EUROPE’S WARMEST WINTER ON RECORD
Europe has just experienced its hottest winter on
record, while across the globe February 2020 was
the second warmest February ever recorded.
According to scientists from the EU’s Copernicus
Climate Change Service, temperatures were 1.4C
above the previous record-breaking winter of 2015-
16 and 3.4C warmer than the average from 1981-
2010.
The effects of these increasing temperatures
have resulted in very little snow fall across the con-
tinent, with many ski resorts and their surrounding
towns suffering an economic downturn due to the
lack of tourism. One of the oldest ski resorts in Fran-
ce – Le Mont-Dore, went into administration in early
March, blaming climate change for the lack of snow
which forced them to close the majority of pistes re-
sulting in massive losses.
In Germany, winter agriculture was also impac-
ted. “Ice-wine” harvests (a local delicacy made from
grapes harvested when they are frozen) failed for
the first time ever.
The recent severe and widespread flooding across
the UK has also been attributed to the unseasonably
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high temperatures, with three consecutive storms
hitting the British Isles in the space of two weeks.
The climate service also wrote on their website
that “Considerably above-average temperatures
were not confined to Europe but extended over most
of Russia. Other regions that were quite substan-
tially warmer than average include north-western
Africa, Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia, and much
of China, with smaller pockets in North and South
America, central and southern Africa and Western
Australia.”
Across the entire globe, last year was the second
warmest year on record after 2016 and global sea
temperatures were the highest since records began.
El invierno más cálido registrado jamás en
Europa
Europa acaba de vivir el invierno más caluroso
de los que constan registros, mientras febrero de
2020 ha sido el más cálido registrado jamás a nivel
mundial.
Según científicos del Servicio Europeo de Cam-
bio Climático Copérnico, las temperaturas han sido
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1.4ºC por encima del último invierno de récord en
2015-16, y 3.4ºC más cálido que la media entre
1981-2010.
Los efectos de estas crecientes temperaturas,
han dado lugar a que disminuya la nieve caída en
todo el continente, con muchas estaciones de esquí
y sus ciudades circundantes, sufriendo una rece-
sión económica debido a la falta de turismo. Una
de las estaciones de esquí más antiguas de Francia
– Le Mont-Dore, declaró su insolvencia a principios
de marzo, culpando al cambio climático de la falta
de nieve que les obligó a cerrar la mayoría de las
pistas, generando pérdidas masivas.
En Alemania, también se ha visto afectada la
agricultura de invierno. Las cosechas de “vino de
hielo” -un manjar local elaborado a partir de uvas
cosechadas cuando se congelan- han faltado por
primera vez en la historia.
Las severas y generalizadas inundaciones re-
cientes en todo el Reino Unido también, también
han sido atribuidas a las temperaturas inestacio-
nalmente altas, con tres tormentas consecutivas
que golpearon las Islas Británicas en el espacio de
dos semanas.
El servicio climático también ha informado en su
web que, “las temperaturas considerablemente por
encima de la media, no se limitaban a Europa, sino
que se extendían sobre la mayor parte de Rusia.
Otras regiones que han sufrido temperaturas sus-
tancialmente más cálidas que el promedio incluye
al noroeste de África, Irán, Afganistán y Asia Cen-
tral y gran parte de China, con focos más pequeños
en América del Norte y del Sur, además del centro
y el sur de Africa y Australia Occidental”.
En todo el mundo, el año pasado ha sido el se-
gundo año más cálido después de 2016 y las tem-
peraturas globales del mar han sido las más altas
desde que comenzamos a tener registros.
HEATHROW EXPANSION RULED UNLAWFUL
DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE
Heathrow Airports plans for a third runway have
been ruled illegal on the grounds that such an ex-
pansion would contradict the UK governments com-
mitment to tackle climate change.
This landmark decision by the Court of Appeals
OTWO 09 / APRIL 2020
is the first of its kind to base its decision on the
Paris Climate Agreement, citing that plans for
the airports’ expansion did not take the UK’s en-
vironmental targets into account, therefore going
against the countries pledge to cut greenhouse gas
emissions to reach net-zero by 2050.
The government has stated that they will not
appeal the court’s decision, however Heathrow air-
port will challenge the ruling at the supreme court.
The environmental group Friend of the Earth,
called the ruling “an absolutely ground-breaking
result for climate justice.”
Legal charity Plan B, who brought the case to the
courts said, “It’s now clear that our governments
can’t keep claiming commitment to the Paris agree-
ment, while simultaneously taking actions that bla-
tantly contradict it”.
This landmark ruling does not necessarily mean
that the new runway will not eventually be built. If
plans are modified and can prove that an expansion
is compatible with the UK’s environmental com-
mitments under the Paris agreement it may still go
ahead.
However, the significance of the court’s decision
to halt the airports expansion on the grounds of cli-
mate change could set a precedence and influence
future challenges against similar projects both in
the UK and around the world. And with the climate
crisis at the forefront of public concern, it could en-
sure that the Paris agreement plays a central role
in future policymaking.
Debido al cambio climático, declarada ilegal
la expansión de Heathrow
Los planes de Heathrow Airports para una ter-
cera pista han sido declarados ilegales con el ar-
gumento de que tal expansión, contravendría el
compromiso de los gobiernos del Reino Unido de
hacer frente al cambio climático.
Esta decisión histórica del Tribunal de Apelacio-
nes, es la primera de este tipo en basar su decisión
en el Acuerdo Climático de París, citando que los
planes para la expansión de los aeropuertos, no
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