Breaking Waves: Ocean News

The search for the perfect wetsuit: is there one that doesn’t harm the planet?

admin — Thu, 16 May 2024 07:00:03 +0000

Neoprene is made from toxic chemicals, hard to recycle and, with 400,000 tonnes made a year, a growing problem. So can surfers and swimmers find green wetsuits?

I have been hesitating for months. The wetsuit I swim in every week to keep me toasty warm in the winter and safe from jellyfish stings in the summer is riddled with holes. Yet I can’t bring myself to buy a new one because I’ve learned that comfortable, flexible and insulating neoprene is manufactured using some of the most toxic chemicals on the planet.

‘It’s unbelievable the difference a path has made’: how volunteers are building a cycle network a yard at a time

admin — Thu, 16 May 2024 06:00:02 +0000

The Strawberry Line network of paths in Somerset has found a way to speed up planning permission and harness the goodwill of the community

In the past two years, multiple sections of a hoped-for 76-mile rural cycling and walking route spanning Somerset have sprouted up around the small town of Shepton Mallet, seemingly every few weeks.

Net zero U-turns will hit UK infrastructure, say government advisers

admin — Thu, 16 May 2024 06:00:01 +0000

Sir John Armitt urges ministers to act swiftly or risk impeding growth and jeopardising climate targets

Rishi Sunak’s U-turns over net zero have delayed progress on vital infrastructure that is needed for economic growth, the government’s advisers have said.

Sir John Armitt, the chair of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), said good progress had been made on renewable energy in the past five years, but changes to key policies, including postponing a scheme to boost heat pump takeup, had created uncertainty and delay.

Walkleys end media awards sponsorship deal with fossil fuel company Ampol

admin — Thu, 16 May 2024 04:36:59 +0000

Exclusive: Walkley Foundation changes donation policy, saying it won’t accept support from companies that ‘offer no tangible benefit to humanity’

Sharp rise in cost of British lamb in UK due to rising demand and import issues

admin — Thu, 16 May 2024 04:00:58 +0000

Cold and wet weather also thought to have led to more lambs dying in early season, as Morrison drops 100% British lamb pledge

The price of British lamb has hit an all-time high as cold weather and disease in the UK and difficulties with imports have combined with a surge in demand.

Wholesale prices have soared by more than 40% year-on-year to more than £8.50 a kg , while the amount of lamb expected to be produced in the UK this year is forecast to shrink by 1.4%, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).

M&S teams up with recycling tech group to trace plastic packaging

admin — Wed, 15 May 2024 23:01:51 +0000

Polytag system prints invisible tag on to containers, which can be picked up by readers located at recycling centres

Marks & Spencer is teaming up with a recycling technology group to enable the retailer to trace what happens to its drinks bottles, cartons and other plastic packaging.

The Polytag system prints an invisible tag on to containers, which can be picked up by electronic readers located at recycling centres.

Canada wildfires: huge queues on highway as thousands evacuate oil town – video

admin — Wed, 15 May 2024 15:36:52 +0000

Footage on social media showed roads full of cars evacuating the suburbs of Fort McMurray in the western Canadian province of Alberta. A growing blaze threatened the city and its surroundings, which experienced devastating fires in 2016. Local officials have ordered thousands to evacuate as the fire grows in size and strength, with winds fanning the flames. 'We’re seeing extreme fire behaviour. Smoke columns are developing and the skies are covered in smoke. Firefighters have been pulled from the fire line for safety reasons,' Josee St-Onge of Alberta Wildfire told reporters

Australia’s budget has ‘gaping hole’ in funds for DV victims, environment and housing, advocates say

admin — Wed, 15 May 2024 15:00:43 +0000

Labor touts cost of living package as ‘substantial’ but advocates say changes are inadequate

Snakes, donkey heads, a dead cow: the odd things found in recycling – and how they should be disposed of

admin — Wed, 15 May 2024 15:00:42 +0000

Most Australians don’t know what to do with their dead pets, vapes and lightbulbs, a waste survey has found

Devon residents told to boil tap water over risk of parasitic disease

admin — Wed, 15 May 2024 14:12:22 +0000

South West Water has detected ‘small traces’ of parasite in drinking supply that can cause diarrhoea-type disease

Boil your tap water before you drink it, residents in Devon have been told, after 22 cases of a parasitic disease were confirmed.

South West Water has detected what it calls “small traces” of a parasite that can cause a diarrhoea-type disease in the drinking supply around the town of Brixham.