Environment | WPN World People News

Commenting on the publication at COP21 of a new draft deal, Martin Kaiser, head of international climate politics at Greenpeace, said:
his thing isn’t over until the conference closes, but what’s on the table just isn’t good enough. It’s a very big problem that the emissions targets on the table will not keep us below 1.5 degrees of warming and this draft deal does absolutely nothing to change that. Right now we’re witnessing a display of international impotence.

A broad coalition of community and conservation groups sued Kern County Thursday for passing a new local law intended to bypass environmental review for oil and gas projects. The new county ordinance, sponsored by the oil industry and passed by the Kern County Board of Supervisors last month, purports to allow county officials to fast track permits for oil and gas activities without environmental review or public notice for a minimum of 20 years.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Wednesday finalized a regional haze plan for Texas, a Clean Air Act protection that requires states to develop plans to clean up pollution and improve air quality at national parks and wilderness areas. The EPA issued a proposed draft of the rule in November 2014.

Members of the International Indian Treaty Council ask for indigenous peoples rights to be respected at the UN climate change conference (COP21). 9 December 2015.

Children are already paying a heavy price for the world’s inaction on climate change, UNICEF said.

“The future of today’s children, particularly the most disadvantaged, is at stake,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, speaking at an event at the 21st United Nations climate change conference in Paris, known as COP21.

Rooftop solar panels. The Clean Power Plan builds on existing trends, like solar power, in the power sector that have allowed many states around the country to reduce emissions at a rapid rate over the last decade.

Wednesday, the famous Greenpeace giant polar bear was brought to Le Bourget to add pressure on governments to agree on an ambitious climate deal.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced $94,700 in fines and more than 1,394 items, including engines, scooters and ATVs, that were recently seized, exported out of the country, or destroyed. This was the latest result of their continued joint operations, at the ports of LA, Long Beach, and Oakland, targeting foreign-made vehicles and equipment without proper emission controls, as well as illegal pesticides, imported into the United States in violation of federal law.

UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Katy Perry reads a unique weather report to draw attention to the devastating effects of climate change on the world’s children.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has reached a settlement with the U.S. Army for alleged violations of its hazardous waste permit at Fort Wainwright, Alaska. As part of the settlement, the Army has agreed to pay $59,220 in penalties for violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).