Environment news

• NHS sets net-zero emissions target for 2040

  01-10-2020 23:05
  
  Despite the ongoing challenges in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, NHS England has signalled its intention to reach net-zero emissions through a plethora of new initiatives that will see 40 net-zero hospitals created alongside a £50m LED lighting upgrade.
  
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• Covid-19: Funding crisis threatens zoo conservation

  01-10-2020 19:55 via bbc.co.uk
  
  As Covid-19 threatens conservation work, Whipsnade Zoo is hoping for rhino breeding success.
  
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• Plastic-eating 'super-enzymes' and water-based fuel: The best green innovations of September 2020

  01-10-2020 17:53
  
  Every month, numerous eye-catching and potentially transformational innovations are being developed to help businesses and nations turn their green ambitions into actions. Here, we round up six of the best from September 2020.
  
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• Brazil's Amazon rainforest suffers worst fires in a decade

  01-10-2020 17:48 via theguardian.com
  
  Satellites record 61% rise in hotspots over September 2019Scientist warns: ‘It could get worse if the drought continues’Fires in Brazil’s Amazon increased 13% in the first nine months of the year compared with a year ago, as the rainforest region experiences its worst rash of blazes in a decade, data from space research agency Inpe has shown.Satellites in September recorded 32,017 hotspots in the world’s largest rainforest, a 61% rise from the same month in 2019. Continue
  
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• Cambridge University to cut fossil fuel investments by 2030

  01-10-2020 16:20 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The university says it is responding to the "urgent existential threat" of climate change.
  
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• What wobbling rocks can tell us about nuclear safety

  01-10-2020 16:09 via bbc.co.uk
  
  How precariously balanced rocks will inform the earthquake hazards faced by critical infrastructure.
  
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• Covid: Vaccine will 'not return life to normal in spring'

  01-10-2020 15:50 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Leading scientists call for realism about what a vaccine against Covid can achieve next year.
  
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• Cambridge University to divest £3.5bn fund from fossil fuels as part of net-zero ambition

  01-10-2020 15:26
  
  The University of Cambridge will divest its £3.5bn endowment fund from fossil fuels by 2030, as part of a wider plan to reduce the University's emissions to net-zero by 2038.
  
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• 'Incredibly dangerous job': concerns safety is slipping at US meat plants

  01-10-2020 13:12 via theguardian.com
  
  Freedom of information request shows dramatic fall in number of inspectors and 30% rise in whistleblower complaintsThe safety of US meat plant workers is at risk, workers and campaigners believe, because of a triple whammy of increased line speeds, higher turnover and fewer workers due to coronavirus.Authorities, meanwhile, are failing to keep up with the problem. A freedom of information request to the US government shows a dramatic decrease in the number of plant inspectors, while the number o
  
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• Survey: 8 in 10 Brits want nature jobs for those left unemployed by Covid-19

  01-10-2020 13:08
  
  More than eight in ten adults in the UK want the Government to help those left unemployed by the pandemic into nature-related roles, a new survey of 1,609 people has found.
  
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• UK held private talks with fossil fuel firms about Glasgow Cop26

  01-10-2020 13:03 via theguardian.com
  
  Documents show BP, Shell and Equinor had several meetings with government officials
  Fossil fuel firms have held a series of private meetings with UK government officials in an attempt to be part of next year’s crucial global climate talks, which are to be held in Scotland.Documents show that some of the world’s biggest polluting corporations have been lobbying the government, offering money in return for exposure at Cop26 and in one case saying they could act as an intermediary betwe
  
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• £2bn Green Homes Grant and £1bn Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme open for applications

  01-10-2020 12:31
  
  The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has officially launched £3bn of initiatives aimed at improving the energy efficiency of housing and public sector buildings.
  
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• Investors 'failing to act on zero-deforestation commitments'

  01-10-2020 11:32
  
  Just 14% of the 235 investor signatories of a statement asking the companies in their portfolios to stop deforestation in the Amazon rainforest have followed through by introducing their own zero-deforestation policies.
  
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• Ikea to phase-out sales of non-rechargeable batteries to cut back on waste

  01-10-2020 11:11
  
  Ikea has confirmed that it will stop selling non-rechargeable alkaline batteries from its stores by October 2021, after lifecycle assessments found that the environmental impacts of the batteries were much higher than rechargeable alternatives.
  
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• Game birds 'could wipe out adders in most of Britain within 12 years'

  01-10-2020 10:41 via theguardian.com
  
  Uncontrolled release of birds for shooting threatens UK’s only venomous snake, expert warnsThe adder, Britain’s only venomous snake, could become extinct across much of Britain within 12 years because of the uncontrolled release of millions of game birds, according to an expert. The warning comes at the start of the pheasant shooting season, during which 47 million non-native pheasants and 10 million partridges will be released into the countryside by estates and shoots across Britai
  
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• REI commits to halve emissions by 2030 and reach carbon neutrality by end of 2020

  01-10-2020 10:09
  
  Outdoor apparel and equipment giant REI Co-op has revealed that it is on track to reach carbon-neutral operations by the end of 2020 through offsetting, and committed to halving its emissions footprint over the next decade.
  
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• Scientists use satellite tags to reveal white storks' migratory habits

  01-10-2020 08:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Scientists look forward to data from tags tracking captive-bred white storks at a West Sussex farm Marge, a white stork released onto a rewilded farm in West Sussex, is shedding light on the birds’ unpredictable migratory habits by flying to Morocco for her first winter and spending the summer in Spain.Scientists are using satellite tags to track white storks released onto the Knepp estate to learn what migratory habits the captive-bred birds will develop. Continue reading...
  
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• New British standard for biodegradable plastic introduced

  01-10-2020 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Products will have to prove they break down into harmless wax containing no microplasticsA new British standard for biodegradable plastic is being published which scientists say will cut through a jungle of classifications that leave consumers confused.Plastic claiming to be biodegradable will have to pass a test to prove it breaks down into a harmless wax which contains no microplastics or nanoplastics in order to make the grade, published by the British Standards Institute. Continue reading...
  
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• 85 bird crime incidents recorded last year, says RSPB report

  01-10-2020 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Half of all confirmed persecution reports in the past seven years occurred in protected nature areas There were 85 confirmed incidents of the illegal shooting, trapping and poisoning of birds of prey in Britain in 2019, according to the RSPB’s annual Birdcrime report.Half of all confirmed persecution incidents in the past seven years have occurred in landscapes supposedly already “protected” for nature, such as national parks. Continue reading...
  
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• edie launches new explains guide to creating a circular economy for electronics

  01-10-2020 04:01
  
  Organisations looking to understand the benefits and opportunities of reusing and recycling used electronics can now access a free 'edie Explains' guide breaking down everything they need to know about preventing e-waste.
  
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• Plastic straw ban in England comes into force

  01-10-2020 02:22 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Businesses can no longer sell or supply the single-use items as part of efforts to reduce pollution.
  
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• Covid-19: Funding crisis threatens zoos' vital conservation work

  01-10-2020 02:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The body that represents British zoos says they are facing the biggest cash crisis in their history.
  
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• Science-based targets for financial sector unveiled

  01-10-2020 02:02
  
  Banks, investors and insurance firms will now be able to verify that their climate targets are Paris-Agreement-aligned through the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi).
  
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• Global heating warming up 'nights faster than days'

  01-10-2020 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Effect seen across much of world will have profound consequences, warn scientistsThe climate crisis is heating up nights faster than days in many parts of the world, according to the first worldwide assessment of how global heating is differently affecting days and nights.The findings have “profound consequences” for wildlife and their ability to adapt to the climate emergency, the researchers said, and for the ability of people to cool off at night during dangerous heatwaves. Contin
  
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