Environment news

• Strongest tremor yet halts fracking at Cuadrilla site near Blackpool

  29-10-2018 22:11 via theguardian.com
  1.1-magnitude tremor second to have breached regulatory threshold in recent days Fracking has stopped again at a shale gas well near Blackpool after the area was struck by the most powerful earthquake since operations began.A total of 27 minor earthquakes have occurred near energy company Cuadrilla’s site since fracking started a fortnight ago. Continue reading...
  
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• Climate change is 'escalator to extinction' for mountain birds

  29-10-2018 21:00 via bbc.co.uk
  A new study shows that rising temperatures drive the disappearance of mountain-top bird species in Peru.
  
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• UK to consult on plastic packaging tax, chancellor says

  29-10-2018 19:59 via theguardian.com
  Budget seeks to reduce non-recycled plastics but resists call for levy on coffee cupsThe government is to introduce a new tax on plastic packaging as it seeks to ramp up efforts to tackle the scourge of litter and waste from single-use plastics, it was confirmed in the budget.Food and drink companies will be taxed on plastic packaging that does not include at least 30% recycled content, in a drive to reduce dependence on “virgin plastics” that are difficult or impossible to recycle,
  
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• £60m 'greenery drive' to plant 10m trees in England

  29-10-2018 19:40 via theguardian.com
  Conservationists say money is step in the right direction in tackling climate changeMore than 10m trees will be planted across England with the injection of £60m of new funding over five years, as part of what the government billed as its “drive to preserve the country’s greenery”.The bulk of the money, £50m, will pay landowners for planting trees that lock up carbon, which observers said raised questions over how accessible those woodlands would be to the public. T
  
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• To save the planet we need a treaty – and to consider rationing | Letters

  29-10-2018 18:08 via theguardian.com
  Bill McKibben, Naomi Klein, Caroline Lucas, John Sauven, Craig Bennett, Ann Pettifor and Leo Murray add their voices to calls for a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty. Plus letters from John Huggins and John RankenWe, the undersigned, support the call for the UK and other OECD governments to negotiate a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty to complement the Paris agreement on climate change, as proposed in your article “We need a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty – and we need i
  
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• Autumn Budget 2018: Chancellor commits to new plastic tax, rules out 'latte levy'

  29-10-2018 15:56
  BREAKING: Chancellor Philip Hammond has today (29 October) pledged to introduce a new tax on plastic packaging in his 2018 Autumn Budget, which also includes a carbon price freeze and multi-million-pound investment for business energy efficiency.
  
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• Budget 2018: Chancellor commits to new plastic tax

  29-10-2018 15:36
  BREAKING: Chancellor Philip Hammond has today pledged to introduce a new tax on the manufacture of plastic packaging in his 2018 Autumn Budget.
  
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• Autumn Budget 2018: Chancellor commits to new plastic tax, freezes carbon price

  29-10-2018 15:36
  BREAKING: Chancellor Philip Hammond has today pledged to introduce a new tax on the manufacture of plastic packaging in his 2018 Autumn Budget.
  
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• Climate change: 'Wetlands vital to protect cities'

  29-10-2018 15:30 via bbc.co.uk
  Urban areas need to cherish wetlands as a natural defence against flooding, experts warn.
  
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• 90% of world's children are breathing toxic air, WHO study finds

  29-10-2018 13:00 via theguardian.com
  Report says air pollution is having a devastating impact on children worldwide, storing up a public health time bombPoisonous air is having a devastating impact on billions of children around the world, damaging their intelligence and leading to hundreds of thousands of deaths, according to a report from the World Health Organization.The study found that more than 90% of the world’s young people – 1.8 billion children – are breathing toxic air, storing up a public health time b
  
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• Autumn Budget 2018: Live green economy reaction

  29-10-2018 12:47
  After Chancellor Philip Hammond opened his red budget box to detail a tax on plastics and a carbon price freeze, edie rounds up what key green economy leaders are making of the new financial measures for low-carbon innovations and resource efficiency.
  
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• Autumn Budget 2018: Follow edie's LIVE BLOG for green business

  29-10-2018 12:47
  With Chancellor Philip Hammond set open his red budget box this afternoon (29 October), edie brings you all the latest updates on what this year's Budget has in store for the UK's green economy.
  
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• Autumn Budget 2018: edie's live blog for green business

  29-10-2018 12:47
  With Chancellor Philip Hammond set open his red budget box this afternoon (29 October), edie brings you all the latest updates on what this year's Budget has in store for the UK's green economy.
  
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• United Utilities rolls out AI across entire network after slashing energy usage

  29-10-2018 12:29
  Water company United Utilities is set to roll out an energy flexibility platform which incorporates artificial intelligence (AI) to cover its entire water network, after a three-month trial generated energy savings of 22%.
  
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• PepsiCo to use 25% recycled content in plastics packaging by 2025

  29-10-2018 11:19
  Beverage giant PepsiCo has revamped its approach to plastics by pledging to use 25% recycled content in plastic packaging by 2025 and working with suppliers and partners to advocate for improved recycling infrastructure and policy across the globe.
  
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• Scottish Government launches 'cashback' scheme to help SMEs bolster energy efficiency

  29-10-2018 11:05
  The Scottish Government has partnered with Zero Waste Scotland to launch a "cashback" scheme which offers interest-free loans to small businesses that install energy efficiency measures.
  
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• World's top fishing nations to be given millions to protect oceans

  29-10-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Bloomberg Philanthropies to launch major grant for coastal communities to improve the health of oceansMillions of pounds’ worth of funding to tackle global overfishing and protect coral reefs will be announced at a major conference in Indonesia this week.Politicians, marine experts and philanthropists will convene in Bali at the Our Ocean conference on Monday to agree commitments on how to address the pressures facing our oceans, including rising sea temperatures, unsustainable fishing pra
  
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• Thousands of ships could dump pollutants at sea to avoid dirty fuel ban

  29-10-2018 07:00 via theguardian.com
  Owners planning to install ‘emissions cheat’ systems to avoid having to buy cleaner, more expensive fuelThousands of ships are set to install “emissions cheat” systems that pump pollutants into the ocean to beat new international rules banning dirty fuel.The global shipping fleet is rushing to meet a 2020 deadline imposed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to reduce air pollution by forcing vessels to use cleaner fuel with a lower sulphur content of 0.5%, co
  
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• Are hydrogen trains the future of UK travel?

  29-10-2018 06:24 via bbc.co.uk
  Trains that emit pure water could be in the UK by the "early 2020s", according to the government.
  
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• Great Barrier Reef authority chairman appointed days after dire bleaching forecast

  29-10-2018 05:34 via theguardian.com
  Australian Marine Conservation Society calls on Ian Poiner to take ‘aggressive’ stance on reef’s behalfThe Australian government has appointed marine scientist Ian Poiner as the new chairman of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, days after a dire new forecast for coral bleaching was issued.The appointment to the authority, which manages the reef and advises the government on its care, also comes months after the government granted $443m in reef funding to the private
  
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• Potholes: Why do we have so many of them?

  29-10-2018 03:09 via bbc.co.uk
  The chancellor says councils in England will get an extra £420m in his Budget to fix potholes.
  
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• Business giants join Ellen MacArthur Foundation's global commitment to eradicate plastics pollution

  29-10-2018 01:17
  Business giants, financial investors, non-profit organisations and national Governments have vowed to eradicate plastic waste and pollution, as part of a new Global Commitment spearheaded by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
  
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• Report: Few countries have emissions targets that match their Paris Agreement pledges

  29-10-2018 01:02
  Most countries signed up to the Paris Agreement, including the UK, have failed to set domestic targets that are at least as ambitious as their pledged contributions, according to a damning new report.
  
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• Bees of Australia: up close with native species – in pictures

  29-10-2018 00:55 via theguardian.com
  Bees are at the heart of Australia’s multibillion-dollar agriculture industry, as 75% of our food crops rely on animal pollination. However, native bees face serious threats. Habitat loss, exotic species, climate change and pesticides are all affecting bee populations. The author and photographer James Dorey has created the book Bees of Australia, showcasing the species unique to Australia using macro photography Continue reading...
  
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