Environment news

• Plastics lobbyists make up biggest group at vital UN treaty talks

  27-11-2024 14:14
  
  Fossil fuel and chemical industry representatives outnumber those of the EU or host country South KoreaRecord numbers of plastic industry lobbyists are attending global talks that are the last chance to hammer out a treaty to cut plastic pollution around the world.The key issue at the conference will be whether caps on global plastic production will be included in the final UN treaty. Lobbyists and leading national producers are furiously arguing against any attempt to restrain the amount that c
  
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• Climate denial a unifying theme of Trump’s cabinet picks, experts say

  27-11-2024 12:00
  
  Loyalists selected for important roles have offered staunch support to fossil fuels and downplayed climate crisisDonald Trump’s cabinet picks have been eclectic and often controversial but a unifying theme is emerging, experts say, with the US president-elect’s nominees offering staunch support to fossil fuels and either downplaying or denying the climate crisis caused by the burning of these fuels.Trump ran on promises to eviscerate “green new scam” climate policies and
  
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• My family has grown Britain’s food for 140 years. Here’s what politicians don’t understand about farming | Clare Wise

  27-11-2024 09:00
  
  We’ve cared for our farm through war, pandemic and money worries. The inheritance tax row shows how little the government respects thatClare Wise is a farmer based in County DurhamIf you are familiar with the pangs of parental guilt, then you can relate to owning a farm. Take that gut-wrenching, often irrational feeling, amplify it, and welcome to being a farmer. From the moment you’re born into a family farm, there’s a weight of expectation on you to look after it, to put it b
  
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• Paradise lost? How cruise companies are ‘eating up’ the Bahamas

  27-11-2024 07:00
  
  Another vast tourist resort project promising jobs and prosperity. But critics say such developments imperil the pristine environments they advertiseRead more in this seriesJoseph Darville has fond memories of swimming with his young son off the south coast of Grand Bahama island, and watching together as scores of dolphins frolicked offshore. A lifelong environmentalist now aged 82, Darville has always valued the rich marine habitat and turquoise blue seas of the Bahamas, which have lured local
  
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• Dead Sea ‘white smokers’ provide early sinkhole warning, say scientists

  27-11-2024 07:00
  
  Underwater chimney structures spewing jets of brine can help alert to dangerous regional issue, research showsVenting chimneys have been discovered on the floor of the Dead Sea. These previously unknown “white smokers” spew out salty water and provide early warning of sinkhole formation on nearby land.The Dead Sea is sinking fast. Over the past 50 years, intense evaporation has resulted in it dropping by about 1 metre a year, with its surface now approximately 438 metres beneath sea
  
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• Country diary: Getting to know autumn again | Country diary

  27-11-2024 06:30
  
  Pollok Country Park, Glasgow: Having lived on Orkney for five years, I’d forgotten about the season’s mellow fruitfulnessAfter five years in Orkney, my partner and I have moved “sooth” – that is, to the Scottish mainland. There’s a lot to get used to, not least carrying our house keys again. But what has caught me by surprise is the sense of having rediscovered a whole season.I’d forgotten about autumn, you see. No trees up north. Or what few hardy souls
  
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• Will Labour’s 2030 green energy goal cost more than 2035? They should come clean | Nils Pratley

  27-11-2024 06:00
  
  Ed Miliband argues the UK should race towards becoming a ‘clean energy superpower’, but costs to the consumer shouldn’t be ignoredThe government’s plan to decarbonise the UK’s electricity system by 2030 is a vast undertaking. Energy companies will throw £40bn-plus annually at the effort, backed by financing that ultimately affects consumers’ bills. So it is extraordinary that no official body seems able to answer this question: will it cost more to compl
  
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