Environment | WPN World People News

Globally, more than 1.42 billion people, including 450 million children, live in areas of high, or extremely high, water vulnerability, according to a new analysis released by UNICEF. This means that 1 in 5 children worldwide does not have enough water to meet their everyday needs.

On February 11, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced settlements with Par Hawaii Refining, LLC, over violations of the federal Clean Air Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) at its oil refining facilities on Komohana Street and Malakole Street in Kapolei.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on February 10, announced a Clean Water Act (CWA) settlement with Fleur de Lis Energy and Fleur de Lis Operating, LLC (Fleur de Lis) in which the companies have agreed to pay $1.9 million for alleged Clean Water Act violations associated with the operation of oil and gas facilities in the state of Wyoming.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Equilon Enterprises LLC -- doing business as Shell Oil Products US -- have agreed on a legal settlement resolving violations of the federal Clean Air Act stemming from a February 2015 release of toxic vapors from the company’s Puget Sound Refinery in Anacortes, Washington.

More than 176,000* people, including 90,000* children, in central Mozambique are likely to need humanitarian assistance in the aftermath of Cyclone Eloise, UNICEF said, on January 26. Children living in the affected areas, particularly those who have been displaced, could soon be at risk of contracting waterborne diseases like cholera and diarrheal infections.

The Republic of Fiji has signed a landmark agreement with the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF), a global partnership housed at the World Bank, that will unlock up to US$12.5 million (approx. FJ$26 million) in results-based payments for increasing carbon sequestration and reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

Authorities in Indonesia say the nation’s most active volcano, Mount Merapi, on the island of Java, erupted Wednesday sending up a cloud of ash, as well as lava flows at least 1,500 meters down its slopes.

The Lao PDR and the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) have signed an agreement to provide up to $42 million between now and 2025 to support the country’s efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+). A ceremony marked the launch of this forest- and climate-focused program on January 27.

A strong earthquake with a magnitude 6.2 hit Indonesia's Sulawesi island Friday, killing at least 34 people, destroying residential and commercial buildings and triggering landslides, local authorities said.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on January 14 announced a Clean Air Act settlement in which Big West Oil, LLC (Big West Oil) has agreed to pay a $344,364 penalty and address violations of Risk Management Plan requirements at its petroleum refining facility in North Salt Lake, Utah. The company has been cooperative in correcting all identified deficiencies and has also agreed to improve the maintenance of process equipment to reduce the possibility of an accidental release of hazardous chemicals at the facility.