Environment | The Guardian

Supermarket announces plans to donate surplus stock to local charities, and urges other chains to follow suitTesco is to become the only UK retailer to no longer waste food fit for human consumption.The company’s chief executive, Dave Lewis, has urged other supermarket chains to follow Tesco’s lead and adopt the changes that it will implement by March 2018. Continue reading...

Pioneering research on cross-species coral hybrids, inoculations with protective bacteria and even genetic engineering could provide a lifeline for the ‘rainforests of the oceans’New super corals bred by scientists to resist global warming could be tested on the Great Barrier Reef within a year as part of a global research effort to accelerate evolution and save the “rainforests of the seas” from extinction.

A mountain hare in the snow, a Christmas beetle, and the pre-speech toddler who has befriended a pack of wild monkeys all feature in this week’s pick of images from the natural world Continue reading...

Fire. Oil palm. Cattle. Soy. Rubber. Wood. New data from Global Forest Watch shows that forest destruction is on the rise globally, in spite of a slate of pledges and commitments.

Indigenous federations, state entities and congresspeople speak out against proposed law promoting road constructionIndigenous federations and other Peruvians have responded fiercely to a proposed law promoting the construction of highways in some of the remotest parts of the Peruvian Amazon near the border with Brazil. A series of “protected natural areas”, including four national parks, and five reserves for indigenous peoples living in “isolation” could ultimately be impacted.Local, regional and national federations - together with NGOs, relevant state entities and congresspeople - have spoken out against or expressed concern about the proposed law. The main claims: it poses serious threats to the forests, biodiversity and indigenous peoples living in “isolation” and “initial contact”, and it contravenes Peruvian and international laws, trade agreements with the US and European Union, Peru’s international climate change commitments, recommendations by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and a request made by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Continue reading...

Waters outside national boundaries are currently unregulated, devastated by overfishing and pollution. 140 countries back the motion to establish a treatyThe world’s oceans are set for a long overdue boost in the coming days as the United Nations votes for the first time on a planned treaty to protect and regulate the high seas.The waters outside national maritime boundaries – which cover half of the planet’s surface – are currently a free-for-all that has led to devastating overfishing and pollution. Continue reading...

Environmental audit committee recommends adoption of ‘polluter pays’ principle, as well as backing deposit return scheme and public water fountainsSupermarkets, retailers and drinks companies should be forced to pay significantly more towards the recycling of the plastic packaging they sell, an influential committee of MPs has said.Members of the environmental audit committee called for a societal change in the UK to reduce the 7.7bn plastic water bottles used each year, and embed a culture of carrying reusable containers which are refilled at public water fountains and restaurants, cafes, sports centres and fast food outlets. Continue reading...

Rockingham Forest, Northamptonshire Grass-covered earthworks are all that remain of an abbey that built one of England’s first windmillsPatches of snow persist in the most sheltered spots alongside Harpers Brook, the pasture dense with a complexity of mounds and earthworks that hints at a significant history. The sloping field by the grey limestone edifices of Pipewell Hall is crowned with a variety of trees, some fairly ancient, and a medley of a dozen horses and ponies come over to say hello; each in turn blowing gusts of warm breath on to the back of my hand, some lingering to gently nuzzle or allow a brief stroke.A Cistercian community, St Mary de Divisis Abbey, was established here in 1143. The monastery and cloisters were surrounded by many facilities – an infirmary, a bakery, a granary, a brewhouse, a quarry, a cemetery, a watermill, carp ponds and refuse pits. A little further to the west the community built one of the first English windmills. Continue reading...

The sacred mountain in the North Island is the third geographic feature in the country to be granted a ‘legal personality’Mount Taranaki in New Zealand is to be granted the same legal rights as a person, becoming the third geographic feature in the country to be granted a “legal personality”.Eight local Māori tribes and the government will share guardianship of the sacred mountain on the west coast of the North Island, in a long-awaited acknowledgement of the indigenous people’s relationship to the mountain, who view it as an ancestor and whanau, or family member. Continue reading...

Environmental groups ask whether government can ever adequately regulate the Macarthur River Mine, after reactive waste rock was dumped in wrong placeThe Northern Territory government’s claim that no report exists from an investigation into an accidental dumping of toxic mining waste demonstrates a lack of transparency and an inability to regulate a mine which has had repeated problems, environmental groups have said.On Thursday Guardian Australia revealed the Glencore-owned McArthur River mine near Borroloola, about 700km south-east of Darwin, had accidentally dumped thousands of tonnes of reactive waste rock in the wrong place, where it combusted and began emitting sulphur dioxide. Continue reading...

Researchers plotted temperature rises against the number of asylum applications and are predicting that as the southern hemisphere heats up the number of people migrating to the EU each year will tripleClimate change will drive a huge increase in the number of migrants seeking asylum in Europe if current trends continue, according to a new study.The number of migrants attempting to settle in Europe each year will triple by the end of the century based on current climate trends alone, independent of other political and economic factors, according to the research. Even if efforts to curb global warming are successful, the number of applications for asylum could rise by a quarter, the authors predict. Continue reading...

Power generated from low carbon sources hit 54.4% between July and September, according to Office for National StatisticsMore than half of the UK’s electricity came from nuclear power stations and renewables between July and September, official figures show.The record high share of 54.4% of power from low carbon sources was a result of the rapid growth in solar and wind power, according to the Office for National Statistics. Continue reading...

Almost twice as many badgers have been killed this autumn, after massive expansion of the cull zonesNearly 20,000 badgers were culled this autumn as part of the government’s attempt to reduce bovine TB in cattle, in what critics called the largest destruction of a protected species in living memory.The 19,274 dead badgers is almost twice as many as last year after 11 new cull zones were added to a swath of the West Country worst-hit by bovine TB. While some badgers were trapped before being shot, the majority – 11,638 badgers – were killed by free shooting, a method judged inhumane by the British Veterinary Association. Continue reading...

UK government should make 100-fold increase in the amount of aid spent on dealing with plastic waste, says TearfundThe British government should divert hundreds of millions of pounds from its aid budget to help developing countries clear up their waste and reduce marine plastic pollution, a charity has said.

Camera footage of road traffic offences can be uploaded onto the Welsh police website Operation SnapHead to your favoured social media platform and at some point you’ll come across footage or photos of poor and illegal behaviour on the UK’s roads. Among the inevitable comments of outrage and armchair verdicts will inevitably be a discussion about whether the police saw this footage, and if so what action they took.But with 45 police forces operating across the UK, the biggest problem most people will face is an inconsistency of approach both over how to submit evidence and which forces will accept it. Continue reading...

Research shows antibiotic use is uneven between farms, making behaviour change a tantalising prospect

Building Britain’s first new nuclear reactor since 1995 will cost twice as much as the 2012 Olympics – and by the time it is finished, nuclear power could be a thing of the past. How could the government strike such a bad deal? By Holly WattHinkley Point, on the Somerset coast, is the biggest building site in Europe. Here, on 430 acres of muddy fields scattered with towering cranes and bright yellow diggers, the first new nuclear power station in the UK since 1995 is slowly taking shape. When it is finally completed, Hinkley Point C will be the most expensive power station in the world. But to reach that stage, it will need to overcome an extraordinary tangle of financial, political and technical difficulties. The project was first proposed almost four decades ago, and its progress has been glacial, having faced relentless opposition from politicians, academics and economists every step of the way.Some critics of the project have questioned whether Hinkley Point C’s nuclear reactor will even work. It is a new and controversial design, which has been dogged by construction problems and has yet to start functioning anywhere in the world. Some experts believe it could actually prove impossible to build. “It’s three times over cost and three times over time where it’s been built in Finland and France,” says Paul Dorfman, from the UCL Energy Institute. “This is a failed and failing reactor.” Continue reading...

Adam Bandt says analysis of emissions targets for electricity sector ‘shows the cost of caving in to the climate deniers’The Turnbull government’s proposed emissions targets for the electricity sector would mean every car would need to be taken off the roads immediately, or every cow would need to be taken off farms from next year, for Australia to reach the targets it committed to as part of the Paris agreement, according to analysis conducted by the Greens.While neither measure is a plausible course of action, the Greens say it reveals the significance of the gap left by the weak ambition of the government’s plans for the national energy guarantee. Continue reading...

The cannon blasts water droplets at high speed to flush out air pollutants, but environmentalists say it doesn’t tackle the root cause of the problemIndia has unveiled a new weapon against air pollution – an “anti-smog gun” which authorities hope will clear the skies above New Delhi but which environmentalists say amounts to a band-aid solution.

A new study warns if the degradation rate continues, all wilderness areas will be at risk over the next 50 yearsThe world’s last great wildernesses are shrinking at an alarming rate. In the past two decades, 10% of the earth’s wilderness has been lost due to human pressure, a mapping study by the University of Queensland has found.Over the course of human history, there has been a major degradation of 52% of the earth’s ecosystems, while the remaining 48% is being increasingly eroded. Since 1992, when the United Nations signed up to the Rio convention on biological diversity, three million square kilometres of wilderness have been lost. Continue reading...

Malcolm Turnbull’s spokesman praises move as a ‘nation-building project’ after report shows it to be financially feasibleA feasibility study into the proposed expansion of the Snowy Hydro scheme has given the project the green light, but says it will cost billions of dollars more than predicted.The study, supported by Malcolm Turnbull, found the proposed expansion was both technically and financially feasible, and that Snowy Hydro would be able to finance the project itself. Continue reading...

The 2020 renewables target is already set to be exceeded by projects now under constructionWeak targets suggested for the proposed national energy guarantee will threaten a massive 27 gigawatts of renewable energy projects proposed for development across Australia.Were they to go ahead, these projects would produce as much capacity as 17 Hazelwood power stations and mean half of Australia’s electricity was supplied by renewables. Continue reading...

Alaska senator Lisa Murkowski believes this refuge could generate vast sums of money once it’s opened to oil leasing. That would be a tragedy

Northern Territory government insists no report about resulting combustion and emissions exists, despite investigating McArthur river mineAn Australian mine owned by the global trading firm Glencore mistakenly dumped 63 truckloads of dangerous waste material in the wrong place, where it combusted and sent sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere.The scale of the incident, which occurred at the remote McArthur river zinc-lead mine in Australia’s north, was kept out of the public eye. The Northern Territory government ordered an investigation but refuses to release any details, claiming no report exists because the findings were delivered verbally. Continue reading...

Exclusive: medical campaigners wanting to preserve antibiotics for human use praise supermarket for reducing their use in production of meat, eggs and dairyMarks & Spencer has become the first supermarket chain in the UK to publish details of the use of antibiotics in its farm supply chain, in a step towards reducing the use of vital human medicines in livestock-rearing.On Wednesday, the company disclosed on its web site information on the quantities of antibiotics used on livestock by the farmers that supply its meat, eggs and dairy products. This will be updated regularly to show progress towards cutting the use of the drugs, which are also prescribed to treat human diseases. Continue reading...

French parliamentarians have passed a law banning fossil fuel extraction. President Macron says he wants France to lead the world with switch to renewablesFrance’s parliament has passed into law a ban on producing oil and gas by 2040, a largely symbolic gesture as the country is 99% dependent on hydrocarbon imports.In Tuesday’s vote by show of hands, only the rightwing Republicans party opposed, while leftwing lawmakers abstained. Continue reading...

Monitoring network Traffic says smuggling of undocumented ivory into China could undermine enforcement of imminent banJapan’s failure to prevent illegal ivory exports could undermine China’s forthcoming ban on its domestic ivory trade, conservation groups have warned.Inaction by Japan’s government has allowed the smuggling of large quantities of undocumented ivory overseas, mainly to China, according to a report released in Tokyo on Wednesday by the wildlife trade monitoring network Traffic. Continue reading...

A group of 28 bottlenose dolphins has been identified that live in the shallow waters around St Ives in Cornwall, but sometimes travel to Devon and DorsetEngland’s only resident population of bottlenose dolphins has been identified by researchers.Experts analysed thousands of sightings and photographs from the south west of England between 2007 and 2016. They identified 98 individual bottlenose dolphins and were able to define a distinct group of 28 that were resident throughout the year. Continue reading...

St Dominic, Tamar Valley In wooded valleys sunbeams filter through the trees, illuminating moss, picking out a spiral of gnats, side-lighting a flock of sheepInterludes and flashes of sunshine bring sparkle and colour to the drab midwinter landscape around home. Before streaks of orange brilliance mark the sunrise, a blackbird chortles and pitches into the remains of ripe fruits on the Kousa dogwood; blooms of the camellia Cornish Snow glow beside dark foliage and yellow spikes of fragrant mahonia; and another blackbird is prospecting myrtle berries.Southwards, beyond the vacated pastures opposite, first light catches plumes of steam and smoke rising from the wood-chip boiler that warms glasshouses growing acres of alstroemeria (Peruvian lilies) to be picked throughout the year. Continue reading...

Researchers say some of the fish also known as anemonefish display individual personalities but others act more as a groupSome species of clownfish have absolutely no personality, a study by Australian researchers has found.Research by the University of Wollongong and Southern Cross University analysed the behavioural patterns of two species of subtropical clownfish, or anemonefish: Amphiprion mccullochi, which is endemic to a shallow lagoon on Lord Howe island, off the coast of New South Wales; and Amphiprion latezonatus, which has a much wider distribution along Australia’s east coast. Continue reading...

Plan to make landlords improve draughtiest homes and boost energy efficiency for hundreds of thousands of tenants lay in tatters, say criticsTenants face missing out on energy bill savings after the government caved in to landlords’ demands by lowering a cap on the costs they face to upgrade Britain’s draughtiest homes.Landlords must improve the energy efficiency of F- and G-rated homes from next April under new regulations designed to protect vulnerable tenants and cut carbon emissions. Continue reading...

Although the landholder had a clearing permit, 132 hectares was cleared outside of the approved areaA Queensland farmer has been fined and ordered to restore native vegetation he cleared on his property, despite a significant media campaign from the farmer, lobby groups and conservative politicians, all claiming the farmer had done nothing wrong.In November, the Guardian reported on allegations that the owners of Wombinoo, south-west of Cairns, had illegally cleared 60 hectares of native trees. Continue reading...

The environmentalist and advisor to Drax power station, Tony Juniper, says the wood used to create energy can be coppice thinnings and waste materialLast week, a group of respected scientists wrote to the Guardian to argue that using wood to generate electricity in place of coal is not a solution to climate change. Their critique pointed to a “carbon debt” arising from the years between using a tree for fuel and new one growing. They gave the impression that forests are being cleared wholesale to be shovelled into power stations. Reality on the ground is, however, somewhat different.I found this out when earlier this year I went to the USA as an advisor to Drax, a power company in the UK that is seeking to accelerate the phase out of coal by using a biomass instead. On my travels I had many vivid reminders as to how forests are more than collections of individual trees. In the case of the US South, from where much of the wood being used in the UK comes from, I saw vast expanses of production woodlands being harvested for a range of products. Continue reading...

Heavily polluting power plants across China will now have to choose between paying for their emissions or cleaning up their actThe world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, China, has launched the world’s biggest ever mechanism to reduce carbon, in the form of an emissions trading system.China’s top governmental bodies on Tuesday gave their approval to plans for a carbon trading system that will initially cover the country’s heavily polluting power generation plants, then expand to take in most of the economy. Continue reading...

Arizona has the highest proportion of female farmers – but conditions in this dry desert landscape aren’t easy, and rural isolation has created a tapestry of challengesBy 9am, it’s already 100F (38C). In the desert afternoons, rain gathers on the horizon, teasing – and then it disappears. There is so much heaviness, so much waiting.I pulled on to the ranch of Anastasia Rabin with Audra Mulkern, a Washington-based photographer and founder of the Female Farmer Project. We were on assignment for a story and chasing a statistic: according to the most recent US census, Arizona is the state with the highest proportion of female farm operators. Continue reading...

Environment secretary’s action plan, due in new year, may include plastic bottle deposit scheme and standardised recycling policyCutting plastic pollution is the focus of a series of proposals being considered by the UK environment secretary, Michael Gove, who has said he was “haunted” by images of the damage done to the world’s oceans shown in David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II TV series.

St Kilda Road trees range from elms planted in late 19th century to London Plane trees planted in 1960sThe decision to cut down 70 trees lining St Kilda Road in Melbourne to make way for a new train station is “an absolute tragedy”, opponents have said.The trees range in age from elms planted in the late 19th century to London Plane trees planted in the 1960s. Continue reading...

Rockland St Mary, Norfolk This adaptable bird feeds on fruit, insects, worms – and sometimes something even more substantialThe raised track by this broad is bordered by a sallow thicket that overtops a network of intertidal creeks.To compensate for the subterranean shadows, you have to cowl your eyes and cup your ears to detect any secret occupant. Usually this is little more than a moorhen but, now and then, it is something finer, such as a feeding woodcock. Fixing the whereabouts of any quiet commotion, which always inserts into the moment a shudder of excitement, is your best hope of seeing it before being seen. Continue reading...

BHP notes Minerals Council of Australia favours energy reliability and affordability over emissions goalsAustralia’s biggest miner, BHP, has put the Minerals Council of Australia on notice, threatening to cancel its almost $2m yearly membership if it does not cease campaigning on climate and energy issues.

Three mammals, 11 amphibians, two fish, 11 reptiles and 88 plants were discovered by scientists in 2016, says WWFA snail-eating turtle found in a food market and a bat with a horseshoe-shaped face are among 115 new species discovered in the Greater Mekong region.A report from the conservation charity WWF reveals that three new mammals, 11 amphibians, two fish, 11 reptiles and 88 plants were found by scientists in Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand and Vietnam in 2016. Continue reading...

Flights likely to be cancelled and delays probable on bus and train services as visibility falls to below 100 metresForecasters have warned of likely travel disruption on Tuesday, including cancelled flights, with severe fog forecast to hit much of the UK.Some patches of freezing fog overnight are also likely and the extreme conditions are expected to last until midday on Tuesday. Continue reading...

New port chairman says the outlook for coal is ‘a threat to the port’, but Newcastle is hamstrung by the state government’s deal with its rival at BotanyIt has been called a “seismic shift” in the move away from coal investment. The beginning, in fact, of a “post-coal regional economy”.But the statement by the incoming chairman of the Port of Newcastle that the world’s largest coal export terminal must “urgently” diversify is closer to a call for help than a declaration of intent. Continue reading...

Clouds don’t act as a climate thermostat, and they’re not going to save us from global warming

International Energy Agency says burning of fossil fuel is falling fast, driven by drop-off in use by EU, China and USEvery major country in the world except India reduced its consumption of coal last year, with demand for the dirty fuel forecast to stagnate for the next half decade, according to official forecasts.The International Energy Agency said 5.3bn tonnes of coal equivalent were burnt in 2016, down 1.9% on the year before and 4.2% on 2014, the fastest decline since 1990-1992, when the global economy was in recession. Continue reading...

Authenticity of droppings and carcasses used as evidence for Tasmanian government-funded fox hunt was questionedA $40m Tasmanian fox eradication scheme that failed to find a single live fox has been cleared of misconduct over allegations droppings were planted to falsify the animal’s existence and secure funding.Independent upper house MP Ivan Dean lodged a complaint with Tasmania’s Integrity Commission last year over two controversial programs that ran from 2002 to 2014. Continue reading...

Exclusive: pension schemes will be free to dump fossil fuel investments after government drops ‘best returns’ legal rulesThe government is to allow Britain’s £2tn workplace pension schemes to dump their shares in oil, gas and coal companies more easily, empowering them to take investment decisions to fight climate change.Until now, pension schemes have been hamstrung by “fiduciary duties” that effectively require schemes to seek the best returns irrespective of the threat of climate change. Many have rebuffed calls by members for fossil fuel divestment, citing legal obligations.

Newby Head, Yorkshire Dales When heavy snow blocks the roads, farmer Rodney Beresford goes out to clear the wayTiny snow devil vortices dance across the scene outside Newby Head Farm, 1,400ft high in Yorkshire’s Three Peaks region. But the snow that tinsels the windbreak of Douglas firs does not stir. Neither does the mound of pink rock salt by the roadside; it is already half-frozen. Sheep farmer Rodney Beresford has to dig hard as he fills the hopper behind his 150hp Deutz tractor. Continue reading...

Decision to end Downer EDI agreement follows Palaszczuk government’s blocking of federal loan for the Queensland projectAdani has blamed the Queensland government’s decision to kill off a taxpayer-funded loan for its decision to ditch a $2 billion agreement with a major contractor.But the Indian miner says it remains committed to building its controversial Carmichael coalmine and the decision to part ways with Downer EDI has no bearing on that. Continue reading...

18 December 1917 Their greens may be dark or even dingy, but when the rains sweep over or the snow melts upon them they shine as if polishedThe sombre firs standing black against the leaden sky and the snow-sprinkled ground, the ivy clinging to the ancient bole, the big-leaved laurels and rhododendrons, and the hardy wayside hollies save the country from the monotony of leafless winter. Their greens may be dark or even dingy compared with those of spring, but they are really greens; when the rains sweep over, as they did yesterday, or the snow melts upon them they shine as if polished. The red berries are all the redder for the wet, and even the withered grass is invigorated by the showers which make us shiver.Related: Holly: the festive berry Continue reading...