Wildfires “fanned by a heatwave and strong winds wreaked destruction across southern Europe”, burning homes and forcing evacuations, reports Reuters. Fires have now affected nearly 440,000 hectares (1,700 square miles) so far in 2025, according to the EU Science Hub’s Joint Research Centre, it adds. This is double the average for the same period of the year since 2006, the article notes. BBC News reports that Greece’s third-largest city Patras, is now under threat from fast-moving wildfires, “as extreme heat and strong winds drive blazes across much of southern Europe”. In the surrounding Achaia region, nearly 10,000 hectares have been burnt in the past two days, it notes. Reuters reports that fires have burned houses, farms and factories, dozens of people are being treated for smoke inhalation and 13 firefighters have been treated for burns and other injuries in the region. The Daily Telegraph reports that thousands of people have been evacuated from the Greek islands of Zakynthos and Chios as wildfires continue to rage. The Daily Mail reports that firefighters are battling 20 wildfires across Greece as of yesterday. The Guardian reports that the Spanish environment minister has said that “the heatwave-fuelled wildfires that have killed two people in Spain over recent days, devouring thousands of hectares of land and forcing thousands of people from their homes, are a ‘clear warning’ of the impact of the climate emergency”. Speaking yesterday, environment minister Sara Aagesen said that 14 wildfires were still burning across seven Spanish regions, it adds. The Financial Times notes that, in a radio interview, Spain’s interior minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska confirmed that he had warned the EU of the need for additional resources amid the fires. The Times reports that a political jibe made by Spanish transport minister Óscar Puente that “things are getting a little hot” amid the wildfires was “widely seen as tasteless”. The Daily Telegraph reports that some roads in France are now unsafe for drivers during the hottest parts of the day amid “soaring summer temperatures”. 

MORE ON EXTREME WEATHER

• Politico reports that climate change made the heatwave in Norway, Sweden and Finland in July 10 times more likely and 2C hotter.
• The Associated Press covers heavy rains in South Korea, which killed one person, damaged homes and roads, and forced more than 1,000 people to evacuate.

Alaskans have been evacuated from their homes as meltwater escapes a basin dammed by the Mendenhall glacier, “raising fears of record-breaking flooding in the US state’s capital city” of Juneau, reports BBC News. The National Weather Service (NWS) office has issued a flood warning for the area and local officials have notified residents that they may be forced to evacuate for several days, it adds. On Tuesday, it was confirmed that water had begun to escape the ice dam, with flooding expected to follow, the article notes. Water levels reached 9.85 feet (3 metres) on Tuesday and, by yesterday morning, were about 16ft (4.9 metres), a level “considered a crest”, it adds. However, newly installed barriers held back the “record levels of flooding and prevented widespread damage in Alaska’s capital city, the Guardian reports. The article notes that the “annual Mendenhall glacial lake outburst flood is judged to be intensifying as a result of climate change”. The Associated Press reports that the flooding of the basin has become “an annual concern since 2011”, with more than 300 homes damaged by flooding caused by it last year. The sandbag-style barriers that held back the record levels of flooding this time have “been a point of contention, with some homeowners in the flood zone objecting to their cost and suggesting officials should pursue a longer-term fix”, it adds. This story was also covered by the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, Scientific American, the Daily Mail and others.

Civil society organisations have warned that COP30 “risks being the most exclusive in history, with a reduction in the number of national delegations, members of constituent bodies and other observers and the press”, Folha de São Paulo reports. Observatório do Clima, representing more than 100 NGOs, said Brazil’s government “is negligent with regard to the expensive accommodation” for the talks in Belém and questioned the federal and state governments “for their performance in conducting COP30”. According to O Globo, Brazil’s government’s accommodation platform indicated that participants “may need to share the same beds while attending the conference”, since there are reservations in hotels, flats and cruise ships for up to four people in two double beds. The newspaper adds that the COP30 organisation said it had “53,003 beds available for around 50,000 attendees, including in hotels, ships, ‘real estate’ residences and Airbnb platform”. Despite the shortage of affordable rooms, the COP30 presidency has reaffirmed that the talks will go ahead in Belém, reports Climate Home News. While a leading business group has called on corporate leaders to overcome logistical challenges and make their presence felt at the “critical” summit, says BusinessGreen.

In a separate piece, Folha de São Paulo reports that Brazil’s government representatives expect “difficulties in reaching agreements on certain themes, especially on decreasing the burning of fossil fuels” at the talks. Instead, they will focus on measures that do not rely on political consensus at COP30, the newspaper says. However, it adds, “it is still unclear what legacy Brazil’s presidency of the UN climate conference will deliver”.

MORE ON LATIN AMERICA

• Bolivia’s reserves of lithium are being used in political campaigns in the run-up to the country’s general elections and are in the spotlight due to contracts with Chinese and Russian companies, reports Spanish newswire Agencia EFE.

• El Espectador covers a study finding that the Amazon is on the brink of a “tipping point” that could transform it into a dry savannah in “less than a century”, driven by deforestation and global warming.

• Petrobras and the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources have agreed to carry out a final test to authorise oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon, but the final decision is still pending, according to Folha de São Paulo.

• Folha de São Paulo also covers a Mapbiomas report revealing Brazil lost 13% of its “natural” areas, equivalent to 13% of its territory, in the last 40 years. According to the report, 65% of the country is covered by native vegetation and 32% by farmlands.

Climate scientists in the US are organising a coordinated response to the US Department of Energy’s recent report that casts doubt on the consensus on climate change, reports the Guardian. The report was published last month and claims concerns about “planet-warming fossil fuels are overblown”, the article continues. It sparked widespread concern from scientists who said it was full of climate misinformation designed to support a proposal from the Environmental Protection Agency to undo the “endangerment finding”, which forms the legal basis of much of the US’s climate regulations, it adds. The article quotes Andrew Dessler, a climate researcher at Texas A&M University, who is organising the response to the report, who said: “A public comment from experts can be useful because it injects expert analysis into a decision-making process that might otherwise be dominated by political, economic, or ideological considerations. Experts can identify technical errors, highlight overlooked data and clarify uncertainties in ways that improve the accuracy and robustness of the final policy or report.”

MORE ON US

• The Guardian covers official figures that show more than 400 people are suspected to have been killed by extreme heat in Arizona, as Maricopa county becomes “increasingly unlivable for many amid record-breaking heatwaves driven by the global climate crisis”. 
• Reuters reports that the Trump administration is eyeing $1bn in spending to speed up the development of critical minerals and materials in the US. 
• Inside Climate News covers the selection of 11 projects that will be fast-tracked through development as part of the new nuclear reactor pilot programme.

China’s solar installations in the second half of 2025 are “likely” to halve compared to last year, Reuters cites analysts as saying, following the reforms that removed “guaranteed pricing” and created “uncertainty for new projects”. However, it adds, “full-year additions” are still expected to “reach a record high”, with two estimates placing solar additions for the full year at 300 and 310 gigawatts (GW), respectively – meaning that additions in H2 could range between 88 and 98GW. ABC News in Australia says China is “bringing about the age of the electrostate” by embracing renewable energy at an “astonishing rate”. Industry news outlet PV Magazine says that China’s exports of solar products were up 11% in the first half of 2025 compared to a year ago, with “higher cell and wafer shipments” offsetting a decline in exports of panels. 

MORE ON CHINA

• Yicai reports that China has unveiled nine “pilot projects” for “liquefied green fuels”.
• Developing new-energy vehicles is the “only way for China to transition…to a leading automotive [industry] powerhouse”, Xinhua reports.
• The People’s Daily publishes an opinion article on its print frontpage under the byline Ren Ping – indicating the article reflects the views of the Communist party – saying China’s “two mountains” theory is a “beacon” for “global green development”. Xinhua, Global Times, China News, and CCTV also issued articles on the theory ahead of China’s national ecology day.
• China Daily quotes the Chinese ambassador to Vanuatu saying China supports Pacific island nations in “their concerns over climate change”.
• The People’s Daily says that the electricity supply has been “stable” this year, partly due to greater interconnection between China’s two major power grids.
• A recent study by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with three Chinese and British universities, found that “foreign” companies in China contributed to around 25% of company emissions between 1997 and 2017, SCMP reports.

Across the UK, cities are facing a growing risk from a phenomenon called “firewaves” as temperatures continue to rise due to climate change, reports BBC News. Researchers at Imperial College London have coined the term, which describes multiple urban wildfires triggered by long periods of hot, dry weather, the outlet explains. The term has emerged as firefighters battle three wildfires on separate heaths in London, as well as “a dramatic gorse blaze on Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh” in recent days, it adds. These fires are now contained, but highlight the increasing vulnerability of urban areas, where vegetation is left “dangerously dry” by summer heatwaves, the article notes. Elsewhere, there is continued coverage of the ongoing heatwave in the UK, with BBC News reporting that a yellow heat health alert has been extended into next week for some areas of England. The Press Association reports the summer’s fourth heatwave is set to bring thunderstorms and showers.

MORE ON UK

• The Daily Telegraph covers calls by deputy prime minister Angela Rayner to introduce a maximum working temperature, in a story featured on the newspaper’s frontpage. The Daily Mail says London Mayor Sadiq Khan is considering bringing in “flexible working hours” in the city during heatwaves.
• The Daily Express covers comments by experts that the entry of Tesla into the UK’s electricity market could “lower bills” for households.
• The Times reports that Rolls-Royce is targeting becoming the UK’s biggest company by market value, as it focuses on the development of small modular nuclear reactors.
• Roadside assistance firm the AA has warned that potholes are getting worse due to heatwaves, reports the Daily Mail.
• The Daily Telegraph reports that Chinese energy company SDIC is planning to build a wind farm with “900ft turbines” off the coast of Angus in Scotland. 

A new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned that a “surge” in oil production is set to “collide” with increasingly weak demand by the end of 2025, reports the Financial Times. It continues: “The Paris-based body cut its forecast for global demand growth this year to 680,000 barrels a day, a third less than it projected in January and the weakest pace since 2009, outside of the Covid-19 slump.” The Daily Telegraph reports that the IEA found oil markets looked “ever more bloated” as supply “far eclipses” demand, following member countries of the OPEC cartel, led by Saudi Arabia, increasing production. Bloomberg reports that oil prices have steadied near a two-month low following the report. Reuters notes that the IEA forecasts are at the lower end of the oil industry range, due to the agency expecting a faster transition to renewable energy sources than some other forecasters.

In the Guardian, journalist and the deputy managing editor of Spanish outlet elDiario.es, María Ramírez, argues that the Spanish government must “step up” to provide everyday solutions for extreme heat, as well as “serious policies on emissions”. What is happening in Spain now goes “far beyond” the discomfort of the summer heat of her childhood in Madrid, she writes, listing the deaths, heat strokes and wildfires all linked to the record heat in the country. She writes: “You can’t ignore it, or escape it; so why are Spain’s politicians still so reluctant to tackle the climate emergency?” Too often, climate change is used as “an excuse for superficial, party-political feuds”, when action is needed at all levels of government, she continues. Ramírez concludes: “The frustrating question is why our politicians are still shrugging off this reality, as though it were just an inconvenience. How many broken records and how many heatwave deaths will it take to change this?”

MORE IN COMMENT

• The Financial Times’ Moral Money newsletter questions “the lessons of Europe’s upside-down power market”.
• Guardian columnist Arwa Mahdawi explains why the “Trump administration has decided coal is female”. 
• Both the Times and the Daily Telegraph carry comment pieces on the “political hot potato” of air conditioning in France.
• In Context, chair of the International Chamber of Commerce Philippe Varin argues that climate finance is being held back by “an outdated banking rulebook from the 2008 crash”.
• A full-page comment article in the Daily Mail by Ian Botham, a former England cricket captain and now a member of the House of Lords, argues that “Labour’s obsession with the religion of ‘rewilding’ threatens lives, livelihoods – and deadly moorland blazes”.
• Guardian columnist Larry Elliott argues that it is “long past time to end the fuel duty freeze”. 

This edition of the Daily Briefing was written by Molly Lempriere, with contributions from Anika Patel, Henry Zhang and Yanine Quiroz . It was edited by Robert McSweeney.

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