Breaking Waves: Ocean News

UN holds emergency talks over sky-high accommodation costs at Cop30 in Brazil

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 14:12:27 +0000

Concerns poorer countries could be priced out of negotiations in Belém as room rates soar amid shortage

The UN climate bureau has held an urgent meeting about concerns that sky-high rates for accommodation at this year’s Cop30 summit in Brazil could price poorer countries out of the negotiations.

Brazil is preparing to host Cop30 this November in the rainforest city of Belém, where representatives of nearly every government in the world will gather to negotiate their joint efforts to curb the climate crisis.

Hundreds evacuated after series of rockfalls in Italy’s Brenta Dolomites

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 13:22:36 +0000

Experts say thawing of permafrost due to climate breakdown is causing increase in rock collapses across Alps

Hundreds of hikers and tourists were evacuated and dozens of trails closed after a series of rockfalls on the slopes of Cima Falkner in the Brenta Dolomites in the north of Italy, as experts warned of a sharp rise in landslides in the area linked to thawing permafrost.

Council recognises right of River Test to flow unimpeded and unpolluted

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 11:41:05 +0000

Test is one of only about 200 chalk streams in the world and councillors says biodiversity in and around it has declined

Local politicians have recognised the right of a famous chalk stream, the Test in Hampshire, to flow freely and unpolluted.

Councillors on Test Valley borough council voted unanimously to acknowledge “the intrinsic rights” of the rivers within its boundaries, including the Test, which is renowned for its trout and fly fishing.

Elon Musk is turning US liberals off not just Tesla but electric vehicles in general

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 10:00:59 +0000

Disgust at the CEO’s rightwing activism is casting a pall but conservatives are no more likely to buy EVs

US liberals have become so disgusted with Tesla since Elon Musk’s rightward turn that they are now not only far less likely to purchase the car brand but also less willing to buy any type of electric car, new research has found.

The popularity of Tesla among liberal-minded Americans has plummeted since Musk, Tesla’s chief executive and the world’s richest person, allied himself with Donald Trump and helped propel the president to election victory last year.

Experts baffled as rarely seen beaked whales involved in series of strandings

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 10:00:58 +0000

Incidents across northern Europe on 26 and 27 July have left scientists trying to understand why so many of the deep-diving whales have appeared

A series of strandings of one of the world’s deepest dwelling and most rarely seen types of whale in the last few days has left experts baffled over why they might have appeared in such numbers.

Scheme to release beavers into wild in England has stalled, say nature experts

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 09:41:11 +0000

Not a single licence granted since first beavers let loose in March, raising questions over application process

When the first pair of beavers to be legally released in England crawled sleepily from their crates into the ponds of Purbeck Heath in Dorset, it seemed like a watershed moment for wildlife in the UK.

Ethnic minorities in England at higher risk of heat-related deaths, says study

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 07:03:39 +0000

Research links poor housing, access to cooling and other economic factors to higher mortality rates during heatwaves

Ethnic minorities and people living in the most deprived areas of England are at increased risk of dying due to excess heat, according to research.

A study, published in BMJ Public Health, is the first of its kind to assess the role of socio-environmental factors in the risk of heat-related deaths.

Half of UK councils still use pesticides in public places, research finds

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 05:00:53 +0000

Pesticide-free movement has grown, but many local authorities still spray weedkiller linked to wildlife declines and cancer

More than half of councils in the United Kingdom continue to use pesticides in parks, playgrounds, pavements, playing fields and housing estates, research revealed on Wednesday.

But increasingly, local authorities are taking action to end or reduce their use of pesticides, according to research by the Pesticide Action Network.

Deadly China floods leave trail of destruction – in pictures

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 01:38:43 +0000

Floods have caused extensive damage in Beijing and northern China, killing 30 people and forcing tens of thousands to evacuate.

China floods: more than 30 killed in Beijing and tens of thousands evacuated

Charity in legal action against minister for failing to act over Thames Water

admin — Tue, 29 Jul 2025 23:01:44 +0000

River Action says failure to publish and put into practice policy on nationalisation of failing water firms is unlawful

A river charity is taking legal action against the environment secretary, Steve Reed, accusing him of an unlawful failure to publish his policy on taking failing water companies into temporary nationalisation.

Lawyers for River Action argue that Thames Water has breached its duties and violated its licence conditions seriously and repeatedly, making it the clearest possible case for special administration.