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NASA research shows Earth's atmosphere contains an unexpectedly large amount of an ozone-depleting compound from an unknown source decades after the compound was banned worldwide.

Here are the clean energy trends that will matter in 2015:  - Moves toward 100 percent renewables will expand - Energy storage will carve out a competitive advantage - Low-cost oil could affect clean transportation, but not clean electricity - Other regions will follow New York's fracking ban 

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be elephant-free by 2018, with the troupe's 13 performing pachyderms sent into retirement at a Florida conservation center. The move is a response to growing consumer concerns about the animals' welfare, coupled with the prospect of local bans on elephant performances. "It's a shame this took so long, but it's a creditable step toward treating animals with respect and dignity," writes Andrew Revkin

EU countries will face tougher recycling targets and a ban on burying recyclable waste in landfills under plans presented by the European Commission. The proposals are part of the Commission's Waste Targets Review, which includes updated recycling targets of 70 percent of household waste and 80 percent of packaging waste by 2030.

President Obama signed a bill on Monday that will phase out the manufacturing of face wash, toothpaste and shampoo containing plastic microbeads by July 1, 2017, and the sale of such beauty products by July 1, 2018.

France's Parliament took definitive steps to prevent food waste on Wednesday. The country's Senate unanimously voted to ban large food stores from throwing away food that's approaching its expiration date.

Increased conservation advocacy by groups including the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and the World Wildlife Fund encouraged the Mexican government to renew efforts to save the critically endangered vaquita porpoise from extinction. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has signed a memorandum of understanding that includes stricter enforcement of a permanent ban on fishing nets in Mexico's Upper Gulf of California, where about 30 vaquitas are estimated to be left.

As evidence mounts that excessive use of light is harming wildlife and adversely affecting human health, new initiatives in France and elsewhere are seeking to turn down the lights that flood an ever-growing part of the planet

mounts that excessive use of light is harming wildlife and adversely affecting human health, new initiatives in France and elsewhere are seeking to turn down the lights that flood an ever-growing part of the planet.

On September 27, 2015, Paris will go car-free for the first time in the city's history to raise consciousness of its pollution problem and encourage sustainable transportation. City officials worked with the environmental nonprofit Paris Sans Voiture to announce "A Day Without Car," which will turn the French capital into a "pedestrian and bicycle paradise."

By April of this year, its 600-plus Scoop Shops around the world will only offer wooden spoons, rather than plastic ones. Paper straws will also only be available upon request.

The EU's Plastics Strategy aims to cut out non-recyclable plastics by 2030, while cutting down on single-use plastics and restricting microplastics, all by establishing a new circular economy around the material. The strategy lays out a few key steps to achieve this. The first is to introduce new rules on packaging that improve their recyclability and increase the demand for recycled plastics, thereby making recycling profitable for businesses.

These celebrities suck but you probably do too. We use 500 million plastic straws every day in the U.S. Many of those plastic straws end up in our oceans, polluting the water and harming sea life. If we don't act now, by 2050 plastics in the ocean will outweigh the fish. One small change can have a big impact: #stopsucking on plastic straws.