Environment | The Guardian

Gregory Andrews is one of several former public servants at rally outside Parliament House calling for end to fossil fuel expansion

From Spain to Hungary, output of staples such as corn forecast to fall by up to 9%, adding to impact of Ukraine war on food securityYields of key crops in Europe will be sharply down this year owing to heatwaves and droughts, exacerbating the impacts of the Ukraine war on food prices.Maize, sunflower and soya bean yields are forecast by the EU to drop by about 8% to 9% due to hot weather across the continent. Supplies of cooking oil and maize were already under pressure, as Ukraine is a major producer and its exports have been blocked by Russia. Continue reading...

Plans for the site have got the go-ahead. The knock-on effect for Suffolk’s rivers and seawater will soon be clearLast week, the government gave the go-ahead for a new nuclear power station to be developed on the Suffolk coast. Providing low-carbon electricity for about 6m homes, Sizewell C will stand alongside two existing stations, Sizewell B and the decommissioned Sizewell A. I live close enough to see the 60-metre tall, white dome of Sizewell B almost every day. When I want to torture myself, I look at developer EDF’s “construction phase visualisations” of the 1,380-acre building site, with its towering spoil heaps and forest of cranes, and wonder if this is what it will take to save the planet.What might not have been immediately obvious in the coverage of the government’s decision was that the Planning Inspectorate, tasked with assessing such projects, had recommended that permission be refused. The problem, the examiners explained, was fairly simple: EDF couldn’t say exactly where it would obtain one of the main substances needed to make a nuclear power station work, that substance being water. Continue reading...

British Trust for Ornithology says droppings are ‘innocuous compared to wet wipes or dog poo in plastic’Warnings on Scottish beaches not to feed gulls because bird poo contributes to water pollution are “massively out of proportion”, according to ornithology experts.The posters, which are part of Keep Scotland Beautiful’s My Beach Your Beach campaign, have also been criticised for “demonising” gulls and contributing to a chronic human misunderstanding of bird behaviour. Continue reading...

One industry consulting firm has influenced politics across Florida, Alabama and at least six other statesThe CEO of the biggest power company in the US had a problem. A Democratic state senator was proposing a law that could cut into Florida Power & Light’s (FPL) profits. Landlords would be able to sell cheap rooftop solar power directly to their tenants – bypassing FPL and its monopoly on electricity.“I want you to make his life a living hell … seriously,” FPL’s CEO Eric Silagy wrote in a 2019 email to two of his vice-presidents about state Senator José Javier Rodríguez, who proposed the legislation. Continue reading...

Banks’ financing of coal, oil, and gas was higher in 2021 than it was in 2016, the year after the Paris agreement was adopted Continue reading...

The likes of Expedia, Airbnb and Tui fail to impress alternative consumer body Ethical ConsumerThe first report of its kind to assess the ethical practices of travel booking sites has named luxury camping company Canopy & Stars and Fairbnb, a non-profit that donates half of its 15% commission fee to local community projects, as among the most ethical options for holidaymakers.Conducted by Ethical Consumer, the UK’s leading alternative consumer organisation, the report focused on 29 companies that people use to book their own transport and accommodation, rather than holiday operators. Continue reading...

Campaigners say question about individual action was irresponsible and too little time was spent on subjectA group of environmental organisations and campaigners have written to the BBC to rebuke it for inadequate questioning about the climate crisis during Monday’s Conservative leadership debate.Just one question on the environment was asked in the debate, and it put the onus on individuals rather than leaders to act on the climate. Continue reading...

A group of Gen Z activists is targeting gas-guzzling vehicles as frustration mounts over US inaction on the climate crisisOn a searingly hot night in New York City, a group of mask-wearing activists grasping bags of lentils set out to stage the biggest blitzkrieg yet upon a new target for climate campaigners in the US – the tires of SUVs.The group – a mixture of ages and genders – split up as midnight approached, heading down the streets of the Upper East Side, lined by some of the most expensive apartments in the world and a gleaming parade of high-end, parked SUVs. This type of vehicle is the second largest cause of the global rise in carbon dioxide emissions over the past decade. Continue reading...

Tourism minister Stirling Hinchliffe says funds were diverted to theme park ride after koala project delayed

Critically endangered grey nurse sharks and threatened turtles among species trapped along with 51 targeted sharks

Industry to feel pinch first after all countries in bloc except Hungary agreed to voluntary reductionThe EU has agreed to cut its gas consumption by 15% in an attempt to stave off a winter crisis triggered by a sharp reduction or total shutdown of Russian gas supplies to the bloc. Continue reading...

Local hosepipe bans considered as Environment Agency officials prepare to declare drought in AugustPeople in England are being urged to curb their use of water as the country faces its driest conditions since 1976.Officials are preparing to declare a drought in August if dry conditions continue, after months of very low rainfall in the UK. Continue reading...

Analysis: Southern European countries were unwilling to sign up to homogenous 15% cut in gasA decade after its government admonished southern European states to “do their homework” of painful fiscal changes to end a sovereign debt crisis, Germany is slowly adapting to the humbling reality of being worst-in-class when it comes to reliance on Russian gas.As EU countries in recent days sought to agree on emergency proposals to curb their gas demand in reaction to Russia’s Gazprom throttling supplies to Europe, southern states made clear they were unwilling to sign up to a homogenous 15% cut in gas across countries with a less vulnerable energy mix than Germany. A deal was finally agreed on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Governments in the European Union have agreed to ration natural gas this winter in order to protect themselves against further supply cuts made by Russia. Since Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, EU leaders have accused Moscow of using its global gas supply as a political weapon. Energy ministers from the 27 EU member states mostly backed a plan for a voluntary 15% reduction in gas usage, but added in several opt-outs for island nations and countries unconnected or little connected to the European gas network, which will blunt the overall effect

Instead of siphoning off profits to private shareholders, state utility companies could tackle the cost of living and climate crisisYesterday morning, Rachel Reeves was drawn into stating on the Today programme that a Labour government would not bring rail, energy and water into public ownership. Then followed a number of tweets from Labour’s shadow transport ministers, reaffirming the party’s commitment to nationalising the railway. By the afternoon, Keir Starmer had confirmed that rail would indeed be brought into public ownership because this was “pragmatic”, but water and energy would not.While Starmer claims the pragmatism of the policy rests on the fact that some of the rail network is already in public hands, the more relevant issue is that Labour is terrified of buying back assets. Bringing contracts (like rail franchises) into public ownership when they come to an end is generally cost-free whereas buying back water and energy companies involves compensating shareholders – and Jeremy Corbyn was hammered for this in the 2019 election.Cat Hobbs is the founder of We Own It, an organisation that campaigns for public ownership of public servicesDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 300 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at guardian.letters@theguardian.com Continue reading...

Various grim discoveries have been made at the drought-stricken Nevada reservoir, including a body in a barrelMore human remains have been found as the shrinking shore line of Lake Mead recedes in the face of a brutal drought gripping the western United States.In a statement, the National Park Service said the unidentified remains were spotted at Swim Beach in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area late on Monday afternoon. Continue reading...

Picnics, treks, camping and swimming continue despite hazardous air quality and ash in national parkYosemite national park’s dramatic vistas were shrouded by a thick grey haze on Monday afternoon, as smoke from the fiercely burning Oak fire hung over its granite peaks. Along the road winding toward the valley, skeletal trees told the story of the Washburn fire that tore through just weeks earlier.The blazes – the two largest to ignite in California so far this year – have besieged Yosemite during one of its busiest months, causing entrance closures, cancellations, and cloaking the landmark in hazardous air. Continue reading...

PM says if Australia didn’t export coal there would be ‘replacement coal from other countries that’s likely to produce higher emissions’

We can’t keep sitting in school, pretending everything is all right, and studying as if the planet wasn’t on fireSchool and university students all over the world are planning to take school strikes one step further and occupy our campuses to demand the end of the fossil economy. Taking a lesson from student activists in the 1960s, the climate justice movement’s youth will shut down business as usual. Not because we don’t like learning, but because what we’ve learned already makes it clear that, without a dramatic break from this system, we cannot ensure a livable planet for our presents and futures.Why occupy? Because we’ve marched. We’ve launched petitions. We’ve written open letters. We’ve had meetings with governments, boards and commissions. We’ve struck. We’ve filled squares, streets and avenues with thousands and, all together, millions of people in continents across this Earth. We’ve screamed with all our lungs. Some of us have even participated in blockades, sit-ins and die-ins. And just as it seemed the seed for deep and radical social transformation was taking root in the midst of the massive 2019 climate mobilizations, Covid-19 came, and our momentum drastically decreased. What didn’t decrease, however, was the greenhouse gas emissions, the exploitation of the global south and the unimaginable profits hoarded by the fossil fuel industry.This open letter was written by youth activists involved in End Fossil: Occupy! and signed by organizers and groups around the world Continue reading...

High temperatures expected to continue for at least another week with more than 300 cities forecast to reach 35CA long-running heatwave in China has pushed electricity usage to record levels in some areas and led to blackouts, with warnings that the high temperatures are expected to continue for at least another week.More than 300 cities were forecast to reach temperatures above 35C on Tuesday. China Southern Power Grid Company said Monday’s usage had surpassed last year’s peak load by 3%. The Guangdong province power grid also hit a record high, reaching 142m kilowatts, an increase of 4.89% over last year’s peak load. Blackouts were reported in the provincial capital, Guangzhou, which has recorded a full week of maximum temperatures above 37C, including highs of 40C on Sunday and Monday. Continue reading...

Faith leaders in the skeptical south are working to persuade their congregations that climate action is a Christian dutyRobin Blakeman, an eighth-generation West Virginian, has been a practicing minister since 2004. This May, the city where she lives flooded for the second time in nine months. Several inches of rain left roads in disarray, with cars washed out and first responders rushing to evacuate families. The rising flood also damaged one of the city’s churches.Before that point, local congregations in Huntington, West Virginia, had talked about how the climate crisis was causing flooding. One church had hosted film screenings about global heating; Blakeman herself gave a sermon on Earth Day at another in 2020. But since the flood, they’re talking about it a lot more, said Blakeman. Continue reading...

Group claims ministers have failed to check environmental impact of burning gas at site off AberdeenGreenpeace has confirmed it will take legal action against the UK government over claims it has failed to check the environmental impact of burning gas from the Jackdaw gasfield off the coast of Aberdeen.The government gave its approval for Shell to develop the field for gas extraction on 2 June. Continue reading...

Services need to recognise risk after last week’s ‘unprecedented’ blazes, say expertsFire chiefs have warned that cities in the UK need to prepare for wildfires after dozens of “unprecedented” blazes broke out during last week’s record-breaking temperatures.Temperatures reached 40C (104F) across England last Tuesday in a heatwave that dried out green spaces, triggering wildfires that destroyed more than 40 houses and shops. Continue reading...

Sightings and non-fatal incidents have proliferated on Long Island this year but experts say they are actually evidence of a conservation success storyThere were thousands of people on Robert Moses Beach on New York’s Long Island on Saturday, but in this heatwave few were venturing into the Atlantic water beyond their ankles or knees.Mothers kept their children close. An array of boats, helicopters and drones moved up and down beyond the surf. And teams of lifeguards aloft in their posts were poised with whistles to order people out of the water. Continue reading...

New biosecurity measures include suspension of walkthroughs in some enclosures and a request that recent travellers to Indonesia wait 48 hours before visiting

Officials urge residents to take precautions as forecasts point to temperatures far above historic averagesA searing heatwave is expected to bring dangerously high temperatures to US Pacific north-west – a region known for its mild, temperate summers.As Oregon, Washington, parts of northern California and British Columbia brace for a week of temperatures well above historic averages, officials are warning residents in the region – many of whom lack air conditioning and are unaccustomed to heat – to take precautions. Continue reading...

On Monday, 17 people sat in the Senate majority leader’s office to demand he reopen climate negotiationsSix staffers were reportedly arrested in Congress on Monday afternoon for staging a sit-in at Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer’s office and protesting about a lack of legislative action on the environment.The congressional staffers and activists had started the demonstration earlier Monday, with 17 staffers sitting in Schumer’s office to demand that he reopen climate negotiations, according to Saul Levin, a policy adviser for progressive congresswoman Cori Bush. Continue reading...

Conservationists say judgment is one of the most significant in environmental law since the environmental protection act was introduced in 1999

Change to ensure future emissions reduction targets could only be increased follows talks with crossbench and Greens

Experts say fire-ravaged forests must be replanted and managed differently to avoid future blazesVast swathes of fire-ravaged pine forest must be replanted and managed differently to avoid future blazes fuelled by global heating, French experts have said, as wildfires – several caused by arson – continued to burn across France and Spain.Officials in the south-west Gironde département said on Monday that two huge fires – one at La Teste-de-Buch that destroyed 7,000 hectares (17,300 acres) of forest, and another at Landiras that ravaged 13,800 hectares – were both under control, although still burning. Continue reading...

Move by Norwegian Cruise authorised by city’s port authority despite plans to curb daytrippersA cruise company has circumvented a ban on its ships entering the Venice lagoon by shuttling passengers into the famous city centre on small motor boats.Norwegian Gem, a vessel of just under 300 metres long and owned by Norwegian Cruise, anchored outside the Venice Lido early on Saturday morning. It then launched several motor boats which between them dropped about 1,500 passengers off in St Mark’s Square before picking them up again in the evening. Continue reading...

Travellers on ‘bucket list adventure’ costing $110,000 will emit 20 times more than poor people do in a yearDisney is marketing a $110,000-a-ticket elite package tour that comes with a carbon price tag of 6.2 tonnes of emissions for each guest – 20 times more than a person in a low-income country accounts for in an entire year.The 24-day “bucket list adventure”, which is limited to 75 guests, takes in 12 Disney resorts in six countries on three continents. Customers will travel on a “VIP-configured” Boeing 757, accompanied by Disney staff “who [will] provide fun and fact-filled stories enabling you to be immersed in every location you visit”. Continue reading...

Government report calls for urgent action including removing barriers in waterways and better water qualityWild salmon stocks are at their lowest on record in England, a government report has found.Officials said the number of fish was reaching “crisis point” with urgent action required, including removing barriers in waterways and improving water quality. Continue reading...

Weather balloons rise to 5,184 metres before finding freezing point amid record heatwavesSwitzerland has recorded the freezing point way above its highest summits, smashing a record set 27 years ago, meteorologists have said.Scientists say human-induced climate change is amplifying the record heatwaves in several parts of the world in recent weeks. Continue reading...

Hosepipe bans could be brought in and farmers restricted from irrigating cropsThe UK is facing the prospect of a drought being declared in August, experts have said, warning of potential crop failures after a period of remarkably dry weather and extreme heat.Hosepipe bans for households could be brought in across the UK and farmers could be restricted from irrigating their crops if the government implements a drought plan. Continue reading...

Campaigners warn of damage as concessions now cover over a quarter of land on both sides of borderEnvironmentalists on the island of Ireland say they fear a “new carve-up of the island” over coming decades, with mining concessions now covering more than a quarter of all land on both sides of the border.More than 25% of the total land area of Northern Ireland is covered by mining concessions, according to government statistics, while the figure for the Irish republic has in the past couple of years been even higher at 27%. The prospecting licences covering these areas grant mining companies permission to survey and assess sites, as well as carry out exploratory work that includes digging tunnels, pits, taking rock samples and carrying out chemical analyses. Continue reading...

Minister says open doors lead to 20% more consumption as restrictions on illuminated signs also announcedAir-conditioned shops throughout France will have to keep their doors shut or risk a fine of €750 (£635), a French minister has announced, after the mayors of several major cities unveiled a similar rule during the country’s heatwave last week.Agnès Pannier-Runacher, the minister for ecological transition, said leaving doors open with air conditioning on led to “20% more energy consumption and … is absurd”. A decree confirming the decision will be issued in the coming days. Continue reading...

His latest climate defeat has affirmed what we’ve long feared: that he just isn’t the man for the momentOn Friday, 15 July, Joe Biden acknowledged the death of his signature climate bill, conceding defeat in a war he never truly seemed willing to wage. He did it from a hastily prepared briefing room in Jeddah, where he had spent the previous day shilling for increased Saudi oil production.It was painful to watch. The fossil fuel oligarchs had him right where they wanted him: his climate ambitions foiled, his rhetoric defanged, his hat in his hand. For their part, they had never been under any illusions that they were waging a war. Over the course of his presidency, they had deployed every weapon at their disposal to protect their profit margins from the public’s desire for a dignified life on a habitable planet.Daniel Sherrell is the author of Warmth: Coming of Age at the End of Our World (Penguin Books) and a climate activist Continue reading...

Animals and insects have been casualties of recent extreme heat, but the true impact will only be known over time, experts sayAnimal rescue centres received a glut of calls, birds fell out of the sky and nature reserves burned as British wildlife baked in last week’s heatwave.Conservationists said animals were eerily still as they tried to shelter from the heat. Experts fear that record-breaking temperatures could cause a further collapse in insect numbers, with bumblebees and butterflies among those most affected. Continue reading...

‘Everything we thought we knew may not actually be true,’ says fish biologist in response to findingResearchers have made a surprising discovery about the dining habits of whale sharks, handing the largest fish in the sea another world title.It turns out the ocean giants routinely enjoy a seaweed salad alongside hefty helpings of krill, meaning they have officially dethroned the Kodiak bear as the world’s biggest omnivore. Continue reading...

Campaigners say bonus curbs on Peter Simpson not enough as company logs 25% of all serious pollution incidents last yearThe boss of a water company with one of the worst pollution records in England has been handed more than £1m in pay and bonuses.Anglian Water chief executive Peter Simpson faces criticism after he landed a “substantial” £337,651 bonus as part of a £1.3m pay package. Continue reading...

Council-supported project beginning on roof of school in Poblenou could grow across the cityA secondary school and a residents’ association have teamed up with Barcelona city council to create a solar energy community with the capacity to grow – rooftop by rooftop – across large areas of the city.The solar panels on the roof of Quatre Cantons secondary school in the former industrial district of Poblenou supply power to the school and 30 households in the surrounding area. Continue reading...

Oak fire prompts Gavin Newsom to declare state of emergency for Mariposa County as firefighters scramble to contain the blazeCalifornia governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for Mariposa County on Saturday after a fast-moving wildfire near Yosemite national park exploded in size, prompting evacuation orders for thousands of people.The Oak fire, which began Friday afternoon south-west of the park near Midpines in Mariposa County, grew to 10.2 sq miles (26.5 sq km) by Saturday morning, according to the California department of forestry and fire protection, or CalFire. Continue reading...

More than 40 houses were destroyed by fires on Britain’s hottest day. Now there are calls for an urgent rethink on building safety lawsFires that burned in several parts of the UK last week spread in the same way as those that led to the great fire of London and would have been far worse with stronger winds, a fire expert has said.Fires in Wennington, Uxbridge and Erith destroyed 41 properties last Tuesday, when temperatures went above 40C to make it the hottest day on record in the UK, and fire services had their busiest day since the second world war. Continue reading...

Sale calls into question protection deal signed at Cop26 as expert warns Congo auction could be a catastrophe for wildlife, health and climateThe Democratic Republic of the Congo has announced it will auction oil and gas permits in critically endangered gorilla habitat and the world’s largest tropical peatlands next week. The sale raises concerns about the credibility of a forest protection deal signed with the country by Boris Johnson at Cop26.On Monday, hydrocarbons minister Didier Budimbu said the DRC was expanding an auction of oil exploration blocks to include two sites that overlap with Virunga national park, a Unesco world heritage site home to Earth’s last remaining mountain gorillas. Continue reading...

While planting rates have risen in Scotland, carbon capture figures overall have fallen every year since 2009, official data showsThe amount of carbon dioxide captured by the UK’s forests has fallen by millions of tonnes and will remain at historically low rates for over a decade, because of a failure to quickly replace old forest stocks.Official data shows the amount of CO absorbed annually by trees in the UK peaked at just under 20m tonnes in 2009, but has fallen every year since. Millions of mature conifers have been felled but not replaced, reducing the carbon they capture and store. Continue reading...

City allegedly addresses illegal dumping complaints by people of color more slowly than those from white residentsHouston’s city government is under federal investigation after accusations that it responds to calls from Black and Hispanic residents about illegal dumping more slowly than if the complaints are from white residents, US justice department officials announced Friday.The investigation into whether the Texas metropolis’ so-called quality of life officials are illegally discriminating against residents based on their race or national origin was prompted by a complaint filed earlier this year by the nonprofit Lone Star Legal Aid clinic, authorities added. Continue reading...