Environment

French schooner Tara stops in Miami on coral reef mission

MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Scientists aboard the French research schooner Tara set sail from Miami on Tuesday after stopping for several days to raise awareness about the peril from global warming facing coral reefs worldwide. The stopover was the first for Tara as it embarks on journey from France toward the Pacific Ocean, where it will collect samples from coral reefs over the next two years. The public was invited to visit the double-sailed […]

Pacific Ocean radiation back near normal after Fukushima: study

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Radiation levels across the Pacific Ocean are rapidly returning to normal five years after a meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant spewed gases and liquids into the sea, a study showed Monday. Japan shut down dozens of reactors after a magnitude 9.0 earthquake-generated tsunami on March 11, 2011 triggered one of the largest ever dumps of nuclear material into the world’s oceans. In the days following the quake and explosions at […]

El Nino brings sharks, other marine life to California coast

by Veronique DUPONT LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Shark encounters and sightings along California’s coast are at their highest level in decades, scientists say, warning that warmer waters mean beachgoers will have to be on the lookout for the predators all summer. The latest near-deadly encounter came in late May when a 52-year-old woman was mauled by a shark near Los Angeles, prompting beach closures for several days. Chris Lowe, director of California State […]

Signs of ‘healing’ ozone layer over Antarctic: study

  MIAMI, United States (AFP) – The hole in the ozone layer over the Antarctic has begun to shrink, signaling good news for the environment decades after an international accord to phase out certain pollutants, researchers said Thursday. The study found that the ozone hole had shrunk by 1.5 million square miles (four million square kilometers) — an area about the size of India — since 2000. “It’s a big surprise,” said lead author Susan […]

Paris takes Global Earth Hour Capital 2016 title

GLAND, Switzerland – Paris is this year’s Global Earth Hour Capital. WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge recognizes the “City of Light” as a role model for climate action and awards Paris for its ambitious vision and successful engagement with business, civil society and other cities on its journey toward sustainability. Paris hosted last year’s historic global climate summit and has shown strong climate leadership, creating a model for other city governments to replicate. In addition […]

Tim Peake says next dream is ‘lunar exploration’

GERMANY (AFP) — British astronaut Tim Peake has landed back on Earth after spending six months on the International Space Station (ISS) and is now looking forward to having some family time — although his next “dream” would be a “lunar exploration mission”. https://youtu.be/vKMttcE7Bko

New video footage of baby snow leopards, an endangered species at Virginia zoo

RICHMOND, Virginia (Reuters) — The Metro Richmond Zoo welcomed its first ever litter of snow leopard cubs on May 24, and has now released video footage of the cubs. The litter includes two cubs, one male and one female. The zoo have not yet released the names of the baby snow leopards, but the mother and father, named Elsa, 2, and Nitro, 3, are first time parents. Elsa was raised by human caretakers, but according […]

Ocean Month 2016: United for an abundant ocean

U.S. Embassy Manila celebrates Oceans Month (and Oceans Day on June 8) with Luis Manzano, WWF-Philippines’ “Ambassador”, as he talks about the efforts the U.S. and the Philippines undertake to preserve the ocean and keep it healthy, clean and blue.

Coral bleaching goes into unprecedented third year: NOAA

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The planet’s coral reefs are likely facing warmer than normal water for an unprecedented third year in a row, extending what is already the longest coral bleaching event on record, US observers said Monday. The global bleaching event began in mid-2014 with global warming and a particularly intense El Nino phenomenon resulting in higher than normal ocean temperatures, according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA presented its grim […]

Poisonous lionfish may invade Med, warn environmentalists

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AFP) — The lionfish, a tropical creature with poisonous barbs and a painful sting that can kill humans in rare cases, may be spreading in the Mediterranean, a conservation group warned Monday. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (UICN) said the fish had been spotted in waters around Turkey and Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean. “That shows that the fish is spreading, and that’s a cause for concern,” Maria del Mar […]