“The sixth mass extinction is not a worry for the future. It’s happening now, much faster than previously expected, and it’s entirely our fault, according to a study published Monday.
“Humans have already wiped out hundreds of species and pushed many more to the brink of extinction through wildlife trade, pollution, habitat loss and the use of toxic substances.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/01/world/sixth-mass-extinction-accelerating-intl/index.html
“May was the sunniest calendar month on record, and spring was the sunniest spring, the Met Office has said.The UK enjoyed 266 hours of sunshine in May – surpassing the previous record of 265 hours in June 1957.
“And it is even more extraordinary following a drenching winter, with record rain in February. Meteorologists say they are amazed at the sudden switch from extreme wet to extreme dry – it is not “British” weather.”
“Serbia has spent more than 78 million euros on restoring and improving flood defences since dozens died when rivers burst their banks in 2014.
“Yet some communities remain unshielded.”
https://balkaninsight.com/2020/06/02/after-the-flood-serbian-villages-left-to-the-mercy-of-a-river/
“Record-breaking rainfall has devastated [Kenyan] communities – and with thousands displaced and more rain predicted the picture is bleak…
“As the frequency of extreme weather events increase, climate experts are warning of above normal levels of rainfall in the already saturated region in the coming months.”
“Flood victims living in camps in the Tana Delta have said that they are sharing tents with deadly snakes and face frequent visits by dangerous reptiles…
“The victims noted that for the past two weeks, they have had six cases of snake attacks on children while they sleep and while playing outside.”
“MUMBAI: The city could be in for a weather phenomenon that has never occurred in its documented history…
“The landfall of Cyclone Nisarga, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), is expected between Harihareshwar (in Maharashtra’s Raigad) and Daman during the afternoon of June 3.”
“Hundreds of hectares of paddy fields in the two districts [Bangladesh] have gone under water with constant rainfall and water rushing down from upstream, washing out and seriously damaging their crops.
“”We are already facing a labour crisis. Now, the flooding has dealt yet another blow to our livelihoods.””
https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/2020/06/01/flash-floods-shatter-hopes-of-farmers
“Today the Murray-Darling [Australia] is at the leading edge of… a series of water crises that could soon envelop river systems in Africa, South Asia, and the American West, as temperatures rise and economies compete for strained supplies.
“The area has spent most of the past several years in a drought so savage that it completely dried out sections of the Darling for months at a time.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2020-australia-drought-water-crisis/
“Hawke’s Bay’s rural community [NZ] needs help as it battles one of the worst droughts in living memory.
“A Givealittle page ‘Digging deep for our farmers in drought’ was launched last week to allow people to support the Hawke’s Bay’s rural community.”
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503462&objectid=12336274
“Friday’s high of 108 felt like the true start to a Sonoran Desert summer. But it also signaled the end of Tucson’s hottest May on record…
“This year, May’s monthly average temperature was almost 5 degrees higher than normal.”
https://www.azpm.org/p/home-articles-news/2020/6/1/174009-tucson-sees-hottest-may-on-record/
“Tropical Storm Amanda has killed at least 20 people in Central America…
“In El Salvador, officials said some 7,000 people have taken refuge in 154 shelters as torrential rain and strong winds destroyed hundreds of homes and damaged roads.”
“A tropical depression has formed in the southern Gulf of Mexico, near the Yucatan Peninsula, and will likely grow into Tropical Storm Cristobal by Tuesday…
“…marking the fastest start to the Atlantic hurricane season since 1851.”
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/06/02/world/atlantic-hurricane-season/#.XtYlxzpKjIU
“More than 50 polar bears have invaded the town of Novaya Zemlya in northern Siberia. The bears have been wandering around the city looking for food. They’ve foraged in dumpsters and even walked into people’s homes looking for something to eat…
“Climate change has reduced the areas where polar bears regularly hunt for food.”
https://rtd.rt.com/videos/an-invasion-of-polar-bears/
“A new ‘mutant’ blood-sucking tick has been discovered in Russia amid a surge in tick bite victims, according to official government papers…
“And scientists have now reportedly discovered a mutant form of the arachnid which is said to have the ‘worst qualities’ of two common forms of ticks found in Russia.”
“The melting of glaciers and ice caps in places as diverse as the Himalayas and Andes mountain ranges, the Svalbard island group and the Canadian Arctic Archipelago…
“…has the dual effect of raising global sea levels and depleting freshwater resources that serve millions of people around the world.”
https://phys.org/news/2020-06-global-glacier-sea-depletes-once-reliable.html
“Vast tracts of pristine rainforest on three continents went up in smoke last year, with an area roughly the size of Switzerland cut down or burned, much of it to make way for cattle and commercial crops, researchers said on Tuesday (June 2).
“Brazil accounted for more than a third of the loss, with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia a distant second and third…”
“The Earth is warming and disturbing the balance of the seasons.
“Data makes it clear that summers are expanding while winters are substantially shortening… most locations globally, including in the United States and Canada, have seen their summer season lengthen and the winter season shrink.”
Read the previous ‘Climate’ thread here and visit my Patreon page here.
