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Starfish ‘arms’ are actually extensions of their head, scientists say
The echinoderms more closely resemble disembodied heads than multi-limbed creatures, experts have discovered
Starfish may appear to have a plethora of limbs, but it turns out the creatures actually resemble something akin to a disembodied head.
Experts say it has long been a conundrum how starfish, sea urchins and other animals with a fivefold body plan, known as echinoderms, evolved from an ancestor with twofold symmetry – a body plan common today in animals including insects, molluscs and vertebrates.
Continue reading...World Cup bid process makes a mockery of green pledges – it’s time for reform
Handling of the 2030 and 2034 tournaments undermines Fifa’s environmental commitments, but it doesn’t have to be like this
There has been a lot of criticism of Fifa’s plans to host the 2030 men’s World Cup across six countries (Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay) and to relax the minimum number of existing stadiums required to host the 2034 tournament, a key decision that will inevitably lead to a successful Saudi Arabia bid. These have quite rightly raised eyebrows – climate has clearly not been at the heart of the decisions.
If fan travel makes up roughly 70% of football’s carbon footprint, how can Fifa plan to halve its emissions in the same year it hosts a tournament in three continents? And given that infrastructure is a big source of emissions around mega-events, what commitment is Fifa showing to the planet when it encourages more building in Saudi Arabia by reducing the minimum number of compliant existing stadiums from seven to four but keeping the final number of suitable stadiums at 14?
Continue reading...How generous subsidies helped Australia to become leader in solar power
Households have continued to use state help that was first created more than a decade ago
For a brief period over several weekends this spring, the state of South Australia, which has a population of 1.8 million, did something no other place of a similar size can claim: generate enough energy from solar panels on the roofs of houses to meet virtually all its electricity needs.
This is a new phenomenon, but it has been coming for a while – since solar photovoltaic cells started to be installed at a rapid pace across Australia in the early 2010s. Roughly one in three Australian households, more than 3.6m homes, now generate electricity domestically. In South Australia, the most advanced state for rooftop solar, the proportion is nearly 50%.
Continue reading...Canadian banking group agrees to buy 27.5k DAC removal credits from 1PointFive
Jim Ratcliffe, Manchester United and the myth of the spotless billionaire
In an era when clubs have become the playthings of billionaires, fans are left pondering the question: how do you prefer your sportswashing?
When Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani withdrew from the race to buy Manchester United last month, you could almost hear the sighs of relief emanating from the press department on Sir Matt Busby Way.
A Qatari takeover, despite the appeal and simplicity of Sheikh Jassim’s all-cash offer, would be sure to face fierce criticism – not only on the basis of Qatar’s enduringly appalling human rights record, but as further proof of oil money’s deepening incursion into global soccer’s most sacred places. With this ethical conundrum out of the way, the path is now clear for a much easier publicity sell: Manchester United looks set to fall into the care of a footballing humanitarian who presents the unique advantage of being both obscenely rich and unimpeachably English. Finally, the self-styled biggest club on the planet will be yanked away from the pesky Americans, snatched from the slick hands of the Gulf, and come to nestle at the top of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s corporate crown – pending a final buyout of the Glazers remaining 75% stake. A victory, at last, for clean money, good money, English money.
Continue reading...Extinction Rebellion co-founder guilty of breaking window at HS2 protest
Dr Gail Bradbrook found guilty of criminal damage to Department for Transport building in 2019
The co-founder of Extinction Rebellion has been found guilty of criminal damage for breaking the window of a government department in a protest against the environmental impact of HS2.
Dr Gail Bradbrook was convicted on Wednesday by a jury after 45 minutes, after a two-day trial at Isleworth crown court.
Continue reading...Company directors could be held liable and fined over unforeseen nature-related impacts and risks
Failure to identify commercial risks could constitute a breach of duty of care and diligence, according to new legal opinion
Company directors who fail to foresee the impacts their companies have on nature, and the commercial risks those effects pose, can be held personally liable and fined, according to lawyers.
A new legal opinion advises that company directors need to identify anywhere their business is dependent on or has an impact on nature and consider the potential risks this poses to the company.
Continue reading...The 2023 BirdLife Australia photography awards – in pictures
Mid-air fights, jabbering gang-gangs and villainous magpies are some of the 68 finalists from more than 6,000 entries in this year’s competition, with the winner to be announced in November. All proceeds go towards bird conservation across the country
Continue reading...Euro Markets: Midday Update
Ørsted cancels two US offshore windfarm projects at £3.3bn cost
Danish company’s CEO cites escalating costs in global offshore wind industry as shares fall
Denmark’s Ørsted has cancelled two big offshore windfarm projects in the US at a cost of more than £3bn amid surging costs facing the global wind industry.
Shares in the world’s biggest wind power company fell 20% on Wednesday after it told investors it had no choice but to take a 28.4bn Danish kroner (£3.3bn) impairment charge and stop the developments off the New Jersey coast.
Continue reading...Legal opinion finds Australian company directors exposed to nature-related risk
King Charles to give opening address at Cop28 climate summit
Attendance in UAE confirmed a year after Truss government advised Charles not to attend Egypt event
King Charles is to attend the opening ceremony of the Cop28 climate summit in the United Arab Emirates, one year after he was advised by Liz Truss’s government not to attend the Cop27 summit in Egypt.
Charles will deliver the opening address at the world climate action summit, a gathering of global leaders at the start of Cop28, in his first major speech on the climate crisis since becoming monarch.
Continue reading...Non-profits launch platform to guide financials on deforestation-free company portfolios
Restoring nature in Europe would bring more than 10x in business returns, say researchers
Pineapple loses its crown: Sainsbury’s sells leafless version to cut waste
Removing leaves will mean they can be replanted or shredded for animal feed and could reduce emissions
The pineapple has been dethroned: Sainsbury’s has announced it will start selling a crownless version of the tropical fruit from Wednesday.
The spiky, green leaves that grow from the top of the plant are a unique feature of the exotic fruit. But, says the supermarket, they are typically thrown away by customers, contributing to up to 700 tonnes of food waste a year.
Continue reading...Giant autonomous drones now lifting cargo to offshore wind turbines
Ørsted has become the first offshore wind company to begin trialling giant autonomous drones to transport cargo to giant wind turbines.
The post Giant autonomous drones now lifting cargo to offshore wind turbines appeared first on RenewEconomy.
‘Captive’ coal to remain under Indonesia’s latest JETP plans
Claimants take UK government to court over inadequate climate adaptation
Kevin Jordan, whose home is 5 metres from the cliff edge in Norfolk, says government’s shortcomings breach his human rights
When Kevin Jordan bought his seaside home in Hemsby, Norfolk, he was told it would be safe for a century. In the decade since, 17 of his neighbours’ homes have had to be demolished, or have been swept away into the waters of the North Sea. His is now just 5 metres from the fast-crumbling cliff, isolated and unreachable by car after part of the road collapsed into the North Sea.
The people of Hemsby would seem to be natural beneficiaries of official policies to adapt to the climate crisis. Under the Climate Change Act 2008, the government is required to produce a national adaptation programme every five years, setting out plans protect communities in the UK from the extreme heat, flooding and coastal erosion expected as the climate breaks down.
Continue reading...Shanghai auctions off 1 mln CO2 permits under local ETS amid hefty demand
EU confirms two African ports identified as carbon leakage hotspots for shipping
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