Environment news

• Shark trapped and killed in WA after surfer loses leg in attack

  01-06-2016 23:40 via theguardian.com
  
  Drum lines were set in the wake of the attack on Ben Gerring and a 4.2m-long great white was caught shortly afterwardsWeatern Australia’s fisheries department has trapped and killed a large great white shark in baited drum lines close to the site where a surfer suffered life-threatening injuries in an attack. The authorities took samples from the 4.2m-long shark to see whether it was responsible for the attack which left a 29-year-old fly-in fly-out worker, Ben Gerring, fighting for his li
  
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• Nigerian militant group says it blew up two Chevron wells

  01-06-2016 23:36
  A Nigerian militant group said on Wednesday that it had blown up two Chevron oil wells in the second such attack in a week on the company's facilities in Nigeria's oil-producing Delta region. An oil spill was seen in waterways and wetlands surrounding the Chevron sites after the attack, according to a Reuters witness and a local official, though the volume spilled could not be immediately determined. The attacks occurred as tensions flared between international oil companies and Niger Delta resi
  
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• Saudi, Iran set to clash over OPEC oil output targets

  01-06-2016 23:18
  By Shadia Nasralla and Alex Lawler VIENNA (Reuters) - OPEC is set for another showdown between rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran when it meets on Thursday, with Riyadh trying to revive coordinated action and set a formal oil output target but Tehran rejecting the idea. Tensions between the Sunni-led kingdom and the Shia Islamic Republic have been the highlights of several previous OPEC meetings, including in December 2015 when the group failed to agree on a formal output target for the first time in
  
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• UAE says oil market still not close to rebalancing

  01-06-2016 22:35
  VIENNA (Reuters) - Oil markets are still not close to rebalancing due to a severe glut and a further price correction is possible, United Arab Emirates Oil Minister Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazroui said on Wednesday. (Reporting by OPEC Newsroom; Editing by Dale Hudson)
  
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• Norway helicopter crash investigators issue safety warning on Airbus Super Puma gearbox

  01-06-2016 22:35
  Norwegian investigators looking into the cause of a fatal North Sea helicopter crash have sent a recommendation to European air safety authorities about a possible safety issue with the model's gearbox, they said on Wednesday. An Airbus H225 Super Puma helicopter ferrying passengers from a Norwegian oil platform operated by Statoil went down on April 29, killing all 13 people on board. Since then the helicopter model, a workhorse of the oil industry, has been grounded for commercial flights in N
  
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• Output ceiling has no benefit for us - Iran oil minister

  01-06-2016 22:33
  VIENNA (Reuters) - Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said on Wednesday Tehran would not support any new collective output ceiling for OPEC and wanted the debate to focus on the more radical idea of individual country production quotas. "An output ceiling has no benefit to us," Zanganeh told reporters upon arriving in Vienna ahead of OPEC's regular meeting on Thursday. (Reporting by OPEC Newsroom; Editing by Dale Hudson)
  
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• High blood pressure linked to short-, long-term exposure to some air pollutants

  01-06-2016 21:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  High blood pressure was associated with short-term and long-term exposure to some air pollutants commonly associated with the burning/combustion of fossil fuels, dust and dirt, a new study shows. Researchers suggest people -- especially those with high blood pressure -- limit their time outdoors when pollution levels are high.
  
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• Oil down, declines cut by report OPEC mulling output cap

  01-06-2016 21:14
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil settled down on Wednesday on technical resistance at around the $50 a barrel mark, with the market retracing most earlier declines after OPEC sources said the group will likely consider a production curb at its forthcoming meeting. Reuters cited four OPEC sources as saying the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries was likely to discuss an output ceiling at its meeting in Vienna on Thursday. A lower output ceiling would represent a major com
  
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• Spike in Alaska wildfires is worsening global warming, US says

  01-06-2016 21:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Report from US Geological Survey says northern wildfires must now be seen as significant driver of climate change, not just a side-effectThe devastating rise in Alaska’s wildfires is making global warming even worse than scientists expected, US government researchers said on Wednesday.The sharp spike in Alaska’s wildfires, where more than 5 million acres burned last year, are destroying a main buffer against climate change: the carbon-rich boreal forests, tundra and permafrost that h
  
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• National Academy of Sciences Weighs In On Genetically-Engineered Foods

  01-06-2016 20:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  The National Academy of Sciences has some conclusions to share about genetically-engineered foods — 420 pages worth. And no matter which side of the fence you stand on when it comes to this divisive topic, you probably aren’t going to like what the nonprofit has to say.The report, Genetically Engineered Organisms: Experiences and Prospects, was released last week online amid a flurry of news articles that attempted to breathlessly summarize the findings in a few short
  
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• Venezuela says Americas bloc suspension threat is 'imperial' plot

  01-06-2016 20:52
  By Daniel Kai CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government said on Wednesday a move by the head of the Organization of American States (OAS) to censure the country for breaching democratic norms is an "imperialist" scheme to take the OPEC member's oil. Under increasing international pressure and facing an internal opposition push for a referendum to recall Maduro, the government has reacted with fury to OAS chief Luis Almagro's request for an emergency meeting o
  
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• Canada wildfire evacuees face cleanup as they return home

  01-06-2016 20:49
  By Nia Williams FORT MCMURRAY, Alberta (Reuters) - Evacuees who fled a massive wildfire that hit Fort McMurray trickle back to their homes on Wednesday, facing a massive cleanup and uncertainty over their safety as the devastated Canadian oil city begins to rebuild. More than 90,000 residents fled the remote northern Alberta city as the fire hit four weeks ago, leaving entire neighbourhoods charred in its wake. Speaking outside his house in downtown Fort McMurray, Mark Hebert was relieved to fin
  
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• VIDEO: Meet science's most famous insect

  01-06-2016 20:25 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The scientific mystery behind one of British science's most famous insects has finally been solved.
  
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• Who gets to influence the climate negotiations?

  01-06-2016 20:24 via feedproxy.google.com
  The influence of fossil fuel corporations was strongly questioned by developing countries in the post-Paris meeting of the climate change negotiations in Bonn last week. Climate Trackers Pavlos Georgiadis, Renee Karunungan and Anna Pérez Català highlight the key issues that were debated. A number of developing countries, led by Ecuador, Guatemala and Bolivia are now calling for concrete measures to define how the public policy making process interacts with the private sector i
  
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• Pluto's 'beating heart' explained

  01-06-2016 19:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The spectacular, flat landscape that dominates the left side of Pluto's icy "heart" can now be explained, say scientists.
  
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• Oil pares losses after report OPEC likely to consider output cap

  01-06-2016 19:32
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices were down slightly on Wednesday, erasing most of the day's losses after OPEC sources said the group was likely to consider a new output ceiling at its forthcoming meeting. Reuters cited four OPEC sources as saying the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries was likely to consider a production cap at its Thursday meeting. If agreed, the decision would represent a major compromise for OPEC, which failed to agree on an output ceiling for
  
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• Scottish parliament votes narrowly in favour of ban on fracking

  01-06-2016 19:23 via theguardian.com
  
  Vote does not create binding policy but is significant defeat for SNP so soon into new parliamentary termThe Scottish parliament has voted narrowly in favour of a ban on fracking, after Scottish National party MSPs abstained following a debate that gave a strong indication of the changed nature of the new Holyrood chamber.Scottish Labour had tabled an amendment in support of a full ban as part of an environment debate headed by the new cabinet secretary, Roseanna Cunningham.Continue reading...
  
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• Textbook moth's dark secret revealed

  01-06-2016 19:05 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists unravel details of the famous mutation that turned moths black during the industrial revolution.
  
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• 10 things you probably didn't know about the record breaking year for renewables

  01-06-2016 18:32
  
  With figures from multi-stakeholder network REN21 revealing that 2015 was a record year for renewable energy installations, edie digs deep into the data to bring you 10 surprising statistics about the world's green energy transformation.
  
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• Honeybees pick up 'astonishing' number of pesticides via non-crop plants

  01-06-2016 18:25 via feedproxy.google.com
  A Purdue University study shows that honeybees collect the vast majority of their pollen from plants other than crops, even in areas dominated by corn and soybeans, and that pollen is consistently contaminated with a host of agricultural and urban pesticides throughout the growing season.
  
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• MSPs back fracking ban as SNP abstain

  01-06-2016 18:16 via bbc.co.uk
  
  MSPs vote in favour of a Labour amendment calling for an outright ban on fracking in Scotland as SNP members abstain.
  
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• Oil pares losses on report of likely OPEC output cap deal

  01-06-2016 17:46
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices were down slightly on Wednesday, paring sharp early losses after OPEC sources said the group was likely to consider a new output ceiling at its forthcoming meeting, although many in the market still appeared skeptical about such a deal. U.S. crude's West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures showed a 40 cent decline at $48.70, after plumbing to $47.75 earlier. Reuters cited four OPEC sources as saying the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Count
  
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• World's longest rail tunnel opens

  01-06-2016 16:37 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The world's longest and deepest rail tunnel is officially opened in Switzerland, after almost two decades of construction work.
  
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• Gotthard tunnel: World's longest and deepest rail tunnel opens in Switzerland

  01-06-2016 16:37 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The world's longest and deepest rail tunnel is officially opened in Switzerland, after almost two decades of construction work.
  
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• Renewable energy smashes global records in 2015, report shows

  01-06-2016 16:32 via theguardian.com
  
  Last year saw record worldwide investment and implementation of clean energy such as wind, solar and hydropowerAn upsurge in new wind, solar and hydro plants and capacity saw renewable energy smash global records last year, according to a report on new supply.Some 147 Gigawatts of renewable electricity came online in 2015 - the largest annual increase ever and as much as Africa’s entire power generating capacity. Continue reading...
  
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• MPs call for release of key documents connected to farm poisoning

  01-06-2016 15:27 via theguardian.com
  
  Pressure mounts on ministers to release full evidence behind the decision to end mandatory use of a harmful chemical sheep dip
  MPs are demanding that ministers release key documents and correspondence connected to the decision to end the mandatory use of a chemical sheep dip by farmers.The call comes as the government made a partial release of evidence to explain why it ended use of the chemical. The documents, published for the first time, show ministers were advised to end use of the chemical
  
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• North America far off from ocean preservation targets, report finds

  01-06-2016 15:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Mexico, Canada and US collaborate on report that concludes the three nations will have to dramatically ramp up efforts to reach 10% protection goalNorth America is far from reaching national and international targets for protecting oceans, according to a first-of-its-kind report released on Wednesday.
  The Dare to Be Deep report, created by a coalition of NGOs in the US, Canada and Mexico, finds that less than 1% of these countries’ oceans are protected like national parks – with only
  
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• Caroline Lucas intends to 'break open' politics with Green Party co-leadership bid

  01-06-2016 14:59
  
  The Green Party's only acting MP Caroline Lucas has announced that she intends to become the Party's leader, but only as part of a joint-leadership bid with work and pensions spokesman Jonathan Bartley.
  
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• Gulf OPEC members seek to revive global oil output deal

  01-06-2016 14:19
  By Shadia Nasralla and Alex Lawler VIENNA (Reuters) - Gulf OPEC members including Saudi Arabia are looking to revive the idea of coordinated oil-output action by major producers when the group meets on Thursday, a senior OPEC source said, but Iran signalled the country was not ready for any such pact. "The Gulf Cooperation Council is looking for coordinated action at the meeting," the source said, referring to a group combining OPEC's biggest producer Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies Qatar, Kuwa
  
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• Supersponge the Size of a Minivan Found Near Hawaii

  01-06-2016 14:12
  
  An unusual sponge was making waves in waters near the Hawaiian Islands — though it doesn't wear square pants and is far too big to live in a pineapple under the sea. Identified as measuring approximately 12 feet (3.5 meters) in length and 7 feet (2.1 m) in height, the minivan-size creature was discovered at a depth of 7,000 feet (2,134 m) during dives by a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) system, which was deployed from the ship Okeanos Explorer by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin
  
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• Wow! Amazing SpaceX Video Gives a Rocket's-Eye View of Landing at Sea

  01-06-2016 13:36
  
  An amazing new video lets viewers ride along with the SpaceX rocket that landed on a ship at sea last week. The time-lapse rocket-landing video, which crams an entire descent and landing into just 30 seconds, shows the first stage of SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster re-orient itself in space shortly after launching the Thaicom 8 communications satellite on May 27. It was the third consecutive successful ocean landing for SpaceX.
  
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• UK's 'oldest' hand-written document found

  01-06-2016 13:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Roman tablets discovered during excavations in London include the oldest hand-written document ever found in Britain, archaeologists say.
  
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• Oil falls as OPEC expected to shun any output curbs

  01-06-2016 12:55
  By Simon Falush LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Wednesday on expectations of OPEC inaction on output as its focus stays firmly on market share, while concerns about China's economy weighed on the demand outlook. Brent crude was at $49.05 (34.2 pounds) per barrel at 0944 GMT (1044 BST), down 84 cents. Analysts said OPEC would continue to focus on defending market share instead of propping up prices by curbing output.
  
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• NATO likely to designate cyber as operational domain of war - German official

  01-06-2016 12:52
  NATO members will likely agree during a summit meeting in Warsaw next month to designate cyber as an official operational domain of warfare, along with air, sea, land and space, a senior German defence ministry official said Wednesday. Major General Ludwig Leinhos, who heads the German military's effort to build up a separate cyber command, told a conference at the Berlin air show that he expected all 28 NATO members to agree to the change during the coming Warsaw summit. Leinhos, who previously
  
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• Leaving EU could end 'unfair' French fishing quotas, says minister

  01-06-2016 12:52 via theguardian.com
  
  Brexit would allow Britain to renegotiate a more favourable share of catches, claims out campaigner George EusticeBritain would have an opportunity to upend fishing quotas that give a “disproportionately large” share of catches to France if it votes to leaves the EU, according to George Eustice, the pro-Brexit minister for farms, food and fisheries. In an interview with the Guardian, Eustice said that even if it left the EU, the UK would still respect catch limits set out to preserve
  
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• Nike unveils 'supply chain of the future' with new campus expansion

  01-06-2016 12:44
  
  Global sportswear giant Nike has reiterated its commitment to promoting a closed-loop business model by unveiling the latest expansion of its 100% renewable European Logistics Campus, which aims to "maximise performance while minimising footprints".
  
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• Volvo's innovative concept truck cuts fuel consumption by 30%

  01-06-2016 12:32
  
  Swedish carmaker Volvo has developed a new concept truck which can make 30% savings in fuel consumption, with the vehicle forming part of a five-year long research project aiming to improve the efficiency of long-haul transportation by 50%.
  
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• Gulf OPEC members seek joint action on oil output

  01-06-2016 12:24
  By Rania El Gamal and Shadia Nasralla VIENNA (Reuters) - Gulf OPEC members including Saudi Arabia are looking to revive the idea of coordinated oil-output action by major producers when the group meets on Thursday, a senior OPEC source said, but Iran signalled the country was not ready for any such pact. "The Gulf Cooperation Council is looking for coordinated action at the meeting," the source said, referring to a group combining OPEC's biggest producer Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies Qatar, K
  
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• Germany agrees to plug nuclear liability loophole

  01-06-2016 12:23
  The German government passed a regulation on Wednesday that aims to ensure utility companies remain liable for the costs of shutting down nuclear power plants even if they split up. Germany decided to end nuclear power by 2022 following Japan's Fukushima disaster five years ago. Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet said it would adopt recommendations made by a commission requiring Germany's utilities to pay 23.3 billion euros (18 billion pound) into a state fund to cover the costs of storing nucle
  
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• Scientists debate experimenting with climate hacking to prevent catastrophe | Dana Nuccitelli

  01-06-2016 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Funding for geoengineering computational experiments was mysteriously included in a Senate appropriations bill
  On his late-night talk show, Jimmy Kimmel recently invited climate scientists to explain that they’re not just messing with us about global warming. Continue reading...
  
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• Jordan king swears in new government to prepare for elections

  01-06-2016 11:45
  By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - Jordanian King Abdullah swore in a new government led by a business-friendly politician on Wednesday, charging him with preparing for parliamentary elections by September and pushing legislation to spur sluggish growth. Hani Mulki, 64, who has held a string of senior diplomatic and ministerial posts, is a former chief commissioner of Jordan's economic zone in the Red Sea port city of Aqaba. Official sources said the government is expected to maintain trad
  
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• Elephants could vanish from one of Africa's key reserves within six years

  01-06-2016 11:38 via theguardian.com
  
  Elephant populations in Tanzania’s Selous national park could collapse unless poaching and mining are urgently controlled, say WWFElephants could disappear from one of Africa’s most important wildlife reserves within six years unless industrial scale poaching is stopped and mining is brought under control, the WWF has said. Selous national park, a world heritage site in southern Tanzania, has lost an average of almost 2,500 elephants a year since the 1970s. But it has now reached a c
  
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• University responds to missed aurora

  01-06-2016 11:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Aurora Borealis watchers switch from using detection equipment in England to kit in Scotland after missing spectacular displays in March.
  
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• Qatar says oil market moving towards rebalancing

  01-06-2016 11:30
  Qatar's energy ministry said on Wednesday that oil markets were showing a positive trend towards rebalancing as demand rises and production slows around the world. Mohammed al-Sada, Qatar's energy minister and current president of the OPEC conference, is expected in Vienna on Wednesday where the group will meet on Thursday. The rebalancing of the market is "largely due to a rise in demand and the slowing down or outage of many production stations around the world, let alone the retreat in invest
  
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• Gulf OPEC members eye joint action on oil output - source

  01-06-2016 11:19
  VIENNA (Reuters) - Gulf OPEC countries are seeking coordinated action by the producer group to help stabilise oil markets, a senior OPEC source told Reuters. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries holds a regular meeting on Thursday. Earlier this year, a global initiative to freeze production was rejected by Saudi Arabia, which said it would act only if rival Iran participated. (Reporting by OPEC newsroom; Editing by Dale Hudson)
  
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• Leaked figures show spike in palm oil use for biodiesel in Europe

  01-06-2016 11:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Steep rise between 2010 and 2014 shows link between EU’s renewable energy mandate and deforestation in south-east Asia, say campaignersLeaked trade industry figures show a five-fold increase in the use of palm oil for biodiesel in Europe between 2010 and 2014, providing new evidence of links between deforestation in southeast Asia and the EU’s renewable energy mandate.The leaked figures, which the Guardian has seen, show that 45% of palm oil used in Europe in 2014 went to biodiesel,
  
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• ETI seeks proposals for 'template' CCS gas plant

  01-06-2016 11:09
  
  The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has called for help to create a "template" for a carbon capture and storage (CCS) enabled gas-fired power plant.
  
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• Forty dead tiger cubs found in freezer at Thai temple

  01-06-2016 10:42 via theguardian.com
  
  Officials have removed 52 live tigers from Tiger Temple in ongoing operation after allegations of wildlife traffickingWildlife authorities have found 40 tiger cub carcasses in a freezer in Thailand’s infamous Tiger Temple during a raid to remove live animals. The Buddhist temple in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, had become a tourist destination where visitors snapped selfies with bottle-fed cubs. The temple promotes itself as a wildlife sanctuary, but in recent years it has been i
  
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• Make building standards top priority for tackling climate change, says IEA chief

  01-06-2016 10:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Energy inefficient and substandard construction in developing countries locking the world into high greenhouse gas emissions for decades, warns Fatih BirolBuildings currently being constructed at an increasing rate in developing countries are locking the world into high greenhouse gas emissions for decades to come, the world’s leading authority on energy has warned. Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, told the Guardian that the world’s number one prior
  
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• Iran says will not commit to any oil output freeze - Shana

  01-06-2016 09:40
  Iran will not commit to any oil output freeze, the country's representative to the OPEC said on Wednesday a day ahead of the group's meeting in Vienna, adding that output rationing could be discussed only when the market had been stabilised. "Iran supports OPEC’s efforts to bring stability to the market with fair and logical prices, but it will not commit to any output freeze," Mehdi Asali was quoted as saying by Iranian oil ministry news agency SHANA.
  
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