In the global rush for bottled water, China leads the way. But while cities lack official recycling schemes, some residents are turning the tide of plastic waste into cash and keeping it out of landfil in the processIn the great global rush for bottled water, nowhere is thirstier than Asia. Demand is predicted to surge by more than 140% across the region this decade, to account for one-third of the global total by 2020.China leads the way. The country accounted for 28% of the global demand for polyethylene terephthalate (Pet) bottles in 2015. Consumers bought 73.8bn bottles of water in 2016, up more than five billion on the previous year. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Annual consumption of plastic bottles is set to top half a trillion by 2021, far outstripping recycling efforts and jeopardising oceans, coastlines and other environments

UK will not be bound by EU deal and opposition MPs say Tory government unlikely to have political will to develop equivalent system

‘Global covenant of mayors’ to work together on climate change whether current White House resident agrees or notMayors of more than 7,400 cities across the world have vowed that Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris accord will spur greater local efforts to combat climate change.

And in the process, illustrated the difference between skepticism and denial

Robotic submersible probes depths of up to 4,000m near Antarctic Peninsula to obtain unprecedented data on how mixing ocean waters affect climate changeA yellow submarine dubbed Boaty McBoatface has obtained “unprecedented data” from its first voyage exploring one of the deepest and coldest ocean regions on Earth, scientists have said.The robotic submersible was given the name originally chosen for a new polar research ship by irreverent contestants in a public competition. Embarrassed officials decided to ignore the popular vote and instead named the vessel the RRS Sir David Attenborough in honour of the veteran broadcaster. A storm of protest led to a compromise that allowed the name to live on. Continue reading...

The discovery of a hundred-million-year-old specimen, beautifully preserved in amber, shows how the birds of yesteryear hatched fully prepared for takeoffWe’re back with News from the World of Old Feathers, and Lida Xing and colleagues strike again. They describe a new amber specimen of a Cretaceous bird with parts of the head, feet and wings beautifully preserved. Why is this important? After all, we have seen feathers in amber before, we have seen wings of juvenile birds in amber and last year we even had a piece of an actual dinosaur in amber. Haven’t we reached peak amber? I like to think we have not*.What Xing and his team of paleontologists from China, Canada and the US describe in a new paper is a hatchling Enantiornithine bird that became trapped in sticky conifer resin about 99 million years ago, in what is now Burma. Although Enantiornithes looked superficially like modern birds – which is to say they were feathered and likely to have been good fliers – the anatomy of their shoulder girdle is different, they were toothed and the fingers in their wing had claws. The newly described specimen, nicknamed Belone, offers an unparalleled glimpse into feather development and molting in young Enantiornithes. Continue reading...

It’s time to switch from cling-wrapped plastic trays to loose, seasonal fruit and veg, and reclaim the vital relationship with what we eatWhen I arrive home from a big shop, or receive a delivery, I spend 10 minutes unwrapping packaging and putting it in the bin, renaturing my fresh fruit and vegetables before I’m able to cook them.

Wenlock Edge, Shropshire Birds verminous and ominous, persecuted and mythologised, foolproof, climateproof, futureproofTwo crows fly into a tree towards the end of a long dreamy summer’s day. They had been walking their beat on Windmill Hill, through the flowering cocksfoot, lady’s bedstraw, pyramidal orchids and whitlowgrass, hunting there as they have done every day for 15 years I know of. They now perch together as if watching the sunset, and so do I.In the same place doing the same thing, what can I know of the corvid mind? We know corvid intelligence is equal to that of primates. We know early people were intimately connected to the crow tribes and there are funerary relics from more than 5,000 years ago containing the bones of crows and ravens buried in this land. This belongs to ancient rituals that suggest a mutual trade in death; these were birds of omen long before they were thought of as vermin. Continue reading...

Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility denies freedom of information request for details of board meetings because of media attention and protestsThe federal agency considering a $900m loan to Adani has cited “substantial cyberbullying” of its directors to justify refusing a freedom of information request for basic details of its board meetings.The Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (Naif) also raised concerns about “attempts to trace board members through unofficial channels” and protests outside its Cairns office to argue the time and place of meetings should be kept secret. Continue reading...

In an excerpt from his book on Australian birdlife, Geoffrey Maslen finds there’s method in magpies’ madnessHostilities have broken out up and down the east coast of Australia. The enemy strikes from above, and always attacks from behind. Casualties have been reported and the dive bombings that began with the onset of spring have become more frequent. Zoologists have been called in to devise some means of defence but they have also suffered from the swift and silent enemy.

Environmental Protection Agency and army propose ending clean water rule to hold ‘substantive re-evaluation’ of which bodies of water should be protectedThe Environmental Protection Agency is poised to dismantle the federal clean water rule, which protects waterways that provide drinking water for about a third of the US population.The EPA, with the US army, has proposed scrapping the rule in order to conduct a “substantive re-evaluation” of which rivers, streams, wetlands and other bodies of water should be protected by the federal government. Continue reading...

Four people have been attacked in less than a week, resulting in two fatalities, in what wildlife experts are calling ‘a lightning strike’Alaska is experiencing a spate of bear attacks, with four people attacked in less than a week, resulting in two fatalities.

The restoration of the ozone hole, which blocks harmful radiation, will be delayed by decades if fast-rising emissions of dichloromethane are not curbed

Turbines for £200m Hywind project will be towed from Norway across North Sea and moored to seabed off north-east ScotlandThe world’s first floating windfarm has taken to the seas in a sign that a technology once confined to research and development drawing boards is finally ready to unlock expanses of ocean for generating renewable power.After two turbines were floated this week, five now bob gently in the deep waters of a fjord on the western coast of Norway ready to be tugged across the North Sea to their final destination off north-east Scotland. Continue reading...

A Greenpeace research expedition into plastic waste finds devastating pollution on Scottish beaches and seabird coloniesPlastic bottles and packaging are overrunning some of the UK’s most beautiful beaches and remote coastline, endangering wildlife from basking sharks to puffins.A Greenpeace research ship has spent the past two months touring the Scottish coast and islands assessing the impact of plastic waste. Continue reading...

Businesses in Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam are getting involved in efforts to collect waste bread and turn it into biogas and fertiliserOnce upon a time, you would throw your old bread to the birds. But in the Netherlands, where an excess of crumbs is feeding a growing scourge of rats, people are starting to turn to massive bread bins instead.Rather than ending up in the street or the dump, collected bread waste is taken to anaerobic digesters and turned into biogas or made into fertiliser. Continue reading...

A Greenpeace expedition around Scottish coastlines has found plastic in the feeding grounds of basking sharks, in the habitats of puffins, seals and whales, and in the nests and beaks of seabirds Continue reading...

Fourteen critical bottlenecks, from roads to ports to shipping lanes, are increasingly at risk from climate change, say analystsIncreasingly vulnerable “chokepoints” are threatening the security of the global food supply, according to a new report. It identifies 14 critical locations, including the Suez canal, Black Sea ports and Brazil’s road network, almost all of which are already hit by frequent disruptions.With climate change bringing more incidents of extreme weather, analysts at the Chatham House thinktank warn that the risk of a major disruption is growing but that little is being done to tackle the problem. Food supply interruptions in the past have caused huge spikes in prices which can spark major conflicts. Continue reading...

Former prime minister warns his successor he has no intention of fading out of public life and will continue to stand for conservative valuesTony Abbott has warned his successor he does not intend to quit public life, declaring Australia needs “strong liberal conservative voices now, more than ever”.The former prime minister used a speech to the Institute of Public Affairs on Tuesday to dust off a conservative manifesto for government he first flagged in February, telling his audience: “I will do my best to be a standard bearer for the values and the policies that have made us strong.” Continue reading...

Allendale, Northumberland Every now and then I hear the peep of what sounds like a single owlet, but I can’t be sureIt can take a while for owls to accept a nest box. My homemade wooden one was built to a chimney design from the RSPB website and set on a sycamore branch at the recommended 45-degree angle. My garden has a plentiful supply of voles, which are owls’ main prey. I have waited five years for one to move in.

Climate Institute survey points to overwhelming frustration with government’s inaction and lack of leadership on clean energyThe vast majority of Australians want to see the country dramatically increase the use of renewable energy, a new survey has found, despite attempts by the federal government to characterise renewables as unreliable and expensive.The Climate Institute’s national Climate of the Nation survey, published on Tuesday, pointed to frustration with the government’s inaction and lack of leadership on clean energy. Continue reading...

Breeder John Hume to take advantage of court ruling lift ban on domestic trade to sell horns trimmed from the 1,500 rhinos on his ranchA rhino breeder in South Africa is planning an online auction of rhino horns to capitalise on a court ruling that opened the way to domestic trade despite an international ban imposed to curb poaching.The sale of rhino horns by breeder John Hume, to be held in August, will be used to “further fund the breeding and protection of rhinos”, according to an auction website. Continue reading...

The move follows demonstrations in the city and the decision by China to ban their own tradeHong Kong has launched a landmark bill to ban its domestic ivory trade, amid accusations that authorities were lagging behind China in phasing out the market.Hong Kong is home to the world’s biggest retail ivory market, with more items for sale than anywhere else in the world. The majority of buyers are mainland Chinese, who smuggle the worked ivory across the border. Hong Kong is also perpetuating the illegal market: more than a third of licensed ivory dealers have been found to advise buyers on ways to smuggle ivory out of the city, according to a recent report by Traffic. Continue reading...

Leaders from more than 250 cities unanimously back a resolution to reach clean energy goal at the US Conference of Mayors in Miami BeachA bipartisan group of mayors from across the country has unanimously backed an ambitious commitment for US cities to run entirely on renewable sources such as wind and solar by 2035.Related: The fight against climate change: four cities leading the way in the Trump era Continue reading...

National Infrastructure Commission chair says UK must maintain ties with EU to save key projects such as third runway and HS2A hard Brexit would be a “calamity” that would spell the end for the Heathrow expansion, according to the chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission.While the airport has argued that Brexit makes its third runway ever more important, Andrew Adonis said private investment in infrastructure would be off the table unless Britain could maintain ties with the EU. Continue reading...

Energy company warns rising cost of installations due to ‘customer apathy’ could prompt suppliers to increase tariffsEnergy suppliers face rising costs for putting smart meters in millions of homes, adding pressure on firms to raise household bills further next year.Fitting the meters, which automate readings and must be installed in every home and small business by the end of 2020, costs suppliers about £100 per household today. Continue reading...

A blue shark caused panic on Saturday after being seen by bathers close to the beaches of Cala Major and Can Pastilla. The animal was captured on Sunday, with local media reporting that it was suffering from a head wound, possibly caused by a harpoon

In a dig at Trump’s climate change inaction, French president welcomes the green campaigner and says there will be ‘no new exploration licences’The new French government has sought to further burnish its green credentials with the announcement it is to stop granting licences for new oil and gas exploration.In his first major intervention since Emmanuel Macron’s election victory, the ecological transition minister, Nicolas Hulot, told the broadcaster BFMTV there would be “no new exploration licences for hydrocarbons”. Continue reading...

The Havasupai resided in and around Grand Canyon for many centuries. This region is sacred – that is why we oppose the pollution of our land and water

Stiegler Gorge dam on the Selous park, a world heritage site listed as ‘in danger’, will cause irreversible damage, say conservationistsPlans to build a huge hydroelectric dam in the heart of one of Africa’s largest remaining wild areas have dismayed conservationists who fear that the plans will cause irreversible damage to the Selous game reserve in Tanzania.After many years of delays and false starts, last week the president of Tanzania, John Magufuli, announced that he would be going ahead with the Stiegler’s Gorge dam on the Rufiji river. Magufuli, nicknamed “the Bulldozer”, was elected in 2015 in part on his record of successful road and infrastructure building. The dam will provide 2,100MW of electricity to a country that is currently extremely undersupplied: Tanzania, with a population of approximately 53m to the UK’s 65m, has just 1,400MW of installed grid capacity compared to the UK’s total grid capacity of 85,000MW. Continue reading...

Shark was first spotted close to beaches at Cala Major and Can Pastilla, then discovered to have serious head woundA blue shark whose presence in shallow waters off the coast of Mallorca caused panic over the weekend and led to the evacuation of beaches on the Balearic island, has been captured.

Survey by Energy Institute finds industry professionals think policy is ‘on pause’ and warn Brexit is ‘material concern’The UK’s ambitious target of slashing carbon emissions by more than half within 13 years is at risk because of government dithering on energy policy, industry professionals have warned.

Comins Coch, Aberystwyth Beech leaves moved silkily in the warm wind as though breathing, the only other sounds the stream and distant sheepLong after midnight, with the temperature well above 20C and humidity high, I gave up attempting to sleep and checked what the night sky might offer in compensation. With the moon yet to rise, the village was in darkness, swathed in a murky blanket of haze that all but obscured the mountains to the east. Looking up, a few stars were just visible above the beech trees – whose leaves moved silkily together in the warm wind as though breathing, the only other sounds those of the stream and a few distant sheep. Continue reading...

Kenya’s wildlife numbers are plummeting. Reconnecting people to nature is key to the solution.

Deloitte Access Economics report says reef underpins 64,000 jobs and contributes $6.4bn to economy each yearA new report has valued the Great Barrier Reef at $56bn and warns of vast economic consequences for Australia unless more is done to protect it.The Deloitte Access Economics report says the world heritage-listed reef underpins 64,000 direct and indirect jobs, and contributes $6.4bn to the national economy each year. Continue reading...

Originally published in the Guardian on 1 July 1967MACHYNLLETH: When a friend wrote recently and added a PS, “How’s that plant?” I knew that he meant the giant hogweed I described in this diary a year ago and which brought in more letters than anything I have ever mentioned. Last year’s plants duly disappeared but this year one has come up in a different place. It sowed itself at a path edge and for several weeks looked harmless enough. But suddenly it stretched out huge arms all round and now the path is quite blocked. Meanwhile its main stem is shooting up with equal speed and will soon be expanding massive umbels. I see it through the window as I write.Related: Giant hogweed; digging deeper into the history of a 'killer weed' Continue reading...

Lock the Gate and Oakey Coal Action Alliance say New Hope Group ad featuring logos of 40 other companies breaches consumer lawOpponents of a Queensland coal project have asked the consumer watchdog to investigate whether an embattled miner and up to 40 other companies broke the law with a “misleading” appeal for public support.New Hope Group, whose New Acland project could become the first coal proposal in Queensland history to be refused mining licences, last week ran an advertising campaign claiming “thousands of jobs” would be lost unless the state government approved its expansion. Continue reading...

Some are concerned that the proposed privatization of some public park services would drive up costs for visitors and fail to raise enough for repairsAmerica’s national parks need a staggering $11.5bn worth of overdue road and infrastructure repairs. But with the proposed National Park Service budget slashed by almost $400m, the Trump administration says it will turn to privatizing public park services to address those deferred maintenance costs.“I don’t want to be in the business of running campgrounds,” Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said at a meeting of the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association in Washington this month. This came after Donald Trump proposed cutting the Department of the Interior budget by 13%. Continue reading...

You’d expect mountain climbers to be great champions of the environment, but their high-performance clothing is a chemical nightmareThere’s a long-standing rivalry between surfers and climbers as to who is the greenest. For my money, surfers have the edge. They’ve influenced environmentalism at large, making their issues – sewage and plastic – ours.Greenpeace has found noxious chemicals in the air around outdoor clothing shops Continue reading...

As tourists pour in, global forces push local fishermen outIt is hard to think of a more faithful depiction of the English fishing village than the scene that greets the visitor to Porthleven in Cornwall: the early summer sun glints off the water, holidaymakers throng the quayside restaurants, enjoying the fresh fish unloaded by the fishermen toiling in their boats.Yet some argue that things are not what they seem. They say that none of the fish sold at the restaurants or cafés offering “fresh local fish” is caught by the town’s fishermen. Instead it is brought in by van from wholesalers in Newlyn, 15 miles away. And of the boats bobbing in the water, only three are commercial fishing boats. Of those, one fisherman is retiring this year and the other two are ready to call it a day. Continue reading...

Even in vast natural ecosystems, the fate and condition of nature lies in the hands of the people who live on, know, respect and manage that landOnly a small number of vast natural landscapes remain on Earth – wild regions where ecological processes function normally and movements of wildlife remain largely unfettered by the fragmentation of habitats. These few places include the Amazon basin, the boreal forests of Canada, tundra of Siberia, the Sahara Desert, and the Australian Outback.It has become increasingly apparent to modern science what Indigenous people have understood for centuries: that even in these large, natural ecosystems, the fate and condition of nature lies in the hands of the people who live on, know, respect and manage that land. Continue reading...

A WWF appeal aims to highlight the threat of habitat destruction and climate change on wild populationsIn February, Pavel Fomenko was told that the body of a young female tiger had been discovered underneath a car parked outside the town of Luchegorsk, in eastern Russia. Fomenko – head of rare species conservation for WWF Russia – took the corpse for examination where he uncovered the grim details of the animal’s death.Related: The Siberian tiger protector - in pictures Continue reading...

Photographer Antonio Olmos travelled to the Russian far east to document the work of Pavel Fomenko, a man of the wilderness and tiger protector with the World Wildlife FundYou can become a tiger protector with the WWF here Continue reading...

The fish was found miles past a barrier designed to keep it from entering the ecosystem and wreaking the sort of damage seen elsewhere in the USAn Asian carp has been found just miles from the Great Lakes, beyond an electrified barrier designed to keep the invasive species from entering the ecosystem and wreaking the sort of damage seen elsewhere in the US.

Freedom-of-information data reveals threat of drought that would devastate wildlife, with government slow to act on water managementA quarter of England’s rivers are at risk of running dry, with devastating consequences for wildlife, according to data obtained by WWF under freedom of information rules.Fish are most obviously affected when rivers slow to a trickle, particularly those that migrate upstream such as salmon, trout, eels and lampreys. But animals such as water voles are also harmed, as they are unable to escape predators by fleeing into rivers to reach underwater entrances to their burrows. Birds such as kingfishers, sandpipers and dippers also suffer, as the insects and small fish they feed on die out. Continue reading...

First global assessment of climate change impact on world heritage-listed reefs says local efforts are ‘no longer sufficient’Greater emissions reductions and delivering on the Paris climate agreement are now “the only opportunity” to save coral reefs the world over from decline, with local responses no longer sufficient, a report by Unesco has found.The first global scientific assessment of the impacts of climate change on the 29 world heritage-listed coral reefs, published on Saturday, found that the frequency, intensity and duration of heat-stress events had worsened with increasing global warming, with massive consequences for the 29 world heritage sites. Continue reading...

Chris Gee on how banks lend to companies that have the potential to cause irreversible damage to heritage sitesEven protected Unesco world heritage sites – some of the most incredible places on earth – are threatened by decisions being made by banks (Report, 22 June). Almost half of those listed for their natural values are threatened by harmful industrial practices such as oil and gas exploration and mining. Banks lend to companies that have the potential to cause irreversible damage to these sites and this could be avoided if they had the right policies and implementation procedures in place. Our report details the steps banks can take to safeguard these areas. World Heritage sites are home to some of the planet’s most endangered species, and they are relied upon by local communities. We need to be doing everything we can to protect them.

Mayor of London wants urgent meeting with new environment secretary to press for action on toxic air qualityThe mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has requested an urgent meeting with the new environment secretary, Michael Gove, to urge him to get a grip on Britain’s “life and death” air pollution crisis.This week, Khan activated the capital’s emergency alert system after experts warned toxic air in the capital had reached dangerous levels. Large parts of southern England and Wales were also affected on Wednesday. Continue reading...