Latest News
Global carbon intensity fell last year along with coal consumption -
Global carbon intensity (the emissions per unit of GDP) dropped by 2.8 percent in 2015—more than double the average from 2000 to 2014. The biggest driver was a significant drop in China's coal consumption. While certainly encouraging, the number is still far below the 6.5 percent required to stay below the 2-degree warming target outlined in the Paris agreement. The Guardian
It is a lot of people showing their support for Standing Rock...They can't be with us here physically, but they are with us in spirit and prayer.
—Protestor leader Mekasi Camp Horinek comments on the thousands of people who "checked in" to Standing Rock Indian Reservation on Facebook yesterday in an effort to support the protestors of the Dakota Access pipeline there. Though the Morton County Sheriff's Department says it is not using check-ins to target demonstrators, protestors say they appreciate the display of solidarity.
EPA unveils new plan for environmental justice -
Last week the agency announced a five-year plan to improve environmental protections for minority communities. Low-income, minority, and indigenous groups are often disproportionately affected by environmental issues, and the EPA has been criticized for not finding solutions sooner. The Hill
One in seven children lives in areas with unsafe levels of air pollution -
A new UNICEF report finds that about 300 million children worldwide live in places where the air pollution is at least six times higher than the safe limits set by the World Health Organization. Out of that total, 220 million live in South Asia. In addition to causing lung illnesses, pollutants can permanently damage a child's developing brain. Reuters
Parts of Europe could become desert by the end of the century -
A new study warns that without drastic cuts to greenhouse gas emissions, climate change is on track to disrupt the Mediterranean region more than it has any other time within the last 10,000 years. The scientists say that the area's temperatures have already risen 2.3 degrees Fahrenheit since the late 19th century, and by 2100 the increased heat and droughts could expand deserts in parts of southern Europe. Reuters
Antarctica's Ross Sea will become home to the world's largest marine protected area -
At a meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, delegates from 24 countries and the European Union officially moved to protect a 600,000-square-mile region of the Southern Ocean. The Ross Sea may make up just 2 percent of that ocean, but it's home to 38 percent of the world's Adelie penguins, 30 percent of Antarctic petrels, and 6 percent of Antarctic minke whales. BBC