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Tag: Pollution

  • Reliable planning tool for the emissions path to achieving the Paris temperature goal

    Reliable planning tool for the emissions path to achieving the Paris temperature goal

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    Newswise — The central aim of the Paris climate agreement is clear: Limiting man-made global warming to well below 2°C. This limit requires a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions to net zero. But what do the intermediate stages look like? How big should the reduction in emissions be within the next five, ten, or fifteen years? And which emissions path is being followed? There is no consensus on these issues between countries, which complicates the active implementation of the Paris Agreement.

    Researchers at the University of Bern have now developed a new method to determine the necessary reduction in emissions on a continuous basis. The main idea: Instead of complex climate models and scenarios, the observed relationship between warming and emissions is applied, and the reduction path is adapted repeatedly according to the latest observations. This new approach has just been published in the journal Nature Climate Change.

    A new calculation method for the emission reduction path

    To date, climate models have been used to calculate possible emissions pathways to the net zero goal. These pathways are based on scenarios including economic and social developments. “These calculations for the emission paths are subject to large uncertainties. This makes the decision-making more difficult and might be one reason why the promised reductions made by the 194 signatory countries to the Paris Agreement remain insufficient,” says lead author Jens Terhaar, explaining the background to the study. Like most of the other authors, Terhaar is a member of the Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research at the University of Bern.

    “Since the climate agreement actually aims at regulating temperature, we thought to specify an optimal emissions reduction path for this purpose which is independent of model-based projections,” continues Terhaar. According to this initial idea, a calculation method has emerged which is based exclusively on observation data: on the one hand, global surface temperatures in the past, and on the other hand, CO2 emissions statistics.

    The Paris Agreement calls for a stocktake of the necessary reductions in global emissions every five years. “The new Bern calculation method is ideally suited to support the stocktake mechanism of the Paris Agreement, as it enables the emission reductions to be recalculated regularly on an adaptive basis,” explains co-author Fortunat Joos of the Oeschger Center. For this purpose, a new algorithm has been developed which is known as the AERA (adaptive emissions reduction approach). In simple terms, the algorithm correlates CO2 emissions with rising temperatures, and is adjusted using a control mechanism. In this way, the current uncertainties in the interaction between these variables can be put aside.

    “Our adaptive approach circumvents the uncertainties, so to speak,” explains Fortunat Joos. “In the same way that a thermostat continuously adjusts the heating to the required room temperature, our algorithm adjusts the emission reductions according to the latest temperature and emissions data. This will allow us to approach a temperature goal, such as the 2°C goal, step-by-step and with specific interim goals.”

    Stronger emissions goals and effective implementation

    “The AERA method already confirms that international climate policy must be far more ambitious,” demands Terhaar. According to the Bern study, to achieve the 2°C goal, global CO2 emissions would have to fall by 7 percent between 2020 and 2025. They actually increased by approximately 1 percent in 2021 in comparison with 2020, though. According to the algorithm, limiting global warming to 1.5°C would require as much as a 27 percent reduction by 2025. “We need far stricter emissions goals than those to which nations have committed,” explains Thomas Frölicher, co-author of the study from the Oeschger Center, “and above all else, effective implementation of the goals.”

    The Researchers in Bern hope that the new calculation method will succeed in finding its way into international climate policy. “The AERA algorithm is already attracting a lot of interest in the climate research community, as it can also be applied to climate modelling,” explains Jens Terhaar. Until now, climate models with prescribed greenhouse gas concentrations have been used. This meant that at the end of the 21st century, the warming for a specific greenhouse gas concentration was very uncertain. When using the climate models with the AERA, however, emissions are continuously adjusted according to the calculated temperature and the intended temperature goal. On this basis, the model temperature is eventually stabilised at the intended level and all the models simulate the same warming, but with different emission pathways. “The AERA enables us to study impacts such as heat waves or ocean acidification for different temperature goals – such as 1.5°C versus 2°C versus 3°C – on a consistent basis and with state-of-the-art models,” explains Terhaar.

    Worldwide, 11 research groups have already started to apply the algorithm under the leadership of the University of Bern in order to study such impacts.

    Information about the publication:

    Jens Terhaar, Thomas L. Frölicher, Mathias T. Aschwanden, Pierre Friedlingstein, Fortunat Joos. Adaptive emission reduction approach to reach any global warming target, Nature Climate Change

    DOI: 10.1038/s41558-022-01537-9

    Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research

    The Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research (OCCR) is one of the strategic centers of the University of Bern. It brings together researchers from 14 institutes and four faculties. The OCCR conducts interdisciplinary research at the cutting edge of climate change research. The Oeschger Center was founded in 2007 and bears the name of Hans Oeschger (1927-1998), a pioneer of modern climate research, who worked in Bern.

    Further information: www.oeschger.unibe.ch

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  • Los Angeles City Council votes to ban oil and gas drilling

    Los Angeles City Council votes to ban oil and gas drilling

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    The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously on Friday to ban drilling of new oil and gas wells and phase out existing ones over the next 20 years.

    The vote comes after more than a decade of complaints from city residents that pollution drifting from wells was affecting their health. Los Angeles was once a booming oil town, but many of its oilfields are now played out.

    “Hundreds of thousands of Angelenos have had to raise their kids, go to work, prepare their meals (and) go to neighborhood parks in the shadows of oil and gas production,” said Los Angeles City Council president Paul Krekorian, one of the councilmembers who introduced this measure. “The time has come …. when we end oil and gas production in the city of Los Angeles.”

    Two engineers with Yorke Engineering, a California-based company that does air quality and environmental compliance review, spoke in opposition to the ordinance. They said a ban and phase out will have a negative effect because oil and gas operators will abandon wells. They said this is being underestimated by the city. If they walk away, that will mean increased air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, they said.

    But Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer said these claims are “not credible,” citing a review by Impact Sciences, another California-based firm that performed an environmental analysis of the ordinance for the city.

    A document prepared by the Los Angeles city controller’s office in 2018 said there were 780 active and 287 idle wells within city boundaries. An idle well is one that is not operating, but neither has it been permanently sealed, so it could be brought back into production.

    Many more well lie just outside the city limits, in Carson, Inglewood and Long Beach. Long Beach is the home of a good part of the extremely prolific Wilmington oil field, which yielded more than 10 million barrels of crude oil in 2019, according to state records.

    There is research on the possible effect of pollution emanating from some of the city’s existing oil and gas wells.

    Researchers from the University of Southern California found in a study in 2021 that people living near wells in two Los Angeles neighborhoods — University Park and Jefferson Park — reported significantly higher rates of wheezing, eye and nose irritation, sore throat and dizziness than neighbors living farther away. Both of those communities are predominantly non-white with large Black and Latino communities, according to the U.S. Census.

    The push to ban drilling in the City of Los Angeles is part of a region-wide effort to shut down oil and gas extraction through the County of Los Angeles, with similar measures covering Culver City and unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County passed in 2021.

    “In Los Angeles, we sit on the largest urban oil deposit in the world,” said councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson ahead of the vote. “So if Los Angeles can do it, cities around the world can do it.”

    ———

    Follow Drew Costley on Twitter: @drewcostley.

    ———

    The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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  • Utility recommends natural gas plant despite objections

    Utility recommends natural gas plant despite objections

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    NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The nation’s largest public utility on Friday recommended replacing an aging coal burning power plant with natural gas, ignoring calls for the Tennessee Valley Authority to speed its transition to renewable energy.

    TVA announced the completion of its environmental impact statement for replacing the Cumberland Fossil Plant near Cumberland City, Tennessee. The federally owned utility considered replacing the two coal-fired turbines there with solar panels but instead recommended a combined-cycle natural gas plant.

    Solar and battery storage would be more costly, requiring transmission upgrades that could take a decade to complete, according to a news release from TVA. The decision still needs the approval of TVA President and CEO Jeff Lyash, who has previously spoken in favor of natural gas.

    “Our focus is on ensuring that we provide affordable, reliable, resilient, and clean energy for generations to come,” Lyash said in the news release.

    TVA’s plan would idle one unit of the coal plant by the end of 2026 and the second by the end of 2028. The utility says a natural gas plant there could be built and operational by 2026, with construction beginning as early as summer 2023.

    The announcement drew backlash from groups that include the Center for Biological Diversity.

    “TVA’s plan to build a new gas plant and pipeline in the midst of climate catastrophe is reckless,” Gaby Sarri-Tobar, with the group’s energy justice program, said in a statement. “This is a slap in the face to the 10 million customers who rely on TVA and makes a mockery of the Biden administration’s clean energy pledges.”

    President Joe Biden has said he wants a carbon-pollution-free energy sector by 2035. TVA has set a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2035, compared with 2005 levels.

    Scientists, meanwhile, have warned that failing to meet Biden’s 2035 target will only lead to more intense and more frequent extreme weather events, as well as droughts, floods and wildfires. Teams of meteorologists across the world have predicted there is nearly a 50-50 chance that Earth will temporarily hit a global warming temperature threshold international agreements are trying to prevent within the next five years.

    The TVA board of directors last year delegated any decision on Cumberland’s replacement to Lyash. He has said TVA will not be able to meet the 100% reduction goal without technological advances in energy storage, carbon capture and small modular nuclear reactors. The utility has its own aspirational goal of net zero emissions by 2050.

    Those opposing the construction of a new gas plant have pointed out it will likely be around for decades, long past the 2035 decarbonization goal. They have also criticized TVA for not considering options that could decrease the demand for new electricity like improved energy efficiency and demand response — which helps customers change their usage patterns to flatten peak demand periods.

    U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, has emerged in legislative hearings as a key critic of TVA. He said the utility should not be moving forward on the Cumberland decision while Biden’s nominees for its board await Senate confirmation. Their installation would create a new board majority.

    “The Tennessee Valley Authority is showing yet again that it is willing to lock its customers into expensive and volatile fossil fuel generation, rather than take this opportunity to adopt reliable renewable energy,” Markey said in a statement Friday. “As the largest public power company in the country, the TVA has a responsibility to be a leader, not a laggard, in delivering clean, affordable power to its customers.”

    Meanwhile, a permit application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is still pending for a 32-mile (51-kilometer) natural gas pipeline branch to link to the proposed new Cumberland plant. Kinder Morgan Inc. said one of its subsidiaries filed the application in July. Pending regulatory approval, construction would begin in August 2024, with an expected September 2025 for the pipeline to be in service, the company said.

    TVA provides electricity to 10 million people in Tennessee and parts of the surrounding states of Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia.

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  • Gas driller pleads no contest to polluting town’s water

    Gas driller pleads no contest to polluting town’s water

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    MONTROSE, Pa. — Pennsylvania’s most active gas driller pleaded no contest Tuesday to criminal charges, capping a landmark environmental case against a company that prosecutors say polluted a rural community’s drinking water 14 years ago and then tried to evade responsibility.

    Residents of the tiny crossroads of Dimock in northeastern Pennsylvania say they have gone more than a decade without a clean, reliable source of drinking water after their aquifer was ruined by Houston-based Coterra Energy Inc.

    Under a plea deal entered in Susquehanna County Court, Coterra agreed to pay $16.29 million to fund construction of a new public water system and pay the impacted residents’ water bills for the next 75 years.

    “After more than decade of denials, of shirking responsibility and accountability, Coterra pleaded to their crime, and the people of Dimock finally had their day in court,” Attorney General Josh Shapiro, the state’s incoming governor, said outside the courtroom. “Today is further proof that you don’t get to just walk away from the harm you do here in Pennsylvania.”

    The plea — the result of years of negotiations between Coterra and the attorney general’s office — represents a milestone in one of the most prominent pollution cases ever to emerge from the U.S. drilling and fracking boom. Dimock drew national notoriety after residents were filmed lighting their tap water on fire in the Emmy Award-winning 2010 documentary “Gasland.”

    Coterra’s corporate predecessor, Cabot Oil & Gas Corp., was charged in June 2020 with 15 criminal counts, most of them felonies, after a grand jury investigation found the company drilled faulty gas wells that leaked flammable methane into residential water supplies in Dimock and surrounding communities.

    The grand jury blasted what it called Cabot’s “long-term indifference to the damage it caused to the environment and citizens of Susquehanna County.”

    Cabot, which merged with Denver-based Cimarex Energy Co. to form Coterra, has long maintained the gas in residents’ water was naturally occurring.

    Coterra pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of prohibition against discharge of industrial wastes under the state’s Clean Streams Law. The plea means Coterra does not admit guilt but agreed to accept criminal responsibility.

    “Coterra has worked closely with the Office of Attorney General to resolve historical matters and create a path forward for all parties,” company spokesperson George Stark said via email. He said Coterra ”strives to follow best practices, exceed industry standards, and to continue to be a valuable community partner.”

    Many residents have avoided using their well water since the aquifer was contaminated with methane and heavy metals, using bottled water, bulk water purchased commercially, and even water drawn from creeks and artesian wells instead.

    “These people had to find very creative ways to get water for their homes, water for their families, their kids, their critters, and it was not pretty,” Dimock resident Victoria Switzer said Tuesday. “It was just crazy, people trying to find water.”

    Switzer, whose house will be connected to the new water line, called it “wonderful news” — and a long time coming.

    Another resident, Scott Ely, said some of his neighbors had moved away or developed health problems as a result of Coterra’s practices, while his own children, now in college, had grown up “without a safe water source.”

    “There’s so much heartache,” he said.

    Residents were informed of the plea deal last week. A public utility, Pennsylvania American Water, plans to drill two wells — what it calls a “public groundwater system” — and build a treatment plant that will remove any contaminants from the water before piping it to about 20 homes in Dimock. The utility estimates that construction will take about three years, during which Coterra will be required to provide individual treatment systems and bottled water to impacted residents.

    The settlement comes near the end of Shapiro’s tenure as attorney general.

    On Tuesday, Shapiro, a Democrat who will be sworn in as governor in January, pledged more aggressive regulatory oversight of the industry.

    “We have to change our regulatory structure here in the commonwealth,” Shapiro said. “We have to make sure we are setting clear rules of the road and holding industry accountable. If the regulators fail to do that, then industry is not going to be constrained and they’re going to go ahead and put profits before people. And that’s where the danger comes in.”

    Shapiro demurred on the question of whether Coterra would be permitted to resume drilling in a 9-square-mile (23-square-kilometer) area of Dimock where it has long been banned. Shpairo said he would review the matter with his new environmental secretary after taking office as governor.

    The criminal case has not slowed Coterra’s business. It is the leading shale gas driller in the nation’s No. 2 natural gas-producing state.

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  • EXPLAINER: What hazards are posed by Hawaii’s Mauna Loa?

    EXPLAINER: What hazards are posed by Hawaii’s Mauna Loa?

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    HONOLULU — Lava is shooting 100 feet to 200 feet (30 to 60 meters) into the air as Hawaii‘s Mauna Loa, the world’s largest active volcano, erupts for the first time in nearly 40 years.

    For now, lava is not threatening any homes or communities and no evacuation orders have been issued. Lava could eventually reach neighborhoods as it flows downhill though it could take a week or more for molten rock to reach populated areas.

    Mauna Loa is spewing sulfur dioxide and other volcanic gases. They form volcanic smog, or vog, when they mix with vapor, oxygen and dust in sunlight. As a result, state health officials are urging people to cut back on outdoor exercise and other activities that cause heavy breathing.

    Mauna Loa last erupted in 1984. It’s smaller, more active neighbor, Kilauea volcano, has been erupting continuously for more than a year since September 2021.

    WHERE IS MAUNA LOA?

    Mauna Loa is one of five volcanoes that together make up the Big Island of Hawaii, which is the southernmost island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It’s not the tallest (that title goes to Mauna Kea) but it’s the largest and makes up about half of the island’s land mass.

    It sits immediately north of Kilauea volcano, which is well-known for a 2018 eruption that destroyed 700 homes and sent rivers of lava spreading across farms and into the ocean.

    Mauna Loa last erupted 38 years ago. The current eruption is its 34th since written history began in 1843.

    The Big Island is mostly rural and hosts cattle ranches and coffee farms but it is also home to a few small cities, including the county seat of Hilo which has a population of 45,000.

    It’s about 200 miles (320 kilometers) south of Hawaii’s most populous island, Oahu, where the state capital Honolulu and beach resort Waikiki are both located.

    Mauna Loa’s volume is estimated at least 18,000 square miles (75,000 square kilometers), making it the world’s largest volcano when measured from the ocean floor to its summit.

    WHERE IS MAUNA LOA ERUPTING FROM?

    The eruption began Sunday night at its summit after a series of large earthquakes. It then spread to vents that formed in a rift zone where the mountain is splitting apart and it’s easier for magma to emerge.

    These vents are on the mountain’s northeast side and lava emerging there could head toward Hilo which is on the east side of the island.

    Ken Hon, scientist-in-charge at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said he doesn’t expect additional vents to form on the volcano’s southwest rift zone during this eruption. That means communities to the west would be spared lava flows this time.

    Mauna Loa’s also erupted from the northeast in 1984. That time, lava headed toward Hilo but stopped a few miles short of the city.

    Historically, each Mauna Loa eruption has lasted a few weeks. Hon expects the current eruption to follow this pattern.

    IS MAUNA LOA EXPLODING LIKE MOUNT ST. HELENS?

    Mauna Loa is not exploding like Washington state’s Mount St. Helens did in 1980, killing 57 people. That eruption sent ash soaring over 80,000 feet (24,384 meters) and raining down as far as 250 miles (400 kilometers) away.

    The magma in Mount St. Helens tends to be stickier and traps more gas, making it much more likely to explode when it rises. It’s of a variety called composite volcanoes, which form concave cones.

    Mauna Loa’s magma tends to be hotter, drier and more fluid. That allows the magma’s gas to escape and lava to flow down the side the volcano the way it is starting to do now. Mauna Loa is a shield volcano, named because the long, broad flanks built by repeated lava flows give it the appearance of a warrior’s shield.

    In 1989, Alaska’s Redoubt Volcano, another composite volcano, belched an 8-mile cloud of ash that clogged all four engines of a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines jet. The plane fell 13,000 feet before all engines restarted and the plane landed without injury to the 245 people aboard.

    Mauna Loa released some ash this time but on a vastly smaller scale than these examples from composite volcanoes.

    WHAT HAZARDS ARE POSED BY MAUNA LOA’S ERUPTION?

    -Lava: Molten rock could cover houses, farms or neighborhoods, depending on where it flows. But lava from the northeast rift zone will likely take at least a week to reach populated areas allowing people time to evacuate if needed.

    -Volcanic gas: Mauna Loa is releasing volcanic gases, mostly sulfur dioxide. The gases are present in their highest concentrations in the immediate area around the summit crater or vents. But they also combine with other particles to form vog, which can spread across the Big Island and even waft over to the state’s other islands.

    Vog can give healthy people burning eyes, headaches and sore throats. It can send those with asthma or other respiratory problems to the hospital.

    -Glass particles: When hot lava erupts from a fissure and rapidly cools, it forms glass particles named “Pele’s hair” and “Pele’s tears” after the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes.

    The particles tend not to travel far from volcanic vents — maybe only a few hundred yards or a mile and won’t threaten many people, said Aaron Pietruszka, an associate specialist at the University of Hawaii’s Department of Earth Sciences.

    “It just literally looks like hair strands. And that’s where the fluid lava is stretched by the wind to make long, thin strands,” said Pietruszka.

    The glass bits — as short as a few millimeters or as long as a few inches — can be sharp.

    “You wouldn’t want to be digging your hands in it because you could get a cut,” Pietruszka said.

    An N95 or KF94 mask would protect against these glass particles but not against volcanic gas, said Dr. Libby Char, the director of the state Department of Health.

    “Pele’s hair” specimens from Kilauea volcano’s eruption are visible at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

    HOW SIGNIFICANT ARE MAUNA LOA’S GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS?

    Mauna Loa released about 15,000 tons of carbon dioxide per day during its 1984 eruption, according to USGS data.

    That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 2,400 sport utility vehicles.

    Scientists say all of Earth’s volcanoes combined emit less than one percent of the carbon dioxide that humans produce each year.

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  • Drying California lake to get $250M in drought funding

    Drying California lake to get $250M in drought funding

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    SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The federal government said Monday it will spend $250 million over four years on environmental cleanup and restoration work around a drying Southern California lake that’s fed by the depleted Colorado River.

    The future of the Salton Sea, and who is financially responsible for it, has been a key issue in discussions over how to stave off a crisis in the Colorado River. The lake was formed in 1905 when the river overflowed, creating a resort destination that slowly morphed into an environmental disaster as water levels receded, exposing residents to harmful dust and reducing wildlife habitat.

    The lake is largely fed by runoff from farms in California’s Imperial Valley, who use Colorado River water to grow many of the nation’s winter vegetables as well as feed crops like alfalfa. As the farmers reduce their water use, less flows into the lake. California said it would only reduce its reliance on the over-tapped river if the federal government put up money to mitigate the effects of less water flowing into the sea.

    “It’s kind of a linchpin for the action we need to see on the Colorado River,” said Wade Crowfoot, California’s natural resources secretary. “Finally we are all in agreement that we can’t leave the Salton Sea on the cutting room floor, we can’t take these conservation actions — these extraordinary measures — at the expense of these residents.”

    The deal announced Monday needs approval from the Imperial Irrigation District, the largest user of Colorado River water. The water entity’s board will take it up on Tuesday.

    Both the district’s general manager and board member JB Hamby applauded the deal Monday.

    “The collaboration happening at the Salton Sea between water agencies and state, federal, and tribal governments is a blueprint for effective cooperation that the Colorado River Basin sorely needs,” Hamby said in a statement.

    The $250 million will come out of the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, which set aside $4 billion to stave off the worst effects of drought across the U.S. West.

    Most of the money is contingent on the Imperial Irrigation District and Coachella Valley Water District making good on their commitments to reduce their own use of river water. Both submitted proposals to cut back their usage for payment as part of a new federal program.

    The quarter-billion dollars will largely go to bolster and speed up existing state projects designed to lower the negative environmental impact of the drying lake bed. The state has committed nearly $583 million to projects at the sea, including dust suppression and habitat restoration. One project underway aims to create wetlands and ponds that will limit dust from blowing into the air while creating safe spaces for fish and birds, according to the state.

    The deal comes as the U.S. Interior Department and the seven states that rely on the river — California, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming — scramble to stave off the worst impacts of the ongoing drought and historic overuse of the river. Lakes Powell and Mead, the key reservoirs that store river water and provide hydropower across the West, are only about a quarter full.

    After months of failed negotiations over a deal to drastically cut water use, the federal government in October said it would pay farmers and cities to cut back through activities like leaving fields unplanted or lining canals to prevent water from seeping into the ground. Proposals were due earlier this month. Meanwhile, the Interior Department has taken steps to unilaterally revise guidelines that govern when water shortages are declared, a move that could force states to further cut back.

    The Salton Sea, meanwhile, became its own political flashpoint in October when Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, then up for reelection, urged the federal government to withhold any environmental cleanup money unless California agreed to give up more water. That prompted criticism he was using communities who already suffer from poor air quality as a bargaining chip.

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  • Australia argues against ‘endangered’ Barrier Reef status

    Australia argues against ‘endangered’ Barrier Reef status

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    CANBERRA, Australia — Australia’s environment minister said Tuesday her government will lobby against UNESCO adding the Great Barrier Reef to a list of endangered World Heritage sites.

    Officials from the U.N. cultural agency and the International Union for Conservation of Nature released a report on Monday warning that without “ambitious, rapid and sustained” climate action, the world’s largest coral reef is in peril.

    The report, which recommended shifting the Great Barrier Reef to endangered status, followed a 10-day mission in March to the famed reef system off Australia’s northeast coast that was added to the World Heritage list in 1981.

    Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said the report was a reflection on Australia’s previous conservative government, which was voted out of office in May elections after nine years in power.

    She said the new center-left Labor Party government has already addressed several of the report’s concerns, including action on climate change.

    “We’ll very clearly make the point to UNESCO that there is no need to single the Great Barrier Reef out in this way” with an endangered listing, Plibersek told reporters.

    “The reason that UNESCO in the past has singled out a place as at risk is because they wanted to see greater government investment or greater government action and, since the change of government, both of those things have happened,” she added.

    The new government has legislated to commit Australia to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 43% below the 2005 level by 2030.

    The previous government only committed to a reduction of 26% to 28% by the end of the decade.

    Plibersek said her government has also committed 1.2 billion Australian dollars ($798 million) to caring for the reef and has canceled the previous government’s plans to build two major dams in Queensland state that would have affected the reef’s water quality.

    “If the Great Barrier Reef is in danger, then every coral reef in the world is in danger,” Plibersek said. “If this World Heritage site is in danger, then most World Heritage sites around the world are in danger from climate change.”

    The report said Australia’s federal government and Queensland authorities should adopt more ambitious emission reduction targets in line with international efforts to limit future warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times.

    The minor Greens party, which wants Australia to slash its emissions by 75% by the end of the decade, called for the government to do more to fight climate change in light of the report.

    Jodie Rummer, a marine biologist at James Cook University in Townville who has worked on the reef for more than a decade, supported calls for Australia to aim for a 75% emissions reduction.

    “We are taking action, but that action needs to be much more rapid and much more urgent,” Rummer told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

    “We cannot claim to be doing all we can for the reef at this point. We aren’t. We need to be sending that message to the rest of the world that we are doing everything that we possibly can for the reef and that means we need to take urgent action on emissions immediately,” she added.

    Feedback from Australian officials, both at the federal and state level, will be reviewed before Paris-based UNESCO makes any official proposal to the World Heritage committee.

    In July last year, the previous Australian government garnered enough international support to defer an attempt by UNESCO to downgrade the reef’s status to “in danger” because of damage caused by climate change.

    The Great Barrier Reef accounts for around 10% of the world’s coral reef ecosystems. The network of more than 2,500 reefs covers 348,000 square kilometers (134,000 square miles).

    Australian government scientists reported in May that more than 90% of Great Barrier Reef coral surveyed in the latest year was bleached, in the fourth such mass event in seven years.

    Bleaching is caused by global warming, but this is the reef’s first bleaching event during a La Niña weather pattern, which is associated with cooler Pacific Ocean temperatures, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Authority said in its annual report.

    Bleaching in 2016, 2017 and 2020 damaged two-thirds of the coral.

    Coral bleaches as a response to heat stress and scientists hope most of the coral will recover from the latest event.

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  • Mangroves: environmental guardians of our coastline

    Mangroves: environmental guardians of our coastline

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    Newswise — They are the salt-tolerant shrubs that thrive in the toughest of conditions, but according to new UniSA research, mangroves are also avid coastal protectors, capable of surviving in heavy metal contaminated environments.

    The researchers found that grey mangroves (Avicennia marina) can tolerate high lead, zinc, arsenic, cadmium and copper in contaminated sediment – without sustaining adverse health impacts themselves.

    The study tested the health of grey mangroves living around the Port Pirie smelter. Using leaf chlorophyll content as a proxy to plant health, mangroves were found to be unaffected by metallic contaminants, despite lead and zinc levels being 60 and 151-fold higher than regulatory guidance values.

    The findings highlight the vital role of mangroves in stabilising polluted regions, and the importance of protecting these ‘coastal guardians’ around the world.

    The study also coincides with a $3 million federal government initiative to restore mangrove forests in Adelaide’s north.

     Dr Farzana Kastury from UniSA’s Future Industries Institute says that ability of mangroves to withstand high metal concentrations make them invaluable in managing polluted environments.

    “Mangroves are the ideal eco-defender: they protect our coastlines from erosion and sustain biodiversity, but they also have an incredible ability to trap toxic contaminants in their sediments,” Dr Farzana says.

    “Grey mangroves are known for their tolerance of potentially toxic elements, but until now, little has been known about the health of these plants in the Upper Spencer Gulf.

    “Our research found that grey mangroves were able to adapt and survive exposure to very high levels of lead and zinc – without adverse health effects in their chlorophyll content – demonstrating how valuable they are to coastal ecosystems.”

    Other, ongoing work being done at Port Pirie by UniSA’s Associate Professor Craig Styan suggests there may be 4-7 times more metals stored in the sediments in mangroves than in adjacent unvegetated mudflats.  Assoc Prof Styan said that, generally, a greater concentration of metals found in sediments means greater contamination risk for the animals and plants living on/in them.

    “The levels of bioavailable metals we measured in the surface sediments in mangrove stands are the same as adjacent mudflats, meaning that although mangroves storing significantly more metals this doesn’t appear to increase the risk of contamination for the many animals that use mangrove habitats,” Prof Styan says.

    “People should nonetheless still refer to the SA Department of Health’s advice if they are considering eating fish caught near the smelter.”

    Mangroves (along with tidal marshes and seagrasses) are part of the blue carbon ecosystem; when protected or restored, they sequester and store carbon, but when degraded or destroyed, they emit stored carbon into the atmosphere as greenhouse gases.

    Dr Kastury says understanding the role of mangrove forests in safely stabilising metallic contaminants in highly polluted areas is imperative – not only for South Australian communities, but also around the world.

    “Globally, over a third of mangrove forests have disappeared, mostly due to human impact such as reclaiming land for agriculture and industrial development and infrastructure projects,” Dr Kastury says.

    “We must protect our mangrove forests so that they can continue their job in protecting our environment.”

     

    Notes for editors:

    • Globally, mangrove forest, tidal marshes and seagrass meadows store more than 30,000 teragrams (or 30 trillion kilograms) of carbon across 185 million hectares, potentially reducing around three per cent of global carbon emissions.
    • In 1992, an oil spill from the Era, at Port Bonython, released 300 tonnes of bunker fuel was released into Spencer Gulf, with a small slick of condensate getting into the mangroves south of Port Pirie. Mangroves do very badly in oil spills, and you can still see the scars of where the oil landed to this day.

    …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

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  • Great Barrier Reef should be placed on the ‘in danger’ list, UN-backed report shows | CNN

    Great Barrier Reef should be placed on the ‘in danger’ list, UN-backed report shows | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    The Great Barrier Reef should be added to the list of world heritage sites that are “in danger”, a team of scientists concluded after conducting a mission to the world’s largest coral reef system.

    In a new UN-backed report released on Monday, the scientists said that the reef is facing major threats due to the climate crisis and that action to save it needs to be taken “with upmost urgency.”

    “The mission team concludes that the property is faced with major threats that could have deleterious effects on its inherent characteristics, and therefore meets the criteria for inscription on the list of World Heritage in danger,” the report said.

    The 10-day monitoring mission by UNESCO scientists in March came months after the World Heritage Committee made an initial recommendation to list Australia’s Great Barrier Reef as “in danger” due to the accelerating impacts of human-caused climate change.

    At the time, the agency called on Australia to “urgently” address the worsening threats of the climate crisis, but received immediate pushback from the Australian government.

    The long-anticipated final mission report lays out key steps that the scientists say need to be taken urgently, though the report itself was published after a six-month delay. Originally scheduled to be released in May before UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee meeting in Russia, the report was postponed due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

    The recommendations include slashing greenhouse gas emissions, reassessing proposed projects and credit schemes, and scaling up financial resources to ultimately protect the reefs.

    Jumbo Aerial Photography/Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority/AP

    Spanning nearly 133,000 square miles and home to more than 1,500 species of fish and over 400 species of hard corals, the Great Barrier Reef is an extremely critical marine ecosystem on the Earth.

    It also contributes $4.8 billion annually to Australia’s economy and supports 64,000 jobs in tourism, fishing and research, according to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.

    But as the planet continues to warm, because of the growing amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the reef’s long-term survival has come into question. Warming oceans and acidification caused by the climate crisis have led to widespread coral bleaching. Last year, scientists found the global extent of living coral has declined by half since 1950 due to climate change, overfishing and pollution.

    The outlook is similarly grim, with scientists predicting that about 70% to 90% of all living coral around the world will disappear in the next 20 years. The Great Barrier Reef, in particular, has suffered many devastating mass bleaching events since 2015, caused by extremely warm ocean temperatures brought by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.

    During the UNESCO monitoring missions, reef managers found that the Great Barrier Reef is suffering its sixth mass bleaching event due to heat stress caused by climate change. Aerial surveys of around 750 reefs show widespread bleaching across the reef, with the most severe bleaching observed in northern and central areas.

    Bleaching happens when stressed coral is deprived of its food source. With worsening conditions, the corals can starve and die, turning white as its carbonate skeleton is exposed.

    “Even the most robust corals require nearly a decade to recover,” Jodie Rummer, associate professor of Marine Biology at James Cook University in Townsville, previously told CNN. “So we’re really losing that window of recovery. We’re getting back-to-back bleaching events, back-to-back heat waves. And, and the corals just aren’t adapting to these new conditions.”

    Weeks before the mission, global scientists with the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released an alarming report concluding that with every extreme warming event, the planet’s vital ecosystems like the Great Barrier Reef are being pushed more toward tipping points beyond which irreversible changes can happen.

    As researchers on the mission assessed the dire state of one of the world’s seven natural wonders, they witnessed how the climate crisis has drastically changed the coral reef system.

    A decision on whether the reef should be officially labeled as “in danger” will be made by the World Heritage Committee next year, once UNESCO compiles a more thorough report that will include responses from the Australian federal and state governments.

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  • Sibling unease dogs Prince William’s ‘Earthshot’ US trip

    Sibling unease dogs Prince William’s ‘Earthshot’ US trip

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    LONDON — Prince William and the Princess of Wales will be looking to focus attention on their Earthshot Prize for environmental innovators when they make their first visit to the U.S. in eight years this week, a trip likely to be dogged by tensions with Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, who have criticized Britain’s royal family in the American media.

    William and his wife, Catherine, will travel to Boston on Wednesday for three days of public engagements before announcing the prize winners on Friday.

    Boston, birthplace of John F. Kennedy, was chosen to host the second annual prize ceremony because the late president’s 1962 “moonshot” speech — setting the challenge for Americans to reach the moon by the end of the decade — inspired the prince and his partners to set a similar goal for finding solutions to climate change and other environmental problems by 2030. The first Earthshot Prizes were awarded last year in London just before the U.K. hosted the COP26 climate conference.

    But as much as the royals try to focus on the prize, William is likely to face questions about Harry and Meghan, who have criticized the royal family for racism and insensitive treatment in interviews with Oprah Winfrey and other U.S. media. The Netflix series “The Crown” has also resurrected some of the more troubled times of the House of Windsor just as the royal family tries to show that it remains relevant in modern, multicultural Britain following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

    “You could say that the royal family, particularly as far as America is concerned, have had a bit of a bumpy ride of late,’’ said Joe Little, the managing editor of Majesty Magazine. “They’ve come in for huge amounts of criticism on the back of ‘The Crown’ and also the Oprah Winfrey interview, which has not particularly reflected well on the House of Windsor, so I think it’s a good opportunity whilst they’re in the U.S. … to sort of redress the balance if at all possible.’’

    Whatever those efforts are, they will take place in and around Boston, where William and Kate will remain for their entire visit.

    The royal couple will keep the focus on environmental issues, meeting with local organizations responding to rising sea levels in Boston and visiting Greentown Labs in Somerville, Massachusetts, an incubator hub where local entrepreneurs are working on projects to combat climate change.

    But they will also address broader issues, using their star power to highlight the work of Roca Inc., which tries to improve the lives of young people by addressing issues such as racism, poverty and incarceration. They will also visit Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child, a leader on research into the long-term impact of early childhood experiences.

    William and Kate will also meet with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and visit the John F. Kennedy Memorial Library and Museum with the late president’s daughter, Caroline Kennedy.

    “The Prince and Princess are looking forward to spending time in Boston, and to learning more about the issues that are affecting local people, as well as to celebrating the incredible climate solutions that will be spotlighted through the Earthshot Prize,” their Kensington Palace office said in a statement.

    Earthshot offers 1 million pounds ($1.2 million) in prize money to the winners of five separate categories: nature protection, clean air, ocean revival, waste elimination and climate change. The winners and all 15 finalists also receive help in expanding their projects to meet global demand.

    Among the finalists is a startup from Kenya that aims to provide cleaner-burning stoves to make cooking safer and reduce indoor air pollution. It was the brainwave of Charlot Magayi, who grew up in one of Nairobi’s largest slums and sold charcoal for fuel.

    When her daughter was severely burned by a charcoal-fired stove in 2012, she developed a stove that uses a safer fuel made from a combination of charcoal, wood and sugarcane. The stoves cut costs for users, reduce toxic emissions and lower the risk of burns, Magayi says.

    Other finalists include Fleather, a project in India that creates an alternative to leather out of floral waste; Hutan, an effort to protect orangutans in Malaysia; and SeaForester, which seeks to restore kelp forests that capture carbon and promote biodiversity.

    The winners will be announced Friday at Boston’s MGM Music Hall as part of a glitzy show headlined by Billie Eilish, Annie Lennox, Ellie Goulding and Chloe x Halle. It will include video narrated by naturalist David Attenborough and actor Cate Blanchett.

    Prizes will be presented by actor Rami Malek, comedian Catherine O’Hara, and actor and activist Shailene Woodley. The show will be co-hosted by the BBC’s Clara Amfo and American actor and producer Daniel Dae Kim.

    The ceremony will be broadcast Sunday on the BBC in the U.K., PBS in the U.S. and Multichoice across Africa.

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  • US nuclear waste repository begins filling new disposal area

    US nuclear waste repository begins filling new disposal area

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    ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Workers at the nation’s only underground nuclear waste repository have started using a newly mined disposal area at the underground facility in southern New Mexico.

    Officials at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant made the announcement this week, saying the first containers of waste to be entombed in the new area came from Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee — one of the many labs and government sites across the country that package up waste and ship it to WIPP.

    Known as Panel 8, the new area consists of seven separate rooms for placing special boxes and barrels packed with lab coats, rubber gloves, tools and debris contaminated with plutonium and other radioactive elements.

    Each room measures 33 feet (10 meters) wide, 16 feet (4.9 meters) high and runs the length of a football field minus the end zones.

    Carved out of an ancient salt formation about half a mile (0.8 kilometers) deep, the subterranean landfill located outside of Carlsbad received its first shipment in 1999. The idea is that the shifting salt will eventually entomb the radioactive waste left from decades of bomb-making and nuclear weapons research.

    In 2014, a fire and separate radiation release forced a nearly three-year closure of the repository and a costly overhaul of the policies and procedures that govern WIPP and the nation’s multibillion-dollar cleanup program for Cold War-era waste.

    Operations had to be reduced after the repository reopened because areas of the facility were contaminated and airflow needed for mining and disposal operations was limited. Now, a multimillion-dollar project is underway to install a new ventilation system, and state regulators are considering a permit change that some critics have said could lead to expanded operations.

    The state Environment Department’s Hazardous Waste Bureau issued a plan this month aimed at ensuring the public has opportunities to comment on modifications or permit renewal applications.

    Sean Dunagan, president and project manager of Nuclear Waste Partnership, the contractor that manages the repository, said in a statement that operations already have become more efficient with the new panel.

    Creating a panel requires mining nearly 160,000 tons of salt, and it takes about 2 1/2 years to fill it with waste. For example, Panel 7 is filled with 20,056 containers, with most of them being 55-gallon (208-litre) drums.

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  • Taiwan votes on lower voting age, mayors, city councils

    Taiwan votes on lower voting age, mayors, city councils

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    TAIPEI, Taiwan — Voters headed to the polls across Taiwan in a closely watched local election Saturday that will determine the strength of the island’s major political parties ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

    Taiwanese citizens will be picking their mayors, city council members and other local leaders in all 13 counties and the six major cities. There’s also a referendum to lower the voting age from 20 to 18. Polls opened at 8 a.m. (0000GMT) Saturday.

    While international observers and the ruling party have attempted to link the elections to the long-term existential threat that is Taiwan’s neighbor, many local experts do not think China has a large role to play this time around.

    “The international society have raised the stakes too high. They’ve raised a local election to this international level, and Taiwan’s survival,” said Yeh-lih Wang, a political science professor at National Taiwan University.

    President Tsai Ing-wen, who also serves as the chairman of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, has spoken out many times about “opposing China and defending Taiwan” in the course of campaigning. But the DPP’s candidate Chen Shih-chung, who was running for mayor in Taipei, only raised the issue of the Communist Party’s threat a few times before he quickly switched back to local issues as there was little interest, experts said.

    During campaigning, there were few mentions of the large-scale military exercises targeting Taiwan that China held in August in reaction to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit.

    “So I think if you can’t even raise this issue in (the capital) Taipei,” Wang said. “You don’t even need to consider it in cities in the south.”

    Instead, campaigns resolutely focused on the local: air pollution in the central city of Taichung, traffic snarls in Taipei’s tech hub Nangang, and the island’s COVID-19 vaccine purchasing strategies, which had left the island in short supply during an outbreak last year.

    Candidates spent the last week before the elections in a packed public schedule. On Sunday, the DPP’s Chen marched through Taipei with a large parade filled with dancers in dinosaur suits and performers from different countries. Chiang Wan-an, the Nationalist party’s mayoral candidate, canvassed at a hardware market, while Vivian Huang, an independent candidate, visited lunch stalls at a market. All three made stops at Taipei’s famous night markets.

    The question is how the island’s two major political parties — the Nationalist and the incumbent DPP — will fare. Because both Tsai and the Nationalist’s chair Eric Chu handpicked candidates, the performance will impact their own standings within their party, as well as the party’s strength in the coming two years.

    “If the DPP loses many county seats, then their ability to rule will face a very strong challenge,” said You Ying-lung, chair at the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation that regularly conducts public surveys on political issues.

    The election results will in some ways also reflect the public’s attitude towards the ruling party’s performance in the last two years, You said.

    Observers are also watching to see if outgoing Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je’s Taiwan People’s Party’s candidates will pick up a mayoral seat. A 2024 presidential bid for Ko will be impacted by his party’s political performance Saturday, analysts say. Ko has been campaigning with his deputy, the independent mayoral candidate Huang, for the past several weeks.

    Food stall owner Hsian Fuh Mei said he was supporting Huang.

    “We want to see someone international,” he said. “If you look at Singapore, before we were better than Singapore, but we’ve fallen behind. I hope we can change direction.”

    Others were more apathetic to the local race. “It feels as if everyone is almost the same, from the policy standpoint,” said 26-year-old Sean Tai, an employee at a hardware store.

    Tai declined to say who he was voting for, but wants someone who will raise Taipei’s profile and bring better economic prospects while keeping the status quo with China. “We don’t want to be completely sealed off. I really hope that Taiwan can be seen internationally,” he said.

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  • Opinion: ‘Africa’s COP’ made some big promises. Here’s how to deliver | CNN

    Opinion: ‘Africa’s COP’ made some big promises. Here’s how to deliver | CNN

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    Editor’s Note: Adjoa Adjei-Twum. She is the Founder & CEO of the Africa-focused and UK-based advisory firm Emerging Business Intelligence and Innovation (EBII) Group for global investors interested in Africa and emerging markets.
    The opinions expressed in this article are solely hers.



    CNN
     — 

    The recently-concluded COP27 was dubbed the “African COP” – with the continent center stage in the global effort to fight the causes and effects of climate change.

    As negotiations in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh spilled over into the weekend, there was a significant breakthrough on one of the most fractious elements – creating a fund to help the most vulnerable developing nations hit by climate disasters.

    The backdrop for COP27 was a series of catastrophic global weather events including record-breaking floods in Pakistan and Nigeria, the worst droughts in four decades in the Horn of Africa, and severe European heatwaves and hurricanes in the US.

    The loss and damage fund – to pay for the sudden impacts of climate change which are not avoided by mitigation and adaptation – has been a major obstacle in COP talks.

    The richest, most polluting nations have been reluctant to agree to a deal, worried that it could put them on the hook for costly legal claims for climate disasters.

    I welcome progress here, as African nations are bearing the brunt of climate change. The continent contributes around 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the UN Environment Programme and the International Energy Agency (IEA).

    Climate change is estimated to cost the continent between $7bn and $15bn a year in lost economic output or GDP, rising to $50bn a year by 2030, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB).

    But my joy is muted – the devil is in the detail, as ever. As an African diaspora entrepreneur whose work focuses significantly on the impact of climate change on the risk profile of African financial institutions and nations, I am concerned about the lack of detail about how the fund would work, when it will be implemented, and the timescale. I fear these could take years.

    During a recent visit to the US, I discussed reparation money with US Democrat Congresswoman Rep. Ilhan Omar. She said it was important for the US and other countries to make heavy investments, which could come in the form of reparations.

    She spoke about the importance of consulting impacted communities in Africa to avoid exploitation and the need for countries such as the US and China to end fossil fuel expansion and phase out existing oil, gas, and coal in a way that is “fair and equitable.”

    Adaptation is Africa’s big challenge – the AFDB estimates that the continent needs between $1.3 to $1.6 trillion by 2030 to adapt to climate change.

    The bank’s Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, in partnership with the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), aims to mobilize $25bn in finance for Africa, for projects such as weather forecasting apps for farmers and drought-resistant crops.

    It is now time for African nations to levy a climate export tax on commodities, such as cocoa and rubber, to help pay for climate adaptation. But it still falls short of the money Africa needs.

    Adaptation is all about building resilience and capacity, and I believe our governments, banks, and businesses must also adapt.

    I am calling on our governments, institutions, and companies to boost efforts to attract green finance and make Africa more resilient by improving governance, tax systems, anti-corruption efforts, and legal compliance.

    Sustainability is not a business tax, it is essential for business survival. Only companies focused on the changing world around us – from regulation to consumer and investor attitudes – will survive the climate crisis.

    Businesses that ignore this can expect fines, boycotts, and limited access to funding. Banks will suffer too. So the financial sector must be better prepared and more agile.

    This message will be reinforced when I meet CEOs, banking executives, and Nigeria’s central bank at the 13th Annual Bankers’ Committee Retreat, organized by the Nigerian Bankers Committee, in Lagos next month. The aim is to support the country’s biggest banks as they navigate new international sustainability rules.

    Increasingly, investment funds must conform to green taxonomies – a system that highlights which investments are sustainable and which are not. In other words, banks will only support investments by institutions in G20 countries if they conform to national or supranational rules, such as the European Union’s Green Taxonomy.

    This will not only help tackle greenwashing but also help companies and investors make more informed green choices. Additionally, G20 countries are asking their banks to forecast how risky their loans are due to climate change.

    African nations must implement robust systems to mobilize private capital and foreign direct investment in key sectors. Governments must ensure they have an enabling environment for increased green investments.

    Regulators must strengthen their capacity to develop and effectively enforce climate-related rules. Companies, especially banks, should strengthen climate risk management teams, regulatory compliance expertise, and preparation of bankable projects for international climate finance. This is the foundation for a successful transition to a low–carbon economy.

    Looking ahead, there are other actions we can take. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) – the world’s largest free trade area and single market of almost 1.3bn people – could protect Africa from the adverse impacts of climate change, such as food insecurity, conflict, and economic vulnerability.

    It could lead to the development of regional and continental value chains, inter-Africa trade deals, job creation, security, and peace. A single market could drive less energy-intensive economic growth while keeping emissions low, for example by developing regional energy markets and manufacturing hubs.

    But we need much better pan-Africa coordination, like the European Union, to accelerate the AfCFTA. I urge our governments to work together and take swift and concrete actions to ensure the full and effective implementation of the AfCFTA. There is no time to waste.

    This will not be popular with some African regimes because they will be forced to be more transparent and accountable with their public finances.

    This year’s COP may have been marred by chaos, rows between rich and poorer nations, and broken multi-billion-dollar pledges by developed countries who created the climate crisis.

    Many observers point out the final deal did not include commitments to phase down or reduce the use of fossil fuels.

    But, the deal to create a pooled fund for countries most affected by climate change is significant, and as UN secretary general António Guterres warned, it was no time for finger-pointing.

    It is also no time for the blame game. It is a wake-up call for African governments, banks, institutions, and companies to unite, step up, and adapt to a new climate reality.

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  • Synthetic fibers discovered in Antarctic air, seawater, sediment and sea ice as the ‘pristine’ continent becomes a sink for plastic pollution

    Synthetic fibers discovered in Antarctic air, seawater, sediment and sea ice as the ‘pristine’ continent becomes a sink for plastic pollution

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    Newswise — As nations meet in Uruguay to negotiate a new Global Plastics Treaty, marine and forensic scientists publish new results this week that reveal the discovery of synthetic plastic fibres in air, seawater, sediment and sea ice sampled in the Antarctic Weddell Sea. The field research was undertaken during an expedition to discover Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship, the Endurance. The results are published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science.

    Fibrous polyesters, primarily from textiles, were found in all samples. The majority of microplastic fibres identified were found in the Antarctic air samples, revealing that Antarctic animals and seabirds could be breathing them.

    ‘The issue of microplastic fibres is also an airborne problem reaching even the last remaining pristine environments on our planet’, stated co-author Professor Lucy Woodall, University of Oxford, Nekton Principal Scientist. ‘Synthetic fibres are the most prevalent form of microplastic pollution globally and tackling this issue must be at the heart of the Plastic Treaty negotiations.’ Professor Woodall was the first to reveal the prevalence of plastic in the deep sea in 2014.

    A modelling analysis of air trajectories revealed that areas with higher numbers of fibres were associated with winds coming from southern South America. The discovery reveals that the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and the associated polar front is not, as previously thought, acting as an impenetrable barrier which would have prevented microplastics from entering the Antarctic region.

    ‘Ocean currents and winds are the vectors for plastic pollution to travel across the globe and even to the remotest corners of the world’, shared Nuria Rico Seijo, Nekton Research Scientist, Oxford, the co-lead author of the research. ‘The transboundary nature of microplastics pollution provides more evidence for the urgency and importance of a strong international plastic pollution treaty.’

    The concentration of microplastics was also discovered by the team to be far higher in sea ice than in other sample types. Research indicates that microplastics are being trapped during the creation of the sea-ice layer every year.

    ‘Sea ice is mobile, can travel vast distances and reach the permanent ice shelves of the Antarctica continent where it can be trapped indefinitely with its gathered microplastic pollutants’, shared Dr Mánus Cunningham, Nekton Research Scientist, Oxford, the co-lead author of the research. ‘We believe the acquisition of microplastics in the multi-year sea ice combined with its seasonal changes could also be considered a temporary sink and one of the main transporters of microplastics within the Antarctic region’, concluded Dr Cunningham.

    Extensive research was also conducted on sediment samples retrieved at depths ranging from 323 to 530 metres below the sea’s surface during the Weddell Sea Expedition. ‘Our discovery of microplastics in seabed sediment samples has revealed evidence of a plastic sink in the depths of the Antarctic waters’, said Professor Woodall. ‘Yet again we have seen that plastic pollution is being transported great distances by wind, ice and sea currents. The results of our research collectively demonstrate the vital importance of reducing plastic pollution globally.’

    The scientific and forensic experts at Nekton’s Oxford University and collaborating laboratories (Staffordshire University, University of Cape Town and Nelson Mandela University) used a range of investigative methods to analyse the samples in the study. These include optical (Polarised Light Microscopy), chemical (Raman Spectrometry) investigative technologies and even a specialist adhesive “crime scene” tape to identify the polymer type. The modelling analysis used a method called Air Mass Back Trajectory analysis.

    ‘Our use of forensic science approaches had two important benefits; improved methods for both the reduction and monitoring of possible procedural contamination in the samples, and also more detailed characterisation of the microplastics, beyond just polymer type, allowing for better understanding of the number of possible sources. We would encourage future studies to harness these forensic approaches to ensure more robust data is gathered’ said Professor Claire Gwinnett, Staffordshire University.

    According to the research team, the findings add urgency for a binding, globally agreed treaty to prevent microplastics from entering the environment, particularly oceans. Ahead of the Global Plastic Treaty discussions, they call on policy makers to:

    • Reduce plastic pollution and production globally, by creating a robust global plastics treaty that builds on national and regional initiatives;
    • Align plastic reduction actions with natural and societal targets to achieve multiple positive outcomes for society;
    • Empower local communities to co-develop and use programmes that support full life-cycle solutions to plastic waste management.

    They add that concerned individuals can also play their part by adopting simple lifestyle habits to reduce synthetic microfibre pollution. These include:

    1. Fill your washing machine: more space to move around in the wash results in microfibres falling off.
    2. Wash at 30C: gentle cycles and lower temperatures decreases microfibre shedding.
    3. Ditch the dryer: tumble dryers generate about 40 times more microfibers than washing machines.
    4. Microfibre capture for washing machines, e.g. GuppyFriend (https://guppyfriend.com) or Coraball (https://www.coraball.com).
    5. Choose natural fibres, e.g. organic natural fibres like cotton, linen, hemp.
    6. Avoid microfibre cleaning cloths – use natural alternatives.
    7. Wash textiles less!

    Source: A Sustainable Life: https://www.asustainablelife.co.uk/7-easy-ways-to-reduce-microfibre-pollution/

    Notes for Editors

    The Publication: ‘The transport and fate of microplastic fibres in the Antarctic: The role of multiple global processes’ published in Frontiers in Marine Science. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2022.1056081/full

    Research Partners: The international team, led by Nekton and scientists from Department of Biology, University of Oxford, collaborating with experts from UK and South African research institutions including Staffordshire University (UK), Nelson Mandela University, and the University of Cape Town (South Africa).

    Video, photographic and infographic content: https://nektonmission.org/about/press-news                                           

    Nekton: Nekton works to accelerate the scientific exploration and conservation of the ocean for people and the planet. Nekton is an independent, not-for-profit research institute and is a UK registered charity. www.nektonmission.org

    University of Oxford: Oxford University has been placed number 1 in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for the seventh year running, and ​number 2 in the QS World Rankings 2022. At the heart of this success are the twin-pillars of our ground-breaking research and innovation and our distinctive educational offer. Oxford is world-famous for research and teaching excellence and home to some of the most talented people from across the globe. Our work helps the lives of millions, solving real-world problems through a huge network of partnerships and collaborations. The breadth and interdisciplinary nature of our research alongside our personalised approach to teaching sparks imaginative and inventive insights and solutions. Through its research commercialisation arm, Oxford University Innovation, Oxford is the highest university patent filer in the UK and is ranked first in the UK for university spinouts, having created more than 200 new companies since 1988. Over a third of these companies have been created in the past three years. The university is a catalyst for prosperity in Oxfordshire and the United Kingdom, contributing £15.7 billion to the UK economy in 2018/19, and supports more than 28,000 full time jobs.

    Flotilla Foundation: The research was funded by a philanthropic grant from the Flotilla Foundation, a Netherlands based charity that aims to pro­mote the con­ser­va­tion, pro­tec­tion and improve­ment of the phys­i­cal and nat­ur­al envi­ron­ment, in par­tic­u­lar­ly the ocean.

    Weddell Sea Expedition: Led by the Flotilla Foundation and in partnership with Nekton, Scott Polar Research Institute, Nelson Mandela University, University of Cape Town and the University of Canterbury – The Weddell Sea Expedition deployed AUVs and ROVs to investigate life beneath the ice and the potential implications of climate change. 36 scientists, surveyors and technicians participated in the 45-day voyage in December 2019 to January 2020. Whilst in the Weddell Sea, the Expedition sought to locate Sir Ernest Shackleton’s vessel The Endurance. The expedition paved the way for the successful discovery of the vessel in 2022.

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  • Chinese coast guard seizes rocket debris from Filipino navy

    Chinese coast guard seizes rocket debris from Filipino navy

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    MANILA, Philippines — The Chinese coast guard forcibly seized floating debris the Philippine navy was towing to its island in another confrontation in the disputed South China Sea, a Philippine military commander said Monday. The debris appeared to be from a Chinese rocket launch.

    The Chinese vessel twice blocked the Philippine naval boat before seizing the debris it was towing Sunday off Philippine-occupied Thitu Island, Vice Admiral Alberto Carlos said Monday. He said no one was injured in the incident.

    It’s the latest flare-up in long-seething territorial disputes in the strategic waterway, involving China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.

    Chinese coast guard ships have blocked Philippine supply boats delivering supplies to Filipino forces in the disputed waters in the past, but seizing objects in the possession of another nation’s military constituted a more brazen act.

    Carlos said the Filipino sailors, using a long-range camera on Thitu island, spotted the debris drifting in strong waves near a sandbar about 800 yards (540 meters) away. They set out on a boat and retrieved the floating object and started to tow it back to their island using a rope tied to their boat.

    As the Filipino sailors were moving back to their island, “they noticed that China coast guard vessel with bow number 5203 was approaching their location and subsequently blocked their pre-plotted course twice,” Carlos said in a statement.

    The Chinese coast guard vessel then deployed an inflatable boat with personnel who “forcefully retrieved said floating object by cutting the towing line attached to the” Filipino sailors’ rubber boat. The Filipino sailors decided to return to their island, Carlos said, without detailing what happened.

    Maj. Cherryl Tindog, spokesperson of the military’s Western Command, said the floating metal object appeared similar to a number of other pieces of Chinese rocket debris recently found in Philippine waters. She added the Filipino sailors did not fight the seizure.

    “We practice maximum tolerance in such a situation,” Tindog told reporters. “Since it involved an unidentified object and not a matter of life and death, our team just decided to return.”

    Metal debris from Chinese rocket launches, some showing a part of what appears to be Chinese flag, have been found in Philippine waters in at least three other instances.

    Rockets launched from the Wenchang Space Launch Center on China’s Hainan island in recent months have carried construction materials and supplies for China’s crewed space station.

    China has been criticized previously for allowing rocket stages to fall to Earth uncontrolled. The Philippine Space Agency earlier this month pressed for the Philippines to ratify U.N. treaties providing a basis for compensation for harm from other nations’ space debris, and NASA accused Beijing last year of “failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris” after parts of a Chinese rocket landed in the Indian Ocean.

    The Philippine government has filed many diplomatic protests against China over aggressive actions in the South China Sea but it did not immediately say what action it would take following Sunday’s incident. The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila would usually wait for an official investigation report before lodging a protest.

    Thitu island, which Filipinos call Pag-asa, hosts a fishing community and Filipino forces and lies near Subi, one of seven disputed reefs in the offshore region that China has turned into missile-protected islands, including three with runways, which U.S. security officials say now resemble military forward bases.

    The Philippines and other smaller claimant nations in the disputed region, backed by the United States and other Western countries, have strongly protested and raised alarm over China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the busy waterway.

    U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who is visiting Manila, is scheduled to fly to the western province of Palawan, which faces the South China Sea, on Tuesday to underscore American support to the Philippines and renew U.S. commitment to defend its longtime treaty ally if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under attack in the disputed waters.

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  • Pakistan welcomes ‘loss and damage’ deal inked at UN summit

    Pakistan welcomes ‘loss and damage’ deal inked at UN summit

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    ISLAMABAD — A breakthrough funding deal at the COP27 conference to help poor countries ravaged by climate change was welcomed Sunday by Pakistan, a nation devastated this year by record-breaking monsoon rains,

    Flooding likely worsened by global warming submerged a third of Pakistan’s territory, left 33 million people scrambling to survive, and an estimated $40 billion in losses to the economy.

    Pakistani officials, who had framed the country as a victim of climate change and sought compensation from bigger polluting nations, called the funding deal “a step in reaffirming the core principles of climate justice.”

    The compensation agreement hammered out early Sunday in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh establishes funding for “loss and damage” suffered by poor countries as a result of global warming.

    It is a big win for developing nations that have long called for cash — sometimes viewed as reparations — because they are often the victims of climate-worsened floods, droughts, heat waves, famines and storms despite having contributed little to the pollution that heats up the globe.

    It has also long been called an issue of equity for nations hit by weather extremes and small island states that face an existential threat from rising seas.

    “Three long decades and we have finally delivered climate justice,” said Seve Paeniu, the finance minister of Tuvalu. “We have finally responded to the call of hundreds of millions of people across the world to help them address loss and damage.”

    Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Twitter welcomed the development, calling it the “first pivotal step towards the goal of climate justice.”

    Sharif acknowledged the work done on the summit deal by his Cabinet minister for climate change, Sherry Rehman, and her team. He said it’s now up to a transitional committee to build on the historic development.

    Rehman in a tweet said: “It’s been a long 30-year journey from demand to formation of the Loss and Damage Fund for 134 countries. We welcome today’s announcement and joint text hammered out through many nights.”

    “We look forward to (the fund) being operationalized, to actually become a robust body that is able to answer with agility to the needs of the vulnerable, the fragile and those on the front line of climate disasters,” she said.

    Pakistan suffered huge losses in the floods that affected a third of its 33 million population, who faced unprecedented suffering in terms of human and property losses. More than 1,700 people were killed and nearly 13,000 others injured. Over 13,000 kilometers (8,080 miles) of roadway, 439 bridges and 2.28 million houses were damaged or destroyed.

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said Pakistan came out a winner as a result of the compensation deal.

    “Win for climate justice, win for developing world in honor of 33 million victims of Pakistan floods and millions around the world who suffer from a climate catastrophe they did not create and do not have resources to address,” Zardari said.

    The world’s biggest polluters must must now live up to their promises and pay into the fund. A 2009 agreement for a $100 billion fund created by richer nations to pay for the development of poor nations was never fully funded.

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  • Looking at oxygen storage dynamics in three-way catalysts

    Looking at oxygen storage dynamics in three-way catalysts

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    Newswise — In light of vehicular pollutants contributing to decreasing air quality, governments across the globe are posing stricter emission regulations for automobiles. This calls for the development of more efficient exhaust gas after-treatment systems (i.e., systems to “clean” exhaust gas before it is released into the atmosphere). The most common mode for treating exhaust emissions of gasoline-fueled internal combustion engines are three-way catalysts (TWCs) or catalytic converters. TWCs often comprise active metals such as platinum (Pt) and palladium (Pd) nanoparticles and oxygen storage materials with a high specific surface area, such as a solid solution of CeO2-ZrO2(CZ). These components can catalyze multiple oxidation and reduction reactions that can convert harmful exhaust from vehicular engines to harmless gases.

    The durability, precision, and performance of a TWC is dependent on factors like the oxygen stored or removed from the bulk and surface of the oxygen storage materials. So, clearly understanding the oxygen transport and dynamics of the storage material is necessary to improve its efficiency. Unfortunately, there is a lack of techniques that can enable direct tracking of the oxygen storage process in TWCs.

    In a recent breakthrough published in Chemical Engineering Journal, however, a team of researchers led by Assistant Professor Tsuyoshi Nagasawa of Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) presented a solution to the problem. The team developed a novel technique for direct visualization of the oxygen storage process in Pd/CZ TWCs using the isotope quenching technique. Prof Nagasawa explains: “It is difficult to get clarity on the dynamic interactions—such as oxygen adsorption/desorption and surface/bulk diffusion—occuring on TWC surfaces, because they can only be estimated indirectly from the valence change of cerium in CZ, or the oxidation state of the noble metal. However, our method surpasses these problems by incorporating isotope labeling with reaction quenching, which allows us to investigate the oxygen storage processes by tracking the 18O isotope involved in these interactions.”

    How was this isotope quenching technique carried out? The team prepared a model TWC consisting of a precious metal, Pd, and a dense CZ substrate, stored 18O2 in it at 600 °C, and then quenched the catalyst using two helium gas nozzles covered in a water cooling jacket. They then used high-resolution secondary-ion mass spectrometry to analyze the 18O distribution on the surface and bulk of Pd/CZ.

    The results indicated that Pd improves the diffusion depth of 18O into CZ bulk, as well as its surface concentration. It further revealed that 18O was preferentially adsorbed at the Pd/CZ interface as compared to the Pd center, where its concentration was lower. Density functional theory calculations also agreed with these observations.

    Finally, the team calculated the local oxygen release/storage rates by comparing 18O distribution and an oxygen release/storage simulation using a diffusion equation. They found that the local rates were comparable and consistent with conventional oxygen storage capacity measurements.

    This new visualization process provides useful insights into the oxygen storage and release mechanisms in metal/oxygen materials systems and can be used to further investigate and improve the performance and efficiency of TWCs used for automobile exhaust treatment. “The volatile organic compounds and oxides of nitrogen and carbon commonly produced by combustion engines, if released without treatment, can not only cause breathing-related health issues but can also indirectly impact the acceleration of global warming. With our study, we wanted to contribute towards the world’s mission to achieve better emission practices,” concludes Prof. Nagasawa.

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    Tokyo Institute of Technology

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  • Austin Pets Alive! | Love Your Pet, Love Your City: Scoop the Poop!

    Austin Pets Alive! | Love Your Pet, Love Your City: Scoop the Poop!

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    Nov 18, 2022

    Pets are our companions, service animals, and beloved members of the family. But their waste, if left behind, can cause real problems at that spot and well beyond.

    Fact: Pet poop is pollution.

    Pet waste can contain bacteria, viruses, and parasites, like roundworm and E. coli, many of which can live for days or months after being deposited. Even after the pile of waste has vanished, these unseen organisms can make the pets and people, especially kids, who come across it sick. Paws and shoes can track waste into homes, and rain washes waste into our creeks and lakes, where it can make the water unsafe for recreation and hazardous for fish and other wildlife.

    Preventing pet poop pollution is EASY.

    1. Pick up pet waste in a plastic bag
    2. Seal the bag
    3. Toss it into a trash can

    You have help!
    In case you run out of bags while walking your dog or forget to bring bags with you, the City of Austin’s Scoop the Poop program provides pet waste bags in City-maintained parks.

    To help keep neighborhoods and natural areas healthy and beautiful, leave no pile behind! Help spread the word – visit www.ScoopThePoopAustin.org for free yard signs, brochures, printable posters, and other educational materials.

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  • Missouri S&T CO2 research is rock solid

    Missouri S&T CO2 research is rock solid

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    Newswise — As climate change accelerates, scientists are investigating ways to lower carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. At Missouri University of Science and Technology, researchers are developing solutions by turning CO2 into rock, including massive rocks for permanent carbon storage, and concrete, the manmade rock that supports modern civilization.

    “CO2 concentration in our atmosphere is now 420 parts per million, the highest in human history,” says Dr. Hongyan Ma, an associate professor of civil engineering at Missouri S&T. “We need ways to not only reduce CO2 emission but also to remove CO2 from the air and utilize or permanently store the removed CO2 at a scale large enough to combat climate change.”

    Ma and a team of researchers in materials science and engineering, chemical engineering, mining, economics, and other disciplines at Missouri S&T are forcing CO2 to react with silicate rocks and industrial wastes generated from power plants, cement plants, concrete recycling facilities, and steel mills to form carbonate minerals. Such reactions happen in nature over millions of years to create natural limestone and dolomite formations that stores trillions of tons of carbon, but they are too slow to address the climate change challenge.

    Ma and his team use innovative technologies to speed up the process. Their manmade rocks are intended for gigaton-scale permanent carbon storage or production of carbon-negative cement materials for making concrete. Traditional cement production emits a metric ton of CO2 for every metric ton of cement produced, and Ma says the innovations will potentially reduce over 2 billion metric tons of CO2 every year.

    Ma’s CO2 conversion and utilization work has garnered more than $2 million in grants for Missouri S&T from the National Science Foundation and other organizations such as the Environmental Research & Education Foundation and the Association for Iron & Steel Technology. These research projects focus on processing various solid wastes using captured CO2 or CO2-rich flue gases to make carbon-negative cement materials and manmade rock for permanent carbon storage.  Ma is seeking follow-up grant funding and investment to scale up these innovations and accelerate commercialization.

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    Missouri University of Science and Technology

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  • The Latest | UN Climate Summit

    The Latest | UN Climate Summit

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    SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt — Sherry Rehman, climate minister for Pakistan, said developing countries would continue to press hard for a deal on the issue of ‘loss and damage’ at this year’s U.N. climate talks in Egypt.

    Rehman told reporters Thursday that the group of countries she chairs, known as G77 and China, wants “at the very least a political announcement of intent” on rich polluters providing new financial aid to poor nations for the effects of global warming.

    She made clear that she didn’t not expect “a slew of finance” to result from the meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh but added that “if this continues to be kicked down the road we will see it as a climate justice denied.”

    Rehman said she was aware that some countries “are anxious about liabilities and judicial proceedings.”

    “I think we can work around all those anxieties,” she said. “The idea here is not to make any one country or group of countries uncomfortable or put them in an adversarial position.”

    But she said the recent devastating floods in her own country, causing tens of billions of dollars in damage, showed how people who have done little to cause climate change are being hit hard.

    “That dystopia that came to our doorstep will come to everyone’s,” she said. “So before it comes to that point, let’s learn to work together and bring some focus and real ambition for climate justice and delivery on joint goals.”

    ———

    KEY DEVELOPMENTS:

    — Lines in the sand need redrawing to reach climate deal

    — Women lead climate talks’ toughest topic: reparations

    — Scientists try to bolster Great Barrier Reef in warmer world

    ———

    Senior western officials have met with the Egyptian diplomat chairing this year’s U.N. climate talks amid concerns that negotiators may not be able to reach an agreement.

    Alok Sharma, the British official who chaired last year’s talks in Glasgow, the EU’s climate chief Frans Timmermans and Canada’s Climate Minister Steven Guilbeault told Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry that “there are still lot of gaps remaining” in the draft decisions.

    Sharma’s office said the three officials told Shoukry that the recent pledge made by the Group of 20 major developed and emerging economies in Bali “should be the baseline and not a ceiling” at the climate talks, known as COP27.

    “The last thing anyone wants is for this COP to end without consensus,” they said, according to Sharma’s office.

    ———

    A draft decision proposed by host Egypt for this year’s U.N. climate talks has surprised negotiators who say it includes ideas never previously discussed at the two-week talks.

    This includes a call for developed countries to achieve “net-negative carbon emissions by 2030” — a far tougher target than any major nation has so far committed to and which would be very hard to achieve.

    Diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, say the 20-page draft released early Thursday is far more bloated than what would normally have been expected at this stage of negotiations.

    The talks are due to wrap up on Friday but it is not unusual for the annual meeting to go into overtime.

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    Follow AP’s climate and environment coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

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    Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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