Environment news

• Climate change: Warmer winters linked to increased drowning risk

  18-11-2020 23:16 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Rising temperatures are destabilising lake and river ice, boosting the risk of people drowning.
  
  Read more

• Steve Bell on Boris Johnson's 10-point green plan – cartoon

  18-11-2020 21:34 via theguardian.com
  
  Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• A £4bn UK 'mini Tesla' choosing to list stock in US is worrying

  18-11-2020 20:40 via theguardian.com
  
  A vibrant, buzzy stock market for tech companies is very useful if you’re planning a green revolutionRight on cue, here comes a £4bn stock market listing of a young and exciting UK electric vehicle company – a mini Tesla, if you wish. It’s just the thing for ministers to crow about, you might think: evidence that the UK possesses a few fast-growing tech innovators capable of injecting oomph into the government’s loose 10-point sketch for a green revolution.There&rsq
  
  Read more

• The Guardian view on Johnson's green jobs plan: the right way to start | Editorial

  18-11-2020 20:16 via theguardian.com
  
  The prime minister has correctly identified the challenge, but his record invites doubt that he can turn his rhetoric into realityBoris Johnson’s comfort zone is the future. He is weak at managing the day-to-day business of a government and bad at making hard choices quickly. For that reason, he is poorly suited to the role of prime minister during a pandemic, but better at the job of selling a “green industrial revolution” for the recovery phase.The launch on Wednesday of a 10
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• SSE plans to triple renewable energy production by 2030

  18-11-2020 19:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Firm says investment in low-carbon infrastructure will help UK emerge from Covid impactSSE has set out plans to triple its renewable energy generation by 2030 as it prepares to build the world’s largest offshore windfarm off the north-east coast of England.The energy firm told investors that it was days away from a final investment decision on the 3.2GW Dogger Bank offshore windfarm, which could generate enough clean electricity to power 4.5m homes by 2026. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• The green plan looks good, but the government must live up to its promises | Rebecca Newsom

  18-11-2020 18:31 via theguardian.com
  
  A huge amount of effort and planning will be required to fulfil Boris Johnson’s 10 pledges to tackle the climate emergency
  •Rebecca Newsom is head of politics at Greenpeace UKAfter many weeks of speculation, the prime minister has finally announced his “ten-point plan” for a green industrial revolution. This is essential because the UK has a massive gap between its current actions to tackle the climate emergency compared to what is needed to meet its legally binding climat
  
  Read more

• Covid-19 mink variants discovered in humans in seven countries

  18-11-2020 18:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Denmark has already launched a nationwide cull of its farmed mink herd after concerns for vaccine efficacyCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSeven countries are now reporting mink-related Sars-CoV-2 mutations in humans, according to new scientific analysis.The mutations are identified as Covid-19 mink variants as they have repeatedly been found in mink and now in humans as well.Uncertainty around the implications of the discovery of a Covid-19 mink variant in human
  
  Read more

• Green targets: Do governments meet them?

  18-11-2020 18:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  As the UK government unveils new environmental targets, what about the previous ones?
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• 'I could make a little difference in the world but it seems like a lot of work. Is it worth trying?'

  18-11-2020 17:30 via theguardian.com
  
  The point of this sort of effort isn’t success, writes advice columnist Eleanor Gordon-Smith. It’s to engage with something bigger than ourselvesI’ve found a perfect way to make a little difference in the world but I’m not sure I can be bothered. We got letters telling us our apartment building would be part of a new recycling program. It sounded really cool but then it never happened. After a lot of emails, I found out our building’s strata would have to vote on it
  
  Read more

• PM's climate vision: 10 steps forward, 10 steps back?

  18-11-2020 16:27 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The long-awaited emissions plan leave some policies untouched, says the BBC's Environment Analyst.
  
  Read more

• edie scoops another prestigious award for Sustainability Leaders Forum

  18-11-2020 16:21
  
  edie's flagship Sustainability Leaders Forum has built on consecutive Bronze accolades at the annual Conference Awards by being awarded Silver in the coveted Conference of the Year category.
  
  Read more

• LafargeHolcim links €850m to decarbonisation goals

  18-11-2020 15:06
  
  The world's largest cement manufacturer, LafargeHolcim, has priced an €850m bond linked to the company's sustainability targets.
  
  Read more

• What does Boris Johnson's Green plan mean for Scotland?

  18-11-2020 15:03 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The PM's plan will need to look heavily to Scotland for both the natural and the technical fixes.
  
  Read more

• South Georgia whaling: Antarctic art marks a dark past

  18-11-2020 14:47 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Michael Visocchi's work memorialises the many animals killed by the whale hunters of South Georgia.
  
  Read more

• 'Some of the darkest places in the world': Joaquin Phoenix on a photobook about slaughterhouses

  18-11-2020 14:11 via theguardian.com
  
  In Hidden, 40 photographers go inside factory farms and abattoirs to create a global indictment of the meat industryWarning: contains images you may find upsettingSlumped in the darkness of a narrow corridor lies a pig with hopeless eyes. Each strand of hair is defined, and every line, wrinkle and crease on its body seems to express the cruel conditions of its life. The photo, by Finnish photojournalist Kristo Muurimaa, is just one of the many shocking images compiled in the photo book Hidden. C
  
  Read more

• How electric cars are charged and how far they go: your questions answered

  18-11-2020 13:04 via bbc.co.uk
  
  We answer your top questions on electric cars - on charging, on range and on battery life.
  
  Read more

• E.ON: 7 in 10 Brits want air pollution information in daily weather forecasts

  18-11-2020 12:51
  
  A survey of more than 4,000 adults in the UK has found that almost three-quarters want information on air pollution in their local area to be included in daily weather forecasts.
  
  Read more

• Laugh if you want, but the 'McPlant' burger is a step to a greener world | Adrienne Matei

  18-11-2020 12:29 via theguardian.com
  
  McDonald’s sells 75 burgers every second. Its embrace of plant-based meat alternatives could make a real difference
  When McDonald’s announced its plan to launch a plant-based burger earlier this month, Twitter users were quick to mock the product’s unimaginative name: the … McPlant.But no matter what you think of the fast food chain’s marketing department, the McPlant actually represents a meaningful milestone for plant-based protein products. This is a real step
  
  Read more

• UK climate plan: What do the terms mean?

  18-11-2020 12:10 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Ahead of a UK plan to reach "net zero", we guide you through some of the key terms in climate change.
  
  Read more

• Report: Just 3 in 10 European businesses are properly disclosing their climate impact

  18-11-2020 11:19
  
  Only 30% of Europe's largest companies publicly publish detailed information on their climate policies, emissions footprint and climate risk, an analysis of 300 major businesses has found.
  
  Read more

• Investment gap: £400bn required to deliver net-zero transition, report finds

  18-11-2020 11:02
  
  On the day that the Government unveiled a new Ten Point Plan to drive investment to assist with the net-zero transition, a new report from PwC has warned that up to £400bn needs to be unlocked and funnelled into green infrastructure to meet the 2050 national target.
  
  Read more

• 'Dire outlook': scientists say Florida reefs have lost nearly 98% of coral

  18-11-2020 11:00 via theguardian.com
  
  While overall US coral reefs are in fair condition, along the coast of Florida as little as 2% of original coral cover remainsThe United States’ coral reefs are in fair condition, according to a recent reef condition status report, but vulnerable to decline. Scientists estimate that along the coast of Florida, where degradation is most severe, perhaps as little as 2% of original coral cover remains.The report, released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (Noaa) and the Universit
  
  Read more

• Henkel targets net-zero by 2040 under Amazon's Climate Pledge

  18-11-2020 10:45
  
  FMCG giant Henkel has joined Amazon's Climate Pledge, committing to reach net-zero emissions across all scopes by 2040.
  
  Read more

• UK's advertising sector charts course to net-zero by 2030

  18-11-2020 10:18
  
  Trade body the Advertising Association has launched a collaborative initiative to support the UK's advertising industry to reach net-zero within a decade.
  
  Read more

• Can Spain fix its worst ecological disaster by making a lagoon a legal person?

  18-11-2020 09:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Murcia residents hope to protect the polluted Mar Menor, Europe’s largest saltwater lagoon, with a change in legal status“At least we know it is alive,” says a fisherman, walking back down the pier to the muddy beach at Los Urrutias, in the south-east Spanish province of Murcia, where he’s been fishing all day. He doesn’t mean his catch, but rather the water in the Mar Menor, one of the largest seawater lagoons in Europe.Los Urrutias may look idyllic, with flamingos
  
  Read more

• Can Spain fix its worst ecological crisis by making a lagoon a legal person?

  18-11-2020 09:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Murcia residents hope to protect the polluted Mar Menor, Europe’s largest saltwater lagoon, with a change in legal status“At least we know it is alive,” says a fisherman, walking back down the pier to the muddy beach at Los Urrutias, in the south-east Spanish province of Murcia, where he’s been fishing all day. He doesn’t mean his catch, but rather the water in the Mar Menor, one of the largest seawater lagoons in Europe.Los Urrutias may look idyllic, with flamingos
  
  Read more

• Small steps taken to make shipping greener

  18-11-2020 09:26 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Delegates agree on guidelines to align the industry with the Paris climate change treaty.
  
  Read more

• Ban on new petrol and diesel cars in UK from 2030 under PM's green plan

  18-11-2020 09:17 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The PM confirms he is bringing the ban forward as he sets out his "green industrial revolution".
  
  Read more

• UK ban on new fossil fuel vehicles by 2030 'not enough' to hit climate targets

  18-11-2020 09:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Thinktank says deadline of 2026 is needed for government to meet its own carbon budgetThe prime minister’s plan to bring forward a ban on the sale of new fossil fuel vehicles by 10 years to 2030 will still not go far enough to meet the government’s own legally binding climate targets, according to new research.Boris Johnson is expected to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles by setting out a new deadline for the sales of polluting passenger cars as part of a 10-point plan to tac
  
  Read more

• City of London buys into new Dorset solar farm to help power Square Mile

  18-11-2020 07:01 via theguardian.com
  
  City Corporation signs £40m deal with French renewables firm Voltalia to ensure green energy supplyThousands of solar panels in the Dorset countryside will soon power Britain’s historic financial centre under a new renewable energy deal struck by the City of London Corporation.The City’s governing body expects to save £3m by buying over half of the electricity powering the Square Mile from a subsidy-free solar farm in the south-west of England made up of 95,000 new solar
  
  Read more

• Country diary: a creaky greenhouse makes a snug shelter from the downpour

  18-11-2020 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Crook, County Durham: There’s a pleasant aroma of damp earth, and some wildflower seedlings are sproutingDuring a break in the rain, I dashed down to the greenhouse at the bottom of the garden. I was seduced into lingering too long. A torrential downpour is hammering on the roof. It’s 70 paces back to the house, far enough away to be soaked to the skin: I’m trapped for a while.This creaky, leaky 8ft-by-6ft house of glass and aluminium is 40 years old. In autumn last year, an ov
  
  Read more

• Push to oust Liberal MP Craig Kelly gathers pace: 'It’s awful to be the laughing stock of the country'

  18-11-2020 01:41 via theguardian.com
  
  Grassroots groups in the Sydney seat of Hughes say enthusiasm is building as they reject Kelly’s climate change denial and unsupported Covid claimsWhat do supporting hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for Covid-19 and climate change denialism have in common?Apart from a dwindling body of scientific support for either of them, the two causes have united some of the world’s most conservative politicians, from the outgoing US president, Donald Trump, to the Australian federal MP Craig Ke
  
  Read more

• Unilever to halve food waste, sets €1bn sales target for plant-based food alternatives

  18-11-2020 01:01
  
  Consumer goods giant Unilever has unveiled a new "future foods" strategy that will see the company commit to halving food waste, improving nutritional standards and set a €1bn sales target for plant-based meat and dairy alternatives.
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!