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Powershop signs huge deal for solar, wind projects – “stunned” by low prices

RenewEconomy - Thu, 2018-02-01 12:16
Energy retailer Powershop signs up for new 200MW solar farm and two major wind projects and says it was "stunned" by the low prices offered. It will also buy three hydro generators, but will need to more than double customers to match output.
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The era of nuclear decommissioning

RenewEconomy - Thu, 2018-02-01 10:45
After a growth spurt from the 1960s to the '90s, then 20 years of stagnation, the Era of Nuclear Decommissioning is upon us.
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Dying in agony

BBC - Thu, 2018-02-01 10:26
While the US suffers an overdose epidemic, most of the world misses out on painkillers.
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Space shuttle Columbia's final mission

BBC - Thu, 2018-02-01 10:17
It's 15 years since disaster struck as the Columbia returned to Earth following a research mission.
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Surfers Against Sewage urge MPs to make parliament plastic-free

The Guardian - Thu, 2018-02-01 10:01

Campaigners ask Westminster to ‘drive war on plastic waste’ and Prince Charles calls for action

Campaigners are demanding that the UK parliament cuts its use of throwaway plastics, as new figures show the Westminster estate purchased more than 2m plastic straws, bottled drinks, plastic-lined coffee cups, food sachets and cutlery items last year.

Freedom of information requests submitted by Surfers Against Sewage show that hundreds of thousands of items of plastic cutlery, more than a million takeaway coffee cups and nearly 22,000 plastic straws were used last year in the Commons and Lords.

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Blue Planet gift from Theresa May to remind Beijing of plastic waste

The Guardian - Thu, 2018-02-01 08:36

Boxset comes with message from David Attenborough as PM hopes for China’s help to cut pollution

Theresa May will present Xi Jinping with a Blue Planet boxset when the two meet in Beijing on Thursday, but the Chinese president may have already seen the BBC series – considering its huge popularity in his country.

The seven-part series was watched by millions across the globe, and proved especially popular in China where an estimated 26 million people saw the first episode and approximately 100 million watched the second online, resulting in the country’s internet slowing to glacial pace.

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Luxembourg PM watches GovSat-1 space launch

BBC - Thu, 2018-02-01 08:10
Xavier Bettel is at Cape Canaveral in Florida to see his nation's latest space project go into orbit.
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Chris Packham memoir voted UK's favourite piece of nature writing

The Guardian - Thu, 2018-02-01 07:00

Naturalist describes accolade as ‘Boaty McBoatface in book form’ after Fingers in the Sparkle Jar beats Wind in the Willows and The Peregrine

When academics asked readers to vote for Britain’s favourite piece of nature writing, they probably didn’t expect a celebrity memoir about Asperger’s to trounce otters, badgers and peregrines.

But Chris Packham has seen off famous poets and naturalists such as John Clare, Kathleen Jamie and Gilbert White, as well as much-loved children’s classics The Wind in the Willows and Tarka the Otter, to top the online poll organised by the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

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Global use of mosquito nets for fishing 'endangering humans and wildlife'

The Guardian - Thu, 2018-02-01 05:00

Study warns that use of anti-malarial nets may reduce people’s protection and affect fish stocks, and calls for urgent research into potential impacts

Anti-malarial mosquito nets are being used to catch fish around the world, according to the first global survey, risking harm to people and fish stocks.

More research is urgently needed to assess these impacts, say the scientists, but they also caution that the draconian bans on mosquito net fishing seen in some countries may cause more harm than good, particularly where people rely on the fish caught to survive.

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Hong Kong bans ivory trade in 'historic' vote

BBC - Thu, 2018-02-01 03:36
The move by Hong Kong's lawmakers is hailed by campaigners as "a lifeline for elephants".
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The 'super blue blood Moon' across the world

BBC - Thu, 2018-02-01 03:23
Eyes around the globe have been turning to the skies to view the lunar event.
Categories: Around The Web

Forests fall, animals die, desert looms: Uganda's burning problem – in pictures

The Guardian - Wed, 2018-01-31 22:10

Charcoal is an integral part of everyday life in Uganda, where most people rely on some form of wood fuel to cook or boil water. For many, the sale of trees also provides a valuable income. Yet this levelling of the landscape, which causes loss of habitat for wildlife and leads to climate change, is unsustainable

All photographs by Jennifer Huxta

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Hong Kong votes to ban domestic ivory sales

The Guardian - Wed, 2018-01-31 22:10

Lawmakers overwhelmingly vote for the bill to abolish trade by 2021, which will shut down a massive ivory market and throw a ‘lifeline’ to elephants

Hong Kong has voted to ban ivory sales in a landmark move to end the infamous trade in the city.

Lawmakers overwhelmingly voted for Wednesday’s bill, which will abolish the trade by 2021, following China’s complete ban on ivory sales that went into effect at the end of last year.

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Cambodian forest defenders killed after confronting illegal loggers

The Guardian - Wed, 2018-01-31 21:34

Three-person team reported to have been attacked by government forces while patrolling in the Keo Seima wildlife conservation sanctuary

Soldiers in an area of north-eastern Cambodia where illicit logging and smuggling are rife are reported to have killed a forest protection ranger, a military police officer and a conservation worker in apparent retaliation for their seizure of equipment from illegal loggers, officials have said.

Keo Sopheak, a senior environmental official in Mondulkiri province, said the three-person team was attacked late Tuesday afternoon after patrolling in the Keo Seima wildlife conservation sanctuary. He said the dead civilian was a Cambodian employee of the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society.

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Killer whale says 'hello'

BBC - Wed, 2018-01-31 21:15
A killer whale is taught to mimic words such as "hello" and "bye bye" in a scientific experiment.
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Cryonics: Your body preserved for future revival?

BBC - Wed, 2018-01-31 20:49
Arizona-based company Alcor offers cryonic preservation in the hope of reviving you in the future.
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Australian trees 'sweat' to survive extreme heatwaves, researchers reveal

The Guardian - Wed, 2018-01-31 17:57

Climate experiment shows trees release water but stop absorbing carbon in extreme heat

Australian researchers growing trees in climate change conditions have found the leaves “sweat” to survive extreme heatwaves.

The year-long experiment showed that trees continue to release water through their leaves as an evaporative cooling system during periods of extreme heat, despite the carbon-fixing process of photosynthesis grinding to a halt.

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Terry the green sea turtle practises for release by swimming with predators – video

The Guardian - Wed, 2018-01-31 17:01

Footage taken at the Sealife Melbourne aquarium shows a green sea turtle that was rescued from a beach on the Mornington peninsula swimming laps alongside predators  to prepare for his release into the wild. Terry the turtle has a phalanx of divers to act as bodyguards for his first foray into the tank

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Stripes of wildflowers across farm fields could cut pesticide spraying

The Guardian - Wed, 2018-01-31 16:30

The stripy fields have been planted across England as part of a trial to boost the natural predators of pests that attack cereal crops

Long strips of bright wildflowers are being planted through crop fields to boost the natural predators of pests and potentially cut pesticide spraying.

The strips were planted on 15 large arable farms in central and eastern England last autumn and will be monitored for five years, as part of a trial run by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH).

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Super blue blood moon: Get ready for a rare celestial show

BBC - Wed, 2018-01-31 16:21
A lunar eclipse, supermoon and blue moon are about to happen at once. Here's what you need to know.
Categories: Around The Web

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