Council’s plan will leave Federal Emergency Management Agency ill-equipped to respond to extreme weather events, experts say
Sweeping changes may be in store at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), the nation’s frontline emergency response coordinator, that experts warned could further erode US capacity to handle disasters as the risks of extreme weather fueled by the climate crisis continue to rise.
Fears about a fundamental overhaul of Fema’s form and function have been brewing since Donald Trump returned to the White House. After castigating the agency over claims that it was too expensive and “doesn’t get the job done”, Trump set to gutting Fema as an early priority for his second term.
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
05/09/2026 - 07:00
05/08/2026 - 21:31
Analysis commissioned by independent senator found national science agency’s funding is at its lowest since 1978
Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast
The Albanese government will boost funding to CSIRO by $387.4m in a bid to meet the long-term costs of the national science agency.
It follows months of advocacy by scientists and staff after hundreds of job cuts and cost-cutting measures.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 18:09
After January order from US department of the interior, managers across 55 sites have lifted prohibitions
Donald Trump’s administration is quietly pushing national park, refuge and wilderness area managers to dramatically scale back hunting restrictions, raising questions about visitor safety and the impact on wildlife.
Doug Burgum, the US Department of the Interior secretary, issued an order in January directing multiple agencies to remove what he termed “unnecessary regulatory or administrative barriers” to hunting and fishing, to and justify regulations they want to keep in place.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 14:50
Whimsical film shows relay of animals carrying centennial card from Balmoral Castle to naturalist in London
King Charles has featured in a surprise birthday tribute to David Attenborough, with a cast of wild animals helping to relay his handwritten congratulatory centenary card.
The whimsical film, A Very Special Delivery, begins with the king writing his tribute in the library of Balmoral Castle. Charles, wearing an animal-themed tie featuring elephants, reflects on more than 60 years of friendship with the renowned naturalist.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 09:00
Claims of nimbyism are a misunderstanding: the movement is about whether regular people have a say in fundamental decisions
Since the surreal scene at the 2024 presidential inauguration, when a row of big tech titans took their VIP seats and signaled their new alliance with Maga, the Trump administration has rolled out the red carpet for Silicon Valley’s AI ambitions and shareholder priorities.
Washington has doled out billions in lucrative federal subsidies and contracts to the cash-rich sector, bloating an AI bubble that experts warn may imperil the entire economy while prohibiting any guardrails on the fast-moving technology.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 08:45
Man was reported missing on Sunday and on Wednesday officials found a body with wounds indicating a bear attack
Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email
A hiker in Glacier national park is believed to have been killed in a confrontation with a bear, which is likely the first such fatality in the Montana park since 1998, authorities said.
The body of the male victim was found on Wednesday, and on Friday morning his identity and other details about him had not yet been publicly disclosed. The man had been reported missing and a search and rescue team was sent out to look for him this week and came upon his remains.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 07:00
Guardian readers in the US share how they get around their cities without driving in such a car-dominated country
We asked Guardian readers in the US how they get around if they don’t have a car in such a car-dominated country. Several of those who responded described the benefits and many challenges of going by foot, bike or public transit.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 06:00
In an exclusive interview, a seafarer describes the strike on the MKD Vyom in the Gulf of Oman that killed his friend and crewmate, Dixit Solanki
The blast tore through the engine room of the tanker MKD Vyom without warning on the morning of 1 March. “There were immense shock waves and a fireball,” says Basis*, a seafarer on one of the first ships to suffer a fatal attack in the Gulf of Oman during the US and Israeli airstrikes against Iran.
“For one or two seconds, I was knocked out,” he says. “Everything went black. The power was gone. I looked up – fire and thick black smoke was pouring down.”
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 05:30
Promises to cut emissions and use more fuel-efficient planes fail to stop rise, with Ryanair’s carbon footprint 50% up on 2019
Emissions from flying in Europe have now passed pre-pandemic levels, with Ryanair’s carbon footprint 50% higher than in 2019, research has shown.
Total aviation emissions continue to increase despite industry pledges to decarbonise and the introduction of more fuel-efficient planes, driven by the massive expansion of low-cost carriers.
Continue reading...
05/08/2026 - 05:00
Temperature swings have left crops across the Plains in terrible conditions, with some farmers opting not to harvest
Merrill Nielsen’s wheat crop looked healthy after he planted it in the fall on his 2,500-acre farm in north-central Kansas, about 50 miles west of Salina, the plants benefiting from higher-than-normal November rainfall.
But an abnormally warm and dry winter, followed by extreme temperature variability, stressed the developing wheat. In the winter-to-spring transition, temperatures fluctuated from 70 to 80F on some days and lows in the teens or low 20s on other days.
Continue reading...
