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It’s one thing to read about <keyword id="19907392" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="climate-change" source="keywords">climate change</keyword> and <keyword id="19951337" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="carbon-emissions" source="keywords">carbon emissions</keyword> in an article, and quite another to see the toxic fumes engulfing your entire country — swirling over it like a certain menacing doom. <keyword id="19935155" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NASA" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="NASA" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="NASA">NASA</keyword> recently unveiled a groundbreaking visualisation tool that offers an unprecedented look at how carbon dioxide (CO2) moves around our planet. This high-resolution model provides a stunning, animated map of <keyword id="22576003" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="global-CO2-concentrations" source="keywords">global CO2 concentrations</keyword>, revealing the complex patterns of this crucial <keyword id="20719964" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="greenhouse-gas" source="keywords">greenhouse gas</keyword>. <div type="Youtube" id="zZ-lMDtiI-k" title="Model Behavior: Visualizing Global Carbon Dioxide" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zZ-lMDtiI-k/mqdefault.jpg"><url><![CDATA[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ-lMDtiI-k]]></url></div>By combining billions of data points from satellites and ground observations, NASA scientists created a dynamic picture of how CO2 is emitted, transported, and absorbed across the globe. This interactive map showcases <keyword id="22576002" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CO2-concentrations" source="keywords">CO2 concentrations</keyword> as they shifted through Earth's atmosphere from January to March 2020, influenced by wind patterns and atmospheric circulation. With its exceptional detail, you can zoom in to pinpoint CO2 emissions rising from power plants, fires, and urban areas, as they spread across continents and oceans. Over India, you can see the greenhouse gas blowing over from neighbouring continents and also originating from the subcontinent. The pulsating oranges indicate CO2 concentrations of 420-460 ppm over India. <h2>The sources of CO2 </h2>One of the most striking features of the map is its ability to zoom in on specific regions, allowing viewers to see CO2 emissions rising from individual cities and industrial complexes. This level of detail provides a clear and compelling picture of human activities' impact on the environment. The map highlights distinct emission patterns across different regions. In China, the United States, and South Asia, power plants, industrial facilities, and vehicles were the primary contributors to CO2 emissions. Conversely, in Africa and South America, fires ignited by land management practices, agricultural burning, and deforestation, along with the combustion of oil and coal, were the main sources. <h2>Pulsating gases</h2>The map also highlights the role of natural systems in the carbon cycle. Forests, oceans, and other ecosystems absorb vast amounts of CO2, acting as vital carbon sinks. However, the visualisation also reveals how human activities are overwhelming these natural systems, leading to a buildup of CO2 in the atmosphere. Further, the map exhibits a pulsating appearance. This is because, firstly, fires typically intensify during daylight hours and subside at night, creating a diurnal pattern. Secondly, the absorption and release of CO2 by plants during photosynthesis and respiration contribute to the fluctuations. This pulsing effect is particularly noticeable in regions with abundant vegetation, such as mid- to high-latitude forests and tropical areas. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="112021374" title="Scientists found a groundbreaking new reason to plant more trees" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>“This map is a powerful tool for understanding the scale and complexity of the climate crisis,” said [Quote from NASA scientist]. “It shows us where the biggest problems are and where we need to focus our efforts to reduce emissions.” The data behind the map comes from NASA's <keyword id="22576004" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="goddard-earth-observing-system" source="keywords">Goddard Earth Observing System</keyword> (GEOS), a sophisticated model that simulates Earth's atmosphere with incredible detail. By applying this model to CO2, scientists have gained new insights into the gas's behaviour and its impact on the planet. As the world grapples with the challenges of climate change, tools like this are essential for informing policy decisions, tracking progress, and inspiring action. NASA’s CO2 map is a remarkable achievement that offers a glimpse into the urgent need to transition to a low-carbon future. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="111566431" title="June warmest on record; every month since July 2023 breached 1.5 deg C threshold" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>

WATCH: A NASA animation shows gigantic plumes of carbon dioxide emissions swirling over India

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Adventurer Benjamin Parent is preparing to cycle around the world for three years.</li><li>He wants to encourage people to slow down, embrace low-carbon travel, and connect with locals.</li><li>Parent plans to meet impact entrepreneurs along the way and document what he's learned.</li></ul>Benjamin Parent has worked at Tesla, on ships, and as a part-time tennis coach.Now, he's trying his hand at documentary filmmaking as he travels around the world on a bicycle to tout the benefits of slow travel and raise awareness about the climate crisis.The 35-year-old Frenchman plans to cover 50,000 kilometers and pass through 44 countries on the three-year adventure, beginning at the Sophia Antipolis technology park, which he characterized as France's equivalent of Silicon Valley.Parent wants to promote a more sustainable way of living and traveling. He plans to set off on September 22, which is also <a target="_blank" href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/world-car-free-day-22-september-great-opportunity-reduce-air-pollution">international car-free day</a>, and return via Norway in 2026. "Traveling is not going to one place, taking a picture, and leaving," Parent told Insider. It's meeting people and experiencing new cultures, he said.Slow travel typically refers to longer stays in destinations and a focus on the journey itself — ideally a low-carbon one. It <a target="_blank" href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211973623000284#s0005">emphasizes more sustainable travel and consumption practices</a>, as well as a more mindful approach. "There is no other option. We have to slow down. We have to sink more into solidarity, into human relationship," Parent said.Travel and tourism account for up to <a target="_blank" href="https://wttc.org/Portals/0/Documents/Reports/2021/WTTC_Net_Zero_Roadmap.pdf">11% of global greenhouse-gas emissions</a>, a 2021 report by the World Travel and Tourism Council found.More people have taken to slow travel in recent years, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/iceland-wants-to-promote-sustainable-tourism-by-encouraging-fewer-visitors-to-take-longer-trips/#google_vignette">including Icelandic tourism officials,</a> who are encouraging fewer tourists to take longer trips to the country. Parent's journey comes amid widespread backlash from European locals as record numbers of tourists <a target="_blank" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ceciliarodriguez/2023/07/31/tourists-go-home-fed-up-with-over-tourism-european-hotspots-impose-bans-fines-taxes-and-traps/">flock to hot spots across Europe</a>.Along the way, Parent plans to meet with entrepreneurs who are working on solutions to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. He doesn't have a set itinerary; he knows where he needs to be and when, but he'll mostly use a physical map and follow waterways, he said. He aims to show others that slow-paced travel and traveling long distances by bicycle is possible.He plans to document the journey, the entrepreneurs' stories, and best practices for building sustainable businesses. He hopes to make a film and write a book about the trip. Parent is fundraising for the project, which he expects to cost 180,000 euros, or about $194,000, or 115,000 euros without including the costs of making the documentary.Parent is part of a WhatsApp group of other cyclist adventurers and expects to bump into his peers on the road. He's hoping that will combat what he expects to be one of the trip's biggest challenges — staying positive.Much of his preparation has been to get into the right mindset, given the potentially long stints he will face alone. "The 'why' is so important," he said. "Why do you want to do it?"For anyone wanting to undertake their own adventure, Parent suggested avoiding negativity and writing their motivation and values down on paper.<div type="image" title="Benjamin Parent in the south of France" height="1537" width="2049" msid="103516655" hostid="261"></div>Ever since traveling across Australia after university, Parent has been keen to get back on the road and has wanted to undertake a "world tour" for a decade. Still, being mostly alone for three years will be tough, he said. The longest cycling trip he has been on so far was about three weeks, covering 900 kilometers.Other than mindfulness, Parent isn't training particularly hard. He goes out on his bike "once or twice" a week, covering about 50 kilometers. His bike, packed with everything he will need for three years, including a tent and camera equipment, weighs about 30 kilograms.The good thing about slow travel is that he doesn't need to train to cover crazy distances every day — it's not performative, he said.A typical day will consist of putting his tent away, finding somewhere to eat or food to cook on a camping stove, and jumping on his bike based on planning from the previous evening. He expects to cover 50 to 60 kilometers a day.In addition to camping gear, Parent has a long list of items he needs based on the length of the trip and the different environments he will encounter. His kit includes waterproof pants, a gadget that charges his phone as he pedals, and basic bike parts in case something breaks. He will also have conventional items like gloves, water, and a first-aid kit.For safety, he has a tracker that can be pressed if there is an issue. "Ninety-nine percent of the time, it's not an issue with people, it's just an issue with the road and bicycle," he said. He is worried about wild dogs, which "are very aggressive with bicycles," he added.He's determined to get on the road, but so far, the trip is keeping Parent indoors, huddled over his laptop. "Don't underestimate the work with planning, the time to plan everything," he said. "Having a dream and realizing it, there is a huge gap in between. This is not to be underestimated."

Meet the ex-Tesla staffer cycling across the world to encourage people to embrace low-carbon slow travel 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>ChatGPT said its carbon footprint depended on the energy use of its computers and servers.</li><li>The climate impact of AI is a newer area of research, but the effect is likely small.</li></ul>Millions of people, like me, are now using ChatGPT, the artificial-intelligence tool that can write everything from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-chatbot-openai-chatgpt-layoff-memo-amazon-google-meta-2023-1?_gl=1*1t95lss*_ga*ODEzOTE0NTE0LjE2NTgyNDk0OTk.*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY3NjA2MDc5MS40NjIuMS4xNjc2MDYwOTk0LjAuMC4w">layoff emails</a> to <a href="https://www.insider.com/okcupid-chatgpt-generated-match-questions-wasnt-great-2023-2">dating profiles</a> to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chatgpt-gave-instructions-for-making-crack-and-smuggling-report-2023-2?_gl=1*1jik3bn*_ga*ODEzOTE0NTE0LjE2NTgyNDk0OTk.*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY3NjA2MDc5MS40NjIuMS4xNjc2MDYwODE4LjAuMC4w">detailed instructions on how to make cocaine</a>.I haven't asked it to create any of those things, though I did wonder whether ChatGPT could spit out an answer on its environmental toll. Concerns about ChatGPT's carbon footprint, which is likely small at the moment, could rise as more people turn to it for day-to-day search. The chatbot had some 590 million visits in January alone, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/feb/02/chatgpt-100-million-users-open-ai-fastest-growing-app" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to UBS analysts</a> who described it as the fastest-growing consumer app in history.The models underlying ChatGPT that train it how to understand and generate human language require heavy-duty processing power. And the data centers hosting its cloud networks must be kept cool. The energy demands for AI are likely to go up as more people ask it questions like, "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chatgpt-how-to-negotiate-a-raise-job-advice-experts-approved-2023-1">How to negotiate a raise?</a>" For now, a lot of mystery surrounds the carbon footprint of AI, including ChatGPT. The murkiness isn't surprising. It's often difficult to total up a single human's carbon tab. I eat dairy and travel on airplanes occasionally. AI does neither of those — nor does it harbor the green guilt I sometimes feel for my actions. I asked the chatbot what its carbon footprint was, and its answer felt, well, human: It depends."As an AI language model developed by OpenAI, I do not have a physical body or personal actions that generate carbon emissions," ChatGPT wrote. "My carbon footprint would be limited to the energy consumption of the computers and servers used to run me and process requests. The exact carbon footprint would depend on factors such as the energy sources used to power the computers and the efficiency of the data centers."ChatGPT added that OpenAI didn't disclose how many computers and servers were used to run and process requests. It's "likely a large-scale infrastructure consisting of multiple data centers spread across different regions," it wrote. The numbers might change based on demand.And because ChatGPT's most recent <a href="https://www.searchenginejournal.com/openai-chatgpt-update/476116/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data is from 2021</a>, it's unlikely any answer it could give would reflect its recent surge in popularity.<div type="image" title="ChatGPT screenshot" height="1146" width="1532" msid="97916879" hostid="261" sizebytes="105332"></div>Sasha Luccioni, a researcher at the AI startup HuggingFace, wasn't surprised that ChatGPT was vague — the environmental impact of AI is still an emerging area of research.Last year, she coauthored a <a href="https://arxiv.org/pdf/2211.02001.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">study</a> that looked at the life cycle of emissions from HuggingFace's own language model, Bloom. The study, which wasn't peer-reviewed, measured emissions starting from the manufacturing of computer hardware to the energy used to train the model. Those emissions totaled nearly 51 metric tons of carbon dioxide — or about 60 one-way flights between London and New York, according to <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/11/14/1063192/were-getting-a-better-idea-of-ais-true-carbon-footprint/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MIT Technology Review</a>. HuggingFace also tracked electricity use as Bloom fielded hundreds of thousands of queries from users during an 18-day period, and emissions totaled far less than 1 metric ton of carbon dioxide. The emissions associated with Bloom were low compared with language models of similar size. A 2019 <a href="https://arxiv.org/pdf/1906.02243.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Massachusetts Amherst</a> study of popular language models found in the case of one model, for example, that its training could emit the equivalent of 284,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, or five times the average gas-powered car over its lifetime.If you take a step back, the entire global tech sector accounts for somewhere between <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666389921001884#!" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2% and 4% of greenhouse-gas emissions</a>, and AI is only a slice of that field. The aviation industry similarly accounts for <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/09/aviation-flight-path-to-net-zero-future/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">about 3% of global emissions</a>.That doesn't mean it should be ignored, Luccioni said. "Most AI programs are on the low end of the emissions spectrum," she said. "A select few models seem to be disproportionately polluting, though, so it's important to understand where the sources of carbon are. Then you can at least start setting up guidelines."ChatGPT also told me that OpenAI's goal was to handle an increasing number of requests in an "efficient" and "cost-effective" way, while reducing its environmental impact. Those strategies include optimizing energy use in its data centers, looking to source renewable energy for its operations, and purchasing carbon offsets. <div type="image" title="ChatGPT screenshot" height="886" width="1773" msid="97916880" hostid="261" sizebytes="94044"></div>OpenAI didn't return a request for comment on its environmental goals.The entire exchange left me feeling like I had interviewed a politician because there were few direct answers and I still had a lot of questions, including what the carbon footprint of my query was.

I asked ChatGPT about its carbon footprint, and for now, it's a mystery

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Two dozen companies plans to buy $53 million worth of carbon-removal credits from Charm Industrial.</li><li>The startup converts corn stalks and other plant waste into bio-oil, then pumps it underground.</li><li>Climate scientists say carbon removal is essential to keep global warming below catastrophic levels.</li></ul>Not all oil is bad for the planet. Two dozen companies announced plans Thursday to buy $53 million worth of carbon-removal credits from Charm Industrial, which converts corn stalks, leaves, and other waste leftover from agricultural harvests into bio-oil. Charm then pumps that carbon-rich oil underground to be permanently stored. It's a way to prevent organic matter from breaking down and further warming the atmosphere. The company says the oil hardens within days and it estimates the carbon dioxide is locked away for 1 million years.The agreement, one of the largest to date involving the carbon-removal industry, would prevent 112,000 tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere between 2024 and 2030. That's far more than the <a href="https://newsletter.businessinsider.com/click/31520770.12795/aHR0cHM6Ly9jaGFybWluZHVzdHJpYWwuY29tL3JlZ2lzdHJ5P3V0bV9tZWRpdW09bmV3c2xldHRlcg/628bdf90094963f5ad0eef3eB34a22263" target="_blank" rel="noopener">6,055 tons that Charm Industrial has removed to date</a> under pilot programs. "This purchase is super helpful for fundraising and going out and building up capacity," Peter Reinhardt, the company's cofounder and CEO, told Insider. "It's hard to build capacity for something that doesn't have demand, so a signed contract is really impactful."The deal <a href="https://frontierclimate.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was facilitated by Frontier</a>, which was launched last year by Stripe, Alphabet, Shopify, Meta, and McKinsey Sustainability aimed at jump-starting the carbon-removal market with a $1 billion commitment. Frontier had spent only <a href="https://frontierclimate.com/portfolio" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$5.6 million on carbon removal</a> before Thursday's deal with Charm Industrial. Climate scientists say that carbon removal is essential to stave off catastrophe. Even if countries reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, it likely won't be fast enough to keep global temperatures from rising above 1.5 degrees Celsius compared with preindustrial levels. Meeting that global climate goal <a href="https://www.wri.org/initiatives/carbon-removal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">will likely require billions of metric tons</a> of carbon dioxide to be removed from the atmosphere by 2050.There are various carbon-removal technologies. Startups like Climeworks <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/carbon-dioxide-removal-air-sky-machine-climate-change-climeworks-2023-1">are using fans to suck carbon dioxide out of the sky</a>, while others are using enhanced weathering that speeds up the natural ability of minerals to store carbon dioxide.For its part, Charm Industrial buys agricultural waste from farmers and heats it to high temperatures in a contraption called a pyrolyzer. The process creates both bio-oil and biochar. The bio-oil is pumped <a href="https://charmindustrial.com/faq?question=is-it-safe-to-inject-bio-oil-underground_7d367946" target="_blank" rel="noopener">into wells and salt caverns</a> that store industrial waste or were left behind by oil and gas companies — and that the Environmental Protection Agency regulates."This is an opportunity to clean up these end-of-life oil and gas assets," Reinhardt said. "We can take these abandoned assets that may be leaking oil or methane, refill the empty formation and then plug it or properly seal it off."Farmers can add the biochar to their fields, which <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cities-will-make-soil-additive-biochar-to-help-climate-2022-6">can improve soil health and sequester more carbon</a>. But Charm Industrial doesn't account for that in its measurement of how much carbon the company is removing. The <a href="https://charmindustrial.com/Bio-oil_Sequestration__Protocol_for_Measurement_Reporting_and_Verification.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">life-cycle analysis</a> includes the total carbon stored, minus emissions from transportation, pyrolysis, and the injection underground. Today, Charm Industrial charges $600 per ton of carbon removed, but Reinhardt said that could drop to less than $100 by 2040 as the company scales. Growing the company will require access to more agricultural waste, known as biomass. It's also used in renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuels. Yet Reinhardt isn't worried about a biomass shortage."I would say this is a theoretical concern we encounter in academic circles, but in practice is very far from reality," he said. "Maybe at a really massive scale there starts to be some questions about how we are going to compete for biomass. Right now, we have biomass coming out of our ears."

Charm Industrial is getting $53 million to turn agricultural waste into oil that can lock away carbon dioxide for 1 million years

<ul class="summary-list"><li>UK scientists found a way to clean up blast furnaces, the most carbon-intensive part of steelmaking.</li><li>Steel accounts for up to 9% of global emissions and is one of the most difficult climate challenges.</li></ul>Steel built much of our modern world, but it also racked up a massive carbon footprint along the way. Now, researchers at <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/2023/novel-adaptation-for-existing-blast-furnaces-could-reduce-steelmaking-emissions-by-90" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow sponsored">the University of Birmingham have developed a process</a> to clean up the most carbon-intensive part of the steelmaking process: blast furnaces. Currently, coking coal and iron ore are fed into furnaces and heated to sky-high temperatures to create liquid iron, which is then refined into steel. About <a href="https://worldsteel.org/about-steel/steel-facts/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow sponsored">70% of steel</a> used around the world for buildings, cars, and household appliances is made this way.For every metric ton of steel produced, nearly two metric tons of carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, <a href="https://worldsteel.org/publications/policy-papers/climate-change-and-the-production-of-iron-and-steel/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow sponsored">according to the World Steel Organization</a>. The industry accounts for up to 9% of global emissions, meaning that if it were a country, it'd be the third-largest emitter behind China and the US.Harriet Kildahl, a co-author of the research by University of Birmingham, told Insider that her team found a way to make steel with 90% less coking coal, which could reduce carbon emissions by a similar percentage. Kildahl described it as a "closed-loop" system that captures and recycles carbon dioxide to trigger the chemical reactions that convert iron ore into steel. A mineral known as perovskite is used to react with carbon dioxide at lower temperatures, she said. The system could be retrofitted onto furnaces. "Some coking coal is used to start up this thermochemical cycle, but from that point on, you would never need to add any more," Kildahl said.The system could be easier and cheaper to adopt than other strategies to decarbonize steel because it repurposes blast furnaces rather than replacing them, Yulong Ding, a co-author of the research, told Insider. His team is searching for industrial partners to build a plant and test the process on a pilot scale. Technologies that don't use fossil fuels for steel production are emerging, though they haven't been proven to work on a commercial scale. The Swedish steelmaker SSAB built a plant that uses green hydrogen from renewable energy and <a href="https://www.ssab.com/en/news/2022/05/ssab-to-deliver-fossilfree-steel-to-volvo-trucks" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow sponsored">delivered a small amount of fossil-free steel to Volvo last year</a>. SSAB aims to reach commercial scale by 2026. Startups like Boston Metal and Electra, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-10-06/how-to-make-emissions-free-iron-at-temperatures-colder-than-coffee" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow sponsored">which are backed by Bill Gates' venture-capital firm and heavy industry</a>, are in the early stages of testing two ways to use electricity to convert iron ore to steel.Yet every strategy has its drawbacks, including the one out of the UK. "I found this very innovative and promising," said Jihye Kim, an assistant professor at the Colorado School of Mines who researches critical mineral extraction from the wasted byproducts from steel production. "But there are a few disadvantages."Kim said the researchers' approach doesn't replace 100% of coke, so other materials like biomass, charcoal, or recycled plastic must be added. Using mostly gas instead of solid coke in the blast furnace also raises questions about its stability at an industrial-sized plant. Extra heat and power might be required, although ideally that could be met with renewables. In the end, different strategies are needed to decarbonize steel, Kim said. "We can use multiple techniques at the same time."

UK scientists found a way to slash nearly 90% of carbon emissions from the country's steel industry

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Whales are the biggest animals on Earth and their huge bodies play a role in the carbon cycle.</li><li>They capture carbon in their body as they live and encourage biodiversity with their poop. </li></ul>Whales naturally help divert carbon away from the atmosphere in life and death, scientists said in a review published Thursday. Because they are so large — with the largest whales bigger even than the dinosaurs — the amount of carbon they capture throughout their lifetime is substantial. Though it may not be a solution to the climate crisis on its own, their ability to store carbon is another reason to encourage their numbers to rise in the oceans, the scientists said.The results of their analysis <a href="https://www.cell.com/trends/ecology-evolution/fulltext/S0169-5347(22)00279-8">were published</a> in the peer-reviewed journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution.<h2>Whales naturally store carbon by living their life</h2>Whales capture carbon mainly by pooping and dying. The diagram below explains how. <div type="image" title="A diagram shows how whales help capture carbon from the athmosphere. Two types of great whales are shown pooping, feeding local phytoplankton growth, feeding on the plankton or the animals that eat the plankton, then dying and sinking to the ocean floor." height="2103" width="2000" msid="96259969" hostid="261" sizebytes="230116"></div>Any animal, big or small, is part of a carbon cycle. Carbon is present in every lifeform on Earth. Animals get carbon by eating plants and animal products, and plants get it from the atmosphere. That carbon is either stored in the body until the animal's death or shed as feces. These byproducts are then nibbled on by other animals and plants, putting that carbon back into the food chain. When you're as big as a whale, what happens to your body and your poop can have a huge effect."Because whales are so large, they have the potential to store vast amounts of carbon," said Heidi Pearson, a study author and biologist from the University of Alaska Southeast, in an interview with Insider. Whales weigh up to 150 tons and can live more than 100 years. That's a lot of carbon stored in their body, away from the atmosphere, until they die."You can think of whales as like big floating trees in the ocean," Pearson said. <div type="image" title="a humpback whale is seen from above, feeding." height="1887" width="2517" msid="96259971" hostid="261" sizebytes="904448"></div><h2>Eating, pooping, and peeing the ecosystem back to life</h2>What they don't store in their body, the whales poop and pee back into the ocean. Previous studies have shown that this is incredibly important for <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/study-whales-eat-thought-crucial-environment-2021-11">the ecosystem. </a>When whale populations dropped after the widespread whaling of the 1900s, plankton populations counterintuitively plummeted as well.That is because plankton feeds on whale poop, so the disappearance of even one whale causes a huge deficit in the ocean ecosystem. This is called the whale pump effect.By encouraging new life, the whales are creating more organisms that can capture carbon away from the atmosphere.The whales can then feed on these new lifeforms, in huge quantities, locking that carbon in their body for many decades. Finally, when they die, the whales' bodies tend to sink all the way down to the bottom of the ocean, where the carbon stays out of the atmosphere."It's going to remain out of contact with the atmosphere for hundreds, thousands of years, maybe even longer. And whales do this naturally," Pearson said. <div type="image" title="A humpback whale breaches." height="2847" width="3797" msid="96259974" hostid="261" sizebytes="691144"></div><h2>Not a silver bullet</h2>By encouraging <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/worlds-largest-container-line-reroutes-around-endangered-blue-whales-2022-9">whale numbers to grow</a>, their carbon-locking effect can be amplified. "We feel it's worth conserving whales for many reasons. They're important components of healthy ecosystems and they help to promote biodiversity, given that we are also in a biodiversity crisis," Pearson said. "This potential climate benefit is just another reason," she said.Conservation today is less about whaling and more about creating protected areas in the ocean to avoid <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cargo-ships-kill-blue-whales-solution-change-route-marine-biologist-2022-2">collisions with ships</a>, keeping the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cargo-ships-in-japan-are-changing-whales-songs-2018-10">oceans quiet</a>, and avoiding whales getting tangled in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rescuers-right-whale-north-atlantic-noaa-2017-1">fishing gear</a>, Pearson said. "Another big thing is climate change. So it kind of goes full circle," she said. Pearson warned, however, that she doesn't think it should be seen as a viable solution to the climate crisis on its own.Advocates of <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/tsinghua-s-institute-for-climate-change-and-asian-development-bank-jointly-call-for-good-nature-based-solutions-practices-in-asia-1031962182">nature-based solutions</a> suggest that by bringing back biodiversity, for instance by planting trees and encouraging re-wilding, a substantial amount of the excess carbon in the atmosphere could be captured in living organisms.This is true, and this approach has obvious positive knock-on benefits for the environment, but it's not the full story. Estimates suggest that nature-based solutions can provide 37% of the climate change mitigation by 2030 that is needed to meet the goal of keeping climate warming below 2 degrees Celsius, <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2022/05/19/what-you-need-to-know-about-nature-based-solutions-to-climate-change">according to the World Bank. </a>"They're not the silver bullet. Even if we could really get strong conservation measures and recover whale populations to their pre-industrial whaling abundance, that's still not gonna solve the climate crisis," she said. "It's gonna be one small piece of everything we need to do," she said.

Whales help mitigate climate change by pooping carbon into the ocean and taking more with them when they die, scientists say

<ul><li><keyword id="6484187" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="ril" source="Orion">RIL</keyword> is now entering its fourth capex cycle, says <keyword id="48670" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="morgan-stanley" source="Orion">Morgan Stanley</keyword>. </li><li>It has pledged a massive ₹75,000 crore (approx. $9.4 billion) investment into the new energy ecosystem. </li><li>RIL’s investment cycles provided 2-3x value creation for shareholders in the last two decades, says Morgan Stanley. </li><li>“We see up to $60 billion value creation in the new energy business by 2025,” the report says. </li><li>However, if refining margins are hit, <keyword id="10926" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="reliance" source="Orion">Reliance</keyword>’s annual debt will go up by $3 billion per annum and impact cash flows. </li></ul>Reliance has always gone big – and every capex cycle it undertakes is bigger and ‘newer’ than the last. The oil to telecom to retail major is now entering into the fourth capex cycle, according to Morgan Stanley, after the company pledged a massive ₹75,000 crore (approx. $9.4 billion) investment into a new energy ecosystem. In his own words, RIL’s chairman <keyword id="3820" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="mukesh-ambani" source="Orion">Mukesh Ambani</keyword> called it the most ambitious ever, at the 45th annual general meeting. In its latest report, Morgan Stanley says that every time RIL re-imagined its business, it has executed above investor expectations. “Investment cycles have unwound with around two to three times value creation for shareholders in the last two decades with every decade seeing around $60 billion in market cap creation,” the report says. This fourth cycle will also produce higher value quickly as its new energy pivot is integrated with its chemicals business and its own large captive use. “RIL’s integrated approach on solar panels and mobility/storage batteries, and focus on providing an alternative to China does stand out and we see up to $60 billion value creation in the new energy business by 2025. We raise our base case new energy valuation to $32 billion to account for quicker monetization,” the report says. RIL, which is a net energy consumer at Jamnagar, will make the green choice by putting more solar and green hydrogen projects that can help reduce its own energy costs. Moreso, it will also focus on producing high value added chemicals from its petcoke gasifiers. It will also enter the engineering, procurement and construction business for selling panels and sell panels with solutions on the back of multiple investments in technology to global customers. “We estimate the business to contribute to around $1 billion in EBITDA by 2027,” the report said. How did the past RIL capex cycles work? Starting in 1997 with Jamnagar refinery commissioning, RIL has gone through three important capex cycles so far. These pertain to gas fields at KGD6, the Jamnagar expansion in 2012 and the great re-entry into telecom. While they did create value, it did not come at no cost to the organization in the form of write-offs, impairments and ‘challenged capex’. “In every capex cycle, RIL also had its share of challenges, such as the write off of investments for petcoke gasifiers, telecom spectrum and upstream shale investments,” the report said. RIL had invested in three shale gas assets in 2010 and 2013 but exited them in 2017. In addition to investing in KGD6 block in the Krishna Godavari which is producing over 25 mmscmd of gas, RIL had also invested in Cauvery and Mahanadi basins over the years. RIL also had to rejig its investments in retail between 2006-2010 and emerged stronger in 2015-16, the report said. RIL capex that was challenged <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Year </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Challenged capex </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY03-FY10 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$12.5 billion upstream exploration and production -Includes $2.7 billion impairment taken on shale investments </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY12-FY16 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$8 billion capex into petcoke gasifier </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY18 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$2 billion spectrum writeoff </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">FY22 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">$4 billion impact on petcoke gasifier value during hiveoff </td></tr></tbody></table>Source: Morgan Stanley Telecom and retail businesses are ‘settling’ Morgan Stanley believes that the timing for new energy investments is ripe. Its other businesses are unwinding and expected to unwind faster in the future. After kick starting the business with ‘free data’ and still retaining the tag of providing the cheapest data offerings, <keyword id="2003276" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="jio" source="Orion">Jio</keyword> is on the verge of reaping benefits. Telecom business has become a three-player market and the report expects the average revenue per user to grow by over 50% over the next four to five 5 years. That means Jio’s revenues can expand to 1.6 times its FY22 levels. It also expects its 5G investments to yield quicker monetization than 4G did. The biggest advantage that new energy investments bring is the global and national support as India pledges to move towards Net Zero emissions by 2070. However, green hydrogen, solar panels and battery technology is a fast evolving sector with new changes afoot. “Policy support in this cycle is also increasing for the new energy vertical and the government recently approved a bill in parliament to raise the use of alternative fuels, provide incentives for investments in new energy and start carbon trading also points to rising total addressable market for RIL – something we saw less of in previous cycles,” the report said. But there is a catch. For its new energy business to run smoothly, RIL needs its refining business to hold steady. Refining margins fund nearly a third of RIL's investment plans and if margins were to decline to cycle low as the business is cyclical — it will reduce operating cash flows by 20% and annual debt would rise by $3 billion, as per Morgan Stanley’s calculations. “While cycle low gross refining margins are not sustainable as there would be a supply response, we do see a net impact of 15% hit to our net asset value as RIL would see its multiple de-rate as well,” the report said. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/jamnagar-is-going-green-but-on-the-back-of-its-oil-and-chemicals-business/articleshow/93859168.cms">Jamnagar is going green but on the back of its oil and chemicals business</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/gautam-adanis-overly-ambitious-growth-plans-can-spiral-into-a-massive-debt-trap-fitch/articleshow/93725014.cms">Gautam Adani’s overly ambitious growth plans can spiral into a massive debt trap: CreditSights report</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/worst-of-times-can-also-be-the-best-of-times-says-anand-mahindra/articleshow/93376032.cms">Worst of times can also be the best of times, says Anand Mahindra</a>

RIL’s fourth capex cycle will unwind with $60 billion value creation, says Morgan Stanley

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="12069433" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ups" source="Orion">UPS</keyword> will start delivering packages from its new, battery-powered, four-wheeled cycles in NYC.</li><li>Called the "eQuad" by UPS, the cycles are meant to be more efficient for congested streets.</li></ul>A smaller, battery-powered version of the UPS <keyword id="11922166" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="delivery" source="Orion">delivery</keyword> truck is hitting the streets of <keyword id="11921345" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="new-york-city" source="Orion">New York City</keyword>. On Tuesday, the company's four-wheeled eQuad electric bikes made their debut in the city, as part of the <a href="https://pix11.com/news/local-news/ups-unveils-tiny-battery-powered-cycles-in-nyc/">UPS' trial run</a> of the delivery cycles in congested cities like NYC and cities in <keyword id="11897120" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="europe" source="Orion">Europe</keyword>, like Paris and Stockholm. "We're testing out in New York just based on the blueprint of New York City, and the complexities," Nicole Pilet, UPS industrial engineer, said in <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2022-06-15/ups-tries-electric-bikes-for-deliveries">a video shared by Bloomberg</a>. "If we can have success here in the city, then we can see how we implement in other cities throughout the US."UPS is already moving toward <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/22/british-ev-start-up-arrival-north-carolina-factory-to-build-a-ups-fleet.html">more electric</a> delivery vehicles, and has <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-new-york-carbon-neutrality-climate-and-environment-2db493a93386182d3ed549c9e885ea9e">more than 1,000 electric vehicles</a> in its delivery fleet. The eQuad is only 34 inches wide, and can go up to 15.53 mph, even though the city has a 12 mph speed limit, Sarah Shatan, media relations and global communications supervisor at UPS, said. On a single charge, the bike can travel 40/4 miles, she added."Last-mile deliveries via cycle can support a more sustainable way to deliver in dense urban environments and navigate zero-emission zones," Shatan said. "They're the latest leap forward in UPS's innovative <keyword id="11896309" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sustainability" source="Orion">sustainability</keyword> driven strategy to test new ways to serve customers while reducing carbon footprint and traffic congestion."UPS has a goal to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-new-york-carbon-neutrality-climate-and-environment-2db493a93386182d3ed549c9e885ea9e">reach carbon neutrality</a> by 2050. UPS isn't the first delivery company to experiment with e-bikes. FedEx <a href="https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/fedex-express-continues-journey-towards-zero-emissions-delivery-as-edinburgh-glasgow-and-cambridge-become-the-next-uk-cities-to-welcome-e-cargo-bikes/#:~:text=FedEx%20has%20already%20introduced%20e,method%20of%20zero%20emissions%20delivery">added e-cargo bikes</a> to its delivery services in London in December 2021, and <a href="https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/fedex-express-continues-journey-towards-zero-emissions-delivery-as-edinburgh-glasgow-and-cambridge-become-the-next-uk-cities-to-welcome-e-cargo-bikes/#:~:text=FedEx%20has%20already%20introduced%20e,method%20of%20zero%20emissions%20delivery">has plans to extend</a> the bike service to Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Cambridge. Like UPS, FedEx wants to cut its carbon emissions too, but 10 years earlier <a href="https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/fedex-express-continues-journey-towards-zero-emissions-delivery-as-edinburgh-glasgow-and-cambridge-become-the-next-uk-cities-to-welcome-e-cargo-bikes/#:~:text=FedEx%20has%20already%20introduced%20e,method%20of%20zero%20emissions%20delivery">by 2040</a>.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-new-york-carbon-neutrality-climate-and-environment-2db493a93386182d3ed549c9e885ea9e">Talking to AP</a>, Mohammad Islam said the eQuad bike was "cool stuff.""Big trucks always blocking the traffic," <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-new-york-carbon-neutrality-climate-and-environment-2db493a93386182d3ed549c9e885ea9e">he told AP</a>. "If they do that kind of stuff, it's 10 times better for everybody."During deliveries, the ebikes have curbside access to park. So far, there have been no incidents reported from the pilot launch in NYC.Even some UPS delivery drivers agree that the electric fleet might be better. Dyghton Anderson, a 22-year-old UPS delivery driver working in the pilot program, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-new-york-carbon-neutrality-climate-and-environment-2db493a93386182d3ed549c9e885ea9e">told AP</a> the program fit his interests as a cyclist."I ride to and from work — from all the way from the Bronx all the way to here on 43rd — so it's pretty comfortable for me," <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-new-york-carbon-neutrality-climate-and-environment-2db493a93386182d3ed549c9e885ea9e">Anderson said</a>.

You Searched For "carbon cycle" and got 8 results

WATCH: A NASA animation shows gigantic plumes of carbon dioxide emissions swirling over India

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Meet the ex-Tesla staffer cycling across the world to encourage people to embrace low-carbon slow travel

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I asked ChatGPT about its carbon footprint, and for now, it's a mystery

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Charm Industrial is getting $53 million to turn agricultural waste into oil that can lock away carbon dioxide for 1 million years

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UK scientists found a way to slash nearly 90% of carbon emissions from the country's steel industry

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Whales help mitigate climate change by pooping carbon into the ocean and taking more with them when they die, scientists say

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RIL’s fourth capex cycle will unwind with $60 billion value creation, says Morgan Stanley

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Check out UPS's new battery-powered cargo cycles, which are hitting the streets of NYC and parts of Europe

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