Archive for October 29th, 2021

29/10/2021

Any End to This Suicidal War? (II): More Lethal Gases and Fewer, Weaker Sinks

Human Wrongs Watch

MADRID, Oct 29 2021 (IPS)* – Another Year Another Record! The emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise, the land and sea temperatures are higher than ever since there are records, and the ecosystems could fail their role as vital sinks absorbing carbon dioxide and as a buffer against larger temperature increases.
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The abundance of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere once again reached a new record last year, with the annual rate of increase above the 2011-2020 average, according to the World Meteorological Organization. Credit: Bigstock

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29/10/2021

Any End to This Suicidal War? (I) The Destruction of the Web of Life

Human Wrongs Watch

soy

More than 6,000 plant species have been cultivated for food. Now, fewer than 200 make major contributions to food production globally, regionally or nationally. A sea of soy is seen near the city of Porto Nacional, on the right bank of the Tocantins River, Brazil. Credit: Mario Osava/IPS

The answer appears to be a bold “no” in view of the business-oriented practices, which deplete biodiversity, pollute the oceans, rise sea levels, cause record temperatures, provoke deadly droughts and floods, and push millions to flee their homes as climate refugees, in addition to more millions of conflict and poverty displaced humans.

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29/10/2021

Countries Most at Risk Lead the Way on Climate Action 

(UN News)* — Vulnerable countries are stepping up and taking climate action, amid a slow response from some of the biggest emitters of carbon dioxide, said the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on Thursday [28 October 2021]. 

UNDP Timor-Leste | Communities in Timor-Leste are helping to restore mangrove forests.
 

In a new analysis, released ahead of the COP26 climate negotiations, the agency said that 93 per cent of least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing States (SIDS) have submitted enhanced national climate plans (NDCs), or plan to do so.

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29/10/2021

World Heritage Forests Releasing More Carbon than They Absorb

Human Wrongs Watch

(UN News)* — Forests in at least 10 World Heritage sites have become net sources of carbon, due to pressure from human activity and climate change, according to a new report released on Thursday [28 October 2021], by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

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Unsplash/Pablo Fierro | Yosemite National Park in the USA is one of ten World Heritage Forests that has gone from removing carbon from the atmosphere to emitting it.
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The agency’s new analysis, World Heritage forests: Carbon sinks under pressure , shows that instead of helping mitigate global warming, some of the world’s most treasured forests are in fact adding to overall CO2 emissions.
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