Climate change

Reuters You’ll probably hear the term “net-zero emissions” a lot over the coming weeks as government leaders and CEOs, under pressure, talk about how they’ll reduce their countries’ or businesses’ impact on climate change. Amazon, for example, just announced that more than 200 companies have now joined its Climate Pledge, committing to reach net-zero emissions by 2040. But what does net-zero emissions actually mean? “Zero emissions” – without the “net” caveat – means emitting no greenhouse gases. “Net-zero emissions” has more wiggle room. It’s like balancing a checkbook. The country or company cuts most of its emissions through efficiency and clean energy, then offsets the rest by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or eliminating emissions elsewhere. Read More For example, trees absorb carbon dioxide from the air, so they’re often considered “negative emissions.” The tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan can claim net-zero emissions because almost … [Read more...] about More companies pledge net-zero’ emissions to fight climate change, but what does that really mean?

The AI will sift through terabytes of satellite data to determine how climate change and natural disasters affect agricultural output and wildlife habitats. (Photo via Pixabay/Pexels) NASA and IBM have teamed up to push a novel use of AI technology on Earth observation data from Nasa satellites. The two groups have announced their intention to create many programmes to mine Earth observation data for information regarding climate change. For example, one project will employ NASA's Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 dataset, a record of land cover and land use changes acquired by Earth-orbiting satellites, to train an IBM geospatial intelligence foundation model. The AI will sift through terabytes of satellite data to determine how climate change and natural disasters affect agricultural output and wildlife habitats. In the meantime, another initiative will likely involve constructing a sizeable language model from Earth science literature. IBM has built a natural language … [Read more...] about Here’s why IBM and NASA have teamed up to study the effects of climate change using AI

Arapaima are now found in Kerala (Photo: Jeff Kubina via Wikimedia Commons) Think about it. The origin story of the brown trout in India dates back to just over 100 years. It was introduced to the cold waters of the Kashmir Valley by the British . The fish has since flourished in the erstwhile state.  It has also snagged a spot on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN’s) 100 of the world's worst invasive alien species (IAS) and emerged as one of the biggest threats to the indigenous snow trout and 150 other native fish species found in the Himalayan waters. An internal study by the Wildlife Institute of India pins the blame on climate change. “This particular breed inhabits cold waters, but rising temperatures are pushing native fish species northwards, leading to a conflict with the brown trout. It is a conflict that the brown trout will dominate,” says Arjun Singh, who has been working towards the conservation of the snow trout in the Kashmir region for … [Read more...] about How climate change is helping invasive species thrive in India’s waterbodies

The world leaders need to take immediate action to limit climate change, restore biodiversity, and protect health, according to an editorial published in over 220 leading journals, including The Lancet and the National Medical Journal of India. The editorial is being published ahead of the UN General Assembly, one of the last international meetings taking place before the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, UK in November. It warns that the greatest threat to global public health into the future is the continued failure of world leaders to take adequate action to keep the global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius and to restore nature. "The recent examples of extreme weather all over the globe have brought into focus the reality that climate change is," said Peush Sahni, Editor-in-Chief of the National Medical Journal of India, and one of the co-authors of the editorial. "We must act now lest it is too late. We owe it to the future generations," Sahni said. … [Read more...] about Climate action cannot wait for Covid pandemic to end, 220 journals warn

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin This week’s Current Climate , which every Saturday brings you the latest news about the business of sustainability. Sign up to get it in your inbox every week. E nergy policy think tank Energy Innovation Policy & Technology issued a new report earlier this week looking at the relative cost of operating coal plants versus renewable energy. What they discovered in looking at the basic economics is that “the cost of new clean energy technologies has plummeted over the past decade while coal costs have stayed flat or risen. The upshot of their analysis? They found that out of the 210 U.S. coal plants they investigated, 209 of them – over 99% – are more expensive to run than if their generation capacity was replaced with solar or wind power. The cost savings would be significant, too–the analysts behind the report determined that the cost of new wind or solar would be at least thirty percent cheaper than … [Read more...] about Current Climate: Report Finds That Replacing Coal Plants With Renewables Saves A Lot Of Money

Climate warriors are the unsung heroes of our times, and our country is blessed with certain relentless fighters for Mother Nature, who brave all odds to keep the environment clean and green. CNN-News18, India’s No.1 English General News channel, recognizes and salutes the spirit of such climate warriors with the 12th edition of its flagship initiative CNN-News 18 Indian of the Year (IOTY) 2022. To be held on 12 October, the awards ceremony will felicitate the achievements of those Indians who, through their grit and determination, have brought pride to the country. The marquee property felicitates personalities across the categories of politics, sports, social change, entertainment, start-ups, and climate warrior. In a post-pandemic world where climate change is emerging as a major concern, the category of climate warrior is a new addition to recognise individuals who are working on impactful and sustainable change. The nominees in the climate warrior category consist of … [Read more...] about CNN-News18 Indian of the Year (IOTY) 2022 to recognize climate warriors from India determined to save our planet

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is planning to scale back proposed rules mandating that companies disclose climate-related data alongside traditional financial reporting, after the agency was surprised by major blowback from affected groups, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing people close to the agency. The proposed rules, announced in March 2022, would require companies to include data about both the way climate change might harm their business and the affect that their business might have on the environment via greenhouse gas emissions, according to the SEC. However, the plan was criticized by companies, investors and lawmakers for implementing onerous reporting rules, and even the pared down regulations are expected to face legal challenges, the WSJ reported . WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 03: U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler (R) during a meeting with the Treasury … [Read more...] about Biden Admin Rethinks Signature Climate Policy After Major Blowback: REPORT

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin There used to be a commercial for a new microwave where, as the pitchmen described its benefits, a skeptical man in the front row kept mumbling, “But does it brown the food?” I often feel like that when observing discussions about the transition to electric vehicles, because so much verbiage sounds like pitchmen extolling a product while avoiding the critical issue: will consumers prefer them in place of conventional vehicles? The next several posts will address this question in some detail; this post will try to identify the factors that are not important or exaggerated in discussions of the issue. The first lesson should be that the past failure of electric vehicles to be adopted does not prove that the technology isn’t viable now, but should raise skepticism about claims from advocates, many of whom also gushed about the previous effort to promote electric vehicles in the 1990s. Those were spurred on by the California … [Read more...] about Some Realism About The Transition To Electric Vehicles

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Climate advocates are asking themselves whether the globe can hit its net-zero targets when the developing nations rely on coal to fuel their energy needs. While China and India power their economies mainly using coal, the Asian giants are committed to using far cleaner electricity and ultimately becoming carbon neutral. These are not platitudes meant to quell the developed nations. Achieving net zero is a must — to improve living conditions while reducing climate emergencies and attracting multinational corporations. Asia will remain the world’s biggest consumer of coal, but Bloomberg New Energy Finance predicts it will peak there in 2027. After that, renewables will eat into its market share. “The central government sets the overall direction, and the state governments implement it,” says Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, co-chair Confederation of Indian Industry National Committee. “In this system, we often go two steps forward … [Read more...] about India Commits To Aggressive Climate Action With International Financing

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The US Federal Reserve System is living in the past and undoing the future. Chairman Jerome Powell and his colleagues have wielded interest rates like a sledgehammer, hoping to crush inflation the way Paul Volcker did in the 1980s. At this point, however, each additional swing of the sledgehammer hurts our chances of a “soft landing” in 2023 and a habitable planet in 2100. The sledgehammer cannot distinguish between companies that are building a clean, sustainable economy and those that keep us hyper-distracted by devices, hyper-addicted to fossil fuels and hyper-apathetic to inequality. It cannot distinguish between the haves who can weather a recession and the have-nots who will suffer most. Moreover, the Fed’s 2% inflation target is arbitrary. It was invented offhand in 1989 by Don Bash, Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, in response to a law mandating that the country’s central bank have a target. It’s … [Read more...] about Mr. Powell, Drop The Sledgehammer And Start Innovating