The Guardian

Airport blames Civil Aviation Authority for denying its request to quadruple spending

Heathrow has said its controversial plan to build of a third runway will be delayed by at least a year after the aviation regulator denied its request to quadruple spending before gaining planning consent.

Heathrow had asked the Civil Aviation Authority for permission to boost spending from £650m to £2.4bn despite the fact it has not yet gained permission to expand. Heathrow said the decision not to greenlight the amount it had requested would delay a third runway being completed until between “early 2028 and late 2029”.

The species is being forced into deeper waters by a disease that locals believe is exacerbated by pollution and global heating

There’s an account of a fifth-century marker that stood on the border between what is now Algeria and Tunisia. On it was recorded the taxes levied on the different kinds of goods that passed its way: dates, grain and, critically, sponges.

Sponges continue to be harvested in Tunisia. Sailing from the Kerkennah Islands and the southern fishing town of Zarzis, Tunisian sponge fishermen have been plying the high-risk trade carried on by their families for as long as anyone can remember.

MidCoast council tells residents, who are on level-four water restrictions, that water may be trucked in, if necessary

Residents in the New South Wales community of Gloucester have been told there is a risk the river that supplies their drinking water could run dry in the coming weeks – for the first time in recorded history.

Gloucester’s town water supply comes from the Barrington River, which flows from the typically fertile Barrington Tops national park.

Demonstrating the real health benefits of action to cut pollution is crucial

Almost every day there is a news story about the newly discovered health impacts of air pollution, including brain cancer and baldness; and it shortens our life expectancy too. But there is some good news.

First, the newest diesel vehicles produce much less air pollution than the ones they are replacing. By discouraging older vehicles and upgrading buses, nitrogen dioxide from traffic in London’s ultra-low emission zone has fallen by about one third. Second, particle pollution in China’s megacities has decreased by 34-49% in just five years. Third, a recent review across four continents showed that reducing air pollution improved health and brought about changes that could be seen within weeks or months. These examples show what can be achieved in a short time.

The Queensland community’s three commercial operations send 100m litres of water a year off the mountain

At Tamborine Mountain, one of the largest sources of Australia’s bottled drinking water, locals are waiting more than six weeks for deliveries to fill their dry water tanks.

The community in the Gold Coast hinterland is one of very few in eastern Australia with no reticulated water supply. Dozens of local bores have run dry as a result of the drought, and many others flow intermittently. The backup water source, a tanker filling station at nearby Canungra, has been closed until further notice.

Pyrocumulonimbus (pyroCB) storms are feared due to the violent and unpredictable conditions they create on the ground

Scientists fear climate change will drive a surge in the number of supersized and dangerous bushfires that become coupled with the atmosphere and create their own violent thunderstorms.

Guardian Australia can reveal 2019 is likely to be a “standout year” for the number of bushfires that generate giant thunderstorm clouds known as pyrocumulonimbus, or pyroCBs.

Trees would have been home to primitive insects about 150m years before dinosaurs evolved

The world’s oldest known fossil forest has been discovered in a sandstone quarry in New York state, offering new insights into how trees transformed the planet.

The forest, found in the town of Cairo, would have spanned from New York to Pennsylvania and beyond, and has been dated to about 386m years old. It is one of only three known fossil forests dating to this period and about 2-3m years older than the previously oldest known fossil forest at Gilboa, also in New York state.

Proposed changes would allow owners to be prosecuted or fined for harming other species

Grouse moor owners in Scotland face heavy fines or prosecution for failing to protect birds of prey and other species under proposals to licence shooting estates.

An expert report for the Scottish government has recommended ministers introduce mandatory licensing of grouse moors within five years because of their associations with the systematic persecution of eagles and other protected birds.

Solar and wind farms produce more electricity than any other source for first time

Fossil fuels fell to a record low in the UK’s electricity mix in recent months after wind and solar farms generated more energy than any other source for the first time.

The government’s official figures showed the UK relied on renewables for 38.9% of its electricity in the third quarter of this year, up from a third in the same period last year.

As part of a new series, we’d like you to tell us about your favourite tree and why it’s special to you

As deforestation continues to threaten green space around the world, and the Guardian’s Christmas appeal launches to tackle it, we’d like to celebrate our trees.

Outside of their ecological value, many of us have sentimental attachment to trees. Perhaps an established tree reminds you of home, travel, or your childhood, or is simply beautiful.

Rob Greenfield gardened, fished and foraged to eat more sustainably and encourage others to do the same. But to succeed, he needed the community

For the last year I grew and foraged 100% of my food. No grocery stores, no restaurants, not even a drink at a bar. Nature was my garden, my pantry and my pharmacy.

Most people would imagine I live in the countryside on a farm, but actually I live in a city; Orlando, Florida, a few miles from the centre. When I arrived here, I didn’t own any land, so in order to grow my food I met people in the neighbourhood and turned their lawns into gardens and shared the bounty of food with them. I’m a big believer in the philosophy “grow food, not lawns”.

Temperatures are expected to be more than 1.1C above pre-industrial average

Next year is likely to be another of the hottest on record, with global temperatures forecast to be more than 1.1C above the pre-industrial average, according to estimates from the Met Office.

The forecast for 2020 is based on observations of trends over recent years that have seen a series of years more than 1C above pre-industrial levels, and bearing what meteorologists said was the “clear fingerprint” of human-induced global heating.

Researchers show disturbance to lawns increases likelihood of pest and weed invasion

Rewilding gardens may be growing in popularity but even a modest reduction in lawn mowing can boost wildlife, increase pollinators and save money, according to a study.

Researchers from the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières found that reducing the intensity of trimming lawns in urban areas can also reduce pests and weeds that cause allergies.

EPA last revised pollution standards for thousands of meat-processing plants 15 years ago and some guidance dates back to 70s

A coalition of conservation and community groups representing millions of people is suing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for refusing to update national water pollution standards for slaughterhouses.

The EPA decision allows thousands of meat and poultry processing plants to continue using outdated pollution-control technology, which has been linked to the contamination of waterways across the US.

In wide-ranging interview, former top bureaucrat says using carryover credits to meet Paris targets will cause Australia significant problems

Governments both in Australia and internationally are not moving fast enough to avoid 2C warming, according to the former head of Scott Morrison’s department, and Australia is also creating a significant problem for itself down the track by deploying carryover credits from Kyoto to meet the Paris target.

In a frank and wide-ranging interview on Guardian Australia’s politics podcast, Martin Parkinson – the former secretary of the prime minister’s department and the bureaucrat at the centre of policymaking at the federal level on climate change during the Howard, Rudd and Gillard governments – reflected on the experience he describes as the worst of his professional life.

Carbon Market Institute survey finds 96% believe Australia should not delay transition to decarbonised economy

Australian businesses are calling for a more ambitious national climate policy, backing a target of net zero emissions by 2050 and raising concerns about the lack of a coordinated energy policy and the government’s proposed use of carryover credits.

The findings are contained in a Carbon Market Institute survey of more than 200 businesses, to be released on Thursday, which reveals 96% of those surveyed believe Australia should not delay the transition to a decarbonised economy.

Three climate protesters glued their hands to a DLR train at Canary Wharf in April

A jury has expressed its regret at convicting three Extinction Rebellion protesters who glued themselves to a Docklands Light Railway train at Canary Wharf.

Cathy Eastburn, 52, Mark Ovland, 36, and Luke Watson, 30, were convicted at inner London crown court after halting DLR services in London’s financial district on 17 April, as part of a series of protests carried out by XR.

Cutting toxic air might prevent millions of people enduring depression, research suggests

People living with air pollution suffer higher rates of depression and suicide, a systematic review of global data has found.

Cutting air pollution around the world to the EU’s legal limit could prevent millions of people enduring depression, the research suggests. This assumes that exposure to toxic air is causing these cases of depression. Scientists believe this is likely but is difficult to prove beyond doubt.

US ranks seventh for overall deaths and is the ‘wealthiest’ nation to feature in top 10 with 197,000 lives lost in 2017

The United States is among the top 10 deadliest countries for pollution-related fatalities, according to a landmark new global study, which warns that understanding the magnitude of the pollution crisis is being obstructed by “vested interests and overtaxed political infrastructures”.

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Governments accused of ‘betrayal’ for setting quotas to miss sustainability targets

Europe’s fish populations will continue to be over-exploited despite a longstanding 2020 deadline for setting fishing quotas at sustainable levels, after ministers from across the EU forced through higher limits than scientists advised.

Key species such as cod in the west of Scotland and Irish Sea, some herring stocks, sole and plaice in the Celtic Sea, pollock in western waters, and ling and tusk in the north-east Atlantic, will all be under renewed and unsustainable pressure, according to campaigners. Quotas for some species were increased from last year, despite advice that they should be brought down.