Ocean Group Pledges to Clean up Five Trillion Pieces of Plastic Waste

25.09.2018

water-2655759_960_720 — Photo-Illustration: Pixabay

The Ocean Cleanup has developed a new technology it says will be able to collect vast amounts of rubbish.

The Ocean Cleanup has pledged to remove plastic waste from the world’s seas by 2050.

It plans to start removing the five million separate pieces of rubbish currently floating in the world’s oceans with its new ‘passive system’, which uses natural currents forces to move around and collect plastic.

The 600-metre solar-powered floater sits on the surface of the water, with a three-metre skirt attached below to catch debris – it uses algorithms to find optimal deployment locations, after which the system roams garbage patches autonomously, feeding information back to scientists on land.

The majority of plastic waste in the oceans accumulates in five ‘garbage patches’, damaging ecosystems, health and economies.

The group estimates a full-scale deployment of its systems would be able to clean up around half of the largest of these, known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, every 5 years.

It says by removing the plastic while it remains in relatively large pieces, like shopping bags and bottles, it can prevent the waste from breaking down into more dangerous microplastics.

Source: Energy Live News

Global Cities Leading the Way in Cutting Emissions

24.09.2018

Some of the world’s major cities, including London, Paris and New York City, are no longer increasing their greenhouse gas emissions.

New analysis reveals 27 cities, representing 54 million people and $6 trillion (£4.6tn) in GDP, saw carbon emissions peak in 2012.
Emissions then fell by 2% every year on average while their economies grew by 3% annually.

The main drivers for cities to achieve peak emissions were decarbonisation of the power grid, building energy efficiency, providing cleaner and affordable alternatives to private cars and reduce waste and boosting recycling rates, according to C40 Cities, a network of cities acting as leaders in combating climate change.

Other cities that have also seen a peak in emissions are Barcelona, Basel, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, Copenhagen, Heidelberg, Los Angeles, Madrid, Melbourne, Milan, Montréal, New Orleans, Oslo, Philadelphia, Portland, Rome, San Francisco, Stockholm, Sydney, Toronto, Vancouver, Warsaw and Washington DC.

To date, mayors of more than 60 C40 cities have committed to develop and begin implementing ambitious climate action plans by 2020 that go beyond national commitments to achieve the highest goals of the Paris Agreement at the local level.
The plans are expected to see many more cities achieve peak emissions over the coming years and become emissions neutral by 2050.

The news was announced at the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco this week.

Source: energylivenews

World Peace Requires Access to Safe Water

24.09.2018

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In drought-ravaged East Africa, the cracks in the plains echo the fault lines splitting tribes.

Across the globe, the devastation of deadly brawls is being exacerbated by tensions over access to water. Water crises, often worsened by governance failures, can portend warning signs for instability and conflict. This year, the World Resources Institute cautioned that water stress is growing globally, “with 33 countries projected to face extremely high stress in 2040.” The effects of such water stress span the gamut from civil unrest to open warfare.

Water alone does not explain why a polity erupts into conflict; other factors often play a role. But water scarcity can provide a tangible marker of the government’s failure to deliver basic services, and spur movements of people that overburden cities and exacerbate tensions.

In India, for example, irrigation is causing social unrest and water distribution has become a flashpoint between farmers and the government. In Somalia, communities affected by drought have been exploited by Al-Shabab, a militant group. The recent water restrictions in Cape Town, South Africa, inflamed old racial fault lines in the city. In Niger, Chad and Nigeria water scarcity has fed a dangerous insurgency.

As the Syrian conflict churns towards what is likely to be a brutal climax in Idlib, it’s worth remembering that the country’s bitter civil war may be linked to climate change-induced drought. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in 2015 states that an extreme drought that occurred in Syria between 2007 and 2010 was likely contributed to by climate change, and that the drought was a key factor in the violent uprising which erupted there in 2011. The researchers stated that in Syria the drought had a “catalytic effect,” prompting crop failures and the mass migration of more than one million people to urban areas, intensifying existing social stressors.

These issues are beginning to touch the U.S. in myriad ways. The lead crisis in Flint, Michigan demonstrated how democracy is implicated by water quality. In Puerto Rico, a lack of access to safe water is intimately tied to a legacy of poverty and a lack of full representation in Congress. In the parched American west, drought has sparked legal and political contests over ownership of water.

Today, vulnerable communities around the world are agitating for a human right to water that has real, practical meaning. Arid, drought-ridden cities will survive only through their ability to create economic, technical and political means to dispense water equitably and safely. Developing such innovations will be one of the most important projects of the 21st century.

Source: Eco Watch

Norway Becomes World’s First Country to Ban Deforestation

24.09.2018

norway-norveška-nature-priroda — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Norway has become the first country to ban deforestation. The Norwegian Parliament pledged May 26 that the government’s public procurement policy will be deforestation-free.

Any product that contributes to deforestation will not be used in the Scandinavian country. The pledge was recommended by Norwegian Parliament’s Standing Committee on Energy and Environment as part of the Action Plan on Nature Diversity. Rainforest Foundation Norway was the main lobbying power behind this recommendation and has worked for years to bring the pledge to existence.

“This is an important victory in the fight to protect the rainforest,” Nils Hermann Ranum, head of policy and campaign at Rainforest Foundation Norway said in a statement. “Over the last few years, a number of companies have committed to cease the procurement of goods that can be linked to destruction of the rainforest. Until now, this has not been matched by similar commitments from governments. Thus, it is highly positive that the Norwegian state is now following suit and making the same demands when it comes to public procurements.”

Norway’s action plan also includes a request from parliament that the government exercise due care for the protection of biodiversity in its investments through Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global.

“Other countries should follow Norway’s leadership, and adopt similar zero deforestation commitments,” Ranum said. “In particular, Germany and the UK must act, following their joint statement at the UN Climate Summit.”

Germany and the UK joined Norway in pledging at the 2014 UN Climate Summit to “promote national commitments that encourage deforestation-free supply chains,” through public procurement policies and to sustainably source products like palm oil, soy, beef and timber, the Huffington Post reported.

Beef, palm oil, soy and wood products in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea were responsible for 40 percent of deforestation between 2000 and 2011. Those seven countries were also responsible for 44 percent of carbon emissions, Climate Action reported.

Norway’s recent pledge is yet another step the country has taken to combat deforestation. The Scandinavian country funds several projects worldwide.

The Norwegian government announced a $250 million commitment to protect Guyana’s forest, WorldWatch Institute reported. The South American country, which has its forests zoned for logging, received the money over a four-year period from 2011 to 2015.

“Our country is at a stage where our population is no less materialistic [than industrialized countries] and no less wanting to improve their lives,” Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Guyana’s minister of foreign affairs, said. “We want to continue our development, but we can’t do that without a form of payment.”

The partnership is part of the UN’s initiative Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation, which was launched in 2008. Guyana is unique among its counterparts in the initiative because the country’s forests don’t face significant deforestation pressure.

In 2015, Norway paid $1 billion to Brazil, home to 60 percent of the Amazon forest, for completing a 2008 agreement between the two countries to prevent deforestation, according to mongabay.com. Deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon decreased more than 75 percent over the last decade, representing the single biggest emissions cut in that time period. The deal helped save more than 33,000 square miles of rainforest from clear-cutting, National Geographic reported.

The partnership was praised by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon:

“The partnership between Brazil and Norway through the Amazon Fund shows intensified support for one of most impressive climate change mitigation actions of the past decades. This is an outstanding example of the kind of international collaboration we need to ensure the future sustainability of our planet.”

The Amazon has lost around 17 percent of its trees in the last 50 years, according to World Wildlife Fund.

This TED talk explains how Brazil reached its goal:

Norway doesn’t just focus on South American forests. The country is also hard at work in Africa and other regions of the planet.

Liberia, with the help of Norway, became the first nation in Africa to stop cutting down trees in return for aid, the BBC reported. The deal involves Norway paying the West African country $150 million through 2020 to stop deforestation.

“We hope Liberia will be able to cut emissions and reduce poverty at the same time,” Jens Frolich Holte, a political adviser to the Norwegian government, said.

Liberia is home to 43 percent of the Upper Guinean forest and the last populations of western chimpanzees, forest elephants and leopards. The country agreed to place 30 percent or more of its forests under protection by 2020.

Forests cover 31 percent of the land on Earth. They are the planet’s figurative lungs, producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Forests also provide homes to people and much of the world’s wildlife.

There are 1.6 million people who rely on forests for food, fresh water, clothing, medicine and shelter, according to the World Wildlife Fund. But people also see forests as an obstacle they must remove. Around 46,000 to 58,000 square miles of forest are lost each year—a rate equal to 48 football fields every minute.

Deforestation is estimated to contribute around 15 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions. Not only does deforestation contribute to climate change, it can also disrupt livelihoods and natural cycles, the World Wildlife Fund said. Removal of trees can disrupt the water cycle of the region, resulting in changes in precipitation and river flow, and contribute to erosion.

Source: Eco Watch

More than 30,000 Ukrainian Homes Go Energy Efficient

24.09.2018

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More than 30,000 Ukrainian households have benefitted from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) energy efficiency programme.

The Residential Energy Efficiency Financing Facility has now invested a total of UAH1 billion (£27m) into energy-efficient home improvements – this has enabled homeowners to take out loans, with many expected to qualify for partial investment grants.

The facility is supported by €15 million (£13.5m) in funding from the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership, to which the EU is the largest contributor.

Ukraine’s residential sector is responsible for over a third of the country’s energy consumption, with many of its soviet-era buildings having significant potential to be made warmer and more efficient.

More than 70% of completed home improvement projects have used domestic-made products such as double-glazed windows or boilers.

Source: Energy Live News

California Becomes First State to Regulate Plastic Straws

23.09.2018

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California became the first state in the U.S. to ban plastic straws in dine-in restaurants Thursday when Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation to that effect, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The law, which will enter into force Jan. 1, prohibits restaurants from providing straws unless a customer requests one. It covers only sit-down eateries, not fast food restaurants, delis or coffee shops.

“It is a very small step to make a customer who wants a plastic straw ask for it,” Brown said as he signed the bill. “And it might make them pause and think again about an alternative. But one thing is clear, we must find ways to reduce and eventually eliminate single-use plastic products.”

The law, Assembly Bill 1884, was passed by the state legislature in late August. Restaurants who violate the law could be fined $25 per day and up to $300 per year, CNBC reported.

The law comes as various cities and companies, including California cities like San Francisco, Alameda, Oakland, Berkeley, Carmel, Davis and San Luis Obispo have also passed restrictions on the use of plastic straws, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The move was supported by some of the same groups who supported the state’s ban on plastic bags, which was solidified by a voter referendum in 2016.

In his signing statement, Brown focused on the impact that all single use plastics have on the oceans. He wrote that plastics are estimated to kill millions of marine animals, referencing the story of a whale that washed up dead in Thailand with 80 plastic bags in its stomach, and that microplastics have also been foundin tap water.

“Plastics, in all forms—straws, bottles, packaging, bags, etc.—are choking our planet,” he wrote.

Plastic straws and stirrers are the sixth most prevalent form of trash found on California beaches, according to the California Coastal Commission, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

However, anti-plastic straw measures have been criticized by disability rights activists, who say they deny people with disabilities a life-saving accessibility tool without addressing the true cause behind the single-use plastic crisis.

“Let me be blunt: Screeching at us about straws is not going to fix the problem of plastic. For that, we need to go higher up the supply chain, rethinking when and how we produce plastics across the board instead of shaming disabled people who are piping up about our needs,” Northern California journalist s.e. smith wrote for Vox.

Some disability advocates say a solution like California’s, which still allows restaurants to serve plastic straws upon request, would resolve the tension between sustainability and accessibility, but others say such regulations still put an added barrier between customers with disabilities and their chance to enjoy a beverage out as easily as anyone else.

“Some people who need straws may have an invisible disability or illness, and they should be able to receive a straw without being judged or asked if they ‘really’ need it,” the Mighty disability editor Karin Willison told the Los Angeles Times, as reported by The Hill.

Source: Eco Watch

Build Walls on Seafloor to Stop Glaciers Melting, Scientists Say

23.09.2018

life-863034_960_720 — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Barriers could halt slide of undersea glaciers and hold back sea level rises predicted to result from global warming.

Building walls on the seafloor may become the next frontier of climate science, as engineers seek novel ways to hold back the sea level rises predicted to result from global warming.

By erecting barriers of rock and sand, researchers believe they could halt the slide of undersea glaciers as they disintegrate into the deep. It would be a drastic endeavour but could buy some time if climate change takes hold, according to a new paper published on Thursday in the Cryosphere journal, from the European Geosciences Union.

Though the notion may sound far-fetched, the design would be relatively straightforward. “We are imagining very simple structures, simply piles of gravel or sand on the ocean floor,” said Michael Wolovick, a researcher at the department of geosciences at Princeton University in the US who described the plans as “within the order of magnitude of plausible human achievements”.

The structures would not just be aimed at holding back the melting glaciers, but at preventing warmer water from reaching the bases of the glaciers under the sea. New research is now being undertaken by scientists showing how the effects of the warmer water around the world, as the oceans warm, may be the leading cause of underwater melting of the glaciers.

Wolovick and his fellow researchers ran computer models to check on the likely impacts of the structures they believe would be needed, taking as their starting point the Thwaites glacier in Antarctica, which at 80-100km is one of the widest glaciers in the world.

They found that creating a structure of isolated columns or mounds on the sea floor, each about 300 metres high, would require between 0.1 and 1.5 cubic km of aggregate material. This would make such a project similar to the amount of material excavated to form Dubai’s Palm Islands, which took 0.3 cubic km of sand and rock, or the Suez canal, which required the excavation of roughly one cubic km.

Building a structure of this kind would have about a 30% probability of preventing a runaway collapse of the west Antarctic ice sheet, according to the models.

Using more complex designs that would be harder to accomplish in the harsh conditions on the sea bottom in the south polar regions, a small underwater wall could be built, which they calculate would have a 70% chance of succeeding in blocking half the warm water from reaching the ice shelf.

Glaciers melting under rising temperatures at the poles have the potential to discharge vast amounts of fresh water into the oceans, sending sea levels rising faster than they have for millennia. The Thwaites glacier alone, an ice stream the size of Britain and likely to be the biggest single source of future sea level rises, could trigger the melting of enough water to raise global sea levels by three metres.

Many of these glaciers extend far under the sea, and scientists have begun to explore their subsea melting as well as the easier-to-measure reductions in the or visible parts. The undersea research vessel now known as Boaty McBoatface after its much larger relative was named the Sir David Attenborough is to be deployed at the Thwaites glacier for just this purpose.

Building undersea walls could be accomplished by similar vessels but would have to be precisely positioned and strong enough to withstand the immense pressure of the ice.

The authors hope that by creating their experimental models they can foster future research into the engineering needed to bring about such projects, which would take many years or decades to be worked out and implemented.

Geo-engineering solutions such as this one should not deter the world from reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Wolovick said. “The more carbon we emit, the less likely it becomes that the ice sheets will survive in the long term at anything close to their present volume,” he said.

The forthcoming report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is expected to warn afresh of the potential for sea level rises to inundate low-lying areas if warming is not held to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.

Source: Guardian

A Wind Farm to Be Built in South Dakota Will Provide Renewable Energy Starting in 2020

22.09.2018

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Boston University (BU) has announced plans to buy wind energy to meet 100% of its electricity consumption.

It has signed a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with energy company ENGIE North America, which will provide renewable electricity from a wind farm in South Dakota starting in 2020.

The university will buy 201,000MWh of electricity every year and earn credits in the form of renewable energy certificates (RECs) to compensate for its own carbon emissions in Boston.

As part of the contract, BU will also receive educational and research opportunities for faculty and students, including tow summer internships for academically high-performing students who want to learn about wind power or energy efficiency or how to put business plans together.

The project will support the university’s commitment to bring its net emissions to zero by 2040.

Since 2006, BU has reduced its carbon emissions by around 25% through energy efficiency and replacing oil usage with natural gas.

Following the 15-year contract, the university said it will either negotiate a new contract or consider alternatives.

Source: Energy Live News

EU Investigates BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen over Emissions Collusion Allegations

22.09.2018

The carmakers allegedly held meetings where they discussed clean technologies to limit harmful car exhaust emissions.

The technologies aim to make passenger cars less damaging to the environment
The Commission will assess if the companies colluded to limit the development and rollout of certain emissions control systems
It aims to establish if their conduct may have violated rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices

The European Commission has launched an investigation into alleged collusion between BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen (VW) on the development of emissions control systems for cars.

It will focus on information it received indicating the car manufacturers, including VW’s Audi and Porsche units, also called the “circle of five”, participated in meetings where they allegedly discussed, among other things, the development and deployment of technologies to limit harmful car exhaust emissions.

In particular, the Commission is assessing whether the companies colluded to limit the development and rollout of certain emissions control systems for cars sold in the European Economic Area.

The in-depth investigation will aim to establish if the conduct of BMW, Daimler and VW may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices.

It follows the Commission’s inspections at the premises of BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen and Audi in Germany last October as part of its initial inquiries.

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy said: “The Commission is investigating whether BMW, Daimler and VW agreed not to compete against each other on the development and rollout of important systems to reduce harmful emissions from petrol and diesel passenger cars.

“These technologies aim at making passenger cars less damaging to the environment. If proven, this collusion may have denied consumers the opportunity to buy less polluting cars, despite the technology being available to the manufacturers.”

Responses

The Volkswagen Group and its brands said they have been fully co-operating with the investigation.

A spokesperson added: “The formal initiation of proceedings is standard and is a purely procedural step in the process, which was fully expected by Volkswagen. The presumption of innocence continues to apply until the investigations have been fully completed.

“This is not affected by the formal initiation of proceedings. The fact that the European Commission has initiated (formal) proceedings does not mean that it has made any final finding whatsoever on any alleged legal infringements. This procedural step merely means that the Commission will now treat this case as having priority.”

A BMW spokesperson said: “This is a formal step which does not prejudge the outcome in regard to a possible violation of antitrust rules. From the start of the investigation, the BMW Group has supported the EU Commission in its work and will continue to do so. Due to the ongoing investigation, the BMW Group will not comment on the case.

“For the BMW Group, it is important to make a clear distinction between possible violations of antitrust law and a targeted manipulation of exhaust gas treatment, as the latter allegation does not relate to the BMW Group. As for possible infringements against antitrust law, the BMW Group is examining the allegations very closely. The company is wholeheartedly committed to the principles of market economics and fair competition.”

Daimler said no allegations have been raised about price fixing and the company is “co-operating fully” with the authorities and has filed a leniency application.

Source: Energy Live News

World’s Largest River Floods Five Times More Often Than It Used to

21.09.2018

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Extreme floods have become more frequent in the Amazon Basin in just the last two to three decades, according to a new study.

After analyzing 113 years of Amazon River levels in Port of Manaus, Brazil, researchers found that severe floods happened roughly every 20 years in the first part of the 20th century. Now, extreme flooding of the world’s largest river occurs every four years on average—or about five times more frequently than it used to.

“With a few minor exceptions, there have been extreme floods in the Amazon basin every year from 2009 to 2015,” study lead author, Jonathan Barichivich, environmental scientist at the Universidad Austral de Chile, said in a press release.

This increase in flooding could be disastrous for communities in Brazil, Peru and other Amazonian nations, the researchers pointed out.

“There are catastrophic effects on the lives of the people as the drinking water gets flooded, and the houses get completely destroyed,” Barichivich told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The study, published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances, also determined that droughts in the Amazon Basin have increased in frequency.

“Our findings unravel the ultimate causes of the recent intensification—wet season getting wetter, and dry season getting drier—of the water cycle of the largest hydrological basin of the planet,” Barichivich told Retuers.

The researchers linked the increase in flooding to a strengthening of the Walker circulation, which is induced by the contrast of warm Atlantic waters and the cooler waters of the Pacific.

This ocean-powered air circulation system, which influences weather patterns and rainfall in the tropics and elsewhere, can partly be attributed to shifts in wind belts caused by climate change, as Reuters noted about the study.

“This dramatic increase in floods is caused by changes in the surrounding seas, particularly the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and how they interact. Due to a strong warming of the Atlantic Ocean and cooling of the Pacific over the same period, we see changes in the so-called Walker circulation, which affects Amazon precipitation,” study co-author Manuel Gloor, from Britain’s University of Leeds, said in the press release. “The effect is more or less the opposite of what happens during an El Niño event. Instead of causing drought, it results in more convection and heavy rainfall in the central and northern parts of the Amazon basin.”

With temperatures in the Atlantic expected to continue warming, the scientists expect to see more of these high water levels in the Amazon River.

“We think that it’s going to continue for at least a decade,” Barichivich told Reuters.

Source: Eco Watch

Greenpeace Report: Europe Has 10 Years Left to Ditch Fossil Fuel Cars

21.09.2018

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Europe must phase out the sales of new gasoline- and diesel-fueled cars by 2028 if it wants to live up to its Paris climate agreement emissions-reduction pledges, according to new research by Germany’s Aerospace Center.

Even conventional hybrid cars, which feature gasoline-powered engines, would have to disappear by the mid-2030s if Europe intends to fulfill its part of the Paris deal to limit global warming to 1.5°C, according to the Greenpeace-commissioned study.

The researchers only analyzed the share of auto emissions in Europe. More research is needed for regions such as Asia or the Americas, as it is “entirely possible that some countries would need to phase out fossil fuel cars even quicker,” Richard Casson, of Greenpeace’s air pollution campaign, noted in a blog post about the new study.

For the study, the German researchers compared the European Union’s current passenger car carbon emissions with the so-called “carbon budget” available to keep global warming under 1.5°C, with a likelihood of 50 percent and 66 percent respectively.

They found that if the current annual CO2 emissions from Europe’s passenger cars continue unchecked, the carbon budget would be completely depleted within 10 years under the 50 percent scenario, and within 5 years in the 66 percent scenario.

The researchers warned that “quick and stringent” CO2 emission reductions are necessary from passenger cars.

“Auto CO2-emissions need to peak as soon as possible,” German Aerospace Center Director Horst Friedrich told the Guardian. “Looking at the dwindling carbon budget it is crucial to push low-emitting cars into the market, the earlier the better, to renew the fleet.”

“The phasing-out of the internal combustion engine in passenger cars will not only benefit the climate, it will also help solve the air pollution crisis and improve quality of life for everyone,” said Barbara Stoll, Greenpeace Clean Air campaigner, in a press release.

Greenpeace, however, is not asking every driver to make the switch to electric vehicles.

“Cutting pollution from transport doesn’t only have to be a choice between fossil fuel power cars and electric ones,” Casson wrote. “A truly sustainable plan for transport should be about constructing more bike lanes, building cycling infrastructure that would make it easier for people to get around without cars. It should be about making public transport more affordable, leading to more people using trains or buses to get around. And it should be about investing in car sharing schemes, and reducing the amount of vehicles on the road.”

Source: Еco Watch

Mosquitoes Could Spread Microplastics, Study Suggests

20.09.2018

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Microplastics, which get gobbled up by whales, deep-sea fish and plankton, have also turned up in the bodies of mosquitoes, scientists have revealed.

The research, published Wednesday in the journal Biology Letters, is the first to show that bits of plastic can be transferred between a mosquito’s life stages that use different habitats.

For the study, the scientists fed the larvae of Culex pipiens—the common house mosquito—different-sized fluorescent polystyrene beads. The researchers found that the tiny fragments stayed in the larvae’s bodies as they matured into flying adults.

Beads that were smaller than 2 micrometers in size transferred “readily” into pupae and adult stages, while larger beads that were 15 micrometers in size transferred at a “significantly reduced” rate, the paper states.

“Larvae are filter feeders that waft little combs towards their mouths, so they can’t actually distinguish between a bit of plastic and a bit of food,” lead researcher Amanda Callaghan of the University of Reading told The Guardian. “They eat algae, which are more or less the same size as these microplastics.”

The study suggests that plastics could enter the larger food chain if birds, bats or other creatures eat the mosquitoes.

“The implication is that you can have plastics at the bottom of the pond that are now going up into the air and being eaten by spiders and bats and animals that normally wouldn’t have access to that plastic,” Callaghan told The Independent.

“You could have a dragonfly, for example, eating mosquitoes as they are emerging—so it could be eating lots of mosquitoes with plastic in them, and then a bird could be eating that and getting an even bigger dose.”

The researchers are now studying if consuming plastics harms the mosquitoes, The Guardian reported.

“It is a shocking reality that plastic is contaminating almost every corner of the environment and its ecosystems,” Callaghan added. “Much recent attention has been given to the plastics polluting our oceans, but this research reveals it is also in our skies.”

Source: Eco Watch

Cities Around the World Lay the Groundwork for a Zero-Waste Future

20.09.2018

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Cities around the world are pledging to reduce waste over the next 12 years in an effort to curb global warming and eventually become zero-waste cities. During the Global Climate Action Summit, the C40 announced a new initiative that encourages cities to eliminate waste production and end the practice of waste burning. So far, 23 cities have agreed to become zero-waste and will work toward that goal by “reducing the amount of municipal solid waste disposed to landfill and incineration by at least 50 percent … and increase the diversion rate away from landfill and incineration to at least 70 percent by 2030,” according to C40.

Each city has agreed to cut down on waste that ends up in landfills by at least half over the next decade. The cities — which include San Francisco, Catalonia, Auckland, Dubai, Copenhagen, London, Montreal, New York City, Milan, Rotterdam, Sydney, Paris, Tokyo, Tel Aviv, Toronto, Washington D.C. and Vancouver — also pledged to reduce waste generation by 15 percent and encourage alternative waste management practices by 2030.

Reducing the amount of waste disposal and incineration is an important step in fighting global warming. Scientists believe that the new initiative could cut global carbon emissions by around 20 percent as cities begin to recycle and compost waste instead of dumping it into landfills or burning it.

The 23 cities who signed the zero-waste declarations hope that they will lead by example and encourage other municipalities to do the same.

The EPA says that incinerators and landfills significantly increase the amount of greenhouse gases around the globe. These practices also encourage companies to acquire new resources and materials, leading to an endless cycle of waste disposal.

In addition to cutting down on waste, increasing recycling and reusing materials also contributes to a better economy. Instead of wasting old materials, recycling and reusing keeps the items in the system for longer periods. This reduces the need to purchase new materials and manage waste.

Source: Inhabitat

Sustainability of Western Balkans Rising Public Debt Becomes Questionable

20.09.2018

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Yesterday, the regional study Public Debt on western Balkans was released in the framework of “Balkan Monitoring Public Finance” project. At the same time that was an occasion to discuss with the representatives of World Bank, Parliament of Montenegro, Western Balkan civil society organizations and prominent media from the region how to jointly tackle the unsustainable levels of public debt in Western Balkans.

The presented study shows that the rising trend of public debt triggered alarm bells concerning the long term sustainability of public finances, especially given that the debt tolerance level is lower for lower income economies. The average debt in the analyzed countries went up from 25% of GDP in 2007 to 51% in 2016. Unsustainable public finances and rising public debts are a threat to some of these countries. Thus, closely monitoring the debt movements is necessary and a timely response to unsustainable developments is of crucial importance for maintaining macroeconomic stability.

One of the authors of the study, Andreja Zivkovic from Wings of Hope, BiH, highlights that ‘The debt management activities should be audited annually by external auditors and audits of government financial statements should be conducted regularly and publicly disclosed. The State Audit Office should have a legal obligation to inform and educate citizens in finance issues, of the fiscal performance of governments and state institutions and of the work of the Audit Office itself”.

Often debt does not serve the needs of the citizens and puts limitations on democracy in a sense that does not imply involvement of citizens and NGOs in the process of decision making in the area of public finances and at the same time is characterized by a low level of transparency. Ajda Pistotnik from EnaBanda, Slovenia who is one of the authors of the study stated that “Greater participation by citizens in affairs that directly concern them is in itself a public good and is a stimulus to greater transparency and accountability in public finance”.

Number of Dirty Diesels on Road Still Growing, Report Shows

19.09.2018

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The number of dirty diesel vehicles pumping out toxic emissions on Europe’s streets is still rising three years after the Dieselgate scandal began, according to a new report. More than 7m such cars and vans remain on UK roads alone.

There were 29m diesel vehicles whose emissions on the road were significantly higher than official laboratory-based EU limits when the diesel scandal erupted in September 2015. But that has now risen by to 43m, according to analysis by the group Transport & Environment (T&E). France has the most dirty diesels on the road, with 8.7m, followed by Germany’s 8.2m and the UK’s 7.3m.

Experts say the number of polluting diesel cars will continue rising until September 2019, when new EU regulations force older models out of showrooms. The slow pace of change has been allowed to enable the manufacturers with most polluting fleets to catch up, the experts argue.

“After three years, it is shocking that the number of dirty diesel cars and vans on the road today is still rising,” said Florent Grelier, at T&E. “The EU needs to take action to clean up these grossly polluting vehicles and prevent their sale or use until they are properly fixed. If not, they will continue damaging citizens’ health for decades to come.”

In the UK, illegal levels of the nitrogen oxides produced by diesel engines are estimated to cause 23,500 early deaths every year. Car manufacturers were fined billions in the US and Germany, but have yet to pay any significant financial penalty in the UK for selling polluting vehicles. “Impossible-to-cheat” emissions tests show almost all new diesels on sale are still dirty.

T&E calculated the number of dirty diesels on the road using data on emissions from the government investigations in the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands and Spain that followed Dieselgate, plus data from independent testers such as Emissions Analytics. Vehicles emitting more than double the official lab limit in real driving were considered dirty. T&E then used sales data to calculate the totals.

“They are absolutely right about the number of dirty diesels on the road increasing and this number will go up further,” said Nick Molden, CEO of Emissions Analytics. He said the vast majority of the diesels currently on the market are four to five times above the legal limit when on the road. This would not change until August 2019 when models approved under old, flawed rules are withdrawn from sale, he said.

Sales of diesel cars have plunged in the UK and Grelier said: “The only way to ensure cars are truly clean is to accelerate the shift to zero-emission technology.” However, Molden warned that dumping diesel entirely could increase the carbon emissions that drive climate change. “There were a lot of very bad diesels, but there are now some very good ones,” he said

The newest diesels emit about the same NOx as petrol cars, but 18% less CO2, Molden said. Electric cars remain expensive to buy (although cheaper to run), meaning most purchasers are choosing petrol models. However, carmakers have a big challenge in rebuilding confidence in diesels, he said: “It is an uphill struggle and they have left it late in the day.”

A spokeswoman for the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said: “The automobile industry has invested heavily to achieve significant improvements in emissions [in new models]. Research by also shows that the latest generation of diesel vehicles will continue to play a major role in helping reach future CO2 targets. Likewise, these vehicles will also have a positive impact on improving air quality, along with other local measures.”

Source: Guardian

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