Global Scans · Environment · Weekly Summary

WHAT'S NEXT:? Our natural environment is under ever-increasing threat. Landscape and ocean adaptation plus stabilizing biodiversity strategies will play an important role in maintaining global food productivity as climate changes. Evidence is mounting that any economic strategy that ignores carbon pollution will impose tremendous costs on the global economy and will result in fewer jobs and less economic growth over the long term. The global market for commercial "Earth observation" data is expected to hit $3.5 billion by 2024. Battles over environmental regulation could become particularly pointed in the coming years.

• [New] Supply Chain Ethics: As consumer activism grows, Samsung could be targeted by campaigns on issues like planned obsolescence, labour rights at suppliers, or rare-earth mining ethics. Risk Intelligence Service
• [New] The UK has an opportunity to position itself as a global leader in autonomous mobility by fostering an environment that supports innovation while maintaining public trust. IoT Now News - How to run an IoT enabled business
• [New] As industries work to reconcile productivity with environmental responsibility, demand for HMIs allowing energy-aware operations is expected to grow, solidifying its status as a vital tool in Europe's new industrial economy. IMARC Group
• [New] Another human induced uncertainty includes geoengineering practices that could occur in the future like carbon capture or aerosol manipulation which would work to reduce the impact or amount of solar radiation received on Earth. IPCC Clearly
• [New] The factors that are expected to lead the worldwide culture of the meat industry are a growing trend toward innovation in cell culture, animal welfare, and environmental sustainability. Market Data Forecast
• [New] Constraints like launch capacity, radiation, power generation, cooling, and physical size mean orbital compute resources will likely be smaller and more specialized than hyperscale infrastructure on Earth. Telecom Ramblings
• [New] The AirNow map shows pockets of unhealthy to very unhealthy air quality across the three Southern states, with elevated pollution levels increasing health risks for millions of residents, particularly children, older adults and people with respiratory conditions. Newsweek
• [New] Rainfall is expected to increase in the Sahel, Northern Europe, Alaska, and Siberia over the next five years, while the Amazon - commonly referred to as the lungs of the Earth - is forecast to be drier. Al Jazeera
• [New] Temperatures in the Arctic - the second coldest region on Earth - are predicted to be 2.8 C above the 1991-2020 average over the next five winters. Al Jazeera
• [New] Greenpeace argues that the environmental risks outweigh the economic benefits and is calling for a global moratorium on seabed mining. Euronews
• [New] NASA plans to install advanced energy systems, including surface reactors, initial habitat elements, and more robust communication networks. Wired
• [New] The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced proposed changes to federal PFAS drinking water regulations that could significantly impact how public water systems plan for compliance in the coming years. Kleinfelder
• [New] The U.K.'s Royal Astronomical Society is urging governments to formally recognize artificial light at night as a pollutant, warning that growing levels of light pollution are harming human health, biodiversity and astronomical research. Forbes
• [New] NASA is targeting mid to late 2027 for Artemis 3, which will launch Orion to low Earth orbit to rendezvous and dock with one or both of the private lunar landers, and late 2028 for the first lunar landing on Artemis 4. Space
• Plastic pollution will become more abundant by cumulative mass than all life on Earth, with a plethora of potential negative consequences across scales of biological organization, from molecular and cellular to population and ecosystem level. PubMed Central (PMC)
• An estimated 710 million metric tons of global plastic pollution is expected between 2016 and 2040 (1). PubMed Central (PMC)
• Sulphur oxide emissions and associated particulate pollution in some of the world's busiest and most environmentally sensitive shipping corridors will be substantially reduced. gCaptain
• MetricStream can help organizations gain better visibility into their global supply chains along with ensuring comprehensive risk management processes to identify, prevent, and minimize risks pertaining to human rights and environmental protection. Metricstream
• Future work integrating higher-resolution environmental data and multi-model climate ensembles could help refine projections and strengthen invasion risk assessments under ongoing global change. PubMed Central (PMC)
• Plastic pollution is found nearly everywhere on Earth and threatens ecosystems, wildlife, and potentially human health. CNW Group

Last updated: 06 June 2026