Last month, Parisians voted in a referendum to turn an additional 500 streets over to pedestrians. A year earlier, Paris had moved to sharply increase parking fees for SUVs, forcing drivers…Continue readingParis said au revoir to cars. Air pollution maps reveal a dramatic change.
Tag: pollution
Water levels in the Caspian Sea—the world’s largest landlocked water body—are getting lower, as hotter temperatures cause more water to evaporate than is flowing in. Even if global warming is limited…Continue readingCaspian Sea’s rapid decline threatens endangered seals, coastal communities and industry, study warns
A dry winter is intensifying wildfires in Nepal, experts said Wednesday, as the capital Kathmandu continued to suffer from hazardous air quality that ranks it among the most polluted cities globally.…Continue readingNepal fights wildfires and pollution amidst drier winter
Analysis of young sable shearwaters, a migratory bird that travels between Australia’s Lord Howe Island and Japan, has found that plastic waste is causing damage to seabird chicks not apparent to…Continue readingPlastic pollution leaves seabirds with brain damage similar to Alzheimer’s, study shows
South Australia’s Environment Protection Authority did not open a formal investigation into what may have killed dozens of birds in Port Pirie, despite tests showing some of the animals had been…Continue readingDead and dying Port Pirie birds and bats exposed to lead at 3,000 times acceptable levels
The pollution of the planet by microplastics is significantly cutting food supplies by damaging the ability of plants to photosynthesise, according to a new assessment. The analysis estimates that between 4%…Continue readingMicroplastics hinder plant photosynthesis, study finds, threatening millions with starvation
Lahore’s 14 million residents spent six months breathing concentrations of PM2.5—tiny particles that can penetrate the lungs and bloodstream—at levels 20 times or more than recommended by the World Health Organization.…Continue reading‘Really suffocating’: Pakistan emerges from record smog season
Nearly every country on Earth has dirtier air than doctors recommend breathing, a report has found. Only seven countries met the World Health Organization’s guidelines for tiny toxic particles known as…Continue readingOnly seven countries worldwide meet WHO dirty air guidelines, study shows
The first section of London’s Ulez scheme was launched in 2019 in the central part of the city. The zone was expanded across inner London boroughs in 2021 and enlarged again…Continue readingDramatic fall in London’s levels of deadly pollutants after Ulez expansion
Researchers surveying nests for the harmful chemical found in pet flea treatments found that it was present in every single nest. The scientists from the University of Sussex are now calling…Continue readingSongbirds being killed by pesticides found in pet fur flea treatments
Air pollution in the Thai capital forced more than 350 schools to close on Friday, city authorities said, the highest number in five years. Air pollution hits the Southeast Asian nation…Continue readingBangkok air pollution forces 352 schools to close
Huge volumes of sewage sludge, also known as biosolids but which is essentially human excrement and industrial waste, are spread on UK fields every year. It is regulated by the Environment…Continue readingUK farmland being contaminated by ‘forever chemicals’ linked to cancers
The multibillion-dollar chemicals company 3M told customers its firefighting foams were harmless and biodegradable when it knew they contained toxic substances so persistent they are now known as “forever chemicals” and…Continue reading3M knew firefighting foams containing PFAS were toxic, documents show
California officials are withdrawing their final requests to enforce their nation-leading electric vehicle rules, days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration. State officials told U.S. EPA on Monday they wouldn’t seek federal…Continue readingCalifornia withdraws requests to enforce pollution rules ahead of Trump
The paper, published in the journal Science Advances, suggests that the industrial hunting of great whales such as sperm, blue, fin and right whales “masked” the ability of these underwater giants…Continue reading‘Extraordinary longevity’: great whales can live a lot longer than we thought – if we leave them alone
The Gulf of Mannar, an inlet of the Indian Ocean connecting India and Sri Lanka, is rich in biodiversity and a source of livelihood for both countries’ fishermen. Kachchatheevu, a tiny…Continue reading‘Treat us like humans’: Fishing wars trap Indians in Sri Lankan waters
The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a measure of pollution in the air, with higher numbers indicating greater health risks. Levels above 300 are considered dangerous. “Stuff I could never even…Continue reading‘Trapped inside’: The children suffocating in the smog of Lahore
The research, involving more than 200,000 people in Scotland, found an increase in exposure to nitrogen dioxide in particular was associated with a higher number of people being admitted to hospital…Continue readingPollution exposure linked to mental health hospital admissions
Delhi’s air pollution is so bad that it’s sometimes hard to discern anything more than a few meters in front of you. And it is affecting people’s health. Breathing is uncomfortable.…Continue readingDelhi’s annual air pollution has become a human-made calamity
Between 2000 and 2019, annual production of plastics doubled to 460 million tons. It is expected to reach 736 million tons by 2040, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and…Continue readingWhy is a global treaty on plastic pollution dividing the world?
BUSAN, South Korea — Global talks to forge a landmark treaty aimed at reducing plastic pollution broke down after negotiators from more than 170 countries remained deadlocked over how to curb…Continue readingDivided over whether to stop making plastic, U.N. treaty talks collapse
Every year, billions of vehicles worldwide shed an estimated 6 million tons of tire fragments. These tiny flakes of plastic, generated by the wear and tear of normal driving, eventually accumulate…Continue readingCar tires shed a quarter of all microplastics in the environment. Urgent action is needed
The world will be “unable to cope” with the sheer volume of plastic waste a decade from now unless countries agree to curbs on production, the co-chair of a coalition of…Continue readingWorld will be ‘unable to cope’ with volume of plastic waste in 10 years, warns expert
The fact that plastics pollute the environment and generate problems has been well-researched in many areas. However, there is little information on the impacts of plastics on climate and biodiversity. In…Continue readingPlastics contribute to ‘triple planetary crisis’ impacts
There are two main types of microplastics. One is primary microplastics, which are small to begin with, like the microbeads sometimes added to personal care products. Then there are secondary microplastics:…Continue readingExperts study where microplastics are winding up—and what risks they pose
A new study led by an international team of scientists highlights tire particles (TPs) as the leading contributor to microplastics and calls for urgent, targeted research to address their unique environmental…Continue readingResearchers call for recognition of tire particles as a distinct environmental threat
Residents of India’s capital New Delhi choked in a blanketing toxic smog Wednesday as worsening air pollution surged past 50 times the World Health Organization’s recommended daily maximum. Many in the…Continue readingToxic smog smothering India’s capital smashes WHO limit
Punjab with a population of 127 million has been struggling to combat smog since last month. “Over 1.8 million people visited hospitals and private clinics in the smog-hit districts in Punjab…Continue readingGrowing pollution in Pakistan has sickened 1.8M people in a month
Air pollution in Pakistan’s second biggest city Lahore soared on Saturday, with an official calling it a record high for the smog-choked mega city. For days, the city of 14 million…Continue readingPollution level in Pakistan megacity hits new high
Schoolchildren in Pakistan’s second-largest city of Lahore have been banned from outdoor exercise until January because of hazardous smog levels, officials said Friday. The eastern megacity near the border with India…Continue readingSmog in Pakistan megacity ends outdoor play for schoolkids
A team of Earth scientists from the Center for Marine Environmental Studies, the University of Tokyo, The Australian National University, Matsuyama University, Kyoto University, and Shimane University, has found, via a…Continue readingNew assessment suggests Anthropocene started in the 1950s
The report by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) details nine factors that are crucial for regulating the planet’s ability to sustain life. In six of these areas, the…Continue readingWorld’s oceans near critical acidification level
Microplastics are widespread, accumulating in the remotest parts of our planet. There is evidence of their toxic effects at every level of biological organization, from tiny insects at the bottom of…Continue readingScientists reviewed 7,000 studies on microplastics. Their alarming conclusion puts humanity on notice.
A world where global mean surface temperature has increased 3°C will be characterized by widespread and intense heat stress, extreme weather events, ruptured and unproductive marine and terrestrial ecosystems, broken food…Continue readingEarth at risk: An urgent call to end the age of destruction and forge a just & sustainable future
Deforestation at one of Indonesia’s largest nickel processing hubs is threatening an Indigenous group that is among the country’s last uncontacted tribes, rights groups allege. Deforestation is a longstanding problem in…Continue readingNickel hub ‘apocalyptic’ for uncontacted Indonesia tribe, say NGOs
Nearly 2,000 children under five are dying every day from air pollution, which has overtaken poor sanitation and a lack of clean water to become the second biggest health risk factor…Continue readingAlmost 2,000 children die every day from air pollution, report finds
An 80% reduction in sulfur dioxide shipping emissions observed in early 2020 could be associated with substantial atmospheric warming over some ocean regions, according to a modeling study published in Communications…Continue readingReduced sulfur content in shipping fuel associated with increased maritime atmospheric warming
The air quality in San Pedro Sula, the second-largest city in Honduras, as been classified as the most polluted on the American continent due to forest fires and weather conditions aggravated…Continue readingHonduran city’s air pollution is almost 50 times higher than WHO guidelines
Migratory fish populations have crashed by more than 80% since 1970, new findings show. Populations are declining in all regions of the world, but it is happening fastest in South America…Continue readingMigratory freshwater fish populations ‘down by more than 80% since 1970’
Mubadala Capital, a fully owned asset management arm of UAE’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment, is reportedly planning to invest approximately $13.5bn in a biofuels project in Brazil over the next…Continue readingUAE’s Mubadala Capital likely to invest $13.5bn in biofuels project in Brazil
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25436099/1194051845.jpg "Microsoft ramps up plans to capture carbon from burning wood")
Microsoft is doubling down on a controversial plan to capture carbon dioxide emissions from wood-burning power plants. It announced a contract with energy company Stockholm Exergi to capture 3.33 million metric…Continue readingMicrosoft ramps up plans to capture carbon from burning wood
An international agreement to end plastic pollution is due to be sealed this year in Busan, South Korea. At the penultimate round of negotiations, held in Ottawa, Canada, Rwanda and Peru…Continue readingA global plastic treaty will only work if it caps production, modeling shows
Nanoplastics are a type of microplastic, distinguished by their extremely small size. Microplastics are usually less than 5 millimeters across; nanoplastics are between 1 and 1,000 nanometers across. For comparison, an…Continue readingWhat are nanoplastics? An engineer explains concerns about particles too small to see
This week, the fourth round of treaty talks by the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution concluded in Ottawa, Canada. A major bone of contention between negotiators from 175 countries is…Continue readingInvisible plastic: Why banning plastic bags will never be enough
For decades, concerns about automobile pollution have focused on what comes out of the tailpipe. Now, researchers and regulators say, we need to pay more attention to toxic emissions from tires…Continue readingTire toxicity faces fresh scrutiny after salmon die-offs
Noise pollution from traffic stunts growth in baby birds, even while inside the egg, research has found. Unhatched birds and hatchlings that are exposed to noise from city traffic experience long-term…Continue readingNoise from traffic stunts growth of baby birds, study finds
Hundreds of Thai children strain to sing the national anthem, reedy voices and fragile lungs competing against eight lanes of belching traffic next to their school’s open atrium in central Bangkok.…Continue readingSmog and sick kids: Thai pupils endure air pollution
Vietnamese capital Hanoi was blanketed by a thick haze of pollution on Tuesday that obscured high-rise buildings and left the city’s nearly nine million people breathing toxic air. The city topped…Continue readingHanoi chokes as Vietnam capital tops most polluted cities list
The world generated 2.3 billion tonnes of municipal waste last year and the pile of trash is set to grow another two-thirds by 2050, the UN said Wednesday, warning of devastating…Continue readingWorld must act to stem surge of polluting trash, UN warns
A blanket of smog covers Milan, empty reservoirs bake in Sicily and wine production is down in Piedmont as a lack of rain across Italy exacerbates pollution and sparks droughts. Gas-guzzling…Continue readingLack of rain leaves Italy gasping
/cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com/reuters/FFS5AELJ2BP7LEX4NL7YNB44DA.jpg "Bangkok says work from home as pollution blankets city")
Bangkok city employees have been told to work from home to avoid harmful air pollution, as a layer of noxious haze blanketed the Thai capital on Thursday. City authorities asked for…Continue readingBangkok says work from home as pollution blankets city
Fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, is a term for fine particulates that are typically the by-product of car exhausts or coal-fired power plants. Their tiny size enables them to travel deep…Continue readingAir pollution behind over 250,000 deaths in Europe in 2021: agency
Authorities in Pakistan ordered schoolchildren in the smog-smothered city of Lahore to wear masks during lessons starting Thursday, an effort to protect against hazardous levels of polluted air. The Punjab state…Continue readingStudents ordered to wear masks in smog-hit Lahore
China’s weather office has said “foggy and hazy” conditions are prevalent in the capital Beijing, the megacity of Tianjin, and parts of the provinces of Hebei, Shandong and Hubei, home to…Continue readingChina’s smog problem
The air was dry and warm and the skies over Dushanbe were gray without a hint of sun during another recent toxic sand storm that enveloped the capital of Tajikistan. Storms…Continue readingToxic storms blamed on climate change cloud Tajikistan
When 6PPD, which occurs in tire dust, is exposed to ground-level ozone, it’s transformed into multiple other chemicals, including 6PPD-quinone, or 6PPD-q. The compound is acutely toxic to four of 11…Continue readingRoad Hazard: Evidence Mounts on Toxic Pollution from Tires
A total of 130,000 healthy years of life are lost to noise pollution in the UK each year alone, according to data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), with 40%…Continue readingLight and noise pollution are neglected hazards
Concentrations of plastics in round-the-world race through remote ocean environments found to be up to 18 times higher than during previous event in 2017-18.Continue readingMicroplastics found in every sample of water taken during Ocean Race
The researchers were able to identify the country of origin for 232 objects, with the largest percentage being from Japan at 33.6%. China was next at 32.3% followed by South Korea…Continue readingMore than 90% of identifiable trash in North Pacific Garbage Patch comes from just six countries
Rapid economic growth, urbanisation and changing lifestyles in communist Vietnam have led to a “plastic pollution crisis”, according to the World Bank. A report in 2022 estimated 3.1 million tonnes of…Continue readingVietnam battles plastic blight in idyllic Ha Long Bay
About 19 million leisure journeys by car are expected on Britain’s roads over the next four days, and more than 3,000 planes are scheduled to take off on Friday.Continue readingBusy roads and airports expected over late-May UK bank holiday weekend
Plastic production has doubled in 20 years. It wraps food, is woven into clothes and the fabric of buildings, and is an important material for disposable medical products. In 2019, a…Continue readingHigh-stakes talks to end plastic pollution resume
A new study found that the feces of four primate species living in Uganda’s Kibale National Park, including chimpanzees and red colobus monkeys, contained significant levels of pesticides and flame retardants.…Continue readingEndangered chimpanzees contaminated with pesticides and flame retardants
Since the 1950s about 8bn tonnes of plastic has been produced. The Greenpeace report catalogues peer-reviewed research and international studies showing not only that just a tiny proportion (9%) of plastics…Continue readingRecycled plastic can be more toxic and is no fix for pollution, Greenpeace warns
Of 1,006 river and lake sites with data, 814 were found to have these toxic mixtures, according to analysis of data collected by the government’s Environment Agency. The data analysis, by…Continue readingChemical cocktails harmful to wildlife found in 81% of English rivers and lakes
Seventeen species that were once commonly found in pastures and meadows across 22 countries, including the small copper, common blue and meadow brown, declined by 36% on average between 2011 and…Continue readingEurope’s grassland butterfly population down more than a third in 10 years
The race for high-tech metals has sparked a cobalt boom in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that has come at a steep human cost. In an e360 interview, author Siddharth…Continue readingFor Your Phone and EV, a Cobalt Supply Chain to a Hell on Earth
In 1900, approximately 80% of the elements humans used came from biomass (wood, plants, food, etc.). That figure had fallen to 32% by 2005, and is expected to stand at approximately…Continue readingHumans plunder the periodic table while turning blind eye to the risks of doing so, say researchers
At the bottom of a crater in southeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, 20,000 people work at a cobalt mine, in shifts of 5,000 at a time.Continue readingDR Congo’s faltering fight against illegal cobalt mines
Toxic air pollution particles have been found in the lungs, livers and brains of unborn babies, long before they have taken their first breath. Researchers said their “groundbreaking” discovery was “very…Continue readingToxic air pollution particles found in lungs and brains of unborn babies
While driving an electric car has fewer environmental impacts than gasoline-powered cars, the production of the parts necessary for these green technologies can have dire effects on human well-being. After studying…Continue readingCobalt’s human cost: Social consequences of green energy must be assessed in addition to environmental impacts
Over the past 25 years, the transition to solid-state LED lighting has been accompanied by rapid increases in light pollution, by up to 270% globally, and 400% in some regions. “Without…Continue readingRapid increase in global light pollution