Environment
EnvironmentEnhancing safe navigation in polar waters
The Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO) and the International Association for Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), in cooperation with Lindblad Expeditions, have found a way for cruise operators to share years of depth soundings from the Arctic and Antarctica.
Huge gathering or Pacific walruses in Alaska beach because of climate change
Scientists have photographed the largest gathering of Pacific walruses ever recorded, on a beach in northern Alaska, blaming climate change for the estimated 35,000 females and calves huddled beside the Chukchi Sea.
US expands marine reserve in the Pacific to three times the size of California
US President Barack Obama has signed a memorandum to expand a vast marine reserve in the Pacific Ocean. The Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument will become the largest network of oceanic protected areas in the world.
Marina blasts Dilma Rousseff for not supporting UN deforestation dead line initiative
Environmentalist and presidential opposition candidate Marina Silva blasted Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff for not supporting an initiative to put a deadline on deforestation supported by 32 countries this Tuesday during the Climate summit in New York.
Deforestation deadline initiative watered down by lack of support from Brazil
More than 30 countries set the first-ever deadline on Tuesday to end deforestation by 2030, but the feasibility of such a goal was eroded when a key player, Brazil, said it would not join.
Pioneer initiative to triple Brazil's marine protected areas project
A pioneer initiative will more than triple the ocean area under environmental protection in Brazil, from 5.5 million hectares to over 17.5 million, an area larger than Greece.
South Atlantic whale sanctuary rejected at the IWC meeting
The world's whaling watchdog rejected a bid to expand protection in the South Atlantic. The issue were put to a vote on the closing day of the International Whaling Commission's (IWC) 65th meeting in Slovenia.
Tougher scrutiny of Japanese bids to kill whales for “scientific research”
Nations agreed on measures Thursday to toughen scrutiny of future Japanese bids to kill whales in the name of scientific research, which critics say is a cover for commercial hunts.
NZ scientists examine giant squid caught in Antarctica' Ross Sea
It was a calm morning in Antarctica's remote Ross Sea, during the season when the sun never sets, when Capt. John Bennett and his crew hauled up a creature with tentacles like fire hoses and eyes like dinner plates from a mile below the surface. A colossal squid: 350 kilograms, as long as a minibus and one of the sea’s most elusive species.
UN hails progress achieved in reducing damage to the ozone layer
United Nations officials hailed on Tuesday the progress made in reducing damage to the ozone layer and the vital role played by one of the most successful environmental treaties in history in phasing out ozone-depleting substances.
