Thursday, October 9News That Matters

Environment

Wildfire smoke blankets one-third of U.S., raising health alarms

Wildfire smoke blankets one-third of U.S., raising health alarms

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Disasters, Environment
June 5, 2025 A dense blanket of wildfire smoke from more than 200 fires burning across Canada has shrouded nearly one-third of the United States, triggering widespread air quality alerts and renewed concerns about public health. The smoke, drifting from blazes in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, has turned skies hazy and pushed toxic pollution levels to hazardous highs in parts of New England, New York, and the Midwest. According to the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center, the smoke has spread from the Dakotas through the Ohio Valley and into the Northeastern states, reaching as far south as Georgia. While much of the smoke remains suspended in the upper atmosphere, areas like New York and Connecticut are experiencing a heavier concentratio...
From Ashes to Action: How 175 Years of Bushfires Shaped a World-Leading Disaster Response System

From Ashes to Action: How 175 Years of Bushfires Shaped a World-Leading Disaster Response System

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Disasters, Environment
In the searing aftermath of bushfires, Victoria has forged not just scars on its landscape but a legacy of learning. From the ferocity of Black Thursday in 1851 to the horror of Black Summer beginning in 2019, bushfires have been central to Victoria's settler history shaping its forests, institutions, communities, and consciousness. For nearly two centuries, the state’s relationship with fire has transformed from fragmented firefighting efforts to one of the most integrated and forward-looking emergency management systems in the world. The Slow Awakening: 19th Century Firefighting In the 19th and early 20th centuries, bushfires were seen as inevitable acts of nature. Local landholders and loosely organized brigades bore the burden with limited coordination or governmental oversigh...
River Yatra Rekindles Ancient Ties to Save a Dying Himalayan Lifeline to Vanishing

River Yatra Rekindles Ancient Ties to Save a Dying Himalayan Lifeline to Vanishing

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
In the dense Himalayan folds of Uttarakhand, where the Nayar River once flowed with grace and abundance, there is now a troubling silence. Water thins, vegetation withers, and in some places, the once-lush slopes show little new plant growth. While grazing has been absent here for decades, signs of disrupted natural regeneration are everywhere. This ecological imbalance is not isolated. Scientific studies have long suggested that regulated grazing, rather than bans, plays a crucial role in ecosystem health. A 2010 paper in Ecology Letters found that controlled grazing helps maintain biomass balance, improve nutrient cycling, and support diverse vegetation. In the Valley of Flowers in Chamoli, a blanket ban on grazing led to a troubling shift dominant grasses took over, biodiversity shra...
Antarctic Ice Sheet Near Irreversible Melting Tipping Point, Study Warns

Antarctic Ice Sheet Near Irreversible Melting Tipping Point, Study Warns

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
A groundbreaking new study has revealed that the Antarctic Ice Sheet Earth’s largest contributor to potential sea-level rise may be dangerously close to an irreversible tipping point, beyond which melting will continue even if global temperatures are stabilised or reduced. Scientists from Norway’s NORCE Research, the UK’s Northumbria University, and Germany’s Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) have confirmed that the ice sheet is showing signs of “hysteresis” a phenomenon where a system continues on its path regardless of changes to the initial conditions. In this case, it means that the melting of Antarctica’s vast ice reserves could continue even without additional global warming. Using sophisticated computer simulations known as Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM), th...
Karnataka Governor Urges Collective Action on Sustainability at Bengaluru Summit

Karnataka Governor Urges Collective Action on Sustainability at Bengaluru Summit

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment, Thoughts & Talks
At the Bangalore Sustainability Summit held on Tuesday, Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot called for urgent and unified efforts to protect the environment, stressing that the time for action is now. Speaking at the event themed “Advancing Sustainable Development Goals: Enhancing the Impact of Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships,” jointly organised by O.P. Jindal Global University and RV University, the Governor urged a lifestyle rooted in simplicity, nature, and reverence for forests. “We must awaken a renewed consciousness—rooted in love and respect for nature,” Gehlot said, highlighting the dangers posed by rising pollution and depleting natural resources. He noted that recent challenges, such as the oxygen crisis, have only underscored the pressing need for environmental preservation...
From Searing to Surreal: India’s Summer Ends Before It Began Amid Weather Whiplash

From Searing to Surreal: India’s Summer Ends Before It Began Amid Weather Whiplash

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
In a stunning contrast to the brutal summer of 2024, India in 2025 is experiencing an unprecedented early end to summer, upending expectations and raising fresh concerns about growing climate volatility. Last year, May and June were defined by relentless heatwaves, pushing thermometers to historic highs and placing immense stress on agriculture, power grids, and public health. The scorching summer of 2024, ultimately labeled the hottest year on record, had become emblematic of the global climate crisis. But in a dramatic reversal May 2025 has unfolded with unseasonably cool temperatures, widespread cloud cover, and scattered rainstorms offering rare relief from what is normally the year's harshest season. The shift has left meteorologists, farmers, and citizens both relieved and perp...
Assam Floods Affect 5.35 Lakh; Death Toll at 11, CM Warns of ‘Water Bomb’ Risk from Dam Release

Assam Floods Affect 5.35 Lakh; Death Toll at 11, CM Warns of ‘Water Bomb’ Risk from Dam Release

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
The flood situation in Assam has turned dire, affecting over 5.35 lakh people across 22 districts, as relentless rainfall and swollen rivers continue to wreak havoc. The death toll from floods and landslides has risen to 11, while two persons remain missing. According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), a total of 5,15,039 people across 1,254 villages in 65 revenue circles have been hit. Sribhumi is the worst-affected district with 1.94 lakh people impacted, followed by Cachar (77,961) and Nagaon (67,880). Fifteen rivers are currently in spate, including the Brahmaputra flowing above danger level at Neamatighat and Tezpur and Barak, Subansiri, Dhansiri, Kopili, and others. Embankments have been breached in three locations and damaged in two more, while crop dama...
India Ramps Up Climate, Security Diplomacy in Central Asia with Strong Glacier Warning

India Ramps Up Climate, Security Diplomacy in Central Asia with Strong Glacier Warning

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
In a major diplomatic push through Central Asia, India has reaffirmed its climate leadership and regional cooperation agenda with a focused outreach led by Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh. During a high-level visit to Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, Singh participated in key multilateral forums on glacier preservation and biodiversity while also holding bilateral discussions on security, trade, and strategic collaboration. In Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, Singh addressed the High-Level International Conference on Glacier Preservation, placing the spotlight on the alarming rate of glacial retreat in the Himalayas. Stressing the urgency of the climate crisis, the Indian delegation showcased India’s scientific and technological efforts in glacier monitoring under th...
New Study Finds Doubling Glacier Preservation Possible If 1.5°C Climate Target Is Met

New Study Finds Doubling Glacier Preservation Possible If 1.5°C Climate Target Is Met

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
A landmark study published in Science reveals that limiting global warming to 1.5°C as outlined in the Paris Agreement could preserve twice as much of the world’s glacier mass compared to current warming projections. Conducted by an international team of researchers, the study examined more than 200,000 glaciers outside of Greenland and Antarctica using eight advanced glacier models. The findings arrive during the United Nations’ International Year of Glaciers' Preservation and offer a stark warning about the irreversible impacts of unchecked climate change. Despite a global average temperature increase of 1.2°C since pre-industrial times, the research shows that 39% of glaciers are already set to disappear even if temperatures stabilized today. This loss alone would add more than fo...
Drought-Resistant Wheat: Friendly Soil Bacteria Offer Breakthrough for Climate-Smart Farming

Drought-Resistant Wheat: Friendly Soil Bacteria Offer Breakthrough for Climate-Smart Farming

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
In a major breakthrough for sustainable agriculture researchers at Western Sydney University have discovered that wheat plants under drought stress can recruit helpful soil microbes to survive a finding that could revolutionise crop resilience in the face of climate change. Nature’s SOS: Microbial Allies Beneath Our Feet The study, published in the prestigious journal Cell Host & Microbe, reveals that drought-hit wheat plants secrete a compound called 4-oxoproline through their roots. This acts like a chemical distress signal, attracting beneficial soil bacteria particularly Streptomyces and Leifsonia to their root zones. Once in place, these “drought-fighting” microbes respond by producing osmolytes, plant hormones, and nutrient solubilisers. Together, these help wheat plants...