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Environment Agency rates eight of nine companies as poor and needing improvement
England’s water company ratings have fallen to the lowest level on record after sewage pollution last year hit a new peak, with eight of nine water companies rated as poor and needing improvement by the Environment Agency.
The cumulative score of only 19 stars out of a possible 36 is the lowest since the regulator began auditing the companies using the star rating system in 2011.
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Use of wood-burning stoves and fires in homes is mostly unnecessary and their toxic pollution costs the NHS millions
The burning of wood and coal in homes contributes to almost 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, analysis has found. Stopping unnecessary burning would save the NHS more than £54m a year, the experts concluded.
Wood-burning stoves and open fires are one the biggest sources of small pollution particles, which cause heart and lung disease, and their use has risen in recent years. The report also links this toxic air pollution to 3,700 cases of diabetes and 1,500 cases of asthma a year, although the health impacts are likely to be underestimated.
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French multinational is ordered to remove its website messages about aiming for carbon neutrality
A French oil company engaged in “misleading commercial practices” about the scope of its environmental commitments, a court has ruled.
TotalEnergies, which this month said it aimed to “ramp up production of gas”, was found on Thursday to have probably misled consumers with claims about its climate policies. The civil court in Paris ordered the company to remove messages from its website that said it wanted to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and be a big player in the energy transition.
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From a red-throated loon landing on water, to good and bad hair days and an airborne squirrel, here is a selection of the finalists in this year’s Nikon Comedy Wildlife awards. A winner will be announced on 9 December
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Former European officers say spending on low-carbon power would make nations more resilient to threats from potential aggressors
Investment in renewable energy should be counted under defence expenditure, says a group of retired senior military personnel, because the climate crisis represents a threat to national security.
They have called for increased spending on low-carbon power as a way of making the UK and other European countries more resilient to threats from Russia and other potential aggressors.
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Private member’s bill backed by Chris Packham and Natalie Bennett would impose a duty of care on government and business
A radical proposal to change the legal status of nature will be launched today in the House of Lords, with the unveiling of the UK nature’s rights bill initiative.
The private member’s bill aims to legally enshrine the idea that there can be no lasting economic progress or social justice without respect for the natural world, and to change the legal status of nature from objects, property and resources to a legal subject with inherent rights.
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Exclusive: Promise to remove almost all fossil fuels from UK’s electricity supply by 2030 may be quietly abandoned over cost
Ministers are considering dropping one of their central green pledges in an effort to keep energy bills down, sources have told the Guardian.
Government insiders say Keir Starmer is prepared to miss his own target of removing almost all fossil fuels from the UK’s electricity supply by 2030 if doing so proves much more expensive than building gas power instead.
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There are three common types of turbulence – and our volatile atmosphere is making them worse
Turbulence has always been an inconvenience for airline passengers and can cause alarm for the already nervous. Part of the problem is that most of the time you cannot see it coming – pilots can run into severe clear-air turbulence in a perfect blue sky.
High in the atmosphere, where most intercontinental flights cruise to make maximum use of fuel, the jet stream can behave erratically, causing wind shear that can throw around an airliner in the sky.
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Around the Cook Islands, the world’s two most powerful countries are exploring the possibility of deep-sea mining for critical minerals
Deep below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, the seafloor is dotted with clusters of brown and black rocks, each containing valuable metals.
The rocks, known as polymetallic nodules, hold reserves of critical minerals that could be used to power clean energy and fuel a new industrial future. In the Cook Islands, a nation halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand, exploration vessels are mapping the mineral-rich seabeds.
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Local non-profits and schools are helping students explore traditional practices paired with modern science to make food sovereignty a reality
The Blackfeet Nation is a remote and rugged landscape on the windswept plains of northern Montana. While rich in resources, the remote location and management by the federal government have made food access a challenge here.
Only four grocery stores serve the entire reservation. Fresh, healthy produce and meat options are often limited at these stores, and prices are higher than in neighboring communities, making access difficult for low–income families. Instead, highly processed foods, rich in sugars, carbohydrates and fat make up the bulk of the food choices.
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