Environment

US towns destroyed as firefighters battle wildfires under orange skies

by Javier TOVAR Agence France-Presse Hundreds of homes including entire communities were razed by wildfires in the western United States Wednesday as officials warned of potential mass deaths under apocalyptic orange skies. At least five towns were “substantially destroyed” in Oregon as widespread evacuations took place across the northwestern state, governor Kate Brown said. “I want to be upfront in saying that we expect to see a great deal of loss, both in structures and […]

Syria battles forest fires for seventh day straight

DAMASCUS, Syria (AFP) — Syrian firefighters and army helicopters Wednesday battled forest fires for a seventh consecutive day in government-held areas of the war-torn country, state media said. Damascus ally Iran sent in a firefighting plane Wednesday carrying 40 tonnes of water to help fight the fires in the hilly woodlands of Latakia and Hama provinces, in northwestern and central Syria respectively, state news agency SANA said. State media has published repeated images of billowing […]

Sudan floods threaten ancient archaeological gem

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AFP) — Rising Nile floodwaters are threatening to swamp an ancient archaeological site in Sudan, after some of the highest ever recorded river levels, archaeologists said Monday. Teams have set up sandbag walls and are pumping out water to prevent damage at the ruins of Al-Bajrawiya, once a royal city of the two-millenia-old Meroitic empire, said Marc Maillot, head of the French Archaeological Unit in the Sudan Antiquities Service. “The floods had never […]

California fires burn record 2 million acres

  NORTH FORK, United States (AFP) — Wildfires in California have torched a record more than two million acres, the state fire department said Monday, as an uncontrolled blaze forced many residents to flee their homes. The record was hit as the wildfire season still has roughly two months to go in the most populous US state and as thousands of firefighters were battling flames during a scorching heat wave. “In the past 33 years […]

Highest Nile waters for a century swamp Sudan

by Sammy Ketz Agence France-Presse KHARTOUM, Sudan (AFP) — On Sudan’s Tuti Island, where the Blue and White Nile meet, the highest river waters since records began have left people struggling to hold back the rising floods. Wedged between the twin cities of Khartoum and Omdurman, people on Tuti fill bags with sand and small stones in an often futile bid to stop the lapping water from swamping their homes. The world’s longest river is […]

Canada backs opposition to Alaska oil drilling threatening caribou

OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canada on Thursday threw its support behind groups fighting to safeguard caribou that are threatened by a recent US approval of oil and gas drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which borders the Yukon. The US Department of the Interior in August approved plans for drilling in the remote Arctic region. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that drilling leases could be auctioned […]

Bering Sea ice at lowest levels in 5,500 years: study

WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — Winter ice in the Bering Sea, in the northern Pacific Ocean between Alaska and Russia, is at its lowest levels for 5,500 years, according to a study released Wednesday. Researchers analyzed vegetation that accumulated on the uninhabited island of St Matthew over the last five millennia. They looked at variations in peat layers of oxygen atoms called isotopes 16 and 18, whose proportions over time correlate with atmospheric and oceanic […]

Germany’s first ‘green’ bonds attract strong demand

FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany on Wednesday launched its first “green” bond offering to finance environmental initiatives as it pivots towards a sustainable economy, and could become a benchmark issuer in the booming field. The government raised 6.5 billion euros ($7.7 billion), in the offering for the 10-year 0% bond, with investors placing orders of more than 33 billion euros, according to German finance agency. Even at this early stage, “Germany is well on the way […]

Mauritian citizen becomes powerful voice for oil spill anger

by Shenaz Patel and David Constantin Agence France-Presse In normal times, Bruneau Laurette spends his days providing armed escort to ships dodging pirates as they head through the Indian Ocean. But in recent weeks, the maritime security expert has surged into a new role: the voice of a nation’s anger after an oil spill soiled the coast of his native Mauritius. The disaster occurred after a 100,000-tonne Japanese bulk carrier, MV Wakashio, ran aground on […]

Unilever to cut carbon footprint in cleaning items

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Anglo-Dutch consumer giant Unilever on Wednesday unveiled a one-billion-euro plan to remove fossil fuels in the production of cleaning and laundry products which have experienced soaring demand from coronavirus-fearing consumers. The initiative, worth the equivalent of $1.2 billion, will replace all the carbon derived from fossil fuels used in the production of some of Unilever’s best-known products by 2030, it said in a statement. Unilever aims to transform the sustainability […]

Toxic liquid leaks into Paris river from cement plant

PARIS, France (AFP) — Hundreds of litres of toxic wastewater have leaked into Paris’ Seine River from a plant belonging to Franco-Swiss cement giant Lafarge-Holcim, local reports said, sparking outrage from French officials. Lafarge acknowledged the spillage but insisted it had been the result of sabotage, rather than an intentional act by the company. The contaminated liquid is composed of a mixture of cement, wastewater treatment liquid and plastic microfibres and comes from a Lafarge […]

Zimbabwe to return land to farmers protected by investment deals

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AFP) — Zimbabwe said Tuesday that only foreign farmers protected by international investment treaties qualified to retrieve land seized by the government two decades ago. Former president Robert Mugabe launched land reforms in 2000, grabbing parcels from 4,000 white farmers on the grounds that he was reversing historical land ownership imbalances that favoured the minority whites. On Monday, the government said white farmers could apply to regain the titles to their land. Information ministry […]