35 March 2010 • International Association for Urban Climate
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Urban Climate News Quarterly Newsletter of the IAUC ISSUE NO. 35 MARCH 2010 • INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR URBAN CLIMATE From the IAUC President Inside the Spring issue... Colleagues, hello. This is my first occasion to write as Pres- ident of the IAUC. I hope that I am as successful as previous News: Met Societies form Forum • CO2 Presidents in pursuing the objectives of the IAUC. 2 domes • City monsoons • Is grass green? It goes without saying that the IAUC owes a considerable NLCD01 − NLCD73 [WET] NLCD01 − NLCD73 [DRY] 34.2N debt of gratitude to Matthias Roth, the ex-President. One of 34N 33.8N the most important activities of the association is the ICUC Feature: Climatic effects of an33.6N urban- 33.4N events, which are held each three years. ICUC-7 in Yokohama 6 izing metropolis: the rise of Phoenix33.2N 33N 32.8N was very successful despite the very difficult economic cir- 32.6N (a) (b) 113W 112.8W 112.6W 112.4W 112.2W 112W 111.8W 111.6W 111.4W 111.2W 111W 113W 112.8W 112.6W 112.4W 112.2W 112W 111.8W 111.6W 111.4W 111.2W 111W -0.2 -0.1 -0.05 0.05 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 cumstances that prevailed during its organisation. The suc- Projects: Geoinformatics & outdoor cess of the event can be attributed to the considerable efforts 10 comfort • Urban noise & particulates of the local organising committee led by Manabu Kanda and the leadership provided by Matthias. There are two other achievements that I think deserve special mention. 17 Country Report: Urban climate re- One of these has been the involvement of the IAUC at the search in New Zealand – an update 3rd World Climate Conference (WCC3), entitled ‘Better cli- mate information for a better future.’ Matthias organised a Conferences: AAG • CWE • ICLEI • AGU session on ‘Climate and more sustainable cities’ at which two 21 HARMO • UEP • NCCARF • WorldCities White papers were presented on urban climate capabilities & needs. These formed the basis for a submission that was included in the Conference Statement (available at http:// 22 Bibliography: Recent publications www.wmo.int/wcc3/documents/WCC-3_Statement_07-09- IAUC Board: Urban climate at IFMS 09_mods.pdf). Although such a statement does not, by itself, change practice, its inclusion in the over-arching documents that are stepping down at this juncture. This includes Bene- means that the interests of urban climatologists are no lon- dicte Dousset who has been a great advocate for the IAUC ger marginal to broader concerns for climate information, for many years and Kevin Gallo who has studiously managed which thus far have regarded urban meteorological data as and maintained our most important resource, the member- fatally contaminated. Hopefully, the call for careful obser- ship information. vations in urban areas (where most of the planet now live) However, as the IAUC grows in size and scope it will have complemented by metadata that describe the circumstanc- to address some challenges, some of which have already es under which they are made, will not fall on deaf ears. arisen and others of which can be anticipated. At the IFMS Our growing relevance as a scientific organisation of merit meeting, I identified the following as key: is apparent in our invitation to the first Global Meeting of In- • Adoption of a formal constitution, ternational Forum of Meteorological Societies (IFMS), which • Sustaining momentum through new initiatives and vol- Rohinton Emmanuel writes about in this edition. The presen- unteers, tation to the IFMS is available at www.ifms.org. The structure of the IAUC, which relies on the goodwill of members and • Needing funds to support initiatives, operates without a budget, was commented upon favour- • Overcoming a reliance of relatively few high profile indi- ably at this meeting. This is a tribute to the smooth running viduals, of the IAUC organisation, which to-date has been remark- • Ensuring that it becomes a genuinely international orga- ably free of any acrimony. This is in large part attributable nization, and to Matthias’ calm demeanour and the efficiency of Jennifer • Providing leadership in develop- Salmond as Secretary. Two areas of the IAUC were singled ing areas of research. out for particular mention as innovative projects that are I hope that over the next three the envy of much larger and better resourced organisations: years I can address some of these Urban Climate News that has, under the editorship of David issues and continue to rely on the Pearlmutter, evolved into a highly professional publication volunteer work of IAUC members. and; the Bibliography project, overseen by Julia Hidalgo, is seen as a valuable resource other organisation would do well to imitate. Gerald Mills We also owe a debt of gratitude to other Board members [email protected] In the News 2 International Forum of Meteorological Societies (IFMS) holds First Global Meeting (GM1) in Atlanta, USA, January 19-20, 2010 Inaugural gathering of leaders form meteorological societies aroung the world (Photo: Jenni Girtman, Atlanta Event Photography for AMS) The first ever Global Meeting (GM1) of the Interna- of the success of the IAUC is that it was invited to par- tional Forum of Meteorological Societies (IFMS) was ticipate at the inaugural meeting. held in Atlanta, USA in January 2010 on the sidelines Gerald Mills (President) and Rohinton Emmanuel of the 90th annual meeting of the American Mete- (Secretary) represented the IAUC, and they present- orological Society (AMS). The initiative to form the ed an overview of the development of the organisa- IFMS was spearheaded by the AMS, which convened tion and the challenges that it faces. The quality of a planning meeting at its 89th annual meeting in the IAUC network, the scientific content of the ICUC Phoenix, USA in 2009. The goal of the IFMS is to fos- series and the calibre of its resources, particularly its ter and encourage communication and exchange of newsletter, Urban Climate News, were cited as exem- knowledge, ideas and resources among the world’s plars for the IFMS to emulate. more than sixty meteorological societies. The IFMS is The GM1 resolved to concentrate initial activities of distinct from the World Meteorological Organization the IFMS on five key areas: sharing of resources, shar- and, unlike the WMO, the IFMS will focus on advanc- ing of resource persons, increasing the coverage of ing the goals and objectives of the world’s profes- IFMS’s member societies, exploring membership ben- sional and scientific societies. The IFMS is intended efits and coordination with the WMO. Of immediate to be an informal mechanism that facilitates interac- benefit to the esteem of the IAUC is the web sharing tions among Societies and, as such, will not have any of access to the IAUC resources including Urban Cli- legal or official standing. Specific terms of reference mate News. In addition to enhancing the profile of the can be accessed at (http://www.ifms.org/tor.html). IAUC, such actions will assist in a wider dissemination Nearly 20 national meteorological societies, three of IAUC resources and help the IAUC reach a wider au- regional groupings of meteorological societies from dience, especially in the developing world. Africa, Europe and Latin America and three interna- The next IFMS meeting (GM2) will be held in China tional associations were present at GM1. A measure in January 2012 (see more photos on page 25). ISSUE NO. 35 MARCH 2010 INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR URBAN CLIMATE In the News If it does matter where CO2 is released, cities are in trouble March 2010 — There’s some fascinating new research about “CO2 domes,” invisible clouds of carbon pollution that hover above urban areas. Bradford Plumer at The New Republic sets the context: Does it matter where carbon dioxide is emitted? From a climate perspective, at least, the standard answer has always been, “Not really.” Carbon dioxide mixes pretty evenly and uniformly throughout the atmosphere, so that the heat-trap- ping gases coming out of a factory in China have the same effect on global temperatures, pound for pound, as the greenhouse gases emitted by, say, cars in Delaware. (This is in contrast to a num- ber of other air pollutants, whose effects are often localized—sulfur dioxide only Map of US CO2 emissions (courtesy of Purdue University Department causes acid rain in discrete areas.) of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences). Source: www.grist.org But a new study just published in Environmental Sci- pact regardless of where it’s emitted, so it doesn’t mat- ence and Technology by Stanford’s Mark Jacobson adds ter if a factory in Nashville and a power plant in Phoenix a slight twist to this standard view. Older research has trade emission permits. It only matters where emissions found that local domes of high CO2 levels can often form can be reduced most cheaply. But, says Jacobson, “This over cities. What Jacobson found was that these domes study contradicts that assumption.” can have a serious local impact: Among other things, If the research proves correct, it doesn’t argue against they worsen the effects of localized air pollutants like cap-and-trade so much as highlight the need for a multi- ozone and particulates, which cause respiratory diseases pronged approach to CO2 regulation. The Clean Air Act and the like. As a result, Jacobson estimates that local CO2 can set plant-by-plant performance standards while a emissions cause anywhere from 300 to 1,000 premature declining cap covers the broader economy. deaths in the United States each year. And presumably Urban vs.