Burning, worsened by global heating, overtook farming and logging as biggest cause of destruction of tropical forests
The destruction of the world’s forests reached the highest level ever recorded in 2024, driven by a surge in fires caused by global heating, according to “frightening” new data.
From the Brazilian Amazon to the Siberian taiga, Earth’s forests disappeared at a record rate last year, losing an area the size of Italy to agriculture, fires, logging and mining, according to analysis from the University of Maryland hosted on Global Forest Watch.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
05/20/2025 - 23:01
05/20/2025 - 19:25
Two days of heavy rainfall still on way as SES carries out 130 rescues amid flooding along Manning River in Taree and nearby areas
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Residents of the mid-north coast of New South Wales have described anxious waits for rescue in the dark as unprecedented flooding has struck the Manning river, inundating homes and businesses across the region.
The State Emergency Service has warned another 200mm of rain was predicted in the next 24-48 hours, further swelling the Manning river which has already surpassed its 1929 record flood level.
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05/20/2025 - 18:01
Climate Change Committee says original goal of a 75% emissions cut by 2030 will now be delayed by up to six years
The UK’s climate watchdog has warned that Scotland needs to take “immediate action at pace and scale” to cut its emissions after ministers axed a series of policy pledges.
The Climate Change Committee (CCC), an official advisory body, said ministers in Edinburgh needed to take urgent action to curb emissions from buildings and transport to cut Scotland’s overall emissions to nearly zero by 2045.
Abandoned a target to cut car miles by 20% by 2030.
Dropped a pledge to rapidly decarbonise homes by mandating low-carbon heating systems.
Cut funding for tree planting.
Missed targets to restore degraded peatland.
Ignored calls for a plan to cut meat and dairy consumption, and failed to use their powers to tax air travel more heavily.
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05/20/2025 - 16:30
Firms among England and Wales suppliers facing record 81 investigations as sources say ‘polluter will pay’ for their cost
Two of Britain’s biggest water companies, Thames Water and Anglian Water, face more than 50 criminal investigations between them as part of a crackdown on sewage dumping, the government has said.
The utilities were subject to the bulk of a record 81 investigations into water companies between last July’s general election and March 2025, according to new data.
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05/20/2025 - 13:25
Doug Burgum defends Trump budget slashing green funds, saying AI and Iran pose bigger threats
The US has “plenty of time” to solve the climate crisis,” the interior secretary, Doug Burgum, told a House committee on Tuesday.
The comment came on his first of two days of testimony to House and Senate appropriators in which he defended Donald Trump’s proposed budget, dubbed the “one big, beautiful bill”, that would extend tax reductions enacted during Trump’s first term, while cutting $5bn of funding for the Department of the Interior.
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05/20/2025 - 12:53
Dom Phillips’ posthumously published book is an urgent reminder of why this unique landscape matters so much
It doesn’t start for six months, but the build-up to the UN’s annual climate conference is already well under way in Brazil. Hosting the tens of thousands of delegates who make the trip is a big undertaking for any city. But the decision to host Cop30 in Belém, at the mouth of the Amazon river, has multiplied the complications.
After three consecutive Cops in autocratic nations, the stated aim of Cop30’s chair, André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, is to make this year’s event a showcase for civil society, including the Indigenous groups and forest defenders who play such a vital role in conservation. But the lack of affordable accommodation and other infrastructure, as well as the distance that must be travelled to reach the Amazon port, mean this commendable ideal will be hard to realise.
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05/20/2025 - 11:20
Forests play a crucial role in promoting health and wellbeing, but not all forests provide the same benefits. A large-scale study demonstrates how specific forest characteristics -- such as canopy density and tree species diversity -- can affect various health outcomes.
05/20/2025 - 11:11
After invasive American bullfrogs 'croak,' native turtles return to Yosemite, finds a new study.
05/20/2025 - 11:11
A novel analysis suggests more than 3,500 animal species are threatened by climate change and also sheds light on huge gaps in fully understanding the risk to the animal kingdom.
05/20/2025 - 11:03
Study shows firms in Colorado, including Chevron, have pumped 30m lbs of chemicals in 18 months without meeting all disclosure rules
Colorado oil and gas companies have pumped at least 30m lbs of secret chemicals into the ground over the past 18 months without making legally required disclosures, according to a new analysis.
That’s in spite of first-in-the-nation rules requiring operators and their suppliers to list all chemicals used in drilling and extraction, while also banning any use of Pfas “forever chemicals” at oil and gas sites. Since the transparency law took effect in July 2023, operators have fracked 1,114 sites across the state, but as of 1 May chemical disclosures have not been filed for 675 of them – more than 60% of the total, the analysis says.
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