Category: Environment

WASHINGTON, April 18, 2009 (AFP) – The US Environmental Protection Agency shifted course Friday by deeming carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases a health risk, in a landmark turnaround that could impact climate change regulation. “After a thorough scientific review ordered in 2007 by the US Supreme Court, the Environmental Protection Agency issued a proposed […]

April 08, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s navy said it has rescued the crew of a tanker in distress off the east coast and towed the vessel into deep seas to prevent pollution from its cargo of sulphuric acid.MT Granba, flying the flag of Turkey, was abandoned by her crew off the eastern port of […]

ISTANBUL, March 22, 2009 (AFP) – A seven-day focus on the world’s water crunch wound up here on Sunday with a pledge by more than 100 countries to strive for clean water and sanitation for billions in need and fight drought and flood.But some countries criticised the cornerstone outcome of the fifth World Water Forum […]

WASHINGTON, February 27, 2009 (AFP) – Anthropologists have uncovered ancient fossil footprints in Kenya dating back 1.5 million years, the oldest evidence yet that our ancestors walked like present-day humans, a study showed Thursday. The footprints were discovered in two sedimentary layers near Ileret in northern Kenya and revealed an essentially modern human-like foot anatomy. […]

Feb 18, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan businesses that want to market their products and services as eco-friendly would have to get approval from the central environmental authority (CEA) in future.CEA chairman Udaya Gammanpila said new rules will be introduced to prevent misuse of the label which many firms were using as an advertising gimmick. […]

CHICAGO, February 14, 2009 (AFP) – The use of crop-based biofuels could speed up rather than slow down global warming by fueling the destruction of rainforests, scientists warned Saturday. Once heralded as the answer to oil, biofuels have become increasingly controversial because of their impact on food prices and the amount of energy it takes […]

Feb 10, 2009 (LBO) – A Sri Lankan business chamber said it plans to start an awareness programme to minimise pollution from agriculture and industry in the island’s provinces using selected enterprises as models for others.“Industrial pollution is causing lot of damage to the environment in urban and rural areas,” the Federation of Chambers of […]

BAROUK, February 7, 2009 (AFP) – Lebanon’s majestic cedar trees have withstood the test of time for centuries but climate change is threatening the country’s most treasured symbol. Used by various civilisations throughout history for their strong and durable wood, Lebanon’s cedars are now on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s “Red List” as […]

WASHINGTON, February 5, 2009 (AFP) – Black wolves, found nearly exclusively in North America, likely inherited their coats from breeding with domestic dogs, according to a study published Thursday.The dogs of the earliest Native Americans or of European immigrants probably contributed to the genetic variability of their wild counterparts, researchers from Stanford University and the […]

PANAMA CITY, February 5, 2009 (AFP) – Scientists have found a 60-million-year-old fossil of the world’s largest snake, a 13-meter (42-foot), one-tonne behemoth dubbed Titanoboa, in a coal mine in Colombia, the US Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute said Wednesday. “The discovery of Titanoboa challenges our understanding of past climates and environments, as well as the […]

PARIS, February 5, 2009 (AFP) – Two hundred years ago, in a wealthy household in rural England, a child was born who, in a quiet, dogged and utterly peaceful way, was destined to become one of the greatest revolutionaries who lived. Armed just with a pen, Charles Darwin reforged our concept of Nature and humanity’s […]

MELBOURNE, February 3, 2009 (AFP) – An Australian man was caught with two live pigeons stuffed in his trousers as he got off a flight from the Middle East, authorities said Tuesday. Customs officers body-searched the 23-year-old after he was allegedly found with two bird eggs in a vitamin container in his pocket during baggage […]