Breaking Waves: Ocean News

The next ayahuasca? Gabon fights to protect sacred plant from US drug companies

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 13:00:02 +0000

Iboga root, central to several Gabonese ritual traditions, is believed to have huge potential for use in treating addiction and some mental illnesses

The temple is dark, its sandy floor edged with candles. People sit shoulder to shoulder beneath palm fronds hung from the rafters. Through the night, they swallow what they have come here for: a bitter root bark called iboga.

Tabernanthe iboga is a slow-growing central African rainforest shrub, the root bark of which has long been used in several Gabonese ritual traditions.

EPA quietly backtracks on claims US has phased out toxic Pfas compounds

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:00:03 +0000

Agency changes wording on website as Texas-based chemical firm continues manufacture of plastic containers

The Environmental Protection Agency has quietly backtracked on a claim that the US has phased out two of the most dangerous Pfas compounds – Pfoa and Pfos.

US workers facing deadly heat borrow from tomato pickers to win key protections

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:00:02 +0000

As efforts to protect people from extreme heat stall, organizers are embracing an approach that targets major brands’ reputations

“It’s the kind of heat that makes you feel like you’re being dehydrated, like your skin is drying out,” said Lucas Benitez, after harvesting watermelons with his sons and wife this summer. “The heat that we had 30 years ago is not nearly the heat that we have today.”

A California town’s beaches are washing away. Can its residents turn the tide?

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 11:00:03 +0000

Rapid coastal erosion threatens coastal homes and economies, and as Super El Niño rounds the corner, a town is reckoning with the reality of climate crisis

San Clemente is one of southern California’s most picture-perfect beach towns – a capital of American surf culture since the 1950s. In two years, 2028 Olympic surfers will compete at Lower Trestles, a world-class surfing beach.

If Trump fells 430 trees in the middle of a golf course, do they make a sound?

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 10:00:56 +0000

In attempting to turn a public space in DC into an enclave for elites, Trump is moving the US capital closer to Graceland

When is a tree not a tree? When it’s an obstacle to a par-3. If a tree falls in the middle of a golf course, does it make a sound? Yeah, probably. I wasn’t there, but I have to assume, based on my limited knowledge of the laws of physics.

What I do know is that Donald Trump’s crusade to clear more than 400 trees for the purposes of redeveloping East Potomac Golf Links into a championship-level course isn’t happening. For now.

Heat pumps and insulation would cut UK living costs more than new oilfields, study suggests

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 06:00:52 +0000

Warm homes plan would create 50,000 jobs, compared with about 1,100 for Rosebank oilfield, thinktank finds

Insulating Britain’s homes and investing in heat pumps would do more to cut the cost of living, create jobs and boost the UK’s economy than drilling for new oil, research suggests.

NASA discovers hidden fires burning beneath the Amazon rainforest

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 01:14:24 +0000

El Niño is fueling a dangerous cascade of wildfires across the tropics, with the Amazon rainforest now experiencing widespread burning and scientists warning that the worst may still be ahead. NASA researchers are uncovering dozens of previously undetected fires, suggesting the destruction could be even more extensive than satellite records show.

Arizona joins Nevada to fight proposed cuts to their shares of Colorado River

admin — Sat, 17 Oct 2026 23:40:11 +0000

Move comes after Trump administration announced restrictions that could slash water supplies

Arizona has joined Nevada in its legal battle against the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to their shares of the shrinking Colorado River.

Most NSW homes destroyed in black summer bushfires were within 100 metres of vegetation

admin — Sat, 17 Oct 2026 19:00:40 +0000

Exclusive: Research confirms official advice about high-risk properties and warns worsening conditions will make more homes unsafe

From little acorns … to his 1,000th article for the Guardian country diary

admin — Sat, 17 Oct 2026 12:00:30 +0000

As Mark Cocker approaches a landmark for the world’s oldest column in an English-language newspaper, he is still inspired by powerful encounters with nature