Environment | The Guardian

NSW Environmental Protection Authority alleged company had exceeded standard concentration of solid particles under air pollution laws

Cape Town mayor declares major incident as roads closed and 80,000 people left without electricityExtreme rain and strong winds across South Africa's Western Cape province have caused flooding, torn off roofs, destroyed crops and damaged roads this week. It is estimated that the 48-hour rainfall totals between Sunday and Monday were between 100mm to 200mm (4-8in) in this region.According to the Cape Town Disaster Risk Management Centre, 12,000 people were affected, but a further 80,000 people were left without electricity, according to the national power utility. The mayor of Cape Town signed a major incident declaration for additional resources and relief measures as 80 roads have been closed, 200 farm workers have been stranded and rail services have been suspended in the Western and Eastern Cape provinces. Continue reading...

The best of this week's wildlife photographs, including a hummingbird hawk moth, capybaras and a newly discovered tarantula Continue reading...

In today's newsletter: A stunning new report lays bare the threats to British wildlife's biodiversity, however all is not lost Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First EditionGood morning. Sorry to bring you more bad news, but with this one there is - hopefully - something we can collectively do to make it less bad.A frankly alarming 16% (or one in six) of all the 10,000 wildlife species in Great Britain are at risk of extinction, according to a report by 60 research and conservation organisations. Among those at risk are some of the country's most well known and loved birds, animals and plants, including turtle doves, water voles, lady's slipper orchids, hazel dormice and European eels. The future is particularly bleak for birds, with about 43% of species facing the risk of extinction.Tax | UK households are facing an average tax rise of 3,500 a year by the next election, the country's leading economics thinktank has said - the biggest increase over a parliament on records dating back more than 70 years.Conservatives | Rishi Sunak is to set out his plan for motorists" that will limit the number of 20mph speed restrictions and favour drivers over bus passengers - setting ministers on a collision course with local authorities.Prison | Growing numbers of criminals in England and Wales are being spared jail sentences because of overcrowding, the Guardian has revealed.UK news | The victim of a stabbing on a busy street in south London during morning rush hour has been named by police as 15-year-old Elianne Andam, who was described by family as the light of our lives".Environment | A 16-year-old boy was been arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage in connection with the felling of the Sycamore Gap tree in the north of England, police said. Continue reading...

After 180 years, flowers and floral sculptures make a return to the famous stone circle this weekendWith the autumn equinox gone and the winter months not far away, Salisbury Plain can take on a rather chilly, sombre air.But not this weekend when displays of 5,000 blooms - cerise pinks, deep crimsons, vibrant oranges - will light up the landscape to celebrate a largely forgotten Victorian tradition: the Stonehenge dahlia shows. Continue reading...

The 300-year-old tree, set in a dramatic dip near crumbling Roman walls, drew photographers and tourists from all over the world until it was felled in a suspected act of vandalism

Members of Sunrise Movement refused to vacate House speaker's office entrance until he pledged to avert US government shutdownScores of young activists with the Sunrise Movement, a youth-led climate organization, protested in the office of the House speaker, Kevin McCarthy, on Thursday morning, demanding he avert a complete government shutdown.Capitol police arrested 18 of the youth who blocked the office entrance and refused to vacate until McCarthy pledged to support bridge funding to keep the government open, including to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema). Continue reading...

Green campaigners relieved after last week's decision to delay ban on petrol and diesel carsThe government has confirmed the majority of new cars sold in Britain will have to be electric by 2030 despite Rishi Sunak's decision last week to delay a ban on petrol and diesel cars by five years.Under the long-awaited zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) mandate, 80% of sales must be fully electric, or another alternative, within seven years. Carmakers would have to pay 15,000 for each petrol or diesel engine above that threshold, the Department for Transport said on Thursday. Continue reading...

Toxic substances pollute the Boeing and government-owned site and are probably contaminating nearby river used to water cropsTwo highly toxic chemicals polluting a former Nasa research site are also probably contaminating the Los Angeles River and aquifer from which the region's agricultural growers draw their water, watchdog groups and a whistleblower charge.The Santa Susana field laboratory about 30 miles north of downtown Los Angeles is already notorious for its radioactive waste, but the site, which is owned by the federal government and Boeing, is also now suspected of leaching polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) forever chemicals" into the water. Continue reading...

Lloyd's of London, Zurich and Swiss Re among top 10 insurers of largest US coalmines, study findsLloyd's of London and other big European insurers are underwriting almost a third of US coal production despite their net zero pledges, according to research, with the Lloyd's insurance market emerging as the second-biggest player.A report from the Insure Our Future campaign group found that Lloyd's, Zurich and Swiss Re are among the top 10 insurers of the 25 biggest US coalmines, which produced more than 60% of the country's output last year. They underwrite 13 mines producing 30.7% of US coal. Continue reading...

Police investigating after former tree of the year winner, estimated to be several hundred years old, felledA police investigation has been launched into the felling of one of the most photographed trees in the UK, the Sycamore Gap tree at Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland, which was found cut down on Thursday morning.The world famous tree, voted English tree of the year in a Woodland Trust competition in 2016 and featured in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, is thought to have been deliberately felled. Continue reading...

Thirty years ago, when the people of Haida Gwaii blockaded logging roads in British Columbia, few foresaw the result - the remarkable Gwaii Haanas agreement that has reshaped how to manage contested areasOn summer days, Haley and Samantha Garvie hop barefoot between barnacle-crusted black rocks, scouting for tiny crabs and periwinkle shells. Depending on the tides, they might even spot colourful glass fishing floats - a rare treat carried by ocean currents to the southern tip of Haida Gwaii all the way from Japan, more than 4,000 miles away. In the evenings, they join their mother, Grace, and older sister, Joey, treading the paths their ancestors once walked, gathering the same berries and listening to the same birds.There's always so much to learn here, like the path of the kingfisher or the way the oystercatchers chase off hawks," says Grace, a member of the Haida Watchmen programme, tasked with guarding a string of historic sites. Continue reading...

Pao Ling Tsai thought his chickens were being taken by a cat but instead he trapped an animal thought extinct on the Limestone Coast

The climate crisis has intensified the rodents' bloodthirsty fighting. From a chalet high on the French-Italian border, scientists are documenting their battlesThe ecologist Christophe Bonenfant strides down the mountainside, a metal cage strapped to his back. Inside, a hessian bag twitches and squirms. His cargo is 4kg of befuddled alpine marmot, a mountain rodent admired by hikers, immortalised by Goethe and Beethoven, and the star of a beloved French ad for Milka chocolate.The creatures' cuddly reputation, however, belies a vicious reality. The life of an alpine marmot is a never-ending bloody battle for dominance. They are, Bonenfant's colleague Rebecca Garcia says, mega-violent". And now the climate crisis is making their fight for survival in the Alps more deadly than ever. Continue reading...

Emails show David Bernhardt of interior department overrode superintendent of California park, causing chaos and destruction'By the time superintendent David Smith decided to close Joshua Tree national park on 7 January 2019, the list of problems was already long. Tire tracks wove through the wilderness mapping a path of destruction where rare plants had been crushed and trees toppled. Charred remains of illegal campfires dotted the desert, and historic cultural artifacts had been plundered. Trash piles were growing, vault toilets were overflowing and park security workers were being pushed to their limits.It was week three in what would become the longest shutdown of the US government, and the famed California park was feeling the consequences of operating without key staff, services and resources. Continue reading...

Volume lost during hot summers of 2022 and 2023 equal to total depletion between 1960 and 1990, says reportSwiss glaciers have lost 10% of their volume in just two years, a report has found.Scientists have said climate breakdown caused by the burning of fossil fuels is the cause of unusually hot summers and winters with very low snow volume, which have caused the accelerating melts. The volume lost during the hot summers of 2022 and 2023 is the same as that lost between 1960 and 1990. Continue reading...

The photographer Victor Moriyama follows an Indigenous fire brigade as they try to fill the gap left by the Brazilian state in Rondonia, one of the most deforested regions of the AmazonPreserving the world's largest tropical forest poses an immense challenge for the governments of Latin America. This task is exacerbated by the inefficiency of public policies and the escalating land conflicts that plague various Brazilian biomes.In response to these threats, Indigenous peoples have taken matters into their own hands, rallying to oversee and protect their territories. Continue reading...

International regulators unable to properly monitor Russian-held site, says dossier sent to western leadersInternational regulators are incapable of properly monitoring safety at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, according to a critical dossier compiled by Greenpeace that is being sent to western governments on Thursday.The environmental campaign group concludes the International Atomic Energy Agency has too few inspectors at Europe's biggest nuclear plant - four - and that there are too many restrictions placed on their access. Continue reading...

Rising risk of heatwaves and bushfires means politicians will be put to the test about the effect of the climate crisis. Already, some have roundly failed

The longest serving premier of NSW throws support behind new alliance calling for overhaul of land-clearing laws

Clean Air Fund says despite increased spending on air pollution, projects still receive less than 1% of fundingGovernments, agencies and development banks have spent more aid money on clean air than fossil fuels for the first time on record, a report has found.However, such projects still receive less than 1% of international development funding, according to the Clean Air Fund, an environmental charity. Continue reading...

Sweet Briar Marshes has been created in heart of city with fewer public footpaths than any other in England and WalesHidden between a hectic ring road, a chemicals factory and housing estates are 36 hectares (90 acres) of a green beating heart, pumping nature" into the surrounding city.Traffic noise and sirens are muffled by ancient oaks, while late-season dragonflies sweep over hawthorns laden with blood-red haws as a kestrel hovers, head down, searching for field voles hiding in the tufty grasses. Continue reading...

Campaigners including Greta Thunberg had called for halt to Rosebank project involving Oslo-listed EquinorBritain has given the go-ahead to develop the UK's biggest untapped oilfield off Shetland, sparking outrage from environmental campaigners.The UK oil and gas regulator's decision to grant the Oslo-listed Equinor and the British firm Ithaca Energy permission to develop the Rosebank oil and gas field in the North Sea was condemned by the Green party MP Caroline Lucas as the greatest act of environmental vandalism in my lifetime". Continue reading...

Campaigners and parliamentarians gear up to fight reckless proposals' on pollution from new developments

Exclusive: PM says the right decisions' are needed to ensure Australia emerges a winner in the global race to renewable energy

Claimants say European countries are breaching their human rights by failing to take adequate action to tackle global heatingAn 11-year-old girl from Portugal sat inside the grand chamber of the European court of human rights on Wednesday to face 86 lawyers from 32 nations in the world's largest climate legal action.Mariana Agostinho was alongside her brother and sister, and her cousins, two rows back from 17 human rights judges. Continue reading...

NSW EPA to test two brush turkeys and several pigeons found in Mosman to identify likely cause of death

There's a bowerbird building a bower in my backyard, so this year I'm on Team Bowerbird

Ex-president attacks clean energy by making multiple false statements at South Carolina rallyDonald Trump has launched a lengthy and largely baseless attack on wind turbines for causing large numbers of whales to die, claiming that windmills" are making the cetaceans crazy" and a little batty".Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, used a rally in South Carolina to assert that while there was only a small chance of killing a whale by hitting it with a boat, their windmills are causing whales to die in numbers never seen before. No one does anything about that." Continue reading...

European Commission president welcomes agreement among EU governments on Euro 7 pollution standardsMore from NGO Transport and Environment's Anna Krajinska, who criticised EU governments' compromise decision yesterday on pollution standards for cars, vans and trucks.The fight to secure an effective Euro 7 is a reminder of the political and economic power of the car industry," Krajinska told the Guardian in an email this morning. Continue reading...

Tribes say Line 5 is a ticking time bomb' for the Great Lakes, which contain a fifth of the Earth's surface fresh water, and risks destroying their relationship with land and waterIt's little known to the throngs of tourists who gawp at the wonder of the Great Lakes but at the meeting point of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, a combined system that forms the largest lake in the world, there is a 70-year-old pipeline, battered and dented by dropped boat anchors.The pipeline pushes a million gallons of oil each hour through the heart of this vast ecosystem. Continue reading...

Thinktank Create Streets calls for people to be allowed to grow plants and trees in barren urban areasA right to plant and grow trees and other greenery in public spaces should be given to people across Britain, an adviser to Michael Gove has said.Nicholas Boys Smith, who heads the Office for Place in Gove's Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), also chairs the thinktank Create Streets, which has released a report calling for more greening of cities. Continue reading...

Country already trails well behind Europe and PM's backtracking on climate policies could widen the gapThe UK has fallen well behind the rest of Europe in the growth of electric vehicle sales and risks falling further back after Rishi Sunak's screeching U-turn" on its climate policies, according to industry analysts.UK sales of electric vehicles grew by 31% in the 12 months to July, one of the slowest rates of growth in Europe, according to data analysed by Cornwall Insight and the law firm Shoosmiths. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Pan-European investigation looked at thousands of transactions since Paris climate agreement in 2016Banks including some of Europe's largest lenders have helped fossil fuel companies to raise more than 1tn (869bn) from the global bond markets since the Paris climate agreement, according to an investigation by the Guardian and its reporting partners.In the push to zero carbon, Europe's biggest lenders face growing pressure to limit their financial support for fossil fuel companies through direct loans and other financing facilities. Continue reading...

Experts blame rising sea temperatures caused by climate crisis for cub deaths at Unesco heritage siteAs many as eight in 10 brown bear cubs born this year in a remote part of northern Japan have died amid a shortage of salmon, with experts blaming rising sea temperatures caused by the climate crisis.Along with acorns, pink salmon are an important source of food for the estimated 500 brown bears living along Hokkaido's Shiretoko peninsula, a Unesco world heritage site known for its dramatic coastline and wild animals. Continue reading...

IEA's Fatih Birol says uptake of solar power and EVs is in line with net zero goal but rich countries must hasten their broader plansThe prospects of the world staying within the 1.5C limit on global heating have brightened owing to the staggering" growth of renewable energy and green investment in the past two years, the chief of the world's energy watchdog has said.Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, and the world's foremost energy economist, said much more needed to be done but that the rapid uptake of solar power and electric vehicles were encouraging. Continue reading...

Robert Habeck said supporters of climate action must have the most compelling arguments

Scientists fear global heating may have shifted region into new era of disappearing ice with far-reaching consequencesAntarctica has likely broken a new record for the lowest annual maximum amount of sea ice around the continent, beating the previous low by a million square kilometres.The new mark is the latest in a string of records for the continent's sea ice, as scientists fear global heating could have shifted the region into a new era of disappearing ice with far reaching consequences for the world's climate and sea levels. Continue reading...

Clean Energy Regulator says consumers looking to save money on energy but investment in large-scale wind and solar all but stalled

Green New Deal for Schools demands districts teach climate justice, update buildings and plan for extreme weatherStudents at more than 50 high schools across the US are proposing a Green New Deal for Schools, demanding that their districts teach climate justice, create pathways to green jobs after graduation and plan for climate disasters, among other policies.The campaign, coordinated by the Sunrise Movement, a youth-led climate justice collective, is a reaction to rightwing efforts to ban or suppress climate education and activism at schools. The national effort could include teach-ins and walkouts, as well as targeted petitions to school boards and districts in the coming weeks, organizers with Sunrise told the Guardian, ahead of the Monday launch. Continue reading...

Birders have flocked in their hundreds to see the songbirds, blown across the Atlantic by Hurricane LeeA record-breaking number of uber-rare" North American songbirds have arrived in the UK this week, blown over the Atlantic in the aftermath of Hurricane Lee.More than a dozen species of small songbirds - one of which has never been seen in the UK before - were sent veering off their usual migration routes by the high winds. Continue reading...

Eight questioned over claims that negligence and mistakes contributed to disaster in which thousands diedLibya's chief prosecutor has ordered the detention of eight current and former officials pending a full inquiry into the collapse of two dams during torrential rain that left thousands dead in the port city of Derna this month.There have been widespread claims that local officials knew the dams were too weak to withstand flooding but for various reasons no structural repairs were undertaken. The Libyan State Audit Bureau has submitted evidence that funds were made available for repair work that was never undertaken. Continue reading...

Carmaker says it will press ahead' with plans to achieve 100% EV in Europe and all new models will be entirely electricNissan has vowed to press ahead" with a plan to only sell electric vehicles in Europe by 2030 despite Rishi Sunak's delay to the UK ban on new petrol and diesel car sales.The Japanese carmaker said all new models in Europe will be entirely electric by the end of the decade, as it launched a new EV design in London. Continue reading...

Party will argue green growth is route to lower bills and says Rishi Sunak will leave UK stuck in economic doom loop'Labour will double down" on making the case that tackling the cost of living crisis and the climate crisis can only be done in tandem, despite an intensifying Conservative attack on net zero policies, the Guardian has learned.Labour will argue that seeking green growth is the way to bring down household bills and secure the future of the UK economy. Continue reading...

Former British PM calls for 3% levy on oil and gas export revenues of biggest producers to generate $25bn a year for global southPetrostates should pay a small percentage of their soaring oil and gas revenues to help poor countries cope with the climate crisis, the former UK prime minister Gordon Brown has urged.Countries with large oil and gas deposits have enjoyed a record bonanza in the last two years, amounting to about $4tn (3.3tn) last year for the industry globally. Levying a 3% windfall tax on the oil and gas export revenues of the biggest-producing countries would yield about $25bn a year. Continue reading...

Danish company says complications with non-oil-based materials would have entailed higher total carbon emissionsLego has stopped a project to make bricks from recycled drinks bottles instead of oil-based plastic, saying it would have led to higher carbon emissions over the product's lifetime.The move, first reported by the Financial Times, followed efforts by the world's largest toymaker to research more sustainable materials, as part of a wave of companies reassessing their contribution to global emissions as the climate crisis hits. Continue reading...

When framing the shortlist for the 2023 bird of the year, we opted for familiar Aussie birds that hold a special place in our hearts

Some of Australia's most recognised feathered denizens have been flying under the popularity radar for far too long

Militant pensioner says a majority want a traditional feature but project leaders call row an attack on democracyIlkley is an affluent, leafy town, one point of Yorkshire's Golden Triangle" where average house prices top 560,000. Last year it was named the best place to live in the UK, and its tree-lined streets hark back to the days when it was a spa town where wealthy Victorians took the waters, Charles Darwin among them.Now the peace and quiet of this favourite municipality of the middle-classes is being rocked by a row between the, often older, traditionalists in the town and a charitable body of volunteers who were hoping to give it just a flick of a modern makeover. The fight centres on the proposed design of a fountain, to be built at the heart of the town at the junction of its two wide shopping avenues. Continue reading...

The lungfish arrived in San Francisco on a steamship along with 230 other fish. Today, she's the only living aquatic animal from that vesselShe's super-gentle, and doesn't get overly excited. She enjoys eating earthworms, fruits and vegetables, and slowly moving around her tank. Her favorite food - at least for what is in season now - is a fig.If Methuselah sounds like a grand old dame, it's because she is: she is the oldest living fish in captivity, aged somewhere upwards of 92 and potentially as high as 101 years. She arrived on a steamship from Australia along with 230 other fish to the Steinhart aquarium in San Francisco in 1938 as a young, small fish. And Methuselah's story unfolded in a typical way, for a fish in an aquarium: she grew. Humans came to look at her. She peered back through glass at humans. Continue reading...