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New government white paper states that Britain is planing no major changes to catch quotas

British fishing fleets will face a tough struggle to wring a substantial advantage from Brexit, despite the prime minister’s promises, owing to key concessions in the government’s fishing proposals and the difficulty of persuading other EU member states to give up their current rights in British and shared waters, the Guardian has found.

Michael Gove, the environment secretary, published a white paper on Wednesday setting out the UK’s approach to fisheries after 2020, when the Brexit transition period is likely to end. He hailed “a sea of opportunity … we can take back control of our waters and revitalise coastal communities”.

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China has launched a carbon trading scheme to improve fuel efficiency for vehicles and boost the production of so-called new energy vehicles (NEVs), though the government’s own data shows the market will be over-supplied in its early years.

Grand Manan Island temporarily halted fishing after the sighting of a single endangered whale, to the surprise of fishermen there

In 30 years of fishing for lobster in the Bay of Fundy between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Laurence Cook has been forced off the water by high winds, winter storms and icy conditions.

But until this summer, he had never had to stay home because of a whale.

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A new study led by chief scientist Alan Finkel has underlined Australia's role as a leader in the household battery storage sector, and says Australia can, and should, be a leader of energy storage of all types.

European carmakers Renault and Volkswagen look to a future where people share electric cars rather than own them.

In a dramatic conclusion to a meeting that failed to approve any finance for the developing world, Howard Bamsey announced his exit from the Green Climate Fund.

Will self-driving cars mean a decrease in carbon emissions overall?

Few people expect Scott Pruitt’s resignation to slow down Trump administration’s efforts to deal a knock-out blow to the agency’s ability to protect the environment.

Australia is already at 19 per cent renewables as at June, and could reach 43 per cent renewables by 2030, just with the state targets in Queensland and Victoria, new data shows.

The robot vehicle would retrieve rocks that could be brought to Earth for detailed study.

A toad named after the character in Lord in the Rings joins a new list of species at risk of extinction.

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

Pruitt seemed indestructible as the administration cycled through resignations, with Trump standing by him even at the end

Towards the end of his 2016 presidential election campaign, Donald Trump discovered a new slogan: “Drain the swamp!” He admitted being surprised at how well it went down with crowds at his rallies and kept repeating it.

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California and RGGI prices were largely static this week as the summer holiday season kicked off in earnest with the July 4 US holiday.

Embattled US EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt resigned as leader of the country’s environmental office on Thursday after a multitude of political and financial scandals, with deputy administrator and former coal industry lobbyist Andrew Wheeler slated to become the acting agency head on Monday.

Pruitt’s actions at the EPA have left a demoralized agency where staff fear their ability to protect public health is diminished

Scott Pruitt, who has finally stepped down as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency after a long-rumbling corruption scandal, rose to public prominence on the back of a series of increasingly outlandish ethical controversies.

Related: Scott Pruitt resigns: Trump's scandal-ridden EPA chief steps down

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Donald Trump announces Pruitt’s departure on Twitter and praises him for doing an ‘outstanding job’

• The biggest Trump resignations and firings – so far

Scott Pruitt, the hugely controversial administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, has resigned.

Related: A scandal for all seasons: Scott Pruitt's ethics violations in full

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The EPA administrator has been embroiled in allegations of ethics violations for months.

On the golden jubilee of the discovery of Mungo Lady's 40,000-year-old remains, we can reflect on Aboriginal Australia's vast history, which predates the arrival of Homo sapiens in both Europe and America. Richard 'Bert' Roberts, Director, ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), University of Wollongong Lynette Russell, Professor, Indigenous Studies and History, Monash University Michael Bird, ARC Laureate Fellow, JCU Distinguished Professor and Landscapes Theme Leader for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, James Cook University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Remains of two or three people found near pride with an axe – commonly used to remove horn

At least two rhino poachers were eaten by lions on a South African game farm, according to the reserve’s owner.

A ranger taking guests on a safari drive at the Sibuya game reserve in the Eastern Cape on Tuesday afternoon discovered human remains near a pride of lions.

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