Sustainable Arlington

New York State Reaches Landmark Deal on Green New Deal-Style Climate Bill

If enacted, the bill would make New York the second big state — after California — to go for 100 percent carbon neutrality by midcentury. New York lawmakers reached a deal late Sunday night to pass one of the most ambitious climate bills in the nation, setting the Empire State on a course to shape what the Green New Deal could look like at a state level. The agreement to pass the so-called Climate & Communities Protection Act calls for New York to eliminate 85% of its overall planet-warming emissions by 2050, while offsetting or capturing the other 15%.  The deal mandates 35% of state energy funding go to low-income, polluted communities, but sets a goal of investing 40%.  The final legislation requires all state-financed energy projects to pay union wages.  Read more at New York State Reaches Landmark Deal on Green New Deal-Style Climate Bill

More than Half the World Could See ‘Record-Setting Heat’ Every Year by 2100

More than half of the world could see new temperature records set in every single year by the end of the century if global warming is not curbed, a study finds. And new heat records could be set in two-thirds of the world’s least developed countries each year by 2100 under the same scenario, the research adds. Limiting global warming to below 2C above pre-industrial levels could reduce the extent of land seeing record-setting heat by almost three quarters, the lead author tells Carbon Brief. The research “nicely illustrates the pace of change”, another scientist tells Carbon Brief.  However, it is worth noting that there are limitations to using climate models to project future temperature extremes, he adds.Heating upClimate change is causing unprecedented heat extremes worldwide.  The past four years have been the warmest on record – with 2016 being the hottest year ever recorded. Read more at More than Half the World Could See ‘Record-Setting Heat’ Every Year by 2100

Climate Change Could Mean More Kids, Not Less

The effects will vary across the globe and could worsen inequality. Climate change threatens to affect every inch of life as we know it.  Some impending disasters are obvious:  rising sea levels will cause flooding, droughts will restrict access to water, and intense storms will destroy our homes and properties. But there’s also the impact it will have on our bodies.  A new paper in Environmental Research Letters, published last week, looked at one aspect of this:  how global warming will influence fertility. The researchers came to some surprising, and disturbing, conclusions.  They found that global warming will increase the number of children people have, while lowering the value of education—but only in certain, vulnerable parts of the world.  This would deepen already-existing inequalities between wealthy and poor nations, and the inequality between men and women in those communities. Read more at Climate Change Could Mean More Kids, Not Less

Friday 14

The Problem with Biden’s Plan to Push China on Climate

When former Vice President Joe Biden released his climate policy plan last week, he was the first presidential candidate to vow to use U.S. foreign policy to address the climate crisis.  In his 22-page climate plan, Biden dedicates section three to “Rallying the rest of the world to address the grave climate threat.” But he seems less concerned with “the rest of the world” as he does one particular country.  Biden’s plan mentions China by name 13 times. The following day Washington Governor Jay Inslee, fellow-2020 hopeful and self-proclaimed climate candidate, released part three of his exhaustive green policy plan (which Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has deemed the “gold standard” thus far).  Inslee’s 50-page “Global Climate Mobilization” document is dedicated solely to how America can use its influence to incorporate green goals into, well, everything:  trade, migration, humanitarian aid, energy subsidies, and future summits. Not to be outdone, his plan mentions China 21 times.  To be fair, Inslee also addresses the U.S.’ relationship with other major polluters, like India.  Biden doesn’t mention India once. Chris Nelson, executive director of the Harvard-China Project, thinks he knows at least one reason for the focus — and it’s clearly something our current president has figured out.  “It’s politically advantageous to be tough on China, even within the Democratic party,” he told Grist. Both Biden’s and Inslee’s plans essentially call for the U.S. to become the world’s climate hype man.  On the agenda:  Pushing for more aggressive targets than agreed upon in Paris; ending fossil fuel[…]