Environment news

• Canada's largest national park risks losing world heritage status

  26-06-2018 22:34 via theguardian.com
  
  Wood Buffalo national park also faces danger from oil and gas development and hydroelectric projects, government report saysThe world’s second-largest national park is under threat from a destructive combination of climate change, oil and gas development and hydroelectric projects, according to a new report from the Canadian government. Related: Canada's National Parks: from Hollywood beauties to beautiful beasts – in picturesContinue reading...
  
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• Specieswatch: What's this beetle doing in my beer? He's under the table I fear

  26-06-2018 22:30 via theguardian.com
  Ambrosia beetles feed on the alcoholic fungus they cultivate on dead trees so finding a gratis pint in the garden is a bonusThose enjoying a cool beer in the garden this summer, at least in the southern half of England, may find an ambrosia beetle swimming about in it. These 6mm beetles, also known as oak pinhole borers, have a remarkable trick of cultivating ambrosia fungi, which produces alcohol, hence their liking for beer. The beetles, Platypus cylindrus, carry spores of the ambrosia fungi a
  
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• Climate change threatens Unesco status of Canada's largest national park

  26-06-2018 21:27 via theguardian.com
  
  Wood Buffalo national park also faces danger from oil and gas development and hydroelectric projects, government report saysThe world’s second-largest national park is under threat from a destructive combination of climate change, oil and gas development and hydroelectric projects, according to a new report from the Canadian government. Related: Canada's National Parks: from Hollywood beauties to beautiful beasts – in picturesContinue reading...
  
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• No end to climate wars if energy pact offers concession to coal, Labor warns

  26-06-2018 20:00 via theguardian.com
  A new subsidy would ‘destroy any chance of the government attracting broad support’Labor has warned the government that new subsidies for coal as part of any internal settlement on the national energy guarantee will scuttle the chances of securing peace after 10 years of warring over climate and energy policy.The shadow climate change minister, Mark Butler, told Guardian Australia that the construction of any new coal-fired power stations “will paralyse Australia’s transi
  
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• The environmental impact of a third runway at Heathrow | Letters

  26-06-2018 19:05 via theguardian.com
  Letters from Dr Robin Russell-Jones, Les Bright and Andrew PapworthThis government’s decision to create more pollution at Heathrow (Report, 26 June) while simultaneously rejecting tidal power in Swansea Bay (Report, 26 June) shows it has no strategy for tackling climate change.Although aviation only contributes about 2% of global emissions of carbon dioxide, it accounts for over 6% of global warming due the effects of other greenhouse gases and vapour trails. The upcoming report by the UK
  
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• Morris, Boris and the Order of St Beryl

  26-06-2018 19:04 via theguardian.com
  Expensive cities | Swift guidance | Paul Twocock | Morris Minor Traveller | Heathrow bulldozers | Not Only… But AlsoSo British cities have “rise[n] up the rankings” of how much it costs to live in them so that London has “made it back into the top 20” and Birmingham has “moved up 19 spots” (Report, 26 June). Why did you report this news as if unaffordable cities are something to be aspired towards?
  Naomi Standen
  Birmingham• If a swift is sick
  
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• Food and drink giants collaborate to improve 'on-the-go' recycling in Leeds

  26-06-2018 16:34
  A string of 18 corporations from the food and drink and packaging sectors, including Asda, Co-op and Marks and Spencer (M&S), have teamed up to launch a scheme aimed at boosting recycling rates for "on-the-go "packaging.
  
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• Palm oil: Are your beauty products killing orangutans?

  26-06-2018 16:06 via bbc.co.uk
  A new study says that alternatives to palm oil could make matters worse for endangered species.
  
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• Mirage-like dust devil swirls in Llandrindod Wells heat

  26-06-2018 15:28 via bbc.co.uk
  The strange weather phenomenon was spotted in Powys, as temperatures soared across Wales.
  
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• Palm oil ‘disastrous’ for wildlife but here to stay, experts warn

  26-06-2018 14:00 via theguardian.com
  The deforestation it causes is decimating species such as orangutans and tigers - but the alternatives could be worse, finds authoritative reportIt is consumed daily by billions of people but palm oil is “disastrous” for wildlife such as orangutans and tigers, according to an authoritative new report. However, the analysis warns that alternatives are likely to drive biodiversity losses elsewhere, rather than halt them.The analysis, from the International Union for the Conservation of
  
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• Rising seas: 'Florida is about to be wiped off the map'

  26-06-2018 13:37 via theguardian.com
  Sea level rises are not some distant threat; for many Americans they are very real. In an extract from her chilling new book, Rising, Elizabeth Rush details how the US coastline will be radically transformed in the coming yearsIn 1890, just over six thousand people lived in the damp lowlands of south Florida. Since then the wetlands that covered half the state have been largely drained, strip malls have replaced Seminole camps, and the population has increased a thousandfold. Over roughly the sa
  
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• Plastic garbage patch: One woman's quest to find truth

  26-06-2018 12:23 via bbc.co.uk
  Sailor Emily Penn sets out to gather scientific data on the world's largest accumulation of marine plastic.
  
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• PepsiCo on track for palm oil goals despite NGO concerns

  26-06-2018 12:18
  PepsiCo has released an updated sourcing policy in a bid to source 100% certified sustainable palm oil by 2020, a move that the Rainforest Action Network has described as a "dodge and cover" action plan.
  
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• Recycling: Senate inquiry recommends all single-use plastics be banned

  26-06-2018 11:47 via theguardian.com
  A national container deposit scheme should be established in response to the recycling crisis, the report saysA Senate inquiry into Australia’s recycling crisis has recommended that all single-use plastics – which could potentially include takeaway containers, chip packets and coffee cups with plastic linings – be banned by 2023. The wide-ranging report also recommends the establishment of a national container deposit scheme as a response to an unfolding crisis in Australian re
  
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• All single-use plastics should be banned by 2023 Senate inquiry recommends

  26-06-2018 11:47 via theguardian.com
  A national container deposit scheme should be established in response to the recycling crisis, the report saysA Senate inquiry into Australia’s recycling crisis has recommended that all single-use plastics – which could potentially include takeaway containers, chip packets and coffee cups with plastic linings – be banned by 2023. The wide-ranging report also recommends the establishment of a national container deposit scheme as a response to an unfolding crisis in Australian re
  
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• Report: UK supermarkets failing to protect supply chain workers' rights

  26-06-2018 11:37
  The UK's largest supermarkets "routinely" implement weak human rights policies in their supply chains, "exerting relentless pressure" on their suppliers while "trapping" overseas workers in poverty, a new report from Oxfam has claimed.
  
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• 'Wonky' fruit and veg sales put Morrisons on straight path to growth

  26-06-2018 11:14 via theguardian.com
  Bradford-based chain becomes fastest-growing of the UK’s big four supermarketsBooming sales of “wonky” fruit and vegetables have helped Morrisons secure its position as the fastest-growing of the UK’s big four supermarkets.The Bradford-based chain increased sales by 1.9% in the three months to 17 June, as sales of misshapen or smaller vegetables – which the chain sells at a lower price as a way of cutting down waste – more than tripled, according toKantar Worl
  
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• Government says no to Swansea tidal lagoon

  26-06-2018 10:35
  The government will not back plans for Swansea's pioneering tidal lagoon power plant based on figures showing that nuclear and offshore wind can generate the same amount of electricity at a third of the cost.
  
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• ABC apologises for saying prime minister decided byelections date– as it happened

  26-06-2018 10:07 via theguardian.com
  ABC News says story should have included Malcolm Turnbull’s denial, live 9.07am BST And on that note, we will leave you there.Labor has a new policy, Tony Abbott didn’t get the support he wanted but is still threatening to cross the floor, and Scott Morrison has given us the snake of envy. 9.04am BST WHAT pic.twitter.com/APDFiT8VxR Continue reading...
  
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• Tesco and Target join CDP's supply chain initiative

  26-06-2018 09:33
  Tesco and Target have committed to a programme to cut emissions, tackle deforestation and promote water efficiency in their supply chains, through a partnership with CDP.
  
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• Heathrow airport: MPs vote in favour of expansion

  26-06-2018 09:32 via bbc.co.uk
  The Commons votes in favour of controversial plans for a third runway by 415 votes to 119.
  
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• 'Mini-Holland' schemes have proved their worth in outer London boroughs | Peter Walker

  26-06-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  First formal study into their impact finds that boroughs with the schemes have boosted walking and cycling ratesThe so-called mini-Holland schemes – much-debated changes to boost cycling and walking in outer London boroughs – have done precisely that, according to the first formal study into their impact.The research found that after one year, people living in parts of such boroughs were, on average, walking and cycling for 41 minutes a week more than those living in comparable areas
  
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• Grayling to face legal action over Heathrow expansion plan

  26-06-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Four councils back move, claiming proposal will not survive ‘independent, lawful and rational’ scrutiny The transport secretary, Chris Grayling, is facing a fresh headache over Heathrow as a group of councils confirmed they were planning legal action against expansion, just hours after MPs voted overwhelmingly to back a third runway.In an embarrassing blow for Theresa May, Conservative-run Windsor and Maidenhead, the prime minister’s own local council, suggested after Monday ni
  
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• Scott Morrison hits back at Labor's 'tax grab to go' – politics live

  26-06-2018 07:27 via theguardian.com
  The Coalition treasurer says tax plan should apply across all businesses. Follow all the day’s events, live 6.26am BST Aspiration count: 10Snake: 4 6.24am BST Penny Wong last week asked a question of Senate president Scott Ryan after Alice Workman’s Buzzfeed story on the ETU member who was asked to turn her shirt inside out, during a parliamentary tour.Wong: There has been some media reporting online of an alleged incident involving a young apprentice visiting Parliament House who wa
  
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• The amazing return of the starfish: species triumphs over melting disease

  26-06-2018 07:00 via theguardian.com
  After a mysterious ‘mass mortality event’ turned ochre stars to goo, experts say rapid evolution may have saved the creaturesFive years after a mysterious virus wiped out millions of starfish off the western coast of North America, causing them to lose legs, dissolve into fleshy goo and taking various species to the brink of disappearance, scientists have announced a remarkable reversal.Continue reading...
  
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• Pet food is an environmental disaster – are vegan dogs the answer?

  26-06-2018 07:00 via theguardian.com
  A quarter of the impact of meat production comes from the pet-food industry. Has the time come to change what we feed our dogs and cats?Animal microbiologist Holly Ganz cannot talk about the pet feeding regime known as biologically appropriate raw food without laughing. The increasingly popular diet is known by its unfortunate acronym, Barf. “It’s bizarrely named,” she says, laughing. It certainly runs contrary to the twee language usually reserved for the pet realm; such as Ki
  
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• Country diary: delighted by daisies

  26-06-2018 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Allendale, Northumberland: Growing abundantly along motorways, these pristine white flowers with their yellow centres have an endearing simplicity, like a child’s drawingDriving north from Newcastle up the A1 there’s an upside to the slowing traffic. It’s an opportunity to look at the high embankments on either side that are crowded with oxeye daisies, Leucanthemum vulgare. Growing abundantly along motorways, these pristine white flowers with their yellow centres have an endear
  
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• 'Toxic garbage will be sold here': Outcry as Brazil moves to loosen pesticide laws

  26-06-2018 05:07 via theguardian.com
  A controversial bill, dubbed the ‘poison package’, is set to go to Brazilian CongressA Brazilian Congress commission has approved a controversial bill to lift restrictions on pesticides despite fierce opposition from environmentalists, prosecutors, health and environment ministry bodies, and even United Nations special rapporteurs.
  Driven by a powerful agribusiness lobby, the bill now needs to be voted on in both houses of Congress and sanctioned by President Michel Temer before beco
  
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• Labor will repeal company tax cuts – politics live

  26-06-2018 03:09 via theguardian.com
  Bill Shorten says that if elected, Labor will roll back the company tax cuts that have already been passed. Follow all the day’s events, live 2.07am BST The Greens spoke about the Neg in their party room – and the need to keep further coal infrastructure out of it – as it stands, if it came up for a vote, the Greens would vote against it.Weak targets and shifting the burden to other sectors – transport and agriculture – were the reasons for that. 1.53am BST Back on
  
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• MPs vote in favour of third runway for Heathrow – video

  26-06-2018 01:20 via theguardian.com
  MPs have voted in favour of building a new runway at London’s Heathrow airport, paving the way for expansion after decades of delays and policy U-turns. The 415 to 119 vote was missed by the most high profile opponent Boris Johnson, who once said he would ‘lie down in front of bulldozers’ to stop the expansion. He was in Afghanistan and came in for criticism from Tory MPs for sidestepping the embarrassment of either not supporting the government or breaking his wordMPs back Hea
  
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• RemoveDebris: Mission to clear a huge mess above Earth

  26-06-2018 00:10 via bbc.co.uk
  The moment the biggest satellite ever released from the space station was set free.
  
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