Environment news

• Trump begins rollback of Obama's car pollution standards to curb emissions

  15-03-2017 23:22 via theguardian.com
  
  Automakers welcome president’s plan for EPA to review fuel efficiency mandate while critics warn reversal would endanger health and environment
  Donald Trump has begun the process of rolling back carbon pollution standards for vehicles following a meeting with automakers in Detroit, Michigan. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• China's 'airpocalypse' linked to Arctic sea ice loss

  15-03-2017 22:55 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A deadly haze of air pollution over China in 2013 has been linked to the melting of Arctic sea ice.
  
  Read more

• Flower-rich habitat boosts survival for bumblebees

  15-03-2017 22:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Access to flower-rich habitats is key to the survival of wild bumblebees, say ecologists.
  
  Read more

• Study: Cold Climates and Ocean Carbon Sequestration

  15-03-2017 21:12 via feedproxy.google.com
  We know a lot about how carbon dioxide (CO2) levels can drive climate change, but how about the way that climate change can cause fluctuations in CO2 levels? New research from an international team of scientists reveals one of the mechanisms by which a colder climate was accompanied by depleted atmospheric CO2 during past ice ages.The overall goal of the work is to better understand how and why the earth goes through periodic climate change, which could shed light on how man-made facto
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• NASA Spots Sub-Tropical Storm 11S Still Swirling

  15-03-2017 20:57 via feedproxy.google.com
  Once a tropical storm, now a sub-tropical storm, the remnants of the tropical low pressure area formerly known as 11S was spotted by NASA's Aqua satellite, still spinning in the Southern Indian Ocean.On March 14 at 2230 UTC (6:30 p.m. EST) the remnants of Tropical Cyclone 11S were located near 29.8 degrees south latitude and 52.4 degrees east longitude, about 530 nautical miles south-southwest of La Reunion Island.
  
  Read more

• When the sea ice melts, juvenile polar cod may go hungry

  15-03-2017 20:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  Polar cod fulfil a key role in the Arctic food web, as they are a major source of food for seals, whales and seabirds alike. But the polar cod themselves might soon be the hungry ones. Under the ice of the central Arctic, the juvenile fish are indirectly but heavily dependent on ice algae. As a result, retreating sea ice could have far-reaching impacts on the food web. Though researchers have long since suspected this relation existed, an international team of researchers led by the Alfred Wegen
  
  Read more

• Optical fingerprints can reveal environmental gases

  15-03-2017 20:11 via feedproxy.google.com
  More efficient sensors are needed to be able to detect environmental pollution. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have proposed a new, sophisticated method of detecting molecules with sensors based on ultra-thin nanomaterials. The novel method could improve environmental sensing in the future. The results are published in the scientific journal Nature Communications.“This could open up new possibilities for the detection of environmental gases. Our method is more robust than
  
  Read more

• Stopping global warming is only way to save Great Barrier Reef, scientists warn

  15-03-2017 19:29 via theguardian.com
  
  Improvements to water quality or fishing controls don’t prevent underwater heatwaves damaging coral, studies of mass bleaching events revealThe survival of the Great Barrier Reef hinges on urgent moves to cut global warming because nothing else will protect coral from the coming cycle of mass bleaching events, new research has found.The study of three mass bleaching events on Australian reefs in 1998, 2002 and 2016 found coral was damaged by underwater heatwaves regardless of any local imp
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• ‘Airpocalypse’ smog events in China linked to melting ice cap, research reveals

  15-03-2017 19:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Stagnant weather caused by fast-melting Arctic ice helped create conditions for China’s recent extreme air pollution events, scientists sayClimate change played a major role in the extreme air pollution events suffered recently by China and is likely to make such “airpocalypses” more common, new research has revealed.
  The fast-melting ice in the Arctic and an increase in snowfalls in Siberia, both the result of global warming, are changing winter weather patterns over east Chin
  
  Read more

• Mary Creagh: Ministers running out of time to establish post-Brexit green legislation

  15-03-2017 18:30
  
  EXCLUSIVE: On the same day that MPs launched an inquiry into the role of sustainability in the policymaking of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the Environmental Audit Committee's (EAC) chair Mary Creagh has chastised the Government for failing to place climate change and resource efficiency at the heart of its agenda.
  
  Read more

• Fracking site approval by government based on legal errors, court hears

  15-03-2017 18:29 via theguardian.com
  
  Residents opposed to the drilling sites in Lancashire say the communities secretary Sajid Javid’s decision was unlawfulThe communities secretary, Sajid Javid, made significant legal errors when he overturned a council’s refusal to allow test drilling at a fracking site in Lancashire, a court has been told.Residents opposed to the drilling sites near Blackpool told Manchester high court that Javid acted “in breach of the rules of natural justice” when he gave the green lig
  
  Read more

• Mexico authorities search for crocodile that killed and apparently ate man

  15-03-2017 17:47 via theguardian.com
  
  10ft reptile carried off 18-year-old fishing in Chiapas reserveIf found, crocodile will be relocated to animal reserve, park or zooEnvironmental authorities are searching for a 10ft (3-meter) crocodile that killed and apparently ate a man in southern Mexico. Related: Mexican police officer accused of gunning down crocodile — a protected speciesContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• Between a rock and an artistic place

  15-03-2017 17:23 via feedproxy.google.com
  Kamilo Beach is, arguably, the world’s dirtiest beach. Located on the southeastern coast on the island of Hawaii, the beach’s sands are littered with marine debris – most of it plastic waste washed up from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Among this garbage, Patricia Corcoran and Kelly Jazvac have discovered something new.
  
  Read more

• What would happen if Britain had no carbon price support?

  15-03-2017 16:57
  
  Research from Imperial College London - commissioned by UK power station operator Drax - has found that operating without a carbon price would have increased Britain's carbon emissions by 21%, levels not seen since the 19th Century.
  
  Read more

• Trump to roll back Obama's car pollution standards to curb emissions

  15-03-2017 16:49 via theguardian.com
  
  Automakers welcome president’s plan for EPA to review fuel efficiency mandate while critics warn reversal would endanger health and environment
  Donald Trump will on Wednesday begin the process of rolling back carbon pollution standards for vehicles at a meeting with automakers in Detroit, Michigan. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• No cancer risk to using glyphosate weedkiller, says EU watchdog

  15-03-2017 16:23 via theguardian.com
  
  Chemical used in the best-selling Roundup herbicide is cleared for public use following an EU licensing battle due to potential health risksA controversial chemical used in Monsanto’s Roundup weedkiller has been judged safe for public use by the European Chemical Agency (Echa).Glyphosate has been the subject of a relicensing battle which split governments, regulators and scientists, with one arm of the World Health Organisation linking the substance to cancer, while another denied any risk
  
  Read more

• Glyphosate weedkiller, previously linked to cancer, judged safe by EU watchdog

  15-03-2017 16:23 via theguardian.com
  
  Chemical used in the best-selling Roundup herbicide is cleared for public use following an EU licensing battle due to potential health risksA controversial chemical used in Monsanto’s Roundup weedkiller has been judged safe for public use by the European Chemical Agency (Echa).Glyphosate has been the subject of a relicensing battle which split governments, regulators and scientists, with one arm of the World Health Organisation linking the substance to cancer, while another denied any risk
  
  Read more

• Hundreds of beehive thefts blamed on rising honey price

  15-03-2017 16:09 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Hive heists in New Zealand are being blamed on the rising price of Manuka honey.
  
  Read more

• Huge plastic waste footprint revealed

  15-03-2017 15:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Soft drinks makers admit more needs to be done to stop people discarding single-use plastic bottles.
  
  Read more

• Study quantifies role of legacy phosphorus in reduced water quality

  15-03-2017 14:43 via feedproxy.google.com
  For decades, phosphorous has accumulated in Wisconsin soils. Though farmers have taken steps to reduce the quantity of the agricultural nutrient applied to and running off their fields, a new study from the University of Wisconsin–Madison reveals that a “legacy” of abundant soil phosphorus in the Yahara watershed of Southern Wisconsin has a large, direct and long-lasting impact on water quality.
  
  Read more

• Increase of Alaskan Snow Geese OK for Other Species

  15-03-2017 14:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  A new report by the USGS finds that although snow geese are increasing rapidly in northern Alaska, they are not having a negative effect on black brant. Brant are a goose species that shares its nesting habitat with snow geese.
  
  Read more

• Burning wood for energy ignites fierce academic row

  15-03-2017 14:38 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists on both sides of the Atlantic have become embroiled in a war of words over energy from trees.
  
  Read more

• Elon Musk's 100-day pledge opens new avenues for energy storage schemes

  15-03-2017 13:04
  
  Elon Musk's claim that he could solve South Australia's energy crisis in 100 days has spread optimism that battery storage could help countries balance their grids, with the Ukrainian Prime Minister also reaching out to the Tesla founder.
  
  Read more

• A guide to the EPA data under threat by the Trump administration

  15-03-2017 13:00 via theguardian.com
  
  EPA data is kept in dozens of databases and represents decades of monitoring the American environment in fine detail. Here are some examplesThe financial benefits of the EPA data Trump doesn’t want you to know about
  Several highly publicized campaigns are taking place to save the data maintained by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from becoming inaccessible to the public under the Trump administration.“There is no reason to think the data is safe,” says Gretchen Gol
  
  Read more

• 'Sea sparkle' plankton turns water blue off Tasmania – video report

  15-03-2017 12:25 via theguardian.com
  
  Waters off the coast of Tasmania turned a shimmering blue this week, a phenomenon known as ‘noctiluca scintillans’, or sea sparkle. Despite people flocking to photograph the eerie scene, scientists have warned that it is, in fact, a worrying sign of climate changeTasmania’s coastline glows in the dark as plankton turn blueContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• Spiders top the global predator charts

  15-03-2017 12:14 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The world's spiders consume between 400 million and 800 million tonnes of primarily insect prey every year, say scientists.
  
  Read more

• Millions of single-use plastic soft drink bottles sold every year, report shows

  15-03-2017 12:05 via theguardian.com
  
  A survey of five of the six biggest soft drinks firms found just 7% of throwaway plastic bottles are made from recycled materialsMore than two million tonnes of throwaway plastic soft drinks bottles are sold each year, with only a small proportion made from recycled materials, research reveals.
  A survey by Greenpeace found five of six global soft drinks firms sold single-use plastic bottles weighing more than two million tonnes – only 6.6% of which was recycled plastic. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Jaguar Land Rover continues energy efficiency drive amid business expansion

  15-03-2017 11:37
  
  A increased investment in a range of energy efficiency and low-carbon initiatives, including an agreement to source 100% electricity from renewable sources, has seen Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) decouple energy consumption per vehicle produced from business expansion and wider data capture.
  
  Read more

• London unveils £50m circular economy business plan

  15-03-2017 11:00
  
  The London Waste and Recycling Board (LWARB) has this week set out a £50m business plan to help reinvigorate recycling efforts and accelerate the development of the circular economy across the capital.
  
  Read more

• Turnbull kicks the energy hornets' nest and goes Full Metal Export | Katharine Murphy

  15-03-2017 09:56 via theguardian.com
  
  Training the spotlight on energy security and climate, the PM opens a deadly serious set of issues – which he has made his government entirely responsible for fixingI wonder when, months ago, Malcolm Turnbull decided to go to war against state-based renewable energy targets as a means of trying to wedge Labor on climate policy, and show voters his government cared about hip-pocket issues – whether he ever imagined he’d be standing behind a podium, making threatening noises abou
  
  Read more

• Life returns to a Cornish orchard

  15-03-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Harrowbarrow, Tamar Valley Short twigs of February-grafted cherries already show swelling buds above the yellow plastic tapeThe new tall fence should help protect Mary and James’s orchard from the attention of roe deer, which come from the valley’s sheltering woodland to nibble leaves, bark and the precious shoots of new grafts, as well as shed their potentially dangerous ticks. Most of the fruit trees are more than 30 years old, but this diverse and catalogued collection of once wid
  
  Read more

• Tasmania's coastline glows in the dark as plankton turn blue

  15-03-2017 06:28 via theguardian.com
  
  Eerie scenes on north-west coast show bioluminescent waters from ‘sea sparkle’ The waters along Tasmania’s north-west coastline have taken on a bizarre, glowing appearance in recent days. Photographs taken off Preservation Bay and Rocky Cape showcase bioluminescent waters caused by a natural phenomenon known as noctiluca scintillans (AKA sea sparkle), which happens when tiny plankton turn blue in self-defence. The phenomenon, which is best seen in calm, warm seas, is foreboding
  
  Read more

• Australian coastline glows in the dark in sinister sign of climate change

  15-03-2017 06:28 via theguardian.com
  
  Eerie scenes in Tasmania show bioluminescent waters caused by ‘sea sparkle’, which happens when tiny plankton turn blue in self-defenceThe waters along Tasmania’s north-west coastline have taken on a bizarre, glowing appearance in recent days. Photographs taken off Preservation Bay and Rocky Cape showcase bioluminescent waters caused by a natural phenomenon known as noctiluca scintillans (AKA sea sparkle), which happens when tiny plankton turn blue in self-defence. The phenomen
  
  Read more

• National Farmers' Federation welcomes South Australian gas royalty plan but urges safeguards

  15-03-2017 06:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Chief executive Tony Mahar says farmers want to ensure availability of land and water is not compromisedThe National Farmers’ Federation has welcomed South Australia’s plan to provide royalties to landholders in return for gas development but warned farmers would want to ensure land and water was not compromised.The NFF chief executive, Tony Mahar, called on the federal government to expand independent bioregional scientific assessments to provide transparent evidence to prove water
  
  Read more

• Renewables roadshow: how Daylesford's community-owned windfarm took back the power

  15-03-2017 01:58 via theguardian.com
  
  In the first of a series about communities building renewable energy projects, we look at how Victoria’s Hepburn Shire overcame local opposition to deliver a new homegrown, community-owned generatorFrom the fertile spud-growing country of Hepburn Shire, 90km northwest of Melbourne, has sprung what many hope will become a revolution in renewable energy in Australia.On Leonards Hill, just outside the town of Daylesford – famed for its natural springs – stand two wind turbines tha
  
  Read more

• Renewables roadshow – Daylesford: 'The windfarm is a symbol of our community'

  15-03-2017 01:57 via theguardian.com
  
  Kicking off our six-part series highlighting innovative community renewable energy projects across Australia, we visit the town of Daylesford in Hepburn Shire in rural Victoria. Despite early local opposition, residents have tackled the electricity crisis by building their own renewable energy projects, starting with a cooperative-owned windfarm and moving into the hydro power that was once a feature of the town Continue reading...
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!