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Philippine fishermen net and eat rare megamouth shark

The Guardian - Wed, 2009-04-08 00:26
One of the world's rarest sharks ends up in the pot after being accidentally caught in fishing nets in south-east Asia

Fishermen in the Philippines accidentally caught a megamouth shark, one of the rarest fish in the world and later ate it after it had been identified. Only 40 other sightings of the shark have ever been recorded, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

The 500kg, four metre megamouth (Megachasma pelagios) died while struggling in the fishermen's net on 30 March off Burias island in the central Philippines. It was taken to nearby Donsol in Sorsogon province, said Gregg Yan, a spokesman for WWF-Philippines.

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Patrick Barkham: The greenest way to go to the grave

The Guardian - Wed, 2009-03-11 10:01

Wendy Richard's funeral was notable not just for the number of EastEnders stars among the mourners but the fact that her coffin was woven from bamboo.

Richard's family chose an eco-friendly coffin because they did not want a tree to be chopped down, according to its manufacturer, Ecoffins. The company stresses its environmental credentials: the bamboo is harvested from sustainable, licensed plantations and is not the species eaten by pandas; its Chinese factory is certified Fairtrade. With smart packing, they claim the shipping of one coffin from China uses the same amount of fuel as driving a car 4.63 miles.

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George Monbiot on the anti-road protest that still influences environmentalists

The Guardian - Wed, 2009-02-11 10:01
When a protest began 15 years ago to save Solsbury Hill from road builders, no one could have foreseen its massive long-term effect

One fine day in 1994, two policemen struggled up to the protest camp on Solsbury Hill, near Bath, and asked to be taken to the leaders. "You want to talk to Aqua and Sulis," someone told them. "They're up the top. You'll recognise them 'cos they're both black." The officers sweated up to the top of the hill and told the people there who they wanted to talk to. Everyone stared at them. "Aqua and Sulis? You sure about that?" they asked. "Definitely," the policemen replied. And so they were taken to meet the two black piglets that were kept as pets at the camp.

No one returned from Solsbury Hill unchanged. The battle against Batheaston bypass was a turning point in the fight against the government's road building programme, and in the lives of many of the people who became involved in it.

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Democratic Unionist party stands by climate change sceptic environment minister Sammy Wilson

The Guardian - Wed, 2009-02-11 03:03
Sammy Wilson keeps job despite petitions calling for his sacking and fellow unionists accusing him of turning Northern Ireland into laughing stock

Despite petitions calling for his sacking and even fellow unionists accusing him of turning Northern Ireland into a laughing stock, the Democratic Unionist party is sticking by climate change sceptic Sammy Wilson, who is the province's environment minister.

All the major parties in the Northern Ireland assembly have now said Wilson is unfit to hold the office, after he used his powers this week to ban government television adverts from the province's airwaves. Wilson said the Act On CO2 ads were insidious green "propaganda".

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President Obama 'has four years to save Earth'

The Guardian - Sun, 2009-01-18 10:01
US must take the lead to avert eco-disaster

Read the full interview with James Hansen here

Barack Obama has only four years to save the world. That is the stark assessment of Nasa scientist and leading climate expert Jim Hansen who last week warned only urgent action by the new president could halt the devastating climate change that now threatens Earth. Crucially, that action will have to be taken within Obama's first administration, he added.

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Macquarie Island faces an 'ecosystem meltdown' after conservation efforts backfire, scientists warn

The Guardian - Tue, 2009-01-13 01:15
Attempts by conservationists to eradicate cats in order to save birds on the sub-Antarctic island has caused an explosion in the rabbit population and damage to plantlife that will cost £11m to repair, scientists say

It is a cautionary tale of recklessness, good intentions and the ecological mayhem that can result when people interfere with the delicate balance of Mother Nature: scientists today catalogued the unfortunate series of biological events caused by human meddling and alien species that has devastated the once pristine sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island.

Lessons must be learnt on all sides, the scientists say, because well-intentioned attempts by conservation experts to fix the island have so far made the situation worse. Life across almost half the island, a World Heritage site, has been affected, and experts are now weighing up a £11m rescue plan.

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Chilling developments in Dubai

The Guardian - Thu, 2008-12-18 10:01
A refrigerated swimming pool and an artificially cooled beach - Dubai's latest excesses are enough to make conservationists weep. Leo Hickman reports

There will surely come a day when Dubai runs the world's reserves of hyperbole dry. But in the meantime, we continue to draw a sharp intake of breath each time a new construction project is announced. We have had ski domes built in the desert, seen vast artificial islands rise from the sea and watched several structures vying for the title of world's tallest building. Dubai represents the will, vision and ambition of our species. Yet many believe it shines an unflattering light on our tendency for folly and hubris, too.

This week, it was reported that the Palazzo Versace hotel - the Emirate's latest offering for those still in the market for exorbitant luxury - will boast, when completed in 2010, a refrigerated 820sq metre swimming pool and a beach with artificially cooled sand to protect its guests from the excesses of a climate that can see summer temperatures exceeding 50C. Wind machines will even be on hand to provide a gentle breeze.

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The Environmental Protection Agency's 'Most Wanted' list

The Guardian - Fri, 2008-12-12 01:27
The Environmental Protection Agency in the United States has launched its own 'Most Wanted' list. It features 23 fugitives, on the run for crimes against the environment ranging from dumping hazardous waste to importing excessively polluting cars Continue reading...
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Silkworms: an environmentally friendly delicacy?

The Guardian - Mon, 2008-11-17 23:27
According to legend, 5,000 years ago a Chinese empress discovered silk when a silkworm cocoon fell into her tea. From Ecoworldly.com, part of the Guardian Environment Network

According to legend, 5,000 years ago Chinese Empress Xi Ling-Shi discovered silk when a silkworm cocoon fell into her hot cup of tea. She unraveled the strange cocoon and, wrapping the thread around her finger, soon realized what an exquisite cloth it would make. Thus the history of one of the world's most coveted fabrics began.

If this is true, the silkworm that haplessly fell into the empress' cup on that fateful day met a fate very similar to that of modern day silkworms. When they exit the cocoon after metamorphosis, silkmoths must bore a hole through the cocoon wall, which ruins the precious thread. Therefore, silk factories drop the cocoons in hot water before the moth can leave. This unravels the thread well, but it boils down to bad news for the silkworms.

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Scientists discover tree fungus that could provide green fuel for transport

The Guardian - Tue, 2008-11-04 10:01
Organism discovered in the Patagonian rainforest produces mixture of chemicals similar to diesel

A tree fungus could provide green fuel that can be pumped directly into tanks, scientists say. The organism, found in the Patagonian rainforest, naturally produces a mixture of chemicals that is remarkably similar to diesel.

"This is the only organism that has ever been shown to produce such an important combination of fuel substances," said Gary Strobel, a plant scientist from Montana State University who led the work. "We were totally surprised to learn that it was making a plethora of hydrocarbons."

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Meltdown in the Arctic is speeding up

The Guardian - Sun, 2008-08-10 09:01
Scientists warn that the North Pole could be free of ice in just five years' time instead of 60

Ice at the North Pole melted at an unprecedented rate last week, with leading scientists warning that the Arctic could be ice-free in summer by 2013.

Satellite images show that ice caps started to disintegrate dramatically several days ago as storms over Alaska's Beaufort Sea began sucking streams of warm air into the Arctic.

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Andrew Simms: We have only 100 months to avoid irreversible environmental disaster

The Guardian - Fri, 2008-08-01 09:01
Time is fast running out to stop irreversible climate change, a group of global warming experts warns today. We have only 100 months to avoid disaster. Andrew Simms explains why we must act now - and where to begin

If you shout "fire" in a crowded theatre, when there is none, you understand that you might be arrested for irresponsible behaviour and breach of the peace. But from today, I smell smoke, I see flames and I think it is time to shout. I don't want you to panic, but I do think it would be a good idea to form an orderly queue to leave the building.

Because in just 100 months' time, if we are lucky, and based on a quite conservative estimate, we could reach a tipping point for the beginnings of runaway climate change. That said, among people working on global warming, there are countless models, scenarios, and different iterations of all those models and scenarios. So, let us be clear from the outset about exactly what we mean.

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Giant carnivorous mice threaten world's greatest seabird colony

The Guardian - Tue, 2008-05-20 03:20

Whalers who visited remote Gough Island in the South Atlantic 150 years ago described a prelapsarian world where millions of birds lived without predators and where a man could barely walk because he would trip over their nests. Today the British-owned island, described as the most important seabird colony in the world, still hosts 22 breeding bird species and is a world heritage site.

But Gough is the stage for one of nature's greatest horror shows. One of those whaling boats, probably from Britain, carried a few house mice stowaways who jumped ship on Gough. Now there are 700,000 or more of them on the island, which is the size of Guernsey.

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Iceland's energy answer comes naturally

The Guardian - Tue, 2008-04-22 19:57
Jessica Aldred visits Reykjavik to find out how Iceland is tapping into its renewable energy resources as it prepares for a low-carbon future

For tourists relaxing in the hot springs of Iceland's famous Blue Lagoon, just outside the capital Reykjavik, the issues of climate change and energy security are not likely to be occupying most bathers' minds. But what many visitors may be surprised to know is that the hot water they are sitting in is part of a remarkable journey by one country from oil dependence to a world leader in harnessing renewable energy.

Iceland's stunning scenery, with its bare, lava-strewn flats, snow-capped mountain ranges, glaciers, volcanoes and hot springs, is due to its location on one of the earth's major fault lines, the mid-Atlantic ridge. While this landscape is attracting an increasing number of tourists each year, the country's geographical peculiarities also mean that Iceland is the only country in the world that can claim to obtain 100% of its electricity and heat from renewable sources.

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Mystery over who hired mole to dig dirt on Plane Stupid's environment activists

The Guardian - Wed, 2008-04-09 09:49
· Spy exposed after leaving easy-to-follow trail
· BAA refused involvement in 'James Bond' tactics

When former Oxford student "Ken Tobias" volunteered in July to help anti-aviation group Plane Stupid, he was accepted with only a few reservations. He seemed committed to the cause of reducing aviation emissions, but as members of the group which occupied the roof of parliament last month recalled yesterday: "There was something not quite right about him."

In retrospect, it is easy to see why. Tobias was yesterday exposed as Toby Kendall, a corporate spy who works as "an analyst" for C2-i International, the UK's premier "special risk management" and investigation company. He was also accused of acting as an agent provocateur, and planting stories to discredit activists.

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How the myth of food miles hurts the planet

The Guardian - Sun, 2008-03-23 22:05
Ethical shopping just got more complicated. The idea that only local produce is good is under attack. There is growing evidence to suggest that some air-freighted food is greener than food produced in the UK. Robin McKie and Caroline Davies report on how the concept of food miles became oversimplified - and is damaging the planet in the process

Mike Small and his wife, Karen, sat down last Thursday to a dinner of smoked fish pie crusted with mashed potato and served with purple-sprouting broccoli, an unremarkable family meal except for one key factor: every ingredient came from sources close to their home in Burntisland, Fife. 'The fish was Fife-landed, while the potatoes and broccoli were grown on nearby farms,' he says.

Nor was this a one-off culinary event. For the past six months Mike and Karen and their two children, Sorley and Alex, have consumed only food and drink bought in their home district.

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How do I make a sandbag?

The Guardian - Tue, 2008-03-11 12:03

Quickly would be a good idea, if you need one. "Some local authorities provide sandbags in an emergency," explains Paul Gainey in the Environment Agency's southwest office, the area currently most at risk of flooding, "but they have limited supply, so it's probably best to get your own."

The simplest way, of course, is to take your credit card down to the nearest DIY store that stocks them - but not all do, and transport can be difficult. Alternatively, if you have a lot of empty bags, you can also order a sack of builder's sand online from any of the major DIY chains. "Last year when there was flooding we did see people buying those," says a B&Q spokeswoman.

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MasterChef success opens kitchen doors

The Guardian - Sun, 2008-03-02 22:15
This year's winner, James Nathan, will follow a well-trodden path to fame and culinary glory

Nathan, 34, who plans to open his own restaurant - 'going from a career that made people miserable to one that makes people happy' - has found inspiration in the good fortune enjoyed by his forerunners.

Since her 2005 win, Thomasina Miers, 31, has written a cookery book, fronted her own cookery-cum-survival series The Wild Gourmets, is starring in another, A Cook's Tour of Spain, which begins on Channel 4 on 20 March, writes a national newspaper column and has opened her own Mexican restaurant, Wahaca, in Covent Garden, London.

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Passage to India curtailed in Calais as language barrier trips campaigner

The Guardian - Sat, 2008-03-01 19:57
Cash-free peace pilgrimage to Gandhi's birthplace comes to an early end

He set off on the first leg of his epic journey with a fanfare of publicity, not to mention an appropriately alternative farewell pre-dawn party on Bristol docks featuring drummers and someone playing a conch shell.

Mark Boyle's idea was to walk to Mahatma Gandhi's birthplace without a penny in his pocket, relying on the kindness of strangers for food and shelter to prove that a better world without money really was possible.

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Why is hemp off the biofuel menu?

The Guardian - Tue, 2008-01-29 02:03
With recent reports downplaying the possibility of biofuels as a solution to climate change, Giulio Sica wonders why there has been no mention of hemp as an alternative crop


Why has hemp been ignored as a biofuel? Photograph: Corbis

The Royal Society, the European Commission and the UK government have all managed, in the last few days, to take the wind out of the sails of the biofuel industry, publishing reports that suggest biofuels could be causing more harm than good, the crops not being as environmentally friendly as first thought, with the Commons environmental audit committee calling for a moratorium on biofuel targets until more research can be done.

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