2 September 2021 - NPWJ News Digest on Environmental Justice & Human Rights

Articles

Brazil Supreme Court weighs landmark Indigenous land rights case
Al Jazeera, 02 Sep 2021

Brazil’s Supreme Court has heard arguments for and against a cut-off date for land claims Indigenous people say are vital for their survival, while the government advocated for legal certainty for farmers in the agricultural powerhouse. The top court weighed on Wednesday whether a state government applied an overly narrow interpretation of Indigenous rights by only recognising tribal lands occupied by native communities at the time Brazil’s constitution was ratified in 1988.

Continua

Opec member urges oil producers to focus more on renewable energy
The Guardian, 01 Sep 2021

The finance minister of Iraq, one of the founding members of the global oil cartel Opec, has made an unprecedented call to fellow oil producers to move away from fossil fuel dependency and into renewable energy, ahead of a key Opec meeting. Ali Allawi, who is also the deputy prime minister of Iraq, has written in the Guardian to urge oil producers to pursue “an economic renewal focused on environmentally sound policies and technologies” that would include solar power and potentially nuclear reactors, and reduce their dependency on fossil fuel exports.

Continua

Climate change: Big increase in weather disasters over the past five decades
BBC, 01 Sep 2021

The number of weather-related disasters to hit the world has increased five-fold over the past 50 years, says the World Meteorological Organization. However, the number of deaths because of the greater number of storms, floods and droughts has fallen sharply. Scientists say that climate change, more extreme weather and better reporting are behind the rise in these extreme events. But improvements to warning systems have helped limit the number of deaths.

Continua

MEPs blast Commission’s flagship forest strategy as vague, overstepping EU remit
Euractiv, 01 Sep 2021

European lawmakers from across the political spectrum have united in criticism against the European Commission’s new flagship Forest Strategy, describing it as vague and superficial while flagging concerns that it goes beyond the remit of EU competences. The strategy, which was presented by EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski during the European Parliament’s agriculture committee meeting on 1 September, is one of the main initiatives of the Commission’s Green Deal.

Continua

Some 30% of global tree species at risk of extinction -report
Reuters, 01 Sep 2021

Almost a third of the world's tree species are at risk of extinction, while hundreds are on the brink of being wiped out, according to a landmark report published by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) on Wednesday. According to the State of the World's Trees report 17,500 tree species - some 30% of the total - are a risk of extinction, while 440 species have fewer than 50 individuals left in the wild.

Continua

Secretary-General calls for bold action to end biodiversity crisis
UN News, 30 Aug 2021

With one million species at risk of extinction, UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday called for greater leadership and political will to end the biodiversity crisis. In remarks to a high-level virtual meeting to develop a new global framework to address biodiversity loss, he underlined the need for commitment, ambition and credibility. "The future of humanity depends on our collective efforts", he said. "Let us work together to sustain all life on Earth so people and nature may benefit".

Continua