Environment | The Guardian

A drone pilot captures footage of a humpback whale following a kayaker near Bondi beach. Up to 50,000 whales are expected to pass Australia's east coast during the annual migration from Antarctica to the Great Barrier Reef. Humpback whales were removed from Australia's threatened species list last year after a significant increase in numbers, from just 1,500 at the height of the commercial whaling industry to an estimated 40,000

When environmentalist and pacifist Joan Carulla came to the city after growing up during Spain's civil war, he created an allotment in the sky' that helped pioneer organic farmingWhen Joan Carulla Figueres turned the roof terrace of his Barcelona apartment into a garden, it was out of nostalgia for his rural origins. Sixty-five years later, the ecological concepts he has long followed have become commonplace, and he is acclaimed as a pioneer of organic farming.Carulla, who celebrated his 100th birthday this year, is credited with creating the city's first roof garden. However, his allotment in the sky" boasts far more than the usual tomato plants and pots of geraniums. It is home to more than 40 fruit trees, vines that produce 100kg (220lbs) of grapes a year, olives, peaches, figs, garlic, aubergines and even potatoes. He is passionate about potatoes. Continue reading...

Seawalls are causing intertidal habitats to vanish as ocean levels increase. But eco-entrepreneurs say artificial rockpools and crevices can save wildlife

Even if the world stopped emitting greenhouse gases tomorrow, ocean levels would continue to riseNot only is dangerous sea level rise absolutely guaranteed", but it will keep rising for centuries or millennia even if the world stopped emitting greenhouse gases tomorrow, experts say.Rising seas are one of the most severe consequences of a heating climate that are already being felt. Continue reading...

Five-year Flinders University project played wind turbine and road traffic audio samples to nearly 70 participants in a sleep laboratory

Residents seek respite from the heat as temperatures above 40C (104F) have been recorded for a third consecutive day in Beijing for the first time Continue reading...

Federal decision about $1.9bn project delayed until end of year as local council flags possiblity of compensation for aircraft noise

Public health advocates say land at Hunters Point in San Francisco contains dangerous levels of strontium-90The US navy is covering up dangerous levels of radioactive waste on a 40-acre former shipyard parcel in San Francisco's waterside Hunters Point neighborhood, public health advocates charge.The land is slated to be turned over to the city as early as next year, and could be used for residential redevelopment. The accusations stem from 2021 navy testing that found 23 samples from the property showed high levels of strontium-90, a radioactive isotope that replaces calcium in bones and causes cancer. Continue reading...

Government's buyout scheme is meeting fierce resistance from farmers in NetherlandsVeal farmer Wim Brouwer sits on his terrace, an emergency" red flag flying outside and his laptop open on a page revealing he is one of the Netherlands' peak polluters, due to the nitrogen excreted each year by his 1,360 calves.His business sits in one of the most intensively farmed parts of Europe's most intensively farmed country, a huge exporter with more than 110 million livestock, including cattle, chickens and pigs. Continue reading...

Plans for the world's first commercial octopus farm are well advanced - just as science discovers more about this curious, intelligent and affectionate animal. Can it be done ethically?The sterile boardroom, much of it taken up by a lengthy white table, is at the heart of the sprawling building in northern Spain. The corporate chatter that fills this room these days, however, is dominated by the scene playing out one floor below, where about 50 adult male octopuses are in a tank the size of a budget hotel room.A handful of the octopuses - the fifth generation to be born in this Spanish multinational's concrete-and-glass office and research centre - skim through the shallow waters, some brushing up against each other while others tuck into the tank's barren corners. A low-intensity light casts a pale glow as researchers lay the groundwork for one of the world's most controversial endeavours: the first commercial octopus farm. Continue reading...

Victorian grassland earless dragon was once common west of Melbourne but numbers declined due to habitat loss and predators such as feral cats

Less office waste material during Covid has led big lavatory roll makers to cut amount of recycled paper in tissues, according to consumer bodyHoarding during the Covid-19 pandemic underlined just how important loo roll is to the British public. But working from home had another unexpected effect: less waste paper from offices, which means less recycled material to make toilet roll.New research by Ethical Consumer magazine shows that the three main toilet brands have cut the amount of recycled paper in their tissues. It said the use of virgin wood pulp was fuelling deforestation, although paper-industry advocates dispute this. Continue reading...

Electricity generated on Shetland could be used to fuel the proposed Rosebank field, instead of homesElectricity from a new onshore windfarm could be used to power the biggest undeveloped oilfield in the North Sea, campaigners are warning, ahead of an imminent decision over whether to approve the project.The huge Rosebank oilfield is three times bigger than the controversial Cambo field that was put on hold more than a year ago. It has the potential to produce 500m barrels of oil and its final approval is expected to reach the energy secretary, Grant Shapps, in the next few weeks. It is expected to be approved after Rishi Sunak hinted last month that it would be economically illiterate" not to invest in UK oil and gas because Britain will remain reliant on fossil fuels for the next few decades". Continue reading...

German national Marcus Decker in prison for climbing Dartford bridge faces automatic deportation, say campaignersHundreds of protesters marched to the Home Office on Saturday demanding deportation proceedings be called off for an environmental activist imprisoned for scaling the Dartford Crossing.Marcus Decker is serving one of the longest sentences ever passed for a non-violent protest in British history after a Just Stop Oil demonstration in October. He is a German citizen with leave to remain in the UK, but faces automatic deportation after serving the two years and seven months sentence. Continue reading...

New Mexico, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri and Kansas also face scorching temperatures as heat dome settles over US south-westA record-breaking heat wave is entering its third week in Texas, as temperatures reach triple digits in the broader US south and tens of thousands of people in affected states are without power and lack air conditioning.More than 40 million people in the US are under a heat alert. Continue reading...

Energy security secretary says costs should be paid for further up the chain' rather than by householdsGrant Shapps has signalled the government will U-turn on its planned hydrogen levy on energy bills.The annual levy, estimated to add about 118 a year to already soaring energy bills, had been expected to be introduced in 2025 via the energy bill going through parliament. The fee was intended to cover the cost of producing the low-carbon gas instead of polluting fossil fuels. Continue reading...

Measure will nullify local ordinances that provide workers protection from devastating, triple-digit temperaturesAmid a dangerous heatwave that has brought blistering temperatures across Texas, the state's governor signed a law this week eliminating local rules requiring water breaks for workers.The measure, which will take effect later this year, will nullify ordinances enacted by Austin and Dallas that mandate 10-minute breaks for construction workers every four hours. It also prevents any other local governments from passing similar worker protections. Continue reading...

Utility's head says demand for drinking water has risen 20% since pandemic, outpacing supplyA water company has blamed more people working from home post-pandemic for a new hosepipe ban.South East Water, which supplies more than 2m homes and businesses, will impose the first hosepipe ban of the summer on Monday, affecting households across Kent and Sussex. Continue reading...

Changes to the World Bank could unlock developing states access to loans and to the means of staving off disasterThe Netherlands has almost the same amount of solar generating capacity as the whole continent of Africa. That must be, in part, because the interest on a loan to set up a windfarm in Africa is about 17% more than one to do the same in Europe.Many poor countries enjoy vast natural resources of wind and sun yet struggle to access renewable energy because of the crippling cost of capital imposed on them. Private sector companies perceive far greater risk in poor countries, penalising most heavily the countries in greatest need of investment. Continue reading...

Countries in debt distress thrown financial lifeline but critics say measures fall short of what is neededPoorer countries struggling with a growing debt crisis were thrown a lifeline at a global finance summit in Paris but the plans still fell short of the debt forgiveness programme that some had hoped for.Progress was made on reforms that would help address the climate emergency, as nearly 40 world leaders and the heads of global institutions met in Paris for the summit, which ended on Friday. Continue reading...

Committee on Climate Change report likely to recommend ending road-building programmeThe government should halt all new roads unless there are exceptional circumstances, the government's climate advisers are likely to say next week.On Wednesday the Committee on Climate Change will publish its latest report on the UK's progress in dealing with the climate crisis. Speaking at Glastonbury on Friday, the climate change committee chair, Lord Deben, said new roads inevitably increased traffic and emissions. Continue reading...

Habit-forming and intrinsically nutritionally unbalanced junk foods elevate the levels of hormones responsible for hungerRichard Montanez knows he's cracked the code when his son Steven exclaims, Ow, ow, ow, it burns!"In the recently released film Flamin' Hot, which tells Montanez's account of how he allegedly invented Flamin' Hot Cheetos, Montanez and his wife ask their son: Burns good or burns bad?" Continue reading...

Almost 40 leaders to present plans for overhaul of public financial institutions including World BankQuestions over a tax on global shipping and other big sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and how countries should go about setting up a loss and damage fund continue to be the subject of fierce discussion, as governments meet in Paris to prepare an overhaul of global development and climate finance.Nearly 40 heads of state and government and a similar number of ministers and high-level representatives will finalise a roadmap for the reform of the world's public finance institutions, including the World Bank, and of overseas aid and climate finance. Continue reading...

The best of this week's wildlife photographs, including busy bees, a peregrine falcon and wild horses Continue reading...

Nearly 50% of US bee colonies died off last year, although efforts have helped the overall bee population remain relatively stable'The US's honeybee hives just staggered through the second highest death rate on record, with beekeepers losing nearly half of their managed colonies, an annual bee survey found.But by using costly and herculean measures to create new colonies, beekeepers are somehow keeping afloat. Thursday's University of Maryland and Auburn University survey found that even though 48% of colonies were lost in the year that ended 1 April, the number of US honeybee colonies remained relatively stable". Continue reading...

Poll also reveals increasing cynicism over environmental claims made by companies

Settlement will provide funds to US municipalities over 13 years to test for and treat PFAS contamination in public water systems3M Co has reached a $10.3bn settlement with a host of US public water systems to resolve water pollution claims tied to forever chemicals", the chemical company announced on Thursday.The company said the settlement would provide the funds over a 13-year period to cities, towns and other public water systems to test for and treat contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Continue reading...

Multnomah county is suing 17 companies for the fatal heatwave, seeking billions to upgrade public services and infrastructureOregon's most populous county on Thursday sued major oil and gas companies over a deadly 2021 heatwave that killed dozens of people.The defendants should be held responsible, the lawsuit alleges, for their role in fueling the climate crisis. Continue reading...

NTSB holds rare field hearing in East Palestine, Ohio, focused on crucial decision to release and burn toxic vinyl chlorideThe fire chiefs whose departments were the first on the scene of February's fiery train derailment in eastern Ohio agree that firefighters need more training about hazardous chemicals, but that it would be hard for them ever to be fully prepared to deal with a disaster of that magnitude.Their evidence was heard as the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is holding a rare field hearing in East Palestine, Ohio, over the next two days. Continue reading...

Announcement comes after Divina de Campo joined host of nominees and judges who pulled out of the eventThe British LGBT Awards have dropped sponsorship deals with Shell and BP after nominees and judges began pulling out of the competition.Amid the latest cultural backlash against the fossil fuel industry, the awards event said it had revised" its corporate sponsors. Overnight, Shell and BP were removed from its list of 2023 supporters. Continue reading...

High court judge rules in favour of government decision to let EDF build plant on the Suffolk coastA legal challenge against the government's decision to build the Sizewell C nuclear power plant has been rejected.The campaign group Together Against Sizewell C (Tasc) had launched a judicial review against the government's decision to give the green light to the 3.2 gigawatt plant on the Suffolk coast, which is being built by French energy company EDF. Continue reading...

The NSW Environment Protection Authority says it will not shy away' from suspending the mine's licence if it does not comply

Scientists have warned that a marine heatwave off the coasts of the UK and Ireland poses a serious threat to species. Sea temperatures, particularly off the north-east coast of England and the west of Ireland, are several degrees above normal, breaking records for late spring and early summer. The Met Office has said that according to records dating to 1850, global sea surface temperatures in April and May reached an all-time high, and June is likely to follow suit. A professor of Earth sciences, Daniela Schmidt, said 'the extreme and unprecedented temperatures show the power of the combination of human-induced warming and natural climate variability like El Nino'. Experts said marine heatwaves have a similar impact on the environment as wildfires on land, destroying organisms that store carbon such as kelp. The damage caused is also harmful to humanity, which relies on oceans for oxygen, storm protection and food

Report shows connections of business and rightwing thinktanks to laws aimed at environmental, social and corporate governanceThe American right wing's widening fight against what it calls woke capitalism" is partly driven by fossil fuel interests or industry allies, according to a new report published on Thursday.Conservatives often use the term woke capitalism" to refer to environmental, social and corporate governance - or ESG - criteria used to screen investments based on their environmental and social implications. Continue reading...

Court has been told states are legally responsible for tackling sector's emissions as IMO talks loomGovernments are under growing pressure to tackle the huge climate impact of the shipping industry, before a key International Maritime Organization (IMO) meeting in the summer.With talks about regulating the sector's greenhouse gas emissions coming up, the world maritime court has been told that states are legally responsible for tackling the climate impact of shipping. Continue reading...

Looe Island is a case study in how to boost biodiversity, a place where the wardens, Claire Lewis and her partner, Jon Ross, are the only residents, alongside gulls, godwits and comma butterfliesWith its driftwood, capsized boat and crystal-clear waters, Looe Island looks more like a scene from Robinson Crusoe than the well-trodden coastline of Cornwall. Few realise that only a mile from Looe - a seaside town whose narrow streets spill over with tourists in the summer months - there is a wildlife sanctuary.In Cornwall's only marine nature reserve, birds nest in thickets of trees, sheep graze grassy slopes and seals seek refuge in the island's rocky bays. Quiet and tranquil, Looe Island is nearly deserted - apart from two wildlife wardens whose job it is to care for the land so its biodiversity flourishes.Coastal grassland on the island. Photograph: Claire Lewis Continue reading...

Zali Steggall and David Pocock take aim at government over support of development on Darwin habour which will benefit gas industry

As climate change ministers, we urge multilateral banks to come together to help vulnerable nations, who face cascading challengesThe science is clear. The climate crisis is the biggest single threat we face as a global community. In turn, meeting the goals of the Paris agreement and realising the opportunities of climate action is the task of the 21st century.No single government can address this alone. Together, we can rise to the challenge. Continue reading...

Firm having regular meetings with environment minister after failing to meet targets to fix leakage ratesThe leakage rate from Thames Water pipes is the highest for five years and the company will not meet its target to plug them this year, according to information released under freedom of information laws.The company, which serves 15 million customers across London and Thames Valley, has to have regular meetings with an environment minister because it is considered to be lagging in its performance. Continue reading...

Attack came less than two weeks after park rangers euthanised another animal

Fossil fuel company aims to thrive through the energy transition by building a low-cost, lower-carbon, profitable, resilient and diversified portfolio'

Regulator's call for action on dust pollution comes after local residents reported blood tests with high levels of selenium, nickel and copper

Scientists tracking alerts sent by the National Weather Service say data underscores the risk of heatwaves and storms this summerHalf of the US population has faced an extreme weather alert since 1 May and many more are likely to face risks from wildfires, flooding, tropical storms and extreme heat as summer begins.The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has been tracking the alerts sent by the National Weather Service (NWS) warning about dangerous weather. Continue reading...

Protesters clashed with policein the Maurienne Valley, south east France on Saturday, as they demonstrated against a tunnel being built through the base of the Alpine range that separatesFrance and Italy. The protesterswere attempting to reach a site where drilling has already begun on whatwillbe the world's longest tunnel, but were blocked by police.The protests were led by Les Soulevements de la Terre (Earth Uprising) - an umbrella group of several different environmental activist associations across France. On June 21 the French government dissolved the collective claiming their actions were violent and led to material damage. Lawyers for Les Soulevements de la Terre immediately announced their intention to file an appeal Continue reading...

Hertfordshire council rules area of land on Hatfield House estate - owned by Marquess of Salisbury - is common landThe aristocrat who owns the country manor Hatfield House has been forced to allow the general public to walk on part of his estate after the local council ruled that it was common land.Earlier this year, the Marquess of Salisbury, Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, opposed an application by the Open Spaces Society (OSS) to register a 1.8-hectare (4.45-acre) area of land on his estate as a common. Gascoyne-Cecil is a Conservative politician, once an MP and minister, and now sits in the Lords as a hereditary peer. Continue reading...

Sarah Finch's challenge to plans to allow oil well hinges on wider environmental impact of fossil fuelsClimate campaigners have begun a supreme court challenge to plans to drill for oil in Surrey, in a case they hope could set a precedent restricting plans for future fossil fuel projects in the UK.Sarah Finch is challenging Surrey county council's decision to extend permission for a well at Horse Hill, near Gatwick airport in the Surrey countryside, which taps a subterranean reservoir developers believe may contain millions of barrels of oil. Continue reading...

Cetacean exhibits same behaviour towards vessel in North Sea that has been seen in Iberian orca populationAn orca repeatedly rammed a yacht in the North Sea off Shetland on Monday, in a concerning development following previous interactions between the cetaceans and vessels in the strait of Gibraltar and Portugal.Dr Wim Rutten, a 72-year-old retired Dutch physicist and experienced yachtsperson, was sailing solo from Lerwick to Bergen in Norway. He was fishing for mackerel, with a single line off the back of the boat, when the orca suddenly appeared in the clear water, and hit the stern of the seven-ton boat. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Alok Sharma among those wanting more onshore and offshore renewables and better energy efficiency in homesFormer Tory cabinet ministers have formed a group to pressure the government to improve its green policies in the hope of making it credible" in the next general election.Alok Sharma, the former Cop26 president, is urging Rishi Sunak to have a bold and positive environmental agenda" in the next general election. He joins the former transport secretary Chris Grayling and Simon Clarke, who was the levelling up secretary, in calling for more ambitious climate policies. Continue reading...

The Guardian finds children in Portland, Oregon, could have lower test scores due to lead emissions from nearby racetrack, one of dozens across the US to use toxic leaded gasolineWhen a neighbor mentioned to Kristy Lanciotti, a mother of two and pediatric nurse who works in environmental health, that toxic leaded gasoline was being used at a racetrack just down the road from her house in Portland, Oregon, she was taken aback.She was well aware of Portland International Raceway - most summer weekends were punctuated by the roar of engines - but Lanciotti, like most of her neighbors, was surprised to learn that the cars in many of those events were powered by a fuel that could damage her children's brains. Continue reading...

Kylea Tink says the Greens are cutting off their nose to spite their face', but Sarah Hanson-Young says Green Wall Street is not what nature needs'