Environment

• Monday, April 18th 2016 - 08:21 UTC

  Ecuador quake primary toll: 262 killed and over 2.500 injured, but climbing

  

  Aid began to flow in Sunday to areas devastated by Ecuador's strongest earthquake in decades and the death toll continued to rise as people left homeless hunkered down for another night outside in the dark.

• Thursday, April 14th 2016 - 21:08 UTC

  Mysterious death of tens of tons of sardines in south Chile; consumption banned

  

  Chile’s government has temporarily banned the consumption of sardines in the south of the country after hundreds of thousands of dead fish turned up floating along the shores of Queule River.

• Monday, April 4th 2016 - 06:52 UTC

  Arctic sea ice recorded its lowest maximum level on record

  

  The growth of Arctic sea ice this winter recorded the lowest maximum level on record, prompting fears of faster climate change than previously expected. Unusually warm temperatures were said to be responsible for the shrinkage.

• Monday, March 28th 2016 - 05:55 UTC

  Japan announces it has harpooned 333 whales in Antarctic waters; conservationists outraged

  

  The Institute for Cetacean Research (ICR), the body behind the Japanese government’s whaling program, announced the return of the Japanese whaling fleet from its Antarctic operations. It is the first time that the Japanese whalers have returned to the Southern Ocean to slaughter whales since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled its whaling program to be illegal in 2014.

• Thursday, March 17th 2016 - 07:53 UTC

  Finland's new state of the art icebreaker Polaris will also be the world's greenest

  

  Due for delivery in the second quarter of the year, Finland’s new icebreaker Polaris is the world’s first to feature dual fuel liquefied natural gas (LNG) and diesel propulsion, earning the icebreaking vessel designations as the Finland’s most powerful and the world’s greenest.

• Monday, March 14th 2016 - 11:35 UTC

  Falklands experiences steady growth in cruise visitors and leisure tourists

  

  By Joshua Peck - The number of cruise passengers visiting the Falkland Islands is projected to increase for the third season in a row. Each tourist season, lasting from October to March, sees numerous cruise vessels arrive in the Falklands, with passengers typically disembarking for a single day onshore. The last cruise vessel for the current season is scheduled to arrive on 31st March.

• Wednesday, March 9th 2016 - 06:47 UTC

  Falklands celebrates “Tussac Tuesday”, one of the most valuable native plants

  

  In rare coincidence with the International Women´s Day, the Falkland Islands celebrated ”Tussac Tuesday'', the Poa flabellata grass, one of the most valuable native plants to farmers and wildlife in the Islands. It is palatable all year round and can provide good supplementary forage for cattle, horses and sheep.

• Tuesday, March 8th 2016 - 12:38 UTC

  Algae bloom in southern Chile causing massive losses in the salmon farms

  

  A group of salmon farms operating in the south of Chile have reported the mass death of millions of salmon. The deaths are attributed to an outbreak of harmful algae, set to generate millions in financial losses and see supermarket prices soar across Chile.

• Wednesday, March 2nd 2016 - 07:45 UTC

  Brazil begins reconstruction of Antarctica base “Comandante Ferraz” lost to fire in 2012

  

  A symbolic ceremony launching the reconstruction of Brazil's “Comandante Ferraz” Antarctic base was held at the Chilean Antarctic Institute in Punta Arenas with the attendance of top officials from both countries. The Brazilian base, located in King George Island was a total loss back in February 2012 caused by a fire that started at the power room.

• Friday, February 26th 2016 - 06:38 UTC

  Falklands' Gentoo penguins practice “kleptoparasitism”, shows study by South African scientist

  

  Penguins in addition to being stealthy swimmers and keen hunters, unique video footage has revealed a dark side: a video camera attached to the back of a gentoo penguin swimming off the Falkland Islands captures a violent underwater scuffle where penguins steal food right out of each other’s beaks.