The Guardian

If the H5N1 virus jumps into the human population and more dangerous strains emerge, it could set off a new pandemic

Lockdowns are a horrible experience, but fortunately one that is in the past now. Unless, that is, you’re a domestic bird in Britain. Since 7 November, a UK directive has instructed all farmers to keep their birds indoors as part of a stringent measure to stop the spread of avian flu, or the H5N1 virus. This measure is intended to avoid infection of domestic birds from wild birds, and will result in tens of millions of chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys being brought inside for the foreseeable future. We’ve also seen island birds affected, resulting in the shutdown of human visitors to the Isle of May in Scotland for five weeks, among other measures.

Avian flu is known as one of the most infectious diseases: the R number, which was often discussed for the spread of Covid-19, can be as high as 100 for avian flu, meaning one bird can infect as many as 100 others. And the past few months have seen exponential spread of the virus, with Britain and Europe hit especially hard. A lab in Surrey that tests samples says it has seen a 600% increase in cases in the past three months.

Prof Devi Sridhar is chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh

Conference attenders in Sharm el-Sheikh ate ice-cream as food stalls and water fountains ran dry

A year ago, Irn-Bru proved an unlikely hit at Cop26 as delegates from around the world tried the Scottish delicacy for the first time. But in Egypt, the battle to find food and water at all has been a core part of the culinary experience at the climate summit.

In the first few days of Cop27, water fountains and refrigerators emblazoned with the logo of sponsor Coca-Cola stood empty in the African sun as thirsty delegates looked on. Stall workers argued with each other as the final few sandwiches, quiche slices and croissants ebbed away.

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Climate Trace reports half of 50 largest sources of greenhouse gas are oil and gas operations and many underreport their emissions

Greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas facilities around the world are about three times higher than their producers claim, new data has shown.

Climate Trace, a project to measure at source the true levels of carbon dioxide and other global heating gases, published a new report on Wednesday showing that half of the 50 largest sources of greenhouse gases in the world were oil and gas fields and production facilities.

REDcycle collections stopping from Wednesday with factory fire and ‘downturns in market demand’ blamed

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Environment minister Tanya Plibersek has called on Australia’s two biggest supermarket chains to come up with a “viable solution” after they were forced to hit pause on their major soft plastic recycling scheme.

REDcycle announced late yesterday it was pausing collections at Woolworths and Coles, where customers were returning more than 5 million pieces of soft plastics every day.

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Leaders, activists and other delegates gathered in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt to discuss the climate crisis

Ukrainian president says Russia’s invasion has forced dozens of countries to resume coal-fired power to alleviate energy costs

• Cop27 live – latest news updates

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has told world leaders they will not be able to tackle the climate crisis unless Russia’s invasion of his country ends.

“There can be no effective climate policy without the peace,” he said in a video address at the Cop27 UN climate summit in Egypt on Tuesday. “The Russian war has brought about an energy crisis that has forced dozens of countries to resume coal-fired power generation in order to lower energy prices for their people, to lower prices that are shockingly rising due to deliberate Russian actions.”

If climate catastrophe is to be avoided, the governments and institutions of the rich west will have to alter their priorities

Making a transition away from fossil fuels and towards low-carbon energy is the only way to keep our planet safe and habitable for future generations. That transition has thankfully begun, but it has a vast distance to go. And the kinds of changes that are needed cost money. Development of new technology has always required investment. This applies to the generation of renewable energy, and to the myriad lifestyle changes that follow from the shift away from coal, oil and gas. Electric cars and other transport are one example. Packaging to replace plastic (which is derived from oil) is another. Resources are also required to protect societies from the harms caused by the global heating that has already happened, and to help them adjust to altered conditions.

A new report presented at the Cop27 UN climate summit says that about $2tn (£1.75tn) a year will be needed by 2030 if developing countries are to make the necessary changes. One of the authors, Nicholas Stern, pointed to a crucial role for the World Bank as well as western governments in redirecting finance and reducing the cost of capital for investors (banks typically charge higher interest on investments in poor countries, due to perceived risks).

Climate campaigners appeal against plans for more flights after original council veto was overruled by central government

Expanding Bristol airport would lead to an unacceptable rise in carbon emissions, a court has heard.

The high court, sitting in Bristol on Tuesday and Wednesday, heard from climate campaigners challenging a central government decision to allow Bristol airport to expand its maximum capacity from 10 million to 12 million passengers a year.

Mia Mottley has celebrated 'loss and damage' – the idea that rich countries, having emitted the most planet-warming gases, should pay poorer countries who are suffering from climate disasters they did not create – being added to the agenda of Cop27.

The prime minister of Barbados sees it as her mission to begin the restructuring of international financial institutions to hold them accountable for the climate crisis, and this summer held key meetings in Bridgetown, the Barbadian capital, aimed at developing new means of financing climate action

• Cop27: US: latest updates

Reduced flock sizes and rising costs put pressure on supplies but retailers say they are working to minimise impact

British egg producers are warning of possible shortages, as farmers leave the industry or reduce the size of their flocks in the face of spiralling costs and uncertainty sparked by the spread of bird flu.

A third of farmers surveyed in recent days by the trade body the British Free Range Egg Producers Association (BFREPA) reported they had reduced the number of hens in their flock because egg prices meant they were unable to cover their costs.

President not expected to attend summit but critics cast doubt on veracity of pledges the country could make

• Cop27 live – latest news updates

Mexico, one of the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitters, is expected to announce a hotchpot of old, inadequate and undeliverable climate pledges that will leave its Paris pledges in tatters, experts have warned.

Climate action has nosedived under the leadership of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who had to be blocked from rolling back Mexico’s modest Paris greenhouse gas targets by the country’s supreme court, and emissions are rising.

A reduction in methane emissions from the state-owned oil company, Pemex – an important but existing target for which Pemex has been fined for non-compliance.

A 1,000MW state-opened solar plant – construction is already under way for a 180MW project, and the government had previously already ruled out further investment to expand the energy potential.

A lithium commitment. Mexico has the ninth-largest identified deposits of lithium – a crucial mineral for electric vehicles and other green technologies – but there has been no government investment so far in advancing extraction, and none is currently being mined. Experts say the country is years away from producing its first gram of lithium.

Campaigners condemning ‘environmental vandalism’ say equivalent of five months of discharges made so far in November

Southern Water has discharged raw sewage for more than 3,700 hours at 83 bathing water beaches during the first eight days of November alone, according to company data analysed by campaigners.

Ed Acteson of SOS Whitstable, which has been monitoring the data, said in his experience the scale was equivalent to five months’ worth of discharges: “The Environment Act was supposed to herald a new era for the environment in Britain. But this is the worst I have ever seen sewage pollution in the south-east.”

Arrest of pair capturing images of M25 protest condemned by British Press Photographers’ Association

The British Press Photographers’ Association has condemned the arrest of a photographer and documentary film-maker as they captured images of a Just Stop Oil protest.

Rich Felgate, a documentary maker, and Tom Bowles, the photographer, were arrested by a Hertfordshire police officer as they caught the action on a footbridge over the M25 on Monday.

Activists from Just Stop Oil scaled gantries along the M25 for a second day, unfurling banners protesting against the use of oil and gas. Demonstrators disrupted traffic, forcing police to block the motorway at various locations until they were able to bring the activists down. Police say 16 arrests were made in Kent, Essex, Surrey and Hertfordshire. 

Similar protests took place along the busy thoroughfare on Monday when activists from the group also climbed gantries on the M25. The protests coincide with the Cop27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, convened to address some of the world's most pressing climate issues 

• Met vows to make more pre-emptive arrests after M25 hit by climate action
• Just Stop Oil protesters bring parts of M25 to halt for second day

The European Commission president has told Cop27 in Egypt 'Europe is stepping up, despite Covid and the Russian war', to tackle the climate crisis. Speaking on the centre stage, Ursula von der Leyen urged the global north to follow the EU's example. 'Those in need in the developing world must be supported in adapting to a harsher climate,' she said. 'We urge our partners in the global north to stand by their climate finance commitments in the global south'

• Cop27 day two: world leaders call for urgent action, saying ‘nature lashing out and citizens losing patience’ – live

High level group releases report at Cop27 saying policies should be ‘about cutting emissions, not corners’

• Cop27 live – latest news updates

A UN group set up to crack down on the greenwashing of net zero pledges by industry and government has called for “red lines” to stop support for new fossil fuel exploration and overuse of carbon offsets.

The “high-level expert group”, created in March by the UN secretary general, António Guterres, to advise on rules to improve integrity and transparency in net zero commitments by industry, regions and cities, said climate plans must include deep cuts in greenhouse gases before 2030, and not delay action until closer to 2050.

The 31-year-old allegedly failed to seek medical attention after the boy was bitten at a property in Murgon, Queensland

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Queensland police have charged a 31-year-old man with manslaughter over the sudden death of an 11-year-old boy who was bitten by a snake.

The man allegedly failed to seek medical attention after the boy reported being bitten at a property at Murgon in Queensland’s South Burnett region on 21 November last year.

Police say 16 arrests made after activists scale gantries in Kent, Essex, Surrey and Hertfordshire

Protesters have caused widespread disruption on the M25 for a second day after several junctions were blocked.

Just Stop Oil said “approximately 15” of its supporters climbed on to overhead gantries in “multiple locations” on the UK’s busiest motorway from 7am on Tuesday, causing police to halt traffic.

Pacific islands nation, which is acutely vulnerable to sea level rises, joins nearby Vanuatu in seeking phase-out of coal, oil and gas

Tuvalu has become the first country to use United Nations climate talks to demand an international fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty, which would phase out the use of coal, oil and gas.

The small Pacific islands nation, which is acutely vulnerable to sea level rises caused by global heating, becomes the second country to call for an agreement to end the era of burning fossil fuels, which is the primary cause of the rapidly escalating climate crisis, fellow Pacific nation Vanuatu being the first.