Scientists from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, have found nine new species of bush frogs, belonging to the genus Raorchestes, in the Western Ghats.

The government has identified 46 million hectares of agricultural land, spread across 122 districts, that is likely to be adversely impacted by extreme weather events, thereby causing a decline in farm output.

Underground water is overexploited and is in a critical or semi-critical condition in 44 districts of Uttar Pradesh. Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad, and Kannauj districts are included among these 44 districts.

Airborne carbon particles and dust are discolouring the Taj Mahal’s iconic marble dome and soaring minarets, giving the gleaming white landmark a brownish case.

The country’s premier mapping agency, Survey of India, will soon begin work on mapping and surveying River Ganga to determine the sources of pollution along its basin.

Raising concerns over the deteriorating quality of river water in Goa, the Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Mr Prakash Javadekar, said that the total and faecal coliform levels were above normal standards and therefore, not matching the desired water quality criteria.

A political agreement was reached on a new legislation to allow EU member states to restrict, or ban, the cultivation of crops containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on their own territory, albeit at EU level. GMO crops in Europe include: corn, soy, sugar beet, rapeseed, etc. Member states will be able to ban GMOs stating environmental policy objectives as a justification.

Authorities in Bangladesh are urgently assessing environmental damage in one of the world’s largest mangrove forests (designated as a ‘UNESCO World Heritage site’) after an oil tanker sank, threatening wildlife (including rare Irrawaddy dolphins).

Record high temperatures and sparse rainfall during California’s three-year drought have combined to produce the worst conditions in 1,200 years.

Deforestation in the Peruvian Amazon is rising after expanding over more than 145,000 hectares, which is an 80 per cent jump from the start of the century.

Nearly 269,000 tonnes of plastic comprising an estimated 5.25 trillion plastic particles are floating in the world’s oceans, including the Bay of Bengal.

Staghorn coral, a key reef-building coral that can survive a more acidic ocean, is giving scientists hope that the world’s reefs stand a chance against climate change.