Author Archives: Cristen Hemingway Jaynes

Countries Meet in Rome for Second COP16 Biodiversity Conference

Posted on by February 24, 2025

Countries are meeting in Rome this week for the United Nations 16th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16), where they will attempt to devise a strategy on how to generate $200 billion annually for the preservation of the planet’s biodiversity.

The main goal of the February 25 to 27 meeting is to review nations’ progress in carrying out their commitments under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), which includes targets such as protecting 30 percent of the planet’s land and oceans by the end of the decade. 

Oscar Soria, co-CEO of The Common Initiative, an NGO think tank that focuses on global environmental and economic policy, said nations must rise above political tensions to focus on financing biodiversity, The Global and Mail reported.

“This could be a historic moment, if they choose ambition,” Soria said. “The question is whether they will fight for the future like gladiators or let this opportunity slip away.”

After KMGBF was established in 2022, countries met in Cali, Colombia, last October to discuss the details of how to finance it.

However, while the Cali Fund was established for the collection of company profits derived from nature’s genetic data, negotiators at the first COP16 weren’t able to agree on how the funds should be managed or who else should contribute.

“The Global Biodiversity Framework is more than just a set of aspirations – it’s our blueprint for a more sustainable and equitable future – one that prioritises nature’s integral value to our everyday lives. We cannot afford to let this slip through our fingers. The last thing the world needs right now is more roadblocks stunting the critical progress needed on global environmental commitments,” said Kirsten Schuijt, director general of WWF International, in a press release from WWF.

According to WWF, since 1970, the number of vertebrates in the wild has plummeted 73 percent.

At the close of COP16 in Cali, countries had committed only $163 million of the $30 billion per year that was being sought by 2030. It is not expected that there will be significant public finance pledges in Rome, but observers would like more transparency about how much is being paid by whom to support biodiversity, reported The Globe and Mail.

“Parties are expected to complete a crucial step by finalizing the monitoring framework agreed upon at COP 15. The monitoring framework is essential to the implementation of the KMGBF because it provides the common yardsticks that Parties will use to measure progress against the 23 targets,” a UN press release said. “On [Planning, Monitoring, Reporting and Review], Parties are expected to make important decisions on how progress in the implementation of the KMGBF will be reviewed at COP17 as part of the planned global stocktake.”

One of the toughest challenges is figuring out how to get richer European and other countries to give money to help poorer nations when the willingness to give low-interest loans or grants has been falling during a wider cost-of-living crisis, The Globe and Mail reported.

Though the United States is not a participant in COP16, recent Trump administration policy shifts could have an effect on other countries’ willingness to pledge funds and support pro-nature policies.

Poorer nations put the blame for most of the world’s biodiversity loss on companies and countries in the Global North, saying they should pay the lion’s share of the costs. Meanwhile, rich countries like those in Europe want to see sovereign wealth funds, countries in the Gulf States and other growing middle-income nations contribute more.

“At least US$20 billion per year was promised to developing countries by 2025, as well as action on identifying and redirecting US$500 billion in harmful subsidies to nature. Crucial to all funding is ensuring Indigenous Peoples and local communities receive direct access to funds to continue their role as custodians of the world’s biodiversity. We’re already in 2025 – these commitments must be honoured,” said Guido Broekhoven, head of policy research and development at WWF.

In the face of reluctance to donate money as grants, there is rising pressure to add funding from other sources, such as domestic resources, the private sector and lending through development banks.

Countries at COP16 in Rome will also discuss ways to divert an estimated $500 billion that is spent annually on subsidies and other funding incentives for projects that hurt the environment into activities that are nature-friendly.

Where to house any raised funds is also an issue, with the potential to create a new fund or for nations to use an existing one, such as the Global Environment Facility (GEF)-run Global Biodiversity Framework Fund.

Europe is fine with GEF managing any funds, but others, such as Brazil and Democratic Republic of Congo, have argued for a new system over which they would potentially have more of a voice.

“Countries must come to Rome committed to having constructive dialogues and with a genuine political will to find the best way forward on finance. Biodiversity loss will have far-reaching consequences that humanity is yet to even fully grasp. Countries have no option but to work together to lay a strong, just, and well-resourced path to reaching our shared biodiversity goals, because the road to 2030 must be built together – or we risk never reaching it at all,” Schuijt said.

The post Countries Meet in Rome for Second COP16 Biodiversity Conference appeared first on EcoWatch.

France’s Parliament Bans PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Key Products

Posted on by February 24, 2025

The French Parliament voted on Thursday for ambitious new legislation to limit the sale and production of some products that contain toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) “forever chemicals,” including cosmetics, most clothing and ski wax.

The bill seeks to prevent the import, sale and production of any product that has an alternative to PFAS, except certain industrial textiles that are deemed “essential,” beginning in January of 2026, reported AFP.

“In a relatively short space of time, two and a half years, thanks to the mobilization of members of parliament, NGOs, scientists and investigative journalists, a subject that was under the radar has made its way into the public debate, to the point where France now has one of the world’s most ambitious laws on PFAS,” said French environmentalist Nicolas Thierry, a Green Party MP and the bill’s rapporteur, as Le Monde reported.

France adopts 'one of the most ambitious' laws on PFAS

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— Le Monde in English (@lemonde-en.bsky.social) February 20, 2025 at 8:39 AM

Only last month, health and environmental organizations throughout Europe wrote a joint letter urging President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen to take action against PFAS.

The coalition called on von der Leyen to “end the worst pollution crisis in human history” with a ban on the hazardous substances. She had promised to do so under the European Green Deal’s 2022 “zero pollution” strategy.

PFAS are a group of thousands of human-made chemical compounds used to make products waterproof, nonstick and stain-resistant, but have been found to cause a wide range of health problems.

Referred to as “forever chemicals,” the dangerous substances have made their way into drinking water and the food chain through soil and groundwater, and have now been found almost everywhere on the planet, from the peak of Mount Everest to the human body.

Chronic PFAS exposure, even at low levels, has been associated with high cholesterol, reduced immune responses, liver damage and several types of cancer.

Non-stick saucepans were to be banned in the original draft of France’s new law, but intense lobbying by the owner of French manufacturer Tefal led to their removal, reported AFP.

The regulation will require French authorities to conduct regular testing of drinking water for PFAS.

A January 2025 study found that one type of PFAS associated with birth defects and health problems had been discovered in the drinking water of many towns and cities in France, including Paris.

Beginning next year, new European Union regulations will require member states to test their drinking water for 20 types of PFAS. The EU has been considering a potential ban on PFAS use in consumer products, but so far no regulation has been implemented.

“This ban on PFAS in products like clothing and cosmetics is great news for French citizens worried about their exposure to these harmful chemicals. The not so good news is that some key products like cookware were exempted. Now France needs to get firmly behind an EU wide restriction on PFAS ensuring more products are included and citizens of all member states are protected,” said Sandra Bell, policy and advocacy advisor at nonprofit CHEM Trust.

The post France’s Parliament Bans PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Key Products appeared first on EcoWatch.

Countries Use More Land for Golf Courses Than for Solar or Wind Energy: Study

Posted on by February 21, 2025

The amount of land needed for renewable energy projects is sometimes criticized, but a new study points out that, in countries like the United Kingdom and the United States, much more land gets allocated for golf courses than renewable energy facilities.

The study, “Countries across the world use more land for golf courses than wind or solar energy,” was published in the journal Environmental Research Communications.

“Land use is a critical factor in the siting of renewable energy facilities and is often scrutinized due to perceived conflicts with other land demands. Meanwhile, substantial areas are devoted to activities such as golf, which are accessible to only a select few and have a significant land and environmental footprint,” the authors of the study wrote.

In the 10 countries in the world that have the most golf courses, a course’s area could support as much as 659 gigawatts (GW) of wind capacity and 842 GW of solar capacity, which exceeds the installed capacity for many of the renewable energy facilities, IOP Publishing reported.

🌍 More land is allocated to golf courses than renewable energy, a new study in our journal Environmental Research Communications shows: ow.ly/y6WR50V4l8c. We don’t suggest eliminating golf courses, but it highlights the potential of rethinking land use to boost renewable energy. 🌱

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— IOP Publishing (@ioppublishing.bsky.social) February 21, 2025 at 10:53 AM

“In many of these countries, this potential exceeds both current installed capacity and medium-term projections,” the authors wrote in the study.

Golf courses have an outsized environmental impact, as they usually require chemical treatments and large amounts of water. On the other hand, solar farms, wind turbines and other renewable energy installations offer an option for sustainable land use that directly reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

Roughly 0.01 square kilometers of land is required per megawatt (MW) for utility-scale solar farms, while wind farms need 0.12 square kilometers for each MW, though just a small fraction of the land is impacted by infrastructure and turbines.

“These findings underscore the untapped potential of rethinking land use priorities to accelerate the transition to renewable energy,” the authors wrote in the study.

Lead author of the findings Dr. Jann Weinand, who is head of the department of Integrated Scenarios at the Institute Jülich Systems Analysis at Forschungszentrum Jülich in Germany, said the study was not advocating for golf courses to be directly converted, but that it “highlights the vast potential for renewable energy on similarly large and underutilized areas.”

“In light of the ongoing debates about land use for renewables, it is crucial to consider how we allocate land overall — especially when significant space is dedicated to activities that benefit only a limited segment of the population,” Weinand said, as reported by IOP Publishing.

The post Countries Use More Land for Golf Courses Than for Solar or Wind Energy: Study appeared first on EcoWatch.

Most Voters in Eight Western States Support Conservation Over Oil and Gas Drilling on Public Lands: Poll

Posted on by February 21, 2025

In the newest edition of Colorado College’s Conservation in the West Poll, nearly three-quarters — 72 percent — of respondents from eight states said they supported boosting outdoor recreation and the protection of water, clean air and wildlife habitat by their congressional representatives over maximizing oil and gas drilling on public lands.

The 14th annual survey by the Rockies Project showed that 67 percent of voters in eight Mountain West states — Montana, Colorado, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada — are concerned about the future of water, land and wildlife.

“Majorities of voters view issues like loss of habitats and declining fish and wildlife populations, inadequate and polluted water supplies, microplastics, uncontrollable wildfires, air pollution, loss of pollinators, and loss of natural spaces as extremely or very serious problems in their state,” a press release from Colorado College said.

More than half of Western voters — 66 percent — believe the impacts of the climate crisis over the past decade have been significant in the state where they live. And 85 percent of voters — including 96 percent of Democrats, 87 percent of Independents and 74 percent of Republicans — say issues that involve clear air and water, public lands and wildlife are important to their decision of who to vote for.

“There may be a lot that divides voters across the country, but in the West there is nearly universal consensus in favor of conservation,” said Katrina Miller-Stevens, associate professor at Colorado College and director of the State of the Rockies Project, in the press release.

When asked their preference for what congressional representatives should put more emphasis on, 70 percent were in favor of protecting air quality, clean water and wildlife habitats while also providing opportunities for recreation on public lands.

That is in contrast to just over a quarter of voters — 26 percent — who would rather more domestic energy production be ensured by maximizing the availability of public lands for oil and gas exploration and mining. It was the first time in the history of the poll that the prioritization of conservation over maximized energy production received a majority of support from both Independents and Republicans.

“Westerners do not want to see a rollback of national monument protections and there is no mandate for oil and gas development. Voters from all political ideologies are united in support of public land conservation in the West,” Miller-Stevens said, as Inside Climate News reported.

Other areas of conservation also received overwhelming support, including a 78 percent majority in favor of more emphasis being placed on the preservation of wildlife migration routes, limiting more development in order to safeguard wildlife habitats and providing highway crossings for animals. This was in comparison with one-fifth of voters who said they wanted more emphasis to be placed on land use that was “economically productive,” like new development, oil and gas production, roads or ranching.

“By contrast, most voters see no conflict between clean energy production and preserving natural areas for wildlife habitat and the character of local communities. 75 percent of voters in the West agree we can increase clean energy production while preserving natural areas, while only 20 percent say we need to choose between production and preservation,” the press release said.

The Conservation in the West Poll showed that the outdoors, including public lands, are an important part of Western lifestyles. Sixty-two percent of respondents said that they had visited national public lands three-plus times over the past year, while just 12 percent said they had not spent time on public lands.

“Western voters also view connecting with nature as vital for their wellbeing. 93 percent say spending more time outdoors would help counter growing rates of anxiety, depression and mental health problems in young people, with 67 percent agreeing it would help a lot,” the press release said. “The deep connection between Westerners and the outdoors, along with the importance placed on protecting public lands, are reflected in strong support for a variety of conservation policies among Westerners.”

Light pollution was also important to voters, with 89 percent saying they supported managing public lands in a way that ensures there are more outdoor spaces that are free from light pollution “to better see the stars at night.”

When asked about policies that regulate the production of oil and gas on public lands, Westerners were overwhelmingly in support of conservation. Ninety percent said they were in favor of requiring that gas and oil companies foot the bill for land restoration and clean-up after drilling is completed, rather than requiring state and federal governments to do so.

“A lot of the actions that the Trump administration has taken or has proposed to take are pretty far out of step with what Westerners want to see in terms of our public lands,” said Rachael Hamby, Center for Western Priorities’ policy director, as reported by Inside Climate News. “If elected officials are straying too far from what their constituents want to see, they’re going to have to answer to their voters.”

The 2025 Conservation in the West Poll confirms what we already know—Westerners overwhelmingly support protecting public lands, clean water, and wildlife www.coloradocollege.edu/…/conserva…

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— Western Watersheds Project (@westernwatersheds.bsky.social) February 19, 2025 at 4:02 PM

The post Most Voters in Eight Western States Support Conservation Over Oil and Gas Drilling on Public Lands: Poll appeared first on EcoWatch.

Green Groups Sue Trump Over Proposed Oil and Gas Drilling in Protected Waters

Posted on by February 20, 2025

Conservation groups, including the Center for Biological Diversity, Oceana, Greenpeace and the Natural Resources Defense Council, filed two separate lawsuits against the Trump administration on Wednesday.

Both complaints focus on the administration’s moves to open more of the nation’s waters to drilling for oil and gas.

“President Trump’s executive order would roll back millions of acres of ocean protection, jeopardizing our coastal economies and the people who rely on healthy, thriving oceans,” said Joseph Gordon, Oceana campaign director, in a press release from the Center for Biological Diversity. “Leaders in both political parties, thousands of businesses, and millions of Americans support permanently protecting our coasts from offshore drilling. We are confident the court will continue to uphold the bipartisan tradition of presidents safeguarding these coastlines and protecting the people who live and work among them.”

#BREAKING: We’re taking the Trump administration to court! Oceana, alongside other environmental groups, is challenging President Trump's attempts to revoke ocean protections & open up millions of acres to offshore drilling. More 👉 oceana.ly/3EMOhSt

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— Oceana (@oceana.bsky.social) February 20, 2025 at 12:08 PM

One group of plaintiffs is challenging a Trump executive order to repeal the protection of hundreds of millions of acres of United States coastal waters from oil and gas leasing executed by former President Joe Biden during his final days in office, a press release from the Center for Biological Diversity said.

The other group is requesting that the court reinstate a prior federal court ruling invalidating the first Trump administration’s attempt to undo offshore drilling protections implemented during the Obama administration.

We're suing the Trump administration over an illegal order to revoke offshore oil drilling protections from most U.S. coastlines. “A nearly identical effort by the first Trump administration to expand drilling was stopped by Earthjustice in federal court.”

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— Earthjustice (@earthjustice.bsky.social) February 19, 2025 at 5:07 PM

“We defeated Trump the first time he tried to roll back protections and sacrifice more of our waters to the oil industry. We’re bringing this abuse of the law to the courts again,” said Steve Mashuda, managing attorney for oceans at Earthjustice, in a press release from the nonprofit legal organization. “Trump is illegally trying to take away protections vital to coastal communities that rely on clean, healthy oceans for safe living conditions, thriving economies, and stable ecosystems.”

Biden invoked the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to withdraw areas off the Atlantic, eastern Gulf, Pacific and Alaska from the possibility of oil and gas leasing. Eight other administrations, including Trump’s first, have done the same.

We filed our first lawsuit of the year against the Trump administration for revoking protections that cover more than 625 million acres of the ocean. When Trump tried to hand over our oceans to Big Oil in 2017, we sued—and won. We’re headed to court to fight back again.

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— NRDC (@nrdc.org) February 19, 2025 at 3:35 PM

The law does not, however, permit a president from revoking withdrawals by prior presidents. A federal court confirmed this before, when Trump tried to undo protections for parts of the Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean set by the Obama administration.

“Trump’s putting our oceans, marine wildlife, and coastal communities at risk of devastating oil spills and we need the courts to rein in his utter contempt for the law,” said Kristen Monsell, the Center for Biological Diversity’s oceans legal director. “Offshore oil drilling is destructive from start to finish. Opening up more public waters to the oil industry for short-term gain and political points is a reprehensible and irresponsible way to manage our precious ocean ecosystems.”

The lawsuits will likely be the first of many filed by environmental groups against the current administration, reported The Guardian. In his first month in office, Trump has frozen funds for climate-related spending programs while attempting to roll back many of Biden’s environmental protections.

“The Arctic Ocean has been protected from US drilling for nearly a decade, and those protections have been affirmed by the federal courts,” said Sierra Weaver, a senior attorney for Defenders of Wildlife, a plaintiff in one of the lawsuits, as The Guardian reported. “Though these coastlines have been protected, the administration is showing no restraint in seeking to hand off some of our most fragile and pristine landscapes for the oil industry’s profit.”

The post Green Groups Sue Trump Over Proposed Oil and Gas Drilling in Protected Waters appeared first on EcoWatch.

Brazil Joins OPEC+ Ahead of Hosting UN Climate Summit

Posted on by February 19, 2025

Brazil’s National Council for Energy Policy has approved the joining of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) just months before the country is set to host the United Nations COP30 climate change summit.

The approval was in response to a 2023 invitation from OPEC.

“OPEC welcomes the decision approved today by the National Energy Council of the Federative Republic of Brazil (CNPE) that formally paves the way for the participation of Brazil as a Member of the Charter of Cooperation (CoC) between oil producing countries,” a press release from OPEC said. “The decision comes after an initial announcement made by HE Hon. Alexandre Silveira, Minister of Mines and Energy of Brazil, at the 36th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting (ONOMM) on 30 November 2023.”

OPEC was initially established with 12 members in 1960 to stabilize oil markets and coordinate production. Since then, 10 other significant oil-producing countries have joined the organization.

Alexandre Silveira, Brazil’s mines and energy minister, said that Brazil, as a member of OPEC, will not have any binding obligations to the group, such as cuts to production, or participate in decision-making, as The Associated Press reported. The country’s participation will involve being a member of the Charter of Cooperation forum, where nations discuss industry-related issues.

“We should not be ashamed of being oil producers. Brazil needs to grow, develop and create income and jobs,” Silveira said.

Brazil will join OPEC+, [cartel] of oil-exporting nations, months before hosting UN climate summit #COP30 – 'We should not be ashamed of being oil producers,' said Brazilian energy minister HT @carbonbrief.org www.cbc.ca/news/busines…

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— Damian Carrington (@dpcarrington.bsky.social) February 19, 2025 at 5:31 AM

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has worked to battle Amazon deforestation and protect Indigenous rights, but has also said new oil revenues could be used to finance the country’s green energy transition.

Recently, Lula has pushed the nation’s environmental regulator to allow exploratory drilling close to the Amazon River delta, one of the planet’s most biodiverse regions.

Brazil is the seventh-largest producer of oil in the world, with roughly 4.3 million barrels per day — four percent of global output, according to the United States Energy Information Administration. Last year, crude oil became Brazil’s biggest export, surpassing soy.

The U.S. is the biggest producer of oil in the world, pumping out almost 22 million barrels a day. In comparison, Saudi Arabia — OPEC’s largest producer — produces approximately 11 million barrels.

Oil expert Luís Eduardo Duque Dutra, a chemistry professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, said that Brazil’s energy council had also approved its membership in the International Renewable Energy Agency and the International Energy Agency.

“This helps keep track of the global situation, matching the country’s growing importance after developing pre-salt (offshore oil) reserves and its wind and solar energy potentials,” Dutra told The Associated Press.

Lula’s interest in increasing Brazil’s oil production has been met with criticism as the country prepares to host COP30 in November.

“Brazil’s entrance to any OPEC body is another sign of the government’s setback,” said Climate Observatory spokesperson Suely Araújo, as reported by The Associated Press.

Opening new areas to fossil fuel exploration “indicates that we are choosing solutions from the past in the face of a huge challenge for the present and the future,” Araújo added.

The post Brazil Joins OPEC+ Ahead of Hosting UN Climate Summit appeared first on EcoWatch.

Top U.S. Prosecutor Resigns After Trump-Appointed Official Orders Investigation Into Biden Climate Funding

Posted on by February 19, 2025

Denise Cheung, the top criminal prosecutor with the United States Attorney’s Office in Washington, DC, resigned on Tuesday after she declined to follow an order from a Trump-appointed superior at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to start a grand jury investigation, people with knowledge of the matter said, as CNN reported.

Acting U.S. Attorney General Emil Bove initially gave the instruction to Ed Martin — a Donald Trump nominee for U.S. Attorney in DC. — for Cheung to direct an investigation of a Biden EPA funding decision, then freeze the funding.

Cheung, a long-time employee of the Department of Justice, did not feel there was sufficient evidence to comply with the order and was asked to resign.

“Earlier yesterday, I was asked to review documentation supplied by the Office of the Deputy Attorney General to open a criminal investigation into whether a contract had been unlawfully awarded by an executive agency before the change in Administration and to issue grand jury subpoenas pursuant to this investigation,” Cheung wrote in her resignation letter on Tuesday, as seen by CNN.

As Cheung noted in the letter, she and other experienced prosecutors did not believe there was enough evidence to meet the threshold requirements to conduct a grand jury investigation. Bove insisted that the DOJ had met that threshold.

Top US prosecutor quits over pressure to investigate Biden climate spending: Denise Cheung resigns after Trump appointees demand she open grand jury investigation into EPA grants A top federal prosecutor has quit after refusing to launch what she called a politically driven investigation …

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— The Guardian Climate News (unofficial) (@guardian-climate.bsky.social) February 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM

In the resignation letter to Martin, Cheung wrote that she and other prosecutors believed there was insufficient evidence despite senior officials citing an undercover Project Veritas video, reported The Guardian.

“When I explained that the quantum of evidence did not support that action, you stated that you believed that there was sufficient evidence,” Cheung wrote to Martin. “You also accused me about wasting five hours of the day ‘doing nothing’ except trying to get what the FBI and I wanted, but not what you wanted.”

Cheung noted her obligation to follow the law and the code of legal ethics, as well as her sworn oath of office.

“When I started as an AUSA, I took an oath of office to support and defend the Constitution, and I have executed this duty faithfully during my tenure, which has spanned through numerous Administrations,” Cheung wrote in a farewell email to colleagues. “I know that all of the AUSAs in the office continue to honor their oaths on a daily basis, just as I know that you have always conducted yourself with the utmost integrity.”

The dispute originated from a claim by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin last week regarding $20 billion in EPA funding being held in an account at Citibank.

The funding at issue was earmarked for eight nonprofits in charge of climate change mitigation projects as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.

Zeldin has criticized what he called “rushed” funding for the climate organizations, saying he would attempt to claw back funding in conjunction with the DOJ and return it to the U.S. Treasury Department.

“We will review every penny that has gone out the door. I will be referring this matter to the inspector general’s office, and will work with the Justice Department as well,” Zeldin said, as The Hill reported.

A former official at the EPA who was responsible for implementation of the funding told CNN that it had not been rushed or set up in a nefarious manner.

The EPA and the U.S. Treasury had set up an arrangement with the bank to distribute the funding to the grantees, and while it was the first time that type of agreement was employed by the EPA, it is a process that the Treasury Department had been using for years.

Cheung’s departure comes during a period of upheaval across the DOJ, as prosecutors deemed untrustworthy by the Trump administration are dismissed and the president’s political appointees clash with long-time federal prosecutors.

In her departure email, Cheung encouraged colleagues to “fulfill your commitment to pursuing Justice without fear or prejudice,” as The Hill reported.

I'm leading my colleagues in writing to the DOJ Inspector General after Denise Cheung was forced to resign after defying her Trump-appointed superiors and refusing to freeze climate bank funding in the absence of any crime. You need your climate bank money and we need answers.

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— Senator Ed Markey (@markey.senate.gov) February 19, 2025 at 8:06 PM

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Gap Between Water Supply and Demand to Widen as Climate Warms: Study

Posted on by February 19, 2025

Stronger water management efforts will be essential to overcoming the gap between supply and demand as the planet continues to warm, according to a new analysis by Lorenzo Rosa, principal investigator at Carnegie Science, and Matteo Sangiorgio, a researcher at the Polytechnic University of Milan.

For the study, the pair of researchers quantified issues of water scarcity under 1.5 and three degrees Celsius of global heating above pre-industrial levels, a press release from the Carnegie Institution of Science said.

“Water scarcity is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity this century,” Rosa said in the press release. “About 4 billion people reside and about half the world’s irrigated agriculture is in regions that experience water scarcity for at least one month each year.”

Life on Earth cannot exist without water. It is necessary for human health, food and energy security, environmental resilience, economic development and a wide range of human activities. Even though it is so important, in many places on our planet, demand for water exceeds available supply.

When water consumption is greater than the natural availability of water at any time during a month, it is referred to as a “water gap.” As time goes on, this kind of unsustainable use leads to depleted rivers, lakes, aquifers, groundwater and other natural water reserves.

“Water gaps are already an issue for communities around the world, resulting in either inadequate supplies of water or environmental degradation,” Rosa explained. “And as climate change further disrupts precipitation patterns and alters the water cycle, it will add even more stress.”

A sailing boat lays stranded on the dried-up bottom of Liptovska Mara freshwater reservoir that is at 40% of its normal capacity due to winter droughts, near Liptovsky Mikulas in Slovakia on Feb. 18, 2025. Robert Nemeti / Anadolu via Getty Images

Earlier research approached the subject by quantifying groundwater depletion or other reductions in water availability globally, while other studies looked at unsustainable use of water at the regional level.

This study combined the two strategies in order to fully comprehend the scope of the problem and make well-informed water management policies and plans going forward.

“We must be able to balance environmental resilience and the growing need for water in a warming world with a burgeoning population,” Rosa emphasized. “As cities grow, pollution, industrial water use, and irrigation will all increase, which will, in turn, exacerbate the water gap.”

Sangiorgio and Rosa quantified water gaps for scenarios under baseline, 1.5 and 3 degrees Celsius of warming, accounting for factors such as surface and groundwater depletion and water requirements for aquatic ecosystems.

The findings showed that there are already almost 458 billion cubic meters in water gaps annually. They are predicted to grow by 6% under a 1.5 degrees Celsius warming scenario and by 15% if the planet warms by 3 degrees Celsius.

“Even relatively modest increases in the water gap can put pressure on ecosystems and lead to severe shortages for agricultural use, resulting in food insecurity,” Rosa said.

Options to consider for water resources managers and lawmakers in order to increase water supplies include enhancing water storage capabilities by investing in resilient infrastructure, reusing treated wastewater, desalinating saltwater and bringing in water from other areas.

Farmers can prepare for the potential of water scarcity by planting crops that are less water intensive while investing in irrigation technologies that are more efficient.

“While water scarcity can affect entire regions, the most severe consequences are borne by the most vulnerable and impoverished populations, underscoring the important influence of economic and institutional factors in determining water scarcity,” the authors wrote in the study. “Under global warming, this fragile balance between supply and demand is likely to worsen, leading to a future where water resources struggle to meet growing societal and environmental needs. Consequently, many areas face a widening water gap, which threatens not only economic development and societies but also the health of aquatic ecosystems.”

The study, “Global water gaps under future warming levels,” was published in the journal Nature Communications.

The post Gap Between Water Supply and Demand to Widen as Climate Warms: Study appeared first on EcoWatch.

UK Agency Developing Early Warning System for Major Climate Tipping Points

Posted on by February 18, 2025

The United Kingdom’s Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA) plans to invest 81 million pounds in the development of an ambitious early warning system designed to detect climate tipping points.

The new system will use drones, plankton bloom patterns and cosmic ray detection combined with artificial intelligence and detailed, cutting-edge computer models, reported The Guardian.

“Major parts of the Earth system are at risk of crossing climate tipping points within the next century, with severe consequences for biodiversity, food security, agriculture, and humanity. Despite the potential impact, we’re poorly equipped to characterise the long-term trends of our climate systems, or predict the future risk of runaway, self-perpetuating change,” ARIA said in a press release. “Combining expertise in observation and modelling with innovative sensing systems, we’ll look to develop a proof-of-concept for an early warning system for climate tipping points that is affordable, sustainable and justified.”

Early warning system for climate tipping points given £81m kickstart: Ambitious UK project aims to forecast climate catastrophes using fleets of drones, cosmic ray detection, patterns of plankton blooms and more An ambitious attempt to develop an early warning system for climate tipping p…

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— The Guardian Climate News (unofficial) (@guardian-climate.bsky.social) February 18, 2025 at 9:07 AM

ARIA has awarded roughly $102 million to 27 project teams with a goal of finding signals that warn of the biggest climate disasters that could be triggered by the climate crisis.

ARIA’s early warning system program will be focused on two major tipping points: the collapse of the subpolar gyre (SPG) ocean current — a part of the crucial Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) — and the melting of Greenland’s ice sheet.

The collapse of ocean currents like AMOC would lead to global weather pattern changes, triggering extreme weather and wreaking havoc on the world’s food supplies, while the collapse of Greenland’s ice sheet would cause significant and potentially damaging sea level rise.

“In a similar way to how we use monitoring stations to detect and warn for tsunamis, we’re aiming to establish networks of climate monitoring systems to detect early signs of critical shifts in our climate,” said Sarah Bohndiek and Gemma Bale, who co-lead the ARIA program, as The Guardian reported. “Through these systems, we can equip decision-makers with the data they need to confront the threat of abrupt climate change head on.”

Sarah Bohndiek, 1 of 2 scientists leading the #ClimateChange program at ARIA, warned the world was less prepared for climate #TippingPoints than it was for #COVID19. “What would happen if we cross one of the climate tipping points?"

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— Carbon Tracker Initiative (@carbontracker.bsky.social) January 2, 2025 at 5:30 AM

At least 16 tipping points have been identified by scientists, some of which may have already been passed, from the thawing of permafrost in the north to a shift in west Africa’s monsoon.

ARIA hopes to come up with an early warning system capable of forecasting tipping points a decade ahead of time, where possible.

Professor Tim Lenton, an ARIA team leader and director of the Global Systems Institute at University of Exeter, said a warning like ARIA is proposing would incentivize the world to speed up climate action, since even if it wasn’t possible to stop a particular tipping point, having advance notice would give society time to prepare.

One of the program’s teams is developing small, high-speed drones to be used to gather better data in Greenland.

“Greenland is the fastest melting place on Earth, but this ice loss has knock-on effects for both North Atlantic ocean currents and fisheries. This crucial research will help us to understand how much freshwater the ice sheet is releasing, and what the subsequent effects will be on the ocean currents that bring warm waters and weather to the UK,” said Kelly Hogan of the British Antarctic Survey in the press release.

Another ARIA team is working on making devices that can move vertically through the ocean to collect data on the SPG.

“The UK and northern Europe could experience much harsher winters, similar to parts of Canada [if the SPG collapses], while the east coast of the U.S. could see dramatic sea level rises,” said Dr. Bieito Fernández Castro, a lecturer at University of Southampton who leads the SPG project, as reported by The Guardian.

One of the projects will develop detailed computer simulations of real-world data to evaluate the reliability of prospective early warning signals.

“We will make use of real-world examples of past tipping points to better understand these events,” said David Thornalley, a professor of ocean and climate science at University College London.

Another team will develop models to pinpoint where and when climate tipping points might happen.

“Forecasting tipping points is a formidable challenge,” said Dr. Reinhard Schiemann, associate professor of climate science at University of Reading. “But the fantastic range of teams tackling this challenge from different angles, yet working together in a coordinated fashion, makes this programme a unique opportunity.”

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World’s Richest Nations Are ‘Exporting Extinction’ With Demand for Agricultural and Forestry Imports: Study

Posted on by February 18, 2025

The richest countries in the world are “exporting extinction” by destroying 15 times more biodiversity globally than they do within their own borders, according to a new Princeton University study.

The researchers found that 13.3 percent of biodiversity loss worldwide came from the consumption of high-income countries, a press release from Princeton said.

“Biodiversity loss has accelerated at an alarming rate in recent decades, driven largely by human activities such as clearing forests to grow crops or harvest timber. While countries often degrade ecosystems within their own borders through these activities, they also play a significant role in driving habitat loss overseas by outsourcing agricultural production, i.e., importing food or timber from other countries, thereby leading those other countries to destroy their forests to produce the exports,” the press release said.

The study is the first to quantify the degree of countries’ contributions to worldwide biodiversity loss when they shift the environmental impact of their consumption abroad.

The researchers looked at how 24 high-income countries impacted 7,593 forest-dependent animal species, from mammals and reptiles to birds. They integrated economic trade data with deforestation maps derived from satellites and information on species’ ranges from 2001 to 2015. By integrating the information, they were able to pinpoint severe biodiversity loss “hotspots” and quantify how much of each species’ habitat loss was attributable to the individual country’s imports.

“Tracing the impacts that countries have on the environment outside of their borders is difficult to do,” said lead author of the study Alex Wiebe, a doctoral student in Princeton’s Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, in the press release. “By combining satellite imagery with economic and biodiversity data, we are now able to measure and map exactly where countries impact species around the world for the first time.”

A scarlet-bellied mountain tanager. Alex Wiebe

The findings revealed that deforestation driven by the countries’ imports of crops and timber from beyond their borders caused over 13 percent of range loss for forest-dependent vertebrates worldwide, in addition to domestic biodiversity loss.

Each of these nations caused an average level of biodiversity loss that was 15 times higher than their own domestic impacts. The United States, France, Germany, China and Japan were among the top contributors. Eighteen of the two dozen countries had higher global than domestic effects on biodiversity loss.

“By importing food and timber, these developed nations are essentially exporting extinction,” said David Wilcove, the study’s co-author and a professor of ecology, evolutionary biology and public affairs at Princeton. “Global trade spreads out the environmental impacts of human consumption, in this case prompting the more developed nations to get their food from poorer, more biodiverse nations in the tropics, resulting in the loss of more species.”

The findings also showed that nations tend to have the biggest impact on species living in the nearest tropical regions.

U.S. consumption had the largest effect on Central American wildlife, while consumption by Japan and China strongly impacted Southeast Asia’s rainforest species.

The results also highlighted the harmful impacts international trade has on endangered species. The researchers discovered that over half of the ranges of a quarter of critically endangered species were lost due to international consumption over the course of the study period.

“By increasingly outsourcing their land use, countries have the ability to affect species around the world, even more than within their own borders,” Wiebe explained.  “This represents a major shift in how new threats to wildlife emerge.”

Wilcove highlighted the necessity of collaboration between exporting and importing countries in order to improve habitat conservation and boost the sustainability of trade practices.

”Global trade in food and timber is not going to stop,” Wilcove said. “What’s important is for the importing nations to recognize the environmental impacts this trade has on the exporting countries and to work with those countries to reduce those impacts. All nations stand to benefit by promoting habitat protection and sustainable agriculture because biodiversity benefits all nations.”

The study, “Global biodiversity loss from outsourced deforestation,” was published in the journal Nature.

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