Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Remainder of year’s water bills will pay dividends and service debts, say campaigners

admin — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 05:00:35 +0000

We Own It says 31% of water bills went on shareholder payouts and company debts in last financial year, while the same percentage of 2024 remains

Tuesday is the day water bills will start servicing debt and paying shareholders rather than fixing leaks and ending the sewage scandal, campaigners have said, dubbing it “cost of water privatisation day”.

Rich countries silencing climate protest while preaching about rights elsewhere, says study

admin — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 04:00:34 +0000

Report says governments in global north increasingly using draconian measures while criticising similar tactics in global south

Wealthy, democratic countries in the global north are using harsh, vague and punitive measures to crack down on climate protests at the same time as criticising similar draconian tactics by authorities in the global south, according to a report.

A Climate Rights International report exposes the increasingly heavy-handed treatment of climate activists in Australia, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and the US.

Fukushima nuclear plant: operation begins to remove radioactive debris

admin — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 03:41:34 +0000

Robots being used to gather sample that will give clues about conditions inside the reactors, a step towards decommissioning plant hit by tsunami in Japan 13 years ago

A difficult operation to remove a small amount of radioactive debris from Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear plant has begun, after technical issues suspended an earlier attempt.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) said in a statement on Tuesday that its “pilot extraction operation” had started. It will take about two weeks, according to the company.

Grim statistics on koala survival odds

admin — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 00:36:05 +0000

Records of koala admissions to veterinary hospitals in South East Queensland shows euthanasia was the most common outcome.

Almost 200 people killed last year trying to defend the environment, report finds

admin — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 23:01:29 +0000

Latin America was the most deadly region in which to defend ecosystems from mining and deforestation, with Indigenous people among half the dead

At least 196 people were killed last year for defending the environment, with more than a third of killings taking place in Colombia, new figures show.

From campaigners who spoke out against mining projects to Indigenous communities targeted by organised crime groups, an environmental defender was killed every other day in 2023, according to a new report by the NGO Global Witness.

Pathogenic microbes blown vast distances by winds, scientists discover

admin — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 19:00:24 +0000

Living microbes that cause disease in humans and host antibiotic-resistance genes carried 1,200 miles

Microbes that cause disease in humans can travel thousands of miles on high-level winds, scientists have revealed for the first time.

The winds studied carried a surprising diversity of bacteria and fungi, including known pathogens and, some with genes for resistance to multiple antibiotics. Some of the microbes were shown to be alive – in other words, they had survived the long journey and were able to replicate.

Pacific islands submit court proposal for recognition of ecocide as a crime

admin — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 18:30:23 +0000

Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa want international criminal court to class environmental destruction as crime alongside genocide

Three developing countries have taken the first steps towards transforming the world’s response to climate breakdown and environmental destruction by making ecocide a punishable criminal offence.

Japanese eels can escape predators’ stomach through their gills, finds study

admin — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 15:00:22 +0000

Eels use tail-first technique to back up digestive tract of fish towards oesophagus before coming out of gills

It sounds like the plot of a horror movie – a predator swallows its prey only for the creature to burst out of its captor’s body. But it seems Japanese eels do just that.

Scientists in Japan have discovered that when swallowed by a dark sleeper fish, the eels can escape.

Tuesday’s rally for Australian farmers lists seven priorities – but the biggest two are nowhere to be seen | Gabrielle Chan

admin — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 15:00:19 +0000

The last time the National Farmers’ Federation marched on Canberra politicians were carefully controlled. This time the agenda looks more useful for politicians than farmers

Whale alleged to be Russian ‘spy’ died after stick became lodged in its mouth, say police

admin — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 14:21:13 +0000

Animal rights groups had claimed beluga named Hvaldimir, which was found dead last month, had been shot

A beluga whale that rose to fame in Norway after its unusual harness prompted suspicions that the creature was trained by Russia as a spy died after a stick became stuck in its mouth, police have said.