Archive for January 2022

A petition argues that the federal government’s current flood insurance policies are ill-equipped for an era of climate crisis.

POILÃO ISLAND, Guinea-Bissau — Castro Barbosa’s eyes still light up when he recalls the first time he saw a sea turtle, in 1993. He was on a visit to Guinea-Bissau’s Bijagós archipelago; the turtles made such a strong impression on him that he has devoted his career since then to their protection. “They were so […]

The Bolivian government has revived a long-held plan to build a hydroelectric plant in a corner of the country’s western La Paz department, sparking concerns about the potential displacement of more than 5,000 Indigenous people from the area. The affected communities live in two protected areas, Madidi National Park and Pilón Lajas Biosphere Reserve and […]

From Minnesota to the Northwest Territories, researchers are studying dramatic changes in the vast northern forests: thawing permafrost, drowned trees, methane releases, increased wildfires, and the slow transformation of these forests from carbon sinks to carbon emitters.

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A sensor installed on the International Space Station is yielding fresh insights on the global distribution of lightning.

Last year, when Colombia’s parliament approved a reform of the nation’s environmental crime laws, the legislation received stark opposition from a surprising assortment of environmentalists, human rights activists and smallholder farmers. The environmental crime bill, which went into effect in August 2021, tacks on longer jail sentences and heftier fines for five environmental crimes already […]

2021 was the fifth-hottest year on record and close to 1.2 degrees C (2.1 degrees F) warmer than the preindustrial average, according to an analysis from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. The last seven years were the hottest ever “by a clear margin,” the analysis found, thanks to rising concentrations of greenhouse gasses, which hit new highs last year.

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NASA will host a media teleconference at 11 a.m. EST Tuesday, Jan. 11, to introduce and discuss the role of the agency’s new chief scientist and senior climate advisor.

KWALE COUNTY, Kenya — More than 20 years ago, along the lush southeastern coast of Kenya, the area known as Vanga Bay was home to a mangrove forest spanning 4,428 hectares (10,942 acres). But some 18 hectares (44 acres) of mangroves have been lost every year for the past 25 years, a total of 451 […]

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson announced that Dr. Katherine Calvin will serve the agency in dual roles as chief scientist and senior climate advisor effective Monday.