Environment | The Guardian

After years of drought graziers were elated when the rain came. Now floods have created a humanitarian crisisIn north-west Queensland it hadn’t rained, any decent rain, for more than five years.When the downpour finally came last week, graziers were elated. Now it’s feared up to 500,000 cattle, mostly from severely drought-stressed herds, have been killed in widespread flood waters. Continue reading...

Bylong Valley residents hope Rocky Hill decision will sway state commission to reject proposed open-cut mineActivists and residents fighting against a proposed coalmine in central New South Wales are hoping last week’s historic judgment in the Rocky Hill case will sway the state’s Independent Planning Commission to reject the project.The NSW land and environment court ruled last week Gloucester Resources’ Rocky Hill coalmine in the state’s Hunter Valley should not go ahead, in part because of its social impact on the town of Gloucester and because a new coalmine was not compatible with Australia’s commitments under the Paris agreement. Continue reading...

Eight women from rural Malawi travelled to India to train as solar engineers. Now they are lighting the way for their communities, in a country where just 10% of households are powered by electricityPhotographs by Peter Caton/VSO

The reasons the mine was rejected have made international news. So how did we get here?

Exclusive: Insects could vanish within a century at current rate of decline, says global review

‘Cool heads’ not ‘politicking’ needed to bolster Australia’s electricity network, Grattan Institute says“Cool-headed policy” not “panic and politicking” is the answer to Australia’s future energy issues, a new report has found.But government underwriting of new power-generation investment – a key Coalition energy policy – could hinder, not help the bid to bolster network reliability, the researchers warned, by scaring away “genuine potential investors”. Continue reading...

Thousands of pupils set to be absent on 15 February, putting schools on the spotHeadteachers across the country will this week be faced with a tricky dilemma: should they allow their pupils to go on strike?Thousands of schoolchildren are expected to absent themselves from school on Friday to take part in a series of coordinated protests drawing attention to climate change. Continue reading...

Police search murky water for 35-year-old as rainfall in Queensland’s north easesA man remains missing in flood waters in north Queensland as police continue to search the area.The 35-year-old Townsville man was one of three on board a boat at Groper Creek when it crashed into a submerged jetty close to Hinkson Esplanade about 5.35pm on Friday. Continue reading...

Society says ‘it’s up to voters to work out what politicians they want to make into threatened species’The Wilderness Society will target former environment ministers Greg Hunt and Josh Frydenberg and former prime minister Tony Abbott in its first major federal election campaign in a decade.After a summer in which temperature records tumbled and up to a million fish died in in the Lower Darling, climate change and the environment are front and centre in voters’ minds before the expected May election, according to conservation groups and the major parties’ internal polling. Continue reading...

Proposed law would protect any shark or ray in state waters and be first of its kind in USSharks could soon become more numerous in Hawaii waters – and advocates say that’s a good thing.Lawmakers in Honolulu advanced a proposed ban on killing sharks in state waters on Wednesday, after receiving hundreds of calls and letters of support from around the country. The law, which would provide sweeping protection for any shark, rather than select species, could be the first of its kind in the United States. Continue reading...

NFU’s Minette Batters says ‘inept parliament’ forcing firms to spend millions to prepareFarmers are finding preparing for Brexit as disruptive as a major disease outbreak, and food companies are in danger of moving out of the UK or scaling back their investment, a farming leader has warned.Minette Batters, president of the National Farmers’ Union, said: “Millions are being spent every day in no-deal planning and contingency plans for the food industry. Businesses are having to invest so much money to protect us from an inept parliament. This will break some businesses.” Continue reading...

Rescued flamingo chicks, angry ibex and Californian elephant seals in this week’s gallery Continue reading...

Holly Gillibrand is skipping class to join pupils around the world in pushing for urgent measuresUntil recently, Holly Gillibrand was like any other schoolchild, keen on the outdoors, football and rock climbing, inspired by the stunning surroundings of her secondary school at the foot of Ben Nevis.But for the past five Fridays, while hundreds of her fellow students file into class, she has stood outside Lochaber high school in Fort William in the Highlands to take strike action. Continue reading...

Thousands of pupils to walk out of lessons amid growing concern over global warming

Five hundred people told to leave area around Sul Superior tailings dam at mine near Belo HorizonteBrazilian authorities have ordered the mining company Vale to evacuate hundreds of people from the vicinity of a dam in Minas Gerais, two weeks after a dam breach at another Vale mine in the state killed an estimated 300 people.Vale said it was evacuating 500 people from three communities around the Sul Superior tailings dam at the Gongo Soco mine, near Belo Horizonte, on the orders of the national mining agency. It said it was a preventive measure after an engineering consulting firm, Walm, refused to give the dam a declaration of stability. Continue reading...

Shopping carts, traffic cones and Styrofoam among the piles of debris that littered Seal Beach after a trio of winter stormsBeachgoers hoping to stretch their legs on southern California’s famous Seal Beach were surprised to find a mountain of trash instead of sand and surf this week.After a trio of winter storms dropped inches of rain on the area, the beach looked more like a landfill than a pristine paradise. Shopping carts, traffic cones and Styrofoam were among the piles of debris that littered the stretch of beach. Continue reading...

Cut your energy bills with these environmentally-friendly homes, from Wales to Cambridgeshire Continue reading...

Judge rejects Rocky Hill mine near Gloucester, NSW, because of its impact on the town and ‘dire consequences’ of increasing emissionsThe controversial Rocky Hill coalmine in the Hunter Valley will not go ahead after a landmark ruling in the land and environment court on Friday that cited the impact it would have had on climate change.Chief judge Brian Preston dismissed an appeal by Gloucester Resources, which was seeking to overturn a New South Wales government decision to reject an open-cut mine because of its impact on the town of Gloucester, north of Newcastle. Continue reading...

Swedish retailer expands old furniture exchange scheme as part of circular business modelIkea is trialling the sale of used, patched-up furniture in the UK as part of its efforts to become more environmentally friendly.An earlier trial in Edinburgh will be expanded to Glasgow in June. Continue reading...

UK must deal with plastic waste on its own soil, says group calling for export banA cross-party group of MPs is calling for a ban on the export of plastic waste over concerns the UK is passing the buck to the world’s poorest people to clean up its rubbish.MPs have tabled an early day motion to highlight growing concerns first raised by the National Audit Office that millions of tonnes of plastic waste sent abroad for recycling may be being dumped in landfill. Continue reading...

City commission voted 6-1 to bar certain chemicals blamed for harming the only living coral reef found in the continental USOfficials in Key West, the popular Florida holiday destination, have decided to ban the sale of sunscreens containing certain chemicals blamed for harming the only living coral reef found in the continental US.Related: Back from the brink: the global effort to save coral from climate change Continue reading...

Closure of Cottam plant in Nottinghamshire likely to lead to more than 150 job cutsOne of the UK’s last seven coal power stations will close this year after half a century of generating electricity, as the polluting fuel continues its rapid decline in the energy mix. Continue reading...

Blueprint for a carbon-neutral economy has been embraced by prominent Democrats and evokes FDR’s famous legacyAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez is releasing a broad outline of a vision for the Green New Deal, a plan to battle economic and racial injustice while also fighting climate change.The new congresswoman’s blueprint, co-introduced by Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey, aims to develop a carbon-neutral economy in 10 years, which would require huge strides in reducing the US’s reliance on oil, gas and coal. It does not set a date for ending the use of fossil fuels. Continue reading...

Franklin Delano Roosevelt sought to redefine freedom in the face of war. The Green New Deal imagines goals for a colorful democracyOne of the biggest challenges of climate politics is that the solutions seem scarier than the problem. We worry that to truly decarbonize, we’d need an authoritarian government or endless austerity. But a big and bold enough Green New Deal could finally make us truly free.The principles that animated the New Deal are often associated with Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s proposed (but never fully enacted) Economic Bill of Rights. These included rights to employment, medical care, housing, education, and social security. Those goals are tragically unrealized for many Americans, and any just version of the Green New Deal must start there. They’re familiar goals for the left, ones we’ve been fighting over for decades. But we also need to rework another New Deal-era statement of principles – FDR’s Four Freedoms. Continue reading...

Cuadrilla and Ineos say strict regulations around earthquakes hinder their workThe government has rejected pleas by fracking companies to review strict rules around earthquakes caused by their operations, in a major blow that could spell the end for Britain’s nascent shale industry.Cuadrilla complained on Wednesday that it had only been able to frack a tiny section of its well near Blackpool last autumn because of the limits, and warned it would not be able to undertake commercial fracking if the regulations are not reviewed. Continue reading...

Nationals leader, who had earlier blamed mass deaths on lack of rain, defends irrigators and plays down climate changeThe Nationals leader Michael McCormack has made his first visit to Menindee since the ecological disaster which led to the death of up to a million fish, claiming “we’re all experts in hindsight”.The deputy prime minister visited the fish-kill ground-zero site with local Nationals MP Mark Coulton, who was also making his first visit since the mass death was reported early last month. Continue reading...

Electronic waste hazardous due to toxic parts was tracked to developing countriesThe UK is the worst offender in Europe for illegally exporting toxic electronic waste to developing countries, according to a two-year investigation that tracked shipments from 10 European countries.The investigation by the environmental watchdog the Basel Action Network (BAN) put GPS trackers on 314 units of computers, LCD monitors and printers placed in recycling facilities in 10 countries. Researchers mapped what they said was the export of 11 items to Ghana, Nigeria, Pakistan, Tanzania, Thailand and Ukraine. Continue reading...

Operation necessary to stop fish dying after flows are cut off to maintain water supplies to stock and domestic usersNew South Wales fisheries workers are attempting to rescue distressed Murray cod near Menindee in the state’s west by catching them in nets and trucking them to a fish hatchery hundreds of kilometres away.The NSW primary industries department (DPI) confirmed the operation was under way on Thursday morning and was necessary because authorities would be cutting off water flows from Menindee’s weir 32 “in the near future to maintain town water supply”. Continue reading...

Lowest Paris agreement target may temporarily be surpassed for first time between now and 2023Global warming could temporarily hit 1.5C above pre-industrial levels for the first time between now and 2023, according to a long-term forecast by the Met Office.Meteorologists said there was a 10% chance of a year in which the average temperature rise exceeds 1.5C, which is the lowest of the two Paris agreement targets set for the end of the century. Continue reading...

Top scientists condemn State of the Union address and say future presidents must confront climate change as urgent priorityA climate scientist and a former government expert in the audience for Donald Trump’s annual address to Congress said this will probably be the last administration that can forgo talking about climate change in the State of the Union speech.Trump did not mention rising temperatures or extreme weather, although he did tout the country’s status as the top producer of oil and gas and boast about how quickly his officials have moved to cut regulations. Continue reading...

Shale gas firm calls for lighter regulation as it reveals only 5% of Blackpool well is fracked

First mass of congealed oil, grease and other nasties brought to surface in DevonThe first chunk of the Sidmouth fatberg, a monstrous mass of congealed oils, grease, wet wipes and other nasties lurking under the seafront of the Devon resort, has been brought to the surface at the start of an eight-week cleanup operation.A hunk of the 64-metre long object was hauled up into the light in a yellow plastic bucket. A wet wipe – a key component of fatbergs – poked out of one side of the grey-white mess, a cotton bud from another. Continue reading...

Scientists yet to figure out how the birds died after hundreds wash up on Dutch coastScientists are scrambling to understand the sudden death of an estimated 20,000 guillemots off the Dutch coast, hundreds of which are washing up on the country’s shoreline.The bodies of the birds, which spend most of their lives at sea where they dive for their food, started emerging over the past month, from the Wadden Islands in the north to Zeeland in the south. Continue reading...

Campaign targets pope because of his environmental leadership and influence over 1.2bn CatholicsEnvironmental campaigners have issued a challenge to Pope Francis: go vegan for Lent and receive $1m for the charity of his choice.The purpose of the Million Dollar Vegan campaign, led by 12-year-old Genesis Butler, is to encourage people to eat less meat and dairy in order to fight climate change. Global warming cannot be beaten without huge cuts in meat eating in rich nations, research shows, while reducing consumption of animal products also tackles pollution and the destruction of forests and wildlife. Continue reading...

New Zealand puts out call to find owner of memory stick spotted in frozen poo sampleA functioning USB stick has been found in the scat of a rare Antarctic leopard seal, prompting New Zealand’s national science body to launch a hunt for the owner.Volunteers at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) recovered the device while examining the animal’s frozen faeces – which had been sitting in a freezer for over a year. Continue reading...

Colorado Parks and Wildlife says man fought off the cougar, hiked out of the area after attack and drove himself to hospitalWildlife officials say a man who fought off a young mountain lion on a northern Colorado trail killed the animal by suffocating it.Colorado Parks and Wildlife says the man was running alone near Fort Collins when the lion attacked him from behind after the movement apparently triggered its hunting instincts. Continue reading...

Joke Schauvliege falsely claimed state agencies had evidence that children’s climate change protests were a ‘set-up’A Belgian environment minister has been forced to resign after falsely claiming the country’s intelligence services held evidence that children skipping school to demonstrate over climate change were being directed by unnamed powers.Joke Schauvliege, a minister in Flanders, where the school-strikes movement first emerged, provoked a wave of criticism of the wider political class after suggesting the protests were a “set-up” and “more than spontaneous actions of solidarity”. Continue reading...

Heat, rainfall, droughts, cyclones and bushfires are all on the rise, Climate Council warnsExtreme weather events linked to climate change have the potential to disrupt Australia’s summer sports obsession at elite and grassroots level, the Climate Council warns.Its latest report – Weather Gone Wild, released on Wednesday – says climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of events such as extreme heat, intense rainfall, droughts, tropical cyclones and bushfires. Continue reading...

Child health experts say public needs to be better informed about scale of crisis

Young patients with respiratory problems are a regular sight for doctors due to air pollution crisis

Bodies are believed to be the men, aged 21 and 23, reported missing yesterday. Follow all the developments6.54am GMTThanks for following along with us again today. We’ll be closing the blog shortly, but, before that, let’s just recap the day’s events in Townsville.The main story from today is the sad news that two men aged in their 20s have died in the floods. Earlier, police said they held grave fears for two men who were last seen on Monday morning. We will learn more about the circumstances in the hours and days to come.6.07am GMTThe Insurance Council of Australia has revised its current estimate of insurance losses up – it now sits at $45m from 3,500 claims.The council expects that figure to rise as people return to their homes. This has been occurring gradually throughout the day, although authorities say many homes are still unsafe. Continue reading...

Men, both in their early 20s, discovered in stormwater drain near Aitkenvale libraryThe bodies of two men have been found in flood waters at Townsville in north Queensland.The two men, both in their early 20s, were discovered in a stormwater drain near the Aitkenvale library on Tuesday afternoon. Continue reading...

Measures to cut emissions could include free bus travel, says Friends of the EarthCampaigners have called for free bus travel and the reopening of hundreds of miles of railway lines to end reliance on cars, as transport is due to be confirmed as the UK’s largest contributor to greenhouse gases.Official data released on Tuesday is expected to confirm transport as the most polluting sector, largely driven by cars. It outstripped energy for the first time in 2016, with annual emissions of about 125m tonnes of CO. This figure has barely changed since 1990. Continue reading...

Increase in extreme weather due to climate change is damaging fruit and vegetable growingThe British chip has been left an inch shorter by the 2018 heatwave, according to a report on the risks to UK fruit and vegetable growing from climate change.The spell of baking summer weather was made 30 times more likely by global warming and left spuds substantially smaller than usual. Yields of carrots and onions were also sharply down. Continue reading...

The deputy secretary has been running the department since Ryan Zinke stepped down at the end of the yearDavid Bernhardt, a former oil and gas and water lobbyist, will be nominated to run the interior department, Donald Trump tweeted.I am pleased to announce that David Bernhardt, Acting Secretary of the Interior, will be nominated as Secretary of the Interior. David has done a fantastic job from the day he arrived, and we look forward to having his nomination officially confirmed! Continue reading...

Launching a new fossil fuel industry was a bad idea, and a coalition of localists and environmentalists appears close to defeating itLess than four months after what was supposed to be a new beginning for fracking in England, when Cuadrilla resumed operations at its Preston New Road site in Lancashire, it appears increasingly unlikely that there is a future for this industry in the UK at all. Minor earthquakes rapidly halted fracking at Preston New Road, and led to a row about whether the legal limit for underground seismic activity, set at 0.5-magnitude after earthquakes in 2011, is unrealistically low. Now Jim Ratcliffe, chairman of petrochemicals firm Ineos and the UK’s richest man, has launched his own attack both on the 0.5 limit and on the planning system that has seen all three of Ineos’s applications to frack rejected by local authorities – although two were later granted on appeal. The government’s refusal to change the law in the industry’s favour, he said, means that it is “shutting down shale by the backdoor”.Having watched the success of the shale gas industry in the US since 2000, Mr Ratcliffe and politicians including former chancellor George Osborne decided that fracking – which involves pumping water, sand and chemicals 2km underground at high pressure – should become a UK industry too. Senior Conservatives including the current energy minister, Claire Perry, agreed. They were wrong. The UK is unsuited to fracking, for political and geological reasons that have become clearer over the past few years, and all the money (Ineos alone has spent £150m) and effort expended on trying to foist a new and dirty industry on communities who do not want it has been thrown away. Continue reading...

Seven protesters arrested between November 2016 and February 2017 win £24,300 from South Yorkshire policeCampaigners who were wrongfully detained while protesting against tree felling in Sheffield have been given a £24,300 payout by South Yorkshire police.The seven protesters were arrested between November 2016 and February 2017 and detained for up to nine hours under an obscure trade union law that was incorrectly used, the police watchdog found last year. Continue reading...

Scott Morrison is trying to scare people about franking credits but seems blithely unaware people are already scared – about climate changeAs I write this, fire is 500 metres from the largest King Billy pine forest in the world on Mt Bobs, an ancient forest that dates back to the last Ice Age and has trees over 1,000 years old. Fire has broached the boundaries of Mt Field national park with its glorious alpine vegetation, unlike anything on the planet. Fire laps at the edges of Federation Peak, Australia’s grandest mountain, and around the base of Mt Anne with its exquisite rainforest and alpine gardens. Fire laps at the border of the Walls of Jerusalem national park with its labyrinthine landscapes of tarns and iconic stands of ancient pencil pine and its beautiful alpine landscape, ecosystems described by their most eminent scholar, the ecologist Prof Jamie Kirkpatrick, as “like the vision of a Japanese garden made more complex, and developed in paradise, in amongst this gothic scenery”.“You have plants that look like rocks – green rocks – and these plants have different colours in complicated mosaics: red-green, blue-green, yellow-green, all together. It’s an overwhelming sensual experience really.” Continue reading...

Improving the quality of high sulphur fuel could offer 5% improvement on CO2 emissions ‘overnight’Australia’s cheap, dirty petrol ranks among the worst of the OECD nations, yet the peak industry body representing Australian petrol refiners has rejected the criticism, saying the industry should be given until 2027 to adjust to stricter regulations.Paul Barrett, the chief executive of the Australian Institute of Petroleum, hit back at critics who have described Australian petrol as low quality thanks to its sulphur content. Continue reading...