Climate Change & Environment
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Activists Scale Government Building in Climate Protest

Climate activists in hard hats scaled a U.K. government building Tuesday, unfurling a banner demanding that countries attending the upcoming U.N. climate conference invest in plant-based alternatives to meat.

The activists campaigning for Animal Rebellion climbed between 10 meters and 20 meters (32 feet to 65 feet) up the latticework decoration of the building which houses the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. The activists are an offshoot of Extinction Rebellion, which has blocked traffic, disrupted public transport and set up encampments to gain attention and press for stronger action against climate change.

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U.N. Chief Laments 'Leadership Gap' ahead of Climate Talks

The head of the United Nations says a "leadership gap" is undermining the world's efforts to curb global warming, days before presidents and prime ministers from around the globe gather for a climate summit in Glasgow.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters Tuesday that time is running out to cut greenhouse gas emissions to meet the goals of the 2015 Paris accord and avert global warming that could damage the planet.

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4 Key Issues to Watch as World Leaders Prepare for the Glasgow Climate Summit

Glasgow sits proudly on the banks of the river Clyde, once the heart of Scotland's industrial glory and now a Launchpad for its green energy transition. It's a fitting host for the United Nations' climate conference, COP26, where world leaders will be discussing how their countries will reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving climate change.

I've been involved in climate negotiations for several years as a former senior U.N. official and will be in Glasgow for the talks starting Oct. 31, 2021. As negotiations get underway, here's what to watch for.

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Record Rainfall as Storm Douses Drought-Stricken California

A powerful storm that swept through California set rainfall records and helped douse wildfires. But it remained to be seen how much of a dent it made in the state's drought.

The system weakened as it moved south but still dropped enough rain Monday evening to cause mudslides that closed roads in the San Bernardino Mountains northeast of Los Angeles.

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Big Tech Data Centers Spark Worry over Scarce Western Water

Conflicts over water are as old as history itself, but the massive Google data centers on the edge of this Oregon town on the Columbia River represent an emerging 21st century concern.

Now a critical part of modern computing, data centers help people stream movies on Netflix, conduct transactions on PayPal, post updates on Facebook, store trillions of photos and more. But a single facility can also churn through millions of gallons of water per day to keep hot-running equipment cool.

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Drought-Stricken California Doused by Major Storm

A powerful storm barreled toward Southern California after flooding highways, toppling trees and causing mud flows in areas burned bare by recent fires across the northern part of the state.

Drenching showers and strong winds accompanied the weekend's arrival of an atmospheric river — a long and wide plume of moisture pulled in from the Pacific Ocean. The National Weather Service's Sacramento office warned of "potentially historic rain."

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Burning Cargo Ship Spews Toxic Gas Off Canada's Pacific Coast

The Canadian coast guard has evacuated 16 people from a burning container ship that is expelling toxic gas off Canada's Pacific coast, but there is "no safety risk" to those on shore, authorities said Sunday.

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Top Oil Exporter KSA Targets Zero Carbon Emissions by 2060

Top crude exporter Saudi Arabia will aim to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2060, its de facto ruler said on Saturday, days before the COP26 global climate summit.

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In South Sudan, Flooding Called 'Worst Thing in My Lifetime'

He feels like a man who has drowned.

The worst flooding that parts of South Sudan have seen in 60 years now surrounds his home of mud and grass. His field of sorghum, which fed his family, is under water. Surrounding mud dykes have collapsed.

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U.S. Says More Threats, More Desperate Refugees as Climate Warms

The Earth's warming and resulting natural disasters are creating a more dangerous world of desperate leaders and peoples, the Biden administration said in the federal government's starkest assessments yet of security and migration challenges facing the United States as the climate worsens.

The Defense Department for years has called climate change a threat to U.S. national security. But Thursday's reports by the departments of Defense and Homeland Security, National Security Council and Director of National Intelligence provide one of the government's deepest looks yet at the vast rippling effects on the world's stability and resulting heightened threats to U.S. security, as well as its impact on migration.

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