Environment news

• Mail-order wine pioneer becomes Australia's biggest environment donor

  23-06-2016 23:42 via theguardian.com
  
  Bequest of $35m makes Cellarmasters founder David Thomas the country’s leading environmental philanthropistDavid Thomas, who became wealthy by pioneering mail-order wine, has become Australia’s biggest philanthropist to the environment, announcing a bequest that takes his donations to about $70m.“Barbara, my late wife, and I – it was always our intention that we’d give about 50% of our wealth away during our lifetime and then we’d give the other 50% away when
  
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• VW to pay over $10 billion for U.S. emissions scandal - sources

  23-06-2016 23:17
  By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Volkswagen AG will pay more than $10 billion to settle claims by nearly 500,000 owners stemming from its U.S. diesel emissions cheating scandal and fund efforts to offset pollution, three sources briefed on the agreement said on Thursday. Owners would also receive the compensation if they choose to have the vehicles repaired, assuming U.S. regulators approve a fix at a later date. As part of the settlements, Volkswagen will to help boost zero emissions
  
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• Solar battery storage: bulk-buy promises Australians lower prices sooner

  23-06-2016 22:48 via theguardian.com
  
  SunCowd says its pioneering program, launched in Newcastle on Thursday, has attracted keen interestAustralia’s first bulk-buy program for solar battery storage has launched, with more than 1,000 people in Newcastle expressing interest and more than 500 attending a sign-up event on Thursday night to buy home battery systems. From Friday, the program is being opened to people all around Australia.
  The cost and complexity of battery storage, and the expectation that prices will come down , ha
  
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• Oil ends higher in choppy trade ahead of Britain's EU vote

  23-06-2016 21:12
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices closed 2 percent higher after a volatile session on Thursday, with investors less worried about prospects for the global economy after the last pre-vote opinion polls showed Britain was likely to remain in the European Union. Oil prices were also supported by market intelligence firm Genscape's report of a drawdown of nearly 1 million barrels at the Cushing, Oklahoma storage base for U.S. crude futures during the week to June 21, traders who saw
  
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• Cleanup underway after California oil pipeline spill

  23-06-2016 21:12
  
  VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — Thousands of gallons of crude oil spilled Thursday from a pipeline and flowed down a ravine in Southern California but did not reach the ocean, officials said.
  
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• California pipeline spills thousands of gallons of crude oil

  23-06-2016 20:16
  VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — Thousands of gallons of crude oil spilled Thursday from a pipeline and flowed down a ravine in Southern California but did not reach the ocean, officials said.
  
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• VW to pay over $10 billion for U.S. emissions scandal - source

  23-06-2016 20:10
  (Reuters) - Volkswagen AG will pay nearly $10.3 billion (£7 billion) to settle claims stemming from its diesel emissions cheating scandal with U.S. regulators, a source briefed on the agreement said on Thursday. The settlement includes offers to buyback nearly 500,000 polluting U.S. vehicles and to set aside billions of dollars for green energy projects and a programme to offset excess diesel pollution, the source said. The settlement is currently valued at $10.287 billion in some settleme
  
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• California pipeline spills about 29,400 gallons of crude oil

  23-06-2016 18:49
  VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — An estimated 29,400 gallons of crude oil spilled Thursday from a pipeline and flowed down an arroyo in Ventura County, California, officials said.
  
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• Beyond borders: 10 amazing European sustainability success stories

  23-06-2016 18:03
  
  With the UK nervously awaiting the results of a defining European Union (EU) referendum, edie has rounded up some of the ways other Member States have been rolling out their own ambitious green initiatives to drive the low-carbon transition outside of the collaborative clutches of the EU.
  
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• Up to 210,000 gallons of oil spills from California pipeline

  23-06-2016 17:40
  VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — Authorities are responding after a Southern California pipeline spilled up to 210,000 gallons of crude oil.
  
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• Maersk appoints new CEO, company could be broken up

  23-06-2016 17:20
  Danish shipping and oil group A. P. Moller-Maersk could be split up into separate companies, its chairman said on Thursday after naming Soren Skou, the head of its container business, as chief executive. "The question is whether we should be a large group, or whether we should be a number of independent companies," Chairman Michael Pram Rasmussen told Danish online media Finans. Skou will begin in his new role on July 1, while remaining the head of Maersk Line, the company said in a statement.
  
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• Oil up in choppy trade ahead of Britain's EU vote

  23-06-2016 17:03
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose in volatile trade on Thursday after the last pre-vote opinion polls on Britain's European Union membership showed a likely stay that would not cause ructions to the global economy. Oil prices were also supported by market intelligence firm Genscape's report of a drawdown of nearly 1 million barrels at the Cushing, Oklahoma storage base for U.S. crude futures during the week to June 21, traders who saw the data said. Brent crude was up 25 ce
  
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• Scientists hungry to deliver food system paradigm shift

  23-06-2016 16:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Eight universities across northern England join forces to form a scientific powerhouse at the launch of a five-year, £16m global food research programme.
  
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• Oil lifted by other markets ahead of Britain's EU vote

  23-06-2016 15:34
  By Karolin Schaps LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose by up to 2 percent, shrugging off a smaller-than-expected draw on U.S. crude stocks as money and equity markets firmed after the last pre-vote opinion polls raised expectations that Britain will stay in the European Union. Markets, including commodities, have been on tenterhooks ahead of Thursday's referendum on Britain's EU membership. Global benchmark front-month Brent crude was trading up 79 cents at $50.67 a barrel by 1303 GMT.
  
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• Rare moth faces extinction at its last site in England

  23-06-2016 14:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Dark bordered beauty moths have declined by over 90% at their last stronghold near York due to sheep grazing and habitat lossThe dark bordered beauty moth is heading towards extinction at its last site in England, new research has found.The tiny, rare insect is now found only on Strensall Common, an area of protected lowland heath near York, having been lost from Newham Bog in Northumberland. But scientists have found that even in its last stronghold numbers have plunged by over 90% in the last
  
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• 2 ways to limit the number of heat-related deaths from climate change

  23-06-2016 14:16 via feedproxy.google.com
  By the 2080s, as many as 3,331 people could die every year from exposure to heat during the summer months in New York City. The high estimate by Columbia University scientists is based on a new model--the first to account for variability in future population size, greenhouse gas trajectories, and the extent to which residents adapt to heat through interventions like air conditioning and public cooling centers. Results appear online in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.
  
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• Oil rises as investors focus on Britain's EU referendum

  23-06-2016 13:30
  By Karolin Schaps LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose by up to 2 percent on Thursday, shrugging off a smaller than expected draw on U.S. crude stocks as money and equity markets firmed after the last sweep of Brexit opinion polls raised optimism over Britain remaining in the EU. Global markets, including commodities, have been on tenterhooks for weeks ahead of Britain's referendum on European Union membership on Thursday. Global benchmark front-month Brent crude was trading up 93 cents at $50.81
  
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• UN boss: Brexit would mean rewriting Paris Agreement on climate change

  23-06-2016 12:30
  
  A vote for Brexit in tomorrow's UK referendum on EU membership (23 June) would mean that the COP21 agreement would have to be rewritten, the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change said on Wednesday (22 June) in Brussels.
  
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• Solar Impulse 2's flight around the world – in pictures

  23-06-2016 12:21 via theguardian.com
  
  Pilot Bertrand Piccard has just completed the first ever Atlantic crossing by solar plane, from New York to Seville, in the latest leg of the first solar flight around the world. We look back at some highlights so farContinue reading...
  
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• Water protection laws won't change until 2017 despite Flint crisis

  23-06-2016 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  EPA has been reviewing lead and copper rule since 2010 but has yet to make changes even as its own scientists have criticized current regulationsChanges to laws that protect Americans’ drinking water are still at least six months away, the US Environmental Protection Agency has said, despite the ongoing lead crisis in Flint and calls for reform from lawmakers and public health groups.
  The EPA has been reviewing the lead and copper rule, part of the Safe Drinking Water Act, since roughly 20
  
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• Glastonbury 2016: Nine reasons that suggest this is the most sustainable festival yet

  23-06-2016 12:00
  
  As the rain falls and the gates open at Worthy Farm for this year's Glastonbury festival, edie rounds up the sustainable initiatives being introduced to ensure that even if the fields don't remain green, the festival will.
  
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• Glastonbury 2016: 10 reasons this is the most sustainable festival yet

  23-06-2016 12:00
  
  As the rain falls and the gates open at Worthy Farm for this year's Glastonbury festival, edie rounds up the green initiatives being introduced to ensure that, even if the fields don't remain green, the festival certainly will.
  
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• 97% global warming consensus paper surpasses half a million downloads | Dana Nuccitelli

  23-06-2016 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Cook et al. (2013) has remained the most-read paper in Environmental Research Letters for most of the past 3 yearsIn 2013, a team of citizen science volunteers who collaborate on the climate myth debunking website SkepticalScience.com published a paper finding a 97% expert consensus on human-caused global warming in peer-reviewed research. Over the past 3 years, that paper has been downloaded more than 500,000 times. For perspective, that’s 4 times more than the second-most downloaded pape
  
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• Michael Bloomberg: Our new alliance unites 600m city dwellers to fight climate change

  23-06-2016 11:56
  
  Cities are huge carbon emitters but are ideally placed to tackle climate change. Michael Bloomberg addresses how the Global Covenant can give them the tools to do so.
  
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• Oil rises as investors await Brexit vote

  23-06-2016 11:31
  By Karolin Schaps LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices edged higher on Thursday, shrugging off a smaller than expected draw on U.S. crude stocks as money and equity markets firmed on the last sweep of opinion polls showing Britons favoured to remain in the European Union (EU). Global markets, including commodities, have been on tenterhooks for weeks ahead of Britain's so-called Brexit referendum on Thursday. "Most market participants are positioned ahead of the Brexit voting or are waiting on the sidel
  
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• EU Referendum: Live updates for green business

  23-06-2016 11:30
  
  The wait is over - the EU Referendum has finally arrived. Should we remain in the European Union, or Brexit the bloc? And how will all of this impact the green economy? Follow all of the action and reaction as it happens in edie's live EU Referendum blog.
  
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• EU Referendum: Decision day for green business as Britain votes - Live

  23-06-2016 11:30
  
  The wait is over - the EU Referendum has finally arrived. Should we remain in the European Union, or Brexit the bloc? And how will all of this impact the green economy? Follow all of the action and reaction as it happens in edie's live EU Referendum blog.
  
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• EU Referendum: Britain votes for Brexit - As it happened

  23-06-2016 11:30
  
  The EU referendum is over and the British public has voted in favour of a Brexit. Now the attention turns to what impact this outcome will have on the green economy. Re-live all of the action and reaction as it happened in edie's live EU Referendum blog.
  
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• Stubbs and the Wild review – a radical world vision seen through animal eyes

  23-06-2016 11:24 via theguardian.com
  
  Terrified horses, playful leopards, anxious lemurs … the 18th-century painter’s acute observation and compassion are vividly present in this impactful showA white horse trembles in terror, veins throbbing in its flanks, its mane thrust forward as if galvanised by electricity, its mouth open in shock. Every muscle of its tremulous body is a beacon of distress. As Horace Walpole, author of the Gothic horror story The Castle of Otranto, observed when Horse Frightened by a Lion was firs
  
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• Michael Bloomberg: Our new alliance unites 600m city dwellers in fight against climate change

  23-06-2016 11:18
  
  Cities are huge carbon emitters but are ideally placed to tackle climate change. Michael Bloomberg addresses how the Global Covenant can give them the tools to do so.
  
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• Solar Impulse completes Atlantic crossing with landing in Seville

  23-06-2016 09:11 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The zero-fuel aeroplane, Solar Impulse, lands in the southern Spanish city of Seville to complete its historic Atlantic crossing.
  
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• Oil rises slightly as markets awaits result of Brexit vote

  23-06-2016 09:04
  By Aaron Sheldrick TOKYO (Reuters) - Oil prices were up slightly on Thursday, shrugging off a smaller-than-expected decline in U.S. stockpiles, as the market nervously awaited the result of Britain's "Brexit" vote. Trading has been choppy in the run up to Thursday's vote on whether Britain leaves or stays in the European Union (EU), although markets appear to have largely priced in a "Remain" vote. The worsening crisis in Venezuela, the country with the highest oil reserves, may be the next sour
  
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• Good news for Goodfellow's as Perth zoo breeds rare roo

  23-06-2016 08:52 via theguardian.com
  
  The birth of joey Mian is a major coup in global efforts to conserve the endangered species native to Papua New Guinea Perth zoo has successfully bred a Goodfellow’s tree kangaroo for the first time in 36 years, bringing the number of males in the endangered marsupial’s global captive breeding population to 15. Continue reading...
  
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• Solar Impulse 2 completes first ever Atlantic crossing by solar plane

  23-06-2016 07:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Solar Impulse 2 lands in Seville, four days after setting off New York, using solar panels and batteries to finish latest leg of its round-the-world journeySolar Impulse 2 has completed the first ever crossing of the Atlantic by a solar-powered aeroplane, landing in Spain early on Thursday morning. The four-day trip, which started in New York, was the latest leg of a round-the-world journey due to end in Abu Dhabi. Continue reading...
  
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• A bumblebee with a taste for high living

  23-06-2016 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Sandy, Bedfordshire A queen hit the bullseye – a 2.8cm hole in our nestbox – and there is a clearly active colony of tree bumblebees in residenceSince the start of the millennium, a new tune for summer has been spreading north. It was first picked up in Wiltshire; within a decade, it had reached southern Scotland. I can hear it from the bathroom, the bedroom, or standing under the eaves at the back door. The sound is not discernibly different from that made by the maker’s neare
  
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• Indian solar scheme shows local teamwork can be a guiding light | Eric Kasper

  23-06-2016 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  A project that helps marginalised Indian communities to build their own solar panels underlines the benefits of local people piloting development initiativesAt last month’s world humanitarian summit in Istanbul, leaders outlined a set of core responsibilities for humanity, and spoke of the need to reform development assistance. One proposal was to place greater emphasis on local ownership and control of projects.The idea is simple: rather than providing ready-made solutions that might not
  
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• Wanted man killed after Saudi raid on Shi'ite village - state media

  23-06-2016 05:18
  A wanted man has been killed in Saudi Arabia's oil-producing Eastern province after an exchange of gunfire while police were searching his home, state news agency SPA reported on Thursday. The search in the village of Awamiya came amid rising anger in neighbouring Bahrain after authorities stripped the spiritual leader of the kingdom's majority Shi'ite Muslims of his citizenship over alleged links to Iran and accusations he was fomenting sectarian tensions. Saudi state news agency SPA said secur
  
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• Food waste - what can we do about it?

  23-06-2016 05:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Wherever you are in the world, if you are running or participating in food waste projects we’d like to hear from you
  Almost $1 trillion in food is thrown away, lost or wasted every year worldwide - roughly one third of all food produced for human consumption. Food such as fruits and vegetables, plus roots and tubers have the highest wastage rates of any food. Around half of us go by the date label printed on the packaging of food and will often throw away food that is safe to eat. Accordin
  
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• Oil rises as markets on tenterhooks ahead of Brexit vote

  23-06-2016 04:38
  By Aaron Sheldrick TOKYO (Reuters) - Oil prices rose in Asian trading on Thursday, shrugging off a smaller-than-expected decline in U.S. stockpiles, as the market nervously awaited the result of Britain's "Brexit" vote. Trading has been choppy in the run up to Thursday's vote on whether Britain leaves or stays in the European Union (EU), although markets appear to have largely priced in a "Remain" vote. The worsening crisis in Venezuela, the country with the highest oil reserves, may be the next
  
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• We learned how to track bilbies and we saw a burrow! This is amazing! | First Dog on the Moon

  23-06-2016 03:04 via theguardian.com
  
  Yukultji Napangarti was riding shot gun in the front car. She not only saw a bilby track 15 feet away, she could also tell from the tracks which exact bilby it wasSign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published
  Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and printsToday I woke up on a football oval. In a canvas bag in the red dirt again. The romantic notion I had about the red earth at the heart of Australia still persists but the
  
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• Rise of border fences hampers wildlife movements

  23-06-2016 01:50 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The growth of border fences in Central and Eastern Europe in recent years is a "major threat" to wildlife, according to a new study.
  
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• Pentagon chief says North Korea test shows need for better defences

  23-06-2016 01:18
  U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Wednesday he did not know if North Korea's latest missile test was a success, but it flew further than past attempts and showed the need to step up defences in South Korea, the United States and Japan. North Korea launched what appeared to be an intermediate-range missile on Wednesday to a high altitude in the direction of Japan before it plunged into the sea, military officials said, an advance after several test failures, including one two hours earlie
  
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• Frog rescue: Last hope for endangered amphibian

  23-06-2016 01:08 via bbc.co.uk
  
  How a shipping container became a last sanctuary for one of the world's most endangered amphibians, the mountain chicken frog.
  
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• Green homes: would you pay more for energy and water efficiency?

  23-06-2016 00:55 via theguardian.com
  
  A new tool will make it easier for home buyers and renters to understand energy efficiency but will it make a difference to their purchasing decisions? What do you look for when you’re searching for a new home? If you are like most buyers and renters, you’re looking for something in the right location, at the right price, near the right amenities that somehow feels like home. While these subjective features can be difficult for real estate agents to tap into, there are other aspects
  
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• 94-million-year-old climate change event holds clues for future

  23-06-2016 00:10 via feedproxy.google.com
  A major climate event millions of years ago that caused substantial change to the ocean's ecological systems may hold clues as to how the Earth will respond to future climate change, a Florida State University researcher said.In a new study published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Assistant Professor of Geology Jeremy Owens explains that parts of the ocean became inhospitable for some organisms as the Earth's climate warmed 94 million years ago. As the Earth warmed, several natural
  
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