Redfin News: “The most flood-prone U.S. counties saw 384,000 more people move in than out in 2021 and 2022—a 103% increase from the prior two years, when 189,000 more people moved in than out. The same trend took hold in the places most vulnerable to wildfires and heat as the pandemic homebuying boom and a… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Environmental Law
Gulf stream could collapse as early as 2025
The Guardian: “The Gulf Stream system could collapse as soon as 2025, a new study suggests. The shutting down of the vital ocean currents, called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (Amoc) by scientists, would bring catastrophic climate impacts. Amoc was already known to be at its weakest in 1,600 years owing to global heating and… Continue Reading
Community Resilience Estimates for Heat
“Data is critical to providing information on how climate change affects Americans nationwide. This includes heat. Recently, the Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau released estimates for heat that identifies areas across the country that are socially vulnerable to extreme heat. This data comes at a critical time as many parts of our nation face this… Continue Reading
What is the relation between climate change and violent conflicts?
German Foreign Office.: Climate & Conflict. What is the relation between climate change and violent conflicts? Which role do socio-economic scope conditions play in exacerbating climate impact? How can we allow analysts and policymaker to make better decisions — based on heterogenous, multi-faceted information sources?…we are currently investigating dynamic, data-driven hotspot detection as well as… Continue Reading
Capital markets: The hidden pipeline for fossil fuel financing
“A new report – Capital markets: The hidden pipeline for fossil fuel financing by the Sierra Club’s Fossil-Free Finance campaign on the role of big US banks in capital markets reveals a hidden pipeline for fossil fuel financing through the banks’ underwriting of bonds and equities for polluting companies. The analysis raises important questions about… Continue Reading
Time is running out on the Climate Clock
The Verge: “An ominous, 62-foot-long clock looms over New York City’s iconic Union Square, and it’s about to tick past a worrying milestone. It’s called the Climate Clock, and it counts down how much time the world has left to stop climate change from becoming exponentially worse. As anyone who’s experienced the weather lately knows,… Continue Reading
EPA Releases New Framework Addressing New Pfas and New Uses of Pfas in The Market
National Law Review: “On Thursday, 29 June 2023, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a new framework (Framework) that will impact manufacturers across the country. The Framework lays out a new process for reviewing and assessing the potential environmental risks posed by new and new uses of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). This PFAS… Continue Reading
The 2023 SCOTUS Awards
The New York Times Opinion – “The headlines that emerged from the 2022-23 term of the Supreme Court conveyed the brutal impact of several big decisions, but they sometimes missed the human elements that made these opinions so startling — how the conservative majority favored one oppressed group but not another or imposed conflicting rules… Continue Reading
Getting ‘forever chemicals’ out of drinking water
EWG’s guide to PFAS water filters: “What’s in your water? The “forever chemicals” known as PFAS contaminate the drinking water and groundwater of more than 2,800 communities, affecting an estimated 200 million Americans. Simply drinking a glass of water from your kitchen tap may expose you to these toxic substances – but there are steps… Continue Reading
Third of North America’s Birds Have Vanished
At first Adam Smith couldn’t believe his calculations. Then it sank in. “…The hardest hit were grassland birds, down by more than 50 percent, mostly due to the expansion of farms that turn a varied landscape into acres of neat, plowed rows. That equates to 750 million birds, from bright yellow Eastern and Western Meadowlarks… Continue Reading
Climate and the Economy
“What the numbers say: Between 1970 and 2021, climate-related disasters resulted in economic losses of around $4.3T, with tropical cyclones responsible for the highest portion of losses at 38%, closely followed by floods which accounted for 32%. Relevance: According to professional services firm Aon’s 2023 Weather, Climate, and Catastrophe Insight, economic losses from hurricanes increased… Continue Reading
Biggest Fossil Fuel Firms Responsible for a Third of Western Forests Burned
Yale Environment 360: “Emissions from the world’s 88 largest fossil fuel firms and cement makers are responsible for 37 percent of the forest burned in the western U.S. and Canada since 1986, according to a new study. “Over the last several decades, human-caused climate change has turned routine Western wildfires into exceptionally destructive events,” Kristina… Continue Reading
