Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Eight more UK universities cut recruitment ties with fossil fuel industry

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 12:00:14 +0000

Manchester Metropolitan University again wins top spot for climate and social justice in league table

More universities have severed ties with fossil fuel companies, banning them from recruitment fairs and refusing to advertise roles in the industry, according to the latest higher education league table.

MP calls for ban on ‘biobeads’ at sewage works after devastating Camber Sands spillage

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 09:16:45 +0000

Exclusive: Use of toxic plastic beads in treatment works is unnecessary and outdated, say conservationists

The use of tiny, toxic plastic beads at sewage works should be banned nationwide, an MP and wildlife experts have said after a devastating spill at an internationally important nature reserve.

Snakes, spiders and rare birds seized by Border Force in month-long operation

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 06:00:59 +0000

Wildlife smuggling is serious organised crime that ‘fuels corruption and drives species to extinction’, Home Office says

More than 250 endangered species and illegal wildlife products were seized at the UK border in a single month, new figures have revealed, including spiders, snakes and birds.

The illicit cargo was uncovered as part of an annual crackdown on wildlife smuggling known as Operation Thunder, which is led by Interpol and the World Customs Organisation.

NSW koala numbers higher than previously thought, but new data may not show true picture

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 05:38:36 +0000

Updated estimate reflects more accurate technology and extensive survey work, rather than a true increase in the koala population

Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates

Sea urchin species on brink of extinction after marine pandemic

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 05:00:57 +0000

Ecologically important Diadema africanum almost eliminated by unknown disease in Canary Islands

A marine pandemic is bringing some species of sea urchin to the brink of extinction, and some populations have disappeared altogether, a study has found.

Identifying priority areas for marine protection in Europe to support fisheries

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 05:00:00 +0000

npj Ocean Sustainability, Published online: 11 December 2025; doi:10.1038/s44183-025-00176-9

Identifying priority areas for marine protection in Europe to support fisheries

‘Not normal’: Climate crisis supercharged deadly monsoon floods in Asia

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 03:00:54 +0000

Cyclones like those in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Malaysia that killed 1,750 are ‘alarming new reality’

The climate crisis supercharged the deadly storms that killed more than 1,750 people in Asia by making downpours more intense and flooding worse, scientists have reported. Monsoon rains often bring some flooding but the scientists were clear: this was “not normal”.

In Sri Lanka, some floods reached the second floor of buildings, while in Sumatra, in Indonesia, the floods were worsened by the destruction of forests, which in the past slowed rainwater running off hillsides.

Montana youth activists who won landmark climate case push for court enforcement

admin — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 16:00:06 +0000

In 2023, court ruled in favor of 16 plaintiffs that officials violated their constitutional right by promoting fossil fuels

The young Montanans who scored a landmark triumph in the lawsuit Held v Montana are calling on the state’s highest court to enforce that victory.

A dead whale shows up on your beach. What do you do with the 40-ton carcass?

admin — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 16:00:06 +0000

A fin whale washed ashore in Anchorage and was left there for months. Then a self-described ‘wacko’ museum director made a plan

When a whale dies, its body descends to the bottom of the deep sea in a transformative phenomenon called a whale fall. A whale’s death jump-starts an explosion of life, enough to feed and sustain a deep-ocean ecosystem for decades.

Synthetic chemicals in food system creating health burden of $2.2tn a year, report finds

admin — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 06:00:43 +0000

Scientists issue urgent warning about chemicals, found to cause cancer and infertility as well as harming environment

Scientists have issued an urgent warning that some of the synthetic chemicals that help underpin the current food system are driving increased rates of cancer, neurodevelopmental conditions and infertility, while degrading the foundations of global agriculture.