Environment news

• With opponents inside and out, there's no plain sailing for Malcolm Turnbull | Katharine Murphy

  04-11-2016 23:33 via theguardian.com
  
  A divided government and an emboldened opposition is not an ideal atmosphere to navigate the tricky policy waters of asylum seekers and climate changeI want to do something very simple this weekend to cut through the staging and the static in Canberra right now. I want to talk about what’s happening rather than what people are saying.
  Over the next few weeks two things are likely to happen. The Turnbull government appears likely to unveil a deal that will allow some of the wretched souls d
  
  Read more

• Impact of sea smell overestimated by present climate models

  04-11-2016 22:42 via feedproxy.google.com
  The formation of sulfur dioxide from the oxidation of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and, thus, of cooling clouds over the oceans seems to be overvalued in current climate models. This concludes scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS) from a model study on the effects of DMS on atmospheric chemistry. Until now, models considering only the oxidation in the gas phase describe merely the oxidation pathway and neglect important pathways in the aqueous phase of the atmosphere
  
  Read more

• How to get an Indonesian Komodo dragon out of your bathroom

  04-11-2016 21:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Planet Earth II's camera crew came back from filming to find an unwanted visitor.
  
  Read more

• California politician likes climate change because 'our enemies' live in hot places

  04-11-2016 21:39 via theguardian.com
  
  Republican assembly candidate stands by his belief that global warming is a good thing because it will negatively affect ‘our enemies in desert climates’Randy Voepel is a big fan of climate change because America’s “enemies are on the equator” and a warmer climate will make their lives worse. Voepel, a Republican running unopposed to be a California assemblyman, told a reporter in 2007 that he likes global warming because of the harm it will bring to certain nations
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Oil falls by most in a week since January on OPEC tensions

  04-11-2016 20:27
  By Scott DiSavino NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil futures on Friday fell by their biggest weekly percentage decline since January of around 9 percent as signs of tensions resurfaced between Saudi Arabia and Iran that could scupper a key supply cut pact. Traders also noted a surge in U.S. crude inventories last week and muted demand continued to weigh on futures. Old disputes between Saudi Arabia and rival Iran resurfaced at a meeting of OPEC experts last week, with Riyadh saying it could raise oil outp
  
  Read more

• Florida measure calls itself pro-solar but critics say it's 'a wolf in sheep's clothing'

  04-11-2016 20:27 via theguardian.com
  
  The amendment, backed by $20m from large energy utilities, has been described by Al Gore and environmentalists as a dishonest attempt to trick consumersClimate change may have been largely ignored during the presidential election but it will be on the ballot on 8 November, with Florida voters deciding on a measure backed by large utilities that could effectively snuff out the solar industry in the state. The measure, known as amendment 1, has been criticized as “fundamentally dishonest&rdq
  
  Read more

• Canada military probes mysterious Arctic pinging noise

  04-11-2016 19:48 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Canadian military probes a mysterious Arctic pinging sound, officials tell the BBC.
  
  Read more

• Arctic farming: Town defies icy conditions with hydroponics

  04-11-2016 18:10
  
  The landscape is virtually treeless around a coastal hub town above Alaska's Arctic Circle, where even summer temperatures are too cold for boreal roots to take hold. Amid these unforgiving conditions, ...
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Widnes worm Dave wriggles into record books

  04-11-2016 17:42 via bbc.co.uk
  
  An earthworm named Dave wriggles into the record books as the largest ever found in the UK - measuring a whopping 40cm (15.7in).
  
  Read more

• Exclusive - Saudis could raise oil output again as sparring with Iran returns: sources

  04-11-2016 17:37
  By Rania El Gamal, Alex Lawler and Dmitry Zhdannikov DUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) - Old disputes between Saudi Arabia and rival Iran resurfaced at a meeting of OPEC experts last week, with Riyadh saying it could raise oil output steeply to bring prices down if Tehran refuses to limit its supply, OPEC sources say. Clashes between the two OPEC heavyweights, which are fighting proxy wars in Syria and Yemen, have become frequent in recent years. Tensions subsided, however, in recent months after Saudi Ara
  
  Read more

• Asian hornet outbreak contained, says Defra

  04-11-2016 17:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Officials have destroyed an Asian hornet nest in Gloucestershire after the invasive species was spotted there, posing a threat to the UK’s honeybeesAn Asian hornet outbreak has been contained, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has said. The first sightings of the pest in the mainland UK were reported in Tetbury, Gloucestershire, in September. Inspectors from the National Bee Unit destroyed the nest and although two dead hornets were found in North Somerset no f
  
  Read more

• Oil set for biggest weekly loss since January

  04-11-2016 17:24
  By Scott DiSavino NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil futures on Friday were on course for their biggest weekly percentage declines since January of just under 10 percent as signs of tensions resurfaced between Saudi Arabia and Iran that could scupper a key supply cut pact. Traders also noted a surge in U.S. crude inventories last week and muted demand continued to weigh on futures. At a meeting of OPEC experts last week, Riyadh threatened to raise oil output steeply to bring prices down if Tehran refused
  
  Read more

• Big Oil pledges $1 bln for gas technologies to fight climate change

  04-11-2016 17:16
  By Karolin Schaps and Ron Bousso LONDON (Reuters) - Some of the world's biggest oil companies, including Saudi Aramco and Royal Dutch Shell, pledged on Friday to invest $1 billion to develop climate-friendly technologies as a global deal to wean the world off oil came into force. The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI), which also includes Total, BP, Eni, Repsol, Statoil, CNPC, Pemex and Reliance Industries, launched the Climate Investments fund which will invest in technologies to reduce carb
  
  Read more

• Paris agreement, air pollution and your carbon footprint – green news roundup

  04-11-2016 16:37 via theguardian.com
  
  The week’s top environment news stories and green events. If you are not already receiving this roundup, sign up here to get the briefing delivered to your inbox Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Brexit concerns mount for UK's waste and water industries

  04-11-2016 16:17
  
  The UK's departure from the European Union (EU) could result in economic downturn and the slow degradation of environmental regulations in the waste and water industries.
  
  Read more

• Scientists apply for GM wheat trial in UK

  04-11-2016 15:47 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Researchers apply for a licence to carry out a trial of a genetically modified wheat crop in a small field in Hertfordshire.
  
  Read more

• Tribal leader who negotiated Libyan oil port takeover hurt in blast - officials

  04-11-2016 14:11
  By Ayman al-Warfalli BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - A car exploded in the Libyan city of Benghazi on Friday, wounding a prominent tribal leader who recently helped eastern forces take control of major oil ports, security and medical officials said. Saleh al-Ateiwish, head of the Magharba tribe, was wounded as he left a mosque in Benghazi's Sidi Frej neighbourhood, the security official said. In September, Ateiwish had appealed to a faction of Libya's Petrol Facilities Guard (PFG) to relinquish cont
  
  Read more

• Saudi Naimi's battles against Western 'greed' shine light on Aramco IPO

  04-11-2016 14:11
  By Dmitry Zhdannikov and Ahmad Ghaddar LONDON (Reuters) - As Saudi Arabia prepares for the world's biggest initial public offering (IPO), memoirs from its former oil minister Ali al-Naimi offer a rare insight into decades of domestic infighting over the future of state-run Saudi Aramco. The 300-page book, titled "Out of the Desert" and published by Portfolio Penguin, describes the battles waged by the influential industry veteran including fending off Western attempts to gain control of oil gian
  
  Read more

• 'The beginning of a new era': World reacts to Paris Agreement coming into force

  04-11-2016 14:00
  
  Green businesses and industry groups have wholeheartedly welcomed the official enforcement of the Paris Agreement, but environmental groups and other experts are now urging governments to go beyond the ambition of the deal in order to avoid catastrophic climate change.
  
  Read more

• Meet Dave the UK’s biggest ever earthworm – video

  04-11-2016 13:51 via theguardian.com
  
  A giant earthworm called Dave has been euthanised by scientists after wriggling his way into the record books. The 40cm (15.7in) annelid, weighing 26g, was the size of a small snake and the largest earthworm found in the UK. Natural History Museum scientist Emma Sherlock tells BBC Breakfast on Friday why the worm came to an untimely demiseDave the earthworm dies after wriggling into UK record booksContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• STA calls for 'modest government intervention' for solar

  04-11-2016 13:44
  
  New research has shown that the current financing for large scale solar PV schemes in the UK is no longer economically viable.
  
  Read more

• Exclusive - Saudis threaten to raise oil output again as sparring with Iran returns

  04-11-2016 13:15
  By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler DUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) - Old disputes between Saudi Arabia and rival Iran resurfaced at a meeting of OPEC experts last week, with Riyadh threatening to raise oil output steeply to bring prices down if Tehran refuses to limit its supply, OPEC sources say. Clashes between the two OPEC heavyweights, which are fighting proxy wars in Syria and Yemen, have become frequent in recent years. Tensions subsided, however, in recent months after Saudi Arabia agreed to suppor
  
  Read more

• Oil firms announce $1bn green fund as Paris climate deal comes into force

  04-11-2016 13:10 via theguardian.com
  
  Analysts criticise fund – which focuses on cutting the impact of fossil fuels but will not support renewable energy - calling it a ‘drop in the ocean’ A $1bn fund to invest in cutting the climate change impact of fossil fuels has been announced by 10 of the world’s biggest oil companies, on the day the global Paris climate change agreement comes into force. But analysts called the sum a “drop in the ocean” which showed the companies were not serious in tacklin
  
  Read more

• Oil firms announce $1bn climate fund to clean up gas

  04-11-2016 13:10 via theguardian.com
  
  Analysts criticise fund – which focuses on cutting the impact of fossil fuels but will not support renewable energy - calling it a ‘drop in the ocean’ A $1bn fund for cutting the climate change impact of oil and gas has been announced by 10 of the world’s biggest oil companies, aimed at keeping the firms in business and cutting the burning of coal. Global action to cut carbon emissions threaten the future of the oil industry and the fund was revealed on the day the global
  
  Read more

• Amazonians call on leaders to heed link between land rights and climate change

  04-11-2016 12:38 via theguardian.com
  
  As Paris climate agreement comes into force, inhabitants of Amazon rainforest demand recognition of key role their communities play in conservationThe land rights of indigenous people in the Amazon must be recognised if their countries’ commitments on reducing deforestation and lowering or capping carbon emissions are to be realised, according to native leaders from the nine South American countries across which the rainforest spreads.Nearly 300 representatives of the forest’s severa
  
  Read more

• Dakota Access: women on frontlines tell of violent arrests and police abuse – video

  04-11-2016 12:30 via theguardian.com
  
  The Native American women leading the Standing Rock protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline say they have faced police abuse and mistreatment in jail. North Dakota’s militarized law enforcement has left many of them traumatized. ‘They came with their guns, their weapons and violence and put it on a peaceful people,’ says Lauren Howland, a member of the San Carlos and Jicarilla Apache tribes and Navajo NationAt Standing Rock, women lead fight in face of mace, arrests and
  
  Read more

• From the ugly to the surreal: readers' photos of fly-tipping

  04-11-2016 12:24 via theguardian.com
  
  With the finding that 40% of illegal dumping in England takes place in the capital, we asked readers to share photos of fly-tipping in their neighbourhoods Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Measuring Arctic ice melt from the sky – in pictures

  04-11-2016 12:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Since 2010, Dr Thomas Krumpen from Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research has been flying above northern Greenland towards North Pole to measure ice thickness. By lowering a small torpedo from the aircraft towards the sea ice scientists are able to to obtain data from inaccessible areas helping to build a clearer picture ice health Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Measuring Arctic ice melt from from the sky – in pictures

  04-11-2016 12:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Since 2010, Dr Thomas Krumpen from Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research has been flying above northern Greenland towards North Pole to measure ice thickness. By lowering a small torpedo from the aircraft towards the sea ice scientists are able to to obtain data from inaccessible areas helping to build a clearer picture ice health Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Oil majors pledge $1 billion for technologies to fight climate change

  04-11-2016 12:04
  LONDON/OSLO (Reuters) - Oil majors including Saudi Aramco, Royal Dutch Shell and Total on Friday pledged to invest $1 billion in carbon-reducing technologies to help fight climate change. The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) also includes BP, Eni, Repsol, Statoil, CNPC, Pemex and Reliance Industries. The 10 firms said they would first focus on speeding up deployment of carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS) technology and reducing methane emissions that can leak from pipelines.
  
  Read more

• Ignoring sustainability in favour of short-termism will cause financial ruin, warns major investor

  04-11-2016 11:16
  
  EXCLUSIVE: Companies that fail to realise the long-term benefits of sustainable investment will see their financial returns collapse, one of Britain's biggest investment groups has said.
  
  Read more

• Paris climate deal enters force as focus shifts to action

  04-11-2016 11:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Paris agreement on climate change has come into force, with efforts due to continue next week on the way ahead.
  
  Read more

• Paris Agreement officially enters force: what happens next?

  04-11-2016 11:11
  
  In the early hours of this morning (4 November), vision turned into reality as the Paris Agreement officially came into force, ushering a new era of climate action. But what does this actually mean for the global green economy?
  
  Read more

• Inventor Sir James Dyson sets up college to tackle skills shortage

  04-11-2016 10:34 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Inventor Sir James Dyson is setting up his own technology institute to tackle the shortage of engineers.
  
  Read more

• The Paris climate agreement is now official

  04-11-2016 10:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Environment groups hail ‘momentous occasion’ but warn governments need to cut carbon emissions more steeply to avoid dangerous global warming The significance of the Paris agreement coming into force today is easy to miss: it may seem like an anti-climax, given the travails that led up to its signing last December.But the moment is of huge importance. This is the first time that a legally-binding agreement, signed by all of the world’s functioning governments, has laid down a
  
  Read more

• Keep it in the ground: the Paris climate agreement is now official

  04-11-2016 10:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Environment groups hail ‘momentous occasion’ but warn governments need to cut carbon emissions more steeply to avoid dangerous global warming The significance of the Paris agreement coming into force today is easy to miss: it may seem like an anti-climax, given the travails that led up to its signing last December.But the moment is of huge importance. This is the first time that a legally-binding agreement, signed by all of the world’s functioning governments, has laid down a
  
  Read more

• Russia's Rosneft starts production at east Siberian oilfield

  04-11-2016 09:45
  Russia's largest oil producer Rosneft said on Friday it was gradually starting production at the Yurubcheno-Tokhomskoye oilfield in eastern Siberia and had began shipments to a pipeline. The move comes as oil producers globally struggle to reach a deal on capping output to support prices. Rosneft, led by Igor Sechin, who has been sceptical about OPEC's ability to stabilise prices, said it had started oil shipments to a pipeline connected to the main East Siberia-Pacific Ocean pipe, mainly used f
  
  Read more

• COP22: Seven green business wishes for the Marrakesh climate talks

  04-11-2016 09:44
  
  edie hears sustainability professionals, businessmen and environmental activists to round-up exactly what the green economy wants to see from the 22nd Conference of Parties (COP22) climate change talks in Marrakesh, Morocco.
  
  Read more

• French energy minister says no risk of power blackouts

  04-11-2016 09:35
  France does not risk electricity blackouts this winter despite 19 out of its 58 nuclear reactors on prolonged outages, French Energy Minister Segolene Royal said on Friday, a day after utility EDF postponed the restart of five reactors. "There is no risk of shortage, " Royal said on Europe 1 radio. "As minister responsible for energy, I'm responsible for the continuity of electricity supply, it is my responsibility to make sure electricity providers are accountable." EDF on Thursday cut its 2016
  
  Read more

• Oil set for sixth straight day of declines

  04-11-2016 08:57
  By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices were on course for their sixth straight day of falls on Friday, dragged lower by a surge in U.S. crude inventories, timid demand and doubts over the ability of producers to coordinate output cuts. Brent crude futures were at $46.21 per barrel at 0740 GMT, down 14 cents from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were down 9 cents at $44.57 a barrel.
  
  Read more

• Arctic farming: Town turns to hydroponics for fresh greens

  04-11-2016 08:06
  
  ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The landscape is virtually treeless around a coastal hub town above Alaska's Arctic Circle, where even summer temperatures are too cold for northern-growing forests to take root.
  
  Read more

• The Paris climate agreement is a game-changer – and business risks being left behind

  04-11-2016 07:22 via theguardian.com
  
  Legal advice issued this week warns directors risk personal liability for breach of duty if they fail to properly consider the impact of climate changeTwo developments this week should bring climate and sustainability-related issues to the top of company board agendas. The first was the release by the Centre for Policy Development and Future Business Council of a legal opinion by Sydney silk Noel Hutley SC that found that directors who don’t properly consider the material impacts of climat
  
  Read more

• Few geese graze the murky marsh edge

  04-11-2016 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Dyfi estuary, Wales A single egret, starkly white against the muted greys and browns of the saltings, flapped slowly up from the bed of a creekFrom my vantage point on the southern side of the Dyfi estuary it was clear that my plan for the day had been compromised. The salt marsh, with its almost fractally complex pattern of creeks, pools and drains, is often host in late autumn to large groups of geese grazing contentedly within easy reach of the seawall. On this visit those few geese visible t
  
  Read more

• Canada's energy business puts indigenous women, girls at risk, report says

  04-11-2016 05:51
  By Ellen Wulfhorst NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Indigenous women and girls in northern Canada live in danger due to rampant development that has brought crime, ratcheted up the cost of living and destroyed traditional ways of life, Amnesty International said on Thursday. The governments of Canada and British Columbia province fail to protect the thousands of indigenous people living in areas with intensive oil and gas extraction, coal mining and hydro power development, the human righ
  
  Read more

• Paris climate change agreement enters into force

  04-11-2016 03:35 via theguardian.com
  
  Environment groups hail ‘momentous occasion’ but warn governments need to cut carbon emissions more steeply to avoid dangerous global warmingThe Paris agreement on climate change enters into force on Friday, marking the first time that governments have agreed legally binding limits to global temperature rises.
  The passage of the accord – the fruit of more than two decades of often tortuous international negotiations on combating climate change – was hailed by nations and
  
  Read more

• Oil prices steady after five days of declines, sentiment bearish

  04-11-2016 03:06
  By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices edged up on Friday, stabilising after five straight days of falls triggered by a surge in U.S. crude inventories and doubts over the ability of producers to coordinate output cuts. Brent crude futures were up 16 cents, or 0.35 percent, at $46.51 per barrel at 1220 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures rose 17 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $44.83.
  
  Read more

• Honey wars: crime and killings in New Zealand's booming manuka industry

  04-11-2016 02:06 via theguardian.com
  
  An extraordinary rise in the popularity of manuka honey has led to mass poisonings, thefts, vandalism and beatings It was the day the bees died – tens of thousands of them in 300 hives, mysteriously killed.“The massacre”, as it is being called, happened in the otherwise idyllic landscape of Doubtless Bay in New Zealand’s far north.Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Health scare

  04-11-2016 02:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Given the complexity of antibiotics resistance, what should we do to tackle the problem?
  
  Read more

• Oil prices steady after five days of declines, but sentiment bearish

  04-11-2016 01:49
  Oil prices edged up in early trading on Friday, stabilising after five straight days of falls triggered by a surge in U.S. crude inventories and doubts over the ability of oil producers to coordinate an output cuts. International Brent crude oil futures were trading at $46.50 per barrel at 0036 GMT, up 15 cents, or 0.3 percent, from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were at $44.83, up 17 cents, or 0.4 percent.
  
  Read more

• Biodiversity needs citizen scientists

  04-11-2016 01:49 via feedproxy.google.com
  Could birdwatching or monitoring tree blossoms in your community make a difference in global environmental research? A new study says yes: citizen scientists have a vital role to play.Citizen scientists are already providing large amounts of data for monitoring biodiversity, but they could do much more, according to a new study published in the journal Biological Conservation, which suggests that citizen science has the potential to contribute much more to regional and global assessments of
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!