Environment news

• Weatherwatch: fashion shines a light on climate change

  19-02-2018 22:00 via theguardian.com
  From light clothes in medieval times to fur in the 1500s, fashion reveals how climate has changedThe history of fashion can give a fascinating glimpse of how climate has changed. Medieval times were notably mild and illustrations in manuscripts show people wearing light and loose clothes, without capes, fur or hats. That changed in the Little Ice Age, roughly spanning the 1300s to 1800s, which included some bitterly cold times. Fashions responded, especially in the 1500s, when heavy textiles in
  
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• 'Fantasy documents': recovery plans failing Australia's endangered species

  19-02-2018 18:00 via theguardian.com
  Expired, unfinished or undeveloped: conservationists call for more transparency and accountability in species management systems Less than 40% of Australia’s nationally-listed threatened species have recovery plans in place to secure their long-term survival. And close to 10% of listed threatened species are identified as requiring plans to manage their protection but the documents are either unfinished or haven’t been developed, according to data published by the environment and ene
  
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• DNA secrets of how vampire bats became bloodthirsty

  19-02-2018 17:51 via bbc.co.uk
  New research shows how vampire bats evolved to survive on a diet of blood alone.
  
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• Life after death: how we hatched live shark pups from dead parents

  19-02-2018 16:34 via theguardian.com
  Six years ago, researchers asked a radical question: could eggcases taken from trawler-caught sharks still hatch live, healthy young?Back in December 2012, I met up with Greg Nowell, co-founder of Sharklab-Malta, a non-profit NGO founded in 2008. Sharklab collaborates with shark researchers on a global and local scale, with an overall mission to highlight the current plight of sharks in our oceans whilst increasing awareness and education of the public.Greg was interested in my experience workin
  
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• World’s most controversial fruit may depend on giant bats for pollination

  19-02-2018 15:48 via theguardian.com
  While we debate whether the durian is the best or worst food on the planet, it turns out this wonderful oddity may require healthy populations of flying fox for survival.
  Durian. Depending on whom you talk to it’s either the most beloved or the most despised fruit on the planet. It suffers no moderation, no wishy-washiness. It is the king of fruits or the worst thing you’ve ever tasted. Due to its potent odour – delicate and sweet to its advocates and sewage-like to its detract
  
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• World’s most controversial fruit depends on giant bats for pollination

  19-02-2018 15:48 via theguardian.com
  While we debate whether the durian is the best or worst food on the planet, it turns out this wonderful oddity requires healthy populations of flying fox for survival.Durian. Depending on whom you talk to it’s either the most beloved or the most despised fruit on the planet. It suffers no moderation, no wishy-washiness. It is the king of fruits or the worst thing you’ve ever tasted. Due to its potent odour – delicate and sweet to its advocates and sewage-like to its detractors
  
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• Pristina in the spotlight: Rita Ora aside, can Kosovo's capital make it big?

  19-02-2018 14:31 via theguardian.com
  Ten years since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia, Pristina struggles with corruption and pollution – but the youngest capital in Europe is full of fresh energyPristina is a city of constant renewal. Not only is Kosovo’s main city the youngest capital in Europe – 42% of the population is under 24 years old – but it has been completely rebuilt twice since the second world war. The first rebuild was as part of an exhortation to build a modern, socialist city as part
  
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• Unilever implements 'radical step' on palm oil traceability

  19-02-2018 14:20
  Unilever has become the first consumer goods firm to publicly disclose palm oil suppliers and mills that it sources from, both directly and indirectly, a move described by the firm as a "major milestone" in driving sustainability through the industry.
  
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• National Grid eyeing up ultra-rapid motorway EV charging fleet

  19-02-2018 13:44
  National Grid is exploring the possibility of rolling out a superfast charging network across the UK's major motorways that is directly connected to the transmission system, according to reports.
  
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• 'Important milestone': National Grid eyes up ultra-rapid motorway EV charging fleet

  19-02-2018 13:44
  National Grid is exploring the possibility of rolling out a superfast charging network across the UK's major motorways that is directly connected to the transmission system, according to reports.
  
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• 'Important milestone': National Grid eyeing up ultra-rapid motorway EV charging fleet

  19-02-2018 13:44
  National Grid is exploring the possibility of rolling out a superfast charging network across the UK's major motorways that is directly connected to the transmission system, according to reports.
  
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• Glastonbury Festival to ban water bottles from 2019

  19-02-2018 13:17
  Glastonbury Festival is undergoing an "enormous project" to create a site-wide ban on plastic water bottles when it returns in 2019.
  
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• Climate change spells turbulent times ahead for air travel

  19-02-2018 13:00 via theguardian.com
  From rising temperatures preventing take-off to rising seas flooding runways, aviation needs to adapt to changes already grounding flights around the worldPhoenix gets hot. But not usually as hot as last June, when the mercury at the airport one day soared above 48C. That exceeded the maximum operating temperature for several aircraft ready for take-off. They didn’t fly. More than 50 flights were cancelled or rerouted.Thanks to climate change, soon 48C may not seem so unusual. Welcome to t
  
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• Treasury 'showing shambolic conflict of interest' over fracking firm

  19-02-2018 12:21 via theguardian.com
  Director of Third Energy, which wants to frack in North Yorkshire, is Conservative donorCampaigners have accused the Treasury of allowing the appearance of a conflict of interest over its examination of an energy company at the forefront of fracking in the UK.Third Energy’s financial health is being looked at by a Treasury body, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), whose findings will inform whether the government gives the firm a green light to frack. Continue reading...
  
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• Fracking row: Treasury 'showing shambolic conflict of interest'

  19-02-2018 12:21 via theguardian.com
  Director of Third Energy, which wants to frack in North Yorkshire, is Conservative donorCampaigners have accused the Treasury of allowing the appearance of a conflict of interest over its examination of an energy company at the forefront of fracking in the UK.Third Energy’s financial health is being looked at by a Treasury body, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), whose findings will inform whether the government gives the firm a green light. Continue reading...
  
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• Virgin Trains hands over old uniforms to prison in recycling scheme

  19-02-2018 12:16
  Prisoners at HMP Northumberland will take part in a recycling initiative which will see old Virgin Trains uniforms transformed into new textiles in a bid to reduce reoffending rates.
  
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• Pollen data shows humans reversed natural global cooling | John Abraham

  19-02-2018 12:00 via theguardian.com
  Current temperatures are hotter than at any time in the history of human civilization
  In order to understand today’s global warming, we need to understand how Earth’s temperatures varied in the past. How does the rapid warming we see now compare with past natural climate changes? Also, how long have humans been having an impact on the climate? These are some questions that can be answered through paleoclimate studies. Paleoclimate research uses natural measurements of the Earth&rsquo
  
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• Waitrose's ethical supplier scheme expands out of Africa for first time

  19-02-2018 11:25
  Waitrose is expanding its ethical trading initiative beyond Africa for the first time, with pineapple growers in Costa Rica set to be backed by extra investment from the British retailer.
  
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• Glastonbury festival set to ban plastic bottles in 2019

  19-02-2018 10:53 via theguardian.com
  Emily Eavis says festival is working on ‘enormous project’ to ban plastic bottles on site when it returns after year off in 2018Glastonbury festival is to implement a site-wide ban on plastic bottles when it returns in 2019. “It’s an enormous project; it’s taking a lot of time to tackle with all the different people we work with,” organiser Emily Eavis told BBC 6 Music.In 2014, Glastonbury introduced environmentally friendly stainless steel bottles and water k
  
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• Labor MP says Adani mine would displace jobs and sabotage Paris targets

  19-02-2018 09:00 via theguardian.com
  Mark Butler says development of Galilee basin is not in Australia’s national interestsThe shadow climate change minister, Mark Butler, has warned the development of the Galilee basin is not in Australia’s national interest, because it would displace mining and jobs in existing coal regions, and would not help the world meet its obligations under the Paris climate agreement.Butler has used a speech to the Sydney Institute to argue the controversial Adani coal project is “utterly
  
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• Born by torchlight: living without power in Benin – in pictures

  19-02-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  For 300 people in the Beninese village of Kokahoue, life without electricity is a daily reality, forcing midwives to deliver babies using lamps and torches. French photographer Pascal Maitre, winner of London Business School’s annual photography awards, has documented the problem in a stunning series of images, while entries from other contestants explore how communities have improvised to deal with issues ranging from poaching to deforestation Continue reading...
  
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• Country diary: literary tourists follow Sylvia Townsend Warner's path

  19-02-2018 06:30 via theguardian.com
  East Chaldon, Dorset: Her diary records a happy morning when she and her lover, the poet Valentine Ackland, lay on top of a barrow listening to the windA row of round barrows stud a Dorset ridge – five of them, although tumbled gaps suggest there once were more. From the old chalk trackway, trails lead through shaggy grass to the top of each. To the north, charcoal and dun in the wintry light, stretches a broad swathe of heathland; to the south, gentle green hills enclose the village of Ea
  
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• Bill Shorten says there's a 'role for coal' and Adani mine just 'another project'

  19-02-2018 06:02 via theguardian.com
  Labor leader’s comments come during visit to Queensland and follow CFMEU’s warning that ALP’s blocking of Carmichael mine would open divisive debateBill Shorten has declared there is a role for coal in Australia, and characterised the controversial Adani coalmine as just “another project” as he digs in for several days visiting marginal coastal electorates in Queensland, trumpeting local infrastructure commitments.The positive public signal from the Labor leader on
  
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