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☆ Zimbabwe to cull 200 elephants to feed citizens left hungry by drought
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Zimbabwe has authorized a mass slaughter of elephants to feed citizens left hungry by its worst drought in decades. With nearly half of the country’s population facing the risk of acute hunger, “we are targeting to cull 200 elephants,” Tinashe Farawo, a spokesperson for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority, told CNN on Monday. The move follows a decision in Namibia to cull elephants and other wild animals to relieve food insecurity fueled by a prolonged drought. Zimbabwe is home to more than 84,000 elephants, Farawo said, around double its “capacity of 45,000,” he added. At least 31 people have died in Zimbabwe this year as a result of conflict between humans and wildlife, local media reported.

Persons: Tinashe, Farawo, Sithembiso Nyoni, ” Nyoni, El Niño, ”, ” Farai Maguwu, Keith Lindsay, —, CNN’s Laura Paddison Organizations: CNN, Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority, Botswana’s, Zim Parks, Namibia’s Ministry of Environment, Forestry, Tourism, for Natural Resource Locations: Namibia, Zimbabwe, ”, Africa

☆ Disneyland half marathon runner dies after voicing concern about the heat
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-14 | by ( Ramon Sanchez | Ray Sanchez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Graves’ death may ultimately be part of a disturbing jump in the number of heat-related deaths, which have doubled across the country in recent years. Another child, a 10-year-old, died of a “heat-related medical event” in July while hiking in an Arizona park. ‘Attempted to save his life for about an hour’The Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon started at 5 a.m. last Sunday. “We’re sort of entering a new era of risk perhaps associated with these increasing temperatures,” Howard said. Before Sunday’s half marathon, Graves posted another TikTok video under his popular @calebtravels user name about the arrival of Disney race weekend.

Persons: Bobby Graves, Graves, Caleb, ”, “, ” Graves, Matt Sutter, Jeffrey Howard, Howard, ‘, Mickey, Minnie Mouse, Jacob Boyer, “ It’s, Jeff Gritchen, ” Sutter, Frank Gonzalez, Jessica Good, Sutter, Boyer, messaged, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich, ” Wilson Sonsini, ” Howard, CNN’s Jen Christensen, Natasha Chen, Deidre McPhillips, Mary Gilbert, Jillian Sykes, Dalia Faheid, Taylor Galgano, Zenebou Sylla, Laura Paddison, Amy O’Kurk, Angela Dewan Organizations: CNN, Disney, Anaheim Police, University of Texas, National Weather Service, ”, MediaNews, Orange, Register, Paramedics, Anaheim Fire, Orange County Sheriff’s Department, Georgetown University, Rosati, US Centers for Disease Control Locations: Southern California, Garden Grove, Orange County, Orange, Maine, California, Arizona , Georgia, Nebraska, Arizona, San Antonio, Anaheim, Sutter, “, Austin, Washington, – California, Arizona , Nevada, Texas, Santa Clara County , California

☆ Greenland: Mystery of a mega-tsunami that made the Earth vibrate for 9 days has been solved
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-13 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —It started with a melting glacier that set off a huge landslide, which triggered a 650-foot high mega-tsunami in Greenland last September. And no place was immune; the signal traveled from Greenland to Antarctica in about an hour, he added. Eastern Greenland had never experienced a landslide and tsunami like this before, Svennevig said. The threat goes beyond Greenland, Svennevig said; similar-shaped fjordsexist in other regions, including Alaska, parts of Canada and Norway. Recent rock avalanches in the Arctic as well as in Alpine regions, are “an alarming signal,” she told CNN.

Persons: Stephen Hicks, ”, Seismologists, Søren Rysgaard, Svennevig, Dickson, sloshing, “, Hicks, Paula Snook, ” There’s, Lena Rubensdotter Organizations: CNN, University College London, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Geological Survey Locations: Greenland, Denmark, Dickson, Dickson Fjord, Antarctica, Eastern Greenland, Alaska, Canada, Norway

☆ The controversial plan to regreen a desert
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-08 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The Dutch engineer wants to transform a huge stretch of inhospitable desert into green, fertile land teeming with wildlife. “The only holistic way out of this situation is with large-scale ecological regeneration”So-called desert regreening projects are not new, and this is one of a number around the world seeking to transform arid landscapes. Costfoto/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesFor van der Hoeven, it was further proof his plan could work. “The scale reaches a level that helps prove that restoration can be done on a planetary scale.”It would add to other huge desert regreening projects also underway. The project was scheduled to kick off this December, but conflict has slowed everything down, van der Hoeven said.

Persons: der Hoeven, “, Van, van der Hoeven, Ali Moustafa, ”, Van der, der, it’s, John Liu, Wolfgang Kaehler, Liu, ” Liu, Susan Gardner, Gardner, Alice Hughes, ” Hughes, Raymond Pierrehumbert, Pierrehumbert, — “, Van der Heoven, He’s, Van der Hoeven Organizations: CNN, United Nations, World Bank, UN, Hong Kong University’s School of Biological Sciences, University of Oxford Locations: Dutch, Africa, Asia, Maryland, Dubai, Lake Bardawil, Sinai, Bardawil, Egypt, China, California, Gansu Province, Yongjing, Gansu province, Nairobi, Hong, Gaza

☆ Landslides are destroying multimillion-dollar homes in California, and they’re getting worse
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-07 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The deep landslides beneath the multimillion-dollar homes in Rancho Palos Verdes moved at an almost glacial pace, until they didn’t. This affluent coastal city in Southern California, around 30 miles south of Los Angeles, has long enticed people with its Pacific Ocean views and lush greenery. This February, an atmospheric river dumped record amounts of rain across southern California, triggering hundreds of mudslides and leaving at least nine people dead. In July, a landslide triggered by heavy monsoon rains in India’s southern state of Kerala killed at least 150 people. In Southern California, “people wanted to pretend they lived in the tropics,” he said, “and planted a lot of landscaping that required lots of watering.”Deforestation is another factor.

Persons: Gavin Newsom, Jason Armond, Alexander Handwerger, ”, Gary Griggs, Dave Petley, Dana Point perilously, Ted Soqui, Handwerger, “ We’ve, Griggs, Thomas, Marcio Jose Sanchez, Cyclone Gabriel, Ugur Öztürk, University of Hull’s Petley Organizations: CNN, Rancho Palos Verdes, Bend Community, Rancho Palos, Los Angeles Times, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Palos, University of California, University of Hull, AP, Cyclone, University of Potsdam, German Research Centre, Geosciences, University of Hull’s Locations: Rancho, Southern California, Los Angeles, Rancho Palos Verdes, Palos Verdes, University of California Santa Cruz, England, California, Dana Point, Dana Point , California, Montecito, Montecito , California, New Zealand, Kerala

☆ How antidepressants can make people more vulnerable to heat
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-02 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —When Adelaide Saywell posted on TikTok last month that SSRIs, a commonly prescribed antidepressant medication, could make people more vulnerable to heat, it went viral and sparked a deluge of comments. Adelaide Saywell received a flood of surprised comments when she posted about the link between SSRIs and heat intolerance. Dehydration puts people at risk of heat exhaustion and, in particularly severe cases, heat stroke, which is dangerous and potentially deadly. Sondeep Shankar/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesScientists and doctors are still trying to unpick the complex relationship between SSRIs and heat. It is partly the reason why medical professionals don’t always talk about heat when they prescribe these anti-depressants.

Persons: Adelaide Saywell, “, ”, ” Saywell, Laurence Wainwright, Pope Moseley, Moseley, Sondeep Shankar, Wainwright, don’t, ” Wainwright, Reddit, won’t, Saywell, Judith Joseph, Joseph, ” Joseph, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, University of Oxford, Arizona State University, Bloomberg, Getty

The tragedy is sadly far from unique; extreme heat is turning ordinary activities deadly. Heat is the deadliest type of extreme weather, and the human-caused climate crisis is making heat waves more severe and prolonged. What heat does to your heartVideo Ad Feedback A rise in heat and humidity pushes the heart rate up. In extreme heat, your heart must work much harder to keep your body’s internal temperature stable. Blood flow to your brain decreases in extreme heat as breathing speeds up and blood vessels constrict inside your neck and skull.

Persons: Philip Kreycik, Kreycik, Santiago Mejia, Taylor, We’ve, ”, Matthew Huber, Damian Bailey, Bailey, “, ” Bailey, Laura Paddison, Catharina Giudice, Harvard T.H, it’s, Pope Moseley, ” Moseley, Moseley, they’ve, Giudice, Purdue University’s Huber, ” Huber, Richer, Jane Baldwin, Bharat Venkat, Venkat, Jen Christensen, Mary Gilbert, Angela Dewan, Angela Fritz , Mark Oliver, Henry Zerkis, Angelica Pursley , Yukari Schrickel, Elisa Solinas, Lou Robinson Organizations: CNN, Police, San Francisco Chronicle, Purdue University, Olympic Games, University of South, Harvard, of Public Health, Arizona State University, Purdue, University of California, World Health Organization, UCLA, Mary Gilbert Story Locations: Pleasanton, California, Mecca, Paris, University of South Wales, Chan, West Africa, South Asia, University of California Irvine

☆ The Greek islands are grappling with a water crisis as tourist season kicks into gear
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-23 | by ( Laura Paddison | Chris Liakos | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —The Greek Islands, known for their idyllic towns, rugged landscapes and sun-baked beaches, are in the grip of a serious crisis. “They combine lack of water resources — shallow aquifers, rare rivers or dams — with a tremendous rise in water demand during summer,” he told CNN. Kottakis blamed the crisis on Leros on a failure to maintain the island’s two desalination units, which are both in disrepair. Tourism is “unsustainable and zero-planned,” which is leading to a tremendous rise in water demand, said Mylopoulos, the university professor. Multiple wildfires raged and at least six tourists, including British TV presenter and doctor Michael Moseley and an American tourist, died as high temperatures scorched the Greek islands.

Persons: ”, Dimitris Lianos, Lianos, what’s, Stelios Misinas, Nikitas Mylopoulos, Kostas Lagouvardos, Panagiotis, Krontiras, ” Kottakis, Timotheos Kottakis, Kottakis, Mylopoulos, Michael Moseley, Vassilis Psomas, ” Krontiras, ” CNN’s Allison Chinchar, Brandon Miller, Sara Tonks Organizations: CNN, Reuters, University of Thessaly, National Observatory of, Farmers, Greek Navy Locations: Crete, Kefalonia, Naxos, Prokopios, Greece, Cycaldes, “, National Observatory of Athens, Panagiotis Krontiras, Tinos, —, Lagouvardos, British, American, Sofiko, Corinth, Greece's Peloponnese

☆ Melting polar ice is changing the way the Earth spins, making our days longer
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-15 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The impacts of human-caused climate change are so overwhelming they’re actually messing with time, according to new research. “This is a testament to the gravity of ongoing climate change,” said Surendra Adhikari, a geophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and a report author. These include processes in the planet’s fluid core, the ongoing impact of the melting of huge glaciers after the last ice age, as well as melting polar ice due to climate change. If the world continues to pump out planet-heating pollution, “climate change could become the new dominant factor,” outpacing the moon’s role, he told CNN. They found any influence from the molten core was outweighed by that of climate change.

Persons: ”, Surendra Adhikari, “, Benedikt Soja, , Olivier Marin, ” Adhikari, Mostafa Kiani Shahvandi, Shahvandi, Duncan Agnew, Jacqueline McCleary, It’s Organizations: CNN, National Academy of Sciences, GPS, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Swiss, ETH Zurich, Getty, University of California San, Northeastern University, Zurich’s Soja Locations: Scoresby, East Greenland, AFP, Greenland, Antarctica, University of California San Diego

☆ Climate change is messing with time more than previously thought, scientists find
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-15 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The impacts of human-caused climate change are so overwhelming they’re actually messing with time, according to new research. “This is a testament to the gravity of ongoing climate change,” said Surendra Adhikari, a geophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and a report author. If the world continues to pump out planet-heating pollution, “climate change could become the new dominant factor,” outpacing the moon’s role, he told CNN. They found the impact of climate change on day length has increased significantly. They found any influence from the molten core was outweighed by that of climate change.

☆ It may look like pink Jello but scientists hope this new invention could revolutionize meat
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-09 | by ( Lex Harvey | Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Researchers in South Korea say they’ve developed a new way to make lab-grown meat taste like the real deal. It may look like a transparent, bubble gum pink-colored disc, but scientists hope it could revolutionize the meat on people’s plates. Because the cultured meat is not yet edible, the researchers used an electronic nose, to test the aromas of the cultured meat, and see how they compare to conventional meat. Ron DeSantis banned the sale of lab-grown meat in the state in what he said was an effort to protect farmers and ranchers. In May, Huber’s Butchery in Singapore became the first retail store to sell cultured meat, a shredded chicken by Good Meat made with just 3% cultivated meat.

Persons: they’ve, Milae Lee, Lee, Maillard, ” Lee, ”, Jennifer Jacquet, Ron DeSantis, ” DeSantis, Huber’s Organizations: CNN, Hong, Yonsei University, Nature Communications, Department of Chemical, Biomolecular, Seoul’s Yonsei University, Yonsei University Livestock, UN, University of Miami, Florida Gov, US Department of Agriculture Locations: South Korea, Florida, “, Singapore

☆ The driest desert on the planet is in bloom
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-09 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The Atacama Desert in northern Chile is one of the driest places on Earth, but swaths of its usually barren sand are currently carpeted with a colorful bloom of white and purple flowers. The Atacama Desert is known as the Disierto Florida (the “flowering desert”) because every few years it’s blanketed with flowers, when the right levels of rainfall and temperature coincide to awaken dormant desert seeds. The bloom usually coincides with El Niño, during which temperatures are warmer in the region, leading to more evaporation and, in turn, more rainfall. The desert blooms every couple of years when rainfall and temperatures are the right levels to awaken the dormant seeds. Rodrigo Gutierrez/ReutersThe desert blooms usually happen in the spring, but this year's heavier-than-usual rainfall has brought flowers out early.

Persons: El Niño, Rodrigo Gutierrez, ” Cesar Pizarro Organizations: CNN, Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, Reuters, National Forestry Corporation Locations: Chile, Florida, El, Chilean

☆ Heat waves: Here’s why your AC can’t save you anymore
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-04 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Then came the heat wave. But it is also a lifeline against increasingly brutal heat, the deadliest type of extreme weather. It allows people to live in places where temperatures push close to the limits of survivability and where extreme heat persists even at night. And many electrical grids are being pushed to a breaking point due to increasingly frequent extreme weather and soaring demand for cooling. Heat can affect vital organs and cause heat exhaustion, heat stroke and even death.

Persons: Ida, ”, Jen Brady, Michael Webber, Webber, Brian Stone Jr, Hurricane Ida, Leah Millis, ” Webber, ” Stone, Stone, Kate Gallego, ” Gallego, it’s, Mario Tama, Central’s Brady, —, Ian, “ Organizations: CNN, Climate Central, Climate, University of Texas, Georgia Institute of Technology, “, Service, Authorities, Arizona Public Service, Babcock Locations: Louisiana, New Orleans, Austin, California, Pacific Northwest, Europe, Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Montenegro, New Orleans , Louisiana, Hurricane, Atlanta, Detroit, Phoenix, Phoenix , Arizona, Florida

☆ Antarctic ice sheet: Scientists identify new ‘tipping point,’ warning future sea level rise may be underestimated
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

A tipping point refers to the threshold at which a series of small changes accumulate to push a system beyond a point of no return. A small increase in ocean temperatures can have a very big impact on the amount of melting, the study found. The study does not give time frames for when the tipping point might be reached, nor does it give figures for how much sea level rise can be expected. A slew of research has looked at the vulnerability of this vast continent to the impacts of the climate crisis. “With every small increase in ocean temperature, with every small increase in climate change, we get closer to these tipping points,” he said.

Persons: ”, Alex Bradley, Bradley, Sebnem, Eric Rignot, Ted Scambos Organizations: CNN, British Antarctic Survey, Nature, Getty, University of California, University of Colorado Locations: West Antarctica, East Antarctica, Antarctica, Anadolu, Irvine, University of Colorado Boulder

☆ Climate change: Fossil fuel use and emissions hit record highs as world struggles with deadly heat, storms and fires
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-20 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Last year was “another year of highs in our energy hungry world,” said Juliet Davenport, president of the Energy Institute. Overall, the proportion of fossil fuels in the 2023 global energy mix remained largely the same at 81.5%, down just 0.5% from the previous year. India’s fossil fuel consumption was up 8% last year and, for the first time ever, the country used more coal than Europe and North America, combined. Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesIn China, fossil fuel use soared to a new record high in 2023, up by 6%, as the end of its extended Covid lockdowns led to a rebound in fossil fuels. Fossil fuel use in major advanced economies is likely to have peaked and is beginning to fall, it found.

Persons: ’, Sharma, Anthony Behar, SIPPL, ”, Juliet Davenport, Dhiraj Singh, lockdowns, Simon Varley, Dave Jones Organizations: CNN, Energy Institute, Getty, “, US, Bloomberg, Resources, KPMG Locations: Mecca, Saudi Arabia, India, New Delhi, Queens, New York City, NY, Europe, North America, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, China, Paris

☆ Why some scientists think extreme heat could be behind people disappearing in Greece
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-19 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The following day, the body of an American tourist was found on Mathraki, a small island west of Corfu. As climate change fuels longer and more severe heat waves, scientists are trying to unravel how our brains will cope. But as heat increases, it can have serious effects, including lowering the fluids in the body and decreasing blood flow to the brain, Bailey said. Extreme heat can disrupt typical brain activity, said Kim Meidenbauer, a neuroscientist at Washington State University. Someone who is very fit understands the dangers and carries plenty of water is still gambling if they decide to go on a hike in very high temperatures, Bailey said.

Persons: Michael Mosley, Albert Calibet, ” Petros Vassilakis, ”, Damian Bailey, Bailey, ” Bailey, Jeff Nerby, Mike De Sisti, Kim Meidenbauer, “ You’re, “, ” Meidenbauer, don’t, Jose Guillermo Cedeño Laurent, Ethan Hickman, Jeff Roberson, Stephanie Halasz, Issy Ronald Organizations: CNN, Reuters, University of South, It’s, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, USA, Network, Washington State University, Rutgers School of Public Health Locations: Symi, Greece, Samos, American, Corfu, University of South Wales, Crete, Milwaukee , Wisconsin, Boston, Weldon Spring , Missouri

☆ A water war is looming between Mexico and the US. Neither side will win
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-17 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Under an 80-year-old treaty, the United States and Mexico share waters from the Colorado River and the Rio Grande, respectively. They say the lack of water from Mexico is propelling them into crisis, leaving the future of farming in the balance. Pain in both countriesThe water from Mexico goes to the Falcon and Amistad Reservoirs which straddle the border and provide water to homes as well and farms. To rely only on storms to reduce water scarcity would make Mexico “totally exposed to what nature decides about our water future,” UNAM’s Magnaña Rueda said. Ultimately, there needs to be a recognition that water sharing agreements must adapt to a changing climate, Rueda said.

Persons: Biden, Maria Elena Giner, “, ”, Alfonso Cortez Lara, Giner, “ There’ll, Paul Ratje, Vianey Rueda, Rueda, , ” Rueda, Pain, Amistad, Falcon, Brian Jones, Carlos Kosienski, Jones, Monica De La, ” De, ” De La Cruz, Ted Cruz, John Cornyn —, —, Victor Magaña Rueda, Salvador Alcántar, ” Alcántar, Jose Luis Gonzalez, Sarah Porter, Claudia Sheinbaum, “ We’ve, ” UNAM’s Magnaña Rueda, ” Giner, we’re, Nobody’s, ” CNN’s Brandon Miller, Jack Guy Organizations: CNN, Texas, Water Commission, College of, Rio, Reuters, University of Michigan, American Free Trade, Falcon, “ Farmers, Texas Farm Bureau, Growers, Republican, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Farmers, National Guard, Mexican National Guard, Kyl, for Water Policy, Arizona State University, “ Locations: United States, Mexico, Colorado, Rio, South Texas, Rio Grande, Rocky, Gulf of Mexico, Fort Quitmen, Presidio , Texas, ”, Mexican, Chihuahua, Las Cruces , New Mexico, Reuters Mexico, Amistad, Rio Grande Valley, Texas, Hidalgo County , Texas, Rio Grande Valley . Texas, Starr County , Texas, Monica De La Cruz, ” De La, La, Camargo , Chihuahua

☆ El Niño is dead. Here’s what to expect in the coming months
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-13 | by ( Mary Gilbert | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —El Niño has officially come to an end and the ripples from its demise will shake up weather around the globe. With El Niño out of the spotlight, its opposite is preparing to take center stage later this summer: La Niña. For now, neither La Niña nor El Niño are present and a so-called neutral phase has begun, according to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. Here’s what a summer without El Niño and a budding La Niña could have in store. Luis Tato/AFP/Getty ImagesCalifornia and the western US also typically pick up more rain during El Niño, especially over the winter months.

Persons: CNN — El Niño, Niño, El Niño, Marcio Jose Sanchez, Luis Tato, Laura Paddison Organizations: CNN, El, Getty Images Locations: West, El, Beverly Crest, Los Angeles, California, South America, Africa, Africa’s, Kenya, Garissa, AFP, Getty Images California, US, West Coast

☆ Climate change: Planet endures 12 straight months of unprecedented heat
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-05 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The planet just marked a “shocking” new milestone, enduring 12 consecutive months of unprecedented heat, according to new data from Copernicus, the European Union’s climate monitoring service. Unless planet-warming fossil fuel pollution is slashed, “this string of hottest months will be remembered as comparatively cold,” he said. “We need an exit ramp off the highway to climate hell.”As temperatures surge, global climate commitments are “hanging by a thread,” he warned. The average global temperature over the past 12 months was 1.63 degrees above these pre-industrial levels. But unprecedented heat has already left a trail of death and destruction across the planet this spring.

Persons: Copernicus, Carlo Buontempo, General António Guterres, Guterres, ”, Richard Allan, Ben Clarke, Raj K Raj, Diego Vara, ” Gutteres, ” Guterres, El Niño, Buontempo Organizations: CNN, United Nations, University of Reading, United Arab, Imperial College London’s Grantham Institute, Hindustan Times, Reuters, El, World Meteorological Organization, WMO Locations: New York, Russian, Paris, India, Asia, Mexico, United States, Brazil, Kenya, United Arab Emirates, New Delhi, Cavalhada, Porto Alegre

☆ The plastics industry says chemical recycling could help banish pollution. It’s ‘an illusion,’ critics say
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —A squat, light-colored building in Tigard, Oregon, was supposed to be part of a game-changing new solution for the global plastics industry. And unlike mechanical recycling, where the quality of the product declines each time, chemical recycling promises virgin-quality plastics. Chemical company Dow says it plans to build multiple chemical recycling facilities in the US and Europe, adding as much as 600,000 tons (1.2 billion pounds) of recycling capacity by 2030. “Mechanical recycling simply uses less energy and chemicals than does chemical recycling, making it overall cheaper and less environmentally impactful,” she said. With that kind of industry pressure, said Congdon, it’s easy to see why chemical recycling may be attractive to policymakers.

Persons: Jennifer Congdon, Congdon, “, ”, Big, Yuri Cortez, Davis Allen, what’s, isn’t, Taylor Uekert, Chaideer Mahyuddin, Mike Kemp, Brightmark, NREL’s Uekert, Allen, ” Congdon Organizations: CNN, Regenyx, Plastics, Getty, Climate Integrity, Companies, Chemical, Dow, Oil, Exxon, American Chemistry Council, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Beyond Plastics, ACC, Center Locations: Tigard , Oregon, Venezuela, AFP, Europe, Asia, Banda Aceh, Indonesia, London, Baytown , Texas, Ashley , Indiana, Macon, Bibb , Georgia, Indiana, The Indiana

☆ Ocean water is rushing miles underneath the ‘Doomsday Glacier’ with potentially dire impacts on sea level rise
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica — nicknamed the “Doomsday Glacier” because its collapse could cause catastrophic sea level rise — is the world’s widest glacier and roughly the size of Florida. Thwaites, which already contributes 4% to global sea level rise, holds enough ice to raise sea levels by more than 2 feet. “This process of widespread, enormous seawater intrusion will increase the projections of sea level rise from Antarctica,” he added. Sea ice around Rothera Point, on Adelaide Island to the west of the Antarctic Peninsula. The researchers also used climate models to predict the potential speed of recovery from such extreme sea ice loss and found that even after two decades, not all the ice will return.

Persons: West Antarctica —, It’s, Thwaites, glaciologists —, Irvine —, ”, Eric Rignot, Finland’s, Rignot, Ted Scambos, it’s, James Smith, Noel Gourmelen, Gourmelen, Steve Gibbs, ” Louise Sime Organizations: CNN, National Academy of Sciences, Global, University of California, UC Irvine, University of Colorado, British Antarctic Survey, University of Edinburgh, BAS Locations: West Antarctica, Florida, Irvine, Antarctica, University of Colorado Boulder, Thwaites, Rothera, Adelaide

☆ A deadly heat wave worsened Gaza’s humanitarian crisis. It was fueled by climate change, new data shows
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The WWA report divided the heat waves into three areas: West Asia, the Philippines and a region spanning South and Southeast Asia. However, the impact of climate change there was greater, increasing temperatures by about 1.2 degrees. Climate change also played a pronounced role in this region, according to the analysis, making the heat 45 times more likely and 0.85 degrees Celsius hotter. “Many cities have seen extreme losses of green space,” Pereira said, increasing the impacts of extreme heat on residents. If not, she added, “extreme heat will lead to even greater suffering in Asia.”

Persons: Jehad, ” Friederike Otto, El, Idrees Mohammed, Otto said, ” Otto, Carolina Pereira Marghidan, ” Pereira, ”, Mariam Zachariah Organizations: CNN, WWA, Getty, Grantham Institute, Climate, Environment Locations: Gaza, West Asia, Philippines, South, Southeast Asia, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Rafah, Anadolu, Delhi, Manila, Asia, West, Raipur, India, AFP, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, , Bangladesh, Thailand

☆ Ancient trees unlock an alarming new insight into our warming world
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

And it’s an alarming signal as some scientists warn 2024 is on track to be be even hotter still. Under the Paris Agreement in 2015, countries agreed to restrict global warming to 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels. Using data taken from temperature instruments during this period, the scientists found the Northern Hemisphere summer in 2023 was 2.07 degrees Celsius warmer than the pre-industrial period. To do this, they used detailed sets of tree ring records from thousands of trees across nine regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including North America and Scandinavia, but excluding the Tropics which lack good tree data. While the study can place the extraordinary Northern Hemisphere heat into historical context, it cannot be applied on a global scale, Esper said.

Persons: Bruna Casas, don’t, Richard A, Brooks, Jan Esper, ”, Kim Cobb, Esper, “ I’m, Laura Paddison Organizations: CNN, Northern, Central America, Getty, Johannes Gutenberg University, Brown University, Southern Hemisphere Locations: Paris, Northern, North America, Scandinavia, Europe, Central, Barcelona, Spain, Tokyo, AFP, Germany

☆ ‘World’s largest’ plant to suck carbon out of the air and turn it into stone opens in Iceland
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Direct air capture, or DAC, is a technology designed to suck in air and strip out the carbon using chemicals. Climeworks plans to transport the carbon underground where it will be naturally transformed into stone, locking up the carbon permanently. ClimeworksClimeworks' Mammoth plant will eventually be able to capture 36,000 tons of carbon from the air. It will increase the size of equipment to capture carbon pollution. It’s this kind of process that makes some critics concerned carbon removal technologies could be used to prolong production of fossil fuels.

Persons: ”, Lili Fuhr, Haukur, Climeworks Climeworks, Stuart Haszeldine, it’s, Jan Wurzbacher Organizations: CNN, Climeworks, Center for International Environmental Law, Mammoth, University of Edinburgh, International Energy Agency, Stratos, Occidental Locations: Iceland, Swiss, Texas, Occidental, Kenya, United States

CNN —The world has passed a clean energy milestone, as a boom in wind and solar meant a record-breaking 30% of the world’s electricity was produced by renewables last year, new data shows. The planet is reaching “a crucial turning point” toward clean energy, according to the Global Electricity Review published Wednesday by climate think tank Ember. Record-breaking renewablesIn 2000, renewables made up less than 19% of the global energy mix. It made up nearly twice as much new electricity generation as coal last year. Electricity demand is set to soar from 2024 onward, Ember’s analysis found.

Persons: It’s, Dave Jones, Ember, ” Jones, “ We’re, Jones, “, ”, Niklas Höhne, Nancy Haegel Organizations: CNN, Global, NewClimate Institute, European Union, EU, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Locations: China, India, Chile, Australia, Netherlands, California, United States

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