Category Archives: Environment

Cop15 half-time report: China prompts fears of new ‘Copenhagen moment’

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Negotiators say divisions mean risk is growing of a weak final agreement similar to Denmark summit in 2009

Talks to halt the destruction of nature “very much hang in the balance”, sources have said, as environment ministers from around the world begin to arrive in Montreal amid concerns about a lack of Chinese leadership of the Cop15 talks.

At the halfway stage of the summit in Canada, negotiators at the UN biodiversity summit have said divisions are contributing to the growing risk of a “Copenhagen moment”, referring to the 2009 UN climate summit when talks ended with a weak final agreement in the Danish capital, not the “Paris moment for nature” leading environmental figures had been calling for.

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Floods and landslides kill scores of people in Kinshasa

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Dozens of people injured after heavy rain destroys houses and ruins roads in DRC’s capital

At least 100 people have been killed and dozens injured in widespread floods and landslides caused by heavy rain in the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kinshasa.

The prime minister, Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde, said officials were still searching for more bodies.

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The ‘silent killer’ of flooding: Murray River fish in dire straits as water quality drops

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Scientists fear an ecological disaster is playing out in parts of the river because of ‘alarmingly’ low dissolved oxygen levels

Stretches of the Murray River could become an “ecological desert” because widespread flooding has reduced water quality, a scientist has warned, as New South Wales communities rally to save fish populations.

Dr Ian Wright, a professor at Western Sydney University’s School of Science, believes fish and other aquatic wildlife are dying in huge numbers along the river as dissolved oxygen levels plummet – and the ecological impact could be “catastrophic”.

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Tech coalition aiming to create Australian high-powered laser industry with nuclear fusion ambitions

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Proponents say lasers can be used to generate energy but others say fusion power unlikely to ‘save us from climate change’

A coalition of technology companies intend to create a high-intensity laser industry in Australia, with potential applications including nuclear fusion.

It follows reports of an expected announcement from the National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California that researchers have managed to get more energy out of a nuclear fusion reaction than they put in.

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Germany at risk of gas shortages as consumption cutting target missed

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Country has scrambled to open up new sources of energy since start of Ukraine war

Germany is saving less gas than necessary to rule out shortages this winter, the head of the German grid agency has said, as the country missed its crucial target of a 20% cut in consumption last week amid dropping temperatures.

Germany, which used to draw about half of its natural gas needs from Russia before the start of the Ukraine war, has scrambled to open up new sources of energy during the last ten months.

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UK ministers face legal challenge over North Sea oil and gas licences

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Three campaign groups challenge plans to award up to 130 new licences for exploration

The UK government is facing a fresh challenge in the courts over plans to award up to 130 new licences for North Sea oil and gas exploration, in the latest attempt to stop ministers’ proposed expansion of the country’s fossil fuel production.

Three campaign groups have written to the business secretary, Grant Shapps, explaining the grounds on which they consider the latest offshore oil and gas licensing round to be unlawful. They call for the decision to award the new licences to be reversed, arguing that new oil and gas exploration and development is incompatible with the UK’s own rules and international climate obligations.

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Senator says plan ‘a Band-Aid on a festering wound’ – as it happened

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Severe weather warning for damaging winds in NSW and Victoria

Several children have been injured after a firework shot into a crowd during a Christmas event in Sydney’s northern beaches last night.

An 11-year-old boy was initially taken to Royal North Shore hospital, before being transferred to the Children’s hospital at Westmead for treatment of burns and a chest injury.

An eight-year-old girl was taken to Northern Beaches hospital for treatment of burns and a wrist injury. She has since been released.

Police have been told a 12-year-old boy was taken to hospital by his parents for treatment to minor burns and has since been released, and six other people were treated on scene by NSW Rural Fire Service for minor injuries, and left prior to the arrival of paramedics and police.

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Albanese government looking at laws to force big business to disclose climate efforts

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Jim Chalmers will say global investors increasingly see ‘a new harmony between profit and planet’

Banks and other big businesses will be forced to come clean with the public about what they are doing to cut emissions under plans put forward by the Albanese government.

The government is also looking for ways to crack down on “greenwashing” – or when businesses try to win over consumers by overhyping their environmental practices.

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At least a dozen climate activists face jail time under NSW laws used to lock up Violet Coco

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Exclusive: A string of protesters linked to Blockade Australia have been charged under the legislation

More than a dozen climate activists are facing possible jail time over protests in Sydney’s CBD this year after being charged under the same controversial laws that led to Deanna ‘Violet’ Coco being handed a 15-month prison sentence.

Court documents seen by the Guardian show a string of activists linked to climate group Blockade Australia have been charged under the laws, which introduced a two-year jail sentence for protests that block major roads, bridges or tunnels in New South Wales.

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‘A remarkable sign’: flurry of wolf births offers hope for California comeback

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Grey wolves from Oregon may now be thriving in California, after vanishing more than a century ago

In a year of environmental ups and downs, a hopeful story of recovery is afoot in California. A grey wolf pack gave birth to eight pups this spring, it was recently confirmed, offering signs of a remarkable comeback after wolves were wiped out in the state more than a century ago.

The births in the Whaleback wolf pack, based in northern California’s Siskiyou county, happened in the spring but were only confirmed by California’s department of fish and wildlife in November. They may be a sign that wolves who entered the state from Oregon several years ago are thriving.

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Australia’s mountain mist frog declared extinct as red list reveals scale of biodiversity crisis

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Experts describe it as a ‘beautiful endemic rainforest species’, one of several that have not been seen for decades

The mountain mist frog, a species once found across two-thirds of Australia’s wet tropics, has been declared extinct on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list.

The last recorded sighting of the frog, most commonly found near Thornton Peak, north-west of Cairns, was in April 1990. It is believed to have been wiped out by chytrid fungus, a disease that attacks the skin and has destroyed amphibian populations across the globe, though a reduction in its natural habitat due to rising temperatures driven by greenhouse gas emissions may have also played a role.

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‘Signs of distress’: beloved P22 mountain lion to be captured after attacking dogs

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Los Angeles’ resident big cat will have his health assessed after recent attacks on two chihuahuas and roaming too close to homes

Los Angeles’s most famous mountain lion, known as P22, will be captured and studied in order to assess his health following recent attacks on two small dogs and close encounters with people near the park he calls home.

Wildlife officials made the announcement on Thursday and said in a statement that, following the evaluation, California department of fish and wildlife veterinarians and National Park Service biologists will determine the best next steps for the animal while also prioritizing the safety of the surrounding communities.

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Keystone pipeline leaks 14,000 barrels of oil into creek in biggest spill yet

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The leak occurred in Washington county, Kansas, with the affected segment being ‘isolated’ and the drip contained

An oil spill in a creek in north-eastern Kansas this week is the largest for an onshore crude pipeline in more than nine years and by far the biggest in the history of the Keystone pipeline, according to federal data.

Canada-based TC Energy estimated the spill on the Keystone system at about 14,000 barrels and said the affected pipeline segment had been “isolated” and the oil contained. It did not say how the spill occurred.

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Government to weaken water pollution goals in ‘attack on nature’

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Exclusive: Despite demands from water campaigners, there will be no overall target for river health

Water pollution goals are to be weakened by the government next week, the Guardian can reveal, as Environment Act targets will give farmers three extra years to reduce their waste dumping into waterways.

River campaigners have said the news is proof the government has not dropped its “attack on nature”.

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Lizard Downs in Cornwall protected for public use after 140 years

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Open Spaces Society secures re-registration of 116 hectares of ‘splendid’ moorland’ for common use

More than 100 hectares of some of the most stunning landscape in west Cornwall has finally been recognised as common land, protecting it for the public 140 years after it was threatened with enclosure.

Lizard Downs was authorised for enclosure – the act of taking ownership of common land – in 1880 but the proposed fencing off never happened.

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Chester zoo hails birth of rare Malayan tapir as ‘important moment’

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Female calf named Nessa will help efforts to protect species, of which fewer than 2,500 remain in the wild

An endangered Malayan tapir has been born at a UK zoo, in what the zoo said was an “important moment” for conservation.

The female calf, which zookeepers have named Nessa, was born weighing 9kg on Wednesday at Chester zoo, one of only two places in the country to keep tapirs, a species related to the horse and the rhinoceros.

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Weather tracker: Heatwave sweeps South America as Argentina hits 43C

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Weather warnings issued as worshippers brave temperatures to celebrate Catholic holy day

A heatwave has hit parts of central South America this week, coinciding with the Immaculate Conception pilgrimage attended by Catholic worshippers.

A sizzling 43.5C was recorded in Santiago del Estero, Argentina, on Wednesday, a day before the holy day. Weather warnings for extreme heat were issued by the Argentinian and the Paraguayan national meteorological services this week, as temperatures rose 10C above the seasonal norm for several days in many places.

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Rome’s solar-powered Christmas tree lights spark row over ‘ugly’ panels

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Critics accuse authorities of ‘bogus environmentalism’ over installation in historic Piazza Venezia

A row has broken out over two “ugly” solar panels intended to power the lights on Rome’s traditional Christmas tree.

There is always much anticipation in the Italian capital when the fir arrives at the Piazza Venezia in the historic centre – a Unesco world heritage site – with many giving their view on the choice of decoration.

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Big energy users not holding their breath on national cabinet help amid ‘outrageous’ prices

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Companies hoping, but not expecting, Albanese government can implement price caps on gas and coal

Australia’s big energy users aren’t confident national cabinet can pull a rabbit out of its hat when it meets on Friday to discuss a crucial deal to reduce gas and electricity prices.

They’ve been disappointed before – for about a decade, some say.

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Puffin nesting sites in western Europe could be lost by end of century

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Experts create guide to help save seabirds from bleak future caused by global heating

The majority of puffin nesting sites in western Europe are likely to be lost by the end of the century due to climate breakdown, a report has warned.

Other seabirds will also be affected unless urgent action to limit global heating is taken, with razorbills and arctic terns forecast to lose 80% and 87% of their breeding grounds respectively owing to reduced food accessibility and prolonged periods of stormy weather.

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