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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: The Gulf Stream is the weakest its been in a thousand years, and climate change is likely to blame; The COVID carbon rebound begins as global emissions rise; Biden Administration to raise US climate target under Paris Agreement; PLUS: Volvo is latest carmaker to say goodbye to gasoline, go all-electric... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Barrett authors first U.S. Supreme Court ruling, a loss for environmentalists; 'Very risky business.' Oil CEOs on survival in Biden era; Germany agrees to pay operators 2.4 billion euros for nuclear exit; Blackjewel’s Bankruptcy Filing Is a Harbinger of Trouble Ahead for the Plummeting Coal Industry; Turning Trash to Natural Gas: Utilities Fight for Their Future Amid Climate Change... PLUS: The man who saves forgotten cats in Fukushima's nuclear zone... and much, MUCH more! ...
STORIES DISCUSSED ON TODAY'S 'GREEN NEWS REPORT'...
- COVID carbon rebound underway:
- Global carbon emissions exceed pre-pandemic lockdown level as economies rebound without clean energy (CBS News):
The Paris-based intergovernmental agency said a resurgence in economic activity coupled with a lack of clean energy policies mean many countries are now seeing higher emissions than before the coronavirus pandemic. - Global CO2 pollution returns to pre-COVID levels: IEA (Al Jazeera):
The International Energy Agency says emissions were 2 percent higher in December than in the same month a year ago.- Covid pandemic drove a record drop in global carbon emissions in 2020 (CNBC):
Researchers said carbon emissions will likely rebound in 2021 and urged governments to prioritize a shift to clean energy and policies that tackle climate change in their economic recovery plans.Fossil fuel emissions in danger of surpassing pre-Covid levels (Guardian UK)
- UN warns Paris Agreement pledges are insufficient:
- Existing emissions pledges barely scratch climate targets, U.N. tally finds (Reuters):
If implemented, the combined impact of these pledges would be to shave less than 1% off global emissions by the end of this decade compared to 2010 levels. - Biden's new Paris pledge (Politico)
- Gulf Stream is weakening earlier than projected:
- VIDEO: New Evidence Points to Possible North Atlantic Changes – Or Does it? (Climate Crocks)
- Scientists see stronger evidence of slowing Atlantic Ocean circulation, an ‘Achilles’ heel’ of the climate (Washington Post):
Scientists do not expect anything so severe in our future, especially because greenhouse gases will continue to cause offsetting warming. However, they note that even the modest slowing of 15 percent has been accompanied by odd temperature patterns in the ocean and the significant upending of certain key fisheries, such as lobster and cod off the coast of New England. - Climate Change is Weakening the Ocean Currents That Shape Weather on Both Sides of the Atlantic (Inside Climate News):
Together with other studies showing that global warming is driving the weakening, the new findings suggest that the circulation will lose even more strength in the decades ahead. That could cause heat and cold extremes in Europe and rapid sea level rise along the East Coast of the United States. - In the Atlantic Ocean, Subtle Shifts Hint at Dramatic Dangers (NY Times):
Interactive: The warming atmosphere is causing an arm of the powerful Gulf Stream to weaken, some scientists fear.
- Shell Oil CEO: Shell already hit peak oil production, will target net zero by 2050:
- Energy leaders grapple with climate targets at virtual CERAWeek (Reuters)
- VIDEO: Shell Chief Executive Ben van Beurden speaks with IHS Markit Vice Chairman Daniel Yergin (CERAWeek)
- Energy firms bet on hydrogen boom, but payday far away (Reuters)
- Shell unveils ‘accelerated’ net zero strategy, confirms oil production peaked in 2019 (Energy Voice)
- Volvo the latest carmaker to go all-electric:
- Volvo plans to only sell electric cars by 2030, says internal combustion engine has no future (Electrek)
- Betting on death of petrol cars, Volvo to go all electric by 2030 (Reuters):
“I am totally convinced there will be no customers who really want to stay with a petrol engine,” Volvo Chief Executive Håkan Samuelsson told reporters when asked about future demand for electric vehicles. “We are convinced that an electric car is more attractive for customers.” - Volvo to go fully electric by 2030 (CNN):
By the end of the decade, the only Volvo you'll be able to purchase will be electric. And you'll only be able to buy it online. - We Had Electric Cars in 1900 ... Then This Happened (EcoWatch)
'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (Stuff we didn't have time for in today's audio report)...
For a comprehensive roundup of daily environmental news you can trust, see the Society of Environmental Journalists' Daily Headlines page
- Barrett authors first U.S. Supreme Court ruling, a loss for environmentalists (Reuters)
- 'Very risky business.' Oil CEOs on survival in Biden era (E&E News)
- Germany agrees to pay operators 2.4 billion euros for nuclear exit - FAZ (Reuters)
- COAL: Blackjewel’s Bankruptcy Filing Is a Harbinger of Trouble Ahead for the Plummeting Coal Industry (Inside Climate News)
- Saudi in no hurry to end its voluntary oil production cut, says minister (Reuters)
- Turning Trash to Natural Gas: Utilities Fight for Their Future Amid Climate Change (Inside Climate News)
- The man who saves forgotten cats in Fukushima's nuclear zone (Reuters)
- VIDEO: New Video: Texas Blackouts a Failure of “Baseload Power” (Climate Crocks)
- Collins pledges Haaland her first GOP 'yes' vote (E&E News)
- Israel accuses Iran of link to oil spill off its shores (Reuters)
- Popular Flea Collar Linked To Almost 1,700 Pet Deaths. EPA Silent. (Investigate Midwest)
- Biden Admin Ditches Trump 'Open Science' Order (E&E News)
- Republicans Press Biden Environment Nominee On Obama-Era Policy (The Hill)
- Things to watch in Democrats' big climate bill (E&E News)
- I Know Why the Caged Songbird Goes Extinct (The Revelator)
- Reversing Trump, Interior Department Moves Swiftly on Climate Change (NY Times)
- Agriculture Secretary Sees ‘Early Wins’ on Climate From Farms (Bloomberg)
- Miami Says It Can Adapt to Rising Seas. Not Everyone Is Convinced. (NY Times)
- How climate change could undo 50 years of public health gains (Grist)
- Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration (Pro Publica)
- Exxon's Snake Oil: 100 years of deception (Columbia Journalism Review)
- What Does '12 Years to Act on Climate Change' (Now 11 Years) Really Mean? (Inside Climate News)
- VIDEO: A Message From the Future With Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (The Intercept)
- SEJ Backgrounder: Green New Deal Proposes Sweeping Economic Transformation (Society of Environmental Journalists)
- Explainer: The 'Green New Deal': Mobilizing for a just, prosperous, and sustainable economy (New Consensus)
- What genuine, no-bullshit ambition on climate change would look like: How to hit the most stringent targets, with no loopholes. (David Roberts, Vox)
- A Global Shift To Sustainability Would Save Us $26 Trillion (Vox)
- Project Drawdown: 100 Solutions to Reverse Global Warming (Drawdown.org)
- An Optimist's Guide to Solving Climate Change and Saving the World (Vice)
- The great nutrient collapse: The atmosphere is literally changing the food we eat, for the worse. And almost nobody is paying attention. (Politico)
- The world's bleak climate situation, in 3 charts: We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there. (Vox)
- The Climate Risks We Face (NY Times):
To stabilize global temperature, net carbon dioxide emissions must be reduced to zero. The window of time is rapidly closing to reduce emissions and limit warming to no more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit or 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, the goal set in the Paris climate accord. The further we push the climate system beyond historical conditions, the greater the risks of potentially unforeseen and even catastrophic changes to the climate - so every reduction in emissions helps. - The Uninhabitable Earth: When will climate change make earth too hot for humans? (New York Magazine):
Famine, economic collapse, a sun that cooks us: What climate change could wreak - sooner than you think. - A beginner's guide to the debate over 100% renewable energy (Vox):
Clean-energy enthusiasts frequently claim that we can go bigger, that it's possible for the whole world to run on renewables - we merely lack the "political will." So, is it true? Do we know how get to an all-renewables system? Not yet. Not really.
FOR MORE on Climate Science and Climate Change, go to our Green News Report: Essential Background Page
- NASA Video: If we don't act, here's what to expect in the next 100 years:
- Covid pandemic drove a record drop in global carbon emissions in 2020 (CNBC):