Environment | The Guardian

New study published in Cell Reports Sustainability finds emission reductions provided $249bn of climate and health benefits

Exclusive: Five facilities named in documents tabled in NSW parliament defend practices, as independent experts question whether testing system is failing consumers

Global industry in crisis' as fears about Brazilian harvest help push wholesale prices to record highsOrange juice makers are considering turning to alternative fruits such as mandarins as wholesale prices have gone bananas" amid fears of poor harvests in Brazil.Prices of orange juice reached a new high of $4.95 (3.88) a lb on commodity markets this week after growers in the main orange producing areas of Brazil said they were expecting the harvest to be 24% down on last year at 232m 40.8kg boxes - worse than the 15% fall previously predicted. Continue reading...

Hundreds of Indian farmers who have been camping for more than 100 days between the Punjab and Haryana states to demand better prices for their crops have been enduring a savage heatwave sweeping swathes of northern India.Temperatures in Delhi, not far from the protest, have hit a record high of 49.9C (121.8F), as authorities warned of water shortages in the capital

Regulator understood to be looking at recovery regime' for Thames Water and others in sector

Los Angeles has long owned large swathes of the Owens valley. An investigation reveals how the city has tightened its gripThis article is reported by AfroLA and co-published by AfroLA, Guardian US and Inyo County's The Sheet. It's the first of several stories examining the impact of Los Angeles's extensive landownership in the Owens Valley.A red horse statue perched on a 12ft pole greets drivers coming to the town of Bishop from the south. It's one of the first landmarks here, part of Mike Allen's corrugated metal feed store - a local institution that sells camping gear, livestock feed and moving equipment in this expansive region of inland California. Continue reading...

Officials are now incentivizing testing, but experts say workers need protective equipment and paid sick leave to prevent further spreadOn a US dairy farm, working in the milking parlor can mean seven-day weeks, 12-hour shifts and intimate contact with cows and everything they expel.When you disconnect the machine from the udder, it can shoot milk in your face," said Jose Martinez, a former dairy worker and United Farm Workers advocate based in Washington state. And there's no time or place to eat. So we ate our tacos in spare moments with cow shit on our hands." Continue reading...

Study confirms huge concentrations of potentially dangerous PFAS in rivers, lakes and taps in DhakaRivers, lakes and tap water in areas of Bangladesh that host garment factories are swarming with dangerous levels of toxic forever chemicals", some with links to serious health issues, according to new research.In the first study of its kind conducted in Bangladesh, a global fashion hub supplying international brands, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as forever chemicals, were found in 27 water samples collected close to textile factories in the capital, Dhaka. Continue reading...

IPPR research examines transport emissions by income, gender, location, ethnicity and ageWealthy white men from rural areas are the UK's biggest emitters of climate-heating gases from transport, according to a study.Research by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) looked at transport emissions by income, gender, location, ethnicity and age. The study broke down the transport emissions into international and domestic flights, private road transport and public transport. Continue reading...

Widening government-run scheme would counter mistrust among householders, says consumer groupThe next government should force all tradespeople who install home heat pumps, solar panels and insulation to sign up to a mandatory accreditation scheme to counter mistrust in the industry, a leading consumer group is demanding.A report from Which? found that households face significant anxiety" in choosing tradespeople to fit low-carbon heating systems, such as heat pumps, and insulation after press stories about poor work and rogue traders". Continue reading...

The Coalition has attacked the GenCost report that found nuclear power plants would be at least 50% more expensive than solar and wind

US agency found PFOS and other types of PFAS in pesticides but failed to disclose those results, watchdog group allegesDocuments obtained from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) indicate the agency may have presented false information to the public about testing for harmful contaminants in pesticides, according to allegations being made by a watchdog group and a former EPA research fellow.The claims come almost a year to the day after the EPA issued a May 2023 press release that stated the agency found no per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in testing of samples of certain insecticide products. The press release contradicted a published study by the former EPA researcher that had reported finding PFAS in the same pesticide products.This story is co-published with the New Lede, a journalism project of the Environmental Working Group Continue reading...

And almost half of respondents back the filing of criminal charges against oil companies that have contributed to the climate crisisAs US communities take big oil to court for allegedly deceiving the public about the climate crisis, polling shared with the Guardian shows that a majority of voters support the litigation, while almost half would back an even more aggressive legal strategy of filing criminal charges.The poll, which comes as the world's first-ever criminal climate lawsuit was brought in France last week, could shed light on how, if filed, similar US cases might be viewed by a jury. Continue reading...

Labour and Liberal Democrats dominated list of MPs who were rated as very good in backing environmental policiesNo elected Tory MPs have been rated as voting positively on climate issues, under a survey of parliamentary voting patterns since the Conservatives took power in 2010.Only a single sitting Conservative was rated as good" on climate votes in the ranking, but that was Lisa Cameron, the MP for East Kilbride, who defected from the Scottish National Party in October. Continue reading...

Collins Nzovu says country's plight is foretaste of disasters that will increasingly afflict region as climate breakdown takes holdSevere drought in Zambia is threatening hunger for millions of people, cutting off electricity for long periods and destroying the country's social fabric and economy, the environment minister has warned, in a harbinger of what is in store for the region as the climate crisis worsens.Collins Nzovu said the crippling drought" his country was experiencing hammered home the message that developing countries were facing catastrophe from the climate crisis, even as richer countries failed to muster financial help for the most afflicted. Continue reading...

Campaigners urge Australians not to buy Tasmanian farmed salmon to avoid extinction event' for Maugean skate

Scalloped hammerhead and greeneye spurdog among at-risk shark discovered in genetic testing of fillets

Exclusive: Facilities owned by Bingo Industries and Aussie Skips Recycling among more than 20 named in NSW parliament for breaching regulations

The Coalition has no climate policy. But Labor's positions are undermined by its confused stance on gas and the delay of new environmental laws

Recommendations include heat forecasts and outdoor-worker safeguards to prevent thousands of deaths and injuriesMillions of Americans face the threat of dangerous heatwaves in the coming weeks with another summer of record-breaking temperatures forecast to hit the US.Most of New Mexico and Utah - alongside parts of Arizona, Texas and Colorado - have the highest chance (60% to 70%) of seeing hotter-than-average summer temperatures, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa). In addition, the entire north-east - from Maine down to Pennsylvania and New Jersey - as well as a large stretch from Louisiana to Arizona, Washington and Idaho, have a 40% to 50% chance of experiencing above-average temperatures from June through August. Continue reading...

Studies find red, blue and green plastic decomposes into microplastic particles faster than plainer coloursRetailers are being urged to stop making everyday products such as drinks bottles, outdoor furniture and toys out of brightly coloured plastic after researchers found it degrades into microplastics faster than plainer colours.Red, blue and green plastic became very brittle and fragmented", while black, white and silver samples were largely unaffected" over a three-year period, according to the findings of the University of Leicester-led project. Continue reading...

Female pair are third litter born at Blair Drummond under endangered species breeding programmeA Scottish safari park has announced the birth of two female lemur pups native to Madagascar.Nova and Evie, who are living at Blair Drummond safari and adventure park, near Stirling, were born on 14 April, and the park has now publicly announced their birth. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Independent testing of recycled soil fill finds two of four samples would not meet legislated thresholds and one contained asbestos

Warnings of possible flooding, travel delays and power cuts as Met Office issues yellow warningMore than an inch of rain could fall in one hour as thunderstorms lash parts of England and Wales, forecasters have warned.Slow-moving showers and thunderstorms are expected to develop on Sunday afternoon, with 20-30mm of rain predicted. There may also be hail and lightning strikes, with people warned to expect possible flooding, travel delays and power cuts. Continue reading...

Sydney Water says data shows men aged between 18 and 29 are biggest culprits when it comes to flushing rubbish down the toilet

A three-year study found that the spiny lobsters' urine scared off predatory worms and snails who snack on the delicate organismsAn unexpected champion has emerged in the increasingly grave battle to save Florida's imperiled coral reefs: spiny lobsters that urinate in the water and scare off predatory worms and snails seeking to feast on the delicate organisms.The finding is one of the more bizarre conclusions of a three-year study by scientists from the Florida fish and wildlife conservation commission (FWC), who are also warning it may already be too late for some species of coral to survive without significant human assistance. Continue reading...

Conservationist says for first time number of animals removed exceeds annual population growth

A football academy will be built on the site and campaigners say high court decision threatens other public parksPublic parks across London and beyond are being put at risk by a high court judgment in favour of Enfield council leasing a rewilded golf course to Tottenham Hotspur for a football academy, campaigners say.The court has ruled that Enfield council is allowed to hand over more than half of the 97-hectare (240-acre) Whitewebbs Park to Spurs, which has submitted plans to the council to build a new women's and girls' academy on the green belt site. Continue reading...

Demonstrators gathered outside Paris meetings of energy giant and Amundi, with some forcing their way into fund manager's tower blockThe head of TotalEnergies has told shareholders that new oilfields have to be developed to meet global demand, as the annual meetings of the French energy giant and one of its biggest shareholders were picketed by climate activists.Police said they detained 173 people among hundreds who gathered outside the Paris headquarters of Amundi, one of the world's biggest investment managers and a major TotalEnergies shareholder. Continue reading...

Literary event suspends' arrangement with Baillie Gifford after Charlotte Church and Nish Kumar joined performers pulling out

Smaller secondary systems that create hailstorms and tornadoes pack a punch that is causing billions of dollars in damagesThis story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaborationThe rising cost of homeowner's insurance is now one of the most prominent symptoms of the climate crisis in the US. Major carriers such as State Farm and Allstate have pulled back from offering fire insurance in California, dropping thousands of homeowners from their books, and dozens of small insurance companies have collapsed or fled from Florida and Louisiana following recent large hurricanes. Continue reading...

Display at Chelsea flower show highlights work in UK and US to bring orchid habitats back to healthScientists are racing against the clock to save the world's orchids by discovering the soil fungi they need to thrive, breeding them and then, in a first for conservation, transplanting them into orchid habitats.Among the showy blooms at Chelsea flower show this week was a moss-covered exhibit, sprouting from which were the types of rare, native flowers one does not normally see at horticultural exhibits. Continue reading...

Speaking at the UK River Summit, Philip Duffy said officials do not want to reveal the true embarrassing' environmental pictureThe head of the Environment Agency has admitted that freedom of information requests have been buried by the regulator because the truth about the environment in England is embarrassing".Philip Duffy, the body's chief executive, told an audience at the UK River Summit in Morden, south London, this week that his officials were worried about revealing the true state of what is going on" with regards to the state of the environment. Continue reading...

PFAS contamination recorded in groundwater on Angus Fire site in Bentham, and includes chemicals with known health impactsA small North Yorkshire town has been found to have the highest concentration of forever chemicals" in the UK, it can be revealed.The market town of Bentham, which is home to 3,000 people and set on the banks of the River Wenning, is also home to the Angus International Safety Group - locally known as Angus Fire - which, since the 1970s, has been producing firefighting foams containing PFAS at a factory near the town centre. Continue reading...

The best of this week's wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...

Shishir Dholakia of the University of Southern Queensland's Centre for Astrophsics has identified Gliese 12b, a possibly temperate Earth-sized planet just 40 light years away. The student has been co-leading an international team that published the discovery in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Friends of the Earth will argue private companies are allowed to create their own public order laws that stifle demonstrationsThe government is to be challenged at the European court of human rights over its use of confusing and opaque" anti-protest injunctions.The environmental group Friends of the Earth (FoE) is to argue such injunctions allow private companies to create bespoke public order laws that stifle peaceful protest. Continue reading...

Two committees inquiring after reports of ex-president's offer to roll back dozens of regulations for $1bn campaign donationsPowerful Senate Democrats have launched an investigation into an alleged quid pro quo offer from Donald Trump to fossil fuel executives.At a meeting at his Mar-a-Lago home and club last month, the former president reportedly told oil bosses he would immediately roll back dozens of environmental regulations if elected, and requested $1bn in contributions to his presidential campaign. It would be a deal" for the executives because of the costs they would avoid under him, he reportedly said. Continue reading...

Factors including near-record warm ocean temperatures in Atlantic' lead to stark prediction from Noaa for June to NovemberThe 2024 Atlantic hurricane season will be above normal" amid very warm ocean temperatures, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted, prompting some scientists to warn of a summer of natural disasters caused by the powerful storms.Hurricane season, which takes place from 1 June to 30 November this year could be an 85% chance of an above-normal season", the federal weather agency said on Thursday. Continue reading...

Settlement for disaster that resulted in plumes of toxic chemicals in Ohio town includes funds for cleanup costsThe freight train company involved in a disastrous, pollution-spewing derailment in Ohio last year has agreed to a $310m settlement with the US government over the incident.Norfolk Southern will pay a $15m civil penalty for violating clean water laws and pay hundreds of millions more in cleanup costs in the wake of the derailment, which occurred near the town of East Palestine in February last year. Continue reading...

WeatherZone predicts no significant snowfalls for five major downhill ski resorts in NSW and Victoria before season kicks off on June long weekend

WWF says the government has breached the law without adequately assessing the consequences'One of the world's biggest environmental groups is suing the Norwegian government for opening up its seabed for deep-sea mining, claiming that Norway has failed to properly investigate the consequences of this move.WWF-Norway says the government's decision has breached Norwegian law, goes against the counsel of its own advisers, and sets a dangerous precedent". Continue reading...

Plaintiffs claim $38.7bn gas export project, which would triple state's greenhouse gas emissions, infringes constitutional rightsEight young people are suing the government of Alaska - the nation's fastest-warming state - claiming a major new fossil fuel project violates their state constitutional rights.The state-owned Alaska Gasline Development Corporation has proposed a $38.7bn gas export project that would roughly triple the state's greenhouse gas emissions for decades, the lawsuit says. Scientists have long warned that fossil fuel extraction must be swiftly curbed to secure a livable future.This story has been updated to add comments from Taylor and Fitzpatrick. Continue reading...

Invitation-only meeting comes on heels of controversial dinner at Mar-a-Lago where Trump reportedly offered $1bn quid pro quoDonald Trump was continuing to ask fossil-fuel executives to fund his presidential campaign on Wednesday, despite scrutiny of his relationship with the industry.The former president attended a fundraising luncheon at Houston's Post Oak hotel hosted by three big oil executives.This article was amended on 23 May 2024 to clarify that the FTC did not accuse Occidental of collusion with Opec. Continue reading...

Action against Letzte Generation could have immense chilling effect' on climate protest, campaigners sayFive members of Letzte Generation, Germany's equivalent to Just Stop Oil, have been charged with forming a criminal organisation", a move civil rights campaigners say could in effect criminalise future support for the climate campaign.Mirjam Herrmann, 27, Henning Jeschke, 22, Edmund Schulz, 60, Lukas Popp, 25, and Jakob Beyer, 30, were charged under section 129 of the German criminal code. It is believed to be the first time the law has been applied to a non-violent protest group. Continue reading...

Agriculture is often seen as the enemy of biodiversity, but in an excerpt from her new book Sophie Yeo explains how techniques from the middle ages allow plants and animals to flourishThe Vile clings on to the edge of the Gower peninsula. Its fields are lined up like strips of carpet, together leading to the edge of the cliff that drops into the sea. Each one is tiny, around 1-2 acres. From the sky, they look like airport runways, although this comparison would have seemed nonsensical to those who tended them for most of their existence.That is because the Vile is special: a working example of how much of Britain would have been farmed during the middle ages. Farmers have most likely been trying to tame this promontory since before the Norman conquest. Continue reading...

After old rivalries between Dogon farmers and Fulani herders erupted into violence, exacerbated by Islamist rebels, thousands of the semi-nomadic pastoralists have fled to camps in towns, leaving their cherished animals and way of life. Many must beg to survive at sites lacking food and clean water, with no end in sight to the conflict Continue reading...

In Fort Mohave, Arizona, even Republican voters are fighting gas power plants as utilities try to lock in fossil fuelsRetirement was pretty idyllic for Mac and Debbie McKeever, who moved to Fort Mohave in Arizona for the desert views, starry nights and fresh air. The couple hosted cocktails by the pool and taco Tuesdays with their neighbors - an active bunch of Republican voting retirees with a penchant for gas-guzzling RVs and side-by-sides, and the unlikeliest environmental activists.However, in late November 2023, the McKeevers found out that the local government, the Mohave county board of supervisors, was about to vote on a zoning proposal for a gas fired peaker plant less than 1,200ft (0.2 miles) from their middle-class neighborhood Sunrise Hills. Continue reading...

Infrastructure firm raises 6.8bn to connect homes to renewable energy sources across US and UKNational Grid has tapped shareholders for nearly 7bn to fund a 60bn spending spree to upgrade its networks to cope with the switch to low-carbon energy on either side of the Atlantic.The energy infrastructure company announced a 6.8bn rights issue - where existing shareholders are offered new shares - to provide fresh funds for investment in thousands of miles of cables to connect homes with renewable energy projects in the UK and the US. Continue reading...

Conservationists say Barbara Creecy has failed to implement vital changes to stop fishing around colonies amid fears African penguins could be extinct by 2035It's 3.40pm on a Thursday and Penguin 999.000000007425712 has just returned to the Stony Point penguin colony in Betty's Bay, South Africa, after a day of foraging. She glides elegantly through the turquoise waters before clambering comically up the rocks towards the nest where her partner is incubating two beige eggs. She doesn't realise it, but a rudimentary knee-high fence has funnelled her towards a state-of-the-art weighbridge. When she left the colony at 6.45am this morning she weighed 2.7kg. Now, after a full day of hunting, she has gained only 285g.Eleanor Weideman, a coastal seabird project manager for BirdLife South Africa, is concerned. In a good year they come back with their stomachs bulging," she says. Penguins can put on up to one-third of their body weight in a single day of foraging. But there's just no fish out there any more." Continue reading...