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Cities fight to keep the lights on in extreme weather events

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

This article is part of POLITICO’s Global Policy Lab: Living Cities, a collaborative journalism project exploring the future of cities. Sign up here.A city, a heat wave, a catastrophic blackout that leaves millions without power, unable to find relief from stifling temperatures.That nightmarish scenario may seem far-fetched. But it’s a growing possibility in Europe’s major cities in the age of climate change.When temperatures climb, city residents — who are disproportionately exposed to extreme heat compared with those living in rural areas — tend to seek refuge in air-conditioned, indoor spaces. That puts a major strain on electricity grids, which struggle to keep up with demand.As these extreme events become more common, experts warn that there’s an increased potential for shortages.“Grid congestion, the failure of the electricity network to cope with increased demand, already affects all regions in one way or another,” said Roel M...

Negotiations on EU nature law to start July 19

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

Negotiations between EU institutions on highly contentious new rules to restore nature will start on July 19, European Parliament environment committee chair Pascal Canfin tweeted Thursday.The announcement comes after the Parliament narrowly adopted its common position on the text during a nerve-wracking vote in plenary on Wednesday, paving the way for negotiations to start with the Council of the EU on a final deal.The Commission’s legislative proposal, presented a year ago as part of the EU’s Green Deal, wants to force EU countries to implement measures to restore at least 20 percent of the EU’s degraded land and sea areas by 2030.It has come under fire from conservative politicians, who pushed hard to get MEPs to reject the bill, arguing that it will have detrimental impacts on food production and the rollout of renewable energy projects.Member countries adopted their joint stance on the proposal in June. The Parliament used the Council’s general approach ...

British response to China threat ‘completely inadequate,’ damning report warns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

LONDON — The British government has taken too long to act against Chinese interference, leading to a “serious failure” in its response and “one that the U.K. may feel the consequences of for years to come,” a cross-party committee of lawmakers warned Thursday.In a long-awaited and damning report, the Intelligence and Security Committee — which oversees the work of the U.K.’s intelligence community — said the resources dedicated to tackling security threats posed by China are “completely inadequate.”And it accused the British government of being too “slow” to develop policies to protect key U.K. assets from Chinese interference. “We found that the level of resource dedicated to tackling the threat posed by China’s ‘whole-of-state’ approach has been completely inadequate, and the slow speed at which strategies and policies are developed and implemented leaves a lot to be desired,” the committee wrote. That contradicts the government’s rosy self-assessment of its approach to China...

Police investigating after bullet pierces window of popular North End bakery

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

A police investigation is underway after a bullet was fired through a window of a popular North End bakery late Thursday night.Officers responding to a reported shooting on Hanover Street around 11 p.m. found a bullet hole in one of the windows of Modern Pastry.The business was closed at the time of the shooting and there were no reported injuries.No additional information was immediately available.Anyone with information is urged to call Boston police.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Buses replacing service on a stretch of Red Line after emergency response at Charles/MGH

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

Buses are replacing subway service on a stretch of the Red Line on Thursday after a mechanical issue disabled a train at the Charles/MGH MBTA station.Fire crews could be seen responding to the station around 6:30 a.m.Buses are replacing service between Harvard and Broadway stations. Riders can use Green Line service from Union Square/Medford for alternate service inbound.They can also use Bus 1, 64, 68, 77, 87, and 96 for alternate service.https://twitter.com/MBTA/status/1679442416867110913No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Heat Now, Storms Ahead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

Back to back beach and pool days the last couple of days as temps yesterday took another step up. We hit 91 in Boston, marking the first official 90 degree day in Boston of the year. It’s the 5th latest 90 degree reading at Logan Airport, where records are kept. Now that we have that in the books, will we take another run at it today? Close, but I expect to fall just shy of it as highs top off in the upper 80s. With that said, some towns just away from the coast will likely touch 90 or 91. With dew points drifting up to near 70, it’ll be very humid with just an isolated afternoon shower/storm popping up, mainly northwest of Boston. The sky high humidity, combined with instability and a disturbance moving in from the west will trigger scattered storms tonight and more scattered storms on Friday. With the atmosphere juiced with water vapor, localized downpours, producing a quick 1-3″ are possible. Those high amounts won’t be found everywhere, but where the ba...

Lawyer accused of North End sex assaults due back in court

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

A New Jersey man charged in a series of sexual assaults in Charlestown in the 2000s will be back in court Thursday to face charges stemming from additional assaults in the North End.Matthew Nilo, 35, is facing new charges following his June 15 release after posting $500,000 bail. The charges stem from five attacks on four women in the North End. One of the victims was attacked twice, 11 days apart. The attacks occurred in January 2007, July 2007, January 2008 and July 2008.Prosecutors say DNA evidence links Nilo to the attacks. His lawyer is questioning the legality of how the DNA evidence was obtained.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Battenfeld: Is Maura Healey becoming just another drive-by governor?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

Is Maura Healey becoming just another drive-by governor?We’ve seen this movie before.Healey showed up in western Massachusetts on Wednesday for two quick events to survey flooding damage in that part of the state, and hours later was off to Atlantic City of all places for a governors’ conference.Then her office announced that after the conference, she’d be traveling to Michigan and wouldn’t be home until Sunday. Details about the Michigan trip were scant but she plans on Friday to meet with the “Michigan Women’s Commission” with other fellow governors. Maybe she can join them for a game of hoops.This comes as more torrential rains are possible later this week which could impact the already flooded areas of western Massachusetts.Healey has been out of state now overnight for four full weeks of her brief tenure as Massachusetts governor, leaving either Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll or Secretary of State William Galvin in charge.That’s a downright Romneyesque record. An...

Top general’s dismissal reveals new crack in Russian military leadership

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian general in charge of forces fighting in southern Ukraine has been relieved of his duties after speaking out about the problems faced by his troops in a move that reflected new fissures in the Russian military command following a brief rebellion by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.Maj. Gen. Ivan Popov, the commander of the 58th Army fighting in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region, which is a focal point in the Ukrainian counteroffensive, said in an audio statement to his troops released late Wednesday that he was dismissed after a meeting with the top military brass.Popov said that the military leadership was angered by his frank talk about the challenges faced by his forces, particularly the shortage of radars tracking enemy artillery, which resulted in massive Russian casualties.“The top officers apparently saw me as a source of threat and rapidly issued an order to get rid of me, which was signed by the defense minister in just one day,” he said. ...

Climate activists block runways at 2 German airports, causing numerous flight cancellations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:54 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Climate activists blocked flights at two German airports for several hours Thursday in protest against the most polluting form of transportation, and to demand tougher government action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.The group Last Generation said several of its members entered the grounds of Hamburg Airport around 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) and glued themselves to the runway on the first day of the school vacation in the north German city.Dozens of flights were canceled and 10 arrivals had to be diverted to other airports, Germany’s dpa news agency reported.Members of the group also cut through a security fence at Duesseldorf Airport in the west and blocked an access route to the runway, disrupting several flights before operations resumed.In a statement, the group accused the German government of lacking a strategy to tackle the climate crisis and called for immediate measures to cut emissions in the transportation sector, including ending tax exemptions for airline...