Daily Archives: August 7, 2020

2020-08-07: News Headlines

Staff (2020-08-07). California greenlights 'Orwellian' solar-powered fracking scheme. therealnews.com California-based multinational oil company Chevron landed two rounds of drilling permits from Gov. Gavin Newsom this summer—evidence, climate advocates say, that Newsom is not committed to tackling the climate crisis. | The permits bolster Chevron's position in the Lost Hills Oil Field, the sixth most prolific field in industry-heavy Kern County, and will shift drilling in the field largely towards using power from solar panels. One critic called the way the permits use climate crisis rhetoric "Orwellian," incorporating solar power into drilling operations to expand the use of fracking and oil production. T…

The Canary (2020-08-07). Record-breaking summers due to climate chaos 'a danger to human health'. thecanary.co Having record-breaking summers will become a certainty due to the climate crisis, experts have warned, as the UK begins to swelter in what could be the hottest day of the year so far.Just a week after Britain recorded the third warmest day on record on 31 July, with 37.8C (100.04F) recorded in Heathrow, Friday could see temperatures rise to — and possibly surpass — 37C (98.6F) in London and the South East.Michael Byrne, lecturer in earth and environmental sciences at the University of St Andrews, warned that two near-record temperatures so closely spaced is "unusual". | Exceptional heat in the southeast…

Matt Sedlar (2020-08-07). On Climate Policy, Biden's Advisers Reveal More Than His Proposals Do. cepr.net The Intercept See article on original site Last month, Joe Biden's presidential campaign released a sweeping climate proposal calling for 100 percent clean energy and net-zero emissions by 2050. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party is working to finalize its 2020 platform. As of now, the platform is more aggressive than the 2016 document, but somehow does …

Harold C. Frazier and John Willis (2020-08-07). Police violence meets spiritual resistance in the struggle over DAPL. nationofchange.org An appeals court overruled the shutdown of DAPL, pending a full environmental review. The fight against a pipeline that provoked unprecedented resistance continues.

imperial.ac.uk (2020-08-07). COVID-19 recovery choices will shape the future climate as well as economy. imperial.ac.uk While a pollution-free period hasn't averted climate change, the recovery offers a chance for health and nature, a study reveals…

Jim Green (2020-08-07). Book review: Michael Shellenberger's reheated critique of climate 'alarmism'. indybay.org California-based Michael Shellenberger first courted controversy in 2004 with his 'death of environmentalism' critique of the environment movement and has continued to attract controversy by promoting nuclear power, demonising renewable energy ("renewables are worse for the environment than fossil fuels") and demonising the environment movement that he claims to be part of.

The Canary (2020-08-07). The impact of lockdown on the climate crisis will be tiny unless there's a 'green recovery'. thecanary.co The global lockdown will have a "negligible" impact on rising temperatures but a green recovery could avert dangerous climate breakdown, a study has said. | Lockdowns to stop the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19) caused huge falls in transport use, as well as reductions in industry and commercial operations, cutting the greenhouse gases and pollutants caused by vehicles and other activities. | The impact is only short-lived, however, and analysis shows that even if some lockdown measures last until the end of 2021, global temperatures will only be 0.01C lower than expected by 2030. | But if countries choose a "str…

teleSUR (2020-08-07). Canada: Last Intact Ice Shelf Collapses Due to Global Warming. telesurenglish.net The last intact ice shelf in the Canadian Arctic collapsed and lost a large part of his area due to extremely high temperatures, according to the Canadian Ice Service (CIS), as reported on Friday. | RELATED: | "Above normal air temperatures, offshore winds and open water in front of the ice shelf are all part of the recipe for ice shelf break up," the CIS tweeted. | According to Luke Copland, a Glaciologist at the University of…

yenisafak (2020-08-07). Landslide kills 15 in southern India, more than 50 feared trapped. yenisafak.com A landslide caused by torrential rains killed at least 15 tea garden workers in the southern Indian state of Kerala on Friday, and rescue workers were searching for more than 50 people thought to be trapped under soil and debris, officials said.The landslide hit in the early hours as workers slept, in Idukki district, district collector H Dineshan told Reuters.Fifteen bodies had been recovered so far and another 51 people were feared to be trapped, he said."One team of National Disaster Relief Force have reached the site. Helicopters cannot be deployed as the climate is very misty," he added.Nearly 20 cm (7.9 inc…

Climate Reality Project (2020-08-06). Tuesday 8/11: Indigenous Leadership in the U.S. Environmental and Climate Justice Movements. indybay.org Online…

Eds. (2020-08-06). A review of Andreas Malm's Corona, Climate, Chronic Emergency: War Communism in the Twenty-First Century. mronline.org What can a virus tell us about climate breakdown, in its causation and in humanity's response?>

The Canary (2020-08-06). Artwork explores Hiroshima and Nagasaki in context of climate change and racism. thecanary.co Two London-based artists explore the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in new perspectives, including in the context of climate change and racism, with their digital artwork.I Saw The World End, by Es Devlin and Machiko Weston, reflects on the impact of the events from the points of view of the British artist and Japanese designer.The 10-minute video includes script from letters written by Albert Einstein and J Robert Oppenheimer during the Second World War, as well as first-hand testimonies from the survivors of the bombings.The United States detonated two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities on 6 and 9 Aug…

Mel Gurtov (2020-08-06). Falling Behind: COVID, Climate Change, and Chaos. zcomm.org "Normal" isn't good, as in the following warning in November 2019: "we declare, with more than 11,000 scientist signatories from around the world, clearly and unequivocally that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency."

Extinction Rebellion (2020-08-06). Fast and Furiously Nonviolent. zcomm.org Whether the virus spreads or shrinks, without action our world will continue to burn. We need to keep confronting a self-destructive system that is spiraling out of control…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-08-05). Celebrating 100 years of the communist party in Britain. peoplesdispatch.org Communists in Britain organized a massive online event on August 1, Saturday, to mark the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the communist party in country. The centenary celebrations, which were titled the 'Red Wedge,' were held online due to the pandemic. The event organized by the Communist Party of Britain (CPB) saw discussions on a wide range of topics with thousands of participants joining in, including around 70 speakers representing different fronts. | As per reports, five sessions were held on Saturday, with deliberations on the themes of anti-racism and anti-fascism, environment and climate crisis,…

imperial.ac.uk (2020-08-05). Project to transform understanding of effects of climate change on mental health. imperial.ac.uk A multidisciplinary team is examining the direct and indirect effects of climate change on mental health.

_____ (2020-08-05). Atomic Bombings At 75: The Illegality Of Nuclear Weapons. popularresistance.org The mere possession of nuclear weapons violates the Nuremberg Principles (decreed a day before Nagasaki) and other international laws. | The human race stands on the verge of nuclear self-extinction as a species, and with it will die most, if not all, forms of intelligent life on the planet earth. Any attempt to dispel the ideology of nuclearism and its attendant myth propounding the legality of nuclear weapons and nuclear deterrence must directly come to grips with the fact that the nuclear age was conceived in the original sins of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945. | The atomic bombings of Hiroshim…

_____ (2020-08-05). I Was Wrong: Congress Isn't Cowardly; It's Evil! popularresistance.org Now that Congress has shown the "courage" of its combat-continuation "convictions," expect a repeat performance enabling the next (potentially extinctive) war — this time in Europe. As I noted with exasperation here last week, congressional majorities are appalled, just appalled, by Trump's plan to withdraw 12,000 troops from Germany. It doesn't matter that the Europeans can capably handle their own defense in the event of a future war that America's expatriate-soldiers shouldn't risk, can't win, and mustn't be fought. At least if our species-mates would like to meet their prospective grandkids. After all,…

Staff (2020-08-05). GOP Proposes Letting Fossil Fuel Firms Sue Sick Workers Seeking Compensation. truthout.org Fossil fuel firms have long argued that addressing climate change will Rather than save jobs, oil firms have lined executive pockets just before declaring bankruptcy, and announced layoffs rather than cut into shareholder profits. Some oil workers are even dying on the job — and instead of increasing safety and transpare…

commondreams (2020-08-05). Sen. Schumer, Rep. McEachin, Progressive and Climate Advocates Speak Out Against Liability Waivers in Covid Stimulus. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Mark Hertsgaard (2020-08-05). Will Climate Break Through in Big Media's Elections Coverage? thenation.com Will Climate Break Through in Big Media's Elections Coverage?

RT (2020-08-04). Hundreds injured in Beirut explosions so powerful they turned streets into wasteland (VIDEOS). rt.com Huge explosions in the Lebanese capital Beirut have killed at least 10 people, local security and medical sources told Reuters. The blasts smashed buildings and turned the city's streets into a debris-strewn wasteland. | An explosion rang out at Beirut's port shortly after 6pm local time on Tuesday, followed immediately by another, deafening blast. The explosions obliterated buildings at the port and shattered windows several kilometers away, sending a mushroom cloud towering up into the sky. Health Minister Hamad Hassan has blamed the explosion on a fireworks accident. | As the dust settled, Hassan ordered al…

_____ (2020-08-04). COVID-19, Climate Change, And Chaos. popularresistance.org COVID-19 and the protests for racial justice have drawn attention away from the mostly bad news about the environment. Yes, the skies in most parts of the world are a lot clearer these days as people stay home and auto emissions decline. But as one study points out, even if lockdown measures continue for the next several months, global carbon emissions will only drop by between 4 to 8 percent from last year. That drop would not be enough to make a dent in overall warming trends—and as the US and other economies recover, it will be back to "normal."

David Korten (2020-08-04). Earth Is Warning Us We Must Change. Will We Listen? commondreams.org "The pandemic may be seen as a not-so-subtle warning to humanity that we may be sacrificed, if necessary, to protect the health of the planet," writes Korten. "On the path to human extinction, the most vulnerable will go first, but there will be no human winners." (Illustration: Malte Mueller/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/korten-earth-warning-us-1024×614.jpg