Major Coal-Fired Power Plant in Washington to Go Solar

14.06.2018

washington-monument-816642_960_720 — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

It was once Washington state’s largest coal pit, a terraced, open-to-the-sky strip mine, five miles from the city of Centralia and halfway between Seattle and Portland, Oregon. Today, the coal beds are quiet and blanketed in green, but an adjacent TransAlta power plant with three tall stacks still churns out electricity the traditional way, with coal now supplied from Wyoming.

Not for much longer. The coal mine closed in 2006—the last of the state’s mines to be shuttered—and then in 2011, TransAlta reached a deal with the state to shut down the plant. One burner will go cold in 2020 and the other by 2025. This move is part of Washington’s larger plan to get carbon dioxide emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. And it should go a long way toward meeting that goal: Today, in a state that relies on hydropower for most of its energy, the Centralia power plant contributes 10 percent of the state’s total greenhouse gases—as much as the emissions from 1.75 million cars.

The plant currently also contributes a good deal of electricity, of course. When the Centralia power plant’s smokestacks quit spewing in 2025, it will mean a loss of 1,340 megawatts of energy. (Of that, it currently supplies about 380 megawatts to area homes via Puget Sound Energy, or PSE, the largest power supplier in the state.) To help fill that gap, TransAlta is converting about 1,000 acres of its former mine site to a solar farm. In homage to the old pioneer town of Tono that once stood where the mine now craters the earth, Tono Solar will be the land’s next incarnation.

“This is a good-news story about moving away from fossil fuels and toward renewables,” said NRDC senior attorney Noah Long about the project, which is set to start producing clean energy as soon as late 2020. He points out that beyond its climate benefits, it’s good for TransAlta’s bottom line, too. “Full reclamation of the site itself can be expensive,” he explained. Under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, coal companies are required to restore land once they have finished mining it to prevent groundwater contamination and erosion—and avoid leaving behind an eyesore. “By putting solar on the land, it maintains an industrial use,” said Long. “This good use of a brownfield brings the costs of reclamation down quite a bit.”

It’s also a practical reuse, since, handily enough, infrastructure already exists at the Tono Solar site to get the sun-produced electricity to the people who need it. “The location is good because it’s close to transmission lines,”‘ TransAlta lead developer Ryan Schmidt said in a March 2018 presentation. “We know exactly what’s in the ground, because we put it there when we reclaimed the site.”

Tono Solar won’t fully make up for the power generated by the Centralia coal-fired plant—it’s expected to provide 180 megawatts of electricity. But already, the region is shaping up to become a hub for alternative energy projects. Just 15 miles from the site of the future solar farm, plans are also in the works for the Skookumchuck Wind Energy Project. That venture expects to produce almost 140 additional megawatts from 38 turbines going up in neighboring Lewis County. (The two projects combined get much closer to making up for the needs of the PSE customers who currently rely on the coal plant.)

Ed Orcutt, Washington State representative for the 20th District, which includes Centralia, pointed out that these projects are near areas with a high demand for electricity—including the growing metro areas of Portland and Seattle. Orcutt noted he’d like to see even more alternative energy in the region and wants to work with area glassmakers to produce solar panels. “I’m interested in finding out how the glass could be locally sourced to get components manufactured and constructed in my district,” he said.

And making the region a center for alternative energy could help offset job losses once the coal plant shuts down entirely. While Tono will create more than 300 construction jobs to build the solar installation, it will offer only up to five permanent positions. That’s a concern on the mind of Bob Guenther, a local community member who worked at the Centralia power plant for 34 years as a mechanical foreman. Guenther has been active in negotiating for workers’ interests alongside environmental considerations and said he’d like to see Centralia become a leader not just in renewable energy production but manufacturing, too. Along with the wind and solar projects, he pointed to an industrial park not far from the soon-to-be-built solar farm, where solar panels and batteries could be built.

“What I’m hoping is that when TransAlta gets going on this project, that we can get some battery storage on it, too,” Guenther said, referring to the energy-storing battery units that now go hand-in-hand with many solar plants and help to save up the electricity produced during sunny days for use at other times. “We get so many cloudy and dark days here, and charged batteries could pick up that load and make for smoother power flow,” he added. Guenther is optimistic about what these new, high-tech fields could mean for his community. “I think we are going to end up doing some smart things with the Industrial Park, and that will be able to replace all the jobs from the plant closing—and more, too,” he said.

Meanwhile, clean energy advocates hope that projects like Tono Solar could serve as a blueprint for similar initiatives. They say there’s a good chance that other former industrial sites requiring reclamation—with transmission infrastructure already in place—may be out there as well. “There are lots of places in the Rust Belt of our country, not just coal mines,” Long said, noting their uses could be rethought, from former industrial sites to farmland degraded with heavily salted soils. All these are candidates for renewable energy projects.

Of course, when it comes to solar, another advantage is that it’s scalable—you don’t need a huge plant to process sunlight, after all. Several smaller solar installations—in parking lots, for example, or even on big-box store rooftops, spread out over an area, could be combined together. It’s this flexibility that will be key to transitioning away from coal-fired power plants like the one in Centralia and toward clean energy sources like solar.

Already, one project is transforming a former mine site in eastern Kentucky—where coal production has plummeted in the past decade. And with more than six million acres of abandoned mine land in the U.S., according to the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, that leaves lots of room for innovative newcomers like Tono Solar, the nearby Skookumchuck Wind project—or maybe even for the battery-manufacturing plant that Bob Guenther is angling for in the heart of Washington state.

Source: Eco Watch

One-Fifth of Britain’s Mammals Could Be Extinct in 10 Years

14.06.2018

red-squirrel, veverica — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

One-fifth of UK mammals could go extinct within a decade, according to the most comprehensive report in 20 years released Wednesday by The Mammal Society and Natural England.

The report found that the Scottish wildcat, black rat and greater mouse-eared bat were the most endangered species left, The Guardian reported.

Next came the red squirrel, water vole, beaver and grey long-eared bat, according to BBC News. The hedgehog, hazel dormouse, Orkney vole, barbastelle bat and serotine bat were all listed as vulnerable, BBC News further reported.

“We have almost been sleepwalking,” The Mammal Society Chair and University of Sussex Environmental Biology Professor Fiona Mathews told The Guardian. “This is happening on our own doorstep, so it falls upon all of us to try and do what we can to ensure that our threatened species do not go the way of the lynx, wolf and elk and disappear from our shores forever,” she said.

The largest threats faced by mammal species were habitat destruction due to development and agriculture, as well as diseases and invasive species, Mathews told The Guardian. According to Mathews, the UK is one of the most densely populated countries in Europe and one of the most wildlife poor countries in the world.

The report assessed the more than 1.5 million individual records for animals belonging to the UK’s 58 terrestrial mammal species and considered their range, population size, trends and future prospects.

Not all mammals were suffering. Populations of otter, pine marten, polecat, badger, beaver, wild boar, greater and lesser horseshoe bat and red and roe deer had all increased since the last survey in 1995, BBC News reported.

Otters are no longer killed by pesticides and deer have no natural predator in the UK, The Guardian pointed out. Mathews further told BBC News the success of carnivores was likely due to the fact that they were not targeted as in the past.

Today, she said, the greatest threat was shrinking habitat.

“On the other hand we have species that tend to need quite specialised habitat like the grey long-eared bat or the dormouse where population numbers are really going down,” she said.

Another bat, the greater mouse-eared bat, is down to one male living in West Sussex.

“Unless we can find some lady friends for him soon [from continental Europe], he is going to be extinct,” Mathews told The Guardian. “He’s 16 now, so he’s getting on a bit. They can live up to the mid-20s.”

Luckily, the report gives conservationists a useful starting point to get to work protecting the vulnerable mammals of the British Isles.

“This project has significantly improved our understanding of the current status of terrestrial mammals known to breed in Great Britain, which is essential to underpin our efforts to protect them and their habitats,” Natural England Senior Specialist for Mammals Katherine Walsh said in The Mammal Society press release.

Source: Eco Watch

Ben & Jerry’s Joins the Campaign to Support Onshore Windfarms

14.06.2018

ben-and-jerry — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Tubs of Strawberry Breeze-cake, Cherry Gale-cia and other wind-themed ice-creams will feature in a campaign by Ben & Jerry’s to persuade the government to rethink its opposition to onshore windfarms.

The renamed flavours will be sold at half price on “windy Wednesdays” to support a pro-renewables push by the Unilever-owned firm, which has a history of campaigning on climate change and environmental issues.

The company’s intervention comes amid an industry lobbying effort to convince ministers to scrap obstacles for onshore windfarms.

They have largely stopped being built since the Conservatives ended subsidies and introduced planning reforms.

Ben & Jerry’s drive will feature a tour of the UK, including London, Birmingham and Bristol, to encourage people to take action supporting the technology.

The firm is also backing a petition by the climate change charity 10:10, which calls on the government to “remove the additional planning requirements” for onshore windfarms. More than 25,000 people have already signed the petition.

Rebecca Baron, the company’s UK social mission manager, said: “If we want to move away from polluting fossil fuels and build a future based on clean energy, then wind power is a vital ingredient.”

The government’s own polling found public support for onshore windfarms at a record high of 76% in April, up from 74% last November.

There is now mounting pressure on ministers to make a U-turn on its policy, with big energy companies including ScottishPower, Vattenfall and Innogy urging the Department for Energy and Industrial Strategy to allow the windfarms to compete for subsidies.

Allowing onshore wind back would save £1.6bn on household energy bills between 2019 and 2025, according to a report this week, commissioned by energy firms.

Lord Deben, the government’s top climate adviser, has also waded into the debate, saying ministers should tell consumers they face higher energy bills if there is no rethink.

The government has said large onshore windfarms are not appropriate for England but “could be right for other areas”, in a reference to Scotland and Wales.

Source: Guardian

Israel to Top Up Sea of Galilee after Years of Drought

13.06.2018

israel-lake-sea-of-galilee — Photo: Юкатан

The shrinking Sea of Galilee, the inland lake where Christians believe Jesus walked on water, is to be topped up with desalinated seawater.

A plan given Israeli cabinet approval will pump 100 million cubic metres of water annually by 2022 into the lake in the Galilee region, said Yechezkel Lifshitz, from the country’s energy and water ministry.

In 2017 Israel’s water authority said the sea, hit by years of drought, had reached its lowest level in a century.

Situated 200 metres (656ft) below sea level and 28 miles (45km) from the coast, the Sea of Galilee is mentioned in the bible as the site of a number of Jesus’s miracles.

Known in Hebrew as Lake Kinneret, it covers an area of roughly 62 square miles (160 sq km). Ten years ago it provided 400m cubic metres a year of fresh water and was the country’s largest freshwater reserve.

But a series of dry winters have reduced its level to such an extent that pumping had to be limited to 30-40m cubic metres a year.

Israel has managed to escape water cuts through the use of five desalination plants built along the Mediterranean coast. Lifshitz said they supplied 670m cubic metres annually – 80% of drinking water consumed by Israeli households.

He said two more plants would be built to serve the new project: one in the Galilee and another south of Jerusalem. The water would then be pumped into the lake’s tributaries in northern Israel.

“We are turning the Kinneret into a reservoir for desalinated water,” said Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister. “This is innovative and important, at least to the extent we are doing this, and has not been done until now.”

Lifshitz said that the long-term goal was to pump 1.1bn cubic metres per year by 2030, rising to 1.2bn when needed – at a “relatively high cost”, equivalent to more than $0.70 cents per cubic metre.

Source: Guardian

Majority of UK Public Want to Bin Fruit and Veg Packaging

12.06.2018

trešnje, cherries, voće, fruit — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Around 92% of the British public want to get rid of fruit and vegetable packaging or make it recyclable.

That’s the suggestion from a new survey conducted by D-CYFOR, which shows 68% of the UK public believe supermarkets should only sell products where the manufacturer of the product clearly labels what percentage of the product’s packaging is recyclable.

Approximately a fifth of people disagreed with this statement and 11% say they ‘don’t know’.

Around 48% of participants think product packaging found in supermarkets should be fully recyclable, while 27% of participants said it should be above 75% recyclable and 11% believe packaging should be between 75% and 50% recyclable.

Approximately 2% of people said they wouldn’t mind if packaging was largely unrecyclable.

The UK’s real plastic recycling rate in 2015 might not have actually been as high as the 39% claimed in official data.

Source: Energy Live News

Giant African Baobab Trees Die Suddenly after Thousands of Years

12.06.2018

baobab-1242050_960_720 — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Some of Africa’s oldest and biggest baobab trees have abruptly died, wholly or in part, in the past decade, according to researchers.

The trees, aged between 1,100 and 2,500 years and in some cases as wide as a bus is long, may have fallen victim to climate change, the team speculated.

“We report that nine of the 13 oldest … individuals have died, or at least their oldest parts/stems have collapsed and died, over the past 12 years,” they wrote in the scientific journal Nature Plants, describing “an event of an unprecedented magnitude”.

“It is definitely shocking and dramatic to experience during our lifetime the demise of so many trees with millennial ages,” said the study’s co-author Adrian Patrut of the Babeș-Bolyai University in Romania.

Among the nine were four of the largest African baobabs. While the cause of the die-off remains unclear, the researchers “suspect that the demise of monumental baobabs may be associated at least in part with significant modifications of climate conditions that affect southern Africa in particular”.

Further research is needed, said the team from Romania, South Africa and the United States, “to support or refute this supposition”.

Between 2005 and 2017, the researchers probed and dated “practically all known very large and potentially old” African baobabs – more than 60 individuals in all. Collating data on girth, height, wood volume and age, they noted the “unexpected and intriguing fact” that most of the very oldest and biggest trees died during the study period. All were in southern Africa – Zimbabwe, Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, and Zambia.

The baobab is the biggest and longest-living flowering tree, according to the research team. It is found naturally in Africa’s savannah region and outside the continent in tropical areas to which it was introduced. It is a strange-looking plant, with branches resembling gnarled roots reaching for the sky, giving it an upside-down look.

The iconic tree can live to be 3,000 years old, according to the website of the Kruger National Park in South Africa, a natural baobab habitat.

The tree serves as a massive store of water, and bears fruit that feeds animals and humans. Its leaves are boiled and eaten as an accompaniment similar to spinach, or used to make traditional medicines, while the bark is pounded and woven into rope, baskets, cloth and waterproof hats.

The purpose of the study was to learn how the trees become so enormous. The researchers used radiocarbon dating to analyse samples taken from different parts of each tree’s trunk. They found that the trunk of the baobab grows from not one but multiple core stems. According to the Kruger Park, baobabs are “very difficult to kill”.

“They can be burnt, or stripped of their bark, and they will just form new bark and carry on growing,” it states. “When they do die, they simply rot from the inside and suddenly collapse, leaving a heap of fibres.”

Of the 10 trees listed by the study authors, four died completely, meaning all their multiple stems toppled and died together, while the others suffered the death of one or several parts.

The oldest tree by far, of which all the stems collapsed in 2010/11, was the Panke tree in Zimbabwe, estimated to have existed for 2,500 years. The biggest, dubbed Holboom, was from Namibia. It stood 30.2 metres (99 feet) tall and had a girth of 35.1 m.

Source: Guardian

Cheap Carbon Capture Technology Might Make Our Climate Goals Possible

11.06.2018

carbon-storage — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

So, let’s just say it: we are not on track to meet the ambitious goals of the Paris Accord, the ambitious international agreement intended to limit global warming.

If we are to reach our goals — and perhaps to limit the seemingly inevitable devastation — we need to do something to reduce the greenhouse gases we’ve pumped (and are pumping) into the atmosphere.

For decades, carbon capture has seemed like a promising solution. Why not just take all the carbon dioxide that’s baking the planet and put it somewhere else? The short answer: the technology was way too expensive and energy-intensive to be practical at scale.

Now, though, that might no longer be the case. A new study published Thursday in the journal Joule found a way to suck carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere for the bargain price of $94 to $232 per ton. That’s a major improvement over the researchers’ previous estimate of $1,000 dollars per ton.

While the technology still requires a great deal of energy (the researchers suggest using natural gas or electricity to satisfy it), it’s very feasible. All of the technology required to build the new carbon capture system already exists, according to MIT Technology Review.

Granted, it’s possible that, in practice, the new technology will be more expensive than those estimates predict, especially if it were to be implemented at any major scale. But that would still way better than what experts had assumed it would cost to suck carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and store it elsewhere. And anything that helps get greenhouse gases out of the way and helps mitigate climate change-related destruction is good news.

Currently, Carbon Engineering, the company behind the new research, plans to use its captured carbon to synthesize new carbon-neutral fuels. It’s already begun creating these carbon-neutral energy sources but, as MIT Technology Review reported, fossil fuels remain much cheaper. So if new fuels are going to actually become widespread, the government may need to provide some subsidies to drop the cost.

There are plenty of hurdles to overcome before we can see any benefit from this technology. The company will have to: prove there’s a market for the carbon-neutral synthetic fuel, ramp up operations for large-scale plants, and keep costs low enough to be a feasible solution for climate change. But if it all works out, it’s possible that we might be able to meet some of our goals for the future of the planet, after all.

Source: Futurism

Pope Francis Tells Oil Bosses World Must Reduce Fossil Fuel Use

11.06.2018

pope-francis-1784304_960_720 — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Pope Francis has told oil company chiefs that the world must switch to clean energy because climate change risks destroying humanity.

“Civilisation requires energy, but energy use must not destroy civilisation,” he said at the end of a two-day conference at the Vatican.

The pontiff said climate change was a challenge of epochal proportions, and that the world needed to come up with an energy mix that combatted pollution, eliminated poverty and promoted social justice.

The unprecedented conference, held behind closed doors at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, brought together oil executives, investors and Vatican experts. Like the pope, they back scientific opinion that climate change is caused by human activity and that global warming must be curbed.

“We know that the challenges facing us are interconnected. If we are to eliminate poverty and hunger … the more than 1 billion people without electricity today need to gain access to it,” Francis told them.

“But that energy should also be clean, by a reduction in the systematic use of fossil fuels. Our desire to ensure energy for all must not lead to the undesired effect of a spiral of extreme climate changes due to a catastrophic rise in global temperatures, harsher environments and increased levels of poverty,” he said.

Source: Guardian

What the Industry of Automakers Needs to do to Keep Moving Forward

10.06.2018

Every few years, the Union of Concerned Scientists takes a look at the auto industry’s emission reduction progress as part of our Automaker Rankings series of reports.

This year’s analysis, based on model year (MY) 2017 vehicles, shows that the industry has once again reached the lowest levels yet in both smog-forming and global warming emissions from new vehicles, despite the fact that many off-the-shelf technologies are deployed in less than one-third of all new vehicles. Unfortunately, this record-setting trend in progress also shows some indications of slowing down, with Ford and Hyundai-Kia showing no progress towards reducing global warming emissions, and Toyota actually moving backwards.

At the same time, the industry spearheaded an effort to re-litigate fuel economy and emissions standards set through 2025, and this report comes out while a proposal from the current administration responding to their request that would completely halt progress in the industry at 2020 levels sits awaiting public release. Therefore, while this year’s Automaker Rankings highlights some of the progress made by leaders in the industry to move forward on the technology front, it’s also critical that on the political front these companies stand up to the administration to ensure the rest of the industry continues to move forward on reducing emissions.

IKEA to Phase Out Single-Use Plastics by 2020

10.06.2018

Swedish furniture giant IKEA announced a slew of commitments to encourage sustainable living, including a pledge to remove all single-use plastics from its product range globally and from its restaurants by 2020.

The plastics ban will apply to its 363 stores worldwide, owner Inter IKEA said Thursday.

IKEA joins a growing list of major retailers taking action against disposable items such as plastic drinking straws, cups and bags, which accumulate in the environment and leach into our oceans and harm marine life. Last month, the European Union announced plans to phase out single-use plastics in an effort to stop ocean pollution.

Among other measures announced today, IKEA plans to increase plant-based choices for its range of meals and snacks, including a veggie hot dog launching globally in August 2018; achieve zero emissions home deliveries by 2025; and to use only renewable and recycled materials in its products by 2030.

“Becoming truly circular means meeting people’s changing lifestyles, prolonging the life of products and materials and using resources in a smarter way. To make this a reality, we will design all products from the very beginning to be repurposed, repaired, reused, resold and recycled,” sustainability manager Lena Pripp-Kovac stated.

The company will also expand its offer of residential solar panels to 29 markets by 2025, and reduce the carbon footprint of every product by an average of 70 percent by 2030.

“Our ambition is to become people and planet positive by 2030 while growing the IKEA business,” said Inter IKEA Group CEO Torbjörn Lööf in a statement. “Through our size and reach we have the opportunity to inspire and enable more than one billion people to live better lives, within the limits of the planet”

Although IKEA is best known for its ready-to-assemble furniture, the company has taken major steps to address its environmental footprint. It has already invested heavily in renewable energy, including wind farms and solar panels on its stores. In 2015, the company pledged $1.13 billion to address the effects of climate change in developing countries.

Greenpeace plastics campaigner Graham Forbes called IKEA’s decision to remove single-use plastic products from its stores by 2020 “a great step in the right direction” and encourages other retailers and corporations to follow suit.

“A truckload of plastic enters our oceans every minute, and plastic pollution has been found in remote locations like the Antarctic, the Arctic, and even the deepest point of the ocean, the Mariana Trench,” Forbes noted. “IKEA has taken an important first step toward delivering the sort of bold action required by reducing plastic pollution at the source, although it’s important for the company to remove these single-use products and not simply substitute bioplastics or other environmentally harmful materials. The momentum is on our side, and the days of single-use plastics are numbered.”

Source: Eco Watch

Serbia Has Joined Copernicus Programme

09.06.2018

earth-1149733_960_720 — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

The European Commission and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia established today a partnership on Earth Observation by signing a Copernicus Cooperation Arrangement. It has been signed in Brussels by Philippe BRUNET, Director for Space Policy, Copernicus and Defence, on behalf of the European Commission and by Vladimir POPOVIC, State Secretary at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development on behalf of the Republic of Serbia. The Serbian BioSense Institute – Research and Development Institute for Information Technologies in Biosystems will be the focal point in Serbia for the Copernicus programme in terms of data access and use of Sentinel data.

On the occasion, Sem Fabrizi, the EU Ambassador to Serbia said: “I am very pleased that Serbia has now access to Copernicus – the world’s most ambitious and successful Earth observation programme. Copernicus is a cornerstone of the European Union’s efforts to monitor the Earth and her many ecosystems, whilst ensuring that her citizens are prepared and protected in the face of crises and natural or man-made disasters. Serbian citizens, academics, researchers and private sector will now have access to the data from the family of Copernicus Sentinel satellites using high bandwidth connections. They will join the EU countries in sharing many benefits of the Copernicus economy facilitating a broad range of environmental and security applications, including climate change monitoring, sustainable development, transport and mobility, regional and local planning, maritime surveillance, agriculture and health. We believe that the Copernicus will stimulate Serbian enterprises to explore new growth and business opportunities and foster job creation. As focal point for Serbia for the Copernicus programme, BioSense Institute of Novi Sad – already supported by EU grants through the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme – will consolidate its leading position as European centre of excellence for advanced technology in sustainable agriculture and food security.”

Prime Minister Brnabic commented the signature of the agreement: “The signature of the Agreement implies great recognition of Serbia’s EU integration efforts. Also, this is a great recognition for the BioSense Institute. It confirms BioSense’s leading position in the area of digital agriculture in this part of Europe and beyond. By winning the first place under the prestigious call within Horizon 2020, the Institute has proven that Serbia has the knowledge and potential as well as the creative and innovative capacity that put it on par with more developed countries. This Agreement will bring us closer to the European Union in the area of science, digitization and agriculture. I am happy that our citizens will from now on have access to these unique data that will bring substantial benefits, first to our farmers, and then to many other areas of the innovation business.“

Copernicus is the European Union’s revolutionary Earth Observation and Monitoring programme, looking at our planet and its environment for the ultimate benefit of all European citizens. Thanks to a variety of technologies, from satellites in space to measurement systems on the ground, in the sea and in the air, Copernicus delivers operational data and information services openly and freely in a wide range of application areas. In partnership with the EU Member States, the European Commission oversees and coordinates the programme and ensures that it remains user-driven.

The Cooperation Arrangement establishes the Serbian BioSense Institute – Research and Development Institute for Information Technologies in Biosystems (hereinafter referred to as “BioSense Institute”) as the focal point in Serbia for the Copernicus programme in terms of data access and use of Sentinel data. BioSense is already leading the EU-funded project Antares, which aims to turn BioSense into the European centre of excellence for advanced technology in sustainable agriculture and food security. Antares has a budget of 28 million euros, out of which 14 million is a EU grant and 14 million is national co-financing provided by the Government of the Republic of Serbia.

Greenpeace Finds Microplastics and Hazardous Chemicals in Remote Antarctic Waters

08.06.2018

Another day, another sign of the reach of the global ocean plastics crisis. A Greenpeace expedition to Antarctica turned up microplastics in more than half of ocean water samples taken in the world’s southernmost waters. It also found chemicals dangerous to wildlife in a majority of snow samples, Greenpeace reported Wednesday.

“We may think of the Antarctic as a remote and pristine wilderness,” Frida Bengtsson of Greenpeace’s Protect the Antarctic campaign said in the press release, “but from pollution and climate change to industrial krill fishing, humanity’s footprint is clear. These results show that even the most remote habitats of the Antarctic are contaminated with microplastic waste and persistent hazardous chemicals.”

Greenpeace took the samples on a landmark expedition during the first three months of 2018 that helped fill in the limited global data on microplastic pollution in the Antarctic. In seven of eight samples of surface water tested, they found at least one microplastic per litre (approximately 1.06 quarts) of water. Out of nine samples taken with manta trawl nets, they found two that contained microplastics.

Greenpeace also tested for chemicals known as per- and polyfluorinated alkylated substances (PFASs). These are chemicals used in industrial processes and commercial products, notably for water or dirt repellent in outdoor gear. They break down very slowly once they enter the environment and have been known to impact wildlife reproduction and development. Greenpeace found PFASs in seven of nine snow samples. The results were reported in depth in the document Microplastics and Persistent Fluorinated Chemicals in the Antarctic.

Greenpeace’s research was part of a campaign to create the largest protected area on Earth in the Antarctic. The Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary, proposed by the EU, would be 1.8 million square kilometers (approximately 1.12 million square miles) and will be decided on at the Antarctic Ocean Commission Meeting in October 2018.

Bengtsson said the expedition results reinforced the need for such a sanctuary.

“Plastic has now been found in all corners of our oceans, from the Antarctic to the Arctic and at the deepest point of the ocean, the Mariana Trench. We need urgent action to reduce the flow of plastic into our seas and we need large scale marine reserves—like a huge Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary which over 1.6 million people are calling for—to protect marine life and our oceans for future generations,” she said.

In addition to the smaller pollutants and plastics, Bengtsson also noticed refuse from the fishing industry on the journey.

“Buoys, nets and tarpaulins drifted in between icebergs, which was really sad to see. We took them out of the water, but it really made clear to me how we need to put vast parts of this area off-limits to human activity if we’re going to protect the Antarctic’s incredible wildlife,” she said.

Source: Eco Watch

Climate Change May Be Slowing Hurricanes, Leading to More Flood-Heavy Storms

08.06.2018

Two studies published within two months of each other show that typhoons and hurricanes are getting slower, and are expected to slow even more as the planet warms, suggesting that climate change is already extending the time storms spend hammering communities, National Geographic reported Wednesday.

The findings mean that storms like Hurricane Harvey, which caused massive flooding when it lingered over Houston, Texas in 2017, could become more common.

“Nothing good comes out of a slowing storm,” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Center for Weather and Climate scientist James Kossin told National Geographic. “It can increase storm surge. It can increase the amount of time that structures are subjected to strong wind. And it increases rainfall.”

Kossin wrote one of the new studies, published in Nature Wednesday, which found that tropical cyclone speed had slowed by an average of 10 percent worldwide from 1949 to 2016.

Another study, led by researchers with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and published April 6 in the Journal of Climate, plugged 22 hurricanes from the past 13 years into climate models with temperatures up to five degrees warmer and found that the storms were on average nine percent slower and 24 percent wetter.

“We’re showing that it not only slows down, but that it’s more intense,” lead author on the second study Ethan Gutmann told National Geographic. “That has serious implications for inland flooding and urban infrastructure.”

While Kossin’s study was only observational and did not address why storms had slowed since 1949, Gutmann’s future analysis backs up the hypothesis that global warming is already slowing storms.

Kossin told The Washington Post that his findings were also consistent with the fact that climate change is warming the poles faster than the tropics, slowing circulation, which should also slow storms.

“I went in with that hypothesis and looked at the data, and out popped the signal that was much bigger than anything I was expecting,” Kossin told the Post.

Regionally, the biggest slowdown was over the Western North Pacific, at 20 percent. The storms also slowed more over land, Kossin found, slowing 20 percent over land in the Atlantic region.

Kossin also said slowing storm speed could be a larger contributor to increased flooding than augmented rainfall intensity, since it is happening at a faster rate. Hurricane rainfall is expected to increase seven to 10 percent per degree Celsius of warming, but Kossin found a storm speed decrease of 10 percent in a period that saw just half a degree Celsius of warming.

Either way, both studies indicate the nature of tropical cyclones, and the threats they pose, are shifting with the climate.

“Inland flooding, freshwater flooding, is taking over as the key mortality risk now associated with these storms,” Kossin told The Washington Post. “There’s been a sea change there in terms of what’s dangerous. And, unfortunately, this signal would point to more freshwater flooding.”

Source: Eco Watch

‘Impossible-to-Cheat’ Emissions Tests Show Almost All New Diesels Still Dirty

07.06.2018

Emissions tests that are impossible for carmakers to cheat show that almost all diesel car models launched in Europe since the “dieselgate” scandal remain highly polluting.

The test uses a beam of light to analyse the exhaust plume of a car as it passes and automatic number plate recognition to link the measurement to a specific model. More than 370,000 such measurements taken in the UK, France and other countries have been compiled into new rating system called The Real Urban Emissions Initiative (True) and made available to the public on Wednesday.

Volkswagen was exposed as cheating emissions tests in September 2015. But, without breaking the letter of the law, almost all car manufacturers were producing diesels that emitted far more in real-world driving conditions than in official lab-based tests. This was done by optimising vehicles to pass standardised tests, but the beam test is conducted as cars pass and so cannot be manipulated.

The True analysis shows that new diesel models released in 2016 were still on average five over times above the EU’s official baseline limit of 0.08mg of nitrogen oxides (NOx) per kilometre. The 2017 models were a little cleaner, but still nearly four times over.

NOx pollution is at illegally high levels in numerous EU nations. It is estimated to cause 23,500 early deaths a year in the UK, where government plans to cut pollution have been repeatedly ruled so inadequate as to be illegal. Separate research published on Wednesday calculates that diesel cars and vans, which make up less than half the UK’s fleet, cause 88% of the health damage from light vehicles.

The beam tests are continuing and will be able to single out highly polluting models in future. “I see this remote sensing mostly as a screening tool, to see which vehicle models behave suspiciously,” said Peter Mock, at the International Council on Clean Transportation which produced the True rating in partnership with the FIA Foundation and other groups.

Those models highlighted as highly polluting could then be tested by putting a portable emissions measuring system (Pems) on a car, which is more accurate but also much more expensive. Diesel cars shown by the True data to emit far more NOx than the official baseline when on the road included two-litre Fiat Chrysler models – 18 times more – and 1.6-litre Renault Nissan models – 14 times more – though the cars passed legally required tests.

“If I was a customer, I would look at these figures at the moment and have to conclude I should not buy a diesel car,” Mock said, noting that the petrol versions are far cleaner. “Even Euro 6 [the most recent standard] diesel vehicles are not performing well at the moment so pretty much all of them should not have access to city centres.”

Greg Archer, at campaign group Transport & Environment, which is part of the True initiative, said: “The True rating exposes the legacy of dieselgate – tens of millions of dirty diesels that are still on the roads producing the toxic smog we daily breathe. It identifies the worst performing models and regulators must act to require carmakers to clean these up.”

The True rating is a “brilliant” screening tool and also good at monitoring pollution from cars as they get older and enter the used car market, said Nick Molden, chief executive of Emissions Analytics, which performs 300-400 Pems tests every year on new car models and publishes another rating system called the Equa index.

But Molden cautioned that the True rating system, which averages the same models across several years, will not show when the latest model has radically cut its pollution. He cites the example of a Mercedes model that improved significantly between 2014 and 2017: “It went from quite dirty to really quite clean.”

Since September 2017, new cars have had to pass a road-based test, but an EU compromise with the industry means emissions can still legally be double the baseline limit. Molden said car manufacturers are now very wary of being caught launching cars that fail emissions tests and some new diesel models are very clean, sometimes 50% below the baseline.

Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders, said: “Thanks to massive investment, each generation of vehicle is more advanced than the last, with significantly lower pollutant emissions. This is acknowledged by the [True] report, and consumers can be assured that new cars on sale today are the cleanest ever and fully compliant with EU emissions standards.”

The new analysis of the health impact of diesel in the UK was conducted by experts at the University of Oxford and University of Bath in advance of Clean Air day 2018 on 21 June. They used data on the number of vehicles and mileage, along with government estimates of the harm caused by pollution.

The researchers found the health damage from diesel vehicle emissions are about 20 times greater than from electric vehicles and five times more than petrol vehicles. Christian Brand, at the University of Oxford, said: “Cars and vans are responsible for 10,000 early deaths each year, and diesel vehicles are the main problem unfortunately.”

Source: Guardian

Spending Time Alone in Nature for Mental and Emotional Health

07.06.2018

Today people live in a world that thrives on being busy, productive and overscheduled. Further, they have developed the technological means to be constantly connected to others and to vast options for information and entertainment through social media. For many, smartphones demand their attention day and night with constant notifications.

As a result, naturally occurring periods of solitude and silence that were once commonplace have been squeezed out of their lives. Music, reality TV shows, YouTube, video games, tweeting and texting are displacing quiet and solitary spaces. Silence and solitude are increasingly viewed as “dead” or “unproductive” time, and being alone makes many Americans uncomfortable and anxious.

But while some equate solitude with loneliness, there is a big difference between being lonely and being alone. The latter is essential for mental health and effective leadership.

We study and teach outdoor education and related fields at several colleges and organizations in North Carolina, through and with other scholars at 2nd Nature TREC, LLC, a training, research, education and consulting firm. We became interested in the broader implications of alone time after studying intentionally designed solitude experiences during wilderness programs, such as those run by Outward Bound. Our findings reveal that time alone in nature is beneficial for many participants in a variety of ways, and is something they wish they had more of in their daily life.

We have conducted research for almost two decades on Outward Bound and undergraduate wilderness programs at Montreat College in North Carolina and Wheaton College in Illinois. For each program, we studied participants’ experiences using multiple methods, including written surveys, focus group interviews, one-on-one interviews and field notes. In some cases, we asked subjects years later to look back and reflect on how the programs had affected them. Among other questions, our research looked at participant perceptions of the value of solo time outdoors.

Our studies showed that people who took part in these programs benefited both from the outdoor settings and from the experience of being alone. These findings build on previous research that has clearly demonstrated the value of spending time in nature.

Scholars in fields including wilderness therapy and environmental psychology have shown that time outdoors benefits our lives in many ways. It has a therapeutic effect, relieves stress and restores attention. Alone time in nature can have a calming effect on the mind because it occurs in beautiful, natural and inspirational settings.

Nature also provides challenges that spur individuals to creative problem-solving and increased self-confidence. For example, some find that being alone in the outdoors, particularly at night, is a challenging situation. Mental, physical and emotional challenges in moderation encourage personal growth that is manifested in an increased comfort with one’s self in the absence of others.

Being alone also can have great value. It can allow issues to surface that people spend energy holding at bay, and offer an opportunity to clarify thoughts, hopes, dreams and desires. It provides time and space for people to step back, evaluate their lives and learn from their experiences. Spending time this way prepares them to re-engage with their community relationships and full work schedules.

Participants in programmed wilderness expeditions often experience a component known as “Solo,” a time of intentional solitude lasting approximately 24-72 hours. Extensive research has been conducted on solitude in the outdoors because many wilderness education programs have embraced the educational value of solitude and silence.

Solo often emerges as one of the most significant parts of wilderness programs, for a variety of reasons. Alone time creates a contrasting experience to normal living that enriches people mentally, physically and emotionally. As they examine themselves in relation to nature, others, and in some cases, God, people become more attuned to the important matters in their lives and in the world of which they are part.

Solitary reflection enhances recognition and appreciation of key personal relationships, encourages reorganization of life priorities, and increases appreciation for alone time, silence, and reflection. People learn lessons they want to transfer to their daily living, because they have had the opportunity to clarify, evaluate and redirect themselves by setting goals for the future.

For some participants, time alone outdoors provides opportunity to consider the spiritual and/or religious dimension of life. Reflective time, especially in nature, often enhances spiritual awareness and makes people feel closer to God. Further, it encourages their increased faith and trust in God. This often occurs through providing ample opportunities for prayer, meditation, fasting, Scripture-reading, journaling and reflection time.

As Thomas Carlyle has written, “In (solitary) silence, great things fashion themselves together.” Whether these escapes are called alone time, solitude or Solo, it seems clear that humans experience many benefits when they retreat from the “rat race” to a place apart and gather their thoughts in quietness.

In order to live and lead effectively, it is important to be intentional about taking the time for solitary reflection. Otherwise, gaps in schedules will always fill up, and even people with the best intentions may never fully realize the life-giving value of being alone.

Source: Eco Watch

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