Latest News
We've already spent the earth's budget for the entire year. -
Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity's demand for natural resources exceeds the planet's supply. In 2000, the date fell in October. Increased carbon emissions are largely to blame for the march earlier and earlier into the year. In all, humans consume 62 percent more than the planet's ecosystems can renew. Huffington Post
U.S. Coast Guard is diverting its resources in order to babysit Shell in the Arctic. -
A national-security ship that would be busy fighting drug traffickers and two helicopters meant for performing search and rescue missions have been sent to the Chukchi Sea in case of an accident. (It wouldn't be the first time the Coast Guard has had to bail Shell out in the Arctic.) Reuters
Thirty blue herons have died at a Syncrude tar sands facility in northern Alberta. -
The province has issued an environmental protection order requiring the company to develop a wildlife-mitigation plan. This is a repeat offense for the oil giant, which was slammed with a $3 million fine after the deaths of 1,600 ducks that landed on one of their toxic tailings ponds in 2008. CBC
Australia pledges to cut carbon emissions 26 percent by 2030. -
The commitment, based on 2005 pollution levels, falls short of what experts say is needed to avert two degrees of warming. Perhap this isn't surprising, though—Prime Minister Tony Abbott is notorious for weak environmental policies. Sydney Morning Herald
A parasite is infesting tadpoles worldwide. -
Amphibians are already in dire straits thanks to climate change, habitat loss, and diseases like the chytrid fungus. Now, a new infectious bug has been found in the livers of frogs and tadpoles on three different continents and is being blamed for a mass die-off in a Georgia lake. Associated Press
Group calls for immediate inspection of California's undersea oil pipelines. -
In a letter to the U.S. government, the Center for Biological Diversity argues that the failed pipeline responsible for the Santa Barbara oil spill was decades younger than most of the state's 200-plus miles of offshore infrastructure. Reuters