News From TreeHugger: Thursday, October 8

photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cloudsoup/3831741068/" target="_blank">David Jones</a> via flickr.

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Editor’s Note: We’re happy to host a weekly news roundup from our friends over at TreeHugger. Enjoy!

How the World Can Cut 13 Billion Tons of CO2 Per Year and Save $14 Billion in the Process

Reducing deforestation, improving energy efficiency and working towards a global renewable energy standard of 20% could cut global CO2 emissions by 13 gigatons a year, and save $14 billion at the same time. That’s the conclusion of a new study from the UN Foundation and the Center for American Progress.

New Clean Coal Hazards Revealed: Could Poison Plants, People

Clean coal may be trotted out as the future of the coal industry, but a new study from the University of Toronto confirms what many in the green community have be saying for a while: Scaling up CCS will need an infrastructure rivaling the oil industry, groundwater reserves could be contaminated, adding CCS to coal plants will up to one-third more water intensive, and unexpected leaks could poison animals, plants and people.

UN Forest Protection Scheme Open for Organized Crime Abuse

Two words of warning about the current wording of REDD: Interpol says international criminal syndicates are already eyeing the program and that enforcement with be very difficult. And, the Ecosystems Climate Alliance takes issue with the lack of explicitly protecting intact forests and indigenous peoples.

Will Carbon Capture & Storage Conflict With Mineral & Property Rights?

Here’s one aspect of carbon capture & storage you may not have considered: A new assessment coming out of Carnegie Mellon University raises the issue of conflicts between mineral exploration and areas where CO2 might be injected under CCS schemes. As you wouldn’t be able to exploit those mineral rights in these areas, how and will property owners be compensated?

Stop Crying Wolf! Cap-and-Trade Will Increase Farmer’s Production Costs Less Than 1%

Another nail in the ‘climate legislation will cost too much’ coffin: The Environmental Working Group’s new assessment on the increased costs of production for farmers shows that there will be less than a 1% increase for soybeans, corn, wheat, cotton and rice.

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We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

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Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with the Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

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