Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Homes damaged as storms follow heatwaves in England and Wales

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 14:28:48 +0000

Forty flood alerts issued by Environment Agency across Midlands, Yorkshire and south-east of England

Dozens of homes have been damaged by flood water as the Met Office issued warnings for thunderstorms and heavy rain after most of England and the whole of Wales was declared in drought.

The Met Office said thundery showers across England and Wales could cause 75mm of rain in just 12 hours in some areas after a summer that saw five heatwaves hit the UK.

Hiker reunited with backpack 60 years after he fell into a glacier in Austria

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 13:27:23 +0000

Bag, camera and pipe belonging to 86-year-old are latest relics uncovered as glaciers melt due to global heating

An 86-year-old mountaineer has been reunited with his backpack and climbing equipment after the kit emerged from a melting glacier in Austria – more than 60 years after he was forced to leave them there.

Items including an ice axe, camera and a pipe dating from the 1950s or 1960s were discovered on the Sulztalferner glacier in Austria’s Tyrol region, at an altitude of 2,955 metres (9,700ft) above sea level, by a hiker in July.

A Britain of wildfires and flood risks: be sure, the climate crisis is real, and we will deal with it | Angela Eagle

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 12:05:25 +0000

Reform and the Conservatives are willing to mislead the public, but as environment secretary, I believe we must be honest – and act boldly

How decoding beluga whales’ chitchat may save them – and teach us more about ourselves

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 09:02:13 +0000

From humpbacks learning the latest songs to sperm whales’ ‘clan codas’, drones and AI learning are helping reveal another dimension to the concept of culture

In 2015, the whale researcher Valeria Vergara pitched a small tent at the icy water’s edge on Somerset Island in the remote Canadian high Arctic, shrouded in a freezing fog so thick she struggled to see her own hands. She trailed a cord out to the coast and plopped a hydrophone into the water to record the calls of belugas.

Nearly 1,400 missing, mostly tourists, after Nepal-Tibet flash flood kills at least 356

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 06:51:40 +0000

Entire villages swept away after glacial collapse triggers flood in mountainous region popular with trekkers and pilgrims

‘Forever chemicals’ surge during pilot of Thames Water plan to combat drought

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 05:00:07 +0000

Exclusive: utility company wants to draw off tens of millions of litres of water a day from Thames and replace it with treated effluent

Levels of a toxic “forever chemical” rose to 13 times the legal limit during Thames Water pilots for a controversial multimillion pound water recycling scheme that will pump millions of litres of treated sewage into the River Thames during drought.

The data from the pilots is in stark contrast to public comments from Thames Water that their water recycling project in south-west London will not harm the riverine environment.

‘Sad moments ahead’: Kew Gardens to fell rare trees in race to save Victorian greenhouse

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 05:00:07 +0000

Horticulturalists begin moving and propagating plants before the rusty and warped Palm House begins renovation – but some are too tall to save

It will be a gut-wrenching moment for the horticulturalists at Kew Gardens when some of the magnificent trees in the Palm House have to be felled.

“There are some sad moments ahead,” said Palm House manager, Will Spoelstra, who knows all the plants inside the cathedral-like greenhouse.

Japan killed 14,000 bears after a rise in deadly attacks on people – but will it work?

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 04:00:05 +0000

Bears killed 13 people in Japan last year, as a lack of forest foods increased conflicts. Yet some say the country’s controversial cull could threaten the endangered species

Top of the crops: record heatwaves help deliver bumper UK berry harvest

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 04:00:04 +0000

Investment in climate-resilient irrigation enables this year’s haul to rise 6% on 2025’s already bigger-than-usual yield

British farmers have faced a sweltering summer tested by heatwaves, wildfires and water shortages – but a bumper berry harvest could prove a rare bright spot.

With two-thirds of the harvest now picked, this year’s haul is 6% up on last year’s already unusually large crop, according to British Berry Growers (BBG). Volumes of blackberries, blueberries and raspberries picked have been particularly strong, the trade body said.

France to relax cheese production rules after drought takes toll on grazing land

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 04:00:03 +0000

Comté, beaufort and abondance makers can temporarily supplement cows’ diets as there is ‘no grass left to eat’

Strict production rules will be loosened for some of France’s most famous cheeses after drought and repeated heatwaves dried out grazing pastures, threatening the livelihoods of traditional dairy workers.