By Katia Moskvitch Science reporter, BBC News The UN may remove the world’s deepest and oldest lake from the World Heritage list because of concerns over pollution by a Russian pulp and paper mill. Lake Baikal holds one fifth of the world’s fresh water and is home to many unique plants and animals. At its […]
Carbon dioxide emissions are making the oceans more acidic, imperiling the growth and reproduction of species from plankton to squid By Marah J. Hardt and Carl Safina “Slow sperm … now that’s a problem,” said Jonathan Havenhand, his British accent compounding the gravity of the message. “That means fewer fertilized eggs, fewer babies and smaller […]
By Tony Paterson in BerlinFriday, 23 July 2010 Record summer temperatures, farm fertilisers and a lack of wind have a gigantic carpet of evil-smelling weed covering large areas of the Baltic and threatening both marine life and seaside tourism, scientists warn. The 377,000 sq km of blue-green algae, covering an area the size of […]
By Nina Chestney; editing by Janet Lawrence (Reuters) – Britain’s coasts have become cleaner but sea levels and temperatures are rising due to climate change, a government report said on Wednesday. The five-year study by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) examined how climate change has affected sea levels and temperatures, […]
By Wei Tian, Hu Meidong and Zhu Xingxin in Fujian, and He Na in Beijing (China Daily)Updated: 2010-07-16 07:57 Qiu Yonglu knew something was wrong when his fish refused to eat and kept circling their pool. Ten days later, they began dying. On July 12, almost a month later, he finally discovered what had poisoned […]
Coral reefs are suffering widespread damage in what is set to be one of the worst years ever for the delicate and beautiful habitats. By Richard Gray, Science CorrespondentPublished: 9:30AM BST 18 Jul 2010 The phenomenon, known as coral bleaching because the reefs turn bone white when the colourful algae that give the coral its […]
Beijing (AFP) July 12, 2010 – Pollution from a mine owned by a top gold producer has severely contaminated a river in southeastern China, leading to a massive fish kill, the government and state media said Monday. Seepage from a mining waste pond owned by the Zijinshan Copper Mine has contaminated the Ding River and […]
The theft of fish from Western Saharan waters should be damned by the European commission, not encouraged By David Cronin, www.guardian.co.uk 10 July 2010 16.00 BST There is one surefire way of allowing the internet to damage your sanity: spend too much time reading politicians’ blogs. Take a recent post from Maria Damanaki, whose career […]
By DEBORAH ANDERSON12 Jul 2010 The Firth of Clyde has been so heavily fished it risks being emptied of almost all sea life, according to a new report. Researchers at the University of York have set alarm bells ringing with a warning that the Clyde has become “an ecosystem in meltdown.” Once known for its […]
If you think the stars of Pixar’s Finding Nemo had it rough, spare a thought for the plight of real clownfish. These popular fish may struggle to survive in oceans that are becoming enriched with carbon dioxide. High levels of CO2 dissolved in the water can muddle a clownfish’s sense of smell, preventing it from […]
