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<br />. <br /> <br />generation projects from wind and solar sources. [Senator Salazar introduced S. 1093, which would <br />extend these credits to 2010.) <br />· An extension of tax credits for ethanol, biodiesel, and other alternative fuels [So 2748 was <br />introduced by Senators Salazar and Bingaman (D-NM)] <br />· An extension of tax credits for holders of clean renewable energy bonds. [So 2401 was co- <br />sponsored by Senator Salazar J <br />· An extension of existing business and residential solar credits [So 2677 was introduced by <br />Senators Salazar and Gordon Smith (R-OR)J <br />· An extension of the investment tax credit for the installation of qualified fuel cells [So 2677J <br /> <br />Scientists Say 2007 May Be Warmest Yet: British climate scientists predict that a resurgent El Nino <br />climate trend combined with higher levels of greenhouse gases could touch off a fresh round of ecological <br />disasters -- and make 2007 the world's hottest year on record. <br /> <br />The warmest year on record is 1998, when the average global temperature was 1.2 degrees Fahrenheit <br />higher than the long-term average of 57 degrees. Though such a change appears small, incremental <br />differences can, for example, add to the ferocity of storms by evaporating more steam off the ocean. <br /> <br />There is a 60 percent chance that the average global temperature for 2007 will match or break the record, <br />Britain's Meteorological Office said on Jan 4. The consequences of the high temperatures could be felt <br />worldwide. <br /> <br />El Nino, which is now under way in the Pacific Ocean and is expected to last until May, occurs <br />irregularly. But when it does, winters in Southeast Asia tend to become milder, summers in Australia get <br />drier, and Pacific storms can be more intense. The U.N.'s Food Aid Organization has warned that rising <br />temperatures could wreak agricultural havoc. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />In Australia, which is struggling through its worst drought on record, the impact on farmers could be <br />devastating. The country has already registered its smallest wheat harvest in a decade, food prices are <br />rising, and severe water restrictions have put thousands of farmers at risk of bankruptcy. <br /> <br />In other cases, El Nino's effects are more ambiguous. Rains linked to the phenomenon led to bumper <br />crops in Argentina in 1998, but floods elsewhere in Latin America devastated subsistence farmers. <br /> <br />El Nino also can do some good. It tends to take the punch out of the Atlantic hurricane season by <br />generating crosswinds that can rip the storms apart -- good news for Florida's orange growers, for <br />example. <br /> <br />What is clear is that the cumulative effect ofEl Nino and global warming are taking the Earth's <br />temperatures to record heights. <br /> <br />u.S. Geological Survey Science Day-January 22, 2007: This one-day event will provide presentations <br />on a number of topics including; a new model of the Denver Basin Aquifers, effects of climate variability <br />on Colorado snowmelt and runoff, new GIS tools for estimating salinity and Instream habitat evaluations <br />using a multi-dimensional surface water model, to name just a few. The event will be held at the Denver <br />Federal Center-Building 810. <br /> <br />Reclamation's 46tb Annual Water Management Workshop, February 5-9, 2007 in Denver: The <br />purpose of this Reclamation workshop is to assist water district managers in improving water <br />management and operations associated with the delivery and management of water. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />15 <br />