Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Battling climate change offers health benefits
Cutting emissions that cause global warming would not only make the planet healthier, it also would make people healthier too, new research suggests.
Fish food fight: Fish don't eat trees after all, says new study
Recent theories suggesting that half of fishes' food comes from from land-based ecosystems may not hold water. Experiments show that algae, not land-based matter, is needed to build healthy and...
Senior doctors launch global movement to tackle climate change
Senior doctors from across the globe have come together to form the International Climate and Health Council. Their aim is to mobilise health professionals across the world to help tackle...
Researchers establish common seasonal pattern among bacterial communities in Arctic rivers
New research on bacterial communities throughout six large Arctic river ecosystems reveals predictable temporal patterns, suggesting that scientists could use these communities as markers for monitoring climate change in the...
B.C. midwives sound warning
Midwives in B.C. are raising the alarm about a potential slowdown in the province's only registered midwife training program.
Mankind using Earth's resources at alarming rate
Humanity would need five Earths to produce the resources needed if everyone lived as profligately as Americans, according to a report issued Tuesday.
Thirsty wetlands need action
Researchers have found that Australia’s Coorong wetlands need a massive influx of water to save collapsing ecosystems.
From Greenhouse to Icehouse
A new study that reconstructed ocean temperatures from millions of years ago could provide new insight into how the Earth responds to climate change.
Pay homes to recycle, say Tories
Households who recycle could get up to £130 a year in shopping vouchers under the Tories, says George Osborne.
Building construction waste 'increases dengue rates'
A Brazilian study indicates that waste produced by building construction, such as rubble, can help spread the dengue vector.
Global warming dangers 'alarming'
Leading UK scientists issue an unprecedented statement about the dangers of failing to cut greenhouse gases.
First Nation pleads guilty to polluting lake
A small First Nations community in northern Saskatchewan has admitted wrongdoing after more than 5,000 litres of diesel fuel from a storage tank spilled and contaminated a nearby lake nearly...
NZ glaciers continue to shrink
An annual survey has revealed that New Zealand's glaciers continued to lose significant ice mass this year.
Opinion: Deforestation deceit reflects badly on environmental campaigners
Exaggerated deforestation statistics do little to forward environmental awareness and promote change, writes Mark Poynter.
Earth's greenhouse gases reach record highs
Greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere reached record highs in 2008, with carbon dioxide levels increasing faster than previously, the UN weather agency said Monday in Geneva.
Nation by nation, evidence thin that boosting crop yields conserves land
Goals to intensify agriculture may not necessarily return farmland to nature, new survey of UN data finds
Time-Tunneling for Climate Change Clues
(PhysOrg.com) -- If you look closely at individual plant species' responses in the past, you may find that the largest effects of high carbon dioxide (CO2) levels occurred decades ago,...
Can Climate Change Cause Conflict? Recent History Suggests So
Some experts call the genocide in Darfur the world's first conflict caused by climate change. After all, the crisis was sparked, at least in part, by a decline...
Bubble-fusion scientist debarred from federal funding
Office of Naval Research passes verdict on controversial researcher Rusi Taleyarkhan.
CO2 curve ticks upward as key climate talks loom
MAUNA LOA OBSERVATORY, Hawaii (AP) -- The readings at this 2-mile-high station show an upward curve as the world counts down to climate talks: Global warming...
Climate change could boost incidence of civil war in Africa
Climate change could increase the likelihood of civil war in sub-Saharan Africa by over 50 percent within the next two decades, according to a new study led by a team...
Supervolcano eruption -- in Sumatra -- deforested India 73,000 years ago
A new study provides "incontrovertible evidence" that the volcanic super-eruption of Toba on the island of Sumatra about 73,000 years ago deforested much of central India, some 3,000 miles from...
Is Energy Conservation Useless? One Scientist Thinks So
Short of a global economic collapse or the construction of a new nuclear power plant everyday, stabilizing or reducing greenhouse gas emissions is impossible, says University of Utah atmospheric scientist...
Competitive, trade-friendly nations weather volatile crop yields best
Richer nations with competitive crop production and few trade barriers would fare the best if climate change, weather events or other factors cause yields of grain and oilseed crops to...
Predicting the fate of underground carbon
A team of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has developed a new modeling methodology for determining the capacity and assessing the risks of leakage of potential underground carbon-dioxide...
After Landslides, Soil Carbon Storage Recovers Rapidly
Scientists at the University of California, Riverside, have investigated carbon and nitrogen accumulation in soils formed on debris flows in a coniferous forest in southern California. Soil formation was studied...
Switchgrass produces biomass efficiently
A USDOE and USDA study concluded that 50 million U.S. acres of cropland, idle cropland, and cropland pasture could be converted from current uses to the production of perennial grasses,...
Leaked emails mark dangerous shift in climate denial strategy | Mark Lynas
Instead of targeting high-profile science communicators, climate deniers are now encouraging mistrust of those who collect and interpret global warming dataThe theft and web publication by climate change deniers of private emails from...