Bodega Bay mollusk shells dissolving as ocean becomes acidic

  By Bob Norberg, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT The danger from increasing levels of acid in the ocean, which could devastate California’s shellfish industry, is under investigation by Bodega Bay scientists. It is painstaking work that requires the team to wade through knee-deep mud at Tomales Bay to collect native Olympic oysters and then raise their […]

Coral reefs: ‘absolute guarantee of their annihilation’

Destroyed by rising carbon levels, acidity, pollution, algae, bleaching and El Niño, coral reefs require a dramatic change in our carbon policy to have any chance of survival, report warns By David Adam Animal, vegetable and mineral, a pristine tropical coral reef is one of the natural wonders of the world. Bathed in clear, warm […]

Graph of the Day: Unemployed for Over 26 Weeks, 1969-2009

From Calculated Risk: The DOL report showed seasonally adjusted insured unemployment at 6.2 million, down from a peak of about 6.9 million. This raises the question of how many unemployed workers have exhausted their regular unemployment benefits (Note: most are still receiving extended benefits, although this is about to change). The monthly BLS report provides […]

Kerala, India: ‘the land can no longer support us’

By Grace Boyle Mutai came to Kerala, to this farm, on January 21st, 1951. He was eleven years old then, and has lived here ever since. He’s dark-skinned, white-haired and wearing a bright blue check lunghi [a wrap-around piece of material worn as a skirt], as all the farmers here wear. A granddad vest, a […]

Battle for Europe's last ancient forest

Climate change, border disputes and the opposition of residents to expansion threaten eastern Poland’s unique woodlands. By Gabriela Baczynska A contest between competing needs of conservation and economic growth is threatening the future of large parts of Europe’s last ancient forest. The 380,000-acre Bialowieza Primeval Forest, which straddles the border between Poland and Belarus, is […]

New El Niño threatens world with weather woe

Forecasters say this one is brewing up to be the second-strongest on record By Michael McCarthy, Environment editor A new El Niño has begun. The sporadic Pacific Ocean warming, which can disrupt weather patterns across the world, is intensifying, say meteorologists. So, over the next few months, there may be increased drought in Africa, India […]

Kenya drought ‘passed emergency levels months ago’

As one devastating drought follows another, the future is bleak for millions in east Africa. John Vidal reports from Moyale, Kenya By John Vidal We met Isaac and Abdi, Alima and Muslima last week in the bone-dry, stony land close to the Ethiopia-Kenya border. They were with five nomad families who have watched all their […]

Political infighting threatens survival of the bluefin tuna

By Martin Hickman, Consumer Affairs Correspondent The last chance to save one of the most majestic fish in the sea is on the verge of collapse because of political jockeying in Europe. A proposal to ban the sale of bluefin tuna is being fiercely opposed by Malta, the capital of the lucrative global business, and […]

Los Angeles wildfire drives wildlife to backyards

By Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – For residents of the scenic foothill communities above Los Angeles, chance encounters with deer, coyote and other wildlife are commonplace. The occasional bear or mountain lion will even wander into a backyard. They’re about to become more visible. As the threat to humans from the 10-day-old Station Fire […]

Herring season canceled in San Francisco Bay

By Demian Bulwa, Chronicle Staff Writer State wildlife regulators canceled the San Francisco Bay herring fishing season for the first time Thursday, hoping to rebuild a population that has plunged dangerously low. The 4-0 vote by the state Fish and Game Commission follows a long decline in bay herring. The drop is blamed on environmental […]

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