A window into what we’re reading at the Stimson Center’s Environmental Security Program

Argentina’s “Glacier Law” Opens Ecologically Sensitive Areas to Mining (Al-Jazeera)

Politicians in Argentina approved a bill pushed by President Javier Milei to authorize mining in ecologically sensitive areas of the nation containing nearly 17,000 glaciers and/or rock glaciers and permafrost which heavily support the country’s water security. Dubbed the “Glacier Law,” the measure is designed to leverage the vast critical mineral reserves (such as copper and lithium) found in frozen parts of the Andes mountains.

A window into what we’re reading at the Stimson Center’s Environmental Security Program

Pakistan’s Grassroots Solar Mitigates Middle East Energy Crisis Impact (The Guardian)

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 also sparked a grassroots solar boom in Pakistan. Surging LNG prices and unreliable grid electricity resulting from the war’s broader effects pushed citizens to invest in rooftop solar as a one-time cost alternative to perpetually high electricity bills. Between December 2021 and December 2025, solar energy’s share of grid-supplied electricity in Pakistan jumped fivefold. Today, solar provides one-fifth of the country’s electricity.

A window into what we’re reading at the Stimson Center’s Environmental Security Program

As Gulf Conflict Widens, So Does Its Environmental Footprint  (Dialogue Earth)

The Conflict and Environment Observatory identified at least 120 incidents of environmental harm across 11 countries since the start of U.S. and Israelis began attacks on Iran, as both sides have made oil infrastructure, military facilities, and strategic sites primary targets. The burgeoning conflict poses nuclear, chemical, and long-term carbon risks, as strikes on refineries, tankers, and storage sites degrade air quality, contaminate water contamination, and harm marine ecosystems. And other serious catastrophes loom as the war develops. The IAEA warns that any radioactive release from strikes that target nuclear sites could require evacuating areas the size of major cities.

I recently returned to Syria for my first peacetime visit. Unsurprisingly, the country is an awful mess. The destruction is somehow slightly more conspicuous than it seemed through a number of trips between 2014 and 2022. People’s exhaustion is palpable, and the economic situation is every bit as bad for many now as it was during the war. A formidable—and thus far entirely unanswered—environmental question also looms: how on Earth is the country’s landscape to be salvaged?

Ford’s CEO was so impressed by the Xiaomi SU7 that he now uses it as his daily driver. The Chinese-made electric vehicle (EV) has a 345-mile driving range on a single charge and costs just $30,000. There is nothing like it in the U.S.

Global plastic production is increasing almost exponentially.  Not only has it grown 250-fold since the 1950s, but it is on track to double by 2040, and nearly triple by 2060. The waste associated with its creation has accumulated in parallel. An estimated 8 billion metric tons of discarded plastic now pollute the planet, breaking down into micro-and nanoplastic particles (MNPs) that are ubiquitous in the environment.

In today’s world of fast fashion, a $4 crop top travel across continents faster than a letter, and new trends die before a customer hits the “checkout” prompt. Yet the global obsession with cheap clothing creates apparel soaked in a cocktail of dyes, plasticizers, and forever chemicals, that linger far longer than the consumer forces that make them trendy.

The global apparel sector is valued at over $1.8 trillion, and it is the world’s second most chemical-intensive industry after agriculture. For big manufacturing hubs in Southeast Asia (particularly India, Bangladesh, Pakistan), textiles represent an economic lifeline.

In December 2024, the Global Plastic Treaty delegates kicked the plastic bottle down the road, delaying a final agreement to rein in the plastic pollution plaguing the planet. Recycling has failed to solve the problem, with most single-use plastic waste ending up in landfills (50%), incinerators (19%) or leaked into the environment (22%). Ultimately, the world needs to produce significantly less single use plastics and more reusable packaging. There is also a need to create better technologies and policies to push companies to transform plastics into new products.