Climate change lays waste to Spain's glaciers; drought looms

Spain loses 90% of its glaciers thanks to global warming, threatening drought as rivers dry up by Giles Tremlett The Pyrenees mountains have lost almost 90% of their glacier ice over the past century, according to scientists who warn that global warning means they will disappear completely within a few decades. While glaciers covered 3,300 […]

Red tides kill seabirds with ‘soapy’ foam

From Not Exactly Rocket Science: In late 2007, seabirds off the coast of California began to die in record numbers. The waterproof nature of their feathers and been wrecked, and they were soaked to the skin. Without an insulating layer of air trapped within their plumage, the damp birds were suffering from extreme cold. These […]

Graph of the Day: Deforestation in Papua New Guinea, 1972-2002

by Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com Nearly one quarter of Papua New Guinea’s rainforests were damaged or destroyed between 1972 and 2002, report researchers writing in the journal Biotopica. The results, which were published in a report last June, show that Papua New Guinea is losing forests at a much faster rate than previously believed. Over […]

Most southern hemisphere plant species face extinction

by Deborah Smith, Science Editor MOST southern hemisphere plants – except for weeds – will not be able to adapt to rapid climate change, a study of more than 11,000 species suggests. Researchers, including the Sydney botanist Peter Weston, traced the history of plants that live in a range of different habitats including bogs, alpine […]

Andean glaciers could disappear in 20 years: World Bank

LIMA (AFP) – Andean glaciers and the region’s permanently snow-covered peaks could disappear in 20 years if no measures are taken to tackle climate change, the World Bank warned Tuesday. A World Bank-published report said rising temperatures due to global warming could also have a dramatic impact on water management in the Andean region, with […]

Southern Ocean carbon sink failing

In the Southern Indian Ocean, climate change is leading to stronger winds, which mix waters, bringing carbon dioxide up from the ocean depths to the surface. As a result, the Southern Ocean can no longer absorb as much atmospheric CO2 as before. Its role as a ‘carbon sink’ has been weakened, and it may now […]

Greenland fishing villages abandoned as fish are driven to colder water

The demise of Greenland’s indigenous fishing villages should be a warning to us all, says a Kiwi who has seen the devastating impact of global warming. by STACEY WOOD – The Dominion Post Otago University student Susan Smirk spent five days in Greenland filming footage for a documentary about the impact of climate change, after […]

Extreme weather events more frequent in Australia

All signs point to the climate becoming more extreme by Marian Wilkinson and Ben Cubby When hundreds of small, grey-headed flying foxes began falling from the sky at Yarra Bend in suburban Melbourne, for some it heralded the awful events that would later unfold. It was Wednesday, January 28, one day into the ferocious heatwave […]

Fires kill 93 in Australia

  By Mick Tsikas WANDONG, Australia (Reuters) – Australia’s deadliest bushfire has killed at least 93 people, some as they fled in cars or as they huddled in houses when the inferno engulfed rural towns in the country’s southeast. The fire storm tore through several small towns north of Melbourne on Saturday night destroying everything […]

Thousands flee caterpillar infestation in West Africa

By LYDIA POLGREEN DAKAR, Senegal — A bizarre swarm of caterpillars is munching its way through the forests, cocoa and coffee fields of Liberia, threatening crops and forcing thousands to leave their homes because the bugs have contaminated the drinking water from rivers and lakes. Entomologists have identified the pests as a moth usually found […]

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