Breaking Waves: Ocean News

07/21/2025 - 05:05
Claimed sighting 300km south of typical crocodile territory started as a Facebook post before doing the rounds of breakfast TV Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here It started as a Facebook post on a community noticeboard by a man with a designer dog as his profile picture and just a few friends – but within 24 hours it was doing the rounds of breakfast TV and online news platforms. The question was: had Ross Buckley really seen a 3.5-metre crocodile while on his “usual 6:30am stroll” down the dog beach at the mouth of the Noosa River? Was Buckley even real? Continue reading...
07/21/2025 - 05:00
In Satartia, Mississippi, locals say a CO2 pipeline leak created an aftermath ‘like a zombie apocalypse’ On a clear February evening in 2020, a smell of rotten eggs started to waft over the small town of Satartia, Mississippi, followed by a green-tinged cloud. A load roar could be heard near the highway that passes the town. Soon, nearby residents started to feel dizzy, some even passed out or lay on the ground shaking, unable to breathe. Cars, inexplicably, cut out, their drivers leaving them abandoned with the doors open on the highway. Continue reading...
07/21/2025 - 04:53
Greens’ Sarah Hanson-Young warns $14m in federal funding ‘nowhere near’ enough to support South Australian communities reeling from toxic algal bloom covering coast Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Get Guardian Australia environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as an email The Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young says $14m in federal funding is “nowhere near what will be needed” to support South Australian communities dealing with the state’s algal bloom catastrophe. The environment minister, Murray Watt, announced the federal assistance package on Monday while visiting South Australia to see the impacts of a toxic algal bloom that for months has caused mass deaths of marine life across the state’s beaches. Get Guardian Australia environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as an email Continue reading...
07/21/2025 - 03:50
Albert Manifold, ex-boss at buildings material company CRH, to take over from embattled Helge Lund BP has appointed a successor to its embattled chair, Helge Lund, as the company breaks from its net zero strategy and pivots back to fossil fuels. Albert Manifold, the former boss of the building material company CRH, will join the BP board on 1 September as a non-executive director and as chair-elect, before taking over on 1 October. Continue reading...
07/21/2025 - 01:34
Environment secretary backs plan to end sewage spills and financial mismanagement in England and Wales Business live – updates A new water regulator will replace the powers of Ofwat, the Drinking Water Inspectorate and the Environment Agency to “reset” a sector tarnished by scandals over sewage spills and financial mismanagement, a after a major review into the sector. The government will adopt the recommendation for England and Wales made in the review it commissioned from Sir Jon Cunliffe, a former deputy governor of the Bank of England, which was released on Monday. In England, the powers of Natural England will also be subsumed. Continue reading...
07/21/2025 - 01:25
Experts say the level of ambition in Labor’s upcoming 2035 emissions target will influence the capital decisions of many companies Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Investment analysts have uncovered what they say is a “significant gap” between the climate commitments of major Australian companies and how they actually spend their money. A report from climate consultancy group Pollination included analysis of the public climate disclosures of 12 major Australian companies, looking especially at their decisions on how and where to spend capital. Continue reading...
07/21/2025 - 01:24
Gene editing may hold the key to rescuing endangered species—not just by preserving them, but by restoring their lost genetic diversity using DNA from museum specimens and related species. Scientists propose a visionary framework that merges biotechnology with traditional conservation, aiming to give struggling populations like Mauritius’ pink pigeon a fighting chance against extinction. From agriculture to de-extinction, these tools are already transforming biology—and now, they could transform the future of biodiversity itself.
07/20/2025 - 06:00
The decision to let a small blaze burn – before it suddenly erupted – has drawn scrutiny. Now those who love the remote North Rim are reckoning with the destruction When lightning struck on 4 July along the remote North Rim of Grand Canyon national park, sparking a small wildfire in a patch of dry forest, few predicted the terror and loss that lay ahead. Fire managers decided that conditions seemed ideal to let the blaze burn at a low intensity – a practice known as “control and contain” that helps clear out excess fuels and decreases the chance of a more catastrophic wildfire in the future. Rains from previous weeks had left the forest floor moist and weather forecasts indicated the summer monsoon season would arrive soon. Continue reading...
07/20/2025 - 05:37
Steve Reed says he is unable to rule out further above-inflation rises and any decision would be up to regulators The environment secretary, Steve Reed, has said he is “furious” about an average 36% rise in water bills in England and Wales but was unable to rule out further above-inflation increases in future to fix the broken water sector. Reed said he hoped that “root and branch” reform of the industry would lead to billions of pounds more in investment, which would mean companies would “never again” have to increase bills in the way they did last year. Continue reading...