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Fossil fuel companies undermining Paris agreement negotiations – report

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 17:11

Exclusive: report says outcomes of climate negotiations have been skewed to favour biggest corporate polluters

Global negotiations seeking to implement the Paris agreement have been captured by corporate interests and are being undermined by powerful forces that benefit from exacerbating climate change, according to a report released ahead of the second meeting of parties to the Paris agreement – COP23 – next week.

The report, co-authored by Corporate Accountability, uncovers a litany of ways in which fossil fuel companies have gained high-level access to negotiations and manipulated outcomes.

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Colombia's land battles shatter the peace in Cauca Valley – in pictures

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 17:00

As the peace deal opens up new areas to extractive industries, a long-running fight for land and the environment has erupted anew as indigenous communities try to reclaim their territory

Read more: Indigenous people of Colombia fighting for their lands

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Most of UK's fruit and veg is from other EU nations 'so Brexit impact may be dramatic'

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 16:01

RSA launches food and farming inquiry as it highlights small quantity of these crops grown in UK and picked by non-EU staff

The UK faces serious health implications if the government fails to agree a Brexit deal, finds a report that says of 35 portions of fruit and vegetables, a figure relating to the five-a-day recommendation for individuals, just one “portion” is grown in the UK and picked by British or non-EU workers.

The report, to mark the launch of a new RSA commission examining the impact of Brexit on food and farming, found that the five-a-day health target – which adds up to the 35 portions of fruit and vegetables a week – was overwhelmingly met by food grown in the EU or harvested by EU workers in the UK.

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Country diary: bright berries and noisy visitors in the churchyard

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 15:30

Wenlock Edge, Shropshire Scratch-calls and white strobing underwings announce a flock of fieldfare in the abbey ruins

Yew berries glow brilliant red at the green edges of the tree’s inner darkness. It is five minutes to closing time when I slip into the Wenlock Priory ruins. Lawns have been freshly cut; towering stones radiate warmth on one of the last of the fine autumn days; no other feet tread the paths.

It is still bright as the church clock strikes five. Lime, hazel and beech have the smouldering brassy ochre of a slow autumn’s burn, only now reaching their peak. A large horse chestnut bough has been downed in a recent gale. Tall pines rise skyward like those marking drover roads in the hills. Where they end the sky is blue beyond smoky clouds.

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Time for Australia to wake up to scale and pace of clean energy transition

RenewEconomy - Wed, 2017-11-01 14:09
Billionaires get it. A million households get it. And so do thousands of businesses. So why does Australia's government - and its principal regulators - fail to understand that the way to a cheaper, cleaner and more reliable grid is with more renewables, not less.
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Jump in shipping costs could hit Australia solar and wind projects

RenewEconomy - Wed, 2017-11-01 13:57
Sudden jump in shipping rates from China to Australia is adding 20-30% to costs of suppliers to Australian wind and solar developments.
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Network Opportunity Maps to fast-track path to smart, renewable grid

RenewEconomy - Wed, 2017-11-01 13:06
A web-based interactive map – dubbed the Uber of the electricity market - will help pave the way for a smart and renewable grid.
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Why do shark bites seem to be more deadly in Australia than elsewhere?

The Conversation - Wed, 2017-11-01 11:57
Fatal shark bites are very rare. But the stats do suggest that the likelihood of an attack proving fatal is higher in Australia - probably because our waters are home to the "big three" dangerous species. Blake Chapman, Adjunct Research Fellow, Science Communicator, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
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World greenhouse gas levels made unprecedented leap in 2016

RenewEconomy - Wed, 2017-11-01 10:54
Human activity, along with a strong El Nino, drove 2016 greenhouse gas levels to new heights with an unprecedented jump in annual emissions.
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Which has cleaner air: Eastbourne or London?

BBC - Wed, 2017-11-01 07:40
The UK cities with atmospheres considered harmful to health by the WHO are revealed in a new report.
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Asteroid impact plunged dinosaurs into catastrophic 'winter'

BBC - Wed, 2017-11-01 06:34
Scientists are now clearer on the freezing climate conditions that forced dinosaurs from the Earth.
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UK mining firm in court over claims it mistreated environmental activists

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 05:24

Peruvian lawsuit in London claims Xstrata should be liable for alleged police violence against demonstrators near Tintaya mine

A UK-registered mining company, which is now part of Glencore, is facing claims in a London court that it hired security forces to mistreat environmental activists protesting about a copper mine in Peru.

Two demonstrators died and others were left with serious injuries following the confrontations which lasted for several days during May 2012 on a remote hillside in the Andes, the court has been told.

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World 'very likely' heading for three degrees of warming by 2100 — UN report

ABC Environment - Wed, 2017-11-01 05:17
Without "much stronger pledges" in 2020, the world is heading for at least three degrees of warming by 2100, according to the 2017 UN Emissions Gap report.
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Citizen scientists count nearly 2 million birds and reveal a possible kookaburra decline

The Conversation - Wed, 2017-11-01 05:05
The fourth Aussie Backyard Bird Count, which has just finished, has some potentially worrying news about one of our best-loved species. Kerryn Herman, Research Ecologist, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
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Pacific Islanders call for Australia not to fund Adani coalmine

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 03:00

Caritas says thousands face threats to their wellbeing, livelihoods and ‘their very existence’ due to rising sea levels

Pacific Islanders whose homes face eradication by rising sea levels have called on Australia to not fund the Adani Carmichael coalmine, as a new report reveals the worsening impact of climate change across Oceania.

Residents of the endangered islands have described their forced displacement as like “having your heart ripped out of your chest” as they called on the Australian government to do more to combat climate change.

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Satellite eye on Earth: September 2017 - in pictures

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 02:54

Algal blooms, hurricanes and volcano fields are among the images captured by Nasa and the ESA last month

A potentially harmful algal bloom covered more than 700 square miles in the western basin of Lake Erie in late September, turning the lake bright green and alarming residents and local officials. Blooms tend to thrive in Lake Erie during summer, sustained by warm water temperatures and nutrients from farm runoff. This year, the bloom had been ongoing since mid-July.

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Moves to curb democratic fracking protests in the UK 'extremely worrying'

The Guardian - Wed, 2017-11-01 02:12

Green MP Caroline Lucas criticises attempts by chemicals multinational Ineos to impose a sweeping injunction against anti-fracking campaigners

The chemicals multinational Ineos is facing criticism for seeking to curb democratic protests against fracking in a move described by Green MP Caroline Lucas as “extremely worrying”.

On Tuesday Ineos began its latest legal move to impose a sweeping injunction against all campaigners protesting over its fracking operations.

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UK's Halley Antarctic base set for second closure

BBC - Tue, 2017-10-31 22:13
The UK's Halley station will be mothballed again this year because of uncertainty over ice cracks.
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Cod and haddock 'may vanish' from Scotland's west coast

BBC - Tue, 2017-10-31 21:22
Herring and haddock could also disappear by the turn of the century due to global warming, warn scientists.
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Emissions gap remains 'alarmingly high' says UN

BBC - Tue, 2017-10-31 20:51
Carbon cuts planned under the Paris accord still fall well short of what's needed, says the UN.
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