As 'Epic Winds' Drive California Fires, Climate Change Fuels the Risk

Inside Climate News

Santa Ana winds are whipping up wildfires in Southern California after a devastating season in wine country. Rising temps can make the West dangerously combustible. Story here.


USDA photo

Diesel vehicles in oil sands operations contribute to regional pollution

EurekAlert!

Photo courtesy of http://beautifuldestruction.ca

Wildfires, cigarette smoking and vehicles all emit a potentially harmful compound called isocyanic acid. The substance has been linked to several health conditions, including heart disease and cataracts. Scientists investigating sources of the compound have now identified off-road diesel vehicles in oil sands production in Alberta, Canada, as a major contributor to regional levels of the pollutant. Story here.

Canola oil linked to worsened memory and learning ability in Alzheimer's

ScienceDaily

Canola oil is one of the most widely consumed vegetable oils, yet little is known about its health effects. Now, a study links canola oil consumption in the diet with..... Story here.

A canola field - a common site 

on the Canadian prairies. PinP photo.




Related: Canola study on Alzheimer mice seen as ‘huge stretch’

As World Warms, Heart-Breaking Video Shows What It Looks Like When a Polar Bear Starves

Common

Dreams

"For all of you still trying to hold a ridiculous 'debate' about whether there's something wrong with our planet, please watch this, if you can." Story here.

A starving polar bear in 

the Norwegian Arctic.

Photo by Andreas Weith

Narwhals’ mixed-up response to fear could kill them

Nature

Tracking study suggests the Arctic whales are particularly vulnerable to human disturbance. Story here.

Image by Pixabay.

Pipeline regulator will let Kinder Morgan break Burnaby rules, but won't say why

NATIONAL OBSERVER

Canada's energy regulator says Texas energy giant Kinder Morgan doesn't have to follow all the rules of a city at the end of the route of its major west coast pipeline expansion project. Story here.

The Most Accurate Climate Models Predict Greater Warming, Study Shows

InsideClimateNews

In the range of climate models, those that most successfully simulate the past predict some of the worst-case scenarios for the future, researchers found. Story here.

PinP photo

UNITED NATIONS LEADERS CALL ON THE SAUDI-LED COALITION TO FULLY LIFT BLOCKADE OF YEMENI RED SEA PORTS

UN warns of a "massive humanitarian tragedy."

The partial lifting of the blockade of Yemen’s Red Sea ports by the Saudi-led coalition in recent days is allowing humanitarian organizations to resume the provision of life-saving assistance to people in desperate need. Given the massive scale of Yemen’s humanitarian crisis, however, all this does is slow the collapse towards a massive humanitarian tragedy costing millions of lives. It does not prevent it. Without the urgent resumption of commercial imports, especially food, fuel and medicines, millions of children, women and men risk mass hunger, disease and death.

Nations agree to ban fishing in Arctic Ocean for at least 16 years

Science

Nine nations and the European Union have agreed to place the central Arctic Ocean off-limits to commercial fishers for at least the next 16 years. The pact will give scientists time to understand the region’s marine ecology and the potential impacts of climate change. Story here.
Fishing boat in the Arctic.
Photo by Josef Knecht

Feces from entangled North Atlantic right whales reveals 'sky-high' stress levels

ScienceDaily

Endangered Species Research journal publishes pioneering whale feces research; also being used to investigate unprecedented number of right whale deaths this summer. Story here.

A North Pacific right whale.
Photo by John Durban, NOAA

Supreme Court rules in favour of Yukon First Nations in Peel watershed dispute

CBCnews

Unanimous decision returns planning process to earlier stage, requires additional consultation. Story here.

Boreal forest in the broad valley of the Hart River, (Peel Watershed). Photo: Juri Peepre