Environment news

• Brent ends steady; U.S. crude extends losses on stockpile build

  22-03-2016 22:53
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Brent oil prices settled steady on Tuesday after the deadly blasts in Brussels while U.S. crude futures fell, then extended losses in post-settlement trade on industry data showing bigger than expected builds in domestic inventory. Oil prices fell early as investors fled risk after the attacks in Belgium that killed at least 30 people. Brent erased losses and settled a little higher as equity markets reversed losses and safe-havens such as gold and governm
  
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• China says Philippines fishermen used fire bombs in South China Sea

  22-03-2016 22:30
  Philippines fishermen threw fire bombs at Chinese law enforcement vessels in the South China Sea, China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, after Philippines media reported that fishermen had been struck by bottles hurled from China's coast guard ships. The reports said that a clash occurred at Scarborough Shoal, an area China seized control of after a three-month stand-off with the Philippine coast guard in 2012.
  
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• Petrobras reinventing itself after oil price drop -CFO

  22-03-2016 21:37
  Brazil's state-controlled oil company Petrobras is being forced to turn itself into a smaller operation as crude prices have fallen more than expected, making it impossible to finance its once-ambitious plans, the company's chief financial officer said on Tuesday. CFO Ivan Monteiro made the comment on a conference call with investors a day after Petroleo Brasileiro SA , as the company is formally known, announced a 36.9 billion real (7.1 billion pounds) fourth-quarter loss, its biggest ever. The
  
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• Brazil probe finds systematic Odebrecht graft, World Cup links - prosecutors

  22-03-2016 20:11
  By Caroline Stauffer SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazilian prosecutors said on Tuesday they uncovered systematic corruption at engineering conglomerate Odebrecht, with an office that paid bribes on work for World Cup soccer stadiums and Olympics legacy projects. Police had arrest orders for 15 people in the latest phase of a massive two-year investigation of a kickback scheme at state-run oil firm Petrobras, including Odebrecht executives and money launderers, said Police Chief Igor Romario. Several t
  
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• Exclusive - Oil revenues down, Algeria woos energy investors

  22-03-2016 17:45
  By Lamine Chikhi and Patrick Markey ALGIERS (Reuters) - After a deep slide in oil prices, Algeria's Sonatrach is shifting strategy to offer foreign firms direct negotiations to buy stakes in 20 oil and gas fields in a bid to attract investors and increase output, a source at the state energy company said. Algeria, a key gas supplier to Europe, is also in talks with European Union officials on holding a summit in Algiers in May that will discuss energy investment opportunities in Algeria as EU le
  
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• Paint drying test boost to nanotech

  22-03-2016 17:30 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists have been watching paint dry in experiments they say could improve the performance of everyday items, from sun screen to mobile phones.
  
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• Castle for sale: Swiss utilities unload assets as energy prices plunge

  22-03-2016 16:56
  By John Miller ZURICH (Reuters) - Juergen Silberzahn, mayor of the southern German village of Wolpertshausen, marched against nuclear power in the 1970s and has warmly embraced Germany's bid to provide four-fifths of its energy from renewable sources by 2050. Silberzahn's own efforts to promote green energy during 26 years in power are evident -- rooftop solar panels, wind turbines, a biogas-powered heating network and an electric car charging station. Wolpertshausen produces 22 percent more pow
  
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• Sumatran rhino sighted in Indonesian Borneo for first time in 40 years

  22-03-2016 16:43
  
  Smallest of the Asian rhino species that number fewer than 100 in the world was captured in a wooden pit in Borneo, Indonesia, to protect and relocate it Conservationists have made the first physical contact in over four decades with a Sumatran rhino in Indonesian Borneo.The smallest of the three Asian rhino species, hairy rhino numbers have plummeted to fewer than 100 on Earth due to hunting and habitat loss, with the last wild populations in Kalimantan, Borneo, and the island of Sumatra. Conti
  
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• Good news for the Sumatran rhino

  22-03-2016 16:15 via feedproxy.google.com
  WWF researchers are celebrating the first live sighting of a Sumatran rhino in Kalimantan, the Indonesia part of Borneo, since it was thought to be extinct there. This is also the first physical contact with the species in the area for over 40 years and is a major milestone for rhino conservation in Indonesia. The female Sumatran rhino, which is estimated to be between four and five years old, was safely captured in a pit trap in Kutai Barat in East Kalimantan on 12 March.  
  
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• Coca-Cola Enterprises reveals five-step pathway to 'factory of the future'

  22-03-2016 16:13
  
  Collaboration, effective data management and bridging the skills gap form key parts of a new five-step pathway to creating a sustainable 'factory of the future' in the UK food and drink industry, drawn up by soft-drinks bottler Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE).
  
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• Green days: why outsider musicians are putting eco-consciousness on record

  22-03-2016 16:00
  
  Anohni and THEEsatisfaction are in the vanguard of artists using their music to challenge ecocide and resist big business on behalf of minoritiesLast month, Anohni (formerly Antony and the Johnsons) became the first transgendered artist to be nominated for an Oscar - a benchmark moment organisers felt was important enough to warrant a mention on their trivia page, but not a live appearance: “I want to be clear — I know that I wasn’t excluded from the performance directly becaus
  
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• Brazilian police target Odebrecht in new anti-corruption raid

  22-03-2016 14:44
  Brazilian federal police were seeking on Tuesday to arrest 15 people tied to engineering conglomerate Odebrecht as part of a massive corruption investigation, police and federal prosecutors said. Tuesday's operation, code-named "Xepa", uncovered a parallel bribe-payment scheme to siphon money from state-run oil company Petrobras led by Odebrecht SA [ODBES.UL], Latin America's largest engineering firm, police said in a statement without divulging names. It is the 26th raid in a two-year corruptio
  
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• Ship insurers plug hole in Iran oil cover left by U.S. sanctions

  22-03-2016 14:36
  By Jonathan Saul and Osamu Tsukimori LONDON/TOKYO (Reuters) - Ship insurers have stepped in to help plug a shortfall in cover for transporting Iranian oil resulting from the fact that U.S. reinsurers are still restrained by Washington's sanctions, according to officials involved in the initiative. International oil and shipping companies have been eager to boost business with Iran since international sanctions related to its nuclear programme were lifted in January, but securing proper insurance
  
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• Coalition announces $1bn clean energy fund to invest in emerging technologies

  22-03-2016 14:01
  
  The new fund will receive the money over a decade from the $10bn in borrowings already allocated to the Clean Energy Finance Corporation The Turnbull government is setting up a new $1bn clean energy fund alongside the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to lend to, or take an equity stake, in emerging technologies.The fund – to be called the Clean Energy Innovation Fund – will receive $1bn over 10 years from the $10bn in borrowings already allocated to the CEFC.Continue reading...
  
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• Australia announces $1bn clean energy fund to invest in emerging technologies

  22-03-2016 14:01
  
  The new fund will receive the money over a decade from the $10bn in borrowings already allocated to the Clean Energy Finance Corporation The Turnbull government is setting up a new $1bn clean energy fund alongside the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to lend to, or take an equity stake, in emerging technologies.The fund – to be called the Clean Energy Innovation Fund – will receive $1bn over 10 years from the $10bn in borrowings already allocated to the CEFC.Continue reading...
  
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• List of farmers signed up for badger cull leaked to activists

  22-03-2016 13:53
  
  Badger Trust says leak could put proposed culling in south Devon in jeopardyPolice are investigating after a list apparently showing farmers who have signed up for the next phase of the badger cull was leaked to animal rights groups.One group that advocates direct action, Stop the Cull, has said it intends to publish the list of farmers in south Devon – one of the new areas where culling may take place later this year – once it has verified it.Continue reading...
  
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• 'Boaty McBoatface' Tops Poll to Name Polar Research Vessel

  22-03-2016 13:35
  
  "Name our ship!" This was the call from the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) in an online poll soliciting names for a U.K. polar research vessel. The whimsical suggestion captured the public imagination and rocketed the humorous moniker into first place, trouncing even recommendations honoring beloved British icons like Sir Richard Attenborough and recently deceased musician David Bowie. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) currently boasts two polar research vessels — a stately p
  
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• 'Boaty McBoatface' Controversy: How Ships Get Named

  22-03-2016 13:35
  "Name our ship!" This was the call from the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) in an online poll soliciting names for a U.K. polar research vessel. And the Internet responded in the most predictable way possible: The people have spoken — and the name they want is "Boaty McBoatface."
  
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• Pictures of the day: 22 March 2016

  22-03-2016 12:55
  
  A daredevil slackliner, azaleas in full bloom and Obama meets Castro
  
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• Iraq seeks financial agreement with Kurds before pumping crude to Turkey

  22-03-2016 12:52
  Iraq will not resume pumping crude through a Kurdish pipeline to Turkey unless it reaches a financial agreement with the Kurdish regional government, the Iraqi oil minister said on Tuesday. Adel Abdul Mahdi confirmed on his Facebook page that the central Iraqi government had decided to stop pumping crude from fields under the management of its state-run company in northern Iraq through the pipeline.He said state-run North Oil Company previously fed 150,000 barrels a day into the pipeline that ca
  
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• #WorldWaterDay: Green groups and businesses unite in fresh awareness drive

  22-03-2016 12:46
  
  With today (22 march) marking the UN's World Water Day, edie has rounded up all of the latest company announcements and industry statistics that together highlight how critical the issue of water scarcity has become.
  
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• Climate change warnings for coral reef may have come to pass, scientists say

  22-03-2016 12:40
  
  As coral bleaching threat is raised for Great Barrier Reef, experts say events show that dire projections for reefs under global warming were not alarmistAfter almost two years of coral bleaching, with some reefs bleaching twice and possibly three times since 2014, scientists have said that dire predictions of global coral decline made almost two decades ago may now be manifest.The rolling underwater heatwave has now arrived upon the Great Barrier Reef, with mass die-offs expected along the nort
  
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• Oil market rattled by deadly Brussels blasts

  22-03-2016 12:38
  By Amanda Cooper LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices seesawed on Tuesday, rattled by investor nervousness after deadly blasts in Brussels prompted a flight towards so-called safe-haven assets such as gold. A suicide bomber blew himself up at Brussels airport on Tuesday killing at least 11 people and a further blast tore through a rush-hour metro train in the Belgian capital shortly afterwards, claiming 10 lives, public broadcaster VRT said. "The stocks (fall) in Cushing (U.S. oil delivery hub) helped
  
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• How Formula One technology could drive vehicle emissions reductions

  22-03-2016 12:31
  
  The UK Government has announced new funding of £38m to support emissions reduction schemes across the automotive industry, including an innovative project which harnesses Formula One (F1) technology to make family cars lighter and plug-in vehicles go further.
  
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• Molson Coors brewery fined £100,000 for polluting Thames tributary

  22-03-2016 12:30
  
  Company pleads guilty to causing large quantities of sewage fungus in a stream close to homes in Alton, according to the ENDS ReportA brewery has been fined £100,000 for polluting a tributary of the Thames in Hampshire.Molson Coors Brewery (UK) Ltd was sentenced by Basingstoke Magistrates Court on 17 March after pleaded guilty to two offences: causing an illegal water discharge activity and breaching its environmental permit.Continue reading...
  
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• Batwind: Battery storage for offshore wind launched by Statoil

  22-03-2016 11:54
  
  Norwegian fossil fuel giant Statoil is piloting an innovative battery storage system for offshore wind energy on the world's first floating wind farm - the Hywind park off the coast of Aberdeenshire in Scotland.
  
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• Deforestation: Where is the world losing the most trees?

  22-03-2016 11:35
  
  Millions of trees are being lost every year as a result of deforestation - but which countries are most under threat from the loss of trees?
  
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• Nearly 1 in 5 home appliances uses more energy than advertised, survey finds

  22-03-2016 11:02
  
  European electronic goods study finds devices from fridge freezers and tumble driers to digital radios and vacuums using more electricity than advertisedNearly one in five fridges, dishwashers, microwaves and other household gadgets guzzle more energy than advertised according to a three-year survey of Europe’s home appliance industry.One AEG fridge freezer tested used 12% more power than claimed, while a Hotpoint tumble-drier was found to be sucking considerable power while supposedly in
  
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• White House enlists private sector for $4bn upgrade to water infrastructure

  22-03-2016 11:00
  
  Water summit in Washington to secure business funding for improvements to dams, canals and pipes but will stop short of replacing all domestic lead pipingThe White House has turned to the private sector in an attempt to mend America’s creaking water infrastructure system, securing $4bn in commitments from businesses and instituting a new plan to help deal with crises such as the Flint lead poisoning disaster and the California drought.The first White House water summit, to be held on Tuesd
  
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• Russia's Putin, Qatar's emir discuss upcoming oil meeting

  22-03-2016 10:58
  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin and Qatar's emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani discussed forthcoming meeting between OPEC and other oil producers due to be held in Doha in mid-April, Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. OPEC and non-OPEC producers will meet in the Qatari capital Doha next month, following an initial deal in February between Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Venezuela and non-OPEC member Russia to freeze oil output in order to support weak prices. (Reporting
  
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• Hanson embraces demand response approach to energy management

  22-03-2016 10:48
  
  Building materials supplier Hanson UK is pioneering a demand-side response approach to energy management, with the technology being rolled out to 29 of the company's quarries across the country.
  
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• Carbon emission release rate 'unprecedented' in past 66 million years

  22-03-2016 10:40
  
  Researchers calculate that humans are pumping out carbon 10 times faster than at any point since the extinction of the dinosaurs.
  
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• China says Philippine fishermen used fire bombs in South China Sea

  22-03-2016 10:13
  Philippine fishermen threw fire bombs at Chinese law enforcement vessels in the South China Sea, China's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday, after Philippine media said fishermen had been struck by bottles hurled from Chinese coast guard ships. China and the Philippines have long exchanged accusations about each other's behaviour in the disputed South China Sea. China claims most of the energy-rich waters through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year.
  
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• Mounting opposition to Bali mass tourism project

  22-03-2016 09:31
  
  Tensions are running high in Bali, with a decision due any day on a controversial land reclamation projectThe battle over a controversial land reclamation project in Bali is reaching crisis point, with an official decision due any day on an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) that would pave the way for the project to break ground.On Sunday, tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered at a major roundabout close to the reclamation site. They represent a protest movement on a scale not seen in
  
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• VIDEO: On board giant floating solar farm

  22-03-2016 08:52 via bbc.co.uk
  
  With 23,000 panels covering an area the size of eight football pitches, Europe's biggest floating solar farm has begun generating power for the very first time.
  
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• Wind power: funding body spends $3.3m on research into turbines' health impact

  22-03-2016 08:45
  
  National Health and Medical Research Council defends decision after grants attacked as waste of timeAn Australian research council has given two grants worth $3.3m to research the impact of wind turbines on human health despite concluding last year there was no evidence turbine noise was harmful.Prof Anne Kelso, the chief executive of the National Health and Medical Research Council, said it had made the grants because “existing research in this area is of poor quality and targeted funding
  
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• Emission impossible: Ford and General Motors 'at risk of losing billions in emissions penalties'

  22-03-2016 08:36
  
  US car giants Ford and General Motors are at risk of losing $1.8bn for non-compliance on their fleet emissions after regulations were tightened in the wake of the Volkswagen (VW) diesel scandal.
  
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• How do you solve a problem like a broken water pump?

  22-03-2016 08:00
  
  Long considered a symbol of development aid, up to 40% of handpumps in sub-Saharan Africa are broken at any one time. Technology is offering smart solutionsOver the past few decades, the humble handpump has become the go-to option for rural water supply in developing countries. They’re used to extract groundwater which is mostly clean, easy and cheap to access, and available year-round. Handpumps are usually a better option than open wells – which are highly vulnerable to contaminati
  
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• Oil futures extend gains on falling U.S. crude stocks

  22-03-2016 07:45
  By Aaron Sheldrick TOKYO (Reuters) - Oil prices rose in Asian trade on Tuesday, adding to gains from the previous session after data showed U.S. crude inventories fell for the first time since January and as commodity prices broadly strengthened. U.S. crude futures for May , the front month from Tuesday, were up 18 cents at $41.70 a barrel at 0630 GMT, after settling up 0.8 percent at $41.54 on Monday. Brent crude futures for May delivery were 17 cents higher at $41.71 a barrel after rising 0.8
  
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• Small copper butterfly in ‘inexorable decline’ according to survey

  22-03-2016 07:01
  
  Once-common butterfly joins a growing list of shrinking species, suggesting climate change is having greather impact than previously thoughtA tiny but unmistakably dazzling butterfly, the small copper, suffered its worst ever year last summer according to the annual scientific survey of Britain’s butterflies.The bright ginger butterfly joins a growing band of once-common butterflies in apparently inexorable decline despite no discernible habitat loss in recent years and conservationists ar
  
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• Soundscapes in the clouds

  22-03-2016 06:30
  
  Sinderhope, Northumberland In the mist, it’s the sounds that are most acute after months of silenceWith the rough texture of a drystone wall behind my back, I perch on a flat stone and look over the high field.I can’t see much of the valley since it’s fogged by low cloud. This sharpens my other senses and I become aware of the damp, of the smell of earth and leaves and rain-soaked grass. Continue reading...
  
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• Insight - Ride to the Bottom: U.S. energy workers hit hard by company stock bets

  22-03-2016 06:21
  By Tim McLaughlin and Luc Cohen OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - Nearly 15 years since Enron’s collapse decimated the retirement accounts of its employees, hundreds of thousands of U.S. energy workers remain precariously exposed to big, concentrated bets on company stock in their 401(k) retirement plans. The slide in oil prices to their lowest levels in over a decade wiped out several billion dollars of retirement wealth in the energy sector in the past year. In Oklahoma and Texas, workers are de
  
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• WA organic farmer must pay $804,000 in court costs after losing GM legal battle

  22-03-2016 05:24
  
  Steve Marsh had tried to sue his GM-canola-cultivating neighbour Michael Baxter over claims his herbicide-resistant crop contaminated his organic farmA West Australian farmer who tried to sue his neighbour after genetically modified canola blew on to his land, contaminating his organic crop, must now pay a hefty court costs bill after a stay order was lifted.Related: Western Australian organic farmer loses appeal over GM case costContinue reading...
  
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• Climate guru James Hansen warns of much worse than expected sea level rise

  22-03-2016 05:01
  
  Former Nasa researcher and father of climate change awareness says melting of ice sheets could cause ‘several meters’ rise in a century, swamping coastal citiesThe current rate of global warming could raise sea levels by “several meters” over the coming century, rendering most of the world’s coastal cities uninhabitable and helping unleash devastating storms, according to a paper published by James Hansen, the former Nasa scientist who is considered the father of mo
  
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