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Denmark's mass mink cull illegal, PM admits as opposition mounts
Tally of culled animals 2.5 million and rising, as confusion mounts over bid to stamp out Covid variant among animals
Denmark’s prime minister has admitted the massive mink cull she authorised last week was illegal, as opposition parties called for the resignation of the agriculture minister who has been overseeing the policy.
Mette Frederiksen announced last week that all the country’s mink would have to be culled due to fears that a Covid-19 mutation moving from mink to humans could jeopardise future vaccines.
Continue reading...California power emissions increase for second straight month on hotter weather
Head of Carbon Markets, Scottish Government – Edinburgh
Utility Uniper sees CO2 output fall 11%, as coal plant launch slows decarbonisation
Renewable energy generation will overtake coal within 5 years, says IEA
New IEA report says renewables immune to impact of Covid-19, but not to policy failures - but will still overtake coal within five years as number one source of generation.
The post Renewable energy generation will overtake coal within 5 years, says IEA appeared first on RenewEconomy.
CEFC invests $10 million in Sunman’s “solar skin” technology
CEFC injects nearly $A10 million into Zhengrong Shi's Sunman, which is rolling out lightweight and flexible solar technology.
The post CEFC invests $10 million in Sunman’s “solar skin” technology appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Hurricane season: Record number of named Atlantic storms
The Covid-carrying Danish mink are a warning sign – but is anyone heeding it? | Matthew Baylis
Sars, Mers, now this: we must think hard about how we farm animals that are known hosts of human coronaviruses
Two decades ago, a seminal study from the University of Edinburgh compiled a list of all known human infectious diseases. It found a total of 1,415 different human pathogens, and claimed that 61% were capable of spreading between humans and animals. Today, with the world put on hold by a deadly disease that seems likely to have spread first from bats to humans, we know the dangerous effects of such pathogens all too well.
The group of diseases that spread from animals to humans are collectively known as zoonoses. The term encompasses diseases such as measles, which first spread from cattle to humans thousands of years ago but now transmits exclusively between people, and Ebola, which periodically passes from bats to humans, where it then spreads from person to person. It can also refer to food-borne diseases caused by bacterias such as salmonella and campylobacter that we only get from the consumption of animal products and almost never pass from person to person.
Continue reading...Carney taskforce seeks exchange listings for voluntary offsets
'A fowl of the law': men sentenced for cooking chicken in Yellowstone hot spring
Three tourists boiled dinner in national park, leading to fines, a ban and some apt puns
When it comes to unthinking human behavior in America’s premier nature preserve, the retired Yellowstone historian Lee Whittlesey can reel off the examples.
There is the tourist who took a selfie in front of a bison only to be tossed in the air by it. There is the drone that crashed into bubbling park waters. And then there’s the latest story, which has driven him both to vexation and to punning.
Continue reading...Natural England 'cut to the bone' and unable to protect wildlife, say staff
Exclusive: report warns of ‘yawning gap’ between government rhetoric on environment and reality of years of underfunding
The government’s conservation watchdog has been “cut to the bone”, with staff underpaid, undervalued and overworked and feeling unable to protect England’s most valuable wildlife sites, according to a new report and testimony from workers.
Natural England, which is sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), has a range of responsibilities, including monitoring and protecting the country’s most valuable habitats such as sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) and national nature reserves (NNRs). It also works with farmers to protect biodiversity and advises the government on environmental policy, planning and licensing.
Continue reading...Australian heritage grants now open
People plan to fly and drive more post-Covid, climate poll shows
Exclusive: Gap between actions and beliefs threatens green recovery from pandemic
People are planning to drive and fly more in future than they did before the coronavirus pandemic, a survey suggests, even though the overwhelming majority accept human responsibility for the climate crisis.
The apparent disconnect between beliefs and actions raises fears that without strong political intervention, these actions could undermine efforts to meet the targets set in the Paris agreement and hopes of a green recovery from the coronavirus crisis.
Continue reading...'We want real action': young activists aim to fill void on climate with Mock Cop26
Frustrated by postponement of UN talks, young people have organised their own virtual conference
Like many young climate activists around the world, 14-year-old Lavinia Iovino was exasperated when Cop26, the annual UN climate summit due to take place in Glasgow in November, was postponed for a year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I was very disappointed because it showed that political leaders think we can give ourselves a year more, when we just can’t do that; the climate crisis is happening right now,” she said.
Continue reading...Renewable energy defies Covid-19 to hit record growth in 2020
International Energy Agency expects green electricity to end coal’s 50-year reign by 2025
Global renewable electricity installation will hit a record level in 2020, according to the International Energy Agency, in sharp contrast with the declines caused by the coronavirus pandemic in the fossil fuel sectors.
The IEA report published on Tuesday says almost 90% of new electricity generation in 2020 will be renewable, with just 10% powered by gas and coal. The trend puts green electricity on track to become the largest power source in 2025, displacing coal, which has dominated for the past 50 years.
Continue reading...Shy rodents may be better at surviving eradications, but do they pass those traits to their offspring?
Oil companies join forces on 1.1GW offshore wind farm plan for W.A.
Pilot Energy enters JV deal with fellow Perth resources outfit Triangle Energy to further plans for a 1,100MW offshore wind farm, plus onshore wind and solar.
The post Oil companies join forces on 1.1GW offshore wind farm plan for W.A. appeared first on RenewEconomy.