Hot Mess: Recent Episodes
RTÉ Radio 1
Is Geo-engineering the planet to reduce warming our best hope or playing with fire? Incorrect speculation that Dubai caused massive flooding in April by seeding clouds put geo-engineering in a critical spotlight. Philip visits the “Centre For Climate Repair” a leading player in this much criticised field.
A new project to take the sting out of flooding. With so much extra rain in our future we are going to have to start adapting now. But most of these projects to keep our feet dry will have as many opponents as supporters. Philip examines one with huge potential and invites a powerful critic to see if he can be persuaded.
Are climate protestors just students acting the maggot or successors to the Sufragettes and Civil Rights movement? In an extended interview with Roger Hallam the co-founder of Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion, Philip tries to establish if the protests can reduce global warming or is the real aim societal change.
Was 10 months of rain from July to April our new normal? The world temporarily went beyond the 1.5 degrees of additional warming we have committed to holding it to. Philip talks to scientists about why this happened, and what it says about how wet it will get.
What the latest research says about how climate change will shape the planet for those alive now.
New research shows the increased climate warming pollution the aviation sector doesn't want to talk about.
Should Ireland leave all its oil and gas reserves in the ground or drill to achieve energy independence?
What was the cabinet sub committee on climate change told by Ireland's leading climate scientist at a recent private briefing?
The things we got wrong about Data Centres and how they could be made a part of Ireland's climate solution.
What upheaval on Antarctica's ice sheets means for the future of Ireland's coastal communities.
Did the success of the anti nuclear protests of the 1970s tie the hands of those trying to tackle the climate crisis in the 2020s?
Does the absence of a national Hydrogen Plan mean Ireland is letting a golden opportunity to cut emissions slip? And in the absence of that plan, are fossil fuel companies making their own?
Climate Change means wildfires in Ireland are going to increase in frequency and intensity. We reveal for the first time the CO2 emissions created by accidental and controlled burning.
The debate about cutting emissions from agriculture is dogged by dispute, division and denial of science. Is there a way of finding common ground between environmentalists and farmers?
Might a growing protest campaign against Bord Na Mona's rewetting of bogs derail one of Ireland's most important climate actions before its begun?
A major wrinkle in meeting Ireland's renewable energy targets. Are wealthy vested interests standing in the way of vital national infrastructure or is there a public problem with wind and solar power.