Climate Change & Environment
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EU lawmakers adopt deals on emissions trading, carbon tax

European Union lawmakers have adopted key pieces of a package designed to achieve the EU's climate goals of cutting emissions of the gases that cause global warming by 55% over this decade.

European Parliament members approved deals to reform the 27-nation bloc's emissions trading system, introduce a so-called carbon border adjustment mechanism and to create a new hardship fund for vulnerable households and small businesses affected by higher fuel costs arising from the new measures.

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Madagascar faces 'catastrophic' hunger after 3 cyclones

Battered by three intense cyclones in the space of a year, southeast Madagascar is experiencing the knock-on effect of those climatic disasters: "catastrophic" hunger in remote, inaccessible areas that is gaining little international attention, humanitarian groups say.

Cyclone Batsirai hit in February 2022, followed two weeks later by Cyclone Emnati. Then, Cyclone Freddy made landfall on the Indian Ocean island in February of this year. The combined impact left 60%-90% of farming areas in the southeast badly damaged and food crops largely destroyed, according to a report by UNICEF and Madagascar's National Office for Nutrition.

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In grim drought, Tunisians ration water in state-ordered ban

It's a feeble drip, drip, drip from the taps every night in Tunisia for six months. Spigots are cut off for seven hours from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. in a state-ordered water rationing in most regions across the country, including Tunis, the capital city.

Tunisians are on the front lines of a battle against an increasingly severe drought, now in its fifth year in the north African country, with the government issuing a sudden order to its population to ration their water usage from April to September — or risk fines or jail.

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Environment groups sue EU over green label for gas, nuclear

Environmental groups have started legal action against the European Union's executive branch in a bid to block a move to include natural gas and nuclear power generation on a list of sustainable activities.

The list proposed by the European Commission drew fierce criticism and accusations of greenwashing. On Tuesday, Greenpeace said that it was filing a lawsuit at the European Court of Justice, the top EU court, after the commission refused to reconsider its move.

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G7 vows to step up moves to renewable energy, zero carbon

Energy and environment ministers of the Group of Seven wealthy nations vowed Sunday to work to hasten the shift toward cleaner, renewable energy, but set no timetable for phasing out coal-fired power plants as they wrapped up two days of talks in the northern Japanese city of Sapporo.

The officials issued a 36-page communique laying out their commitments ahead of a G-7 summit in Hiroshima in May.

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Muslims around the world consider climate during Ramadan

In the heart of Jakarta, the grand Istiqlal Mosque was built with a vision for it to stand for a thousand years.

The mosque was conceived by Soekarno, Indonesia's founding father, and was designed as an impressive symbol for the country's independence. Its seven gates — representing the seven heavens in Islam — welcome visitors from across the archipelago and the world into the mosque's lofty interior.

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Firefighters battle France's 1st major forest blaze of 2023

France's government sounded the alarm Monday about the growing risk of forest fires because of climate change, as hundreds of firefighters in the country's parched south wrestled with their biggest woodland-destroying blaze so far this year.

The fire erupted Sunday and burned on more than 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) of land along the Mediterranean coast, and spread across the border into northeastern Spain.

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Making strides in clean energy: 'Middle East Clean Energy' returns to Lebanon

Access to clean energy is a basic human right and ensuring equal and easy access to it is imperative considering recent climate change developments. Regardless of location, income, or social status, individuals and communities should have access to reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy. Investments in such energy sources will drive more efficiency, by improving the quality of life in a variety of ways, promoting economic growth, and keeping the planet a clean and safe place for future generations.

The demand for clean and renewable energy is growing rapidly worldwide, and the Middle East is no exception. To address this need, the “Middle East Clean Energy” exhibition and conference are returning to Beirut for the second consecutive year, from Wednesday May 3 to Friday May 5, 2023 to provide visitors with access to the latest developments in the world of clean energy production.

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Drought will cause crop failures in Spain, farmers warn

Drought now affects 60% of the Spanish countryside, with crops like wheat and barely in four regions likely to fail entirely, the main Spanish farmers association said on Thursday.

Spain's long-term drought is causing "irreversible losses" to more than 3.5 million hectares of crops, the Coordinator of Farmers and Ranchers Organizations said in a new report, with wheat and barley in four major growing regions was "written off," and badly affected in three more.

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Torrential storms batter South Florida, close key airport

Nearly a foot (30 centimeters) of rain fell in a matter of hours in Fort Lauderdale – causing widespread flooding, the closure of the city's airport and the suspension of high-speed commuter rail service for the Broward County region.

The city of Fort Lauderdale released a statement Wednesday evening urging residents and visitors to stay off the roads until the water has subsided.

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