Water & Oceans

"Chicken farms housing millions of animals threaten a fragile ecology"

"On a drizzly day in May, Maria Payan walked along a country road in Somerset County, Maryland, near her home. On one side of the road was a white house with a peaked roof and an American flag flying from the porch; a ride-on toy tractor was parked by the front steps. On the other, a row of six long, windowless metal buildings housed tens of thousands of chickens. “Oh, the smell is so bad,” Payan said. “Can you imagine living with this every day?”

"Well over a century after the Age of Sail gave way to coal- and oil-burning ships, climate change concerns are prompting a new look at an old technology that could once again harness wind to propel commercial cargo ships — this time with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

"Forecasts for when salt water advancing up the Mississippi River will reach the New Orleans area were drastically pushed back Thursday, potentially sparing most of the city and Jefferson Parish entirely from the threat while avoiding the need to build an emergency pipeline estimated to cost as much as a quarter of a billion dollars."

"Earth's amphibians - from the thorny spike-thumb frog to the red knobby newt, West African giant squeaker, ornate tree toad and fire salamander - are being pushed closer to the brink due to habitat destruction, disease and climate change, with 41% of species now threatened with extinction."

"The thunder of icebergs crashing into the turquoise sea of eastern Greenland is the sound of one of the planet's most important ecosystems teetering on the edge of collapse."

"State regulators on Monday released their draft rules for what to do with all the hazardous oilfield waste that’s left over once a well is drilled. The announcement gives the public one month to comment on the new rules — while some industry representatives started giving input more than two years ago, documents and interviews show."

"Worldwide, humans now occupy more than twice as much land in flood-prone areas as they did four decades ago, according to a new study in the journal Nature. The findings highlight the degree to which rapid development along coasts and in floodplains has increased the need for disaster preparedness around the globe."

"The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will investigate possible racial discrimination in Alabama’s management of funds that can be used to bolster sewage infrastructure."

"The unmistakable influence of the climate crisis helped cause New York City to be inundated by a month’s worth of rain within just a few hours on Friday, scientists have warned, amid concerns over how well the city is prepared for severe climate shocks."

"Arizona governor Katie Hobbs said this week her administration is terminating state land leases that for years have given a Saudi-owned farm nearly unfettered access to pump groundwater in the dry southwestern state."