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Banks Face Scrutiny for $61.5 Billion Petrobras Funding Amid Amazon Oil Exploration Concerns

Banks Face Scrutiny for $61.5 Billion Petrobras Funding Amid Amazon Oil Exploration Concerns

Banks Face Scrutiny for $61.5 Billion Petrobras Funding Amid Amazon Oil Exploration Concerns
AP NewsAP News
At COP31, Turkey pushes zero-waste plan to curb climate change

At COP31, Turkey pushes zero-waste plan to curb climate change

As world leaders arrive at United Nations climate talks in the Turkish resort town of Antalya, calling for urgent climate action, co-host Turkey also wants to halve the amount of global waste in the next decade
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Drought Conditions Intensify Nutrient Imbalances in European Forest Trees, Threatening Forest Health

Drought Conditions Intensify Nutrient Imbalances in European Forest Trees, Threatening Forest Health

A comprehensive study analyzing European forest monitoring records over three decades reveals that summer droughts are exacerbating nutrient imbalances in major European forest tree species. Researchers Lena Wohlgemuth, Mathieu Jonard, Andreas Schmitz, and their colleagues examined over 4,100 foliar measurements from 279 forest monitoring plots across Europe, focusing on common beech, sessile and pedunculate oak, Norway spruce, and Scots pine. The findings indicate a decline in both foliar nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, with phosphorus decreasing at roughly twice the rate of nitrogen. Critically, dry summer periods significantly reduced foliar phosphorus across all four species, leading to increased foliar nitrogen-to-phosphorus ratios. This imbalance is primarily driven by phosphorus depletion during droughts, as dry soil conditions impair phosphate transport into tree roots. The study utilized both atmospheric and soil hydrological drought indices, including the standardized precipitation evapot...
USA TodayUSA Today
VR tool reveals how sea level rise could swamp Fort Lauderdale

VR tool reveals how sea level rise could swamp Fort Lauderdale

Researchers at Florida Atlantic University developed a virtual reality simulation that models the possible future effects of flooding in the city.
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Brazil, Argentina, and Chile Advance Article 6 Carbon Market Plans, Setting Authorization Limits and Standards

Brazil, Argentina, and Chile Advance Article 6 Carbon Market Plans, Setting Authorization Limits and Standards

Brazil, Argentina, and Chile are actively developing their frameworks for participating in carbon market mechanisms under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Brazil's Interministerial Committee on Climate Change (CIM) has set a maximum authorization limit of 50 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e) for 2026-2030 and 100 million tCO2e for 2031-2035 for Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs) under Article 6.2. This decision expands the previously proposed ceiling for 2031-2035. Argentina, in its third Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), declared its intention to participate in bilateral, regional, and multilateral carbon market mechanisms, emphasizing the need for domestic rules to prevent double counting and ensure socio-environmental integrity. Chile's Ministry of Environment has recognized the Verra Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), Gold Standard for the Global Goals (GS4GG), and Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART TREES) as certification programs for Article 6.2 cooperation, an...
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Inter-American Development Bank Approves $60 Million Loan for Flood Risk Reduction in Goiânia, Brazil

Inter-American Development Bank Approves $60 Million Loan for Flood Risk Reduction in Goiânia, Brazil

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a $60 million loan aimed at reducing flood risks and enhancing resilience for residents in Goiânia, Brazil. This initiative is part of the IDB Group's 'Ready and Resilient Americas' program and aligns with its 'South Connection' program, which supports connectivity, trade, and sustainable growth in South America. The project will concentrate on the Macambira-Anicuns Basin, an area prone to flooding, and will involve improvements in urban drainage and solid waste management. Approximately 90,000 residents in the basin are expected to directly benefit from these measures. Additionally, nearly 65,000 people will gain access to new parks, green areas, and public spaces, while the city's 1.5 million residents will benefit from expanded early warning system coverage and improved urban drainage management. This is the second project under a Conditional Credit Line for Investment Projects approved by the IDB in 2025, designed to improve socio-environmental, so...
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NASA Warns of Escalating Amazon Wildfires Driven by El Niño, Projecting Worsening Conditions

NASA Warns of Escalating Amazon Wildfires Driven by El Niño, Projecting Worsening Conditions

Satellite observations from NASA's Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS), Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED), and NASA Worldview indicate a significant increase in fires and smoke emissions across the central and eastern Amazon since September 2026. This surge extends from the forests around Manaus and Santarém eastward towards the mouth of the Amazon River. Douglas Morton, an Earth system scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, describes this as a 'cascade' of tropical wildfires, intensified by the current El Niño climate pattern. The drought conditions, exacerbated by El Niño, have made vast areas of the rainforest highly vulnerable to fire. Manaus, the capital of Brazil's Amazonas state, experienced dangerously polluted air on October 12, 2026, with fine particulate matter exceeding 135 micrograms per cubic meter, leading to school closures and suspension of public events. Scientists anticipate the wildfire cascade to move northward in November and December, affecting Rorai...
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Brazil Deploys National Security Force to Indigenous Territory Following Invasion

Brazil Deploys National Security Force to Indigenous Territory Following Invasion

Brazil has deployed its National Public Security Force to the Ituna/Itatá Indigenous Territory in Pará, northern Brazil, for a period of 180 days. This deployment comes in response to an invasion by over 500 individuals two months prior, impacting the isolated Igarapé Ipiaçava Indigenous people. The security force will support Brazil’s Indigenous Affairs Agency (Funai) in protecting the territory. The invasion followed a new state law in Pará that created the Bacajaí Environmental Protection Area (APA Bacajaí), which overlaps with the federally protected Indigenous land. This state law, deemed invalid by the federal government, reportedly legitimized and encouraged the invasion, which also saw a sharp increase in forest fires within the territory. A federal court ordered the deployment in August, but authorization from the federal government was not signed until October 29 and published on November 3. The National Force's previous authorization expired in July 2026, and its redeployment required authorizat...
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Norway Pledges $64 Million to Brazil's Amazon Fund Following Record Low Deforestation Rates

Norway Pledges $64 Million to Brazil's Amazon Fund Following Record Low Deforestation Rates

Norway has announced a donation of approximately 350 million reais ($63.58 million) to Brazil’s Amazon Fund. This pledge comes in response to Brazil's reported record-low deforestation rates in the Amazon rainforest. According to Brazil’s space research agency, INPE, deforestation in the Amazon fell to its lowest recorded level in the 12 months leading up to July. Sigrun Aasland, Norwegian Climate and Environment Minister, praised Brazil's results as 'impressive and important not just for the country, but for the whole world.' Norway has been the largest contributor to the Amazon Fund since its inception in 2008, having disbursed a total of approximately 3.8 billion reais. The fund is dedicated to preserving the Amazon, the world's largest rainforest, and supports initiatives in forest protection, enforcement, wildfire prevention, restoration, indigenous and land rights, and sustainable economic activities.
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UN climate summit kicks off in Turkey after a disastrous year of extreme weather

UN climate summit kicks off in Turkey after a disastrous year of extreme weather

World leaders, delegates and climate activists are in Antalya, Turkey, for a U.N. climate summit
ReutersReuters
War, conflict must not distract from climate action, leaders warn COP31

War, conflict must not distract from climate action, leaders warn COP31

By Tuvan Gumrukcu and Valerie Volcovici ANTALYA, Turkey, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Wars and trade disputes should not be allowed to distract the world from its struggle to combat global warming, the leaders of Brazil and Turkey told the COP31 climate conference on Wednesday.
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Brazil to present plan for moving economies toward renewable energies at UN climate talks

Brazil to present plan for moving economies toward renewable energies at UN climate talks

Brazil will launch a road map to help countries transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies