The Guardian

City one of five required by government to set up a clean air zone to tackle nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5s

Primary school children who grow up in Birmingham could lose half a year of their lives due to illegal levels of air pollution in the city, a new report warns.

The study examines levels of nitrogen dioxide and particulate pollution (PM2.5) in the city and calculates that an eight-year-old child could die up to seven months early if exposed over their lifetimes to toxic air. The loss of life expectancy is worse in Birmingham than some other major cities in the UK including Manchester, researchers found.

Two of big six energy companies sign up to pledge organised by the Climate Group

Two of Britain’s biggest energy suppliers are accelerating the drive towards greener vehicles by pledging to replace their existing fleet of vans with all-electric models by 2030.

British Gas owner Centrica and SSE have committed to switch to electric cars and vans a decade ahead of the government’s ban on the sale of new combustion engine vehicles.

Australia looking to become an emissions superpower, the Australian Conservation Foundation says

Australia is responsible for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions and could be contributing as much as 17% by 2030 if the pollution from its fossil fuel exports is factored in, research suggests.

Under climate accounting rules that record carbon dioxide released within a country, Australia is responsible for about 1.4% of global emissions. The analysis by science and policy institute Climate Analytics found more than twice that, another 3.6%, are a result of Australia’s coal, oil and gas exports.

Jaguar Land Rover boss says UK needs batteries made in Britain - or carmakers will leave

The feeling of relief in the British car industry was almost palpable on Friday, when Jaguar Land Rover said it would invest billions in producing new electric vehicles in the UK. After the recent closure of two other UK automotive factories in five months – Honda in Swindon and Ford in Bridgend – JLR boss Ralf Speth was clearly pleased to have good news for the 2,500 workers at the Castle Bromwich plant.

Yet amid the congratulations, Speth also struck a note of warning. Not on Brexit this time, but on the future of the car sector in the absence of a British battery industry. “One thing is clear: if batteries go out of the UK, then also the automotive production will go out of the UK,” he said.

The scale of the climate emergency requires nothing less than full government engagement

With just 11 years left to prevent irreversible damage caused by the climate emergency, there are still options to wean the world’s economy off its reliance on fossil fuels. However, anything less than putting Britain on a war footing will not be enough.

The government response so far has been timid. Theresa May introduced a net-zero carbon emissions target for 2050, but there are reasons why the Conservatives haven’t gone further: her party is hard-wired to fail. Clinging to a belief in the power of free markets, it neglects the fact that to decarbonise the economy greater investment from the state is required.

Developing countries must prepare now for profound impact, disaster representative says

Climate crisis disasters are happening at the rate of one a week, though most draw little international attention and work is urgently needed to prepare developing countries for the profound impacts, the UN has warned.

Catastrophes such as cyclones Idai and Kenneth in Mozambique and the drought afflicting India make headlines around the world. But large numbers of “lower impact events” that are causing death, displacement and suffering are occurring much faster than predicted, said Mami Mizutori, the UN secretary-general’s special representative on disaster risk reduction. “This is not about the future, this is about today.”

New kinds of plant-based plastic are beginning to permeate our lives. Supermarkets stock biodegradable bags to carry our groceries home, cafes serve coffee in compostable cups, and this year London Marathon runners could refuel with seaweed-based edible bubbles filled with sports drink. But if we just replace one kind of throwaway packaging with another, are we really solving the bigger problem?

There’s no denying that we have a plastic crisis on our hands. A 2017 study found that, of the 8.3bn tonnes of plastic produced since 1950, 6.3bn tonnes has been thrown away. And whether it ends up in landfill or in the sea, that plastic – thanks to the stability and durability that it is prized for – is not going anywhere fast.

Supermarket to create olive crostini and bread pudding from baguettes to reduce waste

Britain’s largest supermarket chain is launching a drive to reduce food waste from bread by turning unsold baguettes and batons from its in-store bakeries into new products.

Surplus bread is one of the biggest waste problems for food retailers, according to the government’s food waste adviser Wrap, particularly from freshly baked lines which have a short shelf life.

Activists say comments by Opec head prove world opinion is turning against fossil fuels

Greta Thunberg and other climate activists have said it is a badge of honour that the head of the world’s most powerful oil cartel believes their campaign may be the “greatest threat” to the fossil fuel industry.

The criticism of striking students by the trillion-dollar Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) highlights the growing reputational concerns of oil companies as public protests intensify along with extreme weather.

This week: a seal is released back into the wild and sparrows enjoy tarte flambée leftovers

Major brands are using less recycled paper, meaning more trees cut down unnecessarily

Toilet paper – the one product that the majority of us use just once and flush away – is becoming less sustainable, according to research.

Analysis from Ethical Consumer magazine found that major brands were using less recycled paper than in 2011, while only five of the nine major supermarkets (the Co-op, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose) offered an own-brand recycled toilet paper. The large-scale use of virgin paper contributes to unnecessary deforestation.

Footage shows Australian parrot breaching building’s defences with delight

Footage capturing a rebellious sulphur-crested cockatoo’s triumph over bird guard spikes has gone viral on Facebook.

Less well-off areas have least to lose and most to gain from clean-air zones, study finds

Those who object to low emission or clean-air zones often say restricting old vehicles and diesel cars in city centres will hit the poorest most. A study challenges this.

Researchers from the University of the West of England combined UK census and air pollution data with information from annual vehicle safety (MOT) inspections.

Research shows a trillion trees could be planted to capture huge amount of carbon dioxide

Planting billions of trees across the world is by far the biggest and cheapest way to tackle the climate crisis, according to scientists, who have made the first calculation of how many more trees could be planted without encroaching on crop land or urban areas.

As trees grow, they absorb and store the carbon dioxide emissions that are driving global heating. New research estimates that a worldwide planting programme could remove two-thirds of all the emissions that have been pumped into the atmosphere by human activities, a figure the scientists describe as “mind-blowing”.

‘Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt’ now appears almost every year, forming largest record bloom

It weighs 20m tonnes, stretches from west Africa to the Gulf of Mexico, and washes up on beaches creating a malodorous stench. Now scientists say a vast swathe of brown seaweed could be becoming an annual occurrence.

Researchers say the explosion in sargassum seaweed first materialised in 2011. But new research shows it has appeared almost every year since then, forming the largest bloom of macroalgae ever recorded. What’s more, the seaweed band – dubbed the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt – seems to be getting bigger.

If you have seen any planted meadows or verges by roads or public spaces, we would like to hear from you

British conservation charity Plantlife’s campaign to encourage the growth and planting of flowers on UK roadside verges has seen some councils take the message seriously.

Posting on Twitter, Bex Langley wrote about the eight miles of flowers planted along a major road in Rotherham thanks to the local council.

More than 1,300 legal actions over global heating brought since 1990, say researchers

Climate action lawsuits against governments and corporations have spread across 28 countries, according to a new analysis.

The study reveals that more than 1,300 legal actions concerning climate change have been brought since 1990.

Move by heritage body follows revelations last year about oil and gas investments

The National Trust is divesting its £1bn portfolio from fossil fuels in an attempt to help tackle the escalating climate crisis.

The organisation, which looks after 780 miles (1,250km) of coastline, 248,000 hectares (612,000 acres) of land and more than 500 historic houses, castles, monuments and parks, said it would withdraw the vast majority of its investments from fossil fuels within 12 months, and the entirety within three years.

Exclusive: former environment minister rejected department advice and approved Yeelirrie mine day before election called

The former environment minister Melissa Price acknowledged that approval of a uranium mine in Western Australia could lead to the extinction of up to 12 native species but went ahead with the decision anyway.

The admission is contained in a statement of reasons signed by the minister before she approved the Yeelirrie uranium mine, 500km north of Kalgoorlie, the day before the federal election was called in April.

Unesco committee says NSW proposal to raise wall incompatible with listing

Unesco’s world heritage committee has found that a proposal to raise the wall of the Warragamba Dam is incompatible with the world heritage status of the Blue Mountains of New South Wales.

The committee has urged Australia to submit an updated environmental impact statement for the controversial project before any final decisions are made.