The Guardian
Protesters attempt blockade at Lancashire site as fracking begins – video report
Activists have attempted to blockade a fracking site in Lancashire as operations began for the first time in seven years in the UK. Campaigners from Reclaim the Power used a van to block the entrance to the site on Preston New Road near Blackpool early on Monday. One protester climbed on top of a scaffold and locked his neck to it. Police dispersed the protesters and the energy company Cuadrilla commenced with planned operations
Continue reading...Fried chicken, chips and global warming | Letters
Some of the last week’s news items paint a grim portrait of our world: a final warning about climate change (Global warming must not exceed 1.5C, landmark UN report warns, 8 October) and our meat consumption (Huge cut in meat eating vital to curb global warming, 11 October). In the meantime, large parts of our country are as malnourished as ever in spite of the glut (UK’s ‘food deserts’, 12 October).
I live in an area served by numerous convenience stores and fried chicken, pizza and kebab shops. There is a strong community of independent grocers stocking a wide range of fresh produce and all the exotic ingredients that home cooks could want. And we have a fiercely independent scene of local traders who sell their crafts at regular inner-city markets too.
Continue reading...Trouble brewing: climate change to cause 'dramatic' beer shortages
Extreme weather damage to the global barley crop will mean price spikes and supply problems, according to new research
Trouble is brewing for the world’s beer drinkers, with climate change set to cause “dramatic” price spikes and supply shortages, according to new research.
Extreme heatwaves and droughts will increasingly damage the global barley crop, meaning a common ingredient of the world’s favourite alcoholic beverage will become scarcer. Key brewing nations are forecast to be among the worst hit, including Belgium, the Czech Republic and Ireland.
Continue reading...The sand diggers of Mali – in pictures
A building boom in the capital, Bamako, has sparked a surge in demand for bricks made from high-quality sand dug by hand from the bed of the Niger River. The diggers’ work is poorly paid and carries many dangers, from the treacherous river currents to powerful storms that threaten their fragile craft
Banks will not be forced to reveal climate change risks they face
Critics demand tougher action as Bank of England stops short of call for mandatory reports
The Bank of England has stopped short of forcing the banking industry to disclose the potential risks they face from climate change, despite growing calls from campaigners for such action.
In a warning to finance firms to vastly improve their planning to safeguard against the financial risks posed by global warming, Threadneedle Street asked firms to “consider the relevance” of disclosing their climate-related risks.
Continue reading...Earth Science in Our Lives: photography competition winners 2018 – in pictures
The Geological Society of London has announced the results of its 2018 Earth Science Week photography competition. Entrants were asked to submit images of geological sites in the UK and Ireland that meant something in their lives. These 12 winning images will feature in a calendar and be displayed at the Geological Society during Earth Science Week 2018 (13-21 October).
Continue reading...Selfridges is selling Iceland own-brand mince pies – and proud of it
Unusual collaboration between upmarket department store and frozen food specialist is because both have committed to going palm-oil-free
Boxes of Iceland mince pies have made a low-key debut in Selfridges’ food halls this year, sharing the aisles with £1,450 tins of beluga caviar and £5,000 Christmas hampers.
The unusual collaboration between the upmarket department store and the frozen food specialist is on sustainability grounds, as both retailers seek to boost their environmental credentials by committing to removing palm oil from their own-brand ranges.
Continue reading...There’s one key takeaway from last week’s IPCC report | Dana Nuccitelli
Cut carbon pollution as much as possible, as fast as possible
The Paris climate agreement set a target of no more than 2°C global warming above pre-industrial temperatures, but also an aspirational target of no more than 1.5°C. That’s because many participating countries – especially island nations particularly vulnerable to sea level rise – felt that even 2°C global warming is too dangerous. But there hadn’t been a lot of research into the climate impacts at 1.5°C vs. 2°C, and so the UN asked the IPCC to publish a special report summarizing what it would take to achieve the 1.5°C limit and what the consequences would be of missing it.
The details in the report are worth understanding, but there’s one simple critical takeaway point: we need to cut carbon pollution as much as possible, as fast as possible.
Continue reading...'Show me the scientists': Trump reiterates his climate change doubts – video
The US president has reaffirmed his doubts about climate change, claiming scientists are politically motivated. In an interview with the CBS programme 60 Minutes, Trump said he no longer believed climate change was a hoax but he thought its impacts would not be lasting
Continue reading...Fracking protesters blockade site where UK work due to restart
Activists park at Preston New Road site near Blackpool hope to stop Cuadrilla operation
Activists have blockaded a fracking site in Lancashire on the day operations were due to begin for the first time for seven years in the UK.
Related: Cuadrilla is to start fracking in Lancashire. But we will not give in | Caroline Lucas
Continue reading...John Underhill-Day obituary
My colleague John Underhill-Day, who has died of heart failure aged 74, was an outstanding all-round naturalist who negotiated the purchase for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) of such flagship reserves as Minsmere in Suffolk and Leighton Moss in Lancashire.
During 17 years (1971-88) as deputy chief reserves officer and head land agent at RSPB head office, he was instrumental in the huge expansion of its reserves, persuading landowners to sell. He was an excellent negotiator, tough but fair. He pioneered a holistic approach to RSPB’s reserve management, for nature in general.
Continue reading...How profit-driven inbreeding could bring the world dairy herd to its knees
The drive for genetic selection means cattle are increasingly vulnerable to deadly new epidemics that could emerge as the climate warms
Known for their distinctive long horns, the Ankole cattle of western Uganda have evolved over millennia to withstand their harsh environment, with its lengthy dry spells and abundance of local maladies such as trypanosomiasis, a disease spread by the tsetse fly. But after flourishing for almost 10,000 years, the Ankole have begun to rapidly disappear.
Farmland is dwindling in Uganda due to the expanding human population, and Ankole require vast areas to graze. Local herders have responded to the pressure by replacing them, cross-breeding Ankole cattle with industrial species such as the European Holstein. But while these hybrids gain favourable genetic traits from the Holstein, producing more milk and meat, and requiring less land to keep, there is a hidden cost.
Continue reading...Kangaroo attack leaves Queensland wildlife carer with collapsed lung
Linda Smith also suffered broken ribs and cuts after she stepped in to stop a 183cm kangaroo hurting her husband
A Queensland wildlife carer has severe injuries including a collapsed lung after she was attacked by a kangaroo.
Experienced wildlife carer Linda Smith, 64, had a collapsed lung, broken ribs, cuts and other injuries after a 183cm kangaroo attacked after she stepped in to stop it hurting her husband near Millmerran on Saturday night.
Continue reading...I'm face to face with Ningaloo's living miracles and it feels holy | Tim Winton
It’s a very lucky person who swims with whales – but many take heart from knowing such ecosystems exist and believe they need to be protected
I pull the outboard out of gear and let the boat’s momentum wash away until we’re dead in the water. Then I switch everything off – engine, echo sounder, even the radio – and there’s silence. Not even the sound of water lapping against the hull. Because it’s breathless out here today. The surface of the gulf is silky. The sky is cloudless, a shade paler than the water. And behind us, onshore, the arid ridges and canyons of the Cape Range are mottled pink and blond in the morning light.
There’s only the two of us aboard, and although the air and water are still enough to be dreamlike we’re not at all relaxed. In fact, each of us is craning at opposite sides of the boat, heads cocked, tense with anticipation.
Continue reading...Top climate scientist blasts UK’s fracking plans ‘as aping Trump’
One of the world’s leading climate scientists has launched a scathing attack on the government’s fracking programme, accusing ministers of aping Donald Trump and ignoring scientific evidence.
James Hansen, who is known as the father of climate science, warned that future generations would judge the decision to back a UK fracking industry harshly.
Continue reading...Brexit blamed for price rise for Christmas turkeys
Fall in pound and uncertainty has led to farmers paying more to attract or retain EU workers
Brexit is about to make Christmas turkeys more expensive. Prices are to jump as a result of the fall in the value of the pound and higher wages farmers now have to pay to their east European pluckers.
Paul Kelly, the chairman of the British Turkey Federation and boss of KellyBronze, a free range producer, said the industry was being forced to increase prices because of a 5% to 7% rise in costs.
Continue reading...Indian activist dies during hunger strike over Ganges river pollution
GD Agarwal had been fasting since 22 June to protest against government inaction in cleaning the river
An Indian environmental activist has died on the 111th day of a hunger strike to pressure the government to clean the Ganges river.
GD Agarwal, a former professor of environmental engineering at one of India’s top universities, died on Thursday afternoon in hospital in the north Indian city of Rishikesh, where he had been admitted earlier that day.
Continue reading...Reusable coffee cups are just a drop in the ocean for efforts to save our seas
Overfishing and climate change harm the marine environment at least as much as plastic pollution
Films such as A Plastic Ocean, and the huge success of Blue Planet II, have brought ocean plastic pollution firmly into the popular domain. Plastic has become ubiquitous through the world’s oceans, with fragments found in deep ocean trenches and the Arctic ice sheets. Furthermore, pictures of charismatic animals such as whales and turtles consuming or entangled in plastic provide powerful imagery of the problem to the public.
There is no doubt plastic is a big issue. A study in the journal Marine Policy suggests plastic pollution might be reaching a planetary boundary, a term used to describe safe operational environmental limits within which the world can continue to function safely.
Continue reading...Scrapping UK grants for hybrid cars 'astounding', says industry
Government ends incentives to buy new hybrids and cuts those for electric vehicles
Incentives for consumers to buy hybrid and electric cars rather than diesel or petrol alternatives have been slashed by the government, adding thousands of pounds to the price of a new low-emission vehicle.
Car manufacturers said the decision was an “astounding” move. It comes only three months after the transport secretary, Chris Grayling, published a Road to Zero strategy to curb vehicle emissions by promoting greener cars and three days after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change called for an urgent switch to electric vehicles.
Continue reading...The week in wildlife – in pictures
A rhinoceros hornbill and a white moray eel are among this week’s pick of images from the natural world
Continue reading...