use energy more efficiently in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without slowing economic growth.

A new scorecard issued by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) gives California the top prize among all 50 states for energy efficiency, with a total score of 40.5 out of 50 points. Oregon, Connecticut and Vermont were close runners up.

The bottom-ranked state was Wyoming, with a grand total of zero points. Wyoming just barely saved North Dakota and Alabama, with 1.5 points each, from sharing the booby prize.

Califonia's leadership is no accident. The state's Energy Action Plan makes energy efficiency "the resource of first choice for meeting California's energy needs." The California Energy Commission estimates that the state's building and appliance standards alone "have saved consumers more than $56 billion in electricity and natural gas costs since 1978 and averted building 15 large power plants."

PG&E and other utilities have long had programs to help customers save money by saving energy. Since 1976, PG&E's energy efficiency programs have saved an estimated $22 billion and prevented 135 million tons of CO2 emissions. The ACEEE report gives California and Connecticut top marks for providing utilities with incentives to promote energy efficiency.

Joseph Romm, former acting assistant secretary of energy and founder of the non-profit Center for Energy and Climate Solutions, lauded California's record earlier this year in Salon magazine:

While a few states have energy-efficiency strategies, none matches what California has done. In the past three decades, electricity consumption per capita grew 60 percent in the rest of the nation, while it stayed flat in high-tech, fast-growing California. If all Americans had the same per capita electricity demand as Californians currently do, we would cut electricity consumption 40 percent. If the entire nation had California's much cleaner electric grid, we would cut total U.S. global-warming pollution by more than a quarter without raising American electric bills. And if all of America adopted the same energy-efficiency policies that California is now putting in place, the country would never have to build another polluting power plant.

How did California do it? In part, a smart California Energy Commission has promoted strong building standards and the aggressive deployment of energy-efficient technologies and strategies -- and has done so with support of both Democratic and Republican leadership over three decades. . . .

Significantly, California adopted regulations so that utility company profits are not tied to how much electricity they sell. This is called "decoupling." It also allowed utilities to take a share of any energy savings they help consumers and businesses achieve. The bottom line is that California utilities can make money when their customers save money. That puts energy-efficiency investments on the same competitive playing field as generation from new power plants.

This week brought more doom-and-gloom warnings about climate change, as well as some belated action from Congress to promote renewable energy: 

• Scientists assembled at a three-day summit, sponsored by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, warned that global warming could kill up to a third of the planet's species by the end of the century if dramatic steps aren't taken to protect fragile ecosystems.
• The British government's top climate change expert, Vicky Pope, warned that if the world takes no action to slash greenhouse gas emissions, "temperatures could rise as high as 7C above pre-industrial values by the end of the century. This would lead to significant risks of severe and irreversible impacts." Even in the most optimistic scenario, where emissions fall 3 percent a year instead of increasing (as today) by 1 percent a year, temperatures are likely to grow about 2C by the end of the century.
• Taking strong measures to reduce GHG emissions by cutting the use of fossil fuels could produce tens of billions of dollars in ancillary benefits to the European Union (not to mention other parts of the world) by curbing other harmful emissions (such as particulates) that are known to increase mortality, according to a new study by three environmental organizations.
• The first U.S. cap-and-trade auction designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, sponsored by a group of Northeastern states known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, raised $40 million last week. The auction set the price of carbon  at just over $3 a ton. Ned Raynolds, a spokesman for the Union of Concerned Scientists, said, "This shows it's possible to put a price on polluting and the sky won't fall. What was a concept now is a reality."
• The U.S. Congress this week passed a $700 billion bank rescue bill that included billions of dollars in tax incentives for the renewable energy industry, plug-in electric vehicles, and energy efficiency improvements. The extension of these credits should spur new investment and potentially hundreds of thousands of jobs in wind, solar, geothermal and other relatively clean energy technologies.