Environment news

• VIDEO: What fracking vote means- in 20 seconds

  23-05-2016 23:31 via bbc.co.uk
  
  John Moylan explains what the successful bid to frack for shale gas will mean for a North Yorkshire village - in 20 seconds.
  
  Read more

• Landmark North Yorkshire fracking approval leaves green groups up in arms

  23-05-2016 22:52
  
  Shale development company Third Energy has been given the go-ahead by North Yorkshire County Council to hydraulically fracture an existing well near the village of Kirby Misperton - a decision labelled as "bitterly disappointing" and "an absolute travesty" by campaign groups and environmentalists.
  
  Read more

• Summer of content before a Dickensian storm

  23-05-2016 22:30 via theguardian.com
  
  In Barnaby Rudge, his novel of the Gordon Riots, Charles Dickens gives us a vision of sunlit bliss before the murderous climaxBarnaby and his mother have almost nothing, and Barnaby wants nothing, because he has his pet raven, Grip.“A crust of bread and scrap of meat, with water from the brook or spring, sufficed for their repast. Barnaby’s enjoyments were, to walk, and run, and leap, till he was tired; then to lie down in the long grass or by the growing corn, or in the shade of som
  
  Read more

• Wildfire-sparked evacuation orders lifted at all Canadian work camps

  23-05-2016 22:28
  By Eric M. Johnson and Ethan Lou CALGARY/TORONTO (Reuters) - Authorities in Canada lifted evacuation orders on Monday for all work camps and some additional oil facilities that had been shuttered when a massive wildfire threatened the nation's energy hub, a significant step for companies eager to restart production. Municipal authorities for the oil town said a "phased re-entry" was authorized for the remaining camps, including those for Suncor Energy Inc's Baseline and MacKay River camps north
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• French oil and port workers vote to begin new strikes

  23-05-2016 22:15
  Oil sector workers of French CGT and FO unions voted on Monday to begin a strike at Exxon Mobil's 240,000 barrels-per-day Port Jerome refinery in northern France, the unions said in a joint statement. Workers at a port terminal in Le Havre, northern France, which handles large volumes of imported petroleum products, also voted overwhelmingly to strike, the CGT said. The Port Jerome workers will join the rolling nationwide protest that began in March, aimed at forcing the government to withdraw c
  
  Read more

• Climate groups join forces for election campaign blitz

  23-05-2016 22:03 via theguardian.com
  
  A coalition of organisations have entered into unprecedented joint action to ensure climate change is in the minds of voters on 2 July An unprecedented level of coordination between climate activists and conservation groups is aiming to raise the profile of climate changein this year’s election.A coalition of groups has been organising tactics aimed at engaging both politicians and voters with climate change for the 2 July election. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Venezuela's PDVSA eyes $2.5 billion debt issue to pay service firms - documents

  23-05-2016 21:40
  By Brian Ellsworth and Corina Pons CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA is preparing to issue $2.5 billion (£1.7 billion) in promissory notes to settle unpaid bills to services companies, according to industry sources and documents seen by Reuters. PDVSA has already issued at least $310 million in debt securities as part of a broader effort to prevent crucial oil services providers from downing their tools for lack of payment, Reuters reported this month. The company has
  
  Read more

• Wildfire-sparked evacuation orders lifted at more Canadian work camps

  23-05-2016 21:19
  By Eric M. Johnson and Ethan Lou CALGARY/TORONTO (Reuters) - Authorities in Canada lifted evacuation orders on Monday for more work camps and oil facilities that had been shuttered when a massive wildfire threatened the nation's energy hub, bringing more good news for companies eager to restart production. Municipal authorities for the oil town said a "phased re-entry" was authorized for at least six work camps, including those for Suncor Energy Inc's Baseline and MacKay River camps north of the
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• UK local government approves Third Energy shale gas fracking permit

  23-05-2016 20:38
  (Reuters) - Officials in northern England approved a shale gas fracking application from Third Energy on Monday in a shift indicating growing support for shale gas that Britain's government hopes can counter the decline in North Sea output. Britain is estimated to have substantial amounts of shale gas trapped in underground rocks and Prime Minister Cameron has pledged to go all out to extract these reserves. "This has been a very difficult decision for the Council to make and we know it is a dif
  
  Read more

• North Yorkshire council backs first UK fracking tests for five years

  23-05-2016 20:32 via theguardian.com
  
  Council approves shale gas tests in village of Kirby Misperton despite receiving 4,375 objections to the plans Fracking is set to take place in Britain for the first time in five years after councillors approved tests in North Yorkshire, sweeping aside thousands of objections from residents and campaigners. Related: How does the fracking debate affect you? Share your experiencesContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• Squids and octopuses thrive as 'weeds of the sea' warm to hotter oceans

  23-05-2016 20:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Squid, cuttlefish and their relatives appear to benefit from ‘live fast, die young’ mentality as study shows cephalopods have thrived over past 60 yearsOctopuses, cuttlefish and squid have thrived in the world’s oceans over the last 60 years despite – or because of – human activity that has warmed oceans and reduced fish populations.Related: Giant squid that swam into Japanese bay guided back out to sea by diverContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• FTSE ends lower as commodities stocks slip

  23-05-2016 19:46
  By Kit Rees LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's top share index ended lower on Monday, with a drop in the prices of crude oil and industrial metals putting pressure on commodities-related stocks. The UK energy index dropped 1.2 percent as the oil price fell for a fourth consecutive session after Iran insisted it would not freeze crude output, returning investor attention to a global glut. Shares in BP and Royal Dutch Shell were down more than 1 percent.
  
  Read more

• Uganda accuses Congo army of killing four of its police

  23-05-2016 19:36
  By Elias Biryabarema KAMPALA (Reuters) - Uganda said on Monday four policemen patrolling on its side of Lake Albert had been killed by Congolese troops and demanded Kinshasa punish those responsible. The discovery of commercial oil deposits on the Ugandan side has heightened the tensions, with Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) sometimes accusing Uganda of conducting illegal exploration in its waters. The frontier area's security is also undermined by the lawless nature of DRC's eastern region w
  
  Read more

• Oil slides on Iran supply, U.S. rigs; Cushing draw cuts loss

  23-05-2016 17:34
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices slid early on Monday as Iran vowed to ramp up output and rig reductions paused in the United States, then crude futures pared losses on data showing a stockpile drawdown at the U.S. delivery hub. Oil fell $1 a barrel or more in early trade, the day after the Mehr news reported that Iran's Deputy Oil Minister Rokneddin Javadi said the country's crude exports, excluding gas condensates, would reach 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) by the middle o
  
  Read more

• World could warm by massive 10C if all fossil fuels are burned

  23-05-2016 17:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Arctic would warm by as much as 20C by 2300 with disastrous impacts if action is not taken on climate change, warns new studyThe planet would warm by searing 10C if all fossil fuels are burned, according to a new study, leaving some regions uninhabitable and wreaking profound damage on human health, food supplies and the global economy. The Arctic, already warming fast today, would heat up even more – 20C by 2300 – the new research into the extreme scenario found. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Lions and zebras being kept at UK homes

  23-05-2016 16:43 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Wild animals including lions, crocodiles, rattlesnakes and zebras are being kept legally on private property across the UK, licensing figures reveal.
  
  Read more

• Oil falls as Iran firm on export rise, U.S. rigs decline slower

  23-05-2016 15:58
  By Karolin Schaps LONDON (Reuters) - Brent crude prices fell two percent on Monday as investor focus returned to global supply, with Iran insisting on a rise in oil exports and U.S. drillers slowing the reduction in rigs. Global benchmark Brent futures were down $1.06 at $47.66 a barrel by 1345 GMT, on track for a fourth straight day of losses for the first time in a month. Iran's Deputy Oil Minister Rokneddin Javadi told the Mehr news agency on Sunday his country had no plan to halt a rise in o
  
  Read more

• New €12m peatlands fund signifies 'clear benefits' of EU membership, says Defra

  23-05-2016 15:52
  
  A new €12m fund from the European Union (EU) to restore and preserve blanket areas of peatlands is an example of how the Government can protect and enhance the environment by remaining in the EU, Environment Minister Rory Stewart has claimed.
  
  Read more

• Ex-treasurer of Brazilian coalition party arrested in graft probe

  23-05-2016 15:25
  BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilian federal police on Monday arrested a former treasurer of one of the parties in the country's ruling coalition as part of a wide-ranging graft probe centred on state-run oil company Petrobras, prosecutors said. João Cláudio Genu, a former treasurer of the Progressive Party (PP), is accused of receiving about 1 million reais (193,763 pounds) in bribes to distribute within his party. The PP supported now-suspended President Dilma Rousseff for years. ...
  
  Read more

• Drone footage captures 70 sharks feasting on whale in Australia –  video

  23-05-2016 14:43 via theguardian.com
  
  Drone footage shows around 70 tiger sharks eating a whale in the aptly named Shark Bay, around 500 miles north of Perth, Western Australia. The video was posted to the Eco Abrolhos Facebook page, which operates cruises to nearby islands.Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Unions dig in heels to disrupt fuel supply in France

  23-05-2016 14:40
  By Bate Felix PARIS (Reuters) - France's hardline CGT and FO unions launched a 24-hour strike at the Fos-Lavera oil terminals and blockaded a fuel depot in the southern port city of Marseille on Monday as they toughened their stance against labour market reforms. The rolling strikes, which began in March and have gathered pace in recent weeks, have disrupted fuel supplies in France since Friday with protesting workers blockading petrol depots and halting production at refineries. French oil and
  
  Read more

• Carbon capture key to unlocking 'unburnable' fossil fuel resources

  23-05-2016 14:38
  
  Refining Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) techniques would unlock the use of "unburnable carbon" as a viable energy source that would still keep the world on a 2C pathway if coupled with renewable energy, new research has suggested.
  
  Read more

• UK offshore wind capacity hits 10GW as £2.6bn Beatrice project receives green light

  23-05-2016 14:19
  
  The construction of the £2.6bn Beatrice offshore wind farm in Scotland has been given the green light by developers SSE, as the UK looks to secure 10% of its electricity needs by 2020 from the offshore wind sector.
  
  Read more

• India's record-breaking heatwave – in pictures

  23-05-2016 14:18 via theguardian.com
  
  Temperatures in a city in the desert state of Rajasthan have hit 51C (123.8F) – the highest on record in India. A drought has left many villages and towns without regular water. Schools have closed, some hospitals have stopped performing surgery, and in some regions daytime cooking has been banned due to the fire risk Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• UN Climate negotiations update - how to raise and allocate $100 billion

  23-05-2016 14:15 via feedproxy.google.com
  The UN intersessional negotiations on climate change (UNFCCC) which started in Bonn last week enter their second week with the big question - how to find and allocate by 2020 the $100bn as agreed in the Paris Agreement. Delegate Pavlos Georgiadis reports.The burning question for week two of these negotiations is how to raise and allocate the $100bn agreed as part of the Paris AgreementThe first week of the negotiations started slowly, and ended even slower. Negotiators look like they still have
  
  Read more

• FTSE edges lower as commodities stocks slip

  23-05-2016 14:14
  By Kit Rees LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's top share index edged lower on Monday, with a drop in the prices of crude oil and industrial metals putting pressure on commodities-related stocks. The UK energy index dropped 1.1 percent as the oil price fell for a fourth consecutive session after Iran insisted it would not freeze crude output, returning investor attention to a global glut. Shares in BP and Royal Dutch Shell were down about 1 percent.
  
  Read more

• Scientist spots Turkish banknote error

  23-05-2016 13:25 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Nobel chemistry laureate spots DNA error on Turkish banknote.
  
  Read more

• Oil discoveries sink to lowest since 1952 - Morgan Stanley

  23-05-2016 13:24
  By Ron Bousso LONDON (Reuters) - Oil discoveries in 2015 fell to their lowest since 1952 as energy companies slashed exploration budgets in the wake of the oil price fall, creating a gap for meeting future demand, analysts at Morgan Stanley said on Monday. The oil and gas industry discovered 2.8 billion barrels of oil outside the United States last year, the equivalent of one month of global consumption, the U.S. bank said, quoting data from consultancy Rystad Energy. Including the United States
  
  Read more

• Microsoft pledges to develop 'greener' data centres

  23-05-2016 13:19
  
  Tech giant Microsoft wants to combat the growth and electricity consumption of its data centres, by adding more clean sources to its energy mix in an attempt to reach a 60% renewables target "early in the next decade".
  
  Read more

• Tens of countries sign up to shut pirate fishers out of their ports

  23-05-2016 13:19 via theguardian.com
  
  The first of its kind, a new international treaty obliges signatories to intercept pirate fishers before they can sell their catchIn March, the Argentinian coast guard shot at and sank a Chinese vessel that was alleged to be fishing illegally in Argentinian waters (the crew were all rescued). While it’s unclear whether the boat was committing crime, the incident showed that the tension surrounding pirate fishing is reaching a peak, marked elsewhere by increasing conflict, and the detainmen
  
  Read more

• London Black Cab receives $400m windfall to roll-out zero-emission taxis

  23-05-2016 13:17
  
  The development of a zero-emission London Black Cab vehicle has moved a step closer, after a Chinese automobile company raised $400m to support the roll-out of a new generation of electric taxis across the capital.
  
  Read more

• Protesters urge North Yorkshire councillors to vote against fracking

  23-05-2016 13:15 via theguardian.com
  
  A vote allowing Third Energy to frack for shale gas could pave way for technique to be used across England, critics sayNorth Yorkshire councillors have been urged not to turn the region into “the fracking capital of the UK” before a crucial vote that could pave the way for the technique to be used across England.
  The UK firm Third Energy wants to frack for shale gas at its existing drilling site near the village of Kirby Misperton, between Malton and Pickering. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Biodegradable plastic 'false solution' for ocean waste problem

  23-05-2016 12:47 via theguardian.com
  
  UN’s top environmental scientist warns bottles and bags do not break down easily and sink, as report highlights the ubiquity of plastic debris in oceansBiodegradable plastic water bottles and shopping bags are a false solution to the ubiquitous problem of litter in the oceans, the UN’s top environmental scientist has warned.Most plastic is extremely durable, leading to large plastic debris and “microplastics” to spread via currents to oceans from the Arctic to the Antarct
  
  Read more

• Bayer bids $62bn for Monsanto

  23-05-2016 12:40 via theguardian.com
  
  Takeover would be the biggest by a German firm and would create a company producing drugs, pesticides and seedsGerman drug and chemicals group Bayer has offered to buy GM seed pioneer Monsanto for $62bn (£43bn), which would create the world’s biggest agricultural supplier.The offer of $122 a share in cash values the US Monsanto group at 37% more than its closing share price on 9 May, before rumours of a bid emerged. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Bayer bids $62bn for GM seed giant Monsanto

  23-05-2016 12:40 via theguardian.com
  
  Takeover would create world’s largest agricultural supplier in the biggest deal ever by a German firmGerman drug and chemicals group Bayer has offered to buy the American GM seed pioneer Monsanto for $62bn (£43bn) in a deal that would create the world’s biggest agricultural supplier.The offer of $122 a share in cash values the Monsanto group at 37% more than its closing share price on 9 May, before rumours of a bid emerged. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• GRI aims to streamline sustainability reporting through new Digital Alliance

  23-05-2016 12:33
  
  The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) has unveiled a new programme aimed at streamlining sustainability reporting for businesses by using digital platforms to "enable transformational change".
  
  Read more

• Climate denial arguments fail a blind test | Dana Nuccitelli

  23-05-2016 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  In a ‘Pepsi challenge’ test, economist and statisticians find mainstream climate arguments accurate and contrarian arguments wrong and misleading
  As we saw in the recent legal ruling against Peabody coal, arguments and myths that are based in denial of the reality of human-caused global warming rarely withstand scientific scrutiny.In a new study published in Global Environmental Change, a team led by Stephen Lewandowsky tested the accuracy of some popular myths and contrarian talking
  
  Read more

• Fossil gives clues to ancient extinction

  23-05-2016 11:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A strange sea-dwelling reptile fossil suggests there was a burst of evolution after the mass extinction 250 million years ago.
  
  Read more

• French CGT union launches 24-hour strike at Fos-Lavera oil terminals - official

  23-05-2016 11:46
  PARIS (Reuters) - France's hardline CGT union has launched a 24-hour strike at the Fos-Lavera oil terminals in the southern port city of Marseille as the union toughens its stance against the government over a labour reform law. The rolling strikes which began in March and have gathered pace in recent weeks, have led to fuel supply disruptions in France since Friday as protesting workers blockade petrol depots and cut production at refineries. "No ship is operating at the installations," Pascal
  
  Read more

• GE says to double Saudi workforce as economy reforms

  23-05-2016 11:42
  Saudi Arabia won support for its economic reform plan from one of the world's biggest companies on Monday as General Electric Co (GE) said it would double its workforce in the kingdom to 4,000 people by 2020. GE will cooperate with the government's Saudi Arabian Industrial Investments Co (SAIIC) to develop joint ventures that boost Saudi industrial capacity, chief executive Jeffrey Immelt said in a statement during a visit to the kingdom. SAIIC was established in 2014 with capital of 2 billion r
  
  Read more

• Oil falls after Iran dampens hopes for production freeze

  23-05-2016 11:36
  By Karolin Schaps LONDON (Reuters) - Brent oil prices fell for a fourth consecutive session on Monday after Iran insisted it would not freeze crude output, returning investor attention to a global glut. Adding to signs the oil market will remain oversupplied, data showed last week the number of rigs operated by U.S. drillers held steady for the first time this year, following a near two-year slump in the rig count. Global benchmark Brent futures were down 41 cents at $48.31 a barrel by 0851 GMT,
  
  Read more

• Revealed: the dangerous wild animals kept on UK private property

  23-05-2016 09:27 via theguardian.com
  
  Councils have issued licences for thousands of animals, research shows, including lions, wolves and crocodilesLions, wolves and deadly venomous snakes are among thousands of dangerous animals being kept on private properties across the UK, figures have revealed.Big cats including 13 tigers, two lions, eight leopards, seven cheetahs and nine pumas are prowling behind the fences of addresses up and down the land, an investigation by the Press Association has found.Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• VIDEO: Building the world's largest radio telescope

  23-05-2016 09:06 via bbc.co.uk
  
  BBC science correspondent Rebecca Morelle travels to China to take a close up tour of the Five-hundred-metre Aperture Spherical Telescope - or Fast for short.
  
  Read more

• Oil prices fall on strong dollar, firm global supply

  23-05-2016 08:51
  By Keith Wallis SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices fell in Asian trade on Monday on a strong dollar and signs that global crude supply is holding up even as volumes hit by unplanned outages rise to at least five-year highs.
  
  Read more

• Goldman Sachs sees oil in $50-$60 a barrel range through 2020

  23-05-2016 08:51
  (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs said it expects U.S. oil prices to hold in a $50 (34 pounds) a barrel to $60 (41 pounds) a barrel range through 2020, due mainly to improved shale oil productivity and increased supply from OPEC producers. "We continue to have a long-term deflationary oil outlook driven by shale productivity, elevated OPEC supply and, in 2016-18, project start-ups," the bank said in an equity research note dated May 20. In the May 20 note, the bank estimated WTI oil prices would average
  
  Read more

• BP's oil search strategy shrinks with budget cuts

  23-05-2016 08:05
  By Ron Bousso and Dmitry Zhdannikov LONDON (Reuters) - The surprise departure of BP's exploration boss has turned the spotlight on an oil search strategy that, after years of spending cuts, is focussing mainly on expanding existing fields rather than venturing expensively into the unknown. "Exploration doesn't necessarily have to look like (nature broadcaster) David Attenborough standing on a brand new frontier," a BP source told Reuters. While BP's total reserves and fields coming onstream in t
  
  Read more

• India launches mini space shuttle

  23-05-2016 06:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  India launches an unmanned model space shuttle into orbit, joining the race to develop reusable space crafts.
  
  Read more

• Oil prices dip on strong dollar, firm global supply

  23-05-2016 06:35
  By Keith Wallis SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices slipped in Asian trade on Monday on a strong dollar and signs that global crude supply is holding up even as volumes hit by unplanned outages rise to at least five-year highs.
  
  Read more

• Blossom and bulls on a walk to Bucknell Wood

  23-05-2016 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Abthorpe, Northamptonshire Blue-purple columns of bugle and the crimped leaves of betony abound“Do you ever get over to the Silverstone area?” queried John in his first email to me. I don’t, but when he then enthused that the rustic parish of Abthorpe “seemed to be a relic of a long disappeared countryside”, he had my attention. South of Abthorpe a network of footpaths traverse straight lines across clayey fields of blossoming yellow oilseed rape and blue-green spra
  
  Read more

• Eight shuttered work camps reopening in Canada's scorched oil lands

  23-05-2016 05:55
  Authorities in Canada have announced the reopening of eight shuttered work camps south of the wildfire-ravaged oil town of Fort McMurray, paving the way for energy firms to restart production. Municipal authorities announced Sunday evening a "phased re-entry" for camps near Nexen's Long Lake and ConocoPhillips's Surmont facilities, both of which have stopped production due to the fire. "Assessment work to return ... camps to operations may begin immediately," the Regional Municipality of Wood Bu
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!