Chanonry Point, Highlands Bottlenose dolphins can regularly be seen breaching the waters here – particularly if there is a run of salmon on the making tideThis spit of land extending into the Moray Firth about 18 kilometres northeast of Inverness is one of the best places in Britain to see bottlenose dolphins without going to sea. They can regularly be seen breaching the waters here – particularly if there is a run of salmon on the making tide. Birdwatchers, photographers and onlookers of all ages gather by the Chanonry lighthouse to see the display.On my most recent visit, the dolphins were scything through the water with just their large fins showing. Experts say they can identify individuals by the variation in colour and markings, including nicks and clefts, on the fins, but, apart from one specimen with a large fin cleft, I doubt I would have been able to identify any of them again. Continue reading...

General Mills recently announced a commitment to cut its emissions by 28% in the next 10 years. Other companies can, and should, do the same

Huge aircraft such as Airbus A380 are now flying lower out of airport, independent study finds, creating higher level of disturbanceLow-flying “super-jumbo” passenger planes have increased noise for some communities around Heathrow, an independent study has shown.Research by PA Consulting, commissioned by Heathrow, confirmed complaints from residents that more planes were being concentrated on a flight path over Twickenham and Teddington, in the London borough of Richmond, with greatest disruption late at night and early in the morning.

In the run-up to the Paris climate talks, two books argue for drastic action to be taken to avoid a global calamityIn a few weeks, world leaders will gather in Paris in an attempt to reach a deal that will have critical implications for our species. At the COP21 climate talks, they will try to find a formula for reducing the world’s carbon emissions and give humanity an evens chance of holding global warming to a 2C rise above pre-industrial levels.Past efforts to negotiate such deals have been riddled with frustration and failures, in particular the 2009 climate talks in Copenhagen, which ended in disarray. However, there is a sense of guarded optimism in the air these days. Australian and Canadian premiers Tony Abbott and Stephen Harper – who led two of the planet’s worst fossil-fuel burning administrations – have recently been replaced by leaders who seem to understand our current plight. President Obama has begun to show some enthusiasm for the cause of climate-change action, while China and India, scheduled to become vast carbon emitters in coming decades, have made some promising pledges. Continue reading...

In an interview with Guardian Australia, the prime minister signals changes to make family benefits fairer as he promises pragmatic, ‘agile’ leadership

Mr Munro, the Fiordland crested penguin, stands patiently for his morning weigh-in, after some coaxing. He arrived at Sydney’s Taronga zoo in 2006, suffering from malnutrition and respiratory problems after swimming 2,000km across sub-Antarctic waters from New Zealand to New South Wales. Then, he weighed only 2kg but has since recovered to a healthy 3.3kg Continue reading...

Tilton Cutting, Leicestershire The railway excavators clawed through the soil and unearthed millions of ammonitesIn 1870 workmen who were excavating a cutting through the edge of Colborough Hill for a new railway line exposed a multitude of strange creatures that had not seen the light of day for more than 200m years.The workmen clawed through loose clayey mudstones and unearthed millions of ammonites, from the size of a palm to a fingernail, bearing ribbed coils variously sculpted, with sharp dense parallel ribs or gentle ripples. Continue reading...

The new strategy to save coal is to talk about the moral qualities of the ‘little black rock’ itself. Debunking this kind of overgrown student politics is fruitlessAustralia’s coal industry is on borrowed time. In general, renewables are becoming more efficient and major coal projects are being cancelled and scaled back. This is perhaps why have heard so much from the Coalition recently about the superior moral qualities of the “little black rock”.Related: Solar has won. Even if coal were free to burn, power stations couldn't compete | Giles Parkinson Continue reading...

The Competition and Markets Authority’s suggested measures for reform of the banking sector will have little effectThe Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had three options. The first was the radical one of breaking up the big banks on the grounds that nothing less would address the “striking” stability in market shares over time. The second route was the imaginative idea of abolishing “free” in-credit banking, thereby exposing the rotten rates for savers and, perhaps, encouraging punters to shop around. The third was a technocratic fiddle to try to tell customers what they’re missing.To the surprise of almost nobody, the CMA chose the third – a tickle. It used different language, of course. Alasdair Smith, the panel chairman, thinks the measures will have “a far-reaching impact on how banks operate and will empower account holders to search for and switch to the account that suits them best”. Continue reading...

A commercial fisherman who admitted to once pillaging the oceans has won the 2015 Fuller Challenge with a system that only grows restorative crops, such as seaweed and shellfishA commercial fisherman who admitted to once pillaging the oceans has won the 2015 Fuller Challenge, one of the most important prizes in sustainability.Bren Smith, executive director of nonprofit GreenWave, took home $100,000 for his 3D ocean farming model, designed to address overfishing, mitigate climate change, restore marine ecosystems and provide jobs for fishermen. Continue reading...

Grade II listed block on Regent Street is awarded highest eco rating for its green roof with solar panels and plants designed to attract birds, insects and batsA refurbished London office, retail and leisure block, incorporating a green roof to attract wildlife to the capital’s West End, is the first Grade II listed building to achieve an “outstanding” environmental rating.