Tag - pollution

 
 

POLLUTION

Activists wearing masks depicting then-U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau take part in a protest outside the COP25 U.N. climate change conference in Madrid in December 2019.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 13, 2024
What does Trump’s victory mean for climate change?
Trump already levied a 25% tariff during his first presidency and it did nothing to help U.S. automakers prepare for the electric future.
Plastic waste on a beach in Japan. The rising volume of plastic waste is an increasingly urgent issue for world leaders.
ENVIRONMENT
Nov 5, 2024
Cleaning up pristine beaches means spotting plastic trash from space
New research shows how satellites can help locate plastic waste on beaches.
A portion of the Tokyo skyline from an observatory deck at an industrial port in Kawasaki
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Oct 20, 2024
Japan scientists are tracking the big climate problem with tiny aerosols
The clear signs of climate change are everywhere, but a Japan team has found a way to trace the crisis with something that's a little less visible: aerosols.
With a significant need for renewable energy investment in developing countries, China can help drive the adoption of global green infrastructure and technology. 
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 17, 2024
China’s overcapacity can help transition the world
A collaborative effort between the U.S. and China on clean energy initiatives could significantly accelerate the global transition to green technologies.
Each year, millions of tons of trash and other pollutants enter the world's oceans, creating scenes like this one in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 16, 2024
Multinationals must stop flow of ocean waste in Global South
The world's oceans are being suffocated by millions of tons of waste, especially in the Global South. The corporations responsible need to clean up their mess.
The Tomakomai carbon, capture and storage test site in Tomakomai, Hokkaido, in March 2018. The true benefits of carbon removal won’t be realized until we get close to net zero emissions.
COMMENTARY
Oct 10, 2024
Geoengineering can save the planet — if we demystify it
The percentage of Americans who say they trust scientists on the environment has declined to 67% this year from 75% in 2020.
A flag with the logo of the COP29 United Nations Climate Change Conference in front of the Baku Olympic Stadium, the venue of the summit, in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Sept. 19
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Oct 7, 2024
Environment takes center stage as global summits loom
The upcoming session isn't expected to break new ground but will take stock of progress since the last summit secured historic assurances for biodiversity.
A gas station damaged by Hurricane Helene in Perry, Florida, on Sept. 27. Extreme weather and climate change are exposing the flaws in how we handle hazardous waste.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 3, 2024
Toxic waste is at the mercy of climate change
Among Hurricane Helene’s roster of disasters is a storm surge that deluged a retired nuclear power plant in Florida. While radioactive material there remains secure, according to operator Duke Energy, one of the plant’s industrial wastewater ponds overflowed amid the flood. With luck, any resulting...
Inger Andersen, executive director of the United Nations Environment Program, speaks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 18.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Sep 23, 2024
'Convergence' growing on global plastics treaty: U.N. environment chief
At negotiations in November in South Korea's Busan, countries are hoping to seal a potentially groundbreaking deal to tackle the problem of plastic pollution.
Fruits and vegetables sit wrapped in plastic in a supermarket in Tokyo in 2021
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Sep 16, 2024
'Easy, convenient, cheap': How single-use plastic rules the world
Negotiators hope to reach the world's first treaty on plastic pollution this year, but single-use plastic remains hugely popular as a cheap and convenient choice.
An oil slick in the waters off the coast of Manila Bay, in Pamarawan, Malolos, Bulacan province, Philippines, on July 29.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Sep 14, 2024
Philippine fishers call for justice after oil tanker sinks
The largest oil spill in the country since 2006 prompted the government to impose a fishing ban that has pushed the industry toward debt and hunger.
The central monitoring room of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, on Aug. 9
JAPAN / Society
Aug 25, 2024
Tepco completes fourth round of fiscal '24 treated water release
Since discharges began in August last year, the company has released 62,400 metric tons of the treated water over a total of eight rounds.
The Fukushima No. 1 plant in August last year
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2024
One year on, no abnormalities have been found in tritium levels off Fukushima
The plant has so far discharged 60,000 tons of treated water, which contains small amounts of radioactive tritium, into the sea after diluting it with seawater.
Transport ministry officials enter the Kobe plant of Kawasaki Heavy Industries for an on-site inspection on Thursday.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2024
Transport ministry raids Kawasaki Heavy over ship engine test tampering
The firm has admitted inappropriately tweaked testing equipment to keep emissions data within ranges of customer specifications and reduce the variance of data.
Bales of hard-to-recycle plastic waste piled up at Renewlogy Technologies in Salt Lake City, Utah, on May 17, 2021.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Aug 15, 2024
In shift, U.S. backs global target to reduce plastic production, source says
The change away from earlier calls to leave such decisions up to each country puts the U.S. in direct opposition to countries like Saudi Arabia and China.
Following the Paris Olympics, two swimming pools, the climbing wall and the skateboard parks are set to be dug out and moved — most of them to the poverty-stricken Seine-Saint-Denis suburb northeast of Paris.
OLYMPICS
Aug 14, 2024
Olympics infrastructure and equipment heads for 'second life' post-Games
Over decades, the world's biggest sporting event has forged a reputation for monumental waste, but Paris organizers are hoping to change that.
Although markets can promote economic efficiency under the right conditions, there is no “invisible hand” to deliver solidarity, agency, material sufficiency and environmental sustainability.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 11, 2024
A new worldview for troubled times
The problem is not that humans are predominantly ignorant or evil. Most people abhor social discord, abject poverty and environmental destruction.
Bottles of Coca-Cola inside a fridge in the Olympic Village.
OLYMPICS
Aug 7, 2024
Health experts urge Olympics to cut ties with Coca-Cola
Events at the Paris Games have been lined with advertising for the ubiquitous fizzy drinks of Coca-Cola, which has been sponsoring the Olympics since 1928.
The River Seine on Tuesday morning in Paris after organizers announced the postponement of the men's triathlon.
OLYMPICS / Triathlon
Jul 30, 2024
Men's triathlon postponed due to pollution levels in the Seine
The race was postponed to Wednesday and is scheduled to take place immediately after the women's event, which is scheduled for 8 a.m. that day.
Green products must meet customer needs at competitive prices to succeed. If such technologies gain traction, both the planet and consumers will benefit.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 23, 2024
Going green doesn’t have to be a giant money suck
Green products must meet customer needs at competitive prices to succeed. If such technologies gain traction, both the planet and consumers will benefit.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?