Tree rings reveal increased fire risk for southwestern US

Nature

The Pacheco fire in New Mexico. 2011.

Photo by John Fowler.

Historical record points to climate patterns that could prime the region for an intense fire season. Story here.

Animal health and welfare, two cornerstones of sustainable, responsible and effective food production

ILRI news

Improved animal health and welfare standards can also increase food production in ways that protect the environment and enhance the resilience of livestock producers and systems. More here.



Hogs see the sun and get fresh air on an "outdoor" 
farm in the UK. Photo credit - Andy & Hilary.

'Plastic in All Sizes' Found Everywhere in Once Pristine European Arctic

EcoWatch

A disturbing amount of plastic is building up in the once-pristine European Arctic.  More here.

Dams nudge Amazon's eco-systems out of wack

Science Magazine

A dorado, somtimes called mahi-mahi.

A Wikimedia photo.

Once upon a time, thousands of dorados, a giant among catfish, would swim more than 3000 kilometers from the mouth of the Amazon River to spawn in Bolivia's Mamoré River, in the foothills of the Andes. But the dorado, which can grow to more than 2 meters in length, is disappearing from those waters, and scientists blame two hydropower dams erected downstream a decade ago. As countries seek new energy sources to drive economic growth, a surge in dam construction on the eastern flank of the Andes could further threaten fish migration and sediment flows, scientists warn this week in Science Advances. The main consequence of proliferating dams is habitat fragmentation. The dorado's disappearance suggests fragmentation is already taking a toll.

• Barbara Fraser is a freelance journalist in Lima.

Full story here.

50+ Groups Back Landmark Effort to Halt 'Out of Control' Factory Farming in Iowa

Common

Dreams

"Iowa is suffering under the enormous weight of a business that has no respect for the people, environment, animals and future of the state." Story here.

RELATED: "In Hogs We Trust." 

Part #1 How the Manitoba government’s return to a deregulated hog industry could actually aggravate a world health crisis.

Part #2 The Price We Pay For Corporate Hog$

Part#3 "Animal diseases devastate herds, worldwide."

If the world builds every coal plant that’s planned, climate change goals are doomed, scientists say

The Washington Post

The much-heralded demise of the coal industry may be overstated, a new scientific analysis asserts — finding that if all planned plants were constructed, the world would have little chance of meeting its climate change goals. Story here.

Dave Johnson coal-fired power plant, 

central Wyoming Greg Goebel from 

Loveland CO, USA

Protect the neglected half of our blue planet

nature

Maintaining momentum is crucial as nations build a treaty to safeguard the high seas. More here.

A ribbon seal in the Bering Sea. 
Photo by NOAA.