News
Sunak’s U-turns make net zero harder and keep bills high, watchdog warns
Thursday 12th October 2023
Rishi Sunak’s reversals on key climate policies have damaged the UK’s ability to meet its carbon-cutting goals and will keep energy bills high for millions of households, with the effect of “making net zero considerably harder to achieve”, the UK’s climate watchdog has warned.
Rowing back on policies to phase out gas boilers and petrol and diesel vehicles, and the general sense that the government is “weakening its commitments” to shifting to a green economy, have also harmed the prospects of inward investment into the UK, and sent adverse signals to consumers, businesses and other governments.
Scrapping plans to force landlords to improve the energy efficiency of rented accommodation will also cost renters about £325 a year in higher bills, the report found.
Mow problem: gardeners encouraged not to cut lawns in May
Friday 29th April 2022
The number of people not mowing their lawns is increasing after a successful campaign to keep gardens wild, a leading nature charity says. Gardeners are this year being urged once again by Plantlife to keep their lawnmower in the shed during No Mow May, in order to let wild plants thrive and provide nectar for insects. Thousands of people take part in Plantlife’s annual Every Flower Counts citizen science survey, the largest ever study of garden lawns in the UK. The charity says the results show a “radical shift in attitudes towards lawn management is under way”. It says 78.8% of 2,157 EFC participants last year did not mow for a month before taking part in the survey, an increase from 33.6% in 2019.
Extreme global warming could see major ocean life extinction
Thursday 28th April 2022
How badly will ocean animals be hit as Earth warms? A computer model based on the oxygen requirements of marine organisms may provide an answer. Our oceans already contain about 2 per cent less oxygen than 50 years ago, because the gas is less soluble in warmer water. Many organisms are therefore moving polewards to cooler regions. As the oceans continue to warm, some will be left with nowhere to go, with polar species being hit hardest.
Wooden Skyscrapers are on the Rise
Monday 11th April 2022
Guests at a new 20-story hotel and cultural center in Skellefteå, a former gold-mining community in northeastern Sweden, don’t have to step outside to feel immersed in the natural world. The floors, ceilings and support beams of the building—which also houses a museum and other facilities—are made almost entirely of spruce and pine harvested from nearby woodlands.
Solar panels that can generate electricity at night have been developed at Stanford
Thursday 7th April 2022
A team of engineers at Stanford University have developed a solar cell that can generate some electricity at night. The research comes at a moment when the number of solar jobs and residential installations are rising. While standard solar panels can provide electricity during the day, this device can serve as a "continuous renewable power source for both day- and nighttime," according to the study published this week in the journal Applied Physics Letters.
4 tigers rescued from Argentina get new home in South Africa
Wednesday 16th March 2022
South Africa -- Four Bengal tigers rescued from years of captivity in a train carriage in Argentina have been released into open-air enclosures in South Africa.
After a journey of more than 70 hours from Argentina, the tigers stepped from their crates into open-air enclosures at the Lionsrock Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa's central Free State province. Visibly curious about their new homes, the tigers quickly surveyed the boundaries of their fenced-in areas, about 80-square meters (yards) in size, and chowed on chunks of meat put out as a welcome treat.
Nations sign up to end global scourge of plastic pollution
Wednesday 2nd March 2022
“Against the backdrop of geopolitical turmoil, the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5) shows multilateral cooperation at its best,” said President of the Assembly, and Norway’s Minister for Climate and the Environment, Espen Barth Eide. “Plastic pollution has grown into an epidemic. With today’s resolution we are officially on track for a cure.”
Bananas to fish scales: Fashion’s hunt for Eco-materials
Friday 18th February 2022
Sneakers made from banana or pineapple leaves, dresses from nettles or fish scales — the search for sustainable materials has taken the fashion industry to some wild places. Experts warn these new textiles are not a quick fix for fashion's enormous problems with overconsumption and waste, but may be a necessary step in developing cleaner technologies. "You could possibly eat the final product," said Hannes Schoenegger, cofounder of Bananatex, which uses leaves from banana trees in the Philippines to make bags, T-shirts and a line of shoes for H&M that sold out within two hours.
Vertical Forest Complex Rises in China’s Hubei Province
Monday 7th February 2022
Architecture firm Stefano Boeri Architetti China has announced that it has completed construction of its very first vertical forest complex, located in the city of Huanggang in Hubei province, China. The complex covers an area of 4.54 hectares and includes five towers, two of which were designed as a vertical forest. The towers combine open and closed balconies planted with 404 trees, 4,620 shrubs, and 2,408 square metres of perennial grass, flowers, and climbing plants.
Here’s how science is trying to conserve the monarch butterfly’s forests
Monday 17th January 2022
For several weeks in 2015, the sound of chainsaws cutting down trees was incessant in the Angangueo municipality in the Mexican state of Michoacán. When a group of people tried to stop the deforestation, it was already too late: 10 hectares (25 acres) of forest had already been destroyed on hillsides in the central area of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve. The land on which the illegal logging took place belongs to the government of the state of Michoacán. There are no communal lands nor Indigenous communities that conduct surveillance in the area, which exist in other areas of the reserve that are collectively owned.
Looking Ahead at Climate Action in 2022
Friday 14th January 2022
The UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), hosted in November 2021 by the United Kingdom in Glasgow, ended with some positive progress, but not nearly enough. Many have underlined that more drastic work must still be done to address the climate emergency and secure global net zero emissions by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement.
38 Sustainability efforts of the fashion industry in December 2021
Wednesday 29th December 2021
While December was characterised by holiday shopping and some pandemic-related restrictions to it, the industry’s sustainability efforts went on unhindered. There were combined initiatives to reduce an impact on the environment but also in terms of making sustainability more accessible. On the product front, recycled collections took the spotlight as well as platforms that make sustainable or secondhand shopping easier. Companies also made their sustainable goals for the coming year(s) public and were rewarded for their efforts. Read on as FashionUnited highlights 38 sustainable initiatives in December 2021.
Renewable electricity growth is accelerating faster than ever worldwide, supporting the emergence of the new global energy economy
Wednesday 1st December 2021
The growth of the world’s capacity to generate electricity from solar panels, wind turbines and other renewable technologies is on course to accelerate over the coming years, with 2021 expected to set a fresh all-time record for new installations, the IEA says in a new report. Despite rising costs for key materials used to make solar panels and wind turbines, additions of new renewable power capacity this year are forecast to rise to 290 gigawatts (GW) in 2021, surpassing the previous all-time high set last year, according to the latest edition of the IEA’s annual Renewables Market Report.
The most impactful actions at COP26 point to progress on climate change
Monday 22nd November 2021
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Alexandre Soares of UN News, Martina Donlon acknowledged that after two weeks of tough negotiations, the text that serves as the conference's outcome is “a compromise that it is not enough”, especially for small island States and other vulnerable countries. However, it does provide some “positive steps forward”. Indeed, she said, with the agreement by negotiators at COP26 to begin moving away from fossil fuels, “we will see more electric cars and they will become more affordable, and increasingly powered by wind and solar energy”.
'Bridge the gap between indigenous youth and the world'
Saturday 20th November 2021
“In the past two years, my reality, yours, and many others, has changed dramatically. Not overnight, but rather, over a series of incremental global disruptions that began with the news of an unknown pneumonia outbreak. While all countries face the common threat of a deadly virus, clearly the pandemic has not proven to be “the great equalizer”, as deep-seated inequalities between the Global North and South shape each country’s path of survivability in this era of multidimensional crises, with some winning first, and others lagging behind.
COP26: Key Outcomes From the UN Climate Talks in Glasgow
Wednesday 17th November 2021
The long-awaited COP26 climate summit in Glasgow has come to a close, making important progress in a number of areas — but not enough. The world still remains off track to beat back the climate crisis. Recognizing the urgency of the challenge, ministers from all over the world agreed that countries should come back next year to submit stronger 2030 emissions reduction targets with the aim of closing the gap to limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees C (2.7 degrees F). Ministers also agreed that developed countries should urgently deliver more resources to help climate-vulnerable countries adapt to the dangerous and costly consequences of climate change that they are feeling already — from dwindling crop yields to devastating storms.
UK government reveals net zero plan it says will create up to 440,000 jobs
Tuesday 19th October 2021
The UK government has set out its long-awaited strategy for reaching net zero emissions, with a plan ministers said would create up to 440,000 jobs and “unlock” £90bn in investment in the next decade, most of it from private sector companies. But experts and campaigners said the proposals did not go far enough and were under-funded, while the government would continue to support fossil fuels. The plan involves an expansion of electric vehicles, including increasing the network of charging points, and further growth of offshore wind, as well as investments in new technologies such as hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel and £120m towards at least one new nuclear power station.
UNESCO ‘eDNA’ initiative to ‘unlock' knowledge for biodiversity protection
Monday 18th October 2021
Launching the new programme, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said that scientists and local residents would take samples of genetic material from fish waste, mucous membranes or cells, eDNA, to monitor species. “Marine World Heritage sites play a critical role in protecting marine ecosystems of exceptional universal value and provide opportunities for the public to appreciate and preserve marine environments”, reminded UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Culture, Ernesto Ottone Ramírez.
The US has a silent pig pandemic on its doorstep once again
Sunday 17th October 2021
A pandemic is silently sweeping across the globe – and it is not Covid-19. Since African Swine Fever (ASF) was confirmed in the Americas more than two months ago, the deadly pig disease is now on six continents and on the doorstep of the US. Samples taken in the Dominican Republic tested positive for ASF in July and in neighbouring Haiti in September. The virus does not affect humans or meat quality, but is an almost certain death sentence for pigs. The US pork industry – worth $23bn (£17bn) a year – is in a panic, Latin America is on alert, and pork producers in the Dominican Republic and Haiti are haunted by memories of the US-funded eradication of their entire pork population when ASF last hit more than 40 years ago.
‘Tipping point’ for climate action: Time’s running out to avoid catastrophic heating
Saturday 16th October 2021
According to the landmark United in Science 2021, there “is no sign of growing back greener”, as carbon dioxide emissions are rapidly accelerating, after a temporary blip in 2020 due to COVID, and nowhere close to the targets set by the Paris Agreement. “We have reached a tipping point on the need for climate action. The disruption to our climate and our planet is already worse than we thought, and it is moving faster than predicted”, UN Secretary General António Guterres underscored in a video message. “This report shows just how far off course we are”, he added.
China's domestic biodiversity pledges overshadowed by overseas footprint
Friday 15th October 2021
China has used a U.N. biodiversity conference in Kunming to burnish its green credentials and launch new measures to protect domestic habitats, but the world's second-biggest economy is under pressure to tackle the impact of its footprint overseas. The "COP15" conference, which held its closing ceremony on Friday in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming, was designed to lay the groundwork for a new post-2020 global pact to conserve habitats and slow species loss, now believed to be at its fastest rate in 10 million years.
White House unveils climate finance road map, highlights lending and budget pledges
Thursday 14th October 2021
The White House published a report on Friday outlining projects to measure and address the risks that climate change poses to Americans and the economy, including programs to better incorporate climate threats into federal lending programs and budgeting processes. Many of the projects laid out in the report are not new, including mandatory disclosure rules under consideration by the Securities and Exchange Commission to bring more clarity to investors about climate change-related investment risk.
Countries call for urgent action on biodiversity with 'Kunming Declaration'
Wednesday 13th October 2021
On Wednesday, more than 100 countries pledged to put the protection of habitats at the heart of their government's decisions but they stopped short of committing to specific targets to curb mass extinctions. Chinese Environment Minister, Huang Runqiu, told delegates at a U.N. Biodiversity Conference in the city of Kunming that the declaration they adopted was a document of political will not a binding international agreement.
New report reveals how infrastructure defines our climate
Tuesday 12th October 2021
A new report, published ahead of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) has called for a radical change in how governments plan, deliver and manage infrastructure - emphasizing the often overlooked role infrastructure plays in combating climate change, mitigation and adaptation efforts. The new report, Infrastructure for climate action, is co-published by UNOPS, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the University of Oxford. The research meticulously looks at the influence of infrastructure on climate action across energy, transport, water, solid waste, digital communications and buildings sectors. The findings highlight that infrastructure is responsible for 79 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions, as well as 88 percent of all adaptation costs and therefore the sector is centrally important to achieving the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Aging cars are bogging down the battle against climate change
Friday 8th October 2021
When world leaders attend the make-or-break United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland in a few weeks, they will be ferried around in electric vehicles – a reminder that the transportation sector has a critical role to play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. While many developed nations have pledged to phase out petrol and diesel vehicles in the next two decades, the transition will be more complicated in developing countries, where old cars imported from Europe, Japan and the United States are often the only affordable option.
Rising sea surface temperatures driving the loss of 14 percent of corals since 2009
Tuesday 5th October 2021
The Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2020 report, released today, documents the loss of approximately 14 percent of the world’s coral since 2009. The report, the sixth edition produced by the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN), provides the most detailed scientific picture to date of the toll elevated temperatures have taken on the world’s reefs. This, the largest analysis of global coral reef health ever undertaken draws on data:
- spanning 40 years
- in 73 countries
- across 12,000 sites
- collected by more than 300 scientists
- through 2 million individual observations.
Why the global fight to tackle food waste has only just begun
Tuesday 28th September 2021
Our global food systems are having a profound impact on human and planetary health. They are responsible for 70 percent of the water extracted from nature, account for up to one-third of human-linked greenhouse gas emissions and agriculture has been identified as the threat to 24,000 of the 28,000 species (over 86 per cent) at risk of extinction. According to the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP’s) Food Waste Index Report 2021, people globally waste 1 billion tonnes of food each year. A staggering one-third of all food produced globally is lost or wasted. The evidence is becoming too hard to ignore. Food systems reform is critical to tackling the planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss and pollution and waste.
A Warning Sign of a Mass Extinction Event Is on the Rise, Scientists Say
Tuesday 21st September 2021
If you live near a freshwater river or lake, odds are good that you have seen warning signs about harmful algal and bacterial blooms posted on its shores. Alarmingly, a new study reports that these blooms may be early indicators of an ongoing ecological disaster, caused by humans, that eerily parallels the worst extinction event in Earth’s history. Some 251 million years ago, the end-Permian event (EPE), popularly known as the “Great Dying,” wiped out nearly 90 percent of species on Earth, making it the most severe loss of life in our planet’s history.
Rebuilding the ozone layer: how the world came together for the ultimate repair job
Wednesday 15th September 2021
As far as decades go, the 1980s were nothing if not tumultuous. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 reshaped the future, heralding the dawn of a new world order. But another significant, but lesser known, event of that decade took place two years earlier when governments came together to reverse damage to the ozone layer and ensure we had a viable future to reshape. The adoption of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer on September 16, 1987 marked a turning point in environmental history. It also showed that when science and political willpower join forces, the results can change the world.
UN report calls for repurposing of USD 470 billion of agricultural support that distorts prices, environment and social goals
Tuesday 14th September 2021
Global support to producers in the agricultural sector amounts to USD 540 billion per year, making up 15 per cent of total agricultural production value. By 2030, this is projected to soar up more than three times to USD 1.759 trillion. Yet 87 percent of this support, approximately USD 470 billion, is price distorting and environmentally and socially harmful. These are findings of a new UN report calling for repurposing damaging incentives to achieve more of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and realize the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.
Colombia’s 12-year-old eco-activist refuses to let death threats dim passion
Monday 13th September 2021
Francisco Vera is a 12-year-old climate activist from Colombia; he has defended the biodiversity that stretches from high Andes to the Caribbean and Pacific coasts. He uses social media profiles to campaign against fracking and mining; however, security has tightened for Vera due to increasing cyber-attacks and trolling as a result of the child's passion for nature.
Rising Solar Prices Threaten Paris Climate Goals, Analyst Says
Friday 10th September 2021
The global prices for solar panels have increased by 16% this year exacerbated by some of the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic. It will be challenging for the solar industry to increase capacity and fight cost escalation as manufacturers are now seeing their utilization plummet due to rising costs and COVID-19, making it much harder to expand capacity.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX launch site threatens wildlife, Texas environmental groups say
Sunday 5th September 2021
SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, is a company that focuses on testing spacecrafts for its commercial space program. Musk put the launch site off of the Gulf of Mexico because it's a region of land with nobody around. However, David Newstead, director of the nonprofit, "Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries" says the explosion as a result from launching spacecrafts could damage the wildlife refuge in the Lower Rio Grande Valley with rocket debris.
Era of leaded petrol over, eliminating a major threat to human and planetary health
Monday 30th August 2021
When service stations in Algeria stopped providing leaded petrol in July, the use of leaded petrol ended globally. This development follows an almost two decades-long campaign by the UNEP-led global Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles (PCFV). Since 1922, the use of tetraethyllead as a petrol additive to improve engine performance has been a catastrophe for the environment and public health. By the 1970s, almost all petrol produced around the world contained lead. When the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) began its campaign to eliminate lead in petrol in 2002, it was one of the most serious environmental threats to human health.
How tweaking your diet can help save the planet
Monday 23rd August 2021
Food is, of course, fundamental to life. But in a perhaps ironic twist, the things we eat are fueling some of the greatest threats to humanity’s survival. A growing body of evidence has found our industrialized food production systems are a source of pollution, a contributor to climate change and a cause of biodiversity loss. You can help change that, though. Here are 10 simple things you can do today to lessen the environmental toll of your diet.
Methane emissions are driving climate change. Here’s how to reduce them.
Friday 20th August 2021
A recent assessment from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Climate and Clean Air Coalition found that cutting farming-related methane emissions would be key in the battle against climate change. But how can the world do that? Where does methane come from? What’s the big deal about methane? How can we reduce methane emissions? Can farmers help in the campaign to cut methane emissions? Will reducing methane really help counter climate change? How much methane can we really cut? What is the United Nations doing to help limit methane emissions?
Seven things you should know about household air pollution
Tuesday 17th August 2021
Every year, nearly 4 million people die prematurely from indoor air pollution. Many succumb to diseases linked to inhaling smoke from kerosene, wood and charcoal fires, which are commonly used in the developing world for cooking and heating. To help raise awareness about indoor air pollution, the United Nations launched last year the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies. With this year’s event just around the corner, here are seven things you should know about household air pollutants.
Major climate changes inevitable and irreversible – IPCC’s starkest warning yet
Monday 9th August 2021
Human activity is changing the Earth’s climate in ways “unprecedented” in thousands or hundreds of thousands of years, with some of the changes now inevitable and irreversible, climate scientists have warned. Within the next two decades, temperatures are likely to rise by more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, breaching the ambition of the 2015 Paris climate agreement, and bringing widespread devastation and extreme weather. Only rapid and drastic reductions in greenhouse gases in this decade can prevent such climate breakdown, with every fraction of a degree of further heating likely to compound the accelerating effects, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the world’s leading authority on climate science.
New project aims to boost understanding of environmental dimensions of antimicrobial resistance in India
Monday 9th August 2021
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have launched a new collaborative project - ‘Priorities for the Environmental Dimension of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in India,’ marking an important step towards recognizing and addressing the environmental dimension of AMR.
Antimicrobial resistance is a multi-faceted, complex global public health issue and has been recognized as a ‘One Health’ issue owed to its significant linkages with the human health, animals and environment. While aspects addressing AMR from the human health perspective have received much attention, focus on the environmental dimensions of AMR has been limited. This includes the effects of discharging antibiotics and other antimicrobial compounds, such as disinfectants and heavy metals, into natural environments which has the potential to drive the evolution of resistant bacteria.
Why climate science is key to protecting people and planet
Monday 2nd August 2021
This week, scientists and representatives from 195 countries are gathered at the 54th session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to review the world’s most comprehensive assessment of our climate - the Sixth Assessment Report. IPCC reports have historically underpinned global climate action and influenced the decisions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We sat down with Joyce Msuya, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Deputy Executive Director, to find out more about the role of climate science in decision-making and what can be done to prioritize climate action to protect people and planet.
Restoring ecosystems and tiger populations in Bhutan
Wednesday 28th July 2021
For generations, the Royal Bengal tiger has symbolized power and prosperity in Bhutan. Wild tiger populations, however, have plummeted by 97 per cent over the past century – the IUCN Red List estimated that, in 2015, between 2150 and 3160 tigers remained. While a recent rise in the population is cause for optimism, tigers remain threatened by habitat destruction, poaching, and in Bhutan, by the conflict between humans and the big cats. Conflict between people and animals is one of the main threats to the survival of some of the world’s most emblematic species, found in a recent report from WWF and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). Human-wildlife conflict - when struggles arise from people and animals coming into contact – could lead to people killing animals in self-defence, or as pre-emptive or retaliatory killings. Globally, conflict-related killings affect more than 75% of the world’s wild cat species.
Deadly coral disease sweeping Caribbean linked to wastewater from ships
Thursday 22nd July 2021
A virulent and fast-moving coral disease that has swept through the Caribbean could be linked to waste or ballast water from ships, according to research. The deadly infection, known as stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD), was first identified in Florida in 2014, and has since moved through the region, causing great concern among scientists. It spreads faster than most coral diseases and has an unusually high mortality rate among the species most susceptible to it, making it potentially the most deadly disease ever to affect corals. More than 30 species of coral are susceptible. It was found in Jamaica in 2018, then in the Mexican Caribbean, Sint Maarten and the Bahamas, and has since been detected in 18 other countries.
Oil, acid, plastic: Inside the shipping disaster gripping Sri Lanka
Thursday 22nd July 2021
It is visible in satellite images from just off Sri Lanka's coast: a thin grey film that snakes three kilometres out to sea before disappearing into the waves. This, experts say, is fuel oil leaking from the X-Press Pearl, a Singapore-flagged cargo ship that caught fire and sank off Sri Lanka's western coast last month. The slick is a visceral reminder of what observers say is a slow-motion environmental disaster – one of the worst in the country’s history – and of the mammoth effort that will be needed to clean it up. "This is the biggest environmental catastrophe to hit Sri Lanka since the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami," said Thummarukudyil Muraleedharan, the acting head of the disasters and conflicts branch with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
New biodiversity algorithm ‘will blight range of natural habitats in England’
Wednesday 21st July 2021
The government’s new metric for biodiversity will have to be urgently improved if it is going to be fit for purpose, academics and conservationists have warned. The biodiversity net gain (BNG) metric, published by Natural England in July, outlines how new roads, houses and other building projects must achieve no net loss of biodiversity, or achieve a 10% net gain elsewhere if nature is damaged on site. Information about a habitat, such as its type, size and condition, is fed into an algorithm, which then gives a number defining how valuable it is for biodiversity. But the new metric does not value scrubby landscapes dominated by bramble, thistle and ragwort, which are often key features of rewilding projects. Instead it logs them as a sign of “degradation."
Major international legal report backs growing institutional investor focus on achieving positive sustainability impacts
Wednesday 21st July 2021
New research provides a legal framework for institutional investors internationally as they seek to address key environmental and social sustainability challenges, and sets out the opportunities for policy reform. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (Freshfields) has today released a new report, A Legal Framework for Impact, commissioned by The Generation Foundation, the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), and the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI). The report provides the first ever comprehensive analysis of how far the law requires or permits investors to take deliberate steps to tackle sustainability challenges in discharging their duties, described as investing for sustainability impact. Investors are increasingly focusing on the impact of their activities on the environment and society. This report brings much needed clarity and also looks at the opportunities for policy reform that would better enable investors to have coherence on the legal frameworks to invest sustainably. The jurisdictions covered are Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the EU, France, Japan, the Netherlands, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Climate change could spark floods in world’s largest desert lake: new study
Monday 19th July 2021
For years it appeared as though Lake Turkana, which sits in an arid part of northern Kenya, was drying up.
Its main river inflows had been muffled by dams and many feared water levels were poised to drop by two-thirds, causing the lake to cleave into two smaller bodies of water. It was, one report said, an African “Aral Sea disaster in the making” – where only 10 per cent remains of the original sea. But a new study from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) predicts a far wetter future for Lake Turkana – and possibly a more perilous one for the 15 million people who live on its shores. The report found that over the next 20 years, climate change could likely lead to heavier rains over Lake Turkana’s river inflows, which would raise water levels in the lake itself and increase the likelihood of severe flooding.
Western Indian Ocean region has declared 550,000 square kilometers as protected, a 63% jump since 2015
Friday 16th July 2021
The Western Indian Ocean region has declared 143* marine and coastal areas as protected – an area covering 553,163 square kilometers, representing 7 percent of the total Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) for the region – according to a new publication by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP)-Nairobi Convention and the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association. The Marine Protected Areas Outlook, released today, indicates that almost half of the total area – an estimated 63 percent of the overall square kilometers – was brought under protection in the seven years since the 2015 adoption of Sustainable Development Goal 14.5, which committed countries to conserving at least 10 percent of their marine and coastal areas by 2020.
A green recovery in Africa is in the best interests of all
Thursday 15th July 2021
H.E. Felix Tshisekedi, Chairperson of the Africa Union and President of the Democratic Republic of Congo. H.E. Moussa Faki, Chairperson of the African Union Commission. Madame Commissioner Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union Commission. Excellencies, Heads of States and Government Ministers. I send you greetings from the United Nations Environment Programme, located in the UN’s only headquarters in the global south, in Nairobi, Kenya. It is a great honour to address this important meeting. With a young, vibrant and innovative population, Africa has the potential to be a global economic powerhouse. The continent holds 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves. 65 per cent of its arable land. It has massive renewable energy sources. Undercapitalized fisheries resources. From oceans and lakes to rainforests and peatlands, this continent of many nations and peoples holds all the cards. But the African dream is at risk. The COVID-19 linked recession has cost over 30 million jobs, driven poverty up and increased debt pressure. Meanwhile, environmental impacts – from climate extremes to biodiversity loss to pollution – are holding the continent back.
Food systems hold key to ending world hunger
Wednesday 14th July 2021
Among the knock-on effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN has noted a dramatic increase in world hunger. According to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, one tenth of the global population – as many as 811 million people – were undernourished in 2020, an increase of 118 million from 2019. The report, published in July 2021 by the Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Food Programme, the World Health Organisation and other UN agencies, said that food insecurity is being driven by climate change, conflict and the economic recession. If the world were to continue on the current track, the Sustainable Development Goal of ending hunger by 2030 will be missed by a margin of nearly 660 million people.
Planting forests can increase rainfall and help fight drought in Europe, study shows
Friday 9th July 2021
Forests play an important role in mitigating climate change: They absorb carbon dioxide in the air, reduce the risk of floods, increase biodiversity and, as a new study in Europe now shows, reforestation can significantly increase rainfall and help stave off drought. Climate change is expected to bring with it drier summers. But according to a study published in the July edition of the scientific journal Nature Geoscience, converting agricultural land into forests in Europe could boost summer rainfall by an average of 7.6 percent, potentially offsetting some of the effects of global warming. The authors of the study found that in total 14.4 percent of the European land surface – larger than the area of France – is suitable for reforestation, “with concentrations over the British Isles, western and southern France, Portugal, Italy and eastern Europe.”
Belgian court finds government negligent on climate in landmark decision
Thursday 17th June 2021
A Belgian court on Thursday found state authorities guilty of negligence in its policies to tackle the climate crisis, in a judgment that activists hailed as historic. The Court of First Instance in Brussels nevertheless decided not to impose a binding emissions reduction target on the federal and regional governments, to the disappointment of campaigners. The environmental group Klimaatzaak ('Climate Case' in Dutch) launched legal action in 2015, hoping to match the success of similar efforts in the Netherlands and Germany. More than 58,000 citizens joined the lawsuit and all were ruled to have a right to be heard, a unique victory in itself, according to the group's president, Serge de Gheldere.
Brazil's Amazon suffers surge in deforestation for third consecutive month
Friday 11th June 2021
Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest rose for a third consecutive month in May, preliminary government data showed on Friday, with President Jair Bolsonaro yet to follow through on his April pledge to boost funding for environmental enforcement. Deforestation soared 67% in May from the same month last year, according to Brazil's national space research institute Inpe, with much of the land targeted for cattle ranches, farms and logging. For the first five months of the year, the data show deforestation was up 25% compared with a year earlier, with 2,548 square km destroyed - an area more than three times the size of New York City.
Biden Suspends Drilling Leases in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Wednesday 2nd June 2021
The Biden administration on Tuesday suspended oil drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, unspooling a signature achievement of the Trump presidency and delivering on a promise by President Biden to protect the fragile Alaskan tundra from fossil fuel extraction. The decision sets up a process that could halt drilling in one of the largest tracts of untouched wilderness in the United States, home to migrating waterfowl, caribou and polar bears. But it also lies over as much as 11 billion barrels of oil and Democrats and Republicans have fought over whether to allow drilling there for more than four decades.
UK ranked last in Europe for bathing water quality in 2020
Tuesday 1st June 2021
Swimmers in the UK hoping to enjoy waters certified clean and healthy this summer have been let down again. Only 110 coastal and inland sites were judged excellent in the latest bathing water quality data from Europe’s environmental watchdog. Most of the UK’s bathing sites were not classified in 2020, however, because Covid-19 restrictions prevented sampling. This meant that out of 640 sites, 457 received no verdict in the rankings, compiled annually by the European Environment Agency and published on Tuesday.
More Than a Third of Heat Deaths Are Tied to Climate Change, Study Says
Monday 31st May 2021
More than a third of heat-related deaths in many parts of the world can be attributed to the extra warming associated with climate change, according to a new study that makes a case for taking strong action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to protect public health. The sweeping new research, published on Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change, was conducted by 70 researchers using data from major projects in the fields of epidemiology and climate modeling in 43 countries. It found that heat-related deaths in warm seasons were boosted by climate change by an average of 37 percent, in a range of a 20 percent increase to 76 percent.
Capturing Hearts and Minds to Change the Flow of Capital
May 2021
The world needs to find US $4 trillion every year for the next 10 years to meet the SDG goals to 2030. The pandemic has dramatically slowed and even reversed progress on the SDGs, disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable segments of societies, with 115 million people back into extreme poverty and the equivalent of 225 million full-time jobs lost. Many of the world's leading financial institutions, including the participants in the Force for Good initiative, have prioritised the SDGs focusing on climate change, affordable and clean energy and decent work and economic growth. Goal 14, Life Under Water, on the other hand has ranked near the bottom of the finance industry's list of stated development priorities. Credit Suisse talks about how their SDG impact strategy and its focus on both climate change and the sustainability of the world's oceans.
Biden’s Fossil Fuel Moves Clash With Pledges on Climate Change
Friday 28th May 2021
Despite President Biden’s pledge to aggressively cut the pollution from fossil fuels that is driving climate change, his administration has quietly taken actions this month that will guarantee the drilling and burning of oil and gas for decades to come. The clash between Mr. Biden’s pledges and some of his recent decisions illustrates the political, technical and legal difficulties of disentangling the country from the oil, gas and coal that have underpinned its economy for more than a century.
Biden officials condemned for backing Trump-era Alaska drilling project
Thursday 27th May 2021
Joe Biden’s administration is facing an onslaught of criticism from environmentalists after opting to defend the approval of a massive oil and gas drilling project in the frigid northern reaches of Alaska. In a briefing filed in federal court on Wednesday, the US Department of Justice said the Trump-era decision to allow the project in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska’s north slope was “reasonable and consistent” with the law and should be allowed to go ahead.
Bitcoin’s Effect on Global Warming
Sunday 16th May 2021
Cryptocurrency’s race ahead of regulation exemplifies the pace at which the technologically feasible becomes the inexorable. While lobbyists for Ripple Labs and other cryptocurrency purveyors are busy fending off oversight by the Securities and Exchange Commission here in the United States, too little attention is being given to the industry’s astounding impact on our global environment. As Bill Gates told The New York Times, “Bitcoin uses more electricity per transaction than any other method known to mankind.” The power consumed by that company alone exceeds the total electric demand of many countries.
Forests the Size of France Have Regrown in the Last 20 Years, New Research Shows
Tuesday 11th May 2021
Nearly 59 million hectares of forests—an area larger than mainland France— have regrown since 2000, according to a new analysis published today by Trillion Trees, a joint venture between World Wildlife Fund (WWF), BirdLife International and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). This area of forest has the potential to store the equivalent of 5.9 gigatons of CO2—more than the annual emissions of the United States.
Entire U.S. transit bus fleet could transition to zero emission at a cost of $56 billion to $89 billion
Thursday 6th May 2021
The transit bus fleet in the United States could transition to full zero-emission vehicles by 2035 at a cost of between $56.22 billion and $88.91 billion according to a new report from the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE). The report assumes a mix of battery-electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles will be needed to meet the transition target and accounts for vehicles used for service by transit agencies of all sizes, not just heavy-duty 30- to 60-foot buses. In both the low cost and high costs scenarios, the vehicles themselves account for between 51 percent and 59 percent of the costs, followed by infrastructure, technical assistance and Federal Transit Administration innovation and bus testing costs.
The Recovery Budget: Mayor de Blasio Releases the Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2022
Monday 26th April 2021
“A recovery for all of us starts by investing in working families across New York City. The pandemic hit us hard but together we will fight back and drive a recovery in every neighborhood. We are meeting the moment with direct investments in education, small businesses, open space and public health, and we are building up reserves to continue our strong fiscal foundation for the future. With the Recovery Budget, New York City will emerge from this challenge stronger, fairer, cleaner, greener and safer than ever.” – Mayor Bill de Blasio
Transforming Hudson River’s Pier 55 into a whimsical urban park and performance venue
April 2021
Designed by the London-based Heatherwick Studio and the New York-based landscape architecture firm MNLA, Little Island is a 2.4-acre urban oasis. New Yorkers can enjoy the outdoors and take in a range of performances, including theatre, music and dance, as well as community events, with the Hudson River as a backdrop and surrounded by 35 species of trees, 65 species of shrubs and 290 varieties of grasses, vines and perennials. Arup has been involved in the project since its inception, providing a suite of services that spans structural, civil, mechanical, electrical and public health engineering, acoustics, audio-visual and theatre consulting, daylight planning, IT and communications consulting and fire/life safety consulting.
Tasmanian devils return to mainland Australia for first time in 3,000 years
April 2021
It’s been 3,000 years since the Tasmanian devil’s raspy shriek rang through the forests of mainland Australia. But now, thanks to a dogged reintroduction effort, 26 of these endangered tiny terrors have returned. No bigger than a lapdog, these marsupials are famous for their ferocity and powerful jaws, which can reduce large carcasses to smithereens in minutes. But in the 1990s, the species was hit with a contagious and deadly mouth cancer, causing its only remaining wild population, on the Australian island state of Tasmania, to drop to just 25,000 animals.
Merging Science and Finance to Manage Climate Risk
April 2021
An estimated US $79 trillion of global credit risk is linked to environmental considerations and over 60% of the companies on the S&P 500 Index (with a market capitalization of $18 trillion) own physical assets that are at high risk of at least one type of climate change related physical risk. While the global response to climate change is a long-term one, the physical risks of climate change are both immediate and significant. For Wellington Management, the global investment management firm with over US$ 1 trillion in assets under management, solving for this challenge is something they believe in and is a key opportunity for their business.
Climate change top challenge over the next decade, UNESCO global survey finds
Wednesday 31st March 2021
More than 15,000 people worldwide contributed to the survey, which was held online between May and September 2020, and made available in 25 languages. Respondents were mainly young people, with 57 percent under age 35, and 35 percent under age 25. Results also were analyzed along regional, gender, age and other demographic lines. “Greater efforts are needed to address people’s specific concerns, and multilateralism is the way to do this. Restoring confidence in multilateralism requires the implementation of concrete and impactful projects, and this is at the heart of our Organization's role”, said Audrey Azoulay, the UNESCO Director-General.
Plastic pollution disproportionately hitting marginalized groups, UN environment report finds
Tuesday 30th March 2021
The report, titled "Neglected: Environmental Justice Impacts of Plastic Pollution," was produced by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) together with the grassroots environmental group, Azul. The findings aim to empower communities affected by plastic waste and advocate for their inclusion in local decision making.
UN chief urges ‘clear and credible’ plans to achieve net zero
Wednesday 24th March 2021
Addressing a ministerial meeting on climate action, Secretary-General António Guterres reiterated that 2021 is a “make-or-break” year to limit the global temperature rise by 1.5 degree Celsius, as set out in the Paris Agreement on climate change. “We need credible, coherent plans to cut emissions by 45 percent compared to 2010 levels, by 2030”, Mr. Guterres said, urging countries to submit, or re-submit, ambitious nationally determined contributions (NDCs) “as a matter of urgency.” He also called on development banks and donors to commit half their climate finance annually to adaptation, and to ensure those resources are accessible to the most vulnerable people.
Oceans under threat like never before, warns World Meteorological Organization
Monday 22nd March 2021
In an alert that warmer seas helped to fuel a record Atlantic hurricane season last year, along with intense tropical cyclones in the Indian and South Pacific Oceans, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) also underscored the long-term threat from sea level rise. “About 40 percent of the global population live within 100 kilometres of the coast; there is an urgent need to protect communities from coastal hazards, such as waves, storm surge and sea level rise” via “multi-hazard” warning systems and forecasting, said Professor Petteri Taalas, WMO Secretary-General.
Recognizing ‘historic tipping point’, UN begins push towards more sustainable energy future
Thursday 11th March 2021
“Our challenge is clear: to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, the world must cut carbon emissions by at least 45 percent below 2010 levels within the next decade”, Secretary-General António Guterres said. He joined more than 20 ministerial-level "Global Champions" for the virtual launch of substantive preparations for the High-level Dialogue on Energy, a summit-level event he will convene in September. He underscored that the world was “way off track” and needed to use the COVID-19 recovery period to build a sustainable economy, driven by renewables.
Food systems account for over one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions
Wednesday 10th March 2021
Food system emissions were estimated at 18 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2015, or 34 percent, though down from 44 percent in 1990, indicating gradual decline even as these emissions kept increasing. The report was co-authored by Francesco Tubiello, a senior statistician and climate change specialist at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in collaboration with researchers at the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy. It presents a database, known as EDGAR FOOD, which can be used to assess how changes in consumer behaviour or technology, may impact food system-derived greenhouse gas emissions. 
Inaction leaves world playing ‘Russian roulette’ with pandemics, say experts
Tuesday 9th March 2021
Governments must fill a major gap in post-Covid recovery plans by taking action on the root cause of pandemics – the destruction of nature – a new coalition on health and environment has warned. Crucial investments and actions are missing, the Preventing Pandemics at the Source coalition said, leaving the world playing an “ill-fated game of Russian roulette with pathogens.” Many trillions of dollars are understandably being spent to strengthen human health and boost the global economy, said the coalition, but far less expensive measures to halt deforestation and end the illegal wildlife trade are vital. The call is the latest in a series of high-level warnings that say worser, more frequent pandemics will strike without action; but to date these warnings have been unheeded.
France has underestimated impact of nuclear tests in French Polynesia, research finds
Tuesday 9th March 2021
France has consistently underestimated the devastating impact of its nuclear tests in French Polynesia in the 1960s and 70s, according to groundbreaking new research that could allow more than 100,000 people to claim compensation. France conducted 193 nuclear tests from 1966 to 1996 at Moruroa and Fangataufa atolls in French Polynesia, including 41 atmospheric tests until 1974 that exposed the local population, site workers and French soldiers to high levels of radiation.
Global Warming’s Deadly Combination: Heat and Humidity
Monday 8th March 2021
Here’s one more reason the world should aim to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a goal of the International Paris Agreement: It will help keep the tropics from becoming a deadly hothouse. A study published Monday suggests that sharply cutting emissions of greenhouse gases to stay below that limit, which is equivalent to about 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit of warming since 1900, will help the tropics avoid episodes of high heat and high humidity — known as extreme wet-bulb temperature, or TW — that go beyond the limits of human survival.
‘Food security is security’: Brazil’s urban farm success story
Saturday 6th March 2021
Every week, Ezequiel Dias, an urban farmer, knocks on the doors of his community’s red-brick, makeshift houses with a delivery of fresh sweet potatoes, pumpkins, onions, cabbage and herbs. He checks to see if the families require additional help. Some need facemasks, others need soap. But few are hungry. Many of his neighbours – the majority of whom are informal workers, who make up approximately 60 percent of Rio de Janeiro’s labour force, with little-to-no savings – have been unable to work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Big Step Forward for $50 Billion Plan to Save Louisiana Coast
Friday 5th March 2021
The next phase of a $50 billion plan to protect the Louisiana coast from erosion and rising sea levels has cleared an important hurdle, with the Army Corps of Engineers delivering a long-awaited environmental impact statement for a key part of the project. The report, issued Thursday evening, looked at a proposal to punch a hole in the Mississippi River levee. The corps said the move would largely benefit coastal areas in the state; however it might also affect some marine life, especially bottlenose dolphins, and could cause problems for those who make their living from raising and catching seafood in the area.
Elephants or avocados: a Kenyan dilemma
Thursday 4th March 2021
The majestic sight of elephants roaming beneath Mount Kilimanjaro has long lured throngs of wildlife-lovers to Amboseli National Park on Kenya’s border with Tanzania. Yet the free movement of some 2,000 Amboseli elephants, along with two dozen other wildlife species plus cows owned by local Maasai people, may be under threat - from avocados. Kenyan agricultural company KiliAvo Fresh Ltd, which has farms near Amboseli on nearly 175 acres of land, is building nurseries and preparing to grow the fruit; popularity is growing worldwide due to the high nutritional value of the fruit. Conservationists are aghast.
US conservationists, mining firms vie for Minnesota wilderness
Wednesday 3rd March 2021
When Steve Piragis and his wife moved to Ely, Minnesota — a town of just over 3,000 people on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness — they were struck by its charm and pristine beauty. The one-million-acre area straddles the border between the United States and Canada and boasts thousands of lakes, dramatic rock formations, tiny islands and lush forests. Piragis relocated there in 1975 to work as a biologist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In 1979, he and his wife started an outfitter company to lead tourists hungry for solitude and natural beauty on camping and canoe trips.
China cuts "carbon intensity" 18.8% in past five years, in effort to reign in emissions
Tuesday 2nd March 2021
China, the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, succeeded in lowering “carbon intensity” by 18.8% in the five years through 2020, a Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) report said on Tuesday, showing the economy’s reduced reliance on fossil fuels. The decline in “carbon intensity” - the amount of carbon dioxide emissions the country produces per unit of GDP - beat the official target for an 18% reduction. During the five-year period, China’s GDP increased to 101.6 trillion yuan ($15.71 trillion), from 68.9 trillion yuan in 2015. For 2020 alone, carbon intensity fell 1% from a year earlier, according to a statement issued by the National Bureau of Statistic on Sunday.
Fossil fuel cars make 'hundreds of times' more waste than electric cars
Monday 1st March 2021
Fossil fuel cars waste hundreds of times more raw material than their battery electric equivalents, according to a study that adds to evidence that the move away from petrol and diesel cars will bring large net environmental benefits. Only about 30kg of raw material will be lost over the lifecycle of a lithium ion battery used in electric cars once recycling is taken into account, compared with 17,000 litres of oil, according to analysis by Transport & Environment (T&E) observed by The Guardian. A calculation of the resources for each relative to their weight shows internal combustion engines burn material 300 times greater than that lost once an electric car battery is scrapped. The comparison did not include potential emissions if fossil fuels were burned to create the power for recharging of car batteries.
Oregon wolf makes history on lengthy journey to California
Saturday 27th February 2021
A grey wolf has made the longest tracked journey of any wolf over the last century, venturing hundreds of miles from its home range in Oregon to California’s Sierra Nevada. The wolf, a male called OR-93, has been fitted with a GPS collar, allowing officials at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to monitor his progress as he made his way to Mono County, found in the Sierra Nevada mountain range near the border of Nevada. Conservationists hope that OR-93 can help establish a foothold for wolves in the Sierras. Fewer than a dozen grey wolves now live in California, with the species wiped out in the state in the 20th century; this was due to a government-backed program to eradicate them in order to protect the livestock industry.
Global Action Is ‘Very Far’ From What’s Needed to Avert Climate Chaos
Friday 26th February 2021
The global scientific consensus is clear: Emissions of planet-warming gases must be cut by nearly half by 2030 if the world is to have a good shot at averting the worst climate catastrophes. The global political response has been underwhelming so far. New climate targets submitted by countries to the United Nations would reduce emissions by less than 1 percent, according to the latest tally, made public Friday by the world body. The head of the United Nations climate agency, Patricia Espinosa, said the figures compiled by her office showed that “current levels of climate ambition are very far from putting us on a pathway that will meet our Paris Agreement goals.”
CO2 emissions: nations' pledges 'far away' from Paris target, says UN
Friday 26th February 2021
The first assessment of countries’ pledges to cut their greenhouse gas emissions in the next decade, a vital component of the Paris climate agreement, has found that countries have only completed a fraction of the effort needed to avoid climate breakdown. If all of the national pledges submitted so far were fulfilled, global emissions would be reduced by only 1% by 2030, compared to 2010 levels. Scientists have said a 45% reduction is needed in the next 10 years to keep global heating to no more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, in line with the Paris agreement.
China lays down another marker in the offshore wind sector, accounting for half of last year’s installations
Thursday 25th February 2021
The world added more than 6 gigawatts (GW) of new offshore wind capacity in 2020, with China responsible for over half of installations in the sector, according to new figures published Thursday.
The data, from the Global Wind Energy Council’s market intelligence unit, shows China installed 3.06 GW last year. Its nearest rival, the Netherlands, installed a little under 1.5 GW of capacity. The US installed just 12 megawatts of offshore capacity last year. For three years in a row now, China has been the number one country for offshore wind installations.
Biden says U.S., Canada to work toward achieving net zero emissions by 2050
Wednesday 24th February 2021
US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to work toward achieving net zero emissions by 2050. “We’re launching a high-level, climate-ambition ministerial and to align our policies and our goals to achieve net zero emissions by 2050,” Biden said in a speech following a bilateral meeting with the Canadian leader. US Special Climate Change Envoy John Kerry and his Canadian counterpart, Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson will host the ministerial.
Interior nominee Haaland vows 'balance' on energy, climate
Tuesday 23rd February 2021
Interior Secretary nominee Deb Haaland stressed at her Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday that she supports energy independence even as one lawmaker described her nomination as a “proxy fight” over the future of fossil fuels. In testimony before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Haaland said in her opening statement that she’s committed to striking “the right balance” if confirmed as interior secretary as the department faces support for the use of oil and natural gas while trying to tackle climate change and conserve public lands.
Arctic drilling plan in Alaska hits roadblock
Monday 22nd February 2021
Plans for seismic surveys to help find oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge have fizzled due to a lack of protection for polar bears, according to a brief statement Saturday from the Department of the Interior. The Kaktovik Inupiat Corp (KIC), the Native-owned company that applied for permission to conduct the survey, failed to do the required work to identify polar bear dens in the region that would be surveyed, Interior spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz said in an emailed statement. The likely demise of the seismic plan is the latest in a series of setbacks that have deflated the decades-long ambition to convert the refuge into an oil-producing frontier.
Israel shuts Mediterranean shore after oil spill devastates coast
Sunday 21st February 2021
Israel closed all its Mediterranean beaches until further notice on Sunday, days after an offshore oil spill deposited tonnes of tar across more than 160km (100 miles) of coastline in what officials are calling one of the country’s worst ecological disasters. Activists began reporting globs of black tar on Israel’s coast last week after a heavy storm. The deposits have wreaked havoc on local wildlife, and the Israeli Agriculture Ministry determined on Sunday that a dead young fin whale that washed up on a beach in southern Israel died from ingesting the viscous black liquid, according to Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster. Israel’s Nature and Parks Authority called the spill “one of the most serious ecological disasters” in the country’s history.
It's official: U.S. back in the Paris climate club
Friday 19th February 2021
The United States officially rejoined the Paris climate agreement on Friday, reinvigorating the global fight against climate change as the Biden administration plans drastic emissions cuts over the next three decades. Scientists and foreign diplomats have welcomed the US' return to the treaty, which became official 30 days after President Joe Biden ordered the move on his first day in office. Since nearly 200 countries signed the 2015 pact to prevent catastrophic climate change, the United States has been the only country to exit. At the time, President Donald Trump took the step to exit by claiming climate action would cost too much.
Experts identify 'super-plant' that absorbs roadside air pollution
Thursday 18th February 2021
Bushy, hairy-leafed cotoneaster is a “super plant” that can help soak up pollution on busy roads, horticultural experts have said. Scientists at the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) looked at the effectiveness of hedges for soaking up air pollution, comparing different types of shrubs including cotoneaster, hawthorn and western red cedar. The study forms part of work by the charity to ease environmental problems such as air pollution, flooding and heatwaves, boosting the benefits of gardens and green spaces. On roads with heavy traffic, the denser, hairy-leaved Cotoneaster franchetii was at least 20% more effective at soaking up pollution compared with other shrubs, the researchers said, though it did not make a difference on quieter streets.
A Different Kind of Land Management: Let the Cows Stomp
Wednesday 17th February 2021
Adam Isaacs stood surrounded by cattle in an old pasture that had been overgrazed for years. Now it was a jumble of weeds. “Most people would want to get out here and start spraying it” (with herbicides), he said. “My family used to do that. It doesn’t work.” Instead, Mr. Isaacs, a fourth-generation rancher on this rolling land in the northeast corner of the Texas Panhandle, will put his animals to work on the pasture, using portable electrified fencing to confine them to a small area so that they can’t help but trample some of the weeds as they graze. “We let cattle stomp a lot of the stuff down,” he said. That adds organic matter to the soil and exposes it to oxygen, which will help grass and more desirable plants take over. Eventually, through continued careful management of grazing, the pasture will be healthy again.
$47 billion swept into ‘ESG’ stocks last year — and here are Wall Street’s favourites
Tuesday 16th February 2021
Analysts at Wall Street’s biggest banks have listed their top stocks for environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in a sector that has soared in popularity in recent years. In the US last year, investors pumped $47 billion into investment strategies that take ESG features into account, as well as financial metrics, according to Goldman Sachs. That’s almost double the amount of the previous five years combined. Analysts from Credit Suisse listed several “high quality” US ESG stocks that investors are currently “missing,” and Morgan Stanley, meanwhile, chose top picks in oil and gas as companies face a “reckoning with climate-related risks.” Wells Fargo listed food stocks it believes are ahead of tougher European ESG regulations.
Bill Gates warns that manufacturing could challenge climate goals
Monday 15th February 2021
Bill Gates exudes optimism in discussing the world’s ability to tackle climate change – until he hits on manufacturing. He is worried about that. There is currently no way to make steel or cement without releasing climate-warming emissions. Yet, neither governments nor investors are looking hard to solve that problem, Gates said. “That’s the sector that bothers me the most,” Gates said in a video interview with Reuters ahead of the publication this week of his book, “How to Avoid a Climate Disaster.” The software-developer-turned-philanthropist has invested some $2 billion toward the development of clean technologies. But those investments are mostly in electricity generation and storage.
Record number of beavers to be released in Britain this year
Friday 12th February 2021
A record number of beavers will be released by the Wildlife Trusts into Britain this year as the industrious mammal is restored to five counties where they have been extinct for hundreds of years. The popular rodent, whose dams have been shown to boost hundreds of species of insects, amphibians, birds, fish and plants, is returning to Dorset, Derbyshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Nottinghamshire and Montgomeryshire. Last year the government allowed free-living beavers to be unofficially let loose into the River Otter in Devon to remain there, but all licensed releases into the wild in England and Wales are put into large enclosed areas. There are, however, other unofficial beaver populations living freely on some river systems.
Argentine jaguar cubs born to rare wild-captive parents
Thursday 11th February 2021
In Argentina an unusual love story has had a happy ending after two rare jaguar cubs were born to a wild jaguar father and a jaguar mother who has lived all her life in captivity. The northern province of Chaco and conservation group Rewilding Argentina said on Wednesday that the cubs were born to Tania and Qaramta, whose names means ‘The One Who Cannot Be Destroyed’ in the regional Qom language. With wild jaguars largely wiped out in the area around the Impenetrable national park, the successful mating is a glimmer of light as conservationists try to re-grow population numbers.
Dozens trapped in tunnel after Himalayan glacier's collapse, scores still missing
Wednesday 10th February 2021
Rescuers raced to free around 35 Indian construction workers trapped in a tunnel, two days after the hydroelectric dam they were helping to build was swept away by a wall of water from a collapsed glacier that barrelled down a Himalayan river. The workers were among 197 people who officials said were still unaccounted for as the death toll from the disaster - which also broke apart bridges, cut off villages and scarred tracts of mountain landscape - rose to 28. Packing rocks, dirt and construction debris are thought to have been triggered when a glacier lake fed by India’s second highest peak, Nanda Devi, collapsed and the flood swept down the Dhauliganga river on Sunday.
'Invisible killer': fossil fuels caused 8.7m deaths globally in 2018
Tuesday 9th February 2021
Air pollution caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil was responsible for 8.7m deaths globally in 2018, a staggering one in five of all people who died that year, new research has found. Countries with the most prodigious consumption of fossil fuels to power factories, homes and vehicles are suffering the highest death tolls, with the study finding more than one in 10 deaths in both the US and Europe were caused by the resulting pollution, along with nearly a third of deaths in eastern Asia, which includes China. Death rates in South America and Africa were significantly lower.
How Elon Musk will award $100 million in carbon capture contest
Monday 8th February 2021
How much would it take to spur the world's craftiest engineers and entrepreneurs to develop elusive technology able to suck gigatons of heat-trapping carbon dioxide out of the air and the oceans? Elon Musk, the billionaire tech entrepreneur, is betting $100 million, according to details released Monday about a four-year contest he is funding to develop carbon removal technologies. Not only will contestants have to build working prototypes that measurably remove carbon, but they will also have to prove that they can cost-effectively scale them to a level that exceeds anything that has ever been built before.
Glacier Bursts in India, Leaving More Than 100 Missing in Floods
Sunday 7th February 2021
A Himalayan glacier broke and caused sudden, massive flooding in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand on Sunday, smashing two dam projects and forcing the authorities to scramble to evacuate villages and try to save more than 100 lives. Trivendra Singh Rawat, the chief minister of Uttarakhand, said that seven bodies had been recovered and that about 125 people, many of them workers at the two hydroelectric dam projects that were largely swept away, were unaccounted for. “An avalanche came and completely broke the Rishiganga power project, and almost all the workers there are missing,” said Ashok Kumar, the chief of police in Uttarakhand. “By the time the water came downstream, we had alerted people.”
Experts pile pressure on Boris Johnson over 'shocking' new coalmine
Friday 5th February 2021
Pressure is growing on the government over its support for a new coalmine in Cumbria, as the UK prepares to host the most important UN climate summit since the Paris agreement was signed in 2015. Developing country experts, scientists, green campaigners and government advisers are increasingly concerned about the seeming contradiction of ministers backing the new mine – the UK’s first new deep coalmine in three decades, which will produce coking coal, mostly for export, until 2049 – while gathering support from world leaders for a fresh deal on the climate crisis.
Global heating to blame for threat of deadly flood in Peru, study finds
Thursday 4th February 2021
Human-caused global heating is directly responsible for the threat of a devastating flood in Peru that is the subject of a lawsuit against the German energy company RWE, according to groundbreaking new research. The study establishes links from human-made greenhouse gas emissions to the substantial risk of a dangerous outburst flood from Lake Palcacocha, high in the Peruvian Andes. The resulting flood would trigger a deadly landslide inundating the city of Huaraz, and threatening about 120,000 people in its path. Climate litigators say the research published in Nature Geoscience could be key to holding major polluters accountable for their contribution to climate change.
Biden administration to restart permitting for major U.S. offshore wind project
Wednesday 3rd February 2021
The Biden administration said on Wednesday it would restart permitting for the first major US offshore wind farm, reversing a Trump administration decision that canceled the process late last year. The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) said in a statement it would resume an environmental review of the Vineyard Wind project as part of the administration’s broad plan to speed renewable energy development on federal lands and waters. “BOEM is committed to conducting a robust and timely review of the proposed project,” Director Amanda Lefton said in the statement.
U.S. Cities Are Vastly Undercounting Emissions, Researchers Find
Tuesday 2nd February 2021
When cities try to figure out the amount of greenhouse gases they emit, they tend to undercount — and not just by a little. The average error is nearly 20 percent, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications. The researchers suggested that if that error was consistent across all American cities, the resulting annual missed emissions would be nearly one-quarter higher than those of the entire state of California. Nearly three-quarters of the carbon dioxide generated from fossil fuels comes from cities, the researchers said, and urban areas will continue to boom in coming years. Many cities around the world have set ambitious goals to lessen their burden on the planet, but there is not yet a consistent way for them to measure the amount of carbon dioxide or to gauge any reductions. The new research shows that voluntary efforts by cities to measure those emissions are inconsistent and flawed.
How creating wildlife crossings can help reindeer, bears – and even crabs
Sunday 31st January 2021
Every April, Sweden’s main highway comes to a periodic standstill. Hundreds of reindeer overseen by indigenous Sami herders shuffle across the asphalt on the E4 as they begin their journey west to the mountains after a winter gorging on the lichen near the city of Umeå. As Sweden’s main arterial road has become busier, the crossings have become increasingly fractious, especially if authorities do not arrive in time to close the road. Sometimes drivers try to overtake the reindeer as they cross – spooking the animals and causing long traffic jams as their Sami owners battle to regain control. “During difficult climate conditions, these lichen lands can be extra important for the reindeer,” says Per Sandström, a landscape ecologist at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences who works as an intermediary between the Sami and authorities to improve the crossings.
Dizzying pace of Biden's climate action sounds death knell for era of denialism
Saturday 30th January 2021
For a landmark moment in the global effort to stave off catastrophic climate change, Joe Biden’s “climate day” at the White House was rather low-key. The US president bumped elbows with his newly appointed climate tsar, John Kerry, who he called his “best buddy,” then gave a short speech before perfunctorily signing a small stack of executive orders, donning his mask and striding out without taking any questions. The vision laid out in the actions signed by Biden on Wednesday, however, was transformative. It lays a pathway for oil and gas drilling to be banned from public lands. A third of America’s land and ocean will be protected. The government will be ditching the combustion engine from its entire vehicle fleet, offering up a future where battery-powered trucks deliver America’s mail and electric tanks are operated by the US military.
Environmentalists, farmers win Dutch court case over Shell Nigeria spills
Friday 29th January 2021
A Dutch appeals court on Friday held Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary responsible for multiple oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta and ordered it to pay unspecified damages to farmers, in a victory for environmentalists. The case was brought in 2008 by four farmers and an environmental group called Friends of the Earth, seeking reparations for lost income from contaminated land and waterways in the region, the heart of Nigeria’s oil industry. Although only Shell subsidiary SPDC was found to be directly responsible, the Dutch ruling could open the door for more environmental cases against oil companies.
Biden killed the Keystone Pipeline. Good, but he doesn't get a climate pass just yet
Thursday 28th January 2021
Joe Biden scrapping the Keystone XL permit is a huge win for the Indigenous-led climate movement. It not only overturns Trump’s reversal of Obama’s 2015 rejection of the pipeline but is also a major blow to the US fossil fuel industry and the world’s largest energy economy and per-capita carbon polluter. There is every reason to celebrate the end of a decade-long fight against Keystone XL. Tribal nations and Indigenous movements hope it will be a watershed moment for bolder actions, demanding the same fates for contentious pipeline projects such as Line 3 and the Dakota Access pipeline.
Biden suspends oil and gas leasing in slew of executive actions on climate change
Wednesday 27th January 2021
President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed a series of executive orders that prioritize climate change across all levels of government and put the US on track to curb planet-warming carbon emissions. Biden’s orders direct the secretary of the Interior Department to halt new oil and natural gas leases on public lands and waters, and begin a thorough review of existing permits for fossil fuel development. In addition to the pause on leasing, Biden will direct the federal government to conserve 30% of federal lands and water by 2030 and find ways to double offshore wind production by that time.
Fixing global biodiversity policy: Avoiding repeating old mistakes
Tuesday 26th January 2021
Since the founding of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, member states have regularly agreed on global strategies to bring the increasingly rapid loss of biodiversity to a halt. In 2002, the heads of state adopted the so-called 2010 biodiversity targets. Eight years later, little progress had been made and 20 new, even more ambitious goals were set for the next ten years. Last year, it became clear that this target had been missed, too. The loss of biodiversity continues unabated. This year, new targets are being negotiated again -- this time for 2030. The decisions are to be made at the Conference of the Parties (COP15) in Kunming, China. To ensure that the mistakes from previous years will not be repeated, Chinese researchers led by Prof Haigen Xu from the Nanjing Institute for Environmental Research in cooperation with Prof Henrique Pereira (iDiv, MLU) have presented an analysis of the causes of this failure, focusing primarily on implementation in the individual member states.
Ecuadorian Amazon: Three European banks stop funding trade of oil
Monday 25th January 2021
Several big European financial institutions — BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse and ING — have committed to halting the financing of the trade of oil from the Amazon region of Ecuador. The three banks that have recently indicated such a policy change — in emails sent to environmental groups Amazon Watch and Stand.earth — are collectively responsible for $5.5bn in Ecuadorian Amazon oil financing since 2009. The decisions come several months after a critical report published last August by those two groups exposed how a handful of banks in Europe have provided $10bn in financing for over 155 million barrels of oil exported from South America to the United States.
Natural catastrophes cause above-average $100 billion in insurance losses in 2020: Aon
Sunday 24th January 2021
Natural catastrophes resulted in $97 billion in insured losses in 2020, 40% above the average for this century, in a year when insurers also faced hefty bills due to the Coronavirus pandemic, insurance broker Aon said in a report on Monday. Hurricane Laura, which hit the United States and Caribbean in August, caused a $10 billion insured loss, the largest global insured loss event of 2020, Aon said. Economic losses from natural disasters - insured and uninsured combined - totalled $268 billion, with seasonal floods in China between June and September causing the greatest loss event at $35 billion.
The US is back in the climate fight
Friday 22nd January 2021
Until Donald Trump took office in the United States, the long, loping stride of John Kerry, President Barack Obama’s secretary of state, was a familiar sight at UN climate conferences, ultimately helping to steer the Paris Agreement home in 2015. Trump’s time in power was four years of trigger-happy environmental reversing, something Kerry now has to help unravel. He is President Joe Biden’s special presidential envoy for climate, a new cabinet-level position. Kerry is a 77-year-old political veteran. He won three Purple Hearts in the Vietnam War and then became an anti-war activist after returning to the US in 1969. He fights for a cause. And he will need all his powers of persuasion in the months and years ahead. On the second day of Biden’s presidency, Kerry made his first appearance in his new position at a G20 forum, saying the US is re-entering global climate talks with “humility” after it “walked away from the table for four wasted years” under President Trump.
President Joe Biden rejoins the Paris climate accord in first move to tackle global warming
Thursday 21st January 2021
President Joe Biden signed an executive order to rejoin the US into the Paris climate agreement on Wednesday, his first major action to tackle global warming as he brings the largest team of climate change experts ever into the White House. The Biden administration also intends to cancel the permit for the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the US and sign additional orders in the coming days to reverse several of former President Donald Trump’s actions weakening environmental protections. Biden vows to move quickly on climate change action, and his inclusion of scientists throughout the government marks the beginning of a major policy reversal following four years of the Trump administration’s weakening of climate rules in favor of fossil fuel producers.
Limiting air pollution could prevent 50,000 deaths in Europe
Wednesday 20th January 2021
Limiting air pollution to levels recommended by the World Health Organization could prevent more than 50,000 deaths in Europe annually, according to research. The WHO estimates air pollution kills more than 7 million people each year and is one of the leading causes of sickness and absence from work globally. Cities, with their crowded streets and high energy use, are hotspots for illness and disease linked to air pollution. The WHO recommends that fine particulate matter (PM2.5) not exceed 10 micrograms per cubic metre of air, averaged annually. For nitrogen dioxide (NO2), the threshold not to be exceeded is 40μg/m3.
Electric car batteries with five-minute charging times produced
Tuesday 19th January 2021
Batteries capable of fully charging in five minutes have been produced in a factory for the first time, marking a significant step towards electric cars becoming as fast to charge as filling up petrol or diesel vehicles. Electric vehicles are a vital part of action to tackle the climate crisis but running out of charge during a journey is a worry for drivers. The new lithium-ion batteries were developed by the Israeli company StoreDot and manufactured by Eve Energy in China on standard production lines. StoreDot has already demonstrated its “extreme fast-charging” battery in phones, drones and scooters and the 1,000 batteries it has now produced are to showcase its technology to carmakers and other companies. Daimler, BP, Samsung and TDK have all invested in StoreDot, which has raised $130m to date and was named a Bloomberg New Energy Finance Pioneer in 2020.
Electric Cars Are Better for the Planet – and Often Your Budget, Too
Monday 18th January 2021
Electric vehicles are better for the climate than gas-powered cars, but many Americans are still reluctant to buy them. One reason: The larger upfront cost. New data published Thursday shows that despite the higher sticker price, electric cars may actually save drivers money in the long-run. To reach this conclusion, a team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology calculated both the carbon dioxide emissions and full lifetime cost — including purchase price, maintenance and fuel — for nearly every new car model on the market. They found electric cars were easily more climate friendly than gas-burning ones. Over a lifetime, they were often cheaper, too.
Microplastics found across the Arctic may be fibres from laundry
Saturday 16th January 2021
Polyester fibres make up nearly three-quarters of microplastic pollution in the Arctic and probably come from textile manufacturing and household laundry. We already knew that microplastics were present in the Arctic, but new research shines a light on the source of these tiny fragments. Peter Ross at the University of British Columbia in Canada and his colleagues examined seawater samples from 71 locations across the Arctic taken from 3 to 8 metres below the surface. Microplastics were present in all samples except one, with a count of approximately 40 microplastic particles per cubic metre of seawater on average. They found that synthetic fibres made up 92 per cent of the microplastic pollution in these samples, and 73 per cent of this is polyester.
Survey Finds Majority of Voters Support Initiatives to Fight Climate Change
Friday 15th January 2021
A majority of registered voters of both parties in the United States support initiatives to fight climate change, including many that are outlined in the climate plans announced by President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., according to a new survey. The survey, which was conducted after the presidential election, suggests that a majority of Americans in both parties want a government that deals forcefully with climate change instead of denying its urgency — or denying that it exists.
Global temperatures in 2020 among highest on record: WMO
Thursday 14th January 2021
Global temperatures in 2020 were among the highest on record and rivaled 2016 as the hottest year ever, according to international data compiled by the World Meteorological Organization and released on Thursday. The heat came even as a global economic slowdown from the COVID-19 pandemic cut deeply into emissions from fossil fuels, adding evidence that carbon dioxide concentrations already in the atmosphere have set the planet on a warming track. The WMO report included data from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the UK Met Office, both of which ranked 2020 as the second-warmest year on record, as a cooling trend called La Niña failed to tame global temperatures. NASA, whose data was also included, said 2020 tied with 2016 as the warmest year on record.
Top scientists warn of 'ghastly future of mass extinction' and climate disruption
Wednesday 13th January 2021
The planet is facing a “ghastly future of mass extinction, declining health and climate-disruption upheavals” that threaten human survival because of ignorance and inaction, according to an international group of scientists, who warn that people still haven’t grasped the urgency of the biodiversity and climate crises. The 17 experts, including Prof Paul Ehrlich from Stanford University, author of The Population Bomb, and scientists from Mexico, Australia and the US, say the planet is in a much worse state than most people – even scientists – understood. “The scale of the threats to the biosphere and all its lifeforms – including humanity – is in fact so great that it is difficult to grasp for even well-informed experts,” they write in a report in Frontiers in Conservation Science which references more than 150 studies detailing the world’s major environmental challenges.
Covid-19 Took a Bite From U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions in 2020
Tuesday 12th January 2021
America’s greenhouse gas emissions from energy and industry plummeted more than 10 percent in 2020, reaching their lowest levels in at least three decades as the Coronavirus pandemic slammed the brakes on the nation’s economy, according to an estimate published Tuesday by the Rhodium Group. The steep drop, however, was the result of extraordinary circumstances and experts warned that the country still faced enormous challenges in getting its planet-warming pollution under control. In the years ahead, United States emissions are widely expected to bounce back once the pandemic recedes and the economy rumbles back to life — unless policymakers take stronger action to clean up the country’s power plants, factories, cars and trucks.
UK pledges $4 billion to nature and biodiversity protection
Monday 11th January 2021
Britain will allocate 3 billion pounds ($4 billion) over five years to projects aimed at protecting and restoring nature and biodiversity, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday. The money will come from an existing commitment of 11.6 billion pounds for international climate finance. “We will not achieve our goals on climate change, sustainable development or preventing pandemics if we fail to take care of the natural world that provides us with the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe,” Johnson said in a statement.
Global temperatures reached record highs in 2020, say EU scientists
Friday 8th January 2021
Last year had a tie with 2016 for the world’s warmest temperatures on record, rounding off as the hottest decade globally as the impacts of climate change intensify, the European Union’s Copernicus Earth observation service said on Friday. In the United States, the warmer temperatures contributed to a record 22 separate disasters that each caused more than a billion dollars of damage, including wildfires and hurricanes, according to a new government report.
Spain surprised and delighted by rare snowfall
Thursday 7th January 2021
Heavy snow was falling across parts of Spain on Thursday which could cover up to half of the country in the coming days, forecasters said on Thursday. "If the forecasts are confirmed, we could be facing one of the most extensive snowfalls in recent years," said Ruben del Campo, spokesman for Spain's AEMET weather agency. By Thursday afternoon, the capital was blanketed in white, as was the vast central region of Castilla La Mancha with the rare snowfall brought by Storm Filomena. More than half of the country is on alert for snowfall which is expected to last until Sunday and mainly affect the central, northern and eastern regions.
Brazilian beef farms ‘used workers kept in conditions similar to slavery’
Wednesday 6th January 2021
Brazilian companies and slaughterhouses including the world’s largest meat producer, JBS, source cattle from supplier farms that make use of workers by keeping them in slavery-like conditions, according to a new report. Workers on cattle farms that supply slaughterhouses earn as little as £8 a day and live in improvised shacks with no bathrooms, toilets, running water or kitchens, according to a report from Brazilian investigative agency Repórter Brasil.
Trump administration pollution rule strikes final blow against environment
Tuesday 5th January 2021
The Environmental Protection Agency has completed one of its last major rollbacks under the Trump administration, changing how it considers evidence of harm from pollutants in a way that opponents say could cripple future public-health regulation. The EPA administrator, Andrew Wheeler, formally announced the completion of what he calls the “Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science” rule in a Zoom appearance before Competitive Enterprise Institute, a conservative thinktank on Tuesday. The EPA completed the final rule last week.
Trump to approve land swap for Rio Tinto's Resolution Copper project
Monday 4th January 2021
US President Donald Trump’s outgoing administration plans to approve a controversial land swap needed for Rio Tinto Ltd and partners to build an Arizona copper mining project that Native American tribes say will destroy sites of cultural and religious value. The move further escalates the growing global clash between indigenous groups, who are increasingly vocal about the need to preserve historical lands, and mining companies eager to produce more copper for electric vehicles and other green technologies.
Sir David Attenborough calls for positive change on environment in 2021
Saturday 2nd January 2021
Sir David Attenborough has called on all people to make positive changes for the planet in a new year's day message from isolation at his London home. In the address released ahead of his latest natural history series A Perfect Planet, the 94-year-old broadcaster said he had, like so many, spent much of 2020 indoors, away from loved ones and nature. "It has been a challenging few months for many of us, but the reaction to these extraordinary times has proved that when we work together, there is no limit to what we can accomplish," he said. "Today we are experiencing environmental change as never before, and the need to take action has never been more urgent."
Hopes for most endangered turtle after discovery of female in Vietnam lake
Friday 1st January 2021
The last known male giant Swinhoe’s softshell turtle is no longer alone on the planet after the discovery of a female of his species in Vietnam. The female 86kg (13 stone) turtle was found in Dong Mo lake, in Hanoi’s Son Tay district, and captured for genetic testing in October. DNA tests have now confirmed the animal is a Swinhoe’s softshell turtle, (Rafetus swinhoei), the most endangered turtle in the world. Another turtle estimated to weigh 130kg was sighted in the lake, and conservationists hope that this could be another male.
Landslide hits residential area in Norway, 10 hurt, 11 people missing
Thursday 31st December 2020
Ten people were injured, one of them critically, and 11 were classified as missing after a landslide in southern Norway swept away more than a dozen buildings in the early hours of Wednesday, police said. The landslide struck a residential area in the municipality of Gjerdrum, about 30 km (19 miles) north of the capital Oslo. Police said more than 900 people had been evacuated from the area. Rescue workers continued to search the area for children and adults who were feared to have been caught in mud and debris, police said.
China seeks better protection of Yangtze river with landmark law
Wednesday 30th December 2020
China is seeking to further protect the ecology and environment of the Yangtze river, the longest in Asia, in the country’s first set of legislation aimed at guarding the resources of a specific river basin. With 96 provisions spanning over nine chapters, the landmark law was passed at a Standing Committee session of China’s top legislature on Saturday. It will take effect on March 1. The Yangtze, one of China’s two so-called “mother rivers”, the other being the Yellow River, has been stained by years of pollution. Aquatic life has also been threatened and fish stocks depleted.
Crops grown in Bangalore high on toxic heavy metals
Tuesday 29th December 2020
Scientists in Bangalore, India have found toxic levels of four heavy metals, chromium, nickel, cadmium and lead, in crops and vegetables grown on soil irrigated with water from six lakes in the city, reports a study published December in Current Science. According to the study, the 17 lakes in and around Bangalore, a bustling city of more than 12 million people, have become part of the city's drainage system, into which flow untreated sewage and industrial effluents from garment factories, electroplating industries, distilleries and other small-scale but polluting units. However, many farmers are now using water from these lakes to irrigate and water vegetable crops.
Young Champions of the Earth: Peru’s elemental innovator
Monday 28th December 2020
Max Hidalgo has adapted a wind turbine to condense vapour from air to produce water for vulnerable communities affected by climate change in Peru. The technology he has developed at a cost of $70,000 per unit can provide a village of a hundred people with the water they need to survive; it’s estimated that establishing a piped supply to the same community would cost up to $1 million. Max Hidalgo is one of seven innovators who have been recognized as United Nations Environment Programme’s Young Champions of the Earth for 2020.
Is nuclear fusion the answer to the climate crisis?
Monday 28th December 2020
If all goes as planned, the US will eliminate all greenhouse gas emissions from its electricity sector by 2035 – an ambitious goal set by President-elect Joe Biden, relying in large part on a sharp increase in wind and solar energy generation. That plan may soon get a boost from nuclear fusion, a powerful technology that until recently had seemed far out of reach. Researchers developing a nuclear fusion reactor that can generate more energy than it consumes have shown in a series of recent papers that their design should work, restoring optimism that this clean, limitless power source will help mitigate the climate crisis.
Young Champions of the Earth: trashing barriers to boost recycling in Kuwait
Sunday 27th December 2020
Fatemah Alzelzela says she had to overcome stigma around waste collection, skepticism from the business community as well as prejudice about her age and gender in order to set up her recycling company, Eco Star. Since early 2019, the company has recycled over three-and-a-half tonnes of plastic, 10 tonnes of paper and 120 tonnes of metal in a country where 90 per cent of waste ends up in landfill sites. And those people who provide material for recycling are rewarded with plants. Fatemah Alzelzela is one of seven innovators who have been recognized as United Nations Environment Programme’s Young Champions of the Earth for 2020.
'I'll be fierce for all of us': Deb Haaland on climate, Native rights and Biden
Sunday 27th December 2020
The 60-year-old congresswoman from New Mexico will become the first Native American cabinet secretary in US history next month, when she takes responsibility for the country’s land and natural resources as head of the Department of the Interior under Joe Biden. Haaland is a member of the Laguna Pueblo, one of 567 sovereign tribal nations located across 35 states. According to the 2010 census, 5.2 million people or about 2% of the US population identifies as American Indian or Alaskan Native – descendants of those who survived US government policies to kill, remove or assimilate indigenous peoples.
Young Champions of the Earth: turning plastics into paving in Kenya
Saturday 26th December 2020
Nzambi Matee’s invention not only keeps plastic out of landfill sites, it also offers a cheaper alternative to conventional concrete paving slabs. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) says every minute, a million plastic bottles are purchased across the world, the majority of which are not recycled. Nzambi Matee is one of seven innovators recognized as United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Young Champions of the Earth for 2020.
Young Champions of the Earth: mapping clean water in China
Friday 25th December 2020
Xiaoyuan Ren has developed MyH2O, a data platform that provides information about the quality of groundwater in villages across the country, so residents know where to find clean water to stay healthy. Her research suggests that around 40 per cent of those people had concerns about their drinking water but no ability to test it. An army of volunteers travelled to around a thousand villages in 26 Chinese provinces to test water quality and then log the results in the app. MyH2O also suggests ways to purify contaminated drinking water. Xiaoyuan Ren is one of seven innovators recognized as United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Young Champions of the Earth for 2020.
Wetlands, beavers and Cinderella causes; the growth of environmental funding
Thursday 24th December 2020
Philanthropic donations to environmental causes have more than doubled in value in the UK as the climate crisis and unprecedented biodiversity loss attract increasing attention from individuals and charities. The amounts of money given to support efforts to tackle climate change and nature loss range from £5,000 to millions of pounds, and the focus of the funding is as broad. It includes a £10,000 donation given to support a successful campaign for a deposit return scheme in Scotland; the funding of grassroots defenders of Europe’s last primeval forest, in Poland, and the protection of wetlands in Montenegro; and millions of pounds in support of environmental legal challenges and donations to back campaigning against fossil fuels.
Japan to lay out 'green' growth strategy to meet Suga's net-zero emissions goal - Nikkei
Wednesday 23rd December 2020
Japan will lay out a “green growth strategy” on Friday that includes a goal to replace gasoline-powered vehicles with electric cars by around 2035, the Nikkei newspaper reported. The strategy will serve as an action plan to achieve Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s pledge to slash carbon emissions to zero on a net basis in 2050. Under the strategy, the government will set 14 targets for promoting a greener society, such as installing up to 45 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2040, the paper said.
World could lose coral reefs by end of century, UN environment report warns
Tuesday 22nd December 2020
“In the face of inaction, coral reefs will soon disappear,” Leticia Carvalho, head of UNEP’s Marine and Freshwater Branch said on Monday. “Humanity must act with evidence-based urgency, ambition and innovation to change the trajectory for this ecosystem, which is the canary in the coalmine for climate’s impact on oceans, before it’s too late.” Coral reefs are incredibly important and sustain a wide variety of marine life. They also protect coastlines from erosions from waves and storms, sink carbon and nitrogen and help recycle nutrients. Their loss would have devastating consequences not only for marine life, but also for over a billion people globally who benefit directly or indirectly from them.
Japan to mull bolder emissions target, carbon pricing scheme next year -minister
Monday 21st December 2020
Japan will look at reducing greenhouse gas emissions beyond its current target for 2030 and lay out details next year on a carbon pricing scheme that won’t rule out a carbon tax, the environment ministry’s top bureaucrat said on Monday. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Monday instructed his environment and industry ministers to work on a plan next year to create a carbon pricing scheme, which will be part of efforts to meet his pledge to make Japan carbon-neutral by 2050.
Record-breaking storm unleashes travel havoc on U.S. Northeast
Friday 18th December 2020
A winter storm piled record-breaking amounts of snow onto parts of the US Northeast on Thursday and wreaked havoc throughout the region, killing at least four people in traffic crashes and hobbling travel. The first major snowstorm of the season, which was expected to move out to sea by Thursday evening, prompted officials to urge the region’s 50 million residents to stay home. “Given the heavy (snow) and difficult travel conditions, drivers are encouraged to stay off the road if they can during the storm,” Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker said on Twitter.
Is lightning striking the Arctic more than ever before?
Thursday 17th December 2020
Lightning is striking the Arctic many times more often than it did a decade ago, a study suggests — and the rate could soon double. The findings demonstrate yet another way Earth’s climate could be changing as the planet warms, although not all researchers agree that the trend is real. Robert Holzworth, an atmospheric physicist at the University of Washington in Seattle and leader of the study, defends the findings. “We’re seeing a symptom of global climate change,” he says. Holzworth is director of the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN), the collection of ground-based sensors that measured the data.
Air pollution a cause in girl's death, coroner rules in landmark case
Wednesday 16th December 2020
A coroner has made legal history by ruling that air pollution was a cause of the death of a nine-year-old girl. Philip Barlow, the inner south London coroner, said Ella Kissi-Debrah’s death in February 2013 was caused by acute respiratory failure, severe asthma and air pollution exposure. He said she was exposed to nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter (PM) pollution in excess of World Health Organization guidelines, the principal source of which were traffic emissions.
Young Champions of the Earth: Indian’s burning desire for energy
Tuesday 15th December 2020
Vidyut Mohan has pioneered a portable machine which burns agricultural waste without releasing harmful greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere turning it into charcoal and fertilizer which can be used by farmers in India. Farmers have traditionally burnt waste in their fields which not only pollutes the atmosphere worsening health conditions like asthma and heart disease but also contributes to climate change by releasing tiny particles of black carbon into the atmosphere.
COVID and 2020: An extraordinary year for science
Monday 14th December 2020
One event dominated in 2020: a deadly and previously unknown virus wreaked havoc across the globe, killing more than 1.5 million people, infecting many more and causing economic devastation. And although there were other newsworthy research developments in 2020, the pandemic set the course of science to an extraordinary degree. The speed of the Coronavirus’ spread has been matched only by the pace of scientific insights. Almost as soon as SARS-CoV-2 was discovered, research groups worldwide started probing its biology, while others developed diagnostic tests or investigated public-health measures to control it. Scientists also raced to find treatments and create vaccines that could bring the pandemic under control. “We’ve never progressed so fast with any other infectious agent,” says virologist Theodora Hatziioannou at the Rockefeller University in New York City.
In Mexico’s vibrant forests, locals adapt to a year without tourists
Saturday 12th December 2020
When she was 10 years old, Ana Moreno watched buses full of tourists pull into her village. They had come to see the monarch butterflies, which arrive in flurries each November and stay the winter in the Sierra Madre’s forested peaks. Moreno watched the monarch enthusiasts pour from buses, chattering to each other. She thought to herself, “How is it possible that I don’t speak English?” Moreno went on to study tourism and learn English at university. Her goal was to become a butterfly guide and lead tours into the forest. Moreno’s father had worked as a forest ranger, and on several occasions she accompanied him up the mountain to see the monarch colonies. “I wanted to be up there every single day,” she says.
Paris climate agreement: 54 cities on track to meet targets
Friday 11th December 2020
More than 50 of the world’s leading cities are on track to help keep global heating below 1.5C and tackle the worst impacts of the climate crisis, according to a new report. From mass tree-planting in Buenos Aires to new public transport networks in Mexico City, 54 of the world’s leading cities are now rolling out plans that will cut their greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris agreement, according to a new study by the C40 cities network. The findings will be presented to Anne Hidalgo, mayor of Paris, on Friday at an event in the French capital to mark the fifth anniversary of the landmark climate agreement.
The Newest Challenge for Europe’s Parks: A Surge of New Nature Lovers
Thursday 10th December 2020
Lockdown-weary Europeans have sought out nature in record-breaking numbers this year, putting sudden and substantial pressure on national parks and other natural areas across the continent. “You could see this increase in irresponsible behavior, and in a lot of parks it felt like this was out of control,” said Nikoleta Jones, a principal research associate at the University of Cambridge and an author of a recent study of the pandemic’s effect on protected areas in Europe. “The resources they had were not enough. It was just so much more than what they had experienced in the past.”
Human-made materials now outweigh Earth's entire biomass
Wednesday 9th December 2020
The giant human footprint stamped across the world in 2020 is greater than the impact on the planet of all other living things, research suggests. The amount of plastic alone is greater in mass than all land animals and marine creatures combined, the study estimates. While human beings might believe in “the immensity of the globe and the seeming infinity of the natural world”, the researchers say they wanted to provide an objective and rigorous measure of the reality of the balance between man and nature. Their research shows that human activity including production of concrete, metal, plastic, bricks and asphalt has brought the world to a crossover point where human-made mass – driven mostly by enhanced consumption and urban development – exceeds the overall living biomass on Earth.
Developing countries raise climate ambitions to plot path out of pandemic
Tuesday 8th December 2020
UNDP is supporting 115 developing countries, to enhance their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – the specific steps that each country intends to take to help meet the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement, which committed the international community to restrict global warming to “well below 2 degrees Celsius” and aim, if possible, for 1.5C. Signatories to the landmark Agreement are due to meet online for a Climate Ambition Summit on Saturday, marking the fifth anniversary of the pact, and to set out new and ambitious commitments for the next five years, which could provide a major boost for the next landmark meeting, COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, next November. “What that 1.5 (degree target) really stands for is a complete and utter transformation of the world. And the speed, and the scale at which we have to do that is unprecedented”, said Cassie Flynn, UNDP Climate Advisor.
Trump admin set to approve Arizona land swap for mine opposed by Native Americans
Monday 7th December 2020
US President Donald Trump’s outgoing administration is set to approve a controversial land swap later this month that would give Rio Tinto Ltd and partners more than 2,400 acres (9.7 square kilometers) to build an Arizona copper mine, even though the project would destroy religious and cultural sites sacred to Native Americans. Tribal leaders and other critics allege that the US government is fast-tracking the environmental review process before Trump is replaced by President-elect Joe Biden next month, charges the government and Rio Tinto deny.
Downing Street denies report PM Johnson wants Cameron to lead climate summit
Sunday 6th December 2020
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office on Sunday denied a report that he wanted his predecessor David Cameron to take over from business minister Alok Sharma as president of next year’s United Nations COP26 climate change summit. Earlier, ITV political editor Robert Peston said on Twitter that Johnson was keen for Cameron to take the job, but Cameron had not agreed because of his strong objections to a cut in Britain’s foreign aid spending commitment announced last month. “It’s not true at all,” a spokeswoman said in response to a request for comment from Reuters. “We are happy to knock it down,” she said.
A Race Against Time to Rescue a Reef From Climate Change
Saturday 5th November 2020
When Hurricane Delta hit Puerto Morelos, Mexico in October, a team known as the Brigade waited anxiously for the sea to quiet. The group, an assortment of tour guides, diving instructors, park rangers, fishermen and researchers, needed to get in the water as soon as possible. The coral reef that protects their town — an undersea forest of living limestone branches that blunted the storm’s destructive power — had taken a beating. Now it was their turn to help the reef, and they didn’t have much time. “We’re like paramedics,” said María del Carmen García Rivas, director of the national park that manages the reef and a leader of the Brigade. When broken corals roll around and get buried in the sand, they soon die. But pieces can be saved if they are fastened back onto the reef.
Contribution of life in soil ‘remains largely underestimated’, says UN agriculture agency
Friday 4th November 2020
Even though soil organisms play a crucial role in boosting food production, enhancing nutritious diets, preserving human health, and combating climate change, the real contribution of these tiny life forms remains largely underestimated, the UN agriculture agency (FAO) said on Friday.
Nearly 100,000 Californians lose power supply due to high fire risk
Thursday 3rd November 2020
A high risk of fires due to weather conditions in California prompted Sempra Energy’s San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and Edison International’s Southern California Edison to shut off power supply to close to 100,000 customers on Thursday. SDG&E said in a statement it had shut off supply to about 64,503 customers in parts of California including portions of Nestor and San Marcos, while Southern California Edison said it had cut supply to 33,164 customers. “The dynamic nature of the winds was such that we were not able to give our customers in some communities as much notice as usual,” SDG&E said.
Auditors slam EU for 'marine protected areas' that fail to protect ocean
Thursday 3rd November 2020
Europe’s marine protected areas (MPAs), set up to prevent biodiversity loss at sea, are failing to protect the oceans according to an excoriating report from auditors. Examining actions to protect marine life over the past decade, the European court of auditors raised a “red flag” warning the EU had failed to halt marine biodiversity loss in Europe’s waters and restore fishing to sustainable levels. The report concluded there had been “no meaningful signs of progress” in the Mediterranean, the most overfished sea in the world, where the report said fishing is now at twice the sustainable level.
Atlas reveals birds pushed further north amid climate crisis
Wednesday 2nd November 2020
Europe’s breeding bird populations have shifted on average one kilometre north every year for the past three decades, likely driven by the climate crisis, according to one of the world’s largest citizen science projects on biodiversity. The European Breeding Bird Atlas (Ebba2) provides the most detailed picture yet of the distribution of the continent’s birds after 120,000 volunteers and fieldworkers surveyed 11m square kilometres, from the Azores in the west to the Russian Urals in the east.
Singapore approves sale of lab-grown meat in world first
Tuesday 1st November 2020
Singapore has given US start-up Eat Just the green light to sell its lab-grown chicken meat, in what the firm says is the world’s first regulatory approval for so-called clean meat that does not come from slaughtered animals. The meat, to be sold as nuggets, will be priced at premium chicken prices when it first launches in a restaurant in Singapore “in the very near term”, co-founder and CEO Josh Tetrick said. Demand for alternatives to regular meat is surging due to concerns about health, animal welfare and the environment. Plant-based substitutes, popularized by the likes of Beyond Meat, Impossible Foods and Quorn, increasingly feature on supermarket shelves and restaurant menus.
Portuguese youngsters clear major hurdle in European climate lawsuit
Monday 30th November 2020
Six Portuguese children and young adults cleared a major legal hurdle on Monday in a climate litigation case they brought against 33 European countries, claiming government climate inaction jeopardized their futures. The applicants, aged between 8 and 21, want European governments to ramp up their efforts to curb planet-heating emissions, arguing that failure to do so threatens their well-being. The European Court of Human Rights on Monday said it would green light their climate lawsuit against countries including Germany, France, the UK and Greece. The case will now proceed to the next stage, where each defendant country will be compelled to respond to the complaint. The 33 countries have until the end of February to respond, unless a "friendly settlement" is reached before then.
Landmark inquest to rule if air pollution killed London pupil
Monday 30th November 2020
An inquest is to consider evidence that illegal levels of air pollution caused the death of a nine-year-old girl, in a landmark legal case. A coroner will be asked to rule that toxic levels of nitrogen dioxide, from the South Circular road in south London, led to the acute asthma attack that killed the primary school pupil, Ella Kissi-Debrah. Her mother, Rosamund, a former teacher, has fought for years for an inquiry into the role of air pollution from traffic in Ella’s death. A finding that air pollution was a causative factor in Ella’s death in February 2013 would make legal history. It has never been identified as a cause of death before in the UK, and this is thought to be the first case of its kind in the world.
A ‘mutant building’ in Milan is saving energy and pleasing residents
Friday 27th November 2020
From paintings and literature to music and film, the natural world is an inspiration to many. Its influence on architecture is also apparent, with a number of interesting developments now integrating plants and trees into their design. One example of this is the Bosco Verticale, or Vertical Forest, an Italian residential development of two visually striking towers that stand 80 and 112 meters high.
More than 3 billion people affected by water shortages
Thursday 26th November 2020
Water shortages are now affecting more than 3 billion people around the world, as the amount of fresh water available for each person has plunged by a fifth over two decades. About 1.5 billion people are suffering severe water scarcity or even drought, as a combination of climate breakdown, rising demand and poor management has made agriculture increasingly difficult across swathes of the globe. The UN warned on Thursday that billions of people would face hunger and widespread chronic food shortages as a result of failures to conserve water resources, and to tackle the climate crisis.
Waste not, want not: Dutch students build electric car from recycled material
Wednesday 25th November 2020
Dutch students have created a fully functioning electric car made mostly out of waste, including plastics fished out of the sea, recycled PET bottles and household garbage. The bright yellow, sporty two-seater which the students named ‘Luca’, can reach a top speed of 90 kilometres (56 miles) per hour and has a reach of 220 kilometres when fully charged, the Technical University of Eindhoven said. “This car is really special, because it’s made out of waste”, project manager Lisa van Etten said “Our chassis is made out of flax and recycled PET bottles. For the interior we also used unsorted household waste.”
In New York’s East River, a tidal power project takes shape
Tuesday 24th November 2020
Over the years, New York City’s East River has been commemorated in song, provided iconic shots for movies and even inspired the composition of poetry. From ferries taking commuters to and from work to larger ships transporting cargo, this body of water — a tidal strait that has suffered greatly from the effects of pollution over the years — can be a bustling hive of activity. For a good while now, it has also been home to a plan focused on the development of tidal power, a form of renewable energy that could have an important role to play in the years ahead.
Biden names Kerry as U.S. climate envoy, emphasizing diplomacy's role in the issue
Monday 23rd November 2020
President-elect Joe Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry as special climate envoy, his transition team said on Monday, a sign that Biden is putting the issue at the center of his foreign policy. Kerry, whose appointment does not require U.S. Senate confirmation, will have a seat on the National Security Council in the White House, the transition team said, marking the first time an official in that body will be dedicated to the climate issue.
Microplastic pollution found near summit of Mount Everest
Saturday 21st November 2020
Microplastic pollution has been discovered in snow close to the peak of Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain. With plastic debris revealed in 2018 at the deepest point on Earth, the Mariana Trench, it is now clear that humanity’s litter has polluted the entire planet. The tiny plastic fibres were found within a few hundred metres of the top of the 8,850-metre mountain, at a spot known as the balcony. Microplastics were found in all the snow samples collected from 11 locations on Everest, ranging from 5,300 metres to 8,440 metres high.
China-led shift to electric vehicles to help end 'oil era'
Friday 20th November 2020
An aggressive China-led shift to electric vehicles is expected to slash global oil demand growth by 70% by 2030 and will help bring an end to the “oil era”, according to research by the Carbon Tracker think tank published on Friday. Within 10 years, China could save more than $80 billion in annual oil import costs as new-energy vehicles (NEVs) become increasingly competitive, Carbon Tracker said. Its calculations were based on a “conservative” scenario by the International Energy Agency projecting that electric vehicles would account for 40% of China’s total car sales by 2030, and for 20% of sales in India and other emerging markets.
Blue whale sightings off South Georgia raise hopes of recovery
Thursday 19th November 2020
When the Antarctic blue whale – the largest and loudest animal on the planet – was all but wiped out by whaling 50 years ago, the waters around South Georgia fell silent. Twenty years of dedicated whale surveys from ships off the sub-Antarctic island between 1998 and 2018 resulted in only a single blue whale sighting. But a whale expedition this year and analysis by an international research team resulted in 58 blue whale sightings and numerous acoustic detections, raising hopes that the critically endangered mammal is finally recovering five decades after whaling was banned.
'Dire outlook': scientists say Florida reefs have lost nearly 98% of coral
Wednesday 18th November 2020
The United States’ coral reefs are in fair condition, according to a recent reef condition status report, but vulnerable to decline. Scientists estimate that along the coast of Florida, where degradation is most severe, perhaps as little as 2% of original coral cover remains. The report, released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (Noaa) and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science last week, assesses reefs along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, from the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico to Guam, Hawaii and American Samoa. It is the first of its kind to do so using standardized monitoring data on a national scale. Analyzing records from 2012 to 2018, researchers identify ocean warming and acidification, coral disease and fishing as ongoing threats to coral reefs, indicating a “dire outlook” for these ecosystems.
Biden Plans to Move Fast With a ‘Climate Administration.’
Tuesday 17th November 2020
President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., eager to elevate climate change issues throughout his administration, is already drafting orders to reduce planet-warming pollution and seeking nominees who will embed climate policy not only in environmental agencies but in departments from Defense to Treasury to Transportation. Top candidates for senior cabinet posts, such as Michèle Flournoy for defense secretary and Lael Brainard for Treasury, have long supported aggressive policies to curb climate change. Mr. Biden’s inner circle routinely asks “is the person climate-ambitious?” of candidates even for lower profile positions like the White House budget and regulatory offices, according to a person advising the transition.
Increase in burning of plastic 'driving up emissions from waste disposal'
Monday 16th November 2020
Carbon emissions from waste disposal are increasing because of the expansion of energy-from-waste incineration plants, a coalition of campaigners has warned. By 2030 the government’s push to increase incineration of waste will increase CO2 emissions by 10m tonnes a year, mostly from the burning of plastics, the groups said. They argue that the growth in energy-from-waste incineration means the UK will not be able to meet its commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Trump administration pushes to sell Alaska oil leases pre-Biden inauguration
Friday 13th November 2020
The Trump Administration will take key steps to finalize a sale of oil drilling leases in the sensitive Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska just before Democrat Joseph Biden, who opposes drilling there, becomes president, a government spokeswoman said on Friday. The White House will be sending out a call for nominations in coming days, according to a spokeswoman for the US Bureau of Land Management in Anchorage, Alaska. The call is a request to energy companies on what specific land areas should be offered for sale.
UK bird flu outbreaks prompt tough new restrictions on farms
Thursday 12th November 2020
Poultry keepers across England, Scotland and Wales are facing tough new lockdown-style measures on their farms to control the spread of bird flu. It follows outbreaks of a “highly pathogenic” H5N8 strain of bird flu in Cheshire, Devon, Gloucestershire and Hertfordshire over the past two weeks. The outbreaks have been found in wild bird populations and two broiler chicken farms, where all the birds are being culled. Farmers are required to restrict access for non-essential people, remove sources of wild bird food and ensure workers are regularly disinfecting footwear and changing clothes. Those found to not be complying face up to three months in prison or unlimited fines, according to the measures announced by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
EU's lending arm approves 1 trillion euro green plan
Wednesday 11th November 2020
European Union governments approved a 1 trillion euro ($1.2 trillion) green “roadmap” for the bloc’s lending arm on Wednesday that will see it stop financing fossil fuel projects and airport expansions, though climate groups said it did not go far enough. The European Investment Bank’s (EIB) “Climate Bank” plan had been in discussion since last year when it was laid out as a sign of the EU’s intent to lead on the fight against climate change. The 1 trillion euros is to be spent by 2030 on climate-, biodiversity- and sustainability-focused projects. The bank says “all financing activities” will also be aligned with the Paris climate agreement by the end of this year.
NASA Watches Sea Level Rise from Space, and its Centers' Windows
Tuesday 10th November 2020
The two-thirds of Earth covered by water may jeopardize up to two-thirds of NASA's infrastructure built a few feet adjacent to impending sea level rise. Some NASA centers and facilities are located in coastal real estate areas because the shoreline is a safer, less inhabited surrounding if something goes wrong. But now these launch pads, laboratories, airfields and testing facilities are potentially at risk because of sea level rise. As Earth’s sea levels rise, so does the potential damage expected from storms, storm surges and extreme weather events. In 2005, the costliest tropical cyclone on record at the time – Hurricane Katrina – barreled over the Gulf of Mexico, knocking out the power at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. It was matched in 2017 by Hurricane Harvey, which flooded the Sonny Carter Training Facility where astronauts train at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Protective sand dunes at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida were swept away in the winds and high tides generated by Hurricane Sandy in 2014, and then again by Hurricane Mathew in 2016.
Coronavirus kills 15,000 U.S. mink, as Denmark prepares for nationwide cull
Monday 9th November 2020
More than 15,000 animals of the mink population in the United States have died of Coronavirus since August; authorities are keeping about a dozen farms under quarantine while they investigate the cases. Global health officials are eyeing the animals as a potential risk for people after last week when Denmark embarked on a plan to eliminate all 17 million of the mink population; they added that a mutated Coronavirus strain could easily move from animals to humans and this course of action will help evade future need for new COVID-19 vaccines.
Joe Biden could bring Paris climate goals 'within striking distance'
Sunday 8th November 2020
The election of Joe Biden as President of the United States could help ensure support to reduce global heating by about 0.1C, bringing the goals of the Paris agreement “within striking distance.” Biden’s policy of a target to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, and plans for a $1.7tn investment in a green recovery from the Covid crisis, would reduce US carbon dioxide emissions in the next 30 years by about 75 gigatonnes. Calculations by the Climate Action Tracker show that this reduction would be enough to avoid a temperature rise of about 0.1C by 2100.
World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency
Saturday 7th November 2020
Scientists have a moral obligation to clearly warn humanity of any catastrophic threat and to “tell it like it is.” On the basis of this obligation and the graphical indicators presented below, we declare, with more than 11,000 scientist signatories from around the world, clearly and unequivocally that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency. Exactly 40 years ago, scientists from 50 nations met at the First World Climate Conference (in Geneva 1979) and agreed that alarming trends for climate change made it necessary to act with urgency. Since then, similar alarms have been conveyed through the 1992 Rio Summit, the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, and the 2015 Paris Agreement, as well as scores of other global assemblies and scientists’ explicit warnings of insufficient progress. Yet, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are still rapidly rising, with increasingly damaging effects on the Earth's climate systems. Large-scale endeavors are needed to conserve our biosphere and avoid the untold suffering that will continue due to the climate crisis.
Danish Covid-19 mink variant could spark new pandemic
Friday 6th November 2020
A Danish vaccine specialist has warned that a new wave of Coronavirus could be started by the Covid-19 mink variant. “The worst-case scenario is that we would start off a new pandemic in Denmark. There’s a risk that this mutated virus is so different from the others that we’d have to put new things in a vaccine and therefore [the mutation] would slam us all in the whole world back to the start,” said Prof Kåre Mølbak, vaccine expert and Director of Infectious Diseases at Denmark’s State Serum Institute (SSI). He added, however, that the world was in a better place than when the Covid-19 outbreak began.“We know the virus, have measures in place including testing and infection control, and the outbreak will be contained, to the best of our knowledge.”
Cutting Greenhouse Gases From Food Production Is Urgent
Thursday 5th November 2020
Rising greenhouse gas emissions from worldwide food production will make it extremely difficult to limit global warming to the targets set in the Paris climate agreement, even if emissions from fossil-fuel burning were halted immediately, scientists reported Thursday. But they said that meeting one of the targets, (i.e.: limiting overall warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, or about 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) could be achieved through “rapid and ambitious” changes to the global food system over the next several decades. This includes widespread plant-rich diets, increased crop yields and large-scale reduction of food waste. “If we’re trying to meet the 1.5-degree Celsius target there is no single silver bullet that is going to get us there,” said Michael Clark, a researcher at the Nuffield Department of Population Health at the University of Oxford in England and the lead author of the new research on the climate effects of global food production.
UN and partners express regret over US departure from Paris climate accord
Wednesday 4th November 2020
On Wednesday, the United States formally withdrew from the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change, the result of a decision that was originally announced three years ago. “We note with regret that the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement has formally come into effect today”, the UN body said in a joint statement issued alongside Chile, France, Italy and the United Kingdom. Under the Paris Agreement, countries pledge to take action to keep temperature rise below two degrees Celsius and limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. Asked about the US' withdrawal, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists participating in the regular press briefing in New York that “our support, our belief in the need for a strong and active Paris Agreement, remains unchanged.”
First polar bear born in UK in 25 years moved from Scotland to Yorkshire
Tueday 3rd November 2020
As parts of northern England were covered in frost, Hamish – the first polar bear to be born in the UK in 25 years – embarked on a 400-mile journey to his new home. The cub, who has shared an enclosure with his mother, Victoria, in the Scottish Highlands for the past two and a half years, was transported to Yorkshire on Wednesday. Hamish was born in December 2017 at Highland Wildlife Park, near Aviemore, and his name was chosen through a public vote.
Brazil soy farmers plant 1 million hectares per day
Monday 2nd November 2020
Brazilian farmers planted around 1 million hectares of soybeans per day over the last week to catch up on sowing delays for the new grain season, consultancy AgRural said in a report on Monday. AgRural said soybean planting in Brazil advanced in a week from 23% of the area to 42% by Oct. 29 as farmers worked the fields at a breakneck pace after long-delayed rains provided the necessary soil moisture for them to progress.
‘I lost everything’: In hurricane-ravaged Louisiana, people struggle to rebuild
Saturday 31st October 2020
Louisiana has been devastated by this season’s hurricanes. The working-class city of Lake Charles was hit especially hard by Hurricanes Laura and Delta in August and October. Some have endured weeks of frustrating haggling with bureaucracies to get insurance money and government aid. Others desperately search for help to fix wrecked properties, but endure long waits for contractors. “Everything I’ve worked for is gone,” said Tameka Nelson, who ran a daycare facility in Lake Charles that was destroyed by Hurricane Laura.
Trump's environment agency seems to be at war with the environment, say ex-officials
Friday 30th October 2020
Trump has brought public health and environment rollbacks to an EPA already in trouble – and staffers worry it isn’t equipped to keep Americans safe. Donald Trump’s environmental agency, “actually seems to have a war on the environment”, and has been “utterly untenable”, bringing about, “deeply, deeply troubling times” according to three administrators appointed under past presidents. Reflecting on Trump’s dozens of attacks on core environmental protections, a fourth put it another way: “[I’m] really god damned pissed off – and that’s being kind.”
Escaping the ‘Era of Pandemics’: Experts Warn Worse Crises to Come Options Offered to Reduce Risk
Thursday 29th October 2020
Intergovernmental Council on Pandemic Prevention; Addressing risk drivers including deforestation & wildlife trade; Tax high pandemic-risk activities. 540,000 - 850,000 unknown viruses in nature could still infect people. More frequent, deadly, and costly pandemics forecast that current economic impacts are 100 times the estimated cost of prevention. Future pandemics will emerge more often, spread more rapidly, do more damage to the world economy and kill more people than COVID-19 unless there is a transformative change in the global approach of dealing with infectious diseases, warns a major new report on biodiversity and pandemics by 22 leading experts from around the world.
As Climate Disasters Pile Up, a Radical Proposal Gains Traction
Wednesday 28th October 2020
The idea of modifying Earth’s atmosphere to cool the planet, once seen as too risky to seriously consider, is attracting new money and attention. As the effects of climate change become more devastating, prominent research institutions and government agencies are focusing new money and attention on an idea once dismissed as science fiction: Artificially cooling the planet, in the hopes of buying humanity more time to cut greenhouse gas emissions. That strategy, called solar climate intervention or solar geoengineering, entails reflecting more of the sun’s energy back into space — abruptly reducing global temperatures in a way that mimics the effects of ash clouds spewed by volcanic eruptions. The idea has been derided as a dangerous and illusory fix, one that would encourage people to keep burning fossil fuels while exposing the planet to unexpected and potentially menacing side effects.
Southern California's latest wildfires rage with little progress reported
Tuesday 27th October 2020
Firefighters in Southern California reported little headway on Tuesday against two explosive, wind-whipped wildfires that forced the evacuations of tens of thousands of residents and badly injured two crew members on the front lines. Howling Santa Ana winds and hot, dry, air from the desert, put much of the fire-ravaged state under red-flag warnings and quickly spread two blazes in Orange County that erupted on Monday. But by midday on Tuesday, winds that had accelerated the Orange County fires had settled down to 5 to 10 miles per hour (8 to 16 kph), with occasional gusts of up to 20 mph (32 kph), the National Weather Service said. Winds were forecast to weaken further and remain light for at least the next two days, it said.
UN chief encouraged by Japan’s 2050 net zero pledge
Monday 26th October 2020
“The Secretary-General is very encouraged by  Japanese  Prime Minister  Suga Yoshihide’s announcement of Japan’s commitment to get to net zero emissions by 2050, which is a very significant positive development, and hereby expresses his appreciation for Prime Minister Suga’s leadership,” said the statement released by UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric. Japan’s announcement comes two weeks after a call by Mr. Guterres for UN Member States to commit to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and to submit more ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions  (NDCs) – in which each country spells out what it will do to reduce national emissions, and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Some of the countries leading on climate change might surprise you
Saturday 24th October 2020
Iran is tackling the potential water supply crisis exacerbated by climate change. Countries that may not be thought of as climate leaders are emerging at the front-lines on responding to climate change. One great example is Iran. "I have the fortune of performing water-use research with a number of scientists in Iran. And I can assure you they are thinking about, planning, and taking action to reduce the impacts of climate change and ecological destruction."
Trump and Biden clash over climate and oil industry in final debate
Friday 23rd October 2020
Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden clashed over the country’s response to climate change in their final presidential debate on Thursday, which included a stark disagreement over the future of the oil industry. The candidates were asked at their matchup in Nashville, Tennessee, what they would do to combat climate change - the first time in a presidential debate they were not questioned on whether they believed in it or not. “I do love the environment,” said Trump, citing a federal program to plant trees and a drop in carbon emissions. But he said he was not willing to harm businesses in order to help the environment. Biden said his plan for a transition to a more climate-friendly economy would create high-paying jobs and boost US businesses. “Global warming is an existential threat to humanity,” Biden said. “We have a moral obligation to deal with it and we’re told by all the leading scientists in the world we don’t have much time.”
The Trump Administration Is Reversing Nearly 100 Environmental Rules
Thursday 22nd October 2020
Over the last four years in office, the Trump administration has dismantled major climate policies and rolled back many more rules governing clean air, water, wildlife and toxic chemicals. While other administrations have emphasized cutting regulations, calling them burdensome to industries like coal, oil and gas, the scope of actions under Mr. Trump is “fundamentally different,” said Hana V. Vizcarra, a staff attorney at Harvard Law School’s Environmental and Energy Law Program.
London the worst city in Europe for health costs from air pollution
Wednesday 21st October 2020
The health costs of air pollution from roads are higher in London than any other city in Europe, a study has found. Two other urban areas in the UK - Manchester and the West Midlands, have the 15th and 19th highest costs respectively among all 432 European cities that were analysed. The research puts a figure on the social costs of car emissions at local level at an unprecedented number of sites across 30 countries – the EU27 plus the UK, Norway and Switzerland. The costs measure the overall erosion of public welfare, defined as living a long and healthy life in a clean environment. The research quantifies the monetary value of premature death, hospital treatment, lost working days and other health costs caused by particulate matter, ozone and nitrogen dioxide. Indoor air pollution was not taken into account.
Late season wildfires rage across drought-stricken Colorado
Tuesday 20th October 2020
Colorado firefighters were struggling on Monday to get ahead of the state’s largest wildfire on record, which grew markedly over the last few days, and smoke drifted over the population corridor of the drought-stricken state. New fires continue to erupt, including an 8,800-acre blaze that ignited in the mountains above Boulder that incinerated at least 26 homes, according to the sheriff’s office. The latest figures from the US Drought Monitor showed that the entire state of Colorado was at some level of drought, and officials said this was contributing to the outbreak of wildfires.
Alaska's new climate threat: tsunamis linked to melting permafrost
Monday 19th October 2020
Scientists are warning of a link between rapid warming and landslides that could threaten towns and tourist attractions. In Alaska and other highly elevated, cold climate places around the world, new research shows that mountains are collapsing as the permafrost that holds them together thaws, threatening tsunamis if they fall into the sea. Scientists are warning that populated areas and major tourist attractions are at risk. One area of concern is a slope of the Barry Arm fjord in Alaska that overlooks a popular cruise ship route.
Amid devastating US fires, experts urge fire prevention rethink
Sunday 18th October 2020
Calls grow for state and national prescribed burn strategies to prevent repeat of huge wildfires in Western states. It is the fuel – the dry grass, the crispy leaves, the parched shrubbery and the dead trees caused by climate change’s shortened rainy season – that is making the 2020 fire season one of the worst in US history. Some 3.4 million hectares (8.3 million acres) were burned in Washington state, Oregon, California, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada and Wyoming by mid-October. In 2019, about half as much territory was burned in the western United States.
Exxon’s Plan for Surging Carbon Emissions Revealed in Leaked Documents
Friday 16th October 2020
Exxon Mobil Corp. had plans to increase annual carbon-dioxide emissions by as much as the output of the entire nation of Greece according to an analysis of internal documents reviewed by Bloomberg. This sets one of the largest corporate emitters against international efforts to slow the pace of warming. The drive to expand both fossil-fuel production and planet-warming pollution has come at a time when some of Exxon’s rivals, such as BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc, are moving to curb oil and zero-out emissions. Exxon’s own assessment of its $210 billion investment strategy shows yearly emissions rising 17% by 2025, according to internal projections.
Panera Bread becomes first national chain to label entrees as climate friendly
Thursday 15th October 2020
Panera Bread is the first national restaurant chain to label menu items as climate friendly. Sara Burnett, Panera’s Vice President of Food Values, Sustainability and Public Affairs, said that more than half of Panera’s carbon footprint comes from the food that they serve. A 2019 report from the United Nations found that the global food system accounts for 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions. A decade ago, Panera Bread became the first national restaurant chain to disclose the calorie counts of its menu items.
Heavy rains kill 12 people in India and causes damage to properties and crops
Wednesday 14th October 2020
Heavy rains have killed at least 12 people in South India and caused widespread flooding in the city of Hyderabad, home to major IT companies and startups, government officials said on Wednesday. A wall collapsed killing nine people in Hyderabad, the capital of the southern state of Telangana, while the other three were killed in separate incidents, they said. Torrential rain also battered the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh.
Firms ignoring climate crisis will go bankrupt, says Mark Carney
Tuesday 13th October 2020
Bank of England governor warns of financial collapse linked to climate emergency. Companies and industries that are not moving towards zero-carbon emissions will be punished by investors and go bankrupt, the governor of the Bank of England has warned. Mark Carney also told The Guardian it was possible that the global transition needed to tackle the climate crisis could result in an abrupt financial collapse.
Electric cars set to treble market share, but UK could run out without new rules
Monday 12th October 2020
Electric cars will treble their market share in the European market, including the UK, this year as a result of EU car CO2 targets, new analysis shows. Despite the pandemic, EV sales have surged since 1 January, just as the emissions standards kicked in, and will reach 10% this year and 15% in 2021. But Transport & Environment (T&E), which analysed sales in the first half of 2020, said the United Kingdom's supply of electric cars is likely to dry up next year in the absence of British regulations equivalent to those in Europe.
A fifth of countries worldwide at risk from ecosystem collapse as biodiversity declines
Sunday 11th October 2020
Countries across the world are reliant on a range of services that are based around their natural ecosystems. Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BES) include necessities such as food provision, water security and regulation of air quality which are vital to maintaining the health and stability of communities and economies. Over half (55%) of global GDP, equal to USD 41.7 trillion, is dependent on high-functioning biodiversity and ecosystem services. However, a staggering fifth of countries globally (20%) are at risk of their ecosystems collapsing due to a decline in biodiversity and related beneficial services, reveals a new study by Swiss Re Institute.
The Real and Imminent Extinction Risk to Whales, Dolphins And Porpoises
Saturday 10th October 2020
Established in 1985, the MRI Whale Unit is a global, African research, conservation and education facility that researches the ecology, population dynamics and behaviour of the diverse cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) in the Southern African sub-region and surrounding oceans, with the principal objective of providing knowledge that will promote conservation. A primary raison d'être of the Unit remains the development of human capacity in these areas. Research, Conservation and Education are interlinked to execute forward-looking programmes, integral for the understanding of conservation priorities for African cetaceans.
97% of UK marine protected areas subject to bottom-trawling
Friday 9th October 2020
Vessels spent 200,000 hours in 2019 bottom trawling or dredging the seabed in protected areas set up to safeguard vital ecosystems. More than 97% of British marine protected areas, created to safeguard ocean habitats, are being dredged and bottom trawled, according to data shared with the Guardian. Nearly a quarter of the United Kingdom’s territorial waters are covered by MPAs, set up to protect vital ecosystems and species, including harbour porpoises and dolphins. This network of parks is a symbol of the government’s “world leading” target to protect 30% of ocean biodiversity by 2030.
China's 2060 carbon neutral goal bill could hit over $5 trillion
Thursday 8th October 2020
China’s goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2060 would require investments of more than $5 trillion, which would include renewable power generation capacity, Wood Mackenzie said on Thursday. President Xi Jinping said at the United Nations General Assembly in September that China would achieve carbon neutrality before 2060, the first time the world’s biggest emitter of carbon dioxide has committed to ending its net contribution to climate change.
New Study Reveals Mining in the Amazon Threatens 20% of Indigenous Lands
Wednesday 7th October 2020
Legal and illegal mining on more than 1,100 Indigenous lands in the Amazon are linked to higher levels of deforestation. A new report reveals that mining operations in the Amazon basin now cover more than 20% of Indigenous lands, threatening hundreds of Indigenous communities and endangering critical ecosystems across an area of 450,000 square kilometers. This new paper from World Resources Institute and the Amazon Geo-Referenced Socio-Environmental Information Network (RAISG) details for the first time, the full extent of large-scale mining concessions and illegal mining on Indigenous territories across the Amazonian rainforest, and offers solutions.
Air pollution particles in young brains linked to Alzheimer's damage
Tuesday 6th October 2020
Tiny air pollution particles have been revealed in the brain stems of young people and are intimately associated with molecular damage linked to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. If the groundbreaking discovery is confirmed by future research, it would have worldwide implications because 90% of the global population live in areas with unsafe air quality. Medical experts are cautious about the findings and said that while the nanoparticles are a likely cause of the damage, whether this leads to disease later in life remains to be proved.
Hotter Days Widen Racial Gap in U.S. Schools
Monday 5th October 2020
Higher temperatures are linked to bad test scores, but only for Black and Hispanic children. The likely culprit: a lack of air-conditioning. Rising temperatures are widening the racial achievement gap in United States schools, new research suggests, offering the latest evidence that the burdens of climate change fall disproportionately on people of colour. Research from a paper published in the journal Nature Human Behavior, shows that students performed much worse on standardized tests for every additional day of 80 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, even after imposing control variables for other factors. Those effects held across 58 countries, suggest a fundamental link between heat exposure and reduced learning.
Many people missing in severe floods in Italy and France
Saturday 3rd October 2020
A storm hit southeastern France and northern Italy, leading to destroyed homes, broken bridges and blocked roads. Flooding from the record increase of rains in the mountainous region that spans France and Italy killed two people in Italy and left at least 24 people missing in the two countries, authorities said on Saturday. A storm which moved overnight across southeastern France, and then northern Italy caused major flooding on both sides of the border, damaging homes, destroying bridges, blocking roads and isolating communities.
Fungus May Be Fall’s Hottest Fashion Trend
Friday 2nd October 2020
A surprising group of fashion rivals including Stella McCartney and Lululemon are joining forces to back Mylo, a new mushroom leather. It may be fashion week in Paris, with showgoers in face coverings parsing runway looks from the latest designer ready-to-wear collections, but several thousand miles away from the French capital, out of the dank, dark belly of an industrial hangar, a potentially more momentous industry trend is growing. Mushroom leather might not sound stylish but Bolt Threat, a start-up that specializes in developing next-generation fibers inspired by nature, is one of a growing number of companies convinced that the material is a viable replacement — in both form and function — for animal-sourced and synthetic skins.
Energy security and economic fears drive China's return to coal
Thursday 1st October 2020
The Huaneng Group, one of five big Chinese state utilities, is building a $1.9 billion 4 gigawatt coal and power project near the city of Qingyang. The aim is to deliver electricity east of the country. The Zhengning Power Plant Project was revived in July, four years after it was paused. This power project encapsulates the competing pressures that lie behind China’s economic and climate policies. President Xi Jinping surprised the world last week by pledging China would aim for “carbon neutrality” by 2060, but Beijing remains worried about energy security, jobs and growth, especially as the economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ex-Audi chief arrives in German court to face dieselgate charges
Wednesday 30th September 2020
Rupert Stadler, former Chief Executive of Audi arrived to court in Munich on Wednesday to face fraud charges as part of Volkswagen's emissions cheating scandal, which was uncovered by United States regulators five years ago. Volkswagen and Audi were caught disguising excessive diesel pollution by using illegal engine management software to falsify emissions readings during anti-pollution tests.
Lockheed Martin ‘mishandled toxins’, causing illness: US lawsuits
Tuesday 29th September 2020
Two lawsuits filed on Monday alleged that United States-based weapons company Lockheed Martin has mishandled toxins at a Florida facility for decades, causing life-threatening health issues in workers and nearby residents. One of the lawsuits was filed on behalf residents of Tangelo Park in Orange County, Florida where the Lockheed Martin facility is located. The other was filed on behalf of 13 employees of the Golf Channel, which has headquarters near Tangelo Park, a census-designated area with a population of around 2,300 that is roughly 80 percent Black, according to Statistical Atlas.
World leaders pledge to halt Earth’s destruction ahead of UN summit
Monday 28th September 2020
World leaders have pledged to clamp down on pollution, embrace sustainable economic systems and eliminate the dumping of plastic waste in oceans by the middle of the century as part of “meaningful action” to halt the destruction of nature on Earth. Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, Justin Trudeau, Jacinda Ardern and Boris Johnson are among 64 leaders from five continents warning that humanity is in a state of planetary emergency due to the climate crisis and the rampant destruction of life-sustaining ecosystems. To restore the balance with nature, governments and the European Union have made a 10-point pledge to counteract the damage to systems that underpin human health and well-being.
Australia begins disposal of about 350 dead whales as rescue efforts end
Saturday 26th September 2020
Australian wildlife officials began disposing of hundreds of dead pilot whales on Saturday after concluding there was no longer any hope of rescuing more of them. In Australia’s biggest whale beaching, 470 whales were first spotted on a wide sandbank during an aerial reconnaissance of rugged Macquarie Harbour in Tasmania state on Monday. After days of difficult and dangerous rescue attempts, Australia said they rescued 108 whales, with the rest now believed to have died.
Trump Administration Releases Plan to Open Tongass Forest to Logging
Friday 25th September 2020
The Trump administration on Friday finalised its plan to open about nine million acres of the pristine woodlands of Alaska’s Tongass National Forest to logging and road construction. The administration’s effort to open the Tongass, the nation’s largest national forest, has been in the works for about two years, and the final steps to complete the process have been widely expected for months. The decision comes after years of prodding by successive Alaska governors and congressional delegations, which have pushed the federal government to exclude the Tongass from a Clinton-era policy known as the roadless rule, which banned logging and road construction in much of the national forest system.
Carbon capture: The tech that could make or break climate goals
Thursday 24th September 2020
A sharp rise in the deployment of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technology is needed globally if countries are to meet net-zero emissions targets designed to slow climate change, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday. A growing number of countries and companies are targeting net-zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by around the middle of the century in the wake of the 2015 Paris climate agreement.
Melting Antarctic ice will raise sea level by 2.5 metres
Wednesday 23rd September 2020
Melting of the Antarctic ice sheet will cause sea level rises of about two and a half metres around the world, even if the goals of the Paris agreement are met, research has shown. The melting is likely to take place over a long period, beyond the end of this century, but is almost certain to be irreversible, because of the way in which the ice cap is likely to melt, the new model reveals. Even if temperatures were to fall again after rising by 2C (3.6F), the temperature limit set out in the Paris agreement, the ice would not regrow to its initial state, because of self-reinforcing mechanisms that destabilise the ice.
Revolutionising the commute is key to reducing CO2 emissions
Tuesday 22nd September 2020
Revolutionising the commute is key to reducing carbon emissions, according to new research conducted by Mobilityways. Transport is the biggest source of carbon emissions in the United Kingdom and commuting accounts for 25% of these. Mobilityways, a new organisation that helps businesses achieve zero-carbon commuting has analysed travel data from 285,000 commuters across 200 major United Kingdom employers. The researchers found that 42% of commuters could walk or cycle, 46% could use public transport and 92% could share lifts.
Unexpected wildfire emission impacts air quality worldwide
Monday 21st September 2020
In laboratory studies of wildfire, nitrous acid is a minor actor, that is often underrepresented in atmospheric models. In the real-world atmosphere, during the current wildfires, the chemical plays a leading role. It has been observed to spike to levels significantly higher than scientists expected, driving increased ozone pollution and harming air quality, according to a new study led by the University of Colorado Boulder and the Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy.
Global seaweed demand growing
Saturday 19th September 2020
Seaweed is used in more than just sushi. The ocean-grown crop can be found as a food additive in almond milk or in plant-based meats. It’s even in moisturizers, fertilizers, animal feed and can be used as an alternative food source. All of this is to say global demand for seaweed is expanding. The seaweed commercial market size could surpass $85 billion by 2026, according to Global Market Insights, a research firm.
UK Environmental Public affairs summary
Friday 18th September 2020
Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee, Philip Dunne, questioned Prime Minister Boris Johnson on his net-zero plans at the latest session of the Liaison Committee. Johnson said the government would be setting out steps to get to net-zero by 2050 and this would be via a ‘panoply of measures.’ The government has announced £40 million in grants for new nature projects helping to support the green recovery. The DfT has announced £1 million in funding for transport start-ups with a focus on decarbonisation.
Greta Thunberg to Congress: ‘You’re not trying hard enough. Sorry’
Thursday 17th September 2020
Greta Thunberg was one of several people who spoke at a Senate climate crisis taskforce. At a meeting of the Senate climate crisis task force on Tuesday, lawmakers praised a group of young activists for their leadership, their gumption, and their display of wisdom far beyond their years. They asked the teens for advice on how Congress might combat one of the most urgent and politically contentious threats confronting world leaders: climate change.
Fire crews battle wildfires on U.S. West Coast as smoke travels the world
Wednesday 16th September 2020
Fire crews continue to battle deadly wildfires sweeping the western region of the United States. Thousands of evacuees in Oregon and other states are facing a daily struggle to attain resources and safe shelter. Scientists in Europe have tracked the smoke from the West Coast (USA) as it spreads on an intercontinental scale. “The fact that these fires are emitting so much pollution into the atmosphere that we can still see thick smoke over 8,000 kilometers (4,970 miles) away reflects just how devastating they have been in their magnitude and duration,” CAMS (European Union’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) Senior Scientist Mark Parrington said in a statement.
Facebook and Google announce plans to become carbon neutral
Tuesday 15th September 2020
Facebook and Google are becoming "carbon neutral" businesses, alongside competitors Apple and Microsoft who are committed to no excess carbon into the atmosphere. “Over the next decade, Facebook will work to reduce carbon emissions from our operations and value chain,” the company said in a blogpost, “by working with suppliers on their own goals, helping the development of new carbon removal technologies and making our facilities as efficient as possible.”
UN-backed label launched to help shoppers choose environmentally friendly rice
Monday 14th September 2020
A new ecolabel launched today from the Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP) which will help shoppers reduce their environmental impact by identifying rice that has been sustainably produced. The SRP – a group of over 100 public, private, research, financial institutions and civil society organizations led by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)– has developed the “SRP-Verified” Label to reduce the environmental impact of one of the largest food crops in the world.
US prepares for rising death toll in West Coast wildfires
Saturday 12th September 2020
"We're preparing for a mass fatality incident based on what we know and the number of structures that have been lost," warned Andrew Phelps, Director of the Office of Emergency Management in Oregon, on Friday. "We anticipate that number (of deaths) may potentially go up as we get back into areas that have been ravaged by flame and obviously, smoke begins to clear," said California governor Gavin Newsom, as he visited a scorched forest near the raging North Complex Fire.
Stephen Fry and Former Archbishop defend Extinction Rebellion against UK’s ‘organised crime group’ classification
Friday 11th September 2020
Stephen Fry, Mark Rylance and a former Archbishop of Canterbury are among 150 public figures to hit back at government moves to classify the climate protesters of Extinction Rebellion as an “organised crime group.” In a letter to be published in the Observer on Sunday, XR is described as “a group of people who are holding the powerful to account” – who should not become targets of “vitriol and anti-democratic posturing.”
Living Planet Report 2020
Thursday 10th September 2020
The global Living Planet Index continues to decline. It shows an average 68% decrease in population sizes of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish between 1970 and 2016. A 94% decline in the LPI for the tropical subregions of the Americas is the largest fall observed in any part of the world.
Climate crisis adding to stresses on endangered sea turtles in Cyprus
Wednesday 9th September 2020
"This year is a little bit of a strange year, because of the climatic changes we see very, very strange weather," said marine biologist Myroula Hadjichristoforou, in charge of the Cyprus Fisheries Department's marine turtles protection programme. "We had very, very extreme climatic phenomena, a lot of strong winds, big waves covering the beaches, and I think we lost a lot of nests."
Ecological Threat Register 2020
Tuesday 8th September 2020
Approximately one billion people live in countries that do not have the resilience to deal with the ecological changes they are expected to face between now and 2050 which could lead to mass displacement. Results showed that 141 countries are exposed to at least one ecological threat. The 19 countries with the highest number of threats have a population of 2.1 billion people. These countries face four to six ecological threats and more than half are among the 40 least peaceful nations. Ecological threats in many cases lead to humanitarian emergencies.
Gender-Reveal Party responsible for some Californian Wildfires
Monday 7th September 2020
An extravagant plan to reveal a baby’s gender went terribly wrong when a “smoke-generating pyrotechnic device” ignited a wildfire that has been responsible for the loss of approximately 7,300 acres of woodland as well as leading to many people being evacuated from their homes in east of Los Angeles. The device ignited four-foot-tall grass at El Dorado Ranch Park on Saturday morning, and efforts to douse the flames with water bottles proved fruitless, Capt. Bennet Milloy of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said Monday.
Ecological disaster looms as two swollen lakes threaten to merge
Saturday 5th September 2020
Lake Baringo, located in Kenya, is home to an abundance of birds, fish, hippopotamuses and crocodiles, and provides freshwater for tens of thousands of people. The Baringo, which irrigates land and provides drinking water, has expanded by 270 square km in the last 7 years. The neighbouring alkaline Lake Bogoria has also swollen by a quarter to 43 square km. Now heavy rainfall is bringing on the threat of an ecological destruction.
Sebastian Vettel says Formula 1 must do more for the environment
Friday 4th September 2020
"There are some big questions to be answered to make sure this sport is still around in years to come. F1 is held around the globe every year and in many different countries and as a global sport we should act responsibly," the four-time champion said. "F1 should be setting examples rather than reacting to pressure from the outside. When it comes to the environment, we are burning fuel which is a very small amount of the total carbon footprint but still we need to start acting more and more setting the right example, not just on carbon footprint, but on other things. Small things - but I do think every little bit makes a difference - the amount of plastic bottles we consume during the weekends there are solutions to that, how we power some panels in the paddock, there are solutions to that."
UK organic food and drink sales rocket during global pandemic lockdown
Thursday 3rd September 2020
Data from the market research company Nielsen shows organic food and drink sales grew by 6.1%; this is almost double the 3.2% growth of non-organic food and drink products in the year ending May 2020. Louisa Pharoah of the Soil Association said, “Organic farming is a whole system approach that nurtures the soil, biodiversity and our whole planet. The Covid-19 pandemic has meant that more people appreciate where food comes from, and with the increased interest in growing veg in our gardens and home baking, there's never been a better time to talk to people about the benefits of organic farming.”
Death toll rises to 22 for elephants in Zimbabwe
Wednesday 2nd September 2020
Zimparks spokesman, Tinashe Farawo, said the latest elephant carcasses were mostly young with the oldest being 18 years old. “We suspect it is the same causes as the first group and we are also looking at taking samples to other independent laboratories so that we can broaden our investigations,” said Farawo.
Nearly 30,000 tonnes of sewage sludge containing human waste to enter UK
Tuesday 1st September 2020
Sewage sludge containing human waste in the Netherlands has been imported to the UK to be used as fertiliser for farms, despite concerns over the safety of its use. Spreading the sludge on farmland is banned in the Netherlands, where incineration is preferred but allowed in the UK. Dutch water authorities are eyeing the UK as a possible destination for their sewage, after problems at an Amsterdam incineration company left them lacking disposal options.
U.S. EPA weakens limits on waste water from coal plants
Monday 31st August 2020
On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) retracted rules placed by the Obama administration to limit levels of toxic materials in waste water released from coal plants. This is the latest action to degrade environmental regulations for the coal industry by the Trump administration as President Trump's first term winds down.
Heavy monsoon rains lead to record breaking summer crops
Saturday 29th August 2020
Heavy monsoon rains spurred Indian farmers to plant summer crops across a record swathe of farmland, 7% bigger than last year. This has ensured a promising bumper harvest in Asia’s third-biggest economy despite the rapid spread of Coronavirus. Farm ministry data shows that growers sowed 108.2 million hectares (267.4 million acres) of crops such as rice, corn, cotton, soybeans and sugarcane.
Rampant destruction of forests ‘will unleash more pandemics’
Friday 28th August 2020
“There are now a whole raft of activities – illegal logging, clearing and mining – with associated international trades in bushmeat and exotic pets that have created this crisis,” said Stuart Pimm, Professor of Conservation at Duke University. “In the case of Covid-19, it has cost the world trillions of dollars and already killed almost a million people, so clearly urgent action is needed.”
Ancient redwood trees have adapted to survive forest fires, but how will they hold up to climate change?
Thursday 27th August 2020
Many people feared that California's ancient redwood forests would be in danger as recent wildfires spread across California. These thousand-year-old trees tower to 100 metres (about 330 feet) and are among the tallest living things on Earth. Giant sequoias have evolved to thrive on forest fires. The heat from the fires opens up seed cones, and as the flames clear the forest floor of deadwood and brush, nutrient-rich ash allows seedlings to flourish. The full impact of climate change and long term forest fires are still being understood.
Plans to drill for oil in untouched Arctic area
Wednesday 26th August 2020
Ilan Kelman, Professor of Risk, Resilience, and Global Health at UCL and Agder University, says there is no such thing as a "safe" oil excavation in Arctic conditions. “Irrespective of changes in the environment, the Arctic is a very harsh place. A lot can go wrong, and when something goes wrong … it can cause extensive damage for a long time,” he said.
Indian monsoon 24% above average in August
Tuesday 25th August 2020
Monsoon rains, which have picked up pace in August, are predicted to remain heavy for the rest of the month. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) recognised that there is a potential for positive benefits to summer crops like rice, corn and cotton. “There’s no doubt that the quantity of rains has been excellent, but the other important feature of this year’s monsoon is that the rainfall has been very well distributed across the country,” Mohapatra said. “And that augurs well for our agricultural output this year.”
Firefighters, military planes, troops arrive in California to fight massive blazes
Monday 24th August 2020
Reinforcement teams and fire engines have arrived in California from other states like Arizona, Montana, Nevada, Texas and Utah, and more are on their way. Some 200 members of the National Guard have been called and the US military also sent planes. “Extreme fire behavior with short and long range spotting are continuing to challenge firefighting efforts. Fires continue to make runs in multiple directions and impacting multiple communities,” the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
California seeks help as wildfires spread uncontrollably and threaten communities
Saturday 22nd August 2020
Approximately two dozen massive wildfires continued to spread through parts of California on Saturday; these fires resulted from high temperatures and ongoing lightning strikes (including the 100 that hit on Friday). The fires have already killed six people and incinerated nearly 700 buildings since they made their start during the lightning storm last week. The fiery blazes have burned nearly one million acres of land.
WFD warning letter submitted: "The future of our freshwater environment"
Friday 21st August 2020
The letter reads: "In light of growing public concern about water pollution, over-abstraction of sensitive rivers and streams, and serious ongoing shortcomings in water quality, any weakening of Water Framework Standards would be a backward step. At the heart of the Directive is the principle that the water environment is a system, and all parts of that system need to be in good working order for it to operate effectively. That principle remains true and the clarity of the 'one out all out' rule should not be abandoned."
Fossil leaves show high atmospheric carbon spurred ancient 'global greening'
Thursday 20th August 2020
Scientists studying leaves from a 23-million-year-old forest have, for the first time, linked high levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide with increased plant growth and the hot climate at that time. The finding helps us understand how increases to CO2 emissions causes increased heating to the earth. The dynamics of plant life could shift within decades if CO2 levels closely mirror those of the distant past. This might seem like good news but the reality is more complex. Increased CO2 absorption will not come close to compensating for what humans are pouring into the air. Not all plants can take advantage of these circumstances, and among those that do, the results can vary depending on temperature and availability of water or nutrients.
UK to introduce legally binding environmental targets before October 2022
Wednesday 19th August 2020
The Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) confirmed that it is developing time-bound, numerical targets aimed at tackling an array of environmental issues. The issues relate to air quality, waste reduction, biodiversity and cleaner water as part of efforts to combat climate change and improve the environment; this initiative would also help rebuild the economy in a post-Coronavirus society.
Tiny Elephant Shrew species rediscovered in the Horn of Africa
Tuesday 18th August 2020
A mouse-sized elephant shrew that had been lost to science since 1968 has been discovered alive and well this year, in the Horn of Africa. The Somali sengi mates for life, can reach speeds of 30km/h and sucks up ants with its trunk-like nose. In 2019 scientists set out to search for the animal following tips from the region. “It was amazing,” said Steven Heritage, a research scientist at Duke University. “When we opened the first trap and saw the little tuft of hair on the tip of its tail, we just looked at one another and couldn’t believe it. A number of small mammal surveys since the 1970s did not find the Somali sengi in Djibouti – it was serendipitous that it happened so quickly for us.”
Trump administration in Alaska National Wildlife Refuge
Monday 17th August 2020
On Monday, the Trump administration finalised a plan to allow oil and gas drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. This has permanently changed the course of Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by devaluing a natural asset and undermining decade-long leases in the pristine wilderness area. This move has come with intense criticism.
Microplastic particles now discoverable in human organs
Sunday 16th August 2020
Microplastic and nanoplastic particles have polluted our entire planet. Our understanding of the impacts of these plastics on human health and the environment are widely understood to be negative however the full extent is still unknown. The pollution of the plastics extends over the entire planet, from Arctic snow and Alpine soils to the deepest oceans. Humans are known to consume microplastics through food, inhalation and water, but the potential impact on human health is not yet known. Plastics are now discoverable in human organs thanks to the introduction of a new process.
India sends aid to help Mauritius deal with oil spill
Saturday 15th August 2020
A Japanese bulk carrier struck a coral reef off the Indian Ocean island nation on July 25, spilling about 1,000 tonnes of fuel oil and triggering a state of environmental emergency. India has sent technical equipment and a team of specialists to Mauritius to help local authorities deal with the environmental crisis resulting from the oil spill.
Sea otters have surprising impacts on Californian estuary
Friday 14th August 2020
Brent Hughes started studying the seagrass beds of an estuary called Elkhorn Slough in Monterey Bay on California’s central coast. In this highly polluted estuary, excessive nutrients from agricultural runoff spur the growth of algae on seagrass leaves, which kill the plants. Yet in 2010, Hughes noticed that the seagrass beds were thriving. It did not make sense. “This is the highest nutrient concentration that I had ever seen on the planet,” says Hughes, Biologist at Sonoma State University. “Any model would suggest there should be no seagrass there and yet it was expanding.”
Researchers make breakthrough in new catalyst for reduction of carbon dioxide
Thursday 13th August 2020
"The reduction of carbon dioxide is beneficial for a clean environment and sustainable development," said Feng, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering. "In contrast to traditional CO2 reduction that uses chemical methods at high temperatures with a high demand of extra energy, electrochemical CO2 reduction reactions can be performed at room temperature using liquid solution. And the electricity required for electrochemical CO2 reduction can be obtained from renewable energy sources such as solar power, thus enabling completely green processes."
Global warming makes tropical soils leak carbon dioxide
Wednesday 12th August 2020
"Carbon held in tropical soils is more sensitive to warming than previously recognized," lead author Andrew Nottingham, a researcher at the University of Edinburgh's School of Geosciences, told AFP. "Even a small increase in respiration from tropical forest soils could have a large effect on atmospheric CO2 concentrations, with consequences for global climate."
