Science Daily

April 26, 2022
Until now, measures to protect climate and biodiversity have often been developed in parallel. However, this is now considered outdated because many approaches can protect both climate and biodiversity. Scientists have now assessed the role of the potential future global biodiversity targets (Post-2020 Action Targets for 2030) for climate protection and found that about two thirds of these targets can also help to slow climate change.

When the global community is expected to meet for the second part of the UN Biodiversity Conference in Kunming, China, in autumn, it must also adopt the next generation of UN biodiversity targets. These will then replace the Aichi Targets that were aimed for until 2020 -- and have hardly been achieved. 21 "Post-2020 Action Targets for 2030" have already been pre-formulated. While they still have to be finally agreed, they aim to reduce potential threats to biodiversity, improve the well-being of humans, and implement tools and solutions for the conservation of biodiversity.

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Yale Environment 360

April 18, 2022
On the low-lying northern shore of the Indonesian island of Java, the sea has invaded a kilometer inland in places in recent years, engulfing whole communities and vast expanses of rice paddy. But villagers are fighting back against further advances by erecting brushwood barriers in the mud to help the natural regeneration of mangroves. 

This innovative nature-based response to rising sea levels and worsening storms, sponsored by the Indonesian government and the Dutch-based environmental group Wetlands International, could be scaled up across Asia. Within a decade it could be helping at least 10 million people in similar situations to protect and restore their denuded coastlines — all at a fraction of the cost of sea walls, says Jane Madgwick, CEO of Wetlands International. 

But it can do that only if local projects are developed and the financing secured. And so far, she says, progress has been slow. Lives, livelihoods, and coastlines are being lost as a result.

And so it goes.

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LA Times

March 7, 2022
In the latest United Nations report on climate change, scientists document the stark toll inflicted by global warming through more intense heat waves, droughts, floods and other disasters, and present a dire warning that humanity should act quickly to move away from fossil fuels and cut planet-heating emissions.

The report goes beyond past assessments not only by detailing the latest science but also by focusing on how the world, while reducing emissions, can better adapt to the accelerating effects of climate change to reduce risks and protect especially vulnerable people.

The report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC, stresses that the threats to people’s health, livelihoods and lives disproportionately affect those who lack resources to weather the blows. In pursuing climate solutions, the report’s authors say, there should be a focus on equity and justice, because the effects are exacerbating inequality and hitting especially hard for low-income people, marginalized communities and developing countries.

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Nation of Change

February 22, 2022
The reintroduction of gray wolves to Yellowstone National Park in 1995 triggered a cascade of knock-on effects. The wolves kept herbivores like elk in check and on the move, reducing their browsing pressure on young trees. As a result, groves of willow and aspen sprouted along watercourses, creating ideal conditions for a thriving beaver population. The busy beavers in turn engineered wetlands where a diversity of fish, songbirds and invertebrates flourished. In short, the return of the top predators transformed the U.S. national park into a biodiverse, fully functioning, carbon-sequestering ecosystem.

Now, a new study suggests that restoring just 20 large mammal species to their historic habitats could similarly revitalize ecosystems and boost biodiversity across almost one-quarter of the Earth’s land area.

The international team of researchers behind the study assessed global opportunities for the restoration, reintroduction and rewilding of intact large mammal assemblages across the world’s terrestrial ecoregions, geographic areas characterized by similar plant and animal communities. They published their results in the journal Ecography.

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European Commission

February 4, 2022

During an official visit to the United States this week, Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius deepened EU-US environmental cooperation ahead of upcoming multilateral processes and increased US awareness of key Green Deal priorities. These include climate action, deforestation, biodiversity protection and restoration, circular economy, critical materials and batteries, sustainable blue economy, international ocean governance, plastic pollution and green transition.

He held discussions in Washington DC and New York with a range of US counterparts from the US Administration and Congress, as well as multilateral organisations, reaching out to stakeholders including NGOs, representatives of business and financial sector, philanthropists and university students. In discussion with UN interlocutors, Commissioner focused on combined efforts in pressing areas under the environment and oceans agendas in the run up to the major global events, negotiations and processes taking place in 2022-2023.

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World Economic Forum

November 25, 2021
Throughout this past summer, wildfires ravaged forests from California to Siberia, devastating wildlife, and turning entire communities to dust. But as affected countries deal with the visible damage, the whole world will have to reckon with an unseen consequence for decades to come: a massive release of greenhouse gas.

It’s easy to forget that the ground beneath us contains far more than just dirt, even in some of Earth’s most rugged environments. All kinds of ecosystems — lush rainforest, muddy peatland, shady mangroves — contain eons of stored carbon, captured by photosynthesis. Worldwide, there are about 730 gigatons of manageable carbon locked away in nature; and if disturbed by fire, agriculture, or development, these stores can vanish, sending long-stored emissions right back into the air. As humanity works to prevent runaway climate change, this kind of unplanned expense could quietly bust our carbon budget.

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Pew

November 18, 2021
The role of nature to mitigate the impacts of a warming climate—and help wildlife, ecosystems, and people adapt and build resilience to those changes—was a core topic of attention at the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Glasgow, Scotland. The need for increased ambition, in part by protecting and restoring critical carbon sinks around the world, marked a significant call to action in the decade ahead. 

Successfully implementing the agreement—referred to as the Glasgow Climate Pact—will depend on governments moving fast and decisively to deliver on it, and doing so would put many nations on a path toward the net-zero-emissions goals they committed to by 2050 (some have pledged to hit this target by 2030). And although the outcome of the Glasgow summit promises an improvement on the anticipated emissions gap reported prior to the conference, the commitments secured at the conference will not be enough to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius—which science says is needed to stave off major impacts of climate change.

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Campaign for Nature

November 17, 2021
The prominence of nature and biodiversity in the Glasgow Climate Pact and throughout the climate talks marks the first time nature was meaningfully incorporated into global climate negotiations. 

The final Glasgow climate agreement notes the importance of: “ensuring the integrity of all ecosystems, including in forests, the ocean and the cryosphere, and the protection of biodiversity, recognized by some cultures as Mother Earth.” 

It goes on to emphasize: “the importance of protecting, conserving and restoring nature and ecosystems, including forests and other terrestrial and marine ecosystems, to achieve the Paris Agreement temperature goal by acting as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases and protecting biodiversity, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards.” 

Indigenous Peoples were recognized as important partners in designing and implementing climate solutions during negotiations.  And, according to the document, countries should respect, promote and consider their rights when climate action is taken. However, sufficient safeguards for Indigenous rights and recognition of Indigenous leadership  in “Nature-based solutions” were inadequate according to many Indigenous leaders who attended the COP.

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Landscape News

November 16, 2021
The 2021 U.N. Climate Change Summit (COP26) has ended, but many questions remain on the agreements reached by the 197 parties as well as the pledges made by governments.

The Glasgow Climate Pact aims to phase down unabated coal power and end inefficient fossil fuel subsidies, while more than 140 countries have now committed to ending deforestation by 2030.

The two-week event also ended the legal wrangling over Article 6 of the Paris Agreement after six years of discussions, thereby providing a framework for countries to exchange carbon credits through the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as a mechanism to reduce emissions.

Here, climate lawyer and policy advisor Stephen Leonard shares his views on these and other outcomes.

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BBC

November 15, 2021
COP26 was the moment countries revisited climate pledges made made under the 2015 Paris Agreement. 

Six years ago, countries were asked to make changes to keep global warming "well below" 2C - and to try to aim for 1.5C.

COP stands for "Conference of the Parties", and the one in Glasgow was the 26th annual summit. Ahead of it, 200 countries were asked for their plans to cut emissions by 2030. 

The goal is to keep cutting emissions until they reach net zero by mid-century.

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The Guardian Nigeria News

November 14, 2021
Covid-19 and climate change are two unprecedented challenges for all of us. While we now rightly focus on containing the virus, addressing the immediate health crisis and limiting the economic damages, we also need to start tracking our way out of the crisis towards recovery. We need to ensure that the recovery is based on the vast opportunities that green transition offers. 

Africa is home to a remarkable animal, plant, and marine biodiversity. The continent is rich in tropical forests, wetlands, deserts, savannah and montane grasslands, providing critical ecosystem services and serving as buffers to climate change. For example, mangrove swamps protect coastal societies in Eastern Africa from cyclones and tsunamis, while serving as homes for various species and a source of income for the local people. 

However, the region is experiencing a dramatic loss of biodiversity. Agricultural and other human expansion on land and in the sea, overexploitation of wildlife and spread of invasive alien species are some of the drivers for biodiversity loss, and so is climate change and pollution. Scientists have warned that by 2100, climate change alone could cause the loss of over half of mammal and bird species and trigger a 10-30 per cent decline in lake productivity.

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The Independent - OpEd

November 3, 2021
This year, we’ve had the starkest warnings yet of the terrifying future in store if we fail to keep global temperature rises within 1.5 degrees. With Cop26 now underway, we stand at a crossroads: either deliver a tangible trajectory towards addressing the climate emergency, or risk passing a point of no return.

Globally, Cop26 represents a significant moment for world leaders to take bold action on tackling climate change and action to help our natural world recover. Natural England, the Environment Agency and the Forestry Commission stand together to call for nature-based solutions to be prioritised. This will not only help us adapt society, so we are more resilient to climate disruption, it will also reduce emissions helping to reach net zero.

We cannot reach net zero or limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees without protecting and restoring our natural world. Through improving the way forests, grasslands, agriculture and other lands are managed, our research shows we can deliver up to 37 per cent of the emissions reductions that we need globally by 2030, while at the same time making contributions toward resilience and adaptation. We have a chance – and a responsibility – to use Cop26 to catalyse the change we need to reset our relationship with nature.

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BBC News

November 2, 2021
Brazil - where stretches of the Amazon rainforest have been cut down - was among the signatories on Tuesday.

The pledge includes almost £14bn ($19.2bn) of public and private funds.

Experts welcomed the move, but warned a previous deal in 2014 had "failed to slow deforestation at all" and commitments needed to be delivered on.

Felling trees contributes to climate change because it depletes forests that absorb vast amounts of the warming gas CO2.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is hosting the global meeting in Glasgow, said "more leaders than ever before" - a total of 110 - had made the "landmark" commitment.

"We have to stop the devastating loss of our forests," he said - and "end the role of humanity as nature's conqueror, and instead become nature's custodian".

The two-week summit in Glasgow is seen as crucial if climate change is to be brought under control.

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Reuters

November 2, 2021
Colombia will designate a further 16 million hectares (39.5 million acres) of its maritime areas as protected next year, eight years earlier than planned, President Ivan Duque said on Tuesday at the global COP26 climate conference in Glasgow. read moreThe plans envisage new conservation zones off Colombia's Pacific and Caribbean coasts.

The Andean country has already established maritime reserves across just over 12.4 million hectares of its seas and the protection of further areas forms part of plans to protect 30% of Colombia's land and sea area by 2030.

After bringing its target forward, Colombia will count just over 28 million hectares of its seas protected next year.

"In this way, we are reaffirming our commitment to ... protecting our oceans," Duque said in a statement.

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E&E News Greenwire

September 24, 2021
Americans have been draining wetlands for farming and development since Colonial times.

But climate change may reverse that tide — from destruction to restoration.

Federal scientists are studying whether heat-trapping carbon dioxide can be sucked out of the atmosphere and sequestered in restored salt marshes, sea grass beds and mangrove swamps. And those wetlands can in turn protect communities along the coast from rising seas and fierce, frequent climate-driven storms.

“The concept that’s forming is that what we need to do is massive-scale ecosystem restoration as soon as possible to begin absorbing as much carbon dioxide as we can and diminish the amount of overshoot that we have in atmospheric greenhouse gases this century,” said Kevin Kroeger, a research chemist at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center.

Across the Lower 48 states, wetlands hold at least 3.2 billion metric tons of CO2 equivalent, by one estimate — roughly half the country’s net total greenhouse gas emissions in 2019.

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