Governments claim to protect public health while failing to tackle fossil fuel dependence, as new research by the Global Climate and Health Alliance exposes a gap between climate rhetoric and action.
ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Yesterday, the Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC) approved Ameren Missouri’s proposal to build solar and storage projects. The Sierra Club and its members supported the projects at public hearings around the state. Renewable energy remains the cheapest way to generate electricity, while coal and fossil fuels remain ...
[continued] The post Sierra Club Applauds Approval for Ameren Missouri’s New Solar & Storage Projects appeared first on CleanTechnica.
The central government on 14 October proposed to enforce Bharat Stage VII (BS VII) regulations starting 2029, in three phases for cars, light trucks, and heavy commercial vehicles, to ensure that vehicles made and sold in India emit less pollutants and greenhouse gases.
Cimate scientist Myles Allen says yes, but only if greenhouse gas emissions are captured and stored underground. And he has a plan.
Tour our miniature dream house to see how oil and gas became part of everyday products.
The websites you use every day may have been vulnerable to hackers for years because of hidden flaws in their code that AI only recently discovered.Why it matters: The code, called PHP, powers millions of websites, and the vulnerabilities could allow hackers to steal sensitive data or take control of affected servers.If exploited, the bugs could allow attackers to steal sensitive information, like your passwords and data, or take control of vulnerable servers.Driving the news: A potential attack exploiting flaws in PHP emerged on Wednesday, which prompted governments and companies to temporarily take their websites offline while they installed security patches.Dozens of websites in the U.S., U.K., and around the world were briefly taken offline to make the fix.
The disruption put the National Security Agency and Europe's cybersecurity agency on alert.State of play: Security patches were released to fix the issues on Oct. 21, 2026. Cybersecurity firms urged anyone using PHP to install the security updates immediately.What they're saying: OpenAI's technology helped find the bugs, and the company called the discovery "one of the most impactful security issues in recent memory.""To our knowledge, frontier AI found these vulnerabilities before attackers did," OpenAI said.The cybersecurity firm Wiz wrote in a blog post: "These findings rank among the most severe vulnerabilities discovered in PHP, and arguably in software history."Read more below.What is PHP?You've probably never heard of PHP, even though you've interacted with it for decades.PHP, which stands for Hypertext Preprocessor, is a programming language used by roughly 70% of websites whose server-side language is known.It has been around since the 1990s to help build websites, taking data and generating content sent to a browser.It's still used today for a variety of websites, including Wikipedia, WordPress blogs and shopping websites.
How it works: HTML determines what a website displays. PHP works behind the scenes to collect information and generate content.What was the PHP vulnerability, exactly?AI researchers discovered two critical vulnerabilities in PHP that could have allowed an attacker to take control of a website's server without having legitimate access to it.Hackers could exploit the flaws, dubbed "php2shell" by cybersecurity firms, to steal information from those websites.Between the lines: The flaws went undetected for more than a decade because exploiting them required complex technical work that AI helped researchers discover, per Wiz.Why cybersecurity incidents are a big dealThought bubble via Axios' Bradley Olson: The PHP vulnerabilities are so serious that the NSA warned website operators to take their sites down if they didn't have enough time to patch the bug.But the cybersecurity problems in recent days have extended far beyond that and include disruptions to developer platforms, data leaks on public schools, break-ins on public companies and more.A major Axios scoop also revealed that banks are detecting unauthorized third-party agent access inside customer accounts, a problem they are racing to contain.Cyber pros are calling the series of attacks "Black October" due to the sheer volume and the level of risk, although so far many organizations have mitigated the risk and avoided massive real-world harm.While defenders and AI companies have warned for months that a season of cyber emergencies would imminently arrive, they have also been working to secure some of the obscure software that still underpins much of the modern internet ecosystem.The bottom line: As attacks continue, experts have urged users to secure passwords, use a password manager and also to avoid panic.As with any cyber emergency, the true barometer of harm is the extent to which damage seeps into the real world, as it has done with ransomware that took hospital software offline or a pipeline system that disrupted fuel supplies briefly on the East Coast.
New York’s Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) has generated opposition from rural and agrarian communities where renewable energy infrastructure is proposed. Some of that opposition is fueled by misinformation about the impacts of renewable energy projects on wildlife, farmland, and property values, among other issues.
This blog rebuts three of the most common […]
Zia Yusuf claims undercover investigation broke the law as broadcaster stands by its journalismHere is an explainer by Jill Ambrose about the Jackdaw decision.But environmental groups have condemned the decision. Ami McCarthy, head of politics for Greenpeace UK, said:Approving Jackdaw shows the toxic grip fossil fuel lobbyists still hold over our energy policy.
Andy Burnham promised pragmatism [see 8.40am], but there is nothing pragmatic about rubber-stamping a project that won’t lower energy bills, won’t boost energy security and will create just 27 full-time jobs …True pragmatism means severing our reliance on expensive oil and gas that leaves British households broke, supercharges extreme weather, and leaves our energy security at the mercy of petrostates.Is the prime minister living in a parallel universe? One where we haven’t just endured our hottest summer on record, with droughts, wildfires and, in all likelihood, the most heat-related deaths on record? And where the UN hasn’t warned that we’re on the brink of breaching the all-important 1.5 degree warming limit?Shell will be cheering this decision but it won’t knock a penny off our energy bills, which is what’s keeping people up at night, or make a meaningful difference to our gas supply.
Jackdaw will provide around just 2% of our gas demand for roughly ten years. It has been oversold and won’t stop the decline in North Sea jobs, as it will be largely unmanned and operated remotely. Continue reading...
As climate change fuels hotter summers, some Britons are moving north in search of cooler weather. Could a similar shift be on the horizon in the United States?
This article by Nicolas Scibelli first appeared on Yale Climate Connections and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. [Haz clic aquí para leer en español] A single stream nourishes the cattle of Ismael “Jim” Solis’ ranch on Panama’s Azuero Peninsula, which juts out into the Pacific Ocean.
Solis has raised cattle through countless droughts and dry spells over the years, weathering them with little concern. But as El Niño builds strength ahead of Panama’s coming dry season, he worries that for the first time, his stream may run dry. "We hope it keeps flowing, but we need more rain so it will last when the dry season comes,” he said.
Solis has spent his life raising cattle on the Azuero since his family arrived decades ago in the small town of Los Asientos on the southern part of the peninsula. His ranch is one of many that dominate the region, checkering the landscape in a matrix of rolling pasture dotted with trees, the last reminders of the expansive forest that once blanketed the surrounding hillsides.
Extreme drought has caused the artificial reservoir on Cecibet Peralta's ranch to run dry. (Image credit: Nicolas Scibelli) Across the Azuero Peninsula, extreme drought is stretching water resources thin. To counter it, some are switching to a more sustainable system of cattle ranching known as silvopasture, a method that incorporates trees into the landscape and helps preserve water.
Those who have made the switch say the increased tree cover has proven vital in maintaining water supply and grass yield while neighboring farms feel the effects. Still, with forecasts of a historically strong El Niño building in the coming months, a difficult dry season lies ahead for silvopasture and conventional ranchers alike.
Feeling the heat The Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology of Panama declared an El Niño alert in May, warning of drier conditions on the Azuero Peninsula and a 10-20% reduction in rainfall during the region’s typically wet season. As the months drag on, ranchers are seeing the effects.
“In the past, it wouldn't have been as hard as it is this year,” said Edwin Carrasco, a silvopastoral rancher in Herrera province. Edwin Carrasco, a silvopasture rancher in Herrera province, Panama. (Image credit: Nicolas Scibelli) The stream on Carrasco’s property has run dry, requiring him to pump water from a well on site.
The ranch remains in a precarious position as drought lingers. "I'm frightened, because we don't know what we're going to do with the animals if it doesn't keep raining,” Carrasco said. In the nearby Los Santos province, Cecibet Peralta is another rancher dealing with water shortages.
Peralta uses a large artificial reservoir on her ranch to water her cattle, though it historically has not always lasted through the dry season. Peralta recently expanded the reservoir’s capacity hoping it would provide year-round water, but with this year’s El Niño-charged drought, even the expansion has not been enough.
The dry reservoir has forced Peralta to move her cattle to a neighboring farm with more stable water resources. She’s now looking to expand the reservoir again in an attempt to stay ahead of the rapidly changing climate. Living fences separate fields on a silvopasture ranch just outside of Los Asientos on the southern part of Panama's Azuero Peninsula.
(Nicolas Scibelli) “Every year the summers are stronger,” she said. “The intense heat causes the water to be used up more quickly.” With a seasonal dry climate, the Azuero is projected to experience higher temperatures and increasingly irregular rainfall patterns in the coming decades. As climate change potentially drives stronger El Niño events, prolonged droughts are likely to occur again in the future.
Nature’s original solution For years now, some on the Azuero have been planting trees on their farms and using a less intensive, mixed-rotation system known as silvopasture. Those who have established these systems say they are seeing the results as drought rages on. “Nowadays, we have a greater abundance of water because of the way it has been managed,” said Manuel Cedeño, a silvopastoral rancher from the small community of Los Asientos.
"Better water quality, better forage for the animals; more biodiversity.” In contrast to conventional systems that clear the land entirely for pasture, silvopasture incorporates planted and naturally regenerated trees into pastures for grazing. It also uses mixed-rotation cycles that reduce overgrazing and preserve soil health.
A cow walking to pasture on a silvopasture ranch in Veraguas province, Panama. (Image credit: Nicolas Scibelli) The conventional wisdom that trees are detrimental to cattle production is unfounded, according to Jake Slusser, a tropical forester working with Yale’s Environmental Training and Leadership Initiative. Slusser is not affiliated with Yale Climate Connections.
“Trees offer everything from shade, forage, fodder, fruit,” Slusser said. “Some trees fix nitrogen so that the pasture grass that they're eating has a lot higher nutritional content, especially in terms of protein.” Silvopastoral systems are also crucial for preserving water levels and water quality.
Most systems use pumps to transport water directly to cattle, reducing the need for cattle to travel directly to water sources while limiting pollution. Increased vegetation along riparian areas also improves shade cover, reducing evaporation. “These are just in general much more resilient farms during El Niño years when you have these long-term droughts, because you're conserving and utilizing the water you have on [the] farm in a very efficient way,” Slusser said.
The Yale initiative has been working with ranchers on the Azuero since 2009, having helped many farmers make the change to silvopastoral systems. Thousands of hectares of land on the peninsula have been deforested or degraded since ranchers began clearing the region in the 1940s, the majority of which are still actively used for cattle grazing today.
Slusser said silvopasture presents an opportunity to improve environmental outcomes in actively farmed areas. “That's where the most degraded landscapes are,” he said. “It allows the biggest potential because you're not replacing people's traditional livelihoods; you're enhancing them by doing silvopasture.” A solar-powered well on a silvopasture ranch outside of Los Asientos.
The pump provides water for the ranch's cattle and protects water quality. (Image credit: Nicolas Scibelli) The transition to silvopasture is not seamless, as significant upfront financial and technical investments are required. Silvopasture also does not entirely reduce the negative environmental impacts of cattle ranching, with substantial climate-warming methane emissions still caused by the practice.
Still, the positive effects are clear to ranchers in water-stressed areas like the Azuero. For those like Solis who have not yet made the transition to silvopasture, this year’s drought is making a compelling case to do so. "If you don't reforest, the water disappears more quickly,” he said.
Looking ahead to a drier future This year’s extreme drought has been a reason for many to begin examining the future of their farms more closely. The dry season still looms on the horizon, and water resources on many ranches have already been stretched thin.
With extreme weather events becoming increasingly common throughout Latin America, some believe silvopasture offers a potential solution moving forward. “This is one of the ways we can mitigate climate change and help the planet benefit," Cedeño said. Cows grazing in a mixed-rotation pasture outside of Los Asientos.
(Image credit: Nicolas Scibelli) For Cedeño, the change to silvopasture has been a worthy investment. Although the drought is providing new challenges on his ranch, he nonetheless feels secure that his cattle will have water throughout the coming year. Cedeño has already helped several other ranchers in Los Asientos make the change to silvopastoral systems and is looking to expand his own operation even further.
He hopes that in the future, farms like his will be the norm. "The culture of the farmers in this Azuero area had always been to cut down the trees, plant pasture, and raise cattle,” he said. “If we could change that mindset, I think we could accomplish much more.”
French government bond yields highest since 2002 as country rocked by protests; UK approves controversial North Sea gasfield JackdawThe approval of Jackdaw is an “important step” for the North Sea, according to Shell.The UK energy giant jointly owns Jackdaw operator Adura, which is headquartered in Aberdeen, together with Norway’s Equinor.This is an important step in ensuring the UK North Sea can continue to contribute to the country’s energy security and economy.Long-term energy projects depend on a competitive and stable investment environment, alongside timely and predictable regulatory decisions.
Continue reading...
Few believe decision will bring back city’s boom years, but workers hope it will secure North Sea jobs for nowUK approves Jackdaw gasfield in North SeaWhat does the UK’s approval of the Jackdaw gasfield mean?As recently as 2012, Aberdeen boasted the highest concentration of millionaires in the UK.
An ATM reportedly had the highest withdrawal rate in Europe in the 90s, as oil and gas wealth flowed through the city. House prices skyrocketed in the scramble for space as fossil fuel firms transformed the city’s grand granite houses into company offices. But that was then.Today, “for sale” and “to let” signs punctuate the city’s main thoroughfares.
Disposable income in Aberdeen has fallen by nearly 20% between 2013 and 2023 – more than any other large UK city – after a 2014 oil price shock sparked a brutal reversal in Aberdeen’s fortunes. Continue reading...
The Labour administration promised when returning to power in 2024 not to issue any new oil and gas drilling licences as it steers Britain away from fossil fuels towards cleaner renewable energy.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is crisscrossing Europe with a multibillion-dollar checkbook and a grand ambition: Make his company the indispensable backbone of the global AI economy.Why it matters: As fears of an AI bubble rattle Wall Street, Huang is working to spread the boom beyond the U.S. and China — courting governments, bankrolling startups and cultivating massive new markets for Nvidia's chips.The big picture: The godfather of AI is trying to single-handedly build a new market for Nvidia chips, betting that governments and institutions around the world will want their own, highly customized data centers running open models.If it works, it could shore up demand for Nvidia chips just as another big group of customers — neoclouds — appear financially shaky.Driving the news: Part showman, part salesman, Huang has spent the past week preaching the gospel of AI across Europe ahead of a keynote Wednesday at Nvidia's flagship conference in Berlin.In France, Huang announced investments in four startups and joked, whisky glass in hand, that he's "the biggest VC in Europe."
President Emmanuel Macron welcomed him to Paris, while France's economy minister compared the AI revolution to the Gold Rush.In Britain, Huang channeled Oprah Winfrey while announcing stakes in five startups. "I am giving you money! And I am giving you money! And I am giving you money!" he shouted from the stage of a converted London church.In Sweden, Huang unveiled a supercomputer backed by the country's industrial elite, likening Nvidia's technology to a "time machine" capable of compressing years of scientific research into days.In Germany, Huang challenged Chancellor Friedrich Merz to loosen Europe's regulatory instincts.
"There's nothing to regulate if the industry doesn't thrive," he warned Monday. "Give Germany a chance. Give this industry a chance."Zoom in: At the heart of Huang's global strategy is "sovereign AI" — the idea that every nation should build and control its own AI infrastructure, data and models, rather than depend on U.S. or Chinese tech giants.In addition to roughly $10 billion in investments in Europe, Nvidia is helping build national AI ecosystems across Saudi Arabia, South Korea, India, Malaysia and Africa.For Huang, the prize is a vast new class of customers, including entire countries that see AI infrastructure as an economic and national security imperative.Between the lines: Huang's global offensive comes at a precarious moment for the AI industry, with Wall Street increasingly questioning whether the technology's enormous promise can justify its astronomical costs.Shares and bonds of Nvidia-backed CoreWeave and other "neocloud" providers have plunged, fueling fears that the companies borrowing billions to buy Nvidia's chips may struggle to pay their debts.Investors are also scrutinizing a circular flow of money in which Nvidia helps finance the very companies buying its products, raising questions about how much demand is self-sustaining.What to watch: Huang has emerged as the AI industry's chief cheerleader during periods of market turmoil, countering predictions of a bubble with assurances that demand is still accelerating.His Berlin keynote offers another chance to calm investors by arguing that the next wave of AI spending will come from governments treating the technology as a national necessity, not a speculative bet.The bottom line: Countries racing to secure their independence in the AI age may find themselves more reliant than ever on one American company.
The public anger in France spilling over into unrest has been brewing for a long time, with little response from the government over calls for reforms for better education and living conditions, French nationals living in Korea say. They generally agree that the French government's long-standing neglect and inaction have fueled mounting public anger, saying people's concerns have long gone unheard.
"Government hasn’t listened enough to people’s concerns about the climate, the economy and now education. When people repeatedly feel unheard, frustration builds up," Hugo Adam, a graduate student at Seoul National University, told The Korea Times. A French filmmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, agreed that the French government has failed to "listen to its people," despite the many protests that have taken place over the years.
He said his family and friends back home are participating in the protests. The protests began in mid-September by students calling for a better education environment, including more teachers and improved school facilities. Illustrator Zoe Constans said it
Global energy-related greenhouse gases remain at record levels
We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China breakthrough unlocks low-cost, high-margin sustainable aviation fuel Chinese researchers have developed a catalyst that converts synthesis gas into sustainable jet fuel – an advance that could boost production, help meet net-zero carbon goals and yield a gross profit margin above 50 per cent.
2. Landmark...
The public anger in France spilling over into unrest is something that has been brewing for a long time, with little response from the government over calls for reforms for better education and living conditions, French nationals living in Korea say. They generally agree that the French government's long-standing neglect and inaction have fueled mounting public anger, saying people's concerns have long gone unheard.
"Government hasn’t listened enough to people’s concerns about the climate, the economy and now education. When people repeatedly feel unheard, frustration builds up," Hugo Adam, a graduate student at Seoul National University, told The Korea Times. A French filmmaker, who requested anonymity, agreed that the French government has failed to "listen to its people," despite the many protests that have taken place over the years.
He said his family and friends back home are participating in the protests. The protests began in mid-September by students calling for a better education environment including more teachers and improved school facilities. Illustrator Zoe Constans sai