Environment news

• Weatherwatch: ​why does Antarctic ice melt in the depths of winter?

  04-05-2018 22:30 via theguardian.com
  Recent research on the rate of Antarctic ice melt points to the effect of warm föhn winds Scientists have long known that the amount of ice in the Antarctic is steadily decreasing. They were surprised, however, to discover recently that up to a quarter of the melting occurs in the depth of winter, when the average temperature is 15C below freezing. The melting is caused by a phenomenon called the föhn effect.The föhn or foehn wind was first noted in the Alps, and occurs when a win
  
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• Michael Gove leading plan to ban sale of new hybrid cars from 2040

  04-05-2018 19:35 via theguardian.com
  Environment secretary favours the move but it is hotly contested within government Michael Gove is spearheading plans to halt the sale of new hybrid cars from 2040 to help tackle UK air pollution, Whitehall sources have said.Ministers have been battling privately over whether or not to ban hybrids to strengthen the government’s policy of banning new diesel vehicles in 22 years time. Continue reading...
  
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• Michael Gove leading plan to ban sale of new hybrid cars by 2040

  04-05-2018 19:35 via theguardian.com
  Environment secretary favours the move but it is hotly contested within government Michael Gove is spearheading plans to halt the sale of new hybrid cars by 2040 to help tackle UK air pollution, Whitehall sources have said.Ministers have been battling privately over whether or not to ban hybrids to strengthen the government’s policy of banning new diesel vehicles in 22 years time. Continue reading...
  
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• Tidal power to reduce emissions and boost UK economy by £1.4bn by 2030, report finds

  04-05-2018 19:29
  The UK's tidal stream could deliver £1.4bn to the UK economy by 2030, with wider marine technologies helping to reduce national carbon emissions by up to four million metric tonnes a decade later.
  
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• Country diary: spring has ambushed us again

  04-05-2018 17:54 via theguardian.com
  Mid Wharfedale, Yorkshire Dales: Over the course of a day-long walk, the heartening signs of winter’s end are plain to seeThe air is calm and hot, and the etchings of aeroplane contrails are the only blemishes on an otherwise flawless vault of Pennine sky. After this maddeningly prolonged winter, it feels impossible at first, like a wishful dream.Every year there is a day like this, which always manages to ambush us. The burst of warmth and brightness has produced a sudden, overwhelming un
  
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• Sustainable Business Covered podcast: In the green room with Polymateria's Niall Dunne

  04-05-2018 17:27
  Welcome back to the green room - edie's exclusive interview hub for sustainability leaders, brought to you as part of the Sustainable Business Covered podcast. Up next to provide the insights of leading sustainable business: Polymateria's new chief executive Niall Dunne.
  
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• Nasa's InSight mission will target 'Marsquakes'

  04-05-2018 16:22 via bbc.co.uk
  The InSight probe is due to launch this weekend to investigate the interior of the Red Planet.
  
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• How the SDGs and stakeholder engagement can hold the key to sustainability leadership

  04-05-2018 16:03
  EXCLUSIVE: Building strong relationships with stakeholders and aligning targets with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are some of the most effective ways of embedding sustainability into core business models, an expert panel of speakers has concluded.
  
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• Balearic Islands bank on their sun to kickstart power drive | Adam Vaughan

  04-05-2018 15:50 via theguardian.com
  Local government wants to convert to 100% renewables by 2050 but plan will not be easyAs thousands of holidaymakers fly into Menorca this summer, a glance out the window will illustrate the past and future of the island’s energy system.
  In the picturesque harbour of the capital, Mahón, where cruise ships dock alongside a marina full of luxury yachts, sits a pollution-belching, oil-fired power station inaugurated by Gen Franco more than half a century ago. Continue reading...
  
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• SDGs and stakeholder engagement key to sustainability leadership, experts claim

  04-05-2018 15:28
  EXCLUSIVE: Building strong relationships with stakeholders and aligning targets with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are some of the most effective ways of embedding sustainability into core business models, an expert panel of speakers has concluded.
  
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• 'Marsquake' monitor due to fly to Mars in Nasa mission

  04-05-2018 14:42 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists at Imperial College London have spent more than 25 years developing the device.
  
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• 'Label shopping': Is the certification scheme model broken?

  04-05-2018 14:13
  Voluntary certification schemes have fiercely denied claims from a new report that that are providing cover for companies that are "destroying the planet", raising questions of whether the abundance of certification offers is watering-down sustainability efforts.
  
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• How Cape Town was saved from running out of water

  04-05-2018 14:04 via theguardian.com
  Reusing shower water, limiting toilet flushing and night-time irrigation were among measures that saved South Africa’s second city from running dryLate last year, as the South African government faced the prospect of its largest city running out of water, they took an unprecedented gamble.The government announced “day zero” – a moment when dam levels would be so low that they would turn off the taps in Cape Town and send people to communal water collection points. Continu
  
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• Marks & Spencer trials liquid nitrogen deliveries to slash emissions

  04-05-2018 12:14
  British retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) will trial a zero emissions liquid-nitrogen refrigeration truck for its chilled grocery deliveries, with a view to a nationwide rollout.
  
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• How technology can make the world a cleaner, safer place

  04-05-2018 11:40 via theguardian.com
  This week’s edition of the Upside series looks at the use of new tech to fight dirty money, sexual harassment and pollutionOur world is full of persistent, apparently unsolvable problems that often stem from the type of behaviour that can shake our faith in our fellow human beings. But amid that gloom, the advance of technology is one of the great and renewable sources of hope. And while technology alone can never provide all the answers, history is a story of breakthroughs and revolutions
  
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• New climate 'feedback loop' discovered in freshwater lakes

  04-05-2018 11:27 via bbc.co.uk
  Methane emissions from lakes could almost double as warming boosts plants that feed gas production.
  
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• Chris Grayling is a car kind of guy – but he crosses pedestrians at his peril | Laura Laker

  04-05-2018 09:30 via theguardian.com
  Moving roadworks on to pavements, as the transport secretary wants to do, will worsen congestion by making it harder to walkIt seems ironic that the transport secretary, Chris Grayling, should usher in National Walking Month by announcing plans to dig up more pavements, to spare motorists the inconvenience of roadworks.His idea is that cables and services should be laid under pavements and verges to cut congestion and reduce potholes. Even when pavement is only being dug up when there’s an
  
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• Highly charged: complaints as electric car points block city pavements

  04-05-2018 07:00 via theguardian.com
  In the rush to accommodate increasing numbers of electric cars, some cities are letting bulky charging stations take space from pedestriansCities across the world are rushing to install charging points to encourage and keep up with demand from increasing numbers of electric vehicles. By the end of last year there were almost 600,000 street charging points globally.But while some cities, such as Paris, are introducing charging points inconspicuously, many others are not. In some areas of London c
  
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• California burning: life among the wildfires

  04-05-2018 07:00 via theguardian.com
  People used to roll their eyes at my gloomy talk of climate change. Then the big blaze came. By Christina NicholIn 2017, the weather in California was the hottest in history. It was hotter than in 2016, which was also the hottest in history. The vineyard owners spoke nervously of how difficult it was to find people willing to pick grapes in this heat. The apple trees dropped all their apples. Over the summer the smoke from hundreds of wildfires burning throughout the state gave me a chronic coug
  
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• One-third of Australia's threatened species are not monitored

  04-05-2018 06:48 via theguardian.com
  Governments often lack necessary data to determine if conservation measures are effective, says review’s leader• Sign up to receive the top stories in Australia every day at noonOne-third of Australia’s threatened species are not subject to any formal monitoring program and monitoring for the remaining species is largely poorly done, a review has found.The findings come as the ABC reports the federal environment department could cut up to 60 jobs in its biodiversity and conserva
  
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• Country diary: wild boar have been rotovating the woodland

  04-05-2018 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire: They wield their snouts like a blade, slicing into the root layer then slashing vigorously with a deft twist that turns the ground overYou can’t miss the signs of wild boar in the Forest of Dean – the road verges appear to have been enthusiastically but amateurishly rotovated. When we visited in January hundreds of square metres around the car park had been worked over, and it did not take much by way of fieldcraft to spot the culprits. A small sounde
  
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• Climate sceptic group IPA suggested as co-host of Australian visit by Trump's environment chief

  04-05-2018 04:10 via theguardian.com
  Scott Pruitt’s cancelled trip would have promoted ‘innovation deregulation’, emails released under FoI show • Sign up to receive the top stories in Australia every day at noonThe climate sceptic thinktank the Institute of Public Affairs was mooted as a co-host of an Australian visit by Donald Trump’s beleaguered Environment Protection Agency head, Scott Pruitt, which may have included discussion with local officials on whether environmental deals should be changed or
  
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• Extreme weather 'potentially catastrophic' for bats

  04-05-2018 02:25 via bbc.co.uk
  Extreme weather appears to be disrupting the lifecycle of bats, raising concern over their long-term future.
  
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• Making the desert sand bloom

  04-05-2018 01:31 via bbc.co.uk
  Norwegian scientists have developed a treatment that can turn arid desert sand into farmland soil.
  
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• Brexit 'impossible challenge' for environment and trade departments

  04-05-2018 01:01 via theguardian.com
  Preparations for EU exit curbed by ‘pervasive uncertainty’ warns parliament’s spending watchdogThe departments run by Michael Gove and Liam Fox are facing an “impossible challenge” as they prepare for Brexit, parliament’s spending watchdog has warned.The environment and trade departments do not have a clear plan of Brexit priorities and must explain what they will not be delivering, according to the public accounts committee.Continue reading...
  
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