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Shell just got the OK to begin drilling in the Arctic. -

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement just gave the oil giant conditional approval for two permits to drill in the Chukchi Sea. The company can't drill into oil-bearing zones quite yet—not without its emergency-response equipment on-sitebut if it does, a spill in the remote region would have catastrophic consequencesAssociated Press

Virginia developers seek to trade prime bald-eagle habitat for a golf resort. -

Thousands of bald eagles visit Fones Cliffs on the Rappahannock River each year, and hundreds live there year-round, making it a global hot spot for these formerly endangered birds. Unfortunately, there's a proposal to build hundreds of homes, a lodge, and an 18-hole golf course atop the land. Washington Post

Mayors join Pope Francis to pledge climate action. -

Sixty mayors from around the globe—and a handful of American cities—joined the pope at the Vatican yesterday, vowing to cut carbon pollution and help the poor adapt to climate change. Cities emit about 75 percent of the world's CO2 emissions but are also well placed to take action at the local level. Grist

Fossil-fuel emissions are messing with carbon dating. -

The method, used to determine the age of artifacts, depends on measuring the ratio of radioactive carbon to non-radioactive carbon. But the increasing amount of non-radioactive carbon in the atmosphere has a diluting effect, making the technique less reliable. BBC

Natural disasters displaced more than 19 million people last year. -

Typhoons, floods, earthquakes, and volcanoes forced millions from their homes in 2014—and the number of disaster refugees is expected to increase as climate change combines sea-level rise with more frequent and intense storms. New York Times

The first six months of 2015 were the hottest on record. -

According to separate analyses by NASA and NOAA, this January through June beat out the previous record holder, 2010, for the warmest first half of any year. The strengthening El Niño could make the second half of the year toastier than ever, too. The Weather Channel