Climate News July 2025

UK & EU Climate News

• Wildfires have swept across Greece and Turkey amid extreme heat, with temperatures nearing 46C and a record 50.5C in Turkey's Silopi, BBC news reports. Greece has been battling major fires in Kythira, Evia, Crete and near Athens, with high winds and flare-ups complicating efforts. Climate crisis and civil protection minister Giannis Kefalogiannis previously said: "We have injured firefighters, human lives were put at risk, properties have been burned, and forest areas have been destroyed". In Turkey, wildfires broke out in the provinces of Karabuk and Eskisehir, where ten people lost their lives.

• UK energy regulator Ofgem has approved £24 billion in investments for the country’s energy networks from 2026 to 2031, the Financial Times reports, including £15bn for the gas grid and £9bn for electricity infrastructure. Described as the largest electricity grid expansion since the 1960s, the investment aims to improve system resilience amid volatile global gas prices. Ofgem estimates the upgrades will increase annual household energy bills by £24 in network charges - though without the investment, bills could rise by £30. Despite concerns over costs, Ofgem says the move will stabilise the energy system and reduce other charges. CEO Jonathan Brearley stressed that “doing nothing is not an option,” as inaction would lead to higher long-term costs for consumers.

• NatWest Group has announced a new target to provide £200 billion in climate and transition finance between July 2025 and the end of 2030, doubling its previous £100 billion goal, which it has already surpassed. The updated target expands to include transition finance for high-emission sectors like steel, cement, shipping and aviation. This forms part of NatWest’s broader commitment to reach net zero by 2050 across its operations and financed emissions. Alongside the new target, NatWest announced the publication of its new Climate and Transition Finance Framework, replacing its prior Climate and Sustainable Funding and Financing framework. It defines the financing and facilitation of assets, activities, acquisition targets and companies which directly or indirectly contribute to removal or life-cycle emission reduction of GHG emissions. The framework also provides climate and transition financing eligibility criteria across a range sectors. James Close, NatWest’s Head of Climate Change, said the initiative supports real economy alignment with the Paris Agreement and drives investment in climate solutions.

Global Climate News

• The International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts global oil demand to grow at the slowest pace since 2009, outside of the Covid-19 pandemic, amid early signs that US tariffs are weighing on economic activity. In its monthly oil market report, the IEA said it had trimmed its forecast from a previous growth estimate of 720,000 barrels a day (b/d) this year to 700,000 b/d. after lower-than-expected demand in the second quarter of the year, particularly in emerging markets. Meanwhile on 22 July, the UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said “fossil fuels are running out of road”, as research showed that renewables accounted for 92.5% of all new electricity capacity in 2024. During a speech in New York, Guterres said the plummeting cost of renewables has made clean energy “smart economics”. His comments came as a report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) found that 91% of renewable power projects commissioned in 2024 were more cost effective than fossil-fuel alternatives. Guterres spoke against a backdrop of swingeing cuts to clean energy in the US, where the Trump administration has also gutted climate research. “Countries that cling to fossil fuels are not protecting their economies – they are sabotaging them,” said Guterres. “The fossil fuel age is flailing and failing.”

• The Chinese government has set renewable energy mandates for the steel, cement and polysilicon industries for the first time as well as for some data centres, according to a National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) notice, as reported by Reuters. Beijing's renewable portfolio standards (RPS) set targets for the percentage of power consumption that various industries must obtain from renewables in each province. Previously, the RPS only applied to enterprises involved in power trading and the electrolytic aluminium industry. It says the move will help achieve the optimal allocation of power resources, to better support China's power supply.

• India has met its target of 50% non-fossil fuel electricity generation five years early, according to Reuters. It says the move comes after the country's renewable power output increased at its quickest rate since 2022 during the first half of 2025, while coal generation fell by almost 3%. However, it points out that fossil fuels still accounted for more than two-thirds of the increase in generation last year, and that the country intends to increase its coal-fired capacity by 80 gigawatts (GW) by 2032 to meet rising power demand. According to Reuters, India missed its 175GW renewable target in 2022 but has since "ramped up solar and wind additions" to reach a goal of 500GW of non-fossil capacity by 2032.

• 20 US states are suing the Trump administration "over its decision to shut down a multibillion-dollar grant program aimed at protecting communities from floods, hurricanes and other natural disasters", reports the New York Times. The outlet continues: "The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Boston, accuses the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of unlawfully terminating the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, or BRIC, without congressional approval." The filing happened two days after torrential rains drenched areas of New York and New Jersey, and nearly two weeks after devastating floods hit Central Texas.”

• At least 30 people died and over 80,000 were evacuated in northern China as torrential rains and severe flooding devastated roads, homes and infrastructure, according to BBC news. A separate landslide in Chengde claimed eight more lives. Chinese authorities have allocated 200 million yuan ($28m; £21m) for recovery efforts, including repairing transportation and other infrastructure. The floods disrupted power in over 130 villages and left many residents stranded, prompting dramatic rescue operations. Experts link the surge in extreme weather to climate change, which has already cost China billions in damages this year.

• Shell and other key energy organisations "abandoned" a six-year-long attempt to define a net-zero emissions strategy after being told that such a standard would require them to stop expanding new oil and gas fields. According to the Financial Times, Shell, Norway's Aker BP, and Canada's Enbridge have all left the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), the worldwide corporate climate standard-setting body, since late last year. This followed the circulation of draft standards seen by the Financial Times mentioning that companies should not develop new oil and gas fields until they had submitted a climate plan to the SBTi, or the end of 2027, whichever came first.

• At least 63 people have died and 290 were injured in 24 hours in Pakistan’s Punjab province after torrential monsoon rains, BBC news reports. Rawalpindi declared a public holiday and issued evacuation orders for those living near the river which runs through the city. The death toll from monsoon-related incidents since late June has reached nearly 180, over half of them children. Emergency has been declared in worst-hit areas like Chakwal, which saw 400mm of rain in one day. Pakistan remains highly vulnerable to climate change, facing intensified monsoons, glacial melt and extreme weather, as seen in the devastating 2022 floods.

The era of climate impunity is over – the International Court of Justice’s landmark legal decision

In a historic move for climate accountability, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has issued a landmark opinion that could open the door for legal action against countries contributing heavily to global emissions. The decision, hailed as a pivotal moment for climate justice, emphasizes that nations failing to reduce emissions, endorsing new fossil fuel ventures, or allocating public funds to oil and gas may be violating international law.

The advisory opinion, released on Wednesday from The Hague, was prompted by a legal initiative led by students and activists from Vanuatu, a Pacific island nation particularly vulnerable to climate change. Although the ICJ’s ruling is not legally binding, legal experts believe it will significantly influence future climate litigation and policymaking.

The Centre for International Environmental Law responded by declaring that “climate impunity is coming to an end,” noting that the decision establishes a powerful precedent for global accountability and urgent climate action.

Lea Main-Klingst, a legal expert at Client Earth, remarked that the ruling marks a turning point: “The unchecked expansion and financing of fossil fuels must now be reconsidered. This clarity from the ICJ provides a strong foundation for courts worldwide to guide future climate-related cases. It’s now up to legal professionals and civil society to put this tool to use.”

Sustainable funds rebound as European investor interest rises

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investment funds experienced a notable turnaround in the second quarter of 2025, attracting $4.9 billion in net inflows, according to data from Morningstar. This marks a recovery from the $11.8 billion in outflows recorded during the first quarter.

The resurgence was primarily driven by European investors, who contributed $8.6 billion after withdrawing $7.3 billion in the previous quarter. In contrast, U.S. investors continued their retreat from ESG funds, pulling out $5.7 billion—extending a streak of outflows to 11 consecutive quarters. Meanwhile, investors from other regions added $2 billion in net inflows.

This shift comes amid a backdrop of political and regulatory uncertainty. In the United States, President Donald Trump’s return to office earlier this year has led to a series of executive actions aimed at rolling back ESG-related initiatives, particularly those focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion. S&P Global Ratings notes that evolving trade and environmental policies are complicating decarbonisation strategies, increasing credit risks in capital-intensive sectors such as energy, utilities, and manufacturing.

These developments have heightened legal and financial risks for U.S. companies and prompted global asset managers to adopt a more cautious stance on ESG issues.

Europe is also experiencing a recalibration. Policymakers are working to streamline regulations to support post-pandemic economic growth. The European Commission’s proposed “Omnibus” package, which seeks to revise sustainability reporting requirements, has introduced new challenges for asset managers and corporations. Despite this, ESG fund flows in Europe appear to have stabilised.

Hortense Bioy, head of sustainable investing research at Morningstar Sustainalytics, commented: “Despite the backlash against ESG and the turbulence caused by geopolitical tensions and U.S. tariffs, the outlook for ESG funds improved last quarter. European investors have returned to the space, reversing the trend of redemptions seen earlier in the year. While the U.S. remains a challenging environment, ESG funds elsewhere continue to attract capital, and regulators outside the U.S. are largely staying the course.”

SBTi unveils new net-zero standard for finance sector

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has released its long-awaited Net-Zero Standard for Financial Institutions, which will require adopters to disclose their energy financing and set out plans to stop financing deforestation.

Following extensive pilot testing with over 30 financial institutions, a new Net-Zero Standard is now available for voluntary adoption by any organisation that earns at least 5% of its revenue from financial services such as lending, asset management, insurance underwriting, capital markets, or asset ownership.

The launch comes at a time of growing fragmentation in global climate finance efforts, particularly after several major financial players—especially from Wall Street—stepped back from collaborative climate initiatives under the renewed leadership of President Donald Trump.

This new framework is designed to close loopholes that previously allowed financial institutions to exclude certain sectors or asset classes from their climate commitments. It also raises the bar for emissions data quality and transparency.

Compared to earlier standards, the updated version introduces greater flexibility. Previously, institutions were expected to define specific emissions reduction pathways, ideally tailored to individual sectors. Now, they can instead assess whether the companies or projects they finance have credible net-zero strategies. If not, they must outline plans to either engage with or divest from those entities.

The Standard aligns with the Science Based Targets initiative’s (SBTi) Corporate Net-Zero Standard, which applies to large companies across all industries. That broader framework is currently under review, with a revised version expected in early 2026.

So far, more than 135 financial institutions worldwide have expressed interest in using the new Standard to update their climate targets.

The sixth-largest earthquake recorded since 1900 triggers widespread tsunami warnings

A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula at about 11:25 local time on Wednesday 30th July, as reported by BBC news. The tremor had a depth of 18km and is one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded. Russian authorities evacuated the town of Severo-Kurilsk, where they say 4m (13ft) waves flooded the port and a fish processing facility. Waves generated by the tsunami hit American shores along Hawaii’s islands and off the coast of northern California forcing people to evacuate. In other parts of the world, Japan's Meteorological Agency has downgraded the tsunami warning level to "advisory" for coastlines from Kanto to Wakayama but remains at the higher level of warning" for parts of Hokkaido and Tohoku. Tsunami alerts of varying levels have also been issued in the Philippines, Indonesia, Guam, Peru and the Galapagos Islands off Ecuador.

China starts construction on world’s largest hydropower dam in Tibet

China has begun construction on what is set to become the world’s largest hydropower dam, located on the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau in Nyingchi, reports Reuters. Premier Li Qiang confirmed the $170 billion project will be managed by the newly established China Yajiang Group. The dam will be built in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo and will consist of five cascade hydropower stations capable of producing 300 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, which is equivalent to the amount of electricity consumed by Britain last year. A stretch of the river cascades 2,000 metres (6,561 feet) over a distance of 50 km (31 miles), providing enormous hydropower potential. The hydropower generated will primarily be transmitted to other regions of China, with some reserved for local use.

Experts and officials have flagged concerns that the new dam would empower China to control or divert the longest river in Tibet, which flows south into India's Arunachal Pradesh and Assam states as well as Bangladesh, where it feeds into the Siang, Brahmaputra and Jamuna rivers.

Texas Flash Floods Kill Over 120 People

At least 121 people have died following catastrophic flash floods in Kerr County, central Texas, in the early hours of 4 July. A slow-moving weather system, intensified by remnants of Tropical Storm Barry, dropped up to 250mm of rain in under six hours - four months’ worth in a single night. According to BBC News, the US National Weather Service (NWS) reported a “swathe of around 5-10 inches (125-250mm) of rainfall in just three to six hours across south-central Kerr County”, equivalent to “around four months of rain in a matter of hours”. The slow-moving weather system was fed by moisture from the remnants of Tropical Storm Barry, which had brought flooding to Mexico, before tracking north as it died out. The Guadalupe River rose over eight metres, sweeping away homes, vehicles and holiday camps reported the Associated Press. An article in the Conversation explained how the Kerr County's steep terrain and impermeable soils contributed to rapid runoff in the area known as “flash flood alley.”

New research

• A new study examines the physical, biogeochemical, ecological, and societal effects of summers with extremely low Antarctic sea-ice coverage. It finds that increased sea ice melt causes surface warming of the Southern Ocean and changes in the formation rate of Antarctic Intermediate Water, which will "likely affect" heat and carbon absorption. The study also found that "prolonged open water" influences the "magnitude and seasonality of surface-phytoplankton blooms" and that years with less sea ice coverage experience more ice-shelf calving. It also emphasises the negative impact of extreme sea-ice lows on krill, a "foundational prey species".

• People who identify extreme weather with climate change are more inclined to support climate policy, according to a recent study. To explore the relationship between extreme weather exposure, climate change attribution, and climate policy support, the researchers gathered natural and social science data from 68 nations. The study reveals that "most people" support climate legislation and associate extreme weather events with climate change. While exposure to extreme weather did not predict climate policy support, "subjective attribution" of these events to climate change was "positively associated" with support for five commonly discussed policies.

• A new study finds that yearly meltwater from the Greenland ice sheet has “significantly increased. The authors present a dataset of daily satellite observations of surface meltwater for the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets over 1992-2023. The paper says that east Antarctica has seen “high melt rates” since the year 2000 due to “warm air incursions from the Southern Ocean”. The authors add that east Antarctica “has become a melt hotspot, potentially leading to meltwater ponding and future ice shelf destabilisation”.

• A study spanning 88 countries has revealed that climate activism is more prevalent in nations with lower GDP per capita and weaker democratic institutions, challenging the common assumption that wealthier, more democratic societies lead the charge on climate action. The research found that citizens in less affluent and less democratic countries are more willing to engage in climate activism. On the other hand, those in wealthier and more democratic nations tend to express lower concern and take less action, despite having more freedom to protest. There was no evidence found that a country’s carbon dioxide emissions per capita or its vulnerability to climate impacts (as measured by the Climate Risk Index) significantly predicted activism levels.

• New research suggests that coral populations may be adapting to warming consistent with recent increases in their upper thermal limits. The study used spatial comparisons of quantitative genetic parameters and thermal history to provide evidence of widespread adaptive genetic variation and selection responses to climate warming in reef-building corals. Researchers examined over 56,000 coral larvae from 360 genetic crosses across the Indo-Pacific and found significant heritable variation in heat tolerance. This suggests that recent marine heatwaves are also acting as a selective force, potentially enabling coral populations to adapt to rising ocean temperatures. However, temporal shifts in the frequency of adaptive alleles and associated tolerance traits are required to explicitly demonstrate and quantify rates of evolutionary adaptation.

• A new study projects that wildfire intensity will rise significantly across most fire-prone regions as the planet warms by 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius, with the most severe increases expected in Mediterranean and temperate conifer forest regions. Areas where human development meets wildlands, known as the wildland–urban interface, are especially vulnerable, with disaster-prone locations projected to experience fire intensity increases more than three times greater than other areas. This suggests that wildfire impacts will intensify most in regions already vulnerable to dangerous wildfires. These findings emphasise the urgent need to anticipate changes to fire behaviour and proactively manage wildland-urban ecosystems to reduce future fire intensity.

• A recent study of 262 Chinese cities from 2006 to 2019 reveals that artificial intelligence (AI) can improve the energy transition by driving green technology innovation and digital transformation. The results suggest that this is greater in resource-based cities and central and eastern cities at the city level, as well as in strategic emerging industries and capital-intensive industries at the industry level. However, the research also highlights an inverted U-shaped relationship; while moderate AI development enhances sustainability, excessive AI use due to high electricity demands from data centres and model training can hinder progress.