Judge slashed a $667m damages award to Energy Transfer over Greenpeace’s role in Dakota Access Pipeline protests
A North Dakota judge on Friday finalized a $345m judgment against Greenpeace in a lawsuit pursued by pipeline company Energy Transfer (ET.N) over the environmental group’s role in protests against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.
The final judgment by judge James Gion was in line with a decision he issued in October, in which he slashed by almost half a damages award of about $667m that a jury had awarded Energy Transfer in March.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
02/27/2026 - 21:09
02/27/2026 - 19:33
SA premier Peter Malinauskas warns residents to prepare for heavy falls and possible flash floods
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Late summer rain is causing havoc across Australia, with South Australia on flood watch, Victoria cleaning up after a downpour, and Sydney issuing a shark warning after heavy falls.
Almost all of South Australia, much of western Victoria and parts of western NSW were on flood watch as a slow-moving pressure system from central Australia moved east. Queensland had also seen severe rainfall.
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02/27/2026 - 14:18
Researchers find that across 195 US cities, winters are on average nine days shorter than they were in 1970-1997
For the millions of people across the United States who have spent the last month digging themselves out of above-average levels of snow and ice, this winter has felt especially long and harsh. But the typical winter is actually getting shorter in 80% of major US cities scrutinized by researchers, according to new data released by Climate Central, an independent climate science and communication group.
Researchers found that across 195 US cities, winters are on average nine days shorter today than they were from 1970 to 1997, as the climate crisis progresses.
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02/27/2026 - 09:00
What is a favourite place if not one built upon our fondest memories?
Would I like to write about my favourite place?
The invitation inspired me to recall so many magical places – from north-east Arnhem Land to Mediterranean island hamlets with idyllic quayside tavernas, from the Melbourne Cricket Ground on grand final day to Dickensian London pubs, from picture postcard villages beneath snow-capped alpine peaks to the haunts of my literary giants and on to Joshua Tree and Hagia Sofia.
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02/27/2026 - 09:00
EPA rolls back rules as chemical firms claim provisions in RMP protection system too expensive to implement
The Trump administration is slowly dismantling the federal disaster management system that protects the nation from chemical catastrophes, such as fires and explosions at high-risk facilities.
The US Environmental Protection Agency’s Response Management Program (RMP) requires more than 12,500 high-risk facilities to develop protocols to prevent catastrophes, or limit fallout, and was largely designed to protect workers, first responders, and fence-line communities.
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02/27/2026 - 08:32
With most Scots supportive of reintroducing the wild cat, charities are focusing on those whose jobs could be affected
Could lynx, the elusive wild cat driven to extinction in Britain more than 1,000 years ago, become the new Loch Ness monster? “Whether Nessie’s there or not, she draws tourists,” said Margaret Luckwell, a resident of Moray, Scotland. “It would be the same with lynx. I’d love to see a lynx in the wild.”
Luckwell’s view is a majority one among local people gathering at village halls across the Highlands, as a painstaking consultation slowly gathers momentum for the apex predator’s return to Scottish forests.
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02/27/2026 - 07:30
EPA found only 27 of 219 plants needed upgrades; 71 later got exemptions as Donald Trump scrapped mercury limits
Almost all coal-fired power plants in the US had the ability to comply with rules limiting their emission of dangerous pollutants such as mercury that can cause brain damage in children. Despite this, Donald Trump’s administration decided to demolish the standards anyway.
Last week, the Trump administration said it is loosening restrictions on air toxins from mercury, lead and other heavy metals that are released by coal plants. Such pollution is known to be neurotoxic and has been linked to irreversible brain damage in children and infants, as well as heart disease and cancer in adults.
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02/27/2026 - 03:00
This week’s best wildlife photographs from around the world
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02/27/2026 - 01:00
The annual competition draws thousands of entries from across the world and brings together images from below the water’s surface that show the diversity and challenges of subaquatic life
All photographs courtesy of Underwater Photographer of the Year 2026
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02/27/2026 - 00:00
npj Ocean Sustainability, Published online: 27 February 2026; doi:10.1038/s44183-026-00187-0
Identifying suitable mussel cultivation sites in European offshore waters—an assessment for co-location with the wind industry
