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Au Japon, début du démantèlement des réservoirs d’eau traitée de la centrale nucléaire de Fukushima

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L’opérateur de la centrale nucléaire japonaise de Fukushima, victime d’un tsunami dévastateur en 2011, a annoncé vendredi avoir lancé cette opération de démantèlement afin de libérer de l’espace pour y stocker des débris nucléaires.

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Vous l’avez vécu sur BFMTV : la catastrophe de Fukushima

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HISASHI MURAYAMA POUR " LE MONDE "

Dans la ville de Rikuzentakata, le 20 mars 2011. HISASHI MURAYAMA POUR " LE MONDE "

Du 11 mars 2011, on retient surtout le nom de Fukushima, ville et préfecture du centre du Japon, dont la centrale, installée près de la côte pacifique, est au cœur de la pire catastrophe nucléaire après celle de Tchernobyl en 1986.

Pourtant, à ce jour, le lourd bilan humain n'est pas dû à l'accident nucléaire mais bien à un séisme de magnitude 9,1 - le plus violent jamais ressenti au Japon - et surtout au tsunami qui s'en est suivi, dévastant 600 kilomètres de côte et causant la mort ou la disparition de 22 500 personnes, selon le ministère de la reconstruction japonais.

Dans la ville de Kesennuma, le 20 mars 2011. HISASHI MURAYAMA POUR " LE MONDE "

Le vendredi 11 mars 2011, à 14 h 46 (6 h 46 à Paris), un séisme sous-marin d'une magnitude de 9,1 survient à 130 kilomètres au large de la côte est du Japon, dans l'océan Pacifique. L'ensemble de l'archipel est touché et la secousse est ressentie jusqu'à Pékin, à plus de 2 000 kilomètres. Pendant deux à trois minutes, les immeubles tanguent et des dégâts sont constatés, mais le Japon, habitué aux tremblements de terre, a des normes antisismiques élevées et encaisse le choc, dans un premier temps.

L'archipel du Japon est, en effet, situé sur la ceinture de feu du Pacifique, à la jonction de trois plaques tectoniques (les plaques pacifique, eurasienne et des Philippines) -, une zone sismique très active. Mais ce 11 mars, la magnitude atteint un record : ce n'est que la quatrième fois qu'on dépasse le niveau 9. L'île principale, Honshu, s'est même déplacée de 2,4 mètres vers l'est, selon l'Institut de géophysique américain. Le premier séisme a été suivi de nombreuses répliques, dont plus d'une cinquantaine de magnitude supérieure à 6.

Les séismes les plus violents

Moins d'une heure après le violent tremblement de terre sous-marin, une alerte au tsunami est lancée. Celui-ci déferle sur la côte d'une vingtaine de pays, notamment sur l'intégralité de la côte pacifique de l'Amérique - de l'Alaska au Chili -, provoquant des évacuations de populations, mais faisant peu de victimes.

C'est sur la côte Pacifique du Tohoku, au nord-est du Japon, que s'abat principalement la vague géante. Plus de 600 kilomètres de côte sont touchés et, par endroits, le mur d'eau aurait atteint jusqu'à trente mètres de haut. L'eau est entrée dans les terres de manière très variable, de quelques centaines de mètres à Fukushima à plus de dix kilomètres dans les vallées de la région du Sanriku.

Sendai, Minamisanriku, Rikuzentakata... les villes côtières et leurs ports sont submergés, certaines détruites à 90 %. Des carcasses de voitures, de bus ou de trains gisent au milieu de paysages dévastés. Au port d'Onagawa, un navire est perché sur un bâtiment de trois étages, témoin de la hauteur de la vague. Les corps, eux, sont encore invisibles, emportés par la vague.

Voir aussi : Les premières heures de la catastrophe en vidéo

Le système d'alerte japonais n'a pas parfaitement fonctionné, sous-estimant la magnitude du séisme et donc l'ampleur du tsunami engendré. De plus, certaines villes avaient fait le choix de se barricader derrière des digues pour se protéger de la mer, créant un faux sentiment de sécurité. Ce 11 mars, toutes sont submergées ou détruites, même les plus élaborées. A Taro, ville alors montrée en exemple, le rempart de protection de dix mètres érigé sur le littoral est dépassé d'au moins cinq mètres par la vague. Les quartiers construits derrière la digue sont rasés. Malgré cet échec, le Japon a fait le choix de construire de nouvelles digues, plus hautes, sur près de 400 kilomètres.

Le bilan confirmé en décembre 2020 s'élève à 15 899 morts, selon la police nippone. Les victimes se concentrent dans les trois préfectures de Miyagi, d'Iwate et de Fukushima, et la mortalité est due, pour plus de 90 %, à des noyades. Plus de 2 500 personnes sont aussi toujours officiellement portées disparues.

Les personnes sinistrées sont abritées dans l'école Takata. Rikuzentakata, le 20 mars 2011. HISASHI MURAYAMA POUR " LE MONDE "

Plusieurs sites industriels ont été touchés par l'onde du tremblement de terre et la violence du tsunami, comme la raffinerie Ichihara, en proie à un violent incendie, et quatre centrales nucléaires : Fukushima Daiichi, Fukushima Daini, Onagawa et Tokai.

C'est dans une zone apparemment intacte que se joue le troisième acte de la catastrophe : la centrale nucléaire de Fukushima Daiichi, gérée par Tepco (Tokyo Electric Power). A 21 h 25, une alerte de précaution est lancée : le système de refroidissement est en panne - l'eau a envahi les installations, coupé l'alimentation électrique et noyé les générateurs diesel de secours.

La température se met alors à grimper rapidement dans la cuve des réacteurs 1, 2 et 3, mais également dans les piscines où sont entreposés les combustibles usagés : l'évaporation menace de mettre à l'air libre des matières hautement contaminées.

Le lendemain, samedi, une première explosion a lieu. Les autorités se veulent rassurantes, mais le risque est sous-évalué. Une deuxième explosion se produit le lundi, suivi d'une troisième le mardi 15 mars. Les cœurs de trois réacteurs sont en fusion, la piscine du réacteur 4, victime d'une fuite, entre en ébullition : la situation semble ingérable. Il faudra attendre un mois avant que l'accident nucléaire, d'abord estimé à 4, soit relevé à7, le plus haut niveau de l'échelle internationale des événements nucléaires, seulement atteint par Tchernobyl.

Jour après jour, on parvient à faire baisser la température et les radiations, et le 5 mai, une première équipe peut pénétrer brièvement à l'intérieur du réacteur numéro 1. Malgré une nouvelle alerte à la fusion, début novembre, la situation est maîtrisée.

Les catastrophes nucléaires

Les évacuations et les conséquences environnementales

L'impact sur l'environnement n'est pas tout de suite reconnu, alors même que, depuis le 15 mars, le vent pousse les émanations radioactives vers l'intérieur des terres et non plus vers le large. Les produits comme la viande ou le lait de Fukushima sont, finalement, interdits et des légumes sont jugés impropres à la consommation jusqu'à 100 kilomètres au sud de la centrale. Le 21 mars, l'Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) estime que la contamination de l'eau et des aliments crée une " situation grave ".

Au lendemain de l'accident, le gouvernement décide d'évacuer les habitants autour de la centrale, mais le périmètre, d'abord très réduit (deux kilomètres), ne cessera d'évoluer (jusqu'à 20 ou 30 kilomètres). Au total, 95 000 habitants ont reçu un ordre d'évacuation, mais d'autres, désignés comme des " réfugiés volontaires ", ont choisi de partir. Les autorités japonaises estiment que plus de 2 300 personnes sont mortes de façon prématurée en raison des défaillances des structures médicales et des conditions de vie difficiles, liées à l'évacuation.

Le gouvernement japonais, à l'inverse de Tchernobyl, s'est lancé dans un chantier considérable de décontamination des sols, afin de rendre la zone de nouveau habitable. Mais sur les quelque 160 000 réfugiés, 36 200 vivent toujours ailleurs aujourd'hui.

Des tonnes d'eau contaminée ont été déversées dans le Pacifique, volontairement ou à la suite de fuites. Et la gestion de l'eau, qui sert encore aujourd'hui à refroidir les réacteurs, est l'un des problèmes majeurs pour le Japon. L'eau est stockée dans des réservoirs géants, mais le site aura atteint sa capacité de stockage maximale en 2022. L'option la plus probable est que le gouvernement la déverse progressivement dans l'océan, après en avoir extrait la plupart des éléments radioactifs.

La reconnaissance des responsabilités

Le 5 juillet 2012, une commission d'enquête mandatée par le Parlement conclut que l'accident nucléaire de Fukushima n'a pas simplement été provoqué par le séisme et le tsunami géant mais qu'il s'agit d'un " désastre créé par l'homme ".

" L'accident (...) est le résultat d'une collusion entre le gouvernement, les agences de régulation et l'opérateur Tepco, et d'un manque de gouvernance de ces mêmes instances. " " La direction de Tepco était consciente des retards dans les travaux antisismiques et des mesures contre les tsunamis et savait que Fukushima Daiichi était vulnérable. "

Le rapport reproche également à l'opérateur de ne pas avoir réagi suffisamment vite dans les premières heures de l'accident.

Dans la ville de Kesennuma, le 20 mars 2011. HISASHI MURAYAMA POUR " LE MONDE "

Le 5 septembre 2018, le Japon a reconnu pour la première fois qu' un employé de Fukushima atteint d'un cancer du poumon était mort des suites d'une exposition aux radiations. Au total, six cas de travailleurs ayant développé un cancer et une leucémie ont été considérés comme des accidents du travail. A Fukushima, les populations ont été exposées à des doses dix à cent fois inférieures à Tchernobyl, l'accroissement des cancers pourrait donc apparaître bien plus tard. Certains doutent que l'on soit un jour en mesure d'évaluer précisément les conséquences de l'exposition aux radiations de Fukushima.

Le 30 septembre 2020, un tribunal affirme la responsabilité de Tepco et du gouvernement japonais dans la catastrophe de Fukushima. Selon la Haute Cour de Sendai, ils auraient fait preuve de négligences en ne mettant pas en œuvre les mesures de prévention nécessaires, alors que les risques étaient connus. Cette décision pourrait créer un précédent pour la trentaine de procédures en cours dans le pays. Le gouvernement a toujours affirmé qu'il n'avait pu empêcher ni le tsunami ni l'accident nucléaire.

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Fukushima : que s'est-il passé il y a dix ans ?

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Du 11 mars 2011, on retient surtout le nom de Fukushima, ville et préfecture du centre du Japon, dont la centrale, installée près de la côte pacifique, est au cœur de la pire catastrophe nucléaire après celle de Tchernobyl en 1986.

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Bernard Kouchner ancien ministre des affaires étrangères et européennes de la France

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COP29 : « La lutte contre le changement climatique ne peut être dissociée du respect des droits humains »

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TRIBUNE. L’ancien ministre Bernard Kouchner souligne, dans une tribune au « Monde », le risque d’une compromission collective de l’ONU et des démocraties si le choix de l’Azerbaïdjan comme pays hôte de la COP29 est maintenu.

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Niger : une fragile stabilité | Le dessous des cartes - ARTE

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En Mongolie, un hiver assassin décime les troupeaux des nomades

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De nombreux éleveurs de la steppe ont perdu tout ou partie de leur bétail ces derniers mois, à cause de la formation précoce d’une couche de glace et des froids extrêmes qui ont privé les animaux de nourriture. Pour beaucoup, ce désastre signe la fin de la vie nomade.

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Comprendre le réchauffement climatique : comment nous avons bouleversé la planète

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Deux siècles ont suffi à l'humanité pour dérégler le climat et enclencher une hausse des températures aux effets potentiellement dramatiques. Dans ce format visuel, " Le Monde " retrace cette évolution et les mécanismes à l'œuvre dans ce bouleversement.

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COP Timeline: How climate negotiations have evolved over the years

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What were the COP 26 successes and failures ? 

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What were the COP 26 successes and failures ? 

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COP26 had big ambitions - here's why it fell short

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Explained: What is the COP climate conference?

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#COP27: Get Ready.....We need to come together to ramp up #climateaction | UNFCCC | United Nations

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What happened at the COP27 climate summit?

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Sécheresse au Malawi : le pays en état de catastrophe naturelle liée au phénomène El Niño

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Pluies insuffisantes, inondations, sécheresse : 44,3 % des cultures du maïs du pays ont été « endommagées », menaçant de famine près de 2 millions de familles.

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How Young Climate Crisis Activists Changed the World | NowThis

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How China is designing flood-resistant cities

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Can India's Great Green Wall stop desertification?

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An expensive global climate experiment | DW Documentary

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Natural and human changes in the Indian monsoon

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Natural and human changes in the Indian monsoon

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Why has the monsoon over North India been so destructive? | The Hindu

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This module contains materials for educators and trainers to help raise awareness about climate change, its impacts, as well as climate change mitigation and adaptation measures.

Below you can download:

climate Box climate education and awareness program for schools

scientific content to improve knowledge on the climate change issue and possible response measures and capacity building for their practical application, and

the national climate-related content from the localized versions of the Climate Box toolkit.

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Teachers Training Module 1: Basic Course on Climate Change - UNDP Climate Box

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This module contains materials for educators and trainers to help raise awareness about climate change, its impacts, as well as climate change mitigation and adaptation measures. Below you can download: climate Box climate education and awareness program for schools scientific content to improve knowledge on the climate change issue and possible response measures and capacity [...]

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Climate change - Averting catastrophe | DW Documentary

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See what three degrees of global warming looks like

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Consequences of the changes of monsoon patterns

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Consequences of the changes of monsoon patterns

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Chasing A Monsoon In India Because Of Climate Change

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Climate change has affected people world over, and those at the bottom of the economic ladder feel the maximum brunt of global warming. Dhangars are a herding caste of people from Indian state of Maharashtra. They wander looking for water and greener pastures for their animals and themselves.

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Hawaii fires before and after: Devastating photos show how Maui's scenic waterfront has been razed to the ground by raging wildfires killing 53 people

Shocking before and after pictures have laid bare the devastating impact apocalyptic wildfires have had on the once-picturesque island of Maui.

At least 53 people - and likely 'significantly' more - have died in the Hawaii fires, and officials warn the rebuild could take years and cost billions of dollars.

In one of the most heartbreaking images of the destruction, the historic Waiola Church - which had just celebrated its 200th anniversary in March - was razed to the ground by huge flames .

Hawaii Governor Josh Green lamented the loss of the state's landmarks as he admitted upwards of 1,000 people are still unaccounted for on Thursday, saying: 'B uildings that we've all enjoyed and celebrated together for decades, for generations, are completely destroyed.'

The western coast of Maui has bore the brunt of the disaster , with harrowing aerial shots along the seaboard showing dozens of houses and a vibrant community now reduced to white ash.

Lahaina, which was the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1825-1840, has been a draw for the rich and famous for years. But where a fleet of yachts once stood, their burnt-out skeletons are instead floating - just a short walk from where British rocker Mick Fleetwood said he also lost his restaurant to the blaze .

From bustling streets and picture-perfect beaches to scorched family homes and incinerated cars, it is no surprise why Maui Mayor Richard Bissen said: 'With lives lost and properties decimated, we are grieving with each other during this inconsolable time.'

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Devastating photos show Maui before and after unprecedented wildfires

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Shocking before and after images have revealed the harrowing extent of the wildfires that have devastated the Hawaiian island of Maui, where entire communities have been razed to the ground.

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Introduction to the conflicts in the Sahel

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Introduction to the conflicts in the Sahel

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The new frontline of global terrorism: terror groups infiltrating West Africa’s Sahel | ABC News

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Indigenous people and climate change: With Kenya's Turkana people when drought kills (1/4)

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Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet

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Every part of the mosaic of Earth's surface - ocean and land, Arctic and tropics, forest and grassland - absorbs and releases carbon in a different way. Wild-card events such as massive wildfires and drought complicate the global picture even more. To better predict future climate, we need to understand how Earth's ecosystems will change as the climate warms and how extreme events will shape and interact with the future environment. Here are seven pressing concerns.

The Arctic

The Far North is warming twice as fast as the rest of Earth, on average. With a 5-year Arctic airborne observing campaign just wrapping up and a 10-year campaign just starting that will integrate airborne, satellite and surface measurements, NASA is using unprecedented resources to discover how the drastic changes in Arctic carbon are likely to influence our climatic future.

Wildfires have become common in the North. Because firefighting is so difficult in remote areas, many of these fires burn unchecked for months, throwing huge plumes of carbon into the atmosphere. A recent report found a nearly 10-fold increase in the number of large fires in the Arctic region over the last 50 years, and the total area burned by fires is increasing annually.

Organic carbon from plant and animal remains is preserved for millennia in frozen Arctic soil, too cold to decompose. Arctic soils known as permafrost contain more carbon than there is in Earth's atmosphere today. As the frozen landscape continues to thaw, the likelihood increases that not only fires but decomposition will create Arctic atmospheric emissions rivaling those of fossil fuels. The chemical form these emissions take - carbon dioxide or methane - will make a big difference in how much greenhouse warming they create.

Initial results from NASA's Carbon in Arctic Reservoirs Vulnerability Experiment (CARVE) airborne campaign have allayed concerns that large bursts of methane, a more potent greenhouse gas, are already being released from thawing Arctic soils. CARVE principal investigator Charles Miller of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, California, is looking forward to NASA's ABoVE field campaign (Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment) to gain more insight. "CARVE just scratched the surface, compared to what ABoVE will do," Miller said.

Methane

Methane is the Billy the Kid of carbon-containing greenhouse gases: it does a lot of damage in a short life. There's much less of it in Earth's atmosphere than there is carbon dioxide, but molecule for molecule, it causes far more greenhouse warming than CO ₂ does over its average 10-year life span in the atmosphere.

Methane is produced by bacteria that decompose organic material in damp places with little or no oxygen, such as freshwater marshes and the stomachs of cows. Currently, over half of atmospheric methane comes from human-related sources, such as livestock, rice farming, landfills and leaks of natural gas. Natural sources include termites and wetlands. Because of increasing human sources, the atmospheric concentration of methane has doubled in the last 200 years to a level not seen on our planet for 650,000 years.

Locating and measuring human emissions of methane are significant challenges. NASA's Carbon Monitoring System is funding several projects testing new technologies and techniques to improve our ability to monitor the colorless gas and help decision makers pinpoint sources of emissions. One project, led by Daniel Jacob of Harvard University, used satellite observations of methane to infer emissions over North America. The research found that human methane emissions in eastern Texas were 50 to 100 percent higher than previous estimates. "This study shows the potential of satellite observations to assess how methane emissions are changing," said Kevin Bowman, a JPL research scientist who was a coauthor of the study.

Tropical forests

Tropical forests are carbon storage heavyweights. The Amazon in South America alone absorbs a quarter of all carbon dioxide that ends up on land. Forests in Asia and Africa also do their part in "breathing in" as much carbon dioxide as possible and using it to grow.

However, there is evidence that tropical forests may be reaching some kind of limit to growth. While growth rates in temperate and boreal forests continue to increase, trees in the Amazon have been growing more slowly in recent years. They've also been dying sooner. That's partly because the forest was stressed by two severe droughts in 2005 and 2010 - so severe that the Amazon emitted more carbon overall than it absorbed during those years, due to increased fires and reduced growth. Those unprecedented droughts may have been only a foretaste of what is ahead, because models predict that droughts will increase in frequency and severity in the future.

In the past 40-50 years, the greatest threat to tropical rainforests has been not climate but humans, and here the news from the Amazon is better. Brazil has reduced Amazon deforestation in its territory by 60 to 70 percent since 2004, despite troubling increases in the last three years. According to Doug Morton, a scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, further reductions may not make a marked difference in the global carbon budget. "No one wants to abandon efforts to preserve and protect the tropical forests," he said. "But doing that with the expectation that [it] is a meaningful way to address global greenhouse gas emissions has become less defensible."

In the last few years, Brazil's progress has left Indonesia the distinction of being the nation with the highest deforestation rate and also with the largest overall area of forest cleared in the world. Although Indonesia's forests are only a quarter to a fifth the extent of the Amazon, fires there emit massive amounts of carbon, because about half of the Indonesian forests grow on carbon-rich peat. A recent study estimated that this fall, daily greenhouse gas emissions from recent Indonesian fires regularly surpassed daily emissions from the entire United States.

Wildfires

Wildfires are natural and necessary for some forest ecosystems, keeping them healthy by fertilizing soil, clearing ground for young plants, and allowing species to germinate and reproduce. Like the carbon cycle itself, fires are being pushed out of their normal roles by climate change. Shorter winters and higher temperatures during the other seasons lead to drier vegetation and soils. Globally, fire seasons are almost 20 percent longer today, on average, than they were 35 years ago.

Currently, wildfires are estimated to spew 2 to 4 billion tons of carbon into the atmosphere each year on average - about half as much as is emitted by fossil fuel burning. Large as that number is, it's just the beginning of the impact of fires on the carbon cycle. As a burned forest regrows, decades will pass before it reaches its former levels of carbon absorption. If the area is cleared for agriculture, the croplands will never absorb as much carbon as the forest did.

As atmospheric carbon dioxide continues to increase and global temperatures warm, climate models show the threat of wildfires increasing throughout this century. In Earth's more arid regions like the U.S. West, rising temperatures will continue to dry out vegetation so fires start and burn more easily. In Arctic and boreal ecosystems, intense wildfires are burning not just the trees, but also the carbon-rich soil itself, accelerating the thaw of permafrost, and dumping even more carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere.

North American forests

With decades of Landsat satellite imagery at their fingertips, researchers can track changes to North American forests since the mid-1980s. A warming climate is making its presence known.

Through the North American Forest Dynamics project, and a dataset based on Landsat imagery released this earlier this month, researchers can track where tree cover is disappearing through logging, wildfires, windstorms, insect outbreaks, drought, mountaintop mining, and people clearing land for development and agriculture. Equally, they can see where forests are growing back over past logging projects, abandoned croplands and other previously disturbed areas.

"One takeaway from the project is how active U.S. forests are, and how young American forests are," said Jeff Masek of Goddard, one of the project's principal investigators along with researchers from the University of Maryland and the U.S. Forest Service. In the Southeast, fast-growing tree farms illustrate a human influence on the forest life cycle. In the West, however, much of the forest disturbance is directly or indirectly tied to climate. Wildfires stretched across more acres in Alaska this year than they have in any other year in the satellite record. Insects and drought have turned green forests brown in the Rocky Mountains. In the Southwest, pinyon-juniper forests have died back due to drought.

Scientists are studying North American forests and the carbon they store with other remote sensing instruments. With radars and lidars, which measure height of vegetation from satellite or airborne platforms, they can calculate how much biomass - the total amount of plant material, like trunks, stems and leaves - these forests contain. Then, models looking at how fast forests are growing or shrinking can calculate carbon uptake and release into the atmosphere. An instrument planned to fly on the International Space Station (ISS), called the Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) lidar, will measure tree height from orbit, and a second ISS mission called the Ecosystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) will monitor how forests are using water, an indicator of their carbon uptake during growth. Two other upcoming radar satellite missions (the NASA-ISRO SAR radar, or NISAR, and the European Space Agency's BIOMASS radar) will provide even more complementary, comprehensive information on vegetation.

Ocean carbon absorption

When carbon-dioxide-rich air meets seawater containing less carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas diffuses from the atmosphere into the ocean as irresistibly as a ball rolls downhill. Today, about a quarter of human-produced carbon dioxide emissions get absorbed into the ocean. Once the carbon is in the water, it can stay there for hundreds of years.

Warm, CO ₂-rich surface water flows in ocean currents to colder parts of the globe, releasing its heat along the way. In the polar regions, the now-cool water sinks several miles deep, carrying its carbon burden to the depths. Eventually, that same water wells up far away and returns carbon to the surface; but the entire trip is thought to take about a thousand years. In other words, water upwelling today dates from the Middle Ages - long before fossil fuel emissions.

That's good for the atmosphere, but the ocean pays a heavy price for absorbing so much carbon: acidification. Carbon dioxide reacts chemically with seawater to make the water more acidic. This fundamental change threatens many marine creatures. The chain of chemical reactions ends up reducing the amount of a particular form of carbon - the carbonate ion - that these organisms need to make shells and skeletons. Dubbed the "other carbon dioxide problem," ocean acidification has potential impacts on millions of people who depend on the ocean for food and resources.

Phytoplankton

Microscopic, aquatic plants called phytoplankton are another way that ocean ecosystems absorb carbon dioxide emissions. Phytoplankton float with currents, consuming carbon dioxide as they grow. They are at the base of the ocean's food chain, eaten by tiny animals called zooplankton that are then consumed by larger species. When phytoplankton and zooplankton die, they may sink to the ocean floor, taking the carbon stored in their bodies with them.

Satellite instruments like the Moderate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Terra and Aqua let us observe ocean color, which researchers can use to estimate abundance - more green equals more phytoplankton. But not all phytoplankton are equal. Some bigger species, like diatoms, need more nutrients in the surface waters. The bigger species also are generally heavier so more readily sink to the ocean floor.

As ocean currents change, however, the layers of surface water that have the right mix of sunlight, temperature and nutrients for phytoplankton to thrive are changing as well. "In the Northern Hemisphere, there's a declining trend in phytoplankton," said Cecile Rousseaux, an oceanographer with the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at Goddard. She used models to determine that the decline at the highest latitudes was due to a decrease in abundance of diatoms. One future mission, the Pre-Aerosol, Clouds, and ocean Ecosystem (PACE) satellite, will use instruments designed to see shades of color in the ocean - and through that, allow scientists to better quantify different phytoplankton species.

In the Arctic, however, phytoplankton may be increasing due to climate change. The NASA-sponsored Impacts of Climate on the Eco-Systems and Chemistry of the Arctic Pacific Environment (ICESCAPE) expedition on a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker in 2010 and 2011 found unprecedented phytoplankton blooms under about three feet (a meter) of sea ice off Alaska. Scientists think this unusually thin ice allows sunlight to filter down to the water, catalyzing plant blooms where they had never been observed before.

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Seven case studies in carbon and climate - Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet

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Every part of the mosaic of Earth's surface - ocean and land, Arctic and tropics, forest and grassland - absorbs and releases carbon in a different way. Wild-card events such as massive wildfires and drought complicate the global picture even more.

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There's a mega climate problem with our megacities | All Hail The Planet

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Step by Step directions for creating a mind map

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How Can Rain Create Conflict? Precipitation and Water Use: Crash Course Geography #11

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What Will Earth Look Like When These 6 Tipping Points Hit?

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Deal reached at COP27: What's in it and what's missing? | DW News

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La Conférence des parties (COP) de Dubaï a fait les gros titres avec l'impératif de" transition vers l'abandon des combustibles fossiles " dans les systèmes énergétiques. Certes, ce signal n'arrive qu'au terme de vingt-huit de ces rendez-vous annuels, mais il ne faut pas mésestimer son pouvoir symbolique. Même si ce texte ne va pas assez loin, y accorder du crédit, c'est déjà le rendre opérant.

A ce titre, l'inquiétude exprimée - en privé - par le chef de l'OPEP concernant des " conséquences irréversibles " si les combustibles fossiles apparaissaient dans le texte, est sans doute plus intéressante que son hommage public, après la COP, à un " résultat consensuel et positif ". La réception du texte contribue à son pouvoir prescripteur : c'est un signal envoyé aux investisseurs.

La formule adoptée par les Etats s'inscrit, en effet, dans le cadre d'un " bilan mondial " préparatoire aux futurs engagements nationaux attendus pour 2025 : l'accord de Paris (2015) demande que chaque pays décrive tous les cinq ans ses actions climatiques dans le cadre de contributions déterminées au niveau national. Chacun devra donc dans les deux ans se positionner par rapport aux trois piliers de la transition énergétique d'ici à 2030, consacrés par la COP28 : le triplement de la capacité des énergies renouvelables, le doublement du taux annuel moyen mondial d'amélioration de l'efficacité énergétique et la transition vers l'abandon des combustibles fossiles.

Ces objectifs collectifs sont maintenant la référence, il faut les concrétiser. Certes, ils n'ont pas vocation à être traduits à l'identique dans les plans " climat " de chaque Etat. Il y aura des exceptions. Par exemple la Suède, dont plus de la moitié du mix électrique est déjà renouvelable. Ou encore le Kenya, qui dispose d'une production électrique à plus de 90 % renouvelable, mais dont le défi est d'étendre l'accès à l'électricité au quart de sa population qui en est encore dépourvue, et aussi de la mettre au service de sa stratégie d'industrialisation.

" Montrer la voie " aux pays en développement

L'objectif de triplement n'est pas insurmontable : il ne fait que prolonger la tendance à la croissance exponentielle actuelle, à un taux annuel de 17 % depuis sept ans à l'échelle mondiale, selon le think tank Ember. Mais il suppose de redresser d'urgence la balance des investissements dans les énergies propres au niveau mondial, car elles se concentrent à 90 % dans les économies avancées et la Chine. De nouvelles stratégies sont donc nécessaires pour financer les énergies propres dans les pays en développement.
Il vous reste 65% de cet article à lire. La suite est réservée aux abonnés.

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COP28 : " Même si le texte final ne va pas assez loin, y accorder du crédit, c'est déjà le rendre opérant "

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TRIBUNE. Lola Vallejo, la directrice du programme climat à l'Institut du développement durable et des relations internationales, analyse, dans une tribune au " Monde ", les enjeux des engagements pris à Dubaï et les différents leviers qui pourront permettre de les concrétiser.

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A breakthrough deal to attempt to limit global temperature rises was agreed at a conference of world nations in December 2015. These charts from the time show how and why the Earth's climate is changing.

1. What is the problem?

The world is getting warmer

The average temperature of the Earth's surface has increased by about 0.85°C (1.4F) in the last 100 years. Up until 2015, 13 of the 14 warmest years had been recorded in the 21st Century. 2015 then became the hottest year on record, but was surpassed by record-breaking 2016.

10 warmest years

10 coldest years

20th Century average temperature

Hotter

Colder

Source: NOAA

2. Why is this happening?

Greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide

Scientists believe that gases released from industry and agriculture (known as emissions) are adding to the natural greenhouse effect, the way the Earth's atmosphere traps some of the energy from the Sun.

Human activities such as burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas are increasing the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2), the main greenhouse gas responsible for global warming. Carbon-absorbing forests are also being cut down.

The concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is now higher than at any time in the last 800,000 years and reached a record high in May 2015. But 2016 marked five consecutive years of CO2 increases of at least two parts per million.

Scripps CO2 Program, data from the Mauna Loa Observatory

3. What are the effects?

Arctic sea ice melt

Higher temperatures, extreme weather events and higher sea levels are all linked to a warming climate and could have a drastic effect on the world's regions.

Since 1900, sea levels have risen by on average about 19cm globally. The rate of sea-level rise has accelerated in recent decades, placing a number of islands and low-lying countries at risk.

The retreat of polar ice sheets is an important contributor to this rise.

Arctic sea ice is also shrinking because of higher temperatures, though it makes little contribution to raised sea levels.

An area of sea ice roughly 10 times the size of the UK has been lost when the current day is compared with average levels from the early 1980s.

Arctic sea ice min. extent: 1980, 7.8 million sq km. 2015, 4.6 million sq km

Source: National Snow and Ice Data Center

4. What does the future hold?

Higher temperatures and more extreme weather

The scale of potential impacts is uncertain.

The changes could drive shortages in freshwater, bring about major changes in food production conditions and cause a rise in the number of casualties from floods, storms, heat waves and droughts.

This is because climate change is expected to increase the frequency of extreme weather events - however linking any single event to global warming is complicated.

Projected temperature change (1986-2005 to 2081-2100)

If greenhouse gas emissions peak between 2010-2020 and then decline substantially (RCP2.6)

If greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise throughout the 21st century (RCP8.5)

Source: International Panel on Climate Change - Fifth Assessment Report (AR5)

5. What can be done?

World's top ten greenhouse gas emitters

The top 10 greenhouse gas emitters make up over 70% of total emissions

Source: Carbon Brief, figures are for 2012

6. Limiting the damage

By the end of October 2015, 146 countries had submitted national climate plans on curbing emissions that are expected to form the cornerstone of a binding, global treaty on climate change.

According to a UN report, submissions in their current form point to a rise of 2.7°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.

Scientists have determined that if temperature rises surpass 2°C, this will lead to substantial and dangerous climate impacts, which will hit the world's poor in particular.

Average warming (°C) projected by 2100

Source: Climate Action Tracker, data compiled by Climate Analytics, ECOFYS, New Climate Institute and Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

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Six graphics that explain climate change as world leaders gathered in Paris for COP21.

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Geothermal energy is renewable and powerful. Why is most of it untapped?

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In the crook of a river near the west coast of Fiji sits Yavusania village. One day soon, if nothing is done to help, residents fear it will disappear.The threat is most obvious along the water's edge, where successive flash floods have surged up a river once sheltered by mangrove forests, chewing away metres of soil and sand so trees left behind are held up by only a handful of roots.

Epeli Turuva, a 48-year-old community leader in Yavusania, sits near the weathered concrete foundations of an old home, half of which appears to have collapsed into the water below. It is not the only house to have done so: four other buildings have also collapsed during floods over the last few years, the most recent of which hit in March.

Turuva worries his home will be next. "I don't want to move," he says. "Our land is rich, and our community is very close-knit. It's hard to imagine life without this village."

Yavusania is on the edge of the Fijian town of Nadi. Over the past four decades, at least 54 floods have surged through Nadi, damaging homes, businesses and displacing thousands of people, according to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). At the same time, Fiji has allowed tourism developers to clear the mangrove forests nearby that once limited the damage caused by floods - leaving Yavusania more vulnerable to environmental disaster.

People don't realise that if you're destroying mangroves, you're making the climate issue worse

Shipra Shah

The thick, curling roots of mangroves are not picturesque and obstruct access to the water, but they play a vital role in nature and for communities. Shipra Shah, assistant professor of forestry at Fiji National University, explains that mangroves are the "first line of defence" against floods in Fiji as they shield residents from storm surges and disperse flash floods as they flow through rivers.

"People don't realise that if you're destroying mangroves, you're making the climate issue worse," Shah says.

Building a tourist paradise

In recent decades, Fiji has seized on tourism as a pathway to economic development. "The strategy is all about presenting Fiji as a Pacific paradise to get more tourists into the country," says Andreas Neef, professor of development studies at the University of Auckland.

According to a report by the UNDRR, as part of that strategy, in the 1980s and 1990s Fiji began offering international hotel chains an "attractive package of incentives, including tax-free status for 20 years" to encourage them to invest in Denarau Island, several kilometres west of Nadi.

As hotels signed up for places within the resort, developers cleared hundreds of acres of land. Despite being "a very effective natural buffer" against storms and floods, the UNDRR report found that much of the mangroves were destroyed "as these plants interfered with tourists' access to the sea and did not mesh with the new vision of a highly manicured landscape."

Denarau Island was transformed into a tourist hub with a collection of five-star hotels operated by brands including Marriott, Hilton and Wyndham, as well as an 18-hole golf course, shopping malls and a marina.

Neeraj Chadha, Marriott's Pacific Islands vice president, says the hotel chain is "as good as anyone could be in the sustainability space." Chadha says Marriott, which also owns the Sheraton brand of hotels, often participates in mangrove planting efforts and notes: "We have done a lot with the community, ranging from employment to putting a farm together." He adds that after recent floods, Marriott provided sheets, mattresses and financial aid to affected residents.

Hilton, Wyndham and Sofitel did not respond to questions.

'Vital' to mitigating climate change

Government data indicates that tourists to Fiji spend almost half their time in Denarau, Nadi and the nearby Mamanuca Islands, which has made the region an economic powerhouse. Tourism now contributes almost 40% to Fiji's GDP.

Between 2000 and 2018, a study found that 120 hectares of mangroves were destroyed by tourism developmentin Ba province, where Nadi is located: a third of all mangrove deforestation in the region.

The study, published in the Environmental Challenges journal, notes mangroves "store disproportionate amounts of carbon ... and protect coastal communities against the impacts of tropical cyclones." It adds: "They are therefore vital in mitigating and adapting to the impacts of climate change."

Meanwhile, the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said in 2019 that people in Nadi "are already being affected by climate change" and noted that both extreme rainfall and flooding have become more frequent in recent decades.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said of the 84 floods to hit Nadi since 1870, at least 54 have occurred in the last four decades. Two of the most damaging floods to hit Nadi occurred in 2012, killing at least eight people and forcing 15,000 to evacuate.

The UNDRR report said while the area around Denarau has always been flood-prone, in recent years "the incidence of severe floods has increased remarkably". The growing frequency and impact of these floods "may be considered partially an effect of climate change", said the UNDRR report, "but the Denarau development can also be considered a key aggravating factor".

Mangrove deforestation around Denarau "could be a contributing factor" to more damaging flooding, agrees Nezbitt Hazelman, the general manager of Denarau Corporation, which manages the island. "That's common sense." Hazelman says, however, that the development has been a net positive given the economic activity it has generated. Many villagers in Nadi support the development, which has brought significant numbers of jobs to the region.

Vulnerable to disaster

In 2016, the Fijian government proposed a flood alleviation plan for Nadi, including widening nearby rivers, improving drainage and constructing several dykes. In 2022, Fiji began to dredge some local rivers to try and address the issue, but Fiji's former economy minister told the country's parliament that year the pandemic had significantly delayed the wider alleviation project, which remains largely in the planning stage. Fiji's minister for tourism and minister for waterways did not respond to requests for comment.

In the meantime, little has been done to protect the villages. In 2019, the ADB found: "Despite the high frequency and consequent damage caused by floods, only small scale bank protection and small retention dams have been constructed [and] a systematic flood management plan for the Nadi River catchment is yet to be implemented."

Without new protections, Nadi will remain highly vulnerable. Much of the settlement lies six metres below sea level. During the flooding in March, water inundated the central part of Nadi and surged into buildings. At the time, Nadi town council's CEO said the flood waters forced 80% of businesses to close.

Meanwhile, from the riverbank in Yavusania, Meresiana Ubitu, another resident, watches the water that threatens her home.

"Within the last five years, four families have lost their houses to soil erosion, swept away by the flood," Ubitu says.

"We're wondering why this is happening. We never used to have this problem before, so why now?" And she asks: "Who will help us?"

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'First line of defence': mangroves - and mitigation - lost in Fiji's tourism development

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Mangroves, vital in protecting villages from environmental disasters, have been destroyed to build luxury hotels

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Global renewables: Pioneering the energy transition | DW Documentary

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The negative impacts of climate change on the environment and human beings by the end of the 21st century, unless we do all we can to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

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Élise Hulata (CUEJ), Laura Blairet (EPJT), Laureline Condat (IPJ-Dauphine/PSL) et Zoé Moreau (IJBA)

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Ici, on agit !. Énergie : le long chemin de la décarbonation

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L’énergie est dans tout ce que nous consommons. Problème : elle est aussi profondément carbonée. Et si les investissements dans les renouvelables augmentent, ceux dans les énergies fossiles ne diminuent pas.

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Morocco has made a name for itself as a climate leader. Renewables make up almost two-fifths of its electricity capacity, some fossil fuel subsidies have been phased out and the country lays claim to some of the world's largest clean energy projects. The country has received much praise for its actions to decarbonise.

The country's reputation may be well deserved, but it still faces real challenges - its geographical position in a climate change hotspot makes it vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. And even as it seeks to end its dependence on fossil fuels, its energy demands are rising fast.

Despite these challenges, Morocco has a huge natural potential to produce solar, wind and hydropower, and has taken significant steps to realise it. Morocco's national action on climate change dates back to the mid-2000s, when the country made the decision to become a regional leader in clean energy and to push forward massive renewables projects. The country's leaders bet on these major transformations as a way to be economically competitive in the future, as well as to reduce dependence on fossil fuel imports and ensure security of energy supply, says Mohamed Alaoui, the managing director of Africa Climate Solutions, a consultancy firm based in Casablanca.
Shining bright
In 2009, Morocco set out an ambitious energy plan which aimed for 42% of total installed power capacity to be renewable energy by 2020. The plan drove a strong expansion of both wind and solar over the following decade, with solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity increasing 16-fold (albeit from a low base) and wind six-fold by 2020. Morocco also built the Noor-Ouarzazate complex, the world's largest concentrated solar power plant, an enormous array of curved mirrors spread over 3,000 hectares (11.6 sq miles) which concentrate the Sun's rays towards tubes of fluid, with the hot liquid then used to produce power.

Morocco is known for its solar projects, but a lot of its energy is still sourced from fossil fuels (Source: US International Trade Administration, Credit: Pomona Pictures/BBC)

Ultimately, Morocco missed its 2020 target, with renewables at 37% of capacity in 2020. But the country has come a long way. Morocco has since pledged to increase the renewables in its electricity mix to 52% by 2030, made up of 20% solar, 20% wind and 12% hydro. Compared with many other countries, Morocco is doing relatively well on climate action, with its policies and pledges close to being in line with limiting global temperatures to 1.5C, according to analysis from the research group Climate Action Tracker. The country also underwent constitutional reform in 2011 to address gender inequality, known to be a powerful tool in tackling climate change as well as social injustice.

In June 2021, Morocco updated its UN climate pledge with a promise to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 17-18% by 2030 compared with a business-as-usual scenario, with a stretch target of a 42-46% cut on the condition of receiving international support. It has also made a significant effort to decrease government support for fossil fuels, taking advantage of low oil prices in 2014-15 to successfully phase out petrol and fuel oil subsidies.

The country has been praised for using money saved from fossil fuel subsidies to increase funds for education and to implement a health insurance scheme. However, financial support for oil products is still around $3.4bn (£2.5bn), about two-thirds of Morocco's annual budget deficit.

While Morocco's emissions are small compared with many more developed nations, burning fossil fuels for energy and cement production are still a big source of emissions in the country. Morocco still imports most of its energy to meet its rising energy consumption, which increased at an average annual rate of 6.5% between 2002 and 2015. Much of that imported energy is generated from fossil fuels. Morocco relies particularly heavily on coal power, which it is expanding along with renewables, and around 40% of electricity in the country comes from coal. However, at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow this month, Morocco was among the 20 countries who made a new commitment to building no new coal power plants.

To reduce Morocco's emissions, "quick and radical" transformation of industries, urban planning and Morocco's infrastructure must be put in place immediately, says Fatima Driouech, associate professor of meteorology at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University and a vice chair at the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

"We must start reducing greenhouse emissions today if we are to limit warming to 1.5C and therefore the impacts of climate change," Driouech says. She notes that many of the impacts of climate change in countries like Morocco can still be avoided if we act in time. "We could hope for the eradication of poverty and the reduction of inequalities if global warming were limited to 1.5C rather than 2C or more."
Think small
In addition to relying less on coal to reduce carbon emissions, there is an argument that decision-makers in Morocco should focus more on small-scale projects and not just mega-projects, allowing entrepreneurs to answer the specific needs of different regions. "If we compare ourselves to Tunisia or Egypt, we are very advanced in macro-projects but when we talk about energy for individuals and for industries, the regulation is lacking," says Alaoui of Africa Climate Solutions. "We have a climate law but we don't have decrees that would allow people and industries to [easily] implement renewable energy."

Greenpeace's Tazrouti says that the Global North needs to invest more in the countries of the Global South, including Morocco. "A lot of support is needed in southern countries and underdeveloped and poor countries that are suffering and are at the frontline of being affected by climate change," he says. Morocco was the eighth largest recipient of climate finance from richer countries in 2018 and 2019, receiving some $600m (£450m).

Countries that pollute the most are having a disastrous impact on the African continent, says El Hafi. Many African countries do not themselves produce nearly as much carbon, but are already suffering the consequences of climate change.

"Plans and international financial help are needed to help vulnerable countries, islands, and poor countries," says Alaoui, citing water as a top environmental concern for the country. "In Morocco, we need policies to manage, recycle and reuse water. We need climate insurance for droughts and frequent fires, and we need sustainable and smart agriculture."

The World Resources Institute warned that Morocco's water resources were at high stress, as most of it is used for domestic agriculture and for its industries. By the end of the century, rainfall may decline by 20 to 30%.

Morocco's water shortage is hitting hard as water harvesting remains a major issue in this agriculture-intensive country, giving way to discontent and despair. In recent years, in places like the town of Zagora in southern Morocco, residents have been protesting about water shortages.

Broadly, there is a need for environmental reforms and actions that also take into account the country's rich biodiversity, says Abdeladim El Hafi, who was Morocco's general commissioner during the United Nations climate conference held in Marrakesh in 2016 (COP22), and is now the high commissioner for water and forests. Initiatives also need to account for local contexts and needs, he says, adding that decades-long efforts have paved the way for a more solid plan.

"Policies around water [scarcity] in Morocco since the 1960s have been quite visionary," he says. For example, the decision to build a host of large dams allowed Morocco to go through periods of droughts without food shortages, he says.

Morocco is aiming for a large and growing share of its energy to come from renewable sources (Credit: Pomona Pictures/BBC)

Tangier-based environmentalist Hajar Khamlichi also believes adapting to climate change and solving the water issue is possible. Some Moroccan programmes are encouraging steps in the right direction, she says, including the use of sewage treatment plants to treat water for irrigation, the building of new dams and the desalination of seawater powered by renewable energy. "There are still policies in place and a vision," she says.

Khamlichi, the president and co-founder of the Mediterranean Youth Climate Network, which brings together different organisations of young people from Mediterranean countries, believes that mounting climate challenges in Morocco must be met head-on. "There is a lot of work to do and the challenges are great," she says. "As time goes, we notice more problems, but we are also coming up with solutions."

Rachid Ennassiri, a Moroccan environmentalist, founded the Moroccan Youth Center for Sustainable Energy in 2018. This national organisation counts among its members people from the region of Ouarzazate in the south, where many of the mega-projects, including the Noor plant, are located. Over the years, Ennassiri has worked on several climate change initiatives, including a project that aimed to make mosques more sustainable by using solar panels.

Morocco cannot simply continue to follow its initial plan for expanding renewables, Ennassiri says. "2021 is not 2009," he says, referring to the date of Morocco's first plan to cut carbon emissions and curb the reliance on fossil fuels. "In order to increase renewables, major reforms must be made."

--
Towards Net Zero
Since signing the Paris Agreement, how are countries performing on their climate pledges? Towards Net Zero analyses nine countries on their progress, major climate challenges and their lessons for the rest of the world in cutting emissions.
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Morocco has made a name for itself as a climate leader. Renewables make up almost two-fifths of its electricity capacity, some fossil fuel subsidies have been phased out and the country lays claim to some of the world's largest clean energy projects. The country has received much praise for its actions to decarbonise.

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Natural Hazards: Crash Course Geography #27

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The Countries Producing the Most Geothermal Power
See visuals like this from many other data creators on our Voronoi app. Download it for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
Key Takeaways

The U.S. produces the most geothermal power globally, with 3,734 MW of installed capacity.

Indonesia and the Philippines rank second and third, highlighting Asia's strong geothermal resources.

Most leading geothermal producers sit along volcanic and tectonic zones, especially around the Pacific Ring of Fire.

Electricity demand is rising as artificial intelligence, manufacturing reshoring, and electrification drive new power needs worldwide. That is putting renewed focus on geothermal power, a renewable energy source that can run around the clock.

Unlike solar or wind, geothermal plants generate electricity using heat from beneath the Earth's surface, making them a reliable source of always-on clean power.

This treemap visualization ranks countries by installed geothermal power capacity, based on data from Global Energy Monitor, showing where this underground energy resource is most developed today.

Geothermal Power By Country

Dive into the data, which considered geothermal sites with one megawatt of operating capacity or more, below:

The U.S. dominates geothermal production with a capacity of 3,734 megawatts, topping the next largest producer by 1,300 megawatts.

That said, Asia as a region leads in production. While sitting in second and third place, Indonesia and the Philippines surpass the U.S. when counted together, at 2,432 and 1,937 megawatts, respectively.

Their position on the "Ring of Fire," where three tectonic plates collide and create volcanic activity, means they have vast geothermal potential.

The Americas also sit on major geothermal resources, though many fields remain underdeveloped. Some countries have developed their resources more quickly. Mexico ranks sixth globally with 941 MW of capacity.

Italy, the home of geothermal, and Iceland are Europe's biggest producers at 834 megawatts and 779 megawatts respectively. Though Europe leads on renewables more broadly, geothermal is physically limited to these few volcanic countries.

Iceland has a large capacity relative to its population and has one of the more developed geothermal industries globally, heating around 85% of houses in the country.

Kenya is the only African country to make the list, with its 817 megawatts of power capacity. Appetite to exploit geothermal in the Great Rift Valley, a tectonic trench spanning several countries on the continent, has increased in recent years but the industry remains young.

The Growing Potential of Geothermal

Globally, geothermal makes up just 1% of global electricity demand, but more and more sites are becoming viable thanks to advances in technology.

Existing geothermal plants harness energy from sites with highly permeable rocks, often under a thin layer of crust, making it easier to extract. Newer techniques, known as enhanced geothermal, include fracturing rock to unlock heat and push it to the surface by using a fluid. Next generation geothermal could account for 15% of global electricity demand growth to 2050, per the IEA.

As re-shoring industries and the build out of AI continues at pace, the availability of energy will dictate where manufacturing hubs emerge. Geothermal can operate 24-hours a day, seven days a week, making it particularly compelling as a base load power that is currently serviced by fossil fuels.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

To learn more energy, check out this graphic which charts which countries generate the most electricity.

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Visualizing All the World's Carbon Emissions by Country

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China, India, and the U.S. together accounted for half of the world's CO₂ in 2022. This visual breaks down all carbon emissions by country.

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Conçu pour pouvoir fonctionner hors ligne, Tectoglob3D dispose d'une base de données sismiques "interne", disponible en l'absence de connexion internet.

Cependant, Tectoglob3D permet d'accéder également à des bases de données "en ligne" et ainsi de travailler sur des séismes très récents ou locaux.

Cet article décrit trois possibilités offertes par ce logiciel à l'enseignant souhaitant travailler avec ses élèves sur "l'actualité" sismique.

1ère possibilité : visualiser la sismicité récente sous la forme d'une animation

Tectoglob3D permet de visualiser les événements sismiques du dernier jour, de la dernière semaine ou du dernier mois, sous la forme d'une animation temporelle où les foyers apparaissent les uns après les autres sous la forme de disques blancs.

La date correspondant à ces événements apparaît en haut à droite de la fenêtre du globe virtuel.

Pour afficher cette animation, il faut suivre la procédure suivante :

afficher les foyers sismiques dans le menu "Données affichées"

aller dans "Sismicité en temps réel", dans le menu "Options" et cocher "N'afficher que les foyers récents" ou choisir une période (24h, semaine ou mois)

cocher "Animation", toujours dans l'élément de menu "Options/Sismicité en temps réel"

L'animation peut être désactivée, tout comme le mode "N'afficher que les foyers récents" : il suffit de les décocher.

Il est également possible d'étendre les événements à des séismes de moindre magnitude (par défaut seuls ceux de magnitude supérieure ou égale à 4 sont affichés) en allant dans le menu "Options/Restreindre l'affichage des foyers sismiques".

2ème possibilité : afficher les détails d'un événement sismique sur le site de l'USGS

L'USGS (United States Geological Survey) est l'équivalent du BRGM aux Etats-Unis. Il met à la disposition du public de nombreuses données associées aux événements sismiques récents. Tectoglob3D permet d'accéder à ces données d'un simple double-clic.

Pour cela il faut suivre la procédure suivante :

afficher les foyers sismiques dans le menu "Données affichées"

aller dans "Sismicité en temps réel", dans le menu "Options" et cocher "N'afficher que les foyers récents" ou choisir une période (24h, semaine ou mois)

(il n'est pas nécessaire de cocher "Animation" qui ne ferait qu'animer ces foyers).

A ce stade, seuls les foyers sismiques correspondant à des événements "récents" sont affichés, sous la forme de petits carrés de couleurs à l'écran.

De plus, les métadonnées associées à ces événements ont été chargées par Tectoglob3D, ce qui permettra à l'application d'afficher le détail de ces événements.

Pour accéder à un événement sismique particulier, il suffit alors de double cliquer sur le globe virtuel, au niveau du foyer.

Le détail du foyer (ou des foyers si plusieurs foyers sont proches de l'emplacement du double clic) est alors affiché dans la "Fenêtre de résultats" comme le montre la capture d'écran suivante.

Cliquer sur le lien "détails sur le site de l'USGS" aura pour effet d'ouvrir une page internet dans un nouvel onglet, avec les détails de l'évènement sismique.

Les données affichées sur cette page dépendent de la nature et de la magnitude de l'événement sismique. Un séisme important, comme celui pris en exemple ci-dessus, sera associé à de nombreuses cartes et graphiques, tandis qu'un événement mineur ne le sera pas.

Lorsque l'événement a impacté des bâtiments ou des populations humaines, une carte de l'intensité ( échelle MSK modifiée, en chiffres romains) du séisme est proposée sous le terme de "Shakemap".

D'autres données, très utiles dans le cadre de l'étude des notions d'aléa, d'enjeu et de risque, sont proposées par l'USGS, telles que l'estimation du nombre de victimes ou les pertes économiques résultant du séisme.

3ème possibilité : étudier un jeu de sismogrammes d'intérêt pédagogique

Les 2 approches précédemment abordées ne permettent pas d'accéder aux sismogrammes associés à l'événement sismique.

Tectoglob3D ne permet pas, à l'heure où cet article est écrit (mais cela pourrait rapidement évoluer) d'afficher les sismogrammes associés à un événement très récent.

Cependant, si l'actualité le justifie, il est possible que l'équipe d'Edumed-Obs (Observatoire Éducatif Méditerranéen), qui contribue au développement de Tectoglob3D, juge utile de créer et d'héberger un jeu (un ensemble) de sismogrammes associés à un événement sismique présentant un intérêt pédagogique remarquable.

Ce jeu de sismogramme sera alors disponible (ainsi que les autres, plus anciens) via le menu "Fichier/Charger des sismogrammes/Récupérer d'autres jeux de sismogrammes sur Edumed-Obs".

Les jeux de sismogrammes sont alors classés du plus récent au plus ancien, et un champ de recherche (loupe) permet de retrouver les jeux de sismogrammes associés à un mot clé.

La capsule vidéo ci-dessous vous montre la procédure à suivre.

Conclusion

S'il ne permet pas (pour l'instant) de visualiser en temps réel les sismogrammes des événements sismiques les plus récents, Tectoglob3D offre tout de même des possibilité pour travailler sur l'actualité sismique.

Liens

Application Tectoglob3D sur le site académique
(autre URL sur le site personnel de l'auteur)
Présentation de Tectoglob3D (article du site académique) Sismogrammes et métadonnées (article du site académique) Site de l'USGS

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Etudier la sismicité récente sur Tectoglob3D

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par Philippe Cosentino Conçu pour pouvoir fonctionner hors ligne, Tectoglob3D dispose d'une base de données sismiques "interne", disponible en l'absence de connexion internet. Cependant, Tectoglob3D permet d'accéder également à des bases de données "en ligne" et ainsi de travailler sur des séismes très récents ou locaux.

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Natural hazards are extreme natural events that can cause loss of life, extreme damage to property and disrupt human activities.

Some natural hazards, such as flooding, can happen anywhere in the world. Other natural hazards, such as tornadoes, can only happen in specific areas. And some hazards need climatic or tectonic conditions to occur, for example tropical storms or volcanic eruptions.

Human activities can influence how often certain natural hazards occur and how severe they are. Understanding when, where, why and how natural hazards occur can help us to understand how to minimise their impact on our lives.

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Natural hazards - AQA - Revision 1 - GCSE Geography - BBC Bitesize

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Natural hazards are extreme natural events that can cause loss of life, extreme damage to property and disrupt human activities. Some natural hazards, such as flooding, can happen anywhere in the world. Other natural hazards, such as tornadoes, can only happen in specific areas.

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Potential Impacts on Human Health

The activities of humans release pollutants into the Earth's atmosphere. Some of these pollutants are greenhouse gases that can trap the Sun's energy. The result has been a gradual increase in the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere. The result of this global warming has been global climate change.

Increased global temperature, rising sea levels, and precipitation changes, with more extremes in weather, are expected to have ill effects on public health. Increased morbidity, mortality, and displacement are expected due to global climate change. The graphic above shows the potential impacts of global climate change on human health.

Potential Impacts of Global Climate Change on Human Health Changes in global climate are expected to adversely affect communities worldwide. Storms will be more intense and flooding more common. Higher temperatures will lead to heat-related illnesses and longer allergy seasons. Droughts could be more persistent while arctic sea ice and spring snowpack shrink. Changes in rainfall amounts will lead to disruptions in the global food supply. The number, size, and strength of wildfires is predicted to increase. Organisms that transmit viruses and other pathogens will be able to infect people in larger geographic ranges. Air pollution will trigger more respiratory diseases. Mental health and stress-related disorder could increase. Altering the basic human needs of food, clean water, clean air, and shelter is likely to result in civil conflict.

Sadly, these changes are expected to have disproportionate effects on people. People without access to health care will likely suffer more. People who are very young or very old are usually less able to cope with sudden changes. People and nations without wealth will be less able to respond to rapidly changing living conditions. Extreme events can strain on our health system and emergency services. Climate-related economic impacts such as financial losses from flooding, changes in crop yield, and increased patients seeking care for heat-related illness at medical facilities have also been observed. Reduction of greenhouse gases and adaptation are both important strategies to mitigating the human health and economic impact of climate change.

Click on the tabs above to learn more about climate resilience and adaptation, opportunities for public health response, things you can do to mitigate climate change risks, and for more websites and publications about climate change and public health.

Resilience

Resilience is the ability to bounce back. Building resilient communities is important to get communities back to normal living and economic conditions after events like severe weather, accidents, or natural disasters. Terms like resilience, disaster risk reduction, and adaptation are often used when planning to cope with the changing climate. In Tennessee, opportunities for adjusting to climate change include farmers planting more drought-resistant crops and riverside communities building infrastructure well above flood stage.

More and more people are living in cities. Today more than half of the world's population lives in cities. While grouping people in cities helps to leave some green countryside, the increased amount of impervious surfaces in cities leads to more radiant heat creating urban heat islands. Extreme weather events with increased rain on impervious surfaces can lead to storm water issues and flooding. Increased temperature combined with urban heat islands can lead heat-related illness and poor air quality.

Governments and communities that plan now can limit the potential damages of future climate change. Resilient communities protect their valuable infrastructure, maintain their residents property values, conserve their natural resources, often improve their sense of place and livability, maybe even improve their tourism, and should bounce back to functionality much more quickly should the unthinkable happen. The U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit website is a great place to start planning. Also, click on the Resources tab for more websites and publications about climate resilience and adaptation.

Public Health Response

An effective public health response to climate change can prevent injuries, illnesses, and death while enhancing overall public health preparedness. Protecting Americans from adverse health effects of climate change directly correlates with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's four overarching Health Protection Goals of: Healthy People in Every Stage of Life, Healthy People in Healthy Places, People Prepared for Emerging Health Threats, and Healthy People in a Healthy World.

The CDC developed Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE). The BRACE framework is a five-step process that allows health officials to develop strategies and programs to help communities prepare for the health effects of climate change. The BRACE framework has 5 steps to: (1) anticipate climate impacts and assess vulnerabilities, (2) project disease burden, (3) assess public health interventions, (4) develop and implement a climate and health adaptation plan, and (5) evaluate impact and improve quality of activities. The framework and additional resources are available on CDC's BRACE website.

Public Health programs provide a solid foundation for action and policy. Many of the activities needed to protect Americans from adverse health effects due to climate change are mutually beneficial for overall public health. Human health and the environment are connected. What is generally good for the environment is good for human health.

Tennessee Department of Health former Commissioner, Susan R. Cooper, testified before the United States Senate Environmental Public Works Committee. Representing the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), she spoke about the human impacts of climate change. Click here to read the statement.

You can make a difference

Climate change is a global issue. It might be hard to believe that you can have an affect on a global issue, but you can. Whether your affect on climate change is positive or negative is up to you. There are many simple things you can do in your daily life to help keep our planet healthy. See below for actions you can do to green your home or workplace. Also available are slideshows for making changes at home and at work. Our positive actions make a difference.

Buy Energy Star qualified appliances and products

Replace incandescent light bulbs with Energy Star qualified compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs)

Buy appliances, such as refrigerators, air conditioners, heaters, dishwashers, and washing machines, that are Energy Star qualified

Conserve water

Buy plumbing fixtures, such as faucets and toilets, that are WaterSense qualified

Turn off the water when shaving or brushing your teeth

Fix leaky faucets and toilets

Landscape so that rainwater is absorbed into your yard instead of running off into the street

Only run the dishwasher when it is full

Be fuel efficient

Use renewable fuels

Drive a fuel-efficient vehicle

Combine neighborhood errands; bicycle or walk whenever possible

Make your home energy efficient

Seal and caulk around windows and doors; insulate your attic and crawlspace

Replace old windows with Energy Star qualified windows

Plant natives trees for shade

Be Green in your yard

Compost food and yard wastes

Use gasoline-powered equipment during cooler parts of the day

Reduce, reuse, recycle

Reuse products whenever possible

Recycle newspapers, beverage containers, paper

Buy products in containers that can be recycled

Ways to have an environmentally friendly workplace

Turn off equipment when it's not being used. This can reduce the energy used by 25 percent; turning off the computers at the end of the day can save an additional 50 percent.

Reduce fax-related paper waste by using a fax-modem and by using a fax cover sheet only when necessary. Fax-modems allow documents to be sent directly from a computer, without requiring a printed hard copy.

Produce double-sided documents whenever possible

Encourage communications by email, and read email messages onscreen to determine whether it's necessary to print them. If it's not, don't

Don't just toss out paper after you've used it. See if you can turn the paper over and use the back. If this doesn't create confusion, you'll cut down on paper cost as well as help save a tree.

Get some small indoor plants. If you're lucky enough to have an office with a window, most any plant should do ok. However, if you don't have a window, make sure you do a little bit of research and check out which plants can survive in your office without lots of direct sunlight.

Stop cleaning your computer with canned air. Or find a brand without chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which destroy the ozone layer. Use a mini vacuum cleaner instead.

Recycle everything you can: toner cartridges, waste paper, cardboard boxes, batteries, etc. It doesn't cost anything.

Instruct your shipping department to re-use boxes and wrappings. This can cut costs, as well as help reduce the amount of non-biodegradable trash stored in landfills (styrofoam popcorn, plastic bubblewrap, etc).

Bring in a coffee mug. Instead of getting a new styrofoam or disposable cup each day, bring in a regular coffee mug from home and just wash it out at the end of each day. This is a great and simple way to reduce needless trash.

Websites about Climate Change

Reports and Publications about Climate Change

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Potential Impacts on Human Health The activities of humans release pollutants into the Earth's atmosphere. Some of these pollutants are greenhouse gases that can trap the Sun's energy. The result has been a gradual increase in the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere. The result of this global warming has been global climate change.

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What Are Ecosystems? Crash Course Geography #15

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Avec 14,98 °C de moyenne sur l'ensemble du globe, 2023 est classée comme l'année la plus chaude enregistrée depuis 1850. Et les températures relevées les premières semaines de 2024 suivent la même tendance : du 1 er janvier au 20 février, la moyenne terrestre affiche + 0,55 °C par rapport à la même période de 2023. Ces niveaux exceptionnels sont le résultat d'une combinaison de facteurs.

Sources : ECMWF (Réanalyses ERA5) via Climate Reanalyzer

Le principal coupable : le réchauffement lié aux gaz à effet de serre d'origine humaine

Les températures exceptionnelles enregistrées sur le globe depuis le début de 2024 sont d'abord la conséquence des émissions de gaz à effet de serre liées aux activités humaines. Depuis 2013, le climat terrestre s'est réchauffé de 0,21 °C en raison des émissions anthropiques, ce qui en fait le principal contributeur à la situation record enregistrée en 2023. " Rien de ce que nous avons vu en 2023 n'aurait été possible sans prendre en compte les gaz à effet de serre émis ", résume Carlo Buontempo, climatologue et directeur du service dévolu au changement climatique au sein du programme de l'Union européenne Copernicus.

L'invité majeur, anticipé par les climatologues : El Niño

Le second facteur de réchauffement climatique est le phénomène naturel El Niño, qui revient tous les deux à sept ans. Après deux ans d'événements La Niña, qui, à l'inverse, refroidit légèrement l'atmosphère, El Niño a commencé au printemps 2023, conformément à ce qu'attendaient les scientifiques. Les températures terrestres ont alors décollé, dépassant tous les niveaux enregistrés précédemment.

" C'est assez classique. En 2016, c'était pareil. C'est plutôt pendant l'hiver boréal (de novembre à mars) que l'effet d'El Niño sur la température globale est le plus fort ", commente Christophe Cassou, climatologue, directeur de recherche au CNRS et auteur principal du sixième rapport du GIEC (groupe 1). " Depuis quelques années, on était dans une phase plus froide que la normale, liée à une configuration La Niña dans le Pacifique tropical. A partir de juin 2023, on est passé, avec El Niño, dans une configuration chaude de variabilité interne ", confirme Julien Cattiaux, chargé de recherche CNRS au Centre national de recherches météorologiques (CNRM).

La chaleur des eaux dans l'est de l'océan Pacifique a graduellement augmenté la température de l'atmosphère dans une large zone des tropiques. Finalement, El Niño 2023-2024 a été jugé de force " modérée ". Il a réchauffé le Pacifique tropical et l'Amérique latine d'environ 1,14 °C et la moyenne mondiale de 0,16 °C, soit légèrement plus que ce que l'on observe habituellement (+ 1 °C sur la zone affectée, + 0,1 °C au niveau mondial), mais moins qu'en 2016 (respectivement + 2,12 °C et + 0,17 °C). El Niño a normalement atteint son pic à la fin de 2023 et devrait s'évanouir à la mi-2024, ce qui devrait faire redescendre légèrement la température mondiale moyenne.

Sources : ECMWF (Réanalyses ERA5) via Climate Reanalyzer

L'invité surprise : les chaleurs extrêmes dans l'Atlantique Nord

Si El Niño a été anticipé, ce n'est pas le cas des fortes anomalies de température enregistrées dans l'océan Atlantique Nord depuis l'été 2023. Les scientifiques ont remarqué des canicules marines inédites entre l'été et l'automne 2023, avec des températures qui ont battu très largement les niveaux atteints auparavant sur cette partie de l'océan (plus de 0,5 °C). Du jamais-vu depuis au moins le milieu du XIX e siècle.

Ces chaleurs extrêmes de 2023 ont moins à voir avec le développement d'El Niño qu'avec les conditions anticycloniques de la zone. " On a observé une baisse des vents assez forte sur l'Atlantique Nord, explique Christophe Cassou. Or quand il y a moins de vent, il y a moins d'évaporation, ce qui conduit à un réchauffement des eaux de surface. Ces eaux chauffent aussi car elles se mélangent moins avec les eaux plus profondes et plus froides. "

Aujourd'hui, cette configuration météorologique a disparu mais les eaux de surface de l'Atlantique Nord continuent de battre des records de chaleur à cause du phénomène El Niño, qui a fini par réchauffer progressivement les eaux de l'océan pendant l'hiver.

Sources : ECMWF (Réanalyses ERA5) via Climate Reanalyzer

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Climat : pourquoi les températures battent tous les records depuis la mi-2023

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L'année 2023 a été classée comme la plus chaude enregistrée depuis 1850, avec 14,98 °C de moyenne sur l'ensemble du globe. La tendance continue en 2024. Le principal coupable : le réchauffement lié aux gaz à effet de serre d'origine humaine.

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by Bill Bigelow
When you think about Superstorm Sandy, melting ice caps, wildfires in Australia,...

Continue reading

By Bill Fletcher Jr.
The day went down in history as a powerful show of...

Continue reading

by Bill Bigelow
When you think about Superstorm Sandy, melting ice caps, wildfires in Australia,...

Continue reading

By Bill Fletcher Jr.
The day went down in history as a powerful show of...

Continue reading

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by Bill Bigelow When you think about Superstorm Sandy, melting ice caps, wildfires in Australia,... Continue reading By Bill Fletcher Jr. The day went down in history as a powerful show of... Continue reading by Bill Bigelow When you think about Superstorm Sandy, melting ice caps, wildfires in Australia,...

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'Carbon bombs': The fossil fuel projects dooming the world's climate efforts

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The operation of 422 huge oil, gas and coal fields is wiping out the chances of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. For the first time, two French NGOs have identified the companies, banks and governments behind these ticking time bombs.