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COP25: Quebec aiming to finish forestry protocol, post-2023 allocation methodology next year
COP25 climate summit: put children at heart of tackling crisis, says UN
Young activists including Greta Thunberg put pressure on negotiators to break deadlock
Children and young people must be at the heart of dealing with the climate crisis, the UN and campaigners have said as climate talks in Madrid enter their second week with little concrete progress.
Young people, including Greta Thunberg, played a leading role in protests at COP25 over the weekend, and on Monday appeared at the conference to put pressure on negotiators to come up with a plan for reducing greenhouse gases and tackling the impacts of climate breakdown.
Continue reading...Scottish wildlife at risk after £100m funding cut, say charities
Analysis shows ‘staggering’ 40% reduction in government spending in a decade
Public funding for environment bodies in Scotland has plummeted by 40% in a decade, placing already declining wildlife at risk, according to analysis of government budgets.
Scottish Environment Link, a coalition of more than 35 wildlife, environment and countryside charities, including the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, WWF and the Scottish Wildlife Trust, estimates almost £100m has been slashed from the budgets of public agencies in Scotland between 2010-11 and 2019-20.
Continue reading...1.9 billion people at risk from water supply problems, study shows
Rising demand and climate crisis threaten entire mountain ecosystem, say scientists
A quarter of the world’s population are at risk of water supply problems as mountain glaciers, snow-packs and alpine lakes are run down by global heating and rising demand, according to an international study.
The first inventory of high-altitude sources finds the Indus is the most important and vulnerable “water tower” due to run-off from the Karakoram, Hindu Kush, Ladakh, and Himalayan mountain ranges, which flow downstream to a densely populated and intensively irrigated basin in Pakistan, India, China and Afghanistan.
Continue reading...Climate change: 1.9 billion people rely on natural 'water towers'
Seduced and abandoned: tourism and climate change in the Alps
Rising temperatures have contributed to the decline of hundreds of ski resorts on Italian slopes
Deserted ski lifts and ruined hotels are some of the relics of a tourist industry that first seduced and then abandoned the Alps, along with cement, steel cables, paved car parks and deforested slopes.
From Piedmont to Friuli, there are hundreds of abandoned ski resorts in Italy. Researchers counted 186 in 2011, a number that is likely to have grown since.
Continue reading...COP25 climate summit: what happened during the first week?
Activists were left frustrated by the lack of urgency inside negotiating rooms in Madrid
What happened in week one?
The COP25 climate talks in Madrid may have officially opened on Monday 2 December, but they only really started on Friday evening. That was when Greta Thunberg arrived to join a 500,000-strong march through the centre of Madrid, demanding that world leaders listen.
Continue reading...COP25: Roundup for Dec. 9
Germany confirms it will cancel EU carbon allowances to offset coal phaseout
All eyes on Madrid, but they should be on China’s next 5-year energy plan
The climate talks in Madrid simply highlight how important China’s next electricity plan is for the world, for China and for Australia.
The post All eyes on Madrid, but they should be on China’s next 5-year energy plan appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Extinction Rebellion stages air pollution protest in London
Demonstrators wearing gas masks glue hands to breeze blocks outside tube station
Climate change activists wearing gas masks have blocked a central London road to demand the next government tackles “deadly levels of air pollution” in the capital.
Six Extinction Rebellion protesters dressed in hi-vis suits glued their hands to yellow breeze blocks in the middle of Cranbourn Street, outside Leicester Square tube station.
Continue reading...Northeast US transport carbon market jurisdictions eye draft MOU release this week –sources
European shipping emissions in way of nations meeting Paris climate targets
New report says greenhouse gas emissions equal carbon footprint of a quarter of passenger cars in Europe
Greenhouse gas emissions from shipping equal the carbon footprint of a quarter of passenger cars in Europe and stand in the way of countries meeting the Paris agreement, new analysis reveals.
Despite the scale of shipping emissions from both container and cruise ships in Europe, they are not part of European emissions reduction targets.
Continue reading...Boom in seahorse poaching spells bust for Italy’s coastal habitats
Ocean species endangered as black market trade devastates marine life across Puglia region
Every night, dozens of wooden boats loaded with fishing equipment pass under the Punta Penna bridge and into the protected waters of the Mar Piccolo, a unique saltwater lagoon in the southern Italian port city of Taranto.
Trawling nets, cage traps and even homemade bombs are deployed into the moonlit waters by those in search of lucrative prey. “It’s like my father picking lemons and making limoncello at home,” says Luciano Manna, a local activist who has been monitoring the illegal activity for five years. “It’s too easy.”
Continue reading...Avocados with edible coating to go on sale in Europe for first time
US technology allows fruits to stay ripe for twice as long and reduces plastic packaging
Avocados that stay ripe for twice as long as usual thanks to an edible coating on their skin made from plant materials will go on sale in Europe for the first time this week.
Large supermarket chains in Germany and Denmark will stock the fruit, which is treated with a tasteless coating that has the potential to reduce fresh fruit and vegetable waste throughout the supply chain and cut the use of plastic packaging.
Continue reading...NSW coastal towns face anxious wait for rain as water supplies dwindle
Water minister Melinda Pavey says imminent ‘day zero’ dates would apply only if there was no rain and no water restrictions
Coastal towns in New South Wales face serious water supply constraints if summer rains fail to materialise, with some potentially running out by January.
But the water minister, Melinda Pavey, urged people not to abandon their holiday plans, saying the new list of “day zero” dates for NSW towns was a worst-case scenario based on how long water supplies would last with no inflows and without water restrictions.
Continue reading...NT sacks energy chiefs after report into Alice Springs system black
The two most senior energy bosses in Northern Territory sacked after report into Alice Springs "system black" identified major cultural and system problems.
The post NT sacks energy chiefs after report into Alice Springs system black appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Taylor greeted in Madrid by more than 100 countries opposing carbon accounting dodge
Australian climate negotiators will be forced to defend the Morrison government's questionable accounting fudge as countries move to block Kyoto carryover.
The post Taylor greeted in Madrid by more than 100 countries opposing carbon accounting dodge appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Oil giant BP increases stake in solar developer Lightsource
British oil and gas supermajor increases stake in solar developer Lightsource BP to fast-track plans to develop 10GW of renewable energy assets by end 2023.
The post Oil giant BP increases stake in solar developer Lightsource appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Danish wind and solar projects edge closer to subsidy-free
Seven projects with combined wind, solar capacity of 271MW awarded at average cost of $A3.33/MWh – prices so low they accounted for only 61% of the tender’s allocated budget.
The post Danish wind and solar projects edge closer to subsidy-free appeared first on RenewEconomy.
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