Environment news

• New UK science body appoints chief

  01-02-2017 21:26 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Prof Sir Mark Walport has been appointed to head Britain's newly created science funding organisation.
  
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• Faced with U.S. retreat on climate change, EU looks to China

  01-02-2017 21:22
  By Alissa de Carbonnel BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Faced with a U.S. retreat from international efforts to tackle climate change, European Union officials are looking to China, fearing a leadership vacuum will embolden those within the bloc seeking to slow the fight against global warming. While U.S. President Donald Trump has yet to act on campaign pledges to pull out of the 2015 Paris accord to cut greenhouse gas emissions, his swift action in other areas has sparked sharp words from usually measured
  
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• Gradual environmental change is an ally to viral pathogens

  01-02-2017 21:15 via feedproxy.google.com
  How viruses like Ebola, influenza or even the common cold adapt is a question that affects the health of everyone on earth.  A new Yale University study reveals that gradual exposure to new host species leads to major genetic changes in these pathogens — and possibly makes them more dangerous.
  
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• Quantum computer 'construction plan' drawn up

  01-02-2017 21:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Physicists have drawn up construction plans for a large-scale quantum computer.
  
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• Oil rallies to settle up $1 a barrel

  01-02-2017 21:10
  Oil markets have been trapped in a range as traders wait to see whether OPEC production cuts can outweigh U.S. supply growth. "U.S. crude could be in consolidation from $51 to $55 for awhile, until there's more evidence on OPEC production cuts or more evidence of production picking up or stabilizing in the U.S.," said Bill Baruch, senior market strategist at iitrader.com.
  
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• Use your loaf to avoid wasteful food habits | Letters

  01-02-2017 20:44 via theguardian.com
  
  After reading your article (Weighing in to fight waste in the kitchen with a measuring spoon – and an app, 28 January) I felt so guilty I went and dug out from the compost bin two very brown soggy bananas I had thrown away earlier and made them into a banana loaf. Apart from the satisfaction of the loaf, I was also able to knock 252g/9oz off my somewhat nerdy tally of food wasted in January. I decided at new year to record how much food we wasted in an effort to reduce it – a paper v
  
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• Drilling into heart of Iceland volcano complete

  01-02-2017 20:23 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Geologists in Iceland have drilled deeper into a volcano than ever before, reaching a depth of 4,659m.
  
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• How birds of a feather evolved together

  01-02-2017 19:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Research shows how birds acquired beaks of all shapes and sizes over millions of years of evolution.
  
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• Controlling electron spin makes water splitting more efficient

  01-02-2017 18:23 via feedproxy.google.com
  One of the main obstacles in the production of hydrogen through water splitting is that hydrogen peroxide is also formed, which affects the efficiency stability of the reaction and the stability of the production. Dutch and Israelian researchers from Eindhoven University of Technology and the Weizmann Institute have succeeded in controlling the spin of electrons in the reaction and thereby almost fully suppress the production of hydrogen peroxide. They published these findings this week in the&n
  
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• Study Adds to Evidence that Electronic Cigarettes are not Harmless

  01-02-2017 18:17 via feedproxy.google.com
  A study published in JAMA Cardiology has added to growing evidence that electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are not harmless. 
  
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• Genetically modified insects could disrupt international food trade

  01-02-2017 18:10 via feedproxy.google.com
  Genetically modified organisms for pest control could end up as contaminants in agricultural products throughout the globe. 
  
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• Indian children died after 'eating lychees on empty stomach'

  01-02-2017 17:57 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Hundreds of children died due to eating the fruit on an empty stomach, research says.
  
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• Oil pares gains on bigger-than-expected U.S. crude build

  01-02-2017 17:18
  By Jessica Resnick-Ault NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil pared gains on Wednesday after weekly U.S. supply data suggested a crude glut may persist, despite signs that Russia and OPEC producers are delivering on promised supply reductions. Brent crude was up 55 cents at $56.13 a barrel at 10:57 a.m. EST (1557 GMT), having risen as high as $56.24. U.S. crude stockpiles for the week ended Friday rose 6.47 million barrels, nearly double the expected increase.
  
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• Massive Stream of Lava Plunges into Sea in Stunning New Video

  01-02-2017 17:17
  
  A stunning new video has captured a huge fire hose of lava streaming into the ocean at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. The stream of lava is currently pouring into the ocean from a sea cliff near Kamokuna on the Big Island of Hawaii, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The ensuing steam explosions, which occurred Jan. 28 and Jan. 29, have tossed molten lava high up into the air, with some bits of molten rock catapulted to twice the height of the sea cliff.
  
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• Dakota pipeline: US Army to allow work on final section

  01-02-2017 17:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Native Americans vow legal action as the go-ahead is given to complete the Dakota Access oil pipeline.
  
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• Oil production releases more methane than previously thought

  01-02-2017 16:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  Global methane and ethane emissions from oil production from 1980 to 2012 were far higher than previous estimates show, according to a new study which for the first time takes into account different production management systems and geological conditions around the world.Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, which scientists rank as the second-most important contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide. Yet while methane concentrations in the atmosphere can be easily measured, it is difficul
  
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• Oil hits $56 a barrel on signs Russia, OPEC delivering cuts

  01-02-2017 16:52
  By Jessica Resnick-Ault NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil pared gains Wednesday after weekly U.S. supply data suggested a crude glut may persist, despite signs that Russia and OPEC producers are delivering on promised supply reductions. Brent crude was up 29 cents at $55.87 a barrel at 10:33 a.m. EST (1533 GMT), having risen as high as $56.24. Russia has cut production in January by around 100,000 barrels per day (bpd), according to data provided to Reuters on Wednesday.
  
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• First-ever GPS data release to boost space-weather science

  01-02-2017 16:43 via feedproxy.google.com
  Today, more than 16 years of space-weather data is publicly available for the first time in history. The data comes from space-weather sensors developed by Los Alamos National Laboratory on board the nation’s Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites. The newly available data gives researchers a treasure trove of measurements they can use to better understand how space weather works and how best to protect critical infrastructure, such as the nation’s satellites, aircraft, communica
  
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• Coal mine dust hastens Arctic snow melt

  01-02-2017 16:34 via feedproxy.google.com
  Dust released by an active coal mine in Svalbard, Norway, reduced the spectral reflectance of nearby snow and ice by up to 84 percent, according to new University of Colorado Boulder-led research.The study illustrates the significant, localized role that dark-colored particulates — which absorb more solar radiation than light-colored snow and keep more heat closer to the Earth’s surface — can play in hastening Arctic ice melt.   The study was published today in t
  
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• £500-a-bird! How falcons get first-class airline treatment

  01-02-2017 16:24 via theguardian.com
  
  This viral picture of VIP birds of prey en route to Saudi Arabia came as no surprise to Bryn Close, breeder to the sheikhsBryn Close was not surprised by the picture flying around the web this week showing 80 falcons on an airline flight to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. The birds of prey sit on boxes on the middle-row seats, apparently ignoring the safety talk. “To me that’s totally normal, we do it all the time,” he says from a Doncaster industrial estate, where he breeds the fastes
  
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• Coastal Wetlands Excel at Storing Carbon

  01-02-2017 16:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  In the global effort to mitigate carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, all options are on the table—including help from nature. Recent research suggests that healthy, intact coastal wetland ecosystems such as mangrove forests, tidal marshes and seagrass meadows are particularly good at drawing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it for hundreds to thousands of years.
  
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• The public urinal that turns pee into compost – video

  01-02-2017 16:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Eco-friendly urinals have been set up at the busy Gare de Lyon in Paris to combat unpleasant odours caused by street urination. The Uritrottoir has a slot for urine, which leads to a compartment filled with straw, which eventually makes compost. Their designer Laurent Lebot says they are more ethical than chemical urinals Continue reading...
  
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• Wildlife on your doorstep: share your February photos

  01-02-2017 14:29 via theguardian.com
  
  With grey winter skies still dominating the northern hemisphere and the southern still enjoying the summer heat, what sort of wildlife will you discover?The shortest month of the year is upon us and, while the fog and mist might be clearing slightly in the northern hemisphere, the southern hemisphere is still basking in the summer sunshine. So what sort of wildlife will we all discover on our doorsteps? We’d love to see your photos of the February wildlife near you.Share your photos and vi
  
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• £1m Queen Elizabeth Prize: Digital camera tech lauded

  01-02-2017 14:27 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The inventors of digital camera technology win the highest international prize for engineering.
  
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• Consumer needs should dictate low-emission vehicle market, says ETI

  01-02-2017 14:21
  
  The ongoing decarbonisation of the transport sector is unlikely to create a short-term market share for hydrogen vehicles, although current low-emission vehicle manufacturers need to develop a "greater understanding" of consumer needs, the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has found.
  
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• We are heading for a senseless nuclear Brexit - with no political or legal mandate

  01-02-2017 14:15 via theguardian.com
  
  Our nuclear energy, safety and research must not be subjugated to already chaotic Brexit negotiations – the government must put the national interest firstLast week we learned just how hard and how ill-conceived Brexit looks like being. The two line parliamentary bill published by the government last Thursday contained no detail, no plan, and no check or balance on the prime minister’s possible negotiation as it progresses.One thing that was included, albeit buried in the explanation
  
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• EU on track to meet renewable energy targets – but UK lags behind

  01-02-2017 13:44 via theguardian.com
  
  EU looks set to meet its 2020 goal of using 20% of energy from renewable sources but the UK is one of three member states to increase reliance on imported energyThe European Union is on track to meet its renewable energy targets but the UK is one of only three member states to become more dependent on imported energy in the last decade.A report from the European commission boasts of good progress towards the goal of using 20% of final energy consumption from renewable sources by 2020. Continue r
  
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• UK 'falling behind' on EU renewable energy targets

  01-02-2017 13:30
  
  The European Union (EU) is on track to hit a 20% renewable goal for 2020, despite nations such as the UK, Ireland and Luxembourg struggling to increase the share of renewables in transport and heat sectors, a new European Commission (EC) report has found.
  
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• OPEC cut extension could hurt Saudi plan to balance market- Gunvor

  01-02-2017 13:14
  By Libby George ANTWERP (Reuters) - An extension of OPEC oil production cuts could push oil prices too high to meet Saudi Arabia and others' objective of balancing the market without encouraging U.S. shale output, Gunvor's head of oil market research said on Wednesday. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had already begun to achieve some of its aims, creating a virtual price floor of $50 per barrel, David Fyfe told the Platts Middle Distillates conference in Antwerp. OPE
  
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• EDF defends nuclear decommissioning cost estimate

  01-02-2017 12:48
  French power company EDF on Wednesday defended its cost estimate of 22.2 billion euros ($24 billion) for dismantling nuclear power stations, rejecting a parliamentary committee report which said the costs may be higher. The parliamentary report, commissioned by a body looking into renewable energy, said that dismantling the sites could take longer than EDF had envisaged. "The optimistic scenarios upon which EDF has based its provisions, as well as a certain number of major costs which have been
  
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• Scottish government launches public consultation on fracking

  01-02-2017 12:45 via theguardian.com
  
  Four-month consultation on possibility of fracking in Scotland runs until end of May with dedicated website at talkingfracking.scot, reports BusinessGreenThe Scottish government has launched a public consultation over whether to allow unconventional oil and gas extraction – including fracking – to take place in Scotland.The four-month consultation runs until the end of May and the Scottish government then plans to make a recommendation that will go before MSPs for a vote towards the
  
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• UK businesses to accelerate bioenergy opportunities through EU grant

  01-02-2017 12:30
  
  A European Union (EU) funded project is set to support firms across the West Midlands to reap the economic and environmental benefits from bioenergy and thermal technologies.
  
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• New 'super yield' GM wheat trial gets go-ahead

  01-02-2017 11:49 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A new experimental crop of genetically modified (GM) wheat will be planted this spring after the UK government gave the final go-ahead.
  
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• The traditional cures threatening Myanmar's wildlife – in pictures

  01-02-2017 11:30 via theguardian.com
  
  From elephant skins as a remedy for eczema, to otters’ sex organs as a natural aphrodisiac, a $20bn-a-year global wildlife trade operates under the shadow of Myanmar’s Golden Rock buddhist pilgrimage site Continue reading...
  
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• Brits backs smart meter rollout, survey finds

  01-02-2017 11:18
  
  The vast majority of the UK population with a smart meter are in high approval of the technology, according to new research from the independent body in charge of the British rollout.
  
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• Brits back smart meter rollout, survey finds

  01-02-2017 11:18
  
  The vast majority of the UK population with a smart meter are in high approval of the technology, according to new research from the independent body in charge of the British rollout.
  
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• Oil edges further above $55 on Russia, OPEC cuts

  01-02-2017 11:14
  By Alex Lawler LONDON (Reuters) - Oil edged further above $55 a barrel on Wednesday supported by signs that Russia and OPEC producers are delivering on promised supply reductions, although a report showing a large rise in U.S. crude inventories limited gains. Russia has cut production in January by around 100,000 barrels per day (bpd), according to data provided to Reuters on Wednesday. A day earlier, a Reuters survey found high compliance by OPEC with agreed cuts.
  
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• Azeri security forces kill four men suspected of terror plot

  01-02-2017 11:07
  Azerbaijan's security forces killed four members of a group that had been planning to carry out terror acts in the country, the state security service said on Wednesday. Ex-Soviet Azerbaijan, a majority Muslim country with a population of about 10 million, is a major energy producer in the Caspian Sea region. The group, which was eliminated during a special operation, was "loyal to a number of terrorist organisations operating in foreign countries and had been planning to carry out terrorist act
  
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• Solar power to put wind in sails of Ben Ainslie Racing

  01-02-2017 10:20
  
  UK-based renewable energy investment firm Low Carbon has today (1 February) unveiled a new project which will help reduce the carbon footprint of the Land Rover Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR) sailing team.
  
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• Rare 'lava firehose' from Hawaii's Kilauea volcano

  01-02-2017 09:55 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Dramatic footage shows the unusual phenomenon as lava flows through a crack in a sea cliff.
  
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• Barnaby Joyce says Australia should build new coal-fired power stations

  01-02-2017 09:45 via theguardian.com
  
  Nationals leader says he would not oppose taxpayers subsiding the building of new coal-fired plants The deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, says it is “morally prudent” for Australia to build new coal-fired plants and he would have no problem if taxpayers provided support.
  Joyce told the ABC that subsidising new coal plants was not on the agenda right now but, if it emerged on the agenda, “it wouldn’t worry me in the least.” Continue reading...
  
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• Oil prices stabilise as Russia joins OPEC in production cut

  01-02-2017 09:03
  By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil steadied on Wednesday as Russia joined OPEC in cutting production to try to balance the market, although plentiful supply in places such as the United States dragged on prices. Brent crude futures , the international benchmark for oil prices, were trading at $55.63 per barrel at 0749 GMT, up 5 cents from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 5 cents to $52.86 a barrel.
  
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• Russian oil tsar took part in sting to detain minister - sources

  01-02-2017 08:03
  Igor Sechin, head of Russia's biggest oil company Rosneft, set up a personal meeting with a government minister for what was in fact a law enforcement sting, after which state investigators charged the minister with receiving a $2 million bribe, two sources familiar with the case told Reuters.  Alexei Ulyukayev, who at the time was minister for economic development, was detained in the late night operation on Nov. 14 at Rosneft's Moscow headquarters. The Investigative Committee, the state b
  
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• These squirrels are not native. So what?

  01-02-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Wenlock Edge This sycamore isn’t native either, and neither are the people who planted them, or who look at them now The squirrels look as though they make everyday life into a game; they have the kind of mischievous intelligence once attributed by folklore to hidden, supernatural creatures such as fairies, elves, goblins and the like. These grey and ginger squirrels are tricky. To some people they are a delight to watch; to others they are an anathema, interlopers blamed for the demise of
  
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• Trading in trash: Nairobi's e-waste entrepreneurs – in pictures

  01-02-2017 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  From small-scale traders to a company processing hundreds of tonnes of e-waste, we explore Nairobi’s relationship with a burgeoning waste stream and visit the people turning it into a resource Continue reading...
  
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• Oil prices dip as rising U.S. supplies offset OPEC cuts

  01-02-2017 05:38
  By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil dipped on Wednesday, weighed down by ongoing high supplies despite an OPEC-led production cut, but prices remained within a narrow trading band that has been in place since late January. Brent crude futures , the international benchmark for oil prices, were trading at $55.44 per barrel at 0423 GMT, down 14 cents from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $52.74 a barrel, down 7 cents.
  
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• Coalition's renewable energy target won't last forever, says Turnbull

  01-02-2017 04:53 via theguardian.com
  
  • Prime minister boosts conservatives’ calls for U-turn on green energy plan
  • Leaves door open for Coalition to do deals with Pauline Hanson’s One NationMalcolm Turnbull has said Australia’s renewable energy target was “never intended to be perpetual”, giving encouragement to conservatives including Tony Abbott in Coalition ranks who are calling for it to be scrapped.The prime minister made the statement at the National Press Club on Wednesday, after a sp
  
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• January was hottest month on record in Sydney and Brisbane, says weather bureau

  01-02-2017 04:38 via theguardian.com
  
  Sydney’s average maximum temperature was 29.6C and Brisbane’s was 27.2CSydney and Brisbane residents have just sweated through the hottest month on record.Sydney’s average maximum temperature for January was 29.6C, beating the previous mark of 29.5C recorded in 1896, the Bureau of Meteorology said on Wednesday. Continue reading...
  
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• Australian scientists use soybean oil to create graphene

  01-02-2017 03:30 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Australian researchers say their discovery could significantly lower the material's cost to produce.
  
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• Australia sharks: Campaigners call for end to nets

  01-02-2017 03:28 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Conservationists say the nets are killing too many dolphins and turtles.
  
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