Greenpeace slams fossel fuel sponsors for Winter Olympics


By  AFP
February 5, 2026


Greenpeace said fossil fuel emissions were threatening winter sports - Copyright AFP WANG Zhao

Greenpeace activists staged a protest in Milan on Thursday against the sponsorship of the Milan-Cortina Olympics by energy giant Eni, warning that fossil fuel emissions were threatening the viability of winter sports.

Bearing banners saying “Kick polluters out of the Games”, the activists set up a model of the Olympic rings covered in black oil in front of the cathedral in central Milan.

The protest came the day before the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in the northern Italian city on Friday.

“Sponsorships like Eni’s for Milan-Cortina 2026 are not innocent, they are a distraction to make us forget the damage these companies are causing to the planet,” Greenpeace Italia said in a statement.

Eni’s “emissions are helping to eliminate the snow and ice on which the Olympics themselves depend!”

The International Olympic Committee confirmed on Wednesday it has received a petition bearing 21,000 signatures calling for an end to fossil fuel companies sponsoring winter sports.

IOC president Kirsty Coventry told reporters her team had met with the petition organisers, adding: “It’s really nice athletes have a platform to speak up.”

“We are having conversations in order to be better, and for our stakeholders to be better. But that takes time,” she said.

Christophe Dubi, the IOC executive director for the Olympic Games, added: “We make a point to receive those petitions, and we have to recognise climate is a challenge for all of us.

“What we have to do as an organisation is to be at the forefront of sustainability, and our principles are very clear.”

Eni created the Olympic and Paralympic Torches for the Games, and has provided around 250 electricity generators fuelled by HVO (hydrotreated vegetable oil) diesel biofuel, which it says contributes to a reduction in greenhouse gases.

The firm says on its website that it has a shared vision with the Games organisers — “a commitment to increasingly sustainable, equitable and accessible energy”.

Italy foils Russian cyberattacks targeting Olympics


By AFP
February 4, 2026


The number of hacks has been increasing worldwide. — © AFP/File Noel Celis

Italy has thwarted a series of Russian cyberattacks targeting the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, the foreign minister said Wednesday, as security operations ramp up with just hours to go.

Political leaders, including US Vice President JD Vance, are expected to attend Friday’s opening ceremony, and security has become a fraught topic after it emerged that agents from a controversial US immigration enforcement agency would be present.

Italy’s interior minister Matteo Piantedosi stressed Wednesday that the agents from ICE would have an advisory role only.

ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arm will operate within US diplomatic missions only and “are not operational agents” and “have no executive function”, he told parliament.

Just hours before the first sporting events, which begin Wednesday, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Italy has “foiled a series of cyberattacks” of “Russian origin”.

The attacks were “on foreign ministry offices, starting with Washington, and also some Winter Olympics sites, including hotels in Cortina”, he said during a trip to the US city.

His office did not provide further details. AFP requested comment from the International Olympic Committee (IOC).


The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics take place from Friday to February 22 – Copyright AFP PIERO CRUCIATTI

Some 6,000 police plus nearly 2,000 military personnel are being deployed across the Games area, which stretches across half a dozen sites from Milan to the Dolomites.

Bomb disposal experts, snipers, anti-terrorism units and skiing policemen are among those deployed, according to Piantedosi.

The defence ministry is also providing 170 vehicles plus radars, drones and aircraft.

The prospect of ICE agents, currently embroiled in an often brutal crackdown on illegal immigration in the United States, operating on Italian soil has sparked widespread outrage in the country.

Piantedosi noted it was standard for countries to send security officials to the Olympics, with Italy having sent them to Paris for the 2024 Games.

He said the anger over their presence, which included the Milan mayor warning they were not welcome in the city during the February 6-22 Games, was “completely unfounded”.

– ‘Strictly advisory’ –

The HSI investigates global threats, including the illegal movement of people, goods and weapons, and is separate from the department carrying out the US immigration crackdown that has sparked widespread protests.

“ICE does not and will never be able to carry out operational police activities on our national territory,” Piantedosi emphasised.

The US State Department said that the HSI has in the past taken part in other Olympic events.

The US ambassador to Italy, Tilman J. Fertitta, previously said the HSI will be “strictly advisory and intelligence-based, with no patrolling or enforcement involvement”.

“At the Olympics, HSI criminal investigators will contribute their expertise by providing intelligence on transnational criminal threats, with a focus on cybercrimes and national security threats,” he said last week.

But the row continues. A pop-up hospitality house organised by US Figure Skating, USA Hockey and US Speedskating at a hotel in Milan has even changed its name from “Ice House” to “Winter House”.

Several protests have been planned for the opening weekend of the Games, focusing on their environmental impact as well as the politics of the event.

Pro-Palestinian activists are planning a demonstration during the arrival of the Olympic flame in Milan on Thursday, to protest Israel’s participation in the Games due to the war in Gaza.

Demonstrations are also expected to coincide with the opening ceremony at Milan’s San Siro stadium on Friday, with a further march planned in the city on Saturday.

One protest organisation in Milan calls itself the Unsustainable Olympics Committee — a play on the official International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Critics of the Winter Games complain about the impact of infrastructure — from new buildings to transport — on fragile mountain environments, as well as the widespread and energy-intensive use of artificial snow.

 

Two-stage hydrothermal process turns wastewater sludge into cleaner biofuel

Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University

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image: 

Product characteristics and nitrogen evolution pathways of two-stage hydrothermal liquefaction of municipal sludge

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Credit: Guanyu Jiang, Mingxin Xu, Mingyi Guo, Shiming Niu, Pan Wang, Zhiyong Duan, Chengming Li, Krzysztof Kapusta, Pavel Aleksandrovich Strizhak & Donghai Xu

Scientists have developed an improved method to convert municipal wastewater sludge into higher quality renewable fuel while significantly reducing harmful nitrogen compounds, offering a promising pathway for cleaner energy and sustainable waste management.

Municipal sludge is a by-product of wastewater treatment that is produced in massive quantities worldwide. Managing this material remains a growing environmental challenge. Traditional treatment methods often involve high costs, pollution risks, and limited resource recovery. A new study published in Energy & Environment Nexus demonstrates how a two-stage hydrothermal liquefaction approach can transform sludge into cleaner bio-oil with improved fuel properties.

The research shows that hydrothermal liquefaction, a process that converts wet biomass into oil-like fuel under moderate temperature and pressure, can be significantly enhanced by using a staged reaction strategy. While conventional single-step liquefaction produces bio-oil efficiently, it often generates fuel containing high levels of nitrogen, which can reduce fuel quality and cause emissions problems during combustion.

“Our work reveals a more effective way to control how nitrogen moves and transforms during sludge conversion,” said the study’s corresponding author. “By introducing a two-stage process, we can produce bio-oil with lower nitrogen content while still generating valuable fuel products.”

In the new method, sludge undergoes an initial low-temperature treatment followed by a higher-temperature conversion step. Researchers compared three processing routes: traditional direct liquefaction, consecutive two-stage processing, and separated two-stage processing. They found that although the separated two-stage method produced slightly less oil overall, it substantially improved oil quality.

The study revealed that the separated two-stage process reduced nitrogen levels in bio-oil by up to 37 percent. Lower nitrogen content is important because nitrogen-rich fuels can deactivate catalysts during refining and increase pollutant emissions. The improved process also increased the concentration of desirable fuel compounds such as hydrocarbons, alcohols, and esters.

Researchers discovered that the first stage of the separated process plays a critical role. During this stage, most nitrogen compounds move into the water phase instead of remaining in the oil. This shift significantly improves the chemical composition of the final bio-oil product and helps limit the formation of nitrogen-containing molecules that reduce fuel performance.

The team also analyzed how nitrogen changes chemically during the conversion process. They found that proteins and other nitrogen-rich materials break down into smaller compounds that either dissolve in water or transform into solid residues. By controlling reaction conditions, the process minimizes the amount of nitrogen that ends up in the final oil product, improving combustion characteristics and energy density.

Beyond improving fuel quality, the research highlights the potential of sludge as a valuable resource rather than waste. With global sludge production continuing to rise due to population growth and urbanization, technologies that recover energy and reduce environmental impact are increasingly important.

“Municipal sludge is often viewed as an environmental burden, but it also represents a major untapped energy source,” the researchers noted. “Our findings provide new insight into optimizing sludge conversion technologies and improving the sustainability of wastewater treatment systems.”

The authors suggest that further upgrading techniques, such as catalytic treatment, could enhance the fuel even more by removing remaining oxygen and nitrogen compounds. They believe the two-stage hydrothermal liquefaction approach could support future efforts to integrate waste treatment with renewable energy production.

The study provides a foundation for scaling up sludge-to-fuel technologies and advancing circular economy strategies that transform waste into clean energy resources.

 

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Journal reference: Jiang G, Xu M, Guo M, Niu S, Wang P, et al. 2026. Product characteristics and nitrogen evolution pathways of two-stage hydrothermal liquefaction of municipal sludge. Energy & Environment Nexus 2: e004 doi: 10.48130/een-0025-0017  

https://www.maxapress.com/article/doi/10.48130/een-0025-0017  

=== 

About Energy & Environment Nexus:
Energy & Environment Nexus (e-ISSN 3070-0582) is an open-access journal publishing high-quality research on the interplay between energy systems and environmental sustainability, including renewable energy, carbon mitigation, and green technologies.

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---

DOI

10.48130/een-0025-0017 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Product characteristics and nitrogen evolution pathways of two-stage hydrothermal liquefaction of municipal sludge

 

Two-stage hydrothermal processing unlocks cleaner bio-oil from municipal sludge

Maximum Academic Press

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By separating low-temperature pretreatment from high-temperature liquefaction, the team demonstrates that nitrogen can be redirected away from the oil phase at an early stage, yielding a cleaner bio-oil with improved chemical composition and greater potential for sustainable energy applications.

Municipal sludge, a rapidly growing by-product of wastewater treatment, has considerable energy potential but remains challenging as a biofuel feedstock due to its high nitrogen content, which complicates refining and increases emissions. As urbanization accelerates, sludge production continues to rise, placing growing pressure on conventional disposal methods such as landfilling, incineration, and composting—options that are often costly, inefficient, and environmentally burdensome. Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) offers a promising alternative by directly converting wet biomass into bio-oil without energy-intensive drying. However, sludge-derived bio-oil typically contains nitrogen-rich compounds from proteins that poison catalysts and elevate nitrogen oxide emissions. Although two-stage HTL has emerged as a potential low-severity solution, systematic process comparisons and mechanistic understanding of nitrogen migration remain limited.

A study (DOI:10.48130/een-0025-0017) published in Energy & Environment Nexus on 16 January 2026 by Donghai Xu’s team, Xi'an Jiaotong University, shows that two-stage HTL strategy can dramatically reduce nitrogen in sludge-derived bio-oil while improving its chemical composition, offering a promising pathway toward cleaner, more usable biofuels from urban waste.

The study systematically evaluated three HTL configurations—direct HTL (D-HTL), consecutive two-stage HTL (CT-HTL), and separated two-stage HTL (ST-HTL)—to examine how reaction temperature and residence time influence product yields, bio-oil quality, and nitrogen migration from municipal sludge. Product distributions were quantified under varying thermal severities, while elemental analysis, heating value calculations, Van Krevelen diagrams, and GC–MS characterization were employed to elucidate changes in oil composition. Solid residues were further analyzed using proximate analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to resolve nitrogen speciation, and aqueous phases were examined by GC–MS alongside total nitrogen (TN) and total organic carbon (TOC) measurements to track nitrogen partitioning. The results show that increasing temperature in D-HTL enhanced bio-oil yield from 5.38 wt.% at 200 °C to 17.37 wt.% at 325 °C by promoting macromolecular decomposition, while solid yields declined correspondingly. CT-HTL produced slightly lower oil yields due to limited high-temperature residence time. In contrast, ST-HTL generated lower overall oil yields but substantially improved oil quality, particularly in terms of nitrogen reduction. Elemental analysis revealed that ST-HTL reduced nitrogen content in bio-oil by up to 37% compared with D-HTL, while maintaining high heating values up to 37.18 MJ kg⁻¹. Van Krevelen analysis indicated lower N/C ratios for ST-HTL oils, confirming effective nitrogen diversion during the low-temperature pretreatment stage. GC–MS results further showed that ST-HTL decreased the proportion of nitrogen-containing compounds by up to 20.45%, while enriching hydrocarbons, alcohols, and esters. Analysis of solids demonstrated progressive dehydration, decarboxylation, and deamination with increasing temperature, accompanied by the transformation of ammonia nitrogen into heterocyclic and quaternary forms. Aqueous-phase analysis confirmed that more than 65% of nitrogen was captured as nitrogen-containing compounds during the first stage of ST-HTL, with TN concentrations reaching ~2,850 mg L⁻¹, while only 1.45–5.47% of total nitrogen ultimately migrated into the oil phase. Together, these results demonstrate that separated two-stage HTL effectively redirects nitrogen away from bio-oil by modifying reaction pathways, thereby enabling the production of cleaner, lower-nitrogen bio-oil from municipal sludge.

By producing lower-nitrogen bio-oil without catalysts or extreme conditions, separated two-stage HTL addresses one of the most significant barriers to sludge-based biofuels. The cleaner oil could reduce upgrading costs, improve combustion performance, and lower nitrogen oxide emissions. Meanwhile, nitrogen-rich aqueous streams could potentially be recovered for nutrient recycling, supporting circular economy goals.

###

References

DOI

10.48130/een-0025-0017

Original Source URL

https://doi.org/10.48130/een-0025-0017

Funding information

This work was supported by the Projects from National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 52576227), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No. ND6J018), and the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant No. 2021YFE0104900).

About Energy & Environment Nexus

Energy & Environment Nexus is a multidisciplinary journal for communicating advances in the science, technology and engineering of energy, environment and their Nexus.

---

DOI

10.48130/een-0025-0017 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Product characteristics and nitrogen evolution pathways of two-stage hydrothermal liquefaction of municipal sludge

Article Publication Date

26-Jan-2026

Maritime Leaders Convene in Singapore on FuelEU Strategy and Crew Welfare

Published Jan 20, 2026 8:00 PM by The Maritime Executive

[By: OceanOpt]

OceanOpt, a provider of End-to-End Maritime Emissions & Operations Intelligence, gathered 40 maritime leaders in Singapore for a critical fireside chat, "Finishing the Year with Confidence." Executives from BSM, DNV, Stephenson Harwood, and CMB.TECH joined the discussion, dissecting how strategic advisory and unified data governance can turn regulatory complexity into a competitive edge. With the industry facing tight FuelEU Maritime deadlines, the conversation quickly moved past generalities to the specific operational realities of compliance and crew welfare.

The Human Cost of Compliance Capt. Graciano Ausan, a recently retired Master Mariner, offered a stark reality check from the front lines. "We are the frontline of maritime operations," he noted. "Yet seafarers report the same fuel data to four separate platforms simultaneously."

He revealed that on some vessels, fuel reporting alone consumes over 90 minutes daily—time stolen from essential maintenance and safety tasks. "This is time diverted
from maintenance and safety," Ausan warned.

Legal Voids and Liability This operational friction is compounded by legal ambiguity. Rachel Hoyland of Stephenson Harwood LLP warned that current BIMCO clauses have not kept pace with FuelEU complexities.

"Biofuel consumption clarity, pool liability allocation, and settlement mechanics remain undefined across most charters," Hoyland stated. She urged the sector not to wait for regulation, arguing that "he legal profession must lead here... through contractual flexibility."

A Unified Strategic Response Bridging the gap between these legal voids and operational burdens, the OceanOpt leadership team - Anil Jacob (Managing Director), Alex Joseph (Consulting Lead), Capt. Mohit Sabharwal (Business Development Lead), and Adon Jacob (Business Analyst) presented their "Compliance to Transformation" framework.

The model posits that successful decarbonization requires a three-stage evolution: securing a compliance baseline, driving performance enhancement through analytics, and finally achieving long-term transformation.

Launching VECTOR This strategic approach underpins VECTOR, OceanOpt’s newly launched emissions intelligence platform. Directly addressing the crew welfare crisis raised by Capt. Ausan, Managing Director Anil Jacob showcased the platform's impact.

"Unified reporting platforms can reduce crew burden dramatically," Jacob said. "Through API integration with partner operators, we’ve achieved single platform reporting on over 100 vessels, reducing time from 90 minutes to 20 minutes daily. This is not just efficiency - it’s operational sustainability."

Consensus: Strategy Beats Compliance The dialogue concluded with a clear consensus: the window for early-mover advantage is closing. "The question facing operators isn’t ‘How do I comply?’ It’s ‘How do I use compliance strategy to compete?" Jacob noted. "The companies moving decisively... will enter 2026 with an advantage."

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.

Mariners for America Conference

LOOK D.E.I.

Grow, Develop, Sustain

Published Jan 20, 2026 7:57 PM by The Maritime Executive

[By: Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies]

Help Shape the Future of the U.S. Maritime Workforce
The U.S. maritime industry is preparing for a period of significant growth, and the need for a strong, sustainable American mariner workforce has never been greater. The Mariners for America Conference at MITAGS will bring together vessel operators, unions, academies, training institutions, regulators, and industry leaders to explore bold ideas and practical solutions for attracting, developing, and retaining mariners. 

Download Agenda Here

Why Attend:

• Stay ahead of maritime industry trends and workforce changes.
• Gain insights that can elevate your career and organization.
• Be part of a growing national maritime movement.Help strengthen America’s maritime future.
• Build meaningful connections with leaders across the U.S. maritime sector.

Registration Is Open:

Early Bird Price:  $900 (Dec 1 – Feb 28)
Standard Price:  $1,000 (after Feb 28)

Register here.

Call for Sponsors

• Support the mission to grow, develop, and sustain the U.S. mariner workforce by becoming a conference sponsor. 
• Sponsorship gives your organization visibility among key maritime stakeholders, including vessel operators, maritime schools, regulators, and industry leaders. 
• Your support will help us deliver a high-quality conference while positioning your brand as a leader in the maritime industry. 
• To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact us at Events@mitags.org.

Sponsorship Levels:

Pilot Sponsor – $4,000 
Includes signage at registration, logo in the event program, free exhibit table, and recognition in all pre-conference communications. More information here.

Master Sponsor – $2,000
Includes signage at registration, logo in the event program, free exhibit table, and recognition in all pre-conference communications. More information here.

Navigator Sponsor – $1,000
Includes signage at registration, logo in the event program, free exhibit table, and recognition in all pre-conference communications. More information here.

Additional Opportunities

Lanyard Sponsor: $500
Sponsor is responsible for producing and shipping lanyards to the conference venue. More information here.

Exhibit Table: $500
Nonprofits and government organizations — please contact Events@mitags.org to request a table. More information here.

Reception Sponsor: $2,000 (SOLD OUT)
Includes signage at the reception.
Sponsorship at $2,000 would include credit as a Master-Level Sponsor. 

Dinner Sponsor: $2,000
Includes logo placement on all dinner tables.
Sponsorship at $2,000 would include credit as a Master-Level Sponsor. More information here.

Stay On Campus for the Mariners for America Conference

Make the most of your conference experience by staying right on-site at the Maritime Conference Center (MCC) — home of MITAGS and the Mariners for America Conference. Staying on campus keeps you close to every keynote, workshop, and networking opportunity while enjoying the comfort and convenience of being on-site. More information here. 

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.