methane

Energy crisis fuels calls to cut methane emissions

BY LAURENT THOMET AND NATHALIE ALONSO

  • "Reducing methane emissions remains one of the best things we can do to slow global warming while cleaning up our air, improving public health, and increasing our energy security," British energy minister Ed Miliband said in a video message.
  • Officials pushed Monday for faster action to reduce methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector to both help slow climate change and boost energy security as the Middle East war chokes off supply.
  • "Reducing methane emissions remains one of the best things we can do to slow global warming while cleaning up our air, improving public health, and increasing our energy security," British energy minister Ed Miliband said in a video message.
Officials pushed Monday for faster action to reduce methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector to both help slow climate change and boost energy security as the Middle East war chokes off supply.
Using its role as rotating chair of the Group of Seven industrialised powers, France convened government officials, industry leaders and experts to build momentum on cutting methane emissions ahead of the UN's COP31 climate summit in November.
Methane, the second-biggest contributor to climate change, stays in the atmosphere for far less time than carbon dioxide, but its warming effect is roughly 80 times more potent over a 20-year period.
French Ecological Transition Minister Monique Barbut said she hoped the Paris meeting would help to "accelerate the implementation of effective solutions to reduce methane emissions".
"Of course, action on methane is not a fight of any single actor, and nobody can win it alone," Barbut said.
Barbut said the world remains "very far" from meeting a global pledge to cut methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030 compared with 2020 levels.
Around 60 percent of methane emissions are linked to human actions.
The fossil fuel sector -- oil, gas and coal -- accounts for 35 percent of methane emissions from human activity, the International Energy Agency said in a report.
"Yet there is still no sign that methane emissions from fossil fuel operations are falling, despite well-known and proven mitigation pathways," according to the IEA's Global Methane Tracker 2026.
Such emissions from the sector -- which come from leaks, flaring and venting from oil and gas operations -- remained "near record highs" in 2025, the report said.

Barbados PM: 'act with alacrity'

Officials at the Paris conference said cutting leaks and flaring from the fossil fuel industry could increase the availability of energy while slashing planet-heating emissions.
The energy crisis "certainly gives everyone another reason why they should act with alacrity", the prime minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, told AFP.
"The question is, can some of this (gas) be brought on stream in the short to medium term, certainly quicker than it would take to repair some of the production facilities that have been lost in the Middle East as a result of the war," she added.
The European Union's energy commissioner, Dan Jorgensen, also stressed that more gas could be put on the market if leaks were prevented.
"This shows that methane abatement and energy security are not competing priorities," Jorgensen told the conference.
"Methane is the single fastest lever we have to limit near-term warming. We can no longer wait to pull this lever," he added.
Oil prices have soared since the United States and Israel launched the war against Iran in late February and Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz in response.
The IEA said 20 percent, or around 110 billion cubic metres, of the world's liquefied natural gas (LNG) flowed through the Strait of Hormuz last year.
Nearly 100 billion cubic metres of natural gas could be made available annually through a global effort to cut methane from oil and gas operations, the IEA said.
A further 100 billion cubic metres would be unlocked through the elimination of non-emergency flaring worldwide, it added.
"Reducing methane emissions remains one of the best things we can do to slow global warming while cleaning up our air, improving public health, and increasing our energy security," British energy minister Ed Miliband said in a video message.
France will continue pushing the issue for COP31 with "means of action" and "slightly new strategies", a French ecological transition ministry official said on condition of anonymity, without providing details.
Agriculture is also a major emitter through the methane released by livestock during digestion as well as rice cultivation, where flooded fields create ideal conditions for methane-emitting bacteria.
Landfills also emit methane.
The UN Environment Programme announced that it was expanding its satellite-based global methane detection system to track emissions from coal mines and waste facilities for the first time.
nat-lt/jhb

energy

Village braces for closure of Spain's largest nuclear plant

BY ROBIN BJALON

  • Last year, supporters of the plant formed a grassroots campaign group called "Si a Almaraz, Si al Futuro" (Yes to Almaraz, Yes to the Future) to pressure the government to reconsider the closure schedule.
  • In the western Spanish village of Almaraz, the uncertain future of the country's biggest nuclear power plant casts a pall over daily life.
  • Last year, supporters of the plant formed a grassroots campaign group called "Si a Almaraz, Si al Futuro" (Yes to Almaraz, Yes to the Future) to pressure the government to reconsider the closure schedule.
In the western Spanish village of Almaraz, the uncertain future of the country's biggest nuclear power plant casts a pall over daily life.
The Almaraz plant, which contributes around seven percent of Spain's electricity production, is slated to close in 2028 as part of the leftist government's plan to shut all nuclear reactors by 2035.
But last year's nationwide blackout and recent fuel supply disruptions linked to the war in the Middle East have rekindled debate over the phase-out, mirroring a wider reassessment of nuclear power across Europe.
"It's sad that they want to shut it down," said Jose Antonio Morgado, a 59-year-old mechanic who has worked seasonal refuelling operations at the plant since 1989.
Each year, during the complex process of replacing nuclear fuel in the reactors, Morgado joins hundreds of temporary workers brought in to support the facility's roughly 800 permanent employees.
The work can pay up to 6,000 euros (about $7,000) a month -- a substantial income in one of Spain's poorest regions.
Those wages will disappear if Spain follows through on plans announced by Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in 2019 to close the plant's first reactor in 2027, and the second in 2028, as part of a transition to renewable energy.
The three Spanish energy companies that own the site initially agreed to that timetable. But they now argue that keeping the reactors online until 2030 would strengthen energy security and help stabilise electricity prices. 
The government is expected to decide by the end of October.

'Desert'

In the centre of Almaraz, a village of about 1,500 people surrounded by gently rolling countryside, businesses are increasingly worried.
"It would be a desert here" if the site closes, said David Martin, 32, who runs a restaurant in Almaraz that his parents opened in the 1980s at the same time as the plant.
During refuelling periods, Martin serves up to 260 meals a day. In quieter periods, that falls to around 80.
Without the nuclear plant, he estimates business would drop by nearly half, forcing him to lay off half of his 12 employees.
The economic stakes have mobilised local residents.
Last year, supporters of the plant formed a grassroots campaign group called "Si a Almaraz, Si al Futuro" (Yes to Almaraz, Yes to the Future) to pressure the government to reconsider the closure schedule.
The group's leader, Fernando Sanchez Castilla, a long-time plant employee who also serves as mayor of a nearby village, warns that shutting the facility would devastate dozens of surrounding communities.
"This is the region's main industry," he said, estimating the plant accounts for roughly five percent of the economic output of the western region of Extremadura and supports about 4,000 direct and indirect jobs.

'Be brave'

The Almaraz plant, with its two large white domes rising above the countryside, could continue operating for several more years, said Patricia Rubio Oviedo, head of the site's technical operations office.
"Nuclear energy is essential in the energy mix," she said, arguing it provides stable electricity, unlike renewable sources such as wind and solar, whose output can fluctuate.
The European Commission has urged member states to avoid prematurely shutting existing nuclear facilities as part of efforts to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and strengthen energy independence.
Sanchez's government, however, remains firmly committed to its green energy agenda.
Drawing on Spain's sunny plains, windy hillsides and fast-flowing rivers, the country aims to increase the share of electricity generated by renewables to 81 percent by 2030, up from around 60 percent today.
"The government has to be brave. It cannot change its mind because its credibility is at stake," said Francisco del Pozo Campos, a spokesman for Greenpeace Spain.
Extending the plant's operation until 2030 would raise costs for consumers and lead to an estimated 26 billion euros loss in renewable energy investment, he added.
Spain's ecological transition ministry said it was preparing support measures for workers, including retraining programmes linked to a planned electric vehicle battery factory set to open nearby by a Chinese industrial group.
This is little comfort to local residents.
"If these families leave, what will be left for us?" asked Martin, as he scanned his nearly full restaurant.
rbj/ds/imm/giv/lga

automobile

More Nepalis drive electric, evading global fuel shocks

BY ANUP OJHA

  • In line with its clean energy policy, the government is seeking to replace some 10,000 vehicles damaged during anti-corruption protests last year with EVs, finance ministry spokesman Amrit Lamsal told AFP. - Demand surge - Concerns that ongoing conflict in the Middle East could prolong global fuel uncertainty are also influencing consumer behaviour.
  • As global fuel markets reel from the Middle East war, motorists in Nepal are increasingly turning to electric vehicles, with high demand putting a strain on dealerships.
  • In line with its clean energy policy, the government is seeking to replace some 10,000 vehicles damaged during anti-corruption protests last year with EVs, finance ministry spokesman Amrit Lamsal told AFP. - Demand surge - Concerns that ongoing conflict in the Middle East could prolong global fuel uncertainty are also influencing consumer behaviour.
As global fuel markets reel from the Middle East war, motorists in Nepal are increasingly turning to electric vehicles, with high demand putting a strain on dealerships.
Electric microbus driver Purushottam Adhikari said he was now shuttling more passengers along the 300-kilometre (186-mile) journey between his town in Chitwan district and the capital Kathmandu.
"My profession is not affected (by the conflict)," said the 48-year-old, who drives his 18-seater Chinese-made e-van along Nepal's highways daily. "In fact, more people are choosing EVs."
Soaring global oil prices and fuel supply disruption since Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz have led to long queues at gas stations in countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan, but Nepal has largely avoided the worst of the crisis.
"One of the main reasons is the increased penetration of electric vehicles on Nepal's roads," alternative energy expert Govind Raj Pokharel told AFP.
The country of 30 million people has an estimated 50,000 EVs, still a small fraction of the total 6.2 million motor vehicles, but a figure officials expect would keep increasing.
The price of petrol in Nepal, which imports all of its gasoline, has nearly doubled since the war began in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
While transport fares have gone up, Adhikari told AFP that his prices remain unchanged at 700 rupees ($4.60) for a one-way trip in his Joylong A6, which in turn costs $8 for a full recharge.
A full tank for a similar diesel vehicle would have cost "more than $66", he said.

'Comfortable and cheap'

An expanding network of charging stations along major highways has made long-distance electric travel increasingly viable.
Boarding Adhikari's van, 20-year-old Susmita Bishowkarma said she prefers to travel in EVs because they are "environmentally friendly... comfortable and comparatively cheap".
Buoyed by a surge in hydropower generation and a greener electric grid than neighbouring India and Bangladesh, Nepal has emerged as one of the world's fastest adopters of EVs.
The Himalayan nation imported more than 13,500 EVs between mid-2024 and mid-2025 -- double that of petrol vehicles and a sharp rise from just seven a decade ago, government data shows.
Fume-free taxis and cars manufactured in China are a common sight in Kathmandu, with traffic officials estimating that up to 60 percent of microbuses entering the city from key routes are now electric.
Customs department spokesman Kishor Bartaula said the number of EVs would rise further with hundreds awaiting clearance at Nepal's ports.
In line with its clean energy policy, the government is seeking to replace some 10,000 vehicles damaged during anti-corruption protests last year with EVs, finance ministry spokesman Amrit Lamsal told AFP.

Demand surge

Concerns that ongoing conflict in the Middle East could prolong global fuel uncertainty are also influencing consumer behaviour.
Shraban Bhattari, 49, who recently bought a BYD Atto-2, said the Chinese-made car is saving him daily fuel expenses.
"I no longer need to go to the petrol pump," he said.
In April the government approved a legal framework to allow people to convert their petrol and diesel vehicles into electric ones, known as "retrofitting".
But EV dealers told AFP they were struggling to meet demand.
"It is getting challenging to meet the demand," said Ritima Pandey, customer relations officer at Venture Motors.
"As the price of diesel has gone up, many people are coming to trade in fuel vehicles for EV vans."
Schools and colleges are also exploring electric fleet purchases, dealer Dinesh Raj Pandeya said, signalling a shift beyond individual commuters.
Energy expert Pokharel urged policymakers to build on the momentum by encouraging domestic EV manufacturing and assembly.
"This will give us a long-term solution," he said.
aoj/pm/abh/sjc/ami/abs

whale

Humpback whale stranded in Germany released into North Sea: media

  • The whale left the barge it had been towed on from Wismar Bay on the Baltic coast at around 8:45 am (0645 GMT), said Karin Walter-Mommert from the rescue initiative.
  • A humpback whale that had been struggling to survive after beaching near the German coast was Saturday released into the North Sea off Denmark after being transported in a barge, a member of a rescue mission said.
  • The whale left the barge it had been towed on from Wismar Bay on the Baltic coast at around 8:45 am (0645 GMT), said Karin Walter-Mommert from the rescue initiative.
A humpback whale that had been struggling to survive after beaching near the German coast was Saturday released into the North Sea off Denmark after being transported in a barge, a member of a rescue mission said.
Dubbed "Timmy" by the German media, the whale was first spotted stuck on a sandbank on March 23 near the city of Luebeck before freeing itself and then becoming stuck again several times.
The whale left the barge it had been towed on from Wismar Bay on the Baltic coast at around 8:45 am (0645 GMT), said Karin Walter-Mommert from the rescue initiative.
It is now swimming on its own and freely, and at least for the time being, in the right direction, she said.
At the start of April, German officials gave up on trying to rescue the animal, saying they believed it could not be saved.
But this triggered an outcry and authorities were persuaded to approve a privately financed rescue plan proposed by two wealthy entrepreneurs.
The barge idea was hatched after their initial attempt to save the whale with inflatable cushions and pontoons was unsuccessful.
The rescue effort was seen as a long shot and criticised by experts who said it would only cause the animal more distress.
The whale's ordeal has sparked a media frenzy -- with non-stop coverage from TV channels, online outlets and social media influencers -- but has also led to angry spats and conspiracy theories.
jpl/ach/jhb

culture

Afghans celebrate spring in bright red poppy fields

BY ATIF ARYAN

  • - 'Vitality and freshness' -  Many Afghans living in the north used to travel to see the poppies after celebrating Persian New Year, Nowruz, in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif.
  • In the middle of a field filled with bright red poppies, Afghans frolic among the spring flowers in a tradition deeply rooted in the country's north.
  • - 'Vitality and freshness' -  Many Afghans living in the north used to travel to see the poppies after celebrating Persian New Year, Nowruz, in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif.
In the middle of a field filled with bright red poppies, Afghans frolic among the spring flowers in a tradition deeply rooted in the country's north.
Families flocked to the valleys of Shirin Tagab district, near the border with Turkmenistan, to be among thousands of flowers that appeared after abundant rain. 
"There has been a drought for almost 10 years. No flowers or greenery grew," said Ghawsudin, who only uses one name.
"This year has been very good, and God is merciful," said the 79-year-old, who drove for three hours just to see the flowers.
Mohammad Ashraf, a 35-year-old visitor, said he hadn't seen so many poppies for more than a decade.
"Now there are so many red flowers, and you see people come here for picnics," he told AFP.
The landscape in Shirin Tagab is brightened by the common poppy, not the opium poppy that authorities have banned.
- 'Vitality and freshness' - 
Many Afghans living in the north used to travel to see the poppies after celebrating Persian New Year, Nowruz, in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif.
The Taliban government, which applies a strict interpretation of Islamic law, has stopped such celebrations each spring.
But the tradition of visiting the poppies, which are widely revered in poems and songs, has endured.
Oriane Zerah, a photographer who published a book about Afghans and flowers, said they are an integral part of daily life.
"As soon as an Afghan has a little space in their garden, they plant a flower. Even in displacement camps, there'll be a flower somewhere. They put them on their pakol, one of their traditional hats, and there are desserts made with flowers," she told AFP.
The poppy has also been associated with wartime in the country, with the flower often placed on the coffins of fighters, according to Afghan writer Taqi Wahidi.
"Dying in the path of the homeland, or in the path of religion and faith, was considered a kind of new resurrection and entry into a new life," he told AFP.
The same flower is widely used in countries, such as Britain, Australia and New Zealand, where people wear artificial poppies to remember those killed in past conflicts.
Nowadays in Afghanistan, however, the poppy "symbolises vitality and freshness", according to Wahidi.
"At the same time that nature is renewed, human beings also want to bring new colours into their lives," he said.
strs-qb-iw/rsc/lga

agriculture

India's cows offer biogas alternative to Mideast energy crunch

BY UZMI ATHAR

  • The government insists there is no shortage of cooking gas, but supply delays, panic buying and black marketeers have created long queues for cylinders.
  • Across much of India, an energy crunch caused by the Iran war has prompted long queues for cooking gas cyclinders.
  • The government insists there is no shortage of cooking gas, but supply delays, panic buying and black marketeers have created long queues for cylinders.
Across much of India, an energy crunch caused by the Iran war has prompted long queues for cooking gas cyclinders. That's not a problem for Gauri Devi.
On a stove with blue flames, she flips a chapati flatbread, burning biogas produced from cow dung -- an alternative fuel helping ease pressure on supplies.
"It cooks everything," the 25-year-old said in her courtyard kitchen in Nekpur, a village in Uttar Pradesh, about 90 kilometres (55 miles) from New Delhi. "If the pressure goes down, we let it rest for half an hour and it works again."
India consumes more than 30 million tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) annually, importing over half its needs.
The government insists there is no shortage of cooking gas, but supply delays, panic buying and black marketeers have created long queues for cylinders.
However, since the 1980s India has also promoted biogas as a low-cost rural energy source, subsidising more than five million "digester" units that convert farm waste into methane for cooking, and nitrogen-rich slurry for fertiliser.
For Gauri, it requires mixing a couple of buckets of dung with water, then pouring the mixture into a car-sized underground tank topped with a storage balloon.
It provides a piped methane supply so regular that she only uses an LPG cylinder for emergencies or large gatherings.
The biogas works for everything -- "vegetables, tea, lentils", she said.

'Black gold'

The residual slurry is later spread on fields as fertiliser. It has better nitrogen availability for plants compared with raw dung, farmers say.
"The manure is so good," said farmer Pramod Singh, who installed a larger unit in 2025, enough for six people, fuelled by 30–45 kilogrammes of dung daily from four cows.
And he said the slurry fertiliser is particularly valuable at a time when global supplies of artificial fertilisers have been hit by trade disruptions due to the war.
"The real benefit is not just the gas -- that is like a bonus," local farmer leader Pritam Singh said. "The slurry is 'black gold'."
More than 45 percent of India's 1.4 billion people rely on farming, and the country has one of the largest cattle populations.
India -- the world's most populous nation and third-largest fossil fuel polluter -- has pushed large-scale biogas production to achieve a goal of carbon neutrality by 2070.
The government last year required that biogas account for at least one percent of liquid gas fuelling both vehicles and for domestic use  -- rising to five percent by 2028.
Dozens of multi-million dollar production plants are now in the pipeline.
But small-scale rural producers are also being rolled out -- units cost around 25,000–30,000 rupees ($265-$318), often heavily subsidised by the government.
In a Hindu-majority nation where cows are revered and dung and urine are used in everything from floor plastering and fuel to ritual practices, it is easy to win supporters, said Pritam Singh.
He installed his first plant in 2007, and has helped put in 15 more in his village in the past year alone.
He said interest had shot up after the LPG shortages.
"People who earlier were not interested now ask how to get it," he said.
"Once they see food being cooked and crops benefiting, they are convinced."

'Mini factories'

But biogas is still a small fraction of household cooking fuel -- with LPG considered more convenient because companies manage the supply chain.
"Biogas plants are not just equipment; they are mini factories," said A.R. Shukla, president of the Indian Biogas Association.
"They need organised installation, regular operation and maintenance," he added. 
"So, unless installation and upkeep are handled through community-based or cooperative enterprises, households will continue to treat biogas as secondary fuel."
And even with government support, there are barriers to uptake, including cost and space.
"We work on other people's farms the whole day. We don't have land for it," said labourer Ramesh Kumar Singh, standing in a line of around 100 queueing for LPG cylinders in the nearby village of Madalpur.
"I am standing in scorching heat, hungry and thirsty," said Mahendri, 77, who had failed to secure a cylinder for three days in a row.
uzm/pjm/sah/lga

Climate and Environment

Just telling nations to quit fossil fuels 'not realistic': COP31 chief

BY LAURENT THOMET AND ALI BEKHTAOUI

  • So just telling them to phase out of fossil fuels is not realistic," he said through an interpreter.
  • The Turkish COP31 president-designate said Thursday the clean energy transition will be a top issue at the climate summit but simply telling nations to phase out fossil fuels "is not realistic".
  • So just telling them to phase out of fossil fuels is not realistic," he said through an interpreter.
The Turkish COP31 president-designate said Thursday the clean energy transition will be a top issue at the climate summit but simply telling nations to phase out fossil fuels "is not realistic".
Murat Kurum, who is also Turkey's climate minister, spoke to AFP as the war in the Middle East has fuelled calls for the world to speed up the deployment of renewable energy.
Last year's COP30 climate conference in Brazil produced a watered-down final text that lacked any explicit mention of a fossil-fuel transition.
Instead, Brazil offered to create a voluntary "roadmap" on transitioning away from fossil fuels.
Speaking on the sidelines of a high-level meeting on the energy transition at the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris, Kurum said that COP31 would "continue to implement" the roadmap initiated by Brazil.
But when pressed on whether the words "fossil fuels" could appear in a COP31 final decision, Kurum said: "It's not about putting some words in a text."
Nearly 200 countries agreed at COP28 in 2023 to transition away from fossil fuels in a landmark deal, but efforts to turn that pledge into action have stalled.
Nearly 60 nations hailed progress in the fight to exit fossil fuels on Wednesday at a conference in Colombia that gained new urgency after the COP30 failure to spell out the goal.
An urban planner by training who ran an unsuccessful campaign for mayor of Istanbul in 2024, Kurum took a diplomatic tone when talking about issues that are major sources of tension at climate summits.
"Each and every country is dependent on fossil fuels. So just telling them to phase out of fossil fuels is not realistic," he said through an interpreter.
"What should happen is that countries work on clean energy, renewable energy as soon as possible so that they can reduce their dependency on fossil fuels," he said.
"We need to do this not only by writing something, writing a statement on paper, but we need to make sure that people actually see that reality," Kurum added.
On another divisive issue that will top the COP 31 agenda -- climate finance -- he said pledges  by developed countries to provide money to developing nations have not reached "the desired level".
"On the one hand, we are aware of the expectations of developing countries, but we are also aware of the concerns of the developed countries," he said.

'No surprises in Antalya'

Under a compromise deal following a battle over hosting COP31, Australia will lead the negotiations at COP31 while Turkey will preside over the summit in the Mediterranean resort of Antalya.
When asked if he would have a role in the negotiations, Kurum said: "Turkey will play a role anywhere, everywhere, because Turkey is the COP31 president."
Australia will lead the negotiations "in coordination" with the COP31 presidency, he said, adding: "At end of the day, the decisions will be taken by the COP31 presidency."
Kurum said he was working in "great harmony and great coordination" with Australia's Climate Minister Chris Bowen, who is steering the COP31 negotiations.
He said the goal of COP31 can be summed up in one word: sincerity.
"We want sincerity at COP31. We want promises kept at COP31," Kurum said. "At the end of the day, we want a result-oriented, implementation-oriented COP."
Kurum sounded optimistic that COP31 would run smoothly -- a pledge some of his predecessors have also made but struggled to deliver as climate summits notoriously run into overtime due to tense negotiations. 
"At COP31 in Antalya in November there will be no surprises," he said. "Everything will be planned, decided and implemented ahead of time."
lt/gv

nature

Traffic stop: Warsaw's celebrity birds on perilous urban quest

BY WOJTEK RADWANSKI

  • Waddling through the city of 1.8 million people, the groups of mergansers -- fish-eating sea ducks -- are led by their silver-feathered mothers, with their distinctive brown head crests.
  • Waddling across a Warsaw expressway, a brood of wild sea ducks brought traffic to a halt as volunteers held motorists at bay -- an annual ritual to protect the bustling Polish capital's famous ducklings.
  • Waddling through the city of 1.8 million people, the groups of mergansers -- fish-eating sea ducks -- are led by their silver-feathered mothers, with their distinctive brown head crests.
Waddling across a Warsaw expressway, a brood of wild sea ducks brought traffic to a halt as volunteers held motorists at bay -- an annual ritual to protect the bustling Polish capital's famous ducklings.
Every spring, dozens of days-old ducklings must make the risky trek from a centrally located park where they hatch to the Vistula river.
Local volunteers are mobilised to help ensure their safe passage, scrambling in hi-vis vests to stop cars and shepherd the birds across one of Warsaw's busiest roads.
Waddling through the city of 1.8 million people, the groups of mergansers -- fish-eating sea ducks -- are led by their silver-feathered mothers, with their distinctive brown head crests.
"We call mergansers ambassadors of Warsaw's wildlife -- or our celebrities," said Barbara Rozalska from the city parks department.
She was speaking over the rumble of the six-lane expressway -- "one of the biggest threats" for the wild birds on their kilometre-long journey.
Rozalska is in charge of coordinating the volunteers, who, through April and May, monitor the park and tree cavities where ducks lay their eggs and the possible routes they may take towards the river.
Around 30 people -- trained by the city's ornithologist -- take turns to stay alert for any sighting of the mergansers.
"It's a bit like being on call at the accident and emergency department -- you get a call and you have to go, no matter if it's at dawn or in the afternoon," Rozalska told AFP.
The array of threats is not limited to road traffic.
"There are seagulls and crows, which can snatch a chick that gets away from its mother for a moment. There are also predatory fish that can drag a chick underwater," she said.

No honking

One of the first merganser mums to cross this season took almost 24 hours to make it from the park to the river, testing the patience of the volunteers monitoring their every step and stumble.
That included the 11 hours the birds spent nestled in the roadside greenery, waiting for their moment.
Daria Grzesiek, 38, on duty, called it a "very difficult day" for her team.
"But once she set off and began making her way towards the Vistula... the fatigue was gone. There was only the satisfaction of having successfully guided her safely along the way," Grzesiek told AFP.
The volunteers' job involves asking passersby to keep their distance and put their dogs on a leash.
They also take on the task of explaining to drivers why the traffic needs to be stopped -- normally only for a few minutes.
As their efforts have gained traction and the birds have shot to local fame, there is more understanding among those sat behind the wheel, Grzesiek said.
One person, she recounted, "was getting upset that we stopped traffic".
But "the other drivers simply explained to him that he should calm down -- because mergansers are coming".
bur-mmp/jc/jhb

waste

Manila landfill fire leaves locals gasping

BY PAM CASTRO

  • "Honestly, sometimes the smell is so strong that it can still seep through the N95 masks.
  • Filipino ferry dispatcher Dave Delos Reyes has been handing out N95 masks for nearly three weeks to protect passengers against the smoke that a landfill fire has sent billowing above a stretch of Manila Bay.
  • "Honestly, sometimes the smell is so strong that it can still seep through the N95 masks.
Filipino ferry dispatcher Dave Delos Reyes has been handing out N95 masks for nearly three weeks to protect passengers against the smoke that a landfill fire has sent billowing above a stretch of Manila Bay.
The fire at Metro Manila's Navotas landfill is largely invisible to the naked eye, combusting as deep as 15 metres (50 feet) below the surface and releasing a toxic brew of methane as well as carbon dioxide.
Nearly 500 people who lived on islands near the site have been evacuated to the town centre of Obando municipality, about 2.5 kilometres (1.6 miles) away, but it is not nearly far enough to escape the smoke.
"Honestly, sometimes the smell is so strong that it can still seep through the N95 masks. It hurts our throat and heads," Delos Reyes told visiting AFP reporters on Thursday.
At its peak, smoke from the underground fire was affecting air quality across Metro Manila, where an "acutely unhealthy" reading was recorded in multiple areas, according to a local monitor.
Those numbers are finally returning to normal, the Philippine Space Agency's Ernest Macalalad told AFP, the result of around-the-clock efforts to snuff out the fire by covering it with tons of soil, depriving it of oxygen.
But in Obando, residents and evacuees alike said the smoke was still impacting their health and livelihoods.
AFP journalists who traveled to the landfill site by boat saw billows of thick, gray smoke completely enveloping houses on Salambao -- one of the islands from which people were evacuated.
"The smoke from the landfill comes and goes. We can feel it for around 20 minutes, then it will be gone," said Monica Verses, who sells candy and drinks from the open window of her tiny convenience store. 
"Every time the smoke reaches my store, my chest tightens, and I cough a lot," the 62-year-old said.
The US government's disaster agency has linked emissions from landfill fires to cancer, liver damage, rashes and reproductive disorders. 
Multiple residents told AFP the smoke from the landfill, which stopped receiving trash last August, only gets thicker at night.

'Not a typical fire'

Fires like the one at Navotas pose a different set of challenges from aboveground blazes, said Superintendent Anthony Arroyo, a spokesman for Manila's fire bureau.
"It's not a typical fire with surface combustion or a blaze... there's layers of rubbish in a mountainous area, and below that... methane gas," he said.
Fires that start below the surface often begin spontaneously, as organic matter decomposes and creates heat, fueled by oxygen that sneaks in through the cracks.
Flooding the area with water had not been considered, as it risked compromising the liner that prevents chemicals from leaking into the ground below, Arroyo said. 
Instead, firefighters and public works employees were covering the site inch by inch with soil dredged from a nearby site.
"The soil itself absorbs heat. At the same time, it serves as a smothering method, removing the oxygen from the subsurface fire."
While about 50 percent of the affected area has now been covered, work has been slow-going, Arroyo added, with heavy equipment unable to be used in some parts of the landfill due to its sloping walls of refuse.
For evacuees like Ramon Adino, 68, who is living in a cramped school classroom with 12 other families, a return to "normal life" is now just a matter of waiting.
"I'm slightly better now, but I'm still struggling to breathe normally... It's like I'm always catching my breath," he said, adding he hoped the fire would "be extinguished soon".
Food vendor Marissa Gusi, 62, said that while living conditions at the evacuation site were difficult, she planned to prioritise her health.
"I'd rather stay here indefinitely than lose my life because of that smoke," she said.
pam-cwl/jm

Israel

Oil crisis fuels calls to speed up clean energy transition

BY LAURENT THOMET

  • "The world is facing the biggest energy crisis in its history today," COP31 president-designate Murat Kurum said.
  • The oil crisis triggered by the Middle East war has underscored the need for the world to accelerate the clean energy transition, the COP31 president-designate and the UN's climate chief said Thursday.
  • "The world is facing the biggest energy crisis in its history today," COP31 president-designate Murat Kurum said.
The oil crisis triggered by the Middle East war has underscored the need for the world to accelerate the clean energy transition, the COP31 president-designate and the UN's climate chief said Thursday.
Crude prices have soared since the United States and Israel launched the war against Iran in late February and Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz in response. That has fuelled calls for the world to ditch its reliance on fossil fuels.
"The fossil fuel cost crisis now has its foot on the throat of the global economy," Stiell said at a meeting on the energy transition hosted by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris.
"From this tragedy, an immense irony is unfolding. Those who've fought to keep the world hooked on fossil fuels are inadvertently supercharging the global renewables boom," he said, without naming countries or companies.
The Paris meeting was being in held in the lead-up to the UN's COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Turkey, in November.
Diplomats and representatives from banks, oil firms and renewable energy companies attended the talks.
"The world is facing the biggest energy crisis in its history today," COP31 president-designate Murat Kurum said.
"We now know clearly that the global economy must transform its energy paradigm," said Kurum, who is also Turkey's climate minister.
"And the most critical step is to accelerate the transition to clean energy," he added.
IEA chief Fatih Birol said oil prices, which topped $126 per barrel on Thursday, were "putting a lot of pressure in many countries".
"Our world is facing a major energy and economic challenge," said Birol, adding that his agency, which advises its member countries on energy policy, was monitoring the situation.

'Real momentum'

The talks in Paris came as nearly 60 nations hailed progress at the end of a conference in Colombia aimed at speeding the shift away from planet-heating fossil fuels and break a stalemate on the issue at UN climate talks.
The Santa Marta conference was announced last year after nations failed to include an explicit reference to fossil fuels in the final deal reached at the UN COP30 climate summit in Brazil.
"Coalitions of the willing are already forging ahead," Stiell said, pointing to the gathering in Colombia.
"In key sectors right across the action agenda, COP31 in Turkey will provide a global stage to pick up the pace," he said. "We must seize this moment. We have no time to lose."
Stiell said that countries rich in renewables, such as Spain and Pakistan, had been shielded from the worst impacts of the fossil fuel cost crisis.
"Renewables offer safer, cheaper, cleaner energy that can't be held captive by narrow shipping straits, or global conflicts," Stiell said.
"That's why so many governments are pushing renewables plans into overdrive: to restore national security, economic stability, competitiveness, policy autonomy and basic sovereignty," he added.
China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Germany, the UK, and others have been "clear that pushing forward with the renewables transition is a cornerstone of energy security", he added.
"This is real momentum," Stiell said. "We must harness it to accelerate a truly global shift."
lt/jj

conflict

'River on fire': Toxic fumes as Ukrainian drones pound Russian oil town

  • "Look, look at that," Yevgenia, a pensioner with a shopping bag and wearing a face mask, said, pointing at a layer of black dust and soot on a car nearby.
  • Plumes of black smoke towered over the southern Russian town of Tuapse on Wednesday where residents wore face masks to shield themselves from polluted air after multiple Ukrainian drone strikes on a major oil refinery in the coastal town.
  • "Look, look at that," Yevgenia, a pensioner with a shopping bag and wearing a face mask, said, pointing at a layer of black dust and soot on a car nearby.
Plumes of black smoke towered over the southern Russian town of Tuapse on Wednesday where residents wore face masks to shield themselves from polluted air after multiple Ukrainian drone strikes on a major oil refinery in the coastal town.
Ukraine, fending off Russia's full-scale offensive launched in 2022, has in the past weeks stepped up its strikes targeting Russian oil infrastructure hubs: refineries, ports and depots.
It calls the campaign fair retribution for the assault that has ravaged swaths of Ukrainian territory, killed tens of thousands of civilians and forced millions to flee their homes.
Ukrainian drones have hit Tuapse's sprawling oil facilities three times over the past two weeks -- most recently overnight from Monday to Tuesday, triggering a local state of emergency as a column of thick smoke rose from the site.
"The water in the river was on fire," Vladimir, a 63-year-old pensioner and Tuapse resident, told AFP as he looked over the grey smoky skyline.
As the wind gusted, toxic fumes and the smell of burnt oil spread through the city, perched on Russia's Black Sea coast.
Roads and pavements were covered with a sticky film.
Residents were told to stay indoors and schools closed in the town of some 60,000.
Officials said Wednesday the level of benzene -- a toxic carcinogen found in petrol -- in the air was elevated.
"Look, look at that," Yevgenia, a pensioner with a shopping bag and wearing a face mask, said, pointing at a layer of black dust and soot on a car nearby.
"It's impossible to clean it all up quickly. They bombed us three times in a month," she said. 
Vladimir and Yevgenia did not provide their full names for security reasons.

Contaminated soil

The burning oil terminal is located right next to the city centre, close to pedestrian areas and the road to the resort city of Sochi -- a favoured summer escape for the Russian elite, including President Vladimir Putin.
On Tuesday, Putin lashed out at Kyiv, accusing the Ukrainian authorities of resorting to "overt terrorist methods" and intensifying drone strikes "against civilian infrastructure".
"The latest example is the strikes on energy facilities in Tuapse, which could potentially cause serious environmental consequences," Putin said.
Kyiv says it only targets energy and military sites -- designed to hobble Russia's war machine and cast as a legitimate response to Russia's nightly barrages of its cities.
Three people have been killed, including a 14-year-old girl, in the series of Ukrainian attacks on Tuapse in April, local officials said.
Around 600 people were working "around the clock" to mitigate the consequences of the strikes, including an environmental clean-up operation, a regional crisis task force said on Telegram.
It said that "nearly 10,000 cubic metres of oil-contaminated soil and water-oil mixture have been collected from the shore and in the Tuapse River".
For Tuapse residents, the strikes have brought the consequences of Russia's four-year offensive on Ukraine home.
"I've already lived through one war," he said, referring to Russia's wars in Chechnya, a few hundred kilometres across the Caucasus mountains, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. 
"Now here's another one."
bur/yad

diplomacy

Key points from the first global talks on phasing out fossil fuels

  • "This journey that began here in a coal port of the Caribbean Sea, now voyages to the Pacific Ocean," said Tuvalu's Climate Minister Maina Talia.
  • The first global conference on transitioning away from fossil fuels wrapped up on Wednesday -- but what progress was made in Santa Marta, a coal port on the Caribbean coast?
  • "This journey that began here in a coal port of the Caribbean Sea, now voyages to the Pacific Ocean," said Tuvalu's Climate Minister Maina Talia.
The first global conference on transitioning away from fossil fuels wrapped up on Wednesday -- but what progress was made in Santa Marta, a coal port on the Caribbean coast?
Here are a few takeaways:

Roadmaps

France made headlines on the opening day of the conference when it published a "roadmap" detailing its path to eliminating the use of all fossil fuels for energy by 2050.
Analysts said no other country had published such a clear and comprehensive phaseout plan and it sent an important signal from a major economy about its direction on fossil fuels.
The splash caused some grumbling in Santa Marta as some pointed out that France was not announcing new policy but existing pledges under a different title.
Other nations contested that there was no widely accepted definition of a roadmap, and that they too had timelines to phase out coal and other planet-heating fuels, as well as renewable energy targets and plans for decarbonizing heavy industry.
Leo Roberts from the E3G climate change think tank said a roadmap should be guided by science and make a fossil fuel phaseout a "central planning principle" around which other policies gravitate.
  

'Spaghetti' science

One of the key outcomes was the creation of an expert scientific panel to advise governments, cities or regions in planning their own pathways away from fossil fuels.
Carlos Nobre, a Brazilian climate scientist and one of the driving forces behind the panel, told AFP: "It will provide all the solutions -- to implement them, and to finance them." 
The Scientific Panel for the Global Energy Transition was amusingly dubbed the "Spaghetti" group because of its acronym -- SPGET.

Fossil Free Zones

Popular among grassroots movements, the concept of "Fossil Free Zones" is slowly gaining traction in international meetings and found fertile ground in Santa Marta.
These zones aim to encompass territories that -- due to their ecological importance, from the Amazon to the Congo Basin and Indonesian rainforest -- are protected by governments that prohibit all hydrocarbon exploration and extraction within them.
The Earth Insight expert group estimates that there are 58 such protected areas worldwide. 
Colombia, for example, banned the extraction of fossil fuels and minerals in the Colombian Amazon last year to "stop the expansion of the extractive frontier," said Colombia's Environment Minister Irene Velez Torres, host of the Santa Marta conference.

New hosts

Colombia passed the baton to Tuvalu, a tiny island nation in the Pacific Ocean that will host the next fossil fuel phaseout conference in 2027.
The low-lying island is seriously threatened by rising sea levels, and has been a strong voice on the international stage for impoverished countries imperiled by climate change.
"This journey that began here in a coal port of the Caribbean Sea, now voyages to the Pacific Ocean," said Tuvalu's Climate Minister Maina Talia.
Activists urged countries to turn up in numbers, despite the distance.
"I think the fact that the Pacific is far away cannot be an excuse," Nikki Reisch, from the Center for International Environmental Law, told AFP in Santa Marta.
"The Pacific Island countries are constantly bearing the burden of coming to other fora and trying to get their voice heard."
np-app/aks

diplomacy

Nations urged to 'go further' as fossil fuel exit talks wrap in Colombia

BY NICK PERRY AND ANNA PELEGRI

  • Nearly 200 countries agreed at COP28 in 2023 to transition away from fossil fuels, but efforts to turn that pledge into action have stalled.
  • Nearly 60 nations hailed progress in the fight to exit fossil fuels as a breakaway conference wrapped up in Colombia on Wednesday -- but now face the harder work of turning words into action.
  • Nearly 200 countries agreed at COP28 in 2023 to transition away from fossil fuels, but efforts to turn that pledge into action have stalled.
Nearly 60 nations hailed progress in the fight to exit fossil fuels as a breakaway conference wrapped up in Colombia on Wednesday -- but now face the harder work of turning words into action.
Ministers and envoys gathered in the coal port of Santa Marta in the hope of speeding the shift away from planet-heating fossil fuels and breaking a stalemate at the UN climate talks.
The conference was announced last year after nations failed to include an explicit reference to fossil fuels in the final deal reached at the UN COP30 climate summit in Brazil. 
But organizers say it gained momentum after the US-Israel attacks on Iran ignited a global energy crisis -- underscoring the risks of reliance even as some nations looked to fossil fuels to plug supply gaps.
From tiny island states to European powers and emerging markets, nations attended the conference voluntarily after an effort to tackle fossil fuels head-on at last year's COP30 failed.
"Countries are taking steps," said Dutch Climate Minister Stientje van Veldhoven, whose country co-hosted.
"Everybody who is here is here because they want to move further than where they are right now, and they think that we can be stronger together.
"Together we can be stronger -- and we can go further."
No binding commitments were expected but Colombian Environment Minister Irene Velez Torres said "big results" were achieved nonetheless.
She pointed to the creation of an expert panel of world-renowned climate scientists tasked with helping governments on their own transitions -- a daunting task in particular for developing nations dependent on oil and gas.
She thanked nations for coming together "to talk about the challenges (and) to talk about the taboos."
"When they look back at us from the future...They will remember that we were there and working on the challenges of our time," she said.
The climate-threatened Pacific nation of Tuvalu was also named as host of next year's conference with Ireland in what was seen as a crucial signal that the momentum would carry on beyond the first edition.

'Good atmosphere'

Many major fossil fuel producers turned out for the event, from wealthy economies like Canada and Norway to developing oil giants like Angola and Brazil.
The United States, China, Saudi Arabia and Russia -- among other major producers and consumers of fossil fuels -- did not show up.
The conference bypassed the United Nations climate process altogether, reflecting a growing impatience with its failure to tackle fossil fuels, the main driver of global warming.
Many nations spoke of the relief at not having to cobble an agreement by consensus between nearly 200 nations -- a process that takes nearly two weeks at the annual COP climate summits and often ends in bitter disappointment.
"You could really feel it there -- that it's somehow a new beginning or a wake-up call, like things can't go on this way," German environment state secretary Jochen Flasbarth told reporters, noting "a very good atmosphere here."
Away from the conference rooms on the Caribbean coast, oil prices surged Wednesday to their highest level since early 2022, underlining the risk of fossil fuel reliance.
The global energy crisis triggered by the Middle East war dominated the talks, with fossil fuels cast as a threat to energy independence as much as the climate.

Tough message

For many nations -- particularly developing fossil fuel producers -- phasing out a major source of state revenue is easier said than done.
"Not phasing out -- phase down. That is the message," Onuoha Magnus Chidi, an adviser to Nigeria's regional development minister, told AFP in Santa Marta.
"People are going to lose their jobs...How are you trying to re-engage them in other sectors?" said the delegate from one of Africa's biggest oil and gas producers.
Nearly 200 countries agreed at COP28 in 2023 to transition away from fossil fuels, but efforts to turn that pledge into action have stalled.
The discussions in Santa Marta would feed into a voluntary "roadmap" aimed at moving the world away from fossil fuels being compiled by Brazil, said Ana Toni, CEO of last year's COP30. 
np-app/sla

waste

Bali drowning in trash after landfill closed

BY DIAJENG VAYANTRI DEWI IN DENPASAR WITH MARCHIO GORBIANO IN JAKARTA

  • "As a business owner, this is a real nuisance," Yuvita told AFP. She has dipped into her meagre profits to pay a private company to remove the trash from near her stall.
  • Buckets of blooms adorn Yuvita Anggi Prinanda's sidewalk flower stall in Bali, but their perfume can't mask the stench of accumulating trash bespoiling parts of the resort island famed for its natural beauty. 
  • "As a business owner, this is a real nuisance," Yuvita told AFP. She has dipped into her meagre profits to pay a private company to remove the trash from near her stall.
Buckets of blooms adorn Yuvita Anggi Prinanda's sidewalk flower stall in Bali, but their perfume can't mask the stench of accumulating trash bespoiling parts of the resort island famed for its natural beauty. 
Bali's largest landfill was declared off-limits for organic waste from the beginning of April, as the government moves to enforce a longstanding ban on open tips.
But with no immediate alternatives provided, trash is piling up in the streets and attracting rats, or being set alight by frustrated residents, causing acrid smoke that has prompted health concerns.
"As a business owner, this is a real nuisance," Yuvita told AFP.
She has dipped into her meagre profits to pay a private company to remove the trash from near her stall.
"Some customers, perhaps bothered by the smell, ended up not making a purchase," the 34-year-old told AFP.
Her shop alone generates about four large black bags full of waste every day, mostly leaves and flower cuttings -- adding to the island's estimated 3,400 tons of daily garbage output.
On paper, Indonesia has banned open landfills since 2013, but it is only now attempting to fully implement the measure.

'Not a good look'

At Kuta beach, a popular tourist spot regularly inundated with plastic debris that washes ashore, rubbish bags are piled up waist-high in a parking lot.
"You have many rats here at nighttime. The smell is not very good... it's not a good look," said Australian visitor Justin Butcher.
Around seven million tourists visited Bali last year, vastly outstripping the island's native population of around 4.4 million, and contributing to Bali's waste output. 
People caught dumping or burning trash risk up to three months' jail time and a 50-million rupiah (nearly $3,000) fine, according to I Dewa Nyoman Rai Dharmadi, the head of Bali's public order agency, but many feel they have no other choice.
On April 16, hundreds of sanitation workers drove waste-filled trucks to the governor's office in protest.
"If we don't collect our client's trash, we are in the wrong, if we collect it, where do we dispose it?" said protester I Wayan Tedi Brahmanca.
In response, the local government said it would allow limited disposal of waste at Suwung as a temporary measure until the end of July.
But from August, the government has vowed to end all open landfills nationwide, though it is unclear what alternatives will be in place by then.
- 'People need guidance'  - 
Nur Azizah, a waste management expert at Gadjah Mada University, told AFP the Suwung landfill received about 1,000 tons of waste per day and has been overcapacity for years.
Up to 70 percent is organic waste that "is dangerous because over time it generates methane, which could explode and cause landslides".
This has happened several times, including a March collapse at Indonesia's largest landfill outside Jakarta that buried trucks and food stalls, killing seven people.
Nur said the only long-term solution was a mass campaign to educate people on managing organic waste, mainly through composting. 
Yuvita agreed. 
"People need guidance. It's like when someone cannot swim, they shouldn't be told to jump right in," she said. 
The head of Denpasar's environment and forestry agency Ida Bagus Wirabawa told AFP the government has been running awareness campaigns since last year, and handing out composting containers.
Indonesia's 284 million people produce more than 40 million tons of rubbish per year, nearly 40 percent of it food waste and nearly a fifth plastic, according to the environment ministry.
Only about a third gets "managed", meaning recycled or processed, according to Nur. 
The rest ends up in nature.
Fewer than a third of the country's 485 landfills have shuttered since the ban on open dumping came into force on paper about 13 years ago.
"We have not been managing waste properly, resulting in an emergency in all cities and regencies," then-environment minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq told reporters recently. He has since been replaced.
The government aims to break ground on several waste-to-energy projects in June, including one in Bali that could process about 1,200 tons of waste daily, but these could take years to come online.
mrc/mlr/sah/cms

pollution

Air quality improving in Europe but more effort needed: report

  • "For most pollutants the distance to the 2030 target is significant and will likely require additional measures," the report said, stressing the need for efforts on fine particulate matter. 
  • Air quality in Europe is improving but more effort is needed to reach the European Union's 2030 targets, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said in its annual report on Thursday.
  • "For most pollutants the distance to the 2030 target is significant and will likely require additional measures," the report said, stressing the need for efforts on fine particulate matter. 
Air quality in Europe is improving but more effort is needed to reach the European Union's 2030 targets, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said in its annual report on Thursday.
"EU standards were mostly met in most regions across Europe for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and for nitrogen dioxide (NO2)," the EEA said in a statement.
However, in up to 20 percent of monitoring stations, "air pollution is still above current EU air quality standards, especially for smaller particulate matter with a diameter of 10 microns (µm) or less (PM10), ground level ozone (O3) and benzo(a)pyrene (BaP)," it said.
The EEA report covers 39 European countries, comprising the 27 EU member states and 12 countries associated to the agency, including Switzerland, Norway and Turkey.
According to the EEA, EU member states will have to implement their roadmaps if they are to meet the 2030 air quality limits, set in 2024.
"For most pollutants the distance to the 2030 target is significant and will likely require additional measures," the report said, stressing the need for efforts on fine particulate matter. 
It can be politically difficult to gain acceptance for such efforts, as illustrated by France's recent rollback of low-emission zones (LEZs) targeting polluting vehicles. 
Moreover, the EU's 2030 targets still fall well short of the World Health Organization's recommendations, updated in 2021. 
The European agency also emphasised the lack of significant progress on ground-level ozone levels, which "have not decreased significantly", and which caused 63,000 premature deaths in the EU in 2023. 
"Climate change is expected to worsen ozone pollution in Europe because of increased frequency and intensity of heat-related meteorological conditions that enhance ozone formation," the EEA said.
It warned that action at local and national levels "may not be sufficient", since ozone and its precursors can travel over long distances. 
"Effective mitigation also depends on stronger European and international cooperation to tackle transboundary air pollution," the agency said.
ef/po/yad

diplomacy

African oil producers defend need to drill at fossil fuel exit talks

  • - 'Our right' - Senegal struck a similar tone, balancing climate and development priorities after relatively recent offshore oil and gas discoveries in the West African nation.
  • Oil-rich African nations at global fossil fuel phaseout talks in Colombia said Wednesday they would keep drilling to support economic growth, highlighting tensions between climate and fiscal realities for developing producers.
  • - 'Our right' - Senegal struck a similar tone, balancing climate and development priorities after relatively recent offshore oil and gas discoveries in the West African nation.
Oil-rich African nations at global fossil fuel phaseout talks in Colombia said Wednesday they would keep drilling to support economic growth, highlighting tensions between climate and fiscal realities for developing producers.
Ministers and envoys from nearly 60 nations are meeting in Santa Marta, a city on the Caribbean coast, for the first-ever global conference on transitioning the world away from planet-heating oil, gas and coal.
The conference has unfolded as oil prices surged Wednesday to their highest level since early 2022, deepening fears over global energy security and underlining risks to fossil fuel reliance as the Iran war drags on.
But this is particularly difficult for developing producers highly reliant on fossil fuel revenue -- a message some in Santa Marta have been echoing.
"Not phasing out -- phase down. That is the message," Onuoha Magnus Chidi, an adviser to Nigeria's regional development minister, told AFP in Santa Marta.
"We are phasing down, and we are saying that there should be early planning... It must be fair to all."
Chidi said winding down fossil fuels would take time in Nigeria, the world's sixth most populous country and boasting some of Africa's largest oil and gas reserves. 
"People are going to lose their jobs... How are you trying to re-engage them in other sectors?" he said, stressing the need for debt reform and other financial assistance to make that change possible.

'Our right'

Senegal struck a similar tone, balancing climate and development priorities after relatively recent offshore oil and gas discoveries in the West African nation.
"We are fully aware of the global challenges that require a transition," Serigne Momar Sarr, a technical adviser at Senegal's environment ministry and its sole representative at the conference, told AFP.
"What we wish to assert is our right to development, exercised with full responsibility."
Sarr said Africa accounted for just a fraction of global emissions and said Senegal would pursue a strategy of using gas for power, industry and exports while gradually shifting to cleaner energy.
"We are making this transition at the same time as our extractive activities," he said.
The conference was convened after frustration with the UN climate talks, where efforts to tackle fossil fuel use -- the main driver of global warming -- have stalled.
The world's biggest producers of oil, coal and gas -- the United States, China, Saudi Arabia and Russia -- did not attend, nor did oil-rich Gulf states.
While the gathering is not expected to produce binding commitments, organizers hope it will set out concrete proposals for countries willing to accelerate a managed decline of fossil fuel use.
"Each economy has different circumstances," Spain's Climate Minister Sara Aagesen told AFP.
np-app/mlm

diplomacy

France's 'roadmap' to exit fossil fuels by 2050

  • France set a 2050 target date to ditch fossil gas by developing alternative heating methods, including heat pumps, or improving energy efficiency in buildings.
  • France has released a detailed "roadmap" to wean the country from planet-heating oil, gas and coal by 2050, an important signal at a moment when nations are reassessing their reliance on fossil fuels.
  • France set a 2050 target date to ditch fossil gas by developing alternative heating methods, including heat pumps, or improving energy efficiency in buildings.
France has released a detailed "roadmap" to wean the country from planet-heating oil, gas and coal by 2050, an important signal at a moment when nations are reassessing their reliance on fossil fuels.
The plan, presented at a global climate conference, does not unveil any new pledges but brings existing climate and energy policies and targets under one umbrella with an explicit goal.
Analysts say no other country has published such a clear and comprehensive plan. 
Here are details of the 14-page roadmap that Europe's second biggest economy presented Tuesday at the first-ever talks on how to transition away from fossil fuels in Santa Marta, Colombia:

Fossil fuel consumption

Fossil fuels accounted for less than 60 percent of France's final energy consumption in 2023, compared with 65 percent in 2011.
Final consumption refers to energy consumed by end-users such as households, industry and agriculture, excluding energy used in power generation and distribution.
The French roadmap sets a goal of reducing the share of fossil fuels in final energy consumption to 40 percent by 2030 and 30 percent in 2035.
The aim is to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

Phaseout dates

The plan is to stop using fossil fuels for energy purposes by mid-century.
The country plans to close its last two coal-fired power plants by 2027.
It seeks to transition away from oil by 2045 through a "large-scale electrification" of transport.
France set a 2050 target date to ditch fossil gas by developing alternative heating methods, including heat pumps, or improving energy efficiency in buildings.

Transport

France wants two out of three new cars to be electric by 2030.
The plan also calls for deploying charging stations and rolling out electric buses and large trucks.
French manufacturers are expected to produce 400,000 electric vehicles by 2027 and one million by 2030. 
The aim is to ensure that "reduced dependence on oil does not translate into new dependence on imported vehicles", the document says.

Buildings

France is banning the installation of gas boilers in new buildings by the end of this year.
It aims to install one million heat pumps a year by 2030.
The government wants to reduce oil-fired boilers in residential buildings by 60 percent and in non-residential buildings by 85 percent by 2030.
The goal is to phase out fossil oil for heating by 2035.

Electricity

Two-thirds of France's electricity came from nuclear plants in 2025 while solar, wind and hydropower accounted for around a quarter last year, according to data from electricity system operator RTE.
France plans to build next-generation EPR2 nuclear reactors and extend the lifespan of its existing fleet of reactors.
It also wants to add 1.3 gigawatts of onshore wind power each year and increase installed solar capacity threefold by 2035.

Reactions

NGOs welcomed France's announcement but also pushed the country to go further.
"After two years of backsliding in its public policies on the ecological transition, and with emissions falling at a rate three times slower than its own targets since 2024, France has the merit of setting dates to phase out fossil fuels," Anne Bringault, programmes director at the Climate Action Network, told AFP.
Lorelei Limousin, climate and fossil energy campaigner at Greenpeace France, said: "This is a first step, but it remains largely insufficient given the climate emergency."
alb-lt/gv

water

Much-needed rains revive Iraq's fabled Mesopotamian Marshes

  • As he sailed his long wooden boat, wearing his white abaya and keffiyeh, fisherman Kazem Kasid told AFP that "life will return, along with the fish and livestock, and people will feel that their homeland and future have been restored".
  • A fishing boat glides quietly across the waters of Iraq's southern marshes, sending gentle ripples shimmering over the once-parched wetlands, now revived by long-awaited rains.
  • As he sailed his long wooden boat, wearing his white abaya and keffiyeh, fisherman Kazem Kasid told AFP that "life will return, along with the fish and livestock, and people will feel that their homeland and future have been restored".
A fishing boat glides quietly across the waters of Iraq's southern marshes, sending gentle ripples shimmering over the once-parched wetlands, now revived by long-awaited rains.
Running through almost the entire Huwaizah Marshes, the returning water is dotted with patches of greenery, with buffaloes soaking in it or wandering slowly nearby, grazing on the lush grass.
Overhead, birds of many kinds flutter, their movements mirrored in the still water below, part of the protected biodiversity of these millennia-old Mesopotamian wetlands.
Years of drought, blamed on climate change and upstream dams in neighbouring countries, have ravaged Iraq's marshes -- the reputed home of the biblical Garden of Eden -- nestled between the mighty Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
But a few rainy spells this winter have revived hope among residents and admirers alike.
As he sailed his long wooden boat, wearing his white abaya and keffiyeh, fisherman Kazem Kasid told AFP that "life will return, along with the fish and livestock, and people will feel that their homeland and future have been restored".
He added: "My message to the people living here: this is your land, this is your home... and it will remain so for generations to come."
Iraq's water ministry has said the reservoirs on the Tigris River are almost full, adding that it expects water levels in the Euphrates to rise in the coming days if Syria releases water from its dams.
As a result, the marshlands are experiencing "a relative revival".
Activist Ahmed Saleh Neema said the Huwaizah Marshes have not seen this much water in years, adding that 85 percent of the wetlands are now submerged, though the water depth still needs to rise.
"It is good. It means that the marshes will not dry this summer" when temperatures reach 50C.
str-rh/axn

forests

Tropical forest loss eases after record year: researchers

BY DELPHINE PAYSANT

  • Despite last year's progress, global forest loss remains 70 percent above the level required to meet the 2030 goal of halting and reversing forest loss, the researchers said.
  • The pace of tropical forest destruction slowed in 2025 after record losses the year before but remained at worrying levels equivalent to 11 football fields per minute, researchers said Wednesday.
  • Despite last year's progress, global forest loss remains 70 percent above the level required to meet the 2030 goal of halting and reversing forest loss, the researchers said.
The pace of tropical forest destruction slowed in 2025 after record losses the year before but remained at worrying levels equivalent to 11 football fields per minute, researchers said Wednesday.
The world lost 4.3 million hectares (10.6 million acres) of tropical primary rainforest last year -- down 36 percent from 2024, said researchers from the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the University of Maryland.
"A drop of this scale in a single year is encouraging -- it shows what decisive government action can achieve," said Elizabeth Goldman, co-director of WRI's Global Forest Watch platform.
"But part of the decline reflects a lull after an extreme fire year," Goldman said.
The researchers also warned that fires fuelled by climate change have become a "dangerous new normal" which threatens to reverse the recent gains made by government efforts to tackle deforestation.
The warming El Nino weather phenomenon is expected to return in the middle of the year, which could push global temperatures even higher, raising the threat of heatwaves, droughts and wildfires.
The researchers, who used satellite data for their report, noted that last year's forest loss was still significant -- about the size of Denmark and 46 percent higher than a decade ago.
Despite last year's progress, global forest loss remains 70 percent above the level required to meet the 2030 goal of halting and reversing forest loss, the researchers said.
"A good year is a good year, but you need good years forever if you're going to conserve, for example, the tropical rainforest," Matthew Hansen, director of the GLAD Lab at the University of Maryland, said in a media briefing.

Government policies

Much of last year's slowdown was due to sharp declines in Brazil, home to the biggest rainforest in the world.
Brazil's forest loss, excluding fires, was 41 percent lower than in 2024 -- its lowest rate on record.
"Brazil's declines are associated with stronger environmental policies and enforcement since President Lula took office in 2023," Goldman said in a news briefing, referring to Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Lula relaunched an anti-deforestation action plan and increased penalties for environmental crimes, she said.
But the country's forests are still threatened by agriculture, which remains the largest driver of forest loss to make room for soy fields and cattle ranches.
Some states in the Amazon have passed legislation to weaken environmental protections, the researchers said.
"Several countries showed that strong policy action can reduce forest loss quickly," Goldman said.
Forest loss in neighbouring Colombia fell 17 percent, the second lowest year on record since 2016, thanks to government policies and agreements limiting forest clearing.
Government policies also helped to limit forest loss in Indonesia, where it increased by 14 percent but was well below the highs seen a decade ago.
In Malaysia, government efforts have helped to stabilise forest loss in the country.
Tropical forest loss remained high in other parts of the world, including in Bolivia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon and Madagascar, the researchers said.

'Near-permanent state of emergency'

Global tree cover loss fell by 14 percent last year.
While agricultural expansion is still the leading driver of tree cover loss across the tropics, fires played a major role worldwide, accounting for 42 percent of the destruction.
"For the past three years, fires burned more than twice as much tree cover as they did two decades ago," Goldman said.
While humans cause most fires in the tropics, climate change is intensifying natural fire cycles in northern and temperate regions, the researchers said.
Canada had its second-worst fire year on record last year as wildfires tore through 5.3 million hectares of forest.
"Climate change and land clearing have shortened the fuse on global forest fires," Hansen said. "They are turning seasonal disturbances into a near-permanent state of emergency."
dep-lt/sbk

logistics

Cheaper, cleaner electric trucks overhaul China's logistics

BY PETER CATTERALL

  • Now powered by extensive charging and battery-swapping infrastructure, the cost structures clearly favour electric models, experts say, in a potentially fatal blow for conventional diesel rigs.
  • At a dusty lot an hour outside Beijing, a steady stream of vehicles come and go for a quick battery charge -- just one node in China's rapidly expanding network of electric trucks.
  • Now powered by extensive charging and battery-swapping infrastructure, the cost structures clearly favour electric models, experts say, in a potentially fatal blow for conventional diesel rigs.
At a dusty lot an hour outside Beijing, a steady stream of vehicles come and go for a quick battery charge -- just one node in China's rapidly expanding network of electric trucks.
While the country's prowess in electric passenger vehicles has long been known globally, electric trucks have only recently gained traction.
Now powered by extensive charging and battery-swapping infrastructure, the cost structures clearly favour electric models, experts say, in a potentially fatal blow for conventional diesel rigs.
"Last year was the breakthrough for heavy electrified vehicles in China," Lauri Myllyvirta, co-founder of the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and expert on China's energy consumption, told AFP.
"If the infrastructure is there, the economics are there for an increasing number of logistics routes and requirements," he said.
Adoption of alternatives to diesel trucks in the world's second-largest economy has noticeably accelerated in recent years.
New-energy models accounted for 29 percent of all domestic truck sales in China last year, up from 14 percent in 2024, according to data from Beijing-based market intelligence provider Commercial Vehicle World.
The penetration rate was less than one percent as recently as 2021, according to the firm.
Manufacturers say they expect that share to continue swelling, potentially reaching a majority of sales in just a few years.
At the bustling charging station in Beijing's Miyun District, 43-year-old truck driver Wang told AFP how his job had changed since he started driving an electric model last year.
"It's such a breeze!" he said after plugging in the charging cables.
"My old vehicle had over 10 gears, and its operation was so cumbersome. But with this one, you don't have to do a thing -- it's all automatic."

'All about speed'

Asked why he thought logistics firms like his were increasingly switching to electric trucks, Wang said it was a combination of national policies and simple market logic.
"It's just survival of the fittest. Now, with freight expenses and everything, people are trying to earn a bit more, and this one has lower operating costs."
Another driver at the charging station, surnamed Zhang, told AFP that he has been driving an electric truck for around two months after switching from one powered by natural gas.
His job mainly involves hauling sand and stone on short journeys around Beijing, Zhang told AFP, noting that the truck is not suited for longer shipments.
The new sky-blue model Zhang drives -- made by the Howo brand of state-owned firm Sinotruk -- has a maximum range of 240-250 kilometres (149–155 miles), he said.
"The power is pretty strong, the acceleration is fast. It's all about speed, but the range is a bit lacking," he said.
As domestic adoption of electric trucks picks up pace, Chinese firms are thinking more about overseas markets.
"Similar to passenger vehicles, China's heavy truck manufacturers are beginning to view export markets as an inevitable strategy due to rising competition and the eventual saturation in the Chinese market," said Christopher Doleman, an analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

'Electric is superior'

Recent disruption in global energy markets as a result of the Middle East war is a "potential accelerant" for this trend, Doleman told AFP.
"There is likely to be higher demand for electric heavy-duty vehicles as fleet owners try to minimise their vulnerability to volatile diesel costs," he said.
According to Han Wen, founder of electric truck start-up Windrose Technology, the war "already has" boosted demand.
Founded in 2022, Belgium-based Windrose is seeking to leverage China's advanced EV supply chains to position itself in the emerging global long-haul electric truck market -- competing with Tesla's electric "Semi".
"For trucks, range is by far the constraining factor," Han told AFP, noting that Windrose trucks can currently drive about 700 kilometres on a full charge, with plans to extend that to 1,000 kilometres in 2030.
Having secured road approval across Europe, China, the United States and South America, Windrose is now looking to ramp up production.
"We're going to build about 1,000 trucks this year," Han said, followed by goals of 10,000 next year and 100,000 in 2030.
"Economically, there is no more question at all that electric is superior," he added.
"I think we're right on the cusp of a total obliteration of diesel trucks as a product category."
pfc/dhw/dan