Climate change targets achievable by keeping global emissions to COVID levels, scientists say
"To keep climate change within limits that we can reasonably adapt to, the world needs to cut emissions at nearly the same rate it did during the peak of the global COVID-19 pandemic, scientists say.
○Key points:
Relative CO2 emissions dropped more between 2019 and 2020 than at any other time in recorded modern history
Climate scientists say driving down emissions by a similar percentage each year, by transforming to a clean energy economy, could keep warming to around 1.5C
The climate emergency needs to be handled with the same urgency as the pandemic, they warn."
amp.abc.net.au/…
The drop in emissions was driven by COVID containment measures like lockdowns, restricted production and travel
Between 2019 and 2020, global carbon dioxide emissions experienced the largest single year-on-year decline ever recorded — 6.3 per cent — dwarfing dips during both the global financial crisis of 2008, and the estimated decline following the end of World War II.
If we could continue that trend every year, we'd be able to limit warming to around 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to the international team of scientists, who published their findings today in Nature Geoscience
"This tells you that the massive change we saw in the economy — in this case because we were shutting it down — an equivalent change needs to happen in the decarbonisation of the world," said study co-author Pep Canadell from the CSIRO.
"Those equivalent units in the economy that shut down [during COVID], those units need to be switched to the zero carbon economy."
Read more: amp.abc.net.au/…
Links
○Can we beat climate change by geoengineering the oceans?
Chemically altering the seas through iron fertilisation or alkalinity enhancement could be our best hope to suck vast amounts of carbon out of the atmosphere – but questions remain on whether it is worth the risknewscientist.com/…
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○Growing Wildflowers Isn’t Difficult. And It’s Urgent.
In a shifting climate, with environmental diversity at risk, it’s never been more important to propagate native plants. Here’s how.
www.nytimes.com/...
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○CNN)With 61% of the contiguous US in drought, wouldn't it be nice if we could just "make it rain" or just "make more snow?"
Well, certain parts of the country are doing just that, sort of. It's called cloud seeding, and it's nothing new.
It's been around since the 1940s and countries all over the world have been doing it for various reasons (most notably China), but it's a growing practice in the US, especially in the drought-stricken West
amp.cnn.com/
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The global COVID-19 lockdowns caused fossil CO2 emissions to decline by an estimated 2.4 billion tonnes in 2020 - a record drop.
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○Here’s How We Could Brighten Clouds to Cool the Earth
"Ship tracks" over the ocean reveal a new strategy to fight climate change
spectrum.ieee.org/
Other news
Extreme weather, climate events may lead to increase in violence towards women, girls, and sexual and gender minorities phys.org/…
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Carbon-dioxide levels in the atmosphere hit another new record
The relentless rise is caused by burning fossil fuels
www.economist.com
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The climate crisis might make entire cities uninhabitable. It's time to head underground.
Underground cities have long been sci-fi fodder, but now governments and planners are taking them seriously. One of the biggest challenges to overcome is convincing people to be comfortable underground
wired.co.uk
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