NFF submission to Finkel review joins AGL, Energy Australia and Business Council in supporting mechanism such as emissions intensity schemeThe National Farmers’ Federation has called for a market-based mechanism to secure clean and affordable energy, such as an emissions intensity scheme, joining a long list of organisations urging an end to Australia’s policy impasse.In a submission to the Finkel review, the NFF calls for the government to reconsider its opposition to an EIS and institute a market-based mechanism by 2020 because it would be the cheapest path to low-emissions power generation. Continue reading...
Exclusive: State of the Environment report says heritage and economic activity are being affected and the disadvantaged will be worst hitJosh Frydenberg: bright spots, but much more to doAn independent review of the state of Australia’s environment has found the impacts of climate change are increasing and some of the changes could be irreversible.The latest State of the Environment report, a scientific snapshot across nine areas released by the federal government every five years, says climate change is altering the structure and function of natural ecosystems in Australia, and is affecting heritage, economic activity and human wellbeing. Continue reading...
Please don’t give people an excuse for not making every effort to change behaviours that contribute to air pollution (Omega-3 supplements could guard against air pollution, 4 March). Millions of car drivers can cut air pollution right now by reducing their car use. Driving a car is antisocial in the extreme: it negatively impacts on thousands of lives and there are few places (if any) to escape the toxic waste that car drivers (their cars couldn’t do it without them) spew out from the moment they turn the key in the ignition to the moment they turn it off. One of the most troubling aspects of the human intellect is our ability to rationalise and reason away the most irrational and unreasonable and destructive behaviours. Car drivers are brilliant at it.
British high commissioner to Kenya speaks out following death of Tristan Voorspuy, whose ranch was invaded by herdersBritain has urged Kenya to restore law and order in the north of the country after a British rancher was shot dead there.Nic Hailey, Britain’s high commissioner to Kenya, was speaking after the killing of Tristan Voorspuy, whose lodges had been burned by attackers. His body was found on Sunday at his ranch 118 miles (190km) north of Nairobi. Continue reading...
IEA says hundreds of billions of dollars must go into new fields to meet demand from markets such as India and ChinaThe world will be hit by sharp increase in oil prices in the next decade without a major investment in new fields, one of the world’s leading energy authorities has warned.The International Energy Agency said after a two year-slump the industry was making a weak recovery, which would coincide with India and China continuing to drive up oil demand. The result would be a tight market and surge in oil prices towards 2022 without further action, the IEA concluded in a report. Continue reading...
Satao II, about 50 years old, is believed to have been shot with a poisoned arrow in Tsavo national park, KenyaOne of Africa’s oldest and largest elephants has been killed by poachers in Kenya, according to a conservation group that protects a dwindling group of “big tuskers†estimated to be as few as 25.
Twenty-five-year-old green sea turtle nicknamed Bank swallowed money thrown into her pool by tourists seeking good luckTossing coins into a fountain to bring good luck is a popular superstition, but the practice brought misery to a sea turtle in Thailand from which vets have removed 915 coins.Vets in Bangkok operated on Monday on the 25-year-old female green sea turtle nicknamed Bank, whose indigestible diet was the result of tourists seeking good fortune by tossing coins into her pool over many years in the eastern town of Sri Racha. Continue reading...
Farmers like fixing their own equipment, but rules imposed by big corporations are making it impossible. Now this small showdown could have a big impactThere are corn and soy fields as far as the eye can see around Kyle Schwarting’s home in Ceresco, Nebraska. The 36-year-old farmer lives on a small plot of land peppered with large agricultural machines including tractors, planters and a combine harvester.Parked up in front of his house is a bright red 27-ton Case tractor which has tracks instead of wheels. It’s worth about $250,000, and there’s a problem with it: an in-cab alarm sounds at ten-minute intervals to alert him to a faulty hydraulic connector he never needs to use. Continue reading...
Resources minister uses a steak analogy to argue against domestic gas reservation policy, saying rationing doesn’t work in other marketsThe resources minister, Matt Canavan, says adopting a national policy where a proportion of natural gas would be reserved for domestic use would not deliver “a very good outcome†because rationing doesn’t work in other markets.
Berserk beasts, trashed crops, vengeful villagers: tales of ‘conflict’ come thick and fast as humans and elephants are forced into closer contact. But does it have to be war? Across Asia and Africa, there are hints of how we might live in peaceWhile I was working on this article, two people were killed by wild elephants near my home in south India. Mary Leena, a middle-aged woman, was rushing to church for an early morning service. At an intersection, she came face to face with a huge male elephant as it turned the corner. Both panicked; the elephant swung his trunk out, and she was thrown into a wall. She was rushed to the hospital, but died on the way.
Haverah Park, North Yorkshire It is an unglamorous fringeland of rush pasture and white moor, yet nature finds a use for itNeglect has left the wooden barrack-like building looking gaunt and frankly sinister. A sky of torn clouds, a sea of rough, rust-coloured pasture, a few knotty hawthorns and some lonely telegraph poles complete the Yorkshire Gothic ambience; it could be a backdrop to a horror film.
Originally published in the Manchester Guardian on 6 March 1917How the earwigs, beetle larvæ, and earthworms must hate the Food Controller! When, quite in the fashion, I was breaking up some fresh ground in my small garden, I caused great annoyance and considerable injury to numerous worms and insects which no doubt thought that they were in safe winter quarters. It was the earwigs that I specially noticed, and I was almost sorry for them, for, like birds, they were sitting on their eggs. I had to stop occasionally to watch a half-awake mother earwig, if I did not happen to have damaged her with my spade. She turned up an expostulating and threatening tail, metaphorically rubbed her eyes, dazzled by the unexpected light, and then began to fuss round, striving to gather together those precious eggs. She is a model mother amongst insects, and when the tiny larva – very like her in general appearance – are hatched she looks after them in quite a correct manner, while the babes seem to recognise their nurse and crowd round her like much more highly developed animals, even crawling upon her back for a ride. The earwig is not generally popular, but she has some excellent points, and the really neat arrangement of her beautiful wings, folding like a fan from the centre of their forward edge so that they will tuck safely inside her short elytra, is most wonderful. Continue reading...
ANZ, NAB, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac provided three times more for non-renewable than clean energy projects in 2016, says Market ForcesAustralia’s big four banks invested three times as much in global fossil fuels as they did in clean energy in 2016, despite pledging to help Australia transition to a low carbon economy.The banks provided a combined $10bn to projects around the world that expanded non-renewable energy, according to finance group Market Forces.
US president’s Scotland development is under fire as it seeks to expand its boutique hotel and ditch its ecological monitoring groupThe Trump Organization is facing a new battle with Scottish planners and conservationists over the protection of rare dunes and wildlife at its Aberdeenshire golf resort.Trump International Golf Course Scotland has challenged a key part of the planning permission it won for the resort in 2008 as it pushes ahead with plans for a second 18-hole golf course and an extension to its boutique hotel. Continue reading...
Li Keqiang promises to intensify battle against air pollution as he unveils series of measures at annual people’s congressThe Chinese premier, Li Keqiang, has promised to step up his country’s battle against deadly smog, telling an annual political congress: “We will make our skies blue again.â€
Energy supplier apologises and launches inquiry into errant devices after customers tweet company about soaring billsShocked customers of a major energy company have received an apology after malfunctioning smart meters said they would be charged up to £33,000 for one day’s power.SSE, one of the “big sixâ€, said it had launched an urgent investigation into the errant devices, one of which told a customer they had exceeded their daily budget by nearly 3m%. Continue reading...
Choose the right brands if you want to promote women’s rightsEthical shoppers like me want to think that they always have the sisterhood top of their list when they shop. But in practice I find most can rattle off the five freedoms of animal welfare, but are pretty hazy on enshrined women’s rights, like the right to hold elected and appointed government positions.Even ethical shoppers are often pretty hazy on women's rights Continue reading...
Peers, academics and architects urge unified approach to planning to improve quality of lifeRural campaigners and green activists have called for a new “department of land use†to prevent “piecemeal erosion of the countryside†caused by a lack of joined-up thinking in government.A group of former ministers, academics, architects and engineers assembled by the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) has called for a unified approach to dealing with issues such as Heathrow, the housing crisis, farming, high-speed rail links, power stations and flooding. Continue reading...
Painscastle, Powys Over the past few years, to my delight, a pair of swans had made this sky-reflecting pool their homeWe all have our touchstone places. One of mine is the Monk’s Pond on the Begwns – a little group of bracken hills north of the river Wye as it heads eastwards out of Wales. For more than half a century I’ve made regular pilgrimages to this pool, the southern Welsh uplands wrapped round it like a protective barrier. The view takes in the Black Mountains to the south, the Brecon Beacons in the west, and those smooth, heathery highlands of Radnorshire to the north.
Scientists find that commercial hunting caused “basin-wide collapse†among aquatic speciesScientists have conducted what they call the first systematic, historical account of the impacts on wildlife in the Amazon basin of the 20th century international trade in furs and skins. The conclusion: “basin-wide population collapse†for aquatic species, but much greater resilience shown by terrestrial species.
Proposal would remove environmental justice office, tasked with bridging gap in pollution in black, Hispanic and low-income areas and wealthier white onesPlanned cuts at the Environmental Protection Agency are set to fall heaviest upon communities of color across the US that already suffer disproportionately from toxic pollution, green groups have warned.
The week’s top environment news stories and green events. If you are not already receiving this roundup, sign up here to get the briefing delivered to your inbox Continue reading...
The new government plans to relocate residents to larger atolls – leaving small islands ripe for development. It says these super resorts, not solar power, will create the money needed to adapt to climate changeWhen Mohamed Nasheed, the young, first democratically elected president of the Maldives, said in 2008 that he was seeking to buy a new homeland to save his people from being inundated by rising sea levels, it made the country of 1,200 coral islands the moral leader in the UN climate talks and helped persuade rich countries to act.
No power loss after blaze cuts three units from network but planned maintenance work may cause blackouts on weekendA fire at a power station in Adelaide knocked out part of South Australia’s electricity generation capacity on Friday as the state faced the prospect of weekend blackouts because of planned maintenance work.Three units at the Torrens Island power station were cut from the network at 3.35pm on Friday because of the blaze. The nearby Pelican Point power station also tripped at the same time but the incident did not result in blackouts. Continue reading...
Laxton, Northamptonshire The red kite thrives, and surely there’s no other prodigal English species that brings such pleasureKites soar and circle above the small limestone village mentioned in the Domesday book but rebuilt a little over 200 years ago to a design by Humphry Repton. There is a substantial red kite roost near the village, and 40 of them bring the sky to life with their twists and turns, tails contorting and long wings clawing the air.Related: Red kites exported after success of reintroduction programme in Britain Continue reading...
A decision the government had months to prepare for wrong-foots Malcolm Turnbull as he was finally lifting his party’s post-election gloomMalcolm Turnbull lost more than his voice this week, he washed up on the losing side of a critical political battle.
As the Finkel review submission deadline arrives it’s time to accept the inevitable and fix the shambles that is our energy policyEvery few years the fossil fuel industry pressures politicians to force “clean coalâ€, carbon capture and storage (CCS) and more recently coal seam gas (CSG) on an increasingly sceptical community to justify its continued expansion.
Economist says national electricity market has been crippled by design flaws and a failure to take climate change into accountAustralia’s electricity woes could be solved through a unified and publicly owned national power grid, a discussion paper has said.
Ten finalists capture the theme of ‘through young eyes’ in this young photographers’ competition that aims to engage youth around the world in wildlife conservation. The winner will be announced at noon EST in New York Continue reading...
Research shows how black carbon affects bacteria in humans’ nose, throat and lungs, possibly affecting their ability to beat the immune systemBlack carbon found in air pollution can increase the resistance of bacteria that cause respiratory disease, research has found.
by Katharine Murphy, Gabrielle Chan and Miles Martign on (#2EHBT)
Katharine Murphy and Gabrielle Chan look at the week in politics and how Labour has dominated the conversation about penalty rates. They are joined by Labor’s Pat Conroy and the Nationals’ Andrew Broad, both members of a new inquiry into modernising Australia’s power grid. We take a close look at energy policy and how members of opposing parties can find common ground in one of the most bitterly partisan of all areas of political debate• Nationals MP calls for ‘real discussion’ on reserving gas for Australian use Continue reading...
Andrew Broad tells Guardian Australia podcast federal politicians should consider keeping back 15% for manufacturing• Can we have a bipartisan energy policy? – Australian politics live podcastThe chairman of federal parliament’s environment and energy committee has called for a serious discussion about whether a proportion of natural gas supply in Australia needs to be reserved for domestic use rather than sold overseas.The Nationals MP Andrew Broad told Guardian Australia’s Politics Live podcast there needed to be consideration about whether 15% of gas supply should be reserved for Australian manufacturing rather than exported. Continue reading...
by Frances Perraudin North of England reporter on (#2EH1H)
Green party councillor was among those arrested during bitter dispute over city council’s plans to remove roadside treesCharges have been dropped against a Green party councillor and eight others who were arrested during protests against tree-felling in Sheffield.
CEO Francis Egan complains about protesters ‘harassing’ contractors supplying Preston New Road site in LancashireThe chief executive of Cuadrilla, a leading fracking company, has complained at what he calls intimidation and harassment by “irresponsible†activists protesting at a shale gas site the firm is constructing in Lancashire.Related: Cuadrilla starts work on Lancashire fracking site Continue reading...
Impossible Foods is on the cusp of big things. But as the company lines up its first burger chain, it still needs to show it can convert the meat-loving massesI sat down to have my first Impossible Burger, the plant-based meat substitute that has received a lot of press and nice reviews from high profile chefs and their customers. My burger, topped with caramelized onion, dill pickles, lettuce and a special sauce, was cooked medium rare. It looked like a conventional burger, complete with the pinkish ‘meat’ in the middle. It was hard to tell the difference when I bit into the burger and washed it down with a milkshake.I was at Bareburger near New York University yesterday to hear executives from Impossible Foods announcing their first restaurant chain. It’s a big deal for the Silicon Valley company, which only launched its first product, the Impossible Burger, last year and focused its initial publicity blitz around teaming up with trendy restaurants in New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Continue reading...
Global governance expert decries ‘snub’ of Patricia Espinosa as Trump administration considers whether to pull out of Paris climate dealThe UN’s climate chief has been unable to secure a meeting with the US state department as Donald Trump’s administration mulls whether to withdraw the US from the international climate effort.
Experts are puzzled how the shark, normally found near equator, could have reached UKA crocodile shark, a marine creature normally found in deep tropical waters, has been discovered washed up on a beach in Devon.A family found the shark at Hope Cove beach on the south coast and, thinking it was still alive, braved its sharp teeth to try to return it to the water before realising it was dead. Continue reading...
Activist points to ‘hypocrisy’ in BNP Paribas’s involvement in south Texas export terminal, given bank’s claimed commitment to the environmentEnvironmental groups have called on a French bank not to help finance a fracked-gas export terminal planned for south Texas. Continue reading...
Endangered pygmy elephants and orangutans threatened by scheme for Kinabatangan Wildlife SanctuaryDavid Attenborough and Steve Backshall have joined conservationists and charities asking officials in Borneo to reconsider a bridge that threatens one of the last sanctuaries of the rare pygmy elephant.There are now just 1,500 of the world’s smallest pachyderm, according to WWF, and about 300 of them make their home in the 26,000-hectare Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, in the state of Sabah in Malaysian Borneo. But construction teams have begun preparatory work for a bridge that will cross the Kinabatangan river which weaves through the region. The area is also home to critically endangered orangutans, proboscis monkeys, clouded leopards, gibbons, sun bears, pangolins and thousands of other jungle species, and hosts a thriving eco-tourism industry where travellers can view wildlife from boats on the river or while hiking into the forests. Continue reading...
Campaigners say cuts to waste collection services have increased the problem of illegal dumpingFly-tipping is on the rise again, with the number of incidents up for the third year in a row, official figures show.Councils across England reported 936,090 cases of fly-tipping in 2015/2016, up 4% on the previous year, the data from the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) reveals. Continue reading...
Report’s authors say Sydney unprepared for knock-on effects of a significant increase in average summer temperaturesNew South Wales, which has just experienced its hottest summer on record, is 50 times more likely to experience another similarly hot summer and 10 times more likely to experience extremely hot days under climate change, according to a group of Australian climate scientists.The mean temperature in Sydney was 2.8C above average in December, January, and February, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, and the three-day heatwave from 9 February to 11 was the hottest on record from Sydney to Brisbane, breaking records set in 1939. Continue reading...
Deputy prime minister says businessman has ‘enough on his plate’ without building new plant in the Galilee basinThe deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, says he’s not interested in giving the businessman and former politician Clive Palmer government assistance to build a new coal-fired power plant in the Galilee basin.
Flies, worms, slugs, woodlice, centipedes, moulds – the compost bin throbs with lifeSeveral times each week I take vegetable peelings from the kitchen to the three compost recycling bins at the bottom of the garden. Even in winter, they are hotbeds of biodiversity.Today, as I lift the lid of the newest bin, I am greeted by a blizzard of minute moth-flies (Clogmia albipunctata) that have bred in the film of water covering decaying garden weeds and autumn leaves. Continue reading...
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