L’Anthropocène

If despair is the most unforgivable sin, then hope is surely the most abused virtue. That observation feels particularly apposite as we enter the Cop season, that time of United Nations megaconferences at the end of every year, when national leaders feel obliged to convince us the future will be better, despite growing evidence to the contrary.

Oceanographer Stefan Rahmstorf explains why Amoc breakdown could be catastrophic for both humans and marine life

The signs of weakening resilience raise concerns that the world’s greatest tropical forest – and biggest terrestrial carbon sink – is degrading towards a point of no return. It follows four supposedly “one-in-a-century” dry spells in less than 20 years, highlighting how a human-disrupted climate is putting unusually intense strains on trees and other plants, many of which are dying of dehydration.

Cost of environmental damage will be six times higher than price of limiting global heating to 2C, study finds

Un mois de plus, un nouveau record de chaleur à l’échelle mondiale qui laisse les climatologues perplexes, espérant qu’il s’agit d’un phénomène lié à El Niño et non d’un symptôme d’une santé planétaire plus mauvaise que prévu. Les températures à la surface du globe en mars étaient supérieures de 0,1 °C au précédent record pour ce mois, établi en 2016, et de 1,68 °C à la moyenne préindustrielle, selon les données publiées mardi par le Copernicus Climate Change Service.

If the anomaly does not stabilise by August, ‘the world will be in uncharted territory’, says climate expert

Jonathan Watts Traduction Deepl Josette – The Guardian - Le mois de février est en passe de battre un nombre record de records de chaleur, selon les météorologues, car le réchauffement climatique d’origine humaine et le phénomène naturel El Niño font grimper les températures sur terre et dans les océans.

Rapid ocean warming and unusually hot winter days recorded as human-made global heating combines with El Niño

Collapse in system of currents that helps regulate global climate would be at such speed that adaptation would be impossible

Selon les chercheurs, la production actuelle détruit plus de valeur qu’elle n’en crée en raison des coûts médicaux et environnementaux.

Existing production destroys more value than it creates due to medical and environmental costs, researchers say

Extreme weather is ‘smacking us in the face’ with worse to come, but a ‘tiny window’ of hope remains, say leading climate scientists

Human-caused climate disruption and El Niño push temperature in mountains to 37C

Amazon rainforest and other ecosystems could collapse ‘very soon’, researchers warn

Going beyond climate disruption, the report by the Earth Commission group of scientists presents disturbing evidence that our planet faces growing crises of water availability, nutrient loading, ecosystem maintenance and aerosol pollution. These pose threats to the stability of life-support systems and worsen social equality.

Population likely to peak sooner and lower than expected with beneficial results – but environment is priority

Sustainable food systems are a cornerstone to cutting emissions but have been largely absent from the agenda in Glasgow. Farming is a complex issue on the journey to net zero, as it is both a source and sink for emissions. About 20% of global emissions come from agriculture and land use, and this rises to more than 25% for the food system as a whole, which includes processing, packaging and transport.

The scientific consensus that humans are altering the climate has passed 99.9%, according to research that strengthens the case for global action at the Cop26 summit in Glasgow.

Beware summer! The season we used to anticipate as the lightest, brightest, balmiest time of the year now comes with a health warning.

Lucrative pay and share options have created an incentive for oil company executives to resist climate action, according to a study that casts doubt on recent net-zero commitments by BP and Shell. Compensation packages for CEOs, often in excess of $10m (£7.2m), are linked to continued extraction of fossil fuels, exploration of new fields and the promotion of strong market demand through advertising, lobbying and government subsidies, the report says.

The author and eminent climate scientist on the deniers’ new tactics and why positive change feels closer than it has done in 20 years

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The United States and Saudi Arabia have hamstrung global efforts to scrutinise climate geoengineering in order to benefit their fossil fuel industries, according to multiple sources at the United Nations environment assembly, taking place this week in Nairobi.

After water, concrete is the most widely used substance on Earth. If the cement industry were a country, it would be the third largest carbon dioxide emitter in the world with up to 2.8bn tonnes, surpassed only by China and the US. The material is the foundation of modern development. Concrete is how we try to tame nature...