EcoWatch

Sea turtle swimming

Ecuador’s coastal ecosystems have rights, constitutional court rules

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The Constitutional Court of Ecuador has determined that coastal marine ecosystems have rights of nature, including the right to “integral respect for its existence and for the maintenance and regeneration of its life cycles, structure, functions, and evolutionary processes,” per Chapter 7, Articles 71 to 74 in the country’s constitution. This is not the first time that Ecuador has established legal rights for nature. In fact, Ecuador was the first country in the world to establish that nature held legal rights, Earth.org reported.

Cattle

Brazil fines meat ranchers and packers $64 million for raising and purchasing cattle from deforested Amazon

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IBAMA, Brazil’s environmental protection agency, has fined meat packers and cattle ranchers — including the largest on the planet, JBS — $64 million for buying or raising cattle on illegally deforested land in the Amazon rainforest. The agency said 69 properties had been identified that had sold a total of 18,000 cattle who had been raised on deforested land. They also found 23 meat packing companies that had bought the cattle in Amazonas and Para states. Cattle ranching is the biggest driver of deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest.

clean energy concept

Wind and solar energy production in U.S. surpasses coal for the first time in history

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From January through July of this year, wind and solar in the U.S. generated more net electricity than power from coal, according to recent data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Further, wind energy generation alone beat coal energy generation in two consecutive months: March and April. As CleanTechnica reported, wind energy installations produced 45.9 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in March and a record high 47.7 GWh in April, compared to the 38.4 GWh in March and 37.2 GWh in April generated by coal-fired power plants.

Asian elephant and baby

Bangladesh bans capture and exploitation of wild asian elephants

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In a “landmark” ruling, Bangladesh’s High Court has suspended all licenses for the adoption of critically endangered wild elephants, meaning they can no longer be legally taken into captivity or exploited. The ban to protect the approximately 200 wild elephants remaining in Bangladesh was welcomed by animal rights groups. Nearly half the elephants are living in captivity.

Silhouette of an airplane

Denmark introduces “green tax” for sustainable aviation

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Revenue from the new measure is expected to contribute to sustainable fuel use in domestic air transportation by the end of the decade, as well as a pensioner bonus increase of approximately $2.18 billion annually for those receiving the smallest benefits. The Danish government’s goal is to have the nation’s first exclusively green-fueled domestic route operating by 2025.

Deer in the forest

E.U. agrees to restore 20% of its lands and waters by 2030

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In order to meet these goals, member nations must restore a minimum of 30% of the types of habitat covered by the Nature Restoration Law that are in “poor condition” to a “good condition” by the end of the decade, with an increase to 60% by the end of the following decade and 90% by 2050.

Palm trees

Indonesia to reforest more than 400,000 acres of palm plantations

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Landowners with oil palm trees in designated production forests will be allowed to continue growing the crops after paying fines, while plantations found in protected forests will have to be turned over to the government for reforestation. Companies that grow oil palms illegally after the Nov. 2 deadline will be subject to legal action.

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