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Eco-news: Earth and the environment
Whales 'stressed by ocean noise'
(Feb 8, 2012)
Noise from ships stresses whales nearby, researchers have shown. Ships'
propellers emit sound in the same frequency range that some whales
use for communicating, and previous studies have shown the whales
change their calling patterns in noisy places. Now, researchers have
measured stress hormones in whale faeces, and found they rose with
the density of shipping.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Arctic Ocean freshwater bulge detected
(Jan 23, 2012)
UK scientists have detected a huge dome of freshwater that is developing
in the western Arctic Ocean. The bulge is some 8,000 cubic km in size
and has risen by about 15cm since 2002. The team thinks it may be
the result of strong winds whipping up a great clockwise current in
the northern polar region called the Beaufort Gyre.
Read
more. BBC |
NASA: Climate change may bring big ecosystem
changes
(Dec 15, 2011)
By 2100, global climate change will modify plant communities covering
almost half of Earth's land surface and will drive the conversion
of nearly 40 percent of land-based ecosystems from one major ecological
community type – such as forest, grassland or tundra –
toward another, according to a new NASA and university computer modeling
study. Researchers from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California
Institute of Technology, investigated how Earth's plant life is likely
to react over the next three centuries as Earth's climate changes
in response to rising levels of human-produced greenhouse gases.
Read
more. NASA/JPL |
Polar bear 'cannibalism' pictured
(Dec 8, 2011)
It is an image that is sure to shock many people. An adult polar bear
is seen dragging the body of a cub that it has just killed across
the Arctic sea ice. "There are increasing numbers of observations
of it occurring, particularly on land where polar bears are trapped
ashore, completely food-deprived for extended periods of time due
to the loss of sea ice as a result of climate change," said environmental
photojournalist Jenny Ross.
Read
more. BBC |
Indonesian orangutan on the brink of extinction
(Nov 27, 2011)
Conservationists have called on the Indonesian authorities to take
urgent action to save the orangutan after a report warned that the
endangered great apes were being hunted at a rate that could bring
them to the brink of extinction. Erik Meijaard, who led a team carrying
out the first attempt to assess the scale of the problem in Kalimantan,
the Indonesian part of Borneo, said the results showed that between
750 and 1,800 orangutans were killed as a result of hunting and deforestation
in the 12 months to April 2008.
Read
more. The Guardian |
Climate concerns as ‘ozone-friendly’ HFCs
use grows
(Nov 21, 2011)
A rise in the use of "ozone-friendly" HFCs has prompted experts to
voice concerns that the potent greenhouse gases could be a problem
in the future. A UN report says that HFCs, many more times potent
than CO2, could account for up to 20% of emissions and hamper efforts
to curb climate change. They are widely used in fridges and air conditioning,
replacing CFCs and HCFCs that damage the Earth's ozone layer.
Read
more. BBC |
Western black rhino declared extinct
(Nov 10, 2011)
No wild black rhinos remain in West Africa, according to the latest
global assessment of threatened species. The Red List, drawn up by
the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has declared
the subspecies extinct. A subspecies of white rhino in central Africa
is also listed as possibly extinct, the organization says.
Read
more. BBC |
Global warming 'confirmed' by independent
study
(Oct 23, 2011)
The Earth's surface really is getting warmer, a new analysis by a
US scientific group set up in the wake of the "Climategate" affair
has concluded. The Berkeley Earth Project has used new methods and
some new data, but finds the same warming trend seen by groups such
as the UK Met Office and NASA. The project received funds from sources
that back organizations lobbying against action on climate change.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Arctic ozone loss at record level
(Oct 3, 2011)
Ozone loss over the Arctic this year was so severe that for the first
time it could be called an "ozone hole" like the Antarctic one, scientists
report. About 20km (13 miles) above the ground, 80% of the ozone was
lost, they say. The cause was an unusually long spell of cold weather
at altitude. In cold conditions, the chlorine chemicals that destroy
ozone are at their most active.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Arctic ice hits second-lowest level
(Sep 16, 2011)
Sea ice cover in the Arctic in 2011 has passed its annual minimum,
reaching the second-lowest level since satellite records began, US
scientists say. The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) says
the minimum, reached on 9 September, was 4.33 million sq km. That
value is 36% lower than the average minimum for 1979–2000.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Coral reefs 'will be gone by end of the
century'
(Sep 11, 2011)
Coral reefs are on course to become the first ecosystem that human
activity will eliminate entirely from the Earth, a leading United
Nations scientist claims. He says this event will occur before the
end of the present century, which means that there are children already
born who will live to see a world without coral.
Read
more. Source: The Independent |
Climate change driving species out of habitats
much faster than expected
(Aug 20, 2011)
Once heard only rarely outside the north Kent marshes, the loud voice
of the Cetti's warbler is now delighting a whole new set of listeners,
from the isle of Anglesey to the banks of the Humber. The bird has
moved 150 kilometres further north within the UK in the last 40 years,
in response to the changing climate. And Cetti's warbler is not alone.
Read
more. Source: The Guardian |
Huge Arctic fire hints at new climate cue
(Aug 5, 2011)
Scientists say current concerns over a tipping point in the disappearance
of Arctic sea ice may be misplaced. Danish researchers analysed ancient
pieces of driftwood in north Greenland which they say is an accurate
way to measure the extent of ancient ice loss. Writing in the journal
Science, the team found evidence that ice levels were about
50% lower 5,000 years ago.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Huge Arctic fire hints at new climate cue
(Jul 28, 2011)
An exceptional wildfire in northern Alaska in 2007 – the largest
on record – put as much carbon into the air as the entire Arctic
tundra absorbs in a year, reseachers say. The Anaktuvuk River fire
burned across more than 1,000 sq km (400 sq miles), doubling the extent
of Alaskan tundra consumed by fire since 1950. With the Arctic warming
fast, the team suggests in the journal Nature that fires
could become more common.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Melting Arctic ice releasing banned toxins
(Jul 25, 2011)
The warming of the Arctic is releasing toxic chemicals that had been
trapped in the ice and cold water, scientists have discovered. The
researchers warn that the amount of the poisons in the polar region
is unknown and their release could "undermine global efforts to reduce
environmental and human exposure to them".
Read
more. Source: The Guardian |
Urban plants' role as carbon sinks 'underestimated'
(Jul 18, 2011)
Plants in cities and towns make a major contribution towards removing
carbon from the atmosphere, a study suggests. The authors say the
research is the first of its kind in Europe to quantify how much carbon
is stored within this urban vegetation. They add that the data are
vital because local authorities are key in helping the UK reach its
target of cutting CO2 emissions by 80% by 2050.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
"Shocking" decline seen in oceans
(Jun 20, 2011)
Ocean life is "at high risk of entering a phase of extinction of marine
species unprecedented in human history," an international panel of
scientists has concluded. Issues such as over-fishing, pollution,
and climate change are acting together in ways that have not previously
been recognised.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Record carbon emissions prompt fears of
climate catastrophe
(May 30, 2011)
Last year saw a record jump in the amount of greenhouse gases released
into the atmosphere all but scuppering hopes of avoiding a 2°C
rise in global temperatures. Thanks mainly to fossil-fuel burning
30.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide was pumped into the air moving
us closer to what scientists consider dangerous climate change.
Read
more. Source: The Guardian |
Massive jump in Amazon deforestation
(May 20, 2011)
Deforestation in Brazil increased five-fold between March-April 2010
and the same period this year. Much of the destruction has been in
Mato Grosso state, the center of Brazil's soya farming. The news,
based on satellite imagery, comes shortly before a vote on new forest
protection rules.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Global wheat output falls due to climate
change
(May 20, 2011)
The world's production of wheat has dropped 5.5% over the past 30
years because of global changes in temperature and rainfall, a new
study suggests. The team of US researchers found that wheat yields
had fallen pretty much everywhere except, oddly enough in North America,
which appears to be bucking the trend.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Global wheat output falls due to climate
change
(May 6, 2011)
The world's production of wheat has dropped 5.5% over the past 30
years because of global changes in temperature and rainfall, a new
study suggests. The team of US researchers found that wheat yields
had fallen pretty much everywhere except, oddly enough in North America,
which appears to be bucking the trend.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
South American glaciers melting at fastest
rate in 350 years
(Apr 5, 2011)
Meltwater from mountain glaciers are causing sea levels to rise faster
now than at any time in the last 350 years, new research indicates.
Researchers from the universities of Aberystwyth, Exeter and Stockholm
looked at longer timescales than usual for their study. They mapped
changes in 270 of the largest glaciers between Chile and Argentina
since the last global cooling, known as the "Little Ice Age".
Read
more. Source: BBC |
UN report: Cities ignore climate change
at their peril
(Mar 29, 2011)
Urban areas are set to become the battleground in the global effort
to curb climate change, the UN has warned. The assessment by UN-Habitat
said that the world's cities were responsible for about 70% of emissions,
yet only occupied 2% of the planet's land cover. While cities were
energy intensive, the study also said that effective urban planning
could deliver huge savings.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Polar ice loss quickens, raising seas
(Mar 9, 2011)
Ice loss from Antarctica and Greenland has accelerated over the last
20 years, research shows, and will soon become the biggest driver
of sea level rise. From satellite data and climate models, scientists
calculate that the two polar ice sheets are losing enough ice to raise
sea levels by 1.3mm each year. Overall, sea levels are rising by about
3mm (0.12 inches) per year.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Coral reefs report warns of mass loss threat
(Feb 24, 2011)
Three-quarters of the world's coral reefs are at risk from overfishing,
pollution and climate change, according to a report. By 2050 virtually
all of the world's coral reefs – from the waters of the Indian Ocean
to the Caribbean to Australia – will be in danger, the report
warns. The consequences – especially for countries such as the
Philippines or Haiti which depend on the reefs for food – will
be severe.
Read
more. Source: The Guardian |
Mass tree deaths prompt fears of Amazon
'climate tipping point'
(Feb 4, 2011)
Billions of trees died in the record drought that struck the Amazon
in 2010, raising fears that the vast forest is on the verge of a tipping
point, where it will stop absorbing greenhouse gas emissions and instead
increase them. If the Amazon switches from a carbon sink to a carbon
source that prompts further droughts and mass tree deaths, such a
feedback loop could cause runaway climate change, with disastrous
consequences.
Read
more. Source: The Guardian |
UN 'concerned' by world population growth
trends
(Feb 3, 2011)
The world population growth rate must slow down significantly to avoid
reaching unsustainable levels, says a new UN report. To have a reasonable
chance of stabilising world population, fertility must drop to below
"replacement level". It must then be maintained at that level for
an extended period, says the report.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
China has highest wind power capacity: report
(Jan 14, 2011)
China has the world's highest wind power capacity after adding 62
percent or 16 gigawatts (GW) in new capacity last year, the official
Xinhua News Agency reported on Thursday. The country's total installed
wind power capacity reached 41.8 GW at the end of last year, the report
said, citing Li Junfeng, secretary general of the Chinese Renewable
Energy Industries Association.
Read
more. Source: Reuters |
2010 tied 2005 as the hottest year on record
(Jan 13, 2011)
New US government figures for the global climate show that 2010 was
the wettest year in the historical record, and it tied 2005 as the
hottest year since record-keeping began in 1880. The new figures confirm
that 2010 will go down as one of the more remarkable years in the
annals of climatology, featuring prodigious snowstorms in the US and
Europe; a record-shattering summer heat wave that scorched Russia;
strong floods that drove people from their homes in places like Pakistan,
Australia, and California; a severe die-off of coral reefs; and a
continuation in the global trend of a warming climate.
Read
more. Source: New York Times |
Polar bears can be saved by emissions cuts,
study says
(Dec 16, 2010)
Cutting global greenhouse emissions might yet save the polar bear
and its Arctic habitat, according to scientists in the US. It has
been suggested that emissions of greenhouse gases have already put
the Arctic ice cap and the polar bear on an irreversible path towards
extinction. But a new study suggests rapid emission cuts could help
preserve ice cover to save the iconic bear.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Mountain gorilla numbers have increased,
census reveals
(Dec 8, 2010)
The population of endangered mountain gorillas has increased significantly
in the last 30 years, say researchers. A census carried out in the
Virunga Massif – where most of the world's mountain gorillas
live – revealed 480 individuals living in 36 groups. Conservationists
say that, 30 years ago, only 250 gorillas survived in this same area.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
Met Office says 2010 'among hottest on record'
(Nov 26, 2010)
This year is heading to be the hottest or second hottest on record,
according to the Met Office. It says the past 12 months are the warmest
recorded by NASA, and are second in the UK data set, HadCRUT3. The
Met Office says it is very confident that man-made global warming
is forcing up temperatures.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
2009 carbon emissions fall smaller than
expected
(Nov 23, 2010)
Carbon emissions fell in 2009 due to the recession – but not
by as much as predicted, suggesting the fast upward trend will soon
be resumed. Those are the key findings from an analysis of 2009 emissions
data issued in the journal Nature Geoscience a week before
the UN climate summit opens. Industrialised nations saw big falls
in emissions – but major developing countries saw a continued
rise.
Read
more. Source: BBC |
A last chance to save the tiger
(Nov 19, 2010)
This weekend, the leaders of the world's 13 "tiger nations", including
Russia, China and India, are to meet. Billed as the last chance to
save the wild tiger, the St Petersburg summit will be hosted by the
Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, and will launch a program
to double the number of tigers in the wild by 2022, the next Chinese
Year of the Tiger.
Read
more. Source: The Independent |
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