Environment | The Guardian

A specially deployed team of remote air firefighters helped save the trees from the giant Gospers Mountain fireFirefighters have saved the only known natural stand of Wollemi pines, so-called “dinosaur trees” that fossil records show existed up to 200m years ago, from the bushfires that have devastated New South Wales.The state’s environment minister, Matt Kean, said a specially deployed team of remote air firefighters helped save the critically endangered trees from the giant Gospers Mountain fire. Continue reading...

Divestment decision by the world’s biggest fund manager called a breakthrough – but only a first stepIn recent decades, environmentalists have grown used to disappointment when big companies and Wall Street pay lip service to concern over the climate crisis. On Tuesday, it looked like something might have changed.The decision by the private equity giant BlackRock – the world’s biggest fund manager – to exit investments that “present a high sustainability-related risk” has been welcomed by environmentalists as a significant moment in the battle to reshape the relationship between money and the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Expected falls up to 80mm in fire grounds in Victoria and New South Wales called a ‘double-edged sword’Forecast heavy rains across bushfire-hit areas of Victoria and New South Wales may cause mass fish deaths as ash and sediment is washed into rivers, the Murray-Darling Basin Authority has warned.Central parts of Victoria and and NSW are forecast to see falls up to 80mm between Thursday and Sunday, some of it in areas recovering from bushfires. Fire grounds in the Snowy Mountains and south coast regions of NSW may get strong falls. Continue reading...

Facility threatens UK’s aim to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, report saysBritain’s first new deep coalmine in 30 years is unnecessary and incompatible with UK climate ambitions, according to a report.The £165m Woodhouse colliery in Cumbria was given cross party-backing in March 2019, leading to protests from climate campaigners who said the mine would harm the UK’s efforts to reduce CO emissions. Continue reading...

Survey reveals internationally protected natural habitats are among the areas at riskHS2 will destroy or irreparably damage five internationally protected wildlife sites, 693 local wildlife sites, 108 ancient woodlands and 33 legally protected sites of special scientific interest, according to the most comprehensive survey of its impact on wildlife.Swaths of other irreplaceable natural habitat will be lost to the new high-speed line, with endangered wildlife such as willow tit, white-clawed crayfish and dingy skipper butterfly at risk of local extinction. Continue reading...

Doctors liken this summer’s hazardous bushfire smoke to the days when we realised the sun contributes to skin cancerUnprecedented bushfires have sparked health concerns for Australia’s most vulnerable populations, but proper education and adequate policies may help the public to cope better, according to the Public Health Association of Australia.People such as children under the age of 14, those over the age of 65, pregnant women and individuals with pre-existing respiratory issues are at the highest risk during periods of poor air quality. Continue reading...

Migration routes after nesting in French Guiana found extended as far as Nova Scotia and France, research showsLeatherback turtles are making exhausting journeys, in some cases nearly twice as long as usual, from nesting to feeding grounds, because of rising ocean temperatures and changing sea currents.After nesting, turtles must move to cooler waters to feed, but higher temperatures mean some are having to swim further to reach suitable areas, according to research from Greenpeace and the French Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, part of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique. Continue reading...

Rain forecast to bring relief from smoke haze in afternoon as 12 people remain at Tamboon, which is cut off by fireEnvironmental authorities have warned much of Victoria is set for another smoky day on Wednesday, but conditions are expected to improve with rain forecast for large parts of the state by the afternoon.The forecast comes after small group of residents still in a town cut off by bushfire were forced to shelter on the beach after a blaze in Victoria’s East Gippsland flared. Continue reading...

Labour leadership contender says public should be more involved to build consensus

BlackRock CEO says climate crisis will now dictate investments but environmentalists remain waryBlackRock, the world’s largest fund manager, has announced it will put sustainability at the heart of its investment decisions.In his annual letter to chief executives, the BlackRock boss, Larry Fink, writes that the climate emergency is altering how investors view the long-term prospects of companies. “Awareness is rapidly changing, and I believe we are on the edge of a fundamental reshaping of finance.” Continue reading...

Asset management giant promises to put environmental issues at the heart of its investment strategy, following pressure from climate protesters

Dramatic reduction in population needed to combat biodiversity crisis, say expertsA coalition of Scottish conservation groups has called for legally enforceable culls of deer to be imposed on private landowners and stalking estates, while raising the prospect of local communities becoming more involved in shooting and killing deer for food.The report, published by Scottish Environment Link (SEL), which includes the John Muir Trust, the National Trust for Scotland, RSPB Scotland and the Scottish Wildlife Trust, argues that a dramatic reduction in the country’s wild deer population is needed to tackle accelerating climate and biodiversity crises. Continue reading...

MP Tim Farron expected to be among thousands attending day of activism in GrasmereThousands of protesters are expected to descend on the Lake District next month to demonstrate over what they say is the increasing push to develop the national park for commercial gain.Protesters are planning a day of activism following a series of public outcries over the threat of commercialisation of the national park. The move has echoes of the Kinder Scout mass trespass of 1932. Then, hundreds of radical ramblers walked across hills and moorland which had previously been the preserve of landed gentry, eventually resulting in the creation of Britain’s national parks. Continue reading...

After purifiers were installed in southern California classrooms following a gas leak, students saw gains on math and English testsA 2015 gas leak that belched toxic chemicals into the air and spread panic may have indirectly led to higher student test scores.In the days after a gas leak was discovered in Aliso Canyon, 30 miles north of Los Angeles, thousands of residents were evacuated from the area, many of whom reported headaches, nausea, stomach aches, dizziness or breathing problems. Students from two nearby schools were relocated and 18 other schools were impacted. Continue reading...

Colombia was the bloodiest nation with 103 murders and the Philippines was second, followed by Brazil, Honduras and MexicoMore than 300 human rights defenders working to protect the environment, free speech, LGBTQ rights and indigenous lands in 31 countries were killed in 2019, a new report reveals.Two thirds of the total killings took place in Latin America where impunity from prosecution is the norm. Continue reading...

Authorities warn people to take health precautions as firefighters spend night responding to alarms triggered by smoke hazeVictorians started Tuesday by breathing in the worst air in the world due to smoke blowing down from bushfires in the state’s east and New South Wales.The city centre recorded hazardous levels of fine particles in the air from 12am to 4am and had since been categorised as very poor by the Environmental Protection Authority. Continue reading...

Deadly ‘heat islands’ which have fewer green spaces and tree canopy linked to racist policies in urban neighborhoods, study findsDeadly urban heatwaves disproportionately affect underserved neighbourhoods because of the legacy of racist housing policies which have denied African Americans home ownership and basic public services, a landmark new study has found.Extreme heat kills hundreds of people in the US every year – more than any other hazardous weather event, including hurricanes, tornadoes and flooding, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Heatwaves have been occurring more frequently since the mid-20th century, and are expected to become more common, more severe and longer-lasting due to the climate crisis. Continue reading...

US asset manager that built up fossil fuel portfolio fails to join rivals in engaging with climateVanguard, the world’s second largest asset manager, has refused to sign up to a group of major investors demanding that polluters respond to the climate crisis, despite its rival BlackRock relenting to pressure to do so.The US investment manager’s decision leaves it increasingly isolated after BlackRock last week joined Climate Action 100+ (CA100+), a group of asset managers that pushes the largest fossil fuel producers to show how they will meet carbon dioxide reduction targets. Continue reading...

Protest group leader Luisa Neubauer says she would lose right to criticise the companyThe leader of Germany’s Friday for Future climate protests has said she turned down a seat on the board of Siemens’ new energy business amid growing anger over its role in a controversial coalmining project in Australia as she feared she would lose the right to criticise the company.Luisa Neubauer, 23, the German face of the campaign group inspired by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who has campaigned alongside her, said on Monday the position would jeopardise her independence if she had taken up the offer from its chief executive, Joe Kaeser, made at a meeting in Berlin on Friday. Continue reading...

Oceans are clearest measure of climate crisis as they absorb 90% of heat trapped by greenhouse gasesThe heat in the world’s oceans reached a new record level in 2019, showing “irrefutable and accelerating” heating of the planet.The world’s oceans are the clearest measure of the climate emergency because they absorb more than 90% of the heat trapped by the greenhouse gases emitted by fossil fuel burning, forest destruction and other human activities. Continue reading...

Labour leadership frontrunner joins police chiefs in denouncing the move

With its old ideology being treated with universal scorn, a new line is being embraced – and it could signal the death of the planetThe impact of climate-change over the past five months across Australia has caused climate-change deniers within the media and government to quickly update their tactics to a new sinister position.Gone are the plans to just keep lying for the next decade that activists such as Greta Thunberg are predicting that the world is going to end in 2030, or to continue to flub and fudge the science – no real warming since 1998, 2005, 2010, 2016! Solar activity! Volcanoes! Greenland! Continue reading...

Only 15 giant Española tortoises were left in the wild before one male sired 800 offspring in a wildly successful breeding programThe Galápagos National Park has announced it is ending a captive breeding program for giant Española tortoises, after one tortoise produced more than 800 offspring, helping save the species.Related: Giant tortoise believed extinct for 100 years found in Galápagos Continue reading...

Rollout of new turbines is in decline amid Tory subsidy cuts, jeopardising climate targetsThe government’s current energy policies have led to a sharp decline in the number of new onshore windfarms, raising fears that the UK may fall short of the renewable energy it needs to generate to meet its climate targets.Industry data shows the ­rollout of new onshore windfarms fell dramatically after the ­government scrapped subsidy schemes four years ago. Continue reading...

Proposal would involve rerouting traffic to ring road in attempt to improve air qualityThrough traffic could be banned from Birmingham city centre under plans being considered by the council to reduce emissions.The proposal, which forms part of the draft Birmingham transport plan, published on Monday, would involve rerouting traffic to a ring road in an effort to improve air quality in the city centre. Continue reading...

Paris-style proposal to counter loss of ecosystems and wildlife vital to the future of humanity will go before October summitAlmost a third of the world’s oceans and land should be protected by the end of the decade to stop and reverse biodiversity decline that risks the survival of humanity, according to a draft Paris-style UN agreement on nature.To combat what scientists have described as the sixth mass extinction event in Earth’s history, the proposal sets a 2030 deadline for the conservation and restoration of ecosystems and wildlife that perform crucial services for humans. Continue reading...

DHS listed activists engaged in non-violent civil disobedience targeting oil industry alongside white supremacists in documentsA group of US environmental activists engaged in non-violent civil disobedience targeting the oil industry have been listed in internal Department of Homeland Security documents as “extremists” and some of its members listed alongside white nationalists and mass killers, documents obtained by the Guardian reveal.The group have been dubbed the Valve Turners, after closing the valves on pipelines in four states carrying crude oil from Canada’s tar sands on 11 October 2016 which accounted for about 15% of US daily consumption. It was described as the largest coordinated action of its kind and for a few hours the oil stopped flowing. Continue reading...

Catastrophic bushfire burns through half Kangaroo Island’s landmass, devastating wildlife and the sheep populationUp to 100,000 sheep were killed in bushfires on Kangaroo Island and at least 25,000 more livestock perished in fires on mainland Australia, farming groups have said.Kangaroo Island farmers ordered thousands of rounds of ammunition to shoot animals that were critically injured in a catastrophic bushfire that has burned through half of the island’s landmass, devastating a significant koala population and thousands of other wildlife and killing up to one-sixth of the sheep population. Continue reading...

78 out of 154 universities joined campaign in blow to big oil’s ‘social licence’, campaigners sayHalf of UK universities have signed up to divest from fossil fuels in what campaigners say is a significant blow to the “social licence” of big oil.Seventy-eight of the UK’s 154 public universities have joined the divestment campaign, either divesting or pledging to divest hundreds of millions from the fossil fuel industry. Continue reading...

New Economics Foundation calls for £50bn to reboot economy on greener footingThe government fightback against the next recession should include pumping as much as £50bn into green projects, in a move that would help reboot the economy and tackle the climate emergency, according to a left-leaning thinktank.Against a backdrop of concern among economists that Britain is ill-equipped to combat another downturn on the scale of the 2008 financial crisis, the New Economics Foundation thinktank said a green plan to beat a future slump was required. Continue reading...

Gold prospectors are ravaging the Yanomami indigenous reserve. So why does President Bolsonaro want to make them legal?Deep in the Yanomami indigenous reserve on the northern reaches of the Brazilian Amazon, the ruins of an illegal goldminers’ camp emerge after an hour in a small plane and two in a boat. No roads reach here.Wooden frames alongside the Uraricoera River that once supported shops, bars, restaurants, a pharmacy, an evangelical church and even brothels are all that is left of the small town. The army burned and trashed it as part of an operation aimed at stamping out wildcat mining on the reserve. Continue reading...

Joe Kaeser says he must balance stakeholder interests as climate change activists protest company’s decisionGlobal engineering company Siemens will not pull out of a contract at the new Adani coalmine in Australia, rejecting calls from climate campaigners including Greta Thunberg.President and CEO of Siemens, Joe Kaeser, announced Monday that after reviewing the rail signalling contract the company had “a legally binding and enforceable fiduciary responsibility.” Continue reading...

Changes to the curriculum will put the country at the forefront of climate crisis education worldwideEvery school in New Zealand will this year have access to materials about the climate crisis written by the country’s leading science agencies – including tools for students to plan their own activism, and to process their feelings of “eco-anxiety” over global heating.The curriculum will put New Zealand at the forefront of climate change education worldwide; governments in neighbouring Australia and the United Kingdom have both faced criticism for lack of cohesive teaching on the climate crisis. The New Zealand scheme, which will be offered to all schools that teach 11 to 15 year-old students, will not be compulsory, the government said. Continue reading...

British Heart Foundation predicts current total of 11,000 particulate-related deaths per year will continue to rise

Power provided on new tariff to come exclusively from small-scale wind and solar farmsUK homes will soon be able to plug into community wind and solar farms from anywhere in the country through the first energy tariff to offer clean electricity exclusively from community projects.The deal from Co-op Energy comes as green energy suppliers race to prove their sustainability credentials amid rising competition for eco-conscious customers and “greenwashing” in the market. Continue reading...

Latest controversy comes at a problematic time for UK anti-radicalisation scheme

Sir Peter Fahy says efforts to stop terrorism could be undermined by such mistakes

Announcement comes after conservation groups wrote to environment minister Sussan Ley expressing concern for at least 13 animal speciesThe Morrison government will pledge $50m to help rescue and protect wildlife affected by the bushfire crisis, with a promise of more to come, as environment groups warn some species may have already been driven to extinction.The commitment, to be drawn from the government’s $2bn bushfire recovery fund, will be described as a downpayment to be spent immediately on priorities in burned areas and to start longer-term restoration of lost habitat. Continue reading...

US greenhouse gas emissions are up since 2017 and Trump’s administration has ripped up curbs on climate pollutersClimate pollution in the US is up under Donald Trump and threatens to undermine international efforts to stall the crisis, especially if he wins re-election this year and secures a second term in the White House.While US climate emissions fell 2.1% in 2019, they rose significantly in 2018, according to estimates from the economic analysis firm Rhodium Group. On net, emissions are slightly higher than in the beginning of 2017, when Trump’s administration began enacting dozens of environment rollbacks aimed at helping the oil and gas industry. Continue reading...

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Performers join forces with experts for two-month Climate Change festival in a London theatreAfter Extinction Rebellion’s call for urgent action on the streets of London last year, the issue of climate change is to stage another major London takeover. From 23 March, the wider environmental debate will dominate proceedings inside a West End theatre for eight weeks.Performers including Alistair McGowan, Rob Brydon, Gaby Roslin and Jason Manford are to join experts in the field at the Charing Cross theatre, alongside the double Olivier award-winner and West End leading lady, Janie Dee, for the inaugural London Climate Change festival. Continue reading...

The freshest developments and innovations, from ethical clothing to quizzical furnitureWhen Philippe Malouin was asked by Finnish glass manufacturer Iittala to create vessels that could be used to declutter people’s living spaces, he began by taking a critical look at his own home. Continue reading...

Group threatens action after being named in guide designed to help prevent terrorismExtinction Rebellion is threatening legal action against counter-terrorism police for what it said was the illegal listing of the group as an extremist ideology in a guide designed to help stop terrorist violence.The Guardian revealed on Friday that counter-terrorism police had placed the non-violent protest group on a list of extremist ideologies that should be reported to the authorities running the Prevent anti-radicalisation programme. Police now say that was an error. Continue reading...

A biotech startup is researching building materials that could revolutionise construction. Not only are they biodegradable – some also absorb toxinsCocoa husks, dried orange peel, ground blue pea flowers: the ingredients read like a tasting menu. They are, in fact, waste products that are used to make Orb – a sustainable building material that is carbon neutral. It’s versatile enough to be used for furniture or as a substitute for a wood-based sheet materialOrb is produced by Biohm, a startup founded in 2016 by Ehab Sayed. Sayed grew up in Doha, Qatar, and says his home town is one of the “biggest motivators” for him to inspire change. “Although it is the richest country in the world, it is likely one of the least sustainable and a contributor to the climate crisis,” he says. “Growing up in this environment resulted in a resentment towards the impact we are having on our planet.” Continue reading...

Tiny crystals found on edge of Great Salt Lake may offer insight about similar structures on the red planet, scientists sayRare salt formations have been documented for the first time on the shores of the Great Salt Lake, and they could yield insights about salt structures found on Mars before they disappear for good.They’re showing up now in part because water levels at the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi have been lowered by drought and water diversion, exposing more shoreline. It’s a story that’s playing out throughout the American west as a growing population puts more demand on scarce water resources. Continue reading...

Federal force unable to afford to bring fleet into line with new regulations in major citiesBelgium’s federal police have fallen foul of tighter emissions controls that come into force at the start of the year, with some of its cars and vans now too dirty to enter the cities of Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent.The force said it was unable to afford to renew its entire fleet of several thousand vehicles and had already told the authorities about the situation. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Police scramble to recall guide issued to teachers putting climate activists alongside far-right groupsCounter-terrorism police placed the non-violent group Extinction Rebellion (XR) on a list of extremist ideologies that should be reported to the authorities running the Prevent programme, which aims to catch those at risk of committing atrocities, the Guardian has learned.The climate emergency campaign group was included in a 12-page guide produced by counter-terrorism police in the south-east titled Safeguarding young people and adults from ideological extremism, which is marked as “official”. Continue reading...

President backs democratic experiment handing power to 150 people chosen at randomIn a grandiose 1930s building on the banks of the Seine in Paris, 150 French citizens chosen at random had gathered. Ranging from 16-year-old school pupils to carers, shuttle-bus drivers and retired rail workers, the French president said these ordinary people would define the next phase of his term in power.They are part of France’s latest democratic experiment: a randomly selected citizens’ assembly that has been promised more power than any other – the ability to set Emmanuel Macron’s policy on cutting carbon emissions, as he faces harsh criticism that he is not doing enough to tackle the climate emergency. Continue reading...

The pick of the best flora and fauna photos from around the world, including long-eared owls and an injured koala Continue reading...