Environment news

• Why graphene could be the solution to drinkable water

  04-04-2017 23:58 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The BBC's Pallab Ghosh has been finding out about a filter made from graphene that can turn salt water into drinking water.
  
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• Open letter urges Malcolm Turnbull to deliver energy market reforms

  04-04-2017 22:15 via theguardian.com
  
  John Hewson and Simon Holmes à Court join Australia Institute’s call for changes to lower prices and emissions and improve securityThe former Liberal party leader John Hewson and sustainable energy entrepreneur Simon Holmes à Court are among the signatories to a new open letter urging Malcolm Turnbull to implement three urgent reforms to the energy market to lower prices and emissions, and improve network security.The Australia Institute has taken out a full-page advertisemen
  
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• ‘Disaster alley’: Australia could be set to receive new wave of climate refugees

  04-04-2017 22:00 via theguardian.com
  
  US defence expert warns people fleeing low-lying Pacific islands a precursor to ‘climate-exacerbated water insecurities’ that could trigger wider conflict Australia could be on the frontline of a new wave of “climate refugees” displaced by extreme weather events, droughts and rising seas, a US expert on the national security impacts of climate change has warned.Sherri Goodman, a former US deputy undersecretary of defence, argues the impact of climate change – rising
  
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• Visit a village that’s verging on greatness | Brief letters

  04-04-2017 20:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Daffodils on verges | Gendered Oscars | Anti-antidisestablishmentarianism | The world’s oldest continuously established parliament | The Boat Race | San SerriffeI agree with Jill Bennett (Letters, 4 April) that daffodils may not look great on urban verges, but here in Old Buckenham we persuaded the parish council to fund the purchase of sacks of varied narcissi for us in 1999. These were planted in bulk by volunteers around the base of all of the seven 30mph speed signs at the various entr
  
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• Freeing up the rich to exploit the poor – that’s what Trump and Brexit are about | George Monbiot

  04-04-2017 19:54 via theguardian.com
  
  A bonfire of public protections is being lit in Britain and in the United States – and the beneficiaries of it will be the very richPropaganda works by sanctifying a single value, such as faith, or patriotism. Anyone who questions it puts themselves outside the circle of respectable opinion. The sacred value is used to obscure the intentions of those who champion it. Today, the value is freedom. Freedom is a word that powerful people use to shut down thought.When thinktanks and the bi
  
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• Manatees Just Lost Their Status as Endangered Species

  04-04-2017 19:10 via feedproxy.google.com
  Manatees have just been downlisted from endangered to threatened; and while some are celebrating their recovery, many advocates are fearing that the move puts their future survival in jeopardy.
  
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• MEPs vote to ban the use of palm oil in biofuels

  04-04-2017 19:04 via theguardian.com
  
  MEPs say a ban, which needs approval from the European commission, is needed to avoid renewable targets contributing to deforestationMEPs have voted overwhelmingly to ban biofuels made from vegetable oils including palm oil by 2020, to prevent the EU’s renewable transport targets from inadvertently contributing to deforestation. A new palm oil regulation, minimum sustainability criteria, customs duty reforms and anti-deforestation articles in future EU trade deals were also approved with a
  
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• Penn Researchers Investigate How Songbirds Teach Themselves Songs

  04-04-2017 18:41 via feedproxy.google.com
  Music can be a powerful form of expression. It’s especially important for songbirds such as zebra finches, which learn the songs of their fathers in order to court mates.
  
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• Early climate 'payback' with higher emission reductions

  04-04-2017 18:33 via feedproxy.google.com
  Climate scientists have shown that the early mitigation needed to limit eventual warming below potentially dangerous levels has a climate ‘payback’ much earlier than previously thought.
  
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• Evidence of ancient 'geological Brexit' revealed

  04-04-2017 18:23 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists have established how Britain physically split from the rest of Europe 450,000 years ago.
  
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• Check whether your child's school is exposed to illegal levels of air pollution

  04-04-2017 18:22 via theguardian.com
  
  More than 2,000 schools around England and Wales are located near roads with illegal and dangerous levels of emissions from diesel cars. Use this tool to see whether your school is on the listType a school name, postcode or town name into the box to see the schools affected by dangerous levels of NO2 pollution. Continue reading...
  
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• Ken Livingstone says he expects to be expelled by Labour - Politics live

  04-04-2017 18:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happenIs Corbyn right about life expectancy “falling”?Lunchtime summary 5.05pm BSTThe Ken Livingstone hearing has adjourned, my colleague Anushka Asthana reports.Apparently they've adjourned to consider verdict in case of Ken Livingstone... Should know in hour. 4.59pm BSTJeremy Corbyn has now issued a press release about life expectancy. In it he does not repeat the claim made last night, and repeated in his speech th
  
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• Thousands of British children exposed to illegal levels of air pollution

  04-04-2017 18:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Exclusive: More than 2,000 schools and nurseries close to roads with damaging levels of diesel fumes, joint investigation by Guardian and Greenpeace revealsHow have you been affected by air pollution?Hundreds of thousands of children are being exposed to illegal levels of damaging air pollution from diesel vehicles at schools and nurseries across England and Wales, a joint investigation by the Guardian and Greenpeace’s investigations unit has revealed. The analysis of the most recent gover
  
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• 'The car is ingrained into people here': West Midlands faces air pollution crisis

  04-04-2017 18:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Region contains five of top 10 hotspots outside London for dangerous levels of nitrogen dioxide pollutionHow have you been affected by air pollution?
  The West Midlands is one of the worst hit areas outside the capital for illegal levels of nitrogen dioxide pollution but many don’t seem to realise they and their children are breathing some of the UK’s most polluted air.The region is criss-crossed with motorways and dual carriageways churning out NO2 from hundreds of thousands of diese
  
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• Row over 'falling life expectancy' claim as Corbyn launches local election campaign - Politics live

  04-04-2017 17:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happenIs Corbyn right about life expectancy “falling”?Lunchtime summary 4.05pm BSTThe Institute and Faculty of Actuaries has sent me a statement from Tim Gordon, chairman of its continuous mortality investigation (CMI) mortality projection committee. I asked if life expectancy is falling. He sent me a reply with footnotes. Here is the response:The latest CMI mortality projections model – with typical inputs (1)
  
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• Diesel vehicles will disappear sooner than expected, says EU industry chief

  04-04-2017 16:46 via theguardian.com
  
  European parliament backs tougher rules and €30,000 per vehicle fine for carmakers to prevent repeat of VW emissions scandalDiesel vehicles will disappear from roads much faster than expected, according to the European Union’s industry commissioner.
  Elżbieta Bieńkowska spoke after the European parliament backed tougher rules to prevent manufacturers selling cars that produce far more toxic pollution when driven than in official tests.Continue reading...
  
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• Piglets 'prefer blackcurrant to water', student says

  04-04-2017 16:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Study found piglets have "innate preference" for sweet flavours.
  
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• Tesla charges ahead to overtake Ford in market value

  04-04-2017 15:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Elon Musk’s electric car company has been valued at $49bn, leaving the 100-year-old motor manufacturer lagging behindOne is an automotive titan that has built more than 350m vehicles in an illustrious history spanning more than a century.The other is less than 15 years old and has never made a profit. Continue reading...
  
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• Scotland and California agree joint climate change deal

  04-04-2017 15:11
  
  Scotland has signed a joint agreement to tackle climate change with the US State of California, in the same week that new figures have highlighted a record month for Scottish wind power generation.
  
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• Climate change puts California's snowpack in jeopardy in future droughts

  04-04-2017 15:07 via feedproxy.google.com
  Skiing in July? It could happen this year, but California’s days of bountiful snow are numbered.After five years of drought and water restrictions, the state is reeling from its wettest winter in two decades. Moisture-laden storms have turned brown hillsides a lush green and state reservoirs are overflowing. There’s so much snow, Mammoth Mountain resort plans to be open for business on Fourth of July weekend.
  
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• 20 Years Researching Harmful Algal Blooms Supports Sustainable Water Supply in Wichita

  04-04-2017 15:07 via feedproxy.google.com
  Two decades of harmful algal bloom, nutrient and sediment research by the U.S. Geological Survey is helping to support Wichita’s long-term vision of a sustainable water supply into the future. Early warning indicators of harmful algal blooms have been developed for Cheney Reservoir, Kansas, according to a new USGS publication done in cooperation with the City of Wichita, Kansas.
  
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• How to stop deforestation: 'Indigenous people are the best park rangers'

  04-04-2017 13:49 via theguardian.com
  
  Trees soak up greenhouse gases, so how do we ensure their protection? Our experts offer seven ideas for the conservation and restoration of forests
  Countries need to stop using outdated fiscal policies for agriculture. In some places, such as Brazil and Indonesia, the amount spent by their governments on subsidising agriculture is more than 100 times higher than the international funding provided to those countries for forest conservation. It sends out a contradictory message if a government is
  
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• Corbyn triggers row with 'falling life expectancy' claim as he launches Labour's local election campaign - Politics live

  04-04-2017 12:41 via theguardian.com
  
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happen 11.41am BSTAsked about Brexit, Corbyn says he does not want a war with anyone. He thinks it is better to talk than to fight.He says Labour are democrats, and they accept the result of the referendum. 11.37am BSTCorbyn says in wealthy areas parents can afford to give £100 a month to help their children’s school.But you cannot do that in places where children arrive for school hungry because their parents could n
  
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• Nottingham University's carbon neutral laboratory receives highest green building accolades

  04-04-2017 12:36
  
  A carbon neutral laboratory built from natural materials by infrastructure services firm AECOM has become one of the first buildings globally to achieve the highest certifications under BREEAM and LEED standards systems for green buildings.
  
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• London's Ultra Low Emission Zone to arrive in 2019

  04-04-2017 12:36
  
  Sadiq Khan has today (4 April) announced that London will have the world's first Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in 2019 - a year ahead of schedule.
  
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• Fuel duty cut for diesel cars was wrong, says ex-chief science adviser

  04-04-2017 12:16 via theguardian.com
  
  David King, who served Labour and Tory governments, says he was misled by car industry over levels of diesel pollutionThe former chief scientific adviser has admitted it was wrong to cut fuel duty on diesel vehicles after being hoodwinked by the car industry, as the mayor of London launched a crackdown on vehicle pollution.David King, who until last week served Labour and Tory governments as special representative for climate change, said he was misled by carmakers over the amount of poisonous n
  
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• Inconceivable! The latest theatrical House 'Science' committee hearing | Dana Nuccitelli

  04-04-2017 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Republican Party leaders keep putting fossil fuel industry profits over the well-being of Americans
  Last week, the House “Science” committee held one of its regular hearings to dispute the validity of climate science research. Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) articulated the purpose of the hearing when speaking at a recent Heartland Institute climate science denial conference:Next week we’re going to have a hearing on our favorite subject of climate change and also on the scientific
  
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• CCS key to meeting climate change targets say ETI

  04-04-2017 11:54
  
  Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is the most cost effective way of meeting climate change targets and needs to be deployed sooner rather than later, according to the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI).
  
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• 'Surprise' discovery of Europe's first cave-dwelling fish

  04-04-2017 10:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The pink, scaleless cave loach was found by divers in an underground cavern in southern Germany.
  
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• Dolphins 'shake and toss' octopus prey, research finds

  04-04-2017 09:41 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The predators use elaborate techniques to prepare octopuses for consumption, researchers say.
  
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• Diesel cars: 'It turns out we were wrong'

  04-04-2017 09:24 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A new plan to tackle pollution in London
  
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• Flood defence plans heavily favour London and south-east

  04-04-2017 08:15 via theguardian.com
  
  Exclusive: new analysis indicates south will get significantly more funding per capita than elsewhere, in part because of higher property pricesThe government’s planned spending on flood defences heavily favours London and the south-east of England, according to a new analysis, with spending per person up to 13 times higher than in other regions.The recently published plans set out spending to 2021 and, for major projects, beyond that date. By far the largest projects are those for the Tha
  
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• Tory voters want environmental regulations maintained after Brexit

  04-04-2017 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Conservative thinktank finds voters want to protect laws on beach standards and renewable energy productionSignificant majorities of Conservative voters want EU environmental regulations to be maintained or even strengthened in the wake of Brexit, a poll carried out for the Tory thinktank Bright Blue has found.While a handful of prominent Conservatives, such as the former environment secretary Owen Paterson, have argued that leaving the EU will allow Britain to revamp its rules on the subject, t
  
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• Green groups condemn UN plan to use $136m from climate fund for large dams

  04-04-2017 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Activists warn of serious environmental consequences for UN-backed hydro projects in Nepal, Tajikistan and the Solomon IslandsPlans to earmark more than $136m (£109m) of UN money for large dam projects in Nepal, Tajikistan and the Solomon Islands have been angrily condemned by activists, who have warned the projects could have serious environmental consequences.The UN’s green climate fund was set up during the Paris climate agreement to mobilise $100bn a year by 2020 for poor countri
  
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• Amphibian icons of prodigious procreation

  04-04-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Buxton, Derbyshire What compels our imagination is the sheer drive of frogs and toads to get to the spawning pondsWhat is it about frogs and toads that has made them such classic icons of sexual reproduction? It cannot be timing, because their breeding is often over before the other elements of high spring – flowers, bees, birdsong, sunshine – are in full flood. Frogs will gather at the spawning pond when the starlit nights are frosted and the vegetation rimed in white.Nor can it be
  
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• Health warning issued over barramundi caught near Hazelwood power station

  04-04-2017 03:19 via theguardian.com
  
  Environmental Protection Agency updates advice due to presence of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substancesThe Environmental Protection Agency has issued a health warning against barramundi caught in the recreational fishing ponds used as cooling for the now defunct Hazelwood power station, after a change in national guidelines.Barramundi were released into the 55ha Hazelwood Pondage lake system, which was artificially heated by water cycled through the cooling system for the power station condensers
  
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• Brenda the Civil Disobedience Penguin v the Adani mine. Democracy is fatally compromised! | First Dog on the Moon

  04-04-2017 00:53 via theguardian.com
  
  This terrible mine is much more than the sum of its poisonous venal parts. It represents the searing contempt in which voters are heldSign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published
  Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and printsContinue reading...
  
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• Former Danish PM says investment is key to developing renewable energy – video

  04-04-2017 00:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Helle Thorning-Schmidt, appearing on the ABC’s Q&A, says every country needs to determine the right mix of energy sources for its requirements, but the important thing is investment, planning and political will. She says Denmark started investing in its renewables strategy 30 years ago and now makes more from the export of related technology than from its traditional agricultural sector Continue reading...
  
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