Reduced environmental protections and conservation job losses could hit vital progress on climate and biodiversity, research finds

Monitors on Queensland’s Lady Elliot Island have only seen a handful of albino hatchlings but never an adultJessica Buckman is used to finding stragglers when she heads out to check recently hatched green turtle nests on Queensland’s Lady Elliot Island.But the tiny pink creature she found in the neck of one nest on Monday was far from a usual find – a rare albino hatchling that was having a little trouble digging itself out. Continue reading...

Bank’s vote, binding if approved by 75% of shareholders, follows investor pressure to cut clients’ loansHSBC has bowed to investor pressure by ramping up its climate commitments and tabling a shareholder vote on plans to phase out coal financing by 2040.Fifteen pension and investment funds, led by the campaign group ShareAction, have agreed to withdraw their own environment resolution ahead of HSBC’s annual general meeting on 28 May. Continue reading...

Environmentalists hail ‘fantastic news’ for the state’s turtles, whales and seabirdsQueensland has become the second Australian state to pass laws banning single-use plastics including straws and cutlery that are blighting the state’s waterways and beaches and endangering wildlife.Environmental groups congratulated the Queensland government after it passed legislation on Wednesday night that will ban single-use plastic items, including polystyrene food containers and cups, from 1 September. Continue reading...

One of the main characters on Twitter today is the pink-necked green-pigeon, a photo of which went viral overnight. Yes, it’s real. Yes, it’s stunningSteph, there is an incredibly beautiful pigeon all over my Twitter and it doesn’t look real. Is it real?Lucy, yes, it is real and also extremely attractive. People are calling it “hot pigeon”. Continue reading...

Thinktank calls for more support for local initiatives ranging from heating to flood schemesCommunities across the UK are tackling the climate crisis with hundreds of local schemes ranging from neighbourhood heating to food co-ops, community land ownership projects and flood defences, according to a report.A study from the IPPR thinktank found that community projects, often set up with the primary aim of reducing poverty and improving people’s day-to-day lives, were also reducing emissions and restoring nature. Continue reading...

Proposed levy, backed by nine governments, would raise funds for developing zero-carbon shipsShipping industry representatives, backed by several countries, have submitted a proposal to the UN to charge a climate-related levy on fossil fuels used by international shipping for the first time.However, climate campaigners are concerned that the levy is too small, and will distract from more effective ways of reducing carbon dioxide from shipping, which is a growing problem. Continue reading...

Developers built windfarms with a total capacity of almost 100GW in 2020, a rise of nearly 60% on previous yearChina built more new windfarm capacity in 2020 than the whole world combined in the year before, leading to an annual record for windfarm installations despite the Covid-19 pandemic.A study has revealed that China led the world’s biggest ever increase in wind power capacity as developers built almost 100GW worth of windfarms last year – enough to power almost three times the number of homes in the UK and a rise of nearly 60% on the previous year. Continue reading...

Activity fell sharply in Britain and China in 2020 but increased in US, Japan and South Korea, study findsThe UK suffered the largest contraction among top fishing nations during the coronavirus pandemic, according to tracking data analysed by the conservation group Global Fishing Watch.Related: EU accused of ‘neocolonial’ plundering of tuna in Indian Ocean Continue reading...

Prospect of green focus for rescuing economies in danger unless swift action is taken, environment chief says

Once a US conservation success story, numbers in the wild have plummeted. Now a court has given hope for their survivalThere are perhaps no more than 10 red wolves left in the wild, and they are all in just one place: North Carolina.It is an astonishing statistic for a species once hailed as undergoing the most successful reintroduction programme in the US, providing the blueprint for Yellowstone national park’s much-lauded grey wolf rewilding project. Continue reading...

Trees lost to drought and wildfires are not returning. Climate change is taking a toll on the world’s forests - and radically changing the environment before our eyesCamille Stevens-Rumann never used to worry about seeing dead trees. As a wildland firefighter in the American west, she encountered untold numbers killed in blazes she helped to extinguish. She knew fires are integral to forests in this part of the world; they prune out smaller trees, giving room to the rest and even help the seeds of some species to germinate.“We have largely operated under the assumption that forests are going to come back after fires,” Stevens-Rumann said. Continue reading...

Church of England, Lloyds and the National Grid among those pledging to meet 2050 targetMajor pension funds that own assets worth £870bn, including those of the Church of England, Lloyds Banking Group and the National Grid, have committed to cutting the carbon emissions of their portfolios to net zero by 2050 or earlier, in another sign of big investors’ increasing focus on the climate crisis.Pension providers Scottish Widows, Royal London and Nest and a clutch of public sector pension funds from the UK to Scandinavia and New York were also among the investors that have pledged to align their portfolios to the Paris climate goals of limiting global temperature increases to 1.5C. Continue reading...

Power station produces 13% of Victoria’s and 3% of national emissions and employs 500 peopleOne of Australia’s dirtiest coal-fired power stations, Yallourn in Victoria’s Latrobe valley, will close four years earlier than scheduled and be replaced, in part, by a grid-scale battery.EnergyAustralia announced on Wednesday it would shut the 1970s-built, 1,480-megawatt brown coal plant in mid-2028. Continue reading...

Green groups say move ‘beggars belief’ but cut will offer some relief to troubled aviation industryAir passenger duty is set to be cut on domestic flights after the prime minister signalled his support for reform to bolster air links around the UK.Lower rates for UK internal flights or an exemption for return legs will be considered. Continue reading...

Nine-tonne timber harvester clears trees as part of 50-year project to restore Border Mires dating from ice ageTo the uninitiated a vertical mulcher might sound like the creation of a feverish nightmare, but the tree-chipping machine might be the saviour of one of the UK’s most important peat habitants.The mulching is a continuation of a 50-year project to restore the Border Mires, a network of bogs in and around Kielder Forest in Northumberland that dates from the ice age. Forestry England will use the nine-tonne timber harvester to munch through 23 hectares (57 acres) of trees in order to speed up restoration of the mires. Continue reading...

Rob Stokes letter opposed carving out rural zones, which government has effectively adopted as policyA senior New South Wales government minister last year warned rules intended to protect koalas in the state would be “ineffective” if rural areas were excluded as it would mean about 80% of land was exempt.The advice was given in a letter sent in August last year by the planning minister, Rob Stokes, to the deputy premier, John Barilaro. Continue reading...

‘Fish aggregating devices’ have been linked to depletion of yellowfin populations and increased bycatch in the Indian OceanGlobal condemnation is growing at the increasingly widespread use of harmful “fish aggregating devices” (FADs) in the fishing industry, as retailers including Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer and the German chain Edeka joined calls for restrictions.A letter signed by more than 100 NGOs, retailers and artisanal fisheries urges this week’s meeting of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) to consider proposals by Kenya and Sri Lanka to monitor, manage and restrict FADs. The signatories warn of an “urgent need” to improve management of FADs in order to reduce overfishing and rebuild populations of yellowfin tuna. Continue reading...

Biden administration is set to unveil a new greenhouse gas reduction target at a climate meeting on 22 April, Earth DayThe US needs to commit to slashing its planet-heating emissions by at least half by the end of the decade to address the climate crisis and spur other countries to greater action, a coalition of American environmental groups has urged.Joe Biden’s administration is set to unveil a new national emissions reduction target at a climate meeting it has convened with other major economic powers on Earth Day, 22 April, which it hopes will galvanize countries that are currently dangerously lagging in efforts to stave off disastrous climate change. Continue reading...

Twice before, humanity has mitigated severe global environmental threats. In both cases we did this not with ‘cap and trade’ systems, taxes, or offsets, but with bansTime is running out to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and avoid catastrophic climate change. The 2018 special report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) “suggests a remaining budget of about 420 Gigatonnes (Gt) of CO2 for a two-thirds chance of limiting warming to 1.5°C.” The clock on this so-called remaining carbon budget started ticking at the beginning of 2018. Despite this stark warning, the world keeps emitting over 40 Gt of CO2 per year. In other words, the policy instruments that are currently being used across the globe to reduce CO2 emissions aren’t working. It is therefore time to ban fossil fuels.Since we have already drawn down over 120 Gt of CO2 from this carbon budget, we have now less than 300 Gt left. Combining the proved fossil fuel reserves reported in British Petroleum’s Statistical Review of World Energy with CO2 emission factors from the IPCC yields 3,600 Gt of CO2 emissions. This means that we can only afford to burn one twelfth of the fossil fuels we have already found. And this does not account for any greenhouse gas emissions from the ongoing melting of permafrost. The Arctic region alone is estimated to have 1,500 Gt of carbon stored in its soils, some of which is already being converted to CO2 by microbes and released into the atmosphere. Continue reading...

Wyoming representative Liz Cheney says the study proves Biden’s policies would destroy state economies. But it has the oil and gas industry’s fingerprints all over itWyoming’s US representative, Liz Cheney, envisions a dark future for her home state under Joe Biden. Continue reading...

Concerns over carbon emissions and food crises are fuelling a move away from meat consumption as a symbol of wealth

Humane Society International, which won legal action against Queensland government last year, says 80% of sharks caught are still dyingAlmost 80% of sharks caught on drum lines in the Great Barrier Reef marine park last year died despite the Queensland government being told to try harder to eliminate deaths under its shark control program.The Humane Society International (HSI) has analysed the latest drum-line data and says the government is not even close to achieving the non-lethal program the administrative appeals tribunal ordered two years ago. Continue reading...

Support for Australian ex-minister with poor record on climate crisis would send ‘terrible message’The UK has been warned not to send a dreadful message to the rest of the world by backing a controversial Australian former minister with a much-criticised climate change record to run the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.The race to be the next secretary-general of the OECD – the Paris-based economic thinktank that advises governments across the world – has narrowed to Mathias Cormann, the former Australian finance minister, and Cecilia Malmström, the former EU trade commissioner and Swedish centrist politician. The result is due by 15 March. Continue reading...

Australian Conservation Foundation to file test case to access documents on approvals fast-tracked by federal environment ministerThe Morrison government’s claim that national cabinet deliberations are exempt from freedom of information laws will be challenged in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, setting up a test over the new body’s immunity from scrutiny.The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) will file a case with the tribunal as it seeks to access information on at least 15 environmental approvals “fast-tracked” by the federal environment minister, Sussan Ley, a task so far stymied by the government’s insistence the documents fall under traditional cabinet rules. Continue reading...

There is only one daddy longlegs – and it is looking at you right now from the corner you forgot to dust

Nature-rich sites such as woods and wetlands more valuable because of the ‘ecosystem services’ they provideThe economic benefits of protecting nature-rich sites such as wetlands and woodlands outweigh the profit that could be made from using the land for resource extraction, according to the largest study yet to look at the value of protecting nature at specific locations.Scientists analysed 24 sites in six continents and found the asset returns of “ecosystem services” such as carbon storage and flood prevention created by conservation work was, pound for pound, greater than manmade capital created by using the land for activities such as forestry or farming cereals, sugar, tea or cocoa. Continue reading...

Rising heat and humidity threatening to plunge much of the world’s population into potentially lethal conditions, study findsThe climate crisis is pushing the planet’s tropical regions towards the limits of human livability, with rising heat and humidity threatening to plunge much of the world’s population into potentially lethal conditions, new research has found.Related: 'It is the question of the century': will tech solve the climate crisis – or make it worse? Continue reading...

We asked you to tell us about women who have made a difference and how they inspired you‘She was a breath of fresh air on inauguration day’ Continue reading...

Conservation groups argue ‘excising farming and forestry zones is a catastrophic setback for the species’The NSW Coalition has agreed to new rules to protect koala habitat but will effectively exempt most rural land from more stringent rules administered through the planning process.Instead, koala habitat on rural land will be covered by yet-to-be-announced protections under land-clearing laws administered by NSW Local Land Services through the primary industries portfolio. Continue reading...

Emily Ford took thousands of online fans on a 10-week journey, helping shift narrative about who belongs in outdoor spacesTrekking across 1,200-miles of Wisconsin forests and prairies carrying a 65lb pack in temperatures as low as -37F was initially meant as a passion trip for Emily Ford, during her off season as a professional gardener.The 28-year-old ended up taking along thousands of online fans on her journey across the Ice Age national scenic trail, helping to further shift the narrative about who belongs in these outdoor spaces. And on Saturday, when she took her final steps across the frigid expanse with a crowd of supporters there to celebrate, she became the first Black woman known to have thru-hiked the trail. Continue reading...

As more women leave rural areas for cities, course forms part of drive to revive villagesThe rugged pathways crisscross Spain, sprawling across an estimated 1% of its territory. Etched into the land over centuries, the country’s livestock roads have long been the domain of solitary men leading their flocks to lush pastures.Now a new initiative is looking to change this with the launch of the country’s first shepherding school for women. The aim of the School for Shepherdesses of the 21st Century is twofold: offering women a foothold in a trade long dominated by men, while also throwing a lifeline to the thousands of Spanish towns that are slowly fading from the map. Continue reading...

Programme may help to ensure the survival of the critically endangered variable harlequin toadOne of the world’s rarest toads has been bred in captivity for the first time, thanks to the scientists at Manchester Museum.The critically endangered variable harlequin toad, Atelopus varius, lives deep in the central American rainforests of Panama and Costa Rica, breeding only in turbulent streams filled with stones and boulders on which they lay their eggs. Continue reading...

Investigation questions eco-friendly claims of incineration industryWhen it comes to planet-friendly habits, recycling is by far the UK’s most popular, with 87% of householders claiming they do so regularly, according to the Waste and Resources Action Programme. But an investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches into where our rubbish goes, and the role played by energy-from-waste incineration plants, has found that millions of tonnes of our carefully sorted empties are simply being burned after they’re collected.Freedom of information requests reveal that, on average, 11% of rubbish collected for recycling is incinerated. In some areas the figures are far higher: 45% in Southend-on-Sea and 38% in Warwickshire. Continue reading...

The predators, protected in the south, are widely blamed for attacks on livestock but some think coexistence is possible“There have always been wolves. We humans have hunted and killed all the animals around us because we want everything for ourselves,” says Laura Serrano Isla, who tends her flock of 650 sheep near Burgos in north-west Spain.“We think we rule the world but if we kill all the rest of the animals, the wolf will come for our livestock.” Continue reading...

Toxic particles spewed by wildfires resulted in 10 times as many respiratory-illness related hospitalizations as other types of pollution, researchers foundThe thick, grey wildfire smoke that shrouds California each autumn and winter could be more harmful to humans than pollution from cars and other sources, a new study has found.Coming at the heels of the state’s worst wildfire season on record, the findings add to growing evidence that extreme fires, fueled by climate change, will have increasingly dire health consequences for residents in the western US. Continue reading...

Smart, low-carbon homes were once the preserve of one-off grand designs – now there are up to 30,000 projects in the pipeline

Expanding dairy herds have seen surplus male calves shipped to the continent for veal, but there is unease over welfare conditions

Without policies to encourage buyers, new EV models are unlikely to reach Australia, which could be targeted as a dumping ground for petrol carsAustralians considering buying a new electric car have less choice than motorists in the United States, Europe and the United Kingdom – and it’s throttling the take-up of electric vehicles in the country.In the UK, consumers can choose from 33 base models. That number grows to 39 in the European Union, while across the Atlantic shoppers are spoilt for choice with 43 models made by 26 different manufacturers for sale. Continue reading...

Target is in line with previous trends and could mean greenhouse gas emissions continuing to rise

The best of the week’s wildlife pictures, including a peacock in flight, otters crossing the road and kittiwakes in Newcastle Continue reading...

Move follows eight gorillas testing positive for coronavirus at the zoo at the start of 2021

The Upper Skagit Indian tribe are fighting Seattle to remove the Gorge Dam, and return the river to the section the city de-watered

The remarkable bird has outlived mating partners, and even the biologist who first placed a band on her in 1956At 70 years of age, Wisdom the Laysan albatross has hatched another chick.Regarded as “oldest known wild bird in history”, Wisdom has outlived previous mating partners as well as the biologist Chandler Robbins, who first banded her in 1956. Continue reading...

Indian Ocean states say EU pushing weakest conservation efforts for yellowfin tuna while EU ‘distant fleet’ hoovers up the most fishThe EU has been accused of “hypocrisy and neocolonialism” for proposing insufficient measures to tackle overfishing of yellowfin tuna, while being the largest fisher of the prized species in the Indian Ocean.Smaller than its Atlantic and Pacific bluefin cousins, the yellowfin tuna is one of the ocean’s fastest and strongest predators. Also called ahi tuna, this species is massively overfished in the Indian Ocean – so much so that supermarkets and brands including Tesco, Co-op and Princes recently took the surprising step of joining scientists and environmental groups to call for tough action to rebuild the $4bn population. Continue reading...

Public accounts committee report says despite green rhetoric, government policy is falling shortBoris Johnson has failed to set out a plan for the UK to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions despite the government’s green rhetoric, a committee of MPs has found.Ministers are failing to instruct their departments to take the net zero goal into account when setting policy, there has been little coordination between central and local government on achieving emissions reductions, and the public has not been engaged, the public accounts committee said in a report published on Friday. Continue reading...

Rights group calls for action after cash bounty schemes lead to reptiles being blown up and shot with a bow and arrowA spate of cruelty towards invasive iguanas in Taiwan including stuffing firecrackers in the reptiles’ mouths or shooting them with bows and arrows has prompted animal rights groups to call for a government crackdown.The Environment & Animal Society of Taiwan (East) said local and provincial government campaigns to encourage community involvement in controlling the spread of introduced species lacked guidelines, resulting in “a chaotic free-for-all at the expense of the welfare of the targeted animals”. Continue reading...

Es Devlin, stage designer to Beyoncé, wants London Design Biennale to advance UN’s sustainability planOne of the most famous stone courtyards in Europe will be dramatically transformed this summer when it is taken over by a forest of 400 trees.The stage designer Es Devlin will channel ideas of enchanted woodland when she takes over Somerset House for the 2021 edition of London Design Biennale. Continue reading...

When is a meme worth $600,000? When technology has created a ‘unique’ version that can’t be owned by anyone else

The total number of butterflies west of the Rockies has fallen 1.6% a year since 1977, a study finds – ‘You extrapolate it and it’s crazy’The varied, and beautiful, butterfly species that dot the US west are being cut down by the climate crisis, new research has found, with rising temperatures helping cause a steep decline in butterfly numbers over the past 40 years.There has been a 1.6% reduction in the total number of butterflies observed west of the Rocky Mountain range each year since 1977, researchers calculated, which amounts to a staggering loss of butterflies over the timespan of the study period. Continue reading...