Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Campaigners hail ‘important victory’ in protection of England’s national parks

admin — Sat, 01 Feb 2025 06:00:36 +0000

Minister says there was error when Manningtree station car park extension was approved under last government

Campaigners have celebrated an “important victory” in a closely watched case that will determine whether the government will enforce new legislation aimed at protecting national parks and landscapes in England.

Labour warned it risks losing support for net zero if costs not spread fairly

admin — Sat, 01 Feb 2025 05:00:32 +0000

Exclusive: Chief climate adviser calls on Starmer to make ‘strong, confident’ case for green UK that public can buy into

Ensuring that the costs of decarbonisation are shared fairly across society must be a top priority for ministers or they risk losing public support for net zero, the UK’s chief climate adviser has warned.

Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves should be making a “strong, confident” case for decarbonisation as an engine of economic growth, according to Emma Pinchbeck, the chief executive of the Climate Change Committee, the independent statutory adviser.

Trump orders USDA to take down websites referencing climate crisis

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 22:06:23 +0000

Forest service website among many sites affected as agencies scramble to comply with president’s orders

On Thursday, the Trump administration ordered the US agriculture department to unpublish its websites documenting or referencing the climate crisis.

‘Perfect rat storm’: urban rodent numbers soar as the climate heats, study finds

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 19:00:21 +0000

Sharp rise in population in 11 of 16 cities expected to continue as rising temperatures make it easier for the animals to breed, say researchers

Rat numbers are soaring in cities as global temperatures warm, research shows.

‘We’d go absolutely nuts’: PM warned of Labour fight if he backs huge oilfield

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 17:59:59 +0000

Exclusive: MPs and ministers say they would oppose Starmer if he tries to approve Rosebank development

Senior Labour figures are warning of a serious fight if Keir Starmer tries to give the go-ahead to a giant new oilfield off Shetland later this year.

MPs and ministers have told the Guardian they are prepared to oppose the UK prime minister should he try and give final consent to the Rosebank development, which is Britain’s biggest untapped oilfield.

Burn grasslands to maintain them: What is good for biodiversity?

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 16:05:22 +0000

As grasslands get abandoned, controlled burning is discussed as a labor-saving method of keeping forests at bay. A research team found that this method results in higher biodiversity and a higher prevalence of endangered plant species in some grasslands compared to others, depending on what soils they grow on.

Britain’s favourite fish at risk of wipeout within decades, predicts report

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 14:58:53 +0000

Brown trout unlikely to survive in most rivers at height of summer by 2080, says Environment Agency

It has been native to Britain for thousands of years and was heralded as the national fish on the BBC’s Springwatch, but a government report suggests the brown trout risks being wiped out in large parts of England within decades.

Farmland in England to be reduced by more than 10% under government plans

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 14:08:15 +0000

Grassland for livestock faces largest cut, so people will be encouraged to eat less meat, says environment secretary

Farmland in England will be reduced by more than 10% by 2050 under government plans, with less meat produced and eaten by the country’s citizens.

The environment secretary, Steve Reed, launched the government’s blueprint for land use change on Friday, designed to balance the need to build infrastructure and meet nature and carbon targets.

Thirty MPs demand Ofwat puts Thames Water into special measures

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 14:00:15 +0000

Exclusive: Labour and Green MPs write to regulator’s chief executive voicing fears about an expensive public bailout

A group of 30 Labour and Green MPs have written to Ofwat to demand that Thames Water is taken into special measures.

In an open letter to David Black, the chief executive of the regulator, the MPs expressed fears of an expensive public bailout and demanded that Thames Water be placed into the special administration regime (SAR) and restructured under public oversight.

Australia tried to influence other countries and Unesco to keep Great Barrier Reef off in-danger list

admin — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 14:00:13 +0000

Exclusive: Documents seen by Guardian Australia show a sustained strategy approved by environment minister Tanya Plibersek