Environment news

• Taking place next week: Three days of online events on net-zero business leadership

  11-05-2020 23:34
  
  Net-Zero Week is a themed week of editorial content and events dedicated to informing, inspiring and empowering sustainability and energy professionals on the road to a net-zero carbon future for their business, featuring three afternoons on online sessions available to watch for free.
  
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• How is the Covid-19 energy slump affecting the weather?

  11-05-2020 22:30
  
  Global emissions are expected to be 8% lower this year but the long-term impact is unclearEnergy demand has plummeted during the Covid-19 crisis and global carbon dioxide emissions are anticipated to be 8% lower this year, compared with 2019. Is this affecting our weather and will it affect the global climate in years to come?Carbon dioxide hangs around in the atmosphere for decades so it takes a long time for the impact to play out. Keith Shine, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Rea
  
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• Longer overlap for modern humans and Neanderthals

  11-05-2020 18:27 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Modern humans began to edge out the Neanderthals in Europe earlier than previously thought.
  
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• Coronavirus: Branson to sell Galactic stake to prop up Virgin

  11-05-2020 16:43 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The billionaire hopes to raise $500m to support his businesses including Virgin Atlantic.
  
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• This could be the time to usher in a golden age for cycling in Britain

  11-05-2020 16:13
  
  New measures reflect the place riding a bike has taken in our lives during the coronavirus crisis – but do they go far enough?
  Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSaturday’s announcement of extra funds for walking and cycling was a rare example of political focus on sustainable travel. Could the investment announced by the transport minister, Grant Shapps, help usher in what Boris Johnson pledged a week earlier: a ‘golden age for cycling’?.Th
  
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• Are the Tories really serious about supporting cycling?

  11-05-2020 16:13
  
  New measures reflect the place riding a bike has taken in our lives during the coronavirus crisis – but do they go far enough?
  Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSaturday’s announcement of extra funds for walking and cycling was a rare example of political focus on sustainable travel. Could the investment announced by the transport minister, Grant Shapps, help usher in what Boris Johnson pledged a week earlier: a ‘golden age for cycling’?.Th
  
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• In numbers: The public's understanding of net-zero and green policies

  11-05-2020 16:07
  
  A government survey of more than 1,800 UK citizens has found that the public is largely unaware of net-zero movement and what that means for the UK, despite more than three-quarters of citizens being concerned about climate change.
  
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• Centrica and Lotus partner up on electric vehicle energy storage

  11-05-2020 16:07
  Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, has announced a new strategic partnership with auto manufacturer Lotus to give electric vehicle (EV) owners more viability to store electricity and reduce household emissions.
  
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• Coronavirus: Robot dog enforces social distancing in Singapore park

  11-05-2020 13:34 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The four-legged robot carries a camera and speaker to play social distancing messages in Singapore.
  
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• Gravity-based energy storage project set for Edinburgh

  11-05-2020 12:58
  
  A demonstrator project aiming to transform old mine shafts into energy storage systems is set to be up and running in December, after the company behind the innovation agreed to a land rental agreement at a site in Edinburgh.
  
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• Slow streets: can coronavirus cure Brussels of its addiction to driving?

  11-05-2020 10:58
  
  Pedestrians and cyclists are being prioritised during the pandemic – a move some want to be permanentCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageTraffic jams, pretty squares used as car parks, bike lanes that vanish into congested roundabouts: Brussels’s love affair with the car has been waning for several years. Now city authorities are using coronavirus to kickstart plans to reduce the dominance of the car, by creating cycle lanes and “slow streets&rdquo
  
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• Can coronavirus cure Brussels of its addiction to driving?

  11-05-2020 10:58
  
  Pedestrians and cyclists are being prioritised during the pandemic – a move some want to be permanentCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageTraffic jams, pretty squares used as car parks, bike lanes that vanish into congested roundabouts: Brussels’s love affair with the car has been waning for several years. Now city authorities are using coronavirus to kickstart plans to reduce the dominance of the car, by creating cycle lanes and “slow streets&rdquo
  
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• Law firm Slaughter and May's carbon goals approved by SBTi

  11-05-2020 10:37
  
  Legal giant Slaughter and May has confirmed that a goal to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030 has been approved by the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi) as aligned to the 1.5C ambition of the Paris Agreement.
  
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• Coronavirus lockdown: UK hits coal-free month

  11-05-2020 09:06
  
  The UK has gone more than 30 days without relying on coal for power, with gas, nuclear and renewables providing enough demand during a period of lower energy demand because of the coronavirus lockdown.
  
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• Trump's environmental 'blitzkrieg' advances under cover of coronavirus

  11-05-2020 08:00
  
  Administration is weakening protections ahead of the election, making changes that could take years for a Democratic president to undo
  The Trump administration is diligently weakening US environment protections even amid a global pandemic, continuing its rollback as the November election approaches.During the Covid-19 lockdown, US federal agencies have eased fuel-efficiency standards for new cars; frozen rules for soot air pollution; proposed to drop review requirements for liquefied natural gas
  
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• Trump dismantles environmental protections under cover of coronavirus

  11-05-2020 08:00
  
  Administration is weakening protections ahead of the election, making changes that could take years for a Democratic president to undo
  The Trump administration is diligently weakening US environment protections even amid a global pandemic, continuing its rollback as the November election approaches.During the Covid-19 lockdown, US federal agencies have eased fuel-efficiency standards for new cars; frozen rules for soot air pollution; proposed to drop review requirements for liquefied natural gas
  
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• 'Chaotic and crazy': meat plants around the world struggle to contain Covid-19 outbreaks

  11-05-2020 07:36
  
  Critics warn of workers tightly packed together and pressure to keep operating at maximum speedCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageOutbreaks of Covid-19 at slaughterhouses are occurring in a number of countries around the world, in a development that may have long-term implications for food supply systems, say experts.The US has been hardest hit, with outbreaks at more than 180 meat and processed food plants. But other countries with highly consolidated meat supply
  
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• Riverside encounter with an otter family: Country diary, 14 May 1945

  11-05-2020 07:00
  
  14 May 1945 Two cubs romped like puppies while their mother was too busy diving for eels to give more than a casual glance at her chargesCumberland
  An ever lengthening line of bubbles beading the stale, still backwater where a tributary enters the main river betokened the movements of an otter or otters to a deep pool in which they were to play or fish. It was just past midday. The sun beat down on the water over which danced or fluttered insects that a moment or two before had ended the nymph s
  
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• Cargo ship sailors press-ganged into keeping the world's trade afloat

  11-05-2020 07:00
  
  ‘Ticking time bomb’ as contracts aren’t honoured and ports stop crews going ashore even for urgent medical care
  Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThomas Stapley-Bunten was due to finish his contract aboard the Al Shamal, a huge cargo ship carrying liquid natural gas, early last month. The ship docked at the LNG terminal in Fos Cavaou, southern France, as planned, but by then the world was in coronavirus lockdown. He couldn’t disembark, and
  
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• Country diary: where the wildflowers grow weird and wonderful

  11-05-2020 06:30
  
  Allendale, Northumberland: Like many gardeners through the years, I am drawn to unusual colours and double formsPlanted across a large area with hardly any paths, the wild and the cultivated flow together in my garden. In it, I grow 80 species of wildflowers, with many such as pignut, sanicle and harebell found just outside the boundary walls. The leaves and roots of these wildlings provide food for the larval stages of insects, in particular the moths that I study by using a light trap once a w
  
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• HMS Beagle: Dock for Darwin's ship gets protected status

  11-05-2020 05:53 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The submerged mud berth on the River Roach in Essex is recognised as a nationally important site.
  
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• Wooden turbines and Schneider Electric's net-zero homes: The sustainability success stories of the week

  11-05-2020 02:01
  
  As part of our Mission Possible campaign, edie brings you this weekly round-up of five of the best sustainability success stories of the week from across the globe.
  
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