American Geophysical Union: “People with lower incomes are exposed to heat waves for longer periods of time compared to their higher income counterparts due to a combination of location and access to heat adaptations like air conditioning. This inequality is expected to rise as temperatures increase, according to new research. Lower income populations currently face… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Environmental Law
This is the wildlife photo of the year, as chosen by the public
(CNN) — “An image of a frozen lake and the reflection of willow branches above the water’s icy surface has claimed the top prize in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award 2021. The shot by Italian photographer Cristiano Vendramin, originally among a shortlist of 25 images, was voted for by more than… Continue Reading
New study: “An environmental justice analysis of distribution-level natural gas leaks in Massachusetts, USA”
“A peer-reviewed paper by HEET Director Dominic Nicholas and Salem State University Professor Marcos Luna, was released last week in the journal Energy Policy. Read our update here and coverage by WBUR here. Marcos and Nicholas examined over 26,000 utility-reported leaks in relation to demographic groups. Their findings show that low-income and communities of color,… Continue Reading
Plastics production is skyrocketing. A new U.N. treaty effort could cap it.
Washington Post: “Negotiators from around the world will start work this month on a treaty to reduce plastic pollution, in what diplomats say is the most ambitious round of climate diplomacy since the 2015 Paris agreement that focuses on global warming. The discussions, which have the backing of the Biden administration, could reshape a world… Continue Reading
GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Methane – A Key to Fighting Climate Change
Global Investigative Journalism Network: “Journalism about methane sources is increasingly urgent. Reducing methane emissions is the single fastest way to fight climate change, according to climate scientists. Emissions of methane, the second most abundant greenhouse gas (behind carbon dioxide), are rising rapidly and reaching new highs. The full guide to investigating methane emissions can be found… Continue Reading
Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor 2022
“The Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor evaluates the transparency and integrity of companies’ climate pledges.Companies around the world are increasing alert to the climate emergency. They face calls from a growing range of stakeholders to take responsibility for the impact of their activities. Most large companies now have public climate strategies and targets, many of which… Continue Reading
Top 10 Global Consumer Trends 2022
“Every year, Euromonitor International identifies emerging and fast-moving trends that are expected to gain traction in the year ahead. These trends provide insight into changing consumer values, exploring how consumer behaviour is shifting and causing disruption for businesses globally. Each of the 10 trends in this report follows the same format: Overview and defining characteristics;… Continue Reading
Best Toilets of 2022 Five top performers from Consumer Reports’ tough tests, from American Standard, Kohler, and more
Consumer Reports: “If you haven’t updated your commode lately, you may be surprised to find that today’s toilets are, ahem, flush with improvements. New toilets use less water than ever, yet we’ve found in our tests that they tend to work better than previous generations of low-flow thrones. Recent improvements include optimized bowl shapes, stronger… Continue Reading
Tiny nanoplastics are floating in the air—and you’re breathing them in
Fast Company: “By some estimates, people have discarded 4,900 million tonnes of plastic have into the environment. Once in nature, that plastic starts to degrade, fragmenting into microplastics about the size of a sesame seed, which are inadvertently ingested by humans and animals through eating them in seafood and drinking them in water. Some reports… Continue Reading
This is just the beginning’: How high heat of 2021 drove catastrophic weather
NBC News: “…Each January, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA and the European Union Earth observation agency Copernicus publish reports on the previous year’s temperature data. Copernicus ranked 2021 as the fifth-hottest year since 1850, while NOAA and NASA ranked it as the sixth-hottest since 1880. An NBC News analysis of global weather stations… Continue Reading
Gas stoves in kitchens pose a risk to public health and the planet, research finds
Washington Post: “Gas-burning stoves in kitchens across America may pose a greater risk to the planet and public health than previously thought, new research suggests. The appliances release far more of the potent planet-warming gas methane than the Environmental Protection Agency estimates, Stanford University scientists found in a study published Thursday in the journal Environmental… Continue Reading
Eurasia Group: Top Risks 2022
“Top Risks is Eurasia Group’s annual forecast of the political risks that are most likely to play out over the course of the year. This year’s report was published on 3 January 2022. As we enter 2022, the lack of global leadership that characterizes our G-Zero World is clearer than ever. That’s not a good… Continue Reading
