Earth Wise

A look at our changing environment.

You are here: Home / Archives for government

government

Forest-based agroforestry

By Leave a Comment

Tree plantings have become a go-to climate solution for governments and conservation groups due to the carbon-storing potential of trees.  While planting new trees on open farmland would help capture additional carbon, a new study led by scientists from Yale School of the Environment suggests a powerful alternative: forest-based agroforestry.

Instead of clearing land for crops or starting fresh with new trees, forest-based agroforestry (or FAF) brings agriculture into existing forests.  Think fruits, nuts, and medicinal plants, for example, grown sustainably under a forest canopy – all while maintaining biodiversity and storing carbon.

According to the researchers, human activity in forests is often seen as harmful. But for thousands of years, Indigenous and local communities have managed forests in ways that actually strengthen them.

The study, which was recently published in the journal Nature Climate Change, found that FAF not only rivals tree planting in terms of climate benefits, but it can also generate income and support cultural practices tied to the land.

Despite these benefits, forest-based agroforestry receives far less funding and policy support due to two key misconceptions. It’s frequently confused with industrial systems focused on global commodity crops, and results from tropical regions are wrongly assumed to apply to temperate and boreal forests.

The researchers recommend including FAF in agroforestry policies, clearly distinguishing it from harmful industrial practices, and expanding research on FAF in temperate and boreal regions to guide better land management.

Forest-based agroforestry appears to be a natural climate solution hiding in plain sight.

**********

Web Links

Agriculture in Forests Can Provide Climate and Economic Dividends

Photo, posted May 8, 2023, courtesy of Preston Keres / USDA Forest Service via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The UN Carbon Market

By Leave a Comment

The UN climate conference in November approved an official market for large-scale trading of carbon credits.  This will allow industrial countries to help meet their emission reduction targets set by the Paris Climate Agreement by paying other nations to protect and restore forests and carbon-rich peatlands.

The first major participant in this multi-billion-dollar enterprise is Indonesia.  That country is home to the world’s third largest expanse of tropical rainforests and more than a third of the world’s carbon-storing peatlands.  Indonesia’s government plans to raise up to $65 billion by 2028 by selling carbon credits accrued by restoring and protecting its forests and peatlands.

The problem with carbon trading is that it can be filled with loopholes ranging from inaccurate carbon accounting to outright fraud.  Carbon trading with both individual companies and other countries can result in double- and even triple-counting of the same carbon.

For example, carbon credits are assigned when forests earmarked for agricultural or other development are preserved instead of being felled.  But what if that forest destruction wasn’t going to happen even without selling carbon credits? 

There are organizations in the business of verifying carbon accounting, but independent analysis of their methodologies has revealed serious shortcomings, and in many cases, the verifications have been deemed to be worthless.

There are real problems with carbon accounting and setting correct baselines for the carbon emission reductions associated with carbon credits.  Nevertheless, the existence of a global carbon market can be an important tool in the world’s efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change.

**********

Web Links

Will UN Carbon Market Work? Indonesia Will Provide First Test

Photo, posted June 12, 2017, courtesy of Runa S. Lindebjerg via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Renewables progress

By Leave a Comment

According to a new report by the International Energy Agency, the world is on track to produce nearly half of the electricity it uses from renewable sources by the end of this decade.  The report also finds that in nearly every country, large wind and solar plants are the cheapest forms of new power.

Between now and 2030, countries will add more than 5,500 gigawatts of new renewable capacity.   That is as much as China, India, the U.S., and the EU combined have at present.  Most of the new capacity will come from solar power.

China is aggressively pursuing renewable power installations with massive solar and wind projects.  By 2030, China will account for nearly half of the world’s renewable power capacity.

This year’s UN Climate Change Conference, held in the United Arab Emirates, established the goal of tripling renewable energy capacity worldwide by 2030. 

The growth in solar power continues to outperform industry expert projections as manufacturing ramps up.  India and the U.S. are both expected to triple their solar manufacturing capacity by the end of this decade.  Manufacturing, largely based in China, is already outstripping demand.

By 2030, solar and wind power are expected to account for about 30% of global electricity generation, hydropower about 13%, and other renewables such as geothermal power about 5%.

These estimates are based on existing policies and market conditions.  Governments could speed up the shift to clean energy by cutting red tape and by making it cheaper for poorer countries to finance solar and wind projects.

**********

Web Links

Renewables 2024

Photo, posted November 23, 2023, courtesy of Rick Obst via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

China and carbon emissions

By Leave a Comment

China has been the biggest source of greenhouse emissions for nearly 20 years.  Its emissions surpassed those of the United States in 2006 and its fraction of the world’s emissions is now nearly a third.  Therefore, unless China’s emissions stop growing, the world’s emissions won’t either.

Recent data from China’s government and by energy analysts provides some reasons for optimism.  What is happening is that how China produces its electricity is changing.  Renewable sources are gradually replacing coal.

Last year alone, China installed more solar panels than the United States has in its entire history.  Nearly two-thirds of utility-scale wind and solar plants under construction are in China.  According to a report from Global Energy Monitor, China is developing more than eight times the wind and solar capacity currently being planned for the US.

Despite all this progress, China still generates 53% of its electricity from coal.  While this is the lowest share reported since its government began publishing energy data decades ago, it is still a major source of carbon emissions.  China is responsible for two-thirds of the world’s newly operating coal plants and still plans to build many more.  China accounts for about 60% of the world’s coal use.

China is investing heavily in pumped-storage hydropower along with its massive efforts in solar and wind power.  But if it is to meet existing and proposed new commitments to reduce emissions, it will need to be much more aggressive in reducing its dependence on coal.  Current predictions are that China’s emissions may soon no longer be increasing.  But what is needed is for them to start dropping and the sooner the better.

**********

Web Links

Why the Era of China’s Soaring Carbon Emissions Might Be Ending

Photo courtesy of Mike Locke via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The end of the Chevron deference

By Leave a Comment

 At the end of June, the US Supreme Court upended 40 years of legal precedent in a ruling that sharply limited the regulatory authority of federal agencies.  The so-called Chevron Deference doctrine stated that when a legislative delegation to an administrative agency on a particular issue or question was not explicit but rather implicit, a court may not substitute its own interpretation of the statue for a reasonable interpretation made by the administrative agency.

Under the new ruling, courts will have more power to interpret these statutes.  Environmentalists fear that this decision could lead to hundreds of rules being weakened or even eliminated, particularly Environmental Protection Agency limits on air and water pollution, regulations on toxic chemicals, and policies to tackle climate change.

Conservative political organizations have been pushing for decades to roll back the government’s regulatory powers.  The new ruling creates a massive opportunity for environmental regulations to be challenged, considering the proliferation of increasingly activist, right-leaning courts.  In particular, climate regulations under the Clean Air Act are more susceptible to judicial reversal.  The ruling shifts the power from the agencies to the courts.

The danger of this decision is that more Americans will suffer from the worse effects of climate change, air pollution, and other environmental harms that current government regulation protect against.  Any time that the Court makes it harder for the government to regulate and easier for businesses to challenge regulations, it makes it more likely that industries will injure the public and the planet in search of profits.  This is basic economics in action.

**********

Web Links

A Seismic Supreme Court Decision

Photo, posted September 17, 2020, courtesy of Thomas Hawk via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Threats to the Amazon Rainforest

By Leave a Comment

Brazil has made great progress in reducing deforestation in its Amazon Rainforest.  In 2023, the rate of deforestation in Brazil dropped by 50% over the previous year. This was the result of the efforts by conservation-minded President Luiz da Silva, who replaced Jair Bolsonaro, a big proponent of deforestation.  Da Silva’s government has cracked down on land clearing by farmers and ranchers.

In the first quarter of this year, deforestation decreased by 40% over the previous year’s quarter.   Deforestation levels are the lowest they’ve been in six years, although the amount of forest cleared in the period was still nearly 200 square miles.

Unfortunately, the Amazon Rainforest is facing another growing threat:  climate change.  Because of pervasive drought and increasing temperatures, the number of wildfires in the region have hit a 20-year high.

According to satellite data from the national space agency, from January through June, Brazil recorded 13,489 wildfires in the Amazon.  That is 61% more fires than during the same period last year.  And the wildfire season has yet to reach its peak, which usually is in August or September.

Many of these fires begin in pastures or recently cleared rainforest, but then spread into the surrounding rainforest areas.  Many are huge fires.  Hundreds of square miles of rainforest have been consumed by fire, comparable in size to the areas deforested by farmers and ranchers.

Going forward, worsening wildfires could reverse the gains being made by the government’s deforestation policies.  This could not only threaten forest protection, but also weaken public support for the government’s commitment to protecting the region.

**********

Web Links

Brazil Is Seeing a Record Number of Wildfires This Year

Photo, posted January 26, 2018, courtesy of Chris Parker via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Nearly everyone wants climate action

By Leave a Comment

A global survey of 75,000 people revealed that 80% of participants want their governments’ climate action commitments to be stronger.  The poll, conducted by the United Nations Development Program, GeoPoll, and Oxford University, asked 15 questions in telephone calls to residents of 77 countries representing 87% of the global population.

According to the survey, 89% of poorer countries favored increasing efforts to curb global emission, while 76% of wealthy G20 nations supported tougher climate action.

The two biggest greenhouse emitters in the world were less enthusiastic:  Chinese participants were 73% in favor of stronger action and Americans were 66% in favor of greater efforts to combat global warming. 

Other demographic differences included that in the big emitting countries of Canada, France, Germany, Australia, and the U.S., women were 10 to 17% more in support of stronger climate action than men.

Overall, only 7% of those polled globally thought their government should not transition away from fossil fuels at all.  More than half of those polled said that they were more worried about climate change this year than last year.  A worldwide majority of 72% support a fast fossil fuel phaseout, including those in nations that are among the top ten coal, oil, and gas producers.

As is the case across the board with respect to climate issues, the more influential factor continues to be economic as opposed to scientific or humanitarian.  Those who stand to lose the most money from the transition away from fossil fuels continue to hold sway over those who will lose in many other ways.

**********

Web Links

Four Out of Five People Want Increased Climate Action, UN Poll Says

Photo, posted July 31, 2020, courtesy of School Strike 4 Climate via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Biofuel refineries and toxic pollution

By Leave a Comment

There have been decades of government support for renewable, crop-based fuels – primarily corn ethanol.  In fact, it is a required component of gasoline sold in this country.  The biofuels industry has long claimed ethanol to be a clean, greener alternative to petroleum. 

There have been arguments all along that the environmental benefits of corn ethanol are dubious at best because of the energy required to produce the stuff.  There are also issues related to burning a food crop instead of feeding it to people and that the conversion of grasslands and forests to produce it releases massive amounts of carbon.

Recently, another serious concern has emerged.  A new review of industry data has found that the country’s biofuel refineries, mostly located in the Midwest, produce large amounts of toxic air pollutants, in some cases ever more than from their petroleum counterparts.

Emissions data from the country’s 275 ethanol, biodiesel, and renewable diesel plants revealed that they release carcinogenic formaldehyde as well as other potentially dangerous substances including acetaldehyde, hexane, and acrolein.  In 2022, biofuel refineries released 12.9 million pounds of hazardous air pollutants, compared to 14.9 million pounds emitted by oil refineries, and the biofuel plants actually emitted more of the four chemicals just mentioned than petroleum refineries did.

The broad use of crop ethanol is the result of intensive industry lobbying.  Ethanol plants are even exempt from some air pollution permitting requirements.  Perhaps the time has come to revisit its pervasive and mandated use.

**********

Web Links

Biofuel Refineries Are Releasing Toxic Air Pollutants in Farm Communities Across the US

Photo, posted February 27, 2021, courtesy of Sue Thompson via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The cost of methane emissions

By Leave a Comment

Stanford University-led research has determined that American oil and gas operations are emitting more than 6 million tons of methane each year.  The emissions come from both intentional vents and unintentional leaks. 

Methane is the main component of natural gas and losing that much of it through leakage is costing the industry a billion dollars a year just in lost revenue.  Adding in the harm to the economy and human well-being caused by adding this much potent greenhouse gas to the atmosphere is estimated to increase the cost of these emissions to $10 billion a year.

These emission and cost estimates are roughly three times the level predicted by the U.S. government.  The Stanford numbers are based on roughly a million aerial measurements of wells, pipelines, storage, and transmission facilities in six of the nation’s most productive oil and gas regions located in Texas, New Mexico, California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Utah.  These areas account for 52% of U.S. onshore oil production and 29% of gas production.

The survey also found that fewer than 2% of the methane emitters are responsible for 50-80% of emissions in four of the regions.  It also found that midstream infrastructure – which includes gathering and transmission pipelines, compressor stations, and gas processing plants – is responsible for about half of total emissions.

While the federal government estimates that methane leakage averages about 1% of gas production, the new survey puts the number at 3%, and some regions lose almost 10% to leakage.

Better tracking and fixing these leaks – especially the larger ones –  is essential for climate change mitigation.

**********

Web Links

Methane emissions from U.S. oil and gas operations cost the nation $10 billion per year

Photo, posted June 5, 2015, courtesy of Dave Houseknecht / USGS via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Record renewable energy in Scotland

By Leave a Comment

The Scottish government recently announced that in 2022, renewable technologies in that country produced the equivalent of 113% of Scotland’s electricity consumption.

Fossil fuels still supplied electricity in Scotland, helping to fill in gaps in renewable power, but the government figures showed that the growing amount of Scottish renewable generation can easily generate more power than the country uses.  Scotland has seen significant growth in wind power as well as a small drop in overall electricity consumption.

Scotland, with a population of only 5.5 million, aims to produce enough renewable power to both meet its own demand and export clean electricity to other countries.  The U.K. is the obvious potential customer, but it will need to upgrade its national power grid and develop enough capacity to store up surplus wind and solar power.

The U.K. itself is drawing less power from natural gas and coal than it has at any point in the last 66 years.  Fossil fuels supplied only 33% of British electricity in 2023 while renewables supplied 43%. 

Fossil power use in Britain peaked in 2008.  Since then, power from natural gas has fallen nearly in half while coal power has dropped by 97%.  The U.K. has aggressive decarbonization goals in place, but the current Conservative government under Prime Minister Sunak has recently set about weakening British climate policy.

Meanwhile, the Scottish government is talking about becoming a global renewables powerhouse and is making investments aimed at achieving it.

**********

Web Links

Record renewable energy output

Photo, posted July 21, 2010, courtesy of Martin Abegglen via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

EV battery costs continue to drop

By Leave a Comment

Electric vehicles have historically been more expensive than their gas-powered counterparts primarily because of the cost of the batteries that power them.  Today’s EV battery packs range in size from about 40 kWh to as much as 200 kWh, where kWh measure the amount of energy stored in pack.

The batteries in EVs are lithium-ion batteries, the same technology used to power cell phones, tablets, and computers.  A decade ago, the batteries averaged $668 per kilowatt-hour and packs as large as those in some of today’s vehicles were simply unthinkable from a price standpoint. 

Over the years, government subsidies, increased competition, higher volume, improvements in battery technology, and reductions in the cost of raw materials such as lithium have combined to drive continuous and dramatic reductions in battery costs.  By March 2022, the average price for lithium-ion batteries was $146 per kWh.  This past August, battery costs broke the $100 per kilowatt-hour barrier.

Industry analysts have long maintained that once the $100 barrier has been reached, EVs could achieve price parity with their fossil-fuel counterparts.  Electric cars would no longer be more expensive to buy than equivalent gas cars.

Projections are that battery prices will continue to fall by something like 10% a year for the rest of this decade.  All else being equal, EVs should be cheaper to buy than gas cars.  Of course, they have already been cheaper to operate for a long time. 

None of this means that car prices will go down in general.  That will depend on trends in inflation and those are pretty hard to predict.

**********

Web Links

EVs Set to Match Gas Guzzlers in Price as Battery Costs Plummet

Photo, posted May 9, 2018, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A Growing Threat To Wheat | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Wheat is one of the most widely-grown crops in the world and plays a major role in human nutrition.  In fact, wheat contributes approximately 20% of the protein and 20% of the calories consumed by humans globally.  It is grown on every continent except Antarctica.  

But wheat is under growing attacks from harmful toxins.  According to a new study by researchers from the University of Bath and the University of Exeter in the U.K., almost half of wheat crops across Europe are impacted by the fungal infection that gives rise to mycotoxins.

Mycotoxins are naturally occurring toxins produced by the fungus that causes Fusarium Head Blight.  Fusarium Head Blight is a disease that affects wheat and other grains growing in the field. Eating products contaminated with mycotoxins can cause sickness in humans and livestock, including vomiting and other gastrointestinal problems.

In the study, the research team examined 10 years of government and agribusiness data, which tracked Fusarium mycotoxins in wheat entering the food and animal supply chains across Europe and the U.K.  Half of the wheat intended for human food in Europe contained the Fusarium mycotoxin.  In the UK, 70% of wheat was contaminated.

Governments set legal limits on mycotoxin contamination levels in wheat that is to be consumed by humans. But with the ubiquitous nature of these mycotoxins, the effect of constant, low-level exposure in the diet over the course of a lifetime is not known. 

With climate change and the war in Ukraine already impacting both wheat yield and price, preventing toxin contamination is critical to help maintain a stable crop price and to protect global good security. 

**********

Web Links

Harmful fungal toxins in wheat: a growing threat across Europe

Photo, posted July 11, 2011, courtesy of Maria Keays via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Electric Cars And Cleaner Air | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Cities are awash in microscopic soot and other pollutants from the tailpipes of vehicles.  Apart from contributing substantially to the warming of the planet, these emissions have a significant impact on human health.  Research at Cornell University has determined that the continued growth of electric cars will lead to cleaner air and reduced human mortality in most if not all U.S. metropolitan areas.

The study, published in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, estimated the health impact and consequential economic impact of cleaner air in American cities as a result of the transition to electric vehicles.

For example, by 2050, Los Angeles will have 1,163 fewer premature deaths annually, corresponding to $12.6 billion in economic health benefits.  Greater New York City could see 574 fewer deaths a year leading to $6.24 billion in associated economic gains.

Global sales of electric cars have grown steadily.  In 2016, they accounted for less than 1% of the market.  That share grew to 2.2% in 2018, 4.1% in 2020, and 6.6% in 2021.

In the U.S., electric cars accounted for 4.5% of sales in 2021, but in many cities, the numbers were much higher. 

These trends are likely to accelerate as a combination of government policies and major decisions by automakers drive a rapid transition to electrification.  While mitigating the effects of climate change continues to be the main driving force for that transition, the human health benefits will be a very significant reward for doing the right thing for the planet.

**********

Web Links

Electric car sales drive toward cleaner air, less mortality

Photo, posted May 11, 2021, courtesy of Chris Yarzab via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Reef Insurance | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Coral reefs around the world face multiple dangers from warming waters, acidification, human activity, and more.  Powerful storms often cause tremendous damage to reefs.  When possible, snorkelers and divers are deployed to try to repair damage to reefs.  But philanthropy and government grants are basically the only resources available to fund such actions.

Three years ago, tourist businesses and the government in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo purchased an insurance policy to offset costs of protecting the local parts of the Mesoamerican Reef.  The environmental group the MAR Fund later took out an insurance policy on the rest of the reef in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. 

With this precedent, the Nature Conservancy recently purchased an insurance policy on behalf of the state of Hawaii to help offset repair work on its coral reefs.  It is the first U.S. coral insurance contract.

Coral reefs are more than just hosts for marine life.  They provide barriers against ocean storm surges, which is a major financial incentive for protecting them and hence an incentive to invest in insurance.

The new Hawaiian insurance policy has a premium of $110,000 a year and will provide $2 million in protection.  Payouts occur when wind speeds go above 50 knots.  No further proof of damage is required.

The Nature Conservancy has created teams called ‘Reef Brigades’ composed of snorkelers and divers who recover reef fragments, store them in ocean or shore-based nurseries, and then re-attach them when conditions are safe.  It can be very expensive to do this sort of work, particularly when new corals grown in a nursery are required.

**********

Web Links

Analysis: First U.S. coral insurance marks the rise of the reef brigades

Photo, posted September 14, 2011, courtesy of Greg McFall/NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Renewable Energy Booming in India | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

India is the country with the second largest population in the world – over 1.4 billion people – second only to China – and will undoubtedly pass China soon based on population trends in the two countries.   India is the third largest emitter of carbon dioxide, after China and the U.S.  With its rapidly growing population and an economy heavily dependent on coal and oil, emissions in India are on a steep upward trajectory.  Currently, fossil fuels account for about 60% of India’s installed energy capacity.  It is essential that actions are taken to curb its rapid increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

To that end, India’s renewables sector is booming.  The country is projected to add 35 to 40 gigawatts of renewable energy each year until 2030.  That’s enough energy to power up 30 million more homes each year.  The country has established a target of producing 50% of its electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by the end of this decade.

 India is expected to reach over 400 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030

according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis and Climate Energy Finance.  The Indian government’s own projections estimate that the country will reach 500 gigawatts of renewable capacity in that timeframe.

As is the case with China, a country with an enormous population undergoing major economic growth and modernization has vast energy needs.  While it is imperative for the entire world that India puts a cap on its growing greenhouse gas emissions, it is a difficult challenge for an energy-hungry country.

**********

Web Links

Renewable energy booms in India

Photo, posted November 14, 2011, courtesy of Amaury Laporte via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Saving Giant Sequoias | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Last year, the KNP Complex Fire burning in Sequoia National Park drew global attention as the General Sherman, the world’s largest tree, was wrapped in tinfoil-like material in order to repel the flames from the fire.  Hundreds of firefighters labored for weeks trying to save giant redwood trees.  Despite these efforts, the U.S. Forest Service estimates that wildfires killed 13% to 19% of the world’s giant sequoias in 2020 and 2021.

This past July, the Washburn Fire burned through part of Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove and the giant sequoias there were surrounded by automated sprinklers trying to shelter them from the flames.

For a century, government agencies have worked to extinguish all natural wildfires and prohibited Native people in the region from lighting the fires they traditionally used to manage their lands.  As a result, forests have grown far thicker with trees that can fuel fires.  The Sierras are now home to more than three times as many trees as when they were managed by indigenous communities.  But more than 100 million of those trees had died by 2016 because of drought.

Add to this massive amount of kindling the effects of climate change – a hotter and drier environment – and there is the perfect storm for megafires among the giant sequoias.

There is federal legislation pending that would provide resources for prescribed burning and other forms of active forest management.  It is controversial.  It has attracted support from the Nature Conservancy, the Save The Redwoods League, and others, but also opposition from more than 80 environmental groups.

What is not controversial is that the Giant Sequoias are in the midst of a crisis and urgent action is needed.

**********

Web Links

In California, a Race to Save the World’s Largest Trees From Megafires

Photo, posted December 10, 2014, courtesy of Laura Camp via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Low Fares Clean German Air | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Germany’s parliament set summer public transport fares at 9 euros a month as a way to slash pollution and reduce imports of Russian oil.   The low price included all buses, trams, subways, and regional trains, effectively lowering prices by more than 90% in some cities.  Berliners saved 98 euros on their monthly travel pass; commuters in Hamburg saved even more.

The program began June 1 and ended August 31.  The bargain rates drove widespread use of public transport and discouraged the use of cars, which already was undesirable due to high gasoline prices.   Over the three-month period, transit authorities sold over 50 million subsidized tickets.  One out of five travelers were using public transport for the first time, according to surveys.

According to an estimate from the Association of German Transport Companies, the program helped to avoid 1.8 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.  This is roughly equivalent to taking 1.5 million cars off the road for the summer or planting 30 million trees.

The discount transit program had a clearly positive effect on the climate and, obviously, was a source of financial relief for German citizens.  Last year, Germany was the largest buyer of Russian oil in Europe and it wanted to make drastic reductions in its purchases.  The success of the program prompted many to ask for it to be continued.  However, the program cost the government about 2.5 billion euros in reimbursements to transit companies.  The German government has said it would not be extended.

Nonetheless, German policymakers are weighing other proposals for low-cost public transit.  Clearly encouraging people to use public transit pays dividends.

**********

Web Links

Germany’s Cheap Summer Train Fares Prevented 1.8 Million Tons of Carbon Pollution

Photo, posted June 6, 2022, courtesy of 7C0 via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Air Pollution: The Greatest Danger | Earth Wise            

By Leave a Comment

The effort to reduce and ultimately eliminate the use of fossil fuels has largely been driven by the potentially catastrophic consequences of global climate change.  The need to stop dumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere has become increasingly urgent.  But there is an equally compelling reason to stop burning fossil fuels.  According to a study published in the journal Lancet Planetary Health, outdoor air pollution is “the largest existential threat to human and planetary health.”

Pollution of various types was responsible for an estimated 9 million deaths around the world in 2019.  Half of those fatalities – 4.5 million deaths – were the result of outdoor air pollution coming from vehicles and industrial sources like power plants and factories.

The number of deaths attributed to air pollution has increased by 55% just since the year 2000.

The growth in air pollution deaths has offset a decline in deaths from other pollution sources that especially affect people living in extreme poverty, such as indoor air pollution and water pollution.  Overall, countries with lower collective incomes tend to bear a disproportionate share of pollution deaths.  Roughly 16% of deaths around the world are attributable to pollution, also resulting in more than $4 trillion in economic losses.

The peer-reviewed study was produced by the 2017 Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health.  The study notes that despite the enormous health, social, and economic impacts of pollution, preventing it is largely overlooked in the international development agenda.  The study calls upon governments, businesses, and other entities to abandon fossil fuels and adopt clean energy sources.

**********

Web Links

Study Identifies Outdoor Air Pollution as the ‘Largest Existential Threat to Human and Planetary Health’

Photo, posted November 4, 2019, courtesy of Ninara via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Primary Ways To Mitigate Climate Change | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The most recent report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states that the world must halt the increase in greenhouse gases within three years, reduce emissions by 43% in the next seven years, and eliminate them entirely by 2050.  Otherwise, there will likely be catastrophic and irreversible impacts on the climate.

With respect to achieving these reductions, the report emphasizes decarbonizing the energy sector through electrification by replacing fossil fuels anywhere and everywhere possible.  Where that isn’t yet practical – such as in shipping and aviation – the use of biofuels and hydrogen can provide a stopgap until battery technology becomes a viable alternative.

The economics of this approach continue to improve.  Since 2010, the cost of wind, solar, and batteries has declined by as much as 85%.  In many cases, costs have fallen below those of fossil fuels.  Nonetheless, the report stresses that continuing to provide national, state, and local incentives for using renewable energy is a key factor in achieving the necessary reductions.

However, reducing emissions will no longer be enough.  This is the first major IPCC report that states that man-made carbon dioxide removal strategies will be necessary to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.  So-called natural carbon storage options, like planting trees and using farming methods that sequester carbon in soil, are also important parts of the strategy.

It is up to governments, policymakers, and investors to implement the necessary changes to mitigate climate change.  There is lots of talk about it, but it will take concerted action to avoid increasingly dire consequences.

**********

Web Links

Report highlights affordable, available ways to mitigate climate change now

Photo, posted September 8, 2007, courtesy of Kevin Dooley via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Koalas Are Endangered | Earth Wise             

By Leave a Comment

The koala is one of the world’s most iconic animal species and is widely considered to be the symbol of Australia.   Koalas are not bears; they are marsupials. 

Being iconic symbols is not sufficient to prevent koalas from going extinct.  In the 1920s, hundreds of thousands of koalas were shot for the fur trade, greatly reducing their population.

More recently, drought, bush fires, disease, and habitat loss have drastically reduced the numbers of koalas.  Since 2018, there has been a 30% decline in koala populations across Australia.  It is difficult to get an accurate count of the animals because they don’t move around much, and they live high up in tree canopies where they are hard to spot.

 Estimates are that the koala population has dropped from between 45,000-82,000 in 2018 to between 32,000-58,000 in 2021.  The koala is now extinct in 47 Australian electorates and in many others, there are only handfuls of animals remaining.   The population decline was accelerated by devastating wildfires in late 2019 into early 2020.  Some estimates are that koalas could be extinct by 2050.  Conservation organizations around the world have been demanding greater protection for koalas for years.

Given this dire situation, the Australian government recently declared the koala an endangered species, reclassifying it from being a vulnerable species.  The government plans to adopt a recovery plan that will include new laws protecting koalas and their natural woodland environments.  The details of the plan remain to revealed.

According to the Australian Koala Foundation, however, the new status of the koala means very little in and of itself.  If the clearing of the koala habitat continues, the species has little chance of surviving in the wild.

**********

Web Links

‘In rapid decline’: Australia has lost 30% of its koalas in just 3 years, foundation says

Australia Declares Koalas an Endangered Species

Photo, posted September 18, 2019, courtesy of Guido Konrad via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states (more...)