Latest news with #RRS
ITV News
13 hours ago
- Politics
- ITV News
'I'm sad for humanity': John Kerry reacts to Trump's sweeping climate cuts
ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew spoke to former US Secretary of State John Kerry from on board the RRS Sir David Attenborough, where scientsists are studying climate change deep within the Arctic Circle Former US Secretary of State John Kerry has told ITV News he is "very sad for humanity" following the Trump administration's sweeping climate cuts. Kerry was the US's first Special Presidential Envoy for Climate during Joe Biden's presidency and played a significant role in climate protection efforts. The new administration under Donald Trump has not shared Kerry's focus. "I'm very sad that our country is not leading in the way that we were with President Biden and President Obama," Kerry told ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew. "I'm very sad for humanity that any one nation is standing in the way of what the science tells us we must do in order to protect life, protect food production, protect the capacity of the ocean to provide us the oxygen that it provides us. "You know, it's not a matter of politics or ideology, it's a matter of science. We have an absolute period of time within which to avoid the worst consequences of the crisis." Kerry was speaking to ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew, who is on board the RRS Sir David Attenborough, as it researches climate change deep within the Arctic Circle. More than 9,000 miles separates the two - with Kerry in France for the United Nations Ocean Conference, where he is calling for decisive action to protect the ocean. However, through modern technology, they are able to see one another and speak of shared experiences. After Kerry was shown the polar winter sunrise through a laptop webcam, he recalled his own visit to the most remote continent in the world in 2016. "You just feel the wilderness all around you. But it's a thing of absolutely sheer wonder," he said. "It just reaffirmed every notion you have about responsibility, about the life of the planet, about the size of that wilderness and what it means to us on a human level. "And you just come away with great respect and awe and I think a sense of duty to transfer that to our daily endeavours and our responsibilities to deal with the climate crisis." The Trump administration has taken an axe to Biden-era environmental ambitions, rolled back landmark regulations, withdrawn climate project funding and instead bolstered support for oil and gas production in the name of an 'American energy dominance' agenda. The Environmental Protection Agency alone faces a 54.5% proposed cut to funding, taking its budget to a level last seen when Ronald Reagan was president. Under the latest tax and spending bill by the Trump administration, the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act", financial incentives for green technologies such as solar, wind, batteries, electric cars and heatpumps would be slashed. Existing nuclear power plants and biofuels will be subsidised, but climate experts say this would leave the country and its people burning more fossil fuels, despite strong popular and scientific support for a rapid shift to renewable energy. As often with Trump, the focus on energy production from oil and gas also comes alongside a slogan: 'Drill, baby, drill'. Kerry told ITV News of an alternative: "Build, baby, build." "Build the charging stations, build the solar fields, build the kinds of data centres that are going to be able to be managing their energy in a more effective way," he said. "What he's doing is, I think, sadly turning his back on the greatest marketplace the world has ever known. There are 8.1 billion people on this planet who want energy, and they're going to get it. "The question is, who's going to provide it, and is it going to be clean? "The United States has a unique opportunity here in a bigger economic transition and opportunity than the Industrial Revolution. "We have an opportunity to create jobs, clean jobs. People can make a profit with their investments just as they do today." Asked if he had a message for scientists in the Antarctic whose work could be halted due to a reduction in US funding, Kerry said to "bear with us." "Your work is absolutely critical to all of us," he said. "I would say you are in a position, you scientists, to help us get greater data, more backup, persuade people, put your science on the line, help us to convert those who have doubts. Then we can start to go forward faster and do what we need to do." The US is a world leader whose influence can push countries to act, or to fall back in line. Trump's presidency and denial of the climate crisis have led to some worrying that other governments will follow suit. Kerry, however, isn't convinced: "I believe most governments are going to stick with us because they know what they have at stake and they also have a strong commitment already to continuing. "One person in the world has pulled out of the Paris Agreement, and only one person in the world has done it twice. "Everybody else is moving forward, committed to try to meet these goals. "The absence of a big powerful nation like the United States, which is the wealthiest country on the planet, the absence of that country and adding to the ability to be able to accelerate this is really harmful.
ITV News
2 days ago
- Science
- ITV News
ITV News in Antarctica: Scientists fear Emperor penguins could be extinct by end of the century
ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew is the only journalist on board the British research ship the RRS Sir David Attenborough, as it takes part in an expedition deep within the Antarctic Circle They are the largest and most iconic penguins in Antarctica - but scientists from the British Antarctic Survey fear that Emperor penguins could be on the brink of extinction by the end of the century. Emperor penguins rely on sea ice to breed. It needs to be stable for around several months. If it breaks up before chicks can swim, they will drown. The extent of sea ice has declined by 1.5 million square kilometres over the past 30 years - that's an area six times the size of the UK. This decline is a result of warming oceans. Because Emperor penguins live in such remote areas, the only way to track their numbers is through satellite imagery of colonies from space. They can be spotted by the tell-tale staining on the ice caused by penguin droppings. A new analysis of up-to-date satellite imagery suggests that the birds' numbers have declined by 22% in the northwest section of Antarctica over the last 15 years. This is an increase from a 9.5% reduction across the entire continent between 2009 and 2018. Dr Peter Fretwell, who works for the British Antarctic Survey, explained that more research is needed to determine whether this decline in the northwest is reflected across the continent. "If it is,' he told me, 'that's worrying because the decline is worse than the worst-case projections we have for Emperor penguins this century." The area covered by these recent findings is 2.8 million square kilometres - 11 times the size of the UK. It is significant because it contains 30% of the world's Emperor penguin population. Dr Phil Trathan, co-author and emeritus fellow at BAS, stated: "The fact that we're seeing this decline faster than computer models predicted means there must be other factors at play besides the loss of breeding habitat. "The only way we'll see a population turnaround is if we stabilise greenhouse gas emissions. "If we don't, we'll probably have relatively few Emperor penguins left by the end of this century." Interestingly, there has also been a decline in areas where sea ice has not diminished. The report highlights other factors, including changing storm, snow, and rainfall patterns; increased competition for food resources; and open ocean conditions that make penguins more vulnerable to predators like orcas and seals.
ITV News
2 days ago
- Science
- ITV News
Seasickness, spotting icebergs and keeping the crew fed: Life on board an Antarctic expedition
ITV News Science Correspondent shows what life is like on board the RRS Sir David Attenborough on an expedition deep within the Antarctic Circle The British research ship the RRS Sir David Attenborough has travelled through an area of Antarctica that would have been impassable 30 years ago at this time of year. That's because the area the ship navigates with ease would have been solid ice. No other British ship has made the journey since the explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated Endurance expedition, when his ship became trapped in the pack ice and sank in 1915. Fast forward 110 years - after global warming has caused the ice to melt - and ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew is the only journalist on board the British ship. From the chef keeping crew members fed to the captain keeping a lookout for icebergs, he speaks to those on board about what life is like on an Antarctic expedition.
ITV News
3 days ago
- Science
- ITV News
Antarctica: A journey to the end of the earth to find answers about our planet's future
ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew reports from deep within the Antarctic Circle. I'm the only journalist on board the RRS Sir David Attenborough, deep within the Antarctic Circle. No British research ship has ventured this far south, this late in the winter, since Shackleton's ill-fated Endurance expedition. History buffs will know that story didn't end well. Shackleton's ship was crushed by ice in the Weddell Sea, leaving his crew stranded for nearly two years, surviving on the ice and living off seal meat. The fact that our journey south has been plain sailing through waters that, by rights, should be frozen solid is a stark warning of how rapidly our climate is changing. Staring out into this frozen wilderness feels a world away from the UK's summer, but the scientists I'm travelling with insist we're far more connected than you might think. The Southern Ocean captures vast quantities of carbon and heat, and it helps drive global currents, including the Gulf Stream. Meanwhile, the sea ice surrounding Antarctica acts like a giant mirror, reflecting the sun's heat. And then there's the very real issue of rising sea levels. Antarctica holds two-thirds of the world's fresh water. For years, it was considered relatively stable — a vast, ancient ice sheet that wouldn't melt for millennia. But in recent decades, both landscapes and scientific opinions have shifted dramatically. The Antarctic Peninsula, which stretches towards Chile, is now warming faster than anywhere else in the Southern Hemisphere. The fear is that this alarming trend will spread across the entire continent — a land mass nearly twice the size of Europe. You might know the RRS Sir David Attenborough better by its famously suggested nickname, Boaty McBoatface — the humorous moniker voted for by the public. But this £200 million icebreaker is no joke. It's a serious piece of engineering, carrying some of the world's leading scientists aboard the UK's largest floating research lab. Their mission: to better understand how Antarctica's climate is changing, and what it means for the rest of the planet. Six years ago, British Antarctic Survey scientists Professor Mike Meredith and Dr Rhiannon Jones watched as three million tonnes of ice broke away from a glacier before their eyes. Now, they've returned to study how underwater tidal waves — triggered by collapses on that scale — alter the ocean and accelerate warming. Incredibly, while monitoring the same glacier, it happens again. This time, the collapse isn't as massive, but the fact it's happening in the depths of winter is even more alarming. "To stand there and see it directly in front of us was incredible," said Dr Rhiannon Jones. "It was all really unexpected, it really hit home that we're seeing some rapid changes to the region and we don't know what the consequences will be." Professor Mike Meredith said humans are to blame. "The retreat in sea ice is linked to the warming of the ocean and that's something that we know us humans are doing," he said. "The implications of this are climatic in that it effects how reflective the surface of the planet is, so the planet's now absorbing more heat from the sun than it used to. "It also removes a protective barrier from around Antarctica that can actually contribute to the destabilisation of the ice sheets." Releasing vast quantities of ice into the ocean on this scale can directly impact global sea levels. The latest models from researchers at the University of Durham suggest the amount of ice lost from polar ice sheets has quadrupled since the 1990s. We're currently losing around 270 billion tonnes of ice every year. Even if we managed to limit global warming to 1.5°C — which, at present, we're not on track to do — sea levels will still be rising at a rate that will be difficult to manage by the end of the century. According to Professor Chris Stokes: 'People need to be aware that sea level rise is likely to accelerate to rates that will be very difficult to adapt to — rates of one centimetre per year are not out of the question within the lifetime of our young people.' Over the next fortnight, I'll be reporting live from Antarctica — bringing you not just the latest discoveries from the world of climate science, but also the personal stories of those who endure the cold, the darkness, and the isolation to study this remote, frozen continent. From the wildlife to the wilderness, I'll do my best to share with you the stark beauty of this extraordinary place. Please join me on the journey if you can.
Axios
12-05-2025
- Business
- Axios
Richmond paid over $550K to dead retirees
Richmond has paid over half a million dollars to dead people in the past nine years, according to a recent audit of the city's retirement system. Why it matters: It's yet another example of why many Richmonders have lost trust in the city's ability to properly handle taxpayer dollars. Driving the news: The city audit, released Friday, says the Richmond Retirement System (RRS) not only failed to prevent and detect the problem but hasn't recovered most of the money. And one retired City Hall employee received nearly $250,000 in benefit payments over seven years after his death. What they found: The payments happened because of "several control weaknesses," per the audit, including: Lack of oversight or management not knowing this was happening. Staff failing to identify when a retiree died. Inconsistent tracking of overpayments. Not acting to recover overpayments even when identified. Incomplete death reports. By the numbers: RRS paid 44 deceased retirees in that period, 32 of whom had been dead for over two months. Nine of those retirees died between January 2019 and October 2023 and received payments totaling over $110,000. Between the lines: These overpayments are a small fraction of the total benefits RRS administers. And in response to the audit, RRS — which is governed by a seven-member board — wrote to the city that privacy law changes have made getting death information increasingly difficult. What's next: Improvements at RRS are already underway, including using better death auditing services, operating procedures and tracking processes.
