SEK 118 million for wetland efforts in Sweden
today at 10.44 a.m. Agneta Elmegård
Wetlands, which contribute to reducing the greenhouse effect, are among the most threatened ecosystems in the world. Photo: Agneta Elmegård
At least a fifth of the earth’s wetlands have disappeared, a study shows in Nature. Sweden and Finland stand out due to large losses of peatlands, which have been converted to agriculture or forestry.
The Environmental Protection Agency is now distributing over SEK 118 million to the country’s county administrations for wetland measures in 2023. 600 measures are planned over a total area of at least 148 square kilometers.
Actions will be to close ditches in marshlands or to remove overgrowth from previously dug-out land. Support is also given to initiatives for marshes, coastal meadows and rare frogs in southern Sweden.
– Several of the measures will contribute to preserving some of Sweden’s most endangered species that depend on functioning wetlands, says Bo Nilssonmanager at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency in a press release.
Latest news
Now Swedish electric car owners will not have to pay tax when they charge their private vehicles at work. This was decided by the government at a cabinet meeting on Thursday. The proposal must now first go to the Legislative Council and then to the Riksdag, where, according to the government, there is a majority in favor of the proposal. Photo: Björn Lindahl/ Aftonbladet
Soon it will be tax-free to charge your private vehicle at your employer.
According to Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson (M), the scrapped benefit taxation will come into effect from 1 July 2023.
– We want to encourage as many people as possible to switch to climate-smart transport, and this is one way, she says. Read more here.
Electric car still cheaper despite high electricity prices
Despite the fact that the bonus for electric cars has been abolished and electricity prices have gone up, it is not certain that the total cost of a petrol-powered car will be a cheaper deal. This is shown by a calculation model developed by researchers at the University of Gävle. Photo: ROBIN LORENTZ-ALLARD
When it comes to the environment and the climate, electric cars are still the best choice, according to a survey at the University of Gävle. Electric cars have become more expensive to own in the past year. What will be the cheapest, an electric or gasoline-powered car, currently depends on which car models are being compared.
– You must not stare blindly at the purchase price if you are going to buy a new car. Most people own a car for at least three years, and if you look at the economics of owning a car, the total cost is the most important, says Peder Zandén Kjellén, doctoral student in environmental science at the University of Gävle.
It turns out that the increased electricity prices do not have that much significance for the costs of an electric car. 90 percent of electric car charging takes place at night, when prices are usually lower.
– Most people who have electric cars live in houses where they have the opportunity to charge when it is cheapest. In certain periods the electricity price has been very high, but if you calculate it over a year and avoid the most expensive hours, the electricity cost is not that much higher than in previous years, he explains in a press release.
Deforestation decreased in the Amazon during Lula da Silva’s first month as president
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has promised to resume environmental protection efforts in the country Photo: Silvia Izquierdo
Deforestation in Brazil’s part of the Amazon rainforest fell by 61 percent in January, the first month in office of leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, it reports Al Jazeera.
Preliminary satellite data collected by the government’s space research agency Inpe showed that 64 square kilometers were cut down in the region last month, down from the 430 square kilometers lost in January 2022.
But experts warn that while the reduction is a good sign, it is still too early to say that deforestation, which increased under Lula’s predecessor, President Jair Bolsonaro, has been reversed.
Apoteket’s climate goals approved by a third party
Apoteket does like Hermés, Nike and 300 other companies around the world. They connect to Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) and have had their climate goals evaluated and the road there approved. By 2030, Apoteket must halve emissions from goods transport, energy, car travel on duty and refrigerants.
Apoteket explains in a press release that they want to “contribute to more companies working purposefully towards reduced emissions” and they publish a list of the suppliers who have also set climate targets according to SBTi.
Science Based Targets is a method for setting science-based climate targets that contribute to the Paris Agreement. It is an initiative of CDP, UN Global Compact, WRI and WWF. The IPCC is behind the scientific basis.
Apoteket’s Green List https://www.apoteket.se/hallbarhet/hallbar-planet/klimatarbete-pa-vetenskaplig-grund/
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Ask us
check Ask your questions to the editors here!
When will politicians learn the difference between environment and climate?
The climate is the relationship with the sun, the movements of the earth which are the major factors. Sweden’s role in this does not exist at all, in contrast to China, which emits enormous amounts of carbon dioxide and increases the burning of fossil substances every year by 33 times Sweden’s total emissions. Our politicians strain mosquitoes and swallow elephants. The attack to save the environment & climate is not about Sweden at all, but rather countries like China.
Lena Karlsson
Haven’t read in the online newspaper about the new findings from SLU about bald cutting, why?
Anders Eriksson
What responsibility do municipalities have for the climate? In my vicinity, I see a municipality in an expansive phase where they don’t even seem to have thought about e.g. emissions from traffic, noise, access to groundwater, the impact on nearby watercourses.
Annie
The truth is that many municipalities are lagging behind in this work and there is no regulated “agreement” between the state and municipalities to act against Agenda 2030 or the national climate goals in 2045.
I’m a little tired of trudging around among washed-up plastic and other trash here on the west coast. There is a beach cleaner map and many cleaners but it must be stopped at the source. What is being done on that front?
Pray
Have you done a brainstorming session in the food industry? I see that shrink wrap around cans has been replaced by a paper solution by some suppliers. I don’t want anything at all, I can count, if I want 6 cans or 3 cans, I’ll buy it.
Thought dump
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The climate battle
check All around Sweden, conflicts are growing in the wake of climate change. Reduced emissions are pitted against destroyed nature. How far are we prepared to go to save the climate?
Statliga Sveaskog wanted to fell centuries-old natural forest. But the Sami forced the forest company to retreat. “It’s far from over,” says artist and reindeer owner Sofia Jannok, 38.
Copper is a key metal in climate change. Outside Älvsbyn, Boliden wants to open one of Europe’s largest mines. The price: a ruined valley and several obliterated lakes.
Londoner Alexander Pohl left his banking career – to live a simple life with his family close to nature. Now he leads the opposition to wind power in Jämtland.
The company Cementa wants to change. The factory in Slite – Sweden’s second largest emitter of carbon dioxide – will be the first in the world to use fossil-free cement. So what are the Gotlanders afraid of?
The high-speed train is the big prestige project when Sweden’s is to change. But resistance is growing – where the railway is to be pulled forward. “They want to run the tracks right through my house,” says Åsa Nilsson, 54.