Wildfires emitted more than double Germany’s carbon emissions this year

This year has seen several deadly wildfires that have produced a record amount of carbon emissions in parts of Siberia, the United States and Turkey. According to the EU’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, 1.76 billion tonnes of carbon was emitted globally in 2021—more than double Germany’s annual emissions and half of the EU’s total annual emissions. The report highlighted the twin impacts of wildfires—re-emitting stored carbon back into the atmosphere and destroying flora that aids the capture of greenhouse gases. Meanwhile, a forest fire destroyed more than 100 homes in the town of Castro, Chile this past fortnight.  

La Niña to trigger more extreme events, intense cold waves, lesser snowfall in India

For the second consecutive winter, La Niña is set to make its presence felt and experts are blaming climate change for it. Experts believe La Niña has an impact primarily on winter rain over North India. The region should expect less rainfall this winter, say meteorologists. Other effects include less snowfall over Western Himalayas, a drop in winter temperatures along with an extended season, and more rain in the second half of the Northeast Monsoon. 

This will be the second winter in a row with La Niña. Last year, La Niña developed in August

and dissipated in April 2021. North India had a particularly harsh winter last year and a lot of winter precipitation such as freezing rain, snow or sleet.

Corals found in western Indian Ocean are vulnerable to collapse, says study

Corals in the western Indian Ocean are “vulnerable to collapse”, a new study stated. These reefs make up 5% of the global total. The study, published in the journal Nature Sustainability, observed 11 nested ecoregions along the eastern coastline of Africa and around Madagascar and found that the reefs found on the continental coast and northern Seychelles were likely to collapse due to overfishing. The reefs found near islands are likely to be critically endangered because of future warming, the study warned. Possible solutions to avoid such a collapse include ecosystem-based management of reefs and adjacent systems combined with mitigating and adapting to climate change, according to the study. 

Earth to get a Black Box to record its climate change journey
A “black box” that will record every conversation and step taken globally towards climate change is being built in Australia. The box, developed by Clemenger BBDO along with researchers from the University of Tasmania, will have a storage capacity of 50 years. It will be made of 3-inch thick steel and will be covered with solar panels. The reason to build such a box is for future generations to know the world’s journey towards a climate crisis and to push for immediate action.

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