Category Archives: Environment

Biden’s delay of ‘carbon bomb’ projects could be a big deal – but will it last?

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Climate activists cheer decision to pause all pending liquified natural gas export licenses, but is it just a delay till after November elections?

Joe Biden has, at least for a while, defused a ticking carbon bomb. Climate activists and the fossil fuel industry are now left wondering how long it will last.

The decision on Friday by the Biden administration to pause all pending export licenses for liquified national gas (LNG) to consider the climate impact of the projects has been hailed as a momentous shift in the status quo by those concerned by the unfolding climate crisis.

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Menindee fish kills: inconsistent pesticide levels sparks calls for review of water testing methods

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Experts call for review after two sets of water samples from the Darling-Baaka River reported by the state’s top scientific bodies contained different results

Experts are calling for more sensitive water quality testing in the Darling-Baaka River amid concerns that pesticides could be contributing to poor conditions, blue-green algae blooms and fish deaths.

It follows two of the state’s top scientific bodies publishing test results from water samples taken near Menindee in far western New South Wales which contained inconsistent results.

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Thai woman charged over lion cub filmed cruising resort in Bentley

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Sawangjit Kosoognern charged with illegal possession after video showing animal being driven around Pattaya gains 2.6m views

A Thai woman has been charged with illegal possession of a lion cub, police said on Friday, after a video of the animal cruising in a Bentley went viral online.

The police ordered an investigation after a video showing a lion cub riding around the raucous Thai resort town of Pattaya in a Bentley gained more than 2.6m views online.

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Spot the punk rockers: hope for waxwing boost in annual UK bird count

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People encouraged to record sightings of mohican-sporting birds in RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch this weekend

The scale of this waxwing winter will be revealed this weekend when people are encouraged to spend an hour recording the birds they see in their gardens, balconies, parks and school grounds.

The spectacular migratory, mohican-sporting birds have been spotted across Britain during the colder weather and will be recorded alongside more familiar sparrows, blackbirds and robins in the RSPB’s annual Big Garden Birdwatch.

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BHP and Vale ordered to pay $15bn in damages for 2015 Brazil dam collapse

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Mining companies and their joint venture Samarco ordered by Brazilian judge to pay AU$14.7bn over disaster that killed 19 people

A Brazilian judge has ruled that mining companies Vale and BHP and their joint venture Samarco must pay 47.6bn reais (AU$14.7 bn) in damages for a 2015 tailings dam burst, according to a legal decision seen by Reuters.

Vale, a Brazilian company, and BHP, an Australian listed company, said in separate statements they were not informed by the judiciary about the decision.

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Canadian tar sands pollution is up to 6,300% higher than reported, study finds

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Call for companies to ‘clean up their mess’ as Athabasca oil sands emissions vastly exceed industry-reported levels

Toxic emissions from the Canadian tar sands – already one of the dirtiest fossil fuels – have been dramatically underestimated, according to a study.

Research published in the journal Science found that air pollution from the vast Athabasca oil sands in Canada exceed industry-reported emissions across the studied facilities by a staggering 1,900% to over 6,300%.

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Lions making fewer zebra kills due to ‘chain reaction’ involving invasive ants

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Hunting by Kenyan lions impeded in ‘ecological chain reaction’ as big-headed ants fail to stop elephants stripping acacia trees – the cats’ ambush cover

When a lion decides to chase down a zebra it seems as though nothing can stop it. But now researchers have discovered these enormous predators are being thwarted by a tiny foe: ants.

Scientists have found the spread of big-headed ants in east Africa sets off a situation leading to lions making fewer zebra kills.

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‘How to greenwash’: propane industry tries to rebrand fuel as renewable

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Lobbying group spent nearly $30m on ads touting the ‘clean energy’ potential of propane – and downplaying its full climate impacts


This story is co-published with Heated

Members of a propane industry lobbying group strategized to downplay the full climate impacts of propane and market it as renewable or “clean energy”, recordings reviewed by the climate newsletter Heated and the Guardian reveal.

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Skiers leaving ‘forever chemicals’ on pistes, study finds

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Research finds 14 different types of PFAS chemicals commonly used in ski wax on slopes in Austrian ski resorts

Skiers are leaving “forever chemicals” in the snow on ski slopes, a study has found.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – a group of 10,000 or so human-made chemicals widely used in industrial processes, firefighting foams and consumer products – are colloquially known as “forever chemicals” due to their persistence in the environment; they do not easily break down.

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Biden administration reportedly pauses approval of ‘carbon mega bomb’ gas export hub

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Calcasieu Pass 2, positioned near the rapidly eroding Louisiana shoreline, would be the biggest such export terminal in the US

The Biden administration will reportedly pause a decision on approving what would be one of the world’s largest gas export hubs, amid concern from climate experts that greenlighting the project would create a “carbon mega bomb”.

The project, Calcasieu Pass 2, or CP2, would be positioned near the rapidly eroding Louisiana shoreline and be the biggest such export terminal in the US and part of a huge expansion of new gas infrastructure along the Gulf of Mexico.

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Australia’s wholesale power prices fall by almost half as carbon emissions drop

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Grid faces fresh strains as heatwave roasting inland Queensland and NSW extends to Sydney

Wholesale power prices across Australia’s main electricity market almost halved at the end of 2023 compared with a year earlier, stoking hopes households may soon see smaller bills.

Spot prices in the National Electricity Market (Nem) that serves the eastern and southern states fell to an average of $48 a megawatt-hour in the December quarter, down 48% on the previous year, the Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo) said in a report released on Thursday. Carbon emissions also dropped to record lows.

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Just two northern white rhinos remain. An IVF breakthrough could save them from extinction

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The first successful embryo transfer in a southern white rhino paves the way for the technique to save their rarer northern cousins

The critically endangered northern white rhino could be saved from the brink of extinction after scientists performed the first successful embryo transfer in white rhinos.

After the last male northern white rhino, Sudan, died in 2018, the disappearance of the species looked imminent. Just two infertile female northern white rhinos – Fatu and Najin – remain, and are under 24-hour armed protection at a conservation reservation in Kenya. But a new scientific advancement means the mother and daughter may not be the last of their kind.

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Asbestos found in mulch at new sites across Sydney following earlier Rozelle parklands discovery

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Hazardous material found in mulch at railway substations in Dulwich Hill, Canterbury and Campsie and alongside Prospect Highway, authorities say

Asbestos has been found in garden mulch at new locations in Sydney’s inner-west and west after the discovery of contamination at the Rozelle parklands earlier this month prompted wider testing.

The Transport for NSW (TfNSW) secretary, Josh Murray, confirmed on Wednesday that asbestos had been detected in recycled mulch used at three railway electricity substations as well as in landscaping works along a highway.

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EY Oceania accused of potential conflict of interest over government contracts on climate policy

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Exclusive: Consultancy firm supported oil and gas industry lobbying while being paid for independent advice on Albanese’s signature climate policy

Consultancy firm EY Oceania was supporting the oil and gas industry’s lobbying efforts while being paid by the federal government for independent advice on its signature climate policy and gas emissions.

The firm, which is a member of the oil and gas lobby and audits Santos, insists there was no conflict of interest between its work for industry and government. But a bipartisan group of politicians and transparency advocates is not convinced and has demanded more information.

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Louisiana court upholds air permits for petrochemical complex in Cancer Alley

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Decision helps clear path for Formosa Plastics to build US’s largest petrochemical complex of its time

A Louisiana appellate court has upheld air permits for a giant proposed petrochemical complex in a region known as Cancer Alley, enraging local advocates.

The decision, issued on Friday, will help clear a path for Formosa Plastics to build the nation’s largest petrochemical complex of its kind. The project has long faced staunch opposition from local and national environmental justice groups.

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Alok Sharma condemns government’s oil and gas bill as vote passes first hurdle

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Former Cop26 president abstains from vote saying bill breaks UK’s promise to phase out fossil fuels

Alok Sharma has said the government’s oil and gas bill going through the Commons will not cut household energy costs or create jobs and instead will break the UK’s promise to phase out fossil fuels.

The government’s offshore petroleum licensing bill passed its second reading on Monday night with 293 votes to 211 against. No Conservative MPs voted against it, and Sharma – the former business secretary who served as president of the Cop26 climate talks – abstained. The legislation would place the North Sea Transition Authority under a duty to run annual applications for new offshore oil and gas licences.

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UK needs ambitious green plan to keep up with allies, says Labour frontbencher

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Jonathan Reynolds calls for version of US Inflation Reduction Act amid row over future of Labour policy

Britain needs its own ambitious green investment plan to keep up with its allies, a Labour frontbencher has said, amid an increasingly bitter row over whether Keir Starmer should stick to his £28bn pledge.

Jonathan Reynolds, the shadow business secretary, said the UK should come up with a version of Joe Biden’s $369bn (£290bn) Inflation Reduction Act, which has provided support to a range of technologies including electric cars and renewable power.

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New Brexit checks ‘pose existential threat’ to UK fruit and flower growers

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Exclusive: NFU warns blanket import checks from April could fuel long delays and damage future crops

The UK’s fruit and flower growers face an “existential threat” from new post-Brexit border checks that could damage business and affect next year’s crops, the country’s biggest farming body has said.

The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) warned that changes to import rules in April, which will impose checks at the border for nearly all young plants coming into the country, could cause long delays and result in plants being damaged or destroyed.

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Albanese government secures further gas supply before meeting on cost-of-living relief

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Deal aimed at keeping energy bills affordable will see 260 petajoules supplied to gas-fired power stations in Australia’s south-east coast until 2033

Australia’s south-east coast will be further guaranteed gas supply in an effort to keep lights on and energy bills affordable before predicted supply shortages at the decade’s end.

It comes as the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has called Labor MPs and senators to Canberra on Wednesday for a snap caucus to discuss further cost-of-living relief measures put forward by Treasury.

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Australia not prepared for how Antarctic ice changes will hit economy, scientist warns

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Exclusive: Prof Matt King says accelerated melting could transform country and affect viability of some agricultural industries

A leading Antarctic scientist has urged the Albanese government to pay closer attention to abrupt changes under way in the southern continent, warning they will affect Australians in ways that are little understood and research into them is drastically underfunded.

The head of the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science, Prof Matt King, said he found it embarrassing how little was known about the local and global ramifications of changes including a historic drop in floating sea ice cover, the accelerating melting of giant ice sheets and the slowing of a deep ocean current known as the Southern Ocean overturning circulation.

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