Drought-stricken Amazon River at lowest recorded level, and other nature and climate stories you need to read this week

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum.

Author: Johnny Wood, Writer, Forum Agenda

• This weekly round-up contains key nature and climate news from the past week.
• Top nature and climate stories: Amazon River at lowest-ever recorded level; EU targets 74% cut in microplastic waste; Flame-retardant chemicals threaten more than 100 species.

1. Drought-stricken Amazon River at record-low level

Brazil’s Amazon River fell to its lowest-ever recorded water level as a record drought threatens hundreds of thousands of people and has damaged delicate jungle ecosystems.

Drying river tributaries along the world’s second-longest river left boats stranded and cut off essential supplies of food, water and medical provisions to remote village communities.

High water temperatures pose a serious threat to marine life and are suspected of killing more than 100 endangered river dolphins, Reuters reports.

Water levels in Manaus, a port city with the region’s largest population, fell to 13.59 metres, compared to 17.60 metres at the same time last year. This represents the lowest levels in more than a century since records began in 1902.

Parts of the Amazon have had the least recorded rainfall between July and September since the 1980s, Brazil’s disaster monitoring and response organization (Cemaden) reports.

More than 480,000 people have been impacted by the drought, according to the Amazonas state civil defence agency.

Emergency supplies are being distributed by tractor, canoe, or on foot in some regions.

2. EU targets 74% cut in microplastic waste

A European Union (EU) proposal to curb plastic pollution aims to reduce the use of microplastics in most plastic products by 74% by 2030.

Success would result in a 7% reduction in Europe’s microplastics pollution, the European Commission says.

The move targets the tiny plastic pellets that are deliberately added to plastic products as raw material.

Also known as nurdles, nibs and resin pellets, these non-biodegradable small particles of plastic find their way into the environment, where they accumulate in animals and seafood and into the human food chain.

“The most important thing is to cut pollution at the source,” Virginijus Sinkevičius, EU commissioner for the environment, oceans and fisheries, told The Guardian. “What we are looking to do is basically ensure we drastically cut, at the source, pollution of microplastics.”

Globally, plastic waste is forecast to triple by 2060, increasing from 353 billion tonnes in 2019 to 1 billion tonnes, according to the OECD’s Global Plastics Outlook.

While an uptick in recycling rates can go some way to tackling the problem, efforts to curb plastic pollution at source could prove more effective.

https://open.spotify.com/embed/episode/4VHNzqFIwl6zKwpO6Egj7r

3. News in brief: Other top nature and climate stories this week

Long-lasting flame-retardant chemicals threaten more than 100 species across the world, new research shows. Creatures at risk range from mammals to marine life and include endangered animals like red pandas, chimpanzees and killer whales.

The EU has agreed on a push to phase out “unabated” fossil fuels at the upcoming COP28 climate talks in the United Arab Emirates. The bloc’s stance leaves a window for countries to continue burning fossil fuels if they use technology to capture harmful CO2 emissions.

What’s the World Economic Forum doing about the transition to clean energy?

Moving to clean energy is key to combating climate change, yet in the past five years, the energy transition has stagnated.

Energy consumption and production contribute to two-thirds of global emissions, and 81% of the global energy system is still based on fossil fuels, the same percentage as 30 years ago. Plus, improvements in the energy intensity of the global economy (the amount of energy used per unit of economic activity) are slowing. In 2018 energy intensity improved by 1.2%, the slowest rate since 2010.

Effective policies, private-sector action and public-private cooperation are needed to create a more inclusive, sustainable, affordable and secure global energy system.

Benchmarking progress is essential to a successful transition. The World Economic Forum’s Energy Transition Index, which ranks 115 economies on how well they balance energy security and access with environmental sustainability and affordability, shows that the biggest challenge facing energy transition is the lack of readiness among the world’s largest emitters, including US, China, India and Russia. The 10 countries that score the highest in terms of readiness account for only 2.6% of global annual emissions.

To future-proof the global energy system, the Forum’s Shaping the Future of Energy and Materials Platform is working on initiatives including, Systemic Efficiency, Innovation and Clean Energy and the Global Battery Alliance to encourage and enable innovative energy investments, technologies and solutions.

Additionally, the Mission Possible Platform (MPP) is working to assemble public and private partners to further the industry transition to set heavy industry and mobility sectors on the pathway towards net-zero emissions. MPP is an initiative created by the World Economic Forum and the Energy Transitions Commission.

Is your organisation interested in working with the World Economic Forum? Find out more here.

Melting surface ice on Greenland’s ice sheets has accelerated while in the Antarctic it has slowed, new research shows, EcoWatch reports. During the last decade, wind-related melting has increased by 10% in Greenland but fallen by almost a third in Antarctica.

Sewage discharge is more harmful to rivers than the impact of agricultural land use, a study from the University of Oxford says. UK water companies are permitted to release wastewater into rivers, which poses a serious threat to river ecosystems and human health.

Nigeria has for the first time publicly destroyed a four-tonne haul of illegally trafficked Pangolin scales, valued at $1.4 million. The move aims to deter the illicit trade in wildlife parts like Pangolin scales, which are commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine.

Rubber production in Southeast Asia could be responsible for three times more forest loss than previously thought, new research shows. The region produces 90% of global rubber supply, which is putting pressure on natural forests and driving biodiversity loss.

Twenty-one species have been removed from the endangered species list because they are extinct, according to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, CBS News reports. Federal protection arrived too late to preserve the species, which include mammals, birds, fish and mussels.

A new study says it’s found the likely cause of the death of 10 billion snow crabs in Alaska in 2022. Warmer ocean temperatures ‘increased their caloric needs considerably’ causing them to starve, according to scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

4. More on the nature and climate crisis on Agenda

Extreme heat, poor air quality, pests, floods, wildfires and other climate change-linked threats could seriously impact jobs and workers around the world. Here’s how.

Scientists expand on Darwin’s theory of evolution to propose a new law of nature, which states that complex natural systems evolve due to selection for useful functions.

Climate change is becoming a security issue according to Andrew Zolli, Chief Impact Officer at space and AI organization Planet. National and natural security are inextricably linked as the impact of climate change increases, he says.