Wow!: No land, no problem – Netherlands innovates to lead EU solar drive
The Netherlands, Europe’s solar panel leader, is finding innovative places to site solar projects on limited land. KAROLIN SCHAPS, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports…
Explainer – Why did past targets to protect nature fail over the last decade?
Montreal, Canada Reuters This month’s UN biodiversity talks in Montreal aim to hammer out a new, global agreement. But this isn’t the first time governments have tried to halt environmental loss through agreed targets. In fact, many of the 24 conservation targets under discussion now aim to avoid past mistakes and improve on the world’s […]
Future global treaty on plastics must cut production to ease pollution, some states say
Washington DC, USReuters Countries have begun to discuss a future global plastics treaty which would cut pollution, some hope entirely by 2040, at UN talks in Uruguay this week, with many states calling for curbs on plastic production as a way to reach that goal. United Nations members agreed in March on a resolution to […]
“Every breath you take”: Air pollution stifles Europe’s health targets
Reuters Air quality in Europe is improving but still poses high risks, the European Environment Agency said on Thursday, as fine particles exposure led to at least 238,000 premature deaths in the 27-nation EU in 2020. “Air pollution is still the largest environmental health risk in Europe,” the EEA said. “While emissions of key air […]
Polluters must pay, says UN chief, urges taxes to help climate victims
United NationsReuters UN chief Antonio Guterres on Tuesday urged rich countries to tax windfall profits of fossil fuel companies and use that money to help countries harmed by the climate crisis and people who are struggling with rising food and energy prices. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the 77th Session of the United Nations […]
Postcards: First Bangladesh city climate plan targets industrial-hub pollution
MD TAHMID ZAMI, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports on how Narayanganj city, south of Dhaka, which manufactures cement, lime, steel, bricks and knitwear, is aiming to clean up its air and water in a bid to go green and protect residents…
Slovakia scrambles to stem polluted water that turned Slana River orange
Nizna Slana, Slovakia/Sajopuspoki, Hungary Reuters Polluted water flowing from an iron ore mine in eastern Slovakia has turned the Slana River orange, killing fish and wildlife on a long stretch before it reaches Hungary in what is fast developing into an ecological disaster. Slovak authorities say they are taking steps to reduce the amount of […]
Pollution killing nine million people a year, Africa hardest hit – study
Reuters Worsening outdoor air pollution and toxic lead poisoning have kept global deaths from environmental contamination at an estimated nine million per year since 2015 – countering modest progress made in tackling pollution elsewhere, a team of scientists reported Tuesday. Air pollution from industry processes along with urbanisation drove a seven per cent increase in […]
Pollution causing more deaths than COVID, action needed, says UN expert
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Pollution by states and companies is contributing to more deaths globally than COVID-19, a UN environmental report published on Tuesday said, calling for “immediate and ambitious action” to ban some toxic chemicals. The report said pollution from pesticides, plastics and electronic waste is causing widespread human rights violations and at least nine million […]
Environmental threats are biggest challenge to human rights – UN
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters The UN rights chief said the “triple planetary crises” of climate change, pollution and nature loss represented the biggest threat to human rights globally at the opening on Monday of a month-long session set to prioritise environmental issues. “As these environmental threats intensify, they will constitute the single greatest challenge to human rights […]