Breaking Waves: Ocean News

05/07/2024 - 18:01
Report says humans may be on brink of cutting fossil fuel generation, even as demand for electricity rises Renewable energy accounted for more than 30% of the world’s electricity for the first time last year following a rapid rise in wind and solar power, according to new figures. A report on the global power system has found that the world may be on the brink of driving down fossil fuel generation, even as overall demand for electricity continues to rise. Continue reading...
05/07/2024 - 10:00
The US cattle industry adopted a ‘climate neutral’ goal in 2021 but scientists say that ‘misses the point’ in keeping global temperature rises below 1.5C Sign up for the Rural Network email newsletter Join the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the community Cattle Australia is lobbying the red meat sector to ditch its net zero target in favour of a “climate neutral” goal that would require far more modest reductions in methane emissions. The $75bn red meat industry, led by Meat and Livestock Australia, announced a target of reaching net zero emissions by 2030 seven years ago, in an attempt to maintain its social licence and drive investments in emissions reduction technology. Sign up to receive Guardian Australia’s fortnightly Rural Network email newsletter Sign up for the Rural Network email newsletter Join the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the community Continue reading...
05/07/2024 - 08:11
Campaigners ‘appalled’ as French energy company EDF gets go-ahead for next stage of project A planned nuclear power station at Sizewell in Suffolk has been granted the first site licence in more than a decade as investors and government officials race to finalise a deal for the multibillion-pound project this year. The licence from the nuclear regulator is considered a milestone for EDF, which plans to build Sizewell C as a replica of its Hinkley Point C project in Somerset, which has been dogged by delays and cost overruns. Continue reading...
05/07/2024 - 06:00
Charity asks people to charm worms to the surface and count their numbers to contribute to worm map of UK Dancing for worms may seem an odd pursuit, but an environment charity is calling for people across the UK to charm the creatures from the depths in order to count them. The Soil Association is trying to get a nationwide picture of worm abundance, to track their decline and see where they need the most help. Continue reading...
05/07/2024 - 05:00
Outgoing special rapporteur David Boyd says ‘there’s something wrong with our brains that we can’t understand how grave this is’ The race to save the planet is being impeded by a global economy that is contingent on the exploitation of people and nature, according to the UN’s outgoing leading environment and human rights expert. David Boyd, who served as UN special rapporteur on human rights and the environment from 2018 to April 2024, told the Guardian that states failing to take meaningful climate action and regulating polluting industries could soon face a slew of lawsuits. Continue reading...
05/07/2024 - 01:00
Abalobi provides a real-time marketplace for fishers to sell their catch, while also monitoring fish populations, and the tech could go global The 59-year-old Wilfred Poggenpoel is a fisher from Lambert’s Bay, a picturesque town 170 miles north of Cape Town that’s popular with surfers and home to 17,000 breeding pairs of Cape gannets. Five years ago, he made the decision to join a virtual marketplace called Abalobi, which enables fishers such as him to sell their catch directly to restaurants, retailers and consumers using a custom-built app. “I get a better price and I can sell more species now,” he says. “I’ve bought a 60-horsepower motor that I’d never have been able to afford before. I’ve bought a second boat.” He joined, he says, because he didn’t want to spend all day walking around town in the sun trying to sell fish. “My quality of life has improved. I’ve even been able to help some old people in the community.” Continue reading...
05/06/2024 - 23:00
Fish welfare campaigners say Defra decision facilitates greenwashing and will mislead consumers Animal welfare campaigners are challenging the decision to allow producers of Scottish salmon to drop the word “farmed” from labelling. An application by the industry body claimed changing the protected name wording on the front of packaging from “Scottish farmed salmon” to “Scottish salmon” made sense because wild salmon was no longer sold in supermarkets, which consumers were aware of. Continue reading...
05/06/2024 - 12:17
More than 200 expected to join protest calling for climate action and to cut ties with Israeli institutions Israel-Gaza war – live updates More than 100 students have occupied Ghent University in the first European protest to fuse demands about Gaza and the climate crisis. Ghent’s centrepiece UFO building was peacefully taken over by students calling for concrete action to meet the university’s 2030 climate plans, and asking the university to cut ties with institutions connected to the Israeli military. Continue reading...
05/06/2024 - 12:16
To preserve the important intertidal areas and salt marshes off our coasts for the future, we need more turbid water. That is one of the striking conclusions from a new study.
05/06/2024 - 10:32
Your daily caffeine habit is not good for the planet. Thankfully, researchers are finding alternatives to ground coffee beans Name: Synthetic coffee. Age: Three. Continue reading...