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Items tagged with: environment

 
2019-08-25 07:59:04
As Berlin tries to switch to greener transport, people are choosing the bike, not the electric car – and it’s becoming a status symbol

In a fashionable corner of the capital of Germany, Europe’s “car nation”, parents picking up or dropping off their offspring have lined the edge of a popular playground with luxury vehicles. There are summery convertibles, wood-panelled multi-seaters and slim racers – but none of them has four wheels.

Jan Edler, an architect, has picked up his son Laszlo from daycare with a Bullitt, a Danish-built cargo bike with a platform spacious enough to fit the one-year-old and the daily grocery shopping.

39,200 electric cargo bikes were sold in Germany in 2018, compared with 36,062 electric cars

Volkswagen launched its own cargo bike but was met with scathing reviews by the bike community
Four wheels bad, but three sehr gut. Germans climb aboard cargo bikes
#Germany #Citytransport #Europe #Worldnews #Electric #hybridandlow-emissioncars #Cycling #Cities #Travelandtransport #Environment #Society

Four wheels bad, but three sehr gut. Germans climb aboard cargo bikes

As Berlin tries to switch to greener transport, people are choosing the bike, not the electric car – and it’s becoming a status symbol
www.theguardian.com
#Germany #Citytransport #Europe #Worldnews #Electric #hybridandlow-emissioncars #Cycling #Cities #Travelandtransport #Environment #Society
 
2019-08-25 07:59:04
As Berlin tries to switch to greener transport, people are choosing the bike, not the electric car – and it’s becoming a status symbol

In a fashionable corner of the capital of Germany, Europe’s “car nation”, parents picking up or dropping off their offspring have lined the edge of a popular playground with luxury vehicles. There are summery convertibles, wood-panelled multi-seaters and slim racers – but none of them has four wheels.

Jan Edler, an architect, has picked up his son Laszlo from daycare with a Bullitt, a Danish-built cargo bike with a platform spacious enough to fit the one-year-old and the daily grocery shopping.

39,200 electric cargo bikes were sold in Germany in 2018, compared with 36,062 electric cars

Volkswagen launched its own cargo bike but was met with scathing reviews by the bike community
Four wheels bad, but three sehr gut. Germans climb aboard cargo bikes
#Germany #Citytransport #Europe #Worldnews #Electric #hybridandlow-emissioncars #Cycling #Cities #Travelandtransport #Environment #Society

Four wheels bad, but three sehr gut. Germans climb aboard cargo bikes

As Berlin tries to switch to greener transport, people are choosing the bike, not the electric car – and it’s becoming a status symbol
www.theguardian.com
#Germany #Citytransport #Europe #Worldnews #Electric #hybridandlow-emissioncars #Cycling #Cities #Travelandtransport #Environment #Society
 
As Berlin tries to switch to greener transport, people are choosing the bike, not the electric car – and it’s becoming a status symbol

In a fashionable corner of the capital of Germany, Europe’s “car nation”, parents picking up or dropping off their offspring have lined the edge of a popular playground with luxury vehicles. There are summery convertibles, wood-panelled multi-seaters and slim racers – but none of them has four wheels.

Jan Edler, an architect, has picked up his son Laszlo from daycare with a Bullitt, a Danish-built cargo bike with a platform spacious enough to fit the one-year-old and the daily grocery shopping.

39,200 electric cargo bikes were sold in Germany in 2018, compared with 36,062 electric cars

Volkswagen launched its own cargo bike but was met with scathing reviews by the bike community
Four wheels bad, but three sehr gut. Germans climb aboard cargo bikes
#Germany #Citytransport #Europe #Worldnews #Electric #hybridandlow-emissioncars #Cycling #Cities #Travelandtransport #Environment #Society

Four wheels bad, but three sehr gut. Germans climb aboard cargo bikes

As Berlin tries to switch to greener transport, people are choosing the bike, not the electric car – and it’s becoming a status symbol
www.theguardian.com
#Germany #Citytransport #Europe #Worldnews #Electric #hybridandlow-emissioncars #Cycling #Cities #Travelandtransport #Environment #Society
 
2019-08-23 20:54:54

The biggest threat to our planet is believing that someone else will save it


#quote by Robert #Swan



#threat #environment #planet
#quote #Swan #threat #environment #planet
 

The biggest threat to our planet is believing that someone else will save it


#quote by Robert #Swan



#threat #environment #planet
#quote #Swan #threat #environment #planet
 

Monsanto Behind GOP Effort to Defund Cancer Researchers


#environment #health #pollution

Emails Show Monsanto Orchestrated GOP Effort to Intimidate Cancer Researchers

Documents suggest the firm has antagonized regulators and applied pressure to shape research of the world’s leading herbicide.
theintercept.com
#environment #health #pollution
 
2019-08-21 21:42:52

There was worldwide outcry when the Notre Dame cathedral was on fire. Why is there not the same level of outrage for the fires destroying the #AmazonRainforest?


#environment #globalwarming #climatechange #Brazil #forestfire #AmazonFires

Twitter: WWF UK on Twitter (WWF UK)

#AmazonRainforest #environment #globalwarming #climatechange #Brazil #forestfire #AmazonFires
 

There was worldwide outcry when the Notre Dame cathedral was on fire. Why is there not the same level of outrage for the fires destroying the #AmazonRainforest?


#environment #globalwarming #climatechange #Brazil #forestfire #AmazonFires

Twitter: WWF UK on Twitter (WWF UK)

#AmazonRainforest #environment #globalwarming #climatechange #Brazil #forestfire #AmazonFires
 
2019-08-11 08:26:21

Insect 'apocalypse' in U.S. driven by 50x increase in toxic pesticides


#environment #ecology #pollution

Insect 'apocalypse' in U.S. driven by 50x increase in toxic pesticides

Bees, butterflies, and other insects are under attack by the very plants they feed on as U.S. agriculture continues to use chemicals known to kill.
www.nationalgeographic.com
#environment #ecology #pollution
 

Insect 'apocalypse' in U.S. driven by 50x increase in toxic pesticides


#environment #ecology #pollution

Insect 'apocalypse' in U.S. driven by 50x increase in toxic pesticides

Bees, butterflies, and other insects are under attack by the very plants they feed on as U.S. agriculture continues to use chemicals known to kill.
www.nationalgeographic.com
#environment #ecology #pollution
 
2019-08-14 20:01:29

Fracking in U.S. And Canada Linked to Worldwide Atmospheric Methane Spike


#environment #pollution #climate

Thank you, assholes.

Fracking in U.S. and Canada linked to worldwide atmospheric methane spike

"The commercialization of shale gas and oil in the 21st century has dramatically increased global methane emissions", said the scientist behind the study.
www.newsweek.com
#environment #pollution #climate
 
2019-08-14 20:01:29

Fracking in U.S. And Canada Linked to Worldwide Atmospheric Methane Spike


#environment #pollution #climate

Thank you, assholes.

Fracking in U.S. and Canada linked to worldwide atmospheric methane spike

"The commercialization of shale gas and oil in the 21st century has dramatically increased global methane emissions", said the scientist behind the study.
www.newsweek.com
#environment #pollution #climate
 
2019-08-14 20:01:29

Fracking in U.S. And Canada Linked to Worldwide Atmospheric Methane Spike


#environment #pollution #climate

Thank you, assholes.

Fracking in U.S. and Canada linked to worldwide atmospheric methane spike

"The commercialization of shale gas and oil in the 21st century has dramatically increased global methane emissions", said the scientist behind the study.
www.newsweek.com
#environment #pollution #climate
 
2019-08-14 20:01:29

Fracking in U.S. And Canada Linked to Worldwide Atmospheric Methane Spike


#environment #pollution #climate

Thank you, assholes.

Fracking in U.S. and Canada linked to worldwide atmospheric methane spike

"The commercialization of shale gas and oil in the 21st century has dramatically increased global methane emissions", said the scientist behind the study.
www.newsweek.com
#environment #pollution #climate
 

Fracking in U.S. And Canada Linked to Worldwide Atmospheric Methane Spike


#environment #pollution #climate

Thank you, assholes.

Fracking in U.S. and Canada linked to worldwide atmospheric methane spike

"The commercialization of shale gas and oil in the 21st century has dramatically increased global methane emissions", said the scientist behind the study.
www.newsweek.com
#environment #pollution #climate
 
2019-08-08 01:45:46

'It feels like something out of a bad sci-fi movie'


A top #climate scientist quit #USDA, following others who say #Trump has politicized #science.
Lewis #Ziska, a 62-year-old #plant physiologist who’s worked at USDA’s Agricultural Research Service for more than two decades, told POLITICO he was alarmed when department officials not only questioned the findings of the #study — which raised serious concerns for the 600 million people who depend on #rice for most of their #calories — but also tried to minimize #media coverage of the paper, which was published in the journal Science Advances last year.
Source: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/08/05/ziska-usda-climate-agriculture-trump-1445271

#usa #future #humanity #environment #agriculture #earth #co2 #politics
#climate #USDA #Trump #science #Ziska #plant #study #rice #calories #media #usa #future #humanity #environment #agriculture #earth #co2 #politics
 

'It feels like something out of a bad sci-fi movie'


A top #climate scientist quit #USDA, following others who say #Trump has politicized #science.
Lewis #Ziska, a 62-year-old #plant physiologist who’s worked at USDA’s Agricultural Research Service for more than two decades, told POLITICO he was alarmed when department officials not only questioned the findings of the #study — which raised serious concerns for the 600 million people who depend on #rice for most of their #calories — but also tried to minimize #media coverage of the paper, which was published in the journal Science Advances last year.
Source: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/08/05/ziska-usda-climate-agriculture-trump-1445271

#usa #future #humanity #environment #agriculture #earth #co2 #politics
#climate #USDA #Trump #science #Ziska #plant #study #rice #calories #media #usa #future #humanity #environment #agriculture #earth #co2 #politics
 
2019-07-30 11:46:12
Bild/Foto

Conflict Over Resources:

164 activists killed last year


Over 160 people were killed for trying to protect the environment in 2018, says NGO Global Witness.

It said that much of the persecution of environmental activists is being driven by demand for the land and raw materials needed for products we consume every day, including food, mobile phones and jewelry.

Global Witness blamed:
  • Investors.
  • Development Banks
For fuelling the violence by financing abusive projects.

https://www.dw.com/en/conflict-over-resources-164-activists-killed-last-year/a-49797391

#Banks #CorporateTerrorism #environment #theft #consumers #GlobalWitness #capitalism #crimes #murder #CorporateMurder #Banking #investors #CapitalismMustGo
#Banks #CorporateTerrorism #environment #theft #consumers #GlobalWitness #capitalism #crimes #murder #CorporateMurder #Banking #investors #CapitalismMustGo
 
Bild/Foto

Conflict Over Resources:

164 activists killed last year


Over 160 people were killed for trying to protect the environment in 2018, says NGO Global Witness.

It said that much of the persecution of environmental activists is being driven by demand for the land and raw materials needed for products we consume every day, including food, mobile phones and jewelry.

Global Witness blamed:
  • Investors.
  • Development Banks
For fuelling the violence by financing abusive projects.

https://www.dw.com/en/conflict-over-resources-164-activists-killed-last-year/a-49797391

#Banks #CorporateTerrorism #environment #theft #consumers #GlobalWitness #capitalism #crimes #murder #CorporateMurder #Banking #investors #CapitalismMustGo
#Banks #CorporateTerrorism #environment #theft #consumers #GlobalWitness #capitalism #crimes #murder #CorporateMurder #Banking #investors #CapitalismMustGo
 
2019-07-26 16:42:02

Human Thermal Limits — and when we exceed them


The human body relies primarily upon sweat to cool itself. But if the air is hot enough and humid enough, your sweat no longer evaporates, and sweating for cooling no longer works.

The critical point is a wet-bulb temperature of 35°C. Beyond that, fans don't help. Drinking doesn't help. Shade doesn't help. Rest doesn't help. When the wet-bulb temperature exceeds 35°C, unprotected humans die.

Some areas of the Earth are getting alarmingly close to this limit.
Wetbulb temperatures of 35°C have not yet been widely reported, but there is some evidence that they are starting to occur in Southwest Asia. Climate change then offers the prospect that some of the most densely populated regions on Earth could pass this threshold by the end of the century, with the Persian Gulf, South Asia, and most recently the North China Plain on the front line. These regions are, together, home to billions of people.
When regions cross the 35°C wetbulb limit, they will quite simply become uninhabitable by humans outside of air-conditioned environments. And we simply do not have sufficient power to air-condition that much of the world ... and trying to generate it will only make the problem worse unless we can do so using non-carbon-emitting means.
By 2050, cooling systems are expected to increase electricity demand by an amount equivalent to the present capacity of the US, EU, and Japan combined.
Even then, that heat doesn't just go nowhere; remember, we cool buildings by moving the unwanted heat outside. The more we cool the inside, the hotter the outside gets. Which means we need to turn up the air conditioning to keep the building cool, dumping even more heat outside...

You can see where that's going.

The short version is that if we keep on our current path, in as little as another few decades large areas of our planet are on track to become uninhabitable. And the people who live there now are going to have to either find a new place to live, or die.

Finding new places is going to be very hard. Look at all the resistance to the relatively tiny refugee movements happening today. If we pass 35°C wet-bulb, entire nations may need to relocate. And a LOT of them are going to die.

https://www.sciencealert.com/think-it-s-hot-in-europe-in-these-places-the-human-body-is-close-to-its-thermal-limit

Hat tip @Cass M

#science #environment #climate

Think It's Hot in Europe? In These Places, The Human Body's Already Close to Its Thermal Limit

I am a scientist who researches climate hazards. This week I have published research on the potential for a catastrophic cyclone-heatwave combo in the global south.
www.sciencealert.com
#science #environment #climate @Cass M
 

Human Thermal Limits — and when we exceed them


The human body relies primarily upon sweat to cool itself. But if the air is hot enough and humid enough, your sweat no longer evaporates, and sweating for cooling no longer works.

The critical point is a wet-bulb temperature of 35°C. Beyond that, fans don't help. Drinking doesn't help. Shade doesn't help. Rest doesn't help. When the wet-bulb temperature exceeds 35°C, unprotected humans die.

Some areas of the Earth are getting alarmingly close to this limit.
Wetbulb temperatures of 35°C have not yet been widely reported, but there is some evidence that they are starting to occur in Southwest Asia. Climate change then offers the prospect that some of the most densely populated regions on Earth could pass this threshold by the end of the century, with the Persian Gulf, South Asia, and most recently the North China Plain on the front line. These regions are, together, home to billions of people.
When regions cross the 35°C wetbulb limit, they will quite simply become uninhabitable by humans outside of air-conditioned environments. And we simply do not have sufficient power to air-condition that much of the world ... and trying to generate it will only make the problem worse unless we can do so using non-carbon-emitting means.
By 2050, cooling systems are expected to increase electricity demand by an amount equivalent to the present capacity of the US, EU, and Japan combined.
Even then, that heat doesn't just go nowhere; remember, we cool buildings by moving the unwanted heat outside. The more we cool the inside, the hotter the outside gets. Which means we need to turn up the air conditioning to keep the building cool, dumping even more heat outside...

You can see where that's going.

The short version is that if we keep on our current path, in as little as another few decades large areas of our planet are on track to become uninhabitable. And the people who live there now are going to have to either find a new place to live, or die.

Finding new places is going to be very hard. Look at all the resistance to the relatively tiny refugee movements happening today. If we pass 35°C wet-bulb, entire nations may need to relocate. And a LOT of them are going to die.

https://www.sciencealert.com/think-it-s-hot-in-europe-in-these-places-the-human-body-is-close-to-its-thermal-limit

Hat tip @Cass M

#science #environment #climate

Think It's Hot in Europe? In These Places, The Human Body's Already Close to Its Thermal Limit

I am a scientist who researches climate hazards. This week I have published research on the potential for a catastrophic cyclone-heatwave combo in the global south.
www.sciencealert.com
#science #environment #climate @Cass M
 
2019-07-24 07:26:41
Iceland to lay a plaque marking it's first glacier to be lost to climate change.
The first of Iceland’s 400 glaciers to be lost to the climate crisis will be remembered with a memorial plaque – and a sombre warning for the future – to be unveiled by scientists and local people next month.

The former Okjökull glacier, which a century ago covered 15 sq km (5.8 sq miles) of mountainside in western Iceland and measured 50 metres thick, has shrunk to barely 1 sq km of ice less than 15 metres deep and lost its status as a glacier.

Researchers from Rice University in Houston, Texas, a leading Icelandic author, Andri Snær Magnason, and the geologist Oddur Sigurðsson will lead the unveiling ceremony at the site in Borgarfjörður on 18 August, local media said.

“In the next 200 years, all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path,” the plaque reads, in Icelandic and English. “This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it.”

The memorial is dated August 2019 and also carries the words “415ppm CO2”, referring to the record-breaking level of 415 parts per million of carbon dioxide recorded in the atmosphere in May this year.
#GlobalWarming #ClimateChange #Glaciers #Environment #Iceland

Icelandic memorial warns future: ‘Only you know if we saved glaciers’

Plaque marking Okjökull, the first glacier lost to climate crisis, to be unveiled in August
www.theguardian.com
#GlobalWarming #ClimateChange #Glaciers #Environment #Iceland
 
Iceland to lay a plaque marking it's first glacier to be lost to climate change.
The first of Iceland’s 400 glaciers to be lost to the climate crisis will be remembered with a memorial plaque – and a sombre warning for the future – to be unveiled by scientists and local people next month.

The former Okjökull glacier, which a century ago covered 15 sq km (5.8 sq miles) of mountainside in western Iceland and measured 50 metres thick, has shrunk to barely 1 sq km of ice less than 15 metres deep and lost its status as a glacier.

Researchers from Rice University in Houston, Texas, a leading Icelandic author, Andri Snær Magnason, and the geologist Oddur Sigurðsson will lead the unveiling ceremony at the site in Borgarfjörður on 18 August, local media said.

“In the next 200 years, all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path,” the plaque reads, in Icelandic and English. “This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it.”

The memorial is dated August 2019 and also carries the words “415ppm CO2”, referring to the record-breaking level of 415 parts per million of carbon dioxide recorded in the atmosphere in May this year.
#GlobalWarming #ClimateChange #Glaciers #Environment #Iceland

Icelandic memorial warns future: ‘Only you know if we saved glaciers’

Plaque marking Okjökull, the first glacier lost to climate crisis, to be unveiled in August
www.theguardian.com
#GlobalWarming #ClimateChange #Glaciers #Environment #Iceland
 
Bild/Foto
Photo : Ethan Norris.

Environ 90 % des icebergs se trouvent sous la surface de l'eau, ce qui fait que les retournements d'icebergs sont rares. Ces photos ont été prises par le U.S. Antarctic Program dans Iceberg Alley, une région de l'ouest de la mer de Weddell. Les grands icebergs anciens contiennent des siècles de sédiments et de minéraux soufflés par le vent, visibles sous forme de couches lorsqu'ils se retournent, comme on le voit sur la photo.

Approximately 90% of any iceberg is below the surface, making iceberg flips a rare occurrence. These photos were taken by the the U.S. Antarctic Program in Iceberg Alley, a region in the western Weddell Sea. Large old icebergs contain centuries of windblown sediment and minerals, visible as layers when they roll over as seen in the photo.

#Art #photo #environment #icebergs
#Art #photo #environment #icebergs
 
2019-07-18 19:06:57

#UK #energy-saving efforts collapse after #government #subsidy cuts | #Environment | The Guardian


Another top policy by the #Tories.

UK energy-saving efforts collapse after government subsidy cuts

Only 10,000 upgrades such as loft insulation happen each month compared with 65,000 in 2014, report shows
www.theguardian.com
#UK #energy-saving #government #subsidy #Environment #Tories
 

#UK #energy-saving efforts collapse after #government #subsidy cuts | #Environment | The Guardian


Another top policy by the #Tories.

UK energy-saving efforts collapse after government subsidy cuts

Only 10,000 upgrades such as loft insulation happen each month compared with 65,000 in 2014, report shows
www.theguardian.com
#UK #energy-saving #government #subsidy #Environment #Tories
 
They’re cheaper than cabs, less effort than a bike and more convenient than buses. But as the number of e-scooter accidents rises, a backlash is growing

Most of the people riding electric scooters around Copenhagen glide like swans, bodies motionless and serene with heads tilted into the sunshine.

I am the ugly duckling, wobbling and jerking while I struggle to figure out exactly how this two-wheeled contraption works. Where do I put my feet? How hard do I thumb the accelerator? And how on earth am I meant to indicate left and press the brake with my left hand at the same time?

In Copenhagen, police officers mounted an operation against drink riders

Invasion of the electric scooter: can our cities cope?

They’re cheaper than cabs, less effort than a bike and more convenient than buses. But as the number of e-scooter accidents rises, a backlash is growing
www.theguardian.com
#Cities #Roadtransport #Transport #London #Denmark #Europe #UKnews #Worldnews #Environment
#Cities #Roadtransport #Transport #London #Denmark #Europe #UKnews #Worldnews #Environment
 
2019-06-25 14:37:21
Mother and daughter win legal fight to hold state responsible for failing to tackle problem

The French state has failed to do enough to limit air pollution around Paris, according to a landmark court ruling delivered after a woman and daughter with respiratory problems sued the nation.

In the first case of its kind, Farida, 52, and her 16-year-old daughter, whose full names were not released by the court, sued the French state over the impact of living near Paris’s traffic-choked ringroad in Saint-Ouen.
France loses landmark court case over air pollution
#Paris #France #Airpollution #Europe #Worldnews #Environment

France loses landmark court case over air pollution

Mother and daughter win legal fight to hold state responsible for failing to tackle problem
www.theguardian.com
#Paris #France #Airpollution #Europe #Worldnews #Environment
 
Mother and daughter win legal fight to hold state responsible for failing to tackle problem

The French state has failed to do enough to limit air pollution around Paris, according to a landmark court ruling delivered after a woman and daughter with respiratory problems sued the nation.

In the first case of its kind, Farida, 52, and her 16-year-old daughter, whose full names were not released by the court, sued the French state over the impact of living near Paris’s traffic-choked ringroad in Saint-Ouen.
France loses landmark court case over air pollution
#Paris #France #Airpollution #Europe #Worldnews #Environment

France loses landmark court case over air pollution

Mother and daughter win legal fight to hold state responsible for failing to tackle problem
www.theguardian.com
#Paris #France #Airpollution #Europe #Worldnews #Environment
 
Good news for the #Environment: From 2023, aircraft engine particle number and mass emissions will be regulated globally. ✈️
—Theo Rindlisbacher (@bazlCH)
#ETHNPC2019 #Nanoparticles #Emissions #ETH

#Environment #ETHNPC2019 #Nanoparticles #Emissions #ETH @bazlCH
 
2019-06-05 15:57:23
Bild/Foto
Bild/Foto
Mapache’s Stare
by Sonny in Cozumel, Mexico

#streetart #art #Sonny #raccoon #nature #environment

"The oceans connect us all and it’s up to ALL of us to protect them. For my @seawalls_ mural, I wanted to focus on some of the environmental issues that face the beautiful island of Cozumel. The pygmy raccoon (also known as the Cozumel raccoon) is one of 36 species endemic to the island; it’s also critically endangered with habitat loss caused by tourism as a major culprit. A landfill reflected in the eye of the raccoon represents how these animals can only watch as their habitat gets destroyed and taken over. The raccoon is painted to break and fade away, and if you look hard you can see a cruise ship in amongst the splatters. This serves as a reminder of the monstrous cruise ships that bring 5 million people to the island every year, severely impacting on its ecosystems. With another port in the pipelines, this number may double to 10 million people a year! For an island that has one of the world’s largest reefs and is home to so many endemic species, we can only hope that regulations and support from the local government will be able to protect it", says the artist
#streetart #art #Sonny #raccoon #nature #environment
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