UN Declares ‘Ocean Emergency’

 

The Guardian: UN head declares ‘ocean emergency’ as global leaders gather in Lisbon 

António Guterres says the world must turn the tide of rising sea levels, ocean heating, acidification and plastics pollution 

The UN secretary general has declared that the world is in the middle of an “ocean emergency”, and urged governments to do more to restore ocean health.

Speaking at the opening of the UN ocean conference in Lisbon, Portugal, attended by global leaders and heads of state from 20 countries, António Guterres said: “Sadly, we have taken the ocean for granted and today we face what I would call an ocean emergency. 

We must turn the tide.” Guterres said the “egoism” of some nations was hampering efforts to agree a long-awaited treaty to protect the world’s oceans.  

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The 5 top ocean polluters are listed in the above graph. 

UN Declares ‘Ocean Emergency’  

World Faces An "Ocean Emergency": UN Chief -- AFP  

World faces ‘ocean emergency’, UN warns, as activists urge action -- Al Jazeera  

Guterres outlines four recommendations to help us all ‘Save Our Ocean’ -- UN News

World's Largest Polluter Won't Attend This Year's Major Climate Summit In Rome

Zero Hedge: COP-Out? World's Largest Polluter Won't Attend Climate Summit, Kerry Pessimistic On Progress  

Update: As if to confirm the shitshow we expected below, just two weeks before a crucial summit in Rome, Bloomberg reports that the world’s major economies are gridlocked in their efforts to agree concrete steps to tackle climate change. 

Preparatory talks between G-20 officials this week failed to end in an agreement to reduce coal subsidies and curb methane emissions. There wasn’t even a consensus on striving toward net-zero emissions and limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees from pre-industrial levels, according to three people familiar with the matter. 

 China and India, two of the world’s biggest emitters and largest coal users, have failed to submit updated climate pledges.

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: With China not showing up and India not submitting its updated climate pledges .... this summit, to put it bluntly, will be a waste of time. 

The energy crisis is also overshadowing and undermining the goals of this summit .... Europe's Energy Crisis Is A Warning Sign For America (Zero Hedge/Epoch times).

China’s Carbon Pollution Now Exceed All Developed Countries Combined

China (depicted in red) released a greater volume of greenhouse gases into Earth's atmosphere in 2019 that all of the world's developed nations put together, a study has found  

Daily Mail: China emitted more greenhouse gases in 2019 than all of the world's developed nations put together — exceeding 14 gigatons for the first time in TRIPLING of 1990s levels 

* Researchers estimated the greenhouse gas emissions of 190 different nations 

* They considered gases including carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide

* China accounted for 27% of the world's 52 gigatons of CO2 equivalent emissions 

 * However, on a per capita basis, China emits just less than the OECD average 

 * Per person, the globe's worst emitter is the US, at 7.6 tons a head to China's 10.1

China released a greater volume of greenhouse gases into Earth's atmosphere in 2019 than all of the world's developed nations put together, a study has found. 

The eastern superpower has tripled its emission levels since the 1990s, crossing the 14 gigatons threshold for the first time ever in 2019. Emission estimates for 190 nations across the globe were calculated by experts from research firm Rhodium Group in tandem with Breakthrough Energy. 

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: The Rhodium Group's study is here .... China’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Exceeded the Developed World for the First Time in 2019.  

Update #1: I do not trust China's Covid stats, economic stats, and financial stats. It looks like I have to add their environmental/pollution stats also .... Chinese air pollution data was altered, statistical analysis suggests (New Scientists). More here .... China underreporting severity of air pollution levels, new study suggests (FOX News).  

Update #2: China is not going to do this .... China ‘must shut 600 coal-fired plants’ to hit climate target (The Guardian). 

More News On China’s Carbon Pollution Now Exceeding All Developed Countries Combined 

China’s carbon pollution now surpasses all developed countries combined -- Ars Technica  

China’s emissions exceed those of U.S. and developed countries combined, report says -- NBC  

China's annual emissions surpass those of all developed nations combined, report finds -- CNN  

China’s greenhouse gas emissions exceed those of U.S. and developed countries combined, report says -- CNBC  

China’s greenhouse gas emissions exceed total of US and developed countries, report finds -- The Independent

Discarded Gloves And Masks Are Becoming A Pollution And Health Problem

From Baghdad to Gaza, the disposable masks and gloves that remain in high demand to protect populations from the coronavirus pandemic are discarded after use, adding to pollution (AFP Photo/PATRICK BAZ)

AFP: Gloves and masks litter Middle East amid virus panic

Beirut (AFP) - While walking in Beirut during the coronavirus lockdown recently, Omar Frangieh was struck by the number of face masks and gloves littering the Lebanese capital.

The photographer, concerned that contaminated waste could itself transmit the disease, took 200 photos of discarded personal protective equipment and posted them in a Facebook album he titled "Invaders in Beirut".

From Baghdad to Gaza, the disposable masks and gloves that remain in high demand to protect populations from the coronavirus pandemic are discarded after use, adding to pollution.

"The major concern though is the fact that this protective equipment is turned into a health hazard by being littered all over Beirut streets," Frangieh told AFP.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: You do not have to go to the Middle East to see gloves and masks litter the ground. I live in Montreal, and on my last stay in the city I went to a store to pick up some groceries located in an area that is predominantly immigrant. Gloves and masks were on the ground everywhere. It all comes down to culture, and educating people that this is a stupid way to get rid of contaminated waste.

Should The Probelm Of Plastics In The Ocean Be On The G7 Agenda?

Marine debris and plastic pollution are shown along the coastline of Haiti in a handout photo. (Timothy Townsend/The Canadian Press)

CBC: What's on Canada's agenda at the G7 - and will anyone want to talk about it?

The leaders have a to-do list, but tensions over Trump's policies threaten to sweep it off the table.

There is an official agenda for this week's Group of Seven summit in Charlevoix, Que. — though it may be a struggle to get the leaders to stick to it.

There are going to be so many sources of pent-up tension between U.S. President Donald Trump and the other leaders in the room, and so little time to air them. Trump will be on the ground in Canada for only 28 hours.

Governments hosting Group of Seven summits typically select themes that are as non-controversial as possible, and then couch them in vanilla language that everyone can get behind. Canada in 2018 is no exception — the Charlevoix agenda runs to five key themes:

* Investing in growth that works for everyone;
* Preparing for the jobs of the future;
* Advancing gender equality and women's empowerment;
* Working together on climate change, oceans and clean energy; and
* Building a more peaceful and secure world.

Read more ....

Update: Why Canada must push for a G7 plastics charter (John Coyne, The Globe and Mail)

WNU Editor: When it comes to plastic the problem is not the G7 .... so here’s some “awareness” .... it’s not our plastic .... Shocking photos show the horrible effects of pollution (NYPost).

Report: Pollution Kills Nine Million People A Year

DW: Pollution killing more people than war and violence, says report

Pollution kills more people each year than wars, disasters and hunger, also causing huge economic damage, a study says. Almost half the total deaths occur in just two countries.

Pollution killing more people than war and violence, says report

Pollution kills more people each year than wars, disasters and hunger, also causing huge economic damage, a study says. Almost half the total deaths occur in just two countries.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The report is here .... The Lancet Commission on pollution and health (The Lancet)

More News On Reports That Pollution Kills Nine Million People A Year

Study finds pollution is deadlier than war, disaster, hunger -- AP
Study: Pollution kills 9 million a year, costs $4.6 trillion -- Seattle Times
Global pollution kills 9m a year and threatens 'survival of human societies' -- The Guardian
Pollution linked to one in six deaths -- BBC
Global pollution is the world's biggest killer and a threat to survival of mankind, study finds -- USA TODAY
World pollution kills more people annually than wars, disasters, hunger -- ABC News Online
India tops global pollution deaths of 9 million a year - study -- Reuters
Pollution killed 9mn people in a year, 2.5mn in India – study -- RT
Countries with the highest pollution deaths, mortality rates -- AP

WHO Report: 90% Of The World’s Population Breathe Bad Air

New York Times: More Than 9 in 10 People Breathe Bad Air, W.H.O. Study Says

HONG KONG — The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that 92 percent of people breathe what it classifies as unhealthy air, in another sign that atmospheric pollution is a significant threat to global public health.

A new report, the W.H.O.’s most comprehensive analysis so far of outdoor air quality worldwide, also said that about three million deaths a year — mostly from cardiovascular, pulmonary and other noncommunicable diseases — were linked to outdoor air pollution. Nearly two-thirds of those deaths are in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific region, compared with 333,000 in Europe and the Americas, the report said.

“When you look out through the windows in your house or apartment, you don’t see the tiny little particles that are suspended in the air, so the usual perception is that the air is clean,” Rajasekhar Balasubramanian, an air quality expert at the National University of Singapore who was not involved in the study, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: This issue is far more important to me than global warming, and it is one of the many reasons why I love living in Canada. The smell of the air in this country is fantastic .... and it does impact your health. When I travel to China or Russia and/or other places .... groan .... the air pollution is the first thing that I always notice. Water .... or should I say .... bad water .... is the second thing. On a side note .... China is the worst offender .... China tops WHO list for deadly outdoor air pollution (The Guardian). This is sad. When I was living in China in the 1980s the country did have a pollution problem .... but the air was breathable and acid rain was non-existent. Today .... the smog. The acid rain. And don't even talk about the water.

More News On The WHO Report Claiming That 90% Of The World’s Population Breathe Bad Air

Vast majority of world – 6.76 billion people – living with excessive air pollution – UN report -- UN News Centre
Polluted air affects 92% of global population, says WHO -- BBC
Pollution crisis as World Health Organization warns over 90% of the world is breathing bad air -- AFP
Air Pollution Exceeds WHO Limits for 92 Percent of World's People -- NBC
WHO: 9 out of 10 people breathing excessive air pollution -- CBS/AP
WHO: Nine of 10 people breathe bad air -- DW
WHO: Entire global population exposed to too much air pollution -- UPI
Health of more than 90% of world’s population affected by air pollution ‘emergency’, WHO says -- The Independent
WHO: 90 percent of world's population breathe dirty air -- Al Jazeera
Air Pollution Behind 1 In 9 Deaths Worldwide, WHO Report Says -- IBTimes

Is California Facing An Environment Disaster?

Washington Post: New infrared video reveals growing environmental disaster in L.A. gas leak

A runaway natural gas leak from a storage facility in the hills above Los Angeles is shaping up as a significant ecological disaster, state officials and experts say, with more than 150 million pounds of methane pouring into the atmosphere so far and no immediate end in sight.

The rupture within a massive underground containment system — first detected more than two months ago — is venting gas at a rate of up to 110,000 pounds per hour, California officials confirm. The leak already has forced evacuations of nearby neighborhoods, and officials say pollutants released in the accident could have long-term consequences far beyond the region.

Newly obtained infrared video captures a plume of gas — invisible to the naked eye — spouting from a hilltop in the Aliso Canyon area above Burbank, like smoke billowing from a volcano. Besides being an explosive hazard, the methane being released is a powerful greenhouse gas, more potent than carbon dioxide in trapping heat in the lower atmosphere.

Update: 'Unprecedented' gas leak in California is the climate disaster version of BP's oil spill (Mashable)

WNU Editor: Zero Hedge's explanation on why this news story is important and why we should be concerned is spot on .... "Unstoppable" California Gas Leak Now Being Called Worst Catastrophe Since BP Spill (Zero Hedge).

WHO Report: One In Eight People Around The World Die From Air Pollution

People wearing masks are seen on a hazy day at Tiananmen Square in Beijing February 13, 2014. Kim Kyung Hoon—REUTERS

Millions Die Every Year From Air Pollution -- Voice of America

GENEVA — The World Health Organization reports air pollution is now the world’s largest single environmental health risk. A new report finds seven million people died from exposure to air pollution in 2012, more than double the number previously estimated in 2008.

Air pollution is a global problem; the World Health Organization reports one in eight people around the world die from air pollution.

It says new data show people exposed to indoor and outdoor air pollution die prematurely from cardiovascular diseases, such as strokes and ischaemic heart disease, as well as chronic pulmonary diseases and cancer.

Read more ....

More News On The WHO Report That Claims That Seven Million People Die Globally Each Year From Pollution

WHO: Pollution kills 7 million people every year -- Washington Post/AP
Polluted air linked to 7 million deaths in 2012 - WHO -- Reuters
Tainted Air Kills More Than AIDS, Diabetes, WHO Report Shows -- Bloomberg
Air pollution killed seven million people in 2012: WHO -- The Telegraph
WHO Report: Air Pollution Killed 7 Million People in 2012 -- Time
Air Pollution Kills 7 Million a Year, WHO Says -- NBC