Feed aggregator

Scientists predict that the spiny trees are unlikely to survive through the end of the century due to climate crisis

California officials have deferred a decision on whether to list the western Joshua tree as a threatened species after hours of public comment and debate this week ended in a deadlocked vote.

Scientists predict that the spiny-crested fixtures of the high desert are unlikely to survive through the end of the century due to global heating. By 2100, only 0.02% of the tree’s current habitat in Joshua Tree national park would remain viable amid unmitigated climate change, according to a 2019 study published in the journal Ecosphere.

Continue reading...

Human rights committee including peers says public order bill lacks nuance and targets peaceful protests

MPs and peers have accused ministers of creating a “hostile environment” for peaceful protests with its proposals for new policing powers.

The draft public order bill includes a new offence of “locking on”, which relates to demonstrators attaching themselves to something so they cannot be removed. It carries a maximum sentence of up to 51 weeks in prison.

Continue reading...

Spending watchdog warns existing policies not enough to meet most targets by 2030

The government is not on track to cut air pollution and is not effectively informing the public about the issue, the spending watchdog has warned.

The National Audit Office (NAO) warned that existing policy measures will not be enough to meet most of the government’s air quality targets by 2030.

Continue reading...

 

93,98,72,0,B

An isolated population of polar bears in southeast Greenland has learned to hunt on freshwater glacier ice. That means they may be able to survive longer as climate change makes sea ice scarce.

(Image credit: Kristin Laidre)

Temperatures topped 104 degrees in the state's top cattle county. In widely seen video footage, rows of carcasses are shown lined up along the edge of a field.

(Image credit: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Residents in Billings asked to conserve water after record rain and heavy flooding shut down service from city’s main water plant

The unprecedented flooding that wrecked parts of Yellowstone national park is also jeopardizing freshwater supplies in Montana’s most populated city.

The roughly 110,000 residents of Billings, Montana, were asked on Wednesday to conserve water after intense flooding in the region shut down service from the city’s main water plant, reported Q2 News, a local Billings news outlet.

Continue reading...

No 10 official’s name for an insulation plan was nixed for unoriginality – but the campaigning group is OK with it

The well-known campaigning group Insulate Britain is happy to let the government borrow its name if officials can’t come up with a different label for their insulation scheme, it has told the Guardian.

According to a report in the Times on government plans for insulating homes, during one meeting to thrash out the policy, a No 10 official suggested calling it “Insulate Britain” – a proposal quickly nixed when someone else pointed out that it was already the name of the disruptive direct action group.

Continue reading...

Researchers have now calculated how many people could be saved from heat-related death if the US takes meaningful action

The rapidly shrinking window of opportunity for the US to pass significant climate legislation will have mortal, as well as political, stakes. Millions of lives around the world will be saved, or lost, depending on whether America manages to propel itself towards a future without planet-heating emissions.

For the first time, researchers have calculated exactly how many people the US could save by acting on the climate crisis. A total of 7.4 million lives around the world will be saved over this century if the US manages to cut its emissions to net zero by 2050, according to the analysis.

Continue reading...

Atlanta wants to build a police training facility in a forested area amid community opposition

The sign in the forest reads “You are now leaving The U.S.A.” Then, high up among the branches of a white oak tree, there is a treehouse the size of a closet. It is draped on all sides with white sheets bearing painted messages like “No police”, “No pipelines” and “No prisons”.

On the ground below it, woodland paths have been blocked with makeshift barricades of branches and used tires. There is a burned-out white pickup truck with “Defend the forest” spray-painted in black on its tailgate.

Continue reading...

Former Labour leader’s Peace and Justice Project to be part of new climate and social justice movement

Jeremy Corbyn, the former Labour leader, has teamed up with direct action campaigners to form a new “red/green” climate and social justice movement which aims to stage a “major wave of popular mass action” later this year.

Corbyn’s Peace and Justice Project, which he set up in 2021, is joining forces with Just Stop Oil campaigners who have staged a series of disruptive climate actions over the past six months.

Continue reading...

The new government may face pressure to set even more ambitious goals for a country that is one of the world's largest exporters of coal and liquified natural gas.

(Image credit: Mark Baker/AP)

Environmentalists welcome news but urge company to stop mining at Mt Arthur when permit expires in four years

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing

The mining giant BHP has abandoned plans to keep mining coal at Mt Arthur in New South Wales until 2045 and will close the mine down in 2030 after failing to sell it.

Environmentalists and shareholder activists welcomed the decision to close the mine in the Hunter Valley rather than sell it on to another operator. But they said BHP should close the mine in 2026, when its current permit expires, rather than extending its life for another four years.

Continue reading...

Early June temperatures in Melbourne didn’t go above 15 degrees for first time in 70 years as cold weather pattern starts to break

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing

Eastern Australia’s giant cold snap is finally breaking down but not before temperatures reached lows not seen for seven decades or longer and pushed the country’s main electricity grid to the brink.

The extended chill was caused by an unusual weather pattern that locked in cool pools of air over southern and eastern states, triggering the deepest snow dumps in the alps since 1968, according to Ben Domensino, a senior meteorologist at Weatherzone.

Continue reading...

A cold start to winter has the News Corp newspaper and Sky News telling ‘alarmists’ to chill, but what is really going on with snowfall?

It’s felt cold in parts of eastern Australia in recent weeks and with heavy snow falling over ski resorts, it has to mean this whole global heating thing is a dud, right?

Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph said an early start to the snow season had come “despite dire global warming predictions of vanishing snow” with a headline declaring “Alarmists given big chill”.

Continue reading...

Energy minister says the NSW grid will again come under ‘significant pressure’ on Thursday evening, asking residents to limit power use

• Australia’s energy crisis explained
• Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing

The suspension of the national energy market could remain in place indefinitely, with the federal government unable to say when the “extreme” action will end.

Energy minister Chris Bowen ruled out extending the life of coal-fired power stations as a short-term solution to the energy crisis, saying the Labor government believed further investment in renewable generation and storage was a better option.

Continue reading...

Open letter to festival board says Santos’ involvement threatens cultural integrity and amounts to ‘artswashing’

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app; get our morning email briefing

A delegation of First Nations people are expected to join a collective of artists and creative producers on Thursday to protest a controversial sponsorship deal between the Darwin festival and gas and oil company Santos.

The call to dump the longstanding fossil fuel sponsorship was included in an open letter sent on Tuesday to the festival’s board, chaired by former Northern Territory Airports chief executive Ian Kew, along with a petition of about 200 signatures. The protest coincides with the launch the festival’s 2022 program, running from 4 to 21 August.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Ended up with a nice little storm last night that wasn't in the forecast. Total accumulation over 5 hours ended up at .81". Caught 1600 gallons off my rooftops and pumped 2000 gallons into one of my creek tanks. Last time I got a good amount of rain out of one storm was on December 10,2019 with .74". Previous to that was 1.15" on December 7, 2017 (I keep very detailed weather records). I've been wanting to try adding my real time weather station data to a video and finally got my shot. My weather station is a discontinued model that I bought years ago from https://ambientweather.com. You can see my current conditions on WeatherUnderground at KTXALPIN105. The desert sure soaks it up fast...95,100,66,0,B

EPA administrator Michael Regan announces ‘aggressive action’ but new PFAS limits are advisory and critics call them ‘baby steps’

The US Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday announced new advisory limits for four kinds of PFAS “forever chemicals”, warning that the compounds, which most Americans are exposed to daily, are far more toxic than previously thought.

The dangerous chemicals are estimated to be contaminating drinking water for more than 200 million people, and the new limits could have significant financial consequences for PFAS polluters, including the US military and producers like 3M, DuPont and Chemours.

Continue reading...

Yellowstone National Park prepares for limited reopening as surrounding communities grapple with flood damage

(Image credit: Rick Bowmer/AP)