Environment news

• Leadsom vows to continue with UK's climate commitments

  05-07-2016 17:25 via theguardian.com
  
  Tory leadership candidate and EU Leave campaigner says she remains committed to current pledges to cut emissions and decarbonise energy supplyAndrea Leadsom, the Tory leadership candidate and campaigner to leave the EU, vowed on Tuesday to continue with the UK’s commitments to tackle climate change and decarbonise the energy supply.
  She said that reducing greenhouse gases was a duty to future generations, and pledged to continue with the UK’s carbon budgets to set a limit on emission
  
  Read more

• ‘I love midges because I know what their hearts look like’: is the passion for taxonomy in danger of dying out?

  02-03-2026 09:00 via theguardian.com
  Insect taxonomist Art Borkent has described and named more than 300 species of midges but fears his field of science is dying out, despite millions of insects, fungi and other organisms waiting to be discoveredOnce Art Borkent starts speaking about biting midges, he rarely pauses for breath. Holding up a picture of a gnat trapped in amber from the time of the dinosaurs, the 72-year-old taxonomist explains that there are more than 6,000 ceratopogonidae species known to science. He has described a
  
  Read more

• ScottishPower refuses to believe that my father has died

  02-03-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  For months it has been adding to my mother’s distress when all she wanted was feed-in tariff payments go into her accountWhen my father died last year, nearly all the companies we had to notify were kind and empathetic, but not ScottishPower.It had been paying feed-in tariff (Fit) payments for electricity produced from my parents’ solar panels into his account. My parents had bought the panels jointly in 2011, and my mother is named on the certification and was ScottishPower’s
  
  Read more

• Country diary: Taking the long view of the farm and these fells | Andrea Meanwell

  02-03-2026 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Tebay, Cumbria: At this in-between moment where it’s both winter and spring, I’m reminded that nothing is permanent in farmingTo make our new hedgerows as diverse as possible, we are planting a fruit tree every 200 metres in them, and last winter we planted a new apple and damson orchard at Low Park, our abandoned farm. This morning, I am popping some additional fruit trees into the hedges and checking on the orchard. The trees have been sourced from damson growers in the Lyth Valley
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Disbelief as crocodile captured in Newcastle creek thousands of kilometres from natural habitat

  02-03-2026 02:30 via theguardian.com
  The juvenile freshwater crocodile was first spotted by a group of teenagers in Ironbark Creek in the Australian city on SaturdayAn Australian freshwater crocodile has been captured in a city creek thousands of kilometres south of its normal range, after sightings shocked onlookers at a suburban park.The crocodile was first spotted in Ironbark Creek in Newcastle – about 100km north of Sydney – around midday on Saturday, by a group of teenagers. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Datacentre developers face calls to disclose effect on UK’s net emissions

  01-03-2026 17:00 via theguardian.com
  Campaign groups write to technology secretary amid concerns that sites could double overall electricity demandDatacentre developers are facing pressure to reveal whether their projects will increase the UK’s net greenhouse gas emissions, amid concerns the sites could double national electricity demand.Campaign groups have written to the UK technology secretary, Liz Kendall, warning that the energy required by new AI infrastructure poses a “serious threat to efforts to decarbonise the
  
  Read more

• How are flooding and storms affecting wildlife?

  01-03-2026 08:13 via bbc.com
  Recent rain and flooding across Devon and Cornwall is impacting wildlife and their habitats.
  
  Read more

• I went to rural Wales to bathe in starlight and the Milky Way blew me away

  01-03-2026 08:07 via bbc.com
  I join two tourists in the mountains to immerse ourselves in the wonders of the night sky with a star guide.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Thousands of pollution incidents in England downgraded without site visit, data suggests

  01-03-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Exclusive: Whistleblower figures show large rise in ‘serious’ to ‘minor’ downgrades based on water company evidenceEnvironment Agency (EA) staff have downgraded thousands of serious pollution incidents by water companies in England without visiting to investigate, data unearthed by freedom of information (FoI) requests suggests.The figures were obtained by Robert Forrester, a whistleblower who left the agency in January and has spent nine years shining a light on the stat
  
  Read more

• A scorching summer has left Australian wildlife on the brink, but it doesn’t have to be this way | Euan Ritchie and Jess Harwood

  28-02-2026 20:00 via theguardian.com
  Unsettling predictions are now our catastrophic reality,but a brighter future is still within reach if our political leaders change courseSoaring, scorching, record temperatures, yet again. Distressing, protracted droughts. Raging fires and devastating floods. Australia’s summer is drawing to a close, and a reprieve from climate whiplash can’t come soon enough.We’ve witnessed and suffered immense losses and deep heartache for wildlife, ecosystems, and our communities. There was
  
  Read more

• New fungal research to support woodland creation

  28-02-2026 16:11 via bbc.com
  The project's aim is to understand how underground fungal networks adapt to environments.
  
  Read more

• Young country diary: My favourite walk to my favourite tree | Sammy

  28-02-2026 12:00 via theguardian.com
  Hood hill, North Yorkshire: It’s a huge sycamore on top of a hill with amazing views of the Dales. Now we just have to get to itA crisp clear day and welcome relief from a soggy winter – we’re off on my favourite walk, to Sammy’s Tree. There’s nothing to beat a hill climb on a winter’s day – frost and ice underfoot, the odd patch of snow on the hills above. We start on a track through mature conifers and ancient cherry trees, passing some hazel trees, th
  
  Read more

• ‘Who’d guess they’re the same species?’ What Italy’s wall lizards reveal about genetic diversity and why it matters

  28-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Understanding biodiversity within species is key to our understanding of why nature works the way it does, say researchersWords and photographs by Roberto García-RoaTwelve miles from the heart of Rome, Dr Javier Ábalos pauses his walk, lifts his sunglasses and points. To his right, perched on a rocky wall, sits a beautiful lizard. Its body is coated in charcoal-black tones speckled with striking yellow across a green dorsum, and its head, with a prominent jaw, is splashed with fluo
  
  Read more

• Marine strategy must deliver action for seabirds, charity says

  28-02-2026 08:00 via bbc.com
  The updated strategy should mean areas like Strangford Lough will be better protected in five years' time.
  
  Read more

• ‘I live in constant fear’: surge in giant sinkholes threatens Turkey’s farmers

  28-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Falling groundwater, extreme heat and water-intensive farming are accelerating land collapse, forcing a rethink in agricultural practicesFatih Sik was drinking tea with friends at home when he heard a rumbling sound outside that grew to a loud boom, like a volcano had erupted nearby. From the window, he saw water and mud shoot into the sky, as high as the tallest trees, less than 100 metres away.The 47-year-old knew what it was, because it is common in Karapınar, Konya, a vast agricultural
  
  Read more

• From white goods to ‘driver Tizer’: volunteers pick up slack in England’s fly-tipping crisis

  28-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Litter picking groups struggle to stem tide of rubbish after reported incidents rose 10% in last yearLast Wednesday, in a layby outside Brackley, Northamptonshire, Trish Savill and her band of self-styled Wombles proudly took photos of their morning’s work: 28 bags stacked neatly against the verge.It had taken them an hour, but they had barely made a dent in the sprawl of unrecognisable, rotting refuse already working its way into the soil, mixed with dumped white goods and some more dubio
  
  Read more

• Dirty water, death and decline: the inside story of a privatisation scandal

  28-02-2026 07:00 via theguardian.com
  There is no end in sight to the pollution caused by a ‘broken’ system. Experts say it could even be getting worseSarah Lambert took her usual morning swim for 40 minutes off Exmouth town beach before her volunteer shift helping disabled people get access to the water.A wheelchair user herself, Lambert’s regular sea swims twice a week between the lifeboat station and HeyDays restaurant were the perfect form of exercise for her disability. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Nasa announces change to its Moon landing plans

  27-02-2026 19:37 via bbc.com
  It is adding an extra mission to its Artemis programme before landing astronauts on the Moon.
  
  Read more

• How photographer captured six planets in 'parade'

  27-02-2026 18:14 via bbc.com
  Josh Dury, from Bristol, photographed the planetary parade in Worth Matravers.
  
  Read more

• How you can see six planets all at once

  27-02-2026 16:41 via bbc.com
  The best view will be on Sunday evening at sunset.
  
  Read more

• Red Hill, Canberra: its walking tracks, scar trees and ochre earth underfoot will always transport me

  27-02-2026 15:00 via theguardian.com
  What is a favourite place if not one built upon our fondest memories?Would I like to write about my favourite place?The invitation inspired me to recall so many magical places – from north-east Arnhem Land to Mediterranean island hamlets with idyllic quayside tavernas, from the Melbourne Cricket Ground on grand final day to Dickensian London pubs, from picture postcard villages beneath snow-capped alpine peaks to the haunts of my literary giants and on to Joshua Tree and Hagia Sofia. Conti
  
  Read more

• Waitrose to suspend mackerel sales due to overfishing concerns

  27-02-2026 14:52 via bbc.com
  The supermarket chain says it will stop sourcing fresh, chilled and frozen mackerel by 29 April.
  
  Read more

• Lynx could return to Scotland’s forests – but can rewilders win over wary Highlanders?

  27-02-2026 14:32 via theguardian.com
  With most Scots supportive of reintroducing the wild cat, charities are focusing on those whose jobs would be affectedCould lynx, the elusive wild cat driven to extinction in Britain more than 1000 years ago, become the new Loch Ness monster? “Whether Nessie’s there or not, she draws tourists,” said Margaret Luckwell, a resident of Moray, Scotland. “It would be the same with lynx. I’d love to see a lynx in the wild.”Luckwell’s view is a majority one amon
  
  Read more

• Lynx could return to Scotland – but can rewilders win over wary Highlanders?

  27-02-2026 14:32 via theguardian.com
  With most Scots supportive of reintroducing the wild cat, charities are focusing on those whose jobs could be affectedCould lynx, the elusive wild cat driven to extinction in Britain more than 1,000 years ago, become the new Loch Ness monster? “Whether Nessie’s there or not, she draws tourists,” said Margaret Luckwell, a resident of Moray, Scotland. “It would be the same with lynx. I’d love to see a lynx in the wild.”Luckwell’s view is a majority one amo
  
  Read more

• Miliband says climate impact of data centres is uncertain

  27-02-2026 12:56 via bbc.com
  The admission comes after MPs said they were concerned about emissions from a boom in data centres.
  
  Read more

• ‘The river won’: how campaigners in Brazilian Amazon stopped privatisation of waterway

  27-02-2026 12:00 via theguardian.com
  Local river defenders force U-turn by occupying grain terminal operated by one of US powerhouses of world trade“A victory for life.” That was the triumphal message from Indigenous campaigners in the Brazilian Amazon this week after they staved off a threat to the Tapajós River by occupying a grain terminal operated by Cargill, the biggest privately owned company in the United States.“The river won, the forest won, the memory of our ancestors won,” said the campaign
  
  Read more

• Sewage spills threatening salmon survival, says MP

  27-02-2026 11:11 via bbc.com
  Winchester's MP highlights sewage spills potentially affecting the endangered Atlantic salmon.
  
  Read more

• Week in wildlife: rescued dolphins, a white whale and a precious kākāpō chick

  27-02-2026 09:00 via theguardian.com
  This week’s best wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• How extreme weather is leaving thousands of homes uninsurable

  27-02-2026 08:00 via theguardian.com
  In this week’s newsletter: The climate crisis is making insurance unaffordable for many – and it should worry all of us, even if we think we’re safe from floods, wildfires and hurricanes• Don’t get Down to Earth delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereI’m worried about insurance.Some homes are becoming uninsurable due to the rapidly escalating impacts of the climate crisis. And that should worry you too, even if you think your home is safe enough.Under water, in d
  
  Read more

• Six planets on show in celestial 'parade'

  27-02-2026 07:54 via bbc.com
  Six planets - Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune - will all be visible in the night sky.
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Environment on Twitter!