The Guardian

Assessment shows 20% global loss since 1700 – far less than thought – but Europe, US and China bear the brunt

Half the wetlands in Europe, continental US and China have been destroyed in the past 300 years, with some areas – including the UK, Ireland and Germany – losing more than 75%, new research shows. Globally, an area the size of India has disappeared.

Until now, it wasn’t known how many wetlands were left – previous estimates suggested between 28% and 87% had been destroyed since 1700. For the first time, researchers combined global historical records with maps of today’s wetlands to create a more accurate global picture, and found an estimated 20% of all wetlands destroyed. Europe, however, was the worst affected area, with Ireland losing more than 90% of its wetlands, Germany, Lithuania and Hungary more than 80% and the UK, the Netherlands and Italy more than 75%.

Five members of group convicted of criminal damage and fined after gluing themselves to painting in London

Five climate crisis activists who glued themselves to the frame of a copy of Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper in London have said they believe the painter would “100% agree” with their actions, after they were convicted today of criminal damage.

The members of the Just Stop Oil group were each ordered to pay £486 by a judge who described the case as an unusual one in that the evidence of every witness was credible and said he recognised the defendants “believe entirely” in their cause.

Critics say former Australian PM’s membership of Global Warming Policy Foundation thinktank could affect trade deals

The UK government is being urged to sack one of its trade advisers after he joined a thinktank that has denied the scale of the climate crisis and campaigned against net zero.

Tony Abbott, a former Australian prime minister, announced this week that he had joined the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF).

Planning guidance from mayor sets air pollution limits that would not be met with solid fuel burners installed

Wood burners have been in effect banned in new and refurbished buildings in London. New planning guidance announced by the mayor sets air pollution limits for home and office developments that would not be met if burners for wood or other solid fuels were installed.

Wood burning in towns and cities is a major contributor of toxic air pollution particles, which have been linked to a wide range of health problems, including heart and lung disease, dementia and mental illness in children. Dirty air causes thousands of early deaths a year in London alone, and 26,000 to 38,000 in England.

Workers at Environment Agency who monitor warning systems among those striking for second time in month

England’s flood warning systems have been placed on autopilot for the second time in a month as staff at the Environment Agency stage their latest strike over pay and conditions.

Thousands of workers at the government agency, who have key roles in controlling pollution and protecting communities from weather disasters, began striking at 7am on Wednesday.

Agreement to restrict use of aggregating apparatus in the Indian Ocean is hailed as a ‘giant step forward’ for species conservation

Coastal nations and conservation groups have described an agreement to restrict fishing vessels from using devices that contribute to overfishing as a “huge win” for tuna populations and marine life.

The adoption by fishing nations of tough proposals to restrict “fish aggregating devices” (FADs) in the Indian Ocean, follows warnings to EU officials from retailers, including Marks & Spencer, environmentalists and coastal nations that the tools are one of the main contributors to overfishing of Indian Ocean yellowfin tuna, because they catch high numbers of juveniles.

When the rains came last autumn, I was among the millions made homeless in Sindh province. Here is why – months later – I am still helping to patch up ruined lives

• Read more: Pakistan families still hungry and homeless months after the floods

The floods in Pakistan last year were frustrating, heartbreaking and on a scale unseen in my lifetime. Hundreds of thousands of homes collapsed, streets were inundated and millions of people were made homeless.

My home in Naseerabad, a town in the Qambar Shahdadkot district of Sindh province, was flooded and unlivable. With my children and husband, I moved to my mother’s house. We were four families living in one room – my sister, brother and their children too. More than 20 people were living under one roof, which we worried would collapse on top of us. But I was lucky to have a place to stay. Millions didn’t.

Last week, some rules for modern manners went viral, but they weren’t very applicable to those of us with mundane lives. Here is what you really need to know about travel, masks and toilet paper orientation

Have you noticed that nobody seems able to behave properly any more? The pandemic, along with modern technology, has caused some of us to forget how to interact with others completely. See, for example, rising incidents of air rage.

New York magazine has certainly noticed all this: the media outlet recently published a viral list of 140 rules of modern etiquette to help people navigate our brave new world. Unfortunately, a lot of the rules on the list were somewhat deranged and seemingly aimed at people who spend their days mingling with celebrities, attending “ironic birthday parties” and dropping in on gatherings where the hosts put out large bowls of cigarettes as party favours. In other words, not very useful for those of us who lead rather more mundane lives. So, you’ll be thrilled to know, I’ve helpfully put together my own list of rules for modern life that everybody should follow.

This reshuffle will make little difference: the country is going nowhere as the PM leads us further down an economic dead end

Britain’s future will be shaped by a summit of European leaders this week, but Rishi Sunak, as prime minister of a very sovereign nation, will be absent.

It is one of the more subtle degradations of life outside the European Union. Heads of government gather in Brussels to decide things that affect British voters, who are represented by an empty chair.

The Abbott-era policy hides its support for fossil fuel expansion behind a fig leaf of dodgy carbon credits and offsets

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The enormous PEP-11 gas project off Sydney’s northern beaches is back in the headlines and the timing couldn’t be worse for a federal Labor government trying to rush a new climate policy through the parliament; a policy that does nothing to stop new gas and coalmines being built and doesn’t even stop major polluters increasing their emissions. Labor’s Madeline King must now remake the decision made by our undercover resources minister, Scott Morrison.

The gas project is so unpopular that, with an upcoming New South Wales election, even the Liberal premier, Dominic Perrottet, is campaigning against it. And federally, Labor is in a mad, but unnecessary, rush to get its new climate policy through the parliament. Unfortunately for the climate minister, Chris Bowen, the loudest supporters for his so-called safeguard mechanism are the fossil fuel industry. Just last week, Beach Energy, which is preparing to expand the Waitsia gas project in WA by 250 terajoules a day (that’s a lot), spoke up in its defence. There are 113 other gas and coal projects seeking approval in Australia, and by design, the safeguard mechanism will do nothing to stop any of them going ahead.

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Birds stored haul of acorns over the years in Santa Rosa house’s chimney, where they spilled into a wall cavity

Exterminator Nick Castro was inspecting a home for mealworms when he discovered something … nuts. Tens of thousands of acorns came cascading out from behind a bedroom wall.

“Unreal,” Castro posted on his company’s Facebook page. As he reached behind the wall, the little oak nuts kept spilling out. Castro – who owns Nick’s Extreme Pest Control in Santa Rosa, California – said he filled a total of eight garbage bags with 700lbs of acorns.

BMW, Renault and Peugeot PHEVs all exceeded carbon dioxide output claimed in standard lab tests, on-road tests show

Popular plug-in hybrid cars emit significantly more carbon dioxide than official measures suggest, according to new on-road tests by academics that add to concerns over the true impact of cars sold as better for the environment.

Cars from BMW, Renault and Peugeot all emitted much more than standard lab tests had claimed, with the BMW 3 Series in particular emitting more than three times advertised, according to the research by Switzerland’s Graz University of Technology.

Bernard Looney is ‘leaning in’ to his earlier pledge to cut hydrocarbons, but where will it end?

The calls from Labour’s shadow climate secretary, Ed Miliband, and others for a “proper” windfall tax on BP and its brethren after the oil supermajor revealed a near-doubling of its profits are the least of chief executive Bernard Looney’s worries. A more powerful influence is the company’s own shareholders, who have clearly demanded a rethink on previous pledges to slash hydrocarbon output by 40% this decade.

Three years ago, when he was fresh in the job, Looney sounded as if he’d made up his mind. “Today is about a vision, a direction of travel,” he declared to an audience of investors and industry analysts. “The direction is set. We are heading to net zero. There is no turning back.”

David Nixon disobeyed judge’s order not to mention climate crisis as motivation during trial over road-blocking protest

An environmental activist has been jailed for eight weeks after disobeying a judge’s instruction not to mention the climate crisis as his motivation during his trial for taking part in a road-blocking protest.

David Nixon, 36, a care worker from Barnsley, was sentenced at Inner London crown court on Tuesday after admitting contempt of court the day before by using his closing address to begin telling a jury about his reasons for protesting.

Sewage, poor sanitation and a lack of regulation give rise to antimicrobial resistance and threaten global health, report says

Pollution from livestock farming, pharmaceuticals and healthcare is threatening to destroy a key pillar of modern medicine, as spills of manure and other pollution into waterways are adding to the global rise of superbugs, the UN has warned.

Animal farming is one of the key sources of strains of bacteria that have developed resistance to all forms of antibiotics, through the overuse of the medicines in farming.

Political and Indigenous leaders hope to replicate success of British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest conservation area

Nearly a decade ago, Canadian political leaders, environmental activists and Indigenous nations came together to shelter a sprawling 6.4 million-hectare area of trees, sea wolves, salmon and grizzly bears – a project that was named, with some branding acumen, the Great Bear Rainforest.

The plan has since been hailed as a triumph for protecting swathes of old-growth cedar and spruce and drawing global attention to an area of pristine forest the size of Ireland.

Ministers hope training in range of forestry skills will help to meet tree-planting and other climate goals

A shortage of foresters has prompted the government to launch free courses as it rushes to meet targets for tree planting.

There will be training in chainsaw maintenance, coppicing, woodland management, hedge laying and the sale and marketing of timber.

Graphs show the sources of generation in a country that has one of the most diverse ranges in Europe

Great Britain has one of the most diverse ranges of electricity generation in Europe, with everything from windfarms off the coast of Scotland to a nuclear power station in Suffolk tasked with keeping the lights on. The increasing reliance on renewable energy sources, as part of the country’s green ambitions, also means there can be rapid shifts in the main source of electricity generation. On windy days, most electricity generation comes from onshore and offshore windfarms. When conditions are cold and still, gas-fired power stations known as peaking plants are called into action.

Wind, water and solar energy is cheap, effective and green. We don’t need experimental or risky energy sources to save our planet

Nearly 7 million people die each year from air pollution. Moreover, global warming is already causing catastrophic damage. We have only seven years to eliminate 80% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions – and 12 to 27 years to eliminate the rest – to avoid 1.5C global warming since the 1850 to 1900 period. We are already 1.1C above average.

The world also faces serious energy-security risks related to climate change: the economic, social, and political instability that will result when fossil fuels and uranium run out; blackmail by countries that control the supply of fuel to other countries; the high costs of shipping energy long distances; blackouts when a centralized fossil-fuel or nuclear power plant unexpectedly goes down; and health and environmental problems associated with continuous fuel mining, waste storage, nuclear reactor meltdown, and nuclear energy-related weapons proliferation.

Mark Z Jacobson is a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford. His work informs the scientific bases for the Green New Deal. He is also the author of six books, including No Miracles Needed: How Today’s Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air

With floods covering much of the land, farmers in Paguir, an isolated village in Fangak county, are replacing despair with resilience and learning new skills to survive

• Words and photographs by Peter Caton. A selection of the images can be seen at a free exhibition at the gallery@oxo in London from 8 to 19 February 2023