Jonathan Petersson, Unsplash

Forever chemicals, carbon bombs, climate endgame, and more terms of the moment

News to know in our bi-weekly digest
05 August 2022

Same story, new terminology: The world must start preparing for a potential ‘climate endgame,’ scientists have warned.

This week on Landscape News, we’re covering some of the most relevant tactics for averting oblivion, from gravity power to taxing the oil and gas industry.

LANDSCAPE NEWS

An aerial view of oil wells in Texas in 2012. Luis Jou García, Flickr
An aerial view of oil wells in Texas in 2012. Luis Jou García, Flickr

Oil and gas companies are planning hundreds of new projects that will emit so much carbon that climate goals will be impossible to achieve. Here are the top 10 ‘carbon bombs’ that researchers have identified.

Regarding another way to take action, are you thinking about offsetting your emissions before jetting somewhere for vacation? Read our primer on responsible offsetting first.

Electricity doesn’t grow on trees, but what if it could fall from the sky? Here’s our feature on one of the latest sources of clean energy: gravity.

Wildfires are once again flaring up across the northern hemisphere. Here’s what we can expect from this year’s fire season.

CLIMATE

Yields of key EU crops are expected to drop by up to 9 percent this summer, due to heightened temperatures. Laura Rivera, Unsplash
Yields of key EU crops are expected to drop by up to 9 percent this summer, due to heightened temperatures. Laura Rivera, Unsplash

Heatwaves are threatening crop yields across Europe, exacerbating the war in Ukraine’s impact on global food prices.

Last month’s U.K. heatwave would have likely never happened without climate change. Deaths were 20 percent higher than usual that week (here’s one possible explanation).

Climate anxiety kills, too: in Peru, communities are counting the cost of health issues caused by the trauma of climate disasters.

PEOPLE

A Palestinian herder grazes his sheep in the Jordan Valley. Simon Rawles, Oxfam
A Palestinian herder grazes his sheep in the Jordan Valley. Simon Rawles, Oxfam

In the occupied West Bank, Palestinian herders face daily violence from the Israeli military and settlers intent on driving them out of their homes.

Bangladesh is preparing ‘climate-resilient towns’ to welcome climate refugees. Meanwhile, in Singapore and Malaysia, extreme heat is taking a deadly toll on migrant workers.

Hawaii’s Mauna Kea volcano is a perfect site for astronomers to watch the stars – and a sacred mountain for Native Hawaiians. Can the two communities coexist?

PLANET

Chemicals called PFAS, now found in rain, can remain in the environment for years. YELLOW Mao. 黃毛, Photographer, Flickr
Chemicals called PFAS, now found in rain, can remain in the environment for years. YELLOW Mao. 黃毛, Photographer, Flickr

Has humanity crossed another planetary boundary? It’s raining ‘forever chemicals’ even in the most remote corners of the Earth.

Lyme disease started spreading in North America following centuries of deforestation. Today, cases are soaring due to the climate crisis.

For some roaring news, Nepal has tripled its tiger population in the last 12 years. Here’s how.

BUSINESS

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has been outspoken about climate change. Faces Of The World, Flickr
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has been outspoken about climate change. Faces Of The World, Flickr

It’s time to slap a windfall tax on fossil fuel producers to help ease the cost of living crisis, says UN Secretary General António Guterres.

Oil and gas companies are set to start drilling in the world’s second-largest rainforest, including a sanctuary for endangered mountain gorillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Singapore’s USD 290 billion sovereign wealth fund is investing in a sustainable food future. Here’s a quick look behind the scenes.

Sprite is ditching its trademark green bottles to boost recyclability. Unilever, meanwhile, is coming under fire for failing to recycle its single-use food sachets in Indonesia.

POLICY

Maxim Tolchinskiy, Unsplash
Maxim Tolchinskiy, Unsplash

Rich countries have broken their pledge to provide USD 100 billion to help poorer countries adapt to the climate crisis.

The U.S. is on the brink of passing a historic bill to slash greenhouse gas emissions, but it could also make it easier to approve new fossil fuel projects.

Ukraine has exported grain by sea for the first time since Russia’s invasion, but it could be too little, too late to avert a global hunger crisis.

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