The environmental movement has a long history in America’s south – yet people of color and impoverished communities continue to face dangerous pollutionIt doesn’t surprise me that the environmental justice movement began in the south, a place where, historically, the pressure of injustice builds until it explodes into organized resistance. Continue reading...

To cut greenhouse gas emissions we need to increase cyclist numbers and that means getting more women on their bikesSo much of the world around us is designed for men; from the mundane (public toilets and smartphones) to the potentially deadly (stab vests and crash test dummies). My own research, recently launched at the C40 Women4Climate conference, revealed similar trends in how we design cities and formulate transport policy, with devastating consequences.Transportation accounts for up to one-third of greenhouse gas emissions from the world’s biggest cities and traffic is the largest source of toxic air pollution. To create sustainable, healthy and liveable cities, we need to increase the number of cyclists on our streets, and that means getting more women on their bikes. In San Francisco, only 29% of cyclists are women; in Barcelona, there are three male cyclists for every female cyclist; in London, 37% of cyclists are female. Continue reading...

Experts point to climate change for shift in garden pest and disease rankingsAn invasive bug with a taste for beans has jumped into the top 10 list of the worst garden pests as it benefited from the warm summer.The Royal Horticultural Society said its latest annual list of which pests and diseases were causing the most trouble in gardens revealed the impact of the hot dry weather in the UK last summer. Continue reading...

Australia leads operation to remove remaining 600 tonnes of oil from the stricken vessel MV Solomon TraderThe clean-up of an oil spill from a bulk carrier run aground in the Solomon Islands could reach $50m, experts have said, as efforts began to prevent more oil leaking into the sea.Eighty tonnes of heavy fuel oil has leaked so far in an area close to a world heritage coral site on Rennell Island. Continue reading...

The opening of Murohara Surfboards is part of an attempt to revive the area’s reputation as a surfing hotspot after nuclear meltdownThere was a time when Shinji Murohara thought he would never again surf along the coast where he grew up.On 11 March 2011, the waves of the Pacific that gave him his love of the sea suddenly, violently left his community in ruins. That afternoon, a massive earthquake triggered a tsunami along Japan’s north-east coast that killed almost 19,000 people, including about 600 in his home town of Minamisoma, Fukushima prefecture. Continue reading...

Heritage group says law passed as part of plan to raise Warragamba Dam wall could endanger cultural valuesThe New South Wales government has been accused of not following due process when it passed legislation to allow flooding in the heritage-listed Blue Mountains.The Greater Blue Mountains area is already recognised globally for its environmental significance but now some sections are being assessed by the federal government for inclusion on the national heritage list for Aboriginal cultural values. Continue reading...

Changes to the emissions baselines proposed by the Coalition mean businesses are less likely to breach rules in the short termThe Greens have expressed alarm over changes to the emissions safeguard mechanism that will make it less likely that heavy polluters such as mines and smelters will be caught by the scheme – at least in the short term.In the week following an attempted pivot on climate change policy by the Morrison government, the Department of Environment and Energy has published amendments to the safeguard mechanism that take effect immediately. Continue reading...

Residents of Allensworth, a historic town established by a former slave, have struggled with clean water access for decadesOne day in 1979, Nettie Morrison, then 44 and living near Bakersfield, California, announced she was moving to a tiny, rural town called Allensworth, 40 miles north. Hardly anyone had even heard of it, and those who had thought she was crazy. “People said, ‘Why would you want to move out there?’” recalls her daughter, Denise Kadara. “‘There’s nothing for you up there.’ But she knew it was a historically black town and wanted to be a part of it.”Colonel Allen Allensworth, a former slave who rose to become a Union officer during the American civil war, had founded the eponymous town in 1908, when he bought 2,700 acres of alkali flats to establish a black utopia in a part of the San Joaquin Valley known as the Tulare Basin. By 1913, some 1,200 people from across the country had responded to Allensworth’s call – sent out via newspaper advertisements – to build the “Tuskegee of the west”. Back then, abundant clear water flowed from artesian wells, enough to drink and to irrigate crops of alfalfa, sugar beets and corn, along with feed for livestock. Continue reading...

EPA chief says new regulations are needed to meet Paris targets, putting future LNG projects under threatWestern Australia’s environmental protection authority has announced tough new measures aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions from large projects.The EPA, which works independently and makes recommendations to the WA government about whether new developments should be granted environmental approval, said on Thursday it was setting a “higher bar” for how it would assess the impact of major projects on the climate. Continue reading...

Rescuers found 127 ringtail possums along the shoreline and in the water on Victoria’s Mornington PeninsulaMore than 100 dead and injured ringtail possums have been found by wildlife rescuers along a single stretch of beach in Victoria in what ecologists say is becoming an annual occurrence due to extreme heat.Rescuers and wildlife carers discovered 127 ringtail possums along the shoreline and in the water at Somers Beach on the Mornington Peninsula on Saturday during a four-day period that saw consistent temperatures in the high 30s, warm nights and bushfires in parts of the state. Continue reading...

Conservation groups say Trump administration plan that would scale the wolves’ protected area and allow people to shoot the species on private land will snuff out the species

Giving irrigators a licence to divert huge volumes of water is a recipe for disaster, opponents sayAboriginal groups, graziers, environmental groups and the former commonwealth environmental water holder have urged the New South Wales water minister to halt a controversial move to allow Murray-Darling irrigators to “harvest” overland flows after rain events.Known as “floodplain harvesting” the practice has been unregulated and unmonitored in NSW, but is now diverting huge volumes of water in the northern basin of the Murray-Darling system into irrigation storages. Continue reading...

The regent honeyeater’s plight has blocked previous Hunter Valley development plans in the Hunter economic zoneThe site flagged for a 2,000 megawatt coal-fired power plant in the New South Wales Hunter region was the only breeding site in the state last year for the regent honeyeater, a critically endangered bird whose plight has blocked previous development plans.Guardian Australia revealed yesterday that an agreement had been struck between the China Energy Engineering Corporation, Hong Kong-based Kaisun Holdings and a tiny Australian company, Cavcorp, to build a new coal plant. Continue reading...

Deal with wind sector aims to produce one third of UK’s electricity needs by 2030The government will throw its weight behind an expansion in the use of offshore wind power in the hope the renewable energy source will provide a third of the UK’s electricity by 2030.In a deal between the government and the offshore wind sector, industry players have agreed to invest £250m over the next 11 years in exchange for participation in £557m of state subsidies for renewable energy. Continue reading...

Contamination found across UK lakes and rivers, in US groundwater, along the Yangtze river and Spanish coast, and harbouring dangerous bacteria in SingaporeMicroplastic pollution spans the world, according to new studies showing contamination in the UK’s lake and rivers, in groundwater in the US and along the Yangtze river in China and the coast of Spain.Humans are known to consume the tiny plastic particles via food and water, but the possible health effects on people and ecosystems have yet to be determined. One study, in Singapore, has found that microplastics can harbour harmful microbes. Continue reading...

Witness says cormorant survived the plunge into a 200-foot-deep vortex in a California reservoirWhat happens when a small bird is swallowed by a gaping vortex?The fate of the unassuming-looking waterfowl was the subject of anguished debate Wednesday as video surfaced of the animal disappearing into a 200ft-deep tube in a dammed reservoir in northern California. Continue reading...

Elevated levels of lead have been found in schools across the US, alarming experts who say it is particularly harmful to children Continue reading...

The mining company engaged Sir Lynton Crosby’s firm to push anti-renewables message and counter anti-coal activistsThe multinational mining giant Glencore spent millions bankrolling a secret, globally coordinated campaign to prop up coal demand by undermining environmental activists, influencing politicians and spreading sophisticated pro-coal messaging on social media.An investigation by Guardian Australia can reveal the covert campaign, dubbed “Project Caesar”, was orchestrated by world-renowned political operatives at the C|T Group, the firm founded by Sir Lynton Crosby and Mark Textor. Continue reading...

Court finds government failed to consider scientific evidence against frackingThe government’s attempts to make fracking easier have received a setback after the high court ruled key aspects of its national planning policy to be unlawful.In a case brought by anti-fracking campaigners, the court found that it was material to consider scientific evidence, including the effects on climate change, in deciding policy on fracking, and the government had failed to do so. Continue reading...

Bill under consideration by lawmakers would place a five year suspension on municipalities’ banning of plastic strawsIn the growing war against the environmental impact of plastic, Florida seems to be taking a giant step backwards by pushing legislation that would stop local authorities from banning plastic straws, a move that has, not surprisingly, angered many environmentalists.The bill, under consideration by lawmakers, would place a five-year suspension on municipalities’ banning of plastic straws, pending a study from the Florida department of environmental protection. Continue reading...

Bank urged to close loopholes allowing it to lend to projects in countries until 2023A group of powerful HSBC shareholders have written to the bank’s CEO, John Flint, urging him to close a loophole in its energy policy that allows the lender to bankroll coal projects in certain emerging markets.Investment management firms Schroders, EdenTree and stewardship provider Hermes EOS have also called on HSBC to impose a ban on corporate loans, underwriting and advisory services to bank clients that are highly dependent on coal. The letter, which was coordinated by campaign group ShareAction, stresses that HSBC must adopt a “clear, timebound plan” to phase out its existing exposure to the dirty fuel. Continue reading...

The walrus, rusty patched bumblebee, Humboldt marten, leatherback turtle and a Florida sparrow face uncertain futureThe Trump administration is eroding protections for America’s endangered species. Here are five species under threat in the age of Trump.Related: Endangered species face 'disaster' under Trump administration Continue reading...

Trump’s push to expand oil and gas drilling is eroding protections for some of America’s most at-risk wildlifeWhen America was choosing its national animal, Benjamin Franklin was determined the bald eagle shouldn’t prevail. The eagle, Franklin said, was a “bird of bad moral character” with a better option being the turkey, which Franklin considered pleasingly courageous if a little “vain and silly”.Related: Last chance to see? Five species under threat in the age of Trump Continue reading...

Labour chides environment secretary over lack of primary legislation or follow-up actionsThe environment secretary, Michael Gove, has been labelled the “minister for consultations” after it emerged his department had launched 76 since he took office but had only passed one piece of primary legislation.The findings show Gove has launched consultations at a rate of nearly four a month since he took office, covering topics from a deposit return scheme for plastic bottles to animal welfare. Continue reading...

With the wolf population dwindling in a Michigan park, four were trapped in Ontario and transported by helicopterAt a remote national park, four Canadians were recently airdropped into a dizzying new life in America.They are expert moose hunters, accustomed to cold climates, and covered in fur. Continue reading...

Doctors say Queensland government must fund fluoride for the entire state

After Rocky Hill ruling, firm claims open-cut project in NSW will make ‘negligible contribution’ to global emissionsThe company behind a proposed coalmine in the Bylong Valley in New South Wales has claimed the project will make a “negligible contribution” to global climate change, in a fresh submission responding to the historic Rocky Hill judgment.Kepco, the South Korean company that plans to develop an open-cut mine in the valley, has written to the state’s independent planning commission in light of the NSW land and environment court’s ruling in February that the Rocky Hill mine in Gloucester should not go ahead, in part because it was not compatible with efforts to combat climate change. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Local mayor briefed that Hunter economic zone site in Kurri Kurri has been earmarked for 2,000MW plantA deal has been signed to develop two massive new coal-fired power stations near Kurri Kurri in the New South Wales Hunter region, according to a Hong Kong-based investment firm.Guardian Australia can reveal that local authorities – including the Cessnock mayor, Bob Pynsent – have been briefed about the unusual plans to turn the failed Hunter economic zone into a 2,000 megawatt coal power plant. Continue reading...

Shorter hibernation period may accelerate demise of Britain’s only venomous snakeThe adder, Britain’s only venomous snake, has for the first time been confirmed as being active in every month of the year.Adders normally hibernate underground from October to March, a strategy designed to enable them to survive a cold winter, but with warmer weather have now been seen throughout the year. Continue reading...

Solomon Trader leak on the doorstep of a world heritage site on Rennell Island could cost $5m to clean upThe owner of a Hong Kong bulk carrier that is spilling oil in the Solomon Islands has issued an apology over the environmental disaster amid reports the cleanup bill could total $5m.Seventy five tonnes of oil has leaked so far on the doorstep of a world heritage site on Rennell Island. There’s 600 tonnes still on board the vessel. Continue reading...

Already devastated by a fungus made worse by changing temperatures, Australia’s frogs are at risk because of water availability and lack of refugeAustralia’s frog species, already threatened by habitat destruction and disease, are being put under extra pressure by shifting rainfall and rising temperatures from climate change.Some of Australia’s leading frog experts are worried that serious impacts could be unfolding out of sight, with one saying climate change could push certain species to extinction before they are documented by science. Continue reading...

Analysis of air pollution data finds that 64% of cities globally exceed WHO guidelinesTwenty-two of the world’s 30 worst cities for air pollution are in India, according to a new report, with Delhi again ranked the world’s most polluted capital.The Greenpeace and AirVisual analysis of air pollution readings from 3,000 cities around the world found that 64% exceed the World Health Organization’s annual exposure guideline for PM2.5 fine particulate matter – tiny airborne particles, about a 40th of the width of a human hair, that are linked to a wide range of health problems. Continue reading...

Growth for petrol and alternative-fuelled vehicles outweighs decline of dieselThe UK car market staged a small recovery last month when sales of new vehicles rose for the first time in six months.The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said 81,969 new cars were registered in February, up 1.4% from a year earlier. February is traditionally one of the quietest months of the year, as buyers hold off purchases before the numberplate change in March. Continue reading...

Fears Chinese-backed project will flood forest that is home to the most critically endangered species of apeEnvironmentalists in Indonesia have lost a court challenge to a Chinese-backed dam project in Indonesia that will rip through the habitat of the most critically endangered orangutan species.On Monday, the state administrative court in North Sumatra’s capital, Medan, ruled that construction can continue despite critics of the 510-megawatt hydro dam providing evidence that its environmental impact assessment was deeply flawed. Continue reading...

Angus Taylor says while carryover credits are ‘relatively small’ part of carbon budget, any decision to ditch them would be catastrophicAngus Taylor has insisted it would be “apocalyptic” for the economy if Labor did not use Kyoto carryover credits towards its emissions reduction targets, while still maintaining they were “relatively small in terms of the overall carbon budget”.Following on from his Sunday interview in which he falsely claimed emissions had gone down, though the government’s own data showed a 0.9% increase, the energy minister accused critics of “cherry-picking” time periods to prove their points, when his own assertions relied on just the last quarter, instead of the whole year. Continue reading...

Extreme temperatures destroy kelp, seagrass and corals – with alarming impacts for humanityThe number of heatwaves affecting the planet’s oceans has increased sharply, scientists have revealed, killing swathes of sea-life like “wildfires that take out huge areas of forest”.The damage caused in these hotspots is also harmful for humanity, which relies on the oceans for oxygen, food, storm protection and the removal of climate-warming carbon dioxide the atmosphere, they say. Continue reading...

Logging in Poland’s Vistula lagoon described by experts as part of a ‘war on nature’ across the continent’s ancient forestsA logging operation at Poland’s spectacular 55-mile-long Vistula lagoon is casting a “dark omen” of deforestation and biodiversity collapse across Europe’s forests, campaigners say.Tree felling around the Natura 2000 site is aimed at clearing a path to the Baltic Sea for use by Poland’s navy, to the alarm of Russia. But they are just one front in what some academics describe as a war on nature. Continue reading...

Goal of cutting emissions by 90% before 2050 fails to address challenge, warns committeeNicola Sturgeon’s government needs to show much greater urgency in tackling climate change, a cross-party committee of the Scottish parliament has said.The environment committee said the Scottish government’s goal of cutting emissions by 90% before 2050 failed to address the scale of the challenge. Instead, ministers should aim for a net zero target, where there are no additional emissions that affect the climate, MSPs said. Continue reading...

Four suitcases abandoned in arrivals area contain rare and protected varieties of tortoisesPolice in the Philippines have discovered 1,529 live turtles wrapped in duct tape inside suitcases abandoned in an airport.The customs bureau seized four suitcases in Manila on Sunday and found they were filled with rare and protected varieties including star tortoises, red-footed tortoises, sulcata tortoises and red-eared sliders. Continue reading...

Dairy boom has coincided with decline in water quality, leaving two-thirds of rivers unsafe for swimmingIt has been a classic summer in New Zealand: hot days, barbecues on the beach and lazy afternoon games of cricket. But dozens of beaches, rivers and lakes have been closed to the public owing to pollution from farming.According to a recent poll, water pollution is now New Zealanders’ number one concern: 82% of respondents said they want tougher protections for waterways, ranking it as a priority above the housing crisis, the rising cost of living and child poverty. Continue reading...

Several reefs have not recovered from back-to-back bleaching, surveys have found, but others remain in good conditionCoral reefs in the far north of the Great Barrier Reef are showing lasting effects from the mass bleaching of 2016 and 2017 and in some cases their health has declined further, according to fresh surveys by the Australian Institute of Marine Science.Preliminary results of surveys by Aims scientists in January show several reefs have not recovered from the back-to-back bleaching, although the agency said some reefs they surveyed were in good condition. Continue reading...

Residents of Raposa Serra do Sol are determined to face down the threat posed by mining“A united people will never be defeated!” shouted Maria Betânia Mota, as the indigenous assembly in a partially burned-out agricultural college began. Hundreds of voices roared back in approval.Betânia Mota is the women’s secretary of its organisers, the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR), which represents the majority of those living in the 1.7m hectares of savannah and scrub that make up the Raposa Serra do Sol reserve in Brazil’s northernmost state. Continue reading...

Emissions fell for sixth year running in 2018, but reductions margins have shrunkThe government has been warned against complacency on climate change action after figures showed a slowdown in the rate of Britain’s carbon emission cuts.Emissions dropped for the sixth year running in 2018, to 361m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent, a level last seen in the late 19th century. Continue reading...

Some are calling climate change this generation’s civil rights movement. These are the young activists leading the charge

Of 265 US power plants that monitor groundwater, 242 report unsafe levels of at least one pollutant derived from coal ashAlmost every coal-fired power plant in the US is contaminating groundwater with unsafe levels of toxic pollution, according to the first comprehensive analysis of the consequences of coal ash waste disposal.Of the 265 US power plants that monitor groundwater, 242 have reported unsafe levels of at least one pollutant derived from coal ash, which is the remnants of coal after it is burned for energy. More than half such facilities report unsafe levels of arsenic, a carcinogen linked to multiple types of cancer, with 60% finding elevated lithium, which is associated with neurological damage. Continue reading...

Beached hoodwinker sunfish, which is two metres long, baffles locals on California beachA giant sunfish has washed up on a beach in California, the first time this particular species of the animal has been sighted in the northern hemisphere in 130 years.The sunfish measuring 2.05 metres (6ft 8 in) and weighing several hundred kilograms, or more than 600lb, was found on the beach of the Coal Oil Point Reserve in California. Continue reading...

Crisis networks report rise in number of farmers distressed by uncertainty over futureCharities have said British farmers are increasingly at risk of suicide owing in part to uncertainty over Brexit and the impact of bad weather.Distressed farmers have made dozens of calls to crisis networks and some have been placed on “suicide watch”, according to the National Farmers’ Union (NFU). Continue reading...

Fabio Schvartsman and other executives resign after claims firm knew dam was unstableThe boss of the Brazilian iron ore mining firm Vale has resigned, following growing public and political anger over the collapse of a dam in which at least 186 people died.Fabio Schvartsman and several other senior executives resigned on a “temporary” basis on Saturday after prosecutors recommended their dismissal. The move came after a leak of official documents suggested that Vale knew the dam was at a heightened risk of collapse. Continue reading...

Spill could damage Rennell Island, the world’s largest raised coral atoll and home to many species found nowhere elseAustralia is sending more help to the Pacific nation of the Solomon Islands to stop oil from a grounded cargo ship destroying a world heritage-listed marine sanctuary, Australia’s foreign minister said on Sunday.At least 75 tonnes of heavy fuel oil has spilled from Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier Solomon Trader since Cyclone Oma drove it onto a reef at Rennell Island on 5 February. Continue reading...

The energy minister repeats PM’s line that emissions fell by 1% when the government’s own figures show the oppositeThe energy minister has again insisted Australia’s emissions are going down, when the government’s official figures show emissions continue to increase, as the government struggles to sell the latest incarnation of its energy policy.In an interview with the ABC program Insiders, Angus Taylor repeatedly stated emissions had decreased by 1% repeating the line first said by the prime minister, Scott Morrison, that Australia would meet its Paris commitments in “a canter”. Continue reading...