Through the lens

Dense smog smothered parts of Pakistan this week, leading to twelve deaths and countless reports of allergies. Poor visibility caused disruption to traffic and flight schedules. The Pakistan Metrological Department said a lack of rainfall was the reason for the terrible air quality, which was expected to last for several days.

 

One year after the historic Paris Agreement struck at COP21, the 22nd Conference of the Parties got underway in the Moroccan city of Marrakesch. This time round, the 197 signatories have to talk about implementation strategies.

 

One of the key issues on the agenda at COP22 was expected to be water and food security. A project in the country's Anti-Atlas mountains uses giant nets to harvest the fog that is a regular feature in the region's weather pattern. Local villages are already reaping the benefits. 
 

Police in the US state of North Dakoka used pepper spray on demonstrators who stood in a river to protest the construction of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. 

Environmental organisation Greenpeace staged an event outside the Reichstag in Berlin. The giant ring of fire, which was conceived to symbolize a thermometer, was a response to the German government's failure to agree on a climate action plan to present in Marrakesch during COP22. 

 

Last but not least - Donald Trump has been elected as the 45th president of the United States of America. Just two days after the election, arrangements are already underway to fulfill the Republican Party's promise to kill the American agency implementing environmental regulations. According to media reports, Trump has selected Myron Ebell, one of the country's best-known climate skeptics, to lead his transition team for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The team will coordinate with the existing agency management until Trump assumes office on 20 January.