Today’s Climate: August 31, 2010

Climate ‘Sceptic’ Bjørn Lomborg Now Believes Warming is One of World’s Greatest Threats (Telegraph)

Bjørn Lomborg, a self-styled "skeptical environmentalist" who has long opposed international curbs on carbon emissions, is now urging world leaders to invest heavily in clean energy.

German Energy Demand ‘Can Be Met By Renewables By 2050’ (Dow Jones)

Most of Germany’s energy demand can be met through renewable sources by 2050, but this is dependent on spending billions of euros, according to the conclusions of a government-commissioned report.

Panel Member: Blowout Preventer May Hold Key (AP)

Accurate conclusions about what caused the blowout of BP’s oil well in the Gulf and the massive spill that followed will have to wait for a key piece of equipment to be raised from the seafloor and analyzed, a member of a federal investigative panel looking into the disaster said.

Group Touring State to Push for Marcellus Gas Tax (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

An environmental group is holding a statewide "Keep the Promise" tour that’s aimed at enacting a new "severance tax" on Marcellus Shale natural gas producers, and the first stop will be in the Pittsburgh area.

Activists Seek Ban on Mountaintop Removal Mining (AP)

Activists from the Appalachian region called on the Obama administration Monday to end the practice of mountaintop removal coal mining, saying it is destroying their land and harming their water quality.

Not Boycotting Oilsands, 3 U.S. Firms Say (CBC News)

On Friday, it was widely reported that The Gap, Levi Strauss and Timberland had told their transportation companies that preference would be given to those that avoided using oilsands fuels. All three firms denied those reports to CBC News.

Updated Car Stickers to Include Environmental Info (AP)

A government proposal may add letter grades to showroom window stickers on new cars and trucks to reflect a vehicle’s overall fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions.

Japan Forsees Starting Carbon-Emissions Trading in 2013, Panel Reports (Bloomberg)

Japan plans to start emissions trading in 2013, as the government revived a climate-protection draft law that was scrapped earlier this year when then Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned.

Colo. Regulators Hold Hearings on Xcel Smart Grid (AP)

This week the Colorado Public Utilities Commission is holding hearings on its SmartGridCity project and how much of its costs Xcel Energy can recover from customers statewide.

Russia Submits ‘Breakthrough’ Carbon Emissions Reduction Project, UN Says (Bloomberg)

Russia submitted for registration its first carbon emissions reduction project under a special UN procedure, a step that can signal "a substantial increase" of followers, the UN regulator said today.

SunPower Lands Sweet Array of Government Contracts (VentureBeat)

Solar energy company SunPower Corp. has landed a sweet array of installation contracts for U.S. government entities, amounting to about 20 megawatts’ worth of new solar projects for groups such as the Navy and Marine Corps.

Proterra’s Fast-Charging Electric Bus Hits the Road (Earth2Tech)

Proterra is announcing this morning that Foothill Transit, which serves eastern LA County, has purchased three of its electric buses, as well as two fast-charging stations, and signed on for an option to buy nine more if all goes well.