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Oceans at risk from global warming -scientists
Scientists say that the oceans are reaching the limit of their capacity to store carbon dioxide (CO2), the major greenhouse gas, which makes them more acid and puts thousands of marine species at risk. Thanks to global warming, they are currently absorbing one ton of (CO2) per person per year. The scientists are calling on the Group of Eight industrialized nations, who are meeting at Gleneagles, Scotland next week, to take action.
Thousands evacuated in post-drought Australia rain
The good news is that the drought in eastern Australia has broken. The good news is tempered by the fact that 2 people are missing and 3,300 people have had to be evacuated due to flood waters of more than 10 meters (33 feet).
Biotech crop policy in EU gets rethink after rebuff
EU environment ministers have emphatically (22 out of 25) rejected European Commission proposals for lifting bans on certain genetically modified (GMO) products.
Tobacco Fungal Disease Confirmed in Ky.
Blue mold, a fungus that attacks tobacco plants, has been found on nine acres of a farm in Kentucky, but the weather seems to be preventing it from spreading.
Penguins Embrace Zoo Visitors in Syracuse
18 Humboldt penguins were the star attraction at the new $3.7 million "Penguin Coast" exhibit at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo.
No Fish Tale: Thais Catch 646-Pound Fish
The Mekong giant catfish has been listed as critically endangered since 2003, but villagers in Chiang Khong, Thailand recently caught the largest recorded, nearly 9 feet long and 646 pounds. It did not survive long enough to be sold to environmental groups for propagation, so it was eaten. Four captive catfish were recently released into the Mekong river, Cambodia to boost numbers.
U.S. Case of Mad Cow Traced to Texas
The USA's second case of mad cow disease, and the first case that was born in the USA, was born and raised in Texas by one owner. The dead animal was incinerated. The herd has been quarantined. Focus has now turned to the animals that the might have come into contact with the animal, and herd's feed. The animal was born before the 1997 ban on the use of cattle parts in cattle feed.
U.S. mad cow was found at Champion Pet Foods plant
The cow was dead on arrival at the Waco-based pet food facility and a sample was sent for testing last November, but mad cow disease has only recently been confirmed. It was kept out of the pet food chain. Offspring and herdmates of the cow are being traced.
WHO calms fears of bird flu virus mutation
An international flu pandemic as a result of a mutation of bird flu into a form that can pass from human to human has long been predicted. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), however, no tests so far in Vietnam have shown such a mutation.
Vietnam bird flu toll rises to 39
The 73-year-old Vietnamese was the 19th to die of the H5N1 virus since it returned in December.
Texas Man Mysteriously Gets Rare Illness
A Texas man has fallen ill with Q fever, a rare flu-like bacterial disease. His case is unusual because he has had no contact with livestock.
E-Tagging of Pygmy Elephants Helps Study
The WWF is tagging rare dwarf pygmy elephants which are only found on Borneo Island in Malaysia's Sabah state. At 8 feet tall they are a foot or two shorter than other Asian elephants, with longer tails. It has not been studied before because until DNA tests were carried out in 2003, it was not realised that it was a separate subspecies.
Businesses Sue California Over Salmon
California state protections for coho salmon have come under fire from timber, cattle and other business interests who say that the California Fish and Game Commission's rules were enacted with insufficient evidence and that they duplicate federal law.
Which form of storage for radioactive waste do you feel is safest?
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