It's warm at Penang Hill now

More than 30 years ago, the weather in Penang Hill was so cold that even cooking oil in tin containers would solidify. Normah Majid, who operates a drink kiosk at the peak of the hill, said back in the early 70s, she had to heat up the tin to melt the oil before cooking. "Nowadays, we do not have to do that because the oil remains in the same form even on the coldest days here," she said.

Normah first came to live on Penang Hill about 36 years ago. She said 30 years ago, the weather on the hill was cold and humid compared to the air that was less cold and dry today. She said the peak of the 833m hill used to be shrouded in fog even at 2pm. "Now the fog will only appear after it rains," she said.

Peanut seller A. Sathivel, 33, said many tourists had complained about the warm weather on the hill.

Highland warming

thestar.com.my :

Temperatures in Malaysia's highland areas including the three major hill resorts – Cameron Highlands, Genting Highlands and Fraser's Hill – are rising and over-development has been blamed for this. Global Environment Centre (GEC) director Faizal Parish said the maximum temperature in the highlands had climbed between 2°C and 3°C in the last 25 years due to the clearing of forests and over-development.

In 1984, the annual maximum temperature in Cameron Highlands was 24.6°C and over the years, it has gradually increased, hitting 27.9°C in 1998. Residents and visitors are saying that it is no longer as cold as before. Genting Highlands is not faring any better. Residents there remember having to start up a coal stove in their rooms before leaving for work in the morning to keep the room warm when they get home. There is no need to do that now. In Fraser's Hill, back in the 1970s, one only needed to immerse a bottle of soft drink in the water at the waterfall to chill it.

Faizal explained that trees cooled the air around them, adding: "One big tree is the equivalent to 10 air conditioners". He said the climbing temperature in the highlands could also cause chaos to the ecosystem. "As the lowland species of insects, plants and birds start to move to the highlands, it can lead to the extinction of certain highland species as they have nowhere to go," he said.

(2007-03-07 12:30:09 SGT) [Env] Permalink

Greenspan warns of likely U.S. recession

news.yahoo.com :

Former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan warned that the American economy might slip into recession by year's end. He said the U.S. economy has been expanding since 2001 and that there are signs the current economic cycle is coming to an end.

"When you get this far away from a recession invariably forces build up for the next recession, and indeed we are beginning to see that sign," Greenspan said via satellite link to a business conference in Hong Kong. "For example in the U.S., profit margins ... have begun to stabilize, which is an early sign we are in the later stages of a cycle."

Greenspan said that while it would be "very precarious" to try to forecast that far into the future, he could not rule out the possibility of a recession late this year.

- This, and the 9% drop in the Shanghai stock index, were the likely triggers of the recent global stock market crash.

(2007-03-07 12:23:39 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

TXU to be acquired for $31.8 billion

news.yahoo.com :

Texas power company TXU Corp. said it would be acquired by a group led by private equity firms Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Texas Pacific Group for $31.8 billion in the largest leveraged buyout in history.

Under the deal, a privatized TXU will implement 10% price decreases for residential customers and strengthen environmental policies, TXU said. The number of planned coal-fueled generation units will be cut to three from 11, which represents a 75% reduction in new coal capacity. TXU said the deal has been endorsed by the Environmental Defense Fund and Natural Resources Defense Council.

(2007-03-07 12:18:42 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

Snow knocks out power, cancels flights

news.yahoo.com :

A winter storm that knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of Midwest homes and businesses moved into the East with a dicey mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain that slowed travelers and tied up airlines once again.

Highway crews scrambled to clear the roads, and hundreds of flights were canceled — including at least 68 for JetBlue, whose flight schedule and reputation were severely battered by a storm two weeks ago.

Heavy ice brought down miles of power lines and utility poles, mostly in Iowa, where nearly 250,000 customers were without electricity Sunday night. Close to 80,000 were without power in Illinois.