Just Stop Oil says action will affect fuel availability at petrol pumps across south-east and MidlandsClean energy campaigners claim to have disrupted supplies from three oil terminals in the Midlands and south-east of England, as motorists complain that some petrol stations are running short of fuel.The government said only one terminal was out of action on Sunday afternoon as a result of the Just Stop Oil protests, and that local police forces were working with the industry to ensure that fuel supplies can be maintained. Continue reading...
Josie Bassinette on Sizewell C, Morag Carmichael on generational thinking, Bob Cannell on mini-nukes, Linda Rogers on Wylfa, Jon Reeds on tidal power, Malcolm Scott on anaerobic digestion and Ian Jones on energy from wasteYour article (PM to put nuclear power at heart of UK’s energy strategy, 6 April) refers to Sizewell C as one of the major projects that has “already been through some form of planning”. The planning process is still going on, and thousands of interested parties have objected. Six months of Planning Inspectorate meetings exposed the mistakes of trying to build two gigantic reactors in the middle of an area of outstanding natural beauty and site of special scientific interest, pushed against the Minsmere nature reserve, on an eroding coastline, and with no available water for construction or operation, among other problems.This hasn’t stopped Kwasi Kwarteng promising millions in taxpayer funding for Sizewell C when the planning process has not been completed and while he refuses to meet the community to hear alternative views.
Haul of more than 1,000 specimens includes over 400 protected species from polar bears to Bengal tigersPolice in Spain have seized one of the largest hauls of taxidermy animals in Europe as they investigate potential smuggling, after a warehouse in Valencia was found to contain stuffed rhinos, polar bears, elephants and other animals.The Guardia Civil discovered more than 1,000 specimens in a 50,000 sq metre (538,000 sq ft) industrial warehouse in Bétera, Valencia, on Wednesday, it said in a statement on Sunday. Continue reading...
Growing numbers of young nonviolent climate protesters are willing to face jail. Dorian Lynskey followed them in the weeks leading up to last week’s actionIn a flat in east London, on the night of 31 March, two dozen people in their early 20s are packing sleeping bags and energy bars and discussing unorthodox toilet arrangements. There are bowls of vegan curry on the table and a Fontaines DC gig on the television. You might assume that they were going to a music festival, if not for the foldable ladders. In fact, they are all members of the new campaign group Just Stop Oil, which is demanding the cessation of all new oil licences in the UK. Their plan is to bring traffic in and out of the Navigator oil terminal in Thurrock, Essex, to a grinding halt a few hours from now. From the window of the flat they can see Navigator’s vast white silos. “I saw it earlier and my stomach flipped,” says Hannah Hunt, a 23-year-old from Brighton. She calls it “the venue”.Hunt is a veteran of Just Stop Oil’s precursors, Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain. In recent months she has delivered a letter containing Just Stop Oil’s demands to No 10 Downing Street, scaled the Fawley oil refinery in Southampton, and glued herself to the red carpet at the Bafta awards. She experiences anxiety before an action but once it’s happening, she enters “a weird, dreamy, calm mindset. It’s really empowering.” Continue reading...
Survey suggests even Tory voters are unlikely to support Conservatives’ nuclear-first energy policyMore than three-quarters of the public are in favour of windfarms being built in the UK. That is the key result of an Opinium poll carried out for the Observer in the wake of publication of the government’s controversial energy security plans last week.Ministers backed nuclear power but shunned new onshore wind plants as the main means for protecting the UK against future energy crises. But the new poll indicates Tory voters’ backing for wind turbines almost matches that of Labour and Lib Dem supporters – suggesting the move against onshore wind, a result of backbench Conservative pressure, runs counter to the views of the party’s own voters. Continue reading...
Heritage railways, which make millions for UK economy, axe services as mines close and Russian sources are ruled outBritain’s heritage railways are running out of steam. Or, to be more precise, coal. Vintage rail operators across the country have warned that their stocks are now dangerously low and the prospects of replacing them in the near future look bleak.Many of the UK’s heritage rail companies say they are already having to cut services just as they prepare for the Easter break, when their main operating seasons begin. “It is a very serious problem,” said Paul Lewin, of Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways. Continue reading...
RSPB Scotland’s Abernethy nature reserve in Perthshire describes hatching as ‘such a special moment’A hidden camera has captured the first live UK footage of a wild white-tailed eagle hatching.Staff at RSPB Scotland’s Abernethy nature reserve in the Cairngorms, where the eaglet hatched, described it as being “such a special moment”. Continue reading...
One of Britain’s top scientists says the new power security strategy does little to help people or the planetThese are unsettling times. As scientists have issued ringing warnings about the dangers we face from continued fossil fuel burning, an energy crisis has been triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This unprecedented double threat clearly requires an urgent response, which the government supplied last week in the form of its energy security strategy. And it includes some eye-catching headlines, particularly on the expansion of nuclear power.But does it deliver what it says on the tin? Continue reading...
US officials believe nearly 24m poultry birds, mostly chickens and turkeys, have died of flu since virus strain identified in FebruaryMillions of birds have died in the US in recent weeks, because of a contagious strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza, popularly known as bird flu.The bird flu has also led zoos across the US to temporarily close aviary exhibits and move birds away from the public. At zoos from Colorado to Maryland, species ranging from ostriches to penguins have been moved indoors. Continue reading...
by Damien Gayle Environment correspondent on (#5Y0E9)
Activists call for end to fossil fuel investment at sit-down demonstration in Regent Street and Oxford CircusSupporters of the environmental activist group Extinction Rebellion have taken part in a mass sit-down protest in the heart of London’s shopping district.Several thousand demonstrators with multicoloured flags bearing the group’s “extinction” symbol gathered near Marble Arch on Saturday morning as samba bands warmed up. Continue reading...
Unprecedented overpass will allow fauna of the Santa Monica mountains to safely cross a dangerous 10-lane stretchImagine cruising down a 10-lane highway and knowing that, high above your head, a mountain lion is quietly going along its way. This remarkable image could soon be reality for drivers on one of California’s busiest roads, as the world’s largest wildlife overpass begins construction this month.The history-making project will comprise a green bridge built across the 101 highway near Los Angeles, creating a corridor between two parts of the Santa Monica mountains. Stretching 210ft long and 165ft wide, the overpass will allow safe passage for lizards, snakes, toads and mountain lions, with an acre of local plants on either side and vegetated sound walls to dampen light and noise for nocturnal animals as they slip across. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Nike and H&M are among firms whose environmental scores suggest progress. But how are these calculated?Fashion accounts for 10% of the world’s carbon emissions and is the second-most polluting industry in the world. But in an increasingly climate-conscious society, it is increasingly trying to present itself as sustainable to appeal to customers.One big target is reducing greenhouse gas emissions and for the past two decades many brands have signed up to a scheme called the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an independent body that awards grades for environmental performance. Continue reading...
In 50 years, Canvey Island’s George Whatley has won five victories against oil and gas firms trying to expand operationsGeorge Whatley is probably Britain’s most successful anti-oil campaigner, but you won’t find him at Extinction Rebellion’s latest wave of protests or the Just Stop Oil campaign which has blocked fossil fuel infrastructure recently.At 80 years old and after a recent spell in hospital, he will be taking it easy at his bungalow on Canvey Island, Essex. But if anyone can claim a place in the annals of successful environmental protests, it is this former Bank of England security guard. Continue reading...
National event to mark organic dairy cattle’s release from winter barns has been online only since 2020Rural Denmark will come to a standstill on Sunday when for the first time in three years its inhabitants will be able to stand in a field in large numbers to watch the moment when Denmark’s 200,000 organic cows are let out of their barns for “summer” to graze on grass – an event so exciting that the creatures run, leap, buck and “dance” with joy.Økodag, or dancing cow day, as it is affectionately known, marks the start of the outdoor season for all organic cows in Denmark. Children scramble up hay bales to get a better view and parents hold camera phones poised to capture the magic at midday precisely when the cows are released nationwide. Continue reading...
Group plans most disruptive actions yet in the city over coming week, promising most roadblocks everExtinction Rebellion has said it will conduct its most disruptive protest yet on the streets of London over the coming week, calling for an end to the fossil fuel economy.The environmental activist group, which encourages supporters to cause disruption through non-violent civil disobedience, will return to the city from Saturday with new tactics it claims will “create the most roadblocks we ever have”. Continue reading...
Part urban legend, part DNA-tested reality, the coyote-wolf hybrid has adapted to dense human-built environmentsIt was a spring morning when Elise Rustad saw the creature loping down a Toronto sidewalk. At a distance, it looked like a dog, but no owner was nearby. As it drew closer, she was struck by its size and its thick black, white and grey coat.“It was big. I’ve seen a wolf before,” she said. “And that really looked like a wolf.” Continue reading...
Images of harp seals taken from hundreds of miles above show their plight. They should spur us to actionThis week, remarkable images were released of harp seals scattered across a fragmented and rapidly disintegrating ice sheet east of Greenland. With record high temperatures and early melting in the Arctic, great cracks create a deadly mosaic on the sheet, an icy crazy paving on which you can make out dark specks – each one a seal, peering out as if bemused by its fate. In such an inhospitable environment, viewed from such height, the marine mammals resemble alien life forms glimpsed on another planet.By 2035, it is estimated that the disappearance of Arctic sea ice will mean that around 7.5 million harp seals will lose their home. It is another cruel turn for animals that in the 20th century were extensively hunted for their fur – especially the flawless white pelts of their pups. They depend on the sea ice: it is the arena in which they rest after hunting for food, mate, and give birth. The ice is the centre of their lives.Philip Hoare is the author of several books, including Leviathan, The Sea Inside and Albert and the Whale Continue reading...
Ithaca Energy buys Siccar Point, which paused project when Shell pulled out after environmental oppositionThe Cambo oilfield off the Shetland Islands could now be developed after a $1.5bn (£1.1bn) takeover of the owner of the controversial site.Siccar Point Energy, which put the project on “pause” when its partner Shell pulled out late last year after fierce opposition from environmental activists, has been acquired by Ithaca Energy. Continue reading...
RSPB scientists say small increase in sightings points to first signs of recovery of beleaguered speciesGreenfinch populations, which were previously in steep decline in the UK, are showing the first signs of recovery, according to the latest annual RSPB big garden birdwatch results.The citizen science survey gives a good idea of how bird populations are faring in Britain. This year almost 700,000 people took part, counting more than 11 million birds. Continue reading...
Climate scientists say plugging methane leaks and phasing out fossil fuels are necessary to avert catastrophic global heatingAtmospheric levels of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, increased by a record amount for the second year in a row in 2021, according to US government data.The concentration of methane in the Earth’s atmosphere jumped by 17 parts per billion (ppb) in 2021, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) monitoring found, the largest annual increase recorded since modern measurements began in 1983. The previous record increase, of 15.3ppb, was set in 2020. Continue reading...
by Calla Wahlquist and Australian Associated Press on (#5XYS6)
Wet weather and flooding continues, with schools closed and residents ordered to evacuate as torrential rain falls on Sydney and already saturated catchments
The government has failed to seize the moment and build on public enthusiasm for renewable energyA few weeks after the November Cop26 summit concluded in Glasgow, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy published a striking snapshot of public attitudes towards the climate emergency. It showed that popular support for renewable energy, including onshore wind farms, had reached record levels. Given a cost-of-living crunch caused by the rocketing price of fossil fuels, and the new priority of energy independence following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, an imaginative and proactive government would move to harness this enthusiasm and seize the moment. Sadly, Britain is not blessed with such a government.The future energy strategy unveiled by Boris Johnson on Thursday instead carries some of the hallmarks of his flawed government: a prime ministerial penchant for grands projets that may or may not be deliverable; a tendency to be unduly influenced by vocal lobby groups on the right of the Conservative party; and a propensity to set targets without doing the necessary work to enable them to be met. The aspiration that 95% of the UK’s electricity should come from renewable sources by 2030 is admirable, and the commitment to hugely increase offshore wind and solar capacity is significant. But inexplicable lacunae and wrong priorities make this a tale of missed opportunities. Continue reading...
Prime minister claims he has delivered ‘clean, affordable, secure power for generations to come’Boris Johnson claimed on Thursday that his energy security strategy had delivered “clean, affordable, secure power to the people for generations to come”.In comments issued as he launched the policy at Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in Somerset and put atomic energy front and centre of his plan, the prime minister said his government was the first for years that had not “dodged the big decisions on energy”. Continue reading...
The female fox tested positive for rabies and health authorities are considering the fate of her kitsHealth officials in Washington DC have euthanized a red fox that was responsible for biting at least nine people on Capitol Hill, including a congressman, and which tested positive for rabies.The female fox was captured on Tuesday and by Wednesday, officials from the DC health department confirmed that she had been “humanely euthanized” so she could be tested for rabies. Continue reading...
This live blog has now closed, you can find our latest UK political coverage hereBoris Johnson said energy bills had been going up around the world and “absolutely soared” after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.“We just can’t carry on like this,” the prime minister said in a social media video promoting his new energy strategy.I think there are strong views on lots of sides here but I’ll give you my perspective on this. I think that trans people face incredible barriers and stigma in our society.I was talking to a trans person the other day about this. I think the way this debate has been conducted – these anatomical debates – I think it is really awful for so many trans people in our country.I think that is a decision for the sporting bodies though ... I think it’s different in different sports. I think the principle here is that we need fairness in sport. Continue reading...
This plan could have ended dependence on Russian gas and tackled the cost of living crisis. Thanks to Tory backbenchers, it did neitherAt last, the energy security strategy has been published, after weeks of hedging, briefing and delays. The original aims of the strategy, which was initially promised on 7 March, were worthy: to confront rocketing energy bills and transition away from Russian fossil fuels after the invasion of Ukraine.There was also hope in the climate world that the strategy would go further and faster in the transition to a zero-carbon economy. The cost of renewables has tumbled, and the UK’s leaky housing stock is crying out for retrofitting. This was an opportunity for an urgent response both to the climate and cost of living crises.Eleanor Salter writes about climate, culture and politics Continue reading...
Boris Johnson is to put nuclear energy at the heart of the UK’s new energy strategy, which could mean eight more nuclear reactors being approved on existing sites. The government’s plans are in defiance of its own net zero targets, but Johnson insists they will ‘reduce our dependence on power sources exposed to volatile international prices we cannot control, so we can enjoy greater energy self-sufficiency with cheaper bills’
Conservationists say the farms are a danger to sea lions and other marine mammals, who can become entangled in their netsDozens of thieving sea lions in western Canada have spent the last few weeks gorging on fish after brazenly slipping into an industrial salmon farm – and ignoring all attempts to make them move on.Cermaq, the aquaculture giant with operations in Norway, Chile and Canada, says the wily predators were able to evade netting and electric fences in late March as part of a “breach event” at the Rant Point farm near Tofino in British Columbia. Continue reading...
by Caitlin Cassidy and Matilda Boseley on (#5XXBZ)
Flood warnings and evacuation orders in place across NSW; Marise Payne announces fresh sanctions on 67 individuals over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; Melbourne’s Park Hotel empty of asylum seekers after release from detention granted; environment minister adopts long-awaited koala recovery plan; nation records 33 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed
Backflip comes a day after PM rejected the request, prompting the Insurance Council of Australia to accuse the federal government of shirking responsibility
On Wednesday, I risked arrest by locking myself onto an entrance to the JP Morgan Chase building in downtown LA. I can’t stand by – and nor should you“Climate activists are sometimes depicted as dangerous radicals, but the truly dangerous radicals are the countries that are increasing the production of fossil fuels.” – United Nations Secretary General Antonio GuterresI’m a climate scientist and a desperate father. How can I plead any harder? What will it take? What can my colleagues and I do to stop this catastrophe unfolding now all around us with such excruciating clarity?Peter Kalmus is a climate scientist and author based in Los Angeles Continue reading...
Using windfarms would be an easy, quick, cheap and actually popular way to solve the energy bill crisisAfter Friday’s huge jump in energy costs, millions of people across the UK face a frightening future. Urgent measures are needed but, instead of taking action, the cabinet is absorbed in a pointless argument that wrongly pits the energy bill crisis against our climate commitments. In reality, the best way of bringing down bills is to get off gas for good.We can take immediate steps to stop using gas because the UK has clean energy sources that can get going quickly, and are cheap and popular – wind and solar in particular. But at a time when they should be powering up the UK with renewables, ministers have other ideas: suggesting deepening our reliance on fossils fuels by opening up more drilling in the UK; or labouring under the misapprehension that people would rather live near a nuclear power plant than a wind turbine.Alethea Warrington is campaigns manager for the climate crisis charity Possible Continue reading...
‘I stayed in a tent nearby, waking up at 4am to begin the hour-long walk towards the pits. By the time we arrived, the miners had already been working for hours’I took this photograph last year in northern Malawi. It’s part of a project for Norwegian Church Aid, an NGO that documents modern slavery in the mining industry. It’s very hard to believe your own eyes when you see what this actually looks like. These miners work in dangerous conditions with very little protective gear. Their salaries are awful and their contracts are unstable, not to mention the terrible health and environmental impacts of such polluting work. But mining is the only option available to the local people: they have no other choice.I stayed in a tent nearby, waking up at 4am to begin the hour-long walk towards the pits. By the time we arrived, the miners had already been working for hours. Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#5XWKA)
Pressured by Tory right, minister to announce gas-heavy energy strategy with little emphasis on insulationThe UK government is set to order more drilling for oil and gas in the North Sea in defiance of its own net zero targets, while neglecting alternative measures that experts say would provide much quicker relief from high energy bills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions instead of raising them.The energy security strategy to be unveiled on Thursday will acknowledge the need to move away from fossil fuels, the Guardian understands, but still allow for licences to explore new oil and gas fields to be expedited and more production from existing North Sea fields.A review of the scientific advice on the safety of fracking. The Guardian understands that Kwarteng thinks fracking in the UK is unrealistic and uneconomic, but under pressure from the right will keep the option open.Doubling the target on the use of hydrogen, from 5GW to 10GW, of which half will come from “blue” hydrogen created from fossil fuels, despite evidence that it emits more carbon than coal. Ministers are expected to present blue hydrogen as a necessary bridge to future “green” hydrogen from renewable energy, but campaigners say it will lock in high emissions.A boost to offshore wind, with the expansion of existing coastal offshore windfarms and potential new floating platforms in deeper waters, but solar energy risks being missed.Investment in new nuclear reactors being made easier.Few new measures on ramping up heat pumps and no comprehensive national programme to insulate housing on the scale experts say is feasible and would make a real difference to the cost of living. Continue reading...
Just Stop Oil campaigners have blockaded the Navigator oil terminal in Essex in the aim of cutting off region’s fuel supplyActivists who aim to choke off the supply of petrol to south-east England have occupied the region’s busiest oil terminal.Supporters of the Just Stop Oil campaign used telescopic ladders to climb over the fence at Navigator oil terminal in Thurrock, Essex, at 3am on Wednesday morning after trekking along the banks of the Thames to reach the rear of the site. Continue reading...
Rise leads to suspicion that those who wish to kill birds of prey have cottoned on to impact of brodifacoumA highly toxic rat poison is killing increasing numbers of birds of prey, figures show, as wildlife campaigners call for its use to be banned outdoors.Most recently, a white-tailed eagle was found poisoned by the anticoagulant brodifacoum on an estate in Dorset. Police closed the investigation into the eagle death last week with no charges issued. Continue reading...
More products may need to be imported as Covid-19 and Brexit led to 500,000 vacancies in August 2021Chronic worker shortages in the food and farming sector as a result of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic could push food prices even higher and lead to more food having to be imported, MPs have warned.Parliamentarians on the environment, food and rural affairs committee reported that the sector had half a million vacancies in August, representing an eighth of all roles. Continue reading...
I know this seems like a terrible time to argue that anything should be more expensive. But for the sake of farmers, cows and the planet, this is one price that needs to riseHere is just a small list of things I think should be prohibitively expensive: imported flowers, leaf blowers, portable speakers, Frank Sinatra albums and bleach. Here is a list of things I think should be free: childcare, access to woodland, water in pubs, healthcare, ketchup at chip shops and lateral flow tests. And somewhere between the two sits milk.Michael Oakes, chair of the national dairy board of the National Farmers’ Union, told the Today programme this week that rising costs in fuel, fertilisers and animal feed have made dairy farming unsustainable for many people in the UK. Farmers are leaving the sector, getting into terrible debt and worse. As a result of these rising costs, we are likely to see an increase in the price of milk, as well as butter, cheese, yoghurt and everything else that would make up about 85% of my four-year-old son’s diet if he had his way. While this is obviously going to be a huge issue for people on low incomes – especially parents and older people with mid-century appetites – it is also perhaps time. I don’t want to walk into a bear fight covered in honey here but, like many people, I believe that farmers should be paid fairly, supermarkets shouldn’t be able to squeeze every drop of profit out of food producers and more of us should start to see milk – all dairy – as a luxury.Nell Frizzell is the author of The Panic Years, out now through Bantam Press. Arwa Mahdawi is away Continue reading...
Environment | The Guardian