For the past couple of decades, tens of thousands of people living in rural Sri Lanka have been devastated by kidney failure due to unclear causes, also known as…Continue readingRoundup herbicide ingredient connected to epidemic levels of chronic kidney disease
Tag: impact
The deadly heat in central South America over the past two months was made 100 times more likely by human emissions that disrupted the climate, scientists have shown. Temperatures…Continue readingHuman emissions made deadly South American heat 100 times more likely
North Dhaka is particularly vulnerable to the urban heat-island effect due to its densely populated city centre, with some urban hotspots more than 10˚C (18˚F) higher than the surrounding…Continue reading‘Only the rich can bear this heat’: how Dhaka is battling extreme weather
The carcasses of 120 river dolphins have been found floating in a tributary of the Amazon River in Brazil over the last week in circumstances that experts suspect were…Continue readingDeaths of 120 Amazon dolphins linked to severe drought, high temperatures
When scientists started pouring over data to assess Canada’s fire season this year, they struggled to find the right superlatives. “Never before seen,” was thrown around, as was “exceptional…Continue readingCanada left battered by ‘never before seen’ wildfire season
The Netherlands halted extraction from Europe’s biggest gas field on Sunday, which was resulting in earthquakes that have shaken local residents for decades and threaten to persist. Authorities are…Continue readingNetherlands halts extraction from Europe’s biggest gas field
Experts predict there will be fewer than 100 individuals of the species by 2031 as the rate of decline in population grows faster. This month, the environment minister, Tanya…Continue reading‘Watching extinction in real time’: conservationists losing hope for Australia’s swift parrot if logging continues
New York City and its adjoining areas have been brought to a standstill after a bout of torrential downpours triggered flash flooding, disrupting subway service, inundating ground-level apartments and…Continue readingFlash flooding inundates New York City
Antarctica has likely broken a new record for the lowest annual maximum amount of sea ice around the continent, beating the previous low by a million square kilometres. The…Continue readingAntarctic sea ice shrinks to lowest annual maximum level on record
As many as eight in 10 brown bear cubs born this year in a remote part of northern Japan have died amid a shortage of salmon, with experts blaming…Continue readingBrown bear cubs in Japan die of starvation amid salmon shortage
The vast swaths of pine, spruce and larch forest that blanket much of Canada have been prized for generations. Not only do they provide a home to hundreds of…Continue readingWildfires turn Canada’s vast forests from carbon sink into super-emitter
The flash flood that has killed thousands of people in Libya this week followed a “medicane”, a rare but destructive weather phenomenon that scientists believe will intensify in a…Continue readingMedicanes: rare, ‘supercharging’ Mediterranean storms
Sea ice insulates the ocean, reflects heat, drives currents, supports ecosystems and protects ice shelves. It also has an annual seasonal cycle—some of the ice melts, then freezes again.…Continue readingDevastatingly low Antarctic sea ice may be the ‘new abnormal,’ study warns
Half of Britain’s 10 largest fish populations are in a “deeply troubling state”, having been either overfished or depleted to a critically low size, according to a new report.…Continue readingBritain’s fish populations are in a ‘deeply troubling state’
Earth’s life support systems have been so damaged that the planet is “well outside the safe operating space for humanity”, scientists have warned. Their assessment found that six out…Continue readingEarth ‘well outside safe operating space for humanity’
After the northern summer of extreme heat and disastrous fires, we’ve seen more exceptional autumn weather over Europe with record-breaking heat in the UK. Meanwhile, record-breaking rain and intense…Continue readingFaster disaster: Climate change fuels ‘flash droughts’, intense downpours and storms
Our research shows almost everywhere in Australia is now in a different fire climate than it was just 20 years ago, with falling relative humidity a key factor. Previous…Continue readingFire climate regimes around Australia shifted abruptly 20 years ago, and falling humidity may explain why
Between January and August, the United States was struck by a record-breaking 23 weather and climate disasters where losses exceeded $1 billion in each case. The tally for 2023…Continue readingUS hit by record number of billion-dollar disasters so far this year
Storm Daniel, which wrought devastation across the Mediterranean in the past week, killed 15 people in central Greece where it dumped more rain than previously recorded before sweeping across…Continue readingMediterranean’s devastating Storm Daniel may be harbinger of storms to come
Floods, wildfires and a deadly train collision this year have raised questions about the competence of state authorities and central government.Continue readingAfter slew of disasters, Greeks wonder what is happening to their democracy
Flash floods were triggered by rainfall from the arrival of Storm Daniel on Monday September 4 which also affected Turkey and Bulgaria. The following day, in the village of…Continue readingGreece’s record rainfall and flash floods: Across the Mediterranean, the weather is becoming more dangerous
Record rainfall in Hong Kong caused widespread flooding in the early hours of Friday, disrupting road and rail traffic just days after the city dodged major damage from a…Continue readingRecord rainfall causes flooding in Hong Kong days after typhoon
Antarctica is likely warming at almost twice the rate of the rest of the world and faster than climate change models are predicting, with potentially far-reaching implications for global…Continue readingAntarctica warming much faster than models predicted in ‘deeply concerning’ sign for sea levels
The death toll from floods in central Greece has risen to four after severe rainstorms turned streets into raging torrents, hurled cars into the sea, and washed away roads…Continue readingDeath toll rises to four in Greece after floods, more than 800 rescued
Surrounded by idyllic clear waters, the densely populated island of Carti Sugtupu off Panama’s north coast has barely an inch to spare with houses crammed together—some jutting out into…Continue reading‘We’re going to sink’: hundreds abandon Caribbean island home
Meeting the climate goals means we should not only significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also sequester more CO2 in the soil. Research has taught us how to store…Continue readingExperts question whether carbon dioxide storage in farming soils helps the climate
Urban stormwater particles from tire wear were the most prevalent microplastic a new Griffith-led study has found. Published in Environmental Science & Technology, the study showed that in stormwater…Continue readingBit by bit, microplastics from tires are polluting our waterways
At least three people have died and two are missing in Spain after heavy rains triggered flash floods and impacted transportation systems. The weekend storm affected almost the whole…Continue readingRoads turned into rivers as torrential rains lash Spain
Devastating wildfires in Greece will ravage more than 150,000 hectares (370,600 acres) by the end of the summer, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis estimated Thursday, blaming the climate crisis for…Continue readingGreek summer wildfires will burn over 150,000 hectares
A warming Arctic is limiting polar bears’ access to sea ice, which the bears use as a hunting platform. In ice-free summer months the bears must fast. While in…Continue readingStudy connects greenhouse gas emissions to polar bear population declines
More than 450 fires have scorched parts of Louisiana amid weeks of record-breaking heat and severe drought conditions. The Tiger Island Fire, the largest wildfire in the state’s history,…Continue readingLouisiana sees ‘unprecedented’ wildfires amid record heat, drought
Hurricane Idalia could become the costliest climate disaster to hit the US this year, analysts say, with massive implications for the insurance and risk management industries. The category 3…Continue readingHurricane Idalia could become 2023’s costliest climate disaster for the US
Being cautious by nature, scientists warned that in the next few decades the global emperor population will suffer significant losses. This fate appeared a long way in the future,…Continue readingI have studied emperor penguins for 30 years. We may witness their demise in our lifetime
Conservation groups have accused a New South Wales agency of logging one of the last known strongholds of the greater glider, an endangered marsupial species, and urged the state…Continue readingHome of endangered marsupial hit by state-sanctioned logging in New South Wales
The “crazy” extreme weather rampaging around the globe in 2023 will become the norm within a decade without dramatic climate action, the world’s leading climate scientists have said. The…Continue readingDramatic climate action needed to curtail ‘crazy’ extreme weather
Global warming is driving leafy tropical canopies close to temperatures where they can no longer transform sunlight and CO2 into energy, threatening total collapse. A tiny percentage of upper…Continue readingTropical forests nearing critical temperatures thresholds
Helpless emperor penguin chicks perished at multiple breeding grounds in West Antarctica late last year, drowning or freezing to death when sea ice eroded by global warming gave way…Continue readingWarming decimates Antarctica’s emperor penguin chicks
You may not have noticed, but earlier this month we passed Earth overshoot day, when humanity’s demands for ecological resources and services exceeded what our planet can regenerate annually.…Continue readingCritics of ‘degrowth’ economics say it’s unworkable—but from an ecologist’s perspective, it’s inevitable
The regional government for the Canary Islands said that 4,000 more people were ordered to evacuate on Saturday. Those were in addition to the 4,500 people who on Friday…Continue readingTenerife: thousands more flee their homes as ‘out of ‘control’ wildfires rage
Dressed in a full-body protective suit, an elderly pest control worker could last no more than 15 minutes spraying pesticide along a Hong Kong pavement before the summer heat…Continue reading‘In a sauna’: Hong Kong’s laborers swelter as temperatures rise
About 90% of water samples taken over the last 10 years from the Great Lakes contain microplastic levels that are unsafe for wildlife, a new peer-reviewed paper from the…Continue reading90% of Great Lakes water samples have unsafe microplastic levels
The water of as many as 26 million Americans is contaminated, according to an analysis of the new EPA data performed by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington…Continue readingDrinking water of millions of Americans contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’
A huge wildfire in northern Canada is moving closer the city of Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories, and authorities have ordered the city’s 20,000 residents to evacuate.…Continue readingHuge wildfire forces evacuation of Canada’s Northwest Territories capital
Scientists and academics say they have been warning for several years that invasive grasses covering a quarter of the Hawaii islands are a major fire risk. Untamed grassland helped…Continue readingNon-native grass species blamed for ferocity of Hawaii wildfires
Five species, including Tasmania’s Maugean skate, could jeopardise the Albanese government’s zero extinctions target, according to a scientific committee that provides advice on endangered species. A further 41 species…Continue readingFive species face immediate concern of extinction, scientific committee warns Australian Labor
Temperatures in Morocco have for the first time on record topped 50˚C (120˚F), the North African country’s meteorological service said Sunday amid a scorching heat wave. The meteorological station…Continue readingMorocco breaks heat record
Spain’s eastern city of Valencia set a new temperature record on Thursday as the country baked under its third heat wave of the summer. The mercury soared to 46.8˚C…Continue readingSpanish city shatters heat record
Corals across several countries are bleaching and dying en masse from unprecedented levels of heat stress, prompting fears that an unfolding tragedy in Central America, North America and the…Continue reading‘Huge’ coral bleaching unfolding across the Americas prompts fears of global tragedy
Over the past few weeks, a large-scale rescue operation has been under way off the coast and keys of Florida. It began as water temperatures were rising towards a…Continue readingMissing ice and bleached coral: the sudden warming of the oceans
Sea ice in the Antarctic region fell to a record low this year as a result of rising global temperatures and there is no quick fix to reverse the…Continue readingNo quick fix to reverse ‘astonishing’ Antarctic sea ice loss
Antarctica is currently experiencing dramatic changes at unprecedented rates, marked by repeated extreme events. These include circum-Antarctic summer heatwaves and an autumn heatwave last year, with temperatures soaring up…Continue readingAntarctica’s heatwaves are a warning to humanity – and we have only a narrow window to save the planet
Hard coral cover in the northern section of the reef, from Cape York to Cooktown, was estimated at 35.7%, down from 36.5% in 2022. Between Cooktown and Proserpine, the…Continue readingRecovery of Great Barrier Reef stalls as scientists point to bleaching, disease and starfish attacks
Hundreds of firefighters were on Tuesday battling a wildfire that has burned for four days in Portugal, which, like neighboring Spain, is sweltering in a heat wave that has…Continue readingPortugal, Spain battle wildfires amid heat wave alerts
Temperatures in parts of Chile and northern Argentina have soared to 10°C–20°C above average over the last few days. Towns in the Andes mountains have reached 38°C or more,…Continue readingOne of 2023’s most extreme heat waves is happening in the middle of winter
The flooding in Pakistan in August and September 2022 – described by UN secretary general António Guterres as a “monsoon on steroids” – led to the deaths of more…Continue readingA year on, the devastating long-term effects of Pakistan’s floods are revealed
Slovenia on Sunday called for help from the EU and Nato alliance to deal with the aftermath of flooding that killed at least three people and caused damage estimated…Continue readingSlovenia asks for support from EU and Nato after devastating floods
The canal relies on rainwater to move ships through a series of locks that function like water elevators, raising the vessels up and over the continent between the Atlantic…Continue readingDrought-hit Panama Canal must ‘adapt or die’ as water levels drop
Chinese social media users have reacted angrily to comments from a local Communist party official suggesting that the city of Zhuozhou and other flood-hit areas near Beijing should be…Continue readingAnger in China over plan to use cities as ‘moat’ to save Beijing from floods
The collapse of a glacier in the Dolomites and a landslide on the island of Ischia. Devastating floods, wildfires and record-breaking heatwaves. The worst drought of the Po, Italy’s…Continue readingClimatologist warns of Italy’s vulnerability to climate crisis
Extreme temperatures and a lack of electrical power are a deadly combination, and one that is being felt across Iraq. The country is one of the world’s most vulnerable…Continue readingExtreme heat hits Iraq, as temperatures exceed 50 degrees Celsius