Environment news

• New Colorado bill would create guidelines for organic marijuana

  18-02-2016 22:28
  
  The bill, scheduled for its first hearing Friday, would prompt Colorado’s department of agriculture to make certification rules for pesticide-free cannabisColorado marijuana consumers will be able to buy pesticide-free, “certified organic” weed if lawmakers pass a new bill aimed at creating special labels for the state’s legal cannabis industry.“This is going to be the Whole Foods version of cannabis,” said Jonathan Singer, a Democratic state representative sp
  
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• Venezuela sponsor paid no money in 2015 - federation

  18-02-2016 21:11
  Venezuela's football federation (FVF) said on Thursday that chief sponsor, cash-strapped state oil company PDVSA [PDVSA.UL], did not pay the organisation any money last year. "In all of 2015 we didn't receive a single dollar from PDVSA," FVF president Laureano Gonzalez told a news conference in Caracas. "We all know PDVSA is the state's cash cow and that right now it doesn't have liquidity," added Gonzalez who in May replaced Rafael Esquivel, arrested last year as part of U.S. and Swiss investig
  
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• Brent down as U.S. crude build eclipses output freeze plan

  18-02-2016 21:06
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Brent settled lower on Thursday after data showing U.S. crude inventories rose to record highs overshadowed production freeze plans by oil major producers that had sharply boosted the market this week. The U.S. government's Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude stockpiles rose 2.1 million barrels last week, to a peak of 504.1 million barrels in the third week of hitting record highs in past month. Brent , the global benchmark for crude, settle
  
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• Orders 'distance us' from our actions

  18-02-2016 20:31 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Neuroscientists add fresh insight to the famous observation that people are content to hurt others if they are ordered to do so.
  
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• Endangered dolphin dies after beachgoers pass it around for photos

  18-02-2016 19:51
  
  Franciscana dolphin at Argentinian beach was one of fewer than 30,000 and is considered a threatened species The Wildlife Foundation in Argentina has urged people to return beached dolphins to the sea as soon as possible, after a dolphin died having been passed around so that beachgoers could take photos with it.
  Images on Facebook showed a man holding up an endangered Franciscana dolphin on the beach at Santa Teresita, in Buenos Aires province, as people jostled to stroke or take pictures of th
  
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• Endangered dolphin died as beachgoers passed it around for photos

  18-02-2016 19:51
  
  Franciscana dolphin at Argentinian beach was one of fewer than 30,000 and is considered a threatened species The Wildlife Foundation in Argentina has urged people to return beached dolphins to the sea as soon as possible, after a dolphin was left to die having been passed around so that beachgoers could take photos with it.
  Images on Facebook showed a man holding up an endangered Franciscana dolphin on the beach at Santa Teresita, in Buenos Aires province, as people jostled to stroke or take pic
  
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• Saudi Arabia 'not prepared' to cut oil production - AFP

  18-02-2016 19:33
  (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia is "not prepared" to cut oil production, Agence France-Presse reported, quoting the Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir. "If other producers want to limit or agree to a freeze in terms of additional production that may have an impact on the market but Saudi Arabia is not prepared to cut production," al-Jubeir told AFP in an interview. "The oil issue will be determined by supply and demand and by market forces.
  
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• Oil pares gains as U.S. stock rise eclipses output freeze plan

  18-02-2016 19:00
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices surrendered much of Thursday's early gains after a build in U.S. crude inventories despite higher refinery runs stole attention from a global oil producer pact that had sharply boosted the market in recent days. The U.S. government's Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude inventories in the country rose by 2.1 million barrels last week, versus a stockpile draw reported on Wednesday by industry group American Petroleum Institute (API)
  
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• 'Consequences' if US quits Paris deal

  18-02-2016 17:55 via bbc.co.uk
  
  US lead climate negotiator warns of significant diplomatic consequences if a new President pulls out of the Paris climate agreement.
  
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• Stop armed militia to save rare 'forest giraffe', conservationists warn

  18-02-2016 17:21
  
  Action plan says endangered okapi will be lost without action to tackle illegal mining and armed conflict in protected central African forests Conservationists have called for urgent action to stop armed militia and illegal mining in protected central African forests from driving the elusive okapi to extinction. A 10-year plan to save the “forest giraffe” drawn up by a coalition of conservation groups and NGOs calls for government and international commitments to support key protecte
  
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• UK councils warned of 'severe penalties' of fossil fuel divestment

  18-02-2016 16:54
  
  Critics say central government guidance forbidding local authorities from divesting is financially risky, politically unacceptable and open to legal challenge
  Local authorities have been warned that they will face “severe penalties” if they divest from fossil fuel holdings or boycott oil, coal or gas firms in procurement tenders, the UK government has said. Local councils, government agencies and public sector bodies must adopt environmental and social policies consistent with centra
  
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• Next London Mayor urged to ignite solar energy revolution

  18-02-2016 16:54
  
  A London-exclusive feed-in tariff (FiT) subsidy scheme and a new solar taskforce are among the new approaches to renewable energy generation that should be taken by the next Mayor of London, a new report from Greenpeace has claimed.
  
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• Football stadium tracks water use, saves £40,000

  18-02-2016 16:51
  
  Scotland's national football stadium has reduced its water consumption by 35% in the space of 15 months after installing monitoring equipment which identified anomalies and spikes in water usage.
  
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• Libya's North African neighbours brace for any Western strikes

  18-02-2016 16:45
  By Patrick Markey and Tarek Amara ALGIERS/TUNIS (Reuters) - Libya's neighbours are again preparing for possible Western intervention in Libya, tightening border security and sending diplomatic warnings about the risk from hurried action against Islamic State that could force thousands refugees to flee. As Islamic State has expanded in Libya -- taking over the city of Sirte and attacking oil ports -- so too have calls increased for a swift Western response to stop the group establishing a base ou
  
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• Give the EU’s illegal timber policy a chance | Letters

  18-02-2016 16:29
  
  Your article “‘No evidence’ that EU’s illegal timber policy is working” (theguardian.com, 10 February) does not mention the huge challenge the EU timber regulation (EUTR) represents, nor the timber industry’s achievements in implementing it to date and wider commitment to eradicating illegal wood.The regulation entails every member state company that “first places” timber and other forest products on the EU market putting all suppliers through due
  
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• VIDEO: 'Hairy panic' invades Australia town

  18-02-2016 16:14 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Extremely dry conditions have caused masses of tumbleweed to pile up outside homes in rural Australia.
  
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• MillerCoors toasts zero waste to landfill status after behaviour change drive

  18-02-2016 15:08
  
  America's second-largest brewer has achieved landfill-free operations at all of its major breweries across the country, thanks to an enhanced focus on employee engagement and behaviour change.
  
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• National wildlife crime unit facing closure within weeks

  18-02-2016 14:50
  
  Government failure to confirm funding for police unit responsible for investigating crimes against British wildlife condemnedChris Packham, the naturalist and TV presenter, has said it is “disgusting and disappointing” that the UK’s wildlife crime agency faces closure in six weeks unless the government renews its funding.The national wildlife crime unit (NWCU) was established in 2006 to investigate offences including rare-bird egg theft, deer poaching, the trade in endangered s
  
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• Aston Martin adds touch of luxury to EV market with 'RapidE' concept

  18-02-2016 14:39
  
  Luxury sportscar manufacturer Aston Martin is set roll-out a new electric vehicle (EV) concept that incorporates smart technology with low-emitting battery and powertrain capabilities.
  
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• 'Selfish' oil firms relish new production despite glut

  18-02-2016 14:36
  By Ron Bousso LONDON (Reuters) - As oil firms scrap dozens of billions worth of mega projects essential for supplies in decades ahead, fresh output from huge fields already being developed is set to weigh for many more months on an oil market struggling to shake off a glut. A collapse in oil prices over the past 20 months to below $30 a barrel has taken a heavy toll on production around the world, reversing spectacular growth in U.S. shale oil and halting plans to develop costly and complex fiel
  
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• Nigeria's BUA in talks with China's Sinoma over $1.9 billion steel, cement deal

  18-02-2016 13:45
  By Chijioke Ohuocha LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigerian conglomerate BUA Group is in talks with China's Sinoma to build a steel plant in Nigeria and two cement plants in East Africa for $1.9 billion, its chairman said. Expansion plans by Nigerian firms have slowed as Africa's biggest economy grapples with a slump in oil prices which has dried up vital oil revenues and forced firms to lay off staff. Abdulsamad Rabiu said the unlisted company was talking to the Chinese firm for a construction package which
  
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• Algal Toxins Detected in One-Third of Streams Assessed in Southeastern United States

  18-02-2016 13:12 via feedproxy.google.com
  USGS scientists have detected toxins known as microcystins produced by various forms of algae in 39 percent of the small streams assessed throughout the southeastern United States. Their recent study looked at 75 streams in portions of Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
  
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• Plan to revive Russian economy to cost $11.7 billion -Economy Minister

  18-02-2016 12:48
  A Russian government plan to shore up the recession-battered economy will cost around 880 billion roubles ($11.7 billion), Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev told a cabinet meeting on Thursday. Some of these funds have already been factored into the 2016 federal budget, Ulyukayev said, but the government still needs to find additional money. With oil prices well below levels originally envisaged for this year, the government of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev is trying to keep the economy from sin
  
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• Mayoral hopefuls urged to back tenfold increase in London solar capacity

  18-02-2016 12:48
  
  Greenpeace publishes new report detailing how capital can close the gap on the rest of the country when it comes to solar power, reports BusinessGreenLondon could deliver a tenfold increase in solar power over the next 10 years, closing the gap which has seen the capital become the worst performing major city and region in the UK for solar adoption.That is the conclusion of a new report released today by campaign group Greenpeace, which is calling on all of the London Mayoral candidates to come
  
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• UCLA studies the long-term health impacts of ozone

  18-02-2016 12:31 via feedproxy.google.com
   Adults with long-term exposure to ozone (O3) face an increased risk of dying from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, a study  “Long-Term Ozone Exposure and Mortality in a Large Prospective Study” published online ahead of print in the American Thoracic Society’s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine suggests.Using data from a large U.S. study begun in 1982, researchers found that every additional 10 parts per billion (ppb) in
  
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• Pictures of the day: 18 February 2016

  18-02-2016 12:15
  
  Today: A dumpy tree frog, surfing dogs and 'hairy panic' in Australia
  
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• Iraq oil minister says talks between OPEC and non-OPEC members to continue

  18-02-2016 12:09
  Iraq's oil minister said on Thursday talks would continue between OPEC and non-OPEC members to prop up oil prices, a day after a meeting aimed at trying to reach a global pact to freeze production ended inconclusively. In his first response since the meeting between oil ministers from Iran, Iraq, Qatar and Venezuela in Tehran on Wednesday, Adel Abdul Mahdi said it was incumbent on producers to find a way of restoring "normal" prices and that rapprochement between OPEC and non-OPEC members was a
  
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• London mayor race: transport watchdog urges road traffic reduction policy

  18-02-2016 12:07
  
  The capital’s official transport users’ representative has produced ten policy ideas for the next mayor
  From London Travelwatch, the capital’s official transport-users’ watchdog, come ten policy themes for helping people get around the place more efficiently and pleasantly. They hope these will catch the eye of mayoral candidates. Three in particular have caught mine.One concerns London’s roads and the irritable state they’re in. Congestion has been rising. Ca
  
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• El Niño has passed peak strength but impacts will continue, UN warns

  18-02-2016 11:43
  
  Current climate event is still strong but it is too early to say whether it will be most powerful on record, says World Meteorological OrganisationThe El Niño that caused record temperatures, drought and floods over the last year has passed its peak strength but will continue to have humanitarian impacts for months to come, the UN has said.The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said the event, which plays havoc with weather systems around the world, was still strong and its impacts o
  
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• Oil extends rally towards $35 after Iran welcomes output freeze

  18-02-2016 11:39
  By Alex Lawler LONDON (Reuters) - Oil rose towards $35 a barrel on Thursday after Iran welcomed plans by Russia and Saudi Arabia to freeze output and an industry report showed a surprise drop in U.S. inventories. The gain added to a more than 7 percent surge in the previous session, which came even though analysts said the market had over reacted to Iran's support for the caps and the Russian-Saudi move would not likely reduce the global surplus. Brent rose 38 cents to $34.88 a barrel by 0959 GM
  
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• Tullow Oil finds potential issue at Ghana field, shares drop

  18-02-2016 10:23
  (Reuters) - Oil producer Tullow Oil Plc said there was a potential issue with a storage vessel at its flagship Jubilee field in Ghana, sending shares down more than 7 percent on Thursday morning. The company, which is expecting a second field in Ghana to begin production this year, said it had taken additional measures to monitor part of a turret bearing in its floating storage and offtake vessel. Shares in the company were down 7.4 percent at 177.2 pence on the London Stock Exchange at 0858 GMT
  
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• Insurer Lancashire's profit hit by fall in gross premiums

  18-02-2016 09:20
  (Reuters) - British property and casualty insurer Lancashire Holdings Ltd reported a 24.2 percent fall in full-year pretax profit on Thursday, hurt by a fall in gross written premiums in its property and energy businesses. The company, whose shares were up 1.6 percent at 0808 GMT, also said Chairman Martin Thomas would step down in May after about nine years at the helm. Lancashire, which insures heavy-duty assets such as oil rigs, ships and aircraft, said its pretax profit fell to $171.7 millio
  
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• Centrica trims investments as energy price slump weighs

  18-02-2016 09:18
  By Karolin Schaps LONDON (Reuters) - British Gas owner Centrica reported a 4 percent fall in 2015 adjusted earnings on Thursday as it felt the effects of a steep fall in energy prices and said it could trim investments further if conditions fail to improve. Britain's largest energy utility said full-year adjusted EPS came to 17.2 pence as it booked pretax charges of 2.4 billion pounds ($3.4 billion) on oil and gas assets and power stations. Electricity and gas prices in Centrica's core British m
  
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• Shenhua applies for exploration licence extension for $1.2bn Watermark mine

  18-02-2016 08:42
  
  New South Wales government needs to approve licence extension for coalmine, which covers 35 square kilometres in rich farming land on Liverpool PlainsChinese-state owned Shenhua company has applied for an extension to its exploration licence as doubts grow over the future of the $1.2bn mega-coalmine on the Liverpool Plains.The Shenhua exploration licence, which was granted for $300m in 2008 by disgraced former NSW Labor resources minister Ian Macdonald, was due to expire this month.Continue read
  
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• Australia town consumed by 'hairy panic'

  18-02-2016 08:41 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A fast-growing tumbleweed called "hairy panic" is clogging up homes in a small Australian town.
  
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• Tiny sea snail 'swims like a bee'

  18-02-2016 08:24 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A microscopic species of sea snail "flies" underwater using movements just like winged insects, according to a study.
  
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• Icy gales shake the trees above spring’s first new growth

  18-02-2016 06:30
  
  Backstone Bank, Weardale On the ground, on fallen trunks and limbs, the first signs of life were forcing their way through the skeletons of last summer’s leavesI felt the sting of ice on my face just before I reached the shelter of the wood. The squall appeared as a sullen grey mist as it swept down the fell, engulfing grazing sheep before it roared through the tree canopy overhead. A blizzard of tiny hailstones hissed as they bounced across the layer of dead leaves around my feet.Seeking
  
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• Oil prices climb as Iran endorses oil output cap

  18-02-2016 05:19
  By Keith Wallis SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Crude futures rose in Asian trade on Thursday after Iran welcomed plans by Russia and Saudi Arabia to cap production, although analysts said the move would not lead to any output cuts and Tehran offered no action of its own. After oil prices rose in the previous session as much 8 percent, commentators suggested markets had overreacted to Iran's support for the caps and said the Russian-Saudi move would not likely reduce the global surplus. "I share the conse
  
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• Billions of bits of plastic waste threaten humans and wildlife, Australian senators told

  18-02-2016 05:19
  
  Senate inquiry told debris a ‘critical problem’ – as it emerges the government has the power to instantly ban controversial microbeads from productsPlastic pollution in the marine environment is a “critical problem” for global ecosystems and for human health as microscopic pieces of waste enter the food chain, an Australian Senate inquiry has been told.The warning came as Guardian Australia learned the federal health minister has the power to instantly ban controver
  
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• Doubts over future of Shenhua's $1.2bn Watermark coalmine in NSW – reports

  18-02-2016 04:44
  
  Chinese state-owned company has NSW government approval for $1.2bn open cut mine on Liverpool Plains, but falling coal price has raised questions over its viability, according to reportsFederal government sources have reportedly cast doubt on the future of a contentious coal project in north-west New South Wales proposed by a Chinese state-owned company, according to the ABC.Shenhua is yet to apply for a mining lease for its $1.2bn open cut Watermark coalmine on the Liverpool Plains despite havi
  
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• Corrosion outside oil pipeline caused crude spill on California coast – report

  18-02-2016 02:22
  
  The report notes that the Plains All American Pipeline spill in May was greater than previously estimated, dumping more than 140,000 gallons of crudeFederal regulators say corrosion on the outside of an oil pipeline was the cause of a major crude spill on the Santa Barbara coast last year.The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued preliminary findings Wednesday of the 19 May spill. Continue reading...
  
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• Corrosion outside oil pipeline caused crude spill on California coast

  18-02-2016 02:22
  
  Federal report notes that Plains All American Pipeline spill in May was greater than previously estimated, dumping more than 140,000 gallons of crudeFederal regulators say corrosion on the outside of an oil pipeline was the cause of a major crude spill on the Santa Barbara coast last year.The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued preliminary findings Wednesday of the 19 May spill. Continue reading...
  
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• Why shouldn’t a sledge go at 150mph?

  18-02-2016 01:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The world speed record for a gravity-powered snow sledge is currently 83mph (134km/h) but three Norwegian friends are hoping to smash it.
  
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• U.S. crude climbs further on Iran support for oil output cap

  18-02-2016 01:09
  By Keith Wallis SINGAPORE (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose as much as 3 percent in early Asian trade on Thursday after Iran backed plans by Russia and Saudi Arabia to cap crude oil production at January levels, extending steep gains in the previous session. U.S. crude jumped $1.06 shortly after Asian markets opened, and was trading up 77 cents at $31.43 a barrel as of 2346 GMT, up 2.5 percent. "The price rebound looks like an overreaction as the probability of Iran not increasing production i
  
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