Environment

• Thursday, January 2nd 2020 - 08:57 UTC

  Mendoza reinstates law that protects water resources following public uproar over a bill favoring mining

  

  A controversial mining law that sparked massive protests in the province of Mendoza in Argentina’s western-central region was finally abolished. The province's governor Rodolfo Suárez presented a formal request before the legislature on Monday, and with 34 votes in favor and 2 against, the Senate approved the annulment.

• Thursday, January 2nd 2020 - 08:48 UTC

  Australia on fire: thousands evacuate coastal communities; political storm brewing

  

  Thousands of tourists have been given less than 48 hours to evacuate fire-ravaged coastal communities as Australia braces for a heatwave on Saturday expected to fan deadly bushfires.

• Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 12:14 UTC

  Teenage climate change Greta Thunberg said talking to president Trump would be a waste of time

  

  Teenage climate change activist Greta Thunberg said on Monday that talking to US President Donald Trump at a United Nations summit on global warming would have been a waste of time since he would not have paid any attention.

• Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 11:48 UTC

  Thousands of Australian holidaymakers trapped on a beach close to fire ravaged Sydney

  

  Thousands of holidaymakers and locals were trapped on a beach in fire-ravaged southeast Australia on Tuesday, as blazes ringed a popular tourist area leaving no escape by land. As many as four thousand people are trapped on the foreshore of the encircled seaside town of Mallacoota, as smoke turned day to night and the authorities said nearby fires were causing extreme thunderstorms and “ember attacks”.

• Tuesday, December 31st 2019 - 10:53 UTC

  Angela Merkel's New Year message reaffirms the fight against climate change

  

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in her New Year's message she is fighting climate change with all her strength to enable future generations to live in peace and prosperity.

• Monday, December 30th 2019 - 09:45 UTC

  Freezing record: Six men cross the Drake Passage to Antarctica rowing, in 13 days

  

  As freezing water thrashed their rowboat in some of the most treacherous waters in the world, six men fought for 13 days to make history, becoming the first people to traverse the infamous Drake Passage with nothing other than sheer manpower.

• Monday, December 30th 2019 - 08:58 UTC

  Australia orders the evacuation of 30.000 tourists as temperature rises to 40 Celsius

  

  Thousands of residents and holiday makers have been told to evacuate a swathe of Victoria as soaring temperatures and strong winds fan massive bushfires in the Australian state.

• Monday, December 30th 2019 - 08:40 UTC

  Sydney New Year's Eve fireworks display is on announce city officials

  

  A petition to cancel Sydney's famous New Year's Eve fireworks and use the money to fight bush fires ringing the city has topped 260,000 signatures, but officials say the show will go on.

• Saturday, December 28th 2019 - 09:40 UTC

  Mendoza province up in arms to defend its water resources from the mining industry

  

  The government of the wine-producing province of Mendoza, suspended the rule of the mining law 7.722 that had given the green light for chemicals such as cyanide and sulfuric acid to be used by the industry, but which threaten the water resources of that territory.

• Saturday, December 28th 2019 - 09:36 UTC

  Fires in Australia threaten the water infrastructure that supplies Sydney

  

  Australian authorities said on Friday that they are focused on protecting water plants, pumping stations, pipes and other infrastructure from intense bushfires surrounding Sydney, the country's largest city. Firefighters battling the blazes for weeks received a reprieve of slightly cooler, damper conditions over Christmas, but the respite is not expected to last long.