Sat.Mar 02, 2024 - Fri.Mar 08, 2024

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Countries failed to agree first steps on solar geoengineering at the UN. What went wrong?

Legal Planet

In the last weeks, diplomats from all over the world were negotiating more than twenty draft resolutions at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA). The Assembly is a biennial intergovernmental meeting which sets the global environmental agenda. It also sets the strategy for the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), and outlines policy responses to address emerging environmental challenges.

2019 339
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In Mongolia, a Killer Winter Is Ravaging Herds and a Way of Life

Yale E360

Mongolia’s nomadic herders are facing a savage “dzud” winter, with more than 2 million livestock frozen to death so far. Scientists say this lethal phenomenon — extreme cold and heavy snow following summer drought — is occurring more frequently and is linked to climate change.

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Wildfire Threat to Texas Nuclear Weapons Facility Highlights Intersecting Risks

Union of Concerned Scientists

Last week, Texas’s Windy Deuce Fire, one of several large fires that broke out in the state’s panhandle region, passed within a few miles of a nuclear weapons facility and necessitated an emergency evacuation of nonessential employees. The immediate threat of wildfire to the Pantex nuclear facility, at which nuclear weapons are assembled and disassembled, has passed for now.

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Harsh Result in a Drilling Contract Dispute

Energy & the Law

Frontier Drilling, LLC v. XTO Energy , Inc. has the indicia of an inequitable result, but as I remind my wife every time she objects to what she deems to be an outrageous jury verdict, we don’t know all the facts and the court’s gotta follow the law, so let’s not judge. The facts Drilling contractor Frontier and operator XTO were parties to a drilling contract that was amended several times by negotiations via oral and/or email communications and then written agreements memorializing the discuss

Law 147
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Manufacturing Sustainability Surge: Your Guide to Data-Driven Energy Optimization & Decarbonization

Speaker: Kevin Kai Wong, President of Emergent Energy Solutions

In today's industrial landscape, the pursuit of sustainable energy optimization and decarbonization has become paramount. Manufacturing corporations across the U.S. are facing the urgent need to align with decarbonization goals while enhancing efficiency and productivity. Unfortunately, the lack of comprehensive energy data poses a significant challenge for manufacturing managers striving to meet their targets.

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Actually, EV Sales Are Right on Track

Legal Planet

There is a lot of talk about weak consumer demand for EVs — doleful from greens, triumphant from others. Maybe US carmakers have hit a few speed bumps –not surprising when trying to rapidly ramp up a product that’s new to most consumers. But the reality is actually quite reassuring in terms of the U.S. market. Globally, the picture is even rosier for EVs, with the big open question being whether U.S. carmakers are going to be shoved to the curb by the Chinese.

2020 299
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As Flooding Increases on the Mississippi, Forests Are Drowning

Yale E360

Ever-worsening floods are killing trees at an increasing rate along the upper Mississippi River, and invasive grasses are taking over. The Army Corps of Engineers has launched a project to boost both tree density and diversity, and to improve habitat for fish and waterfowl, too.

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Mandatory Climate Reporting in Singapore From FY2025

Clean Energy Law

The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority and Singapore Exchange Regulation have provided details of mandatory climate reporting for listed issuers and large non-listed companies. By Paul A. Davies , Farhana Sharmeen , Michael D. Green , James Bee , and Kevin Mak On 28 February 2024, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) introduced regulations for mandatory climate-related disclosures (CRD) (the Regulations).

2027 147
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The SEC’s Watered-Down Climate Rule

Legal Planet

After months of discussion, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 3-2 to adopt climate reporting standards that will mandate publicly-traded companies disclose some of their greenhouse gas emissions. The SEC’s rule was proposed way back in 2022, and the initial draft would have required companies to disclose their “Scope 3” supply chain emissions, in addition to the “Scope 1” and “Scope 2” direct and indirect emissions the final rule includes.

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Great Lakes Ice Cover Hits New Lows

Yale E360

On the North American Great Lakes, ice cover usually peaks in late February or early March. But currently, the lakes are nearly ice-free.

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The Future of Resilient Agricultural Communities in California Is Alive in Allensworth

Union of Concerned Scientists

This blog post was cowritten with Dezaraye Bagalayos, Laurie Galvagna, Kayode Kadara, Kinah Hutson, and Jose Armando Munguia, and revised by other members of the Allensworth Progressive Association team and community leaders. Over the next 15 years, California will have to repurpose about 1 million acres of cropland, most of it out of the 5.5 million irrigated acres in the San Joaquin Valley.

2023 259
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Implementing D.E.J.I. Strategies in Energy, Environment, and Transportation

Speaker: Antoine M. Thompson, Executive Director of the Greater Washington Region Clean Cities Coalition

Diversity, Equity, Justice, and Inclusion (DEJI) policies, programs, and initiatives are critically important as we move forward with public and private sector climate and sustainability goals and plans. Underserved and socially, economically, and racially disadvantaged communities bear the burden of pollution, higher energy costs, limited resources, and limited investments in the clean energy and transportation sectors.

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Four Stock Exchanges Collaborate to Develop the ASEAN-Interconnected Sustainability Ecosystem

Clean Energy Law

The stock exchanges of Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Singapore have partnered to advance sustainability in ASEAN through the development of an interregional ESG ecosystem. By Paul A. Davies , Farhana Sharmeen , Michael D. Green , James Bee , and Kevin Mak On February 15, 2024, Bursa Malaysia Berhad (Bursa Malaysia), Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX), The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), and Singapore Exchange (SGX Group) released a joint statement announcing their collaboration on the develop

2024 147
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The SJC Provides New Guidance to Litigants in Anti-SLAPP Cases; I’m not Optimistic

Law and Environment

Last week, in Bristol Asphalt v. Rochester Bituminous Products , the SJC jettisoned two prior decisions and revised its directions to lower courts regarding how to handle “special motions to dismiss” under Massachusetts’ so-called “Anti-SLAPP” statute. If you don’t know what SLAPP stands for, you can just stop reading now. The purpose of the Anti-SLAPP statute is, in brief, to prevent large corporations from stifling petitioning activities by citizen groups.

Law 130
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Great Barrier Reef Sees Mass Bleaching as Ocean Temperatures Hit Record High

Yale E360

Beset by severe heat throughout the Australian summer, the Great Barrier Reef is undergoing a mass bleaching, its fifth in eight years.

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El futuro de las comunidades agrícolas resilientes vive en Allensworth

Union of Concerned Scientists

Este blog ha sido escrito en colaboración con Dezaraye Bagalayos, Laurie Galvagna, Kayode Kadara, Kinah Hutson, y José Armando Munguía, y revisado por miembros de la Allensworth Progressive Association y líderes comunitarios. En los próximos 15 años, California tendrá que reusar aproximadamente 1 millón de acres de tierras de cultivo, la mayoría en los 5,5 millones de acres irrigados (2.2 millones de hectáreas) en el Valle de San Joaquín.

2023 199
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Shaping a Resilient Future: Climate Impact on Vulnerable Populations

Speaker: Laurie Schoeman Director, Climate & Sustainability, Capital

As households and communities across the nation face challenges such as hurricanes, wildfires, drought, extreme heat and cold, and thawing permafrost and flooding, we are increasingly searching for ways to mitigate and prevent climate impacts. During this event, national climate and housing expert Laurie Schoeman will discuss topics including: The two paths for climate action: decarbonization and adaptation.

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Salmon farms are increasingly being hit by mass die-offs

New Scientist

Mass mortality events at salmon farms have been getting more frequent since 2011, sometimes killing millions of fish at once, with causes including heatwaves and poor living conditions

2011 145
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Deepwater Sharks Are Threatened by Demand for Liver Oil

Scientific American

One in seven species of deepwater sharks and rays is threatened with extinction because of the liver oil and meat trade and emerging fishing technologies that make it possible to catch deep-sea fishes

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Scientists Vote Down Proposal to Declare Anthropocene Has Begun

Yale E360

For more than a decade, scientists have been mulling whether the Earth had entered a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene, marked by the profound impact humans have had on the planet. Today, a committee of experts has reportedly decided on the matter.

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How Bad Ballot Design Can Impact Election Outcomes—And What We Can Do 

Union of Concerned Scientists

Before going to my polling place to vote in the November 2023 local elections, I searched online to find a sample ballot. After clicking around, I found one on a non-government site and reviewed the list of contests and ballot measures. I had to read the instructions a few times to clearly understand how many candidates I should select in each contest.

2008 190
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Sustainability at Retail

Sustainability impacts every nation, company, and person around the world. So much so that, in 2015, the United Nations (UN) issued a call for action by all countries to work toward sustainable development. In response to this and as part of a global Sustainability at Retail initiative, Shop! worked collaboratively with its global affiliates to address these critical issues in this white paper.

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AI chatbots use racist stereotypes even after anti-racism training

New Scientist

Large language models still demonstrate racial prejudice against speakers of African American English, despite the safety guard rails implemented by tech companies such as OpenAI

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Why this First Nation is Right to Sue the Alberta Energy Regulator over Last Year’s Toxic Tailings Leak

Enviromental Defense

Last year, one of Imperial Oil’s mines in the tar sands leaked toxic industrial waste into the surrounding environment. Instead of informing downstream communities, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) helped Imperial cover up the spill for over nine months. Now the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN) – one of the downstream Indigenous nations impacted by the toxic spill – is taking the AER to court.

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New X-Ray Map of Cosmic Megastructures Unravels Subatomic Mysteries

Scientific American

A new catalog of more than 12,000 galaxy clusters is helping scientists better understand the universe’s clumpiness, dark energy and some of the smallest particles in the cosmos: neutrinos

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A New EDF-Harvard Satellite Will Monitor Methane Emissions From Oil and Gas Production Worldwide

Inside Climate News

MethaneSAT, a partnership between the Environmental Defense Fund, Harvard University and others seeks to combat climate change through enhanced greenhouse gas emissions monitoring. By Phil McKenna A satellite that could soon play a key role in combating climate change by monitoring methane emissions entered Earth’s orbit aboard a SpaceX rocket launched from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in southern California on Monday.

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D-Wave says its quantum computers can solve otherwise impossible tasks

New Scientist

Quantum computing firm D-Wave says its machines are the first to achieve "computational supremacy" by solving a practically useful problem that would otherwise take millions of years on an ordinary supercomputer

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Queen’s Park Motion to Slash 407 Truck Tolls Undermines the Ontario Government’s Business Case for Highway 413

Enviromental Defense

Moving trucks to Hwy 407 would tackle 401 congestion faster – and $6 billion cheaper – than the Highway 413 Scheme Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat – This morning Ontario’s Official Opposition introduced a motion, that if passed by the legislative assembly and adopted, would demolish the Ontario government’s only real public pretext for pushing ahead with the $10 billion dollar “Highway 413”

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We Need to Investigate UFOs. But Without the Distraction of Conspiracy Theories

Scientific American

A former government official calls for investigating unidentified anomalous phenomena without succumbing to conspiracy theories about extraterrestrials

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New Research Shows Emissions From Cars and Power Plants Can Hinder Insects’ Search for the Plants They Pollinate

Inside Climate News

What happens when a rose doesn’t smell as sweet? By Moriah McDonald The level of air pollution in many cities is great enough to shorten the distance from which insects can smell the flowers they need to pollinate, according to recent research.

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Engineers are diverting Mississippi river to restore Louisiana’s coast

New Scientist

South of New Orleans, a project to divert the Mississippi river could restore ecosystems destroyed by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and build new land to protect against sea level rise

Sea Level 143
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New Research Exposes How Canadian Banks are Undermining Climate Goals and Risking Client’s Money

Enviromental Defense

Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat – A report launched today by the global think tank InfluenceMap , a non-profit which holds corporations accountable for climate performance, shows Canada’s big banks are failing to deliver on their own climate promises and creating greater financial risks for Canadians as a result.

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Is Raw Milk Cheese Safe to Eat?

Scientific American

Recent bacterial outbreaks from consuming cheese made from unpasteurized milk, or “raw milk,” raise questions about the safety of eating these artisanal products

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In Florida, Skyrocketing Insurance Rates Test Resolve of Homeowners in Risky Areas

Inside Climate News

Research shows the soaring costs hint at widespread, unpriced risk as the global climate warms, with states like California, Florida and Louisiana hit hardest. By Amy Green ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla.—For most of his life, Cory Infinger has lived down a hill and along a bend in the Little Wekiva River, a gentle stream meandering northwest of Orlando. During Hurricane Ian, in September 2022, the stream swelled, inundating the homes of his family and his neighbors and also the street where they live,

2022 126
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Walking 10,000 steps a day really does seem to make us healthier

New Scientist

The much-touted advice to take 10,000 steps a day for our health has been accused of lacking evidence, but new research suggests that hitting this target has serious benefits

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Five Things to Watch for in Biden’s State of the Union Address If You Care About the Climate Crisis

NRDC

This is an important moment to rally the country around the climate progress of the past three years—and show the way to build on those gains going forward.

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Spike in Lyme Disease Cases Reflects More Accurate Surveillance

Scientific American

In states with high rates of Lyme disease, new reporting guidelines have revealed tens of thousands of previously overlooked cases--giving scientists a better understanding of the public health threat

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