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Animal antibiotics reduced in bid to tackle superbugs
Coal India report finds renewables will ‘substantially decrease’ coal demand
Water vole areas in England and Wales fall by 30% in a decade
Species remains UK’s fastest declining mammal despite large reintroduction programme
The number of areas where water voles are found across England and Wales has fallen by almost a third in 10 years, research has found.
The species, which provided the model for the much-loved character Ratty in The Wind of the Willows, has suffered catastrophic declines over several decades and is the UK’s fastest declining mammal.
Continue reading...Australia's Emissions Reduction Fund is almost empty. It shouldn't be refilled
The terrifying phenomenon that is pushing species towards extinction
There was almost something biblical about the scene of devastation that lay before Richard Kock as he stood in the wilderness of the Kazakhstan steppe. Dotted across the grassy plain, as far as the eye could see, were the corpses of thousands upon thousands of saiga antelopes. All appeared to have fallen where they were feeding.
Some were mothers that had travelled to this remote wilderness for the annual calving season, while others were their offspring, just a few days old. Each had died in just a few hours from blood poisoning. In the 30C heat of a May day, the air around each of the rotting hulks was thick with flies.
Continue reading...Can a tourist ban save DiCaprio’s coral paradise from destruction?
South-east Asian idylls – from Philippine islands to the Thai bay made famous in The Beach – plan to turn tourists away so that devastated coral reefs have some time to recover. Will it be enough?
Our Thai tour guide, Spicey, takes a drag on her cigarette and gestures sadly towards the beach. “The problem with people is that they are too greedy. They see a beautiful place and they want it. They take, take, take from nature. And then they destroy it.”
The golden sands of Maya Bay where Spicey stands are some of the most famous in the world. This once-idyllic cove, on the tiny Thai island of Koh Phi Phi Leh, was the paradise location of The Beach, Danny Boyle’s 2000 film starring Leonardo DiCaprio. It was then pushed by tourism officials in advertising campaigns to entice more wealthy visitors to Thailand.
Continue reading...One million birds killed illegally every year at a wildlife site in Iran
A million wild birds a year are now being killed illegally at a single wildlife site in Iran. That is the stark warning from conservationists who say highly endangered migratory species face being wiped out in the near future there unless urgent action is taken.
In a letter last week to the journal Science, the conservationists pinpoint the Fereydunkenar wetlands in Iran as the site of this widespread wildlife slaughter.
Continue reading...Sydney beaches reopen after first shark attack in Botany Bay in 25 years
Anna Shurapey recovering in hospital after being bitten by a suspected juvenile great white off Little Congwong beach
Swimmers at a Sydney beach where a woman was bitten by a shark shouldn’t have reservations about venturing back into the water when it reopens on Sunday, experts say.
Anna Shurapey, 55, survived the first shark attack in Botany Bay in at least 25 years after she was bitten on the leg about 7pm Friday, prompting the Randwick City Council to close nearby beaches for 24 hours.
Continue reading...Wearable tech aids stroke patients
Toxic toad invasion puts ecology of Madagascar at risk
Rustling branches and a canopy cacophony – part howl, part screech, part snigger – proclaim the presence of black-and-white ruffed lemurs as visitors enter Ivoloina zoological park in eastern Madagascar.
The raucous primate is one of several critically endangered species in this biological refuge, which breeds and protects rare wildlife from the growing pressures on this island’s unique ecology.
Continue reading...Nappies, takeaways and bubble wrap: could I remove plastic from my life?'
It’s polluting our oceans and killing our wildlife, but how easy is it to get by without it? Four writers find out
No man is an island. However, if I were an island, I’d probably be the best one ever. When the Guardian asked me to record all the single-use plastic I got through in a week, I scoffed. Piece of cake, I thought.
Continue reading...Country diary: a glimpse of spring down by the river Ystwyth
Aberystwyth, Ceredigion: From the depths of dormant bramble thickets, tangled and moribund, robins called and chased defiantly as they reinforced their territories
In the last stages of its journey to the sea, the river Ystwyth curves in gentle meanders across a broad valley pasture grazed by a modest scattering of sheep. This close to the coast, the wind from the sea is a powerful force, carving the small riverside trees into forms that leave no doubt as to its direction and persistence.
Continue reading...Nile conflict
Deep Water Horizon spill killed more than one thousand marine mammals
Cleaning products, pesticides, paints and personal products a major source of urban air pollution
President Trump blocks out science
Tech billionaire, ordered to reopen public beach, appeals to supreme court
Investor Vinod Khosla has battled regulators for years over Martin’s Beach, which can only be reached by road on his property
A Silicon Valley billionaire who was ordered by California courts to restore public access to a popular surfing beach is seeking to take his case to the US supreme court.
The case could entirely upend public access to beaches in a state with more than 1,000 miles of shoreline.
Continue reading...Plastic straws could be banned, suggests Michael Gove
A Big Country
Michael Gove denies EU is 'one step ahead' on plastic straw ban
Minister in Twitter spat with Brussels after suggesting UK ban could be prevented by EU
Michael Gove has become embroiled in a Twitter row with the EU over his suggestion that Brussels could block the UK government from banning plastic straws.
The environment secretary and Frans Timmermans, a European commission vice-president, goaded each other on the social media platform over their rival claims to be the most advanced in clamping down on plastic waste.
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