Climate Change

Land Absorbs Carbon Now—But It Could Emit It in Just a Few Decades

The Earth is saving our asses right now by sucking up a large hunk of humanity’s carbon pollution. But we may not be so lucky for much longer. A new study in Science Advances on Wednesday warns that turning up the planetary heat is weakening the biosphere’s ability to protect us. More worrisome still, it…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Jan 13

Climate Change Drove $75 Billion in Rainfall Damage Over the Past 30 Years

Extreme weather disasters are costing the country billions of dollars in damages each year. A new study from Stanford shows that over the past three decades, the U.S. has seen nearly $75 billion in damage from floods fueled by the climate crisis. The research, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Jan 12

Grasslands May Soon Produce More Greenhouse Gases Than They Sequester

The world’s grasslands are an essential carbon sink, and may even be more efficient at capturing atmospheric carbon than trees. But thanks to animal agriculture and fertilizer use, they’re now producing as much greenhouse gas pollution as they sequester, according to a new study published in Nature Communications on Tuesday. Grasslands themselves are exceptionally resilient to…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Jan 5

The Senate Agrees to a Plan to Phase Out a Dangerous Greenhouse Gas

“Bipartisan climate policy” is a unicorn of phrases when it comes to Congress, let alone “bipartisan climate policy instructing the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gases.” Yet on Monday, this mythical creature appeared after senators agreed to include a plan to phase down production and use of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, an extremely powerful greenhouse…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Dec 21

Some Tropical Forests in Brazil Are Already Releasing More Carbon Than They Absorb

For years, climate scientists have been sounding the alarm about the increasing likelihood that the Amazon rainforest, now one of the biggest absorbers of carbon in the world, could actually become a source of carbon within just 15 years. New research shows that for some other kinds of tropical forests nearby, that’s already happening. That’s…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Dec 18

The Climate Core of Joe Biden’s Cabinet Is Perfectly Fine

We now know the core group of people who will implement President-elect Joe Biden’s climate agenda. While Biden has promised an all-of-government approach (and he should certainly do that), the leaders of the agencies with the biggest say on climate and environmental rule making and R&D are set. They range from progressive champions like Rep.…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Dec 18

Buildings Are Becoming a Huge Source of Carbon Pollution

Carbon emissions from buildings reached an all-time high, according to a new United Nations report. In 2019, buildings were responsible for 9.95 gigatons of carbon—up from 9.7 gigatons in 2018—accounting for 38% of the world’s output of the planet-warming gas. The report, put out by the UN Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction on Wednesday,…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Dec 16

FEMA Wants to Cut Disaster Aid at the Worst Possible Time

The U.S. saw a horrific hurricane season, unprecedented wildfires, and a powerful derecho this year alone. A record-breaking 16 climate disasters caused at least $1 billion in damage each. And yet the Federal Emergency Management Agency is pursuing a plan that would cut disaster aid to certain states. On Monday, Trump’s FEMA proposed substantial changes…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Dec 14

New York State Just Set a New Standard for Fossil Fuel Divestment

After an eight-year fight to get New York to divest its $226 billion pension fund from fossil fuels, activists have won a major victory. On Wednesday, New York Comptroller Tom DiNapoli announced the state will take a systematic approach to ensure the third-largest pension fund in the U.S. divests from fossil fuels by 2025. But…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Dec 9

The Old Arctic Is Gone

Scientists have spent the past 15 years pulling together data about the Arctic into an annual report card. What’s become clear in the 15 iterations of the report is nothing will be the same for centuries to come, and the shifts are happening faster than anticipated. On Tuesday, researchers unveiled the latest edition of the…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Dec 8

California’s Hellish 2018 Wildfires Cost the U.S. Economy $148.5 Billion

Two years later, we’re still adding unfortunate superlatives to the 2018 California wildfire season. The latest is a new study that reveals the hidden toll of what—until this year—was the state’s most destructive fire season. The findings, published Monday in Nature Sustainability, show that the flames of 2018 roared throughout the U.S. economy, costing the…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Dec 7

Trump Taps Climate Denier to Pick National Medal of Science Winners

The president took a break from his grifty attempt to blow up democracy under a cloud of flatulence to do more damage in the job he has for another month and a half. The White House announced this week that President Donald Trump was appointing a climate denier to serve on the committee that chooses…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Dec 4

The Danger of Big Oil’s New Methane Emissions Pledge

On Monday, 62 oil majors that represent 30% of the world’s oil and gas production signed an international agreement to report methane emissions with a far higher level of transparency. The pledge, signed by the likes of BP, Shell, and Total, is a part of the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership 2.0, led by the…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Nov 23

Climate Scientists Debunk ‘Point of No Return’ Paper Everyone’s Freaking Out About

On Thursday, a new study came out warning that even if we stopped emitting carbon dioxide, the world has reached the “point of no return” for climate change. The paper claims that’s because Arctic permafrost—carbon-rich, permanently frozen earth made of rocks, water, and dead wildlife—is melting irreversibly, and it could continue to heat the planet…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Nov 13

The Biggest Climate Report in the U.S. Is Reportedly Being Led by a Climate Denier Now

The Trump administration has found yet another way to slow-release malignant stupidity into our future world. A climate-denying National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration climatologist known for cheering global warming’s ability to create enormous crabs has reportedly been tapped to lead the creation of the most important climate study the U.S. government produces. According to the…

Climate Change Andrew Couts Nov 12

Norway’s Supreme Court Will Hear an Arctic Drilling Case With Global Implications

Norwegian climate activists are taking their government to court over Arctic drilling. The case’s fate could have implications for climate litigation around the world. Organizations including Greenpeace Norway and Young Friends of the Earth Norway filed a complaint against the nation that seeks to invalidate its licenses for new oil exploration in the Arctic by…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Nov 5

For Sale: Oil Company Headquarters, Slightly Used

When you fall on hard times, you sometimes have to downsize. So it is with BP, which is in talks to sell its London headquarters because of massive financial losses. Multinational oil companies: They’re just like us. The company’s office is located in what the Wall Street Journal calls the “tony Mayfair section” of London…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Nov 5

Inside Environmentalists’ Final Efforts to Get Out the Vote

This election cycle, the climate crisis is on Americans’ minds. In an October poll from the New York Times and Siena College, 58% of people surveyed said they were “very concerned” or at least “somewhat concerned” about climate change, and potential voters in swing states expressed worry about its effects in their communities. Across the…

Climate Change Dharna Noor Nov 2

How a Biden Administration Could Fight Climate Change Without the Senate

Somewhere between a dream and nightmare is this scenario for Jan. 20, 2021: Joe Biden becomes president, while the Senate remains in Republican control. The latest election polls (I know, I know) at FiveThirtyEight give Biden an 89% chance of winning the White House and Democrats a 76% chance of gaining a slim majority in…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Oct 30

The Hummer EV Is the Last Thing We Need

Way back in the Before Times, during February’s Super Bowl, GMC hinted an electric Hummer was coming. Now, it’s here (for preorder). The company unveiled the Hummer EV on Tuesday with a commercial featuring Lebron James intoning that this truck is about “seeing the world not as it is but how it could be,” and…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Oct 21

Land Absorbs Carbon Now—But It Could Emit It in Just a Few Decades

Climate Change Drove $75 Billion in Rainfall Damage Over the Past 30 Years

Grasslands May Soon Produce More Greenhouse Gases Than They Sequester

The Senate Agrees to a Plan to Phase Out a Dangerous Greenhouse Gas

Some Tropical Forests in Brazil Are Already Releasing More Carbon Than They Absorb

The Climate Core of Joe Biden’s Cabinet Is Perfectly Fine

Buildings Are Becoming a Huge Source of Carbon Pollution

FEMA Wants to Cut Disaster Aid at the Worst Possible Time

New York State Just Set a New Standard for Fossil Fuel Divestment

The Old Arctic Is Gone

California’s Hellish 2018 Wildfires Cost the U.S. Economy $148.5 Billion

Trump Taps Climate Denier to Pick National Medal of Science Winners

The Danger of Big Oil’s New Methane Emissions Pledge

Climate Scientists Debunk ‘Point of No Return’ Paper Everyone’s Freaking Out About

The Biggest Climate Report in the U.S. Is Reportedly Being Led by a Climate Denier Now

Norway’s Supreme Court Will Hear an Arctic Drilling Case With Global Implications

For Sale: Oil Company Headquarters, Slightly Used

Inside Environmentalists’ Final Efforts to Get Out the Vote

How a Biden Administration Could Fight Climate Change Without the Senate

The Hummer EV Is the Last Thing We Need

First Statewide Data Center Ban Passed by Maine Legislature

FCC Exempts Netgear from Foreign-Made Router Ban for Some Reason

Jamie Dornan Is Your New Aragorn in ‘The Hunt for Gollum’

Trump’s Fed Pick Is Knee Deep in Tech and Crypto Investments

The First Trailer for ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ Takes Terror Stateside

The Trump Phone Still Looks Like Total Trash

‘Masters of the Universe’ Really, Really Wants to Be the Next ‘Barbie’

Samsung’s Micro RGB TVs Provide So Much Color It May Be Too Much

Sony Inzone H6 Air Review: A Perfect Case for Open-Back Gaming Headsets

Anker’s EufyMake E1 Finally Brings Printers Out of the Dark Ages

The Soundboks Mix Is Going to Make You the Most Popular Guy at the Park

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

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