A Tempestuous Year Is there a connection between last year’s extreme weather and global warming? If the Republicans in Congress were less hostile to climate change research we might know. [News Source]

Global warming: Top stories of 2011 The year of the tipping point? By Bob Berwyn SUMMIT COUNTY — If 2011 goes down as the year that global warming awareness reached a critical mass, it could be attributed to the spate of unusual weather events around the globe. From massive tornado outbreaks in the Midwest, to heatwaves, Mississippi flooding, droughts and more, [...] [News Source]

More than 100 take Polar Plunge to help curb global warming More than a 100 bathers made a mad dash into the 44-degree Atlantic Ocean at East End Beach today to help curb global warming. [News Source]

Gingrich to Nix Chapter on Climate Change in Book Newt Gingrich says he's going to nix a chapter on climate change in a forthcoming book, after the Republican presidential candidate took some heat from conservatives.  [News Source]

Maine’s ocean plunge focuses on global warming Maine's largest conservation advocacy organization is using the frosty ocean waters to raise money in the name of global warming. [News Source]

New Hampshire Scientists Urge Candidates to Accept Climate Change Reality PORTSMOUTH, N.H. -- No less than 50 New Hampshire scientists, experts, and academics from a variety of disciplines and backgrounds have signed onto a letter urging all candidates for public office to accept the "overwhelming" evidence that climate change is real, and that action must be taken both to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and prepare communities for its impact. [News Source]

Mild weather redefines winter landscape. At the National Arboretum, the white petals of snowdrops — normally an early spring flower — have unfurled. In Maine’s Acadia National Park, lakes still have patches of open water instead of being frozen solid. [News Source]

Study: Does enduring extreme weather make you vote liberal? On the heels of a disastrous weather year in the USA, and with the long presidential campaign season looming, a new study finds that people who have endured extreme weather events are more likely to support environmental legislation, even if it means restricting individual freedoms. [News Source]

California flood plan calls for up to $17B in repairs. The first statewide flood plan follows a call by Gov. Jerry Brown to refocus state efforts on preparing for the effects of a warming climate as floods from a faster-melting snowpack already place increased strain on the state's aging levees. [News Source]

Global hunger for plastic packaging leaves waste solution a long way off. Five hundred tonnes of Christmas tree lights and at least 25m bags of plastic sweet wrappers, turkey coverings, drinks bottles and broken toys will be thrown away by UK homes this Christmas and new year. But only a tiny proportion of this waste will be recycled. [News Source]

World pays Ecuador not to extract oil from rainforest. An alliance of European local authorities, national governments, US film stars, Japanese shops, soft drink companies and Russian foundations have stepped in to prevent oil companies exploiting 900m barrels of crude oil from one of the world's most biologically rich tracts of land. [News Source]