Environment | The Guardian

A third of €100bn post-Covid package to be used for greener future, but critics say it falls short

Hundreds of animals perished in Botswana and new deaths are reported in Zimbabwe – now scientists are trying to find the causeEarlier this year, more than 350 elephants mysteriously died in the Okavango delta in Botswana. Individuals of all ages and both sexes were affected, with many walking in circles before dying suddenly, collapsing on their faces. The mass die-off in May and June was described as a “conservation disaster”.Three months later, most surviving elephants have fled. Last week a plane flew over the Okavango Panhandle, an area in the north-west of the delta where most of the deaths occurred, and eight elephants were spotted, when normally you would see hundreds, says Dr Niall McCann, director of conservation at UK-based charity National Park Rescue. “It is understandable, I’m sure you or I would flee if all our friends and relatives were dying, and that’s what the elephants appear to have done.” Continue reading...

Two companies granted permission to clear land at Hwange national park, home to cheetahs, elephants and rhinosRhinos, giraffes, cheetahs and other endangered species face a new threat in Zimbabwe’s Hwange national park: Chinese mining companies.Zhongxin Coal Mining Group and Afrochine Smelting have received permission from the government to begin environmental impact assessments for drilling, land clearance, road building and geological surveys at two proposed sites inside the park, which is home to almost 10% of Africa’s remaining wild elephants. Continue reading...

Green activists say 74-year-old’s primary victory over Joe Kennedy in Massachusetts shows putting the crisis first can succeedUS climate advocates have their highest-profile evidence yet that putting the crisis first can win elections. And it arrived in an unlikely package: a 74-year-old Senate incumbent, who garnered intense grassroots support from young activists.Related: 'A political awakening': south Asians to play growing role in US elections Continue reading...

Liberty condemns ‘unworkable restrictions, fines and arrests’ used by police to stifle ralliesCivil liberty experts have warned that peaceful protest is under threat in the UK, after the environmental campaigners were targeted with pre-emptive arrest and “unworkable restrictions” were placed on this week’s Extinction Rebellion (XR) demonstrations.Thousands of people have taken to the streets this week to highlight the escalating climate emergency and demand urgent action from the government. Continue reading...

The devastating blazes began just as I began a two-week quarantine. We desperately need leadershipAt 10am on 16 August, I drove east from Santa Cruz to Oakland to my mom’s nursing home, where I was being allowed in, in full PPE, to kiss her a last goodbye. As I curved north through San Jose, I could see a billowing steel-gray fire cloud among the hills to the east. Lightning flashed past Berkeley as I pulled into the parking lot. On the way home, I took the long route across the San Mateo Bridge, then over the top of the San Francisco Peninsula and south from Half Moon Bay. Halfway down the coast I saw a helicopter dropping bright red pillows of retardant on to a fire streaming its smoke in a flat horizontal panel out to the ocean. Ten minutes later I passed white smoke pouring down another canyon on my left. Before I pulled into my driveway at the edge of Santa Cruz, I could see a fourth, giant fire spewing far to the south beyond Salinas.By afternoon it was clear that the fires I’d seen were just a few of the hundreds sparked all over northern California by freak thunderstorms that weekend, in which 10,800 lightning strikes ignited 367 fires. Soon, hundreds of the small fires converged into bigger and bigger ones, so fast and so vast that Cal Fire didn’t even give names to the largest ones as it usually does, resorting to acronyms like the SCU Lightning Complex, the LNU Lightning Complex, and my own fire to the north and east of Santa Cruz, the CZU Lightning Complex. Continue reading...

Conservationists say relaxing of regulations poses threat to welfare of minke whalesDemand for whale meat in Norway is rising after years of decline, although activists have warned the loosening of regulations could damage the welfare of the animals.Norway remains one of only three countries to publicly allow commercial whaling, along with Japan and Iceland. Much of the catch is sent to Japan, where demand is high, but for the first time in years businesses have reported increased interest in eating whale meat domestically. Continue reading...

The move outrages Labor, the Greens, crossbench MPs and conservationists with the legislation now headed to the SenateLegislation to change Australia’s environmental laws has been rammed through the lower house by the Morrison government prompting outrage from Labor, the Greens and the crossbench.The government’s bill would amend the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act, clearing the way for the transfer of development approval powers to state and territory governments. Continue reading...

Fearing red signs sent the wrong message, one resident created an alternative – and councils are taking noteAn alternative road sign is being adopted by communities around England to promote the benefits of low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTN).Finding that the official signs on the temporary barriers installed in her own LTN in Brixton, London, conveyed the wrong message, Sarah Berry and other local residentsdesigned a green sign reading “road open to” with icons showing pedestrians, a scooter user, a wheelchair user and a bicycle. Continue reading...

Bananas, chicken, eggs and wine the standouts as growth reaches highest rate since 2016

Conservationists blast Chris Gulaptis and Gurmesh Singh, saying ‘the demise of the koala’ would be expedited if they get their wayA conservation lobby group has pilloried two Nationals MPs for threatening to quit the New South Wales government and move to the crossbench if new koala protection regulations are not altered, saying “the demise of the koala” would be expedited if they get their way.Chris Gulaptis, the MP for Clarence, said he would move to the crossbench if the government doesn’t review the Koala Habitat Protection State Environmental Planning Policy, which came into effect in March this year. Continue reading...

The Australian government should allow the electricity industry to wean itself off gas

Groups hail result as vindication of removing chicks from nests to rear them in captivityThe much-persecuted hen harrier has enjoyed its best breeding year in England for nearly two decades, benefiting from good weather and high numbers of voles.Grouse moor groups hailed the fledging of 60 chicks from 19 nests across the northern Pennines as a vindication of controversial “brood management”, whereby chicks are removed from some nests on grouse moors, reared in captivity and released elsewhere. Continue reading...

The NSW premier has said ‘it doesn’t take much’ to reach net zero by 2050 in a webinar with former British prime minister Theresa MayThe New South Wales’ Liberal premier, Gladys Berejiklian, says it will not take much to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and it would be “the stuff of dreams” for an Australian Coalition government to legislate that target.The comments came at a Wednesday night webinar conversation between Berejiklian and the former British prime minister Theresa May, hosted by the group Coalition for Conservation. Continue reading...

Mark Rylance and Zadie Smith join Writers Rebel event against lobbyists who seek to play down dangers of climate changeA group of artists and writers including Zadie Smith and Sir Mark Rylance have spoken out against the thinktanks and lobbyists at the heart of Westminster, gathering with hundreds of protesters near their offices on Wednesday night.Speakers from Writers Rebel, a group formed in support of the aims of Extinction Rebellion, blocked Tufton Street in London amid a noticeable police presence. Continue reading...

Politicians and industry use error to dismiss research showing logging can make the state’s forests more flammablePro-forestry politicians and industry groups have seized upon the retraction of a scientific paper on logging in Tasmania to claim there’s no evidence industry practices raise the risk of dangerous fires.The study, published in May in the journal Fire, claimed logging had made forests in Tasmania more flammable, but was withdrawn last week at the request of its authors after a major error was discovered. Continue reading...

The vast rainforest is experiencing a repeat of last year’s devastating fires and critics say Bolsonaro bears ultimate responsibilityJair Bolsonaro smiles down from a propaganda billboard at the entrance to this scruffy Amazon outpost, welcoming travelers to his “route to development”.But 20 months into Bolsonaro’s presidency – and a year after a devastating outbreak of Amazon fires caused global outrage – the fires are back, and many fear Brazil’s leader is instead steering his country towards environmental ruin. Continue reading...

Good neighbor agreements, or GNAs, aim to hold big firms accountable for their environmental conduct – but can wealthy companies really be tamed?Twenty years ago, a group of cattle ranchers, sheep herders and community members in rural Montana came together and struck a rare agreement with a mining company: be liable for community-set environmental standards in exchange for unobstructed use of the land.Related: Trump administration rule seeks to make drilling easier in national forests Continue reading...

Margaret Atwood among those supporting Writers Rebel group set to protest in LondonA number of famous novelists, poets and playwrights including Margaret Atwood and Zadie Smith have lent their support to an Extinction Rebellion campaign against the political influence of rightwing thinktanks fighting against climate action.On Wednesday evening the Writers Rebel group will demonstrate outside 55 Tufton Street in London, a venue known to host meetings of thinktanks and lobbying outfits linked to climate science denial and the oil industry. Continue reading...

Shipment from Amsterdam has been approved despite health concerns, FoI request revealsSewage sludge containing human waste from the Netherlands has been passed for import to the UK, to be used on farmland as fertiliser, despite concerns over the safety of its use.Spreading the sludge on farmland is banned in the Netherlands, where incineration is preferred, but allowed in the UK. Dutch water authorities are eyeing the UK as a possible destination for their sewage, after problems at an Amsterdam incineration company left them lacking disposal options. Continue reading...

Trash Free Trails project calls on walkers, runners and cyclists to take part in countryside clean-upsDom Ferris is a man who is building a career out of rubbish. He used to be responsible for organising beach cleans for Surfers Against Sewage. While working there, the Cornwall-based surfer and mountain biker saw many of the issues that he was dealing with on beaches replicated on cycle trails. But there was one key difference: while a proportion of beach rubbish is washed up by the tide, the litter found in the countryside is overwhelmingly (with the odd notable exception, such as fly-tipping) left by its users. It was this realisation that spurred Ferris and a couple of like-minded friends to set up Trash Free Trails (TFT) in 2017.The news that the litter problem has got worse since lockdown eased is depressing. But Ferris is keen to look for the positives. A recent study has shown that the more individuals visit nature for recreation, the more pro-environmental their behaviours become. Continue reading...

‘Some things that weren’t possible 90 years ago are feasible today,’ Garnaut says of plan to create new river to drought-prone landEconomist Ross Garnaut will lead an expert panel to examine the merits of reinvigorating a 90-year-old Queensland water scheme to sustain the nation into the future.The Bradfield inland irrigation project was dreamt up in the 1930s by engineer Dr John Bradfield, the man behind the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Continue reading...

Environmental protesters among the first to be charged under state’s ban on ‘locking’ devicesA Queensland court has thrown out the conviction and sentencing of two young climate activists, who were among the first to be charged with breaching controversial anti-protest laws passed last year.The remarkable judgment in the Queensland district court found there was no evidence that the use of banned “locking” or “attachment” devices by the climate change protesters posed any risk of injury to others or damage to property. Continue reading...

Guardian US environment reporter Emily Holden looks at the Trump administration’s impact on the environment, and the consequences for the climate crisis if he wins another termThe United States is one of the most polluting nations in the world – its factories, power plants, homes, cars and farms pump billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. By the end of this century, the earth’s temperature will rise by several degrees, many scientists say, if highly polluting countries like the US don’t control their output now.The Guardian’s US environment reporter, Emily Holden, tells Anushka Asthana about Trump’s environmental policies over the past four years, which have included reversing many of the pledges made by Barack Obama – most notably dropping out of the Paris climate agreement. She also looks at the proposals from the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, which include putting Americans back to work installing millions of solar panels and tens of thousands of wind turbines, making the steel for those projects, manufacturing electric vehicles for the world and shipping them from US ports. What the American people decide in November, Emily believes, is critical for the future of the planet. Continue reading...

The private equity firm that now has a stake in Oatly has been accused of contributing to deforestation in the AmazonVegan milk brand Oatly is facing protests by climate and political activists who say the decision to sell a stake in the company to a consortium that includes Blackstone, a powerful private equity firm headed by Trump donor Stephen Schwartzman, has left a sour taste.The $200m deal for the Swedish oat milk brand, favored by many vegans and non-dairy drinkers and considered one of the most sustainable non-dairy milk brands, was agreed in July. Continue reading...

Big-budget blockbusters produce 2,840 tonnes of CO, though their environmental impact is often ‘underreported’, study revealsA landmark BFI study has called for the film industry to step up attempts to address its environmental impact – including the possible mandatory reporting of carbon emissions.“It is clear that resource consumption and associated carbon emissions are underreported by productions, and in some cases not reported at all. The industry needs to take significant steps to change this,” concludes A Screen New Deal, the first wide-ranging survey since a 2006 UCLA study that has so far been virtually the sole yardstick for the sector’s ecological toll. Continue reading...

Consumer goods giant aims to develop renewable or recycled alternatives by 2030The owner of Persil, Domestos and Cif is to invest €1bn in eliminating fossil fuel-based ingredients from its cleaning products by 2030.Unilever’s “clean future” initiative aims to develop renewable or recycled alternatives to chemicals derived from the oil industry as part of the company’s pledge to eliminate carbon emissions from its products by 2039. Continue reading...

The opposition will try to amend the government’s plan to allow the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to invest in gas-fired powerLabor says it will vote against a proposal from the Morrison government to explicitly open up the taxpayer-owned green bank to fossil fuel investments if its planned amendments fail.As part of its much-vaunted gas-led recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, and its initiative to establish a fund to invest in grid reliability, the government wants to redefine gas-fired power as low-emissions technology. The aim is to enable the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to make investments in grid infrastructure. Continue reading...

Environmentalists fear changing Kenya’s resolve would lead to all of Africa becoming a plastics dumping groundMajor oil companies are lobbying the United States to pressure Kenya to change its world-leading stance against plastic waste, according to environmentalists who fear the continent will be used as a dumping ground.The request from the American Chemistry Council to the Office of the United States Trade Representative came as the US and Kenya negotiate what would be the first US bilateral trade deal with a country in sub-Saharan Africa. Continue reading...

The federal government has given $12m towards planning the latest version of the scheme championed by prominent NationalsThe idea of building a massive dam at Urannah Creek, on the slopes of the Eungella Range, has been a pipe dream in north Queensland since the late 1950s.Over the decades, the project has been championed by a host of speculators, business groups and rural politicians. It has been studied and discarded more than a dozen times. Continue reading...

Study warns sites must be protected in search for materials to build infrastructureThe mining necessary for producing renewable energy could exacerbate threats to biodiversity, researchers have found.The production of renewable energy requires metals and other materials which are mined. Researchers mapped the areas around more than 60,000 mining properties to assess whether they overlapped with biodiversity conservation sites. Continue reading...

Insurance institution will run at 45% capacity to adhere to social distancing rules

Proposal would eliminate key environmental reviews and public notice requirements, according to environmental advocatesThe Trump administration is proposing to make it easier for oil and gas companies to drill on US forest service lands.A proposed rule would eliminate key environmental reviews and public notice requirements, according to environmental advocates. Continue reading...

Opposition says the Coalition bill offers no standards, no independent ‘cop on the beat’ and no additional fundingLabor says it will vote against the Morrison government’s proposed changes to environmental laws to transfer development approval powers to the states and territories.The opposition’s environment spokeswoman, Terri Butler, said a bill before the parliament was designed purely for political conflict in the absence of serious environmental reforms, including an independent regulator. Continue reading...

Exclusive new emissions analysis shows how much more dangerous for the climate SUVs are than smaller vehicles, and how embedded they have become in our lives

Rarer birds suffer the most from the network that criss-crosses the country, finds study, but kerbside life appears to suit someIn 1925, ecologist Dayton Stoner drove 632 miles through Iowa, making a note of all the dead animals he saw en route. There were 225 pieces of roadkill in total, including red-headed woodpeckers, painted terrapins and blue racer snakes – once-common species that are now rare. The paper, called The Toll of the Automobile, was the first study of “road ecology” – a growing area of research that looks at the many ways tarmac dissects habitats.In Britain, dead pheasants, foxes and badgers are common roadside sightings, but much of the environmental damage is hidden and hard to measure – roads fragment habitats and damage them through noise, chemical and light pollution. There are an estimated 28m miles (45m km) of paved roads on our planet, set to increase to about 43m miles by 2050, according to the International Energy Agency. Continue reading...

Vast majority of world’s electricity companies remain heavily invested in fossil fuelsOnly one in 10 of the world’s electric utility companies are prioritising investment in clean renewable energy over growing their capacity of fossil fuel power plants, according to research from the University of Oxford.The study of more than 3,000 utilities found most remain heavily invested in fossil fuels despite international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and some are actively expanding their portfolio of polluting power plants. Continue reading...

Number of glacial lakes rose by 53% in 1990-2018 to reveal impact of increased meltwaterGlacial lakes have grown rapidly around the world in recent decades, according to satellite images that reveal the impact of increased meltwater draining off retreating glaciers.Scientists analysed more than quarter of a million satellite images to assess how lakes formed by melting glaciers have been affected by global heating and other processes. Continue reading...

Edinburgh declaration calls on leaders to work far more closely with communitiesThe worldwide effort to combat critical levels of biodiversity loss will fail without far greater involvement from local communities, according to an international declaration.The “Edinburgh declaration”, published on Monday, urges leaders to work more closely with sub-national governments, indigenous peoples, national parks, local councils and wider society in meeting 20 biodiversity goals set out in the Aichi accord, signed in Nagoya, Japan, 10 years ago. Continue reading...

Concern grows over proposal to open three mines along Nova Scotia’s longest single waterway that supports both endangered species and ecosystemsThe extractive industries have their sights set on Nova Scotia as a literal goldmine, and decades of conservation efforts – as well the future of a beloved river – hang in the balance.Three years after Atlantic Gold opened a goldmine north-east of Halifax, the mining company intends to open three more across Nova Scotia. One of the mines has been proposed alongside the St Mary’s River, Nova Scotia’s longest single waterway – and in the opinions of many, its wildest, supporting both endangered species and ecosystems. This, the so-called Cochrane Hill goldmine, has become the focal point of mounting public opposition to goldmining in Nova Scotia. Continue reading...

Birmingham and Liverpool among local authorities with lowest rates, analysis shows

About 205 megatonnes emitted in June and July alone as Siberia hit by heatwaveThe amount of carbon dioxide emitted by Arctic wildfires this year is already 35% higher than the figure for the whole of 2019.The latest data, provided by the EU’s Copernicus atmosphere monitoring service, shows that up to 24 August 245 megatonnes of CO2 had been released from wildfires this year. The figure for the whole of last year was 181 megatonnes. Continue reading...

About half of staff at poultry plant in Norfolk have had to self-isolate after 75 tested positive for coronavirus

Exemption for smaller shops to end, and campaigners say ‘bags for life’ are next targetThe government is to double the charge for single-use plastic carrier bags in England from 5p to 10p and end the exemption for smaller shops from April 2021, as it steps up efforts to tackle plastic pollution.Since the introduction of the charge in October 2015, shoppers have used billions fewer thin-gauge plastic shopping bags. Continue reading...

Electricity demand fell by 13% in second quarter which helped renewables grow to 40% of energy mixCarbon emissions from Britain’s electricity system plunged by more than a third during the coronavirus lockdown after renewable energy played its largest ever role helping to keep the lights on, according to a report.During the spring bank holiday weekend in May, the energy grid’s carbon intensity reached a record low of 21 grams of COper kilowatt-hour due to a slump in energy demand triggered by Britain’s lockdown measures and a surge in renewable energy. Continue reading...

Analysis shows state and federal governments not exercising their powers to require companies to increase offsetsOnly 1.2% of the greenhouse gas emissions released by Australia’s top 65 emitting companies had to be offset under federal and state laws last financial year, an analysis has found.The analysis by Footprint, a sustainability news site, examined both regulatory constraints imposed on businesses with emissions greater than 1m tonnes and any voluntary offsetting commitments they made. Continue reading...

Giantess is one of the biggest geysers in the national park, and typically explodes between twice and six times a yearIn these troubled times there comes a point where we all need to let off steam.For this huge geyser in Yellowstone park, the moment was now and the eruption was spectacular, after a six-year wait. Continue reading...

Peak employer body warns Australia faces ‘costly increase in climate-related impacts and risks’ even in best-case scenarioThe Morrison government should spend $3.3bn over 10 years on renewable energy and $500m over two years on capital grants to improve energy efficiency and management, according to the Australian Industry Group.The peak employer body made the calls in its pre-budget submission, released on Monday, which also proposes it bring forward income tax cuts, cut business tax, extend the coronavirus supplement on jobseeker and make a further round of $750 payments to households. Continue reading...

Cbus superannuation expands pledge to hit zero emissions by 2050 across its entire portfolioConstruction and mining industry super fund Cbus says it will slash emissions from its investments by 45% within the next 10 years, putting carbon-intensive companies on notice that they will need to demonstrate how they will cut greenhouse gas emissions in order to stay within the fund’s $54bn portfolio.Cbus has also expanded an existing pledge to hit the Paris agreement target of zero emissions by 2050 in its property and infrastructure investments to cover its entire portfolio. Continue reading...