Earth ChangesS


Umbrella

Cities 'are like giant contraceptives'

Cities act like giant contraceptives and could help curb the Earth's explosive population growth that drives climate change, according to two studies.

The United Nations estimates that in the past year the majority of the world's population will, for the first time in human history, live in town and cities.

Cities are now home to half of the world's 6.6 billion humans and by 2030 that urban fraction will rise to 60 per cent as nearly 5 billion people will live in cities of the projected global population of 8.2 billion.

Bizarro Earth

Man's effect on world's oceans revealed



Global human impact map
©BS Halpern
World map showing Man's effect on the planet's oceans

Almost half of the world's oceans have been seriously affected by over-fishing, pollution and climate change, according to a major study of man's impact on marine life.

Evil Rays

Magnitude 5.3 earthquake shakes Middle East

An earthquake shook Lebanon, Israel and the Gaza Strip on Friday, sending panicked people in several towns in the south of Lebanon out on to the streets.

The tremor -- the second in the region this week -- hit at around 1030 GMT, but its intensity was not immediately known.

Friday's quake was felt throughout Lebanon, including the capital Beirut, where many buildings shook.

In the southern coastal city of Tyre, residents ran toward the seashore and began reciting verses of the Koran after the tremor struck, an AFP correspondent witnessed.

Bizarro Earth

Maude Barlow: The Growing Battle for the Right to Water

Maude Barlow's new book about the water crisis is a call to arms to protect a fundamental human right.

From Chile to the Philippines to South Africa to her home country of Canada, Maude Barlow is one of a few people who truly understands the scope of the world's water woes. Her newest book, Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water, details her discoveries around the globe about our diminishing water resources, the increasing privatization trend and the grassroots groups that are fighting back against corporate theft, government mismanagement and a changing climate.

If you want to know where the water is running low (including 36 U.S. states), why we haven't been able to protect it and what we can do to ensure everyone has the right to water, Barlow's book is an essential read. It is part science, part policy and part impassioned call. And the information in Blue Covenant couldn't come from a more reliable source. Barlow is the national chairperson of the Council of Canadians and co-founder of the Blue Planet Project, which is instrumental in the international community in working for the right to water for all people. She also authored Blue Gold: The Fight to Stop Corporate Theft of the World's Water with Tony Clarke. And she's the recipient of the Right Livelihood Award (known as the "Alternative Nobel") for her global water justice work.

She took a moment to talk to AlterNet in between the Canadian and U.S. legs of a book tour for Blue Covenant. (Barlow just kicked off her U.S. tour; for a list of tour stops and dates, click here).

Info

Mt. Kanla-on shows volcanic activity

The majestic beauty of the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park (Philippines) is once again under threat by the volcano's eruptive nature.

"Kanla-on Volcano seismic network recorded seven low frequency volcanic earthquakes during the past 24 hours" as stated on Phivolcs bulletin said.

The bulletin further mentioned that, "Alert Level 1 was hoisted over Kanla-on which means that the volcano is at slightly elevated unrest and volcanic activity could lead to steam and ash ejections.

Star

Harvard Astrophysicist Says Global Warming Related To Sun

In her lecture series, "Warming Up to the Truth: The Real Story About Climate Change," astrophysicist Dr. Sallie Baliunas shared her findings Tuesday at the University of Texas at Tyler R. Don Cowan Fine and Performing Arts Center.

Bulinas
©Jaime R. Carrero/Tyler Paper
Astrophycist Dr. Sally Bulinas speaks to members of the press before her conference about Global warming and the Sun's interaction with the Earth's environment.

Bizarro Earth

Southern Greece Struck by Magnitude-6.7 Earthquake

Southern Greece was hit by a magnitude-6.7 earthquake, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Attention

Strong quake off Indonesia's Maluku, tsunami alert issued

JAKARTA - A strong 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck off the eastern Indonesian province of Maluku early Thursday, prompting a tsunami alert that was later lifted, the meteorology and geophysics office said here.


Cloud Lightning

Bolivia floods misery continues, state of emergency declared



Bolivia flood
©AP
Many tens of thousands have been forced from their homes

The Bolivian authorities estimate that some 60,000 families across the country have been affected by severe flooding, which has followed weeks of heavy rain.

The flood waters, which have killed at least 60 people, are threatening to inundate the Amazon city of Trinidad, sparking large-scale evacuations.

The government has declared a state of emergency in the worst-hit areas.

Life Preserver

Russia to deliver food to storm-hit Far Eastern islands

A ship carrying around 50 metric tons of food has left for the Komandor Islands, in Russia's Far East, after the area was cut off by storms and bad weather, the local emergencies said Wednesday.

Heavy storms have made it impossible to deliver supplies by sea or air to the islands, 200 km east off Kamchatka, since December 2007. Food has been running short in the Aleut District, where around 800 people, including 200 children, live.