Global Scans · Pollution · Weekly Summary

• [New] Investing in a stable climate, healthy land and nature, and a pollution-free planet could deliver annual gains of US$ 20 trillion, avoid millions of deaths, and lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and hunger. Circular Online
• [New] A five-year delay in starting that effort would increase cumulative environmental pollution by 540 Mt by 2040 versus System Transformation as modelled. The Pew Charitable Trusts
• [New] Particulate and NOx pollution from traffic leads to more than 1,800 earlier than expected deaths a year. Australian Broadcasting Corporation
• [New] Humanity has not cut planet-warming pollution quickly enough, and the planet will exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming, likely in the next decade. Virginia's home for Public Media
• [New] Nine million premature deaths can be avoided by 2050, through measures such as cutting air pollution. United Nations Environment Programme
• [New] Widespread EV adoption could reduce climate pollution worldwide by over 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year. Yale Climate Connections
• [New] AI's overall influence on worldwide pollution is small and could even support environmental and economic progress. ScienceDaily
• [New] A new briefing from Transport & Environment (T & E) highlights how plans to expand the UK's cruise sector could significantly worsen air pollution in coastal communities. AirQualityNews
• [New] NASA has linked increased risks for severe storms to planet-warming air pollution, generated partly by electricity generation from dirty fuels. Yahoo News
• [New] In addition to rolling back renewable energy investments, the U.S. is looking to eliminate key pollution control laws, which will affect pollution standards for cars, trucks, power plants, and fossil fuel production. Virginia's home for Public Media
• [New] Reuse alone could account for two-thirds of a 97% reduction in plastic packaging pollution by 2040. Gizmodo
• [New] Nearly eliminating plastic pollution from the packaging sector and reducing plastic pollution from all major economic sectors by 83% by 2040 is possible with international political attention, commitment of resources and existing technologies, continued innovation, and strategic policy approaches. The Pew Charitable Trusts
• [New] Under System Transformation, by 2040, annual combined macroplastic and microplastic pollution falls by 83%, from 280 Mt per year under BAU to 47 Mt per year. The Pew Charitable Trusts
• [New] Chemical pollution has crossed a planetary health boundary, and chemical production projections suggest a tripling of chemical production between 2010 to 2050. CAPE
• [New] Millions of fragments orbit the planet, revealing a level of pollution that already threatens the sustainability of the space environment. Noticias Ambientales
• [New] In major cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, local governments have announced plans to restrict gasoline-powered motorbikes in central districts starting from 2025-2026, with the goal of reducing air pollution. B-Company
• [New] Plastic pollution will double by 2040 at the current rate. Positive News
• [New] With two-thirds of the world's population projected to live in cities by 2050, urban soils are under increasing pressure from sealing, pollution and unplanned expansion. FAO
• [New] Pakistan faces alarmingly high vulnerability to climate change and natural disasters, compounded by escalating air and water pollution. Dawn
• [New] The expansion of liquefied natural gas production in B.C. could add 200 LNG tankers a year over the coming decade, increasing the risk of pollution to already busy shipping lanes in the Georgia and Juan de Fuca straits. vancouversun

Last updated: 15 December 2025