LEO Network

About the LEO Network
The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
Continue

Observations

'I'm definitely worried': Wildfire smoke means Yellowknife's air quality among worst in Canada
Clean, fresh air can be part of the draw for tourists to Canada's North — but they won't find it this week in Yellowknife due to wildfire smoke.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada
CBC

Wildfire smoke, extreme heat continue to steamroll N.W.T. communities
Wildfire smoke has been blasting much of the N.W.T. lately, with air quality advisories in nearly every community Tuesday morning. Meanwhile, much of the territory is also coping with record-breaking heat.
Northwest Territories, Canada
CBC

Smoke from Canada wildfires reaches Southeast Alaska
People in Southeast Alaska are starting to see smoke from Canada's record-breaking wildfire season — and there’s more to come. The air quality levels are still fair: hovering around 17, on a scale that goes up to 300.
Petersburg, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Borough wood stove change-out program continues
As the Fairbanks North Star Borough continues to tweak plans to improve air quality in its nonattainment zone, its wood stove change-out program continues to grow.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Millions breathing hazardous air as smoke from Canadian wildfires streams south over US
The air quality index, a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency metric for air pollution, exceeded a staggering 400 at times in Syracuse, New York City and Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. A level of 50 or under is considered good; anything over 300 is considered “hazardous,” when even healthy people are advised to curtail outdoor physical activity.
New York City, New York, United States
AP NEWS

E-fuel: Norwegian invests in aviation fuel in Mosjøen as first in the country
Norwegian invests NOK 50 million to build Norway's first e-fuel factory. Airline company Norwegian thus hopes to reach its own climate goals, and using e-fuel rather than jet fuel.
Mosjøen, Nordland, Norway
NRK

Alaska seeks federal air quality waiver due to wildfire smoke impact
Alaska's Department of Environmental Conservation seeks a waiver to exclude 2022-2023 wildfire smoke from EPA air quality assessments, citing these as "exceptional events."
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

As permafrost thaws, a Biden-supported drilling plan is on unstable ground
ConocoPhillips' massive Willow project would emit 284 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over its 30-year lifetime.
Nuiqsut, Alaska, United States
Grist

B.C. Wildfires 2021: Hundreds of properties on evacuation order or alert as wildfire between Oliver and Osoyoos spreads
As of Tuesday, there were 299 wildfires burning in B.C., with 40 evacuation orders affecting approximately 5,724 people (2,862 properties), in addition to 69 evacuation alerts impacting approximately 32,076 people (16,038 properties).
Osoyoos, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Sun

St Vincent volcano erupts again, spewing more gas and ash
Experts raise concerns about residents who refuse to evacuate as ‘huge explosion’ reported at La Soufriere volcano. The volcano, which last erupted in 1979, began spewing copious amounts of ash on Friday.
La Soufriere, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Al Jazeera

400 million rubles will be allocated for waste elimination in Usolie-Sibirskoye.
The Interdepartmental Working Group approved a list of priority measures to eliminate environmental damage in the town of Usolie-Sibirskoye, Irkutsk Region. This was reported by the press service of Deputy Prime Minister Victoria Abramchenko.
Усолье-Сибирское, Irkutsk, Russia
Russian newspaper

On land, Australia's rising heat is 'apocalyptic'; in the ocean, it's even worse
BRUNY ISLAND, TASMANIA (WASHINGTON POST) - Even before the ocean caught fever and reached temperatures no one had ever seen, Australia's ancient giant kelp was cooked.. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Australia
The Straits Times

Wildfire smoke drifts back into Anchorage area
The intensity of the smoke this week will be “hit or miss” depending on winds and fire behavior.
Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

UAF project seeks to provide air quality data for rural, remote Alaska areas
A graduate student with the University of Alaska Fairbanks is installing air-quality sensors in rural and remote areas around the state to monitor wildfire smoke and other types of air pollution.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Он гарсаар 89 удаагийн ой, хээрийн түймэр гараад байна
Улсын хэмжээнд 2019 оны 07 дугаар сарын 16-ны байдлаар нийслэл Улаанбаатар хот, Булган, Баян-Өлгий, Дорнод, Дорноговь, Дархан-Уул, Сэлэнгэ, Сүхбаатар, Төв, Увс, Хөвсгөл, Хэнтий аймгийн 43 суманд нийт 89 удаагийн ой, хээрийн гал түймэр гарч урьдчилсан байдлаар 49593.8 га ой, 250839.2 га хээрийн талбай, нийт 300433 га талбай түймэрт өртөж, 13 байшин, гурван гэр шатсан. Дээрх … 43 soums of Ulaanbaatar, Bulgan, Bayan-Ulgii, Dornod, Dornogovi, Darkhan-Uul, Selenge, Sukhbaatar, Tuv, Uvs, Khuvsgul and Khentii aimags.
Mongolia
News.MN - Мэдээллийн эх сурвалж

Swan Lake Fire spreads smoky haze to much of Southcentral
The state Division of Air Quality is warning of the smoke's potential health effects, with advisories in effect until Friday evening, pending any extensions.
Sterling, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

South Korea plans artificial rain to reduce Seoul air pollution
President Moon hopes collaboration with China will improve air quality in the country.
Yellow Sea and Korean Peninsula
AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES

Loads of seaweed are threatening the Caribbean’s sea life and tourism. Experts say we may be to blame
Scientists say the threat from sargassum is as serious as rising sea levels and hurricanes.
Quintana Roo, Mexico
Washington Post

How smoky skies from wildfires is affecting mental health
Extreme smoke seems to be a new feature of summers in British Columbia with back-to-back years of heavy wildfires in the province and, for some, the overcast skies are taking a toll on mental health.
British Columbia, Canada
CBC

Lingering B.C. wildfire smoke puts children, elderly at risk
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control recommends children and elderly stay indoors during lingering smoke from forest fires.
British Columbia, Canada
The Star

Wildfire smoke blanketing much of B.C. causing health concerns, traffic warnings
The smoke has pushed pollution in Calgary and other cities to dangerous levels, and cast an unsettling, spooky haze over almost every part of B.C.
British Columbia, Canada
The Globe and Mail

Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation's solar farm now generating electricity
There will be something noticeably different in Old Crow, Yukon in a few months. The hum of diesel engines will be gone, as the community's solar farm is now generating power. "The symbolism in shutting down those generators will be, we're becoming more sustainable and we're becoming more self-sufficient like our ancestors were," said Brandon Kyikavichik, the First Nation's heritage interpreter.
Old Crow, Yukon, Canada

Russian planes seed clouds as raging wildfires near Siberian power plant
Russian planes seeded clouds to bring down rain on huge wildfires raging in the Siberian region of Yakutia that in one place spread dangerously close to a hydroelectric power plant, authorities said on Monday.
Yakutsk, Sakha, Russia
ArcticToday

Alaska seeks more time to submit air-quality plan for particulate-plagued Fairbanks
The state’s environmental commissioner is pushing back on EPA’s position that the state should address power-plant emissions.

Nez Perce Tribe leads the way in protecting the community from wildfire smoke indoors
The Nez Perce Tribe in Idaho is leading efforts to protect vulnerable community members from wildfire smoke indoors by distributing free portable air purifiers and providing education on indoor air quality. A nearby paper mill is a local source of emissions. But now, wildfire smoke is the main pollutant the reservation faces, a near-constant each summer.
Boise, Idaho, United States
KSUT Public Radio

Fairbanks winter air pollution holds clues for safe living in northern cities worldwide
A major source of pollution comes from wood-burning stoves. Other sources are vehicle exhaust systems, power plant emissions and heating oil. The air pollution can permanently harm respiratory function and cause other health problems.
Anchorage Daily News

Alaska fire agencies offer wildfire-smoke reports online
Alaskans have shown interest in online smoke and air-quality advisories after a surge of lightning-caused fires across the Interior.
Alaska, United States

Thawing permafrost could expose Arctic populations to cancer-causing radon
According to a new study, thawing of permafrost due to climate change could expose the Arctic population to much greater concentrations of the invisible, lung cancer-causing gas Radon.
ScienceDaily

By road and by air, Yellowknifers head home after 3-week evacuation
A three-week evacuation odyssey ended for many Yellowknifers Wednesday, as people began to return home. The barricades outside of the city opened at 11 a.m., and cars began streaming in.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

ConocoPhillips Alaska says gas release source is controlled
The release was first detected last month at one of the company’s North Slope drill sites. A report from the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, dated Friday, listed the cause of the release as under evaluation and said that future plans included a continuation of “source remediation operations.”
Alpine Field

Great Salt Lake is shrinking fast. Scientists demand action before it becomes a toxic dustbin
Great Salt Lake is also known as America's Dead Sea -- owing to a likeness to its much smaller Middle Eastern counterpart -- but scientists worry the moniker could soon take new meaning.
Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
CNN

Prevalence of serum antibodies to Coxiella burnetii in Alaska Native Persons from the Pribilof Islands
Q fever is a febrile illness caused by infection with the bacterium Coxiella burnetii. It is most often transmitted by inhalation of the bacteria after it is shed by infected livestock. The antibody prevalence in NFS samples from 2009 and 2011 (69%) was significantly higher than in 1994 (49%). The antibody prevalence of SSL samples from 2007 to 2011 was 59%. All NFS vaginal swabs were negative for C. burnetii, despite an 80% antibody prevalence in the matched sera. The significant increase in antibody prevalence in NFS from 1994 to 2011 suggests that the pathogen may be increasingly common or that there is marked temporal variation within the vulnerable NFS population.
Saint Paul, Alaska, United States
PubMed Central (PMC)

Observed Evidence of Changing Forests:Testimonial for the Status of Tribes and Climate Change Report
The Institute of Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) Tribes and Climate Change Program is publishing a report called the Status of Tribes and Climate C...
Spokane, Washington, United States
YouTube

Support

Observation Template