Environment | The Guardian

Beavers can regenerate landscapes, encourage wildlife and prevent flooding – and they have friends in high placesThe must-have accessory for every English country estate was once a gothic folly, a ha-ha or a croquet lawn. Now it is a pair of beavers.Landowners and large estates are racing to acquire licences to reintroduce the water-loving rodents, which were hunted to extinction in Britain 400 years ago. Continue reading...

Farm on Eyre Peninsula volunteered by owner to house low and medium risk wasteA farming property on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula will become a nuclear waste dump, the federal government has announced, but opponents of the facility are making a last-bid ditch to stop it.On Saturday the federal resources minister, Matt Canavan, said 160 hectares of the Napandee property in Kimba would host Australia’s radioactive waste, the vast majority of which comes from the production of nuclear medicine and is held across more than 100 sites. Continue reading...

Source says officials in COP26 unit could not work with Claire O’Neill in run-up to Glasgow talksClaire O’Neill, the former UK energy minister who was to lead the UN climate talks this year in Glasgow, has been removed from the post.Her sacking comes as Boris Johnson prepares to launch the UK’s strategy for hosting November’s crunch climate talks, known as COP26. Continue reading...

Biodegradable potato-starch bags | Fossil fuel advertising | Marmalade | Sponges and loofahsI have just turned my “active” compost heap, which has received all the Guardian biodegradable bags since they were introduced last year. I am pleased to say the older bags are barely recognisable and are well on their way to forming nice new compost. By the time the “maturing” heap is emptied in the spring, I expect all the bags will have disappeared and will help grow the next crop of potatoes – a virtuous circle. Well done on your initiative.

The pick of the world’s best flora and fauna photos, including a plea for a crocodile trapped in a tyre Continue reading...

Ugandan activist says she hopes storm over Davos photo will help shift narrativeThe Ugandan climate activist who was cropped out of a press photo in Davos has said many African activists experience the same erasure but feel unable to speak up.The Associated Press apologised last week after it cropped Vanessa Nakate out of a photo she had posed for alongside fellow activists Greta Thunberg, Loukina Tille, Luisa Neubauer and Isabelle Axelsson. Continue reading...

NSW environment minister insists government will not ‘cut corners’ in assessing Santos’s controversial coal-seam gas project at NarrabriFarmers near the proposed Narrabri gas development in northern New South Wales fear they will be “sold out” by a federal-state energy deal that promises to dramatically increase supplies of the fossil fuel in the state.Announcing the $2bn deal alongside the prime minister, Scott Morrison, on Friday, the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, nominated Santos’s long-promised Narrabri coal-seam gas project as a way to deliver 70 petajoules of new gas a year as promised under the agreement. Continue reading...

Hives that survived catastrophic Paris cathedral blaze are healthier than ever, says beekeeperIt is a crisp winter morning and the area around Notre Dame is sealed off as it has been since the fire last April that devastated the cathedral.Those in the know, however, especially those with the keenest of eyes, might spot some small movement high up to the south of the stricken and blackened structure. Continue reading...

Governments risk derailing global fossil fuel demand with ‘handbrake turns’ in futureThe oil industry is at risk of a global market shock that could halve the value of fossil fuel investments if governments delay setting policies to tackle the climate crisis, according to new analysis.A report by Carbon Tracker, a financial thinktank, warned that a “handbrake turn” in climate policy could have a “forceful, abrupt, and disorderly” impact on the global oil industry by derailing fossil fuel demand. Continue reading...

Agreement will underwrite grid interconnectors and cut emissions, Australian prime minister saysScott Morrison has struck a $2bn deal with the New South Wales government to increase gas supply and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the electricity sector.The deal includes at least $450m of federal grants and $510m more of federal grants or loans for “NSW-based emissions reduction initiatives”, to be matched by $1.01bn in direct funding from Gladys Berejiklian’s government. Continue reading...

Annual challenge encourages the public to catch as many of the invasive giant snakes that decimate native wildlife as possibleMost visitors to the mosquito-infested swamps of the Florida Everglades are happy to leave again quickly: a half-hour airboat ride and photograph of a basking alligator is usually enough to satisfy the curiosity of any tourist keen to return to the theme parks and beaches – or sports events – of the sunshine state’s more traditional attractions.But Mike Kimmel wouldn’t be anywhere else. The professional wildlife trapper and self-styled python cowboy’s most recent excursion into the uninhabitable backwaters of the famed River of Grass region was rewarded with the grand prize in this year’s extra-special version of the annual Python Challenge encouraging the public to catch as many of the invasive giant snakes that decimate native wildlife as possible. Continue reading...

Companies to be banned from destroying clothes, cosmetics and other itemsFrance is to ban designer clothes and luxury goods companies from destroying unsold or returned items under a wide-ranging anti-waste law passed by parliament on Thursday.The groundbreaking law, which the French government claims is a world first, also covers electrical items, hygiene products and cosmetics, which must now be reused, redistributed or recycled. Continue reading...

Environment group says $4.5bn saving should be redirected to rural and regional renewal after bushfiresThe Australian Conservation Foundation is calling on the federal government to cap lucrative fuel tax credits for big business, with the $4.5bn annual saving to be redirected to rural and regional renewal in the wake of the summer bushfire crisis.The environment group’s pre-budget submission argues that reform of the fuel rebate – forecast to cost $34bn over the forward estimates – is urgently needed given the scale of devastation caused by the fires, which have seen more than 18 million hectares of land burned across the country. Continue reading...

Johnson’s promised cash only for those flooded from 8-18 November and where at least 25 houses affectedHundreds of flooded households will not receive a penny of the thousands of pounds in compensation announced by Boris Johnson because of an “obscene postcode lottery” being applied by the government.The prime minister promised that grants of up to £5,000 would be made available for victims of flooding, after visiting Fishlake in Yorkshire last November in the run-up to the general election. Another set of payouts of £500 for households and £2,500 for businesses was also announced. Continue reading...

I shut down an oil pipeline as part of a peaceful protest. The government thinks this is violent extremism

Agriculture and forestry union says up to 90% of saplings they have looked at so far have diedUp to 90% of the millions of saplings planted in Turkey as part of a record-breaking mass planting project may have died after just a few months, according to the country’s agriculture and forestry trade union.On 11 November last year, which the government declared National Forestation Day, 11 million trees were planted by volunteers in more than 2,000 sites across the country, including by the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and the parliament Speaker, Mustafa Şentop. Continue reading...

Three survivors joined Friends of the Earth to accuse ANZ of misleading consumers by investing in fossil fuel projectsThree bushfire survivors have joined environment group Friends of the Earth in a claim against ANZ, accusing it of financing the climate crisis by funding fossil fuel projects.The case, lodged under international guidelines agreed by members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), demands the bank disclose its greenhouse gas emissions, including “scope three” emissions resulting from its business lending and investment portfolio, and set ambitious targets that align with the Paris climate agreement. Continue reading...

Temporary ban to curb coronavirus is not enough, says environmental leader Jinfeng ZhouA temporary ban on wildlife markets in China to curb the spread of coronavirus is “not enough” and should be made permanent, a prominent Chinese environmental leader has told the Guardian.Echoing calls from experts worldwide who have denounced the trade for its damaging impact on biodiversity as well as the spread of disease, Jinfeng Zhou, secretary general of the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF), said the ban failed to address the root cause of the outbreak, which was poor regulation and high levels of illegal trade. Continue reading...

Andrea Leadsom overruled climate aims of government’s own planning authorityThe UK government is being sued for approving a large new gas-fired power plant, overruling the climate change objections of its own planning authority.The plant, being developed by Drax in north Yorkshire, would become the biggest gas power station in Europe and could produce 75% of the UK’s power sector emissions when fully operational, according to the environmental lawyers ClientEarth, who have brought the judicial review. Continue reading...

Conservation group wins case against VicForests to protect threatened species habitat after unprecedented bushfiresVicForests has been forced to immediately stop logging in parts of Victoria’s central highlands after the supreme court granted an injunction to a citizen science group pushing for a stop to logging of unburnt areas in the wake of bushfires.Wildlife of the Central Highlands (Wotch) has launched a fresh case against VicForests in a bid to stop logging of threatened species habitat after the country’s unprecedented fire season. Continue reading...

Binding targets on air, water quality and wildlife proposed to replace EU rulesPowers to prevent the export of plastic waste to developing countries, binding targets on air and water quality and the protection of wildlife will be enshrined in law under the environment bill due to be introduced in parliament on Thursday.The commitments will replace the UK’s current obligations on environmental protection under EU law, and the UK will be able to diverge in future from new requirements in EU regulations. Continue reading...

Whitehall’s spending watchdog says energy regulator not tough enough on companiesElectricity bills sent to UK homes are higher than they should be because the energy regulator has allowed electricity network companies to rake in bigger than expected profits, according to Whitehall’s spending watchdog.Households have paid at least £1bn more than necessary over recent years, according to the National Audit Office, because the regulator, Ofgem, was not tough enough on the electricity network companies. Continue reading...

Climate activist also applied to register name of climate movement Fridays for FutureThe climate activist Greta Thunberg has said she has applied to register her name and that of the Fridays For Future movement she founded in 2018, which has gone global and catapulted her to international fame.The move would allow legal action against persons or companies trying to use her name which are not in line with her values or that of her movement, she said. Continue reading...

Experts call for controversial measures to control numbers, estimated at up to 1 millionAn expert report has called for hundreds of thousands of deer to be culled in Scotland to deal with an unsustainable surge in numbers.The report estimates that up to 1 million wild deer could be roaming Scotland, nearly double some previous estimates, causing significant damage to the landscape and hampering calls to increase tree cover to tackle the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Scientists find increasing levels of harmful chemicals, causing health issues and links to mass mortality events

Exclusive: attempts to tackle crisis fail because gender issues are not addressed, report findsClimate breakdown and the global crisis of environmental degradation are increasing violence against women and girls, while gender-based exploitation is in turn hampering our ability to tackle the crises, a major report has concluded.Attempts to repair environmental degradation and adapt to climate breakdown, particularly in poorer countries, are failing, and resources are being wasted because they do not take gender inequality and the effects on women and girls into account. Continue reading...

Scientists say lions and rhinos among species at risk from breeding of trophy animalsLions, rhinos and cheetahs are among the wild species at risk of irreversible “genetic pollution” from breeding experiments, scientists have warned.South African game farmers have increasingly been breeding novel trophy animals, including some freakishly-coloured varieties such as the black impala, golden wildebeest or pure-white springboks. Continue reading...

Move follows efforts to reduce carbon footprint and increase reporting on climate crisis

This is the single largest loss of clean water protections that America has ever seen – and the timing couldn’t be worseIt may be hard to remember these days, but the nation that led the world on to the stage of modern environmental protection was the United States.Starting in the early 70s, the US Congress enacted bold bipartisan laws to protect America’s wildlife, air and water. America’s skies cleared. Waterfronts across the nation went from blighted dumping grounds into vital civic hearts. Continue reading...

Most analysts expect the Reserve Bank will delay a rate cut next week with inflation just below its preferred rangeInflation figures for the December quarter have nudged higher and most analysts expect the Reserve Bank will delay a rate cut.Annual inflation climbed 0.1% to 1.8%, which the RBA board may consider when it meets on Tuesday. The 1.8% figure is just below the Reserve’s preferred 2.0% to 3.0% range. Continue reading...

Carl Lis OBE, chair of National Parks England, warns young people being priced out of scenic areasMore affordable housing should be built in England’s national parks to help communities excluded by spiralling prices driven by second homes, the new chair for the authorities has said.Carl Lis OBE, chair of National Parks England, has warned that young people and national parks staff are being forced out of some of the most scenic parts of the country by high prices, driven in part by exclusive holiday homes. Continue reading...

A glass of dairy milk produces almost three times more greenhouse gas than any plant-based milk. But vegan options have drawbacks of their own

Iceland, Asda and Aldi lag behind but other major retailers make good progress

Scott Morrison says ‘we are playing our part’, and given climate change cannot be stopped, Australia needs to focus on bushfire resilience and adaptationThe prime minister, Scott Morrison, has rejected suggestions Australia could increase its international advocacy on climate change, saying the country is already “carrying its load” and must adapt to a warmer climate regardless of emissions policy.After indicating that the government would “evolve” its climate change policies to address heightened concerns about the role of global warming in Australia’s ongoing bushfire crisis, Morrison used a keynote speech at the National Press Club on Wednesday to talk up the government’s current policies, including its emission reduction targets. Continue reading...

Damage caused by industrial development could undermine efforts to achieve recognition for WA’s Murujuga cultural landscape, the country’s largest collection of rock artThe decades-long campaign to secure world heritage listing for Australia’s largest collection of rock art has finally been taken to Unesco.The federal government on Friday lodged a submission for the Murujuga cultural landscape on Western Australia’s Burrup Peninsula to be included on Australia’s world heritage tentative list, the first formal step toward achieving global recognition for the 50,000-year-old gallery of more than one million petroglyphs. Continue reading...

Acidity is making shells of crab larvae more vulnerable to predators and limiting effectiveness in supporting muscle growth

Ernst & Young review finds several factors preventing ‘rapid, targeted and impactful’ fundingProjects aimed at stimulating drought-affected communities are taking almost 18 months to complete, says a review of the Coalition’s drought communities program, raising doubts about the $300m scheme’s effectiveness.As the government announced a shake-up of the funding model to guide a $47m expansion of the program, a review undertaken by Ernst & Young has found that the design of the flagship drought package has so far shown “limited ability to target areas being economically affected because of drought”. Continue reading...

Adaptation to bushfires might not be achievable without stronger action to curb emissions, letter warnsAustralia’s current position as “ground zero” for both the impacts of climate change and policy uncertainty presents an opportunity for the country to emerge as a leader in responding to the climate crisis, according to Australian Research Council laureates.In a letter signed by 80 ARC laureate fellows, some of Australia’s top researchers said claims strong action to cut emissions would be economically destructive have no basis and are not “consistent with Australia’s traditional optimism and ingenuity, nor with historical experience”. Continue reading...

Indigenous leader urges focus on native knowledge as study shows rainforest areas under tribal stewardship manage carbon betterEcosystems will continue to collapse around the world unless humanity listens to the expertise of indigenous communities on how to live alongside nature, a prominent Amazon leader has warned.Tuntiak Katan of the Ecuadorian Shuar people, who is vice-president of the pan-Amazon organisation representing communities in the river basin, said governments were spending millions of dollars on environmental consultants while largely ignoring the land management skills of the planet’s indigenous people that could help combat the climate crisis and biodiversity loss. Continue reading...

Amount of clean energy bought by companies triples in two years, with Google biggest buyerThe world’s biggest tech companies fuelled a record surge in the amount of renewable energy sold directly to global corporations last year, according to new figures.The amount of clean energy from renewable energy developers bought by companies has tripled in the past two years, driven by a growing corporate appetite for sustainable energy. Continue reading...

Judge says ‘abject failure’ by CPS left case lacking key prosecution witness as police officer goes on holidayAll charges against five Extinction Rebellion protesters have been dismissed at City of London magistrates court.The deputy district judge, Vincent McDade, said there had been an “abject failure” by the Crown Prosecution Service. A police officer who had been due to be a prosecution witness was not given enough notice about the date of the trial and had booked a holiday. Continue reading...

National Grid and Scottish Power project was two years late and has suffered outagesNational Grid and Scottish Power face an investigation by the energy industry regulator after repeatedly bungling the startup of a £1.3bn subsea power cable which is supported by home energy billpayers.The high-voltage power cable began transmitting renewable electricity from Scottish windfarms to homes and businesses in England and Wales in late 2017, about six months behind schedule. Continue reading...

Proposed new post-Brexit rules may apply only to animals being sent for slaughter and fattening, not breeding stockThe export of tens of millions of chicks every year from the UK may not fall under a promised “ban” on live exports, as the majority of the trade is for breeding stock.The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs told the Guardian that the new rules would include poultry, but specified that they would be applied to animals being sent abroad for slaughter. A spokesperson said: “The government has committed to ending excessively long journeys for live animals, including poultry, going for slaughter and fattening. We will shortly launch a public consultation outlining our plans to improve animal welfare in transport, and encourage as many people as possible to share their views to help shape future policy.” Continue reading...

Around 60 of the brightly coloured Mount Kaputar slugs have been spotted, but fires have burnt their habitatA fluorescent pink slug, found only on a single mountaintop in northern New South Wales, has survived the bushfires that burnt through much of its alpine habitat.Around 60 of the brightly coloured Mount Kaputar slugs, which can grow to a size longer than a human hand, were spotted by National Parks and Wildlife Service rangers after recent rainfall in Mount Kaputar national park. Continue reading...

Report by royal colleges highlights impact of poor air quality on children’s healthMedical experts are calling for councils to be given new powers to tackle indoor air pollution amid mounting evidence it is threatening the health of children in schools, nurseries and homes across the UK.The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) and the Royal College of Physicians want local authorities to be able to compel schools and other public buildings with poor air quality to make urgent improvements. Continue reading...

The bus company faced a boycott from opponents of the Carmichael coalmine after signing a contract with a firm building a railway for the projectThe bus company Greyhound Australia has ruled out any extension of work on the controversial Adani coal project after a backlash from climate change campaigners.On Sunday the SchoolStrike4Climate group launched a campaign to boycott travel with the company until it publicly ruled out working on the mine. Continue reading...

Retailer’s plans include cutting down on waste and a plastic bottle deposit schemeSainsbury’s has pledged to spend £1bn to become a carbon-neutral business by 2040, 10 years ahead of the government’s target for a net-zero economy.The supermarket chain said the 20-year programme would include cutting its carbon emissions, food waste, plastic packaging and water usage, while increasing recycling, promoting healthy and sustainable eating, and ensuring that its operations are net positive for biodiversity. Continue reading...

National Grid report says target needs to be met if projects to cut greenhouse gas emissions are to go ahead

Rise of 2C would cause 56% loss of vineyard land, while 4C would wipe out 85%From wildfires to rising tides, the climate crisis is already bringing many threats. Now scientists say it may also bring a shortage of many popular wines.Researchers looked at the land suitable for 11 popular varieties of wine grape and found that 2C (3.6F) of warming above pre-industrial levels – a rise the world is on track to exceed – would result in a 56% loss of suitable land within current wine-growing regions compared with the 1970s, before the most serious impacts of global heating. Continue reading...