Environment | The Guardian

Cyclists: Scourge of the Roads? isn’t just as bad as the title indicates – it’s irresponsible

City one of five required by government to set up a clean air zone to tackle nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5sPrimary school children who grow up in Birmingham could lose half a year of their lives due to illegal levels of air pollution in the city, a new report warns.The study examines levels of nitrogen dioxide and particulate pollution (PM2.5) in the city and calculates that an eight-year-old child could die up to seven months early if exposed over their lifetimes to toxic air. The loss of life expectancy is worse in Birmingham than some other major cities in the UK including Manchester, researchers found. Continue reading...

Two of big six energy companies sign up to pledge organised by the Climate GroupTwo of Britain’s biggest energy suppliers are accelerating the drive towards greener vehicles by pledging to replace their existing fleet of vans with all-electric models by 2030.British Gas owner Centrica and SSE have committed to switch to electric cars and vans a decade ahead of the government’s ban on the sale of new combustion engine vehicles. Continue reading...

Australia looking to become an emissions superpower, the Australian Conservation Foundation saysAustralia is responsible for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions and could be contributing as much as 17% by 2030 if the pollution from its fossil fuel exports is factored in, research says.Under climate accounting rules that record carbon dioxide released within a country, Australia is responsible for about 1.4% of global emissions. The analysis by science and policy institute Climate Analytics found more than twice that, another 3.6%, are a result of Australia’s coal, oil and gas exports. Continue reading...

Jaguar Land Rover boss says UK needs batteries made in Britain - or carmakers will leaveThe feeling of relief in the British car industry was almost palpable on Friday, when Jaguar Land Rover said it would invest billions in producing new electric vehicles in the UK. After the recent closure of two other UK automotive factories in five months – Honda in Swindon and Ford in Bridgend – JLR boss Ralf Speth was clearly pleased to have good news for the 2,500 workers at the Castle Bromwich plant.Yet amid the congratulations, Speth also struck a note of warning. Not on Brexit this time, but on the future of the car sector in the absence of a British battery industry. “One thing is clear: if batteries go out of the UK, then also the automotive production will go out of the UK,” he said. Continue reading...

The scale of the climate emergency requires nothing less than full government engagementWith just 11 years left to prevent irreversible damage caused by the climate emergency, there are still options to wean the world’s economy off its reliance on fossil fuels. However, anything less than putting Britain on a war footing will not be enough.The government response so far has been timid. Theresa May introduced a net-zero carbon emissions target for 2050, but there are reasons why the Conservatives haven’t gone further: her party is hard-wired to fail. Clinging to a belief in the power of free markets, it neglects the fact that to decarbonise the economy greater investment from the state is required. Continue reading...

Campaigners escalate health protest over brownfield development in SouthallResidents are preparing a legal challenge to the redevelopment of a former gasworks in Southall, west London. The move follows two years of complaints to Ealing council, developers the Berkeley Group and environmental regulators that a petrol-like odour from the site is making them ill and putting children’s lives at risk.“The campaign group has become increasingly frustrated by the abject failure of Berkeley adequately to respond to legitimate grievances,” said Jo Sidhu QC. “We now have no choice but to instigate legal action to hold them accountable for the damage they have done to the health of local residents. People are suffering serious and chronic illnesses relating to the toxic pollution released by the land being used by the developers.” Continue reading...

Energise Africa offers a 5% return and allows you to help support low-income familiesFight the climate crisis and earn a return of 5% at the same time, plus enjoy a guarantee on your investment.That’s the offer from an ethical investment scheme that allows people to put money into companies providing African families with access to clean, affordable solar energy. Continue reading...

Supermarket to create olive crostini and bread pudding from baguettes to reduce waste

Former environment minister says Angus Taylor made inquiries on behalf of farmers in his electorateJosh Frydenberg has defended a decision when he was environment minister to query whether he had the power to water down federal protections for critically endangered grasslands, and establish if any change had to be published, saying he was just investigating the process.The Senate this week passed a Greens motion forcing the government to explain the conduct of two of its senior ministers – Angus Taylor and Frydenberg – in relation to critically endangered grasslands at the centre of an investigation involving companies part-owned by Taylor. Continue reading...

People suffer rashes and breathing difficulties as warm weather brings infestationMarauding caterpillars with toxic hairs have brought parts of Germany to a standstill, leading to closures of swimming pools, restaurants, public parks and sections of the motorway.Oak processionary moth caterpillars, named after the nose-to-tail processions they form to travel between the oak trees they devour, have fine, long hairs with an irritating toxin that can cause blistering rashes, feverish dizzy spells and asthma attacks. Continue reading...

UN also names national park in Iceland among sites protected for their value to humanity

Ada Colau will also oppose airport expansion to curb tourism and pollutionBarcelona’s mayor, Ada Colau, has pledged to restrict the number of cruise ships allowed to dock in the city and to oppose the expansion of the city’s airport, saying: “We don’t have infinite capacity.”Colau said the limits would reduce pollution in the city, where air quality regularly exceeds World Health Organization limits for nitrogen oxide and PM10 particulates. Continue reading...

Activists say comments by Opec head prove world opinion is turning against fossil fuelsGreta Thunberg and other climate activists have said it is a badge of honour that the head of the world’s most powerful oil cartel believes their campaign may be the “greatest threat” to the fossil fuel industry.The criticism of striking students by the trillion-dollar Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) highlights the growing reputational concerns of oil companies as public protests intensify along with extreme weather. Continue reading...

This week: a seal is released back into the wild and sparrows enjoy tarte flambée leftovers Continue reading...

Antony Gormley and Rachel Whiteread among nearly 80 artists stepping up campaignFive winners of the Turner prize are demanding an end to BP’s sponsorship of the National Portrait Gallery, stepping up the campaign against big oil’s involvement in the arts.Antony Gormley, Rachel Whiteread, Anish Kapoor, Gillian Wearing and Mark Wallinger are among a group of almost 80 leading artists, including winners of the BP portrait award, who have written to the gallery’s director, Nicholas Cullinan, highlighting the company’s role as one of the world’s biggest fossil fuel producers and calling on him to cut ties. The group say it is necessary to ensure the gallery remains a “forward-looking institution that’s on the right side of history”. Continue reading...

Major brands are using less recycled paper, meaning more trees cut down unnecessarilyToilet paper – the one product that the majority of us use just once and flush away – is becoming less sustainable, according to research.Analysis from Ethical Consumer magazine found that major brands were using less recycled paper than in 2011, while only five of the nine major supermarkets (the Co-op, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose) offered an own-brand recycled toilet paper. The large-scale use of virgin paper contributes to unnecessary deforestation. Continue reading...

An estimated 5,000 tonnes of bauxite has spilled into Kangava Bay, where a tanker ran aground in FebruaryA second major spill has hit the pristine Solomon Islands bay where a bulk carrier ran aground on a coral reef and leaked oil earlier this year.On Monday, an estimated 5,000 tonnes of bauxite, the ore used in aluminium smelting, slipped into the water at Kangava Bay, Rennell Island, while it was being loaded on to a barge. Continue reading...

Footage shows Australian parrot breaching building’s defences with delightFootage capturing a rebellious sulphur-crested cockatoo’s triumph over bird guard spikes has gone viral on Facebook. Continue reading...

The 9ft snake, missing since Sunday, was spotted up a tree near its home by a neighbourA 9ft reticulated python that was on the loose for more than four days has been found. The missing snake, called Turin, has been reunited with its owner, Cambridgeshire constabulary said.The BBC said the animal was spotted up a tree on Thursday evening by one of its owner’s neighbours about 50m away from its home on Lovell Road on the northern edge of Cambridge. Continue reading...

Less well-off areas have least to lose and most to gain from clean-air zones, study findsThose who object to low emission or clean-air zones often say restricting old vehicles and diesel cars in city centres will hit the poorest most. A study challenges this.Researchers from the University of the West of England combined UK census and air pollution data with information from annual vehicle safety (MOT) inspections. Continue reading...

Research shows a trillion trees could be planted to capture huge amount of carbon dioxidePlanting billions of trees across the world is by far the biggest and cheapest way to tackle the climate crisis, according to scientists, who have made the first calculation of how many more trees could be planted without encroaching on crop land or urban areas.As trees grow, they absorb and store the carbon dioxide emissions that are driving global heating. New research estimates that a worldwide planting programme could remove two-thirds of all the emissions that have been pumped into the atmosphere by human activities, a figure the scientists describe as “mind-blowing”. Continue reading...

Industry accuses government of undermining sector after first decline since April 2017The British car industry has accused the government of undermining the sector after sales of electrified vehicles fell for the first time in more than two years.Sales of cars with alternative fuels – including battery electric vehicles and hybrids – were down 11.8% in June compared with the same month last year, the first annual decline since April 2017, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Continue reading...

The living walls employ state-of-the-art technology, which means they are automatically irrigatedPlaying on Wimbledon’s hallowed courts can be an intense experience, causing many a player to hurl a racket or mutter a profanity in exasperation. But some are managing to find tranquility in the All England Tennis Club’s new living walls, part of its commitment to biodiversity.The two walls, spanning 245 sq m and created with 14,344 plants stand on the redeveloped No 1 court, either side of the big screen on Henman Hill. Continue reading...

Non-native species has begun to flourish in state’s warm climate and is causing damageNon-native iguanas are multiplying so rapidly in south Florida that a state wildlife agency is now encouraging people to kill them.The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said people should exterminate the lizards on their properties as well as on 22 areas of public land. It did not say how civilians should try to kill them. Continue reading...

Blacktown City staff refused to continue using glyphosate weedkillers due to cancer concernsA Sydney council says it will trial a new weedkiller after more than 500 workers walked off the job due to concerns over the use of the glyphosate-based Roundup.The union which represents council workers said outdoor staff at Blacktown City Council last month refused to continue using glyphosate weedkillers, including Roundup, due to safety concerns. Continue reading...

Guardian Australia investigation revealed Angus Taylor met with the environment department even as it investigated a company he holds an interest inThe government will be forced to explain the conduct of two of its senior ministers – Angus Taylor and Josh Frydenberg – in relation to critically endangered grasslands at the centre of an investigation involving companies part-owned by Taylor.A Greens motion to compel the explanation passed the Senate with support from Labor, Centre Alliance, One Nation and Jacqui Lambie on Thursday. Continue reading...

Doyte lives in South Omo, Ethiopia, one of the most remote areas in the world and hard hit by the climate crisis. As Lord of the Rain, it’s Doyte’s job to summon the rains, but for five years they haven’t come. Ethiopia’s economy is booming, fuelled by green power and climate-resilient policies. But neither the government, nor Doyte, can reverse the catastrophic change that’s devastating their environment

Move by heritage body follows revelations last year about oil and gas investmentsThe National Trust is divesting its £1bn portfolio from fossil fuels in an attempt to help tackle the escalating climate crisis.The organisation, which looks after 780 miles (1,250km) of coastline, 248,000 hectares (612,000 acres) of land and more than 500 historic houses, castles, monuments and parks, said it would withdraw the vast majority of its investments from fossil fuels within 12 months, and the entirety within three years. Continue reading...

Unesco committee says proposal to raise wall incompatible with Blue Mountains world heritage listingTraditional owners and the Blue Mountains mayor have welcomed Unesco’s world heritage committee raising concern about a proposal to raise the wall of the Warragamba dam, saying it should be an embarrassment to the New South Wales government.The committee has asked Australia to submit an environmental impact statement for the controversial project before any decision is made. Continue reading...

Exclusive: On Monday president will likely tout America’s clean air and water, even though he’s rescinded rules to cut pollutionDonald Trump plans to go on the offensive against criticism of his industry-friendly rollbacks of environment protections in a speech on Monday, according to three sources familiar with the plans.Trump will tout America’s clean air and water, although his administration has advanced many efforts that experts say have undercut the country’s environmental record. Continue reading...

‘Selfie seekers’ are causing ‘noticeable concern and damage’ to several properties, according to sheriff’s departmentFarmers in one California county are asking visitors to stop taking selfies in their scenic sunflower fields and be more respectful of their crop.“Selfie seekers” are causing enough “noticeable concern and damage” to several properties that the Solano county sheriff’s department posted a warning about the issue on social media. Continue reading...

A fifth of Brazilian chicken exports are contaminated with the potentially life-threatening food poisoning bug salmonellaBrazil is the largest exporter of frozen chicken in the world, exporting $750m-worth of the meat to Europe last year. But about one in five of its birds are contaminated with the food poisoning bug salmonella.An investigation by the Guardian, Repórter Brasil and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has found that thousands of tonnes of salmonella-contaminated chicken have been exported from Brazil during the past two years, including more than one million birds sent to the UK. Continue reading...

Government will spend £193m on directly tackling climate-related issues in first initiativeThe UK will have an “ethical” development policy that puts the climate emergency and environmental protection at the heart of overseas aid, with more than £190m to be spent directly on climate-related issues in the first initiative, the government has announced.Rory Stewart, the international development secretary, said he hoped this sum would soon be doubled and “run to billions rather than hundreds of millions” within a few years. Continue reading...

Trade group says change may have opposite intended effect towards low carbon futureOil and gas companies listed on the London Stock Exchange have been reclassified under a non-renewable energy category in a move designed to distinguish between heavily polluting companies and greener producers.The change has been made by the index provider FTSE Russell, which now groups companies such as BP, Royal Dutch Shell, Cairn Energy, Petrofac, Premier Oil and Tullow Oil, formerly labelled oil and gas producers, in the non-renewable energy sector. Coal companies, previously classified under basic materials/mining, also now come under non-renewable energy. Continue reading...

From congestion to cost, there are many entirely misguided arguments in circulationCycle lanes have been in the news recently, as have the many often entirely misguided arguments that opponents use against them.For all the (slight) progress in some UK cities over mass cycling, we are still at a stage where a leaflet from a local branch of the party of government (see below) will state falsehoods about bike lanes as if they were the undoubted truth. Continue reading...

Anchorage sees 80F weather with nearly 120 fires blazing across the stateRecord-breaking heat across Alaska is pushing tourists to beaches, and sending flames across the unseasonably hot, dry state.Anchorage experienced higher than average temperatures nearly every day of June, reaching a balmy 80F on days that once maxed out at a mild 67. Continue reading...

Greenpeace report reveals 29 floor-exploration licences have been granted worldwideThe world’s oceans are facing a “new industrial frontier” from a fledgling deep-sea mining industry as companies line up to extract metals and minerals from some of the most important ecosystems on the planet, a report has found.The study by Greenpeace revealed that although no mining had started on the ocean floor, 29 exploration licences had been issued covering an area five times bigger than the UK. Environmentalists said the proposed mining would threaten not only crucial ecosystems but the global fight against climate breakdown. Continue reading...

US represents 4% of the world’s population but produces 12% of municipal solid waste, a stark contrast with China and IndiaThe US produces far more garbage and recycles far less of it than other developed countries, according to a new analysis by the global risk consulting firm Verisk Maplecroft.The figures emerge as the world faces an escalating waste crisis driven largely by plastics piling up in developing countries and the oceans. The US is at a crossroads as China and other developing countries refuse to continue to accept its waste, the report authors say. Continue reading...

Marium, who is five months’ old, was rescued off Thailand’s southern Krabi province after she was separated from her motherShe eats sea grass, drinks milk from a rubber glove, snuggles up to passing canoes and frequently beaches herself. But these idiosyncrasies have not stopped an entire nation from falling in love with her.Thailand has a new national sweetheart – an orphaned baby dugong called Marium. Continue reading...

Fracking ban and new environment act among influential group’s suggestionsFracking should be banned, the UK must take global leadership on the climate emergency and a royal commission should decide how to build homes in an environmentally sustainable manner, an influential group of Conservative MPs has said.The Conservative Environment Network (CEN) set out a manifesto on Tuesday that they said must govern the UK’s policies to prevent climate catastrophe and allow for greener economic growth. Among the 41 MPs who signed up to the pledges, which include a call for a new environment act, are senior figures such as Sir Nicholas Soames, Sir Oliver Letwin, Greg Hands, Caroline Spelman, Richard Benyon and Zac Goldsmith. Continue reading...

Liquefied natural gas developments on a collision course with Paris agreement, Global Energy Monitor saysThe booming liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry will play at least as big a role as new coal investments in bringing on a climate crisis if all planned projects go ahead, US-based energy analysts and campaigners say.The report by the Global Energy Monitor appears at odds with comments by Australia’s emissions reduction minister, Angus Taylor, who has said the country could be proud that the rapidly expanding LNG export industry was displacing coal power overseas. Continue reading...

Linda Rogers says the CBI has its head in the sand over nuclear reactors and Iain Climie wants politicians prepared to fund action to combat the climate emergencyHas the Confederation of British Industry got its head in the sand, or in the record levels of carbon-intensive concrete just poured at the Hinkley C nuclear site (Build more nuclear reactors to help climate crisis, says CBI, 28 June)? Nuclear power, apart from destroying biodiversity throughout its life cycle, produces up to 37 times the CO emissions of renewable energy sources, owing partly to the mining and refining of uranium. The impact of this process on people and the environment is not included in the rationale for nuclear power in the UK.As the CBI looks for investment from abroad, UK taxpayers will pick up the bill for the likely time and cost overruns of new nuclear build under the regulated asset-based funding proposals so welcomed by the CBI. Nuclear has failed to achieve the investment needed so far because it is no longer seen as economically viable. Even Hitachi (one of the world’s largest multinationals) cannot magic Wylfa Newydd into a commercially viable business. In January this year, Hitachi announced it had failed to squeeze the UK government for the very high levels of subsidies desired by large investors upfront for Wylfa. Nobody can afford the costs or the many risks attached to building new nuclear power stations.

Number of ‘warning letters’ sent by FDA has fallen by 33% compared with the most recent equivalent period under ObamaThe US regulator of food and drug safety has seen steep declines in several markers of enforcement under the Trump administration, according to a new analysis in the journal Science.The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sends “warning letters” for tainted food, improperly advertised dietary supplements or even violations of human subjects’ protections in clinical trials. Continue reading...

Investigation exposes how Brazil’s huge beef sector continues to threaten health of world’s largest rainforest

The EU-Mercosur trade deal is good news for Brazil’s huge beef industry but devastating for the rainforest and environmentEuropean leaders have thrown the Amazon rainforest under a Volkswagen bus in a massive cows-for-cars trade deal with Brazil and three other South American nations.The EU-Mercosur agreement – the largest in Europe’s history, according to officials – will make it cheaper for Brazilian farmers to export agricultural products, particularly beef, despite growing evidence that cattle ranching is the primary driver of deforestation. Continue reading...

How the strange case of a former president secretly taped by industry executives revealed where power lies in BrazilIn Brazilian financial circles 17 May 2017 is dubbed “Joesley Day”. It’s the date when the power and influence of Brazil’s meat industry was exposed in all its ugly glory and gave the stock market a sucker punch.It was the date that Joesley Batista, at that point one of the controllers of the world’s biggest meat-packing company, family-run JBS, went to meet then-President Michel Temer, and secretly recorded him endorsing payments to a notoriously corrupt politician imprisoned for political corruption. Continue reading...

Four of the five new species, which are only a few millimetres in diameter, are from Queensland and one is from NSWA Queensland Museum arachnologist has helped identify five new species of tiny brushed jumping spiders the size of a grain of rice.The group includes a spider named after Karl Lagerfeld. Arachnologist Danilo Harms, said the spider had a distinct look that was reminiscent of the late fashion designer. Continue reading...

Emissions from dead trees were eight times higher than those from the healthy treesMangrove forests that died along a 1,000km stretch of coastline in northern Australia have been emitting methane at rates eight times higher than live trees, according to new research.Scientists from Southern Cross University have used the site of the mass dieback along the Gulf of Carpentaria to measure methane emissions from mangrove tree stems for the first time. Continue reading...