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Sewage dumps into English rivers widespread, criminal inquiry suspects

A criminal investigation into water companies in England has uncovered suspected widespread illegal sewage discharges from treatment plants, the Environment Agency has revealed.

Biodiversity Solutions Also Fight Climate Change

Mass extinction lurks beneath the surface of the sea. That was the dire message from a study published in April in the journal Science, which found that continuing to emit greenhouse gases unchecked could trigger a mass die-off of ocean animals that rivals the worst extinction events in Earth’s ...

International Day of Plant Health 2022: History, Significance and All You Need to Know

Plants are the life of Earth and we all are dependent on them. How we breathe and what we eat are all affected by plants. They develop up to 80% of food for us and up to 98% of oxygen. But human habitation is harming the life of plants. Several diseases and pests kill up to 40% of food crops eve ...

First ever International Day of Plant Health: No food security without healthy plants

As the world marks the International Day of Plant Health (IDPH) for the first time, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has called for more investment in innovation in a field crucial for boosting food security and transforming how our food is produced, delivered an ...

Africa: UN Spotlights Plant Health, Crucial for Boosting Food Security Worldwide

On the very first International Day of Plant Health, marked on Thursday, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has called for more investment in innovation to boost food security, especially for the billions worldwide living close to the bread line.

World Migratory Birds Day: How are India’s winged guests doing

Everybody loves the sight of flocks of exotic birds making the most of the winter sun. But how many pause to think of how their lot really fare? The eve of World Migratory Bird Day offers an opportunity to take stock.

Dim the lights for birds at night

World Migratory Bird Day, which is celebrated on both the second Saturday in May (14th) and October (8th), celebrates the migration of birds across countries and continents. This year, the campaign will be focusing on the issue of light pollution and the negative effects it is having on migrator ...

The perilous life of migratory birds

Climate change is making their journeys longer and harder, window panes and power lines are deadly obstacles, and hunters lie in wait with nets. But there is plenty we can do to help, not harm, our feathered friends.

The slender-snouted crocodile savior: Q&A with Whitley Award winner Emmanuel Amoah

Baby West African slender-snouted crocodiles come into the world doubly watched over. Females of the species, Mecistops cataphractus, guard their nests on the riverbanks in the Tano River Basin until they hear the hatchlings squeak. Then they uncover them, take the hatchlings gently in their jaw ...

Not all is rosy for the pink pigeon, study finds

The authors of a major study on the once critically endangered pink pigeon say boosting the species’ numbers is not enough to save it from extinction in the future.

‘We saved a giraffe’s life’: calf fitted with braces to correct bent legs

Over the past three decades Ara Mirzaian has fitted braces for everyone from Paralympians to children with scoliosis. But Msituni was a patient like none other: a newborn giraffe.

Wild Pacific salmon catches down 80 per cent, elders report

Wild Pacific salmon catches are one sixth what they were 50-70 years ago, Indigenous elders report. Employing Indigenous research methodologies, Nisga’a citizen Dr. Andrea Reid (she/her) interviewed 48 knowledge keepers from 18 First Nations across the Fraser, Skeena, and Nass rivers.

Climate adaptation is a business opportunity — but at what cost?

Fancy getting real-time data on where lightning is striking during a thunderstorm, accurate to under a hundred metres, using a couple of lightweight ground-based sensors?

Moon soil used to grow plants for first time in breakthrough test

Scientists have grown plants in lunar soil for the first time, an important step towards making long-term stays on the moon possible. Researchers used small samples of dust collected during the 1969-1972 Apollo missions to grow a type of cress.

Remote sensing research improves hurricane response

Safe and uninterrupted road travel is crucial in the aftermath of storms so that people can access medical treatment, downed power lines can be removed and communities can begin a return to normalcy.

Study finds soil composition isn't key to southeast Raleigh flooding

Some types of soil act more like concrete than a sponge, allowing water to flow off to flood streams, creeks and rivers. However, a recent study by North Carolina State University researchers suggests recurrent problematic flooding in part of Raleigh is more likely due to the amount and location ...

Sea ice can control Antarctic ice sheet stability, new research finds

Despite the rapid melting of ice in many parts of Antarctica during the second half of the 20th century, researchers have found that the floating ice shelves which skirt the eastern Antarctic Peninsula have undergone sustained advance over the past 20 years.

Satellite images reveal dramatic loss of global wetlands over past two decades

An analysis of more than a million satellite images has revealed that 4,000 square kilometers of tidal wetlands have been lost globally over twenty years.

New study lays out hidden backstory behind deadly Pacific Northwest heat wave

Last summer, a deadly wave of heat struck the Pacific Northwest, causing temperatures to soar more than 30 degrees Fahrenheit above normal and killing more than a thousand people.

South Asia pummelled by heatwave that hits 50C in Pakistan

South Asia was in the grip of an extreme heatwave on Friday, with parts of Pakistan reaching a temperature of 50 degrees Celsius as officials warned of acute water shortages and a health threat.

Trees aren't a climate change cure-all: Two new studies on the life and death of trees in a warming world show why

When people talk about ways to slow climate change, they often mention trees, and for good reason. Forests take up a large amount of the planet-warming carbon dioxide that people put into the atmosphere when they burn fossil fuels. But will trees keep up that pace as global temperatures rise?

Fighting white-nose syndrome in bats benefits agriculture, study shows

For years, bats have gotten a bad rap as the creepy creatures lurking in the dark. But for just as long, agricultural producers have known the winged wonder is actually the hero of the story, not the villain.

Unusually fast beaked whale has special deep-sea hunting strategy

An international team of biologists has successfully used biologgers to reveal insights into the lifestyle and hunting behavior of the little-known species Sowerby's beaked whale.

Sweet lime oils defeat pests

Citrus peel and pulp is a growing waste problem in the food industry and in the home. However, there is potential to extract something useful from it. Work in the International Journal of Environment and Waste Management describes a simple steam distillation method that uses a domestic pressure ...

Immunomodulatory effects of parasitic dinoflagellate Hematodinium on crustacean hemocytes

The parasitic dinoflagellate Hematodinium spp. is an endoparasitic dinoflagellatet. It could infect more than 40 species of marine crustaceans, leading to Hematodinium epizootics.

Decoding the leaf: Scientists search for features to ID modern, fossil leaves

Machine learning programs that can classify leaves and place them in biological families may unlock new clues about the evolution of plant life, but only if scientists understand what the computers are seeing.

How dragonflies right themselves when dropped upside down

A trio of researchers, two with Cornell University, the other with Howard Hughes Medical Institute, has discovered the means by which dragonflies are able to right themselves so quickly from an upside-down orientation.

Algae reveal clues about climate changes over millions of years

Organisms adjust their cell walls according to environmental conditions such as temperature. Some adaptations involve changes in lipids, which may still be preserved long after the rest of the organisms has been degraded.

Michigan profs push 'pee for peonies' urine diversion plan

A pair of University of Michigan researchers are putting the "pee" in peony. Rather, they're putting pee ON peonies. Environmental engineering professors Nancy Love and Krista Wigginton are regular visitors to the Ann Arbor school's Nichols Arboretum, where they have been applying urine-based fe ...

Could we learn to love slugs and snails in our gardens?

Before you squash or poison the next slug or snail you see in your garden, consider this: The British Royal Horticultural Society no longer classifies these gastropods as pests. Why on earth would a leading gardening organization do that, you might wonder.

Tadpoles for dinner? Indigenous community in Mexico reveals a favorite recipe for a particular frog

Stone soup (caldo de piedra) is a traditional meal from the Indigenous Chinantla region in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Prepared by men, it is made by placing tomato, cilantro, chili peppers, onion, raw fish, salt, and water in a jicara (a bowl made from the fruit of the calabash tree) in a hole ...

Sea turtle success stories along African east coast—but thousands still dying

Conservation of sea turtles along much of Africa's east coast has made good progress in recent decades—but tens of thousands of turtles still die each year due to human activity, researchers say.

‘Is it all worth it?’: farmers left heartbroken as Queensland floods ruin crops

A “gut-wrenching” clean up and recovery is under way across Queensland as the flood waters slowly subside from the second major rain event this year.

Why the world has a lot to learn about conservation – and trust – from Indigenous societies

Twenty-five years ago, when I was a young anthropologist working in northern Siberia, the Indigenous hunters, fishers and trappers I lived with would often stop and solemnly offer something to the tundra. It was usually small, such as coins, buttons or unlit matches.

Beyond honey: 4 essential reads about bees

As spring gardening kicks into high gear, bees emerge from hibernation and start moving from flower to flower. These hardworking insects play an essential role pollinating plants, but they’re also interesting for many other reasons.

What is dead pool? A water expert explains

Journalists reporting on the status and future of the Colorado River are increasingly using the phrase “dead pool.” It sounds ominous. And it is.

Environment tipping points fast approaching in UK, says watchdog

Environmental tipping points are fast approaching in the UK, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) has said.

Extreme weather: What is it and how is it connected to climate change?

People around the globe are experiencing dramatic heatwaves, deadly floods and wildfires as a result of climate change. Parts of Pakistan and north-west India could see temperatures of more than 50C this weekend.

Climate change increases risks of tree death

Planting a tree seems like a generally good thing to do for the environment. Trees, after all, take in carbon dioxide, offsetting some of the emissions that contribute to climate change.

Effect of climate change on kidney beans, bean sprouts and green beans

A team of researchers from the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), belonging to the Instituto Universitario de Conservación y Mejora de la Agrodiversidad Valenciana (COMAV), and the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (Ecuador) has evaluated the effects of climatic conditions on local ...

Climate change isn't just making cyclones worse, it's making the floods they cause worse too

Super cyclones, known as hurricanes or typhoons in different parts of the world, are among the most destructive weather events on our planet.

Climate Change: Even If We Miss the 1.5°C Target, We Must Not Allow More Warming

'We must all become engaged and active to protect our world, by all means possible', experts suggest. Is it game over for our attempts to avert dangerous climate change?

Tree death contributes to climate change more than you’d think

Trees hold an important place in global climate change efforts, but with tree deaths increasing, could they do more harm than good?

How Miami Can Survive Climate Change

This article is part of a series from Future Tense and New America’s Future of Land and Housing Program on managed retreat and other adaptations to climate change.

Africa Finance Corporation: Three steps for Africa to combat climate change

With hopes for countering global warming pinned on progress at the upcoming COP27 UN Climate Change Conference in Egypt, a new report from the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Africa’s leading infrastructure solutions provider, sets out the continent’s stance by balancing the need for emissions ...

Dehydrated birds falling from sky in India amid record heatwave

Rescuers in India’s western Gujarat state are picking up dozens of exhausted and dehydrated birds dropping every day as a scorching heatwave dries out water sources in the state’s biggest city, veterinary doctors and animal rescuers say.

Changes in cholesterol production lead to tragic octopus death spiral

For all their uncanny intelligence and seemingly supernatural abilities to change color and regenerate limbs, octopuses often suffer a tragic death. After a mother octopus lays a clutch of eggs, she quits eating and wastes away; by the time the eggs hatch, she is dead.

US forests provide 83 million people with half their water

Forested lands across the U.S. provide 83 million people with at least half of their water, according to a broad new study of surface water sources for more than 5,000 public water systems.

Extreme storms could help protect beaches from sea level rise, new study finds

A quick checkup on the “skin of the Earth”

One of the biodiverse ecosystems on the planet is the soil beneath our feet. When healthy, a single gram of soil can contain tens of thousands of bacteria and fungi species, serving as the living foundation for all other ecosystems as well as of human food systems, clean water and safety from ce ...