U.S. sets record for billion-dollar disasters in a single year, with almost four months to go & more environmental news.

[View this email in your browser]( Wednesday, September 13, 2023 “Climate change does not respect border; it does not respect who you are — rich and poor, small and big. Therefore, this is what we call ‘global challenges,' which require global solidarity.” — Ban Ki-moon U.S. Sets Record for Billion-Dollar Disasters in a Single Year, With Almost Four Months to Go With nearly four months still to go in 2023, the U.S. has already set a record for the most natural disasters that have cost $1 billion or more in a single year. Since 1980, there have been 371 [climate]( and weather-related disaster events in the U.S. with costs and damages reaching or exceeding $1 billion, a press release from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s [National Centers for Environmental Information]( (NCEI) said. The estimated costs include a consumer price index adjustment. Altogether these disasters cost more than $2.6 trillion. [Read More]( Related: [10 Costliest Climate Disasters of 2022]( Flamingos From Mexico Seen From Florida to Ohio After Being Blown Off Course by Hurricane Idalia Once a native species of [Florida]( American flamingos mostly disappeared in the state due to hunting around the turn of the twentieth century. These days they are mostly found in the Caribbean and Central and South America. Recently, the exotic birds — whose pink feathers come from their diet of brine shrimp and algae containing carotenoids — have made their way into Florida, the Carolinas and as far north as Ohio, Kentucky and Pennsylvania after being blown off course by last month’s Hurricane Idalia. [Read More]( Related: [Category 3 Idalia Strongest Hurricane to Hit Big Bend, Florida on Record]( Sand Dredging Is Unsustainable and Wiping Out Marine Life, UN Says [Water]( is the most overused natural resource on Earth, but the second most might surprise you: [sand](. Approximately six billion tons of sand is extracted from the planet’s [oceans]( annually, which the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) says is unsustainable and poses a serious threat to [marine life](. [Read More]( Related: [Microplastics Increase Sand Temperature, Impacting Sea Turtle Development, Study Finds]( Urban Parks Built on Former Trash Incineration Sites Could Be Contaminated With Lead, Study Finds Many cities in [Canada]( and the U.S. used municipal incinerators to burn their [waste]( and [trash]( until the early 1970s, when most of the facilities were closed due to [air pollution]( concerns. A new [study]( by scientists at Duke University has found that the [lead]( contamination produced by the incinerators could still be present in city [soils](. [Read More]( Related: [Lead Poisoning Reveals Environmental Racism in the U.S.]( Nature Livestream Camera Leads to Lost Hiker, Rescue A lost hiker in Alaska’s Katmai National Park was rescued after being spotted on a livestream camera that viewers were observing to catch glimpses of brown bears. [Read More]( Related: [Don’t Hike So Close to Me: How the Presence of Humans Can Disturb Wildlife Up to Half a Mile Away]( Do you get this newsletter daily? If not, [sign up here]( or forward to a friend. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Website]( [Instagram]( Copyright © 2023 EcoWatch, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up for EcoWatch Top News of The Day Our mailing address is: EcoWatch 1122 Oberlin RoadRaleigh, NC 27605 [Add us to your address book]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. [Mailchimp Email Marketing](