Biodiversity Catastrophe

• [New] The next decade is a crucial window of opportunity to address the inter-related crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
• [New] Vienna-based international oil, gas, and chemicals company OMV plans to build a pilot plant at its Schwechat refinery to produce second-generation biofuels to reduce carbon emissions.
• [New] As the Earth's climate warms and precipitation patterns shift, we expect the geographic ranges of many species, including plants, to shift as well.
• [New] With studies showing that direct contact with nature greatly improves mental health and reduces stress, 2021 will likely be the year where more consumers turn to nature for peace and healing, exploring hinterland destinations.
• [New] Threats such as habitat loss, climate change and the wildlife trade are global phenomena leading to mass biodiversity loss.
• [New] The Korean government plans to leverage its dominance in the global supply of memory chips to build the next generation of smart chips by 2030.
• [New] Anopheles stephensi has recently been found to invade the horn of Africa, where Anopheles gambia - another malaria carrying mosquito species - is the major vector, and could become a serious problem there.
• [New] Further investments in offshore wind and the grid infrastructure to support it would make north Wales an attractive option for low-carbon electricity generation and bring much-needed economic opportunities for young people in north Wales.
• [New] Natural gas will be the only hydrocarbon resource to increase its share from 23% today to 28% in 2050 as it is one of the global enablers for reducing emissions quickly, cost-effectively and steadfastly by replacing carbon-intensive fuels as well as backing up intermittent renewables.
• [New] Two novel calculators for predicting which patients admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 are at greatest risk of requiring mechanical ventilation or of in-hospital death have been developed and validated by Massachusetts General Hospital.
• [New] Construction of the Kinetic Edge platform is proceeding in 36 US cities, and will offer Kinetic Edge coverage that reaches ~ 80% of US population.
• [New] For the first time in Belgium, hydrogen will be used in a commercial scale cogeneration plant designed to generate electricity and heat from natural gas.
• [New] Accounting for the reciprocal, water-to-land consequences of impaired water quality could represent an important conservation paradigm, both in North America and globally, where water quality concerns persist.
• [New] Ending global environmental crises such as climate change and slowing the growing number of extinctions of plant and animal species will require radical solutions that could take centuries to implement.
• [New] Carbon off-sets provide an opportunity for Africa to tap into the value of its natural assets by factoring in carbon sequestration values.
• [New] Musk has always claimed that Tesla electric vehicles will add value due to the continuous improvement of its automatic driving function, and may even generate revenue through the automatic driving calling network Tesla plans to release later in 2021.
• [New] Tesla vehicles will gain in value due to their self-driving capability, which could generate revenue through an upcoming self-driving ride-hailing network that Tesla is planning to release later in 2021.
• [New] Scholars point out, for instance that platform-based disruptions of supply chains may result in a growth of precarious work in OECD countries.
• [New] In the UK, around the city of Leeds, industrial actors have partnered in a regional and multi-sector effort, the H21 Project, to showcase how 3.7 million homes and 40,000 businesses, currently heated by natural gas, could become emission-free by 2034.
• [New] In the immediate future, Brookdale expects its senior living occupancy rates to improve as COVID-19 vaccines become more readily available, both inside its buildings and across the general U.S. population.

Last updated: 05 March 2021