Colossal rain to test New Orleans’ barriers as hurricane threatens

New Orleans’ new storm defence systems will be tested as the USA’s first tropical storm of the year threatens to turn into a hurricane.

New Orleans resident Terrian Jones as flooding hits parts of
the city ahead of a potential hurricane making landfall. 

A state of emergency has been declared in the state of Louisiana where already high river levels are causing flooding ahead of the storm.

There are fears that colossal rainfall – rather than than wind – could lead to life-threatening conditions, with New Orleans’ $20 billion levees and seawalls predicted to near capacity.

Tropical Storm Barry is currently spinning through the Gulf of Mexico and expected to intensify into a hurricane and make landfall on Saturday local time.

Read the story from The New Daily - “Colossal rain to test New Orleans’ barriers as hurricane threatens.”

Democrats Will Debate in a City Under Siege by Climate Change

MIAMI — New water pumps and tidal valves worth millions of dollars are needed to keep the streets from flooding even on sunny days. Septic tanks compromised by rising groundwater leak unfiltered waste that threatens the water supply. Developers are often buying out residents of established communities, hoping to acquire buildable property on higher ground.

After Hurricane Irma in 2017, Michael Clarkson helped
found a collective that provides free cleanup and repairs
 to needy residents. He said the Little Haiti neighborhood
 of Miami is facing a “climate change invasion” from
investors looking for real estate on higher ground.

Climate change became a daily reality long ago in Miami, where both rich and poor have been forced to grapple with the compounding effects of warmer temperatures and higher sea levels. The evidence is everywhere of a city under siege by the rising sea.

“Climate change is really the issue that sits on all other issues,” said Rachel Silverstein, executive director of Miami Waterkeeper, an environmental research and activist group. “It affects security. It affects drinking water. It affects tourism. It affects public health. Property values. It’s a part of the discussion of almost any topic that might come up.”

Read the story from The New York Times by Patricia Mazzei - “Democrats Will Debate in a City Under Siege by Climate Change.”

Earth Day, planetary boundaries, and the Green New Deal

As we celebrate Earth Day in 2019, we need to recognize that more than climate change threatens our environment and our very existence. We have passed or are approaching several Planetary Boundaries outside of which human society may not survive.

Image Credit: EcoIdeaMan/Twitter

Environmental scientists have developed the concept of Planetary Boundaries to identify Earth system processes that human activity is disrupting. They have tried to identify boundaries beyond which that disruption will trigger radical planetary environmental changes that endanger the survival of human society. 

Of the nine planetary boundaries these scientists have identified, they say that we have already passed four of them:

Read the story from Nation of Change by Howle Hawkins - “Earth Day, planetary boundaries, and the Green New Deal.”

‘Not happy’: Australia must act on climate, says former Kiribati leader.

Anote Tong has had quite a week. The former president of Kiribati has been in Australia to advocate for more robust action on climate change, which threatens to wipe out his Pacific home within a matter of decades as sea levels rise.

Former Kiribati president Anote Tong is advocating
 for robust action on climate change.

But on Wednesday he got caught up in controversy when reports emerged that Australia’s environment minister, Melissa Price, allegedly told him it was “always about the cash” when Pacific Islands leaders came to Australia.

Read the story from The Guardian by Kate Lyons - “‘Not happy’: Australia must act on climate, says former Kiribati leader.”

Senate report recognises climate change as existential risk, but fails to draw the obvious conclusions

Climate change is “a current and existential national security risk”, according to an Australian Senate report released on Thursday 17 May. It says an existential risk is “one that threatens the premature extinction of Earth-originating intelligent life or the permanent and drastic destruction of its potential for desirable future development”. These are strong words.

The report by the Senate’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee follows an Inquiry into the Implications of Climate Change for Australia’s National Security. Whilst many of the findings accord with the growing international recognition of climate change as a “threat multiplier” or an “accelerant to instability”, the inquiry’s recommendations lack a sense of urgency, especially since the “current existential risk” is being triggered today by the Australian Government’s insistence on  expanding the use of fossil fuels.

Read the story by David Spratt from Climate Code Red - “Senate report recognises climate change as existential risk, but fails to draw the obvious conclusions.”

Swaths of native forest near Great Barrier Reef set to be bulldozed

Federal officials plan to back the destruction of almost 2000 hectares of pristine Queensland forest in a move that threatens the Great Barrier Reef and undermines a $500 million Turnbull government rescue package for the natural wonder.

Old growth forest in the vicinity of Kingvale Station,
near rivers that flow into the Great Barrier Reef.

A draft report by the Department of the Environment and Energy recommends that the government allow the mass vegetation clearing at Kingvale Station on Cape York Peninsula. The area to be bulldozed is almost three times the size of the combined central business districts of Sydney and Melbourne.

Read the story by Nicole Hasham from The Age - “Swaths of native forest near Great Barrier Reef set to be bulldozed.”

Many people feel lonely in the city, but perhaps ‘third places’ can help with that

Loneliness is a hidden but serious problem in cities worldwide. Urban loneliness is connected to population mobility, declining community participation and a growth in single-occupant households. This threatens the viability of our cities because it damages the social networks they rely on.

Third places are most effective when, like Waverley Community Garden
in Sydney, they appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds.

One response to these trends involves “third places”. These are public or commercial spaces that provide informal opportunities for local people to mix socially on neutral ground.

The concept of third place, developed by Ray Oldenburg, is distinct from first and second places. A first place is the private space of home. Second places are where people spend significant time, often formally. These include schools, universities and workplaces.

Read the piece on The Conversation by a PhD Candidate from Griffith University, Joanne Dolley, and a Lecturer in Urban and Environmental Planning, also the Griffith University, Tony Matthews - “Many people feel lonely in the city, but perhaps ‘third places’ can help with that.”

Victoria weather: Heavy rain, floods forecast across state as Premier warns of 'challenging period’

Victorians have been warned to prepare for a "very challenging period" over coming days, as unprecedented severe weather threatens public safety, Premier Daniel Andrews says.

More than 100mm could fall across Melbourne in the coming days.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) has warned the state could be drenched with up to three times its monthly rainfall on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

State and local emergency control centres have been activated as emergency services work on a four-day plan to cope with possible flash flooding.

Mr Andrews told Parliament people must follow official warnings.

Read the ABC News story - “Victoria weather: Heavy rain, floods forecast across state as Premier warns of 'challenging period’.”

Australia’s lush street trees face grave threat if emissions keep rising, research finds

Much-loved leafy streets and shady parks in Sydney and Melbourne are in jeopardy, according to new research that found climate change severely threatens the health of more than one-third of tree species in Australia's cities.

Australia's much-loved street trees could fall victim to rising emissions. 

The federally funded study of 1.5 million trees in 29 council areas across Australia found that higher temperatures and urban heat means new tree species may be introduced, existing trees must be given special care and some trees may disappear in certain locations.

More than four in 10 houses in Australia's capital cities have a street tree.

Trees can greatly affect people's experience of a city - providing shade, places for recreation and a sense of place and heritage. They also cool the city, capture rain, slow stormwater and provide habitat for birds and other animals.

Read the story by Nicole Hasham in the Melbourne Age - “Australia’s lush street trees face grave threat if emissions keep rising, research finds.”

Coalition pledge to turn on the gas could imperil Australia's climate target

Any move to boost gas production in Victoria by drilling onshore threatens to undermine Australia's commitment to cut its greenhouse gas emissions, energy experts warn. 

  

The Coalition wants to end Victoria's
moratorium on onshore gas exploration. 

Political pressure is growing for Victoria to cut short its moratorium on onshore gas exploration, after Opposition Leader Matthew Guy joined Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in blaming the ban for soaring power prices.

The state Coalition promised on Monday to open up Victorian farmland to gas extraction before the end of the decade, reversing a ban it brought in more than three years ago in order to allay community fears about fracking.

One Melbourne-based gas drilling company is already eyeing off reserves in Gippsland and the Otways, should the Matthew Guy-led opposition take power and lift the ban. 

Read Adam Carey’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Coalition pledge to turn on the gas could imperil Australia's climate target.”