Environment news

• Using astronomy to save a species

  04-04-2018 22:25 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists have been developing a technique to count animals that is usually used to map stars.
  
  Read more

• Dozen black holes found at galactic centre

  04-04-2018 20:40 via bbc.co.uk
  A dozen black holes may lie at the centre of our galaxy, the Milky Way, researchers say.
  
  Read more

• You don't have to be a climate science denier to join the Monash coal forum, but it helps | Graham Readfearn

  04-04-2018 20:00 via theguardian.com
  The Coalition’s backbench group of coal fans have a history of attacking climate scienceThere seems to be three rules for membership of the Coalition’s new backbench Monash Forum that wants taxpayer subsidies for new coal fired power stations.Firstly, you have to really love the life-giving and not-really-all-that-deadly rock from the late Permian and Carboniferous which, if they made it into a snack bar, you would totally want to eat it and then rub the bits left sticking to the wra
  
  Read more

• Murray-Darling: when the river runs dry

  04-04-2018 20:00 via theguardian.com
  Five years after the implementation of the Murray-Darling basin plan, our great river system is under stress. Follow our 3000km journey along the rivers, travelling from inland Queensland to the Murray mouth, to understand where the plan has failed those who live and work on this land Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Ghost water, poor planning and theft: how the Murray-Darling plan fell apart

  04-04-2018 20:00 via theguardian.com
  More than five years and $9bn since the basin plan began, the Murray-Darling river system is in crisis. In a series of in-depth features and articles this week, Guardian Australia will explore what’s gone wrongKate McBride stands on the banks of the Lower Darling river as it flows past her family property, Tolarno, south of Menindee in New South Wales. She surveys the stagnating waterholes that were once a river. They are turning an alarming shade of chartreuse, thanks to blue-green algae.
  
  Read more

• Why are unions so keen on nuclear jobs? | Letters

  04-04-2018 19:43 via theguardian.com
  Andy Stirling and Phil Johnstone reply to criticism of their analysis of the government’s infatuation with nuclear powerThanks to Mike Clancy (Letters, 2 April) for responding to our analysis that intense UK government attachments to civil nuclear power are (to a significant – but dangerously undiscussed – extent) aimed at supporting the national industrial base underpinning nuclear submarine capabilities. He accuses us of “speculation”, yet fails to address an
  
  Read more

• Births of endangered Suffolk punch foals celebrated

  04-04-2018 18:37 via bbc.co.uk
  Two Suffolk punch horses are being put forward for a charity's breeding programme.
  
  Read more

• Waitrose builds on plastics pledge by switching to paper straws in cafes

  04-04-2018 18:00
  Waitrose has revealed it will build on a commitment to stop selling packs of single-use plastics straws later this year, by replacing all plastic straws used in its onsite cafes with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper alternatives.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Great white shark follows police off Australian coast

  04-04-2018 16:46 via bbc.co.uk
  They were patrolling off the South Australian coast when they noticed something behind them.
  
  Read more

• Inside Heathrow 2.0: edie webinar to discuss Airport's sustainability progress

  04-04-2018 13:36
  Heathrow Airport's chief executive and director of sustainability will join external sustainable business experts for an exclusive edie webinar on 23 April to discuss the Airport's progress against its 'Heathrow 2.0' sustainability strategy.
  
  Read more

• Unilever to develop closed-loop supply for food packaging plastics

  04-04-2018 13:05
  In the latest corporate commitment to target plastic waste, Unilever has agreed a new partnership to develop technology capable of converting PET plastic waste into virgin-grade materials available for use in food packaging.
  
  Read more

• UK construction firms have ramped up sustainability efforts, edie report finds

  04-04-2018 12:02
  EXCLUSIVE: Almost two-thirds of businesses operating in the construction industry are now more committed to taking action on sustainability than they were 12 months ago, despite having to deal with challenges caused by a lack of funding and an unstable policy environment.
  
  Read more

• Shell threatened with legal action over climate change contributions

  04-04-2018 11:30 via theguardian.com
  Friends of the Earth demands the oil firm move away from fossil fuels to comply with Paris dealThe global flurry of legal campaigns against “big oil” has widened, with Royal Dutch Shell being threatened with legal action unless it steps up efforts to comply with the Paris climate agreement.Friends of the Earth Netherlands on Wednesday demanded the Anglo-Dutch company revise plans to invest only 5% in sustainable energy and 95% in greenhouse-gas emitting oil and gas. Continue reading.
  
  Read more

• International Maritime Organisation 'too slow' on emissions strategy

  04-04-2018 11:19
  The International Maritime Organisation has moved too slowly on drafting its greenhouse gas strategy and reducing emissions from shipping, Transparency International has warned, urging the global shipping regulator to improve its governance, transparency and efficiency.
  
  Read more

• The dramatic melting of Arctic icebergs – in pictures

  04-04-2018 10:45 via theguardian.com
  Photographer Francesco Bosso travelled to Greenland to capture images of the melting icebergs, which he describes as ‘gems of nature in danger of extinction’. The results are presented in his new book, Last Diamonds Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Scott Morrison: new coal-fired power station not the answer

  04-04-2018 09:33 via theguardian.com
  The treasurer has pushed back against backbenchers arguing for a return to coal saying ‘the days of subsidies in energy are over’ The treasurer, Scott Morrison, has smacked down a backbench push for the Turnbull government to back a new coal plant, arguing that high-efficiency coal does not mean cheap energy, and taxpayers would also be left on the hook.
  Morrison used a public appearance on Wednesday to rebuff fresh positioning by conservatives on coal, declaring it “false to t
  
  Read more

• Bowhead whales: jazz artists of the deep whose calls rival birdsong

  04-04-2018 08:38 via theguardian.com
  Bowheads serenade each other off Greenland with a vast repertoire of improvised jazz-like song, study saysHow do bowhead whales in the unbroken darkness of the Arctic’s polar winter keep busy during breeding season?They sing, of course. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Emergency declared after oil spill ignites on Indonesian island of Borneo

  04-04-2018 06:35 via theguardian.com
  City of Balikpapan is struggling to deal with toxic smoke from fire that killed four fishermanThe Indonesian port city of Balikpapan, on the island of Borneo, has declared a state of emergency after a devastating oil spill spread along the coast, killing four fisherman when it ignited.The oil spill, which occurred over the weekend, has now stretched to an area of around seven square miles (18 sq km), contaminating the sea and polluting the air with thick black smoke. One protected dugong has alr
  
  Read more

• Country diary: avian pipers at the gates of dawn

  04-04-2018 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Lune Estuary, Lancaster: Some oystercatchers piped the first bars of their call and then, as if a signal that dawn had broken, a curlew summoned sunriseIt was becoming light, but not light yet. Water, salt marsh, sky: these were names for things that did not exist in the dark before dawn. Then the glim of something, maybe a moon-piece, as befits the Lune, made its way in to where it was possible to look but not go. There was the cold, face-wash quiet of the air and the slight rub of dry sedge tr
  
  Read more

• Great white shark interrupts police operation in South Australia – video

  04-04-2018 05:16 via theguardian.com
  Police officers in South Australia had a close encounter with a great white shark while they were out on a routine operation checking boat registrations over the Easter breakContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• Jaws drop as great white shark interrupts Australian police operation

  04-04-2018 05:15 via theguardian.com
  Shark nicknamed ‘Noah’ gets between officers and fishing boat selected for random breath testA great white shark swimming in one of Australia’s most renowned shark habitats interrupted a police operation on Saturday by serenely terrifying the officers.The shark, dubbed Noah by South Australia police, glided in between a police dinghy containing two life-jacketed police officers and their intended target, a recreational fishing boat selected for a random breath test. Continue re
  
  Read more

• Arctic jazz: bowhead whales are the coolest cats

  04-04-2018 03:50 via theguardian.com
  Bowheads serenade each other off Greenland with a vast repertoire of improvised jazz-like song, study saysHow do bowhead whales in the unbroken darkness of the Arctic’s polar winter keep busy during breeding season?They sing, of course. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Alinta Energy says it wants to buy AGL’s Liddell coal-fired power station

  04-04-2018 02:44 via theguardian.com
  Coalition pressuring Alinta to run ageing station five to seven years past AGL’s 2022 closure date
  Alinta Energy has confirmed it has been approached by the Turnbull government and is interested in purchasing AGL’s ageing Liddell coal-fired power plant immediately with a view to extending its life for five to seven years.In a statement on Tuesday AGL said it will consider a formal offer when it is made but cast doubt on the plan by noting it needs power from Liddell up until 2022 the
  
  Read more

• The whales who love to sing in the dark

  04-04-2018 02:36 via bbc.co.uk
  A new study reveals the surprising complexity of bowhead whale song.
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!