A report drawing on over 300 peer-reviewed articles concludes that natural infrastructure solutions are not only cheaper, but more effective in mitigating climate disasters like floods, wildfires and landslides.
What the heck are we waiting for?
Each week we summarize three news articles that gives up hope for a greener, brighter future. We do this to makes climate issues more approachable and inspire everyday action!
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Green Infrastructure Can Be Cheaper, More Effective than Dams
By Daniel Cusick, E&E News, June 9, 2020
- A report drawing on 300+ “academic, government and nonprofit-affiliated” articles found that natural infrastructure solutions are cheaper and more effective at mitigating climate disasters than engineered ones.
- Examples include:
- Reverting an old golf course into a 178-acre park/wetland protected 150 homes from flooding in Texas.
- A dam removal project in Massachusetts that more effectively reduced flood risk and was 60% less expensive than maintaining the dams.
- The 44-page report draws on “both model-based and empirical evidence from around the world.” Hopefully, it can serve as a road map for infrastructure policy decisions
Conservation ‘Game-Changer’: China Removes Pangolin Scales From Traditional Medicine List
By Olivia Rosane, EcoWatch, June 10, 2020
- By removing pangolin scales from its traditional medicine list, China made a meaningful step in protecting the pangolin — a rare scaled mammal. The move prohibits all domestic trade and use of the animal.
- Per the article: “All eight species of pangolin are at risk from extinction. Tens of thousands are killed every year for their meat, which is considered a delicacy in China and Vietnam, and their scales, which are used for medicinal purposes.”
- Pangolin is also a known carrier of a coronavirus strain similar to COVID-19, although it is unknown of the strain can jump to humans.
The surprising protest of Exxon’s law firm at Harvard Law
By Umair Irfan, Vox, January 16, 2020
- Harvard Law School student activists protested at a campus recruitment for a law firm that provides legal council for Exxon Mobil. The protest highlighted Harvard’s role in grooming corporate lawyers that defend the fossil fuel industry.
- Per the article: “Climate lawsuits have emerged as an increasingly popular way to try to hold fossil fuel companies to account for the impacts of their greenhouse gas emissions, although many of the suits are still underway and some have already been dismissed. One reason some cases have dragged on for so long is that the defendants have retained powerful legal representation, including firms like Paul Weiss.“
- In the past, student led campaigns convinced Kirkland Ellis — the world’s largest law firm — to ditch forced arbitration clauses. Perhaps Harvard Law School protesters can score a climate victory of their own.
Copyright Emeraldology 2020.
