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Officials have destroyed an Asian hornet nest in Gloucestershire after the invasive species was spotted there, posing a threat to the UK’s honeybees

An Asian hornet outbreak has been contained, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has said. The first sightings of the pest in the mainland UK were reported in Tetbury, Gloucestershire, in September.

Inspectors from the National Bee Unit destroyed the nest and although two dead hornets were found in North Somerset no further sightings have been reported.

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The week’s top environment news stories and green events. If you are not already receiving this roundup, sign up here to get the briefing delivered to your inbox

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A sleeping dormouse, baby marine iguana and a frilled dragon are among this week’s pick of images from the natural world

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An earthworm named Dave wriggles into the record books as the largest ever found in the UK - measuring a whopping 40cm (15.7in).

Analysts criticise fund – which focuses on cutting the impact of fossil fuels but will not support renewable energy - calling it a ‘drop in the ocean’

A $1bn fund to invest in cutting the climate change impact of fossil fuels has been announced by 10 of the world’s biggest oil companies, on the day the global Paris climate change agreement comes into force.

But analysts called the sum a “drop in the ocean” which showed the companies were not serious in tackling global warming.

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Researchers apply for a licence to carry out a trial of a genetically modified wheat crop in a small field in Hertfordshire.

The Native American women leading the Standing Rock protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline say they have faced police abuse and mistreatment in jail. North Dakota’s militarized law enforcement has left many of them traumatized. ‘They came with their guns, their weapons and violence and put it on a peaceful people,’ says Lauren Howland, a member of the San Carlos and Jicarilla Apache tribes and Navajo Nation

• At Standing Rock, women lead fight in face of mace, arrests and strip searches

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Since 2010, Dr Thomas Krumpen from Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research has been flying above northern Greenland towards North Pole to measure ice thickness. By lowering a small torpedo from the aircraft towards the sea ice scientists are able to to obtain data from inaccessible areas helping to build a clearer picture ice health

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The Paris agreement on climate change has come into force, with efforts due to continue next week on the way ahead.

Inventor Sir James Dyson is setting up his own technology institute to tackle the shortage of engineers.

Environment groups hail ‘momentous occasion’ but warn governments need to cut carbon emissions more steeply to avoid dangerous global warming

The significance of the Paris agreement coming into force today is easy to miss: it may seem like an anti-climax, given the travails that led up to its signing last December.

But the moment is of huge importance. This is the first time that a legally-binding agreement, signed by all of the world’s functioning governments, has laid down a commitment to limit the growth of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere with the goal of preventing global warming exceeding 2C above pre-industrial levels.

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Dyfi estuary, Wales A single egret, starkly white against the muted greys and browns of the saltings, flapped slowly up from the bed of a creek

From my vantage point on the southern side of the Dyfi estuary it was clear that my plan for the day had been compromised. The salt marsh, with its almost fractally complex pattern of creeks, pools and drains, is often host in late autumn to large groups of geese grazing contentedly within easy reach of the seawall.

On this visit those few geese visible through the pervasive anticyclonic murk were strung out along the seaward edge of the marsh, distant and difficult to approach. As if by compensation a single egret, starkly white against the muted greys and browns of the saltings, flapped slowly up from the bed of a creek just in front of me.

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Another of Australia's dirtiest coal-fired generators has closed due to the confluence of incompatible energy market conditions. So how does that match with what the conservative types are telling us?

Australia’s chief scientist says battery and energy storage a "tremendous" innovation opportunity – and a primary focus for Commonwealth Science Council.

Deutsche Bank predict the state of South Australia could easily beat its aspirational target of 50 per cent renewables by 2025.

Environment groups hail ‘momentous occasion’ but warn governments need to cut carbon emissions more steeply to avoid dangerous global warming

The Paris agreement on climate change enters into force on Friday, marking the first time that governments have agreed legally binding limits to global temperature rises.

The passage of the accord – the fruit of more than two decades of often tortuous international negotiations on combating climate change – was hailed by nations and observers around the world.

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Given the complexity of antibiotics resistance, what should we do to tackle the problem?

New pricing for Tesla Powerwall suggests solar and battery storage now competitive with grid power. For about $16,000, consumers can slash their grid bill to almost nothing and not worry about blackouts. The strategic and commercial implications are marvellous or frightening, depending on your vested interest.

Windlab's 30MW Victorian wind farm, which is part owned by 24 of its neighbours, will be built in 2017 after reaching financial close.

The greenhouse gas emissions reductions countries have pledged aren’t nearly enough to meet the Paris goal.