Tuesday, June 18, 2019

The women leading Asia’s zero-waste movement

China, Indonesia and Vietnam are amoung the worst ocean plastic polluters in the world, according to a 2015 Ocean Conservancy report.
But it's not just their own waste they are swamped with. At its height in January 2017, the UK was exporting 28,000 tonnes of waste to China in just one month alone. Following China's import ban, this fell to close to zero, leaving the UK scrambling for a new destination for its waste.
As images of plastic-choked rivers in Indonesia and dead whales washed onto the shores of the Philippines circulate on social media, individuals in Asia have begun practising a zero-waste lifestyle.
Amongst them are three inspiring women championing zero-waste in China, Indonesia and Vietnam. They spoke to the BBC about their quick tips on how to reduce our impact on the planet.
The women leading Asia’s zero-waste movement

Monday, June 17, 2019

Nature On The Eve Of Destruction -- The UN Extinction Report

One million species are close to extinction, thanks to Homo sapiens.
Thus warns a landmark new report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), presented at the 7th session of the IPBES Plenary meeting earlier this month in Paris.
Sir Robert Watson, Chair of the IPBES, said, “The health of ecosystems on which we and all other species depend is deteriorating more rapidly than ever. We are eroding the very foundations of our economies, livelihoods, food security, health and quality of life worldwide.”

Smokestacks and Garbage. It is no wonder that nature can’t compete in this wasteland of humanity. Bangladesh. See https://populationspeakout.org. M.R.HASASN
The Report highlights the urgency of global decarbonization and the need to increase nuclear power along with all other non-fossil energy sources. But while global warming will have a multiplier effect, this rapid decline in species is not just the result of climate change, but of humans all on their own.
Continue reading at: Nature On The Eve Of Destruction -- The UN Extinction Report

Germany to support EU climate neutrality by 2050 – leaked documents

Germany will join a growing group of EU countries to support the pledge to aim for carbon neutrality by 2050, increasing the likelihood EU leaders will agree to the goal at a meeting this week (20-21 June), several media outlets report. Documents show that Germany has thrown its weight behind an EU-wide target to cut net carbon dioxide emissions to zero by mid-century, after having resisted such calls by several neighbouring countries, including France, for months. Angela Merkel’s spokesperson Steffen Seibert largely confirmed the media reports. [Update adds Seibert's statement.]
Photo shows German chancellor Angela Merkel at press conference after European Council summit in March 2019. Photo: European Union 2019.
Continue reading at: Germany to support EU climate neutrality by 2050 – leaked documents

Sunday, June 16, 2019

Montana Judge Stops Mining at Yellowstone’s Doorstep

Thanks to Earthjustice litigation, a proposal for a giant gold mining project near Yellowstone National Park is now entirely off the table.
As people across the country prep for their summer vacations, residents and businesses in Paradise Valley, the northern gateway to Yellowstone National Park, are gearing up to greet them.
A Montana district court blocked an access road for drilling rigs and heavy equipment from tearing up this landscape.
A Montana district court blocked an access road for drilling rigs and heavy equipment from tearing up this landscape. PHOTO COURTESY OF WILLIAM CAMPBELL
A destination in and of itself, Paradise Valley offers the full array of the Yellowstone region’s iconic wildlife and magnificent landscapes. With a lot riding on the tourist season, one thing the locals shouldn’t have to worry about is a massive new gold mine driving away tourists.
Continue reading at: Montana Judge Stops Mining at Yellowstone’s Doorstep

This remarkable Greenland photo highlights extreme Arctic melting

The melting Arctic is on dramatic display.
At mid-June, Arctic sea ice is now at a record low for this time of year, and melted ice is especially notable both in and around Greenland — home to the second largest ice sheet on the planet. Steffen Olsen, a climate researcher at the Danish Meteorological Institute, snapped a photo on Thursday of Greenland sea ice that had melted into a large lake of aqua water, pooled atop the icy surface.
A big melting event in Greenland.
A big melting event in Greenland. IMAGE: STEFFEN M. OLSEN
Olsen, along with local hunters, had to sled across the flooded ice to retrieve vulnerable weather and ocean monitoring equipment. Their sled dogs splashed through the icy water.
Continue reading at: This remarkable Greenland photo highlights extreme Arctic melting

EDF consortium wins 600 MW Dunkirk offshore wind project - ET EnergyWorld

Interesting, Enbridge is diversifying into renewables. Maybe we can pursue them to drop tar sands and pipeline?

EDF's bid in partnership with Germany's Innogy and Canada's Enbridge beat rivals including utility Engie in partnership with Portugal's EDPR and energy group Total in partnership with Denmark's Orsted.
PARIS: A consortium led by French state-owned utility EDF has won a contract for a major 600 megawatt (MW) offshore wind project near Dunkirk in western France, Environment Minister Francois de Rugy said on Friday.
EDF's bid in partnership with Germany's Innogy and Canada's Enbridge beat rivals including utility Engie in partnership with Portugal's EDPR and energy group Total in partnership with Denmark's Orsted
De Rugy said nine international energy and industrial companies had shown an interest in the project and that seven had made a bid.
"EDF has been chosen," de Rudy said in Saint Nazaire, western France, where he was launching a separate EDF offshore wind project.
Image result for offshore wind project
Rhyl Flats Offshore Wind Farm © Copyright David Dixon and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
The ministry said the tariff proposed by the winning consortium was significantly lower than 50 euros per megawatt hour (MWh). That compares with 63 euros/MWh for an onshore wind tender of around 516 MW that was awarded by the government on Wednesday.

Friday, June 14, 2019

Permafrost is thawing rapidly. How much should we worry? » Yale Climate Connections

Scientists warn of consequences to infrastructure, the economy, and the climate.

The change is visible from space. In the Earth’s high latitudes, new lakes and ponds are appearing in once-dry areas. These so-called “thermokarst” lakes form when underground ice collapses as permafrost warms. In the freshly formed lakes, the greenhouse gas methane is bubbling to the surface and escaping to the atmosphere, where it will make human-caused climate change even worse.

Permafrost lakes

“I’m very concerned about the state of permafrost ecosystems,” says Ben Abbott, an assistant professor of ecosystem ecology at Brigham Young University. He and other scientists interviewed in this month’s “This is Not Cool” video, by independent videographer Peter Sinclair, warn that thawing permafrost will have cascading impacts on ecosystems and local infrastructure, which is buckling as it shifts on formerly sturdy ground.

Permafrost is thawing rapidly. How much should we worry? » Yale Climate Connections