Vibrant blooms mean first stage of plan to cover 1,200 hectares is hailed as a success 18 months after planting
When the sowing began on the coastline of south-west England, conservationists warned it may take a little while for the new wildflower meadows to flourish fully.
But 18 months on, a vibrant display of blooms has popped up in north Devon, a joy for human visitors and a draw for precious birds, insects and mammals.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
07/09/2024 - 05:51
07/09/2024 - 05:00
Warning after intensification of storm aided by unusually hot ocean waters in much of Beryl’s path
Hurricane Beryl, which slammed into Texas on Monday after wreaking havoc in the Caribbean, was supercharged by “absolutely crazy” ocean temperatures that are likely to fuel further violent storms in the coming months, scientists have warned.
Beryl left more than 2m people without power after making landfall near Houston as a category 1 storm, after having rampaged through the Caribbean as a category 5 hurricane, with wind speeds reaching 165mph (265km/h), killing 11 people.
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07/09/2024 - 04:00
Report says member states poured $1.34tn into their militaries last year – an increase of $126bn from 2022
As leaders from member countries gather to mark the 75th anniversary of Nato in Washington DC, researchers are warning that their military budgets are eroding the climate, producing an estimated 233m metric tonnes of greenhouse gas, more planet-heating pollution than some entire countries.
“Our research shows that military spending increases greenhouse gas emissions, diverts critical finance from climate action, and consolidates an arms trade that fuels instability during climate breakdown,” says a new report from three international research and advocacy groups, the UK-based Transnational Institute and Tipping Point North South, and the Netherlands’ Stop Wapenhandel.
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07/09/2024 - 03:45
Incidents from sites and pipe network increased by 19 last year to 350 amid delays in investment, company says
Thames Water to tap investors for funds as it will run out of cash by next June
Sewage pollution from ageing Thames Water treatment works that have not been upgraded increased last year, causing the company to again fail to meet its legal targets, according to its financial report.
Across the Thames Water area, the number of incidents of pollution from treatment works and the pipe network increased to 350, compared with 331 in 2022. The rise was attributed to delays in investment to create more capacity at many of the company’s 400 ageing sewage treatment works. Chris Weston, Thames Water’s chief executive, said the works could not cope with a 40% increase in rainfall and exceptionally high levels of groundwater.
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07/09/2024 - 03:39
Wildlife authorities are hopeful about a new technique to identify which waterways have crocs without needing to sight them
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DNA testing could be the latest tool to help park rangers track down elusive crocodiles in tropical north Queensland.
Researchers from the University of Canberra have developed a technique that can detect minute amounts of a crocodile’s mitochondrial DNA in water samples.
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07/09/2024 - 02:00
Blackened trees, dead animals and scorched earth – early wildfires have already devastated Brazil’s Pantanal and local people worry they may lose the battle to save them
Perched atop blackened trees, howler monkeys survey the ashes around them. A flock of rheas treads, disoriented, in search of water. The skeletons of alligators lie lifeless and charred.
The Pantanal, the world’s largest wetland and one of the most biodiverse places on Earth, is on fire. Huge stretches of land resemble the aftermath of a battle, with thick green shrubbery now a carpet of white ash, and chunks of debris falling from the sky.
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07/09/2024 - 01:47
Activists are convinced a wartime campaign of resistance is the only way to highlight the existing system’s failure to meet the moment
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As pro-Palestinian protesters sparked outrage scaling the roof of Parliament House last week, a few dozen activists at Newcastle were making an equally sharp point – mostly to less fanfare.
Over more than two weeks, campaigners under the Blockade Australia banner have been interrupting trains near the world’s biggest coal port. My colleague Jordyn Beazley reported that by Monday at least 500 train journeys had been cancelled and more than 30 people arrested.
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07/08/2024 - 21:23
A recently published study demonstrates how sucralose affects the behavior of cyanobacteria -- an aquatic photosynthetic bacteria -- and diatoms, microscopic algae that account for more than 30% of the primary food production in the marine food chain.
07/08/2024 - 21:22
Oysters sanctuaries in Chesapeake Bay are working for more than just oysters. Compared to nearby harvest areas, sanctuaries contain more abundant populations of oysters and other animal life--and the presence of two common parasites isn't preventing that.
07/08/2024 - 18:17
Man, 53, and woman, 74, killed by fallen trees and third person drowns amid howling winds and torrential rain
Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall in south-east Texas on Monday with howling winds and torrential rains, causing the deaths of at least three people, closing oil ports, and knocking out power to more than 2.5m homes and businesses.
Before making landfall in Texas, the storm had already carved a path through the Caribbean as a category 5 hurricane, where it killed 11 people. It continued on to Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula as a category 2, temporarily dropped in intensity to a tropical storm but again strengthened to a hurricane over the weekend.
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