Environment | The Guardian

More than 30 species, including nine that are threatened, are being hunted unsustainably, report findsMore than 30 shorebird species that fly across oceans each year to visit Australia – including nine that are threatened – are being hunted during their long migrations, according to a study that analysed decades of records from 14 countries.The study, which experts said filled a major gap in the world’s knowledge about the impact of hunting on declining shorebird numbers, found that more than 17,000 birds from 16 species were likely being killed at just three sites – Pattani Bay in Thailand, West Java in Indonesia and the Yangtze River delta in China. Continue reading...

Ban on use of subcontractors and fines of €30,000 for slaughterhouses breaching new labour regulations a ‘historic moment’, say campaigners

The pick of the world’s best flora and fauna photos, including rose-ringed parakeets and a poppy-loving bumblebee Continue reading...

High court rejects challenge after ministers overruled climate objections of planning officialsThe UK government’s approval of a large new gas-fired power plant has been ruled legal by the high court. A legal challenge was brought after ministers overruled climate change objections from planning authorities.The plant, which is being developed by Drax in North Yorkshire, would be the biggest gas power station in Europe, and could account for 75% of the UK’s power sector emissions when fully operational, according to lawyers for ClientEarth, which brought the judicial review. Continue reading...

The coronavirus complicated response to the disastrous flood that swallowed a series of small communities in mid-Michigan when an ageing dam broke

Family on remote highway stumble upon predator, whose highly unusual colouring is caused by a recessive geneCara Clarkson and her family were driving down a remote highway in Canada’s Rocky Mountains, when a figure glimpsed against the dark evergreen forest left them in disbelief.Related: Indigenous input helps save wayward grizzly bear from summary killing Continue reading...

Climate risks and opportunities need to be incorporated into the financial system as well as public policymaking and infrastructure

After the financial crisis, green investment paid dividends. Coronavirus presents an even greater opportunityEverest is once again visible from Kathmandu, after decades shrouded in pollution. Greenhouse gas emissions have fallen to levels last seen in 2006. Nature has returned to our streets with a quack and a flurry, and people are waking to birdsong in inner cities as the roar of traffic recedes.Clear skies bring little cheer at the food bank, however. Birdsong might lift the heart, but it won’t pay the rent. Continue reading...

National Grid may ask suppliers to stop generating electricity due to record low consumption

Particles may outnumber zooplankton, which underpin marine life and regulate climateThe abundance of microplastic pollution in the oceans is likely to have been vastly underestimated, according to research that suggests there are at least double the number of particles as previously thought.Scientists trawled waters off the coasts of the UK and US and found many more particles using nets with a fine mesh size than when using coarser ones usually used to filter microplastics. The addition of these smaller particles to global estimates of surface microplastics increases the range from between 5tn and 50tn particles to 12tn-125tn particles, the scientists say. Continue reading...

Deputy premier says project will bring jobs to Snowy Mountains region, but conservationists have labelled it ‘environmental vandalism’The Snowy Hydro 2.0 project is a step closer to going ahead after being approved by the New South Wales government, less than a month after it topped a list of 24 infrastructure projects the government wanted fast-tracked as part its Covid-19 economic response.The deputy premier, John Barilaro, announced on Thursday the government had approved the main works for the 2,000-megawatt pumped hydro storage project in the Snowy Mountains. Continue reading...

Experimental cell using the potentially game-changing material perovskite passes a series of heat and humidity testsA team of Australian researchers are claiming a world first in a global race to develop cheaper, more flexible and more efficient solar panels after their experimental cell passed a series of heat and humidity tests.Using a type of crystal material known as perovskite, the group found that a simple glass and synthetic rubber coating around the cell was enough to stop it from degrading too quickly. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Letter to national cabinet, energy ministers and Nev Power warns Australia’s prosperity depends on cutting emissionsA cross-society collection of groups – representing business, the energy industry, property owners, unions, major investors, disadvantaged people and the environment – have banded together to warn that Australia’s prosperity depends on eradicating greenhouse gas emissions.In a letter to the national cabinet, federal and state energy ministers and Nev Power, Scott Morrison’s handpicked Covid-19 recovery chairman, the 14 organisations have called for government support in the wake of the pandemic to urgently stimulate job growth and rebuild a “sustainable and strong economy”. Continue reading...

Alexander Stafford says party can avoid mistakes made in mine closures of Thatcher era

Leeds, Birmingham and Bath also push back green plans and blame coronavirus pandemic

Deer, bobcats and black bears are gathering around parts of Yosemite national park typically teeming with visitors

Subsidies should focus on early-stage clean technologies not energy sources that are already mature or commercial, Energy Council saysAustralia’s oil and gas producers have warned against the Morrison government underwriting a massive expansion of the domestic industry, saying the country does not have a gas shortage and intervention could reduce supply and raise prices.The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association said it welcomed some recommendations on gas in a leaked draft report by a manufacturing taskforce advising the National Covid-19 Coordination Commission, but it also included “ideas that just won’t work”. Continue reading...

Union and consumer groups warn post-Brexit trade policy must hold food imports to same standards as UK

Media watchdog criticises retiring shock-jock and orders he make an on-air correction about climate changeAlan Jones breached broadcasting codes for decency in his use of “violent metaphors” about New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern and accuracy in his comments about climate change, the media watchdog has found days before the shock-jock retires after a 35-year career.The Australian Communications and Media Authority ordered the 79-year-old to make an on-air correction about the climate change comments but found he has already apologised for his criticism of Ardern. Continue reading...

Catastrophic flooding could potentially release toxic pollution from site contaminated by Dow ChemicalCatastrophic flooding triggered by dam failures in Michigan could potentially release toxic pollution from a site contaminated by the industrial giant Dow Chemical.Dow’s facility in Midland, Michigan, where the company is headquartered along the Tittabawassee River, manufactured chlorine-based products beginning in the early 1900s. The company discharged dioxins, chemical compounds which can cause reproductive harm and cancer, into the river. Continue reading...

Governor says town of Midland could soon be under 9ft of water while one of the dams had been under federal scrutiny since 1999

Survey by Shenhua environmental consultant shows decline of 87% in koala numbers since 2012-13, as campaigners plead for impact of bushfires to weigh on mine conditionsKoalas on the site of the planned Shenhua Watermark coalmine in New South Wales are heading towards localised extinction “even before the mine commences”, according to company documents.Meeting minutes for the mine’s koala technical working group say there has been a steep drop in koala populations at the mine site in the Liverpool Plains. Continue reading...

Exclusive: The report does not consider alternatives to gas, or mention climate change and the financial risk of investing in fossil fuel as emissions are cutAustralian taxpayers should underwrite a massive expansion of the domestic gas industry – including helping open new fields and build hundreds of kilometres of pipelines – according to a group advising on Covid-19 recovery.A leaked draft report by a manufacturing taskforce advising the National Covid-19 Coordination Commission (NCCC) recommends the Morrison government make sweeping changes to “create the market” for gas and build fossil fuel infrastructure that would operate for decades. Continue reading...

Small modular reactors ‘have potential’, investment roadmap discussion paper saysThe Morrison government has flagged examining “emerging nuclear technologies” as part of Australia’s energy mix in the future in a new discussion paper kicking off the process of developing its much-vaunted technology investment roadmap.Facing sustained pressure to adopt a 2050 target of net zero emissions, pressure it is continuing to resist, the government plans instead to develop the roadmap as the cornerstone of the Coalition’s mid-century emissions reduction strategy. Continue reading...

AMTE Power and Britishvolt to invest up to £4bn in plant similar to Tesla facility in US

The world’s most productive salmon fishery and a stronghold for the state’s bears are under threat from an open-pit gold and copper mineTowering over the average human and weighing as much as a grand piano, the bears found in south-west Alaska are considered among the best in the world to observe as they pad around in a largely untouched wilderness of soaring mountains, pristine rivers and rocky beaches.About a third of Alaska’s 30,000 brown bears are found on the Alaska Peninsula, which separates the Pacific Ocean from Bristol Bay, a place that hosts the most productive wild salmon fishery in the world and draws large numbers of bears to catch their food in the tumbling waters once they emerge from their winter hibernation. Continue reading...

Swedish developer Vattenfall says hold-up could call into question UK’s green resolveThe government has delayed the planning process for a major new windfarm off the Norfolk coast because of the coronavirus lockdown, with its developer to warning the move could “send the wrong signal” to the renewables industry.The Swedish energy company Vattenfall said delaying a decision on the 1.8GW Norfolk Boreas windfarm by up to five months was “regrettable” and might call Britain’s green ambitions into question. Continue reading...

New strategy to protect nature includes far-reaching habitat protections, and restrictions on pesticide use – but campaigners warn enforcement is keyThe European Commission has committed to protecting 30% of the EU’s land and oceans by 2030 as part of the European Green Deal, in a plan tentatively welcomed by environment groups who warned far-reaching ambitions must not only exist “on paper”.The 10-year plan, published on Wednesday, includes commitments to reduce the use of chemical pesticides by 50%, plant 3bn trees by 2030 and reverse the decline in pollinators. Within the 30% protected areas, a third of land and sea will be under “strict protection”, meaning there should be no human intervention besides minimal management to keep the area in good condition for wildlife. Continue reading...

Under the leadership of William Perry Pendley, the Bureau of Land Management is failing to fulfill its most basic duties of safeguarding America’s public lands, his critics sayIn July 2017, William Perry Pendley, a crusading conservative attorney, delivered a speech to a group of rightwing activists in North Carolina in which he was completely candid about his ideological commitments.He accused “the media” of selling “their soul to the greens”. And after criticizing the Endangered Species Act, he made light of killing endangered species. Continue reading...

US study identifies statistically significant trend in line with climate scientists’ predictionsTropical cyclones have become more intense around the globe in the past four decades, with more destructive storms forming more often, according to a study that further confirms the theory that warming oceans would drive more dangerous cyclones.Analysis of satellite records from 1979 to 2017 found a clear rise in the most destructive cyclones – also known as hurricanes or typhoons – that deliver sustained winds in excess of about 185km/h. Continue reading...

Call to avoid more inequality and climate breakdown when coronavirus crisis endsGlobal leaders must heed the lessons of the financial crisis of 2008 when they look to repair the damage from the coronavirus pandemic, leading experts have warned, to avoid entrenching disastrous social, health and environmental inequalities and hastening climate breakdown.The 2008 global financial crisis and recession marked the last time the world experienced a convulsion comparable in scale to the coronavirus crisis, though starkly different in its nature. Governments responded first with economic rescue and stimulus packages worth trillions in taxpayer cash, followed in many cases by austerity programmes to cut back public spending. Continue reading...

Pace will slow for first time in 20 years with fewer windfarms and solar plants being built but rebound possible in 2021The global growth of renewable energy will slow for the first time in 20 years due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which will “hurt but not halt” the rise of clean energy.The world’s energy watchdog has warned that developers will build fewer wind farms and solar energy projects this year compared with a record roll out of renewables in 2019. Continue reading...

Low-income households and people of color in cities are least likely to live near decent green spacesYears of patchy investment in public parks has left 100 million Americans, including 27 million children, without access to decent nearby green spaces during the coronavirus lockdown, a new report reveals.Local parks have been a godsend to many people during the pandemic as schools, gyms and walking trails have closed to minimize physical contact and curtail the spread of the virus. Continue reading...

Marsh talks the talk when it comes to climate risk, but by working with Adani it is walking us all into a dangerous future

Orca, cuckoo and peregrine falcon some of species enjoying breathing space of quieter worldFirst came the goats. During the first days of lockdown the bearded, ghostly white creatures wandered down from their north Wales clifftop home into the town of Llandudno and made headlines around the globe.Now the National Trust is reporting that emboldened wildlife, from raptors and warblers to badgers, otters and even orcas, appear to be enjoying the disappearance of humans from its gardens, castles and waterways across the UK. Continue reading...

With support of the Trump administration, Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks have partially reopened after Covid-19 closures

Environmentalists say the Morrison government is directing emissions reduction funding to polluting companiesFossil fuel industry groups and companies have applauded new climate change measures proposed by the Morrison government, including support for carbon capture and storage developments.The government has agreed to 21 of 26 recommendations made by an expert panel review headed by the former gas industry executive and business council president Grant King, who was asked to come up with new ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at low cost. Continue reading...

Government sets out plan to cut tariffs, with farming and car industry to be protectedBusiness has warned Boris Johnson that he must clinch a free trade deal with the EU after the government released details of the tariffs Britain will impose from the start of next year.With talks between London and Brussels stalled, employers organisations said they welcomed arrangements that will provide protection for farmers and carmakers but stressed the need for progress in talks with the UK’s biggest trading partner. Continue reading...

Unmanned submersible will descend nearly 2.5 miles to bottom of the ocean to get radio, believed to still be near grand staircaseA federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a salvage firm can retrieve the Marconi wireless telegraph machine that broadcast distress calls from the sinking Titanic.The order is a big win for RMS Titanic, the court-recognized salvor, or steward, of artifacts from the doomed ocean liner. Continue reading...

Brief hiatus will make little difference to catastrophic levels of global heating, experts say

Responses to coronavirus crisis cause sharpest drop in carbon output since records began

Gough Island in South Atlantic is home to mutant mice that feast on young seabirds

Concern that new strategy, which also includes protecting primeval forests, ‘lacks tools’The European commission will launch a sweeping effort to tackle the global biodiversity crisis on Wednesday, including a call for 3bn trees to be planted in the EU by 2030 and a plan to better protect the continent’s last primeval forests.The draft policy document, published online by an environmental NGO, admits that to date in the EU, “protection has been incomplete, restoration has been small-scale, and the implementation and enforcement of legislation has been insufficient”. Continue reading...

Key to ensuring policymakers see nature’s relevance is to show its physical and mental health benefits

Harnessing power from sun, wind and sea could spur UK’s post-pandemic economy while tackling climate crisis, say experts

Climate breakdown is causing the Gulf of Maine to heat up and that effect – in addition to the pandemic – is being felt across the lobster industryRocky shorelines and weathered saltbox homes dot the landscape of South Thomaston on the coast of Maine. Lobster traps take up frontyard real estate and lobster shacks, still shuttered for the season, are common sightings. Back from a day of scalloping, lobsterman Bob Baines has docked his boat, the FV Thrasher, at the Spruce Head Fishermans Co-op. His sternman, David McLellan, clad in waterproof overalls like Baines, shucks the last few hauls, tossing the meats into a bucket and the shells overboard.It’s the last week of scallop season, but there is a new venture on the horizon. Baines, 64, steers the Thrasher back out toward Hewett Island on Penobscot Bay to check on the underwater kelp farm that he “planted” in December. It’s a willowy structure made up of moorings, buoys and ropes that hovers 7ft underwater and spans 1,000ft wide, like a monster cat’s cradle. Continue reading...

Energy minister says Coalition’s approach is ‘not to have a target without a plan’ to achieve itAngus Taylor says it is not Australia’s policy to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, despite signing up to the Paris agreement, because the Morrison government will not adopt a mid-century target in advance of a plan to achieve it.The energy minister said on Tuesday that signatories to the Paris agreement, including Australia, had agreed to hit net zero “in the second half of the century”. But scientists say in order to meet the central Paris goal of keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5C – a commitment Australia adopted in 2015 – signatories need to hit net zero by 2050. Continue reading...

Decision to lift blocks on wind and solar projects has boosted ‘attractiveness’ ranking

Fall in air pollution and abundant sunshine resulting in bumper outputThe disappearance of aeroplane contrails and a reduction in air pollution has allowed much stronger sunlight to reach the ground and resulted in bumper production of solar power.Falling demand due to the Covid-19 lockdown and the increase in renewable energy means that EDF, the owner of the Sizewell C nuclear power station in Suffolk, is being paid millions of pounds to run it at 50% capacity to avoid blackouts from oversupply. Continue reading...