The latest news related to nature conservation from around the world. If there is
Local extinction of Southern California mountain lions possible within 50 years
Two isolated mountain lion populations in southern California’s Santa Ana and Santa Monica Mountains are at risk of local extinction, perhaps as soon as within 50 years, according to a study published in the journal Ecological Applications. The extinction risk is due to low genetic diversity and mortality…
Butterfly numbers down by two thirds
Meadows adjacent to high-intensity agricultural areas are home to less than half the number of butterfly species than areas in nature preserves. The number of individuals is even down to one-third of that number.
When more women make decisions, the environment wins
When more women are involved in group decisions about land management, the group conserves more – particularly when offered financial incentives to do so, according to a new study.
Headline: Forest protection efforts earn Indonesia millions
An innovative effort to keep trees in the ground and carbon out of the air is paying dividends in Indonesia – the fifth-highest emitter of carbon dioxide globally.Norway announced on 16 February that it will pay Indonesia for reducing its deforestation by 60 percent in 2017, as compared to 2016. The…
During the last day of the first substantive session of the Ad hoc Open-Ended Working Group (AHWG), discussion focused on the agenda for the second substantive session. The Co-Chairs presented a revised agenda, including the agenda item “discussion of possible options to address possible gaps in international…
UK will miss almost all its 2020 nature targets, says official report
The targets were set in 2010 by the global Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the report from the joint nature conservation committee …
Headline: Call for wetland decade under the U.N. decade on ecosystem restoration (2021-2030)
The environmental health of wetlands across the world is deteriorating. The authoritative Global Wetland Outlook released by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 2018 highlighted an alarming trend in wetland loss; at least 35 percent of the world’s natural wetlands have been lost since 1970.
Headline: Will Large Protected Areas Save the Oceans or Politicize Them?
In the last decade, governments have been pushing to create vast Marine Protected Areas large enough to protect species from overfishing and other threats. But critics are questioning whether the creation of these large protected areas is driven more by geopolitics than conservation.
Headline: Biodiversity loss in the oceans can be reversed through habitat restoration
Activities such as laying gas pipelines, trawling for fish, drilling for oil, and even burying internet cables in the deep sea, are destroying marine ecosystems. But studies have shown that reintroducing seaweed and corals to these habitats could ward off the worst effects – and recover marine life.
Protecting Africa’s oceans to secure our futures
Jessica Donovan-Allen, senior director of Conservation International Liberia, discusses why ocean conservation is vital in western Africa.
Increasing global energy demands have led to the ongoing intensification of hydrocarbon extraction from marine areas. Hydrocarbon extractive activities pose threats to native marine biodiversity, such as noise, light, and chemical pollution, physical changes to the sea floor, invasive species, and greenhouse…
Bank of China to review funding of dam in orangutan habitat in Sumatra – Eco-Business
Bank of China to review funding of dam in orangutan habitat in Sumatra Eco-Business Bank of China has promised to evaluate a hydroelectric project it is helping fund in Indonesia, which activists say threatens the only known habitat of the …
Headline: China plans ‘landmark’ biodiversity talks
A country that now claims it is attempting to chart a development path away from its former “pollute now, clean up later” approach, China will host the most important biodiversity conference in a decade next year.
Headline: Let’s build on the plastics revolution – and save our marine habitats
If people knew the wonder of the UK’s marine habitats they would want to protect them – TV shows like Blue Planet can help. The life of a conservationist often feels like one long struggle, taking little-known challenges and trying to make them mainstream. How do environmental issues move from niche…
Climate Change Could Make Insurance Unaffordable for Most People
Insurers have warned that climate change could make coverage for ordinary people unaffordable after the world’s largest reinsurance firm blamed global warming for $24 billion of losses in California’s recent wildfires. Read more on E360 →
Predicted deforestation in Brazil could lead to local temperature increase up to 1.45°C
A new model quantifies how forest change affects local surface temperatures by altering sunlight-reflection and evapotranspiration properties, and predicts that Brazilian deforestation could result in a 1.45°C increase by 2050.
Alpine tundra releases long-frozen CO2 to the atmosphere, exacerbating climate warming
Thawing permafrost in high-altitude mountain ecosystems may be a stealthy, underexplored contributor to atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions.
