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Langstone Harbour, Hampshire: As they break down rubbish on the strandline, the tiny crustaceans may however be contributing to the spread of secondary microplastics

With my back to the sea, I paced out a five-metre-wide transect and began methodically surveying the shore, working my way up the exposed shingle towards the high-tide mark. I was taking part in the Big Seaweed Search – a citizen science project that aims to investigate whether sea temperature rise, ocean acidification and the spread of non-native species is affecting the distribution and abundance of 14 indicator seaweeds.

The seaweed was growing in an uninterrupted three-metre-wide band that arced around the bay. Long skeins of pea-green gutweed were interwoven with flattened, tawny-coloured fronds of bladderwrack and spiralwrack, and an unfamiliar species that had tiny, spherical air bladders clustered along its wiry branches. According to my field guide, it was Japanese wireweed, an invasive alien.

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The only zero-emissions race car to complete the Dakar Rally is in Australia to compete in the annual Finke Desert Race.

France government incentive to trade in old petrol and diesel cars for new EVs proves unexpected success.

Automaker behind world's best selling EV unveils Nissan Energy Solar – a home solar, storage, and smart control package, including 2nd-hand EV batteries.

Alan Jones and Josh Frydenberg traded barbs on radio on Thursday. And beneath the bravado was an insight into how far to the right the debate around Australia’s climate and energy politics has shifted.

Wind, solar PV and Nuclear have gained electricity market share in China, but because of another downturn in hydro, coal generation continues to grow.

What is it about AI that unnerves us? Alan Finkel suspects it’s a combination of things.

Australia faces many security issues driven by climate change, including more international migration and an increase in defence personnel being sent on disaster relief missions, a Senate inquiry has found. Matt McDonald, Associate Professor of International Relations, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

How an Australian town found itself at the vanguard of a global solar revolution.

Report finds Narrabri has “enormous potential” for renewables, with scope for between 1GW and 4.5GW of large-scale solar and wind, that would create 500-2,600 permanent local jobs.

Senate report acknowledges the huge risks of climate change and the "threat to intelligent life". But it needs to do more than that.

A high-tech solution being tested in Iceland gets rid of waste carbon dioxide by pumping it 1,000m underground.

A high-tech solution being tested in Iceland gets rid of waste carbon dioxide by pumping it 1,000m underground.

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North American carbon markets jumped into life late this week as the WCI programme prepared for its second quarterly auction result, while RGGI traders began to plan for the northeast US market’s second sale of the year.

Mo Brooks rejects notion that global warming is causing sea levels to increase, and says: ‘What about the White Cliffs of Dover?’

A member of Congress has suggested that the White Cliffs of Dover tumbling into the English Channel was causing rising sea levels.

Related: Everglades under threat as Florida's mangroves face death by rising sea level

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The world's national parks cover an area bigger than South America. But a new survey finds that one-third of this area is subject to pressure from human developments, potentially putting wildlife at risk. James Watson, Professor, The University of Queensland James Allan, PhD candidate, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland Kendall Jones, PhD candidate, Geography, Planning and Environmental Management, The University of Queensland Pablo Negret, PhD candidate, The University of Queensland Richard Fuller, Associate Professor in Biodiversity and Conservation, The University of Queensland Sean Maxwell, PhD candidate, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

One third of the world's protected lands are being degraded by human activities, says a new study.

One third of the world's protected lands are being degraded by human activities, says a new study.

New study’s author says failure to protect biodiversity in places identified for that purpose is ‘staggering’

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A third of global protected areas such as national parks have been severely degraded by human activities in what researchers say is a stunning reality check of efforts by nations to stall biodiversity loss.

A University of Queensland-led study, published on Friday in the prestigious academic journal Science, analysed human activity across 50,000 protected areas worldwide.

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