May 2016 Arctic Sea Ice Plunges Toward Record Low

climatescience.com

Data from the US National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) shows that average Arctic sea ice extent during May 2016 set a new record low for the month of May over the period of satellite observations which goes back to 1979. Story here.

Beneath the Caribbean Sea, a Wastewater Problem Lurks Unnoticed

WORLD

RESOURCES

INSTITUTE

The Caribbean has long been hailed as a vacationer’s paradise, with its coral reefs, bioluminescent bays, white sand beaches and rainforests. Yet there’s a problem lurking beneath the sparkling sea—untreated wastewater. Story here.

Salmon Stocks Likely to Diminish in B.C. This Year: DFO

NATIONAL

OBSERVER

Chinook salmon. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

As Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) announced new federal action to bring back struggling Atlantic salmon on Canada's East Coast, a panel of DFO scientists on Canada's West Coast said the outlook for Pacific salmon has declined from previous years. Story here.

37 Million Bees Instantly Dropped Dead After Farms Started Spraying "Neonics" on Crops

Nation of Change                                                          

Honeybee on milkthistle plant. Photo credit: Fir0002
Dave Schuit, a honey-producer in Elmwood, Canada,  said that his farm lost 37 million bees almost immediately after a nearby farm began planting GMO corn and spraying neonics on their crops. Story here.

There’s Nothing Average About This Year’s Gulf of Mexico ‘Dead Zone’

EcoWatch

Jellyfish - said to be one of the few creatures able to survive & thrive in dead zones. Photo credit -  Dan90266

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released its annual forecast for the size of the Gulf of Mexico “dead zone”—an area of coastal water where low oxygen is lethal to marine life. They say we should expect an “average year.” That doesn’t sound so bad, but as we wrote last year, the dead zone average is approximately 6,000 square miles or the size of the state of Connecticut. Average is not normal. Story here.

U.S. Coal Giant Owed Money to Canadian Climate Change Deniers

NATIONAL OBSERVER

A Canadian climate change denial group has popped up in a U.S. coal giant's bankruptcy proceedings that have lifted the curtain on the funding of a sophisticated continent-wide marketing campaign designed to fool the public about how human activity is contributing to global warming. Story here.