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Researchers say problem could increase number of people at risk of starvation by 400m in next two decades
The pollution of the planet by microplastics is significantly cutting food supplies by damaging the ability of plants to photosynthesise, according to a new assessment.
The analysis estimates that between 4% and 14% of the world’s staple crops of wheat, rice and maize is being lost due to the pervasive particles. It could get even worse, the scientists said, as more microplastics pour into the environment.
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Staff crisis at Environment Agency, which helps monitor 950 sites, means it is hearing about incidents later than normal, insider says
The team responsible for preventing environmental risks at England’s most hazardous industrial sites is facing a recruitment crisis and one insider has warned environmental incidents are going unchecked.
The control of major accident hazards (Comah) regulations cover 950 of England’s most hazardous industrial sites – from nuclear power plants to chemical manufacturers – in locations such as Buncefield oil depot near Hemel Hempstead, where, in 2005, the largest explosion in peacetime took place in the UK.
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Highly toxic jet fuel leaking from oil tanker threatens local ecosystems as investigations begin into collision’s cause
Leaking fuel from the collision between a cargo ship and oil tanker in the North Sea would have a “devastating” impact on marine life, experts have said, as investigations began into the cause of the incident.
Fires continued to burn onboard both vessels 24 hours after the Stena Immaculate tanker and cargo ship Solong collided off the coast of Yorkshire on Monday morning. A search for a missing crew member was called off overnight.
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Annual survey by IQAir based on toxic PM2.5 particles reveals some progress in pollution levels in India and China
Nearly every country on Earth has dirtier air than doctors recommend breathing, a report has found.
Only seven countries met the World Health Organization’s guidelines for tiny toxic particles known as PM2.5 last year, according to analysis from the Swiss air quality technology company IQAir.
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Tetrodotoxin immobilises the female – who is about two to five times bigger than the male – so mating can occur, researchers observed
Male blue-lined octopuses inject females with venom during sex, paralysing their larger mates to avoid being eaten, new research has found.
The blue-lined octopus is a tiny, highly dangerous cephalopod found commonly in shallow reefs and tide pools.
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US-style mega-farms in Herefordshire face tough new regulations after high court ruling
Industrial poultry farms face tough new regulations around the disposal of chicken manure after a judge ruled it can be classified as waste and requires a detailed and transparent plan to dispose of it without damaging the environment.
The high court ruling means new US-style mega-farms in Herefordshire will have to deal with poultry manure as if it was industrial waste.
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The Guardianas del Conchalito ignored chants of ‘get back to your kitchens’, determined to protect the environment and create a sustainable shellfish operation
Ahead of the small boat, as it bobs on the waters near La Paz in the Mexican state of Baja California, is a long line of old plastic bottles strung together on top of the waves. Underneath them are as many as 100,000 oysters, waiting to be sold to the upmarket hotels down the coast.
Cheli Mendez, who oversees the project, pulls a shell up from below, cuts it open with a knife, and gives me the contents to try: a plump, tasty oyster. Mendez is one of a group known as Guardianas del Conchalito, or guardians of the shells, and theirs is the first oyster-growing business in the region run entirely by women, she says.
The women dug a channel with shovels and pickaxes to allow seawater to reach the mangroves
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An ugly fight has ripped through Galloway in south-west Scotland, with rival campaigns complaining of dirty tricks and murky finances. How could the mere possibility of a new national park stir up so much ill will?
As soon as the green fields of Galloway, in south-west Scotland, were selected as the preferred site for Britain’s first new national park in 15 years, Denise Brownlee sprang into action. The 64-year-old retired civil servant had served two seasons as a park ranger in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, and knew a thing or two about the chaos brought by thoughtless day-trippers and campers. “The detritus!” she says. “I’ve seen a two-man tent used as a human litter tray. You think dog poo on the pavement is bad? Try wandering up any remote little area in a national park. Your faith in humankind gets lost.”
In July, Galloway was chosen as the frontrunner from a shortlist of five areas as part of the Scottish government’s pledge to designate at least one new national park – the country’s third – by 2026. The park’s creation, however, is by no means assured. The other areas in the running had faced varying degrees of opposition (especially Lochaber in the west Highlands), but no one could have predicted the ugly fight that was to tear through one of Scotland’s most picturesque regions, rip apart friendships and turn neighbours against each other.
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Rainfall in Bahía Blanca led to 10 deaths, swept away vehicles, destroyed bridges and left areas underwater
The city of Bahía Blanca in Argentina had a new rainfall record on Friday, after a recent heatwave. More than 400mm (15.7in) of rain was recorded in just eight hours, more than twice the city’s previous record of 175mm set in 1930, and roughly equivalent to a year’s worth of rainfall.
The heatwave primed the atmosphere for heavy rainfall by creating high instability and raising humidity levels. Then on Friday, as a cold front swept across the region, this warm moist air was able to rise, cool and rapidly condense, leading to severe thunderstorms across the region. As the front then continued northwards towards Buenos Aires over the weekend, further severe storms were triggered, containing heavy rain, hail and strong gusts.
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Two Italian cacti smugglers have been fined for illegally trading plants from Chile – and for the cost of restoring the environment. Conservationists hope more cases will follow
Chile’s Atacama desert is one of the driest places on Earth, a surprisingly cool environment, sucked clean of moisture by the cold ocean to the west. This arid, golden landscape is home to many rare species of cacti, which attract professional and amateur botanists from around the world keen to make discoveries and experience the thrill of naming a new species.
But they are not the only ones prowling the sands: Atacama has become a hotspot for succulent smuggling.
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