Category Archives: Environment

‘It’s full of green areas’: mystery of Europe’s heat death hotspot

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Hot weather has proved deadlier in the Croatian city of Osijek than in any other European city but little is being done to work out why

The green LEDs on the cross outside the pharmacy read 38C for the second day running, but the noontime crowds in the centre of Osijek seemed untroubled by the danger that signalled. “We work in the sun but for us it’s no problem,” said Davor, 47, a bike courier with the food delivery service Wolt.

Though many living there may be unaware, this small Croatian city is Europe’s heat death hotspot. In the past two decades, hot weather has proved deadlier in Osijek than in any other city in Europe, a study in the Lancet medical journal found. The researchers modelled temperature and mortality data from the 854 biggest cities in Europe and found Croatians were most likely to died from the heat.

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Chris Skidmore resigns Conservative whip over Sunak’s oil and gas licence plan

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Former minister also resigns as an MP, which will trigger byelection in his Kingswood constituency

A former Conservative minister has announced he is resigning as an MP in protest at the party’s dash for oil and gas, setting up an awkward vote for the prime minister on the issue on Monday and an even more difficult byelection within weeks.

Chris Skidmore, a leading voice within the Tory party on green issues, said on Friday he would resign from parliament as soon as it returns next week over Rishi Sunak’s bill to allow new oil and gas licences to be issued.

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Weather tracker: Beijing experiences its coldest December since 1951

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Weather observatory records period of more than 300 hours in which temperatures remained below freezing

Beijing experienced its coldest December since records began in 1951, after a cold wave hit much of China. Temperatures fell below -10C, alongside heavy snowfall and blizzard conditions. Northern and north-eastern parts of the country experienced the coldest temperatures, as icy air moved south from the Arctic, with some areas plunging to -40C.

The Beijing weather observatory recorded a period of more than 300 hours in which temperatures remained below freezing, which is the longest for December since records began 72 years ago. The cold snap forced the closure of many schools and businesses in the Chinese capital, owing to travel disruption and the stress from added heating demands. Temperatures have risen into the new year but Beijing remains cold, with maximum temperatures reaching just above freezing so far.

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Warnings over further flooding after Storm Henk batters England – live

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Environment agency says ‘significant surface water and river flooding impacts are possible’ on Friday

The highest rainfall totals recorded on Thursday were 35.2mm at Otterbourne in Hampshire, with a wide range of 20-30mm across much of the southern counties of England.

The Environment Agency said the impact of surface water and river flooding would continue to be “significant” across parts of England over the next five days.

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Labour’s energy advisers warn against watering down £28bn green investment

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Climate thinktank says Britain could be left trailing in global race to develop low-carbon energy

Labour’s independent energy advisers have warned the party against watering down its £28bn green spending plans in advance of its promise to create a zero carbon electricity system by 2030.

Experts at the climate thinktank Ember, which provided the independent analysis underpinning Labour’s green targets, said growing international competition for low-carbon investment from the US and EU could leave the UK lagging in the global race for low-carbon energy.

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Electric car sales in UK flatline, prompting calls for VAT cut

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Stalled growth in electric vehicles comes despite government goal to phase out petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicles by 2035

The number of new cars registered in the UK has jumped by nearly 18% but electric vehicle demand is flatlining, prompting the industry to call for a VAT cut to stimulate sales.

Annual figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) on Friday show 1.9m new cars were registered last year, well up on the previous year’s figure of 1.6m and the highest level since the 2.3m registrations of 2019.

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Rishi Sunak says his ‘working assumption’ is that general election will take place in second half of 2024 – UK politics live

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PM appears to rule out spring election after recent speculation it could be held in May

Starmer says being in opposition is frustrating, and he accuses the Tories of treating it as performance art.

He is now on the passage about his career in public service that was posted earlier. See 9.12am.

If you’ve been breaking your back to keep trading, steering your business through the pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis, the challenge of Brexit and the chaos of Westminster.

If you’ve been serving our country, whether in scrubs or the uniform of your regiment and what you want now is a politics that serves you, then make no mistake - this is your year.

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‘Bureaucracy going mad’: the 250 ‘magnificent’ 10m-high trees being felled for a Melbourne bike path

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Residents of Queens Avenue in Caulfield East are ramping up the fight against the 1km path and vow to ‘fight until the bulldozers come’

For 30 years, Tamara de Silva has woken up to the sound of birds chirping in the trees across the road from her home in Melbourne’s south-east.

“Listening to the magpies and the lorikeets in the mornings, watching them playing around – it lifts your spirits,” she said.

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Starmer rules out breaking Labour’s fiscal rules to meet £28bn green target

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Statement is clearest sign yet party is willing to drop one of its flagship policies in face of Conservative attacks

Keir Starmer has ruled out breaking Labour’s fiscal rules to meet its green investment targets if it wins the election this year, in the clearest sign yet that the party is willing to scale back one of its flagship policies in the face of Conservative attacks.

The Labour leader told an audience in Bristol on Thursday that he would not borrow £28bn to spend on green projects if it meant breaking a separate promise to reduce government debt as a proportion of economic output.

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UK farmers say tighter environmental rules put them at risk of being undercut

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Eco-friendly British produce could become unaffordable luxury if low quality imports still allowed, say farmers

Tightening environmental standards for British farmers while importing food produced to lower standards risks making eco-friendly food an unaffordable luxury item, farmers have said.

At the Oxford Farming Conference on Thursday, the environment secretary, Steve Barclay, announced that the government would consult on a new labelling scheme that would single out food produced to UK standards, allowing consumers to choose more environmentally friendly food.

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Birds of prey in Africa experiencing population collapse, study finds

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Several species have vanished across swathes of the continent – and scientists say their disappearance holds unknown risks for humans

Africa’s birds of prey have experienced a widespread population collapse that risks unforeseen consequences for humans, according to a new study.

Tropical raptor species including the martial eagle, the bateleur and the dark chanting goshawk have vanished from swathes of the African continent over the past 40 years, new analysis shows, as many wild areas were converted to farmland. Several African birds of prey are on track to become locally extinct in many countries this century.

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Snakes in a drain: spotted black snake found in Queensland public toilet

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Expert says if you see a snake you should leave it alone and call for a professional catcher

When Tennille Bankes walked into a toilet cubicle in Goondiwindi, Queensland, she was greeted by the scaly tail of a spotted black snake peaking out beneath a closed lid.

The wildlife carer and snake catcher was called by police to the public bathroom after a local, surprised by the reptile, summoned them for help.

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Elephant calf separated from herd in India is reunited with mother

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Photograph taken at wildlife reserve shows baby nestled with his mother after his return

A baby elephant who was separated from his mother and the rest of his herd in a wildlife park in Tamil Nadu, south India, has been reunited with them by park officials.

An aerial photograph taken by officials shows the mother and calf, three days later, enjoying a nap on a slight incline with the baby nestled in the nook of his mother’s chest.

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UK weather: Storm Henk triggers more than 300 flood warnings in England

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Train operators say services face delays and cancellations after rain and strong winds batter UK

More than 300 flood warnings are in place across England as travellers face transport delays, with train services struggling to get back on track after rain and strong winds from Storm Henk lashed large parts of the UK.

The Environment Agency said on Wednesday there were 368 active alerts in England for possible flooding, 322 flood warnings, meaning flooding is expected and, in Northampton, one danger-to-life severe flood warning.

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East coast weather: Victoria and NSW brace for heavy rain as more storms forecast for Queensland

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Dozens rescued from flood waters and thousands remain without power as BoM warns of wild weather in Melbourne, south-east NSW and Queensland

The first week of 2024 is off to a wild start, with storms continuing to lash Australia’s east coast and a heatwave baking the north of the continent.

Thunderstorms were headed for central Victoria on Wednesday and were forecast to become widespread over the eastern half of the state.

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Polar bear dies from bird flu as H5N1 spreads across globe

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Highly contagious virus could bring “one of largest ecological disasters of modern times” say scientists

A polar bear has been killed by bird flu as the highly contagious H5N1 virus spreads into the most remote parts of the planet.

The death was confirmed in December by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. “This is the first polar bear case reported, for anywhere,” Dr Bob Gerlach, Alaska’s state veterinarian, told the Alaska Beacon.

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Climate crisis: 2023 was UK’s second-hottest year on record

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Such a warm year would have occurred once in 500 years without global heating, Met Office scientists say

The UK had its second-hottest year on record in 2023, according to provisional data from the Met Office, as the climate crisis continued to deliver elevated temperatures.

Such a warm year would have occurred only once in 500 years without human-caused global heating, the scientists said. The heat peaked in June and September, both record hot months in a series dating back to 1884. The UK’s 10 warmest years have all occurred since 2003.

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Federal Labor under pressure to ‘stop idling’ on car fuel efficiency standards

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Australia, along with Russia, remains one of the few countries in OECD without fuel efficiency standard

The federal government is facing pressure to “stop idling” and swiftly introduce new laws that will encourage carmakers to produce cleaner vehicles as Australia eyes its 2030 emissions reduction targets.

Automotive industry bodies and environment advocates say the European-style fuel efficiency standards would offer consumers greater choice of cleaner cars that are cheaper to run amid the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

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WA bans commercial native logging in move state says could save 20,000 sq km of forest

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New plan bans selling of native timbers and includes transition payouts to sawmills and towns to diversify industry

The end of unsustainable commercial logging in Western Australia could save almost 20,000 square kilometres of forest, the state government says.

Chopping down native karri, jarrah and wandoo hardwood in the state’s south-west and selling it is banned from Monday. The state’s environment minister, Reece Whitby, said it was a historic moment for WA.

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‘It’s beautiful’: bioluminescence lights up ocean in Tasmania and parts of NSW in glowing end to 2023

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‘Sea sparkles’ appeared at Hobart’s waterfront, the NSW mid-north coast and Sydney’s Manly, with hundreds delighting in the natural phenomenon

Revellers along the Hobart waterfront welcomed in the new year with the glow of fireworks in the sky – and bright, blue bioluminescence lighting up the ocean.

With an easterly wind bringing the “sea sparkle” to the east coast, onlookers were treated to a truly glowing end to 2023.

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