Environment news

• Antarctic temperatures rise 10C above average in near record heatwave

  01-08-2024 20:32
  
  Reported temperatures on continent in midwinter reach 28C above expectations on some days in JulyGround temperatures across great swathes of the ice sheets of Antarctica have soared an average of 10C above normal over the past month, in what has been described as a near record heatwave.While temperatures remain below zero on the polar land mass, which is shrouded in darkness at this time of year, the depths of southern hemisphere winter, temperatures have reportedly reached 28C above expectation
  
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• Five Just Stop Oil protesters jailed for climbing gantries to block M25

  01-08-2024 20:22
  
  Activists had admitted causing public nuisance for their part in four days of disruption on motorway in 2022Five supporters of the climate activist group Just Stop Oil have been jailed for climbing gantries over the M25 in an attempt to cause gridlock on the motorway.George Simonson and Theresa Higginson were sentenced to two years each, Paul Bell was sentenced to 22 months, and Gaie Delap and Paul Sousek were sentenced to 20 months for their part in the protests in November 2022. Continue readi
  
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• This is a pivotal moment for deep-sea mining | Letter

  01-08-2024 19:23
  The challenger to the current secretary general of the International Seabed Authority should be supported in this week’s election, writes Guy StandingA vital election is taking place this week, for secretary general of the International Seabed Authority, the body responsible for regulating activities in about half the world’s sea (Inside the battle for top job that will decide the future of deep-sea mining, 29 July).Standing for re-election is a British lawyer, Michael Lodge, but the
  
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• Almost quarter of big fashion brands have no decarbonisation plan, report finds

  01-08-2024 14:00
  
  DKNY, Tom Ford and Reebok among companies to score 0% in Fashion Revolution report ranking top 250 firmsAlmost a quarter of the world’s biggest fashion brands, such as Reebok, Tom Ford and DKNY, do not have a public plan for decarbonisation, a report has found.The fashion industry can be highly polluting. In some casesforever chemicals have been found in the waters near factories. The industry is also a concerning source of waste, with fast fashion accused of encouraging overconsumption. C
  
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• The silence is deafening: why this year’s environmental films are nonverbal

  01-08-2024 12:12
  From Hundreds of Beavers to In a Violent Nature and Sasquatch Sunset, all have chosen to limit or refrain from dialogue to bring audiences closer to those that cannot speak for themselvesAs the old adage goes “nature is red in tooth and claw” but this year’s environmental cinema focuses on a bloodier violence which is far from inevitable. The black and white slapstick comedy Hundreds of Beavers, the gory slasher In a Violent Nature and cryptid movie Sasquatch Sunset all chose t
  
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• US Forest Service failing to protect old growth trees from logging, critics say

  01-08-2024 12:00
  
  Biden’s efforts to save mature trees are not getting enough Forest Service support, according to some conservationistsThey are the ancient giants of America – towering trunks of sequoias or beech or ash that started to sprout in some cases before the age of the Roman empire, with the few survivors of a frenzy of settler logging now appreciated as crucial allies in an era of climate and biodiversity crises.Joe Biden has vowed to protect these “cherished” remnants of old gr
  
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• Sea swimming was my saviour. But the dumping of sewage changed everything | Jo Bateman

  01-08-2024 11:00
  
  My daily dips were a game-changer for my mental health. Now I’m suing the water company that’s deprived me of themSix years ago, I was living in the Midlands, about as far away from the sea as you can get. But during a week of walking from Poole to Lyme Regis, I fell in love with that vast blue space and its ability to restore my mind and body. I went home, handed in my notice, put my house on the market and within a few months I was living in Exmouth, Devon – a stone’s t
  
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• Brazil led the way, now the UK should get behind the assault on hunger and poverty | Kevin Watkins

  01-08-2024 10:00
  At its recent summit, Lula gave the G20 a chance to show its commitment to real change – and Britain can take the leadLast week the Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, shattered the mould of G20 meetings. In using the annual summit as a launchpad for a new effort to tackle hunger and extreme poverty, he has provided the world with a chance – a last chance – to breathe new life into a moribund sustainable development goal (SDG) agenda. He has handed the G20 a
  
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• Sea change: How the Herring Queen brought promise and joy to a small Scottish town

  01-08-2024 08:00
  
  The annual coronation of a young girl symbolised a fishing community’s hopes. Now, as the industry declines, it has evolved to reflect the powerful role of women and the change they bring about• Photographs by Christopher ThomondThe sun is battling the clouds, but the forecast rain holds off as the flotilla enters the harbour. Lining the quayside, hundreds of local people and tourists cheer each boat as it appears, and the sound of a pipe band skirls on the breeze as families crane th
  
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• Weatherwatch: Space rockets helping trigger noctilucent clouds

  01-08-2024 07:00
  Research shows strong correlation between summer launches and the frequency of the wispy silvery-blue phenomenonNoctilucent clouds are a rare and special sight. Only visible at latitudes between 45° and 80°, these shimmering wispy silvery-blue clouds can occasionally be seen high in the sky on a clear summer’s night. But in recent decades they have been making more frequent appearances and now a new study reveals that space launches are helping to spawn them.Made up from very thin
  
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• Country diary: Into the woods for the (near) silence of midsummer | Sara Hudston

  01-08-2024 06:30
  
  Porlock, Somerset: Only hungry horseflies and a young buzzard disturb the peace, while the deep green has taken on a blue glintThis is the time of the green pause, when the wood is heavy and stilled, its main growth rush over, poised before autumn ripening. Quietness hangs between the trees, disturbed only by the high, distant keening of a young buzzard.Riding early on a hot morning, my horse’s neck is soon damp with sweat. Veins rise on his sleek, bay shoulders as he puffs his way up the
  
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• Cornish conservation charity launches major ‘Tor to Shore’ rewilding project

  01-08-2024 06:00
  
  Cornwall Wildlife Trust initiative aims to benefit creatures from upland marsh fritillaries to seahorses in St Austell BayA Cornish conservation charity has launched an ambitious rewilding project intended to benefit creatures from marsh fritillary butterflies living high on the moor to long-snouted seahorses in seagrass in a bay five miles away.The Tor to Shore project will stretch from Helman Tor, a reserve topped with a granite boulder summit near Bodmin, to St Austell Bay via the tumbling Ri
  
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• Signs of life on Sycamore Gap tree stump

  01-08-2024 03:10 via bbc.com
  
  Eight new shoots have been discovered emerging from the base of the felled tree on Hadrian's Wall.
  
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• Dutton sings O Canada to sell nuclear plan. But does Ontario really have cheaper power? | Temperature Check

  01-08-2024 02:00
  Opposition leader’s argument is puzzling given Canadian provinces dominated by renewables pay less for electricityGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThere’s a community in Ontario called Dutton which, right now, seems appropriate given the number of times Peter Dutton has name-checked the Canadian province over the last 12 months.In dozens of media interviews and speeches, Dutton (the opposition leader, not the township) has said Ontarians are ge
  
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• Dutton praises Canada to sell nuclear plan. But does Ontario really have cheaper power? | Temperature Check

  01-08-2024 02:00
  Opposition leader’s argument is puzzling given Canadian provinces dominated by renewables pay less for electricityFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThere’s a community in Ontario called Dutton which, right now, seems appropriate given the number of times Peter Dutton has name-checked the Canadian province over the last 12 months.In dozens of media interviews and speeches, Dutton (the oppositi
  
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• Witness to Titan sub tragedy tells of fear and false hope

  01-08-2024 01:41 via bbc.com
  
  Rory Golden, who was on the Titan sub's support ship when it went missing, recounts the experience.
  
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