Environment news

• Atomic Movies May Help Explain Why Perovskite Solar Cells Are More Efficient

  26-07-2017 23:02 via feedproxy.google.com
  In recent years, perovskites have taken the solar cell industry by storm. They are cheap, easy to produce and very flexible in their applications. Their efficiency at converting light into electricity has grown faster than that of any other material – from under four percent in 2009 to over 20 percent in 2017 – and some experts believe that perovskites could eventually outperform the most common solar cell material, silicon. But despite their popularity, researchers don’t know
  
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• NASA Eyes Compact Hurricane Hilary

  26-07-2017 22:09 via feedproxy.google.com
  When the NASA-NOAA Suomi NPP satellite passed over the Eastern Pacific Ocean on July 25 it captured a visible close-up of Hurricane Hilary.The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument aboard the NASA-NOAA Suomi NPP satellite captured a visible light image of Hilaryon July 25 at 5:54 p.m. EDT (2154 UTC). The Suomi NPP image showed that Hilary appeared somewhat asymmetric.
  
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• Coral Gardening Is Benefiting Caribbean Reefs, Study Finds

  26-07-2017 21:42 via feedproxy.google.com
  A new study found that Caribbean staghorn corals (Acropora cervicornis) are benefiting from “coral gardening,” the process of restoring coral populations by planting laboratory-raised coral fragments on reefs.The research, led by scientists at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and partners, has important implications for the long-term survival of coral reefs worldwide, which have been in worldwide decline from multiple stressors such as
  
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• Diesel and petrol car ban: Clean air strategy 'not enough'

  26-07-2017 20:55 via bbc.co.uk
  The clean air strategy should include a scrappage scheme and clean air zones, campaigners say.
  
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• 'It's the future of motor travel': readers on driving electric vehicles

  26-07-2017 20:45 via theguardian.com
  With the UK planning to ban petrol and diesel cars and vans in 2040 we asked you what it’s like to drive the vehicle of the future
  Amid fears that rising levels of nitrogen oxides pose a major risk to public health, Britain plans to ban all new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2040. As part of the government’s much-anticipated clean air plan it has said the move is needed because of the unnecessary and avoidable impact that poor air quality was having on people’s health. Wi
  
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• The Guardian view on air pollution proposals: too little, much too late | Editorial

  26-07-2017 20:42 via theguardian.com
  If the UK government is serious about cutting noxious emissions, it needs to step on it. We should not have to wait 23 years to breathe easyOnly 20 years ago, it would have sounded like the stuff of fantasy: a clean, green image of the 21st century, with Britons gliding along in electrified, no doubt self-driving, cars. Even now, the pledge to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2040 has a bold, vaguely futuristic ring to it. That is its political genius. In fact, it reflec
  
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• Government's air quality plan branded inadequate by city leaders

  26-07-2017 20:41 via theguardian.com
  Michael Gove’s pledge to ban new petrol and diesel cars in 23 years is not enough to tackle health crisis now, say campaigners The government’s new clean air plan has been branded inadequate by the leaders of eight heavily polluted cities, as campaigners said banning petrol and diesel cars from 2040 would not help the thousands dying each year from illnesses linked to toxic fumes.
  The long-awaited report was published by Michael Gove, the environment secretary, on Wednesday, after a
  
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• Biosecurity blitz to target red fire ants that threaten Australian way of life

  26-07-2017 20:16 via theguardian.com
  Second-biggest biosecurity operation in nation’s history sees $411m committed to eradicating invasive species that threatens agriculture, wildlife, tourism and outdoor lifestyleThey are one of the world’s worst invasive species, and now, more than two decades after they are believed to have arrived in Australia, the country is launching the second-biggest biosecurity operation in its history to eradicate red imported fire ants.State, territory and federal agricultural ministers met i
  
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• Study projects deaths from heat and cold for 10 U.S. metros through 2090

  26-07-2017 19:48 via feedproxy.google.com
  A new analysis projects that inaction on climate change could lead to tens of thousands more heat-related deaths annually in U.S. metropolitan areas within a few generations.
  
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• New membranes help reduce carbon dioxide emission

  26-07-2017 19:34 via feedproxy.google.com
  The University of Twente and the German Research Centre Jülich are collaborating on developing membranes for an efficient separation of gasses, to use for the production of oxygen or hydrogen, for example.
  
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• Is there enough electricity? National Grid reacts to fossil-fuel vehicle ban

  26-07-2017 19:13 via theguardian.com
  Power network raises questions about how UK will meet demand when all new cars and vans sold are electricNational Grid has welcomed the plan to make electric or zero-emission cars and vans account for all new sales from 2040, but said the government and industry now faced big decisions on how the extra power was provided and demand for it was managed.The grid recently warned that, by 2030, electric cars could require 3.5-8GW of additional capacity, on top of the current peak demand of 60GW. Cont
  
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• Electric cars: everything you need to know

  26-07-2017 18:42 via theguardian.com
  From how to charge them to whether they are really better for the environmentThe first generation of electric-car buyers have been people with homes where it is easy to plug one in. “The vast majority of Nissan Leaf customers are [families with] 2.4 children, mums and dads, with off-street parking,” said Gareth Dunsmore of Nissan Europe. “Tomorrow that won’t be the case.” Continue reading...
  
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• The government's air pollution plan is a beautiful smokescreen

  26-07-2017 16:29 via theguardian.com
  A ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040 is a great vision for the future but does nothing to address a public health emergency happening right nowWhat a beautiful smokescreen. A UK ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040 conjures up the clean, green vision of an all-electric future and is absolutely the right thing to tackle climate change – emissions from transport are high and not falling. But for the public health emergency of today, with most urban areas already havin
  
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• More than half UK international airports lack free drinking water fountains

  26-07-2017 15:40 via theguardian.com
  Travellers are left to buy expensive and wasteful plastic bottles of water after passing through security, says consumer website MoneySavingExpert.com
  More than half of the UK’s international airports do not have free drinking water fountains installed in their departure lounges, a leading consumer website has revealed. Continue reading...
  
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• Fishing communities in Asia seeking net gains after Bali summit – in pictures

  26-07-2017 15:17 via theguardian.com
  Experts recently gathered in Bali to develop regulations that will help small-scale fishing operations and their sustainable methods thrive in our overfished seas. In this series of images, photojournalist Paul Hilton visits fishing communities in Asia where locals work in harmony with their environment Continue reading...
  
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• Fishing communities in Asia seek net gains after Bali summit – in pictures

  26-07-2017 15:17 via theguardian.com
  Experts recently gathered in Bali to develop regulations that will help small-scale fishing operations and their sustainable methods thrive in our overfished seas. In this series of images, photojournalist Paul Hilton visits fishing communities in Asia where locals work in harmony with their environment Continue reading...
  
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• Vegan advert claiming 'Humane milk is a myth' cleared by ASA

  26-07-2017 15:02 via bbc.co.uk
  Complaints from the dairy industry are dismissed as vegan group's advert is given the green light.
  
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• How could the UK-US trade deal affect your food? – Q&A

  26-07-2017 14:57 via theguardian.com
  Chlorinated chicken is the tip of the iceberg. Current EU standards cover everything from conditions for battery hens to antibiotics use in farms, and they are all up for negotiationThe international trade secretary Liam Fox has been in the US for the preliminary stages of thrashing out a trade deal to take effect after the UK leaves the EU. He was asked about the trade in food and agricultural products, which is likely to form a key plank of any deal. Fox on Monday refused to rule out allowing
  
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• Government's air quality plan is cynical headline-grabbing, say critics

  26-07-2017 14:28 via theguardian.com
  Michael Gove’s pledge to ban new petrol and diesel cars in 23 years is not enough to tackle health crisis now, say campaignersMichael Gove’s new air quality plan has been criticised for failing to take enough immediate action to stop people dying from pollution, while promising to ban petrol and diesel cars in 23 years’ time.The long-awaited document contains a pledge to stop new petrol and diesel cars being sold after 2040, as well as measures to encourage councils to tackle p
  
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• Passers-by rescue dolphin on Weymouth beach

  26-07-2017 13:22 via bbc.co.uk
  People wade into the water to help save a dolphin which was stranded close to the shore
  
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• Tell us what it is like to drive an electric car or van where you live

  26-07-2017 13:01 via theguardian.com
  The UK plans to ban diesel and petrol vehicles from 2040. With the future looking electric we’d like to hear your driving experiences
  From 2040, Britain plans to ban all new petrol and diesel cars and vans as part of the government’s much-anticipated clean air plan.Amid fears that rising levels of nitrogen oxide pose a major risk to public health, the government said the move is needed because of the unnecessary and avoidable impact that poor air quality was having on people’s
  
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• Climate change threatens ‘Himalayan Viagra’ fungus, and a way of life

  26-07-2017 13:01 via theguardian.com
  Valuable fungus, prized as a reputed aphrodisiac, is disappearing due to warming temperatures, reports Climate HomeA Himalayan fungus used in Chinese medicine, which underpins the livelihoods of communities of harvesters in Nepal, is under the threat due to climate change.Harvesting the Cordyceps sinensis fungus, called ‘yarsha gumba’ in Nepal, provides a livelihood for Himalayan dwellers. The fungus fetches up to Rs 2,800,000 (£20,000) per kg in raw form. During the peak seaso
  
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• Trump pulled out the oil industry playbook and players for Paris | Benjamin Franta

  26-07-2017 12:00 via theguardian.com
  The fossil fuel industry used the same arguments, and even the same people, to block climate policies in the 1990s. We must not let this happen again.Since President Trump announced on June 1 that the U.S. would cease implementation of the Paris Agreement, pundits have argued about whether the American pullout will truly affect greenhouse gas pollution one way or another, since, after all, the Paris Agreement was not legally binding to begin with.We don’t know the future, but we do know th
  
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• Horses and rabbits make lucky escapes from New Zealand floods – video report

  26-07-2017 11:50 via theguardian.com
  A group of horses caught in a flooded river make a run for it after heavy rains in New Zealand’s South Island over the weekend. Three wild rabbits also managed to escape floods by hopping on to the backs of some sheep. Videos courtesy of fergs3374 and Kyla JasperseWoolly jumpers: rabbits ride on sheep to stay dry in flood
  Continue reading...
  
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• Trump plan could open Giant Sequoia monument to logging and wildfires

  26-07-2017 11:00 via theguardian.com
  As the Trump administration continues to roll back protections on public lands, timber industry advocates are pushing to reduce federal defenses for California’s giant treesFor the largest living things standing on the planet, California’s giant sequoias have an unassuming, almost gentle aura to them. The recognizable cinnamon-colored bark is soft and fibrous. Its cones are modest. When cut down, the trees tend to shatter and won’t produce reliably sturdy timber.These majestic
  
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• Trump plan could open Giant Sequoia monument to logging

  26-07-2017 11:00 via theguardian.com
  As the Trump administration continues to roll back protections on public lands, timber industry advocates are pushing to reduce federal defenses for California’s giant treesFor the largest living things standing on the planet, California’s giant sequoias have an unassuming, almost gentle aura to them. The recognizable cinnamon-colored bark is soft and fibrous. Its cones are modest. When cut down, the trees tend to shatter and won’t produce reliably sturdy timber.These majestic
  
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• Loved to death: Sequoia national monument faces wildfires and logging

  26-07-2017 11:00 via theguardian.com
  As the Trump administration continues to roll back protections on public lands, timber industry advocates are pushing to reduce federal defenses for California’s giant treesFor the largest living things standing on the planet, California’s giant sequoias have an unassuming, almost gentle, aura to them. The recognizable cinnamon-colored bark is soft and fibrous. Its cones are modest. When cut down, the trees tend to shatter and won’t produce reliably sturdy timber.These majestic
  
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• Man arrested for smuggling king cobras to the US in crisp canisters

  26-07-2017 10:39 via theguardian.com
  California man faces up to 20 years in prison after the three live snakes were illegally shipped from Hong KongA man was arrested on federal smuggling charges Tuesday after customs officers intercepted a shipment with three live king cobras hidden inside potato chip canisters that were being mailed to his California home, US prosecutors said.Rodrigo Franco, 34, was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday afternoon in Los Angeles on a charge of illegally importing merchandise. It wasn’t immediate
  
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• UK-US trade deal would not allow chlorinated chicken imports – Gove

  26-07-2017 10:21 via theguardian.com
  Environment secretary responds to Liam Fox’s remarks by saying UK would avoid deal requiring it to accept lower standards The UK would back out of any trade deal that required it to accept lower standards, such as allowing imports of chlorinated chicken from the US, the environment secretary has said, deepening the cabinet split over the issue. Related: Brussels attacks Liam Fox's 'ignorant' remarks on chlorinated chickenContinue reading...
  
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• New diesel and petrol cars face 2040 ban in UK

  26-07-2017 08:34 via bbc.co.uk
  Ministers will also unveil a £255m fund to help councils introduce steps to deal with vehicle pollution.
  
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• Ireland's staggering hypocrisy on climate change

  26-07-2017 08:30 via theguardian.com
  The national climate policy is a greenwash – the country is certain to miss its 2020 emissions target and still handing out drilling licences
  On the face of it, Ireland appears to be acting on climate change. Last year it appointed its first ever “climate action minister”, and in June it outlawed onshore fracking. What’s more, the telegenic new taoiseach Leo Varadkar dedicated much of the first day of his Cabinet retreat to discussing climate change.
  Last week Varadkar in
  
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• Exxon, Shell and other carbon producers sued for sea level rises in California

  26-07-2017 08:00 via theguardian.com
  As a trio of lawsuits claim compensation for sea rises resulting from fossil fuel emissions, campaigners say carbon majors must change their business modelsThree Californian communities have launched legal action against some of the world’s biggest oil, gas and coal companies, seeking compensation for the current and future costs of adapting to sea level rises linked to climate change. San Mateo and Marin Counties, coastal communities in northern California, and Imperial Beach, a city in S
  
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• Exxon, Shell and other carbon producers sued for sea level rises

  26-07-2017 08:00 via theguardian.com
  As a trio of lawsuits claim compensation for sea rises resulting from fossil fuel emissions, campaigners say carbon majors must change their business modelsThree Californian communities have launched legal action against some of the world’s biggest oil, gas and coal companies, seeking compensation for the current and future costs of adapting to sea level rises linked to climate change. San Mateo and Marin Counties, coastal communities in northern California, and Imperial Beach, a city in S
  
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• Pegas reborn: Romania's communist bicycle returns with oomph and style

  26-07-2017 07:30 via theguardian.com
  A proletariat era symbol gets a modern makeover as a nostalgic nation warms up to its iconic bike brand
  In communist Romania, almost every child had a Pegas bicycle. In a country cut off from the outside world, the state-owned company’s distinctive bikes were all people knew. However, with the violent end of Nicolae Ceaușescu’s reign in 1989, all that changed.Continue reading...
  
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• Captive by Jo-Anne McArthur: plight of animals in captivity – in pictures

  26-07-2017 07:00 via theguardian.com
  McArthur’s book of photographs puts the spotlight on ethics of zoos around the world. Accompanied by essays by Born Free Foundation’s Virginia McKenna and philosopher Lori Gruen, the images and stories are also shared online through A Year of Captivity. Images from both projects will be exhibited at Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre from 7 to 10 SeptemberContinue reading...
  
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• Damned as dangerous but ragwort is full of life

  26-07-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Wenlock Edge, Shropshire A fantasia of hoverflies, solitary bees, bumblebees, butterflies and beetles feed on ragwortRagwort makes fields of gold, and to walk in them feels far more transgressive than a bucolic stroll through wheat or barley. Unlike the pale, safe, beige of ripening cereal crops, the ragwort is bold as brass. Unlike the slim pickings in the stashes of mice (and men), the ragwort swarms with life. The insects, and those creatures who feed on them, are harvesting a crop that is to
  
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• On a mission to Mars (with Hawaii stopover)

  26-07-2017 01:34 via bbc.co.uk
  Researchers living near the active Hawaiian Volcano Mauna Loa are simulating what it's like to "live" on Mars.
  
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• Call for action to protect Scotland's endangered capercaillie birds

  26-07-2017 01:01 via theguardian.com
  Survey finds Highlands population has halved since 1990s, believed to be because of climate change and human activityConservationists have called for action to protect the capercaillie, one of Scotland’s rarest and most treasured birds, after data showed its population had fallen 50% in just over two decades.An extensive field survey of capercaillie breeding grounds in the Highlands estimated a population of only 1,114 birds between 2015 and last year, compared with an estimate of 2,200 be
  
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