Environment | The Guardian

Aruanas aims to make the environment an ‘everyday topic’ at a time when politics is dominated by the interests of agribusinessDeep in the Brazilian Amazon, an environmental activist meets with a journalist who warns that a mining company is responsible for a looming environmental disaster. “People are already getting sick,” he warns, before promising to bring her documentary proof the next day.But in the jungle, someone is watching. Driving to their next meeting, the activist hears a phone ringing in the back of her car. She opens the trunk – and finds the journalist’s dead body. Continue reading...

Campaigners say PVC used in footwear is made from fossil fuels and is difficult to recycleThe footwear equivalent of Crayola crayons and lunchboxes, the jelly shoe is back for the summer. But with most of the shoe made from PVC, it might seem an odd trend for our plastic-anxious times.Online searches for jelly sandals have significantly increased since April on global fashion search platform Lyst. The 82% month-on-month increase comes after the sandals dominated the season’s catwalks. At Alexa Chung they came elevated with jewels, while at Simone Rocha jelly sliders were decorated with feathers. There are plenty of high street versions available from Asos to Next and New Look, where prices start at around £6. Continue reading...

EPA said studies it considered, most of which were sponsored by industry, found sulfoxaflor isn’t dangerous for the pollinatorsThe Trump administration is approving the pesticide sulfoxaflor – thought by some experts to harm bees – for use on a wide variety of crops.The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says the studies it considered, most of which were sponsored by industry, found the chemical is not dangerous for the pollinators responsible for $15bn in US crops each year. Continue reading...

This week: Hungary’s insect of 2019, and bluehead wrasse courtship and sex change Continue reading...

More than 30 activists have been charged with a range of public order offencesMore than 30 Extinction Rebellion protesters have appeared in court in London charged with a range of public order offences.The charges relate to demonstrations led by the movement in April – when thousands of people blocked landmarks across the capital over 10 days to highlight climate breakdown. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Study shows associated damage to critical pumping muscles, even in childrenThe hearts of young city dwellers contain billions of toxic air pollution particles, research has revealed.Even in the study’s youngest subject, who was three, damage could be seen in the cells of the organ’s critical pumping muscles that contained the tiny particles. The study suggests these iron-rich particles, produced by vehicles and industry, could be the underlying cause of the long-established statistical link between dirty air and heart disease. Continue reading...

Mini replicas were previously discovered by environmental groups on beaches and in waterwaysColes is relaunching its Little Shop promotion with 30 new mini replicas, despite ongoing criticism from environmental groups about plastic waste.The promotion helped deliver the company record growth when it ran in 2018. Continue reading...

Fund donates £500,000 to grassroots Extinction Rebellion and other groups, with promise of more to comeA group of wealthy US philanthropists and investors have donated almost half a million pounds to support the grassroots movement Extinction Rebellion and school strike groups – with the promise of tens of millions more in the months ahead.Trevor Neilson, an investor and philanthropist who has worked with some of the world’s richest families, has teamed up with Rory Kennedy – daughter of Robert Kennedy – and Aileen Getty, whose family wealth comes from the oil industry, to launch the Climate Emergency Fund. Continue reading...

The native birds were bleeding from their mouths, according to rescuers at One Tree Hill near AdelaideNearly 60 native birds have died after they fell out of the sky in front of horrified onlookers and a nearby primary school in a suspected case of mass poisoning in South Australia.Bird rescuers said it was like “something out of a horror movie” as dozens of birds fell, bleeding from their eyes and beaks at One Tree Hill near Adelaide. Continue reading...

Species’ expansion threatens South Australia’s habitat and biodiversity, report saysAnimals including koalas and kangaroos could be culled in parts of South Australia, where high population numbers are damaging the landscape.A report from a parliamentary inquiry has recommended the state’s environment minister make an immediate decision to declare koalas, western grey kangaroos, long-nosed fur seals and little corellas overabundant in some areas. Continue reading...

Steep fines and social credit penalties face people violating complex waste sorting rules – but some say the answer is all about pigsFor the last two weeks, Shanghai residents have grappled with a singular question: “What kind of trash are you?”The question is aimed at the city’s daily 22,000 tonnes of household waste that, according to new rules implemented on 1 July, must be sorted into one of four colour-coded bins: dry, wet, recyclable and hazardous. Continue reading...

Highly contagious virus can live for months in processed meat and would have ‘devastating implications’ if passed to live pigsAfrican swine fever has been picked up in meat seized by port authorities in Northern Ireland, the first time the ASF virus has been detected in the UK.Officials confiscated more than 300kg of illegal meat and dairy products from airport passengers’ luggage in June. Samples tested by the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute in Belfast confirmed traces of the virus, which is highly contagious and can survive for several months in processed meat. Continue reading...

Drilling at Preston New Road is last-ditch effort to convince regulators to relax safety rulesThe first company to drill for shale gas in the UK plans to restart fracking at its Preston New Road site in Lancashire in a last-ditch effort to convince policymakers to relax safety rules.Cuadrilla will drill a second well near Blackpool after it was forced to abandon the first, which caused multiple earth tremors. Continue reading...

The Netherlands’ national airline urges people to ‘fly responsibly’ and to invest in its carbon-offsetting schemeDutch airline KLM has launched a campaign asking people to fly less. The video and open letter from CEO Pieter Elbers asks: “Do you always have to meet face-to-face?” and “Could you take the train instead?”The campaign aims to encourage travellers and the aviation industry to consider the environmental impact of flying. It describes the “shared responsibility” of travellers and airlines to “fly more responsibly”, and says those in the industry need to “create a sustainable future for aviation”. Continue reading...

Labor says deputy premier John Barilaro’s plan is outrageous while the Greens label it ‘criminal’New South Wales Labor has demanded Gladys Berejiklian rule out Liberal party support for a Nationals bill that would open up the Murray Valley national park to logging.The premier refused to comment on Thursday after the deputy premier, John Barilaro, vowed to de-gazette the park in the state’s Riverina region or reduce its size. Continue reading...

Groups say expanding access to contraception can improve lives and help save wildlifeA UN-backed campaign has been launched to help tackle the destruction of wildlife by boosting people’s access to contraception.Growing human populations often underlie the destruction of nature, and barriers to family planning are the “most important ignored environmental challenge”, say the campaigners. Continue reading...

Owners failed to assess environmental and community concerns, court rules, while US ambassador wades into debate in support of coal power

Restricted scheme would have far less benefit to UK economy, government data suggestsA comprehensive deposit return scheme (DRS) for plastic bottles, cans and glass could boost the economy by £2bn, government assessments show, as ministers weigh up which type of system to adopt.Government data highlighted by the Campaign to Protect Rural England indicates that a more restricted DRS involving only bottles of 750ml and under would benefit the economy by just £250m. Continue reading...

Survey finds holiday clothing is biggest extravagance, with consumers set to spend £700mBritons will spend £2.7bn this summer on more than 50m summer outfits that will be worn only once, a poll reveals.By far the biggest extravagance is new clothing for holidays, where consumers splash out more than £700m on 11m items bought for the trip which will never be worn again, according to research carried out by Censuswide for the charity Barnardo’s. Continue reading...

Coral bleaching, crown-of-thorns starfish and cyclones cause 10% to 30% decline over past five yearsHard coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef remains near record lows in its northern stretch and is in decline in the comparatively healthy south, government scientists have found.A report card by the government’s Australian Institute of Marine Science says hard coral cover in the northern region above Cooktown is at 14% – a slight increase on last year but close to the lowest since monitoring began in 1985. Continue reading...

Ankara hits back at Greek and EU officials and vows to press ahead with offshore operationsTurkey has hit back at Greek and EU officials, denying claims it is acting illegally by drilling for gas in waters off Cyprus.The country’s foreign ministry criticised EU condemnation of its efforts to tap the region for potentially lucrative energy resources, saying the bloc could not be considered an impartial mediator for the divided island. Continue reading...

By 2050, National Grid predicts, 35m electric cars will supply energy when neededA fleet of 35m electric vehicles could help the UK reach its net-zero carbon target by forming large battery hubs to store renewable energy, according to the country’s energy system operator.National Grid predicts that by 2050 millions of electric cars will use wind and solar power to charge up within minutes to act as battery packs for when the grid needs more energy. Continue reading...

John Barilaro wants to remove protection by either de-gazetting the entire park or reducing its sizeThe NSW deputy premier has vowed to introduce legislation to open up a national park in the state’s Riverina region to logging.John Barilaro wants to remove protection of the 42,000 hectare Murray Valley national park by either de-gazetting the entire park or reducing its size. Continue reading...

Kickstart the domestic market so Asian countries rejecting Australian waste is no longer a problem, industry suggestsAustralia could quickly solve the problem of Indonesia and other countries rejecting its waste if governments invested in recycling manufacturing as promised and required the use of recycled material in public projects, industry and environmental groups say.Jakarta announced on Tuesday it would return 210 tonnes of Australian household rubbish – the latest demonstration of opposition in south-east Asia to receiving exported waste. Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia have each turned back shipments and warned they would not become dumping grounds for developed countries after China banned imports of foreign plastic rubbish. Continue reading...

Celebrated naturalist’s most vivid impression of human impact on the planet is Great Barrier Reef bleachingDavid Attenborough has highlighted Australia as an “extraordinary” example of a country where people in power remained climate change deniers despite the country facing some of the worst effects of global heating.Appearing before the UK parliament’s business, energy and industrial strategy committee on how to tackle the climate emergency, the celebrated broadcaster and natural historian was asked about claims people were overreacting to the threat of a climate emergency. Continue reading...

Overall rating ‘unacceptable’ with Southern and Yorkshire Water criticised for pollutionWater companies in England have been warned to clean up their act after the environment watchdog described their performance last year as “simply unacceptable”.Southern Water and Yorkshire Water were singled out for high levels of serious pollution incidents, where sewage is discharged into bathing water. Continue reading...

More than 4,000 sign petition to overturn decision, which aimed to appease neighboursA national debate has been sparked in the Netherlands after a council ordered a primary school playground to be shut for being too noisy.Questions have been raised in the Dutch parliament and a campaign has been launched to save the playground in the wake of the decision by Nijmegen council. Continue reading...

Tourists warned not to feed the animals after plastic waste found in stomachs of several dead deerAuthorities in Japan’s ancient capital Nara are warning visitors not to feed the city’s wild deer – a major tourist attraction – after several of the animals died after swallowing plastic bags.Large amounts of plastic waste were found in the stomachs of nine of 14 deer to have died since March, according to a local wildlife conservation group. Continue reading...

Grantham Research Institute found half do not factor climate crisis in decision-makingAbout a quarter of the world’s highest-emitting publicly listed companies fail to report their greenhouse gas emissions and nearly half do not properly consider the risks from the climate crisis in their decision-making, new research has found.The findings show the distance even the world’s biggest companies still have to cover to meet the goals of the Paris agreement on climate change, according to the group of investors coordinating the report. Continue reading...

Union worries about ‘reporting culture’ at Queensland mines, where most workers are now employed as casualsContract and casual mineworkers in Queensland are fearful of “retribution” if they complain about questionable safety practices, their union says, as the sector grapples with a sixth workplace death in the past year.The recent cluster of accidents and deaths, the worst on record in Queensland for 22 years, has prompted the state government to commission two independent reviews into mine safety. Continue reading...

Researchers say ‘eye-opening’ findings that 20% of silver gulls nationwide carry pathogenic bacteria should be a wake-up callAustralian gulls are carrying superbugs resistant to antibiotics, raising fears that disease-causing bacteria may spread from the birds to humans, livestock and pets.A team of scientists led by researchers at Perth’s Murdoch University found more than 20% of silver gulls nationwide were carrying pathogenic bacteria, such as E coli, that are resistant to drugs. E coli can cause urinary tract infections, life-threatening sepsis and meningitis. Continue reading...

Mayor of German capital considering €365 annual ticket to reduce traffic and pollutionBerliners could pay as little as €1 a day to use public transport for a year under plans to wean the German capital off its cars and reduce air pollution, its mayor has announced.“Step by step I want to follow the goal of introducing an annual public transport ticket for €365,” Michael Müller told Neue Zürcher Zeitung. An annual ticket normally costs €761. Continue reading...

The Green party MEP for the south-west on why social justice is key to making the transition to a carbon-neutral economy by 2050Molly Scott Cato can hardly contain herself. Having spent more than 30 years as an activist in the ecology and the sustainability movement, the Green MEP for the south-west region feels the UK is finally starting to appreciate the scale of the climate emergency. “People are suddenly waking up to it, which is very exciting for someone like me who’s been banging on about this for years,” she says.Take aviation. “We’re really getting a grip on that now. That was something where I was really out of line with other people. But in the last year, people have stopped thinking that I’m a loony not flying anywhere. They start by being admiring and then they start thinking ‘Oh God, I’m going to have to start doing that’. We’ve reached that point, it’s really encouraging.” Continue reading...

Judge says there is no evidence that decision not to retest for bovine TB was unlawfulAn alpaca farmer has lost a high court battle to prevent one of her prized animals from being killed.Helen Macdonald took legal action against the government in a last-ditch attempt to save her stud alpaca, Geronimo, who was earmarked for slaughter after twice testing positive for bovine tuberculosis (bTB). Continue reading...

Naturalist tells MPs radical action needed to tackle crisis but attitude of young people gives him hopeThe attitude of young people towards tackling the environmental crisis is “a source of great hope”, David Attenborough has told MPs, as he predicted that polluting the planet would soon provoke as much abhorrence as slavery.Giving evidence to the business, energy and industrial strategy committee on how to tackle the climate emergency, the naturalist and TV presenter said radical action was required. Continue reading...

Indonesian officials say containers of paper contaminated by electronic waste, used cans and plastic bottlesIndonesia says it will immediately send eight containers of household rubbish back to Australia after inspectors declared the material too contaminated to be recycled.It is the latest in a series of announcements by south-east Asian nations that they will not be dumping grounds for overseas waste. Continue reading...

MPs must stop prioritising cars over people if we are to stand a chance of meeting climate goalsThe UK is among the worst countries in Europe for cycling participation, and the government is predicted to achieve just a third of the 800m extra cycling trips by 2025 it had aimed for. What’s more, much of the growth so far has been restricted to London.This is why Tuesday’s debate among MPs on government support for cycling and walking – or rather, the lack thereof – is so important. Continue reading...

After toxins in the water killed animals and left humans scared to swim, the state’s future governor made cleanup a campaign issueIt was a sweltering late summer day in southern Florida when Becky Harris took her dogs to run along the bank of the St Lucie River. Her white Pomeranian, Pandora, was off leash while Kylie, her Rottweiler mix, trotted alongside her. Suddenly, Pandora took off down the grassy hill toward the beach and was soon tearing into a dead fish. Harris tried to yank it out of her mouth, but Pandora bolted under the sea grapes to polish it off.Within hours, the normally bouncy Pandora was so lethargic that her head fell into her water bowl. Harris took Pandora to the closest veterinary ER. By the next day, Pandora’s liver was failing. Harris already suspected the cause: the toxic algal bloom. Gunk full of blue-green algae known as cyanobacteria had spewed from Lake Okeechobee into the river near her home in Stuart, a short drive north of West Palm Beach. Continue reading...

Huge sums of money are being wasted with no guarantee more water is reaching the environment, former commissioner warnsThere are renewed calls for an independent commission of inquiry into the management of water flows in the Murray-Darling Basin with scientists warning billions have been spent without any guarantee more water is reaching the environment.Richard Beasley SC, who was the counsel assisting the South Australian Murray-Darling royal commission, says there needs to be a national commission of inquiry established with a remit to conduct a “full independent audit” of water-saving schemes. Continue reading...

One of Britain’s biggest green energy switches to date will come at no extra costMore than 3m homes are to automatically receive renewable energy from E.ON UK at no extra cost in one of the UK’s biggest green energy switches to date.The big six supplier says it will respond to rising public concern over the climate crisis by supplying its 3.3 million customers with 100% renewable electricity as standard. Continue reading...

In a White House speech, the president claimed clean air and water has been a priority but voters disapprove of his climate crisis handlingDonald Trump is arguing he has made America an environmental leader, despite moving to gut dozens of rules meant to safeguard clean air and water and rescinding every major US effort to stem the climate crisis.Related: Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez move to declare climate crisis official emergency Continue reading...

Global heating is threatening supplies of water needed in large volumes to cool reactors

Exclusive: Democrats to introduce resolution in House on Tuesday in recognition of extreme threat from global heatingA group of US lawmakers including the 2020 Democratic presidential contender Bernie Sanders are proposing to declare the climate crisis an official emergency – a significant recognition of the threat taken after considerable pressure from environment groups.Related: Donald Trump's five most dangerous attacks on the environment Continue reading...

Fugitive emissions from LNG are also fuelling rising national emissions, Ndevr Environmental figures showAustralia’s emissions are again the highest on record, driven this time by an increase in emissions from the electricity sector, which rose to their highest levels in two years, according to new figures.Fugitive emissions from Australia’s LNG industry also continue to fuel rising national emissions. Continue reading...

Trump’s administration has pursued cuts in environmental protections that are critical to the health of all AmericansDonald Trump is set to hail his administration’s “environmental leadership” on Monday in a speech in which he is expected to declare the US a world leader on the issue.But since taking office two and a half years ago, the US president has been at the helm of an administration that has pursued numerous cuts in environmental protections and last year saw a rise in greenhouse gases of 3.4% – the biggest rise in emissions since 2010. Continue reading...

Lightsource BP hopes ‘bi-facial’ panels will boost renewable energy at its solar farmsBP’s solar subsidiary is on the hunt for Britain’s shiniest grass to help make the most of new double-sided solar panels that can harness light reflected off the ground.Lightsource BP hopes the “bi-facial” solar panels will boost the amount of renewable energy generated at its solar farms and could make them more economic in gloomier parts of Northern Ireland and Scotland. Continue reading...

UK aid projects ‘actively undermine’ efforts to tackle climate crisis, MPs and campaign groups warnA cross-party group of MPs, backed by campaign groups, has called for an immediate ban on all investment in fossil fuels and for all UK aid to be “nature positive”.The 28 MPs, led by Tory Zac Goldsmith and Labour’s Kerry McCarthy, with support from Amnesty International, WWF and other organisations, criticised the UK for “actively undermining” its own investment in tackling the climate emergency by continuing to fund fossil fuels through aid and export finance. Continue reading...

New rightwing council fails to reverse policy of former mayor Manuela CarmenaBarely a week after Madrid’s rightwing council began rolling back the city’s low emissions zone, a judge has ruled that the traffic restrictions must be maintained.As of Monday, drivers of non-exempt vehicles will once again be fined €90 if they enter the 1.8 sq mile zone in the centre of the Spanish capital. Continue reading...

Conservative lawmakers have put forward laws criminalizing protests in at least 18 states since 2017 that civil liberties advocates say are unconstitutionalFrom the Standing Rock camps in North Dakota to tree-sits in Texas, activists have attempted to stop pipeline construction with massive shows of civil disobedience. Now they could be forced to change those tactics, or face heavy penalties under a wave of new anti-protest laws that civil liberties advocates say violate the first amendment.Conservative lawmakers have put forward laws criminalizing protests that disrupt the construction and operation of pipelines in at least 18 states since 2017. Continue reading...

We could use a global carbon tax to give developing countries incentives to phase out coalAlthough much derided by climate-change deniers, not least Donald Trump, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal hits the nail on the head with its urgent call for the US to lead by example on global warming. But the sad truth is that, for all the needless waste produced by Americans’ gluttonous culture, emerging Asia is by far the main driver of the world’s growing carbon dioxide emissions. No amount of handwringing will solve the problem. The way to do that is to establish the right incentives for countries such as China, India, Vietnam, Indonesia and Bangladesh.It is hard to see how to do this within the framework of existing multilateral aid institutions, which have limited expertise on climate issues and are pulled in different directions by their various constituencies. For example, to the dismay of many energy experts, the World Bank recently rather capriciously decided to stop funding virtually all new fossil-fuel plants, including natural gas. But replacing dirty coal plants with relatively clean natural gas is how the US has managed to reduce emissions growth dramatically over the past decade (despite Trump’s best efforts), and is a centrepiece of the famous “Princeton wedges” pragmatic options for minimising climate risk. One cannot let the perfect become the enemy of good in the transition to a carbon-neutral future. Continue reading...