Environment news

• Pollutionwatch: exhaust emissions double below 20C – by design

  18-01-2018 22:30 via theguardian.com
  Modern cars can start in the cold, so why are manufacturers failing to make exhaust controls more efficient below 20C?Twenty-five years ago, starting a car in winter required careful balancing of choke and accelerator and sometimes sprays of WD40 or a bump start. Now, modern vehicles simply work in the cold. However, a European parliament inquiry following the Volkswagen scandal found that the nitrogen oxides abatement systems on many diesel cars shut down below the official test temperature of
  
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• Crop Failure in the Andes

  18-01-2018 20:46 via feedproxy.google.com
  Kenneth Feeley, the Smathers Chair of Tropical Tree Biology in the University of Miami’s Department of Biology, is an expert in studying the effects of climate change on tropical forests. From the mountains of Peru to the lowlands of the Amazon, Feeley examines the ramifications of climate change on the trees and other species that comprise the diverse forests of these regions. Yet, recently, Feeley shifted gears from studying tropical forests to examining the impacts of climate change in
  
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• Fox Creek Quakes Linked to Volume and Location of Hydraulic Fracturing

  18-01-2018 20:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  The volume of hydraulic fracturing fluid and the location of well pads control the occurrence and frequency of measurable earthquakes, new research from the Alberta Geological Survey and the University of Alberta shows.
  
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• Root Discovery May Lead to Crops That Need Less Fertilizer

  18-01-2018 20:30 via feedproxy.google.com
  Bean plants that suppress secondary root growth in favor of boosting primary root growth forage greater soil volume to acquire phosphorus, according to Penn State researchers, who say their recent findings have implications for plant breeders and improving crop productivity in nutrient-poor soils.
  
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• UNH Researchers Find Human Impact on Forest Still Evident After 500 Years

  18-01-2018 20:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  Tropical forests span a huge area, harbor a wide diversity of species, and are important to water and nutrient cycling on a planet scale. But in ancient Amazonia, over 500 years ago, clearing tropical forests was a way of survival to provide land for families to farm and villages to prosper. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire used high-tech tools to more precisely view where these cleared sites were and how much lasting impact they had on the rainforest in the Amazon Basin in South A
  
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• NASA Sees Tropical Cyclone Berguitta Soaking Mauritius and Reunion Island

  18-01-2018 20:18 via feedproxy.google.com
  NASA found heavy rainfall in Tropical Cyclone Berguitta as it closed in on Mauritius and Reunion Islands. On Jan. 18, NASA's Terra satellite captured an early morning visible image that showed the center of the storm just south of Mauritius and the storm blanketing both islands. Warnings were in effect for both islands. A tropical cyclone alert class 3 is in effect for Mauritius and La Reunion is on Orange Alert. 
  
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• NASA Team Studies Middle-aged Sun by Tracking Motion of Mercury

  18-01-2018 20:16 via feedproxy.google.com
  Like the waistband of a couch potato in midlife, the orbits of planets in our solar system are expanding. It happens because the Sun’s gravitational grip gradually weakens as our star ages and loses mass. Now, a team of NASA and MIT scientists has indirectly measured this mass loss and other solar parameters by looking at changes in Mercury’s orbit.
  
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• Fanged Friends: Study Says the World's Most Vilified and Dangerous Animals May be Humankind's Best Ally

  18-01-2018 20:12 via feedproxy.google.com
  An international review led by the University of Queensland and WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) says that many native carnivores that live in and around human habitation are declining at an unprecedented rate – spelling bad news for humans who indirectly rely on them for a variety of beneficial services.
  
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• Using Data Mining to Make Sense of Climate Change

  18-01-2018 20:07 via feedproxy.google.com
  Big data and data mining have provided several breakthroughs in fields such as health informatics, smart cities and marketing. The same techniques, however, have not delivered consistent key findings for climate change.
  
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• Researchers find post-fire logging harms Spotted owls

  18-01-2018 18:05 via feedproxy.google.com
  Wildlife ecologists studying the rare Spotted owl in the forests of California have discovered that large, intense wildfires are not responsible for the breeding territory extinction that has been reported recently.
  
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• Gene edited crops should be exempted from GM food laws, says EU lawyer

  18-01-2018 17:05 via theguardian.com
  Technology can help foster specific positive traits in plants but can also have potentially dangerous ‘off-target’ effects, say criticsGene editing technologies should be largely exempted from EU laws on GM food, although individual states can regulate them if they choose, the European court’s advocate general has said.
  The opinion may have far-reaching consequences for new breeding techniques that can remove specific parts of a plant’s genetic code and foster herbicide-r
  
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• Humans now 'dwarf natural climate effects'

  18-01-2018 16:30 via bbc.co.uk
  Last year was the second or third hottest year on record even without an El Niño boost.
  
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• 2017 was the hottest year on record without El Niño boost

  18-01-2018 16:30 via theguardian.com
  Data shows the year was also one of the hottest three ever recorded, with scientists warning that the ‘climate tide is rising fast’
  2017 was the hottest year since global records began that was not given an additional boost by the natural climate cycle El Niño, according to new data. Even without an El Niño, the year was still exceptionally hot, being one of the top three ever recorded.The three main global temperature records show the global surface temperature in 2017
  
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• 2017 'warmest year without El Niño'

  18-01-2018 16:30 via bbc.co.uk
  Even with no natural climate boost, last year was the second or third hottest on record.
  
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• Turning heat into electricity

  18-01-2018 15:06 via feedproxy.google.com
  What if you could run your air conditioner not on conventional electricity, but on the sun’s heat during a warm summer’s day? With advancements in thermoelectric technology, this sustainable solution might one day become a reality.
  
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• Fruit fly breakthrough may help human blindness research

  18-01-2018 14:26 via feedproxy.google.com
  For decades, scientists have known that blue light will make fruit flies go blind, but it wasn’t clear why. Now, a Purdue University study has found how this light kills cells in the flies’ eyes, and that could prove a useful model for understanding human ocular diseases such as macular degeneration.
  
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• Supermarkets under pressure to reveal amount of plastic they create

  18-01-2018 14:12 via theguardian.com
  Leading UK retailers say information is too ‘commercially sensitive’ to reveal, following Guardian report they make almost 1m tonnes a year
  Nearly 1m tonnes every year: supermarkets shamed for plastic packaging
  Supermarkets are coming under growing pressure from politicians and campaigners to reveal the amount of plastic they create, and pay more towards its safe disposal, following a Guardian investigation.Amid mounting concern about the devastating environmental impact of plastic p
  
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• ING announces €100m Sustainable Investments fund

  18-01-2018 13:18
  Dutch Bank ING has today (18 January) launched a €100m Sustainable Investments fund to help start-ups and innovative new business models scale up concepts and projects tailored for energy, water and resource efficiency.
  
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• Donald Trump is hampering fight against climate change, WEF warns

  18-01-2018 13:11 via theguardian.com
  World Economic Forum outlines huge increase in all five eco risks since the US president assumed officeThe World Economic Forum delivered a strong warning about Donald Trump’s go-it-alone approach to tackling climate change as it highlighted the growing threat of environmental collapse in its annual assessment of the risks facing the international community.In the run-up to the US president’s speech to its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, next week, the WEF avoided mentioning Tr
  
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• Crunch question

  18-01-2018 12:30 via bbc.co.uk
  Insects are often portrayed as a sustainable superfood - and many are delicious.
  
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• Swedish engine plant becomes Volvo's first 'climate-neutral' site

  18-01-2018 12:20
  Car giant Volvo's engine factory in Sweden has become the firm's first "climate-neutral" manufacturing plant after switching to renewable heating.
  
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• Shell inks five-year deal with England's largest solar power plant

  18-01-2018 11:59
  Shell Energy Europe has agreed a five-year supply deal to source renewable power from the second largest solar power plant in the UK.
  
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• China oil spill: warning over seafood contamination

  18-01-2018 11:07 via theguardian.com
  Scientists say consumers should be wary of buying any seafood that may have passed through the area until the toxic impact of the spill has been assessed
  Consumers in Japan, China and South Korea should be wary of buying seafood until governments in the region have monitored and released details about the toxic impact of the Sanchi oil spill, scientists have warned.The worst oil ship disaster in decades has so far produced two visible plumes covering almost 100 square kilometres on the surface o
  
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• CDP: Global car industry must embrace low-carbon shift to ensure survival

  18-01-2018 11:00
  Traditional carmakers will face multi-million-pound fines and a huge loss in market share to tech firms such as Uber and Google unless they embrace the low-carbon vehicle transition.
  
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• Report: Global emissions to plateau in 2030, but Paris goals out of reach

  18-01-2018 09:28
  New insight from business advisors McKinsey has suggested that "major shifts" in the energy landscape driven by renewables and electric vehicles (EVs) will see global emissions plateau in 2030, but progress is nowhere near close to the 2 degrees Paris Agreement target.
  
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• Stuart Wenham: scientists pay tribute to 'Einstein of solar world'

  18-01-2018 07:12 via theguardian.com
  University of New South Wales colleagues pay tribute to pioneer with ‘Crocodile Dundee persona’ who died age 60 from malignant melanomaAustralia’s scientific community has paid tribute to Prof Stuart Wenham, a solar energy pioneer described as the “Einstein of the solar industry”, whose research increased the efficiency of solar cells a hundredfold.Wenham passed away on 23 December, age 60, after suffering from malignant melanoma. He was the director of the Centre o
  
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• From Georgia to Grimsby: campaign seeks to save Europe’s neglected heritage sites

  18-01-2018 07:00 via theguardian.com
  An initiative led by Europa Nostra has shortlisted at-risk cultural landmarks and aims protect seven of the most endangeredAn aerial cableway in Georgia, a modernist monument in Bulgaria and an ice factory in Grimsby, are among 12 heritage sites that have been shortlisted by a campaign that is highlighting Europe’s most at-risk cultural monuments. Heritage federation Europa Nostra, which works with Unesco and the EU, lobbies to protect cultural and natural heritage across the continent and
  
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• Europe's microwave ovens emit nearly as much CO2 as 7m cars

  18-01-2018 06:42 via theguardian.com
  The biggest impact comes from electricity used to power the microwaves, but study also highlights rising environmental cost of our throwaway culturePopping frozen peas into the microwave for a couple of minutes may seem utterly harmless, but Europe’s stock of these quick-cook ovens emit as much carbon as nearly 7m cars, a new study has found.And the problem is growing: with costs falling and kitchen appliances becoming “status” items, owners are throwing away microwaves after a
  
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• Country diary: an electrifying sight beneath the pylons

  18-01-2018 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Haldon Forest, Devon: Britain’s hawfinch population has been boosted by hundreds of unexpected but welcome visitors from the continent Towering electricity pylons bisect the western edge of Haldon Forest, their splayed metal arms echoing the shapes of surrounding conifer trees, as if they have broken ranks from the plantation pines. It is bitterly cold but I take a seat at the foot of a pylon. I have come in search of one of Britain’s most elusive birds and the surrounding woodland,
  
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• Oil from sunken Iranian tanker spreads over 100 sq km of East China Sea

  18-01-2018 06:10 via theguardian.com
  Satellite imaging shows four large slicks spreading amid concerns for the marine ecosystem
  Oil from an Iranian tanker that sank in the East China Sea has diffused into four separate slicks, covering a combined area of just over 100 square kms (39 square miles), Chinese authorities said late on Wednesday.Earlier satellite imaging showed two large slicks, with the larger one also thicker and more concentrated, but the latest data had found four slicks ranging in size from 48 square kms (19 square
  
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• Tasmania launches roadkill campaign to reduce 500,000 native animal deaths

  18-01-2018 04:25 via theguardian.com
  Drivers urged to stop throwing food out of windows, which attracts wildlife to the roadside
  The motorists lobby in Tasmania has launched a joint campaign to reduce roadkill, saying that 500,000 native animals are killed on the state’s roads each year.That equates to about one dead native animal per head of Tasmania’s population, giving the state one of the highest roadkill rates in the world. Continue reading...
  
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• Climate sensitivity study suggests narrower range of potential outcomes

  18-01-2018 04:08 via theguardian.com
  Findings should not be seen as taking pressure off need to tackle climate change, authors warnEarth’s surface will almost certainly not warm up four or five degrees Celsius by 2100, according to a study which, if correct, voids worst-case UN climate change predictions.
  A revised calculation of how greenhouse gases drive up the planet’s temperature reduces the range of possible end-of-century outcomes by more than half, researchers said in the report, published in the journal Nature.
  
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