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Zurich/Seattle, WA—An international research team led by the University of Zurich (UZH) and the University of Washington (UW) has, for the first time, used fiber-optic technology to discover a critical underwater mechanism that rapidly accelerates the melting and retreat of Greenland's massive ice sheet. The discovery, highlighted on the cover of Nature, reveals that the impact of large ice blocks calving into the ocean generates internal underwater waves that mix warm seawater with cold meltwater for extended periods, significantly amplifying glacier melt and erosion. The Calving Multiplier Effect Iceberg calving, the process where ice splits from a glacier's front and falls into the ocean, is a major contributor to ice loss. The research focused on the Eqalorutsit Kangilliit Ser...

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil—New data released by the Global Carbon Project (GCP) at the annual COP30 climate conference reveals a dramatic slowdown in India's fossil fuel-related carbon dioxide CO2 emissions growth for 2025. The annual Global Carbon Budget study projects that India's emissions will increase by just 1.4% this year, a sharp decline from the 4% growth recorded in 2024. This relatively modest jump will see India's fossil fuel emissions rise from 3.19 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2024 to an estimated 3.22 billion tonnes in 2025. This projected growth rate is notably lower than the 1.9% increase expected for the United States. Weather and Renewables Drive Down Coal Use The significant deceleration is attributed to a combination of favorable climatic conditions and Ind...

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil—The future of the Amazon rainforest is facing a serious threat as powerful agricultural interests and Brazilian politicians seek to overturn a key environmental policy, the Amazon Soy Moratorium (ASM), even as the COP30 UN climate conference debates global protection efforts. The ban, which has prohibited the sale of soya grown on land cleared in the Amazon biome after 2008, is widely recognized as a global success story for curbing deforestation. However, opponents are demanding Brazil's Supreme Court investigate whether the voluntary agreement constitutes anti-competitive behavior. Attack on the Soy Moratorium The ASM, first signed nearly two decades ago by environmental groups and major global food companies like Cargill and Bunge, effectively halted the ...

New Delhi, India—A critical study published in Nature Sustainability has issued a stark warning that several of India’s largest metropolitan areas, including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, and Bengaluru, are experiencing significant land subsidence a gradual sinking of the ground due to unsustainable groundwater extraction. Using eight years of satellite radar data, researchers found that the ground is compressing as water is pumped from underground layers faster than it can be naturally replenished. This process puts nearly 1.9 million people at risk in areas subsiding faster than four millimeters each year, with over 2,400 buildings already at high risk of structural damage. If current trends continue, projections show more than 23,000 buildings could face very high risk within the ...

Delhi has recorded its lowest average air quality index (AQI) for the November 1–15 period in three years, yet residents continued to inhale air that remained firmly in the “very poor” to “severe” category. This year’s average AQI of 349 is only marginally lower than 367 in 2024 and 376 in 2023, and barely above 345 in 2022 a shift too small to offer any real relief. Experts cautioned that this decline should not be mistaken for cleaner air. They attributed the lower readings to a combination of meteorological luck, a delayed surge in stubble burning due to flooding in Punjab, and an unusually early Diwali that took place before winter’s pollutant-trapping inversion layer could settle. In addition, irregularities in Delhi’s air monitoring network including missing values and suspicious ...

New Delhi, November 16: Greenpeace South Asia has released a damning investigation that could reshape global conversations on corporate responsibility at sea. The 128-page report, Below Deck: The Truth Beneath What You See (Mediterranean Shipping Company – MSC), draws on a decade’s worth of inspection records, port detentions, court filings and verified documentation, alleging a long-running pattern of safety failures and environmental neglect by the world’s largest container shipping line. The timing is significant. The report comes six months after the sinking of MSC ELSA 3, a Liberia-flagged vessel owned by MSC, off the Kerala coast. The wreck spilled oil and nearly 1,400 tonnes of plastic pellets into the Arabian Sea. Greenpeace argues this disaster was not an isolated accident but ...

The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has carried out the country’s first Plastic Waste Brand Audit, identifying major corporate contributors to the state’s non-recyclable plastic waste. The exercise, conducted across six major cities, marks a significant move towards strengthening accountability in plastic waste management. The audit was undertaken in Mohali, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Patiala and Bathinda to determine which brands generate the largest share of hard-to-recycle plastic waste. After analysing 11,810 plastic packets collected under multiple brand names, PPCB identified 14 companies including four multinational corporations responsible for around 59 per cent of the state’s non-recyclable waste. Of the 6,991 kilograms of municipal waste assessed, 613 kilograms we...

India’s public health is facing a serious threat from imported PVC resin containing dangerously high levels of carcinogenic chemicals, according to a new report by the Centre for Domestic Economy Policy Research (C-DEP.in). Released at IIT Delhi, the study warns that imports from China contain Residual Vinyl Chloride Monomer (RVCM) concentrations up to five times above globally accepted safety limits, posing potential long-term risks to consumers. The findings have renewed calls for strict quality enforcement under the Modi government Quality Control Order (QCO), introduced to regulate safety and industrial standards across sectors. The Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals had proposed the QCO for PVC resin in 2024, but implementation delays have pushed enforcement to an expected ...

A growing water crisis is unfolding across West Africa, with a new study by WaterAid and Tree Aid warning that millions are increasingly exposed to unsafe drinking water. The report From Roots to Rivers: How Deforestation Impacts Freshwater Access finds that 45 per cent of people across Ghana, Niger and Nigeria more than 122 million are now at risk, a rise of 20 million in just five years. Researchers link the trend directly to deforestation and the rapid loss of vegetation that supports freshwater systems. Forest loss destabilising freshwater systems The report explains that forests stabilise soil, filter pollutants and regulate rainfall, making them essential for protecting freshwater sources. Their destruction is disrupting these processes, threatening drinking water supplies, agr...