The dominant influence on Earth’s climate & environment is human activity fuelled by the world energy system. This has been identified as a new geological age named the Anthropocene,…Continue readingAbout the Anthropocene
The Anthropocene
The vast swaths of pine, spruce and larch forest that blanket much of Canada have been prized for generations. Not only do they provide a home to hundreds of…Continue readingWildfires turn Canada’s vast forests from carbon sink into super-emitter
When 6PPD, which occurs in tire dust, is exposed to ground-level ozone, it’s transformed into multiple other chemicals, including 6PPD-quinone, or 6PPD-q. The compound is acutely toxic to four…Continue readingRoad Hazard: Evidence Mounts on Toxic Pollution from Tires
Rankings of countries’ carbon production and emissions shown in a set of charts.Continue readingCarbon Rankings
The flash flood that has killed thousands of people in Libya this week followed a “medicane”, a rare but destructive weather phenomenon that scientists believe will intensify in a…Continue readingMedicanes: rare, ‘supercharging’ Mediterranean storms
Australian oil and gas company Woodside Energy announced that its Shenzi North project has commenced production in the deepwater US Gulf of Mexico. Discovered in 2002, the Shenzi platform…Continue readingWoodside announces start of production at Shenzi North project
Sea ice insulates the ocean, reflects heat, drives currents, supports ecosystems and protects ice shelves. It also has an annual seasonal cycle—some of the ice melts, then freezes again.…Continue readingDevastatingly low Antarctic sea ice may be the ‘new abnormal,’ study warns
Half of Britain’s 10 largest fish populations are in a “deeply troubling state”, having been either overfished or depleted to a critically low size, according to a new report.…Continue readingBritain’s fish populations are in a ‘deeply troubling state’
Earth’s life support systems have been so damaged that the planet is “well outside the safe operating space for humanity”, scientists have warned. Their assessment found that six out…Continue readingEarth ‘well outside safe operating space for humanity’
After the northern summer of extreme heat and disastrous fires, we’ve seen more exceptional autumn weather over Europe with record-breaking heat in the UK. Meanwhile, record-breaking rain and intense…Continue readingFaster disaster: Climate change fuels ‘flash droughts’, intense downpours and storms
Most coastal communities will encounter 100-year floods annually by the end of the century, even under a moderate scenario where carbon dioxide emissions peak by 2040, a new study…Continue readingCentury’s end may bring annual 100-year floods
Urgewald, a campaign group that tracks global fossil fuel finance, found that the World Bank supplied about $3.7bn (£2.95bn) in trade finance in 2022 that was likely to have…Continue readingWorld Bank spent billions of dollars backing fossil fuels in 2022
A mega blaze that has been burning for more than a week is racing towards a remote Northern Territory town, tearing through fire breaks. The Barkly Complex fire broke…Continue readingFire too fast for containment lines near Australian NT town of Tennant Creek
Our research shows almost everywhere in Australia is now in a different fire climate than it was just 20 years ago, with falling relative humidity a key factor. Previous…Continue readingFire climate regimes around Australia shifted abruptly 20 years ago, and falling humidity may explain why
An Indigenous Sami activist has set up camp outside the Norwegian parliament to protest against wind turbines built on land traditionally used by Sami reindeer herders. In October 2021,…Continue readingSami activist protests in front of Norwegian parliament over wind turbines
Between January and August, the United States was struck by a record-breaking 23 weather and climate disasters where losses exceeded $1 billion in each case. The tally for 2023…Continue readingUS hit by record number of billion-dollar disasters so far this year
Storm Daniel, which wrought devastation across the Mediterranean in the past week, killed 15 people in central Greece where it dumped more rain than previously recorded before sweeping across…Continue readingMediterranean’s devastating Storm Daniel may be harbinger of storms to come
Floods, wildfires and a deadly train collision this year have raised questions about the competence of state authorities and central government.Continue readingAfter slew of disasters, Greeks wonder what is happening to their democracy
Flash floods were triggered by rainfall from the arrival of Storm Daniel on Monday September 4 which also affected Turkey and Bulgaria. The following day, in the village of…Continue readingGreece’s record rainfall and flash floods: Across the Mediterranean, the weather is becoming more dangerous
A profile of the energy system of China has been published on this site.Continue readingThe Energy System of China
No new offshore windfarms will go ahead in the UK after the latest government auction, in what critics have called the biggest clean energy policy failure in almost a…Continue reading‘Biggest clean energy disaster in years’: UK auction secures no offshore windfarms
Two women climbed in the dark down the banks of the Greenbrier River in West Virginia on Thursday morning and locked themselves to a massive drill, stopping work on…Continue readingUS climate scientist risks felony by chaining herself to pipeline drill
A profile of the energy system of the USA has been published on this site.Continue readingThe Energy System of the United States of America (USA)
Record rainfall in Hong Kong caused widespread flooding in the early hours of Friday, disrupting road and rail traffic just days after the city dodged major damage from a…Continue readingRecord rainfall causes flooding in Hong Kong days after typhoon
Antarctica is likely warming at almost twice the rate of the rest of the world and faster than climate change models are predicting, with potentially far-reaching implications for global…Continue readingAntarctica warming much faster than models predicted in ‘deeply concerning’ sign for sea levels
The death toll from floods in central Greece has risen to four after severe rainstorms turned streets into raging torrents, hurled cars into the sea, and washed away roads…Continue readingDeath toll rises to four in Greece after floods, more than 800 rescued
Greenhouse gas concentrations, global sea level and ocean heat content reached record highs in 2022, according to the 33rd annual State of the Climate report. “People are causing the…Continue readingInternational report confirms record-high greenhouse gases, global sea levels in 2022
The pace at which the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has jumped three-fold in five decades. Annual growth in global mean carbon dioxide averaged across the last decade…Continue readingPace of increase in CO₂ concentration has increased three-fold
Surrounded by idyllic clear waters, the densely populated island of Carti Sugtupu off Panama’s north coast has barely an inch to spare with houses crammed together—some jutting out into…Continue reading‘We’re going to sink’: hundreds abandon Caribbean island home
Meeting the climate goals means we should not only significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also sequester more CO2 in the soil. Research has taught us how to store…Continue readingExperts question whether carbon dioxide storage in farming soils helps the climate
Urban stormwater particles from tire wear were the most prevalent microplastic a new Griffith-led study has found. Published in Environmental Science & Technology, the study showed that in stormwater…Continue readingBit by bit, microplastics from tires are polluting our waterways
At least three people have died and two are missing in Spain after heavy rains triggered flash floods and impacted transportation systems. The weekend storm affected almost the whole…Continue readingRoads turned into rivers as torrential rains lash Spain
The rapid sea level rise and resulting retreat of coastal habitat seen at the end of the last Ice Age could repeat itself if global average temperatures rise beyond…Continue readingUsing evidence from last Ice Age, scientists predict effects of rising seas on coastal habitats
Much of the world’s natural coastline is protected by living habitats, most notably mangroves in warmer waters and tidal marshes closer to the poles. These ecosystems support fisheries and…Continue readingAfter studying more than 1,500 coastal ecosystems, researchers say they will drown if we let the world warm above 2˚C
Devastating wildfires in Greece will ravage more than 150,000 hectares (370,600 acres) by the end of the summer, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis estimated Thursday, blaming the climate crisis for…Continue readingGreek summer wildfires will burn over 150,000 hectares
A warming Arctic is limiting polar bears’ access to sea ice, which the bears use as a hunting platform. In ice-free summer months the bears must fast. While in…Continue readingStudy connects greenhouse gas emissions to polar bear population declines
A prominent sheikh in the oil-rich Gulf state hosting this year’s UN climate negotiations, COP28, is heading a new rush to capture and sell carbon credits by managing tens…Continue readingIn New Scramble for Africa, an Arab Sheikh Is Taking the Lead
The Baleine field will see a multi-phase development to exploit the estimated 2.5 billion barrels of oil and 3.3 trillion cubic feet of associated gas in place.Continue readingEni starts production from Baleine oil and gas field in Côte d’Ivoire
More than 450 fires have scorched parts of Louisiana amid weeks of record-breaking heat and severe drought conditions. The Tiger Island Fire, the largest wildfire in the state’s history,…Continue readingLouisiana sees ‘unprecedented’ wildfires amid record heat, drought
The intent of the project is to boost production by 26 million barrels of oil equivalents from the satellite field of the Statfjord oil and gas field. The oil…Continue readingEquinor begins production from Statfjord Øst expansion project in North Sea
The Timi platform is designed to produce up to 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day of gas at peak production. It will transport its gas through a new…Continue readingShell begins production at Timi sweet gas field development in Malaysia
Hurricane Idalia could become the costliest climate disaster to hit the US this year, analysts say, with massive implications for the insurance and risk management industries. The category 3…Continue readingHurricane Idalia could become 2023’s costliest climate disaster for the US
China is approving new coal power projects at the equivalent of two plants every week. In 2022 the government approved a record-breaking 106 gigawatts (GW) of new coal-fired power…Continue readingChina continues coal spree despite climate goals
U.S. oil production — already the highest in the world — is on track to set a new record this year, and will probably rise even more in 2024.…Continue readingThe U.S. is pumping oil faster than ever. Republicans don’t care.
Being cautious by nature, scientists warned that in the next few decades the global emperor population will suffer significant losses. This fate appeared a long way in the future,…Continue readingI have studied emperor penguins for 30 years. We may witness their demise in our lifetime
Conservation groups have accused a New South Wales agency of logging one of the last known strongholds of the greater glider, an endangered marsupial species, and urged the state…Continue readingHome of endangered marsupial hit by state-sanctioned logging in New South Wales
The “crazy” extreme weather rampaging around the globe in 2023 will become the norm within a decade without dramatic climate action, the world’s leading climate scientists have said. The…Continue readingDramatic climate action needed to curtail ‘crazy’ extreme weather
Global warming is driving leafy tropical canopies close to temperatures where they can no longer transform sunlight and CO2 into energy, threatening total collapse. A tiny percentage of upper…Continue readingTropical forests nearing critical temperatures thresholds
Many credits in the voluntary market going unused, with study finding some offsetting could make global heating worse Carbon credit speculators could lose billions as scientific evidence shows many…Continue readingCarbon credit speculators could lose billions as offsets deemed ‘worthless’
Fossil fuels benefited from record subsidies of $13 million (£10.3m) a minute in 2022, according to the International Monetary Fund, despite being the primary cause of the climate crisis.…Continue readingFossil fuels being subsidised at rate of $13m a minute
Helpless emperor penguin chicks perished at multiple breeding grounds in West Antarctica late last year, drowning or freezing to death when sea ice eroded by global warming gave way…Continue readingWarming decimates Antarctica’s emperor penguin chicks
You may not have noticed, but earlier this month we passed Earth overshoot day, when humanity’s demands for ecological resources and services exceeded what our planet can regenerate annually.…Continue readingCritics of ‘degrowth’ economics say it’s unworkable—but from an ecologist’s perspective, it’s inevitable
The regional government for the Canary Islands said that 4,000 more people were ordered to evacuate on Saturday. Those were in addition to the 4,500 people who on Friday…Continue readingTenerife: thousands more flee their homes as ‘out of ‘control’ wildfires rage
Australian Pacific Coal has received a non-binding letter of intent from a major commodities trading firm, for up to $50m in debt funding to support the restart of Dartbrook…Continue readingAustralian Pacific Coal secures $50m funding commitment to restart Dartbrook mine
Dressed in a full-body protective suit, an elderly pest control worker could last no more than 15 minutes spraying pesticide along a Hong Kong pavement before the summer heat…Continue reading‘In a sauna’: Hong Kong’s laborers swelter as temperatures rise
About 90% of water samples taken over the last 10 years from the Great Lakes contain microplastic levels that are unsafe for wildlife, a new peer-reviewed paper from the…Continue reading90% of Great Lakes water samples have unsafe microplastic levels
The water of as many as 26 million Americans is contaminated, according to an analysis of the new EPA data performed by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington…Continue readingDrinking water of millions of Americans contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’
A huge wildfire in northern Canada is moving closer the city of Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories, and authorities have ordered the city’s 20,000 residents to evacuate.…Continue readingHuge wildfire forces evacuation of Canada’s Northwest Territories capital
Scientists and academics say they have been warning for several years that invasive grasses covering a quarter of the Hawaii islands are a major fire risk. Untamed grassland helped…Continue readingNon-native grass species blamed for ferocity of Hawaii wildfires
Five species, including Tasmania’s Maugean skate, could jeopardise the Albanese government’s zero extinctions target, according to a scientific committee that provides advice on endangered species. A further 41 species…Continue readingFive species face immediate concern of extinction, scientific committee warns Australian Labor
Iraqi merchant Mohamed has never seen such a grim tourist season: years of drought have shrunken the majestic Lake Habbaniyah, keeping away the holidaymakers who once flocked there during…Continue reading‘No more water’: Iraq drought claims lakeside resort