Minister for Ecological Transition and Biodiversity Monique Barbut stands in a flooded street as she visits Cadillac-sur-Garonne, France, on Feb. 16, 2026. France's flood alert system has been working at a record pace as relentless rain over the past month has saturated soils, the head of the agency told AFP. Gaizka Iroz/AFP via Getty Images
Operators control power generation and transmission at Tokyo Electric Power Company's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant Unit 6, in Kariwa Village, Niigata Prefecture, Japan, on Feb. 16, 2026. Japan Pool/Jiji Press/AFP via Getty Images
