Ecology
Greenpeace Finds Microplastics and Hazardous Chemicals in Remote Antarctic Waters
Another day, another sign of the reach of the global ocean plastics crisis. A Greenpeace expedition to Antarctica turned up microplastics in more than half of ocean water samples taken in the world’s southernmost waters. It also found chemicals dangerous…
Climate Change May Be Slowing Hurricanes, Leading to More Flood-Heavy Storms
Two studies published within two months of each other show that typhoons and hurricanes are getting slower, and are expected to slow even more as the planet warms, suggesting that climate change is already extending the time storms spend hammering…
Spending Time Alone in Nature for Mental and Emotional Health
Today people live in a world that thrives on being busy, productive and overscheduled. Further, they have developed the technological means to be constantly connected to others and to vast options for information and entertainment through social media. For many,…
A Fishing Town in India Is Building a Road to a Plastic-Free Ocean
A fishing town on the southwest tip of India is showing what a community can achieve when it decides to face an environmental problem and turn it into a solution, using ocean plastics to empower women and literally build roads…
Whale Dies from Eating more than 80 Plastic Bags
A whale has died in southern Thailand after swallowing more than 80 plastic bags, with rescuers failing to nurse the mammal back to health. The small male pilot whale was found barely alive in a canal near the border with…
Asheville Declares First Ever ‘City-Proclaimed’ Vegan Challenge in U.S.
The famously artsy and progressive city of Asheville, North Carolina declared the week of June 4-10 as the nation’s first “city-proclaimed” seven-day vegan challenge. The initiative—organized by the City of Asheville, regional hospital Mission Health and no-kill shelter Brother Wolf…
Antibiotic Apocalypse: EU Scraps Plans to Tackle Drug Pollution, Despite Fears of Rising Resistance
The EU has scrapped plans for a clampdown on pharmaceutical pollution that contributes to the spread of deadly superbugs. Plans to monitor farm and pharmaceutical companies, to add environmental standards to EU medical product rules and to oblige environmental risk…