Category Archives: Environment

Australia fires: helicopter crashes as 140 bushfires rage in NSW and Queensland – live

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RFS says Gospers Mountain blaze, which has merged with neighbouring fires, will take many weeks to put out

A shipping container full of fireworks? Really?

This is from AAP:

A shipping container loaded with fireworks has exploded and residents have been warned to flee as an unpredictable fire closes in on homes in south-east Queensland.

The fast-moving blaze is burning in bushland at Bundamba, west of Brisbane, and travelling in a northerly direction from White Street towards the Warrego highway.

This, I fear, will be the trend for the afternoon. Across the east coast of Australia, fires worsening with strengthening winds, no respite in temperatures.

Watch & Act - Blue Gum Road (Tenterfield LGA)
Fire is burning SW of Urbenville. Spot fires are starting ahead of the main fire front. If you are in the Wallaby Creek area, seek shelter as the fire approaches. Protect yourself from the heat of the fire. #nswrfs #nswfires pic.twitter.com/Fw0wlqMgOE

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Victoria Falls dries to a trickle after worst drought in a century

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One of southern Africa’s biggest tourist attractions has seen an unprecedented decline this dry season, fuelling climate change fears

For decades Victoria Falls, where southern Africa’s Zambezi river cascades down 100 metres into a gash in the earth, have drawn millions of holidaymakers to Zimbabwe and Zambia for their stunning views.

But the worst drought in a century has slowed the waterfalls to a trickle, fuelling fears that climate change could kill one of the region’s biggest tourist attractions.

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Trump says people flush the toilet 10 times and seeks solution

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The president announced he had issued an order to review water-saving regulations for bathroom facilities

Americans are in the midst of a toilet-flushing epidemic, according to the president.

Speaking to the press on Friday, with the hammer of impeachment poised to fall and countless domestic and international crises to consider, Donald Trump took on a pressing enemy: poor water pressure caused by conservation laws.

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Bees in Amazon ‘are greatest ally to halt rainforest destruction’

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Stingless insects also improve livelihoods of rainforest’s people, say environmentalists

  • Please donate to our appeal here

Under an Amazonian canopy of guava and Xylopia trees, Neida Pereira lifts the lid of a beehive, gently lowers an unprotected hand into the swarm, and smiles as she lifts it out unscathed but covered in pollinators and honey.

For the 49-year-old educator and environmentalist, the stingless Amazonian insects are the greatest ally she has found in a decades-long campaign to halt the destruction of the rainforest and improve the livelihoods of its people.

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The climate crisis is the most urgent threat of our time. Help us fight it | Katharine Viner

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Urgent policy steps are needed to avoid climate catastrophe, but we as citizens can also support practical, natural solutions

  • Please donate to our appeal here

The 2019 Guardian and Observer charity appeal is all about trees: for what they are in themselves, in all their beauty and majesty, and for what they represent. This year, our theme is the climate emergency and our support goes to charities whose work is essential for the renewal of nature and the planet: not just planting new trees but protecting and restoring existing forest, woodland and other natural habitats in the UK and in the Amazon basin of South America.

As Guardian and Observer readers, we hope you will have appreciated our comprehensive reporting on the causes of the climate crisis, from fossil-fuel burning and rainforest-clearing to pollution-emitting cars and planes. We’ve tracked the destructive consequences, including forest fires, melting ice caps, extreme weather events such as droughts and flash floods and filthy air. We’ve reported the evolving science of global heating and followed the emergence of a wave of youth-led eco-activism led by Greta Thunberg. We’ve covered the fight of environmental and land rights activists across the planet against ecologically destructive corporate and political interests.

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Jane Fonda on joining the climate fight: ‘It’s back to the barricades’

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The veteran actor and activist has been arrested four times after being inspired by Greta Thunberg and disgusted by Trump

Jane Fonda has unusual plans for her 82nd birthday: she wants to spend the night in jail.

The American actor and political activist – who has been protesting about inaction over the climate crisis at the US Capitol every Friday – has been arrested four times and kept overnight once. Her lawyers have helped her avoid serious charges. But she says the acts of civil disobedience have pulled her out of a depression she sunk into after Donald Trump took office.

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‘This place used to be green’: the brutal impact of oil in the Niger Delta

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Bayelsa state once offered rich pickings for farmers and fisherman. Then oil companies arrived and wrought an environmental catastrophe

• All photographs by Arteh Odjidja, whose work features in the exhibition Rise for Bayelsa, which runs in London until 20 December 2019

Almost every day, Udengs Eradiri is informed of another oil spill in Bayelsa state, in the Niger Delta. Most of the time, little or nothing is done to clean up the mess, says Eradiri, the state’s commissioner for the environment.

“You just need to take a tour to understand the magnitude of the environmental abuse,” he adds. “[Bayelsa] used to be green, you could go to farm or fish. We used to have very impressive harvests. You would spend just an hour in the water and you have a lot of fish.”

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NSW fires: five bushfires merge north of Sydney – as it happened

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Gospers Mountain, Paddock Run and Little L Complex, Three Mile and Thompson Creek fires overlap, and there are now seven emergency warnings in NSW as fire conditions worsen along Australia’s New South Wales and Queensland coasts. This blog is now closed

We are going to wrap the live blog up here. As of almost 7.30pm AEDT there are still seven fires at emergency warning level across NSW.

They are:

Related: Australia fires: five blazes merge north of Sydney as conditions forecast to worsen

Some more photos from photographer Matthew Abbott out at Kulnura:

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Cutting air pollution ‘can prevent deaths within weeks’

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Asthma and heart attacks fall rapidly and babies born healthier, review finds

Cutting air pollution can prevent deaths within weeks, according to scientists. They found the health benefits of clean air were “almost immediate and substantial” and stretched into the long term, saving billions of dollars.

The review examined the evidence for the reduction of illness after levels of toxic air were reduced. It showed dramatic reductions in asthma and children missing school, heart attacks and the number of small and premature babies.

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California woman punched mountain lion in effort to save her dog

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Miniature schnauzer was killed and its owner suffered a minor cut in attack in Simi Valley

A southern California woman punched a mountain lion and tried to pry its jaws open to save her dog from an attack in her backyard, but the pet was killed, officials said.

The woman suffered a minor cut after the mountain lion attacked her miniature schnauzer on Thursday in the city of Simi Valley, the police Sgt Keith Eisenhour told KNBC-TV.

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Flooding hits New Zealand tourist hubs of Wanaka and Queenstown

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Heavy rain has led to rivers bursting their banks, forcing the closure of shops and restaurants

Streets in the South Island tourist towns of Wanaka and Queenstown were slowly going under water on Friday, after Lake Wanaka and Lake Wakatipu burst their banks earlier in the week, flooding businesses and sewerage systems.

Water and large debris closed the main street of Wanaka, a popular spot with Instagrammers thanks to its famous tree that appears to have grown out of the lake. On Friday businesses were sandbagging as heavy rain continued to fall.

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Plastic pollution kills half a million hermit crabs on remote islands

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Experts fear species decline after huge number of deaths on Henderson and Cocos

More than half a million hermit crabs have been killed after becoming trapped in plastic debris on two remote island groups, prompting concern that the deaths could be part of a global species decline.

The pioneering study found that 508,000 crabs died on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands archipelago in the Indian Ocean, along with 61,000 on Henderson Island in the South Pacific. Previous studies have found high levels of plastic pollution at both sites.

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Blooming scary: runner rescued after getting stuck in cornflake seaweed on Gold Coast beach

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Algae piles up thigh-deep in places – and could keep water murky for weeks

A woman running on a Gold Coast beach has been rescued after becoming stuck in masses of cornflake seaweed that has piled up thigh-deep in places.

A seaweed expert, Pia Winberg, said the bloom of Colpomenia – also known as sea potatoes, oyster thief or cornflake seaweed – was not unusual for this time of year.

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Long-term damage from logging hits ability of Canada’s forests to regenerate

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  • ‘Logging scars’ blight up to 25% of formerly logged areas
  • Canada partly relies on forests to capture carbon

Canada’s logging industry has a larger and more damaging impact on forest health than previously thought, a new report has found, casting doubt on the sustainability of forestry management in the country.

Related: The last great tree: a majestic relic of Canada's vanishing rainforest

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Let the UK continue to lead the world in global development | Letter

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Whatever the outcome of this general election, leaders should rise to the ambition of our own and global commitments, write representatives of 49 organisations

The UK has a well-earned reputation for being a key player on the global stage – respected for our record on international development, climate change, and humanitarian aid.

By 2020, this country will have helped vaccinate 76 million children, saving 1.4 million lives from preventable diseases. The UK has already helped 57 million people to cope with the effects of climate change over the last eight years and is on track to reach 60 million people with clean water by 2020. About 32 million people have been supported with humanitarian assistance in the face of conflict and disasters, including at least 10 million women and girls.

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Greta Thunberg arrives in Lisbon after three-week voyage from US

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Climate activist heading to COP25 in Madrid after crossing Atlantic on family’s yacht

The climate activist Greta Thunberg has arrived in Lisbon after a three-week catamaran voyage across the Atlantic Ocean from the US.

The Swedish teenager now plans to head to Spain to attend the UN climate conference in Madrid.

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Climate emergency: Lagarde says ECB must step up action

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Bank president indicates she will move bank beyond traditional remit of controlling inflation

Christine Lagarde has said the European Central Bank should do more to help tackle the climate emergency, as she came under pressure from MEPs to step up action against global heating.

In a strong hint that as president she would move the ECB beyond its traditional remit of controlling inflation, Lagarde said the bank would incorporate the climate threat into both its economic forecasts and in its capacity as watchdog of the financial system.

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Mosquitoes bring ‘mystery illness’ to the mountain villages of Nepal

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Rising temperatures linked to outbreaks of dengue fever high in the Kathmandu Valley, experts say

•Global heating behind record number of cases of the disease

Lilawati Awasthi is used to the risks that come from living in a remote mountainous district in the far west of Nepal. Floods, landslides and treacherous roads are a part of daily life. But this year she faced a new hazard: mosquitoes carrying a mystery illness.

When she began to feel sick in September she was not overly concerned at first. “I thought it was a simple fever, but it wouldn’t go away,” says the 50-year-old. “We went to the hospital and it turned out I was suffering from dengue.”

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Revealed: ‘monumental’ NSW bushfires have burnt 20% of Blue Mountains world heritage area

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More than 10% of forest in NSW national parks destroyed by fire this season, with the damage to Gondwana rainforest a ‘global tragedy’

More than 10% of the area covered by New South Wales national parks has been burned in this season’s bushfires, including 20% of the Blue Mountains world heritage area, state government data obtained by Guardian Australia has revealed.

The amount of bushland destroyed within NSW national parks dwarfs that of the entire previous fire season, when 80,000 hectares were lost.

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Boris Johnson urged to challenge Trump on climate denial

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350 experts call on PM to address president’s ‘dangerous’ and ‘irresponsible’ claims

Boris Johnson is being urged by 350 leading climate researchers to robustly challenge Donald Trump on his “dangerous” and “irresponsible” denial of the risks of climate change during the US president’s visit to the UK this week.

Putting the prime minister under more pressure over his stance on global heating, leading academics involved in climate research said he must try to persuade Trump to take strong domestic and international action.

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