Environmental, Health and Safety News | Volunteer EHS News Network Dedicated to Protecting People & Our Planet

DHS Now Tracking SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern B.1.617.2, the Delta Variant

Today, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services released new information about the newest variant of concern , variant B.1.617.2, also known as the Delta variant. Following the CDC’s recent classification update on June 14, DHS will begin reporting current case counts that are updated…(see release)
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The next pandemic is already happening – targeted disease surveillance can help prevent it

by Maureen Miller (Columbia University) As more and more people around the world are getting vaccinated, one can almost hear the collective sigh of relief. But the next pandemic threat is likely already making its way through the population right now. My research as an infectious disease epidemiologist has found that there is a...
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I-Pollinate

I-Pollinate is a research initiative designed to collect state-wide pollinator data for studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Citizen scientists participate by collecting data on monarch egg and caterpillar abundance, pollinator visitation to ornamental flowers, and state bee demographics. Read more →
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Tackling the impacts of pesticides on human, animal and environmental health

Read the full story at Open Access Government. Jane Mills, University of Gloucestershire, tells us about the SPRINT project’s aim to tackle the impacts of pesticides on human, animal and environmental health. Read more →
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When conservation work pays off: After 20 years, the Saker Falcon breeds again in Bulgaria

Read the full story from Pensoft Publishers. Considered extinct as a breeding species in the early 2000s, the Saker Falcon was recovered when the first active nest from the new history of the species in Bulgaria was discovered in 2018, built by two birds that were reintroduced back in 2015. Read more →
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CO2 and temperature challenge photosynthesis

Read the full story at Western Producer. Heat may impair the enzymes that drive photosynthesis, hindering plants’ abilities to regulate carbon uptake and water loss Read more →
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Enough solar and wind to clean the U.S. power grid… available yesterday

Read the full story at pv magazine. Data show that the U.S. has more than 750 GWac of electricity generation capacity in interconnection queues, with 90% of that clean energy-related. But how much actually will be built? Read more →
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USGS releases nationwide marsh vulnerability maps

U.S. Geological Survey scientists have developed and made available a new mapping resource that can identify the most vulnerable marshes across the contiguous U.S. through a combination of remote-sensing and satellite technologies. These maps provide critical information to land managers and help inform marsh conservation and restoration strategies without costly site-specific or labor-intensive assessments....
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Opportunity for Director, Environmental, Health & Safety / Site Lead.

Opportunity for a leading pharmaceutical services organization looking for an Associate Director, Environmental, Health & Safety / Site Lead. This individual will be a culture change agent, responsible for at least two sites in the Detroit area. Rapidly growing company, preparing for a multi-million dollar, multi-site expansion. Scaling to 24/7 operations, high potency APIs....
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Overcrowded US national parks need a reservation system

by Michael Childers (Colorado State University) If you’re headed out into the wild this summer, you may need to jump online and book a reservation before you go. For the second consecutive year, reservations are required to visit Yosemite, Rocky Mountain and Glacier national parks. Other popular sites, including Maine’s Acadia National Park, encourage...
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Global Methane Assessment

Download the document. The Global Methane Assessment shows that human-caused methane emissions can be reduced by up to 45 per cent this decade. Such reductions would avoid nearly 0.3°C of global warming by 2045 and would be consistent with keeping the Paris Climate Agreement’s goal to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius (1.5˚C) within...
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The arc of the moral universe is bending toward environmental justice

Read the full story from GreenBiz. How can environmental justice best be advanced in the current political moment that is part of a greater historical transition to a non-white population majority by the mid-2040s? Read more →
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Hundreds of gibberish papers still lurk in the scientific literature

Read the full story in Nature. The nonsensical computer-generated articles, spotted years after the problem was first seen, could lead to a wave of retractions. Read more →
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What does green mean? Investors grapple with definitions and data

Read the full story in the Financial Times. Coming up with accurate data on companies’ environmental, social and governance records has always been difficult for investors. Demand for so-called ESG funds may be high, but understanding where the green capital should flow is not always obvious. The problem is most often a lack of...
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New group calls on SEC to strengthen climate protections for U.S. financial system

Read the full story from EDF. Experts with the brand new Initiative on Climate Risk and Resilience Law (ICRRL) are calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission to strengthen protections from the dangers of climate change to our nation’s financial system and the millions of people who rely on it to sustain the American...
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Making climate impact science more accessible to the public: ISIpedia launch

Read the full story from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Decision-makers on all levels are provided with a new tool to tackle the climate challenge. Data and explanations on global warming impacts – from floods to droughts – are made more accessible to the public by a team of 12 international research...
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Soaking up the sun: Artificial photosynthesis promises a clean, sustainable source of energy

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Humans can do lots of things that plants can’t do. We can walk around, we can talk, we can hear and see and touch. But plants have one major advantage over humans: They can make energy directly from the sun. That process of turning sunlight directly into usable energy –...
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The Big Oil Instagram influencers are here

Read the full story at Earther. Earther has found at least two oil and gas companies—Shell and Phillips 66—have launched campaigns with different types of Instagram influencers. Shell is the second-largest investor-owned source of historical carbon pollution on the planet. Phillips 66 doesn’t have quite that historic footprint, but a staggering 80% shareholders recently...
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Green Chemistry Challenge Awards honor innovators

Scientific innovations that decrease or eliminate the use of hazardous chemicals, reduce greenhouse gases and result in a safer and more sustainable product are being honored with Green Chemistry Challenge Awards from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Michal Freedhoff, Ph.D., principal deputy assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention at the...
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EPA to reinstate air pollution panel disbanded under Trump

Read the full story at The Hill. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will reinstate a scientific group that looks at air pollution and was disbanded under the Trump administration, a spokesperson confirmed to The Hill on Monday, EPA spokesperson Tim Carroll said in an email that the EPA’s Science Advisory Board will issue a...
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Bipartisan lawmakers introduce bill to ban ‘forever chemicals’ in cosmetics as study finds them prevalent

Read the full story from The Hill. Bipartisan legislation introduced Tuesday would ban the use of so-called forever chemicals in cosmetics, on the heels of a study indicating their presence in more than 100 makeup products. The study, published Tuesday in Environmental Science and Technology Letters, found per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in more than...
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Solar industry launches diverse suppliers database

Read the full story from the Solar Energy Industries Association. Today the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) is releasing the Diverse Suppliers Database, a free platform that will highlight and elevate minority, women, disabled, veteran, and LGBTQ+ owned businesses operating in the solar and storage industries. More than 120 diverse companies are listed in the...
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These are the winners of 2021’s ‘Green Nobels’

Read the full story at Fast Company. From stopping coal plants in Japan to pushing the Malawi government to ban thin plastics, the six winners of this year’s Goldman Environmental Prize show how much climate progress is made by grassroots activism. Read more →
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As storms become more frequent and volatile, some ports plan for the risk — but most do not

Read the full story at Supply Chain Dive. The interconnectedness of ports leave assets such as warehouses, trucking networks and railroads vulnerable to disruptions from climate change and rising sea levels. Read more →
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Trillions of pounds of trash: New technology tries to solve an old garbage problem

Read the full story at CNBC. The world generates trillions of pounds in solid waste each year and landfills are no solution as they leak greenhouse gas emissions contributing to climate change. AMP Robotics thinks it can solve some of the recycling industry’s biggest challenges with an AI and machine vision-based autonomous recyclables-sorting technology....
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Food scraps to compost: Three 8th Street restaurants using worms to combat food waste

Read the full story at BoiseDev. Customers aren’t the only ones enjoying a meal at Bittercreek Alehouse in downtown Boise. Below the restaurant, through a maze of long hallways, past the prep kitchen is a room full of thousands of worms busily munching through pounds of rotting food. The invertebrates are part of a...
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Nature has enormous potential to fight climate change and biodiversity loss in the UK

Read the full story from the British Ecological Society. A new report details how nature can be a powerful ally in responding to the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change. Read more →
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Solar Farm 2.0 project makes U of I third-largest producer of onsite clean power among U.S. universities

Read the full story from the University of Illinois. Today, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Facilities & Services (F&S) announces the final stage of completion for Solar Farm 2.0, totaling 12.3 megawatts (DC), with the planting phase of the farm’s pollinator habitat commencing this month. The project is the second solar farm constructed at...
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Donor’s gift allowing Urbana to plant 200 new trees over next three years

Read the full story in the News-Gazette. Urbana is a city that loves its trees, and it’s about to plant a lot more of them. Mayor Diane Marlin announced Friday that an anonymous donor has given the city $98,650 to plant more trees, enough to cover the cost of 200 new trees over three...
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Port of Long Beach waives pollution fee for natural gas trucks as it targets supply chain emissions

Read the full story at Supply Chain Dive. The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners approved an exemption from the Clean Truck Fund Rate “for the cleanest” natural-gas-powered trucks, according to an announcement Monday. The rate, which has been set at $10 per TEU for any non-zero-emissions truck at the Port of Long Beach and the Port of...
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Earthworms could help reduce antibiotic resistance genes in soil

Read the full story from the American Chemical Society. Earthworms improve the soil by aerating it, breaking down organic matter and mineralizing nutrients. Now, researchers have dug up another possible role: reducing the number and relative abundance of antibiotic-resistance genes (ARGs) in soils from diverse ecosystems. These results imply that earthworms could be a...
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CanPAC: A new tool to conserve and protect the Canadian eastern Arctic

WWF-Canada has released a new report that shows how protected area networks can help marine life stay healthy and resilient despite a rapidly changing climate in the Canadian eastern Arctic. CanPAC (Canadian Arctic Marine Priority Areas for Conservation) highlights potential priority areas for conservation and is the first analysis of its kind in this region to show how...
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ClearGen, GreenStruxure announce $500M partnership on renewable microgrids

Read the full story at Utility Dive. ClearGen, the Blackstone Group sustainability fund, will commit up to $500 million in partnership with GreenStruxure, a joint venture of Schneider Electric and Huck Capital, to develop renewable energy microgrid solutions for commercial and industrial customers. GreenStruxure launched in September 2020 and offers no-money-down, modular microgrids installed on-site as part...
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SEIA creates Storage Advocacy Network to boost policy support for new technology

Read the full story at Solar Power World. SEIA is announcing a new venture to prioritize energy storage across policy advocacy, membership, research and events. The venture, called the Storage Advocacy Network, will be a formal branch of SEIA and serve as a national and state advocacy voice for energy storage. Storage is a...
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NREL details cost declines needed for long-duration storage to displace nuclear, gas with CCS

Read the full story at Utility Dive. More research is needed to understand the economics of long-duration and seasonal storage technologies to make sure they can play a role in decarbonizing the electric grid, according to a new article published in the journal Nature Energy. The article, written by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) research engineer Omar...
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Massive science-funding bill passes US Senate — but China focus worries researchers

Read the full story in Nature. Scientists praise the budget boost slated for the National Science Foundation, but worry the legislation could dampen international collaborations. Read more →
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Chief Industries, Inc. and Catahoula Resources announce agreement to advance carbon capture and sequestration in Nebraska

Read the news release. Chief Industries, Inc. (“Chief”) and Catahoula Resources (“Catahoula”) have entered into an agreement to jointly develop carbon capture and permanent sequestration (“CCS”) within Nebraska… Catahoula and Chief are currently evaluating CCS infrastructure investments that will enhance the sustainability and improve the economics of ethanol production through low-cost carbon storage within Nebraska. Work has...
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The company behind the viral fish tube — or salmon cannon — has a new project: Keeping Asian carp out of Lake Michigan using facial recognition technology

Read the full story in the Chicago Tribune. There may come a day on the Illinois River when a fish swims up a chute, slides through a scanner, and, after being recognized as a feared silver carp, is sorted and removed, eventually ending up in a carp burger on your dinner plate. Keeping invasive...
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Engineered bacteria show promise for sustainable biofuel industry

Read the full story from Hiroshima University. Acetone, a volatile solvent used for everything from removing nail polish and cleaning textiles to manufacturing plastics, could get a sustainability boost from a new strain of engineered bacteria. Read more →
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Two explorers, an avalanche and the front line of the climate crisis

Read the full story in Wired. On the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, climate change is something you can see with your own eyes. Explorers Hilde Fålun Strøm and Sunniva Sorby raise the alarm Read more →
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Electric trucks alone won’t deliver environmental justice, say neighbors of Chicago warehouse site

Read the full story at Energy News Network. A Target distribution center planned at the site of a former coal plant has local activists concerned about sustainability — both for the environment and the economy in the surrounding Little Village community. Read more →
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Webinar: Powering Sustainability and Circularity with Connected Products

Jul 8, 2021, 11 am-noonRegister here. Brands are transforming the way consumers engage and interact with their products by connecting physical items with the digital world. Along with creating engaging consumer experiences, brands are also enabling circularity, driving sustainability and providing digital traceability of the entire supply chain. They are leveraging digital ID technology...
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States active on recycling and waste legislation in first half of 2021

Read the full story at Waste Dive. Lawmakers have tackled legislation aimed at cutting single-use plastics, reducing materials headed to disposal and increasing recycled content use, but missed the chance to pass high-profile EPR bills. Read more →
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DHS Community-Based Vaccination Clinics to Begin Ramping Down Operations

Today, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announced that the six DHS community-based vaccination clinics will gradually reduce hours of operation starting Monday, June 14. These locations include clinics in Barron County, Douglas County, La Crosse County, Marathon County, Racine County, and Rock County. “Standing up these community clinics across Wisconsin was an...
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DHS Adds COVID-19 Vaccination Data to Existing Racial and Ethnic Disparities Dashboard

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announced that the COVID-19 Racial and Ethnic Disparities page has been updated to include vaccination data, in addition to existing data on COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths by group. The data underscore health inequities disproportionately affecting communities of color in Wisconsin. “This pandemic has highlighted existing gaps...
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Can fisheries benefit from biodiversity and conserve it, too?

Read the full story from Simon Fraser University. A new study reveals the trade-offs of fish biodiversity — its costs and benefits to mixed-stock fisheries — and points to a potential way to harness the benefits while avoiding costs to fishery performance. Read more →
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To guide future growth, Bob’s Red Mill adds two

Read the full story at Food Business News. Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods has hired two individuals to guide its future growth as an organization committed to fostering, cultivating and preserving a culture of equity and inclusion, as well as taking a leadership role in environmental best practices. Read more →
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Argonne partners with Chilean company SQM to better understand lithium life cycle

Read the full story from Argonne National Laboratory. A groundbreaking collaboration with one of the world’s largest producers of lithium will yield critical insights into the lithium production process and how it relates to environmental sustainability. Read more →
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What’s the buzz? Magnetic properties for more energy-efficient computer chips

Read the full story at Centered. Magnetostriction is a property of magnetic materials that causes fluorescent lights and electrical transformers to buzz. This property causes the materials to change shape or dimensions as the magnetic field changes. Magnetostriction also plays a big part in a new material that could lead to more energy-efficient computing....
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Tomorrow Water awarded USDA SBIR grant to develop eco-friendly solution for recycling keratin from livestock rendering waste

Read the company news release. Tomorrow Water, an innovative total solution provider of water treatment technologies and eco-friendly waste management solutions, has been awarded a highly competitive Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) grant by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The funding will support the development of its environmentally friendly technology that extracts and...
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Podcast: It’s an ‘incredibly exciting’ time for the field of bioacoustics

Today we take a look at the growing world of bioacoustic research and listen to a number of recordings of wildlife, from owls, lemurs, and elephants to seals, right...
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Sri Lanka braces for fallout of sunken cargo ship’s toxic payload

COLOMBO — Along the shoreline north of Colombo, Sri Lanka’s commercial capital, the beaches are littered with millions of tiny white pellets, each about the size of a peppercorn....
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Coal phase-out plan gets pushback in power-hungry Indonesia

JAKARTA — Officials have cast doubts on a government plan that would somehow see Indonesia phase out all its coal-fired power plants while at the same time build more...
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Singapore launches new carbon marketplace for nature conservancy projects

SINGAPORE — Singapore is launching a carbon trading marketplace focused on nature conservancy projects, a move that could protect at-risk tropical forests in the region while unlocking a ready...
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Tin mines close in on an Indonesian hamlet still clinging to nature

BANGKA, Indonesia — In the lore of Bangka Island, one of the world’s main tin-producing centers, the rocky, white-sand beach of Tuing holds a special place. Tuing Beach is...
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Two new Javan rhino calves spotted in the species’ last holdout

JAKARTA — Conservation officials in Indonesia have reported a sighting of two new Javan rhinoceros calves, boosting hopes for stable population growth of the nearly extinct species. The calves,...
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Banks increased deforestation-linked investments by $8B during Covid-19: report

The world’s 50 largest financial institutions increased their investments in deforestation-linked commodity companies by more than $8 billion since the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, a new report...
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New ecolabel will certify ‘Whale-Safe’ shipping companies and cruise lines

In the 1980s, video of dolphins dying in fishing nets sparked a public boycott of tuna and the development of “dolphin-safe” labeling programs for canned tuna that have become...
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Can the Japanese seafood industry reconcile their finances with nature?

At a glance, Japan’s seafood sector is a financial success story. Indeed, between 2010 and 2019, the 70 publicly-listed companies exposed to the sector on the Tokyo Stock Exchange...
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Forest advocates press EU leader to rethink views on biomass and energy

“Please get the science right,” forest advocates implored last week in an open letter sent to the most influential European Commission leader on climate, as the European Union reevaluates...
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Climate change isn’t fueling algal blooms the way we think, study shows

It started in October 2017. A swarm of microscopic algae called Karenia brevis amassed in the waters off Florida’s southwest coast, turning the ocean a rust-red hue. The algae,...
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Marbled cat: Candid Animal Cam meets the mini clouded leopard

Camera traps bring you closer to the secretive natural world and are an important conservation tool to study wildlife. This week we’re meeting a wild cat that looks like...
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Illegal logging in Philippines’ Palawan stokes fears of a mining resurgence

Pala’wan indigenous community leader Simpio Mata trudges through the natural forest of Mount Domadoway, in the southern part of the Philippines’ Palawan province, at least twice a month. He...
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Meet the 2021 Goldman Environmental Prize Winners

The prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, also known as the “Green Nobel Prize” will be awarded today to six environmental activists, one from each of the world’s inhabited continents. This year’s...
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Calls for independent probe after anti-mine Indonesian official dies

JAKARTA — Human rights and environmental activists have called for an investigation following the sudden death of a top government official in a remote Indonesian archipelago who was opposed...
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Rocky Mountains are burning more now than ever, and it could get worse

High up in the Rocky Mountains, forests are burning more frequently than any time in the past 2,000 years. The overarching reason: climate change. Warmer and drier climate conditions...
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Illegal miners block Indigenous leaders headed to protests in Brazil’s capital

Illegal miners attacked and tried to block Indigenous leaders in Brazil’s Amazon from traveling to the country’s capital to protest invasions of their lands and violence against their people,...
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After two collapses, a third Vale dam at ‘imminent risk of rupture’

A dam holding back mining waste from Brazilian miner Vale is at risk of collapsing, a government audit says. The same company was responsible for two tailings dam collapses...
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Irrigation dams threaten Thailand’s tiger forests, say conservationists

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — A plan to construct seven dams in one of mainland Southeast Asia’s last intact forest systems could cause widespread habitat loss and sever important wildlife...
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U.N. declares decade of ecosystem restoration to ‘make peace with nature’

Earth’s ecosystems are stressed, and people are suffering the consequences. Experts say that conserving what’s left of the natural world is not good enough; we must also restore it...
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Amazon rainforest destruction is accelerating, shows government data

Destruction of Earth’s largest rainforest is accelerating ahead of the region’s peak fire and deforestation season, reveals data released today by Brazil’s national space research institute INPE. According to...
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What’s the cost of illegal mining in Brazil’s Amazon? A new tool calculates it

Illegal gold mining caused an estimated $429 million (2.2 billion reais) in social and environmental damages on the Yanomami Indigenous Reserve in Brazil’s Roraima state last year, according to...
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Chinese special economic zones hotspots for wildlife trafficking, surveys say

SINGAPORE — Special economic zones set up to promote trade between China and its Southeast Asian neighbors are facilitating a black-market trade in wildlife products, according to watchdog group...
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Podcaster Tuli Amakali on the African white-backed vulture

Tuli Amakali is an podcaster and software developer who lives in Windhoek, Namibia. His podcast, Conversations About Nothing, explores opinions, in-depth reviews as well as interviews with influential people...
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Slash-and-burn clearing nears Indigenous park as Brazil’s fire season ignites

Situated deep in the middle of Brazil, Xingu Indigenous Park encompasses some of the most biodiverse rainforest in the country and is home to dozens of Indigenous communities and...
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Conservation solutions in paradise: Jamaica’s Oracabessa Bay Fishing Sanctuary

The coastal ecosystem of the Caribbean is as unique as the region’s year-round humid tropical climate. On the island of Jamaica, picturesque deep-blue waters and rich biodiversity are among...
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Big boost for bioacoustics as Cornell University program receives $24 million donation

The rapidly growing field of bioacoustics received a big boost when the Cornell Lab of Ornithology announced a gift of $24 million to support its Center for Conservation Bioacoustics...
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‘Conservation litigation’ tries to put a true price on wildlife crime

Gibbons, hornbills, komodo dragons and even Sumatran orangutans — these are just a few of the animals once kept illegally behind bars at a small zoo in North Sumatra,...
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Final court ruling orders Indonesian government to publish plantation data

JAKARTA — An Indonesian court has upheld a landmark 2017 ruling that all plantation data and maps in the country must be made publicly available — a ruling that...
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Brazil’s Uru-eu-wau-wau document COVID-19 victory with new video

When the Uru-eu-wau-wau were first contacted in 1981, disease and death followed shortly thereafter. With limited antibodies to fight foreign pathogens, infectious diseases like tuberculosis and measles took a...
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‘Listening to communities must go beyond ticking compliance boxes’, says Peter Kallang, a Kenyah leader

The Malaysian state of Sarawak was until recently home to some of the last truly nomadic peoples of Borneo, who roamed its wild and rich rainforests as they had...
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New areas of primary forest cleared in Brazil’s ‘lawless’ Lábrea

Satellite imagery reveals several areas of primary rainforest were cleared alongside agricultural fields in the Brazilian Amazon, all in close proximity to Indigenous and protected lands. In March, the...
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As U.K. eyes new environmental rules, some firms want to pump the brakes

After months of delays, the U.K. is on the cusp of passing a long-awaited post-Brexit environmental bill. But according to documents obtained by U.K.-based advocacy group Earthsight, some of...
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Indonesia’s biodiesel program fuels deforestation threat, report warns

JAKARTA — A new report has added to growing concerns that Indonesia’s ambitious program to increase its use of palm oil-based biodiesel will drive greater deforestation across the country....
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For Africa’s great apes, a post-pandemic future looks beyond tourism

On Jan. 11 this year, something happened that primatologists had both feared and expected: two western lowland gorillas at San Diego Zoo Safari Park tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Right...
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Chinese banks pouring billions into deforestation-linked firms, report says

Chinese banks and investors funneled billions of dollars into global agribusinesses driving deforestation in the past seven years, according to new analysis published by eco-watchdog Global Witness. The report,...
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The secret bears of Bolivia’s lost dry forests

EL PALMAR, Bolivia — It was worth the journey. After sweating across the scrubby Bolivian mountainsides, stepping into the forest was like entering a different world. Twisted pino de...
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In Gabon, a new partnership for sharks and rays announced on World Ocean Day

The Government of Gabon has passed landmark measures to manage and protect the country’s sharks and rays: over the past decade, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has worked with the...
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NGOs back Maldives’ ambitious plan to save Indian Ocean yellowfin tuna

Indian Ocean yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), one of the most profitable fisheries in the world, is just a few years away from collapse. A meeting that began June 7...
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In less than a generation, legal mining in Colombia deforested over 120,000 hectares

Legal mining in Colombia is a significant driver of deforestation, contributing to the destruction of 121,819 hectares (301,021 acres) of forest from 2001 to 2018. During that time, deforestation...
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Indonesia to retire coal-fired power plants while also adding more

JAKARTA — Indonesia says it will begin retiring coal-fired power plants for good — while still continuing to build more than a hundred new ones, in the latest mixed...
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Unregulated by U.S. at home, Facebook boosts wildlife trafficking abroad

In a matter of seconds, anyone can find evidence of wildlife trafficking on Facebook, according to independent researchers and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) experts. Even using simple...
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Our 10 most popular conservation stories in May 2021

Most published nearly 400 stories across its various bureaus during the month of May. Here are the ten most read stories on the global English news site. A story...
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A buffer zone for Thailand, last great hope for wildlife in Southeast Asia (commentary)

It might sound nihilistic and harsh to describe Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia (Indochina) as forming a kind of buffer zone against the onslaught of snaring and the defaunation of...
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CSI, but for parrots: Study applies criminological tool CRAAVED to wildlife trade

Parrots, inhabiting pan-tropical and temperate regions across the world, are highly sought after as pets due to their attractive colors, calls and clever nature. But some of the trade...
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Study shows it took the Amazon as we know it over 6 million years to form

The asteroid impact 66 million years ago that killed more than 75% of all species on Earth, including all non-avian dinosaurs, triggered an ecological catastrophe that took the neotropical...
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World’s richest tin mine pollutes rivers serving Amazon Indigenous villages

Waste from the world’s richest tin mine has since March leaked into rivers flowing through an Indigenous reserve in the Brazilian Amazon, reportedly contaminating the water and killing fish...
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Brazil’s environment minister faces second probe linked to illegal timber

Brazil’s controversial environment minister, Ricardo Salles, faces mounting legal problems after the country’s highest court authorized an investigation — the second in two weeks — into allegations that he...
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May deforestation in the Amazon hits 14-year high

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon last month reached the highest level in any May since at least 2007, reports Brazil’s national space research institute INPE. The new data come...
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‘We guard the forest’: Carbon markets without community recognition not viable

Nature-based solutions to tackle the climate crisis, specifically through the global carbon market, are attracting major public and private investment. Yet, according to new research by the NGO Rights...
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