Category Archives: Environment

Australia live news update: fifth child airlifted to hospital with irukandji jellyfish sting; Albanese and Dutton trade insults over Indigenous voice

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Federal opposition leader wants Labor to legislate its preferred model before referendum is held this year. This blog is now closed

‘I’m genuinely interested in advancing the cause of reconciliation’

Peter Dutton is asked about whether the prime minister has been given a copy of his letter – Anthony Albanese has said he has not received it – and Dutton says a copy has been provided to the prime minister’s office and he expects “he will respond in due course”.

I don’t think that’s unreasonable. Certainly not racist. It’s not being opposed to reconciliation. It’s all about, frankly, just being informed about what it is they’re being asked to vote on. I don’t think that is unreasonable to ask the prime minister to provide that.

I’ve met with the prime minister and I’m grateful for the meetings that we’ve had and he knows that I’m genuinely interested in advancing the cause of reconciliation.

I’m speaking of millions of Australians, we’re asking you the reasonable questions.

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‘A search for ourselves’: shipwreck becomes focus of slavery debate

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Vessel that sank with more than 200 transported people onboard is being used to humanise the story of slavery

In 2015, a delegation from the Smithsonian Institution travelled to Mozambique to inform the Makua people of a singular and long-overdue discovery. Two hundred and twenty-one years after it sank in treacherous waters off Cape Town, claiming the lives of 212 enslaved people, the wreck of the Portuguese slave ship the São José Paquete D’Africa had been found. When told the news, a Makua leader responded with a gesture that no one on the delegation will ever forget.

“One of the chiefs took a vessel we had, filled it with soil and asked us to bring that vessel back to the site of the slave ship so that, for the first time since the 18th century, his people could sleep in their own land,” says Lonnie Bunch, now the secretary of the Smithsonian.

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Investors pressure top firms to halt production of toxic ‘forever chemicals’

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Shareholders say lawsuits over PFAS compounds linked to cancer and other diseases represent growing threat to companies’ profits

Investors from some of the world’s largest firms are pressuring chemical companies to end production of toxic PFAS “forever chemicals”, which shareholders say represent an enormous and growing threat to manufacturers’ bottom lines.

PFAS are a class of about 12,000 compounds typically used to make products resist water, stains and heat. They are called “forever chemicals” because they do not naturally break down, and are linked to cancer, kidney disease, liver problems, immune disorders, birth defects and other serious health issues.

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Weather tracker: January temperatures smash records across Europe

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Abnormally high temperatures caused by orientation of high and low pressure, but also point to effects of climate change

Exceptionally high temperatures affected large parts of Europe last week, with longstanding records across the central and western regions broken in a number of locations. The abnormally high temperatures developed due to the orientation of high and low pressure across the continent, which helped push very mild air in from the south-west. Although the pressure pattern was not particularly unusual, the temperatures were unprecedented in many places, and scientists are certain that they would not have been achieved without the influence of human-induced climate change.

Temperatures peaked at 18.9C in Warsaw, Poland, on New Year’s Day, smashing the previous record set in 1993 for the month of January by an astonishing 5C. In Bilbao, Spain, 25.1C was recorded, more than 10C above the seasonal average, which is typically around 14C.

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Floods force road trains supplying Kimberley to detour extra 7,400km via SA and NT

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Trucks normally travel direct from Perth to Fitzroy Crossing but new return trip halfway across Australia is ‘equal to a one-way trip from Paris to Vladivostok’

Triple road trains delivering essential supplies to Western Australia’s flood-stricken Kimberley communities face week-long 12,000km return trips from Perth as they are forced to detour halfway across the country due to washed-out roads and bridges.

Instead of travelling directly from Perth to the Kimberley region – a 4,600km return trip – trucks will be forced east to Port Augusta in South Australia, before travelling the length of Australia to Katherine in the Northern Territory, then heading back west to WA.

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Half of glaciers will be gone by 2100 even under Paris 1.5C accord, study finds

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If global heating continues at current rate of 2.7C, losses will be greater with 68% of glaciers disappearing

Half the planet’s glaciers will have melted by 2100 even if humanity sticks to goals set out in the Paris climate agreement, according to research that finds the scale and impacts of glacial loss are greater than previously thought. At least half of that loss will happen in the next 30 years.

Researchers found 49% of glaciers would disappear under the most optimistic scenario of 1.5C of warming. However, if global heating continued under the current scenario of 2.7C of warming, losses would be more significant, with 68% of glaciers disappearing, according to the paper, published in Science. There would be almost no glaciers left in central Europe, western Canada and the US by the end of the next century if this happened.

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UK average annual temperature tops 10C for first time

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Mean temperature of 10.03C beats 2014’s 9.88C, confirming 2022 as country’s warmest on record

The UK’s annual average temperature topped 10C for the first time in 2022, as last year was confirmed as the country’s warmest on record.

The mean temperature across the 12 months was 10.03C, beating the previous all-time high of 9.88C in 2014, the Met Office said on Thursday.

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Lifesavers rescue 1,200 over holiday period in Australia – as it happened

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This blog is now closed

‘Challenging night’ for WA fire crews in south-west

Earlier today, Western Australian Department of Fire and Emergency Services incident controller Peter Thomas said it had been a “challenging night” for fire crews in the south-west, as bushfires threaten the region.

So our volunteers from the Donnybrook area across the south-west [who have] come to deal with this incident.

We’ve had some strong winds that have been coming consistently from the east, but been fairly strong and making it challenging for our crews.

When we allow sportspeople from Russia to participate in the Australian Open, we do exactly what Putin wants.

It doesn’t matter what flag Russian Federation players compete under. It has Ukrainian blood on it.

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Energy efficiency ‘war effort’ needed to cut bills and emissions, say MPs

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Ministers missed crucial opportunities but should use energy windfall tax to speed up insulation efforts, committee says

A national “war effort” on energy efficiency is required to cut energy bills, reduce climate-heating emissions and ensure energy security, according to a cross-party committee of MPs.

Boosting efficiency in homes and businesses is the fastest way to cut energy use but the government missed a “crucial window of opportunity” last summer, the report from the environmental audit committee (EAC) said. The energy bills crisis was sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while political turmoil in the UK resulted in three prime ministers in office between July and October.

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Australian coal industry says China market matters less than before, even if import ban ends

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Queensland Resources Council says industry would welcome restrictions easing but new long-term customers since found elsewhere in Asia

Australia would benefit from a lifting of China’s ban on its coal but any gains would likely be modest as miners have largely redirected supplies elsewhere, analysts said.

Shares of ASX-listed coalminers shot up on Wednesday after reports China was considering lifting its restrictions on coal imports from Australia from April. The ban was imposed in mid-2020 amid deteriorating bilateral relations that have since begun to improve.

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Record warm winter in parts of Europe forces closure of ski slopes

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Resorts open hiking trails and lifts for mountain bikes amid unseasonably high temperatures and lack of snow

Europe’s record-breaking warm winter weather has closed ski slopes and forced resorts to open summer trails or shut altogether, as grass and mud replace seasonal snow from Chamonix in France to Innsbruck in Austria.

Eight countries across the continent have recorded their warmest January day ever, with temperatures in parts of Switzerland and southern Germany exceeding 20C and 90 monitoring stations in France setting new records over new year.

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NSW forests could become net carbon emitters in coming decades, report finds

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Declining soil organic carbon could undermine state’s commitment to net zero emissions by 2050

Forests in New South Wales could become net carbon emitters in coming decades, undermining state government efforts to reach net zero emissions, according to a report by one of its own agencies.

The Natural Resources Commission has warned the Perrottet government the carbon benefits the state’s forests provide are degrading and will continue to degrade without “major intervention”.

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Tobacco companies to be billed for cleaning up cigarette butts in Spain

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Ruling is part of a package of measures designed to reduce waste and increase recycling

Tobacco companies are to be forced to foot the bill for cleaning up the millions of cigarette ends that smokers discard every year under new environmental regulations in Spain.

The ruling, which comes into force this Friday, is part of a package of measures designed to reduce waste and increase recycling. It includes a ban on single-use plastic cutlery and plates, cotton buds, expanded polystyrene cups and plastic straws, as well as cutting back on plastic food packaging.

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John Kerry: rich countries must respond to developing world anger over climate

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US climate envoy says there needs to be work on details of ‘loss and damage’ fund in 2023

People in developing countries are feeling increasingly angry and “victimised” by the climate crisis, the US climate envoy John Kerry has warned, and rich countries must respond urgently.

“I’ve been chronicling the increased frustration and anger of island states and vulnerable countries and small African nations and others around the world that feel victimised by the fact that they are a minuscule component of emissions,” he said. “And yet [they are] paying a very high price. Seventeen of the 20 most affected countries in the world, by the climate crisis, are in Africa, and yet 48 sub-Saharan countries total 0.55% of all emissions.”

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Insulate Britain and Just Stop Oil vow to continue disruptive action

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Commitment to ‘civil resistance’ comes after Extinction Rebellion said it would prioritise ‘relationships over roadblocks’

Insulate Britain and Just Stop Oil have doubled down on their commitment to disruptive climate “civil resistance” after Extinction Rebellion announced new tactics prioritising “relationships over roadblocks”.

“It’s 2023 and XR has quit,” Just Stop Oil said in a statement. “But it’s 2023, and we are barrelling down the highway to the loss of ordered civil society, as extreme weather impacts tens of millions, as our country becomes unrecognisable … there is now a need to face reality.

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Hunters go home empty-handed on first day of Sweden’s biggest wolf cull

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Hunters allowed to kill 75 wolves from an already endangered population of 460 amid ‘political pressure’ from hunting lobby

The biggest wolf cull in modern times has begun in Sweden as nature organisations warn it could drastically harm the population.

On Monday, the Guardian accompanied 200 hunters as they went to kill wolves in the frost-covered forests between Gävleborg and Dalarna, hunting from midnight until the sun set at 3pm. Groups will be going out across Sweden all month as they attempt to take down the large predators.

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Record number of public electric vehicle chargers installed in UK in 2022

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More than 8,700 chargers installed, bringing total to 37,000 in a 30% increase

British companies installed a record number of public electric car chargers during 2022 as they raced to dominate a fast-growing and potentially lucrative market.

There were more than 8,700 public chargers installed in the UK during the year to 22 December, bringing the total available to more than 37,000, according to Zap-Map, a data company. That represented a 30% year-on-year increase, slower than the 38% annual growth in sales of battery electric cars during the year to November.

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More than 2,400 lives will be lost to bushfires in Australia over a decade, experts predict

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Exclusive: Healthcare costs from smoke-related deaths tipped to reach $110m, new modelling led by Monash University suggests

In the decade to 2030, more than 2,400 lives will be lost to bushfires in Australia, with healthcare costs from smoke-related deaths tipped to reach $110m, new modelling led by Monash University suggests.

The lead health economist with the university’s Centre for Medicine Use and Safety, Associate Prof Zanfina Ademi, who headed the analysis, said it was important to get a predictive picture of the bushfire situation in Australia and its impact on health and the economy.

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River Murray fish kill concerns grow as flood waters peak in South Australia

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Authorities are confident peak flows have reached the state but worry a blackwater event may follow

While flood waters look to have peaked in South Australia, authorities are concerned about the potential for a blackwater event that may lead to fish kills along the River Murray.

Flows at the border into South Australia had not increased for the last seven consecutive days with authorities confident peak flows had reached South Australia and would work their way downriver.

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Howard ministers considered extinguishing native title over SA site earmarked for nuclear waste dump

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Cabinet papers 2002: documents shed light on strategy amid decades-long battle to create national storage centre

John Howard’s government considered extinguishing native title over a South Australian site earmarked for a nuclear waste dump “by agreement or by compulsory acquisition”, the 2002 cabinet papers reveal.

The records, released on Sunday by the National Archives of Australia, shed light on the Howard government’s part in the decades-long battle to create a national storage site for Australia’s low- and medium-level nuclear waste.

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