I made bushfire maps from satellite data, and found a glaring gap in Australia's preparedness

Feb 25, 2020 13:25 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

On the night of January 9 2020, my wife and I secured our Kangaroo Island home and anxiously monitored the South Australian Country Fire Service (CFS) website for bushfire advice. After many horrific weeks of bushfires,...

'Natural' flood management would be overwhelmed by Britain's winter super-floods

Feb 25, 2020 13:13 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

As large swathes of the UK endure the worst floods in living memory, hearts and minds are rightly focused on protecting people and property. At one point the governments Environment Agency had issued a record 594 flood...

Air pollution kills thousands of Americans every year – here's a low-cost strategy to reduce the toll

Feb 25, 2020 13:06 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

About 1 of every 25 deaths in the U.S. occurs prematurely because of exposure to air pollution. Dirty air kills roughly 110,000 Americans yearly, which is more than all transportation accidents and shootings...

Three financial firms could change the direction of the climate crisis – and few people have any idea

Feb 25, 2020 12:54 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

A silent revolution is happening in investing. It is a paradigm shift that will have a profound impact on corporations, countries and pressing issues like climate change. Yet most people are not even aware of it. In a...

Mine waste dams threaten the environment, even when they don't fail

Feb 25, 2020 12:34 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Scars from large mining operations are permanently etched across the landscapes of the world. The environmental damage and human health hazards that these activities create may be both severe and irreversible. Many...

Why drought-busting rain depends on the tropical oceans

Feb 25, 2020 12:28 pm UTC| Nature

Recent helpful rains dampened fire grounds and gave many farmers a reason to cheer. But much of southeast Australia remains in severe drought. Australia is no stranger to drought, but the current one stands out when...

Want to help save wildlife after the fires? You can do it in your own backyard

Feb 25, 2020 01:06 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

People living in cities far from the unprecedented bushfires this summer may feel they can do little more to help beyond donating to organisations that support affected wildlife. But this is not necessarily the case: ten...