Models link 1 degree of global warming to 50% spike in population displacement


As the climate warms, models predict an increase in the risk of people being displaced by river flooding. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

March 24 (UPI) -- As the planet warms, seas rise and climate change triggers shifts in precipitation patterns, scientists expect millions of people to be displaced by flooding and other forms of extreme weather.

In an effort to more precisely quantify displacement risk, an international team of researchers combined a variety of climate and hydrological models.

Their analysis, published Wednesday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, showed a single degree of warming will increase the risk of displacement caused by river flooding by 50 percent.

"Displacement poses many hardships, which often fall most heavily on socio-economically vulnerable groups, who tend to live in more hazard-prone areas," researchers wrote in their newly published paper.

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Since 2008, 288 million people have been displaced by natural disasters, more than 140 million people by river flooding.

Over the last 15 years, three times as many people have been displaced by natural disasters than by violence and political conflict.

"Displaced people face heightened risks to their physical and mental health, livelihoods, land tenancy, personal security and many other aspects of their well-being," researchers said.

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At macro scales, natural disaster-related displacement can severely slow economic development, leaving already vulnerable populations socially and economically left behind.

Previous studies have shown climate-fueled increases in flood risk could have severe consequences on global food production and trade patterns.

By quantifying climate change's influence on displacement risk, the authors of the new study hope to help policy makers take steps to protect vulnerable populations by mitigating flood risk and strengthening emergency preparedness.

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When scientists used the models to estimate displacement risks under different climate scenarios, they found that if Paris Agreement targets for global warming are met, the globally averaged risk of populations being displaced by river floods will double by the end of the century.

If greenhouse gas emissions and climate change continue unabated, however, the risk will balloon by 350 percent, the researchers found.

The latest study echoes the findings of earlier investigations, showing urban development and population both increase flooding risks.

The researchers argue that their findings highlight the importance of curbing greenhouse gas emissions and slowing global warming.

Report: Climate change increases length of spring allergy season in much of U.S.

Climate change is increasing the length of the spring allergy season, a new report suggests. File Photo by KatePhotographer/Shutterstock


March 24 (UPI) -- Rising temperatures from climate change are causing the spring allergy season to start earlier and last longer in many regions of North America, a report released Wednesday by environmental research organization Climate Central found.

Climate Central is a non-profit news organization composed up of scientists and journalists who conduct scientific research and report on issues related to climate change and its impact on the public.

Over the past 50 years, the spring growing season increased in length in 166, or 82%, of more than 200 locations throughout North America that the group assessed, the data showed.

The season was extended by at least four weeks in 38 of those areas, with Bend, Ore. and Reno, Nev., leading with 99 additional growing season days.
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The findings mean that in many parts of the United States and Canada, people with pollen allergies are exposed to the airborne irritant for longer periods, according to Climate Central.

"Many people may experience allergies as a minor inconvenience, but seasonal allergies can have serious consequences and decreased quality of life for those with respiratory problems like asthma," the organization said in its report.

More than 25 million people in the United States have seasonal pollen allergies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Of the 25 million people nationally with asthma, 60% have allergic asthma, meaning that exposure to pollen can trigger their attacks of severe shortness of breath, the agency reports.

Pollen is a powdery substance made up of tiny grains produced by trees, flowers, grasses and weeds to fertilize other plants of the same species.

It is particularly prevalent in the spring across the United States, when many plants begin to grow after the winter months.

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The earlier onset of spring in some parts of the country, due at least in part to warming caused by climate change, has led to an increase in asthma- and allergy-related hospitalizations, according to an analysis published last summer by JAMA.

For their report, Climate Central researchers analyzed the length of the spring growing season, or the number of days between the last spring freeze and first fall freeze, over a 50-year period in 203 locations across North America.

Locations were only included in the analysis if they had a "freeze season" of at least 90 days with a temperature minimum lower than or equal to 32 degrees.

In many regions included in the analysis, the length of the spring growing season -- and the allergy season -- grew by 20 days or more between 1970 and last year.

Although it increased by 11 days in Boston and 13 days in Chicago over that period, it grew by 17 days in Dallas-Fort Worth and by 32 days in Cleveland, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Philadelphia.

The spring season in New York City increased by 26 days over the 50-year period, according to the researchers.

"With a longer pollen season and high pollen concentrations, asthma and allergy reactions can become even more severe and expensive to treat, and unfortunately this burden is placed on the most vulnerable populations," the Climate Central researchers said in their report.

Virginia Gov. Northam signs death penalty repeal


Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (seated) signs legislation repealing the death penalty in the state surrounded by members of the General Assembly on Wednesday. Photo courtesy of Gov. Ralph Northam's office

March 24 (UPI) -- Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on Wednesday signed legislation making the state the 23rd in the country to abolish the death penalty.

His signature comes one month after both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly gave their approval to the bill.

"The death penalty system is fundamentally flawed -- it is inequitable, ineffective, and it has no place in this commonwealth or this country," Northam said. "Virginia has come within days of executing innocent people, and Black defendants have been disproportionately sentenced to death.

"Abolishing this inhumane practice

In addition to banning the use of the death penalty, the law establishes a maximum penalty of life in prison without the possibility of parole and gives judges discretion to suspend part of sentences. It also commutes the sentences of the two men on Virginia's death row to life without parole.

Sen. Scott Surovell, a Democrat who co-sponsored the legislation in the upper chamber, thanked Northam for his public endorsement of the repeal.

"He's going to restore Virginia to its position of leadership not just in the country but also in the world, as a society, as a government that values civil rights that values your rights against the government, that values things like trial by jury," Surovell in a ceremony ahead of the signing.

"I never dreamed that Virginia would change as fast as it did."

In addition to the 23 states that have banned use of the death penalty, three others -- California, Oregon and Pennsylvania -- have a governor-imposed moratorium on the punishment.

Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, said Virginia's abolition is indicative of a nationwide decline in support for the death penalty and a greater focus on race relations.

"The commonwealth's death penalty has deep roots in slavery, lynching, and Jim Crow segregation," he said in a statement Wednesday. "The symbolic value of a legislature sitting in the former capital of the Confederacy dismantling this tool of racial oppression cannot be overstated."

A Gallup poll in November found that 55% of Americans favor executing criminals convicted of murder, its lowest point since 1972. President Joe Biden has promised to work toward repeal at the federal level.

Equal Pay Day: Megan Rapinoe says she and her teammates are 'devalued'

UPI Staff
MARCH 24, 2021 


March 24 (UPI) -- U.S. women's soccer star Megan Rapinoe said Wednesday that she and her teammates have been "devalued" for their gender as President Joe Biden called for Congress to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Delivering remarks at an Equal Pay Day event at the White House alongside her Team USA colleague, Margaret Purce, the president and first lady Jill Biden, Rapinoe said that although she has won an Olympic gold medal and two World Cups, she still struggles to earn as much as her male counterparts.

"Despite those wins, I've been devalued, I've been disrespected and dismissed because I am a woman. And I've been told I don't deserve any more than less -- because I am a woman," she said.

Rapinoe, who has long campaigned for equality, was part of a lawsuit last year against the U.S. Soccer Federation for gender discrimination.

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During testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, Rapinoe accused the U.S. Soccer Federation of lobbying against the women's team's efforts for equal pay, declaring that no level of status, accomplishments or power "will protect you from the clutches of inequity."

"We are told in this country that if you work hard and continue to achieve, you will be rewarded fairly. It's the promise of the American Dream. But that promise has not been for everyone," she said. "If that can happen to us, to me, with the brightest light shining on us, it can and it does, happen to every person who is marginalized by gender. And we don't have to wait. We don't have to continue to be patient. We can change that today. Right now."

Purce said the issue of unequal pay "rests on the notion of unequal value."

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"It is an issue of equity," she said. "When men began sports leagues, they were supported by billions in taxpayer subsidies. They were prioritized in media and afforded time to grow. The investment was great and the return was great."

She added that women's sports have not been provided the same grace and investment.

"You would never expect a flower to bloom without water. But women in sport who have been denied water, sunlight and soil are somehow expected to blossom. Invest in women. Then let's talk again when you see the return," Purce said.

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Equal Pay Day was established by the National Committee on Pay Equity in 1996.

"This date symbolizes how far into the year women must work to earn what men earned in the previous year," according to the committee. "Because women earn less, on average, than men, they must work longer for the same amount of pay. The wage gap is even greater for most women of color."

The White House noted that American women, on average, earn 82 cents for every dollar earned by American men. Joe Biden issued a proclamation calling for the passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act.

The legislation would ban employees from seeking salary history, hold employers who engage in systemic discrimination accountable, and seek to ensure transparency and reporting in wage disparities.

"The gender wage gap can cost women hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of a career," Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., chairman of the congressional Joint Economic Committee, said in a statement Wednesday.

"If long-term economic growth is our goal, then closing the gender wage gap is not just a moral imperative, it is an economic one in a nation where two-thirds of mothers are either the primary breadwinner or co-breadwinner in their families."

Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan includes billions in emergency funding aimed at returning Americans to the workforce -- among them, about 2 million women who have lost jobs due to COVID-19.

The president signed two executive orders this month to promote gender equity and equal rights in the United States.

"This issue is so much bigger than the number on a paycheck. Our work gives us a sense of purpose, it's often how we make our mark on the lives of others and the world," Jill Biden said Wednesday.

Levine becomes first openly transgender official confirmed by U.S. Senate

The Senate voted 52-48 to confirm Rachel Levine as assistant secretary for health and human services. File Pool Photo by Caroline Brehman/UPI | License Photo

March 24 (UPI) -- Lawmakers on Wednesday voted to confirm Rachel Levine as President Joe Biden's assistant secretary for health, making her the first openly transgender federal official to be approved by the Senate.

Senators voted 52-48 with all Democrats in favor, joined by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., urged her colleagues to vote for Levine on the Senate floor, noting her history as a "trusted voice" as Pennsylvania's secretary of health, while noting the historic nature of her confirmation.

"I've always said the people in our government should reflect the people it serves and today we will take a new historic step towards making that a reality. I'm proud to vote for Dr. Levine and incredibly proud of the progress this confirmation will represent, for our country and for transgender people all across it who are watching today," she said.

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In a statement Wednesday, Human Rights Campaign President Alphonso David praised Levine's confirmation as a "historic, inspiring day for the LGBTQ community, particularly transgender people."

"We are one step closer to a government that mirrors the beautiful diversity of its people," David said. "It is absolutely critical that everybody has a seat at the table and the Biden-Harris administration has made a dedicated, applaudable effort to ensure that outcome."

Levine will work alongside Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who was confirmed last week, and will quickly face the task of leading the nation's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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As Pennsylvania's secretary of health, she led the state's pandemic response as well as programs on opioid prescribing guidelines, health equity and LGBTQ healthcare.

During Levine's confirmation hearing, Murray admonished Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., for asking Levine about "genital mutilation" to which Levine responded that "transgender medicine is a very complex and nuanced field with robust research and standards of care that have been developed."

"If I'm fortunate enough to be confirmed as the assistant secretary of health I look forward to working with you and your office and coming to your office and discussing the particulars of the standards of care for transgender medicine," she said at the time.

Alligator and bull shark swim side by side in Florida lagoon

NOT QUITE THE LAMB LAYING DOWN WITH THE LION

March 24 (UPI) -- A Florida man walking over a bridge took video when he came across an unusual sight: an alligator and a bull shark swimming side by side in a river.

Gray Vinson said he was walking on a bridge over the Indian River Lagoon in Vero Beach when he spotted the bull shark and alligator swimming in tandem just a few feet apart.

"It's not everyday you see a bull shark and a gator swimming together in the Indian River," Vinson wrote on Facebook.

Vinson said bull sharks are known to use the Indian River Lagoon as nursery rounds, but the alligator was a surprising sight, especially so close to its fellow predator.

"I was shocked to see the alligator," Vinson told CBS Miami. "I was looking to see if any of the bull sharks were there since they normally are this time of year."

Montana girl, 17, earns a doctorate in business administration

March 19 (UPI) -- A 17-year-old Montana girl who studied business administration at California Intercontinental University has become the youngest American in history to earn a doctorate.

Kimberly Strable, 17, of Great Falls, said she presented her dissertation virtually and was awarded a doctorate in business administration with an emphasis in global leadership.

"I'm the third youngest in world history to ever get a doctorate in any subject, the youngest in all world history to ever get a doctorate in business and the youngest in American history to get a doctorate in any field," Strable told KRTV.

Strable said she is looking forward to starting her career.

"Right now I'm actually working on some legal battles, discrimination I faced because of my age. So that's a really interesting part and I've actually applied some of my knowledge and I'm working on that. But after all that wraps up, I plan on trying to get into executive management," Strable said.

Strable said achieving runs in her family -- her older sister earned a master's degree just days after turning 18 and her three younger siblings have all expressed an interest in getting their degrees at a young age.

"I was just so happy and glowing. So relieved because it's been such a long journey and it's always been a next step and a next step. To finally recognize I am now officially a doctor, super amazing," she said.

Strable's graduation was celebrated on Twitter by Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobson.

"17-year-old *DOCTOR* Kimberly Strable -- that has a nice ring to it. Congratulations on hard work paying off!" Jacobson wrote.

Lake Michigan's shifting sands uncover 19th century shipwreck

March 19 (UPI) -- Dropping water levels and shifting sands revealed the remains of an 18th century shipwreck along the coast of Lake Michigan this week, according to local historians.

Valerie VanHeest, director of the Michigan Shipwreck Research Association, told WXMI-TV in Grand Rapids, Mich., the wreckage belongs to the Contest, a scow schooner that transported items including cordwood, posts, ties, stone and other general merchandise.

The Contest likely became wrecked along the shore near White Lake channel in the late 1800s due to a storm.

"We understand that there were no lives lost. The lighthouse was right there at the mouth of the channel so the crew members probably stepped off onto dry ground and took shelter in the lighthouse," VanHeest said. "They reported that the ship was a total loss."

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The 121-foot-long ship has been uncovered periodically since its demise, and a lighthouse keeper identified it as the L.C. Woodruff when it became visible again in 1974. But in 2018, historians determined the wreckage belonged to the smaller Contest after measuring it.

Local Kerri Eriskin told WBCK-radio in Battle Creek, Mich., that they came across the wreckage while walking along the shoreline on Sunday.

"I wasn't sure what I was seeing when we visited on Sunday, but researched it later and found an article from MLive in 2018," Eriskin said. "It was pretty exciting to see remnants of the late 1800s."

SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIOR

Pope Francis condemns racism as a 'virus' that mutates and hides

Pope Francis condemned racism as a virus in the wake of the slaying of six Asian women in shootings at massage parlors in Atlanta and the observance of International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Photo by press office of Iraqi Prime Minister/UPI | License Photo

March 21 (UPI) -- Pope Francis condemned racism on Sunday, comparing it to a "virus" that changes and persists throughout time.

The pope did not cite any particular instance of racism, but his comments come after a gunman opened fire at three massage parlors in Atlanta last week, killing eight people including six Asian women, and on the day the United Nations observes International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

"Racism is a virus that quickly mutates and, instead of disappearing, goes into hiding, and lurks in waiting," he wrote. "Instances of racism continue to shame us, for they show that our supposed social progress is not as real or definitive as we think."

On Saturday, thousands of people gathered for a "Stop Asian Hate" rally in response to the attack on Tuesday during which Robert Aaron Long, 21, was charged with murder for targeting three Asian-owned spas in the Atlanta area.
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Hyun Jung Grant, 51; Xiaojie Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Yong Ae Yue, 63; Soon Chung Park, 74; Suncha Kim, 69; Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33; and Paul Andre Michels, 54 were all shot and killed, while Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz, 30, survived the shooting but remained in critical condition.

Police said Long cited a sex addiction as the reason for the shooting but Georgia state Rep. Bee Nguyen noted the fact that the businesses were all owned by Asians and six of the victims were Asian women.

"No matter how you want to spin it the facts remain the same. This was an attack on the Asian community," said Nguyen.
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March 21 has also served as the day the United Nations observes International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, since 1960 when police in Sharpeville, South Africa killed 69 people at a peaceful protest against apartheid laws.

In a statement released Sunday, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi also compared the devastating impacts of racism to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Violent and deadly attacks against Black, Brown, Asian and Indigenous people, toxic language and daily and sustained racially charged acts have rightly forced painful -- but necessary -- conversations to re-examine prejudice, privilege, the way we view the world and most importantly how we act," Grandi said.

Bipartisan group of lawmakers see carbon capture as answer to climate change

Republicans are banking on the development of carbon capture so that fossil fuels can continue to play a long-term role in the nation's energy grid.

IT IS USED TO FRACK OLD WELLS

By Nico Portuondo, Medill News Service

Carbon capture is a process by which carbon dioxide is sequestered from emission sources such as power plants or directly from the atmosphere and then stored or reused. File Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI | License Photo

WASHINGTON -- Republican members of Congress have had a busy few months lambasting President Joe Biden's early climate actions -- halting the Keystone XL pipeline and pausing oil and gas leases on federal land -- but there is one area where the president may be able to count on Republican support and still reduce global carbon emissions.

Carbon capture, a process by which carbon dioxide is sequestered from emission sources such as power plants or directly from the atmosphere and then stored or reused, has become a rare bastion of bipartisan congressional agreement on climate action. On Wednesday, lawmakers in the House and Senate, including Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Reps. David McKinley, R-W.Va., and Marc Veasey, D-Texas, introduced a bill to provide loan guarantees from the Department of Energy to new and existing carbon capture projects.

"If we are serious about a global solution to address climate change by reducing carbon emissions, carbon capture is essential," McKinley said in an email. "It's not realistic to believe the world will transition away from fossil fuels in the next several decades."

He and Veasey also introduced last month the ACCESS 45Q Act, which would extend the 45Q policy that provides a tax credit for each metric ton of CO2 stored or reused for 10 years.
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The goal of carbon capture technology is to sequester carbon dioxide and then store it in geological formations so that there is less carbon in the atmosphere that can contribute to climate change.

At the moment, carbon capture mainly happens at emissions centers such as power plants and cement factories, but technology is being developed that can take carbon dioxide directly out of the atmosphere. Biden's climate plan explicitly calls for the acceleration and deployment of carbon capture technology.

At first glance, it makes sense that both Republicans and Democrats would support the further development of this technology.

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Republican lawmakers, especially those from fossil fuel powerhouse states, such as Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., see it as an opportunity to continue to back the traditional energy use while still addressing the potential climate consequences.

"My advocacy is really for energy and energy independence in our country from all sources, traditional and renewable," Hoeven said in a phone interview. "Carbon capture is how we can continue to produce energy from all sources."

Most Democrats are happy to support any technology that could reduce CO2 in the atmosphere and see carbon capture as potentially vital to the climate change fight.

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"I think most, if not all, realistic climate modeling shows we are going to not only need to get emissions down to net zero, we're still going to need to be able to pull carbon dioxide out of the air," said a staffer for Sen. Tina Smith, a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, an affiliate of the Democratic Party.

Even if Biden's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050 is fully met and other countries honor their carbon emission reduction commitments, many scientists say that climate change could still have devastating impacts unless some of the CO2 already in the atmosphere is removed.

Despite the bipartisan enthusiasm, carbon capture at the moment is nowhere near a comprehensive solution to climate change.

There are 21 carbon capture facilities around the world that can capture and store around 32 million tons of CO2. Current global CO2 emissions are around 36 billion tons a year, meaning that three orders of magnitude need to be made up for the technology to fully address the problem.

This is where Republicans and Democrats start to differ. Most Democrats see divesting in fossil fuels and implementing renewable energy quickly as the most important steps to take, with carbon removal playing a role in the future of climate change action, but is not the main solution to global warming.

Republicans, on the other hand, are banking on the development of carbon capture so that fossil fuels can continue to play a long-term role in the nation's energy grid.

"Some people are just anti-fossil fuel," Hoeven said. "But, you know, the question I say is why not produce from all these sources, particularly if we're able to address the whole greenhouse gas issue."