The D Brief: Climate emergency worsens; Russia’s Ukraine buildup; QAnon, weaponized; ‘Do not travel

[rangerrebew]

 The D Brief: Climate emergency worsens; Russia’s Ukraine buildup; QAnon, weaponized; ‘Do not travel’ warning expanded; And a bit more...
By Bradley Peniston and Kevin Baron
April 20, 2021 11:22 AM ET

    The D Brief
 

The climate emergency is getting worse, the UN reports. Some highlights from “State of the Global Climate 2020,” released on Monday:

    “2020 was one of the three warmest years on record. The past six years, including 2020, have been the six warmest years on record.”
    “The trend in sea-level rise is accelerating. In addition, ocean heat storage and acidification are increasing, diminishing the ocean’s capacity to moderate climate change.”
    Carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is at a 3-million-year high, and is still rising, despite the pandemic’s economic slowdown.
    The 2020 North Atlantic hurricane season was exceptionally active.
    Weather and climate events displaced an estimated 9.8 million people in the first half of 2020.

Dozens of nations have commited to Biden’s climate virtual summit, but many are skeptical, given the previous U.S. administration’s efforts to undermine climate action, the Washington Post reports. The two-day meeting will convene on Thursday.

What to expect: The Biden administration’s “expected aggressive plan to cut U.S. emissions — probably around 50 percent by the end of the decade, compared with 2005 levels — has been telegraphed by officials for weeks. It would basically double the goal first put forward by President Barack Obama as part of the 2015 Paris climate agreement.”

https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2021/04/the-d-brief-april-20-2021/173477/