Climate and environment updates: UN issues vital warning on avoiding climate disaster
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(NEW YORK) — The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it’s happening right now and affecting what matters most to us. Hurricanes intensified by a warming planet and drought-fueled wildfires are destroying our communities. Rising seas and flooding are swallowing our homes. And record-breaking heatwaves are reshaping our way of life.
The good news is we know how to turn the tide and avoid the worst possible outcomes. However, understanding what needs to be done can be confusing due to a constant stream of climate updates, scientific findings, and critical decisions that are shaping our future.
That’s why the ABC News Climate and Weather Unit is cutting through the noise by curating what you need to know to keep the people and places you care about safe. We are dedicated to providing clarity amid the chaos, giving you the facts and insights necessary to navigate the climate realities of today — and tomorrow.
UN says it will take ‘a quantum leap in ambition’ to avoid climate disaster
The United Nations is calling out the world’s largest polluting nations for failing to take decisive action in their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions significantly. And they’re warning that it will require nothing short of “a quantum leap in ambition” if we are to avoid the worst-case global warming scenarios.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme’s Emissions Gap Report 2024, aptly titled, “No more hot air … please!” the world has made little progress in reversing the use of fossil fuels and faces twice as much warming as agreed to during the Paris Climate Agreement. The report finds that unless we significantly reduce our global emissions and do so quickly, the planet is headed toward a 3.1° C (5.6° F) increase in warming above pre-industrial levels by 2100.
The annual report looks at countries’ emission reduction promises and where we are in meeting those goals. The report said that despite the urgent need to reduce GHG emissions, global emissions actually set a new record in 2023, increasing by 1.3%.
However, the report made a point to emphasize that the majority of global emissions are coming from G20 countries, specifically China, the United States and India. Only the U.S. showed a slight reduction in emissions in 2023, down 1.4%. China and India saw an increase of 5.2% and 6.1% respectively. Both countries produce many of the products purchased and used by American consumers, and some experts say their emissions are our emissions.
In 2015, during a summit in Paris, the majority of the world’s governments agreed to work toward limiting global warming to 1.5° C (2.7° F). This new report said it would require a 42% cut in yearly GHG emissions by 2030 if we want to try to avoid surpassing that milestone.
World leaders will meet in Azerbaijan next month for the UN climate summit COP29 to work on meeting the goals first agreed to in Paris.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
Central Park and Philly could break no rain records
The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions are experiencing an unprecedented dry spell, raising concerns of fire danger.
Central Park in New York City is also facing an unusually dry October. The world-renowned landmark has seen zero rainfall this month. Since record-keeping began in 1869, there has never been a month in Central Park that didn’t have some rainfall. With no rain in the forecast through the end of the month, this could be a first.
Similarly, Philadelphia is on the brink of shattering its record for the longest period without rain, reaching 25 days as of Oct. 24. If the city doesn’t receive any precipitation by the end of Monday, Oct. 28, it will surpass an historic 29-day dry streak, the current record. Records go back to 1871.
As a result of these near-record dry conditions, fire danger levels have surged. Elevated warnings stretch from Massachusetts to Virginia, with humidity levels plummeting to around 30% and gusty winds of nearly 30 mph. New Jersey is particularly vulnerable, with most of the state under a Red Flag Warning, indicating a high threat of wildfires. The combination of low moisture and wind creates an environment ripe for the spread of any fire, making it crucial for residents to remain vigilant.
-ABC News meteorologists Max Golembo and Kenton Gewecke and ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
World’s coral in peril: Largest bleaching event in history is underway
A global coral bleaching event that began in Feb. 2023 is now the largest bleaching event on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The agency says nearly 77% of the world’s coral reef areas have experienced bleaching-level heat stress.
NOAA says the previous record, which occurred between 2014 and 2017, impacted 65.7% of the world’s reef area.
“We’ve eclipsed the previous record by 11.3% and did so in about half the amount of time,” said NOAA in a statement to ABC News. “This percentage is still increasing in size.”
The world’s oceans experienced record-breaking temperatures in 2024, and when the water is too warm, coral can expel the algae inside it, causing it to turn completely white. While bleaching doesn’t necessarily kill the coral, it can increase the likelihood of permanent damage or death.
This latest mass bleaching event marks the 4th global bleaching event since 1998 and the second since 2010. NOAA says each event has been more extensive than the last, with the current one setting a global record.
Since Feb. 2023, 74 countries and territories have been impacted by the mass coral bleaching event, affecting the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, according to NOAA.
Coral reefs are among the planet’s most diverse and valuable ecosystems. While they only cover 1% of our oceans, they provide a home to at least 25% of our marine life and significantly impact the global economy. Reefs attract millions of tourists and visitors, supporting local businesses and jobs.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser and Dan Manzo
Study finds biodiversity isn’t safe even in protected areas
In 2022, world leaders agreed to a landmark deal to protect the planet’s biodiversity at the UN Conference of Parties convention (COP15) in Montreal. Dubbed “30 by 30,” the historic agreement called for protecting 30% of the globe’s land and waters by 2030. As a result, many of the participating nations strengthened and expanded protected areas for plants and animals.
But, according to new research conducted by the National History Museum in London, biodiversity in these protected areas is declining faster than in non-protected areas. Using their own “Biodiversity Intactness Index,” which estimates how much of an area’s biological diversity is left in an area in response to human interventions, the Museum found that life in protected areas declined by around 2% compared to 1.8% globally.
The difference was even more significant in areas with the most critical ecosystems. Protected areas saw a loss of 2.12% compared to 1.91% overall.
The study’s authors don’t know for sure why there is this discrepancy but say it could be because many protected areas only focus on protecting a specific species. They also say many of the protected areas were already in trouble, and that’s why they were protected.
The team says we need to not only protect individual species but the land and ecosystem where they live. They are also calling for better monitoring of these critical areas.
The study comes while world leaders meet in Columbia for the UN’s COP16 Biodiversity Conference—a global effort to protect the planet’s biological diversity.
(LONDON) — At least nine people are dead and over 2,750 people were injured after pager devices owned by a large number of workers in various Hezbollah units and institutions exploded on Tuesday, according to Lebanese officials and the group.
Hezbollah blamed Israel for the attack and vowed it would respond. The apparent attack comes amid rising tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.
“We hold the Israeli enemy fully responsible for this criminal aggression, which also targeted civilians and led to the deaths of a number of martyrs and the injury of a large number with various wounds,” Hezbollah said in a statement. “This treacherous and criminal enemy will certainly receive his just punishment for this sinful aggression, whether he expects it or not.”
The dead and injured included people who are not members of Hezbollah, such as a 10-year-old girl killed in the eastern village of Saraain, according to Hezbollah-owned Al-Ahed News. Two Hezbollah members were also dead, the outlet reported.
“These explosions, the causes of which are still unknown, led to the martyrdom of a girl and two brothers, and the injury of a large number of people with various injuries,” Hezbollah said in a statement.
About 200 of the injuries are critical, meaning they needed surgery, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health. Most of the injuries were to the face, hand or abdomen, officials said.
The Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, was among those who had one of the pagers and was injured due to an explosion Tuesday, according to Iranian state TV.
Amani said in a phone call after the incident that he was “feeling well and fully conscious,” according to Iranian state TV.
The Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said it condemned the alleged Israeli attack and have begun preparing a complaint to the Security Council.
The Lebanese Council of Ministers collectively condemned “this criminal Israeli aggression, which constitutes a serious violation of Lebanese sovereignty and a crime by all standards,” adding that “the government immediately began making all necessary contacts with the countries concerned and the United Nations to place it before its responsibilities regarding this continuing crime.”
Hezbollah said it is conducting a “security and scientific investigation to determine the causes that led to these simultaneous explosions.”
There have also been high-level contacts between the U.S. and Israel prompted by Tuesday’s incidents in Lebanon, according to a U.S. official.
The U.S. said it had no role in the apparent attack on Hezbollah and no warning that it would happen, according to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller. He also declined to offer an assessment on who could be behind it, saying only that the administration was “gathering information” on the incident.
Miller wouldn’t say whether the administration had any information to doubt Hezbollah’s claim that Israel was behind the explosions and only said that he didn’t want to offer an assessment “one way or the other.” The Israeli government has declined to comment on the matter.
The White House also said it was not aware the attack was going to happen ahead of time and would not speculate on who was behind it, according to press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
This attack comes as U.S. diplomats have been working intensely to avoid escalation at Israel’s northern border and amid fears that a full-blown war between the country and Hezbollah, which sits on a vast trove of missiles, could engulf the entire region. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is, coincidentally, on his way to the region and scheduled to land in Egypt on Tuesday night.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke again on Tuesday after speaking on Monday.
The latest conversation was intended “to touch base regarding ongoing tensions in the Middle East and the threats facing Israel, to include the Houthi missile attack over the weekend,” according to Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder.
Ryder said America’s focus was to ensure tensions in the region do not escalate.
“We strongly believe that the way to reduce tension along the Israel-Lebanon border is diplomacy,” he said.
Iran and Hezbollah are likely to retaliate for the attack, but it could take them time to do so while they assess what happened, according to a U.S. official. The official also said 50 or more people were targeted in Syria in this attack.
The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health has issued a statement Tuesday instructing all hospitals in various regions of Lebanon to be on maximum alert and raise their level of readiness to meet the rapid need for emergency health services.
The ministry noted that preliminary information indicates “the injuries were related to the explosion of wireless devices that were in the possession of the injured.”
The ministry also asked all citizens who own pagers to throw them away immediately.
The Lebanese Red Cross said it has deployed “more than 30 ambulances” to help treat and evacuate “the wounded as a result of multiple explosions in the South, the Bekaa and the southern suburbs of Beirut,” according to a post on its official X account.
The group also added “50 more ambulances and 300 Emergency Medical Technicians [are] on standby to assist in the evacuation of victims.”
About 100 hospitals took in the wounded, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said.
Back in February, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had urged members to stop using mobile phones, saying, “I call for dispensing with cellphone devices at this stage, which are considered a deadly agent.”
ABC News’ Luis Martinez, Shannon K. Kingston and Anne Flaherty contributed to this report
(NEW YORK) — The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it’s happening right now and affecting what matters most to us. Hurricanes intensified by a warming planet and drought-fueled wildfires are destroying our communities. Rising seas and flooding are swallowing our homes. And record-breaking heatwaves are reshaping our way of life.
The good news is we know how to turn the tide and avoid the worst possible outcomes. However, understanding what needs to be done can be confusing due to a constant stream of climate updates, scientific findings, and critical decisions that are shaping our future.
That’s why the ABC News Climate and Weather Unit is cutting through the noise by curating what you need to know to keep the people and places you care about safe. We are dedicated to providing clarity amid the chaos, giving you the facts and insights necessary to navigate the climate realities of today — and tomorrow.
EPA says oil and gas companies have to pay up for excessive methane emissions
For the first time, high-emitting oil and gas facilities will have to pay a fee for emitting a potent greenhouse gas if those emissions exceed a certain level set by the U.S. Environmental Production Agency (EPA).
The new rule, finalized on Tuesday, was announced by John Podesta, the top U.S. climate representative at COP29, the annual U.N. climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The regulation would cap the amount of methane that certain oil and gas facilities could release into the atmosphere. The companies will be charged a fee for each metric ton of methane exceeding that limit, starting at $900 per metric ton, increasing to $1,200 in 2025 and $1,500 in 2026.
EPA administrator Michael S. Regan wrote in a statement, “EPA has been engaging with industry, states, and communities to reduce methane emissions so that natural gas ultimately makes it to consumers as usable fuel — instead of as a harmful greenhouse gas.”
He added, “Along with EPA’s complementary set of technology standards and historic financial and technical resources under the Inflation Reduction Act, today’s action ensures that America continues to lead in deploying technologies and innovations that lower our emissions.”
The EPA estimates the new rule will reduce methane emissions by 1.2 million metric tons through 2035. That’s the equivalent of taking 8 million gas-powered cars off the road for an entire year, according to the agency.
The EPA classifies methane as a “super pollutant” and says that over 100 years, one ton of methane released into the atmosphere “traps 28 times as much heat in the Earth system as one ton of emitted carbon dioxide.” On a 20-year time scale, it’s 84 times more potent, according to the European Union.
The EPA said the oil and natural gas industry is the largest industrial source of the greenhouse gas.
During a press call, David Waskow, director of international climate action at the World Resources Institute, said, “Large oil and gas companies actually supported the fee approach, and I think that they’re aiming to make sure that methane, which has been a sort of sore spot in the oil and gas industry, is cleaned up as a way of helping the reputation of the oil and gas industry.”
Waskow said that even if the incoming Trump administration tries to undo the regulation, he believes its support within the industry may help keep it in place.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
Global climate conference off to a challenging start
How much will it cost to fight climate change globally, and who should pay for it? That’s the primary issue facing delegates at the annual U.N. climate conference, COP29. Dubbed the “finance COP,” the two-week event began on Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan.
While representatives from nations worldwide will discuss various climate issues, finance is a key theme this year, namely how much external financing will be available to developing countries for their climate adaptation efforts and to compensate them for the damage and loss caused by climate change. Although wealthier countries generate the majority of greenhouse gas emissions, poorer nations are disproportionately impacted by the consequences of global warming.
Conference attendees and climate leaders will be watching closely the climate investment commitments made by various nations and private finance, and much of the discussion will revolve around who should be paying and how much they should be contributing.
The current target for international public and private financing is around $100 billion, but the U.N. estimates that it will take as much as $2.4 trillion by 2030 to meet climate goals, with $1 trillion coming from international sources.
It’s uncertain, however, how much each nation will contribute and where the money will go.
“For those poorest countries and particularly for adaptation, finance needs to be in grant and concessional form,” said Melanie Robinson, the global climate, economics and finance program director at the World Resources Institute.
One issue sure to be controversial is whether developing countries that can afford to contribute to the global effort should be added to the contributor base. Critics of that recommendation say the biggest emitters should be the most significant contributors.
U.N. Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell set the table for the talks during his opening address, focusing on what’s at stake.
“If at least two-thirds of the world’s nations cannot afford to cut emissions quickly, then every nation pays a brutal price,” said Stiell. “If nations can’t build resilience into supply chains, the entire global economy will be brought to its knees. No country is immune.”
Stiell added, “So, let’s dispense with the idea that climate finance is charity. An ambitious new climate finance goal is entirely in the self-interest of every single nation, including the largest and wealthiest.”
On the same day Stiell was delivering his remarks, preliminary data from the World Meteorological Organization showed that 2024 remains on track to be the warmest year on record and will likely become the first year that is more than 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer than the 1850 to 1900 pre-industrial average
COP29 takes place in the shadow of significant political challenges, including changes in worldwide political leanings and the recent presidential election in the U.S. It didn’t help that delegates had to delay the convention activities on Monday because leaders couldn’t agree on a conference agenda. Who would be leading financial planning meetings, as well as an unconventional move from a supervisory board to pass new standards without any consultation, were the primary sources of contestation.
Mukhtar Babayev, president of COP29 and Azerbaijan minister of ecology and natural resources, suspended sessions for further talks on the agenda.
“The hour is late, we have a lot of work ahead of us,” Babayev said as the delayed session resumed.
-ABC News’ Charlotte Slovin and ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
US climate envoy tells global climate conference the fight must continue despite election results
With the future of U.S. climate and environmental policies uncertain following the presidential election, the world is gathering in Baku, Azerbaijan, to talk climate change. COP29, formally known as the 29th Annual Conference of Parties, opened Monday with questions about the United States’ commitment to global climate goals in light of the 2024 election results.
At a press conference on Monday, U.S. Climate Change Envoy John Podesta told reporters, “For those of us dedicated to climate action, last week’s outcome in the United States is obviously bitterly disappointing.”
“It is clear that the next administration will try to take a U-turn and reverse much of this progress,” Podesta said. “And I know that this disappointment is more difficult to tolerate as the dangers we face grow ever more catastrophic,” he added.
In sharp contrast to President-elect Donald Trump calling climate change a hoax, promising to “drill, baby, drill,” and roll back unused Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funds, Podesta highlighted the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to combat climate change, including the move to rejoin the Paris Agreement and the climate and clean energy investments made through the IRA and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Podesta said that while the Biden Administration will work with the incoming Trump Administration to ensure a peaceful transfer of power, “This is not the end of our fight for a cleaner, safer planet.”
“Facts are still facts. Science is still science,” he added. “The fight is bigger than one election, one political cycle in one country, this fight is bigger still, because we are all living through a year defined by the climate crisis in every country of the world.”
Podesta pointed to extreme heat records, recent hurricanes in the Southeast United States, flooding in Spain, severe drought in southern Africa, and wildfires in the Amazon as some examples of the acute impacts of climate change felt around the world just this year.
Following then-President Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement in 2017, a coalition of local and state government leaders, organizations and private industry members announced the joint declaration, “We Are Still In.”
Podesta reminded attendees of that effort, saying that while a Trump White House may pose challenges for federal level climate action, the U.S. is not giving up on its goals and that support for clean energy, an issue that “has become bipartisan in the United States.”
“You might not know that by reading the newspapers, but it has,” he said. “57% of new clean energy jobs created since the Inflation Reduction Act passed are located in congressional districts represented by Republicans.”
He added, “We can and will make real progress on the backs of our climate committed states and cities, our innovators, our companies and our citizens, especially young people, who understand more than most that climate change poses an existential threat that we cannot afford to ignore. Failure or apathy is simply not an option.”
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Kelly Livingston and Matthew Glasser
How a university is using AI to reduce cafeteria food waste
Food waste is a massive problem. According to the UN, the world wastes more than a billion tons annually. Here at home, Americans waste around 80 million tons each year. And worldwide, nearly 40% of all the food we produce is lost or wasted, according to the WWF.
At the same time, Feeding America, a nationwide network of food banks and pantries, says 47 million people in the U.S. face hunger, including 1 in 5 children. Then, there are the significant environmental impacts of sending so much wasted food to landfills. Left to decompose, this organic waste releases methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that’s far more potent than carbon dioxide.
Erin Murphy, a student at Georgia State University (GSU) in Atlanta and a sustainability initiatives intern, saw all the food her peers were wasting and wanted to do something about it. She applied for a grant to bring new technology to campus that uses artificial intelligence to examine food waste and provide real-time data on what’s left behind.
The technology, aptly named “Raccoon Eyes,” analyzes the food left on each plate, categorizing and weighing the leftovers to provide detailed data on the waste and recommendations for reducing the leftovers.
When students finish their meals, they place their plates on a conveyor belt, where “Raccoon Eyes” captures an image of the plate. AI then uses that picture to evaluate the contents. This data is displayed on an online dashboard, offering real-time insights to the dining staff.
Ivan Zou, the co-founder of “Raccoon Eyes,” said the information helps identify trends, such as how many plates of a specific meal were uneaten. For example, the system showed that students ate most of the salmon they put on their plates during a particular meal, but they left behind a lot of french fries during another meal.
Jennifer Wilson, GSU’s Director of Sustainability, said that since the program’s launch in January, the AI has analyzed over 400,000 plates and found that approximately 21% contained food waste.
And it turns out that some of the most popular items, like chicken, pizza, and french fries, also generate the most waste. However, the dashboard’s detailed feedback also reveals that popular meals often have leftover portions because students take too much, not because the food is unpopular. This nuanced insight helps dining services adjust not only the menu but also portion sizes and serving methods.
The initiative is already making a difference. In the first four months, GSU reduced food waste by 23%, thanks to AI insights and increased student awareness.
The program even encourages feedback through a kiosk where students can leave comments like “sorry for my waste.” Such feedback has proven invaluable, guiding the dining team in refining their offerings, for instance, by making more of the crowd-favorite Hot Cheetos sushi and less of other less popular items.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser, ABC News’ Matt German, and ABC News meteorologist Dan Manzo
Drought in US improves slightly but still a problem for half the country
Heading into November, widespread drought conditions are still a significant concern across the country, with the Northeast currently experiencing some of the worst impacts, according to a U.S. Drought Monitor update released Thursday.
Overall, more than half of the contiguous United States is still grappling with drought. But there are some areas where things are improving slightly. A large swath of the central U.S. saw its drought situation improve, according to the data.
As a result, countrywide drought coverage decreased from 54.08% to 51.89% week over week. Moderate to severe drought conditions expanded in the Northeast, with portions of southern New Jersey now experiencing extreme drought conditions. Recent heavy rain in the Southern Plains brought drought improvements to parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.
October was one of the driest months on record for the U.S., triggering a significant increase in the area and severity of drought conditions. While the overall drought coverage has decreased slightly, over 87% of the lower 48 states continue to experience abnormally dry conditions, the most extensive coverage area ever recorded by the U.S. Drought Monitor, which began tracking the data in 2000.
Drought is a complex phenomenon influenced by various factors. Among these, extreme heat is strongly linked to human-amplified climate change. More frequent and intense extreme heat events can worsen the effects of drought. Drought risk has increased in the Southwest over the past century, according to the federal government’s Fifth National Climate Assessment.
Over the next week, measurable rain is forecast across most of the country, with widespread significant rainfall likely across portions of the Midwest, Plains and Pacific Northwest.
Looking ahead, NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center said most of the country will likely experience above-average precipitation in mid-November, particularly in the Midwest, Plains and West. Most of the East Coast and Gulf Coast can expect near-average rainfall during this period. No part of the nation should experience below-average precipitation during this time.
-ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck and ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
2024 a near certainty to be the warmest year on record
It’s now virtually certain that 2024 will surpass 2023 as Earth’s warmest year on record, according to a new report by Copernicus, the European Union’s Climate Change Service. As of October 2024, the average global year-to-date temperature was 0.16 degrees Celsius (or 0.29 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than it was in 2023, which is the warmest year ever recorded.
While .16 degrees may not seem significant, even small global temperature increases can trigger substantial changes in weather patterns, leading to more extreme events like heatwaves, droughts, floods, and wildfires, according to climate scientists at NASA.
Last month was also the second warmest October globally, with an average temperature of 15.25 degrees Celsius, or 59.45 degrees Fahrenheit.
Copernicus noted that 2024 will likely be the first year to be 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) than the pre-industrial average of 1850-1900.
The global average temperature over the past twelve months (November 2023 through October 2024) was 1.62 degrees Celsius or 2.92 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels.
The Paris Agreement goals aim to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to prevent the worst outcomes of climate change.
Global daily sea surface temperatures across most of the world’s oceans remain well above average, including much of the Atlantic Basin. Unusually warm sea surface temperatures can make hurricanes more intense and may play a role during the remainder of the Atlantic Hurricane Season, which ends on November 30th.
Persistent marine heatwaves are also a major concern for the world’s coral reefs as the largest global coral bleaching event on record continues to impact these delicate ecosystems. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says that nearly 77% of the world’s coral reef areas have experienced bleaching-level heat stress during this latest event, the second global coral reef bleaching event in the last 10 years.
-ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck and ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
Study finds use of renewable energy sources reduces risk of blackouts
The Texas freeze of 2021 knocked out power for more than 10 million people, leaving some without heat for days. In the aftermath of the storm, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told a national news network that “Wind and solar got shut down.” He added, “They were collectively more than 10% of our power grid, and that thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power on a statewide basis.”
However, in the aftermath, a research study found that renewable energy sources (RES) weren’t to blame. Instead, the researchers found that Texas “failed to sufficiently winterize its electricity and gas systems after 2011.”
Other blackouts have also been blamed on RES, including the 2016 blackout in South Australia and a 2019 outage in the U.K., both of which involved disruptions to wind farms.
Now, according to a new study from The University of Tennessee, grids with higher renewable energy penetration are actually less vulnerable to blackouts than those more reliant on traditional, non-renewable sources.
The analysis found that as the proportion of renewable energy in the grid increases, the intensity of blackouts — measured by the number of affected customers and the length of outages — decreases. This finding challenges the notion that renewable energy inherently makes power grids more fragile.
The researchers analyzed over 2,000 blackouts across the U.S., looking specifically at how renewable energy levels and various weather patterns influenced outage severity. They discovered that high levels of renewables didn’t contribute to an increase in weather-related blackouts.
In grids where renewables made up more than 30% of the energy supply, blackout events were generally less intense and shorter in duration. This trend held even during extreme weather, like high winds and storms, which can place heavy demands on power systems.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
Researchers say they’ve devised the perfect placement for EV chargers
When you buy a gas-powered car, you rarely worry about where to fill it up. That’s because gas stations are everywhere. A 2022 McKinsey survey found that more than 40% of prospective electric vehicle (EV) buyers want that same degree of convenience when it comes to public charger availability for EVs.
Engineers at Cornell University say they have devised a solution for where to place EV charging stations so they are convenient for drivers and profitable for companies.
Using Bayesian optimization, a mathematical method that efficiently analyzes complex data to achieve these results, the research team discovered that for urban areas that it’s best to install an equal percentage of medium-speed and fast chargers. And because motorists use different speed chargers for different reasons, the researchers said it is essential to consider how they are being used when placing them around town.
For example, the engineers found that fast charging is more important at grocery stores when consumers are only inside for 20 minutes. Work and home charging stations should be medium speed because drivers usually park for hours at a time at those locations.
The researchers say their approach can boost investor returns by 50% to 100% compared to random placement strategies.
The team simulated the behavior of 30,000 vehicles over 113,000 trips in the Atlanta region, considering various traffic patterns and driver decisions. This method allowed them to determine optimal charging station placements.
Yeuchen Sophia Liu, the study’s lead author, told the Cornell Chronicle that, “Placing publicly available charging stations around cities sounds like a simple thing, but mathematically, it’s actually very hard.”
She added, “Economically strategic placement of charging stations could play a pivotal role in accelerating the transition to zero-emission vehicles.”
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
Nearly 40% of the world’s trees face extinction, according to new assessment
Climate change, deforestation, invasive pests and disease all threaten to permanently wipe out nearly 40% of the earth’s trees, according to a new assessment by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The organization, comprised of 1,400 member organizations worldwide and 16,000 experts, said more than one in three tree species across 192 countries is now facing extinction, especially trees found on islands.
development and agriculture, as well as the other threats faced by tree species across the globe.
Since 1964, the IUCN has hosted its “Red List,” a database of threatened species from around the world. The research group found that 16,425 of the 47,282 tree species on their list are at risk of extinction — more than 2,000 of which are used for medicines, food, and fuels.
“Trees are essential to support life on Earth through their vital role in ecosystems, and millions of people depend upon them for their lives and livelihoods,” said Grethel Aguilar, IUCN director general, in a statement.
According to their analysis, “the number of threatened trees is more than double the number of all threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians combined.”
The group is calling for more habitat protection and restoration to protect these species and the creation of seed banks and botanical gardens to ensure they don’t disappear forever.
“The significance of the Global Tree Assessment cannot be overstated, given the importance of trees to ecosystems and people. We hope this frightening statistic of one in three trees facing extinction will incentivize urgent action and be used to inform conservation plans,” said Eimear Nic Lughadha from the Royal Botanic Gardens, in a statement.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
Report finds climate change increased heat deaths among older adults by 167%; worsened food security
The health and economic costs of climate change are rising worldwide, according to the newly released 2024 Lancet Countdown, a yearly report hosted by University College London and involving more than 300 researchers.
According to the report, “Of the 15 indicators monitoring climate change-related health hazards, exposures, and impacts, ten reached concerning new records in their most recent year of data.”
With global communities facing an additional 50 days of “dangerous heat,” heat-related deaths among older adults increased by a record-breaking 167% in 2023 compared to the 1990s, according to the report’s findings.
In addition to the heat impact, the Lancet report found that climate change is significantly worsening food insecurity, with 151 million more people facing shortages compared to previous decades. And more than 3 million people died in 2021 because of air pollution and fine particulate matter.
The researchers also found that global extreme weather costs have increased by 23% from 2010-14 to 2019-23, amounting to $227 billion annually.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Kelly Livingston and ABC News Medical Unit’s Sony Salzman
(HAITI) — A Spirit Airlines plane flying from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Haiti was diverted after it was struck by gunfire while attempting to land in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian National Office of Civil Aviation (OFNAC) told ABC News.
The plane was struck by gunfire four times while attempting to land at Touissant Louverture Airport in the capital city of Port-au-Prince, OFNAC said.
The Spirit Airlines plane “diverted and landed safely in Santiago, Dominican Republic,” Spirit Airlines said in a statement Monday, adding that no passengers reported injuries and one flight attendant onboard the plane reported unspecified “minor injuries” and was undergoing medical evaluation.
The plane came within 550 feet of the runway before aborting its landing and diverting to the Dominican Republic, according to data on FlightRadar24.
After the plane arrived in the Dominican Republic, “an inspection revealed evidence of damage to the aircraft consistent with gunfire,” the Spirit Airlines statement said. The plane was taken out of service and a different aircraft was secured to return the passengers and crew to Fort Lauderdale, the statement added.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed in a statement that the Spirit Airlines flight landed safely in the Dominican Republic “after the plane was reportedly damaged by gunfire while trying to land” at the Port-au-Prince airport.
Two other flights headed for Toussaint Louverture Airport were also diverted “as a precaution,” the FAA said in its statement, adding that the airport was now closed.
All airlines have temporarily suspended flights at Touissant Louverture Airport, OFNAC told ABC News.
American Airlines and JetBlue issued statements Monday announcing that they had suspended flights into Haiti until at least Thursday.
The U.S. Embassy in Haiti issued a security alert saying that it was “aware of gang-led efforts to block travel to and from Port-au-Prince which may include armed violence, and disruptions to roads, ports, and airports.”
“The security situation in Haiti is unpredictable and dangerous,” the embassy alert continued, further noting that “The U.S. government cannot guarantee your safety traveling to airports, borders, or during any onward travel. You should consider your personal security situation before traveling anywhere in Haiti.”
