New EEA interactive atlas on how environmental risks affect the health and well-being of Europeans

How is the air quality where you live, what about noise levels or the number of green spaces and quality of the nearest bathing water sites? Now you can check the quality of the environment on one online platform, the EEA’s European environment and health atlas. Launched this week, the atlas presents data and information … Continue reading New EEA interactive atlas on how environmental risks affect the health and well-being of Europeans

A board game challenges players to decarbonise New York City

A board game give players a quick grounding in what solving climate change actually means, in a physical and social sense, based on demand of energy and the types of renewable or carbon neutral generation that can supply 8 million New Yorkers. Alyson Krueger describes the game in an article on the New York Times … Continue reading A board game challenges players to decarbonise New York City

Benefits of agrivoltaic farming

Joshua M. Pearce, John M. Thompson Chair in Information Technology and Innovation and Professor at Western University in Canada writes on The Conversation that crop yields increase when the crops are partially shaded with solar panels.   How shading crops with solar panels can improve farming, lower food costs and reduce emissions If you have … Continue reading Benefits of agrivoltaic farming

Dutch government announces major funding for climate measures

A news item on the Dutch News website details the latest funding for climate measures in The Netherlands. The approach is to ensure climate policy ‘works for everyone, no matter where they live, their age or their income.’ Is it enough?   Cabinet allocates €28bn to slashing CO2 emissions The cabinet is to spend €28 … Continue reading Dutch government announces major funding for climate measures

New report from Renovate Europe

This week the Renovate Europe Campaign, together with E3G, published the report 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy Support for Energy Efficiency and Building Renovation. The study looks into how EU member states plan to use cohesion policy funding to support renovation and draws attention to key actions to maximise impact. An estimated €20bn are programmed for energy … Continue reading New report from Renovate Europe

Is hydrogen a realistic option for home heating?

Ran Boydell, Associate Professor in Sustainable Development at Heriot-Watt University, in an article on The Conversation website, argues against hydrogen being used for home heating. What are your views?   Replacing methane with hydrogen to heat homes is a bad idea – here’s why Hydrogen is an energy-rich gas, which releases no carbon emissions when … Continue reading Is hydrogen a realistic option for home heating?

Shakespeare’s plays are teaching us all to relinquish the delusion that we are entitled to dominate the planet

Todd Andrew Borlik, Reader in Renaissance Drama at the University of Huddersfield writes a very interesting article on The Conversation website about Shakespeare’s view of the environment. Hope you enjoy. Let us have your views?   Shakespeare’s environmentalism: how his plays explore the same ecological issues we face today Climate change, urban sprawl, air pollution, … Continue reading Shakespeare’s plays are teaching us all to relinquish the delusion that we are entitled to dominate the planet

Nearly one adult in three in France is said to suffer from a pollen allergy – climate change is making it worse

Respiratory allergic diseases, such as seasonal rhinitis and asthma, have almost doubled in the last 20 years in industrialized countries. Raphaëlle Aubert discusses why allergies are getting worse in an article on the Le Monde website.   How climate change is making our allergies worse Between April and May, the birch pollen season is in … Continue reading Nearly one adult in three in France is said to suffer from a pollen allergy – climate change is making it worse

“The fight to hold the Ontario government accountable for its climate action is not over”

A judge has warned that Ontario’s weak climate plans will “increase the risk of death” for Canada’s young people – but dismissed a lawsuit brought by a group worried that government inaction on global heating threatens their futures. Canadian youth activists’ case nevertheless dismissed as judge rules province’s policies do not violate Charter rights. This … Continue reading “The fight to hold the Ontario government accountable for its climate action is not over”

New EEA official data on 2021 GHG gas emissions published

Official data, published this week by the European Environment Agency (EEA), confirm that the economic recovery in 2021 increased the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions but their level remained lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, the EU has reduced its emissions by 30% since 1990.   Economic recovery pushed EU emissions up in 2021 but … Continue reading New EEA official data on 2021 GHG gas emissions published