Urged on by the oil and gas industry, the Trump administration is moving to drastically weaken the Endangered Species Act. But the act, writes a former U.S. Interior Secretary, has saved hundreds of species that might now be extinct, while allowing for well-managed development.
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Biodiversity
The Ongoing Disgrace of South Africa’s Captive-Bred Lion Trade
An estimated 7,000 to 14,000 lions are held in captivity and bred in South Africa. Increasingly, the animals are slaughtered for their bones and other body parts, many of which are sold in Asia for their purported — and scientifically discredited — health benefits.
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Field Notes
As Greenland Warms, Nature’s Seasonal Clock Is Thrown Off-Kilter
For millennia, ecosystems in Greenland and throughout the Arctic have been regulated by seasonal changes that govern the greening of vegetation and the migration and reproduction of animals. But a rapidly warming climate and disappearing sea ice are upending that finely tuned balance.
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Analysis
Paris Conundrum: How to Know How Much Carbon Is Being Emitted?
As climate negotiators consider rules for verifying commitments under the Paris Agreement, they will have to confront a difficult truth: There currently is no reliably accurate way to measure total global emissions or how much CO2 is coming from individual nations.
Oceans
In the Melting Arctic, a Harrowing Account from a Stranded Ship
The grounding of a research-cruise vessel in a remote polar region last week was a reminder of the hazards of increased ship traffic in an ice-free Arctic. Our correspondent was on board and reports on the ordeal and the long, uncertain wait for rescue.
E360 Digest
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Could Building Massive Seafloor Barriers Around Antarctica Help Slow Sea Level Rise?
Large-scale geoengineering projects that would involve building walls and berms along the seafloor could help stem the collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and slow global sea level rise, two scientists contend in a new peer-reviewed study published in the journal The Cryosphere. More about Could Building Massive Seafloor Barriers Around Antarctica Help Slow Sea Level Rise? →
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New Jersey Wants to Build 1,100 Megawatts of Offshore Wind Capacity
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities is seeking proposals from developers to build 1,100 megawatts (MW) of offshore wind capacity, the largest single-state solicitation of its kind in the United States to date, according to Greentech Media. The order is the first step in New Jersey’s new goal to generate 100 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by 2050. More about New Jersey Wants to Build 1,100 Megawatts of Offshore Wind Capacity →
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World’s First Recycled Plastic Bike Path Opens in The Netherlands
A new 100-foot track in the Dutch city of Zwolle is the world’s first bike path made almost entirely out of recycled plastic, containing the equivalent of 218,000 plastic cups or 500,000 plastic bottle caps. The plastic road is the latest example of the growing shift among cities and businesses toward a circular economy, which requires reusing products and producing no waste. More about World’s First Recycled Plastic Bike Path Opens in The Netherlands →
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In an interview with Yale Environment 360, ecologist Charles M. Peters discusses how, in an era of runaway destruction of tropical forests, the centuries-old ecological understanding of indigenous woodland residents can help point the way to the restoration of damaged rainforests.
Climate
Fighting Fire with Fire: California Turns to Prescribed Burning
A century of fire suppression and historic drought have combined to kill 129 million trees and counting in California’s forests. As wildfires rage across the state, managers are increasingly setting fires to burn the dead timber and ward off catastrophe.
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Solutions
In India’s Largest City, A Ban on Plastics Faces Big Obstacles
Facing a scourge of plastic bags, the Indian state that includes Mumbai mandated a sweeping ban on plastic bags and other throwaway plastic items. But the chaos that followed shows the challenges of restricting a material so deeply embedded in the modern economy.
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E360 VIDEO CONTEST WINNER
In Sicily, A Plague of Cancer Overwhelms an Oil Refinery Town
The winner of the 2018 Yale Environment 360 Video Contest examines how the people of Augusta, Sicily, led by the town’s priest, are fighting back against a cancer epidemic linked to a massive petrochemical complex.
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Policy
Should Rivers Have Rights? A Growing Movement Says It’s About Time
Inspired by indigenous views of nature, a movement to grant a form of legal “personhood” to rivers is gaining some ground — a key step, advocates say, in reversing centuries of damage inflicted upon the world’s waterways.
Our 10th Anniversary
From the E360 Archives
As part of the 10th anniversary celebration of Yale Environment 360, we are highlighting some of our most popular and favorite content.