Hello again. Another week, and as always, there’s plenty going on on the climate front. Thanks to those of you that’ve sent in stories to me - I really appreciate it - whilst I try to gather from as many sources as possible, I inevitably miss things, so pointers to interesting events are always good!
State of the Climate
This week’s CO2 levels are at 410.56 ppm, as levels start to decrease steadily from the yearly maximum around May. The NOAA this week released the latest of their ‘State of the Climate’ reports, which showed that 2018 was the fourth warmest year since records began in the 1800s, despite a La Niña event, which has a cooling effect on the climate.
Visualisation of the Week
This week’s graph is from the National Snow and Ice Data Center, via Kees van der Leun, and shows Arctic sea ice extent this year so far, versus that in the 80s, 90s and 2000s. Not only is the increase from 2000s to this year alarming, but also the increase in sea ice loss from the 90s to the 2000s versus the previous 10 years.
Climate Disasters
Ice...
Whilst the heatwave in Europe is largely over, the damage to the Arctic is continuing. Alaska recorded its warmest month ever in July, averaging 14.5°C. The state has seen extensive wildfires and an ice-free coastline - there is no sea ice within 150 miles of Alaskan shores. Satellite records only go back 40 years, but the loss is unprecedented in that time. That warmer climate has lead to lightning being recorded within 300 miles of the North Pole. This is extremely rare - normally the stabilising effect of the polar sea ice means that thunderstorms cannot form in the region. The smoke from Arctic wildfires is now estimated to cover an area larger than the entire EU.
Some of the figures from the heatwave’s effect on both Europe and Greenland are starting to trickle in. Greenland in particular lost 12.5 billion tons of ice in a single day, and over the whole of July was estimated to have lost 97 billion tons. Greenland’s citizens, unsurprisingly, are extremely worried, with over 75% having experienced the effects of climate change in their daily lives. Meanwhile, in Switzerland, preliminary estimates suggest that Switzerland’s glaciers lost 800 billion tons of ice over 14 days in the heatwave. It’s hard to give context to these numbers, but they are enough to cause measurable rises in global sea level.
..and Water
Further south, the issue is not ice, but water, with Saudi Arabia estimated to have only 13 years of groundwater left. India is already suffering similar problems, with huge population growth straining and polluting groundwater supplies, but there is no doubt climate change is exacerbating the issue. Over 600 million Indians face acute water shortages, and there are 200,000 deaths a year from contaminated water. An estimated ¼ of the world’s population are at risk of running out of water, with 17 countries under water stress. By 2030, it’s thought that nearly half a billion people could suffer extremely high water stress, with associated implications for public health and social unrest.
Capitalism and Climate Change
Capitalism doesn’t have the best rep amongst environmentalists, with a number of people calling for ‘de-growth’. Indeed, environmentalism is often associated with the left, bringing associations of socialism and state control rather than our current market-dominated society. I’m not going to argue the pros and cons of left versus right - whilst an important debate, it’s best left to a more political or economic missive than this to settle. However, the role that capitalism plays in causing or countering climate change is important.
Andrew McAfee, a scientist at MIT, has just published a new book arguing that capitalism is in fact the cure to climate change. His thesis is that developed, rich nations are able to decouple growth from climate impacts, showing how US GDP has risen despite falling use of metals, stone, cement and more. Whilst there is some merit to his argument, it’s worth pointing out that US emissions continue to climb, and much of the lower-level industrial capacity has moved to countries like China, where the use of raw materials is anything but slowing.
There is another point here not directly addressed by the book, and that’s that we don’t have time to move away from a market-based economy. We have around 12 years to really tackle climate change, and if there’s a way forward that can harness the power of capitalism rather than fighting it, we should absolutely take that route. Already, we are seeing the markets starting to wake up to the risks of climate change, and the death of coal.
However, there are still far too many firms either ignoring climate change, or greenwashing. Take Amazon, long secretive on the emissions from its data centers and enormous logistics network. It recently announced Shipment Zero, where it aims to have 50% of all deliveries reach net zero emissions by 2030. It sounds wonderful, until you hear about how they specifically market their AWS compute services to oil companies, to enhance efficiency in extracting fossil fuels (see this excellent thread from a very concerned Amazon employee who found out about this earlier this year).
Individual Actions
Sometimes, it seems like there’s little we can do ourselves, but individual actions definitely add up. One key area is diet. By now, you may be aware that red meat is particularly emissions-intensive, but even cutting your meat intake in half can make a huge difference. Obviously, in a perfect world, we’d all go vegan, but aside from being a massive lifestyle change, it’s not practical for many people in many parts of the world. However, movements like ‘Meat-free Mondays’ are more than just window dressing - they normalise eating less meat, and highlight alternatives in a socially acceptable way. Many UK universities are shifting away from red meat in particular, with Goldsmiths banning beef from campus shops and cafes, whilst Cambridge University has not served beef or lamb since 2016. A study this week showed that if everyone in the US switched to a meat-free diet, it would save 280 million metric tons of CO2 - equivalent to 60 millions cars being taken off the road.
Transport is another area where individual actions are important. Less younger people are driving than ever, but particularly in the US, it can be hard to get around in car-centric cities where everything is spread out, and public transport is limited. However, e-bikes offer a good alternative - they allow more people to ride, and make trips of up to 5 miles possible for most people. A recent study showed that e-bike riders get more exercise than conventional cyclists, perhaps because they lower the barrier to entry so much more. Whilst the Netherlands and Denmark are renowned for high cycling rates, Germany is now planning to improve cycle infrastructure with a 62 mile bicycle highway system linking 10 cities.
Climate News
Fortum, a Finnish clean energy company, has achieved over 80% recyclability of EV batteries, versus the current average of 50%.
The FBI and state police are actively monitoring anti-pipeline protesters in the US, with some trying to describe the activists as domestic terrorists.
The latest IPCC report, covering food supply and land use, has been released. There’s too much to cover in full here, but I recommend Carbon Brief’s in-depth review.
Climate change is resulting in increased flight turbulence over the Atlantic.
The latest IRENA report highlights the growth of the renewable energy sector, which now employs 11 million people, with 3.6 million working on PV solar alone.
India’s #2 coal buyer is scaling back imports by at least a third over the next five years, partly due to increased domestic production, but also due to increasing use of renewables.
The chairman of the FC Shalke football club received a slap on the wrist after racist comments blaming climate change on Africa (for context, Germany emits more CO2 than the entire continent of Africa).
Endgame
That’s everything I have for you this week. If you made it this far, thanks for reading! If you have any feedback you’d like to share with me (or climate news stories!), do reach out - I’m still playing around with the format, trying to strike a balance between sharing important climate stories and adding flavour and context to the events of the week. And, as always, if you enjoyed this, please do subscribe - every fresh (virtual) face is inspiration to keep this going as long as I can.
Cheers, and see you next week!
Oli