Fossil fuel production on track for double the safe climate limit
News
Fossil fuel production on track for double the safe climate limit
The Guardian joins other outlets in reporting new findings by the UN Environment Programme and a group of research organisations which reveal that nations are set to produce more than twice as much fossil fuels as can be burned in 2030, if the global temperature rise is to be restricted to 1.5C. Ten major countries, including China and the US, feature in the analysis, Reuters notes. It adds that by 2030 their planned production would lead to 53% more CO2 emissions than allowable under 2C and 120% more than for 1.5C. The Guardian quotes Måns Nilsson, executive director of the Stockholm Environment Institute: “We’re in a deep hole – and we need to stop digging”. It also carries a quote from Nilsson’s colleague Cleo Verkuijl, who says the UK is a “striking” example of the mismatch between pledges made under the Paris Agreement and commitments to end fossil-fuel extraction. According to Agence France-Presse, the so-called “production gap” between output in the pipeline and the Paris climate goals is largest for coal. CNN says the report highlights initiatives in countries such as Costa Rica and New Zealand to totally and partially ban new oil or gas projects. Meanwhile, a piece in Reuters notes Ecuador has appointed a new energy minister as it “seeks to boost oil production”.
One story going against this trend comes from California, which NPR and Bloomberg report has “intensified its battle against fossil fuels” by imposing new regulations on fracking,and curbing steam-injected oil drilling in the state. In the UK, the Guardian reports that North Sea oil fields could “emerge as an unlikely climate hero”, by providing a test bed for carbon storage in the coming years. However, according to Reuters, Russia is “unlikely to agree” to deepen cuts in oil output at an upcoming meeting with fellow exporters.
Reuters also reports that China is “bucking the global trend” by raising its coal-fired power capacity by 42.9 gigawatts (GW), about 4.5%, in the 18 months leading up to June. Based on analysis by US research network Global Energy Monitor, the newswire notes this is “nearly enough to power the whole of France”. The Financial Times says this rise in coal production “more than offsets the decline elsewhere”. Elsewhere, Bloomberg reports that “discussions are faltering” around Germany’s controversial lignite coal industry, as company executives and government ministers disagree on how to compensate the industry for plant shutdowns. Across the Atlantic, Bloomberg also reports on the closure of the largest coal-fired power plant in the western US.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports that 2019 is “virtually certain” to rank high among the hottest years on record and is shaping up to be Earth’s second-hottest year.
Annual budget for planting trees in England stands at just 20p per person
The Daily Mail, which has recently launched its own tree-planting campaign, reports on a “slump” in the government’s tree-planting budget from £33.9m to £13.5m in four years. The Guardian notes that trees have become an “unexpected electoral battleground”, with parties offering competing pledges, while reporting separately that “spending on trees and forestry fell by nearly £20m a year between 2015 and 2018”.
After trailing their plans earlier in the week, the Greens have become the first significant party to release an official manifesto. The Financial Times reports that while all the major parties have placed environment at the forefront of their election promises, the Greens’ proposals are “by far the most radical”, including £100bn a year in investment to tackle climate change through a green new deal bill. According to the Press Association, co-leader Jonathan Bartley has promised his party’s green new deal would be the “most ambitious in the world”. The Guardian reports that Green pledges on housing, transport, industry and the economy are all influenced by the central premise of reaching net-zero emissions by 2030, an election pledge recently dropped by the Labour party after pressure from unions.
Timed to coincide with last night’s leaders’ TV debate between Boris Johnson of the ruling Conservatives and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, in which climate change only received a passing mention, a letter from all the main opposition parties to Johnson has called on a debate on the climate crisis before the election, according to the Guardian. Corbyn, along with the Scottish National Party’s Nicola Sturgeon, Jo Swinson of the Liberal Democrats and the Green party’s Jonathan Bartley and Siân Berry, say the public have a right to know how their leader intend to address “the irreversible impacts of environmental breakdown”. Several outlets including Politico and the Independent report on comments made by shadow chancellor John McDonnell that companies failing to act on climate change will be axed from the stock exchange.
A piece in DeSmog UK examines donations registered on the Electoral Commission database and finds that “by a very long distance” supporters of “climate science denial have donated predominantly to the Conservative Party and Tory politicians”, notably prime minister Boris Johnson.
EU 2020 budget boosts climate action spending
The European parliament and EU member states have agreed to boost spending for climate action in the bloc’s 2020 budget, according to Climate Home News. It notes the EU has committed to finance projects worth €168.7bn ($186.8bn), more than a fifth of which will go to measures to address climate change. The article also notes the bloc had a target to dedicate at least 20% of its expenditure to climate protection in the 2014-2020 period.
Meanwhile, according to the Financial Times, the head of the EU’s investment bank has warned that the EU must help countries and regions that will be hit hardest by cost of going green, such as those heavily dependent on coal.
Nearly all America’s endangered species will struggle to adapt to climate crisis
A new study reported by the Guardian finds that the most threatened animals in the US are being dealt a severe blow, as almost every species considered endangered is vulnerable to the effects of climate change. “Of the 459 animal species listed as endangered by the US government, researchers found that all but one, or 99.8%, have characteristics that will make it difficult for them to adapt to rising temperatures,” it notes. Meanwhile, Axios reports on a new public federal report that finds 945 “Superfund” sites — spaces that store hazardous materials, like coal ash ponds or decommissioned mining sites — could be affected by “sea-level rise, wildfires and other climate change-related harms”.
Comment
Why it’s good news this election is going green
An editorial in the Evening Standard states the UK is current going through its “first climate-change election”, with parties competing on net-zero pledges against a backdrop of flooding in northern England. It notes that such a focus “is not normal in a lot of countries” highlighting Australia and the US as examples. “There are real choices about how we travel, what we eat, how we heat our homes and how much we are prepared to pay for our energy that must be confronted. And none of the answers will be immediately popular,” it concludes. “This election is a chance to lock in public support not just for the ends of going carbon free but also the means of doing it.”
A piece by Green co-leader Siân Berry in the Times claims that “only the Greens will act on climate change before it’s too late”, in light of their new manifesto. “It is often said that where Greens lead others follow, but this week we have seen that only the Greens have the vision and plan needed to go carbon neutral by 2030 and truly tackle the climate emergency. Other parties are trying to catch up, but we keep racing ahead. We’re the originators and the experts, and we are ready to change everything,” she writes.
Meanwhile, hereditary Conservative peer and climate sceptic Matt Ridley writes in the Daily Telegraph about “the left’s” green pledges, noting that in his view “obsessive focus on state intervention, a cornerstone of Left-wing environmentalism, will get us nowhere”. He writes: “When it comes to going green, the parties are competing to see who can make the most unrealistic promises. Fortunately the most likely government, the Tories, are currently losing this bidding war, promising policies that are only mildly barmy and unaffordable”.
Science
Environmental co-benefits and adverse side-effects of alternative power sector decarbonisation strategies
Relying largely on wind and solar power in efforts to limit global warming to well below 2C – the temperature limit set by the Paris Agreement – could bring large co-benefits for human health and wildlife, a new study finds. The assessment combines “integrated-assessment models” with forecasted life cycle emissions assessments to explore the potential benefits and trade-offs of different paths for limiting warming to below 2C. The authors say: “Mitigation scenarios focusing on wind and solar power are more effective in reducing human health impacts compared to those with low renewable energy, while inducing a more pronounced shift away from fossil and toward mineral resource depletion.”
Other stories
- EU must help regions hit by cost of going green, EIB chief warns (Financial Times)
- Bill Gates backs startup using sunlight to create 1,000C-plus heat (The Guardian)
- Global heating supercharging Indian Ocean climate system (The Guardian)
- The last of the climate deniers hold on, despite your protests (Vice)
- Can carbon offsets tackle airlines’ emissions problem? (The Guardian)
- What Bill Gates gets wrong about fossil fuels (Bloomberg)
- Climate ambitions challenge Finland’s ‘soul’ (Politico)
- What if all that flying is good for the planet? (The New York Times)
- Should fossil-fuel companies bear responsibility for the damage their products do to the environment? (Wall Street Journal)
- Inside Copenhagen’s plan to be the world’s first carbon-neutral capital (The Washington Post)
- As climate risk grows, cities test a tough strategy: Saying ‘no’ to developers (The New York Times)
- Report: UK enjoys renewables investment growth despite Brexit uncertainty (BusinessGreen)
- Freshwater lakes already emit a quarter of global carbon – and climate change could double that (The Conversation)
- Angus Taylor to seek states’ support for emissions reduction fund overhaul (The Guardian)
- Australia needs policy to deal with health effects of climate change, Chris Bowen says (The Guardian)