Conservation News ~ October 20 2017

• World’s first “negative emissions” plant turns carbon dioxide into stone: https://qz.com/1100221/the-worlds-first-negative-emissions-plant-has-opened-in-iceland-turning-carbon-dioxide-into-stone/
• Feds grant endangered species protection to four Florida plants: http://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/2017/10/05/feds-grant-endangered-species-protection-to-four-florida-plants/
• Toyota trucks that only emit water vapor are moving goods to LA: https://futurism.com/toyotas-trucks-that-only-emit-water-vapor-are-moving-goods-in-la/
• Paris to ban fossil fuel cars by 2030: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-paris-autos/paris-plans-to-banish-all-but-electric-cars-by-2030-idUSKBN1CH0SI
• Study reviews 1154 climate science results, finds no evidence of publication bias: https://futurism.com/study-reviews-climate-science-results-no-evidence-publication-bias/
• Rooftop solar provides a record-breaking 48% of South Australia’s power: https://futurism.com/rooftop-solar-provides-record-breaking-48-south-australia-power/
• Mexico takes unprecedented action to save Vaquita: https://news.mongabay.com/2017/10/mexico-takes-unprecedented-action-to-save-vaquita/
• Whales and dolphins lead “human-like” lives thanks to big brains: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/oct/16/whales-and-dolphins-human-like-societies-thanks-to-their-big-brains
• Chocolate industry’s illegal deforestation of West Africa’s National Parks an open secret: http://www.iflscience.com/environment/chocolate-industrys-illegal-deforestation-of-west-africas-national-parks-an-open-secret/
• Over 300k gallons of oil spilled in Gulf of Mexico: http://wgno.com/2017/10/14/coast-guard-over-300000-gallons-of-oil-spilled-in-gulf-of-mexico/
• New study finds nature is vital to beating climate change: https://www.nature.org/newsfeatures/pressreleases/new-study-finds-nature-is-vital-to-beating-climate-change.xml
• Judge allows “Necessity Defense by activists in oil pipeline: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16102017/climate-change-activists-arrest-pipeline-shutdown-necessity-defense
• “SAVES Act” actually harms endangered species: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/twisted-terms-saves-act-actually-harms-endangered_us_59dce302e4b0b48cd8e0a660
• Robert Bateman receives Jay N. “Ding” Darling Award for wildlife paintings: http://wildlife.org/robert-bateman-earns-jay-n-ding-darling-award-for-paintings/
• Two new stink bug species named for dragons from Game of Thrones: https://entomologytoday.org/2017/10/16/two-new-stink-bug-species-named-for-dragons-from-game-of-thrones/
• The Lush Billion-Tree Spectacle of China’s Great Green Wall: https://www.wired.com/story/ian-teh-chinas-great-green-wall/
• Oil rig explodes in Louisiana: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-louisiana-oil-rig-explosion-20171017-story.html
• Animal biodiversity key part of carbon cycle: https://news.stanford.edu/2017/10/09/animal-biodiversity-important-part-carbon-cycle/
• Regreening the planet could account for one-third of climate migration: https://www.environmentguru.com/pages/elements/element.aspx?id=5634505
• Resolute Forest Products RICO and Defamation lawsuit against Greenpeace dismissed: https://www.commondreams.org/news/2017/10/17/federal-court-dismisses-rico-and-defamation-lawsuit-against-greenpeace
• Long Beach, California passes sytrofoam ban: https://lbpost.com/news/2000011633-a-unanimous-vote-bans-styrofoam-packaging-from-use-in-long-beach-restaurants
• Photo of butchered rhino wins top photo award: http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-41656188
• Senate is expected to pass a vote on a budget that includes opening the Arctic to drilling: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/29/us/politics/senate-budget-tax-cuts-arctic-refuge-drilling.html
• Rehab of Colorado’s Fraser River shows early signs of success: https://www.cpr.org/news/story/rehab-of-colorado-s-fraser-river-shows-early-signs-of-success
• Indigenous groups sign agreement to protect Quebec caribou: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/quebec-caribou-agreement-1.4359562
• UK just installed first seabin to clean plastic-polluted waters: https://futurism.com/the-u-k-just-installed-its-first-seabin-to-clean-plastic-polluted-waters/
• Dramatic plunge of insects warns of ecological Armageddon: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/18/warning-of-ecological-armageddon-after-dramatic-plunge-in-insect-numbers
• The Netherlands is planning to end all of its coal power by 2030: https://www.sciencealert.com/the-netherlands-is-planning-to-end-all-its-coal-power-by-2030
• Solar innovation cuts cost by 60% while increasing efficiency by 24%: http://www.iflscience.com/technology/new-solar-innovation-cuts-costs-by-60-while-increasing-efficiency-by-24/
• USFWS being sued by Center for Biological Diversity over failure to protect Walrus: http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/12/group-plans-to-sue-over-walrus-protection/
• Black butterfly wings offer a model for better solar cells: https://phys.org/news/2017-10-black-butterfly-wings-solar-cells.html
• First floating wind turbines just came online off the coast of Scotland: https://www.engadget.com/2017/10/18/first-floating-wind-farm-scotland/
• World’s deepest lake, Lake Baikal, crippled by putrid algae, poaching, and pollution: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/19/lake-baikal-russia-crippled-algae-fish-poaching-pollution
• Climate change is causing catastrophic shortage of food for birds in the Galapagos: http://therevelator.org/climate-change-catastrophic-food-birds-galapagos/
• New Mexico was just shamed into putting climate change and evolution back into science standards: https://thinkprogress.org/new-mexicos-proposed-science-standards-7c1a436bee13/
• Stormwater pollution in Puget Sound streams killing Coho Salmon before they can spawn: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/stormwater-pollution-in-puget-sound-streams-killing-coho-before-they-can-spawn/
• Seychelles home to new legless amphibian species: https://news.mongabay.com/2017/10/seychelles-home-to-new-species-of-caecilian-a-legless-amphibian/
• North Atlantic winds could power the whole world: https://newatlas.com/offshore-wind-farm-atlantic-whole-world/51700/
• Pollution kills 3 times more people than AIDS, TB, and Malaria combined: http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2017/10/19/558821792/report-pollution-kills-3-times-more-than-aids-tb-and-malaria-combined
• All-female Black Mambas guard South Africa’s wildlife: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/destinations/africa/south-africa/black-mambas-anti-poaching-wildlife-rhino-team/
• Seattle increased public ridership 4.1%, more than twice of other cities: https://usa.streetsblog.org/2017/02/24/transit-ridership-falling-everywhere-but-not-in-cities-with-redesigned-bus-networks/