Photos by James Whitlow Delano @jameswhitlowdelano for @everydayclimatechange...

Every Day Climate Change 2 years ago

Photos by James Whitlow Delano @jameswhitlowdelano for @everydayclimatechange As summer reaches record heat, and talk turns to the warming planet, it again becomes clear to me that only a few voices in the US can get a word in edgewise. We need more voices, voices of those in the field witnessing and documenting the devastating consequences of our changing climate – not the same celebrity climate activists. 1. A fishing boat left behind on Lake Poopo, formerly Bolivia's second largest, that has completely dried up in large part due to climate change. Lake Poopo dried up completely in 2015. Poopo was suffering for years with increased meltwater diversion and contamination of water along its source, the Desaguadero River but prolonged decrease in rains and intense drought, due to climate change, led to this 2,400 sq km (926 sq. mi.) lake, an area five times larger than Lake Tahoe, to dry out completely, killing estimated 3 million fish and thousands of birds. 2. Riding this road in Bulakan (correct spelling), every day, during high tide is likely riding out to sea, due to rising sea levels and subsiding ground from over-exploitation of an underground aquifer. Bulakan (correct spelling(, Bulacan (correct spelling) Province, The Philippines 3. 2023: The sun filtered through the smoke of the forest fire in San José de Palco. Bío Bío, Chile. In the 13th year of a megadrought in Central Chile, over 425,000 hectares (1,050,197 acres) of forest have burned, most of it in dessicated monoculture tree plantations of highly flammable exotic species of eucalyptus and Monterey pine. At least 26 people have been killed and 2,000 injured. 4. The advancing Sahara: Small fields of wheat, irrigated by water from a solar powered pump drawn from a 15 meter deep well, are planted amid sand dunes which are encroaching upon the palmeraie oasis of M'Hamid. Morocco This palmeraie is drying out due to the the climate crisis and a dam build at the top of the valley at the base of the Atlas Mountains.

layersDaily Sustainability Digest

Published about 8 hours ago



The UK government’s new Steel Strategy signals a structural shift in sustainable construction, embedding recycled scrap at the core of industrial decarbonisation and boosting the supply of low carbon construction materials. The move towards electric arc furnaces is intended to reduce embodied carbon in materials and support the delivery of net zero carbon buildings. For the building sector, the policy aligns with life cycle thinking in construction and whole life carbon assessment, creating investment certainty for producers of verified low embodied carbon materials. The increased focus on clean energy and circular economy in construction connects directly to broader environmental sustainability in construction and reinforces the shift toward net zero whole life carbon performance.

In parallel, reforms to grid flexibility are enabling energy-efficient buildings to trade electricity from heat pumps, EV chargers and battery systems. This improves building lifecycle performance by optimising operational energy demand and minimising the carbon footprint of construction through more effective resource efficiency in construction. Developers applying sustainable building design and eco-design for buildings can now integrate energy flexibility into their life cycle cost calculations, reducing long-term emissions and supporting carbon neutral construction targets.

The Land Use Framework introduces a more integrated approach to planning green infrastructure, ensuring that housing, nature recovery and flood resilience are assessed within whole life carbon perspectives. It embeds environmental product declarations (EPDs) and life cycle assessment principles into spatial planning, a step towards measurable sustainable building practices.

Circular economy principles are maturing from aspiration to methodology. By promoting end-of-life reuse in construction and circular construction strategies, the industry is reframing recycling as the last resort rather than the goal. Specifying green building materials and renewable building materials at RIBA Stage 2 enhances sustainable material specification and reduces the environmental impact of construction. Design for disassembly and reuse is no longer niche; it is central to sustainable construction and low carbon design. The integration of BREEAM and the forthcoming BREEAM v7 framework will further tie lifecycle assessment to performance metrics, ensuring that sustainable design becomes both a compliance requirement and a competitive advantage.

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