The Guardian

Impact on ecosystems must be predicted before technology is used, US atmospheric science agency chief says

Scientists must work urgently on predicting the effects of climate geoengineering, the chief of the US atmospheric science agency has said, as the technology is likely to be needed, at least in part.

Richard Spinrad, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), said the government-backed body was estimating the effects of some of the likely techniques for geoengineering, including those involving the oceans.

EVs represent about 1% of light vehicles in Australia – but Electric Vehicle Council warns there is ‘more work to be done’ to reach 2050 emissions targets

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Electric vehicles are “no longer a novelty” and their uptake in Australia is booming, with the industry recording a 120% rise in sales over the past year, according to a new report on the industry.

There are now more than 180,000 EVs on Australian roads, with 98,436 of those bought last year, the Australian Electric Vehicle Industry Recap 2023 found.

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Testing commissioned by Mamavation blog found high levels of a marker of PFAS in nine of 11 baggies tested

Most of the nation’s plastic sandwich baggies contain toxic PFAS “forever chemicals”, an analysis suggests, raising questions about the products’ safety in the US.

Testing of 11 types of baggies made by major producers showed high levels of a marker of PFAS in nine.

Fancy a plate of fangers and mash? Some researchers say python farms on a commercial scale could provide sustainable alternative protein

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Dr Daniel Natusch has eaten python in almost every way imaginable.

“I’ve had it barbecued. I’ve had it in satay skewers. I’ve had it in curries. I’ve had it with Indigenous people in the wilds of the Malaysian jungle,” he said.

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Location, extent and strength of recent freshwater events suggest an unusually warm and dry summer over southern Europe this year

Long-range weather predictions are notoriously difficult, but a new paper in the journal Weather and Climate Dynamics suggests that the melt rate of the Greenland ice sheet can predict the next summer’s weather in Europe.

The chain of events is complex and other factors may interfere. But according to Dr Marilena Oltmanns of the UK National Oceanography Centre, lead author of the study, it goes roughly as follows:

Exclusive: The H5N1 virus reached the region late last year and is killing wildlife, with witnesses spotting numerous seal corpses on South Georgia island

The grave of the explorer Ernest Shackleton on South Georgia island has become inaccessible to visitorsdue to bodies of “dead seals blocking the way”, as increasing numbers of animals are killed by bird flu’s spread through the Antarctic.

The H5N1 virus has spread to 10 species of birds and mammals since it arrived in the region last October, with five king penguins and five gentoo penguins the latest to test positive on the sub-Antarctic islands. Those confirmations follow reports of mass die-offs of elephant seals at the end of last year.

Green MP Caroline Lucas says call for investment in gas-fired power plants is election ploy that will jeopardise UK’s net zero target

Green MP Caroline Lucas has accused the government of stoking a culture war on climate issues by calling for more investment in new gas-fired power plants before a general election.

Lucas used an urgent question in the House of Commons to challenge the energy minister, Graham Stuart, on the plans set out on Wednesday, which could see a string of new plants built in the coming years despite the government’s commitment to phase out fossil fuels.

Coalition’s claim of cheap power and quickly built reactors is at odds with real world experience of other countries

We may not yet be entering a nuclear age in Australia, but we would all be best advised to handle the rhetoric around the issue as carefully as we would radioactive waste.

This week opposition leader Peter Dutton said an annual CSIRO report that had included estimates of costs for small modular reactors – which are not yet available commercially – was “discredited” because it “doesn’t take into account some of the transmission costs, the costs around subsidies for the renewables”.

Thousands of farmers have been persuaded by TREES scheme to replace barren monocultures with biodiverse forest gardens

In a world of monoculture cash crops, an innovative African project is persuading farmers to plant biodiverse forest gardens that feed the family, protect the soil and expand tree cover.

Could Trees for the Future (TREES) be a rare example of a mass reforestation campaign that actually works? The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) certainly thinks so and last month awarded it the status of World Restoration Flagship.

But 98% of Europeans live in areas WHO says have unhealthy levels of PM2.5

Air pollution levels have improved in Europe over the past 20 years, research has found.

However, despite these improvements, most of the European population lives in areas exceeding the World Health Organization’s recommended levels. About 98% of Europeans live in areas the WHO says have unhealthy levels of small particles known as PM2.5, 80% for larger ones known as PM10, and 86% for nitrogen dioxide.

See how polluted your part of Europe is

Analysis finds 58 people have died due to cold homes every winter day since 2013 Tory pledge to ‘cut the green crap’

The government’s failure to insulate the UK’s cold and leaky homes is costing thousands of lives a year, according to analysis.

The report from Greenpeace reveals 58 people have died due to cold homes every day on average during the winter since David Cameron’s Conservative government decided to “cut the green crap” in 2013 – drastically slashing support for home insulation.

Coral larvae more likely to settle on degraded reefs bathed in marine soundscapes, Caribbean study shows

Underwater speakers that broadcast the hustle and bustle of thriving coral could bring life back to more damaged and degraded reefs that are in danger of becoming ocean graveyards, researchers say.

Scientists working off the US Virgin Islands in the Caribbean found that coral larvae were up to seven times more likely to settle at a struggling reef where they played recordings of the snaps, groans, grunts and scratches that form the symphony of a healthy ecosystem.

Soon it will head back north to the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea where it can breed undisturbed

I opened the windows to the hide and was greeted by a mass of birds. Hundreds of cormorants, gulls, herons, egrets, ducks and waders, all feeding frantically as the rising tide covered up the fertile mud. Overhead, black kites patrolled half-heartedly, occasionally provoking the other birds to take to the wing in short-lived panic, before settling back down to feed or rest.

I witnessed this spectacle at the World Wide Fund for Nature’s Mai Po nature reserve in Hong Kong, justly celebrated as one of the most important wetlands in the world. Either side of high tide, birds gather here in vast numbers against the backdrop of Shenzhen, one of the fastest-growing cities in the world, just across the border in mainland China.

Government has no credible plan for effects of extreme weather, says Committee on Climate Change

The UK’s plans for adapting to the effects of the climate crisis “fall far short” of what is required, the government’s statutory adviser has said.

The Climate Change Committee (CCC) has examined the national adaptation programme published by ministers last July, intended to set out how people, buildings and vital national infrastructure such as water, transport, energy and telecommunications networks could be protected from the increasing severity of storms, floods, heatwaves and droughts that are afflicting the UK as a result of global heating.

Playing sounds from healthy coral reefs at degraded ones encourages coral larvae to settle, a study has found.

Scientists recorded audio from thriving reefs and then played it back at reefs in decline. Their work suggests that coral larvae respond to sounds in the ocean to work out where best to settle and grow

Record Western Australian rainfall has closed the Eyre Highway that links Perth to the eastern states and flooded outback stations, including Australia’s largest operating sheep station Rawlinna. Parts of WA experienced more than half a year's rain in 24 hours over the weekend, with more than 155mm of rain recorded at Rawlinna

• WA floods: ‘serious welfare concerns’ for seven people, including four children, missing amid heavy rain

The sewage treatment works at Horley seem to be crumbling, much like owner Thames Water itself

• Come clean on rescue plans for Thames Water, MP demands

The brochure boasts of a family-friendly community located in tranquil green space within easy reach of high-speed links to London.

However, the residents of a new development of 1,500 homes in Horley, Surrey, have recently set up a WhatsApp group, whose title illustrates a less attractive feature of the community: Stop the Poo.

Clean Energy Council report details ‘particularly poor’ investment in large-scale plants but says roof-top solar and batteries are ‘storming ahead’

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Investments in renewable energy plants showed an “alarming” slowdown in 2023, with financial approvals for new solar farms shrinking more than a third while no new windfarms won backing, the Clean Energy Council said in its annual report.

The yearly results come as separate data revealed fossil fuel power stations expanded generation in the first two months of 2024 as heatwaves in the east of Australia sent demand soaring.

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Swedish police have forcibly removed Greta Thunberg and other climate activists after they blocked the entrance to the Swedish parliament for a second day. Two officers lifted Thunberg and dragged her away before putting her down on the ground about 20 metres away from the door she had been obstructing. Thunberg and dozens of other environmental campaigners started blocking the main entrances to Sweden’s parliament on Monday in a sit-down protest against the effects of the climate crisis and what they said was political inaction

• Swedish police forcibly remove Greta Thunberg from parliament entrance

Intent to sue federal regulators charges they have failed to address dangerous levels of PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ known to be in sludge

New legal action could put an end to the practice of spreading toxic sewage sludge on US cropland as a cheap alternative to fertilizer, and force America to rethink how it disposes of its industrial and human waste.

A notice of intent to sue federal regulators charges they have failed to address dangerous levels of PFAS “forever chemicals” known to be in virtually all sludge.