Climate Change News—November 30, 2015 | Newsletter

On November 25, President Obama pardoned National Thanksgiving Turkey Abe. Image courtesy of the White House.

US Federal Agencies to Cut Greenhouse Gases By Nearly Half

On November 23, the White House announced that federal agencies will cut greenhouse gas emissions 41.8 percent from 2008 levels by 2025, saving $18 billion in energy costs. This new target is even more ambitious than the March 2015 target for 40 percent reductions from 2008 levels by 2025. Federal agencies are also putting out Strategic Sustainability Performance Plans, to outline how they are cutting carbon emissions, waste and energy use to save taxpayer dollars. The White House also announced winners of the 2015 GreenGov Presidential Awards for agency projects, teams, facilities, and programs, as well as civilian and military personnel, that “exemplify” the Federal commitments to cut emissions.

For more information see:

The White House, Reuters

World Bank Announces $16 Billion in Funding for Climate Projects in Africa

On November 24, the World Bank announced in a press call that it would be putting $16 billion toward climate adaptation projects in African communities, to help offset climate impacts such as more frequent drought and increasing incidence of malaria. The funds, called the African Climate Business Plan, will safeguard water, land, cities and people. The proposed projects will be presented during the United Nations climate negotiations in Paris that begin November 30. “Any African leader will tell you they’ve had very little role putting the carbon in the air, but they’ve suffered most from the impact of climate change,” said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.

For more information see:

Bloomberg Business

Alberta to Introduce Carbon Tax and Methane Reductions

On November 22, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley announced a plan to implement an economy-wide carbon tax, to start at $20 a metric ton in 2017 and increase to $30 per metric ton by 2018. The plan will cap emissions from oil sands at 100 megatonnes, giving the industry some room to grow from its current 70 megatonnes annual emissions level. The plan also calls for the phase-out of coal-fired power plants by 2030 and the reduction of methane emissions from oil and gas operations by 45 percent from 2014 levels by 2025. “This is the day we stop denying there is an issue. And this is the day we do our part,” said Rachel Notley. Oil sands producers, including the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, as well as environmental groups, positively received the plan. Revenues will be invested in sustainable initiatives.

For more information see:

The Star, Marketwired, Global News, Calgary Herald

Major Cities in Britain Pledge to Be 100% Renewable by 2050

On November 23, Labor party council leaders from more than 50 British cities, including Edinburgh, Liverpool and Manchester, pledged to source the cities’ electricity from 100 percent renewable energy by 2050. If this goal is fully realized, the United Kingdom’s carbon footprint would shrink 10 percent. “We are taking action to show a completely clean energy future is both viable and within reach within the course of a generation,” said Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester city council. Lisa Nandy, Shadow Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, coordinated the pledge.

For more information see:

The Guardian, BusinessGreen

Over 2,000 Academics Call for Ambitious International Climate Agreement

On November 23, over 2,000 academics from more than 80 countries sent an open letter petitioning world leaders to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius instead of the established two degrees Celsius target. With current climate pledges submitted ahead of Paris climate negotiations, the world would warm about 2.7-3 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by 2100. “This is profoundly shocking, given that any sacrifice involved in making those reductions is far overshadowed by the catastrophes we are likely to face if we do not,” the letter says. The letter, organized by Global Climate Change Week, was launched September 27 and will continue accepting signatures until November 29. Signatories include Noam Chomsky and Naomi Oreskes.

For more information see:

The Guardian, Global Climate Change Week

Some of World’s Largest Food Companies Call for Ambitious Climate Agreement

On November 24, the chief executive officers of Coca-Cola, The Hain Celestial Group Inc., Hershey’s and PepsiCo signed onto a letter asking governments to achieve an ambitious international agreement on climate change at the United Nations climate negotiations this year in Paris. The letter, originally released October 1, has ten other signatories, including the CEOs of General Mills, Unilever, Kellogg Company, Nestle USA, Mars Incorporated and Dannon USA. “These businesses see both climate impacts in their supply chains and the long-term financial benefits of GHG-reducing efforts,” commented Mindy Lubber, the president of Ceres.

For more information see:

Press Release, Letter

Unilever Pledges to Become Carbon Positive by 2030

On November 26, Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, pledged to completely stop using coal power over the next five years, and source all of its energy from renewables by 2030. The company plans to produce more renewable energy than it needs, allowing it to sell the surplus and be “carbon positive.” It currently sources 40 percent of its power from renewable energy. Unilever chairman Paul Polman said the target was “do-able, really do-able,” and that he hoped other businesses would come forward with similar pledges.

For more information see:

The Guardian, Business Green

Bloomberg Says Private Sector Is Responsible for Most Emissions Cuts

On November 23, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg made comments at a Council on Foreign Relations conference saying that government has made little progress to alleviate climate change, and that the private sector has done much more. “Greenhouse gases in the United States have gone down 20 percent in the last few years,” said Bloomberg. “Why? Because the private sector financed the campaign, ‘Beyond Coal,’ and we’ve closed 200 of the 500 coal-fired power plants in this country. No thanks to the federal or state governments.”

For more information see:

Capital New York

Extreme Weather Linked to More than 600,000 Deaths in Last 20 Years

On November 23, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) released report findings that more than 600,000 people died and 4.1 billion were injured, displaced or in need of emergency assistance, due to weather-related disasters from 1995 to 2015. The report also warns that the frequency of extreme weather events will increase due to climate change. The authors found that the disasters cost at least $1.9 trillion in damages, noting that 29 percent of total economic damages remain unaccounted for. The United States had the highest number of weather-related disasters during the period, followed by China, India, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Margareta Wahlström, head of UNISDR, commented that an international agreement on climate would be a “significant contribution to reducing damage and loss from disasters.”

For more information see:

The New York Times, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Yale Paper Reveals Corporate Financing Behind Climate Denial

On November 23, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a study linking corporate money to doubts about the science behind climate change. Study author Justin Farrell, a sociologist at Yale, examined the published works of 164 groups and 4,500 individuals on climate change from 1993 to 2013 to find that groups receiving consistent corporate funding were more likely to deny climate science. "They were writing things that were different from the contrarian organizations that did not receive corporate funding," said Farrell. “This counter-movement produced messages aimed at the very least at creating ideological polarization . . . and at the very most, at overtly refuting current scientific consensus.”

For more information see:

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Phys.org, The Washington Post

Taxing Meat for Climate Change Could Be Popular Strategy, Study Says

On November 24, the Chatham House and Glasgow University released a new study that found in 12 countries surveyed the population would accept restrictions on meat consumption to alleviate climate change. Meat production is responsible for 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to the total exhaust emissions of every vehicle in the world. The report recommends that governments put a tax on meat, increase vegetarian meals at publicly funded institutions, or cut livestock subsidies, to address these emissions.

For more information see:

The Guardian, Study