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Exclusive: Labour will also boost environmental efforts by reestablishing climate role cut by Rishi Sunak
The UK government is planning to appoint a special envoy for nature for the first time, as the foreign secretary, David Lammy, seeks to put the UK at the centre of global efforts to tackle the world’s ecological crises, the Guardian has learned.
Labour will also appoint a new climate envoy, after the Tories abolished the post over a year ago, a move that dismayed foreign governments and climate campaigners.
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Emissions from in-house data centers of Google, Microsoft, Meta and Apple may be 7.62 times higher than official tally
Big tech has made some big claims about greenhouse gas emissions in recent years. But as the rise of artificial intelligence creates ever bigger energy demands, it’s getting hard for the industry to hide the true costs of the data centers powering the tech revolution.
According to a Guardian analysis, from 2020 to 2022 the real emissions from the “in-house” or company-owned data centers of Google, Microsoft, Meta and Apple are likely about 662% – or 7.62 times – higher than officially reported.
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The hoiho, which means ‘noise shouter’, triumphed in a year free from the usual scandals surrounding the competition
One of the world’s rarest penguins has been crowned New Zealand’s bird of the year, in an unusually sedate year for the competition, free from the foreign interference and voting scandals of previous events.
The endangered yellow-eyed penguin, or hoiho, is the largest of New Zealand’s mainland penguin species and is distinctive for the pale yellow band of feathers linking the eyes.
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As rich westerners fuel demand for the ancient fragrance, a lucrative race for the resin is killing the trees but leaving little of the trade’s profit for those gathering it
In a corner of Covent Garden, well-heeled Londoners and tourists browse the range of frankincense products sold by a leading cosmetics brand while they drink a complimentary rose and berry tea. Amid the aromatic resin sheathed under glass, shoppers can buy “age-defying” serums, creams and essences, and tablets to strengthen brittle nails and hair.
At one counter, a sales assistant is advising customers on how much of the essential oil to add to their nebuliser to make guests feel relaxed “without overwhelming them”. Another explains frankincense’s “hydrating and rejuvenating” properties, including its alleged ability to smooth out fine lines caused by smiling and squinting. In terms of popularity, she says, it now far outstrips lavender, tea tree and other botanicals.
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Caistor St Edmund, Norfolk:An artist’s map of the farm breathes new life into intriguing monikers such as Pi Field (3.14 acres) and Woodcock Wood
A juvenile gull, a lesser black-back, sits on the roof of the stable block, emitting a repetitive, plaintive call. It rings out around the entire yard like an alarm. Starlings gather on the telephone wires and the swallows are still here, just. Swifts are long gone, though.
A local artist has helped create a map of the farm, with illustrations that bring the boundaries to life. As I stride out, map in hand, the field names are rekindled, each telling a tale of history or change, of loss or progress.
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Leaked government figures show proportion of assets in adequate condition has fallen ‘significantly below’ target
Thousands of flood defences in England that are supposed to protect properties from serious damage are in a state of disrepair, according to official figures leaked to the Observer before what is expected to be a wetter than usual autumn.
Data from inside the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Environment Agency about the so-called “asset condition” of key flood defences shows the proportion of those regarded as being in adequate condition now stands at just 92.6%, compared with 97.9% in 2018-19. This is the proportion of defences judged to be fit for purpose after rigorous inspection by experts.
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Lake Charles has been battered by storms over the past 20 years – and now its most famous landmark lies in ruins
Last week, one south-west Louisiana city in particular was girding itself for Hurricane Francine’s blow: Lake Charles, located about four hours west of New Orleans and two hours east of Houston.
In the lottery of hurricane paths over the past 20 years, Lake Charles has been very, very unlucky. But Francine’s impact on the city turned out to be relatively minor, a summer storm like locals are used to.
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For most of her life she’s lived without running water, electricity and a fridge. Her toilet is often clogged so she goes to the bathroom in the bush
On the side of Alice Underwood’s house is a list of things she wants written in chalk. “Shower. Electricity” are at the top, in bright red. “Flowers. Berries” follow.
Alice is 32 years old. For most of her life she has lived without running water, electricity or even a fridge – but not by choice.
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I loved the adrenaline rush of work as a political adviser - but a chance encounter with a tiny leveret make me rethink everything
The path near the barn where I lived was a short, unpaved track leading along the edge of a cornfield. I was deep in my thoughts one day, walking down this slope towards a narrow country lane, when I was brought up short by a tiny creature facing me on the grass strip running down the track’s centre. I stopped abruptly. Leveret. The word surfaced in my mind, even though I had never seen a young hare before.
The animal, no longer than the width of my palm, lay on its stomach with its eyes open and its short, silky ears held tightly against its back. Its fur was dark brown, thick and choppy. It blended into the dead winter landscape so completely that, but for the rapid rise and fall of its flanks, I would have mistaken it for a stone. Its jet-black eyes were encircled with a thick, uneven band of creamy fur. High on its forehead was a distinct white mark that stood out like a minute dribble of paint. It did not stir as I came into view, but studied the ground in front of it, unmoving.
‘It seemed impossible that the fragile animal at my feet could survive by itself.’ Photograph: Chloe Dalton
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In the picturesque area in south-west England, farmers and conservationists are turning around the long decline
“What we want is cowpats that are alive – you can see the evidence here,” says Holly Purdey, pointing at dung beetle holes. She took on the 81-hectare (200-acre) Horner farm in Exmoor national park in 2018, challenging herself to produce beef and lamb while restoring nature to land she says had been “trashed” by intensive farming.
In the field of knee-high grass, her shorthorn cattle are sheltering from the sun by the tall hedges. Water scavenger beetles also feed on the dung, she says, and eat the larvae of the face flies that can torment the red and white cattle and are usually tackled with pesticides. “I think it’s incredible that we have a natural predator for the flies,” Purdey says.
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