DONG Energy given go-ahead for 1.2-gigawatt project that will power more than a million UK homesThe UK wind energy industry received a boost on Wednesday with the announcement of the world’s biggest offshore windfarm, to be built off the north-east coast.Dong Energy said its multi-billion pound Hornsea project, which is expected when complete to power as many as 1m homes in the region, will occupy more than 400 square kilometres, situated about 120km off the Yorkshire coast.

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EasyJet founder Stelios Haji-Iannou’s new easyFoodstore will most likely be lauded by the government. But no society on earth can ultimately afford food this cheapThere is something disconcerting about the sight of the easyJet founder, Sir Stelios Haji-Iannou, at the launch of his latest business venture this week, easyFoodstore: a discount food store in Park Royal in London, selling products for 25p each. The cheery entrepreneur stands grinning beneath an impossible-to-miss placard proclaiming the slogan: “No expensive brands. Just food honestly priced.” Behind him, stacked up on cheerless shelving such as you’d see in the most basic cash and carry, stand boxes of cola, salt and vinegar snacks, long-life milk and more of that ilk.Related: Stelios Haji-Ioannou opens easyFoodstore with 25p offer Continue reading...

Angela Merkel to attend test in which team will heat hydrogen until it becomes plasma in bid for clean nuclear powerScientists in Germany are poised to conduct a nuclear fusion experiment they hope will advance the quest for a clean and safe form of nuclear power.In a test expected to be attended by Angela Merkel, the chancellor, researchers will inject a tiny amount of hydrogen into a special device and heat it until it becomes a super-hot gas known as plasma – mimicking conditions inside the sun. Continue reading...

A new strategic partnership to improve marine law enforcement and combat illegal fishing in Indonesia builds on existing progress

British start-up firm says its revolutionary design offers a more robust and effective helmet. But design niggles remainLet’s begin by forgetting the usual tedious arguments about bike helmet use – you can do it; close your eyes, count to 10, breathe – and instead focus on the more minor irritations concerning them.For someone like me, who wears a helmet the majority of the time when on two wheels, it’s mainly the care you have to take with a cycle helmet, not dropping it on the floor or, if you have it attached to a bag, bashing it against things. Continue reading...

Leading group of environmentalists warns that leaving the European Union would mean a return to filthy beaches, foul air and weak conservation lawsBritain risks becoming the “dirty man of Europe” again with filthy beaches, foul air and weak conservation laws if it leaves the European Union, a group of leading environmentalists warned on Wednesday.

Demand for food is growing but arable land is being lost; millions are obese but millions still face hunger. Can you put exact figures to these problems?

Anyone aged over 20 with a relevant licence will be able to hire an electric moped, in a move aimed at cutting down on noise and pollutionElectric mopeds will be available for hire around Paris from this summer following an “encouraging” trial of the public scheme, the mayor’s office has announced.

Southern California Gas could be fined up to $25,000 for each of the three days it didn’t notify the state of the leak in the Porter Ranch communityThe utility company whose blown-out natural gas well forced the evacuation of thousands of people in the Los Angeles area faced criminal charges on Tuesday for failing to report the massive breach to the authorities.With the criminal complaint, Southern California Gas Company faces mounting legal challenges for its response to the underground blow-out of its natural gas storage well, which was discovered on 23 October. Continue reading...

Australian little blue penguins, also known as fairy penguins, colonised an area in New Zealand, wiping out local penguins about 500 years ago, researcher sayThey might be the cutest invaders ever. It seems a population of little blue penguins in New Zealand are Australian invaders who colonised the region very recently, exploiting a gap in the ecosystem left when humans arrived and wiped out the local penguins.Little blue penguins, known as fairy penguins in Australia, are the smallest penguins in the world, growing to about 30cm tall and weighing a bit over 1kg. Continue reading...

Sunshine Coast snake catcher Richie Gilbert was called in to evict an unwanted guest from the men’s toilets at the Waterfront hotel in Maroochydore. While the reptile, curled up beneath the urinal, turned out to be a ‘completely harmless’ common tree snake, Gilbert says ‘it would still give you a bit of a fright if it came out and nipped you while you were doing your business’. The cool tiles of bathrooms provide the perfect place for snakes to escape the summer heat, and Gilbert recommends Queenslanders keep their doors closed Continue reading...

Decision to restart 40-year-old nuclear reactors places strain on relations between European neighbours, as Germans and Dutch voice concernsBelgium’s decision to restart two 40-year-old nuclear reactors is putting pressure on northern Europe’s political fault lines, with Germany announcing that it would send experts to inspect the plants.Concerns have been stoked by the discovery of thousands of defects in the reactors’ pressure vessels, a fire, and one unresolved sabotage incident at the plants, which also border Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Continue reading...

New report says there is a ‘diminishing window of opportunity’ to completely eradicate the Asian toad, which poses a threat to biodiversity, human health and the economyMadagascar must wipe out an invasive, toxic toad immediately to save the country’s unique wildlife from disaster, scientists have warned.A report published on Tuesday says that the Asian toad is spreading unchecked through the eastern part of the island, and poses a direct threat not only to the country’s biodiversity, but to human health and the economy.

As these new crisis bailouts for fossil fuels show, it’s those who are least deserving who get the most government protectionThose of us who predicted, during the first years of this century, an imminent peak in global oil supplies could not have been more wrong. People like the energy consultant Daniel Yergin, with whom I disputed the topic, appear to have been right: growth, he said, would continue for many years, unless governments intervened.Related: New research points to risk peak oil presents to business Continue reading...

£6bn wiped off stock market value of oil company as investors react to losses and increasing Deepwater Horizon liablitiesBP is to axe another 7,000 jobs after reporting an annual loss of $6.5bn (£4.5bn), the worst in its history.Shares in the oil company dived 8.6% to 335p by the end of trading on Tuesday, wiping almost £6bn off the stock market value of the business, and helped drag down the wider FTSE 100 index of leading shares in London. Continue reading...

Environmental Protection Agency addresses fears over ‘pre-flushing’ techniques that could downplay water’s lead levelsThe US Environmental Protection Agency aims to “strengthen” existing safe water laws, in response to findings that many cities are downplaying the levels of lead in their water.Since news proliferated of dangerous lead contamination in Flint’s water, the Guardian revealed that numerous US cities and states, including Philadelphia, Detroit and Rhode Island, advise residents to run their faucets for several minutes the night before taking a sample of water for lead tests. Continue reading...

Scientists find capacity for abstraction not necessarily uniquely human in study of ravens’ behaviour when hiding foodRavens can imagine being spied upon by a hidden competitor, showing a capacity for abstraction once thought to be exclusively human, according to a new study.Scientists have shown that the birds take extra care to hide food if they suspect their movements are being monitored by another raven, even when the second bird is not actually there. Continue reading...

FBI spokeswoman says agency’s role is ‘investigating the matter to determine if there have been any federal violations’ in lead contamination of drinking waterThe FBI is working with a multi-agency team investigating the lead contamination of Flint’s drinking water, alongside Environmental Protection Agency investigators who can tackle criminal violations of federal environmental law, officials said on Tuesday.Also on Tuesday, it was announced that Darnell Early, the state-appointed emergency manager for Flint when its water source was switched, will leave his current role in Detroit’s troubled school district four-and-a-half months early. Continue reading...

A zebra escapes from enclosure at Ueno zoo, giving one keeper a heart attack – at least, that’s the scenario of the drill, aimed at helping staff deal with runaway animals Continue reading...

Demand by hundreds of academics from Oxford and Cambridge universities for evidence-based investment policies could include divestment from fossil fuelsHundreds of academics from the universities of Cambridge and Oxford are demanding their institutions adopt an “evidence-based, morally sound investment policy that serves the needs of the future”, which could include divestment from fossil fuels.The call is supported by Lord Deben, chair of the government’s official climate change advisory committee; Prof David Mackay, former chief scientist at the Department of Energy and Climate Change; the incoming president of the Royal Society, Sir Venki Ramakrishnan, and the former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, as well as 300 other academics. Continue reading...

For more than 30 years, John Thompson, who has died aged 74, was the city of Oxford’s landscape architect. Si monumentum requiris, circumspice: his magnificent legacy to the city can be seen at every turn – he initiated Oxford in Bloom and the Forest of Oxford scheme, oversaw planting of trees in every crevice and corner of the city, and created enchanting wildlife sanctuaries in Boars Hill, Shotover, Cutteslowe, Grandpont, Wolvercote and Burgess Field. He was a passionate advocate of allowing nature as much freedom as possible by the promotion of indigenous species linking landscape to surrounding buildings.He was also a collector of modern art and a passionate supporter of Bauhaus, Corbusier, brutalism, Didcot power station, modernism and postmodernism in all its guises. But this paradox emanated from his underlying deep aesthetic – an intuitive understanding of how landscape and buildings should interact harmoniously with each other. Continue reading...

The murder of helicopter pilot Roger Gower while protecting Tanzania’s wildlife is the latest example of those on the frontline in the war against illegal ivory being outnumbered and outgunnedThe death of Roger Gower, shot through his helicopter by AK47 while protecting Tanzania’s game reserves from poachers, is the culmination of a worrying trend in the east African nation that has seen its wildlife populations plummet in recent years.In 2014 a helicopter donated to the Tanzanian government to help the anti-poaching operations crashed, killing four. In December last year, Tanzania National Parks’ head of anti-poaching Emily Kisamo was murdered. Four have been charged, but there are still uncertainties as to the reasons for his killing, or the cause of the helicopter crash. Continue reading...

New Moscow exhibition showcases young artists playing with stereotypes of Soviet-era suburban landscapes Continue reading...

Joshua Gilbert says he was told he would be publicly attacked if he spoke out against the association’s policy on clearing of native vegetationA dispute inside a New South Wales farming lobby group over permission to clear native vegetation has led to one of its most prominent voices resigning, after personal threats he alleges were made against him.Joshua Gilbert, who was formerly the chair of the NSW Farmers young farmers committee and was also on the NSW Farmers executive, resigned last week citing “philosophical differences” over the group’s policy on land clearing. He said he received threats from a member of NSW Farmers saying he would be publicly attacked if he spoke out against the policy. Continue reading...

Huge project clears one more hurdle, but financial uncertainty still hovers over the mine and related rail and port construction at Abbot PointAdani has secured an environmental permit from the Queensland government to build Australia’s largest coal mine.The Indian conglomerate was issued an environmental authority for its Carmichael mine, west of Bowen in north Queensland, by the department of environment and heritage on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Claxton, Norfolk They seem to watch us as much as we look at them. It is the piercing glare of equalsWhat is it about owls that’s so captivating? I’m sure one part of the allure is that array of night noises which passes for owl communication. Frequently we have barn owls land on our bedroom roof, where they delight in waking us with a coarse, breathy hiss that sounds like something concocted for a zombie out the crypt in an old Hammer Horror film. Earhhhhhhh!Even better is tawny owl song, which has begun this week and is the earliest marker of winter’s breakdown. It reminds me in one specific sense of its diurnal twin, the cockerel’s dawn clarion. They both arc across the sky and fall towards you out of some indeterminate space. Continue reading...

Europe’s offshore wind capacity doubles in one year but the UK falls behind Germany in the clean energy race, despite attracting more investmentGermany has overtaken the UK in the rate at which it is installing wind turbines at sea, industry figures show.Globally, wind installations grew by 25% in 2014, reaching a landmark 62,000 MW of capacity, according to a separate report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Continue reading...

Pictures from Tasmania’s central plateau, shot by wilderness photographer Dan Broun, show the extraordinary damage wrought by more than a week of bushfires following lightning strikes in Australia’s southernmost state on 13 January. The world heritage area was home to a range of unique alpine flora including pencil pines, king billy pines and cushion plants, some more than 1,000 years old. Now more than 10,000ha of land has been incinerated, and ecologist say that, unlike eucalyptus trees, the ancient flora will not recover Continue reading...

The airline hopes to test technology later this year which would allow its planes to taxi to and from the runway using zero-emissions fuelEasyJet has unveiled plans to use hydrogen fuel cells on its aircraft to save up to 50,000 tonnes of fuel a year and cut its carbon emissions.The airline hopes to trial technology later this year that would allow planes to taxi to and from the runway using zero-emissions fuel. Continue reading...

This is midwinter day, the halfway point between the winter solstice and spring equinox. The days are rapidly getting longer, by about four minutes, and it is marked as a significant day in many cultures. February 2 is celebrated by Christians as Candlemas, when the church candles are blessed, and by pagans as the Festival of Light. In America it is Groundhog Day, when this animal’s behaviour is said to foretell whether spring is coming.Related: Weatherwatch: Candlemas and the folklore factor Continue reading...

Board terms expire, leaving body tasked with investing in emerging technology in hands of department secretary for second time in two yearsAll appointed board members of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency have had their terms expire and have not been replaced, leaving it governed by the secretary of the Department of the Environment, Guardian Australia has learned.Related: Australia's carbon emissions are increasing, government report shows Continue reading...

Hassan Rouhani charmed his way around Europe, but Iran is still fuelling the war in SyriaPresident Hassan Rouhani’s whirlwind visit to Europe last week was an indication both of how eager Iran is to shed its pariah status and of how eager western countries are to resume trade and financial relations now that international sanctions are being lifted. Dozens of contracts running into billions of dollars were discussed. He met the pope, the Italian prime minister, the French president, and many business leaders.The security services continue to harass and detain activists, writers and journalists Continue reading...

As a pilot is shot down trying to stop elephant poaching, the extent of big game slaughter is becoming clear. But we must get to the cause of the problemThe death of the British helicopter pilot Roger Gower, shot down by elephant poachers over a game reserve in Tanzania, shows the dangers faced by the heroes attempting to save our most charismatic mammals from extinction.We are in the midst of a crazy killing spree, the slaughtering of elephants, rhinos and lions on a scale never before witnessed on Earth. The 1989 ban on the international trade in ivory and conservation efforts that helped populations of big African animals recover in the 1990s now looks like a golden age. In 2007, 13 rhinos were poached in South Africa. In 2014, 1,215 were poached. Last year, numbers fell for the first time since 2007 – to 1,175. More than 129,000 elephants have been killed for their ivory since 2012. Continue reading...

Police have joined forces with Guard From Above, a raptor-training security firm based in the Hague, to keep wayward drones from causing troubleAs the use of drones increasingly worries everyone from firefighters and air traffic control to law enforcement, Netherlands’ national police have aligned themselves with a group that hates flying robots on principle: the bald eagle.Dutch police have joined forces with Guard From Above, a raptor-training security firm based in the Hague, to keep wayward drones from causing trouble by snatching them out of the sky. Continue reading...