Environment news

• Air pollution 'as bad as smoking in increasing risk of miscarriage'

  11-01-2019 20:00
  Scientists called study’s findings upsetting and said toxic air must be cut Air pollution is as bad for pregnant women as smoking in raising the risk of miscarriage, according to a scientific study. They said the finding was upsetting and that toxic air must be cut to protect the health of the next generation.Air pollution is already known to harm foetuses by increasing the risk of premature birth and low birth weight. Recent research has also found pollution particles in placentas. Contin
  
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• SpaceX launch completes Iridium satellite refresh

  11-01-2019 18:16 via bbc.co.uk
  The $3bn refurbishment of the original sat-phone network will help transform air-traffic surveillance.
  
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• Giant hi-tech tomato glasshouse set to produce millions of the fruit

  11-01-2019 18:07 via bbc.co.uk
  The facility is set to produce 150 million tomatoes a year, helped by red LED lights and bees.
  
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• 'Raining spiders': airborne arachnids appear over south-east Brazil

  11-01-2019 17:11
  Soaring temperatures bring tales of eight-legged invaders as huge numbers of communal species spin invisible webs in the skySummer in south-east Brazil has brought soaring temperatures and some disconcerting eight-legged visitors.Residents in a rural area of southern Minas Gerais state have reported skies “raining spiders”, a phenomenon which experts say is typical in the region during hot, humid weather. Continue reading...
  
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• Cloudy with a chance of arachnophobia: raining spiders in Brazil – video

  11-01-2019 17:01
  Residents in a rural area of southern Brazil were rained on by spiders this week. Experts say it’s typical in Minas Gerais state during hot, humid weather. While it looks like the spiders are falling from the sky, they’ve actually created a huge web to catch prey. Scientists say the parawixia bistriata species builds a community web so fine that it’s nearly impossible to see with the human eye, giving the illusion that the spiders are floating on air Continue reading...
  
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• Guardian to be first national newspaper with biodegradable wrapping

  11-01-2019 16:53
  The change aims to reduce plastic waste, following readers’ feedbackThe Guardian’s print edition will no longer be sold in plastic packaging, becoming the first national newspaper to switch to biodegradable wrapping.The Saturday edition of the paper contains a large number of supplements which are currently packaged in polythene to meet the demands of retailers and ensure they reach readers. Continue reading...
  
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• Hitachi set to cancel plans for £16bn nuclear power station in Wales

  11-01-2019 14:48
  Move by Japanese firm would be blow to UK plans to replace coal plants and ageing reactorsThe Japanese conglomerate Hitachi looks certain to cancel its plans for a £16bn nuclear power station in Wales, leaving Britain’s ambitions for a nuclear renaissance in tatters.An impasse in months-long talks between the company, London and Toyko on financing is expected to result in the flagship project being axed at a Hitachi board meeting next week, according to the Nikkei newspaper. Continue
  
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• 'Horror scene': meet the man who found the Sidmouth fatberg

  11-01-2019 14:35
  Charlie Ewart discovered the 64-metre lump and will be part of the team breaking it up Charlie Ewart, a 51-year-old father of two from Plymouth, has been battling blockages in the sewers of south-west England for 15 years.But even he was not prepared for the dreadful sight, and smell, of what he found lurking beneath the elegant seafront in the regency town of Sidmouth when he scrambled through a small manhole. Continue reading...
  
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• Chang'e-4: China Moon probes take snaps of each other

  11-01-2019 14:23 via bbc.co.uk
  A Chinese rover and static lander put on the far side of the Moon take pictures of each other.
  
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• Report: London Mayor's air quality measures set to benefit poorest the most

  11-01-2019 13:16
  Sadiq Khan's measures to tackle London's air quality crisis will "substantially" benefit the health of people living in the capital's most deprived areas, new research has found.
  
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• Mother wins right to seek new inquest into girl's death linked to air pollution

  11-01-2019 12:56
  Attorney general quashes Ella Kissi-Debrah verdict, paving way for fresh hearingThe mother of a schoolgirl who died of an asthma attack linked to air pollution has won the right to seek a new inquest at the high court.The attorney general moved on Friday to quash the inquest into the death of Ella Kissi-Debrah at the age of nine, after new evidence linked it to air pollution spikes from traffic near her home in south London. Continue reading...
  
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• Ella Kissi-Debrah 'pollution' death: Backing for new inquest

  11-01-2019 12:56 via bbc.co.uk
  Attorney general backs new look at whether air pollution was to blame for nine-year-old girl's death.
  
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• Defra launches £5m food redistribution scheme to help businesses slash waste

  11-01-2019 12:40
  The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has today (11 January) launched a new £5m scheme aimed at helping UK businesses to redistribute surplus food and minimise their food waste outputs.
  
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• Chang'e-4: First panoramic images from China moon lander

  11-01-2019 12:03 via bbc.co.uk
  The Chinese space agency releases new vistas from the lunar surface featuring its lander and rover.
  
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• Shell teams up with Anesco for UK battery storage project

  11-01-2019 11:27
  Oil and gas giant Shell has partnered with UK renewables firm Anesco to deliver a new 1.25MW battery storage project in Norfolk.
  
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• UK's first floating tidal stream turbine to be built in Scotland

  11-01-2019 11:14
  The UK's first floating tidal stream turbine is set to be deployed off the coast of Scotland in 2020, after £7m of funding to build the device was secured earlier this month.
  
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• Crunch time for crisp makers as EU waste targets loom

  11-01-2019 11:07
  The European Commission has set an EU-wide objective for all packaging to be recyclable or reusable by 2030. But crisp packets are a particular headache for policymakers and the recycling industry because they are so small and lightweight.
  
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• Essex little owls win wildlife photographer's affection

  11-01-2019 10:11 via bbc.co.uk
  "I love their facial expressions," says wildlife cameraman Russell Savory.
  
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• A frozen history of climate change – in pictures

  11-01-2019 08:30
  Buried deep under the Greenland ice sheet is a unique archive of life on Earth 40,000 years ago. Scientists are using this information to try to predict future changes to the planet Continue reading...
  
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• Planned wild boar cull in Poland angers conservationists

  11-01-2019 08:00
  Mikołaj Golachowski describes plan as ‘evil’ and warns of environmental consequencesConservationists have branded plans by the Polish government to cull almost the entire wild boar population of the country as “pointless, counterproductive and evil”.In a move to tackle an epidemic of African swine fever, the Polish government has ordered a series of hunts, beginning this weekend, with the aim of killing the vast majority of the country’s population of around 20
  
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• 'Fine to flush' label for wet wipes to aid fight against fatbergs

  11-01-2019 07:01
  Logo drawn up by water firms aims to ensure only wipes that degrade properly are flushedThe fight to eliminate “fatbergs” is to receive a major boost with the launch of a universal standard for wet wipes, clarifying which can be safely flushed down the toilet.Manufacturers of wipes will be able to use a “fine to flush” symbol on their packaging – drawn up by the water industry – provided they pass stringent tests. The logo aims to reassure consumers that the p
  
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• Taiwan's Guidebook of Marine Debris – in pictures

  11-01-2019 01:33
  The environmental education association Re-Think has launched The Guidebook of Marine Debris to highlight the 101 most commonly found plastic items washed up on Taiwan’s beaches. From Hello Kitty toys to cigarette lighters from thousands of kilometres away on the Midway Islands, Re-Think photographed the items in a bid to educate young people on the extent of the problem. The project took a year to complete with the help of beach clean-up volunteers around Taiwan and the Society of Wildern
  
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• How dynamite became a million dollar idea

  11-01-2019 01:09 via bbc.co.uk
  The BBC's Aaron Heslehurst explains how dynamite became a million dollar idea.
  
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• Hydrogen bikes and electric 'delivery dogs': The best green innovations of CES 2019

  11-01-2019 01:01
  From big-name corporates to tiny startups, this week saw more than 4,500 firms showcase their newest tech-based innovations to a crowd of thousands at the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Here, edie rounds some of the displays that could have the biggest sustainability impacts.
  
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