– A round-up of the day’s top climate change stories
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Thailand: Bangkok is sinking as weakening wind and waves are failing to provide enough sediment to reinforce the delta that it sits on. As well as facing rising sea levels, the Chao Phraya delta is subsiding 3cm a year, according to Dr Anond Sanitwong, director of the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency. Calls are growing for a seawall to protect the city from worsening flooding. (Deutsche Welle)
The 2011 flood in Bangkok caused $45.7bn in damage according to the World Bank (Source: UN/Mark Garten)
USA: Car manufacturer GM Motors has called on President Barack Obama and the US Congress to take real action on climate change. The company said the problem was “the greatest economic opportunity of the 21st century (and simply the right thing to do)”. (The Guardian)
Fossil fuels: Shell has announced CEO Peter Voser will retire next year. Meanwhile the company has also revealed that it will be betting big on natural gas in the near future. It will look to double its global market share of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) from 7% to 14%. Many countries are turning to gas fired electricity production as a cleaner alternative to coal. (New York Times)
Business: Most companies either fail to report all their greenhouse gases or do so incorrectly, according to the Environment Investment Organisation (EIO). Companies are increasingly being asked to keep tabs on their emissions with the London Stock Exchange making greenhouse gas reporting mandatory as of April this year. (Reuters)
UAE: Abu Dhabi’s waste management contractor has been caught throwing the contents of the city’s recycling bins into landfill. An investigation by local newspaper 7DAYS discovered that despite green bins located throughout the city, the contractor had allegedly informed employees to throw everything it collects into landfill. The firm blamed residents for not separating their rubbish correctly. (7DAYS)