Climate Threat Global Challenges

UN agencies sound the alarm: Earth is out of balance – everything is red

The Earth’s energy balance is out of balance, which is contributing to global warming. This is what the UN World Meteorological Organization, WMO, warns in a new report that includes the energy balance for the first time as one of the most important climate indicators.

When the system is in balance, the energy supplied from the sun is about the same as the energy that leaves. But since the 1960s, the imbalance has increased, and the increase has accelerated in the past 20 years. A new peak was reached last year.

“The Earth is being pushed beyond its limits. All important climate indicators are red,” says UN Secretary-General António Guterres, in a press statement.

The eleven warmest years on record have all occurred between 2015 and 2025. At the same time, the oceans, which have an important buffer function for temperatures on land, are getting warmer and the Earth’s glaciers are melting.


SVT: Neste has banned palm oil in biofuel

Finnish Neste is suspected of receiving banned palm oil instead of recycled frying oil, an investigation by SVT Nyheter shows.

The company is the world's largest producer of biofuel for aviation. According to the EU, it must be produced from waste products, such as used frying oil from restaurants and private individuals in, for example, Malaysia.

But it is easy to cheat, the investigation shows. A reporter submits new palm oil and gets paid - without checking.

According to customs figures, Neste buys 250,000 tons of used frying oil from Malaysia each year, even though the supply is estimated at a maximum of 100,000 tons. The company does not want to say where the raw materials come from.

“If we have any suspicions about raw materials we import, we investigate and stop deliveries from such suppliers,” says Vice President Carl Nyberg.

Palm oil can produce higher emissions than fossil fuels and contribute to deforestation. Therefore, it is not permitted in biofuels according to the EU.