Environment | The Guardian

A decade after Hurricane Sandy, critics of a federal plan that allocates billions to protect the region from rising waters are calling it a failure of imagination'The retired FDNY firefighter Patrick Kilgallen remembers the night well. In late October 2012, the approach of Hurricane Sandy up the US Eastern Seaboard coincided with a spring tide, propelling a surge of storm water that crashed into New York City and its surrounds, causing more than $70bn (56bn) in damages, mostly from flooding.When water from the ocean and bayside came coursing up the street, Kilgallen was with his family at home, one block in from the wooden boardwalk, at Rockaway Beach - a barrier island off Queens that faces the Atlantic Ocean and has become known as the Irish Riviera" for its large population of Irish-American families, including many New York City firefighters and police officers. Continue reading...

Study finds species groups are going extinct 35 times faster than the previous million years because of human activityGroups of animal species are vanishing at a rate 35 times higher than average due to human activity, according to researchers, who say it is further evidence that a sixth mass extinction in Earth's history is under way and accelerating.Scientists analysing the rate at which closely related animal species have gone extinct in the past 500 years have found they would have taken 18,000 years to vanish in the absence of humans, and the rate at which they are being lost is increasing. Continue reading...

Rail networks in most countries have been starved of funding while motorways lengthen, study showsEuropean governments have systematically" shrunk their railways and starved them of funding while pouring money into expanding their road network, a report has found.The length of motorways in Europe grew 60% between 1995 and 2020 while railways shrank 6.5%, according to research from the German thinktanks Wuppertal Institute and T3 Transportation. For every 1 governments spent building railways, they spent 1.6 building roads. Continue reading...

Underinvestment in infrastructure will have serious consequences for environment and security of water supplies, committee saysTherese Coffey has been complacent" in dealing with water companies, risking water shortages as well as extreme environmental consequences, a House of Lords committee has said.In a letter to the environment secretary, the peers criticised her department's dismissive brevity and complacent tone" in response to their report published earlier this year, which found water companies had been too focused on maximising financial returns at the expense of the environment. Continue reading...

Action came as world leaders begin arriving in New York for the UN general assembly and after Sunday's march to end fossil fuelsOne day after the largest climate march since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, hundreds of climate activists blockaded the Federal Reserve Bank in New York to call for an end to funding for coal, oil and gas, with police making scores of arrests.Fossil fuel companies ... wouldn't be able to operate without money, and that money is coming primarily from Wall Street," Alice Nascimento, environmental campaigns director at New York Communities for Change, said hours before she was arrested. Continue reading...

Study in US shows one day a week of remote working cuts emissions by just 2% but two or four days lowers them by up to 29%

Perhaps we introduce children to dinosaurs long before they understand evolution to teach them to imagine the past and to love doing soIt is a fact about people that we all love a brontosaurus. The long curved neck, the small head, the massive ribs. We don't mind a brachiosaurus either. We don't mind that its head is out of proportion with its body; we don't hold this against it as we do with the T Rex's puny arms.We love to think of the brontosaurus with its head so far away from its tail, and of the brachiosaurus with its head so far above us, we who are at that moment dressed in animal skins. We forget that people were not there and then we remember and it doesn't matter. Look up and you will see the small head, soaring, saurusing above you, having just plucked a fern from the ground. The head is backlit by the prehistoric dinosaur sun. You can just make out the silhouette fern sticking out of its mouth, the jaws moving. Now look in front of you, and there are the elephant feet, there is the enormous shadow. Continue reading...

Prospective investors will be subject to strict national security checks', minister vowsProspective investors in the proposed Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk will undergo strict national security checks", the government has said, as it formally kicked off a hunt for outside investment.The project, led by the French state-backed energy company EDF and backed by the UK government, aims to produce 3.2 gigawatts of electricity - enough to power about 6m homes - and was approved in July last year. Continue reading...

Mayor says interim climate report paints a worrying picture of an underground Tube system that is not fit for purpose, and care homes and schools that are too hotLondon faces the incredibly worrying" prospect of enduring days that hit 45C (113F) due to the worsening climate crisis, its mayor, Sadiq Khan, told the Guardian at a climate summit in New York where governments have gathered to discuss how to best cope with searing temperatures.Khan said an interim independent climate resilience report for London had found the capital could experience multiple 45C days in the foreseeable future", potentially buckling various basic functions of the city. It means the Underground is not fit for purpose, some of the homes are too hot in the daytime, care homes and schools too," Khan said. Continue reading...

Declaration signed by more than 20 Indigenous groups says dingoes are a cultural icon' and killing them is killing family'

Membership steady and income from legacies tops 70m in financial yearThe National Trust spent a record 179.6m on the conservation of its historic buildings and collections in the last year in the face of significant challenges regarding rising costs.Its coffers were boosted by an increase in the number of visitors to pay-for-entry venues and record amounts bequeathed in legacies, its annual report says. Continue reading...

New research finds evidence that exposure to PFAS and phenols increases odds of certain hormonally driven' cancers for womenWomen exposed to several widely used chemicals appear to face increased odds for ovarian and other types of cancers, including a doubling of odds for melanoma, according to new research funded by the US government.Using data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a team of academic researchers found evidence that women diagnosed with some hormonally driven" cancers had exposures to certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which are used in thousands of household and industrial products, including in stain- and heat-resistant items. Continue reading...

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the crowd must become too big and too radical to ignore' as Biden came under fire for oil projectsTens of thousands of climate activists took to the streets of New York City on Sunday in a march to end fossil fuels", with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez telling the crowd that the movement must become too big and too radical to ignore".To cheers from the crowd, the progressive Democrat criticized the US continuing to approve fossil fuel projects, something which the Biden administration did earlier this year with the controversial Willow project in Alaska. Continue reading...

Demonstration falls days before the United Nations climate ambition summit, at which Joe Biden is expected to be a no-showActor and climate activist Susan Sarandon opened her speech by congratulating the students of New York University on the news of their university divesting from fossil fuels after years of pressure, as the Guardian first reported last week.Addressing the crowd, she said, You guys give me hope," adding: What we have to do is take responsibility and press those that are at the top to finally step up." Continue reading...

Covering Climate Now cites Damian Carrington for investigating carbon bombs' and super-emitting methane leaksCovering Climate Now, the global journalism collaboration, is announcing its media awards this week at a time when audiences need to know how and why the planet is on fire" and what can be done, judges said.CCN's climate journalists of the year for 2023 are Damian Carrington of the Guardian, Manka Behl of the Times of India and Amy Westervelt, the founder of the Critical Frequency podcast network.Behl of the Times of India was praised by judges for reports from the frontlines of the crisis in one of the world's most climate-important countries" and for her interviews with leaders.Carrington of the Guardian was credited for science-based reporting that explains that politics and corporate power, not a lack of green technologies, are what block climate progress", and cited for leading a reporting team on investigating carbon bombs" and super-emitting methane leaks.Westervelt was described as a prolific, multiplatform reporter for Critical Frequency whose work exposes how fossil fuel companies continue to mislead the public and policymakers alike. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer could end up on the back foot as his party's main backer launches campaigns on energy, steel and green jobs in red wall seatsLabour's biggest union backer, Unite, is launching grassroots campaigns in scores of industrial constituencies across the UK demanding more radical policies on energy, steel and green jobs.Unite's leader, Sharon Graham, who has been publicly critical of Keir Starmer, said funding earmarked for Labour would instead be funnelled into stoking public pressure for the party to shift its position on key issues including energy nationalisation. Continue reading...

The figure adds fuel to the growing political dispute over the pace and form of Australia's energy transition

As a growing number of householders turn off the gas, the fossil fuel sector will need clear policy direction from government, says energy regulator

March on Sunday will cap a week of more than 650 global actions and is expected to be the largest US climate march in five yearsA climate protest and rally headlined by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Sunday are expected to bring thousands of activists to the streets of New York.Under the banner March to End Fossil Fuels, protesters will push the Biden administration to take bold steps to phase out fossil fuels. The demonstration will fall days before the United Nations Climate Ambition Summit, which the UN secretary general, Antonio Guterres, has described as a no nonsense" conference meant to highlight new climate commitments. Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak has been told his next manifesto must prioritise net zero and help renters if the party wants the under-40s to vote for itRead more: how Tories can boost their image with under-40sSenior Tories are urging Rishi Sunak to use his next manifesto to address their party's alarming unpopularity among younger voters, amid increasing concern that the Conservatives could be sunk" without urgent action to win over the under-40s.With mounting anxiety among moderate Tories that the party is failing to prioritise policies on net zero and help for renters that could attract younger voters, Tom Tugendhat, the cabinet minister who is among the figureheads of the party's liberal wing, has become one of the most senior figures to publicly urge a rethink. Continue reading...

Civil lawsuit filed by the state targets Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and BPCalifornia has filed a lawsuit against some of the world's largest oil and gas companies, claiming they deceived the public and downplayed the risks posed by fossil fuels.The civil lawsuit filed in state Superior Court in San Francisco also seeks creation of a fund - financed by the companies - to pay for recovery efforts after devastating storms and fires. Democratic governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement the companies named in the lawsuit - Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and BP - should be held accountable. Continue reading...

Journalists who reported on last week's catastrophic storm say the country's bloody political tussle has contributed to the collapse of servicesEarly last week, Mohamed Eljabo travelled to the eastern provinces of Libya, passing through Derna, Al Bayda and Sousa, and what he saw he describes as shock beyond comprehension".I have visited these cities before and I know them well," he says. I expected to find these cities when I made the journey from Tripoli. I expected to see the neighbourhoods and towns. But these were gone. Erased. It was horrifying." Continue reading...

California families endured wartime incarceration and market changes to stay in business, but gen Z eyes life beyond the farmAlan Hayashi's 120-hectare (300-acre) farm is an unassuming pillar of Arroyo Grande, a city on California's central coast that's covered by rolling vineyards and ancient oaks. Two vast fields, partitioned by an inland stretch of Highway 1, produce white strawberries, squash, beets, celery and two dozen other crops.Hayashi, who's up at dawn seven days a week, has devoted the better half of his life to the farm's upkeep: he plants, irrigates and harvests his crops, the roar of rushing traffic an untiring companion. He also packages and sells the goods at his roadside stand and different farmers' markets in San Luis Obispo county. On a good day, he'll wrap up by 6pm and return home for dinner. Continue reading...

Three years after unprecedented inquest ruling, absence of other cases has left a gap for pollution sceptics to exploit

Premier Chris Minns also defends ending existing electric vehicle rebates ahead of Tuesday's state budget

Match between the Giants and Richmond pushed back by about 30 minutes due to red-bellied black snakeAn AFLW match between Greater Western Sydney and Richmond in Blacktown was delayed after a snake was spotted sunning itself in the grass.The red-bellied black snake appeared to be taking advantage of the hot weather that parts of Australia's south-east have been experiencing. Continue reading...

Car users can be exposed to more damaging pollution than cyclists, bus passengers or pedestrians, research claimsDrivers in London are likely to be among the biggest beneficiaries of moves to penalise highly polluting vehicles in the capital, London's mayor is to say, because at present many drivers are likely to experience more pollution than other road users.Though they may have the illusion of being insulated in their vehicles from the effects of exhaust fumes, drivers can be more exposed to pollutants including the highly dangerous small particles known as PM2.5, which can damage lungs and lodge deep within the body. Continue reading...

This beautiful bird's former name represented colonial dominance - and told us nothing about the species

Only emergency workers to be allowed into devastated area over fears of contamination from dead bodies in limited water supplyLibyan authorities have largely sealed off the flood-devastated port town of Derna from civilians in an effort to give space to emergency aid workers and amid concern that contamination of standing water may add to the already horrific death toll.Salem Al-Ferjani, director general of the ambulance and emergency service in eastern Libya, said that only search and rescue teams would be allowed to enter parts of the town most affected by the flooding that has left at least 11,000 dead according to official projections. Many citizens have already left the town voluntarily. Continue reading...

After giving two officers in Springfield, Missouri, a good run, the escaped pet was caught by the long arms of the lawUS law enforcement is familiar with pursuing much more dangerous escapees but there was one guy in stripes this week who gave officers the run-around, then ultimately came quietly.We see the tail," a cop called as he gave chase through the darkness of a public park equipped only with a large towel. Continue reading...

Exclusive: EU restricts use of eight chemicals, with 16 more in pipeline; UK has two under considerationSeveral toxic chemicals that have been banned in the EU since Brexit are still allowed to be used in the UK, it can be revealed, as campaigners say the lower standards are putting public health at risk.The UK has not been part of the EU's chemicals regulations scheme since 2021 and instead has its own, called Reach. Eight rules restricting the use of hazardous chemicals have been adopted by the EU since Brexit, and 16 more are in the pipeline. The UK has not banned any substances in that time and is considering just two restrictions, on lead ammunition and harmful substances in tattoo ink. Continue reading...

From the Sargasso Sea to the Costa Rica thermal dome, scientists are identifying key diversity hotspots to safeguard under a new UN treatyFrom 20 September, the UN's high seas treaty will at last be open for signatures - an important moment that starts the process for nations to ratify it into their own laws. At least 60 countries must do so for the treaty to come into force. Scientists hope that it will finally allow marine protected areas (MPAs) in the high seas to be established.Conservationists are urging governments to act quickly. Fishing hours on the high seas rose by about 8.5% between 2018 and 2022, according to estimates published this week by Greenpeace using data from Global Fishing Watch. The high seas are areas of the ocean that lie beyond any national jurisdictions and, as such, have no legal protections. They cover nearly 50% of the planet and house a variety of unique ecosystems. Yet many high seas areas are under threat not just from overfishing, but also pollution, the climate crisis and damage from shipping and deep-sea mining. Continue reading...

The best of this week's wildlife photographs, including a jellyfish bloom, a happy seal, and an endangered Amur leopard cub Continue reading...

System not fit for carbon offsetting, puts Indigenous communities at risk and should be replaced with new approach, say researchersRainforest conservation projects are not suitable for carbon offsetting and a different approach should be used to effectively protect critical ecosystems such as the Amazon and Congo basin, a report has concluded.New research by UC Berkeley Carbon Trading Project looking into rainforest carbon credits certified by Verra, which operates the world's leading carbon standard, found that the system is not fit for purpose. Continue reading...

Big Butterfly Count records increase on 2022 but longer-term trends show declines for some of most common species

The flash flood that has killed thousands of people in Libya this week followed the medicane' storm DanielThe flash flood that has killed thousands of people in Libya this week followed a medicane", a rare but destructive weather phenomenon that scientists believe will intensify in a warming world.The term is an amalgamation of the words Mediterranean and hurricane. Used by scientists and weather forecasters, it is less well known to the wider public. Continue reading...

Protests were a preview of planned marches in the city ahead of United Nations' climate ambition summit on 20 SeptemberProgressive lawmakers and climate activists rallied at the Capitol on Thursday to demand an end to fossil fuel usage, previewing a planned march in New York on Sunday ahead of the United Nations' climate ambition summit on 20 September.Clearly, saving the planet is the most important issue facing humanity," the Democratic senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, said. But here's the ugly and brutal truth: right now, humanity is failing. The planet is crying out for help." Continue reading...

Executives privately sought to downplay link between fossil fuels and climate change despite public pronouncements, WSJ reportsExxonMobil executives privately sought to undermine climate science even after the oil and gas giant publicly acknowledged the link between fossil fuel emissions and climate change, according to previously unreported documents revealed by the Wall Street Journal.The new revelations are based on previously unreported documents subpoenaed by New York's attorney general as part of an investigation into the company announced in 2015. They add to a slew of documents that record a decades-long misinformation campaign waged by Exxon, which are cited in a growing number of state and municipal lawsuits against big oil. Continue reading...

Comments by agriculture minister seem to signal shift away from focus on organic produce as shoppers choose cheaper meatFrance is urging its farmers to produce more cut-price meat in a major U-turn on factory farming, with inflation hammering demand for organic pork, beef and chicken.The agriculture minister, Marc Fesneau, told a big agro-industry gathering on Tuesday that we have to admit that we must work on the entry level" end of the market. Continue reading...

Exclusive: local trust that backs proposal says there is urgent need to tackle impact of greater tourismScotland's heritage agency plans to introduce an admission fee at the neolithic Calanais standing stones, one of the most popular and revered cultural sites in the Hebrides.The fee proposal coincides with a 6m revamp of Calanais visitor facilities being built in response to a surge in tourism to the Western Isles, driven largely by day trips by cruise ship passengers. Continue reading...

Federal effort will focus on marginalized areas in all parts of country and aims to reduce extreme heat and benefit healthHundreds of communities around the US will share more than $1bn in federal money to help them plant and maintain trees under a federal program that is intended to reduce extreme heat, benefit health and improve access to nature.The US agriculture secretary, Tom Vilsack, will announce the $1.13bn in funding for 385 projects at an event on Thursday morning in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Continue reading...

Not only are male palm cockatoos expert toolmakers and musicians, research shows they pass their knowledge down through generations

Claimants to argue lack of adequate action is breach of human rights, in largest climate legal action to dateSix young people are preparing to appear at the European court of human rights to try to compel 32 nations to rapidly escalate their emissions reductions in the world's largest climate legal action to date.Aged from 11 to 24, the six Portuguese claimants, say they were driven to act by their experiences in the wildfires that ripped through the Leiria region in 2017, killing 66 people and destroying 20,000 hectares of forest. Continue reading...

Outgoing chief executive Bernard Looney presided over plans to cut fossil fuel output by end of decadeBP's climate goals must not evaporate" along with another chief executive, campaign groups have said after the shock resignation of Bernard Looney.The chief executive is stepping down after three years at the helm of Britain's biggest petroleum company after failing to disclose full details of relationships with colleagues, although many old-school shareholders had also reportedly been putting pressure on him over his plans for a net zero energy transition by 2050. Continue reading...

South African scientists find a mystery female specimen with stunted wings identified as a flightless flyIn December 2021, the South African dipterologists (entomologists specialising in flies) John Midgley and Burgert Muller set off on a long-anticipated collecting mission to Lesotho, the only country in the world that has its entire territory located at an altitude of 1,000 metres (3,280ft) and higher.Looking at the maps, we knew that the high-altitude plateau in north-eastern Lesotho would be interesting," says Midgley. Whenever you have an island' that's cut off from its surroundings you get cool things." Especially when you can count on the fingers of one hand the number of entomologists who have been there. Continue reading...

Farmers protested against Murray-Darling Basin policy and the proposed Hunter gas pipeline

Insect-eating sundew plants among 17,500 reintroduced as part of carbon-sequestering conservation schemeAfter a 100-year absence, ruthless carnivores are flourishing again on a peat bog near Garstang in Lancashire.The insect-eating great sundew and oblong-leaved sundew are among 17,500 plants being reintroduced to Winmarleigh Moss as part of its restoration by the Lancashire Wildlife Trust. Continue reading...

Techniques such as solar radiation management may have unintended consequences, scientists sayGovernments should place a moratorium on efforts to geoengineer the planet's climate, as greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise and the climate crisis takes hold, a panel of global experts has urged.Geoengineering is highly controversial, but discussions of its feasibility are gathering pace as the impacts of extreme weather, driven by climate breakdown, grip the planet. There is no global agreement on geoengineering, and no rules on what countries, or businesses, can do. Continue reading...

Rural Fire Service says smoke is expected to clear by the weekend when runners compete in the Sydney Marathon

Series sponsored by organisations including coal and gas companies features incorrect' claims on green gas' and context missing on carbon capture technology