Microfibres from fishing lines and nets and materials from textiles discovered in 67% of seabed-dwelling sharksMicroplastics and synthetic microfibres from clothing have been found for the first time in the guts of sharks that live off the UK coast.Scientists examined the stomachs and intestines of 46 seabed-dwelling sharks that had been caught as bycatch by Penzance-based hake fishing trawlers. Continue reading...
Scientists are putting dwarf chameleons through their paces in a series of speed and endurance challenges to study how the species is adaptingThe tension is palpable. The first athlete is placed on the starting line and the official timer, Dr Anthony Herrel, resets the stopwatch on his smartphone. Once given the go-ahead, Dr Krystal Tolley tickles the yellowy-green chameleon’s tail and the two-inch reptile springs into action. About 10 seconds later, after reaching the end of the 1-metre dowel in a season’s best time, it returns to the resting area and the next competitor is given a chance to strut its stuff.In the coming days, 120 Knysna dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion damaranum) – male and female, from forest habitats, gardens and parks – will be put through their paces in a series of speed and endurance challenges that the scientists refer to as the Chameleon Olympics. They will run on horizontal and vertical dowels of varying diameter; have the strength of their bite and gripping forces measured in newtons, and be tested on their ability to thermoregulate along a course that has a temperature gradient. Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#560HP)
Industry group says Britain’s climate goals may be doomed without heating overhaulThe installation of new gas boilers must be banned from 2025 or the UK’s net-zero climate target will be “doomed”, according to a high-level commission convened by the CBI.The ban would apply to conventional gas boilers, but hybrid or hydrogen-ready boilers would be allowed under the business organisation’s recommendations, which were developed in collaboration with energy industry leaders. Continue reading...
Traditional owners were suing environment minister in the federal court over areas of significant Aboriginal culture heritage in the Liverpool PlainsThe Gomeroi people have lost their legal bid to protect significant areas of Aboriginal cultural heritage within the footprint of the Shenhua Watermark open-cut coalmine on the Liverpool Plains in north-west New South Wales, but said they will fight on a new front.Gomeroi custodian Dolly Talbott was suing the environment minister, Sussan Ley, in the federal court, alleging Ley made an error of law in deciding not to make a declaration to protect the Aboriginal heritage. Continue reading...
Authorities have warned of poor air quality in central and northern parts of the state due to Gold, Hog and Mineral firesWildfires burning in rural north-eastern California have prompted evacuations and injured two firefighters, fire officials in the state said.Two firefighters were injured Monday while battling the Gold fire, which erupted on Monday in Lassen county and has burned several hundred acres. Continue reading...
The Morrison government promises draft laws to change the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act next monthConservationists have criticised a Morrison government plan to rush through legislation implementing new environmental approval rules, warning they will be too vague and will not improve wildlife protection.The environment minister, Sussan Ley, has promised draft laws to change the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act will be introduced to parliament next month, before a review of the legislation has been concluded. Continue reading...
An analysis of 93m US homes found that the most energy intensive dwellings are found in Maine, Vermont and WisconsinThe homes of wealthy Americans are major engines of the climate crisis, research has found, with the United States’ most affluent suburbs generating as much as 15 times the greenhouse gas emissions as nearby, poorer districts.An analysis of 93m homes in the contiguous US found that the most energy intensive dwellings, per square foot, are found in Maine, Vermont and Wisconsin, while the least energy intensive are located in Florida, Arizona and California. Continue reading...
Critics say environmental protection system falls ‘shockingly short’The vast majority of complaints to a hotline designed for the public to report offences such as fly-tipping and pollution did not result in any sanction, it has been revealed.Data from a freedom of information request submitted by the Liberal Democrats shows just 3.6% of complaints about pollution, fly-tipping, oil spills, fish kills and other environmental damage last year resulted in penalties for those responsible. Continue reading...
Influential climate campaigner says Gulbenkian rights award gave her ‘more money than I can begin to imagine’Greta Thunberg has been awarded a Portuguese rights award and promptly pledged the €1m ($1.15m) prize to groups working to protect the environment and halt climate change.“That is more money than I can begin to imagine, but all the prize money will be donated, through my foundation, to different organisations and projects who are working to help people on the front line, affected by the climate crisis and ecological crisis,” the Swedish teenager said in a video posted online on Monday. Continue reading...
Jobs could be created in three years with a focus on 12 areas including large-scale renewable energy and electric vehicle networksNearly 80,000 jobs could be quickly created through a stimulus plan that aims to rebuild the Australian economy from recession while tackling the climate crisis, an analysis commissioned by the Climate Council says.The report by the consultants AlphaBeta says 76,000 positions could be created over three years through nearly $22bn of combined public and private investment. It focuses on 12 areas including creating large-scale renewable energy projects, restoring degraded ecosystems, better dealing with organic waste, retrofitting inefficient public buildings and expanding electric vehicle networks. Continue reading...
Government accused of hypocrisy for backing scheme while claiming to be leading on climateThe UK government could face a legal battle after offering more than $1bn in financial support to help build a gas project in Mozambique despite its commitment to tackling the climate crisis.Under the deal, UK taxpayer funds will be used to help develop and export Mozambique’s gas reserves, in one of the largest single financing packages ever offered by a UK credit agency to a foreign fossil fuel project. Continue reading...
Divers and biologists trying to free whale caught in illegal netting near island of SalinaThe Italian coastguard is struggling to free a sperm whale caught up in illegal fishing netting off the coast of one of Sicily’s Aeolian islands.A team of divers and biologists have been working for more than 48 hours to help the whale close to the island of Salina. The whale’s huge size and agitated state has made the operation more challenging. Continue reading...
Biden rode a wave of establishment endorsements to the nomination this spring. But it’s progressive ideas that might carry him to the presidencyOn Tuesday, Joe Biden did something unprecedented for a Democratic candidate assured of nomination: he moved left. In a speech delivered from Wilmington in his home state of Delaware, Biden unveiled the most ambitious clean energy and environmental justice plans ever proposed by the nominee of a major American political party. The plans, which the Biden campaign described to reporters as “the legislation he goes up to [Capitol Hill] immediately to get done,” outline $2tn in investments in clean energy, jobs and infrastructure that would be carried out over the four years of his first term.Forty percent of these investments would be directed to communities of color living on the toxic edge of the fossil fuel economy – communities that have also been among the most devastated by the coronavirus pandemic. Biden proposes to pair these investments with new performance standards, most notably a clean electricity standard that would transition the United States to a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035. Continue reading...
Review of EPBC Act finds protection laws are ineffective and recommends sweeping changes, including developing legally enforceable national environmental standardsAustralia’s environment is in an unsustainable state of decline and laws set up to protect unique species and habitats are ineffective, a major review of the national environmental framework has found.The interim report from the review of Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act recommends sweeping changes, including the establishment of a set of legally enforceable national environmental standards that set clear rules for environmental protection while allowing for sustainable development. Continue reading...
Three decades after 13 were flown in by jet from Spain, there are nearly 2,000 breeding pairs of red kites across the countryIn July 1990, 13 red kites had to be flown by British Airways jet from Spain before they could grace the skies of the Chilterns.Thirty years on, nearly 2,000 breeding pairs of red kites display their distinctive forked tails as they soar over virtually every English county, in what has been hailed as one of the most successful reintroduction projects in the world. Continue reading...
Nigel Lawson’s thinktank is pushing dirty energy on the continent with the greatest capacity for creating clean fuelThe power of climate science denial in the UK, thankfully, has been in retreat over the past decade. Nigel Lawson’s Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) may still boast a prime Westminster address, but its influence has waned. In fact, its decline aptly mirrors the fortunes of the coal industry, including US titans such as Peabody Energy, which saw its share price plunge 99% between 2008 and 2016 before filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy.With countries rightly phasing coal out of their energy mix, the GWPF has turned its sights on Africa to peddle its misinformation about the merits of burning fossil fuels. It has published a new report, derisively titled Heart of Darkness: Why Electricity for Africa is a Security Issue, and launched a glossy website for “energy justice”, which uses the language of climate justice campaigners to try to undermine renewable energy. Continue reading...
Ou Hongyi, who took part in the #FridaysforFuture protest, says she has been told she cannot return to school unless she stops her activismTakes initiative. An independent thinker. Engages in study outside of the curriculum. Cares deeply about her community and the world around her. Stands up for her convictions and beliefs.These are all qualities that would appear to make Ou Hongyi a suitable candidate for studying at her dream institution of Harvard University. Continue reading...
The UK has lost its lead in windpower and batteries, but there is one eco fuel that could transform its post-Covid fortunes…At the entrance to Saltend Chemicals Park, on the outskirts of Hull, there is a small blue heritage-style plaque, placed there four years ago by the Royal Society of Chemistry. It proudly commemorates: “100 years of innovation in supplying the UK with transportation fuels and important base chemicals.”A sense of pride in Saltend’s past is understandable: places like this helped drive Britain’s industrial age. But the biggest, most dramatic innovation of all may be yet to come. This month, the Norwegian energy company, Equinor, (formerly Statoil), unveiled proposals to install the biggest facility in the world for making hydrogen from natural gas, using capture and storage technology to extract and bury the resulting carbon under the North Sea. Continue reading...
Fears grow for coastal wildlife as ministerial supporters of ‘free ports’ seek to scrap vital safeguardsThe looming cranes of the Humber’s four ports are surrounded by wildlife, from bitterns and marsh harriers to grey seals, lounging on the mudflats and hunting for fish in the estuary waters. Despite the steady flow of cargo ships in and out of the ports, wildlife has thrived – testament to the success of decades of environment policies, according to green groups.Yet those groups are now increasingly alarmed that the government’s plans to turn ports like those in the Humber into free ports will have a “disastrous” effect on the seals and other wildlife across the UK. Continue reading...
Whole town wants designated status for River Wharfe and Defra is stalling, say campaignersCampaigners seeking to make a river in Yorkshire the UK’s first to be designated a bathing area have accused environment ministers of blocking their application.In the spa town of Ilkley, river users and residents submitted a 65-page application to turn part of the River Wharfe in the town into a bathing water area last October. Continue reading...
Two houses partially collapse and 66 more believed to be at risk as police ask some residents to evacuateTwo houses in the New South Wales Central Coast suburb of Wamberal have partially collapsed after powerful surf caused massive erosion near beachfront homes.Structural engineers were assessing the area on Saturday morning after the partial collapses overnight. A NSW police spokeswoman said residents of up to 30 houses on Ocean View Drive had been advised to evacuate as a precaution. Continue reading...
UN and IEA call for stricter standards to improve energy efficiency and cut use of HFCsUp to eight years’ worth of global greenhouse gas emissions could be prevented over the next four decades by setting tougher standards for air conditioning, according to a study.It found that improving the energy efficiency of cooling systems by using climate-friendly refrigerants could remove emissions equivalent to between 210bn and 460bn tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2060. Continue reading...
Species is one of Europe’s largest and rarest raptors, last seen in England in 2016Birdwatchers have been flocking to the boggy and desolate moors of the Peak District to try to spot a bearded vulture, one of the rarest birds ever seen in the UK, which has set up home on a remote cliff in the national park.This is only the second sighting of a bearded vulture in the UK, one of the largest and rarest raptors in Europe, and which was last seen in England in 2016. Continue reading...
Ten-year-old was fishing with his father and two other men about 5km from shore when he was ‘grabbed from the boat’A boy who was grabbed by a shark from a boat off Tasmania’s north-west coast has suffered arm, head and chest injuries.The 10-year-old was taken to hospital on Friday afternoon following the attack near Stanley. Continue reading...
Samsung group company responds to protesters targeting electronics brand saying it will give no more financing to ‘any of Adani’s coal projects’A company in the Samsung group will not provide any further financial backing for Adani’s coal port in Queensland or any of the company’s coal projects just days after protests targeted the group’s electronics brand.In an email to campaigners, seen by Guardian Australia, Samsung Securities said it would not provide any further financing for the Adani Abbot Point Terminal or “any of Adani’s coal projects.” Continue reading...
Startup firm Britishvolt, serving energy storage and electric cars, plans 30GWh battery plant at Bro TathanA startup company with plans to build Britain’s first gigafactory to make batteries for electric cars has chosen a site in south Wales for the plant after discussions with the Welsh government.Britishvolt, which in May launched an ambitious effort to create a £1.2bn factory, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Welsh government ahead of signing a lease for a former Royal Air Force base at Bro Tathan business park, south Wales. Continue reading...
Several houses on Ocean View Drive now dangerously close to cliff edge as huge waves wash away beachesBeachfront homes along the New South Wales Central Coast have been left dangling over the ocean and in danger of collapse after powerful surf caused massive erosion.A powerful low across Australia’s east coast earlier in the week created large swells and high waves battering some coastal areas. Continue reading...
Saudi Aramco joins Oil and Gas Climate Initiative pledge but critics say targets are insufficientThe world’s biggest oil company, Saudi Aramco, has joined an alliance of oil companies to set the first industry-wide target to help tackle the climate crisis by setting carbon emissions goals.Saudi Arabia’s state oil giant has agreed to reduce the carbon intensity of its business as part of the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) which includes Shell, BP and ExxonMobil. Continue reading...
‘Questions naturally arise’ about review’s independence, environmental group saysEnvironment groups are increasingly anxious and frustrated as they wait for the release of an interim report from a review of Australia’s national environmental laws.The review’s chair, the former competition watchdog head Graeme Samuel, handed his report to the environment minister, Sussan Ley, almost three weeks ago. Continue reading...
Schemes including Fairtrade and FSC may serve to mask human rights abuses and allow government inaction, study claimsMany of the world’s leading certification standards are not only failing to improve the ethical conduct of large corporations but are serving to entrench abusive business practices, a damning new report argues.
Spill from decaying vessel could wreck environment and livelihoods for decadesTime is running out to prevent a disastrous oil spill from a deteriorating tanker loaded with 1.1m barrels of crude that is moored off the coast of Yemen, the UN’s environment chief has said.Inger Andersen told the UN security council that a spill from the FSO Safer, which has had no maintenance for more than five years, would wreck ecosystems and livelihoods for decades. Continue reading...
International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List changes ocean giants’ status to ‘critically endangered’With their population still struggling to recover from over three centuries of whaling, the North Atlantic right whale is now just “one step from extinction”, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The IUCN last week moved the whale’s status on their Red List from “endangered” to “critically endangered” – the last stop before the species is considered extinct in the wild.The status change reflects the fact that fewer than 250 mature individuals probably remain in a population of roughly 400. While grim, scientists and conservationists expressed hope that this move may help speed up protections for these dwindling giants. Continue reading...
Auditor general finds no framework to maximise value from buybacks, including from company founded by Angus TaylorA highly critical audit of $190m spent by the federal government on water entitlements in 2017 without open tender has found that the department of agriculture did not develop a framework designed to maximise value for money.The acting auditor general, Rona Mellor, found that the department only negotiated on price in one purchase and then made just one counter-offer. Continue reading...
Activists protest at Samsung Electronics store in Sydney over debt purchase by affiliate Samsung SecuritiesA company in the Samsung Group invested in Adani’s Australian coal operation last year in a deal that has prompted environmental activists to call for a boycott of the Korean conglomerate’s flagship electronics products.Samsung Securities, a publicly-traded brokerage and part of the broader group of affiliated companies that includes Samsung Electronics, purchased a share of $120m of debt in the Adani-owned Abbot Point coal terminal last year with another Korean firm. Continue reading...
Acidic runoff from abandoned Urals mine puts spotlight on hazardous industrial wasteRussian prosecutors are inspecting a facility supposed to treat acid runoff from an abandoned Urals mine after videos emerged of streams running orange.Drone footage uploaded last week by an Instagram travel blogger showed a bright-orange landscape near the disused copper-sulphide mine close to the village of Lyovikha. Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#55RWX)
Across the world, failure of official advice to provide sustainable, healthy diets is shocking, say scientistsOfficial dietary advice across the world is harming both the environment and people’s health, according to scientists who have carried out the most comprehensive assessment of national dietary guidelines to date.Food is responsible for a quarter of the emissions driving the climate crisis and millions of early deaths. The analysis assessed all available dietary guidelines, covering 85 countries and every region of the world. The researchers said governments’ failure to help people eat good diets was “shocking”. Continue reading...
Plan reduces number of projects, such as pipelines and highways, subject to review and limits scope of investigationsThe Trump administration is rolling back major environmental protections that require the US government to comprehensively analyze how proposed projects like pipelines and highways affect surrounding communities.Trump announced the changes on Wednesday afternoon from a UPS airport hub in Atlanta, where he backed the widening of commercial truck lanes on Interstate Highway 75. The White House said projects like the Atlanta expansion would have taken seven years to permit and now should take less than two years. Continue reading...
Tiny west African country enjoys warm temperatures, which are cooler on its tourist-filled coastAs the smallest country on the African mainland – just 30 miles (50km) across at its widest point, and barely larger than Devon and Cornwall combined – you would not expect the Gambia to have a very varied climate. The low-lying nature of the country, which runs along the Gambia River, also means there is little or no altitudinal variation.But there is a difference in temperature, and especially humidity, between the Atlantic coast in the west and places further upriver: inland sites are noticeably hotter and more humid, especially from March to June. Hence the vast majority of the holiday resorts are situated along the 50-mile coastline, where pleasantly warm winds also offer some relief from the heat. Continue reading...
Egypt fears hydroelectric project will restrict limited waters on which its population dependsEthiopia has allowed a controversial dam built across the headwaters of the Nile to fill with rain water, raising tensions with Egypt and Sudan.The huge hydroelectric project on the Blue Nile, known as the Grand Renaissance dam, is at the centre of Ethiopia’s plan to become Africa’s biggest power exporter, but Egypt fears already limited Nile waters, on which its population of more than 100 million people depends, might be restricted. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Shine Energy, which has proposed a new plant at Collinsville in north Queensland, describes itself as a ‘traditional owner company’The company proposing a coal-fired power station at Collinsville in north Queensland, Shine Energy, is promoting itself as a representative of Birriah traditional owners without having consulted their formal native title body, a Birriah elder has said.Shine Energy – which has been promised $3.3m by the federal government to conduct a feasibility proposal on the controversial power station – describes itself as a “traditional owner company”. Continue reading...