Environment news

• Endangered axolotl release raises hopes for rare amphibian

  30-04-2025 20:00 via bbc.com
  Study provides hope for future of the axolotl amphibian, pushed to the brink of extinction in Mexico.
  
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• Downing Street forces Tony Blair to row back from net zero strategy criticism

  30-04-2025 19:58 via theguardian.com
  Labour politicians warn former PM had boosted Tory and Reform climate sceptics on the eve of local electionsTony Blair has been forced by Downing Street to row back from his criticism of the government’s net zero strategy after furious Labour politicians warned he had given a boost to Tory and Reform sceptics on the eve of the local elections.Climate experts also accused the former prime minister of granting political cover to fossil fuel interests and weakening momentum behind the UK&rsqu
  
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• The Guardian view on Labour and net zero politics: lean in and ignore bad advice | Editorial

  30-04-2025 19:44 via theguardian.com
  
  Sir Tony Blair’s ill-conceived contribution to the climate debate was a political gift to Nigel Farage. But public support for the green transition remains strongThe Climate Change Committee’s latest report on the UK’s response to unprecedented environmental challenges makes for grim reading. Recalling the extreme weather swings of the last few years – which delivered both the wettest 18 months on record and the largest number of wildfires – the report’s autho
  
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• Are microplastics really in everything – even my brain?

  30-04-2025 18:00 via theguardian.com
  
  The plastic particles are everywhere – here’s what to know about what to avoid, whether they ever leave the body and what to do about plastic pollutionMicroplastics are tiny particles of plastic. Continue reading...
  
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• The Guardian view on Australia’s federal election: progressives must vote strategically

  30-04-2025 17:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Anthony Albanese has delivered steady, gradual reform – but a minority government might force Labor to push through bolder solutionsPolls tracker; election guide; full federal election coverageAnywhere but Canberra; interactive electorates guideListen to the latest episode of our new narrative podcast series: GinaGet our afternoon election email, free app or daily news podcastAustralians know the government they elect on 3 May will have to navigate multiple crises.At home, a cost-of-living
  
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• It’s the anti net-zero, anti-woke Tony Blair – how was this man ever considered a progressive? | Zoe Williams

  30-04-2025 16:59 via theguardian.com
  The former PM has form when it comes to pushing corporate interests and meeting populists halfwayWhen Tony Blair came out this week to say current net zero policies were “doomed to fail”, there was something familiar in his arguments: phasing out fossil fuels wouldn’t work because people perceived it as expensive, arduous and not their problem. Stop banging on about renewables; won’t someone think of the things we don’t know how to do, like carbon capture and such w
  
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• Climate experts and politicians round on Tony Blair for ‘wrong message’

  30-04-2025 13:28 via theguardian.com
  
  Former Labour PM accused of ‘handing talking points’ to Tories and Reform after saying net zero strategy falteringUK politics live – latest updatesClimate experts and politicians have criticised Tony Blair for claiming that any strategy that relied on rapidly phasing out fossil fuels was “doomed to fail”.The former prime minister’s comments, published in a report from the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI), prompted an internal row in Labour, with so
  
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• Chicken megafarm in Shropshire must not be built, clean river group tells court

  30-04-2025 12:44 via theguardian.com
  
  ‘Huge volumes of chicken muck’ entering rivers are harmful to fish and plants, campaigners argue at Cardiff high courtClean river campaigners have told a court that planning permission for a poultry megafarm in Shropshire is unlawful and should be overturned.In the high court in Cardiff on Wednesday, Dr Alison Caffyn argued that the council had failed to take into account all the environmental impacts of the industrial chicken units, which will house 230,000 birds at any one time, in
  
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• Tony Blair risks sending absolutely wrong message, says climate expert

  30-04-2025 11:39 via theguardian.com
  
  Former PM also sparks Labour fury, with top MP accusing him of ‘handing talking points’ to Tories and ReformUK politics live – latest updatesTony Blair has come under criticism from climate experts after warning that any strategy relying on rapidly phasing out fossil fuels is “doomed to fail”.The former prime minister’s comments, published in a new report from the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI), triggered an internal row within Labour, with some
  
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• Scientists hope sequencing genome of tiny ‘functionally extinct’ frog could help save it

  30-04-2025 11:05 via theguardian.com
  
  Corroboree frog belongs to 100m-year-old family of amphibians but is now found only in the puddles and peat bogs of Kosciuszko national parkScientists have sequenced the genome of the critically endangered southern corroboree frog – one of Australia’s most threatened amphibians – in hope that the information could be used to aid its recovery.The striking alpine frog, which has distinctive yellow and black markings, is so threatened by disease and the drying of its habitat due t
  
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• ‘Alarming’ bug splat decline on UK cars raises fears for flying insect numbers

  30-04-2025 09:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Annual survey of numberplates from more than 25,000 journeysreveals 63% fall in squashed bugs since 2021 The long-term decline in the number of flying insects being splattered on cars after a journey is well recognised by older drivers. But the latest survey has revealed that the number of insects found on vehicle number plates has plummeted by 63% since 2021.An analysis of records from more than 25,000 journeys across Britain since 2021 reveals an alarming apparent drop in flying insect abundan
  
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• UK watchdog bans coffee pod ads over ‘misleading’ composting claims

  30-04-2025 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Advertising Standards Authority says neither Lavazza UK nor Dualit’s product can be recycled at homeDescriptions of coffee pods as “compostable eco capsules” were misleading as they could not be composted at home, the Advertising Standards Authority has ruled.The ASA has banned adverts by Lavazza UK and Dualit, which both made claims about the eco credentials of their coffee products. Continue reading...
  
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• Butterflywatch: UV torches aid monitoring of rare and elusive species

  30-04-2025 07:00 via theguardian.com
  Conservation groups count glow-in-the-dark caterpillars and chrysalises which are hard to spot in daylightNature lovers have been enjoying using UV torches to discover the vivid fluorescent colours of plants and animals at night for a few years now.Now lepidopterists have realised that UV torches provide a highly effective new way to find and count rare and elusive butterflies. Continue reading...
  
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• India and Pakistan already sweltering in ‘new normal’ heatwave conditions

  30-04-2025 06:00 via theguardian.com
  Temperatures south Asians dread each year arrive early as experts talk of ever shorter transition to summer-like heatThe summer conditions south Asian countries dread each year have arrived alarmingly early, and it’s only April. Much of India and Pakistan is already sweltering in heatwave conditions, in what scientists say is fast becoming the “new normal”.Temperatures in the region typically climb through May, peaking in June before the monsoon brings relief. But this year, th
  
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• Australia’s best photos of the month – April 2025

  30-04-2025 03:00 via theguardian.com
  Wild weather, elections and rabbit jumping are all part of some of the month’s best images in Australia for April Continue reading...
  
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• Government not taking climate seriously - advisers

  30-04-2025 02:54 via bbc.com
  The government has made little progress in preparing the UK for rising temperatures, climate watchdog the CCC says.
  
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• Blair says current net zero policies 'doomed to fail'

  30-04-2025 00:00 via bbc.com
  The former PM's call for a change of course is rejected by Downing Street but welcomed by the Tories and Reform.
  
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