Environment news

• Expanding Antarctic sea ice linked to natural variability

  04-07-2016 23:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  The recent trend of increasing Antarctic sea ice extent -- seemingly at odds with climate model projections -- can largely be explained by a natural climate fluctuation, according to a new study led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).The study offers evidence that the negative phase of the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO), which is characterized by cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific, has created favorable conditions for addition
  
  Read more

• 66 Million Dead Trees in California Increases Wildfire Risk

  04-07-2016 22:48 via feedproxy.google.com
  Those orange tree patches pictured aren’t harbingers of winter. They are dying or dead trees in California, most likely the result of pine beetle forest damage.It’s hot now in much of the golden state, and as temperatures continue to rise, something else is happening: Trees are dying in unprecedented numbers.A recent U.S. Forest Service aerial detection survey revealed a record 66 million dead trees in southern Sierra Nevada. What we’re left with is a breedi
  
  Read more

• Flooding: the problem that will not go away

  04-07-2016 22:30 via theguardian.com
  
  A report by MPs says the government is failing those in flood-prone areas in a number of waysDuring last December and January, floods in the northern half of the UK cost insurance companies £1.3bn. Bridges and roads were destroyed, hundreds of homes and businesses were inundated, and many of these are still recovering. The government reacted by reversing earlier decisions to cut spending on flood defences and then hoped the problem would go away; but this is wishful thinking.The House of C
  
  Read more

• France's Total rehuffles management in renewables drive

  04-07-2016 22:07
  French oil major Total has moved the head of its refining and chemicals arm to run its newly created gas, renewables and power division as the group strives to become a leading renewables and electricity player within 20 years. The appointment of Philippe Sauquet to oversee Total's expansion in renewables makes room for Bernard Pinatel to return to the company as president of the refining and chemicals arm. Pinatel will join Total's executive committee, as will Namita Shah, who was appointed exe
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Discovery could dramatically boost efficiency of perovskite solar cells

  04-07-2016 20:26 via feedproxy.google.com
  Scientists from the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have discovered a possible secret to dramatically boosting the efficiency of perovskite solar cells hidden in the nanoscale peaks and valleys of the crystalline material.Solar cells made from compounds that have the crystal structure of the mineral perovskite have captured scientists' imaginations. They're inexpensive and easy to fabricate, like organic solar cells. Even more intriguing, the efficienc
  
  Read more

• Juno mission: Jupiter probe on course for orbit manoeuvre

  04-07-2016 19:39 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The US space agency says its Juno probe is in good shape as it prepares to orbit Jupiter and begin a survey of what lies beneath the giant planet's obscuring clouds.
  
  Read more

• Scotland's pro-Brexit fishing federation warns ministers over EU stance

  04-07-2016 19:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Scottish Fishermen’s Federation suggests that it could block Holyrood’s efforts to keep Scotland in EU following referendumFishing industry leaders have clashed openly with Scottish ministers over Nicola Sturgeon’s campaign to keep Scotland in the EU, warning that they are opposed to her efforts to resist Brexit.On Monday, a delegation from the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation told the Scottish rural economy secretary, Fergus Ewing, that trawler workers had unanimously sup
  
  Read more

• An 81-year-old as shadow leader of the house? Hear hear | Patrick Barkham

  04-07-2016 19:32 via theguardian.com
  
  I hope Paul Flynn’s appointment to the shadow front bench ushers in new thinking in a world where youth can be prized over experienceOpportunity comes from crises and it knocked last week for Paul Flynn, the MP for Newport West. At 81, he became Labour’s oldest frontbencher since William Gladstone when Jeremy Corbyn, 67, made him shadow leader of the House of Commons.Flynn points out there are more women and minorities on the front bench than ever before (although still not enough),
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Norway says could achieve full carbon capture and storage by 2022

  04-07-2016 19:28
  By 2022, Norway could realise every step in the development of a technology many see as critical to reducing global carbon emissions, carbon capture and storage (CCS), it said on Monday. Oslo said it could capture carbon dioxide from an industrial plant, transport it by ship and inject it into an empty North Sea oil and gas reservoir for 4.3 billion to 7.6 billion crowns ($915 million to $515 million) by 2022. If it goes ahead with the plan, it could help lower carbon emissions worldwide: the In
  
  Read more

• Iranian officials revive ghost of oil deals disliked by majors

  04-07-2016 19:10
  Iran's officials are reviving the idea of developing oil fields using buy-back deals that international oil companies dislike, suggesting renewed tensions between hardliners and reformists over the future of the industry. Iran needs money to boost output from its oil reserves, the world's fourth largest, because production has been crippled by years of Western sanctions. Iran has promised new Iran Petroleum Contracts (IPCs), offering more flexible terms and ending a system known as buy-back cont
  
  Read more

• This artist has literally made jewellery out of air - and we want some

  04-07-2016 18:52
  
  An artist has combined science, technology and a creative flare to transform pollution particles found in air into unusual jewellery pieces.
  
  Read more

• Brazilian police target former Workers Party treasurer in Petrobras probe

  04-07-2016 17:57
  Brazil's federal police served five arrest warrants and conducted search and seizure operations in three states on Monday, in the latest round of a sweeping corruption probe around state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA. Police said contractors paid at least 39 million reais (£8.9 million) in bribes to executives of Petrobras, as the oil company is known, and rigged public auctions at Petrobras' research centre Cenpes. Part of the funds allegedly embezzled were directed to the leftist W
  
  Read more

• The Future of Cities is Bright

  04-07-2016 17:46 via feedproxy.google.com
  What does the “city of the future” look like?In an era of rapid technological advancement and increasing urbanization, it’s a fair question. Eighty percent of the U.S. population already lives in large cities* – each with a smartphone, wearable or other device in hand.As such, city officials are beginning to piece together how those bits of technology can connect with assets like energy meters, garbage cans, street lights, traffic lights, water pipes and more. But, how do
  
  Read more

• EDF says has full confidence in Hinkley Point, Brexit no barrier

  04-07-2016 16:17
  French power utility EDF on Monday stuck to its plans to build a nuclear reactor complex at Hinkley Point in southern England, saying Britain's referendum vote to quit the European Union was no barrier to the plan. The 18 billion pound ($24 billion) Hinkley Point project and its implications for the country's main state power company has divided opinion in France at a time when it finances are severely stretched already by its absorption of loss-making nuclear plant builder Areva. EDF Chief Exec
  
  Read more

• Oil eases as weak demand tempers bullish Saudi energy minister comments

  04-07-2016 16:03
  By Ahmad Ghaddar LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices eased on Monday after comments by Saudi Energy Minister Khaled Al-Faleh that the market was heading towards balance were tempered by signs of slowing demand in Asia. U.S. crude futures were flat at $48.99 per barrel. The energy minister of Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude exporter, and the secretary general of producer club OPEC agreed that global oil markets were heading towards balance, and that prices reflected this.
  
  Read more

• Three-quarters of people living in cities want clean air zones, poll finds

  04-07-2016 15:46 via theguardian.com
  
  YouGov survey of more than 800 people shows 76% want to bring their cities in line with European limits on air pollutionThe UK may be on its way out of the EU but more than three-quarters (76%) of people want clean air zones to bring their cities into line with European standards, according to a YouGov poll.The poll comes as new forecasting suggests London will still breach the limits for another 14 years without further action and the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, prepares to make a major speech
  
  Read more

• Twitter suspends account of Nigerian militant group Niger Delta Avengers

  04-07-2016 15:25
  Twitter on Monday suspended the account of Niger Delta Avengers, a militant group that has carried out a series of attacks on oil facilities in Nigeria in the last few months which pushed the country's crude production to 30-year lows. The Avengers have used a Twitter account as its main form of communication, using it to publicise claims of attacks and as a platform to criticise Nigeria's government. The group - which says it wants a greater share of Nigeria's oil wealth to be passed on to comm
  
  Read more

• Internet of Things paves way for connected cars of the future, says BT's sustainability chief

  04-07-2016 15:22
  
  The automotive industry has the power to become a lynchpin of the 'Internet of things' (IoT) phenomenon, connecting cars with homes and transforming the way we use and store energy, BT Group's head of sustainability Niall Dunne has said.
  
  Read more

• Solar sector celebrates Independence Day with record monthly output

  04-07-2016 15:10
  
  New analysis has revealed that the UK solar industry reached an energy generation record-high last month by producing 23.9% of the country's electricity demand, on the same day that the industry celebrates its third Solar Independence Day (4 July).
  
  Read more

• Liz Goodwin to join WRI as senior fellow in the fight against food waste

  04-07-2016 14:18
  
  Former chief executive of the UK Government's Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) Liz Goodwin has revealed that she will join the World Resources Institute (WRI) as a senior fellow and director in September this year.
  
  Read more

• Oil firms as Saudi Arabia sees balancing market

  04-07-2016 14:15
  By Ahmad Ghaddar LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday after Saudi Energy Minister Khaled Al-Faleh said that the market was heading towards balance, although signs of slowing demand in Asia weighed. U.S. crude futures were up 14 cents at $49.13 per barrel. The energy minister of Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude exporter, and the secretary general of producer club OPEC agreed that global oil markets were heading towards balance, and that prices reflected this.
  
  Read more

• Caribbean island's last two rare frogs are reunited

  04-07-2016 13:56 via theguardian.com
  
  Male and female mountain chicken frogs that were sole survivors of deadly disease are hoped to begin breeding on Montserrat for the first time since 2009 The last two remaining wild mountain chicken frogs living on Montserrat have been reunited, and are hoped to begin breeding on the Caribbean island for the first time since 2009.
  Last month, a project led by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust took the last female and relocated her into the territory of the remaining male as part of a 20-ye
  
  Read more

• Looking forward to Jupiter mission

  04-07-2016 13:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Dr Chris Lintott explains why he's looking forward to Juno's arrival at Jupiter.
  
  Read more

• Demand response spreads to the media as Scottish publisher embraces smart-grid thinking

  04-07-2016 13:41
  
  The Herald and Times Group has discovered a new revenue stream worth up to £250,000 after becoming the first newspaper group to sign up to Edinburgh-based aggregator Flexitricity's demand response initiative.
  
  Read more

• Mars and Ford hit big zero-waste-to-landfill milestones

  04-07-2016 13:21
  
  Multinational corporations Mars and Ford have announced zero-waste-to-landfill achievements across their respective factories in their latest sustainability reports.
  
  Read more

• Oil climbs as market seen in balance, but slow demand weighs

  04-07-2016 12:18
  By Ahmad Ghaddar LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday following comments from the Saudi energy minister that the market was heading towards balance, although signs of slowing demand in Asia weighed. The energy minister of Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude exporter, and the secretary general of producer club OPEC agreed that global oil markets were heading towards balance, and that prices reflect this. The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation said last week that output was rising fol
  
  Read more

• Shell launches new digital tool to springboard low-carbon start-ups into green markets

  04-07-2016 11:48
  
  A new digital tool has been launched by Shell's business development platform to create a route to market for innovative, low-carbon small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through a variety of sources totalling £157m in value.
  
  Read more

• Alan Whitehead resigns as shadow energy minister

  04-07-2016 11:47
  
  Alan Whitehead has become the latest MP to resign from Labour's shadow cabinet because of concerns over Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, after he quit his post as shadow energy minister this morning.
  
  Read more

• Bloodhound supersonic car project back on track

  04-07-2016 10:26 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Bloodhound supersonic car project is back on track thanks to new sponsorship, and now aims to break the land speed record in October 2017.
  
  Read more

• China fits final piece on world's largest radio telescope

  04-07-2016 10:16 via bbc.co.uk
  
  China has fitted the final piece on what is set to be the world's largest radio telescope, the size of 30 football fields and worth $180m (£135m).
  
  Read more

• Oil rises as market seen in balance, but slow Asian demand hurts

  04-07-2016 10:14
  By Osamu Tsukimori and Henning Gloystein TOKYO/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday following comments from the Saudi energy minister that the market was heading towards balance, although signs of slowing demand in Asia weighed. "The bulls are seemingly once again on their relentless march to keep this market above $50," said Matt Stanley of oil brokerage Freight Investor Services (FIS) in Dubai. Attacks in the Niger Delta have pushed Nigerian crude production to 30-year lows, althoug
  
  Read more

• Growth in artificial lawns poses threat to British wildlife, conservationists warn

  04-07-2016 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Growing trend to lay fake lawns instead of real grass causes loss of habitat for wildlife and creates waste that will never biodegrade Environmentalists have warned that a growing trend to lay artificial lawns instead of real grass threatens the loss of wildlife and habitat across Britain.From local authorities who purchase in bulk for use in street scaping, to primary schools for children’s play areas and in the gardens of ordinary suburban family homes, the sight of pristine, green artif
  
  Read more

• Pesticide blamed for huge drop in frog numbers along Queensland coast

  04-07-2016 07:43 via theguardian.com
  
  The Cairns Frog Safe project blames neonicotinoids for population decline and malformations, but cannot attract government or academic interestThe head of Australia’s only dedicated frog hospital believes powerful insecticides are behind a staggering decline in frog populations along the Queensland coast. Related: Neonicotinoids: new warning on pesticide harm to beesContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• UK expedition explores potential and risks of deep sea gold rush

  04-07-2016 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Huge rich-metal deposits on the ocean floor could transform the global commodities market but there are fears mining them could harm rare ecosystemsA scientific expedition has been launched from the UK to explore the mining of rich metal deposits on the deep ocean floor, which are the focus of a new gold rush around the world.The UK research vessel, the RSS James Cook, left Southampton on Thursday, heading for the underwater ridge in the middle of the Atlantic where volcanic activity drives hot
  
  Read more

• Do cows get seasick? Welcome to Rotterdam's floating dairy farm

  04-07-2016 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  The €2.5m project envisages 40 cows on a floating platform producing 1,000 litres of milk a day. It aims to reconnect Rotterdam’s residents with their food
  Do cows get seasick? It’s not a question farmers often ask, except in the Dutch city of Rotterdam where a team of developers plans to build a floating dairy. “They won’t here,” says Minke van Wingerden of Beladon, a company involved with water-based projects from a luxury hotel to this floating farm proposed
  
  Read more

• Oil stable as market seen in balance, but slow Asian demand hurts

  04-07-2016 06:52
  By Osamu Tsukimori and Henning Gloystein TOKYO/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil futures were steady on Monday following comments from the Saudi energy minister that the market was heading towards balance, although signs of slowing demand in Asia weighed. The energy minister of Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude exporter, and the secretary general of producer club OPEC agreed that global oil markets were heading towards balance, and that prices reflect this. Crude futures are drawing some support from
  
  Read more

• A walk among clouds on Liathach's fabled ridge

  04-07-2016 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Glen Torridon, Liathach, Highlands The path that worms up alongside the waterfalls is invisible until we’re on itFrom Glen Torridon, Liathach looks impregnable, with little sign of a way upwards; the path that worms up alongside the waterfalls of the Allt an Doire Ghairbh is invisible until we’re on it. The vast bulwarks and bastions of rock rise into a ceiling of white cloud, their full extent obscured. We climb unhurriedly, content to wait for the forecasted “cloud free Munro
  
  Read more

• China offers Philippines talks if South China Sea court ignored - China Daily

  04-07-2016 05:37
  China is ready to start negotiations with the Philippines on South China Sea-related issues if Manila ignores an arbitration ruling expected next week on their long-running territorial dispute, the official China Daily reported on Monday. The Philippines brought the case to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague and a ruling is expected on July 12. The case contests China's claims to the bulk of the South China Sea, a body of water through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes ev
  
  Read more

• Climate change: big four banks' lending to Australian renewables projects falls

  04-07-2016 03:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Market Forces finds only two financing deals closed in first half of 2016 despite banks’ purported support for sectorAustralia’s big four banks’ lending for Australian renewable energy projects has tumbled in the first half of 2016, despite all of them spruiking their continuing support for the sector.Based on public announcements from the banks and their customers, the activist group Market Forces has found only two financing deals were closed this year in the Australian renew
  
  Read more

• Oil extends gains, Saudi minister sees market balance

  04-07-2016 01:16
  Crude prices extended gains on Monday in Asia, supported by comments from the Saudi energy minister saying the oil market is heading towards balance. London Brent crude for September delivery was up 17 cents at $50.52 a barrel by 2247 GMT on Sunday, after settling up 64 cents at $50.35 on Friday. The energy minister of Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, and the secretary general of OPEC agree that the global oil market is heading towards a balance and that prices are starting to set
  
  Read more

• Food Standards Agency urges UK to cut down on freezer-related waste

  04-07-2016 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  FSA identifies myths preventing people from freezing food, as households throw away 7 million tonnes of food a yearConsumer ignorance about how to freeze food safely is helping to fuel the annual 7-million-tonne household food waste mountain in the UK, the government’s food watchdog has said.The Food Standards Agency, working with the government department Defra, is to launch an urgent review of current guidance given to the food industry on date marking for food, which could include givin
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!