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Gopal Sharma, Reuters
Nepal’s catastrophic floods have caused damages to property, housing and infrastructure worth at least $2.56bn, the country's disaster authority chief tells Reuters. Dharma Raj Upreti, chief of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, says to the newswire that the first four months of recovery, involving building roads and temporary shelters and restoring power and drinking water, would cost more than $50m. Upreti tells Reuters: “These are estimated amounts. We have calculated this in coordination with different concerned agencies and departments.” Reuters also reports on how Nepalese authorities are working to try to reach 900 people that are believed to be trapped inside hydroelectric plants, and has a story on how engineers are guiding rescue efforts from a WhatsApp group.
Xinhua
Local authorities in south-eastern China’s Fujian province have relocated 83,700 people in dangerous areas as Typhoon Saudel brings “persistent heavy rainfall, with high cumulative rainfall in some areas and a high risk of disasters”, reports state news agency Xinhua. Local authorities said cumulative rainfall exceeded 100mm in 122 townships across 20 counties in the province, adds the newswire. China has allocated 5,000 items of central disaster relief supplies to support disaster relief and assistance efforts in affected areas in Fujian, according to Xinhua. Meanwhile, more than 2,500 teachers and students were trapped in a school compound in neighbouring Zhejiang province on Wednesday after heavy rainfall caused flash floods, reports Reuters. Experts estimate that two-to-three typhoons are expected to “make landfall in or significantly affect China” in September, exceeding the average of 1.6 during the same period in previous years, reports state broadcaster CCTV. The typhoons are expected to be “stronger than usual”, adds the outlet.
Meanwhile, the glacier area on the Tibetan Plateau has shrunk by around 24% over the past 60 years, with around 7,000 small glaciers disappearing completely, reports the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post, citing Gao Rong, deputy director of China’s National Climate Centre. Gao also said that climate change is an “important background factor” behind the recent disaster on the China-Nepal border, according to CCTV. The outlet adds that the stability of the glaciers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is expected to “decline further in the future, potentially leading to more frequent glacial disasters”, Gao warned.
MORE ON CHINA
Following disagreement over a joint statement, finance vice-minister Liao Min called on the G20 to “uphold free trade” and “promote economic globalisation”, reports China Daily. Bloomberg says that “China proposed a tweaked phrase that would have addressed trade imbalances without putting a spotlight on the nation’s [state-owned enterprises]”. China’s commerce ministry said using the G20 to promote claims of “economic imbalances” and “overcapacity” is an attempt to “pursue protectionism”, reports Xinhua. China says talks between China and the EU should not involve “unilateral demands” and “threats such as closing markets”, reports Global Times. Chinese vice-premier Ding Xuexiang called for China and Russia to deepen cooperation in areas such as “green industries”, reports Xinhua. Economic Daily publishes an article by reporter Wang Yichen saying that “energy storage, power grids and dispatching are all indispensable” for solar power to become China’s “major power source”. A new “five-year plan” calls for supporting the “green transformation and upgrading” of small and medium-sized enterprises, according to BJX News.
Ian Johnston, The Financial Times
Spain “wants the EU to tax oil and gas company profits to fund measures to adapt to climate change, after drought and wildfires ravaged western Europe during the region’s hottest summer on record”, says the Financial Times. It continues: “Spanish minister for ecological transition (and third vice-president) Sara Aagesen Muñoz called on the EU to establish a climate adaptation fund, financed by measures including the permanent levy on oil and gas profits and the issue of more common debt to help it fund protections from extreme events driven by climate change. The Spanish government made the recommendations in a letter and policy paper, seen by the FT, addressed to EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra, who will deliver a new strategy on climate adaptation and resilience this autumn.” It adds that “economists estimate the cost of the drought in Europe this summer was at least €50bn ($58bn), with one bank putting the total cost as high as €180bn ($209bn)”.
MORE ON EUROPE
A frontpage story in the Financial Times says that the EU is entering winter with its lowest gas stocks on record. German car giant Volkswagen has approved a plan to cut another 50,000 jobs as “part of the biggest restructuring in the group's almost nine-decade history”, says BBC News. VW said it is facing “shifting demand and technological change”, adds the broadcaster. The Journal: “Summer 2026 was officially the hottest in modern Irish history.” Reuters: “Hungary to create watchdog to oversee EV battery plants, boost fines for polluters.” European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen will announce €200m ($233m) in funding for Greenland on a visit to the nation this weekend, with the money going towards “critical raw materials industry, renewable energy, undersea cables, satellite connections and data centres”, says the Financial Times.
Kiran Stacey and Damian Carrington, The Guardian
A frontpage story in the Guardian says that environment minister Angela Eagle has urged people in the UK to have enough food and water stored to survive several days without power or water, amid the rapidly intensifying super El Niño. The newspaper says that the UK government is currently planning a campaign to urge citizens to prepare for national emergencies. It quotes Eagle as saying: “We’re about to experience probably the largest El Niño that has ever been seen, and that will lead to drier summers, wetter winters, with more extreme storms in this country. If you’ve got a store of a bit of food that can keep you going for a while before the emergency services can get to you, you’re going to be a lot better off than if you haven’t. So some of it is that kind of preparation for just being a bit more resilient.” A frontpage story in the Daily Telegraph says citizens have been told to “prepare for food shortages”. El Niño also makes the frontpage of the Metro.
MORE ON UK
BBC News reports that the Jackdaw gas project is set to be approved in mid-September, according to “government and industry sources”. The Guardian also has the story, saying the announcement could come as “soon as next week”. Pro-oil and gas newspaper the Daily Telegraph claims that “drilling the North Sea’s controversial Jackdaw gas field is the best option for the climate”. The UK has announced a £400m ($541m) loan for Brazil’s Tropical Forests Forever Facility, says Reuters. Publications including Sky News, BBC News, the Daily Telegraph and the Guardian cover the news that an invasive tropical mosquito has been found breeding in east London. Hundreds gathered to urge the Scottish government to stop rapid data centre expansion, says the Guardian. The story makes the frontpage of the National. BBC News: “Households warned gas price spike could pile fresh pressure on energy bills.”
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