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Second Saharan dust cloud to hit England and Wales this weekend

The Guardian - Thu, 2015-12-17 19:44

Cocktail of Saharan dust and diesel fumes prompts officials to issue health warning for Saturday as unseasonably warm weather continues

A further spell of air pollution caused by a cocktail of Saharan dust and diesel fumes is expected to hit England and Wales on Saturday as temperatures remain unseasonably warm.

Parts of eastern, central and southern England are already being affected by a moderate pollution episode on Thursday, causing officials to warn adults and children with lung problems to reduce physical activity outdoors.

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The 19th-century whaling logbooks that could help scientists understand climate change

The Guardian - Thu, 2015-12-17 15:55

The public are being enlisted to read through detailed logs of whaling ships which include records of ice flows and weather conditions

Maritime historians, climate scientists and ordinary citizens are coming together on a project to study the logbooks of 19th-century whaling ships to better understand modern-day climate change and Arctic weather patterns.

The crew of whaling ships kept meticulous daily logbooks of weather conditions during their often years-long voyages searching the globe for whales, valued for their light-giving oil, said Michael Dyer, a senior maritime historian at the New Bedford whaling museum in Massachusetts, which is supplying much of the data.

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Saharan dust cloud bound for UK prompts health warning

The Guardian - Thu, 2015-12-17 00:01

Older people, asthma sufferers and those with breathing difficulties are most at risk as pollution levels expected to rise

A Saharan dust cloud is expected to settle over parts of the UK on Thursday, prompting health experts to issue warnings to elderly people and those who suffer from breathing problems.

High levels of pollution are expected over southern and central England, with Lincolnshire bearing the brunt of the cloud.

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National Clean Air Agreement released

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2015-12-15 16:38
On 15 December 2015 Australia’s Environment Ministers established the National Clean Air Agreement. The Agreement seeks to ensure that the community continues to enjoy clean air and address the impacts on human health and the environment.
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Reef 2050 Plan Implementation Strategy - Edition 2

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2015-12-15 16:09
This second edition highlights implementation successes over the last six months, outlines priorities for implementation over the next six months and describes key strategies for coordination and efficient delivery of Reef 2050 Plan commitments.
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Partnerships for the Reef

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2015-12-15 15:54
Through Partnerships for the Reef, the Reef Trust is inviting the corporate sector, investors, philanthropic organisations and individuals to work in partnership with the Australian and Queensland governments on practical on ground projects that...
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Ants use brains and brawn to share the load

ABC Science - Tue, 2015-12-15 13:17
GREAT MOMENTS IN SCIENCE: Ever wondered how tiny little ants coordinate a raid on the cat's bowl? Humans could learn a lot from the answer, says Dr Karl.

Australian newspaper cartoon depicting Indians eating solar panels attacked as racist

The Guardian - Mon, 2015-12-14 14:31

Cartoon in News Corp paper by veteran Bill Leak described by critic as ‘shocking ... and unequivocally racist, drawing on base stereotypes of third world people’

A cartoon in the Australian depicting starving Indians chopping up and eating solar panels sent to the developing nation in an attempt to curb carbon emissions has been condemned as unequivocally racist”.

Drawn by the veteran cartoonist Bill Leak, Monday’s cartoon was his response to the climate deal signed in Paris at the weekend. India is the world’s fourth-largest greenhouse emitter.

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Solar Towns (Round 3) now open

Department of the Environment - Mon, 2015-12-14 13:07
The call for applications for funding through the 2015-16 Solar Towns Programme (Round 3) is now open. Applications close 12 February 2015
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Solar Towns (Round 3) now open

Department of the Environment - Mon, 2015-12-14 13:07
The call for applications for funding through the 2015-16 Solar Towns Programme (Round 3) is now open. Applications close 12 February 2015
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Paris climate deal: nearly 200 nations sign in end of fossil fuel era

The Guardian - Sun, 2015-12-13 03:19

Two decades of talks have come to this: an ambitious agreement to hold states to emissions targets – but already low-lying countries are worried

Governments have signalled an end to the fossil fuel era, committing for the first time to a universal agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions and to avoid the most dangerous effects of climate change.

After 20 years of fraught meetings, including the past two weeks spent in an exhibition hall on the outskirts of Paris, negotiators from nearly 200 countries signed on to a legal agreement on Saturday evening that set ambitious goals to limit temperature rises and to hold governments to account for reaching those targets.

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Paris climate deal: key points at a glance

The Guardian - Sun, 2015-12-13 02:56

The goal of 1.5C is a big leap below the 2C agreed six years ago in Copenhagen. Here’s what the agreement means for global emissions and the future of the planet

Governments have agreed to “pursue efforts” to limit warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels: something that would have seemed unthinkable just a few months ago.

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James Hansen, father of climate change awareness, calls Paris talks 'a fraud'

The Guardian - Sat, 2015-12-12 22:30

The former Nasa scientist criticizes the talks, intended to reach a new global deal on cutting carbon emissions beyond 2020, as ‘no action, just promises’

Mere mention of the Paris climate talks is enough to make James Hansen grumpy. The former Nasa scientist, considered the father of global awareness of climate change, is a soft-spoken, almost diffident Iowan. But when he talks about the gathering of nearly 200 nations, his demeanour changes.

Related: John Kerry rejects leading climate scientist's claim Paris talks were 'fraud'

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Rehabilitated Siberian tiger plays with cubs in wild – video

The Guardian - Fri, 2015-12-11 01:13

A Siberian tiger called Zolushka is filmed in the Bastak nature reserve in east Russia playing with two young cubs. Zolushka was found orphaned in 2012 and after a year of rehabilitation was retuned to the wild. Now it seems Zolushka has given birth to cubs in the wild. The Siberian tiger is one of the most endangered species in the world with as few as 500 left in the wild

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Commonwealth Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery - Agency application 2015

Department of the Environment - Thu, 2015-12-10 13:37
Agency application on ecological sustainability - call for public comments open from 10 December 2015 until 18 January 2016
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Victorian Scallop (Ocean) Fishery - Application 2015

Department of the Environment - Thu, 2015-12-10 12:48
Application on ecological sustainability - Call for public comments open 11 December 2015 until 29 January 2016.
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Australia on the spot over Adani mine and funding of Attenborough reef series

The Guardian - Thu, 2015-12-10 05:59

Scientist who features in BBC series says Australia’s positions on reef and coal are incompatible, but environment minister Greg Hunt fails to address contradiction at Paris screening

A leading scientist who features in David Attenborough’s new series about the Great Barrier Reef has told the Australian government it cannot expand coal exports and continue to claim to be protecting the reef.

The government is planning a big tourism campaign to run at the same time as the new series screens around the world.

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Cameron government rejected flood risk warnings from climate advisers

The Guardian - Thu, 2015-12-10 01:55

Committee on Climate Change had warned in October that the government must take action to protect homes from risk of flooding

The UK government was warned by its official climate change advisers in October that it needed to take action on the increasing number of homes at high risk of flooding but rejected the advice.

The decision not to develop a strategy to address increase flooding risk came just a few weeks before Storm Desmond brought about severe flooding in Cumbria, Lancashire and other parts of the north west causing an estimated £500m of damage.

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Douglas Tompkins, co-founder of North Face, dies after Chile kayak accident

The Guardian - Wed, 2015-12-09 14:12

Millionaire behind adventure brand and Esprit, who ploughed fortune into saving South American ecosystems, suffers hypothermia from falling into lake

Douglas Tompkins, co-founder of the North Face outdoor company who poured millions into conservation, has died after falling into near-freezing waters during a kayak accident in southern Chile.

Tompkins, 72, was taken with acute hypothermia to a hospital in Coyhaique after high winds flipped his adventure kayak during a trip across Lake General Carrera in Patagonia on Tuesday, reports said. He died about six hours after arriving at hospital in the regional capital.

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Australian Heritage Strategy launched

Department of the Environment - Wed, 2015-12-09 10:40
The Australian Heritage Strategy is one of Australia’s key heritage priorities. The Strategy provides a nationally driven strategic direction for heritage management across all levels of government and the community for the next ten years.
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