Chuyên mục: Biến đổi khí hậu – Climate change

Nonproliferation and Nuclear Energy: The Case of Vietnam

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Is Vietnam diverting its civilian know-how to create an indigenous nuclear weapons program? Not yet, says the CSS’ Oliver Thränert, but increased tensions or overt conflict with China could lead Hanoi to develop its own nuclear deterrent.

By Oliver Thränert for Center for Security Studies (CSS)

ISN – For many years, the international nuclear non-proliferation regime has been in deep crisis. This became apparent most recently when the ninth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in May 2015 ended without a common final document. At the same time, a number of threshold countries are planning to begin using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. In a time of increasing international tensions, some of them might build on know-how acquired through their civilian programs to safeguard their national security needs through a nuclear weapons program in the near future. Vietnam is an interesting case in point. Irrespective of certain delays in the development of its peaceful nuclear program, the country has progressed quite far. At the same time, it is engaged in an increasingly precarious conflict with its main neighbor, nuclear-armed China. Currently, there are no signs of a Vietnamese nuclear weapons program. In the framework of the nuclear non-proliferation regime, the country is a model of transparency and cooperation. But it is uncertain whether this will always remain the case. On the contrary, Hanoi might change its policy if the conflict with China should come to a head while the NPT continues to be weakened.

Vietnam’s strategic situation

Vietnam might complete its first nuclear reactor within a few years, ahead of ambitious neighbors such as Indonesia or Malaysia. The country’s main motivations are its growing energy requirements and the desire to diversify its energy sources. Considerations of prestige may also be a factor. As a threshold nation, Vietnam aims to achieve the same level as Asia’s developed nations. With a view to China, Hanoi probably also wishes to demonstrate the high level of global confidence that the country enjoys in sensitive matters of security policy. Tiếp tục đọc “Nonproliferation and Nuclear Energy: The Case of Vietnam” →

From Omen to Opportunity: How Cheap Oil Is Accelerating Sustainable Energy Investment

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

An increasingly unprofitable global oil market is driving fuel prices to historic lows and hemorrhaging investment in conventional energy sources. Breaking with tradition, cheap oil no longer foretells disaster for renewable energy companies. On the contrary, disillusioned fossil fuel investors are seeking high-growth opportunities—just in time to ride the renewables wave in the wake of the 2015 Paris climate talks.

worldwatch – Crashing out in February at $27 per barrel, crude oil prices have reached their lowest point in over 13 years, since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Despite a modest recovery in March driven by expectations for reduced production, investors remain skeptical of underlying oil market fundamentals and are reducing their exposure. These selloffs have dragged down the stock prices of large conventional energy companies listed in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index by 13 percent and have cost investors more than $703 billion since the record-high oil prices of June 2014.

Responding to these selloffs, oil companies have tightened their belts, decommissioning two-thirds of their rigs and sharply cutting investment in oil field exploration and development, while an estimated 250,000 oil workers have lost their jobs. A Wood Mackenzie report identified 68 major oil and natural gas projects—representing a combined value of $380 billion and output of 2.9 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day—that have been put on hold since late 2014. Besides reducing operating costs, oil companies hope that these measures will have a stabilizing effect on the market by reducing productive capacity in the medium to long term. Tiếp tục đọc “From Omen to Opportunity: How Cheap Oil Is Accelerating Sustainable Energy Investment” →

ASEAN PLAN OF ACTION FOR ENERGY COOPERATION (APAEC) 2016-2025

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ 2 bình luận

FULL REPORT

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Energy is key to the realisation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) which calls for a well-connected ASEAN to drive an integrated, competitive and resilient region. Energy is key to the realisation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) which calls for a well-connected ASEAN to drive an integrated, competitive and resilient region.

ASEAN is now one of the most dynamic and fastest growing economic regions in the world, and through the implementation of the AEC by end of December 2015, this growth is expected to continue. The region is projected to grow by at least 4% per year on average over the next five years, but could be as high as 6% – provided ASEAN moves towards greater integration, where member states continuously implement domestic structural reforms to raise their productivity and competitiveness under the framework of the AEC.

1 To fuel this growth, the demand in primary energy
2 is expected to grow by an average of 4.7% per year from 2013 to reach 1,685 Mtoe in 2035, according to the ASEAN Centre for Energy’s (ACE) 4 th ASEAN Energy Outlook (AEO4).

Addressing this growing demand for energy, which is driven by both economic and demographic growth, has been a challenge for ASEAN ahead of the AEC. Against this backdrop, the 32 nd ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM) held on 23 rd September 2014 in Vientiane, Lao PDR, endorsed the theme of the new ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) 2016-2025 as “Enhancing Energy Connectivity and Market Integration in ASEAN to Achieve Energy Security, Accessibility, Affordability and Sustainability for All” .

The theme also reflects the central elements of connectivity and energy security captured in the Nay Pyi Taw Declaration on the ASEAN Community’s Post 2015 Vision adopted by the ASEAN Leaders at the 25 th ASEAN Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, on 12 th November 2014 The key initiatives under this APAEC include embarking on multilateral electricity trading to accelerate the realisation of the ASEAN Power Grid (APG), enhancing gas connectivity by expanding the focus of the Trans-ASEAN Gas Pipeline (TAGP) to include Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) regasification terminals as well as promoting clean coal technologies. It also includes strategies to achieve higher aspirational targets to improve energy efficiency and increase the uptake of renewable energy (RE) sources, in addition to building capabilities on nuclear energy.

Plans to broaden and deepen collaboration with ASEAN’s Dialogue Partners (DPs), International Organisations (IOs), academic institutions and the business sector will be stepped up to benefit from their expertise and enhance capacity building in the region. The APAEC 2016-2025 will be implemented in two phases. Phase I will cover the period 2016-2020 for the implementation of short to medium-term measures to enhance energy security cooperation and to take further steps towards connectivity and integration. In 2018, there will be a stocktake of the progress of Phase I, which will guide ASEAN in charting the pathways and directives for Phase II (2021-2025).

 

 

The Effects of Fukushima Linger after Five Years, but Not from Radiation

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

While hundreds died in the evacuation, none perished as a result of exposure to radiation.

technologyreview : The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident, which began on March 11, 2011, uprooted thousands of Japanese people, set the worldwide nuclear power industry back a decade, and caused a run on potassium iodide (said to help ward off thyroid cancer). What it didn’t do was kill anyone from radioactive fallout.

A Greenpeace report released this week, “Nuclear Scars: The Lasting Legacies of Chernobyl and Fukushima,” takes a harsher view, saying that “the health consequences of the Chernobyl and Fukushima catastrophes are extensive.” But most of the report dwells on Chernobyl, and it notes that the primary effects of Fukushima were “mental health disorders, such as depression, anxiety and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.” Put another way: fear and panic resulting from the accident (and from the loss of homes and livelihoods) were more dangerous than the radiation.
Tiếp tục đọc “The Effects of Fukushima Linger after Five Years, but Not from Radiation” →

Cận cảnh hạn mặn

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ 2 bình luận

Đức Tâm – Thứ Hai,  7/3/2016, 14:14 (GMT+7)

Tình trạng hạn mặn đã ảnh hưởng đến cuộc sống của mọi người dân, từ bà bán hàng rong cho đến nhà của Tổng giám đốc Công ty Cấp thoát nước – Ảnh: Đức Tâm

(TBKTSG Online) – Ở Bến Tre hiện nay bạn không cần ra biển để cảm nhận được vị mặn của nước; Chỉ cần nhấp một ngụm trà, bạn đã thấy vị mặn hiện diện ngay tại mỗi gia đình.

Tiếp tục đọc “Cận cảnh hạn mặn” →

Cộng đồng người Khmer ứng phó với những thách thức từ thiên tai và biến đổi khí hậu

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

September 4th, 2015 by Oxfam in Vietnam

Oxfam – Hiện nay có khoảng hơn 1 triệu người dân Khmer sinh sống quanh khu vực đồng bằng sông Cửu Long, mảnh đất đang phải oằn mình chống chọi lại những thiên tai do tác động của biến đổi khí hậu. Các hiện tượng biến đổi khí hậu cực đoan và khó lường ảnh hưởng nghiêm trọng đến cuộc sống người dân trên nhiều phương diện, và những người chịu thiệt hại nhiều nhất chính là nhóm đối tượng đang yếu kém trong xã hội như người nông dân Khmer. Vì vậy, một câu hỏi đã được đặt ra: Liệu cộng đồng Khmer có thể làm gì để ứng phó với những thách thức từ thiên tai và biến đổi khí hậu này?

Tiếp tục đọc “Cộng đồng người Khmer ứng phó với những thách thức từ thiên tai và biến đổi khí hậu” →

Crisis Response: When Trees Stop Storms and Deserts in Asia

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này
by Kathleen Buckingham Kathleen Buckingham – February 23, 2016

This is the first installment of our Restoration Global Tour blog series. The series examines restoration success stories in Asia, Latin America, Africa, Europe and North America. Tune in over the coming months for additional installments, or check out our Restoration Diagnostic for more information.

Mangrove forest in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta.
Mangrove forest in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. Photo by Jonas Hansel/Flickr

WRI – A history of deforestation has made Asian nations like Vietnam, China and South Korea especially vulnerable to coastal storms, floods and sandstorms. Yet just as these nations have experienced similar crises, they’re also all pursuing a solution—restoring degraded landscapes.

In fact, reforestation, afforestation and changing agricultural policies have played a large role in bringing these countries from the brink to prosperity. WRI recently analyzed Asia’s restoration practices to inform the design of our Restoration Diagnostic, a method for evaluating existing and missing success factors for countries or landscapes with restoration opportunities.  Here’s a look at how these countries overcame disasters by restoring degraded land: Tiếp tục đọc “Crisis Response: When Trees Stop Storms and Deserts in Asia” →

Mobilising finance for a renewable and sustainable future

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này
solar wind hua hin
Solar panels and wind turbines in Hua Hin, Thailand. Solar and wind accounted for 92 per cent of all investment in renewable and fuels worldwide in 2014. Image: iceink / Shutterstock.com
By Yvo de Boer

Friday 12 February 2016

eco-business – Global momentum is building towards greater investment in renewables. Renewable energy is no longer seen as an indulgence that needs to be tolerated. Prospects are looking bright for the renewable energy industry as a growing number of countries, including the United States are realizing that the rapidly increasing use of renewable energy has become a beacon for optimism.

In fact, renewable energy sources are becoming affordable thanks to enhanced infrastructure and policies. Over the next decades, huge investments will be flowing into the energy sector. It is critical to seek ways to green those investments. According to UNEP’s 9th “Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment 2015,” renewables are growing rapidly in both developed and developing countries, with China leading the way. Tiếp tục đọc “Mobilising finance for a renewable and sustainable future” →

Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change Is Found Lacking

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

By JOHN SCHWARTZFEB. 11, 2016

Bertha Vazquez, a teacher in Miami, has persuaded colleagues, including those teaching German and art, to talk about climate in class. Max Reed for The New York Times

nytimes – Most science teachers in the United States spend some time on climate change in their courses, but their insufficient grasp of the science as well as political factors “may hinder effective teaching,” according to a nationwide survey of the profession.

The survey, described in the current issue of the journal Science, found that teachers spent little time on the topic — just one to two hours on average over an academic year.

Close to a third of the teachers also reported conveying messages that are contradictory, emphasizing the scientific consensus on human causation and the idea that many scientists believe the changes have natural causes.

The authors of the paper suggested that those teachers “may wish to teach ‘both sides’ to accommodate values and perspectives that students bring to the classroom.” The survey also found, however, that only 4.4 percent of teachers said that they had faced overt pressure from parents, school administrators or the community to teach about climate change.

Tiếp tục đọc “Science Teachers’ Grasp of Climate Change Is Found Lacking” →

Despite Stay, America’s Economy and Climate Need the Clean Power Plan

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

by Sam Adams Sam Adams and David Waskow – February 10, 2016

WRI – Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court paused implementation of the Clean Power Plan (CPP) to allow an appeals court to consider a legal challenge from a number of states, corporations and industry groups. That case is being expedited, and a decision is expected by the fall.

Importantly, the Supreme Court’s decision to grant a temporary stay was not based on the legal merits of the CPP, which calls for emissions reductions throughout states’ power sectors. Experts agree that the CPP is on solid legal ground and will prevail. Indeed, previously the Supreme Court not only upheld the EPA’s authority to regulate carbon pollution under the Clean Air Act (which the Clean Power Plan builds upon), the Court found the agency had the obligation to do so to protect Americans’ health.

We expect yesterday’s ruling to be only a temporary time out as the CPP heads to full implementation. As the legal case proceeds, the EPA has indicated it will continue to help states put in place the plans and tools they need to comply with the rule, and the Obama administration has committed to continue taking aggressive steps to reduce emissions and lead in the fight against climate change.

Clean Power Plan: Smart, Balanced and Beneficial

The benefits of the plan are clear, far-reaching and worth fighting for. The CPP offers a smart, balanced approach that will cut dangerous pollution as it drives innovation, creates new job opportunities and improves public health. The CPP is one of the most important near-term tools the United States can use to help reach its goal of reducing emissions 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. In addition, the plan will make our air safer to breathe by reducing Americans’ exposure to particulate matter and ground-level ozone, benefiting our health and the economy by an estimated $25 billion to $65 billion – far more than the $7 billion to $9 billion cost of compliance, according to the EPA.
Tiếp tục đọc “Despite Stay, America’s Economy and Climate Need the Clean Power Plan” →

Thổi năng lượng mới cho năng suất nông nghiệp vùng hạ lưu Mekong

~ Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hợp ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

English: Reinvigorating agricultural productivity in the Lower Mekong

Aladdin D. Rillo and Mercedita A. Sombilla

asia.nikke

Cuộc cách mạng xanh đã làm nên những kỳ tích ở châu Á. Sản lượng từ những mùa vụ, cụ thể là sản lượng gạo là lương thực chính của khu vực này, đã tăng gấp đôi trong những thập kỷ qua. Vùng hạ lưu đồng bằng sông Mekong, được xem như là vựa gạo của châu Á, kỹ thuật mới và giống cây trồng mới mà cuộc cách mạng xanh mang lại là một thành công lớn.

Sản xuất lúa gạo ở các nước hạ lưu sông Mekong như Campuchia, Lào, Myanmar và Việt Nam tăng vọt 68% từ năm 1980 đên năm 1995. Trong cùng thời gian này, trung bình sản lượng tăng hơn gấp đôi từ mức sản lượng những năm 1960 lên khoảng 3.5 tấn/ha. Tổng diện tích đất canh tác lúa cũng tăng khoảng 25% đạt 16.3 triệu ha từ năm 1996 đến năm 2005.

Cuối năm 2013, tuy nhiên, thành tựu đạt được như bị khựng lại. Giữa năm 2006 và năm 2013, tăng trưởng sản lượng trung bình chậm lại còn 22% trên tất cả các nước hạ lưu sông Mekong trừ Campuchia, trong khi tăng trưởng sản lượng gạo trượt xuống còn 36%.
Tiếp tục đọc “Thổi năng lượng mới cho năng suất nông nghiệp vùng hạ lưu Mekong” →

The Problem with Biofuels

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

The U.S. Navy is touting its “Great Green Fleet,” but why haven’t biofuels made a bigger splash despite a decade of hype and investment?

technologyreview – Last week the U.S. Navy, with its accustomed pomp and fanfare, launched its first carrier strike group powered partly by biofuel—in this case, a blend made primarily from beef fat. The biofueled warships form a central element of the Navy’s Great Green Fleet program to draw half of its power from clean energy sources, rather than petroleum, by 2020.

Attended by secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus and agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack, the ceremony masked what has been nearly a decade of problems for biofuels—an energy source once touted as capable of virtually eliminating the use of petroleum in the transportation sector. Today biofuels production and consumption stand at a fraction of the levels foreseen under the Renewable Fuel Standard, a federal mandate signed by President George W. Bush that requires fuels made from corn, sugarcane, and other biological sources to be mixed into the nation’s gasoline supply. Tiếp tục đọc “The Problem with Biofuels” →

Vietnam Plans Move Away From Coal

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

January 28th, 2016 by

cleantecnica – Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has announced his government’s intention to “review development plans of all new coal plants and halt any new coal power development.”

Vietnam prime minister

Nguyễn Tấn Dũng, Prime Minister of Vietnam

According to Solarplaza, the Premier stated that Vietnam needs to “responsibly implement all international commitments in cutting down greenhouse gas emissions; and to accelerate investment in renewable energy.”

The announcement comes in advance of the Solar PV Trade Mission, scheduled April 18 – 22 in Hanoi and Bangkok. It is hoped the trade missions will assemble diverse high-level delegations of stakeholders from around the world into emerging markets to jointly explore and create business development opportunities.
Tiếp tục đọc “Vietnam Plans Move Away From Coal” →

Em thơ lạnh tím tái vì giá rét

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ 3 bình luận
26/01/2016 09:45 GMT+7

TT – Lần đầu tiên băng tuyết xuất hiện khắp nơi, hiện tượng thiên nhiên kỳ thú với nhiều người dân Việt Nam đã nhuốm màu khắc nghiệt lên đời sống đồng bào những vùng này.

Con trâu duy nhất trong nhà ông La Văn Sỹ (xóm Phja Đén, xã Thành Công, huyện Nguyên Bình, Cao Bằng) bị chết vì rét lạnh (-60C) - Ảnh: Đan Chi
Con trâu duy nhất trong nhà ông La Văn Sỹ (xóm Phja Đén, xã Thành Công, huyện Nguyên Bình, Cao Bằng) bị chết vì rét lạnh (-60C) – Ảnh: Đan Chi

Không chỉ Sa Pa (Lào Cai), Đồng Văn (Hà Giang), Yên Bái mà một số nơi như Ba Vì (Hà Nội), Nghệ An, Thanh Hóa… hiện băng tuyết đã phủ trắng xóa khắp nơi.

Chiều 25-1 tại thị trấn Phố Bảng (Đồng Văn, Hà Giang) nhiệt độ dao động ở 10C. Trong thị trấn, người dân đốt lửa chống chọi giá rét.

Trong cái lạnh tê tái lịm người, bé Mỷ (10 tuổi, ở khu 2, thị trấn Phố Bảng) cùng hai em lê từng bước chân lạnh giá gùi củ cải về nhà. Gia đình các em thuộc diện nghèo ở vùng này, nên dù trong băng tuyết các em vẫn phải kiếm miếng ăn. Tiếp tục đọc “Em thơ lạnh tím tái vì giá rét” →

2015 Was the Warmest Year on Record, and It Wasn’t Even Close

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Warming oceans and a sharp rise in air temperatures show that climate change is in full effect – and may be outstripping predictions.

By Michael Reilly on January 20, 2016

technologyreview – The numbers are in, and they are unforgiving: 2015 was the hottest year on record, and it wasn’t even close. The announcement was expected—scientists monitoring global temperatures predicted before the end of the year that 2015 would set a record for warmth, in part because of the massive El Niño event currently under way in the Pacific Ocean. But the data released today confirm that human-induced global warming is pushing temperatures higher at an alarming rate: 2014 was the previous record holder for global average surface temperature, clocking in at 0.57 °C above the 1960 to 1990 average, but last year was 0.75 °C above that average.

If that doesn’t sound like a big jump, consider that the agreement reached at the U.N. climate summit in Paris last year aims to limit warming to 2 °C above preindustrial levels. The good news is that the agreement represents the first global effort to try to curtail greenhouse-gas emissions. The bad news is we’re already half way to that 2 °C target. Worse, the figures released today could be underestimates, and even if the Paris agreement is upheld we could be headed for much more warming, unless we get even more ambitious in our emissions targets.

(Source: New York Times, Guardian, New Scientist)

2016 will be even hotter than 2015 – the hottest year ever

2015 Was Hottest Year in Historical Record, Scientists Say

2015 smashes record for hottest year, final figures confirm