Desertification

US Supreme Court Deals Blow to Climate Action: Ruling Limits Administration’s Ability to Restrict Carbon Emissions from Power Plants

By Krista Shennum | – Fellow, Environment and Human Rights | – ( Human Rights Watch) – In a significant setback for climate action, the United States Supreme Court ruled yesterday to limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to restrict greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. The ruling prevents the EPA from using its […]

Australia

Australia’s “Greenslide” Shows the Political Dangers for Conservatives of Downplaying Climate Emergency

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who had headed the conservative Liberal-National Coalition since 2018, has been turned out of office, and the climate emergency played a key role in his defeat. Morrison’s rival, victorious Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese, proclaimed that Australia could become a “renewable energy superpower.” He […]

Climate Crisis

California to test solar Panels over irrigation Canals to save Water, boost Electricity Output

Cronkite News Arizona PBS

By Anna Campbell and Karen Marroquin | – ( Cronkite News ) – TURLOCK, Calif. – As the most persistent drought conditions on record continue to grip the Southwest, a pilot project in California’s lush Central Valley looks to save water and increase energy efficiency. The Turlock Irrigation District, the California Department of Water Resources […]

Climate Crisis

Climate Emergency: 2022 Drought in Western US the Harbinger of a hotter, thirstier Atmosphere

The Conversation

By Imtiaz Rangwala, University of Colorado Boulder | – Much of the western U.S. has been in the grip of an unrelenting drought since early 2020. The dryness has coincided with record-breaking wildfires, intense and long-lasting heat waves, low stream flows and dwindling water supplies in reservoirs that millions of people across the region rely […]

Climate Crisis

The Iraqi Dust Bowl: The US Invaded for its Oil, but now Climate Change from burning Fossil Fuels is Smothering the Country

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Some Middle East countries profit off oil and gas, but the very source of their prosperity is threatening their future, since burning these fossil fuels causes global heating, and you wouldn’t want the Middle East to be hotter than it already is. But it will be. The very oil that […]

Climate Crisis

Stressed by Drought and Pests, Trees in Southwest are losing Resilience to changing Climate

Cronkite News Arizona PBS

By Fiona L.Q. Flaherty | – ( Cronkite News ) – FLAGSTAFF – The electric blue sky frames a stand of ponderosa pines – their ramrod trunks picket the forest floor as sunlight floods the ground. A breeze tickles the green needles, mingling dust with the heady scent of pine. At first, it’s easy to […]

Climate Crisis

The Southwest’s Drought and Fires Are a Window to Our Climate Change Future

ProPublica

By Mark Olalde | – ( ProPublica ) – The concentration of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere has reached its highest level in recorded human history. Again. In April, the level of CO2 was 27% higher than it was 50 years ago, according to the latest data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and […]

Climate Crisis

Desertification and Land Degradation now Affects 50% of World’s Population, Economy: UN

China Dialogue

By Catherine Early | – ( China Dialogue ) – A “crisis footing” is needed to conserve, restore and use land sustainably, according to a major report that warns of food supply disruptions, forced migration and rapid biodiversity loss. Unless countries scale up action, there will also be a higher risk of zoonotic diseases like […]

Climate Crisis

Climate Crisis: Hoover Dam’s Lake Mead, Water and Electricity Source for West, May become a Dead Pool

The Conversation

By Robert Glennon, University of Arizona | – Journalists reporting on the status and future of the Colorado River are increasingly using the phrase “dead pool.” It sounds ominous. And it is. Dead pool occurs when water in a reservoir drops so low that it can’t flow downstream from the dam. The biggest concerns are […]