Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Stockpile food – and wash your hands: is that really how to prepare for environmental catastrophe? | George Monbiot

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 05:00:10 +0000

The UK state is dumping its responsibilities on our doorsteps, while green-lighting policies that lead us closer to crisis

Would you mind fixing the NHS? And while you’re at it, could you please build an anti-missile system in your garden? Then regulate the banks, replace the water mains, tax the very rich and use the proceeds to rebuild our schools. Well, come on people: what are you waiting for?

Next UK banknotes to feature barn owls, bumblebees, puffins and hedgehogs

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 04:00:11 +0000

Four native species selected after consultation, but which one adorns which note is yet to be decided

Bees, barn owls, puffins and hedgehogs have been picked to feature on the next generation of banknotes, the Bank of England has announced.

The quartet of creatures were selected after a large-scale consultation settled on wild animals as the theme, with members of the public then asked to pick their favourites out of 18 options divided into three categories.

This is one of Norway’s most pristine fjords. So why is it being used as a dumping site for mine waste?

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 04:00:09 +0000

The Norwegian government has given a permit to a mining company to release waste into Førde fjord despite a 17-year battle by campaigners and a supreme court ruling against it

Indonesia accused of ‘gross negligence’ in wildfires lawsuit as haze tests region

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 03:54:09 +0000

NGOs in Indonesian Borneo file class action lawsuit calling for government to better manage annual fires and

The Indonesian government has been accused of “gross negligence” in a class action lawsuit over its handling of wildfires that have cloaked large parts of South-east Asia in a toxic haze, shuttered schools and caused a spike in respiratory illnesses.

World must change way it produces food to avoid biodiversity collapse, says WWF

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 23:01:03 +0000

Recovery of tigers, tuna and green sea turtles show nature loss can be reversed when action taken, charity says

Conservation comebacks for wild tigers, tuna and green sea turtles prove that global nature loss can be reversed, scientists have said. But a report warns food production must be the next “positive tipping point” if the world is to avert biodiversity collapse.

Bendy elm still standing against all odds crowned UK tree of the year

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 23:01:03 +0000

Hundred-and-fifty-year-old Wych elm in Newcastle, Co Down has grown sideways owing to strong winds

The “astonishing and bizarre” Bendy Tree in Northern Ireland has been crowned the winner of this year’s tree of the year competition.

The wych elm tree, located in Newcastle, County Down, owes its name to its near horizontal trunk, which has grown sideways owing to the strong seaside winds coming off the Irish Sea.

French wine industry facing historic low harvest after extreme summer heat

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 15:40:11 +0000

This year’s harvest expected to be down 2% on mediocre yield in 2025, when production was lowest in nearly 70 years

France’s wine industry is facing a historic low harvest after the country was hit by a series of summer heatwaves.

At about 35m hectolitres, the total harvest would be down 2% on a mediocre 2025 yield and 14% below the 2021-2025 average, according to estimates published on Wednesday by the ministry of agriculture.

World’s largest penguin colony suffers ‘enormous population crash’

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 15:00:53 +0000

Chinstrap penguins on Zavodovski Island in Antarctica down by two-thirds since 2011, probably due to climate crisis

The world’s largest penguin colony has declined by two-thirds since 2011, most likely because of the climate crisis, a study has revealed.

Scientists said the rapid demise of chinstrap penguins on Zavodovski, the northernmost of the South Sandwich Islands in Antarctica, increased the risk of a wider ecosystem collapse.

Landslides, flash floods and raging seas: is California ready for the ravages of El Niño?

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 14:30:52 +0000

A mix of natural disasters could all befall the state at once as it finds itself in the crosshairs of the climate phenomenon

On a cloudless autumn afternoon, sunlight sparkled on the water that had quietly swallowed a busy intersection to the north of San Francisco, as the surrounding rush-hour traffic slowed to a painful crawl.

There were no crashing waves or storm surges to blame for the flood. Marin county was one of many areas up and down the California coast affected by high tides last week, as parts of the Pacific swelled with excess warmth.

South West Water owner taps investors to fix infrastructure after sewage spills

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 14:14:35 +0000

Pennon slashes dividend and launches £550m cash call ‘to drive improved outcomes for customers and communities’

Burnham, take note: water shareholders have their uses