Environmental lawyer James Thornton says China’s ‘ecological civilisation’ concept is the best response to the world’s environmental crisisJames Thornton’s specialty is suing governments and corporations on behalf of his only client – the Earth – and he’s very good at it. In his four decades of legal practice across three continents, he’s never lost a case.Acknowledging this in 2009 the New Statesman named him one of the ten people likely to change the world; ClientEarth, the public interest environmental law firm he started in London in 2007 now employs 106 people.

President Temer is courting the mining companies and their political backers by breaking into pristine rainforestOn 23 August it emerged that the president of Brazil, Michel Temer, had issued a decree abolishing the protected status of an immense area of the Amazon forest. The area is in the north of the country, beyond the Amazon river, going up to the frontiers with French Guiana and Suriname (formerly Dutch Guiana). The estimated size is 4.5 million hectares, the size of Denmark or Switzerland.The decree was shocking, but not entirely unexpected. Temer is in political difficulties, facing corruption charges and needing political allies. There are more than 30 registered political parties in Brazil, and to get anything done in Congress they form bancadas (“benches” or coalitions). One of the most powerful is the bancada ruralista, consisting of powerful, wealthy agribusiness interests (mostly cattle and soya) together with those who represent mining and other extractive industries. And, making things gloomier, the evangelicals attach themselves to this bancada. Continue reading...

Animal rights campaigners claim strong support in the Midlands village that hosts a museum dedicated to the bloodsportThe fractious politics of hunting was far from the minds of Julian Smith and Becky Whitehead during a pleasant afternoon exploring Leicestershire’s only National Trust house – a 118-year-old cottage nestled in countryside just out of earshot of the M1.Nevertheless their views were clear, before a landmark vote next month that could prohibit trust land from being used for trail hunting – where riders follow hounds in pursuit of a fox-based scent. “We would be very anti-hunting, to be honest, and very much in favour of the existing government ban on foxhunting,” said Smith, a trust member who had travelled from Nottinghamshire to visit old houses and walk in the Peak District. Continue reading...

In an extract from his book Ends of the World, Peter Brannen examines mass extinction events and the catastrophic outcome of rising temperatures for all the world’s populationMany of us share some dim apprehension that the world is flying out of control, that the centre cannot hold. Raging wildfires, once-in-1,000-years storms and lethal heatwaves have become fixtures of the evening news – and all this after the planet has warmed by less than 1C above preindustrial temperatures. But here’s where it gets really scary.If humanity burns through all its fossil fuel reserves, there is the potential to warm the planet by as much as 18C and raise sea levels by hundreds of feet. This is a warming spike of an even greater magnitude than that so far measured for the end-Permian mass extinction. If the worst-case scenarios come to pass, today’s modestly menacing ocean-climate system will seem quaint. Even warming to one-fourth of that amount would create a planet that would have nothing to do with the one on which humans evolved or on which civilisation has been built. The last time it was 4C warmer there was no ice at either pole and sea level was 80 metres higher than it is today. Continue reading...

Rapa Nui protection area, about same size as Chilean mainland, will protect up to 142 species, including 27 threatened with extinctionOne of the world’s largest marine protection areas has been created off the coast of Easter Island.The 740,000 sq km Rapa Nui marine park is roughly the size of the Chilean mainland and will protect at least 142 endemic marine species, including 27 threatened with extinction. Continue reading...

As the hurricane approaches, the wealthy residents of Miami Beach can afford to play golf, their homes primed to withstand the wind and rain. In Liberty City, just a few miles away, they’re crossing their fingers

A slew of Trump properties stand in the path of Hurricane Irma, and they could be underwater by the end of the centuryMar-a-Lago. Trump National Doral Miami. Trump Palace. Trump Royale. Trump International Beach Resort Miami. Trump Hollywood.

Humphrey Head, Cartmel Peninsula Tiny creatures, with remarkable jumping ability, dwell in the carboniferous limestone hills above Morecambe BayDense vegetation alive with birdsong clings to the face of Humphrey Head. Gazing up at the gaping mouth of Edgar’s Arch, a blowhole in Cumbria’s highest limestone headland – and above a bushy beard of trees, shrubs and creepers – I forget to watch my feet. Result? I become stuck in one of the glutinous exiting channels that booby-trap Morecambe Bay’s shores.Good Samaritans hoist me to my feet, “We’re on a weekend activity hen do,” says the one in the “Game Over” T-shirt. “Glad the tide’s out,” says the group’s instructor, her top labelled “Boss”. “Folk get mired down like mice in those traps with sticky floors. Then the tide sneaks in.” Continue reading...

Environment secretary says EU must combat spread of Xylella fastidiosa by stopping high-risk species from crossing borders uncheckedEurope must implement greater protections against a disease that could threaten UK plants and trees, including oaks, the environment secretary Michael Gove has said.The horticulture sector is also being urged to take action to prevent Xylella fastidiosa, which is having a devastating impact on plants such as olive trees in parts of mainland Europe, spreading to the UK. Continue reading...

Exclusive: New studies find microplastics in salt from the US, Europe and China, adding to evidence that plastic pollution is pervasive in the environment

Our air, water and salt are contaminated by plastic and the impact on our health is unknown. While we wait for the findings, here are ways to reduce plastic use

EU duties on Chinese solar modules are set to rise 30% above market levels signalling ‘huge negative effects’ for businessesEurope’s solar industry has condemned an EU vote to impose another round of duties on Chinese imports, just weeks before a US trade panel is due to rule on similar tariffs.

Milder floods that refill reservoirs are decreasing as severe floods become more common

Exclusive: Winner of the BP young artist award at UK’s National Portrait Gallery says donation is a protest against his art being used to promote the oil company

An artist has given away part of his winnings to protest against BP’s role in climate change. The company’s money has helped an unfashionable artform, but what’s at stake is far more importantWe can’t stop looking at human faces. Can’t stop being interested in ourselves, our species. The BP Portrait Award, whose annual exhibition of winners and strong contenders can be seen at the National Portrait Gallery until 24 September, is full of humanity. It is, perhaps, the most humanist art prize in the world, an art award that specifically celebrates the painted human image and looks for modern heirs to the profoundly compassionate tradition of portraiture that includes Rembrandt, Velázquez and Lucian Freud.Yet it may be time to get over ourselves. Has the moment come to put nature before portraiture, and abolish this oil-tainted oil painting prize? Continue reading...

Project supported by WWF is likely to take many years and involves creation of nature reserve and restoration of forestWild tigers are to be reintroduced to Kazakhstan 70 years after they became extinct in the country.The animals will be reintroduced in the Ili-Balkhash region in a project that involves the creation of a nature reserve and the restoration of a forest that is part of the animal’s historical range. Continue reading...

Akademgorodok is a science centre situated in a remote Siberian forest. Photographer Pablo Ortíz Monasterio gained access to marvel at its brightly coloured chemistry labs and nuclear particle accelerators Continue reading...

Petersfield, Hampshire Bags of picnic rubbish littered the lakeside, and rats were helping themselves to bread left for the ducks

Environmental law group has accused Delta Electricity of underreporting emissions at its Vales Point power station and breaching licence conditionsThe only Australian company with a stated potential interest in buying and keeping AGL’s ageing Liddell coal-fired power station open beyond 2022 is facing a number of allegations of environmental mismanagement.AGL’s chief executive, Andy Vesey, has told government ministers AGL would consider selling Australia’s oldest coal-fired power station – near Muswellbrook in New South Wales – to a “responsible buyer”. Continue reading...

Australia’s overall greenhouse gas emissions last financial year were the highest since 2011, despite the closure of the Hazelwood coal-fired power plantEmissions from the electricity sector in the three months to June dropped by the biggest amount on record, as the effect of the Hazelwood coal-fired power station closure is seen for the first time in quarterly projections produced exclusively for the Guardian.But even that drop wasn’t enough to stop Australia’s overall greenhouse gas emissions from continuing to rise. Emissions from almost every other sector – industrial energy, transport, industrial heat and agriculture – all rose. They are the highest levels seen since before the carbon tax was repealed, according to projections by consultants at Ndevr Environmental. Continue reading...

Joe Corré accuses multinational petrochemical company of âbully boy tacticsâ to prevent legitimate protest against its fracking activities in the UKAn environmental campaigner is challenging the legality of a wide-ranging injunction obtained against protesters by a multinational firm that he criticised as being âdraconian, anti-democratic and oppressiveâ.Joe Corré accused petrochemical giant Ineos of using âdisgusting bully boy tacticsâ against campaigners who want to protest against the firmâs fracking operations. Continue reading...

Carmaker follows Volvo in spelling an end for petrol or diesel-only cars, despite not making any electric vehicles at presentJaguar Land Rover has become the latest large carmaker to say it will stop launching new models solely powered by internal combustion engines, two months after Volvo pledged to do so.The UK-based manufacturer promised that all new models from 2020 will be fully electric or hybrid, a year later than Volvoâs target, but a big step beyond its unveiling last November of a single electric concept car. Continue reading...

Northumberland coastline famed for Arctic terns and Atlantic puffins granted greater protection by Natural EnglandA stretch of coastline which is one of the most important sites in the UK for seabirds such as Arctic terns and Atlantic puffins has been given greater protection.The newly-designated Northumberland marine special protected area (SPA) stretches 12 miles from the coast into the North Sea, covering an area larger than 120,000 football pitches, government conservation body Natural England said. Continue reading...

It came without warning, and without equivalent. Now a flash drought is fueling fires and hurting the lives of those who work the landWhen Rick Kirn planted his 1,000 acres of spring wheat in May, there were no signs of a weather calamity on the horizon. Three months later, when he should have been harvesting and getting ready to sell his wheat, Kirn was staring out across vast cracked, gray, empty fields dotted with weeds and little patches of stunted wheat.

Bristol-based brand says Unilever will help it expand globally amid rising demand for upmarket organic brewsUnilever, owner of PG Tips and Liptons, is increasing its presence in the herbal tea market by acquiring Bristol-based Pukka Herbs.Sebastian Pole and Tim Westwell, founders of the brand known for its exotic flavours such as turmeric gold and mint matcha as well as cleansing and detox teas, have sold the business to Unilever for an undisclosed sum. The pair have agreed to stay on to help drive global expansion. Continue reading...

Government data reveals Tesco deducted administration costs from plastic bag sales, unlike other major supermarkets, angering senior MPsMillions of pounds in administration costs were deducted from the charitable donations made by Tesco using funds generated from the plastic bag tax, government data has revealed. No other major supermarket made any such deductions, leading senior MPs to urge Tesco to follow their lead.

What would the world be like if we weren’t dependent on oil? Photographer Richard Allenby-Pratt imagines a deserted Dubai in which the wealthy have fled, leaving giraffes and zebras to wander the alien landscapes Continue reading...

London-based designer Ryan Yasin used his background in aeronautical engineering to develop sustainable clothing to fit babies through to toddlersAn origami-inspired range of children’s clothing made from a durable pleated fabric that expands to fit growing babies and toddlers has won its 24-year-old designer a prestigious James Dyson award.Ryan Yasin devised the material using scientific principles he studied for his aeronautical engineering degree, after noting the lack of sustainability in the clothing industry and being frustrated by how quickly his baby niece and nephew outgrew garments he bought for them. Continue reading...

Federal funding for biodiversity conservation has dropped by 37% since 2013 and all MPs need to take greater actionAustralia is rapidly losing its world-famous biodiversity. More than 90 species have gone extinct since European colonisation (including three in just the past decade) and more than 1,700 species are now formally recognised as being in danger of extinction.Despite the pride many Australians feel in our unique natural heritage (and the billions of dollars made from nature-based tourism), the amount of federal funding for biodiversity conservation has dropped by 37% since 2013. Continue reading...

Destructive force of Irma and Harvey has Trump expressing awe, but those in power should focus on the environmental causes

The Azerbaijani regime wants to present a positive image in Europe because it needs support for its flagship project, write four campaigners. Plus Rebecca Gowland on British failure to crack down on those who exploit weaknesses in tax and governance lawsThe Guardian’s Azerbaijani Laundromat investigation (UK at heart of $3bn secret payments by Azerbaijan, 5 September) has uncovered thousands of covert payments as part of a European lobbying effort. But the article doesn’t mention the elephant in the room. Azerbaijan is particularly keen to present a positive image in Europe because it needs significant European support for its flagship project – the Southern Gas Corridor – despite the regime’s serial human rights abuses, systemic corruption and election rigging.The corridor, one of the biggest infrastructure projects undertaken by the fossil fuel industry with a total cost of about $45bn, will carry gas from Azerbaijan to Europe. Powerful interests from fossil fuel corporations to European governments are pushing through this unnecessary project against the will of communities and threatening human rights and a safe climate. Continue reading...

Gliders listed as threatened by both state and federal governments, but they are not protected by legislationLogging has begun in trees inhabited by the threatened greater gliders in a forest also inhabited by Victoria’s faunal emblem, the threatened Leadbeater’s possum.Protections for the remaining Leadbeater’s possum population – believed to be fewer than 2,500 breeding individuals left in the wild – mean logging will be halted within 200m of known colonies. But no such protection exists for the greater gliders, which have been listed as threatened by both state and federal governments. Continue reading...

The victims were targeted by a criminal gang who wanted to use their lands to grow lucrative palm oil, according to local indigenous leaders

Developer TuNur has applied to build a 4.5GW plant in the Sahara and pipe enough electricity via submarine cables to power two million European homesAn enormous solar park in the Sahara could soon be exporting electricity to Europe if Tunisia’s government approves an energy company’s request to build it.

Many UK councils are planning to restrict parking and idling near school gates, with fines of up to £130 in some casesParents across the country face tough restrictions – and even fines – over driving their children to the school gates, in a push by councils on road safety and pollution.As the new academic year begins, a survey of councils shows many are enforcing laws preventing parking immediately outside the school gates, using CCTV cameras and mobile monitoring vehicles to crack down on parents flouting the rules. Continue reading...

Confectionery firm also launches M&Ms renewable energy campaign as part of a growing corporate backlash against the US’s decision to pull out of the Paris climate dealThe corporate backlash is growing against Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris climate accord, with Mars launching a $1bn sustainability plan and an M&M’s campaign centred on renewable energy.It is the latest climate move by the family owned firm, which emerged as a vocal critic of the US president’s decision to pull out of the 2015 climate pact, saying it was “disappointed” with the withdrawal and stressing that corporations could not go it alone when it came to tackling climate change. Continue reading...

Planning application for 5,000 houses in Kent is withdrawn following a long campaign but wildlife site remains at risk from future developmentsOne of the best sites in England for endangered nightingales will not be covered in 5,000 new houses after a long campaign by environmental charities.The planning application to build on the former Ministry of Defence site of Lodge Hill, Kent, has been withdrawn ahead of a public inquiry into the controversial development. Continue reading...

New studies reveal that tiny plastic fibres are everywhere, not just in our oceans but on land too. Now we urgently need to find out how they enter our food, air and tap water and what the effects are on all of usSometimes a single revelation opens our eyes to a whole new view of the world. The contamination of tap water around the world with microplastics, exposed on Wednesday in the Guardian, unmasks Earth as a planet pervasively polluted with plastic.What that means for the seven billion people who live on it, no one yet knows. All the experts can agree on is that, given the warning signs being given by life in the oceans, the need to find out is urgent. Continue reading...

A strong-beaked bird named after Barack Obama, a fire-tailed titi monkey and a new pink river dolphin are among species recorded by the Living Amazon Initiative of the WWF Network Continue reading...

Government must incentivise households to make energy saving improvements to improve air quality and warm homesMore efficient use of energy in the UK would save as much power as could be generated by six new nuclear reactors and shave £7.5bn from energy costs, experts have calculated.But to achieve such savings would require substantial changes to government policy because there are few incentives for households to carry out the necessary measures, such as insulation, which can take 20 years to pay for themselves via bill savings. Continue reading...

Scientists have tracked the ruddy shelduck to 6,800 metres, making it the first duck known to fly at extreme high altitudesA high-flying species of duck reaches altitudes of up to 6,800 metres (22,000ft) to cross the Himalayas, research from a British university has revealed.Scientists from the University of Exeter used satellite tracking to find out how ruddy shelducks – which are a similar size to mallards – find their way through the mountain range. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Tests show billions of people globally are drinking water contaminated by plastic particles, with 83% of samples found to be polluted

We need our mob working arm-in-arm with non-Indigenous people across the Northern Territory to stand up against fracking. It’s not safe, not trusted and not wantedThere has been a lot of talk from both the Northern Territory and federal governments recently about the rivers of royalties, jobs and other benefits they claim will come from opening up the Territory to vast new shale fracking gas fields.This has seen 83% of the Territory’s landmass swallowed by shale gas exploration applications and permits from 2011 to the current day, under both Labor and Country Liberal governments. Continue reading...

State will also introduce new container refund scheme with most drinks containers attracting 10-cent refundSingle-use plastic bags will be banned in Queensland from July next year after the state parliament passed new legislation on Tuesday night.The state will also have a new container refund scheme, with most beverage containers to attract a 10-cent refund to stop them ending up in waterways and the sea. Continue reading...

Science agency stands in contrast to Australia’s biggest polluter, AGL, which parted ways with MCA over climate changeThe Australian government’s science agency, the CSIRO, has paid tens of thousands of dollars to peak mining lobby group the Minerals Council of Australia, which fights against government action on climate change.The CSIRO has been listed as an “associate member” of the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) since at least 2004 and new documents obtained by the Australian Institute, under freedom of information laws, show that in 2017 the “annual subscription” for membership was just under $10,000. Continue reading...

Prymnesium parvum has wreaked calamitous damage on angling spots in Norfolk, making it an economic and environmental threatMany effects of global warming appear gradually but can cause sudden and devastating changes. A rise in sea levels is one; it makes estuaries and lagoons slightly more saline, which in the case of the Norfolk Broads, suddenly threatened a big attraction, angling.This is because tiny “golden” algae called Prymnesium parvum, which thrive in slightly saline or mineral rich water, can turn toxic, suffocating the fish by destroying their gills. Continue reading...

Add to the top council tax bands to boost effective use of our housing stock, writes David RenshawYour letter writers on the housing shortage (5 September) neglect a key point – under-occupation of the existing stock. I sympathise with the nimbys’ desire to keep the green belt from urban sprawl, but this can only be done if they are prepared to occupy less space when occasion demands (ie in later life). Only a reset of the council tax bands, punitively progressive at the top end to discourage oligarchs and investment buyers, will have the desired effect, along with stronger compulsory purchase order powers for councils.