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Scientists detect high levels of DDT in South Africa's great white sharks. -
Scientists found high levels of the insecticide in skin samples taken from 15 sharks off the country's Western Cape. DDT was banned from KwaZulu-Natal province in 1996 but was reintroduced in 2000 to fight malaria. Times Live
More than half of Americans are breathing unhealthy air -
The American Lung Association's annual "State of the Air" report finds that 166 million Americans (or about 52 percent of the population) live in the 418 counties that have unhealthy levels of year-round particle pollution, short-term particle pollution, or ozone pollution. Breathing contaminated air is associated with premature death, cardiovascular disease, respiratory problems, and cancer. Huffington Post
If we stay on this trajectory, 100 years from now, national parks and wildlife refuges will be like postage stamps of nature on a map.
—U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, speaking today at the National Geographic Society on the occasion of National Park Week, outlines her vision for the future of conservation in America.
155 countries to sign Paris climate agreement on Friday -
The United Nations expects a record-breaking number of signatories at its ceremony in New York on April 22—aptly, Earth Day. Associated Press
As we experienced many times with Solar Impulse, obstacles often turn out to be opportunities for improvement.
—André Borschberg, who copilots the 100 percent solar-powered Solar Impulse 2, comments on the aircraft's setbacks. After spending nine months in a hangar to have its batteries replaced, the plane will resume its historic trip around the world next week.
Europe orders first-ever moratorium on endocrine-disrupting weed killers -
The European commission voted unanimously to ban amitrole (widely used in 10 EU countries) and isoproturon (sold in 22 EU countries). The herbicides have been linked to thyroid cancer, infertility, reproductive problems, and damage to unborn children, but after September 30, they will no longer be sold. Guardian