Florida Steps Up Fight Against Citrus Canker
July 31 — The state is launching a major assault on the crop-destroying citrus canker disease in central Florida, trying to remove infected trees before the next tropical storm or hurricane spreads the bacteria any farther. (Associated Press)

Canadian Scientists Test Laser-Radar
July 31 — A unique laser-radar destined for the arctic plains of Mars is providing insight into the atmospheric conditions above Halifax, Nova Scotia, by measuring aerosols, clouds, water vapor and temperatures. (Associated Press)

ASEAN States Welcome to Join New Climate Pact: Australia
July 31 — Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) would be welcome to join a new six-country pact on curbing greenhouse gases once details are worked out, Australia says. (AFP)

Slovakia Cuts Access to Forests on Polish Border after Spate of Fires
July 31 — Slovakia has banned public access to forests in the northern High Tatras mountains near the border with Poland after the worst fire there in 60 years consumed more than 250 hectares (620 acres) of woodland. (AFP)

Rash of Wildfires Ravages Forests and Crops in Greece
July 31 — Scores of wildfires fanned by violent winds destroyed about 500 hectares (1,200 acres) of forests and crops in Greece over the weekend, emergency services say. (AFP)

Fresh Rain Compounds India Flood Misery as Death Toll Nears 1,000
July 31 — Torrential rain lashed Mumbai again, disrupting flights, hampering rescue efforts and bringing more misery as the death toll from the heaviest downpours in the Indian city's history neared 1,000. (AFP)

Study: Warming Is Intensifying Hurricanes
July 31 — New research shows for the first time that hurricanes spinning in both the Atlantic and the Pacific since the 1970s have increased in duration and intensity by about 50 percent. (Associated Press)

Africanized Honeybees Found in Louisiana
July 30 — Nearly 30 years after a TV movie showed the Superdome saving New Orleans from "killer bees," Louisiana has joined other southern-tier states with confirmed sightings of the aggressive insects. (Associated Press)

Vegas Heading for 'Dry Future'
July 29 — Las Vegas is world-renowned as a city of fantasy, flaunting its reputation for excess, but environmentalists warn water supplies could run dry within the next 50 years while urban sprawl is out of control and development is encroaching on protected areas. (BBC)

'Myth' that Forests Improve Water Flows
July 29 — Many countries are wasting millions of dollars planting trees because of myths that forests always help improve water flows and offset erosion, a British-led study says. (Reuters)

Asia's Promised Tsunami Alert System by December
July 29 — Disaster early warning towers will be in place across Southeast Asia in time for the first anniversary of the December 26 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed more than 200,000 people, the United Nations says. (Reuters)

Robin, Not Crow, May Be West Nile Culprit
July 29 — The beloved American robin, not the annoying, raucous crow, may be the more potent source for West Nile virus, according to new research. (Associated Press)

A Butterfly Map of America's Green Space
July 28 — Researchers say butterflies are good environmental indicators and tracking the types and numbers of butterfly species across time and space can provide early warnings when something is amiss. (Christian Science Monitor)

Fighting Bloom and Gloom
July 28 — Scientists are studying the unusually large algae bloom off Massachusetts this spring and summer, hoping to determine if this event pushed these tiny organisms farther south than their usual range, making an even larger area of shellfish beds vulnerable to future algae blooms. (Christian Science Monitor)

Overfishing Leads to Decline in Big Fish
July 28 — Scientists say the variety of tuna, marlin, swordfish and other big ocean predators has declined up to 50 percent over the past half-century due to overfishing. (Associated Press)

Jellyfish Gone With the Wind in California
July 28 — Tens of thousands of purplish-black jellyfish that invaded Orange County beaches for the past week mostly disappeared along with a red tide of microscopic plankton on which they may have been feeding. (Associated Press)

'Mini Tornado' Wreaks Brief Havoc in British City
July 28 — A freak "mini-tornado" injured 20 people, three seriously in Britain as it cut a half-mile path of destruction through part of the city of Birmingham. (AFP)

India's Heaviest Rains Leave 786 Dead, Mumbai near Standstill
July 28 — Floods, landslides and building collapses caused by India's heaviest-ever recorded rainfall have killed at least 786 people and brought the financial capital Mumbai to a near-standstill, police say. (AFP)

U.S, Five Asia-Pacific Nations Unveil New Climate Initiative
July 28 — The United States, China and four Asia-Pacific nations announced a partnership to cut greenhouse gases blamed for global warming, but environmental groups dismissed the plan as unworkable. (AFP)

Large Forest Fire Damages Homes near Athens
July 28 — Hundreds of firemen struggled to contain a fire that was raging through a pine forest and damaging homes in a populated coastal area near Athens, Greece, a local official says. (AFP)

Bruce A. Bolt, 75, Scientist Who Improved Earthquake Safety, Dies
July 28 — Bruce A. Bolt, a seismologist who made important observations about earthquakes in California and later helped translate the research into safer and more resilient bridges and buildings, died on July 21 in Oakland, California. (The New York Times)

Franklin Strengthens on Slow, Erratic Path
July 28 — Tropical Storm Franklin intensified slightly in the Atlantic waters, but is no longer a threat to Bermuda, forecasters say. (Associated Press)

Hurricanes Start With Tiny Droplets, Study Hints
July 27 — New research suggests that a prominent force behind devastating hurricanes is tiny drops of water: the ocean spray from storm-surge waves. (National Geographic News)

NASA Develops a Nugget to Search for Life in Space
July 27 — Astrobiologists who search for evidence of life on other planets may find a proposed Neutron/Gamma ray Geologic Tomography (NUGGET) instrument to be one of the most useful tools in their toolbelt. (Science Daily)

Researcher Measures the Gases Cows Emit
July 27 — A scientist in California is studying the gases given off by cows to write the state's first air quality regulations for dairies that could ultimately affect regulations nationwide. (Associated Press)

Witnesses Say Bears Back in Switzerland
July 26 — Bears may have returned to Switzerland, more than 100 years after disappearing from their Alpine habitat, according to eyewitnesses. (Associated Press)

Now Streaming Live: Pacific Walruses
July 26 — Two cameras installed at the Walrus Islands State Game Sanctuary off Alaska's southwest coast are giving scientists and Web surfers alike the chance to watch the mammals rest and play in their natural environment. (Associated Press)

Rare Island Birds Threatened by 'Super Mice'
July 26 — "Monster mice" are eating albatross chicks alive, threatening rare bird species on a remote south Atlantic island seen as the world's most important seabird colony. (Reuters)

Researcher Trying to Breed Tropical Fish
July 26 — A University of New England researcher is working to breed a tropical aquarium fish in captivity in an effort to take pressure off fragile ecosystems in Southeast Asia that are being damaged by unsustainable harvesting of exotic fish species. (Associated Press)

Sea Turtles Hunted to Brink, Study Finds
July 26 — Sea turtles are being killed by the thousands by commercial fishermen in Nicaragua, according to a new report. (LiveScience.com)

Tropical Storm on Path Toward Bermuda
July 26 — Tropical Storm Franklin was continuing its slow, erratic path toward Bermuda and a tropical storm watch was issued for western Atlantic islands, where forecasters said Franklin could drop 2 to 4 inches of rain. (Associated Press)

Powerful Typhoon Hits Mainland Japan, Disrupts Transport
July 26 — A powerful typhoon drenched eastern Japan with rain, narrowly missing Tokyo but delaying flights and traffic and causing a sea accident. (AFP)

Twenty-two Dead, 120 Feared Trapped in Indian Landslides
July 26 — At least 22 people have died and some 120 are feared trapped beneath two separate landslides in India's western state of Maharashtra following flashfloods caused by monsoon rains, officials say. (AFP)

New Report Finds Australia Set to Heat Up within 25 Years
July 26 — Australia will become warmer and drier with average national temperatures rising as much as two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) and rainfall decreasing significantly by 2030, according to a new report. (AFP)

German Army Opens Sites for Wind Plant Projects
July 26 — Germany's army has started offering two training locations to wind power plant developers in a process that could eventually involve more than 250 sites housing 750 megawatts of generation capacity, wind energy association BWE says. (Reuters)

Japan Hosts 'Children's Summit' on the Environment
July 26 — Some 600 children from 65 countries gathered in Japan to give their own views on how to protect the environment in a United Nations event to create awareness. (AFP)

Drought Devastates Crops in U.S. Midwest
July 26 — Drought conditions have spread across the Central and Northwest U.S., with some areas receiving only a third of the average rainfall and officials warn this may cause global agriculture, especially corn, prices to jump. (AFP)

Avoidable Lightning Deaths Mount in 2005
July 26 — Lightning has killed at least 14 people and injured more than 100 in the United States since early June, according to a statement issued today by NOAA, parent organization of the National Weather Service. (LiveScience.com)

Dead Sea-Red Sea Canal Could Cause Quakes
July 26 — The chairman of Egypt's Suez Canal Authority objected to a project to link the Dead Sea and the Red Sea, saying it would increase the risk of earthquakes in the Middle East. (Reuters)

Moderate Quake Rocks Montana
July 25 — An earthquake measuring a magnitude 5.6 struck southwestern Montana, rattling windows, nerves and buildings, but there were no immediate reports of any serious damage or injuries. (Associated Press)

Japan Braces as Tropical Storm Heads North
July 25 — A powerful tropical storm was moving slowly north toward Japan, threatening to make landfall by the end of the week along a coast that was hit by a record number of deadly typhoons last year. (Reuters)

At Least 41 People Die in Western U.S. Heat Wave
July 25 — A relentless heat wave has killed at least 41 people in the Western United States since the start of July, officials said. (AFP)

Greenpeace Wants Halt to Deep Seas Bottom-Trawling
July 25 — Greenpeace issued a fresh call to stop the practice of bottom-trawling, saying the international organizations that manage fish stocks were doing nothing to stop the destruction of ocean beds. (Reuters)

Scientists Lead Sea Expedition from Land
July 25 — The ship with all the gadgets and underwater rovers is in the Atlantic Ocean, but for the first time, the team of scientists directing the expedition is not on board, instead they are watching 52-inch plasma television screens on land as an unmanned submersible pokes around Lost City hydrothermal vents, a forest of limestone chimneys on the ocean floor. (Associated Press)

Blackberry Fungus Enters U.S., Hits Oregon
July 25 — A deadly fungus used to control the spread of unwanted varieties of blackberries overseas has landed in the United States, infecting numerous fields in Oregon, the capital of America's blackberry industry. (Associated Press)

Reversing Course, NASA Moves Ahead With Glory Mission
July 25 — NASA intends to finish and fly the Glory climate-monitoring satellite, reversing a decision the U.S. space agency made just six months ago to cancel the $208 million mission. (Space.com)

Poaching Becoming Rampant on Federal Land
July 24 — The low chances of getting caught and the volcanic dust of the grasslands that preserves the bones of prehistoric animals make it easy for poachers with even the most elementary knowledge of archaeology to walk onto the land and take what they want, a fast growing problem, say officials. (Associated Press)

Wildfires Brought Under Control in Portugal as Temperatures Drop
July 24 — Firefighters aided by cooler overnight temperatures have brought a rash of wildfires which ravaged Portugal over the past week, killing one man and prompting the evacuation of several mountain villages, under control, emergency services say. (AFP)

Spain to Declare Disaster Zone in Fire-Hit Area
July 24 — Spain will declare a disaster zone in a region ravaged by a wildfire that killed 11 firefighters, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero says. (Reuters)

Strong Quake Hits Indian Islands, But No Tsunami
July 24 — India's Andaman and Nicobar islands, devastated by last year's tsunami, were shaken by a strong quake, but fears of new killer waves hitting the Indian Ocean archipelago proved unfounded. (Reuters)

Car Makers Set to Miss European Union Emissions Goal
July 24 — European car makers are unlikely to meet their voluntary target for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide, an industry newspaper reported, raising the prospect that lawmakers will force them to act. (Reuters)

Gert Takes Aim at Mexico's Gulf Coast
July 24 — Tropical Storm Gert headed for Mexico's Gulf Coast with a threat of several inches of rain in an area where some spots already had been soaked by Hurricane Emily. (Associated Press)

Tropical Storm Franklin Churns Away from U.S.
July 23 — The sixth tropical storm of one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record strengthened as it churned through the Atlantic and away from the United States, forecasters say. (Reuters)

Strong Earthquake Shakes Tokyo
July 23 — A strong earthquake registering 6.0 on the Richter scale shook Tokyo and its vicinity, lightly injuring 18 people, swaying buildings in the heart of the capital and disrupting transport. (AFP)

China Seeks Spanish Help on Meeting Energy Needs
July 23 — China's top economic planner urged the visiting Spanish prime minister to seek ways to help the Asian powerhouse meet its rising fuel demand through new renewable energy sources, state press says. (AFP)

Hazy Cloud of Saharan Dust Nearing U.S.
July 23 — An enormous, hazy cloud of dust from the Sahara Desert is blowing toward the southern United States, but meteorologists do not expect much effect beyond colorful sunsets. (Associated Press)

Scientists Say More Right Whales Are Dying
July 23 — More than 8 in 10 right whale deaths may be going undiscovered, according to marine scientists who called for emergency action to help prevent humans from accidentally killing the rare animal. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Emily Takes Toll on Sea Turtles
July 22 — When Hurricane Emily tore through the Yucutan Peninsula last weekend it destroyed nearly all the eggs that have been laid so far this season by endangered sea turtles on the white sand beach of Xcacel. (Christian Science Monitor)

Mexico Reports First Death from Hurricane
July 22 — Mexican authorities reported the first death from Hurricane Emily, which destroyed thousands of buildings and drove 90,000 people from their homes as it tore through northern Mexico this week. (Associated Press)

After Five Hurricanes, Florida Slow to Rebuild
July 22 — Contractors say a shortage of labor has delayed repairs to hundreds of thousands of homes, apartments and other housing units that have been damaged or destroyed by 5 Florida hurricanes over the past 12 months. (Associated Press)

Geologist Maps Undersea Terrain in Massachusetts
July 22 — When geologist Page Valentine steams out for a trip off the state's picturesque coastline, he's far more interested in what he can't see - using sophisticated sonar to map 1,400 square miles of ocean floor off the Massachusetts coast for 11 years. (Associated Press)

Mount St. Helens Still Shaking
July 22 — There's a whole lotta shakin' going on at Mount St. Helens these days as the restless peak does what it has done for thousands of years: build new lava domes that totter and fall and become the foundations for still more new ones. (Associated Press)

Expert Questions Existence of Woodpecker
July 22 — An expert on the ivory-billed woodpecker is questioning evidence that the rare bird, once thought to be extinct, exists in the swamps of Southeast Arkansas. (Associated Press)

At Least 18 People Die as Heat Wave Scorches Western U.S.
July 22 — A summer heat wave packing temperatures of as high as 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit) has killed at least 18 people in the western United States, authorities say. (AFP)

AERONET Mission Follow Up: Finding an Instrument's Place under the Sun
July 22 — East Africa now has some new technology to monitor the tiny particles in the air known as aerosols, thanks to the placement of a number of NASA's AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) sunphotometers. (I-Newswire.com)

Eerie Recording Captures Sound of Tsunami
July 22 — Sound from last December's huge tsunami-causing earthquake was picked up by underwater microphones designed to listen for nuclear explosions, and the spine-tingling hiss and rumble is an eerie reminder of the devastation and death that is still being tallied in the largest natural disaster in modern times. (LiveScience.com)

Ice Mission Almost Set for Launch
July 22 — European engineers are carrying out final checks on the ice monitoring craft CryoSat, in preparation for an autumn launch. (BBC)

"Save Sight with More Light": NASA Helps Develop New Bulb
July 22 — A revolutionary product for eye correction has been developed by NASA and Westinghouse Lighting Systems, the Eye Saver Easy Reading Light Bulb that focuses specifically on the needs of those in working environments. (I-Newswire.com)

Northern California Oil Refineries Get Tougher Pollution Standard
July 21 — Historic new regulations limiting how much waste gases San Francisco-area oil refineries can burn are a "win-win" for the companies and the environment, air quality officials say. (AFP)

"Satellites & the City": NASA Scientists Encourage Satellite Observations to Improve Our Understanding of Urban Effects on Climate and Weather
July 21 — A new study suggests satellites can help us better understand how a society's desire to live in densely populated areas has the potential to change our Earth's climate. (Science Daily)

Smog Fight Aided by Self-Cleaning Elements
July 21 — Scientists are taking the fight against big-city smog to the streets by developing "smart" building materials designed to clean the air with a little help from the elements. (Associated Press)

Heat Wave to Stick Around in Southwest
July 21 — As a record heat wave bakes the Southwest, government forecasters are offering little respite in their long-range outlook, calling for above normal temperatures from August through October. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Fizzles, Still Trigger Floods
July 21 — Hurricane Emily fizzled to a tropical depression as it moved inland, but remained a threat with heavy rains and flooding in northern Mexico. (Associated Press)

Endangered Siberian Tigers Growing in Numbers in China
July 21 — The number of Siberian tigers in captivity in China has been climbing, raising hopes for the future of the highly-endangered species. (AFP)

Scientists Plan to Reintroduce Gray Whales off United Kingdom
July 21 — Squadrons of Gray whales could be winging their way across the Atlantic within a decade to restock British waters under plans put forward by two conservation scientists. (Reuters)

China Mops Up as Residents Return after Typhoon
July 21 — Evacuated residents began returning to their inundated homes as China began mopping up the mess left by Typhoon Haitang, which killed at least 17 people with eight more still missing. (AFP)

Greenland Glacier Melting Rapidly, Sliding into Sea
July 21 — A glacier in Greenland is melting very rapidly and has accelerated its slide into the sea, with Greenpeace warning that this "dramatic" discovery proves that immediate action is needed to stop climate change. (AFP)

Deadly Spanish Forest Inferno 'Under Control'
July 21 — A fire that ravaged a nature reserve in central Spain killing 11 firefighters was declared under control, as the official in charge of environmental issues in the regional government resigned over the blaze. (AFP)

Portugal Seeks Better Management of Its Fire-plagued Forests
July 21 — Portugal, which has lost over one-fifth of its forests to wildfires over the past five years, is looking into ways to improve the management of its woodlands to reduce the risk of blazes. (AFP)

Portugal Advises Against Bathing in Southern Beaches Due to Red Algae
July 21 — Health officials in Portugal advised against swimming along a 12- kilometer (seven mile) stretch of the nation's southwestern coast because of the appearance of red algae in the ocean. (AFP)

Humans Primarily Cause Global Warming
July 21 — Global warming is caused primarily by humans and "nearly all climate scientists today" agree with that viewpoint, the new head of the National Academy of Sciences - a climate scientist himself - says. (Associated Press)

World Bank to Take Lead in New Climate Change Plan
July 20 — The World Bank wants to bring together nations split over the Kyoto Protocol to work out a new plan that would remain effective long beyond the 2012 expiration of the climate change treaty. (Reuters)

China and Taiwan Grapple with Havoc from Typhoon Haitang
July 20 — At least 15 people were reported dead and several missing in China and Taiwan in the aftermath of Typhoon Haitang, whose lashing winds and rain caused millions of dollars in damage. (AFP)

Texas Weathers Emily with Little Damage
July 20 — Hurricane Emily pushed turbulent waves onto resort islands, bent palm trees and rocked some parked cars, but the storm wound up being nothing more than an inconvenience for many residents in South Texas. (Associated Press)

Strong Quake Rocks Taiwan
July 20 — An earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale jolted high-rise buildings in Taiwan, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. (AFP)

Health Warnings Issued in Greece as Temperatures Climb
July 20 — Greek authorities issued public health warnings and braced for record-breaking electricity consumption as temperatures in Athens and other parts of the country were set to reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) - the highest so far this year. (AFP)

Heavy Rain Causes Earth Tremors in German Alps
July 20 — More than 30 tremors have been recorded beneath the Hochstaufen mountain in Bavaria, probably caused by heavy rainfall dissolving salty stone inside the mountain, a ministry official says. (Reuters)

Power Cuts, Roads Blocked after New Storms in Flood-Devastated Romania
July 20 — Fresh rainstorms overnight in flood-hit Romania have left 260 communities without electricity and cut off several roads in the south and west of the country, the interior ministry says. (AFP)

Drought Sweeps All of Portugal, Fires Kill One
July 20 — Portugal, gripped by its worst drought in at least 60 years, sent hundreds of firefighters to battle deadly blazes across the country and forecast heavy losses to the parched agricultural sector. (Reuters)

Population of Endangered Woodpecker Rises
July 20 — Working by flashlight in a Georgia pine forest, wildlife biologists carefully position nets over tree cavities 30 to 40 feet above ground to monitor a vast woodpecker population boom. (Associated Press)

Scientists: Antarctic Has Strong Ecosystem
July 20 — An expansive ecosystem of knee-high mud volcanoes, snowy microbial mats and flourishing clam communities lies beneath the collapsed Larsen Ice Shelf in Antarctica, say researchers. (Associated Press)

Research Lab Probes Life under the Sea
July 20 — A bevy of scientists and researchers spend up to 10 days underwater at an underwater lab off the Florida Keys pursuing a variety of studies, ranging from water pollution to astronauts-in-training. (Associated Press)

Gulf Dead Zone Likely to Be Smaller
July 20 — The dead zone off the coasts of Louisiana and Texas should be considerably smaller than usual this year - about the size of Rhode Island, rather than larger than Jamaica, researchers say. (Associated Press)

Europe Moving in 'R&D Slow Lane'
July 20 — The stagnating state of science and technology investment in the European Union is laid bare by new statistics, showing the bloc devoted just 1.93% of its wealth (Gross Domestic Product) in 2003 to this important area - compared with 2.59% in the U.S. and 3.15% in Japan. (BBC)

Field Tests Unite Weather and Climate Models
July 20 — Researchers from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and several other government and academic institutions have created four new supercomputer simulations that for the first time combine their mathematical computer models of the atmosphere, ocean, land surface and sea ice. (PhysOrg.com)

Wetland Birds Hit Hard by Drought
July 19 — Wading birds in South-east England look set to be amongst the casualties of this year's drought, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds says. (BBC)

Britain Plans New Antarctic Research Base
July 19 — Britain plans to replace its aging scientific research station in the Antarctic with a structure on skis so that it can move away from dangerous ice, officials say. (Associated Press)

Experts Say Arkansas May Have Earthquake
July 19 — Residents of the northeastern part of Arkansas along the New Madrid fault should be prepared for a high-magnitude earthquake, the University of Memphis Center for Earthquake Research and Information says. (Associated Press)

New Futures Market Gambles on Hurricanes
July 19 — Three University of Miami professors have founded an electronic futures market that allows the public, students and trained forecasters to invest in shares representing selected coastline spots where they think a hurricane will strike, and those who forecast most accurately will get a payout. (Associated Press)

Emily's Outer Bands Hit Southern Texas
July 19 — Several families fled Hurricane Emily as its outer bands began lashing the southern tip of Texas, while others boarded up windows and stocked up on sandbags in anticipation of a storm that forecasters predict could drop 5 to 10 inches of rain on the lower Rio Grande Valley and northeastern Mexico. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Emily Aims at Mexico Coastline
July 19 — Hurricane Emily grew in strength as its outer winds and rain lashed Mexico's coastline, forcing thousands in northeastern Mexico and southern Texas to seek higher ground. (Associated Press)

Storms Worsen Erosion Fears in the Gulf
July 19 — Federal, state and local governments are spending millions across Florida to widen and build up eroding beaches and repair damage from Ivan and three other powerful hurricanes that hit last year. (Associated Press)

Clinton Warns of Global Warming Dangers
July 19 — Former President Clinton sounded a warning against the dangers of climate change as he met with young South Africans. (Associated Press)

World Faces Massive Increase in Carbon Dioxide Emissions as Population Grows
July 19 — The world faces a massive increase in carbon dioxide emissions because of population growth, poor countries getting richer, and the failure of wealthy countries to reduce greenhouse gases, a world population conference heard. (AFP)

Oyster Isn't Endangered, Fishermen Tell Congress
July 19 — The Eastern Oyster may be in trouble in the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, but any move to protect it as an endangered species could devastate thriving oyster fisheries from Maine to Louisiana, fishermen told Congress. (Reuters)

Italy Shuts Beach after Toxic Algae Surfaces
July 19 — Environmental experts have closed a stretch of beach near the northern Italian city of Genoa after toxic algae poisoned dozens of bathers, an official said. (Reuters)

U.S. Lawmakers Push a Longer Day to Save Energy
July 19 — U.S. lawmakers working out details of a broad U.S. energy bill voted to expand daylight-saving time by two months to conserve energy, but refused to boost mileage requirements for gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles. (Reuters)

Canada Planes to Monitor Arctic for Ship Pollution
July 19 — Canadian spotter planes will for the first time start monitoring Arctic waters for illegal discharges of waste by ships which could damage the region's delicate environment, officials say. (Reuters)

India Unlikely to Meet 2012 Forest Cover Target
July 19 — India is unlikely to meet a target of increasing forest cover to one-third of its territory by 2012 because some trees will be cut for industrial activity to meet the needs of economic development. (Reuters)

India Unlikely to Meet 2012 Forest Cover Target
July 19 — India is unlikely to meet a target of increasing forest cover to one-third of its territory by 2012 because some trees will be cut for industrial activity to meet the needs of economic development. (Reuters)

Typhoon Haitang Makes Landfall, Pounding Chinese Mainland
July 19 — More than one million people were evacuated as Typhoon Haitang pounded China's coast after tearing through Taiwan, where up four people were killed and one was missing. (AFP)

Death Toll Rises to 23 in Romania's Floods
July 19 — The floods in northeastern Romania last week killed 23 people and have left 750 cut off from the rest of the world, local authorities say. (AFP)

Ship Leaks Diesel onto Russia's Pacific Coast
July 19 — A clean-up operation was launched after a ship taking part in oil and gas drilling at the Sakhalin fields off Russia's Pacific coast struck an underwater object in stormy weather and began to leak diesel, a local news agency reported. (AFP)

Beijing Ski Resorts Blamed for Exacerbating Capital's Water Shortages
July 19 — A leading academic has warned that a tremendous growth in ski resorts in Beijing is threatening the Chinese capital's water supply as the city prepares to open its first-ever indoor facility, state press say. (AFP)

Heat and Hype: The Truth about the Scorching Southwest
July 19 — The Southwest U.S. has been gripped by a deadly heat wave that might seem extraordinary to newcomers, those with short memories, or anyone who pays too much attention to the media. (LiveScience.com)

A Step toward Personal Windmills
July 19 — Engineers have developed the guts of a small-scale windmill that could one day help power individual homes. (LiveScience.com)

Portugal Pins Energy Hopes on Wind Farm Licenses
July 18 — Portugal's Socialist government said it would grant licenses within six months to build massive stretches of wind farms, as part of a 2.5 billion-euro ($3-billion) investment plan in renewable energy. (Reuters)

At Least One Dead as Taiwan Battens Down for Strongest Typhoon in Five Years
July 18 — At least one person was killed and 34 injured as Typhoon Haitang pounded Taiwan, forcing airports and financial markets to shut down while Southeast China evacuated more than half a million people as it braced for the storm. (AFP)

India's Rare Tigers and Freshwater Dolphins Threatened by Poaching
July 18 — India's tiger and freshwater dolphin populations are rapidly dwindling as poachers kill the endangered species to feed a lucrative trade in traditional medicines, newspaper reports say. (AFP)

Tiny Tsunami Reveals Big Gaps in Readiness
July 18 — The tiny wave generated by a major undersea earthquake off the far Northern California coast last month revealed large gaps in how ready communities hugging the Pacific shoreline are for a true tsunami threat. (Associated Press)

Native Lore Adds Clues to Ancient U.S. Catastrophes
July 18 — The Pacific Northwest is an historically active area for earthquakes and tsunamis. Native lore is giving scientists new clues about such catastrophes, including information on a fault line stretching along the coast from Vancouver to northern California -- that likely erupted in seven or more major earthquakes in the last 3,500 years, geologists say. (LiveScience.com)

SIDS Linked to Nitrogen Dioxide Pollution
July 18 — High outdoor pollution levels, especially nitrogen dioxide, raise the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), say California-based researchers. (Reuters)

Lightning Strike Injures 21 Guardsmen
July 18 — Lightning struck a metal canopy and injured 21 soldiers who were standing under it at a National Guard weapons training range at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania. (Associated Press)

European Union Presses on with Drive to Reduce Energy Use
July 18 — The European Union's (EU) energy chief charged ahead with his drive to cut energy consumption in the EU, calling on households to use efficient appliances and launching a campaign to promote sustainable energy use. (Reuters)

Methane's Impacts on Climate Change May Be Twice Previous Estimates
July 18 — New NASA-funded research shows a particular greenhouse gas - methane - may have an even larger role in climate change than previously believed. (Science Daily)

Study Says Ethanol Not Worth the Energy
July 17 — Farmers, businesses and state officials are investing millions of dollars in ethanol and biofuel plants as renewable energy sources, but a new study says the alternative fuels burn more energy than they produce. (Associated Press)

Glacial Cover-Up Won't Stop Global Warming
July 17 — Most of Austria's 925 glaciers have been receding under decades of global warming; prompting researchers and ski-lift operators to seek novel solutions that many researchers admit will only slow the shrinkage. (Associated Press)

Official: Dennis Ruined Florida Cotton Crop
July 17 — Hurricane Dennis destroyed up to 50 percent of the cotton crop in parts of the state, making it the second straight year that some farmers will struggle to make a profit after a hurricane, agriculture officials say. (Associated Press)

Hurricane's Winds Begin to Lash Yucatan
July 17 — Jittery tourists clutching pillows streamed out of beachside hotels and headed inland as Hurricane Emily's outer winds lashed the Yucatan peninsula. (Associated Press)

Taiwan Braces for Typhoon, Markets Shut Down
July 17 — Taiwan braced for the powerful typhoon Haitang, ordering schools, government offices and financial markets to close on July 18 as the storm bore down on the island's northeast coast. (Reuters)

Thousands Count Endangered Bird in India
July 17 — Carrying binoculars and notebooks, thousands of nature lovers and conservationists scoured semiarid grasslands of western India to count a bird considered on the brink of extinction. (Associated Press)

Tasmanian Coral Reef 'Proof of Global Warming'
July 17 — Biologists have found a shallow reef extensively covered by coral off the northeast coast of Tasmania, strong evidence that warmer sea temperatures are having an impact on the marine environment since reefs typically only survive in warm, tropical waters. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

China's Summer Floods Affect 90 million People, Destroy 702,000 Houses
July 17 — China's summer floods have affected 90 million people so far, the official Xinhua news agency says, while confirming an earlier report that 764 people have been killed with another 191 missing. (AFP)

Romanian Flood Tolls Rise to 19
July 16 — The death toll in Romania's floods has risen to 19 over the past six days, the interior ministry says, although water levels were beginning to fall. (AFP)

Minnesota, Mississippi Students Win Solar Car Race
July 16 — Student teams from Minnesota and Mississippi cruised to victory in a high school solar car race along a 1,600-mile route through the Southwest. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Emily Aims for Mexico's Yucatan
July 16 — Fishermen dragged skiffs to shore and workers raced to board up buildings in Jamaica as Hurricane Emily swept along the country's southern coast, packing winds of nearly 155 mph and rain that could bring landslides and flooding. (Associated Press)

Why So Many Storms So Early in Hurricane Season?
July 15 — July is usually a slow month for Atlantic hurricanes, but it feels like peak season for parts of Florida and the Gulf Coast, and meteorologists say it's because of warmer than normal water temperatures and a strong, larger-than-average high pressure system over the North Atlantic. (ABC)

Earthquake Jolts Mount St. Helens Volcano
July 15 — A magnitude three earthquake rattled Mount St. Helens, triggering rockfall and sending an ash plume above the crater rim, says the United States Geological Survey. (Associated Press)

Court Nixes Regulating Greenhouse Gases
July 15 — States lost a bid to force the federal government to regulate heat-trapping industrial gases that have been blamed for global warming. (Associated Press)

EU Targets Sport Vehicles in Car Emissions Rules
July 15 — Popular sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in Europe will no longer benefit from a loophole that lets them escape tough emissions standards under draft proposals presented by the European Union's executive. (Reuters)

Endangered Squirrels' Numbers Down
July 15 — A wildfire that charred 29,400 acres near Mount Graham, Arizona last year may have contributed to a decline in the population of endangered red squirrels, whose numbers are now at their lowest levels since 1991. (Associated Press)

Hawaii Fights Noisy Frog Infestation
July 15 — It's hard to imagine that a tiny, two-inch creature could cause so much harm, but the coqui frog has become a menace in Hawaii, where it suddenly appeared in the 1990s, and has since multiplied exponentially - causing lots of noise and headaches for homeowners. (Associated Press)

Protecting California Salamander to Cost $367 Million
July 15 — Protecting the California tiger salamander as a threatened species will cost the state $367 million in lost development opportunities over the next two decades, federal wildlife officials say. (Associated Press)

Virginia Mountain Wind Farm Gets Initial OK
July 15 — A plan to put 19 towering wind turbines on a pair of mountain ridges won initial county approval despite vigorous public opposition, likely setting up a court challenge. (Associated Press)

Indonesia Pledges over 15 million Dollars to Combat Illegal Logging
July 15 — The Indonesian government has pledged over 15 million dollars to aid in the fight against illegal logging which is leaving the country's forests depleted, the forestry ministry says. (AFP)

More than 1,000 Dead in Natural Disasters in China so far this Year
July 15 — Natural disasters have claimed more than 1,000 lives around China this year, with 764 people drowned and 191 others missing in severe floods alone. (AFP)

Wrapping Alpine Glaciers
July 15 — The few skiers and hikers who make their way up to the Stubai glacier in Austria in the early summer are outnumbered by workers covering parts of the ski slopes with tons of white textile, in hopes of protecting the glacier from the glare of the sun to prevent further rapid melting. (NBC)

Danish Scientists Developing Solar Cell
July 15 — Danish scientists say they have built a new type of plastic solar cell that lasts significantly longer than previous versions and could pave the way for cheaper solar power. (Associated Press)

Planet with Three Suns Challenges Astronomers
July 14 — In a scenario out of "Star Wars," astronomers have detected a planet outside our solar system with not one, but three suns, a finding that challenges astronomers' theories of planetary formation. (Reuters)

Arctic Pollution Linked to Bird Droppings
July 14 — A major source of chemical contamination in the Arctic turns out to be bird droppings - a study by a group of Canadian researchers found that the chemical pollution in areas frequented by seabirds can be many times higher than in nearby regions. (Associated Press)

U.S. Firm Turns Chicken Droppings into Energy
July 14 — Scientists at Gas Technology Institute in Des Plaines, Illinois, have developed a machine that turns chicken droppings into gas and electricity, company officials say. (AFP)

Fault May Be More Dangerous Than Thought
July 14 — The fault that has twice caused major earthquakes in the Tokyo area may be shallower and more hazardous than previously thought. (Associated Press)

Siberia Much Warmer than 45 Years Ago, Study Warns
July 14 — Average temperatures in Siberia have risen by three degrees Celsius (5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) just since 1960, research by a team of German scientists has found. (AFP)

Red Tide Research Grant to Be Awarded
July 14 — The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is getting a $540,000 grant for red tide research, following this spring's worst bloom of the toxic algae in New England since 1972. (The Boston Globe)

Scientists Wary of Red Tide Recurrence
July 14 — The red tide that shut down shellfish beds from Maine to Buzzards Bay is fading, but scientists are worried that the toxic tide could return to coastal waters as soon as this fall. (Associated Press)

Australian Town Could Die of Thirst
July 14 — Sports fields too hard to play on, gardens that have dried up and plumbing so bereft of water that every bathroom smells -- this is the reality of drought in Goulburn, on track to be the first Australian city to die of thirst. (AFP)

Thousands Forced to Flee Homes as Rains Trigger Floods in Northeast India
July 14 — Thousands of people have been displaced from their homes due to floods and landslides triggered by heavy monsoon rains across several parts of northeast India, officials say. (AFP)

Hurricane Emily Tears Through Grenada
July 14 — Hurricane Emily, now a category 2 storm, pounded Grenada, tearing the roofs off hospitals and other buildings, destroying crops and causing widespread flooding. (Associated Press)

Giant South African Crater Added to World Heritage List
July 14 — A giant crater formed 2 billion years ago when a meteorite smashed into what is now South Africa has been added to the United Nations' list of protected heritage sites, South African officials say. (Reuters)

Wyoming Wants Gray Wolf off Threatened List
July 14 — Wyoming formally petitioned the U.S. Department of the Interior to remove gray wolves from the threatened species list in the northern Rockies and to allow the state to control the predator. (Associated Press)

'Big Jump' to Raise Awareness of Need to Clean Up Europe's Rivers
July 14 — Europeans have been invited to throw themselves into the river this weekend for their first "Big Jump," a day called to advocate clean and living waterways through public awareness events across 12 European Union countries. (AFP)

Scientists Raise Alarm about Ocean Health
July 13 — With a record number of dead seabirds washing up on West Coast beaches from central California to British Columbia, marine biologists are raising the alarm about rising ocean temperatures and dwindling plankton populations. (Associated Press)

Tsunami Quake Caused 1,000 Kilometer Sea Floor Rupture
July 13 — Scientists say, the earthquake that triggered December's devastating Indian Ocean tsunami caused a 1,000 kilometer (620 mile) rupture in the sea floor. (Reuters)

Mountain Building Quicker than Thought
July 13 — By studying the geology of the Southern Caledonides in western Norway, researchers have found that the time between burial and resurfacing, called the orogenic cycle, took 13 million years, instead of some 40 million years as previously thought. (LiveScience.com)

Washington City Turns Down Lab Tunnel Proposal
July 13 — The Leavenworth City Council has voted down a proposal from the University of Washington to build a $300 million science lab under Mount Cashmere, nine miles west of this Cascade Mountain resort town. (Associated Press)

California Mulls Emissions Plan for Big Trucks
July 13 — California air-quality regulators are considering a requirement that big-rig trucks install computer systems to pinpoint on-the-road emissions problems, a move that could spur a change in federal rules. (Reuters)

California Officials Worry about Asian Beetle
July 13 — State and federal agriculture officials warned that destructive Asian beetles have been found near a Sacramento warehouse and dispatched federal firefighters to climb nearby trees to search for traces of the insects that might harm area oak trees. (Associated Press)

Animal Rights Group Sues Over Sea Lions
July 13 — An animal rights group filed a lawsuit accusing the federal government of violating several environmental protection acts by allowing the use of certain research techniques on threatened and endangered Steller sea lions. (Associated Press)

Officials Investigating Pelican Deaths
July 13 — The Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the deaths of thousands of young white pelicans at a wildlife refuge in central North Dakota, a year after thousands of adult birds abruptly left the same location. (Associated Press)

Caterpillars Invade New Mexico Forests
July 12 — Some of northern New Mexico's aspen stands have been stripped of their leaves by masses of wriggling caterpillars in search of food and a place to build a home, but forest officials are confident the trees will recover in time to show off their brilliant colors. (Associated Press)

Wyoming Panel Approves Grizzly Boundaries
July 12 — The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission set boundaries for where grizzly bears can roam in the state in hopes of ending special federal protections and giving Wyoming, Montana and Idaho more control over the bears. (Associated Press)

Geologist: Laguna Landslide Predictable
July 12 — The Laguna Beach, California, landslide that destroyed at least 11 homes and displaced hundreds of residents last month was a predictable result of geologic conditions in the area, according to a report. (Associated Press)

Indonesia Raises Java Volcano Alert after Weekend Tremors
July 12 — Indonesian scientists upgraded an alert status for the Mount Merapi volcano on densely populated Java Island after almost 100 tremors were recorded. (AFP)

Local Leaders Urged to Lead Climate Fight
July 12 — Former U.S. Energy Secretary Bill Richardson urged mayors from across the nation yesterday to take the lead in fighting global warming. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Dennis Fixes Botched Florida Reef
July 12 — Mother Nature tidied up a man-made mess off the coast of the Florida Keys when the force of Hurricane Dennis flipped a sunken U.S. Navy ship into the perfect position to help form an artificial reef. (Reuters)

Lessons of Ivan Paid off for Residents in Hurricane Dennis
July 12 — Responsiveness, coupled with some cooperation from nature, made the start to this year's season in Florida far less dramatic than in 2004. (Christian Science Monitor)

Caribbean Braces for Possible Hurricane as Emily Gathers Steam
July 12 — The Caribbean braced for a possible hurricane as Tropical Storm Emily roared across the Atlantic, just days after Hurricane Dennis left at least 62 people dead in Cuba, Haiti and the southern United States. (AFP)

The Ocean's Deadliest Trick
July 12 — Year after year, the ocean's most successful killer is not the great white shark, monster waves, or hurricane-force wind; instead, your worst ocean nightmare is more likely to be a rip current, causing over 21,000 rescues in 2004 alone, says the U.S. Lifesaving Association. (LiveScience.com)

Manitoba Says Half of Crops Look Average or Better
July 12 — Half of Manitoba crops appear to be in average to above-average condition, the director of Manitoba Agriculture's crops branch says, but the other half has been hurt by excess rain. (Reuters)

European Union Targets Ireland, Others on Environment
July 12 — Ireland, Portugal and Luxembourg drew fire from the European Union (EU) Executive Commission for flouting EU environmental laws on issues from ozone layer protection to air pollution. (Reuters)

Hurricane Dennis Leaves Five Dead in U.S., 22 in Caribbean
July 11 — Storm-weary U.S. Gulf coast residents started mopping up in the wake of hurricane Dennis, which left five dead in two U.S. southern states and another 22 in the Caribbean. (AFP)

Flooding Surprises Village Far from Dennis
July 11 — The small fishing village on the picturesque St. Marks River received a nasty surprise from Hurricane Dennis: although the storm came ashore some 175 miles west, it pushed an 8-foot storm surge down the mouth of the river, flooding businesses and homes with chest-deep water. (Associated Press)

Some of Dennis' Worst Damage Far Afield
July 11 — The first hard look at the spot where Hurricane Dennis rolled ashore revealed a messy patchwork of buckled roads, tattered roofs, downed power lines, and washed-out beaches -- damage accepted by storm-weary residents as mercifully moderate. (Associated Press)

Hillary Issues Call to Save Mt. Everest
July 11 — Edmund Hillary, the first climber to conquer Mount Everest with his Sherpa guide, urged that the world's highest mountain be placed on the United Nations' list of endangered heritage sites because of the risks of climate change. (Reuters)

Hollywood Could Help Save Madagascan Forests
July 11 — The hit movie "Madagascar" has raised hopes that its namesake island will benefit from higher tourist visits, which could encourage locals to conserve rainforests considered among the world's most pristine and rare. (Reuters)

Lightning Spawned Wildfire Forces Evacuation of Thousands
July 11 — An out-of-control wildfire prompted the evacuation of thousands of people and threatened hundreds of mountain homes in Colorado, according to authorities. (AFP)

Native Tales Hint at Past West Coast Tsunamis
July 11 — Tales about "Thunderbird" and "Whale" by native tribes along the U.S. West Coast, along with geological clues, point to at least two massive quakes and tsunamis that have hit the area in the last 1,100 years, a researcher says. (Reuters)

A Strong Quake Prompts Panic in Indonesia's Sulawesi Island
July 10 — An earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale rocked an area in the Indonesian province of Central Sulawesi, prompting widespread panic but no casualties or significant damage, officials say. (AFP)

Fires Rage in Drought-hit Portugal
July 10 — A camping ground was partially evacuated in the north of Portugal while more than 1,000 firefighters backed up by water-dropping aircraft fought 20 fires which were burning out of control across the country. (AFP)

State to Tackle Climate Change
July 10 — States and cities across the country are making moves of their own to tackle climate change and Arizona is one of the latest to hop aboard, although it's a cautious step that will involve at least a year of study before any recommendations are made. (The Arizona Republic)

North Carolina Addresses Global Warming
July 10 — Climate change, sea-level rise and global warming are especially troublesome to the lowest coastal areas in the country, including the North Carolina barrier islands that are at the front lines of the effects of a rising, warmer ocean that could engulf shorelines, swallow infrastructure and feed storms. (The Virginian-Pilot)

There Are Exceptions, MU Professor Says
July 10 — Global warming and cooling are not global, and some regions can buck the climate trends for several million years, a University of Missouri-Columbia geologist has discovered. (The Kansas City Star)

Global Warming Expected to Worsen Hurricanes
July 9 — A new study finds that within 80 years, the average hurricane strength will increase by half a category in the five-step scale of destructive power, due to global warming. (ABC News)

2005 Sets Mark with 4 Named Storms So Far
July 9 — Martin Nelson, the lead forecaster at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, says this is the first time the Atlantic hurricane season had four named storms this early in the season since record-keeping began in 1851. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Dennis Roars Toward Gulf Coast
July 9 — Hurricane Dennis dealt a glancing blow to the Florida Keys, knocking out power and leaving streets flooded with seaweed as it roared toward the storm-weary Gulf Coast, where nearly 1.4 million people were under evacuation orders. (Associated Press)

Deadly Dennis Kills 15 in Caribbean and Aims for U.S.
July 9 — Cuba's deadliest hurricane in 40 years gathered strength as it moved over the Gulf of Mexico away from Cuba, where it killed 10 people and authorities evacuated more than 1.5 million from their homes. (AFP)

Regulators OK Wind Farm Near Bird Home
July 8 — Wisconsin regulators approved a $250 million wind farm that its proponents said would generate energy for 72,000 homes and opponents warned would kill migratory birds. (Associated Press)

Warming to Take Heavy Toll on Polar Bears, Report Says
July 8 — As the pack ice that is the bedrock of their existence melts because of global warming, polar bears are facing unprecedented environmental stress that will cause their numbers to plummet, according to a report by several of the world's leading specialists on the species. (The Washington Post)

Unusual Number of Wildfires Scorch Alaska Coast
July 8 — Rising temperatures in Alaska have sparked an unusual number of storms along the state's south-central coast this summer, officials say, and the multitude of lightning strikes and resulting fires have burned more than 1 million acres. (Reuters)

Study: Brush Fires Caused Australian Extinctions
July 7 — The extinction of most of Australia's large animals occurred around 45,000 years ago, shortly after the arrival of humans, and a new study suggests human burning of the landscape forced dietary changes that killed off many of the animals. (Associated Press)

Data Reveal Sea Levels Have Risen More than 1 Inch in Last Decade
July 7 — For the first time, NASA has the tools and expertise to understand the rate at which sea level is changing, some of the mechanisms that drive those changes and the effects that sea level change may have worldwide. (Knight Ridder)

North Atlantic Ocean Temps Hit Record High
July 7 — Ocean temperatures in the North Atlantic hit an all-time high last year, raising concerns about the effects of global warming on one of the most sensitive and productive ecosystems in the world. (Associated Press)

Agencies Propose Great Lakes Cleanup Plan
July 7 — From cleaning toxic hot spots to repelling the exotic species invasion, a blueprint requested by President Bush calls for governments at all levels to help solve the Great Lakes' biggest environmental problems. (Associated Press)

G-8 Declaration Recognizes Global Warming
July 7 — Leaders of the Group of Eight industrial nations reached a global warming agreement that recognizes the problem as partly caused by human activity but does not set targets or timetables for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, officials say. (Associated Press)

Hurricane Dennis Leaves 4 Dead in Haiti
July 7 — A bridge collapsed into a river swollen by Hurricane Dennis' fierce winds and rain, killing at least four people in southwestern Haiti as the storm lashed Caribbean coastlines. (Associated Press)

Tourists, Some Residents Told to Flee Keys
July 7 — People in the Florida Keys were ordered to flee and residents along hundreds of miles of Gulf Coast began boarding up as a rapidly strengthening Hurricane Dennis took aim at the storm-weary region. (Associated Press)

Tropical Storm Floods U.S. Gulf Coast Areas, Hurricane Could Be on the Way
July 6 — Tropical Storm Cindy flooded streets and knocked out power in Louisiana and Mississippi, while another weather system threatened to turn into a full-blown hurricane as it neared Haiti and Jamaica. (AFP)

What Does Busy Start Mean to Hurricane Season Predictions?
July 6 — The record fast start to this year's hurricane season won't alter meteorologists' earlier prediction of a fairly active season with 12 to 15 named storms, forecasters say. (LiveScience.com)

Tsunami Risk on San Diego Coast Could Be Higher than Previously Thought
July 6 — While Southern California's geology differs from Indonesia's, geophysicists who have studied local offshore faults and geology say the coastal region is far from seismically benign, and isn't free from tsunami risks. (San Diego Union Tribune)

Gerard C. Bond, 65, Geologist Who Studied Climate Change, is Dead
July 6 — Gerard C. Bond, a marine geologist at Columbia University who conducted novel studies of earth's climate changes by interpreting sediments taken from beneath the seafloor, died at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx. (The New York Times)

Hungry to Get Hungrier with Global Warming
July 6 — The poorest countries where food is scarcest will find it increasingly difficult to feed themselves as global warming exacerbates desertification and drought, a United Nations food agency expert says. (Reuters)

Last Shuttle Flight Made Clouds over Antarctica
July 6 — High altitude clouds were detected over Antarctica shortly after the fateful launch of the space shuttle Columbia and the fact that some of these clouds are born out of shuttle exhaust may require a rethinking of their role as a diagnostic for global climate change. (LiveScience.com)

Poisonous Algae Invade Swedish Coastline
July 6 — Carpets of poisonous blue-green algae have started invading the coasts of Sweden, a senior scientist says. (AFP)

Fires Destroy Vast Areas of Forest in Eastern Russia
July 5 — Three national parks are under threat and more than 15,000 hectares of forest have already been destroyed by raging fires which broke out in Russia's Far East region two weeks ago. (AFP)

More than 10,000 People Evacuated from Advancing Fire on French Riviera
July 5 — More than 10,000 people -- many of them foreign tourists -- were evacuated from six camping grounds on the French Riviera as an intense forest fire driven by high winds advanced on their tents and caravans. (AFP)

White Storks Skipping Winter Trip to Africa, Staying in Portugal
July 5 — Growing numbers of white storks are staying in southern Portugal year-round instead of making their annual migration to wintering grounds in Africa to the delight of local residents who encourage the birds to build nests near their homes. (AFP)

New Dolphin Species Found in Australia
July 5 — Australian researchers say they have identified a new species of dolphin living in the coastal waters of northern Australia. (Associated Press)

Pollution Experts Head to Grounded Ship
July 5 — The United States Coast Guard says it is sending experts to assess and cope with any environmental damage to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands marine reserve after a ship ran aground on a remote atoll there over the weekend. (Associated Press)

Busiest Start Ever to Hurricane Season as Fourth Storm Forms
July 5 — Predictions of a busy hurricane season appear to be on track as the development of the fourth tropical storm for 2005 set a record - the first time in recorded history four tropical storms formed in the Atlantic Basin so early in the season. (LiveScience.com)

Gulf Coast Braces for Arrival of Cindy
July 5 — A strengthened Tropical Storm Cindy moved its way toward the Gulf Coast with 70 mph winds and the potential for 10 inches of rain, forcing tourists and residents to head for higher ground and oil companies to evacuate rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. (Associated Press)

No Tornado Deaths in April-May-June
July 5 — For the first time since record-keeping started in 1950, no one was killed by a tornado in April, May or June, normally the top months for tornadoes with an average of 52 fatalities, sometimes many more. (Associated Press)

Manitoba Sees Up to 2.5 Million Acres Damaged by Rain
July 5 — As much as 2.5 million acres or about 25 percent of land in the Canadian Prairie province of Manitoba won't produce crops because of too much rain, provincial government officials say. (Reuters)

Part of Australia's 12 Apostles Collapses
July 5 — One of Australia's 12 Apostles has disappeared as one of nine limestone stacks that made up the famous landmark off Australia's southern coast collapsed into the Indian Ocean -- apparently a victim of coastal erosion. (Associated Press)

Building Destroying Spain's Coast
July 5 — Spain, where millions of holidaymakers will flock this summer, is destroying its coastline by overbuilding, environmental group Greenpeace says. (Reuters)

Mexico's Volcano of Fire Unleashes Ash
July 5 — An explosion inside the smoldering summit of western Mexico's Volcano of Fire sent ash and gases nearly three miles into the air, but did not cause any immediate evacuations. (Associated Press)

Wind Turbines Not so Deadly for Birds
July 5 — Wind turbines producing "green" energy kill many fewer birds than previously thought and pose less of a threat to avian life than cars, a study by the Dutch Bird Protection charity and power utility Nuon showed. (Reuters)

Carbon Emissions Threaten Sea Life
July 5 — Excessive carbon in the atmosphere is already causing irreparable environmental damage to the Earth's oceans and drastic cuts in emissions are necessary to prevent further devastation, a panel of leading scientists has warned. (The New York Times)

NASA Offers a Real-time 3-D Look at the Inside of Hurricanes
July 5 — Seeing how rain falls from top to bottom and how heavy the rain falls throughout parts of a tropical cyclone is very important to hurricane forecasters, and NASA has sped up the process of receiving this data within three hours, while making it appear in 3-D. (Science Daily)

Officials Investigate Deaths of Sea Birds
July 4 — Wildlife officials are trying to determine what is killing hundreds of sea birds that have washed ashore in Virginia Beach and other locations along the Atlantic coast in the past several weeks. (Associated Press)

EU Divided on Ways to Fight Pollution
July 4 — The European Commission has implicitly acknowledged that it is divided over how best to tackle pollution, by pushing back the publication of two new reports on the problem. (AFP)

Biotech Firms Fight Pollution with Plants
July 3 — "Gene jockeys" conducting exotic experiments envision a future in which plants can be used as an inexpensive, safer and more effective way of disposing of pollution. (Associated Press)

Lava Dome Falls into Mount St. Helens
July 3 — A large part of the growing lava dome on Mount St. Helens falls, sending an ash plume above the crater rim, the U.S. Geological Survey reports. (Associated Press)

Volcanic Activity Spotted Off Iwo Jima
July 3 — Japanese coast guard officials say they believe an underwater volcanic eruption has caused a 3,300-foot high column of steam to rise from the Pacific Ocean near Iwo Jima. (Associated Press)

Wildfires Pose Danger to Desert Tortoise
July 3 — Wildfires burning in the Southwest U.S. are threatening federally protected desert tortoises, further stressing a species that already has lost much of its population to drought. (Associated Press)

Brazilian Weed Clogging U.S. Lakes, Rivers
July 3 — Pockets of the South, particularly Texas, are struggling with an infestation of velvet-leaf weed in ponds and lakes that can double in size in eight to 10 days, and grow into feet-thick mats of floating vegetation, blotting out all light beneath it and effectively killing anything trying to live there. (Associated Press)

Earth Day Founder Nelson Dies at 89
July 3 — Gaylord Nelson, the folksy Democratic senator from Wisconsin who helped start the modern environmental movement with the creation of Earth Day 35 years ago, died at age 89. (Associated Press)

India to Replace Old Zoos with More 'Natural' Ones
July 2 — India, under fire from environmentalists for failing to protect its tiger population, will replace dozens of its old and crammed zoos with sprawling near-natural habitats, officials say. (Reuters)

Sensor Web Simulation Investigates Technique to Improve Prediction of Pollution across the Globe
July 1 — To improve our ability to track the transport of pollutants from their sources to populated cities and towns around the globe, NASA technologists are exploring an innovative technology called the "sensor web" that coordinates observations by spacecraft, airborne instruments and ground-based data-collecting stations. (Science Daily)

Red Tide Recedes in Massachusetts
July 1 — Shellfish beds that closed because of an outbreak of toxic red tide algae were reopened in seven coastal communities, just in time for the holiday weekend. (Associated Press)

India Flood Death Toll Rises to 94
July 1 — Nearly a hundred people have been killed and around 200,000 displaced by severe flooding in western India in the past week, officials say. (Reuters)

Monsoon to be Average: Indian Minister
July 1 — India's monsoon rains, vital for its farm-reliant economy, will be average this year, Science Minister Kapil Sibal said before adding that while some parts of the country could face severe floods others could be parched. (AFP)

35 New Sri Lanka Frogs Discovered
July 1 — Researchers confirmed the discovery of 35 new frog species in Sri Lanka's dwindling rain forest over the past decade, but also found that 17 frog species have disappeared and 11 others face imminent extinction unless their habitat is protected. (Associated Press)

Global Warming to Wreck Mediterranean 'Paradise'
July 1 — Global climate change will bring hotter, drier summers to the Mediterranean and hit two of the region's biggest earners, agriculture and tourism, according to a study released by the environmental group WWF. (AFP)

Malaysia Moving West since December's Tsunami Quake
July 1 — Malaysia has been shifting west instead of the usual east since the huge December earthquake that produced a deadly tsunami, with Langkawi island moving as much as 7 inches. (AFP)

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