Climate summit in Glasgow postponed to 2021 because of coronavirus pandemic 2/4/2020

A climate summit that had been due to take place in Glasgow in November has been postponed to 2021 because of the coronavirus outbreak, officials said on Wednesday, throwing new uncertainty into talks to tackle global warming. ...more

Challengers rev their engines to fight Trump's auto emissions weakening 2/4/2020

Just two months after taking office, President Donald Trump in March 2017 traveled to Michigan to announce that he would undo ambitious vehicle emissions standards mandated under his predecessor Barack Obama, portraying the reversal as a boost to the U.S. auto industry centered in the Midwestern state. ...more

Oceans can be restored to former glory within 30 years, say scientists 2/4/2020

The glory of the world’s oceans could be restored within a generation, according to a major new scientific review. It reports rebounding sea life, from humpback whales off Australia to elephant seals in the US and green turtles in Japan. ...more

Climate change: Warming clips the nightingale's wings 2/4/2020

Rising temperatures may be having a profound physical impact on one of the world's favourite songbirds. ...more

Coronavirus comes to rescue of Sierra Leone's plundered rosewood 2/4/2020

The unpaved road leading to Sierra Leone’s Outamba-Kilimi national park was busy last month with men loading rosewood logs into trucks for export to China, an illegal trade that has devastated some West African forests. ...more

Trump finalizes rollback of Obama-era vehicle fuel efficiency standards 1/4/2020

President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday completed a rollback of U.S. vehicle emissions standards adopted under his predecessor Barack Obama and will require 1.5% annual increases in efficiency through 2026 - far weaker than the 5% increases in the discarded rules. ...more

EU presses on with tighter 2030 climate target despite pandemic 1/4/2020

The EU executive kick-started its plan to set a tougher 2030 emissions target on Tuesday, a move that could help maintain the bloc’s focus on climate change despite pressure to soften its green ambitions in response to the coronavirus pandemic. ...more

Report reveals ‘massive plastic pollution footprint’ of drinks firms 1/4/2020

Four global drinks giants are responsible for more than half a million tonnes of plastic pollution in six developing countries each year, enough to cover 83 football pitches every day, according to a report. ...more

Climate-killing products should come with smoking-style warnings 1/4/2020

Cigarette packets with grisly warnings of the consequences of smoking are intended to deter smokers. Now a group of public health experts says similar warnings should appear on high-carbon products, from airline tickets and energy bills to petrol pumps, to show consumers the health impacts of the climate crisis. ...more

Climate crisis may have pushed world's tropical coral reefs to tipping point of 'near-annual' bleaching 1/4/2020

Rising ocean temperatures could have pushed the world’s tropical coral reefs over a tipping point where they are hit by bleaching on a “near-annual” basis, according to the head of a US government agency program that monitors the globe’s coral reefs. ...more