OMNI CLIMATE MEMO MONDAYS #220, March 3, 2025.

 

OMNI CLIMATE MEMO MONDAYS #220, March 3, 2025.   Compiled by Dick Bennett

 

Global Affairs SmartBrief, Feb. 28, 2025.  2 Reports.

“Marine heatwaves surged in 2023-24, study shows.”

The frequency of marine heatwaves surged over the last two years, which saw ocean temperatures climb above normal levels for three-and-a-half times more days than in any previous year and close to 10% of ocean waters break heat records, a study published in Nature Climate Change indicates. Warmer waters can fuel more intense storms, spark coral bleaching, disrupt fishing and cause billions in damage, experts warn.    Full Story: The Guardian (London) (2/28) .
“57 Companies Are Responsible for 80% of Carbon Emissions That Cause Climate Change. “  A new study just revealed that 80% of climate change-causing emissions come from just 57 companies around the world. Chevron, ExxonMobile, BP, Aramco, Gazprom, and the National Iranian Oil Company are several of the largest contributors to continually skyrocketing greenhouse gasses. . . . Sign the petition to demand that Chevron, ExxonMobile, BP, Aramco, Gazprom, and the National Iranian Oil Company take responsibility for their carbon emissions and reverse their dangerous contributions now! We must speak out while we still have a planet to save!    Celeste, Care2 Petitions Team.  [Petitions—so easy sign on, and a venerablef feature of the idea of democracy--can help if enough reach their destination and there’s follow-up, but not if they distract us from working through other methods of protest also.  –D]
 

Chelsea Henderson.  Glacial: The Inside Story of Climate Politics.  Turner.   August 6, 2024.

Publisher’s description  It took nearly sixty years for a meaningful climate change bill to run the political gauntlet from Capitol Hill to the Oval Office. Why?

From mavericks to party standard-bearers, U.S. Senators, members of the House of Representatives, and presidential candidates have campaigned for four decades espousing their intentions to address the impacts of climate change.

Glacial: The Inside Story of Climate Politics is the first Inside-the-Beltway account to lay bare the machinations of what went wrong in Washington—how and why our leaders failed to act on climate change as mounting scientific evidence underscored the urgency to do so. Glacial tells a story of behind-the-scenes infighting and power struggles that blocked or derailed federal legislative progress on climate change, even in times of bipartisanship and with polls showing most Americans favored action.

The good news today is that public opinion is at its highest level of support for climate action, from corporate boardrooms embracing sustainability for business reasons to movements led by passionate younger generations who can't afford to stand mute because it is they who will inherit the worst environmental catastrophes. If the missed opportunities in Washington are instructive, the path to doing so is clear. Our elected officials must use their offices not solely for the power and prestige it bestows upon them personally, but for the public good—and they must do so while there is still time.