Michel Forst, UN special rapporteur, joins growing chorus of voices criticising jail terms handed to five defendantsThe lengthy multi-year sentences handed to Just Stop Oil activists are not acceptable in a democracy", a UN special rapporteur has said, as the government faced growing pressure to reverse the previous administration's hardline anti-protest" approach.Michel Forst, the UN special rapporteur for environmental defenders, joined a growing chorus of voices condemning the sentences handed down to the five defendants for planning non-violent protests on the M25. Continue reading...

Tourist hotspots including Ullapool and Fort William badly hit as biting insects enjoy damp, humid conditionsScotland's wet summer is providing perfect conditions for surges of midges, with experts saying worse is yet to come.This week the Scottish Midge Forecast predicted high numbers of the biting insects, reaching peaks of four and five on a scale of one to five. Continue reading...

Thousands have joined American Climate Corps, a new federal program that links young people with jobs in green energy and conservationDid you ever imagine spending a year restoring paths along the Appalachian Trail? Developing community gardens on a Caribbean island? Or helping neighbors electrify their homes?This summer, thousands of people in the US joined the American Climate Corps (ACC), a new federal program that connects young people with jobs in conservation, climate adaptation and green energy. Continue reading...

Chris Packham calls for meeting with attorney general as prominent figures condemn long jail terms for M25 activistsChris Packham has called for a meeting with the attorney general for England and Wales as he joined a chorus of prominent voices condemning long jail terms for Just Stop Oil protesters.Speaking after five activists were sentenced to up to five years for planning protests on the M25, the broadcaster and naturalist said: Be clear, be very, very clear, this is not just about climate activism. Continue reading...

Nominating Biden is a recipe for electing Trump,' says founder of Climate Defiance, while other groups stay quietSome climate campaigners are heaping further pressure on Joe Biden to drop out of the US presidential election, with activists staging a protest outside the Democratic National Committee's headquarters on Friday to demand the US president stand aside.Several dozen protesters are planning to blockade the DNC in Washington on Friday morning to call for a freeze on Biden's nomination, in favor of another candidate who could prevent Donald Trump becoming president and tearing up Biden's climate policies. Continue reading...

As heatwaves hit the US, farm workers struggle to wear PPE. The country now faces its biggest human outbreakExtreme heat may be a crucial factor behind the biggest bird flu outbreak in humans in the US as officials continue to track the virus' spread.A heatwave in Colorado likely caused personal protective equipment not to work correctly for workers culling poultry infected with H5N1, a highly pathogenic bird flu. Four people have tested positive for H5N1 and a fifth is also expected to have their case confirmed as bird flu, officials said this week. Continue reading...

From a Grand Designs-style property nestled underground to a remote timber-framed home on a hillside Continue reading...

Campaigners receive longest ever sentences for non-violent protest after being convicted of conspiracy to cause public nuisanceFive supporters of the Just Stop Oil climate campaign who conspired to cause gridlock on London's orbital motorway have been sentenced to lengthy jail terms by a judge who told them they had crossed the line from concerned campaigner to fanatic".Roger Hallam, Daniel Shaw, Louise Lancaster, Lucia Whittaker De Abreu and Cressida Gethin were found guilty last week of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance for coordinating direct action protests on the M25 over four days in November 2022. Continue reading...

Driven out by hunting and habitat loss, the birds are now nesting and breeding in a few pockets in EnglandWith their long, spoon-shaped beaks, it is perhaps little surprise that the RSPB has nicknamed the offspring of a spoonbill a teaspoon".It has been a bumper year for the snow-white wading birds, which have been found nesting and breeding in Cambridgeshire for the first time since the 17th century. Continue reading...

As the climate crisis causes heavier and more frequent floods across the US, one in four small businesses are one disaster away from shutting downAlejandra Palma lives in perpetual fear of the next storm.We are constantly checking the weather," said Palma, who co-owns Root Hill Cafe in Brooklyn's low-lying Gowanus neighborhood. If we see that there's a hurricane in Florida, it's like, oh my God, please let it not come here." Continue reading...

Union says members being kept up at night' over failure to commit to continue payments at current rateFarmers are facing a cliff edge" as the Labour government refuses to commit to maintaining the agriculture budget for England, the president of the National Farmers' Union has said.The issue is one of the first pressures Labour is facing over its tight fiscal rules, along with a rebellion on the party's refusal to remove the two-child benefit cap. Continue reading...

Marathon Petroleum predecessor warned of potential for social and economic calamities' in decades-old publicationThe corporate predecessor to America's largest refiner of oil, Marathon Petroleum, explained in a company periodical nearly 50 years ago that global temperature rise potentially linked to industrial expansion" could one day cause widespread starvation and other social and economic calamities".This decades-old description of climate breakdown is from a 1977 issue of the magazine Marathon World and is attributed in the article by an unnamed author to several experts including a scientist working for a top US agency. Continue reading...

Some scientists want to stop naming new species after public figures, especially as it can threaten an animal's survival, but others say it can be a helpful conservation toolWhen Lady Gaga held a Q&A on Reddit for a 2014 album release, there was one question that took the botany world by storm: what's it like to have a genus of ferns named after you? Pretty cool," she responded, especially since it's an asexual fern."The 19 fern species of the Gaga genus are found from Bolivia to the south-west US, and were named after the singer partly for their G-A-G-A genetic sequence. All sexless, judgeless," she added. How I wish to be." Continue reading...

A team of scientists are trying to find the cause of what is becoming an increasingly common event - and the answer may be hidden deep in the whales' skullsA mass stranding last week that led to the deaths of 77 pilot whales on the Orkney island of Sanday was the largest ever recorded of the species on British shores. Initially, 12 of the animals at Tresness beach were still alive - but sadly did not survive.The event occurred almost exactly a year after the stranding of 55 pilot whales on Tolsta beach on the Isle of Lewis in the Hebrides on 16 July 2023. All but one of those whales died. According to Dr Andrew Brownlow, director of the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme (SMASS) at Glasgow University, this may not be a coincidence. Continue reading...

A sustainable project aims to repurpose encroacher bush to create building blocks to solve Namibia's housing crisisPeople think the house would smell because the blocks are made of all-natural products, but it doesn't smell," says Kristine Haukongo. Sometimes, there is a small touch of wood, but otherwise it's completely odourless."Haukongo is the senior cultivator at the research group MycoHab and her job is pretty unusual. She grows oyster mushrooms on chopped-down invasive weeds before the waste is turned into large, solid brown slabs - mycoblocks - that will be used, it's hoped, to build Namibian homes. Continue reading...

Scientists say government's approach to emissions cutting is high risk' and reliant on immature technologies'New Zealand's ambitious plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050 is at risk of being derailed, as the government backslides on climate policies, new figures show.In 2019, the Labour government passed landmark climate legislation, committing the nation to reducing its carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 and meeting its commitments under the Paris climate accords. It requires future governments to detail how New Zealand will meet its greenhouse gas targets on the way to a carbon-neutral future. Continue reading...

Snakebites, the deadliest of neglected tropical diseases', often impact rural communities the most but a new study offers hope

Fourteen attorneys general petition federal emergency officials as millions in US under excessive heat advisoriesFourteen state attorneys general are urging the federal government to declare extreme heat and wildfire smoke major disasters. The petition comes as millions of people in the south and north-east face excessive heat advisories, and large swaths of the western US and Canada battle ongoing wildfires.The likelihood of high-severity extreme heat and wildfire smoke events is increasing due in part to climate change," wrote the Arizona attorney general, Kris Mayes, in a letter submitted to the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Tuesday. We urge Fema to update its regulations to prepare for this hotter, smokier future." Continue reading...

Three restaurant owners share their experiences feeding people - and leveraging their positions to tell humanizing storiesAs some of the most visible Palestinian establishments in American cultural life, Palestinian restaurants have found themselves thrust into the spotlight in a new way over the last nine months of Israel's bombardment of Gaza.Some have rejoiced at finally being able to list themselves on Google as Palestinian, as opposed to the more vague Middle Eastern or Mediterranean, and found a new customer base in the form of people looking to demonstrate their solidarity. Others have found themselves suddenly flooded with one-star reviews designed to tank their online rankings, been robbed, or even received death threats for putting their Palestinian identities on display. Continue reading...

Illuminated signs have increased nocturnal artificial light and are detrimental to the city's liveability and sustainability, a review has found

There are fewer than 400 of critically endangered species left and sighting gives glimmer of hope'A critically endangered North Atlantic right whale has been spotted off the coast of Ireland for the first time in more than a century.Holidaymaker Adrian Maguire, from County Tyrone in Northern Ireland, glimpsed the large, dark body of the whale on the surface of the water while out fishing for mackerel. Continue reading...

Energy giant promised to turn 1m tonnes of plastic waste into oil each year, but now says goal is unfeasibleThe energy giant Shell has quietly backed away from a pledge to rapidly increase its use of advanced recycling", a practice oil and petrochemical producers have promoted as a solution to the plastics pollution crisis.Advanced" or chemical" recycling involves breaking down plastic polymers into tiny molecules that can be made into synthetic fuels or new plastics. The most common form, pyrolysis, does so using heat. Continue reading...

Anne Hidalgo fulfils pledge after cleanup operation makes water quality safe enough to host events at GamesIt has been the dream and promise of Paris mayors for decades and a nightmare for Olympic organisers: could the Seine be cleaned up enough to swim in and hold triathlon and other events?For the last 100 years and up until a few days ago, the answer seemed to be no. Continue reading...

Labour government recognises urgency of climate challenge' but presents measures as way to also cut cost of living

Natalie Anastasia Davies to create works inspired by the mysterious rock formations' at North Yorkshire siteBrimham Rocks in North Yorkshire has its first writer in residence, who has been recruited by the National Trust to create works inspired by the mysterious and awe-inspiring rock formations".Natalie Anastasia Davies, who is Yorkshire-born and of Grenadian descent, will in her new role explore themes of cultural identity and the climate crisis, as well as connection and memory. Continue reading...

Footage shows severe flooding across Toronto after the Canadian city was hit by three big storms in recent days. The Canadian rapper Drake shared a video on Instagram appearing to show parts of his home submerged in flood water. Authorities say the storm left 167,000 people without power and several flights were delayed or cancelled. At least 14 people were rescued Continue reading...

World's oldest known open caves now impossible to access, as only remaining road shuts down for repairs for 18 months

Campaigners are concerned at how the tourist treat could affect the species, and how it could become an event like whale watching or shark divingA tall, slim fin slashes the Mediterranean's surface for a split second and the bait fish is gone, provoking a few gasps and some nervous laughs from the 40 or so snorkellers lined up to enter the open-water pen.Most wear wetsuits and clutch masks and air tubes, a few are in swim shorts and goggles. Some have already had a beer or a glass of wine. The midday sun is out, The Trammps' Disco Inferno is playing from the catamaran's speakers and now people are climbing down a stepladder into a ring of netting that stretches 35 metres down into the sea near the Spanish port of L'Ametlla de Mar, about 80 miles from Barcelona. Continue reading...

A fox in the sun, fireflies and a brush fire, and trees blanketed with butterflies are among the striking images caught by winners of the California Academy of Sciences' annual contest. Now in its 11th year, it highlights biodiversity and the many threats our planet faces Continue reading...

Researchers from California Polytechnic State University have set up a webcam to observe a 'mega den' of as many as 2,000 rattlesnakes. Emily Taylor, the Cal Poly biology professor leading the Project RattleCam research, says the exact location in Colorado is being kept secret to keep snake lovers - or haters - away Continue reading...

Nashville and surrounding areas have been hit by severe storms and flooding, overwhelming city's infrastructureResidents in Nashville, Illinois, are evacuating their homes after emergency management officials warned the failure of the city's dam was imminent".Nashville, a small city in Illinois with a population of nearly 3,000 people, and surrounding areas have been hit with severe storms which have caused flooding, overwhelming the city's infrastructure. More than 5in of rain fell in the region within six hours on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Half of Americans live in states without rules restricting disconnections for unpaid or overdue bills, report findsMillions of low-income households are at risk of having their power disconnected this summer, exacerbating the risk of deadly heat as the climate crisis drives up temperatures.A new report by the Centre for Energy Poverty and Climate (EPC) and the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (Neada) found that almost half of Americans live in states without rules restricting disconnections for unpaid or overdue energy bills during potentially deadly heatwaves, forcing some low-income families to choose between cooling their homes and paying rent. Continue reading...

Government will also overhaul state laws after Guardian Australia uncovered serious problems with biodiversity offsets scheme

Authorities asked residents of small, rural community to leave, nearly a year after deadliest US wildfire struck in MauiFirefighters have contained a wind-swept wildfire that was threatening about 200 homes on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, nearly a year after an explosive blaze killed more than a hundred people on nearby Maui.Residents of about 200 homes in a small, rural community on Kauai were told to evacuate on Monday, as firefighters worked to stop the spread of a fire between Hanapepe and Kaumakani. Continue reading...

Award for Lawrence Gosden comes after criticism of business plan and attempts to increase bills by 73%

Company insists project should go ahead despite new government saying it had been unlawfully approvedThe company behind the first new coalmine in the UK for 30 years has argued in the high court on Tuesday that it would be a unique net zero" mine.West Cumbria Mining (WCM) continued to defend the legality of its mine, which will produce 60m tonnes of coking coal in its lifetime, in the court days after the government said its planning permission was unlawful because it had not taken into account downstream emissions from using the coal. Continue reading...

Vance's record shows pattern of prioritizing fossil fuel interests' over the climate crisis, environmentalist saysJD Vance's close ties to the fossil fuels industry and eagerness to please Donald Trump pose a major threat to Americans and the planet, environmental advocates have warned.The Republican nominee for vice-president, a wealthy venture capitalist who was elected to the US Senate in 2022, went from voicing concern about the climate crisis before running for political office to voting to roll back environmental protections and to repeal landmark climate legislation boosting renewables and electric vehicles. Continue reading...

New peak may be challenged as early as Tuesday evening as mid-winter bites in Melbourne

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From sea carrots' to the rubbery luga, Rodolfo Guzman is on a mission to transform seaweed's unique salty flavours into irresistible bitesRodolfo Guzman produces a carrot-shaped pod of algae from one of the packed shelves in his test kitchen in the Chilean capital, Santiago: Put it on your tongue for five seconds," he instructs. An explosion of salty flavour ensues.Imagine getting more kids to eat stuff like this!" he says, eagerly. Instead of processed snacks like Pringles, they could eat something healthy and delicious from the sea." Continue reading...

Scientists believe the world's rarest whale may have washed up on a New Zealand beach. Spade-toothed beaked whales have never been seen alive; beaked whales are believed to be exceptionally deep divers, spending their time far below the surface hunting squid and small fish. The specimen has been transported to cold storage and is awaiting examination. If confirmed to be a spade-tooth whale, it will be the first ever to be dissected by scientists. Continue reading...

Thirty-year-old airlifted from fishing vessel after coming into contact with venomous reptileA man is recovering after being bitten by a sea snake on a fishing vessel off the coast of the Northern Territory.The man, a fishing crew member in his 30s, was bitten on Monday morning while aboard the vessel in the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf, near the border of the NT and Western Australia.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...

Conservationists link previous fishing trips to a population crash in stocks of extraordinary species

When I was in school, for a few weeks every year, caterpillars were the most exciting thing happening

Nearly 300,000 residents without electricity as governor gives company until end of month to address outagesPower outages persist in Houston, Texas, after Hurricane Beryl tore through the area last week leavings hundreds of thousands of residents without electricity in the middle of a brutal heatwave.Nearly 300,000 customers have now gone almost a week without electricity and air conditioning during excessive heat where temperatures are reaching 94F (34C). Continue reading...

The hikers were a father and daughter lost in Canyonlands and a woman who passed out at Snow Canyon state parkThree hikers died over the weekend in suspected heat-related cases at state and national parks in Utah, including a father and daughter who got lost on a strenuous hike in Canyonlands national park in triple-digit temperatures.The daughter, 23, and her father, 52, sent a 911 text alerting dispatchers that they were lost and had run out of water while hiking the 8.1-mile (13km) Syncline Loop, described by the National Park Service as the most challenging trail in the Island in the Sky district of the south-east Utah park. Continue reading...

Figure represents 64-66% of global output of tetrafluoromethane and hexafluoroethane, MIT study findsEmissions of two of the most potent greenhouse gases have substantially increased in China over the last decade, a study has found.Perfluorocarbons are used in the manufacturing processes for flat-panel TVs and semiconductors, or as by-products from aluminium smelting. They are far more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than CO2, and can persist in the Earth's atmosphere for thousands of years, unlike CO2 which can persist for up to 200 years. Continue reading...

Winds blow particulates from drying lake into minority neighborhoods, exposing people to harmful particulatesToxic dust storms from the dried, exposed Great Salt Lake bed disproportionately poisons the air in Utah neighborhoods with higher levels of Hispanic and Pacific Islander populations, new research finds.The disparity between their average exposure and those of white populations will grow as the lake dries further. Continue reading...

Lending puts banks in complete violation' of commitments to Paris agreement, climate group says, even as overall funding to sector ebbs

Blazing temperatures force people to find new ways to keep their pets safe, cool and occupied: They sit, pee and go home'Heat-resistant bootees, frozen bananas and pet sunscreen - it takes a lot to keep dogs safe during a nationwide heatwave. As pet owners across the US try to keep cool themselves, they're changing dog-walking habits to accommodate boiling sidewalks or scorching parks, relying on indoor pet games to relish air conditioning, and embracing what has become a new normal for the dog days of summer, as extreme heat becomes an increasingly common reality.Julie Nashawaty, a professional dog walker who lives in Boston, says her various trips to take pups out around the city have become shorter, as the temperatures reached 90 to 100 degrees this week. These are really quick breaks, quick walks," she said. They sit in the shade under the tree, pee, and then it's straight back home, where sometimes I'll even put a cooling blanket on them." She also puts little boots on dogs' paws, so their bare feet don't have to touch blazing concrete. Continue reading...