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The international community has made some headway on pledges to protect 30% of the Earth by 2030 but progress must accelerate, the official progress report from the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has found. The Protected Planet Report 2024 reveals that 17.6% of land and inland waters and 8.4% of the ocean and coastal areas globally are within documented protected and conserved areas. The increase in coverage since 2020, equivalent to more than twice the size of Colombia, is to be celebrated. But it is a rise of less than 0.5 percentage points in both realms. This leaves a land area roughly the size of Brazil and Australia combined, and at sea an area larger than the Indian Ocean, to be designated by 2030 in order to meet the global target. Over the next six years the global network will need to be urgently expanded by a further 12.4% on land and 21.6% in the ocean... Read the complete article here Source: UNEP  The world’s trees — the lungs of our planet and the foundation of many ecosystems — are in trouble. According to the first Global Tree Assessment, 38 percent of tree species are at risk of extinction... “Today, we are releasing the global assessment of the world’s trees on the IUCN Red List, which shows that more than one in three tree species are threatened with extinction. Trees are essential to support life on Earth through their vital role in ecosystems, and millions of people depend upon them for their lives and livelihoods,” said IUCN Director General Dr. Grethel Aguilar in a press release from IUCN... Read the complete article here Source: ECOWATCH  King Charles has used his opening speech to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to warn against the "existential" threat of climate change, encouraging all 56 member states gathered in Samoa to do everything possible to cut emissions. The commonwealth's ranks are dominated by small and developing countries across Africa, South Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific, and many have been pressing wealthier countries to ramp up climate finance to help them deal with the threat. Read the complete article here Source: ABC News  Tuvalu’s Prime Minister Feleti Teo took to a stage in Apia, Samoa, on Thursday morning to say something pointed. Planned fossil fuel expansions in nations such as Australia represented, for his nation, a “death sentence”. The phrase “death sentence”, Teo said, had not been chosen lightly. He followed up with this: “We will not sit quietly and allow others to determine our fate.” Read the complete article here Source: The Conversation 
Cop16 at a glance: the big issues that will define talks at Colombia’s UN summit
Every two years, leaders from around the world gather to discuss the state of life on Earth, negotiating agreements to preserve biodiversity and stop the destruction of nature. This week, representatives of 196 countries are gathering in Cali, Colombia, for the 16th UN Conference of the Parties summit (Cop16). It is the first biodiversity-focused meeting since 2022, when governments struck a historic deal to halt the destruction of ecosystems. Scientists, Indigenous communities, business representatives and environment ministers from nearly 200 countries will discuss progress towards the targets and negotiate how they will be monitored. Here are the main things to look out for during the summit. Read the complete article here Source: The Guardian Australia could toughen the rules regarding the acceptable levels of key PFAS chemicals in drinking water, lowering the amount of so-called forever chemicals allowed per litre.The National Health and Medical Research Council on Monday released draft guidelines revising the limits for four PFAS chemicals in drinking water. PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), a class of several thousand compounds, are sometimes referred to as “forever chemicals” as they persist in the environment for long periods of time and are more difficult to destroy than substances such as sugars or proteins. PFAS exposure is wide and not limited to drinking water. Read the complete article here Source: The Guardian  In a new report, The Economics of Water: Valuing the Hydrological Cycle as a Global Common Good, the Global Commission on the Economics of Water warns that, unless water resources are urgently conserved and the destruction of ecosystems is stopped, more than half the world’s food production will be at risk of failing within the next quarter century. Read the complete article here Source: EcoWatch  |