Tag: climate
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Methane leaks from oil and gas extraction must end, but industry is slow to act
Jim Krane, Rice University What’s the cheapest, quickest way to reduce climate change without roiling the economy? In the United States, it may be by reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas industry. Methane is the main component of natural gas, and it can leak anywhere along the supply chain, from the wellhead and…
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California’s Public Scientists Union Battles Covid-19, Climate Crisis, and Austerity on Pay from Newsom Administration
By Steve Sander for massolidarity.org, CC BY-NC-NA 4.0 The California Association of Professional Scientists (CAPS) represents toxicologists, biologists, veterinarians, geologists, chemists, and other scientific practitioners and researchers who play pivotal roles in ensuring that the state’s residents have clean and sanitary food, water, air, and soil. Many state scientists are also leading the state’s response…
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Brazil’s Ecocidal Meat Industry is Funded by Big Investment Firms
It’s largely accepted that clearing land for cattle accounts for 70% of Amazon deforestation, with the rate of rainforest cutting accelerating drastically since President Jair Bolsonaro took office at the start of 2019. Between August 2020 and July 2021, 13,235 square kilometers (5,110 square miles) were lost, the highest level since 2006. That devastation is likely to increase in…
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How Public Pension Divestment could Wreck the Corporations that are Wrecking the World
By MICHAEL MCCANN & RIDDHI MEHTA-NEUGEBAUER for Yes! Magazine Originally published in November of 2021. Still just as relevant. A massive oil spill on the California coast caused by a broken pipeline is shining a harsh light on the fossil fuel industry, just as the world prepares for another climate summit in November. In recent years, the…
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Extreme heat + air pollution can be deadly, with the health risk together worse than either alone
Erika Garcia, University of Southern California; Md Mostafijur Rahman, University of Southern California, and Rob Scot McConnell, University of Southern California On the morning news, you see the weather forecast is for high heat, and there is an “excessive heat watch” for later in the week. You were hoping the weather would cool down, but…
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A tale of two climate policies: India’s UN commitments aim low, but its national policies are ambitious – here’s why that matters
By Tarun Gopalakrishnan, Tufts University At the United Nations climate talks in Glasgow in 2021, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi surprised the world when he announced that his country would zero out its greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2070. It was a landmark decision, acknowledging that long-term decarbonization is in India’s interest. However, climate…
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World Food Systems are in Crisis, and Big Agribusiness is at its Heart
By Lorena Cotza & Ouafa Haddioui, originally posted on OpenDemocracy, CC BY-NC 4.0 Article also available in Portuguese Public finance has a key role to play in agriculture. Instead of propping up corporate interests, it should learn from local producers In 2017, the people of Zagora, Morocco, took to the streets in what became known…
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Analysis: China’s CO2 Emissions See Longest Sustained Drop in a Decade
By LAURI MYLLYVIRTA, originally published on carbonbrief.org, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 China’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions fell by an estimated 1.4% in the first three months of 2022, making it the third quarter in a row of falling emissions. The new analysis for Carbon Brief, based on official figures and commercial data, shows that the three…
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As heat waves intensify, tens of thousands of US classrooms will be too hot for students to learn in
Paul Chinowsky, University of Colorado Boulder Rising temperatures due to climate change are causing more than just uncomfortably hot days across the United States. These high temperatures are placing serious stress on critical infrastructure such as water supplies, airports, roads and bridges. One category of critical infrastructure being severely affected is the nation’s K-12 schools.…