Environment news

• Robin Hood's Sherwood Forest faces fracking threat

  01-01-2017 19:38 via theguardian.com
  
  Ineos to conduct seismic survey for shale gas and could be working within 200m of the 1,000-year-old tree Major Oak, documents revealThe latest battleground for the future of fracking in Britain looks set to be Sherwood Forest, the legendary home of folk hero Robin Hood and now the target of a seismic survey by Ineos.The chemical multinational, which relocated its headquarters back to the UK last month, appears to have agreed terms with the Forestry commission to start burying charges and spend
  
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• Turkmenistan halts gas exports to Iran over payment row, Tehran says

  01-01-2017 18:45
  Turkmenistan stopped gas exports to Iran on Sunday in a long-running dispute over arrears, Iran's state gas company said, days after Tehran said the issue had been temporarily resolved. "Türkmengaz suddenly and ... in an illogical manner, contradictory to the agreement, halted gas deliveries to Iran this morning, demanding quick payment of the disputed amount," the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) aid in a statement carried by the oil ministry news website SHANA. Tehran said in December
  
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• Planet Earth II 'a disaster for world's wildlife' says rival nature producer

  01-01-2017 18:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Martin Hughes-Games, a presenter of BBC’s Springwatch, says David Attenborough series ignores damage humans are doingDavid Attenborough’s blockbuster nature series Planet Earth II is “a disaster for the world’s wildlife” and a significant contributor to planet-wide extinctions, a rival natural history producer has claimed.The BBC programme concluded in December and drew audiences of more than 12 million viewers but presents “an escapist wildlife fantasy”
  
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• Nigerian ex-militants say lost confidence in Buhari over restive Delta

  01-01-2017 14:45
  A group of former Nigerian militants said on Sunday it had lost confidence in the president's efforts to end attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta, a major goal in efforts to reach a lasting peace settlement. In its first public criticism of President Muhammadu Buhari, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said he was "jeopardizing the fragile peace in the region" with public comments about the unrest while reneging on past agreements. MEND had backed Buhari in his 2
  
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• UK countryside at risk in rush to declare Britain ‘open for business’

  01-01-2017 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Economically driven infrastructure and housing plans endanger beauty spots, say rural campaignersSome of Britain’s best-loved landscapes are being threatened by the government’s rush to declare the country “open for business”, warn rural campaigners.Large developments and infrastructure projects are planned in some of the UK’s most treasured tourist destinations, including the Lake District, the Cotswolds, and Sussex’s High Weald as well as on large swaths of
  
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• SK Innovation to invest up to $2.5 billion in 2017 to boost growth

  01-01-2017 02:46
  SK Innovation Co Ltd , which owns South Korea's top refiner SK Energy, said on Sunday it will spend up to 3 trillion won ($2.49 billion) in chemicals, oil exploration and battery businesses to boost its global growth. Kim Joon, president of SK Innovation, said in a statement that the investments would target new growth options and innovate its business, even though 2017 is expected to be a tough business environment. Under the plan, SK Innovation aims to continue its investment on mergers and ac
  
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• Having a baby? Don’t be brave – take the drugs | Barbara Ellen

  01-01-2017 01:05 via theguardian.com
  
  There’s no point in false machismo when giving birth when pain relief is so close to handA study by Which? Birth Choice reveals that pregnant women in London are more likely to request pain relief before going into labour than in other areas of Britain. The study of 48,000 prospective parents found that age and location could influence preferences in other ways – two-thirds of Scottish women were interested in birthing pools, while women over 40 were more likely to want medical inter
  
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