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☆ U.S. and UAE sign strategic partnership deal to spur $100 billion in clean energy investment
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Solar panels are set up in the solar farm at the University of California, Merced, in Merced, California, August 17, 2022. ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — The United States and United Arab Emirates on Tuesday announced the signing of a strategic partnership that will see $100 billion mobilized to develop 100 gigawatts of clean energy by 2035. The deal, signed during the Adipec energy conference in Abu Dhabi, is entitled the "Partnership for Accelerating Clean Energy" (PACE) and encompasses four main pillars: the development of clean energy innovation and supply chains, managing carbon and methane emissions, nuclear energy, and industrial and transport decarbonization. "Today President Biden again demonstrated his deep commitment to ensuring a global clean energy future and long-term energy security as the United States and United Arab Emirates announced a robust partnership to ensure the swift and smooth transition toward clean energy and away from unabated fossil fuels," the White House statement said. The two countries will set up an "expert group" to "identify priority projects, remove potential hurdles, and measure PACE's progress in achieving its goal of catalyzing $100 billion in financing, investment, and other support and deploying globally 100 gigawatts of clean energy," it said.

"Brazil is ready to retake its leadership in the fight against the climate crisis," Lula told a crowd of supporters in Sao Paulo. Silva said that Brazil would demand rich countries provide financing to poor countries to respond to climate change and give compensation for permanent "loss and damage" from climate change. Under Lula, Brazil will also discuss expanding its national targets for cutting climate-related emissions, said Silva, his former environment minister from 2003 to 2008. The firm, with roughly 237 billion euros ($234 billion) in assets under management, only owned about 100 million euros in Brazilian sovereign bonds when the prohibition took effect. Environmental advocates also cheered Lula's proposals for the Amazon, but cautioned that his agenda would face enormous political resistance.

☆ Explainer: COP27: what's on the U.N. climate talks agenda
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Valerie Volcovici | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

FOSSIL FUELS AND BACKSLIDINGCountries at last year's COP26 talks agreed for the first time to "phase down" coal production and trim other fossil fuel subsidies. Voluntary side deals also touted plans to curb fossil fuel financing and to limit planet-warming methane emissions, chiefly from the fossil fuel and agriculture industries. Following a breakthrough at the weekend as this year's summit began, the issue for the first time is part of the U.N. talks' formal agenda. ADAPTING TO A WARMER WORLDHigh-income countries have yet to meet their pledge to deliver $100 billion a year in climate finance. Low-income and climate-vulnerable countries want to ensure that the share spent on adaptation is doubled by 2025 - a pledge made at last year's U.N. climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland.

☆ Brazil's Lula to send reps to COP27 climate summit after election win
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SAO PAULO, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will send representatives to next month's COP27 United Nations climate summit, allied environmentalist Marina Silva said on Monday, a day after the left-wing former president won a third term. The congresswoman-elect told Reuters in an interview that Lula would "definitely send broad representation" even if it was not an official delegation ahead of his Jan. 1 inauguration. Reporting by Jake Spring Editing by Brad HaynesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Greta Thunberg: COP27 an opportunity for "greenwashing, lying and cheating"
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Gloria Dickie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg speaks with British journalist Samira Ahmed (not pictured) on stage at the Royal Festival Hall during the launch event of her new book "The Climate Book", during The Southbank Centre’s London Literature Festival, in London, Britain, October 30, 2022. REUTERS/Henry NichollsLONDON, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Climate activist Greta Thunberg on Sunday called out next month's United Nations climate summit in Egypt for being "held in a tourist paradise in a country that violates many basic human rights." Speaking at the London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre where she was promoting her new book, "The Climate Book", 19-year-old Thunberg dismissed the looming climate summit, known as COP27, as an opportunity for "people in power... to [use] greenwashing, lying and cheating." While Thunberg did attend protests in Glasgow last year for COP26, she said she won't attend COP27, scheduled to be held from Nov. 6 to Nov. 18 in Sharm El Sheikh. Thunberg rose to prominence in 2018 at the age of 15 by staging school strikes in her native Sweden, becoming the face of the youth activist climate movement.

☆ Tougher Rules on Methane Leaks Coming, but Low-Output Wells Might Catch a Break
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Timothy Puko | Photographs Ross Mantle For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON—The Biden administration is nearing completion of its long-awaited proposal to curb methane gas emissions, setting the stage for a fight over how strictly the government should regulate low-producing oil and gas wells. The plan, which industry lobbyists expect could be released during the United Nations climate summit in Egypt next month, is aimed at reducing leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that traps roughly 85 times more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.

☆ U.S. climate envoy Kerry: King Charles at COP27 would be 'very powerful'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - It would be "very powerful" if King Charles attended the COP27 climate summit in Egypt, U.S. special climate envoy John Kerry said, adding that the British monarch's credibility and leadership on environmental issues would make a difference. The Sunday Times newspaper reported at the time he had been told not to go by then prime minister Liz Truss. A spokeswoman for new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Friday she was not aware the advice provided under the previous government had changed. "I know that his being there would make a difference ... because he has credibility, because he has been a long-term leader," said Kerry, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate. "Many people would be expecting the prime minister of the UK not just to attend COP but to use it as an opportunity to pull world leaders together," he said.

☆ Claude Monet, Larry Fink, and Ted Cruz: Climate stunts grab headlines but can they get results?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

That was an improvement over the previous year, but still not nearly enough given the threat the climate crisis presents for humanity, Hu told Insider. "I could spend 20 minutes talking about the destruction from climate change. "More people are aware of this climate crisis and that we have to do something about it because of our actions," Harris said. "Journalists don't report on the climate crisis like it is an emergency. Ridiculous stunts like the art action gets the climate crisis into the headlines and millions of people talking."

☆ In COP27 host Egypt, Red Sea coral reefs resilient but under stress
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Mariam Rizk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] General view of a hotel with pools in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh town as the city prepares to host the COP27 summit next month, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt October 20, 2022. REUTERS/Sayed Sheasha/File PhotoHURGHADA, Egypt, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Egypt hosts next month's COP27 climate summit at a Red Sea resort, where climate change and human activity are threatening one of the world's most prized coral reefs. These Red Sea reefs, which make up about 5% of the global reef cover, contain the most diversity of species outside of Southeast Asia. "We have in Egypt coral reefs that will be among the last remaining in the world, which means it will provide hope for humanity that a unique ecosystem like this remains alive," Hanafy said. But the Red Sea reefs face other threats, including scuba divers.

Sunak became prime minister on Monday, and has delayed an autumn fiscal statement to Nov. 17 as he looks to tackle a cost-of-living crisis and restore international economic credibility damaged in the short tenure of his predecessor Liz Truss. Truss had been expected to attend, but on Thursday Sunak's Downing Street office said the new prime minister was not planning to go to the summit. "The Prime Minister is not expected to attend the summit in Egypt due to other pressing domestic commitments, including preparations for the autumn statement," a Downing Street spokesperson said. The spokesperson said that Britain remained "absolutely committed to supporting COP27 and leading international action to tackle climate change and protect nature," having hosted the COP26 summit in Glasgow last year. The opposition Labour Party criticised Sunak's decision to skip the summit, with its climate change policy spokesperson calling it a "big mistake."

☆ World 'nowhere near' hitting climate targets, U.N. warns
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Chantal Da Silva | Chantal Da Silva Is A Breaking News Editor For Nbc News Digital Based In London. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

The world is "nowhere near" hitting its targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions, putting it on track to soar past the limit for global warming countries committed to in the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement, the United Nations has warned. But the impact of countries' pledges to ramp up their climate fight is falling short, scientists behind the report warned. “We are still nowhere near the scale and pace of emission reductions required to put us on track toward a 1.5 degrees Celsius world,” Simon Stiell, head of the U.N. climate office, said in a statement. But it found that just 24 new or updated climate plans were submitted by countries since COP 26. “The fact that only 24 new or updated climate plans were submitted since COP 26 is disappointing," said Stiell.

☆ UN warns 'time is running out' as greenhouse gases surge
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Hikes in the atmospheric concentration of all three greenhouse gases - carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide - outstripped the average increase over the past decade, it showed, meaning they are now all at new record levels. Concentrations of the main greenhouse gas carbon dioxide rose by 2.5 parts per million to 415.7 - a level not seen since at least 3 million years ago when the Earth was much warmer. The jump in the potent, heat-trapping gas methane was the highest since records began in 1983, the report said. Greenhouse gases are responsible for warming the planet and triggering extreme weather events like heatwaves and intense rainfall. The WMO said scientists are investigating the reason for the exceptional hike in methane levels of 18 parts per billion to 1,908 last year following a similar increase in 2020.

☆ COP27: World on track to increase emissions 10.6% by 2030 - UN report
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Gloria Dickie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says a 43% reduction in emissions by 2030 is needed to limit warming to 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial temperatures. "At the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow last year, all countries agreed to revisit and strengthen their climate plans," said Simon Stiell, executive secretary of UN Climate Change in a statement. "The fact that only 24 new or updated climate plans were submitted since COP26 is disappointing." The latter, which sees most emissions come from deforestation and peatland clearance, now says it will cut emissions levels by at least 31.89% by 2030. Last year's UN assessment found countries were on track to up emissions by 13.7% by 2030.

☆ Mexico to discuss lithium, auto industry with U.S. climate envoy Kerry
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry attends a meeting ahead of COP27 climate summit in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo October 3, 2022. REUTERS/Justin MakangaraMEXICO CITY, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Mexico will speak with U.S. climate envoy John Kerry about lithium, batteries and the automotive industry when Kerry visits the northwestern state of Sonora on Friday, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Monday. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe Sonora Plan also aims to develop the electric car industry in the agricultural state. While Mexico nationalized lithium reserves earlier this year, experts say it could take years for the newly created state firm to start production. Lithium batteries are not currently produced by any Latin American country at a commercial scale.

View of a COP27 sign on the road leading to the conference area in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh town as the city prepares to host the COP27 summit next month, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt October 20, 2022. The Nov. 6-18 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh is the first annual U.N. climate conference to be held after the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. CONCRETE BARRIERAnother concern among activists is the difficulty ordinary citizens may face accessing Sharm el-Sheikh. A petition led by 12 Egypt-focussed rights groups has called on Egypt to address restrictions on civil society, saying "effective climate action is not possible without open civic space". "Certainly we're very alive to the fact that Sharm el-Sheikh is an enclosed space, very controlled, very curated," she said.

WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Over 100 U.S. environmental groups on Monday urged top U.S. climate diplomat John Kerry to support the creation of a fund that would compensate countries that have experienced economic and physical loss from climate change, a key demand of vulnerable countries at the upcoming COP27 climate summit in Egypt. The United States and European Union, the world's third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, are facing pressure from lower-income nations to soften their long-standing resistance to compensation for the "loss and damage" wrought by floods, rising seas and other climate change-fueled impacts. "We also think you need to examine the existing institutions and see what the what the gaps are." Egypt, host of the United Nations' climate negotiations, has appointed the environment ministers of Chile and Germany to come up with a plan for including the controversial loss and damage topic on the formal summit agenda. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Valerie Volcovici; Editing by Aurora EllisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EU to back climate compensation talks at U.N. summit - document
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Oct 21 (Reuters) - The European Union will support discussion of financial compensation for vulnerable nations bearing the brunt of climate change at next month's U.N. climate summit, a draft document showed, a potential breakthrough for countries pushing for such talks. The EU and United States, the world's third and second-biggest polluters respectively, have historically resisted steps that could assign legal liability or lead to compensation for climate impacts including droughts and floods that are disproportionately hurting poor nations. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterIt remained vague, however, on what these talks would deliver, and whether the COP27 summit should launch the climate compensation fund that dozens of developing countries have called for. "Action and support for vulnerable countries, populations and vulnerable groups needs to be further scaled up," the document said. EU countries' climate ministers meet on Monday to attempt to approve their final negotiating position.

☆ London's mayor slams global leaders for 'dragging feet' on climate
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Adam Jourdan | Thomson Reuters | Regional Bureau Chief In South Latin America With Previous Experience Leading Corporate News Coverage In China | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

London Mayor Sadiq Khan speaks during the opening of the C40 World Mayors Summit to bold action on climate change, in Buenos Aires, Argentina October 20, 2022. REUTERS/Tomas CuestaBUENOS AIRES, Oct 20 (Reuters) - London Mayor Sadiq Khan, speaking at a climate summit in Argentina, slammed global policymakers on Thursday for "dragging their feet" on environmental policy, amid fears that momentum to tackle climate change has stalled in the face of economic turmoil. Climate Change Conference, known as COP27, with concerns over fuel security and rising costs exacerbated by the war in Ukraine overriding climate goals. A report on Wednesday from global nonprofit research group World Resources Institute found that current global plans to fight climate change, known as nationally determined contributions, would fall well short of Paris Agreement targets. "The climate emergency isn't a tomorrow issue, it's right here today on our doorstep," Khan said.

LONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Companies worth half of total global market capitalistion are now disclosing environmental data after a 42% year-on-year rise in the number of firms reporting, new data published on Wednesday showed. Non-profit environmental disclosure platform CDP said more than 18,700 companies -- the highest yet since CDP launched in 2000 -- and worth a combined $60.8 trillion disclosed data on climate change, deforestation and water security in 2022. The data is also crucial for climate negotiators, including at next month's United Nations climate summit, COP27, to assess progress and spot laggards. However, despite more companies disclosing environmental data, few are providing sufficient information. The United States, China, Japan, Britain and Brazil topped the list of countries for corporate disclosures in 2022, CDP said on Wednesday.

☆ 'Massive gaps' seen in countries' plans to tackle climate change -study
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Timothy Gardner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The 2015 pact launched at a U.N. global climate summit requires 194 countries to detail their plans to fight climate change in what are known as nationally determined contributions, or NDCs. In pledges made through September, the NDCs would reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases only 7% from 2019 levels by 2030, said the report titled "The State of NDCs: 2022." It was written by the World Resources Institute (WRI) global nonprofit research group. She added that the COVID-19 pandemic and economic woes may have mostly capped countries' ambitions to boost their NDCs since 2021. Countries in the Paris Agreement are required to update their NDCs by 2025.

And demand for the greener fuel has dried up, according to Reuters interviews with nine LNG market analysts, industry officials and traders. Several gas drillers, including in the world’s top gas producer the United States, told Reuters they have invested in finding and plugging greenhouse gas emissions associated with production, transport and processing. Since Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, gas prices have soared about 25% in the United States and 32% in Europe . To export gas, the fuel must be supercooled into LNG and then shipped across the sea, a process that produces substantial additional greenhouse gas emissions. Other U.S. LNG suppliers, like Cove Point LNG and Cameron LNG, also told Reuters they are not certifying their cargoes.

☆ HSBC’s COP26 Climate-Change Ads Were Misleading, U.K. Watchdog Says
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Dieter Holger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A U.K. advertising watchdog ruled that HSBC Holdings PLC posted misleading advertisements in the run-up to last year’s United Nations climate summit, serving a warning to companies marketing their environmental credentials. In October 2021, ahead of the U.N. Climate Change Conference, or COP26, in Glasgow, HSBC UK placed ads promoting its efforts to plant trees and supply financing to achieve net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions. “Climate...

☆ E-bus deal puts Oslo on track for zero-emissions public transport goal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Victoria Klesty | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The transport push entails replacing its diesel-fuelled buses with 450 electric ones, under a 500 million crown ($47 million) programme that Sirin Stav, Vice-Mayor responsible for environment and transport, said will save the city money over the long term. "The maintenance is cheaper, it's also cheaper for the operators of the electric buses," she said. Ingvild Roerholt, an adviser on transport questions at ZERO, a Norwegian environmental group, said the bus rollout marked an important step forward for the city. "However, it is important that Oslo going forward makes sure there is transparency in how much emissions are associated with the production of these ferries and vehicles," she added. ($1 = 10.7344 Norwegian crowns)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Victoria Klesty, editing by Gwladys Fouche and John StonestreetOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Nigeria floods: 76 die in Anambra fleeing rising water levels
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

People stranded due to floods following several days of downpours In Kogi Nigeria, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. Lokoja the capital city of Kogi state is experiencing the worse flood ever, and body is saying anything. In neighboring Nasarawa state, which is also grappling with flood water cascading down the River Benue, farmers are counting their losses from ravaged farmlands. Pictures from Kogi state flood. pic.twitter.com/frjiyBOYkr — Adenike Titilope Oladosu (@the_ecofeminist) October 5, 2022Climate activists are intensifying the call for climate finance to address Nigeria’s climate crisis.

☆ Nearly half of the coal industry is still on an expansion course in 'reckless’ mining rush
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-06 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas is the chief driver of the climate crisis. An annual update from Urgewald and 40 partner NGOs published Thursday found that 490 of the 1,064 companies on its Global Coal Exit List were pursuing new coal power plants, coal mines or new coal transport infrastructure. The research, which represents the world's most comprehensive public database on the coal industry, said less than 3% of those surveyed had announced timely coal exit dates. "Pursuing new coal projects in the midst of a climate emergency is reckless, irresponsible behavior," said Heffa Schuecking, director of Urgewald. To be sure, the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas is the chief driver of the climate crisis.

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