Environment news

• Global landmarks turn off the lights to mark annual Earth Hour

  27-03-2021 22:34 via theguardian.com
  
  This year’s event focuses on the link between harming the natural world and disease outbreaks like Covid-19Cities around the world were turning off their lights on Saturday for Earth Hour, with this year’s event highlighting the link between the destruction of nature and increasing outbreaks of diseases like Covid-19.In London, the Houses of Parliament, London Eye, Shard skyscraper and neon signs of Piccadilly Circus were among the landmarks flicking the switches. Continue reading...
  
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• Green Homes Grant scheme to insulate houses axed

  27-03-2021 22:20 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Homeowners were invited to apply for grants to insulate houses but the scheme is being suddenly ended.
  
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• UK government scraps green homes grant after six months

  27-03-2021 22:00 via theguardian.com
  
  £1.5bn scheme at heart of Boris Johnson’s ‘build back better’ promise has struggled since launchThe government has scrapped its flagship green homes grant scheme, the centrepiece of Boris Johnson’s promise to “build back greener” from the Covid-19 pandemic, just over six months after its launch.The abandonment of the £1.5bn programme, which offered households grants of up to £5,000 or £10,000 to put in insulation or low-carbon heating,
  
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• Leading the charge: how the hospitality sector is building Australia's EV network

  27-03-2021 20:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Instead of waiting for the government to step up, hotels, Airbnb hosts and other operators are installing micro EV chargersFor David Ritchie, installing three electric car chargers for customers at his winery was a “no-brainer”. With a powerful solar array and storage battery about to come online, visitors to Delatite Wines will soon be able to drive their EVs to the idyllic spot in regional Victoria and enjoy their sampling tour safe in the knowledge that they will be charging their
  
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• Developing a flood plain: how raising a dam wall could create a false sense of security in Sydney's west

  27-03-2021 20:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Thinking a higher wall will stop flooding could leave governments, businesses and home owners unprepared for ‘the inevitable big one’, an expert saysIn 1867 the river at Windsor, north-west of Sydney, rose 19 metres, causing the biggest flood known to Europeans in Australia.“The town of Windsor itself is almost entirely submerged and the country for miles around is underwater,” the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Continue reading...
  
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• Apophis asteroid will not hit Earth for 100 years, Nasa says

  27-03-2021 14:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The space agency rules out a 2068 threat to Earth from the "poster child for hazardous asteroids".
  
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• Sow seeds now for a riotous summer bouquet | Alys Fowler

  27-03-2021 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  The thought of being able to give posies to those who might need a little cheer has brought about a calmness in meLike everyone else, I have missed peering into other people’s lives. I’m so ready to see back gardens again, to peep through the back door at interior worlds. The thought of being able to fill the house with flowers and give away big bouquets and tiny posies to those who might need a little cheer has brought about a calmness in me. And I’ve got a plan.There are hund
  
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• Richard Mabey: 'Viruses and man-eating tigers and predatory Asian hornets are all part of nature'

  27-03-2021 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  A pioneer of British nature writing, Richard Mabey has always been years ahead of his time. So how does he think the pandemic will change our relationship to the natural world?After a year of virus-plagued humans observing with new wonder how wildlife boosts our wellbeing, the conclusion of the man who invented the burgeoning “nature cure” genre is unexpected. Nature, declares Richard Mabey, makes us ill. He was first told this by his fellow writer, Kathleen Jamie, and it made Mabey
  
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• 'Reclaim These Streets' and rubber duck rallies: human rights roundup – in pictures

  27-03-2021 10:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Coverage on recent struggles for human rights and freedoms, from Cardiff Bay to Thailand Continue reading...
  
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• Protests at 'inhumane' export of live horses to Japan for food

  27-03-2021 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Activists seek ban on flying horses to Japan with thousands sent every year from Canada and France
  Tens of thousands of horses are being subjected to long-haul flights, confined in crates with no food or water, to meet demand for horsemeat in Japan.Since 2013, about 40,000 live horses have been flown to Japan from airports in western Canada. Under Canadian regulations, the journey can stretch up to 28 hours, during which the animals are allowed to go without food, water or rest. Continue reading
  
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• Giant sandcastle built to bring sand martins home to roost in Surrey

  27-03-2021 07:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Conservationists build 400-tonne structure to tempt migrating birds back to nature reserve after 25 yearsA giant “sandcastle” has been constructed to encourage sand martins to nest at a nature reserve for the first time in 25 years, Surrey Wildlife Trust has said.The 400-tonne sand installation at Spynes Mere, near Merstham, Surrey, was built by professional sand sculptors who used a “giant bucket mould” made from wooden boards, as well as the help of diggers and dumper t
  
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• Weatherwatch: planes, rain and wartime radar angels

  27-03-2021 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Large numbers of blips moving across the Channel prompted red alerts – but had an innocent explanationOn 20 March 1941, RAF Fighter Command sounded a red alert. The Chain Home radar had detected a large number of blips moving across the Channel and it looked like a mass Luftwaffe bomber raid was on the way. But 40 miles from the south coast the blips faded out to nothing, and no aircraft were sighted.The same thing happened several times, with fighters scrambled to intercept intruders only
  
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• Country diary: mist, music and mighty oaks evolve

  27-03-2021 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Castle Howard, North Yorkshire: The pottering and probing curlews appear to have chosen one of the most well-trodden areas of the estateLow-lying mist has extended this morning’s sunrise into a feature-length spectacle – the light remains diffuse and golden fully two whole hours after dawn. It seems to have inspired an extended chorus, which pours in from every which way at once – blackbird and wren, rook and jackdaw, wood pigeon, great and blue tits, an occasional estate peaco
  
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• Joe Biden invites 40 world leaders to virtual summit on climate crisis

  27-03-2021 03:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin among invitees as US heralds return to forefront of climate fightJoe Biden has invited 40 world leaders to a virtual summit on the climate crisis, the White House said in a statement on Friday.Heads of state, including Xi Jinping of China and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, have been asked to attend the two-day meeting meant to mark Washington’s return to the front lines of the fight against human-caused climate change, after Donald Trump disengaged from the pr
  
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