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world/2011/aug/31/obama-irene-federal-disaster-funds | Obama declares Hurricane Irene a federal disaster to release repair money | Barack Obama has declared Hurricane Irene a "major federal disaster" in states across the eastern US, freeing relief funds for what is likely to be one of the costliest natural disasters in American history. Obama acted as people struggled with severe flooding in states along the east coast from North Carolina going north. The designation means government money can be used for temporary housing and home repairs. The president earlier signed emergency declarations for other states including Puerto Rico and Vermont, where heavy flooding has destroyed roads and left 13 towns surrounded by water. New Jersey's governor, Chris Christie, called on the president to designate his heavily flooded state a disaster funds recipient. Thousands of people were evacuated in cities along the Passaic river, which has flooded towns along its banks. "I saw just extraordinary despair," Christie said after visiting some affected areas. The homeland security secretary, Janet Napolitano, is visiting the state to survey the damage. The scale of the disaster is putting intense pressure on the resources of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) and has led to a political row about whether the agency will have enough money to deal with Irene's aftermath. Fema's disaster relief fund has less than $800m (£490m) left and could run out before the end of the current fiscal year on 30 September. Eric Cantor, the Republican leader in the House of Representatives, is pressing for budget cuts to cover the cost of cleaning up after Irene and other disasters, while Democrats argue that aid should not be delayed by political bickering. About 40 people are now believed to have been killed by the storm, which also caused damage to property estimated at more than $10bn and forced a shutdown of New York city. Insurance experts are still calculating the likely bill but Irene looks set to be one of the most costly disasters to hit the US. The most expensive disaster in US history was Hurricane Katrina, which killed at least 1,836 people and caused $45bn in insured damages in 2005, according to the Insurance Information Institute (III). The second most costly – at $23bn – were the 9/11 attacks, which the institute counts as a single event. Hurricane Andrew, which hit southern Florida and Louisiana in 1992, is the third most costly at $22bn. On current estimates, Irene would rank seventh. Even before Irene, 2011 has already been one of the most costly disaster seasons in history. According to the institute, there were 43 "severe thunderstorms" in the first half of the year, causing 593 deaths and damage in excess of $23.5bn. AM Best in New Jersey, which rates the financial strength of insurers, calculates insurance losses topped $27bn in the first half of the year and have already exceeded the total for all of 2010. Jeff Mango of AM Best said 2011 was shaping up to be a year of record losses from storm damages. He said damage from tornadoes and hail in the midwest and storms in the north-east had taken a heavy toll in the first half of the year. Massive tornadoes in Alabama left almost 300 people dead and caused billions of dollars in damage earlier this year. Mango said it was the increased frequency of events rather than their scale that was leading to record damages. "It's hard to say yet what Irene will cost. It's more of a flooding event and a lot of it is uninsured risk, unfortunately," he said. US household insurance does not usually include flood damage. September is typically the biggest month for hurricanes, and forecasters have predicted an above-average hurricane season this year. "This could potentially be a record year," Mango said. | ['us-news/hurricane-irene', 'weather/usa', 'world/natural-disasters', 'world/world', 'weather/index/northandcentralamerica', 'us-news/usdomesticpolicy', 'us-news/us-news', 'tone/news', 'world/hurricanes', 'type/article', 'profile/dominic-rushe', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/international'] | us-news/hurricane-irene | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2011-08-31T19:21:48Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
uk/2007/may/23/nuclear.immigrationpolicy | Ministers to press on with new nuclear power stations | The government will today reassert its determination to press ahead with a new generation of nuclear power stations despite evidence of Tony Blair's inability to convince many of his own backbenchers and the public at large that atomic energy holds the key to security of supply and lower carbon emissions. An energy white paper published today will promise further consultation on the issue as demanded by the high court following a challenge by Greenpeace, but industry secretary Alistair Darling will make clear his belief that nuclear is essential if the UK is to meet growing energy demands and meet its Kyoto treaty commitments on C02. But the government faces battles ahead. A group of Labour, Lib Dem and SNP MPs warn in a letter published in today's Guardian that "we should not be politically panicked into accepting a technology that poses a continuing risk in terms of weapons proliferation and terrorism, produces a toxic waste for which no management solution is agreed, benefits from hidden subsidies and tends to undermine the prospects of renewable energy and efforts to increase efficiency". The letter, also signed by Friends of the Earth, said it was a "myth" that the lights would go out or that Britain would be far less dependent on gas imports without nuclear. A Guardian/ICM poll out this week shows opponents of nuclear energy narrowly outnumber supporters, by 49% to 44%, underlining how the government has made no progress in persuading people of the case for nuclear energy. When the Guardian last asked voters their opinion on the issue, in late 2005, 45% backed nuclear energy and 48% opposed it. The poll also shows that 62% of men think more nuclear power stations should be built against 27% of women. But industry has become increasingly positive with the huge German utility E.ON, which is fast-expanding in Britain and which sponsored last Saturday's FA Cup, saying for the first time that it was ready and willing to build new plants here and could do so without subsidies. "E.ON is keen to take a leading role in the development of a next generation nuclear programme," said Paul Golby, the chief executive of E.ON UK. "We believe that private companies will be able to fully fund the next generation nuclear build but it clearly requires sustained political and public support," he added. The company denied that nuclear would push out other forms of investment citing its commitment to spend £3bn on a variety of new gas and clean coal-fired power stations, together with wind, biomass and marine projects across the country. Mr Golby added: "This white paper should not be all about nuclear and our plans are suitably diverse - to keep UK plc's lights on we need to look at all our options and not just at one." | ['uk/uk', 'business/business', 'politics/politics', 'world/world', 'environment/energy', 'environment/environment', 'environment/nuclearpower', 'uk/immigration', 'type/article', 'profile/julianglover', 'profile/terrymacalister'] | environment/nuclearpower | ENERGY | 2007-05-23T06:51:19Z | true | ENERGY |
world/2005/jan/03/tsunami2004.comment | 'A tranquil haven reduced to rubble' | I am a Sri Lankan who lives in London, and have worked for Christian Aid for many years. My husband and I were in Sri Lanka hoping for a quiet, peaceful, warm Christmas in the tropical environs of my home country. Boxing day. Nothing could have prepared us for the death, destruction, displacement and disease that was wrought when the tsunami crashed into the coast, killing 28,000 and displacing nearly 10% of the country's 20 million population. A country that has already suffered the ravages of ethnic conflict during the past 20 years now faces mass trauma, loss and desperation. Years of working with the charity, Christian Aid, propelled me into autopilot mode. I was unable to sit and watch as my fellow Sri Lankans struggled to rescue the many coastal communities whose lives and livelihoods had been washed away in a mere 15 minutes. Even in the capital, the southern areas saw the tidal waters engulf coconut-thatched dwellings and destroy the livelihoods of many fisherfolk, washing up on the beaches the evidence of human life. As a family, we had spent the few days prior to Christmas in the beach house of a dear friend 45 miles south of Colombo. We were soon to hear that this haven of tranquillity was reduced to rubble along with the entire village of 26 households. Rajiva and his brother Kumudhu had seen to our every need during our stay. They lived in the village in simple surroundings. Thankfully they are alive. Clinging to his dignity, Rajiva said: "We had to carry our mother and run. All our belongings are gone except the clothes we were wearing. We were not destitute but today we are like beggars and many of us have lost our livelihoods." Another young mother, unable to save both her children, was forced to make a choice and let one go. This is the fate of many survivors. The courage and care exercised by so many during this tragedy has been an indication that despite our human vulnerability, transforming adversity into hope and hope into action is a real and deeply human trait. It has been a week since I walked into the offices of the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL), a partner organisation of Christian Aid, to offer my services. An emergency task force meeting was already taking place, which I was invited to join. Through its local networks the NCCSL had already begun a relief operation in the affected areas of the southern, northern, eastern and western provinces. In collaboration with local religious leaders churches, pansalas (Buddhist temples), kovils (Hindu temples) and mosques are being used as centres of refuge, collection and distribution points for relief goods. It is heartening to witness communities hitherto divided on grounds of ethnicity and religion putting prejudice aside and working to bring relief to those who have suffered and are in need. As always the most vulnerable are the poorest of the poor, especially children and the elderly. My own local parish here in Colombo, St Michael and All Angels, has been a collection point. In addition to collecting information and channelling it within Sri Lanka and back to the UK, I have also been involved in ferrying bags of rice, lentils and other food items. Everyone has been moved to act in his or her own way. A Christian Aid supported partner, Thadaham, (which literally translates as "a place to quench one's thirst") based in the Batticaloa area in the Eastern province, stirred into action in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. "With the use of a tractor and truck bought with funds given by Christian Aid for earlier flood relief work, we were able to rescue and evacuate 1500 people and bring them to the safety of a refugee camp. " said Chandra, one of Thadaham's coordinators. Feelings of guilt persist among many survivors, and I am no exception. The pain and trauma experienced by many needs to be addressed. The Holistic Centre for Health, a Christian Aid partner in Jaffna, has already sent its trained counsellors to work with children in the affected areas of the peninsular. Immediate relief is now in hand, due to the amazing generosity of people around the world. Unsurprisingly amid the panic and poverty, occasional looting and diversion of relief goods has happened. It is our responsibility as Sri Lankans to compel government and non-governmental agencies, along with the international community, to move from immediate relief to the greater task of rebuilding the lives of communities. It will take a very long time for the scars to heal, but the focus has to be on sustained action so that Sri Lanka's people can rebuild their lives, develop their communities and face the future with full human dignity. · Ramani Leathard is a communications officer for Christian Aid | ['world/tsunami2004', 'world/world', 'tone/comment', 'global-development/global-development', 'society/society', 'type/article'] | world/tsunami2004 | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2005-01-03T15:34:13Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
environment/2023/aug/30/nsw-forestry-agency-ordered-to-stop-logging-after-greater-glider-found-dead | NSW forestry agency ordered to stop logging after greater glider found dead | The state-owned New South Wales forestry agency has been ordered to immediately stop logging in parts of a state forest after the Environment Protection Authority found a dead greater glider – an endangered species – nearby. Conservation groups had written to the state government and EPA to investigate Forestry Corporation logging in the Tallaganda state forest, east of Canberra, as it was one of the last known strongholds of the southern greater glider. The EPA said it inspected several active logging areas in the forest on Tuesday after receiving a complaint and found a dead glider about 50m from where Forestry Corporation was working. It ordered all logging, haulage and road and track construction work in the area to stop for at least 40 days while the death was investigated. The EPA’s acting executive director operations, Steve Orr, said the cause of the glider’s death was not known, but it was “extremely concerning”. The species has been increasingly reliant on unburnt forest areas after its habitat was severely damaged in the black summer bushfires nearly four years ago, he said. The greater glider is Australia’s largest gliding marsupial, with bodies up to 45cm long and furry, prehensile tails that extend another 60cm. It was listed as endangered in 2022 after losing significant parts of its habitat to bushfire, drought, land-clearing and logging. Scientists estimate its population has fallen by about 80% in 20 years in some areas. Orr said the Forestry Corporation was required to protect and implement 50m logging exclusion zones around large “den trees” that gliders relied on for food and shelter. “While community reports suggest around 400 southern greater gliders may be living in the Tallaganda State Forest, [Forestry Corporation] has identified only one den tree,” he said. “We are not confident that habitat surveys have been adequately conducted to ensure all den trees are identified. “The EPA has a strong compliance and enforcement program for native forestry, and we will take immediate action where warranted, including issuing stop work orders for alleged non-compliance.” Environment groups praised the EPA and state environment minister Penny Sharpe for acting swiftly, and called for it to make the native forest logging ban permanent. Rachel Lowry, the chief conservation officer with World Wide Fund for Nature Australia, said it showed that promised environmental law reform needed to be accelerated “if Australia wants to live by our nation’s commitment to zero extinctions”. “We applaud all our supporters and the many community groups who have mobilised to expose this destruction,” Lowry said. “The fact that it had to come to this, an actual sighting of a deceased, endangered animal, is beyond sad.” Bob Debus, the chair of the group Wilderness Australia and a former Labor state environment minister, said the group had “long been concerned at the apparent efforts of the Forestry Corporation to undermine environmental policy in NSW”. “As a publicly owned body, the Forestry Corporation should be attempting to miminise environmental damage during logging operations. Instead, they appear to be deliberately targeting the areas of highest conservation value within the state forest estate for destruction,” Debus said. Forestry Corporation said protecting greater glider habitat was crucial, and it had “spent many months preparing for these operations through intensive pre-harvest surveys to identify and map sensitive habitat and ecological features”. “We are fully committed to investigating what has occurred and finding out what the circumstances are around the greater glider found dead in the forest,” a spokesperson said. The state Greens MP Sue Higginson said she had also raised concerns about the logging with the EPA. “These forests are worth so much more to NSW when they’re standing,” she said. | ['environment/endangeredspecies', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'australia-news/new-south-wales', 'environment/wildlife', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/adam-morton', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/wildlife | BIODIVERSITY | 2023-08-30T15:00:18Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
australia-news/2016/jan/06/victoria-pursues-national-ban-on-hoverboards-after-melbourne-house-fire | Victoria pursues national ban on hoverboards after Melbourne house fire | The Victorian government is calling for a national ban on hoverboards to be considered after one given as a Christmas present caused a house to burn down. The charger attached to the hoverboard – which did not comply with Australian safety standards – was the cause of the fire, Victoria’s electrical safety regulator, Energy Safe Victoria, has found. Neil Fraser, Energy Safe’s executive manager for equipment safety, said the board involved in the fire could not meet safety standards because it had no model number, a basic requirement for safety accreditation. “This board didn’t have any model or serial number or markings on it at all,” Fraser said. A family home in the suburb of Strathmore, in Melbourne’s north-west, was destroyed on Monday night after the toy exploded while charging. The family of six was unhurt but their home was left in ruins. “I’d encourage people to never leave their boards unattended while charging, because they only take about an hour to charge, and to use compliant chargers,” Fraser said. Ash Ibraheim, a tenant at the property, told Fairfax he had bought three boards for his daughters from an online retailer, and had believed they complied with Australian safety standards. The board had been charging for only 13 minutes before it began to spark and the fire broke out, he said. Energy Safe Victoria has recalled six hoverboards – also known as self-balancing scooters, gliders or modboards – or their chargers; the products were a popular Christmas gift. Victoria’s minister for consumer affairs, Jane Garrett, is writing to her commonwealth counterpart, Kelly O’Dwyer, to consider a national ban on the sale of hoverboards given the safety concerns. “Christmas toys should be fun but most importantly they need to be safe,” she said. In a copy of the letter seen by Guardian Australia, Garett notes there have been similar incidents in the United States and across Europe. “In addition to the recall of specific devices, I am concerned more generally about whether hoverboards are an appropriate consumer good, given that they might cause injury to consumers,” the letter says. “Hoverboards have not only caused fires from faulty design; in addition there is significant risk of user injuries through falls ... I would ask you to consider whether hoverboards and related equipment should be permanently banned under the Australian consumer law.” Garrett has ordered inspectors to conduct sweeping checks of hoverboards sold across the state. “These toys are very popular but they are also dangerous and could have devastating consequences if they are dodgy or aren’t used properly,” she said. “I have instructed Consumer Affairs Victoria to conduct an immediate blitz across the state to make sure we don’t have a tragedy.” Dodgy products would be seized and fines for selling recalled or noncompliant products start at $4,000 for individuals and $20,000 for companies. | ['australia-news/victoria', 'technology/gadgets', 'money/consumer-affairs', 'australia-news/melbourne', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'australia-news/victorian-politics', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/melissa-davey'] | technology/gadgets | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE | 2016-01-06T00:57:02Z | true | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE |
environment/2008/jan/06/nuclearpower.energy | Nuclear plants 'will be delayed to 2020' | New nuclear reactors may not be built in Britain until the late 2020s if the government's botched energy bill is delayed by another legal challenge. The warning from Paul Golby, head of energy giant Eon UK, comes ahead of the government's announcement this week, which is expected to give the green light to a new generation of reactors. Greenpeace said this weekend that its lawyers could take months to decide whether to launch a fresh legal challenge when the results of the second consultation into nuclear power were released. The energy bill is due to be unveiled later this month. Last year, the environmental campaign group won a judicial review into how the first consultation on nuclear power had been carried out. A judge subsequently ordered the government to begin a new consultation, ruling that the first was flawed. But the nuclear industry is concerned that global reactor design companies, such as Areva and Westinghouse, may decide to scrap plans to build their plants in the UK if delays keep mounting. Global demand for more nuclear power already outstrips companies' capacity to build them. Golby says these nuclear companies could take their designs to countries such as India and China, where there are fewer barriers to their construction. He said: 'We should anticipate a judicial review. But we should work on the assumption the government decision [on nuclear power] will stand. It would be disastrous if we lost another six months while everything stalls again. Companies will start to lose interest and the UK will lose our place in the queue. ' One senior nuclear executive at another UK energy company said reactor companies were anxious about more legal challenges and the likelihood of public inquiries. Referring to the oil price which last week broke through the $100-a-barrel barrier, Vincent de Rivaz, head of EDF Energy, said: 'The oil price is not subject to a legal challenge.' A spokesman for Greenpeace dismissed the complaints as 'griping'. 'It's a bit rich for the industry to start griping about the consultation which we said was so flawed. The problem of getting reactors built is nothing to do with a legal challenge. It's because of the global shortage of engineers and other resources.' | ['environment/nuclearpower', 'environment/energy', 'business/business', 'business/energy-industry', 'type/article', 'profile/timwebb', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/businessandmedia', 'theobserver/businessandmedia/news'] | environment/nuclearpower | ENERGY | 2008-01-06T23:40:40Z | true | ENERGY |
world/2005/feb/14/tsunami2004 | Baby 81 reunited with parents | A baby boy swept from his mother's arms in the Asian tsunami will be returned to her safe and well, after DNA tests today proved that one of the nine women claiming him was truly his mother. The story of four-month-old Abilash - who was known as Baby 81 until custody was determined - is a rare happy ending in a time of countless bereaved parents and orphaned children. Abilash's parents, Jenita and Murugupillai Jeyarajah, fought for an agonising two months to recover their son. They will now have to wait two more days before the court hands him back, while legal formalities are completed. "The parents have been ordered to come to court on Wednesday, when the baby will be given. They have to wait only two more days," said MSM Nazeer, Kalmunai court registrar. "I am so happy and I only have to thank God for giving my child back. We've got the results for all our hardships," Mr Jeyarajah told the Associated Press. After the tsunami swept him away from his mother's arms, Abilash was found alive amid debris. He was nicknamed Baby 81 because he was the 81st person admitted to Kalmunai hospital on Sri Lanka's east coast. Mr and Mrs Jeyarajah fought for two months to prove they were Abilash's rightful parents, after the December 26 tsunami washed away the child's birth certificate and other identity documents along with the family home. His parents said he was born on October 19. Eight other women came forward to claim him, although the Jeyarajahs were the only couple to file papers to claim him. Last week police took the baby 180 miles away to a laboratory in Colombo to carry out the DNA tests. Today the courts confirmed the results. Mrs Jeyarajah said that as soon as she gets her son back, she will fulfil vows to smash 100 coconuts at a temple of the Hindu god, Ganesh, offer sweet rice to the warrior god, Murugan, and kill a rooster for the goddess Kali. | ['world/world', 'world/tsunami2004', 'type/article'] | world/tsunami2004 | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2005-02-14T11:24:02Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
world/2005/feb/05/tsunami2004.johnaglionby | 30,000 tsunami survivors get jobs | The UN is expanding its cash-for-work scheme for tsunami survivors in the Indonesian province of Aceh from a few hundred refugees to 30,000 people in an attempt to get them back into paid employment, officials said yesterday. Gwi-Yeop Son, of the UN development programme, said the campaign was designed to give people something to do in the short term and then help them decide how they can best rebuild their lives. "Now when we ask people what they want, the majority say they want jobs," she told the Guardian. "They don't want to be sitting around doing nothing. "The intention is to provide them with immediate employment opportunities and by doing that we will get a sense of what their skills are and what they want to do." Muhammad Asep, who lost his wife, two of his three sons and his fishing boat, said he was keen to get any work he could. "It's getting frustrating hanging around the refugee camp worrying about the future," he said. "We want to make some money and rebuild our lives." Ms Son said the majority of work would last three months and be manual labour, clearing up devastated cities and towns. In the second phase, some 15,000 people will be offered more permanent jobs. She said most of the people already employed, in the provincial capital Banda Aceh, had lost everything. "I met a 60-year-old woman helping clean up the main hospital who had lost all her 22 relatives and all her possessions. At the moment this is the only thing she can do, but she's a trained midwife and hopes to be doing that once the hospital is fully operational again." Most workers will receive 30,000 rupiah (£1.74) a day plus a small food allowance. The expansion comes as many foreign governments are starting to withdraw their military forces from the province on the northern tip of Sumatra, six weeks after the earthquake and tsunami killed at least 112,000 people in Aceh and 45,000 others in countries around the Indian Ocean. Tens of thousands are still missing. Jakarta has declared the emergency phase over and said the priorities now would be reconstruction and rebuilding livelihoods. | ['world/world', 'world/tsunami2004', 'world/refugees', 'type/article', 'profile/johnaglionby'] | world/tsunami2004 | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2005-02-05T00:04:35Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
travel/2005/sep/04/hurricanekatrina.usnews.travelnews | Travel news: Mississippi tourism counts cost of Katrina | Mississippi's Gulf Coast has been designated a no-go zone for tourists following the devastation wreaked last week by Hurricane Katrina, which killed hundreds and left the cities of Biloxi and New Orleans under water. High temperatures mean it is low season for tourists in Mississippi, and at the time of going to press it was thought there were few British tourists in the area when the hurricane struck. Those there were evacuated via Atlanta airport. 'We had just seven guests in New Orleans. They were moved to LA and Miami just before it hit,' said a spokeswoman for Virgin Holidays. The disaster comes as the state tourist board was planning a publicity push to persuade British visitors to consider the area. Now officials say it could be up to a year before international visitors return. 'We were trying to promote the coast and its proximity to New Orleans,' said David Nicholson, the UK director of Mississippi Tourism. 'What was an enormously thrilling tourist destination has been wiped out overnight. At the moment the coast is completely and utterly devastated. But if there's anything positive to come out of this, it's that at least now people will know where it is.' The process of rebuilding may have been easier if it wasn't for an old state law dictating that gambling in Mississippi is only legal when conducted over water. All gambling spaces were constructed as pontoons, over the sea. 'They were supposed to have been built to withstand force five hurricanes but they didn't plan for the fact that they would simply be picked up and dropped by the winds,' said Nicholson. A 30-foot wave wiped out 90 per cent of buildings on New Orleans's east coast, including a new Hard Rock Casino and Cafe that was due to open next week after two years in construction. Inland, the rest of Mississippi is operating as normal, but there are so many evacuees from the affected areas that hotels throughout the state are booked solid. It may be months before people can return to the cities and years before they are fully functional again. Those planning to visit the area are being told to cancel and re-book elsewhere or postpone their holiday. Tour operators have cancelled departures in the short term and are offering alternatives, with a plan to review the situation week by week. | ['us-news/hurricane-katrina', 'us-news/us-news', 'travel/travel', 'tone/news', 'us-news/mississippi', 'world/hurricanes', 'type/article', 'profile/gemmabowes', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/escape', 'theobserver/escape/features'] | world/hurricanes | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2005-09-04T17:22:32Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
news/2020/jul/17/weatherwatch-giant-iceberg-on-the-move-and-picking-up-speed | Weatherwatch: giant iceberg on the move and picking up speed | Three years ago, in July 2017, a gigantic iceberg a quarter the size of Wales split off the Larsen C ice shelf in Antarctica. The berg, known as A-68, was the fourth largest iceberg ever, and is currently the biggest in the world. This is despite having shed two pieces, each a few hundred square kilometres, designated A-68B and A-68C. The main body is now called A-68A. In its first year the iceberg stayed close to the Larsen Shelf, moving no more than about five kilometres, as it was hemmed in by sea ice. In September 2018 strong winds broke A-68 free. Since then it has been moving towards South America, picking up speed. A-68A has now reached the South Orkney islands, more than a thousand kilometres from its starting point. The European Space Agency’s Copernicus Sentinel-1 radar satellite has been monitoring the berg’s progress. Radar is helpful in tracking even such a large object, as the Antarctic is dark through the winter months and obscured by cloud for much of the rest of the year. Although it covers over 5000 square kilometres, A-68A is only about two hundred metres thick. As it gets into rougher waters, it may disintegrate into a multitude of smaller bergs; or it may persist long enough to see another birthday. | ['news/series/weatherwatch', 'science/european-space-agency', 'world/antarctica', 'environment/poles', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/davidhambling', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-weather'] | environment/poles | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2020-07-17T20:30:01Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
technology/2021/oct/19/phone-firms-hit-by-suspected-chinese-hackers-lightbasin-china | At least 13 phone firms hit by suspected Chinese hackers since 2019, say experts | At least 13 phone companies around the world have been compromised since 2019 by sophisticated hackers who are believed to come from China, a cybersecurity expert group has said. The roaming hackers – known as LightBasin – were able to “search and find” individual mobile phones and “target accordingly”, according to CrowdStrike, a group regularly cited by western intelligence. Hackers were also able to obtain personal subscriber information held by phone companies and metadata showing who made and received calls. “Sophisticated signals intelligence activity” aimed at phone company networks has been considered a core function of western intelligence agencies such as the NSA in the US and GCHQ in the UK. But this is one of the first times its existence by groups linked to Beijing been publicly disclosed in the west. CrowdStrike researchers indicated they believed LightBasin was a “Chinese state-sponsored” group gathering information “likely to be of significant interest to intelligence organizations”. The attribution was not definitive but Adam Meyers, a senior vice-president at CrowdStrike, said there was also evidence that LightBasin was operating in support of other well-established Chinese groups, who typically carry out hacking activity at the ultimate direction of Beijing. Meyers added that the research group “was able to uncover passwords used by the LightBasin cluster which were in Pinyin, romanised Chinese characters”. Western experts have said Chinese hacking is running at record levels, describing it as a low-level form of cyberwarfare that has traditionally been focused on intellectual property but also includes classic espionage activity. Worries about China’s influence in telecoms have also underpinned the decision by some western countries such as the US to exclude the supplier Huawei from their phone networks – although the company insists it never allows spying on its customers. Last year, the UK said it would strip out Huawei kit from 5G phone networks from 2027. China has consistently denied being involved in hacking despite a number of attempts by the US and other western nations to call it out. In July, China’s foreign ministry accused Washington of “ganging up with its allies” and engaging in “smear and suppression out of political motives”. That denial came after the US, the EU, Nato, the UK and four other countries accused Beijing of being behind a massive exploitation of vulnerabilities in Microsoft’s widely used Exchange company server software in March. It affected about 250,000 organisations worldwide, allowing hackers to siphon corporate emails for espionage. Governments can be slower to attribute claims of hacking and other cyber-activity to a country, often waiting for tech companies or researchers to put the initial claims in the public domain. | ['technology/hacking', 'technology/telecoms', 'world/china', 'business/telecoms', 'world/world', 'world/asia-pacific', 'technology/technology', 'business/business', 'world/espionage', 'technology/data-computer-security', 'technology/cyberwar', 'technology/internet', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/dan-sabbagh', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-foreign'] | technology/hacking | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE | 2021-10-19T14:42:24Z | true | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE |
news/2012/may/27/weatherwatch-jubilee-history-storms | Weatherwatch: Jubilee celebrations and all eyes are watching the heavens | After the downpours of April and May, all eyes are watching the heavens for the outdoor events of the Diamond Jubilee. It is still too early to make a confident forecast for the early June bank holiday, but if past history is anything to go by there could be some big surprises. Queen Victoria's Jubilee in June 1897 began in blazing sunshine, but storm clouds soon gathered. At a grand lunch held for foreign VIPs in marquees at Windsor Castle, the skies grew inky black before the music from the German Emperor's band was drowned out by thunder and crashing rain. Afterwards a parade through the town of carriages and the "vehicle of the future", the motor car, was abandoned in the rain. Even worse, the nearby town of Marlow was battered by a tornado and the pinnacle of the local church crashed down through the roof during a service, however no casualties were reported. The deluge of rain that followed the tornado left streets flooded up to 2ft deep in water. Across many other parts of the country, street parties were abandoned because of hail, rain, wind and lightning. Things were not much better for the silver jubilee celebrations of George V in May 1935. It, too, began in warm sunshine, but suddenly turned bitterly cold with a deep and widespread frost on May 16. Shortly afterwards heavy snow carpeted most of the country, with even the West Country looking like a winter wonderland. | ['news/series/weatherwatch', 'uk/weather', 'uk/uk', 'tone/features', 'uk/queen-diamond-jubilee', 'type/article', 'profile/jeremy-plester', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/weather2'] | news/series/weatherwatch | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2012-05-27T21:30:05Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
environment/2019/dec/11/dont-invest-in-brazilian-meat-warn-deforestation-campaigners | Don't invest in Brazilian meat, warn deforestation campaigners | An international group of 30 non-profit groups published an open letter on Wednesday warning investors considering buying shares in two Brazilian meat giants of their exposure to deforestation. Billions of dollars of shares held by the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) in JBS and Marfrig – two of the world’s biggest meat companies – will reportedly go on sale next year. The letter says that both companies have been linked to destruction of the Amazon forest – where deforestation soared this year while fires in August reached a nine-year record. BNDES declined to comment. Signed by Global Witness, Greenpeace Brasil and the Rainforest Action Network, amongst others, the letter follows a report on Tuesday by the Guardian, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Réporter Brasil which showed that over the summer Amazon fires were three times more common in beef farming zones. Some 70% of cleared Amazon rainforest is estimated to have been converted to pasture, the letter said. Brazilian companies JBS and Marfrig are two of the biggest buyers of cattle in the area. “There is increasing recognition by central banks, stock exchanges, consumers and the public that climate change has become a material issue for the financial system,” the letter said. “This serves as a caution.” “There are some real gaps in the information that JBS and Marfrig are supplying on their supply chain,” said Shona Hawkes, senior policy advisor, forests at Global Witness. “Investors need to insist on that information.” Some cattle are born, raised and reared on the same farm – these are called direct suppliers, or “full cycle” farms. But many pass through numerous ranches – or “indirect suppliers” – before slaughter, with some specialising on fattening, others in rearing. This is proving to be a serious weakness for deforestation monitoring by the big Brazilian meat companies. In an email, Marfrig’s director of sustainability Paulo Pianez said the company’s efforts to meet its zero deforestation commitment include a real-time fire alert and a supplier monitoring platform. “Marfrig constantly develops technologies to mitigate risks, while permanently engaging suppliers and ensuring transparency for all stakeholders,” he said. Pianez also said only 47% of its cattle came from “full cycle” farms. Its annual report from auditors DNV.GL said: “Marfrig’s indirect suppliers are not systematically verified … Marfrig argues that the lack of a nationally implemented public traceability policy makes it difficult to implement such a verification.” JBS’s audit from the same company made a similar observation. “Regarding indirect suppliers, JBS and the industry in general does not yet have in place a verification system in these cases,” it said. The company said in an email that its Amazon monitoring system covers more than 280,000 sq miles, assesses more than 50,000 farms every day and has blocked more than 8,000 supplying farms due to non-compliance. “JBS is committed to eradicating deforestation, ensuring sustainable livestock practices and improving the livelihoods of farmers in the Amazon region,” a company spokesperson said in an email. “We urge those who share the common goal of ending deforestation to seek solutions rather than criticism.” The groups signing this letter argued that neither company has done enough. “Buying shares in these companies means running a big risk in being involved in deforestation in the Amazon,” said Christian Russau, from Germany’s Association of Ethical Shareholders. “We in Europe are also responsible.” | ['environment/series/animals-farmed', 'environment/amazon-rainforest', 'environment/deforestation', 'environment/conservation', 'environment/environment', 'environment/forests', 'environment/meat-industry', 'environment/farming', 'environment/food', 'world/americas', 'world/world', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/dom-phillips', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/global-development'] | environment/amazon-rainforest | BIODIVERSITY | 2019-12-11T14:02:19Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
travel/2023/jan/04/rail-route-of-the-month-alps-to-adriatic-vienna-ljubljana-trieste-austria-italy | Rail route of the month: through the Alps to the Adriatic – Vienna to Trieste | Vienna is Europe’s best-connected capital city, at least in terms of rail links. Weekly direct services to Minsk and Monaco slipped from the departure boards during the pandemic, but new services over the past couple of years include direct trains to Paris, Amsterdam, Genoa, Split and Trieste. As the Habsburg empire’s main Adriatic seaport, Trieste had good rail services to Vienna, but after the first world war, politics and geography conspired against it, leaving the city on a finger of land only tenuously connected to the rest of Italy. For decades Trieste was what the late Jan Morris described as “an allegory of limbo”, and a railway backwater. The end of the cold war, and Slovenia’s later accession to the EU and Schengen area, brought new life and opportunity to Trieste. The rail link to Ljubljana was restored. Then, in June 2021, a direct train from Vienna was added. The daily Eurocity train from the Austrian capital takes just over nine hours. It is a tremendous journey, and well suited to the dark days of January, when slow travellers must choose their route carefully. Sunrise in Vienna is about 7.40am in mid-January, perfect for a daylight departure at 7.58am. The route includes the celebrated Semmering railway, some tantalising Styrian landscapes and the Slovenian karst. If the train reaches Trieste punctually, as it usually does, its arrival coincides with dusk over the Adriatic. With the sun dipping into the Golfo di Trieste, the train does a loop past Prosecco and the city’s northern seaside suburbs to Trieste Centrale station. But it’s not just that final descent from the dry limestone karst to the sea that makes this journey so memorable. The appeal lies in the medley of landscapes and the political and social context of the journey. The must-take book for this trip is Jan Morris’s Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere. The Eurocity Emona Our Eurocity train to Trieste is called Emona, after the early Roman settlement on what is now Ljubljana. In 2023, this train usually has six carriages, three Slovenian and three Austrian, with only the Austrian ones running through to Trieste. The Emona ticks all the boxes for the ultimate rail cruise. Stunning mountain scenery, with a good mix of distant panoramas and closeup views, is all the better viewed from a very comfortable train which, rather than dashing to its destination, glides gracefully through the hills. The Slovenian offering includes a nicely retro restaurant car offering breakfast essentials including fried eggs and pršut (dry-cured ham) and endless coffee before its scheduled removal from the train in Ljubljana, along with the other two Slovenian carriages. Over the Semmering The first part of the journey to Trieste follows the Semmering railway, which links Vienna with Austria’s second city, Graz. Modern trains make light of the steep gradients, but in the 1840s they posed a tough engineering challenge. Nurtured by Habsburg imperial ambition, the Semmering railway opened in 1854. In 1998, it gained Unesco listing as “one of the greatest feats of civil engineering during the pioneering phase of railway building”. The villages around the line have fabulous turn-of-the-century villas built for wealthy Viennese who were delighted to find the Alps now within striking distance of the capital. No surprise perhaps that these communities figured prominently in the literary and cultural imagination of fin-de-siècle Vienna. The intelligentsia used the Semmering area as a rural annexe to the capital’s coffee houses and salons. Semmering was not an escape from Vienna; it was Vienna in the mountains. And Trieste was Vienna-by-the-sea. Dropping down from the hills, we follow the Mürz and Mur valleys to Graz, where the restaurant car becomes the preserve of Styrian beer drinkers who seem immensely proud of Graz’s progressive politics. The city’s communist mayor, Elke Kahr, has presided over civic affairs since late 2021. Slovenian transit By midday, we are well into Slovenia and after a stop in Ljubljana, our now-truncated train crosses a beautiful area of seasonally flooded marshland, which looks wonderful even on a dull day. Slowly the railway gains height, swapping valley landscapes for more challenging arid limestone hills. In the days of steam, the lack of water for topping up locomotives was a problem. We pause at Gornje Ležeče, once the hub of an ambitious network of aqueducts providing water to this arid land. The steam engines of the Austrian Southern Railway would stop here to draw from a reservoir in a trackside building which still stands. Today it is half-covered in ivy and a nice reminder of a Habsburg engineering prowess. At 4pm, we slip over the Italian border and reach the first station in Italy. Villa Opicina is a shadow of its former self, but still has some of its cold war mystery. Villa Opicina often plays a bit-part role in spy novels – sometimes under its former name, Poggioreale Campagna. The name was changed to Villa Opicina in the 1960s. Ian Fleming wrote about James Bond’s arrival here from Yugoslavia in From Russia with Love. From Villa Opicina, it is downhill all the way to Trieste, with our train looping gently down to the coast for the final run into Trieste’s elegant Centrale station, along the way passing Miramare Castle, the waters around which are still haunted by the spirit of the late, great Jan Morris. Travel notes Eurocity train EC151 leaves Vienna daily at 7.58am, stops in Ljubljana at 2pm and reaches Trieste at 5.16pm. The train number mysteriously changes to EC134 during the stop in Ljubljana. Singles to Trieste, from €29.90, are available online at ÖBB Austrian Railways or Rail Europe. Holders of Interrail passes have to pay a small surcharge of €2.60 in second class and €4.60 in first class. The 17th edition of Nicky Gardner’s book, Europe by Rail: The Definitive Guide, is available from Guardian Bookshop. She is co-editor of Hidden Europe magazine | ['travel/series/rail-journey-of-the-month', 'travel/railtravel', 'travel/vienna', 'travel/italy', 'travel/public-transport-trips', 'travel/travel', 'travel/austria', 'travel/europe', 'travel/slovenia', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/nicky-gardner', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-travel'] | travel/series/rail-journey-of-the-month | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE | 2023-01-04T07:00:11Z | true | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE |
environment/2019/apr/16/james-cook-university-professor-peter-ridds-sacking-ruled-unlawful | James Cook University professor Peter Ridd's sacking ruled unlawful | James Cook University is considering its legal options after the federal circuit court ruled it had unlawfully sacked a professor who had criticised scientific research about the climate change impact on the Great Barrier Reef. Peter Ridd, who was the head of the physics department at the institution from 2009 until 2016, took legal action against his dismissal. Judge Salvatore Vasta ruled on Tuesday the 17 findings made by the university, the two speech directions, the five confidentiality directions, the no satire direction, the censure, the final censure and the termination of Ridd’s employment were all unlawful. “Some have thought that this trial was about freedom of speech and intellectual freedom. Media reports have considered that this trial was about silencing persons with controversial or unpopular views,” Vasta said in his judgement. “Rather, this trial was purely and simply about the proper construction of a clause in an enterprise agreement.” The judgement noted Ridd had been in trouble with university management for contacting a News Corp journalist and making media appearances on Sky News after dark claiming he had breached a code of conduct. Ridd had started a GoFundMe page asking for donations to fund his legal expenses and he also published material from the internal disciplinary process on a blog. A number of media articles were also published where it was obvious that Prof Ridd had spoken to the journalist involved, the judgment said. “Professionally, Professor Ridd had been concerned with the quality of the scientific research that had been published about the state of health of the Great Barrier Reef,” the judgment said. “He had published a number of papers on the need for better quality assurance. In his opinion, the health of the Great Barrier Reef had been frequently misrepresented.” Judge Vasta said the university has not understood the whole concept of intellectual freedom. “[The] university has ‘played the man and not the ball’,” he said. “Intellectual freedom is so important. It allows academics to express their opinions without fear of reprisals. It allows a Charles Darwin to break free of the constraints of creationism. It allows an Albert Einstein to break free of the constraints of Newtonian physics. It allows the human race to question conventional wisdom in the never-ending search for knowledge and truth.” The Townsville-based university’s provost professor, Chris Cocklin, noted the judgment does not refer to any case law. “We disagree with the judgment and we maintain we have not taken issue with Dr Ridd’s nor any other employee’s rights to academic freedom,” Cocklin said in a statement. “Dr Ridd was not sacked because of his scientific views. Dr Ridd was never gagged or silenced about his scientific views, a matter which was admitted during the court hearing.” The case has been adjourned for a further hearing to award a penalty. Comment was sought from Ridd. | ['environment/great-barrier-reef', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'australia-news/australian-universities', 'science/scienceofclimatechange', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/environment', 'australia-news/australian-education', 'science/science', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/lisa-martin', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/great-barrier-reef | BIODIVERSITY | 2019-04-16T10:34:54Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
commentisfree/2007/oct/12/aninconvenientpeaceprize | An inconvenient peace prize | This year's Nobel peace prize justly rewards the thousands of scientists of the United Nations climate change panel (the IPCC). These scientists are engaged in excellent, painstaking work that establishes exactly what the world should expect from climate change. The other award winner, former US vice-president Al Gore, has spent much more time telling us what to fear. While the IPCC's estimates and conclusions are grounded in careful study, Gore doesn't seem to be similarly restrained. Gore told the world in his Academy Award-winning movie (recently labelled "one-sided" and containing "scientific errors" by a British judge) to expect 20-foot sea-level rises over this century. But his Nobel co-winners, the IPCC, conclude that sea levels will rise between only a half-foot and two feet over this century, with their best expectation being about one foot - similar to what the world experienced over the past 150 years. Likewise, Gore agonises over the accelerated melting of ice in Greenland, but overlooks the IPCC's conclusion that, if sustained, the current rate of melting would add just three inches to the sea level rise by the end of the century. Gore also takes no notice of research showing that Greenland's temperatures were higher in 1941 than they are today. Gore also frets over a predicted rise in heat-related deaths, without mentioning that rising temperatures will reduce the number of cold spells, which are a much bigger killer than heat. The best study shows that by 2050, heat will claim 400,000 more lives, but 1.8 million fewer will die because of cold. Indeed, global warming will actually save lives. The IPCC has magnanimously declared that it would have been happy if Gore had received the Nobel peace prize alone. I am glad that he did not. Unfortunately, Gore's prize will only intensify our focus on climate change to the detriment of other planetary challenges. Gore concentrates above all else on his call for world leaders to cut CO2 emissions, yet other policies would do much more for the planet. Over the coming century, developing nations will be increasingly dependent on food imports from developed countries, not primarily as a result of global warming, but because of more people and less arable land in the developing world. The number of hungry people depends much less on climate than on demographics and income. Extremely expensive cuts in carbon emissions could mean more malnourished people. If our goal is to fight malnutrition, policies like getting nutrients to those who need them are 5,000 times more effective at saving lives than spending billions of dollars cutting carbon emissions. Likewise, global warming will probably slightly increase malaria, but CO2 reductions will be far less effective at fighting this disease than mosquito nets and medication, which can cheaply save 850,000 lives every year. By contrast, the expensive Kyoto protocol will prevent just 1,400 deaths from malaria each year. While we worry about the far-off effects of climate change, we do nothing to deal with issues facing the planet today. This year, malnutrition will kill almost 4 million people. Three million lives will be lost to HIV/Aids. Two and a half million people will die because of indoor and outdoor air pollution. A lack of micronutrients and clean drinking water will claim two million lives each. With attention and money in scarce supply, we should first tackle the problems with the best solutions, thereby doing the most good throughout the century. Focusing on solving today's problems will leave communities strengthened, economies more vibrant, and infrastructures more robust. This will enable us to deal much better with future problems - including global warming - whereas committing to massive cuts in carbon emissions will leave future generations poorer and less able to adapt to challenges. To be fair, Gore deserves some form of recognition for his resolute passion. However, the contrast between this year's Nobel winners could not be sharper. The IPCC engages in meticulous research where facts rule over everything else. Gore has a very different approach. In cooperation with Project Syndicate, 2007. | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'tone/comment', 'us-news/algore', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/environment', 'global-development/global-development', 'society/health', 'world/world', 'commentisfree/cif-green', 'environment/ipcc', 'type/article'] | environment/ipcc | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2007-10-12T14:36:00Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
food/2021/apr/23/sipping-on-a-banana-peel-the-sydney-bar-making-waste-minimisation-sexy | Sipping on a banana peel: the Sydney bar making waste minimisation sexy | You don’t expect to see 82,000 milk bottles in a cocktail bar. You won’t see them at Re in Sydney’s South Eveleigh either, but they’re there. They’ve been transformed by Melbourne’s Replas into a sleek terrazzo-style bar and tabletops. “Everything you touch as a guest is recycled: the seat, the top, the glass, your plate,” Matt Whiley says of his new venue. He wants Re to be a zero-waste bar, and his eco-friendly brief goes beyond what’s in your martini or spritz. The bar’s sleek counter, staircase and other plastic fixtures once transported milk. The Philippe Starck stools are moulded from “stuff swept off the floor from warehouses,” says the award-winning bartender, who moved to Sydney in November 2018 to launch a pop-up version of his London bar, Scout. The plates are shaped from recycled waste clay from tableware brand Mud Australia, while the glasses are “imperfect” rejects from candle and glass makers Maison Balzac. They usually get trashed, but now they serve margaritas flavoured with rescued rockmelons. Early hype around the venue billed it as the world’s first permanent no-waste cocktail bar. After opening in mid-April, Re now describes itself as a “Regenerative bar and kitchen”. “I think it’s very easy to go ‘that bar’s zero waste’. We’re not zero waste, we’re not going to be zero waste for a while,” Whiley says of the change. Getting there will be a long-term goal, and will involve a website that documents Re’s waste-eliminating efforts, failures and lessons as well as his Never Wasted initiative, which helps other bars develop sustainable cocktails. Zero it may not be, but Re already does an impressive job turning landfill-destined produce into highly drinkable fare. Rescued banana peel mightn’t sound appealing, but Whiley rests the skins in rum and distills peanut butter to create a caramelly-rich tribute to the Old Fashioned, topped with a plantain crisp. It’s the same with the Wimbledon Gimlet. Pickled strawberries plus cordial made from leftover ricotta whey Whiley has fermented since last March? No thanks, you might say. But combine it with vodka and bartending magic and it tastes like strawberries and cream. Whiley is supplied with a wildcard assortment of surplus ingredients from Sydney Direct Fresh Produce. Trays of unsold nectarines are easily juiced for cocktails. But a request for “some herbs” resulted in six boxes arriving at the bar. Most will end up in compost. Whiley admits he has to get better at communicating what he wants. He’s helped by a team with great CVs: Ho Song (Cantina OK, PS40), Jake Down (who worked with Whiley at Scout) and Evan Stroeve, who was bar manager at Bulletin Place when it won the best sustainable bar program in the 2019 Australian Bar Awards. When Re was recently delivered a tray of avocados, Whiley instantly admitted defeat. “They were just a bit too soft and they’re so time-sensitive,” he says. “Ho had an immediate solution: to take them to his mum’s [sushi] restaurant.” They became salmon-avocado rolls and were used up before lunch. “In our first order, we got loads of cherry tomatoes and beetroot. And Evan made a beetroot and cherry tomato soda,” Whiley says. “I’m not sure about this, mate,” he told Stroeve. “But it was so good.” The soda adds a dark pink fizz to the Autumn Americano, where it’s combined with a local café’s spent coffee grounds, red vermouth and a Campari-like aperitif called St Felix. This might sound like bad cocktail maths (how could these ingredients taste good together?) but the result is like an adult, boozy creaming soda – highly delicious. Whiley doesn’t always succeed. “I’ve tried about 10 times to ferment rockmelon and it never works. It just goes slimy and horrible,” he says. Instead, he serves it as a bar snack, rubbed with wasabi oil and salt. He also creates a refreshing syrup for Re’s bestselling melon margarita. Not that you can always tell. The lights once were mushrooms and the banquette coverings were formerly pineapple leaves. But they resemble the designer furniture you’d see in any cool bar. Whiley wanted to combat people’s low expectations of a green venue. “Are you going to sit in a shed and eat stuff that’s going off?” he imagines people asking. That’s why there are no hippie-ish platitudes on the menu. You could easily leave Re and have no idea about the bar’s waste-minimising mission. You mightn’t realise your drinks were flavoured with leftover strawberry pulp from a charity cocktail event which Whiley saved in his tiny home freezer for nine months (his wife was relieved when he turned it into strawberry wine and she could finally put ice in her freezer again). “I’m not here to tell people how to enjoy their night,” he says. Working at Re involves distilling, dehydrating, fermenting, centrifuging or breaking down ingredients so they last longer – and become drinkable. Sometimes the results are hidden away: the bar’s outdoor furniture conceals fermenting sauerkraut, barley wine and other goods made from salvaged produce (such as 50 litres of strawberry wine). “We don’t see it as hard work, we see it as a reward for our efforts,” he says. “We don’t ever look at produce as waste, we don’t ever discuss waste, we talk about rejuvenating it – giving that thing that no one else wants purpose.” This article was amended on 26 April 2021. An earlier version stated the clay used for the tableware was made of excess clay – it has been corrected to state the clay is recycled waste clay. | ['food/cocktails', 'environment/food-waste', 'food/australian-food-and-drink', 'food/food', 'travel/bars', 'type/article', 'lifeandstyle/australian-lifestyle', 'australia-news/sydney', 'environment/recycling', 'environment/ethical-living', 'environment/waste', 'tone/features', 'profile/lee-tran-lam', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-lifestyle'] | environment/waste | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2021-04-22T17:30:46Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
world/2019/sep/09/search-for-bodies-and-survivors-continues-after-hurricane-dorian-in-bahamas | Search for survivors of Hurricane Dorian continues in Bahamas | Rescue workers wearing white hazard suits continued their grim search for bodies and survivors in the hurricane-ravaged Bahamas on Monday, as relief agencies worked to deliver food and supplies over flooded roads and piles of debris. At least 44 people died when Hurricane Dorian hit the Bahamas on 1 September, flattening homes and tossing cars and planes like toys. At least five deaths have been blamed on the storm in the south-eastern US and one in Puerto Rico. Dorian was one of the most powerful Caribbean storms on record, a category 5 hurricane with winds of 200mph. It stalled over the Bahamas for nearly two days, becoming the worst disaster in the nation’s history. Large swaths of Greater Abaco Island were destroyed. In the hard-hit Mudd section of the island, search crews have used geotagging technology to mark the locations of bodies. The government of the Bahamas said on Sunday more than 900 members of its police and military were on Abaco and Grand Bahama to help with hurricane relief. The government also said 120 Jamaican security personnel had arrived and 100 troops from Trinidad and Tobago were due. Large numbers of security forces from Britain and the US were also involved in search, rescue and recovery operations, the Bahamian government said. The Bahamian National Emergency Management Agency said late on Sunday 2,500 people had been evacuated, most from Abaco. Thousands of people have reached the capital, Nassau, where shelters are under strain. Hundreds of people displaced by the storm have fled to the US. Shelters were housing about 1,100 people, officials said. More were staying with friends and relatives. The Bahamian government was asking residents whose homes were intact to open them up to those displaced by the storm. Some 90% of homes, buildings and infrastructure in Marsh Harbour were damaged, the World Food Programme (WFP) said. Thousands were living in a government building, a medical center and an Anglican church but had little or no access to water, power and sanitary facilities. About 70,000 were in need of food and shelter, the WFP estimated. Private forecasters estimated that about $3bn in insured property was destroyed or damaged. The risk of outbreaks of diarrhea and waterborne diseases was high as drinking water may be tainted with sewage, according to the Pan American Health Organization. | ['world/bahamas', 'world/hurricane-dorian', 'us-news/us-news', 'world/natural-disasters', 'world/world', 'world/extreme-weather', 'world/americas', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/international', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-news'] | world/hurricane-dorian | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2019-09-09T15:51:51Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
commentisfree/2022/sep/12/global-heating-fighting-degree-target-2030 | Why we should forget about the 1.5C global heating target | Bill McGuire | Keeping the global average temperature rise (since pre-industrial times) below 1.5C is widely regarded as critical if we are to sidestep dangerous, all-pervasive climate change. This idea of a 1.5C temperature threshold is in the news again because just-published research has revealed that several catastrophic climate tipping points are in danger of being crossed at around this level of warming, including collapse of the Greenland and west Antarctic ice sheets, which would lock in about 12 metres of sea-level rise. To have a fair chance of keeping this side of 1.5C, emissions have to fall by 45% in little more than 90 months, and I am on record as saying that this is practically impossible. But it’s worse than that. It is perfectly feasible that we will crash through the 1.5C guardrail even earlier. The UK Met Office, for one, forecast in 2021 that there was at least a 40% chance that 1.5C would be breached temporarily at least once in the following five years. This means the average temperature would be above 1.5C one year, but likely return below it the next – and we will fluctuate around that number before crossing it permanently some time in the future. In both 2016 and 2020, the Earth was 1.36C hotter than during pre-industrial times, so we are already getting disturbingly close. The development of El Niño conditions in the Pacific Ocean in the next year or two, which typically ramps up the level of global heat, could well provide the final push that breaches the threshold. The idea of breaching “temporarily” opens a whole can of worms. Does one year of 1.5C mean we have breached the barrier or not? How many years of 1.5C or more of heating does there need to be before we have officially crashed through the guardrail? And how critical would this really be, anyway, in terms of real-world consequences?? Maybe we are too fixated with this precise temperature rise. The fact is, while not exactly picked out of a hat, the 1.5C figure is an arbitrary one. The exact level of temperature rise at which climate change becomes dangerous is simply not known. Indeed, the 33 million people displaced from their homes in Pakistan might justifiably say we have reached it already. As for tipping points, any or all of those flagged in the new research could happen at some point below 1.5C, so we may have crossed one or more already – only time will tell. Just as easily, we might need a 1.6C, 1.7C or even higher rise before the first runaway impacts of global heating are encountered. The key point, then, is not the precise value of the global average temperature rise, but the simple fact that it is continuing to rise. The climate system is so sensitive to additional heating that every fraction of a degree rise counts, so that every 0.1C rise is just as important as every other. Global heating is now translating into extreme weather rapidly: there has been a huge hike in these events over the last few years, during which time the global average temperature climbed by one- or two-tenths of a degree at most. The bottom line is that 1.5C is not sacred. Whether we crash through it or – by some miracle – stay below it, we cannot be certain what the consequences will be. The number has been a useful metric in the global heating story, marking a somewhat concrete focal point. But we mustn’t become obsessed with a single target figure. On the contrary, we need to knuckle down as much as we can to prevent every 0.1C rise, both below this figure and above, in order to rein in climate breakdown as best we can. You never know, we might just get lucky. Bill McGuire is professor emeritus of geophysical and climate hazards at UCL, and the author of Hothouse Earth: an Inhabitant’s Guide Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 300 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at guardian.letters@theguardian.com | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'environment/environment', 'world/arctic', 'environment/ice', 'world/antarctica', 'type/article', 'tone/comment', 'profile/billmcguire', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-opinion'] | environment/carbon-emissions | EMISSIONS | 2022-09-12T16:48:44Z | true | EMISSIONS |
us-news/2021/jun/22/wildfires-us-west-arizona-california | Wildfires burn across US west as lightning sets off blaze near Arizona city | Dozens of wildfires were burning in hot, dry conditions across the US west, including a blaze touched off by lightning that was moving toward northern Arizona’s largest city. The mountainous city of Flagstaff was shrouded in smoke on Monday and ash was falling from the sky as a blaze was encroaching on the city. The national forest surrounding Flagstaff announced a full closure set to begin later this week – the first time that has happened since 2006. Intense heat that has hampered firefighting efforts was expected to moderate in the coming days. But, the National Weather Service (NWS) noted it could bring uncertainty for fire crews. “The humidity and the possibility of some scattered rainfall is a good thing,” said the meteorologist Andrew Taylor. “The lightning is not a good thing.” In California, firefighters still faced the difficult task of trying to contain a large forest fire in rugged coastal mountains south of Big Sur that forced the evacuation of a Buddhist monastery and nearby campground. The Willow fire has burned more than 2,800 acres since it broke out on Thursday evening. More than 500 firefighters are battling the blaze. Arizona is at the highest level of preparedness for wildfires, and new fire starts have required constant shifting of resources. While humans are to blame for an overwhelming majority of the blazes, lightning started the 31-sq mile (80-sq km) blaze west of Sedona that was moving toward Flagstaff. Some campers were forced to evacuate, and residents of rural areas have been told to prepare to leave on a moment’s notice, said Jon Paxton, a Coconino county sheriff’s spokesperson. If the fire continues its north-eastern push, hundreds of people in Flagstaff – a college city about two hours north of Phoenix – also could be affected, Paxton said. Two national forests in northern Arizona have made the rare decision to close completely to visitors starting Wednesday because of concerns they won’t have enough resources to respond to any future wildfires. “We have limited resources, and we’re tapped right now,” said Brady Smith, a spokesperson for the Coconino national forest, which surrounds Flagstaff. The Coconino last issued a full closure in 2006. The nearby Kaibab national forest, which borders the Grand Canyon, last fully closed in 2002. Both forests are popular for hiking, camping, fishing and other recreation because they sit at higher elevations and are much cooler than the state’s desert areas. Meanwhile, firefighters in Oregon were focused on two wildfires, one burning near the state’s highest peak and another in the southern part of the state. In Utah, several wildfires were burning in bone-dry conditions. And in New Mexico, lightning-sparked blazes have been scorching the southern part of the state where a large portion of the Gila Wilderness remains closed. | ['us-news/arizona', 'world/wildfires', 'us-news/us-news', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/west-coast-news'] | world/wildfires | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2021-06-22T17:59:39Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
global-development/2012/dec/03/climate-change-compensation-doha-talks | Climate change compensation emerges as major issue at Doha talks | Kilafasru Kilafasru, from the island of Kosrae in Micronesia, helped build his island's first defensive sea wall in 1971. Fifteen years later he worked on a new, larger one because the water kept rising. And in 2004, a third wall had to be erected. But the sea level continues to rise, and now it comes right up to the houses, which are flooded every year. So Kilafasru has just spent $500 on a new cement wall to protect his family. Whether rich countries should compensate vulnerable communities like those on Kosrae, in the central Pacific, for the "loss and damage" caused by events linked to climate change has emerged as a major new issue for developing countries in the UN talks that have just entered their second week in Doha. The concept is new for both science and policy, say observers. In the past, the debate was about how poorer countries could adapt their economies to climate change and reduce, or mitigate, their emissions with assistance from rich countries. But in a little-noticed paragraph in the agreement that came out of the Cancún, Mexico, talks in 2010, the need "to reduce loss and damage associated with climate change" was recognised by all countries. In legal terms, that potentially opens the door to compensation – or, as the negotiators in Doha say, "rehabilitation". Now, as ministers from 194 countries fly in to take over the political negotiations, "loss and damage" has become a "red line" for more than 100 developing countries, led by the Alliance of Small Island States, the Least Developed Countries block and the African Group of Nations. But the US and Europe are resisting strongly the idea that they should compensate for losses, fearing that it would lead to potentially endless financial claims. "Developing countries are saying it needs a new [negotiating] track, which means action, not just further discussions. But the developed countries do not want to open that door," said Saleemul Huq, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Environment and Development in London. "It is an important new concept. It could decide whether there is a Doha agreement." New research by the UN University backed by the Overseas Development Institute's climate and development knowledge network suggests that developing countries have a strong case for compensation. Researchers visited five countries to assess how communities were coping with escalating climate change. They talked to farmers along the north bank of the river Gambia who are experiencing more and more droughts, Bangladeshi and Kenyan coastal communities struggling with continual floods, Bhutanese smallholders experiencing more unreliable rains, and Kenyan pastoralists plagued by erratic rainfall. People, they found, had few options to resist climate change events beyond their normal coping strategies. But these broke down if the crisis was repeated. "If the crisis is severe, for example where an area is hit by drought in subsequent years, [their] coping strategies will soon be exhausted and people will have to take more drastic action," said the report (pdf). The researchers concluded that measures being employed by households to counter the effects of climate change were often insufficient, costly, and in many cases had negative effects. "We need technical assistance and we need to think about financial assistance. We are negotiating and it is give and take. This is part of the negotiating process. We hope it will be part of the Doha outcome," said Adao Soares, an East Timor diplomat. He was backed by a new report from CARE, ActionAid and WWF, which argues that the developed countries must start to take full responsibility for the consequences of climate change. The report proposed setting up a climate change insurance fund to pay poor nations according to the damage sustained. "We have transcended the era of mitigation and adaptation – this is now the new era of loss and damage. To rectify and redress the situation, developed countries have an urgent legal and moral obligation to undertake urgent and dramatic mitigation action," it says. | ['global-development/environmental-sustainability', 'global-development/global-development', 'environment/cop18-doha-climate-change-conference', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/global-climate-talks', 'environment/environment', 'world/world', 'tone/news', 'type/article', 'profile/johnvidal'] | environment/global-climate-talks | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2012-12-03T11:30:29Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
uk-news/2022/jan/24/hs2-protesters-plan-nationwide-day-action-rail-expansion | HS2 protesters plan ‘nationwide day of action’ over rail expansion | A nationwide day of action against HS2 – involving banner drops, solidarity protests and a “Twitter storm” – is planned for Monday as the bill to expand the line beyond Crewe is presented to parliament. Environmental activists say the bill will “sanction immense and irreversible destruction to the environment” and want to raise awareness of HS2’s “continuing ecocide, corruption and financial mismanagement”. In contrast, the transport secretary, Grant Shapps, has called the bill, which extends HS2 from Crewe to Manchester, “a landmark moment” in improving the country’s rail connections. The Department for Transport said the line would cut travel times from Manchester to London by about 55 minutes and 45 minutes between Manchester and Birmingham. Labour politicians have described the proposals as the wrong plan for the north and a missed opportunity. The day of action is expected to include events along the line with a particular focus on Manchester, in Piccadilly Gardens, and Birmingham, at the Thinktank Science Museum. Campaigners are also using social media and want to create a Twitter storm using the hashtags #HS2CostingTheEarth, #StopHS2 and #HS2Rebellion. Alan, a spokesperson for Stop HS2 North, said activists began the day with banner drops. “Now we will take part in protests and solidarity events all along the proposed route, so we can demonstrate to the government how unpopular and unnecessary this project is,” he said. “People are being faced with a choice between being able to heat or eat. Meanwhile, HS2 has a blank cheque to commit terrible and irreversible ecocide. This money ought to be used to properly fund our NHS, improve local transport links, help ordinary people with the rising cost of living, and to resolve our energy crisis.” Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, said he remained committed to bringing HS2 to the region. But he said it was the “wrong plan”. He added: “Building HS2 on the surface at Manchester Piccadilly means the new station will be at full capacity from day one. It means the new train services from Liverpool and Leeds having to reverse out. And it also means forever losing prime development land and the economic opportunity that goes with it. “We also again have to ask again: why is Greater Manchester the only part of the country being asked to make a substantial financial contribution to the cost of HS2? We believe there is a better plan which would do much more to level up the north of England with the south.” He called for a new underground station in Manchester to help deliver a new line between Manchester and Leeds, “which is what we were promised”. The government published its £96bn integrated rail plan for the north in November, which abandoned an eastern leg of HS2 and downgraded plans for a new line across the Pennines. Louise Haigh, the shadow transport secretary, said Monday’s HS2 bill represented “a monumental missed opportunity to drive growth and investment right across the north and the Midlands. “The rail betrayal will hit millions of people and leave swathes of the north and the Midlands in the slow lane for decades.” | ['uk/hs2', 'uk/rail-transport', 'uk/transport', 'uk-news/north-of-england', 'uk/uk', 'politics/transport', 'politics/politics', 'business/rail-industry', 'business/business', 'environment/environment', 'environment/activism', 'world/protest', 'environment/conservation', 'uk-news/england', 'politics/andyburnham', 'politics/grant-shapps', 'uk/birmingham', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/markbrown', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/topstories', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-home-news'] | environment/activism | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM | 2022-01-24T11:34:02Z | true | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM |
voluntary-sector-network/2014/jul/22/greenpeace-shell-lego-viral-video | Behind the scenes at Behind the scenes at Greenpeace's Lego and Shell protest viral video | The scene that gets me is when a stranded Lego Arctic fox cub is encircled by an unrelenting tide of black oil. This is less than one minute into our film – 'Lego: Everything is not awesome', and the pristine Arctic landscape has vanished. In our film, Shell has moved in, invited by Lego, and disaster has struck. We wanted to create a film with emotional resonance to raise the profile of our campaign which calls on Lego to end its co-promotional deal with Shell. We used pieces from the Lego City Arctic range for the film. Since 2012, Shell's Arctic drilling programme has faced fierce criticism from environmental NGOs and regulators. We are campaigning against this in our Save the Arctic campaign. Drilling in this pristine region risks oil spill under ice that would be impossible to clean up. In that same time period, 16m Shell-branded Lego sets were sold or given away at petrol stations in 33 countries, making Shell a major contributor to Lego's global sales. Lego partnering with Star Wars or with Harry Potter makes a lot of sense. Making toys for a controversial international oil major does not. The film was designed to increase the pressure on Lego to cut its ties with Shell. Arguably it is the way the film subverts and disrupts expectations that explains why more than 4.5 million people have watched it since it was released earlier this month. More than 520,000 have signed our petition and the internet is talking about how Lego has got it wrong and why fans are so upset with the beloved toy brand. Mixing the familiar with unexpected A big motif for our campaign is the casting of the familiar with the unexpected. With the film, we decided to remix the hit theme tune of the Lego Movie 'Everything is Awesome' because we knew Lego fans would get the reference and respond to it. The track is slowed down and becomes a haunting accompaniment to the catastrophe unveiling on screen as oil floods over an impressive and intricate build. Using a cover of the Lego Movie theme tune was a risky move, but we knew we had a right under freedom of speech to parody it for our protest. And we chose to take the risk of copyright conflict because we were sure the irony wouldn't be lost on Lego fans. The song got our message across better than anything else could. The Lego Movie villain, Lord Business, was also too good a parody to miss. So we created our own grinning cigar-smoking oil tycoon to blast Lego's deal with Shell. Tapping into popular culture As well as Lego fans, we wanted to engage other audiences that share a lot online. To build chatter around the film, we tapped into the trend of Lego stop frame animation story-telling. And we gave a referential nod to a well-known promotional video for the popular Halo computer game, to attract gaming communities and YouTube users. We hoped the high production values would impress too. It was all part of our strategy to seed the film widely so it would trickle down to fans and parents. The agency we chose has an incredible track record of creating popular viral videos and great contacts that really helped the film to fly. Starting a conversation Our intent was also for the film to become a lightning rod for discourse around corporations advertising to children. When Lego puts Shell's logo on its toys, Shell's brand starts to be normalised for another generation – future voters, business leaders, consumers or politicians. While our diorama is a tribute to how much we love the creativity and imagination that Lego fosters, the film is unambiguous that the protection of the Arctic, and our children's future, is at odds with its Shell partnership. The film helps us keep the brand responsibility conversation going and looks at how values start to interlace as brands come together. In Lego's case, that means it is helping to clean up Shell's image by allowing Shell to latch on to its family-friendly, trusted heritage. Lego commented that it expects Shell "lives up to their responsibilities wherever they operate," and it intends to "live up to the long term contract with Shell". If Shell can commandeer the toy company's values, then Shell's business in the Arctic deserves more attention from Lego than simply passing the buck. Time will tell if this outdated approach to criticism lasts as our campaign grows. We're only at the start of this campaign, and we plan to carry on until we've won. The campaign has already had more than half a million people sign up and hundreds of thousands have written to Lego to urge them to cancel the deal. Our first film asked Lego to come down off the fence, do the planet a favour and end its deal with Shell. What comes next depends on Lego's response. Elena Polisano is an Arctic campaigner for Greenpeace. For more news, opinions and ideas about the voluntary sector, join our community – it's free! | ['voluntary-sector-network/voluntary-sector-network', 'voluntary-sector-network/voluntary-sector-network-blog', 'voluntary-sector-network/communications', 'voluntary-sector-network/fundraising', 'tone/comment', 'society/charities', 'society/society', 'society/voluntarysector', 'lifeandstyle/lego', 'environment/greenpeace', 'type/article'] | environment/greenpeace | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM | 2014-07-22T13:46:00Z | true | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM |
environment/2020/may/14/greta-thunberg-cnn-coronavirus-town-hall-climate-change | Why shouldn't Greta Thunberg speak at CNN's coronavirus town hall? | Shortly after CNN announced yesterday that 17-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg would join a panel of experts discussing the coronavirus, the backlash began. “What place does Greta Thunberg have in this town hall?” asked the New York magazine journalist Yashar Ali. On the other side of the spectrum, Fox News pundits and Donald Trump Jr also took issue with Thunberg’s name being on that list. It is worth noting that Don Jr frequently takes the stage with no qualifications other than being his father’s son. Fox News, meanwhile, has a rotating roster of non-experts debating people whose job it is to know better than them. We’ve seen climate-deniers who debate scientists about climate change; unlicensed health practitioners who debate what actual doctors have told us; and commentators who have compared Black Lives Matter to the KKK debate civil rights activists on what racism is. We are hardly in expert-land here. Even if letting “people with a view” challenge experts can sometimes produce good debate, it can also run the risk of creating a false equivalence between the two. So is CNN right to have Thunberg on? Thunberg is hardly a coronavirus expert, but she is world-renowned climate activist – and has already spoken about how the pandemic should inform our response to climate justice in a post-pandemic world. Thunberg’s activism also gives her an undeniable platform which she has used to inform people about the pandemic. After showing mild symptoms of Covid-19 in late March after a trip around Europe, Thunberg chose to quarantine away from her family for two weeks and encouraged other young people to do the same. Without Thunberg, the panel for “Coronavirus Facts and Fears” – which includes the CNN broadcasters Dr Sanjay Gupta, 50, and Anderson Cooper, 52; Kathleen Sebelius, 71, the former health secretary; and Richard Besser, 60, the former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director – has an average age of 58. That makes sense: expertise often takes years to accrue. But it also makes sense to have a young voice that carries influence on the panel. Young people are less vulnerable to the virus and so they might take its risks less seriously, but they also tend to be more socially agile. Studies analyzing the early outbreak of Covid-19 suggest that about four in five people who have spread the disease probably didn’t know they had the virus. In other words, young people could play a vital role in preventing its spread. Some have suggested that sexism might play a role in the shock people are expressing at Thunberg’s appearance. It is hard to imagine the same outrage if the journalist Chris Cuomo – who was recently diagnosed with Covid-19 – was invited to the town hall. In fairness, Cuomo had proof that he had the coronavirus. But isn’t that kind of the point? Most people who aren’t wealthy or famous simply aren’t able to get tested – certainly many young people won’t. Medical guidelines also encourage people without severe symptoms not to get tested. Viewed in this light, Thunberg – a young person who showed symptoms that weren’t bad but decided to stay home anyway – has one of the most important experiences on the panel. | ['environment/greta-thunberg', 'media/cnn', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'us-news/us-news', 'environment/environment', 'media/tvnews', 'media/television', 'world/world', 'media/media', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/poppy-noor', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-social-news'] | environment/greta-thunberg | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM | 2020-05-14T18:08:02Z | true | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM |
global-development/2015/dec/03/china-poor-countries-wealthy-states-emissions-paris-climate-talks-cop21 | China joins poor countries in pointing finger at wealthy states over emissions | The UN climate negotiations in Paris descended into recriminations on Thursday as China and two groups of developing countries accused the US and others of undermining trust and trying to evade responsibility for cutting emissions. With only one full day of negotiations left before a final text is due to be released by the French presidency for politicians to work on next week, the gaps between rich and poor countries remain wide. But diplomats have been quick to say that all sides can be expected to compromise significantly by the end of next week, and it is not unusual for countries to be so far apart at this stage of the talks. Su Wei, China’s head of delegation, argued that rich countries like the US, Britain and Germany should not be allowed to evade responsibility for their historical emissions. “The basic facts do not change. The problem has been caused by developed countries. They need to take their historical responsibility into account and take the lead in reducing greenhouse gases”, he said. In a separate meeting, Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko, South Africa’s ambassador to the UN and chair of the G77 and China bloc of developing nations, said that “a small group” of rich countries that she would not name was trying to avoid negotiating a key financial deal. “Finance must be negotiated. A specific group is not negotiating and is trying to change the terms of reference. Finance will make or break [the talks]. It is critical,” she said. Developing countries say the principle of rich states taking the lead, which has been the cornerstone of the UN climate convention, is being eroded as the US and others press hard for all countries to act voluntarily according to their ability and without legal liability. “There are attempts being made to redraft the convention. It is important we do not change the principles,” said Mxakato-Diseko. “New language is emerging that has nothing to do with the convention. It puts us in a precarious position. We do not understand what this language is and where it is coming from. It creates conditions which do not enhance trust,” she said. “This group of countries feels free to waste time … with no sense of responsibility. The world should ask them what their responsibility is. They are ballooning the text yet we are being cast as the villains,” she said. But Mxakato-Diseko added: “We are mindful that at the end of the day we are going to have to meet our partners half way. It will be a process of give and take,” she said The world’s 47 least developed countries (LDCs) said separately that there could be no final agreement in Paris if rich countries did not also accept responsibility for causing irreversible “loss and damage” to the environment. The US and Europe have so far refused to accept any liability, fearing that they would be left open to financial reparations. But Pa Ousman Jarju, the Gambian minister of the environment, speaking on behalf of the LDC group, said: “If loss and damage is not reflected adequately, there will be no agreement. It is a red line. “We were very encouraged by the world leaders when they came at the start of the meeting. We thought what they said would filter into the negotiations. We have not seen that yet. We have seen a lot of disagreement.” He accused rich countries of over-inflating the amount of money they have mobilised by classing money borrowed by poor countries to adapt to climate change as “climate finance” from rich countries. “Finance is the bedrock of this agreement. It is through finance that the trust needed to reach agreement will be strengthened,” he said. “It will be difficult to come to an agreement but not impossible,” said Giza Gaspar Martins, chair of the LDC group. “Painful choices need to be made at the political level”. The country that looks most likely to put a serious block on an agreement is India. With its massive population and stated commitment to use coal to raise its people from poverty, the country looms as the most difficult single challenge to those aiming to balance justice with a safe climate. The Greenpeace executive director, Kumi Naidoo, interceded on Thursday evening in an open letter to the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. The floods currently drowning the city of Chennai, he said, were exacerbated by global warming. “Climate change was not made in India, but the price is being paid in India. Could the grounds for a solution now be laid by India? Could you, the political leader of nearly one-fifth of humanity, make history by securing a deal for the world?” asked Naidoo. The move comes against the backdrop of an Indian government crackdown on Greenpeace’s national branch, described as one of the biggest crises the global organisation has faced. But Naidoo was effusive with hope for Modi’s nationalist government to play a “heroic” role at the talks. He noted India’s leading role in the creation of the 120 country Solar Alliance, announced on Monday. “We stand with you in your demand for a deal that serves the interests of India and the wider world – and also for the people of Chennai. And we hope you will stand with the most vulnerable and help deliver success here in Paris by supporting 100% renewables for all by 2050,” said Naidoo. | ['global-development/environmental-sustainability', 'environment/cop-21-un-climate-change-conference-paris', 'global-development/global-development', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/global-climate-talks', 'environment/environment', 'global-development/least-developed-countries', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/johnvidal', 'profile/karl-mathiesen'] | environment/global-climate-talks | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2015-12-03T18:34:36Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
politics/2009/aug/17/obama-ambassador-london-congestion-charge | Obama's ambassador to London will not pay congestion charge backlog | Hopes by Boris Johnson that Barack Obama's new ambassador in London would pay almost £3.5m in unpaid congestion charges and fines run up by the previous administration were dashed today as the new regime confirmed it has no intention of settling the bill. A spokesperson for the mayor of London said that Johnson, who is on holiday, was disappointed that the US embassy was choosing to "continue to ignore" its responsibility to Londoners by paying the £8 daily charge incurred by those driving within the city's congestion charge zone, as well as fines built up for non-payment. The mayor had hoped that Obama's new representative in London, Louis Susman, who was sworn in two weeks ago and arrived in the capital today, would signal a change of approach due to the new administration's green credentials. But a spokesman for the US embassy confirmed that Washington's position had not changed. In total, Transport for London says the embassy now owes a backlog of charges and fines worth £3,446,420. Around a quarter of embassies share the US view that they are exempt from the charge because it is a tax, and therefore not payable because of their diplomatic immunity. The US embassy spokesman said: "Our policy on the congestion tax is a long-standing policy decided on by Washington. The US government's position is that this a tax and therefore is prohibited by various treaties." The disclosure will intensify the battle between Transport for London and foreign embassies who refuse to pay the charge and collectively owe around £28m. Last year, the mayor made clear his fury at diplomats based in London who refuse to pay for driving in the congestion charge zone. At a public meeting in November, Johnson claimed he would happily "slap on asbo" on non-paying embassies were it not for the Geneva conventions. A spokesman for Johnson said today that the change in ambassador had been the "perfect opportunity" to resolve the dispute. "The mayor is deeply disappointed that it seems they may not choose to do so. The congestion charge is a service, not a tax, which is paid by the majority of embassies and millions of Londoners. There is simply no excuse for the American embassy to continue to ignore this responsibility to its host city and the mayor will continue to press this point to their representatives." A TfL spokeswoman pointed out that three quarters of embassies pay their dues. "TfL and the UK government are agreed that the congestion charge is a charge for a service and not a tax, which means that diplomats are not exempt from payment. All staff at the American embassy should pay it, in the same way as British officials pay road tolls in the United States. TfL continues to engage directly with those embassies that refuse to pay in order to increase compliance with the scheme by diplomats." | ['politics/london', 'uk/london', 'uk/transport', 'politics/transport', 'environment/environment', 'environment/travel-and-transport', 'environment/green-politics', 'politics/boris-johnson', 'uk/uk', 'tone/news', 'us-news/us-news', 'world/world', 'type/article', 'profile/helenemulholland'] | environment/green-politics | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2009-08-17T16:19:38Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
commentisfree/2019/jul/19/extinction-rebellion-protesters-ordinary-people | Extinction Rebellion protesters aren’t anarchists – we just want to save our world | Bob Rivett | I am a retired doctor, a husband, a father and grandfather – I am also one of more than 1,000 Extinction Rebellion protesters who have been arrested by police. During the April demonstrations in London, I sat on Waterloo Bridge with many others and refused to move in full acceptance that this nonviolent action would lead to my arrest. For many years I have been aware of the growing threat to life on Earth due to our overconsumption of the planet’s finite resources, our pollution of land, air and sea, our disregard for other forms of life and, in particular, our reckless burning of fossil fuels. It’s now clear that global heating and biodiversity loss are proceeding even faster than predicted just a few years ago and we are reaching a tipping point beyond which it will soon be too late to avoid the extinction of life as we know it. Like most of my generation living in the wealthy parts of the world, I must accept the guilt and responsibility of my own contribution to this situation. I share the frustration of those people who have been warning about this for decades – who have observed the totally inadequate response of governments and the deliberate lies and distortion of the facts by the fossil fuel industry, among others. I welcome the formation of Extinction Rebellion: I share its aims, I want to take part in its actions and I am gratified by the results it has achieved so far. And yet, I also recognise that there is still a very long way to go before we have any chance of mitigating the ecological and social disaster that faces us. More and more people are waking up to the scale of the emergency: members of the public voice their concern, councils declare a climate emergency, and some politicians utter fine words. But we are yet to see this translated into effective action and there is no general acceptance or understanding of what that will entail. Because it will mean changing the way we live. The system that has brought us to this cliff edge is based on greed and inequality – we will only sustain life on this planet if we accept the need for less consumption and more social justice. On Tuesday Extinction Rebellion was accused of being an anarchist organisation. To my mind, anarchists are anti-government, are destructive in their aims, and are not afraid to use violence. We are none of those things: we are resolutely nonviolent, recognise the need for a government, act in the interests of the people and are trying not to destroy, but to save life on Earth. Occupying Waterloo Bridge in April gave me a glimpse of the sort of community we could all enjoy living in. Full of energy, imagination and creativity. A community organised to look after its members and its surroundings. A simple society but one rich in love and respect for each other. Sitting on the bridge, waiting to be arrested, I was mainly thinking of my grandchildren. I was also thinking, desperately, that the world must change course before it is too late. • Bob Rivett is a retired general practitioner and Extinction Rebellion member | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'environment/extinction-rebellion', 'environment/activism', 'world/protest', 'uk/london', 'environment/environment', 'uk/uk', 'tone/comment', 'type/article', 'profile/robert-rivett', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/journal', 'theguardian/journal/opinion', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-opinion'] | environment/extinction-rebellion | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM | 2019-07-19T10:47:56Z | true | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM |
environment/2020/apr/01/really-amazing-scientists-show-that-fish-migrate-through-the-deep-oceans | 'Really amazing': scientists show that fish migrate through the deep oceans | New research has finally demonstrated what many marine biologists suspected but had never before seen: fish migrating through the deep sea. The study, published this month in the Journal of Animal Ecology, used analysis of deep-sea photographs to show a regular increase in the number of fish in particular months, suggesting seasonal migrations. Tracking fish in the deep sea is challenging. They are sparsely distributed, the water is nearly devoid of sunlight, and the monitoring equipment has to withstand enormous pressure. The study used photographs taken by the Deep-ocean Environmental Long-term Observatory System (Delos), two observatories on the sea bed 1,400m below the surface, off the coast of Angola. The researchers analysed 12,703 photographs – only 502 of which had actually managed to capture a fish – taken over seven-and-a-half years, and found that each year, in late November and June, there was a spike in the number of fish. “It is certainly not unprecedented but it has never really been demonstrated,” says Rosanna Milligan, an assistant professor at Nova Southeastern University in Florida and the lead author on the paper. “That is what we were able to do with this study.” “Even after all these years, one of my favourite parts of being a scientist is when you do those first graphs of your results and start to see something emerging from the data,” says David Bailey, a senior lecturer at the University of Glasgow and a co-author on the paper. “That’s one of the greatest thrills of the whole scientific endeavour. It was really, really amazing.” Even with this new discovery, Milligan and Bailey still say there is a lot they don’t know. “The natural thing to do is to find out where the fish are coming from and going to when they move around,” says Bailey. “What is going on? What does it mean and what are the fish doing?” Very little is known about the behaviour of any of the fish photographed. Grenadiers, a family of fish seen in more than 100 of the Delos photos, have long tails that may allow them to move great distances at low speed – but despite being a relatively common deep-sea fish, little information exists on how far they can swim. A 1992 paper, for instance, put acoustic tracking devices in bait and fed them to grenadiers, but the devices only tracked the fish up to 1km away. Milligan thinks the fish might be migrating to follow dying organisms on the surface. Plankton blooms off the coast of west Africa every year four months before the deep-sea fish migrate into the area. Given that the deep sea is dependent on life at the surface that dies and sinks to the bottom, it is possible that other animals could be gathering to take advantage of the dying plankton, and the deep-sea fish migrate to eat those. “We just have no idea how these things act,” says Tim O’Hara, a researcher and senior curator of marine zoology at Museums Victoria, Australia, who was not involved in the research. “We are literally groping in the dark. It’s kilometres down in the ocean and we get these tiny bits of information from one or two locations and we’re trying to put together a big picture.” Milligan and Bailey hope this discovery encourages other researchers to look for similar patterns in the deep oceans. “Maybe if we had more of this level of surveillance in other places, we would find fish migrations in all kinds of places,” says Bailey. “It’s just that [Angola] is where we happened to be observing in this level of detail for this amount of time … This could be happening all over the place.” | ['environment/series/seascape-the-state-of-our-oceans', 'environment/marine-life', 'environment/fish', 'environment/oceans', 'environment/wildlife', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/global-development'] | environment/marine-life | BIODIVERSITY | 2020-04-01T05:30:13Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
environment/2010/aug/08/recycled-island-plastic-waste-pacific | Recycled island: plastic fantastic? | Environment | A floating city of half a million people on a vast plastic island. Does that sound like Waterworld? The vision could soon be a reality if Dutch conservationists have their way. Recycled Island is a plan to clean up 44 million kilos of plastic waste from the North Pacific Gyre, which stretches from California to Japan, and provide 10,000 square kilometres (3,861 square miles) of sustainable living space in the process. Solar and wave energy would provide power for islanders while sustainable fishing and agriculture could provide their food. According to the website for Whim Architecture, which designed the concept: "The proposal has three main aims: cleaning our oceans from a gigantic amount of plastic waste, creating new land and constructing a sustainable habitat." There is an estimated 100m tonnes of plastic flotsam in the Pacific Gyre, where ocean currents cause it to accumulate. The floating dump covers an area one and a half times the size of the US. Captain Charles Moore of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation (AMRF) was the first to find the huge, floating plastic dump in 1997. On the foundation's website, he described it as "just absolutely gross – a truly disgusting plastic cesspool. [It] has to be burned into the consciousness of humanity that the ocean is now a plastic wasteland". Because petroleum-based plastics are non-biodegradable, any plastic that enters the ocean stays there, continually breaking into smaller pieces until it is ingested by marine life or deposited on the shore. In a 1998 survey, 89% of the litter observed floating on the ocean surface in the North Pacific was plastic. In the Central Pacific Gyre, the AMRF in 2002 found six kilos of plastic for every kilo of plankton near the surface. By 2008, that figure had risen to 45 to one. Birds like albatrosses eat the larger pieces which block their stomachs, while smaller pellets can cause fatal intestinal damage in fish. Recycled Island could be a unique opportunity to save marine life. "The project should be carried out with great care so no negative influence to the environment is made," states the project's website. "Our ideal is to return more balance to the environment and set an example of how an environment-friendly habitat could be created." | ['environment/recycling', 'environment/oceans', 'environment/environment', 'tone/features', 'type/article', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/new-review', 'theobserver/new-review/discover'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2010-08-07T23:05:22Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/article/2024/jul/17/extreme-heat-wildfire-smoke-disaster-fema | US government urged to declare wildfire smoke and extreme heat major disasters | Fourteen state attorneys general are urging the federal government to declare extreme heat and wildfire smoke major disasters. The petition comes as millions of people in the south and north-east face excessive heat advisories, and large swaths of the western US and Canada battle ongoing wildfires. “The likelihood of high-severity extreme heat and wildfire smoke events is increasing due in part to climate change,” wrote the Arizona attorney general, Kris Mayes, in a letter submitted to the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Tuesday. “We urge Fema to update its regulations to prepare for this hotter, smokier future.” Extreme heat and wildfire smoke are not recognized by Fema as major disasters. In June, a coalition of environmental, labor and health groups petitioned the federal agency to grant that recognition under the Stafford Act which oversees disaster relief. “Across the country people are suffering and dying from extreme heat,” Jean Su, energy justice director and senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. “Fema can bring a mass mobilization of resources to deploy life-saving cooling centers, air conditioning and community solar. But so far Fema’s only shown these communities piecemeal efforts and lackluster leadership.” Last year, 2,300 people died from heat exposure, with 874 deaths occurring in Arizona. In 2022, the state recorded 1,030 deaths related to excessive heat, and more than 4,000 hospital or emergency room visits for heat-related illness. “These preventable deaths are occurring both inside and outside,” said Mayes in a statement. “Extreme heat and wildfire smoke events are devastating because of their severe impact on public health and the environment. Updating Fema’s regulations to include these events will provide much-needed resources and help us better protect our residents.” Extreme heat is responsible for more weather-related deaths in the US annually than hurricanes, floods and tornadoes combined. And even low levels of exposure to wildfire smoke can worsen conditions such as asthma and heart and lung disease. The letter references last year’s wildfire smoke from Canada that blanketed much of US midwest and the east coast in an orange haze. Millions of Americans and Canadians are exposed to worsening air quality from ongoing wildfires and toxic smoke in California, Utah, Oregon, Idaho and Montana, as well as Canada. In addition to Mayes of Arizona, the letter was backed by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington DC. | ['environment/extreme-heat', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'world/wildfires', 'us-news/biden-administration', 'us-news/us-news', 'environment/environment', 'us-news/arizona', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/aliya-uteuova', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-news'] | environment/extreme-heat | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2024-07-17T17:12:02Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
environment/shortcuts/2011/dec/20/paper-plastic-bags-which-best | Paper bags or plastic bags: which are best? | When we are spending more money than we should in tough economic times at least we are being served the perfect item in which to hide our guilty purchases: the discreet paper bag. The war against plastic bags seems to have been won on the high street this Christmas. Everyone from classy French label APC to the likes of Nike (complete with swoosh), Topshop and even Primark hand out brown paper bags. An armful of paper bags feels so much less trashy than a swaddling of plastic; they recall the classic brown paper groceries bag of old. So victory for paper bags – they are the children of trees! – in the war against decadent, dolphin-smothering plastic. Except, like most wars, it is far from clear if it has left the world a better place. Wrap, the government-funded company set up to reduce waste, summarises the drawbacks of paper bags: while from a renewable source and biodegradable, compostable and recyclable, they require far more energy to make and transport than plastic, have less re-use potential and produce methane if dumped in landfill. "Faced with the question of paper or plastic, the answer should always be neither," says Reuseit.com. According to a 2007 study (funded by US plastic bag manufacturers), it takes almost four times as much energy to manufacture a paper bag as a plastic bag. Paper-bag manufacture uses 20 times as much water as plastic and paper requires more energy to be recycled. Cloth bags are far from perfect. An Environment Agency report this year found that a resusable cloth bag would have to be taken out 131 times to reduce its environmental impact to that of a single-use plastic bag. And despite all our fretting, plastic bag use has actually risen. Rather than pitching paper against plastic, we really need to change our habits. Apart from banning ourselves from buying more than we can carry loose in our arms, the obvious solution is a tax on all bags, an economic nudge that if we can't shop less we should at least reuse those bags stuffed under the kitchen sink. | ['environment/waste', 'environment/ethical-living', 'environment/environment', 'news/shortcuts', 'tone/blog', 'tone/features', 'type/article', 'profile/patrickbarkham', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/g2', 'theguardian/g2/features'] | environment/waste | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2011-12-20T20:00:01Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2005/sep/20/waste.ethicalliving | Leo Hickman: Should I ... bother recycling? | Blame the Minoans. They had the bright idea to dig large pits away from their homes, fill them with their rubbish, then cover the lot over with earth. Three thousand years on, and not much in municipal waste disposal has changed, except that where they left something to excite archaeologists by throwing out their broken amphoras, we now mark our place in history with discarded tyres, plastic bags and empty cereal packets. It's taken a bit of time, but we are finally, albeit with the speed of a turning tanker, starting to confront our "out of sight, out of mind" attitude towards our rubbish. Or rather, we have been forced to confront it as available landfill space rapidly runs out or faces death by EU directive. The options now before us are stark: we can consume less and thus throw out less, we can try to reuse or recycle as much of our rubbish as possible, or we can wallow in our putrescent effluence and be damned. Sadly, given our nation's addiction problem when it comes to shopping, the first option seems a distant fantasy; a bit of a downer when you consider that 80% of what we buy ends up being discarded within six months and that UK homes are currently tossing out 26m tonnes a year (40m tonnes by 2020). Which leaves us - assuming we don't want to face the last option - with recycling. Cheeringly, whether it's because of a growing awakening to the problem by us, the tossers, or through increasingly persistent arm-twisting by local councils (themselves under pressure due to the threat of missed targets and fines), we are starting to adopt the habit of recycling. In fact, last week the government even gave us a little pat on the back for our efforts. The amount of household waste being recycled over the past four years has doubled, it said. The sound of party poppers, however, is dampened somewhat when you learn how our recycling and composting rates - on average, 17% - compare with other countries. Swiss households, for example, recycle 53% of their waste. But is recycling really the answer? What of the oft-heard claims that it can take more energy to sort, collect and recycle something than it does to produce it in the first place? And what of the cynical belief that what we send to be recycled is just tipped, out of view, on to landfill anyway? Having once visited my local recycling centre, in large part to put my mind at rest about the latter point, I can confirm that what we put out for recycling is definitely separated and sorted. I stubbornly stood and watched my bottles - with about 40 tonnes of other bottles - being driven off in a truck to be reprocessed. The energy-comparison argument comes down on the side of the recyclers, too. According to WasteWatch, the energy used to recycle plastic bottles is eight times less than required to manufacture the same virgin polymer. Producing recycled paper uses up to 70% less energy than virgin paper, as well as using far less water. And recycling just one glass bottle saves enough energy to power a TV for 20 minutes. There are some caveats, though. "Trash miles", like food miles, are becoming a problem. Much of what we recycle is sent abroad, often to China where worker conditions can be poor, because there is simply no market here for most of the materials. For example, half the plastic bottles we diligently put out for recycling are now thought to be sent to China where they command a price of £50 a tonne, whereas here they are virtually worthless. China has quickly become the world's leading rag-and-bone man, but what some see as a sensible market-driven solution can seem short-sighted when you factor in transport-related emissions and the health of the workers (who often sort through toxic waste, such as old computers, with their bare hands). It would be much better - and laws are soon to start enforcing this - if much of what we bought was designed with reuse or recycling in mind. It would be better still if we interrupted the waste stream by curbing our overall consumption, as well as buying goods made from recycled materials where possible (Recyclenow.com has examples). Recycling should really be seen as the last resort. You say ... Susanna White, Bath I'm committed to recycling, but until the supermarkets learn to stop over-packaging goods that local councils are not prepared to recycle, we are fighting a losing battle. I return all unnecessary packaging to my supermarket. If everybody did this, it would send a message that consumers are tired of paying for unwanted packaging. Claire Lackford, by email Recycling would be worth it if I didn't have to drive out of town to do it, only to find the paper bank full and a sign telling me to chuck it in the household waste bins. Next week: Should I use loyalty reward cards? Send your views to ethical.living@theguardian.com | ['environment/waste', 'environment/ethical-living', 'money/ethical-money', 'lifeandstyle/lifeandstyle', 'environment/pollution', 'money/money', 'environment/environment', 'environment/recycling', 'type/article', 'environment/series/ask-leo-lucy', 'profile/leohickman', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/g2', 'theguardian/g2/features2'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2005-09-20T13:46:29Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2021/mar/22/uk-government-green-homes-grant-disastrous-mps-say | UK government's green homes grant in urgent need of rescue, MPs say | The UK government’s flagship home insulation scheme, intended to kickstart a green recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, has been botched, disastrous in administration, devastating in some of its impacts, and stands in urgent need of rescue, an influential committee of MPs has said. Their outspoken criticism is a blow to the government’s plans for reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions, and comes as ministers prepare to host vital UN climate talks – called Cop26 – in Glasgow this November. There can be little chance of meeting the UK’s target of net zero emissions by 2050 without a comprehensive programme to insulate Britain’s 19m draughty homes and switch from gas boilers to low-CO2 heating, the environmental audit committee of MPs said on Monday. But they delivered a damning assessment of the green homes grant, launched last summer to offer £1.5bn in subsidies for insulation and low-CO2 heating, and demanded urgent action from ministers. They said the scheme was “rushed in conception and poorly implemented … [the] scheme administration appears nothing short of disastrous”. They added: “The impact of its botched implementation has had devastating consequences on many of the builders and installers that can do the work, who have been left in limbo as a result of the orders cancelled and time taken to approve applications.” Far from generating green jobs as the government promised, some businesses offering home upgrades were having to lay off staff because of payment problems. There were more than 123,000 applications for the grant by the end of February, according to data released last week by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, but only 28,000 vouchers had been issued and only 5,800 measures had been installed. More than £1bn is estimated to be unspent from the public money allocated to the end of March, which the government now intends to keep back, while allocating only £320m to next year. The environmental audit committee demanded the unspent money should be rolled over instead and the scheme overhauled and turned into a viable long-term grant scheme that would give households and businesses the confidence to embark on renovation work. Philip Dunne, chair of the committee, said action was urgently needed to avoid further damage to the green homes industry, and start the vital task of refitting the UK’s draughty housing stock. “Further schemes that endure must be rolled out, boosting the government’s credibility with householders and their contractors, that it is determined to decarbonise the nation’s homes,” he said. “This will give confidence to businesses that they can invest in upskilling and green jobs … Realism needs to be injected into the government. A much better understanding of cost, pace, scale and feasibility of skills development is desperately needed for net zero Britain.” Ed Matthew, campaigns director at the climate change thinktank E3G, said: “The committee has hit the nail on the head. The industry has been damaged by stop-start schemes and short-term funding, which destroys investment and undermines consumer confidence. The Treasury has to make this the UK’s number-one infrastructure priority and provide the long-term funding it needs. There is no other public investment that can do more to boost jobs while cutting carbon emissions.” Under the green homes grant, homeowners can apply for vouchers for up to £5,000, or £10,000, to cover most of the cost of installing insulation and other energy efficiency measures, and low-CO2 heat pumps. But the scheme has been dogged with problems from the outset, with builders complaining of the bureaucracy involved in registering for the scheme, while tens of thousands of homeowners have been frustrated in their applications. The scheme is administered by a company in the US, and the Guardian has found numerous instances of people unable to get a response from customer services, or given conflicting advice, while builders have complained that heat pump installations in particular have been stymied by the rules. The government has responded by claiming that people are being put off the scheme by fear of having tradespeople in their homes during the pandemic. Campaigners have rejected that claim, saying the 120,000 applications show people want the grants but cannot get them. Home heating accounts for about 14% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions. Jess Ralston, analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit thinktank, said it was crucial for the government to act as the UK prepared to host Cop26. She said: “Despite government talking a good game on net zero, it is clear this is failing to manifest into action to cut carbon from our homes. Rushed policies that are chopped and changed seemingly at random risk undermining public enthusiasm for fixing up our leaky homes, damage that could harm future schemes for years to come.” | ['environment/environment', 'politics/economy', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'uk/uk', 'politics/rishi-sunak', 'politics/politics', 'politics/conservatives', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/fiona-harvey', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-home-news'] | environment/carbon-emissions | EMISSIONS | 2021-03-22T07:00:16Z | true | EMISSIONS |
environment/2019/apr/23/how-have-you-been-affected-by-the-climate-movement | How have you been affected by the climate movement? | As the last Extinction Rebellion protesters were cleared from Waterloo Bridge on Sunday night, many moved on to sites at Marble Arch and Parliament Square, marking a week-long occupation in London mirrored in 33 other countries. The protests have been met with both resounding support and disapproval. Still, millions of people have now heard their call for transformative and urgent change to avoid climate catastrophe. It’s a message echoed by Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish environmental activist, who is speaking in parliament on Tuesday, and the young people across the world who continue to strike from school each Friday. The climate conversation has now gone mainstream; earlier in the week the BBC aired a primetime documentary from David Attenborough, Climate Change: The Facts, while Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of England, warned the global financial system faces an existential threat from climate change. It feels as though the message about the climate emergency is being pushed further than ever before. We want to know how you have been affected by this movement in the UK. Has it opened your eyes to the climate issue? Have the school strikes and Extinction Rebellion protests changed your perspective and understanding of the climate emergency? What are the reactions of people around you? Have you and others reacted positively or negatively? Do you feel hopeful or frightened for the future? If you’re having trouble using the form, click here. Read terms of service here. | ['environment/activism', 'environment/environment', 'world/protest', 'environment/greta-thunberg', 'environment/extinction-rebellion', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'uk/uk', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'tone/callout', 'environment/school-climate-strikes', 'profile/guardian-readers', 'profile/naomi-larsson', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-communities-and-social'] | environment/activism | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM | 2019-04-23T15:35:40Z | true | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM |
environment/2019/aug/30/sites-holding-skms-recycling-waste-left-in-lurch-as-victoria-denies-access-to-clean-up-loan | Sites holding SKM's recycling waste left in lurch as Victoria denies access to clean-up loan | Companies holding tens of thousands of tonnes of waste on behalf of recycling group SKM have been told they will not receive any assistance from a multimillion-dollar state government loan aimed at helping clean up SKM sites, and say the material they are holding may end up in landfill. This week, the Victorian government announced a $10m loan to receivers KordaMentha to “help clean up SKM sites and resume waste processing”. The loan is aimed at helping clear up stockpiles and to get SKM’s plants up and running. Laverton will be the first to resume processing next month, and Hallam, Geelong and Coolaroo are expected to follow. But for the estimated 60,000 tonnes of rubbish across several sites rented by SKM, the landowners have been told they will have to deal with it themselves. “The $10m in funding from the state government is to allow the resumption of processing from kerbside recycling and is not being used for the clean-up of third party sites like yours,” Nick Gill, a director at KordaMentha, told one of the landowners, Marwood Constructions. “You may be able to recover the cost of cleaning up the site under the terms of the lease; however if so, these would most likely form an unsecured claim against SKM Corporate.” Marwood Constructions alone holds about 10,000 tonnes of SKM waste, one-third of it being rubbish that will need to go to landfill. The lease had been valued at more than $1m a year, but the waste is now sitting there rent-free and has been left for the landowners to deal with. Marwood Constructions’ project co-ordinator, Carly Whitington told Guardian Australia it was “extremely surprising” to be advised that they were responsible for SKM’s waste, because they thought it was still owned by SKM. She said the company wanted the government to help find a solution, failing which the 10,000 tonnes would eventually be destined for landfill. “We hope they will be the white knight at the end of the day and do the correct thing,” she said. “We’re losing a monthly rent, and it’s really stressful when you’ve got an environmental risk, you’ve got a fire risk. It’s not a good position to be in.” A KordaMentha spokesman confirmed that the landowners would not receive funds from the loan. “The government money is to clear the backlog of waste at the SKM facilities at Coolaroo and Laverton so the company can resume kerbside collections,” he said in an email to Guardian Australia. “The clearing began this morning and will continue 24/7 for two to four weeks until the processing plants can be turned on again … SKM kerbside collection [will] resume at 50% of previous levels by the end of September and then build from there.” A Victorian government spokeswoman said: “We’ll work with KordaMentha, any prospective purchaser of the former SKM recycling business and landlords of SKM’s leased sites to facilitate the recovery or disposal of material stored in warehouses.” An interim report from a Victorian parliamentary inquiry on waste management this week found that companies such as SKM had put emergency services personnel at risk because of the over-stockpiling of waste that had caused a fire at SKM’s Coolaroo plant. The garbage company Cleanaway has been put in the box seat to take over SKM’s operations. | ['environment/recycling', 'environment/waste', 'environment/environment', 'australia-news/melbourne', 'australia-news/victoria', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/josh-taylor', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2019-08-30T02:03:45Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2012/feb/28/windfarm-opposition-scotland | Scotland's spectacular scenery 'being wrecked by windfarm vultures' | Scotland's spectacular mountain scenery is being wrecked by "windfarm vultures" making millions on the back of government subsidies, an environmental group says. The warning follows a decision by the Scottish government to approve a 59-turbine windfarm on the Glenfiddich estate on Speyside, south of Dufftown. The estate is owned by Christopher Moran, a multi-millionaire London financier whose insurance and property business is said to be worth more than £200m. Critics allege that he is now set to make more than £20m over 25 years for leasing his land for the windfarm, which is 1.4 miles from the boundary of the Cairngorms national park. They blame the "massive financial incentives" offered by Westminster. "Christopher Moran is just one of many windfarm vultures circling around the Cairngorms national park," said Dave Morris, director of Ramblers Scotland. "Scotland's reputation as a beautiful, unspoilt country is being destroyed as massive industrial-scale wind turbines sprout from the hillsides. Never in the history of public subsidy has so much been given to so few, for so little public benefit." "He's going to make another shedload out of this," said Robert McHugh, who runs a holiday cottage business near the proposed windfarm, known as Dorenell, and was involved in a local opposition group. "People like us care, and think this is a bad thing, but no politician actually cares." The windfarm was opposed by the Cairngorms National Park Authority and a coalition of local businesses, including two whisky distilleries, William Grant & Sons and Glenfarclas, as well as Walkers, the shortbread makers. But it was approved by Scottish energy minister, Fergus Ewing, on 28 December. A spokesman for Moran expressed surprise at the criticism, saying: "Mr Moran has for several decades been the patron of many national charities involved with health, heritage and culture and he is a highly respected individual who is chairman of Co-operation Ireland which has done so much to improve relations between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and between Britain and Ireland." Moran was defended by Esbjorn Wilmar, the managing director of the Dutch company Infinergy, which will build the windfarm. Details of the deal were confidential, he said, though landowners got "a decent return on their land". Wilmar pointed out that a landowner who built a windfarm would do more to benefit the local community than one who just used his estate as a "private playground for shooting". Infinergy was investing £885,000 a year in local community benefits, he said. It was hypocritical to attack windfarms built by rich landowners but ignore those built by the less well off, he argued. "I don't care whether it is a poor sheep farmer or a very wealthy London property developer that is helping to use renewable energy in deprived areas to bring wealth," he told the Guardian. Environmental groups that back wind power argue that more should be done to benefit local communities. "We would like to see developments moving from simply providing community funds to an increasing element of community ownership," said the director of WWF Scotland, Dr Richard Dixon. "It is time for government north and south of the border to enable communities to be the drivers of larger schemes and benefit from the renewables revolution that will help us wean ourselves off fossil fuels and nuclear." A Scottish government spokesman said: "Ministers approved the Dorenell windfarm in December following a public inquiry and the Reporter's recommendation to grant consent. The windfarm will power 84,000 homes, creating new jobs and long lasting community benefits worth around £350,000 per year – and there were 615 public representations in support of the windfarm, nearly half of the total of 1,261. "The Reporter considered closely the impacts of the development and concluded that the windfarm is compatible with the Cairngorms National Park Plan and the Park's statutory aims. "Conditions of consent imposed by ministers will also help protect the environment and mitigate the impacts of the development." Going it alone Should Scotland vote for independence, the rest of the UK could have problems meeting its target to boost renewable electricity generation to 30% by 2020, according to industry body Scottish Renewables. Scotland is expected to provide a third of the power needed to meet the target. "The largest share is likely to come from onshore wind – the cheapest technology readily deployed at scale," said Scottish Renewables' chief executive, Niall Stuart, who said his organisation did not have a view on independence. "The rest of the UK would have two options: to increase deployment of onshore wind, offshore wind and/or biomass, or import renewable electricity from Scotland. There are already significant flows of power among EU states, for example in Scandinavia." SSE (formerly Scottish & Southern Energy) warned last week that the referendum was damaging confidence and investment. | ['environment/windpower', 'environment/energy', 'environment/renewableenergy', 'environment/national-parks', 'environment/environment', 'uk/scotland', 'uk/ruralaffairs', 'uk/uk', 'politics/scotland', 'politics/politics', 'tone/news', 'type/article', 'profile/rob-edwards', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews'] | environment/windpower | ENERGY | 2012-02-28T12:00:01Z | true | ENERGY |
environment/2021/sep/16/environment-agency-must-do-more-to-protect-boy-5-from-landfill-fumes-rules-court | Watchdog must do more to protect boy, 5, from landfill fumes, court rules | The high court has ruled the Environment Agency must do more to protect a five-year-old boy from landfill fumes that doctors say are shortening his life expectancy. In a landmark judgment on Thursday, a high court judge said he was not satisfied that the EA was complying with its legal duty to protect the life of Mathew Richards, whose respiratory health problems are being worsened by fumes from a landfill site near his home in Silverdale, near Newcastle-under-Lyme. The court accepted evidence from Dr Ian Sinha, a paediatric respiratory consultant at Alder Hey children’s hospital, who said exposure to hydrogen sulphide fumes from the site “will have a lifelong detrimental effect on Mathew’s future respiratory health” and would reduce his life expectancy. Mathew’s mother, Rebecca Currie, said she was overwhelmed when she read the ruling: “Mathew’s done this and we’ve not only done it for us, we’ve done it for everyone back home. Because Mathew’s won today, we’re all going to be able to breathe fresh air, and a lot of people have been suffering. “But I’m still angry that it’s been allowed to happen. It’s been horrific. Mathew came running in the other day saying his nose was burning.” Rebekah Carrier, the solicitor representing Mathew, said: “What has happened in Silverdale was really shocking to me. I’m so delighted for them that they’ve had this outcome, but I do feel a bit of trepidation about whether the EA will step up now, and what we’ll do if they don’t.” She added: “I think this judgment will be really important as we’re getting to understand more about the impacts of pollution. The ruling said the EA had not yet “addressed its legal duties in the way that it must” and that “there is an obvious and pressing public interest imperative that it must do so, as a matter of urgency”. The high court found that in order to protect Mathew’s human rights there must be “real and significant change, as a matter of urgency” and that levels of dangerous emissions from Walleys Quarry landfill must be reduced in a matter of weeks. The judgment ordered hydrogen sulphide to be reduced to less than an eighth of current levels by January 2022. Eloise Scotford, a professor of environmental law at University College London, said the judgment was groundbreaking in many ways and could open the door to further legal action around air pollution. “There’s always been a conceptual challenge for law around the rights of individuals in relation to a collective problem like air pollution, which the state controls through regulation, but this is a judgment that finds a way to cut through that,” she said. She said the decision to force the EA to take action was also unique. “Normally courts would trust a regulator to do their job but here they’re stepping in and saying the stakes are too high. Courts don’t tend to try and second guess the experts on judicial review, but this judgment is doing that, which is quite unusual.” Prof Robert Lee, from Birmingham Law School, said the use of human rights legislation made the case particularly interesting. “We all live in situations in which we’re exposed to noise or odours or air pollution, and there’s an acceptance that some of that is economically necessary,” he said. “But when we get to article 2 [of the Human Rights Act] and the right to life, they’re much less contingent, and clearly if there’s a threat to life … the state must act.” Campaigners welcomed the judgment as a huge victory for those affected by the fumes. Residents in the towns and villages surrounding the Staffordshire landfill say they have been plagued for months by a bad smell and fumes, which have caused headaches, itchy eyes, nosebleeds and worsened respiratory conditions such as asthma. An EA spokesperson said: “We have every sympathy with the local community, who should not have to live with the distress caused by landfill gas being released from Walleys Quarry. That’s why we are requiring the operator, Walleys Quarry Ltd, to take action. “The court agreed that we are right to rely on assessments and advice from Public Health England and did not find a present breach by the Environment Agency of its legal obligations. “We will seek to appeal some aspects of the judgment relating to the role of the court. This in no way affects or changes our determination to tackle the problems at this site in the interests of the claimant, the community and the environment.” | ['environment/environment-agency', 'environment/landfill', 'environment/waste', 'environment/environment', 'environment/pollution', 'uk/uk', 'environment/air-pollution', 'society/childrens-health', 'society/health', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/jessica-murray', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-home-news'] | environment/pollution | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2021-09-16T16:23:44Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
world/2005/jan/27/tsunami2004.internationalaidanddevelopment29 | The fundraiser (Sri Lanka) | Charlie Anderson, 40, a property developer from Cornwall, raised £40,000 for local fishermen I was in Negombo staying with Isham, my driver/ translator/right-hand man, in the house he shares with his wife, two-year-old daughter, father and mother. I woke to find myself sharing a room with two frogs, a lizard and a cockroach the size of my big toe. I got up at 6.30, and called my associates in the Pottuvil & Arugam Bay Fisherman Association in Pottuvil to discover that they had failed to complete the two jobs I'd asked them to do before I left. I've become resigned to the fact that this country is blighted with public holidays. At times, it's impossible to get anything done. I went to supervise the loading of two boats ready to be transported to Pottuvil, and spent the rest of the day running errands - first to the garage for engine oil, and then on to the boatyard, where I attempted to squeeze a couple more engines out of them. Engines are scarce, but I had been able to order 10, which had just been delivered. I kick myself for not ordering more as there won't be another shipment until April. I visited a signwriter to commission a sign for the workshop in Pottuvil, and then spent an hour or so replying to the scores of emails from family and friends back in Cornwall, whose generosity has made this all possible. | ['world/tsunami2004', 'global-development/global-development', 'world/world', 'type/article', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/g2', 'theguardian/g2/features'] | world/tsunami2004 | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2005-01-27T10:23:59Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
business/2020/aug/29/uk-firm-flying-high-as-eco-friendly-airship-project-gathers-pace | UK firm flying high as eco-friendly airship project gathers pace | More than 80 years after the Hindenburg disaster, commercial airships could soon take to the skies again – carrying freight from Africa and as luxury transport for the super-rich on trips to the Arctic. A small Bedford-based company has emerged as the front-runner in a race to bring environment-friendly versions of the zeppelin-type aircraft back to the skies. Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), which has in the past attracted funding from Peter Hambro, a founder of Russian gold miner Petropavlovsk, and Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson, has raised £1.6m – £630,000 more than it sought – in its latest crowdfunding campaign. Tom Grundy, the company’s chief executive, said the Covid pandemic and the flygskam movement against air travel, could drive huge demand for the low-emissions craft. “The pandemic has changed almost every aspect of our lives,” he said. “But one thing is for sure – it has given us all a glimpse of a cleaner future. In just weeks carbon levels dropped significantly, partly driven by a massive reduction in air travel, but it’s a temporary change and only a fraction of what we must achieve to keep global warming within target levels.” Grundy claims that if all goes to plan, HAV’s airships will be by 2025 able to transport people faster and with lower emissions than road, rail or sea. The company estimates that its Airlander 10 craft will fly with up to 90% fewer emissions than traditional aircraft. A second-generation of the company’s airship, due before 2030, will be electric-powered and emissions-free, the company hopes. The company says it has letters of intent for 15 commercial aircraft, and is “working to secure major defence contracts supporting both the UK and the US”. The craft was originally designed as a surveillance vehicle for intelligence missions in Afghanistan. HAV claims independent estimates put the value of the airship market at $50bn over the next 20 years. It aims to sell 265 of its Airlander craft over that period. “HAV is the only company in the world to have flown a full-scale prototype hybrid aircraft,” it says in its fundraising prospectus. “Over the past 10-plus years, we’ve spent £116m developing Airlander. We’re now production-ready, with a clear path to certification.” The £25m Airlander 10 prototype undertook six test flights, some of which ended badly. It crashed in 2016 on its second test flight, after a successful 30-minute maiden trip. HAV tweeted at the time: “Airlander sustained damage on landing during today’s flight. No damage was sustained mid-air or as a result of a telegraph pole as reported.” The aircraft, which can take off and land from almost any flat surface, reached heights of 7,000ft and speeds of up to 50 knots during its final tests. The company has had UK government backing and grants from the European Union. Other international firms are also developing airships. French company Flying Whales last month teamed up with the Nouvelle-Aquitaine regional government in south-west France to start building 154-metre airships near Bordeaux for cargo transport. In the US, Skunk Works, the innovation arm of defence giant Lockheed Martin, is designing airships to carry medical supplies to remote locations. “Burning less than a tenth the fuel of a helicopter per tonne, the Hybrid Airship will redefine sustainability,” Lockheed Martin says. “With unlimited access to isolated locations around the globe, hybrid airships safely and sustainably support a wide range of activities in areas with little to no infrastructure. The airship offers the simplicity of a pickup truck by carrying cargo loads and personnel in and out of remote areas daily.” HAV says its aircraft could be used to transport up to 90 people or 10 tonnes of cargo, and could fly for days at a time. It intends to tap the luxury travel market, offering the atmosphere of a five-star hotel in the skies. It has teamed up with Swedish firm OceanSky Cruises to promote future “experiential travel” over the North Pole with Arctic explorer Robert Swan. “The expedition will show that travel and transport by air can be sustainable. Lighter-than-air technology can supply humanity with ultra-efficient means of mobility, and operate in areas without infrastructure and civilisation,” the company says in its adverts. OceanSky said it would offer 10 luxury en suite bedrooms, “horizon-to-horizon views from the aircraft’s Infinity Lounge” and an “Altitude Bar” serving drinks with “the ultimate view”. | ['business/theairlineindustry', 'business/manufacturing-sector', 'technology/crowdfunding', 'travel/green', 'business/travelleisure', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'business/business', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/rupertneate', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/business', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-business'] | environment/carbon-emissions | EMISSIONS | 2020-08-29T15:00:11Z | true | EMISSIONS |
us-news/2019/may/23/phthalates-everyday-products-toxics-guide | Phthalates: why you need to know about the chemicals in cosmetics | What are phthalates? Phthalates are a group of chemicals most commonly used to make plastic more flexible and harder to break. They also act as a binding agent or a solvent. Also known as plasticizers, they are found in a wide range of products and were first introduced in the 1920s as an additive in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and some healthcare products, such as insect repellent. Exposure to phthalates is widespread and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) studies have found phthalates present in the majority of the population, particularly among children and women of child-bearing age. What are phthalates in? Cosmetics and personal care products (shampoo, perfume, nail polish, hairspray, sanitary pads and more), vinyl flooring, mini blinds and wallpaper, raincoats, medical equipment and devices (including blood storage bags and IV tubes), plastic pipes, shower curtains, plastic film and food packaging, pharmaceuticals, lubricating oils and detergents. Phthalates are believed to leach into food products via the plastic found in food packaging and in production facilities; the chemicals have been found in food, particularly in milk and spices, researchers at the University of Washington said in 2013. They are known to spread across the food chain and have been found in the eggs of birds in the Canadian Arctic, scientists at the Canadian Wildlife Service recently discovered. Can phthalates cause harm? Phthalates’ effects on humans have not been studied extensively, but they are believed to be an endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC) that can alter hormonal balance and potentially cause reproductive, developmental and other health issues. Links have been found to reproductive and genital defects, lower sperm count, disrupted hormones and infertility has been found in numerous studies on animals, the National Research Council stated in a 2008 risk assessment report. Exposure to phthalates can increase the risk of miscarriage and gestational diabetes in pregnant women, according to two recent Harvard studies. In infants and children, phthalates have been linked to allergies, male genital deformities, premature puberty, eczema, asthma, lowered IQ and ADHD. A 2010 study on New York schoolchildren associated prenatal phthalate exposure with social impairment later in life. Researchers in Korea last year found, through a review of existing studies, a “significant association” between DEHP exposure and neurodevelopmental effects in children. Other studies have linked phthalates to other effects in adults. A Harvard-led research team concluded in a 2008 study that levels of certain phthalates were linked to sperm DNA damage among men at an infertility clinic. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission said in a 2014 risk report that exposure to certain phthalates may induce adverse effects to the thyroid, liver, kidneys and immune system. Some phthalates – like DEHP, among the most widely-used phthalates – are listed as a probable carcinogen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). How can consumers limit any risks? Most exposure to phthalates come from eating and drinking food that has absorbed the chemicals. Phthalates may also be inhaled through vapors from fragranced cosmetics or cleaning products absorbed through the skin. Because they are in so many products, avoiding phthalates altogether is tricky. Minimize exposure by avoiding plastic food containers (plastic marked with a number 1, 2, 4 or 5 recycling code are probably safest). Use glass instead and never reheat food in plastic. Check product labels – avoid anything with “fragrance” or phthalates listed. How are phthalates regulated? In the US, a few federal agencies have oversight of phthalates. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) monitors use of phthalates in food packaging, and the EPA regulates a handful of phthalates under its clean air and water powers. In 2008, Congress passed a bill to ban or restrict the use of eight types of phthalates in certain children’s products, a rule finalized by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The EU has been tightening restrictions on the use of phthalates in consumer products since the early 2000s, but many chemicals have remained in use. In 2003, the EU moved to ban five phthalates in cosmetics. Last year, EU agencies voted to remove a loophole that allowed four phthalates – DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP – that had been previously banned in consumer products. Canada has also banned the use of DEHP in cosmetics and restricted its use in other products. | ['us-news/series/toxic-america', 'environment/plastic', 'environment/pollution', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/lauren-zanolli', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-news'] | environment/pollution | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2019-05-23T06:00:39Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
news/2016/jan/24/sahel-rainfall-drought | Why the rains failed – and why they may return | Traditionally the Sahel – a semi-arid strip of land, south of the Sahara Desert – is one of Africa’s most productive crop regions. But during the 1980s this region, which stretches from the Atlantic to the Red Sea, became better known for drought and famine. Thankfully the region has become wetter again, and now new research indicates that the return of the rains is most likely a beneficial side-effect of global warming. Rainfall statistics show that between the 1950s and 1980s summer rainfall fell by around 40% across the Sahel, bringing the region to its knees. At the time scientists speculated that the drought was linked to poor land management, and a rapidly growing population. But newer data indicates that it may have been sulphate aerosols, produced by fossil fuel burning in Europe and North America, which slowed evaporation from the North Atlantic and cut off the Sahel’s moisture source. Since then we’ve cleaned up our skies, but in the meantime sea surface temperatures have risen and greenhouse gas concentrations have climbed. By modelling these changes, and studying the impact of each change individually, Buwen Dong and Rowan Sutton, from the University of Reading, have found strong evidence that the rise in greenhouse gases was the dominant driver of the recovery of Sahel rainfall. But wWhether these increases will continue into the future isn’t clear, and the scientists also caution that increased rainfall isn’t always beneficial. “If more of the rain falls in short intense events then it may cause flooding and could run-off very quickly rather than penetrate the soil,” says Sutton. | ['news/series/weatherwatch', 'environment/drought', 'world/sahel', 'world/natural-disasters', 'tone/features', 'science/meteorology', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'world/africa', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'profile/kate-ravilious', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/weather2'] | environment/drought | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2016-01-24T21:30:01Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
world/2009/apr/01/rio-slums-walls-deforestation | Rio to build walls around slums in attempt to halt deforestation in Brazil | The Rio state government will build concrete walls around some of the city's biggest slums in an attempt to halt deforestation of the surrounding jungle, officials said yesterday. Seven miles of walls, reaching a height of three metres (10ft) will be built around sections of at least 11 slums this year, Icaro Moreno, the president of the state's public works department, said. The project will cost $17m (£12m). Standing in the Dona Marta slum, in the shadow of Rio's famous Christ statue, Moreno pointed out a section of the first wall under construction. Work began a few weeks ago. "Each year that passes, we're losing more of the Atlantic rainforest," he said. "Now we're setting limits on where these communities can expand." In December, Brazil's National Institute for Space Research, which monitors forest destruction, reported that, between 2005 and 2008, the deforestation of Rio's urban rainforest doubled compared with the previous three years. About 205 hectares (506 acres) were destroyed in that time, with officials blaming most of the destruction on the expansion of slums as more newcomers arrived from Brazil's interior. Moreno said that around 600 houses in the 11 slums would have to be destroyed to make way for the walls. People living in the homes wiould be provided with new housing, he added. Some rights groups suggested the walls are being constructed to segregate the slums from the richer areas of Rio, Many slums‚ called favelas‚ are built on the steep mountains that dot Rio's landscape and look down on wealthy beachfront areas. However, Moreno rejected the criticism, saying the only objective was to protect the rainforest. In Dona Marta, Maria da Graçca Martins da Silva, who has spent most of her 62 years living in the slum, said: "We don't feel imprisoned. But I wonder about one thing – is this wall going to curtail our freedom? I hope not." | ['world/brazil', 'world/world', 'environment/deforestation', 'environment/environment', 'tone/news', 'environment/forests', 'environment/conservation', 'environment/amazon-rainforest', 'world/americas', 'type/article'] | environment/deforestation | BIODIVERSITY | 2009-04-01T07:56:00Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
sport/2024/oct/10/hurricane-milton-rips-apart-roof-of-tampa-bay-rays-tropicana-field | Hurricane Milton rips apart roof of Tampa Bay Rays’ Tropicana Field | The home of MLB’s Tampa Bay Rays suffered major damage as Hurricane Milton tore through Florida on Wednesday night. Most of the fabric covering Tropicana Field’s dome was ripped off during the Category 3 storm, and photos and video from social media showed the inside of the stadium clearly visible through the gaps. According to WFTS-TV in Tampa, there were no reported injuries at the site. The stadium was being used as a shelter for first responders in the buildup to the storm. On Tuesday, rows of cots sat atop the Rays’ artificial turf for use by emergency personnel but the workers were moved on Wednesday before the storm hit. “They were relocated,” Florida governor Ron DeSantis said at a Thursday morning news conference. “Tropicana Field is a routine staging area for these things. The roof on that ... I think it’s rated for 110 mph and so the forecast changes, but as it became clear that there was going to be something of that magnitude that was going to be within the distance, they redeployed them out of Tropicana. There were no state assets that were inside Tropicana Field.” Tropicana Field’s roof was designed to withstand wind of up to 115 mph, according to the Rays. The maximum sustained wind speed as Milton made landfall about 35 miles south of the stadium was 120 mph. The stadium opened in 1990 and initially cost $138m. It is due to be replaced in time for the 2028 season with a $1.3bn ballpark. The Rays did not make the MLB playoffs and are not due to play at home until March 2025. Milton caused several sports events in Florida to be rescheduled. An NBA preseason game in Orlando between the Magic and the New Orleans Pelicans, scheduled for Friday, was cancelled even before Milton hit the state. “There’s always things bigger than the game of basketball and that’s what we have to keep our perspective on,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “Knowing that there’s families and homes and situations that are going through a tough time right now, we need to be mindful of that and conscious of it.” The NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers are playing in New Orleans this weekend. Their next home game is scheduled for Monday 21 October. | ['sport/tampa-bay-rays', 'us-news/hurricane-milton', 'us-news/tampa', 'us-news/florida', 'us-news/us-weather', 'world/world', 'us-news/us-news', 'sport/baseball', 'sport/us-sport', 'sport/sport', 'world/hurricanes', 'world/extreme-weather', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/guardian-sport', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-sport'] | world/hurricanes | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2024-10-10T12:00:21Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
us-news/2015/sep/16/california-wildfire-lake-county-middletown-bodies-expected-to-be-found | Bodies expected to be found among ruins of wildfire, California officials say | Authorities say they are expecting to find several bodies amid the smoldering ruins of a northern California county hard-hit by a drought-fueled wildfire, as residents began to pick through what remained of their homes. State and local officials in a convoy of government-issued SUVs inspected the devastated region about 100 miles north of San Francisco on Wednesday morning. Smoking power lines dangled overhead. The convoy stopped frequently to view the hardest-hit areas. The officials are contemplating asking president Barack Obama for emergency federal assistance. Obama and Governor Jerry Brown are expected to discuss the matter Wednesday. “It’s not a pretty picture,” said Kim Zagaris, the state’s fire chief, on the tour. “There’s going to be a lot of heartbreak for the folks who live out here.” Some 15 minutes before entering Middletown, California, police were interrogating anyone who wanted to make it through. Many were turned away. Residents of Middletown and nearby Hidden Valley, who are under an evacuation order since Saturday evening when a massive wildfire pummeled the towns, raised concerns that looters are entering private homes. In nearby Hidden Valley, a short five-minute drive north from Middletown, doors of homes are open and little police presence aside from the checkpoints and a few cars touring the town is seen. When approached by the Guardian on Tuesday afternoon, one officer dismissed the notion that looting was taking place, saying “security and safety is our first concern”. Police in Lake County said at least two arrests had been reported. Aided by drought, the fire has consumed more than 109 square miles since the flames sped Saturday through rural Lake County, less than 100 miles north of San Francisco. Crews are gaining ground on the fire and were able to double containment from 15% to 30% on Wednesday, California department of forestry and fire protection spokesman Dan Olson said. The weather was cooperating, with heavy rain falling Wednesday morning. “We’re trying to use that the best we can,” Olson said. “Hopefully we get a little bit more rain.” Cadaver dogs and their handlers are scouring Lake County in a search for missing persons thought to have perished in a fast-moving blaze that has destroyed more than 600 homes 90 miles north of San Francisco. A former police reporter whose home was destroyed by a raging wildfire was reported missing by his family, and authorities said Wednesday his burned-out car was found on the route he would have used to escape. Leonard Neft, 69, who worked for the San Jose Mercury News, last spoke with his family on Saturday. His daughter Joselyn Neft said his wife, Adela Neft, repeatedly called him then to tell him to leave the house, but he told her he didn’t think the fire was coming toward him. Leonard Neft’s house was in the same area where 72-year-old Barbara McWilliams was found dead. McWilliams told her caretaker she didn’t want to leave her home near Middletown. The world traveler and sharp-minded woman with advanced multiple sclerosis said she would be fine. Her body was found Sunday in her burned-out home after flames kept Lake County sheriff’s officials from reaching her. Authorities say 585 homes were known to be destroyed, and the number was expected to increase. Another 9,000 structures remained threatened. The Lake County fire and another blaze about 120 miles to the south-east have displaced 23,000 people and were the worst of a dozen wildfires burning in the state. The Lake County fire spread into northern Napa County, but the region’s famous wine valley was not threatened. Lake County has been particularly hard-hit. In late July, a wildfire east of Clear Lake destroyed 43 homes as it spread across more than 100 square miles. Another fire erupted 9 August several miles from the community of Lower Lake. A separate destructive wildfire burning less than 200 miles away in the Sierra Nevada had destroyed at least 233 homes. The blaze in Amador and Calaveras counties has charred more than 110 square miles and was 45% contained on Wednesday. It was threatening another 6,400 structures. East of Fresno, California’s largest wildfire had moved away from the Sierra Nevada’s Giant Sequoia trees, some of which are 3,000 years old. The Associated Press contributed to this report This article was amended on 26 May 2016 as a result of a fact-checking investigation. A quote that could not be verified has been removed. | ['us-news/california', 'world/wildfires', 'us-news/us-news', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/joseph-mayton'] | world/wildfires | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2015-09-16T21:59:09Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
world/2013/sep/17/colorado-flood-deaths-missing | Colorado flood deaths reach eight but number of missing continues to fall | Eight people have been confirmed dead following the flooding in Colorado, but the number of those missing continued to fall on Tuesday as search-and-rescue teams began to reach devastated communities. Hundreds of people were still unaccounted for in the state, but the number has fallen from more than 1,200 to around half that, officials said. Emergency crews had hoped the number of people missing would decline as rescuers reached more homes and those stranded were able to contact families and friends. After days of heavy rain and floods which have destroyed or damaged around 19,000 homes, clearing skies and receding waters allowed crews to intensify their search efforts and assess the damage caused by the historic floods on Tuesday. Twenty-one helicopters fanned out over the mountain-sides to drop supplies and airlift those who needed help. Much of the effort is focussed on remote foothill and canyon communities in north-central Colorado, where the bulk of nearly 12,000 people evacuated since last week were stranded due to washed-out roads, bridges and communication lines, state emergency officials said. Residents of Hygiene, a small community east of the Rocky Mountain foothills, returned home on Monday to find homes destroyed and mud blanketing roads. The St Vrain Creek left trucks in ditches and carried items as far as two miles (3.2km) downstream. "My own slice of heaven, and it's gone," Bill Marquedt said of his home. Residents set to sweeping, shoveling and rinsing, but the rebuilding task was overwhelming. "What now? We don't even know where to start," said Genevieve Marquez. "It's not even like a day-by-day or a month thing." "I want to think that far ahead but it's a minute-by-minute thing at this point," she said. Officials have said it could take weeks or even months to search through flood-ravaged areas looking for people who died. In mountain towns, major roads were washed away or covered by mud and rock slides. Hamlets like Glen Haven were reduced to debris and key infrastructure like gas lines and sewers systems were destroyed. Hundreds of homes around Estes Park, next to Rocky Mountain national park, could be unreachable and uninhabitable for up to a year, town administrator Frank Lancaster said. The town of Lyons was almost completely abandoned. Emergency crews gave the few remaining residents, mostly wandering Main Street looking for status updates, a final warning to leave on Monday. In 2012 Colorado's billion dollar tourism industry was threatened after wildfires devastated the state. The floods of the past week has struck communities in the very mountains that attract millions of hikers, campers and skiers. Some tourism operators want to see a media campaign to counter the photos of raging rivers and towns ruined by muddy floodwaters. David Leinweber owns Angler's Covey in Colorado Springs, which caters to fly fishermen seeking prime trout. He said the images on television and social media make it look as if this year's fishing season is finished. "Our out-of-state business is down 15%. People don't realise that we still have 9,000 miles (14,500km) of fishable water and 2,000 lakes in Colorado that aren't affected," he said. "And they won't know unless we tell them." | ['us-news/colorado', 'us-news/us-news', 'environment/flooding', 'world/natural-disasters', 'world/world', 'tone/news', 'type/article', 'profile/adam-gabbatt'] | environment/flooding | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2013-09-17T17:19:33Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
environment/2023/jun/05/airborne-dna-accidentally-collected-by-air-quality-filters-reveals-state-of-species | Airborne DNA accidentally collected by air-quality filters reveals state of species | From owls to hedgehogs to fungi, genetic material from plants and animals is being inadvertently hoovered up by air-quality monitoring stations around the world, creating an untapped “vault of biodiversity data”, according to a new scientific paper. Globally, thousands of air filters are continually testing for heavy metals and other pollutants in the atmosphere. Scientists are now realising that this monitoring network is also picking up invisible traces of genetic material known as airborne environmental DNA (eDNA) from bits of hair, feathers, saliva and pollen. Testing eDNA from two UK air-quality stations – one in a London park and another in a rural location outside Edinburgh – revealed the presence of more than 180 fungi, insects, mammals, birds and amphibians, including badgers, dormice, little owls, hedgehogs and smooth newts. Plant eDNA was also collected, including yarrow, daisies, nettles, wheat, soya beans and cabbages. The data can tell scientists which animals live nearby, and could become an important tool in monitoring declines in biodiversity by amassing large amounts of local data over long periods of time. “This infrastructure may represent a tremendous opportunity to collect high-resolution biodiversity data on national scales,” researchers wrote in the paper published in Current Biology. “This is gamechanging for our approach to biodiversity monitoring on land.” The increasing rate of species extinctions globally is a huge concern to scientists. “The potential of this cannot be overstated,” said first author Joanne Littlefair from Queen Mary University of London. “Almost every country has some kind of air pollution-monitoring system or network, either government-owned or private, and in many cases both. This could solve a global problem of how to measure biodiversity at a massive scale.” Air monitoring networks, some of which have been running for decades, are concentrated in Europe, Asia, and central and north America, but some are also found across the global south. Collecting eDNA data does not interfere with their ability to monitor air quality. Researchers found they could still collect eDNA from an eight-month-old filter stored at ambient temperatures, and it could last for decades if frozen. They are now encouraging monitoring stations to keep the filters to preserve the eDNA information they contain. Andrew Brown from the UK’s National Physical Laboratory and one of the paper’s authors said: “For the past two decades of my career, I’ve been working on air-quality pollution to assess exposure of the population to potentially harmful pollutants. “To find out this extremely well-established network can be used by an entirely different field of science – and that it has all this hidden potential that we never thought about – is extremely exciting.” The research was carried out in collaboration with a team from York University in Canada. Sampling of eDNA is more developed in aquatic ecosystems, where ecological consultants often use it to survey for the presence of great crested newts. Using airborne systems, scientists from Lund University have been able to gather DNA from 85 insect species, and zoo species have also been identified by sampling the surrounding air. All this opens up a non-invasive way of tracking wildlife, with no need for the animal to be nearby, unlike camera traps or acoustic monitoring. Dr Fabian Roger at Lund University, who was not involved in this latest study, said: “What is exciting is that these filters are collected from an existing monitoring network, which presents an up-and-running network that could be co-opted for biodiversity monitoring. Still at question, he said, was the usefulness of the data in biodiversity monitoring: “Detecting some species some times is not the same as detecting a signal of biodiversity change, which is representative for a larger area.” Researchers still have to analyse data from multiple stations over an extended period. “I fully agree that the potential could be great,” said Roger. Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on Twitter for all the latest news and features | ['environment/series/the-age-of-extinction', 'global-development/global-development', 'environment/biodiversity', 'environment/wildlife', 'environment/conservation', 'science/genetics', 'science/science', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/phoebe-weston', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-age-of-extinction'] | environment/wildlife | BIODIVERSITY | 2023-06-05T15:00:14Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
environment/2020/nov/27/report-casts-doubt-uk-pledge-prevent-low-quality-food-imports-brexit | Report casts doubt on UK pledge to prevent low-quality food imports | Ministers’ pledges to preserve the UK’s food and farming standards after Brexit will not prevent the import of lower-standard products and could spell potential disaster for Britain’s farmers, a report has found. The government has repeatedly promised that a ban on chlorinated chicken and hormone-treated beef would remain in place after Brexit, and has made changes to the way future trade bills will be scrutinised. But ministers have refused to sign safeguards on imported food into law, despite pressure from consumers and civil society groups. The headline bans on two products will still allow a large number of other lower-standard imports, while the changes to the way trade bills are managed are too weak to ensure a robust scrutiny of their impacts, according to the damning verdict of the Future British Standards Coalition (FBSC), which represents farmers and food producers, and animal welfare and green campaigners. Facing a potential second rebellion by its own MPs on the agriculture bill, the government agreed to strengthen the scrutiny of future trade bills with an expanded trade and agriculture commission (TAC), a statutory body with powers to advise on bills for the next three years. This was hailed by the National Farmers’ Union as heading off potential problems with trade bills lowering import standards. However, the FBSC found in a report on Friday that ministers would still have many powers to change the rules on food imports without parliamentary votes or robust scrutiny. Some standards on the use of antibiotics in farming, for instance, have already been scrapped, and rules governing the use of hormones on animals, and additives to food, will also be easier to alter. The FBSC also found that the TAC under current plans would not include representatives with expertise on public health, environment, animal welfare and consumer protection. Kath Dalmeny of the FBSC said she was “very positive” about the setting up of the TAC, but that it needed more powers and more expertise. She said “absolutely loads” of food products could be affected by a loosening of standards, done behind closed doors as part of trade deals. “There should be proper scrutiny, on issues such as antibiotic resistance, public health, [the impacts of products on] climate change and biodiversity loss,” she said. Antibiotic resistance was a particular problem, she said. The UK has high standards to prevent the overuse of antibiotics, and antibiotic use in farming has fallen in recent years. But many other countries still use antibiotics prophylactically and as growth promoters, which encourage the growth of resistant superbugs. The lack of rules on imports means that without strict measures to prevent it, meat and other products containing superbugs that are resistant to antibiotics could be imported under future trade agreements, threatening to spread such pathogens to the UK. “I think the government does not want its hands tied in any way when it goes into trade talks, so they have provided us with reassurances and advisory groups and given the impression that something robust is happening, but none of this holds anyone to account,” Dalmeny said. Some of the impacts of lower-standard imports are also being felt on the climate. Deforestation in some areas means agricultural production is harming the climate: beef from Brazil, for instance, has a carbon footprint about five times greater than the equivalent produced in the UK. Dalmeny called for ministers to strengthen safeguards by at least agreeing to widen the remit of the TAC, and ensure it is staffed with experts on the environment, public health and animal welfare as well as trade. “Consumers have consistently rejected the prospect of poorly produced food that hurts people, the planet and animals,” she said. “The government needs to show the public it is listening and taking advice from a wide range of experts.” George Dunn, the chief executive of the Tenant Farmers Association, said: “The unity of voice across farming, environmental, animal welfare and public health groups underlines the imperative that the UK government does not drop the ball in reaching trade agreements which undermine domestic food production standards. “Extending the tenure of the TAC will mean nothing if it is toothless, sidelined and ignored. Now is the time for the government to show that it is indeed determined to deliver its general election manifesto commitment to protect standards in trade.” | ['environment/farming', 'politics/eu-referendum', 'environment/food', 'politics/politics', 'uk/uk', 'business/internationaltrade', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/fiona-harvey', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-environment'] | environment/farming | BIODIVERSITY | 2020-11-27T07:00:20Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
environment/2007/dec/31/recycling.youtube | Archbishop embraces YouTube for 'green' message | The Archbishop of Canterbury has said God "does not do waste", in a green new year message released on YouTube. Rowan Williams, who followed the Queen's lead after she posted her Christmas message on the video-sharing website, called for a "more balanced future" and criticised what he described as a culture of "vast material waste and emotional short-termism" which "is a lot more fragile than it knows". He said: "In a society where we think of so many things as disposable, where we expect to be constantly discarding last year's gadget and replacing it with this year's model - do we end up tempted to think of people and relationships as disposable? In a message filmed in Canterbury cathedral and a nearby recycling centre, Williams also argued that God did not regard people as disposable. "He doesn't regard anyone as a 'waste of space', as not worth his time - from the very beginnings of life to its end, whether they are successful, articulate, productive or not. And so a life that communicates a bit of what God is like is a life that doesn't give up, that doesn't settle down with a culture of waste and disposability - whether with people, or with things." The message will be shown on BBC2 at 8.30pm tonight and on BBC1 at noon tomorrow. | ['environment/recycling', 'environment/waste', 'environment/environment', 'media/media', 'technology/web20', 'technology/youtube', 'world/religion', 'technology/technology', 'media/digital-media', 'lifeandstyle/christmas', 'type/article', 'profile/fredattewill', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews4'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2007-12-31T15:15:03Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
uk-news/2020/feb/20/uk-weather-warning-further-rain-areas-already-hit-flooding | UK weather warning of further rain for areas already hit by flooding | Parts of the UK remain at risk of significant flooding from ongoing heavy rain, as Jeremy Corbyn challenged Boris Johnson to visit flood victims to “see what it’s like when you’ve got sewage water in your kitchen”. The Labour leader added to criticism of the government’s response to the floods during a visit to south Wales on Thursday, where he said the prime minister should have convened the Cobra emergency meeting to manage the crisis. “Sadly, I’m not surprised but I do think that it’s the duty of the prime minister to be there in places where there are difficulties, whether there is an election or not,” he said. Asked if he had a message for Johnson, Corbyn said: “Go and visit people, go and talk to them, go and see what it’s like when you’ve got sewage water in your kitchen. Go see what it’s like when you lose all your personal possessions and just think about that. Think how you would feel if your house was flooded.” In response, the environment secretary, George Eustice, accused the Labour leader of trying to politicise the floods. The Environment Agency (EA) warned on Thursday of worsening conditions across the Pennines and parts of Yorkshire, and said that ongoing river flooding remained probable for the English-Welsh border around the River Severn for the rest of the week. It said England had received 144% of the average February rainfall, and record river levels had been broken on the Colne, Ribble, Calder, Aire, Trent, Severn, Wye, Lugg, and Derwent. The director of incident management, Caroline Douglass, warned residents of the flood risk. “This is the third weekend we have seen exceptional river levels and stormy weather, and, with the effects of climate change, we need to prepare for more frequent periods of extreme weather like this,” she said. The EA’s prediction was echoed by the Met Office, which forecast another deluge across northern regions and parts of England. Yellow warnings for rain and wind have remained throughout the week in the north of the UK. Ninety-one flood warnings stayed in place in England and Wales on Thursday afternoon as well as six severe flood warnings, meaning a danger to life. The more extreme warnings were near the English-Welsh border, around the rivers Severn, Wye, and Lugg, where people had already experienced flooding. There are also 154 flood alerts across the country. The prime minister was criticised earlier this week by the Plaid Cymru leader, Adam Price, who said the Welsh government should have its own Cobra-style system. The business minister, Nadhim Zahawi, defended Johnson for not visiting areas of the UK affected by flooding. “[He] is focused to make sure that I, as the business minister, get the money out the door to those businesses. That’s what he has tasked me to do. “He’s made sure that the ministers in the department for local government activate the Bellwin scheme, that’s what Robert Jenrick [the housing secretary] has done,” Zahawi told Sky News. “He is now prime minister and is leading the team as the prime minister but quite rightly, rather than having a sort of jamboree of media and your whole entourage going, he wants to help people by getting the funding to them.” He added that the Bellwin scheme – a system of of emergency financial assistance to help local authorities meet uninsurable costs – and 2,500 businesses hit by the floods would be helped. Capel Curig village in north Wales received 54mm (2.12in) of rain in 24 hours, compared with an average of 97mm for the whole of February. The village of Shap in Cumbria, which recorded 120mm across February 2019, received 52mm before sunrise on Thursday. More weather warnings were likely on Friday with heavy rain expected across western Scotland, Yorkshire and parts of Cumbria. Gusts are also expected to strengthen on Friday. The Met Office urged people to be mindful of warnings as they went about their day. “There could be some pretty tricky conditions on the roads. Make sure you give yourself a bit more time with travel because there’s some fairly heavy rain around,” the forecaster Mark Wilson said. Fundraising efforts have continued for those affected, with communities in Wales starting collections. On Wednesday, the actor Michael Sheen launched a campaign to raise money for those affected in Wales that raised half of its £10,000 goal within the first five hours. | ['uk/weather', 'environment/flooding', 'uk/wales', 'politics/jeremy-corbyn', 'politics/boris-johnson', 'uk/scotland', 'uk/uk', 'politics/politics', 'campaign/callout/callout-flooding-aftermath', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/estheraddley', 'profile/alexandratopping', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-home-news'] | environment/flooding | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2020-02-20T18:35:18Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
business/2020/dec/13/climate-crisis-ftse-giants-fail-to-disclose-their-carbon-footprint | Climate crisis: FTSE giants fail to disclose their carbon footprint | BP, Glencore and Rolls-Royce are among eight FTSE 100 companies who have refused to comply with investor demands to disclose their carbon dioxide emissions, as the UK government prepares to compel firms to report their climate impact. Companies are coming under increasing pressure from shareholders, campaigners and governments to report climate data, and show how they intend to reduce emissions to help tackle the climate crisis. Ninety-two of the UK’s blue-chip companies have so far provided data to CDP, the non-governmental group that requests data on behalf of investors. The other laggards who have not reported data included Melrose, the engineering company, and B&M, the fast-growing discount retailer. Meal delivery app Just Eat Takeaway and enterprise software company Aveva also failed to provide any data. A Just Eat Takeaway spokeswoman said the company was still working out its carbon footprint after completing its merger. Homeserve, the home repairs company, said it planned to report for the first time in 2021. A spokeswoman for Aveva said the company will report to CDP next year, and will align with TCFD in 2021. “As a software company, Aveva has a relatively low carbon footprint but we are taking steps to set company-wide climate targets and will report to CDP next year. We are also evolving our environmental reporting to reflect how our software can help industries address the climate crisis and to align with TCFD requirements in 2021,” said Aveva’s director of sustainability, Lisa Wee. The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, last month announced UK companies would be forced by law to report emissions data by 2025, following in the footsteps of New Zealand under Jacinda Ardern’s government. The UK Treasury’s plans show that all companies listed on the stock market will be forced to report climate data by 2022. The mandatory UK climate data will be in line with standards set by the taskforce for climate-related financial disclosures (TCFD), an organisation set up by Mark Carney when he was governor of the Bank of England to make companies pay more attention to climate risks to their finances. The CDP data requests, which cover all of the TCFD requirements, are backed by more than 500 investors with $106tn in assets under management. Some of those investors last week said they would push for companies whose shares they control to reach net zero by 2050. Standardised disclosure of climate data is seen by campaigners as a key first step in reducing the global economy’s carbon emissions, even if some of the companies that have reported data are still major polluters. Some of the companies who have not complied with the CDP request have disclosed some data and ambitions to reduce emissions, but not in a way that easily allows scrutiny. For instance, a spokesman for Glencore, the Switzerland-headquartered miner, highlighted its ambition, announced earlier this month, to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. However, its plan does not include shutting down its vast coal mines, despite coal being one of the most polluting fossil fuels. BP, the oil producer, and Rolls-Royce, the struggling manufacturer of jet engines, both said they had previously complied with CDP’s requests but had declined to do so in recent years. Both firms said they supported TCFD requirements and net-zero targets. “It’s a space that needs discipline – it could be greenwashing,” said Dexter Galvin, a global director at CDP. “What tends to happen is that companies tend to disclose in a way that makes them look better.” Galvin said there is growing acceptance in the corporate world that companies need to take action around climate risks. “2020 has been a torrid year for most people, but for environmental action it has been a quite positive year,” he said. “The trend is very, very positive. The starting gun has been fired on the race to net zero.” Melrose declined to comment. B&M did not respond to a request for comment. | ['business/corporate-governance', 'business/ftse', 'global-development/climate-finance', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/carbonfootprints', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'business/bp', 'business/melrose', 'business/glencore', 'business/rollsroycegroup', 'business/avevagroup', 'uk/uk', 'business/business', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/jasper-jolly', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/financial3', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-business'] | environment/carbon-emissions | EMISSIONS | 2020-12-13T10:53:09Z | true | EMISSIONS |
news/blog/2005/aug/30/thisistherea | 'This is the real deal' | A US Coast Guard helicopter searches for people in need of rescue in New Orleans following the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina. Photograph: Petty Officer Kyle Niemi Much of today's analysis on hurricane Katrina, which has killed dozens of people in the Gulf of Mexico, seems to be focusing on claims that the erosion of wetland has exacerbated the problems of flooding. The Washington Post has an interesting story about how the shrinking Louisiana coastline is contributing to the difficulties. It reports that just two months ago, Senator Mary Landrieu told an audience of congressional staffers and scientific experts that more federal funds were needed over the next 20 years to restore Louisiana's wetlands. The paper reports that she "warned that intentional rerouting of the Mississippi river over the past century, coupled with rising sea levels due to climate change, had eroded Louisiana's natural buffer against massive storms". "This is not Disneyland. This is the real deal," Ms Landrieu said, referring to New Orleans's vulnerability to hurricanes. "The French Quarter could be under 18 feet of water. It would be lost forever." While the French Quarter has escaped the worst flooding, her words were certainly prescient. There are also questions in the media today about how the city's artificial levees have increased the vulnerability. A New York Times leader entitled Nature's Revenge argues that Katrina is in some ways an unnatural disaster because "much of it is self-inflicted". The paper says that in New Orleans "politicians and planners must rethink the bad policies that contributed to the city's vulnerability". Events have lent urgency to a plan to "restore natural hurricane protections by diverting water and silt from the river to coastal marshes and wetlands, and by rebuilding barrier islands", the leader says. The paper says the 40-year project to help the wetlands, estimated to cost $14bn, is going to need "a lot more" than the $20m budgeted for this year. A combination of subsiding land and rising seas has put the Mississippi Delta about three feet lower than it was 100 years ago. There is a useful piece on Slate, which explains why New Orleans is so vulnerable to flooding, with parts of it beneath sea level because of natural and artificial levees. Footage taken from helicopters hovering above New Orleans showing burning buildings and flooded streets illustrates the huge cleanup operation that will be needed; some reports question how the city's systems for pumping water will cope, especially with so many areas below sea level. Reports suggest that there has also been difficulties for emergency services in communicating with one another. The lead story of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, the report says: Police officers, firefighters and private citizens, hampered by a lack of even rudimentary communication capabilities, continued a desperate and impromptu boat-borne rescue operation across Lakeview well after dark. There are also stories about the huge cost of the storm, and anxieties about oil and gas prices because of the huge concentration of petrochemical plants there. Katrina may become the most expensive storm in US history, and I imagine that nobody would be that surprised if it was also the most photographed. There are thousands and thousands of photographs of the storm online, both professional and from "citizen journalism". Steve Outing, writing on Poynteronline, a journalism resource site with a focus on technology, argues that he would like to see websites collating of the "best photographs" rather than separating them between professional and citizen. The key is in clear labelling of the photo bylines, he says. Meanwhile, Paul McLeary, writing in the Columbia Journalism Review, has selected some choice moments from the rolling television news broadcasts. One of these features a man walking a dog in the storm who was not caught in a chatty frame of mind when questioned by a Fox reporter. | ['news/blog', 'us-news/us-news', 'world/world', 'tone/blog', 'us-news/hurricane-katrina', 'us-news/louisiana', 'world/hurricanes', 'type/article', 'profile/markoliver'] | us-news/hurricane-katrina | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2005-08-30T13:10:53Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
science/2007/nov/11/agriculture.biodiversity | Frozen vault saves crops for mankind | Engineers last week finished work on one of the world's most ambitious conservation projects: a doomsday vault carved into a frozen mountainside in the archipelago of Svalbard, a few hundred miles from the North Pole. Over the next few weeks, the huge cavern - backed by the Norwegian government and the Gates Foundation - will be filled with more than a million types of seed and will be officially opened in February next year. 'This will be the last refuge for the world's crops,' said Cary Fowler, of the Rome-based Global Crop Diversity Trust, which is building the vault. 'There are seed banks in various countries round the globe, but several have been destroyed or badly damaged in recent years. We need a place that is politically and environmentally safe if we are going to feed the planet as it gets hotter.' New varieties of the world's main plant foodstuffs - maize, barley, rice, wheat and other crops - are constantly being created by plant breeders as pests develop new ways to break down a strain's natural resistance and as local climates change. 'The bread you eat today is made from very different wheat strains from the bread you had 10 years ago,' said Fowler. The old strains - which can date back hundreds of years - are a crucial resource, nevertheless. Their seeds may prove invaluable as environments alter. Varieties discarded for more bountiful but less hardy types could regain their usefulness. By 2030, for instance, current strains of maize will no longer be able to grow in South Africa because of rising temperatures. Possessing old types of maize seed as a basic resource could be invaluable, say scientists. National seed banks were meant to be the key defence but some have suffered serious damage, like those in Iraq and Afghanistan, which were destroyed by looters. 'The raiders were only after the glass jars in which the seeds were stored,' said Fowler. 'They destroyed an incredibly valuable resource. These countries were the birthplaces of agriculture.' Typhoons caused major damage to a seed bank in the Philippines. The only answer, Fowler's trust decided, was to build an international doomsday vault, so the trust looked around for a site that was remote but accessible, and which was so cold that there would be no problem if the refrigeration equipment failed. Svalbard, a group of islands far to the north of Norway but linked by a daily flight from Oslo, proved ideal. For the past year engineers using highway tunnelling equipment have drilled deep into a mountain near Longyearbyen, the main settlement of Svalbard, and have created three main vaults. Temperatures inside fluctuate around minus 4 degrees Celsius: not quite cold enough, say seed experts. As a result, engineers are scheduled over the next few weeks to use refrigerating equipment to cool the vault to around minus 18 degrees. Then it will be ready for its seeds, say scientists. About 500 seeds from about 1.5 million types of crop - donated by individual countries - will be placed in envelopes and about 400-500 of these envelopes are stored in a single box. Boxes will then be stacked like library books along shelves inside the vaults. 'National seed banks will still be the first line of defence for countries who need to develop fresh varieties of crops as environments change,' said Fowler. 'But if something goes wrong there, they will be able to come here, take a hundred seeds or so, and use these to grow new strains. This will be the last place we can turn to.' | ['science/science', 'science/agriculture', 'environment/biodiversity', 'environment/conservation', 'environment/environment', 'environment/food', 'type/article', 'profile/robinmckie', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/worldnews'] | environment/biodiversity | BIODIVERSITY | 2007-11-11T09:56:51Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
business/2023/jan/02/50m-fund-will-boost-uk-nuclear-fuel-projects-ministers-say | £50m fund will boost UK nuclear fuel projects, ministers say | A £50m nuclear fuel fund to bolster production in the UK and support development of alternatives to Russian supply opens for applications on Monday, the business department has announced. The fund forms part of a nuclear fuel investment package of up to £75m, of which up to £13m has already been awarded to the nuclear fuel fabricators Westinghouse in Preston, helping the company develop conversion capability for reprocessed uranium and freshly mined uranium. Uranium conversion is an important stage in the nuclear fuel cycle. The funding is designed to create capability to convert recycled uranium in the UK that is not currently available outside Russia. As well as strengthening UK energy security, ministers hope it will also open up new export opportunities. G7 leaders agreed in June to take collective action to reduce reliance on civil nuclear and related goods from Russia, including diversifying their supplies of uranium and nuclear fuel production capability. Russia owns about 20% of global uranium conversion capacity and 40% of enrichment capacity. Graham Stuart, the energy and climate minister, said: “Record high global gas prices, caused by Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, have highlighted the need for more homegrown renewable energy, but also UK-generated nuclear power – building more plants, and developing domestic fuel capability. “This investment package will strengthen the UK’s energy security, by ensuring access to a safe and secure supply of UK-produced fuel to power the UK nuclear fleet of today and tomorrow – squeezing out Russian influence, while creating more UK jobs and export opportunities.” Tom Greatrex, the chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: “Having the sovereign capability to manufacture next-generation nuclear fuels for advanced reactors of the future is vital for energy security and net zero.” The £50m fund will support projects such as fuel supply options for light water reactors, including future small modular reactors. It will also look to support projects producing new fuel types that will be needed to supply advanced modular reactors, likely to be in operation from the 2030s, such as high-assay low-enriched uranium. The news comes after the government confirmed in late November that the Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk will go ahead, backing the scheme with an investment of nearly £700m that will end China’s controversial involvement. | ['business/energy-industry', 'environment/nuclearpower', 'environment/energy', 'science/energy', 'technology/energy', 'business/business', 'campaign/email/business-today', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/juliakollewe', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/financial3', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-business'] | environment/nuclearpower | ENERGY | 2023-01-02T00:01:00Z | true | ENERGY |
environment/2023/jul/04/country-diary-the-astonishing-value-of-nature-volunteers | Country diary: The astonishing value of nature volunteers | Mark Cocker | This 32-acre reserve centres on the River Ure, near Ripon, and is exceptional for its biodiversity, which includes 600 moth species (almost one-quarter of the national total), 19 different dragonflies and 300 plants. Yet in some ways, High Batts is even more extraordinary for its origins and history. In 1973, a 21-year-old naturalist called Colin Slator walked up unannounced to the door of High Batts’ owners and asked if he could rent and manage it for nature. They agreed, and 50 years later the place is still being run by a cohort of remarkable (if increasingly white-haired) volunteers, some of whom have kept up their unpaid efforts for the full half century. On the day we gathered to celebrate this anniversary it looked as if High Batts had never been in better shape. It also struck me that not only are volunteers the very lifeblood of almost all environmental achievement, they are at the heart of our relationship with nature. As I walked down the rides through its wet woodland, there were deep stands of comfrey, hogweed and bramble. These, in turn, held thousands of white-tailed, common carder and buff-tailed bumblebee workers, as well as more vestal cuckoo bees than I had ever seen. The first three species were engaged in supplying reproductive services for the plants in exchange for payments of pollen and nectar to nourish their own siblings. This reciprocity benefits not only the vegetation and insects, but it also makes our species possible. One in every three mouthfuls eaten by humans is thought to originate with pollinating insects. More than 150 crops – including cotton, coffee, chocolate and tomatoes – are enhanced or are only possible as a result of these invertebrate services. That cumulative effort has been valued globally at $400bn. In return we are deploying 3.5m tonnes of toxic chemicals annually, some of the most powerful of which can kill 2.5bn insects with just 10 grams. Our chemical warfare with so-called pests has been ongoing for 80 years. If and when we finally relent, it will be refugia sites like High Batts that will resupply our wider countryside with those wonderful volunteers on which all life ultimately depends. • Country diary is on Twitter at @gdncountrydiary | ['environment/series/country-diary', 'society/volunteering', 'environment/environment', 'uk/ruralaffairs', 'uk/uk', 'environment/biodiversity', 'environment/insects', 'environment/bees', 'environment/conservation', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/markcocker', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/journal', 'theguardian/journal/letters', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-letters-and-leader-writers'] | environment/biodiversity | BIODIVERSITY | 2023-07-04T04:30:51Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
global-development/2019/feb/13/restaurants-cutting-waste-food-report-reveals | Restaurants could make £7 for every £1 invested in cutting waste, report reveals | Restaurants can make a profit of £7 for every £1 they invest in cutting food waste, a global report reveals today, in findings that are hailed as proving the business case for stopping edible food from being binned. The study is based on research for Champions 12.3, a group of political, business, NGO and farmers’ leaders from across the world who have united to tackle waste, using data taken from 114 restaurant sites across 12 countries. The group is committed to accelerating progress toward achieving the UN’s sustainable development target of halving per capita global food waste at retail and consumer level and through production and supply chains by 2030. The UN estimates global food waste causes about $940bn (£770bn) a year in economic losses. It says a third of the world’s food is wasted while one in nine people remain malnourished. In addition, food waste accounts for 8% of global greenhouse emissions. The findings are published in a report from the World Resources Institute – the business case for reducing food loss and waste: restaurants. It urges all food service outlets – regardless of their size or location – to take steps to measure food waste in order to be able to track and analyse it. The research found that the average benefit-cost ratio for food waste reduction was 7:1 over a three-year time frame, meaning that £7 could be recovered for every £1 invested. Within the first year of implementing a formal food waste reduction programme, 76% of the food outlets recouped their investment. Within two years of implementing a programme, 89% of them did so. In addition, by reducing food waste, the average site saved more than 2 cents on every dollar of cost of goods sold. The furniture chain Ikea has at the same time given an update on how it has reduced food waste in its own restaurants in 420 stores in 52 countries worldwide – saving the equivalent of more than three million meals from being thrown away in nearly two years. It has used Winnow – an electronic scale developed for commercial kitchens and restaurants that weighs waste as it is thrown away – which is hailed for cutting food waste by the likes of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage restaurant. “Through this smart scale solution, food waste is measured and registered in the Ikea restaurants and bistros,” said Michael La Cour, managing director of Ikea Food Services. “More than half of all Ikea stores have implemented the solution while others are preparing for it.” He said the project had resulted in new ways of working in many Ikea kitchens, with examples of stores that had diminished their food waste by 50% or more. “Every year, a third of the world’s food goes to waste,” said Dave Lewis, Tesco chief executive and chair of Champions 12.3. “That’s the equivalent of 1.3bn tonnes of food being thrown away – and we think that’s simply not right. We believe that what gets measured gets managed.” In the UK alone almost 900,000 perfectly edible, freshly prepared meals end up in the bin every day because they haven’t been sold in time by restaurants and cafes. This means that more than 320m meals are thrown away by British food establishments every year – enough meals for everyone in the UK five times over, according to food waste app Too Good To Go. | ['global-development/environmental-sustainability', 'environment/food-waste', 'environment/environment', 'global-development/global-development', 'environment/sustainable-development', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/rebeccasmithers', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/global-development'] | environment/sustainable-development | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2019-02-13T23:11:01Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
uk-news/2018/mar/25/nuclear-watchdog-raises-hinkley-point-c-concerns | Nuclear watchdog raises Hinkley Point C concerns | The UK nuclear regulator has raised concerns with EDF Energy over management failings that it warns could affect safety at the Hinkley Point C power station if left unaddressed, official documents reveal. Britain’s chief nuclear inspector identified several shortcomings in the way the French firm is managing the supply chain for the £20bn plant it is building in Somerset. Though not serious enough alone to raise regulatory issues, together they “may indicate a broader deficiency” in the way the company is run, concluded Mark Foy, chief inspector at the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). In October and November 2017, a team of 11 inspectors led by Foy visited the Hinkley site, EDF facilities in Bristol and Paris, and a French factory making parts for the plant. The visits were triggered by the regulator’s concerns that EDF did not have sufficient oversight of the Creusot nuclear forge in France, where records have been found to be falsified. A summary of the inspections, published by the ONR earlier this month, judged EDF’s supply chain management to be improving but below standard in some areas. The full reports, released to the Guardian under freedom of information rules, paint a critical picture. They show that: The ONR was concerned that EDF’s internal oversight and governance had not identified the shortcomings at the forge Stuart Crooks, Hinkley Point C managing director, admitted that EDF, not the ONR, should have spotted those shortcomings first A lack of resources meant EDF did not undertake an internal audit of its quality control processes during 2017. Foy said this was “disappointing” as it might have picked up problems On safety, the report said: “Throughout this ... inspection, themes have emerged that relate to both improvements in NNB GenCo’s [the EDF subsidiary building Hinkley] processes and to shortfalls in management system arrangements that, if unresolved, have the potential to affect safety.” EDF’s own assessment of how it managed Hinkley’s supply chain had discovered shortfalls that could affect safety, the regulator found. The ONR also felt that the company’s plan for improving its self-assessment process was inadequate. Moreover, they said that it was not clear who at EDF was managing quality control on the supply chain. Interviews with EDF’s contractors for the Hinkley project, which include civil engineering groups Kier BAM and Bylor, also found that EDF had not done enough to pass on information about the failings at the Creusot forge to its suppliers. However, the regulator said it was confident the company could make improvements before the next key regulatory milestone for the power station, in August 2018. Overall, EDF was found to be operating within the UK’s exacting nuclear regulations. “Current arrangements for the control of quality are judged, through ONR’s wider regulatory activities, to be appropriate at present,” said Foy. Experts said the inspection’s conclusions were significant as nuclear regulation language is usually restrained. Paul Dorfman, of the Energy Institute at University College London, said: “Looking at this report with a practiced eye, you can see that the UK regulators are worried, and things aren’t necessarily going to get any better. “In all things nuclear, safety is absolutely paramount. The fact that the UK nuclear regulator says that these problems could affect safety is very significant.” EDF said it was already implementing improvement measures where required before an increase in construction activity at the site. The company is also completing the outstanding internal quality assurance programme. A spokesperson said: “The chief nuclear inspector’s report recognises that the current quality control arrangements for Hinkley Point C are appropriate.” There are about 3,500 people working on the site at the moment, a number that is expected to peak at around 6,000 in 18 months, when construction is due to be at full throttle. The power station should provide around 7% of the UK’s electricity and is due to switch on in 2025, though EDF has warned that the project may run 15 months over schedule. | ['uk-news/hinkley-point-c', 'uk/uk', 'environment/nuclearpower', 'business/edf', 'business/energy-industry', 'business/business', 'environment/energy', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/adam-vaughan', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/financial3', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-business'] | environment/nuclearpower | ENERGY | 2018-03-25T15:20:25Z | true | ENERGY |
environment/2013/mar/08/australian-uranium-discovery-art | Australian uranium discovery threatens ancient indigenous cave art | One of the world's biggest uranium producers has found a significant deposit in a remote tropical Australian mountain range near sandstone galleries holding some of the oldest and most spectacular rock art on the planet. After years of drilling, Canadian-based mining company Cameco has reported the find in the Wellington Range, where the thousands of Aboriginal artworks adorning cliffs and caves include a painting of the extinct dog-like creature, the thylacine, made in a style that is at least 15,000 years old. "The importance of this art site is that it's like a library," Ronald Lamilami, a traditional Aboriginal landowner in western Arnhem Land and a custodian for the art, told The Global Mail, which on Friday published a detailed feature and map of the rock-art sites at risk nationwide. Lamilami said he fears if mining goes ahead, the works of his ancestors will be damaged. The archaeologist Prof Paul Taçon, who has worked with Lamilami to document and date the artwork, said that dust and visitors from mining exploration could potentially damage works at the Northern Territory's Djulirri, Malarrak and Bald Rock galleries. Uranium runs right through the Wellington Range area, and Cameco has explored close to Djulirri, although the big deposit found recently is nearer to Australia's northern coast, Taçon said. Where once there was trenchant opposition to expanding uranium mining in Australia – which has the largest known reserves in the world – the present Labor government has softened its stance, as the resources boom feeding China's voracious appetite for energy powers the Australian economy. When the Australian prime minister, Julia Gillard, worked through a uranium deal with India late last year, Toronto-based Cameco noted her nation could benefit from a nuclear boom in India and in China. The company has reportedly been trying to strike a deposit in Australia as rich as that of the Athabasca Basin in its home country, which supplies about one-fifth of the world's uranium. Djulirri, a magnificent complex where artwork ripples across cliffs, into caves and beneath overhangs, contains more than 3,000 images, including the oldest known "contact" art, a faded yellow ochre depiction of a south-east Asian boat at least 350 years old. The rainbow serpent, fish, kangaroos and other creatures are painted in traditional "X-ray" style and the world's only known indigenous rock-art stencils depicting whole birds are silhouetted on a cave wall, while the gallery also features European missionaries, a biplane and a buggy. At nearby Malarrak and Bald Rock galleries, there are more recent images of rifles, a coffee mug, an ocean cruiser and three stencils of a tobacco tin. "There are rock art sites throughout the Wellington Range, but most of it still has not been adequately surveyed," said Taçon, who worries that the explorers surging across Australia as its resources boom continues will damage works never properly recorded. There are estimated to be about 100,000 rock-art sites in Australia, with more than one million images, but there is not even a national list, let alone adequate heritage protection, according to Taçon. Lamilami said his people are not anti-development, but the resources boom has made it apparent that mining will impact both the people and the country in Arnhem Land. "It's spreading like a wart," he said. Australia's environment minister, Tony Burke's office said Cameco had not yet submitted a proposal for any uranium project in the Wellington Range, but such a plan would need clearance if it was likely to have significant environmental impact. Cameco Australia's managing director, Brian Reilly, said that the company would work with all stakeholders to protect the area's environment, culture and heritage. Traditional owners – the Aboriginal people who own land belonging to their ancestors – review any exploration work by the company, which conducts heritage surveys to ensure these areas are protected, he said. Meanwhile, an exploration company owned by the world's second richest woman, Gina Rinehart, has just announced that it will withdraw two applications to explore for minerals, after Aboriginal complaints that mining could damage another world-class rock art precinct in northern Queensland. However, research by James Cook University adjunct research fellow in archaeology Noelene Cole has discovered this region, known as "Quinkan" country, is crisscrossed by similar applications. These have not been lifted. • Read more about the threats to Aboriginal rock art on The Global Mail. | ['environment/mining', 'environment/environment', 'environment/energy', 'world/indigenous-peoples', 'world/world', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'world/asia-pacific', 'tone/news', 'artanddesign/art', 'artanddesign/artanddesign', 'science/archaeology', 'science/science', 'australia-news/indigenous-australians', 'type/article'] | environment/mining | ENERGY | 2013-03-08T06:00:00Z | true | ENERGY |
environment/2011/may/30/local-rubbish-collection-council-incentive | Councils to receive financial incentive to reinstate weekly rubbish collections | Councils are to be offered an estimated £100m to reinstate weekly household rubbish collections cut as part of a drive to encourage more recycling. The move, which is likely to infuriate environmental campaigners, follows widespread complaints that fortnightly collections have led to a rise in fly-tipping and concerns over vermin and hygiene. The scheme, which government officials will be announcing soon, the Daily Telegraph reported, is expected to be included in a review of waste disposal to be published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). It is said to mirror a similar plan introduced this year to encourage local authorities to freeze council tax. A Defra spokesman confirmed the review will be published shortly, but described the Telegraph report as "speculation". "We won't comment on speculation about the final detail of the waste review. It is important that the right policies are in place to help communities and businesses reduce waste and maximise recovery of materials through recycling." The government has for some time been urging councils to abandon fortnightly refuse collections despite claims it would lead to 1m extra tonnes of recyclable material being sent to landfill each year and would jeopardise the UK's ability to meet EU environmental targets. More than 170 English councils have fortnightly collections of "black bag" rubbish. Evidence shows less frequent collections encourage people to recycle more in order to avoid over-filling their bins. An analysis by Defra's waste quango Wrap, has suggested that if weekly collections were reintroduced, the amount of paper, plastic and cans put out for recycling could drop by 30-46kg per household per annum. But earlier this year, Eric Pickles, the local government secretary, warned councils operating fortnightly collections that they risked creating an "army of angry middle England" if they did not give them something back for paying their council taxes. In January, Pickles told a local government conference: "We need to remember that rubbish is the most visible and most frontline service of all in return for what they now pay – the best part of £120 a month in council tax." | ['environment/waste', 'environment/recycling', 'environment/ethical-living', 'environment/environment', 'society/localgovernment', 'society/communities', 'society/society', 'politics/localgovernment', 'politics/eric-pickles', 'politics/politics', 'uk/uk', 'tone/news', 'type/article', 'profile/barry-neild', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2011-05-29T23:58:16Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2017/aug/24/russian-tanker-sails-arctic-without-icebreaker-first-time | Russian tanker sails through Arctic without icebreaker for first time | A Russian tanker has travelled through the northern sea route in record speed and without an icebreaker escort for the first time, highlighting how climate change is opening up the high Arctic. The $300m (£233m) Christophe de Margerie carried a cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Hammerfest in Norway to Boryeong in South Korea in 19 days, about 30% quicker than the conventional southern shipping route through the Suez Canal. The tanker was built to take advantage of the diminishing Arctic sea ice and deliver gas from a new $27m facility on the Yamal Peninsula, the biggest Arctic LNG project so far which has been championed by the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. On its maiden voyage, the innovative tanker used its integral icebreaker to cross ice fields 1.2m thick, passing along the northern sea section of the route in the Russian Arctic in a record six-and-a-half days. “It’s very quick, particularly as there was no icebreaker escort which previously there had been in journeys,” said Bill Spears, spokesperson for Sovcomflot, the shipping company which owns the tanker. “It’s very exciting that a ship can go along this route all year round.” Environmentalists have expressed concern over the risks of increased ship traffic in the pristine Arctic but Sovcomflot stressed the tanker’s green credentials. As well as using conventional fuel, the Christophe de Margerie can be powered by the LNG it is transporting, reducing its sulphur oxide emissions by 90% and nitrous oxide emissions by 80% when powered this way. “This is a significant factor in a fragile ecosystem,” said Spears. The northern sea route between Siberia and the Pacific is still closed to conventional shipping for much of the year. But the Christophe de Margerie, the first of 15 such tankers expected to be built, extends the navigation window for the northern sea route from four months with an expensive icebreaker to all year round in a westerly direction. In the route’s busiest year so far, 2013, there were only 15 international crossings but the Russian government predicts that cargo along this route will grow tenfold by 2020. This link with the Pacific reduces its need to sell gas through pipelines to Europe. “There has been a steady increase in traffic in recent years,” said Spears. “There’s always been trade along this route but it’s been restricted a lot by the ice. It’s exciting that this route presents a much shorter alternative than the Suez route. It’s a major saving.” Simon Boxall, an oceanographer at the University of Southampton, said that shipping companies were making a “safe bet” in building ships in anticipation that the northern sea route will open up. “Even if we stopped greenhouse emissions tomorrow, the acceleration in the loss of Arctic ice is unlikely to be reversed,” he said. “We’ve been able to sail through the north-west passage for several years now but the northern passage, which goes past Russia, has opened up on and off since 2010. We’re going to see this route being used more and more by 2020. “The irony is that one advantage of climate change is that we will probably use less fuel going to the Pacific.” The extent of Arctic ice fell to a new wintertime low in March this year after freakishly high temperatures in the polar regions, and hit its second lowest summer extent last September. | ['environment/sea-ice', 'world/arctic', 'world/russia', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'business/gas', 'world/norway', 'environment/environment', 'uk/uk', 'business/commodities', 'environment/travel-and-transport', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/patrickbarkham', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/international', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-environment'] | environment/sea-ice | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2017-08-24T15:51:29Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
world/2024/oct/21/bhp-accused-of-doggedly-trying-to-avoid-responsibility-for-brazil-dam-disaster | BHP ‘doggedly trying to avoid’ responsibility for Brazil dam disaster, English high court hears | The Anglo-Australian mining company BHP has been accused of “cynically and doggedly trying to avoid” responsibility for Brazil’s worst environmental disaster at the opening of the largest group lawsuit in English legal history. The claim for up to £36bn in compensation was opened by lawyers acting for more than 620,000 individuals at the high court in London. It comes nine years after the breach of a dam holding toxic waste from an iron ore mine killed 19 people near the town of Mariana in south-eastern Brazil. In his opening submission, Alain Choo Choy KC, for the claimants, suggested that the “profound shortcomings” of the reparations process in Brazil had led the case to be opened in England. He accused BHP of devoting “very substantial resources to placing obstacles in the way of the claimants’ English claims”. A “chasm” had emerged between the level of compensation that BHP regarded as “acceptable” for the disaster and the amount the victims were “morally and legally” entitled to, the court heard. “This is not BHP facing up to its responsibilities but cynically and doggedly trying to avoid them,” the claimants’ lawyer claimed in court filings. “Although that is BHP’s choice, it cannot properly now claim to be a company ‘doing the right thing’ by the victims of the disaster.” The opening submission to Mrs Justice O’Farrell went on: “There is certainly no injustice in the claimants seeking to hold BHP properly to account in London in circumstances where the potential routes for redress in Brazil have not been effective.” About 50m cubic metres of toxic waste was released when the Fundão dam was breached on 5 November 2015. The avalanche reached the small community of Bento Rodrigues within minutes, killing 19 people including a seven-year-old child and destroying bridges, roads, houses, factories and other commercial premises as well as farmland, wildlife and historic churches containing priceless artefacts. The dam was managed by a Brazilian company, Samarco, in which BHP and Brazilian miner Vale were joint shareholders. In the wake of the collapse, BHP, along with Vale and Samarco, established the Renova Foundation to provide compensation for individuals and some small businesses for loss and damages, as well as mitigating environmental impacts. Many of the injured parties also brought individual claims in the Brazilian courts but the largest class action was stayed after settlement negotiations were opened. BHP and Vale had proposed to increase their offer in the Brazilian case by about $5bn to nearly $30bn on the eve of the high court trial but it was dismissed by the law firm Pogust Goodhead, which has been preparing the case in London, as a “desperate attempt” to avoid accountability. In an opening submission, lawyers for the claimants alleged that BHP had known the risks were high as they increased production at the iron ore mine. “A risk matrix shared with BHP in 2009 considered that the failure of Germano and Fundão [dams] could lead to ‘100 fatalities (Bento Rodrigues district),’” the claimants alleged. “A BHP presentation in November 2012 further highlighted that a breach of the dam could reach the community ‘in less than 10 minutes’, and that the lack of a relocation plan for Bento Rodrigues (in the context of a planned new dam) was a matter for improvement.” In its defence, BHP rejects claims that it is liable as a shareholder and denies any knowledge that the dam’s stability was compromised or that its senior staff “approved matters which caused the collapse”. It writes: “The BHP Brasil-appointed Samarco directors were not told that the safety of the dam was being compromised. Indeed, they were repeatedly assured by engineers and experts, including independent experts, that dam management was ‘well controlled’”. The claimants’ legal action is being bankrolled by the US alternative asset manager Gramercy. As well as more than 620,000 individuals, the claimants include 2,000 businesses, 46 municipalities and 65 faith-based organisations. BHP claims in its defence submission that “lawyers and funders” will be entitled to “take up to 30% of the claimants’ compensation in legal fees”. Outside the court, Gelvana Aparecida Rodrigues da Silva, 37, whose seven-year-old son Thiago drowned in the disaster, said: “It’s been really difficult these last nine years but I have to be strong. My hope is to find justice here. In Brazil, it is hopeless.” The trial is expected to last 12 weeks but a second round of hearings will be required to settle the size of payouts if BHP is found liable. | ['world/brazil', 'business/bhpbilliton', 'environment/pollution', 'environment/environment', 'business/mining', 'world/world', 'law/law', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/daniel-boffey', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-home-news'] | environment/pollution | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2024-10-21T16:18:07Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2015/jul/06/climate-change-compounding-threats-to-australias-ecosystems-studies-find | Climate change compounding threats to Australia's ecosystems, studies find | Climate change is compounding existing threats to Australia’s forests, wetlands and deserts, with several key landscapes now at risk of total collapse, a landmark series of new studies have found. An assessment of 13 ecosystems across Australia, ranging from the wet tropics of far north Queensland to rare shrubland in Western Australia, found what researchers call a “worrying” climate change impact that adds to existing harm caused by urban development, agriculture and invasive species. The research is the first of its kind to assess Australian ecosystems based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s benchmark Red List criteria which has, until recently, focused on the status of individual animal and plant species rather than whole landscapes. Under the Red List criteria, eight of the studied Australian ecosystems would be classified as “endangered” or “critically endangered”, with just the Lake Eyre wetlands considered in the “least concern” category. Professor David Keith of the University of NSW, who led the international team to expand the Red List to ecosystems, said the Australian study, which he also led, shows that climate change is leaving its imprint on vast swaths of the environment. “The overall picture is one of increasing risk,” he told Guardian Australia. “Climate change is amplifying other threats. It’s the most pervasive threat because it cuts across everything, whereas habitat loss and diseases are specific to individual systems. It’s very worrying.” Changes in the climate – Australia has warmed by nearly 1C over the past 100 years – are having a variety of effects, the research published in Austral Ecology found. A decline in rainfall in south-west Western Australia is threatening incredibly diverse but rare shrublands that require moisture during a crucial window for seedlings during the year. Meanwhile, forests perched on the mountains of Lord Howe Island are drying out because the damp clouds that envelop them are becoming sparser. A separate study of an area of Antarctica shows that sea sponges could lose out to algae if sea ice thins, increasing the amount of sunlight that enters their marine environment. Ecosystems face other threats – for example, the wet tropics have become fragmented due to land clearing for cane sugar farming and other industries. This means that cassowaries, which are crucial to dispersing seeds and maintaining plant diversity, have less space to roam and are increasingly being killed by cars or having their young picked off by predators. “Our ecosystems are become more simple, they are losing species, which reduces these systems’ resilience to change,” Keith said. “In some cases it’s due to changes in land use, such as the clearing of woodland, and in others it’s invasive species, such as water mould, goats, deer, cats and foxes. “Native herbivores are being taken out, which means that ecosystem tasks such as the turning over of soils isn’t being done. This has cascading effects – species that aren’t directly impacted [on] find they can’t persist because they can’t reproduce.” This decline has a direct impact upon humans as well as other affected species, Keith said, citing the Cumberland plain woodland system near Sydney. “This woodland has been extensively cleared for grazing and cropping to the extent that just 10% of its area remains,” he said. “The native mammals have become extinct and there are sustained declines in the bird species. The system is at a point where it’s almost starting to consume itself, it’s collapsing. “Apart from the intrinsic values of nature, urban areas need open spaces to keep populations sane and healthy. That, essentially, is what we are losing. “The rate of decline in Australia is up there among the worst in the world. We need to turn that around. That said, the major threats have been operating for a relatively short time on a global scale, around the last 150 years, so there’s still a lot to work with.” The research comprised of making detailed assessments over the extent of an ecosystem and then analysing the trends of key species within the area. Australia contains more than 5% of the world’s plants and animals, with 87% of them endemic, meaning they aren’t found anywhere else on Earth. However, Australia has one of the worst extinction records in the world, with 50 species vanishing in the past 200 years, including 27 mammal species. Alongside climate change, habitat loss remains a challenge in Australia despite land-clearing laws slowing historical removals. WWF estimates that between 3m hectares and 6m hectares of rainforest and temperate forest, mainly stretching across New South Wales and Queensland, could be lost between 2010 and 2030 on current trends. | ['environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/environment', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'environment/forests', 'environment/endangered-habitats', 'australia-news/queensland', 'australia-news/western-australia', 'world/antarctica', 'environment/conservation', 'science/agriculture', 'environment/endangeredspecies', 'australia-news/new-south-wales', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/oliver-milman'] | environment/forests | BIODIVERSITY | 2015-07-06T04:36:06Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
world/2013/dec/09/edward-snowden-voted-guardian-person-of-year-2013 | Edward Snowden voted Guardian person of the year 2013 | For the second year in a row, a young American whistleblower alarmed at the unfettered and at times cynical deployment of power by the world's foremost superpower has been voted the Guardian's person of the year. Edward Snowden, who leaked an estimated 200,000 files that exposed the extensive and intrusive nature of phone and internet surveillance and intelligence gathering by the US and its western allies, was the overwhelming choice of more than 2,000 people who voted. The NSA whistleblower garnered 1,445 votes. In a distant second, from a list of 10 candidates chosen by Guardian writers and editors, came Marco Weber and Sini Saarela, the Greenpeace activists who spearheaded the oil rig protest over Russian Arctic drilling. They received 314 votes. Pope Francis gained 153 votes, narrowly ahead of blogger and anti-poverty campaigner Jack Monroe, who received 144. Snowden's victory was as decisive as Chelsea Manning's a year earlier. It is strange to think now, but a little more than six months ago, virtually no one had heard of Snowden, and few people outside the US would have been able to identify what the initials NSA stood for. Though internet privacy was beginning to emerge as an issue, few people had any idea of the extent to which governments and their secretive auxiliaries were able to trawl, sift, collect and scrutinise the personal digital footprints of millions of private individuals. All that changed in May when Snowden left Hawaii for Hong Kong, where he met Guardian journalists Glenn Greenwald and Ewen MacAskill, and independent film-maker Laura Poitras, and handed over materials that blew the lid on spying technologies, some of which were truly stranger than fiction: a dragnet programme to scoop up digital activities direct from the servers of the biggest US tech companies; a tap on fibreoptic cables to gather huge amounts of data flowing in and out of the UK; a computer program to vacuum up phone records of millions of Americans; a codebreaking effort to crack the encryption system that underpins the safety and security of the internet. In so doing, Snowden transformed his life, and not for the better. Forced to go on the run, he ended up in Moscow where he now lives in a curious Julian Assange-like limbo, unable to leave Russia for fear of arrest, extradition to the US and a prosecution that would threaten a long jail sentence, if Manning's term of 35 years is anything to go by. It is this personal sacrifice, as much as his revelations, that impressed most readers who voted for him. "He gave his future for the sake of democratic values, transparency, and freedom," said Miriam Bergholz. Colin Walker wrote: "We need people like him to have the courage to forget about their own life in the cause of other people's freedom. Let's face it, his life is over as even if he goes back to the US he will face decades in prison and the personal sacrifice he has made is immense." One commenter, identifying themselves as "irememberamerica", said he voted for Snowden "for his extraordinary and exemplary courage, and the historic value of his daring act. At every step, he has displayed an astonishing integrity and presence of mind. He is a great American and international patriot." Some readers felt that the actions of the Greenpeace activists were as brave, if not braver, than Snowden's. "Facing jail, as Snowden does, for defending privacy is one thing," wrote CaptainGrey. "Facing injury or even death for defending the planet, as Greenpeace activists often do, is another entirely," he said, in casting a vote for Weber and Saarela. Others put in a good word for the pope, Waris Dirie and Monroe. Iriscepero wrote: "[I am voting for] Waris Dirie for her work concerning female genital mutilation. It's an awful, brutal way of controlling females that carries significant health risks and it needs to end. I don't feel the topic gets the attention it needs because of the nationalities that are usually involved in the practice." Final vote count Edward Snowden 1,445 Marco Weber and Sini Saarela 314 Pope Francis 153 Jack Monroe 144 Waris Dirie 69 Satoshi Nakamoto 33 Kanye West 28 Andy Murray 22 Elon Musk 11 | ['us-news/edward-snowden', 'world/world', 'us-news/the-nsa-files', 'us-news/us-news', 'technology/data-protection', 'us-news/nsa', 'environment/greenpeace', 'environment/activism', 'environment/environment', 'world/pope-francis', 'tone/news', 'type/article', 'profile/mark-rice-oxley', 'profile/frances-perraudin', 'profile/leila-haddou', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/topstories'] | environment/activism | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM | 2013-12-09T12:44:00Z | true | CLIMATE_ACTIVISM |
environment/2023/jun/09/australian-governments-impose-mandatory-packaging-rules-on-industry-to-cut-waste | Australian governments impose recycling rules after packaging industry fails on waste | Industry will be forced to do more to cut waste and boost recycling after Australia’s federal and state governments agreed for the first time to impose mandatory packaging rules on manufacturers and retailers. The agreement, at a meeting of environment ministers in Sydney on Friday, was welcomed by conservationists as a major breakthrough after years of voluntary industry action has failed to reduce waste. The federal environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, said the “historic agreement” meant packaging would be “subject to strict new government rules”. A communique released after the meeting said a new regulatory scheme would shift the country towards a circular economy that would minimise waste and lead to materials being “recovered, reused, recycled and reprocessed”. It promised compulsory rules for packaging design based on international best practice and that harmful chemicals and contaminants would be regulated out. A roadmap would be developed to “harmonise” kerbside waste collection across the country and a framework for recycled content traceability would be introduced to give business confidence to use recycled materials, it said. Plibersek said while some in the industry had voluntarily reduced their impact, it had been “just not enough”. An official review in April found Australia was recycling just 18% of plastic packaging, and would fall well short of a target of 70% by 2025. The minister said the call for regulation had been supported by some major companies including Nestlé, Unilever and Coca-Cola. “We need to dramatically reduce packaging waste, and the harmful chemicals that destroy our environment. We see packaging in the guts of dead birds, floating in our oceans, destroying nature as it takes generations to degrade,” she said. “Put simply, we’re making too much, using too much, and too much is ending up in landfill.” The Boomerang Alliance, a coalition of 55 environment groups, said the agreement was the first “substantial and meaningful step” to deal with waste in 20 years. “This is absolutely the right decision, and a key first step to tackle the growing waste and plastic pollution harming the oceans and climate,” the alliance’s director, Jeff Angel, said. “Mandatory standards for recycled content and targets are essential to create the economic rationale for new recycling and reprocessing plants. New rules to minimise wasteful packaging will also help tackle the plastic waste and pollution tidal wave projected by the UN.” Angel said the agreement needed to be followed by “a comprehensive product stewardship scheme” that forced industry to pay for collection and recycling programs. He said it must avoid the mistakes of the failed REDcycle scheme, which led to 12,000 tonnes of soft plastics collected at supermarkets being stockpiled in warehouses across three states while consumers were told it was being recycled. Much of Australia’s recyclable rubbish was sent overseas until August 2019, when then prime minister Scott Morrison announced a ban on the export of waste plastic, paper, glass and tyres. Coalition and Labor governments subsequently announced hundreds of millions in funding for recycling facilities, but until now resisted rules that ensured they would be viable. The announcement comes amid a global push to cut plastic use. Plibersek attended negotiations in Paris on a proposed global plastic treaty earlier this month. The Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association, representing companies that deal with rubbish and recycling, welcomed an agreement, saying it meant there would “finally be real action” on packaging. The association’s chief executive, Gayle Sloan, said it was “a great start” and “the first step on the path to creating the level playing field industry desperately needs between virgin and recycled materials”. The environment group World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia said the agreement would “have a major impact on Australia’s plastic pollution crisis”. | ['environment/plastic', 'environment/recycling', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'environment/environment', 'environment/waste', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/adam-morton', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2023-06-09T07:57:17Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
media/greenslade/2014/jan/21/investigative-journalism-media-events-conferences | Investigative film festival begins with 'shocking' death row movie | The Centre for Investigative Journalism is staging a film festival next month that opens with a movie by the Oscar nominated director Amy Berg. Her film, West of Memphis, shows the struggle to free three innocent men from death row in the United States. And she will attend the event, at City University London, to participate in a Q&A session following its screening. Philip French called the film "a shocking indictment of the American criminal justice system and a tribute to the dedication of selfless civil rights lawyers and their supporters from all over the world." There will also be four more investigative documentaries, including the UK premiere of Paul Moreira's film Big Tobacco, Young Targets. It reveals how cigarette companies target the young. Film director David Niblock will be joined by Al-Jazeera English journalist Step Vaessen to talk about their film Trial of Murder: Indonesia's Bloody Retreat, which deals with the killing of the Financial Times journalist Sander Thoenes in East Timor in 1999. High Tech, Low Life follows the journey of two brave Chinese citizen journalists as they travel the country to chronicle news not reported by the state media. And Gasland II, deals with one of the most important environmental issues facing the US and Britain - fracking. The festival, the fifth of its kind, begins on 7 February with the screening of West of Memphis at 7pm. Details can be found here. | ['media/greenslade', 'media/media', 'tone/blog', 'tone/news', 'media/investigative-journalism', 'media/media-events-conferences', 'education/cityuniversity', 'media/al-jazeera', 'media/financialtimes', 'world/china', 'business/tobacco-industry', 'environment/fracking', 'us-news/us-news', 'type/article', 'profile/roygreenslade'] | environment/fracking | ENERGY | 2014-01-21T17:38:41Z | true | ENERGY |
technology/2021/jan/09/bill-gates-joins-blackstone-in-bid-to-buy-british-private-jet-firm | Bill Gates joins Blackstone in bid to buy British private jet services firm | Bill Gates has joined a £3bn bidding war to buy the world’s largest private jet services company just as he prepares to publish his new book How to Avoid a Climate Disaster. Cascade Investment, the fund that manages much of Gates’s $134bn personal fortune, announced on Friday it had teamed up with US private equity firm Blackstone in a bid for the British firm Signature Aviation. The Cascade and Blackstone offer came just hours after rival American private equity firm Carlyle made an approach to buy Signature, which handles more than 1.6m private jet flights a year. Cascade is already the biggest investor in Signature with a 19% stake. According to a study by academics at Lund University, Gates is one of the world’s biggest “super-emitters” due to his regular private jet travel. He took 59 flights in one year travelling more than 200,000 miles, according to the report, which estimated that Gates’ private jet travel emitted about 1,600 tonnes of carbon dioxide. That compares with a global average of less than five tonnes per person. Researchers have found that private jets emit up to 40 times as much carbon dioxide per passenger than commercial jets. Gates, who says in the foreword to his forthcoming book that he has spent a decade investigating the causes and effects of climate change, did not respond to requests for comment about his views on the carbon footprint of private jets. The billionaire has previously said that owning private planes was his “guilty pleasure”. In a Reddit Ask Me Anything in 2014, Gates said: “Owning a plane is a guilty pleasure. Warren Buffett called his the Indefensible. I do get to a lot of places for Foundation work I wouldn’t be able to go to without it.” • This article was amended on 11 January 2021 to clarify that Signature Aviation provides ground services for private jets, rather than being an owner or operator of private jets itself. | ['us-news/bill-gates', 'technology/technology', 'business/business', 'business/theairlineindustry', 'business/privateequity', 'environment/environment', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/carbonfootprints', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/rupertneate', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/financial3', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-business'] | environment/carbonfootprints | EMISSIONS | 2021-01-09T08:00:16Z | true | EMISSIONS |
film/2016/aug/18/behemoth-review-china-coal-mining-documentary-mongolia | Behemoth review – haunting descent into Mongolia's coal mines | Zhao Liang’s haunting documentary tessellates with Jia Zhangke’s recent films in studying the effects of China’s rapid industrialisation on the landscape. Words sourced from Dante float over images of everyday activity at one Inner Mongolian coal mine; as the camera descends into its depths, it becomes apparent we’re several fathoms beyond conventional health-and-safety regulation. Zhao’s closeups of faces – bathed in sweat, caked with carbons – are as expressive and dynamic as his long shots of fiery smelting yards and mountains being blasted into oblivion: here is a labour that cannot possibly be rebranded. Sporadic digital manipulations, sculpting this region’s exteriors into jagged cubist mosaics, might be interpreted as cheats, striking though they are. There is, however, no retouching the poverty inhabited by the mine’s employees, their blisters and varicose veins, their unblinking effort. What this exceptionally lucid film-survey reveals is what has to go on at ground level, and beneath the surface, in order to power a powerhouse. | ['film/documentary', 'film/film', 'culture/culture', 'film/world-cinema', 'world/china', 'environment/coal', 'type/article', 'tone/reviews', 'profile/mike-mccahill', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-culture'] | environment/coal | ENERGY | 2016-08-18T21:45:13Z | true | ENERGY |
us-news/2014/dec/10/northern-california-farms-brace-big-storm | Northern California farms brace for big storm's welcome rain but also punishing winds | Workers at orchards, vineyards and other farms in northern California are preparing for the beneficial rains and punishing winds of a powerful storm set to hit on Wednesday. The state is in the midst of one of its worst droughts ever and this storm promises the desperately needed Sierra Nevada mountain snow that would have more of a beneficial effect on water availability than the warm rains that have occasionally hit the state. “We are viewing this kind of storm with a dual approach, we’re really not that happy about it, but you have to look down the road at the picture,” said Noreen Aguilar, who owns the 10-acre Highland Orchard with her husband, who acquired it in 1947. The orchard is located in Penryn, California, a city in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain that is on flood watch through Friday. Flash flood warnings have been issued for parts of the region ahead of the storm system, which is expected to arrive on Wednesday and continue through Thursday. The National Weather Service said it is “expected to be one of the strongest storms in terms of wind and rain intensity” since storms in 2008 and 2009. Aguilar said the winds are the biggest threat to the mandarins because they can knock fruit off of the tree, and fruit that remains on trees can be punctured by tree limbs. She said they are expecting to lose a significant part of their crop so fruit pickers are rushing to collect as much as they can before the storm hits. “It’s really a dichotomy, because we need the rain – we’re in the middle of a drought here – but we’re also in the middle of our harvest,” said Aguilar. “So for mandarin growers, it’s going to be good and bad.” The heaviest rainfall could bring 3-to-6-inch rainfall totals to several regions of the northern part of the state. Growers of dormant crops like wine grapes are eagerly anticipating this part of the storm. “We’re glad its coming,” said Charlie Jones, owner of Lava Cap Winery in Placerville. “We need all we can get at this point.” While farmers in this hilly region are looking forward to the rain, there are serious concerns about erosion. Jones and his workers were preparing by laying straw on the roads. He is cautiously optimistic about the impact the storm could have on the drought, which hasn’t yet effected his grapes. He noted that at this time last year, there were promising rains, but they dwindled in January and February. “If we have another year of drought, I think we will definitely see some effects on the vine and ability to get fruit to maturity,” Jones said. The devastating King Fire that raged through the region in the fall has also created potentially treacherous conditions when mixed with the heavy rains. The burned lands are at greater risk for debris slides and flash-flooding, according to the California governor’s office of emergency services. | ['us-news/california', 'environment/flooding', 'us-news/us-news', 'world/natural-disasters', 'world/world', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'profile/amanda-holpuch'] | environment/flooding | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2014-12-10T21:15:56Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
environment/2022/may/12/us-oil-refineries-benzene-pollution-cancer-causing | US oil refineries spewing cancer-causing benzene into communities, report finds | A dozen US oil refineries last year exceeded the federal limit on average benzene emissions. Among the 12 refineries that emitted above the maximum level for benzene, five were in Texas, four in Louisiana, and one each in Pennsylvania, Indiana and the US Virgin Islands, a new analysis by the Environmental Integrity Project revealed on Thursday. Benzene is a known carcinogen that is highly toxic and volatile when exposed to air. Much of the excess emissions come through leaks from valves, tanks, pumps and other means that are hard to detect. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates 6.1 million people in the US live within three miles of a refinery, with low-income people and people of color represented at rates nearly twice that of the general population. Out of 129 operable oil refineries in 2021, 118 reported benzene concentration registered at or near the site, otherwise known as the fence-line. Nearly half of these refineries released benzene levels above 3 micrograms per cubic meter, which the Environmental Integrity Project defines as a long-term potential health threat. The EPA requires facilities to take action if they exceed an average 9 micrograms per cubic meter, or above “action level” emission of benzene. “If [facilities] can’t get their benzene below the action level, year after year, we really need to see enforcement from the EPA,” said Eric Schaeffer, the executive director of the Environmental Integrity Project, in a press conference. “You need to start paying penalties when your fence-line levels persist,” he added. Lifetime exposure to benzene at levels as low as 0.13 microgram per cubic meter could cause a risk of up to one additional cancer case for every one million exposed, according to the EPA. The higher the level of benzene, the higher the health risk. Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery in Texas City had the highest average net benzene levels in 2021, according to the analysis of the self-reported data. Roughly 37,000 people live within a three-mile radius of the refinery. Among them, 62% are people of color and 47% are low-income. “This analysis provides important insight into why the Houston area is an industrial cancer hotspot,” said Leticia Gutierrez of advocacy group Air Alliance Houston, at the press conference. “People living near these facilities have greater [exposure] to lifetime cancer risk than any other part of the state, yet the regulatory agencies responsible for protecting us continue to approve permits for these facilities,” Gutierrez said. Environmental Integrity Project notes that its analysis did not measure concentrations of benzene within neighborhoods adjacent to refineries, and does not reflect the actual levels of benzene within the communities. In a statement to the Guardian, EPA spokesperson Taylor wrote that the agency is actively engaged in reviewing the benzene fence-line data, and has “initiated several investigations of facilities to determine the reason for the elevated benzene emissions”. | ['environment/pollution', 'us-news/us-news', 'environment/environment', 'us-news/series/americas-dirty-divide', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/aliya-uteuova', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-news'] | environment/pollution | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2022-05-14T15:32:28Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2019/sep/09/englands-tree-of-the-year-competition-unearths-tales-of-myth-and-legend | England's tree of the year competition unearths myths and legends | Mythical creatures are stalking England’s forests, at least in the tree of the year competition, in which a dragon and a phoenix are among the finalists for this year’s crown. The Dragon Tree grows at Brighstone on the Isle of Wight, with one of its many massive snaking boughs forming a bridge over the Buddle Brook, a stream powering a local mill that shut in the 1960s. According to local legend, the oak was once a fearsome dragon that was slain by a knight returning from the crusades. On its final breath, the dragon turned to wood and laid down roots to become a tree. In reality, the tree’s unusual shape is a result of having been blown down in a storm, after which it re-rooted, with the existing branches twisting to accommodate the new structure. Another “phoenix” tree is the Fallen Tree in Richmond Park in south-west London. It, too, was blown over by high winds, but rose again. Its branches now grow all from the upward side of its trunk, each one reaching to the sky like a small tree in itself. The other trees on the 10-strong shortlist may lack such mythical connections, but still give insights into the country’s heritage. Britain’s yew forests, thousands of years old and once prized for military reasons, as the supple wood was used to make longbows, have disappeared from all but a handful of places. One is the Kingley Vale on the South Downs, where the forest’s Great Yew has huge arching branches that form a large canopy. Oaks were treasured in England’s forests for another military reason, as they were used to build the ships that gave Britain naval dominance for centuries. Few oaks are now being planted, leading foresters to warn of upcoming shortages and the need for imports, but their national importance is reflected in their position on this year’s shortlist: six of the 10 trees listed are oaks. The Allerton Oak in Liverpool is believed to have been the site of the local court in medieval times. The large crack down the side of the tree is said to have come from the explosion of the Lottie Sleigh, a ship carrying 11 tonnes of gunpowder to the local docks. Addison’s Oak in Bristol has a more recent origin: it was planted in 1919 when the MP Christopher Addison launched a city-wide housing scheme to build “homes fit for heroes”, for soldiers returning from the first world war. Addison was behind the Housing and Town Planning Act, which led to building of the UK’s first council houses. As minister for health and an eminent doctor, he recognised that the squalor and slums ordinary people lived in were a prime factor in their poor health and wanted social housing and council planners to provide opportunities for green surroundings, light and fresh air. Though the government has pledged millions of new trees, targets are not being met. Adam Cormack, the head of campaigning at the Woodland Trust, which runs the annual competition, urged people to value woodlands. “Trees across the country are constantly under threat of felling due to inappropriate developments. The competition is all about helping to rise the profile of trees in order to offer them better protection,” he said. Voting is now open and closes at noon on 27 September. Last year, more than 15,500 people voted for their favourite tree. | ['environment/forests', 'uk/uk', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/fiona-harvey', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-environment'] | environment/forests | BIODIVERSITY | 2019-09-09T06:00:05Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
uk-news/shortcuts/2014/jan/03/why-is-the-british-weather-so-bad-right-now | Why is the British weather so stormy right now? | It started with the St Jude’s Day storm on 28 October, then there was Xaver on 5 and 6 December, and most recently we’ve seen Christian, Dirk, and Erich slamming our shores over the festive season. Between them these winter storms have brought misery to huge swathes of the UK, flooding hundreds of homes, cutting the power to thousands and bringing much of the transport system to a halt. But how unusual is this weather and what is behind it all? Weather statistics show it has been an unusually active storm season. The St Jude’s Day storm was one of the strongest to have hit southern England in the last 40 years, while Xaver produced exceptional gusts (142mph recorded on Aonach Mòr in Scotland) and Dirk recorded the lowest pressure (936.8 mb) in the British Isles since 1886. Parts of southern England have seen double their usual December rainfall, and as far as temperatures go it has been warm, with December currently ranked as the 7th mildest on record for the UK. A Met Office blog post ranks December 2013 as the stormiest December in records dating back to 1969 and one of the windiest months since January 1993. For Europe it is normal to get storms at this time of year. Extra tropical cyclones, as they are known, are created by cold polar air meeting hot tropical air, spinning up powerful storms. “There is always a large temperature contrast between these two air masses between October and March, which produces a constant conveyor belt of storms,” says Milan Simic, managing director of AIR Worldwide, a risk modelling company. But this year the warm air mass sitting over the North Atlantic appears to be extra warm. “Back in the summer warm air from the Sahara moved over the Atlantic Ocean and prevented the formation of North Atlantic hurricanes,” explains Simic. And that lingering warmth may be partly responsible for the weather patterns we are seeing now. On both sides of the North Atlantic the weather conditions are reflecting the clash between warm and cold air, producing a string of storms for the UK, the Toronto ice storm just before Christmas and severe snow in the north-eastern United States right now. It feels exceptional, and it is tempting to blame global warming, but it could also be that our memories are failing us, and that this kind of weather isn’t so unusual after all. “I'm sure all of this has happened before - but we've got used to some dry and snowy winters recently,” says Roger Brugge, a meteorologist at Reading University. | ['uk/weather', 'environment/flooding', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/kate-ravilious'] | environment/flooding | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2014-01-03T15:10:38Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
commentisfree/2019/nov/11/weve-been-in-bushfire-hell-in-glen-innes-and-the-scientists-knew-it-was-coming | We've been in bushfire hell in Glen Innes – and the scientists knew it was coming | Carol Sparks | Heeding the advice of fire controllers and decades of scientific reports, Glen Innes Severn council last month declared a climate emergency. As the New South Wales government itself has now declared, those emergency conditions extend far beyond our shire borders and touch every community across the state. Within our borders we have seen a magnificent, humane and unstinting response from the Rural Fire Service, State Emergency Service, Red Cross, Salvation Army, NSW Police, Glen Innes Severn council employees, fellow councillors, the deputy mayor, Dianne Newman, and hundreds of community volunteers who for months now have done everything from sweep gutters to pitch tents to butter bread for sandwiches. Throughout this time, every effort has been made to prepare and defend both private and public properties in my community of Wytaliba, NSW, which last week succumbed to merciless physics that pay no heed to opinion, nor folklore, nor politics. Members of my family are in hospital. Two community members, my neighbours for decades, are lost to us. We have lost dozens of homes beloved by hundreds of people. An entire community has been all but wiped off the map. In the face of this tragedy already I have received a personal message of support from the NSW governor, Margaret Beazley, for whose humane and wise words I am most humbly grateful, and for whose leadership of the state of NSW we are together all indebted. Alongside everyone in this community, I also welcome the commitment of our state member for Northern Tablelands, Adam Marshall, to the rebuilding of Wytaliba public school, a much-loved school which burned to the ground on the same day that the federal government announced that only private schools will share in $10m of drought support funding. While all this is a personal tragedy for my family and myself, it is but one story within an unfolding statewide and global disaster, about which our community deserves nothing less than the honest and unvarnished truth. There are already those who, following such statements, will aim to shoot the messenger. To those people I say this: take your best shot, for I have already been through hell and there is nothing you can say or do that can touch me now. But for the sake of the future, for the sake of our community and the rising generation who will inherit this scorched Earth, one can only hope there will be enough people remaining who retain the common decency to listen, to heed the cries of those in harm’s way, who will now together take decisive and collective action to save our ecosystem and our civilisation from collapse. Already there are armchair experts ready with free advice about meeting with disaster. Let it be made perfectly clear that all the area that burned has already been a fire ground for two months. There were hazard reduction and backburns under state authority last month and last year. The properties were all well-prepared and extensively defended. People who have lived with fire risk for decades knew exactly what to do, and they did it. The full expertise and advice of fire controllers has been heeded at every turn. I’ll put my 20-year Rural Fire Service medal up against your free advice any day of the week. The anger is real. The anger is justified. Because this disaster was all foreseen and predicted. For decades the link between a hotter, drier climate, land-clearing, excessive irrigation and increased fire risk have all been attested in scientific papers. Equally for decades there have been those who insist they know better. Their ignorance and arrogance have delivered us only ashes – let these now be swept away. Instead, we will turn towards the sober and sensible measures recommended by fire controllers, and by scientists. We will insist that governments at all levels take heed of that advice, for we have seen now up close the result when they do not. We turn to those governments now to seek what support is needed and available to assist these devastated communities to get back on their feet. To protect these communities from future harm by curbing climate change. To commit to a saner, safer world where we measure our progress in terms of sustainability, and our wealth in terms of community. In the face of disaster, everyone learns something about themselves and the people around them. What, I wonder, will be the lesson learnt from this disaster? That remains to be seen. But for now it is the words attributed to Winston Churchill that are salutary: “if you’re going through hell, keep going.” • Carol Sparks is the mayor of Glen Innes Severn council | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'australia-news/bushfires', 'australia-news/new-south-wales', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/environment', 'world/wildfires', 'australia-news/rural-australia', 'australia-news/australian-politics', 'world/natural-disasters', 'australia-news/new-south-wales-politics', 'type/article', 'tone/comment', 'profile/carol-sparks', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-opinion'] | world/wildfires | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2019-11-11T04:47:38Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
australia-news/2021/sep/08/western-australia-to-ban-native-forest-logging-from-2024-in-move-that-blindsides-industry | Western Australia to ban native forest logging from 2024 in move that blindsides industry | Native forest logging in Western Australia will end at the start of 2024, the state government has announced, in a decision hailed as historic by the premier, Mark McGowan, and conservation campaigners. In a statement on Wednesday morning, McGowan said the state’s next forest management plan – covering the period 2024-2033 – would not include native forest clearing, and the government was spending $350m to expand softwood timber plantations and $50m to support affected workers and communities. Activists said it meant Western Australia would be the first Australian state to end native forest logging, ahead of Victoria’s promised phase-out in 2030. The decision is restricted to forestry, and does not prevent clearing of native forests for mining. McGowan said it would preserve at least 400,000 hectares of karri, jarrah and wandoo forests, and another 9,000ha of high-conservation karri forest would receive immediate protection. “This is a historic moment for the protection of our magnificent forests and the creation of sustainable WA jobs,” he said. “By transitioning more of the forestry industry to sustainable timber products like softwood, we are investing in WA’s future, supporting the construction and forestry industries, and our regional communities. Protecting this vital asset is critical in the fight against climate change.” Foresters said they were blindsided by the announcement. Melissa Haslam, executive director of Forest Industries Federation WA, said the industry was in “a total state of shock’”, and that some members learned of the decision via the radio. “We are shocked at this rushed and bizarre decision, which came without any consultation,” she said. Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning Jess Beckerling, campaign director with the WA Forest Alliance, said the decision was “huge” and praised the government for making a “long-awaited breakthrough”. “The south-west forests are incredibly precious and they’re vital to climate and to wildlife, water and culture,” she said. “This new direction that the premier has announced today to end native forest logging in just over two years’ time is profoundly important and will be heartily welcomed by the West Australian community.” Beckerling said the announcement was “not the end” and campaigners would push to ensure the forest management plan was delivered as promised. She said the decision did not address all threats facing the forests as jarrah forests could still be cleared for bauxite mining by Alcoa, and regrowth forests would still be “thinned” through selected tree removal. “It also doesn’t address fire management,” she said. “There will, however, be plenty of opportunities coming up for the community to have an effect on these other major issues facing the forests during the development of the next forest management plan.” The decision follows a decline in native forestry and a rise in plantation timber. About 90% of the state’s timber comes from plantations. Haslam said the announcement was “heartbreaking” for those working in the industry in regional areas, but would affect most Western Australians. “Anyone who enjoys products from timber furniture right through to firewood,” she said. “The irony is this does not even protect our forests. Forest management protects our forests.” The federal assistant minister for forestry and fisheries, Jonno Duniam, said the WA Labor government of “selling out” its forestry industry. “This decision is a complete nonsense given the fact that native forestry is done better here than anywhere else in the world,” he said. “Every tree that is harvested as part of native forestry is regrown.” McGowan said the government would support at least an extra 33,000ha of softwood timber plantations. He estimated up to 50m pine trees would be planted, about 140 timber industry jobs would be created and about 1,980 existing jobs would be retained. The Wilderness Society praised the decision, and said it followed “tireless campaigning” led by the WA Forest Alliance. The society’s national campaigns director, Amelia Young, called on the WA government to also protect jarrah forests near Perth from mining, and urged other states to follow McGowan’s lead. “The factors recognised by the WA government that have made it essential to protect WA’s forests, such as the impacts of climate change, the importance of maintaining biodiversity and forest health, the need for carbon capture and storage, and declining timber yields, apply equally to high conservation value forests still subject to logging across Australia,” she said. Young repeated calls for the Victorian government to bring forward its timeline to phase out native forest logging, in part due to the damage caused by the catastrophic 2019-20 bushfire season. | ['australia-news/western-australia', 'environment/environment', 'environment/logging-and-land-clearing', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'environment/forests', 'australia-news/mark-mcgowan', 'australia-news/western-australian-politics', 'environment/conservation', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/adam-morton', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/logging-and-land-clearing | BIODIVERSITY | 2021-09-08T04:32:36Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
us-news/2017/sep/02/on-the-road-with-hurricane-harvey-what-it-was-like-to-cover-the-storm | On the road with Hurricane Harvey: what it was like to cover the storm | The rain started about an hour south of Dallas, specks bouncing off the windshield. It thrummed heavier, eased, then hammered down in waves, a syncopated rhythm. By Buffalo it was sluicing, blotting out the moon, stars and landscape, everything except the blurry headlights ahead. Cars, then trucks, started pulling off the I-45. By Centerville roadside signs started flashing a mantra: “If you see flooding, turn around, don’t drown.” It was Sunday night and Hurricane Harvey was unleashing unimaginable quantities of water on Houston, America’s fourth-biggest city. The airports were shut so I was driving down from Dallas, almost marvelling at rain that seemed horizontal. After Madisonville the only other vehicles headed south were towing boats. With visibility negligible I halted at Conroe, 42 miles outside downtown Houston. It would take three days to finish the journey, an at-times surreal zig-zag through a waterworld of flooded highways and towns. For swaths of Texas and Louisiana, Harvey’s impact is just beginning. Dozens dead, thousands of homes damaged and destroyed, perhaps $100bn in damage. Recovery will take years. Travelling through the storm’s passage was uplifting – people showed remarkable resilience and generosity. And dismaying. Everywhere, peeking above the waters, was evidence of hyper-development that had devoured wetlands and prairies which used to serve as natural sponges. A century of lax regulation had pushed nature to the brink. Now nature was pushing back. “I was sitting on a stool with the water up to my ankles when this snake swam by me,” said Jennifer Shardlow, 35, huddled over coffee at an IHOP diner which became a refuge for displaced families in Conroe on Monday. “Alligators are coming up through the bayous,” said William Miles, seated a few tables away. His wife Erin noted the gloom. “We haven’t seen the sun in four days.” Back on the I-45 I got about 10 miles south and diverted to the Hardy toll road, which seemed higher and drier. I took a wrong turn, doubled back and tried to re-enter Hardy, only to encounter a foaming surge. Steve Perez, 60, a Houston police officer, drowned trying to get onto the toll road. Marooned in a community called Woodlands, everything was shut except Chinese restaurants and an Alcoholics Anonymous centre offering coffee and wifi. “Are you an alcoholic?” one man asked. He grinned. “You might be before this is over.” Spring Creek was overflowing, inundating a neighbourhood called High Oaks. Seven rescue vessels were in action, two from the fire department, the rest owned and operated by private individuals like John Brown, a 41-year-old metal worker with a battered fishing skiff. He plucked people and pets from their homes and delivered them to Sawdust Road, where other volunteers, knee-deep in water, led them to trucks. “I think it’s beautiful, everybody coming together to do this,” said Brown. On Tuesday I got as far as Cypress, a northern suburb of Houston, and encountered the Cajun navy: volunteers from Louisiana with canoes, skiffs, airboats and jet skis. Trump supporters, mostly, who had paid their own way to help one of America’s most diverse cities. “Put a gay or black person in need next to them and they’ll help. But in a voting booth they’ll turn around and cut their healthcare. It’ll just blow up your mind,” said a self-described liberal member of the navy. He requested anonymity. Television footage showed dramatic rooftop rescues but in the chaos many would-be rescuers drove around in vain seeking people to help. They got lost, stuck in traffic and struggled to launch their boats. Those who launched in Twin Lakes, a submerged estate with mock Tudor houses, encountered a different problem: residents did not want to leave. They were reluctant even to show themselves to the crews paddling past their windows. “We’re staying, thank you,” said one woman, clicking her door shut. Brad Johns, 39, tired and drenched after a 22-hour journey hauling and paddling his boat to get to this point, was stumped. “We’ve come all the way from Louisiana to help.” That night a motorist crashed into his truck, damaging the truck and boat, forcing a retreat to Louisiana. Here is another aspect television does not show: boredom. People hunkered in mercifully unscathed homes grew antsy with confinement. “Two kids bouncing off the walls – I had to get out,” said one volunteer in Cypress. Humanity gleamed in acts of generosity and courage – not least that of the mother who drowned while saving her three-year-old daughter. Less visible was humanity’s role in aggravating the storm: endless strip malls and suburban tract homes where once were swamps affording natural flood protection; an energy industry, headquartered in Houston, accelerating climate change. The sky cleared on Wednesday – Harvey moved east, towards Louisiana – and the waters began to recede around Houston. Driving the final stretch into downtown, sun glinted off a skyline whose towers proclaimed oil, money, construction. Downtown escaped relatively unscathed but you could see the storm’s human cost in the convention centre, which at one point sheltered 10,000 people. Some wandered outside, hauling bags and pillowcases stuffed with clothes and food. A shirtless Bob Marley fan strode among them shouting: “The rasta say everything’s gonna be all right.” It wasn’t all right. Inside the shelter, Eloy Martinez, 57, a plumber, picked from a mound of donated clothes. His home was gone, he was sick and he had no flood insurance. “It’s going to be real difficult to get established once again. It’s going to be a mess, that’s all I know.” An elderly Latino man at a desk for information about missing people gazed ahead, apparently not hearing questions, his eyes vacant. Officials warned of cholera and typhoid outbreaks. On Thursday explosions rocked a chemical plant and on Friday rescuers were still trying to reach people trapped in flooded suburbs and cities to the east. Where the high waters receded they revealed devastation: homes, streets, entire towns, silent and sodden. Harvey, a storm for the record books. Until the next one. | ['us-news/hurricane-harvey', 'us-news/us-news', 'us-news/texas', 'world/hurricanes', 'world/natural-disasters', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/rorycarroll', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/focus', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-news'] | world/hurricanes | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2017-09-02T11:00:13Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
sport/2024/feb/26/irelands-eyes-on-title-but-farrell-wants-to-see-twickenham-improvement | Ireland’s eyes on title but Farrell wants to see Twickenham improvement | The rugby world will be in the unfamiliar position of wanting England to win in a fortnight. Scotland, in particular, will be wishing it hard. Ireland are six points clear of the field after three rounds, which means a bonus-point victory at Twickenham in round four would yield them the title, even before the visit of Scotland in round five. Just a win would all but guarantee it. “It sets it up nicely,” said Andy Farrell, “because we’ve earned the right to get to that point. But going to Twickenham, everyone knows how difficult a task that is. We will certainly be looking forward to that after the fallow week.” It is traditional at this point to say that team X will have to be better when they go to team Y next, but the truth is, Ireland will not really. They may not have been at their best against Wales in winning 31-7, but they were so much better than the team who ran England close in the previous round that they enjoy significant room for error. A bonus-point victory, their third from three, was secured with the last play of the game, but they played nearly half the second half with 14 men, courtesy of yellow cards for Tadhg Beirne and, in the last 10 minutes, James Ryan. The fact they appeared to wobble without ever leading by less than 10 tells its own story. Much will depend on how England react to their defeat at Murrayfield. Farrell would not be drawn on what Ireland need to do to beat England. “We played against the same side [Wales] that played at Twickenham [in round two],” Ireland’s coach said. “So you could say that Wales played better here than they did at Twickenham, but we still found a way. “It’s not as simple as saying we need to be better to win at Twickenham. Of course, we always want to play better, but the game is what it is, from minute one. For example, we’re winning the penalty count hands down at half-time and then all of a sudden within minutes of the second half, it has evened up. That could happen in two weeks’ time. The game takes its own shape, but there’s parts of our game we obviously need to improve. That’s never, ever going to be any different, but I suppose it won’t be for England either.” It was amid that rush of penalties against Ireland at the start of the second half that Wales scored their only points, a penalty try from a Wales lineout and drive, which also saw Beirne receive the first of the yellow cards. One could say Wales were lucky to be awarded it – Farrell certainly had his doubts – but it was as close as they came to bothering their hosts. Ireland scored from a lineout and drive themselves in the first half, then swung the ball this way and that for their second, finished by James Lowe. After their “wobble” at the start of the second half, they registered tries in the final quarter by Ciaran Frawley and Beirne. Can anyone stop them? One thing we can say for sure. England will need to be better if they are to get even close. | ['sport/six-nations-2024', 'sport/ireland-rugby-union-team', 'sport/wales-rugby-union-team', 'sport/england-rugby-union-team', 'sport/sixnations', 'sport/rugby-union', 'campaign/email/the-breakdown', 'sport/sport', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/michaelaylwin', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/sport', 'theguardian/sport/news', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-sport'] | sport/wales-rugby-union-team | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE | 2024-02-26T01:00:11Z | true | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE |
commentisfree/2016/nov/21/trump-threat-paris-agreement-california-climate-change | Trump is a threat to the Paris agreement. Can states like California defend it? | Adam McGibbon | There’s no point hiding from it – Donald Trump’s election should give us all concern for our future and the future of our children. The chances of successfully mitigating climate change and holding global temperature increases to below a manageable 1.5 degree rise has nosedived. Trump, a man who believes that climate change is a “hoax”, wants to pull the US out of the Paris climate agreement. Even if that ends up taking time, he can decimate US federal agencies engaged in efforts to move to a greener society. He will probably cancel Obama’s Clean Power Plan, and slash federal funding for renewable energy. It’s not for nothing that Noam Chomsky has said that the Republican party is now “the most dangerous organization in world history.” Their commitment to collaborating in climate change denial – and therefore, the destruction of our futures – is absolute, and they will now control the White House, Congress and the supreme court. Deliberately manufacturing doubt about climate science in order to protect the profits of a few fossil fuel companies might just turn out be the biggest crime in human history. But don’t expect that to be recognized until the history books are written, nor for it to deter Trump. His administration spells disaster for the millions who will die climate change-related deaths from flooding, forced migration, starvation, drought and extreme weather. With all this unfolding, the rest of the world needs confidence to continue with climate action. The total commitments of the world’s nations so far aren’t enough to stop the crisis. They need to be emboldened further by activists and peoples all over the world to take the drastic action needed to save the planet and save ourselves. Trump’s election has dealt a blow to that confidence, but there is a way that the US climate movement can help restore it – fight for individual US states to defy the federal government and pledge to follow the goals of the Paris climate agreement. The climate movement, working with unions, faith groups and everyone who doesn’t want to see the world burn, could push individual states to commit to draw up their own climate plans in line with the Paris agreement, effectively becoming honorary signatories to the accord. Currently only UN member states are signed up to the Paris agreement’s parent treaty, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, but observer members are permitted (the Vatican is an observer), and when it comes to the most important fight in human history, no quibbles should be made around technicalities. There is precedent for this kind of state-level action – after the US’s failure to sign the Kyoto protocol in the 2000s, a student group called Kyoto Now had similar objectives, calling for university campuses to draw up their own climate action plans in line with the Kyoto agreement. The difference between then and now is that the US climate movement is a hundred times stronger, and ready for this fight. For example, California alone is the sixth biggest economy in the world by gross domestic product, as well as the second-biggest state in the union for carbon emissions. California’s governor, Jerry Brown, has already reacted to Trump’s victory by saying California will continue with its nation-leading climate plans, and has dispatched a team to the UN climate talks in Marrakech. New York state is another huge carbon emitter, with a population slightly smaller than Australia and some of the best climate policies in the US. Even small states in the world’s second-biggest carbon emitter can make a huge difference. If the Paris agreement could effectively cover large parts of America, this could send a hugely powerful signal to the rest of the world that not everyone in the US wants the country to become a “rogue state” on climate (as Mary Robinson, UN climate envoy, warned last week). It would do much to undermine the Trump administration’s denialism on the international stage and embolden other nations to continue the progress we’ve made so far. The US climate movement has got to fight the obvious battles that are coming to try and at least partly to save federal climate action. But a purely rearguard strategy isn’t going to cut it. A strategy of also pushing individual states to lead on climate action could set achievable goals for the movement, allow them to go on the offensive and demonstrate to the world that America isn’t a rogue state on climate – it just has a rogue president. Their actions and success in doing this could mean the difference between winning or losing for the climate change movement globally. The world is counting on the climate movement in the US to keep climate action going. The fate of the world quite literally hangs in the balance. Take it door-to-door, state-by-state to win. | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/environment', 'environment/carbonfootprints', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'type/article', 'tone/comment', 'profile/adam-mcgibbon', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-opinion'] | environment/carbonfootprints | EMISSIONS | 2016-11-21T12:00:05Z | true | EMISSIONS |
environment/2006/jun/27/japan.climatechange | Japan aims for breakthrough on carbon gas storage | Japan plans to capture a sixth of its carbon dioxide pollution and store the gas underground in a bid to tackle climate change, according to a report yesterday. The proposals would see Japan bury some 200m tonnes of carbon dioxide each year by 2020, a huge increase on the scale of existing schemes, the largest of which store about 1m tonnes annually. Masahiro Nishio, an official at the ministry of economy, trade and industry, told the Associated Press that underground storage could begin as soon as 2010. But several hurdles remain, he admitted. The technology is expensive, costing up to 6,000 yen (£30) a tonne of stored carbon dioxide. The new initiative aimed to halve that cost by 2020, Mr Nishio said. "It's very expensive, so we have much to study." Capture and storage of carbon dioxide, also called sequestration, has become a key technology in recent years as industrialised nations battle to control their greenhouse gas emissions. Japan, the world's second largest economy, expels 1.3bn tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, making it one of the world's top offenders. The technology is also seen as the only realistic way to allow developing nations including China and India to burn their abundant stocks of coal without provoking runaway global warming. That would require so-called "clean coal" technology, which is able to separate the carbon before or after the coal is burnt. Mr Nishio said the first target would be the carbon dioxide produced during natural gas production, but that emissions from steel mills, power plants and chemical factories would follow. The gas would be made into liquid and squeezed into underground reservoirs, gas fields or gaps between rock strata. Concerns have been raised that carbon dioxide could leak, but geologists monitoring existing schemes say there are no signs of escapes. John Davison, of the International Energy Agency's greenhouse gas programme in Cheltenham, said Japan's plans were ambitious: "To be capturing and storing that amount of carbon dioxide by 2020 is a very large ramp-up rate." Stuart Haszeldine, a carbon storage expert at Edinburgh University, said Japan could have trouble finding enough underground space. "Japan doesn't have access to large scale carbon dioxide storage reservoirs like the UK does in the North Sea." Backstory The most high profile carbon storage project is in the North Sea, where Norwegian oil company Statoil disposes of about 1m tonnes each year. BP disposes of a similar amount below Algeria, and Chevron wants to set up a bigger version in Australia. Pipes carrying carbon dioxide criss-cross Texas, where the gas is used to recover oil, and there is a storage project in Dakota. In the UK, firms plan to build power stations that could pipe carbon dioxide under the North Sea within a decade. | ['environment/environment', 'world/japan', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'tone/comment', 'world/world', 'environment/carbon-emissions', 'environment/carbon-capture-and-storage', 'world/asia-pacific', 'type/article', 'profile/davidadam', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/international1'] | environment/carbon-capture-and-storage | EMISSIONS | 2006-06-27T14:31:51Z | true | EMISSIONS |
politics/davehillblog/2011/oct/13/metropolitan-police-record-rises-knife-crime-serious-youth-violence | London knife crime, robbery and serious youth violence increasing says Met | Knife crime, serious youth violence and robberies in London have all increased substantially in recent months compared with the same period a year ago, according to Metropolitan Police statistics. A "headline performance report" to be considered later this afternoon (Thursday) by the Metropolitan Police Authority's strategic and operational policing committee says that between April and August 2011 notifiable knife crime offences of all types rose by 17.1% (or 910 more offences) and robberies by 19.8% (2,858 more offences) compared with the same five month period last year. A separate "thematic performance report" says that knife crimes measured within a specific "violence portfolio" rose by 15.7% (up by 892 offences) and that serious youth violence went up by 11.2% (from 3,053 to 3,394 offences). I understand that Green Party London Assembly member and 2012 mayoral candidate Jenny Jones, who is a member of the committee, will be asking for further details about new Met commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe's promise to use stop-and-search in a more targeted way. The one piece of good news within the performance report about knife crime is that the percentage of such offences where a knife was used to injure someone fell by 3.3% (or by 60 offences). This figure refers to victims of all ages, but its significance might be instructively weighed in the longer-term context of the more than 30% increase in teenage and young adult knife crime injury victims over a three year period to the end of March 2011 revealed by statistics the Met provided me with in July. The headline performance report says that the serious youth violence figure "is mainly comprised of robbery (64%) and GBH (26%). This illustrates the significant crossover there will be between the serious youth violence, robbery and also the knife crime categories. The latter includes offences where a knife was used to threaten but not injure and where possession of a knife was intimated to the victim in the course of committing an offence, but not actually seen by that victim. The new statistics suggest a less optimistic story about knife crime and violent offences against young people than the one Boris Johnson has been able to tell London's voters in recent months. In July he pointed to a reduction of 8.5% in knife crime in the "violence portfolio" in March to May of this year compared with the same three months of last year, but the large increase shown in the newer figures is over a longer and more recent period. Boris has also highlighted a fall in the annual overall "youth violence" category - which includes all victims below the age of 20 - of 7.4% between May 2010 and April 2011 as compared with May 2008 to April 2009. But the latest rise in serious youth violence is a continuation of a gradual upward trend that has ocurred throughout the three years of his mayoralty. There were 6,675 such notifiable offences during 2008/09, 6,777 during 2009/10 and 6,868 during 2010/11. The headline performance report also has better news about violent crime in general. It says that within the "violence portfolio" there were "6,839 fewer crimes in the five months to August than last year," equating to a drop of 10.4%. Interestingly, it adds that this was "only slightly down on the rate of decrease of 10.8% for the 4 months to July," indicating that "the portfolio was not greatly affected by the disorders [August riots] in volume terms." The report also says that overall violent assaults have fallen. As so often, the crime glass can be seen as half empty or half full. But those numbers for knife crime, robbery and young victims of serious violence do not make cheerful reading. | ['politics/boris-johnson', 'politics/politics', 'politics/london', 'uk/london', 'society/gangs', 'society/society', 'politics/green-party', 'environment/green-politics', 'uk/police', 'uk/davehillblog', 'uk/crime-and-justice-blog', 'tone/blog', 'type/article', 'profile/davehill'] | environment/green-politics | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2011-10-13T11:33:00Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
environment/2021/oct/24/poor-ev-take-up-to-cost-australias-health-system-1tn-by-2050-modelling-shows | Poor EV take-up to cost Australia’s health system $1tn by 2050, modelling shows | Australia may be left with almost a $1tn health bill by 2050 if it doesn’t boost the take-up of electric vehicles, according to a new report released on Sunday. But this could be slashed in half by setting an ambitious target to convert every car in the country to electric by 2035. The modelling was released by the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), which commissioned accounting firm Deloitte to examine the community benefit from increasing the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs). A “bespoke economic model” was used to examine three scenarios: whereby Australia achieved net-zero road transport emissions in 2035, 2040 and 2050. These scenarios compared the cost of air, noise, water and greenhouse gas pollution caused by petrol- and diesel-powered cars, and those of EVs. Petrol cars contribute heavily to air, noise and water pollution through the particles emitted from the exhaust and through the waste grease, oil and rubber needed to run them. By contrast, electric vehicles have fewer components and more efficient motors. As this pollution leads to illness, the cost ends up being borne by the health system. The report found that under the “business as usual” scenario – where nothing is done to support uptake – costs will mount to $864.9bn by 2050, with air pollution alone amounting to $488.2bn. New South Wales and Victoria will bear the brunt as the most populous states, with costs mounting to $257.7bn and $203.6bn respectively. On a per-capita basis, the combined use of private transport and freight was greatest in Western Australia, where the cost was $43,900 per person. However, in a scenario where EVs made up 26% of the private car fleet by 2030 and 100% by 2050, Australia would avoid $233bn in costs. A more ambitious scenario where a 28% share is achieved by 2030 and full uptake in 2045 would see $335bn in costs side-stepped. A rapid transition of the entire private car fleet to EV by 2035, when coupled with better public transport systems, would see $492bn in costs avoided. • Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning Dr Eamon McGinn, a partner at Deloitte Access Economics, said while these figures were broadly understood among government departments, they are “not front of mind” for many people. “We create invisible, unborne costs whenever we go driving. Obviously we pay for fuel and the maintenance, but there are these additional costs we impose on our neighbours and our community,” McGinn said. “We think about petrol costs, we think about getting stuck in traffic. We don’t necessarily think about the noise, or the pollution coming out the tailpipe or the damage to waterways.” Matt Rose, ACF’s economy and democracy program manager, said the report was unique in that it sought to measure the cost of inaction. “Transport emissions are the second-largest source of emissions in Australia and they’re growing,” Rose said. “There is a cost to not moving and this shows what those costs are in our built-up city areas.” The report assumed that all EVs would be powered entirely by renewable energy and obtained its data from the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics, and Australian Transport Assessment and Planning guidelines. The honorary secretary of Doctors for the Environment, Dr Richard Yin, said independent research suggested the combined pollution from coal-fired power and internal combustion engines caused 5,000 deaths a year, with some studies finding the cost to the health system running as high as $24bn a year. “It’s a ginormous hidden cost,” Yin said. “Worldwide for example, there were 8 millions deaths globally in 2018. That’s a year.” While the goal should be for all electric vehicles to be entirely powered by renewable energy, Yin said there were still benefits even where the power was drawn from coal. “There are advantages even if you are sourcing power from coal-fired power stations because the vehicles are more efficient,” he said. “The benefits are just multiplied when we transition to renewable energy and get rid of coal-fired power stations as well.” | ['environment/electric-vehicles-australia', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'environment/environment', 'environment/air-pollution', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/royce-kurmelovs', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/air-pollution | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2021-10-23T19:00:50Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
business/2023/jun/25/solar-powers-ahead-with-hopes-of-a-renewables-record-for-solstice-month | Solar powers ahead with hopes of a renewables record for solstice month | Britain’s solar industry delivered record levels of renewable electricity to the power grid earlier this year, but as daylight hours stretch longer around the summer solstice, it could be on track to reach another record. Solar power generation in June is on track to come within a hair’s breadth of the record set during an unusually sunny May in 2020 at about 20 gigawatt hours, according to Alastair Buckley, the professor of organic electronics at the University of Sheffield. That is perfect timing for the largest solar power industry gathering of the year, at a summit in London this week, and a chance for many to reflect on the resurgence of sunlight in the grid, in the years since the Conservative government brought the industry to its knees by slashing subsidies. More importantly, it will be a chance to look ahead to a new dawn. The solar industry has been easy to underestimate in a country better known for dull drizzly days than blue skies. But it has enjoyed steady growth, is far cheaper than headline-grabbing nuclear investments and far less conspicuous than fields of wind turbines. Solar power made up 4.4% of the UK’s electricity needs in 2022, but the annual figures belie a far greater impact in the summer. Solar regularly accounts for more than 25% of demand when it is producing peak output during the sunnier months. It has also seen a step change in demand due to falling technology costs and a growing desire for cheap, secure energy supplies. Last year, the number of rooftop installations in the UK doubled, according to MCS, an accreditation scheme. It found that a total of 130,596 systems were mounted on UK rooftops in 2022, the same number as in the three previous years combined. In total, the UK has about 15 gigawatts of solar power capacity across the country, according to the industry body Solar Energy UK. The government hopes to increase this to 70GW by 2035. This ambition is not without challenges. Surging demand has led to one of the longest queues for a grid connection in Europe, with many solar developers being told they will have to wait more than a decade. The outcry over delays, which threaten the UK’s solar aims and legally binding climate targets, underlines the appetite for homegrown solar energy. National Grid, which manages the connections process, has begun an urgent review and hopes to ease the gridlock in the coming years. Worldwide, growth in solar is expected to rocket. The International Energy Agency believes the global energy crisis will give way to a boom in spending on affordable, homegrown renewable energy, with solar likely to emerge as the fastest growing source of renewable electricity. Solar power is set to almost triple between 2022 and 2027, to surpass coal as the biggest source of electricity capacity in the world, it said. This year, investment in solar power is likely to eclipse spending on oil production for the first time, the IEA added. The next week’s weather will determine whether June emerges as the solar industry’s latest record-breaking month. At the UK solar summit, energy executives and investors will determine how best to navigate the technology’s enormous growth potential in the long term. For the industry, it’s a sunny forecast ahead. | ['business/energy-industry', 'environment/solarpower', 'environment/energy', 'environment/environment', 'environment/renewableenergy', 'business/business', 'uk/uk', 'business/series/observer-business-agenda', 'type/article', 'tone/analysis', 'profile/jillian-ambrose', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/business', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-business'] | environment/energy | ENERGY | 2023-06-24T23:05:20Z | true | ENERGY |
media/2006/jun/13/newmedia.bbc | World Cup viewers go interactive | Nearly 2 million viewers pressed their Sky Digital red buttons to access BBC World Cup interactive services - including alternatives to John Motson's love-it-or-hate-it TV commentary - in the first three days of the tournament. Across eight live World Cup matches between Friday and Sunday, including England's 1-0 victory over Paraguay, 1.8 million viewers hit the interactive red button on their Sky Digital remote control, according to a BBC spokeswoman. This compares with a total of 9 million people using the BBC interactive service during the Athens Olympics two years ago. BBC World Cup interactive services are also available to viewers with digital cable and Freeview, but the spokeswoman said that no audited usage figures were available for these platforms. The spokeswoman added that the BBC is also unable to break down the red button interactive usage figures further to show exactly how many viewers have been seeking alternative audio feeds to the regular BBC1 commentary featuring Motson. Audio is one of the four BBC interactive services available during matches, along with a choice of highlights, goals and England news. Viewers taking the audio option can choose to listen to the Radio 5 Live commentators, a children's commentary, or live match sound, instead of the BBC TV commentary. The BBC's World Cup interactive service also offers viewers the chance to watch further studio comment and analysis after BBC1 goes to other programming, and full replays of matches overnight. · To contact the MediaGuardian newsdesk email editor@mediatheguardian.com or phone 020 7239 9857 · If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication". | ['media/digital-media', 'media/bbc', 'media/television', 'media/media', 'media/worldcupthemedia', 'type/article', 'profile/jasondeans'] | media/worldcupthemedia | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE | 2006-06-13T11:34:46Z | true | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE |
commentisfree/2018/dec/02/if-you-thought-snake-plisskens-new-york-was-a-dangerous-place | If you thought Snake Plissken’s New York was a dangerous place... | Kevin McKenna | Film reviewers often reach for a clutch of well-thumbed words and phrases to convey a sense of time and place quickly. This is not a criticism. These reviewers are rarely given sufficient space to explore often complicated themes of several films at a time. A familiar locution, understood by all readers, allows them to cut to the action, as it were. “Dystopian nightmare” is one of them and when I see this deployed by my favourite reviewers my interest is piqued. To my mind, the dystopian nightmare by which all others must be measured is Escape From New York. This 1981 John Carpenter masterpiece works on several levels. It’s often described as “cult”, another idiom that tells you there will be no rocky but ultimately pleasing romance in the middle of it. Instead, there is an edgy undercurrent that induces emotional disorientation in the watcher. It can’t be long now until we get zombie love stories (love bites obligatory) and zombies saving the president by eating all the kidnappers on Air Force One. Escape From New York is the dystopian’s dystopia. With Frank Doubleday’s first vulpine cackle as the malevolent clown/gangster, Romero, you begin to feel gloriously uneasy. And it gave us Kurt Russell’s Snake Plissken, the finest antihero (and antihero’s name) of them all. But it works, like all good dystopian nightmare movies, because it suggests that the bleak future scenario it depicts is not beyond the realms of distinct possibility, in this case, a walled and decaying New York city being turned into the national penitentiary for America’s most violent criminals. These types of film also spark the imaginations of both left and right. Left-leaning punters see in them the inevitable consequences of rampant and authoritarian capitalism, while rightwingers nod approvingly and ask why we can’t introduce such a system now. Yet I fear for the future of dystopian apocalypse films. When we currently have the leader of the world’s most powerful country routinely targeting ethnic communities and preaching hatred of minorities every time he opens his mouth, the dystopian nightmare is close at hand. And when the newly elected leader of Brazil, the biggest country in South America, openly discusses ethnic genocide you know that dystopia has been turned up to apocalypse. Although, admittedly, nothing will beat wee Romero blasting away at Donald Pleasance as the US president in his underpants holding a briefcase with the nuclear codes. In Scotland last week, a dystopian nightmare was painted by the Herald under the headline “Blackouts, deaths and civil unrest: warning over our rush to go green”. This was a report quoting the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland (IESIS) warning of “deaths, severe societal and industrial disruption, civil disturbance and loss of production”. According to IESIS, society has become imperilled by an over-reliance on uncertain green energy that has left some holes in the electricity system. When you add to this the expected dire consequences of Brexit, you could be forgiven for scanning the horizon for signs of the four horsemen and yon pale rider chappie and not the Clint Eastwood one either. I immediately thought of the film franchise The Purge, in which citizens are given a full day each year to come and go as they please without any legal redress. In this way, the authorities sought to address a recent uncontrollable rise in violent crime. As films depicting dystopian nightmares go, The Purge wasn’t bad but suffered from a huge plot hole. If you knew in advance when the day of chaos would be, you’d simply arrange not to be around for a couple of days and take a wee break in the Highlands, although you might risk being picked up on a lonely road by a comely alien looking like Scarlett Johansson who injects you with dope juice before you live your life out as a cow on a farm. And what’s the point of a dystopian apocalypse if you don’t get the chance to overthrow big capital and kill the bill? In Scotland, at least, according to our top engineers and our most authoritative newspaper, we need to be looking at the price of an underground bunker or at least seek out the wellies and cagoules for a couple of nights up Glencoe. Scotland’s own version of The Purge could be about to happen any day and night now. Nor do I think this would necessarily be a bad thing. Many of our people have been living in dystopia since the day they were born. To them, society was founded on anarchic principles, but with a twist: only the richest and most influential people in society get to operate above the rule of law. The norm for them is to avoid paying taxes and use their vast wealth to change or delay legislation and bring an entire country to the brink of financial ruin in the knowledge that they will never be prosecuted. In turn, they allow the world’s most powerful criminals to use their biggest city as a laundry for dirty money. If the lights were to go out and we were to have an extended period of civil unrest, it might be an opportunity for those on the receiving end of UK society’s unequal equation to even up the game. It could be like a 24-hour version of the conveyor belt on Bruce Forsyth’s Generation Game... on acid, with everything up for grabs. • Kevin McKenna is an Observer columnist | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'inequality/inequality', 'film/film', 'film/john-carpenter', 'society/society', 'society/poverty', 'uk/scotland', 'film/kurt-russell', 'tone/comment', 'uk/uk', 'environment/energy', 'environment/renewableenergy', 'type/article', 'profile/kevin-mckenna', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/comment', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/observer-comment'] | environment/renewableenergy | ENERGY | 2018-12-02T05:59:25Z | true | ENERGY |
news/2011/aug/14/weatherwatch-weather-derivatives | Weatherwatch: weather derivatives | The business of weather derivatives is growing fast. Unlike weather insurance that deals in extremes like floods, weather derivatives pay out on departures from average conditions. A simple example is an ice cream manufacturer who pays a premium against a cooler than average summer. Each day the temperature is below an agreed average then the manufacture gets a pay-out, but if it is a hot summer and ice cream sales boom then the premium costs are more than met from profits. There are many versions. The construction industry loses in cold winters because bricks cannot be laid in frosty conditions. Too many cold days and companies could face costly penalties because of failing to meet construction deadlines. Utilities, on the other hand, lose profits in mild winters. But not all derivatives involve paying premiums. There are swaps on offer, for example a colder than average winter with lots of snow is good for the skiing industry but expensive for the highway authority that has to clear roads. A swap could be arranged with the skiers paying for road clearing in the event of a bad winter and the highway authority subsidising the ski resort if it does not snow. Many businesses are dependent on "average weather." Chocolate sales drop and tanning saloons empty in hot weather while gardening, barbeque and cider sales suffer in cooler summers. White water rafters can pay premiums to guard against too high or too low river flows. | ['news/series/weatherwatch', 'tone/features', 'uk/weather', 'money/insurance', 'type/article', 'profile/paulbrown', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/weather2'] | news/series/weatherwatch | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2011-08-14T22:00:04Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
lifeandstyle/2017/may/17/fondoodler-gadget-review-hot-cheese-glue-gun-rhik-samadder | Kitchen gadgets review: Fondoodler – the perfect device for our times | What? The Fondoodler ($30, fondoodler.com) is a hollow cartridge and ratcheted plunger mounted in a nozzled pistol, with heated tip. Discharges cheese. Why? Want to eat food that looks like radioactive worm casts and will eventually kill you? You, my friend, are in luck. Well? Some people believe a supreme intelligence loved us so much, he left us alone, to make our own choices. How would we live, what would we create? Behold the Fondoodler, an electric dairy glue gun that lets you pipe hot cheese like Polyfilla. “Lightly pull trigger until cheese extrudes from tip,” read the instructions, and you can’t help but think: “My God, what have we done?” I’m looking at it right now, and I still don’t know what it is. First impressions are that it resembles one of those “pump up your junk” home devices that, once Googled, will be advertised to you for ever (#apparently #whoknows #notme). I push the cartridge through a block of red leicester – like taking a punch biopsy – then return it to the gun, and plug in to heat. The process “works” with any cheese – I pull the trigger and orange discharge wriggles forth on to Ryvita, where I write my name in coagulating fat. Then I draw some boobs, and then I’m out of ideas. Actively trying to doodle defeats the point, whatever the point of doodling with cheese is in the first place. Fondoodler’s Instagram page suggest using hot monterey jack as mortar to build a cabin made of crackers. Fat chance. No one is going to do that, or follow the safety note that advises “do not apply melted cheese directly on to skin”. Because this is a tool destined for an accident on a stag-do hazing. I can picture the groom, comatose in a Czech Republic dormitory, while friends violently epilate his most intimate hairs and draw cheese ones on instead. But this is what we want, isn’t it? The final word in idiocy, a device so pointless it can only be understood as art, and so messy it turns snacks into dirty protests. What is it? The perfect gadget for our times. Redeeming features? When Fonzie from Happy Days was finally arrested (he would be, he was older than those other kids, and his “office” was a toilet) I imagine the Fondoodler could be his prison nickname. Counter, drawer, back of the cupboard? Landfill, or the Smithsonian. I honestly don’t know. 1/5 | ['lifeandstyle/series/inspect-a-gadget', 'food/cheese', 'food/food', 'lifeandstyle/lifeandstyle', 'lifeandstyle/homes', 'technology/gadgets', 'technology/technology', 'tone/features', 'type/article', 'profile/rhik-samadder', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/g2', 'theguardian/g2/features', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-g2-features'] | technology/gadgets | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE | 2017-05-17T11:44:30Z | true | UNRELATED_TO_CLIMATE |
environment/2016/aug/08/for-a-secure-energy-future-there-are-far-better-investments-than-hinkley | For a secure energy future, there are far better investments than Hinkley | John Sauven | Hinkley Point C, the multibillion pound nuclear deal, years in the making, is on the cusp of unravelling. At the last minute, the government has hit the pause button in order to take a hard look at what Hinkley is offering in return for £37bn of energy consumers’ money. The voices of opposition are growing. Even newspapers which have supported the nuclear industry are raising doubts. Its supporters chant the same mantra: there is no alternative, Britain needs Hinkley to keep the lights on. That was the warning from the then business secretary, John Hutton, in 2008 yet the lights are still on and Lord Hutton is now the chairman of the Nuclear Industry Association. But the world - and the electricity landscape - has changed radically since 2008.Then, just 5.5% of the UK’s electricity came from renewables. It’s now 25%. Costs have plummeted – solar photovoltaic is 50% cheaper than it was in 2011, onshore wind is down 43%. More than 800,000 homes now have rooftop solar and the UK was recently ranked sixth in the world for total solar capacity - despite our weather. It is ranked first in the world for offshore wind, which is on course to supply 10% of our power by 2020, much more than Hinkley C. The cost for wind and solar is coming down too. The way we increasingly get our energy is changing. The former chief executive of the National Grid, Steve Holliday, said that the idea that we need nuclear power stations to provide baseload electricity is “outdated”. Baseload is the trump card of Hinkley’s supporters: how do we keep the lights on when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing? But the National Grid predicts that in some scenarios by 2020, small-scale and distributed generation will represent a third of total capacity in the UK. The future is more local and in our control. It will also provide more jobs and greater energy security at increasingly lower cost. Intermittent supply is already being tackled with interconnectors - basically, huge cables connecting the UK with European countries like Norway to manage variations in supply coming from renewables. They could be hugely expanded. But renewables and interconnectors are only part of the answer. Electricity demand is not constant. At peak times, there can be up to 50% more demand compared to the average – typically when people get home from work in the early evening and prepare their evening meal, especially in winter. This demand needs to be met with power generation which can be switched on, sometimes at very short notice. Hydropower does this – with reservoirs in places like Scotland, Wales and Sweden being filled up at a time of low demand, so water can be released through turbines when demand is high. Existing gas-fired plants can also be fired up at short notice, but this comes with a carbon cost. The point is to use it only when back up is required and only until alternatives become mainstream. The real leap forward will come with improved storage. You can also look at energy demand another way. Rather than building lots of extra capacity to meet intermittent peaks, could those peaks be lower by shutting down demand where and when it’s not needed? Google and Tesla are already experimenting with smart energy – managing how gadgets are switched on and off. Energy systems and the thinking behind them are changing fast. What happened in just a few years with telephones - where we moved from centralised exchanges and fixed landlines to mobile phones - is about to happen with energy systems. Hinkley is a roadblock in this transition. And then there’s the Cinderella of them all - energy efficiency. The less we use, the easier the problem is to solve. If all street lights were switched to LED bulbs we could take half a GW of demand off the grid with ease. If all homes did the same, we’d save 2.7GW of power at peak use - that’s nearly the equivalent of Hinkley by just changing the lightbulbs. The UK has come a long way since 2008 – the year parliament passed the Climate Change Act, which committed the UK to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 compared to 1990 levels. We are already halfway there with emissions down 40%. A low-carbon future is essential. So is energy security and affordable energy. If we are to deliver on all three, there is a huge investment opportunity across renewable energy, interconnectors, energy storage, smart grids and energy efficiency. We mustn’t squander that money and opportunity on Hinkley Point C. • We would like to publish your ideas about how to power Britain. Please send them to john.sauven@greenpeace.org. | ['environment/energy', 'environment/environment', 'environment/nuclearpower', 'environment/energyefficiency', 'environment/solarpower', 'environment/windpower', 'environment/wave-tidal-hydropower', 'business/energy-industry', 'technology/energy', 'business/business', 'environment/renewableenergy', 'technology/technology', 'type/article', 'tone/comment', 'profile/johnsauven', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-environment'] | environment/renewableenergy | ENERGY | 2016-08-08T13:41:03Z | true | ENERGY |
australia-news/2022/mar/23/climate-change-spat-splits-lismore-council-in-flood-aftermath | Climate change spat splits Lismore council in flood aftermath | The Lismore council has been gripped by in-fighting over whether it should make references to “climate change” following the flood disaster and a decision to pause its work on flood mitigation despite warnings the “optics” of doing so were “not good”. The disaster-ravaged town is still in the early stages of recovering from an unprecedented 14.4-metre flood, which wiped out thousands of homes and businesses and brought Lismore to its knees. On Tuesday, in a late-night sitting, Lismore council proposed a message of thanks to volunteers and the community for their efforts in the immediate response and clean-up effort. It included a line saying the council “acknowledges we are likely to experience further disasters of this nature as climate change continues to escalate”. The words “climate change” prompted a reaction from four councillors, led by independent councillor Big Rob, who attempted to have the reference removed and replaced with a line saying “we are definitely going to experience further disasters of this nature”. Rob – who says he does not deny climate change but likes to “stir up lefties” – said he did not think a message of community support was the right place to make “political” statements about climate change. “That motion was about thanking people, not being political about climate change,” he said. Rob was supported by three other councillors, including Andrew Gordon, who told the Guardian it was “piss poor” to add a climate change reference to a statement thanking the community. Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning The effort to delete the reference to climate change failed. But it rankled other councillors, including Greens councillor Adam Guise, who first proposed the climate change reference be added. “They tried to couch it as not politicising it,” Guise said . “But this is the whole thing about climate change, it’s not political, it’s science.” The dispute came amid further divisions within council over a decision to halt the work of a key committee working to improve flood mitigation measures in Lismore. That occurred despite councillors acknowledging the “optics” of pausing the flood mitigation committee so soon after a disaster were “not good”. The council has also sacked members of the Lismore community who were on a community reference group advising council on flood mitigation. On Tuesday, at 11pm, the council decided to pause the work of the floodplain committee to wait for more information from CSIRO, which has been given $10m to explore flood mitigation measures in the region. Lismore council decided it should hold off doing any further work on flood mitigation of its own until it understood what CSIRO was doing. But councillor Vanessa Ekins, who chairs the committee, warned that could take months. She said pausing the committee was “very dangerous ground” and would not look good to Lismore residents. “We have just been through a big flood, we are still experiencing that and for us to send a message out there that we are pausing work that we have been working really hard on for years until we hear what the CSIRO are doing … they might take six months to tell us what they’re doing,” she said. “This could take a really, really long time and meanwhile our community has no guidance from us, we’re not doing anything, we’ve paused the consultation we’re currently engaged in until someone else tells us what they’re doing.” She said the decision was “absolutely outrageous”. “It’s really important that our flood plain committee continues the work that it’s been doing for the last five years on mitigating the impacts of flooding on the CBD and residences,” she said. “We were in the middle of a consultation process with members of the community about various options.” Others were furious that community members had been sacked from the committee so soon after the floods. “We had community members on that committee with five years’ experience and expertise in understanding the mitigation options that were before us,” councillor Elly Bird said. “To throw all of that experience away, I don’t support it.” | ['australia-news/australia-east-coast-floods-2022', 'australia-news/new-south-wales', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'australia-news/australia-weather', 'environment/flooding', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/christopher-knaus', 'profile/michael-mcgowan', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-state-news'] | environment/flooding | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2022-03-23T04:20:25Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
news/2011/mar/24/weatherwatch-weather-kites | Weatherwatch: When kites helped to measure the weather | March winds are ideal for kite flying, not just for fun but also for meteorological purposes. The first experiments with kites were carried out in Glasgow in 1749, when two students used them to measure the temperature at high altitudes. Benjamin Franklin's 1752 kite experiment with lightning is well known, but weather kites became popular for the less hazardous and more mundane task of daily data gathering for many years. Of course balloons were also used to carry instruments aloft, but kites are cheaper, simpler and much easier to handle in high winds. By 1899 the US Weather Bureau had 17 kite stations, each of which regularly lifted instruments to 8,000ft using a train of several kites joined together. The standard "moderate wind" kite was about 2 metres by 2 metres. Light wind kites were used when the breeze was less than 8mph, and heavy-duty ones when it was above 30mph. The kites were of a box design, made of spruce with cambric cloth. Piano wire was used for kite string, and kite trains needed to be hauled back with a steam-powered windlass, housed in a reel house mounted on a turntable to face into the wind. Each kite train carried a meteorgraph, a combined instrument package which recorded temperature, wind velocity, humidity, and barometric pressure. While weather kites have been largely superseded, they still have their uses, and are still employed by the British Antarctic Survey. | ['news/series/weatherwatch', 'tone/features', 'type/article', 'profile/davidhambling', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/weather2'] | news/series/weatherwatch | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2011-03-24T00:05:02Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
lifeandstyle/2014/sep/15/how-to-reupholster-an-office-chair | How to reupholster an office chair | Office chairs are probably among the least sexy items of furniture around, and when the covers are worn or dirty they’re even less appealing. But in only three hours you can bring colour and character to your workspace with this surprisingly simple project. If you don’t already have a suitable chair, they are readily available second-hand: try Freecycle or Freegle, Furniture Reuse Network, Gumtree or eBay. You will need: Spanner Screwdriver Small plastic bags or pots Staple lift Pliers Pattern cutting paper Chalk Scissors Heavy-duty staple gun and staples 1m flame-retardant calico ¾ m each of two different cover fabrics (or 1m of one fabric) ½ m black fabric Car dashboard polish 1) Locate the bolts and screws that attach the fabric pads to the plastic back and seat of the chair. Use the spanner and screwdriver to remove these and separate each pad from the plastic structure. Depending on the style of chair, the back pad may have to be popped out of its plastic casing – a long screwdriver or crowbar can be used to lever it out. Take brief notes or photographs of each step as you are disassembling the chair so that you know the sequence for putting it back together. Keep the screws and bolts in two separate plastic bags or pots, one for the back and one for the seat. 2) Place the seat pad and back pad on a table and use the staple lift to remove all the staples, separating the fabric cover from the foam and wood layer underneath. If the staples are very firmly stuck, or break during removal, you can use pliers to get them out. Discard the staples and place the fabric covers, foam and wood layer to one side to clear space on the table. 3) Roll out your cutting paper. Place the fabric covers you have removed on to the cutting paper and chalk around the outline of each piece. Label them “back” and “seat” and cut them both out of the paper. 4) Bring out your chosen fabrics. Place your cut-out paper patterns on to the fabric(s) and cut around them. You may use one fabric for the whole chair, or different ones for the back and seat – at the Remakery we often use a plain one for the seat and a patterned one in a complementary colour for the back. If you’re comfortable with sewing you can also get more creative, for example adding a corner or a stripe in a different fabric. The fabric should be of a suitable weight for upholstery. If it is not flame-retardant, you will need to add a lining of flame-retardant calico, cut to the same shape as the covers. 5) If you are using a calico lining, place the cut-out lining on to the table and position the back pad in the centre of it. Bring the left hand side of the fabric over the edge of the back plate and staple it to the wooden surface. Do the same with the right hand side, making sure the fabric is firmly stretched between the two. Then work your way around the fabric along the lower edge and then the top edge, keeping the fabric firmly stretched all around and stapled in place. At corners, gather the fabric and fold it together before stapling it. While stapling, make sure that you avoid the screw and bolt holes. 6) Repeat step 5 using your chosen fabric over the lining (or on its own if it’s a flame-retardant fabric). 7) Repeat steps 5 and 6 for the seat pad. 8) Take a piece of black fabric (or another dark colour) to make the “dust sheet” for the underside of the seat cushion. To cut this to size, place the seat pad on top of the fabric and cut around it, allowing about half an inch extra all the way around. Fold this edge under to form a hem as you staple around the edge of the dust sheet, over the stapled edges of the cover fabric. 9) Reassemble the chair using the screws and bolts removed in step 1, and enjoy your stylish new seating. If the plastic base and back are dirty or scratched you can restore them with car dashboard polish. Hannah Lewis is the director of the Remakery, a south London-based community workshop for reuse, repair and upcycling. Rosey Walbancke is a retired upholsterer who shares her skills at the Remakery. Interested in finding out more about how you can live better? Take a look at this month’s Live Better challenge here. The Live Better Challenge is funded by Unilever; its focus is sustainable living. All content is editorially independent except for pieces labelled advertisement feature. Find out more here. | ['lifeandstyle/live-better', 'lifeandstyle/series/live-better-how-to-mend', 'lifeandstyle/diy', 'lifeandstyle/lifeandstyle', 'lifeandstyle/craft', 'environment/recycling', 'environment/ethical-living', 'environment/waste', 'type/article'] | environment/waste | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2014-09-16T11:10:56Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2016/may/29/australia-covered-up-un-climate-change-fears-for-tasmania-forests-and-kakadu | Australia covered up UN climate change fears for Tasmania forests and Kakadu | A draft UN report on climate change, which was scrubbed of all reference to Australia over fears it could deter visitors to the Great Barrier Reef, also outlined possible threats to the Tasmania wilderness and Kakadu. The draft report contained a chapter on the Great Barrier Reef, which described climate change as “the biggest long-term threat to the [reef] today, and to its ecosystems services, biodiversity, heritage values and tourism economy”. It concluded that “without a comprehensive response more in keeping with the scale of the threat, the [reef]’s extraordinary biodiversity and natural beauty may lose its world heritage values”. But before it was scrubbed, the report had two other key sections on Australian world heritage sites, and the threats they face from climate change. One of those sections was on the Tasmanian wilderness. At the time the report was being reviewed by the Australian government, in early 2016, that wilderness was just starting to burn, in what unfolded to be a catastrophic bushfire in regions that had never burned before. Those fires were a result of increased lightning activity and drier conditions, which are consequences of climate change. At the time, the Tasmanian premier, Will Hodgman, criticised conservationists for their “hysterical response,” again worrying about the impact it would have on tourism. “It’s damn ordinary that you’ve got environmental activists almost gleefully capitalising on images, naturally caused, which could inflict significant damage on our brand, our reputation,” he said. “The threat is still ongoing, but Tasmania’s tourism industry, particularly in our magnificent world heritage area and the national parks, is well and true open,” he told Fairfax Media. But the censored section of the Unesco report on Tasmania is clear about the “dire” nature of the threat. It said: “A 2013 assessment of climate threats identified the same habitats as at high risk from greater fire frequency and drier conditions, with likely catastrophic implications for fauna. These dire predictions appeared to be playing out in January 2016, when tens of thousands of hectares of forest burned, sparked by lightning strikes that came in a month when temperatures were 2C above average and in the wake of the driest two-year period ever recorded for the region.” The deleted section on Kakadu national park contained similarly dire warnings. It described the important natural and cultural values of Kakadu, which has been inhabited by Aboriginal people for 50,000 years. “The thousands of rock art sites in the park are at risk from damage by more extreme rainfall events, while sea level rise is happening at twice the global average along the northern Australian coast,” the draft report said. It warned that fresh-water wetlands were at risk from sea level rise, as they are likely to be inundated with salt water. “Climate change threatens Aboriginal traditional use by altering the ecosystems of the vast wetlands of Kakadu and raising temperatures to a level likely to lead to more intense fire regimes,” the report said. The final version of the report entitled “World heritage and tourism in a changing climate” was published last week by Unesco, United Nations environment programme and the Union of Concerned Scientists, with all references to Australia removed. The lead author of the report, Adam Markham, told Guardian Australia: “I was shocked when I read in the Guardian the reasons the Australian government gave for why they had pressured Unesco to drop the Australian sites.” | ['environment/climate-crisis', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'australia-news/australian-politics', 'world/unitednations', 'australia-news/northern-territory', 'australia-news/queensland', 'environment/great-barrier-reef', 'australia-news/tasmania', 'environment/conservation', 'environment/endangered-habitats', 'australia-news/bushfires', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/michael-slezak', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-news'] | environment/great-barrier-reef | BIODIVERSITY | 2016-05-29T07:59:40Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
environment/2013/nov/21/solar-industry-facing-job-losses | Solar industry facing job losses as household panels takeup tapers off | One in ten Australian homes now has solar panels but takeup has levelled off and the solar industry is facing significant job losses due, in part, to unhelpful government policies, according to a new report. The study found that falling installation costs have fuelled adoption of household solar, with 1.1m solar panel photovoltaic (PV) systems, encompassing 13% of Australian households, now installed. But while Australia now ranks seventh in the world for solar market share, albeit a long way behind world-leading Germany, growth has tapered off, with installations in 2013 set to be 22% down on last year. This contraction, the report warns, risks 3,400 solar industry jobs over the next 12 months. Currently, the sector employs around 18,500 people. The report was commissioned by the REC Agents Association (RAA), which represents companies that trade in renewable energy certificates, and was undertaken by Green Energy Markets. “The level of activity in the residential solar industry may well have peaked,” the report states. “The industry is now going through a consolidation process and faces a number of challenges. “The future of the residential solar market in Australia may depend on finding new ways of refinancing the cost to customers, tax changes to make solar leasing more attractive and finding new markets, such as renters and low-income earners.” The report identifies a number of challenges facing the solar industry, including the removal of feed-in tariffs by state governments and an upcoming review of the 20% Renewable Energy Target, which the renewables sector has blamed for creating investment uncertainty. RAA called on the government to “reaffirm its strong support” for the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme, which creates a financial incentive for small solar systems. The organisation said it does, however, welcome the Coalition’s Million Solar Roofs program, which helps low-income households install solar. Ric Brazzale, CEO of Green Energy Markets and president of the RAA, told Guardian Australia that the industry was going through an “adjustment phase”. “There are a few factors for this – all the states have removed feed-in tariffs and we are seeing some states, such as Queensland, reach saturation point,” he said. “We’ve also got a new government that wants to review the Renewable Energy Target, which creates additional uncertainty for solar companies. “There are issues, but we are taking a positive view. We’ve been engaging quite well with the government. I think they are more pro-solar than wind, because they can see it has been embraced by a lot of Australians and it is a significant employer in regional Australia. “Renewables will certainly have to play an increasing role in meeting the 5% emissions cut target. Solar will have an important play.” A spokesman for Greg Hunt, the environment minister, told Guardian Australia that the solar industry has a “very bright future”. “The government is committed to a million roofs solar policy,” he said. “It is part of our Cleaner Environment Plan for Australia. It supports our commitment to both reduce electricity prices for families while also meeting our climate change targets. “This will not only assist households and community groups with the cost of electricity, but provided stability for the solar industry. “The government supports local manufacturing and the solar industry and will ensure the industry has a stable policy framework for the future.” | ['environment/solarpower', 'australia-news/australia-news', 'environment/energy', 'environment/renewableenergy', 'environment/energyefficiency', 'money/household-bills', 'australia-news/australian-politics', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/oliver-milman'] | environment/solarpower | ENERGY | 2013-11-21T06:04:40Z | true | ENERGY |
us-news/2021/sep/06/i-dont-have-a-choice-hurricane-ida-leaves-devastated-louisiana-communities-struggling-with-new-reality | ‘I don’t have a choice’: Hurricane Ida leaves devastated Louisiana communities struggling with new reality | As they sifted through the wreckage of their childhood home in Mount Airy, members of the Robinson family were hunting for memories. They came in the form of a dozen family photo albums, somehow preserved amid the rubble. There was nothing much else to salvage as most of the house was destroyed. It had been in the family for generations, built and preserved with toil and hard work. Judy Robinson, 70, had raised her two children here, working as a plant operator at a nearby Marathon Oil refinery and then living on income support as a retiree. Her daughter, Gayle Robinson, struggled as she watched Judy’s reaction to seeing home for the first time since Hurricane Ida struck seven days ago. “I have never seen her look how she looked,” she said, outside in the oppressive heat. “Confused. Lost for words. It’s like someone threw a grenade into the house.” As cable news channels pivoted away from Ida’s destruction in south-east Louisiana over the weekend, the storm only a week into history, thousands of people, including the Robinson family, were still coming to terms with a new reality. Power is gradually returning to New Orleans, with hopes for full restoration by the middle of this week, but residents here in St John the Baptist parish, just 35 miles (56km) away and which took a harder hit than New Orleans, look set for at least another two weeks waiting. The Robinson family had evacuated during the storm, fanning out across Louisiana and Texas and now returning for the first time on Sunday. Their family home is just a few miles from where president Joe Biden visited on Friday, promising: “We’re not going to leave any community behind.” But for Gayle Robinson, the words were beginning to feel a little hollow. She had tried and failed to reach the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), the US government agency tasked with managing the aftermath of disasters, to request a tarp for her mother’s decimated roof in order to protect the remains inside. It left her questioning what resources were available to assist. “You’ve got to do more than just show up. We need support,” she said, clutching a family photo album. “It’s not about a show and tell. People’s lives are at stake right now. They have lost everything, when they have worked so hard to provide for their families. And right now, Fema are not trying to help.” With limited funds available and faltering federal government assistance, the family worried they would be forced to live out of their car in a matter of days. Down the street, Sterling Bazilet, 63, sat out on the half of his front porch that remained. The rest was strewn as rubble over the roadside. A retired pipe fitter, who has lived here all his life, Bazilet was unable to evacuate as his truck was broken down. He had been living without power and no generator for the past seven days, finding comfortable sleep nearly impossible in the still, stifling late summer air. “With no electricity there’s no way to keep cool,” he said, sitting topless. Fema had not reached his home yet either, but a group of church volunteers had begun to tarp his roof and the left side of his home, almost completely destroyed. Without power or connectivity, Bazilet was not even aware Biden had visited on Friday. “I have no telephone service, so I have no way of knowing a thing,” he said. ‘I don’t know how much more of this I can take’ Officials in St John the Baptist parish have issued an area-wide water boil advisory and told residents to limit “all non-essential sewer services”. There are three food, ice and water handouts throughout the parish, which is comprised of 42,000 residents, 58% of whom are Black. The roadway between Mount Airy and the neighboring town of Reserve gives a small taste of the continuing catastrophe here. In the heart of the region’s “Cancer Alley”, a heavily industrialized region between New Orleans and Baton Rouge with some of the most polluted air in America, petrochemical plants with flaring stacks frame the felled trees and shattered homes. One main road remains blocked after a grain export elevator, owned by the agricultural giant Cargill, collapsed during the storm. In Reserve, many families and residents have left amid widespread destruction. But of the handful still present on Sunday, some were attempting to keep their spirits up. Brian Millet, a 59-year-old drummer and DJ, had bought a generator, allowing him to blast big band jazz onto the empty streets through a loudspeaker. He had cobbled together some coals and cuts of meat and was barbequing by his home, battered by Ida and sustaining significant roof damage. The six sausages, two steaks and handful of chicken wings were supposed to last the next three days, he said. “I’m thankful for what I have.” Millet lost his home over a decade ago when Hurricane Gustav hit Louisiana in 2008. As Ida’s floodwaters crept into his new home , he thought about that experience all over again. Millet had been handed a roof tarp by local volunteers, but he had no means to put it in place. He has splints in both his legs and suffers with diabetes, high blood pressure and carpal tunnel syndrome. But as grey skies loomed on the horizon and rain began to fall, Millet’s spirits took a turn. He worried his roof would leak again, and the water put out the fire on his barbeque. “I don’t know how much more of this I can take,” he said. “But I don’t have a choice.” | ['us-news/us-news', 'world/hurricanes', 'us-news/louisiana', 'type/article', 'tone/features', 'profile/laughland-oliver', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-foreign'] | world/hurricanes | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2021-09-06T10:00:17Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
commentisfree/2008/aug/13/billbryson.waste | Maggie Brown: Litter bugged | One of the great things about traveling is that you pick up on things that the guidebooks and the seasoned experts never tell you about. I've just spent three weeks touring northern California and, along with my family, we were all struck by one wonderful fact. Cleanliness. There was no litter. Not in the public transport system, Bart, serving the San Francisco Bay area, nor in the national parks of Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, the Redwoods of Muir Forest, nor the pristine Tomales Bay of Marin county. Even though a baseball game at the San Francisco Giants stadium turned into a huge fast food munch-in, the debris was minimal. At Lake Merritt, in gritty Oakland, where we passed some hours at its sweet children's theme park, Fairyland, the lunch-time trash was carefully deposited, parents carefully collecting children's Coke cans. Now I arrive home to find that American-born Bill Bryson is lecturing Britain about being a nation of disgusting fly-tipping litterbugs. How right he is. But I think there are profound cultural differences. First, fines and enforcement. I was so struck by the complete lack of litter, that I asked a recently retired state trooper from Pleasanton, in the Bay area, why this should be. He said that the prominently displayed warnings, of a $1,000 fine for litter across the state, was one reason - he had handed out plenty of fines in his time. Yet there were no litter warnings or state troopers around on the shores of Lake Tahoe, a Sierra Nevada gem, which were infested, daily, with families obsessively conducting barbeques. In Yosemite, more than two million people visit its valley areas, lakes, waterfalls and viewing points, which were all clean as a whistle. In part, perhaps, this urge to clear up in national parks is driven by personal safety; a fear of wild bears (we saw four). Everywhere there are warnings to place litter (as well as food) in bear-proof receptacles. But there is also, I suspect, a deeply inbred respect, within the American psyche, for its fantastic natural environment. A shared pride in some of the most pristine and magnificent countryside in the world. To this Briton's eye, I'd also note that this wilderness is accessible - a week's family car pass to Yosemite is just $20, and camping is cheap to free. The park also operates a free junior ranger programme for children, every morning, on a different topic natural environment, plus evening campfires. A family can hire a fully equipped campsite (tent, table, chairs etc) for $20 a night. American parents of modest means said they were returning, after coming as children to camp with their parents. This is something the National Trust might study, to our national benefit. For sure, Americans eat far too much, they're in the grip of an obesity crisis, are totally dependent on cars, and are embarrassingly prone to flying the stars and stripes at their gates and drives. But they certainly have far more respect for their open and public spaces than we do here. That's why it takes a more sensitive American eye to point out a horrible home truth - our mounting squalor. The only thing I would say in our defence is that I usually spend August not in California, but in southern Italy, well south of Naples. Believe me, the Italians I encounter are even more messy in their public places - especially the beaches - than Britons, though I've never really worked out why that should be. | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'books/billbryson', 'environment/waste', 'environment/environment', 'us-news/us-news', 'travel/travel', 'tone/comment', 'media/media-blog', 'type/article', 'profile/maggiebrown'] | environment/waste | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2008-08-13T07:00:00Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2020/apr/26/why-britains-25-billion-paper-coffee-cups-are-an-eco-disaster | Why Britain’s 2.5 billion paper coffee cups are an eco disaster | Britain gets through 2.5 billion of them every year, and the number is set to increase. But despite a growing clamour for coffee chains to make their cups more environment-friendly, the vast majority are used only once, which critics say is a considerable waste of natural resources. One company vying to produce a truly recyclable alternative claims that the UK’s caffeine addiction is responsible for the felling of a million trees a year. An independent study it commissioned suggests that almost 1.5 billion litres of water go into making the cups the UK uses annually. The study, by product-testing company Intertek, claims to be the first to measure the environmental impact of producing, using and disposing of all types of single-use coffee cup. It found that a typical cup requires 0.58 litres of water to produce and has a carbon footprint equivalent to up to 60.9 grammes of carbon dioxide. A 2017 report from the UK’s House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee found that only one in 400 cups end up being recycled, with the vast majority going straight to landfill. This suggests that coffee cups that end up in the UK’s landfill sites produce an annual carbon footprint equivalent to over 152,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, similar to what 33,300 cars produce in a year. The audit committee called on the government to set a target to recycle all single-use cups by 2023. It said: “If an effective recycling system is not established… by this date, the government should ban disposable coffee cups.” But a major issue for the industry is that even cups promoted as compostable cannot be recycled conventionally. They have to be transported by lorry to one of the UK’s 53 high-temperature industrial composting facilities, which increases their carbon footprint. “The problem with conventional, coated and compostable cups is that they’re all made from virgin paper, and the laminated plastic coating is very hard to remove,” said Malcolm Waugh, chief executive of Frugalpac, an Ipswich-based company that produces an alternative called the Frugal Cup, which is made almost totally from recycled paper, and which funded the study. “Our answer was to redesign the cup by scrapping the laminated virgin paperboard and instead make the cup out of 96% recycled paper with no waterproofing chemicals, and then lightly attach a separately made plastic food grade liner. Not perfect yet but a damn sight better than the alternatives.” Waugh predicted that using cups made from recycled paper would save a million trees a year in Britain and more than 200 million worldwide. Producing a truly recyclable coffee cup is a key issue for environmental groups. The WWF forecasts that by 2030 the UK will use 33% more cups than it does now. Some major chains are starting to act. Last month, Starbucks announced that it is trialling NextGen compostable cups, which are made without the polyethylene lining that makes normal cups hard to recycle. | ['environment/recycling', 'food/coffee', 'environment/environment', 'environment/ethical-living', 'environment/waste', 'uk/uk', 'business/starbucks', 'business/fooddrinks', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/jamiedoward', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/observer-main'] | environment/recycling | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE | 2020-04-26T06:05:06Z | true | POLLUTION_AND_WASTE |
environment/2021/apr/15/just-3-of-worlds-ecosystems-remain-intact-study-suggests | Just 3% of world’s ecosystems remain intact, study suggests | Just 3% of the world’s land remains ecologically intact with healthy populations of all its original animals and undisturbed habitat, a study suggests. These fragments of wilderness undamaged by human activities are mainly in parts of the Amazon and Congo tropical forests, east Siberian and northern Canadian forests and tundra, and the Sahara. Invasive alien species including cats, foxes, rabbits, goats and camels have had a major impact on native species in Australia, with the study finding no intact areas left. The researchers suggest reintroducing a small number of important species to some damaged areas, such as elephants or wolves – a move that could restore up to 20% of the world’s land to ecological intactness. Previous analyses have identified wilderness areas based largely on satellite images and estimated that 20-40% of the Earth’s surface is little affected by humans. However, the scientists behind the new study argue that forests, savannah and tundra can appear intact from above but that, on the ground, vital species are missing. Elephants, for example, spread seeds and create important clearings in forests, while wolves can control populations of deer and elk. The new assessment combines maps of human damage to habitat with maps showing where animals have disappeared from their original ranges or are too few in number to maintain a healthy ecosystem. Some scientists said the new analysis underestimates the intact areas, because the ranges of animals centuries ago are poorly known and the new maps do not take account of the impacts of the climate crisis, which is changing the ranges of species. It is widely accepted that the world is in a biodiversity crisis, with many wildlife populations – from lions to insects – plunging, mainly due to the destruction of habitat for farming and building. Some scientists think a sixth mass extinction of life on Earth is beginning, with serious consequences for the food, and clean water and air that humanity depends upon. “Much of what we consider as intact habitat is missing species that have been hunted [and poached] by people, or lost because of invasive species or disease,” said Dr Andrew Plumptre, the lead author of the study, from the Key Biodiversity Areas Secretariat in Cambridge, UK. “It’s fairly scary, because it shows how unique places like the Serengeti are, which actually have functioning and fully intact ecosystems. “We’re in the UN decade of ecosystem restoration now, but it is focusing on degraded habitat,” he said. “Let’s also think about restoring species so that we can try and build up these areas where we’ve got ecologically intact ecosystems.” The research, published in the journal Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, used maps of the ranges of 7,000 species in 1,500 and today from the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List. Most of the data was for mammals, but it also included some birds, fish, plants, reptiles and amphibians. Many of the intact areas identified were in territories managed by indigenous communities. The analysis did not include Antarctica. “It might be possible to increase the ecological intact area back to up to 20% through the targeted reintroductions of species that have been lost in areas where human impact is still low, provided the threats to their survival can be addressed,” said Plumptre. He cited the successful reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone national park in the US, which transformed the ecosystem. Prof Pierre Ibisch, at the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development in Germany and not part of the study, said finding just 3% of land was intact was “predictably devastating”. He said: “We need to give nature significantly more space to carry us into the future, [but] I fear that the reintroduction of a few species in certain areas is not a gamechanger.” Ibisch said the analysis did not take account of the climate crisis. “Accelerating climate change is becoming the overarching threat to the functionality of entire ecosystems. Yesterday’s mammal intactness hardly tells us a lot about the functioning ecosystems in the [global heating] age.” Prof James Watson at the University of Queensland, Australia, said: “This study undervalues many efforts by ecosystem scientists to map and save ecologically intact places across the planet. It uses maps for species that are basically best guesses, meaning the message of where ecosystems are actually still pretty much intact is clearly minimised.” Plumptre acknowledged that the species range maps were relatively crude and said the 3% figure was a “ballpark estimate”. He said: “The trouble is, at the moment, we don’t have any other maps.” Scientists should next focus on specific regions and use more detailed human impact data and species data to identify ecologically intact sites, he said. In January, more than 50 countries committed to protect almost a third of the planet by 2030 to halt the destruction of the natural world. “Putting efforts into conserving these [intact] places is very important,” Plumptre said. “They are so rare and special, and show what the world was like before humans had any major impact, helping us measure how much we’ve lost.” | ['environment/wildlife', 'environment/conservation', 'environment/forests', 'environment/environment', 'environment/amazon-rainforest', 'environment/deforestation', 'environment/climate-crisis', 'environment/biodiversity', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/damiancarrington', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/uknews', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/uk-environment'] | environment/biodiversity | BIODIVERSITY | 2021-04-15T04:00:26Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
commentisfree/2015/feb/24/guardian-view-on-the-greens-growing-pains | The Guardian view on the Greens: growing pains | Editorial | “Replace capitalism with something nice” read one memorable banner at the turn-of-millennium anti-corporate protests, which consumed the left’s passion before 9/11 and Stop the War. So far as a disdainful political mainstream is concerned, that slogan would be a snug fit of a strapline for the Green party. Natalie Bennett’s stuttering, cough-strewn and shambolic interview on housing on Tuesday will redouble the condescension of those Westminster sorts who fancy themselves as “the grownups”. The grownups are, however, deluding themselves if they imagine that green haze around detailed policy costings is going to do them much good – or Ms Bennett much harm – with her target electorate. For the Green surge in the polls is not really about particular proposals and whether they stack up, but much more about a yearning for different values and a new, less venal, style of politics. It could be that the event of the week that will do most to determine Green fortunes will not be Ms Bennett’s confusion over the cost of social housing, but two former foreign secretaries being caught out undercover, exploring their options for lucrative lobbying work. A significant slice of voters wants to hear somebody lever open discussions which the old parties – with messages honed in focus groups in the marginals – would rather keep closed. From mass incarceration to the “independent” nuclear deterrent and the criminalisation of drugs, Labour and the Tories will sometimes unite in support of a dubious status quo, and then defend it with “lines to take” that lack all conviction. No wonder there is an opening for the Greens on the left flank, just as there is for Ukip on the right. But much like Ukip, who have recently found themselves slipping back in the polls, the Greens are discovering that the road from being, in effect, a pressure group that puts up candidates to being a party with real ambitions can be punishing. For most of the last couple of years – during which Ukip, the Greens and the SNP have all waxed – we’ve had five- or six-party politics, but only three-party scrutiny. The media obsessively interrogates how much money Labour’s mansion tax could rake in, and Ed Miliband’s desire to offer students something on fees has for months been frustrated by his failure to pinpoint the funding for this, even though it’s barely a rounding error in the broader public finances. Compare that with Ukip, which for a long time seemed free to “spend” the UK’s contribution to Europe as many times as it liked, and the Greens, who until recently could propose vast wealth taxes and a universal citizen’s income, without being snared on awkward details. In the last few weeks, however, this comfortable position has changed – and, on current evidence, the Greens have urgent work to do if they are to sound like they’ve got a convincing programme by polling day. Consider the citizen’s income. The theory has something going for it, and has previously been backed by free-thinking liberals as well as leftists, but if it were ever to be put into practice there would be a vast redistribution of resources. Any politician proposing that should be able to explain who will lose, who will gain, and why. But in another painful broadcast interview last month, Ms Bennett failed in that. In an anti-political mood, the Greens might be able to turn in a decent “values vote” almost irrespective of policy detail. But to achieve anything in terms of parliamentary seats under Britain’s unreformed electoral system, decent will not be enough. And especially not if Mr Miliband – who has spoken up against military misadventures overseas and predatory companies at home – manages to use the campaign to wrestle back one or two of the values that New Labour mislaid over the years. With the psephology pointing to many seats where the logic will be “vote green, get blue”, Labour will not shrink from reminding progressive voters about the role that votes for the American Green candidate Ralph Nader played in landing the world with eight years of George W Bush. The tactical argument is not the only consideration, but it is one that will weigh heavily on many voters. To overcome the doubters, the Greens are going to have to get better at dealing with awkward questions than they sounded on Tuesday . | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'politics/green-party', 'tone/editorials', 'tone/comment', 'environment/green-politics', 'politics/general-election-2015', 'politics/politics', 'type/article', 'profile/editorial', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/editorialsandreply'] | environment/green-politics | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2015-02-24T20:12:51Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
world/2015/aug/17/more-plane-trees-felled-along-canal-du-midi-in-fight-against-killer-fungus | More plane trees felled along Canal du Midi in fight against killer fungus | France’s waterways authority will begin felling thousands more plane trees along the historic Canal du Midi on Monday in its ongoing battle against the disease that is killing them. The destruction of the trees, which will be burned where they fall, will bring the total number cut down along the Unesco site to more than 15,000 in the last nine years. Voies Navigables de France (VNF), the country’s waterways authority, fears that all 42,000 plane trees along the 250km canal that links the Atlantic and the Mediterranean will eventually have to be removed, but it has pledged to replace them. Built on the orders of the sun king, Louis XIV, the Canal du Midi is listed by the UN as one of the “most remarkable feats of civil engineering” but also a natural work of art. On 1 January 1667, workers began removing the first of an estimated 7m cubic metres of earth and rubble to create the canal. The plane trees were added in the 1830s to strengthen its banks as well as offer shade from the relentless sun to those using the waterway and reduce evaporation. By 2006, however, it was clear that many of the trees were sick. Specialists identified the fungus Ceratocystis platani, which is believed to have been brought to France in contaminated ammunition boxes used by US troops during the second world war. Boat users bumping into the trees and tying mooring ropes around them are also thought to have contributed to the spread of the fungus. Since 2006 around 13,850 trees have been felled and on Monday, workers began cutting down another 2,200. Jacques Noisette, a spokesman for the VNF, said the affected trees were in around 30 different places. He added that the current round of felling should be completed by November. Noisette said the planes were being replaced by a variety of trees including pine, poplar and oak. VNF raised more than €500,000 (£355,000) after a public appeal for donations in 2013. | ['world/france', 'world/europe-news', 'world/world', 'environment/forests', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'profile/kim-willsher', 'publication/theguardian', 'theguardian/mainsection', 'theguardian/mainsection/international'] | environment/forests | BIODIVERSITY | 2015-08-17T10:03:58Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
world/article/2024/jun/17/pilgrims-die-hajj-pilgrimage-mecca-saudi-arabia-heat-hot-weather-temperatures | At least 14 pilgrims die during hajj pilgrimage amid soaring temperatures | At least 14 Jordanian pilgrims have died while on the hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia as temperatures soar in the kingdom. Jordan’s foreign ministry said “14 Jordanian pilgrims died and 17 others were missing” during the performance of hajj rituals. It said its nationals had died “after suffering sun stroke due to the extreme heatwave” and that it had coordinated with Saudi authorities to bury the dead in Saudi Arabia, or transfer them to Jordan. The Iranian Red Crescent chief, Pir Hossein Kolivand, said “five Iranian pilgrims have lost their lives so far in Mecca and Medina during the hajj this year”, but did not say how they died. Mohammed Al-Abdulaali, a spokesperson for the Saudi health ministry, told reporters that more than 2,760 pilgrims suffered from sunstroke and heat stress on Sunday alone. Saudi Arabia has not provided any information on fatalities. The heat reached 47C (116.6F) in Mecca on Sunday, a temperature that was forecast to continue on Monday. The kingdom has implemented heat mitigation measures, including climate-controlled areas, distributes water, and offers advice to pilgrims on protecting themselves from the sun. The hajj, which will end on Wednesday, is one of the largest mass gatherings in the world, with more than 1.8 million Muslim pilgrims expected to take part this year, according to the Saudi General Authority for Statistics. Stampedes, tent fires, heat and other factors have caused hundreds of deaths at the event over the past 30 years. Many of the rituals are performed outdoors and on foot, creating challenges especially among elderly people. Temperatures have pushed well past 40C during the pilgrimage. The Saudi health ministry issued an advisory on Thursday warning of soaring temperatures and advising pilgrims to stay hydrated and avoid being outdoors during the hottest hours of the day between 11am and 3pm. During last year’s hajj at least 240 people – many from Indonesia – died, according to figures announced by various countries which also did not specify causes of death. More than 2,000 people suffered heat stress during the festival. More than 10,000 heat-related illnesses were recorded last year, 10% of them heatstroke, a Saudi official told AFP this week. With Reuters, Agence France-Presse and Associated Press | ['world/hajj', 'world/saudiarabia', 'world/islam', 'world/middleeast', 'world/religion', 'environment/extreme-heat', 'world/extreme-weather', 'environment/environment', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/australia-foreign'] | environment/extreme-heat | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2024-06-16T23:18:32Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
environment/2014/aug/15/rarest-dolphins-under-threat-from-oil-exploration-in-nz-sanctuary-say-greens | Rarest dolphins under threat from oil exploration in NZ sanctuary, say Greens | The New Zealand government has been accused of threatening the survival of the Maui’s dolphins, one of world’s rarest dolphin breeds, with just 55 of the animals remaining. The Maui’s dolphin is endemic to New Zealand and is only found off the west coast of the country’s north island. The IUCN lists the species as critically endangered. Although a special sanctuary for the species was established in 2008, conservation groups have accused the New Zealand government of hastening its demise by allowing oil exploration and fishing in the area. A recent report by the International Whaling Commission cites “extreme concern” for the species, calling for a ban on trawling fisheries throughout its habitat. The report stated current protection “falls short of that required to reverse the Maui’s dolphin decline”. The New Zealand Greens party is also critical of the government’s decision to permit oil and gas exploration across a huge area of land and sea, with around 3,000 square kilometres of this area overlapping with the Maui’s dolphin sanctuary. Gareth Hughes, a Greens MP, told Guardian Australia that the government should rule out any oil drilling or seabed mining in the dolphin sanctuary. “There are a huge number of threats, from dolphins being caught in indiscriminate fishing nets to underwater explosions from exploration that can deafen the dolphins or drive them out of the sanctuary,” he said. “The government has to listen to the international scientific experts and give this species a shot at survival. We need to develop alternative methods of fishing to transition industry to more sustainable methods, or we will risk our good international brand for fish.” But Nick Smith, New Zealand’s conservation minister, told Guardian Australia the government was taking great care to ensure Maui’s dolphin would defy predictions from some scientists that the species may die out within 20 years. “There are some extreme green groups that are critical of the government’s steps to protect the Maui’s dolphin but I’m confident I’m doing everything practical to ensure their survival,” he said. Smith said the government had already banned set-net fishing, which he called the “overwhelming risk” to the dolphin. He added that oil and gas exploration had occurred off the north island for 40 years without any detrimental impact upon the species. “It would be economic lunacy to shut down the petroleum industry in that area,” he said. “It would cost the economy NZ$1bn a year and mean that we’d move away from natural gas to coal, which would hugely increase our greenhouse gas emissions.” Smith said one application for seabed mining had already been knocked back and a “robust process” would ensure that other projects wouldn’t harm the dolphin. The government and the Greens are in agreement, however, on the question of whether the Maui’s dolphin is doomed, given its tiny population. “New Zealand has been world leaders in bringing back species from the brink,” said Hughes. “We brought the kakapo back from 40 individuals, so we’re not giving up on the Maui’s dolphin. It’s not game over yet, although it’s perilously close.” Smith said he would want 20 years without a human-caused fatality before being certain of the Maui dolphin’s survival, but said he was confident it could remain. Maui’s dolphins are known for their rounded fins and small size – females weigh up to 50kg. Females reproduce at a rate of just one calf every two to four years, making population growth a painstaking business. | ['environment/dolphins', 'environment/wildlife', 'world/newzealand', 'environment/environment', 'environment/marine-life', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'profile/oliver-milman'] | environment/marine-life | BIODIVERSITY | 2014-08-15T07:49:40Z | true | BIODIVERSITY |
commentisfree/2011/jun/05/observer-leader-extreme-weather-poor | Poor must have the burden of global warming lifted | A couple of things are certain about the latest round of UN climate change talks that begin tomorrow in Bonn. The first is that any advance toward implementing a proper commitment on reducing carbon dioxide emissions will again be what used to be known as glacial. The second is that the climate in which these talks are being held is already markedly hotter to that in which they began very nearly 20 years ago. You don't have to be a wheat farmer in Suffolk to know that we are not waiting for climate change to happen, as we liked to believe when the UN started talking in 1992; we are in the midst of it. Every year in this century has been warmer than all but one – 1998 – in the last. Last year, the second hottest on record, an unprecedented 19 nations set new all-time temperature records and, as one consequence, extreme weather events have increased both incontrovertibly and in line with prediction. The only temperature that remains stubbornly cool is the political one. Governments – and, by extension, all of us – know what is happening, but still, it seems, refuse to believe. Since the Copenhagen summit of two years ago, even limited progress has stalled. Inaction has become once again, because of pressing economic crises, almost addictive. Last week's announcement from the International Energy Agency that CO2 in the atmosphere rose dramatically in 2010, and at current rates will arrive the doomsday levels once predicted for 2020 by as early as next year, was the latest statistic to serve notice of that fact. That the most polluting countries still have a responsibility to at least honour the Kyoto accord on emissions goes without saying. But much more must also be put in place to mitigate and avert the effects of warming that is already happening, and which, even with the most hopeful reductions, will continue to happen. The vast majority of extreme weather events associated with the change in climate devastate those populations that do the least to pollute the world. Recent figures suggest that of the 1.4 million people killed directly by weather disasters around the world over the past 30 years, 83% lived in low and lower middle income countries. That figure does not begin to include the many millions dependent on small-scale farming who have seen rains increasingly fall harder or not at all. Practical adaption to these realities is a burden that has to fall not only on the people experiencing them, but also on the nations that have done most to bring them about. Research to be published this week by Nicholas Stern's Grantham Research Institute at the LSE makes clear that measures to share risks from extreme weather events – not only sea walls but also support for a greater degree of financial resilience in countries most affected – makes urgent and cost-effective sense. In 2006, Mozambique was refused a request for £2m from the international community to improve its flood defences. A year later, after severe flooding, more than £60m in post-disaster aid was granted. Averting climate change is no longer a possibility, but its effects can be far better managed and predicted and its costs more equitably borne. The best protection against global warming remains the spread of the most sustainable technologies – in irrigation and agriculture and flood defence – and the more equal distribution of the kinds of resources – education as well as finance – that will allow those most vulnerable to its effects to survive. | ['commentisfree/commentisfree', 'environment/global-climate-talks', 'environment/environment', 'tone/editorials', 'type/article', 'publication/theobserver', 'theobserver/news', 'theobserver/news/comment'] | environment/global-climate-talks | CLIMATE_POLICY | 2011-06-04T23:06:59Z | true | CLIMATE_POLICY |
world/2019/aug/31/hurricane-dorian-category-4-florida-bahamas | Hurricane Dorian: Trump flies to golf club as likelihood of direct hit recedes | Millions along the US east coast from Florida to North Carolina remained under threat of a deadly strike from Hurricane Dorian on Saturday, even as official predictions for the path of the 150mph monster storm pulled back from a direct hit on land. Dorian was poised to tear through the northern islands of the Bahamas on Sunday after beefing up into a category 4 hurricane late on Friday. The storm was heading west towards the mainland US and what was initially expected to be the most powerful hit on Florida’s east coast in almost three decades on Tuesday. But after a nervous week in which longer-range forecasts from the Miami-based National Hurricane Centre (NHC) enveloped almost the entire state of Florida in its “cone of uncertainty”, the expected track for the storm was recalibrated early on Saturday to a northerly crawl at sea towards Georgia and the Carolinas, steered by a weakening atmospheric ridge over the Atlantic. “There is hope,” said Jeff Masters, director of meteorology at Weather Underground. Even so, officials warned of significant and potentially devastating impacts, even if the centre of the storm remained offshore or just inland, as a dwindling number of models continued to suggest. They pointed to Hurricane Matthew in 2016, a category 5 storm that followed a near identical track to Dorian’s predicted path, hugging the coastline of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, causing hundreds of billions of dollars in wind and flood damages in the US, killed 47 and left millions without power. In an afternoon advisory, the NHC posted tropical storm warnings for portions of Florida’s east coast and warned that Dorian still had some strengthening to do, its winds expected to peak at 155mph, 2mph short of category 5 status, by the end of the day. “Even if it doesn’t directly strike Florida, this is still a big, powerful storm,” Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor, said in a Saturday morning briefing. “You’re still looking at really significant storm surge on the east coast, you’re looking at major flooding events in different parts of the state, so the effects can range. DeSantis said: “A bump in one direction or the other could have significant ramifications in terms of impact. If it bumps further east that obviously is positive [but] if it bumps just a little west then you’re looking at really, really significant impacts. Don’t make any assumptions. Remain vigilant and be prepared.” Lixion Avila, a senior hurricane specialist at the NHC, echoed the warning later, predicting a “prolonged period of life-threatening storm surge, devastating hurricane-force winds and heavy rains capable of life-threatening flash floods” for the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama, reaching the US next week. “Since Dorian is expected to slow down and turn northward as it approaches the coast … storm surge and dangerous hurricane force winds are still possible along the Florida east coast. There is an increasing risk of strong winds and dangerous storm surge along the coasts of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina during the middle of next week.” David Bibo, Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) deputy associate administrator for response and recovery, was more succinct, branding Dorian “a long duration nailbiter”. Mandatory evacuation orders were issued but later postponed for 24 hours for barrier islands and coastal areas of Florida’s Brevard and Martin counties, including the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, with voluntary requests for evacuation in several other counties. DeSantis declared a state of emergency in all 67 counties before the weekend, and said he had spoken with Donald Trump on Friday night. The president, he said, had promised whatever federal support was needed but “hopefully that won’t be necessary”. As the immediate threat to southern and central Florida appeared to lessen, Trump tweeted his fears for other parts of the US. “Looking like our great South Carolina could get hit MUCH harder than first thought. Georgia and North Carolina also,” he wrote. “It’s moving around and very hard to predict, except that it is one of the biggest and strongest (and really wide) that we have seen in decades. Be safe!” Trump was at his Virginia golf club, having travelled there by helicopter from Camp David in Maryland. On Friday, Trump had given the impression as he left the White House that he would spend Saturday at Camp David with experts, monitoring Dorian’s progress, and would return to Washington on Sunday to attend a briefing at Fema. Stephanie Grisham, the White House press secretary, said Trump received updates every hour during his time at his club before his scheduled return to Camp David for a hurricane briefing. “He has someone travelling with him to specifically brief him on an hourly basis,” she told a reporter for the White House press pool, adding that it was better for him to remain in the US after cancelling a planned weekend trip to Poland. “We’re more nimble and all his agencies are here,” she said. The governors of North Carolina and Georgia declared states of emergency on Thursday and Friday. Henry McMaster, the South Carolina governor, was expected to follow suit on Saturday. Although expected to weaken slightly, Dorian was still expected to be menacing the coast of Georgia and the Carolinas by Wednesday or Thursday as a category 3 storm, still pushing out winds of up to 130mph. In the Bahamas on Saturday, canned food and bottled water were disappearing from shelves and the sound of hammering echoed across the islands as people boarded up their homes. Dorian was expected to hit the north-western islands by Sunday. “To those of you in the Cays and Grand Bahamas, I beg you, please leave,” the prime minister, Hubert Minnis, said. “Dorian is expected to cause devastating effects to our island. If you wait until tonight, it will be too late. Time is not on our side.” Associated Press contributed to this report | ['world/hurricanes', 'world/natural-disasters', 'world/world', 'us-news/florida', 'us-news/us-news', 'world/bahamas', 'world/americas', 'us-news/us-weather', 'type/article', 'tone/news', 'world/hurricane-dorian', 'profile/richardluscombe', 'tracking/commissioningdesk/us-news'] | world/hurricane-dorian | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS | 2019-08-31T21:48:19Z | true | EXTREME_CLIMATE_IMPACTS |
world/2015/oct/29/babushkas-of-chernobyl-film-nuclear-exclusion-zone | Chernobyl's babushkas – the women who refused to leave the exclusion zone | On 26 April 1986 the Chernobyl nuclear power plant’s reactor No 4 blew up after a cooling test. The resulting nuclear fire lasted 10 days, spewing 400 times as much radiation as the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Today Chernobyl’s soil, water, and air are among the most highly contaminated on Earth. The reactor is at the centre of a 1,000-square-mile “exclusion zone”, a quarantined no-man’s land complete with border guards, passport control and radiation monitoring. But amid the environmental devastation, the human story of Chernobyl is often lost. That story is embodied in an unlikely community of some 130 people, known as “self-settlers”, who defiantly live inside the exclusion zone. Almost all of them are women. About 116,000 people were evacuated from the zone at the time of the accident, but about 1,200 of them refused to stay away. The women who remain, now in their 70s and 80s, are the last survivors of those who illegally returned to their ancestral homes shortly after the accident. A new film by Holly Morris and Anne Bogart, screening in London this weekend, follows the unlikely group of rebels as they continue to go about their daily lives in the toxic and lonely environment. The film depicts the zone’s scattered ghost villages, now silent, eerie and contaminated. Many villages have eight or 12 babushkas, or babas – the Russian and Ukrainian words for “grandmother” – still living in them. One self-settler depicted in the documentary, Hanna Zavorotnya, explained how she snuck through the bushes back to her village in the summer of 1986. “Shoot us and dig the grave,” she told the soldiers who tried to evacuate her and other family members, “otherwise we’re staying.” Why did she choose to live on this deadly land? Is she unaware of the risks, or crazy enough to ignore them, or both? When asked about radiation, Zavorotnya replied: “Radiation doesn’t scare me. Starvation does.” Zavorotnya and the other women lived through Stalin’s Holodomor – the genocide-by-famine of the 1930s that wiped out millions of Ukrainians – and then the Nazis in the 1940s. When the Chernobyl accident happened a few decades into Soviet rule, many were simply unwilling to flee an enemy that was invisible. Trauma of relocation As long as they were well beyond child bearing age, self-settlers were allowed to stay “semi-illegally”. But what about their health? The complications from an environment laced with radioactive contaminants, such as cesium, strontium and americium. Health studies vary. The World Health Organisation predicts more than 4,000 deaths will eventually be linked to the Chernobyl disaster. Greenpeace and others put that projection into the tens of thousands. All agree thyroid cancers are sky high, and that Chernobyl evacuees have suffered the trauma of relocated peoples everywhere, including anxiety and depression. Radioactive contamination from the accident has been deadly, but the trauma of relocation is another fallout of Chernobyl. Of the old people who relocated, one Chernobyl medical technician, whose job is to give annual radiation exposure tests to zone workers said: “Quite simply, they die of anguish.” Other babushkas have said: “If you leave you die”; “Those who left are worse off now. They are all dying of sadness”; “Motherland is Motherland. I will never leave.” Radiation or not, these women are at the end of their lives. But their continued existence and spirit indicate the transformative connections to home, and about the strength of self-determination. They are unexpected lessons from a nuclear tragedy. This article is based on director Holly Morris’ Ted Talk about the women of Chernobyl. For more about the film visit www.thebabushkasofchernobyl.com or follow @hollymorris on Twitter | ['world/ukraine', 'world/series/new-east-network', 'environment/chernobyl-nuclear-disaster', 'world/series/guardian-world-networks', 'environment/environment', 'environment/nuclearpower', 'world/world', 'film/film', 'film/documentary', 'culture/culture', 'type/article', 'tone/features'] | environment/nuclearpower | ENERGY | 2015-10-29T07:00:01Z | true | ENERGY |
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