Category Archives: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

Microbes in the bark of trees play a vital role in removing methane from the atmosphere, scientists have discovered. The greenhouse gas is a product of agriculture and the burning of fossil fuels and is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. However, it remains in the atmosphere for a shorter time. Methane has been responsible for about 30% of global heating since preindustrial times, with emissions currently rising at their fastest rate since the 1980s. The study by the University of Birmingham investigated methane absorption levels in upland tropical forests in the Amazon and Panama; temperate broadleaf trees in Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire in the UK; and boreal coniferous forest trees in Sweden. … Prof Vincent Gauci said: “Our results suggest that planting more trees, and reducing deforestation must be important parts of any approach towards the Global Methane Pledge to cut methane emissions by 30% by the end of the decade.”

From hiking through crocodile-infested habitats to traversing mountains and flying a helicopter to the side of a cliff, it would be easy to think Brendan Espe was trying to be the next Bear Grylls. But he isn’t in the game of extreme adventure like the British TV presenter. Instead, he is looking for the rare plants that he believes could help humanity survive climate change. An environmental officer for James Cook University, Mr Espe curates the living collection of plants and animals on the Townsville campus, with a particular focus on endangered species. …In an unassuming building in Canberra, millions of native seeds sourced by people like Mr Espe are carefully stored to stay viable for hundreds of years. National Seed Bank manager Lydia Guja said it was a vital resource for the continuation of many species, as well as identifying those that could adapt to climate change.

PORTEL, Brazil — Over the past two decades, a new financial commodity known as carbon credits has become one of the world’s most important tools in the fight against climate change. …The Amazon rainforest…has increasingly drawn those pursuing carbon credits. …“carbon cowboys” have launched preservation projects generating carbon credits worth hundreds of millions of dollars; purchased by some of the world’s largest corporations. The projects have helped transform the Brazilian Amazon into an epicenter of a largely unaccountable global industry with sales of nearly $11 billion. But a Washington Post investigation shows that many of the private ventures have repeatedly and, authorities say, illegally laid claim to publicly protected lands, generating enormous profits from territory they have no legal right to and then failing to share the revenue with those who protected or lived on the land. The use of such lands to sell credits also contributes little to reducing carbon emissions. [full access to the story requires a Washington Post subscription]

LONDON — Sunday, July 21 was the hottest day ever recorded globally, according to preliminary data from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. The global average surface air temperature on Sunday reached 17.09 degrees Celsius (62.76 F) — slightly higher than the previous record set last July of 17.08 C (62.74 F). Heatwaves have scorched large swathes of the United States, Europe and Russia over the past week. Last year saw four days in a row break the record, from July 3 through July 6, as climate change, driven by the burning of fossil fuels, drove extreme heat across the Northern Hemisphere. Every month since June 2023 – 13 months in a row – has now ranked as the planet’s hottest since records began, compared with the corresponding month in previous years, Copernicus said.

The New Zealand Government is no longer on track to meet its third emissions budget, according to projections released with its draft Emissions Reduction Plan. More work is needed to meet New Zealand’s Paris commitments, which will likely result in billions of dollars being sent offshore to pay for international climate mitigation. …Under new projections, which incorporate decisions the new Government has made to bin a host of Labour-era policies, the government will sail 17 Mt CO2-e above that third budget, which runs from 2031–35. …The Government said it was keen to harness private investment to plant trees on Crown land. …“Estimates of the area of Crown land that is suitable for planting are preliminary and conservative. Further analysis will be required to confirm land suitability; however, it is likely that more land is available, and the potential abatement is greater than currently projected,” the plan said.

Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo — Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s opening remarks for the ceremony of the first International Conference on Afforestation and Reforestation, in Brazzaville today: We congratulate President Denis Sassou Nguesso for his vision on afforestation and reforestation launched in 2022, at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s twenty-seventh Climate Change Conference, in Sharm el Sheikh, and the fruition of his initiative in this gathering.  You have given life to your ambitious vision. The outcomes of your Conference give impetus to decisive and collective actions to confront the global loss of forests and biodiversity, with the charge to spearhead a green and just transition for the benefit of all. Today, our promises in the Paris Agreement are in crisis; the 1.5°C world we need is in the emergency room.  Our ecosystems are being threatened. 

Climate change is likely to drive tree species towards colder and wetter regions of their geographical distribution, a new study has shown. The research, led by the University of Alcalá, in Spain, and including researchers at the University of Birmingham, draws together data from across Europe and North America to show that tree species in the Northern Hemisphere are starting to become denser in colder and wetter regions. The study provides the first quantitative evidence that climate change is driving this change in the numbers of trees of each species across temperate forests on a continental scale. The researchers analysed data from over two million trees, representing 73 species widely distributed across Europe and the United States. …Understanding how forest species are responding to climate change through increasing their density in these more northerly regions is essential for planning ecosystem conservation, management and restoration.

In 2022, credulous media were writing flamboyant headlines venerating Running Tide CEO Marty Odlin as “the guy who wants to help save the planet with thousands of buoys, seaweed and giant antacids.” … Spotify and Microsoft were so taken by the hype that both bought carbon credits from Running Tide, which bills itself as a carbon-sequestration company that can “fix the planet.” …Two years after those big headlines Running Tide is being shut down. … On June 14, the Icelandic weekly newspaper, Heimildin, known for its investigative journalism, published an article about Running Tide’s carbon capture scheme, noting that it sounded “too good to be true.” That’s because it was. … last summer Running Tide dumped 19,000 tonnes of wood chips into Iceland’s coastal waters, “completely unsupervised.”  … the “Canadian” wood chips Running Tide dumped were shipped from Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia … On June 14, Odlin reported that he was shutting down Running Tide’s global operations…

Bioenergy Europe has released its Statistical Report on Pellets and its Policy Brief. The report analyses the development of the world’s pellet market over the past year with a deep dive into the European market. “Despite significant progress, our industry’s growth is being stunted by the EU’s continued dependence on fossil fuels. It’s imperative that we accelerate the transition to renewable energy sources to stabilise energy prices and combat climate change effectively,” said Bioenergy Europe secretary general, Jean-Marc Jossart. After two years that saw record consumption and production, as well as record sales of pellet-based appliances, the global pellet industry in 2023 has been facing significant challenges, found the report. The production and consumption of pellets stagnated worldwide, breaking a tw0-decade-long trend of uninterrupted growth.

BRAZIL — New investment is going into transforming swaths of Brazilian farmland back into tropical forests, following a backlash against projects that claim to protect existing forests. Pledges to protect the world’s forests, a major carbon sink, have been under attack, as accusations fly of doctored results and thin science. But as those projects come under increased scrutiny, money is flowing into others that regrow native vegetation. And despite a spate of greenwashing scandals, Brazil is at the center of these efforts, with its vast territory and many degraded areas in need of revival. …In a sign of growing support for forest restoration, Brazil’s BTG Pactual Timberland Investment Group will provide tech giant Microsoft with 8 million tons of carbon offsets through 2043 from a project in Brazil’s Cerrado savanna, in what would be the biggest-ever contract of this kind. [to access the full story a WSJ subscription is required]

…One of the key advantages of biomass is its carbon neutrality. While burning biomass does release carbon dioxide (CO2), the amount released is roughly equal to the CO2 absorbed by the plants during their growth. This creates a closed carbon cycle that significantly mitigates the impact of global warming compared to fossil fuels, which release carbon that has been sequestered underground for millions of years. Moreover, biomass energy production can help reduce waste. Organic waste materials, which would otherwise decompose in landfills and produce methane (a potent greenhouse gas), can be utilized to generate energy, experts from innasol.com explain. This not only reduces greenhouse gas emissions but also addresses waste management challenges. …Looking ahead, the future of biomass energy appears promising. As technology continues to advance and awareness of the need for sustainable energy grows, biomass is likely to play an increasingly important role in the global energy landscape.