Exclusive: Environmental groups criticise NFU for helping companies to fight Defra rules on nitrates in waterwaysEnvironmental groups have criticised the National Farmers Union for helping hundreds of agricultural businesses to push back against measures designed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to protect vulnerable rivers in the UK.Working with the specialist consultancy Hafren Water, the NFU has helped at least 200 land users in nearly 40 river basins and groundwater catchments to fight against “nitrate vulnerable zone” designations, according to documents made available to the union’s members. Continue reading...
Officers block access to vehicle to keep pair of herring gulls undisturbedYou may think they have plenty of conventional spots – cliffs, islands, seaside rooftops, chimney pots – to nest on.But a pair of herring gulls have opted to construct their nest on the roof of a Dorset police car, taking it out of action because they are a protected species and cannot be disturbed. Continue reading...
Legislation makes no mention of skins, feet, ears and tails so these can continue to be bought and soldElephant skins, feet, ears and tails will continue to be traded in the UK even after next month’s ivory ban comes into force, it has been revealed.The government has been praised for its Ivory Act 2018, effective from next month, making the purchase and sale of elephant tusks punishable by fines of up to £250,000 or up to five years in prison. Continue reading...
Horticulturist Lottie Delamain created a garden at Chelsea flower show using plants that can be used to make fabrics and dyesGardeners are fighting back against the toxic chemicals used by the fashion industry – by using plants to dye their clothes.The horticulturist Lottie Delamain created a garden for the activist movement Fashion Revolution at Chelsea flower show using plants that can be used to make fabrics and dyes. She became so enthused by experimenting with using plants to make clothes dyes that she has dyed many of her own garments using flowers and even tree branches from her own plot at home. Continue reading...
Rising greenhouse gases have caused Lake Palcacocha to swell in size which makes the area at risk for a devastating outburst floodIn a global first for climate breakdown litigation, judges from Germany have visited Peru to determine the level of damage caused by Europe’s largest emitter in a case that could set a precedent for legal claims over human-caused global heating.Judges and court-appointed experts visited a glacial lake in Peru’s Cordillera Blanca mountain range this week to determine whether Germany’s largest electricity provider, RWE, is partially liable for the rise in greenhouse gases that could trigger a devastating flood. Continue reading...
The growing trend for imported olive trees has brought hoards of invasive snakes to the Spanish island, threatening the future of its wall lizardFar below the Ibiza sun, a solitary lizard fidgets across the baking rocks on the southern tip of the island, happily oblivious to what may lurk ahead.After 6m years of isolated evolution, the Ibiza wall lizard, whose scaly finery runs from cobalt blue to acid green, is facing an existential threat summed up in the Catalan phrase sargantanes o serps: lizards or snakes. Over the past two decades, the wall lizards have completely disappeared from some areas of Ibiza and the neighbouring island of Formentera thanks to the rapid proliferation of invasive, non-venomous horseshoe whipsnakes and ladder snakes. Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#5ZNWS)
Strong climate action could wipe $756bn from individuals’ pension funds and other investments in rich countriesIndividuals in rich countries face huge financial losses if climate action slashes the value of fossil fuel assets, a study shows, despite many oil and gas fields being in other countries.The researchers estimated that existing oil and gas projects worth $1.4tn (£1.1tn) would lose their value if the world moved decisively to cut carbon emissions and limit global heating to 2C. By tracking many thousands of projects through 1.8m companies to their ultimate owners, the team found most of the losses would be borne by individual people through their pensions, investment funds and share holdings. Continue reading...
Charlie Burrell and Isabella Tree were pioneers of rewilding in the UK. Now they are setting their sights on regenerative agriculture, which will supply food to a new farm shop and cafeIt’s odd to hear the owners of the UK’s pioneering rewilding project at Knepp estate in West Sussex gushing about farming. But Charlie Burrell and Isabella Tree are returning to a sector they left 20 years ago. In 2000, they let their unprofitable dairy and arable farm go to seed. Now Knepp Wildland is a 1,400 hectare (3,500 acre) rewilding project, home to a smörgåsbord of remarkable wildlife, including critically endangered nightingales and turtle doves. It is a success story that has inspired many to think differently about land, and how much wildlife we should expect in our countryside.Now, another chapter is being added to the Knepp story, as the last 150 hectares of land is amalgamated into the project. For decades, land scattered around the villages of Shipley and Dial Post was run by a tenant farmer who used it for grazing sheep. But the farmer has left and it is being scruffed up and transformed into the Knepp estate regenerative farm, which will supply local food to a new farm shop and cafe, due to open later this year. They are also opening a market garden, which will make use of manure from the cows. Knepp visitors will be able to go on farm safaris, just like they do on the rewilding project. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Fears over regulator’s ability to cope with planned expansion in nuclear energyThe number of formal reports documenting security issues at the UK’s civil nuclear facilities has hit its highest level in at least 12 years amid a decline in inspections, the Guardian can reveal.Experts said the news raised concerns about the regulator’s capacity to cope with planned expansion in the sector. Continue reading...
The tree, in Chile’s Alerce Costero national park, is known as the Great-Grandfather and could be more than 5,000 years oldScientists in Chile believe that a conifer with a four-metre-thick trunk known as the Great-Grandfather could be the world’s oldest living tree, beating the current record-holder by more than 600 years.A new study carried out by Dr Jonathan Barichivich, a Chilean scientist at the Climate and Environmental Sciences Laboratory in Paris, suggests that the tree, a Patagonian cypress, also known as the alerce milenario, could be up to 5,484 years old. Continue reading...
Five projects to receive funding from Defra and Natural England to tackle wildlife loss and improve access to natureUp to 99,000 hectares of land in England, from city fringes to wetlands, will be focused on supporting wildlife in five major “nature recovery” projects, the government has said.The five landscape-scale projects in the West Midlands, Cambridgeshire, the Peak District, Norfolk and Somerset aim to help tackle wildlife loss and the climate crisis, and improve public access to nature.The picture on this article was changed on 26 May 2022, from one of Herefordshire’s Wye Valley, to the Peak District’s Wye Valley referred to in the article. Continue reading...
Claimants in England and Wales to receive more than £2,100 each after joining legal action against carmakerVolkswagen has agreed to pay £193m to settle 91,000 legal claims in England and Wales linked to the “dieselgate” emissions scandal that rocked the German carmaker.The claimants will receive average payments of more than £2,100 each after joining the action that alleged cars made by Volkswagen group, including its Audi, Seat and Skoda brands, emitted more nitrogen dioxide than the company claimed. The high court in London dismissed the proceedings on Wednesday after the settlement. Continue reading...
Wandering salamanders live in the world’s tallest trees and wind tunnel tests show how the amphibians take their ‘leaps of faith’A new study is shedding fresh light into the incredible world of California’s temperate forests, and the daring survival techniques of one of its inhabitants: parachuting salamanders.The study, published on Monday in the journal Current Biology, shows how salamanders living in the canopy are able to parachute consistently, slowing their speed and controlling their movements. Continue reading...
Other seven locations popular with locals have high concentrations of harmful bacteria due to sewage and livestockOnly one popular river spot for bathing and water sports in and around Oxford has bacteria within safe levels, a survey by a campaign group has found.The other seven locations in rivers which are regularly used by swimmers, punters, rowers and kayakers, were found to have concentrations of harmful bacteria one and a half to three times above recommended safe levels, a study by the Oxford Rivers Project funded by Thames Water has found. Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#5ZMH0)
Commitment to building four-storey bioreactors is gamechanger for cultivated meat industry, says expertThe building of the world’s largest bioreactors to produce cultivated meat has been announced, with the potential to supply tens of thousands of shops and restaurants. Experts said the move could be a “gamechanger” for the nascent industry.The US company Good Meat said the bioreactors would grow more than 13,000 tonnes of chicken and beef a year. It will use cells taken from cell banks or eggs, so the meat will not require the slaughter of any livestock. Continue reading...
Residents of Jacobabad say loss of trees and water facilities makes record-breaking temperatures unbearableMuhammad Akbar, 40, sells dried chickpeas on a wheelbarrow in Jacobabad, and has suffered heatstroke three times in his life.But now, he says, the heat is getting worse. “In those days there were many trees in the whole city and there was no shortage of water and we had other facilities so we could easily beat the heat. But now there are no trees or other facilities including water, due to which the heat is becoming unbearable. I’m scared that this heat will take our lives in the coming years.” Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#5ZM66)
Host of November’s summit wants focus to be on ‘moving from pledges to implementation’Financial assistance for developing countries must be at the top of the agenda for UN climate talks this year, the host country, Egypt, has made clear, as governments will be required to follow through on promises made at the Cop26 summit last year.Egypt will host Cop27 in Sharm el-Sheikh in November. The talks will take place in the shadow of the war in Ukraine, as well as rising energy and food prices around the world, leaving rich countries grappling with a cost-of-living crisis and poor countries struggling with debt mountains. Continue reading...
Recipients from around world demonstrate power of unified community actionIndigenous activists and lawyers who took on transnational corporations and their own governments to force climate action are among the 2022 winners of the world’s pre-eminent environmental award.Taking on powerful vested interests is a risky business, and the recipients of this year’s Goldman prize demonstrate the power of unified community action, perseverance and the courts in the battle to save the planet from environmental collapse. Continue reading...
Marjan Minnesma’s legal fight forced the Dutch government to cut emissions, while Chima Williams took on Royal Dutch ShellThe road to a landmark legal victory compelling the Dutch government to take climate action began a decade ago when the 2022 Goldman prize winner Marjan Minnesma received an official letter saying the government did not want to be a frontrunner in tackling the climate crisis.At the time the Netherlands was one of the world’s worst greenhouse emitters and had a dismal record on renewables that was highly dependent on fossil fuels – a stark contrast with its environmentally friendly image of windmills and bicycles. Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#5ZM29)
Unwanted lockdown goldfish pose a triple threat to native species in UK waterways, study revealsIf that lockdown goldfish is starting to lose its lustre, think twice before throwing it in the river or canal – the creatures may look innocent but their voracious appetite, tolerance for cold and have-a-go habits compared with native species can be catastrophic for local wildlife.New research shows that goldfish consume much more than comparable fish in UK waters, eat more than other invasive fish and are also much more willing to aggressively take on other competing species. Continue reading...
Time is running out to save 58 resident species, Butterfly Conservation warnsHalf of Britain’s butterfly species are now listed as threatened with extinction after five more joined the new “red list” of endangered butterflies.The increase in the number of species listed as “vulnerable” from nine in 2011 to 16 today is a warning that time is running out to save the 58 resident species, according to Butterfly Conservation, which compiled the red list from scientific monitoring data according to the criteria set out by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Continue reading...
The ruling, and another crucial court decision this week, will force the company to face charges it lied about global heatingThe Massachusetts high court on Tuesday ruled that the US’s largest oil company, ExxonMobil, must face a trial over accusations that it lied about the climate crisis and covered up the fossil fuel industry’s role in worsening environmental devastation.Exxon claimed the case brought by the Massachusetts attorney general, Maura Healey, was politically motivated and amounted to an attempt to prevent the company from exercising its free speech rights. But the state’s supreme judicial court unanimously dismissed the claim in the latest blow to the oil industry’s attempts to head off a wave of lawsuits across the country over its part in causing global heating. Continue reading...
‘Fly Responsibly’ adverts mislead customers on the sustainability of flying with KLM, say campaignersEnvironmental campaigners are suing the Dutch airline KLM over “greenwashing” adverts they say misleadingly promote the sustainability of flying.Lawyers from ClientEarth are supporting Fossielvrij NL, a Netherlands-based campaign group, to bring a claim that KLM’s ad campaigns give a false impression of the sustainability of its flights and its plans to address its impact on the climate. Continue reading...
Unconventional garden by Lulu Urquhart and Adam Hunt features a dam and sticks pre-gnawed by beaversA garden with hardly a bloom in sight and inspired by the dramatic transformation of land through the reintroduction of beavers to the UK has won best in show at the Chelsea flower show.The garden – A Rewilding Britain Landscape by first-time Chelsea designers Lulu Urquhart and Adam Hunt – may lack eye-catching flowers but features a beaver dam, a pool with a lodge behind it, a shabby shed with corrugated iron roof and UK native plants. Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#5ZK91)
Government limit on contracts for new renewable energy generation is ‘outdated thinking’, says Greenpeace UKConsumers will face higher energy bills than necessary next winter because of a decision by the government to limit new renewable energy generation, described as a “missed opportunity” by the renewables industry, and “outdated thinking” by a green campaign group.Ministers have decided to authorise contracts for about 12GW of new renewable energy generation, to start construction this year, with much of it likely to come on stream before next autumn. However, the renewable energy industry estimates that about 17.4GW of projects have cleared planning permission and are “shovel-ready”. Continue reading...
Environmental activists accuse firm’s board of spending more on green ads than green technologyThree people have been arrested after Shell was forced to pause its annual general meeting in London after it was interrupted by environmental protesters chanting: “We will stop you.”About 40 climate protesters attending the event as shareholders told the oil and gas company’s board: “We will expose you. We know who you are. We know what you have done. We will remember.” Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#5ZK2E)
António Guterres says young people should tackle climate crisis by using talent to deliver a renewable futureThe UN secretary general has told new university graduates not to take up careers with the “climate wreckers” – companies that drive the extraction of fossil fuels.António Guterres addressed thousands of graduates at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, US, on Tuesday. “You must be the generation that succeeds in addressing the planetary emergency of climate change,” he said. “Despite mountains of evidence of looming climate catastrophe, we still see mountains of funding for coal and fossil fuels that are killing our planet. Continue reading...
by Kalyeena Makortoff Banking correspondent on (#5ZJXW)
Warning follows first Bank of England climate stress tests on seven largest lendersUK banks and insurers will end up shouldering nearly £340bn worth of climate-related losses by 2050, unless action is taken to curb rising temperatures and sea levels, the Bank of England has warned.The numbers emerged from the Bank’s first climate stress tests on seven of the UK’s largest lenders. These involved three climate scenarios over a 30-year period, covering physical and transition risks, including one in which governments fail to take further steps to curb greenhouse gas emissions, resulting in average temperature rises of 3.3C, and a 3.9-metre rise in sea levels. Continue reading...
Team admit Gillyflower is not the first but hope it encourages a more sustainable approach to golfingThe views are spectacular, taking in a lovely Cornish river, a ruined castle and the rooftops of an ancient town while the golf is pleasantly challenging, with tight fairways and undulating greens.But what makes Gillyflower golf course in Lostwithiel different is that every square metre of non-playing surface will be used to grow fruit and vegetables or encourage flora and fauna. Continue reading...
Last seen in the South American country 20 years ago, 40 are being reintroduced to El Impenetrable park in the coming weeksIt may be one of the slowest-moving conservation projects in history, not just because of the red tape, but due to the animals themselves: 40 red-footed tortoises are being released into El Impenetrable national park in Argentina in the coming weeks after being rescued from the illegal pet trade in Paraguay and transported to Argentina.One of the larger tortoises in South America, the red-footed tortoise (Chelonoidis carbonarius) was once found throughout three provinces of Argentina. But the last live tortoise spotted in the country was in the north-eastern province of Formosa in 2002. A shell was found in the same province, 40 miles (60km) from El Impenetrable, in 2016. Continue reading...
Hands Off Mangrove represents plight of 1970s activists who overcame might of British stateThey were worlds apart in 1970, when the face of the Chelsea flower show was Britt Ekland posing with the rose of the year. Months later, the 55-day trial of defendants who became known as the Mangrove Nine would make legal history as black activists took on and overcame the might of the British state.More than five decades later, their story has pride of place at this year’s flower show, where thousands of visitors are getting their first view of a garden inspired by what the nine activists endured and achieved. Continue reading...
Governor’s warning comes amid drought after driest January-March period in at least a centuryCalifornia could face mandatory water restrictions if residents don’t use less on their own as the drought drags on and the hotter summer months approach, the state’s governor has said.Gavin Newsom threatened the possibly of statewide mandates in a meeting with representatives from major water agencies, including those that supply Los Angeles, San Diego and the San Francisco Bay Area, according to his office. The Democratic governor has avoided issuing sweeping mandatory cuts in water use and instead favored an approach that gives local water agencies power to set rules for water use in the cities and towns they supply. Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#5ZJ6E)
Focussing on carbon dioxide alone will not keep world within 1.5C limit of global heating, warn scientistsCutting methane sharply now is crucial, as focusing on carbon dioxide alone will not be enough to keep rising temperatures within livable limits, scientists have warned.CO is the greenhouse gas most responsible for heating the planet, with most of it coming from the burning of fossil fuels. As a result, it has been the major focus of international efforts to prevent climate breakdown. Continue reading...
Environment | The Guardian