Breaking Waves: Ocean News

‘It’s all we have’: young climate activists on the state of politics around the world

admin — Sun, 02 Jun 2024 09:39:01 +0000

With elections affecting half the world’s population this year, campaigners offer their views on the chances of real change

This year elections are taking place across the globe, covering almost half of the world’s population. It is also likely to be, yet again, the hottest year recorded as the climate crisis intensifies. The Guardian asked young climate activists around the world what they want from the elections and whether politics is working in the fight to halt global heating.

Scotland’s remote land of bogs and bugs in line for world heritage status

admin — Sun, 02 Jun 2024 09:00:01 +0000

A decision from Unesco on giving the peat-rich Flow Country the same standing as the Great Barrier Reef is just weeks away

It is a land of mire, mist and midges that could soon be awarded a special status among the planet’s wild habitats. In a few weeks, Unesco is set to announce its decision on an application to allow the Flow Country in north Scotland to become a world heritage site.

C’mon kids! Here’s your chance to get published in the Guardian

admin — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 15:02:22 +0000

Our nature series Young Country Diary is looking for pieces written by children about their summer wildlife adventures

Once again, the Young Country Diary series is open for submissions! Every three months, as the UK enters a new season, we ask you to send us an article written by a child aged 8-14.

The article needs to be about a recent encounter they’ve had with nature – whether it’s a trip to the beach, a worm-hungry blackbird or a thriving rockpool.

Climate activist defaces Monet painting in Paris

admin — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 12:41:33 +0000

Woman from Riposte Alimentaire arrested after sticking poster on impressionist painter’s Coquelicots

A climate activist has been arrested for sticking an adhesive poster on a Monet painting at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris to draw attention to global heating, a police source said.

The action by the woman, a member of Riposte Alimentaire (Food Response) – a group of environmental activists and defenders of sustainable food production – was seen in a video posted on X, placing a blood-red poster over Coquelicots (Poppies) by the French impressionist painter Claude Monet.

Climate deniers like DeSantis hurt most vulnerable communities, scientists say

admin — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 12:00:03 +0000

On first day of predicted intense Atlantic hurricane season, Nature Conservancy urges action and warns against misinformation

Misinformation spread by climate deniers such as Florida’s extremist Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, increases the “vulnerability” of communities in the path of severe weather events, scientists are warning.

Sensor error means New Delhi heatwave record overstated by 3C

admin — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 11:48:51 +0000

Meteorologists found 52.9C reading to be false, though new record does appear to have been set

A record temperature registered this week for the Indian capital of 52.9C (127.22F) was too high by 3C, the Indian government has said.

Scientists develop method of making healthier, more sustainable chocolate

admin — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 09:00:30 +0000

Approach replaces sugar with mashed pulp and husk of cocoa pod and uses less land and water

Healthier and more sustainable chocolate could hit store shelves after Swiss scientists and chocolatiers developed a recipe that swaps sugar for waste plant matter.

By mashing up the pulp and husk of a cocoa pod instead of just taking the beans, scientists have made a sweet and fibrous gel that could replace the sugar in chocolate, according to a report published in Nature Food.

‘More profitable than farming’: how Ecuador’s birding boom is benefiting wildlife

admin — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 07:00:29 +0000

With hundreds of highly prized species, bird tourism is thriving in the country – and farmers are increasingly turning their land into nature reserves

When it came to dividing up his late father’s farm between five brothers, Vinicio Bacuilima says he drew the short straw. Maraksacha, on the main road out of Ecuador’s capital Quito, is a tiny patch of land on the edge of a steep ravine, making it very difficult to make a living from farming.

California lake so green with algae it’s visible from space, says Nasa

admin — Fri, 31 May 2024 18:32:31 +0000

Bright hue of Clear Lake, state’s largest freshwater basin, may have been caused by cyanobacteria and other phytoplankton

California’s largest freshwater lake has turned bright green due to algae blooms so intense they are visible from space, Nasa has announced, sharing satellite images from mid-May.

The photographs showed that “bright green swirls were visible across most of the lake’s area”, the space agency said, and may have been caused by cyanobacteria, commonly known as blue-green algae, as well as other kinds of phytoplankton.

‘Game-changing’: Vermont becomes first state to require big oil to pay for climate damages

admin — Fri, 31 May 2024 17:47:27 +0000

Climate Superfund Act compels oil companies to pay potentially billions of dollars for climate impacts caused by their emissions

Vermont has become the first state to enact a law holding oil firms financially responsible for climate damages, after the Republican governor, Phil Scott, allowed it to pass without his signature late on Thursday.