Category Archives: Environment

Flood-affected Lismore residents with nowhere to go return to homes deemed uninhabitable

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Exclusive: Multiple families who evacuated during the NSW floods left with no choice but to move back home in recent days

Residents in Lismore have been left with no choice but to move back into their houses that have been deemed uninhabitable, with some sleeping on swags in mouldy rooms without electricity, as they are unable to find safe accommodation three weeks after floods devastated the town.

In South Lismore – a low-lying part of the town that bore the brunt of historic flooding this year and an area well known for attracting residents seeking affordable housing – Guardian Australia spoke with multiple residents who had evacuated town following the floods but had returned to their homes in recent days.

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Indian spiritualist Sadhguru on 100-day motorbike mission to save soil

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Yoga guru will visit dozens of countries en route from London to India to raise awareness of plight of one of nature’s greatest resources

One of India’s best-known spiritual leaders is embarking on a 100-day motorbike journey from London to India to raise awareness of one of nature’s most undervalued resources.

Sadhguru, or Jaggi Vasudev, is setting off on Monday on a 30,000km (18,600-mile) trip through Europe and the Middle East in an effort to “save soil”, meeting celebrities, environmentalists and influencers in dozens of countries along the way.

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After Ukraine, how will the world replace Russia’s oil products?

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A report from the International Energy Agency makes clear that viable alternatives are limited

As Boris Johnson flew to the Gulf this week to ask for more oil to replace supplies from Russia, he was accused by the Labour leader, Keir Starmer, of “going cap in hand from dictator to dictator”.

At the same time, a report produced by the International Energy Agency (IEA) underlined just how limited the options are for any economy seeking to replace Russian crude and other oil products.

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Plum job: UK public asked to track fruit trees for climate study

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People asked to record flowering cherry and plum trees near them to see whether patterns are changing

The British public have been asked to track flowering fruit trees to help determine whether climate change is changing blooming patterns, in one of the largest studies of its kind.

The University of Reading and Oracle for Research have developed a fruit recording website where citizen scientists can easily post their findings. People will initially be asked to record the flowering cherry and plum trees near them, with apple trees soon to follow.

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Free-range eggs unavailable in Britain from Monday

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Hens have been indoors for months because of avian flu and their eggs must now be differently labelled

Consumers will no longer be able to buy free-range eggs in the UK from Monday, with birds not having been allowed outdoors since November due to fears of avian flu outbreaks.

Eggs sold in shops will have to carry a sticker or label saying they are in fact “barn eggs”, the name given to eggs produced by hens permanently housed indoors.

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Jamaica Inn calls time on 100 years of hunts meeting on its land

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Cornish pub used in Daphne du Maurier novel says there are no pluses, just minuses to hunt visits

A pub that was the setting for a novel by Daphne du Maurier has banned hunts from meeting on its land after 100 years of the practice.

The Jamaica Inn in Cornwall – immortalised in the 1936 novel of the same name about smuggling – announced the decision after the East Cornwall Hunt invited the Beaufort Hunt to meet there on Saturday, a move the pub called “extremely ill-advised”.

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What would increasing Saudi Arabian oil production mean for the climate?

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Explainer: Boris Johnson has asked Saudi Arabia to pump more oil; what implications would this have?

Why are Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates being asked to pump more oil?

Western powers are looking for ways to keep the pressure on Russia during its invasion of Ukraine. Some countries have committed to phasing out Russian oil and gas, while others are still investigating ways of doing this. Saudi Arabia is one of a number of countries, along with Venezuela and Iran, that might be able to plug the gap in oil production.

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Defence personnel not allowed to speak about climate ‘unless they go through Peter Dutton’s office’

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Former defence force chief Chris Barrie says it’s a disgrace that we’ve made a left-right issue out of global heating and its impacts

The former chief of the defence force Chris Barrie says defence personnel are not allowed to speak out on the national strategic threats posed by climate change without prior approval from Peter Dutton’s office.

The suggestion was immediately rejected by the defence minister’s office. Asked for comment, the minister’s spokesperson said: “That is not correct.”

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‘It reached 38 degrees’: rental properties across Australia routinely exceeding safe temperatures, study reveals

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Warnings come as extreme heat kills more people than all other natural disasters in Australia combined

Karen Thorne’s rental home heats up as soon as the morning sun hits her east-facing bedroom in the Sydney suburb of Rosemeadow.

“I could wake up at 8am to 28-degree heat in there,” Thorne said. “The heat is what actually wakes me up.”

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Seventh Japanese encephalitis case in NSW; nation records 17 Covid deaths – as it happened

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PM highlights China’s ‘chilling silence’ on Russian invasion as Labor says China has ‘responsibility’ to call out Putin’s actions; NSW Health confirms seventh case of Japanese encephalitis; man in court over Sydney boarding house fire; Coalition to spend $243m on four mining projects; a man has died in Broken Hill after driving his ute into flood waters; nation records at least 17 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

NSW Health has added the results from 10,000 additional positive rapid antigen tests to its official numbers after a data error meant they were left out.

The results were registered between Sunday 13 March and Monday 14 March, with NSW Health warning the numbers will “inflate the cases being reported today for the 24 hours to 4pm yesterday (Tuesday)”.

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Queensland to provide $3,000 subsidy to buy electric vehicles

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Palaszczuk government to support purchases of EVs cheaper than $58,000 and invest $10m in charging stations

The Queensland government will pay a $3,000 subsidy to electric vehicle buyers and build new charging stations to incentivise take-up, under a new strategy to be announced on Wednesday.

The 10-year strategy includes measures the state says will help to drive down emissions and ultimately help Queensland meet its net zero commitment by 2050.

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Hope for Kenya’s mountain bongos as five released into sanctuary

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Rewilding programme marks the ‘most significant step’ in ensuring the critically endangered species’ survival

Five mountain bongos have been released into a sanctuary in Kenya, a milestone in the fight for the animals’ survival with fewer than 100 left in the wild

Considered critically endangered, the chestnut-coloured mountain bongo is one of the largest forest antelopes and native to the equatorial forests of Mount Kenya, Eburu, Mau and Aberdares. IUCN predicts their numbers will probably continue to decline without direct action. A recent wildlife census in Kenya counted just 96 mountain bongos in the wild.

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Manchin ‘very reluctant’ on electric cars in ominous sign for Biden’s climate fight

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Centrist Democrat, who holds key swing vote in US Senate, has poured scorn on the idea of phasing out gasoline and diesel cars

Faced with rising gasoline prices, many Americans are now looking to switch to an electric car. But the shift away from fossil fuel vehicles has been criticized by Senator Joe Manchin, who has said he is “very reluctant” to see the proliferation of battery-powered cars.

There has been a surge in interest in buying electric vehicles (EVs) in the wake of the war in Ukraine, analysts say, with drivers in the US unnerved by gasoline prices that have surpassed $4.30 a gallon as a result of the conflict and the supply chain issues from the pandemic.

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Coalition to allow some projects, including mining, to bypass federal environmental approvals

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Conservationists warn using workaround to speed up decisions will lead to worse outcomes

The Morrison government has announced it will remove the need for developments in some areas to receive project-specific approval under national environment laws, in a step conservationists fear will further weaken nature protection.

Guardian Australia revealed last month that the government was considering using a little known section of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act to allow some developments to be given the green light as part of a regional plan without consideration of the impact of the project itself.

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Yorkshire’s lost ‘Atlantis’ nearly found, says Hull professor

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Is it hoped discovery of medieval trading town Ravenser Odd can teach people about perils of climate crisis

Hopes are high that a fabled medieval town known as “Yorkshire’s Atlantis” is about to be located and will begin giving up secrets held for more than 650 years.

Ravenser Odd was a prosperous port town built on sandbanks at the mouth of the Humber estuary before it was abandoned and later destroyed and submerged by a calamitous storm in 1362.

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Former senior RSPCA officers launch campaign to repair ‘broken’ animal welfare system

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Experts launch Australian Alliance for Animals to push for independent national animal welfare commission

Two RSPCA animal welfare experts have left the organisation to campaign for a national independent animal welfare commission, saying the current regulatory structure is “broken”.

Dr Bidda Jones stepped down as chief scientific officer at RSPCA Australia in late 2021, after 25 years. Dr Jed Goodfellow stepped down as a senior policy officer in October.

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Severn Trent and Anglian Water pledge to do more to protect rivers

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Water firms commit to improving sewage discharge practices after government pressure

Severn Trent and Anglian Water say they will accelerate efforts to protect rivers after the government and regulators called on the sector to do more.

Last month, the environment minister Rebecca Pow called on water companies to significantly improve their practices in England and Wales to support the local environment.

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Flooded NSW communities call on government to fund more resilient roads

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Local leaders are calling for a loan system or longer-term funding to build more resilient roads than those washed away

Leaders in northern New South Wales are concerned they will not be able to “build back better” with flood relief money and will instead be forced to rebuild the same flood-prone roads and bridges, leaving communities at risk.

While Transport for NSW works to restore the most critical of the hundreds of roads that have been damaged or swept away in the disaster, councils are also turning their thoughts to the future.

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Roads ripped apart by NSW and Queensland floods must be rebuilt stronger, councils say

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Repairs could top $1bn and mayors say roads and bridges shouldn’t just be rebuilt but ‘rebuilt to withstand future disasters’

Commuters across New South Wales and Queensland are dodging gaping potholes and avoiding cracked roads after flooding damaged the states’ road networks, with mayors arguing they will need to be repaired stronger to withstand future disasters.

Many NSW and Queensland councils are scrambling to find funding that could top $1bn in total to repair roads ripped apart by the devastating flood waters.

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Fertiliser company urged to halt plans to remove Burrup Peninsula Indigenous rock art

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Environment minister Sussan Ley asks Perdaman not to go ahead until a review is carried out after traditional owners raise concerns

The federal government has asked a multinational fertiliser company to stop work on plans to remove Indigenous rock art from a world heritage-nominated area in the Burrup Peninsula after traditional owners raised concerns.

Perdaman is planning to build a $4.5bn fertiliser plant in Western Australia’s Burrup Peninsula. The company is already contracted to buy gas used to make the fertiliser from Woodside Energy’s Scarborough gas field.

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