Countries agree to deal at COP28 climate summit

COP28 president Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber speaks during the Transforming Food Systems in the Face of Climate Change event on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit at Dubai Expo on December 1, 2023. Ludovic Marin | Afp | Getty Images Government ministers representing nearly 200 countries on Wednesday agreed to a deal that calls … Read more

Anger and frustration as COP28 draft text omits fossil fuel phaseout

COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber speaks to the media at the U.N. climate conference on Dec. 10, 2023 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty Images DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The draft text for a COP28 climate deal that does not include the phasing out of fossil fuels has … Read more

China’s emissions targets not robust enough, U.S. energy chief says

China’s current emissions reduction targets are not as strong as they need to be, U.S. Deputy Secretary for Energy David Turk said Monday. “I think every country needs to take a look at what it’s doing, especially in its implementation phase,” Turk told CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick at the COP28 summit. “I’ve looked at the numbers for … Read more

Bill Gates warns the world is likely to overshoot 2 degrees of warming

Bill Gates arrives for a press conference to launch the Global Polio Eradication Initiative at the European Commission’s Berlaymont headquarters in Brussels on October 11, 2023. Simon Wohlfahrt | Afp | Getty Images Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES — Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates on Friday said the world is likely to overshoot a critical temperature threshold … Read more

Coal power, traffic, waste burning a toxic smog cocktail in Indonesia’s Jakarta

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Against the backdrop of smokestacks from a nearby coal power plant, the sky above Edy Suryana’s village stays grey for months at a time, while ashes and the stench of smoke hang in the air. Suryana has spent more than three decades living in the shadow of the power plant in northern … Read more

First long-haul flight fully powered by sustainable aviation fuel takes off

Flight100, Virgin Atlantic’s world first 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) transatlantic flight by a commercial airline is fuelled ahead of its take off from London Heathrow to New York JFK on Tuesday 28 November 2023. PA Media Assignments | Virgin Atlantic LONDON — The first trans-Atlantic flight using 100% sustainable aviation fuel departed London for … Read more

Coal use needs to be cut faster to meet emissions target, analysis

A coal-fired power plant in Indonesia. Aditya Aji | AFP | Getty Images Efforts to restrict global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius are failing “across the board” — and major shifts will be required to create meaningful change, according to a new report, including a much faster move away from using coal to generate electricity. … Read more

Nations gather in Nairobi to hammer out treaty on plastic pollution

NAIROBI, Kenya — Efforts to create a landmark treaty to end global plastic pollution are advancing Monday in Nairobi as most of the world’s nations, plus petrochemical companies, environmentalists and others affected by the pollution gather to discuss draft language for the first time. It’s the third gathering in a compressed five-meeting schedule intended to … Read more

Delhi Plans to Unleash Cloud Seeding in Its Battle Against Deadly Smog

India’s capital, New Delhi, is preparing a new weapon in the fight against deadly air pollution: cloud seeding. The experiment, which could take place as early as next week, would introduce chemicals like silver iodide into a cloudy sky to create rain and, it’s hoped, wash away the fine particulate matter hovering over one of … Read more

Millions of Indians set new world record celebrating Diwali

LUCKNOW, India — Millions of Indians celebrated Diwali on Sunday with a Guinness World Record number of bright earthen oil lamps as concerns about air pollution soared in the South Asian country. Across the country, dazzling multi-colored lights decked homes and streets as devotees celebrated the annual Hindu festival of light symbolizing the victory of … Read more