Declan Davitt, 26, and Martin Needham, 27, were driving across Carrowniskey river when 4x4 became submergedThe families of two men who died after their Jeep was swept away in a river on Christmas Day have said they are heartbroken.Declan Davitt, 26, and Martin Needham, 27, were in the 4x4 when it fell into the Carrowniskey river in County Mayo, west Ireland, in the early hours of the morning.

Hobby’s increasing popularity, and the rising cost of some queens, thought to be driving thefts of bees and hivesThieves are cashing in on an increasingly lucrative beekeeping market by snatching entire hives, with 135 reported thefts over the past six years.

A key chapter of the US Global Change Research Program Report deals with how the oceans are being impacted by human carbon pollution

Hartburn, Northumberland Carved into the cliff is a narrow entrance, like a grotesque maskOur footsteps are quieted by fallen leaves as we enter Hartburn Glebe, a curve of ancient semi-natural woodland hugging the steep sides of the Hart Burn. There is something of Kipling’s poem The Way Through the Woods about it, a past glimpsed beneath the undergrowth. There was “once a road through the wood”. The Devil’s Causeway, a Roman road that ran north-east to the Tweed, passed through here, seen now as a holloway under woodrush and conifers.Related: The 10 best woods and forests for views Continue reading...

Winning images from national and international wildlife photography competitions of the year Continue reading...

It was a tale of two years – the best of times and the worst of times. But not everything went wrong – from Mata’s 1% to orangutans, we look at the goodHow was it for you? A bit grim? Many people will be eager to see the back of 2017, the year of Trump, Twitter, terrorism, Yemen, Libya and the plight of the Rohingya, as well as environmental degradation and almost daily doomsday warnings about the multiplying threats to sustainable life on earth.But the big, bold headlines tell only half the story – perhaps not even that much. Away from the hysteria of daily news, it is possible to discern progress, joy, breakthroughs and that rarest commodity of all: optimism. Continue reading...

Colossal funding in manufacturing plants by fossil fuel companies will increase plastic production by 40%, risking permanent pollution of the earthThe global plastic binge which is already causing widespread damage to oceans, habitats and food chains, is set to increase dramatically over the next 10 years after multibillion dollar investments in a new generation of plastics plants in the US.Fossil fuel companies are among those who have ploughed more than $180bn since 2010 into new “cracking” facilities that will produce the raw material for everyday plastics from packaging to bottles, trays and cartons. Continue reading...

Communities fear impact on environment, as fossil fuel companies target region in multi-billion dollar push to increase global plastic productionDonald Trump’s state visit to Saudi Arabia in May will perhaps be best remembered by his participation in an all-male sword dance where he awkwardly waved a ceremonial blade in step with his cabinet and their Saudi counterparts.

Nearly a third of all new cars sold in the country this year will be plug-in models and experts expect that share to skyrocketWhile tourists explore Oslo’s history in the grounds of the centuries-old Akershus fortress, below their feet is a harbinger of the city’s future.Here in the catacombs sit scores of Teslas, Nissan Leafs and BMW i3s, plugged into the charging points of the world’s largest public garage for electric cars. Continue reading...

Binding carbon commitments and the falling cost of renewables could prove a perfect storm for investorsThe UK’s shale gas industry is in a race against time to establish itself before climate change regulations shut it down. As its stands, the frackers are off the pace.With no wells yet tested for gas flow, the industry does not yet know if large-scale production is possible or what the cost of the gas will be, and it won’t know until 2020 at best. Protests and planning problems have delayed exploration, but the real difficulty is the UK’s legally binding carbon targets. Continue reading...

Firms leading UK push for shale gas say ‘we will see results next year’ after 12 months of opposition, protests and a ban in ScotlandBritish shale gas companies have said domestic fracking will finally begin in earnest in 2018, after another year passed without serious progress amid strong opposition.Industry figures said next year would be crucial for the sector, as companies start the process of hydraulic fracturing to extract gas trapped underground in shale rock. Continue reading...

Rapid growth is due to falling battery costs, government incentives and car makers competing to build new modelsThe number of fully electric and plug-in hybrid cars on the world’s roads has passed the 3m mark, as manufacturers ramp up their plans for mass production of battery-powered vehicles.Related: Norway leads way on electric cars: 'it’s part of a green taxation shift' Continue reading...

Butterflies | The light in Kirkcudbright | Nempnett ThrubwellGeorge Monbiot’s memory (Our selective blindness is lethal the living world, 20 December) is indeed bittersweet. As a boy I also recall summertime nettlebeds thickly hanging with the black caterpillars of peacocks and small tortoiseshells. We used to gather them and then watch them pupate and hatch on the top of our television set (a somewhat bulkier item in the late 1960s). I don’t recall seeing such butterfly fecundity for more than 40 years.

28 December 1917 In the sombre foliage of the forest firs we heard the short, high-pitched notes of the goldcrest, and saw two or three of the tiny birds hunting for insectsIron-hard roads rang beneath our feet and cat-ice between the ruts scrunched and crackled; a black frost had the forest in its grip. Under the firs was a litter of stripped cones and scattered flakes; the squirrels, in spite of the frost, had been busy, and over and over again we disturbed them from their hunt amongst the fallen needles and sent them scurrying up the straight boles. It was in the sombre foliage of these forest firs that we heard the short, high-pitched notes of the goldcrest, and saw two or three of the tiny birds hunting for insects – hibernating insects too insignificant for larger birds to worry with.Related: Walking in the winter woods: Country diary 100 years ago Continue reading...

PM will reportedly abandon election manifesto pledge to give MPs free vote on whether to overturn foxhunting banTheresa May will reportedly abandon her Conservative general election manifesto pledge to give MPs a free vote on whether to overturn the fox hunting ban.According to the Sunday Times, the prime minister will in early 2018 announce plans to permanently drop the commitment to a House of Commons vote, in a move that would risk infuriating rural Tories. Continue reading...

Going out for a breather after the big meal is a tradition. But now you have to think about the quality of the air you’re taking inThe post-lunch Christmas walk is a family tradition in many households. What’s not to like? You get to walk off one of the biggest meals of the year. Young or old, most members of the family can manage a gentle stroll and you get some fresh air in your lungs.But how fresh is that air? A new study by British researchers recently published in the Lancet highlights the fact that older members of the family need to be much more choosy about where they take their exercise. Continue reading...

The Southern Ocean was a sanctuary – but now Japan’s boats have military hardware and conservationists can no longer track themA fleet of Japanese ships is currently hunting minke whales in the Southern Ocean. It is a politically incendiary practice: the waters around Antarctica were long ago declared a whale sanctuary, but the designation has not halted Japan’s whalers, who are continuing a tradition of catching whales “for scientific research” in the region.In the past, conservation groups such as Sea Shepherd have mounted campaigns of harassment and successfully blocked Japan’s ships from killing whales. But not this year. Despite previous successes, Sea Shepherd says it can no longer frustrate Japan’s whalers because their boats now carry hardware supplied from military sources, making the fleet highly elusive and almost impossible to track. As a result the whalers are – for the first time – being given a free run to kill minke in the Southern Ocean. Continue reading...

Hawkhurst, Kent One of Britain’s largest collections of Victorian glasshouses is being restored thanks to the fond memories of a wartime evacueeJust outside Hawkhurst, in the Kentish Weald, there’s a walled garden so quintessentially Victorian that stepping inside feels like time-travelling. Rustic brickwork glows in the winter sun; in bright corners the skeletal arms of buddleia seem to beckon the ghosts of bees; and everywhere you look the light is reflected by shimmering glass.There are 13 crumbling, deeply atmospheric glasshouses – the “Demanding Ladies” – most of them more than 140 years old. There’s a shaded fern house, a long, leaning peach case, a sunken glass corridor for melons and pineapples, a pelargonium house, a carnation house, a hot house with great vats that once steamed with heated water. Continue reading...

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...