Environment | The Guardian

Articles from conservative groups argue plastic bags are safer for coronavirus than reusable bags, misrepresenting recent studies

Independent MP calls for approvals pause as Natural Resources Commission report shows more than 37,000ha approved last yearLand-clearing approvals in New South Wales have increased nearly 13-fold since the Coalition government relaxed laws in 2016, according to a secret report to the state cabinet by its Natural Resources Commission.The report, marked “Cabinet in Confidence”, was commissioned by the government in January 2019 under an agreement between the Liberals and Nationals to review land clearing if applications exceeded 20,000ha a year. The commission handed it to the government in July, but released it only after the Independent MP Justin Field threatened legal action. Continue reading...

Charity asks people to emulate Japan’s hanami custom and share images on social media

Airlines get $60bn bailout, but Pelosi’s proposal on halving of emissions by 2050 not included

More than a third of British electricity was generated by renewables in 2019The UK’s greenhouse gas emissions fell for a seventh consecutive year in 2019 after a record year for renewable energy, according to government figures.The provisional data, published by the government on Thursday, revealed a 3.6% fall in greenhouse gas emissions compared with 2018 and almost 28% from 2010. Continue reading...

Firefighters call for halt after fire set in readiness for grouse shooting spread out of control

Severity of damage has increased, with areas spared in previous years experiencing moderate or severe bleachingThe government agency responsible for the Great Barrier Reef has confirmed the natural landmark has suffered a third mass coral bleaching episode in five years, describing the damage as “very widespread”.The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority said the assessment was based on information from in-water and aerial observations, and built on the best available science and technology to understand current conditions. Continue reading...

Climate change scientists planning to transcribe paper records from 1820s to 1950sWeather is a perennial British obsession, with some of the country’s rainfall and temperature records going back centuries. Some of this data has been invaluable in drawing up detailed pictures of the British climate, which have been influential in computer models used to forecast climate change.But some of it is still effectively unusable because it is marooned in reams of old-fashioned paper records. Now scientists at the University of Reading are planning to rescue these obscure rain gauge records, using citizen scientists to do the work. They hope that hundreds of people currently stuck indoors with little else to do will be inspired to join up to help digitise rainfall data for use by meteorologists and climate experts. Continue reading...

Army corps of engineers ordered to conduct full environmental review, which could take yearsThe future of the controversial Dakota Access pipeline has been thrown into question after a federal court on Wednesday struck down its permits and ordered a comprehensive environmental review.Related: Our fight against the Dakota Access pipeline is far from over Continue reading...

At least 10,000 people have signed up, but more than 90,000 jobs need filling

Jet stream appears to have stopped moving south and may be moving back towards normalInternational cooperation on ozone-depleting chemicals is helping to return the southern jet stream to a normal state after decades of human-caused disruption, a study shows.Scientists say the findings prove there is the capacity to heal damaged climate systems if governments act promptly and in coordination to deal with the causes. Continue reading...

Offshore windfarms and onshore projects in US and China fuel one of strongest years on record

Auditor general predicts drought in 20 years as demand rises and climate crisis reduces supply

Facilities thought to be 75% full with Saudi Arabia due to ramp up output as demand falters amid coronavirus shutdownsThe world may soon run out of space to store its extra oil as Saudi Arabia prepares to increase its fossil fuel production even as global demand for energy continues to fall due to the Covid-19 pandemic.Oil storage levels across the world’s storage facilities have climbed to about three-quarters full on average since the January shutdown of major refineries in China’s industrial heartlands to stem the outbreak of the coronavirus. Continue reading...

Renowned scientist Terry Hughes says huge swathes of reef have been affected in a ‘severe’ situationThe Great Barrier Reef has experienced a third mass coral bleaching event in five years, according to the scientist carrying out aerial surveys over hundreds of individual reefs.With three days of a nine-day survey to go, Prof Terry Hughes told Guardian Australia: “We know this is a mass bleaching event and it’s a severe one.” Continue reading...

Creatures are intelligent and patient but have been declared an endangered species along south coastMost of us are familiar with the remains of cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis, large chalky internal shells that are washed up on beaches and sold in pet shops as a source of calcium for birds.This relative of the squid and octopus thrives in the seas around Britain and is caught in large numbers for our continental neighbours who regard them as a culinary delicacy. Europeans also use their ink as a colouring agent in food, ink and paint. Continue reading...

Activist says she self isolated and warns young people to take the outbreak seriously

Numbers of endangered primate thought to have shrunk by half in the last 36 yearsTwin ring-tailed lemurs have been born at a UK zoo.The endangered primates were born to mother Fiona and father Dog at Chester zoo on 2 March and have just begun to venture outside. Continue reading...

A female peregrine has been spotted on a balcony nest, but Sally, star of Springwatch, hasn’t been seenThe rollercoaster saga of the Salisbury Cathedral peregrine falcons is continuing this spring, with one bird protecting an egg on a balcony of the great building but another missing in action.A female that has been visiting the balcony regularly in recent weeks has laid one egg and can be viewed hunkering down on the nest via a cathedral webcam. Continue reading...

Campaigners urge governments to tie any bailouts to aviation and cruise industries to requirements for climate action

Descendants of the drug lord’s pets bear similarities to extinct megafaunaWhen the drug lord Pablo Escobar was shot dead in 1993, he left behind a zoo stocked with wild animals alongside his multibillion dollar cocaine empire. The lions, giraffes and other exotic species were moved from the luxurious Hacienda Nápoles estate east of Medellín to new homes, but nearly three decades later, dozens of hippos, descendants of animals left behind, are thriving in small lakes in northern Colombia, making them the world’s largest invasive animal.Now scientists say that contrary to the conventional wisdom that large invasive herbivore mammals have strictly negative effects on their new environments, Escobar’s “cocaine” hippos show how introduced species can restore a lost world. Continue reading...

Pot worth £700m raises holdings in renewable energy after cross-party campaignParliament’s pension fund has made record investments in renewable energy and cut its exposure to fossil fuel companies to bring MPs’ pensions in line with the government’s climate action targets.A report from the £700m pension fund showed that almost a third is now being invested in low carbon and environmentally sustainable funds following calls from hundreds of MPs to align the fund with the government’s legally binding climate commitments. Continue reading...

Major infrastructure projects highlight varying approaches to the coronavirus outbreak

Queensland snake catcher says 80kg albino Burmese python found in Oxenford is the largest he has come across in 27 yearsAs a seasoned snake catcher, Tony Harrison is used to the people the claiming there is a five-metre snake on their doorstep. But for the first time on Monday, the caller wasn’t exaggerating.“This was the largest snake I have come across in 27 years,” Harrison said. “The poor old lady who opened the front door to see it there got the fright of her life” Continue reading...

Plant part-owned by Trevor St Baker was registered with emissions reduction fund but review said it should not qualifyA push by power baron Trevor St Baker to access a Morrison government climate policy initiative to pay for an upgrade at a 42-year-old coal power plant has been rejected after a review found it should not qualify.As reported by Guardian Australia, the Vales Point coal plant in New South Wales was registered with the $2.55bn emissions reduction fund, the “direct action” policy introduced by Tony Abbott and extended by Scott Morrison, in August 2018. Continue reading...

Finding will come as boost to governments seeking to move to net zero carbon emissions

Possible slaughterhouse shutdowns and staffing issues put pressure on ‘vulnerable’ supply chains, as campaigners call for restriction of live exports

Anglo-Dutch oil giant to cut operating costs by $4bn and capital spend by up to $20bn

Once branded ‘rogue animals’, the elusive creatures were on the brink of extinction, but hope is rising for their survivalIt is a blistering day in the Senegalese coastal town of Joal and a group of biologists are standing in a motorised dugout canoe, scanning the cyan waters for floating manatee dung.Suddenly, a bobbing brown mass appears in the distance. Continue reading...

Abundant food thanks to mix of sunshine and rain helps species confound fears of declinesThe record temperatures of summer 2019 helped make it the best season for butterflies in 22 years, with more than half of Britain’s species increasing in number.Last summer delivered a winning combination of warmth, sunshine and rain which ensured that caterpillars fed up on lush plants before emerging as adult butterflies. Continue reading...

Slowdown in large-scale clean energy projects started before coronavirus crisis due to lack of state supportEurope’s energy storage boom stalled last year due to a slowdown in large-scale schemes designed to store clean electricity from major renewable energy projects, according to the European Association for Storage of Energy (Ease).A new study by consultants Delta-EE for Ease found that the European market grew by a total of 1 gigawatt-hours in 2019, a significant slowdown compared with 2018, when the energy storage market exceeded expectations to grow by 1.47GWh. Continue reading...

Planes will this week cover areas in the southern half of the reef that escaped earlier bleaching but may have undergone high levels of heat stressThe full impact of coral bleaching across the Great Barrier Reef will become clearer this week as aerial surveys of hundreds of reefs are completed in the bottom two thirds of the world’s biggest reef system.An aerial survey carried out last week over almost 500 individual reefs between the Torres Strait and Cairns revealed some severe bleaching of corals closer to shore, but almost none on outer reefs. Continue reading...

Indigenous species do not grow fast enough, so imports will have to be planted in their millions to offset emissions, expert warnsLast century the Forestry Commission sparked anger with a mass planting of conifer trees designed to provide a national reserve of timber because the shortages of the first world war had highlighted a national need.Now a leading expert is calling for similar action again, arguing that if the UK is serious about offsetting its carbon dioxide emissions it must plant tens of millions of trees from imported species on open land. Continue reading...

On World Water Day, UN warns that more than half the global population lacking access to safely managed sanitationDecades of chronic underfunding of water infrastructure is putting many countries at worse risk in the coronavirus crisis, with more than half the global population lacking access to safely managed sanitation, experts said as the UN marked World Water Day on Sunday.Good hygiene – soap and water – are the first line of defence against coronavirus and a vast range of other diseases, yet three quarters of households in developing countries do not have access to somewhere to wash with soap and water, according to Tim Wainwright, chief executive of the charity WaterAid. A third of healthcare facilities in developing countries also lack access to clean water on site. Continue reading...

The host of RuPaul’s Drag Race revealed recently that he leases the mineral rights of the 60,000 acres he owns in Wyoming to oil companiesRuPaul, of the beloved RuPaul’s Drag Race television show, said in a recent interview that he leases the mineral and water rights of his land in Wyoming to oil companies.In an interview with NPR’s Terry Gross on her show “Fresh Air” (the irony), Gross asked RuPaul about the 60 acres of land he owns in Wyoming. Continue reading...

Series of before and after images spark renewed calls for Victoria to urgently phase out native timber logging Continue reading...

Up to a third of the UK’s greenhouse emissions come from central heating. But a switch from natural gas to hydrogen, one of three proposals for greener energy, has experts dividedOn 27 June 2019, the energy and clean growth minister Chris Skidmore signed papers that committed the UK to reduce carbon emissions to effectively nothing by 2050. If we are to stand any chance of meeting this target, known as “net zero”, there is one enormous challenge that we will have to tackle: home heating.Warming our homes is responsible for between a quarter and a third of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions. That’s more than 10 times the amount of CO created by the aviation industry. Around 85% of homes now use gas-fired central heating, and a large proportion of gas cooking still takes place. Greening this system is a huge challenge by any measure. But if recent reports are to be believed, there could be a simple and efficient way to do it: change from using natural gas to hydrogen gas. Continue reading...

The real-life Paddington bears were in decline across South America, but records suggest their numbers are growing in EcuadorDeep in the Maquipucuna cloud forest, two hours drive from Ecuador’s capital, Quito, rare Andean bears come together for a few weeks each year to feast on the wild avocados ripening atop mist-shrouded trees.According to ecologists, this small community is growing, bucking the trend of a vulnerable species in decline across South America. The gathering, similar to those of grizzly bears at salmon rivers in Alaska and Canada, is turning what experts know about this normally reclusive, solitary creature on its head. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Poor air quality contributed to 400 deaths and more than 4,000 hospital attendances, research in Medical Journal of Australia shows

Leaders and unions concerned about acute labour shortage suggest retraining those put out of work

One defendant did not attend hearing into last year’s protests as she was self-isolatingDozens of Extinction Rebellion protesters failed to attend their court hearings after the campaign group told them to stay away due to the coronavirus crisis.Forty-nine people were due to appear at City of London magistrates court on Friday charged in connection with a series of environmental demonstrations held in the capital last October. Continue reading...

The pick of the world’s best flora and fauna photos, including a rare kākāpō and orphaned chimps Continue reading...

Survey said proposed Western Link threatens endangered barbastelles in Wensum ValleyAn ecological report revealing that a new road would imperil one of Britain’s rarest mammals was rewritten to remove the warning.The proposed Western Link road in Norwich will cut through a maternity roost of barbastelle bats and put at risk a wider “super colony” that lives and feeds in the Wensum Valley. Continue reading...

At least 83 murdered in 2012-2019, with a third of attacks targeting opponents of energy mega-projectsAt least 83 Mexican land and environment defenders were murdered between 2012 and 2019, while hundreds more were threatened, beaten and criminalized, according to a new report.Latin America is the most dangerous continent in the world to defend environmental, land and human rights, with Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala ranking worst. Continue reading...

Bikes allows people to maintain isolation but provide important respite from being indoorsIt’s an increasingly urgent question for those who still have to travel into work, or to collect supplies or visit vulnerable people – how can you get around without contracting – or spreading – the coronavirus? One answer could be cycling.The immediate caveat to mention is that this is not a call for every trip to be made by bike. If you’re going 25 miles at night to collect 50kg of supplies for a food bank … well, you could do it with a cargo bike, but for most people it’s a non-starter. Continue reading...

Experts fear swarms like those seen in Africa will become more common as tropical storms create favourable breeding conditionsThe locust crisis that has now reached 10 countries could carry on to endanger millions more people, forecasters have said.Climate change created unprecedented conditions for the locusts to breed in the usually barren desert of the Arabian gulf, according to experts, and the insects were then able to spread through Yemen, where civil war has devastated the ability to control locust populations. Continue reading...

Australian photographer Brian Cassey visits Hasdeo Arand, one of the largest contiguous stretches of dense forest in central India. The area is rich in biodiversity, containing many threatened species including elephants, leopards and sloth bears. A rash of newly approved mines could further destroy swathes of the Hasdeo Arand forest – and with it the wildlife local villagers depend on for survival• India’s ancient tribes battle to save their forest home from mining Continue reading...

Campaigners welcome decision which allays fears for fragile biodiversity and communities dependent on river for livelihoodA Cambodian government decision to postpone building new hydropower dams on the Mekong river has been welcomed by campaigners, who say it will provide welcome relief to the tens of thousands of people whose livelihood depend upon its rich resources.Cambodia announced on Wednesday that it would not build any new hydropower dams on the mainstream Mekong for the next decade, allaying fears that the river’s fragile biodiversity could be further devastated by development projects. Continue reading...

Slow recovery due to relocating groups and stronger protection through law enforcementNumbers of African black rhinos in the wild have risen by several hundred, a rare boost in the conservation of a species driven to near extinction by poaching.Black rhinos are still in grave danger but the small increase – an annual rate of 2.5% over six years, has swollen the population from 4,845 in 2012 to an estimated 5,630 in 2018, giving hope that efforts put into saving the species are paying off. Continue reading...

With many activities halted by coronavirus, benefits of time spent in nature still available