By Ryan Johnson Malaysia, which has become the dumping ground for the world’s plastic waste, will send back non-recyclable plastic scrap to the developed countries that sent it there, its environment minister said on Tuesday. Malaysia last year became the leading alternative destination for plastic scrap after China banned imports of such waste, disrupting the […]

By Ryan Johnson New research suggests that, due to global warming, storm-related deaths in developing nations could increase by as much as 52 percent. Weeks after the deadly cyclone Idai tore through Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, the human toll is still being tallied. Entire communities remain submerged, more than a thousand people lost their lives—more […]

By Christopher Thompson They may not be cute, but the work they do for our soil keeps humans in business. But their numbers are in steep decline If earthworms had feathers, wings or fur, or eyes that looked mournful – or eyes at all – perhaps they would fare better in the public’s affections. This […]

By Ryan Johnson It’s well known that ocean plastics harm marine life, but could the eight million metric tons of plastic that enters the seas each year also make it harder for us to breathe? That’s the troubling implication of a new study published in Communications Biology Tuesday, which found that plastic pollution can have […]

By Christopher Thompson In a twist, the investors include Chinese companies interested in having access to wastepaper or bottles. The halt on China’s imports of wastepaper and plastic that has disrupted U.S. recycling programs has also spurred investment in American plants that process recyclables. U.S. paper mills are expanding capacity to take advantage of a […]

By Christopher Thompson Single-use plastic is clogging oceans and landfills. The industry that makes it has waged a decades-long campaign to keep it on the market.New York’s Suffolk County had a trash problem. Facing brimming landfills and public pressure, legislators took a first-in-the-nation step: They banned plastic bags. But what the county saw as part […]

By Ryan Johnson Extreme heat adds stress to the electricity grid. Large storms are not the only cause of power outages. In the Los Angeles area, rising temperatures could lead to more frequent blackouts. Stephanie Pincetl of the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability co-authored a recent report about how extreme heat will affect […]

By Ryan Johnson Corals are considered not only as one of the most important creatures in oceans for they do not only add beauty to it but they also provide homes for different marine animals especially fish. In fact, a small percent of coral reefs envelops the ocean bed and supports 30% of known marine […]

By Christopher Thompson US reportedly opposed deal, which follows concerns that villages in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia had ‘turned into dumpsites’ Almost all the world’s countries have agreed on a deal aimed at restricting shipments of hard-to-recycle plastic waste to poorer countries, the United Nations announced on Friday. Exporting countries – including the US – […]

By Ryan Johnson New research shows affected areas are losing ice five times faster than in the 1990s, with more than 100m of thickness gone in some places Ice losses are rapidly spreading deep into the interior of the Antarctic, new analysis of satellite data shows. The warming of the Southern Ocean is resulting in […]