Today’s Climate: June 3, 2010

Sen. Lugar to Propose Climate Bill Alternative (Reuters)

A senior Republican in the Senate next week will propose energy and climate legislation that aims to cut emissions of planet-warming gases, but with far lower goals than Pres. Obama seeks.

Obama: I Intend to Find the Votes on Climate ‘In the Coming Months’ (The Hill)

Pres. Obama vowed Wednesday to personally corral Senate votes for a sweeping climate change and energy bill in the coming months.

Spill Panel May Look at Energy Needs (AP)

The new presidential commission investigating the Gulf oil spill will include two experts who have been active on the subject of global warming, including one who wrote just last month that the country should redouble efforts to lessen its dependence on oil.

BP Inches Ahead in Latest Bid to Control Oil Spill (Reuters)

Robot submarines plying the dark, frigid depths of the Gulf of Mexico made halting progress in BP’s latest bid to siphon off oil belching from its ruptured wellhead, but tar balls and other debris from the spill posed new threats to the region’s shoreline.

Interior Demands More Info from Oil Drillers (The Hill)

The Obama administration on Wednesday stepped up efforts to show that it is toughening offshore drilling oversight by announcing that it will require oil-and-gas companies to submit more information about their projects before proceeding.

Nuclear Option on Gulf Oil Spill? No Way, U.S. Says (New York Times)

The chatter began weeks ago as armchair engineers brainstormed for ways to stop the torrent of oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico: What about nuking the well? DOE officials are now saying the nuclear option is not on the table.

Exploration of W.Va. Mine Explosion Site Resumes (AP)

The underground search for clues to the nation’s worst coal mining disaster in 40 years started Wednesday as two teams began exploring the West Virginia mine where 29 men died in an explosion in April.

UN Climate Talks Face Up to Cash Flow Fears (Business Green)

The already fraught global climate negotiations are facing a fresh challenge after Yvo de Boer, the outgoing head of the UNFCCC, revealed that the secretariat does not have sufficient funds to host two additional meetings ahead of the Cancun summit in November.

World Is at Warmest on Record, NASA’s Hansen Says (Bloomberg)

The global temperature this year reached its warmest on record based on a 12-month-rolling average, James Hansen, the top climate scientist at NASA, said today.

Low-Lying Pacific Islands ‘Growing Not Sinking’ (BBC News)

The islands of Tuvalu, Kiribati and the Federated States of Micronesia are among many Pacific Islands that have grown because of coral debris and sediment, according to a new report in the magazine New Scientist.

China’s 1st Carbon Capture Plant to Start Operation (Xinhua)

China’s first commercial carbon capture and storage plant is expected to be operational by the end of the year as construction of the plant’s liquefaction facility has started, company managers said Wednesday.

Coulomb Launches Ambitious Plan to Electrify Cars: 4,600 New Charging Stations (GreenBeat)

Coulomb Technologies unveiled ambitious plans today to install 4,600 new charging stations for plug-in vehicles in homes and commercial spaces across the U.S. — a project nearly half-funded by federal stimulus money.