Environment news

• Weatherwatch: Ophelia's arrival hints at a new vulnerability for Europe

  19-10-2017 22:30 via theguardian.com
  An off-the-charts hurricane that tracked to Ireland points to climate change pushing ‘tropical oceans’ northward and putting the continent in the firing lineOphelia formed so far to the east in the Atlantic it caused the United States Hurricane Centre to recast its maps so that they could track the storm. They had not thought it was feasible for hurricanes to head north so near the coast of Europe.
  As it was, the cold sea south of Ireland took the sting out of the 15th named storm of
  
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• Scientists Map Monogamy, Jealousy in the Monkey Mind

  19-10-2017 19:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  It’s perhaps one of the most common emotions to feel in a relationship, but one that’s virtually untouched when it comes to studying relationships in monogamous primate species. What scientists have recently discovered about jealousy in pair-bonded titi monkeys at the California National Primate Research Center (CNPRC) offers insight into human emotions and their consequences.
  
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• A New Butterflyfish— A Rare, Surprise Find— Is Described from the Philippine “Twilight Zone” and Academy Exhibit

  19-10-2017 19:04 via feedproxy.google.com
  A newly described species of brown-and-white Philippine butterflyfish—the charismatic Roa rumsfeldi—made a fantastic, 7,000-mile journey before surprising scientists with its unknown status. Live specimens collected from 360 feet beneath the ocean’s surface in the Philippine’s Verde Island Passage escaped special notice until a single black fin spine tipped off aquarium biologists back in San Francisco. Deep-diving researchers from the California Academy of Scie
  
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• Queensland councils to pay at least $31m for Adani coalmine airstrip

  19-10-2017 19:01 via theguardian.com
  Townsville and Rockhampton councils may pay millions more if company’s bid to sew up deal with traditional owners failsTwo local councils are paying $31m to build an airstrip for Adani’s Queensland coalmine – and could fork out millions more if the energy giant’s bid to sew up a deal with traditional owners hits a stumbling block.Townsville and Rockhampton councils last week announced they would spend $15.5m each on the airport – hundreds of kilometres away –
  
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• Labor says it will reach 50% renewable energy regardless of PM's guarantee

  19-10-2017 19:01 via theguardian.com
  Exclusive: Mark Butler says Malcolm Turnbull ambushed states with energy ‘thought bubble’The shadow climate change minister, Mark Butler, says if state governments don’t veto the Turnbull government’s national energy guarantee, and if the policy passes into law, Labor will ramp up the level of emissions reduction in the event it wins the next federal election.Butler says Labor has been “crystal clear” in discussions with industry stakeholders, and with state g
  
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• Tony Abbott needs to go back to Bible class if he quotes it on climate change | Geoff Thompson

  19-10-2017 19:00 via theguardian.com
  From refugees to environment, the Judeo-Christian warrior doesn’t grasp what he is supposed to have studiedFor a former seminary student Tony Abbott is not a very good interpreter of the Bible. Of course, he’s very strong on defending western culture and its Judaeo-Christian roots. For this cause he is an unwavering ideological warrior. But as in all wars, truth is often the first casualty. In this case, it’s the truth of the very scriptures Abbott himself employs.His latest in
  
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• Impact of Amazonian Hydropower is 'Significantly Underestimated', Study Finds

  19-10-2017 18:48 via feedproxy.google.com
  The environmental impact of hydropower generation in the Amazon may be greater than predicted, according to new University of Stirling research.
  
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• Carbon Feedback from Forest Soils will Accelerate Global Warming, 26-Year Study Projects

  19-10-2017 18:13 via feedproxy.google.com
  After 26 years, the world’s longest-running experiment to discover how warming temperatures affect forest soils has revealed a surprising, cyclical response: Soil warming stimulates periods of abundant carbon release from the soil to the atmosphere alternating with periods of no detectable loss in soil carbon stores. Overall, the results indicate that in a warming world, a self-reinforcing and perhaps uncontrollable carbon feedback will occur between forest soils and the climate system, ad
  
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• Scientists Solve a Magnesium Mystery in Rechargeable Battery Performance

  19-10-2017 17:54 via feedproxy.google.com
  Rechargeable batteries based on magnesium, rather than lithium, have the potential to extend electric vehicle range by packing more energy into smaller batteries. But unforeseen chemical roadblocks have slowed scientific progress.
  
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• Forest fires on the rise as JRC study warns of danger to air quality

  19-10-2017 17:48 via feedproxy.google.com
  The JRC’s annual forest fires report confirms a trend towards longer and more intense fire seasons in Europe and neighbouring regions, with wildfires now occurring throughout the year. The report coincides with an international study which finds that global wildfire trends could have significant health implications due to rising harmful emissions.
  
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• Storm Brian to bring heavy rain and strong winds to UK and Ireland

  19-10-2017 16:59 via theguardian.com
  Met Office issues yellow warning for strong winds as ‘weather bomb’ develops over AtlanticA “weather bomb” that is forecast to form over the Atlantic on Thursday and bring wind and heavy rain to the UK on Saturday has become the second named storm of the season.Storm Brian is forecast to bring strong winds over Wales, north-west England and most of southern England on the first day of many pupils’ half-term holidays. Continue reading...
  
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• Five of the UK's best birdwatching sites

  19-10-2017 16:26 via theguardian.com
  Interested in birdwatching around the UK? As Walthamstow welcomes its new wetlands reserve, we select five other great spots to take flight to for feathery figuresRathlin Island, the northernmost point of Northern Ireland, is home to the country’s biggest seabird colony. The star is the puffin, which arrives in April to breed and heads back out to sea in late July. Other birds to see at the West Light Seabird Centre, a refurbished lighthouse, include razorbills, guillemots, kittiwakes and
  
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• Storm Brian to bring strong winds and heavy rain to UK and Ireland

  19-10-2017 15:59 via theguardian.com
  Met Office issues yellow warning for strong winds as ‘weather bomb’ develops over AtlanticA “weather bomb” that is forecast to form over the Atlantic on Thursday and bring wind and heavy rain to the UK on Saturday has become the second named storm of the season.Storm Brian is forecast to bring strong winds over Wales, north-west England, and most of southern England on the first day of many pupils’ half-term holidays. Continue reading...
  
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• Your best pictures of insects around the world

  19-10-2017 15:30 via theguardian.com
  After a new study showed an alarming decline in insect populations we asked you to share your pictures of the creatures, in celebration of all they do for global ecosystems. Here are some of our favourites
  Click to see more contributions and add yours
  Continue reading...
  
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• Wild in Walthamstow: Europe’s biggest urban wetlands opens

  19-10-2017 15:06 via theguardian.com
  Europe’s biggest urban wetlands open on Friday. Few locals knew of it before but now they, and nature lovers everywhere, can enjoy this amazing bird reserve for free• Plus: Five great UK birdwatching sites
  We’re strolling along Songbird Walk, beneath a row of waterside poplars very like ones Monet painted in Normandy. The October sky is grey but the footpath is lined with wildflowers: yellow gorse, purple knapweed, white campion. With a liquid twittering, a flock of goldfinches
  
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• Carbon case history

  19-10-2017 14:15 via bbc.co.uk
  Prof Joanna Haigh from Imperial College London explains why this gas has played a crucial role in shaping the Earth's climate.
  
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• A brief history of the Earth's CO2

  19-10-2017 14:15 via bbc.co.uk
  Prof Joanna Haigh from Imperial College London explains why this gas has played a crucial role in shaping the Earth's climate.
  
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• European Commission moves to Brexit-proof Emissions Trading System

  19-10-2017 14:07
  The European Commission has agreed on a new measure to protect its Emissions Trading System (ETS) against a potential breakdown in Brexit negotiations.
  
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• Evolving global supply chain risks must raise 'red flag' for EV manufacturers

  19-10-2017 13:45
  As the demand for raw materials grows over the next 15 years, EV manufacturers must prepare for greater supply chain risks or face brand damage and regulatory penalties from emerging legislation.
  
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• Is climate change Hollywood's new supervillain?

  19-10-2017 13:18 via theguardian.com
  Eco-thriller Geostorm, with Gerard Butler as a weather-busting scientist, is the latest movie to battle the environment. From Blade Runner 2049 to Alexander Payne’s Downsizing, film are turning up the heat on the big screenIn 2004, when climate change was still called global warming, it was considered sensational enough to get top billing in The Day After Tomorrow, a city-smashing blockbuster by disaster master Roland Emmerich. But the incremental death march of the real thing was consider
  
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• Atlantic 'weather bomb' to bring strong winds and heavy rain to UK

  19-10-2017 12:45 via theguardian.com
  Met Office issues yellow warning for strong winds over Wales and southern England and will consider naming storm if forecast worsensThe aftermath of a “weather bomb” that is forecast to form over the Atlantic on Thursday will bring wind and heavy rain to the UK on Saturday.The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for strong winds over Wales and much of southern England and will consider naming the storm if its forecast impact worsens. Continue reading...
  
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• Government launches proposals to boost charge points for electric vehicles

  19-10-2017 12:43
  Large petrol retailers and motorway services will be required to install charging points for electric vehicles (EVs), as part of new legislation from the Government that also enables drivers of automated vehicles to gain insurance in the UK.
  
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• Greater Manchester businesses back switch to 100% renewable electricity

  19-10-2017 11:52
  A host of businesses, politicians and local organisations from across Greater Manchester are aiming to save money and energy through support of a pioneering new campaign to switch to clean energy.
  
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• Report calls for bonfire of energy policy 'obsessions'

  19-10-2017 11:19
  A new report co-authored by Laura Sandys has called for a bonfire of the traditional "obsessions" of energy policy makers and regulators in order to enable a radically new regulatory model for the future.
  
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• Share your pictures of insects around the world

  19-10-2017 10:50 via theguardian.com
  A new study finds alarming decline in insect numbers – we’d like your help celebrating what these creatures do for life on earth
  A dramatic plunge in insect numbers reported in a new study has led scientists to predict what they are calling “ecological Armageddon”.Three-quarters of flying insects in nature reserves across Germany have vanished in 25 years, the study says, with serious implications for all life on Earth. Continue reading...
  
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• Frydenberg appeals to states on energy but gives them 24-hour deadline

  19-10-2017 10:23 via theguardian.com
  States have only 24 hours to provide input before Coalition sends instructions to the Energy Security BoardThe federal energy minister, Josh Frydenberg, has attempted to extend an olive branch to his furious state counterparts, inviting their input into modelling energy regulators will carry out about the impact of the government’s proposed national energy guarantee.
  Frydenberg emailed his state counterparts on Thursday inviting their comments on instructions the government has drafted for
  
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• Wong calls on Bishop to 'undo damage' with NZ Labour – politics live

  19-10-2017 09:28 via theguardian.com
  Government and Labor trade blows over energy and unemployment falls to lowest rate in four years. Follow the day’s events 8.25am BSTJacinda Ardern is holding her press conference following Winston Peters’s announcement. She said she missed a phone call from Bill Shorten and we understand Malcolm Turnbull has sent a message congratulating her. 7.58am BSTThe treasurer, Scott Morrison, has left the country ... for the weekend:This week I will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
  
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• Alarm over decline in flying insects

  19-10-2017 09:07 via bbc.co.uk
  Flying insects have declined by more than 75% in 30 years in German nature reserves, alarming ecologists.
  
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• Amazing mini animals – in pictures

  19-10-2017 08:00 via theguardian.com
  David Yeo’s photography places naturally small species alongside animals that have been selectively bred to be tiny and cute, opening a troubling ethical debate Continue reading...
  
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• Government and Labor trade blows over energy in question time – politics live

  19-10-2017 07:38 via theguardian.com
  Andrew Wilkie calls lack of support for casino inquiry ‘scandalous’ and unemployment falls to lowest rate in four years. Follow the day’s events 6.33am BSTThe wooing of the states over energy doesn’t seem like it is going overly well. Katharine Murphy has had a chat to South Australian premier Jay Weatherill:The South Australian premier says Labor states will not accept a national energy policy that cuts renewable energy targets, removes incentives for low-emissions techn
  
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• World's deepest lake crippled by putrid algae, poaching and pollution

  19-10-2017 07:24 via theguardian.com
  Lake Baikal in Siberia holds one fifth of the world’s unfrozen fresh water, but its precious fish stocks are disappearing Lake Baikal is undergoing its gravest crisis in recent history, experts say, as the government bans the catching of a signature fish that has lived in the world’s deepest lake for centuries but is now under threat.
  Holding one-fifth of the world’s unfrozen fresh water, Baikal in Russia’s Siberia is a natural wonder of “exceptional value to evolut
  
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• Country diary: up to the gills in toadstool spores

  19-10-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Hollingside Wood, Durham City Overnight, uncountable numbers of microscopic spores had drifted down to be made visible on the paper surfaceThere is something stealthy about toadstools. When we followed this path recently there were none. Today a dozen shaggy parasols (Chlorophyllum rhacodes) had appeared, shouldering aside the soil with their closed caps. One of these toadstools, with a newly expanded scaly canopy perched on its long frilled stalk, was at the perfect stage for preparing a spore
  
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• Surge in eye injuries as Melbourne magpies go on attack spree

  19-10-2017 04:54 via theguardian.com
  Hospital issues warning as ‘extraordinary’ spate of bird-inflicted injuries include a penetrated eye that required surgery A penetrated eye that needed surgery is just one of an “extraordinary” spate of magpie-inflicted injuries in Melbourne, and one hospital has issued a warning about the swooping birds.The number of eye injuries caused by the bird has risen significantly, according to the emergency director of the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear hospital, Dr Carmel Crock. C
  
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• Trend unemployment falls to lowest rate in four years at 5.5% – politics live

  19-10-2017 03:49 via theguardian.com
  Rate is down from 5.6% in August. The government has not given up on its controversial citizenship changes and Labor continues to push back on energy. Follow the day’s events2.38am BSTTaking time out of his busy dabbing schedule, the opposition leader examined a car 2.35am BSTBill Shorten doesn’t often dab. But when he does, he makes sure the cameras are there. Continue reading...
  
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• Stonehenge builders 'ate food from Scotland'

  19-10-2017 01:50 via bbc.co.uk
  Animals were transported from as far away as the north east of Scotland to the Neolithic site in Wiltshire.
  
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• Labor's support for Coalition energy policy under microscope – politics live

  19-10-2017 00:42 via theguardian.com
  The government has not given up on its controversial citizenship changes, while Labor continues to push back on energy and the ABC remains under review. All the day’s events and more 11.38pm BSTLabor started the emissions-intensity-scheme-in-sheep’s-clothing line on Wednesday. Pat Conroy, who seems to know more about energy policy than is healthy for one person, said the Neg “involves setting an emissions reduction target for its retail, so it is sending a signal through the ma
  
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