Climate Science
Covid exposes Mexico City’s water access gap between rich and poor
The coronavirus pandemic lays bare the impact of Mexico City’s mounting water crisis on vulnerable households, while gated communities enjoy reliable supplies
UN summit highlights $700bn funding gap to restore nature
A pledging conference to halt the decline of biodiversity worldwide yielded only a handful of vague financial commitments from European governments
World misses 2020 biodiversity goals: leaked UN draft report
Global Biodiversity Outlook draft finds funding shortfalls and failure to account for the role of women held back progress on restoring ecosystems
African ministers call for investment in Great Green Wall to aid Covid-19 recovery
Plans for an 8,000km green belt across the Sahel region have stalled, with fresh funds needed to halt desertification and create sustainable livelihoods
Loopholes in Arctic heavy fuel oil ban defer action to the end of the decade
In concessions to Russia, the International Maritime Organisation has watered down draft rules to protect the Arctic from oil spills and black carbon pollution
Mauritius oil spill compensation could be limited by maritime law technicality
Experts warn payouts for an oil spill that has devastated Mauritius’ fishing and tourism industries may not match the scale of the damage
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Most of UN climate science report likely to be delayed beyond 2021 Glasgow summit
Only the first section of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, about the science of global warming, is set to be ready before the postponed Glasgow summit
Green shift urged to revive Brazil’s economy and shield Amazon forests
President Bolsonaro could rebuild the economy faster after Covid-19 by making low-carbon growth a pillar of recovery, international study says
‘Worst-case’ global warming scenario still best guide until 2050, study says
UN panel’s RCP8.5 scenario of sharply rising emissions matches trends since 2005, PNAS study says, rejecting criticisms it’s “alarmist”
Guterres confronts China over coal boom, urging a green recovery
China’s provinces have overseen a coal plant building spree in the first half of the year, in a bid to revive the Covid pandemic-hit economy
‘Nature doesn’t trust us any more’: Arctic heatwave stokes permafrost thaw
Record permafrost temperatures are transforming the Arctic, especially for indigenous peoples, whose hunting livelihoods are at risk as ground melts
Coronavirus delays work to protect the world’s poor from climate shocks
Travel restrictions and patchy internet access are slowing down efforts to improve resilience to weather extremes like cyclones Amphan and Nisarga
Now is the time to climate-and-pandemic-proof our food systems
Social safety nets and shorter supply chains are essential to protect smallholder farmers facing spiralling debt and bankruptcy
EU plans to protect 30% of land and seas by 2030 for biodiversity
The European Commission set out a strategy to overhaul farming and strictly protect carbon-rich forests and wetlands, to benefit wildlife
Coronavirus lockdown cut energy-related CO2 emissions 17%, study finds
Early estimates show deep cuts to emissions from air and road travel as a result of public health measures, but scientists warn these are only temporary
Watchdog: Germany must reach net zero emissions by 2038
An independent advisory body on environmental policy warned Germany risks exhausting its carbon budget by 2029 without robust climate action
Next UN climate science report to consider lessons from coronavirus
UN climate science reports due in 2021 will examine the links between pandemics and human pressures on the natural world to guide policymakers
Greenpeace takes Arctic oil lawsuit to Norway’s supreme court
After losing at two lower courts, campaigners are taking the fight to ban new oil exploration licences to the top, where it will be heard by all 19 justices
Coronavirus: plane-free skies spur research into warming impact of aviation
As the Covid-19 pandemic response hits air traffic, scientists seize the opportunity to study how planes’ contrails trap heat in the atmosphere