Seventeen species that were once commonly found in pastures and meadows across 22 countries, including the small copper, common blue and meadow brown, declined by 36% on average between…Continue readingEurope’s grassland butterfly population down more than a third in 10 years
Tag: agriculture
50 researchers, 40 years, 28 countries, 550 million fewer birds.Continue readingIntensive farming is biggest cause of bird decline in Europe, study says
“At the moment,” writes Warren Hern, “we are the most misnamed species on the planet: Homo sapiens sapiens—’wise, wise man.’ Not.” Hern, 84, physician and adjunct professor of anthropology…Continue readingHumanity devouring itself and the planet
Earth’s wildlife populations have plunged by an average of 69% in just under 50 years, according to a leading scientific assessment, as humans continue to clear forests, consume beyond…Continue readingAlmost 70% of animal populations wiped out since 1970, report reveals
Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are a class of about 12,000 chemicals typically used to make thousands of products water-, stain- and heat-resistant. They do not naturally break down…Continue readingToxic ‘forever chemicals’ detected in commonly used insecticides in US, study finds
It was the river that is said to have watered the biblical Garden of Eden and helped give birth to civilisation itself. The Tigris’s course through Iraq begins in…Continue readingCradle of civilisation dying
Synthetic nitrogen fertilizers account for 2.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, new research shows. Unlike organic fertilizers, which come from plant or animal material, synthetic fertilizers are made by…Continue readingFertilizers cause more than 2% of global emissions
Caption for figure above: Grid-cell specific rankings of 22-yr negative soil moisture anomalies (drought rank) in 2000–2021 compared to the driest 22-yr period in each previous drought event back…Continue readingMegadrought in the American south-west: a climate disaster unseen in 1,200 years
The world’s chances of avoiding the worst ravages of climate breakdown are diminishing rapidly, as we enter “uncharted territory of destruction” through our failure to cut greenhouse gas emissions…Continue readingWorld heading into ‘uncharted territory of destruction’
The latest assessment by risk company Verisk Maplecroft brings those two threats together to calculate that heat stress already poses an “extreme risk” to agriculture in 20 countries, including…Continue readingCountries growing 70% of world’s food face ‘extreme’ heat risk by 2045
Unprecedented and societally disruptive extreme weather events, including heat waves, droughts, dust storms and torrential rains, will soon become a reality unless immediate, ambitious, and transboundary climate action is…Continue readingWarming of up to 5°C in this century projected for the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East
The number of forest fires in the Brazilian Amazon hit a nearly 15-year high this week, according to official figures that provided the latest warning on the advancing destruction…Continue readingBrazil records worst day for Amazon fires in 15 years
Bumblebee populations have dropped throughout the United States and Europe as Earth has heated up. Research from 2020 found that the number of areas populated by the insects had…Continue readingBumblebee species stressed by climate change
No longer having access to potable running water, the villagers of Ouled Essi Masseoud rely solely on sporadic supplies in public fountains and from private wells. “The fountains work…Continue readingDrought tightens its grip on Morocco
Millions in Assam have been affected by the floods since heavy pre-monsoon rains first hit the region last month, inundating large parts of the valley. After the initial deluge…Continue reading‘All is lost’: Floods in India’s Assam leave trail of destruction
Scientists have been able quickly to prove that record-breaking temperatures are no natural occurrence. A study published last month showed that the south Asian heatwave was made 30 times…Continue readingBurning planet
Niger is on the frontline of the climate crisis. Increasingly erratic rainfall and longer dry seasons mean that many parts of the country have not had a good harvest…Continue readingNiger is in the eye of the climate crisis – and children are starving
The Klamath Basin in the western U.S. was once a string of pristine wetlands but in the middle of the 19th century settlers began diverting the three big rivers feeding…Continue readingYoung farmers in Klamath Basin lose hope