Environment | The Guardian

Australian scientists say shading reef and controlling coral-eating starfish can only be effective if strong action is taken to reduce emissionsShading corals and deploying more heat-resistant species across the Great Barrier Reef on an as-yet untested scale could buy the world heritage site another two decades, according to a study led by Australian government scientists.The scientists said combining “life support” interventions such as cloud brightening – which involves spraying sea water to make low-altitude clouds more reflective – with better management of a coral-eating starfish could help delay “precipitous declines” caused by global heating. Continue reading...

Gruesome 2013 video shows Wayne LaPierre repeatedly failing to finish off the endangered animal from barely five yards awayIn his National Rifle Association biography, Wayne LaPierre boasts of his prowess as “a skilled hunter”.But a newly surfaced video of the gruesome 2013 killing of an endangered savanna elephant in Botswana has revealed a different truth: the gun group’s longtime leader and self-styled role model for big-game hunters is a lousy shot. Continue reading...

Work will stop until 21 August after the discovery of an Anna’s hummingbird nest during construction of TransMountain pipelineActivists and protesters have tried fruitlessly for years to stop the construction of the controversial TransMountain oil pipeline in western Canada.Now, a tiny hummingbird have succeeded where others have fallen short, forcing construction on the multibillion-dollar project to halt for the next four months. Continue reading...

Glacier melt contributing more to sea-level rise than loss of Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, say expertsThe melting of the world’s glaciers has nearly doubled in speed over the past 20 years and contributes more to sea-level rise than either the Greenland or Antarctic ice sheets, according to the most comprehensive global study of ice rivers ever undertaken.Scientists say human-driven global heating is behind the accelerating loss of high-altitude and high-latitude glaciers, which will affect coastal regions across the planet and create boom-and-bust flows of meltwater for the hundreds of millions of people who live downstream of these “natural water towers”. Continue reading...

Unfounded claims do not reflect president’s proposals to tackle global heating, which make no mention of meat consumptionAt a major summit hosted by Joe Biden last week, a procession of world leaders fretted over the spiraling dangers of the climate crisis, with some pledging further cuts to planet-heating emissions, others touting their embrace of electric cars and a few vowing the end of coal.In the US, however, Biden’s political opponents were focused on one pressing matter – meat. Continue reading...

Malcolm Hole spent seven years working on island of volcanological significanceA geologist who spent seven years working in the Antarctic has had a peninsula on the continent named after him in recognition of his work.Dr Malcolm Hole became only the second person to visit Rothschild Island when he arrived there in 1985 and part of it has now been called the Hole peninsula. Continue reading...

Environmental groups claim planned Suffolk power station will devastate marine life and key bird habitatMore than 500 million fish, including protected species, could be sucked into the cooling system of a proposed £20bn nuclear power plant in Suffolk if construction goes ahead, environmental campaigners say.A local campaign group, Together Against Sizewell C (Tasc), claims the subsequent deaths of millions of fish is “inhumane and unacceptable” and flies in the face of the government’s green agenda. Also opposing the development, the bird conservation group RSPB expressed concern over predicted levels of fish loss on the marine birds that feed on them. Continue reading...

Mick de Brenni claimed he was blindsided when Stanwell chief executive Richard van Breda said company was pivoting from coal to renewablesThe board of Queensland state-owned power generator Stanwell corporation spent 18 months planning a transition strategy to pivot from coal to renewables, before the unexpected resignation of its chief executive last week.Guardian Australia understands Richard van Breda quit Stanwell after the state energy minister, Mick de Brenni, complained to board members he was blindsided by an announcement – revealed by the Guardian – that rapidly changing market conditions would probably force the scaled-down operation of its coal plants. Continue reading...

Expedition spent 24 days clearing 10 miles of shoreline in Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, collecting 94,472lb marine debrisIn a span of just over three weeks, more than 47 tons of plastic waste were removed from America’s largest protected marine reserve, sometimes directly off animals, a stark reminder of the scourge of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans.Related: Idaho bill seeks to kill more than 1,000 wolves Continue reading...

Scale of aid cut emerges in leaked FCDO memo, prompting experts to describe it as ‘a national shame’The UK is to slash funding for lifesaving water, sanitation and hygiene projects in developing nations by more than 80%, according to a leaked memo.The cuts have been described as “savage”, “incredible” and “a national shame” by experts highlighting that sanitation and handwashing is a key line of defence during the coronavirus pandemic. The reduction to the bilateral aid budget was revealed as details emerged of cuts in the foreign aid budget. Continue reading...

US has broken promises as Indigenous Americans lack access to safe water, a crisis worsened by Covid-19The US government’s haphazard approach to providing Indigenous American tribes with clean drinking water and sanitation must be radically transformed to tackle decades of underfunding and neglect, according to a new report.An estimated one in 10 Indigenous Americans lack access to safe tap water or basic sanitation – without which a host of health conditions including Covid-19, diabetes, and gastrointestinal disease are more likely. Continue reading...

State environment department says proposal presents ‘a number of unacceptable risks’ due to its Rockhampton locationClive Palmer’s plan to build an open-cut coalmine 10km from the coast of the Great Barrier Reef has been deemed “not suitable” by the Queensland government with its assessment now being sent to the federal environment minister.Palmer’s Central Queensland Coal project, which wants to mine up to 18m tonnes of coal a year from two pits near Rockhampton, posed “a number of unacceptable risks”, the Queensland Department of Environment and Science has decided. Continue reading...

Don’t be alarmed if you spot one in your compost heap, they are harmless, except to pests like slugsIf it looks like a snake but blinks, it is a slow worm: Anguis fragilis. That is the helpful hint for the squeamish who might worry about the appearance of a greyish brown or black legless lizard in their garden compost heap. Your reaction should be delight, as slow worms are entirely harmless and a gardener’s friend; they eat slow-moving prey like slugs and other garden pests.They are the most likely of Britain’s reptiles to be found in gardens but like any damp and boggy place on the edge of woodland or in tufty grasslands. They are most numerous in Wales and the West Country but can appear anywhere in Britain although populations can be patchy. Continue reading...

MPs say Treasury has not set out how tax system will help UK meet target to cut emissionsThe Treasury cannot explain how it will manage declines in tax revenues worth £37bn from fossil fuels as the UK shifts to a clean economy, MPs have warned.A report from the influential parliamentary public accounts committee also warned that the Treasury had not set out how the tax system was going to help the government meet the target to cut emissions to “net zero” by 2050. Continue reading...

People were uncertain the fish existed, until citizen scientists made an underwater recording

Since Trump administration removed protections for gray wolves in January, groups and states have moved to open up huntingLawmakers in Idaho are pushing to drastically reduce wolf numbers in the state, perhaps by as much as over 90%, complementing other US efforts to shrink their population.Idaho’s gray wolf population was recently estimated at 1,556, but sponsors of a bill approved in the state senate last week say that the preferred number of wolf packs in the state is 15. Because a wolf pack in the region averages 10 wolves, this means the bill could lead to hunters killing well over 1,000 wolves. Continue reading...

Food website Epicurious has announced that it won’t run beef recipes any more as part of a shift towards sustainable consumptionThe food website Epicurious will no longer feature beef in its recipes, in an effort to help drive more sustainable consumption.The decision to cut cows from the menu was announced on Monday, but the organisation is confident readers will not miss the meat – because it actually made the change a year ago and has not published a beef recipe since. Continue reading...

Huge concerts and nonstop touring mean the music business is in dire need of reform. Performers have begun to lead – but can their industry reshape itself as the world reopens?Before the pandemic struck, it wasn’t uncommon for DJs to fly between three European cities in a weekend. The carbon footprint of globetrotting tours was massive. Festivals and gigs were criticised for the levels of waste they created. Streaming services, requiring ever more processing power, have had a burgeoning impact, as has the recent craze of selling music via NFTs (non-fungible tokens).But a series of announcements last week, coordinated by the Music Declares Emergency collective, have challenged the idea that the industry is not taking the climate emergency seriously. After a uniquely difficult year for those in live music, perhaps this is an inflection point: can the recovery from Covid-19 be green? Continue reading...

Nestlé, accused of taking millions more gallons than it is entitled to, receives draft cease-and-desist order from state officialsCalifornia water officials have moved to stop Nestlé from siphoning millions of gallons of water out of California’s San Bernardino forest, which it bottles and sells as Arrowhead brand water, as drought conditions worsen across the state.Related: ‘Water warriors’: the US women banding together to fight for water justice Continue reading...

Scheme involving ‘ bee hotels’ and ‘bee stops’ reaps rewards as census shows no strong decline in urban populationBee hotels, bee stops and a honey highway are some of the techniques the Dutch are crediting with keeping their urban bee population steady in recent years, after a period of worrying decline.Last week, more than 11,000 people from across the Netherlands participated in a bee-counting exercise as part of the fourth edition of the national bee census. Continue reading...

Extent of possible toxic waste site near Catalina Island ‘staggering’, says chief scientist on sea survey

Powering Past Coal Alliance accused of failing to follow up on pledges as many countries expand use of coalAn attempt by the UK government to encourage countries and businesses around the world to quit coal for power generation is failing to make an impact, and in danger of being used as “greenwash”, an assessment has found.The Powering Past Coal Alliance, led by the UK and Canada, with 111 members including 24 governments, local governments and businesses, is a key plank of Boris Johnson’s strategy for vital UN climate talks to be hosted in Glasgow in November. Continue reading...

Chemicals and plastics, not just overfishing, threaten aquatic food chain with ‘disaster’, report warns

From abandoned car plants to poisoned and dried-out lakes, Travis Fox’s bird’s eye views of the US capture the nation’s terrifying pace of change Continue reading...

Rich countries urged to stump up to help developing nations cut greenhouse gas emissions

Countryside visitors told to avoid barbecues after large fire broke out on Marsden Moor, devastated in 2019A fire chief has called on visitors to the countryside to refrain from “reckless behaviour” on days out as lockdown eases, after a large fire broke out on Marsden Moor over the weekend, along with fires in Cumbria and Bury.Dave Russel, Greater Manchester fire and rescue service’s chief fire officer, described a very busy 72 hours for the force, with a major incident being declared at the Bury fire. Continue reading...

Objectors say relief road contradicts council’s net zero target and will damage local wildlife sitesA 550-year-old tree known as “Darwin’s oak”, 4km of hedgerows and an internationally-renowned wetland are threatened by a new road around Shrewsbury, which has gathered more than 1,000 formal objections.The £84.3m Shrewsbury north-west relief road planned by Shropshire council is becoming a local election issue, with the Conservative-controlled council arguing that the scheme, which completes a ring-road around the medieval town, will alleviate traffic and unlock land for housing. Continue reading...

Industry’s congressional allies defeated nearly all PFAS legislation while the Trump EPA killed, watered down or slowalked new rulesThe nation’s top PFAS manufacturers executed a lobbying and campaign donation blitz in recent years as the federal government attempted to regulate the toxic compounds.A Guardian analysis of campaign finance records found spending on PFAS issues jumped as lawmakers introduced over 100 new pieces of legislation in 2019 and 2020, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed strong new restrictions. Observers say the results are clear: industry’s congressional allies defeated nearly all PFAS legislation while the Trump EPA killed, watered down or slowalked new rules that never went into effect. Continue reading...

In the lead-up to a byelection, residents express outrage about decision, saying, ‘It’s not an expansion, it’s a whole new pit’A coalmine in the Upper Hunter Valley has been given approval to expand by the New South Wales Independent Planning Commission.Mangoola Coal Operations, a subsidiary of Glencore Coal, applied to extract an additional 52m tonnes of coal over eight years at the Mangoola mine near Muswellbrook. Continue reading...

Film about human-octopus bonding in an undersea kelp forest takes the top documentary prize at the Academy AwardsMy Octopus Teacher, the heartwarming story of a human-octopus friendship, has won the Oscar for best documentary at the 93rd Academy Awards, which are taking place in Los Angeles.Directed by Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed, My Octopus Teacher follows film-maker and diver Craig Foster as he explores an underwater kelp forest near Cape Town, South Africa. Foster appears to bond with an octopus he encounters living in the area. Continue reading...

Businesses must adopt Paris emissions targets even if the government fails to do so, big investors sayBig super funds have threatened to vote against company directors who do not make sure their businesses are committed to action on global heating that includes hitting net zero by 2050.The Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (Acsi), which represents investors that manage more than $1tn in retirement savings and hold about 10% of the shares in the top 200 companies in the country, said some boards were not tackling the climate crisis quickly enough. Continue reading...

The climate emergency should not be used to make poorer countries dependent on private finance

Investigation finds up to 40% of UK solar farms were built using panels from leading Chinese companiesSolar projects commissioned by the Ministry of Defence, the government’s Coal Authority, United Utilities and some of the UK’s biggest renewable energy developers are using panels made by Chinese solar companies accused of exploiting forced labour camps in Xinjiang province, a Guardian investigation has found.Confidential industry data suggests that up to 40% of the UK’s solar farms were built using panels manufactured by China’s biggest solar panel companies, including Jinko Solar, JA Solar and Trina Solar. Continue reading...

About 31,800 battery electric cars were sold in Britain in first three months of 2021The UK overtook France to become Europe’s second largest electric car market in the first quarter of the year, amid rising demand for cars with zero exhaust emissions.About 31,800 battery electric cars were sold in the UK in the first three months of the year, compared with 30,500 in France, according to analysis by Matthias Schmidt, an independent automotive analyst. Continue reading...

If politicians are serious about change, they need to incentivise it, say scientists and writersThe UK business secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, is considering a “full vegan diet” to help tackle climate change, saying people will need to make lifestyle changes if the government is to meet its new emissions target of a 78% reduction on 1990 levels by 2035.But how much difference would it make if everyone turned to a plant-based diet? Experts say changing the way we eat is necessary for the future of the planet but that government policy is needed alongside this. If politicians are serious about wanting dietary changes, they also need to incentivise it, scientists and writers add. Continue reading...

The red list of species at risk is well-known, but the list for protected sites is quietly helping to ‘paint the planet green’When Kawésqar national park was formed in the Chilean part of Patagonia in 2019, just one ranger was responsible for an expanse the size of Belgium. Its fjords, forests and Andean peaks are a precious wilderness – one of the few remaining ecosystems undamaged by human activity, alongside parts of the Amazon, the Sahara and eastern Siberia.Chilean officials hope that Kawésqar will, one day, meet the high standards for protected areas laid out by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and make it on to the organisation’s “green list”. Continue reading...

Australian smarts and Chinese industrial might made solar power the cheapest power humanity has seen – and no one saw it comingIn the year 2000, the International Energy Agency (IEA) made a prediction that would come back to haunt it: by 2020, the world would have installed a grand total of 18 gigawatts of photovoltaic solar capacity. Seven years later, the forecast would be proven spectacularly wrong when roughly 18 gigawatts of solar capacity were installed in a single year alone.Ever since the agency was founded in 1974 to measure the world’s energy systems and anticipate changes, the yearly World Energy Outlook has been a must-read document for policymakers the world over. Continue reading...

The tougher target for carbon reduction could dramatically reshape the fortunes of several industries – for better or worseBoris Johnson’s plan to accelerate the UK’s climate ambitions over the next 15 years, revealed last week, will hasten progress towards a carbon-neutral economy by 2050. The new target – to cut the UK’s carbon emissions by 78%, compared with 1990 levels, by 2035 – toughens an earlier pledge for a 68% reduction by 2030. This greater ambition could boost the fortunes of several low-carbon technologies which stand ready for a rapid roll-out. Here are the winners and losers from the new targets. Continue reading...

Warning comes after lack of new funding pledges at virtual summit attended by 40 world leaders and hosted by White HouseRich countries have failed to provide the financial assistance needed for the developing world to cut greenhouse gas emissions and cope with the impacts of climate breakdown, poorer nations have warned, after a US summit of world leaders ended with few new funding promises.The failure leaves billions of people at risk from the worsening ravages of extreme weather, as poor countries struggle with the Covid-19 crisis and rapidly mounting debt. Continue reading...

The administration has pledged to cut US emissions by half by 2030, one of the most ambitious goals for a developed countryJoe Biden has closed out a two-day climate summit of more than 40 world leaders by warning that the planet risks reaching the “point of no return” if more isn’t done to escalate efforts to constrain the climate crisis.Biden, along with several other national leaders, made a number of new promises in the summit. Here’s what it all means. Continue reading...

Is this the year to venture to a national park? Questions to consider include Covid risks, crowding and staffing shortagesFor most of the last year, Dan Stark has been cooped up in his home in south-west Portland, Oregon. But with spring upon us – and Stark’s first vaccination shot – he and his family have been dreaming of summer vacation. “We’ve been talking about what our Covid freedom trip is going to be,” he says.The family settled on plans for an RV trip the first week of July, by which time, they reasoned, they’d all be vaccinated. Stark began looking into parks the family had yet to experience and set his sights on Montana’s Glacier national park, known for its dramatic mountain views and stunning alpine lakes. Continue reading...

Did you know that tomatoes respond to a high C note? Or that the prickly pear made red fabric popular, and yams helped create the contraceptive pill?Often beautiful, sometimes deadly, but constantly ingenious, plants are the sources of life and delight, myth and mayhem.Their worlds are intricately entwined with our own history, culture and folklore. Some have a troubling past, while others have ignited human creativity or enabled whole civilisations to flourish. Continue reading...

Countries with poor track records on climate change, including Brazil and Saudi Arabia, were also courted at virtual summitThe US will work with Russia on ways to combat the climate crisis, President Joe Biden has announced, saying he looked forward to joint efforts and was “very heartened” by the country’s call for collaboration on new technologies such as carbon removal.But though Russia’s president Vladimir Putin insisted he was “genuinely interested in galvanising international cooperation so as to look further for effective solutions to climate change as well as to all other vital challenges”, he made no mention of reducing oil and gas supply or consumption. Continue reading...

Find a tree, bush or hedge and emulate Japanese custom of hanami by savouring sights and scents of springLife may be getting busier as the long, hard lockdowns come to an end but people are being urged to pause for a few moments to savour the sights and scents of one of nature’s precious but fleeting glories – the blossom season.The National Trust is launching on Saturday what it bills as the UK’s first ever “blossom watch” day. The idea is that people will find a tree, bush or hedge bursting with blooms, perhaps meet friends and family there and – if so inclined – share images of the moment on social media using the hashtag #BlossomWatch. Continue reading...

President had promised to double budget for environmental enforcement at conference organised by Joe BidenBrazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has approved a 24% cut to the environment budget for 2021 from the previous year’s level, just one day after vowing to increase spending to fight deforestation.Speaking on Thursday to the summit organised by US President Joe Biden, Bolsonaro pledged to double the budget for environmental enforcement and end illegal deforestation by 2030. Continue reading...

Executive order is a reversal for Governor Gavin Newsom, who faced pressure from environmental groups for previously resisting a banCalifornia’s governor has moved to ban new fracking permits by 2024 and halt all oil extraction by 2045.California, the most populous US state, produces the third largest amount of oil in the country. It would be the first state to end all extraction. Continue reading...

Scott Morrison’s summit claim that Australia is taking significant action challenged by Investor Group on Climate Change analysis

Six activists cleared of causing criminal damage to Shell’s London headquarters in 2019Six Extinction Rebellion protesters have been cleared of causing criminal damage to Shell’s London headquarters despite the judge directing jurors that they had no defence in law.Two of the group’s co-founders, Simon Bramwell, 49, and Ian Bray, 53, were acquitted on Friday alongside Jane Augsburger, 55, Senan Clifford, 60, David Lambert, 62, and James “Sid” Saunders, 41, after a trial at Southwark crown court. Continue reading...

World leaders will be unable to halt climate breakdown without strong action from biggest emitterThe US, the world’s second biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, is now committed to halving emissions this decade.Joe Biden’s announcement, at a White House virtual climate summit, has thrown the spotlight clearly on the world’s biggest emitter: China. Continue reading...