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UK urged to expand meat alternative sales to tackle climate crisis
Social Market Foundation says more research could help people move ‘to more sustainable dietary habits’
The UK should back the development and sale of artificial meat to tackle the climate crisis, a thinktank report says, calling for the government to encourage the consumption of “alternative proteins” that do not come from animals.
The report, from the Social Market Foundation, also points to a wide array of benefits to supporting alternative proteins, including opening up a green export opportunity for British businesses, reducing the risk of zoonotic diseases and improving animal welfare.
Continue reading...News Corp hasn’t seen the light on climate – they’re just updating their tactics
Is News Corp really seeing the light on climate? More likely it's pivoting to a modern style of greenwashing and delay, just like Morrison.
The post News Corp hasn’t seen the light on climate – they’re just updating their tactics appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Blue-tongue lizards are resistant to red-bellied black snake venom, Australian study finds
Researchers say blue-tongues seem to have evolved a chemical resistance while goannas that feed on venomous snakes have not
Blue-tongue lizards have developed a resistance to the venom of the red-bellied black snake, according to new research.
The largest animals in the skink family, blue-tongues seem to have evolved a chemical resistance to the snake venom, while carnivorous monitor lizards – goannas – that feed on Australia’s venomous snakes have not.
Continue reading...The Guardian view on saving forests: when trees are at risk, so are we | Editorial
Plantations are no replacement for biodiverse forests that have evolved over thousands of years
People need trees. A world without ilex, cinnamon and rosewood trees, a world devoid of magnolias, hornbeams and maples would be much the poorer. We rely on trees, of course, to absorb and store carbon dioxide. They provide us with food, fuel, medicine and construction materials. They shelter us from storms; they reduce soil erosion. Without them, other plants and animals would be lost for ever – in the UK, native oaks feed and shelter about 2,300 other species. We are only beginning to fully comprehend their social nature and the “wood wide web” which connects plants together through roots, fungi and bacteria. We need them, too, because their grace and beauty lift our spirits and restore our calm.
There are almost 58,500 tree species in the world, a richness few of us can truly comprehend. But a shocking new international study has warned that between a third and half of those are at risk of extinction in the wild – posing a risk of wider ecosystem collapse. The comprehensive report by Botanic Gardens Conservation International, which was five years in the making, found that twice as many tree species are threatened as mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles combined.
Continue reading...Divers rush to locate source of reported oil spill in Gulf after Hurricane Ida
Coast Guard says suspected oil spill spotted in Gulf of Mexico after Hurricane Ida wreaked havoc in region last week
Clean up crews are rushing to try to locate the source of a suspected oil spill spotted in the Bay Marchard area of the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday, after Hurricane Ida wreaked havoc in the region last week, the US Coast Guard said on Saturday.
The spill, which continues, appears to be coming from a source underwater at an offshore drilling lease about 2 miles (3km) south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana. The reported location is near the site of a miles-long brown and black oil slick visible in aerial photos first published Wednesday by the Associated Press.
Continue reading...Hurricane Ida: drone footage shows damage in Grand Isle, Louisiana – video
Drone footage has captured the extent of destruction caused by Hurricane Ida in the barrier island town of Grand Isle in Louisiana. The US death toll from Ida has risen towards 60. In Louisiana, the confirmed storm-related death toll is nine.
It is nearly a week since one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the US mainland made landfall in Louisiana. The White House has said the president, Joe Biden, will survey storm damage in New York City and Manville, New Jersey
Continue reading...Another record tumbles as renewables share reaches 57.3 per cent
Record for share of renewable energy in Australia's main grid tumbles again on Sunday morning.
The post Another record tumbles as renewables share reaches 57.3 per cent appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Ministers face showdowns on post-Brexit green bill weeks before Cop26
Peers’ challenge to government may see it arguing for lower environmental standards at home while hosting global summit
Ministers are facing a fortnight of showdowns with peers over weak post-Brexit green protections just weeks before the Cop26 summit on the environment.
An alliance of crossbench and opposition peers have tabled more than 100 amendments to the environment bill in an attempt to beef up protections for nature, air quality and water standards and give the new green watchdog more powers.
Continue reading...Tuna bounce back, but sharks in 'desperate' decline
Komodo dragon in danger of extinction as sea levels rise
World’s largest lizard moves from vulnerable to endangered on IUCN red list of threatened species
The komodo dragon, the world’s largest lizard, is threatened with extinction as rising water levels driven by the climate crisis shrink its habitat, according to the latest “red list” update.
Endemic to a handful of Indonesian islands, the komodo dragon lives on the edge of forest or in open savannah, rarely venturing higher than 700 metres above sea level. Rising water levels are set to affect 30% of its habitat in the next 45 years, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which has changed its status from vulnerable to endangered.
Continue reading...Louisiana Shell refinery left spewing chemicals after Hurricane Ida
Power outages from the storm have left air quality tracking systems out of commission, making public health concern hard to gauge
Behind a playground littered with downed tree branches, Shell’s refinery in Norco, Louisiana spewed black smoke from its stacks. The smell of rotten eggs, the signature scent of sulphur emissions, lingered in the air. In an effort to burn off toxic chemicals before and after Hurricane Ida, many industrial facilities sent the gases through smoke stacks topped with flares.
But the hurricane blew out some of those flares like candles, allowing harmful pollution into the air.
Continue reading...CP Daily: Friday September 3, 2021
Revealed: how Tory politicians fought plans to tackle air pollution
Guardian investigation finds 17 MPs, candidates or associations took out 50 ads criticising a clean air zone
Conservative councillors, MPs and local associations have vocally opposed measures to clean up air pollution, often in opposition to government policy, a Guardian investigation has found.
Transport decarbonisation is one of the government’s “priority action areas” at the upcoming Cop26 global climate talks. However, cities in the UK have been slow to adopt clean air zones, schemes that deter the use of older, more polluting vehicles and incentivise cleaner forms of transport. Only three cities currently operate a CAZ.
Continue reading...Anxiety and biscuits: the climate cafes popping up around the world
Organisers say showing people they are not alone in their fears is key to instigating climate action
Kathy Kilmer tried bringing up the climate crisis twice at a recent dinner party, but it didn’t go well. Guests quickly turned the conversation to other topics.
“I just feel awful bringing it up,” said Kilmer, a retired conservation group communications director from Denver, Colorado. “And yet, I feel like talking about it is absolutely key to getting people to understand it.”
Continue reading...Then and now: Why deforestation is such a hot topic
WCI compliance entities added to positions as CCAs surged after Q3 auction
New asset management firm targets $1 bln for premium offset fund
Helping Australia’s threatened wildlife thrive – in pictures
A small team of ecologists and scientists are working to find new ways to bolster populations of Australia’s endangered native animals
Continue reading...World’s biggest biodiversity summit since Covid opens in Marseille
Emmanuel Macron tells IUCN World Conservation Congress ‘there is no vaccine for a sick planet’
The world’s biggest biodiversity summit since the start of the pandemic has opened in the French port city of Marseille with a warning from Emmanuel Macron that “there is no vaccine for a sick planet”.
Speaking at the opening of the IUCN World Conservation Congress, the president echoed warnings from leading scientists that humanity must solve ongoing crises with climate and nature together or solve neither, urging the world to catch up on preventing the loss of biodiversity.
Continue reading...What are big oil companies sending to Hurricane Ida flood victims? 'Thoughts and prayers'
Critics pillory the companies for cynical expressions of sympathy while continuing to block climate solutions
Major oil companies are being pilloried on social media for sending “thoughts and prayers” to victims of Hurricane Ida while sidestepping their role in the ongoing climate disaster.
At least two ExxonMobil outposts – from Beaumont and Baytown, Texas – tweeted the message on Monday, using the hashtag #LouisianaStrong. It didn’t take long for Twitter users to call out the company for its tone-deaf response, noting that Exxon’s own internal research program predicted catastrophic climate change decades ago.
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