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Heat records of over 40C set as extreme weather spreads east, with more than 191m in Europe enduring 35C or above
Germany, Czechia, Poland and Hungary reached record temperatures of more than 40C on Sunday as aheatwave linked to hundreds of deaths in western Europe spread east.
More than 191 million people in Europe faced temperatures of at least 35C, with extreme heat warnings across the region.
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Home-grown food may become a niche product for wealthy in our supermarkets as British farmers’ incomes plummet
For Liz Webster, who farms 647 hectares (1600 acres) in Wiltshire, south west England, the latest impact of Brexit has been particularly brutal. About £400 per animal has been wiped off the price she can get for her beef cattle, a hefty blow at a time when all the inputs – feed, energy, fertiliser – are going through the roof.
The fall in price, on livestock that typically fetch £2,000 to £3,000 per animal, is the result of a flood of cheaper meat arriving from Australia, the result of one of the new trade deals the government has signed since the UK left the European Union. Prices for beef in the supermarkets have remained broadly the same, but farmers have seen their income plummet.
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The H5N1 virus has now reached every continent on the planet. What does it mean for some of the world’s unique species?
It was a rough five-day sail from the Falkland Islands and, as the science expedition approached the South Georgia coast, they found fur seal carcasses floating on the water. “There were these moments when it would hit us,” says Dr Jane Younger, remembering the expedition to the British subantarctic territory six months ago.
Younger, an ecologist at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania, was with scientists from the United States, France, South Africa and the Falklands to check on the spread of the H5N1 variant of bird flu.
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Accumulation on Switzerland’s glaciers from last winter expected to all be gone by Monday amid ‘enormous’ melt rates across Alps
Swiss glaciers are set to lose an enormous amount of ice due to the heatwave battering Europe, according to the head of Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (Glamos).
The snow and ice accumulated last winter by Switzerland’s glaciers is expected to have all melted away by Monday, marking the alarming second-earliest arrival on record of the tipping point known as glacier loss day.
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From cardboard coffins and natural burials to water-based cremation, Australians are increasingly open to alternative farewells – but the key is to plan
Change by degrees offers life hacks and sustainable living tips each Saturday to help reduce your household’s carbon footprint
Got a question or tip for reducing household emissions? Email us at changebydegrees@theguardian.com
It may seem small among the decisions people have to make as they face the end of their life, but what happens to their bodies can make a significant difference to the final cost inflicted on the environment.
In many Western countries, cremation is the most common method of deathcare – chosen by about three-quarters of Australians – but it’s arguably the most environmentally damaging.
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Experts worked in ocean midwater off Brazil at near-record speeds thanks to cutting-edge tech
A marine biology expedition in international waters off the coast of Brazil has discovered 31 new species in just two weeks.
The researchers believe the speed at which the species were found and identified may be a record, in part because of the cutting-edge technology designed and built by the science and engineering team. For the first time on board a ship, the researchers were able to observe the living 3D cellular structure of microbial life thanks to a technological breakthrough nicknamed the Squid.
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Edinburgh:As we are visually impaired, we love to appreciate the sounds and smell of the woodland. This time it had been raining, so we could smell the wet ground
Our school, the Royal Blind school, Sight Scotland, is across the road from the Astley Ainslie hospital. The hospital gardens are open to the public and have over 2,000 trees, and sometimes we go to there for outdoor learning lessons with Margon, who helps us learn about the outdoors.
Recently we went to a wooded area to make a den for shelter. We could see lots of green everywhere. It had been raining but we could feel the warm sun and smell the wet ground, which was spongy and soft under our feet. It had been windy and there were twigs and leaves on the ground. We found a tree with textured bark that felt like veins. Margon told us that the bits we could feel were old ivy vines. We could hear lots of birds and feel the breeze and hear it rustling the leaves.
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The CLP’s ‘tough on crime’, pro-development agenda brings sweeping changes, which advocates say cut the NT’s most vulnerable out of the conversation
The Northern Territory is out of sight – and often out of mind – for many Australians. But for 18 months, environment, First Nations, justice and family groups have been sounding the alarm with increasing urgency.
The populist “tough on crime” agenda which saw the Country Liberal party, led by Lia Finocchiaro, sweep to power in 2024 has been taking shape, and those representing the territory’s most vulnerable people, communities and ecosystems are worried.
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As temperatures soar across Europe, cities are struggling to adapt, further exacerbating socioeconomic divisions
The heatwave afflicting western Europe is the worst ever, with the combination of heat and humidity fuelled by the climate crisis making scores of cities feel unliveable. While for some the adverse impacts amount to disturbed sleep and sticky days in the home office, low-income families are often worse affected by cities’ lack of adequate adaptation measures, with women at the sharp end.
“[It] throws a grenade into every vulnerability you already have,” says Asad Rehman, chief executive of Friends of the Earth, pointing out that vulnerable or marginalised groups often bear the brunt of climate crisis-based hardship globally.
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From checking on older neighbours to greening spaces, some cities are stepping up efforts to keep people safe
Extreme heat has seared Europe this week, with the UK smashing its top heat record for June for three days in a row, and France sweltering through its hottest day and night on record.
As fossil fuel pollution bakes the planet, making heatwaves hotter and longer, some places are adapting better than others. What have European cities done to stay safe when it gets too hot?
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