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EPA proposal to limit role of science in decision-making met with alarm
Democratic lawmakers and scientists denounced proposal to allow administrators to reject study results if research isn’t public
Democratic lawmakers joined scientists, health and environmental officials and activists on Tuesday in denouncing a proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), backed by industry, that could limit dramatically what kind of science the agency considers when making regulations.
Related: Andrew Wheeler: 'point man for Trump' focused on undoing Obama's EPA agenda
Continue reading...Does Wales hold the key for saving the puffin from extinction?
Hosepipe ban firm loses 133 litres of water in leaks per house a day
United Utilities, imposing ban on 7m households, is second worst for leaking pipes
The water company ordering a hosepipe ban on 7m households in the north-west of England has the second-worst record for leaking pipes of any supplier, industry data shows.
The temporary use ban being imposed by United Utilities from 5 August has led to calls for water firms to do more to tackle leakage on their networks.
Continue reading...The UK's history in space
Practice Leader, Climate Policy & Finance, First Climate – Zurich
Think-tank urges UK to introduce carbon tax with border measures upon EU exit
How Trump’s wildlife board is rebranding trophy hunting as good for animals
As hunters hold immense clout in the Trump administration and most of the council’s members are advocates of the sport, critics worry the board will protect their hobby, not the animals
Donald Trump has called big-game trophy hunting a “horror show”, despite his own sons’ participation in elephant and leopard hunts, and in 2017 he formed an advisory board to steer US policy on the issue.
Continue reading...NZ Market: NZ carbon prices extend record highs
State minister says Australia’s NEG unacceptable in current version
Country diary: metamorphosis in a museum tower
Oxford University Museum: For 70 years, researchers have been watching ‘particularly hideous’ young swifts turn into long-winged angels
This glorious structure is a place rich in history. As we walked through the galleries our guide paused to show us the great oak door behind which Bishop Wilberforce confronted “Darwin’s bulldog”, Thomas Huxley, in their famous debate on evolution. We, however, were intent on a more modest fraction of the building’s past. For it was here in 1947 that the ecologists Elizabeth and David Lack noticed how breeding swifts were vanishing into air vents in the roof’s slate-covered tower.
Continue reading...AEMO's new electricity plan is neither a death knell nor a shot in the arm for coal
Only 2% of lithium-ion batteries in Australia are recycled, report says
CSIRO says lack of consumer awareness is ‘number one issue’ affecting recycling
Australians have to boost their recycling of lithium-ion batteries, a new CSIRO report has found.
Consumers only recycle 2% of our lithium-ion batteries, and an estimated $813m to $3bn worth of valuable components is in landfill. The commonly-used rechargeable batteries are used in mobile phones, laptops, household appliances and, increasingly, electric vehicles.
Continue reading...Swan upping on the Thames: counting the Queen's birds – in pictures
This week marks the annual stocktake of the crown’s swans on the River Thames, known as swan upping. The process of counting the swans on the river and identifying them as belonging to the Queen or one of the two City livery companies that also have rights to them – has been carried out since the 12th century, when the birds were so prized for their meat that all wild swans in England were appropriated as property of the crown. The pomp, finery and techniques of swan upping would be familiar to the villagers who looked on centuries ago
Continue reading...Dumas, VW sets new EV speed record at Goodwood
Common cranes 'here to stay' after recolonising eastern England
Model predicts population of UK’s tallest bird could double within 50 years after its return to the east of England following a 400-year absence
Common cranes which recolonised eastern England less than 40 years ago after a 400-year absence are now here to stay, research has found.
There could be as many as 275 breeding pairs of the UK’s tallest bird within 50 years, scientists at the University of Exeter, the RSPB and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) predict.
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