Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Read more from My DIY climate hack, a new series on everyday people’s creative solutions to the climate crisis When temperatures creep past 90F in Oakland, California, the mini air-conditioning units in the classrooms at Melrose Leadership Academy can’t keep pace. So the middle schoolers in MLA’s chapter of the climate justice group Youth vs Apocalypse started doing some extra homework: they researched, planned and proposed installing a heat pump on campus. Heating buildings accounts for 10% of CO2 emissions globally, according to the International Energy Agency. Heat pumps have become an increasingly popular clean-energy technology because they can both heat and cool using electricity, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Continue reading...

Blue crabs with no natural predators have been disrupting prized shellfish populations on Italy’s coast. So revenge is on the menu In a down-to-earth suburb of Catania on Sicily’s east coast, smoke billows from street stands selling traditional grilled horse meat, and local youngsters gather around kiosks selling the region’s unique handmade drink, seltz limone e sale (seltzer with lemon and sea salt). It is here that a family of charismatic ex-fishers have opened a seafood restaurant that bravely challenges long-held regional conventions. The Salamone family sell all the usual local specialities in their slick new business “La Fish”, such as Sicily’s famous swordfish, sardines and tuna. However, the feature of tonight’s tasting menu – attracting customers who range from local families to food connoisseurs – is a relative newcomer to these shores and to Sicilian tables: the Atlantic blue crab. Continue reading...

The White House has a goal to conserve 30% of US land and water by 2030 – Trump has different plans A week after his presidential inauguration, Joe Biden cited the climate and biodiversity crises as reasons to set a sweeping new goal – to conserve at least 30% of America’s vast lands and waters by the end of the decade. Three years on, new protections have spurred meaningful progress towards meeting the target by 2030. Continue reading...

More than 400 scientists write to political parties urging ambitious action or risk making Britain and the world ‘more dangerous and insecure’ After five years of record heat and record floods, one might assume British politicians would also pay record attention to the climate issue in the current election campaign. But with the manifestos due this week, concerns are growing that the response of the two main parties will range from tepid progress to a great leap backwards, despite the certainty of further climate chaos during the next parliament. Continue reading...