Rival energy suppliers have joined forces in attacking Amber Rudd’s announcement that gas is future of British powerCoal and renewable power firms have formed an unlikely alliance to criticise government plans to put gas and nuclear at the centre of UK energy supply.The energy secretary, Amber Rudd, has claimed she will resetUK policy and has promised to shut down polluting coal-fired power stations by 2025.

IAEA says country has broken up 4,500 centrifuges under landmark deal but has some way to go until all commitments are metIran has begun dismantling parts of its nuclear programme, as agreed in a landmark deal with major powers, the UN atomic watchdog has said.Iran has started removing centrifuges and related infrastructureat the Natanz and Fordo enrichment facilities, the International Atomic Energy Agency quarterly report said on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Canada has opened its market to imports of British beef alongside 19 EU member statesCanada has formally reopened its market for imports of British beef for the first time since 1996 as part of a deal that includes 19 EU member states.The environment secretary, Elizabeth Truss, said she welcomed the move as recognition of the world-class reputation of British beef and the UK’s welfare standards. Continue reading...

Renewable energy ‘must stand on its own two feet’ yet subsidies for nuclear and fossil fuels continue unabated, and energy efficiency policies are axed with no thought as to what might replace themIt’s difficult to decide which characteristic best describes the government’s approach to climate and energy policy since 8 May; hypocrisy or incompetence.If that seems harsh on a day when the energy secretary has announced a phase-out of coal, the most polluting of fossil fuels, then let me explain. Continue reading...

National sanctuaries in Florida and Texas will partner with Guanahacabibes national park and the Banco de San Antonio to preserve fragile ecosystemsThe United States and Cuba are set to reach their first accord on environmental protection since announcing plans to re-establish diplomatic relations, linking up marine sanctuaries in both countries to cooperate on preservation and research.US National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration chief Kathryn Sullivan is in Havana to sign the agreement on Wednesday and continue talks on a host of environmental issues common to the two countries, separated by just 90 miles (140km) of water. Continue reading...

Hot rocks beneath the visitor attraction in Cornwall could generate enough clean energy to power the site and 4,000 homes, in one of the UK’s only geothermal plantsA tropical fish farm, medical facility and computer servers could be powered by “hot rocks” underneath the Eden project if plans to create one of the UK’s only geothermal plants get underway.The visitor attraction is bidding for part of a £12m EU fund awarded to Cornwall, after it said the government had turned down requests to match fund the £37m project. The three-four megawatt (MW) plant’s backers at Eden said it would take three years to build but generate enough clean heat and electricity to power the site, as well as 4,000 homes via the national grid. Continue reading...

While the Paris climate summit is set to launch the world towards renewable energy, UK energy secretary Amber Rudd is backing nuclear power and gasThe UK’s new energy policy, sketched out on Wednesday by Amber Rudd, will keep the lights on. That’s the good news. But it makes meeting the UK’s carbon emissions targets harder and will cost energy bill payers more.This is the result of the many contradictions it contains. Energy bills must be “as low as possible”, Rudd says, but the government is turning its back on the cheapest clean options: energy efficiency, onshore wind and solar power. Coal must be phased out but only to be replaced by gas, another fossil fuel which itself must be largely phased out within 15 years. All energy technologies must compete in a market - unless it is nuclear power. Continue reading...

Proposed cuts will halt solar panel schemes on up to 45,000 UK social homes, that could save households £200 a year on energy bills, say renewable energy firmsPlans to put solar panels on up to 45,000 social houses in the UK will be shelved if government subsidy cuts go ahead in January as promised, renewable energy companies have told the Guardian. Continue reading...

It’s a simple idea. The Swedish city’s Stadsleveransen system pools deliveries for 500 shops and businesses – drastically reducing shopping centre traffic and freeing up once-congested streets for pedestrians and cyclists“I call it the rolling deckchair,” says Johan Erlandsson as his six-wheeled cargo bike, the Velove Armadillo, glides down the cobbled pedestrian streets of central Gothenburg. Stretching 14ft long but only 34 inches wide, the sleek machine is crafted from red-coated aluminium with a pedal-assisted electric drive and a trailer that is low enough for other cyclists to look over.

But US president warns there is still ‘a lot of work to do’ at UN climate summit which he said will send signal to businesses to go ‘all-in on renewable powerUS president Barack Obama said on Wednesday he was optimistic an elusive deal to contain global warming could be forged at an upcoming crunch summit in Paris, and insisted an ambitious deal would boost a flagging world economy.In a speech to an Asia-Pacific business conference in the Philippines, Obama said there was still a “lot of work to do” to ensure success at the United Nations summit. Continue reading...

Amber Rudd vows to close coal-fired stations by 2025 but says balance has swung too far in favour of green policiesThe UK will close all coal-fired power plants by 2025, the first major country to do so, but will fill the capacity gap largely with new gas and nuclear plants rather than cleaner alternatives.The announcement came in a speech by the energy secretary, Amber Rudd, which she described as a “reset” of Britain’s energy policy on Wednesday. Continue reading...

The organic-or-not debate ignores a crucial further option. Setting aside tracts of land for wildlife habitat can benefit bees, butterflies and plants without harming crop yieldsNon-organic farmers can do much more to foster wild plants, butterflies and bugs without giving up on pesticides, according to new research, but organic farms still bring the largest benefits for wildlife.In the UK, 80 non-organic farms have signed up to the conservation grade (CG) scheme. This requires them to turn 10% of their land over to habitat specifically targeted at supporting their local ecology. In return, farmers brand their products with a “Fair to Nature” accreditation and can charge a premium for them. Continue reading...

Wagamama and Bella Italia among restaurants using seafood from overfished areas or failing on transparency, survey findsMore than half of the UK’s biggest restaurant chains are using seafood from overfished areas of the sea or failing to be transparent about the origins of their fish and shellfish, according to a new survey by a marine conservation charity.

There is little recognition of the pressure that we, the citizen investors, can put on companies to act more socially responsiblyPeople often talk of capitalism, and of plans to reform or replace it. But we seldom ask who are the capitalists, on whose behalf the system is supposedly run.

Is the planet’s fastest growing metropolis in China, Indonesia or Niger? With many different methods of measurement, there’s no simple, single answerThe fastest growing city in the world is Batam in Indonesia … or Niamey in Niger … or maybe Xiamen in China. It all depends on who you ask.Batam is the fastest-growing city in the world by population, according to US-based consultancy Demographia, which bases its annual Demographia World Urban Areas ranking largely on the United Nations’ 2010-20 world population forecasts – but only includes cities with a population of 1 million or more. Batam is close to Singapore and operates as a transport hub and industrial area, while a free-trade zone boosts trade with the island city-state. Batam had a population of 1.1 million in the latest estimate, with an annual growth of 7.4%. Continue reading...

An area forested since 1600 – as Smithy Wood in Sheffield has been – should not be turned into a motorway service station, surely. But there is little protectionSmithy Wood can be traced back to the 11th century. Long-eared and soprano pipistrelle bats fly among its oaks. Marsh tits, badgers and dingy skipper butterflies make their home in this ancient woodland, on green belt surrounding the famously tree-rich city of Sheffield.Twenty acres of this unique wood will be bulldozed to build a pleasantly leafy service station by junction 35 of the M1, if the city council approves a move that could undermine the status of ancient woodland across Britain. Extra Motorway Services has enlisted Forbes-Laird Arboricultural Consultancy (Flac) to help its application. It claims to “secure ‘impossible’ planning permissions, including in ancient woodland and historic landscapes”. This isn’t an idle boast. Ancient woodland – places proven to have been forested since 1600, with uniquely rich, pesticide-free soils – is under siege. Flac succeeded with a housing application imperilling part of the ancient Bluebell Woods in Kent, and is involved in others. Continue reading...

Lynher Valley, Cornwall Autumn colours lighten the gloom, leaves brighten the path and the swollen river gushesTowards Halwinnick Butts a flock of starlings courses low across drab fields; hedgerow trees are leafless although clusters of keys hang on the ash. Ahead, the mast on Caradon Hill overlooking this pastoral land is part obscured by cloud but in the Lynher Valley autumn colours lighten the gloom. In the gardens at Rilla Mill there are blue hydrangeas, red fuchsias and valerian; in adjoining woodland, catkins have already formed among yellowing hazel leaves. Drifts of beech, chestnut and oak leaves brighten the rough path and are caught in the greenery of ferny undergrowth and mossy banks.By Stara Woods, within sound of gunshot at a nearby range, the swollen river gushes beneath a mediaeval clapper bridge. Upstream a new suspension bridge gives access to paths through this community woodland. Today a volunteer with long-handled Cornish shovel has buried the decomposing body of a badger. Continue reading...

Kyodo Senpaku has been found guilty in a case brought by Humane Society International – the first verdict of contempt of the environment actAn Australian court has found a Japanese whaling company guilty of “wilful contempt” of court for breaching an order to stop killing whales, and has fined it $1m.On Wednesday, the Australian federal court heard an application by Humane Society International (HSI) as part of a decade-long legal battle against the company Kyodo Senpaku to stop Japan killing whales within Australia’s Antarctic whale sanctuary. Continue reading...

Data suggests giant climatic event could be the strongest on record, meaning rains for drought-stricken California and a worsening of the coral die-offThe giant El Niño climatic event is set to bring rain to drought-stricken California by January, but is likely to exacerbate a widespread die-off of corals in the ocean, new data suggests.

US Fish and Wildlife Service has allowed one of world’s rarest wolves to be killed, as an estimated 50 to 75 are left in North Carolina wilderness, lawsuit allegesThe US government has failed to properly protect the red wolf, one of the world’s rarest wolves, by allowing a member of the species’ small wild population to be killed, conservationists have claimed.

Stanford University president John Hennessy was asked about his current policies on fossil fuel divestment while getting his hair cut at a local barber. In a video posted online by the Fountain Hopper, Hennessey is told there are more than 100 students protesting outside his office and asked if he will meet with them. He says he cannot see them right away, but that they can make an appointment

Scientists have discovered a breed of sandpiper with four different sexes. It makes for a complicated mating seasonName: Ruffs.Age: Up to four-and-a-half years, on average. Continue reading...

Activists object to French government proposals to scale down protest on 29 November amid security fears following terrorist attacksTalks between the French foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, and campaigners over the fate of a huge march before the forthcoming Paris climate summit have ended without agreement.In the wake of attacks in Paris last Friday, the French government proposed scaling down the protest from a march on 29 November – which organisers had hoped would draw hundreds of thousands of people – to a stationary rally. Continue reading...

Judges make order amid concerns that smoke and ash spewing from mausoleum could harm marble monumentIndia’s supreme court has ordered a state government to remove a wood-burning crematorium near the Taj Mahal to protect the monument from pollution damage.The judges made the order after receiving a letter from another supreme court judge, who said he had noticed the mausoleum spewing smoke and ash during a recent visit to the monument and was concerned about the impact of air pollution on the marble structure. Continue reading...

A government cull of tens of thousands of bats has no scientific basis and is putting the survival of the species at risk, coalition saysConservationists are calling for an end to a government cull of tens of thousands of fruit bats in Mauritius that they say is putting the survival of the threatened species at risk.Authorities began shooting 18,000 Mauritius fruit bats (Pteropus niger) on 7 November, despite protests and even though the species is protected on the Indian Ocean island and listed as vulnerable by the IUCN, the world’s conservation union. Continue reading...

Australian environmental group asks court in Sydney to find Japanese whalers in contempt of a 2008 ruling banning fleet from the Southern OceanEnvironmental campaigners are launching a last-ditch legal attempt to prevent Japan from slaughtering whales in the Antarctic this winter, after Tokyo indicated it would ignore a ban on its “scientific” expeditions.

US firm’s plan to produce GM salmon eggs in Canada and ship them to Panama threatens contamination of wild fish in a ‘huge live experiment’, lawsuit arguesEnvironmental groups are taking the Canadian government to court in an attempt to halt the production of genetically modified salmon eggs, claiming that the process risks a “huge live experiment” with the genetic makeup of all wild Atlantic salmon.A US firm has been granted permission to produce fertile salmon eggs in Canada and ship them to Panama, where they will be grown in the hope that the fish will be given approval for human consumption in the US and Canada. Continue reading...

The banning of fishing in a newly created Pacific marine sanctuary will help stocks recover and attract high-end tourist dollars as a replacement source of incomeThe recent decision by the Pacific island nation of Palau to end fishing in a California-sized swath of tuna-rich ocean comes at a time of record overfishing and will help the populations of bigeye and yellowfin to recover, scientists say.Officials hope that the new reserve will boost sustainable tourism revenues as well as fish populations, as ordinary divers and even snorkelers will be able to experience the difference that protection measures can make. Continue reading...

Figures from October show carmaker sold fewer of its mass market brands – VW, Seat and Skoda – at a time that the overall market was growingVolkswagen’s European sales and market share slipped in October, industry data has showed, as the German carmaker’s emissions-cheating scandal began to take its toll at a time when the overall market continued to grow.New passenger car registrations in the EU and European Free Trade Association trading bloc rose 2.7% last month on a year ago to 1.14m vehicles, according to figures from the Brussels-based Association of European Carmakers (ACEA) published on Tuesday. Continue reading...

New research shows that investing in clean cookstoves and solar lanterns could benefit people, the planet, and NGOs’ budgetsStretched humanitarian agencies could save millions of dollars – and reduce carbon emissions, deforestation and violence against women and girls – if solar power and other clean energy sources were installed at refugee camps, according to new analysis released today.In the first report looking into energy use in refugee camps around the world, a consortium of NGOs, thinktanks and donors says that the refugees’ energy use has been neglected by both the international energy access lobby and by humanitarian agencies. In refugee camps, 90% of families have no access to electricity. There’s also often no street lighting, putting women and girls at greater risk of sexual attack if they need to go to the toilet at night. Continue reading...

The drought that may prevent many South African farmers planting this year could lead to food shortages and social unrest, and stall land redistributionHannes Geldenhuys, a burly farmer in South Africa’s Gauteng province, surveys his fields. At this time of year, they should be a green, thigh-high carpet of maize and soybean. Instead, all he sees is the decaying residue of his last crop: hectare upon hectare of brittle, yellowing stalks.“Look, I’ve got goosebumps. In 40 years on the farm, from when I was a boy, I’ve never seen anything as bad,” he says. Continue reading...

Protesters against HS2 have been dismissed as nimbys, but there’s more at stake than house prices. Is there no future for life in the slow lane?Ron Ryall, wearing an oil-smudged blue boilersuit, was fettling a cream Morris Minor in his low wooden workshop on a lane where the suburbs of West Ruislip give way to scrapyards, dog kennels and horse paddocks. A strong whiff of solvents filled his shed and the rain battered on the roof. Ryall was born in a council house on this lane and started his car bodywork repair business there in 1962; it remained, he said, his own little world. Continue reading...

Claxton, Norfolk The summer woods are disrobing, and you can hear them do so one leaf at a timeOn these exceptionally still days I go to the copse by the marsh to listen to its subtlety one more time. You have to work to pick it out behind the blackbird commotion or the jay screech: a snick as a stalk breaks free and the leaf lullabies down.Often there is also the patter of its zigzag tumble through the branches and then a quiet rustle once it settles among the trees’ heap of old clothes. The summer woods are disrobing, and you can hear them do so one leaf at a time. Continue reading...

Students at prestigious US university demand it accelerate plans to divest parts of its $22.2bn endowment fund out of fossil fuelsStanford University students have begun an indefinite sit-in to protest against the institution’s investments in fossil fuels.According to protest organisers, more than 100 students attempted to enter the main administration building and office of the president on Monday afternoon. The students have been locked out but say they have encircled the building and will camp out there until Stanford acts on their demand to “completely divest” its financial holdings from the fossil fuel industry. Continue reading...

One of the most complex problems of man-made climate change is what our activities are doing to the clouds and rainfall. Certain generalities apply – the warmer it gets, for example, the more energy and moisture there are in the atmosphere and the weather gets more violent.Another factor is pollution. Traffic, factories and forest fires pump vast quantities of particles into the sky that would otherwise not be there. Around these particles droplets of water form, become clouds and eventually rain falls. Continue reading...

So-called Operation Noah’s Ark aims to relocate aquatic life from Doce river by moving fish in tanks provided by mining company Samarco to area lakesTeams of biologists are rushing to rescue fish from a river that was contaminated after two dams at an iron ore mine in Brazil collapsed earlier this month, unleashing a deadly wave of mud.Mining company Samarco said in a statement that it was providing logistical support to the so-called Operation Noah’s Ark effort aimed at saving aquatic life from the now-turbid waters of the Doce river. Experts have warned that the ecological harm caused by the 5 November breaches could last a generation. Continue reading...

Despite Friday’s horrific attacks, Obama and other world leaders will attend talks in France, as Republicans in Congress continue to fight Obama’s climate planThe point person behind Barack Obama’s environmental agenda has declared Americans are fed up with climate change denial and other efforts to wreck a Paris summit to stop global warming.Despite Friday’s horrific attacks, Obama and other world leaders still plan to travel to Paris on 30 November for the start of two weeks of talks aimed at securing a global agreement to reduce climate pollution. Continue reading...

Lufthansa and BA two thirds as fuel efficient as Norwegian Air Shuttle, says report by group that exposed VW emissions-rigging scandalThere is huge variation in fuel efficiency between transatlantic airlines, with British Airways and Lufthansa emitting 51% more carbon dioxide than the cleanest flyers, according to a report by the organisation that revealed the VW test-rigging scandal.Pollution from a non-stop transatlantic round trip averages around one tonne of CO2 per passenger, the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) research found – the same as would be clocked up in a year by commuting 22 miles to work daily in a Toyota Prius. Continue reading...