🇮🇱 Climate Costs of Israel’s War on Gaza

🇮🇱 Climate Costs of Israel’s War on Gaza

A new study by the Social Science Research Network found that the long-term climate cost of destroying, clearing, and rebuilding Gaza could top 31 million tons of CO2 equivalent. The carbon footprint for the first 15 months of Israel’s conflict in Gaza will be greater than the annual planet-warming emissions of a hundred individual countries, exacerbating the global climate emergency on top of the huge civilian death toll. Hamas bunker fuel and rockets account for roughly 3,000 tons of CO2 equivalent, just 0.2% of the total direct conflict emissions. Fifty percent of emissions were generated by the supply and use of weapons, tanks, and other ordnance by Israel’s military. More than 40% of the total emissions were generated by the estimated 70,000 aid trucks allowed into the Gaza Strip. However, there is currently no obligation for states to report military emissions to the UN climate body.

Nina Lakhani, The Guardian

🦠 Climate Change Accelerates Spread of Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria

An international study at Durham University in collaboration with scientists from around the globe revealed that climate change is not just warming our plant - it’s accelerating the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in soils. Rising temperatures were linked to an alarming increase in antibiotic-resistant genes and virulence factors in soil microbial communities. As global temperatures climb, they trigger a surge in genetic material that makes bacteria harder to treat. These antibiotic-resistant genes allow bacteria to survive common treatments, raising the chances of infections that traditional antibiotics can no longer cure. Colder regions where bacteria would typically die off due to freezing temperatures are now becoming more hospitable to dangerous pathogens as temperatures warm. This study further exemplifies how closely connected human health is to environmental changes.

Rodielon Putol, Earth.com

☀️ Floating Solar Panel Technology

The Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) in Arizona began generating power last November on their reservation with a first-of-its-kind technology. The GRIC has a solar farm that follows the shape of the canal, with solar panels serving as awnings to shade the flowing water from the heat and wind of the Sonoran Desert. In September, GRIC plans to break ground on another experimental effort to conserve water while generating electricity: floating solar panels. The new project would float photovoltaic panels on a reservoir that is also being built. This effort could reduce evaporation, generate more carbon-free electricity, and require dams to run less frequently to produce power. Several Western water managers listed costly and unusual construction methods and potentially modest water savings as the primary obstacles to floating solar in the United States.

Jake Bolster, Inside Climate News

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Check out the blogs from May:

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• ICECHIP Heads to the Plains