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Return of the European bison

The Guardian - Wed, 2014-05-21 16:10

Europe's largest beast is to roam the forests of Romania after 200 years. Adam Vaughan witnesses the buzz as a herd of 17 is released in the Carpathian mountains

The crowd surges forward against the barrier, cameraphones are held aloft, children are hoisted on to shoulders. The celebrities, the first European bison about to set their hooves in this remote Romanian valley in the southern Carpathian mountains for two centuries, wait in the shadows of a huge trailer.

The forest, already home to bears and packs of wolves, is the final destination for 17 of Europe's largest land mammal, some of whom have been travelling hitched to lorries for five days from as far as Sweden. It will be their first time out of captivity.

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Landmark sites in the US at risk from climate change – in pictures

The Guardian - Wed, 2014-05-21 03:23

From Statue of Liberty to Fort Monroe, a string of national monuments and heritage sites are becoming vulnerable to rising seas, floods and wildfires according to a report from the Union of Concerned Scientists

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Leave seashells on the seashore or risk damaging ecosystem, says study

The Guardian - Mon, 2014-05-19 23:47
Beachcombers and beach cleaning equipment reduce shell numbers and endanger some organisms

You might think twice next time you snag a seashell from the beach and drop it into your pocket: you might be altering the seaside environment.

In a study more than 30 years in the making, researchers have found that the removal of shells from beaches could damage ecosystems and endanger organisms that rely on shells for their survival.

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Winner of the 2014 Sharon Sullivan National Heritage award announced

Department of the Environment - Mon, 2014-05-19 13:49
Australian Heritage Council today announced this year’s recipient of the Sharon Sullivan National Heritage Award.
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Review of the Water Act 2007

Department of the Environment - Fri, 2014-05-16 17:14
The overarching focus of the Review is to consider whether the Water Act is delivering on its objectives effectively and with the minimum necessary regulatory burden imposed on the water industry, water managers and irrigators. Submissions close Friday 4 July 2014.
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NGER (Measurement) Amendment Determination 2014

Department of the Environment - Fri, 2014-05-16 17:11
National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (Measurement) Amendment Determination 2014 - consultation draft - Comments close 5 June 2014
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NGER (Measurement) Amendment Determination 2014

Department of the Environment - Fri, 2014-05-16 17:11
National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (Measurement) Amendment Determination 2014 - consultation draft - Comments close 5 June 2014
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Carbon Farming Initiative - Application to vary methodology determination

Department of the Environment - Fri, 2014-05-16 14:50
Application to vary methodology determination Native forest protection (Avoided deforestation) - comments close 25 June 2014
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National Waste Policy Implementation Report 2012 and 2013

Department of the Environment - Thu, 2014-05-15 16:18
The National Waste Policy Implementation Report 2012 and 2013 sets out progress against the National Waste Policy’s five-year implementation plan.
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Notice of intention to vary the Ambient Air Quality NEPM

Department of the Environment - Wed, 2014-05-14 14:17
On 29 April 2014, Ministers signalled their intention to vary the National Environment Protection (Ambient Air Quality) Measure for particles reflecting the latest scientific understanding on health risks arising from particle pollution. The...
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Portfolio Budget Statements 2014-15

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2014-05-13 20:20
The Environment Portfolio Budget Statements for 2014-15 were released on May 13 2014.
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Public consultation: draft approval bilateral agreement between the Commonwealth and Queensland

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2014-05-13 19:16
The Department is seeking public comment on a draft assessment bilateral agreement with the Queensland. Comments close 13 June 2014.
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Traces of cocaine in our tap water don't prove we have a problem

The Guardian - Tue, 2014-05-13 01:37
The cocaine byproduct is just one of the many traces of pharmaceutical compounds and other contaminants found in our water – and new contaminants are discovered all the time. But should we really be worried?

According to various headlines this weekend, we Brits use so much cocaine that traces of the drug have been found in our water supply. A study by the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) aimed at assessing the danger from pharmaceutical compounds in drinking water revealed that even after intensive purification treatment, minute quantities of benzoylecgonine – the metabolised form of cocaine – were found at four sites in Britain. So are we a nation of coke-heads? And does the presence of something related to a class-A drug in the water we drink actually matter?

The answer to the first question, says Sue Pennison of DWI, the independent body that ensures the water companies supply water fit to drink, is not clear. Benzoylecgonine, she notes, "is also an ingredient in a popular muscle-rub, and there's no way of telling which it came from".

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Honeybees abandoning hives and dying due to insecticide use, research finds

The Guardian - Sat, 2014-05-10 01:45
Harvard study shows neonicotionoids are devastating colonies by triggerring colony collapse disorder

The mysterious vanishing of honeybees from hives can be directly linked to insectcide use, according to new research from Harvard University. The scientists showed that exposure to two neonicotinoids, the world's most widely used class of insecticide, lead to half the colonies studied dying, while none of the untreated colonies saw their bees disappear.

"We demonstrated that neonicotinoids are highly likely to be responsible for triggering 'colony collapse disorder' in honeybee hives that were healthy prior to the arrival of winter," said Chensheng Lu, an expert on environmental exposure biology at Harvard School of Public Health and who led the work.

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Behind the rise of Boko Haram - ecological disaster, oil crisis, spy games | Nafeez Ahmed

The Guardian - Sat, 2014-05-10 00:11
Islamist militancy in Nigeria is being strengthened by western and regional fossil fuel interests

The kidnapping of over 200 Nigerian school girls, and the massacre of as many as 300 civilians in the town of Gamboru Ngala, by the militant al-Qaeda affiliated group, Boko Haram, has shocked the world.

But while condemnations have rightly been forthcoming from a whole range of senior figures from celebrities to government officials, less attention has been paid to the roots of the crisis.

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Emissions Reduction Fund exposure draft legislation

Department of the Environment - Fri, 2014-05-09 13:20
The Emissions Reduction Fund exposure draft legislation is now open for public comment. Comments close 23 May 2014.
Categories: Around The Web

Emissions Reduction Fund exposure draft legislation

Department of the Environment - Fri, 2014-05-09 13:20
The Emissions Reduction Fund exposure draft legislation is now open for public comment. Comments close 23 May 2014.
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Wind Power, and Australian Water Accounting - 2 co-badged seminars in May 2014

Newsletters QLD - Wed, 2014-05-07 17:15
Wind Power, and Australian Water Accounting - 2 co-badged seminars in May 2014
Categories: Newsletters QLD

Invitation to comment on six species listing assessments

Department of the Environment - Wed, 2014-05-07 13:43
The Threatened Species Scientific Committee is seeking comments on the assessment of six species. The public consultation period closes 20 June 2014.
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The goblin shark: a rare glimpse of something truly hideous

The Guardian - Wed, 2014-05-07 02:06
A fisherman trawling for shrimps off the coast of Florida has become one of the … err … lucky few people to have come face to face with this monster of the deep

Name: The goblin shark.

Age: You'd have to ask it.

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Categories: Around The Web

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