Environment | The Guardian

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...

Shows like Chopped seem like career-making opportunities, but when entertainment comes first, even winners can struggleWhen the pastry chef turned educator Derek Corsino walked on to the set of the Food Network's hit series Spring Baking Championship, he didn't expect much. I knew from all my previous work [on TV] that my life was not going to change at all," said Corsino, who currently teaches culinary arts at Healdsburg high school in California. I'm just some guy at the end of the day. I went on that show for my students. It was peak Covid and was a great morale boost when it aired in the spring."Corsino, who was a finalist in 2021, said some of his fellow contestants believed they were going to get a lot of business from appearing on the baking competition show, but soon received a reality check. You're not going to get business from this because your business name is going to flash really fast on screen," he said, noting that one competition series he previously filmed was canceled halfway through the season, so no one ever saw his episode. You're here because of your own ego." Continue reading...

Children are particularly vulnerable to climate crisis yet have little say politically or legally in most of worldYoung climate activists should be able to fully take part in legal cases that affect them, say campaigners.As governments and organisations around the world submit formal comments on climate breakdown to the world's top courts, experts have condemned children's inability to fully participate in the legal process in almost all jurisdictions. Continue reading...

Newspaper endorses CEO Meg O'Neill's position the company's gas is needed but doesn't mention global heating

Beloved tree in Cubbington, thought over 250 years old, regrowing from transplanted stump and its cutting offspring are also thrivingA former tree of the year that was chopped down to make way for HS2 is alive and well, regrowing from its transplanted stump.The pear tree in Cubbington, Warwickshire, thought to be more than 250 years old, became a cause celebre when it was first threatened with destruction. Despite having won the tree of the year award in 2015 and thousands having signed a petition to save it, the tree was felled in 2020 by HS2 contractors. Continue reading...

Thames Water and Southern Water among firms urged to take action to secure long-term finances

Exclusive: North Sea Transition Authority under fire for using lawyers to argue against publication of environmental impactThe UK's oil and gas regulator is coming under fire from environmental groups for using lawyers to try to prevent the publication of five key documents relating to the environmental impact of Shell's activities in the North Sea.At a hearing in December, a legal representative for the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) is expected to argue against the publication of documents that contain details about the risk of pollution as a result of decommissioning the Brent oilfield, which was operated by Shell for more than 40 years. It says it opposes publication on a matter of process basis". Continue reading...

Billionaire's web of rightwing groups works to bring cases to court that could undermine core functionings of the US governmentThe Koch network, a web of rightwing groups cultivated by billionaire businessman Charles Koch and his late brother David Koch, is spearheading the attack on federal agencies and government regulations that dominates the US supreme court agenda this term.The network has been working behind the scenes to bring cases before the court that, if successful, could undermine many of the core functionings of the US government. At least two of the biggest cases to be considered by the justices this term have been spurred by groups bankrolled and coordinated within the Koch universe. Continue reading...

Phones often get the blame for distracting users, but technology can also be a powerful way to connect with the natural worldWith a phone at your fingertips, the world is your oyster, or hoopoe, or oak tree. It's now possible to identify everything from mystery animal tracks to elusive birdsong via an app. Beyond that, your sightings could contribute valuable information to scientific studies and conservation efforts around the globe. While phones often get the blame for distracting users from their physical environment, technology can also be a way to connect with the natural world. Here's how. Continue reading...

The winning images of the British Ecological Society's annual photography competition, taken by international ecologists and students, feature a lone tree dominating an empty landscape and a giant squirrel devouring a jackfruit Continue reading...

Anglers in Venezuela have been raking up oil spills and collecting plastic waste from Lake Maracaibo to try to save the lake that sustains their livelihoods.President Nicolas Maduro has ordered the implementation of a "rescue, attention and decontamination" plan for the 13,000 sq km lake, one of South America's largest and one of the oldest in the world. Years of inadequate waste management and neglect of oil industrial infrastructure have polluted the lake, which harbours two-thirds of the country's oil reserves - and production is expected to increase. Continue reading...

Images taken by public reveal insights into threatened minke whales, including finding the most attention-seeking whaleSnowy is the oldest known minke whale in Europe, while Knobble appears to adore attention - or, at least, the whale has been spotted more than 60 times since 2002, mostly close to the Isle of Mull.Photographic records of minke whales submitted by members of the public are being published in a digital catalogue, providing insights about the threatened species. Continue reading...

WA police demanded the ABC reveal its sources for an episode featuring a Disrupt Burrup Hub protest against a Woodside gas project

The 55-year-old was wingfoiling at Mona Vale beach when a humpback whale soared out of the water and landed on top of himJason Breen didn't think his GoPro was turned on to capture what happened while he was wingfoiling at a Sydney beach on Wednesday. Luckily it was, otherwise he thinks nobody would have believed him.The 55-year-old Newport resident was cruising along the water at Mona Vale beach when a humpback whale soared out of the water and landed on top of him, dragging him about 20 to 30 feet below the surface.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...

Getting approval for nuclear submarine plan through legislature a question of not if, but when'Joe Biden has played down congressional jitters over the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine deal and has revealed he assured Xi Jinping that the countries involved are not aiming to surround China".The US president welcomed the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, to the White House and insisted he was confident that we're going to be able to get the money for Aukus because it's overwhelmingly in our interest". Continue reading...

Conservationists optimistic turning point reached in effort to prevent red-listed bird from extinction in BritainThe number of corncrakes serenading Scotland with their strange summer calls has increased for the first time in five years, giving hope that this secretive bird can be saved from extinction in Britain.Calling males rose to 870 this summer, up from a low of 828 in 2022 and the highest total since the summer of 2019. Continue reading...

Whether it's by emphasizing meat consumption or introducing new flavors to our palette, food TV can shape our dietsFour million viewers are tuning into the Great British Bake Off every week as it returns with its 14th season. It's entertaining, but is it more than that? If the old adage holds that we are what we eat, are we also what we watch on TV?Researchers agree on the power TV has to shape what we eat. Studies have shown that cooking shows not only influence how healthy our diets are, but also our food preferences. Frans Folkvord, a professor at Tilburg University in the Netherlands who has conducted research on this topic, says it's about priming" certain foods and modeling behavior". Continue reading...

National union members urge government to create water strategy to prevent such losses

The Cuyama valley gets only 8in of water a year - and some of the US's top carrot farms want a bigger share of the increasingly precious resourceMore than five years ago, Jim Wegis, a lifelong farmer in central California's Cuyama valley, could see the writing on the wall for his water-intensive alfalfa fields.He switched most of his 140 planted acres from seasonal hay to permanent olive and pistachio groves, drastically reducing his impact on the local aquifer. I cut my water use just about in half," he said. Continue reading...

About 60% of oil and gas operations protected from protest due to money spent on lobbying, says Greenpeace USA reportFossil fuel companies have spent millions of dollars on lobbying and campaign donations to state lawmakers who sponsored anti-protest laws - which now shield about 60% of US gas and oil operations from protest and civil disobedience, according to a new report from Greenpeace USA.Eighteen states including Montana, Ohio, Georgia, Louisiana, West Virginia and the Dakotas have enacted sweeping anti-protest laws which boost penalties for trespass near so-called critical infrastructure, that make it far riskier for communities to oppose pipelines and other fossil fuel projects that threaten their land, water and the global climate. Continue reading...

Analysis also warns of further tipping points on horizon such as drying up of groundwater vital for food suppliesHumanity is moving dangerously close to irreversible tipping points that would drastically damage our ability to cope with disasters, UN researchers have warned, including the withdrawal of home insurance from flood-hit areas and the drying up of the groundwater that is vital for ensuring food supplies.These risk tipping points" also include the loss of the mountain glaciers that are essential for water supplies in many parts of the world and accumulating space debris knocking out satellites that provide early warnings of extreme weather. Continue reading...

Ministers accused of giving in to lobbying by hunting groups to allow trapping of thousands of birds in experimental study'Bird protection campaigners have accused the French government of flouting European regulations after it rescinded a ban on traditional hunting.They accuse ministers of giving in to lobbying by powerful hunting groups to allow the trapping of thousands of birds as part of an experimental study". Continue reading...

The recipients of this year's Royal Photographic Society awards have been announced. Now in their 145th year, the awards are the world's longest-running and most prestigious photography honours, recognising individuals working across still and moving image. Rather than rewarding a single image, the society celebrates the photographers, highlighting significant achievements, showcasing new and emerging talent and recognising notable contributions from RPS members Continue reading...

Winners and runners-up in the mangrove photography awards run by the Mangrove Action Project. This year, Soham Bhattacharyya was named mangrove photographer of the year for an image capturing the curious gaze of an endangered tigress in the Sundarbans Continue reading...

Exclusive: Party says it will find other ways to create more access to countryside after opposition from landownersLabour has U-turned on its pledge to create a Scottish-style right to roam in the English countryside if elected, the Guardian can reveal.Instead of an assumed right of access, the party now says it will find other ways to create more access to land in England, after opposition from some landowners' groups. Continue reading...

Environment secretary hits new low' with remarks on storm that left hundreds homeless with at least seven people thought to have diedThe environment secretary has suggested the damage done by Storm Babet was harder to predict because the rain came in from the east.Therese Coffey's remarks to the Commons environment committee prompted the Lib Dems to urge her to get a grip" and stop blaming everyone else for her failings". Continue reading...

Even as experts say to eat less meat and switch to electric stoves, food TV is full of steaks, gas flames and endless wasteA whole dessert unceremoniously dropped into the trash on the Great British Baking Show. Piles of raw chicken used to create a dramatic decorative tableau on Iron Chef. Gas stoves and food frequently catching fire on Chopped. If what we see on TV shapes our aspirations or our sense of what's normative, cooking shows are ripe for a sustainability makeover.At a time when climate experts are recommending eating less meat and fewer animal products, switching from gas stoves to electric ones and minimizing food waste, reality TV cooking shows seem to be awash in thick beef steaks, roaring gas flames and tables of food that competition judges barely nibble at. These practices prevailing against a backdrop of rising temperatures and the proliferation of climate disaster seems particularly discordant once you consider that food is responsible for somewhere between a quarter and a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. Continue reading...

Electricity market prices predicted to rise in 2024 and stay well above pre-energy crisis levels for rest of decadeUK households could face higher energy bills next year, after a leading forecaster said electricity market prices will rise in 2024 - and remain well above pre-energy crisis levels for the rest of the decade.Analysts at Cornwall Insight predicted that Britain's wholesale power prices would rise from an average of 96.64 per megawatt-hour so far this year to 129/MWh next year, due to higher gas prices triggered by the war in Ukraine. Continue reading...

As the first known cases of H5N1 are detected in the region, scientists fear for the isolated penguin and seal populations that have never been exposedAvian flu has reached the Antarctic, raising concerns for isolated populations of penguins and seals that have never been exposed to the deadly H5N1 virus before. The full impact of the virus's arrival is not yet known, but scientists are raising concerns about possible catastrophic breeding failure" of the region's fragile wildlife populations.The virus was found in populations of a scavenging bird called brown skua on Bird Island, which is part of the British overseas territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. These migratory birds probably brought it with them from South America where bird flu is widespread and has already killed an estimated 500,000 seabirds and 20,000 sea lions in Chile and Peru alone. Continue reading...

Colossal Biosciences, which is behind bid to bring back Tasmanian tiger, teams up with Melbourne Zoo to save tiny reptile

Life on planet is in peril, say climate experts, as they call for a rapid and just transition to a sustainable futureEarth's vital signs" are worse than at any time in human history, an international team of scientists has warned, meaning life on the planet is in peril.Their report found that 20 of the 35 planetary vital signs they use to track the climate crisis are at record extremes. As well as greenhouse gas emissions, global temperature and sea level rise, the indicators also include human and livestock population numbers. Continue reading...

Energy prices and presidential veto powers among challenges facing parties likely to form government, say analystsPoland's probable new government can shed its reputation as a climate laggard" but will still struggle to cut emissions quickly, environment and energy groups have said.The rightwing Law and Justice party (PiS), which has ruled Poland since 2015 and has slammed the brakes on climate action at home and in the EU, is unlikely to form a government despite having won the most votes in parliamentary elections on 15 October. Analysts expect a more climate-friendly coalition between the centrist Civic Coalition, the centre-right Third Way and the leftwing Lewica parties. Continue reading...