The best of this week's wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...

From an unexpected glimpse of a silky anteater to a tagged terrapin, here is a selection of this year's winning, runner-up and commended images from the 2024 Mangrove photography awards, run by the Mangrove Action Project Continue reading...

Connection found between early exposure and bronchitic symptoms in adults without previous lung problemsAir pollution breathed in during childhood is one of the factors in adult lung health, according to a new study.The origins of the study date back to 1992 when researchers began investigating the effects of air pollution on groups of children in California. Some of these children are now in their 40s. Continue reading...

Researchers say 650 tonnes on order for Paris Games is a potential stress on local and regional resourcesFrom cold-water swimming to ice baths, deliberately freezing yourself has been hailed as a panacea for everything from menopause symptoms to arthritis, headaches and immunity conditions.And for sportspeople, ice is widely used to aid recovery after exercise. But now researchers have said the clinical benefits of ice therapy are not evidence-based and its popularity is bad for the environment. Continue reading...

European visitor rushed to hospital after briefly walking barefoot in California national park amid extreme heatA European visitor got third-degree burns on his feet while briefly walking barefoot on the sand dunes in California's Death Valley national park over the weekend, park rangers said Thursday.The rangers said the visitor was rushed to a hospital in nearby Nevada. Because of language issues, the rangers said they were not immediately able to determine whether the 42-year-old Belgian's flip-flops had somehow been broken or were lost at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes during a short Saturday walk. Continue reading...

More than 25,000 residents and tourists evacuated from national park region as firefighters forced into a retreatA fast-moving wildfire has destroyed parts of Jasper, the old mountain town in the Canadian Rockies, with the mayor warning the damage was beyond description and comprehension". The blaze had forced more than 25,000 people to flee earlier this week.Jasper national park officials said the fire entered the southern edge of the town on Wednesday evening. But, given the speed and intensity of the blaze, fire crews working to protect key infrastructure were ordered to retreat. Continue reading...

Secretary general said wealthiest countries are signing away our future' with more production and called for phase-out of fossil fuelsThe world's wealthiest countries are signing away our future" by leading a flood" of expansion in fossil fuel activity that threatens worsening heatwaves and other climate impacts that imperil billions of people, the head of the United Nations has warned.Antonio Guterres, secretary general of the UN, on Thursday called on countries to fight the disease" of the world's addiction" to coal, oil and gas, warning that tumbling heat records this week must spur rich nations to lead the way in phasing out fossil fuels. Continue reading...

Prime minister says energy plans will bring down bills and help planet as he accuses Tories of shortsightednessThe former Lib Dem leader Vince Cable is testifying at the inquiry into the Post Office Horizon scandal today. My colleague Mark Sweney will be sharing updates on that in the live blog here:The days of government ministers waging culture wars against civil servants are over," chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, Pat McFadden, has said.Yesterday I met the civil service unions together with my colleague, the new minister [Georgia Gould]. We had a very positive discussion covering a whole range of issues.I made it clear that the days of government ministers waging culture wars against civil servants are over. Instead, we want a civil service that's motivated, valued and helps the government deliver its priorities. And on this specific issue of pay, the government will have more to say on civil service pay before the summer recess."We do value civil servants, and of course we want all public servants to be properly and fairly rewarded, and, like any public expenditure, what's spent on pay has to be balanced against other priorities and fair to taxpayers as a whole."Departments do have flexibility on pay, they can direct pay towards the needs of their own workforces." Continue reading...

Service at Germany's busiest airport gradually resuming as oil kills' protests spread from Europe to North AmericaClimate activists have disrupted flights at Frankfurt and Oslo airports on the second day of coordinated oil kills" protests across Europe and North America.Demanding an end to fossil fuels by 2030, supporters of Letzte Generation (Last Generation) briefly suspended flights at Frankfurt airport on Thursday morning. The activists said they had cut a wire fence, entered on bicycles and skateboards and glued themselves to the tarmac. Continue reading...

At formal launch of state-run GB Energy, PM sets out plan to build enough offshore wind facilities to power 20m homes

At a wildlife centre in Mozambique, trafficked animals are fed, nursed, taken for walks and eventually released back to the wild. Vet Mercia Angela describes what it's like to bond with these rare and charismatic mammalsI had never seen a pangolin before I started working with them in Mozambique's Gorongosa national park. They are the only mammal in the world covered with scales. I think they are so handsome - just seeing them makes me fall in love.If you have never seen a pangolin, they have a cone-shaped head and snout, four short legs, small eyes and a brilliant sense of smell. Their front claws are long to help them dig for food in the ground. They have a long sticky tongue but no teeth. When they feel threatened, they curl up in a ball to protect the parts of their bodies that do not have scales. Continue reading...

Record heat is killing hundreds in Clark county. But one of America's fastest-growing metro areas just keeps getting biggerHot air wafted through the heavy, gold-lined doors of a Las Vegas casino as they opened, offering a reminder of a disaster quietly unfolding outside. Even though the sun had just set on an evening in mid-July, temperatures were yet to dip below 100F (37C).Spawned from a paved-over oasis in the Mojave, this desert metropolis has always been hot. But a string of brutal heatwaves this summer has pushed Sin City to a deadly simmer. Continue reading...

The storm has made landfall in Taiwan, unleashing torrential rain and strong gusts that have claimed at least three lives. Typhoon Gaemi also exacerbated rains in the Philippines, flooding the capital, Manila, and nearby cities, forcing authorities to shut schools, offices and declare a state of calamity

Brazil court freezes assets of Dirceu Kruger to pay climate compensation for illegal deforestationA Brazilian cattle rancher has been ordered to pay more than $50m (39m) for destroying part of the Amazon rainforest and ordered to restore the precious carbon sink.Last week, a federal court in Brazil froze the assets of Dirceu Kruger to pay compensation for the damage he had caused to the climate through illegal deforestation. The case was brought by Brazil's attorney general's office, representing the Brazilian institute of environment and renewable natural resources (Ibama). It is the largest civil case brought for climate crimes in Brazil to date and the start of a legal push to repair and deter damage to the rainforest. Continue reading...

Justice Michael Lee rules there is not enough evidence the popular weedkiller caused cancer in more than 800 non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients

This week all eyes will be on Teahupo'o as it hosts the world's best surfers. Many islanders welcome the new infrastructure brought by the 2024 Paris Games, but are concerned that any benefits will be undone by longer-term damage

State of the UK Climate report shows sea surface temperatures 0.9C higher than the 1961 to 1990 averageThe water near the UK's coasts was hotter in 2023 than scientists have ever before recorded, a report has found, with children today experiencing a hotter and wetter climate than that in which their parents and grandparents grew up.The sea surface temperature near coasts was 0.9C hotter and winter rainfall across the country was 24% greater over the last decade than the average from 1961 to 1990, according to the State of the UK Climate 2023 report. It found the number of hot" (28C) days has more than doubled over that period, and the number of very hot" (30C) and extremely hot" (32C) days has more than tripled. Continue reading...

Scheme will use taxpayer money to develop parts of seabed owned by the royal familyKeir Starmer will promise to build enough offshore wind over the next five years to power 20m homes, by using taxpayer money to develop parts of the seabed owned by the royal family.The prime minister will announce details of the government's energy generation company, known as Great British Energy, during a visit to the north-west designed to highlight the government's promises on green energy. Continue reading...

Change equivalent to removing 200,000 cars for a year, with capital's air quality improving at faster rate than rest of EnglandLevels of harmful air pollutants have dropped significantly since the ultra-low emission zone was enlarged to cover Greater London last year, according to a report from city hall.Analysis covering the first six months since the Ulez expansion found that total emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from cars across London were 13% lower than projected had the scheme remained confined to inner London, while NOx from vans was 7% lower. Continue reading...

Father says Grace Rohloff, 20, lost footing about three-quarters into 400ft cables descent and slid down mountainA father-daughter hike that began with an Arizona college student checking off a bucket list item ended tragically when she was killed after falling down Yosemite's Half Dome earlier this month.Grace Rohloff, a 20-year-old hiker, and her father, Jonathan Rohloff, were descending the cables at Yosemite's summit when she slipped and fell on 13 July, as reported by SFGate. The 14- to 16-mile round-trip hike to Half Dome is known for its difficulty and requires hikers to obtain permits in advance.This story was amended on 24 July 2024. A previous version erroneously used an image of Liberty Cap. Continue reading...

Data shows that the global surface air temperature reached 62.87F compared with 62.76F on Sunday.World temperature reached the hottest levels ever measured on Monday, beating the record that was set just one day before, data suggests.Provisional data published on Wednesday by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, which holds data that stretches back to 1940, shows that the global surface air temperature reached 62.87F (17.15C), compared with 62.76F (17.09C) on Sunday. Continue reading...

No country has ever in history produced as much oil and gas as the US does now and Louisiana is ground zero

The US and the UK among countries with low dependence on fossil fuels criticized for hypocrisy' on climate pledges

Two new AgustaWestland AW139s will be in use this year as total annual travel bill rises from 3.9m to 4.2mThe royal family spent more than 1m on journeys by helicopter last year, and will take delivery of two new ones to replace those they have used for the past 15 years.In total, royals made 170 helicopter journeys, costing a total of 1,096,300, official accounts reveal, with the total travel bill last year rising to 4.2m from 3.9m. Continue reading...

Latest research shows how illegal drug consumption by humans is harming marine lifeWild sharks off the coast of Brazil have tested positive for cocaine, according to new study by Brazilian scientists, in the latest research to demonstrate how illegal drug consumption by humans is harming marine life.According to a study entitled Cocaine Shark and published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, scientists dissected the bodies of 13 sharpnose sharks (Rhizoprionodon lalandii) caught in fishermen's nets off a beach in Rio de Janeiro. Continue reading...

Allies of the 73-year-old anti-whaling activist Paul Watson have said that prison time would amount to a life sentence'The arrest of the anti-whaling activist Paul Watson in Greenland - where he could face extradition to Japan - has been condemned as politically motivated" by supporters, who compared the case to the detention of the WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange.The parallels are disturbing," said Omar Todd, chief executive and co-founder of the Captain Paul Watson Foundation (CPWF). Continue reading...

Preliminary data from Copernicus suggests temperature records were shattered, taking world into uncharted territory'World temperature records were shattered on Sunday on what may be the hottest day scientists have ever logged, data suggests.Inflamed by the carbon pollution spewed from burning fossils and farming livestock, the average surface air temperature hit 17.09C (62.76F) on Sunday, according to preliminary data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service, which holds data that stretches back to 1940. The reading inched above the previous record of 17.08C (62.74F) set on 6 July last year, but the scientists cautioned that the difference was not statistically distinguishable. Continue reading...

Talk of building reactors in Australia is breeding uncertainty and delaying decisions to back major solar and wind projects

Death is one of several believed to be caused by high temperatures in the western US in recent weeksA 56-year-old woman died while hiking near a state park in south-western Utah over the weekend after running out of water on a sweltering day, officials said.The woman's death is one of several believed to be caused by the extreme heat in the western United States over the past several weeks. Continue reading...

Civil Aviation Authority proposes measure to help consumers make more informed travel choices'Airlines may have to tell passengers the environmental impact of the flights they book under new proposals from the UK regulator.The Civil Aviation Authority said consumers should be able to make more informed travel choices when booking flights and package holidays. Continue reading...

Better food labels are a necessary but insufficient step to improve diets and healthDing.The microwave beeped. I grabbed the bowl of bright orange macaroni and cheese and slid it in front of my daughter, alongside an apple and milk, before dashing back to my laptop. My seven-year-old was home sick, and I was frantically attempting the hazardous maneuver all too familiar to post-pandemic parents: working while parenting. As I logged into Zoom, I wondered what my nutrition colleagues would think if they knew that down the hall, my kiddo was eating the verboten: ultra-processed food. Continue reading...

In western Kenya, wild giraffes are being relocated to the Ruko Conservancy to maintain peace between the Pokot and Ilchamus communities. Since the first giraffe's arrival to the reserve in 2011, poaching has ceased, and community relations have improved, creating jobs and regional stability. Before a giraffe's arrival, an intercommunal welcoming ceremony with dancing and singing is held for them, an inconceivable scene in the mid-2000s Continue reading...

Vice-president's record on climate crisis strikes stark contrast with Trump in potential 2024 election match-upKamala Harris has a strong record on the environment that will provide a vivid contrast with Donald Trump, who has vowed to rescind climate change policies should he return to the White House, according to green advocates who have welcomed the prospect of a Harris presidency.We are confident that she is ready to carry forward President Biden's historic legacy and set a new high bar for climate ambition in America," said Lena Moffitt, executive director of Evergreen, one of a raft of green groups, including Sierra Club, League of Conservation Voters Action Fund and the NRDC Action Fund that have now endorsed the leading contender for the Democratic nomination. Continue reading...

With little grass for grazing on the island of Lamu, donkeys are rummaging through rubbish - and scientists now fear it is a global problem affecting many speciesThe smell of sea water and fresh dung fill the oceanfront air on the Kenyan island of Lamu, as donkeys plod along the town's dock, ferrying residents and cargo. Lamu Old Town is a Unesco world heritage site, known for preserving its Swahili culture. With no cars but nearly 3,000 donkeys on the island, residents rely heavily on the animals for a living and as transport in the narrow, winding streets of the 700-year-old town, one of east Africa's oldest.Now, however, increasing numbers of donkeys are dying from eating plastic on the island, and scientists fear many other land animals are also being affected by human plastic pollution. Continue reading...

Report says new nuclear capacity will not be ready in time to provide required increase in baseload electricityLabour is likely to have to approve new gas-fired power stations in its attempt to decarbonise the UK's electricity systems by 2030, in what would be a tricky decision for the new government.Keeping the lights on for the rest of the decade, and beyond, will require some additional baseload power, and new nuclear power stations will not be built in time, according to a report from the National Engineering Policy Centre. Continue reading...

Late spring and early summer blazes in Canada, Alaska and eastern Russia add to carbon emissionsThe northern hemisphere has had a large number of intense wildfires in the first half of summer, carrying vast amounts of smoke across Eurasia and North America.Research by the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (Cams) showed large-scale and intense wildfires had been developing throughout the late spring and summer, with numerous fires burning in Canada, Alaska and eastern Russia. Continue reading...

Stormont's rescue proposal for UK's largest lake criticised by campaigners for dilution of sewage reduction targetsThere will have to be a move away from intensive farming around Lough Neagh if it is to survive, campaigners have said, as the noxious algal blooms that last year devastated the vast body of water returned to its shores earlier than ever.Lough Neagh is the UK's largest lake and supplies more than 40% of Northern Ireland's drinking water. But vast amounts of phosphorus, nitrogen and other substances draining into the lough have left it at crisis point for some years now. Continue reading...

If approved, the region would become Scotland's third national park and first to be made official in UK since South Downs in 2010Galloway has been selected by the Scottish government as the preferred site for Scotland's third national park.The region, which came out top from a shortlist of five, will now be the subject of a consultation and an investigation into its suitability before potentially being made official by 2026. The unsuccessful candidate areas were Lochaber, Loch Awe, Scottish Borders and Tay Forest. Continue reading...

Targets to halt environmental damage severely lacking', Australian Conservation Foundation says, urging food industry to step up to the plate'

Hitting target for zero-carbon electricity system will require step-change', says analyst Cornwall Insight

Found in products such as eggs and rice, forever chemicals' have been linked to cancer, kidney disease and moreIn recent years, research has found or pointed to the presence of toxic PFAS forever chemicals" in a range of staples, products and beverages across the food system.Among them are kale, eggs, butter, protein powder, milk, ketchup, coffee, canola oil, smoothies, tea, beef, juice drinks and rice. Evidence suggests they're most widely contaminating carryout food, seafood and even pet food. Continue reading...

Padi's first South African blind scuba diver describes how her other senses enhance her experience underwaterI went on my first dive in Mozambique and as I was descending, I could hear this weird chirruping noise. As we got closer to the reef, it got louder and louder. It was so weird and different from any other sound I've heard. Other scuba divers call it the crackling" of the coral reef. That's what I was hearing: the actual coral. I could hear the whole reef, being alive - and it sounded absolutely amazing, like its own kind of orchestra. A sea orchestra.I am Padi's first South African blind scuba diver. I have a condition called optic atrophy, caused by a brain tumour that pressed on my optic nerves when I was 11. After it was removed, my central vision turned completely black, but with pinpricks of light that almost look like stars. Continue reading...

Hunting migratory birds is illegal in the country, but a series of crises means enforcement is derisory and many birds are being shot just for fun'Shell casings litter a meadow on Mount Terbol in northern Lebanon. The valley below falls along one of the world's busiest routes for migratory birds. The mountain peak, buffeted by harsh winds, creates a natural corridor that encourages birds fatigued from long journeys between Africa and Eurasia to fly at low altitudes.Those low-flying birds are easy targets for poachers who live in the mountain communities, says Michel Sawan, director of the Lebanese Association of Migratory Birds (Lamb). They say: We inherited this culture from our grandfathers,' and I keep saying: Your grandfathers are and were wrong.'" Continue reading...

Five stores will offer to alter, clean or mend clothes in service marketed as a way to help prevent wasteJohn Lewis customers will be able to give their favourite leather jacket a new lease of life or have a cushion cover fixed, as part of a repairs partnership with Timpson Group, the business famed for offering ex-offenders a second chance.The service, which will be trialled at five stores from Monday, is designed to encourage shoppers to pay to have items altered, repaired, cleaned or restored, rather than throwing them away and buying replacements. Continue reading...

Opposition in wealthier areas is likely and overcoming it is essential, says Resolution FoundationThe government will need to take on net-zero nimbys" and ramp up public investment to decarbonise Britain's homes, transport and electricity system, a leading thinktank has said.With Keir Starmer promising a rapid transition to decarbonise the power system by 2030, a report by the Resolution Foundation said achieving the target would require more government spending and private investment. Continue reading...

AI-based system designed to help people assess immediate risk of getting ill from water polluted with bacteriaReal-time water quality monitors are being installed at wild swimming spots and beaches across southern England to help people assess their immediate risk of getting ill from polluted water.Wessex Water is installing sensors at three freshwater sites in Dorset, Somerset and Hampshire, plus two coastal sites in Bournemouth, after a successful pilot study at Warleigh Weir near Bath. Here, the artificial intelligence-based system correctly predicted when bacteria in the water were high 87% of the time. Continue reading...

Sparrows were taken into captivity after numbers dwindled - and this week experts released 1,000th bird back into wildScientists in Florida are hailing the landmark release this week of a tiny bird only 5in tall as an oversized success in their fight to save a critically endangered species.Numbers of the Florida grasshopper sparrow, seen only in prairies in central regions of the state, dwindled so severely by 2015, mostly through habitat loss, that authorities took the decision to remove remaining breeding pairs into captivity. Their wager was that a controlled repopulation program would be more successful than leaving the birds to their own devices. Continue reading...

Decline blamed on washout summer driving down population of insects, butterflies and moths they feed onConservation groups across England are seeing more malnourished bats, as wildlife experts warn the washout summer is driving down the insects, butterflies and moths they feed on.Groups across Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Worcestershire, Essex and South Lancashire said they are seeing an increase in the number of starving" or underweight" bats, often juveniles, who need to be rescued and cared for by volunteers. In some places, they are seeing fewer bats than they usually do in the summer. Continue reading...

Violence erupts after about 4,000 gather in La Rochelle amid heightened tensions over water resourcesA police officer and five protesters were injured when violence erupted after about 4,000 people turned out for a demonstration in La Rochelle over the use of reservoirs to supply large-scale agriculture, local officials said.Police fired teargas and brought in water cannon trucks and reinforcements to disperse the demonstrators after the unrest broke out on Saturday afternoon, with several shop fronts smashed and at least seven people arrested. Continue reading...

The energy secretary's plans to install thousands of pylons in unspoiled rural areas is facing a huge backlashThe energy secretary, Ed Miliband, has been warned he faces battlegrounds across the country over plans to install thousands of pylons in unspoilt rural areas to deliver a clean power" revolution.Council leaders and communities oppose proposals for a vast new network of pylons across large parts of several counties, including Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Continue reading...