Page 6 - Climate Change

Human induced climate change behind recent flooding disasters in Nepal

World Weather Attribution, an international collaboration, has underscored the urgent need for Nepal to limit development in low-lying, riverside areas of the cities and scale up early warning and prompt action to avoid repeat of flooding disasters. Climate change was responsible for the extreme three day downpours in Nepal about 10 percent more intense, concluded the organization in its recently published report. The flood and landslide triggered by heavy rain in Nepal in late September caused heavy loss to the country as it claimed at least 244 lives. The rainfall became 10 percent more intense by human-induced climate change, pointed out the report. Bursts of rainfall will become even more heavier, risking more destructive floods until the world replaces fossil fuels with renewable sources of energy, warned the organization. Reducing development in flood-prone areas of cities will help protect people in Nepal from future floods, according to the report. The explosive monsoon ...

India presses ahead with coal as China cuts permits ahead of COP29

Until two years back, it was the reverse: India was pushing renewables and freezing new coal projects while China was pressing the pedal on coal

Climate change could reduce Amazon's methane absorption by 70%: Study

Extreme temperatures and humidity driven by climate change could reduce the Amazon rainforest's capacity to absorb the greenhouse gas methane by 70 per cent, a study has found. Researchers said that under a warmer climate, the extreme rainfall and droughts projected for South America's Amazon could impact its net greenhouse gas emissions. Often referred to as the 'lungs of the planet', the tropical rainforest lies majorly in Brazil, with parts in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, among others, and is known to be a crucial 'greenhouse gas sink' that absorbs these gases from the air. However, 20 per cent of the Amazon region, which remains flooded for nearly half a year, releases methane, countering its ability to absorb other greenhouse gases, the researchers at the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil said. Their study is published in the journal Environmental Microbiome. Previous studies have shown that the flooded areas of Amazon contribute up to almost 30 per cent of methane emissions from ..

Water security: India must boost wastewater reuse to tackle insecurity

Given the climate risks, India needs to prepare to deal with them because water stress is only likely to worsen

How climate change contributes to dangers, influences paths of hurricanes

Scientists have linked high ocean temperatures to the rapid intensification of hurricanes- Milton's wind speed increased 95 miles per hour in a single day

Earth might warm by 2C or 5.5C, narrowing it would just be a distraction

Will the Earth warm by 2C or 5.5C? Either way it's bad, and trying to narrow it down may be a distraction

Sonam Wangchuk continues indefinite hunger strike at Delhi's Ladakh Bhawan

Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk on Tuesday continued his indefinite hunger strike at Delhi's Ladakh Bhawan along with his supporters and appealed that the Centre should resume talks on their demands. Wangchuk, who is spearheading an agitation for Ladakh's Sixth Schedule status, had started his fast on Sunday afternoon. According to the protesters, they have not been approached by any government representative so far. This is the third day of the fast... We still hope our leaders will give us time. Even now we are 25 people sitting on hunger strike, Wangchuk told PTI. We hope the talks with Apex Body (Leh) and KDA (Kargil Democratic Alliance) will be resumed, this is our request, he said. Wangchuk said the people of Ladakh have worked for India's security without a uniform or a salary. Such treatment to people who have come from the border area is not in the national interest. Whenever India is in trouble, faces a war, these are the people who work with the Army without uniform or

Antarctica turning green 'dramatically', trend accelerated over yrs: Study

Antarctica is turning green "dramatically", with the trend accelerated by more than 30 per cent in recent years, compared to the past three decades, a new study has found. Researchers found that vegetation cover across the Antarctic Peninsula increased more than tenfold -- from less than a square kilometre to almost 12 square kilometres -- between 1986 and 2021. The researchers, including those at the University of Exeter, UK, used satellite data to estimate the "greening" rate of the Antarctic Peninsula in response to climate change. "This recent acceleration in the rate of change in vegetation cover (2016-2021) coincides with a marked decrease in sea-ice extent in Antarctica over the same period," the authors wrote in the study published in the journal Nature Geoscience. The study provides evidence that a widespread greening trend, across the Antarctic Peninsula, is under way and accelerating, they said. Antarctica has been shown to be warming faster than the global average, wit

Antarctica's winter sea ice in 2024 was lowest ever, except for 2023

In the Antarctic, sea ice typically covers the largest expanse of ocean at some point in September

Data centre emissions witness growth: Is AI or climate change to blame?

Three of the biggest tech companies, Microsoft, Google and Meta, have reported ballooning greenhouse gas emissions since 2020

Why are Italy and Switzerland redrawing their border near Matterhorn Peak?

The boundary change, agreed upon by both Italy and Switzerland, affects the area under Matterhorn, one of the highest and most iconic peaks in the Alps

Tamil Nadu's auto manufacturing sector faces severe climate risks: CII

The risk assessment was carried out as part of CII's new framework, 'Building Climate Resilience for Indian Industry', which aims to help businesses identify and address climate-related threats

UK, home to world's first coal power plant, to close its last unit today

The UK will close its last coal power plant on Monday, marking a significant milestone in energy use amid global calls for adopting green energy to thwart the irreversible threat of climate change

PM Narendra Modi inaugurates three Param Rudra supercomputing systems

Says India has taken significant steps towards self-reliance in computing

Jaishankar meets UN Chief, discusses Pact for Future, climate action

Sharing a post on X, Jaishankar wrote, Always a pleasure to speak with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Decarbonisation key to firm profitability, India ahead of global average

Globally, only about 25 per cent of the companies reported annual decarbonisation benefits worth at least 7 per cent of sales

Deadly flooding in Central Europe made twice as likely by climate change

Human-caused climate change doubled the likelihood and intensified the heavy rains that led to devastating flooding in Central Europe earlier this month, a new flash study found. Torrential rain in mid-September from Storm Boris pummelled a large part of central Europe, including Romania, Poland, Czechia, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia and Germany, and caused widespread damage. The floods killed 24 people, damaged bridges, submerged cars, left towns without power and in need of significant infrastructure repairs. The severe four-day rainfall was by far the heaviest ever recorded in Central Europe and twice as likely because of warming from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas, World Weather Attribution, a collection of scientists that run rapid climate attribution studies, said on Wednesday from Europe. Climate change also made the rains between 7 per cent and 20 per cent more intense, the study found. Yet again, these floods highlight the devastating results of fossil fuel-driven .

Developing nations urge world's richest to do more on climate at UNGA

Leaders of small island states most at risk from rising sea levels said it was time for those countries that burn most of the fossil fuels blamed for rising temperatures to stop paying lip service

About 83% of Indian buyers will consider new energy vehicles by 2030: Study

Driven by the Centre's efforts, India's EV sector shows promise but challenges remain. At present, EV adoption in the country stands at 2% for passenger vehicles and 6% aross all categories

Here's why Nationally Determined Contributions are crucial in climate talks

Altogether, these reports help countries coordinate their climate policies action with one another