Environment news

• Alaskan infant's DNA tells story of 'first Americans'

  03-01-2018 20:34 via bbc.co.uk
  The 11,500-year-old bones of a child unearthed in Alaska shed light on the peopling of the Americas.
  
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• A Chinese Megacity Bus Fleet Goes Fully Electric

  03-01-2018 20:09 via feedproxy.google.com
  The Chinese megacity of Shenzhen has successfully switched 100 percent of its 16,359-vehicle bus fleet to electric vehicles, reaching its goal just six years after it vowed to move away from diesel engines, according to reporting by CleanTechnica and other news outlets. The fleet — which has three times as many buses as New York City — serves a population of 12 million. The switch is expected to save the equivalent of 345,000 tons of diesel fuel and cut 1.35 milli
  
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• Habitat on the Edges: Making Room for Wildlife in an Urbanized World

  03-01-2018 20:05 via feedproxy.google.com
  One morning not long ago, in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, I traveled with a Wildlife Conservation Society biologist on a switchback route up and over the high ridge of the Western Ghats. Our itinerary loosely followed the corridor connecting Bhadra Tiger Reserve with Kudremakh National Park 30 miles to the south.
  
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• Researchers Use 'Global Thermometer' to Track Temperature Extremes, Droughts and Melting Ice

  03-01-2018 19:52 via feedproxy.google.com
  Large areas of the Earth’s surface are experiencing rising maximum temperatures, which affect virtually every ecosystem on the planet, including ice sheets and tropical forests that play major roles in regulating the biosphere, scientists have reported.
  
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• What a woman with a bionic hand can feel

  03-01-2018 19:33 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists have unveiled the first bionic hand with a sense of touch that can be worn outside the laboratory.
  
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• Short-term thinking of UK nuclear policy | Letters

  03-01-2018 19:05 via theguardian.com
  Sue Roaf writes that evacuation plans for Hinkley Point would have to involve at least a million people; while Diarmuid Foley says that, in the modern world, the route to weapons-grade material is not taken through the civilian nuclear fuel cycleJustin McCurry (Fukushima looms large as Japan plans to restart world’s biggest nuclear plant, 28 December) quotes critics of the proposed reopening of the 8.2GW Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Japan, who say chaos would ensue if the plant fail
  
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• No cause for rejoicing in the countryside | Letters

  03-01-2018 19:04 via theguardian.com
  The natural world does indeed carry on functioning, writes Margaret Porter, but it is struggling. Plus Andrew Dean says robins are as happy in an old paint tin as a nesting boxYour correspondent June Lewis (Letters, 29 December), having referred to Country diary, says that the country – by which I think she means the countryside and nature – is “carrying on happily”. While the natural world does indeed carry on functioning regardless of politics (sometimes almost in spite
  
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• Berliner will be missed in the henhouse | Brief letters

  03-01-2018 19:04 via theguardian.com
  Plastic debris | Guardian redesign | Closed-down pubs | McMafia | Theresa May pictureOn page 5 of Wednesday’s Guardian is an article about David Attenborough, reminding us of his warning in Blue Planet II about the devastating consequences of plastic debris in our oceans. Immediately below is a piece entitled “China’s plastic waste ban ‘creates crisis for UK local authorities’”, which quotes environment secretary Michael Gove: “I don’t know what im
  
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• Genetic Changes Help Mosquitoes Survive Pesticide Attacks

  03-01-2018 17:32 via feedproxy.google.com
  For decades, chemical pesticides have been the most important way of controlling insects like the Anopheles mosquito species that spreads malaria to humans. Unfortunately, the bugs have fought back, evolving genetic shields to protect themselves and their offspring from future attacks.
  
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• Tweaking quantum dots powers-up double-pane solar windows

  03-01-2018 17:14 via feedproxy.google.com
  Using two types of “designer” quantum dots, researchers are creating double-pane solar windows that generate electricity with greater efficiency and create shading and insulation for good measure. It’s all made possible by a new window architecture which utilizes two different layers of low-cost quantum dots tuned to absorb different parts of the solar spectrum.
  
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• Fire reductions 'make methane numbers add up'

  03-01-2018 13:34 via bbc.co.uk
  Fewer fires globally may help explain the recent change in atmospheric methane, a study says.
  
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• Pret A Manger doubles reusable coffee cup discount

  03-01-2018 13:24
  Pret A Manger has doubled its discount for customers who bring reusable cups into stores to 50p, in an effort aimed at reducing the amount of paper coffee cups that are discarded as waste.
  
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• Taking your eyes off the motorway with VR

  03-01-2018 13:10 via bbc.co.uk
  Fed up with motorway driving? Now you can switch to virtual reality thanks to a new driverless car from Renault.
  
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• Five reasons to be cheerful about the green economy in 2018

  03-01-2018 13:04
  From heightened corporate investment in clean energy sources, to an accelerated shift towards resource efficiency and new environmental legislation, we look at some of the major reasons to be optimistic about the outlook of the green economy in 2018.
  
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• Horizon scanning: Six innovations set to shake-up sustainability in 2018

  03-01-2018 12:46
  Following a year of steady progress for the green economy, edie scans the horizons to highlight six key areas where innovation could make big strides in 2018.
  
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• Tips and inspiration for the new year, new you cyclist

  03-01-2018 12:31 via theguardian.com
  If you’re planning to cycle to work as part of a new year’s health kick here’s our tips to make sure you enjoy the ride rather than endure itCome the new year, it’s traditional for people to promise themselves that the next 12 months will be marked by a health kick, and this sometimes end up as a pledge to cycle to and from work.
  In bike-unfriendly Britain, even if your commute is short enough, this can sometimes be a tricky prospect. But if it works out, the benefits &nd
  
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• Make 2018 the year to green your fleet with edie's latest business guide

  03-01-2018 11:59
  Organisations looking to reduce vehicle fuel use, emissions and costs now have access to a new edie Explains guide which breaks down everything you need to know when it comes to greening your fleet.
  
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• First polar bear cub born in the UK for 25 years at Scottish park

  03-01-2018 11:31 via theguardian.com
  Staff at Highland Wildlife Park in Scotland confirm the birth to mother Victoria but say the first three months of life for the new-born cub are perilousThe first polar bear cub to be born in Britain for 25 years is being cared for in a private den by its mother, Victoria, at the Highland Wildlife Park in Scotland.Staff at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) park confirmed the birth after hearing distinct high-pitched sounds from Victoria’s maternity unit, which remains closed
  
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• BEIS cuts projection for greenhouse gas emissions

  03-01-2018 09:23
  The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has lowered its projection for greenhouse gas emissions during the fourth and fifth carbon budgets.
  
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• Circular and digital transformations 'key' to enabling business growth

  03-01-2018 08:30
  A growth in circular innovation and digital transformation are the "keys to a more sustainable future" that is currently being hindered by businesses that still view sustainability as an "add on" that requires additional resources and finances.
  
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• Bamboo worlds: the beauty of Chinese aquaculture – in pictures

  03-01-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  In Coastal Geometries, architect and photographer Tugo Cheng conjures minimalist compositions from the fishing nets and bamboo poles on the coast of Fujian. It is a world that’s vanishing, since this vital culture is threatened by rapid development Continue reading...
  
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• Wildflower planting on farms boosts birds, from skylarks to starlings

  03-01-2018 07:01 via theguardian.com
  New research shows wildlife-friendly farming can quickly help bird populations bounce back, but large-scale rollout will be needed to reverse long-term declinesPlanting wildflowers and protecting nests on farms enables birds, from skylarks to starlings, to bounce back rapidly from long-term declines, new research shows.
  Intensive agriculture has led to overall farmland bird numbers in the UK plunging by more than 50% since 1970 and the fall has not stopped yet, with the latest figures showing a
  
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• Country diary: an old railway sleeper has become a dreaming post

  03-01-2018 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Wenlock Edge, Shropshire The weathered waymark, like a fragment of a wooden henge, is an archive of local history At the top of steps into the railway cutting stands a wooden post. It is old and weathered and, when sunlight through trees catches it, a beautiful greenfinch blush of moss and algae. Continue reading...
  
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• Abbott's stance on international carbon credits makes 'no sense', business says

  03-01-2018 05:17 via theguardian.com
  Australian Industry Group says ruling out use of the credits would push up the cost of meeting emissions targetsThe Australian Industry Group has warned that Tony Abbott’s call to rule out the use of international carbon credits will push up the cost of meeting emissions targets.The Turnbull government’s review of its climate policies, released before Christmas, flagged the Coalition’s intention to allow use of international permits to help Australia meet its international emis
  
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• Weather: What to expect in 2018

  03-01-2018 01:43 via bbc.co.uk
  More hurricanes? Rising temperatures? BBC meteorologist Tomasz Schafernaker looks ahead to the year.
  
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• Whale people

  03-01-2018 01:35 via bbc.co.uk
  A glimpse into the life the Inupiat, an indigenous community in Alaska.
  
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