Breaking Waves: Ocean News

05/21/2024 - 07:10
Also on Sunday, in Alaska, a man was killed as he tried to photograph newborn moose calves when their mother attacked A grizzly bear attacked and seriously injured a man in western Wyoming’s Grand Teton national park, prompting closure to the public of a mountain there on Monday. That mauling was one of at least two serious animal attacks on people in the US wilderness on Sunday. Elsewhere, in Alaska, a 70-year-old man who was attempting to take photos of newborn moose calves was attacked and killed by their mother, authorities said. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 07:00
In 2010, Mexico led the way, followed by Ecuador, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, Argentina and Colombia What are those weird ingredients in our favorite packaged foods? Candy lines every inch of the mercado de dulces in Mexico City’s historic center. Tantalizing strawberry-flavored chocolates and Tajín-covered mango gummies pack the narrow aisles of the meandering marketplace. But many of the colorful packages are somewhat dampened by black stop signs printed on their fronts. Alongside dreamy descriptions of creamy and chocolatey confections, the stop signs warn “Excess calories” or “Excess sugars”. For some customers, the warnings are enough for them to pause and reconsider their purchases. Latin America is leading the world in a movement to print nutritional warning labels on the fronts of food packages. Currently, the labels warn when a food product exceeds a consumer’s daily recommended value of any “nutrient of concern” – namely, sugar, salt or saturated fat (some countries have added trans fats, artificial sweeteners and caffeine). But research led by scientists across the continent is increasingly pointing towards another factor consumers may want to consider: how processed a food is. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 07:00
Revealed: Four gas utilities have teamed up with Habitat for Humanity to build ‘zero-net energy homes’, investigation shows US gas utilities are partnering with one of the nation’s most trusted non-profits as part of a “cynical PR stunt” to combat efforts to curb fossil fuel usage, a Guardian investigation has found. Local Habitat for Humanity affiliates have teamed up with at least four utilities across 10 states to build “zero-net energy homes”, which are meant to produce more energy than they use. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 06:00
Case alleges French company’s exploitation of fossil fuel contributed to deaths of victims in extreme weather disasters A criminal case has been filed against the CEO and directors of the French oil company TotalEnergies, alleging its fossil fuel exploitation has contributed to the deaths of victims of climate-fuelled extreme weather disasters. The case was filed in Paris by eight people harmed by extreme weather, and three NGOs. The plaintiffs believe it to be the first such criminal case filed against the individuals running a major oil company. The public prosecutor who received the file has three months to decide whether to open a judicial investigation or dismiss the complaint. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 03:03
Supplier hands out £127m to investors as it says normal service has been restored for 85% of customers Business live – latest updates The owner of South West Water has said normal service has been restored for 85% of its customers after unsafe drinking water led to more than 100 cases of a waterborne disease in Devon, as it raised its dividend payout to shareholders. After cryptosporidium, a disease that can cause unpleasant symptoms such as diarrhoea and vomiting, was detected in the water supply in the Brixham area of Devon last Wednesday, 17,000 households and businesses were told by South West Water not to use their tap water for drinking without boiling and cooling it first. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 02:56
Authorities cut short school term as weather bureau warns of severe heatwave conditions this week Authorities in the Indian capital, have ordered schools to shut early for the summer holiday, after temperatures in Delhi hit 47.4C (117F). City officials told schools to shut with “immediate effect” due to the blistering heat, according to a government order quoted by the Hindustan Times on Tuesday, cutting the term by a few days. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 01:00
Oil Change International says plans do not stand up to scrutiny and describes US fossil-fuel corporations as ‘the worst of the worst’ Major oil companies have in recent years made splashy climate pledges to cut their greenhouse gas emissions and take on the climate crisis, but a new report suggests those plans do not stand up to scrutiny. The research and advocacy group Oil Change International examined climate plans from the eight largest US and European-based international oil and gas producers – BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Eni, Equinor, ExxonMobil, Shell and TotalEnergies – and found none was compatible with limiting global warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels – a threshold scientists have long warned could have dire consequences if breached. Continue reading...
05/21/2024 - 00:07
Tassal staff legally killed 53 of the native birds with permission from the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast The Tasmanian government approved the shooting of dozens of cormorants after substandard netting allowed hundreds of the birds to enter fish cages at a salmon farm near Hobart. Right to Information documents released to Tasmanian Inquirer revealed that an estimated 641 cormorants entered fish cages at the Sheppards salmon lease near Coningham in November and December 2023. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup This article was republished with permission from the Tasmanian Inquirer Continue reading...
05/20/2024 - 23:47
The well-preserved huia bird feather was expected to fetch up to NZD$3,000 but ended up selling for more than NZD$46,000 A rare and highly prized feather from the extinct New Zealand huia bird has sold for NZD$46,521 (US$28,365), making it by far the world’s most expensive feather ever sold at auction. The hammer price far exceeded initial estimates of between $2,000-$3,000, and blew the previous record-holder’s price out of the water. Until Monday’s sale, the previous record sale was another huia feather that sold in 2010 for $8,400. Continue reading...
05/20/2024 - 23:00
‘Catastrophic’ global decline due to dams, mining, diverting water and pollution threatens humans and ecosystems, study warns Migratory fish populations have crashed by more than 80% since 1970, new findings show. Populations are declining in all regions of the world, but it is happening fastest in South America and the Caribbean, where abundance of these species has dropped by 91% over the past 50 years. Continue reading...