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Trying to kill algae with chemicals is a common response when community ponds or other water features go green. But there are better solutions that cost far less, last longer and carry less risk of harm to pets and wildlife. Rather than battling against nature, these alternatives work with nature for long-term solutions.

Data centres cooling drives heatwave demand Channel News brendan 1st July 2026 Teaser Media

When Tropical Storm Ana made landfall in Malawi in 2022, it hit the Southeast African country’s electricity system hard, destroying a third of its hydropower capacity and causing nationwide shutdowns.

Even before the storm, Malawi’s power supply – generated mostly from renewables including solar and hydro – had been unreliable for many years, suffering from persistent outages.

The Malawian government is now hoping to improve the stability of its grid power with the construction of a battery energy storage system (BESS) in its capital that will charge up with surplus electricity generated when the sun is shining and hydropower dams are running, and release it when needed.

More than 80% of Malawi’s electricity comes from renewables and the country has been expanding capacity by adding more solar power while decommissioning 78 megawatts (MW) of diesel generation. But climatic impacts such as cyclones disrupt the grid and threaten to reverse energy transition gains.

West Africa’s first lithium mine awaits go-ahead as Ghana seeks better deal 

To ensure a more stable supply, Malawi is building the 20 MW/30 megawatt hour (MWh) battery storage system in Lilongwe with support from the Global Energy Alliance (GEA), under Mission 300 – an initiative led by development banks and their partners to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030.

The project in Malawi aims to stabilise the country’s grid, smooth its intermittent power supply, and reduce its reliance on diesel generators, as well as averting about 10,000 tonnes of carbon emissions per year.

Battery energy storage systems act like giant power banks, absorbing clean electricity during periods of lower demand and releasing it for use when demand is high or generation drops. A typical BESS includes battery packs, inverters that allow electricity to flow between the batteries and the grid, transformers, and cooling and safety systems.

Damola Omole, director of the ‘Grids of the Future, Africa’ programme at the GEA, a philanthropic organisation, said BESS offers the “flexibility needed to smoothly integrate high levels of variable renewables” into the power grid. In doing so, it can reduce reliance on expensive diesel generation and protect consumers and industries from rising energy costs, he added.

Can BESS drive Africa’s industrialisation?

As calls to develop local green industries grow louder in Africa, Omole said there is a need to prioritise upgrading national grids with BESS so they can “transmit reliable, cost-reflective power directly to commercial clusters”.

While financiers previously doubted that intermittent solar and wind could meet the needs of industrial production, utility-scale BESS has demonstrated that renewables can deliver “predictable, steady output just like traditional fossil-fuel baseload power”, he added.

An electrical power engineer performs preventative maintenance using a digital voltmeter to monitor battery charge efficiency. (Photo: Nitat Termmee/ Getty Images)

In recent years, African leaders, including William Ruto of Kenya, Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe, have called for the continent to use the energy transition to drive green industrialisation and create value from its resources at home.

At a mining investment conference in Nairobi in April, Ruto said Africa had stayed at the bottom of the value chain for too long but would now collaborate to process its minerals within the continent. “We will refine them here and we will manufacture them here,” he told African ministers and business executives.

Kenya seeks regional coordination to build African mineral value chains

However, deploying energy at scale to advance this industrial ambition has long been a problem, while about 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity. BESS could therefore become a critical technology in the continent’s development drive, experts say.

Michael Iwu, West Africa business development manager at Empower New Energy, which finances and co-develops renewable energy, said BESS is challenging the narrative that solar and wind power alone cannot provide enough reliable electricity to run factories and other energy-intensive industries. Modern battery systems can now support business operations for several hours, helping maintain production during grid outages, he added.

For GEA’s Omole, the key question has shifted to how quickly countries can build the battery storage, grid infrastructure and market frameworks needed to unlock the potential of renewables.

BESS to help renewables displace fossil fuels

While BESS is still in its initial stages of deployment in Africa, interest is growing as countries look for ways to make renewable energy more reliable.

South Africa is leading with the largest and first of its kind utility-scale BESS on the continent. With the capacity to discharge up to five uninterrupted hours of power, the system is keeping homes and businesses running in Worcester, a southwestern town of more than 100,000 people.

Egypt is also investing heavily in battery storage. In 2025, the country launched its first utility-scale BESS, a 300-MWh facility integrated with a 500 MW solar plant in the southern city of Aswan. It has also committed more than $1 billion to strengthen its electricity grid and update regulation to support battery storage projects.

Africa needs more than export bans to cash in on critical minerals, experts say

Falling battery prices are helping drive the rapid deployment of energy storage. According to BloombergNEF, battery packs for stationary storage (used in BESS) cost an average of $70 per kilowatt-hour in 2025, down 45% from 2024.

Soon the role of BESS in supporting the grid integration of wind and solar could reduce reliance on fossil fuels and help the world meet ambitious climate goals, according to a GEA report released in April.

Stephen Nicholls, director of South-Africa based energy think-tank African Energy Futures, said the rapid pace of technological development and the falling costs of BESS are attracting growing attention.

He said improvements in storage duration could further strengthen the role of renewables in industrial power systems. While most commercial and utility-scale battery systems currently provide around four to eight hours of storage, Nicholls said researchers are developing units capable of storing electricity for extended periods. 

“The cheaper the storage and the longer the storage, the more [BESS] will replace fossil fuels like gas,” he added.

Workers are busy on a product at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. (Photo: REUTERS/Esa Alexander) Workers are busy on a product at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. (Photo: REUTERS/Esa Alexander) Limited awareness and data

However, significant obstacles to BESS deployment still stand in the way of its massive potential. Iwu of Empower New Energy said limited awareness of utility-scale BESS, as well as concerns about financing and a lack of long-term performance data continue to slow investment across Africa. 

Governments and developers need to build more pilot projects and demonstration sites to generate evidence of the technology’s value and benefits and boost confidence among investors and policymakers, he added. To scale BESS, we need to “keep amassing this [evidence] data and keep talking about it and exploring it,” Iwu said.

Two to tango: How governments can unlock private investment for national climate goals

To help address those barriers, Omole said a BESS Consortium under the Global Energy Alliance is working with governments, development banks and other technical partners to de-risk the sector for private financiers by generating evidence from early projects, mobilising public finance to attract private capital, and introducing policies that make battery storage commercially viable.

“This coordinated action helps African nations bypass legacy infrastructure constraints, integrate massive volumes of clean energy, and secure the reliable power required for large-scale industrialisation,” Omole explained.

The post Can giant batteries unlock Africa’s green industrial future? appeared first on Climate Home News.

By Pat Elder
July 1, 2026

Left- AI-generated illustration depicting a homeless encampment on the Fort Ord coastal dunes. Right – The yellow dots show homeless encampments. - California Department of Parks and Recreation, 2025 Annual Report, Fort Ord Dunes State Park.

A 2025 California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and California State Parks Annual Report documents that significant quantities of lead bullets remain on the surface of portions of Fort Ord Dunes State Park nearly three decades after half-hearted remediation efforts were completed by the Army. Quarterly inspections continue to identify huge areas with bullet cover, while annual lead removal operations continue to recover substantial quantities of lead from the dunes. 

‍ Buckets containing lead bullets and fragments collected from the sand dunes at the former Fort Ord, popular with vacationers.  - California Department of Parks and Recreation 2025 Annual Report, Fort Ord Dunes State Park

In December 2025 alone, State Parks personnel removed 106 pounds of lead bullets from Ranges 15 and 16 after identifying areas of concentrated surface contamination during routine inspections. The report also documents continuing homeless encampments within former firing ranges and the construction of a new campground in portions of the historic military training area.

‍These findings raise important questions regarding potential human exposure to lead among several groups of park users, particularly individuals who spend extended periods in the dunes.

Magnitude of the Remaining Contamination

The Army claims that the cleanup of contamination at the beach is complete, but they are lying to the public.  Rather, it has become an ongoing management issue for the state, requiring repeated inspections and recurring removal activities. Surface inspections conducted throughout 2025 found concentrations of lead bullets in many of the same locations identified during inspections conducted between 2017 and 2022. Inspectors continue to map visible bullets, remove smaller accumulations during quarterly inspections, and schedule larger cleanup operations where concentrations remain elevated. The recovery of more than one hundred pounds of lead during a single cleanup event illustrates that substantial quantities of metallic lead remain accessible at or near the surface in portions of the former firing ranges.‍ ‍

Tens of thousands of soldiers trained each year for more than 50 years.  The cumulative total of bullets reached into the billions of rounds.

Unlike many former military ranges located on stable soils, Fort Ord occupies an active coastal dune system. Sand movement driven by strong coastal winds, winter storms, bluff erosion, and wave action continually reshapes the landscape. The annual report itself notes continuing bluff erosion caused by winter storms and ongoing wind erosion in portions of the park. These natural processes can expose bullets that were previously buried beneath sand while simultaneously burying others.

Areas appearing relatively clean during one inspection may later contain newly exposed bullets following periods of strong winds or storm erosion, explaining why annual inspections and repeated cleanup efforts remain necessary decades after the initial remediation. Of course, the Army understood this when they proclaimed a clean bill of health for the dunes many years ago. It’s the same story in many places around the world. They just don’t give a damn.

 Potential Exposure to Campground Visitors

A new campground is being constructed under the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, (DTSC) oversight, with environmental monitoring during grading activities. These measures reduce, but do not eliminate the likelihood of direct exposure within the campground itself. Nevertheless, campground visitors are naturally drawn to explore the surrounding dunes, particularly children and families. Individuals leaving designated areas and entering former firing ranges may encounter visible lead bullets or fragments exposed at the surface. Contact with contaminated sand may result in incidental ingestion through ordinary hand-to-mouth activity, while windblown dust generated during dry conditions may provide an additional pathway for inhalation exposure.

Homeless Encampments

The annual report documents that law enforcement removed homeless encampments from Range 1 during 2025. Individuals residing within former firing ranges may experience considerably greater opportunities for lead exposure than recreational visitors because of the duration and nature of their activities.

Living in the dunes often requires repeated disturbance of surface sands while constructing campsites, leveling sleeping areas, digging fire pits, or building makeshift shelters. These activities increase direct contact with surface soils where lead bullets remain. Windblown sand can accumulate on bedding, clothing, food, cooking utensils, and personal belongings, creating repeated opportunities for ingestion and inhalation. Individuals living outdoors also spend many hours each day in direct contact with the ground, substantially increasing cumulative exposure compared with visitors spending only a few hours in the park.

The annual report documents the continued presence of homeless encampments but does not discuss whether environmental lead exposure has been evaluated among these individuals or whether any public health assessment has been conducted.

Potential Exposure Among Hikers and Other Recreational Users

See Monterey Magnet Man’s brilliant YouTube video. He found 93 bullets while metal detecting in a small area on the Fort Ord Dunes.

Many hikers leave established paths to explore the dunes, former bunkers, and the historic military landscape. Those entering former firing ranges may encounter visible lead bullets or fragments resting on or near the surface. Sitting directly on contaminated sand, allowing children to play in affected areas, handling bullets as curiosities, or disturbing surface sediments during recreation all provide plausible pathways for lead exposure. Although exposure during a single visit is likely to be relatively small, repeated recreational use of contaminated areas could increase cumulative contact over time.

Occupational Safety Highlights an Important Concern

An important observation emerges from the annual report. State Parks personnel conducting lead removal operations wear gloves, long sleeves, safety glasses, and N95 respirators while collecting bullets from the dunes. These protective measures acknowledge that collecting and disturbing lead-contaminated materials presents an occupational exposure concern. In contrast, members of the public entering former firing ranges generally receive no comparable protective equipment and may be unaware that visible lead bullets remain present on the ground surface.

Conclusions

The 2025 DTSC annual report demonstrates that lead contamination remains a serious management issue within portions of Fort Ord Dunes State Park. Continuing inspections, repeated bullet mapping, and the recovery of 106 pounds of lead during a single cleanup operation indicate that substantial quantities of lead remain accessible on or near the surface of the former firing ranges. The report further documents continuing coastal erosion, ongoing dune migration, recurring homeless encampments, and the ongoing need for lead removal, indicating that this is not a static contamination site but a constantly changing coastal environment where storms and wind can expose previously buried bullets.

The potential for human exposure varies considerably depending upon how the park is used, although we must keep in mind that lead bullets weather through physical abrasion and chemical corrosion. Weathering produces small lead-containing particles that adhere to fine sand and dust. The strong coastal winds suspend these fine particles in the air where they can be inhaled.

Campground visitors using the new facilities are likely to experience some exposure, while hikers who leave designated trails may encounter highly contaminated areas. Individuals living for extended periods within homeless encampments located inside former firing ranges may experience the greatest opportunity for repeated exposure because of prolonged contact with contaminated sand, windblown dust, and surface lead. Additional environmental monitoring and public health evaluation, particularly regarding populations residing within the former firing ranges, would provide a stronger scientific basis for evaluating the magnitude of these potential risks.‍‍‍ ‍

As the hot days of summer begin to settle in and the excitement of spring migration slows down, human celebrations are picking up. June is a month to celebrate freedom, a feeling that birds have...

Today we had another conversation with our frequent guest and comrade Professor Eskandar Sadeghi of The University of St. Andrews in Scotland, who’s an international authority of Iranian history and…

Why Oregon should keep investing in clean trucks and buses Brett Morgan Tue, 06/30/2026 - 12:12 pm

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down President Trump’s order denying birthright citizenship to children born on U.S. soil, affirming that the Fourteenth Amendment means what it has always meant. The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, which filed an amicus brief in Trump v Barbara, welcomed the ruling and issued the following:

Dariely Rodriguez, chief counsel at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said:

“Today’s ruling solidifies what we have known to be true for over a hundred years and what our Constitution and federal laws have supported: that anyone born on American soil, regardless of the legal status of their parents, is born an American citizen. We have endured an incredible test of our collective will as a nation and have prevailed. We are glad ideological gamesmanship failed, and the right result was reached here.”

Olivia Sedwick, counsel at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said:

“We are satisfied with today’s result, however, we know it should have never been a question from the start. This part of our democracy’s foundation remains intact. The domicile status of one’s parents has never been a part of the calculus to determine who is born an American citizen. We hope this ends the attack on the citizenship of our American-born brothers and sisters who are born to immigrant parents. That question has finally been asked, answered, and laid to rest, hopefully, forever.”

In response to the Supreme Court’s ruling allowing states to ban trans youth and some intersex youth from participating in school sports, the Center for Constitutional Rights released the following statement:

Today's decision confirms what trans and intersex advocates have known for some time: we are in the Plessy v. Ferguson/Bowers v. Hardwick era of trans rights, which is to say that we have entered a period when the legal recognition and legal protections for trans and intersex people are at an all-time low. As was the case for Black Americans after Plessy was rebuked by Brown v. Board of Education, and for the LGBTQIA+ community after Lawrence v. Texas overturned Bowers, eventually this moment will be seen for what it is: a disgrace, a legal wrong, and a failure of moral clarity for which we must atone.

We stand in solidarity with trans and intersex people as they face a wave of persecution and hatred much more vast than is commonly recognized. A comprehensive campaign years in the making – one that includes a raft of executive orders and federal rules driven by anti-LGBTQIA+ animus, 797 anti-trans bills in 43 states (with exceptions impacting intersex youth), efforts to censor speech and punish professors, cuts to funding for nonprofits that serve LGBTQIA+ people, and shameful kowtowing by hospitals – has endangered the health, rights, and safety of trans and intersex people across the country.

The anti-trans policymakers and activists have, through their actions and rhetoric, made their goal clear: to terrorize trans people and remove them from public life.

And yet, with today’s decision, the Supreme Court has once again abdicated duty to be a bulwark against state-sponsored persecution of trans and intersex people that is so severe that, according to the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention and Human Security, trans and intersex people are experiencing the early stages of genocide.

Rather than document this persecutory campaign, the mainstream press has boosted anti-trans propaganda in the deceptive name of “science” and “balance,” while many Democratic Party leaders are sacrificing trans and intersex people on the altar of political expediency.

We cannot defeat hatred with equivocation, we cannot mollify fascists, sadists, and bigots, and we cannot fixate on the presumed predilections of “swing voters” when the rights and wellbeing of fellow citizens are under sustained assault. What is needed is simple yet elusive: unshakable support from the broad left.

Awed and inspired by the courage of trans and intersex people in the face of this mounting threat, we are proud to stand with them, and we are eager to join others ready to bring unwavering fierceness and love to this urgent civil rights struggle.

In response to the Supreme Court decision in West Virginia v. BPJ, Karla Gonzales Garcia, Gender, Sexuality, and Identity Director at Amnesty International USA said:

“This decision comes at a time of rising authoritarian practices under the Trump administration, which use gender and sexuality as a cultural battle for political gain. Amid escalating efforts to legalize discrimination against transgender people, this decision could pave the way for broader laws that exclude transgender people from public life altogether.

“Transgender youth should have the same opportunities afforded to their cisgender peers. Athletic programs are essential to the growth and development of all young people. Today’s ruling would deny transgender youth the ability to participate in recreational activities with their friends and peers – simply due to their gender identity.

“Transgender people are our family, neighbors, friends, coworkers and community members, and the U.S. government will not force them from existence. We are united in solidarity with every young transgender athlete whose future feels less certain today.

“Together, we will continue to fight for a better future – one where transgender people can enjoy their human right to bodily autonomy and a life of freedom, safety and dignity.”

Nearly one third of all corporate political spending on elections since the 2010 Citizens United decision has occurred in the current election cycle – months before the general election, a new report from Public Citizen finds.

Since the U.S. Supreme Court greenlit direct corporate spending to influence election outcomes in 2010, corporations have spent $1.58 billion on federal elections. In the 2026 election cycle alone, they have spent $517 million, a figure sure to soar as the November general election approaches (these totals reference disclosed political spending, not any contributions from Dark Money organizations that keep donors secret).

The 2026 cycle spending already far exceeds the $461 million corporate spending during the 2024 presidential cycle. Driving this unprecedented surge of political spending are crypto, Big Tech and online betting corporations. Altogether, those three sectors are responsible for 57 percent of the corporate spending in the 2026 midterms. The new corporate spending is going primarily to corporate supremacist super PACs, which, unlike most super PACs, prioritize the interests of specific corporate sectors over either major political party or any particular candidate.

The report, “The Rise of Corporate Supremacist Super PACs,” also finds that the biggest beneficiary of corporate contributions besides the industry-prioritizing super PACs is the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. MAGA Inc. received $120.6 million in direct contributions from corporations including Crypto.com, Energy Transfer Partners, UnitedHealthcare, and Reynold’s American.

“A decade and a half after Citizens United, corporations are starting to spend on politics like never before,” said Rick Claypool, Research Director at Public Citizen and author of the report. “Crypto corporations shattered norms against corporate spending in elections last cycle and now many others are following suit – and still more are sure to follow.”

“This corporate spending is a disaster for democracy,” said Claypool. “If the current, broken campaign finance system remains unchallenged – and corporate spending is allowed to drown out the voices of real voters and real people – these corporate campaigns will keep multiplying, even as voting rights for individual Americans face escalating attacks.”

A healthy network of saline lakes in the Western United States is crucial to the survival and wellbeing of millions of waterbirds that depend on these ecosystems for nesting, breeding, refueling, and...

Today, by a vote of 6-3, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the long-standing federal limit on campaign spending coordination between political parties and candidates. This limit was passed by Congress in 1971 to guard against the corrupting effect of large campaign contributions flowing through party committees to candidates to circumvent federal limits on the amount of direct campaign contributions to candidates. The case is National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission. Public Citizen filed an amicus brief in the case arguing in support of the law.

“This Supreme Court twisted the First Amendment to help billionaires and corporations buy our elections and bend our government to their will,” said Public Citizen Democracy Advocate Jon Golinger. “We have to combat this outcome by increasing transparency so voters know who’s paying for election ads, empowering small donors and public matching funds, and passing the Democracy For All Amendment to empower Congress, the states, and the voters to put in place reasonable protections to guard against campaign finance corruption.”

Today in Trump v. Barbara the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Fourteenth Amendment’s guarantee of citizenship to everyone born in the United States.

Thomas Wolf, director of democracy initiatives at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, had the following reaction:

“Today’s ruling is the right one amid an avalanche of Supreme Court opinions undermining our democracy. The Court could not have defensibly ruled any differently. The Fourteenth Amendment guaranteed citizenship to everyone born here over 150 years ago. The Supreme Court affirmed that 20 years later in Wong Kim Ark. Meanwhile, the Court has been on an anti-democratic rampage.

“In just the past few weeks alone, the Court further undermined the Voting Rights Act, encouraged more aggressive partisan gerrymandering, dangerously expanded presidential power over federal agencies, and further depleted protections for immigrants. This ruling does not make up for all the damage the Court has done this term.”

In an important victory for all Americans, today the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a presidential executive order that would have changed the 14th Amendment’s process for U.S. citizenship.

But while today is a victory, attacks on communities of color continue to persist both with the president and in cases with this court.

“While we welcome the Court finally upholding a constitutional amendment ratified nearly two centuries ago, upholding the law is no cause for celebration, it is a requirement” Common Cause President & CEO Virginia Kase Solomón said. “Let today be a stark reminder that this court continues to systematically dismantle voting protections for Black and brown communities, tilting the scales of justice toward a dark era where a wealthy, privileged few dictate the rules for the rest of us. Today may be a brief victory for the rule of law, but our fight to protect our multiracial democracy continues.”

Today, the Supreme Court ruled for the Republican Party and JD Vance in National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission, reversing previous decisions and removing one of the last restrictions preventing wealthy donors from funneling huge sums to their preferred candidates through political parties. The decision strikes down limits on "coordinated expenditures" and opens the door to even more billionaire influence in American elections.

Stand Up America’s Managing Director of Policy and Political Affairs, Brett Edkins, issued the following statement on today’s decision:

“The right-wing supermajority on the Supreme Court thinks Citizens United didn’t go far enough. Today they gave their blessing for billionaires to buy even more influence over the politicians who represent us.

“Americans deserve a Supreme Court that upholds our fundamental freedoms–not one that consistently sides with billionaire donors and diminishes the power of everyday citizens in our democracy. Congress should rein in this rogue Court once Trump leaves office by enacting major reforms, including term limits, an enforceable code of ethics, and expanding the Court with justices who will defend our democracy and our fundamental freedoms.”

Since 2021, Stand Up America has been on the front lines of the fight for Supreme Court reform, mobilizing its members to take nearly one million actions in support of Supreme Court term limits, expansion, and a binding code of ethics.

SALT LAKE CITY — Today, the National Audubon Society released the Great Salt Lake Birds and Habitat Assessment—a science-based analysis that integrates habitat, hydrology and climate modeling...

Eric Mackres is senior manager of urban analytics for the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities and attended London Climate Action Week during the June 2026 heatwave. Usama Bilal is an associate professor of epidemiology and co-director of the Urban Health Collaborative at Drexel University.

As thousands gathered in London for one of the year’s largest climate gatherings last week, Western Europe faced its most severe heatwave ever recorded. The irony was not lost.

Across Europe, over a dozen countries issued urgent heat warnings and the World Health Organization recorded over 1,300 excess deaths. In London, where air conditioning is rare in buildings and on trains and buses, temperatures soared past 36 degrees Celsius (97F) and schools closed early. The mayor announced the city’s first heat action plan – an important step.

Extreme heat is now a public health crisis for many of the world’s cities, as the urban heat island effect intensifies dangerous temperatures – and it’s growing worse. Around 500,000 people die from extreme heat every year. As global temperatures rise, and with a severe El Niño getting underway, even more people will die and be hospitalised unless cities act soon.

But most cities are still taking a far too one-sized-fits-all approach to tackling heat, looking only at temperatures and not its local effects on people and their health.

People experience heat differently

How extreme heat affects people’s health can vary widely across a country and city, depending on their environment and demographics. Cities can save far more lives and prevent more hospitalisations by taking a tailored approach, using data to understand who’s most vulnerable and directing solutions toward them.

The good news: better data now exists that enable cities to pinpoint who’s most at risk. And that data can inform customised adaptation strategies to save lives. Indeed, the future of cities will hinge on their ability to deliver solutions to extreme heat tailored to at-risk people and neighborhoods.

Comment: Climate adaptation in Africa needs investment, not imported solutions

First, cities should start by measuring heat’s risks to people’s health locally. Our work in Brazil and across Latin America shows big differences in what temperatures are dangerous and how quickly risks escalate at higher temperatures. These variations exist between cities, between demographic groups and between neighbourhoods.

But it’s not as simple as finding the hottest places. In temperate Porto Alegre, in southern Brazil, a person’s risk of death increases by 25% at temperatures of 27 degrees Celsius (81F). In tropical Teresina, in northern Brazil, which is hot year-round, the same temperature does not elevate the risk of death. At 32 degrees Celsius (90F), a person’s risk of death increases by a milder 10%.

These differences also exist within cities where the climate is the same. Elderly people, the very young, lower-income communities and those without air-conditioning and shaded green spaces are all more likely to get sick, be hospitalised, or die from heat. Areas with more trees and green spaces usually have lower temperatures, and therefore lower impacts of heat.

Targeted heat alerts

Second, cities can use this data to develop early warning systems and outreach campaigns that give people more targeted heat alerts. Research in the UK found that the elderly, despite being among the most at-risk, often were unable to heed warnings during the 2022 heatwave. Well-designed heat warning systems and city responses strengthen people’s trust in health services. They can change people’s behaviours and better prepare municipal services, helping reduce illness, hospital visits and deaths.

Rio de Janeiro adopted a heat alert system in 2024 with five alert levels based on past heatwaves’ impacts on health and forecasts of when temperature and humidity will hit those dangerous levels again. The alert levels activate services like cooling centres, extra public drinking water, and changes to outdoor events. When a heatwave struck during Carnival in 2025, the city was able to deploy resources to protect and warn people while still allowing events to go on.

WHO issues new guidance on heat-health action plans, as El Niño sets in

Finally, cities should use local heat data to target cooling solutions to where they can help people the most. Solutions like tree cover, shade structures and cool roofs lower temperatures and can provide targeted relief for the most vulnerable people, like outdoor workers and those who travel by foot, bike or public transit.

In Florianópolis, Brazil, we helped the local government use heat impact modeling to design a green corridor and urban forestry project that will reduce pedestrians’ heat stress up to 7 degrees C. In Hermosillo, Mexico, our researchers worked with the city and found that certain neighbourhoods could feel up to 14 degrees C hotter than the shaded city center. A park is now under construction that will bring better shade and heat relief to one of the city’s most at-risk areas.

A modular street shade structure on display during an event at New York Climate Action Week on Governors Island, NYC in September 2025. (Photo: Megan Rowling) A modular street shade structure on display during an event at New York Climate Action Week on Governors Island, NYC in September 2025. (Photo: Megan Rowling) Connecting health and climate planning

Momentum to address extreme heat in cities is growing, from both national and local governments. At last year’s UN climate summit in Brazil, the Belém Health Action Plan saw 30 national health ministries commit to build climate-resilient health systems based on local data and evidence-based policies.

And over 160 local governments joined the Beat the Heat initiative, committing to develop urban heat action plans and deliver passive cooling projects to reduce health risks.

But there’s still a disconnect between health, urban and climate officials. Only 23% of World Meteorological Organization member countries integrate weather information into health surveillance systems. Heat-health impact models, though increasingly easy to scale, are not yet built for every city. Some cities still need to collect local data for specific demographics and neighbourhoods – and many need support.

National and local governments will need to partner on this tailored approach. It will require integrating local heat and health data into public health systems, city planning, infrastructure, and disaster preparedness.

We have the data to know who will be most impacted by extreme heat when – and the solutions to keep people alive and out of the hospital. It’s time for governments to use them.

The post With extreme heat now a public health crisis, local data can save lives appeared first on Climate Home News.

• June 30, 2026

(Op-Ed) Ska Fela Moya: Don’t Give Up, Just Breathe The Fumes

When a corporation wraps itself in the language of human endurance while polluting the air that athletes breathe, we should name it for what it is. A lost opportunity.

Gerda Steyn crossed the Comrades Marathon finishing line in Pietermaritzburg in 5 hours 44 minutes and 53 seconds, her fifth (and fourth consecutively), setting a new Up Run course record. It was, by any measure, one of the great performances in the history of the race.

Gerda is a Global Team Toyota Athlete. Toyota announced that partnership at last year’s Comrades and it returned with her to the 2026 race.

Two diesel-powered Toyota Hilux vehicles led her to the finish line.

I have spent more than 25 years working at the intersection of energy, environment and community rights in South Africa. In that time, I have seen many examples of corporations saying one thing and doing another. It is particularly disappointing that Toyota seems to have regressed by only providing fossil fuel-powered vehicles at Comrades 2026. This deserves to be examined clearly.

The Language Of Values, The Reality Of Diesel
Before the race, Toyota South Africa issued a release describing its 22-year Comrades partnership as an expression of values ‘deeply aligned with the Toyota brand,’ including ‘human endurance and determination.’ It provided 14 Hilux bakkies, three Quantum mini-buses, two Urban Cruisers and two Starlet Cross models to support the event.

Not one of those vehicles is electric. Toyota produces the BZ4X electric SUV and, through Lexus, the RZ 450e. Neither appears in the Comrades fleet. The official lead vehicles for the route from Durban to Pietermaritzburg were two diesel Hilux models, burning diesel directly in front of runners for hours on end.

When the language of human spirit is used to sell a brand while exhaust emissions from that brand’s products harm the environment and the health of the people it claims to celebrate, that is a contradiction dressed in marketing.

What The Science Tells Us About Diesel And Human Health
I am a scientist by training. I rely on evidence. There have been a number of published peer reviewed articles that show that breathing in diesel fumes is not good for your health.

Diesel particles cause inflammation in the body. A controlled chamber study by Xu et al., published in Particle and Fibre Toxicology, found that healthy volunteers exposed to diesel exhaust for three hours showed measurable drops in lung function, airway irritation, and elevated inflammatory markers in the blood.

A 2021 peer-reviewed study in PeerJ by Zoladz and Nieckarz found that elite marathon runners ventilate at over 110 litres of air per minute during a race, absorbing substantially more particulate matter than a person at rest. The researchers called for ‘clean air marathon runs’ as a public health measure. A 2024 Brown University study in Sports Medicine quantified the performance effect: higher race-day air pollution could mean slower finish times.

“It’s a missed opportunity. Leading the Comrades Marathon in an electric vehicle would have promoted the brand, the safety of electric vehicles, and the lack of harm. It is slightly incongruous that you are leading a marathon with a diesel engine,” said Professor Richard van Zyl-Smit, professor of pulmonology at the University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital. “Diesel particles are known to cause inflammation in the body. They are associated with cardiovascular disease and the development of asthma.”

Van Zyl-Smit is right. And there is a further dimension to this that goes beyond the elite runners at the front of the field.

The runners who spend twelve hours on the Comrades route are not professional athletes with medical teams and optimal conditions. They are ordinary South Africans, many from communities that already bear a disproportionate burden of air pollution from industry, traffic and energy poverty.

Every runner on that road was already breathing elevated levels of traffic pollution on a public highway for up to twelve hours, with lungs working at many times their resting capacity.

Instead of seizing the opportunity to promote the future and highlight how electric vehicles can showcase a future driven by clean transport, Toyota disappointingly chose to supply a fossil fuel fleet as the official, branded, celebrated centrepiece of a race-day environment that in my view should have focused on clean air.

The Athlete In The Exhaust
The Gerda Steyn detail sharpens this further. Toyota announced her as a Global Team Toyota Athlete in 2025. She returned to Comrades in that capacity and won, emphatically, smashing her own Up Run record by nearly five minutes and becoming only the second woman in history to claim five Comrades titles.
South Africa and Toyota will celebrate that, as it should. But Steyn, ventilating at elite pace for nearly six hours, was absorbing airborne particulate matter every step along the road.

Why not lead with a fully-electric vehicle?

The Technology Exists. So Why Not Showcase It?
In 2025, Toyota led the Comrades elite races with a Corolla Cross Hybrid. In 2026, it was replaced by a diesel Hilux, a vehicle that burns more fuel, not less. The Toyota BZ4X has a range of over 400 km on a single charge. The Comrades route is 86 km. Other major marathons have already made the shift: the 2025 Berlin Marathon was led by an all-electric BMW iX3, and the London Marathon is supported by an all-electric Ford fleet.

There are various electric vehicle initiatives underway in South Africa. For example, for logistics and people-mover duties, peer-reviewed research by Professor Thinus Booysen and Joshua Sello of Stellenbosch University (conducted in partnership with GoMetro) has demonstrated that electric minibus taxis are operationally viable in South African conditions.

Toyota has previously shown a willingness to supply even rare, commercially unavailable vehicles when it suits the brand. In October 2023, it brought a hydrogen-powered Mirai to the Smarter Mobility Africa Summit in Gauteng for a proof-of-concept demonstration, with the Gauteng Premier in the passenger seat. The Mirai is not for sale in South Africa. Toyota went to the effort regardless. The will to deploy experimental technology for brand purposes exists. Why not seize the opportunity to deploy existing, locally available electric vehicle technology that showcases the future in front of 21 000 runners and a much larger television audience?

The CMA Must Account For Its Choices Too
Toyota does not operate at Comrades without the agreement of the Comrades Marathon Association. Sponsorship contracts are negotiated. The CMA has the standing to require that its official vehicle partner supply electric vehicles and also engage a zero-emissions logistics provider. Neither condition was apparently set.

The CMA’s theme for 2026 is “Ska Fela Moya.” “Don’t give up.” Those words carry weight for everyone who has kept moving through the pain of the last 20 kilometres. But clean air is not a luxury for marathon runners. It is the medium through which they perform. Toyota and the CMA missed the opportunity to deploy electric vehicles and demonstrate that the future of transport is clean, consistent with their celebration of human endurance and determination.

The 100th Comrades Is Eleven Months Away
We live in climate-constrained world, and a move to electric vehicles is an important part of our just energy transition package. South Africa’s Just Energy Transition (JET) aims to decarbonize the economy while protecting vulnerable workers and communities, and its Electric Vehicles White Paper predicts that 75% of total new vehicle sales by 2035 will be electric vehicles. There appears to be an amazing opportunity to showcase South Africa as a country which is moving away from polluting fossil fuels, and that Toyota is committed to leading this charge.

The 2027 Comrades Marathon will be the 100th edition of the race. It will draw global attention and carry symbolic weight that goes well beyond a single sporting event. It is an opportunity to demonstrate what South African sport, and Toyota, stand for over the next 100 years.

A fully electric lead vehicle and fleet at the centenary Comrades would be a genuine expression of the values of sustainability and endurance that lie behind ensuring another 100 years of long-distance running. Corporate environmental responsibility is not measured in mission statements. It is measured in decisions that make a difference in the real world: in this case, what you burn and what you do not burn, and whose air you choose to protect and whose you choose to compromise.

Let us ensure that the 100-year celebration of The Comrades Marathon is a celebration of human endurance and determination to move towards electric-driven mobility.

Liziwe McDaid is Strategic Lead at The Green Connection and co-recipient of the 2018 Goldman Environmental Prize for Africa.

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As governments gathered at the Our Ocean Conference in Kenya’s coastal city of Mombasa this month, pledging over $6 billion for marine protection, sustainable fisheries and offshore wind, one issue remained largely absent from the main stage: the continued expansion of offshore oil and gas.

From Norway, Brazil and Guyana to South Africa, Angola and Kenya, countries are pushing ahead with offshore oil and gas projects even as they promise to protect marine ecosystems and tackle the climate change that is heating the ocean, raising sea levels and damaging coastal livelihoods. 

Governments argue that offshore oil and gas production is needed for energy security, public revenues and economic growth, but environmental groups say new drilling risks locking countries into decades of fossil fuel production just as they are promising to build a sustainable blue economy. 

Inia Seruiratu, Fijian parliamentarian and the Pacific COP31 Envoy for the Ocean, said the contradiction is becoming harder to ignore. 

“For too long, two conversations – climate mitigation and ocean protection – have run on separate tracks, in separate rooms, with separate experts,” Seruiratu told delegates at a side event during the Mombasa conference held on the shores on the Indian Ocean. 

• Jun 19, 2026 Oceans Mombasa ocean summit drives progress on marine protection, but threats persist At the 11th Our Ocean conference in Kenya, its founder John Kerry says the ocean must become central to climate solutions and needs to be looked after Read more
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• Jun 5, 2026 Nature Offshore oil and gas expansion threatens key marine ecosystems, report warns Sea life in countries like Kenya is under threat from planned new oil and gas production, analysis by environmental groups has found Read more

“We talk about emissions reductions in one hall, and coral bleaching in the other, as if they were unrelated phenomena rather than cause and effect. As we commit to new marine protected areas, new ocean financing and fisheries action, we cannot continue to treat the symptoms while funding the disease,” he added. 

In Mombasa, only one side event out of the dozens of panels was dedicated to the threats posed by the expansion of offshore oil and gas. That event was organised by civil society rather than governments.

Kenyan officials led by deputy president Kithure Kindiki, alongside John Kerry, founder of the Our Ocean conference. (Photo: Kenya State Department for Blue Economy and Fisheries) Kenyan officials led by deputy president Kithure Kindiki, alongside John Kerry, founder of the Our Ocean conference. (Photo: Kenya State Department for Blue Economy and Fisheries) New wave of offshore projects

One-third of the world’s global production of oil and gas comes from offshore projects. They harm oceans in part through the greenhouse gas emissions generated by the fuels they produce, with climate change already driving record sea temperatures, coral bleaching and sea-level rise. 

Offshore exploration and production also affect marine life through seismic surveys, underwater noise, vessel traffic and the risk of oil spills, threatening sensitive habitats such as coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass meadows that support fisheries, biodiversity and coastal protection. 

Now, as onshore reserves mature, a new wave of offshore oil and gas development is advancing across the world. 

Offshore oil and gas expansion threatens key marine ecosystems, report warns

A May report by Earth Insight found that 85% of all hydrocarbon discoveries made in 2024 were offshore, with new projects advancing from Norway and Brazil to Guyana, Namibia and East Africa. 

In Africa, countries such as Namibia, Tanzania and Kenya say exploiting fossil fuel resources could help finance development, support economic growth and lift millions out of poverty, particularly at a time when many face high debt levels and limited access to climate finance. 

Kenya’s conundrum

The debate was on display at the Mombasa conference, where host Kenya announced it was joining the Global Offshore Wind Alliance (GOWA), while also defending plans to explore for oil and gas in the Lamu Basin, a biodiverse coastal region. 

“The energy transition is a journey. It is not a one-stop shop,” Alex Wachira, principal secretary for Kenya’s Department of Energy, told Climate Home News. “Therefore, we must explore the transition and bring on as many options as possible while exploiting the resources we have. At some point, the entire sector will transition to 100% renewable,” he added. 

Wachira said Kenya’s low contribution to global emissions and its continued development needs justify pursuing offshore oil and gas alongside renewables, adding that the country still has “the industrial revolution” to achieve.

“Kenya needs to have a piece of the pie … our emissions today are the least, but we have suffered the most,” said Wachira. 

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The East African nation is seen as a world leader in renewable energy, with about 90% of its electricity generated from geothermal, hydropower, wind and solar. 

Omar Elmawi, a Kenyan climate activist and member of the Fossil Free Ocean Initiative, said Kenya should focus on expanding renewable energy, adding that new fossil fuel projects could result in financial losses as countries move to cut planet-heating emissions and shift to cleaner energy. 

“We know we cannot have a future dependent on fossil fuels. The rest of the world is talking about how to move beyond them,” Elmawi told Climate Home News. 

“If we invest heavily in fossil fuels within our oceans, we’ll end up with stranded assets and a huge debt that taxpayers will have to pay,” he added. 

A side event on fossil-fuel-free oceans at the Our Ocean conference in Mombasa. (Photo: Kenya State Department for Blue Economy and Fisheries) A side event on fossil-fuel-free oceans at the Our Ocean conference in Mombasa. (Photo: Kenya State Department for Blue Economy and Fisheries) Offshore wind as a solution

Many environmental groups argue that offshore wind is a promising alternative, as it can deliver similar economic benefits from energy production without worsening climate change. 

A study unveiled at the Mombasa conference by Zero Carbon Analytics, Ocean Conservancy and GOWA found that Africa’s offshore wind potential is vast, yet largely untapped. 

The continent could install around 6,750 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity – roughly 28 times its current power generation capacity. 

Developing just 5% of that potential could create an estimated 5.9 million jobs and generate more than $1 trillion in economic benefits, while producing enough electricity to meet all projected growth in power demand through 2040, the study found. 

Campaigners say this could strengthen energy security, reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels and help build new industries around ports, manufacturing and maritime services. 

According to a 2025 World Bank report, every $1 million invested in offshore wind creates around 25 jobs – five times more than fossil fuels. 

Robust marine protection needed

Bruna Campos, senior campaigner for the Climate and Energy Program at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), said offshore wind offers a cleaner alternative to offshore oil and gas, but warned that poorly planned projects can also cause harm. 

She called for robust marine spatial planning, environmental assessments and early community involvement to ensure the industry does not repeat mistakes associated with fossil fuel development. 

“You need to understand what are the impacts that offshore wind will have on sensitive ecosystems and communities,” Campos told Climate Home News. 

West African nations target Eastern Atlantic for early high seas protection

A 2024 UN study found that offshore wind farms can disturb whales, seals, porpoises and migratory fish, particularly during construction, when underwater noise and seabed disruption are greatest. At the same time, turbine foundations can act as artificial reefs, creating habitat for some species and boosting local fish populations. 

Pacific COP31 Envoy for the Ocean Seruiratu said that while investing in renewables is crucial, it is also important to keep pushing for fossil fuels to be phased out. 

He said his own country, Fiji, is among a growing block of nations calling for “a binding international mechanism for an orderly and equitable phase-out of fossil fuels”. 

“Every offshore drilling decision, every new exploration site, every delayed phase-out is a decision made against the common good,” he added. 

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