By Paul Homewood

 A round up of the latest news, as reality hits home:

https://www.thegwpf.com/lockdown-kills-californias-green-new-deal-gov-cancels-billions-in-climate-spending/

LONDON (AP) — The coronavirus pandemic threatens to derail any progress made in recent years to deal with the climate change crisis, organizers of the annual gathering of business and political elites in the Swiss ski resort of Davos said Tuesday.

In a survey of industry professionals that reassesses the risks to the global outlook in light of the pandemic, the World Economic Forum said "years of progress" on addressing climate change could be undone and that it is important for countries to make sure environmental issues are at the heart of recovery plans.

https://13wham.com/news/coronavirus/coronavirus-threatens-years-of-progress-on-climate-issues

https://news.ku.dk/all_news/2020/05/ambitious-eu-climate-efforts-could-increase-greenhouse-gas-emissions-in-the-rest-of-the-world/

Germany is on track to widely miss its EU obligations to reduce CO2 emissions, even if the EU does not follow through plans to step up its ambitions in the fight against climate change, according to calculations by think tank Institute for Applied Ecology (Öko-Institut). In sectors that are not covered by the Emissions Trading System (ETS) such as buildings, transport and agriculture, Germany is on course to lower emissions by 28 percent by 2030 compared to 2005 with existing legislation, falling short of its effort-sharing target of minus 38 percent.

https://www.cleanenergywire.org/news/germany-course-widely-miss-eu-emission-targets-think-tank

Peak-hour morning traffic in Beijing has surged as commuters shun public transport in favor of their cars amid continued concerns over the spread of coronavirus.

Despite lockdowns being lifted, it is no surprise that people are hesitant to board crowded commuter trains and are instead preferring to drive. Data for weekday subway passenger numbers on the Beijing network show a recovery to only 52% of the pre-virus average. This compares with morning peak-hour road congestion that is now 50% above normal levels.

The trends in Beijing and other Chinese cities provide a bellwether for how people are likely to behave as lockdowns are lifted around the world. The reluctance of commuters to use public transport may also be compounded by capacity restrictions and social distancing measures on trains and in stations.

https://about.bnef.com/blog/gridlock-in-beijing-as-commuters-shun-public-transport/

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May 21, 2020 at 05:09AM