Mountain forests are being lost at an accelerating rate, putting biodiversity at risk, warns study

Worryingly, the rate of mountain forest loss seems to be accelerating: the annual rate of loss increased by 50% from 2001–2009 to 2010–2018, when we…

I’ve watched the Murray-Darling for 30 years and I’ve never seen carp numbers like this

Rise in ocean plastic pollution ‘unprecedented’ since 2005

Iconic Nile River Delta faces existential threats, according to new study

Extreme wildfires are turning the world’s largest forest ecosystem from carbon sink into net-emitter

The new study showed a significant increase in emissions from boreal fires over the past two decades. Things were particularly dramatic in 2021, when they…

Indonesia breaks ground on $2.6bn Mentarang Induk hydropower project

Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said: “Since the source of energy is green, the products that will be produced later in the Industrial Park Area…

New disease caused by plastics discovered in seabirds

Natural History Museum scientists say plasticosis, which scars digestive tract, likely to affect other types of bird too.

Fighting for their lives: the world’s forests in figures

Study of Yellow River flooding over past 1,000 years shows human activities made flooding worse

Counting the cost of Uganda’s east Africa oil pipeline – in pictures

Oil companies plan to pump crude oil from Lake Albert, Uganda to the coast of neighbouring Tanzania, with the goal of producing 1.4bn barrels over…

All fish tested from Michigan rivers contain ‘forever chemicals’, study finds

Ecosystem collapse ‘inevitable’ unless wildlife losses reversed

Scientists studying the Permian-Triassic mass extinction find ecosystems can suddenly tip over.

Alarming toxic ‘forever chemicals’ found in animals’ blood – study

Analysis says hundreds of animals are contaminated with dangerous compounds linked to cancer and other health problems.

Revealed: scale of ‘forever chemical’ pollution across UK and Europe

Alarming levels of PFAS in Norwegian Arctic ice pose new risk to wildlife

Oxford University-led study detects 26 types of PFAS compounds in ice around Svalbard, threatening downstream ecosystems.

Sea turtles under threat from warming seas and hotter beaches, research suggests

Australian scientists say the animals unlikely to be able to change nesting behaviour enough to mitigate temperature rises.

Half the wetlands in Europe lost in past 300 years, researchers calculate

Human activity and drought ‘degrading more than a third of Amazon rainforest’

Fires, land conversion, logging and water shortages have weakened resilience of 2.5 million square kilometres of forest, says study.

Dead whales and tough economics bedevil Biden’s massive wind energy push

Dead whales and tough economics bedevil Biden’s massive wind energy push.

‘It used to be like heaven’: the Iraq wetlands decimated by the climate crisis – in pictures

The people of the Hawizeh marshes of southern Iraq have an ancient history living in the world’s most unique and biodiverse wetlands. The region has…

System to protect Australia’s threatened species from development ‘more or less worthless’, study finds

Environment ministers’ decisions spanning 15 years made no difference to amount of habitat destroyed, researchers say.

Revealed: more than 90% of rainforest carbon offsets by biggest provider are worthless, analysis shows

Investigation into Verra carbon standard finds most are ‘phantom credits’ and may worsen global heating.

Freshwater fish more contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’ than in oceans

Study also says eating one serving of fish with PFAS could be equivalent to drinking contaminated water every day for a month.

‘Extinction crisis’ of sharks and rays to have devastating effect on other species, study finds

Almost two-thirds of sharks and rays living on world’s coral reefs at risk, with 14 of 134 species reviewed critically endangered. “These sharks and rays…

‘Last nail in the coffin’: Utah’s Great Salt Lake on verge of collapse

It’s lost 73% of its water and is unable to sustain some wildlife – and could soon negatively affect human health.

Empty nests: why UK’s winter bird numbers are in sharp decline

Fewer and fewer migrant species, which used to be seasonal fixtures, are flying to our shores as the climate crisis takes its toll on their…

New Indonesia capital imperils ancient Eden with ‘ecological disaster’

Climate change could cause ‘disaster’ in the world’s oceans, say scientists

Canada polar bears declining at alarming rate, study finds

Researchers say there has been a dramatic drop in particular in the number of female bears and cubs in Hudson Bay.

Antarctica’s emperor penguins could be extinct by 2100. And other species may follow if we don’t act

Earthworms may have declined by a third in UK, study reveals

Scientists say loss may be as significant as ‘insectaggedon’ in terms of impact on soil, birds and ecosystems.

Flying insect numbers plunge 64% since 2004, UK survey finds

Scientists behind car number plate study say ‘potentially catastrophic’ decline must be reversed.

Calls for tougher regulations as Queensland, Australia records highest rate of land clearing in country

Conservation groups warn not enough is being done to protect ecosystems as state government data shows more than 400,000ha of land was cleared in 2019-20.

Study uncovers widespread and ongoing clearcutting of Swedish old forests

Almost one fourth of Sweden’s last unprotected old-growth forest was logged between 2003 and 2019. At this rate, all of these ecologically unique and valuable…

Native mussel numbers down almost 95% since 1960s

Scientists attempting to replicate a 1964 survey of freshwater bivalves in a stretch of the Thames near Reading found striking results, as native mussel populations…

Marine life hit by ‘perfect storm’ as red list reveals species close to extinction

Illegal and unsustainable fishing, fossil fuel exploration, the climate crisis and disease are pushing marine species to the brink of extinction, according to the International…

Coal projects in Great Barrier Reef catchments approved without environmental impact statements

At least 8 coalmining projects in Great Barrier Reef catchments and floodplains have been exempted from requiring environmental impact statements (EIS) by the Queensland government,…

Humanity devouring itself and the planet

“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…

The magnificent Lake Eyre Basin is threatened by 831 oil and gas wells, and more are planned

The heart-shaped Lake Eyre Basin covers about one-sixth of Australia. It contains one of the few remaining pristine river systems in the world. The Lake…

Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions driving monkeys and lemurs from trees to the ground

The stresses of warming temperatures and forest losses are driving dozens of species of monkeys and lemurs that normally shelter and feed high in the…

Disease ravages UK’s fragile woodlands

“We are getting hotter, drier summers and wetter winters and that is making trees more susceptible to disease. Climate change is already having some really…

Almost 70% of animal populations wiped out since 1970, report reveals

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…

Phantom Forests: Why Ambitious Tree Planting Projects Are Failing

Everybody likes trees. There is no anti-tree lobby. A global push to go beyond conservation of existing forests and start creating new ones goes back…

Last stand in the Amazon

Despite decades of social and environmental campaigns aimed at protecting the Amazon, the threats now are greater than they have ever been, thanks to the…

World’s central banks financing destruction of the rainforest

Some of the world’s biggest central banks are unwittingly helping to finance agri-business giants engaged in the destruction of the Brazilian Amazon. The banks buy…

Half of world’s bird species in decline as destruction of avian life intensifies

Nearly half of the planet’s bird species are in decline, according to a definitive report that paints the grimmest picture yet of the destruction of…

How an effort to reduce fossil fuel use led to another environmental problem: Light pollution

In 2014, Los Angeles cut its annual carbon emissions by 43% and saved $9 million in energy costs by replacing the bulbs in more than…

EU slammed over failure to protect marine life from ‘destructive’ fishing

The waters of the EU are in a “dismal” state, with only a third of fish populations studied in the north-east Atlantic considered to be…

Industrial mining in Indonesia accounts for 45% of global tropical deforestation

Out of 26 countries, Indonesia accounted for 58.2% of the tropical deforestation directly caused by industrial mining activities. The data covered 26 countries representing 76.7%…

‘Nothing left to burn’: Wildfires blaze through the Arctic

Smoke from hundreds of wildfires has darkened skies over the Alaskan interior this summer with the state experiencing its fastest start to the fire season…

A new strain of avian flu is decimating wild birds. Humans should worry

Avian flu is a highly pathogenic strain of the H5N1 virus. Since its early detections in poultry and wild birds in the spring of 2021,…

Two-year countdown for deep seabed mining

One argument against deep seabed mining is the existence of previously unknown species in the deep sea, including the recently discovered pom-pom-like Biremis spaghetti worm…

Brazil records worst day for Amazon fires in 15 years

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…

‘Charismatic’ dugong sea mammal declared functionally extinct in China

A giant, gentle sea creature that belongs to the manatee family is now “functionally extinct” in China with no sightings recorded since 2008, a new…

Forest fires burn twice as many trees as two decades ago

Researchers found that a typical forest fire season now burns 3 million more hectares (7.4 million more acres) than in 2001. Forest fires accounted for…

90% of marine species at risk of extinction by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions are not curbed

An international team of researchers looked specifically at 25,000 species, including fish, bacteria, plants and protozoans living in the top 100 meters of the world’s…

Bumblebee species stressed by climate change

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…

Climate change driving unprecedented forest fire loss

Forest fires supercharged by climate change are burning twice as much global tree cover as 20 years ago. The equivalent of 16 football pitches are…

Iraq’s Garden of Eden now ‘like a desert’

The reputed home of the biblical Garden of Eden, Iraq’s swamplands have been battered by 3 years of drought and low rainfall, as well as…

Global heating has caused ‘shocking’ changes in forests across the Americas

Forests from the Arctic to the Amazon are transforming at a “shocking” rate due to the climate crisis, with trees advancing into previously barren tundra…