The growing frequency of climate extremes affected human health and caused wide-scale damages to the ecosystems that people depend upon, including agriculture, fisheries and freshwater.
Plastic fragments washed onto Schiavonea beach in Calabria, Italy, in a 2019 storm.
Alfonso Di Vincenzo/KONTROLAB /LightRocket via Getty Images
New research suggests that an effective way to locate and track large concentrations of microplastics in the ocean could be from high in the sky.
In February, the Innu Council of Ekuanitshit and the Minganie Regional County Municipality declared the Muteshekau Shipu (Magpie River) a legal person, a move that may provide greater certainty for this majestic river’s future.
(Boreal River)
A recent declaration of a river as a legal person in Canada recognizes Indigenous laws and governance, and champions people as the guardians of nature.
Willow invasion on Happy Valley Creek in north east Victoria.
Author provided; Happy Valley Creek, Victoria
The Supreme Court recently dealt defeat to Florida in its 20-year legal battle with Georgia over river water. Other interstate water contests loom, but there are no sure winners in these lawsuits.
Floodplains are among the most productive ecosystems on the planet – they are biodiversity hotspots. That’s in large part due to periodic flooding between different parts of a river-floodplain system.
New research shows nature started its long road to recovery in 2020 – especially in NSW and Victoria. But overall conditions across large swathes of the country remain poor.
In the Netherlands, some flood control systems are designed to adapt to future climate change.
Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management
In Canada, watersheds are vast and often inaccessible, making it difficult to monitor the health of these ecosystems. A new tool helps communities collect data to assess the state of Canada’s rivers.
Salmon crowd a river in Washington State in the US as they swim upstream to spawn.
Danita Delimont/Shutterstock
New research published in the journal Nature reveals that more than 1.2 million flow barriers exist on European rivers and that approximately 10% are obsolete.
Buddhist literature is used for teaching children about environmental issues in Taiwan.
Photo credit should read SAM YEH/AFP via Getty Images
Taiwan has made significant efforts in protecting its environment. A scholar writes about how the country educates its children on protecting the environment through Buddhist stories.
The decision recognises that water rights are critical for Indigenous people to restore customs, protect their culture, become economically independent and heal Country.
The strange appearance of three humpback whales in a Kakadu river threw up many questions – including whether they’d come out on top in a fight with a crocodile.
After the Black Summer bushfires, heavy rains extinguished many fires but turned high quality water in our rivers to sludge. This is how we better prepare for next time.
Executive Director and Professor of Fisheries and River Management, Gulbali Institute (Agriculture, Water and Environment), Charles Sturt University, Charles Sturt University