Tuesday 24 August 2021

The Earth's hottest month ever recorded

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration declared July 2021 as the world's hottest month in the 142 years since it started keeping record. "This new record adds to the disturbing and disruptive path that climate change has set for the globe'. the NOAA Administrator said in a statement. 

(Photo: ABC Chicago)


During July 2021, news of extreme weather scenarios came from all corners of the world. Data shows that the combined land and ocean-surface temperature was 0.93°C (1.68F) above the 20th Century average of 15.8°C (60.4F). We have researched the web and put together a comprehensive list below.




EUROPE

Northern Ireland: Broke all-time heat records twice in five days

Italy: Europe's new all-time record of 48.7°C in Siciliy, plus over 800 wildfires recorded nation-wide including the island of Sardinia

Germany: Massive floods180 dead + 150 missing and a Eur400 million recovery package

Belgium: Floods causing substantial damage and landslides, 50 dead

Switzerland, The Netherlands, Luxembourg: Floods causing substantial damage

Spain: Blazing countryside and record-braking snowfall and snowstorm

UK: wettest 3-day period on record, and extreme flash floods

France: Unusual, larger and faster spreading wildfires

Greece: More than 580 wildfires caused by heatwaves

A firefighting helicopter flies in front of a thick cloud of smoke from a forest fire at Spathovouni village, Greece. The Mayor called the situation "an immense catastrophe". (Photo: Global Citizen)

Damaged houses are seen at the Ahr River, Germany. 148 litres of rain per m2 fell in 48 hours, compared to the 82 litres that are normally expected in the month of July. (Photo: Global Citizen)

 
Heavy downpours and thunderstorms have caused severe flash flooding in parts of London. Tube and rail networks suspended after a month's worth of rain in a day. (Photo: The Telegraph)



AMERICA

California: Extreme heatwaves 53°C and devastating wildfires

Canada: Heat dome 50°C and wildfires

North America: Extreme heatwave, 840 dead and wildfires

Texas: Extreme low temperature of -13°C, 210 people dead

Oregon: One of the largest blazes in history, hundreds of homes consumed by the flames and thousands evacuated

Mexico: Heavy rains, severe flooding and a long-term drought

Saint Lucia, Dominican Republic, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Jamaica, Cuba, Cayman Islands (Caribbean): Storm Elsa caused relentless storms and mass flooding

Brazil: Extremely rare snowfall with huge risks for crops

The Andes Mountain range, in South America, is facing historically low snowfall during a decade-long drought that scientists link to global warming. (Photo: Reuters)

There are currently 86 active large fires across 12 U.S. states, as more than 22,000 firefighters are battling the blazes that have so far burned over 1.5 million acres. (Photo: Newsweek)

Disaster is brewing in Brazil as the world's coffee supply is at risk as temperature plunge and snow falls, also threatening sugarcane and orange cops with frost. (Photo: Gizmodo)
 


ASIA

Turkey: Record high temperatures, devastating wildfires and floods

Japan: Severe weather with torrential rains, strong winds, landslides and flooding

Russia: 1.5 million hectares of forest in Siberia on fire, and record temperatures in Moscow 34.8°C

Nepal: Heavy rainfall triggering flooding and landslides

Oman: Heavy rains and severe floods

China: 60 dead and 1+ million evacuated due to deadly floods caused by a typhoon, and the worst sandstorm/duststorm in a decade

India: Extreme floods in various states, 200 dead

Iraq: Strong heatwave 50°C causing loss of electricity

Iran, Lebanon, Cyprus, Greece: Floods causing substantial damage

The National Disaster Response Force rescuing people in Maharashtra, India, where heavy monsoon downpours caused landslides, flooding and killed at least 180 people. (Photo: Global Citizen)


A huge search and rescue operation is underway in north of Turkey, after dramatic flash foods killed at least 77 people. The country is also battling huge wildfires in the south. (Photo: Global Citizen)

China was hit by 2 major events in July; floods in Henan province left 73 people dead and a typhoon in Zhejiang province that caused $516 million in damage. (Photo: Bloomberg)


AUSTRALASIA

Fiji: Two cyclones in a row

New Zealand: Floods causing substantial damage

New South Wales: Extreme flooding, thousands of evacuations

Australia: Coldest weather in 17 years in Queensland


Major roads turned into lakes across Perth as they were deluged by flash flooding, leading to almost 700 calls to the State Emergency Service for help. (Photo: The West)


AFRICA

Algeria - Forest fires killing at least 65 people

Nigeria: Floods causing substantial damage

Madagascar: Worst drought in 40 years; famine effecting 1+ million people

South Africa: Rare and unusual snowfall twice in a month

Ghana & Ethiopia: Below-average rainfall results in abnormal dryness

Firefighters battle more than 30 blazes amid blistering temperatures in Algeria, killing at least 65 people including 28 soldiers deployed to help the firefighters. (Photo: News Central Africa)



Meanwhile, in August 2021, rain fell for the first time on record on the snowy summit of Greenland, where tempreatures rose above freezing for the third time in less than a decade. The result was a loss of ice mass which is seven times higher than the daily average for this time of year. 


Collapsology

According to Sir John Beddington, England's Chief Scientist Advisor and author of 'A Perfect Storm', by 2030, the world will be dealing with an increase of 33% in population (6bn to 8bn); a 30% demand for water, a 40% demand for energy, and a 50% demand for food; challenges which we will need to face and find a solution for, amidst natural disasters, 50 million climate change refugees, deadly diseases, failed states and economic instability. 

The term collapsology refers to the collapse of societies and of industrial civilization; a likely consequence, unless drastic measures are implemented immediately to avoid the catastrophic effects of climate change. 



We were warned

"All of this was predicted in climate science decades ago" says John P. Holdren, a Professor of Environmental Policy at Harvard's John F Kennedy School of Government. The reason why this alarming news went mostly unnoticed was because of the interference of the oil industry, that deliberately manipulated and distorted scientific evidence, and spent millions in climate hoax campaigns. Instilling doubt was enough to convince people that it might not be true. If you'd like to read more about this subject, we recommend this BBC article.  


On the 10th of August, 2021, The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), issued the 'Sixth Assessment Report'. In this landmark report, the world's top climate scientists are warning that Earth is headed toward unprecedented warming. They believe that in order to prevent the worst effects, the Earth needs a drastic U-turn away from the use of fossil fuels. 

This report is accessible to the general public and it explains the science in plain language and you can read it here.



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Sources:

https://www.noaa.gov/news/its-official-july-2021-was-earths-hottest-month-on-record?fbclid=IwAR1uvI6IiMZAXdrf2IVxirGgnAplf9a5gmbovB8E3i68zg1YWcz5-E3OcPQ

https://www.theweek.co.uk/news/environment/953574/worlds-most-extreme-weather-events-2021

https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/turkey-china-canada-photos-extreme-weather-climate/

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/19/weather/greenland-summit-rain-climate-change/index.html

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-58208792

Friday 6 August 2021

#movethedate

Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when we have used all the biological resources that the Earth can renew during the entire year. 

This year, Earth Overshoot Day was on 29 July, meaning that between 1 January and 29 July our demand was equivalent to what the planet can regenerate until 31 December. 

The world's population is using as much as 1.7 planets a year, a figure that is thought to increase to 2 planets by 2030. Yet, we only have one planet.

The past does not necessarily determine our future. Our current choices do. Through wise, forward-looking decisions, we can turn around natural resource consumption trends while improving the quality of life for all people. While our planet is finite, human possibilities are not. The transformation to a sustainable, carbon-neutral world will succeed if we apply humanity's greatest strengths: foresight, innovation and care for each other. 

The Earth Overshoot Day Organisation has identified five key areas that are defining our long-term trends most forcefully. All of them are shaped by our individual and collective choices. 


If the world's population lived like Indonesia, Earth Overshoot Day would fall on 18 December, a fantastic achievement, followed by Ecuador (7 Dec) and Nicaragua (2 Dec). On the other side of the spectrum, there is Qatar with a shocking Earth Overshoot Day falling on 9 February, followed by Luxembourg (15 Feb). 

The rapid depletion of resources, causing an early Earth Overshoot Day is mainly due to deforestation, over-fishing, over-farming and green house gas emissions from burning fossil fuels, particularly for the industrial and mobility sectors. 



Let's have a look at the dates of the past 11 years:

2021                29 July                          2015                6 August

2020                22 August                      2014                5 August

2019                29 July                          2013                3 August

2018                1 August                        2012                4 August

2017                3 August                        2011                4 August

2016                5 August                        2010                8 August


Last year, the date was pushed back to where it stood some 15 years ago. This was due to the pandemic-induced lockdown measures around the world that slowed human activity down. Pandemics are not the solution to Earth Overshoot Day however - it came at a great cost and millions of lives. 

The solution is when humans and nature learn to thrive together in equilibrium. This recipe can be found in the 17 Global Goals, for which 193 countries have signed their pledge to.



Earth Overshoot Day has been calculated since 1970. Note the advancement in a period of 10 years:

2000                23 September

1990                11 October

1980                4 November

1970                30 December

Humanity started to consume more than the planet produces and regenerates in the early 1970s, and since then the deadline has been brought forward every year, largely due to increased consumption and population growth.

What happened in the 70s? It was the decade when dependence on oil increased, and airlines (such as Boeing 747) started their commercial trips; it was the year of rockets and moon landings and later, the Industrial Revolution. 


#movethedate

This movement helps eco-conscious individuals like you to explore and tackle solutions to contribute positively to move Earth Overshoot Date. Check out their website to learn how to help nature thrive, create a sustainable community, empower ourselves, feed ourselves and discuss population concerns. For instance, if every other family had one less child and parenthood was postponed by two years, by 2050 we would move Overshoot Day by 49 days.

Did you know that you can calculate and discover your ecological footprint? How many planets do we need if everybody lives like you? Find out your own personal Overshoot Day!

Go here.