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Lancaster Wildlife Trust has brought the species back to peatlands following a local extinction in the 19th century
Large heath butterflies are returning to peatlands in greater Manchester 150 years after they went locally extinct.
The acidic peat bogs and mosslands around Manchester and Liverpool were home to the country’s biggest colonies of large heath butterflies – known as the “Manchester argus” – but numbers plummeted as land was drained for agricultural land and peat extraction.
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Rising temperatures, natural disasters and deforestation taking heavy toll, say scientists
Climate breakdown and the mass felling of trees has made the world’s forests significantly shorter and younger overall, an analysis shows.
The trend is expected to continue, scientists say, with worrying consequences for the ability of forests to store carbon and mitigate the climate emergency and for the endangered wildlife that depends on rich, ancient forests.
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Commission argues it can raise €150bn to fund greener transport, cleaner industry and renovated homes
Senior officials have pledged that the European Union’s recovery plan will “do no harm” to the bloc’s landmark goals to tackle the climate crisis and threats to the natural world.
Following the unveiling of a €750bn (£671bn) recovery plan to pull EU economies out of the deep economic downturn caused by coronavirus, the European commission announced further details of green spending on Thursday.
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The bloc is showing the way in rebuilding coronavirus-ravaged economies to fight the climate emergency
The European commission has put down a marker for the world with its green recovery package. It sets a high standard for other nations, using the rebuilding of coronavirus-ravaged economies to tackle the even greater threat of the climate emergency, in principle at least.
With the world fast approaching the point when climate chaos becomes inevitable, how the trillions of recovery dollars – or euros – are spent is a use-it-or-lose-it moment, so what the EU does really matters. Climate change is a global crisis, meaning all nations must act and some must lead the way.
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Khonoma’s residents are sanguine about the Covid-19-enforced loss of visitor income – and it’s all thanks to their sustainable lifestyle
As he looks to the future, Kezhaseria Meyase, a 37-year-old resident of Khonoma, expresses confidence in the youth of the village. “They are well aware of the importance of conserving our forests and wildlife,” he says.
For the first time since the creation of the Khonoma Nature Conservation and Tragopan Sanctuary (KNCTS) in 1998, tourism in Khonoma has come to a halt. In 2019, the remote 700-year-old village in the Indian state of Nagaland, near the Indo-Myanmar border, received more than 4,000 visitors. Nearly a fifth of the tourists were from overseas, drawn to Khonoma’s rich biodiversity and conservation success (in 2005, it was named India’s first “green village”).
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Climate experts push Britain, as talks host, to work on ‘zero carbon’ route from pandemic
The UK government must urgently set out clear plans on a green recovery from the coronavirus crisis if the delayed UN climate summit is to be a success, say leading experts.
The climate talks known as Cop26 and scheduled to be held in Glasgow, are expected to be postponed by a year from their original date this November, dashing hopes that the summit would be swiftly reconvened. A formal decision on the delay will be taken by the UN Thursday evening.
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Research published after video shows environment minister calling for deregulation while public distracted by Covid-19
Two studies have raised further alarm about deforestation in Brazil during the first year of the far-right president Jair Bolsonaro’s government.
One study showed the country lost 12,000 km2 (4,633 sq miles) of forest last year and also provided important information about those behind deforestation. The other research flagged a 27% increase in the destruction of tropical forests in eastern Brazil.
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Nine-seater plane should take to skies on Thursday and produce no carbon emissions
The world’s largest all-electric aircraft is about to take to the skies for the first time.
The Cessna Caravan, retrofitted with an electric engine, is expected to fly for 20-30 minutes over Washington state in the US on Thursday.
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Report calls for urgent action to tackle developing countries’ reliance on bottled water
Focusing on improving the water supply in developing nations could be a powerful way to fight the scourge of plastic waste in the oceans, experts have said, highlighting that the issue has received little attention.
People in developing countries, and many middle-income countries, often rely on plastic bottles of water as their piped water supply can be contaminated or unsafe, or perceived as such.
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Experts warn the exploitation of endangered animals such as pangolin and tiger is tarnishing the industry
Supporters and practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine have warned that the discipline is threatened by those who continue to trade in endangered animals.
The small segment of the TCM community that insists on using endangered animal parts in the pharmaceutical side of TCM, ignoring welfare considerations and the idea of respecting biodiversity, could destroy its reputation for good, they argue.
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