The Dutch and Danish cycling utopias of Amsterdam, Groningen, Utrecht and Copenhagen are high up the list – but what about the rest of the world?The future of cycling in the UK was dealt a bad hand when George Osborne’s Spending Review revealed a new commitment of £300m to cycling investment to 2020/21. While that might sound like a lot, it equates to around £1.40 per person per year in England (outside of London), and a significant step backwards from previous commitments to minimum funding of £10 per person per year. To put this in perspective, the average investment in the Netherlands is around €30 (£22) per person per year.But while the UK government may be limiting the chances for British cities to become the most cycle-friendly in the world, across the globe many metropolises are taking huge steps to improve conditions for people on bikes. One Danish study reveals that for every kilometre cycled, society enjoys a 23 cent (16p) profit, while driving the same distance produces a net loss of 16 cents (10p). Of course, cycling also increases fitness, tackles stress levels and one less car on the road will help to lower pollution levels. Continue reading...

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The forests of the Mekong region have become a battleground as rangers try to stop poachers from driving the Siamese rosewood tree to extinction

Sale of 200kg fish to restaurant in Japan comes despite campaigners’ warnings that species is heading for extinctionA sushi restaurant in Japan has paid US$118,000 (£80,000/AU$164,000) for a bluefin tuna at the first auction of the year at Tokyo’s Tsukiji market, despite repeated warnings that the prized fish is heading towards extinction.

Wybunbury Moss I squelch among bushes and clawing briars, stopping to admire the chocolate-brown bulrushesOn this raw winter’s day a scalpel-sharp wind slices across my face as I head down the ancient steps in St Chad’s churchyard, each one created from gravestones, all slippery with leaves. And there it is in the distance, a bowl-like depression, wreathed in mist: Wybunbury Moss, a national nature reserve famed for its floating peat bog carpeted in sphagnum moss and its invertebrate populations.I open a wooden gate and walk into a marshy field. The wind snatches at my woollen hat and bullies me down the hill. I pass a huddle of sheep, bleating pitifully, drizzle now pearling their grubby fleeces. A heron takes off on silent, silvery wings. A fetid stink hangs in the air. I squelch among bushes and clawing briars, between reeds, stopping to admire the tall, velvety, chocolate-brown bulrushes, standing stalk-stiff. In spring, when their heads split open, the air is filled with seeds; and in early summer, its flower looks like a cat’s tail, hence its American name, cattail. Today, they remind me of hot dogs on sticks. Continue reading...

A motorist in Perth says she ‘had to look twice’ when she noticed a 2m-long dead shark strapped to the front of a white four-wheel-drive vehicle in Safety Bay. Julie Wright shared video footage of the car on the Perth & WA Fishing Reports Facebook page on Monday afternoon, where it has been viewed more than 200,000 times. It is unclear what species the shark was, and whether it was a legal size, although some have suggested it was a tiger shark Continue reading...

The Justice Department alleges that international scandal in which car manufacturer put illegal emissions devices in vehicles defied Clean Air ActThe US government has sued Volkswagen over allegations that the German company illegally installed special software to cheat emission tests.

Warnings issued in Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana after flooding from heavy December rainfall caused death and destruction in Missouri and IllinoisSouthern US states are bracing themselves for major flooding as surging waters that have inundated parts of Missouri and Illinois head south down the Mississippi river.

Bad weather cuts off some villages, while train service between Carlisle and Glasgow will be closed for at least a monthHeavy rain and high winds have battered central and north-east Scotland with homes again threatened by flood waters and some villages in Aberdeenshire remaining cut off after Storm Frank caused damage to transport routes last week.Local MSPs praised the “huge community spirit” as residents of a sheltered housing complex in Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, were evacuated to the village scout hut on Monday afternoon, while the local Asda supermarket supplied food to the makeshift emergency centre. Continue reading...

Those who drop rubbish will increasingly be ‘hit in the pocket’. But only a change of attitude will work, and that means confronting themIt’s over three years ago that I threw a plastic bottle back through the car window whence it came. I thought little of it at the time until I tweeted about it and a small media storm erupted. Apparently, it was not normal to stand up to litter louts. Which is not to say that the issue is not important to people. It is clearly something many of us feel very strongly about. We just don’t take any action.Now I hear that the Department for Communities and Local Government is planning to increase fines for dropping litter. The minimum fine is set to double to £100, with communities minister Marcus Jones claiming that those who drop litter would be “hit in the pocket”. Continue reading...

Zookeepers have started the annual headcount, which takes a week to complete. They will tally up every mammal, bird, reptile, fish and invertebrate from 750 different species for the audit, a requirement for the zoo’s licence.All of the information is shared with zoos around the world via the International Species Information System, where it is used to manage worldwide breeding programmes for endangered animals.

Weather caused 94% of catastrophes including storms, floods and earthquakes last year, according to data from reinsurer Munich ReAround $27bn (£18bn) was paid out by insurers for natural disaster claims last year, with weather causing 94% of incidents, according to data from reinsurer Munich Re.While the climate phenomenon known as El Niño reduced the development of hurricanes in the north Atlantic, storms and floods still caused billions of dollars worth of damage in Europe and North America, the world’s largest reinsurer said in an annual review. Continue reading...

Newly formed Uniper will assume control of the German energy giant’s fossil fuel assets, with E.ON focusing on renewables and energy networks, reports BusinessGreenGermany energy giant E.ON has officially separated its fossil fuel assets into a new company, dubbed Uniper.The move, which became effective on January 1st, will see the energy company focus on renewables, energy networks, and energy efficiency services. Meanwhile, the independent Uniper will assume control of the company’s fossil fuel and hydro assets, as well as its global energy trading activity. Continue reading...

A new initiative is arming coastguards with satellite intelligence that allows them to target their search for pirate fishing vessels in remote marine areasPirate fishing vessels plundering fish from the world’s marine reserves, such as the one around Ascension Island announced on the weekend, can now be watched, tracked and brought to justice using satellite technology.Despite a proliferation of huge, publicly lauded marine reserves, actually stopping fishing in many remote areas has previously been almost impossible. Continue reading...

Statistics for first 10 months of 2015 show an 8.6% rise from a year earlier after new North Sea fields were openedBritain’s oil and gas fields have increased production for the first time in more than 15 years, figures show.Government statistics for the first 10 months of 2015 show oil and gas produced on the UK continental shelf up 8.6% from a year earlier, the industry body Oil & Gas UK said. It added that, based on that number, it expected production for all of 2015 to be between 7% and 8% higher. Continue reading...

We asked you to share your December pictures of the wildlife around the world. Here’s a selection of our favourites

January signals the start of a new year, and while the northern hemisphere is bracing itself for midwinter conditions, the southern hemisphere is soaking up summer sunshine. We’d like to see your photos of the January wildlife near youIt’s January and the northern hemisphere will be bracing itself for more wintry weather. The southern hemisphere on the other hand will be basking in sunshine and enjoying summer temperatures. So what sort of wildlife will we all discover on our doorsteps? We’d like to see your photos of the January wildlife near you.Share your photos and videos with us and we’ll feature our favourites on the Guardian site. Continue reading...

Emergency services respond after a 6.7 magnitude earthquake hit India’s remote northeast region before dawn on Monday, killing at least four people, injuring 100 others and damaging several buildings. India’s Meteorological Department says the epicentre of the quake was in Tamenglong region of Manipur state. It struck before dawn on Monday at a depth of 10 miles on the India-Myanmar border

Laird of Abergeldie Castle, close to Balmoral, vacates ancestral home as swollen river sweeps away parts of estateResidents of a castle close to Balmoral have been forced to flee their home after the swollen river Dee threatened to devastate the 16th-century tower.Images of the rising flood show Abergeldie Castle, a Grade A-listed building, just a few feet from the water’s edge, with parts of the estate reportedly being swept away. Continue reading...

Four-month operation to clean waterway that has attracted tourists, fans of the film Amélie – and piles of rubbishAuthorities in Paris are to begin draining the canal St-Martin, a favourite haunt of hipsters in north-eastern Paris, in an attempt to refurbish its locks and remove rubbish.Commissioned by Napoleon in the early 19th century to provide fresh drinking water, the canal in the 10th arrondissement was paid for with a new tax on wine. It went on to become a transport artery, but faced being decommissioned when boat traffic declined in the 1960s. Continue reading...

Originally published in the Manchester Guardian on 6 January 1916The gale has blown down some fine beeches. They root rather shallow, and have been totally torn up. It is sad to see the great smooth limbs lying prone, every branch, to the ends of the smallest twigs, beset with firm, pointed tightly twisted buds which will never unfurl in that enchanting way they have, a silky frill of the palest green breaking from the sheath. The mind runs forward to bluebell time in these beech-woods, when the small, young leaves are like a soft mist thrown about the grand trunks and hovering over that other mist of heavenly blue at our feet. These uprooted beeches grew at one time rather thickly, with the result that they shot up tall and straight for a long way before branching. Maybe they would have been the better for some mulching, for the soil is poor and the beech does not go far down for its food; but they were old (the woodman who was lopping them said 400 years, but this exceeds what is likely) and some of the roots were badly decayed, so perhaps their time was come.One of these old beeches which was lost last winter was a perfect model of sylvan surgery. Various amputations had been made at one time or another, and these were so precisely at the right slope and had been so well dressed to keep out canker and other ills that the bark had slowly curled over and made perfect scars. Between two great limbs a fissure had appeared and decay had set in. The craftsman had dug out and scraped away all the decayed wood, had bored a hole in the stem corresponding to the bottom of the hollow, and had drained away the water. He had then dressed the wound with creosote and tar, and when it was quite dry had filled it up with bricks and cement. The outer coat of cement was so skilfully coloured and scored that one had to look very close to detect it. This hole was too old for the bark to close over the stopping, but, marvellous to relate, when the tree is vigorous and the work done in time, the bark will roll over cement as it will over the scar where a branch has been sawn away. Continue reading...

Washburn Valley, North Yorkshire On the surface, the environs seem an appropriate home for these unhurried birdsIt emerges from somewhere in the bare oak branches above with the slow, sliding grace of an airship. Within moments it has taken its place high in the huge midwinter sky, which today is hectic with rowdy winds, long trains of cumulus and meteoric bursts of sunshine.Red kites are Britain’s most graceful gliders. This one appears to balance effortlessly in the energetic air, its forked tail twisting, but its wide wings almost still. Sometimes they seem not quite of this world. The bird is aggressively mobbed by loud, restive crows, but it drifts through them with a characteristic zen-like detachment, literally unflappable. Continue reading...

Residents demand federal government remove community from shortlist of six potential sites to store nuclear wasteRelated: Government to pick single site to store Australia’s nuclear waste within a yearA southern Queensland community is demanding to be removed from the federal government’s shortlist of potential nuclear waste dump sites. Continue reading...

Heavy rain over the weekend washed bird droppings from trees that line the Tiber onto the streets, creating hazardous conditionsAuthorities in Rome have been forced to close roads for cleaning after heavy weekend rainfall made streets and pavements covered in bird droppings too slippery and treacherous for pedestrians and traffic.The downpour washed the guano deposited by millions of migratory starlings from trees onto the streets. The result, in combination with rotting leaves, was a slimy fungal mush so hazardous that it that reportedly led to car and motorcycle accidents. Continue reading...

David Cameron’s promise of extra funding for Storm Eva repairs met with cross-party criticism as Met Office issues further weather warningsA pledge of £40m by David Cameron to repair and improve flood defences has failed to stem criticism of the government as parts of the UK braced themselves for more misery.

Scotland’s SNP government urged to review budget cuts to Scottish Environment Protection Agency amid warnings that river levels have yet to peakThe Scottish government has been urged to carry out an urgent review of flood defences as forecasters warned of further flooding in the north-east of the country, with some rivers not peaking until Monday morning.Scottish Labour made the call as it emerged that the Scottish National party government is to cut the budget of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) – the country’s flood-forecasting and risk-management agency – by 6%, or £2.4m, in the next financial year. Continue reading...

Dong Energy says it is now convinced UK government will back offshore wind power despite recent cuts to renewable energy sector subsidiesDong Energy, the biggest operator of offshore windfarms in Britain, has said it plans to spend a further £6bn in the UK by 2020, convinced that the government is serious about supporting wind power.Vattenfall, another significant UK windfarm operator, says it too is “optimistic” about 2016 and is hoping to proceed with a turbine testing site off Scotland this summer. Continue reading...

Scott Slater wants to pump billions of gallons to LA and other drought-hit cities - and make $2.4bn in the processScott Slater has a plan. It is not a popular plan, but he wants to pump 814bn gallons of water from under the Mojave desert to Los Angeles and other drought-stricken communities in southern California, and make more than $2bn (£1.3bn) doing so.“Yes, it’s quite a lot of money,” Slater, the 57-year-old chief executive of Cadiz Inc, says as he stands in front of a scale model of the project in the foyer of the company’s office on the 28th and top floor of a LA city centre office block. “It’s worth whatever the community who wants the water is willing to pay for it to meet their demands.” Continue reading...

Crossing in Elland, near Halifax, deemed beyond repair and new one will take at least a year to design and buildA West Yorkshire town has been told its flood-damaged bridge is beyond repair and will not be replaced for a least a year.The extensive damage to the crossing in Elland, near Halifax – along with the well-publicised partial collapse of the bridge in Tadcaster, 35 miles away – has dramatically highlighted the costly impact of December’s deluge on infrastructure in the north of England. Continue reading...

‘Bee fence’ idea has been buzzing since hives were deployed in Kenya and Botswana to reduce conflict – and now groups look to roll it out in TanzaniaA community near the famed Serengeti national park in Tanzania is enlisting the help of bees to reduce escalating tensions with elephants that enrage locals by trampling upon their crops.A fence made of beehives is being constructed around a one-acre farm close to the Ngorongoro conservation area as part of the pilot project to see if the buzzing bees will deter elephants that stroll on to cropland. Continue reading...

Drainage authorities told ministers in November that cuts could leave 240,000 more households at risk of flood damageThe government has defended its funding of flood defences after it emerged ministers were told spending cuts could leave 240,000 extra households facing a “significant risk” of flood damage within 20 years.A document presented to ministers in November last year – just days before Cumbria was inundated – warned of the risks posed by extreme weather events becoming more frequent. Continue reading...

Make your zero-tolerance stance on unneccessary packaging known: it’s the best way to stop itIn the mid-noughties my inbox was full of images of shrinkwrapped fruit and veg: readers were incensed that supermarkets wrapped coconuts (which famously provide their own husks) with layers of non-recyclable film. The debate has been repackaged for a new generation. Twitter is awash with examples of idiotic packaging from e-tailers, such as one bottle of nail varnish and a cat’s toy, each sent in a big box.We accumulate 200kg of packaging materials a year per person, adding up to almost 13m tonnes entering the UK waste stream. Even if you drag your cardboard to the recycling plant, you’re still complicit in a system that wastes important resources on a single-use box. It’s also cheaper to have one size of box that fits neatly into a truck. Logistics companies don’t get charged for shipping air, creating more carbon emissions and traffic. The protective packaging industry that makes crumpled paper and inflatable plastic pockets is a real winner, projected to be worth $35bn by 2020. Continue reading...

Man tried to fight off the shark which bit him on his arms and legs while he was spearfishing near near Miall Island off YeppoonA man is in a stable condition in hospital after being attacked by a shark while spearfishing off central Queensland.The 31-year-old man was bitten on his arms and legs while swimming near Miall Island off Yeppoon just before midday on Saturday. Continue reading...

Chris Riddell makes some new year predictions Continue reading...

Document seen by ministers before recent storms warns that number of at-risk households will doubleMany of Britain’s flood defences are being abandoned or maintained to minimal levels because of government cuts that could leave almost twice as many households at “significant risk” within 20 years, according to a leaked document submitted to ministers.Related: Homeowners count the cost as floods force prices to plummet Continue reading...

As anger over the state of flood defences grows, some fear their houses will be unsellablePeople trying to sell their properties in flood-hit parts of north-west England have begun dramatically dropping their prices amid fears that houses in some roads have become virtually unsellable.Large homes in and around the Warwick Road area of Carlisle, which in December 2015 experienced its second major flooding episode in a decade, have started to appear on the market for only 60% of their November values – leaving some people wondering whether they will ever be able to move house. Continue reading...

While some feel they have been taken in by small print, others say no amount of money can make up for losses caused by floodingThey were still removing sodden drum kits and waterlogged guitar amps from York’s Melrose Yard Studios yesterday. A week earlier, floodwaters from the nearby river Foss had inundated the popular music studios with ruinous effect and left the North Yorkshire business among those feeling shortchanged by its insurers. A hitherto unnoticed clause in Melrose Yard’s insurance policy has left the firm ineligible for reimbursement, despite its owners calculating that it will need at least £20,000 to get the studio back up and running.Related: Homeowners count the cost as floods force prices to plummet Continue reading...

When Poland banned wolf hunting, numbers doubled. But now animal scientists fear that politicians could turn back the clockRobert Mysłajek stops dead. Between two paw prints on a muddy mountain track, the scientist finds what he is looking for. “Scats!’’ he enthuses. Wolf sightings are so rare that a flash of faeces marks a good day, even for a seasoned tracker.But it is getting easier. There are now an estimated 1,500 wolves in Poland. The number has doubled in 15 years. Wolves are – along with the brown bear, the lynx and the wolverine – Europe’s last large predator carnivores. Conservationists from Britain, Germany and the Netherlands are beating a path here to find out how the country has saved this protected species, slandered even in fairytales. Continue reading...

The giant whales, who usually spend the period from November through May in the area, are a well-known part of winter but have been slow to returnHumpback whales have been slow to return to Hawaii as December usually marks the start of the season, experts say.

Sixteen states issue flood warnings as waters blamed for 22 deaths in Illinois, while Missouri governor expects record-breaking disasterFloods have submerged towns, roads, casinos and shopping malls around the south and midwest for more than three days, prompting governors in Illinois and Iowa to call in the national guard.Related: Southern US states braced for floods as Mississippi nears record crest Continue reading...

Jane Perrone put six bird feeders into her garden to find out which one scored bestBack in November I set out to trial six bird feeders for our gardening podcast Sow, Grow, Repeat: which were attracted the most birds to my garden, were the most durable, and easy to fill and clean? Here’s my verdict on all six, plus my choice of best buy. You can listen to my update on the podcast here. Continue reading...

Cwmpengraig, Carmarthenshire A jay. It will be here soon enough, once it’s finished its taunting of some poor tawny owl

A temporary track will be built around the accident site after a train that was carrying more than 800,000 litres of sulphuric acid derailed in Queensland’s northwestA highway near a freight train that derailed in Queensland’s northwest has reopened almost a week after the accident, and a temporary track will be built to bypass the site.