MPs debate Labour motion that would set aside parliamentary time to pass Labour’s water quality (sewage discharge) bill
Rishi Sunak is seeking to capitalise on his improved relations with the EU with hopes of an agreement to allow British passport holders to use e-gates when travelling in the bloc, Lisa O’Carroll reports.
On small boats, Starmer told This Morning that he wanted to stop the boats. Labour would focus on two policies in particular, he said.
Continue reading...National Trust rangers brace for second year of mass deaths on islands off Northumberland coast
A group of islands that make up one of the UK’s most important bird sanctuaries are to remain closed after new cases of avian flu were detected.
The disease devastated the seabird population of the Farne Islands, off the coast of Northumberland, last year and National Trust rangers expect thousands more deaths this year.
Continue reading...Exclusive: US climate envoy says existing measures, such as shift to renewable energy, must be deployed faster to stop global warming
Relying on technology to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is “dangerous” and a cause for “alarm”, John Kerry has warned.
The US special presidential envoy for climate said in an interview that new technologies may not prevent the world from passing “tipping points”, key temperature thresholds that, once passed, could trigger a cascade of unstoppable physical effects.
Continue reading...BASF among firms selling chemicals to sugar industry despite links to human health risks
Pesticides banned in the EU because of their links to human health risks are being exported and used on farms in Brazil supplying Nestlé, an investigation has revealed.
Europe is home to some of the world’s biggest and most profitable chemical companies, including the Swiss-based Syngenta and the German multinationals BASF and Bayer.
This article was amended on 25 April 2023. Although fipronil and triflumuron have been banned in the EU they have not been identified as potential carcinogens.
Continue reading...Study suggests antimicrobial used to promote livestock growth breeds bacteria more resistant to our natural defences
The blanket use of antibiotics in farming has led to the emergence of bacteria that are more resistant to the human immune system, scientists have warned.
The research suggests that the antimicrobial colistin, which was used for decades as a growth promoter on pig and chicken farms in China, resulted in the emergence of E coli strains that are more likely to evade our immune system’s first line of defence.
Continue reading...If Tory MPs vote down opposition day motion, Labour can accuse them of thwarting attempts to clean up rivers, beaches and chalk streams
Labour is planing to use the same Commons procedure that helped remove Liz Truss from Downing Street to force Conservative MPs into a politically embarrassing vote about whether to toughen up rules on sewage discharges.
The party plans to use its regular opposition day motion on Tuesday to push a binding motion, which would oblige the government to set aside Commons time next week for a debate and vote on a Labour bill to impose tougher penalties for sewage spills.
Continue reading...Record heat in Thailand and Laos is forecast to ease this week as snow sweeps Norway and Sweden
A prolonged heatwave that has been affecting many parts of Asia this month continued to batter the region last week. Much of the south-east, including Thailand and Laos, has been experiencing record heat: in Tak, north-west Thailand, the temperature soared to 45.4C (113.7F) on 15 April, while in Luang Prabang, Laos, it reached 42.7C.
Temperatures in Thailand continued to exceed 40C into the weekend, prompting the authorities to issue warnings for extreme heat and advise residents in many parts of the country, including the capital, Bangkok, to stay indoors.
Continue reading...Diane Wilson took on Formosa Plastics and won a $50m settlement to help clean up decades worth of toxic plastic waste
Grassroots activists who took on British mining giants and a serial plastics polluter – and won – are among this year’s recipients of the world’s most prestigious environmental prize.
The environmental campaigns led by the six 2023 Goldman prize winners highlight the hurdles faced by some local activists, who are often on the frontlines confronting the toxic mix of corporate greed and systemic corruption that is fuelling the climate emergency, biodiversity collapse and increasingly forced displacement.
Continue reading...Anote Tong says that Australia needs to take responsibility for emissions caused by the export of its fossil fuels
A former Pacific Island president has backed a Torres-Strait Islander-led legal case to hold the Australian government accountable for climate crisis inaction.
On Monday, Anote Tong, the former president of Kiribati, signed a statement of solidarity with Paul Kabai and Pabai Pabai, who have taken the government to court, demanding further emissions reductions in line with science.
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Continue reading...A research team has discovered a parasite that’s been killing off sea urchins, but there’s no method to eliminate it yet
Marine biologists at a Florida university say they have solved the mystery of a mass die-off of long-spined sea urchins from the US to the Caribbean.
The scientists blame a microscopic, single-cell parasite for the die-off, which took hold early last year. Affected Diadema antillarum urchins lose their spines and suction, then succumb to disease.
Continue reading...Local governments approved more coal power in first three months of 2023 than all of 2021
Local governments in China approved more new coal power in the first three months of 2023 than in the whole of 2021, according to official documents.
The approvals, analysed by Greenpeace, reveal that between January and March this year, at least 20.45 gigawatts of coal power was approved, up from 8.63GW in the same period in 2022. In the whole of 2021, 18GW of coal was approved.
Continue reading...Dirty air causes premature death of at least 1,200 children across Europe every year, says European Environment Agency
Europe is failing its children when it comes to air pollution, exposing nearly all children across the continent to air that falls below healthy standards and delaying the clean-up of the sources of pollution, research has found.
Breathing dirty air causes the premature death of at least 1,200 children across Europe each year, and many thousands more are afflicted with physical and mental health problems that could have lifelong impacts, according to the latest assessment of air pollution by the European Environment Agency.
Continue reading...Poll also revealed 65% of drivers expect to be buying a hybrid or electric vehicle if they upgrade in the next 10 years
The majority of Australians feel positive about switching off the gas and turning to cleaner energy options, with environmental reasons one of the biggest drivers behind the shift, according to new research by the Australia Institute and research firm SEC Newgate.
In a poll about electrification, 55% felt positively about electrifying more homes, with 59% mentioning environmental reasons as a main driver of their opinion and 18% pointing to the potential for cheaper electricity bills.
Continue reading...Wildlife presenter urges people to join action on climate crisis during mass protest supported by more than 200 organisations
Wildlife presenter Chris Packham has made a rallying call for “every last person who cares” about the planet to join Extinction Rebellion after thousands took part in a demonstration on Saturday.
The 61-year-old broadcaster spoke to the crowd from a stage close to Parliament Square, Westminster, during the second day of a mass protest the climate group has called The Big One.
Continue reading...Hundreds of dead birds found in past three weeks as conservationists call for international funding to help stop the disease spreading on migration routes
An outbreak of avian influenza in seabirds in the Gambia could affect vast numbers of birds migrating along the East Atlantic Flyway, unless international funding is secured, warn conservationists.
Teams from the West African Bird Study Association (Wabsa), the Gambia’s Department of Parks and Wildlife Management, and UK-based NGO Conservation Without Borders have buried hundreds of dead birds over the past three weeks, including some ringed birds from Europe.
Continue reading...Denis Hayes, who coordinated the first event in 1970, denounces fossil fuel companies that use the event to get positive publicity
Corporate greenwashing should not undermine the message behind Earth Day and has nothing to do with its original aims, one of the founders of the annual environmental event has warned.
Denis Hayes, the American environmental activist who coordinated the first Earth Day in 1970, denounced the “appalling” environmental messaging by oil, gas and other extractive companies and said he hoped it did not distract attention from the threats posed by the climate crisis and biodiversity loss, which he compared to the threat of nuclear conflict during the cold war.
Continue reading...Environmentalists decry move but natural resources minister says doubling of Vancouver terminal’s size is needed to meet demand
Canada’s federal government has approved a controversial container terminal expansion in Vancouver that would double the port’s current size but could have damaging effects for maritime species already on the brink of extinction, environmental groups warn.
The country’s natural resources minister announced support for the Port of Vancouver’s plan – which would effectively double the size of the Roberts Bank Terminal – framing the decision as a way of preventing future backlog.
Continue reading...Canadian project plans to strengthen understanding of Arctic environment by drawing on Indigenous knowledge
Alexandre Langlois was surprised to learn that snow that has stayed on the ground for a couple days in the Arctic can be heard even before it is felt.
Margaret Kanayok, an Inuk elder from Ulukhaktok, an Inuit community in the neighbouring Northwest Territories, had come to speak to a group of scientists who had gathered to attend the world’s first Arctic snow school, being held in Nunavut, Canada.
Continue reading...‘To see this at the heart of government planning is an overwhelming relief,’ Energy Council says, while investors warn of impact from US energy package
The Albanese government has promised to “grab this opportunity” to become a renewable energy superpower after holding a high-level roundtable with major banks, financiers and investment managers.
The Friday roundtable in Brisbane comes after the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said on Monday that next month’s federal budget would see major investments in “cleaner and cheaper” energy.
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Continue reading...Europe’s first new plant in 16 years comes on stream in Finland day after Germany pulls plug on last reactors
When Europe’s first new nuclear reactor in 16 years came online in Finland, it was hailed by its operator as a “significant addition to clean domestic production” that would “play an important role in the green transition”.
The opening last Sunday of the long-delayed Olkiluoto 3 plant, Europe’s largest, means about 40% of Finland’s electricity demand will soon be met by nuclear power, which the government says will boost energy security and help it achieve its carbon neutrality targets.
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