Climate
Aerial firefighting companies’ new challenge: Keeping up with demand
As out-of-control wildfires threatened thousands of Los Angeles residents earlier this month, the companies that fight infernos from the air raced to send their air tankers and water bombers to the area. It was supposed to be the off-season. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, has more than 60 fixed-wing […]
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Business leaders can no longer ignore the ‘north-south’ climate divide, top UN official warns
The United Nations’ top corporate sustainability chief warned business leaders they can no longer ignore the growing “north-south divide” on climate change. Sanda Ojiambo, CEO and executive director of U.N. Global Compact — a body responsible for overseeing business commitments to achieving sustainable development goals — told CNBC’s Steve Sedgewick that “climate has become a […]
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New wildfire near Los Angeles explodes to 9,400 acres, forces evacuations
The Hughes Fire burns near the I-5 freeway north of Los Angeles on January 22, 2025 near Castaic, California. Mario Tama | Getty Images A new wildfire that broke out north of Los Angeles on Wednesday rapidly spread to more than 9,400 acres (38 square km), fueled by strong winds and dry brush, forcing mandatory […]
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Why the gold boom is causing a surge in illegal mining
In challenging economic and geopolitical times, investors bet on gold for its ability to store value. Gold prices hit record highs last year, with some analysts forecasting the precious metal could reach $3,000 an ounce by the end of 2025. But the boom has also been linked to a surge in illegal gold mining. “What […]
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This startup plans to recycle aluminum from cars and keep it all in the U.S.
The drive to recycle just about everything is gaining ground, but the process — separating out all the different materials and item types — can be both confusing and tedious for consumers. For industrial recycling, it can be even more cumbersome. Scrap metal, in particular, needs to be sorted in order to reduce pieces to […]
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Greenland’s melting ice is clearing the way for a mineral ‘gold rush’
In this aerial view melting icebergs crowd the Ilulissat Icefjord on July 16, 2024 near Ilulissat, Greenland. Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty Images Major ice loss from Greenland is exposing the island’s natural resources, inadvertently making some of the world’s largest untapped critical mineral reserves more accessible. Greenland, a vast but sparsely […]
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From giant Lego-style bricks to artificial reefs, how the construction industry is using tech to tackle climate change
The problem of stolen manhole covers in Turkey might seem an unlikely starting point for a new way for buildings to withstand earthquakes and tackle the construction industry’s environmental issues, but when a Turkish businessman heard about a new material that prevented the thefts, it sparked an idea. Cast iron is traditionally used to make […]
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Tesla is offering Cybertruck discounts as EV market gets crowded
A soldier walks next to a Tesla Cybertruck, which was donated to the National Guard, after powerful winds fueling devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area forced people to evacuate, in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on the west side of Los Angeles, California, U.S. Jan. 13, 2025. Daniel Cole | Reuters Tesla started offering discounts […]
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Conflict, extreme weather and disinformation top global risks in 2025, Davos survey says
This picture taken from the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip shows smoke plumes rising from explosions above destroyed buildings in the northern Gaza Strip on January 13, 2025 amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Menahem Kahana | Afp | Getty Images Risk specialists identified armed conflict, extreme weather and […]
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Trump is fixated on Greenland — a vast Arctic island with massive resource potential
An aircraft alledgedly carrying US businessman Donald Trump Jr. arrives in Nuuk, Greenland on January 7, 2025. Emil Stach | Afp | Getty Images U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s pursuit to acquire Greenland could well be motivated by critical minerals, with mining executives and researchers describing the island’s massive resource potential as an “enormous opportunity.” Trump’s […]
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