Global Climate News

Robeco, a Dutch asset manager, has expanded its engagement in climate and nature, focusing on natural resource management, deforestation (expanding from palm oil to soy, beef, leather, paper and pulp), biodiversity, and human capital management. They are also initiating new themes on transition minerals (supply chains in electric vehicle batteries) and protecting shareholder rights from weakening regulations.

Global biodiversity loss is at an unprecedented rate, with up to one million species at risk of extinction. More than 50% of global GDP depends on natural resources. The World Economic Forum estimates business opportunities in sustainable resource use to be worth up to USD 10 trillion annually by 2030. Nordea launched a biodiversity fund investing in sustainable resource use and biodiversity restoration.

The Norwegian company Farmforce has developed a software solution to trace agricultural goods, helping its 70 customers meet sustainability targets by tracing crops of 1.1 million small farmers across Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Farmforce, with financial support from Nordea, focuses on documenting the absence of child labor and deforestation in production. The company aims to improve farmers' living standards and empower them in the international market. The EU's deforestation-free regulation further emphasizes the importance of Farmforce’s work.

The European Commission launched a public feedback period on a uniform format for Member States’ national restoration plans under the Nature Restoration Regulation. The aim is to reduce administrative burden and improve transparency in the implementation of the EU’s Nature Restoration Law, which aims to restore Europe’s environment and ensure the availability of ecosystem services.

The UK government published guidance on landfill and deposit for recovery: aftercare and permit surrender. The guidance helps operators understand aftercare procedures and permit surrender applications. Updates were made on January 13, 2025, and March 30, 2022, to improve clarity and address specific landfill types.

In Wales, Natural Resources Wales’s Four Rivers for LIFE project, funded by the EU LIFE Programme, Welsh Government and Welsh Water, has installed 25km of riparian fencing on 27 farms along the Teifi, Tywi, Cleddau and Usk SAC Rivers. This aims to reduce soil, sediment and nutrient runoff, improving water quality and benefiting livestock management.

Wales' Natural Resources Wales (NRW) published an interim State of Natural Resources Report (SoNaRR 2025), highlighting urgent need for collective action to address nature degradation, climate change, and pollution. The report emphasizes the importance of pro-nature thinking and decision-making across government, business, and society to ensure the sustainability of Wales’ natural resources. The full report, to be published by the end of 2025, will offer a comprehensive evidence base for decision-making.

The Working Party on Forestry meeting discussed topics including Agriculture and Environment, indicating potential relevance to sustainability.

India reported a 7.93% reduction in GHG emissions in 2020 compared to 2019, as highlighted in its 4th Biennial Update Report (BUR-4). The energy sector contributed 75.66% of emissions. India aims for net-zero emissions by 2070 and has launched several initiatives including the "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam" tree plantation campaign and the Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats & Tangible Incomes (MISHTI) Program, with ₹12.55 crores allocated in FY 2024-25.

Canada has offered support to California in response to devastating wildfires. The Canadian Armed Forces are providing air transport, the Canadian Coast Guard is exploring available resources, and Natural Resources Canada is working with US agencies to identify deployable resources. Several Canadian provinces are also mobilizing resources, including firefighters, aircraft, and equipment.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection suspended Bluestone Coal Corporation’s Poca surface mine permit due to numerous violations, including failures in reclamation, sediment and runoff control, and unlawful dumping. The mine, operated by the family of Senator Jim Justice, had received 13 notices of violation and 16 cessation orders in the past year. The suspension follows a federal directive to revoke the permit.

The UK Environment Agency has provided low risk waste positions (LRWPs) for landspreading waste operations, allowing certain activities without environmental permits if conditions are met. LRWPs may be reviewed or withdrawn; the agency replaced LRWP 13 (zoo manure) with RPS 313 and added waste type 03 01 05 to LRWP 61.

India's ICAR Research Complex for North-Eastern Hill Region has developed over 100 climate-resilient crop varieties, increasing food grain and horticultural crop production by 30% and 40% respectively in the last 10 years. The focus on agri-based enterprises has led to a 25% increase in agri-entrepreneurs in the last five years. The President highlighted the climate resilience of tribal farming systems and urged the conservation of germplasm resources for agricultural sustainability.

The US Congress passed several bills related to water conservation and drought preparedness. The Great Salt Lake Stewardship Act will divert funds to conserve Utah’s Great Salt Lake. The WATER Data Improvement Act will support U.S. Geological Survey programs tracking water availability. The Drought Preparedness Act reauthorizes the Bureau of Reclamation’s Drought Response Program. The America’s Conservation Enhancement Reauthorization Act supports wildlife habitat restoration.

The US passed the Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act of 2024, allowing NGOs to remediate polluted mines. The Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary of National Significance Act of 2024 designates these Florida waterways as estuaries of national significance, increasing protections and restoration efforts. The EXPLORE Act, improving public lands recreation access, awaits President Biden’s signature. The FISHES Act expedites federal disaster relief for fisheries.

The Environment Agency in England is consulting the public on an environmental permit application submitted by Mr Richard Geoghegan and Mrs Jane Skelton for waste and mining waste operations, installations, water discharge and groundwater activities, and medium combustion plant and specified generators at The Rosery, Basingstoke Road, Old Alresford, SO24 9DL.

Jeremy Collins has submitted an environmental permit application to the Environment Agency for Meridon House in Bishops Sutton, UK. The application concerns waste and mining waste operations, installations, water discharge and groundwater activities, and medium combustion plant and specified generators.

The Environment Agency in England is consulting the public on an environmental permit application submitted by Indurent Strategic Land Ltd for land off Junction 1 of the A50 in Leicestershire. The application concerns waste and mining waste operations, installations, water discharge and groundwater activities, and medium combustion plant and specified generators.

The Environment Agency in England is consulting the public on an environmental permit application submitted by Richard Pearson-Wood for White Farm Stables in Kingsdown, Kent. The application concerns waste and mining waste operations, installations, water discharge, groundwater activities, and medium combustion plant and specified generators.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) provided a €4.7 million loan to Lviv, Ukraine, to reclaim the Hrybovychi landfill. This is part of the EIB’s Ukraine Solidarity Urgent Response package and the Ukraine Municipal Infrastructure Programme (UMIP). The project will improve waste management, minimize ecological impact, and transform the landfill into a green zone and park. Earlier phases received €6.04 million from EIB and co-financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).