Environment | The Guardian

Removing leaves will mean they can be replanted or shredded for animal feed and could reduce emissionsThe pineapple has been dethroned: Sainsbury's has announced it will start selling a crownless version of the tropical fruit from Wednesday.The spiky, green leaves that grow from the top of the plant are a unique feature of the exotic fruit. But, says the supermarket, they are typically thrown away by customers, contributing to up to 700 tonnes of food waste a year. Continue reading...

Kevin Jordan, whose home is 5 metres from the cliff edge in Norfolk, says government's shortcomings breach his human rightsWhen Kevin Jordan bought his seaside home in Hemsby, Norfolk, he was told it would be safe for a century. In the decade since, 17 of his neighbours' homes have had to be demolished, or have been swept away into the waters of the North Sea. His is now just 5 metres from the fast-crumbling cliff, isolated and unreachable by car after part of the road collapsed into the North Sea.The people of Hemsby would seem to be natural beneficiaries of official policies to adapt to the climate crisis. Under the Climate Change Act 2008, the government is required to produce a national adaptation programme every five years, setting out plans protect communities in the UK from the extreme heat, flooding and coastal erosion expected as the climate breaks down. Continue reading...

Huq, a visionary and climate champion', who was named one of the top 10 scientists in the world by Nature last year, has died at 71Tributes have poured in from around for world for the renowned Bangladeshi scientist Prof Saleemul Huq, who died on 28 October.Huq, 71, was an acclaimed academic, a relentless climate activist and the director of the International Centre for Climate Change & Development (ICCCAD), a research and capacity-building organisation in Bangladesh. Continue reading...

Nancy Mace and Marjorie Taylor Greene among those accused of hypocrisy over efforts to gut landmark Inflation Reduction ActAt least a dozen Republican members of Congress have welcomed clean energy investment flowing to their electorates following Joe Biden's landmark climate bill, even as they launch fresh attempts to dismantle the legislation.The group of conservative lawmakers, including the House of Representatives members Nancy Mace, Clay Higgins and Marjorie Taylor Greene, have all recently praised the arrival of new renewable energy, battery or electric vehicle jobs in their districts even after voting against last year's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which was loaded with incentives for clean energy projects. Continue reading...

Elephants that dropped dead in Zimbabwe were victims of an obscure bacteria combined with extreme heat. Scientists fear more elephants - and other species - could suffer the same fateThe first elephant to die was an eight-year-old male. It was found on 24 August 2020 on the southern border of Panda Masuie forest reserve, Zimbabwe, collapsed on its side like a grey marquee in the reddish dirt.When Dr Chris Foggin, a wildlife veterinarian at the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, went to examine it, his first guess was anthrax - a common killer at that time of year. He was cautious taking organ samples, and burned the carcass when he had finished. Continue reading...

Seven-year study of 12,000 residents of Delhi and Chennai finds link between PM2.5 particles and increased blood sugar levelsInhaling polluted air increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, the first study of its kind in India has found. Research conducted in Delhi and the southern city of Chennai found that inhaling air with high amounts of PM2.5 particles led to high blood sugar levels and increased type 2 diabetes incidence.When inhaled, PM2.5 particles - which are 30 times thinner than a strand of hair - can enter the bloodstream and cause several respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Continue reading...

Durham University research found warnings of environmental or health impacts reduced choice of meals containing meat by 7-10%People are used to seeing stark warnings on tobacco products alerting them about the potentially deadly risks to health. Now a study suggests similar labelling on food could help them make wiser choices about not just their health, but the health of the planet.The research, by academics at Durham University, found that warning labels including a graphic image - similar to those warning of impotence, heart disease or lung cancer on cigarette packets - could reduce selections of meals containing meat by 7-10%. Continue reading...

Audit finds little to no improvement' in health of sea between 2016 and 2021, as Swedish coastguard battles oil spillThe Baltic Sea faces critical challenges" due to the climate crisis and degradation of biodiversity, a report has said, as Sweden's coastguard battled to contain the impact of an oil spill off the country's southern shore.In the most comprehensive audit of its kind to date, experts at the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (Helcom) said on Tuesday there had been little to no improvement" in the health of the body of water between 2016 and 2021. Continue reading...

Several of the city's governmental, environmental and cultural institutions share lobbyists with fossil fuel companiesDozens of governmental, educational, cultural and environmental organizations across the city of Pittsburgh have hired lobbying firms who work with planet-heating fossil fuel companies, new research shows.The Pennsylvania city has almost entirely divested its pension funds from fossil fuels and plans to dramatically cut its planet-heating pollution. Yet in 2023, it employed lobbyists who also worked for ExxonMobil and seven other fossil fuel companies. Continue reading...

French banks have financed $154bn to firms running biggest fossil fuel projects since 2015 climate pactFrance is Europe's biggest supporter of carbon bomb" extraction projects that hold enough fossil fuels to pump out more than a gigaton of CO each, the Guardian can reveal.Since world leaders gathered in the French capital to sign the Paris agreement in 2015 - where they promised to try to stop the planet heating by 1.5C above pre-industrial levels - French banks have financed companies planning or operating carbon bombs amounting to $154bn. Continue reading...

London mayor says releasing animals into wild is environmentally sound and a Labour vote-winner

Police say 55-year-old man is believed to be victim of fatal shark attack' although his body is yet to be found

Exclusive: Projects that risk 1.5C heating target operated by companies receiving financing from European, Chinese and US banksBanks pumped more than $150bn last year into companies whose giant carbon bomb" projects could destroy the last chance of stopping the planet heating to dangerous levels, the Guardian can reveal.The carbon bombs - 425 extraction projects that can each pump more than one gigaton of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere - cumulatively hold enough coal, oil and gas to burn through the rapidly dwindling carbon budget four times over. Between 2016 and 2022, banks mainly in the US, China and Europe gave $1.8tn in financing to the companies running them, new research shows. Continue reading...

Coast guard tackling very serious' incident as severe weather hampers efforts to empty oil from Marco Polo, which grounded near HorvikA ferry that ran aground off south-eastern Sweden had extensive damage" and was leaking oil into the Baltic Sea, a spokesman for the Swedish coast guard said.On 22 October the Marco Polo was running between two Swedish ports - Trelleborg and Karlshamn - when it ran aground near Horvik and started leaking. It continued under its own power before grounding a second time. Continue reading...

Sadiq Khan hails huge progress' as progress report finds more than 95% of vehicles are now compliant

Local residents discovered trapped whale trailing two buoys, making unusual sounds and having trouble moving freely'A young humpback whale was freed by rescuers in Alaska after it was discovered hog-tied to a 300lb crab pot.The rescue, which occurred on 11 October, came after two local residents discovered the trapped whale a day earlier in the coastal waters near Gustavus, a city close to Glacier Bay national park in the southernmost part of Alaska. Researchers estimate the whale to be about three to four years old. Continue reading...

Research highlights benefits forests bring surrounding regions in terms of cooler air and more rainfallDeforestation has a far greater impact on regional temperatures than previously believed, according to a new study of the Brazilian Amazon that shows agricultural businesses would be among the biggest beneficiaries of forest conservation.The research has important political implications because farmers in Amazonian states have, until now, led the way in forest destruction on the assumption that they will make money by clearing more land. Continue reading...

Students say that by investing in fossil fuels their schools are violating commitments to the public interestStudents at six universities filed legal complaints on Monday accusing their colleges of breaking a little-known law by investing in planet-heating fossil fuels, the Guardian has learned.Campus organizers from the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Chicago, Tufts University, Pomona College, Washington University in St Louis and Pennsylvania State University wrote to the attorneys general of their respective states to ask officials to scrutinize their universities' investments. Each filing elicited signatures of support from dozens of faculty and staff members, alumni and local, national and international climate-focused groups. Continue reading...

Having good chance of limiting global heating to 1.5C is gone, sending dire' message about the adequacy of climate actionThe carbon budget remaining to limit the climate crisis to 1.5C of global heating is now tiny", according to an analysis, sending a dire" message about the adequacy of climate action.The carbon budget is the maximum amount of carbon emissions that can be released while restricting global temperature rise to the limits of the Paris agreement. The new figure is half the size of the budget estimated in 2020 and would be exhausted in six years at current levels of emissions. Continue reading...

Almost three-quarters say development of renewables should not come at the expense of local communities' and half support nuclear energy

New report says buybacks by far' most cost-effective method to recover water while confirming plan won't be completed on budget'

Nobody experiences the purple light of the blossoms as totally as the bee inside her petal trumpetIt is what jacarandas do to blue sky that makes us so helpless to resist them. They emerge in early summer, when we hope the skies will be bluest, and make them bluer still. The jacaranda flames on the air like a ghost," the Australian poet Douglas Stewart wrote, Like a purer sky some door in the sky has revealed."Their blossoms fall, turning the ground to the sky, like still water reflecting clouds, and in the middle is us, bobbing happily up and down. Continue reading...

Pumpkin growers in west and south-west fail to achieve predicted yields as climate crisis worsens drought and heat extremesAlan Mazzotti can see the Rocky Mountains about 30 miles west of his pumpkin patch in north-east Colorado on a clear day. He could tell the snow was abundant last winter, and verified it up close when he floated through fresh powder alongside his wife and three sons at the popular Winter Park resort.But one season of above-average snowfall wasn't enough to refill the dwindling reservoir he relies on to irrigate his pumpkins. He received news this spring that his water delivery would be about half of what it was from the previous season, so he planted just half of his typical pumpkin crop. Then heavy rains in May and June brought plenty of water and turned fields into a muddy mess, preventing any additional planting many farmers might have wanted to do. Continue reading...

Therese Coffey says data will be gathered on impact of emerging industry and UK will not support licences in meantimeBritain is backing a moratorium on commercial deep-sea mining, after criticism from scientists, MPs and environmentalists of its previous stance in support of the emerging industry.On Monday, the UK government announced it would back a temporary suspension on supporting or sponsoring any exploitation licences to mine metals from the sea floor until enough scientific evidence was available to understand the impact on ecosystems. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Hundreds of poor' or very poor' defences are in areas battered by Storm Babet, according to analysis by UnearthedMore than 4,000 of England's vital flood defences are so damaged they are almost useless, including hundreds in areas battered by Storm Babet.Nearly 800 critical assets - defined as those where there is a high risk to life and property - were in a poor" or very poor" condition in the 10 English counties worst affected by last week's historic downpours. Continue reading...

Block Cop City' plans non-violent march onto site of police center and a week of panels and screenings aimed at Black audiencesThe movement against the police and fire department training center known as Cop City" is planning two events for the coming weeks in and near Atlanta, Georgia - including a first-ever, non-violent protest march on to the project's construction site.The action, planned for 13 November and aimed at occupying the Cop City site for a day, could draw a thousand or more people from across the county. This would make it the largest protest to date at the location. The other event is a Black-led week of action" the week before, aimed at Black audiences. Continue reading...

Environmentalists want Tasmanian government to follow Victoria and WA and end native forest logging

Conservation charity will roll out two-year pilot scheme across UK as it seeks to increase young people's engagement with natureEurope's largest wildlife conservation charity is giving free access to all of its reserves for those aged 16-24 years old as it attempts a youth revolution" to better engage young people with nature.The two-year pilot programme will be rolled out across the UK from 6 November, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) said in a document sent out to volunteers.This article has been updated to clarify that entry will not be free to all under-24s: families with children between six and 15 years old will receive free entry for one child, then have to pay half price at some reserves for additional children. Continue reading...

Storm named after a civil servant as Met Office warns of severe weather later this weekStorm Ciaran is likely to bring strong winds, heavy rain and the risk of flooding across southern England and Wales later in the week, the Met Office has said.Forecasters announced the new storm name on Sunday morningfollowing the havoc wreaked in recent weeks by Storm Agnes and Storm Babet. Continue reading...

Experts fear half of the 290m wetland acres have lost federal protection and could be at risk from developersOften dismissed as dismal wet bogs and rampantly cleared since European arrival in the US, the underappreciated importance of wetlands has been placed into sharp relief by a supreme court ruling that has plunged many of these ecosystems into new peril.The extent of wetlands, areas covered or saturated by water that encompass marshes, swamps and carbon-rich peatlands, has shrunk by 40% over the past 300 years as the US drained and filled them in for housing, highways, parking lots, golf courses and other uses. Globally, wetlands are disappearing three times faster than forests are. Continue reading...

Amid lack of acorns and beechnuts in natural habitats, bears have injured 158 people and killed two since AprilExperts in Japan have warned that bear attacks are rising at an unprecedented rate, as the animals struggle to find food in their natural habitat.Bears have caused at least 158 injuries and two deaths since April, equalling the record set in 2020, according to media reports. Most of the attacks occurred in the northern part of Honshu, Japan's biggest island, the environment ministry said. Continue reading...

Increasing infestation in the Italian capital blamed on city's refuse problem and high temperaturesAndrea Velardi had just settled down to dine on the terrace of his friend's apartment near Campi de' Fiori in central Rome when he felt an excruciating pain in his foot.It was nearing sunset on a sweltering day in mid-August, and his friend had valiantly tried to kill off the unusually large wasps that had been swarming around the terrace before the guests arrived. He wanted to protect us," said Velardi. But one on the ground beneath the table was still alive ... the pain was tremendous, and my foot swelled up so much I couldn't walk. I knew straight away that this wasn't a normal wasp sting." Continue reading...

Sean Hanley says hybrid vehicles are better fit' in Australia but Electric Vehicle Council says brand's comments could undermine lithium industry

Efforts at major conference in Tasmania stall despite evidence that such areas would save crucial foraging and breeding grounds for Antarctic wildlife

Environmental and health experts say UK grows or imports two and a half times the population's recommended intakeMinisters should cap domestic sugar production to tackle Britain's obesity crisis, according to a new report backed by health experts and environmental campaigners.The UK grows and imports more than two and a half times the population's maximum recommended intake of sugar, according to Sugar Pollution, a report by environmental campaigners Feedback Global and Action on Sugar, a group of specialists in medicine, nutrition and public health. Continue reading...

PM will announce a new system for awarding oil and gas exploration licences, and new pro-car legislation, sources sayRishi Sunak's government will use next week's king's speech to advance expansion of North Sea oil and gas exploration, as well as pro-car policies, in the hope of opening up a clear divide over the green agenda with Labour, the Observer understands.Energy industry sources and senior figures in Whitehall say they expect ministers to announce legislation to usher in a new annual system for awarding oil and gas licences, despite the UK's commitments to move away from fossil fuels and reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Continue reading...

Campaigners call for Sir Robert Goodwill to resign as Guardian reveals he is also head of destructive' rural pressure group that backs trophy huntingThe Conservative chair of the environment select committee has been urged to resign as the Guardian revealed he is also chair of a group endorsing nature policies described by critics as destructive and dangerous".Sir Robert Goodwill, who chairs the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Efra) select committee (Efra), is tasked with holding the environment secretary to account on nature and environmental targets. He became chair of the committee after his predecessor, Neil Parish, resigned after a pornography scandal. Continue reading...

Trees once described as about as much use to our wildlife as concrete posts' to gradually be phased out in favour of more drought-tolerant plants

Derbyshire and South Yorkshire MPs say agency not up to the task' after people received warnings too late

From product placement for unnecessary gadgets to meat-centred cooking, TV can make us think unsustainable is normalWhen you log in to your favorite streaming service and pull up a cooking show, chances are you're just looking for a bit of entertainment - maybe even to shut your brain off for a while. But if what you're watching is constantly exposing you to images of sizzling steaks, roaring gas flames and all the fanciest new appliances, it might be reinforcing habits or norms that aren't exactly climate friendly.While there's not enough data to pinpoint precisely what effect TV and film has on our behavior, experts say that what we see on screen can help shape our sense of what's normal - and therefore acceptable. Unfortunately, what we're shown on TV is rarely a great guide for how we might begin reducing the climate impacts of food, which accounts for somewhere between 25% and 33% of the planet's greenhouse gas emissions. Continue reading...

Encroaching water from the Mississippi River has necessitated more thorough disinfecting, which leaves behind dangerous chemicalsThe water for a community along Louisiana's Gulf coast has seen a significant increase in the levels of contaminants known as disinfection byproducts, according to recent state water tests reviewed by the Guardian. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), long-term exposure to such substances poses an increased risk of cancer.The findings have emerged as many residents along Louisiana's southern coast have faced saltwater intrusion from the Gulf of Mexico. Continue reading...

Researchers say discovery of at least 11 new kinds of PFAS in water near Chemours plant indicates more contamination than thoughtAt least 11 new kinds of PFAS forever chemicals" are polluting the water around a North Carolina Chemours plant that manufactures the toxic substances, new research finds.The discovery, made by researchers using a novel testing method, is evidence that the environment around the plant is more contaminated with PFAS than regulators have found, the researchers said. Continue reading...

Met Office issues yellow weather alert for Highlands and north-east Scotland days after Storm Babet disruptionSome rail services have been suspended after a yellow weather warning was issued for heavy rain in the Highlands and north-east of Scotland.ScotRail halted direct services between the central belt and Aberdeen and Inverness until Sunday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: campaigners fear less rigorous methods could lead to more pollution in rivers and waterwaysThe UK government is to diverge from the EU's standards for monitoring water quality in England, it can be revealed.Campaigners fear the change of approach could lead to more pollution in England's rivers and waterways if the new measuring methods are less rigorous. Continue reading...

The best of this week's wildlife photographs, including a sandwich-eating bear, an unexpected aerial invasion of the pitch at the cricket World Cup, and the rarest ape in the world Continue reading...

The operator Tepco says the workers came in contact with the wastewater when a hose came off accidentally and have been taken to hospital as a precautionFour workers at the Fukushima nuclear plant were splashed with water containing radioactive materials, with two of them taken to hospital as a precaution, according to the plant operator.The incident, which took place on Wednesday, highlights the dangers Japan still faces in decommissioning the plant. The reactor was knocked out by an immense tsunami in 2011 in the world's worst atomic disaster since Chornobyl in 1986. Continue reading...

Snake expert says the survival of Bagel and Mango in the wild is a greater concern than any threat to people in Coogee

Kristjan Loftsson has stubbornly refused to bow to public opinion or an overwhelming international consensus against whaling. But with a full ban coming in Iceland, has he killed his last whale?In the face of protests from environmentalists, political pressure and a near universal global consensus, whale hunting is still legal in Iceland, where it is carried out by a single company. Hvalur was inherited by a man named Kristjan Loftsson, 80, who rarely speaks to the international media, but this month he invited the Guardian's chief reporter, Daniel Boffey, to visit.As Boffey tells Nosheen Iqbal, Loftsson is in effect Iceland's last whaler, and with his five-year permit expiring in the coming weeks, he could have killed his last whale. A new bill is being debated in the Icelandic parliament that would ban the practice. Continue reading...

NSW environment minister Penny Sharpe says threatened native species are in danger of extinction' after authorising aerial cull

Secrecy and lax oversight mean illegal loggers and miners in Amazon can park billions in real estate and other assetsSecrecy and lax oversight have made the US a hiding place for dirty money accrued by environmental criminals in the Amazon rainforest, a report says.Illegal loggers and miners are parking sums ranging from millions to billions of dollars in US real estate and other assets, says the report, which calls on Congress and the White House to close loopholes in financial regulations that it says are contributing to the destruction of the world's biggest tropical forest. Continue reading...