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Climate in Crisis

MORE CLIMATE NEWS

Richard Branson has an urgent message for climate change deniers

Branson sat down with NBC News while in New York for the United Nations General Assembly. This week he revealed his new climate change coalition, Planetary Guardians.
Richard Branson is interviewed by NBC's Chloe Melas, in New York, on Sept 23, 2023.
Richard Branson is interviewed by NBC's Chloe Melas, in New York, on Sept 23, 2023.

Wildfire-prone California will allow property insurers to factor future climate risks into pricing

Unlike other states, California does not let insurance companies consider future risks when deciding how much to charge for an insurance policy.
Woodbridge firefighter Joe Zurilgen passes a burning home as the Kincade Fire rages in Healdsburg, Calif.,
Woodbridge firefighter Joe Zurilgen passes a burning home as the Kincade Fire rages in Healdsburg, Calif.,

California is engaged in the world’s largest dam removal project in hopes of letting nature rebound

A national push to "rewild" looks to restore natural environments that might help mitigate the effects of climate change.
Iron Gate Dam
Iron Gate Dam

How rainfall turned into floods in Libya

Record rain turned into a disaster when two dams burst, sending flood water through the center of the city of Derna.
Map of the Denra region in Libya, showing how water flowed from two dams down into the city.
Map of the Denra region in Libya, showing how water flowed from two dams down into the city.

A summer of deadly fires and floods tests Greece's role on the front lines of climate change

“After the year 2050, 2060, all of the Mediterranean will be in bad shape in terms of extreme events,” the country's leading climate scientist said. “They would happen more often and with larger intensity.”
Firefighters work to extinguish a fire in Evros, Greece, on Aug. 31, 2023. Greek Special Forces rescue a resident from the flooded Koskinas village on Sept. 9, 2023.
Firefighters work to extinguish a fire in Evros, Greece, on Aug. 31, 2023. Greek Special Forces rescue a resident from the flooded Koskinas village on Sept. 9, 2023.

Lahaina's firefighters fought an impossible battle, again and again. This is what they saw.

As firefighters raced to hold back wind-whipped flames, they faced near-death escapes, blinding smoke, car-melting heat — and a battle they couldn’t win.
A wildfire burns in Lahaina, Hawaii on Aug. 8, 2023, and Capt. Ikaika Blackburn at Napili Fire Station in Lahaina.
A wildfire burns in Lahaina, Hawaii on Aug. 8, 2023, and Capt. Ikaika Blackburn at Napili Fire Station in Lahaina.

U.K. PM Sunak criticized for pushing back ban on new gas and diesel cars

The move angered green groups, opposition politicians and large chunks of U.K. industry, but was welcomed by some in his governing Conservative Party.
A night-time aerial view of Muswell Hill in London.
A night-time aerial view of Muswell Hill in London.

The unexpected places where extreme weather threatens homeowners' pocketbooks

As climate disasters drive home insurers to exit markets, many Americans already face rising premiums and lowered home values. Tens of millions more could join them.
A car is stranded in Virginia Beach intersection after Hurricane Matthew
A car is stranded in Virginia Beach intersection after Hurricane Matthew

Wildfires are destroying decades of clean air efforts

Wildfire smoke made an imprint on pollution trends in three-quarters of all U.S. states, according to research published in the journal Nature.
GUNNISON, COLORADO - JULY 26: A plane drops retardant as smoke billows and flames rise from the Lowline fire on July 26, 2023 near Gunnison, Colorado. The US Forest Service said the fire was started by lightning and has forced evacuations in the area.
GUNNISON, COLORADO - JULY 26: A plane drops retardant as smoke billows and flames rise from the Lowline fire on July 26, 2023 near Gunnison, Colorado. The US Forest Service said the fire was started by lightning and has forced evacuations in the area.

White House launches group to mobilize 20,000 Americans to combat climate change

The move comes as Democratic lawmakers and activists call on President Joe Biden to take bigger steps to fight climate change.
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 24 : A small group of volunteers work to clean trash from the Watts Branch Stream, where its slight flow of water crosses from Maryland into northeast DC where Southern and Eastern Avenues meet to form the right corner of the District's diamond shape on April 24, 2010, in Washington, DC.  It took the falling of an old tree, its trunk skimming the stream's flow just enough to be a filter, to reveal what besides water and tree debris was surely headed toward the already poisoned Anacostia River.  Styrofoam folding food trays and cups in all levels of disintegration, alcohol bottles from top shelf to bottom, potato chip bags and plastic motor oil containers.  In an Earth Day 2010 effort organized by the Anacostia Watershed Society, volunteers participated in a massive trash cleanup along the shores of the polluted river and its tributaries in DC and Maryland.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that roughly 20,000 tons of trash enter the Anacostia River from local creeks and streams each year. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has officially declared the Anacostia to be Òimpaired by trash", only the second river in the nation to receive such a distinction, and it lists human beings as the chief source of the litter.  It's only fitting that humans chip in to repair their damage.  But, more importantly, we must develop the mentality that leads us to properly dispose of our waste in the first place.  (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 24 : A small group of volunteers work to clean trash from the Watts Branch Stream, where its slight flow of water crosses from Maryland into northeast DC where Southern and Eastern Avenues meet to form the right corner of the District's diamond shape on April 24, 2010, in Washington, DC.  It took the falling of an old tree, its trunk skimming the stream's flow just enough to be a filter, to reveal what besides water and tree debris was surely headed toward the already poisoned Anacostia River.  Styrofoam folding food trays and cups in all levels of disintegration, alcohol bottles from top shelf to bottom, potato chip bags and plastic motor oil containers.  In an Earth Day 2010 effort organized by the Anacostia Watershed Society, volunteers participated in a massive trash cleanup along the shores of the polluted river and its tributaries in DC and Maryland.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that roughly 20,000 tons of trash enter the Anacostia River from local creeks and streams each year. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has officially declared the Anacostia to be Òimpaired by trash", only the second river in the nation to receive such a distinction, and it lists human beings as the chief source of the litter.  It's only fitting that humans chip in to repair their damage.  But, more importantly, we must develop the mentality that leads us to properly dispose of our waste in the first place.  (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Olive oil prices surge over 100% to record highs and spark cooking oil thefts

Global prices of olive oil surged to $8,900 per ton in September, driven by “extremely dry weather” in the Mediterranean, according to the USDA.
Rows of Tesco brand olive oil on a supermarket shelf in England.
Rows of Tesco brand olive oil on a supermarket shelf in England.

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