Orchid
numbers double at Corfe Mullen nature reserve
Green
winged orchid numbers have doubled this year at a Corfe Mullen nature reserve,
according to the latest figures released by Dorset Wildlife Trust.
Lake Vyrnwy tree is joint tallest
living thing in northern Europe
As
tall stories go, they don't come much bigger. A Douglas fir tree on the Lake Vyrnwy
Estate, managed by Forestry Commission Wales, has officially been declared the
joint tallest tree in the UK - exactly the same height as another Douglas fir
near Dunans Castle in Argyll, Scotland.
A flower that is flourishing in this showery summer is ivy-leaved
toadflax. It is hanging in long, dark green swags down damp walls and is covered
with tiny flowers.
It has been a good year for the rare
and threatened marsh fritillary butterfly on a number of Devon's nature reserves,
including a record number reported on one in Torridgeside.
A
Sharkatag event is currently under way in the waters off the Dumfries and Galloway
Coast. Organised by the Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network, it hopes to
provide valuable data on shark numbers and behaviour.
Warning over landscapes and wildlife
in Northamptonshire
A report issued
today by Natural England has a warning for authorities in Northamptonshire about
the state of landscapes and wildlife across the county.
The Green Party has called on the Ministers for justice and transport
to ensure that there are “full, transparent and impartial investigations” into
the sinking of a fishing vessel off Erris Head, Co Mayo.
Sizewell nuclear disaster averted by dirty laundry, says official
report
A nuclear leak, which could
have caused a major disaster, was only averted by a chance decision to wash some
dirty clothes, according to a newly obtained official report.
China
suspends 'illegal' hydropower projects for environmental reasons
China's environment ministry has suspended construction of two
ambitious hydropower dams in the upper Yangtze river region, saying the projects
were illegal because they were started without necessary environmental assessments.
A
new US study offers evidence to support the theory that beaked whales get the
bends when they surface rapidly, possibly after being startled by naval sonar.
Hawaiian Islands expand habitat
for endangered monk seal
The federal
government is set to make a substantial expansion of the critical habitat for
endangered Hawaiian monk seals to include beaches and waters of the main Hawaiian
Islands on Friday.
Zebra mussels hang on while quagga mussels take over
The zebra mussels that have wreaked ecological havoc on the Great
Lakes are harder to find these days — not because they are dying off, but because
they are being replaced by a cousin, the quagga mussel.
Europe's Renewable Energy Directive comes
into force
Europe has published the
final version of its new Renewable Energy Directive, along with other measures
under the climate and energy package of legislation agreed earlier this year.
Wealthy countries'
targets to cut greenhouse emissions fall well short of what is needed to avoid
catastrophic climate change, according to a confidential United Nations analysis.
US says it will not demand binding carbon
cuts from China
Progress towards
a global treaty to fight climate change took an important step forward today when
the US said it would not demand that China commits to binding cuts of its greenhouse
gas emissions.
China hits back at carbon trading free-ride claims
China has made huge financial contributions to the global Kyoto
compact to cut CO2 emissions and it is unfair to accuse it of taking advantage
of the system, a senior Chinese climate change official said on Friday.
Time is running out for climate change talks, with another meeting
of world governments ending on Friday, this time in Bonn, with little progress
towards a new agreement on greenhouse gases.
Don’t break promises, help the poorest fight climate
change
The G8 must stick to its past
financial commitments to help the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs) address
the disastrous impacts of climate change, WWF said ahead of a meeting of the group’s
finance ministers.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced
on Friday plans to restart the FutureGen clean coal power project, which was scrapped
by the previous Bush administration as too expensive.
Ice loss could push sea levels
above estimates: report
Increasing
loss of ice from Antarctica and Greenland could cause sea levels to exceed U.N.
estimates by 2100, an Australian government-backed report says, with the extent
of the rise still uncertain.
