- There are many important conservation and environmental stories Mongabay isn’t able to cover.
- Here’s a digest of some of the significant developments from the week.
- If you think we’ve missed something, feel free to add it in the comments.
Tropical forests
New maps pinpoint ancient forests under threat (Sustainable Brands).
The forestry act for the Malaysian state of Sabah on the island of Borneo aims to capitalize on the carbon found in the state’s forests by including a reference to REDD+ (New Straits Times).
To help stem deforestation, France plans to cut imports of palm oil and beef (Ecowatch).
Botanists find two new species of Raphia palm in Central Africa (Sci News).
Four new species of horned frogs have been found in India (Natural History Museum).
How the push for biofuels has driven the palm oil boom — and deforestation (ProPublica, The New York Times).
Mendelian genetics is behind beak size in tropical finches, researchers find (Princeton University/Phys.Org).
Other news
Marine biologists recorded a dive by an orca (Orcinus orca) of 1,087 meters (3,566 feet) — the deepest ever logged — in pursuit of fish snagged on the lines of fishers (Hakai).
The U.S. Coast Guard has demanded that an energy company clean up oil from a leak that’s released at least a million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico since 2004 (The Washington Post).
Whale earwax helps scientists track their stress levels over time (The Atlantic).
The leader of the United Nations Environment Programme resigned after revelations that he had spent more than half a million dollars on travel in less than two years (The New York Times).
Tanzania has formed an anti-poaching outfit of 300 people (Daily Nation).
China has reduced its carbon emissions rate ahead of schedule, according to a government report (Ecns.cn).
U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke: “Environmental radicals” who stood in the way of forest management are to blame for California’s fires (The Hill).
Mountain gorillas’ turn for the better shows that a little optimism might be warranted for life on Earth (The New York Times).
China must continue to curb markets for wildlife products, scientists say (The New York Times).
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would make it easier for farmers and ranchers to kill wolves (Huffington Post).
Andrew Wheeler, a former coal lobbyist, is President Donald Trump’s pick to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (The New York Times).
Banner image of an orca by Robert Pittman (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons.
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South Africa Today – Environment
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