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On plogging and dirty diapers
Gloves recommended when plogging for dirty diapers.
Hi friend,
At least someone was listening last week when I was on my soapbox about speeding up efforts to fight climate change.
The EU has set higher renewable energy targets, committing to source 42.5% (from 32%) of its energy from renewable sources like wind and solar by 2030, with a potential top-up to 45%. It has also added a legally binding aim to cut net greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 and to radically slash the use of pesticides.
Big moves like these, combined with small actions at scale – like plogging* – can spark a movement to turn things around for the climate.
*Gloves recommended when plogging for dirty diapers.
— Tarryn ✌️
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Quote of the week:
"A growth model centred on fossil fuels is simply obsolete."
This week's climate and sustainability news worth noting
🤝 US President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have signed the new US-Australia Climate, Critical Minerals, and Clean Energy Transformation Compact. The agreement makes tackling climate change a key joint priority and aims to speed up the transition to clean, renewable energy.
🌡️ The United Nations has warned that there’s a 66% chance that the world will breach the critical 1.5C global warming threshold in the next four years, thanks to rising carbon emissions and an imminent El Niño weather pattern expected later this year.
🌳 Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest fell 68% in April from the previous year under President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's leadership.
🛢️ Over 100 members of the US Congress and European Parliament want Sultan al-Jaber to be removed as the designated head of the upcoming COP28 climate talks, saying his appointment threatened the integrity of negotiations. Jaber leads the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and serves as the UAE's Ministry of Industry and Technology as well as its climate envoy. Lawmakers are concerned that private sector polluters would be able to "exert undue influence" on the climate negotiations with Jaber leading the talks.
🇮🇩 Indonesia is building a new capital city on higher ground – from scratch – in response to rising sea levels. Forty percent of Jakarta, the country’s current capital city, is below sea level. The planned new city, known as I.K.N., will run on renewable energy and is being marketed as a smart city that will attract digital nomads. And although the initial phase is planned for August next year, the project has attracted doubt and scrutiny.
🗽 Meanwhile, New York City is also sinking because of rising sea levels and the collective weight of its buildings. A recent study found that the City is sinking at a rate of 1 to 2 millimetres a year, with some areas going under at a rate of 4.5 millimetres a year.
❌ A popular bioplastic advertised as biodegradable does not actually break down in the ocean, a PLOS ONE study has found.
🌀 Wild weather: A category 5 tropical cyclone lashes Myanmar and Bangladesh, triggering the evacuation of nearly a million people. Floods in Italy leave at least 13 people dead and 400 roads damaged or destroyed. And a typhoon rips through Guam.
And in business news:
🔋 For the first time, investments in solar could exceed that of oil production. A new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) says US$2.8 trillion will be invested in global energy this year, of which more than US$1.7 trillion will be spent on clean energy technologies. That said, investment in oil and gas is also expected to increase, with the IEA warning that fossil fuel investment in 2023 will be more than double the levels needed in a 2030 Net Zero future.
🌱 The Science Based Targets Network (SBTN) has released the first science-based targets for nature. The original scope of the framework covers freshwater and land, alongside climate, which will be supported by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). An initial pilot will be undertaken with a group of 17 companies – including AB InBev, Nestle, and GSK – with a full roll-out to all companies in early 2024.
🏭 157 global companies account for 60% of industrial emissions when also considering their vast supply chains, with many firms insufficiently supporting climate action to address their impact. A report from the World Bank and CDP says these companies are the key drivers of the climate crisis, but they’re doing little to address their impact.
Well, that's interesting
Disposable nappies present a massive environmental challenge and are one of the biggest contributors to the plastic waste that’s clogging up landfills .
The stats are rather shitty:
One baby uses 4,000-6,000 nappies before they are potty trained.
Every year, an estimated 167 billion disposable nappies are produced, requiring 248.5 million barrels of crude oil.
Because they are hard to recycle, the majority of nappies end up in landfill, where they take hundreds of years to break down.
Globally, more than 300,000 disposable nappies a minute are sent to landfill, incinerated, or end up in the environment, including the ocean.
And that’s just baby nappies.
Research has found that adult diapers present an even bigger environmental problem. Waste from adult incontinence products will outnumber infant diapers between 4 and 10 times by 2030 – and that’s just in Australia.
But a bunch of smart people might have come up with a solution to this crappy situation: Turning nappies into concrete.
A recent study found that up to 8% of the volume of concrete and mortar to make a basic house could be replaced by recycled disposable diapers. This would not only solve part of the waste problem but could also offer a solution to the high cost of building materials when it comes to constructing more affordable housing in low- and middle-income countries.
One small thing you can do.
Because lots of little actions combined can add up to something remarkable.
Go plogging.
Plogging means to pick up and run.
It’s the act of picking up rubbish when out on a run, walk, jog, or hike.
It’s a combination of the Swedish terms plocka upp, which means "to pick up," and jogging.
I'll leave you on this happy note…
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