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☆ Global Forest Loss Remains High, Despite Recent Progress
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Manuela Andreoni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Despite major progress in protecting vast tracts of rainforest, the world failed again last year to significantly slow the pace of global forest destruction, according to a report issued on Thursday. Record wildfires in Canada and expanding agriculture elsewhere offset big gains in forest protection in Brazil and Colombia, the report found. The annual survey by the World Resources Institute, a research organization, found that the world lost 9.1 million acres of primary tropical forest in 2023, equivalent to an area almost the size of Switzerland, about 9 percent less than the year before. But the improvement failed to put the world on course to halt all forest loss by 2030, a commitment made by 145 nations at a global climate talks in Glasgow in 2021 and reaffirmed by all countries last year.

Organizations: World Resources Institute Locations: Canada, Brazil, Colombia, Switzerland, Glasgow

At least 112 people have been killed by wildfires in central Chile, leading its president to declare two days of national mourning. Scientists say climate change makes the heat waves and drought now hitting South America more likely — and both contribute to wildfires by drying out the plants that feed the blazes. “Climate change has made droughts more common,” said Mitchard. Climate change makes stronger El Niños more likely, said Mitchard, and droughts caused by it are likelier to be more intense. And the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has found that globally, extreme heat waves happen five times more often because of human-caused global warming.

Persons: Edward Mitchard, ”, We’ve, Mitchard, — Organizations: South America, University of Edinburgh School of Geosciences, it's, World Resources Institute, Associated Press Locations: Chile, Colombia, CHILE, Santiago, Scotland, South America, Belgium, AP.org

☆ Norway is gearing up to mine precious metals from the depths of its ocean in a world first
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-09 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Norway is set to become the first country to move forward with deep-sea mining in its waters. Industry experts don't expect deep-sea mining to start before at least the early 2030s. It could open 108,000 square miles of Norway's national waters to commercial deep-sea mining, per the BBC. AdvertisementThe industry would seek to collect rare minerals like lithium, scandium, and cobalt from nodules and crust found on the ocean floors. AdvertisementThere are very few places in the world where these rare minerals can be found on the surface.

Persons: —, Energy Terje Aasland, Walter Sognnes, Lise Øvreås, Michael Norton, Odd Kristian Dahle Organizations: Service, BBC, Petroleum, Energy, Politico, European Union, Guardian, World Resources Institute, University of Bergen, EASAC, Association of Norwegian Fishermen, Democratic Locations: Norway, Norwegian, Democratic Republic of Congo

The first option in the draft is listed as "an orderly and just phase-out of fossil fuels". The second option calls for "accelerating efforts towards phasing out unabated fossil fuels". "I don't think we're going to leave Dubai without some clear language and some clear direction on shifting away from fossil fuels," he added. China's fossil fuel emissions rose after it lifted COVID-19 restrictions, while India's rise was a result of power demand growing faster than its renewable energy capacity, leaving fossil fuels to make up the shortfall. "Leaders meeting at COP28 will have to agree rapid cuts in fossil fuel emissions even to keep the 2C target alive," he said.

Persons: Stephane Mahe, Jean Paul Prates, Patrick Pouyanne, Jennifer Morgan, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, David Waskow, Exeter, Pierre Friedlingstein, Kate Abnett, William James, Valerie Volcovici, Elizabeth Piper, Katy Daigle Organizations: REUTERS, Petrobras, European, Oxford University, Saudi Arabia's Energy, Bloomberg, World Resources, University of Exeter, Reuters, Thomson Locations: France, Montoir, Bretagne, Saint, Nazaire, DUBAI, COP28, Brazil's, United States, European Union, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Dubai, India, China, Paris

☆ Satellites are the new climate police for oil and gas polluters
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Fifty oil and gas companies pledged to zero out methane emissions by 2030 at the UN climate summit. Satellites are the next tool that will hold oil and gas companies accountable in their promise to cut methane emissions and slow global warming. Many state-owned oil companies signed on, including the UAE's Adnoc, as well as Saudi Arabia's Saudi Aramco. This, in turn, means oil and gas companies responsible for the plumes can be notified faster and potentially take action. The country's state-owned oil companies are also absent from the "decabonization charter" announced in Dubai.

Persons: Adnoc, Catherine Boudreau, Erin Snodgrass, Michael Bloomberg, Sultan Al Jaber, Peter Dejong, Fred Krupp, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Melanie Robinson, Robinson Organizations: ExxonMobil, Shell, Service, United, Saturday, Environmental Defense Fund, Bloomberg, UN, Summit, EDF, IEA, RMI, European Union, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, EU, Russia —, World Resources Institute Locations: Saudi Aramco, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Los Angeles, Saudi, Argentina, EU, Glasgow, Scotland, China, Russia

We need to implement food systems approaches throughout COP28," said Joao Campari, global leader of food practice at the World Wildlife Fund. Doing so could also unlock financial investment in tackling food emissions, said Saswati Bora, global director for regenerative food systems at the Nature Conservancy. TACKLING METHANEA key goal for advocates is reducing methane emissions from food sectors like livestock production and food waste. Countries should also make stronger commitments in NDCs on food waste, said Liz Goodwin, director of food loss and waste at the World Resources Institute. Food waste generates half of all global food system emissions according to a March study published in the journal Nature Food.

Persons: David Swanson, Joao Campari, NDCs, Patty Fong, Saswati Bora, Bora, John Tauzel, Tauzel, Liz Goodwin, Goodwin, Leah Douglas, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, United Nations, Food, Agriculture Organization, FAO, World Wildlife Fund, Conference of, United, United Arab Emirates, Global Alliance, Nature Conservancy, COP26, Environmental Defense Fund, World Resources Institute, Thomson Locations: Corcoran , California, U.S, Dubai, COP28, United Arab, United States, India, China, Canada, NDCs

☆ A Climate Summit Begins With Fossil Fuels, and Frustration, Going Strong
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( David Gelles | More About David Gelles | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

As leaders from nearly every nation on the planet gather on Thursday in the United Arab Emirates to confront global warming, many are carrying a sense of disillusionment into the annual climate summit convened by the United Nations. Countries talk about the need to cut the pollution that is dangerously heating the planet, but emissions are reaching record highs this year. Rich countries have pledged to help poor countries transition away from coal, oil and gas, but have largely failed to fulfill their promises for financial aid. After 27 years of meetings, countries still can’t agree to stop burning fossil fuels, which scientists say is the main driver of climate change. “There is skepticism of this COP — where it is and who is running it,” said Ani Dasgupta, president of the World Resources Institute, a research organization.

Persons: ”, Ani Dasgupta Organizations: United, United Nations, World Resources Institute Locations: United Arab Emirates

CNN —The United States is receiving criticism for contributing an “embarrassing” amount of money to a new climate fund adopted Thursday at the COP28 talks in Dubai, offering a pledge more than five times lower than the United Arab Emirates . Some countries pledged money to the fund right after it was agreed. Money from rich nations must now begin flowing into the fund, they said. Several wealthy nations, including the United States, have been reluctant to tie countries’ obligations to their historic emissions. It’s also been contentious because wealthy nations have expressed concern that paying for such a fund could be seen as admission of climate liability.

Persons: Sultan Al Jaber, ”, Ani Dasgupta, Dasgupta, ” “, ” Dasgupta, Mohamed Adow, ” Adow, “, Biden, John Kerry, ” Tom Evans, ” Evans, “ they’re, It’s, Al Jaber —, ADNOC —, Al Jaber Organizations: CNN, United, United Arab Emirates, World Bank, Japan, World Resources Institute, Republican, Republicans, US Locations: United States, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, United Arab, Germany, UAE, COP28, Egypt

Greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels are the biggest cause of climate change. "We have a world which has more fossil fuels than ever," said Ani Dasgupta, president of the World Resources Institute, a climate NGO. U.S. officials and others are hopeful a recent climate deal between the U.S. and China may also set a positive tone for the talks. Another test is whether wealthy nations announce money for the fund at COP28 - to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. "Speaking from previous experience, unfortunately most of the global agreements, most of the global climate related pledges went uncompleted," said Najib Ahmed, National Consultant at Somalia's Climate Ministry.

Persons: Sultan al, Jaber, ADNOC, Ani Dasgupta, Narendra Modi, Britain's King Charles, Joe Biden, Gayane, Najib Ahmed, Valerie Volcovici, Josie Kao Organizations: OPEC, United Nations, International Energy Agency, BBC, World Resources Institute, Indian, European Union, Reuters, U.S, FINANCE, EU, Climate Ministry, “, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, WASHINGTON, BRUSSELS, Dubai, UAE, U.S, China, India

☆ Are the COP climate summits working? These countries are going to the courts, instead
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Ella Nilsen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

“It is a recipe for permanent climate chaos and suffering.”Yet the UN climate summit, known as COP, is tedious. Even fierce climate advocates who agree COP should be more ambitious still believe the summit is a powerful and worthwhile endeavor. “There is a lot of questioning whether this process will deliver or not,” Ani Dasgupta, president and CEO of international climate nonprofit World Resources Institute, told CNN. In this June 2017 photo, President Donald Trump after announcing his intention to abandon the Paris Agreement in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC. Doug Mills/The New York Times/ReduxStill, former and current US negotiators say climate diplomacy has helped keep the world’s temperature from reaching truly alarming highs.

Persons: António Guterres, ” Guterres, Paris, Payam Akhavan, ” Akhavan, ” Ani Dasgupta, ’ COP’s, ”, Sue Biniaz, John Kerry, Frances F, Denny, Biniaz, ” Biniaz, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Doug Mills, Jonathan Pershing, William, Flora Hewlett, Pershing, ” Pershing, “, Todd Stern, Jens Astrup, Stern, “ It’s, ” Stern, it’s, It’s, Margaretha Wewerinke, Singh, Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Peter Dejong, Hailey Campbell, ’ ”, Campbell Organizations: CNN, United Nations, Law, United, Resources Institute, Yale University, The New York Times, “, ”, White, New York Times, Kerry, Bella Center, Getty, US, Republicans, International Court of Justice Locations: Paris, Small, States, Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Antigua, Barbuda, Dubai, COP28, United States, New Haven , Connecticut, Rose, Washington , DC, Copenhagen, AFP, Europe, Mississippi, Philippines, Sharm el, Sheikh, Egypt, Hawaii, Honolulu

☆ A showdown is brewing over money, oil and carbon. Here's what's at stake at the COP28 climate summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Global temperatures and greenhouse gas emissions continue to break records, with no continent left untouched by more frequent and intense extreme weather events. MoneyClimate finance is always a hotly debated talking point at the U.N. summit and COP28 promises to be no different. She anticipated three main debates around the use of oil, gas and coal — the burning of which is the chief driver of the climate crisis. "So, one is this 'phase out' or 'phase down' [of fossil fuels]. There is no credible scenario where CCS will allow continued use of fossil fuels, let alone expanding oil and gas.

Persons: Sean Gallup, HENRY NICHOLLS, Henry Nicholls, COP28, Alex Scott, Rich, Sultan al, Jaber, LUIS TATO, Luis Tato, Melanie Robinson, Robinson, Sultan Al Jaber, Francois Walschaerts Organizations: AG, Getty, United Arab Emirates, InterContinental, Fossil, Energy Intelligence, Afp, Organization for Economic Cooperation, Development, Getty Images, Abu, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Climate, World Resources Institute, CNBC, CCS Locations: Salzgitter, Germany, Dubai, Bonn, COP28, London, AFP, E3G, Egypt, COP27, UAE, Garissa, Africa, El Nino, Abu Dhabi, WRI, Brussels

The world is heading for considerably less warming than projected a decade ago, but that good news is overwhelmed by much more pain from current climate change than scientists anticipated, experts said. Even though emissions of heat-trapping gases are still rising every year, they’re rising more slowly than projected from 2000 to 2015. “It requires the tearing out the poisoned root of the climate crisis: fossil fuels,” said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Guterres, numerous climate scientists and environmental activists all say what’s needed is a phase-out — or at the very least a phase-down — of coal, oil and gas. “This is throwing the global energy transition and humanity’s future into question.”___Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment.

Persons: That’s, It’s, ”, Niklas Hohne, Bill Hare, Rob Jackson, Ani Dasgupta, ” Dasgupta, Hare, Anne Olhoff, “, ” Jackson, Melanie Robinson, that’s, Johan Rockstrom, Antonio Guterres, Sultan al, Jaber, Greta Thunberg, Adnan Amir, ’ ’, Majid Al Suwaidi, we’ve, Institute’s Hohne, Al Jaber, ” Hohne, Dasgupta, can’t, Inger Andersen, ” ___ Read, Seth Borenstein Organizations: United Nations, United Nations Environment, NewClimate, Stanford University, Project, Resources, UNEP, World Resources Institute, Potsdam Institute, Climate Research, Center for Biological Diversity, Biden Administration, Twitter, AP Locations: Dubai, Paris, Europe, Pakistan, Libya, Arab Emirates, ”, al, greenwashing, Russia, Ukraine

☆ COP28: What you need to know about the 2023 climate summit in Dubai
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Tens of thousands of people are heading to Dubai in early December for COP28, the annual international climate summit convened by the United Nations. While the science behind human-caused climate change was still young, scientists knew even then it would be life-changing. The controversy at COP28The climate summit is hosted at a different location each year. “It tells us clearly that the world is not on track to achieve our global climate goals,” Melanie Robinson, the global climate program director for the World Resources Institute, told CNN. A major debate among the parties has been whether to “phase out” or “phase down” fossil fuels.

Persons: John Kerry, Ian Langsdon, —, United Arab Emirates —, Critics, Al Jaber, Britain's King Charles III, COP28, Sultan Ahmed al Jaber, Aaron Chown, John Kerry —, Al Jaber’s, King Charles III, Pope Francis, Joe Biden, China’s, Jinping, Biden, Xi, Larry Fink, It’s, ” Melanie Robinson, ” Robinson, “, Maya Siddiqui, Nate Warszawski, ”, CNN’s Ivana Kottasová Organizations: CNN, COP28, United Nations, Getty, UN, “ Conference, United, United Arab Emirates, Minister of State, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Buckingham Palace, US, Publishing, decarbonize, Wall, BlackRock, World Resources Institute, Bloomberg, World Bank Locations: Dubai, Le Bourget, Paris, AFP, Berlin, COP21, United Arab, UAE, Abu Dhabi, Buckingham, France, Germany, Japan, Hami city, Xinjiang province, China, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Russia, Iran, Israel, Egypt, COP27

☆ Coal use needs to be slashed seven times faster to meet emissions target, analysis finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Anmar Frangoul | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Published Tuesday, the "State of Climate Action 2023" paints a sobering picture of the challenges that policymakers face as they gear up for the COP28 climate change summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates at the end of November. Tuesday's report takes that 1.5 degrees goal and develops targets for 2030 and 2050 that align with it. The U.N. has previously noted that 1.5 degrees Celsius is viewed as being "the upper limit" when it comes to avoiding the worst consequences of climate change. "Despite decades of dire warnings and wake-up calls, our leaders have largely failed to mobilize climate action anywhere near the pace and scale needed," Boehm added. Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs, refer to individual countries' targets for cutting emissions and adapting to the effects of climate change.

Persons: Aditya Aji, Sophie Boehm, Boehm, tinker, Ani Dasgupta Organizations: AFP, Getty, United Arab Emirates, CNBC, World Resources Institute, UN, ClimateWorks, United Nations Locations: Indonesia, Dubai, United Arab, Paris

BEIJING (AP) — China and the U.S. have pledged to accelerate their efforts to address climate change ahead of a major U.N. meeting on the issue, making a commitment to take steps to reduce emissions of methane and other greenhouse gases besides carbon dioxide. Cooperation between the world's two biggest emitters of greenhouse gases is considered vital to the success of the U.N. climate talks opening in two weeks in Dubai. A climate expert described the agreement by both countries to include methane in their next climate action plans as “a major step." The U.S. and China also said that they and the United Arab Emirates would host a meeting on methane and other greenhouse gases during the upcoming talks in Dubai. “Methane has been notably absent from China’s previous commitment,” David Waskow, the international climate director at the World Resources Institute, said in a statement.

Persons: Joe Biden, Xi, “, ”, ” David Waskow Organizations: BEIJING, U.S, Group, ”, United, World Resources Institute Locations: China, Dubai, Taiwan, Ukraine, Beijing, Washington, U.S, United Arab Emirates

The world is off track in its efforts to curb global warming in 41 of 42 important measurements and is even heading in the wrong direction in six crucial ways, a new international report calculates. On the flip side, public money spent to create more fossil fuel use is going in the wrong direction and faster than it has in the past, said study co-author Kelly Levin, science and data director at the Bezos Earth Fund. The globe has already warmed about 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit) since the mid 19th century. But he said the report shows “we’re really struggling to pick the low-hanging fruit.”___Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment. ___Follow Seth Borenstein on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @borenbears___Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations.

Persons: Kelly Levin, it’s, ” Levin, ”, Joe Thwaites, Katharine Jacobs, ” Jacobs, Justin Mankin, “ we’re, ___ Read, Seth Borenstein Organizations: Climate, World Resources Institute, Fund, United Nations, United, Natural Resources Defense, Arizona State University, Twitter, AP Locations: Canada, South Asia, Dubai, United States, Paris, Ukraine, Dartmouth

☆ Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon Falls to a Five-Year Low
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Manuela Andreoni | More About Manuela Andreoni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Deforestation in the Amazon rainforest in Brazil fell to a five-year low, the country’s National Institute of Space Research announced on Thursday, a sign that Brazil, which has the biggest share of tropical forest in the world, was making progress on its pledge to halt all deforestation by the end of the decade. The decline in tree loss is estimated to have reduced the country’s greenhouse gas emissions by 7.5 percent. “Behind this was a political decision,” Marina Silva, Brazil’s environment minister, said on Thursday at a news conference. “We are changing the image of the country when we change this reality.”The announcement was an encouraging sign that local policies could change the trajectory of global forest loss. The world lost 10.2 million acres of primary forest in 2022, a 10 percent increase from the year before, according to an annual survey by the World Resources Institute.

Persons: ” Marina Silva Organizations: National Institute of Space Research, World Resources Institute Locations: Brazil

☆ Five graphics that show some of the biggest threats facing the natural world
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Flo Cornall | Woojin Lee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

In a series of graphics, we take a look at some of the biggest environmental challenges facing our planet. Global wildlife populations plummeted by 69% on average between 1970 and 2018, according to WWF’s Living Planet Report 2022. Swipe to see more Forest loss Note: These figures do not include regrowth or regeneration of forest. But many are facing threats from pesticides and crop monocultures, as well as the destruction of their habitats. Swipe to see more Bird populations Source: BirdlifeDespite the scale of the challenges, there are countless groups and individuals committed to protecting our planet.

Persons: it’s Organizations: CNN, Resources Institute, Global, UN, University of Sheffield, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, British Trust for Ornithology, Birdlife Locations: California, Hawaii, India

The announcement was made Thursday by the country's Committee on Climate Change, a joint body made up of 18 government ministries. The change will be officially transmitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the international body that works to advance global action on climate change. During the tenure of far-right President Bolsonaro, Brazil backtracked on its Nationally Determined Contribution calculation twice. Brazil’s target under the Paris Agreement is 1.2 billion metric tons of CO2. The former president dismantled Brazil’s environmental agencies in favor of expanding agribusiness, neglecting preservation efforts.

Persons: Jair Bolsonaro, Geraldo Alckmin, Bolsonaro, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Organizations: RIO DE, —, United Nations, Climate, Talanoa Institute, Climate Watch, World Resources Institute, AP Locations: RIO DE JANEIRO, — Brazil, Paris, Brazil, Brasilia

With the world far off track on its 2015 pledge to curb global warming, a new United Nations report central to upcoming climate negotiations details how quickly and deeply energy and financial systems must change to get back on a safer path. “The window of opportunity to secure a livable and sustainable for future for all is rapidly closing,” Friday's report warned. To get there, the report said, “the phase-out of unabated fossil fuels is required,” using a phrase international climate negotiators have shied away from before. “Halting and reversing deforestation” and adopting better crop-growing practices are critical to fighting climate change, the report said. Limiting warming to 1.5 degrees is another window of opportunity that is rapidly closing, the report said.

Persons: ”, Sultan Al Jaber, David Waskow, “, Antonio Guterres, there's, Bill Hare, —, Al Jaber, Tom Evans, ” Evans, Seth Borenstein Organizations: United, World Resources Institute, United Nations, World Meteorological Organization, Twitter, AP Locations: United Nations, India, Paris, Dubai

☆ Climate change: Extreme water stress affects a quarter of humanity and it's poised to get worse
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Hafsa Khalil | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The biggest change in water demand will occur in sub-Saharan Africa according to the report, which projects a 163% increase in water demand by 2050. In North America and Europe, water demand has plateaued, helped by investment in water use efficiency measures. In the US, six states experience extremely high water stress, according to the report. People collect drinking water from in Cape Town on January 19, 2018, during a water crisis which saw the city nearly run dry. The report suggests various measures to prevent water stress spilling into a water crisis.

Persons: ”, Samantha Kuzma, “ I’ve, ” Kuzma, Will Lanzoni, Kuzma, “, Charles, Rodger Bosch, Dieter Gerten, – Organizations: CNN, Ocean Program, UN, Getty, Potsdam Institute, Climate Impact Research Locations: Bahrain, Cyprus, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Lake Mead, Boulder City , Nevada, East, North Africa, Africa, Saharan Africa, North America, Europe, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Charles Iceland, Cape Town, AFP, Vegas, Singapore

☆ High-powered satellites have made blue-carbon credits a reality. But they still face accuracy and scalability issues.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Breakthroughs in satellite technology have helped commercialize blue-carbon credits. Over $50 billion worth of carbon credits have been predicted to be traded annually in the voluntary market, according to McKinsey. Blue carbon, which is stored in coastal and marine ecosystems, has become an increasingly important asset in the fight against the climate crisis. Carbon credits can then be verified and issued faster. Satellite data has to be paired with sonar, divers collecting information, or other field data, she added.

Persons: Philip Davis, Guy Wolf, Oxford University spinout OxCarbon, it's, Wolf, David Gross, you've, Thomas Merriman, Donna Lyndsay, Traganos, It's, Kita's Merriman, Merriman, Zoë Balmforth, Cameron Frayling Organizations: McKinsey ., World Resources Institute, Tech, Oxford University, Bank OxCarbon, Kita, Ordnance Survey Locations: Bahamas, Caribbean, Islamorada , Florida

Nearly 500 square kilometers (193 square miles) of rainforest were cleared in July, a significant fall from the 1,487 square kilometers (574 square miles) cleared last July. There has been a sharp decline in deforestation since Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was inaugurated as president in January. Brazil’s environment minister, Marina Silva, said government policies, including increasing surveillance and fining perpetrators, has played a big role in bringing rates of deforestation down. The reduced rate of deforestation is positive news at a time when the Amazon remains critically vulnerable. In 2022 an area of global tropical forest the size of Switzerland was lost as forest destruction rose by 10% compared to the previous year, according to a recent report from the World Resources Institute’s (WRI) Global Forest Watch.

Persons: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Lula, Jair, Marina Silva, ” Silva, Moraes Almeida, Nelson Almedia Organizations: CNN, Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, Getty, Resources, Watch Locations: Brazilian, Para, Brazil, AFP, Belem, Switzerland

For investors looking to weed out climate laggards from portfolios, these are vital questions but existing guidelines on emissions reporting and new rules due to come in for the United States and Europe are unlikely to provide hard answers. The United States is on track to announce similar rules this year and the corporate standard, first launched in 2001 and revised in 2004, is also embedded in other international emissions reporting standards. Nonetheless, many investors scrutinise carbon emissions data to gauge how polluting a company is, how it compares with rivals and how this might affect its bottom line and share price. Another area of investor concern is how companies account for their own energy use, or Scope 2 emissions. The GHGP allows companies to buy green energy to offset their emissions, using contractual instruments such as renewable energy certificates, and reflect this in their reporting.

Persons: Fabrizio Bensch, Vanessa Bingle, David Lubin, Subaru, SCA's Lubin, Laura Kane, Kane, Jimmy Jia, Jia, abrdn, Pedro Faria, Faria, Pankaj Bhatia, Douglas Gillison, Sumanta Sen, Dan Flynn, David Clarke Organizations: REUTERS, Toyota, Shell, Greenhouse, World Business, Sustainable Development, World Resources Institute, Reuters, Alpha Financial Markets Consulting, Analytics, Subaru, North, Voya Investment Management, Voya, EU, Sustainability, IFRS, Oxford Smith School of Enterprise, Reuters Graphics, U.S . Securities, Exchange, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, United States, Europe, Japan, North America, U.S, Britain, British, EU

Washington is seeking to protect U.S. manufacturers from low-cost competitors in China, including those it suspects of using forced labor, which Beijing denies. Both countries say they should be able to collaborate on climate change regardless of other disagreements. After Pelosi's August trip to Taiwan, a democratically-governed island that China claims as part of its territory, Beijing said it would halt all dialogue with Washington on climate change. The two countries only resumed informal climate talks in November at the COP27 summit in Egypt. During Yellen's visit last month, she made a public push to get China to participate in the UN-run funds to help poorer nations address climate change.

Persons: Kerry, John Kerry, Xie Zhenhua, David Sandalow, Biden, Antony Blinken, Janet Yellen, Li Shuo, Nancy Pelosi, Pelosi's, Alden Meyer, Yellen's, Fang Li, Valerie Volcovici, David Stanway, John Stonestreet Organizations: Observers, UN, U.S, Center, Global Energy, Greenpeace, Trump, ., Centre for Research, Energy, Clean, Global Energy Monitor, World Resources Institute, Thomson Locations: COP28 WASHINGTON, United States, China, Beijing, Washington, Paris, Taiwan, U.S, Xinjiang, Egypt, Singapore

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