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Lights out: can we stop glow-worms and fireflies fading away?

From night walks with children to switching off streetlights and rewilding areas, naturalists are working to save Europe’s dwindling populations An hour or so after sunset, green twinkles of possibility gleam beneath the hedgerows of Westbury-sub-Mendip in Somerset. Under an orange August moon, the last female glow-worms of the season are making one final push at finding a mate.For almost 20 years, Peter Bright and other volunteers have combed the village’s shrubberies and grasslands, searching for the bioluminescent beetles as part of the UK glow-worm survey. Most years, they have counted between 100 and 150, rising to 248 in 2017.Ben Cooke, a National Trust ranger, places a glow-worm trap near Winspit Quarry in Dorset. Photograph: P Flude/Guardian Continue reading...

An hour or so after sunset, green twinkles of possibility gleam beneath the hedgerows of Westbury-sub-Mendip in Somerset. Under an orange August moon, the last female glow-worms of the season are making one final push at finding a mate.For almost 20 years, Peter Bright and other volunteers have combed the village’s shrubberies and grasslands, searching for the bioluminescent beetles as part of the UK glow-worm survey. Most years, they have counted between 100 and 150, rising to 248 in 2017.During last year’s wet summer and this year’s dry one, they found barely 50, says Bright, a retired science teacher taking a group on a late-night glow-worm walk. By August, the remaining lights are something of a lonely hearts club – many of the adult males have already died.Glow-worms and fireflies comprise about 2,200 species of bioluminescent beetles around the world, with 65 found in Europe. The UK has two, including the common glow-worm (Lampyris noctiluca) – which is not a worm and only the females truly glow – while Italy has 17 species.Across Europe, five species of glow-worm are threatened with extinction, another two are endangered, and the common glow-worm is classified as near threatened, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.“Once, these things were much more common than they are now,” says Tim Gardiner, an entomologist. “Nobody could have realised what would happen to them.” His 18-year survey found that the numbers of L noctiluca in Essex were falling by about 3.5% a year.Similar trends have been observed in France, Germany and Spain, though the insects, which live quiet, secretive lives in the foliage, are not easy to survey accurately. “There is so much that we don’t know about fireflies,” says Ana Catalán, who researches firefly genomics at Germany’s Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.Their vulnerability is part of a much larger story: more than 40% of insect species are in decline, according to a global review from 2019, and scientists have warned that the picture may be more dire than is already known. Ana Catalán, an evolutionary biologist, checks a global firefly collection for a DNA study at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich’s biomedical centre, and a researcher checks his trap for fireflies “We need more data,” says Alan Stewart, an ecologist at the University of Sussex, adding: “We haven’t really got the luxury of waiting another 50 years to find out.”For glow-worms, some of the threats are clear. Hotter summers threaten the slugs and snails they feed on as larvae, while habitat loss and fragmentation have extinguished whole populations. As female glow-worms cannot fly, they are bound to spend their lives close to where they hatched, so a change as seemingly minor as a new ditch can devastate a population.Light pollution disrupts their mating displays, with artificial lights sometimes luring males away from the female’s green glow. “Street lights are a real hazard to them,” says John Tyler, a naturalist who has studied the insects for decades.These trends recur around the world. In Italy, more agricultural activity on the plains of northern Italy and in the northern Apennine mountains has been linked with declining numbers of a range of different species, according to a 2020 study published in the journal BioScience.In Spain, the abandonment of small orchards – and the lack of irrigation that follows – makes it harder for snails, glow-worms’ preferred food, to thrive. In both countries, more streetlights seem to correlate with fewer glow-worms.We realised that to protect and preserve this place, we had to make people love itSome people have attempted to take matters into their own hands. Fabio Falchi, an Italian physics professor and light-pollution expert in Mantua, Lombardy, took steps to reduce light pollution in his garden, including using motion sensors for outdoor lights and allowing it to grow wild.Now, Falchi says: “Every May, our lawn comes alive with their tiny flickers. It’s beautiful to watch them move.” Their cat, he adds, is mesmerised.Others have proposed more drastic steps. Since 2020, Pete Cooper, an ecologist and species-reintroduction specialist in Bristol, has bred glow-worms in captivity, with a view to re-establishing healthy populations in places where they have not been seen for decades.As part of a partnership between Restore, an ecological restoration business, and the Wildwood Trust, a conservation organisation with parks in Kent and Devon, many of these insects will be reintroduced to Nosterfield nature reserve, near Ripon in North Yorkshire.But it will take years to determine the success of their efforts – glow-worms have a two-year life cycle – and some optimism is involved, Cooper says. “That’s the thing with glow-worm reintroduction – it’s not as simple as you’d think.”Tyler says: “We don’t know what habitat is good for them, in any detail. You can find sites that look ideal, but if you try to introduce or reintroduce glow-worms, you can never guarantee that they’ll take.”Glow-worm enthusiasts are divided on reintroduction efforts, which they worry may distract from preserving existing populations or embolden developers to build in ancient countryside.“Before you reintroduce something, you really need to know why it disappeared in the first place,” says Stewart. “Otherwise, they’re not going to survive.”Rewilding can help bolster the insects in riverside areas where they already thrive, says Gardiner. “You need to manage the habitats quite well,” he says. “The corridors between them have disappeared in the last 70 years – hedgerows removed, meadows ploughed up.”Areas that have been rewilded sometimes see glow-worm populations boom. In the early 1990s, a group of volunteers in the Italian village of Binasco, near Milan, began reclaiming and revitalising a plot of land between the highway and a local sports pitch.After a few years, they noticed more and more fireflies, says Ruggero Rognoni, a member of the local environmental association.“We realised that to protect and preserve this place, we had to make people love it,” Rognoni says.A first step was inviting local children to come for night walks to see the fireflies with their parents, a tradition that has continued. “That’s how we’ve managed to protect it,” he says.Such walks exist around the world and are growing in popularity. On the glow-worm walk in Westbury, locals linger along country paths, as a barn owl screeches overhead. Over a couple of hours, careful eyes spot almost a dozen female glow-worms waiting at ankle-height.The average glow-worm female lays 100 to 150 eggs – it’s a numbers’ game. You might have a brilliant year, then it might suddenly crashAmanda Bennett, 48, gently pulls a female from the grass and places it on her hand, transfixed by the green glow that spreads across her fingers. “I can’t believe I’ve never seen one before,” she says.Glow-worms were once a far more common sight, especially for people strolling on summer nights.Tyler was first introduced to them about 50 years ago, in a family friend’s garden. “I didn’t even know they were real,” he says.That night, Tyler saw more than he has on any single occasion since. “It was like looking down on a village,” he adds. “All these dots of light.”They have an unusual capacity to captivate people. John Horne, an amateur naturalist, first discovered them in his Hampshire garden about 25 years ago.After observing them for years, including discovering Phosphaenus hemipterus, a rarer species, Horne is more optimistic about their prospects than some. “The average glow-worm female lays 100 to 150 eggs – it’s a numbers’ game,” he says. “You might have a brilliant year, and then it might suddenly crash.”Where many species find it harder to capture the imagination, glow-worms can be a “gateway drug”, as Cooper puts it, for connecting with nature.Tyler says: “If it has to start with something that glows out of its bottom, then so be it.”Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow the biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield in the Guardian app for more nature coverage

Business
Conservation
Extinction

Crews Are Working to Fix Alaska Native Villages Devastated by Flooding. but Will Residents Return?

Crews are working to repair remote Alaska Native villages that were devastated by the remnants of a typhoon last month

KWIGILLINGOK, Alaska (AP) — Darrel John watched the final evacuees depart his village on the western coast of Alaska in helicopters and small planes and walked home, avoiding the debris piled on the boardwalks over the swampy land.He is one of seven residents who chose to remain in Kwigillingok after the remnants of Typhoon Halong devastated the village last month, uprooting homes and floating many of them miles away, some with residents inside. One person was killed and two remain missing.“I just couldn’t leave my community,” John said while inside the town’s school, a shelter and command post where he has helped solve problems in the storm's aftermath.But what will become of that community and others damaged by the severe flooding — whether their people, including John's children, will come back — is an open question as winter arrives.The office of Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy says the state's focus is on repairing the villages and supporting the more than 1,600 people who were displaced. It could take 18 months. Hundreds are in temporary housing, many in Alaska's biggest city, Anchorage, where they must accustom themselves to a world very different from the subsistence lifestyle they're used to.Even with short-term repairs, residents question whether their villages can persist where they are as rising seas, erosion, melting permafrost and worsening storms threaten inundation year after year. John hopes repairs can keep the community together long enough to come up with a plan to move the village.“A lot of people have claimed they’re not returning. They don’t want to do this again,” said Louise Paul, a 35-year resident of Kipnuk, the hardest-hit village, who evacuated about 100 miles away to the regional hub city of Bethel. “Every fall, we have a flood. It might not be as extreme as this one was, but as the years have set in, we’re seeing it. The climate warming is increasing the storms and they’re just getting worse and worse.” A region of natural abundance — and floods Where the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers enter the Bering Sea is one of the largest river deltas in the world — a low-lying area roughly the size of Alabama, with dozens of villages and a population of about 25,000 people. For thousands of years Athabascan and Yup’ik people were nomadic, following the seasons as they fished for salmon and hunted moose, walrus, seals, ducks and geese. They settled into permanent villages around churches or schools after missionaries and then government arrived. Those villages remain off the road system — connected by plane or boat, with all-terrain vehicles or snowmachines in winter.Flooding has long been a problem. Strong winds can push high tides and even sheets of ice onto land. In the 1960s, tidal floods prompted some frustrated residents of Kwigillingok to start another village, Konkiganak, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) away. Alaska Native villages on the front lines of global warming With climate change, storms have grown more intense. Shorter periods of ice coverage means less protection from erosion. Melting permafrost undermines villages.Kwigillingok spent years seeking state and federal help as well as working to raise some houses on pilings and to move others to higher ground, according to a 2019 report from the Alaska Institute for Justice. But that “high ground” is only about 3 feet (0.9 m) above the rest of the village on the flat, treeless tundra.In Kipnuk, the Kugkaktlik River has cut ever closer. This year, the Trump administration canceled a $20 million grant for a rock wall to reinforce the riverbank — a step recommended by the Army Corps of Engineers in 2009 — amid the administration’s efforts to cut government spending.Some 144 Alaska Native communities face threats from warming, said a 2024 report from the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium. Over the next 50 years, some $4.3 billion will be needed to mitigate damage, it found.Relocating villages is no easy task. Newtok began planning in the mid-1990s and only moved its last residents into the new town of Mertarvik, northwest of Kwigillingok, last year. The relocation cost more than $160 million in state and federal money. A storm surge unlike others Harry Friend has lived through many floods in Kwigillingok in his 65 years, but nothing like what the remnants of Typhoon Halong brought the night of Oct. 11. Other homes, loosed from the ground, bashed his before floating upriver. The Coast Guard plucked dozens of survivors from rooftops.“When the water started coming in, my house was floating, shaking, floating, shaking," he said. The next morning, the homes of his older sisters and brother, who lived next door, were gone.His family has settled with relatives in a nearby village, but he returned to see what he could salvage and to retrieve his shotguns so he can hunt.Unmoored homes are scattered across the tundra like game pieces on a board. One building rested on its corrugated metal roof and rocked in the wind. Others had smashed into boardwalks. Coffins lodged in above-ground cemeteries washed away.But work crews have arrived with large earth movers, gravel and other material brought by barge. Some residents have come back to help, such as by repairing boardwalks, recovering coffins or righting fishing boats that overturned.Efforts to rebuild, which include repairing water and fuel lines, will proceed as long as the weather allows, said state emergency management spokesman Jeremy Zidek.Kwigillingok resident Nettie Igkurak stayed behind to cook traditional food for the workers, search crews and remaining residents. The school freezer works, and it's stocked with moose meat.“I knew I had to stay and cook for them because they had no one,” she said.Friend has since rejoined his family. He couldn't remain at the home for the winter: The power outage spoiled his stockpile of seal, walrus, moose and beluga whale. And because the storm surge forced salt water from the Bering Sea into the village, there's little access to fresh water.He knows the village will likely need relocation.“This is our land," Friend said. “You’ve got to come back to your home."Some 500 miles (800 km) away, Darrell John of Kipnuk — not related to the Darrel John who remained in Kwigillingok — is realizing his idyllic subsistence life may be over.“We’re probably never going back home,” he said as he took a break from filling out assistance applications at a shelter in Anchorage.Like other residents, he was airlifted twice — first to the regional hub of Bethel, and then to Anchorage when shelters in Bethel became too crowded. He and his family are staying in a motel room.They abandoned their home for the village school as the water rose at 2 a.m. When he returned, it was gone, along with his shed full of freezers packed with berries, fish, moose and seal.He got in a boat, found his house far upriver, and retrieved some clothing and birth certificates.As they were airlifted out, he saw that most of the village cemetery's graves were gone. He felt like he was abandoning his late mother and brother.Anchorage has its advantages, he said: “Flushing toilets; we don’t have them back home.”But to hunt, he now needs permits and for the animals to be in season — hurdles foreign to subsistence hunters.And he will need a job — but what?“I have no idea,” John said. “This was not a plan to be here."Johnson reported from Seattle and Bohrer from Juneau, Alaska.___ The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See – Oct. 2025

Animals
Climate
Food

Brazil Stumps up Billions of Dollars for Its Ambitious Rainforest Fund at UN Climate Summit

Brazil has unveiled long-awaited details about a plan to pay countries to preserve their tropical forests and announced it had already drawn $5.5 billion in financial pledges

BELEM, Brazil (AP) — Brazil on Thursday unveiled long-awaited details of a plan to pay countries to preserve their tropical forests and announced it had already drawn $5.5 billion in pledges.Financed by interest-bearing debt instead of donations, the fund, dubbed the Tropical Forests Forever Facility, seeks to turn the economic logic of deforestation on its head by making it more lucrative for governments to keep their trees rather than cut them down. Although destroying rainforests makes money for cattle ranchers, miners and illegal loggers, Brazil hopes to convince countries that preserving forests promises richer rewards for the entire world by absorbing huge amounts of planet-warming emissions.As senior Brazilian officials walked reporters through the fund’s inner workings, Norway pledged $3 billion — the biggest commitment of the day — raising hopes about Lula's ambitions becoming a reality. Through investments in fixed-rate assets, the fund aims to issue $25 billion of debt within its first few years before leveraging that into a pot worth $125 billion that can pay developing countries to protect their tropical rainforests.A list of more than 70 heavily forested countries — from Congo to Colombia — will be eligible for payments as long as they keep deforestation below a set rate. Nations that fail to protect their forests will see their payouts reduced at a punitive rate for every hectare that’s destroyed.“I was already very excited about this, but now even more so,” Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said in a press conference. But the fine print on Norway’s announcement — contingent on Brazil raising some $9.8 billion in other contributions — has ramped up the pressure on Brazil to deliver. Other pledges include $1 billion from Indonesia and $500 million from France, along with $5 million from the Netherlands and $1 million from Portugal toward setup costs.Brazil earlier announced $1 billion to kick off the fund. Officials said they expected to hear about Germany's contribution on Friday.But it remained unclear how many other countries would follow suit. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed support for the initiative on Thursday but declined to declare a pledge.Brazil is also banking on the participation of the private sector after the fund reaches $10 billion, considered enough to start preparing bond issuances.When asked about possible concerns on Thursday, Norwegian Climate Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen said he thought the risks to the fund were “manageable.”“There is perhaps an even bigger risk of not participating,” he said. “Rainforests are disappearing before our eyes.”“These initiatives demonstrate a massive and welcome shift in recognizing the central role that Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants and local communities play in protecting the forests that sustain us," said Wanjira Mathai, managing director for Africa and Global Partnerships at the World Resources Institute, a research organization. “These commitments could be transformative, but only if governments turn these words into action.”The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.orgCopyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See – Oct. 2025

Forests
Climate
Indigenous

Where climate meets community

MIT’s Living Climate Futures Lab takes a human-centered approach to investigating a global challenge.

The MIT Living Climate Futures Lab (LCFL) centers the human dimensions of climate change, bringing together expertise from across MIT to address one of the world’s biggest challenges.The LCFL has three main goals: “addressing how climate change plays out in everyday life, focusing on community-oriented partnerships, and encouraging cross-disciplinary conversations around climate change on campus,” says Chris Walley, the SHASS Dean’s Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and head of MIT’s Anthropology Section. “We think this is a crucial direction for MIT and will make a strong statement about the kind of human-centered, interdisciplinary work needed to tackle this issue.”Walley is faculty lead of LCFL, working in collaboration with a group of 19 faculty colleagues and researchers. The LCFL began to coalesce in 2022 when MIT faculty and affiliates already working with communities dealing with climate change issues organized a symposium, inviting urban farmers, place-based environmental groups, and others to MIT. Since then, the lab has consolidated the efforts of faculty and affiliates representing disciplines from across the MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS) and the Institute.Amah Edoh, a cultural anthropologist and managing director of LCFL, says the lab’s collaboration with community organizations and development of experiential learning classes aims to bridge the gap that can exist between the classroom and the real world.“Sometimes we can find ourselves in a bubble where we’re only in conversation with other people from within academia or our own field of practice. There can be a disconnect between what students are learning somewhat abstractly and the ‘real world’ experience of the issues” Edoh says. “By taking up topics from the multidimensional approach that experiential learning makes possible, students learn to take complexity as a given, which can help to foster more critical thinking in them, and inform their future practice in profound ways.”Edoh points out that the effects of climate change play out in a huge array of areas: health, food security, livelihoods, housing, and governance structures, to name a few.“The Living Climate Futures Lab supports MIT researchers in developing the long-term collaborations with community partners that are essential to adequately identifying and responding to the challenges that climate change creates in everyday life,” she says.Manduhai Buyandelger, professor of anthropology and one of the participants in LCFL, developed the class 21A.S01 (Anthro-Engineering: Decarbonization at the Million-Person Scale), which has in turn sparked related classes. The goal is “to merge technological innovation with people-centered environments.” Working closely with residents of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Buyandelger and collaborator Mike Short, the Class of 1941 Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering, helped develop a molten salt heat bank as a reusable energy source.“My work with Mike Short on energy and alternative heating in Mongolia helps to cultivate a new generation of creative and socially minded engineers who prioritize people in thinking about technical solutions,” Buyandelger says, adding, “In our course, we collaborate on creating interdisciplinary methods where we fuse anthropological methods with engineering innovations so that we can expand and deepen our approach to mitigate climate change.”Iselle Barrios ’25, says 21A.S01 was her first anthropology course. She traveled to Mongolia and was able to experience firsthand all the ways in which the air pollution and heating problem was much larger and more complicated than it seemed from MIT’s Cambridge, Massachusetts, campus.“It was my first exposure to anthropological and STS critiques of science and engineering, as well as international development,” says Barrios, a chemical engineering major. “It fundamentally reshaped the way I see the role of technology and engineers in the broader social context in which they operate. It really helped me learn to think about problems in a more holistic and people-centered way.”LCFL participant Alvin Harvey, a postdoc in the MIT Media Lab’s Space Enabled Research Group and a citizen of the Navajo Nation, works to incorporate traditional knowledge in engineering and science to “support global stewardship of earth and space ecologies.”"I envision the Living Climate Futures Lab as a collaborative space that can be an igniter and sustainer of relationships, especially between MIT and those whose have generational and cultural ties to land and space that is being impacted by climate change,” Harvey says. “I think everyone in our lab understands that protecting our climate future is a collective journey."Kate Brown, the Thomas M. Siebel Distinguished Professor in History of Science, is also a participant in LCFL. Her current interest is urban food sovereignty movements, in which working-class city dwellers used waste to create “the most productive agriculture in recorded human history,” Brown says. While pursuing that work, Brown has developed relationships and worked with urban farmers in Mansfield, Ohio, as well as in Washington and Amsterdam.Brown and Susan Solomon, the Lee and Geraldine Martin Professor of Environmental Studies and Chemistry, teach a class called STS.055 (Living Dangerously: Environmental Programs from 1900 to Today) that presents the environmental problems and solutions of the 20th century, and how some “solutions” created more problems over time. Brown also plans to teach a class on the history of global food production once she gets access to a small plot of land on campus for a lab site.“The Living Climate Futures Lab gives us the structure and flexibility to work with communities that are struggling to find solutions to the problems being created by the climate crisis,” says Brown.Earlier this year, the MIT Human Insight Collaborative (MITHIC) selected the Living Climate Futures Lab as its inaugural Faculty-Driven Initiative (FDI), which comes with a $500,000 seed grant.MIT Provost Anantha Chandrakasan, co-chair of MITHIC, says the LCFL exemplifies how we can confront the climate crisis by working in true partnership with the communities most affected.“By combining scientific insight with cultural understanding and lived experience, this initiative brings a deeper dimension to MIT’s climate efforts — one grounded in collaboration, empathy, and real-world impact,” says Chandrakasan.Agustín Rayo, the Kenan Sahin Dean of SHASS and co-chair of MITHIC, says the LCFL is precisely the type of interdisciplinary collaboration the FDI program was designed to support."By bringing together expertise from across MIT, I am confident the Living Climate Futures Lab will make significant contributions in the Institute’s effort to address the climate crisis," says Rayo.Walley said the seed grant will support a second symposium in 2026 to be co-designed with community groups, a suite of experiential learning classes, workshops, a speaker series, and other programming. Throughout this development phase, the lab will solicit donor support to build it into an ongoing MIT initiative and a leader in the response to climate change.

Climate
Agriculture
Crisis

Check Your City: Air Pollution Linked to Slower Marathon Times

By Deanna Neff HealthDay ReporterTHURSDAY, Nov. 6, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Does the city you run in make a difference? Researchers say yes, it...

By Deanna Neff HealthDay ReporterTHURSDAY, Nov. 6, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Does the city you run in make a difference? Researchers say yes, it does.When marathon runners hit the wall or fall behind their goal pace, they often blame fatigue, weather or nutrition. However, a study from Brown University published in Sports Medicine suggests a less obvious, environmental culprit: air pollution.Researchers analyzed a dataset of 2.6 million marathon finish times from major U.S. races, including those in Boston, New York City and Los Angeles, spanning 17 years and matched it to estimated pollution levels from weather stations. They found a direct link between slower average finish times and higher concentrations of fine particulate matter known as PM2.5.The data also showed that the fastest runners were more affected by this effect.PM2.5 refers to tiny pollutants smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter. These particles are often the focus of air-quality health advisories, because they can travel deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream, causing inflammation and chest constriction, reports The New York Times.The study revealed a measurable slowdown tied to PM2.5 levels. For every increase of one microgram per cubic meter increase in these tiny particles, the average finish time for runners dropped.In other words, on a day with even moderately elevated pollution, a runner's time could be slower by several minutes.The Los Angeles Marathon generally had the highest estimated median pollution levels and the slowest median finish times among the races studied. While this could owe to other factors like warmer weather and a hillier course, the overall pattern of slower finishes in more polluted races held true across all cities, even when comparing different years within the same marathon city.Boston had the fastest average finish time and one of the cleanest air levels among the cities, along with Minneapolis/St. Paul and New York City.What makes this finding particularly notable is that it affects even the fittest individuals. “What’s notable is that we’re looking at people who are all incredibly healthy,” Joseph Braun, a professor of epidemiology at Brown, told The New York Times. “But even among really healthy people, air pollution is having an important, albeit subtle, effect on your physiology.”Surprisingly, the slowdown was more pronounced for faster-than-average runners. Researchers suspect this may be because elite and competitive marathoners breathe in more air — and do so more rapidly — inhaling a larger dose of the pollution over the 26.2-mile course.PM2.5 primarily comes from the burning of fossil fuels — such as from power plants, gasoline or diesel vehicles — as well as from forest fires and wood burning. While air quality has improved in many U.S. regions, short-term spikes from sources like wildfire smoke have become a growing concern, The Times said. SOURCE: The New York Times, Nov. 1, 2025Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Health
Pollution

14 Incredible New Books to Inspire Your Friends and Family in the Year Ahead

These beautifully produced new books — covering art and photography, cooking, crafts, and more — celebrate our wildlife, health, and sustainable ways to care for our environment. The post 14 Incredible New Books to Inspire Your Friends and Family in the Year Ahead appeared first on The Revelator.

After a challenging year, we could all use something to help us recharge and remotivate ourselves. A new book (or two, or more) may be just what the situation calls for. We’ve gathered 14 new books to inspire you, your friends and family as the year winds down — and encourage everyone to start the new year with a positive and energetic approach. The list includes practical, thoughtful, and informative reads that you might find humorous and enlightening. We’ve adapted the books’ official descriptions below, and the link in each title goes to the publisher’s page. You should also be able to find any of these titles through your local bookseller. Pseudoscience: An Amusing History of Crackpot Ideas and Why We Love Them by Lydia Kang and Nate Pedersen This short, light-hearted book is a visual and narrative history of popular ideas, phenomena, and widely held beliefs disproven by science. From the easily disproved to the wildly speculative, to straight-up hucksterism, Pseudoscience is a romp through much more than bad science — it’s a hilarious look into why we insist on believing in things such as climate change denial, phrenology, astrology, and the existence of aliens. For example, “Rumpology” claims you can tell a person’s future by touching their butt. Seriously. Other examples include fake moon landings by the government, spontaneous human combustion, and gay conversion “therapy.” This wild mix of history, pop culture, and good old-fashioned science not only entertains, but sheds a little light on why we all tend to believe in things we know aren’t true — and how con artists take advantage of us by convincing us that these unscientific notions are facts. This book is a searing commentary on how conspiracy theories can spread like wildfires across the social networks of our increasingly interconnected online existence. Painting the Cosmos: How Art and Science Intersect to Reveal the Secrets of the Universe by Nia Imara This National Indie Excellence award winner presents a stunning portrait of our vast, dynamic, and mysterious universe as seen through the lenses of astronomy and art, evoking our curiosity about where the two come together. Astrophysicist and visual artist Dr. Nia Imara combines these perspectives to shed new light on the marvels of the universe and how we see ourselves in it. Richly illustrated with stunning full-color images of our universe and beautiful paintings, drawings, sculptures, and more from creators around the world — particularly the often-neglected work of women and Black artists — this one-of-a-kind book unites the realms of art, science, and culture to create a dynamic portrait of the cosmos, inspiring one to see the world in a fascinating new light where space and art are beautifully intertwined. Welcome to Florida: True Tales From America’s Most Interesting State by Craig Pittman Humor with an environmental message, award-winning investigative journalist and New York Times bestselling author Craig Pittman introduces readers to the people, creatures, places, and issues that make up the Florida of today. From threats to Florida’s environment to a hippo that became an official state citizen, these tales range from the moving to the bizarre. Follow the escapades of crime writers, hungry predators, politicians, and developers across the state. At the core of this collection is a deep sense of admiration for the resilience of those who live here, showcasing the power of “ordinary Floridians” fighting to save some part of the state and its wildlife that they hold dear. Often, that means folks rallying to protect the state’s unique natural landscape; sometimes it means former CIA agents incorporating their own island community. Both a love letter to and hilarious deep dive into the nation’s fastest growing state, and imbued with Pittman’s characteristic humor and undeniable fondness for both the weird and wonderful parts of his home, this book shows why, despite some of its reputations, Florida continues to prove irresistible. Wild Eye: A Life in Photographs by Beverly Joubert and Dereck Joubert A magnificent, large-format coffee table book featuring the dazzling wildlife and haunting landscapes of the African continent, with more than 250 beautiful photographs from one of National Geographic’s most popular photographers and her filmmaker husband. This luxe retrospective documents their 40-year odyssey through Kenya, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania. A vivid journey into Africa’s landscape and all its wildlife, this passion for animals shows striking images that tell an arresting story in an instant, opening a window into the souls of their subjects and inspiring viewers to fight for their survival. Each alluring shot includes Dereck’s observations on the wildlife they hold so dear. Covering five themes, the book reveals the essence of Africa such as a leopard, his eyes glowing, from an acacia tree, a lion devouring a buffalo, a baboon silhouetted against the moon, a baby elephant snuggling with his mother, a rhino being rescued from poachers and much more. Both profound and inspiring, this majestic book forms a bridge between the animals, the lands, and the photographer. Each page is an impassioned call to conserve all forms of life— no matter what it takes. Mastering the Art of Plant-Based Cooking: Vegan Recipes, Tips, and Techniques by Joe Yonan Maybe you know someone who wants to become vegan but doesn’t know where to start. This informative and fun cookbook features simple, delicious, and wholesome plant-based recipes, making it easy for anyone to savor the joys of vegan cooking — whether you’re a seasoned chef or a curious beginner. With over 100 vegan recipes using seasonal and sustainable ingredients, this book educates vegan newbies on how to choose fresh, local produce that supports the planet while respecting their busy lives with quick meals. Voted by NPR and Bon Appétit as one of the best culinary books of 2025, it’s the first book to collect vegan dishes and wisdom into a single volume, treating vegan food as its own cuisine, worthy of mastery. Packed with recipes and essays from prominent food writers in the plant-based sphere, this book shows the abundance of vegan food around the world, offering something for everyone. Starting with an in-depth pantry section, it explains how to create homemade versions of foundational ingredients like milks, butters, stocks, dressings, and spice mixes. There are numerous base recipe variations, an extensive dessert section, hundreds of vegan meals, and stunning photography. This will become a mainstay in you and your friends’ kitchens delivering new ideas for years to come. Yosemite Wildlife: The Wonder of Animal Life in California’s Sierra Nevada By Beth Pratt This lively and accessible blend of storytelling, the latest research, natural history, and compelling wildlife photographs fills a 100-year gap in publishing that will deeply connect people to this world-renowned national park in California. Crafted over decades by writer and conservation leader Beth Pratt to fulfill her vision of continuing the legacy of Grinnell & Storer’s landmark 1924 work, Animal Life in the Yosemite. Beth’s writing is accompanied by the work of naturalist-photographer Robb Hirsch, who spent more than 30 years in the field photographing animals so as not to impact them by his presence; his photography tells a distinct story of the park’s dazzling wildlife at its most undisturbed. Portrait of an Oyster: A Natural History of an Epicurean Delight by Andreas Ammer, translated by Renée von Paschen, illustrated by Falk Nordmann For anyone who loves oysters, this glorious guide to global oyster varieties, with drawings and descriptions of each specimen is an exploration of the oyster’s role in art, culture, cuisine, science, and history — featuring stunning full-color illustrations. Delve beyond the shucked shell to discover the rich and surprising world of the oyster and the artists, philosophers, explorers, and chefs the mollusk has inspired across the centuries. See vintage advertisements, line drawings, and archival photographs and find intriguing insights into the biology and cultivation of oysters. Bonus: Read our article about how conservationists are restoring oyster reefs and helping to protect coastal communities. Tamed: From Wild to Domesticated, the Ten Animals and Plants That Changed Human History by Alice Roberts Dogs became our companions. Wheat, rice, corn, soy and potatoes fed booming populations. Chickens inspired new branches of science. Horses gave us strength and speed. Apples and other fruits provided harvestable sweetness. Humans tamed them all. For hundreds of thousands of years, our ancestors were just one wild species among many, our survival dependent on the whims of nature. Then we began to tame the plants and animals all around us — and ourselves. Combining genetics, archaeology, evolutionary biology, and anthropology, Tamed tells the story of the greatest revolution in human history, revealing the fascinating origins of crucial domesticated species and how they transformed us. As Roberts uncovers the astounding global implications of mutual domestication, she urges us to look again at our relationship with the natural world — and our incredible influence upon it. *** And Something for the Young Folks… No matter the occasion, never arrive empty-handed — bring a book! These titles encourage our younger readers to discover ways to protect and sustain the planet. How to Explain Climate Science to a Grown-Up by Ruth Spiro, illustrated by Teresa Martínez Hey kids: Do you want to know a secret? Sometimes grown-ups need you to explain things to them — like climate science. In this tongue-in-cheek guide, an in-the-know narrator instructs kid readers in the fine art of explaining climate science to a grown-up. Both children and their adults learn: The difference between weather and climate, how climate scientists collect data, what causes climate change and what we can do to reverse course and repair the planet. Fun and fact-filled, this book, part of a series, will empower kids to explore complex scientific concepts with any grown-up who will listen. Earthrise: The Story of the Photograph That Changed the Way We See Our Planet by Leonard S. Marcus A unique middle-grade nonfiction book about the astonishing photograph taken during the Apollo 8 mission that forever shifted the way we view ourselves and our planet. Gazing out the window of the Apollo 8 spacecraft on Christmas Eve, 1968, NASA astronaut Bill Anders grabbed his camera and snapped the iconic color photo of our planet rising over the lunar horizon. Not long after the crew’s safe return, NASA developed Anders’s film and released “Earthrise” to the world. It soon became one of the most viewed and consequential photographs in human history, inspiring the first Earth Day in 1970 and boosting the global environmental movement. In the decades since, this incredible photograph of our “blue marble” has moved billions to rethink their understanding of our home planet, and even their very idea of “home.” No Less Strange or Wonderful: Essays in Curiosity by A. Kendra Greene Author and artist Greene delivers a brilliant and generous meditation on the complex wonder of being alive, on how to pay attention to even the tiniest (sometimes strangest) details that glitter with insight, whimsy, and deep humanity, if only we’d look. In 26 essays, illuminated in both text and image, Greene is trying to make sense of the things that matter most in life: Love, connection, death, grief, the universe, meaning, nothingness, and everything. Through a series of encounters with animals, strangers, and children, the wild merges with the domestic and the everyday meets the sublime. Each essay returns readers to our smallest moments and our largest ones in a book that makes us realize life’s playful curation, and its delightful associative interconnectedness that helps us understand we are all one. History Smashers: Earth Day and the Environment by Kate Messner In this graphic novel for young adults, discover the real story behind the first Earth Day celebration and some of the biggest U.S. climate catastrophes — and their solutions. In April 1970, 20 million people grabbed their rakes, gloves, and recycling bins to celebrate the first Earth Day. Since that environmental kickoff, the struggle to save and restore wildlife and nature continues. While it’s true that the first Earth Day encouraged people around the globe to clean up their act when it came to the environment, it has not been an easy task. Learn about the centuries-old history of activists who have tried to save the planet: Indigenous people across the world using sustainable farming practices, women in 18th-century India protecting trees, and amateur scientist Eunice Foote discovering the science behind global warming in the 1850s. Join the History Smashers team to bust history’s biggest misconceptions and figure out what in the world really happened before and after the first Earth Day — and how you can join the fight to protect the environment. Plant Attack! The Fascinating Ways Flora Defends Itself by Erin Silver Plants can’t scream or run away from danger, but many have developed surprisingly cool and courageous ways to keep themselves safe from pesky bugs, hungry animals and even large-clawed crabs. Plants can stab, poison, drown and even suffocate their predators. Discover the corpse flower, which smells like a combination of rotting wounds, garlic, cheese and sour sweat. Then there’s the touch-me-not balsam that explodes, flinging anything that touches it through the air. This intriguing book explores 15 different plants and the unique, and sometimes bizarre, ways they defend themselves from predators, including us. We Love You: An Optimistic Guide to Life on a Rock Floating Through Space by Thomas Sullivan and Andy Min Join best friends Thomas and Andy as they take you on an optimistic, philosophical, and hopeful journey that contemplates what it means to be joyfully alive. Providing a guidebook to deepen your relationship with nature — and your relationship with yourself — these lifelong best friends explore nature as they talk, laugh, and cry their way through what it means to live a fulfilling life on Earth. From teeming oak forests to the strange concrete wilderness of our human cities, Thomas and Andy will show you how to pursue hope and happiness across our world and teach you to recognize the beauty of what we often take for granted. With breathtaking imagery, essays, original artwork, poetry, and mindfulness practices, universal human themes like “Recapturing Childhood Wonder” and “Dealing with Today’s World” take on the big questions of life and shows that maybe there’s nothing to be afraid of. If we embrace the journey, we can make our lives and this rock we live on so much better. *** You can find hundreds of additional environmental book recommendations, including many more to inspire your friends and relatives, in the “Revelator Reads” archives. And let us know what you’re reading: Drop us a line at comments@therevelator.org. The post 14 Incredible New Books to Inspire Your Friends and Family in the Year Ahead appeared first on The Revelator.

Sustainable
Activism
Climate

Researchers Found Hundreds of Mysterious Dimples on the Seafloor Near Antarctica. Now They Know What Creature Made Them

The indentations are nests of fish called yellowfin notie, and they are not randomly scattered—rather, they appear to have been arranged in distinct patterns

Researchers Found Hundreds of Mysterious Dimples on the Seafloor Near Antarctica. Now They Know What Creature Made Them The indentations are nests of fish called yellowfin notie, and they are not randomly scattered—rather, they appear to have been arranged in distinct patterns Sarah Kuta - Daily Correspondent November 6, 2025 8:56 a.m. While seaching for Ernest Shackleton's lost ship Endurance in 2019, researchers stumbled across clusters of indentations on the seafloor. Weddell Sea Expedition 2019 Scientists were using an underwater robot to explore the waters around Antarctica when they came across a peculiar scene: The seafloor was dotted with hundreds of mysterious dimple-like indentations. At first, the researchers were totally perplexed. Working aboard the polar research vessel S.A. Agulhas II, they went back and forth, debating what the imprints might be—and what might have made them, reports BBC Wildlife Magazine’s Melissa Hobson. Now, the scientists say they have an answer. The depressions were nests created by yellowfin notie (Lindbergichthys nudifrons), a type of fish that thrives in the extreme cold of Antarctic waters. Researchers describe their discovery in a new paper published October 28 in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science. Fun fact: A big berg When the giant iceberg A68 broke free from the Larsen C ice shelf in 2017, it made news, even becoming a social media star. It's no wonder: The iceberg was twice as large as the entire country of Luxembourg and was even visible from space, before breaking up into smaller pieces. The discovery “goes to show that exploration of our world is still underway, with constant new findings,” lead author Russ Connelly, a marine biologist at the University of Essex in England, tells CNN’s Ashley Strickland. Researchers discovered the yellowfin notie nests during the 2019 Weddell Sea Expedition. The mission, which took place in January and February 2019, included scientists from around the world. It had several goals. A big one was to find Ernest Shackleton’s lost ship Endurance, which became trapped in sea ice and sank in 1915. But the team also wanted to investigate ice shelves in the Weddell Sea, particularly a largely unexplored region of the Larsen C ice shelf on the Antarctic Peninsula. In July 2017, a massive, 2,200-square-mile iceberg called A68 broke free from the ice shelf, revealing a huge swath of newly accessible seafloor below. “That calving event provided a unique opportunity to study a region undergoing rapid environmental change, specifically the first chance to study previously inaccessible areas of the seabed that were once underneath A68,” Connelly writes in a commentary accompanying the paper.The researchers didn’t find the Endurance—though another group located it three years later in 2022—but they did learn plenty about the Weddell Sea, one of the most remote and least studied regions on the planet, Connelly writes. The yellowfin notie nests, for example, were a major find. In total, the team documented 1,036 nests across five sites. The researchers found larvae in and around 72 of them. Video footage also revealed new insights about the creatures, including how they arrange their nests to ensure the survival of their young. The nests, which had all been cleared of plankton, were not randomly scattered. Instead, they were “organized into distinct patterns, forming a vast, geometric fish neighborhood on the seafloor,” Connelly writes. Over 1,000 Strange Markings Discovered On Antarctic Seafloor Many of the nests were arranged in clusters, and the scientists suspect this setup helps keep the eggs safe from hungry predators, like brittle stars and ribbon worms. Once the eggs are laid, males stand guard for roughly four months to ensure the little ones don’t get eaten. Since yellowfin notie males are known to defend the area surrounding their nest—up to about 9.8 inches away—the clusters likely make everyone safer. Some of the nests were more isolated, perched on the outskirts of the communities. Researchers think those are inhabited by larger, stronger fish that are better suited to defend themselves and their eggs on their own. The arrangement is an example of the “selfish herd” theory, which posits that animals “reduce their domain of danger by putting other individuals between themselves and an approaching predator,” the researchers write in the paper. Similar defensive nesting patterns have been observed in other species of fish, though this is the first time scientists have documented it in yellowfin notie. “The entire community is a dynamic interplay between cooperation and self-preservation,” Connelly writes. Nearly 15 percent of the active nests had pebbles in and around them, and some had been built next to rocks. The researchers suspect the fish might be taking advantage of stones that fall off icebergs as they melt. These rocks “are ideal to lay eggs on as they allow good oxygenation of the eggs, helping to prevent rotting on the seafloor, whilst also providing a barrier to animals living within the muds to eating the eggs,” Autun Purser, an ecologist at the Alfred Wegener Institute who was not involved with the research but reviewed the paper for the journal, tells CNN. Zooming out, the scientists hope their findings will help support efforts to get the Weddell Sea designated as a marine protected area. The move would not only help protect charismatic creatures like penguins and seals, but also “these hidden nurseries that form part of the Antarctic food web,” Connelly writes. “These underwater environments are a powerful reminder that even in the planet’s most extremes, life finds a way to build complex, resilient communities,” he adds. Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.

Animals
Food
Science

Many of Altadena's standing homes are still contaminated with lead and asbestos even after cleanup

A study led by a community group found that even after cleanups were supposedly complete, many standing homes in Altadena remain contaminated with lead and asbestos.

More than half of still-standing homes within the area the Eaton fire’s ash settled had significant lead contamination even after extensive indoor remediation efforts, according to new findings announced Thursday from the grassroots advocacy group Eaton Fire Residents United. Additionally, a third of remediated homes tested positive for asbestos.The results from 50 homes within and downwind of the Eaton burn area provide the first widespread evidence that the remediation techniques pushed by insurance companies and public health officials have not sufficiently removed contaminants deposited by the fire.Long-term exposure to asbestos increases the risk of developing mesothelioma and other cancers, and long-term exposure to lead can cause permanent brain damage, especially in children, that leads to developmental delays and behavioral problems. No level of exposure to lead and asbestos comes without risks of adverse health effects.“This is a community-wide problem,” said Nicole Maccalla, who leads EFRU’s data science. “It doesn’t matter what remediation you’re using, one pass is not establishing clearance based on the data that we have, which means that it is not yet safe to return to your home.”That’s an issue given that many residents who have been staying elsewhere are returning home — especially those whose insurance money for temporary housing is running dry. EFRU leaders are encouraging residents to test their homes after remediation work, and, if the results show contamination, to keep remediating and testing until the lab results come back clean.EFRU — born in January out of a frustration that no level of government was adequately addressing Altadena residents’ environmental health concerns — started by asking owners of standing homes to share the results of testing they had commissioned from professional labs both before and after remediation.In March, EFRU was the first to publish comprehensive results from inside homes that had not yet been remediated: Out of the 53 professional testing reports homeowners shared with the organization, every household that tested for lead had found it. A similar process was employed for this latest, post-remediation report. Homeowners hired testing professionals to come collect samples and run tests at certified labs, then they shared those results with EFRU. The organization then collated them in a database to give a wider-scope view of contamination in standing homes than any one single test could show.Of the 50 total homes included in EFRU’s report, 45 were tested for lead, and 43 of those had at least some level of lead contamination.Out of the 18 homes where professionals tested for lead on windowsills specifically, nine exceeded the corresponding level at which the Environmental Protection Agency typically requires further remediation. And out of the 24 homes tested for lead on floors specifically, 15 exceeded the EPA’s remediation level.There are no official EPA remediation levels for asbestos dust on surfaces. However, asbestos dust was found in nine of the 25 homes that were tested for it in the EFRU report. The average concentration within those homes was significantly above the ad-hoc remediation level the EPA used in New York after 9/11.“The number of houses tested is still very low, but considering that most of the homes have been remediated by professional companies, we would expect that all the homes should go below the EPA level,” said François Tissot, a Caltech geochemistry professor who began testing standing homes after the Eaton fire damaged his own. “That’s the promise of professional remediation.”Now, EFRU is calling on the California Department of Insurance to implore insurers to cover testing and, if needed, multiple rounds of remediation. The group is also asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare an “ash zone,” which would formally recognize the impact of the fire’s smoke and ash beyond the immediate burn zone.An ash zone, EFRU says, would raise public awareness around health concerns and take some of the burden off individual residents to prove to insurance companies that their home was affected. The Department of Insurance did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Tissot, who is not involved with EFRU but has been in communication with the group, previously found that wiped-down surfaces had about 90% less lead than those left untouched since the fire. It made EFRU’s findings particularly surprising. “To see that we are not even breaking 50% with professional remediation is rather alarming,” he said.While state and federal officials, in collaboration with researchers, have developed playbooks for addressing contamination in drinking water systems and in soil after wildfires, standing-home remediation is something of a Wild West.Instead of a central government agency working to ensure indoor remediation follows a research-backed recovery approach, a revolving door of insurance adjusters and a hodgepodge of remediation specialists with wildly different levels of qualifications and expertise have set different policies and standards for each home.EFRU reviews test results primarily from industrial hygienists, who specialize in identifying and evaluating environmental health hazards, most often in workplaces such as manufacturing facilities and hospitals. In its review, EFRU found many tests did not even look for lead or asbestos — despite the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health clearly warning that the two contaminants are known issues in the post-fire area. Those that tested for asbestos often used less-sensitive methods that can under-report levels.EFRU hopes to work with researchers and officials to develop an indoor contamination playbook, such as the ones that exist for drinking water and soil, designed to help residents both safely and quickly recover.“We need coordinated effort from all the different agencies with the elected officials — either through legislation or pressure,” said Dawn Fanning, who leads EFRU’s advocacy work. “We can come up with the answers for these residents and for future wildfires.” How to get your blood tested for lead Environmental health experts encourage lead blood testing for individuals who might be routinely exposed to the contaminant, particularly kids. Anyone concerned about their exposure to lead due to the January fires can call 1-800-LA-4-LEAD to request free testing through Quest Labs. Most insurance companies also cover lead blood testing. More information is available on the LA County Department of Public Health’s website.

Government
Health
Science

How dry cleaning might raise the risk of cancer, and what to do about it

A new study found links between a toxic dry cleaning chemical and liver cancer. Trump officials are reconsidering an EPA plan to phase it out.

Environmental and health advocates have long sought to curb dangerous chemicals used in dry cleaning. Now a new study adds to the evidence of harms, linking a common dry cleaning chemical to liver disease and cancer.Here’s what you need to know about the risks.How dry cleaning worksDespite the name, clothes don’t stay “dry” when dry-cleaned. Instead, garments are loaded into drums and soaked in chemicals that dissolve stains.Before modern cleaning systems were developed, workers would manually move solvent-soaked garments from washer to dryer, creating a direct exposure route and increasing the chances of environmental contamination. Today, cleaners wash and dry everything in the same drum. Clothes are then pressed or steamed.What are the health risks?One of the most widely used dry cleaning chemicals is an industrial solvent called PCE, also known as tetrachloroethylene, perchloroethylene and perc. The Environmental Protection Agency considers PCE a probable human carcinogen, and it has been linked to bladder cancer, multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.Follow Climate & environmentLast year, the EPA announced a new rule banning PCE for most uses and giving dry cleaners a 10-year phaseout period. The Trump administration is reconsidering this decision, according to an EPA spokesperson.But a recent study found that exposure to PCE tripled the risk of liver fibrosis, excessive scarring that can lead to liver disease and liver cancer. Researchers found that repeated exposure to PCE, which is detectable in an estimated 7 percent of the U.S. population, increased the likelihood of liver damage.“If you’ve been exposed to PCE, talk to your doctor about it,” said Brian P. Lee, associate professor of medicine at the University of Southern California and the study’s lead author.The study found that higher-income households faced the most risk from PCE exposure because they are more likely to use dry cleaning. People who work in cleaning facilities or live nearby also face an elevated risk due to prolonged exposure. Once the chemical gets into a building or the ground, it’s very difficult to remove. The EPA estimates that roughly 6,000 dry cleaners, mostly small businesses, still use PCE in the United States.Lee said the study adds to the growing list of harms associated with the chemical.Studies have also shown that PCE can linger on clothing after dry cleaning and that it builds up over time after repeated cleanings and can contaminate indoor air as it vaporizes.“We now have decades of studies confirming that these widespread dry cleaning chemicals are exposing people to unacceptable risks of cancer and other serious diseases,” said Jonathan Kalmuss-Katz, a senior attorney at the advocacy group Earthjustice. “Those harms are entirely avoidable.”Jon Meijer, director of membership at the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute International, a trade association, said the group supports the original rule passed under the Biden administration and explained that those who still use the chemical do so because of financial challenges.“It’s time for a phaseout of perchloroethylene,” Meijer said. “There are so many alternatives out there.”Safer alternativesExperts say there are plenty of alternatives to using harmful dry cleaning chemicals, but some are safer than others.Go dry-clean free: Try purchasing clothes that don’t need to be dry-cleaned. Selecting cotton blazers and other professional attire, for example, can reduce dry cleaning visits, said Tasha Stoiber, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy group. “The easiest thing is to look for professional staples that don’t need to be dry-cleaned,” Stoiber said.Hand-washing: Some “dry-clean only” garments can be delicately hand-washed in cold water with a gentle detergent specific to the particular fabric you’re using. Hanging delicate clothes to dry after a wash can avoid damage from heated air dryers.Steaming: Steam cleaning can freshen up clothes by removing odors, bacteria and small stains without needing a full wash.Commercial wet cleaning: Commercial wet cleaning relies on biodegradable detergents and water instead of toxic solvents.Liquid carbon dioxide: Experts suggest selecting dry cleaners that use liquid carbon dioxide as a solvent to remove dirt and avoid toxic chemicals.Watch out for greenwashingSome businesses advertise eco-friendly or “green” alternatives to dry cleaning. But experts warn that new chemicals can have their own downsides.Diana Ceballos, an assistant professor in the University of Washington’s Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, said that dry cleaning technology has improved dramatically and that new solvents and machinery can be more effective than PCE.Still, Cebellos said that there can be a lot of “regrettable substitution” when it comes to alternatives to PCE and that some that are billed as “safe” or “organic” could also be toxic.“Most options are far better,” Cebellos said. “But there’s a lot of greenwashing” out there, so people should ask questions and do “a little bit of research.”

Chemicals
Business
CO2

Climate Change Boosted Hurricane Melissa's Destructive Winds and Rain, Analysis Finds

An analysis from World Weather Attribution reports human-caused climate change intensified the winds and rainfall unleashed by Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean

Human-caused climate change boosted the destructive winds and rain unleashed by Hurricane Melissa and increased the temperatures and humidity that fueled the storm, according to an analysis released Thursday.Melissa was one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes to make landfall and brought destructive weather to Jamaica, Haiti, Dominican Republic and Cuba, causing dozens of deaths across the Caribbean. Roofs were torn off of homes, hospitals were damaged, roads were blocked by landslides and crop fields were ruined.The rapid analysis by World Weather Attribution found that climate change increased Melissa’s maximum wind speeds by 7% and made the rainfall 16% more intense. The scientists also wrote that the temperature and humidity in which the storm intensified were made six times more likely due to climate change compared to a pre-industrial world.Rapid attribution analyses are a type of research that study factors influencing an extreme weather event and explore what the event would have been like in a world without climate change. They are typically published days or weeks after an extreme weather event.Melissa slowly tracked across the region and drew in enormous amounts of energy from abnormally warm ocean water. The analysis reported ocean temperatures in Melissa’s path through the Caribbean were about 1.4°C (2.5°F) warmer compared to a pre-industrial climate.“Warmer ocean temperatures are effectively the engine that drives a hurricane … the warmer the ocean temperatures, the greater the wind speed a hurricane can have,” said Theodore Keeping, a climate scientist who works for WWA and contributed to the analysis.Melissa is the fourth storm in the Atlantic this year to undergo rapid intensification, which is when a tropical cyclone’s maximum sustained winds increase by at least 30 knots (about 35 mph or 56 kph) in 24 hours.“A hurricane this rare would actually have had wind speeds about 10 mph (16 kph) less extreme” in a pre-industrial climate, said Keeping. He said research links hurricane wind speeds to economic damage and there would have been less destruction caused by Melissa if the winds were slower.Scientists have linked rapid intensification of hurricanes in the Atlantic to human-caused climate change. Planet-warming gases released by humans, such as carbon dioxide, cause the atmosphere to hold more water vapor and increase ocean temperatures. Warmer oceans give hurricanes fuel to unleash more rain and strengthen more quickly. “It’s like basically taking a sponge and wringing it out, and climate change is making that sponge even larger,” said Brian Tang, a professor of atmospheric science at University at Albany.Tang, who was not involved in the WWA research, said the methodology of the study released Thursday seems robust, and one of the more novel aspects of the analysis was the connection the scientists drew between wind speeds and increase in damage, which he said is a challenging area of research.Andrew Dessler, professor of atmospheric sciences at Texas A&M University, who was not involved in the WWA research, said the findings of the rapid analysis are in line with existing research about climate change and tropical storms in the Atlantic. “This is completely consistent with our expectation of what’s going to happen in the future,” Dessler said.Rapid attribution analyses help fill the need for an explanation about the influence of climate change shortly after a catastrophic weather event occurs, said Dessler. He said such analyses are “very valuable as a quick look” before the scientists are able to do more time-consuming calculations. Dessler said one of the scariest aspects of Melissa was the storm's peak sustained winds of 185 mph (298 kph) winds. “That’s pretty rare to have a storm that strong. And I think that, to the extent that this is a harbinger of the future, it’s not good,” he said.The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See – Oct. 2025

Climate
CO2
Science

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