Climate and environment updates: 7 key measures of Earth's health in danger, report warns

Nearly one-third of the world's species could be at risk for extinction because of climate change if the world does nothing to reduce global warming, according to a new analysis from Science.

University of Connecticut researcher and biologist Mark Urban found that while some species are adapting to climate change, 160,000 species are already at risk. Many are now facing declining populations because of changes in our climate.

According to the study, with current global temperatures at 1.3 degrees Celsius above industrial levels, 1.6% of species are projected to become extinct. As the temperatures warm even more, Urban found the extinction rate would also increase, with the most severe scenario included (5.4 degrees Celsius of warming) putting the extinction risk at 29.7%.

"The increased certainty of predicted climate change extinctions compels action," Urban wrote. "Extinction represents just the final endpoint of a species' existence; even when extinction is avoided, declining abundances and shrinking ranges can strongly affect many other species, including humans."

Urban defines the risk of extinction as the probability that any one species will go extinct without mitigation efforts. Urban found that extinction rates could increase dramatically if global temperatures rise over 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to industrial levels.

1. 5 degrees Celsius is the warming limit set by the world's nations under the Paris Agreement after the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found that crossing that benchmark would lead to more severe climate change impacts.

Risks varied across geographic areas in the study, with Australia/New Zealand and South America facing the highest risks (15.7% and 12.8%, respectively) and Asia facing lower risks (5.5%).

-ABC News Climate Unit's Kelly Livingston

Imagine you have a swimming pool with ice cubes filling it. Now, measure the total area of the pool that has ice on the surface, even if the ice cubes don't cover it completely. Because ice often spreads out unevenly, leaving water between the chunks, scientists count areas where at least 15% of the surface is covered. So, because your pool is loaded with ice cubes, it would be considered ice covered. In the real world, scientists call it sea ice extent.

While you can add ice to your pool, you can't to the ocean. And according to a new report by Copernicus, the European Union's Climate Change Service, the sea ice extent in the Antarctic has dipped to its lowest value on record for the month of November. It is 10% below average. This occurred during a stretch of near-record global land and sea surface temperatures.

Last month ranked as the second warmest November on record globally, with an average temperature of 14.10 degrees Celsius, or 57.38 degrees Fahrenheit.

Copernicus noted the new data not only makes it virtually certain that 2024 will surpass 2023 as Earth's warmest year on record, but it will likely be the first year to be 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) than the pre-industrial average of 1850-1900.

The Paris Agreement aims to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to prevent the worst outcomes of climate change.

As of November 2024, the average global year-to-date temperature was 0.14 degrees Celsius (or 0.25 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than it was in 2023, which is the warmest year ever recorded.

-ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck

The United States will need a "shocking" amount of power in the coming years, according to a new report from the consulting firm Grid Strategies.

"The era of flat power demand is behind us," the report found. "Over the past two years, the five-year load growth forecast has increased by almost a factor of five."

That means the country's demand for electricity is estimated to increase by nearly 16% by 2029.

The report cites data centers and manufacturing as the primary drivers of the increased demand but also finds that oil and gas production and the electrification of buildings and vehicles are adding to the growth.

"There are real risks to America's economic, technological and geopolitical leadership if the grid can't keep up with demand," the report warns.

America's increased demand for electricity will significantly impact the country's efforts to fight climate change. According to the EPA, electricity generation is responsible for 25% of greenhouse gas emissions. And while more clean energy projects are coming online each year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration says 60% of U.S. electricity still comes from burning fossil fuels.

The study's authors say their findings could be an underestimate or overestimate due to the complexity of the electric system and the rapid growth in demand for electricity.

-ABC News Climate Unit's Matthew Glasser

At a Tuesday night event, politicians and climate activists, including actress Jane Fonda, delivered a strong message to the incoming Trump administration: they will continue fighting for climate progress and Trump's agenda will not stop them.

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. told a crowd gathered at George Washington University, "It is time, after one month, for us to get up and begin to fight," adding, "The power of this movement is undeniable, and unlike the incoming president, our record of victory is unimpeachable."

Despite the incoming administration's "doomsday day one agenda," activists and advocates from the climate movement would push for change in Congress, in board rooms and in the streets, he said.

"The planet is running a fever," Markey said. "There are no emergency rooms for planets, so we have to engage in the preventative care which is necessary to save this planet and the people on this planet, and we know we're going to face an uphill battle with a climate denier in chief."

Climate activist and actress Jane Fonda called on those who care about climate progress to stand together and welcome new people into the movement's tent – even those who voted for President-elect Trump.

"Seventy-eight million Americans voted for Trump. They are not all part of the MAGA movement," Fonda said. "Many of them did so because they're suffering financially, they're scared, they're confused and they're angry because the neo-liberal leaders of the Democratic Party have ignored them for so many decades, and so they took a chance on the burn-it-all-down option."

Fonda, a longtime activist, became involved in the climate movement during the first Trump administration by hosting "Fire Drill Fridays" in front of the U.S. Capitol. These weekly protests often led to her arrest.

At Tuesday night's event, Fonda wore the same bright red coat she wore during her "fire drills," noting that it was her "blanket and pillow when I turned 82 in jail."

"Standing here today in my red coat, I hereby declare myself part of the resistance," Fonda said.

Fonda also encouraged listeners to focus on down-ballot races and initiatives to address climate change.

Since becoming a climate activist, Fonda has started a political action committee dedicated to electing "climate champions." In 2024, she said the PAC endorsed 154 candidates, telling the audience at the event that her PAC's candidates won at a ratio of two-to-one.

Local activists, like Roishetta Ozane, spoke about the importance of not forgetting the communities that are feeling the impacts of climate change firsthand, saying, "These are our real lives and we are real people."

In her home state of Louisiana, Ozane has been advocating against the implementation and use of liquified natural gas pipelines, arguing that her area has suffered adverse health and environmental effects from local LNG production efforts.

One of the projects Ozane has advocated against, Calcasieu Pass 2, which would represent an expansion of one of the existing LNG projects in the area, was just delayed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission earlier this week.

-ABC News Climate Unit's Kelly Livingston