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When is a vandal not a vandal? When they’re attacking Ulez cameras, say desperate Tory MPs | Polly Toynbee
Investigating protest and criminal damage is apparently now a waste of police time. Funny that Conservatives didn’t say that about Just Stop Oil protests
This was “crime week” on the Tory grid, but the party of law and order is no more. Tories now do like dictators, passing draconian laws against the freedom to protest but flouting them for protesters of their own political ilk.
Self-styled “blade runners” claim to have so far destroyed 600 cameras of the 3,000 needed to enforce the new Ulez – ultra-low emission zone – now covering all of Greater London. The Mail, Telegraph and Sun have been whooping up the actions of “Captain Gatso” and his balaclavaed vandals as they tear down cameras and cut cables. The Sun reports anti-Ulez exploits along with its “Give Us A Brake campaign to slow down the government’s ruinous race to net zero”. The Telegraph quotes a vigilante describing his night-time vandalism as “unpaid voluntary work for the community”.
Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist
Continue reading...Seven new ‘walking leaf’ insect species discovered
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Seven new leaf insect species, known as “walking leaves”, have been discovered.
The insects exhibit a sophisticated “twigs and leaf-like” camouflage allowing them to blend into their surroundings without detection, posing a challenge to both predators and researchers.
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Scientists demand end to dingo baiting after research reveals most are genetically pure
Discovery that most canids in Australia are not hybrids with wild dogs leads researchers to push to change policy and terminology
Scientists are calling on governments to end baiting programs targeting dingoes in national parks, to ditch the “inappropriate and misleading” term “wild dog”, and to proactively engage with Indigenous Australians regarding dingo management.
Dozens of scientists have written to the New South Wales, Victorian and South Australian environment and agriculture ministers to push for changes to dingo policies in light of new scientific research.
Continue reading...Fuel supplier raises stake in voluntary carbon intermediary, secures first forestry credits
RSPB versus the Tories: Six claims, the truth or otherwise
Do the charity’s accusations that the government has reneged on a range of environmental pledges stand up to scrutiny?
If the RSPB hoped to raise awareness about the perplexing concept of “nutrient neutrality” their post calling Rishi Sunak, Michael Gove and Thérèse Coffey “LIARS!” worked: it has, to date, been viewed by five million people.
“You lie, and you lie, and you lie again,” the conservation charity declared on X, formerly Twitter, listing a number of environmental statements from the trio over recent years.
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‘A national living library’: UK charity’s plea to save rare plants from extinction
Plant Heritage is asking volunteers to grow rare pollinator-friendly plants in their homes or gardens
Keep rare plants in your living room or garden, a horticultural charity has urged people in Britain, because creating a “national collection” can save pollinator-friendly plants from becoming extinct.
Plant Heritage, which works to keep rare garden flowers growing even when they are out of fashion, has started a campaign to protect pollinator-friendly plants and is asking for volunteers to set up a collection.
Astrophytum: With large yellow flowers in late spring and summer, these North American cacti will survive in a cool glasshouse if kept dry. International plant breeders have created many highly ornamental hybrids and cultivars, too.
Campanula: Also known as bellflowers, these distinctive open, bell-shaped flowers can be blue, pink, purple or white. There are about 80 species and 232 cultivars available.
Colocasia: These dramatic foliage plants can be grown outside in a warm, sheltered spot, or in greenhouses or conservatories. There are 19 cultivars available.
Echinacea: Known for attracting bees, birds and other pollinators, these hardy, herbaceous perennials have about 200 cultivars listed on the RHS Plantfinder.
Elaeagnus: There are 45 species and cultivars available in the UK, which either flower in spring and early summer or in the autumn. Some have edible berries.
Erigeron: Related to daisies, Erigeron can be annuals, biennials or perennials. They thrive in sunny spots with some happily growing through the cracks in paving.
Gaura (Oenothera (G)): Known for attracting bees, these drought tolerant, deciduous perennials flower for a long period at the end of summer and into autumn. They are mostly in shades of pink and white.
Knautia: A magnet for bees and butterflies, this plant group can be found growing wild in meadows across the UK and is also a cottage garden favourite.
Lysimachia: From creeping, ground cover plants to stately perennials, this genus can survive in a variety of settings. The UK native species have yellow flowers, but the garden types include whites and deep maroons too.
Osmanthus: These hardy evergreen shrubs with attractive foliage are easy to grow, and thrive in either sun or shade. There are 17 cultivars and 10 species available in the UK.
Phygelius: These are low growing evergreen shrubs but are often treated as perennials. The tubular flowers are held on long stems and come in tones of pink, red and occasionally yellow, and will last from mid-summer into the autumn.
Silene: These wildflowers are also known as campion and catchfly, with many other species found in the UK, from alpines to border perennials. With shades of pink, lilac, white and red, they bloom from late spring through to early summer.
Continue reading...US government is funding kills of endangered animals, activists say
June hunt in Alaska that killed 99 bears and five wolves prompts activists to renew their call for crackdown on ‘rogue states’
The US federal government has been accused of simultaneously paying to protect endangered species while funding state-organized hunts of large, endangered predators, like gray wolves and grizzly bears, that increase the likelihood of their extinction.
A coalition of more than 35 animal welfare and Indigenous groups in late 2021 formally petitioned the US Department of the Interior to develop rules to withhold money from state agencies that fund the “slaughters”. But the department has not responded to the petition, the groups allege.
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RSPB chief apologises after charity calls ministers ‘liars’ over green policy
Beccy Speight says frustration at ‘weaker protections’ prompted criticism of Sunak, Gove and Coffey
The head of the RSPB has apologised after the wildlife charity called Rishi Sunak and other ministers “liars” in a social media post.
Beccy Speight, the chief executive of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, said she did not approve the post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that said the UK prime minister, the levelling-up secretary, Michael Gove, and the environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey, were liars.
Continue reading...South Korea to fund companies that launch carbon projects abroad
Fifth of known species on Earth found in Unesco world heritage sites – survey
Sites cover less than 1% of planet and although protected are at risk from climate breakdown and human consumption, say experts
A fifth of known life on Earth can be found in Unesco world heritage sites, according to the first survey of the planet’s most important cultural and historical landmarks.
From the Great Barrier Reef to the Kazakh steppe, nearly three-quarters of all recorded bird species, two-thirds of all mammals and more than half of all hard corals have been recorded at world heritage sites even though they cover less than 1% of the planet, according to the new analysis produced by Unesco and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Continue reading...HumeLink inches ahead as state inquiry rules out putting lines underground
Transgrid submits environmental impact statement for HumeLink as opponents promise to cause "significant delays" after underground option again dismissed.
The post HumeLink inches ahead as state inquiry rules out putting lines underground appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Indian state govt launches smallholder farmer carbon market initiative
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