Breaking Waves: Ocean News

‘Drinking PFAS’: water providers call for broad ban on ‘forever chemicals’ amid proliferation fears

admin — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 08:05:06 +0000

Fifty-one sites in NSW have significant PFAS contamination requiring continued monitoring and remediation, EPA tells Senate inquiry

‘I felt death in the flames’: how lighting a forest fire inspired one man to transform a barren ranch into rainforest

admin — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 06:00:12 +0000

Juan Guillermo Garcés had a brush with death while burning jungle for cattle pasture – now he runs a nature reserve in Colombia where more than 100 new species have been discovered

Words and photographs by Anastasia Austin and Douwe den Held

Juan Guillermo Garcés remembers coming face to face with death at age 17. Smoke filled the air, choking his lungs. The temperature rose and Garcés struggled to see through the haze. Panic set in as he watched monkeys, snakes, lizards and birds desperately trying to escape the flames surrounding them.

Brazil fires consumed wilderness area larger than Italy in 2024 – report

admin — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 03:00:08 +0000

New report says more than 30m hectares burned, 79% more than in 2023, after country saw worst drought on record

After enduring its worst drought on record in 2024, Brazil closed the year with another alarming milestone: between January and December, 30.86m hectares of wilderness burned – an area larger than Italy.

Brazil appoints veteran diplomat as Cop30 president for November summit

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 21:41:17 +0000

Climate negotiator André Aranha Corrêa do Lago given top job, bypassing Brazilian environment minister Marina Silva

Brazil has announced the top team for the next UN climate summit, which will be hosted in Belém this November, bypassing the country’s environment minister, Marina Silva, in favour of a veteran diplomat for the crucial role of president of the talks.

Gatwick still beats Heathrow hands-down if we must have another runway | Nils Pratley

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 18:50:56 +0000

Pollution aside, the problem with expanding Heathrow lies in the disruption and delay inevitable in such a complex project

Cycle of coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef now at 'catastrophic' levels

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 18:00:51 +0000

Marine scientists highlights the complex interplay between heat stress, disease onset and coral mortality. They found that 66 percent of the colonies were bleached by February 2024 and 80 per cent by April. By July, 44 percent of the bleached colonies had died, with some coral genera, such as Acropora, experiencing a staggering 95 percent mortality rate.

Water quality expert calls for wider PFAS ban as NSW community seeks blood tests on ‘poisoned’ land

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 14:00:29 +0000

Cost of fixing ‘forever chemical’ pollution should be borne by manufacturers and polluters, not governments and consumers, expert tells Senate inquiry

Southern California braces for vicious winds as new fires break out in region

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 13:56:46 +0000

Forecasters warn gusty conditions will return on Wednesday, marking end of break in fire-risk conditions

Southern California was bracing for more dangerous winds on Tuesday as new wildfires broke out across the region, which is continuing to grapple with the major fires that have ravaged Los Angeles communities.

A third of the Arctic’s vast carbon sink now a source of emissions, study reveals

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 10:00:12 +0000

Critical CO2 stores held in permafrost are being released as the landscape changes with global heating, report shows

A third of the Arctic’s tundra, forests and wetlands have become a source of carbon emissions, a new study has found, as global heating ends thousands of years of carbon storage in parts of the frozen north.

‘We ask to be recognised’: small fishers claim €12bn EU fund favours big players

admin — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 07:00:08 +0000

Artisanal shellfish farmers face ruinous losses but money meant to help is going to the powerful fishing industry, say critics

Early on a warm September morning in southern Italy, Giovanni Nicandro sets out from the port of Taranto in his small boat. Summoning his courage, the mussel farmer inspects his year’s work – only to find them all dead, a sight that almost brings him to tears.