New IRENA Report Explores Potential of Green Hydrogen

27.09.2019

Bus_hydrogen — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Hydrogen from renewables can help tackle various critical energy challenges. It could particularly offer ways to decarbonise a range of sectors where it is proving difficult to meaningfully reduce CO2 emissions, a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) on Hydrogen: a renewable energy perspective finds.

As world leaders gather in New York to discuss climate action solutions, IRENA contributed to building a community of stakeholders that look at the emerging solution of clean hydrogen. Led by the World Economy Forum (WEF), the initiative aims to explore the role of hydrogen in the energy transition and advance on the clean hydrogen agenda. At a side event hosted by WEF, IRENA presented key findings of its new report and emphasized the expected growing role of renewables-based hydrogen in the future energy mix. IRENA projects an 8% share of total global final energy consumption to be attributed to hydrogen by 2050.

Decarbonisation impacts depends on how hydrogen is produced. Current and future sourcing options can be divided into grey (fossil fuel-based), blue (fossil fuel-based production with carbon capture, utilisation and storage) and green (renewables-based) hydrogen. With massively falling cost of renewables, the potential of green hydrogen particularly for so called ‘hard-to-decarbonise’ sectors and energy-intensive industries like iron and steel, chemicals, shipping and aviation would become more compelling given the urgency to limit CO2 emissions. In that context, IRENA also supports the work of the “Getting to Zero 2030 Coalition” to achieve carbon emissions cuts in the global shipping sector by 2030.

However, deployment of hydrogen-based solutions will not happen overnight, IRENA’s new report cautions. Hydrogen might likely trail other strategies such as electrification of end-use sectors, and its use will target specific applications. The need for a dedicated new supply infrastructure may also limit hydrogen use to certain countries that decide to follow this strategy. While renewable energy and energy efficiency are immediately ready to be deployed at large-scale, hydrogen in combination with renewables could represent a complementary solution in the long run.

Download IRENA’s report Hydrogen: a renewable energy perspective.

Source: IRENA

Mont Blanc Glacier in Danger of Collapse, Experts Warn

26.09.2019

mont_blanc_france_sneg_snow_planine_mountains — Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Patrick Boucher)

Italian authorities have closed off roads and evacuated homes after experts warned that a portion of a Mont Blanc glacier is at risk of collapse.

Stefano Miserocchi, the mayor of the town of Courmayeur, said “public safety is a priority” after experts from the Fondazione Montagna Sicura (Safe Mountains Foundation) in the Aosta Valley said up to 250,000 cubic metres of ice was in danger of sliding off the Planpincieux glacier on the Grandes Jorasses peak.

“This phenomenon once again testifies that the mountain is in a phase of strong change due to climatic factors, therefore it is particularly vulnerable,” Miserocchi said in a statement.

Experts have been monitoring the glacier closely since 2013 to detect the speed at which the ice is melting, and Miserocchi said the rate had “significantly increased” recently. But they are unable to predict when the ice would break away.

“There are currently no empirical models or methods that can enable quantitative predictions in the case of glaciers with sliding dynamics such as Planpincieux,” Miserocchi added.

The warning comes as world leaders meet in New York for the UN climate action summit. The Italian prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, said: “The news that part of Mont Blanc risks collapsing is a warning that should not leave us indifferent. It must shake us all and force us to mobilise.”

In 2017, about 50 cubic metres of ice fell from Planpincieux, while in September last year a mass of ice broke away from the Glacier de la Charpoua, on the south-east side of the Aiguille Verte, on the French side of Mont Blanc.

Miserocchi’s order came into force on Tuesday and includes the evacuation of homes and mountain refuges in the area. He said it was a precautionary measure and there was no threat to residential areas or tourist establishments. The zones affected are in the area of Val Ferret.

Rising temperatures are causing glaciers to melt, with environmental activists in Switzerland holding their second “mourning ceremony” on the evaporating Pizol glacier in the country’s Glarus Alps on Monday. The glacier has lost up to 90% of its volume since 2006. In August, a similar event was held at a glacier in Iceland.

A heatwave across Europe this summer is also said to have accelerated the melt speed.

Source: Guardian

IRENA on the Front Line of the Battle to Limit Climate Change

25.09.2019

Francesco La Camera Climate Action Summit — Photo: IRENA

It was billed as a day of action. Parties without concrete, actionable plans and commitments stayed away from a meeting that the UN Secretary General and wider community believed could be the most important climate meeting since Paris in 2015. Leaders who brought announcements to the Climate Action Summit effectively represented the world’s front line in the battle to stay within the 1.5°C of warming.

The International Renewable Energy Agency participated. Director-General Francesco La Camera joined heads of state and leaders from business and civil society in reinforcing a unified and immediate response to the climate emergency. In an address to delegates, Mr. La Camera reiterated the Agency’s support for the world’s most vulnerable nations including small island developing states (SIDS) and reminded attendees that it’s possible to limit warming if we invest in the energy transition.

“It’s possible to secure justice for SIDS who, along with least developed countries, are the most threatened [by the effects of a warming planet], despite having contributed nothing to climate change,” said Mr. La Camera. While SIDS have shown climate leadership through 100% renewable energy ambitions, realizing these ambitions is critical – something the Agency pledged to continue supporting. “IRENA stands with SIDS in this effort,” he continued “including through the SIDS Lighthouses initiative which received a new injection of financial support from Denmark, Germany, Norway and the UAE.”

Furthermore, the Director General presented the recently launched Climate Investment Platform. “It’s possible to mobilize financial resources for the change,” he said. “The recently launched Climate Investment Platform will be inclusive, well-articulated, proactive and agile in supporting SIDS and other developing countries access the capital necessary to respond. It will also facilitate private sector engagement to accelerate the energy transition, and scale-up a low-carbon resilient economic future for islands.”

The day began with a powerful opening message from youth climate activist Greta Thunberg. She rallied the Summit telling the global community, “How dare you put my future in jeopardy. How dare you to turn to young people to solve the problems you created. We [the next generation] are watching you.”

UN Secretary General said, “Nature is angry and we fool ourselves if we think we can fool nature. Our Earth is issuing a cry: “STOP”. The climate crisis is caused by us, and the solutions must come from us to cut greenhouse gas emissions.”

Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine said the time has come for “leaders to lead”. Leaders responded.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden said her country aims for 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2023 as part of their climate response package. She says it’s not just about avoiding the worst but building the best future possible.

Michael Bloomberg reported that due to the anti-coal lobbying, the USA had closed nearly 300 coal power plants since 2011 and his coalition would not stop until every remaining plant was closed. Orsted CEO Henrik Poulson said his company would stop using coal altogether by 2022 and by 2025 the company’s production will reach carbon neutrality.

The day proved beyond doubt that it is possible to mitigate catastrophic climate change and that the political will exists to take meaningful and immediate action. But “we have to do more,” Mr. La Camera reminded attendees, “IRENA is ready to act.”

Source: IRENA

Call for 1m People to Join UK’s Biggest Mass Tree-Planting Campaign

24.09.2019

tree_planting_sadnja_sadnica_drvo — Photo: Dragan Leleš

Volunteers are being urged to do their bit to stop the climate emergency by grabbing a spade and signing up for the biggest mass tree-planting campaign in the UK’s history.

Plots in suitable sites around the country are being prepared for 30 November, when the Big Climate Fightback campaign will start with pledges sought from 1 million people. Local groups are being encouraged to run tree-planting events and councils are being asked for permission to plant trees on their land, or outside schools and other publicly owned properties. Businesses are also being urged to plant trees on their own premises if possible.

People without gardens or the means to plant their own trees are being encouraged to spot potential sites and ask their local council or the landowner for permission to plant.

By 2025, the Woodland Trust – the charity behind the Big Climate Fightback – hopes to have planted a tree for every person in the country. All of the trees provided by the charity will be native broadleaf varieties, such as oak, birch and hawthorn.

The writer and broadcaster Sandi Toksvig has pledged to plant a tree and called on others to do the same. “Climate change is a real threat and affects us all, but there is the simplest of all solutions: the humble tree,” she said. “I urge people to get off their sofas and plant a tree. It’s very simple and you could be one in a million.”

According to the Committee on Climate Change, the government’s statutory advisers on the climate crisis, the UK should have 1.5bn new trees by 2050 to meet the net zero carbon target, set in line with international scientific warnings on the climate crisis. The government has set a target of 5,000 hectares a year for England alone, but planting rates have fallen well short of that, with last year only 1,420 hectares (3,508 acres) of new woodland planted.

However, trees will also need to be cared for after planting to ensure they survive, so groups are encouraged to participate beyond the planting stage. The Woodland Trust also warned that tree planting alone was not enough. “As individuals, we all need to do much more to reduce our impact on the planet by cutting emissions and reducing pressure on resources,” said Darren Moorcroft, the charity’s chief executive.

A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “Working with the Woodland Trust and other organisations, we also want to encourage everyone to play a part and help us to plant more trees. We’ve already kick-started the creation of a Northern Forest, which will see 50m trees planted from Liverpool to Hull, and we have set up two funds worth £60m to drive up planting rates, including in our towns and cities. Later this year we will be consulting on a new English Tree Strategy, focusing on how to accelerate woodland creation across the country.”

Source: Guardian

Greta Thunberg Condemns World Leaders in Emotional Speech at UN

24.09.2019

Greta_Tunberg_samit — Foto: YouTube (screenshot)

Greta Thunberg has excoriated world leaders for their “betrayal” of young people through their inertia over the climate crisis at a United Nations summit that failed to deliver ambitious new commitments to address dangerous global heating.

In a stinging speech on Monday, the teenage Swedish climate activist told governments that “you are still not mature enough to tell it like it is. You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal.”

Days after millions of young people joined protests worldwide to demand emergency action on climate change, leaders gathered for the annual United Nations general assembly aiming to inject fresh momentum into efforts to curb carbon emissions.

But Thunberg predicted the summit would not deliver any new plans in line with the radical cuts in greenhouse gas emissions that scientists say are needed to avoid catastrophic climate breakdown.

“You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words,” a visibly emotional Thunberg said.

“The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us I say we will never forgive you. We will not let you get away with this. Right here, right now is where we draw the line.”

As the summit spooled through about 60 speeches from national representatives, it became clear that Thunberg’s forecast was prescient. Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India, told delegates that “the time for talking is over” in announcing a plan to ramp up renewable energy but didn’t announce any phase-out of coal – a key goal set by António Guterres, the UN secretary-general who convened the summit.

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, did set out the end of coalmining in her country but only by 2038 – a lengthy timeframe that disappointed environmentalists.

Meanwhile, China declined to put forward any new measures to tackle the climate crisis.

Emmanuel Macron, the French president, called for the European Union to deepen its emissions cuts and said that France would not make trade deals with countries not signed up tor the landmark Paris climate agreement. “We cannot allow our youth to strike every Friday without action,” Macron said, in reference to Friday’s global climate strikes.

Despite Guterres’ efforts, the summit was somewhat overshadowed by its absentees – most notably the US, and Jair Bolsonaro’s Brazil, whose representatives were reportedly not selected to make a presentation there because of Brazil’s failure to outline plans to strengthen its efforts to counter climate change.

Donald Trump did visit the UN on Monday but only briefly dipped into the climate summit to see Modi’s speech before attending a meeting which he had called on religious freedom.

As he arrived at the UN, Trump crossed paths with Thunberg, who fixed the president with a hard stare.

The summit was designed to accelerate countries’ ambition to address the climate crisis amid increasingly urgent warnings by scientists. A new UN analysis has found that commitments to cut planet-warming gases must be at least tripled and increased by up to fivefold if the world is to meet the goals of the 2015 Paris agreement of holding the temperature rise to at least 2C above the pre-industrial era.

The world is currently on track to warm by as much as 3.4C by the end of the century, the UN warned, a situation that would escalate disastrous heatwaves, flooding, droughts and societal unrest. Major coral reefs and many other species face extinction.

After Stalling Last Year, Renewable Power Capacity Additions to Hit Double-Digit Growth in 2019

21.09.2019

windpark_vetropark — Photo-illustration: Unsplash (American Public Power Association)

After stalling last year, global capacity additions of renewable power are set to bounce back with double-digit growth in 2019, driven by solar PV’s strong performance, according to the International Energy Agency.

The IEA expects renewable capacity additions to grow by almost 12% this year, the fastest pace since 2015, to reach almost 200 GW, mostly thanks to solar PV and wind. Global solar PV additions are expected to increase by over 17%.

Last year was the first time since 2001 that growth in renewable power capacity failed to accelerate year on year, largely due to a Chinese government policy change. This highlights the critical role of governments for the deployment of renewables and the need to avoid sudden policy changes that can result in strong market volatility.

Renewables have a major part to play in curbing global emissions and providing universal access to affordable, secure, sustainable and modern energy. Renewable capacity additions need to grow by more than 300 GW on average each year between 2018 and 2030 to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement, according to the IEA’s Sustainable Development Scenario.

“These latest numbers give us many reasons to celebrate: Renewable electricity additions are now growing at their fastest pace in four years after a disappointing 2018,” said Dr Fatih Birol, the IEA’s Executive Director. “We are witnessing a drastic decline in the cost of solar power together with strong growth in onshore wind. And offshore wind is showing encouraging signs.”

“These technologies are the mainstays of the world’s efforts to tackle climate change, reduce air pollution and provide energy access to all,” Dr Birol said. “The stark difference between this year’s trend and last year’s demonstrates the critical ability of government policies to change the trajectory we are on.”

The cost of solar PV has plunged more than 80% since 2010, making the technology increasingly competitive in many countries. The IEA estimates that global solar PV capacity additions will increase to almost 115 GW this year, despite a slight decline in China, the world’s largest market. This is set to be the first year that solar PV additions have surpassed 100 GW and the third year in a row that they account for more than half of global renewable additions.

The softness in the Chinese solar PV market is being offset by faster expansion in the European Union, led by Spain; a new installations boom in Vietnam as developers rush to complete projects before incentive cuts; and faster growth in India and the United States. Japanese solar PV developers are also expediting the commissioning of projects to meet deadlines for higher incentives.

The pace of acceleration in the Chinese solar PV market remains the biggest uncertainty for the IEA’s 2019 estimates. China’s policy transition from feed-in tariffs to competitive auctions resulted in relatively slow solar PV deployment in the first half of 2019. But installations in the second half of the year are expected to accelerate with the completion of the first projects linked to large-scale auctions and the emergence of projects that rely far less on incentives to compete with other power sources.

The rebound in renewables is also supported by higher onshore wind growth, which is expected to rise 15% to 53 GW, the largest increase since record deployment in 2015. In the United States, project developers have accelerated deployment before the phase-out of federal production tax credits. In China, lower curtailment levels have unlocked additional growth in several provinces this year, enabling faster expansion.

Offshore wind growth is expected to be stable at around 5 GW in 2019, led by the European Union and China.

Source: IEA

Climate Crisis Leaving 2 Million People a Week Needing Aid

20.09.2019

beach_woman_poor_fruit — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

A new report by the world’s largest humanitarian network warns that the number of people needing humanitarian assistance every year as a result of climate-related disasters could double by 2050.

The Cost of Doing Nothing – published today by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) – estimates that the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance as a result of storms, droughts and floods could climb beyond 200 million annually – compared to an estimated 108 million today.

It further suggests that this rising human toll would come with a huge financial price tag, with climate-related humanitarian costs ballooning to US$20 billion per year by 2030, in the most pessimistic scenario.

Speaking in New York, in the run-up to the UN Climate Action Summit, IFRC President Francesco Rocca said:

“These findings confirm the impact that climate change is having, and will continue to have, on some of the world’s most vulnerable people. It also demonstrates the strain that increasing climate-related disasters could place on aid agencies and donors.”

“The report shows the clear and frightening cost of doing nothing. But it also shows there is a chance to do something. But now is the time to take urgent action. By investing in climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction, including through efforts to improve early warning and anticipatory humanitarian action, the world can avoid a future marked by escalating suffering and ballooning humanitarian response costs,” said Mr Rocca.

The Cost of Doing Nothing builds on the work and methodology of the World Bank’s Shock Waves report, and draws on data from the UN, the EM-DAT International Disaster Database as well as IFRC’s own disaster statistics. The report shows that we are facing a stark choice. No action and costs are likely to escalate. Take determined and ambitious action now that prioritizes inclusive, climate-smart development and the number of people in need of international humanitarian assistance annually could in fact fall to as low as 68 million by 2030, and even drop further to 10 million by 2050 – a decrease of 90 per cent compared to today.

Julie Arrighi, an advisor at the Red Cross and Red Crescent Climate Centre, and one of the main contributors to the report, said:

“In this report, we present some of the potential consequences should the global community fail to step up ambition to address the rising risks in a changing climate. It also shows some of the potential positive outcomes if indeed the global community takes action now to build resilience, adapt and address the current climate crisis.

“We hope that this report helps build momentum during the upcoming Climate Action Summit and beyond to increase investment in inclusive, climate-smart development – including reduced emissions, but especially renewed efforts to adapt to the rising risks,” Ms Arrighi said.

To download the full report, visit www.ifrc.org/costofdoingnothing.

Source: IFRC

Air Pollution Particles Found on Foetal Side of Placentas

18.09.2019

pregnant_woman_trudnoća — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Air pollution particles have been found on the foal side of the placenta, indicating that unborn babies are directly exposed to the black carbon produced by motor traffic and fuel combustion.

The research is the first study to show the placental barrier can be penetrated by particles breathed in by the mother. It found thousands of tiny particles per cubic millimeter of tissue in every placenta analyzed.

The link between exposure to dirty air and increased miscarriages, premature births and low birth weights is well established. The research suggests the particles themselves may be the cause, not solely the inflammatory response of the pollution produces in the mothers.

Damage to foetuses has lifelong consequences and Prof. Tim Nawrot at Hasselt University in Belgium, who led the study, said: “This is the most vulnerable period of life. All the organ systems are in development. For the protection of future generations, we have to reduce exposure. ”He said governments had the responsibility of cutting air pollution but that people should avoid busy roads when possible.

A comprehensive global review concluded that air pollution may be damaging every organ and virtually every cell in the human body. Nanoparticles have also been found to cross the blood-brain barrier and billions have been found in the hearts of young city dwellers.

While air pollution is decreasing in some nations, the records of harm caused by even low levels are rapidly increasing and 90% of the world’s population live in places where air pollution is above the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.

The research, published in the journal Nature Communications, examined 25 placentas from non-smoking women in the town of Hasselt. It has particle pollution levels well below the EU limit, although above the WHO limit. Researchers used a laser technique to detect the black carbon particles, which have a unique light fingerprint.

In each case, they found nanoparticles on the foetal side of the placenta and the number correlated with air pollution levels experienced by the mothers. There was an average of 20,000 nanoparticles per cubic millimetre in the placentas of mothers who lived near main roads. For those further away, the average was 10,000 per cubic millimetre.

They also examined placentas from miscarriages and found the particles were present even in 12-week-old foetuses. The first report of possible pollution particles in placentas was presented at a conference in September 2018, though the composition of the particles had not been confirmed.

The detection of the particles on the foetal side of the placental barrier means it was very likely the foetuses were exposed, Nawrot said. Work to analyse foetal blood for particles is now under way, as is research to see if the particles cause DNA damage.

The team also found black carbon particles in the urine of primary school children. The study, published in 2017, found an average of 10 million particles per millilitre in hundreds of nine-to-12-year-olds tested. “It shows there is translocation of particles from the lungs to all organ systems,” said Nawrot.

Amazon Deforestation Is Driven by Criminal Networks, Report Finds

17.09.2019

forest_fire_monkey_aper_deforestation_krčenje_šuma_požari — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is a lucrative business largely driven by criminal networks that threaten and attack government officials, forest defenders and indigenous people who try to stop them, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch.

Rainforest Mafias concludes that Brazil’s failure to police these gangs threatens its abilities to meet its commitments under the Paris climate deal – such as eliminating illegal deforestation by 2030. It was published a week before the UN Climate Action Summit.

Ricardo Salles, Brazil’s environment minister in the government of far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, has argued that poverty drives degradation, and that development of the Amazon will help stop deforestation.

But the report’s author, Cesar Muñoz Acebes, argues that Amazon needs to be better policed.

“As long as you have this level of violence, lawlessness and impunity for the crimes committed by these criminal groups it will be impossible for Brazil to rein in deforestation,” he said. “These criminal networks will attack anyone who stands in their way.”

The report documents 28 killings in which it found evidence that “those responsible were engaged in illegal deforestation and saw their victims as obstacles”.

Victims included indigenous people, forest residents and environmental agents, and only two cases went to trial. It cites “serious flaws” in investigations of six killings. More than 300 killings were counted by the Pastoral Land Commission, a not-for-profit group connected to the Catholic church, over the last decade in the Amazon, of which just 14 went to trial.

Officials and environmentalists told the Guardian the report echoed their experiences working in the Amazon.

“There is a lack of people, a lack of resources, a lack of logistics and a lack of will,” said Antonio de Oliveira, a retired federal police officer previously seconded to indigenous agency Funai. He worked with the Guardians, a brigade of Guajajara indigenous people who forcibly expel loggers from their heavily depleted Araribóia reserve in Maranhão state on the east of the Amazon.

Oliveira received several death threats and came under fire from loggers during one operation, when an environment agency official sitting next to him was hit in the arm. Nobody was jailed.

He agreed with the report’s assertion that illegal loggers have become more brazen since Bolsonaro launched a strong series of attacks on environmental agencies for levying fines and destroying loggers’ equipment, and promised to develop protected environment areas.

“The situation has got worse,” he said. “There is a sort of encouragement to people to enter, to invade.”

Source: Guardian

European Commission and World Health Organization Join Forces to Promote the Benefits of Vaccines

16.09.2019

vaccination_health_vakcinacija_zdravlje — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

On 12th of September, the European Commission and the World Health Organization (WHO) co-hosted the world’s first Global Vaccination Summit in Brussels. The aim was to accelerate global action to stop the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases, and advocate against the spread of vaccine misinformation worldwide.

Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, said: “It is inexcusable that in a world as developed as ours, there are still children dying of diseases that should have been eradicated long ago. Worse, we have the solution in our hands but it is not being put to full use. Vaccination already prevents 2-3 million deaths a year and could prevent a further 1.5 million if global vaccination coverage improved. Today’s summit is an opportunity to address this gap. The Commission will continue to work with the EU’s Member States in their national efforts and with our partners here today. This is a global challenge we must tackle together, and now.”

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, said: “After many years of progress, we are at a critical turning point. Measles is resurging, and 1 in 10 children continues to miss out on essential childhood vaccines,” said Dr Tedros, “We can and must get back on track. We will only do this by ensuring everyone can benefit from the power of vaccines – and if governments and partners invest in immunization as a right for all, and a social good. Now is the time to step up efforts to support vaccination as a core part of health for all.”

Opening the summit, President Juncker and Dr Tedros called for an urgent intensification of efforts to stop the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles. In the past 3 years, 7 countries, including 4 in the European region, have lost their measles elimination status. New outbreaks are the direct result of gaps in vaccination coverage, including amongst teenagers and adults who were never fully vaccinated. To tackle vaccination gaps effectively, the summit addressed the multiple barriers to vaccination, including rights, regulations and accessibility, availability, quality and convenience of vaccination services; social and cultural norms, values and support; individual motivation, attitudes, and knowledge and skills.

The European Commission and the World Health Organization also urged for strong support of GAVI, the Global Vaccine Alliance. GAVI plays a critical role in achieving the global vaccine goals in the world’s least-resourced countries.

New models and opportunities for stepping up vaccine development are also on the Global Vaccination Summit agenda, as well as ways to ensure that immunisation is a public health priority and a universal right.

Background

The WHO has declared vaccine hesitancy, including complacency and lack of confidence and convenience, one of ten threats to global health in 2019. Vaccines are safe and effective, and are the foundation of any strong Primary Health Care system.

Worldwide, 79% of people agree that vaccines are safe and 84% agree that they are effective, according to the Welcome Global Monitor on how people around the world think and feel about science and major health challenges. Yet, the State of Vaccine Confidence in the EU report shows that vaccine refusal has been increasing in many EU member states linked to low confidence in the safety and effectiveness of vaccines worldwide. This lack of confidence contributes significantly to lower coverage rates, which are essential to ensure herd immunity and are leading to increases in disease outbreak.

According to a Eurobarometer from April this year, almost half of the EU public (48%) believes that vaccines can often produce serious side effects, 38% think they can cause the diseases against which they protect and 31% are convinced that they can weaken the immune system. These figures are also the result of an increased spread of disinformation about the benefits and risks of vaccines through digital and social media.

So far in 2019, reported measles cases have reached the highest numbers seen globally since 2006. A surge in measles cases that began in 2018 has continued into 2019, with approximately 90 000 cases reported for the first half of the year in the WHO European Region alone and over 365 000 worldwide. These half-year figures already exceed each annual total since 2006.

Source: WHO

How Global Tourism Can Be More Sustainable

14.09.2019

photographers_mountains_planine — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

One of the world’s biggest economic activities, tourism drives wealth, employment, and regional development.

In 2018, international tourist arrivals reached 1.4 billion, while total export earnings from international tourism reached USD 1.7 trillion, or almost USD 5 billion per day on average, according to the latest data from the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

Despite these results, the long-term sustainability of the industry faces important challenges in terms of making the growth model compatible with the quality of life of local communities, especially in cities or mature destinations.

A recent UNWTO report on overtourism in cities recognized the need for the sector to “ensure sustainable policies and practices that minimize adverse effects of tourism on the use of natural resources, infrastructure, mobility and congestion, as well as its socio-cultural impact.”

Consequently, the tourism policy paradigm should shift from a growth-oriented model to an approach focused on the quality of this growth and its compatibility with the quality of life of residents.

A new generation of tourism strategies

In recent decades, tourism policies have focused on attracting tourists and maximizing the positive impacts of tourism in terms of employment and income, with emphasis on marketing and tourism promotion.

Now, “destination management” has emerged as a policy topic and, more importantly, governments and destination-management organizations are actively engaging in the practice.

An OECD report underlines how sustained development of the sector depends on the ability of destinations to promote adaptations to economic, social, political, and environmental trends, highlighting the emergence of integrated policies—with the participation of the private sector and local communities—in order to promote more inclusive growth.

In Portugal, tourism has very positively contributed to the Portuguese economy, generating higher revenues and employment.

In order to ensure the long-term sustainability of this positive contribution, two years ago the Portuguese government launched Tourism Strategy 2027, which defines the vision for the Portuguese tourism industry for the next decade: “To affirm tourism as a hub for economic, social and environmental development throughout the territory, positioning Portugal as one of the most competitive and sustainable tourism destinations in the world.”

Developed in an open process with many participants, Tourism Strategy 2027 proposes an ambitious agenda, with the principles of sustainable tourism and the Sustainable Development Goals as its DNA. The strategy sets objectives for each of the three pillars of sustainable development: economic goals cover specific growth targets in terms of overnight stays and tourism receipts; social goals include seasonality, workforce-skills improvement,and residents’ satisfaction; and environmental goals are related to best practices in energy, water, and waste management.

Underlying this vision is the principle that tourism should be a vehicle for promoting the country’s balanced development, deconcentrating tourist demand to less-developed regions throughout the year and adding value to local communities.

At the same time, the strategy aims to position Portugal as a leader in tourism of the future: a sustainable destination with a cohesive territory; an innovative and competitive country that values work and talent; an inclusive, open, creative country to visit, to invest in, to study in and live in.

New tools for monitoring (new) strategies

Making tourism more sustainable is a continuous process of making optimal use of environmental resources, respecting host communities, and ensuring viable, long-term economic operations, providing fairly distributed benefits among tourism stakeholders. This is a complex activity, with a number of economic, environmental, social, and political challenges, which require adequate management and evidence-based public policies.

And it’s far from easy to monitor the impacts of tourism. Efforts by international organizations such as UNWTO, OECD, and Eurostat have led to significant progress, including the establishment of international standards and tools such as the Tourism Satellite Account, which helps to understand the growing economic importance of tourism.

However, monitoring efforts have focused mainly on economic aspects, leaving behind the social and environmental impacts that, as we have seen, play a key role in the generation of sustainability-oriented tourism policies.

UNWTO’s initiative Towards a Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism (MST) will be an important tool to provide integrated information on sustainable tourism and to help destinations understand their social and environmental impacts.

Nevertheless, tourist destinations are already confronted with the need to develop public policies to promote sustainability, which requires new approaches in terms of generating data and guiding decision-making processes.

In the case of Portugal, the implementation of Tourism Strategy 2027 required the development of a sustainable tourism indicators system, enabling tourism policy evaluation and providing the private sector with instruments for making strategic decisions.

Those 34 indicators followed recommendations from international organizations like UNWTO and Eurostat and cover economic, environmental, and social pillars, using existing and comparable data sources. These indicators are available to relevant tourism stakeholders through TravelBI, a free and open data platform provided by Turismo de Portugal.

Finally, the new generation of tourism strategies requires a completely new approach in terms of data to enable real-time decision-making, especially of crisis management operational decisions, and broaden the dimensions of destination management. Ultimately, technology, and data generated by the rise of the digital economy, can make destination management more efficient and improve tourism’s sustainability.

Global tourism experienced steady growth for more than six decades, benefiting from the rise of technological advances that have made travel easier and cheaper. Now, it is time to use technology as a tool for managing tourist flows and improving the experience of both visitors and residents.

For more insights and analysis on how 140 countries performed, read the World Economic Forum’s 2019 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness report here.

Source: WEF

Plastic Alternatives May Worsen Marine Pollution, MPs Warn

13.09.2019

Compostable and biodegradable plastics could add to marine pollution because there is no infrastructure in place to make sure they break down correctly, a committee of MPs has warned.

The use of alternatives to plastic are being adopted by many food and drink companies, takeaway coffee venues, cafes and retailers. But experts giving evidence to MPs on the environment, food and rural affairs committee said the infrastructure required to deal with the new packaging was not in place and there was a lack of consumer understanding about these alternatives.

Much of the compostable packaging produced for the UK market only degrades in industrial composting facilities, rather than in home composting – but not all is sent to these facilities.

Environmental NGOs told the committee that the rapid introduction of such alternatives could actually increase plastic pollution.

Juliet Phillips, of the Environmental Investigation Agency, said: “If a biodegradable cup gets into the sea, it could pose just as much of a problem to marine life as a conventional plastic cup.”

The environmental thinktank Green Alliance said there was evidence that the term biodegradable made consumers think it was fine to discard it into the environment, which would make pollution on land and at sea even worse.

Neil Parish, chair of the Commons select committee, said: “In the backlash against plastic, other materials are being increasingly used as substitutes in food and drink packaging.

“We are concerned that such actions are being taken without proper consideration of wider environmental consequences, such as higher carbon emissions.

“Compostable plastics have been introduced without the right infrastructure or consumer understanding to manage compostable waste.”

Keep Britain Tidy said “the drive to introduce bioplastics, biodegradable plastics and compostable plastics is being done with limited emphasis on explaining the purpose of these materials to the public or consideration of whether they are in fact better from an environmental perspective than the plastic packaging they replace”.

The committee, in a report on plastic food and drink packaging published on Thursday, said the government should focus on reducing the use of plastic packaging rather than replacing it with other materials.

“Reduction is far more important than recycling, and a fundamental shift away from all single-use packaging, plastic or otherwise, is now necessary,” the report said.

A government consultation on biodegradable and compostable packaging is under way. It will examine whether the standard required for all such alternative plastics should be that they can be home composted.

In evidence to the committee Libby Peake, from Green Alliance, said there was a need for standards to be re-examined, saying: “Some companies are already switching to alternatives including bio-based and compostable plastics, paper, cartons or other materials in ways that will not ultimately prove sustainable.”

Peake added: “You cannot have a wholesale switchover to bio-based plastics, to aluminium, to glass or to paper, which all have environmental consequences themselves.”

Vegware, a compostable packaging manufacturer, said it advised consumers to put their products in the general waste if suitable composting was not possible.

The committee said it was shocking that the government had no idea how much plastic packaging was put on to the market. This is because the system is based on producers self-declaring their packaging footprint, and only those with a turnover of more than £2m and 50 tonnes of packaging a year are obliged to release their data. MPs recommended this figure should be reduced to 1 tonne…

Disposable, single-use plastics used for packaging food and drink – particularly cigarette butts, plastic drinking bottles, plastic caps, food wrappers, grocery bags, plastic lids, straws and stirrers – are the most common single use plastics found in the environment, according to a 2018 UN report.

Source: Guardian

Japan Will Have to Dump Radioactive Water into Pacific, Minister Says

12.09.2019

pollution_radioactive_waste_nuclear — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The operator of the ruined Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant will have to dump huge quantities of contaminated water from the site directly into the Pacific Ocean, Japan’s environment minister has said – a move that would enrage local fishermen.

More than 1 million tonnes of contaminated water has accumulated at the plant since it was struck by a tsunami in March 2011, triggering a triple meltdown that forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents.

Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco) has struggled to deal with the buildup of groundwater, which becomes contaminated when it mixes with water used to prevent the three damaged reactor cores from melting.

Tepco has attempted to remove most radionuclides from the excess water, but the technology does not exist to rid the water of tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. Coastal nuclear plants commonly dump water that contains tritium into the ocean. It occurs in minute amounts in nature.

Tepco admitted last year that the water in its tanks still contained contaminants beside tritium.

Currently, more than 1m tonnes of contaminated water is held in almost 1,000 tanks at the Fukushima Daiichi site, but the utility has warned that it will run out of tank space by the summer of 2022.

“The only option will be to drain it into the sea and dilute it,” Yoshiaki Harada told a news briefing in Tokyo on Tuesday. “The whole of the government will discuss this, but I would like to offer my simple opinion.”

No decision on how to dispose of the water will be made until the government has received a report from a panel of experts. Other options include vaporising the liquid or storing it on land for an extended period.

Harada did not say how much water would need to be discharged into the ocean.

One recent study by Hiroshi Miyano, who heads a committee studying the decommissioning of Fukushima Daiichi at the Atomic Energy Society of Japan, said it could take 17 years to discharge the treated water after it has been diluted to reduce radioactive substances to levels that meet the plant’s safety standards.

Any decision to dispose of the waste water into the sea would anger local fishermen, who have spent the past eight years rebuilding their industry.

Nearby South Korea has also voiced concern over the impact it would have on the reputation of its own seafood.

Last month, Seoul summoned a senior Japanese embassy official to explain how Fukushima Daiichi’s waste water would be dealt with.

Ties between the north-east Asian nations are already at a low ebb following a compensation dispute over Koreans forced to work in Japanese factories during the second world war.

The government spent 34.5bn yen (£260m) to build a frozen underground wall to prevent groundwater reaching the three damaged reactor buildings. The wall, however, has succeeded only in reducing the flow of groundwater from about 500 tonnes a day to about 100 tonnes a day.

Japan has come under renewed pressure to address the contaminated water problem before Tokyo hosts the Olympics and Paralympics next summer.

Six years ago during the city’s bid for the games, the prime minister, Shinzo Abe, assured the international community that the situation was “under control”.

Source: Guardian

Up to Half of the Consumed Energy Saved Thanks to Solar Panels

12.09.2019

One production plant has saved almost half of the electricity consumption in the day of the largest production thanks to the solar power plant on the roof of the facility. Out of 950 kWh consumed, it saved about 450.

The construction of a small solar power plant with the installed capacity of 50 kW in Simanovci with the connection to the cabinet for consumption was entrusted to the Belgrade-based company MT-Komex. The amount of produced energy from accumulated solar radiation is used exclusively for their own consumption. The photovoltaic power plant in Simanovci supplies the user with clean energy, and at the same time reduces the monthly electricity bill.

The rooftop structure carries 180 panels of 275 Wp which are set at an angle of 10°. In order to transform the DC to AC, three Fronius inverters were installed: two of 20 kW and one of 8.2 kW.

Experienced installers of MT-Komex have mounted a system of aluminium construction of the K2 Systems manufacturer from Germany, one of the leaders in the production of aluminium systems for rooftop structures. Due to the specificity of the location, they chose a system that reduces the influence of wind, thus reducing the need to use additional load in the form of concrete slabs which make the construction of solar panels and aluminium rails heavier. In this way, the risk of wind pushing the structure along on the roof and taking it off the roof with all the panels was averted.

The solar power plant was put into operation in mid-March. Even though April was marked by bad weather and abundant precipitation which are not characteristic for this time of year, the solar power plant has produced enough electrical energy to reduce almost 30 per cent of the electricity consumption to the cabinet for consumption in the production plant on whose roof a solar power plant is installed. In some cases, when days are sunny, no precipitation, this amount of reduction of electricity consumption has reached as much as 50 per cent. One of the sunniest days in the fourth month was April 26th and then the factory had the highest consumption in the facility, given that they had the highest production capacity, which resulted in a total consumption of 950 kWh on that day, and the solar the power plant gave almost 440 hours.

Thanks to solar power plants, MT-Komex customers receive clean and cheaper electricity. Certified engineers and electrical fitters are trained to mount solar power plants almost on any land and any facility, whether it’s a house, a factory, a parking lot or a canopy. So far, they have built 16 solar plants with 10 thousand solar panels with a total installed capacity of 2.6 MW. Behind every project of the power plant construction is 25 years of experience.

IN BRIEF ABOUT SOLAR POWER PLANTS Solar power plants produce “clean” electricity, and they can be rooftop or ground-mounted. The generated electricity from a solar power plant can be used to satisfy own consumption. This clean energy reduces the energy you would pay by taking it from the distribution network, which generates significant savings. Solar power plants can provide 15 to 70 per cent of the electricity of their consumption when there is constant electricity consumption throughout the day. Energy production depends mostly on how to install panels and equipment selection.

This article was published in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine on ENERGY EFFICIENCY, June 2018. – August 2019.

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