Environmental News Network

Frogs Becoming Homogenous as Species Disappear
Like neighborhood coffee shops and independent movie theaters around the United States, unusual varieties of frogs are rapidly disappearing from rainforests in Central America. >> Read the Full Article
U.S. May Remove Humpbacks From List of Endangered Species
The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service may remove the humpback whale from its list of endangered species, citing evidence that the species has rebounded from near extinction. Since an international ban on their whaling in 1966, populations of the north Pacific humpback have increased about 4.7 percent each year, researchers say. An estimated 18,000 to 20,000 humpbacks now exist in the north Pacific. >> Read the Full Article
Fanged frog, 162 other new species found in Mekong
Scientists discovered 100 plants, 28 fish, 18 reptiles, 14 amphibians, two mammals and one new bird species in the region. >> Read the Full Article
Climate Changes Outpacing Worst-case Projections
Global temperatures may be 4 degrees Celsius hotter by the mid-2050s if current greenhouse gas emissions trends continue, said a study published on Monday. The study, by Britain's Met Office Hadley Center, echoed a U.N. report last week which found that climate changes were outpacing worst-case scenarios forecast in 2007 by the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). >> Read the Full Article
Carbon Cycling Processes Of Inland Waters are Important to Understanding Climate Change
In a paper titled "The Boundless Carbon Cycle," published in the September issue of Nature Geoscience, scientists from the University of Vienna, Uppsala University in Sweden, University of Antwerp, and the U.S. based Stroudâ„¢ Water Research Center argue that current international strategies to mitigate manmade carbon emissions and address climate change have overlooked a critical player - inland waters. Streams, rivers, lakes, reservoirs, and wetlands play an important role in the carbon cycle that is unaccounted for in conventional carbon cycling models. >> Read the Full Article
Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Opens
Saudi Arabia's highly-anticipated King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), which houses one of the world's fastest supercomputers, officially opened its doors this week (23 September). Located in the city of Thuwal on the Red Sea, KAUST is the country's first co-educational facility. According to Ali Ibrahim Al-Naimi, Saudi's minister of petroleum and mineral resources, the university will lead many aspects of economic development in the kingdom. >> Read the Full Article
Burning Leaves is Bad News
Remember the smell of burning fall leaves wafting through the air? Good memories, indeed, but best that they remain just memories. Burning leaves is bad news. This practice is now illegal â€“ or at least highly discouraged â€“ in most areas. >> Read the Full Article
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Requirements Finalized
A major new regulatory requirement, starting January 1, 2010, will affect most large industrial and utility combustion sources in the US. Fossil fuel and industrial GHG suppliers, motor vehicle and engine manufacturers, and facilities that emit 25,000 metric tons or more of CO2 equivalent per year will be required to report GHG emissions data to EPA annually. This threshold is equivalent to about the annual GHG emissions from 4,600 passenger vehicles. >> Read the Full Article
Thinning Of Greenland And Antarctic Ice
The most comprehensive picture of the rapidly thinning glaciers along the coastline of both the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets has been created using satellite lasers. The findings are an important step forward in the quest to make more accurate predictions for future sea level rise. >> Read the Full Article
China Pledges to Curb CO2 Emissions
Chinese President Hu Jintao on Tuesday promised to put a "notable" brake on the country's rapidly rising carbon emissions, but dashed hopes he would unveil a hard target to kickstart stalled climate talks. The leader of the world's biggest emitter told a U.N. summit that China would pledge to cut "carbon intensity," or the amount of carbon dioxide produced for each dollar of economic output, over the decade to 2020. >> Read the Full Article