World Economic Forum: Cost of living dominates global risks in the next two years while climate action failure dominates the next decade. “As 2023 begins, the world is facing a set of risks that feel both wholly new and eerily familiar. We have seen a return of “older” risks – inflation, cost-of-living crises, trade wars,… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Environmental Law
Artificial intelligence deep learning model for mapping wetlands yields 94% accuracy
PHYS.org: “Chesapeake Conservancy’s data science team developed an artificial intelligence deep learning model for mapping wetlands, which resulted in 94% accuracy. Supported by EPRI, an independent, non-profit energy research and development institute; Lincoln Electric System; and the Grayce B. Kerr Fund, Inc., this method for wetland mapping could deliver important outcomes for protecting and conserving… Continue Reading
Assessing ExxonMobil’s global warming projections
Science [no paywall for two weeks] – Assessing ExxonMobil’s global warming projections. G. Supran. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3846-1633 , S. Rahmstorf. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6786-7723, and N. OreskesAuthors Info & Affiliations Science 13 Jan 2023 Vol 379, Issue 6628 DOI: 10.1126/science.abk0063 “In 2015, investigative journalists discovered internal company memos indicating that Exxon oil company has known since the late 1970s that… Continue Reading
Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters
NOAA – “The U.S. has sustained 341 weather and climate disasters since 1980 where overall damages/costs reached or exceeded $1 billion (including CPI adjustment to 2022). The total cost of these 341 events exceeds $2.475 trillion. In 2022, there were 18 weather/climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each to affect the United States.… Continue Reading
What are Large Global Banks Doing About Climate Change?
What are Large Global Banks Doing About Climate Change? Daniel O. Beltran, Hannah Bensen, Amy Kvien, Erin McDevitt, Monica V. Sanz, and Pinar Uysal. January 2023 – We review the “climate action plans” of Global Systemically Important Banks (GSIBs) and the progress they are making toward achieving them. G-SIBs have identified the drivers of climate… Continue Reading
How to keep your phone charged and working in extreme storms
Washington Post: “More storms are expected to drench the West Coast this week as parts of California are still dealing with flooding, destruction and power outages caused by recent atmospheric rivers. It’s the latest extreme weather to hit the country this winter. A powerful winter “bomb cyclone” pummeled the central U.S. and Great Lakes region… Continue Reading
How microplastics are infiltrating the food you eat
BBC: “Microplastics have infiltrated every part of the planet. They have been found buried in Antarctic sea ice, within the guts of marine animals inhabiting the deepest ocean trenches, and in drinking water around the world. Plastic pollution has been found on beaches of remote, uninhabited islands and it shows up in sea water samples… Continue Reading
Coastal Risk Screening Tool
“An interactive map showing areas threatened by sea level rise and coastal flooding. Combining the most advanced global model of coastal elevations with the latest projections for future flood levels. Flood maps are only as good as the elevation data they’re founded on. We used machine learning to develop CoastalDEM ®, a high-accuracy digital elevation… Continue Reading
2022 Close-Up Photographer of the Year Competition
Colossal – Nature’s Diversity is Captured in Minuscule Detail: “Among the winning images of the Close-Up Photographer of the Year contest, frilly slime mold stems from leaves, elegant insects splay colorful wings, and microscopic patterns create vivid abstractions. Now in its fourth year, the competition attracted more than 9,000 entries from 54 countries. The overall… Continue Reading
Emergency measures needed to rescue Great Salt Lake from ongoing collapse
BYU Report – Great Salt Lake is facing unprecedented danger. “Without a dramatic increase in water flow to the lake in 2023 and 2024, its disappearance could cause immense damage to Utah’s public health, environment, and economy. This briefing provides background and recommends emergency measures. The choices we make over the next few months will… Continue Reading
2022’s US climate disasters, from storms and floods to heat waves and droughts
Ars Technica: “The year 2022 will be remembered across the US for its devastating flooding and storms—and also for its extreme heat waves and droughts. By October, the US had already seen 15 disasters causing more than $1 billion in damage each, well above the average. The year started and ended with widespread severe winter… Continue Reading
How much money will you get with the Inflation Reduction Act?
This savings calculator from Rewiring of America [in English and Spanish] allows homeowners to calculate how the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) will permit them to save thousands of dollars on the upfront costs of electric machines (how we power our cars, heat our air and water, cook our food, dry our clothes and get our… Continue Reading
