It really is hot out there

Excerpts from the Globe's environmental blog.
June was hot - not only in Boston but around the world. The National Climatic Data Center reported that last month was the eighth warmest on record since data collecting began in 1880. And globally, it was the ninth warmest January to June period on record.

In Boston, June temperatures averaged 70.3 degrees Fahrenheit, about 2.3 degrees warmer than long-term averages, placing the month in the top 20 warmest since local record-keeping began in 1872.

And July is promising to be a scorcher. Meteorologists at the National Weather Service say that this month's temperature has averaged about 75 degrees so far, about 1.7 degrees above normal. Because July temperatures tend to be stable, that difference is quite significant, meteorologists say.

Man-made chemicals are contaminating squids (such as the cockatoo squid, above) and octopuses in the deep sea, according to a study published in the journal Marine Pollution Bulletin.

The researchers collected 22 specimens in the western North Atlantic from depths of 3,300 to 6,600 feet, including vampire squids, short-finned squid, and large jelly-like octopuses. They detected polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, a banned probable human carcinogen; DDT, the controversial US banned pesticide that is still used in some parts of the world to control such diseases as malaria; tributyltin, an endocrine disrupter used in antifouling paints for boats that is being phased out worldwide because of it toxicity to some marine organisms; and other chemicals.

Scientists already knew that whales and other marine mammals' blubber and tissues contain a variety of chemicals known as persistent organic pollutants because they don't degrade over time. But, "it was surprising to find measurable and sometimes high amounts of toxic pollutants in such a deep and remote environment," said Michael Vecchione of the National Systematics Laboratory for the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The American Lung Association of New England notes that we probably have more to worry about than the 18 New England unhealthy air alerts issued so far this year by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The lung association conducted an analysis that noted if EPA this year had adopted the recommendations of an air quality expert panel - and dozens of health and environmental groups - there would have been at least 41 unhealthy days this year.

"This is a significant public health problem," Margaret R. LaCroix, a vice president for marketing and communications at the lung association said in an e-mail. "The public should know that when the EPA tells us that the air quality is moderate, it really is unhealthy."

ELIZABETH DALEY