A sharp increase in forest fires stoked record losses in global forest cover equivalent to the area of New Zealand in 2016, a Global Forest Watch report has said.

The alarming pace of destruction of 51% higher than the prior year with a loss of 73.4 million acres (29.7 million hectares), according to data from the University of Maryland&nbsp;was partially due to climate change that has increased the risks and intensity of wildfires by triggering temperature rise and drought in some places, the monitor said yesterday.

The 2015-2016 weather phenomenon El Nino, one of the strongest on record, also played a role, having created particularly dry conditions in the tropics. Many of those tropical areas are not naturally prone to catching fire&nbsp;but vulnerability increased due to poor management and was exacerbated by El Nino.

Deadly blazes in Brazil and Indonesia were among those contributing to the loss. This year, deadly blazes have again devastated regions of Portugal as well as California.

Brazil&#39;s Amazon region lost 9.1 million acres of tree cover more than three times that of 2015. And Portugal saw some 4% of its forests go up in smoke in 2016, the highest proportion of any other country.

Nearly half of all forests burned in the European Union in 2016 were in Portugal, where fire-prone eucalyptus and pine plantations along with poor soil encouraged the deadly flames.

The country is set to break the record for destroyed forests in 2017, with recent disasters killing dozens of people.

Early 2016 saw one of the largest fires ever recorded in Central Africa, destroying 37,000 acres of forest in the Republic of Congo.

Last year&#39;s Fort McMurray fire in Canada ravaged more than 1.5 million acres, causing $8.8 billion in damage.

Deforestation resulting from agriculture, logging and mining also contributed to the losses.

The report urged improving fire and forest management, including early warning systems, fire bans during dry seasons and more augmented investment in forest protection and restoration.

A sharp increase in forest fires stoked record losses in global forest cover equivalent to the area of New Zealand in 2016

A sharp increase in forest fires stoked record losses in global forest cover equivalent to the area of New Zealand in 2016, a Global Forest Watch report has said. The alarming pace of destruction of 51% higher than the prior year with a loss of 73.4 million acres (29.7 million hectares), according to data from the University of Maryland was partially due to climate change that has increased the risks and intensity of wildfires by triggering temperature rise and drought in some places, the monitor said yesterday. The 2015-2016 weather phenomenon El Nino, one of the strongest on record, also played a role, having created particularly dry conditions in the tropics. Many of those tropical areas are not naturally prone to catching fire but vulnerability increased due to poor management and was exacerbated by El Nino. Deadly blazes in Brazil and Indonesia were among those contributing to the loss. This year, deadly blazes have again devastated regions of Portugal as well as California. Brazil's Amazon region lost 9.1 million acres of tree cover more than three times that of 2015. And Portugal saw some 4% of its forests go up in smoke in 2016, the highest proportion of any other country. Nearly half of all forests burned in the European Union in 2016 were in Portugal, where fire-prone eucalyptus and pine plantations along with poor soil encouraged the deadly flames. The country is set to break the record for destroyed forests in 2017, with recent disasters killing dozens of people. Early 2016 saw one of the largest fires ever recorded in Central Africa, destroying 37,000 acres of forest in the Republic of Congo. Last year's Fort McMurray fire in Canada ravaged more than 1.5 million acres, causing $8.8 billion in damage. Deforestation resulting from agriculture, logging and mining also contributed to the losses. The report urged improving fire and forest management, including early warning systems, fire bans during dry seasons and more augmented investment in forest protection and restoration.

Forest fires contributed to record global tree cover loss: Report

As part of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP21) in Paris in 2015, countries across the world came together and adopted a climate agreement whereby they indicated their long term climate goals post 2020. These goals or targets were laid out in each country&rsquo;s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) with the aim to hold the increase in global average temperature to well below 2&deg;C.

India and China have both made significant commitments as part of their INDC. For instance, in case of India, these include reduction of the emission intensity of GDP by 33 to 35 per cent from 2005 levels, increase the percentage of non-fossil fuel electricity to 40 per cent of total electric power capacity and create a carbon sink.&nbsp;China similarly has made a commitment to peak Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2030, lower carbon intensity of GDP by 60 to 65 per cent below its 2005 levels by 2030, and&nbsp;increase it&#39;s non-fossil fuel energy to 20 per cent of the total primary energy supply (TPES) by 2030. It has also pledged to increase its forest stock.

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<h5>One problem that India faces along with the other BRICS countries includes the financing of clean energy.</h5>
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In line with India&rsquo;s pledge of generating 40 per cent of TPES through non-fossil fuels, India has declared an aim to have installed renewable energy capacity of 175 gigawatts (GW) of which solar photovoltaics (PV) is 100 GW by 2030. This includes increasing ground mounted grid connected solar power to 60 GW and increasing rooftop grid interactive solar power to 40 GW. Earlier, in 2010, with the launch of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, 100 GW of solar installations were planned by 2022.&nbsp;

India&rsquo;s current solar generation capacity is about 13 GW in 2017. In 2016, rooftop solar contributed to an approximate total of 1 GW of generated solar power. This means that an additional 87 GW has to be installed in the next twelve years, which roughly translates to an addition of 4GW (9.6 GW) of the mounted grid and 3.25 GW (7.8 GW) of rooftop every year till 2030 (2022). Many have suggested that this is not possible.

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<h5>China constitutes about 75 per cent of the Indian solar PV market. The main reason is the cost competitiveness of the Chinese, with the cost of solar modules and cells being 25-50 per cent lower than in India.</h5>
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Solar power is generated by converting sunlight into electricity using either&nbsp;PV&nbsp;or using concentrated solar power (using lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam) or a combination. For generating photovoltaic solar power, crystalline silicon PV module is used. This silica is used to make polysilicon, ingot, wafer, PV cell all of which are used to make crystalline silicon PV module. Eight firms worldwide make about 80 per cent polysilicon. Others buy from them. Companies who buy polysilicon may sell wafers or carry out all of the subsequent steps of the wafer, cell, and module manufacturing and assembly. Some PV manufacturers such as Yingli make their own polysilicon.

The lack of upstream segments in this value chain adds to the vulnerability of Indian manufacturers. India does not produce polysilicon, ingot or wafer. However, crystalline silicon PV module is produced in India. The share of the Indian modules is about 10 per cent with imports from China constituting about 75 per cent of the Indian solar PV market. The main reason is the cost competitiveness of the Chinese, with the cost of solar modules and cells being 25-50 per cent lower than in India. India imports polysilicon, as well as wafers, and other ingredients such as ethylene vinyl acetate, which adds to the cost of production of modules.&nbsp;

Incidentally, the price of solar cells has fallen from 50 cents per kWh to 33 cents per kWh, in three years since 2010, when launch in 2010 of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, the target of which was dramatically upgraded in 2014 to 100 GW of solar installations by 2022. In 2016, the WTO ruled against India that the domestic content requirements for solar cells and modules under the Jawaharlal Nehru Solar Mission amounted to trade-related investment measures as they favour domestic products over imported products. The Indian Solar Manufacturers Association have recently had launched an anti-dumping investigation against China, Taiwan, and Malaysia of alleged dumping of &#39;solar cells whether or not assembled partially or fully in modules or panels or on glass or some other suitable substrates&#39;.&nbsp;

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<h5>China&rsquo;s top solar module manufacturer, are in talks with India&#39;s Essel group to set up a solar module manufacturing facility in India.</h5>
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It has been debated that Indian solar PV industry should be developed with support from policies of the government like a capital subsidy and lower interest loans. However, the scale of Indian manufacturing is too small (in comparison to China). Four states - Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, account for over three-quarters of today&rsquo;s installed capacity. Rooftop solar also has the potential to become a more important part of India&rsquo;s solar portfolio and is being taken up by Indian Railways and on canals as well.&nbsp;

One problem that India faces along with the other BRICS countries includes the financing of clean energy. It has been estimated that India might need USD 175 billion in this regard. India has emerged as the second most attractive destination for investment in renewables ahead of the US according to a ranking by Ernst and Young (EY) last year. China is the most attractive destination. The New Development Bank&nbsp;has sanctioned a USD 250 million loan for India to fund its renewable energy. Clearly, more is needed.&nbsp;

Chinese firms such as GLC-Poly Energy, China&rsquo;s top solar module manufacturer, are in talks with India&#39;s Essel group to set up a solar module manufacturing facility in India. Cooperation between China and India in this regard could go a long way in achieving the NDC target of both countries.

India and China need to work simultaneously to curb the increase in global average temperature.

As part of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP21) in Paris in 2015, countries across the world came together and adopted a climate agreement whereby they indicated their long term climate goals post 2020. These goals or targets were laid out in each country’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) with the aim to hold the increase in global average temperature to well below 2°C. India and China have both made significant commitments as part of their INDC. For instance, in case of India, these include reduction of the emission intensity of GDP by 33 to 35 per cent from 2005 levels, increase the percentage of non-fossil fuel electricity to 40 per cent of total electric power capacity and create a carbon sink. China similarly has made a commitment to peak Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2030, lower carbon intensity of GDP by 60 to 65 per cent below its 2005 levels by 2030, and increase it's non-fossil fuel energy to 20 per cent of the total primary energy supply (TPES) by 2030. It has also pledged to increase its forest stock. One problem that India faces along with the other BRICS countries includes the financing of clean energy. × In line with India’s pledge of generating 40 per cent of TPES through non-fossil fuels, India has declared an aim to have installed renewable energy capacity of 175 gigawatts (GW) of which solar photovoltaics (PV) is 100 GW by 2030. This includes increasing ground mounted grid connected solar power to 60 GW and increasing rooftop grid interactive solar power to 40 GW. Earlier, in 2010, with the launch of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, 100 GW of solar installations were planned by 2022. India’s current solar generation capacity is about 13 GW in 2017. In 2016, rooftop solar contributed to an approximate total of 1 GW of generated solar power. This means that an additional 87 GW has to be installed in the next twelve years, which roughly translates to an addition of 4GW (9.6 GW) of the mounted grid and 3.25 GW (7.8 GW) of rooftop every year till 2030 (2022). Many have suggested that this is not possible. China constitutes about 75 per cent of the Indian solar PV market. The main reason is the cost competitiveness of the Chinese, with the cost of solar modules and cells being 25-50 per cent lower than in India. × Solar power is generated by converting sunlight into electricity using either PV or using concentrated solar power (using lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam) or a combination. For generating photovoltaic solar power, crystalline silicon PV module is used. This silica is used to make polysilicon, ingot, wafer, PV cell all of which are used to make crystalline silicon PV module. Eight firms worldwide make about 80 per cent polysilicon. Others buy from them. Companies who buy polysilicon may sell wafers or carry out all of the subsequent steps of the wafer, cell, and module manufacturing and assembly. Some PV manufacturers such as Yingli make their own polysilicon. The lack of upstream segments in this value chain adds to the vulnerability of Indian manufacturers. India does not produce polysilicon, ingot or wafer. However, crystalline silicon PV module is produced in India. The share of the Indian modules is about 10 per cent with imports from China constituting about 75 per cent of the Indian solar PV market. The main reason is the cost competitiveness of the Chinese, with the cost of solar modules and cells being 25-50 per cent lower than in India. India imports polysilicon, as well as wafers, and other ingredients such as ethylene vinyl acetate, which adds to the cost of production of modules. Incidentally, the price of solar cells has fallen from 50 cents per kWh to 33 cents per kWh, in three years since 2010, when launch in 2010 of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, the target of which was dramatically upgraded in 2014 to 100 GW of solar installations by 2022. In 2016, the WTO ruled against India that the domestic content requirements for solar cells and modules under the Jawaharlal Nehru Solar Mission amounted to trade-related investment measures as they favour domestic products over imported products. The Indian Solar Manufacturers Association have recently had launched an anti-dumping investigation against China, Taiwan, and Malaysia of alleged dumping of 'solar cells whether or not assembled partially or fully in modules or panels or on glass or some other suitable substrates'. China’s top solar module manufacturer, are in talks with India's Essel group to set up a solar module manufacturing facility in India. × It has been debated that Indian solar PV industry should be developed with support from policies of the government like a capital subsidy and lower interest loans. However, the scale of Indian manufacturing is too small (in comparison to China). Four states - Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, account for over three-quarters of today’s installed capacity. Rooftop solar also has the potential to become a more important part of India’s solar portfolio and is being taken up by Indian Railways and on canals as well. One problem that India faces along with the other BRICS countries includes the financing of clean energy. It has been estimated that India might need USD 175 billion in this regard. India has emerged as the second most attractive destination for investment in renewables ahead of the US according to a ranking by Ernst and Young (EY) last year. China is the most attractive destination. The New Development Bank has sanctioned a USD 250 million loan for India to fund its renewable energy. Clearly, more is needed. Chinese firms such as GLC-Poly Energy, China’s top solar module manufacturer, are in talks with India's Essel group to set up a solar module manufacturing facility in India. Cooperation between China and India in this regard could go a long way in achieving the NDC target of both countries.

Cooperation between India and China over the energy sector can keep the earth safe

Weather and climate don&rsquo;t cause disasters &ndash; vulnerability does. Perhaps counter-intuitively, this means that the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/aug/28/climate-change-hurricane-harvey-more-deadly">widespread discussion</a> as to whether the Hurricane Harvey disaster was caused by climate change or not becomes a dangerous distraction.

The hurricane was born off the coast of South America in mid-August and then tracked through the Gulf of Mexico, making landfall in the US on August 25. The storm surge and winds devastated coastal settlements, after which the storm stalled, dumping immense rainfall over Houston. At the time of writing, the confirmed death toll had just reached <a href="http://www.mystatesman.com/weather/hurricanes/death-toll-reaches-harvey-pulls-out-houston-heads-east/1lReyk4gPeIVlH6tP1rlgO/">14</a> and there are expectations that this will soon rise.

A disaster involving a hurricane cannot happen unless people, infrastructure and communities are vulnerable to it. People become vulnerable if they end up lacking knowledge, wisdom, capabilities, social connections, support or finances to deal with a standard environmental event such as a hurricane.

This can happen if lobbyists block tougher building codes, planning regulations, or enforcement procedures. Or if families can&rsquo;t afford insurance or the cost of alternative accommodation if they evacuate. Or if limited hurricane experience induces a sense of apathy.

Often, <a href="http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9781137485991">people with disabilities</a> rarely have their needs met when away from home. Fear of harassment or assault could stop others from entering a communal shelter. Legal or undocumented immigrants might not understand warnings and might fear the prospect of detention if they seek help.

These possible scenarios represent reasons why people in Texas might end up and remain in harm&rsquo;s way. Anecdotes point to all these issues having played a part during Harvey, but only careful research in the months ahead will be able to confirm or refute them. It is nevertheless such vulnerability issues that cause the disaster. None relate to the hurricane&rsquo;s physical characteristics.

Climate change

Yes, climate change can and does influence hurricanes. The ocean&rsquo;s temperature &ndash; to a certain degree &ndash; drives hurricane intensity, especially the coastal flooding level and the amount of rainfall. If the Gulf of Mexico was warmer than usual, or if some atmospheric winds were weaker than usual, then part of Harvey&rsquo;s strength might be attributable to human-caused climate change. Harvey stalling above Houston might also be linked to climate change&rsquo;s effects <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/aug/28/climate-change-hurricane-harvey-more-deadly">due to changing wind patterns</a>.

But climate change does not affect people&rsquo;s vulnerabilities to the hurricane. Neither the climate nor the hurricane&rsquo;s characteristics made Houston an industrial centre of 2.3m people (2017 estimate), <a href="http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/Demographics/docs_pdfs/Cy/hist_pop_1900_2014.pdf">an increase of 40% since 1990</a>. They did not force Texans to build along the coast or in floodplains without adequate measures, <a href="https://theconversation.com/americans-who-live-far-from-coasts-should-also-be-worried-about-flooding-81012">as occurs around the US</a>. They did not pave over green spaces leading to reduced rainfall absorption. And they did not create the ingrained racism and desperate social inequities prevalent across the state.

In fact, storms striking Texas represented problems long before human-caused climate change appeared. One of the deadliest storms in US history occurred in 1900, when a hurricane swept ashore over Galveston, <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;id=hNyZBAAAQBAJ">killing more than 6,000 people</a> &ndash; more than triple Hurricane Katrina&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2017/08/28/how-bad-harvey-compared-katrina/lehGM6Hd5BMVhdLypOKVuN/story.html">death toll</a> in 2005. We often do not know details about the strength of past hurricanes or the height of their floodwaters. But we do know that fewer people lived &ndash; and much less infrastructure lay &ndash; along the storms&rsquo; paths. Yet tragedies such as Galveston still manifested, irrespective of climate change.

These historical disasters &ndash; and more recent ones such as Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 &ndash; spurred the disaster prevention measures which saved many lives but which were not implemented fully in Texas. This left far too many people vulnerable and in danger.

&lsquo;Turn Around, Don&rsquo;t Drown&rsquo;

The first mandatory evacuation notice in Texas for Harvey was issued about 36 hours before the hurricane&rsquo;s landfall. The ability to forecast hurricane tracks and traits, to communicate the necessary responses and to plan for masses of people moving have emerged from decades of dedicated science.

Compared to the 1900 Galveston disaster, thousands of lives were saved by scientists and government officials collaborating to serve those who were vulnerable. Many structures withstood Harvey&rsquo;s 200+ km/h wind gusts with debris because engineers and lawyers wrote building codes while the government enforced the regulations. The &ldquo;<a href="http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/water/tadd">Turn Around, Don&rsquo;t Drown</a>&rdquo; message to stay out of floodwater comes from combining research and experience on flood physics and <a href="http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470669845,subjectCd-GE01.html">communication science</a>.

But the news is not all good, especially since much of this lifesaving work is <a href="https://www.aip.org/fyi/2017/trump-budget-cuts-noaa-16-slashes-research-funding-even-deeper">currently undergoing budget cuts</a>.

And politics created further vulnerability. State and local leaders disagreed about evacuating Houston. Development in the city&rsquo;s floodable areas had been encouraged to support the oil-fuelled economy, increasing both the population living in floodplains and the paved surfaces which augments run-off. As usual in disasters, poor and marginalised people seem to be bearing the brunt of the impacts, despite plenty of science showing the importance of social services for fostering self-help and for collectively avoiding disasters.

All this work prevents deaths during any hurricane, irrespective of climate change. Climate change might have augmented Harvey&rsquo;s rainfall, storm surge, or wind. If not, Texas would still have implemented exactly the same measures to reduce the disaster&rsquo;s effects. And Texas would still have had exactly the same political difficulties propping up the remaining vulnerability.

Disasters are not natural

Hurricane Harvey was an expected natural event, even if potentially modified or exacerbated by climate change. The Hurricane Harvey disaster was caused entirely by society creating and perpetuating vulnerability to these natural events.

Because vulnerability is not natural, many disaster researchers avoid the phrase &ldquo;natural disaster&rdquo;. Nor must hurricane disasters be our natural state of affairs, even though hurricanes have always happened. A hurricane need not become a hurricane disaster &ndash; but society let a disaster happen.

To help those affected recover quickly, Texas needed improved pre-disaster mechanisms such as more widespread insurance coverage and more widely available social services targeted at the most needy. Society must permit affordable insurance, without bankrupting the companies. Society needs regulators to ensure that payouts are reasonable and prompt while identifying claimant fraud. Society requires sufficiently skilled and resourced authorities to support everyone affected in helping themselves, no matter their background or abilities.

Many voting records in Texas are for lower taxes, for less government intervention, against tackling systemic inequities and against helping marginalised people help themselves. This choice actively creates the vulnerabilities which cause disasters. It is an ideological choice to vote for creating disaster vulnerability and voters have the right to do so. The consequences are known based on decades of disaster science.

<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/83163/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1" />Blaming climate change, or even just the weather, for the hurricane disaster distracts from individuals&rsquo; and society&rsquo;s responsibility for where we live, how we live and how we support people who cannot help themselves. This vulnerability, not nature and not climate change, causes hurricane disasters.

&nbsp;

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-blame-climate-change-for-the-hurricane-harvey-disaster-blame-society-83163">original article</a>.

&nbsp;

Development in the city?s floodable areas had been encouraged to support the oil-fuelled economy, increasing the population living in floodplains. This has certainly added to the current disaster.

Weather and climate don’t cause disasters – vulnerability does. Perhaps counter-intuitively, this means that the widespread discussion as to whether the Hurricane Harvey disaster was caused by climate change or not becomes a dangerous distraction. The hurricane was born off the coast of South America in mid-August and then tracked through the Gulf of Mexico, making landfall in the US on August 25. The storm surge and winds devastated coastal settlements, after which the storm stalled, dumping immense rainfall over Houston. At the time of writing, the confirmed death toll had just reached 14 and there are expectations that this will soon rise. A disaster involving a hurricane cannot happen unless people, infrastructure and communities are vulnerable to it. People become vulnerable if they end up lacking knowledge, wisdom, capabilities, social connections, support or finances to deal with a standard environmental event such as a hurricane. This can happen if lobbyists block tougher building codes, planning regulations, or enforcement procedures. Or if families can’t afford insurance or the cost of alternative accommodation if they evacuate. Or if limited hurricane experience induces a sense of apathy. Often, people with disabilities rarely have their needs met when away from home. Fear of harassment or assault could stop others from entering a communal shelter. Legal or undocumented immigrants might not understand warnings and might fear the prospect of detention if they seek help. These possible scenarios represent reasons why people in Texas might end up and remain in harm’s way. Anecdotes point to all these issues having played a part during Harvey, but only careful research in the months ahead will be able to confirm or refute them. It is nevertheless such vulnerability issues that cause the disaster. None relate to the hurricane’s physical characteristics. Climate change Yes, climate change can and does influence hurricanes. The ocean’s temperature – to a certain degree – drives hurricane intensity, especially the coastal flooding level and the amount of rainfall. If the Gulf of Mexico was warmer than usual, or if some atmospheric winds were weaker than usual, then part of Harvey’s strength might be attributable to human-caused climate change. Harvey stalling above Houston might also be linked to climate change’s effects due to changing wind patterns. But climate change does not affect people’s vulnerabilities to the hurricane. Neither the climate nor the hurricane’s characteristics made Houston an industrial centre of 2.3m people (2017 estimate), an increase of 40% since 1990. They did not force Texans to build along the coast or in floodplains without adequate measures, as occurs around the US. They did not pave over green spaces leading to reduced rainfall absorption. And they did not create the ingrained racism and desperate social inequities prevalent across the state. In fact, storms striking Texas represented problems long before human-caused climate change appeared. One of the deadliest storms in US history occurred in 1900, when a hurricane swept ashore over Galveston, killing more than 6,000 people – more than triple Hurricane Katrina’s death toll in 2005. We often do not know details about the strength of past hurricanes or the height of their floodwaters. But we do know that fewer people lived – and much less infrastructure lay – along the storms’ paths. Yet tragedies such as Galveston still manifested, irrespective of climate change. These historical disasters – and more recent ones such as Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 – spurred the disaster prevention measures which saved many lives but which were not implemented fully in Texas. This left far too many people vulnerable and in danger. ‘Turn Around, Don’t Drown’ The first mandatory evacuation notice in Texas for Harvey was issued about 36 hours before the hurricane’s landfall. The ability to forecast hurricane tracks and traits, to communicate the necessary responses and to plan for masses of people moving have emerged from decades of dedicated science. Compared to the 1900 Galveston disaster, thousands of lives were saved by scientists and government officials collaborating to serve those who were vulnerable. Many structures withstood Harvey’s 200+ km/h wind gusts with debris because engineers and lawyers wrote building codes while the government enforced the regulations. The “Turn Around, Don’t Drown” message to stay out of floodwater comes from combining research and experience on flood physics and communication science. But the news is not all good, especially since much of this lifesaving work is currently undergoing budget cuts. And politics created further vulnerability. State and local leaders disagreed about evacuating Houston. Development in the city’s floodable areas had been encouraged to support the oil-fuelled economy, increasing both the population living in floodplains and the paved surfaces which augments run-off. As usual in disasters, poor and marginalised people seem to be bearing the brunt of the impacts, despite plenty of science showing the importance of social services for fostering self-help and for collectively avoiding disasters. All this work prevents deaths during any hurricane, irrespective of climate change. Climate change might have augmented Harvey’s rainfall, storm surge, or wind. If not, Texas would still have implemented exactly the same measures to reduce the disaster’s effects. And Texas would still have had exactly the same political difficulties propping up the remaining vulnerability. Disasters are not natural Hurricane Harvey was an expected natural event, even if potentially modified or exacerbated by climate change. The Hurricane Harvey disaster was caused entirely by society creating and perpetuating vulnerability to these natural events. Because vulnerability is not natural, many disaster researchers avoid the phrase “natural disaster”. Nor must hurricane disasters be our natural state of affairs, even though hurricanes have always happened. A hurricane need not become a hurricane disaster – but society let a disaster happen. To help those affected recover quickly, Texas needed improved pre-disaster mechanisms such as more widespread insurance coverage and more widely available social services targeted at the most needy. Society must permit affordable insurance, without bankrupting the companies. Society needs regulators to ensure that payouts are reasonable and prompt while identifying claimant fraud. Society requires sufficiently skilled and resourced authorities to support everyone affected in helping themselves, no matter their background or abilities. Many voting records in Texas are for lower taxes, for less government intervention, against tackling systemic inequities and against helping marginalised people help themselves. This choice actively creates the vulnerabilities which cause disasters. It is an ideological choice to vote for creating disaster vulnerability and voters have the right to do so. The consequences are known based on decades of disaster science. Blaming climate change, or even just the weather, for the hurricane disaster distracts from individuals’ and society’s responsibility for where we live, how we live and how we support people who cannot help themselves. This vulnerability, not nature and not climate change, causes hurricane disasters. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Blame society, not climate change for the Hurricane Harvey disaster

<a href="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183367/area14mp/file-20170824-18715-id9cba.jpg" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183367/width237/file-20170824-18715-id9cba.jpg" /></a>

<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<figcaption>
My Nuclear Nightmare by Naoto Kan. <a class="source" href="http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/Resources/titles/80140100930800/Images/80140100930800L.jpg">Handout</a>
</figcaption>
</figure>

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30455027-my-nuclear-nightmare">My Nuclear Nightmare</a>

Leading Japan Through the Fukushima Disaster to a Nuclear-Free Future

By Naoto Kan. Translated from Japanese by Jeffrey S. Irish. (Non-fiction. Hardcover, 2017. Cornell University Press.)

On March 11, 2011, following a massive earthquake and tsunami, nuclear reactors at Fukushima, Japan, lost electrical power and all cooling systems stopped functioning. The malfunction led to meltdowns of three reactor cores, and multiple explosions involving hydrogen gas that was seen live around the world.

The resulting radioactive contamination spread over a large area and forced the evacuation of about 160,000 people from their homes, many of whom still cannot return because their neighborhoods continue to have unacceptably high levels of radiation. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people are expected to develop fatal cancers as a result of exposure to radiation from the accident.

Naoto Kan was the prime minister of Japan during this critical period and this book, published in Japanese in 2012 and newly available in English, offers his inside perspective of how events unfolded at the highest levels.

Kan reveals how little even powerful individuals and institutions like him and the government can do in the face of a major nuclear accident. If a society like Japan that is so well-prepared for natural disasters like earthquakes is unable to deal with a severe nuclear accident like Fukushima, there is little doubt that no country would have been able to do much better.

Kan&rsquo;s account is a testimony of the prevalence of the safety myth: the comforting but illusionary idea that technology can prevent nuclear accidents. Sadly, that myth continues to prevail not just in Japan but in most countries that are operating or constructing nuclear power plants.

<figure class="align-right zoomable"><a href="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183368/area14mp/file-20170824-24217-1qmrg69.jpeg"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183368/width237/file-20170824-24217-1qmrg69.jpeg" />&nbsp;</a>

<figcaption>
Command and Control by&nbsp;Eric&nbsp;Schlosser. <a class="source" href="http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/303337/command-and-control-by-eric-schlosser/9780143125785/">Handout</a>
</figcaption>
</figure>

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6452798-command-and-control">Command and Control</a>

Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety

By Eric Schlosser (Non-fiction. Paperback, 2014. Penguin.)

The Damascus accident started when a missile technician dropped a socket from a socket-wrench while servicing a Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in a silo in rural Arkansas. The socket hit the missile, puncturing its outer layer, causing a fuel leak that eventually sparked a powerful explosion that engulfed and propelled out of the silo the multi-megaton thermonuclear warhead. Fortunately, the warhead itself did not explode.

September 18, 1980, incident was just one of the many close calls involving nuclear weapons that the world has experienced. Going through these experiences, it&rsquo;s hard to attribute the fact that there have been no accidental nuclear explosions to anything but blind luck.

Eric Schlosser, an award-winning American journalist, and the author has produced a very readable account of accidents and near-misses, as well as the decades-long history of trying to control these risks through technological and institutional fixes.

Command and Control reminds us of the extraordinary danger posed by the large nuclear arsenals possessed by many countries around the world &mdash; most importantly, the United States and Russia.

At a time when Donald Trump and North Korea&rsquo;s Kim Jong Un are trading aggressive rhetoric and increasing tensions in East Asia and elsewhere, this book raises a further warning: The mere existence of nuclear arsenals &mdash; even during periods of low political tension &mdash; brings with them the risk of nuclear weapon use, deliberately or inadvertently, along with horrendous consequences.

<figure class="align-right zoomable"><a href="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183369/area14mp/file-20170824-23353-8n6uip.jpg"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183369/width237/file-20170824-23353-8n6uip.jpg" /></a>

<figcaption>
Unmaking the Bomb by&nbsp;Harold&nbsp;A.&nbsp;Fieveson et&nbsp;al. <a class="source" href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/sites/default/files/9780262529723.jpg">Handout</a>
</figcaption>
</figure>

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22104557-unmaking-the-bomb">Unmaking the Bomb</a>

A Fissile Material Approach to Nuclear Disarmament and Nonproliferation

By Harold A. Feiveson, Alexander Glaser, Zia Mian, Frank N. von Hippel (Non-fiction. Hardcover, 2014. MIT Press.)

The threat of nuclear warfare with North Korea, thanks to the posturing by Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, makes me, like many others, ponder the question of how to rid the world of these hugely destructive weapons.

In contrast to proposals for nuclear disarmament that focus on diplomacy and international relations, this book by four physicists at Princeton University (my former colleagues) offers a more technical road map for nuclear disarmament: Namely, through the control and elimination of highly enriched uranium and plutonium &mdash; the fissile materials that are the essential ingredients of all nuclear weapons.

The connection is laid out in the introduction of the book: &ldquo;If we are to reduce the threat from nuclear weapons, we must deal with the dangers posed by the production, stockpiling, and use of fissile materials. Unmaking the bomb requires eliminating the fissile materials that make nuclear weapons possible.&rdquo;

Unmaking the Bomb provides useful background material for the present crisis in East Asia by presenting some of the most reliable publicly available information on the nuclear facilities in North Korea and the United States (as well as the eight other countries confirmed to possess nuclear weapons) and the best independent estimates of their stockpiles of highly enriched uranium and plutonium.

It also reminds us that most nuclear programs grow by borrowing technology from other states and that the acquisition of nuclear technology for supposedly civilian purposes can be a stepping stone to a nuclear weapons program.

<figure class="align-right zoomable"><a href="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183372/area14mp/file-20170824-18740-1xabidb.jpg"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183372/width237/file-20170824-18740-1xabidb.jpg" /></a>

<figcaption>
The Rise of Hindu Authoritarianism by&nbsp;Achin&nbsp;Vanaik. Handout
</figcaption>
</figure>

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30805651-the-rise-of-hindu-authoritarianism">The Rise of Hindu Authoritarianism</a>

Secular Claims, Communal Realities

By Achin Vanaik (Non-fiction. Hardcover, 2017. Verso Books.)

The last few years have seen victories by the right wing, authoritarian political parties, and leaders in multiple countries. The same phenomenon in India, the &ldquo;world&rsquo;s largest democracy,&rdquo; should be &mdash; and is &mdash; cause for worry.

In 1998, when the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power for the first time (if one discounts a brief stint in 1996), one of its earliest decisions was to test nuclear weapons, which has since led to well over a billion people living under a nuclear shadow.

The year before the BJP&rsquo;s rise, Achin Vanaik&rsquo;s book, The Furies of Indian Communalism: Religion, Modernity, and Secularization, was published. Vanaik &mdash; a writer, social activist, former professor at the University of Delhi, and Delhi-based fellow of the Transnational Institute in Amsterdam &mdash; has now updated and expanded that work significantly.

In this updated edition, he traces the transformation of the BJP from a relatively fringe position on the political spectrum to become the dominant national-level party replacing the Congress, and implanting itself and its ideology &ldquo;in the country&rsquo;s structures and institutions.&rdquo;

The Rise of Hindu Authoritarianism not only explores in great detail the growing communalisation of the political arena and civil society, it also delineates what an oppositional and transformative project might look like.

<figure class="align-right zoomable"><a href="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183370/area14mp/file-20170824-18734-1q8521.jpg"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/183370/width237/file-20170824-18734-1q8521.jpg" />&nbsp;</a>

<figcaption>
The Great Derangement by Amitav Ghosh. <a class="source" href="http://www.press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/G/bo22265507.html">Handout</a>
</figcaption>
</figure>

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29362082-the-great-derangement">The Great Derangement</a>

Climate Change and the Unthinkable

By Amitav Ghosh (Non-fiction. Cloth, 2016. University of Chicago Press.)

Climate change has rightly come to be seen as one of the greatest challenges &mdash; if not the single greatest challenge &mdash; confronting the world today. There is an endless stream of academic papers and books, reports by local, national and international bodies, newspaper stories and documentaries on the subject. And yet climate change has appeared only sparingly in the world of fiction and literature.

It is the curious absence of climate change in these latter genres that novelist and writer Amitav Ghosh explored in a series of lectures delivered at the University of Chicago, which were subsequently published in the form of this book.

Ghosh traces this literary absence to &ldquo;peculiar forms of resistance that climate change presents to what is now regarded as serious fiction,&rdquo; but then goes on to explore the histories of imperialism, colonialism, and capitalism that have brought humanity to what he terms &ldquo;the Great Derangement.&rdquo;

<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/83024/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1" />Reading this book makes it clear, at least to me, that climate change is not a problem that can be dealt with through some clever technological inventions or some neat-looking financial instrument, but will require us to fundamentally reshape our economic, political and international structures.

&nbsp;

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/worth-reading-in-the-trump-era-nuclear-nightmares-authoritarianism-and-climate-change-83024">original article</a>.

M.V. Ramana, the noted nuclear physicist, talks about the horror of a nuclear war and climate change through these 5 books.

My Nuclear Nightmare by Naoto Kan. Handout My Nuclear Nightmare Leading Japan Through the Fukushima Disaster to a Nuclear-Free Future By Naoto Kan. Translated from Japanese by Jeffrey S. Irish. (Non-fiction. Hardcover, 2017. Cornell University Press.) On March 11, 2011, following a massive earthquake and tsunami, nuclear reactors at Fukushima, Japan, lost electrical power and all cooling systems stopped functioning. The malfunction led to meltdowns of three reactor cores, and multiple explosions involving hydrogen gas that was seen live around the world. The resulting radioactive contamination spread over a large area and forced the evacuation of about 160,000 people from their homes, many of whom still cannot return because their neighborhoods continue to have unacceptably high levels of radiation. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people are expected to develop fatal cancers as a result of exposure to radiation from the accident. Naoto Kan was the prime minister of Japan during this critical period and this book, published in Japanese in 2012 and newly available in English, offers his inside perspective of how events unfolded at the highest levels. Kan reveals how little even powerful individuals and institutions like him and the government can do in the face of a major nuclear accident. If a society like Japan that is so well-prepared for natural disasters like earthquakes is unable to deal with a severe nuclear accident like Fukushima, there is little doubt that no country would have been able to do much better. Kan’s account is a testimony of the prevalence of the safety myth: the comforting but illusionary idea that technology can prevent nuclear accidents. Sadly, that myth continues to prevail not just in Japan but in most countries that are operating or constructing nuclear power plants. Command and Control by Eric Schlosser. Handout Command and Control Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety By Eric Schlosser (Non-fiction. Paperback, 2014. Penguin.) The Damascus accident started when a missile technician dropped a socket from a socket-wrench while servicing a Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in a silo in rural Arkansas. The socket hit the missile, puncturing its outer layer, causing a fuel leak that eventually sparked a powerful explosion that engulfed and propelled out of the silo the multi-megaton thermonuclear warhead. Fortunately, the warhead itself did not explode. September 18, 1980, incident was just one of the many close calls involving nuclear weapons that the world has experienced. Going through these experiences, it’s hard to attribute the fact that there have been no accidental nuclear explosions to anything but blind luck. Eric Schlosser, an award-winning American journalist, and the author has produced a very readable account of accidents and near-misses, as well as the decades-long history of trying to control these risks through technological and institutional fixes. Command and Control reminds us of the extraordinary danger posed by the large nuclear arsenals possessed by many countries around the world — most importantly, the United States and Russia. At a time when Donald Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un are trading aggressive rhetoric and increasing tensions in East Asia and elsewhere, this book raises a further warning: The mere existence of nuclear arsenals — even during periods of low political tension — brings with them the risk of nuclear weapon use, deliberately or inadvertently, along with horrendous consequences. Unmaking the Bomb by Harold A. Fieveson et al. Handout Unmaking the Bomb A Fissile Material Approach to Nuclear Disarmament and Nonproliferation By Harold A. Feiveson, Alexander Glaser, Zia Mian, Frank N. von Hippel (Non-fiction. Hardcover, 2014. MIT Press.) The threat of nuclear warfare with North Korea, thanks to the posturing by Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, makes me, like many others, ponder the question of how to rid the world of these hugely destructive weapons. In contrast to proposals for nuclear disarmament that focus on diplomacy and international relations, this book by four physicists at Princeton University (my former colleagues) offers a more technical road map for nuclear disarmament: Namely, through the control and elimination of highly enriched uranium and plutonium — the fissile materials that are the essential ingredients of all nuclear weapons. The connection is laid out in the introduction of the book: “If we are to reduce the threat from nuclear weapons, we must deal with the dangers posed by the production, stockpiling, and use of fissile materials. Unmaking the bomb requires eliminating the fissile materials that make nuclear weapons possible.” Unmaking the Bomb provides useful background material for the present crisis in East Asia by presenting some of the most reliable publicly available information on the nuclear facilities in North Korea and the United States (as well as the eight other countries confirmed to possess nuclear weapons) and the best independent estimates of their stockpiles of highly enriched uranium and plutonium. It also reminds us that most nuclear programs grow by borrowing technology from other states and that the acquisition of nuclear technology for supposedly civilian purposes can be a stepping stone to a nuclear weapons program. The Rise of Hindu Authoritarianism by Achin Vanaik. Handout The Rise of Hindu Authoritarianism Secular Claims, Communal Realities By Achin Vanaik (Non-fiction. Hardcover, 2017. Verso Books.) The last few years have seen victories by the right wing, authoritarian political parties, and leaders in multiple countries. The same phenomenon in India, the “world’s largest democracy,” should be — and is — cause for worry. In 1998, when the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power for the first time (if one discounts a brief stint in 1996), one of its earliest decisions was to test nuclear weapons, which has since led to well over a billion people living under a nuclear shadow. The year before the BJP’s rise, Achin Vanaik’s book, The Furies of Indian Communalism: Religion, Modernity, and Secularization, was published. Vanaik — a writer, social activist, former professor at the University of Delhi, and Delhi-based fellow of the Transnational Institute in Amsterdam — has now updated and expanded that work significantly. In this updated edition, he traces the transformation of the BJP from a relatively fringe position on the political spectrum to become the dominant national-level party replacing the Congress, and implanting itself and its ideology “in the country’s structures and institutions.” The Rise of Hindu Authoritarianism not only explores in great detail the growing communalisation of the political arena and civil society, it also delineates what an oppositional and transformative project might look like. The Great Derangement by Amitav Ghosh. Handout The Great Derangement Climate Change and the Unthinkable By Amitav Ghosh (Non-fiction. Cloth, 2016. University of Chicago Press.) Climate change has rightly come to be seen as one of the greatest challenges — if not the single greatest challenge — confronting the world today. There is an endless stream of academic papers and books, reports by local, national and international bodies, newspaper stories and documentaries on the subject. And yet climate change has appeared only sparingly in the world of fiction and literature. It is the curious absence of climate change in these latter genres that novelist and writer Amitav Ghosh explored in a series of lectures delivered at the University of Chicago, which were subsequently published in the form of this book. Ghosh traces this literary absence to “peculiar forms of resistance that climate change presents to what is now regarded as serious fiction,” but then goes on to explore the histories of imperialism, colonialism, and capitalism that have brought humanity to what he terms “the Great Derangement.” Reading this book makes it clear, at least to me, that climate change is not a problem that can be dealt with through some clever technological inventions or some neat-looking financial instrument, but will require us to fundamentally reshape our economic, political and international structures. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

What does nuclear nightmare look like?

As news of Donald Trump&rsquo;s victory in last November&rsquo;s US presidential election&nbsp;spread around the world, delegates at the Marrakech Climate Change Conference were meeting to discuss implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement.&nbsp;The man widely credited with playing a pivotal role in securing that landmark deal in the French capital was US President Barack Obama.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&ldquo;It was a combination of the United States and China that ultimately got that deal through. You had to get 200 countries to go along with this agreement, and the approach the US came up with was the one that was ultimately successful,&rdquo; said Ken Berlin, CEO of the Climate Reality Project, an environmental NGO based in Washington, DC.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
The outgoing president&rsquo;s commitment to fighting climate change has formed a key part of his domestic agenda and will undoubtedly shape his legacy.&nbsp;According to figures from the White House, Obama&rsquo;s administration has cut US carbon emissions by 9 per cent&nbsp;since he took office in 2009. In the same period, the US economy grew by more than 10 per cent.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
But many Democrat supporters and environmentalists now fear Obama&rsquo;s work could be torpedoed by his successor.&nbsp;During the presidential campaign, a tweet expressing scepticism over climate change surfaced on Donald Trump&rsquo;s official Twitter account.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&ldquo;The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive,&rdquo; Trump tweeted in November 2012.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
Recently, the UK&rsquo;s climate change minister, Nick Hurd, called the US President-elect a &ldquo;very big challenge&rdquo; to efforts to control global temperature rises.&nbsp;Senior members of Trump&rsquo;s team like Jeff Sessions and Ben Carson are also openly sceptical about climate change.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&ldquo;I know there are a lot of people who say &lsquo;overwhelming science&rsquo;, but then when you ask them to show the overwhelming science, they never can show it,&rdquo; Mr Carson, the President-elect&rsquo;s pick for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2015.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
Although fearful about Trump&rsquo;s future climate change policy, environmentalists say the new administration&rsquo;s impact on falling carbon emissions in the US could be limited in the short term.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&ldquo;Overall, if you take into account federal, state and local governments and business, we will still continue to make progress in reducing carbon emissions in the United States. It will be a slower pace than if Hillary Clinton had won, but the environmental community here is gearing up for what might be the fight of our lives,&rdquo; said Mr Berlin.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
Even if Trump does not do what many fear and pull out of the Paris deal immediately, what he does in 2020 could be just as crucial. Under the terms of the Paris climate change deal, countries must set five-year targets or &ldquo;national determined contributions&rdquo;. By 2020, the US will need to ramp up its efforts to cut emissions once again in order to meet its commitments.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
While Obama has been a leader on climate change policy across the world, a Trump White House could stall the Paris deal in its delicate early years.&nbsp;In the environmental community, the latest US election was billed as a showdown between Hillary Clinton&rsquo;s green credentials and Donald Trump&rsquo;s climate scepticism. &nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
Scepticism prevailed in 2016. But environmentalists say the next time US voters go to the polls in 2020 could be the defining moment in the global battle against climate change.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
(WION)

US environmentalists highlight Obama?s climate change legacy, but fear a Trump presidency

As news of Donald Trump’s victory in last November’s US presidential election spread around the world, delegates at the Marrakech Climate Change Conference were meeting to discuss implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The man widely credited with playing a pivotal role in securing that landmark deal in the French capital was US President Barack Obama. “It was a combination of the United States and China that ultimately got that deal through. You had to get 200 countries to go along with this agreement, and the approach the US came up with was the one that was ultimately successful,” said Ken Berlin, CEO of the Climate Reality Project, an environmental NGO based in Washington, DC. The outgoing president’s commitment to fighting climate change has formed a key part of his domestic agenda and will undoubtedly shape his legacy. According to figures from the White House, Obama’s administration has cut US carbon emissions by 9 per cent since he took office in 2009. In the same period, the US economy grew by more than 10 per cent. But many Democrat supporters and environmentalists now fear Obama’s work could be torpedoed by his successor. During the presidential campaign, a tweet expressing scepticism over climate change surfaced on Donald Trump’s official Twitter account. “The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive,” Trump tweeted in November 2012. Recently, the UK’s climate change minister, Nick Hurd, called the US President-elect a “very big challenge” to efforts to control global temperature rises. Senior members of Trump’s team like Jeff Sessions and Ben Carson are also openly sceptical about climate change. “I know there are a lot of people who say ‘overwhelming science’, but then when you ask them to show the overwhelming science, they never can show it,” Mr Carson, the President-elect’s pick for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2015. Although fearful about Trump’s future climate change policy, environmentalists say the new administration’s impact on falling carbon emissions in the US could be limited in the short term. “Overall, if you take into account federal, state and local governments and business, we will still continue to make progress in reducing carbon emissions in the United States. It will be a slower pace than if Hillary Clinton had won, but the environmental community here is gearing up for what might be the fight of our lives,” said Mr Berlin. Even if Trump does not do what many fear and pull out of the Paris deal immediately, what he does in 2020 could be just as crucial. Under the terms of the Paris climate change deal, countries must set five-year targets or “national determined contributions”. By 2020, the US will need to ramp up its efforts to cut emissions once again in order to meet its commitments. While Obama has been a leader on climate change policy across the world, a Trump White House could stall the Paris deal in its delicate early years. In the environmental community, the latest US election was billed as a showdown between Hillary Clinton’s green credentials and Donald Trump’s climate scepticism. Scepticism prevailed in 2016. But environmentalists say the next time US voters go to the polls in 2020 could be the defining moment in the global battle against climate change. (WION)

Political climate change

At the beginning of the Himalayan summer, when the snows start to melt, all the schools close for the season and Nepali parents and children move to the grasslands with enough food for a month-long journey on a quest for a herb more valuable than gold.

To find yarsagumba, families crawl through muddy fields hoping to spot a yellowish-green mummified caterpillar that resembles a disproportionate unicorn, with a dark-coloured elongated fungus growing out of a larva&rsquo;s head.

In Chinese, the two-faced creature is called dong chong xia cao, which translates as &ldquo;winter worm, summer grass&rdquo;. During the winter, yarsagumba is worm-like, but by the summer, invaded by fungus, it looks more like a plant.

Mature yarsagumba resembles nothing so much as a matchstick, thin and slender, projecting two to three centimetres above the ground across the alpine meadows of the Himalayas.

<figure class="align-center "><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/171588/width754/file-20170531-25691-sok3e3.jpg" />
<figcaption>
&nbsp;

(A) The stroma and sclerotium sections; (B, C) The complex of mycelial cortices and attached soil particles outside the sclerotium as indicated by arrows. Zhang et al, 2010, Author provided
</figcaption>
</figure>

&nbsp;

Himalayan viagra

To locals, the hunt is well worth it. Just one kilogram of yarsagumba can <a href="https://thehimalayantimes.com/business/yarsagumba-lifts-living-standard-of-rural-nepalis/">fetch up to US$100,000</a>. In rural Nepal, where <a href="http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---asia/---ro-bangkok/---ilo-kathmandu/documents/publication/wcms_543497.pdf">jobs are limited</a>, the majority of families living at high altitudes as well as those in neighbouring regions earn their living by collecting this herb, making it by far the most <a href="https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.833518">valuable commodity around</a>.

Bu why is it so lucrative? The name is a hint: yarsagumba is also known as &ldquo;Himalayan Viagra&rdquo; due to the aphrodisiac medley of caterpillar and fungus.

It is believed that cattlemen first discovered the pharmacological benefits of the caterpillar-fungus more than a thousand years ago after noticing their yaks becoming energised from feeding on the herb.

Starting in the 1960s, people have been making tea and soups out of this mythological little plant-animal, and stuffing the belly of a duck with yarsagumba herbs before roasting.

This magic fungus was widely popularised in the 1990s, when a <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/athletics/2016/02/25/athletics-world-records-blow-as-wang-junxia-admits-being-part-of/">Chinese runner</a> who ate it broke <a href="http://mushroaming.com/blogs/cordyceps?page=2">two world records</a>. Since then, research on the caterpillar-fungus has intensified.

<figure class="align-center "><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/171580/width754/file-20170531-25664-tgynyd.jpg" />
<figcaption>
&nbsp;

A market selling &lsquo;Himalayan Viagra&rsquo; in Bhutan, and a close up of this complex chimera.
</figcaption>
</figure>

&nbsp;

The main <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233417214_Chemical_Constituents_of_Yarsagumba_Ophiocordyceps_sinensis_Berk_Sung_et_al_a_Valued_Traditional_Himalayan_Medicine">chemical constituents</a> of natural Cordyceps&rsquo;s 28 saturated and unsaturated fatty acids are palmitic acid, linoleic acid, oleic acid, stearic acid, and ergo sterol. It also includes vitamins and inorganic elements.

Chinese medicine now <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3121254/">asserts that</a> that yarsagumba can cure impotence, increase libido, and resolve joint pains, as well as treat cancer and obesity.

Some of these claims have been substantiated. According to a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4791983/#ref99">2016 paper</a> in the journal Pharmacognosy Review, the authors found evidence &ldquo;illustrating that O. sinensis can enhance libido and sexual performance, and can restore impaired reproductive functions, such as impotency or infertility, in both sexes.&rdquo;

&nbsp;

Fungus through the looking glass

As Lewis Carroll writes in his book <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/12/12-h/12-h.htm">Through the Looking Glass</a>, &ldquo;It takes all the running you can do, to stay in the same place&rdquo;. That seems the perfect metaphor for the yarsagumba, a living relationship in which a host and a parasite are involved in a continuous arms race.

Biologically speaking, this complex chimera consists of ghost moth larvae (the Thitarodes species in caterpillar stage) infected by the parasitic entomogenous ascomycete, Ophiocordyceps sinensis.

Ghost moths are relatively large moths known for their reduced adult mouth parts and distinctive subterranean larvae, which are root-feeders of grassland soil, meaning they can feed on any parts of a plant.

The caterpillars spend several years of their lives remaining dormant in winter, and emerge as adults after pupating in early summer. Then, alas, they die; the average adult lifespan of Thitarodes is two to five days.

Thitarodes are the only hosts to the O. sinensis parasite, and young caterpillars infected by the fungal spores perish before pupation, a wildly growing mycelium having consumed the body of the larva.

After two to four weeks, a slender, sprouting body emerges from behind the head of the larva. It is an eerie death, to be sure.

Scientists don&rsquo;t entirely understand this spectacular co-evolutionary process. Because the fungus is highly host-specific and it is very difficult to rear moths in laboratories, its infection pathway is still under investigation.

<figure class="align-center "><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/171587/width754/file-20170531-25664-1xyljut.jpg" />
<figcaption>
&nbsp;

(A) Male adult moth; (B) Female adult moth; &copy; Late-instar larva; (D) Pupa. Cannon et al., 2009
</figcaption>
</figure>

&nbsp;

Humans: the final threat

In this biotrophic system in which the parasite must kill its host to survive, humans may be considered a third trophic level: we parasitise this parasitic complex.

As the medicinal value of yarsagumba is increasingly hyped, China&rsquo;s massive consumer market is clamouring for the product, causing its price to rise and spurring a veritable gold rush to Nepal&rsquo;s Himalayan belt.

But collecting these fungi before they mature prevents dispersal of their spores, and the availability of yarsagumba is declining yearly. From a 2009 peak to 2011, the <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/overharvesting-leaves-himalayan-viagra-fungus-feeling-short-1.12308">trade fell</a> by half per annum. Due to a lack of proper regulation, over-harvesting is increasingly common.

The fungi are also vulnerable to climate change. As global temperatures rise and <a href="http://www.navdanya.org/climate-change/in-the-himalayas">snowfall in the Himalayas decreases</a>, their natural habitat suffers, limiting the breeding period.

There is a darker side to the fungus fad, too. Every year, as families race to the hills for their annual yarsagumba quest, some fungus hunters &ndash; both adults and school children &ndash; <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-12110240">lose their lives</a> to turf wars and the precipitous, unforgiving mountains.

In June 2009, seven Nepalese men who had climbed up the mountains to pick yarsagumba were attacked with sticks and knives, and their bodies thrown into the deep ravines.

<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/78558/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1" />Local Buddhists, especially those of the older generation, believe that to pick yarsagumba <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-12110240">is a sin</a>, in keeping with the Buddha&rsquo;s teaching that this seemingly natural treasure is actually a curse. China&rsquo;s consumers don&rsquo;t seem to mind.

&nbsp;

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/himalayan-viagra-is-threatened-by-fervent-chinese-demand-and-climate-change-78558">original article</a>.

Yarsagumba is also known as ?Himalayan Viagra? due to the aphrodisiac medley of caterpillar and fungus.

At the beginning of the Himalayan summer, when the snows start to melt, all the schools close for the season and Nepali parents and children move to the grasslands with enough food for a month-long journey on a quest for a herb more valuable than gold. To find yarsagumba, families crawl through muddy fields hoping to spot a yellowish-green mummified caterpillar that resembles a disproportionate unicorn, with a dark-coloured elongated fungus growing out of a larva’s head. In Chinese, the two-faced creature is called dong chong xia cao, which translates as “winter worm, summer grass”. During the winter, yarsagumba is worm-like, but by the summer, invaded by fungus, it looks more like a plant. Mature yarsagumba resembles nothing so much as a matchstick, thin and slender, projecting two to three centimetres above the ground across the alpine meadows of the Himalayas. (A) The stroma and sclerotium sections; (B, C) The complex of mycelial cortices and attached soil particles outside the sclerotium as indicated by arrows. Zhang et al, 2010, Author provided Himalayan viagra To locals, the hunt is well worth it. Just one kilogram of yarsagumba can fetch up to US$100,000. In rural Nepal, where jobs are limited, the majority of families living at high altitudes as well as those in neighbouring regions earn their living by collecting this herb, making it by far the most valuable commodity around. Bu why is it so lucrative? The name is a hint: yarsagumba is also known as “Himalayan Viagra” due to the aphrodisiac medley of caterpillar and fungus. It is believed that cattlemen first discovered the pharmacological benefits of the caterpillar-fungus more than a thousand years ago after noticing their yaks becoming energised from feeding on the herb. Starting in the 1960s, people have been making tea and soups out of this mythological little plant-animal, and stuffing the belly of a duck with yarsagumba herbs before roasting. This magic fungus was widely popularised in the 1990s, when a Chinese runner who ate it broke two world records. Since then, research on the caterpillar-fungus has intensified. A market selling ‘Himalayan Viagra’ in Bhutan, and a close up of this complex chimera. The main chemical constituents of natural Cordyceps’s 28 saturated and unsaturated fatty acids are palmitic acid, linoleic acid, oleic acid, stearic acid, and ergo sterol. It also includes vitamins and inorganic elements. Chinese medicine now asserts that that yarsagumba can cure impotence, increase libido, and resolve joint pains, as well as treat cancer and obesity. Some of these claims have been substantiated. According to a 2016 paper in the journal Pharmacognosy Review, the authors found evidence “illustrating that O. sinensis can enhance libido and sexual performance, and can restore impaired reproductive functions, such as impotency or infertility, in both sexes.” Fungus through the looking glass As Lewis Carroll writes in his book Through the Looking Glass, “It takes all the running you can do, to stay in the same place”. That seems the perfect metaphor for the yarsagumba, a living relationship in which a host and a parasite are involved in a continuous arms race. Biologically speaking, this complex chimera consists of ghost moth larvae (the Thitarodes species in caterpillar stage) infected by the parasitic entomogenous ascomycete, Ophiocordyceps sinensis. Ghost moths are relatively large moths known for their reduced adult mouth parts and distinctive subterranean larvae, which are root-feeders of grassland soil, meaning they can feed on any parts of a plant. The caterpillars spend several years of their lives remaining dormant in winter, and emerge as adults after pupating in early summer. Then, alas, they die; the average adult lifespan of Thitarodes is two to five days. Thitarodes are the only hosts to the O. sinensis parasite, and young caterpillars infected by the fungal spores perish before pupation, a wildly growing mycelium having consumed the body of the larva. After two to four weeks, a slender, sprouting body emerges from behind the head of the larva. It is an eerie death, to be sure. Scientists don’t entirely understand this spectacular co-evolutionary process. Because the fungus is highly host-specific and it is very difficult to rear moths in laboratories, its infection pathway is still under investigation. (A) Male adult moth; (B) Female adult moth; © Late-instar larva; (D) Pupa. Cannon et al., 2009 Humans: the final threat In this biotrophic system in which the parasite must kill its host to survive, humans may be considered a third trophic level: we parasitise this parasitic complex. As the medicinal value of yarsagumba is increasingly hyped, China’s massive consumer market is clamouring for the product, causing its price to rise and spurring a veritable gold rush to Nepal’s Himalayan belt. But collecting these fungi before they mature prevents dispersal of their spores, and the availability of yarsagumba is declining yearly. From a 2009 peak to 2011, the trade fell by half per annum. Due to a lack of proper regulation, over-harvesting is increasingly common. The fungi are also vulnerable to climate change. As global temperatures rise and snowfall in the Himalayas decreases, their natural habitat suffers, limiting the breeding period. There is a darker side to the fungus fad, too. Every year, as families race to the hills for their annual yarsagumba quest, some fungus hunters – both adults and school children – lose their lives to turf wars and the precipitous, unforgiving mountains. In June 2009, seven Nepalese men who had climbed up the mountains to pick yarsagumba were attacked with sticks and knives, and their bodies thrown into the deep ravines. Local Buddhists, especially those of the older generation, believe that to pick yarsagumba is a sin, in keeping with the Buddha’s teaching that this seemingly natural treasure is actually a curse. China’s consumers don’t seem to mind. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

?Himalayan Viagra? threatened by fervent Chinese demand and climate change

Heavy monsoon rains and landslides have killed at least 156 people in southeast Bangladesh and India, burying many in their homes as they slept, authorities said Tuesday.

Three young children from the same family were among those killed in the disaster, which comes just weeks after a cyclone battered the region and destroyed camps housing thousands of Rohingya refugees.

Police warned the death toll would likely rise as emergency workers reached remote parts of the Chittagong Hills, where telephone and transport links had been cut.

Manzurul Mannan, the government administrator of the worst-hit Rangamati district, said at least 98 people were killed in the hilly region alone.

&quot;The death toll might rise,&quot; Mannan told AFP.&nbsp;

At least 30 people were killed in neighbouring Chittagong and another six in Bandarban, officials told AFP, adding about 15 people were missing, feared buried under chunks of mud.

Many of the victims were from poor tribal communities in the remote hill district of Rangamati, close to the Indian border, where mudslides buried hundreds of homes.&nbsp;

One woman described the ground sliding from beneath their family home in the dead of night, sending them fleeing to a house next door.

&quot;A few other families also took shelter there, but just after dawn a section of hill fell on the house. Six people are still missing,&quot; Khatiza Begum told local news website Bangla Tribune at Rangamati hospital.

District police chief Sayed Tariqul Hasan said most of the landslides happened before dawn Tuesday. &nbsp;

&quot;Some of them were sleeping in their houses on hillsides when the landslides occurred,&quot; he said.

Police and local authorities ordered the evacuation of thousands of people living in slums at the base of hills in the neighbouring district of Chittagong, where 30 people have been confirmed dead.

At least 126 people were killed in that district when a massive landslide buried a village a decade ago.

In the latest incident six people were killed in the nearby district of Bandarban, among them three children buried by a landslide as they slept in their home.

Authorities have opened 18 shelters in the worst-hit hill districts, where 4,500 people have been evacuated, disaster management and relief minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya told reporters.

&#39;Constant fear&#39; 
 
Head of disaster management department Reaz Ahmed said disaster response teams had been deployed but had not yet been able to reach all the affected areas. &nbsp;

&quot;Once the rains are over, we&#39;ll get a full picture of the damage and get the recovery work in full swing,&quot; he added.&nbsp;

The monsoon rains came two weeks after Cyclone Mora smashed into Bangladesh&#39;s southeast, killing at least eight people and damaging tens of thousands of homes.

Rohingya leader Mohammad Anam said the latest rains had further worsened conditions in camps that were badly hit by the cyclone.

&quot;We&#39;re living in constant fear of landslides,&quot; he told AFP.&nbsp;

Around 300,000 Rohingya, a mainly Muslim stateless ethnic minority, are living in camps in southeastern Bangladesh after fleeing persecution in Myanmar.

Heavy monsoon rains also pounded the capital Dhaka and the port city of Chittagong in the district of the same name, disrupting traffic for hours and flooding key roads and business districts.

A ferry sank in the River Buriganga in Dhaka on Monday evening with an estimated 100 passengers aboard, police said, adding all the passengers had managed to swim ashore.

Among the victims in Rangamati district were at least four soldiers who had been sent to clear roads after an earlier landslide.

Thousands of troops are stationed in Rangamati, where a tribal insurgency raged for two decades, and which still suffers sporadic violence.

&quot;The soldiers were sent to clear roads hit by landslide in Manikchhari town when they were themselves buried by a second landslide,&quot; armed forces spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Rashidul Hassan told AFP. &nbsp;

&quot;They fell 30 feet (nine metres) from the main road,&quot; he said, adding one soldier was missing and 10 injured, five critically. 
 
(AFP)

Police warned the death toll would likely rise as emergency workers reached remote parts of the Chittagong Hills

Heavy monsoon rains and landslides have killed at least 156 people in southeast Bangladesh and India, burying many in their homes as they slept, authorities said Tuesday. Three young children from the same family were among those killed in the disaster, which comes just weeks after a cyclone battered the region and destroyed camps housing thousands of Rohingya refugees. Police warned the death toll would likely rise as emergency workers reached remote parts of the Chittagong Hills, where telephone and transport links had been cut. Manzurul Mannan, the government administrator of the worst-hit Rangamati district, said at least 98 people were killed in the hilly region alone. "The death toll might rise," Mannan told AFP. At least 30 people were killed in neighbouring Chittagong and another six in Bandarban, officials told AFP, adding about 15 people were missing, feared buried under chunks of mud. Many of the victims were from poor tribal communities in the remote hill district of Rangamati, close to the Indian border, where mudslides buried hundreds of homes. One woman described the ground sliding from beneath their family home in the dead of night, sending them fleeing to a house next door. "A few other families also took shelter there, but just after dawn a section of hill fell on the house. Six people are still missing," Khatiza Begum told local news website Bangla Tribune at Rangamati hospital. District police chief Sayed Tariqul Hasan said most of the landslides happened before dawn Tuesday. "Some of them were sleeping in their houses on hillsides when the landslides occurred," he said. Police and local authorities ordered the evacuation of thousands of people living in slums at the base of hills in the neighbouring district of Chittagong, where 30 people have been confirmed dead. At least 126 people were killed in that district when a massive landslide buried a village a decade ago. In the latest incident six people were killed in the nearby district of Bandarban, among them three children buried by a landslide as they slept in their home. Authorities have opened 18 shelters in the worst-hit hill districts, where 4,500 people have been evacuated, disaster management and relief minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya told reporters. 'Constant fear' Head of disaster management department Reaz Ahmed said disaster response teams had been deployed but had not yet been able to reach all the affected areas. "Once the rains are over, we'll get a full picture of the damage and get the recovery work in full swing," he added. The monsoon rains came two weeks after Cyclone Mora smashed into Bangladesh's southeast, killing at least eight people and damaging tens of thousands of homes. Rohingya leader Mohammad Anam said the latest rains had further worsened conditions in camps that were badly hit by the cyclone. "We're living in constant fear of landslides," he told AFP. Around 300,000 Rohingya, a mainly Muslim stateless ethnic minority, are living in camps in southeastern Bangladesh after fleeing persecution in Myanmar. Heavy monsoon rains also pounded the capital Dhaka and the port city of Chittagong in the district of the same name, disrupting traffic for hours and flooding key roads and business districts. A ferry sank in the River Buriganga in Dhaka on Monday evening with an estimated 100 passengers aboard, police said, adding all the passengers had managed to swim ashore. Among the victims in Rangamati district were at least four soldiers who had been sent to clear roads after an earlier landslide. Thousands of troops are stationed in Rangamati, where a tribal insurgency raged for two decades, and which still suffers sporadic violence. "The soldiers were sent to clear roads hit by landslide in Manikchhari town when they were themselves buried by a second landslide," armed forces spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Rashidul Hassan told AFP. "They fell 30 feet (nine metres) from the main road," he said, adding one soldier was missing and 10 injured, five critically. (AFP)

Heavy rains, landslides kill at least 156 in Bangladesh & India

US&nbsp;President Donald Trump &quot;believes the climate is changing,&quot; US&nbsp;Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Saturday after Trump&#39;s decision to take the United States out of the Paris climate accord sparked dismay across the world.

&quot;President Trump believes the climate is changing and he believes pollutants are part of the equation,&quot; Haley said during an excerpt of a CNN interview released on Saturday. The interview will be broadcast on CNN&#39;s &quot;State of the Union&quot; on Sunday.

Trump &quot;knows that it&#39;s changing and that the US&nbsp;has to be responsible for it and that&#39;s what we&#39;re going to do,&quot; Haley said.

On Thursday, Trump announced the United States would withdraw from the Paris climate change pact, tapping into his &quot;America First&quot; campaign theme. He said participating in the pact would undermine the US&nbsp;economy, wipe out jobs, weaken national sovereignty and put his country at a permanent disadvantage.

&quot;Just because the US&nbsp;got out of a club doesn&#39;t mean we aren&#39;t going to care about the environment,&quot; Haley said.

Later on Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence said that remaining in the accord would have proved costly to US economic growth and to the working-class Americans at the core of Trump&#39;s political base.

&quot;By withdrawing from the Paris climate accord, President Donald Trump chose to put the forgotten men and women of America first. And he always will,&quot; Pence told a political rally in Iowa.

On Friday, nobody at the White House was able to say whether Trump believed in climate change. In recent years, he has expressed scepticism about whether climate change is real, sometimes calling it a hoax. But since becoming president, he has not offered an opinion.

The decision to take the United States out of the pact prompted a negative reaction around the world, and world leaders redoubled their commitment to an accord agreed to by every country on the planet save Nicaragua and Syria.

China and Europe on Friday pledged to unite to save what German Chancellor Angela Merkel called &quot;our Mother Earth,&quot; standing firmly against Trump&#39;s decision.

The vast majority of scientists believe global warming is mainly the result of human activities, including power generation, transportation, agriculture and industry.

A small group of sceptics, some of them in the White House, believe the Paris Pact threatened business.

(Reuters)

Trump 'knows that it's changing and that the US has to be responsible for it and that's what we're going to do,' Haley said

US President Donald Trump "believes the climate is changing," US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Saturday after Trump's decision to take the United States out of the Paris climate accord sparked dismay across the world. "President Trump believes the climate is changing and he believes pollutants are part of the equation," Haley said during an excerpt of a CNN interview released on Saturday. The interview will be broadcast on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. Trump "knows that it's changing and that the US has to be responsible for it and that's what we're going to do," Haley said. On Thursday, Trump announced the United States would withdraw from the Paris climate change pact, tapping into his "America First" campaign theme. He said participating in the pact would undermine the US economy, wipe out jobs, weaken national sovereignty and put his country at a permanent disadvantage. "Just because the US got out of a club doesn't mean we aren't going to care about the environment," Haley said. Later on Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence said that remaining in the accord would have proved costly to US economic growth and to the working-class Americans at the core of Trump's political base. "By withdrawing from the Paris climate accord, President Donald Trump chose to put the forgotten men and women of America first. And he always will," Pence told a political rally in Iowa. On Friday, nobody at the White House was able to say whether Trump believed in climate change. In recent years, he has expressed scepticism about whether climate change is real, sometimes calling it a hoax. But since becoming president, he has not offered an opinion. The decision to take the United States out of the pact prompted a negative reaction around the world, and world leaders redoubled their commitment to an accord agreed to by every country on the planet save Nicaragua and Syria. China and Europe on Friday pledged to unite to save what German Chancellor Angela Merkel called "our Mother Earth," standing firmly against Trump's decision. The vast majority of scientists believe global warming is mainly the result of human activities, including power generation, transportation, agriculture and industry. A small group of sceptics, some of them in the White House, believe the Paris Pact threatened business. (Reuters)

Trump 'believes the climate is changing', says UN ambassador Nikki Haley

President Trump is expected to pull out of the Paris climate change accord later on Thursday (read WION&#39;s <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trump-to-announce-paris-climate-deal-decision-thursday-16284">report here</a>.) He has recently even made noises about withdrawing from the <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/04/trump-nafta-withdrawal-order/524463/">North American Free Trade Agreement</a> and cutting funding for the <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-g20-imf-worldbank-idUSKBN17L313">World Bank</a> and <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/nato-allies-not-spending-enough-to-shore-up-defences-trump-16049">NATO</a> military alliance.

So we ask the question, what else could Trump pull the US out of? How else will Trump&#39;s <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-wagner/trump-and-the-coming-deat_b_12915974.html">hostility to multilateralism</a> manifest itself

Here&#39;s a graphic looking at major international organisations and treaties and how long the US has been associated with them.

<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="365" id="datawrapper-chart-AInOU" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" scrolling="no" src="//datawrapper.dwcdn.net/AInOU/1/" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="100%"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">if("undefined"==typeof window.datawrapper)window.datawrapper={};window.datawrapper["AInOU"]={},window.datawrapper["AInOU"].embedDeltas={"100":571,"200":425,"300":408,"400":365,"500":365,"600":365,"700":348,"800":348,"900":348,"1000":348},window.datawrapper["AInOU"].iframe=document.getElementById("datawrapper-chart-AInOU"),window.datawrapper["AInOU"].iframe.style.height=window.datawrapper["AInOU"].embedDeltas[Math.min(1e3,Math.max(100*Math.floor(window.datawrapper["AInOU"].iframe.offsetWidth/100),100))]+"px",window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if("undefined"!=typeof a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var b in a.data["datawrapper-height"])if("AInOU"==b)window.datawrapper["AInOU"].iframe.style.height=a.data["datawrapper-height"][b]+"px"});</script>

The thing to keep in mind is that there are several treaties such as the <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2016/09/26/whats-the-deal-with-senate-republicans-and-the-test-ban-treaty/">Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty</a>, the Ottawa Treaty (banning mines) and organisations such as the <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2014/apr/24/chain-email/chain-email-says-barack-obama-wants-us-joint-inter/">International Criminal Court</a> that the US is not a part of.

So this&nbsp;unilateral route that Trump is taking is nothing new. Sadly, it&#39;s a road the US has been on for some time now.

President Trump could pull the US out of the Paris climate deal later today. So what does Trump have his eyes on next?

President Trump is expected to pull out of the Paris climate change accord later on Thursday (read WION's report here.) He has recently even made noises about withdrawing from the North American Free Trade Agreement and cutting funding for the World Bank and NATO military alliance. So we ask the question, what else could Trump pull the US out of? How else will Trump's hostility to multilateralism manifest itself Here's a graphic looking at major international organisations and treaties and how long the US has been associated with them. The thing to keep in mind is that there are several treaties such as the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the Ottawa Treaty (banning mines) and organisations such as the International Criminal Court that the US is not a part of. So this unilateral route that Trump is taking is nothing new. Sadly, it's a road the US has been on for some time now.

Infographic: After Paris climate accord, will Trump pull out of NATO?

The EU and China will attempt to deepen ties at a summit Thursday amid rising worry about the direction taken by US President Donald Trump on trade and climate change.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will meet EU president Donald Tusk and European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker with hopes of forging an answer to Trump&#39;s &quot;America First&quot; challenge.

But years of skirmishes over trade and human rights will make a deeper alliance difficult.

The incentive to strengthen links with Beijing is strong after German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the EU&#39;s most powerful leader, on Sunday warned that the EU can no longer depend on longtime ally US as a reliable partner.

Li, China&#39;s second most powerful leader after President Xi Jinping, will also visit Germany where he will meet Merkel and sign a cooperation deal on electric cars.

&quot;There&#39;s a lot we can offer each other,&quot; said vice foreign minister Wang Chao in the run-up to the European tour by Li.

The Brussels talks follow a tense international tour by Trump in which the unpredictable tycoon refused pleas by his European counterparts to adhere to the 2015 Paris climate accord.

The EU, US and China each roughly represent the same weight in the world economy and an exit by Washington from the climate deal would leave its only chance of survival in the hands of Brussels and Beijing.

Given the context, China&#39;s premier and the heads of the European Union&#39;s main institutions are expected to deliver a strong statement in support of the Paris agreement.

But besides climate, big obstacles to a deeper diplomatic breakthrough remain.

&nbsp;

&#39;Walk the talk&#39;

Also on the agenda is an EU-China investment accord that has been under negotiation since 2013 and that is largely seen as a dry run for a full trade deal.

But those talks are at a standstill over longstanding disagreements on the lack of access given to European companies in China and a fight over cheap Chinese exports that Europeans say are unfairly flooding their market.

China, the EU&#39;s second-largest trade partner, &quot;needs to walk the talk,&quot; said EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem at a business conference last week.

&quot;The welcome commitments from China about liberalisation have not been matched by concrete action,&quot; she added.

Many had hoped that President Xi Jinping&#39;s fervent defence of globalisation at the World Economic Forum in January would signal a new open trade era for China.&nbsp;

&quot;We have heard a lot of positive signals coming out of China when it comes to market opening and freer trade, but we hope this week we will lead to some concrete result,&quot; the European Chamber of Commerce&#39;s Mats Harborn told Bloomberg TV.

But Li Chenggang, assistant minister of commerce, told a news briefing in Beijing that &quot;the two sides don&#39;t see eye to eye on all issues&quot;.&nbsp;

China&#39;s militarisation of islands in the South China Sea and the increase in authoritarianism under Xi have also rung alarm bells for Europeans.

&quot;EU leaders need to make good on their pledges and make human rights and the freeing of peaceful activists a top strategic priority in the EU&#39;s relationship with China,&quot; said Human Rights Watch&#39;s EU director Lotte Leicht.

In a letter to Juncker and Tusk, several groups of rights activists, including Human Rights Watch, urged the EU to take up these concerns with China&#39;s leadership.

&quot;While EU officials are willing to engage in very public, critical battles with China over steel tariffs, solar panels, or the South China Sea, most EU officials are not willing to engage publicly in such debates over China&#39;s use of torture and arbitrary detention,&quot; the letter said.

(AFP)

This comes amid rising worry about the direction taken by US President Donald Trump on trade and climate change

The EU and China will attempt to deepen ties at a summit Thursday amid rising worry about the direction taken by US President Donald Trump on trade and climate change. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will meet EU president Donald Tusk and European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker with hopes of forging an answer to Trump's "America First" challenge. But years of skirmishes over trade and human rights will make a deeper alliance difficult. The incentive to strengthen links with Beijing is strong after German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the EU's most powerful leader, on Sunday warned that the EU can no longer depend on longtime ally US as a reliable partner. Li, China's second most powerful leader after President Xi Jinping, will also visit Germany where he will meet Merkel and sign a cooperation deal on electric cars. "There's a lot we can offer each other," said vice foreign minister Wang Chao in the run-up to the European tour by Li. The Brussels talks follow a tense international tour by Trump in which the unpredictable tycoon refused pleas by his European counterparts to adhere to the 2015 Paris climate accord. The EU, US and China each roughly represent the same weight in the world economy and an exit by Washington from the climate deal would leave its only chance of survival in the hands of Brussels and Beijing. Given the context, China's premier and the heads of the European Union's main institutions are expected to deliver a strong statement in support of the Paris agreement. But besides climate, big obstacles to a deeper diplomatic breakthrough remain. 'Walk the talk' Also on the agenda is an EU-China investment accord that has been under negotiation since 2013 and that is largely seen as a dry run for a full trade deal. But those talks are at a standstill over longstanding disagreements on the lack of access given to European companies in China and a fight over cheap Chinese exports that Europeans say are unfairly flooding their market. China, the EU's second-largest trade partner, "needs to walk the talk," said EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem at a business conference last week. "The welcome commitments from China about liberalisation have not been matched by concrete action," she added. Many had hoped that President Xi Jinping's fervent defence of globalisation at the World Economic Forum in January would signal a new open trade era for China. "We have heard a lot of positive signals coming out of China when it comes to market opening and freer trade, but we hope this week we will lead to some concrete result," the European Chamber of Commerce's Mats Harborn told Bloomberg TV. But Li Chenggang, assistant minister of commerce, told a news briefing in Beijing that "the two sides don't see eye to eye on all issues". China's militarisation of islands in the South China Sea and the increase in authoritarianism under Xi have also rung alarm bells for Europeans. "EU leaders need to make good on their pledges and make human rights and the freeing of peaceful activists a top strategic priority in the EU's relationship with China," said Human Rights Watch's EU director Lotte Leicht. In a letter to Juncker and Tusk, several groups of rights activists, including Human Rights Watch, urged the EU to take up these concerns with China's leadership. "While EU officials are willing to engage in very public, critical battles with China over steel tariffs, solar panels, or the South China Sea, most EU officials are not willing to engage publicly in such debates over China's use of torture and arbitrary detention," the letter said. (AFP)

EU, China seek tighter bond to face Trump

A crack that could create an iceberg the size of Delaware -- and destabilise one of the largest ice shelves in the Antarctic -- has branched out and begun to widen more quickly, a scientist said on Wednesday.

The new fissure has turned toward the shelf&#39;s ocean edge, potentially speeding up the iceberg&#39;s process of breaking off, said Dan McGrath, a geophysicist with the US&nbsp;Geological Survey and a project partner with UK-based monitoring group Project Midas, which reported on the new crack on Monday.

&quot;It&rsquo;s taking basically a sharp hook toward the calving front,&quot; said McGrath, using a technical term to describe the ocean side of the ice shelf.

It is reasonable to link the event and the shrinking ice shelves in Antarctica to global warming, Richard Alley, a glaciologist at Penn State University who is not connected with the project.

An overwhelming majority of scientists say human activity - including the burning of oil, gas and coal - is the main driver of rising global temperatures.

Located on the Larsen C ice shelf, the fourth largest in Antarctica, the new Antarctica crack is an offshoot of a rupture that gained notice after growing dramatically in 2014, and last year was forecast to cause the separation of a 1,900-square-mile (5,000-square-kilometer) iceberg within years.

For comparison, the projected size of the iceberg is more than 300,000 times the size of the 125-meter (410-foot) iceberg that sunk the Titanic, putting it among the largest on record.

While not getting longer, the original crack has continued to widen steadily, at a rate of about 3 feet (1 meter) per day, a rate that has increased since the new crack formed, according to the Midas report.

McGrath, who has studied the shelf extensively, said the combination of the new crack and the faster widening could point to an imminent separation of the berg, even as soon as this summer.

The loss of so much ice would shrink the shelf by about 10 percent, leaving it with the smallest area ever recorded.

Scientists from the group also warned in 2015 that the loss of such a large mass of ice would create a &quot;significant risk&quot; of the shelf as a whole becoming unstable and breaking up, although McGrath cautioned the outcome is not guaranteed.

(Reuters)

The new fissure has turned toward the shelf's ocean edge, potentially speeding up the iceberg's process of breaking off, said Dan McGrath

A crack that could create an iceberg the size of Delaware -- and destabilise one of the largest ice shelves in the Antarctic -- has branched out and begun to widen more quickly, a scientist said on Wednesday. The new fissure has turned toward the shelf's ocean edge, potentially speeding up the iceberg's process of breaking off, said Dan McGrath, a geophysicist with the US Geological Survey and a project partner with UK-based monitoring group Project Midas, which reported on the new crack on Monday. "It’s taking basically a sharp hook toward the calving front," said McGrath, using a technical term to describe the ocean side of the ice shelf. It is reasonable to link the event and the shrinking ice shelves in Antarctica to global warming, Richard Alley, a glaciologist at Penn State University who is not connected with the project. An overwhelming majority of scientists say human activity - including the burning of oil, gas and coal - is the main driver of rising global temperatures. Located on the Larsen C ice shelf, the fourth largest in Antarctica, the new Antarctica crack is an offshoot of a rupture that gained notice after growing dramatically in 2014, and last year was forecast to cause the separation of a 1,900-square-mile (5,000-square-kilometer) iceberg within years. For comparison, the projected size of the iceberg is more than 300,000 times the size of the 125-meter (410-foot) iceberg that sunk the Titanic, putting it among the largest on record. While not getting longer, the original crack has continued to widen steadily, at a rate of about 3 feet (1 meter) per day, a rate that has increased since the new crack formed, according to the Midas report. McGrath, who has studied the shelf extensively, said the combination of the new crack and the faster widening could point to an imminent separation of the berg, even as soon as this summer. The loss of so much ice would shrink the shelf by about 10 percent, leaving it with the smallest area ever recorded. Scientists from the group also warned in 2015 that the loss of such a large mass of ice would create a "significant risk" of the shelf as a whole becoming unstable and breaking up, although McGrath cautioned the outcome is not guaranteed. (Reuters)

Growing Antarctic crack primes Delaware-sized iceberg

Arctic sea ice is likely to vanish during summers even if all the nations that have signed the Paris Agreement accord meet their targets, a study has said.

Almost 200 nations that signed the Paris climate accord have pledged to limit average global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit); they aspire to keep the rise to less than 1.5C (2.7F).

James Screen and Daniel Williamson of Exeter University in Britain wrote in the journal Nature Climate Change that Arctic sea ice would melt during summertime even if the rise is limited to 2C.

They said there was a 39&nbsp;per cent chance of Arctic sea ice melting if the rise in average global temperature was limited to just 2 degrees Celsius.

Ice was virtually certain to survive, however, with just 1.5C of warming.

In March 2017, the extent of Arctic sea ice is rivalling 2016 and 2015 as the smallest for the time of year since satellite records began in the late 1970s. The ice reaches a winter maximum in March and a summer minimum in September.

&quot;In less than 40 years, we have almost halved the summer sea ice cover,&quot; said Tor Eldevik a professor at the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research at the University of Bergen in Norway, who was not involved in the study.

He predicted that sea ice would vanish in the Arctic Ocean in about another 40 years, on current trends.

Scientists define an ice-free Arctic Ocean as one with less than 1 million square kilometres (386,000 square miles) of ice because they say some sea ice will linger in bays, such as off northern Greenland, even after the ocean is ice-free.

US President Donald Trump said during his 2016 election campaign that he would &quot;cancel&quot; the Paris Agreement and instead promote the domestic fossil fuel industry. He has since said he has an &quot;open mind&quot; on the subject.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

&nbsp;

A Nature Climate Change report said there was a 39% chance of the ice melting

Arctic sea ice is likely to vanish during summers even if all the nations that have signed the Paris Agreement accord meet their targets, a study has said. Almost 200 nations that signed the Paris climate accord have pledged to limit average global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit); they aspire to keep the rise to less than 1.5C (2.7F). James Screen and Daniel Williamson of Exeter University in Britain wrote in the journal Nature Climate Change that Arctic sea ice would melt during summertime even if the rise is limited to 2C. They said there was a 39 per cent chance of Arctic sea ice melting if the rise in average global temperature was limited to just 2 degrees Celsius. Ice was virtually certain to survive, however, with just 1.5C of warming. In March 2017, the extent of Arctic sea ice is rivalling 2016 and 2015 as the smallest for the time of year since satellite records began in the late 1970s. The ice reaches a winter maximum in March and a summer minimum in September. "In less than 40 years, we have almost halved the summer sea ice cover," said Tor Eldevik a professor at the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research at the University of Bergen in Norway, who was not involved in the study. He predicted that sea ice would vanish in the Arctic Ocean in about another 40 years, on current trends. Scientists define an ice-free Arctic Ocean as one with less than 1 million square kilometres (386,000 square miles) of ice because they say some sea ice will linger in bays, such as off northern Greenland, even after the ocean is ice-free. US President Donald Trump said during his 2016 election campaign that he would "cancel" the Paris Agreement and instead promote the domestic fossil fuel industry. He has since said he has an "open mind" on the subject. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

Arctic sea ice likely to vanish in summers even if Paris accord target met: Study

Hundreds participated in a cyclothon in the heart of New Delhi on Monday&nbsp;to spread awareness about the use of fuel-less transport options.

People from all walks of life and across age groups took part in the event which was organised as part of a federal government initiative called &quot;Saksham (able) 2017&quot;&nbsp;- aimed at creating awareness about judicious utilisation and conservation of petroleum products.

Starting from the war memorial of India Gate and concluding at the Parliament building, cyclists covered a distance of 3.4 kilometres. Participants acknowledged the need for action to contain the impact of climate change.

&quot;There&#39;s a lot of awareness due to climate change. Everyone is aware what is happening in the world right now, (about the need) to control the temperature, rising temperature and save the planet from devastation due to climate change. There is so much awareness, a huge crowd has gathered. There is a lot of change due to awareness,&quot; said a participant.

&quot;Today it is a very good event. Government should continue, at least compulsory for once in a week to go to office by cycle,&quot; said another participant.

India is the world&#39;s third largest emitter of greenhouse gases.

As a signatory to the Paris Agreement on climate change, India is committed to ensuring that at least 40 per cent of its electricity will be generated from non-fossil-fuel sources by 2030.

While coal still provides the lion&#39;s share of India&#39;s energy, officials forecast the country will meet its Paris Agreement renewable energy commitments three years early - and exceed them by nearly half.

A 10-year blueprint released in December predicts that 57 per cent of total electricity capacity will come from non-fossil sources by 2027.

(Reuters)

Cycling from India Gate to the Parliament building, participants from all walks of life stressed the need to contain climate change

Hundreds participated in a cyclothon in the heart of New Delhi on Monday to spread awareness about the use of fuel-less transport options. People from all walks of life and across age groups took part in the event which was organised as part of a federal government initiative called "Saksham (able) 2017" - aimed at creating awareness about judicious utilisation and conservation of petroleum products. Starting from the war memorial of India Gate and concluding at the Parliament building, cyclists covered a distance of 3.4 kilometres. Participants acknowledged the need for action to contain the impact of climate change. "There's a lot of awareness due to climate change. Everyone is aware what is happening in the world right now, (about the need) to control the temperature, rising temperature and save the planet from devastation due to climate change. There is so much awareness, a huge crowd has gathered. There is a lot of change due to awareness," said a participant. "Today it is a very good event. Government should continue, at least compulsory for once in a week to go to office by cycle," said another participant. India is the world's third largest emitter of greenhouse gases. As a signatory to the Paris Agreement on climate change, India is committed to ensuring that at least 40 per cent of its electricity will be generated from non-fossil-fuel sources by 2030. While coal still provides the lion's share of India's energy, officials forecast the country will meet its Paris Agreement renewable energy commitments three years early - and exceed them by nearly half. A 10-year blueprint released in December predicts that 57 per cent of total electricity capacity will come from non-fossil sources by 2027. (Reuters)

Hundreds in New Delhi cycle to raise awareness of fuel-less transport

As wetlands disappear so does biodiversity. It is crucial to conserve wetlands amid changing social and political climates

The Ramsar Convention defines wetlands as: “areas of marsh, fen, peatland, or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing fresh, brackish, or salt, including marine waters, the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres.” Wetlands often occur in disconnected patches, and therefore wildlife species associated with them are also fairly disconnected, except for their occasional migration. As the number of wetlands in a large area decrease, each wetland gets more isolated from any other. What does this mean for wildlife dependent on these wetlands? Aquatic animals have specific adaptations which limit them from moving between wetlands, especially if they are disconnected. This movement between sites in search of food and mates is called dispersal, and seasonal, periodic dispersals are termed as “migration”. Studies have found that frogs, salamanders, reptiles like freshwater turtles and small mammals cannot disperse if wetlands are spaced more than half a kilometre apart. Therefore, saving these populations from extinction is not as simple as just preserving the quality of one single wetland. This is what makes life in wetland ecosystems so vulnerable to extinction. Let me explain what this means with an example from the lives of some wetland birds. Birds often travel between wetlands to fulfil their requirements, as one wetland does not necessarily provide all the needs of these birds. A single wetland may provide avenues for feeding or roosting or breeding opportunities — rarely all. This makes it necessary for a bird to use different types of wetlands to meet its ecological requirements. Studies have found that birds are more attracted to wetlands in agricultural and forested landscapes than where there is urban sprawl. (WION) × Therefore, to sustain populations of these birds in a landscape, a complex of wetlands is required. That is, "good" quality wetlands of varying shapes and sizes, not very far from each other. Alas! If maintaining such sites isn’t a challenging enough conservation task, there are more complications — the landscape context being the most challenging factor. For many wetland-dependent species, it has been found that they use wetlands that are embedded in “friendly” landscapes. Again, because my subject familiarity is mostly with wetland birds, I’ll illustrate what this means by drawing another example from this group. Studies have found that birds are more attracted to wetlands in agricultural and forested landscapes than where there is urban sprawl. And, if you look closer, they are even sensitive to the kind of agricultural landscape surrounding these wetlands. Studies have found that paddy cultivation is a more “friendly” landscape for wetland birds as compared to sugarcane or soy cultivation, owing to their structural similarity with natural wetlands. At a finer resolution, we would probably find differences in bird use even in different paddy patches, depending on their cropping patterns, use of pesticides and so on. These aspects illustrate the complexities of wetland biodiversity conservation and the commitment required in doing so. Conserving wetlands in changing social, political and climate scenarios There has been considerable basic biological study of wetland birds, to inform broad-scale conservation action. However, let us look at the social, economic and climatic context that these wetlands are embedded in. They are one of the most productive ecosystems in the world, and apart from harbouring biodiversity, provide a number of ecosystem goods and services to people. An environmental economics approach has valued wetlands at US $14,785 ha-1 year-1 which is higher than even those of the most valuable terrestrial ecosystems, such as forests valued at US$ 969 ha-1 year-1. While these estimates are fairly coarse, there is enough evidence to show how valuable wetlands are. For instance, they provide protection during flooding events and cyclones. And in acknowledgement of this role, World Wetlands Day 2017 has been themed, “Wetlands for disaster risk reduction”, emphasising the role of wetlands in disaster risk management. They also provide water security by facilitating groundwater recharge. Apart from this, they are valued by humans for a number of utilitarian reasons such as catching wild fish, aquaculture, grazing livestock, agriculture, soil extraction, plant extraction, et cetera. Wetlands are valued by humans for a number of utilitarian reasons such as catching wild fish, aquaculture, grazing livestock, agriculture, soil extraction, plant extraction, etc. (WION) × For example, the fish catch of India’s Chilika lake, a Ramsar site, for the year 2009-10 was estimated to be about 12000 metric tonnes, and supported more than 200,000 fishermen, whereas Vembanad Kol Wetland in Kerala supports livelihoods of around 1.6 million people living in 38 gram panchayats. However, in spite of playing such important roles, they are one of the most threatened ecosystems in the world. The main threat being their conversion to agriculture, dredging and overexploitation by humans. Studies have estimated that 30 per cent to 90 per cent wetlands have been either lost or severely modified, with very little abatement to this trend. In the current scenario, the new Draft Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2016 in India does not make provisions that can actually help save wetland species from the brink of extinction. This is because it does not prioritise wetland conservation based on any technicalities related to hydrology, size, cultural uniqueness, biodiversity value, etc. It should be criticised even more for not including the participation of local communities who depend on these resources, and for having no provisions to ensure water and food security, or risk aversion, in the light of climate change. As we lose wetlands, we will not only lose biodiversity but all the wonderful ecosystem services that are associated with them. So save them. (WION)

Wetland loss: Many unexpected repercussions in a fast-changing world

Researchers on Monday warned that reindeer in the Arctic are shrinking due to climate change, news agency AFP reports.

According to recent findings presented at the British Ecological Society (BES) in Liverpool, the average weight of reindeer in Svalbard in the Norwegian Arctic has dropped by 12 per cent over the past 16 years.

The average weight of adult reindeer has fallen to 48 kg from 55 kg in the 1990s, the study found.

&quot;Twelve per cent may not sound very much, but given how important body weight is to reproduction and survival, it&#39;s potentially huge,&quot; study leader Steve Albon of the James Hutton Institute in Scotland, told AFP.

Albon and his fellow researchers blame climate change for the shrinking reindeer.

Warmer winters mean more rain, which falls on snow and freezes into a sheet of ice, according to the BES.

The ice makes it harder for the herbivores to reach plant food.&nbsp;

&quot;The reindeer starve, aborting their calves or giving birth to much lighter young,&quot; AFP quoted the BES as saying.

Albon said reindeer numbers have increased over the past two decades. The rising population also means more competition for scarce food in winter.

The team has tracked Arctic reindeer since 1994, catching, marking and measuring 10-month-old calves every winter and returning the following year to recapture and note the animals&#39; size and weight, AFP said.

(WION with inputs from AFP)

The weight of adult reindeer in Svalbard in the Norwegian Arctic has dropped by 12% over the past 16 years

Researchers on Monday warned that reindeer in the Arctic are shrinking due to climate change, news agency AFP reports. According to recent findings presented at the British Ecological Society (BES) in Liverpool, the average weight of reindeer in Svalbard in the Norwegian Arctic has dropped by 12 per cent over the past 16 years. The average weight of adult reindeer has fallen to 48 kg from 55 kg in the 1990s, the study found. "Twelve per cent may not sound very much, but given how important body weight is to reproduction and survival, it's potentially huge," study leader Steve Albon of the James Hutton Institute in Scotland, told AFP. Albon and his fellow researchers blame climate change for the shrinking reindeer. Warmer winters mean more rain, which falls on snow and freezes into a sheet of ice, according to the BES. The ice makes it harder for the herbivores to reach plant food. "The reindeer starve, aborting their calves or giving birth to much lighter young," AFP quoted the BES as saying. Albon said reindeer numbers have increased over the past two decades. The rising population also means more competition for scarce food in winter. The team has tracked Arctic reindeer since 1994, catching, marking and measuring 10-month-old calves every winter and returning the following year to recapture and note the animals' size and weight, AFP said. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Reindeer shrinking, because of climate change

The sea level is expected to rise more than previously estimated in 2100 due to accelerated global warming.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said the average sea level will be a half a metre more than earlier suggested by them.

By 2100, the sea level will rise by 8.2 feet (2.5 metres), according to NOAA.

The figure has been revised due to disappearing ice cover in Antarctica&nbsp;and Greenland.

&quot;Recent (scientific) results regarding Antarctic ice sheet instability indicate that such outcomes may be more likely than previously thought,&quot; said the report, released on January 19.

The lower limit of the sea level rise also saw an increase. In the best case scenario, the sea level will rise by nearly one foot (0.3 metres), up from four inches (0.1 inches) as was previously estimated.

NASA also weighed in on the subject, saying unfettered burning of fossil fuels were causing global warming, which meant that the rise in sea level was &quot;unavoidable&quot;.

But the big question remains: how soon? Researchers do not know how soon the seas will rise, and whether they will hit these levels in this century or beyond.&nbsp;

&quot;We are not projecting anything. Everything is dependent on the amount of future heating, ocean and atmospheric heating,&quot; the lead author of the reprot, William Sweet, said.

Localised results

Though experts warn that the past is not an accurate predictor of future sea level rise, global average sea level has climbed eight to nine inches since 1880, when modern record-keeping began.

Much of that has taken place in recent years, as global warming has accelerated. Seas around the world have risen an average of nearly three inches&nbsp;since 1992.&nbsp;

The NOAA report also&nbsp;pointed to regional dangers of sea level rise, with some portions of the US coast more likely to see above-average&nbsp;rise and increased flooding than other parts of the world.

Land in Alaska is rising, but in Louisiana and along the Gulf Coast and the mid-Atlantic, it is sinking.

Other factors, like changing ocean circulation in some parts of the planet, affect how much oceans mount in various places.

As ice sheets melts, the gravity around Earth will change as the planet loses mass, causing some areas to see higher or lower sea level rise than the global average.

Recent research has shown that about three feet of sea level rise &quot;would permanently inundate areas currently home to two million Americans,&quot; said the report.&nbsp;

Six feet would flood the homes of six million people in the United States.

Sweet said the report&#39;s release was not planned to coincide with the end of the Obama presidency, or to precede the inauguration of Donald Trump, who has expressed doubts about climate change and pledged to increase fossil fuel extraction in the United States.

&quot;The timing might look suspect,&quot; Sweet said.

&quot;But no, this has actually been in the works for over a year.&quot;

(WION with inputs from AFP)

The figure has been revised due to rapidly disappearing ice cover in Antarctica and Greenland

The sea level is expected to rise more than previously estimated in 2100 due to accelerated global warming. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said the average sea level will be a half a metre more than earlier suggested by them. By 2100, the sea level will rise by 8.2 feet (2.5 metres), according to NOAA. The figure has been revised due to disappearing ice cover in Antarctica and Greenland. "Recent (scientific) results regarding Antarctic ice sheet instability indicate that such outcomes may be more likely than previously thought," said the report, released on January 19. The lower limit of the sea level rise also saw an increase. In the best case scenario, the sea level will rise by nearly one foot (0.3 metres), up from four inches (0.1 inches) as was previously estimated. NASA also weighed in on the subject, saying unfettered burning of fossil fuels were causing global warming, which meant that the rise in sea level was "unavoidable". But the big question remains: how soon? Researchers do not know how soon the seas will rise, and whether they will hit these levels in this century or beyond. "We are not projecting anything. Everything is dependent on the amount of future heating, ocean and atmospheric heating," the lead author of the reprot, William Sweet, said. Localised results Though experts warn that the past is not an accurate predictor of future sea level rise, global average sea level has climbed eight to nine inches since 1880, when modern record-keeping began. Much of that has taken place in recent years, as global warming has accelerated. Seas around the world have risen an average of nearly three inches since 1992. The NOAA report also pointed to regional dangers of sea level rise, with some portions of the US coast more likely to see above-average rise and increased flooding than other parts of the world. Land in Alaska is rising, but in Louisiana and along the Gulf Coast and the mid-Atlantic, it is sinking. Other factors, like changing ocean circulation in some parts of the planet, affect how much oceans mount in various places. As ice sheets melts, the gravity around Earth will change as the planet loses mass, causing some areas to see higher or lower sea level rise than the global average. Recent research has shown that about three feet of sea level rise "would permanently inundate areas currently home to two million Americans," said the report. Six feet would flood the homes of six million people in the United States. Sweet said the report's release was not planned to coincide with the end of the Obama presidency, or to precede the inauguration of Donald Trump, who has expressed doubts about climate change and pledged to increase fossil fuel extraction in the United States. "The timing might look suspect," Sweet said. "But no, this has actually been in the works for over a year." (WION with inputs from AFP)

Sea level to rise more than previously thought by century end

<a href="http://thehill.com/policy/finance/314991-trump-team-prepares-dramatic-cuts">The Hill has reported</a> that Trump&#39;s team is proposing more than $10 trillion in budget cuts over the next ten years.&nbsp;

The departments of Commerce and Energy would either see programs under their umbrella eliminated, transferred to other agencies or have their budget majorly reduced, The Hill reports. The Transportation, Justice and State departments would also see significant cuts or programs abolished.

A Trump administration would privatise the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and abolish both the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowments for the Humanities, The Hill reports.

The proposed cuts adhere to a reported issued last year&nbsp;by the <a href="http://www.heritage.org/about">Heritage Foundation</a>, a conservative think tank working along&nbsp;the Trump transition&nbsp;team.

The Heritage Foundation describes their mission:&nbsp;&quot;To formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense.&quot;

The Trump&nbsp;administration&#39;s full budget is expected to be released by mid- to late April. While it is vital in setting policy and providing a broad picture of their agenda, approval&nbsp;will be up to Congress. There is expected to be considerable blowback from some Republicans and Democrats.

<article about="/policy/finance/314991-trump-team-prepares-dramatic-cuts" typeof="sioc:Item foaf:Document">
 
The Hill reports that more proposed programs to eliminate&nbsp;at the Department of Justice include: The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services,&nbsp;Violence Against Women Grants and the Legal Services Corporation. Cuts or fund reductions would be in line for Civil Rights and its Environment and Natural Resouces division, The Hill Reports.

Meanwhile at the Department of Energy, nuclear physics and advanced scientific computing research would be reduced to 2008 levels, the Office of Electricity would be eliminated, as would the Office of Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy and the Office of Fossil Energy, which is aimed at decreasing carbon dioxide emissions, The Hill reports.

Some other candidates for programs up for elimination include: The Paris Climate Change Agreement and&nbsp;the United Nations&#39; Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, The Hill reports.

Running the Energy Department under a Trump administration will be&nbsp;noted climate change denier and former governor of Texas, Rick Perry, who is replacing nuclear physicist, Ernest Moniz.

Earlier in December, a survey with 74 questions sent by the Trump transition team to the Energy Department sought to know the names of individual&nbsp;workers and contractors who had attended UN climate meetings, as well as the names of those who had attended meetings on the social cost of carbon, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-climatechange-idUSKBN1432JJ">Reuters reported</a>. The department refused to divulge this information.&nbsp;

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said at the time that the questionnaire was not &quot;authorised&quot; and that the person who sent it had been &quot;properly counselled&quot;, but didn&#39;t explain what consequences they faced, or&nbsp;why a team member apparently took it upon himself to learn which civil servants were engaged in projects a Trump administration appears&nbsp;hostile towards.

A White House spokesman at the time, Josh Earnest, said the questionnaire &quot;could have been an attempt to target civil servants&quot;.

(WION)
</article>

Public broadcasting, the arts, the Paris Climate Change agreement, Violence Against Women grants and more may be cut or eliminated

The Hill has reported that Trump's team is proposing more than $10 trillion in budget cuts over the next ten years. The departments of Commerce and Energy would either see programs under their umbrella eliminated, transferred to other agencies or have their budget majorly reduced, The Hill reports. The Transportation, Justice and State departments would also see significant cuts or programs abolished. A Trump administration would privatise the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and abolish both the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowments for the Humanities, The Hill reports. The proposed cuts adhere to a reported issued last year by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank working along the Trump transition team. The Heritage Foundation describes their mission: "To formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense." The Trump administration's full budget is expected to be released by mid- to late April. While it is vital in setting policy and providing a broad picture of their agenda, approval will be up to Congress. There is expected to be considerable blowback from some Republicans and Democrats. The Hill reports that more proposed programs to eliminate at the Department of Justice include: The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, Violence Against Women Grants and the Legal Services Corporation. Cuts or fund reductions would be in line for Civil Rights and its Environment and Natural Resouces division, The Hill Reports. Meanwhile at the Department of Energy, nuclear physics and advanced scientific computing research would be reduced to 2008 levels, the Office of Electricity would be eliminated, as would the Office of Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy and the Office of Fossil Energy, which is aimed at decreasing carbon dioxide emissions, The Hill reports. Some other candidates for programs up for elimination include: The Paris Climate Change Agreement and the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, The Hill reports. Running the Energy Department under a Trump administration will be noted climate change denier and former governor of Texas, Rick Perry, who is replacing nuclear physicist, Ernest Moniz. Earlier in December, a survey with 74 questions sent by the Trump transition team to the Energy Department sought to know the names of individual workers and contractors who had attended UN climate meetings, as well as the names of those who had attended meetings on the social cost of carbon, Reuters reported. The department refused to divulge this information. White House spokesman Sean Spicer said at the time that the questionnaire was not "authorised" and that the person who sent it had been "properly counselled", but didn't explain what consequences they faced, or why a team member apparently took it upon himself to learn which civil servants were engaged in projects a Trump administration appears hostile towards. A White House spokesman at the time, Josh Earnest, said the questionnaire "could have been an attempt to target civil servants". (WION)

Donald Trump administration proposes more than $10 trillion in budget cuts over 10 years

China today launched a global carbon dioxide monitoring satellite to understand climate change, hours after it lifted nearly a week-long red alert for the worst smog that engulfed about 40 cities in the country.

The 620-kilogram&nbsp;satellite TanSat was put into orbit by Long March-2D rocket from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China&#39;s Gobi Desert early this morning, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. This was the 243rd mission of the Long March series rockets. Besides TanSat, the rocket also carried a high-resolution micro-nano satellite and two spectrum micro-nano satellites for agricultural and forestry monitoring.

China is the third country after Japan and the US to monitor greenhouse gases through its own satellite. The satellite was sent into a sun synchronous orbit about 700 kilometres&nbsp;above the earth and will monitor the concentration, distribution and flow of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, Yin Zengshan, chief designer of TanSat at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) micro-satellite research institute said.

The satellite will help understanding of climate change and provide China&#39;s policy makers with independent data. On a three-year mission, TanSat will thoroughly examine global carbon dioxide levels every 16 days, accurate to at least 4 ppm (parts per million), the report said.

The new satellite will enable China to obtain emissions data first-hand and share it with researchers worldwide, Yin said.

The Paris agreement on climate change came into force on November 4, with more than 100 countries committed to reducing their carbon emissions. The satellite can trace the sources of greenhouse gases and help evaluate whether countries are fulfilling their commitments.

TanSat means a louder voice for China on climate change, carbon reduction and in negotiations with a bigger say on carbon trading.

Earlier in midnight, Beijing lifted the red alert for air pollution as cold air dispersed the smog that has affected the city since December 17 which drew strong criticism from public as it disrupted the normal life. Beijing woke up this morning with a relatively clear sky.

Since December 17 emergency measures such as even-odd car restrictions will end and classes will resume at schools, official media reports said. While the red alert was implemented by 23 cities including Beijing, 17 other cities implemented Orange alerts for pollution. PM2.5 density in the capital remained high throughout the period of the red alert.

About the satellite Lu Naimeng, TanSat chief scientist said concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased from 280 ppm to 400 ppm over the past 150 years, leading to an increase in average global temperatures of about 0.7 degrees Celsius over the last century.

China&#39;s CO2 emissions are to peak around 2030, with emissions per unit of GDP cut by 60 per cent of 2005 levels by the same date.

(PTI)

As its cities are engulfed in the world's worst smog, Beijing is being forced to take up the lead in international climate change science

China today launched a global carbon dioxide monitoring satellite to understand climate change, hours after it lifted nearly a week-long red alert for the worst smog that engulfed about 40 cities in the country. The 620-kilogram satellite TanSat was put into orbit by Long March-2D rocket from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China's Gobi Desert early this morning, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. This was the 243rd mission of the Long March series rockets. Besides TanSat, the rocket also carried a high-resolution micro-nano satellite and two spectrum micro-nano satellites for agricultural and forestry monitoring. China is the third country after Japan and the US to monitor greenhouse gases through its own satellite. The satellite was sent into a sun synchronous orbit about 700 kilometres above the earth and will monitor the concentration, distribution and flow of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, Yin Zengshan, chief designer of TanSat at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) micro-satellite research institute said. The satellite will help understanding of climate change and provide China's policy makers with independent data. On a three-year mission, TanSat will thoroughly examine global carbon dioxide levels every 16 days, accurate to at least 4 ppm (parts per million), the report said. The new satellite will enable China to obtain emissions data first-hand and share it with researchers worldwide, Yin said. The Paris agreement on climate change came into force on November 4, with more than 100 countries committed to reducing their carbon emissions. The satellite can trace the sources of greenhouse gases and help evaluate whether countries are fulfilling their commitments. TanSat means a louder voice for China on climate change, carbon reduction and in negotiations with a bigger say on carbon trading. Earlier in midnight, Beijing lifted the red alert for air pollution as cold air dispersed the smog that has affected the city since December 17 which drew strong criticism from public as it disrupted the normal life. Beijing woke up this morning with a relatively clear sky. Since December 17 emergency measures such as even-odd car restrictions will end and classes will resume at schools, official media reports said. While the red alert was implemented by 23 cities including Beijing, 17 other cities implemented Orange alerts for pollution. PM2.5 density in the capital remained high throughout the period of the red alert. About the satellite Lu Naimeng, TanSat chief scientist said concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased from 280 ppm to 400 ppm over the past 150 years, leading to an increase in average global temperatures of about 0.7 degrees Celsius over the last century. China's CO2 emissions are to peak around 2030, with emissions per unit of GDP cut by 60 per cent of 2005 levels by the same date. (PTI)

China launches satellite to track global carbon emissions

Officials in 24 states have urged US President-elect Donald Trump to kill the centrepiece of President Barack Obama&#39;s strategy to combat climate change and shut down coal-fired power plants.

The coalition requested the incoming Republican government undo the Clean Power Plan enacted by the current Democratic administration. The law was designed to lower carbon emissions mainly from coal-fired power plants by 2030 to 32 per cent below 2005 levels.

The Supreme Court has ordered a delay in implementation until legal challenges to the regulation are completed.

The group, headed by West Virginia attorney general Patrick Morrisey and Texas attorney general Ken Paxton, suggests Congress take action to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from drafting similar regulations in the future.

&quot;The order (to withdraw the plan) should explain that it is the administration&#39;s view that the (Clean Power Plan) is unlawful and that EPA lacks authority to enforce it. The executive order is necessary to send an immediate and strong message to States and regulated entities that the administration will not enforce the rule,&quot; according to Morrisey.

Trump&#39;s potential Cabinet is filling with nominees from top fossil fuel-producing states. He tapped Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, an ardent opponent of Obama&#39;s measures to curb climate change, to run the Environmental Protection Agency and Rick Perry, a climate sceptic and former governor of Texas, to head the Department of Energy.

Trump has promised to revive oil and gas drilling and coal mining by cutting back on federal regulations. He also has said he would pull the United States out of a global deal to curb emissions of carbon dioxide, which an overwhelming number of scientists say contribute to changes to the climate that are leading to sea level rise, droughts and more frequent violent storms.

(Reuters)

The group has suggested that Congress take action to to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from drafting similar regulations

Officials in 24 states have urged US President-elect Donald Trump to kill the centrepiece of President Barack Obama's strategy to combat climate change and shut down coal-fired power plants. The coalition requested the incoming Republican government undo the Clean Power Plan enacted by the current Democratic administration. The law was designed to lower carbon emissions mainly from coal-fired power plants by 2030 to 32 per cent below 2005 levels. The Supreme Court has ordered a delay in implementation until legal challenges to the regulation are completed. The group, headed by West Virginia attorney general Patrick Morrisey and Texas attorney general Ken Paxton, suggests Congress take action to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from drafting similar regulations in the future. "The order (to withdraw the plan) should explain that it is the administration's view that the (Clean Power Plan) is unlawful and that EPA lacks authority to enforce it. The executive order is necessary to send an immediate and strong message to States and regulated entities that the administration will not enforce the rule," according to Morrisey. Trump's potential Cabinet is filling with nominees from top fossil fuel-producing states. He tapped Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, an ardent opponent of Obama's measures to curb climate change, to run the Environmental Protection Agency and Rick Perry, a climate sceptic and former governor of Texas, to head the Department of Energy. Trump has promised to revive oil and gas drilling and coal mining by cutting back on federal regulations. He also has said he would pull the United States out of a global deal to curb emissions of carbon dioxide, which an overwhelming number of scientists say contribute to changes to the climate that are leading to sea level rise, droughts and more frequent violent storms. (Reuters)

Coalition of 24 states urges to kill Obama's carbon emission plan

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Live - 24 Hours of Reality World is One Degree × WION takes up a fight against global warming with its upcoming initiative, World Is One Degree. Join the fight! Watch more on the impact of climate change on WION: - How Goa, India's smallest state fights with the garbage problem. - Going the electric way to reduce carbon emission - Clean and green e-rickshaws hit Delhi roads - The Arctic Ice Melt - The World Unites To Fight Climate Change - Sundarbans islands shrinking due to rising sea levels - Is the Great Barrier Reef dying? - Delhi's Floating Island - Shrinking habitats lead to human-animal conflict - Sustainable tourism in South Asia - The threat of climate change: Donald Trump's reaction - Drought in Bolivia worsens

WION goes around the world exploring solutions to climate change

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The melting of the Arctic sea ice could reduce the polar bear population by a third over the next few decades, scientists said on Monday, news agency Reuters reported.

Arctic sea ice is the animal&rsquo;s chief habitat.

The current global population of polar bears is estimated to be around 26,000.

However, scientists say&nbsp;their population is expected to diminish by some 8,600 over the next 35-40 years.&nbsp;

The new findings were presented as part of a panel discussion about climate impacts on wildlife during a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco.&nbsp;

&quot;There is the potential for a large reduction in the global population of polar bears over the next three generations if the sea ice loss continues at the rate we&#39;ve seen it,&quot; Reuters quoted Kristin Laidre, a marine mammal ecologist at the University of Washington&#39;s Polar Science Center, as saying.

The study was led by the US Fish and Wildlife Service&#39;s Eric Regehr.&nbsp;

The polar bear research is drawn from new satellite data documenting a loss of Arctic sea ice from 1979 to 2015.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

The polar bear research is drawn from new satellite data documenting a loss of Arctic sea ice from 1979 to 2015

The melting of the Arctic sea ice could reduce the polar bear population by a third over the next few decades, scientists said on Monday, news agency Reuters reported. Arctic sea ice is the animal’s chief habitat. The current global population of polar bears is estimated to be around 26,000. However, scientists say their population is expected to diminish by some 8,600 over the next 35-40 years. The new findings were presented as part of a panel discussion about climate impacts on wildlife during a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco. "There is the potential for a large reduction in the global population of polar bears over the next three generations if the sea ice loss continues at the rate we've seen it," Reuters quoted Kristin Laidre, a marine mammal ecologist at the University of Washington's Polar Science Center, as saying. The study was led by the US Fish and Wildlife Service's Eric Regehr. The polar bear research is drawn from new satellite data documenting a loss of Arctic sea ice from 1979 to 2015. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

Polar bear numbers to plunge a third as Arctic sea ice melts

President-elect Donald Trump has chosen former Texas Governor Rick Perry to head the US&nbsp;Department of Energy, a transition official said, putting him in charge of the agency he proposed eliminating during his bid for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

The choice, confirmed late on Monday by the official, adds to the list of oil drilling advocates skeptical about climate change who have been picked for senior positions in Trump&#39;s Cabinet. The selections have worried environmentalists but cheered an industry eager for expansion.

Perry&#39;s proposal to scrap the Energy Department caused what has become known as his &quot;oops&quot; moment during a November 2011 debate when he could not remember all the Cabinet-level departments he wanted to eliminate.

&quot;It&#39;s three agencies of government when I get there that are gone: commerce, education and the um, what&#39;s the third one there? Let&#39;s see,&quot; Perry said.

His debate opponents tried to prod his memory but Perry ultimately gave up, saying, &quot;I can&#39;t. The third one, I can&#39;t. Sorry. Oops.&quot;

Perry, who also briefly ran in the 2016 presidential race, would have to be confirmed by the Senate to head the Energy Department, which is responsible for US&nbsp;energy policy and oversees the nation&#39;s nuclear weapons program.

Perry served as governor of Texas, a leading oil-producing state, from 2000 when he succeeded President George W&nbsp;Bush until 2015. In his unsuccessful presidential runs, he touted his record of job creation in the second-most-populous state.

Perry was a fierce critic of Trump last year before dropping out of the race, calling him &quot;a cancer on conservatism&quot; who offered &quot;a toxic mix of demagoguery and mean-spiritedness and nonsense&quot;.

Trump also had harsh things to say about Perry during the campaign, even belittling his eye glasses by saying, &quot;He put on glasses so people will think he&#39;s smart&quot;.

Once Trump secured the nomination, Perry endorsed him as &quot;the people&#39;s choice&quot;.

If Perry gets the job, it would be further indication that the incoming Trump administration may be friendly toward the fossil fuel industry. Perry has advocated lighter regulation on the industry, and has said that the science around climate change is &quot;unsettled&quot;.

Trump is set to pick US&nbsp;Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who is also a climate-change skeptic and an advocate for expanded oil and gas development, to head the Interior Department.

Trump&#39;s pick for the Environmental Protection Agency is Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, an ardent opponent of President Barack Obama&#39;s measures to curb climate change who has sued the EPA to block in a bid to undo a key regulation to curb greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from coal-fired power plants.

Trump named Rex Tillerson, chief executive of oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp, as his choice for secretary of state on Tuesday.

An overwhelming majority of scientists believe that carbon dioxide emissions from burning oil, gas and coal is a significant contributor to global climate change, causing sea level rise, drought, and more frequent violent storms.&nbsp;

(Reuters)

Perry, who called climate change science 'unsettled', will lead the agency he proposed eliminating in 2012

President-elect Donald Trump has chosen former Texas Governor Rick Perry to head the US Department of Energy, a transition official said, putting him in charge of the agency he proposed eliminating during his bid for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. The choice, confirmed late on Monday by the official, adds to the list of oil drilling advocates skeptical about climate change who have been picked for senior positions in Trump's Cabinet. The selections have worried environmentalists but cheered an industry eager for expansion. Perry's proposal to scrap the Energy Department caused what has become known as his "oops" moment during a November 2011 debate when he could not remember all the Cabinet-level departments he wanted to eliminate. "It's three agencies of government when I get there that are gone: commerce, education and the um, what's the third one there? Let's see," Perry said. His debate opponents tried to prod his memory but Perry ultimately gave up, saying, "I can't. The third one, I can't. Sorry. Oops." Perry, who also briefly ran in the 2016 presidential race, would have to be confirmed by the Senate to head the Energy Department, which is responsible for US energy policy and oversees the nation's nuclear weapons program. Perry served as governor of Texas, a leading oil-producing state, from 2000 when he succeeded President George W Bush until 2015. In his unsuccessful presidential runs, he touted his record of job creation in the second-most-populous state. Perry was a fierce critic of Trump last year before dropping out of the race, calling him "a cancer on conservatism" who offered "a toxic mix of demagoguery and mean-spiritedness and nonsense". Trump also had harsh things to say about Perry during the campaign, even belittling his eye glasses by saying, "He put on glasses so people will think he's smart". Once Trump secured the nomination, Perry endorsed him as "the people's choice". If Perry gets the job, it would be further indication that the incoming Trump administration may be friendly toward the fossil fuel industry. Perry has advocated lighter regulation on the industry, and has said that the science around climate change is "unsettled". Trump is set to pick US Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who is also a climate-change skeptic and an advocate for expanded oil and gas development, to head the Interior Department. Trump's pick for the Environmental Protection Agency is Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, an ardent opponent of President Barack Obama's measures to curb climate change who has sued the EPA to block in a bid to undo a key regulation to curb greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from coal-fired power plants. Trump named Rex Tillerson, chief executive of oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp, as his choice for secretary of state on Tuesday. An overwhelming majority of scientists believe that carbon dioxide emissions from burning oil, gas and coal is a significant contributor to global climate change, causing sea level rise, drought, and more frequent violent storms. (Reuters)

Trump to pick former Texas Governor Perry as Energy Secretary

Canadian scientists will be allowed to share their research with&nbsp;the media without first being designated official spokesmen, after the union representing public servants reached a tentative contract agreement, the<a href="http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadian-politics/union-representing-public-servants-reaches-tentative-agreement"> National Post </a>reports.&nbsp;

Under the previous Conservative&nbsp;government,&nbsp;led by&nbsp;Prime Minister Stephen Harper,&nbsp;scientists who worked around climate change&nbsp;were forbidden from speaking to journalists about their work amid vast funding cuts, the National Post reports.&nbsp;

Stephen Harper&#39;s critics claimed it was an effort to &quot;muzzle&quot; scientists whose research was likely to undermine the government&#39;s position on climate change and on&nbsp;developing Alberta&#39;s tar sands.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada says it has arrived at tentative agreements involving more than 18,000 public servants, according to the National Post.

(WION)

Canada's last Conservative administration was accused of 'muzzling' scientists likely to diverge from their position on climate change

Canadian scientists will be allowed to share their research with the media without first being designated official spokesmen, after the union representing public servants reached a tentative contract agreement, the National Post reports. Under the previous Conservative government, led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, scientists who worked around climate change were forbidden from speaking to journalists about their work amid vast funding cuts, the National Post reports. Stephen Harper's critics claimed it was an effort to "muzzle" scientists whose research was likely to undermine the government's position on climate change and on developing Alberta's tar sands. The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada says it has arrived at tentative agreements involving more than 18,000 public servants, according to the National Post. (WION)

Canadian scientists, formerly 'muzzled', to be allowed to talk to media

Apple Inc has&nbsp;invested in China&#39;s largest wind-turbine maker Goldwind Science &amp; Technology Co Ltd, according to Mashable.

Apple has invested in four Chinese companies owned by Beijing Tianrun New Energy Investment, a subsidiary of Goldwind, Mashable reports.

The deal marks Apple&#39;s largest clean energy project, according to Lisa Jackson, vice-president of environment, policy and social initiatives at Apple.

The investment &quot;will add 285 megawatts of clean energy to China&#39;s grid as part of Apple&#39;s commitment to reducing the carbon emissions from its manufacturing&quot;, Jackson told China Daily.

The subsidiaries are located in Henan, Shandong, Shanxi and Yunnan provinces, according to China Daily.

Apple now assumes 30 per cent of equity in these four subsidiaries.&nbsp;

In September, Apple had committed to use more renewable energy at its third-party suppliers.&nbsp;

The announcement further concretes Apple&rsquo;s intention of reducing its reliance on non-renewable energy sources.

(WION)

Apple has invested in four Chinese companies owned by Beijing Tianrun New Energy Investment, a subsidiary of Goldwind

Apple Inc has invested in China's largest wind-turbine maker Goldwind Science & Technology Co Ltd, according to Mashable. Apple has invested in four Chinese companies owned by Beijing Tianrun New Energy Investment, a subsidiary of Goldwind, Mashable reports. The deal marks Apple's largest clean energy project, according to Lisa Jackson, vice-president of environment, policy and social initiatives at Apple. The investment "will add 285 megawatts of clean energy to China's grid as part of Apple's commitment to reducing the carbon emissions from its manufacturing", Jackson told China Daily. The subsidiaries are located in Henan, Shandong, Shanxi and Yunnan provinces, according to China Daily. Apple now assumes 30 per cent of equity in these four subsidiaries. In September, Apple had committed to use more renewable energy at its third-party suppliers. The announcement further concretes Apple’s intention of reducing its reliance on non-renewable energy sources. (WION)

Apple invests in China's largest wind turbine maker

US President-elect Donald Trump will name Oklahoma attorney general Scott Pruitt, a climate change sceptic, as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), news agency Reuters reports.

Pruitt has said the science on climate change is &quot;<a href="http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/3-things-scott-pruitt-actually-said-climate-change/">far from settled</a>&quot;.&nbsp;Pruitt&nbsp;is an ardent opponent of President Barack Obama&#39;s measures to curb climate change. He, along with fellow state attorneys general, sued the EPA over the EPA&rsquo;s recently announced regulations seeking to curtail the emissions of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, from the oil and gas sector,&nbsp;the Washington Post reports.&nbsp;

In an interview with Reuters in September, Pruitt said he sees the Clean Power Plan, a key part of meeting US obligations under the Paris Climate Agreement, as a form of federal &quot;coercion and commandeering&quot; of energy policy and that his state should have &quot;sovereignty to make decisions for its own markets&quot;.

The Washington Post characterised him as an &quot;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/12/07/trump-names-scott-pruitt-oklahoma-attorney-general-suing-epa-on-climate-change-to-head-the-epa/?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_ee-epa-310pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&amp;utm_term=.52740c9dede9">ally&nbsp;of the energy industry</a>&quot; as&nbsp;he, along with Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange, defended ExxonMobil when it was being investigated for failing to disclose material information about climate change.

The news of the appointment was confirmed by a member of Trump&rsquo;s transition team, according to Reuters.

During his election campaign, Trump vowed to pull the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement, saying that&nbsp;it would put American businesses at a competitive disadvantage.

Heather Zichal, a former deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate change under Obama, said Trump&#39;s choice was alarming.

&quot;You can meet with Al Gore on Monday, pledge to keep Teddy Roosevelt&#39;s environmental legacy alive on Tuesday, but if you nominate the Clean Power Act&#39;s leading opponent to head the EPA on Wednesday, you&#39;re making an unequivocal statement about the direction of your leadership,&quot; Reuters quoted her as saying.&nbsp;

Vermont Senator and Democratic candidate for the presidency Bernie Sanders&nbsp;called Trump&#39;s pick to run the EPA &quot;sad and dangerous&quot;.

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Trump&#39;s nominee to lead EPA, Scott Pruitt, is a climate denier who&#39;s worked closely with the fossil fuel industry. That&#39;s sad and dangerous.
&mdash; Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenSanders/status/806589902062284801">December 7, 2016</a></blockquote>
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(WION)

Scott Pruitt opposes President Barack Obama's climate change measures, and is currently suing the EPA, the group he may lead

US President-elect Donald Trump will name Oklahoma attorney general Scott Pruitt, a climate change sceptic, as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), news agency Reuters reports. Pruitt has said the science on climate change is "far from settled". Pruitt is an ardent opponent of President Barack Obama's measures to curb climate change. He, along with fellow state attorneys general, sued the EPA over the EPA’s recently announced regulations seeking to curtail the emissions of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, from the oil and gas sector, the Washington Post reports. In an interview with Reuters in September, Pruitt said he sees the Clean Power Plan, a key part of meeting US obligations under the Paris Climate Agreement, as a form of federal "coercion and commandeering" of energy policy and that his state should have "sovereignty to make decisions for its own markets". The Washington Post characterised him as an "ally of the energy industry" as he, along with Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange, defended ExxonMobil when it was being investigated for failing to disclose material information about climate change. The news of the appointment was confirmed by a member of Trump’s transition team, according to Reuters. During his election campaign, Trump vowed to pull the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement, saying that it would put American businesses at a competitive disadvantage. Heather Zichal, a former deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate change under Obama, said Trump's choice was alarming. "You can meet with Al Gore on Monday, pledge to keep Teddy Roosevelt's environmental legacy alive on Tuesday, but if you nominate the Clean Power Act's leading opponent to head the EPA on Wednesday, you're making an unequivocal statement about the direction of your leadership," Reuters quoted her as saying. Vermont Senator and Democratic candidate for the presidency Bernie Sanders called Trump's pick to run the EPA "sad and dangerous". Trump's nominee to lead EPA, Scott Pruitt, is a climate denier who's worked closely with the fossil fuel industry. That's sad and dangerous. — Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) December 7, 2016 × (WION)

Trump to name climate change sceptic to head environmental protection agency

A massive rift in the Antarctic Peninsula&#39;s Larsen C ice shelf has been spotted by NASA.

On November 10, scientists from NASA&rsquo;s IceBridge mission captured an image of the 70-mile-long crack.

According to NASA, the crack is more than 300 feet wide and about a third of a mile deep.

Once the crack completely cuts through the ice shelf, it will produce an iceberg roughly the size of the state of Delaware in the United States, according to Ice Bridge.

Larsen C is Antarctica&#39;s fourth-largest ice shelf, and it holds back the land-based glaciers just behind it, according to science news website Live Science.

(WION)

Scientists from NASA?s IceBridge mission captured an image of the crack in the Antarctic Peninsula's Larsen C ice shelf back on November 10

A massive rift in the Antarctic Peninsula's Larsen C ice shelf has been spotted by NASA. On November 10, scientists from NASA’s IceBridge mission captured an image of the 70-mile-long crack. According to NASA, the crack is more than 300 feet wide and about a third of a mile deep. Once the crack completely cuts through the ice shelf, it will produce an iceberg roughly the size of the state of Delaware in the United States, according to Ice Bridge. Larsen C is Antarctica's fourth-largest ice shelf, and it holds back the land-based glaciers just behind it, according to science news website Live Science. (WION)

NASA spots 70-mile-long ice rift in Antartica

India&rsquo;s eastern city of Kolkata has been honoured with the Best Cities of 2016 award at the C40 Mayors Summit held in Mexico city, news agency Press Trust of India reports.

Kolkata received the award for the inspiring and innovative programme called Kolkata Solid Waste Management Project.

The project has achieved 60-80 per cent (depending on site) segregation of waste at its source, with further waste segregation occurring at transfer stations.

Along with Kolkata, 10 other cities from across the world have been honoured with the award.

Kolkata is the only Indian city to receive the prestigious award.

&quot;In our country, only Kolkata metropolitan has got this award,&quot; Dilip Yadav, chairman of the Uttarpara Municipality, told PTI over the&nbsp;phone from Mexico City after receiving the prestigious award.

&quot;This motivates us for more performance for the sustainability of this project,&quot; he said.

&quot;Our motto is the&nbsp;participation of the common people. Being chairman, I have visited 50,000 house and have made our people aware of&nbsp;the benefits of solid waste management,&quot; Yadav added.

Onkar Singh-Meena, Secretary Municipal Affairs and CEO of Kolkata Municipal Development Authority told PTI the project involved a 100 per cent door to door collection of solid waste, segregation and recycling by way of compositing which is sold in the market.

&quot;One significant aspect of this project is that ragpickers are part of it,&quot; he said.

Other cities that won the award are Addis Adaba, Copenhagen, Curitiba, Sydney and Melbourne, Paris, Portland, Seoul Shenzhen, and Yokohama.

(WION with inputs from PTI)

Kolkata received the award in recognition of the inspiring and innovative programme on solid waste management

India’s eastern city of Kolkata has been honoured with the Best Cities of 2016 award at the C40 Mayors Summit held in Mexico city, news agency Press Trust of India reports. Kolkata received the award for the inspiring and innovative programme called Kolkata Solid Waste Management Project. The project has achieved 60-80 per cent (depending on site) segregation of waste at its source, with further waste segregation occurring at transfer stations. Along with Kolkata, 10 other cities from across the world have been honoured with the award. Kolkata is the only Indian city to receive the prestigious award. "In our country, only Kolkata metropolitan has got this award," Dilip Yadav, chairman of the Uttarpara Municipality, told PTI over the phone from Mexico City after receiving the prestigious award. "This motivates us for more performance for the sustainability of this project," he said. "Our motto is the participation of the common people. Being chairman, I have visited 50,000 house and have made our people aware of the benefits of solid waste management," Yadav added. Onkar Singh-Meena, Secretary Municipal Affairs and CEO of Kolkata Municipal Development Authority told PTI the project involved a 100 per cent door to door collection of solid waste, segregation and recycling by way of compositing which is sold in the market. "One significant aspect of this project is that ragpickers are part of it," he said. Other cities that won the award are Addis Adaba, Copenhagen, Curitiba, Sydney and Melbourne, Paris, Portland, Seoul Shenzhen, and Yokohama. (WION with inputs from PTI)

India: Kolkata receives Best Cities award for tackling climate change

A German court will on Thursday hear a complaint by a Peruvian farmer who accuses energy giant RWE of contributing to the climate change that has caused glacial melting in the Andes, threatening his home and livelihood.

Saul Luciano Lliuya argues that RWE, as a major historic emitter of greenhouse gases, should share in the cost of protecting his hometown Huaraz from a nearby glacial lake that is at risk of overflowing from melting snow and ice.

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<h5>Germanwatch, a pressure group advising Luciano, said the case was the first of its kind in Europe and could set a legal precedent</h5>
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Luciano, who is also a mountain guide, filed the landmark lawsuit a year ago but Thursday&#39;s hearing at the regional court in Essen, where RWE is based, will mark the first time the two sides will come face to face.

Germanwatch, a pressure group advising Luciano, said the case was the first of its kind in Europe and could set a legal precedent.

&quot;The big contributors to climate change, such as RWE, must finally take responsibility for the consequences of their emissions,&quot; Luciano was quoted as saying in a statement on the Germanwatch website.

&quot;We in Peru have hardly contributed to climate change but have to live with the worst consequences.&quot;

But Germany&#39;s second-largest energy producer said it expected the judges to throw out the case.

&quot;We consider the complaint to be unfounded. There is no legal basis for the applicant&#39;s request,&quot; RWE spokesman Guido Steffen told AFP.

Luciano&#39;s German lawyer, Roda Verheyen, however claims that RWE is the &quot;top single-greatest CO2-emitter in Europe&quot; and says that according to a 2013 climate study it was responsible for 0.5 percent of the total emissions &quot;since the beginning of industrialisation&quot; -- making it at least partly responsible for Luciano&#39;s plight.

According to a court summary of the case, Luciano, who will be in Essen for the hearing, is asking RWE for 17,000 euros ($18,000) to help pay for flood defences for his community. He is also asking RWE to reimburse him for 6,300 euros he himself has spent on protective measures.

RWE has countered that the plaintiff has failed to demonstrate a clear link between CO2 emissions and the alleged flood danger, and that the act of emitting greenhouse gases was not against the law.

Court spokesman Johannes Hidding said judges could rule on the claim&#39;s admissibility as early as Thursday, or they could ask for more information and schedule further hearings before making a decision.

&#39;World belongs to all&#39; 
Luciano, a father of two, told AFP last year that he had spent his whole life watching climate change breaking the Andes glaciers apart.

&quot;Someone caused this,&quot; he said. &quot;It&#39;s not right to remain silent. The world belongs to all of us, not just the polluters.&quot;

His community in Peru&#39;s northern Ancash region believes that at the Palcacocha lake, there is a risk of massive flooding from ice chunks that could break off from surrounding glaciers and crash into the water, requiring a new drainage system and a reinforcement of the lake&#39;s dams.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) said in a 2014 report that the lake is so swollen it has become a permanent threat.

RWE spokesman Steffen said the firm did not understand why it had been singled out for legal action.

&quot;We are making a huge contribution to the modernisation of coal-fired power plants in Germany&quot; to make them more efficient and reduce the output of CO2, he told AFP.

At the same time RWE was &quot;investing billions in renewable energy&quot;, he said, as part of Germany&#39;s switch from fossil fuels to clean energy such as wind, solar, biomass and hydroelectric power.

(AFP)

Saul Luciano accuses energy giant RWE of contributing to the climate change that has caused glacial melting in the Andes

A German court will on Thursday hear a complaint by a Peruvian farmer who accuses energy giant RWE of contributing to the climate change that has caused glacial melting in the Andes, threatening his home and livelihood. Saul Luciano Lliuya argues that RWE, as a major historic emitter of greenhouse gases, should share in the cost of protecting his hometown Huaraz from a nearby glacial lake that is at risk of overflowing from melting snow and ice. Germanwatch, a pressure group advising Luciano, said the case was the first of its kind in Europe and could set a legal precedent × Luciano, who is also a mountain guide, filed the landmark lawsuit a year ago but Thursday's hearing at the regional court in Essen, where RWE is based, will mark the first time the two sides will come face to face. Germanwatch, a pressure group advising Luciano, said the case was the first of its kind in Europe and could set a legal precedent. "The big contributors to climate change, such as RWE, must finally take responsibility for the consequences of their emissions," Luciano was quoted as saying in a statement on the Germanwatch website. "We in Peru have hardly contributed to climate change but have to live with the worst consequences." But Germany's second-largest energy producer said it expected the judges to throw out the case. "We consider the complaint to be unfounded. There is no legal basis for the applicant's request," RWE spokesman Guido Steffen told AFP. Luciano's German lawyer, Roda Verheyen, however claims that RWE is the "top single-greatest CO2-emitter in Europe" and says that according to a 2013 climate study it was responsible for 0.5 percent of the total emissions "since the beginning of industrialisation" -- making it at least partly responsible for Luciano's plight. According to a court summary of the case, Luciano, who will be in Essen for the hearing, is asking RWE for 17,000 euros ($18,000) to help pay for flood defences for his community. He is also asking RWE to reimburse him for 6,300 euros he himself has spent on protective measures. RWE has countered that the plaintiff has failed to demonstrate a clear link between CO2 emissions and the alleged flood danger, and that the act of emitting greenhouse gases was not against the law. Court spokesman Johannes Hidding said judges could rule on the claim's admissibility as early as Thursday, or they could ask for more information and schedule further hearings before making a decision. 'World belongs to all' Luciano, a father of two, told AFP last year that he had spent his whole life watching climate change breaking the Andes glaciers apart. "Someone caused this," he said. "It's not right to remain silent. The world belongs to all of us, not just the polluters." His community in Peru's northern Ancash region believes that at the Palcacocha lake, there is a risk of massive flooding from ice chunks that could break off from surrounding glaciers and crash into the water, requiring a new drainage system and a reinforcement of the lake's dams. The US Agency for International Development (USAID) said in a 2014 report that the lake is so swollen it has become a permanent threat. RWE spokesman Steffen said the firm did not understand why it had been singled out for legal action. "We are making a huge contribution to the modernisation of coal-fired power plants in Germany" to make them more efficient and reduce the output of CO2, he told AFP. At the same time RWE was "investing billions in renewable energy", he said, as part of Germany's switch from fossil fuels to clean energy such as wind, solar, biomass and hydroelectric power. (AFP)

Peruvian farmer sues German energy giant over climate change

Nearly 200 nations agreed around midnight on Friday to work out the rules for a landmark 2015 global deal to tackle climate change within two years in a new sign of international support for a pact opposed by US&nbsp;President-elect Donald Trump.

At the end of two-week talks on global warming in Marrakesh, which were extended an extra day, many nations appealed to Trump, who has called climate change a hoax, to reconsider his threat to tear up the Paris Agreement for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

Showing determination to keep the Paris Agreement on track, the conference agreed to work out a rule book at the latest by December 2018.

A rule book is needed because the Paris Agreement left many details vague, such as how countries will report and monitor their national pledges to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

Two years may sounds like a long time, but it took four to work out detailed rules for the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement&#39;s predecessor, which obliged only developed countries to cut their emissions. Paris requires commitments by all.

The final text also urged rich nations to keep building towards a goal of providing $100 billion a year in climate finance for developing countries by 2020.

Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar told a news conference that Marrakesh had been the start of turning promises made in Paris into action.

&quot;We will continue on the path,&quot; he said, urging Trump to join other nations in acting to limit emissions.

Fiji&#39;s Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, who will host next year&#39;s climate meeting in Germany, invited Trump to drop his scepticism about climate change and visit the South Pacific nation to see the effects of stronger storms and rising seas.

Trump plans to favour fossil fuels over renewable energies and has threatened to halt any U.S. taxpayer funds for U.N. climate programmes.

On Thursday, governments reaffirmed their commitment to &quot;full implementation&quot; of the Paris accord which seeks to phase out greenhouse gas emissions this century and to limit a global average rise in temperature to &quot;well below&quot; 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit).

&quot;Not one country has said that if President Trump pulls the United States out of Paris, they will follow him,&quot; said Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Environmental groups said the outcome in Marrakesh was a step in the right direction, but many issues needed to be resolved over the next two years, including funds for developing nations.

&quot;Rich countries have been trying to wriggle out of their pledges to help poorer countries meet the costs of coping with impacts and greening their economies,&quot; said Harjeet Singh at ActionAid.

Also on Friday, a group of 48 developing countries most at risk from climate change said they would strive to make their energy production 100 percent renewable &quot;as rapidly as possible&quot;, as part of efforts to limit global warming.

(Reuters)

Many nations appealed to Trump, who has called climate change a hoax, to reconsider his threat to tear up the Paris Agreement

Nearly 200 nations agreed around midnight on Friday to work out the rules for a landmark 2015 global deal to tackle climate change within two years in a new sign of international support for a pact opposed by US President-elect Donald Trump. At the end of two-week talks on global warming in Marrakesh, which were extended an extra day, many nations appealed to Trump, who has called climate change a hoax, to reconsider his threat to tear up the Paris Agreement for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Showing determination to keep the Paris Agreement on track, the conference agreed to work out a rule book at the latest by December 2018. A rule book is needed because the Paris Agreement left many details vague, such as how countries will report and monitor their national pledges to curb greenhouse gas emissions. Two years may sounds like a long time, but it took four to work out detailed rules for the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement's predecessor, which obliged only developed countries to cut their emissions. Paris requires commitments by all. The final text also urged rich nations to keep building towards a goal of providing $100 billion a year in climate finance for developing countries by 2020. Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar told a news conference that Marrakesh had been the start of turning promises made in Paris into action. "We will continue on the path," he said, urging Trump to join other nations in acting to limit emissions. Fiji's Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, who will host next year's climate meeting in Germany, invited Trump to drop his scepticism about climate change and visit the South Pacific nation to see the effects of stronger storms and rising seas. Trump plans to favour fossil fuels over renewable energies and has threatened to halt any U.S. taxpayer funds for U.N. climate programmes. On Thursday, governments reaffirmed their commitment to "full implementation" of the Paris accord which seeks to phase out greenhouse gas emissions this century and to limit a global average rise in temperature to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). "Not one country has said that if President Trump pulls the United States out of Paris, they will follow him," said Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists. Environmental groups said the outcome in Marrakesh was a step in the right direction, but many issues needed to be resolved over the next two years, including funds for developing nations. "Rich countries have been trying to wriggle out of their pledges to help poorer countries meet the costs of coping with impacts and greening their economies," said Harjeet Singh at ActionAid. Also on Friday, a group of 48 developing countries most at risk from climate change said they would strive to make their energy production 100 percent renewable "as rapidly as possible", as part of efforts to limit global warming. (Reuters)

Under Trump shadow, climate talks set 2018 as deadline to agree rules

The earth is on track for its warmest year on record after October temperatures equalled the third-warmest for the month ever, a US&nbsp;government agency said on Thursday.

October globally was 1.31 Fahrenheit (0.73 Celsius) above the 20th century average of 57.1 F (13.9 C) and tying it with 2003 as the third warmest October on record, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said in a statement.

For the year through October, the average global temperature was 1.75 F (0.97 C) above average, topping the record set in 2015 by 0.18 F (0.1 C).

&quot;With only two months left in the year, the globe remains on track to be one of the warmest years, if not the warmest, in the 122-year record,&quot; the agency said.

It said temperatures had begun to fall because of the La Nina weather pattern. It is characterised by unusually cold temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.

Among standouts last month, Alaska and Finland had the driest Octobers on record. Africa also notched the second-warmest October, behind the record set in 2015.

The US&nbsp;weather agency&#39;s report comes as negotiators meet in Morocco to hammer out the fine points of the historic 2015 Paris accord aimed at staving off climate change.

Almost 200 nations reaffirmed support for the deal on Thursday. The talks which have been overshadowed by worries that US&nbsp;President-elect Donald Trump, who has called climate change a hoax, would pull out of the accord.

NOAA said the average Arctic sea ice area for October was 28.5 per cent below the 1981&ndash;2010 average, the smallest extent of ice for the month since records began in 1979.

The world&#39;s averaged sea surface temperature was the second warmest on record for October, and the warmest on record for the year to date, according to the NOAA.

(Reuters)

For the year through October, the average global temperature was 1.75 F above average, topping the record set in 2015 by 0.18 F

The earth is on track for its warmest year on record after October temperatures equalled the third-warmest for the month ever, a US government agency said on Thursday. October globally was 1.31 Fahrenheit (0.73 Celsius) above the 20th century average of 57.1 F (13.9 C) and tying it with 2003 as the third warmest October on record, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said in a statement. For the year through October, the average global temperature was 1.75 F (0.97 C) above average, topping the record set in 2015 by 0.18 F (0.1 C). "With only two months left in the year, the globe remains on track to be one of the warmest years, if not the warmest, in the 122-year record," the agency said. It said temperatures had begun to fall because of the La Nina weather pattern. It is characterised by unusually cold temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Among standouts last month, Alaska and Finland had the driest Octobers on record. Africa also notched the second-warmest October, behind the record set in 2015. The US weather agency's report comes as negotiators meet in Morocco to hammer out the fine points of the historic 2015 Paris accord aimed at staving off climate change. Almost 200 nations reaffirmed support for the deal on Thursday. The talks which have been overshadowed by worries that US President-elect Donald Trump, who has called climate change a hoax, would pull out of the accord. NOAA said the average Arctic sea ice area for October was 28.5 per cent below the 1981–2010 average, the smallest extent of ice for the month since records began in 1979. The world's averaged sea surface temperature was the second warmest on record for October, and the warmest on record for the year to date, according to the NOAA. (Reuters)

Earth heading for hottest year on record

Joining more than 100 other countries to combat climate change, Britain ratified the Paris Agreement on Thursday, promising to deliver on its commitments to create a safer, more prosperous future.&nbsp;

UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson signed the Agreement in Morocco as the countries met for the latest round of United Nations climate talks. There focus is on the implementation of the treaty by the end of the year.&nbsp;

The Paris Agreement had come into force on November 4 when more than 55 countries ratified the deal to control global greenhouse gas emissions and limit global temperature rises to &quot;well below&quot; 2 degrees Celsius.&nbsp;

But individual member states of the European Union had to get parliamentary approval for the ratification in their own countries. &quot;The Paris Agreement has completed the 21 day sitting period before parliament and the Instrument of Ratification has been signed by the foreign secretary,&quot; the foreign ministry said in statement.

After US President-elect Donald Trump threatened to &quot;cancel&quot; the hard-fought deal to limit global warming, the countries said this ratification and the comments by China, France and others should be viewed as a &quot;warning that any reneging on the agreement would make the US a global environmental pariah&quot;.

Speaking at the UN climate conference in Marrakesh, US Secretary of State John Kerry underlined the perils that await the world if leaders drag their feet on cutting planet-warming greenhouse gases. &quot;At some point even the strongest sceptic has to acknowledge that something disturbing is happening,&quot; Kerry told delegates on Wednesday.

Chief adviser on climate at WWF-UK, Stephen Cornelius said, &quot;It has never been more important for the world to stand together on climate change and the UK joining the Paris Agreement is a welcome signal.&quot;

ClientEarth said: &quot;The UK&rsquo;s ratification of the Paris Agreement is a welcome sign that the world is forging ahead with climate action.

(WION with inputs from agencies)

Britain's foreign secretary signed the deal to limit global greenhouse gas emissions in Morocco after UK Parliament's clearance

Joining more than 100 other countries to combat climate change, Britain ratified the Paris Agreement on Thursday, promising to deliver on its commitments to create a safer, more prosperous future. UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson signed the Agreement in Morocco as the countries met for the latest round of United Nations climate talks. There focus is on the implementation of the treaty by the end of the year. The Paris Agreement had come into force on November 4 when more than 55 countries ratified the deal to control global greenhouse gas emissions and limit global temperature rises to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius. But individual member states of the European Union had to get parliamentary approval for the ratification in their own countries. "The Paris Agreement has completed the 21 day sitting period before parliament and the Instrument of Ratification has been signed by the foreign secretary," the foreign ministry said in statement. After US President-elect Donald Trump threatened to "cancel" the hard-fought deal to limit global warming, the countries said this ratification and the comments by China, France and others should be viewed as a "warning that any reneging on the agreement would make the US a global environmental pariah". Speaking at the UN climate conference in Marrakesh, US Secretary of State John Kerry underlined the perils that await the world if leaders drag their feet on cutting planet-warming greenhouse gases. "At some point even the strongest sceptic has to acknowledge that something disturbing is happening," Kerry told delegates on Wednesday. Chief adviser on climate at WWF-UK, Stephen Cornelius said, "It has never been more important for the world to stand together on climate change and the UK joining the Paris Agreement is a welcome signal." ClientEarth said: "The UK’s ratification of the Paris Agreement is a welcome sign that the world is forging ahead with climate action. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Britain ratifies Paris Agreement to combat climate change

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