Environment news

• Oil edges down as traders weigh U.S. stock build, OPEC cuts

  25-01-2017 23:06
  By Jessica Resnick-Ault NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices ended less than 1 percent lower on Wednesday after data showed a build in U.S. crude inventories, reinforcing the view that oil prices are range bound, buoyed by expected OPEC production cuts while pressured by U.S. output growth. "Crude oil is in the middle of a trading range that began to unfold in early December," said Walter Zimmerman, chief technical analyst at ICAP. "You have a market with a serious case of indigestion, it swallowed t
  
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• National Park Service climate change Twitter campaign spreads to other parks

  25-01-2017 21:52 via theguardian.com
  
  A day after three climate-related tweets sent out by Badlands National Park were deleted, other park accounts have sent out tweets that appear to defy TrumpThe National Park Service employees’ Twitter campaign against Donald Trump spread to other parks on Wednesday, with tweets on climate change and a reminder that Japanese Americans were forcibly interned in camps and parks during the second world war.A day after three climate-related tweets sent out by Badlands National Park were deleted
  
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• Study reveals that climate change could dramatically alter fragile mountain habitats

  25-01-2017 20:38 via feedproxy.google.com
  Mountain regions of the world are under direct threat from human-induced climate change which could radically alter these fragile habitats, warn an international team of researchers - including an expert from The University of Manchester.
  
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• Nearby Alien Planet's Climate Swings May Be Too Wild for Life

  25-01-2017 19:00
  
  This planet, known as Wolf 1061c, resides in the "habitable zone" of its host star, that just-right range of distances where liquid water could theoretically exist on a world's surface. For starters, Wolf 1061c — which circles a star located just 14 light-years from Earth's sun — lies at the inner edge of the habitable zone, similar to where Venus is in Earth's solar system. Venus has a hellish environment today, with surface temperatures reaching nearly 900 degrees Fahrenheit (480 d
  
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• Greenpeace activists scale Washington crane in protest – video

  25-01-2017 18:29 via theguardian.com
  
  Greenpeace activists scale a crane in Washington on Wednesday and unveil a banner which reads ‘Resist’. The protest comes a day after president Donald Trump signed executive orders to allow the construction of the Dakota Access and Keystone XL oil pipelinesGreenpeace activists hang giant ‘Resist’ banner over White HouseContinue reading...
  
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• Oil little changed as traders weigh U.S. inventory build, OPEC cuts

  25-01-2017 18:21
  Oil prices rebounded on Wednesday, reversing earlier losses even after data showed a build in U.S. crude inventories, reinforcing traders' sentiment that oil is trapped in a range by expected OPEC production cuts and U.S. output growth. U.S. crude futures for March delivery were up 0.02 cent, or 0.04 percent, to $53.20 per barrel after earlier dropping to as low as $52.56 per barrel. "Crude oil is in the middle of a trading range that began to unfold in early December," said Walter Zimmerman, ch
  
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• Global shark attacks drop to recent average in 2016

  25-01-2017 18:15 via feedproxy.google.com
  After 2015’s record-busting 98 shark attacks, calmer waters prevailed in 2016. The University of Florida’s International Shark Attack File reported 81 unprovoked attacks worldwide, in line with the five-year average of about 82 incidents annually.
  
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• Getting by With a Little Help From Their Friends

  25-01-2017 18:05 via feedproxy.google.com
  A long-term study by UCSB scientists and colleagues demonstrates that failing kelp forests can be rescued by nearby neighbors.After big winter storms, clumps of kelp forests often wash ashore along the Southern California coast. Contrary to the devastation these massive piles of seaweed might indicate, new research suggests the kelp may rebound pretty quickly, with help from neighboring beds.
  
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• Keystone pipeline will create just 35 permanent jobs. Don't believe the lies | Congressman Raul M Grijalva

  25-01-2017 17:11 via theguardian.com
  
  We cannot pollute our way to prosperity. If President Trump doesn’t own up to that, he will face a backlash For those who still insist fossil fuels are the future, the Trump administration represents a new day for some old ideas. In an early sign of things to come, the president showed his faith in big oil when he signed documents Tuesday pressuring federal agencies to support construction of the Dakota Access and Keystone XL oil pipelines. Each of these projects faced enormous protests an
  
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• Northumbria University 'life-threatening' caffeine test fine

  25-01-2017 16:57 via bbc.co.uk
  
  University is fined £400,000 after students are given 100 times too much caffeine in an experiment.
  
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• Oil slips as rising U.S. inventories overshadow OPEC cuts

  25-01-2017 16:55
  Oil prices fell on Wednesday after builds in U.S. inventories reinforced expectations that increasing shale output this year would reduce the impact of production cuts by OPEC and other major exporters. Benchmark Brent crude was down 52 cents a barrel at $54.92 by 10:33 a.m. EST (1533 GMT). U.S. light crude was down 40 cents at $52.78.
  
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• Trump's 'control-alt-delete' on climate change policy

  25-01-2017 16:47 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Are the Trump team's actions on climate and energy the opening shots in a war on knowledge?
  
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• Electric cars will not stem global demand for oil, says BP

  25-01-2017 16:47 via theguardian.com
  
  Company predicts 100-fold rise in number of electric cars, but says fossil fuels will still account for 75% of energy mix in 2035Global demand for oil will still be growing in 2035 even with an enormous growth in electric cars in the next two decades, with numbers on the road rising from 1m to 100m, BP has predicted. The oil and gas giant predicted that despite electric cars spreading rapidly and renewable energy recording exceptional growth, oil demand would still rise because of rising prosper
  
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• Peering into China's thick haze of air pollution

  25-01-2017 16:16 via feedproxy.google.com
  As 2016 gave way to 2017, residents of Beijing, Tianjin, and many other northern Chinese cities suffered through the longest stretch of stifling air pollution ever recorded in the country. They choked through eight continuous days of thick, light-blocking haze, starting Dec. 30, 2016. This stretch of bad air began only a week after people in 70 northern Chinese cities were enveloped by similar days of haze composed of high concentrations of particles less than 2.5 μm in diameter (PM2.5).
  
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• Florida Corals Tell of Cold Spells and Dust Bowls Past, Foretell Weather to Come

  25-01-2017 16:07 via feedproxy.google.com
  Scientists seeking an oceanic counterpart to the tree rings that document past weather patterns on land have found one in the subtropical waters of Dry Tortugas National Park near the Florida Keys, where long-lived boulder corals contain the chemical signals of past water temperatures. By analyzing coral samples, USGS researchers and their colleagues have found evidence that an important 60- to 85-year-long cycle of ocean warming and cooling has been taking place in the region as far back as the
  
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• Gucci owner gets teeth into snakeskin market with python farm

  25-01-2017 15:47 via theguardian.com
  
  Luxury group Kering says snakes will be raised in the ‘best conditions’ before they are turned into shoes, bags and beltsFrom Balenciaga’s £845-a-pair high-top black python trainers for men to a full-length trenchcoat sported by Rihanna, snakeskin – or python in particular – is having something of a fashion moment.Demand for the luxury patterned leather is riding so high that Kering – the company behind big brands including Gucci, Saint Laurent and Alexa
  
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• Trump energy policy unlikely to have big impact on CO2 fight - BP

  25-01-2017 15:43
  Changes to U.S. energy policies under new President Donald Trump are unlikely to have a big impact on global action to curb a rise in greenhouse gas emissions, oil major BP's chief economist said on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Trump signed orders to smooth the path for the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines in a move to expand energy infrastructure and roll back key Obama administration environmental decisions. As part of his election campaign, Trump promised to bolster the U.S. oil, gas and
  
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• Global oil demand to grow into 2040s - BP outlook

  25-01-2017 15:37
  By Ron Bousso LONDON (Reuters) - Global oil demand will keep growing into the 2040s due to higher consumption of plastic goods even as the electric vehicle fleet expands rapidly and technology revolutionises transport, BP said in its annual Energy Outlook on Wednesday. The forecast of sustained demand growth for the fossil fuel comes as other oil companies such as Royal Dutch Shell brace for demand to plateau by the early 2030s while countries gradually shift to less-polluting energy. The Britis
  
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• New Paper Explains Consequences of Plant Disappearance in Salt Marshes on the Atlantic Coast

  25-01-2017 15:36 via feedproxy.google.com
  An important new research paper, titled “Response of Sediment Bacterial Communities to Sudden Vegetation Dieback in a Coastal Wetland,” examines the consequences of plant disappearance and changes in salt marsh soil communities following Sudden Vegetation Dieback (SVD).The paper, published in Phytobiomes, an open-access journal of The American Phytopathological Society, is written by Wade Elmer, Peter Thiel, and Blaire Steven, scientists at the Connecticut Agricultural Experimen
  
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• Is warming behind India's depleting groundwater?

  25-01-2017 15:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  Changing rainfall patterns may be depleting India’s groundwater storage more than withdrawals for agricultural irrigation, says a new study published in January by Nature Geoscience.  While India’s diminishing groundwater is widely attributed to over extraction, especially in the northern agricultural belts of Punjab and Haryana, the study holds decline in rainfall caused by the rise in the temperatures in the Indian Ocean — a major factor in
  
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• BP sees potential for gas purchases from Rosneft of up to 20 bcm/year

  25-01-2017 15:20
  Global oil major BP may receive gas supplies of between 7 billion and 20 billion cubic metres per year under an agreement last year with Russia's largest producer Rosneft , a BP official told Reuters on Wednesday. Vladimir Drebentsov, chief economist for BP in Russia and the former Soviet Union, said these were hypothetical supplies because Kremlin-controlled gas giant Gazprom currently holds exclusive rights for pipeline gas exports for Russia. BP owns a 19.75 percent stake in Rosneft.
  
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• Russia's state finances seen stable if oil stays at $50-55 per barrel - EBRD

  25-01-2017 15:17
  By Jakub Iglewski WARSAW (Reuters) - Russia's state finances will stay in reasonably good shape if oil prices hold at current levels but Moscow needs structural reforms to improve economic growth, the chief economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said. Oil, a crucial source of revenue for Russia, has bounced back above $50 and last month Russian manufacturing expanded at its fastest pace since 2011, a sign the economy is starting to grow again after more than two
  
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• Badlands national park – the new heroes of the resistance

  25-01-2017 15:06 via theguardian.com
  
  In today’s pass notes: the Twitter feed of the South Dakota park defied the Trump administration by posting facts about global warming. Was it an ex-employee or a rogue one?Name: Badlands national park.Location: South Dakota, United States. Continue reading...
  
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• Defra urged to make 'rapid progress' with release of environment plan

  25-01-2017 14:49
  
  The UK Government must swiftly implement a legally-binding 25-Year Environment Plan to halt the decline of the country's natural capital, an independent advisory body has said.
  
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• May says hopes all parties stick to Paris climate agreement

  25-01-2017 14:11
  LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday she hoped all countries involved in the Paris Climate Agreement would ensure it is implemented. During his election campaign, President Donald Trump said he would pull the United States out of the agreement, intended to curb global warming by cutting emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, within 100 days of taking office. He has since said he would keep an open mind about the deal. ...
  
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• UK egg producers warn free range sector at risk due to bird flu controls

  25-01-2017 14:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Ordered indoors after flu outbreaks, hens are in danger of losing free range status if not allowed outside by end of FebruaryUK egg producers have warned that the future of the premium free range sector is at risk should the eggs lose their prized status because of the ongoing threat of bird flu. Flocks of free range hens are being housed indoors because of the bird flu outbreak and if they are unable to go back outside by the end of February the eggs will be downgraded to “barn produced&r
  
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• Free range eggs may have to be renamed because of bird flu restrictions

  25-01-2017 14:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Ordered indoors after flu outbreaks, hens are in danger of losing free range status if not allowed outside by end of FebruaryUK egg producers have warned that the future of the premium free range sector is at risk should the eggs lose their prized status because of the ongoing threat of bird flu. Flocks of free range hens are being housed indoors because of the bird flu outbreak and if they are unable to go back outside by the end of February the eggs will be downgraded to “barn produced&r
  
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• Standing Rock Sioux: 'we can't back down now' on Dakota pipeline fight

  25-01-2017 13:38 via theguardian.com
  
  Donald Trump’s revival of the Dakota Access pipeline is a stunning twist of fate, but the tribe and its supporters say now is the time to show strength Dakota Access and Keystone XL pipelines to be revived by Trump administration
  The Standing Rock Sioux tribe and its supporters are vowing to resist Donald Trump’s executive order to allow construction of the Dakota Access pipeline with legal action, civil disobedience and a return to the “water protector” encampments. &ldq
  
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• Big data will drive consumer demand for sustainability, claims ScottishPower Renewables

  25-01-2017 13:34
  
  EXCLUSIVE: The decarbonisation of Britain's energy sector will require greater innovation and consumer engagement levels to ignite an increased demand for low-carbon products, systems and infrastructure - with big data well-equipped to instigate the transformation.
  
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• Why storms are becoming more dangerous as the climate warms

  25-01-2017 13:26 via feedproxy.google.com
  Researchers know that more, and more dangerous, storms have begun to occur as the climate warms. A team of scientists has reported an underlying explanation, using meteorological satellite data gathered over a 35-year period.
  
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• Kering shifts focus to supply chain with 2025 strategy

  25-01-2017 12:59
  
  Global luxury fashion group Kering has today (25 January) revealed new targets which place a focus on emissions reductions and supply chain sustainability, as part of the next phase of its CSR strategy.
  
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• National Parks Service 'goes rogue' in response to Trump Twitter ban

  25-01-2017 12:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Badlands National Park sent out a series of (now-deleted) tweets on climate change, seemingly in defiance of Trump administrationIf you had “National Parks subtweet the new president” on your 2017 bingo card, today’s your lucky day. After the US National Parks Service was temporarily banned for retweeting images comparing Trump and Obama’s inaugurations, the official Twitter account of the appropriately-named Badlands National Park, based in South Dakota, appeared to go r
  
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• Call of the wild in South Georgia: Instagram snapshots

  25-01-2017 12:29 via theguardian.com
  
  Studying penguins and seals for the British Antarctic Survey, marine biologist Jamie Coleman has unique access to the island’s wildlife and stark landscape Continue reading...
  
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• Scotland unveils 50% renewable energy goal for 2030

  25-01-2017 11:19
  
  Scotland's new target to deliver 50% of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2030 has been hailed as a "landmark moment" in the country's low-carbon transition.
  
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• Kolkata: the city that eats fish reared on sewage

  25-01-2017 11:08 via theguardian.com
  
  Farmers rear sewage-fed fish to meet the West Bengal city’s growing food demand in the face of competition for wastewater and real estateIt all started as an accident, if you believe the story that the fishermen of the east Kolkata wetlands tell. Around a century ago, a cultivator named Bidu Sarkar accidentally allowed untreated wastewater from Kolkata’s sewage pipes into his fish pond. Realising what had happened, Sarkar expected disaster. Continue reading...
  
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• The UK’s deadly air pollution can be cured: here's how

  25-01-2017 10:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Tens of thousands of people die every year from breathing polluted air. The cost of doing nothing far outweighs the price of solving the problem
  Pollution levels in the UK are soaring. Last year, a committee of MPs in the UK described the state of the air that we breathe as a public health emergency. London mayor Sadiq Khan has a budget of £875m to try to tackle air pollution – small, compared to the capital’s annual £3.6bn bill arising from its impact.Continue reading...
  
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• Oil slips on rising U.S. inventories, awaits EIA data

  25-01-2017 10:33
  By Christopher Johnson LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Wednesday after builds in U.S. inventories reinforced expectations that increasing shale output this year would reduce the impact of production cuts by OPEC and other major exporters. Benchmark Brent crude was down 40 cents a barrel at $55.04 by 0900 GMT. U.S. light crude was down 40 cents at $52.78.
  
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• MEPs bolster EU recycling and landfill targets

  25-01-2017 10:24
  
  Members of the European Parliament's Environment Committee yesterday (24 January) moved to increase draft EU recycling and landfill targets that had been lowered by the European Commission in its re-tabled Circular Economy Package.
  
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• EU body: Climate change poses increasingly severe risks

  25-01-2017 09:40
  
  COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — The European Environment Agency says the continent is facing rising sea levels and more extreme weather, such as more frequent and more intense heat waves, flooding, droughts and storms because of climate change.
  
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• Trump bans agencies from 'providing updates on social media or to reporters'

  25-01-2017 08:39 via theguardian.com
  
  Administration put de facto gag order on EPA and agriculture department staff, following similar guidance for USDA and Department of Transportation, reports sayHow to contact and share information with the Guardian securelyThe Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture have been placed under de facto gag orders by the Trump administration, according to documents obtained by news organizations.The president has banned EPA employees from “providing updates on social me
  
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• Brands committed to strengthening animal welfare management in supply chains

  25-01-2017 08:00
  
  UK supermarkets Marks & Spencer (M&S) and Waitrose have been listed amongst the best performing businesses for the management and reporting of farm animal welfare, although others have been warned to adhere to best practice as tougher regulations are introduced.
  
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• Wool on the wire that feeds on fog

  25-01-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Wenlock Edge The weather has carded the bits of sheep wool into swags and the mizzle fills them full of treasureWisps of sheep’s fleece snagged on barbed wire are full of pearls and crystal. The wool has lost its mattress-stuffing quality and, now wet, its lanolin makes the moisture from drizzle and damp stand out in droplets. These gleam with what little light is left, giving the fleece effulgence, as if it were a living substance like fungal threads or root hairs feeding on the fog.
  The
  
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• Endangered Hawaiian monk seal population rises to 1,400

  25-01-2017 06:21
  
  HONOLULU (AP) — The population of Hawaiian monk seals — one of the world's most critically endangered marine mammals — has been increasing 3 percent a year for the past three years, federal wildlife officials said.
  
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• Shampoo bottle made from ocean plastics hailed as ‘technological breakthrough’

  25-01-2017 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Limited edition Head & Shoulders bottle to go on sale in France represents tiny proportion of global salesBeaches strewn with plastic waste have become a graphic illustration of just how much plastic we use in everything from food packaging to cosmetics, and how much of it gets thrown away.Consumer goods giant P&G has become the latest company to attempt to show it is tackling the problem, announcing plans for a limited run of Head & Shoulders shampoo in bottles made partly from plas
  
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• Birth of rare cotton-top tamarin a once-in-a-decade event at Sydney zoo

  25-01-2017 04:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Taronga Zoo’s tiny six-week-old monkey has only just started to explore on its own and is already sporting the endangered species’ distinctive mohawkKeen-eyed visitors to Sydney’s Taronga Zoo may be treated to a glimpse of a tiny baby monkey after the birth of the first cotton-top tamarin at the zoo in 10 years.The rare primate was born over six weeks ago, but has only just started to explore on its own, climbing trees and cheekily snatching food out of its mother’s hands
  
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• Oil eases on rising U.S. inventory, market looks to EIA data

  25-01-2017 03:49
  By Naveen Thukral SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil edged lower on Wednesday as expectations of an increase in U.S. inventories weighed on the market, offsetting bullish momentum from output cuts announced by OPEC and other producers. Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, had dropped 15 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $55.29 a barrel by 0228 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures lost 22 cents, or 0.4 percent, to trade at $52.96 a barrel.
  
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• London's dirty air: How bad is it?

  25-01-2017 02:42 via bbc.co.uk
  
  How do scientists assess the scale of dirty air across the UK and just how dangerous is the air that we breathe?
  
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• ERM Power criticised for choosing $123m fine over renewable energy certificates

  25-01-2017 02:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Company says it’s cheaper to pay the penalty, but the move is branded as ‘undermining of the objectives’ of the renewable energy targetThe Clean Energy Regulator has castigated a major electricity company for choosing to pay a $123m penalty rather than build or contract new wind or solar power.It said the move was “hugely disappointing” and customers would rightly be outraged to know the company wasn’t using money collected for investing in renewables in the p
  
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• Premature baby hippo fights for survival in Cincinnati Zoo

  25-01-2017 02:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Staff hand-nurse female calf of mother Bibi and father Henry after it was born around six weeks early and well below normal birth weightCincinnati Zoo staff have begun 24-hour critical care for a baby hippo that was born around six weeks early.The zoo said 17-year-old Bibi gave birth early on Tuesday to the first Nile hippo born there in 75 years. Continue reading...
  
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• Zoo staff feed baby hippo that arrived six weeks early – video

  25-01-2017 01:59 via theguardian.com
  
  A female Nile hippo calf – born early and so underweight that it cannot feed by itself – receives critical care from staff at Cincinnati Zoo Continue reading...
  
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