2/20
© LaPresse
For the sea, Tuscany comes first, with Maremma in the Grosseto area. But Sardinia is the most awarded region, with six 5 out of 18 ski areas. The top 10 also includes Sicily, Liguria and Campania. The most beautiful lake beaches are almost all in Northern Italy. In the lead is Trentino-Alto Adige, with four lakes, followed by Lombardy
Sardinia, goodbye to the green pass: tourists can enter freely
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323 cities in the EU were examined for their air quality. The first in Austria is only in 52nd place, Vienna is completely behind.
On Wednesday, the European Environment Agency (EEA) published its large air quality ranking. A total of 323 cities in 26 countries were examined for their particulate matter pollution. Austria does anything but good here.
The front runners are the Scandinavian cities of Umea (Sweden) and Tampere (Finland), Funchal on Madeira (Portugal) takes third place. This is followed by the Estonian capital Tallin, Bergen in Norway and Uppsala in Sweden. Salamanca in Spain also made it into the top 10 with 8th place. The first German-speaking city is Göttingen in 29th place.
At the bottom of the ranking, there are almost exclusively cities in southern Poland and northern Italy. Geographically – and also on the ranking list – Austria is in between. The capital of Carinthia, Klagenfurt, has the best value. At rank 52 you are still in the green. It is followed by Innsbruck in 78th place and Salzburg in 90th place.
On the other hand, the three largest cities in the republic are already in the orange zone. Graz is in 234th place in the bottom third of the list. But Vienna (202) and Linz (206) also miss the top 200. In terms of air quality, you measure yourself against metropolises like Naples and Prague.
The air quality recommended by the WHO should not exceed ten micrograms of fine dust per cubic meter of air. Vienna (12.31), Linz (12.52) and Graz (13.97) come well above this. Just below that are Salzburg (9.29), Innsbruck (9.03) and Klagenfurt (8.49).
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The journey of a wandering herd of elephants in China is being watched all over the world. The people of the world are eagerly awaiting their pictures, scenes and news. The funny scene of elephants getting beaten up during the journey is now filling up on social media. Although they are pushing, shoving and pushing each other, it is clear at a glance that this is part of their trunk. The other day, a herd of elephants was seen bathing in muddy water.
The herd started its journey in March 2020 from the Sishwangbana Wildlife Sanctuary on the China-Myanmar border. After 100 km, the two returned. The remaining 14 continued their journey. Meanwhile, with the birth of a female, the membership has grown to 15. The group consists of 3 Kompanana, 6 Pitiyana and 6 Kuttiyana. The herd of elephants is now on its way back after approaching Kunming, a large city of 85 lakh people. The elephants travel through Shiji Township, near the town of Yuxi, south of Kunming. So far they have not attacked a single human being. They walk very peacefully even in populated areas. The government itself supports the journey by providing them with food and transportation.
So far, the elephants have covered more than 500 km. Their journey became a big event on social media last April after covering 100 km. Authorities arrived in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan, on Wednesday. They arranged the journey by removing blocks and other things in a way that did not cause much damage. Various teams of 630 personnel, 103 vehicles, 14 drones and other equipment have been deployed to rescue the elephants. There is also police security. The government delivers 1,200 kg of food, including maize, peanuts and bananas, daily. Not only Yunnan, but Beijing is directly instructing their protection.
Elephants are one of the most endangered species in China. So if you touch them, those who touch them will go inside.
The walk became so popular last Monday when a picture of the group relaxing in the Xiang forest was released during the trip. The elephants, walking back from Kunming, after a short distance lay in a herd near Xiang Township. There was an incident when I fell asleep. Orana was late to wake up. The others left the place. The elephant, which was late to get up, is now walking alone in Kunming. The government has set up a special team to monitor this. It is also reported that Lakku was wandering around after eating another fermented grain.
In the meantime, minor mistakes were made. Two puppies fell into the canyons. Video footage of adult elephants rescuing them then spread. There are many opinions as to where they are going. According to a section, they may leave the forest in search of new pastures due to lack of fodder. Another group said they were holding a long march to see the country. There are those who say it is a misguided move.
Usually elephants do not like to leave the area where they were born. Lack of food and shelter in the Sishwangban area is believed to have led to the elephants’ journey. It is said that the increase in agricultural activities in the region has led to deforestation. Some point out that the lack of attention paid to the elephants by the locals may also be a factor. But nothing, Orana came first, followed by others. The first person does not know the way, the others just follow him – there is a theory.
The elephants caused damage worth around Rs 7.5 crore during the journey. Farms and farms were slightly destroyed. Occasionally visited a car showroom. On the way through Ishan village, an elephant reached a house and threw its trunk through the window. When the householder saw this, he was afraid and hid under the bed. They knocked on the doors of some houses with their trunks and informed that they were here. Chinese officials say they have caused minor problems about 500 times during the trip so far.
All the scenes of the herd’s journey captivated the minds of elephant lovers and animal lovers all over the world. Millions of people have turned a blind eye to images and videos released by Chinese agencies and social media such as Weibo.
English Summary: China’s Wandering Elephants Are On The Move Again. Are They Headed Home?
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The project to change the state’s climate was presented by Mtra. Giovana Irigoyen González, from the Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences of the Autonomous University of Chihuahua, who shared that although Chihuahua has a dry climate, like Israel or Phoenix, what these cities do is change their own climate, through a theory called the Biotic Bomb.
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Currently, the only functional lung with an impact for the city of Chihuahua is Campus 1 of the Autonomous University of Chihuahua in conjunction with the Ciudad Deportiva, for which this initiative was presented at the Forum “University Perspectives, Chihuahua through the Objectives for Sustainable Development (SDG) ”.
Green lungs is a project designed to change the climate of Chihuahua, as part of an investigation by means of a satellite, in which it was found that the capital does not have enough green areas to meet the demand for all the oxygen it needs, since in turn, also to reduce pollution.
Once this has been achieved, it would change from a dry climate to a slightly more humid one, thus attracting rain and reducing respiratory diseases, explained Giovana Irigoyen.
This innovative idea is part of the Action for Climate axis framed in the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations Organization and the UACH-DS Renewal Educational Model. The conclusions of said virtual Forum will be available for consultation and improvement of the public policies of the state of Chihuahua.
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>> The killer fungus that threatens to exterminate a third of Panama’s amphibians
>> Brazil: Bolsonaro under pressure to preserve the Amazon
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| Lake Mead, on the Nevada-Arizona border, in the United States hit its lowest level this week since its inception in the 1930s. Photo: AFP / VNA / CVN |
According to the latest records from government agencies, 88% of the American West was in a state of drought this week, including all of California, Oregon, Utah and Nevada.
The latest symptom to date of this phenomenon, which affects a total of more than 143 million people in the United States, Lake Mead, the largest water reserve in the country located on the Colorado River, on the border of Nevada and the United States. Arizona, this week hit its lowest level since its inception in the 1930s.
The lake, adjacent to the famous Hoover Dam which stands at the gates of Las Vegas, is only 36% full, below the record set in 2016. Federal authorities certainly expected a such shortage occurs, but not before August.
The situation is equally worrying in northern California, which is generally well watered during winter and spring. The level of Lake Oroville, the state’s second largest reservoir and a key part of the network providing drinking water to 27 million Californians, is fifty meters lower than in 2019.
Now, severe water restrictions are inevitable in the coming months, which could have serious consequences in several states in the west of the country, especially for farms that depend on irrigation and supply much of the water. fruits and vegetables of the country. Not to mention the California almond trees, which account for up to 80% of world production but which some farmers have already started to pull out to reduce their water consumption.
At 1is April, which traditionally marks the end of snowfall, snow reserves in the neighboring Sierra Nevada – the source of about a third of the water used in California – were only about 60% of the average.
“What is truly unique this year is that when the snow melted, the runoff eventually seeped into the dry soils and evaporated.“, without actually reaching Lake Oroville to inflate its reserves, explains John Yarbrough, an official at the California Department of Water Resources.
“Rare, dangerous and deadly”
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Fish were trapped in a puddle due to the drop in the level of Lake Oroville, in northern California, here on May 24.
Photo: AFP / VNA / CVN |
According to the Drought Observatory, one-third of California’s territory is currently experiencing “exceptional drought“, the most severe stage.
However, these arid soils and parched vegetation in turn create the conditions for an increase in temperatures, setting up a devastating vicious circle.
Unsurprisingly, the southwestern United States is bracing for an extreme heat wave next week, with temperatures at least 11 ° C above seasonal averages and risking to approach 50 ° C in places.
Las Vegas could thus beat the heat record established in 1940, with a temperature of up to 46 ° C next Wednesday, June 16, according to the weather services which launched an alert in various states.
Such conditions are “rare, dangerous and deadlyNational Weather for Phoenix, central Arizona, warned.
The authorities fear in particular a resurgence of forest fires, which were particularly early and intense this year: at the end of May in California, the fires had already consumed five times more vegetation than last year at the same time.
For most experts, even though the Southwestern United States is naturally prone to drought, there is no doubt that the situation is significantly worsened by global warming.
A study published last year in the journal Science estimated that climate change induced by human activities had accentuated the impact of drought by 46% between 2000 and 2018.
“What is clear is that we are already living in a new climate, a climate that is different from the one our systems were designed under fifty or a hundred years ago.“, recently declared Noah Diffenbaugh, climatologist at the University of California at Stanford.
“And it is a climate in which water deficits are mainly the consequence of global warming“, believes the expert, for whom it remains possible”manage the risks presented by these climate changes“.
“But to achieve this, we must not only recognize the reality of this climate change and adjust to it, we must anticipate“, he emphasizes.
AFP / VNA / CVN
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Lakes at all-time low, early forest fires, water restrictions and now potentially record-breaking heat wave: summer has yet to officially begin and the western United States is already feeling the full brunt of the effects chronic drought, further exacerbated by climate change.
According to the latest records from government agencies, 88% of the American West was in a state of drought this week, including all of California, Oregon, Utah and Nevada.
The latest symptom to date of this phenomenon, which affects a total of more than 143 million people in the United States, Lake Mead, the country’s largest water reserve located on the Colorado River, on the border of Nevada and the United States. Arizona, this week hit its lowest level since its inception in the 1930s.
The lake, adjacent to the famous Hoover Dam which stands at the gates of Las Vegas, is only 36% full, below the record set in 2016. Federal authorities certainly expected a such shortage occurs, but not before August.
The situation is equally worrying in northern California, which is generally well watered during winter and spring. The level of Lake Oroville, the state’s second reservoir and a key element in the network providing drinking water to 27 million Californians, is fifty meters lower than in 2019.
From now on, severe water restrictions are inevitable in the coming months, which could have serious consequences in several states in the west of the country, especially for farms that depend on irrigation and provide much of the water. fruits and vegetables of the country. Not to mention the California almond trees, which account for up to 80% of world production but which some farmers have already started to pull out to reduce their water consumption.
As of April 1, which traditionally marks the end of snowfall, snow reserves in the neighboring Sierra Nevada – the source of about a third of the water used in California – were only about 60% of the average. .
“What is really unique this year is that when the snow melted, the runoff ended up seeping into the dry soils and evaporating”, without actually reaching Lake Oroville to swell its reserves, John Yarbrough, an official with the California Department of Water Resources, told AFP.
– “Rare, dangerous and deadly” –
According to the Drought Observatory, a third of California is currently experiencing “exceptional drought”, the most severe stage.
However, these arid soils and parched vegetation in turn create the conditions for an increase in temperatures, setting up a devastating vicious circle.
Unsurprisingly, the southwestern United States is bracing for an extreme heat wave next week, with temperatures at least 11 ° C above seasonal averages and risking to approach 50 ° C in places.
Las Vegas could thus beat the heat record established in 1940, with a temperature of up to 46 ° C next Wednesday, according to the weather services which launched an alert in various states.
Such conditions are “rare, dangerous and fatal,” warned National Weather in Phoenix, central Arizona.
The authorities fear in particular a resurgence of forest fires, which were particularly early and intense this year: at the end of May in California, the fires had already consumed five times more vegetation than last year at the same time.
For most experts, even though the southwestern United States is naturally prone to drought, there is no doubt that the situation is significantly worsened by global warming.
A study published last year in the journal Science estimated that climate change induced by human activities had accentuated the impact of drought by 46% between 2000 and 2018.
“What is clear is that we are already living in a new climate, a climate which is different from the one our systems were designed under fifty or a hundred years ago,” Noah Diffenbaugh, climatologist at AFP, told AFP recently. Stanford University of California.
“And it is a climate in which water deficits are mainly the consequence of warming”, estimates the expert, for whom it remains possible “to manage the risks presented by these climate changes”.
“But to achieve this, we must not only recognize the reality of this climate change and adjust to it, we must anticipate,” he underlines.
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Faced with the climate emergency, the leaders of the great powers of the G7 decline their action plan on Sunday, the last day of their summit in England which marked a new dynamic in favor of Western multilateralism, led by the United States.
In the aftermath of the announcement of joint initiatives to respond to major global challenges, such as responding to China’s growing international influence and preventing pandemics, industrialized countries are tackling the climate emergency when they meet in Carbis Bay (southwest England), the first in almost two years.
Time is running out, warned British star naturalist David Attenborough, 95. “The decisions we make during this decade – especially the decisions of the most economically advanced nations – are among the most important in human history.”
The stakes are high for the United Kingdom, which wants to lay the foundations for a consensus a few months before the major UN climate conference (COP26) which it will host in Glasgow in November.
The goal is to limit the increase in temperatures below 1.5 ° C compared to the pre-industrial era, a threshold beyond which scientists believe that climate change will get out of hand.
To achieve this, the leaders of the G7 will vote for a reduction of about half of their greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, a target that some countries intend to exceed.
Coal is in their sights, especially power plants powered by this fossil fuel, the most polluting – unless environmental compensation measures are in place, such as CO2 capture. Public aid will be stopped this year.
In this context, the leaders plan to sign a check for up to $ 2 billion to support the green transition in disadvantaged countries.
“There is a direct relationship between reducing emissions, restoring nature, creating jobs and ensuring long-term economic growth,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
– “New momentum” –
Since the start of the summit on Friday, leaders have wanted to offer the image of a united front on major issues.
Through working sessions and asides, US President Joe Biden has endeavored to rally his allies against Moscow and Beijing, a major objective of his European tour which should mark the “return” of the United States on the stage. international post-Trump era.
His arrival in power brought “a new impetus” to the work of the G7, welcomed the German chancellor on departure, Angela Merkel, who had very difficult relations with her predecessor.
But this is not to the taste of Beijing, which denounced decisions taken by “a small clique of countries”.
This image of good relations has, however, been tarnished by the dissensions, exposed in broad daylight, between Europeans and British on Brexit and the thorny issue of Northern Ireland.
The leaders of France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Germany and Japan will also examine the climate component of the vast global infrastructure plan presented on Saturday for disadvantaged countries in Africa, Asia or Latin America, to encourage green growth and try to counter Beijing on its own ground.
The G7 will also commit to increasing its contributions towards the objective of developed countries to finance climate policies of poor countries to the tune of $ 100 billion per year by 2025.
For environmental activists, these announcements are too soft or too vague: they want more action and fewer words. Greenpeace denounces reheated “old promises” and Extinction Rebellion has called the summit a “flop”.
On the pandemic front, after the promise to share a billion doses of anti-Covid vaccines to poor countries, lagging behind in their immunization campaigns, the G7 adopted a battle plan to prevent future pandemics.
This is insufficient, tackled the former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Sky News: “Millions of people will not be vaccinated and millions will die”.
After the final communiqué and the traditional press conferences, Joe Biden will have tea with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle, before the NATO summit in Brussels and then a closely scrutinized meeting with Russian President Vladimir Poutin on Wednesday in Geneva.
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Idea came out during a meeting that dealt with the topic of climate change, to the surprise of the participants
Even if the times are of Terra Plana, the world still has some surprises. Especially when it comes to the suggestion of a relevant public figure, such as a federal deputy. That’s what happened this Wednesday, in the most advanced country in the world. Congressman Louie Gohmert presented a surprising suggestion for combating climate change on earth.
He suggested to NASA that it change the Earth’s or, if not possible, the Moon’s orbit, to solve the problem of the world’s climate.
Gohmert is from Texas, a longtime Republican congressman who is piling up controversy. Denialist, he refused to wear a mask as a prevention against the coronavirus. It ended up contaminated with Covid-19.
The deputy’s suggestion came during a video hearing at the Chamber’s Natural Resources Committee. In conversation with Jennifer Eberlien, deputy associate chief of the National Forest System, he had the vision. He shared with her his idea of how the government should fight climate change.
According to the deputy, the problems with the Earth’s climate could be solved with a “simple” change. Gohmert gave the suggestion in a consultative tone:
“Is there anything the National Forest Service can do to change the course of the Moon’s orbit or the Earth’s orbit around the Sun? Obviously, they would have profound effects on our climate.”
Given the placement, Jennifer avoided being fueled by the controversy. She tried to go off on a tangent, with a “we have to talk about this, Mr. Gohmert.” The news was published on the American Unilad portal.
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Stuttgart / Karlsruhe (dpa / lsw) – The situation in the forests in the southwest has currently improved somewhat as a result of the relatively humid and cool spring. From the perspective of experts, however, the situation remains tense because the groundwater reserves have not been replenished since 2018 after the dry and hot summers. On the other hand, the bark beetles could cause less damage this year. Important topics, because almost 40 percent of Baden-Württemberg is forested.
“The damp and cool spring has a positive effect on the vitality of our trees and delays the development of the bark beetles,” said Forest Minister Peter Hauk (CDU) of the German Press Agency in Stuttgart. “That brings some relief, but it shouldn’t hide the fact that the situation in the forests is still very tense. A few months of heavy rainfall cannot compensate for the long-term effects of climate change.”
According to the ministry, the main causes of the current forest damage are the massive increase in bark beetles, the drought and infestation with harmful fungi. Spruces in particular and, to a lesser extent, firs are affected by the bark beetles. Here, however, the experts expect that the development of the beetles will be significantly delayed by the cool weather compared to previous years. Since they swarm out later, in many places only two generations are expected this year. Also more of the animals died as a result of the cold and wet weather. “The initial population of bark beetles is still very high, however,” it said.
The state forest administration assumes that this year the amounts of damaged wood in the coniferous trees could be lower than in 2020 – but are still at a high level. The forest owners and foresters in regions rich in coniferous wood are still busy processing the beetle wood damage from recent years. “The state supports the forest owners when it comes to clearing the damaged areas and replanting them with climate-stable mixed forests,” said Minister Hauk.
Firs, but especially the most common deciduous tree, the beech, are struggling with drought damage. “For the damage under the deciduous trees, we are assuming a similarly high level in 2021 as in 2020,” said the ministry. The precipitation of the last few weeks provided the topsoil well with water, but the water did not penetrate into the deeper soil layers everywhere. According to the ministry, an adequate water supply is guaranteed again in many low mountain ranges. In the lower elevations of the Neckarland and on the Upper Rhine as well as in the rain shadow areas of the low mountain range, however, the situation has not yet completely relaxed.
The President of the State Agency for the Environment Baden-Württemberg (LUBW) in Karlsruhe, Eva Bell, recently stated that the average, sufficient but very changeable rainfall over the past three winter half-years had not yet been able to compensate for the extreme drought of 2018. “This shows that extreme events can be detected in the groundwater even years later.” At the beginning of June, the groundwater conditions in the southwest were often slightly below average, according to the current LUBW report.
The Black Forest National Park benefits from a snowy winter. The water supply in the region is very good at the moment, said a spokeswoman. “But now summer begins.” From the Ministry’s point of view, the weather in the course of the summer will be decisive for the development of damaged wood in the current year – and for the ability of the trees to compensate for the damage. “We will not have a final picture of the effects of the three dry and hot years until 2022 at the earliest, provided the weather continues to be so favorable,” said a spokesman.
Meanwhile, the forest experts are also worried about damage that has been at a “worryingly high level” regardless of the extraordinary weather of the past three years: Fungal pathogens therefore cause so-called ash dieback in ash trees. Often, however, there are several causes for dead or damaged trees.
In order to be able to decide which tree species grows best where, the Forest Research and Research Institute Baden-Württemberg (FVA), based in Freiburg, is working on estimating the water balance of a location taking climate change into account. The previous procedures had reached their limits with a view to the extreme summer and drought years.
According to the information, the water balance of forests is about rainwater, among other things, which wets the treetops and evaporates again from there. Other parts of the precipitation also fall to the ground and can be taken up there directly by the roots. An important factor is then the forest soils, which store rainwater and thus ensure a continuous water supply even when there is no rain. The experts differentiate, for example, how permeable the soil is, how much water it can store and how high the risk of groundwater or waterlogging is.
The forest policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group, Klaus Hoher, said on Thursday: “To build climate-stable forests, we also need new, non-native tree species Take percent. ” Forest expert Reinhold Pix from the Landtag Greens countered: “The cap of a maximum of 25 percent is important because first the effects of new tree species on the ecosystem must be observed and it is important to avoid monocultures.”
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210610-99-931717 / 5
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Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania (ots/PRNewswire) – Westinghouse is the first company to join the IAEA’s Nuclear Saves Partnerships, bringing together the best of science and technology for a better quality of life worldwide
Westinghouse Electric Company joins the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Nuclear Saves Partnerships, a new initiative to curb the effects of climate change by investing in nuclear technology, renewable integrated energy systems and smart climate agriculture.
“I am grateful to the Westinghouse Electric Company for being the first partner to join Nuclear Saves. Westinghouse funding will support our climate and clean energy efforts. I want to ensure that the IAEA is at the forefront, with the support of Westinghouse and others the use of nuclear science and technology remains to meet global challenges, “said IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi.
“This partnership is further evidence of our commitment to fighting climate change and an important step in deepening the collaboration between Westinghouse and the IAEA,” said Patrick Fragman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Westinghouse. “In the global fight against the effects of climate change, we are proud to serve as a model for future public-private partnerships.”
Nuclear power is the world’s largest source of carbon-free energy and is critical to addressing climate change and meeting decarbonization deadlines set by the world’s leading climate scientists. Nuclear power plants operate at full capacity almost 93% of the time, reliably filling the gap in the field of renewable energies that intermittent energy sources such as wind and sun cannot fill alone.
The Nuclear Saves Partnerships offer companies the opportunity to assist the IAEA in transferring nuclear science and technology to countries to improve the health and prosperity of millions of people around the world. The IAEA brings together the best of global science, technology and human ingenuity to help its 173 member states address some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Funding from the Nuclear Saves Partnerships will enable the IAEA to accelerate the peaceful uses of nuclear energy for cancer diagnosis and treatment, zoonosis prevention and control, and climate change adaptation, control and the transition to clean energy. For more information, please contact the following address: partnerships@iaea.org.
Westinghouse Electric Company is the world’s leading nuclear power company and a leading supplier of products and technologies for nuclear power plants to auxiliaries around the world. Westinghouse delivered the world’s first commercial pressurized water reactor in 1957 in Shippingport, Pennsylvania, USA. Today, Westinghouse technology is the basis for around half of the world’s nuclear power plants. For more information, visit www.westinghousenuclear.com.
Sheriece Dick
Head of Strategic Corporate Communications
Westinghouse Electric Company
Phone: +1 571-489-1351
E-Mail: sheriece.dick@westinghouse.com
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