This is the website page in The Multiplural World of ‘Ecology news headlines and analysis’ for the current month of September 2026. Items with red headlines indicate they were published in full on the home page of the website; notice of these are emailed to website subscribers. Comments and information in square brackets [ ] are by the website editors. The month of August 2026 is archived here. All previous months of ‘Ecology news headlines and analysis’ (since March 2024) are archived here.
Ecology news headlines and analysis for September 2026
Arctic wildlife research suffers as geopolitical competition and warfare grow, by Ed Struzik, in Yale Environment 360 (Yale E360), Oct 15, 2026 ..The decline in funding of circumpolar science and environmental protection is not just about rising costs; it stems from governments shifting priorities from climate change [global warming] to national security [military] issues and the search for rare minerals. According to the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, geopolitical tensions are also undermining the work of the Arctic Council, an international forum comprising the eight countries that border or include the Arctic region that plays a key role in monitoring environmental conditions in the region…
Southeast Asia’s recurring wildfire smoke crisis, by Farheen Hussain, Asia Media Center, Oct 13, 2026 As thick smoke from Indonesia’s forest and plantation fires spreads across Southeast Asia, schools have closed, air pollution has reached dangerous levels and millions are struggling with the effects. Behind the recurring haze lies bigger questions about Indonesia’s peatlands and plantation industries, and why the region continues to struggle to find lasting solutions…
Related: Indonesia’s rhetoric over wildfire haze tests regional cooperation, by Resty Woro Yuniarin, in Jakarta, South China Morning Post, Oct 13, 2026 The claim by an official of the Indonesia government that his country exports “oxygen” and not just smoke to its neighbours has renewed criticism of Jakarta’s handling of its annual forest fires, with analysts warning that defensive nationalism risks undermining regional cooperation to tackle the recurring haze crisis… (Read the report here in pdf format: Indonesia’s rhetoric over wildfire haze tests regional cooperation)
Desalination plant in China’s Hebei province cuts energy use by 60%, turning waste brine into industrial salt, South China Morning Post, Oct 13, 2026 The technology may help to solve the global problem of discharging concentrated by-products of drinking water production into the sea (Read the report here in pdf format: Desalination plant in China’s Hebei province cuts energy use by 60%, turning waste brine into industrial salt)
Unsung turtle conservation heroes in Malaysia’s state of Sabah track and report poachers, by Ushar Daniele, in South China Morning Post, Oct 11, 2026 A group of volunteers is helping to stem the illegal trade of protected turtles by monitoring the movements of poachers (Here in pdf format: Unsung turtle conservation heroes in Malaysia’s Sabah province track and report poachers)
The U.S. public is losing its say on environmental policy, by Jody Freeman, in Yale E360, Oct 8, 2026 Federal agencies in the United States have long been required to seek public comment when writing new regulations or approving large projects, from highways to data centers. The Trump administration is systematically undercutting that process, stifling public input while skirting federal laws.
A 2,500-year-old ski? The melting Alps mountain range releases ancient secrets, New York Times, Oct 6, 2026 Archaeologists are scouring mountain passes as artifacts from a bygone world all but tumble out of Switzerland’s shrinking ice and glaciers. At the current pace of global warming, 97 percent of today’s glaciers across the Alps could be gone by century’s end, posing big challenges for the tens of millions of Europeans for whom the ice is a vital reserve of water in dry years. (Read the report here in pdf format: The melting Alps mountain range releases ancient secrets)
New tandem solar cell developed in China hits 29.71% efficiency with sulfur-based innovation, Interesting Engineering, July 31, 2026 [Solar energy made up nearly nine percent of the electricity produced in the United States in 2025, up from three percent in 2020, according to the Energy Information Administration. That compares to 13 per cent in China in mid-2026. A news report in the New York Times dated Oct 5, 2026 vaunts the development of tandem solar technology in the United States while barely mentioning how the new technology is also advancing in China. The report is wishfully headlined: ‘A new crop of solar panels is the best hope for the U.S. to catch China.]
U.S. Supreme Court to weigh energy companies’ bid to end global warming lawsuit by city of Boulder, Colorado, CBS News, Oct 4, 2026 …The lawsuit from Boulder is one of dozens filed by states and local governments against energy companies in state courts seeking financial damages for past and future harms caused by the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and resulting global warming…
Switzerland’s glaciers are losing an astonishing amount of ice, Washington Post, Sept 30, 2026 Dry winters and a warming climate are taking a toll on centuries-old ice in the Alps, researchers say, with about 20 percent of Swiss glacial ice melting since 2021 (Here in pdf format: Switzerland’s glaciers are losing an astonishing amount of ice)
Previously reported: Glaciers in the Alps are on track for record-breaking ice loss, report from Switzerland by Alec Luhn, feature writer, New Scientist weekly magazine, Aug 27, 2026 (print issue of Sept 5, 2026 #3611) Glacier loss could break the 2022 record after a series of heatwaves this summer, raising the risk of falling river levels and deadly ice avalanches (Read the report here in pdf format: Glaciers in the Alps are on track for record-breaking ice loss)
United States to end health program funding for Zimbabwe, Associated Press, Sept 30, 2026
Most Americans do not believe childhood vaccines cause autism, poll finds, report in Washington Post, Sept 30, 2026 Around 68 percent of respondents to a poll by the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center say it is false to claim that ‘vaccines given to children for diseases like measles, mumps, and rubella cause autism’ (Read the report here in pdf format: Most Americans do not believe childhood vaccines cause autism, poll finds)
Years of thin investment have stalled Germany’s vaunted rail network as China’s network speeds ahead, South China Morning Post, Sept 29, 2026 Twenty years ago, Germany was selling high-speed trains to China. Today, its rail network is slowing to a crawl while China’s continues to improve and speed up. (Read the report here in pdf format: YearGermany’s vaunted rail network stalls as China’s speeds ahead)
Canada’s bankster government and prime minister continue cranking open the spigots for global warming destruction. Reference: ‘New LNG expansion gets go-ahead in western Canada’, CBC News, Sept 26, 2026 [Canada’s bankster prime minister Mark Carney calls his government’s latest global warming project–expanded liquefied natural gas and export from west coast ports–‘an historic investment in Canadian energy’. Sane people call it another nail in the coffin of the world’s population as the imperialist countries desperately seek to maintain their suicidal grip on the fate of humanity. Central to that grip is escalating imperialist war. Much of the existing, global ‘environmental movement’, such as it was, opted to side with NATO in its proxy war in Ukraine or go silent. So don’t look to that defunct movement to wage class struggle for an alternative, post-growth course for humanity. No, that will come from new and unforeseen sources outside of the grip and influence of the collection of Western genocidaires currently dominating the world and madly struggling to maintain their dominance.]
Small farmers in Malaysia and Indonesia confront rising heat and rising costs to cool their sheds, South China Morning Post, Sept 29, 2026 (Here in pdf format: Small farmers in Malaysia and Indonesia confront rising heat and rising costs to cool their sheds)
Background, previously reported:
* Wildfire haze threatens health of millions in Indonesia, report in Phys.org, Aug 26, 2026 … Millions of Indonesians risk health complications from exposure to thick haze covering several cities and towns, government officials explained on August 26 as El Niño-fueled wildfires wreak havoc on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. Most wildfires are blamed on slash-and-burn practices to clear land for corporate farms. The chief of staff of President Prabowo Subianto says four companies operating in West Kalimantan are under investigation for land burning…
* Related report in South China Morning Post on August 26, 2026 (paywalled), headlined ‘As toxic haze spreads, can Indonesia make land burners pay?’: …Under laws passed in 1999 and 2009, deliberately setting fire to forest areas carries a sentence of up to ten years in prison and heavy fines. But environmental activists and analysts say containment of fires is no longer enough, pointing to what they describe as chronic weaknesses in prosecution, deterrence and enforcement of Indonesia’s forest-fire laws…
Incessant rainfall across Nepal results in 27 casualties in 542 disaster incidents, report in The Rising Nepal blog, Sept 29, 2026 Twenty-seven people have died in 542 disaster incidents across Nepal triggered by heavy rains. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority reports that four people went missing and eight were injured in the disasters that occurred from September 24 to 27…
Related: Latest casualty figures from August 26 ice-rock avalanche disaster in Nepal and Tibet, as of Sept 29:
Deaths: Over 1,450 confirmed fatalities in Nepal; over 9,200 people sustained injuries. Missing: More than 5,700 to 6,200 individuals remain unaccounted for as search and rescue operations continue. Precise figures on casualties and missing in Tibet are not easily found; reports in mid-September speak of 16 deaths and some 500 people missing.
Beaches are disappearing in Southern California as El Niño bears down, New York Times, Sept 25, 2026 Beachfront homeowners and beachcombers are watching the sand vanish into the ocean as torrid waves strike the California coast (Read the report here in pdf format: Beaches are disappearing in Southern California as El Niño bears down)
Photo caption: Powerful ocean swells in 2026 have swallowed beaches and damaged homes in parts of Southern California (photo by NY Times)
A ‘zombified’ Centers for Disease Control, hobbled by cuts, struggles to fulfill scientific mission, report in New York Times, Sept 26, 2026 The health agency has lost its independence and nearly one third of its staff, as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and associates have tightened control. As of May 2026, the CDC had 30 percent fewer employees than it did before the layoffs, new data released here for the first time shows. (Read the report here in pdf format: A ‘zombified’ Centers for Disease Control struggles to fulfill scientific mission)
Sales of electric vehicles made in China are rapidly rising in EU countries, South China Morning Post, Sept 26, 2026 The latest figures issued by Dataforce analyst firm show the share of PHEV registrations of China-manufactures brands climbing from about 20 per cent in January 2026 to 35.3 per cent in August across Europe, more than double their share of the battery-electric market (Read the report here in pdf format: Sales of electric vehicles made in China are rapidly rising in EU countries)
Hong Kong reports more than 40% drop in cancer-related death rate over 30 years, South China Morning Post, Sept 24, 2026 Health minister Lo Chung-mau outlines Hong Kong’s ‘remarkable’ progress at the World Cancer Congress, being held in the city for the first time (Read the report here in pdf format: Hong Kong reports more than 40% drop in cancer-related death rate over 30 years)
[For the year 2024, the World Health Organization records 5,150,572 new cancer cases in China (4.1 times the U.S. population), 2,462,729 in the USA, and 633,830 new cases in Russia (42% of the U.S. population). The top five countries for age-standardized rates of cancer that year are listed by WHO, in order: Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, USA, Norway. A different source lists the top ten countries for age-standardized rates of cancer for 2022, in order, as follows: Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United States, Denmark, Belgium, The Netherlands, Canada, France.]
The solar boom in developing countries: Fast, chaotic, and unequal, analysis by Jan Rosenow, in Yale Environment 360, Sept 22, 2026 Soaring energy costs are driving a solar rush in developing countries, but as households unplug from the grid, those who remain face higher electricity bills. If governments fail to manage the buildout, the growth of solar could destabilize power systems and deepen economic inequality.
China breaks ground on the world’s first supercritical CO2 and molten salt energy plant, South China Morning Post, Sept 19, 2026 Ruitan demonstration project in Shandong aims to reduce energy waste and stabilise grid electricity supply
Photo caption: Artists’ view of the Ruitan demonstration project under construction at China Huaneng’s Bajiao power station in Yantai City on September 16 (image by Huaneng)
Seven of the nine planetary boundaries are now at record breach levels, report by Oceanographic magazine, Sept 21, 2026 Record ocean heat, droughts, floods, wildfires, and extreme heat have pushed seven on the nine Planetary Boundaries to their highest levels of transgression yet, according to the 2026 Planetary Health Check – an annual assessment produced by more than 60 leading scientists at the Planetary Boundaries Science Lab. The Lab is part of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Its annual reports frame the interconnected Earth system processes that must stay within safe limits for the planet to remain stable and resilient. Ocean acidification became the latest to breach its boundary, in 2025, joining climate change, biosphere integrity, land system change, freshwater change, biogeochemical flows, and novel entities as boundaries now transgressed…
Related: 44-page summary of the 2026 Planetary Health Check report, here (The full report is 144 pages; find it here.)
The cooling trap: how Asia’s air conditioners are making heatwaves worse, South China Morning Post, Sept 21, 2026 As heatwaves intensify across Asia, soaring air-conditioner use is threatening power grids and warming urban nights (Read the report here in pdf format: The cooling trap: How Asia’s air conditioners are making heatwaves worse)
Measles outbreak spreading in Pennsylvania, met with defiance by some, rush to vaccinate by others, New York Times, Sept 20, 2026 Vaccination coverage among U.S. kindergartners has declined to about 92.4 percent in the 2025-2026 school year, below the 95 percent needed to obtain herd immunity. The United States has recorded more measles cases in 2026 than in any other year since the virus was declared eliminated in 2000, toppling last year’s record, when measles infected more than 2,200 Americans and killed three people. (Read the report here in pdf format: Measles outbreak spreading in Pennsylvania)
Scientists in Florida heard a knock at the door; turns out it was a pelican needing help, Washington Post, Sept 20, 2026 (Here in pdf format: Scientists in Florida heard ‘tap tap’ at the back door, a pelican needing help)
New paint that cuts surface temperatures by 25 C in summer begins mass production in China, South China Morning Post, Sept 19, 2026 China has begun mass production of a super-coating that can cut wall and other surface temperatures by 25 degrees Celsius in summer, according to the state-run Science and Technology Daily… (Read the report here in pdf format: New paint that cuts surface temperatures by 25 C in summer begins mass production in China)
Polar glaciers have lost trillions of tons of ice, and the losses continue, report in Washington Post, Sept 17, 2026 Ice from Greenland and from Antarctica is flowing faster into the ocean, a new study shows, causing sea levels to rise. This leaves millions of humans immediately threatened by rising ocean levels, with hundreds of millions more threatened in the coming decades. (Read the report here in pdf format: Polar glaciers are melting and have lost trillions of tons of ice
Geologists in China find unexpectedly large water sources in Xinjiang region beneath China’s largest desert, South China Morning Post, Sept 16, 2026 The discovery offers an answer to sand control and agricultural demands along the arid region’s edge (Read the report here in pdf format: Geologists in China find unexpectedly large water sources in Xinjiang region beneath China’s largest desert)
Along the path of Himalayan avalanche-flood disaster, towns are wiped out and grief is mounting, report in New York Times, Sept 13, 2026 (Read the report here in pdf format, with map and photos: Along the path of Himalayan ice avalanche-flood disaster, towns are wiped out and grief is everywhere
Caption: The avalanche site is 65 km
in a direct line north from Kathmandu
(map by NYT)
August 2026 was the hottest month ever recorded globally, by Copernicus environmental agency (European Union), Sept 10, 2026
Caption: Global-average surface air temperature (°C). 2023 (orange), 2024 (yellow), 2026 (dark red). All other years between 1940 and 2025 in grey lines (image on Copernicus)
Chinese scientists boost output of hydrogen fuel cells fourfold, South China Morning Post, Sept 11, 2026 (Here in pdf format: Chinese scientists boost output of hydrogen fuel cells fourfold)
Record electric vehicle sales in China: China’s electric vehicle (EV) adoption rate has hit an all-time high as rising fuel prices prompt motorists to shift away from petrol cars, even as the overall automotive market remains sluggish. A record 65.2 per cent of the 1.54 million cars sold in China last month were either pure electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed. The figure broke the previous record of 65.1 per cent set one month earlier.–South China morning Post, Sept 11, 2026
Sargassum seaweed in the tropical Atlantic Ocean: A scourge or ecological boon?, report by Fred Pearce, in Yale Environment 360 (Yale E360), Sept 10, 2026
Russia trains public health specialists in Uganda amid ongoing Ebola threat, RT News, Sept 9, 2026
Panama Canal reduces daily transits as drought conditions continue, report by Marine Insight, Sept 8, 2026
Chinese scientists propose turning abandoned coal mines into underground farms, South China Morning Post, Sept 9, 2026 Insulated from surface weather and natural disasters, mining tunnels could offer agricultural advantages amid climate change, scientists say. There are n estimated 15,000 abandoned mines in China. (Here in pdf format: Chinese scientists propose turning abandoned coal mines into underground farms)
Update on September 8 of the Aug 26 ice-rock collapse disaster in Himalayas:
The ice-rock avalanche/flash flood disaster in Nepal and Tibet was unleashed by an ice-rock collapse on the morning of Wednesday, August 26 at Langtang Lirung on the Nepalese side of the shared border. Nepal’s disaster agency reports on September 8 that 1,357 deaths in total have been recorded, with 5,326 people missing, including 587 foreigners. In China’s Tibet Autonomous Region, 43 deaths are recorded with 518 people missing.—source
Rescue efforts include those focused on 12 hydropower projects across Nepal, where about 900 workers are missing and roughly 500 are believed to be trapped in various tunnels. Specialized rescue teams from India, China, South Korea and the United States have been searching through debris, damaged structures and tunnels at the projects, hoping to find survivors. Only three of these workers have been rescued so far. Meanwhile, authorities in Nepal estimate that 7,500 homes there have been destroyed, with a total of 20,000 needing to be repaired or rebuilt. Some 3,500 people are currently sheltering in government-run facilities across the three worst-hit districts of Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading. Having lost their homes, land and life savings, survivors now face an uncertain future, haunted by the daunting task of rebuilding from scratch.
Nepal’s flood survivors face economic ruin as migration beckons, report by Bibek Bhandari, in Nepal, in South China Morning Post, Sept 8, 2026 With homes and savings washed away, survivors of last month’s devastating floods in Nepal are looking aborad for work and income (Read the report here in pdf format: Nepal’s flood survivors face economic ruin as migration beckons)
Avalanche disaster in Nepal puts UN climate fund to its biggest test yet, report by Bibek Bhandari, in Nepal, in South China Morning Post, Sept 8, 2026 (Here in pdf format: Avalanche disaster in Nepal puts UN climate fund to its biggest test yet)
China is powering Africa’s green tech moment, by Dulue Mbachu (Africa correspondent), in South China Morning Post, Sept 8, 2026 Record photovoltaic additions and major infrastructure deals allow developing countries in Africa to bypass fossil fuel price shocks and ignore the U.S. ‘drill, baby, drill’ oil strategy for the continent (Here in pdf format: China is powering Africa’s green tech moment)
Measles toll nears grim 1,000-child mark in Bangladesh, Agence France presse, Sept 5, 2026 …At least 986 children have died since March, while suspected and confirmed cases have surged past 180,000, according to the latest health ministry figures. The South Asian country of 170 million has rolled out a mass vaccination drive to combat the outbreak, but case numbers continue to climb. More than 1,000 suspected cases are being reported daily. Bangladesh has previously made major advances in vaccination against infectious diseases, but a measles drive planned for 2024 was delayed by the social uprising that toppled former prime minister Sheikh Hasina. Workers’ strikes and political instability delayed a 2025 campaign. The country has since rolled out a mass vaccination drive to combat the outbreak, but the number of cases continues to climb…
Inside the investigations by the U.S. Dept. of Justice of Dr. Anthony Fauci and other virus scientists, investigative report by the New York Times, Sept 5, 2026 As Dr. Anthony Fauci faces harsh scrutiny from congressional Republicans, the DOJ has pursued a quieter and more expansive effort against a wider circle of researchers (Read the report here in pdf format: Inside the investigations of virus scientists by the U.S. Dept. of Justice)
El Niño set to become very strong, raising risks of extreme weather into 2027, media release and report by World Meteorological Organization, Sept 3, 2026
A surge of marine heat waves threatens to scramble ocean life, by Jim Robbins, in Yale Environment 260 (Yale E360), Sept 3, 2026 Fueled by climate change and a strengthening El Niño ocean and weather pattern, record-setting marine heat waves are gripping oceans worldwide and playing havoc with sea life. Mounting evidence from recent events suggests the damage could be severe and long-lasting, both onshore and off.
Chinese geologists warn an active fault line threatens world’s biggest hydropower project along Yarlung Tsangpo River across Tibet, report in South China Morning Post, July 9, 2026 New analysis brings call for slope reinforcement for massive mega-dam project in Tibet to mitigate risks of landslides and collapses (Read the report here in pdf format: Geologists in China warn of active fault line threatens world’s biggest hydropower project along Yarlung Tsangpo River across Tibet)
Related: What are the geological and environmental risks of China’s giant Yarlung Tsangpo hydro-electric project?, by Mehebub Sahana (University of Manchester), in The Conversation academic journal, April 8, 2025 In late 2024, China approved construction of the world’s largest hydroelectric project, a multi-dam project along the Yarlung Tsangpo river in Tibet. When fully up and running, it will be the world’s largest power plant by some distance. There are big trans-border issue involved because the river flows into India as the Brahmaputra River, merging with the Ganges River, then becomes the Jamuna River in Bangladesh before emptying into the Bay of Bengal…
The Nepal-China rock-ice avalanche disaster and the global warming crisis, essay by Dr Zhengxu Wang, re-published here in The Multiplural World, Sept 2, 2026 (with related readings) The rock-ice avalanche disaster on the Nepal-Tibet (China) Himalaya mountains border highlights a growing front of the global warming crisis. While rising sea levels, extreme weather and drought all remain concerns, destabilised ice and snow at high altitudes is increasingly a threat. (Dr Zhengxu Wang is a distinguished professor at the School of Public Affairs, Zhejiang University in China. This essay by him originally appeared in the South China Morning Post on September 2, 2026.)
The history of the electric car, report by the U.S. Dept. of Energy, Sept 2014 [Electric vehicles were popular at the turn of the 20th century, when most automobile driving took place in cities with favorable roads. They were soon to be sidelined by the rising auto industry and oil industry behemoths based on the internal combustion engine.
Related:
* The first electric car, by Josh Sadlier, in Edmunds.com, Sept 2023 The first electric car was the 1888 Flocken Elektrowagen, a four-wheeled open carriage with a one horsepower electric motor, a rechargeable lead-acid battery and a top speed of 9 mph (15 km/h). It weighed 400 kg. The late-1800s were actually chock full of EV-related innovations. By the early 1900s, numerous electric cars were on sale and being used for local errands in cities, with ranges from 15 km to 150 km. Cheap gasoline, subpar EV performance and a lack of environmental concern ultimately spelled doom for this initial crop of electric cars…
* The Flocken Elektrowagen, beginning production in Germany in 1888 (Wikipedia)
‘Master class in greenwash’ as Ottawa and Alberta governments re-commit to carbon capture and storage (CCS) scheme, industry creates ‘Oil Sands Alliance’ to see it through, report in The Energy Mix, July 13, 2026
