Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Thailand bans imports of plastic waste to curb toxic pollution

admin — Tue, 07 Jan 2025 14:05:25 +0000

Campaigners welcome move but say success depends on enforcement and global agreement on a treaty

Thailand has banned plastic waste imports over concerns about toxic pollution, as experts warn that failure to agree a global treaty to cut plastic waste will harm human health.

Canals have vital role to play in UK’s climate resilience, says charity

admin — Tue, 07 Jan 2025 12:29:46 +0000

Waterways can protect biodiversity, help with water security and keep cities cooler, says Canal & River Trust

Protecting the UK’s canals is crucial for improving the nation’s resilience to climate change, campaigners have said.

A report by the Canal & River Trust charity found canals could play a “critical role” in biodiversity, decarbonisation and climate adaptation.

Tuesday briefing: How Britain has coped with an Arctic blast

admin — Tue, 07 Jan 2025 06:34:35 +0000

In today’s newsletter: Widespread flooding, snow and power outages have left thousands of households and travellers facing the aftermath of a cold snap – with more disruption to come

Good morning.

Hadi Nazari's camera and campfire found as search continues for hiker missing in Kosciuszko national park

admin — Tue, 07 Jan 2025 04:47:09 +0000

NSW police ‘hopeful’ of finding 23-year-old Hadi Nazari alive in remote national park as they track movements since he was last seen on Boxing Day

Southern California warned of ‘life-threatening, destructive’ windstorm

admin — Tue, 07 Jan 2025 02:51:22 +0000

Officials warn of fire risks and potential outages as gusts could reach 80mph in Los Angeles county and Ventura

Southern California could experience a “life-threatening, destructive” windstorm this week, with forecasters warning of major fire risks unusual for January and potential power outages.

‘He was prescient’: Jimmy Carter, the environment and the road not taken

admin — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 13:00:33 +0000

The ex-president was a pioneer on renewable energy and land conservation but his 1980 defeat was a ‘fork in the road’

When a group of dignitaries and journalists made a rare foray to the roof of the White House, Jimmy Carter had something to show them: 32 solar water-heating panels.

UK government scraps plan to ban sale of gas boilers by 2035

admin — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 12:59:54 +0000

‘Future homes standard’ will not mandate replacing boilers with environmentally friendly alternative

The government is to scrap the 2035 ban on gas boilers in its new housebuilding standards.

The previous Conservative government had laid plans to phase out gas heating for homes by banning the sale of new gas boilers by 2035, so people replacing their gas boilers after that date would instead have to buy a heat pump or other environmentally friendly way of heating homes.

Biden bans new drilling in US coastal waters weeks before Trump handover

admin — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 11:50:34 +0000

Ban includes entire Atlantic coast, eastern Gulf of Mexico, Pacific coast off California, Oregon and Washington, and part of Bering Sea

Joe Biden has banned offshore drilling across an immense area of coastal waters, weeks before Donald Trump takes office pledging to massively increase fossil fuel production.

The US president’s ban encompasses the entire Atlantic coast and eastern Gulf of Mexico, as well as the Pacific coast off California, Oregon and Washington, and a section of the Bering Sea off Alaska.

Dried halibut and whale jerky: how a traditional Inuit diet fuelled an epic kayak adventure

admin — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 10:00:45 +0000

British chef Mike Keen paddled up the coast of Greenland eating only what local people did, and the health benefits led him to question the global food system

For a period of two months last year, a typical day for chef Mike Keen would see him skipping breakfast and lunch in favour of snacks such as dried capelin (a small bait fish), dried halibut, jerky-like dried whale and a local Greenlandic whale skin and blubber treat called mattak.

Mike Keen eats fermented seal blood in Sermilik fjord, east Greenland. Photograph: Mike Keen

Snow therapy: ski tourism at the crossroads – in pictures

admin — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 07:00:42 +0000

Exploring the aberration, absurdity, madness and ingenuity of skiing, an activity that raises both questions and concerns despite its global success. It continues to fascinate and intrigue in the face of social and environmental upheavals. There are more than 2,000 resorts scattered across the world, attracting hundreds of millions of skiers, but there are also profound questions about its future amid climate challenges and societal changes