Latest news with #StormBoris
Straits Times
04-07-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Local, innovative solutions in each city can resonate beyond borders: Chee Hong Tat
– While every city faces unique challenges, solutions created locally – from flood protection to involving communities in decision-making – resonate far beyond borders. This was the key message by National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat, who chaired the World Cities Summit Mayors Forum in Vienna on July 3 and 4. The Mayors Forum gathered leaders from more than 50 cities who convened in Vienna City Hall to discuss pressing urban challenges and share best practices across themes that include affordable housing, alternative energy and water management. 'The most innovative solutions often emerge when we reach out and learn from one another... That combination of being clear about what we want to do, but also being very open to learning from others and sharing best practices with one another gives us the greatest likelihood of success,' said Mr Chee in his closing address to delegates. In highlighting citizens' participation in shaping policies, the minister cited the example of Caracas' government plan that guides for the country's development up to through 2030. The plan has seven pillars, including expanding Venezuela's economy beyond oil and reducing crime and violence. This roadmap for Venezuela was formed through extensive consultations with communities across the country. 'Today, residents of Caracas are empowered to shape national priorities, and also supervise transformation projects...,' said Mr Chee. 'When governments actively partner citizens, we can deliver more effective services for all.' On the topic of preventing natural disasters, Vienna's unconventional flood protection measure, which involved building an island in the middle of a river, was highlighted. To prevent the banks from overflowing during flooding events, the Danube River which runs through the city had a side channel carved next to it in the 1980s, essentially widening the river. The cultural city had suffered several floods in the 1800s and in 1954, prompting the widening of the river. The excavated soil was used to build the 21km-long Danube Island in the middle of the river, which has since become a favourite recreation spot for the Viennese , with its beaches and walking trails that run through vegetation . In September 2024, Vienna was spared the major damages that Storm Boris wreaked on other parts of Europe, partly due to the Danube Island project. The BBC reported that 10 people were lightly injured by the floods and only 15 homes had to be evacuated. Coinciding with the forum, Singapore's Centre for Liveable Cities had released a few publications. One of them is a book detailing the housing policies of Vienna and Singapore. Vienna has a social housing policy, where more than half of its population live in either city-owned flats or publicly subsidised housing. The large share of subsidised homes exerts a price-dampening effect on the private housing market there, and a person's social status cannot be inferred from where he or she lives. Rent in Vienna remains lower compared with other European capitals like Berlin, Paris and Madrid. One of the youth delegates of the forum, Mr Zac Toh – founder of urban farm and social enterprise City Sprouts – said: 'Vienna's social housing policy is interesting. It's on a rental basis, which means there is a low house ownership. Yet, they can still pass down their social houses to the next generation. 'For this approach, Vienna has to have a good amount of land banked, as well as an efficient system for recovering capital.' Singapore Management University's (SMU) Professor of Urban Climate Winston Chow, who moderated the two-day forum, told the media that cities can only thrive if the community's voices are heard and not sidelined. 'There are far too many cities where local indigenous knowledge is excluded, and that leads to very detrimental outcomes,' he noted. Preceding the Mayors Forum was the SMU City Dialogues conference at the same venue on July 2. Beyond looking at resilient cities of the global north that have been branded as 'liveable', the conversations across the three days also focused on cities that require more basic needs, and are classified as 'survivable', a term used by Professor Loretta Lees of Boston University. 'They can't take that next step to be resilient because they're so busy dealing with the day-to-day circumstances of crises in their city and ensuring that they can live, feed their children, get a job,' said Prof Lees, who spoke at a roundtable discussion on July 2.
Japan Times
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Global warming is a security threat and armies must adapt, experts say
From responding to weather disasters to rising competition in the fast-warming Arctic, militaries are exposed to climate change and cannot let it become a strategic "blind spot", security experts say. Concerns have grown recently that climate action is being sidelined as Europe beefs up defense and the U.S. retreats from allies and its green commitments. But defense departments have already underscored that a warming planet poses major national security challenges, and militaries need to adapt to respond to these evolving threats. "You can't escape this. Climate doesn't care who's president or what your political goals are at the moment," said Erin Sikorsky, director of the Washington-based Center for Climate & Security. "It is coming, and militaries need to be prepared," she said. In the U.S., where President Donald Trump's administration has scrubbed global warming from government websites, the latest intelligence threat assessment made no mention of climate change. Sikorsky said this leaves crucial strategic gaps, particularly when it comes to renewable energy superpower China and the race for supremacy in the Arctic, where the loss of sea ice is opening up shipping lanes and access to resources. "What I worry about, as someone who worked in national security for a long time, is this blind spot puts the U.S. at risk," she said. In Europe, Russia's invasion of Ukraine sparked energy security fears and accelerated many countries' renewables ambitions. But in recent months countries have slashed international development aid, throwing climate budgets into question as spending priorities turn to defense and trade. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock last month acknowledged the "extremely challenging" geopolitical situation but insisted that climate action remained a "top security policy". The country plans a half trillion dollar spending "bazooka" for military and infrastructure, coupled with €100 billion ($114 billion) for climate measures. "Anyone thinking about security needs to think about climate as well. We are already living in the climate crisis," said an assessment commissioned by Germany's foreign and defense ministries in February. It said climate challenges were emerging over "the entire range of military tasks," with increased risks including large-scale crop failures, conflict and instability. In a September report, the U.K.'s defense ministry said humanity's impact on climate and the environment "continues to have far-reaching consequences, putting significant pressure on societies and economies and threatening the very existence of some states." Militaries are increasingly being called in following floods, storms and wildfires, stretching the capacity of some forces, said Sikorsky, whose organization has tracked more than 500 such emergency responses across the world since 2022. There have also been efforts to "weaponize" climate disasters, she said. Last year, torrential rains unleashed by Storm Boris caused massive flooding in Poland that swept away bridges, and destroyed homes and schools. But as soldiers helped evacuate residents and clear debris, the government said it faced a 300% increase in Russian online disinformation, targeting the relief effort. Sikorsky said China used the same "playbook" in the aftermath of deadly floods in Valencia, Spain, which also saw thousands of soldiers deployed. Warming itself also has major operational implications. Extreme temperatures can risk the health of soldiers and even reduce the amount of cargo that planes can carry, said Sikorsky. Militaries are not required to report their greenhouse gas emissions, so their direct contribution to global warming is not precisely known. But a 2024 report by the European Union estimated the carbon "bootprint" of the world's armies could be 5.5% of global emissions. The Pentagon alone produced more emissions than nations like Portugal or Denmark, the "Greening the Armies" report said. Armies worried about fossil fuel dependence long before climate change became a priority — concerns go back to the oil crisis in the 1970s, said Duncan Depledge from Loughborough University, who studies the implications of climate for militaries. According to a 2019 study, the U.S. army consumed about a gallon of fuel per soldier per day in World War Two. During the 1990-91 Gulf War it was around four gallons, and by 2006 it had surged to some 16 gallons in U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. A heavy reliance on fossil fuels creates "significant vulnerabilities" in combat, said the EU report. Fuel convoys are an easy target for roadside bombs, which accounted for nearly half of American deaths in Iraq and close to 40% in Afghanistan, it said. Renewable energy could help avoid these risks, the report said, but acknowledged the technology was "not yet entirely suitable for combat". Depledge said a faster global energy transition to avert "climate catastrophe" would pose challenges for armies, likely raising concerns over their fossil fuel use. "Whichever direction you go, militaries no longer have a choice about the fact that they're going to be operating in a very different world to what they do today," he said.
NDTV
22-04-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Global Warming A Security Challenge, Army Needs To Be Prepared: Experts
From responding to weather disasters to rising competition in the fast-warming Arctic, militaries are exposed to climate change and cannot let it become a strategic "blind spot", security experts say. Concerns have grown recently that climate action is being sidelined as Europe beefs up defence and the US retreats from allies and its green commitments. But defence departments have already underscored that a warming planet poses major national security challenges, and militaries need to adapt to respond to these evolving threats. "You can't escape this. Climate doesn't care who's president or what your political goals are at the moment," said Erin Sikorsky, director of the Washington-based Center for Climate & Security. "It is coming, and militaries need to be prepared," she said. In the US, where President Donald Trump's administration has scrubbed global warming from government websites, the latest intelligence threat assessment made no mention of climate change. Sikorsky said this leaves crucial strategic gaps, particularly when it comes to renewable energy superpower China and the race for supremacy in the Arctic, where the loss of sea ice is opening up shipping lanes and access to resources. "What I worry about, as someone who worked in national security for a long time, is this blind spot puts the US at risk," she said. In Europe, Russia's invasion of Ukraine sparked energy security fears and accelerated many countries' renewables ambitions. But in recent months countries have slashed international development aid, throwing climate budgets into question as spending priorities turn to defence and trade. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock last month acknowledged the "extremely challenging" geopolitical situation but insisted that climate action remained a "top security policy". The country plans a half trillion dollar spending "bazooka" for military and infrastructure, coupled with 100 billion euros for climate measures. 'Weaponising' disaster "Anyone thinking about security needs to think about climate as well. We are already living in the climate crisis," said an assessment commissioned by Germany's foreign and defence ministries in February. It said climate challenges were emerging over "the entire range of military tasks", with increased risks including large-scale crop failures, conflict and instability. In a September report, the UK's Ministry of Defense said humanity's impact on climate and the environment "continues to have far-reaching consequences, putting significant pressure on societies and economies and threatening the very existence of some states". Militaries are increasingly being called in following floods, storms and wildfires, stretching the capacity of some forces, said Sikorsky, whose organisation has tracked more than 500 such emergency responses across the world since 2022. There have also been efforts to "weaponise" climate disasters, she said. Last year, torrential rains unleashed by Storm Boris caused massive flooding in Poland that swept away bridges, and destroyed homes and schools. But as soldiers helped evacuate residents and clear debris, the government said it faced a 300 percent increase in Russian online disinformation, targeting the relief effort. Sikorsky said China used the same "playbook" in the aftermath of deadly floods in Valencia, Spain, which also saw thousands of soldiers deployed. Warming itself also has major operational implications. Extreme temperatures can risk the health of soldiers and even reduce the amount of cargo that planes can carry, said Sikorsky. Energy vulnerabilities Militaries are not required to report their greenhouse gas emissions, so their direct contribution to global warming is not precisely known. But a 2024 report by the European Union estimated the carbon "bootprint" of the world's armies could be 5.5 percent of global emissions. The Pentagon alone produced more emissions than nations like Portugal or Denmark, the "Greening the Armies" report said. Armies worried about fossil fuel dependence long before climate change became a priority -- concerns go back to the oil crisis in the 1970s, said Duncan Depledge from Loughborough University, who studies the implications of climate for militaries. According to a 2019 study, the US army consumed about a gallon of fuel per soldier per day in World War Two. During the 1990-91 Gulf War it was around four gallons, and by 2006 it had surged to some 16 gallons in US operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. A heavy reliance on fossil fuels creates "significant vulnerabilities" in combat, said the EU report. Fuel convoys are an easy target for roadside bombs, which accounted for nearly half of American deaths in Iraq and close to 40 percent in Afghanistan, it said. Renewable energy could help avoid these risks, the report said, but acknowledged the technology was "not yet entirely suitable for combat". Depledge said a faster global energy transition to avert "climate catastrophe" would pose challenges for armies, likely raising concerns over their fossil fuel use. "Whichever direction you go, militaries no longer have a choice about the fact that they're going to be operating in a very different world to what they do today," he said. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Global warming is a security threat and armies must adapt: experts
From responding to weather disasters to rising competition in the fast-warming Arctic, militaries are exposed to climate change and cannot let it become a strategic "blind spot", security experts say. Concerns have grown recently that climate action is being sidelined as Europe beefs up defence and the US retreats from allies and its green commitments. But defence departments have already underscored that a warming planet poses major national security challenges, and militaries need to adapt to respond to these evolving threats. "You can't escape this. Climate doesn't care who's president or what your political goals are at the moment," said Erin Sikorsky, director of the Washington-based Center for Climate & Security. "It is coming, and militaries need to be prepared," she said. In the US, where President Donald Trump's administration has scrubbed global warming from government websites, the latest intelligence threat assessment made no mention of climate change. Sikorsky said this leaves crucial strategic gaps, particularly when it comes to renewable energy superpower China and the race for supremacy in the Arctic, where the loss of sea ice is opening up shipping lanes and access to resources. "What I worry about, as someone who worked in national security for a long time, is this blind spot puts the US at risk," she said. In Europe, Russia's invasion of Ukraine sparked energy security fears and accelerated many countries' renewables ambitions. But in recent months countries have slashed international development aid, throwing climate budgets into question as spending priorities turn to defence and trade. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock last month acknowledged the "extremely challenging" geopolitical situation but insisted that climate action remained a "top security policy". The country plans a half trillion dollar spending "bazooka" for military and infrastructure, coupled with 100 billion euros for climate measures. -'Weaponising' disaster - "Anyone thinking about security needs to think about climate as well. We are already living in the climate crisis," said an assessment commissioned by Germany's foreign and defence ministries in February. It said climate challenges were emerging over "the entire range of military tasks", with increased risks including large-scale crop failures, conflict and instability. In a September report, the UK's Ministry of Defense said humanity's impact on climate and the environment "continues to have far-reaching consequences, putting significant pressure on societies and economies and threatening the very existence of some states". Militaries are increasingly being called in following floods, storms and wildfires, stretching the capacity of some forces, said Sikorsky, whose organisation has tracked more than 500 such emergency responses across the world since 2022. There have also been efforts to "weaponise" climate disasters, she said. Last year, torrential rains unleashed by Storm Boris caused massive flooding in Poland that swept away bridges, and destroyed homes and schools. But as soldiers helped evacuate residents and clear debris, the government said it faced a 300 percent increase in Russian online disinformation, targeting the relief effort. Sikorsky said China used the same "playbook" in the aftermath of deadly floods in Valencia, Spain, which also saw thousands of soldiers deployed. Warming itself also has major operational implications. Extreme temperatures can risk the health of soldiers and even reduce the amount of cargo that planes can carry, said Sikorsky. - Energy vulnerabilities - Militaries are not required to report their greenhouse gas emissions, so their direct contribution to global warming is not precisely known. But a 2024 report by the European Union estimated the carbon "bootprint" of the world's armies could be 5.5 percent of global emissions. The Pentagon alone produced more emissions than nations like Portugal or Denmark, the "Greening the Armies" report said. Armies worried about fossil fuel dependence long before climate change became a priority -- concerns go back to the oil crisis in the 1970s, said Duncan Depledge from Loughborough University, who studies the implications of climate for militaries. According to a 2019 study, the US army consumed about a gallon of fuel per soldier per day in World War Two. During the 1990-91 Gulf War it was around four gallons, and by 2006 it had surged to some 16 gallons in US operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. A heavy reliance on fossil fuels creates "significant vulnerabilities" in combat, said the EU report. Fuel convoys are an easy target for roadside bombs, which accounted for nearly half of American deaths in Iraq and close to 40 percent in Afghanistan, it said. Renewable energy could help avoid these risks, the report said, but acknowledged the technology was "not yet entirely suitable for combat". Depledge said a faster global energy transition to avert "climate catastrophe" would pose challenges for armies, likely raising concerns over their fossil fuel use. "Whichever direction you go, militaries no longer have a choice about the fact that they're going to be operating in a very different world to what they do today," he said. klm/np/yad
Euronews
15-04-2025
- Climate
- Euronews
Deadly floods, storms and heatwaves: Europe suffered the 'serious impacts' of climate change in 2024
ADVERTISEMENT Last year was the hottest year on record for Europe, with record-high annual temperatures in almost half of the continent. The latest European State of the Climate report from the EU's Copernicus service (C3S) shows that 45 per cent of days were much warmer than average, and 12 per cent were the warmest on record. More than 100 scientific experts came together to demonstrate that the impacts of climate change in Europe - which is warming twice as fast as the global average - were abundantly clear in 2024. Storms were often severe, flooding was widespread, and parts of the continent were gripped by record-breaking heatwaves. Related From Portugal to Russia, here's how Europeans experienced the hottest March on record Experts from C3S and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warn that 'additional fraction of a degree of temperature rise matters' as it accentuates the risk to people's lives, to economies and to the planet. How is Europe experiencing the 'serious impacts' of climate change? The 2024 report 'highlights that Europe is the fastest-warming continent and is experiencing serious impacts from extreme weather and climate change,' according to WMO secretary-general Celeste Saulo. All European regions saw a loss of ice last year as glaciers in Scandinavia and Svalbard experienced their highest rates of mass loss on record. Wildfires in Portugal in September burned 110,000 hectares of land in a week - a quarter of Europe's total annual burnt area for 2024. In total, blazes across the continent impact 42,000 people. Flooding also had a dramatic and often deadly impact on communities across Europe. In September, Storm Boris affected hundreds of thousands of people with flooding, fatalities and damage in parts of Germany, Poland, Austria, Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia, Romania and Italy. People walk through a street with piled furniture and rubbish on the sides in an area, affected by floods, in Paiporta, Valencia, Spain. AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti Then, at the end of October in Spain , extreme precipitation brought flooding with devastating impacts and fatalities for people in Valencia and neighbouring regions. At least 232 people lost their lives in Valencia, with further fatalities in the provinces of Albacete, Cuenca and Malaga. Infrastructure damage and economic losses were severe, totalling around €16.5 billion. Storms and flooding across Europe last year affected a total of 413,000 people, led to the loss of at least 335 lives and are estimated to have cost at least €18 billion in damages. Extreme heat, too, was a problem for many in 2024. In July, southeastern Europe experienced its longest heatwave on record, lasting 13 consecutive days and affecting 55 per cent of the region. People cool off in Athens during a heatwave last summer. AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris In total, there were record-breaking numbers of days with at least 'strong heat stress' (66) and tropical nights (23) in southeastern Europe during the summer. Related Eight countries in Europe use renewables for more than half of their heating and cooling needs Ditching fossil fuels would improve energy security for most countries, new research finds 'Think 1.3°C of warming is safe? This report lays bare the pain Europe's population is already suffering from extreme weather,' says Dr Friederike Otto, senior lecturer at the Centre for Environmental Policy and co-lead of World Weather Attribution at Imperial College London. ADVERTISEMENT Europe is one of the regions with the largest projected increase in flood risk, and 1.5C of warming could result in 30,000 annual deaths in Europe each year due to extreme heat, according to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) data. 'But we're on track to experience 3°C by 2100,' adds Otto, who wasn't involved in the report. 'You only need to cast your mind back to the floods in Spain, the fires in Portugal, or the summer heatwaves last year to know how devastating this level of warming would be.' Can Europe adapt to increasing risks from extreme weather? Florence Rabier, director general of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, says these widespread climate impacts highlight the 'importance of building greater resilience'. ADVERTISEMENT Damage to the built environment from extreme weather events is expected to increase tenfold by the end of the century due to climate change alone. Flooding has been identified as the climate risk which most urgently needs action. Some progress is already being made. The report highlights examples of adaptation initiatives in cities across Europe, from 'tile whipping' in the Netherlands to boosting green spaces in Paris. Rabier adds that 51 per cent of cities now have a dedicated climate adaptation plan - up from just 26 per cent in 2018 - underscoring the value of the information the report provides. We are making progress but need to go further and need to go faster, and we need to go together. Celeste Saulo WMO secretary-general Saulo also says that the WMO is 'intensifying efforts' to strengthen early warning systems for extreme weather events and climate services to help decision-makers and society at large to be more resilient. ADVERTISEMENT Continued efforts, however, are still needed to address both the current climate challenges Europe is facing and to prepare for future risks. 'We are making progress but need to go further and need to go faster, and we need to go together,' according to Saulo. Is it time to leave fossil fuels behind? Adaptation is just one side of the coin, however, and climate experts say the growing risk from extreme weather emphasises the need to address a significant cause of this warming. The 'major suffering and losses' seen in Europe last year make it 'all the more urgent to leave fossil fuels behind as fast as possible', says Professor Stefan Rahmstorf from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany, who wasn't involved in the report. ADVERTISEMENT 'The growing renewable share of now 45 per cent of our electricity is encouraging, and it is critical for our future to resist short-sighted fossil lobby interests and to implement the European climate goals without any delay.' Related 'Society is at a crossroads': 5 deep changes experts say will turn us away from the climate abyss The number of countries in Europe where renewables now generate more electricity than fossil fuels has nearly doubled since 2019, rising from 12 to 20. But, as the report points out, renewable power generation and electricity demand are also highly sensitive to weather conditions. The continued use of fossil fuels in such a volatile global economy is 'frankly insane', adds Dr Otto. 'The EU can't afford to put its climate commitments on the backburner. It needs to lead the charge and accelerate the shift to evidence-based politics, actually helping low-income people and not oligarchs.' ADVERTISEMENT
