Environment news

• Specieswatch: zander have a look of Dracula

  27-02-2018 22:30
  Introduced species, which thrives in muddy waters, is good for eating and those who fish are encouraged to take them homeThe zander (Stizostedion lucioperca) is a large fish that looks like a cross between a pike and a perch and has teeth like Dracula and bulbous eyes. It is a European species introduced to British waters by the Duke of Bedford, into the lakes on his Woburn estate in 1878 and then into the Great Ouse Relief Channel in the Fens shortly afterwards. From there, it spread across the
  
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• Seal pups rescued in winter storms released back to wild

  27-02-2018 20:03 via bbc.co.uk
  The pups were separated from their mother during storms at the end of last year.
  
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• Sheffield residents worry about effects of austerity, not trees | Letters

  27-02-2018 19:22
  Sheffield councillor Bryan Lodge and others respond to protests against the city’s tree replacement programmeIn Sheffield – with 4.5 million trees, still Europe’s greenest city – we know that a small band choose to ignore the facts in their protests against our lawful tree replacement programme (The roots of resistance, G2, 26 February). But we remain happy to let the facts speak. There will be more trees at the end of this work than at the beginning, as we plant trees fo
  
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• Moon to get 4G mobile network

  27-02-2018 17:02 via bbc.co.uk
  Vodafone and Nokia lay out plans to put a 4G mobile network on the Moon in 2019.
  
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• Atacama's lessons about life on Mars

  27-02-2018 16:56 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists investigate the microbes that survive in the South American desert on very little water.
  
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• Arctic warming: scientists alarmed by 'crazy' temperature rises

  27-02-2018 16:15
  Record warmth in the Arctic this month could yet prove to be a freak occurrence, but experts warn the warming event is unprecedented An alarming heatwave in the sunless winter Arctic is causing blizzards in Europe and forcing scientists to reconsider even their most pessimistic forecasts of climate change.Although it could yet prove to be a freak event, the primary concern is that global warming is eroding the polar vortex, the powerful winds that once insulated the frozen north. Continue readin
  
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• Skip the dip? Swimming in the sea increases risk of illness, analysis suggests

  27-02-2018 16:04
  Pollution of coastal waters by sources including sewage and farm run-off may be the cause, experts suggestPeople who swim in the sea are at significantly higher risk of stomach bugs, ear problems and other illnesses than those who stick to the sand, research suggests.
  The team behind the findings suggest the increased chances of becoming unwell may be down to pollution of coastal waters by sources such as farm run-off and sewage.Continue reading...
  
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• Lack of models, not charging points, 'holding back electric car market'

  27-02-2018 15:27
  Analysis shows just 20 battery models on sale in Europe against more than 400 conventional onesThe rise of electric cars in Europe is being hampered by a lack of models for consumers to choose from rather than a lack of public recharging points, according to energy companies and carmakers.Some motoring groups and insurers have warned over the past year that the number of chargers is putting the switch to electric transport at risk. But an analysis by the Platform for Electromobility – whos
  
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• EU's carbon market update clears final hurdle

  27-02-2018 14:05
  The Council of the EU has given the final stamp of approval to an update to the European Union's Emissions Trading System (ETS), which hopes to help the bloc cut emissions by 40% by 2030.
  
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• German court rules cities can ban diesel cars to tackle pollution

  27-02-2018 12:36
  Landmark ruling could cause traffic chaos and dramatically hit the value of diesel vehiclesOne of Germany’s top courts has ruled that heavily polluting vehicles can be banned from the urban centres of Stuttgart and Düsseldorf, a landmark ruling that could cause traffic chaos on the country’s roads and dramatically hit the value of diesel cars.Environmental campaigners had sued dozens of German cities, arguing they have a duty to cut air pollution to protect people’s health
  
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• Scientists have detected an acceleration in sea level rise | John Abraham

  27-02-2018 12:00
  Faster melting of ice sheets is speeding up sea level rise
  As humans emit heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide, the planet warms, and over time consequences become more apparent. Some of the consequences we are familiar with – for instance, rising temperatures, melting ice, and rising sea levels. Scientists certainly want to know how much the Earth has changed, but we also want to know how fast the changes will be in the future to know what the next generations will experience.One of th
  
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• Labour would keep Britain in EU internal energy market

  27-02-2018 11:58
  Jeremy Corbyn has pledged that Labour would keep Britain in the EU internal energy market (IEM) and the Euratom nuclear co-operation treaty.
  
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• Mirrors have revealed something new about manta rays – and it reflects badly on us

  27-02-2018 11:36
  Humans make huge use of marine vertebrates, but manta rays may pass the self-awareness test and fish potentially could too. Ethically, where does that leave us?As a shark biologist, I enjoy nothing more than going scuba diving with sharks in the wild. However, I realise it’s an immense privilege to do this as part of my work – and that for the vast majority of people experiencing the underwater world in such a way is simply not possible.
  Nevertheless, even without the aid of an air t
  
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• CDP: 100 global cities use renewables for at least 70% of electricity needs

  27-02-2018 10:57
  More than 100 global cities are now sourcing at least 70% of their electricity from renewables sources, new research has found.
  
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• ‘SOS’: the rainforest distress call carved into Sumatra's oil palms | Kate Lamb

  27-02-2018 07:30
  With his chainsaw-wielding crew, artist Ernest Zacharevic has emblazoned a cry for help across an oil palm plantation, highlighting Indonesia’s deforestationDramatically carved into the landscape of a Sumatran oil palm plantation that borders one of the world’s most unique rainforests are three ominous letters: SOS.The message stretches half a kilometre alongside a snaking river; a bird’s-eye view gives the eerie sense the land has been given voice, and is issuing a mayday.Cont
  
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• It's time to find out if Australia's threatened species projects are actually effective

  27-02-2018 07:23
  A Senate estimates hearing has been told how little auditing takes place on such projects. But no big deal, it’s just the environment, right? Imagine spending hundreds of millions of dollars on a project and not being able to demonstrate whether or not you’ve achieved what you set out to.Such is the case for programs aimed at helping Australia’s threatened plants and animals, which the government has boasted it is funding to the tune of $255m. Continue reading...
  
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• More than 100 cities now mostly powered by renewable energy, data shows

  27-02-2018 07:00
  The number of cities getting at least 70% of their total electricity supply from renewable energy has more than doubled since 2015The number of cities reporting they are predominantly powered by clean energy has more than doubled since 2015, as momentum builds for cities around the world to switch from fossil fuels to renewable sources.Data published on Tuesday by the not-for-profit environmental impact researcher CDP found that 101 of the more than 570 cities on its books sourced at least 70% o
  
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• More cities powered by renewable energy, data shows

  27-02-2018 07:00
  The number of cities getting at least 70% of their total electricity supply from renewable energy has more than doubled since 2015The number of cities reporting they are predominantly powered by clean energy has more than doubled since 2015, as momentum builds for cities around the world to switch from fossil fuels to renewable sources.Data published on Tuesday by the not-for-profit environmental impact researcher CDP found that 101 of the more than 570 cities on its books sourced at least 70% o
  
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• James Cromwell: 'In jail, everyone recognises my face'

  27-02-2018 07:00
  The Hollywood star now has a second life as a fearless animal activist and eco warrior – and, he reveals, it all started with Babe, his film about a talking pig James Cromwell, veteran actor, Oscar nominee and star of LA Confidential and The Green Mile, is listing what he hates about Hollywood. “I don’t like the system,” he says. “I don’t like what it does to people. I don’t like the values. I don’t like the class system. I don’t like the dis
  
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• Country diary: the stoat's winter coat is no camouflage now

  27-02-2018 06:30
  Allendale, Northumberland: One of their main predators is the domestic cat; an ermine will be particularly vulnerable once the snow has goneI’m eating my breakfast when I see a flash of white hurtling down the garden path. Reaching for the binoculars that are always on the kitchen table, I see it’s a stoat, part ermined, starkly revealed now the snow has gone. Its fur is a rich red-brown with white patches, the brilliant winter coat contrasting with the jet black tip to its tail. Flo
  
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• Siberian blast blankets Europe in snow – in pictures

  27-02-2018 05:26
  Britain is bracing for the onslaught of freezing conditions after the extreme weather system hit Continental Europe Continue reading...
  
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• Post-Brexit farm payments to be used to help the environment

  27-02-2018 02:52 via bbc.co.uk
  Farmers will receive money for "public goods", such as investment in sustainable food production.
  
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• CO2 emissions from average UK new car rise for first time since 2000

  27-02-2018 01:01
  Climate change targets may be missed as consumers buy bigger cars and turn away from diesel CO2 emissions from the average new car sold in the UK rose last year for the first time since 2000, according to an industry report, raising fears that the country will fail to meet its climate change targets as consumers buy bigger vehicles and turn against diesel. Although motor manufacturers said new models coming on to the market were on average about 12% more fuel-efficient than their older versions,
  
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