Bits of good climate related news among the bad...

[Aquamarine]

'According to this official, India’s emissions intensity has sharply decreased as a result of policies that target emissions in the industrial, automotive, and energy sectors and promote non-fossil production'.

India succeeds in reducing emissions rate by 33% over 14 years - sources - Saving our planet with chris

According to the report’s conclusions, India is on track to fulfill its obligation under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to reduce emissions intensity by 45% from 2005 levels by 2030. From 2005 to 2019, according to authorities familiar with the Third National...

savingourplanetwithchris.com

 

[Aquamarine]

EU's GHG emissions drop in Q1 2023 despite rise in GDP​

EU's GHG emissions drop in Q1 2023 despite rise in GDP: Eurostat

Emissions totaled 941 million mtCO2e GDP increased 1.2% in Q1 2023 EU carbon prices inched higher in this period EU greenhouse gas emissions totaled 941 million mtCO2e in the first quarter of 2023, do

www.spglobal.com

 

[danny la rouge]

Wind powered ships invented!

“Enabling a vessel to be blown along by the wind, rather than rely solely on its engine, could hopefully eventually reduce a cargo ship's lifetime emissions by 30%.”

We could call this new technology, “sail”.

Pioneering wind-powered cargo ship sets sail

Inventors hope maiden voyage will help usher in new era of greener shipping.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[platinumsage]

Parts of Great Barrier Reef See Most Extensive Coral Cover In 36 Years

e360.yale.edu

 

[ska invita]

Solar powered desalination would be a magic wand fix to so many problems
Sounds like getting close

MIT scientists used solar power to make drinking water cheaper than tap water

MIT scientists have designed a solar desalination system that turns saltwater into drinkable water at a higher volume – and a lower cost.

electrek.co

 

[Silas Loom]

Doesn’t look like it scales up for the requirements of irrigation, which would be the magic wand to end all magic wands.

 

[Aquamarine]

EU legislators agreed yesterday on a new directive that will jail the worst polluters for up to 10 years and fine companies up to 5% of their global turnover.

EU strikes deal on new 'ecocide' rules to put polluters in jail

European Union legislators reached agreement on Thursday (16 November) on a new directive that will see jail sentences of up to 10 years for the worst polluters and companies fined up to 5% of their global turnover.

www.euractiv.com

 

[Dystopiary]

This is positive, and we need some of that right now. It's about three women in different parts of the world doing conservation work with threatened species.

Climate crisis: Three women helping wildlife survive

 

[Aquamarine]

Portugal just ran on 100% renewables for six days in a row

For nearly a week, the country of 10 million met customer needs with wind, hydro and solar — a test run for operating the grid without fossil fuels.

www.canarymedia.com

 

[Aquamarine]

Carbon emissions and fossil fuels: The global picture

Fossil fuels are responsible for about 75% of climate change but still provide around 80% of the world's energy.

news.sky.com

 

[Pickman's model]

Carbon emissions and fossil fuels: The global picture

Fossil fuels are responsible for about 75% of climate change but still provide around 80% of the world's energy.

news.sky.com

i'm not sure what the point you're making here is

 

[Humberto]

I think this belongs here. In the USA mainly, climate lawsuits are being brought against fossil fuel companies and state agencies. Instigated in many cases by youth activist groups, they argue for instance:

Last year delivered wins for the two dozen cases brought by states and municipalities against fossil fuel companies for allegedly deceiving the public about the dangers of global warming.

Why 2024 will be a crucial year for climate litigation

Advocates predict activists and local governments will look to the courts to bring about accountability for climate damage

www.theguardian.com

They've had some success, with more to come hopefully. Seems credible and good for them for taking a stand.

 

[hash tag]

We are better off flying on holiday than cruising.
"Various studies by environmental organisations, comparing the carbon footprint of a week-long holiday on a European cruise with taking a flight and staying in a hotel, concluded that such cruises were up eight times as carbon intensive."

‘Biggest, baddest’ – but is it the cleanest? World’s largest cruise ship sets sail

Claims that Icon of the Seas, the vast new ship described as ‘human lasagne’, runs on clean fuel have been labelled greenwashing as LNG’s methane emissions are a more potent climate gas than CO2

www.theguardian.com

 

[WouldBe]

We are better off flying on holiday than cruising.
"Various studies by environmental organisations, comparing the carbon footprint of a week-long holiday on a European cruise with taking a flight and staying in a hotel, concluded that such cruises were up eight times as carbon intensive."

‘Biggest, baddest’ – but is it the cleanest? World’s largest cruise ship sets sail

Claims that Icon of the Seas, the vast new ship described as ‘human lasagne’, runs on clean fuel have been labelled greenwashing as LNG’s methane emissions are a more potent climate gas than CO2

www.theguardian.com

Not sure why it should leak methane. Considering the number of LNG tankers bobbing around the oceans then wouldn't they be a far bigger problem?

 

[two sheds]

Copied from a less suitable thread:

One of the few government actions I've agreed with. Who the fuck did the oil companies pay to pass this in the first place?

UK quits treaty that lets fossil fuel firms sue governments over climate policies

Britain joins France, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands in withdrawing from charter it says ‘penalises’ shift to net zero

www.theguardian.com

The treaty allows fossil fuel investors to sue states for lost profit expectations in an opaque corporate arbitration system set up to protect fossil fuel investors in the former Soviet economies in the 1990s.

The ECT is the world’s most litigated investment agreement and the UK’s continued presence within it has raised fears of “climate-wrecking lawsuits” if the government manages to pass its offshore petroleum licensing bill, which aims to jack up UK oil and gas extraction. About 40% of North Sea oil and gas licences are owned by foreign investors, according to research by the Common Wealth thinktank.

“However, the mechanism in the ECT which made it so deadly – the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions – lives on in a number of other treaties, including the pacific trade deal. With ISDS’s legitimacy crumbling, now is the time to scrap all this system.”

 

[bcuster]

California man first in U.S. to be charged with smuggling greenhouse gases

Michael Hart is the first person to be charged in the U.S. with smuggling potent greenhouse gases that are commonly used as refrigerants, federal prosecutors said.

www.latimes.com

 

[Aladdin]

Wind powered ships invented!

“Enabling a vessel to be blown along by the wind, rather than rely solely on its engine, could hopefully eventually reduce a cargo ship's lifetime emissions by 30%.”

We could call this new technology, “sail”.

Pioneering wind-powered cargo ship sets sail

Inventors hope maiden voyage will help usher in new era of greener shipping.

www.bbc.co.uk

A Brief History of Sailing | LEARNZ

www.learnz.org.nz

• The earliest record of a ship under sail appears on an Egyptian vase from about 3500 BC.
• Vikings sailed to North America around 1000 years ago.
• Advances in sailing technology from the 15th century onward enabled European explorers in Canada to make longer voyages into regions with extreme weather and climatic conditions.
• Further improvements in sails and equipment allowed colonization of America, Australia and New Zealand, and world trade to flourish in the 18th and 19th century."

Bit rich someone taking credit for sail boats / ships.

 

[RiderOnTheStorm]

no specific articles spring to mind, but I did hear about (re)using sails to aid ships (and thus reduce their fuel usage) and the possibility if (re)using horses for transport and agriculture. It seems that tech advances are done sometimes just because we can or because its the next push of the envelope. But maybe some of the old ways were good from environmental point of view (if not economy / financial reasons). I know some farmers (in Ireland) were very reluctant to cut down hedgerows / ditches between fields, as it destroys a micro climate / environment , but were pressured for financial reasons. There seems to be a return to replacing these hedgerows now (iirm there is a scheme / grant to plant them again?)

 

[bcuster]

The Quiet Work Trees Do for the Planet

"Trees are many things in our climate-fragile world: shields, indicators, educators, and managers," writes Daniel Lewis.

time.com

 

[Jeff Robinson]

Landmark ECHR ruling just dropped:

Human rights violated by inaction on climate, ECHR rules in landmark case

Court finds in favour of group of older Swiss women who claimed weak policies put them at greater risk of death from heatwaves

www.theguardian.com

 

[Humberto]

I thought this was worth putting here.

Our incredible win could change the future of oil and gas in the UK | Sarah Finch

Thanks to the tireless work of campaigners in Surrey, fossil-fuel development must now take into account ‘downstream’ emissions, says Sarah Finch of Weald Action Group

www.theguardian.com

 

[weltweit]

Spain is pushing ahead with electricity and sometimes when the sun shines (which is often) generates more clean electricity than it has demand for.

Too much of a good thing? Spain's green energy can exceed demand

Spain is looking at storing electricity or increasing demand to solve electricity oversupply.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[WouldBe]

Spain is pushing ahead with electricity and sometimes when the sun shines (which is often) generates more clean electricity than it has demand for.

Too much of a good thing? Spain's green energy can exceed demand

Spain is looking at storing electricity or increasing demand to solve electricity oversupply.

www.bbc.co.uk

I've generated 220kW so far this month but only used 80kW in the UK.

 

[stavros]

Demark have passed a law taxing cow and pig farmers by methane emissions. This sounds quite impressive, as I suspect the unions are pretty strong in that sector there.