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Oxo-biodegradable bags are designed to have a useful shelf life and to degrade over time when exposed to oxygen and sunlight, says Michael Stephen

If the researchers from the University of Plymouth’s International Marine Litter Research Unit (Biodegradable plastic bags still intact after three years, 29 April) had been polymer scientists who understood the process of abiotic degradation, they would have understood that an oxo-biodegradable shopping bag contains stabilisers to give the product a useful service life and which could therefore delay the onset of degradation for two years or more depending on how the particular bag was designed.

They would also have understood that oxo-biodegradable bags are not intended to degrade in special conditions such as landfill or when buried deep in soil, but are intended to degrade if they become litter in the open environment on the surface of land or sea with an abundance of oxygen and usually exposed to sunlight.

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Washington state’s legislative session drew to a close on Sunday without lawmakers having endorsed proposals for a low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) or various forms of carbon pricing, despite last ditch efforts to include a scaled-down version of the clean fuels programme.

Activists to rally at parliament urging government to declare environmental emergency

Momentum, the youth climate strikers and Extinction Rebellion are to unite in protest outside parliament on Wednesday as Labour calls on the Conservatives to declare an environmental emergency in a parliamentary vote.

In the first explicit collaboration between the three groups, a coalition of activists and campaigners will rally in Parliament Square to demand the government backs the plan, first put forward by Extinction Rebellion as the primary demand of the protests that engulfed London over the past fortnight.

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Marine specialists believe this white beluga whale filmed approaching fishing boats in Norway could have received military-grade training by the Russian navy. The whale, which was first sighted near the Norwegian village of Inga, was wearing a strange harness bearing the words 'equipment of St Petersburg'. The fisherman said the whale, which was tame and accustomed to people, attempted to pull ropes and straps from the sides of the boats

• Whale with harness could be Russian weapon, say Norwegian experts

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CBI is looking for a manager for a team aiming to rapidly expand climate-friendly investment by influencing policy makers in national governments, central banks and financial regulators.

WRI is looking for an associate to implement an initiative aimed at ensuring countries increase their climate ambition by 2020.

ClientEarth is seeking an experienced professional to take on the lead role in providing strategic direction and managerial oversight to its Forests and Climate Programme.

Non-profit group Network for Certification and Conservation of Forests (NCCF) has circulated draft rules for an Indian carbon standard and credit registry that will form the foundation of the country’s voluntary carbon offset market.

European carbon prices showed signs of recovery on Monday following the previous session’s 5% crash, although the lower prices failed to attract keen buying at the day’s auction.

A woman from Mongolia has won the Goldman Environmental Prize after a campaign to stop mining firms destroying a critical habitat for snow leopards.

Like other recipients, Alfred Brownell has faced threats and worse defending the environment

Two years ago Alfred Brownell was forced to flee Liberia after a successful campaign against a foreign palm oil plantation led to death threats and intimidation. Today, he hopes to return after being named one of this year’s winners of the Goldman environmental prize.

Like several other recipients of the 2019 award, which will be presented at a ceremony on Monday in San Francisco, the Liberian lawyer risked life and liberty to defend people and wildlife in a region of the world that was until recently remote, but is now encroached upon by powerful business interests.

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Japanese utility J-Power has halved the planned size of a new coal-fired power plant in Yamaguchi prefecture after fellow generator Osaka Gas pulled out of the project.

NZUs on Monday closed within the same tight 5-cent range for an 18th consecutive session amid limited demand ahead of next month’s compliance and lack of news on the fixed price option.

Is there such a thing as the perfect toilet or does it depend on where you live? Assa Doran takes us though the history to discover that privilege, power and poo are connected. So how does that play out in India?

Are environmentalists doing more harm than good when it comes to mitigating the effects of climate change? Mallen Baker believes so. What can be done to help solve the problems of climate change in a way that benefits everyone and not just those who think they know best?

Artists and musicians swoop to save one of UK’s most celebrated but endangered birds

Just as Vera Lynn sang, the voices of nightingales are again being heard in Berkeley Square in central London over the hum of traffic and din of construction work.

The nightingale has virtually disappeared from Britain over the past 50 years, its population plummeting by 93% to fewer than 5,500 pairs. But now a chorus of nightingale events are being arranged by artists, musicians and filmmakers to raise awareness of the plight of one of the country’s most celebrated but endangered birds.

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Fisherman raised alarm after white whale sporting unusual strapping began harassing their boats

Marine experts in Norway believe they have stumbled upon a white whale that was trained by the Russian navy as part of a programme to use underwater mammals as a special ops force.

Fishermen in waters near the small Norwegian fishing village of Inga reported last week that a white beluga whale wearing a strange harness had begun to harass their fishing boats.

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The CEFC has invested $30 million in the Woolworths Group green bond, the first certified green bond issued by an Australian retailer and by a supermarket business globally.

The post CEFC invests $30 million in world-first Woolworths green bond appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Lincoln Gap wind farm begins production as owner strikes interim deal as turbine provider Senvion sorts out its finances.

The post Lincoln Gap wind farm delivers first power to grid as it deals with Senvion issues appeared first on RenewEconomy.

South Australia signals search for new projects and competitors to supply 100% of its electricity supply, after failure of the Aurora solar thermal project.

The post S.A. begins search for energy provider after failure of solar tower project appeared first on RenewEconomy.