Climate and environment updates: US counties lack sufficient air quality monitoring

(LONDON) — — Qadira Zourob, a 17-year-old in Gaza, was in her last year of high school when war broke out in the Strip after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel in 2023.

“I was preparing for my exams with great excitement. I had been studying hard, staying up late every night, determined to succeed and achieve a high score. But the next day, we woke up to the sounds of bombings and rocket fire,” she told ABC News in an interview in a tent where her family has been displaced.

Zourob is one of the more than 600,000 students in Gaza who have had their education interrupted by the war. She said she dreamed of becoming a nurse, helping people and traveling abroad, but now she says she feels lost, adding, “I feel as if my life has come to a standstill.”

As millions of children go back to school around the world, formal education continues to be on hold for the children of Gaza. An ABC News visual analysis reveals that at least 70% of all schools in Gaza — 399 school buildings — have been damaged or destroyed since Oct. 7.

In a statement to ABC News about these figures, the Israel Defense Forces said “There is no IDF policy to target schools or educators. Rather, Hamas’ widespread and well documented strategy of exploiting schools and educational facilities for terror activities, has required IDF activity in those areas.”

Using Palestinian Authority government and U.N. records, ABC News geolocated nearly every school in Gaza, about 547 of the 567 school buildings. Analysis of dozens of satellite images identified which of each of the 547 buildings were damaged or destroyed.

To further supplement the data, 149 videos where schools were visible, showing about a quarter of all schools, were added to the analysis. The videos were filmed by the IDF and Hamas, as well as dozens of local journalists, civilians, the United Nations, and other organizations in Gaza. Some schools that did not look damaged on satellite imagery had holes in the sides or the structures were still standing but lower floors had been completely blown out.

The results show 212 schools are either partially or completely destroyed, and a further 187 show signs of damage.

This analysis relies solely on data available online, as international journalists are not allowed into Gaza and movement for ABC News’ local journalists in Gaza is severely restricted.

The U.N. estimates as many as 84% of schools — 477 buildings — will need to be repaired or rebuilt. This higher number is a result of the U.N.’s use of a model to estimate blast damage to areas in the vicinity of bomb sites, while ABC News’ analysis relies solely on visually verifiable damage.

It has been a particularly bloody summer at school buildings across Gaza. At least 354 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes on school buildings that housed displaced people between June 1 and Sept. 1, according to individual tallies released by the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health and collated by ABC News.

The death toll comes from Israeli airstrikes on 25 schools for which Israel has publicly claimed responsibility in that timeframe. In statements announcing the strikes, the IDF said each time that it was targeting Hamas militants or Hamas command centers embedded inside the school buildings. In statements on 23 of the 25 schools hit, the IDF said it took “numerous steps to mitigate the risk of harming civilians.”

Verified videos from 14 of the 25 scenes show injured and bloodied children either running or being carried from the wreckage.

A video taken by journalist Talal Mahmoud at the Abu Oreiban school in Nuseirat on July 14 shows six children being rushed out of the courtyard, as screams come from the school. A screaming toddler covered in dust sits against a back wall in another video. Twenty-two people were killed in the strike, according to the Ministry of Health.

The Khadija school, in the Israeli designated safe zone in Deir al-Balah, was struck on July 27. Video moments after the strike by a bystander, and verified by ABC News, shows dozens of people running from the school courtyard, carrying people, including multiple children, from the scene. As a child looks at the smoking ruins, another missile crashes to the ground, exploding on impact.

The entire eastern side of the school crumpled. Thirty people, seven of whom were children, were killed, according to the Ministry of Health. Video filmed by journalist Hani Abu Rezeq from the scene shows a young man with a biohazard bag picking up charred fragments of human remains from the rubble.

Future obstacles for educators, students

Rachael Cummins, a humanitarian director in Gaza for Save the Children, told ABC News the organization is bringing learning back to some of Gaza’s children. They started earlier this year with child-friendly spaces for play, and are now introducing more learning, with the goal of reintroducing a level of normalcy and structure to children’s lives, she said.

Cummins said the obstacles are immense, from staff safety, to finding child friendly spaces, to sourcing materials, and all made more difficult by the constant displacement of people.

For the children themselves, Cummins said, returning to learning is no easy task and the lost year will have lasting ramifications.

“Children haven’t been able to access formal education, so they’ve missed a whole year of learning. But, you know, outside of that, what they’re seeing and what they’re living through and the consequences of that in terms of their mental health, really, really cannot be underestimated. A whole generation, a whole population, actually, of children and their parents and their caregivers, in terms of the impact of the war on their mental health is absolutely extraordinary,” she said.

She said their programs have to take into account how the war has changed children’s behaviors, from finding it impossible to focus, to aggressive reactions, and anxiety attacks.

She also highlights the poor physical health, malnutrition and illnesses affecting many children in Gaza, which compound the difficulty of their focusing on anything but immediate needs.

“It’s a dire situation for children. It manifests in many different ways and is deeply distressing for them and obviously deeply distressing for their families who obviously want to support their children as best they can and to keep them safe, but it’s impossible,” Cummins told ABC News.

Qadira Zourob, the high school student, said her former school, in Khan Younis, is being used as a shelter for thousands of displaced people. It is damaged, but it has not been bombed. Even so, she said she does not have hopes she will be able to return to education, even if a cease-fire is agreed to.

“The displaced people will likely remain in the school. How can they be removed when they have no shelter, home, or anything else?” she asked.

“Our lives are on hold. What will become of my life?” she said. “An entire year of my life, where I built my hopes and dreams, has been destroyed.”

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(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.

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

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(LONDON) — The Israel Defense Forces continued intense air and ground campaigns against Hezbollah in Lebanon and against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The uptick in offensive operations came after Israel marked the anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7 assault, and as Israeli leaders planned their response to Iran’s latest ballistic missile attack.

Israel to probe deadly drone attack on troops, Gallant says

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visited the scene of a deadly Hezbollah drone strike in northern Israel on Monday, telling soldiers there the incident “was a difficult event with painful results.”

Four troops were killed and 55 wounded in Sunday’s attack on the Golani Training Base close to the town of Binyamina, some 20 miles south of Haifa.

“We must investigate it, study the details and implement lessons in a swift and professional manner,” Gallant said, according to a Defense Ministry readout.

“We are concentrating significant efforts in developing solutions to address the threat of UAV attacks,” he added

-ABC News’ Jordana Miller

IDF claims 200 strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces said Monday its warplanes targeted around 200 “Hezbollah terror targets” in its continuing operation against the Iranian-backed group in southern Lebanon.

The targets included “launchers, anti-tank missile launch posts, terrorist infrastructure and weapons storage facilities containing launchers, anti-tank missiles, RPG launchers and munitions,” the IDF wrote on X.

Ground forces, meanwhile, “eliminated dozens of terrorists in close-quarters encounters and aerial strikes” in their ongoing cross-border incursion, the force reported.

The IDF is still describing its ground operation as consisting of “limited, localized, targeted raids” in southern areas close to the border.

Airstrikes, though, continue across southern Lebanon. Around a quarter of all Lebanese territory is under IDF evacuation orders and some 1.2 million civilians are displaced, according to the government in Beirut.

-ABC News’ Jordana Miller

Hezbollah drone attack on IDF base ‘painful,’ commander says

The Israel Defense Forces identified the four soldiers killed in a Hezbollah drone attack on a training base in the north of the country on Sunday.

Sgt. Omri Tamari, Sgt. Yosef Hieb, Sgt. Yoav Agmon and Sgt. Amitay Alon were killed, an IDF press release said. The strike occurred at the Golani Training Base close to the town of Binyamina, some 20 miles south of Haifa.

Around 55 more are reported to have been injured.

IDF Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Herzi Halevi addressed Golani Brigade troops on Sunday night following the attack.

“We are at war, and an attack on a training base in the rear is difficult and the results are painful,” the commander said according to a post on the IDF’s official Telegram channel.

-ABC News’ Jordana Miller

Israel strike on Gaza hospital kills 4, wounds dozens

At least four people were killed and 40 others wounded Monday in an Israeli airstrike on tents housing displaced Palestinians inside the Al-Aqsa Hospital in the central Gaza’s city of Deir al-Balah, health officials said.

The Israeli military said it targeted militants operating from a command center inside the compound. Israel accuses Hamas of routine use of civilian facilities such as hospitals for military purposes — a charge Hamas denies.

-ABC News’ Will Gretsky

Defense Secretary Austin discusses safety of UNIFIL forces with Israel’s Gallant

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant by phone on Sunday to express his condolences for the IDF soldiers killed in a Hezbollah drone attack and discuss the IDF’s military operations in Lebanon.

According to a readout of the call from the Pentagon, Austin, “reinforced the importance of Israel taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of UNIFIL forces and Lebanese Armed Forces, and the need to pivot from military operations in Lebanon to a diplomatic pathway to provide security for civilians on both sides of the border as soon as feasible.”

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is a peacekeeping mission in Lebanon established by the U.N. Security Council.

The conversation comes after the IDF has repeatedly fired on the UNIFIL headquarters in southern Lebanon.

Additionally, Secretary Austin “reaffirmed the deep U.S. commitment to Israel’s security,” which he says is demonstrated by the deployment of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD).

According to the Department of Defense, THAAD employs interceptor missiles, using “hit-to-kill” technology, to destroy threat missiles.

During the call, Austin “again raised concern for the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and stressed that steps must be taken soon to address it,” the Pentagon said.

At least 3 killed in IDF strike on Gaza hospital

At least three people were killed and dozens more were injured after Israel Defense Forces struck Al Aqsa Hospital in Gaza on Sunday.

-ABC News’ Will Gretsky

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