by Robyn Vinter North of England correspondent on (#6DQBV)
New Zealand pigmyweed harms waterways by forming dense mats and depleting oxygen, say expertsVisitors to the Lake District are being asked to help prevent the spread of a particularly bad" invasive weed that could wipe out native species if left unchecked.Conservation organisations said they were dismayed to find New Zealand pigmyweed spreading rapidly across a number of lakes in the national park, including a previously pristine waterway.Check all clothing, footwear and equipment for plant fragments and living organisms before leaving a water body. Pay particular attention to any crevices.Clean and wash all equipment on site, leaving all organisms and plant fragments behind. Or wash on a hard standing surface away from a draining system.Dry all equipment and clothing thoroughly before heading to the next water body. Some species can survive for two weeks in damp conditions. Continue reading...
Famed for their freediving skills, only a few hundred Bajau still live in the traditional way. Caught between laws hostile to their unique way of life, they are being forced to resettle as outcasts on shoreWords and photographs by Claudio Sieber in SempornaThe Bajau people have been crisscrossing the waters of the Sulu Sea for centuries, the world's only community of self-sufficient sea nomads. To the Bajau, a border" is merely the farthest distance they can reach by boat.Noted for their exceptional freediving abilities, the Bajau have evolved to have larger spleens, enabling them to stay underwater for up to 10 minutes at depths of 200 feet. Their diet includes a diverse array of sea creatures, including sea cucumbers - a valuable protein source also used for medical purposes and even as an aphrodisiac.Only about 100 to 200 Bajau families still live on the traditional Lansa houseboats. This one, part of the Bohey Bual community off Bodgaya Island, has 10 sq metres of living space and houses nine people Continue reading...
In today's newsletter: After years of rampant exploitation under a far-right government, Brazil has brought together leaders to help secure the future of the world's biggest rainforest - and create a just ecological transition' Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First EditionGood morning. I think the world needs to see this meeting in Belem as the most important landmark ever ... when it comes to discussing the climate question." For once you can forgive the hyperbole of Brazil's president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, when he spoke about this week's Amazon summit.Leaders from the eight South American countries that share the river basin have been meeting this week in the Brazilian city to discuss an issue that, by any measure, is a global emergency: how to protect the vast rainforest and safeguard its critical role in regulating the planetary climate.Education | Rising costs and family needs could force one in three students starting university this year to opt to live at home, according to new research. While some of the Covid generation" of school-leavers said they planned to live at home because their preferred university was nearby, most said they could not afford to live away from home.Northern Ireland | The UK's Information Commissioner's Office has launched an investigation into an unprecedented data breach that disclosed details of more than 10,000 police officers and staff in Northern Ireland. The agency, which regulates data privacy laws, is working with the Police Service of Northern Ireland to establish the level of risk amid warnings that the leak may compel officers to leave the force or move their home address.Hawaii | Six people were killed after unprecedented wildfires tore through the Hawaiian island of Maui. The fires, fanned by strong winds from Hurricane Dora, destroyed businesses in the historic town of Lahaina, and left at least two dozen people injured.Ecuador | Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio was shot dead at a campaign rally on Wednesday. The country's president, Guillermo Lasso, said he was outraged and shocked by the assassination" and would convene a meeting of his security cabinet.Media | Employees at ITV's This Morning were allegedly subjected to bullying, discrimination and harassment", according to staff members who have spoken out after Phillip Schofield's departure from the programme. Some workers claim they attempted to raise concerns about the programme only to face further bullying and discrimination" by bosses for speaking out. Continue reading...
Wildfires fanned by strong winds from Hurricane Dora have burned through the town on Lahaina in Maui. The US Coast Guard had to pull a number of people from the ocean beside the town after they dived in to escape smoke and flames. 'It's like an apocalypse,' said a local resident
Biden said I've done that' when asked about declaring climate emergency, yet White House has not announced such a declarationJoe Biden has said that he has practically" declared a national emergency on the climate crisis, despite not actually taking that step, vexing climate campaigners.I've already done that," Biden said when asked if he intends to declare a climate emergency in a Weather Channel interview aired on Wednesday. Continue reading...
Critics of the policy expressed concern that decision will weaken investor confidence in solar and wind energy in the regionA decision by Canada's largest oil and gas-producing province to halt new wind and solar projects has prompted disbelief among environmental groups and economists. The move comes as the country struggles with its worst wildfire season on record, a situation that experts agree is worsened by the climate crisis and a reliance on fossil fuels.Alberta last week announced a six-month moratorium on large solar and wind projects so it can review policies surrounding the projects' construction and impact on the power grid, as well as rules for their eventual decommissioning. Continue reading...
by Tom Phillips in Belém and Patrick Greenfield on (#6DPPT)
Brazilian president says developed nations that over centuries have pumped emissions into the atmosphere must pay their bit'The Brazilian president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has told developed countries to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to protecting the world's remaining tropical forests, as major rainforest nations demanded hundreds of billions of dollars of climate financing and a greater role in how those resources are spent.It's not Brazil that needs money. It's not Colombia that needs money. It's not Venezuela. It's nature," Lula told journalists on the second day of a major environmental summit in the Amazon city of Belem. Continue reading...
Experiment by Google and American Airlines reduces vapour trails, which are a source of global heatingAircraft contrails - or clouds of condensation behind planes - have been a familiar sight in skies across the world since the start of the jet age. However, a new experiment by Google and American Airlines suggests they could soon become much rarer, in a small but significant win that could assist the battle to cut aviation emissions.Pilots flying using artificial intelligence models to choose different altitudes were able to reduce contrails by 54%, with further improvements expected, Google said in a blogpost on Tuesday night. Continue reading...
Parts of eastern and central Norway still on red alert as country battles widespread flooding and landslidesA dam in Norway has partly collapsed as the country battles record high river levels, flooding and landslides after a fatal storm.Norwegian police were considering blowing up the dam when water from the Glama River, the country's longest, started spilling out the side at Braskereidfoss hydroelectric power plant. Continue reading...
Wildfires in Hawaii fanned by strong winds burned structures in areas including the historic town of Lahaina, forcing evacuations and closing schools in several communities. Rescuers pulled a dozen people from the ocean after they dived in to escape the smoke and flames; the coastguard tweeted that a crew rescued 12 people from the water off Lahaina. A firefighter responding to the West Maui fire was taken to hospital after experiencing smoke inhalation and was in stable condition, Maui county said. Because of the wind, helicopters were not able to dump water on the fires from the sky or gauge more precise fire sizes. Firefighters encountered roads blocked by downed trees and power lines as they worked the inland fires
This live blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereNicola Sturgeon's deeply personal and revealing" memoir will be published in 2025 by Pan Macmillan, after nine publishers bid for it at auction. Lucy Knight has the story here.Zac Goldsmith, who resigned as a Foreign Office minister in June saying he could no longer support Rishi Sunak because of his apathy" on climate issues, has told the BBC that he might even back Labour as a result.My concern about the Labour party at the moment - I don't say this is a tribal politician, I'm not a tribal politician - is I think there is a blind spot on the natural environment. When the Labour party thinks environment, when it talks about the environment, it is thinking carbon - and taxation, regulation and all the things that go with that.The simple truth is there is no pathway to net zero and there's no solution to climate change that does not involve nature, massive efforts to protect and restore the natural world. Continue reading...
Countries across the globe are facing a range of extreme weather events. In Germany, snowploughs were deployed in the middle of summer to shift ice from roads after a hailstorm. Severe flooding has affected parts of Europe including Sweden and Slovenia, with hundreds of houses submerged. Human-caused climate change is supercharging extreme weather across the world, driving more frequent and more deadly disasters, from heatwaves to floods to wildfires
Solar installation jobs grew by 247% since 2011, with promises of good pay and stability - but the work is grueling, and the pay is actually lowAs a child, Scott Horton dreamed of becoming a firefighter. My father worked for the post office," said Horton. My mother was a school [bus] driver." Only natural, then, that Horton would also want to enter public service.Now, at 55, with salt-and-pepper hair, transition lenses, and a sparkly stud in his left ear, some of Horton's early longings have materialized. He spends his days climbing ladders, wearing a hardhat, and scrambling around roofs. But Horton is not a firefighter; Denver's fire department disqualifies applicants with felony convictions. Instead, he is a solar panel installer, one of the few paths available to him after a 19-year stint in prison. Continue reading...
by Tom Phillips in Belém, Patrick Greenfield and age on (#6DP7F)
Eight South American presidents including Brazil's Lula say rich countries need to pledge more resources to help protect rainforestAmazon leaders have called on rich countries to help them develop a Marshall-style plan to protect the world's largest rainforest - but stopped short of committing to zero deforestation across the biome by 2030 amid divisions over oil extraction.In a joint declaration at the end of a two-day summit in the Brazilian city of Belem on Wednesday, the eight South American countries that are home to the Amazon rainforest said ensuring its survival could not be solely up to them, as resources from the forest were consumed globally. Continue reading...
Drone footage shows Russia's coldest city, Yakutsk, blanketed by smog as wildfires continue to burn in the region. Local residents explained how they 'annot open the windows at home or in the car to deal with the 'stuffiness' as it only exacerbates the problem. Hundreds of firefighters and dozens of vehicles have been deployed to tackle the wildfires raging in the area Continue reading...
Land dispossession and depravation was a mainstay strategy used by settler colonials to divide and disempower communitiesMore than a million acres of tribal land - an area larger than the state of Rhode Island - have been flooded by dams, compounding centuries of land seizures and forced displacement by settler colonials and the US government, new research has found.Land has always been central to Indigenous culture, sovereignty and prosperity, while land dispossession has been a mainstay strategy used to divide and disempower communities, by depriving Indigenous people of clean water, traditional food sources, spiritual connections and economic opportunities. Continue reading...
More than 300,000 homes and businesses in the eastern US were without power after storms passed over the region, killing at least two people and disrupting air travel. The National Weather Service highlighted the tornado risk for more than 29.5 million people across a region spanning Alabama to western New York state
Residents on island rush to buy warm clothing and heaters amid unusually cold winter weather for the Pacific nationTonga is bracing for more chilly weather as the Pacific nation shivers through one of its coldest winters ever, sparking a rush for jackets and heating units.The island has experienced unusually cold weather through July and Tonga Meteorological Services (TMS) recorded a low of 9.3 degrees Celsius at the Lapaha village weather station at the end of the month. The country's record low of 8.7C was set in September 1994. Continue reading...
Class action legal claim on behalf of 20 million householders in England and Wales could top 800m in compensationThe public could receive hundreds of millions of pounds in compensation in the first class action against water companies which are alleged to have failed to reveal the true scale of raw sewage discharges, and abused their position as privatised monopolies.A collective case against six water companies alleges they have failed to properly report sewage spills and pollution of rivers and seas to the Environment Agency and Ofwat, the regulator for England and Wales. The first of six parallel claims is against Severn Trent Water on behalf of its 8 million customers. Claims against Thames Water, United Utilities, Anglian Water, Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water are being brought in the coming months. Continue reading...
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva sets out ambitious programme to repair damage done by Bolsonaro and tackle environmental crimeThe Brazilian president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has vowed to haul the Amazon out of centuries of violence, economic plundering" and environmental devastation and into a new Amazon dream", at the start of a major regional summit on the world's largest rainforest.Addressing South American leaders gathered in the Brazilian city of Belem, Lula offered a bold blueprint for the future of the Amazon, a 6.7m sq km region that is home to nearly 50 million people spread across eight countries and one territory. Continue reading...
Conclave represents handbrake turn in Brazilian government policy since Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva took powerThe leaders of Amazon nations including Brazil, Colombia and Peru have gathered in the Brazilian city of Belem for a rare conclave about the future of the world's largest rainforest amid growing concern over the global climate emergency.The environmental summit - convened by Brazil's leftist president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - represents a handbrake turn in Brazilian government policy after four years of Amazon destruction and international isolation under the country's previous leader, Jair Bolsonaro. Continue reading...
Amazon nations' leaders have gathered in the Brazilian city of Belem for a rare summit about the future of the world's largest rainforest amid growing concern over the global climate emergency. The environmental summit convened by Brazil's leftist president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, represents a handbrake turn in Brazilian government policy after four years of Amazon destruction under the country's previous leader, Jair Bolsonaro. In the run-up to the summit, thousands of Indigenous people gathered to protest and demand the government pledge a greater commitment towards protecting the rainforest. Activists have warned Brazil's ultra-right congress could prevent the president from carrying out his ambitious environmental agenda
The Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni Grand Canyon monument - home to several Native tribes - will be protected from uranium miningJoe Biden signed the proclamation establishing a national monument in Arizona on Tuesday, surrounded by a small crowd of Indigenous leaders and lawmakers who have championed permanently protecting the land.It's not hyperbole to suggest there is no national treasure, none grander, than The Grand Canyon," the president said on Tuesday, describing the valley as God's cathedral". Continue reading...
Global average temperature exceeded previous record by substantial marginJuly has been confirmed as the hottest month on record globally after several heatwaves in parts of Europe, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).The global average temperature was 16.95C last month, surpassing the previous record set in 2019 by a substantial 0.33C. Temperatures exceeded 40C last week in several countries across Europe including Greece, France, Italy and Spain. Continue reading...
Wild Justice says government initiative to relocate broods away from grouse moors rewards past crimes' of illegal killingA 900,000 government scheme to meddle" with nests of hen harriers is a waste of money and rewards those who kill them, a wildlife campaign group has said.The claims are contained in a report produced by Wild Justice and released to coincide with the Glorious Twelfth, the official start of the grouse shooting season, on Saturday. Continue reading...
Landslides, a stranded town and two deaths so far reported as extreme weather sweeps across south of the countryA powerful storm has brought destruction to Norway, causing landslides and leaving an entire town stranded, as meteorologists warned of the strongest rainfall in a quarter of a century.The storm - named Storm Hans - has killed two people, ripped off roofs and caused widespread disruption across northern Europe in a summer that started with wildfires across much of the region. Continue reading...
The US national weather service detected at least one tornado as severe storms struck southern Indiana. Video footage taken by Salem's fire department shows gusts of wind and lightning hitting the city, with wind speeds reaching 90mph. Storms across eastern US have caused damage to homes and triggered power cuts. More widespread rain and thunderstorms are expected
Experts say larger-than-normal hole could cause further warming of Southern Ocean and heighten damaging effects of 2022 Tonga volcano eruptionThe hole in the ozone layer has begun to form early this year, prompting warnings that a larger-than-average hole may further warm the Southern Ocean while the level of Antarctic sea ice is at a record low.Satellite data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts suggests the hole has already begun to form over Antarctica.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...
Fire has scorched thousands of hectares of land and forced precautionary evacuation of 1,400 peopleHundreds of firefighters are scrambling to put out a blaze raging in southern Portugal that has scorched thousands of hectares of land and led to the precautionary evacuation of about 1,400 people.The wildfire, which is being tackled by more than 800 firefighters, started on Saturday in the municipality of Odemira in the Alentejo region but has since spread south towards the Algarve, one of Portugal's top tourist destinations. Continue reading...
by Adam Morton Climate and environment editor on (#6DN3K)
Energy giants reject Australian Conservation Foundation's infrared video investigation which claims gas leaks and venting at dozens of mines and facilities
Infrared videos show gas leaking or being vented from more than 100 places across 35 fossil fuel sites in Queensland and New South Wales, according to an investigation by environmental organisations. The Australian Conservation Foundation commissioned the US-based Clean Air Task Force, a global nonprofit, to use new technology to monitor if methane was leaking from coalmines and gas facilities owned by energy giants Santos and Origin and pipeline company Jemena. The organisations said the videos were recorded over a four-week period in which they visited 80 sites to take a snapshot of Australia's fossil fuel infrastructure. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas with more than 80 times the global heating impact of CO2 over a 20 year period when released into the atmosphere
The results of the Nature inFocus photography awards were announced at the Nature inFocus festival held at Jayamahal Palace in Bengaluru, India, on Monday 31 July. The awards honour photographers documenting unique natural history moments and critical conservation issues, and generate an impressive catalogue of imaginative and artistic images every year Continue reading...
City dwellers just as likely to be too shy or lazy' to solve puzzle for food as their country cousins, study findsFrom rooting through our rubbish to stealing shoes and garden gloves, urban foxes are renowned for their intrepid behaviour. But although city life may have made them bolder than their country cousins, they are no more cunning - and most are likely to be too lazy to persevere at a problem to obtain food, research suggests.Globally, red foxes are among the most successful carnivores, and the number living in British towns and cities has exploded in recent years. But while some researchers have suggested that urbanisation might be making foxes and other wildlife bolder and smarter, few studies have directly tested how they compare with rural foxes when confronted with the same challenges. Continue reading...
No 10 backtracks on minister's claim 500 asylum seekers could be on barge by end of weekAccording to a report in the Times, Liz Truss named 16 people on her original honours list - four for peerages, and 12 people getting other honours. Two people have declined, but there are still 14 names on the list, the Times says, one person for every four days she was in office.The Labour MP Chris Bryant says resignation honours lists should be abolished. Continue reading...
World's tiniest marine mammal - found only in the Gulf of California in Mexico - has only 10 individuals left, study findsThe International Whaling Commission has issued the first extinction alert" in its 70-year history, to warn of the danger facing the vaquita, the world's tiniest and most critically endangered marine mammal.A recent study shows that the small porpoise, found only in the Gulf of California in Mexico, has only 10 individuals left. It has been driven to the edge of extinction due to entanglement in fishing nets known as gillnets", which are now illegal in the area. Continue reading...
Tyre Extinguishers claim responsibility for attack to highlight presence of grossly inappropriate private vehicles' on roadsAnti-SUV activists used a power drill to sabotage the tyres of more than 60 4x4 vehicles at a car dealership, in an attack they described as a reprisal for the deaths of two girls in a crash at a primary school last month.In the early hours of Monday morning, activists crept on to the forecourt of the Vertu Jaguar showroom in Exeter. They told the Guardian they went from vehicle to vehicle drilling holes in the sidewalls of all four tyres on each, so they must be replaced. Continue reading...
Soggy July has affected wheat, barley and hay crops as waterlogged soil makes some harder to harvestThe unseasonably wet weather is causing problems for this year's harvest, experts have said, with wheat, barley and hay crops affected.Many farmers have been signed up to a nature-friendly scheme called Mid Tier, which does not allow hay to be cut until July to help wildlife. Continue reading...
Oarfish swim vertically, moving up and down and side to side like a cursor. It would be easier to believe they do not existA giant oarfish, also known as the king of herrings", is an eight-metre long ribbon of silver, tapered at its tail and on its head wearing a permanently stunned face - as though moments ago it was a normal herring and then the world's largest chef slapped it down on a benchtop and rolled over it with a rolling pin.
by Dharna Noor and Kristi Swartz of Floodlight on (#6DM35)
Lobbying group's pushback is out of step with voters and raises questions about industry commitment to reducing pollutionThe main lobbying group for US electric utilities plans to oppose a Biden administration proposal to curb greenhouse gas emissions from existing gas power plants, raising questions about the industry's commitment to reducing planet-heating pollution.The pushback will put the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) out of step with many of its members' stated commitments to cut emissions, critics say. It also runs counters to the US voters' political views based on new polling shared exclusively with the Guardian and Floodlight.This story is co-reported with Floodlight, a news nonprofit that partners with local outlets and the Guardian to investigate the corporate and ideological interests holding back climate action. Continue reading...
Park bosses condemn bonkers' proposition that they say would cause untold damage to our landscapes'England's national parks would be destroyed" by proposed government rules that would allow landowners to convert barns into houses without planning permission, critics have said.The levelling up department has launched a consultation into new legislation that would change permitted development rights to allow farmers to turn agricultural buildings into homes. Continue reading...
by Jillian Ambrose Energy correspondent on (#6DM1B)
Exclusive: Ideal Heating's 50m investment aims to build 60,000 pumps and train 5,000 installers a yearOne of Britain's biggest boiler makers is to start manufacturing electric heat pumps to keep pace with what it describes as the biggest transformation since the switch from coal to gas devices in the 1930s.Ideal Heating has invested 50m in transforming the manufacturing facilities at its Hull headquarters, which have produced fossil fuel boilers for more than a century. Continue reading...