Climate experts and ministers say burying electricity cables could cost 10 times more than pylonsEnergy and climate experts have hit out at Conservative plans to hold a review into electricity pylons, saying the manifesto pledge could increase energy bills and make it harder to reach net zero.Industry sources and climate action groups have criticised the Tories over the party's manifesto commitment to hold a rapid review" of overhead pylons, which it announced amid mounting pressure from anti-pylon activists in rural areas. Continue reading...

Whether you want to volunteer or just get up close to marine life, here are some of the best places to visit for a fresh view of your shores

Callum the red deer was reportedly in poor condition with rotted teeth from being given wrong types of foodA Highlands red deer known to approach tourists for their snacks has been put down over health concerns.Callum the stag was a familiar sight at Torridon's Beinn Eighe car park, in the north-west Highlands, due to his willingness to walk up to tourists and accept food from human hands. Continue reading...

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Curiosity and a fascination with nature have brought volunteers together to survey sea life under the pier in Ryde on the Isle of Wight, to help experts gauge what's thriving - and what isn't

For generations the Gurung community in Taap, about 175km (110 miles) west of the capital, Kathmandu, and other villages in the districts of Lamjung and Kaski, have scoured the steep Himalayan cliffs for honey. The villagers say the proceeds, split among them, are drying up as the number of hives has declined over the past decade, although some also earn a living from growing crops of rice, corn, millet and wheat Continue reading...

From bees to burrowing owls, many species are adapting to urban environments and, with a little extra help from us, more could follow suitIn Sapzurro bay on the Colombia-Panama border, the blue land crab can be found scuttling around human infrastructure, burrowing in the nooks and crannies of the coastal settlement. The species, which can grow up to 15cm and ranges in colour from violet to bright cerulean blue, is considered critically endangered or vulnerable in this region, although it can be classed as invasive elsewhere. It traditionally lived in the region's rich mangrove forests, many of which have now been urbanised - habitat loss that scientists have blamed for the crab's decline.But when scientists studied the distribution of the species around Sapzurro bay, they were surprised to find it was still thriving in areas where vegetation had been eliminated: crawling in pastures, banana and coconut plantations, and scurrying below concrete structures. While burrows in urban areas were fewer and smaller, it had successfully built homes along sewage canals and among houses. Continue reading...

Almost a third of installers surveyed say finding skilled fitters is a barrier for customers, while 40% note lack of interestThe UK's drive to replace gas boilers with heat pumps is being stymied by a lack of consumer demand and a shortage of skilled installers to fit heat pumps where they are wanted, according to an industry survey.The most comprehensive poll of heat pump installers to date found that the biggest barrier was the low number of households choosing to get one fitted. Continue reading...

Retailer says circular design' collection is the first stage of an environmental overhaul of its productsFabric that shrinks or bobbles is a pet peeve of Britons who want to buy long-lasting clothes, with the low quality of high street fashion contributing to the 30,000 shipping containers of clothing and homewares dumped by consumers every year.With retailers tasked with finding ways to reduce the environmental impact of the clothing they sell, the first wave of products in a new range especially designed to minimise waste and maximise longevity" has gone on sale at John Lewis. Continue reading...

Exclusive: French survey of 26 countries finds fewer Australians than global average agree that climate change is the greatest health threat facing humanity

Rachel Cooke traces the long history of the UK's resorts through nostalgia, deprivation and revival

The volunteer environment network says lack of money is stifling the growth of local groups despite an increase in interest on the ground

Water companies have logged five sewage spills a day, every day, for a decade, analysis by the Observer showsWater companies in England and Wales have averaged five serious sewage spills into rivers or seas every day over the past decade, the Observer can reveal.Analysis of Environment Agency data has found that the 10 firms recorded 19,484 category 1-3 pollution incidents between 2013 and 2022, the most recent year recorded, an average of one every four and a half hours. Continue reading...

Communities in the Latrobe Valley - and those in six other locations around Australia - are on a new energy frontline. On Wednesday, the Coalition promised that, if elected to government, a part of the Loy Yang power station would be one of seven sites to host a nuclear reactor. But what do residents think of Peter Dutton's nuclear plan for their area? The Coalition's decision seems to have split opinions

Exclusive: State department official urges politicians to do the right thing', citing collective responsibility'

Protest features 350 environmental groups demanding more robust action on UK wildlife lossThousands of people marched through central London to urge political leaders to take more decisive action in tackling the UK's wildlife crisis.The protest on Saturday culminated in a rally outside Parliament Square with speeches from prominent figures including the naturalists Chris Packham and Steve Backshall, and poetry readings and performances from Billy Bragg and Feargal Sharkey. Continue reading...

Costly new vehicles, limited choice and scarce charging points are holding back a switch to electric by businessesCarbon emissions from vans in the UK have risen by 63% since 1990, new analysis shows, as cars are getting cleaner.While more people are opting to drive electric or plug-in hybrid cars, van drivers still prefer diesel because electric vans are much more expensive with little choice of models. Continue reading...

Opposition leader tells Liberal party officials that state premiers won't stop us' and labels Anthony Albanese a child in a man's body'

Labour leader says he would refuse to participate in negotiations for another independence referendum if he is elected PM

We unpack the questions that remain about the Coalition's plan - and the contradictions in their messaging

From the nuclear submarine pact to community vetoes, Peter Dutton has abandoned pledges the Coalition made in government with his latest announcementWhen he unveiled preliminary details of his nuclear power plan this week, Peter Dutton was not asked any questions about the relevance of the Aukus agreement.His energy spokesperson, Ted O'Brien, mentioned the nuclear-powered submarine pact in his opening remarks at Wednesday's joint news conference, called to name seven sites for possible future nuclear reactors.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

The far-right governor's comments about Indigenous Americans have crossed a line for all nine tribes in her stateWhile sifting through his work emails one February afternoon, Clyde Estes saw a message that dismayed him.I started reading it and was just shocked," recalled Estes, chairman of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. It's something you don't expect to see." Continue reading...

Governors of Florida, Texas, Louisiana and Nevada have all received money from oil and gas firms as residents sufferElected officials in states baking under sweltering temperatures - including Florida, Texas and Louisiana - are prioritizing their donors from planet-warming industries instead of protecting their constituents, advocates say.Florida has already seen unprecedented heat this year, with several cities breaking daily heat records this month. Continue reading...

Missisauga officials have twice forcibly cut Wolf Ruck's grass and billed him, after he decided to rewild his gardenMost mornings, Wolf Ruck walks the mown paths in his yard in Mississauga, Ontario, watching for insects landing on the goldenrod, birds feeding on native seed heads, and chipmunk kits playing in the tall grass.The septuagenarian artist, film-maker and former Olympic canoeist began rewilding his garden with native plants three years ago, as part of a growing movement across Canada towards replacing water-thirsty lawns with naturalised gardens". Continue reading...

UN says finding funds to tackle climate crisis is a steep mountain to climb', as talks end with little agreement

UK nuclear site pleads guilty to IT security breaches from 2019 to 2023The UK's most hazardous nuclear site, Sellafield, has pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to cybersecurity failings brought by the industry regulator.Lawyers acting for Sellafield told Westminster magistrates' court on Thursday that cybersecurity requirements were not sufficiently adhered to for a period" at the vast nuclear waste dump in Cumbria.

Conservationists hope insects carrying birth control' bacteria can save honeycreeper being wiped out by malariaMillions of mosquitoes are being released from helicopters in Hawaii in a last-ditch attempt to save rare birds slipping into extinction.The archipelago's endemic, brightly coloured honeycreeper birds are dying of malaria carried by mosquitoes first introduced by European and American ships in the 1800s. Having evolved with no immunity to the disease, the birds can die after just a single bite. Continue reading...

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

Mainstream groups including National Trust and RSPB will join hunt saboteurs and direct action activists for first timeCrabs, badgers and scores of dragonfly wings will be among the fancy dress worn by thousands of people joining more than 350 environmental groups marching through London on Saturday to demand the next government does not recklessly" ignore the nature crisis.For the first time, mainstream organisations including the National Trust and the RSPB will stand beside hunt saboteurs and direct action activists in the Restore Nature Now march, as campaigners call on the next government to take bold" steps to tackle the biodiversity crisis. Continue reading...

Community conservation groups are fighting to protect woodlands from illegal logging, farming and fires, but limited resources are a constant challenge and the task is getting ever more difficult

State's transport department given a 2045 deadline to fully decarbonize and achieve zero emissions under agreementHawaii officials have announced a groundbreaking" legal settlement with a group of young climate activists, which they said will force the state's department of transportation to move more aggressively towards a zero-emission transportation system.You have a constitutional right to fight for life-sustaining climate policy and you have mobilized our people in this case," Josh Green, the Hawaii governor, told the 13 young plantiffs in the case, saying he hoped the settlement would inspire similar action across the country. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Chris Skidmore, ex-energy minister, says Rishi Sunak's bid to turn net zero into culture war issue is greatest tragedy of his premiership'

Heatwave leads to record daily highs in New York and Maine, as US south-west sees wildfires and excessive rainfallThe United States continues to suffer extreme weather as a heatwave baked millions across the upper midwest and north-east and a tropical storm soaked Texas and northern Mexico.The National Weather Service said the heatwave was expected to peak in the eastern Great Lakes, New England, the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic over the coming weekend. Continue reading...

DNA analysis of old samples finds only five historical cases raising hopes for polar bears as a distinct speciesA family of grolars" in Canada's Arctic remains the only confirmed example of hybrid offspring between polar and grizzly bears, according to a new study which may provide some optimism for conservationists worried about the future of polar bears as a distinct species.A team of North American researchers examined old bear samples collected between 1975 and 2015 using a newly developed tool to look for previously unknown examples of hybrid bears. Continue reading...

NFU and the BRC write to Tories, Labour and Lib Dems over lack of focus on food security in campaignsFarmers and supermarkets have accused the main political parties of ignoring the risk of severe food shortages in Britain, calling the issue a worrying blind spot" in their general election campaigns.The UK's main farming and food and drink bodies have joined forces to voice their frustration at the lack of focus on food security by politicians as the attempt to gain votes, despite the headwinds faced by producers. Continue reading...

Hugh Durrant-Whyte says 2045 is a realistic timeframe, adding it was likely to be more expensive than anything else you could possibly think of'

Landmark judgment says planning bodies must account for burning of extracted fuel when considering site proposalsThe climate impact of burning coal, oil and gas must be taken into account when deciding whether to approve projects, the supreme court in London has ruled.The landmark judgment, handed down on Thursday, sets an important precedent on whether the inevitable" future greenhouse gas emissions of a fossil fuel project should be considered. Continue reading...

The animal, which is still categorised as vulnerable', has been the subject of a 20-year conservation programmeLess than a quarter of a century after the Iberian lynx was feared to be only a whisker away from extinction, populations of the animal have recovered enough across Spain and Portugal for it to be moved from endangered" to vulnerable" on the global red list of threatened species.The change in status, announced on Thursday by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (ICUN), is the result of a two-decade-long effort from a coalition of partners including the EU and regional and national governments in Spain and Portugal, as well as wildlife NGOs and local people. Continue reading...

On Falmouth pier, volunteer angling coaches and men and women of all ages gather regularly for fresh air, companionship and the mindfulness that comes from casting a rod into the seaWhen Justin Keight saw two ambulances outside his best friend's house one morning during the Covid lockdown, he knew instantly what it meant. His friend, who was married with children, had lived with depression.The day before he killed himself he told me he was really struggling," he says. Keight urged him to stay the night and talk, but his friend did not want to break the social distancing rules.On Falmouth pier, Andrew prepares his rod to take part in the Tight Lines fishing session Continue reading...

Just Stop Oil activists have sprayed two jets with orange paint at a private airfield in Stansted where they say Taylor Swift's plane landed before her shows at Wembley stadium. The group said on X: 'Private jet users are responsible for up to 40x as much carbon emissions compared with a commercial flight'. The previous day, Just Stop Oil protesters sprayed Stonehenge with orange powder paint before the summer solstice

Researchers find extreme heat four times more likely than at turn of millennium and urge reduction in fossil fuelsThe deadly heatwave that scorched large swaths of Mexico, Central America and the southern US in recent weeks was made 35 times more likely due to human-induced global heating, according to research by leading climate scientists from World Weather Attribution (WWA).Tens of millions of people have endured dangerous daytime and nighttime temperatures as a heat dome engulfed Mexico, and the large, lingering zone of high pressure stretched north to Texas, Arizona and Nevada and south over Belize, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador. Continue reading...

We want this to be on the bucket list of visitors from around the world because it is so special globally,' environment minister says

Only two countries provide fair amount to compensate lower-income nations for biodiversity loss, with most paying less than half what they should, says ODIThe UK, Canada, New Zealand, Italy and Spain are among the rich countries contributing less than half their fair share of nature finance to poor countries, a new report has found.Developed nations have agreed to collectively contribute a minimum of $20bn annually for nature restoration in low and middle-income countries by 2025. This money is in addition to the $100bn agreed for climate finance. Continue reading...

Largest ever climate survey also finds majority want countries to set aside differences to fight global heatingMost people in the world's biggest fossil fuel producing countries want their countries to transition quickly to clean energy to fight the climate crisis, according to the largest ever climate opinion poll, conducted by the UN.Many of these states have profited heavily from fossil fuel exploitation, but the 77-nation poll shows their citizens are deeply concerned about the impacts of global heating on their lives. In China and India, the biggest coal producers, 80% and 76% respectively want a quick green transition. Continue reading...

Report finds developing countries are increasing reliance on coal, gas and oil as overall demand for energy risesThe world's consumption of fossil fuels climbed to a record high last year, driving emissions to more than 40 gigatonnes of CO for the first time, according to a global energy report.Despite a record rise in the use of renewable energy in 2023, consumption of fossil fuels continued to increase too, an annual review of world energy by the Energy Institute found. Continue reading...

Environmentalists hail decision to end practice in five years but aquaculture industry warns of 6,000 jobs at riskCanada will ban open-net pen salmon farming in British Columbia coastal waters in five years, the government has announced, a decision that has been welcomed by environmental groups but opposed by the aquaculture industry.The Liberal government made the decision in 2019 to transition to closed containment technologies to protect declining wild Pacific salmon populations. Continue reading...

Peter Dutton says renewable energy is too expensive - and unveils a plan to switch to nuclear, which the CSIRO says will cost 50% more than wind or solar

Commission recommends 33-point plan to ensure oil giant complies with state climate commitmentsThe French government should intervene in TotalEnergies and spur faster climate action, a senate inquiry commission has concluded.The commission, set up to explore ways the state could guarantee that the oil conglomerate complies with French climate commitments, recommended 33 steps the government should take to encourage a rapid, orderly and effective transition". Continue reading...

Tony Wood of the Grattan Institute rejects Coalition's claim electricity prices are high due to Labor's renewables policy

Two people have been arrested after Just Stop Oil activists sprayed orange powder paint over Stonehenge. Members of the public tried to stop the incident and a visitor managed to wrestle a spray can from one of the protesters. According to Wiltshire police, two people have been arrested. The prime minister condemned the incident, saying: 'This is a disgraceful act of vandalism to one of the UK's and the world's oldest and most important monuments.'. Just Stop Oil says it took the action to demand the incoming government sign up to a legally binding treaty to phase out fossil fuels by 2030