Environment news

• Scientists find two new species of fungi that turn flies into 'zombies'

  15-12-2020 19:18 via theguardian.com
  
  Insect-destroying fungi ‘may represent the next frontier for drug discovery’Two new fungi species that infect flies and eject spores out of a large hole in the insect’s abdomen “like small rockets” have been discovered in Denmark.The new species, Strongwellsea tigrinae and Strongwellsea acerosa, are host-specific and rely on two species of Danish fly – Coenosia tigrina and Coenosia testacea, according to researchers at the University of Copenhagen. Continue re
  
  Read more

• The Morrison government subsidising dirty fuel amid the climate crisis beggars belief | Bill Hare

  15-12-2020 17:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Angus Taylor seems to be wilfully ignoring Australia’s huge transport emissions problem The announcement this week by energy minister Angus Taylor that he’s putting together a major package to prop up oil refineries to preserve dirty fuel supplies to one of the dirtiest car fleets on the planet simply beggars belief.This week, we’ve seen king tides and storms hitting the country’s eastern coastline, changing the face of much-loved Aussie beaches, which were already feelin
  
  Read more

• China is scaling up its weather modification programme – here's why we should be worried | Arwa Mahdawi

  15-12-2020 16:50 via theguardian.com
  
  Beijing is aiming to control rain and snow across half the country. But it is the reason it wants to do this that is really frighteningRemember when Donald Trump wanted to nuke hurricanes so they didn’t hit the US? Everyone laughed uproariously, but Trump’s warped little mind was actually on to something. You may not be able to bomb hurricanes into oblivion, but you can shoot things into the atmosphere in order to change the weather. It’s a process known as cloud seeding and a
  
  Read more

• 'A conversation across time and space': the power of birdsong

  15-12-2020 16:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Musician Cosmo Sheldrake is on a mission to highlight the loss of UK birdlife with an album of avian chatterWhy should we listen to birds? – podcastI’m sitting by a pond with musician Cosmo Sheldrake, wearing a pair of headphones that are attached to a large, fluffy microphone a few feet away. An obstacle course of wires surrounds us and there are two more microphones hidden in a bush by a bird feeder. It looks like lockdown’s answer to a silent disco, but far from being engros
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Sustainable Business Covered podcast: In the Green Room with EN+ Group's Lord Barker

  15-12-2020 15:38
  
  To mark episode 94 of the edie podcast, content editor Matt Mace makes a long-overdue return to the Green Room, to discuss how Covid-19, climate policy and Brexit have impacted corporate sustainability with EN+ Group's non-executive chairman and former DECC minister Lord Barker.
  
  Read more

• Councils not confident of reaching net-zero commitments

  15-12-2020 14:25
  
  More than a third of councils in the UK are not confident that they'll be able to meet public commitments to reaching net-zero emissions, with a "black hole" of data hindering efforts on energy efficiency plans.
  
  Read more

• America's last wilderness is about to go to the highest bidder for oil drilling | Kim Heacox

  15-12-2020 12:32 via theguardian.com
  
  Ten thousand years of undisturbed nature will soon be open to the highest bidder, starting at $25 an acreLanguage is everything.Those who argue for oil drilling in the Arctic national wildlife refuge, a place of stunning wild beauty in far north-east Alaska, seldom call it what it is – a refuge. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Lendlease outlines roadmap to reach zero carbon emissions in Europe

  15-12-2020 11:55
  
  International property and investments group Lendlease has launched a new roadmap which outlines how eliminating diesel use on construction sites and procuring 100% renewable electricity will help the company reach net-zero emissions by 2040.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Telefónica, Nestlé and Ragn-Sells commit to net-zero supply chains

  15-12-2020 11:10
  
  Technology giant Telefónica, food manufacturer Nestlé and waste management firm Ragn-Sells are the latest businesses to sign up to a collaborative movement to reduce value chain emissions in line with the 1.5C ambition of the Paris Agreement.
  
  Read more

• Hayabusa-2: Pieces of an asteroid found inside space capsule

  15-12-2020 10:48 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists in Japan open the Hayabusa-2 space capsule that landed just over a week ago.
  
  Read more

• First case of coronavirus detected in wild animal

  15-12-2020 10:40 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Experts are calling for greater surveillance of wildlife for the virus after the discovery in a wild mink.
  
  Read more

• Government ponders 120GW of solar to help reach net-zero

  15-12-2020 10:18
  
  On the same day that the Energy White Paper was unveiled, the Government also launched a new consultation on how financing and deployment of renewable technologies can accelerate action towards net-zero, with up to 120GW of solar capacity mooted as a means to quadruple green energy nationally.
  
  Read more

• M&S to relaunch Plan A sustainability strategy

  15-12-2020 08:55
  
  M&S is planning to relaunch its industry-leading Plan A sustainability programme in 2021 to reflect on the changing environmental and social needs globally, with a new ESG Board Sub-Committee to be set up to scrutinise the strategy.
  
  Read more

• Restore UK woodland by letting trees plant themselves, says report

  15-12-2020 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Rewilding Britain charity says natural dispersal of seeds is cost-effective and boosts biodiversityAllowing trees and woodland to regenerate through the natural dispersal of seeds should become the default way to restore Britain’s forest cover, according to a new report.Natural regeneration brings the most benefits for biodiversity, is cost-effective and may sequester more carbon than previously thought, argues Rewilding Britain. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• 'Happy corals': climate crisis sanctuary teeming with life found off east Africa

  15-12-2020 07:45 via theguardian.com
  
  Rare discovery of reef cooled by channels formed during creation of Kilimanjaro is ‘something to hope for’, say scientists
  Scientists have discovered a climate crisis refuge for coral reefs off the coast of Kenya and Tanzania, where species are thriving despite warming events that have killed their neighbours.The coral sanctuary is a wildlife hotspot, teeming with spinner dolphins and boasting rare species, including prehistoric fish and dugongs. Researchers believe its location in a
  
  Read more

• A68a iceberg: Science mission to investigate frozen giant

  15-12-2020 07:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists will send robotic vehicles under the colossal berg drifting in the South Atlantic.
  
  Read more

• Scientists plan mission to biggest iceberg as it drifts towards island

  15-12-2020 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Team will study effects on environment of A-68A, which is heading for South GeorgiaScientists are preparing for an urgent mission to the world’s biggest iceberg, which is on a collision course with the island of South Georgia in the southern Atlantic Ocean.The A-68A iceberg, which is larger than Luxembourg, broke off from the Larsen C ice shelf in Antarctica in 2017 and has been drifting towards the island ever since. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Why should we listen to birds? (part one) – podcast

  15-12-2020 06:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Our colleagues from the Age of Extinction project, Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield, are back with two new episodes asking whether birdsong might be beneficial to both our mental and physical health – and if nature is so good for us, why aren’t we taking better care of it? Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• New Covid strain: How worried should we be?

  15-12-2020 05:47 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists will keep a close eye on this variant to see if it is a better spreader than others.
  
  Read more

• A palm oil alternative could help save rainforests

  15-12-2020 01:17 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Plantations for palm oil are blamed for rainforest destruction, but an artificial palm oil is close.
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!