Many members of the Paris Climate Agreement have made pledges to reach zero emissions by the year 2060 in order to be on track to limit warming to 2.1 degrees C by 2100. Japan, South Korea, and China are all among countries promising to reach zero emissions by 2060.

Image Credit: Dan Riedlhuber | Reuters

The U.S is not currently part of the Paris Climate agreement but president-elect Joe Biden has plans to rejoin. Additionally, the Biden administration has rolled out plans for the promise of being net-zero by 2050.

Unfortunately, many countries are already behind schedule for their emissions promises. Many countries have plans to increase fossil fuel production by two percent annually.

That being said, a new study by Princeton University presents many different paths for the U.S to get to net emissions by 2050. The U.S has serious work to do before it reaches its 2050 zero-emissions goal.

One such path requires an investment in solar and wind manufacturing, which offers long-term domestic employment opportunities without incurring too many additional technology costs. The caveat? Manufacturing capacity for turbines and photovoltaics would have to increase drastically by 2050 — up to 45 times for wind and 120 times for solar.

Yes, the U.S. can go carbon neutral by 2050, says new Princeton study

The health of our environment and our own health are very intertwined. Sustainable, organic, whole foods do good for our environment whereas overly processed junk food leaves behind a significant carbon footprint, in most cases. One of the best things you can do for the environment is to take care of yourself in a sustainable way.

In the UK, A nine-year-old girl, Ella Kissi-Debrah, died in 2013 from an asthma attack that resulted in respiratory failure. It was later discovered by Stephen Holgate that the levels of pollution near her home were illegal.

PHOTOGRAPH: KEVIN SCHAFER/GETTY IMAGES

Air pollution has officially been labeled as a cause of death with the coroner ruling that it “made a material contribution” to her death.

“Ella died of asthma contributed to by exposure to excessive air pollution. The whole of Ella’s life was lived in close proximity to highly polluting roads. I have no difficulty in concluding that her personal exposure to nitrogen dioxide and PM was very high.”

Barlow – Air pollution listed as an official cause of death in the UK for the first time

The World Health Organization has estimated that nearly 7 million people are killed by air pollution each year. Children who live in poorer areas are more susceptible to asthma.

The U.K has announced that it would end the sale of gas and diesel cars 10 years earlier than planned, by the year 2030. Boris Johnson, Prime Minister, plans to have the country reach zero emissions by 2035.

An Alaskan health worker had a serious allergic reaction from the new coronavirus vaccine. She is now stable, public health authorities said on Wednesday.

The Alaskan patient did not have a history of allergic reactions, Lindy Jones, the director of the emergency department in the capital Juneau where the patient was treated, told reporters at a virtual briefing.

Reuters

Related: Natural Coronavirus Prevention

The adverse reaction happened within minutes of receiving the Pfizer shot on Tuesday. The symptoms in the middle-aged patient resolved after being administered with allergy treatment epinephrine, Jones said. This reaction was similar to two cases reported last week in Britain.

Two British people with severe allergies apparently had allergic reactions to Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine, raising questions about whether it is safe for people with preexisting allergies.

USA Today

Britain’s medical regulator stated that people with a history of anaphylaxis, or severe allergic reactions to medicine or food, should not get this COVID-19 vaccine.

But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says most Americans with allergies should be safe to receive the vaccine. Allergic reactions were not a significant problem in the U.S. trial where more than 20,000 people got two doses of the vaccine, but the U.S. trials did not test on subjects who have had severe allergic reactions in the past, according to Moncef Slaoui, co-head of Operation Warp Speed which is the government program tasked with developing and distributing COVID-19 vaccines.

Pfizer stays the vaccine comes with a clear warning that appropriate medical treatment and supervision should always be readily available in case of anaphylaxis, and that they would update the labeling language for the vaccine if needed.

Note to Social Media Fact Checkers:

Vaccines do not ever cause damage. Vaccines are perfectly safe. You do not need to detox from vaccinations. We’ve been getting throttled, chocked, blocked, and banned from social media sites regarding our vaccine information, so we want to be clear that we are not saying that vaccines can cause any damage! We’re just reporting what Reuters is reporting.

The first non-trial dose of the coronavirus vaccine was administered earlier this week in the U.K, to a 90-year-old woman. Two of the first health care workers in the U.K have had severe allergic reactions to the vaccine. Pfizer has urged those with serious allergies not to get the vaccine.

The FDA has approved the coronavirus vaccine, and the first doses were administered yesterday (Monday, December 14th).

Pfizer was the first company to be approved by the FDA, Moderna with likely be next. Other companies such as Johnson and Johnson also have vaccine trials in the late stages.

More than nine in 10 people immunized with Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine candidate registered some level of side effects.

Business Insider

Most people are reporting some side effects. Common complaints include headache, fatigue, chills, muscle soreness, fever, and joint pain as well as general flu-like symptoms.

The most common reactions with Pfizer’s vaccine were pain at injection site (84%), fatigue (63%), headache (55%), muscle pain (38%), chills (32%), joint pain (24%), and fever (14%). 

Business Insider

“Systemic events (fatigue, headache, chills, muscle pain and joint paint) were reported in small numbers of younger recipients of [the second shot],” Pfizer said in a report published in The New England Journal of Medicine. “But no severe systemic events were reported by older recipients of this vaccine candidate.”

Here Are All the Side Effects of Every Top COVID-19 Vaccine in US

The data gathered has shown that you are even more likely to experience side effects after the second dose of the vaccine. The vaccine requires two doses over the course of a couple of weeks.

The vaccine has not yet been approved for pregnant women or children under the age of 16.

Currently, the U.S is planning to receive 100 million doses of the vaccine, enough for 50 million people. The Trump administration allegedly turned down an additional 100 million doses of the vaccine. Pfizer has said that they may not have extra doses available until mid-summer.

If you are worried about contracting or spreading the coronavirus, we recommend prioritizing gut health above all else and building a strong immune system.

Microplastics have now been discovered at the highest and lowest points of the Earth. In 2018, microplastics were discovered at the deepest point on Earth, the Mariana Trench. Now, after analyzing samples collected by national geographic in 2019, scientists have discovered microplastic particles have been discovered near the top of Mount Everest. Samples were collected from 11 locations on the mountain ranging from 5,300 meters to 8,440 meters high.

The fibers likely came from clothing, tents, and ropes worn by mountaineers. In 2019, around 880 people climbed Everest. The highest concentration of microplastics was found near Base Camp, where people spend most of their time.

“It really surprised me to find microplastics in every single snow sample I analysed,” said Imogen Napper, at the University of Plymouth, who led the new research. “Mount Everest is somewhere I have always considered remote and pristine. To know we are polluting near the top of the tallest mountain is a real eye-opener.”

Microplastic pollution found near summit of Mount Everest

Microplastics are tiny particles of plastic that come off plastic products. They can be carried by wind, they’re in the rain, the ocean, and pretty much every surface of the Earth. At this point, they’re making their way into our food and water supply, as well. We release millions of tonnes of microplastics each year. Plastics are toxic to us and the animals around us.

This study was released by the journal One Earth. Scientists found microplastics in every snow sample they analyzed, with the most contaminated sample containing 119 particles per liter. The average was 30 particles per liter.

Plastic is in everything, thus it’s everywhere. Our clothes are made of plastic, our furniture is made of plastic, and it’s seemingly impossible to get through life without it. The cut down on plastic waste, we recommend shopping for cotton clothing as much as possible. Eat at home and cook your own food as often as you can. Look for glass whenever it’s available, and be conscious of what you consume, and how.

A new study, reported in JAMA Psychiatry, found Psilocybin to be four times more effective at treating depression, compared to antidepressants. Psilocybin is the psychedelic substance in magic mushrooms. This research comes after research suggesting that psilocybin could ease depression and anxiety in cancer patients.

The study involved 27 people. Patients received two doses of psilocybin on two different days, in addition to 11 hours of psychotherapy. Patients were administered the drug in what Alan Davis, lead author on the study, describes as a homey but safe environment. After being administered the drug, patients were blindfolded and given headphones, and told experience whatever was happening within the trip. Half of the patients were put on a waitlist to serve as a comparison group for the other half of the group, who began treatment immediately.

The group who began treatment immediately saw a significant reduction in depression and responded much quicker compared to antidepressants.

“The effect happened within one day after the first session and sustained at that reduced level through the second psilocybin session all the way up to the one-month follow-up,”

Rigorous Study Backs A Psychedelic Treatment For Major Depression

On September 16th, scuba divers found more than 3,000 pounds of trash at Rushikonda beach in India. Divers were on their first underwater clean-up since quarantine began when they found 3,300 pounds of N-95 masks, gloves, and other bio-medical waste floating in the seabed. The trash was removed over three rounds of ocean clean up ending on September 27th.

According to the World Health Organization, the world needs 89 million medical masks a month. Disposable masks take hundreds of years to break down and are now being used more than ever.

 Before COVID-19, a government hospital bed would generate around half a kg of biomedical waste per day which has now gone up to 3-5 kg (per day).

Discarded single-use plastic masks and gloves are choking ocean beds

The pandemic has done extensive damage to the environment in recent months. Disposable masks frequently get wrapped up in wildlife. The amount of PPE that we dispose of is adding to an ever-growing pile of plastic in our oceans and landfills. The world has made a quick shift away from reusable products back to disposable products, for the sake of human health. That being said, the health of the planet and its animals cannot be forgotten, as it is likely what got us into this pandemic in the first place.

If you have to wear a mask, please use a reusable one. If you ever find yourself with a disposable one, when it comes time to throw it away, cut the strings off the mask to prevent it from getting wrapped up in the legs and fins of wildlife. More people are ordering things online than ever before. Keep in mind how much waste your package from amazon is generating. In an attempt to return to normal, many people have begun eating out again or ordering take-out from restaurants. Remember that you, the environment, and your wallet, are better off with a meal cooked at home. Be conscious of what you consume, and how, in a time where staying safe from COVID-19 has become more of a priority than taking care of the environment.