Environment news

• Oil down second straight day; rising output reignites glut worry

  03-05-2016 21:18
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices fell for a second day on Tuesday, retreating further from the year's highs hit last week, as rising output renewed worries about the global glut of crude, the U.S. dollar rebounded and equity markets weakened. "There are enough supply stories out there to slow or temper any gains," Energy Aspects analyst Richard Mallinson said, adding that the only upside came from the possibility of longer-term U.S. production declines. Brent crude futures sett
  
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• Global water shortages to deliver 'severe hit' to economies, World Bank warns

  03-05-2016 21:00
  
  The Middle East, north Africa, central Asia and south Asia due to suffer biggest economic hit from water scarcity as climate change takes hold, report findsWater shortages will deliver a “severe hit” to the economies of the Middle East, central Asia, and Africa by the middle of the century, taking double digits off their GDP, the World Bank warned on Tuesday.By 2050, growing demand for cities and for agriculture would put water in short supply in regions where it is now plentiful &nd
  
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• Tim Peake: 'Science can solve problems'

  03-05-2016 20:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  British astronaut Tim Peake says he wants his mission to the space station to change attitudes towards science.
  
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• Norway suspects technical fault in fatal helicopter crash

  03-05-2016 19:49
  "The investigation will now solely be focussed on potential root causes of a technical failure, such as design, production, and/or maintenance," Airbus Helicopters said in a statement. Design and production are the responsibility of Airbus Helicopters, while maintenance is handled by the operator, CHC Helicopter. Airbus, which had initially urged a halt to all Super Puma flights, said on Monday commercial operations could resume outside UK and Norway, since initial evidence did not suggest a lin
  
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• Fat Labradors give clues to obesity

  03-05-2016 19:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Genes are partly to blame for some dogs getting fat, say scientists who have studied Labrador retrievers.
  
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• Climate protesters occupy UK's largest opencast coalmine – in pictures

  03-05-2016 18:41
  
  The biggest coordinated global action against fossil fuel companies began with early morning demonstrations at the Ffos-y-fran coalmine, near Merthyr Tydfil in south Wales. Groups of environmental activists descended at the site in red boiler suits forming human chains and blocking access roadsContinue reading...
  
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• Malta should consider moratorium on turtle dove hunting, says EU

  03-05-2016 17:54
  
  European Commission investigating violations of the EU bird directive after Malta allows 5,000 turtle doves to be shot, says Karmenu VellaMalta should consider a temporary ban on the shooting of turtle doves which are being driven to extinction by hunting and other pressures, the EU’s environment chief has said.The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) put turtledoves on its Red List of species threatened with extinction for the first time last October. Continue reading
  
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• Halliburton aims to boost weak businesses after failed Baker Hughes deal

  03-05-2016 17:54
  Halliburton Co said it would consider acquisitions to bolster its weaker businesses as the world's No.2 oilfield services company looks to move on after abandoning a deal to buy smaller rival Baker Hughes Inc . The deal would have helped Halliburton better compete with market-leader Schlumberger for the dwindling number of contracts from oil producers as crude prices stay stubbornly low. While Halliburton is the market-leader in fracturing, cementing, and completion services, acquiring Baker Hug
  
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• West Africa pirates switch to kidnapping crew as oil fetches less

  03-05-2016 17:32
  By Jonathan Saul LONDON (Reuters) - Pirate gangs in West Africa are switching to kidnapping sailors and demanding ransom rather than stealing oil cargoes as low oil prices have made crude harder to sell and less profitable, shipping officials said on Tuesday. Attacks in the Gulf of Guinea - a significant source of oil, cocoa and metals for world markets - have become less frequent partly due to improved patrolling but also to lower oil prices, according to an annual report from the U.S. foundati
  
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• Idea of renewables powering UK is an 'appalling delusion' – David MacKay

  03-05-2016 17:30
  
  Country should focus on nuclear power and carbon capture technologies, former chief scientific adviser said in his final interview The idea that renewable energy can power the UK is an “appalling delusion”, according to the final interview given by former chief scientific adviser, the late Professor Sir David MacKay.
  The sensible energy and climate change plan for the UK, MacKay said, was for the country to focus on nuclear power and carbon capture storage technology, which traps the
  
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• The time has come to turn up the heat on those who are wrecking planet Earth | Bill McKibben

  03-05-2016 16:43
  
  Break free and join the biggest global action against fossil fuel companies the world has ever seenAn interesting question is, what are you waiting for? Global warming is the biggest problem we’ve ever faced as a civilisation — certainly you want to act to slow it down, but perhaps you’ve been waiting for just the right moment.Continue reading...
  
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• The time has come to turn up the heat on those who are wrecking planet Earth

  03-05-2016 16:43
  
  Break free and join the biggest global action against fossil fuel companies the world has ever seenAn interesting question is, what are you waiting for? Global warming is the biggest problem we’ve ever faced as a civilisation — certainly you want to act to slow it down, but perhaps you’ve been waiting for just the right moment.Continue reading...
  
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• UN chief picks Mexican diplomat to head climate office

  03-05-2016 15:54
  
  Ban Ki-moon says he will appoint Patricia Espinosa Cantellano as new chief of UNFCCC, as climate talks shift from setting goals to carrying them outA veteran Mexican diplomat has been chosen to head the United Nations’ newly upgraded climate office, UN chief Ban Ki-moon announced in a letter to France’s environment minister.
  Ban said he will appoint Patricia Espinosa Cantellano “as the new UNFCCC Executive Secretary for a term of three years,” referring to the body which
  
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• Saudi-Iran split muddies OPEC long-term strategy - sources

  03-05-2016 15:51
  By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler DUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) - OPEC has yet to agree on a long-term strategy as Saudi Arabia objects to a proposal from arch-rival Iran that the exporter group aim for tighter control of the oil market, sources said, pointing to deep divisions over the way forward. The OPEC board of governors met on Monday in Vienna to discuss the latest draft of its LTS. While they made progress on some issues, OPEC kingpin Riyadh disagreed with Tehran's proposal to include "effectiv
  
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• Fatal helicopter crash off Norway due technical error - investigators

  03-05-2016 15:49
  By Joachim Dagenborg and Tim Hepher OSLO/PARIS (Reuters) - A helicopter crash that killed 11 oil workers and two crew on Friday off the Norwegian coast was due to a technical fault, not human error, Norway's Accident Investigation Board said on Tuesday. "We are as certain as we can be that a technical error caused the accident.
  
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• UK-led satellite to 'weigh' forests

  03-05-2016 15:18 via bbc.co.uk
  
  British industry is to lead the construction of the Biomass satellite which will use an innovative radar instrument to essentially weigh all the world's trees.
  
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• Oil drops as higher output stokes concern over supply glut

  03-05-2016 14:56
  By Simon Falush LONDON (Reuters) - Oil fell on Tuesday as rising output from the Middle East renewed concerns about global oversupply while economic data painted a negative backdrop for the outlook for demand. Brent crude futures were trading 40 cents lower at $45.43 a barrel at 1234 GMT, retreating from earlier gains. U.S. crude futures were down 53 cents at $44.25 a barrel. Iraq said its oil shipments from southern fields averaged 3.364 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, up from 3.286 mil
  
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• Timberland pledges to 'preserve the outdoors' with fresh sustainability targets

  03-05-2016 14:41
  
  Outdoor clothing company Timberland has set itself a new list of ambitious sustainability targets for 2020, including goals to plant 10 million trees andensure that 50% of energy comes from renewable sources.
  
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• A month in the wild: readers' April wildlife pictures

  03-05-2016 14:27
  
  We asked you to share your April pictures of the wildlife around the world wherever you are. Here’s a selection of our favourites• You can add your May wildlife photographs here Continue reading...
  
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• Heathrow becomes first airport to earn four Carbon Trust Standards

  03-05-2016 14:11
  
  Heathrow has become the first airport in the world to simultaneously hold four certifications from the Carbon Trust Standard, after working to reduce key environmental footprints both in-house and across its supply chain.
  
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• Air pollution has been lost in the murk of the London mayoral campaign | Alan Andrews

  03-05-2016 14:02
  
  Boris Johnson has left Londoners with an urgent problem with dirty air. Whoever replaces him needs to act quickly – starting with diesel carsA year ago, ClientEarth obtained a landmark ruling from the supreme court, ordering the government to prepare plans to bring air pollution within legal limits across the country. Last week we were granted permission to take it back to court – because its new plan still isn’t nearly good enough.Air pollution across the UK continues to threa
  
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• David Attenborough unveils UK's newest nature reserve in east London

  03-05-2016 13:23
  
  Britain’s threatened birds including kingfishers, bitterns and Cetti warblers find a refuge in Woodberry Wetlands, once a barren wastelandThe UK’s newest nature reserve was opened in east London over the weekend by Sir David Attenborough. Overshadowed by council tower blocks and swanky high rise developments, the 11 hectare (27 acres) site which includes a reservoir that supplies water to millions of Londoners, has become home to some of Britain’s more threatened birds includin
  
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• Patricia Espinosa nominated to replace Christiana Figueres as UN climate chief

  03-05-2016 13:04
  
  Mexican diplomat Patricia Espinosa looks set to replace Christiana Figueres as the new Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) after receiving the nomination in a selection process led by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.
  
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• Gentrification is destroying communities just as much as climate change

  03-05-2016 13:00
  
  The Sierra Club was pushed out of its home because of high rent. The grassroots environmental group will be fine – it’s San Francisco I worry aboutLast week, the Sierra Club left San Francisco, its home since its founding 124 years ago. Like so many individuals and institutions, it was pushed out by high rent.The Club, the US’s largest grassroots environmental organization, will be fine in its new home across the bay in Oakland; it’s San Francisco I worry about. Continue
  
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• DONG Energy offers subsidised renewable electricity to UK businesses

  03-05-2016 12:56
  
  Utility company DONG Energy will offer UK businesses the chance to purchase renewable electricity at a subsidised rate, by absorbing cost premiums to ensure that green energy prices are no higher than traditional "brown energy" sources.
  
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• Shah Deniz consortium awards $1.5 billion subsea production contract

  03-05-2016 12:52
  The consortium developing the second phase of Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz gas field has awarded a $1.5 billion (1.02 billion pound) subsea production contract to a consortium involving Saipem , BOS Shelf and Star Gulf FZCO, it said on Tuesday. The group has won a contract to operate a Subsea Construction Vessel (SCV) to transport and install a deepwater subsea production system, said the Shah Deniz consortium, led by British oil major BP . The consortium said the Shah Deniz 2 project was on track to
  
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• DONG Energy offers subsidised renewable electricity to UK businsesses

  03-05-2016 12:38
  
  Utility company DONG Energy will offer UK businesses the chance to purchase renewable electricity at a subsidised rate, by absorbing cost premiums to ensure that green energy prices are no higher than traditional "brown energy" sources.
  
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• Climate protesters invade UK's largest opencast coalmine

  03-05-2016 12:11
  
  Hundreds of activists take control of vast site and bring operations to a halt as part of a coordinated global direct action against fossil fuel companiesHundreds of environmental activists have invaded the UK’s largest opencast coalmine and halted operations across the vast site.Dressed in red boiler suits, groups of protesters crossed barbed wire fences to gain access to Ffos-y-fran mine near Merthyr Tydfil in south Wales. Some chained themselves to machinery, others lay across access ro
  
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• Climate protesters invade UK's largest opencast coal mine

  03-05-2016 12:11
  
  Hundreds of activists take control of vast site and bring operations to a halt as part of a coordinated global direct action against fossil fuel companies
  Hundreds of environmental activists have invaded the UK’s largest opencast coal mine and claim they have halted operations across the vast site.Continue reading...
  
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• Phasing out coal, oil and gas extraction in US would drastically cut emissions

  03-05-2016 12:00
  
  The reduction would slash greenhouse gas emissions by 100m tonnes a year by 2030 and even more after that, comparing well to other proposed measures
  Phasing out coal, oil and gas extraction on US federal land would cut greenhouse gas emissions by 100m tonnes a year by 2030 and even more after then, providing a useful brake to careening climate change, according to a new study.A quarter of all fossil fuel extraction in the US occurs on the 650m acres of land under federal management. The outer sh
  
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• Chinese energy official joins IEA as advisor for first time

  03-05-2016 10:39
  The International Energy Agency (IEA) has picked a Chinese official as a special advisor to the IEA head, a first for a Chinese official, as the world's top energy consumer steps up cooperation with the energy watchdog for the developed nations. Yang Lei, the deputy head of the oil and gas division of National Energy Administration (NEA), told Reuters that he will start a two-year assignment in the coming weeks based in Paris to work with IEA executive director Fatih Birol. The appointment came
  
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• VIDEO: Solar Impulse lands safely in Arizona

  03-05-2016 09:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Solar Impulse, a plane fuelled only by the sun, has landed in the US state of Arizona after a 16-hour flight from California.
  
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• Could the circular economy salvage Britain's struggling steel industry?

  03-05-2016 09:30
  
  The ongoing debate over the UK's escalating steel crisis has failed to consider the circular economy as a potential solution, with Tata Steel's Port Talbot production plant well-positioned to become a national remanufacturing hub as a way of securing a more sustainable future.
  
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• Has Cook's Australia ship been found?

  03-05-2016 07:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Researchers in the US believe they are a step closer to finding the Endeavour, the ship in which Captain Cook sailed to Australia in 1768.
  
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• Australia plans to kill carp with herpes

  03-05-2016 07:27 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Australian politician who declared war on Johnny Depp's dogs has a new enemy - the European carp.
  
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• Golfers are slicing through our wild spaces | Patrick Barkham

  03-05-2016 07:00
  
  For Aberdeenshire 47 golf courses isn’t enough – even if the 48th, designed by Jack Nicklaus, destroys a woodland refuge of red squirrels and pine martens“If there is any larceny in a man,” said the American sportswriter Paul Gallico, “golf will bring it out.” James Bond ruthlessly exposed this when he took on Goldfinger (and Oddjob the caddy) in the most gripping round of fictional golf ever played and discovered the greedy chrysophilist was also a cheat. Rel
  
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• Peacocks emerge from winter sleep in combative mood

  03-05-2016 06:30
  
  Claxton, Norfolk To be touched by those fluttering wings is to be brushed by velvet. Yet in this way they contest anything that transgresses their boundaryNormally all the softness of the English summer is in a blackbird’s syrinx. Today, however, as the sound of the song wafts towards me across the garden, it somehow seems to congeal in these north-easterlies. It is like a dark warm spawn-filled pond of music but with ice edges. I go out and the air is cold. The new greens in the hawthorns
  
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• Solar Impulse reaches Arizona

  03-05-2016 06:23 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The zero-fuel aeroplane Solar Impulse starts to cross the continental USA, flying the first leg from California to Arizona.
  
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• Mammal on Victorian beach thought to be rare dwarf sperm whale

  03-05-2016 06:22
  
  The 2.42-metre whale washed up on Lake Tyers beach and authorities suspect it could be rare species spotted only 17 times since records began in AustraliaA rare dwarf sperm whale that has been spotted only 17 times since records began in Australia may have washed up on a Victorian beach, local authorities have said.The 2.42-metre whale died after becoming stranded on Lake Tyers beach in Gippsland, about 330km east of Melbourne, on Saturday.Continue reading...
  
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• Oil prices rise as dollar slips to 18-month low against yen

  03-05-2016 04:41
  By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Tuesday as the dollar slipped to an 18-month low against the yen, potentially spurring fuel demand, but gains were restricted by rising Middle East output that renewed concerns of a global supply overhang. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were 20 cents up at $44.98 a barrel. Energy Aspects' oil analyst Virendra Chauhan said the weak U.S. dollar was a factor in rising oil prices, but also pointed to a "sentiment shift",
  
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• Military tests unmanned ship designed for seafaring missions

  03-05-2016 02:17
  
  SAN DIEGO (AP) — The military is starting tests on the world's largest unmanned surface vessel — a self-driving, 132-foot ship designed to travel thousands of miles out at sea without a single crew member on board.
  
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• Activists launch fresh court challenge over Carmichael coalmine

  03-05-2016 01:48
  
  Australian Conservation Foundation argues emissions from coal mined from Adani’s project will put the Great Barrier Reef at risk by exacerbating climate changeA landmark case pitting the Great Barrier Reef against Adani’s proposed Carmichael coalmine begins in the federal court on Tuesday.The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) is arguing that environment minister Greg Hunt unlawfully approved the mine in central Queensland, which would be the largest in Australia. They will arg
  
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