Their state budgets flush with cash, U.S. Democratic and Republican governors alike want to spend some of the windfall on projects aimed at slowing climate change and guarding against its consequences, from floods and wildfires to dirty air.

Democratic governors such as California's Gavin Newsom and Washington's Jay Inslee have been clear about their plans to boost spending on climate-related projects, including expanding access to electric vehicles and creating more storage for clean energies such as solar. Newsom deemed climate change one of five "existential threats" facing the nation's most populous state when he rolled out his proposed state budget this past week.

The tsunami threat around the Pacific from a huge undersea volcanic eruption began to recede Sunday, while the extent of damage to Tonga remained unclear.

Satellite images showed the spectacular eruption that took place Saturday evening, with a plume of ash, steam and gas rising like a mushroom above the blue Pacific waters. A sonic boom could be heard as far away as Alaska.

Earth simmered to the sixth hottest year on record in 2021, according to several newly released temperature measurements.

And scientists say the exceptionally hot year is part of a long-term warming trend that shows hints of accelerating.

An unprecedented, experimental attempt to feed manatees facing starvation in Florida has started slowly but wildlife officials expressed optimism that it will work as cold weather drives the marine mammals toward warmer waters.

A feeding station established along the state's east coast has yet to entice wild manatees with romaine lettuce even though the animals will eat it in captivity, officials said on a news conference held remotely.

The ashes of Winter the dolphin were returned to the sea, about two months after the beloved marine mammal of movie fame died at a Florida aquarium.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium staff members released a Himalayan sea salt urn containing Winter's ashes into the Gulf of Mexico from the back of a U.S. Coast Guard response boat.

Conservationists and veterinarians are warning that plastic waste in an open landfill in eastern Sri Lanka is killing elephants in the region, after two more were found dead over the weekend.

Around 20 elephants have died over the last eight years after consuming plastic trash in the dump in Pallakkadu village in Ampara district, about 210 kilometers (130 miles) east of the capital, Colombo.

On a gusty mountain crest, the Jama brothers weave between wind turbines that stretch as far as the eye can see, on what used to be their animals' winter pasture. Climate emergency or not -- for these reindeer herders, the turbines have to go.

"Before, the area was perfect for our reindeer. The place was pristine, unspoiled by human activity. Now, everything has been ruined for years to come," laments Leif Arne, the younger of the brothers, at the wheel of his 4x4.

A severely corroded pipeline ruptured and spilled more than 300,000 gallons (1.1 million liters) of diesel fuel just outside New Orleans after the operator delayed needed repairs, according to federal records.

Most of the fuel drained into two artificial ponds called "borrow pits" and thousands of fish, birds and other animals were killed, state and local officials said Wednesday. The spill also contaminated soil, according to state and federal officials.

A veterinarian has said that a brown bear cub found exhausted in snowy woods in southeastern Poland has been diagnosed with a disease that will be treated with antibiotics.

The young male named Ada has been diagnosed with anaplasmosis, a dangerous disease that has affected the cub's lungs and is probably behind the neurological symptoms like the shaking of the head.

A land mine-detecting rat in Cambodia who received a prestigious award for his life-saving duty has died in retirement, the charity for which he had worked has announced.

Magawa, an African giant pouched rat, passed away last weekend, said an announcement on the website of APOPO, a Belgium-headquartered non-profit group. The organization trains rats and dogs to sniff out land mines and tuberculosis.