World
Russia warns EU against carbon border tax plan, citing WTO rules
As Brussels gets serious about imposing levies on imports from polluting countries, Moscow argues such measures create unfair barriers to trade
Amazon land grabbers are destroying brazil nut groves for cattle pasture
Emboldened by a promised amnesty on land seizures, cattle ranchers are felling brazil nut trees, edging out families who have harvested them for generations
How ‘green’ the EU recovery is depends on member states
A 7-year EU budget and coronavirus recovery plan agreed this week calls for climate-friendly spending, but the details have been left to national capitals
Guterres confronts China over coal boom, urging a green recovery
China’s provinces have overseen a coal plant building spree in the first half of the year, in a bid to revive the Covid pandemic-hit economy
Renewables overtake fossil fuels in EU electricity generation
Wind and solar produced a record fifth of the European Union’s electricity during the first half of the year – a trend accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic
Poland bails out coal, yet wins access to EU climate funds
Warsaw can get EU money allocated for greening the economy, despite having no plan to exit coal or commitment to the bloc’s 2050 net zero emissions goal
Seven countries back Africa’s biggest investment, a $20 billion gas project
US, Japan and the UK are among the backers of a scheme to exploit Mozambique’s gas reserves, despite climate, security and human rights concerns
Vulnerable states urge EU to link recovery funds to tougher 2030 climate target
In a rare intervention in EU politics, poor and small island nations urged leaders to rebuild the economy in line with a 55% emissions cut by 2030
No time for loopholes: Japan must immediately end all overseas coal finance
Environment minister Shinjiro Koizumi promised to scrap funds for dirty power plants abroad, but the government is making too many exceptions
Biden support for US cleantech innovation ‘will raise the bar’ internationally
The US presidential contender has pledged to invest in research and development to tackle the climate crisis if elected, in a plan welcomed by experts
Portugal ends coal burning two years ahead of schedule
Portugal is the third EU country this year to announce early closure of its last coal plants, as rising carbon costs and competition from gas and clean energy bite
Saudi Arabia censors fossil fuel subsidy discussion as G20 host
Riyadh is scrubbing the word “subsidy” from expert briefings, despite a commitment from G20 countries to phase out “inefficient” support to coal, oil and gas
Not all biomass is carbon neutral, industry admits as EU reviews policy
The EU is working on stricter sustainability criteria for bioenergy, posing a challenge for the industry and several member states
Gas curse: Mozambique’s multi-billion dollar gamble on LNG
A vast gas discovery promises riches for the people of Mozambique, but it can only pay off in a dangerously overheated world
The Amazon home of Bolsonaro’s mineral fantasy
Indigenous inhabitants of the region with the largest deposits of niobium in the world claim the right to decide what is done with the metal
Big nations aid fossil fuels more than clean energies amid pandemic, researchers find
US, Russia are among many G20 nations helping coal, oil and gas more than clean energy as part of recovery packages, a major study will show
Airlines’ climate obligations postponed as UN body endorses industry proposal
A handful of countries on the council of the International Civil Aviation Organization agreed to change the rules to reduce the sector’s carbon costs
EU must not sacrifice the Amazon rainforest on the altar of trade with Brazil
As Brazil’s second-biggest trade partner, the EU should condemn President Bolsonaro’s assault on environmental protections and indigenous rights
US climate activists confront the movement’s whiteness problem
Coronavirus, Black Lives Matter and a Chevron slip-up highlight how environmentalism has failed black communities – calling for new models of activism
India eyes private investment to open 41 new coal mines
Prime Minister Modi says private coal mining will boost India’s energy security, despite expert warnings of stranded assets and indigenous rights violations