Climate Change

[SteveH]

THE UK Government has announced a range of new policies as part of its aim to significantly cut carbon emissions and tackle climate change.

Its long-awaited net zero strategy, outlining plans to meet legal targets to end its contribution to climate change by 2050, has been published ahead of crucial UN Cop26 climate talks in Glasgow.

Among the key policies are an expansion of the electric vehicle network and new measures to encourage renewable heating in homes.

We've taken a look at the progress made on green initiatives in Conwy so far.

Electric vehicle charging
The Government's net zero strategy included an announcement of £620 million for electric vehicle grants to support the rollout of charging infrastructure nationally.

Figures show Conwy is on track with the average pace across Great Britain of its EV charging point rollout.

Statistics from the Department for Transport show there were 45 public charging points in the area at the start of October – up from 32 a year before.

At a rate of 38 per 100,000 people, this is on a par with the UK average, of 39.

Since October 2019 – when figures began at local authority level – the number of devices in Conwy has risen by 24.

Across the UK, an additional 10,800 devices were made available over the same period, taking the total number to 25,900 by October.

cont   https://www.northwalespioneer.co.uk/news/19675776.cop26-ev-charging-points-renewable-energy-conwy/

[SteveH]

Climate change: Fridge doors could save 1% of UK electricity use

The UK could cut its total electricity usage by 1% if the top five British supermarkets put doors on fridges, campaigners have said.

Aldi has pledged to put fridge doors in all of its new UK stores, saving 2,000 tonnes of carbon a year.

Other supermarkets say they will try to make open fridges more efficient.

But the Environmental Investigation Agency said supermarkets could cut their electricity bills by an average of 33% by adding doors.

"It's such a simple change," and "It could save so much energy, that's going to be so important for us as we try to decarbonise and make the changes to become a greener country."

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-59141894

[SteveH]

A Climate Change Points to Ponder article............

Farmers are being "cold called" by agents working for investors who want to buy farmland to plant trees that would offset their carbon footprint.

Farming unions claim "powerful players are seeking to offset emissions" at the expense of rural communities in what one politician called a "land grab."

Land agent Savills said it has made "direct approaches" to farmers in Wales on behalf of clients.

One of those approached said they feared farmers were an "easy take".

Kyra Somerfield said she was "annoyed" and "shocked" by the unsolicited call from Savills to ask if she was interested in selling the 220-acre family farm in Carmarthenshire where she has lived and worked for 60 years.

Kyra Somerfield farms 300 sheep and 30 beef cattle at her farm in west Wales
The 83-year-old is worried the nature of Wales could change forever if productive farm land is converted to forests.

"If we do go along those lines of covering our uplands with trees, the nature of Wales would change irrevocably," said Mrs Somerfield.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-60125398

[Ian]

A great deal of fascinating info in this Register piece.

[SteveH]

14million package to help protect North Wales from climate crisis
It will see 5,209,532 being invested in Denbighshire, protecting 4,502 homes.

This includes a 3,777,017 investment in a flood and costal erosion risk management programme in Rhyl Central, and 150,000 for Prestatyn Central.

In Conwy, 3,485,425 will be invested, protecting 12,269 homes, including 1,445,000 in Llanfairfechan Coastal Defence Improvements, 931,780 for Kinmel Bay, 85,000 to safeguard Schoolbank Road, in Llanrwst and 340,000 to protect Church St, in Dolwyddelan.

In Gwynedd, 1,855,773 will be ploughed into protecting 1,541 homes.

It will include 950,000 for Barmouth North Prom, 342,087 for the Hirael flood defence scheme in Bangor, and 40,000 for Criccieth West Beach.
On Anglesey, 3,444,938 is being invested in protecting 435 homes.

The investment includes 1,530,000 to protect Penlon, in Menai Bridge,  297,500 for a coastal erosion risk management scheme in Brynsiencyn, and 150,000 to safeguard Holyhead.

cont https://www.northwalespioneer.co.uk/news/23535211.14million-package-help-protect-north-wales-climate-crisis/

PS
Climate change: Ministers lack urgency on flood risks, critics say
Welsh ministers have been accused of lacking urgency on flood risks due to climate change, after postponing planning rule changes twice.

The policy, based on the latest advice, was due to come into force next month, but the minister said that was no longer "achievable".
Opposition parties and environmental campaigners have expressed concern at the delay.
The Welsh government said it was important to "get it right".

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-65645615

[SteveH]

Underwater 'lawnmower' helps create vast sea 'meadows' off North Wales coast
Harvesting is also being done manually by scuba divers, snorkellers and volunteers wading through shallower waters

Youngsters are donning snorkels to help harvest a million seeds from the seas off North Wales this month. They will join scuba divers in the hunt for a plant that could help tackle the global climate and nature crises.

They?re on the look-out for seagrass seeds off the Llŷn Peninsula. Once collected, they?ll be planted at three sites along the North Wales coast to create giant sea ?meadows? that will absorb carbon dioxide and attract sea creatures.

cont https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/underwater-lawnmower-helps-create-vast-27445909

[SteveH]

Climate change: Flintshire cement work's carbon capture plan

A cement works has plans to pipe 800,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year out to sea to fight climate change.

Cement giant Hanson claims capturing carbon could play a vital role in the UK reaching its net-zero targets.

The company is planning a ?400m facility at its Padeswood plant in Flintshire, making it the first carbon capture-enabled cement works in the UK.

While Greenpeace objects to some uses of carbon capture, it accepted it may be necessary for cement production.

Hanson is one of several companies chosen by the UK government to progress plans for carbon-reducing solutions as part of the HyNet project.

What is carbon capture and can it fight climate change?,..................

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-66453932

[SteveH]

Climate change: Rise in Google searches around ?anxiety?

Online search queries related to "climate anxiety" have risen, according to data gathered by Google and shared exclusively with BBC 100 Women.

Studies also suggests that women are more affected by climate anxiety than men.

The rise of wildfires, floods and droughts around the world are just some of the highly visible signs of climate change.

What is reported less is the impact of climate change on human minds.

Climate anxiety - defined as feelings of distress about the impacts of climate change - has been reported globally, particularly among children and young people.

Data from Google Trends shows that search queries related to "climate anxiety" have increased dramatically.

Search queries in English around "climate anxiety" in the first 10 months of 2023 are 27 times higher than the same period in 2017.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-67473829

[SteveH]

Away from the bright lights and the big star names, Tilly Ashton spends her days on film sets doing less glitzy but no less important work.

While the cameras roll, she is busy washing dirty waste packaging and sorting it for recycling.

A veteran of big productions for Netflix and ITV, her mission is to cut carbon and reduce waste.

That's because Wales' screen sector has been chosen to pilot major changes to meet net zero targets.

According to industry experts, filmmakers both in Wales and abroad are more likely to be drawn to places where making carbon neutral films is easier.

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-67486152

[Ian]

From Scientific American:
 "After months of record-breaking warm temperatures, much of the U.S. is facing a harsh, fast-approaching blast of frigid air from the Arctic that could plunge wind chill factors below zero degrees Fahrenheit (?18 degrees Celsius)?all close on the heels of a serious winter storm dumping snow over the Midwest and Great Lakes this weekend.

?It will be a very impressive?certainly one of the most impressive Arctic outbreaks of this century anyway,? says Judah Cohen, a climate scientist at the company Verisk Atmospheric and Environmental Research. Similar recent events have included the terrible cold snap that struck Texas in February 2021 and a sharp preholiday freeze in December 2022, Cohen notes.

Fortunately, this Arctic blast isn?t expected to be as deadly as the Texas event, which knocked out power for four million people, says Kristina Dahl, a climate scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists, who adds that upgrades in recent years should reduce the strain that frigid air places on the power grid during this event.

To understand how this Arctic blast could affect you and what risks to prepare for, consult your local National Weather Service office. Meanwhile here?s the science behind why temperatures are suddenly plummeting so sharply across such a wide swath of North America.

Typically, very cold air in the Arctic is trapped inside a high-altitude swirl of winds called the polar vortex, which is surrounded by a lower-altitude band called the polar jet stream. If the polar vortex gets disrupted, however, the jet stream can become wavy and carry frigid air much farther south than usual in an Arctic blast. Sometimes this frigid air brings snow and ice; other times the weather is dry but bitterly cold.

Scientists are still trying to pin down precisely what causes these disruptions. ?It?s a very active area of research and something that scientists are passionately debating and trying to figure out at the moment,? Dahl says. ?It?s definitely not settled science.?

Still, many experts believe climate change likely plays a role?and Cohen goes even further: he contends that climate change in the Arctic is directly disrupting the polar vortex. According to Cohen, this winter?s melting sea ice near Scandinavia coupled with high snowfall near Siberia to set up a thermal contrast, which he says drove the polar jet stream into waves. The polar vortex typically ?wakes up? around January, he adds, so it makes sense that we?re now feeling the sharp chill from an Arctic blast whose stage was set by these distant trends.

?It seems very counterintuitive and surprising that a warmer planet can actually increase your odds of experiencing severe winter weather events?but that?s what our research has shown,? Cohen says.

Cohen adds that he expects a second, less severe Arctic blast to occur later this month and that the phenomenon could potentially repeat into February as well.

Although science is still working to hone an explanation for polar vortex disruptions and accompanying Arctic blasts, Dahl says that she sees the irony of this incident coinciding with the U.S. government confirming that 2023 was the hottest year on record. ?To me, this is indicative of a climate changed world with greater extremes,? she says.

?I like to think of these polar jet stream outbreaks as ?global weirding,?? Dahl adds. ?Climate change is causing all sorts of different impacts, and some of them are counterintuitive.?

[SteveH]

Climate change: Sabrina Lee quits buying new clothes

With her job as a TV weather presenter, it would be easy for Sabrina Lee to justify buying new clothes for work on a regular basis.

Instead she has set herself a challenge - to quit buying new clothes for the whole of 2024.

"There's pressure for me to look good because of my role and I know there's a lot of eyes on me," said Sabrina.

"But I'm a meteorologist, I studied the weather and climate at university and I also talk to the public about it... so I've realised that the fashion industry has a negative impact on the environment."

The fashion sector is responsible for somewhere between 2% and 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-68545114

[SteveH]

Tourism businesses need more support so they are not left choosing between "sustainability or quicker profits", a guest house owner has said.

John Whitehead, who runs an eco lodge in Eryri National Park, also called Snowdonia, said the sector needed help to tackle climate change.

It comes as Wales was named one of the world?s most sustainable destinations to visit this year by travel company Lonely Planet.

The Welsh government said it was supporting tourism businesses to reach their green ambitions.

Since buying his guest house 25 years ago, Mr Whitehead has made it more eco-friendly by adding new insulation, solar panels and "a boiler for the heating which runs on cat litter".

He added: "These things aren?t cheap but there?s not a lot of money out there."

"With the support we?ve got now you might break even in five or six years? time and sometimes businesses won?t accept that, they?ll just look for a quicker return.

"Government can lead on this. We?re so far down the rabbit hole with climate change now they need to do more."

cont https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckk7r16yrllo