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NZ Climate to heat up

Auckland, 27 May 2008 - New climate change projections released for New Zealand

The National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research (NIWA) has produced new climate change projections for New Zealand.

Swedish government approves giant wind farm

STOCKHOLM (AFP) 28 May 2008 - Sweden's government on Tuesday approved the building of the largest offshore wind farm in the Scandinavian country and one of the biggest in Europe, the environment ministry said in a statement."The government has authorised the building... of a maximum of 108 windurbines measuring at most 200 metres (656 feet) and with a capacity of 60 megawatts (MW)," the ministry said.

Although there are several giant wind farm projects in the works around he world today, the largest existing offshore wind farm is a 750-MW pread in Texas, while total global offshore wind capacity amounts to ust 1,100 MW, according to the Brussels-based Global Wind Energy ouncil.

Climate change hits snowfalls

Melbourne, 28 May 2008 - SCIENTISTS say Australia will not be immune from a downturn in snowfalls threatening some of the world's best resorts in Europe.Australia's ski season begins in two weeks, but most of the snow dumped in the past two months has already melted.

The melt comes as researchers in Europe have found the number of snow days in the Swiss Alps have fallen in the past 20 years.

plug-in gas garbo hits the streets

Odyne Corporation announced that the City of Fresno has held a press conference to debut and demonstrate the world’s first compressed natural gas refusevehicle equipped with Odyne's PHEV technology.

The event was held in Fresno, Calif., and in attendance were Fresno Public Utilities Director, Rene Ramirez, Fresno Council of Governments Planner, Jason Paukovits, and City of Fresno Deputy Mayor, Jeff Eben, who acknowledged the City of Fresno’s Department of Public Utilities for their extensive legwork necessary to accomplish the project. “This truck is part of a citywide energy conservation strategy," says Eben. "There is an expected 90 percent reduction in smog-forming emissions.”

Vast cracks appear in Arctic ice

London, May 24 2008 - Dramatic evidence of the break-up of the Arctic ice-cap has emerged from research during an expedition by the Canadian military.Scientists travelling with the troops found major new fractures during an assessment of the state of giant ice shelves in Canada's far north.

The team found a network of cracks that stretched for more than 10 miles (16km) on Ward Hunt, the area's largest shelf.

US driving falls first time in 30 years on oil prices

THE last time this happened Jimmy Carter was US president. In March, US driving fell an astonishing 4.3 per cent on a year earlier. It was first time driving has fallen in the month since 1979.

US driving began to taper off in November, according to Doug Hecox of the Federal Highway Administration, but at first it was thought the decline could be seasonal, because of bad weather. Then came March, and the largest year-over-year driving drop in the agency's recorded history, going back to 1942.

Tornadoes hit family twice

ATLANTA, May 21 2008 - At least one Arkansas family already knows that 2008 has been a devastating year for tornadoes.John E. Hill, 31, lost his job on Feb. 2 when a huge twister demolished the boat factory in Clinton, Ark., where he worked as a welder. Little more than three months later, Mr. Hill, who was struggling to provide for his family, lost his house, cars and cash savings to another tornado.

"I don't know what this is," said Mr. Hill, whose family survived the second tornado with bruises and gashes. "I've lived in Arkansas most of my life, and I've never see this many tornadoes. They're all over the place."

Big investors seek stricter climate laws

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Investors managing more than $2.3 trillion urged the government on Tuesday to enact strict laws to cut greenhouse gas emissions, saying lax regulation could hurt the competitiveness of U.S. companies.

The group of some 50 investors, including the world's biggest listed hedge fund firm, Man Group Plc and influential venture capitalist John Doerr, want U.S. lawmakers to pass laws to reduce climate-warming emissions by at least 60 to 90 percent by 2050.

Oil heading $US150

May 21, 2008 - Crude oil rose above $US129 a barrel in New York for the first time after billionaire hedge-fund manager Boone Pickens said oil will reach $US150 a barrel this year because supply isn't keeping up with demand.Producers are ``running out of oil,'' Pickens, the founder and chairman of Dallas-based BP Capital LLC, said on CNBC today, reiterating comments he made to Bloomberg News on April 29. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG also said in the past month that prices would rise.

``It's not just Boone Pickens; just about every big global bank has raised its price forecast in recent weeks,'' said John Kilduff, vice president of risk management at MF Global Ltd. in New York. ``When prices last fell below $US20 in 2001 there was a surplus. That's no longer the case. There's now a deficit.''

Kiwi kite power secures 10 million google funding

A Kiwi who wants to use giant kites soaring a kilometre into the sky to harness cheap and green wind power has hauled in a US$10 million (NZ$13 million) investment from Internet giant Google.

Based in the United States, Pete Lynn is at the forefront of efforts to generate power by flying kites in the troposphere, the lowest part of the Earth's atmosphere.