Breaking Waves: Ocean News

03/04/2025 - 11:22
Ruling by the court, which has a Republican super majority, undermines the 1972 Clean Water Act The US supreme court has weakened rules on the discharge of raw sewage into water supplies in a 5-4 ruling that undermines the 1972 Clean Water Act. The CWA is the principle law governing pollution control and water quality of the nation’s waterways. Continue reading...
03/04/2025 - 10:08
Powerful thunderstorms likely to sweep through Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama Severe thunderstorms are forecast to batter the southern and central United States on Tuesday, with a threat of tornadoes, damaging winds, blizzards, flash flooding and dust storms possible from the southern Plains into the lower Mississippi Valley and south-east. Meteorologists warn that a line of powerful thunderstorms will probably sweep through Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and could include destructive tornadoes. The main threats are strong destructive gales, tornadoes and at least some areas of large hail. Continue reading...
03/04/2025 - 09:54
How do you stop people worrying about the climate emergency? By sacking anyone whose job it is to keep an eye on it. Chalk up another win for Project 2025 Some politicians go whichever way the wind blows. Not, however, the US’s esteemed leader, Donald Trump. He is such a force of nature that he can dictate the direction of the wind. During his first term, he suggested “nuking hurricanes” to stop them from hitting the country. A few weeks after that, Trump seemed to think he could alter the course of Hurricane Dorian with a black marker, scribbling over an official map to change its anticipated trajectory in an incident now known as Sharpiegate. Weirdly, Dorian did not end up following Trump’s orders. Hurricanes can be uncooperative like that. Six weeks into Trump’s second term, the president hasn’t bombed any hurricanes, but he has nuked the US’s weather-forecasting capabilities. Last week, hundreds of workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), the US’s pre-eminent climate research agency, were abruptly fired. Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
03/04/2025 - 08:46
Researchers at University of Exeter warn many of the hunted species are important crop pollinators Invasive Asian hornets are eating hundreds of different species of insects in Europe, including many which are important pollinators, researchers have warned. The findings, from tests of the guts of more than 1,500 larvae, raise new concerns over the “extra threat” the hornet poses to native insects already under pressure from farming, changes in land use and chemical pollution. Continue reading...
03/04/2025 - 07:00
As layoffs under Trump bleed out, workers in the Mountain West fear devastating consequences for their communities Republican representative McKay Erickson walked through the halls of the Wyoming capitol with a Trump 2024 pin on the front of his suit jacket. Much of Erickson’s home district in Lincoln county falls under the jurisdiction of the Bridger-Teton national forest and Grand Teton national park. With that federal land, comes federal workers. While it appears districts in Wyoming crucial to US energy dominance have been spared the brunt of the layoffs, McKay said his forest-heavy district has not been so fortunate. He’s hearing from his constituents about the layoffs, and he’s troubled about the implications for his district’s future. Continue reading...
03/04/2025 - 05:00
The highly concentrated egg market may be contributing to soaring consumer prices – and the spread of the virus, data shared exclusively with the Guardian shows Major egg corporations may be using avian flu as a ruse to hike up prices, generating record profits while hurting American consumers, new research suggests. The cost of a dozen large eggs hit almost $5 in January – a record high in the US and more than two and a half times the average price three years ago before the avian flu outbreak. This signifies a 157% inflation rate for eggs – a previously go-to affordable protein source for many American families. Continue reading...
03/03/2025 - 21:54
The extensive loss of biodiversity represents one of the major crises of our time, threatening not only entire ecosystems but also our current and future livelihoods. As scientists realize the magnitude and scale of ongoing extinctions, it is vital to ascertain the resources available for conservation and whether funds are being effectively distributed to protect species most in need.
03/03/2025 - 21:51
Tasmanian senator says she is ‘pro-salmon’ but the farms should move on to land or offshore Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Independent senator Jacqui Lambie has called on Tasmania’s salmon industry to stop farming in Macquarie Harbour on the state’s remote west coast, marking a dramatic intervention into a polarised debate with implications for the federal election. “Macquarie Harbour has been a very hot, hot spud when it comes to the salmon industry for many, many years,” Senator Lambie told the Tasmanian Inquirer, “and it’s getting worse.” Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email “Go and put them on land. Go and put your fish somewhere else. I’ve had a gutful. You’ve made more than enough money off the arse of Tasmania. Move it on.” Senator Jacqui Lambie Continue reading...
03/03/2025 - 20:11
The Wilderness Society launches legal action in hope of helping animals on brink of extinction Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast One of Australia’s largest conservation organisations has launched legal action alleging that successive federal environment ministers failed to meet their obligation to create recovery plans for native species threatened with extinction. The Wilderness Society (TWS) filed the proceedings in the federal court on Monday. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...
03/03/2025 - 19:08
Gasps from dockside crowd watching Bigg’s orca pod in event described as ‘once-in-a-lifetime experience’ A pod of orcas swam close to shore and amazed onlookers in Seattle by treating the whale watchers to the rare sight of the apex predators hunting a bird. The pod of Bigg’s killer whales visited Elliott Bay and were seemingly on a hunt underwater just off Seattle’s maritime industrial docks. The pod exited the bay close to the West Seattle neighborhood across from downtown, where people were waiting to catch sight of them. Continue reading...