Paper in Nature Climate Change journal reveals major role wealthy emitters play in driving climate extremesThe world's wealthiest 10% are responsible for two-thirds of global heating since 1990, driving droughts and heatwaves in the poorest parts of the world, according to a study.While researchers have previously shown that higher income groups emit disproportionately large amounts of greenhouse gases, the latest survey is the first to try to pin down how that inequality translates into responsibility for climate breakdown. It offers a powerful argument for climate finance and wealth taxes by attempting to give an evidential basis for how many people in the developed world - including more than 50% of full-time employees in the UK - bear a heightened responsibility for the climate disasters affecting people who can least afford it. Continue reading...

Orsted cancels fourth stage of Hornsea project off Yorkshire coast, which was set to include enough turbines to power 1m homesThe world's biggest wind power developer has cancelled plans for one of the UK's largest offshore windfarms in a significant blow to the government's green energy targets.The Danish wind power company Orsted said the Hornsea 4 project no longer made economic sense because of soaring costs in the industry's global supply chain, after it won a government contract two years ago. Continue reading...

Data suggests pollution from energy is falling again after previously stalling, but experts say faster growth needed to achieve Labor goal of 82% renewable electricity by 2030

Emissions from abandoned coalmines, oil and gas wells globally are larger than any single country except China, the US and RussiaAbandoned coalmines and oil and gas wells are now one of the biggest sources of the powerful greenhouse gas methane, new data shows, and little effort is being made to clean them up.The methane emissions from abandoned fossil fuel infrastructure now exceed those from Iran, and if considered as a country would be the fourth biggest source in the world, behind China, the US and Russia. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Government and water firms preparing for possible shortages as dry weather is expected to continueEngland is heading towards a drought this summer unless there is significant rainfall soon, as reservoir water levels dwindle.The government will on Wednesday convene the National Drought Group of water companies, farming groups and other experts to prepare for what is expected to be a dry summer with potential water shortages. Continue reading...

Incident in 2021, during which the defendant said he was attacked by a brown bear, sparked fierce criticismAn 81-year-old French hunter has avoided jail after killing an endangered female bear that attacked him in the Pyrenees in 2021, in an incident that sparked fierce criticism from environmental associations.The defendant, who said he had no choice but to open fire when a brown bear attacked him while he was boar-hunting in the mountain range separating France and Spain, was given a four-month suspended jail sentence. Continue reading...

Researchers call for urgent action as fragments of plastic found in human brains and pollute food, water and airThe UK is falling behind on international efforts to tackle microplastics, scientists have said, as the pollutants continue to infiltrate food, ecosystems and human bodies.The tiny fragments of plastic have been found in human testicles and brains, and they burrow into plants, inhibiting their ability to photosynthesise. The impact on human health is largely unknown, but they have been linked to strokes and heart attacks. Continue reading...

Horsham local Glenn Coffey says he witnessed large numbers of sick birds falling out of trees and drowning in Wimmera river

Professionals call for a fundamental transition including controlling flight numbersThe aviation industry is failing dramatically" in its efforts to tackle its role in the climate crisis, according to a newly formed group of aviation professionals.They say they are torn between their passion for flying and their concern for the planet and are calling for a fundamental transition of the industry, including controlling flight numbers. Continue reading...

Lawsuit also filed over administration's cuts to health and human services that destroy life-saving programsA coalition of Democratic state attorneys general sued on Monday in an attempt to block Donald Trump's move to suspend leasing and permitting of new wind projects, saying it threatens to cripple the wind industry and a key source of clean energy.Seventeen states and the District of Columbia argued, in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Boston, that the decision by the Republican president's administration to indefinitely pause all federal wind-energy approvals was unlawful and must be blocked. Continue reading...

Governor is expected to sign the green fee', which adds 0.75% levy to state's existing tax on short-term lodgingLawmakers in Hawaii have passed first-of-its-kind legislation that will increase the state's lodging tax to raise money for environmental protection and strengthening defenses against natural disasters fueled by the climate crisis.Hawaii's governor, Josh Green, supports the creation of the so-called green fee", and is expected to sign it. Continue reading...

The $160m makeover to the park's north side is part of a long-term project to address years of neglect Continue reading...

After a landslide election win, there will never be a better chance to shake off old policy impasses and deliver a more ambitious plan for the environment

Doug Paulley and Kevin Jordan say their lives being ruined, and lack of effective strategy infringes their human rightsTwo men who say they are being failed by the UK's flawed response to climate breakdown are taking their case to Europe's top human rights court.Doug Paulley and Kevin Jordan say their lives have been ruined by the rising temperatures and extreme weather caused by the climate crisis, and that the government's response fails to respect their human rights. Continue reading...

Layoffs and funding cuts to Fema and Noaa will impact how they predict and respond to disasters, warns professor Samantha MontanoThe Trump administration's sweeping cuts to disaster management will cost lives in the US, with hollowed-out agencies unable to accurately predict, prepare for or respond to extreme weather events, earthquakes and pandemics, a leading expert has warned.Samantha Montano, professor of emergency management at Massachusetts Maritime Academy and author of Disasterology: Dispatches from the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis, said the death toll from disasters including hurricanes, tornadoes and water pollution will rise in the US unless Trump backtracks on mass layoffs and funding cuts to key agencies. That includes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), whose work relies heavily on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), which is also being dismantled. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Surprise challenger Zack Polanski says party can learn from success of Nigel Farage and Reform UKA leading Green has launched a surprise campaign to oust Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay as party leaders, saying the party needs to be less timid and transform itself into a radical, mass-membership eco-populism" movement.Zack Polanski, who has been deputy leader since 2022 and serves as a London assembly member, will challenge Denyer and Ramsay this summer despite them taking the party to its best-ever general election result last year, winning four seats. Continue reading...

Gen Z want the government to address the big structural problems: housing supply, inequality and climate

Seventh season of hit slow TV' show followed annual trek of moose (or elk) heading to summer pasturesFor thousands of years, moose have crossed rivers, navigated thawing forests and quietly followed ancient trails toward their summer pastures in northern Sweden.A 24-hour live stream gave millions of viewers front-row seats to watch every unhurried step of the journey. Continue reading...

US researchers link BHP, Rio Tinto, Santos, Whitehaven Coal and Woodside Energy to specific climate harms over three decades

Zinc Nacional will move most polluting' operations after joint investigation found heavy-metals pollution in area

Exclusive: Treasury threat an example of scare tactics' to help force through private sector deal, sources suggestWhitehall officials have been at loggerheads over the fate of Thames Water since the Treasury told the environment department that it would have to meet the cost of a multibillion pound temporary nationalisation.Britain's biggest water company recently came within days of running out of money. Thames is in a desperate race to find a buyer willing to inject cash, with the US private equity firm KKR in pole position. Continue reading...

A feasibility report using historical maps and ecological data is raising excitement: It would be a slow process'On the eve of the gold rush, California was teeming with grizzly bears - as many as 10,000 of them. They were so popular that the Bear Flag Republic - a short-lived attempt by a group of US settlers to break away from Mexico in 1846 - used the animals as their mascot; an image that still adorns California's flag.But by the mid-1920s, the bears were all gone. The last documented sighting of a grizzly bear in California was in the spring of 1924 in Sequoia national park, a lonesome bear wandering among the trees. Continue reading...

Two groups join forces for peer-reviewed research after key contributors on Congress-mandated report dismissed

Territory's voluntary move comes as Trump administration makes good on pledge to end lawsuits against oil and gasPuerto Rico has voluntarily dismissed its 2024 climate lawsuit against big oil, a Friday legal filing shows, just two days after the US justice department sued two states over planned litigation against oil companies for their role in the climate crisis.Puerto Rico's lawsuit, filed in July, alleged that the oil and gas giants had misled the public about the climate dangers associated with their products. It came as part of a wave of litigation filed by dozens of US states, cities and municipalities in recent years. Continue reading...

White House orders closure of USGS water science centers, which shares data with weather service for flood warningsThe Trump administration has ordered the closure of 25 scientific centers that monitor US waters for flooding and drought, and manage supply levels to ensure communities around the country don't run out of water.The United States Geological Service (USGS) water science centers' employees and equipment track levels and quality in ground and surface water with thousands of gauges. The data it produces plays a critical role across the economy to protect human life, protect property, maintain water supplies and help clean up chemical or oil spills. Continue reading...

Tariff chaos hampers Trump's pledge to drill, baby, drill', but analysis still shows surge in planet-heating emissions

Environmentalists worry that the post-Brexit legislation will allow the destruction of rare and fragile ecosystemsWalk along the gin-clear River Itchen in Hampshire and you might see otters, salmon, kingfishers and clouds of mayflies, all supported by the unique ecosystem of the chalk stream.The UK has no tropical rainforests or tigers; its wildlife is arguably more modest in appearance. But its chalk streams are some of the rarest habitats in the world - there are only 200, and England boasts 85% of them. If you look properly, they are as biodiverse and beautiful as any rainforest. Continue reading...

Nature organisations say legislation would remove safeguards for nature and put protected sites at riskKeir Starmer's planning bill has been criticised by the environment watchdog, which has warned that the draft of the legislation would remove safeguards for nature and put protected sites at risk.Currently, laws that protect habitats and nature are derived from EU legislation. Since the UK left the bloc, it has been able to weaken these laws that protect specific species and habitats. Continue reading...

Warm weather means strawberries, aubergines and tomatoes have come weeks earlier than expectedA glut of early strawberries, aubergines and tomatoes has hit Britain with the dry, warm weather eliminating the usual hungry gap", growers say.It has been a sunny, very dry spring, with the warmest start to May on record and temperatures predicted to reach up to 30C at the earliest point on record, forecasters have said. Continue reading...

I saw the world's tallest moss and camped beneath a 500-year-old myrtle tree

The best of this week's wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...

From the turtle-nesting beaches of Italy to Greek island bird havens, across the Mediterranean campaigners are fighting to protect habitats from tourists seeking a picture-perfect holidayIn the summer months in Puglia, southern Italy, the battle for the beaches begins before dawn. Armed with tractors, beach owners flatten every imperfection from the sand, dragging it to sift out anything large enough to be considered waste. As the sun rises, tourists flood the coastline, often unaware of what lies hidden beneath their feet.Two feet below the surface, delicate eggs laid by loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) are waiting to hatch. For the turtles, the beach is not a beauty spot but a habitat. Continue reading...

DoJ says Clean Air Act creates program to oversee air pollution and displaces' states' ability to regulate itThe US justice department on Wednesday filed lawsuits against Hawaii and Michigan over their planned legal action against fossil fuel companies for harms caused by the climate crisis, claiming the state actions conflict with federal government authority and Donald Trump's energy dominance agenda.The suits, which legal experts say are unprecedented, mark the latest of the Trump administration's attacks on environmental work and raise concern over states' abilities to retain the power to take climate action without federal opposition. Continue reading...

Study using citizen data finds three-quarters of nearly 500 species in decline, with steepest trend in areas where they once thrivedBird populations across North America are falling most quickly in areas where they are most abundant, according to new research, prompting fears of ecological collapse in previously protected areas.Analysis of nearly 500 bird species across North America has found that three-quarters are declining across their ranges, with two-thirds of the total shrinking significantly. Continue reading...

Campaigners warn move could worsen access to nature for millions already living more than a 10-minute walk from park or playing fieldHousing developers will be able to build on once-protected green spaces without having to replace the loss of nature in the nearby area, the Guardian understands.New nature areas, parks and community gardens created to offset the removal of green spaces to make way for housing developments may not even have to be in the same county, under the new planning and infrastructure bill, sources at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said on Thursday. Continue reading...

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The Australian Institute for Progress's Can you afford the Greens?' ads claim minor party's housing policies would lead to increased rents

I support the Climate Paradox report from the Tony Blair Institute, but his foreword risks compromising what must be achieved

Most countries have no fossil fuel reserves, but no country in the world is without renewable energy resources. For a country such as Iceland, the world leader in renewables, this statement is clear to see. The island nation has made good use of its volcanoes and glaciers, which help provide 100% of its electricity and almost all its heat energy. But what about other countries that don't have Iceland's unique geology to rely on. Josh Toussaint-Strauss finds out how the world has managed to reach the impressive milestone of more than 40% of global electricity demand coming from clean power sources, and how other countries such as the UK are making this energy transition happen, despite a distinct lack of volcanoes

Blitzkrieg has hit protections in place for land, oceans, forests and wildlife, and will worsen the climate crisis

Guardian reporters map out how Trump is eviscerating efforts to protect the natural world - from drill, baby, drill' to mass firings

Police and military personnel were seen helping people evacuate the highway connecting Jerusalem to Tel Aviv as wildfires raged. Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, declared the situation a national emergency as the fire threatened to reach the city. Israel's Magen David Adom (MDA) rescue agency said they treated about 23 people, 13 of whom were taken to hospital

Government to press ahead with net zero plans as Keir Starmer rejects Tony Blair's criticisms of climate policyAlmost all new homes in England will be fitted with solar panels during construction within two years, the government will announce after Keir Starmer rejected Tony Blair's criticism of net zero policies.Housebuilders will be legally required to install solar panels on the roofs of new properties by 2027 under the plans. Continue reading...

Only one in two Liberal party voters are in favour of lifting the national ban, according to the National Climate Action Survey

A warming tundra has seen unexpected shifts, raising the alarm about fragile ecosystems and those who rely on themScientists studying Arctic plants say the ecosystems that host life in some of the most inhospitable reaches of the planet are changing in unexpected ways in an early warning sign" for a region upended by climate change.In four decades, 54 researchers tracked more than 2,000 plant communities across 45 sites from the Canadian high Arctic to Alaska and Scandinavia. They discovered dramatic shifts in temperatures and growing seasons produced no clear winners or losers. Some regions witnessed large increases in shrubs and grasses and declines in flowering plants - which struggle to grow under the shade created by taller plants. Continue reading...

The celebrated presenter warns of modern day colonialism at sea' as he highlights the destruction caused by overfishing and bottom trawlingWhen David Attenborough's Blue Planet II documentary aired eight years ago, its impact was so strong it was credited with bringing about a revolution in the way people use plastics. Now film-makers are hoping he can do the same for other destructive environmental practices that the world's best-known living naturalist describes as draining the life from our oceans".The industrial fishing method of bottom trawling is the focus of a large part of Attenborough's latest film, Ocean, which airs in cinemas from 8 May, the naturalist's 99th birthday. In a remarkably no-holds-barred narrative, he says these vessels tear the seabed with such force the trails of destruction can be seen from space". He also condemns what he calls modern day colonialism at sea", where huge trawlers, operating off the coasts of countries reliant on fish for food and livelihoods, are blamed for dwindling local catches. Continue reading...

The broadcaster behaves like Starmer's government: suppress the left, cave to your critics, and undermine your own survivalIt's no longer even pretending. Last week, the BBC, already the UK's most prolific censor, instructed the presenter Evan Davis to drop the podcast he hosted in his own time about heat pumps. It was a gentle, wry look at the machines, with no obvious political content. But the BBC, Davis says, saw it as steering into areas of public controversy". It should cease forthwith.So are BBC presenters banned from saying anything controversial? Far from it. Take an article published earlier this year by Justin Webb in the Times. It praised the political genius" of Donald Trump, suggested that Democrats are now seen as the extremists, and claimed that Trump is widely regarded as making [America] normal again". The BBC was fine with that, and complaints about it were rejected. Continue reading...

Labour politicians warn former PM had boosted Tory and Reform climate sceptics on the eve of local electionsTony Blair has been forced by Downing Street to row back from his criticism of the government's net zero strategy after furious Labour politicians warned he had given a boost to Tory and Reform sceptics on the eve of the local elections.Climate experts also accused the former prime minister of granting political cover to fossil fuel interests and weakening momentum behind the UK's legally binding target to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Continue reading...

Sir Tony Blair's ill-conceived contribution to the climate debate was a political gift to Nigel Farage. But public support for the green transition remains strongThe Climate Change Committee's latest report on the UK's response to unprecedented environmental challenges makes for grim reading. Recalling the extreme weather swings of the last few years - which delivered both the wettest 18 months on record and the largest number of wildfires - the report's authors deplore the current inadequacy of provision to protectthe nation against risks which are now a lethal reality. The threat represented by flooding, said the chair of the committee's adaptation group, Lady Brown, is not tomorrow's problem. It's today's problem. And if we don't do something about it, it will become tomorrow's disaster."An assessment so scathing, from such a source, deserved to be at the centre of political discussion ahead of Thursday's local elections. Instead, Wednesday's front pages were dominated by a considerably less useful contribution to the climate debate. In a foreword to a report from his eponymous Tony Blair Institute (TBI), Sir Tony Blair suggested that governments should dial down efforts to limit the use of fossil fuels in the short term, or risk alienating voters allegedly put off by the irrationality" and cost of green policies. Politicians' focus, he insisted, should shift to investing speculatively in technologies for the future such as carbon capture and storage.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...