As the capital’s annual cycling marathon enters its fifth year, it is smaller and safer but still predominantly maleThis year’s RideLondon was the fifth time the event that now bills itself as the world’s biggest weekend of cycling has taken place.And as has become a tradition, here are my first thoughts – typed in the press centre, still in my bike gear – about the 100-mile event. As ever, feel free to disagree/add your own observations below. Continue reading...

Turnbull says he will seek agreement of all Murray-Darling states for independent review into compliance with the basin planThe Turnbull government has announced an independent basin-wide review into compliance with the Murray-Darling basin plan, with a report to be produced by December.

Britain has joined France and India in trying to ban the sale of diesel and petrol cars, but some say Australia’s size makes the transition too difficultIt is only a matter of time until every Australian car is all-electric. But while other countries are speeding up the transition, with plans to ban petrol cars within a couple of decades, Australia is stuck debating even modest cuts to vehicle emissions, let alone policies to encourage zero-emissions cars.But as the UK, France, India and other countries move quickly towards getting all-petrol cars off the roads, could Australia’s fleet be caught up in the winds of change? Continue reading...

Details of this year’s Observer Ethical Awards categories

The ethical experts judging your nominations

Ethical living columnist and awards founder Lucy Siegle on the 11th Observer Ethical AwardsIn the 10 years since An Inconvenient Truth, the Observer Ethical Awards have highlighted that change is not only desirable but possible too. Now in our 11th year, we want you to help unearth the new crop of talent working to make a better world.Activists like to say that the real job is to prepare the world for huge change, but we’re celebrating some of the positive shifts: away from a fossil fuel economy to one powered by renewables; away from irresponsible design, like single-use plastics, to products that stand the test of time. Continue reading...

With mining of cobalt and other elements politically and ethically charged, the hunt for alternatives is onBritain last week joined France in pledging to ban sales of petrol and diesel cars by 2040 in an attempt to cut toxic vehicle emissions. The move to battery-powered vehicles has been a long time coming. Environmental campaigners claim that charging cars and vans from the grid, like a laptop, is sure to be cleaner than petrol or diesel power. The government agrees and says it will invest more than £800m in driverless and clean technology, and a further £246m in battery technology research.BMW plans to build a fully electric version of the Mini at Cowley in Oxford from 2019. Volvo announced earlier this month that from the same year, all its new models will have an electric motor. Continue reading...

Oxford economist Dieter Helm said that the agriculture industry enjoys benefits ‘nobody else in the economy gets’Tax breaks for farmers have caused a “subsidy addiction” and are used to avoid inheritance tax, a government adviser has claimed.Economist Dieter Helm, chair of the Natural Capital Committee, which advises the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), called for a review of the current taxation rules for farmers and said the agricultural sector received a disproportionate level of government support.

Windermere, Lake District There’s a bullfinch aboard the steamer, and intriguing creatures in the waterThe moment my hands catch the bird so I can free it from the ship’s capacious saloon, I become dizzy. As the Windermere steamer Swan reverses out from the pier at Bowness and manoeuvres around it feels to me as though it’s the lake dotted with sailing craft and leafy islands that is pirouetting, not the boat itself.The moment passes. My diminutive charge’s heart pumps in sync with the beat of the engines reverberating below decks. The steamer heads down England’s longest lake towards Lakeside near its southern end. Continue reading...

The hawk, which is usually prey for eagles, is in excellent health after being taken in, and now ‘thinks he’s a bald eagle’, according to one expertBiologists and bird watchers in Canada are closely monitoring a young red-tailed hawk that has – against all odds – been adopted into a nest full of bald eagles and is seemingly thriving after taking on eagle-like behaviour.The chick was first seen in the nest in British Columbia in early June, said biologists – possibly after one of the bald eagles raided a hawk’s nest to provide food for their young. Continue reading...

European Union’s top court orders an immediate halt to large-scale logging in the Unesco-listed ancient forestThe European Union’s top court has ordered Poland to immediately halt large-scale logging in an ancient protected forest, one of many cases that has pitted the nationalist, eurosceptic government in Warsaw against the bloc.The EU’s executive commission earlier this year sued Poland at the European court of justice (ECJ) over logging in the Białowieża forest, a Unesco World Heritage site. Continue reading...

A £26m refit of a power station beside Smithfield market has made E.ON’s Citigen the largest urban combined heat and power plant in the UKThe beautiful, listed facades of the Port of London Authority and the Central Cold Store, which once held animal carcasses from Smithfield market opposite, stand as a reminder of London’s industrial and commercial past.But behind these brick walls in the heart of London is a hidden power station that could resolve how the UK heats, cools and powers business of the future. Continue reading...

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...

A swimming jaguar, a new species of frog, and a racoon are among this week’s pick of images from the natural world Continue reading...

They are one of the harshest environments on the planet and also one of the most important in terms of carbon storage. New research hopes to reveal the role these threatened bogs could play in the climate change storyRandy Kolka hands me a fist-sized clump of brownish-black material pulled up by an auger from a bog. It’s the color and texture of moist chocolate cake. When I look closely I can see filaments of plant material. This hunk of peat, pulled from two meters (7ft) below the surface, is about 8,000 years old. I’m holding plants that lived and died before the Egyptians constructed the pyramids and before humans invented the wheel. In my hand is history. And carbon gold. Continue reading...

Army and police investigate unexplained incident in which scientists tasked with fighting deforestation and illegal mining in the Amazon diedInvestigation is underway into an unexplained plane crash in the Amazon that left four dead, including members of Brazil’s special environmental protection forces.

A summit in Bali last week sought new strategies to help small scale fishers access global markets in an effort to alleviate poverty and improve sustainability

Smaller farms may be squeezed out if farmers switch to vast, intensive facilities due to the pressures the industry faces from leaving the EU, say farmers and campaignersLeaving the EU is likely to lead to an increase in the number of megafarms dominating the British countryside, campaigners and farmers agree, with far-reaching effects for farms, consumers and those who live in the countryside.

US president’s resort wants to build second 18-hole links in Aberdeenshire but critics say it breaches sewage and pollution rulesThe Trump Organization faces a long battle with Scotland’s environment agencies after they objected to its plans to build a new golf course on the coast of Aberdeenshire.The agencies have told Donald Trump’s company its plans for a second 18-hole course at his Trump International Golf Links Scotland resort north of Aberdeen breach strict rules on sewage pollution, environmental protection and conserving groundwater. Continue reading...

Spin-off foundation aims to create an Eden on every continent except Antartica – and one at an M5 service stationOther Edens, inspired by the set of giant greenhouses on a derelict clay pit that have become the most successful tourist attraction in Cornwall, could soon sprout up in an English motorway service station, a Tasmanian warehouse, a Chinese docklands and among the giant sequoia trees of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the US.“We’re not in the business of building theme parks, we’re in the business of building hope, inspiration and leadership,” said Sir Tim Smit, co-founder of the original Eden Project, launching Eden Project International, which aims to recreate not just the tourist bonanza but its environment consciousness-raising mission around the globe. Continue reading...

Chair of its board, mining magnate Brian Flannery, says it ‘regrets’ use of logo in ads pushing for approval of controversial Acland mine expansionA major Queensland hospital has abandoned its role in a campaign endorsing a new coal project that a court recommended for state government refusal after the proponent possibly breached air pollution limits.The Mater hospital on Friday confirmed it had pulled its logo from an advertising campaign that called for government approval of New Hope’s controversial mine expansion at Acland. Continue reading...

Couples splash out an average of £3,245 on food but end up throwing about £500-worth away Continue reading...

Paying people not to cut down trees works, evidence shows – so can we really afford not to do so?For years some environmentalists and economists have argued that you could pay people to keep their forests standing, maintaining carbon sources and habitat for threatened species. Yet, the idea – known as payments for ecosystem services or PES – has faced critics, who argued it wouldn’t live up to the hype. A new study in Science this week may make them think twice.“We needed better evidence about how well this approach worked in order to know if we should be scaling it up or rethinking it,” said Seema Jayachandran, lead author and development economist with Northwestern University. Continue reading...

Northamptonshire Canute’s queen would have known these fish but not the now local mink – or the roses that are taking over Denmark’s dunesThe broad river Nene is ponded by a substantial weir to the south-east of Northampton. The deep water is still, clear and, at present, sunlit. The northern side of the river supports extensive patches of lily pads; they blast out green as the sun sparks and flashes between them.The open water to the south side is occupied by great herds of bream – big fish with pointed fins, vertically flattened bodies and jutting scaled heads. Continue reading...

Squid and anchovies are moving into warming waters in large numbers, a report finds, with the long-lost bluefin tuna also returningSquid and anchovies, more commonly eaten by Britons holidaying abroad, are being drawn into UK waters in large numbers by climate change, according to major new report that suggests the nation’s long-lost bluefin tuna is also returning.However, global warming is harming sea birds, such as puffins, fulmars, terns and razorbills, as the fish they rely on are driven north or deeper as waters warm. The analysis of the impact of climate on the UK’s seas, which draws on the work of 400 scientists, found a steady rise in water temperature. Continue reading...

Europe has seven prevailing weather regimes, a system windfarms could better exploit to even out supply and demand

Readers respond to Britain’s latest clean air plan and the ban on all new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2040So, the government is committed to banning all diesel and petrol cars by 2040 (Report, 26 July). Has it considered the wider impacts?Power stations will face huge peak-time demand when drivers charge vehicles overnight. Can they cope? Will we face increased electricity charges? Continue reading...

Cuadrilla faces action for breaching planning permission after delivery to site near BlackpoolA company preparing to be the first to start large-scale UK fracking has breached its planning permission by delivering a drilling rig overnight, prompting the local authority to warn it is considering action against it.Cuadrilla said that around 30 trucks had made deliveries to its Preston New Road site near Blackpool at 4.45am on Thursday. It has permission to frack at the site later this year. Continue reading...

Modern trophy hunters can shoot animals via the internet – but they argue that it is all conservation. The killing of Xanda – Cecil the Lion’s son – has sparked debate about what hunting really meansThey’re known as canned hunts; captive mammal hunting ranches in the US which offer the chance to shoot a zebra or antelope or even a lion for several thousand dollars. The animals are fenced in and often unafraid of humans so the kills are easy, to the extent that some venues even provide the option of shooting them via the internet, with the use of a camera and a gun on a mount.It’s estimated that there are more than 1,000 of them - completely legal. But many US hunters consider them a betrayal of every belief they hold dear. “I don’t consider that hunting,” said John Rogalo, a New Jersey hunter who has been stalking bears, deer and turkeys for nearly 50 years. “It’s a weird culture that has developed in this country in the past few years. I joke that you may as well ask the farmer if you could shoot his black Angus because at least you’d get more meat for it.” Continue reading...

Met Office figures for 2016 also show long-term decrease in amount of frost, while last winter was the second wettest on record across the countryThe winter of 2016 was the warmest for England and Wales in records that stretch back to 1910, the Met Office’s annual State of the UK Climate report revealed on Thursday.The average temperature from December 2015 to February 2016 was more than 2C above the long-term average across the southern half of the UK. The report also found that, over the last decade, the number of air frosts has dropped by 7% and the number of ground frosts by 9%, compared with the average between 1981-2010. Continue reading...

Kevin Trenberth - recent award winner - is one of the world’s foremost climate scientists

Creeks found to be contaminated by decades-long use of poisonous firefighting foam, studies showSeafood in two creeks near Darwin airport is contaminated with toxic firefighting chemicals at levels similar to the notorious Williamtown red zone, research has found.The Northern Territory government on Thursday released the results of two contamination studies at Rapid and Ludmilla creeks. Continue reading...

Court rules in favour of Indigenous owners, who have long questioned whether mining giant provided enough to fully rehabilitate the lead and zinc mineA Northern Territory court has ruled the amount of money mining giant Glencore gave to the state government as a security bond for its McArthur River mine must be revealed, after a lengthy court battle brought by traditional owners.The NT civil administrations tribunal has ruled in favour of Borroloola resident Jacky Green, who had long questioned whether Glencore had provided enough to fully rehabilitate the controversial lead and zinc mine. Continue reading...

A pilot scheme in the Netherlands is sifting sewage for cellulose, which it says can be recycled into valuable products

Here’s how to prepare for the 100-mile cycling event ...Shortly before 6am on Sunday, the first of about 25,000 intrepid cyclists will set off from the Olympic Park in east London on a 100-mile trip through the capital and into the hills of Surrey, finishing on the Mall.It is the fifth year of an event which has so far lived up to its billing of a London marathon for two wheels, part of a wider and much-enjoyed weekend of cycling activities in the capital, which has now spawned similar events elsewhere in Britain. Continue reading...

The route, which will span 2,000km from Cairns to Coolangatta and west to Toowoomba, within six months will offer drivers 18 free recharging stationsQueensland will have a 2,000km network of electric vehicle charging stations that make up one of the world’s longest electric vehicle highways within six months.The state government announced on Thursday it would build an 18-station network stretching along Queensland’s east coast from Cairns to Coolangatta and west to Toowoomba. Continue reading...

Joyce’s comments at odds with press conference on Wednesday when he likened water thieves to cattle and sheep thievesBarnaby Joyce has told a pub in a Victorian irrigation district that the Four Corners program which raised allegations of water theft was about taking more water from irrigators and shutting down towns.The deputy prime minister, agriculture and water minister told a gathering at a Hotel Australia in Shepparton that he had given water back to agriculture through the Murray Darling Basin plan so the “greenies were not running the show”.

Fears of widespread famine as people in extremist-controlled areas are threatened with death if they contact aid agenciesIslamist militants in Somalia have imposed a ban on humanitarian assistance in areas they control, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to choose between death from starvation and disease or brutal punishment.

For 10 years, Nasa has been flying over the ice caps to chart their retreat. This data is an invaluable record of climate change. But does anyone care? By Avi SteinbergFrom the window of a Nasa aircraft flying over the Arctic, looking down on the ice sheet that covers most of Greenland, it’s easy to see why it is so hard to describe climate change. The scale of polar ice, so dramatic and so clear from a plane flying at 450 metres (1,500ft) – high enough to appreciate the scope of the ice and low enough to sense its mass – is nearly impossible to fathom when you aren’t sitting at that particular vantage point.But it’s different when you are there, cruising over the ice for hours, with Nasa’s monitors all over the cabin streaming data output, documenting in real time – dramatising, in a sense – the depth of the ice beneath. You get it, because you can see it all there in front of you, in three dimensions. Continue reading...

Sandy, Bedfordshire The Airlander 10 is a 92-metre hybrid airship-plane, full of helium and personalityHalf an hour after appearing high over our washing line a giant followed us down to the pub. The church bells next door rang eight, the air was mosquito-still and then an all-consuming bass rumble filled the sky.A puffed up grey cloud three times the length of a blue whale came overhead. People sitting at the neighbouring table glanced up, then went back to their drinks. Continue reading...

Power network raises questions about how UK will meet demand when all new cars and vans sold are electricNational Grid has welcomed the plan to make electric or zero-emission cars and vans account for all new sales from 2040, but said the government and industry now faced big decisions on how the extra power was provided and demand for it was managed.The grid recently warned that, by 2030, electric cars could require 3.5-8GW of additional capacity, on top of the current peak demand of 60GW. Continue reading...

With the UK planning to ban petrol and diesel cars and vans in 2040 we asked you what it’s like to drive the vehicle of the future

If the UK government is serious about cutting noxious emissions, it needs to step on it. We should not have to wait 23 years to breathe easyOnly 20 years ago, it would have sounded like the stuff of fantasy: a clean, green image of the 21st century, with Britons gliding along in electrified, no doubt self-driving, cars. Even now, the pledge to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2040 has a bold, vaguely futuristic ring to it. That is its political genius. In fact, it reflects the current trajectory of the motor industry – while masterfully distracting us from the government’s persistent failure in the rest of its plan to address the health crisis that must be tackled now: the air pollution that chokes our cities.The announcement may help to concentrate the minds of policymakers, consumers and car manufacturers on the need to press ahead with the switch and the huge changes that will be required. (Installing ranks of charging points is the least of it; how will Britain supply them all with power?) But the government has already said that 2050 emissions targets will require “almost all new cars and vans sold to be near-zero emission at the tailpipe by 2040”. Norway is to ban the sale of all fossil-fuel-dependent cars by 2025. Momentum in electric purchases is building rapidly, thanks to falling costs, longer battery ranges and more charging points, even if the total number of sales remains relatively low; at present just 1 in 700 of the cars on Britain’s roads are pure electric. Volvo has said it will make only hybrid or fully electric cars from 2019. If anything, the need is for governments to offer short-term incentives so more people start choosing electric or hybrid vehicles now. Twenty-three years is too long to wait. Continue reading...

Second-biggest biosecurity operation in nation’s history sees $411m committed to eradicating invasive species that threatens agriculture, wildlife, tourism and outdoor lifestyleThey are one of the world’s worst invasive species, and now, more than two decades after they are believed to have arrived in Australia, the country is launching the second-biggest biosecurity operation in its history to eradicate red imported fire ants.State, territory and federal agricultural ministers met in Melbourne on Wednesday and agreed to spend $411.4m over the next 10 years, endorsing a biosecurity operation second only in size and ambition to the country’s successful eradication of bovine tuberculosis, which started in the 1970 and took nearly three decades. Continue reading...

From how to charge them to whether they are really better for the environmentThe first generation of electric-car buyers have been people with homes where it is easy to plug one in. “The vast majority of Nissan Leaf customers are [families with] 2.4 children, mums and dads, with off-street parking,” said Gareth Dunsmore of Nissan Europe. “Tomorrow that won’t be the case.” Continue reading...

Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders calls for more customer incentives to buy electric and criticises outright banBritain’s car industry has warned that the government’s proposed ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2040 risks damaging the industry and stalling sales of new cars.Mike Hawes, chief of executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders trade body, said that carmakers were working with ministers on the switch to electric cars but called for the government to use carrots rather than sticks. Continue reading...

A ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040 is a great vision for the future but does nothing to address a public health emergency happening right nowWhat a beautiful smokescreen. A UK ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040 conjures up the clean, green vision of an all-electric future and is absolutely the right thing to tackle climate change – emissions from transport are high and not falling.But for the public health emergency of today, with most urban areas already having suffered illegal levels of air pollution for years, it does nothing at all. Continue reading...

Travellers are left to buy expensive and wasteful plastic bottles of water after passing through security, says consumer website MoneySavingExpert.com