Podľa štúdie bude vývoj nabíjacej infraštruktúry pre elektrické nákladné vozidlá stáť takmer 35 miliárd eur. Odborníci z poradenskej firmy PwC v štúdii zverejnenej v pondelok napísali, že verejné investície v Európe by do roku 2035 dosiahli 6,1 miliardy eur s cieľom zriadiť 720 nabíjacích parkov a zabezpečiť tak celoštátnu infraštruktúru. Ďalších 28,6 miliardy eur by sektor logistiky použil na vybudovanie približne 28 500 nabíjacích miest v depách. Pokiaľ ide o nabíjanie, pozornosť sa doteraz výrazne sústredila na verejné rýchlonabíjacie parky, ktoré sú potrebné na široké pokrytie územia, ale ktorých využitie kapacity značne kolíše, uviedol odborník z PwC Philipp Rose. „Logistický sektor by preto mal v budúcnosti prevziať iniciatívu a viac investovať do nabíjacích staníc v depách.“ Využitie kapacity sa tam ľahšie plánuje, čo pomáha udržať náklady pod kontrolou. (More on marketscreener.com)

Kedy sa intenzívny dážď zmení na katastrofu? Kedy sa povodeň stane takzvanou „povodňou storočia“? Naši blízki susedia v Poľsku a Českej republike práve teraz čelia novej „povodni storočia“, a krízový stav bol vyhlásený aj v Dolnom Rakúsku. Vo východnom Nemecku tiež zaznamenali stúpajúce hladiny vodných tokov, hoci situácia nie je až tak dramatická.

Ako teda určujeme rozsah katastrofy? Je to podľa množstva zrážok, početnosti úmrtí alebo rozsahu škôd na majetku? Pred tromi rokmi, keď záplavy zasiahli polovicu Európy, sa počet obetí vyšplhal na viac ako 220 ľudí, pričom najmenej 188 z nich zahynulo v Nemecku.

Dážď momentálne postihuje Rakúsko, Českú republiku, Poľsko, Slovensko a Rumunsko—päť členských štátov EÚ, ktoré prežívajú ďalšiu vážnu „povodeň storočia“. Doteraz si situácia vyžiadala 17 životov a viacerí ľudia sú stále nezvestní. Je ťažké určiť jasné príčiny. Ako však k tejto katastrofe došlo?

Faktorov, ktoré prispievajú k takýmto povodňovým udalosťam, môže byť mnoho. Zmeny v klimatických podmienkach sa prejavujú extrémnymi výkyvmi počasia, pričom silné dažde sú čoraz častejšie a intenzívnejšie. Rovnako je dôležité vziať do úvahy stav miestnej infraštruktúry a pripravenosť krajín na zvládanie takýchto extrémnych situácií. Urbanizácia bez adekvátnej kanalizačnej siete môže situáciu ešte zhoršiť, keď voda nemá kam odtekať, čo vedie k rýchlemu hromadeniu a šíreniu po okolí.

Tieto povodne takisto zdôrazňujú potrebu medzinárodnej spolupráce v oblasti klimatických opatrení, prevencie a reakcie na katastrofy. Pokračujúca diskusia o zmierňovaní dopadov klimatických zmien a zvyšovaní odolnosti spoločnosti voči týmto výzvam je viac než aktuálna. (Co2AI)

16. septembra, je Svetový deň ozónu pri príležitosti Montrealského protokolu o postupnom vyraďovaní látok poškodzujúcich ozónovú vrstvu (ODS) škodlivých pre životné prostredie. Spotreba látok poškodzujúcich ozónovú vrstvu, na ktorú sa vzťahuje Montrealský protokol, klesla v EÚ a na celom svete od roku 1986 do roku 2023 približne o 99 %. Zvyšné 1 % odráža niektoré priemyselné procesy, hasičské, laboratórne a analytické použitia, kde alternatívy ešte nie sú široko dostupné. (More on eea.europa.eu)

Snaha Európy o konkurencieschopnosť a bezpečnosť by nemala nahradiť dlhodobú víziu, ktorá prináša výhody občanom a blahobytu. V „strategickom programe Európskej rady“ zverejnenom v júni sa uvádza, že mandát EÚ na nasledujúcich päť rokov sa zameria na konkurencieschopnosť a bezpečnosť. Táto vízia je pochopiteľná, ak je cieľom presvedčiť európskych občanov a hospodárskych hráčov, že EÚ môže poskytnúť ochranu a silu v čase geopolitických a ekonomických turbulencií.

Snaha o konkurencieschopnosť a bezpečnosť by však nemala nahradiť politický projekt a dlhodobá vízia Európy, ktorá prináša občanom a blahobytu – a ciele sociálnej a environmentálnej udržateľnosti by sa mali vrátiť do politickej diskusie.

Zdá sa, že predsedníčka Európskej komisie Ursula von der Leyenová vo svojich politických usmerneniach predložených Európskemu parlamentu v júli o tejto potrebe uvažovala. Hoci dala jasne najavo, že konkurencieschopnosť bude kľúčovou prioritou Dohody o čistom priemysle – ktorá nahradí Európsku zelenú dohodu – povedala, že Komisia „výrazne zvýši svoje financovanie na spravodlivý prechod v rámci budúceho dlhodobého rozpočtu“. (Viac na sustainableviews.com)

Dňa 10. septembra 2024 bola v úradnom vestníku zverejnená legislatívna vyhláška č. 125 zo 6. septembra 2024 (ďalej len „vyhláška“), ktorou sa implementuje smernica 2022/2464/EÚ, známa ako Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive alebo CSRD, o podávaní správ o udržateľnosti .

Nižšie je uvedený súhrn hlavných inovácií pre spoločnosti.

HLAVNÉ INOVÁCIE

CSRD – ktorým sa mení a dopĺňa nariadenie (EÚ) č. 537/2014, smernica 2004/109/ES, smernica 2006/43/ES a smernica 2013/34/EÚ – zavádza významné zmeny v podávaní správ o podnikovej udržateľnosti a jej cieľom je podporovať transparentnosť podnikov o environmentálnych, sociálnych a vládnych (ESG) dopadoch ich činností posilnením povinností ročného podávania správ. Vyhláška, ktorou sa vykonáva CSRD, nahradí legislatívnu vyhlášku č. 254 z 30. decembra 2016, ktorou sa implementovala smernica (EÚ) č. 2014/95 o nefinančnom výkaze („NFS“). Nižšie sú uvedené hlavné inovácie vyplývajúce z uplatňovania vyhlášky:

• rozšírenie subjektov, ktorých sa ohlasovacia povinnosť týka;
• rozšírenie rozsahu komunikácie o udržateľnosti, ktorá musí zahŕňať informácie o udržateľnosti a akékoľvek negatívne vplyvy nielen vo vzťahu k činnosti spoločnosti, ale aj vo vzťahu k jej hodnotovému reťazcu smerom nahor a nadol;
• prístup dvojitej významnosti;
• harmonizácia kritérií podávania správ prostredníctvom používania spoločných noriem (Európske normy podávania správ o udržateľnosti alebo ESRS);
• certifikácia zhody údajov uvedených v správe o udržateľnosti;
• zahrnutie informácií o udržateľnosti do správy o hospodárení;
• digitalizácia komunikácie.

(Melania Mazzonová, more at lexology.com)

Ekologické nároky sú mimoriadne dôležité pre ekologický prechod ekonomiky. Viditeľne demonštrujú angažovanosť spoločností pre dlhodobé blaho všetkých ľudí a planéty. Je zrejmé, že ekologické tvrdenia musia byť presné a podložené.

V roku 2020 Komisia EÚ vykonala inventarizáciu environmentálnych tvrdení proti zásadám smernice EÚ o nekalých obchodných praktikách (UCPD): jasnosť, jednoznačnosť, presnosť a overiteľnosť. Štúdia zistila, že 53 % tvrdení poskytovalo vágne, zavádzajúce alebo nepodložené informácie a 40 % tvrdení bolo nepodložených.

S cieľom posilniť postavenie spotrebiteľov pri ekologickom prechode predložila Komisia EÚ v marci 2023 Európskemu parlamentu návrh smernice o ekologických nárokoch (GCD). Smernica, ktorá má vstúpiť do platnosti v roku 2028, sa snaží zabezpečiť, aby všetky explicitné environmentálne tvrdenia boli podložené a jasne oznámené. Hlavným cieľom smernice je odstrániť neoverené a klamlivé praktiky greenwashingu a pomôcť spotrebiteľom prijímať informovanejšie rozhodnutia. S rovnakým cieľom revízia švajčiarskeho zákona o nekalej súťaži (UCA), ktorá nadobudne účinnosť 1. januára 2025, vyžaduje, aby boli ekologické nároky zdokumentované a objektívne overiteľné. (Daniel Lucien Bühr, Gabriela Svalduzová, viac na lexology.com)

Pri nedávnom vývoji v oblasti energetickej a klimatickej politiky Európskej únie vyjadrila Kadri Simson, komisárka Európskej únie pre energetiku, značné obavy z pokroku národných klimatických plánov. Počas tlačovej konferencie o stave „Energetickej únie 2024“ Simson zdôraznil naliehavú potrebu, aby krajiny EÚ predložili svoje chýbajúce národne stanovené príspevky (NDC). Tieto plány sú kľúčové pre splnenie cieľov EÚ v oblasti klímy a posilnenie dôvery investorov v prechod na ekologickejšiu energetickú budúcnosť. Naliehavosť tejto záležitosti podčiarkuje širší kontext úsilia EÚ riešiť svoju závislosť od fosílnych palív a posilniť sektor obnoviteľnej energie.

„Vyzývam krajiny EÚ, aby predložili chýbajúce národné plány v oblasti energetiky a klímy. K dnešnému dňu sme dostali len 10 konečných plánov (v EÚ je 27 krajín). Už sme dávno po termíne. Tieto plány sú potrebné na presun záväzkov a budovať dôveru investorov.“ – zdôraznil Samson. (Nazrin Abdul, viac na azernews.az)

Climate change education helps people understand and address the consequences of the climate crisis, giving them the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes needed to act as agents of change.

The international community recognizes the importance of education and training in addressing climate change. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Agreement and the associated Action for Climate Action (ACE) program call on governments to educate, empower and engage all stakeholders and major groups in climate change policies and actions. (More on unesco.org)

"What you see is worse than in 1997. I don't know what will happen because my house is under water and I'm not sure if I'll ever go back there," declared one of the evacuees hit by the storm. Significant flooding in central and eastern Europe claimed at least seven lives and forced thousands of people to leave their homes over the weekend.

Storm Boris, a pressure trough, has hit the region since Thursday. Major cities saw rainfall equivalent to a month's total from Saturday to Sunday, with some areas experiencing the heaviest rainfall in 100 years.

"We are once again facing the consequences of climate change, which are becoming more pronounced on the European continent and have dramatic consequences," Romania was among the countries worst hit by the storm, with four people killed on Saturday and a fifth on Sunday. Hundreds of people had to be rescued from the rising waters. Galati, Romania was the worst affected, with the storm damaging around 5,400 homes and around 700 in the village of Slobozia Conachi.

"This is a disaster of enormous proportions"

The sixth victim claimed the life of a firefighter in Austria on Sunday who was battling floods. Authorities declared a state of emergency in Lower Austria, where Vienna is based, and nearly 5,000 rescue workers were involved in rescue operations on Saturday night.

"In Lower Austria, we are experiencing challenging and dramatic times," noted the regional governor, Johanna Mikl-Leitnerová. "For many people, these are probably the most difficult moments of their lives."

In Poland, one person drowned in the worst-hit region of Kladsko, where 1,600 people were evacuated and 17,000 were left without electricity. In another town of Stonie Slaski, floods destroyed a dam and washed away a bridge, while the river in Glucholazy overflowed its banks.

"The situation is still critical in many places. Unfortunately, these situations often recur and some residents tend to underestimate the degree of danger and refuse to evacuate."

The storm also hit Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic, where some of the highest rainfall totals in the region fell and where four people are still missing. The storm forced 10,000 residents of the town of Opava to leave their homes, and Mayor Tomáš Navrátil said conditions were worse than in 1997, known as the "flood of the century".

Rain is expected to continue through at least Monday. According to the 2021 World Weather Attribution, a climate emergency has increased the likelihood of extreme flooding in Europe. The storm followed a record-breaking summer and a warm start to September, which played a role in trapping more moisture in the air. (Co2AI)

The volatility of food prices, such as rice, cocoa, coffee and others, is getting worse. This is due to both climate change and market speculation. Agriculture has been dealing with problems that are not limited to Europe for a long time. Climate change leads to a reduction in production and the pressure on raw material prices increases. Eating out could thus become a more expensive affair, in some cases even a luxury. What future awaits us on the European table?

"There are several factors that cause price increases. Climate change is definitely one of them, it threatens production. The demand for coffee, which is one of the main consumer products in the world, is very high. However, the marketing of coffee is controlled by only a few traders who control the supply through price speculation. According to the World Coffee Organization, the price of coffee has increased globally by 54.6 % since August 2023. In addition, higher costs in the catering industry are also passed on to the final consumer."

Cocoa and sugar have also been affected by similar price problems. What happens in these cases? "The increase in sugar prices in 2023 resulted from the EU's actions, which introduced tariffs on imports from abroad to protect European suppliers from cheaper competition. The cocoa discussion is more complicated. The ecological problems in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, two of the world's main cocoa producers, have been compounded by the speculation of some hedge funds investing in cocoa futures.

As raw material prices rise, some are already considering alternatives, such as carob, which is considered an ecologically sustainable, drought-resistant plant. Can carob gain importance in commodity markets? “If there are more sustainable and cheaper alternatives, why not consider them? But taste is also important - I've never tasted carob myself, but it seems hard for it to compete with a certain chocolate!"

Problems caused by the climate also affect livestock farms, where a decrease in milk production is predicted. The resurgence of bird flu in poultry farms has in turn increased the price of eggs. Is this the perfect storm for farmers? “The agricultural sector is in crisis and the climate conditions are only making it worse. In Europe, we face competition from abroad. We need not only economic aid, but also a recovery program focused on quality, which distinguishes us from intensive agriculture and cultivation."

In 2023, India has stopped rice exports due to drought, and Japan's rice stocks are at historic lows. Is it just the climate? “In Japan, the decline in rice stocks is attributed not only to abnormal heat, but also to increased tourism. In India, the ban on rice exports is a policy move to meet domestic demand and reduce food prices. However, such an anti-inflationary measure had global implications as India is the world's largest exporter of rice.”

In short, this issue is complex and price increases can significantly affect consumers. The further development of the situation is unclear, but the conditions are challenging. (Co2AI)

IN MARCH The Information reported that Microsoft is in talks with OpenAI, creator of ChatGPT, to spend a whopping $100 billion on a massive data center in Wisconsin dedicated to running artificial intelligence software. Codenamed "Stargate," the data center would consume five gigawatts of electricity at full operation, enough to power 3.7 million homes. By comparison, that's roughly the same amount of energy produced by Plant Vogtle, a large nuclear power plant in Georgia that cost $30 billion to build. (Andrew Leonard, more at sierraclub.org)

The human right to food is becoming increasingly important as climate change and biodiversity loss increase pressure on food supplies and food insecurity issues become more widespread.

In this article, we examine the evolution of the human right to food under international law and how climate change and biodiversity loss contribute to existing global food insecurity issues, including implications for First Nations peoples. We will also discuss the role of the private sector in protecting and improving safe access to healthy and nutritious food and how pro bono legal services can help. (Grace Cameron, more at nortonrosefulbright.com)

Climate changes that used to take 30,000 years are now happening in just 100 years. Planet Earth has already experienced periods of increased overheating and excessive amounts of carbon dioxide in the past, sometimes even more extreme than today. For example, 190, 120 and 90 million years ago. However, the difference is that these changes then took place over millennia, while today they are faster than ever.

To understand current climate change and its implications for the oceans, it is useful to examine similar historical events. The researches dealt with the response of organisms, especially marine phytoplankton, to past global warming. It found that while the oceans were resilient in the past, this is no longer the case today. Organisms do not have enough time to adapt to rapid changes.

The biggest concern is the ability of the Earth system to adapt in an extremely short time, which could have fatal consequences for many ecosystems. The average global temperature has already increased by 1-1.5 degrees since pre-industrial times. If we continue at the current rate of CO2 emissions, temperatures could rise by up to 5 degrees by the end of the century and CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere could double. This could lead to the extinction of 10-20 percent of the current biodiversity, as many organisms cannot adapt to an overheated climate.

The marine biosphere, the largest and most complex ecosystem on Earth, is extremely sensitive to ongoing changes. Understanding the impact of warming on marine ecosystems is key to understanding ocean-land dynamics. The ocean is the oldest and largest ecosystem on the planet, and its sediments record climate change over millions of years, long before humans arrived. The Congress "Geology for the Sustainable Management of our Planet" therefore focused on the role of geosciences in disseminating information about current global changes and their future development. (Co2AI)

Natural climate solutions are critical ecosystem management measures to mitigate climate change. However, prioritizing places and possible actions is difficult. We will demonstrate a generalizable approach to identifying potential opportunities for natural climate solutions by creating a spatial hierarchy of landscape management constraints. Global forest carbon stocks and flux models were then used to examine forest-based natural climate solutions in the high carbon-density temperate coastal rainforests of western North America. Our results show that 13 million hectares are available for action, an area that contains 4,900 ± 640 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent and represents 45 % of regional and 0.5 % of global above-ground forest carbon stocks. Based on historical trends, a 10 % reduction in average annual forest carbon loss through better forest management and protection could reduce forest carbon emissions by 9.1 megatons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year, equivalent to 5.2 % of terrestrial climate commitments by 2030, USA and Canada. Implementing natural climate solutions at scale will require collaborative planning with forest-dependent communities, industry, governments and indigenous peoples. (Colin S. Shanley, Rose A. Graves, Tanushree Biswas, more at nature.com)

Fears are growing that the EU's long-awaited Green Deal, which is supposed to decarbonise Europe, could be in jeopardy. This perspective has gained support among those who propose delaying climate action, which amounts to climate change denial, even though the scientific evidence and record of extreme weather events caused by human global warming is undeniable. These skeptics ignore the benefits of the clean energy transition and risk the business sector losing momentum on its sustainability agenda if they proceed slowly.

It will be necessary to invest in clean energy infrastructure and technologies, simplify business processes, and introduce the Industrial Decarbonization Accelerator Act to support energy-intensive sectors during the green transition. According to Shine, the next five years will be crucial in deciding whether Europe meets its climate targets by 2030. More importantly, it will affect whether Europe is able to compete economically, especially as China leads the way in investment in renewable energy and electric cars. If Europe slows down, it risks falling behind. (Co2AI)

The European Commission is considering a market system that would encourage farmers and industry to protect nature and restore lost biodiversity by putting a price on ecosystems. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said today (September 13) that the EU must create new financial instruments to reward farmers who contribute to reversing biodiversity loss and climate change.

"We need new financial instruments to compensate farmers for the additional costs of sustainability and to compensate them for taking care of land, soil, water and air," von der Leyen said.

Climate change is accelerating the melting of the ice in Greenland at an alarming rate, which has serious consequences not only for the Arctic, but also for the global climate, including Europe. According to a study led by researchers at the University of Barcelona, extreme melting episodes - periods when large areas of snow and ice melt rapidly - have been about twice as frequent during the summer in recent decades compared to the 1950-1990 period. (University of Barcelona, more at phys.org)

Temperature and precipitation variability and extremes affect production worldwide. These production disruptions will change with future warming and affect consumers both locally and remotely through supply chains. Given the potentially non-linear economic response, trade impacts are difficult to quantify; rather, empirical assessments focus on the direct uneven impacts of weather extremes. Here, simulating the global economic interactions of profit-maximizing firms and utility-optimizing consumers, we assess the risks to consumption arising from weather-induced production disruptions in supply chains. Within countries, risks are highest for middle-income countries due to adverse trade dependence and seasonal exposure to climate conditions. We also found that risks are increasing in most countries in relation to future climate change. Global warming increases consumer risks locally and through supply chains. However, high-income consumers face the greatest increase in risk. Overall, risks to income are heterogeneous within and across countries, so targeted local and global resilience building can reduce them. (Lennart Quante, Sven N. Willner, Anders Levermann, more at nature.com)

It was the warmest August on record, marking the 15th consecutive month of record high global temperatures, itself a record, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and NASA. The European Union's Copernicus climate change service said it was the joint warmest August on record (with August 2023).

The Northern Hemisphere (boreal) summer was the warmest on record, and July saw the hottest day on record. Global temperatures in July and August 2023 and 2024 were significantly higher than anything previously recorded.

Global summaries from other international climate centers will be available in the coming days.  (More on wmo.int)

It's not common to feel like things are really moving in the right direction, but in the case of climate literacy, it really looks like it's finally getting the attention it deserves. Our Power, Our Planet is focused on promoting renewable energy and calling for a tripling of clean energy production by 2030. This week, the World Bank released a report showing that the transition to clean energy is being held back by a lack of skilled workers. This report highlights the need for millions of climate literate workers for the success of the global green transition. The organizations agree that universal climate literacy and education are key to addressing this skills gap.

Education is a key part of the sustainability strategy and central to our efforts. Climate education should be at the core of any national strategy to combat climate change. We call on all signatory countries to the 2015 Paris Agreement at COP21 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to include it in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). (Co2AI)