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Tanzania’s new marine conservation zones cover 1,300 square kilometres of ocean, aiming to tackle overfishing, protect coral reefs and restore marine ecosystems through community led action. Pemba Island in Tanzania has established two new marine protected areas (MPAs) to combat overfishing, illegal fishing and the degradation of marine ecosystems. Covering a combined area of 1,300 square kilometres, the North-East and South East conservation zones aim to protect biodiversity while supporting communities that depend on the ocean for food and income. The initiative brings together more than 20 local communities the Tanzanian government and environmental organisations including the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Blue Alliance and Mwambao. The new protected areas were announced at t...

EU climate chief Wopke Hoekstra warns Europe could face 3°C warming by 2100, urging governments to strengthen protection against extreme heat, floods and wildfires. Europe must prepare for a future of increasingly extreme weather with the European Union warning that the continent could face around 3°C of warming by 2100. The European Commission is preparing new rules requiring member states to clearly identify which authorities are responsible for protecting citizens against climate related disasters. EU Climate Action Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told Euronews that the world risks temporarily or potentially remaining above the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C warming limit. He stressed that governments must strengthen preparedness even as efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions continue. ...

Scientists discover an abrupt reversal in Antarctic Intermediate Water trends after 2016 with the ocean layer becoming saltier denser and deeper as sea ice declines. A major shift in a vast ocean water layer across the Southern Hemisphere has raised concerns about the long term impacts of climate change on global ocean circulation, heat storage and carbon absorption. Researchers have found that Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) which plays a crucial role in transporting heat, freshwater, oxygen and carbon, has rapidly reversed its long term trends. The study led by researchers from the University of Melbourne and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), found that the water layer became saltier denser and deeper between 2016 and 2024 following decades of freshening. The findings were ...

A massive Antarctic iceberg A-81 has reached the remote South Georgia island in the South Atlantic Ocean after drifting north for more than three years. NASA satellite imagery captured on October 20, 2026, shows the iceberg slowing near the island’s shallow underwater shelf. The iceberg which covers approximately 1,550 square kilometres broke away from Antarctica’s Brunt Ice Shelf in January 2023. It spent more than three years moving through the Weddell Sea, carried along the coast by the clockwise flowing Weddell Gyre. By May 2026, A-81 had reached the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula before continuing north into the Scotia Sea. By late October it had travelled about 2,300 kilometres from the Brunt Ice Shelf and approached South Georgia. According to researchers Jan Lieser of Aust...

  The global effort to protect 30% of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030 is falling behind schedule with governments facing major challenges ahead of the COP17 biodiversity summit in Yerevan, Armenia, in October 2026. The summit will assess progress towards Target 3 of the Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework widely known as “30 by 30”. According to the Protected Planet database, 18.7% of the world land and inland waters and around 10% of its oceans are currently under some form of conservation management. Although more than one million square kilometres of land has been added to protected area records since 2022 conservation experts say the pace of expansion must accelerate significantly to meet the 2030 deadline. One major challenge is establishing protected are...

  Climate change is increasing drought risks across southern Africa, threatening livestock farming and potentially widening the economic gap between wealthy and poorer pastoralists, according to a new study. Researchers found that hotter, drier seasons and increasingly erratic rainfall could reduce the number of livestock the land can support, undermining the livelihoods of rural communities. The study examined Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe, where many communities depend on cattle, sheep and goats for their income and food security. Livestock rearing takes place across approximately 43% of Africa’s land, making changing rainfall patterns a major concern for pastoralist livelihoods. Pastoralists depend on seasonal rains to grow veg...

  Chinese researchers have developed an environmentally friendly nanofilm covering that has reduced glacier melting by more than 80% in treated areas of Dagu Glacier in southwest China’s Sichuan Province. The experiment has also recorded an increase of up to 10 centimetres in surface elevation in some sections over six years. The research team from Nanjing University has been testing the protective covering on Glacier No. 17, the largest individual glacier in the Dagu Glacier area which covers approximately 0.17 square kilometres. Researchers say substantial ice loss from this glacier could contribute significantly to the retreat of the surrounding glacier region. The protective material works by reflecting sunlight and insulating the ice surface, reducing the solar radiation...

Delhi may introduce a bottle deposit system charging an extra ₹1–₹2 that consumers can reclaim by returning used plastic bottles. Delhi is preparing to introduce a Deposit Refund Scheme (DRS) to encourage residents and tourists to return used plastic bottles for recycling, taking inspiration from similar initiatives in Uttarakhand and Goa. Under the proposed scheme, consumers may pay an additional ₹1 or ₹2 when purchasing a plastic water bottle. The amount would be refunded when the empty bottle is returned to a designated collection point. QR codes may also be introduced to simplify the refund process. Officials are considering launching the initiative as a pilot project at tourist destinations before expanding it across the national capital. The scheme aims to replace the “use and...

UK residents question climate resilience policies, warning they could shift responsibility for repeated flooding from authorities to citizens. Climate change is increasing the risk of frequent and intense flooding across the United Kingdom, prompting authorities to encourage communities to adapt and learn to “live with water”. However, residents in several flood prone areas are questioning whether the emphasis on resilience places too much responsibility on individuals while allowing institutions to avoid accountability. Research conducted with three flood action groups in north west England, based on 17 interviews and five years of participant observation found that many residents were uncomfortable with the idea of resilience. They feared it could normalise repeated flooding rather t...

Proposed 1,720 MW Kamala hydropower project requires 3,278 hectares of forest land across three districts, raising environmental concerns. The National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) has sought forest clearance to divert approximately 3,278 hectares of forest land in Arunachal Pradesh for its proposed 1,720 MW Kamala Hydroelectric Project. If approved, the proposal could involve the felling of an estimated 23,40,213 trees across Kamle, Kra Daadi and Kurung Kumey districts. The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change’s Forest Advisory Committee was scheduled to consider the proposal on October 23, 2026. The forest clearance remains pending, making the decision a significant step in determining the project’s future. Planned on the Kamala River a tributary of t...