White nose syndrome has been diagnosed in a European
bat for the first time. The disease, caused by a fungus, Geomyces
destructans, has wiped out millions of bats in the US since it
was discovered there in 2006.
Tens of thousands of trees have been felled in Cardinham
Woods near Bodmin to try to prevent the spread of a deadly disease
which affects Japanese larch.
With the lambing season in full swing, the RSPB is
reassuring farmers that red kites do not pose any threat to lambs.
These spectacular birds are once again making themselves at home in
Northern Ireland after an absence of 200 years.
Opportunity for local communities to comment on badger
control licence applications
As part of the badger control licence application process,
residents and businesses within and adjacent to the proposed pilot
licence areas will be invited to provide information ...
Funding for wildlife friendly farming takes another
hit
Following today’s Budget Bill debate, Vicki
Swales, Head of Land Use Policy at RSPB Scotland said: “It’s
extremely disappointing that pleas for Mr Swinney to reverse cuts
to schemes that encourage wildlife friendly farming seem to have
fallen on deaf ears."
RSPB asks for safeguarding of funding to deliver
sustainable farming
The RSPB believes that Northern Ireland’s farmers
are well placed to lead the way in delivering the European Commission’s
priorities of ‘Sustainable management of natural resources
and climate action’.
A new study which is investigating the benefits of
supplementary feeding during the leanest months of winter could
mean that farmers will be paid to feed their starving farmland birds
in future.
Monsanto, the biggest promoter of genetically modified
food, was hoist with its own petard when it was disclosed that it
has a staff canteen in which GM produce is banned.
Tuna and mackerel populations have reduced by 60% in
the last century
A study shows that the impact of fishing for tuna and
similar species during the last 50 years has lessened the abundance
of all these populations by an average of 60%.
European Union failing threatened Mediterranean sharks
Oceana, the international marine conservation organisation,
denounces the European Commission for blocking efforts to protect
threatened and endangered sharks and rays in the Mediterranean Sea,
under the Barcelona Convention.
Majority of protected tropical forests "empty"
due to hunting
Protected areas in the world's tropical rainforests
are absolutely essential, but one cannot simply set up a new refuge
and believe the work is done, according to a new paper in the American
Institute of Biological Sciences.
European leaders have mapped out a bold agenda ahead
of the Rio summit, vowing to transform development aid, help provide
renewable electricity to the world’s neediest people, and bulk
up the United Nations environment body.
Rising temperatures at Fukushima raise questions over
stability of nuclear plant
Workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant
say they are regaining control of a reactor after its temperature
rose dramatically this week, casting doubt on government claims that
the facility has been stabilised.
Campaigners clash over industry claims of rise in GM
crops
Pro- and anti-GM organisations clashed on Tuesday over
the accuracy of industry figures which suggested a rise internationally
of 8% in the acreage of GM crops in 2011, a 16th straight rise since
they were first sold in 1996.
Silent in flannel shirts and ponytails, farmers from
Saskatchewan and South Dakota, Mississippi and Massachusetts lined
the walls of a packed federal courtroom in Manhattan last week, as
their lawyers told a judge that they were no longer able to keep genetically
modified crops from their fields.
A smarter and greener EU Budget would contribute to
employment
A coalition of Environmental Groups launches a major
study by GHK Consultants on “the contribution a green EU Budget
could make to job creation and the economy”.
The Himalayas and nearby peaks have lost no ice in past 10 years
The world's greatest snow-capped peaks, which run
in a chain from the Himalayas to Tian Shan on the border of China
and Kyrgyzstan, have lost no ice over the last decade, new research
shows.
Scientists melt mystery over icecaps and sea levels
U.S. scientists using satellite data have established
a more accurate figure of the amount of annual sea level rise from
melting glaciers and ice caps which should aid studies on how quickly
coastal areas may flood as global warming gathers pace.
Carbon capture to net €1bn of infrastructure
funds
Experimental technology to capture, store and bury
carbon emissions in geological formations is in line to receive
a payout of as much as €1.37 billion from the EU’s energy
infrastructure package, EurActiv has learned.
Louisiana report urges state to brace for 3 feet
of sea level rise
A new report released by the administration of Louisiana
Gov. Bobby Jindal projects that the state’s already vulnerable
coastline could face 3 feet of sea level rise by the end of the
century.
UK greenhouse gas rise exceeds expectations on 2010
recovery
The UK has been pumping out more greenhouses gases
(GHG) than previously thought, according to new government figures
confirming emissions rose 3.1 per cent between 2009 and 2010.
