Environment | The Guardian

Campaigners call on banks to cease funding Ithaca, which is playing a key role in Rosebank oilfield planTwo major UK high street banks have been accused of continuing to finance fossil fuel expansion in the North Sea despite signing a pledge to align their activities with the net zero climate goal.HSBC and NatWest have provided tens of millions in finance to Ithaca Energy, a British oil and gas company that is playing a key role in plans to exploit the controversial Rosebank oilfield north-west of the Shetland Islands. Another high street bank, Lloyds, also provided finance but has since sold down the debt. Continue reading...

Police called after the 1.4-metre freshwater crocodile wandered into the Townsville business

World water development report warns that access is major source of conflict between countriesWomen and girls are the first to suffer when drought strikes poor and rural areas, and water strategies around the world must reflect this, the UN has said in a plea to countries to mend conflicts over water resources.Stress on water resources, which is being exacerbated by the climate crisis, as well as overuse and pollution of the world's freshwater systems, is a large source of conflict, according to the latest UN world water development report. Continue reading...

States including Texas, Louisiana and Florida say federal government lacks authority to broadly deny permitsSixteen US states, including Texas, Louisiana and Florida, have filed a lawsuit to challenge the US federal government's ban on approving applications to export liquefied natural gas, the office of Texas attorney general Ken Paxton said on Thursday.The lawsuit argues the federal government lacks the authority to broadly deny those permits. Continue reading...

MSPs vote for controls as it emerges another hen harrier has vanished in area notorious' for persecutionGrouse moors across Scotland will be required to hold licences and could face shooting bans as part of radical measures to combat bird of prey persecution passed by MSPs on Thursday.The Scottish parliament voted for the controls amid intense pressure from conservation scientists and campaigners after decades of illegal attacks on birds of prey by gamekeepers instructed to protect grouse on shooting estates from being eaten. Continue reading...

Port Kembla facility will be able to meet all of Victoria's needs and cover for 70% of New South Wales, according to Squadron Energy

Welney landlord fears business may not survive impact of increasingly lengthy spells of flooding on customer numbersDennis Birch estimates his pub loses about 3,000 a week when the road into the village of Welney is closed because of flooding - and this winter, it was closed for a record-breaking 89 days.Now labelled the most flooded road in Britain", Birch said he questions whether the 18th-century Lamb and Flag can survive the impact the flooding has on the number of customers coming through his door. Continue reading...

Public Citizen, a non-profit group, proposed the idea last year to prosecute companies for millions of deaths due to climate crisisEach year, extreme temperatures take 5 million lives, while 400,000 people die from climate-related hunger and disease and scores perish in floods and wildfires.Now, researchers are promoting a new legal theory that says fossil fuel companies - which, data show, are the leading contributors to planet-heating pollution - could be tried for homicide for climate-related deaths. Continue reading...

Here's what happened when two climate reporters tried to ditch natural gas This story is co-published with Grist

New industries such as cryptocurrency and cannabis are boosting industry forecasts, straining efforts to cut emissionsWhat's happening with US energy?Demand for power is soaring, creating a new energy crisis for the United States - one that could make the climate crisis even worse. Continue reading...

Suit claims bibs, produced by Bumkins, leaves babies exposed to high levels of forever chemicals' and do not have warning labelsDC and Marvel comic-themed baby and toddler bibs are contaminated with toxic PFAS forever chemicals", leaving kids exposed to carcinogens that can easily be ingested, a new California lawsuit alleges.Among others, the suit names the bibs' US producer and Amazon as defendants. Under Proposition 65, products sold in California that contain PFOA, a highly toxic PFAS compound that was phased out of production in the US, must at a minimum contain a warning. Continue reading...

Some of our favorite foods and drinks rely on these oft-misunderstood mammals, which are facing multiple threatsIf you've ever enjoyed coffee, tomatoes, corn, bananas, mangoes, walnuts, chocolate, tequila or mezcal, you may just owe bats a thank-you.While bats are often the subject of fear and scorn - they're fixtures in Halloween decor and haunted-house imagery, and are frequently portrayed as harbingers of doom - their presence is often a sign of a thriving ecosystem. Some of our favorite food and drinks would be much less plentiful, or even nonexistent, without them. Continue reading...

Stars of Avatar: The Way of Water photographed in baroque style by Christy Lee RogersPhotographs of the actors Kate Winslet, Zoe Saldana and Sigourney Weaver seemingly floating underwater in elaborate blue dresses, with eyes shut and arms outstretched, are to be sold to raise money for ocean conservation.The images are the work of one of the world's most celebrated underwater photographers, Christy Lee Rogers, who teamed up with the stars of the 2022 film Avatar: The Way of Water and its director, James Cameron, a longtime proponent of ocean conservation, who commissioned the photoshoot. Continue reading...

High temperatures in February affected millions of people and put further pressure on chocolate pricesA searing heatwave that struck west Africa in February was made 4C hotter and 10 times more likely by human-caused global heating, a study has found.The heat affected millions of people but the number of early deaths or cases of illness are unknown, due to a lack of reporting. Continue reading...

Poet laureate produces 10 poems, haiku and a musical EP, working with National Trust as it renews its blossom campaignHe imagines blossom as fancy dress, as an artist or a magician lighting up countryside, town and city. Yes, it is a thing of beauty and joy but also, sometimes, a pertinent reminder of changing climate patterns.On World Poetry Day and to celebrate spring, the poet laureate, Simon Armitage, has launched a collection celebrating the bright blossom that sweeps through the UK at this time of year. Continue reading...

Established 24 years ago, the Carrifran Wildwood has been credited with inspiring the current surge of rewilding projects across the UK and beyondAbout 6,000 years ago, most of southern Scotland was covered by broadleaf woodland, interspersed with patches of rich scrub, heath and bog. In stark contrast, the landscape today is dominated by close-cropped, severely nature-depleted hills, punctuated by sharp-edged blocks of non-native spruce plantation.Now, thanks to the Carrifran Wildwood, one of the UK's first community-led rewilding projects, patches of habitat resembling Scotland's primeval forest are staging a comeback. Continue reading...

Nine out of ten producers and sellers do not fulfil their legal duty to help consumers dispose of e-cigarettes, study showsA quarter of a billion disposable vapes could be dumped before a ban comes in next year as most retailers are not fulfilling their legal duty to help consumers recycle them, according to new research.

Rule, hailed as historic step on climate crisis, will have slashed more than 7bn tons of carbon dioxide emissions by 2055In a move being hailed as one of the most significant climate rules in US history, the Biden administration announced on Wednesday new regulations on tailpipe emissions. The rule, which calls for a 56% reduction in fleetwide average carbon emissions by 2032, constitutes the strictest-ever limit on pollution from the nation's cars and light trucks.Today, we're setting new pollution standards for cars and trucks," Joe Biden said in a statement. US workers will lead the world on autos making clean cars and trucks, each stamped Made in America'. You have my word." Continue reading...

Authorities advise parents to keep children indoors during extreme heatwave, expected to last two weeksSouth Sudan is closing all schools from Monday in preparation for an extreme heatwave expected to last two weeks.The health and education ministries have advised parents to keep all children indoors as temperatures are expected to soar to 45C (113F). Continue reading...

For the first time in 10 years, a baby pygmy hippo has been born at Attica Zoological Park. Zoo staff said they were thrilled to welcome the birth as a lack of male pygmy hippos in captivity made breeding efforts complicated. The rare male calf was born on 19 February and joins his parents, Lizzie and Jamal, as the only pygmy hippos at the zoo. Native to western Africa, pygmy hippos are listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Continue reading...

Operator also found by Amsterdam court to have painted overly rosy picture' of sustainable aviation fuelThe Dutch airline KLM has misled customers with vague environmental claims and painted an overly rosy picture" of its sustainable aviation fuel, a court has found.In a greenwashing case brought by the campaign group Fossielvrij, the district court of Amsterdam ruled on Wednesday that KLM had broken the law with misleading advertising in 15 of the 19 environmental statements it assessed. They include claims that the airline is moving towards a more sustainable" future and statements on its website about the benefits of offsetting a flight. Continue reading...

Global witness analysis suggests 11.5 million deaths could be caused by burning of fuel produced by 2050The emissions from burning oil and gas produced by the world's leading fossil fuel companies could cause millions of excess heat deaths before the end of the century, according to a new analysis.The study from Global Witness found that the combined emissions from fossil fuels produced by Shell, BP, TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil and Chevron up to 2050 could result in 11.5 million excess deaths from heat by 2100. Continue reading...

NSW environment department spokesperson says offset program for the area has continued despite failure to file reports for three years

Executives at Texas summit claim clean-energy transition is failing and say world should abandon the fantasy' of fossil-fuel phaseoutThe bosses of the world's leading oil and gas companies have poured scorn on efforts to move away from fossil fuels, complaining that a visibly failing" transition to clean energy was being pushed forward at an unrealistic pace".The oil executives, gathered at the industry's annual Cera Week conference in Houston, Texas, have taken turns this week to denounce calls for a rapid phase-out of fossil fuels, despite widespread acknowledgment within the industry, as well as scientists and governments, of the need to radically reduce planet-heating emissions to avoid the worst effects of the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Yurok Tribe, which had 90% of its territory taken during the gold rush, will get 125 acres returned after it was stolen in the mid-1800sCalifornia's Yurok Tribe, which had 90% of its territory taken from it during the gold rush of the mid-1800s, will be getting a slice of its land back to serve as a new gateway to Redwood national and state parks visited by 1 million people a year.The Yurok will be the first Native people to manage tribal land with the National Park Service under a historic memorandum of understanding signed on Tuesday by the tribe, Redwood national and state parks and the non-profit Save the Redwoods League. Continue reading...

Shuttering of New York facility raises awkward climate crisis questions as gas - not renewables - fills gap in power generationWhen New York's deteriorating and unloved Indian Point nuclear plant finally shuttered in 2021, its demise was met with delight from environmentalists who had long demanded it be scrapped.But there has been a sting in the tail - since the closure, New York's greenhouse gas emissions have gone up. Continue reading...

Climate Change Committee finds Scottish government has repeatedly failed to make cuts required by lawScotland's pledge to cut its climate emissions by 75% by 2030 is no longer credible" and cannot be met, the UK's climate watchdog has said.In a damning report submitted to the Scottish parliament, the UK Climate Change Committee (CCC) accused the Scottish government of repeatedly failing to live up to its legally binding targets. Continue reading...

Analysis shows alarming prevalence of harmful fishing methods thought to destroy whole ecosystems'Industrial vessels suspected of using a harmful fishing method known as bottom trawling spent more than 33,000 hours in British marine protected areas last year, a new analysis of satellite data shows.Ten of these vessels, primarily from the EU, were responsible for a quarter of this activity in offshore protected areas, according to Oceana UK, a conservation group. Continue reading...

Greenhouse gases from sector could make up 44% of continent's total output by 2030, says transport groupThe failure to tackle Europe's runaway" transport emissions could lead to the sector pumping out nearly half of the continent's planet-heating pollution by 2030, a report has found.Driven by polluting cars and pushed higher by the growing thirst for flights, transport emissions in Europe have grown 26% since 1990 - even as efforts to clean up other areas of the economy have led to an overall emissions fall. Continue reading...

WARNING: contains images some viewers may find distressingFootage supplied to Guardian Australia shows koalas clinging to falling blue gums as logging occurs on Kangaroo Island in South Australia. The footage was taken across two days in November 2023 and January 2024. Logging has been stopped while an investigation takes place.

Analysis finds almost nine in 10 planned new school sites exceed three WHO targets - and all breach at least one of themEvery new school in England is being built in an area with unsafe levels of air pollution, according to a damning report that says thousands of children will experience alarmingly poor" air quality.Children are particularly vulnerable to the harmful effects of air pollution because their bodies, organs and immune systems are still developing. Continue reading...

Year of devastating wildfires meant Canadians were breathing worse air than southern neighbours for first time everCanada's pristine air quality has been long praised by its citizens and prized by its government. But the thick plumes of smoke and miles of haze released by a record-breaking season of wildfires deteriorated the country's air so much that it has fallen behind the United States for the first time on record, highlighting the wide-ranging and damaging effects of the blazes.In its sixth annual World Air Quality report released on Tuesday, the Switzerland-based IQAir found overall air quality in Canada was worse than its southern neighbour. Of the 15 most polluted cities in the two countries, 14 were in Canada. Overall, Canada and the United States were ranked 93 and 102 for their air quality (Bangladesh, at No 1 was the most polluted). Continue reading...

Shadow chancellor to use annual Mais lecture to set out plans to green the economy if party wins electionA Labour government will make fighting global heating a priority for the Bank of England as it seeks to put environmental sustainability at the heart of its plans to grow the economy, Rachel Reeves is to announce.The shadow chancellor will say in a speech in London on Tuesday evening that if Labour wins the general election she will reverse Jeremy Hunt's decision last year to downgrade the emphasis on the climate crisis in Threadneedle Street's main objectives. Continue reading...

Catch of 11 snakes after discovery of two mating balls' adds to total of 34,000lbs of pythons captured in one part of state since 2013Wildlife experts in Florida recently captured 500lb worth of Burmese pythons after finding two large snake mating balls" in the south-west of the state, as part of a continued effort to prevent the non-native species from harming Floridian wildlife.The catch of a total of 11 pythons was a record for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida (CSWF), the Miami Herald reported - and it adds to the total of 34,000lb of pythons captured in that part of the state since 2013. Continue reading...

Incarcerated people often must drink unhealthy water, a particularly cruel - but not unusual - form of punishmentRussell Rowe spent almost two and a half years in Washington DC's central detention facility, where rusty water flowed from taps in sinks that were connected to toilets. He remembers dawdling at the nurse's station when it was time to take his meds, in hopes she'd give him an extra, tiny portion" cup of water, the cup that often holds or accompanies pills.I was just in a state of constant dehydration," he said. My whole body felt different. I just didn't feel well." Continue reading...

Records being broken for greenhouse gas pollution, surface temperatures and ocean heatThe world has never been closer to breaching the 1.5C (2.7F) global heating limit, even if only temporarily, the United Nations' weather agency has warned.The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed on Tuesday that 2023 was the hottest year on record by a clear margin. In a report on the climate, it found that records were once again broken, and in some cases smashed" for key indicators such as greenhouse gas pollution, surface temperatures, ocean heat and acidification, sea level rise, Antarctic sea ice cover and glacier retreat. Continue reading...

Teluk has one of country's dirtiest beaches and the problem has worsened due to weatherAn Indonesian fishing village has been inundated with tonnes of rubbish after recent heavy rains resulted in stronger tides.Teluk, in the Indonesian province of Banten on the western edge of Java island, has one of the country's dirtiest beaches. But the arrival of tonnes of rubbish on the shore has shocked residents. Continue reading...

Conservationists plead for coexistence as shrinking forests drive conflict, with elephant deaths doubling in a decadeSetting out from home to collect firewood on a cool spring morning last year, Harshini Wanninayake and her mother had no idea only one of them would come back alive. The pair were walking to a nearby forest from Eriyawa, a village in north-west Sri Lanka, when they heard a loud rustling close by.It came out of nowhere," says Wanninayake. The elephant was behind the thicket and took us completely by surprise." Continue reading...

Almost all countries failing to meet mark for PM2.5, tiny particles expelled by vehicles and industry that can cause health problemsOnly seven countries are meeting an international air quality standard, with deadly air pollution worsening in places due to a rebound in economic activity and the toxic impact of wildfire smoke, a new report has found.Of 134 countries and regions surveyed in the report, only seven - Australia, Estonia, Finland, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius and New Zealand - are meeting a World Health Organization (WHO) guideline limit for tiny airborne particles expelled by cars, trucks and industrial processes. Continue reading...

We should focus on rooftop solar - Australians love itA missing element from much of the debate about whether Australia should embrace nuclear power is that - unless the Labor rank-and-file have an extraordinary change of heart - the issue is already dead on arrival.John Howard and Scott Morrison knew the score on this. Unless there is bipartisan support, a nuclear industry has virtually no chance of being developed. And as things stand there is no chance of the ALP changing its position. Continue reading...

High-capacity electrical spine' to run onshore from north-east Scotland to north-west EnglandA 58bn plan to rewire Great Britain's electricity grid to connect up new windfarms off the coast of Scotland is expected to trigger tensions with communities along the route.National Grid's electricity system operator (ESO) has mapped out power motorways" across Great Britain to allow for the biggest investment since the 1960s. Continue reading...

Study says the 19% of kids using unfiltered tap water have about twice as much lead in their blood as they would otherwiseAbout 129,000 Chicago children under the age of six are exposed to poisonous lead in their household drinking water because of lead pipes, according to a study published on Monday.The study used artificial intelligence to analyse 38,000 home water tests conducted for the city of Chicago, along with neighborhood demographics, state blood samples and numerous other factors. Continue reading...

Labour shadow energy minister will use speech to say Tory approach is also leading to higher billsMinisters are stoking the fires of the culture wars over the UK's net zero target instead of addressing the urgency of the climate crisis, Ed Miliband will say.The shadow energy secretary will make a pitch directly to Conservative voters who are concerned that the party has made major U-turns on cutting greenhouse gas emissions amid increasingly anti-green rhetoric. Continue reading...

Carrier says technology could be a reality by end of the next decade, as it launches a base in BirminghamEasyJet has joined aerospace manufacturers in urging the government to help fund hydrogen-powered flight, as the carrier launched an operation out of Birmingham airport - its first new UK base since 2012.The airline, along with companies including Airbus, Rolls-Royce and GKN, said hydrogen planes could be a reality by the end of the next decade, setting out a detailed roadmap to change the sector. Continue reading...

AgForce is seeking a judicial review of a 2022 decision that found the project did not need to be assessed under federal environmental laws

AGL Energy, Alinta, EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy say they will remain focused on renewables despite Coalition support for nuclear reactors

Northern town of Liptovsky Mikula declares state of emergency while hunt for animal takes placeFive people have been injured in the second bear attack in Slovakia in three days, officials have said, prompting a northern town to declare a state of emergency and authorities to propose reclassifying the animals' status on the protected species list.A 49-year-old woman was treated in hospital for an injury to her shoulder, and a 72-year-old man for a cut to his head, after the incident on Sunday in Liptovsky Mikula, near the Tatra mountains, local authorities said. Continue reading...

Mindanao island is the last stronghold of the endangered Philippine eagle. But now the raptor's habitat is at risk from logging, hunting and armed groupsChristian Daug whistles with all the spirit he can muster. The male and female were perched there yesterday," he says, pointing to a dead tree amid the sea of flora that smothers the tallest mountain on the Philippine archipelago.He whistles again as we look out over the jungle from a wooden observation post. This area is one of the last remaining strongholds of Pithecophaga jefferyi: one of the world's largest and rarest eagles. Measuring about a metre in height when perched, with a wingspan that can reach more than two metres (6.5ft), it is known locally as the monkey-eating eagle". The enormous raptors prey primarily on macaques, but also feed on pythons, chickens, cats and dogs. Continue reading...

Appeal court says defendants' beliefs and motivation' do not constitute lawful excuse for damaging propertyOne of the last defences for climate protesters who commit criminal damage has been in effect removed by the court of appeal. The court said the beliefs and motivation" of a defendant do not constitute lawful excuse for causing damage to a property.The defence that a person honestly believes the owner of a property would have consented had they known the full circumstances of climate change has been used successfully over the last year by protesters. Continue reading...

Academic experts also criticise UN Food and Agriculture Organization for dismissing alternative proteinsThe omission of meat-eating reduction from proposals in a UN roadmap to tackle the climate crisis and end hunger is bewildering", according to academic experts.The group also criticised the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's report for dismissing" the potential of alternative proteins, such as plant-based meat, to reduce the impact of livestock on the environment. Continue reading...