World must act to stem surge of polluting trash, UN warns

The world generated 2.3 billion tonnes of municipal waste last year and the pile of trash is set to grow another two-thirds by 2050, the UN said Wednesday, warning…Continue readingWorld must act to stem surge of polluting trash, UN warns

‘The river has been destroyed’: expert says agriculture has overshadowed science in the Murray-Darling Basin

Dr Stuart Rowland, a retired principal research scientist who worked for NSW Fisheries for 36 years and remains a mentor to scientists in the agency, says there is a…Continue reading‘The river has been destroyed’: expert says agriculture has overshadowed science in the Murray-Darling Basin

Lack of rain leaves Italy gasping

A blanket of smog covers Milan, empty reservoirs bake in Sicily and wine production is down in Piedmont as a lack of rain across Italy exacerbates pollution and sparks…Continue readingLack of rain leaves Italy gasping

A large percentage of European plastic sent to Vietnam ends up in nature

Despite strict EU regulations on plastic recycling, there is little oversight on plastic waste shipped from the EU to Vietnam. About half of Europe’s plastic waste is exported to…Continue readingA large percentage of European plastic sent to Vietnam ends up in nature

Devastating drought in Amazon result of climate crisis

The climate crisis turned the drought that struck the Amazon rainforest in 2023 into a devastating event, a study has found. The drought was the worst recorded in many…Continue readingDevastating drought in Amazon result of climate crisis

Heavens remain shut over Catalonia as three-year drought persists

Rainfall has been lower than the average in Catalonia for the past three years, with the drought lasting more than twice as long as the previous dry spell of…Continue readingHeavens remain shut over Catalonia as three-year drought persists

‘Everything is dead’: How record drought is wreaking havoc on the Amazon

Hundreds of thousands of people rely on the Amazon’s rivers and streams for food, transportation and income. But the historically low water levels have forced residents to reimagine their…Continue reading‘Everything is dead’: How record drought is wreaking havoc on the Amazon

UN human rights experts express alarm over PFAS pollution in North Carolina

A new investigation by human rights experts appointed by the United Nations has expressed alarm at evidence of pollution from a North Carolina PFAS manufacturing plant, describing it as…Continue readingUN human rights experts express alarm over PFAS pollution in North Carolina

‘Forever chemicals’ found in drinking water sources across England

Potentially toxic “forever chemicals” have been detected in the drinking water sources at 17 of 18 England’s water companies, with 11,853 samples testing positive, something experts say they are…Continue reading‘Forever chemicals’ found in drinking water sources across England

US industry disposed of at least 60m pounds of PFAS waste in last five years

US industry disposed of at least 60m pounds of PFAS “forever chemical” waste over the last five years, and did so with processes that probably pollute the environment around…Continue readingUS industry disposed of at least 60m pounds of PFAS waste in last five years

UN chief urges world to ‘stop the madness’ of climate change

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the world Monday to “stop the madness” of climate change as he visited Himalayan regions struggling from rapidly melting glaciers to witness the devastating…Continue readingUN chief urges world to ‘stop the madness’ of climate change

When Idiot Savants Do Climate Economics

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has assumed Nordhaus is to be trusted. The integrated assessment models used at the IPCC are based on Nordhausian visions of adaptation to…Continue readingWhen Idiot Savants Do Climate Economics

The mighty Mississippi, America’s water highway, is dangerously low

From the Great Lakes in the north to Louisiana in the south, the majestic Mississippi is a shadow of its former self. For the second straight year, water levels…Continue readingThe mighty Mississippi, America’s water highway, is dangerously low

UN report warns of catastrophic risks to Earth systems

The Interconnected Disaster Risks Report identifies thresholds it calls “risk tipping points,” defined as “the moment at which a given socioecological system is no longer able to buffer risks…Continue readingUN report warns of catastrophic risks to Earth systems

90% of Great Lakes water samples have unsafe microplastic levels

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

Drinking water of millions of Americans contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’

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’

Colorado River Basin megadrought caused by massive 86% decline in snowpack runoff

The Colorado River Basin provides freshwater to more than 40 million people within the semi-arid southwestern United States, including major cities such as Las Vegas and Los Angeles. However,…Continue readingColorado River Basin megadrought caused by massive 86% decline in snowpack runoff

With less than a year to go, the Murray-Darling Basin Plan is in a dreadful mess

The Murray Darling Basin Plan is an historic deal between state and federal governments to save Australia’s most important river system. The A$13 billion plan, inked over a decade…Continue readingWith less than a year to go, the Murray-Darling Basin Plan is in a dreadful mess

Risk of tap water exposure to toxic PFAS chemicals higher in Southern California

In what is considered to be the nation’s first large-scale analysis of PFAS in tap water from private wells and public water supplies, researchers estimated that at least 45%…Continue readingRisk of tap water exposure to toxic PFAS chemicals higher in Southern California

Toxic foam blights river crucial to Brazil’s biggest city

Not far from Latin America’s biggest city, Sao Paulo, a river is covered in a white layer that resembles fresh snow but is in fact a smelly, toxic foam.…Continue readingToxic foam blights river crucial to Brazil’s biggest city

Iraq’s marshes are dying, and a civilization with them

The marshlands have shrunk from 20,000 square kilometers (7,700 square miles) in the early 1990s to 4,000 (1,500 square miles) by latest estimates—choked by dams on the great rivers…Continue readingIraq’s marshes are dying, and a civilization with them

Global study details microplastics contamination in lakes and reservoirs

Around 14 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean every year. But that is not the only water source where plastic represents a significant intrusion. “We found…Continue readingGlobal study details microplastics contamination in lakes and reservoirs

Pesticides from farming leach into world’s waterways at rate of 710 tonnes a year, UN research shows

Agricultural pesticides leach far from their original sources into the world’s waterways, according to new research which finds pesticides exceed safe levels in 13,000km of rivers globally. Analysing 92…Continue readingPesticides from farming leach into world’s waterways at rate of 710 tonnes a year, UN research shows

Study says drinking water from nearly half of US faucets contains potentially harmful chemicals

Drinking water from nearly half of U.S. faucets likely contains “forever chemicals” that may cause cancer and other health problems, according to a government study released Wednesday. The synthetic…Continue readingStudy says drinking water from nearly half of US faucets contains potentially harmful chemicals

France to shut down climate protest group citing public safety risks

The French government is to shut down a climate protest group over a series of recent demonstrations citing risks to public safety, as the environmental activists called the decision…Continue readingFrance to shut down climate protest group citing public safety risks

New types of chemicals found in Danish drinking water

As far as is known, five of the compounds detected have never before been reported in groundwater anywhere in the world.Continue readingNew types of chemicals found in Danish drinking water

At Menindee, NSW, Australia, the lifeblood of the people has turned to bitter sludge

The fight for a healthy Darling-Baaka River is becoming a ‘recurring nightmare’ for the communities that depend on it.Continue readingAt Menindee, NSW, Australia, the lifeblood of the people has turned to bitter sludge

‘Like you’re in a horror movie’: pollution leaves New Zealand wetlands irreversibly damaged

Ecologists say some bodies of water may already have passed the tipping points from which they may never recover.Continue reading‘Like you’re in a horror movie’: pollution leaves New Zealand wetlands irreversibly damaged

‘Vampiric’ water use leading to ‘imminent’ global crisis, UN warns

“If nothing is done, it will be a business-as-usual scenario—it will keep on being between 40 percent and 50 percent of the population of the world that does not…Continue reading‘Vampiric’ water use leading to ‘imminent’ global crisis, UN warns

Cradle of civilisation dying

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

Boiling heat and no water: taps run dry in southern Iraq

Iraq is known in Arabic as the Land of the Two Rivers, but it has seen water levels on the once mighty Tigris and Euphrates plummet. The Euphrates, which…Continue readingBoiling heat and no water: taps run dry in southern Iraq

Himalayan glaciers melting at ‘exceptional rate’

The accelerating melting of the Himalayan glaciers threatens the water supply of millions of people in Asia, new research warns. Himalayan glaciers have lost ice ten times more quickly…Continue readingHimalayan glaciers melting at ‘exceptional rate’

The Murrumbidgee River’s wet season height has dropped by 30% since the 1990s, and the outlook is bleak

The southern Murray-Darling Basin occupies the southern half of NSW and northern Victoria. It receives most of its water from rain in the cooler months that fills dams, with…Continue readingThe Murrumbidgee River’s wet season height has dropped by 30% since the 1990s, and the outlook is bleak

Young farmers in Klamath Basin lose hope

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

CSIRO predicts more drought, drastic drop in Murray-Darling basin water

“Going to get worse.”Continue readingCSIRO predicts more drought, drastic drop in Murray-Darling basin water