World breaches critical 1.5°C warming threshold 12 months in a row, and other nature and climate stories you need to read this week
The hotter the planet gets, the less people and ecosystems can adapt. Image: REUTERS/Bhawika Chhabra
- This weekly round-up contains the key nature and climate news from the past week.
- Top nature and climate news: Temperatures 1.5°C above pre-industrial era average for 12 months; Renewables growth rate insufficient to reach 2030 target; Millions affected as floods sweep across South Asia.
1. The 1.5°C warming limit has been broken 12 months in a row
June 2024 was the 12th consecutive month of temperatures of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, according to the European Commission's Copernicus Climate Change Service (CS3).
"This is more than a statistical oddity and it highlights a large and continuing shift in our climate," said Carlo Buontempo, Director of the CS3.
The global average surface air temperature was 16.66°C, which is 0.67°C above the 1991-2020 average for the month and 0.14°C above the previous high set in June 2023, making it the hottest June ever recorded.
Other oddities highlighted by CS3 include:
- The month was wetter than average over parts of North America, with a series of storms, including Hurricane Beryl.
- Heavy precipitation led to floods in parts of Germany, Italy, France and Switzerland.
- Severe wildfires occurred in North Eastern Russia and central South America.
- It was also drier than average over Ireland, most of the UK, Fennoscandia, southern Italy and much of Eastern Europe.
2. World not on track to reach 2030 renewables target, says IRENA
The current renewable energy growth rate is inadequate if the world is to triple capacity by 2030, according to a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
This goal was set last year at a United Nations' COP28 climate change conference in Dubai, where nations committed to raising global renewable energy capacity to more than 11 terawatts.
"Renewable energy has been increasingly outperforming fossil fuels, but it is not the time to be complacent," said Francesco La Camera, director general of IRENA.
Last year, the world achieved an unprecedented 14% increase in renewables capacity. However, on this trajectory, the tripling target outlined by IRENA’s 1.5°C scenario will still fall 1.5 terawatts short, missing the target by 13.5%. This would rise to more than a third with the current global average increase of 10% per year.
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3. News in brief: Other top nature and climate stories this week
Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions are at their lowest level in 30 years, latest figures from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) show. Despite this, the country is "still well off track" to meet EU and national 2030 targets, the EPA said.
The world's largest tropical wetland area – the Pantanal wetlands – experienced significant wildfire activity in June. More than 3,400 square kilometres of the Pantanal burned from 1 January to 9 June, the highest level in a record going back to 2012, according to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro's satellite monitoring programme. Wildfire activity in Brazil typically peaks in August and September, so this is "cause for alarm" says Copernicus.
Hurricane Beryl, which hit Texas on 8 July was supercharged by "absolutely crazy" ocean temperatures, which are likely to exacerbate further storms in the coming months, The Guardian reports.
Wildfires across Greece are being contained by emergency services, with blazes near Athens, Chios and Kos causing many locals and tourists to evacuate.
For the first time, wind energy is providing more of North America's power than coal.
Floods sweeping through India, Nepal and Bangladesh have affected millions of people, resulting in large-scale rescue operations across the three nations, the BBC reports.
The Key Largo tree cactus has become Florida's first local species extinction caused by sea-level rise, according to a recent study.
South Africa's new energy minister, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has vowed to accelerate the nation's shift to renewable energy from coal, which breaks from his predecessor's stance who opposed a move away from coal power.
4. More on the nature and climate crisis on Agenda
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The nature and climate crisis is affecting over half of people worldwide, and technology is crucial for managing resources and accelerating decarbonization. Check out how these three innovations can help.
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