Environment | The Guardian

Our national building standards need to be overhauled to fight climate change and energy poverty – and improve our lives

Former PM says state and federal governments should ‘make sure all the gas we need is available here’

Ship Badr 1 sank in Red Sea port of Suakin early on Sunday, prompting environmental concernsA ship crammed with thousands of sheep sank on Sunday in Sudan’s Red Sea port of Suakin, drowning most animals onboard but with all crew surviving, officials said.The livestock vessel was exporting the animals from Sudan to Saudi Arabia when it sank. “The ship, Badr 1, sank during the early hours of Sunday morning,” a senior Sudanese port official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “It was carrying 15,800 sheep.” Continue reading...

Henry Dimbleby says government’s response to his review of food system shows no vision and ‘is not a strategy’The government’s lead adviser on food issues has condemned what ministers have billed as a landmark national plan to combat food poverty and obesity, saying it is “not a strategy” and warning it could mean more children will go hungry.Henry Dimbleby’s verdict is further bad news for Boris Johnson as the white paper is a direct response to last year’s wide-ranging review of Britain’s food system, which was led by the restaurateur. Continue reading...

A mining lease being sought for a proposed coalmine is being challenged in the state’s land court

The British journalist was travelling in the Amazon with Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira when they went missingThe wife and mother-in-law of the missing British journalist Dom Phillips have said their hopes of finding him alive had gone, in a heartfelt and heart-breaking message that paid tribute to him and his travelling companion Bruno Pereira.Phillips, a longtime contributor to the Guardian, and Pereira, an experienced Indigenous advocate, went missing on 5 June in a remote part of the western Amazon. Continue reading...

Phoenix reported 114F, Las Vegas soared to 109F and Denver hit 100F, while inland areas of California reached triple digitsA dangerous heat swept across the American south-west over the weekend as potentially deadly heat set temperatures soaring to record levels in numerous major US cities in the region.Phoenix, Las Vegas, Denver and California’s Death Valley all posted record temperatures on Saturday. Continue reading...

An avid diver saw how lionfish have devastated populations of Florida’s native tropical fish and resolved to help solve the problemAarav Chavda has been diving off the coast of Florida for years. Each time he became increasingly depressed by the ever-growing void, as colourful species of fish and coral reefs continued to disappear.A significant reason for that disappearance is the lionfish, an invasive species that has boomed in Atlantic waters from Florida to the Caribbean in recent decades, and in numerous other places from Brazil and Mexico to the Mediterranean. Continue reading...

President visits state beset by Hermits Peak Calif Canyon fire, result of two accidental fires that mergedJoe Biden landed in New Mexico on Saturday amid anger and frustration from wildfire survivors as he visited the state to review efforts to fight its biggest blaze in recorded history – which was started by federal officials.Driven by drought and wind, the fire has destroyed hundreds of homes in mountains north-east of Santa Fe since two controlled burns by the US Forest Service went out of control in April. Continue reading...

Ecologists say discovery of scaly-tailed possum at Bullo River Station is a sign of positive benefit of private land conservationA rare scaly-tailed possum has been caught in the Northern Territory for the first time in what scientists say is a sign that private land conservation is having a positive effect.The scaly-tailed possum, also known as the Wyulda, is a rock-dwelling marsupial with stout limbs and a “grippy” tail it uses to hang from branches and rock ledges to reach for seeds, fruits and flowers. Continue reading...

Anger grows before West Country byelection as farmers say they will be left poorer and unable to compete with foreign producersBoris Johnson’s hopes of surviving as prime minister have been dealt a serious blow after farmers and environmentalists condemned his government’s post-Brexit food strategy as a disaster for people in the countryside – with less than two weeks to go before a key rural byelection.In an interview with the Observer, the president of the National Farmers Union, Minette Batters, said ambitious proposals to help farmers increase food production, first put forward last year by the government’s food tsar, Henry Dimbleby, had been “stripped to the bone” in a new policy document, and meant farmers would not be able to produce affordable food. Continue reading...

The then 12-year-old had diplomats squirming in their seats when she berated them at the 1992 gathering

If Democrats act, New Yorkers will begin to get the government they deserve. With climate cataclysms here, the political system can’t afford more delaysIt has been, for progressives in New York, a trying year.Major pieces of legislation that were supposed to reshape the state to safeguard the working class have stalled out. A bill to create a statewide single-payer healthcare system is no closer to passage than it was several years ago. A push to guarantee new protections for tenants as rents soar in New York City could not find the votes. And ambitious legislation to combat climate that did have the votes to go through the state legislature was halted by the speaker of the state assembly.Ross Barkan is a journalist based in New York City. He is the author of Demolition Night, a novel, and The Prince: Andrew Cuomo, Coronavirus, and the Fall of New York Continue reading...

Climatenomics lays out how ‘supply chain disruptions’ has become a euphemism for the effects of climate changeForget Ukraine, coronavirus, corporate greed and “supply chain issues”, when it comes to inflation the climate crisis is the real, lasting, worry, according to a new book, and one that’s only likely to get worse.Climatenomics, by former White House reporter and director of Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) Bob Keefe, is a narrative account of how the climate crisis is fundamentally altering not just the US but global economies. Continue reading...

Institute of Chartered Foresters says 70% more staff must be recruited to meet current tree planting targetsWhen Kevin Martin was a child he spent days beneath the canopy of Hampshire woodlands while his father, a tree surgeon, scaled the heights of oak and ash above him.Twenty years later, with a degree and with research for a master’s under way, Martin is in charge of tending to the 14,000 trees at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew. With trees at the forefront of UK strategies to reach net zero by 2050, Martin and others like him are key professionals on the frontline of the fight to mitigate the impact of climate change and adapt to the changing conditions. Continue reading...

Labour says leaked white paper suggesting more fish farming and venison ‘borders on preposterous’

Heatwaves becoming more frequent and are beginning earlier, according to Spanish meteorological officeSpain is in the grip of its first heatwave of the year, with temperatures in parts of the west and south expected to reach 44C (111.2F).Heatwaves – defined as at least three consecutive days of temperatures above the average recorded for July and August from 1971-2000 – are becoming more frequent and are beginning earlier, according Aemet, the Spanish meteorological office. “We are facing unusually high temperatures for June,” said Rubén del Campo, an Aemet spokesperson. Continue reading...

Renewable heating incentive was set up to help business, public sector and non-profit organisationsA minister, MPs and several aristocratic landowners have received thousands in public funds from a government subsidy intended to stimulate the green transition.The renewable heating incentive was set up in 2014 to help businesses, public sector and non-profit organisations meet the cost of installing renewable heat systems by paying them a tariff for each unit of heat produced from renewable sources. A parallel system was set up for homes. Continue reading...

Governments not listening to people with disabilities despite them being at high risk, say researchersPeople with disabilities are being “systematically ignored” by governments around the world when it comes to the climate crisis, even though they are particularly at risk from the impacts of extreme weather, research has shown.Few countries make provisions for the needs of people with disabilities when they make plans for adapting to the effects of climate breakdown, and none mention disabled people in their programmes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to the first comprehensive review of the issue. Continue reading...

An alarming trend shows average temperatures have increased by at least 2F since 1970, with even higher spikes in the west and south-westFrom Texas to California, most of the US south-west is experiencing scorching heat this week, with temperatures soaring above 100F (38C) in dozens of locations, putting millions of people at risk of “dangerously hot conditions”.This is part of an alarming trend. American summers are hotter than ever, according to new research, with most of the country experiencing increased summer averages over the last half century. Continue reading...

The best of this week’s wildlife pictures, including a new iguana, a nesting weaver and a rare albino giant tortoise Continue reading...

Nadesalingam family arrive back home to Biloela; New Zealand ‘heartened’ by Albanese government’s climate stance; Australia records at least 40 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

Extracting the chemical used in fertilisers from waste rather than mining it could also help reduce pollutionSewage could provide a novel way of helping consumers with soaring food bills and reducing pollution in our waterways – if sewage plants separated out phosphorus, a vital ingredient of fertiliser, according to a new report.Phosphorus, found naturally in all plants, is essential for growing plants but its use as a fertiliser is creating widespread pollution in developed countries, because much of it is wasted. Phosphorus is a leading cause of water pollution, as the runoff from fertiliser use in fields produces an excess of nutrients that upset the natural balance of rivers and ponds, leading to algae blooms that harm fish and plants. Continue reading...

Planning policy is killing off projects that would otherwise help provide the energy Europe needsWith the UK having the largest wind energy resource in Europe and more than three-quarters of voters wanting more onshore windfarms, it is surprising that there remains a virtual ban on their construction in England. Footnote 54 to the National Planning Policy Framework updated in 2018 made it possible for any small group of “local community” objectors to kill off an onshore windfarm project even if the majority want it.With onshore wind generation being ever cheaper compared with gas and nuclear energy this seems particularly harsh on those struggling to pay bills. This planning restriction does not apply in Scotland so the stark difference in the number of turbines when crossing the border in either direction is clearly nothing to do with the wind speeds. Continue reading...

US wildlife agency agrees to review protection for habitats after conservationists sue over mass die-offs from poor water qualityThe US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has agreed to update critical habitat protections for manatees after legal pressure from environmental groups, as the animals continue to die in record numbers.More than 1,000 manatees died in Florida last year, wiping out more than 10% of the state’s population, the deadliest year on record. The unusually high mortality rate for the threatened mammals has continued into 2022, with 562 deaths in the first five months. Continue reading...

Scientists are watching an area in Pacific Ocean that has been unusually cool – a signal current La Niña could linger

Intervention from outspoken Liberal backbencher Catherine Cusack offers different version of the conflict

Energy crisis has made Kent scheme aimed at unobtrusively building up solar output more timelyTennis fans tucking into strawberries at Wimbledon this month may find their fruit has an unusual origin – a solar-powered greenhouse.Transparent panels have been attached to the sides of glasshouses in Kent as part of a trial to build up solar power supplies without using more land. Continue reading...

Identification of Galápagos tortoise celebrated by scientists as a big deal for island’s biodiversityA rare Galápagos species, the “fantastic giant tortoise”, long thought extinct, has been officially identified for the first time in more than a century in what scientists called a “big deal” for the famed islands’ embattled biodiversity.The animal is the first Chelonoidis phantasticus to be seen since a male specimen was discovered by the explorer Rollo Beck during an expedition in 1906. The newcomer has been named Fernanda, after the Fernandina Island, a largely unexplored active volcano in the western Galápagos Archipelago that she calls home. Continue reading...

Sian Phillips joins London vigil for Briton and the Brazilian Bruno Araújo Pereira who have vanished in AmazonThe sister of a British journalist missing in the Amazon has said she still has hope he will be found.Sian Phillips was joined by supporters at a vigil for her brother Dom Phillips, who has worked as a freelance correspondent for the Guardian, and the Brazilian Indigenous affairs official Bruno Araujo Pereira outside the Brazilian embassy in central London on Thursday. Continue reading...

Coastguard checking ships’ routes and says samples being sent for analysisA massive spill of an unknown substance has been detected in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Sweden, the country’s coastguard said on Thursday.Covering a surface area of 30 sq miles (77 sq km) in both Swedish and Finnish waters, the spill was detected on Wednesday in the Bothnian Sea. Continue reading...

Researchers call for recognition of latest online strategies used to derail climate actionClimate policy is being dragged into the culture wars with misinformation and junk science being spread across the internet by a relatively small group of individuals and groups, according to a study.The research, released on Thursday, shows that the climate emergency – and the measures needed to deal with it – are in some cases being conflated with divisive issues such as critical race theory, LGBTQ+ rights, abortion access and anti-vaccine campaigns.Elitism and hypocrisy: these posts focused on the alleged wealth and double standards of those calling for action, and in some cases referenced wider conspiracies about globalism or the “New World Order”. The study identified 199,676 mentions of this narrative on Twitter (tweets and retweets) and 4,377 posts on Facebook around the time Cop26 took placeAbsolution: it found 6,262 Facebook posts and 72,356 tweets around Cop26 which absolved one country of any obligation to act on climate by blaming another. In developed western countries this often focused on the perceived shortcomings of China and, to a lesser extent, India, claiming they were not doing enough so there was no point in anyone acting.Unreliable renewables: over a longer period – from 1 January to 19 November 2021 – the study found 115,830 tweets or retweets were shared, alongside 15,443 posts on Facebook, that called into question the viability and effectiveness of renewable energy sources. Continue reading...

We must restore our largely broken relationship with nature if we are to ensure the planet’s future – and our ownAsked to consider the value of animals, many people’s first thought would be about money. During the Covid-19 pandemic, for example, the price of dogs became a popular talking point. Others might think of the less tangible, but also very real, value they place on their relationships with companion animals, especially pets such as cats and dogs. Fewer would immediately consider the ways in which our entire civilisation rests on animals. The fact is, though, that our society and economy are embedded in a natural system that is maintained by the activities of animals, and without them, we would not be here.Animals are vital to the functioning of the biosphere in innumerable ways. Their interactions with plants, fungi and microbes sustain the conditions on which we, along with all other life, depend. For example, the great whales that sit at the pinnacle of marine food webs are linked to some of the most fundamental processes that shape conditions in our world. They eat other marine creatures, including krill, and in the process take nutrients from deeper water to be released via their faeces into the ocean, where they fertilise blooms of planktonic algae. Continue reading...

Exclusive: study of London schemes says local communication should be improved but that benefits are clearLow-traffic neighbourhoods boost cycling, reduce car use and make roads safer, but councils could do more to make the schemes more palatable and comprehensible to local people, the most thorough study yet of the concept has concluded.The report by the Centre for London thinktank about the interventions, which use planters or other filters to stop through-traffic by motor vehicles on smaller residential streets, also found no evidence they disproportionately benefited richer people. Continue reading...

Even if Millmerran power station’s carbon capture plan succeeds, it will only eliminate 2.1% of emissions. Plus: nuclear still costlier than renewables

Consent decree would settle two lawsuits against EPA brought by Louisiana residents in one of most polluted parts of USA proposed legal settlement between the Environmental Protection Agency EPA and residents of the town of Reserve, Louisiana could significantly reduce toxic emissions in one of the most polluted parts of the US.Announced on Tuesday via the federal register, the proposed agreement, known as a consent decree, would settle two lawsuits partly brought against the EPA by members of the predominantly Black community in St John the Baptist parish, the epicenter of the region known colloquially as “Cancer Alley”. Continue reading...

European parliament defeats centre-right lawmakers’ attempts to weaken climate targetThe European parliament has voted to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2035, defeating attempts by centre-right lawmakers to weaken the target.Lawmakers hailed a major victory for the climate after an intense day of votes on a set of laws that make up the EU green deal, the bloc’s main response to the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Energy and climate change minister, Chris Bowen, has held an emergency meeting with state and territory ministers about the impending energy crisis, with electricity prices soaring up to 18% as supply issues plague much of the country. Laura Murphy-Oates speaks with economics correspondent, ​​Peter Hannam, about what’s really behind this crisis and how we could prevent another oneRead more: Continue reading...

CSIRO researchers say efforts to raise public awareness have quickly led to improvements in the environment

UK cabinet minister who led Cop26 understood to have been approached and expressed interest in the roleAlok Sharma, the UK cabinet minister who led last year’s Cop26 climate summit, is in the running to be the UN’s global climate chief, at a crucial time for international action on greenhouse gas emissions.The UN’s current top climate official, Patricia Espinosa, will step down next month, leaving a vacancy as the world prepares for the next stage in vital negotiations to stave off climate breakdown. Continue reading...

Charles Secrett says exposing those behind these disastrous fossil fuel projects and drawing the public into the fight are essential to prevent runaway global heatingIt is great news that a global coalition of activists and experts is to confront the governments and corporations responsible for the mega-carbon projects, recently exposed by the Guardian, that threaten life on Earth (Environmentalists join forces to fight ‘carbon’ bomb fossil fuel projects, 6 June).Exposing the politicians and executives behind these madcap schemes, challenging them in court, organising shareholder and investor rebellions, and running activist campaigns to draw the wider public into the fight are essential measures if we are to avoid irreversible, runaway global heating. Continue reading...

Biden officials make announcement on World Oceans Day in effort to stem huge tide of pollution from plastic bottles and packagingThe Biden administration is to phase out single-use plastic products on US public lands, including the vast network of American national parks, in an attempt to stem the huge tide of plastic pollution that now extends to almost every corner of the world.The US Department of the Interior will halt the sale of single-use plastics in national parks, wildlife refuges and other public lands, though not entirely until 2032, with a reduction planned in the meantime. The government will look to identify environmentally preferable alternatives to plastic bottles, packaging and other products, such as compostable materials. Continue reading...

Lib Dems and environmental campaigners condemn central government after Tory-run council overruledCampaigners and the Liberal Democrats have criticised the government after a minister overruled a Tory-run council to approve gas drilling on the edge of the Surrey Hills, despite accepting the scheme would cause harm to the natural landscape.The decision, formally announced in a written statement by the housing minister Stuart Andrew, gives the green light to three years of exploratory drilling at a site near the edge of the Surrey Hills area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB). Continue reading...

Southern Company spent $62.1m over the years to deny the impact of fossil fuel combustion on climate crisisIn 1980, a report circulated to a division of one of the biggest coal-burning utilities in the US warned that “fossil fuel combustion” was rapidly warming the atmosphere and could cause a “massive extinction of plant and animal species” along with a “5 to 6-meter rise in sea level” across the world.Several years later an official at the utility co-chaired a conference where scientific researchers fretted that “as we continue to exploit the vast deposits of fossil fuels” it could cause “disruptive climate changes”. Continue reading...

Unchecked water use by companies like Exxon risks saltwater intrusion and undrinkable tap waterFlowers seem to live longer in vases filled with Baton Rouge water, according to Dominique Rogers, 36, a florist in Louisiana’s capital city with 14 years of experience.The city pulls its water deep underground from the Southern Hills aquifer, which requires little to no treatment to drink, unlike other Louisiana communities such as New Orleans, which draws its water from the Mississippi River and requires heavy treatment. Continue reading...

Regulator upholds complaints that marketing by Evergreens UK Ltd was unsubstantiated and misleadingAdverts claiming plastic grass is “eco-friendly” and “purifies” the atmosphere must be removed after the Advertising Standards Authority upheld complaints of greenwashing.The ASA upheld concerns that adverts claiming artificial grass produced by Evergreens UK Ltd was eco-friendly were unsubstantiated and misleading. The product was made of plastic, the ASA said, and, taking into account its whole lifecycle, it “had a negative impact on the environment”. Continue reading...

Alessandra Sampaio, whose husband Dom Phillips was last seen in the Amazon on Sunday, makes appeal in tearful video messageThe wife of the British journalist who has vanished in a remote corner of the Amazon with a celebrated Indigenous expert has issued an emotional plea for Brazilian authorities to work harder to find “the love of my life”.“I want to make an appeal to the federal government and the relevant organs to intensify their search efforts, because we still have some hope of finding them,” Alessandra Sampaio, the wife of longtime Guardian contributor Dom Phillips, said in a tearful video message. Continue reading...

Residents of the New Mexico canyon scorched by the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon fires blame the government for the acres they lostThe air smells of ash and the landscape is leached of color. Spots of green punctuate the valley floor in places. But along the ridges, the powdery residue of charred trees has fallen like snow, accumulating up to 4 inches deep. These are the slices of forest where the fire burned the hottest, scorching ponderosa pines from crown to root. Once titans, they are now matchsticks.Pola Lopez gestures in their direction, southward toward Hermits Peak. Before a tsunami of flames ripped through this canyon in Tierra Monte, the canopy was so thick that it was impossible to see the nearby mountain. But two prescribed burns set by the US Forest Service (USFS) – one on Hermits Peak, the other in Calf Canyon to the south-west – have changed all that. Continue reading...

Increasing spare electricity capacity and the development of a transition plan to reduce emissions among decisions at ‘very collegiate’ energy ministers meeting

Chris Bowen says ‘no silver bullet’ to energy crisis; NAB the last of big four banks to lift home loan interest rates; treasurer warns of budget pressure from rate rises; at least 59 Covid deaths recorded. This blog is now closed