Exposure to small particulate matter from fires contributes to thousands of annual deaths in US, according to study
Wildfires driven by the climate crisis contribute to as many as thousands of annual deaths and billions of dollars in economic costs from wildfire smoke in the United States, according to a new study.
The paper, published on Friday in the journal Nature Communications Earth & Environment, found that from 2006 to 2020, the climate crisis contributed to about 15,000 deaths from exposure to small particulate matter from wildfires and cost about $160bn. The annual range of deaths was 130 to 5,100, the study showed, with the highest in states such as Oregon and California.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
05/07/2025 - 14:10
05/07/2025 - 13:08
Loss of the vast Hornsea 4 offshore wind project is bad news but it reveals a big flaw in setting a deadline
Danish firm shelves huge UK windfarm project over rising costs
“Immensely challenging” and pushing the limits “of what is feasibly deliverable”. That was the state-owned National Energy System Operator’s description of its own proposals on how to decarbonise electricity generation in Great Britain by 2030. In short, it thought clean power by that date, a key Labour manifesto pledge, was “credible” and “achievable” as long as little went wrong along the way.
Neso’s £200bn plan, detailing a rapid rollout of offshore wind, onshore wind, solar farms plus a major upgrade of the electricity grid, was adopted virtually unchanged by the government at the end of last year.
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05/07/2025 - 12:03
New research has shown how small, inexpensive drones combined with free, open source software can be used by community forest organizations to calculate and monitor the amount of carbon stored in their forests.
05/07/2025 - 12:03
Parasites are crucial indicators of ecosystem health, and their absence can signal trouble. Once pristine, Florida's Indian River Lagoon (IRL) now faces pollution and algal blooms that have damaged essential habitats like seagrass beds. New research finds parasite levels in the IRL are significantly lower than in comparable ecosystems worldwide -- 11% lower overall and 17% lower for larval parasites requiring multiple hosts. This sharp decline suggests a disrupted food web likely caused by pollution and habitat degradation, and a less resilient and more vulnerable ecosystem.
05/07/2025 - 11:51
First stage of initiative will introduce ‘keystone’ species to beaver enclosures in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire
Elk could return to the UK after 3,000 years under plans by the Wildlife Trusts to reintroduce the “keystone” species into Britain’s landscapes.
The Derbyshire Wildlife Trust wants to introduce elk into two existing beaver enclosures in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, with the hope of demonstrating that the large semiaquatic deer should be released to roam free in the wild.
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05/07/2025 - 11:11
Environment Agency recommends rationing water as UK sees driest start to spring in 69 years
Crops are already failing in England because of drought conditions this spring, farmers have said.
People should start to ration their water use, the Environment Agency said, as water companies prepare for a summer of drought. The government has also asked the water CEOs to do more to avert water shortages, and the EA said hosepipe bans are on the horizon if a significant amount of rain does not fall.
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05/07/2025 - 10:19
Reported closure of program for home appliances comes amid president’s hatred of water-conserving showers
US customers could face higher energy bills, experts have warned, amid reports that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to end the Energy Star program whose blue labels have certified energy efficiency on home appliances for more than 30 years.
“If you wanted to raise families’ energy bills, getting rid of the Energy Star label would be a pretty good way,” said Steven Nadel, executive director of the non-profit research organization the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).
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05/07/2025 - 10:00
Characterised by darkness and cold temperatures, the extreme environment of Antarctica’s deep sea is largely unexplored. Now, after a special marine science voyage, a team aboard Australia’s national icebreaker, RSV Nuyina, has collected some remarkable species from the waters around the Denman Glacier
Read more about RSV Nuyina’s crucial mission to Antarctica
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05/07/2025 - 10:00
Australian Ethical, which holds $56m worth of QBE shares, calls on insurer to overhaul its policies which allow it to underwrite oil and gas projects without restriction before AGM
Australia news live: latest politics and federal election updates
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An ethical super fund is pushing for QBE to overhaul its coverage policies amid criticism the insurer can underwrite fossil fuel projects without restriction while blaming the climate crisis for steep premium rises.
The critique comes before QBE’s annual general meeting in Sydney on Friday, and against a backdrop of rapidly rising premiums that has priced some households out of insurance coverage altogether.
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05/07/2025 - 08:46
A Russian drone attack has inflicted tens of millions of pounds of damage to the site of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, according to experts. The photographer Julia Kochetova has gained access to the area
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