On the eve of Cop29 in Baku, Antonio Guterres says dangers are underestimated as irreversible tipping points nearThe world is still underestimating the risk of catastrophic climate breakdown and ecosystem collapse, the UN secretary general has warned in the run-up to Cop29, acknowledging that the rise in global heating is on course to soar past 1.5C (2.7F) over pre-industrial levels in the coming years.Humanity is approaching potentially irreversible tipping points such as the collapse of the Amazon rainforest and the Greenland ice sheet as global temperatures rise, Antonio Guterres has said, warning that governments are not making the deep cuts to greenhouse gas emissions needed to limit warming to safe levels. Continue reading...
Country's foreign minister says UN climate summits have produced no results' as Pacific nation takes the rare step of withdrawing from upcoming Cop29Papua New Guinea's decision to pull out of an upcoming UN global climate summit due to frustration over empty promises and inaction" has prompted concern from climate advocates, who fear the move will isolate the Pacific nation and put vital funding at risk.Prime minister James Marape announced in August the country would not attend Cop29 in protest at the big nations" for a lack of quick support to victims of climate change". Then last week, foreign affairs minister Justin Tckatchenko, confirmed Papua New Guinea would withdraw from high-level talks at the summit, which begins on 11 November in Baku, Azerbaijan, describing it as a total waste of time". Continue reading...
Royal says it's probably been the hardest year in my life' as Catherine and King Charles underwent cancer treatmentPrince William has described the past year as brutal" and probably the hardest year in my life" as he dealt with his wife and father having cancer.In a video interview to mark the end of his week-long visit of Cape Town in South Africa for the Earthshot prize awards ceremony, William was asked about his year. Honestly, it's been dreadful," he said. It's probably been the hardest year in my life. Trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult. Continue reading...
Newfoundland Memorial Univeristy team find white masses are likely material used to clean pipes in oil industryWhen the chemist Chris Kozak finally got his hands on a sample of the mysterious blobs that recently washed up on the shores of Newfoundland's beaches, Project Unknown Glob officially began.At his disposal, Kozak and a team of graduate students had the gorgeous" new science building and world-class facilities" of Newfoundland's Memorial University to run a battery of tests on the white, doughy blob. Continue reading...
Critics say amendment 2 is intentionally open to applying chicanery' and outdated hunting practicesBlack bears in Florida could soon again be in the crosshairs of trophy hunters after a controversial wildlife ballot measure was approved by voters, environmental advocates say.The fear stems from amendment 2, which enshrines into the state constitution legal protections for citizens' right to hunt and fish. Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#6S205)
Analysis of 19m flights between 2019 and 2023 reveals 50% rise in emissions, condemned as gratuitous waste'Private jet flights have soared in recent years, with the resulting climate-heating emissions rising by 50%, the most comprehensive global analysis to date has revealed.The assessment tracked more than 25,000 private jets and almost 19m flights between 2019 and 2023. It found almost half the jets travelled less than 500km and 900,000 were used like taxis" for trips of less than 50km. Many flights were for holidays, arriving in sunny locations in the summertime. The Fifa World Cup in Qatar in 2022 attracted more than 1,800 private flights. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#6S1VH)
Jon Thompson tells industry conference there was no evidence' that bats were at risk from the trainsThe cost of a bat shed" to protect a species in woodland along the new HS2 high-speed line has risen to more than 100m, HS2's chair has revealed.The 1km-long mesh structure will be built where the London-Birmingham high-speed line emerges from a tunnel in Buckinghamshire, to protect a colony of Bechstein's bats. Continue reading...
Warming climate has caused rivers used for transport to dry up, leaving children with little food, water or school access, says UnicefTwo years of severe drought in the Amazon rainforest have left nearly half a million children facing shortages of water and food or limited access to school, according to a UN report.Scant rainfall and extreme heat driven by the climate crisis have caused rivers in what is usually the wettest region on Earth to retreat so much that they can no longer be traversed by boats, cutting off communities. Continue reading...
Voters have never been swayed by rational debate'. Only a genuine change in the way we do politics can prevent the march of the rightWe were losing slowly. Now we are losing quickly. Democracy, accountability, human rights, social justice - all were rolling backwards as money swarmed our politics. Above all, our life-support systems - the Earth's atmosphere, oceans, ecosystems, ice and snow - have been hammered and hammered, regardless of who is in power. Donald Trump might strike the killer blows, but he is not the cause of an ecocidal economic system. He is the embodiment of it.Under Joe Biden, the US was missing its own climate goals, and those goals were insufficient to meet the global objective of limiting heating to 1.5C above preindustrial levels. That target in turn might not be tight enough to prevent a tipping of Earth systems. Already, at roughly 1.3C of heating, we see what looks alarmingly like climatic flickering: the ever wilder perturbations that tend to precede the collapse of a complex system.George Monbiot is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
Leading Colombian conservationists share their experiences working in the most dangerous country to fight for wildlifePoliticians, conservationists and business people from around the world met last week to discuss how to save nature at the Cop16 biodiversity conference in Cali, Colombia.For those working on the ground, however, it is the most dangerous country in the world to fight for the environment. A third of the 196 environmental defenders killed last year were Colombian. Here, four conservationists give us a glimpse into their working lives and the dangers they face. Continue reading...
Conservation groups are asking for the decision to allow Hvalur to hunt to be put on hold until after electionA coalition of conservation and animal welfare groups are urging Iceland's president to step in and stop any plans the prime minister has to issue a whaling licence to Europe's last whaler before the Icelandic election at the end of the month.Earlier this year, the country granted a one-year licence to Hvalur to kill more than 100 fin whales this hunting season, despite hopes the practice may have been stopped after concerns about cruelty led to a temporary suspension in 2023. Continue reading...
Westminster plan for UK's biggest heat network could involve parliament warmed by waste and low-carbon heatAbout 1,000 London buildings including the Houses of Parliament and the National Gallery could soon be warmed by low-carbon heat sourced from the River Thames, London Underground and sewer networks.Plans to develop the UK's biggest heat network to supply decarbonised heat to buildings across Westminster were set out on Wednesday by the government as part of its pledge to back seven heat network zones with more than 5m of public funding. Continue reading...
Land reform charities call for better regulation of UK's carbon market so profits can be shared with publicNature campaigners have called for taxpayers to take stakes in forest and peatland projects designed to store carbon, to avoid all the profits from carbon credits going to private investors.A report from the Revive Coalition, an umbrella group for Scottish land reform and conservation charities, says carbon credits also need to be used much more effectively to bolster demand and help the UK meet its net zero targets.Government-owned banks such as the Scottish National Investment Bank should invest in carbon projects, including on public land.It becomes mandatory for all large and medium-sized companies to have audited carbon reduction targets to avoid green washing.All carbon offsetting projects must register with the official schemes, the Woodland carbon code and the Peatland carbon code.A new land tax is set up that is reduced if the land is managed to protect the climate and promote nature recovery. Continue reading...
Earlier this year, families from the Indigenous Guna people on the tiny island of Gardi Sugdub became the first to undergo a climate-related relocation by the Panamanian government because of the threat of rising sea levels. Hundreds of residents moved to Isber Yala, a new town built on the mainland. But many fear that the relocation has put their traditions and culture in perilPhotographs by Euan Wallace Continue reading...
My mother showed me the importance of Indigenous and Afro-descendant women in protecting the natural world. Yet they continue to face barriers and discrimination in their workI learned about the importance of women in small communities from my mother. She was a peasant woman - a campesina as we say in Colombia - in the mountains near Cali, where I grew up. She searched the forest for food and cultivated the earth to grow vegetables to feed me and my four siblings. It is women like her that I try to empower with my work supporting the collective rights of Indigenous and Afro-descendant women in Asia, Africa and Latin America.In an era of environmental crises, people from such communities have an outsized role in preventing the destruction of nature and slowing the climate crisis. Colombia, where the biodiversity Cop16 was held last week, is home to 10% of all life on Earth, stretching from thick mangrove forest of the Pacific coast to the Amazon rainforest. Many of the communities I work with live alongside this rich nature and have made its survival part of their culture, something increasingly recognised in conservation. This is true from the Arctic Circle to the Indonesian forest. My job is to make sure women in these places receive practical support and a fair share of growing financial assistance. Continue reading...
Unexpected appearance sparks rush to catch animal in a trash can as it hides at check-in and dangles from wiresPassengers awaiting an early morning flight at New York's LaGuardia airport were surprised by the sudden arrival of an unexpected extra flyer: a raccoon who fell through a terminal ceiling and proceeded to cause mayhem at a departure gate.Video of the animal's abrupt appearance at a Spirit Airlines gate inside the airport's Marine air terminal, and almost comical efforts to capture it in a giant transparent trash can, was posted to social media by an observer. Continue reading...
More than 150 million people and 318m acres of crops are affected by droughts after summer of record heatEvery US state except Alaska and Kentucky is facing drought, an unprecedented number, according to the US Drought Monitor.A little more than 45% of the US and Puerto Rico is in drought this week, according to the tracker. About 54% of land in the 48 contiguous US states is affected by droughts. Continue reading...
As a new report makes clear, the timetable is dauntingly tight. But the potential rewards on offer are hugeOne of Labour's first acts in government was to lift the de facto ban on new onshore windfarms introduced by the Conservatives in 2016, which closed off one of the key pathways to clean, cheap energy by the 2030s. This week, progress was resumed as plans were outlined for what would be the most productive onshore windfarm in England. According to developers, the Scout Moor scheme in GreaterManchester could meet 10% of the region's energy needs by the end of the decade.As a major new report published on Tuesday makes clear, if Labour's mission of a clean electricity system by 2030 is to be met, an avalanche of such projects will be required. The publicly owned National Energy System Operator (Neso) estimates that a doubling of onshore wind capacity will be necessary, along with a still bigger expansion of offshore wind and a tripling of solar power. When this is all considered alongside the need to transform the country's power and transmission networks at an unprecedented pace, the daunting scale of the task becomes clear. Crucially, though, Neso's analysis finds that the 2030 date is achievable if, to put it non-technically, the government, the energy industry and regulators truly go for it.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
Carmakers sell 29,800 electric cars in October as diesel models drop by a fifth and petrol cars by 14%Sales of electric cars in the UK grew in October despite overall demand for vehicles shrinking as manufacturers raced to meet government targets.Carmakers sold 29,800 electric cars during the month, up by a quarter compared with the same month last year, according to data published on Tuesday by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), a lobby group. Continue reading...
Christian Aslund was shocked at the difference between what he saw in 2002 and what confronted him this summerStanding in blinding sunlight on an archipelago above the Arctic Circle, the photographer Christian Aslund looked in shock at a glacier he had last visited in 2002. It had almost completely disappeared.Two decades ago Greenpeace asked Aslund to use photographs taken in the early 20th century, and photograph the same views in order to document how glaciers in Svalbard were melting due to global heating. The difference in ice density in those pictures, taken almost a century apart, was staggering. Continue reading...
by Hannah Al-Othman North of England correspondent on (#6S0B8)
Collaboration between RSPB and Chester zoo leads to best mating season on record for the semi-aquatic fen raft spiderThousands of giant spiders that can grow to the size of a human hand are thriving in the UK, thanks to a successful breeding programme from Chester zoo.The fen raft spider is a harmless arachnid that plays a vital role in aquatic ecosystems, but 15 years ago was on the brink of extinction because of habitat loss. Continue reading...
by Jillian Ambrose Energy correspondent on (#6RZX3)
Cubico project at Scout Moor near Greater Manchester could power the equivalent of 100,000 homesPlans to build what would be the biggest onshore windfarm in England will move forward this week, the first since the Labour government lifted the de facto ban put in place by the Conservatives nine years ago.An independent renewable energy developer has submitted plans to erect 21 wind turbines next to an existing windfarm near Greater Manchester. Continue reading...
Former NSW Liberal energy minister Matt Kean debated his former Coalition colleagues about the cost of nuclear power in a parliamentary estimates hearing on Monday. Now chair of the Climate Change Authority, Kean debated Nationals senator Ross Cadell over CSIRO analysis which found nuclear was the most expensive form of large-scale energy available
State-owned Neso says Britain could be net exporter of green electricity by end of decade at no extra costA plan to create a clean electricity system by 2030 promised by Labour before the election is immensely challenging" but still credible" if ministers take urgent action to fix Britain's sluggish planning system, the energy system operator has said.Britain could become a net exporter of green electricity by the end of the decade at no extra costs to the energy system under the plans and bills may even fall if ministers make the right policy changes, according to the operator. Continue reading...
Union says Defra figures show far more farmers will be hit by budget proposal and warns of militant protest' to comeThe government argument that just 28% of farmers will be affected by the new inheritance tax rules is in direct conflict with data produced by the its own environment department, according to the head of the farmer's union, as the row over inheritance tax for farmers continued.The announcement in Rachel Reeves's budget last week of plans to remove the Agricultural Property Relief inheritance tax exemption from farms worth more than 1m has been met with a storm of fury from across the farming industry and suggestions of militant protest". Continue reading...
by Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent on (#6RZ72)
Decision comes after military concludes projects would complicate defending Nato's newest member against attackSweden has vetoed plans for 13 offshore windfarms in the Baltic Sea, citing unacceptable security risks.The country's defence minister, Pal Jonson, said on Monday that the government had rejected plans for all but one of 14 windfarms planned along the east coast. Continue reading...
Deputy environment minister calls for urgent action as Riyadh prepares for global summit on issue next monthThe degradation of the world's soils and landscapes is threatening human life, and must be addressed as a matter of urgency, the government of Saudi Arabia has said.Neglect of the land is wiping trillions of dollars from global economies, hampering agricultural production, disrupting water supplies, threatening children with poor nutrition, and destroying vital ecosystems, according to the country's deputy environment minister. Continue reading...
One sucker is precariously attached to some flimsy reality - a wet leaf, a slippery rock - the other one pointed at the futureImagine if your Wikipedia page described you as a segmented or parasitic worm" with two head segments" and suckers at both ends". You might turn to the Bible, instead - here is the Book of Proverbs on leeches: The horseleech hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough: The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough."The daughters are the leech's words (though some interpret the daughters as the suckers): Give, give." Within this damp, humid, leech-infested jungle is the surprisingly sweet idea of the words you say as daughters you have given birth to. Continue reading...
Detailed plans from 30 oil and gas producers come amid historic levels of potent planet-heating emissionsA powerful US oil and gas industry lobby group has drawn up detailed plans to kill off penalties for emitting methane, a potent planet-heating gas that's increasing at the fastest rate in decades, with this effort led by a major donor to Donald Trump whose company has just been fined for methane pollution.Leaked internal documents from the American Exploration & Production Council (AXPC), a group of 30 oil and gas producers, outline a push to repeal a fee levied on methane emissions should the former US president win this week's election and Republicans gain control of Congress. Continue reading...
by Jillian Ambrose Energy correspondent on (#6RZ0D)
Analysis finds demand for wood pellets from US for North Yorkshire power plant reduces forest carbon stocksDrax will keep raising the levels of carbon emissions in the atmosphere until the 2050s despite using carbon capture technology, according to scientific research.The large power plant in North Yorkshire is a significant generator of electricity for the UK but has faced repeated criticism of its business model of burning wood pellets sourced from forests in the US and Canada. Continue reading...
by Jillian Ambrose Energy correspondent on (#6RYZ3)
Companies are waiting up to 14 years for connections, leading some to revise net zero targetsOn the south bank of the Mersey, Britain's first factory dedicated to manufacturing electric vehicles may one day be powered exclusively by wind and solar farms.Stellantis, the European carmaker that owns the Ellesmere Port site, has begun work to fit four megawatts (MW) of solar power capacity across 500 sq metres (5,400 sq ft) of its rooftop space, enough to power the equivalent of 8,000 homes. Continue reading...
by Patrick Greenfield and Phoebe Weston in Cali on (#6RYZA)
Representatives at the Cop16 summit in Colombia negotiated against a backdrop of extreme weather and ecosystem collapseAs world leaders gathered in Colombia this week, they also watched for news from home, where many of the headlines carried the catastrophic consequences of ecological breakdown. Across the Amazon rainforest and Brazil's enormous wetlands, relentless fires had burned more than 22m hectares (55m acres). In Spain, the death toll in communities devastated by flooding passed 200. In the boreal forests that span Siberia, Scandinavia, Alaska and Canada, countries were recording alarming signs that their carbon sinks were collapsing under a combined weight of drought, tree death and logging. As Canada's wildfire season crept to a close, scientists calculated it was the second worst in two decades - behind only last year's burn, which released more carbon than some of the world's largest emitting countries.In global negotiations, climate and nature move along two independent tracks, and for years were broadly treated as distinct challenges. But as negotiations closed at the Cop16 biodiversity summit in Cali on Saturday, ministers from around the world underscored the crucial importance of nature to limiting damage from global heating, and vice versa - emphasising that climate and biodiversity could no longer be treated as independent issues if either crisis was to be resolved. Countries agreed a text on links between the climate and nature, but failed to include language on a phase out of fossil fuels. Continue reading...
King Felipe heckled in Paiporta, one of the municipalities worst affected by last week's floodsHundreds of people have heckled Spain's King Felipe and Queen Letizia, as well as the prime minister and the regional leader of Valencia - throwing mud and shouting murderers" - as the group attempted an official visit to one of the municipalities hardest hit by the deadly floods.The scenes playing out in Paiporta on Sunday laid bare the mounting sense of abandonment among the devastated areas and the lingering anger over why an alert urging residents not to leave home on Tuesday was sent after the flood waters began surging. Continue reading...
Conservationists worry amendment 2 will open the door to banned practices like blast fishing and undercut their workOn election day, Florida voters will decide whether to enshrine a constitutional right to hunt and fish in their state.Amendment 2, proposed by the Republican state lawmaker Lauren Melo, seeks to preserve traditional methods, as a public right and preferred means of responsibly managing and controlling fish and wildlife". Continue reading...
More than 130 organisations take part in protest demanding government action over country's sewage crisisThousands of blue-clad protesters have told the government to stop poisoning Britain's water" as they marched through London calling for action on the country's contaminated coastal waters and rivers.A coalition of more than 130 nature, environmental and water-sport organisations called supporters out on to the streets of the capital on Sunday afternoon, aiming to create the country's biggest ever protest over water. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#6RYNN)
Letter by 61 Labour MPs supports cheapest and most pragmatic' plan for new electricity infrastructureMore than 60 Labour MPs have formed a bloc to push back against anti-pylon lobbying by Conservative and Green MPs, saying they back plans to build the pylons despite local opposition in several areas.MPs, particularly in rural areas, have come under mounting pressure from anti-pylon activists to oppose the infrastructure. The Tories found themselves forced to commit to hold a rapid review" of overhead pylons in their July manifesto. Continue reading...