"The Himalayas are approaching a tipping point as glaciers melt faster than a decade ago, threatening water security as the region approaches "peak water" by mid-century, according to a study released this month."
"When officials in Wyoming conducted a routine test on the water that was being discharged from a massive under-construction Meta datacenter, it was a shock to find it contained a rare and potentially hazardous bacterium."
"The Environmental Protection Agency is finalizing a rule that’ll drastically weaken restrictions on “stripper wells,” which tend to be old, poorly maintained and prone to leaking methane, the highly potent greenhouse gas."
"The Richmond airport is renewing its stormwater discharge permit, and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) added general requirements for the airport to monitor and lower its discharge of PFAS. Some stakeholders say that’s not enough and are asking for specific reduction targets."
"A group of commercial fishers, fishing guides and seafood processors in southwest Louisiana is suing liquefied natural gas company Venture Global, claiming that dredging operations in preparation for the construction of a new terminal resulted in a sediment spill that killed millions of oysters and diminished catches of finfish, crabs and shrimp."
The Farm Bill — omnibus legislation that affects the food supply of millions of Americans, as well as their air, water and soil — is bogged down in hyperpartisan division. But as Backgrounder outlines, environmental journalists would be wise to track how Congress ultimately uses it to address matters like land and water conservation, rural water supply and pollution, pesticides and more.
"Federal agencies say opening these lands will reduce wildfire risks and make timber more accessible. Experts, however, say the government is contradicting itself."
"The birds are up with the sunrise — warblers, flycatchers, sparrows and towhees calling across the treetops. Deer browse on tender buds emerging from dense shrubs. Black bears scrounge for roots, insects and other edibles." "But it’s what’s underground that has drawn scientists and investors to this 23-square-mile (60-square-kilometer) tract: spongy, dense peat up to 15 feet (5 meters) deep."
"In July, the Trump administration relegated endangered leatherback turtles, sea lions and whales to mere collateral damage in its race to profit from the oceans. Now, fisheries science is in the government’s crosshairs."
"It’s been a relentless summer of extremes—only the latest in a half-decade packed with record-breaking weather events. A growing body of research shows they’re becoming more frequent and severe as human-caused climate change accelerates."
