Category: Environment and Conservation

  • Climate change’s impacts on wildlife can vary by sex

    Climate change’s impacts on wildlife can vary by sex

    <div data-thumb="https://scx1.b-cdn.net/csz/news/tmb/2023/climate-changes-impact.jpg" data-src="https://scx2.b-cdn.net/gfx/news/hires/2023/climate-changes-impact.jpg" data-sub-html="Examples of sex-based responses to climate change at different levels of biological organization. Credit: Nature Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40316-8″> Examples of sex-based responses to climate change at different levels of biological organization. Credit: Nature Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40316-8 Biological sex can be an important factor in predicting how animal and plant populations…

  • Can blue bonds boost investment in ocean conservation? (commentary)

    Can blue bonds boost investment in ocean conservation? (commentary)

    Although they’re new vs. green bonds, the blue bond market is poised to take off as governments, companies, and investors begin to realize the importance of the blue economy and the relationship between climate change and the oceans. The Republic of Seychelles issued the first blue bond in 2018, with funds dedicated to expanding marine…

  • Colorado Leopold Conservation Award seeks nominees

    Colorado Leopold Conservation Award seeks nominees

    Nominations and applications are now being accepted for the 2024 Colorado Leopold Conservation Award. The $10,000 award honors ranchers, farmers and forestland owners who go above and beyond in their management of soil health, water quality and wildlife habitat on working land. Sand County Foundation and national sponsor American Farmland Trust present the Leopold Conservation Award to private…

  • Proposed Southwest Florida wildlife conservation area renamed, size reduced

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has nearly halved the acreage involved in its plan to establish a large conservation area in Southwest Florida first detailed this summer. In June, the federal fish and wildlife agency announced an ambitious 7-million-acre “Southwest Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Area,” which is home to roughly 74 threatened and…

  • Penn State team to help local groups reduce pollution in lower Susquehanna basin

    Penn State team to help local groups reduce pollution in lower Susquehanna basin

    UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — To accelerate conservation and reduce water pollution, a Penn State team composed of outreach staff and extension educators will build upon existing partnerships with organizations in the lower Susquehanna River basin. The watershed is plagued by runoff of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus from agriculture.  Funded by a three-year, $1…

  • Shepherd recognized with environmental achievement award

    Shepherd recognized with environmental achievement award

    Marshall Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of geography and atmospheric sciences at the University of Georgia, was recognized as the recipient of the 2023 Environmental Achievement Award. The award, which is presented by the Environmental Law Institute, recognized Shepherd’s exceptional contributions to environmental, protection, conservation and sustainability. He accepted the award at the ELI…

  • Proposed Southwest Florida wildlife conservation area renamed; size reduced

    Proposed Southwest Florida wildlife conservation area renamed; size reduced

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has nearly halved the acreage involved in its plan to establish a large conservation area in Southwest Florida first detailed this summer. In June, the federal fish and wildlife agency announced an ambitious 7-million-acre “Southwest Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Area,” which is home to roughly 74 threatened and…

  • Climate change impacts on wildlife can vary by biological sex

    Climate change impacts on wildlife can vary by biological sex

    Varying responses In polar regions, where global warming impacts are most extreme, years with earlier snowmelt can be a boon for Arctic wolf spiders. An earlier spring kick-starts the growing season. Given the extra time to mature, both sexes grow larger, with females increasing in size even more than males, improving their odds of getting…

  • DEC urges caution around endangered bats

    DEC urges caution around endangered bats

    NEW YORK — In observance of the internationally recognized Bat Week Oct. 24-31 to raise awareness about the critical role of bats in the environment, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos has encouraged outdoor enthusiasts to refrain from visiting caves and mines during the fall and winter months. DEC officials noted…

  • Environmental Protection Agency sued over Oak Ridge landfill for radioactive waste

    Environmental Protection Agency sued over Oak Ridge landfill for radioactive waste

    The Environmental Protection Agency is illegally withholding records that could shed light on why it approved plans by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to build a radioactive waste landfill over the objections of senior government officials, an environmental group claims. The landfill serves as a receptacle for remnants of decades-old low-level radioactive waste from  the…