Owners of stranded oil rig say salvage effort is at mercy of weather
Transocean apologises to Isle of Lewis residents and says salvage experts are not ready to refloat the structure The owners of a 17,000-tonne oil rig that has been stranded on the coast of the Isle of Lewis in Scotland for 10 days have told locals that salvage experts are not ready to refloat the vast […]
Study identifies key species which act as warning signs of ecosystem collapse
The success or failure of certain species can be used to predict the future health of an entire ecosystem, research says The Earth’s biodiversity is under attack. We would need to travel back over 65 million years to find rates of species loss as high as we are witnessing today. Conservation often focuses on the […]
Gas supplies to rise and secret contracts to be scrapped under Coag reform plan
States agree to develop coal seam gas and make deals more transparent in an effort to increase competition and reduce prices Gas supplies in Australia will be expanded and suppliers forced to publish previously secret prices under reforms agreed to by state and federal ministers at the Coag energy council meeting in Canberra. All states […]
Water voles to be reintroduced to England's highest lake
National Trust will release 100 of the endangered animals, not seen at Malham tarn in Yorkshire dales for 50 years Britain’s endangered water voles will reach new heights when they are returned to Yorkshire’s Malham tarn for the first time in 50 years. Around 100 water voles will be reintroduced on Friday to the National […]
High on Kinder Scout, land at the end of its tether
Kinder Scout, Derbyshire Far from being a dismal, greasy world of chocolate peat, the plateau appeared luxuriantly green There is something littoral about the northern rim of Kinder Scout, the plateau that includes Derbyshire’s highest point. Its start in life was estuarine. Its famous gritstone cap, abrasive icing on a sedimentary layer cake, began as […]
Culling 5,000 brumbies: 41 scientists back controversial Kosciuszko proposal
Academics say plan to slash number of wild horses is needed to protect delicate Snowy Mountains environment A plan to cull more than 5,000 brumbies in the Snowy Mountains has received the support of leading scientists from around Australia. Forty-one scientists from 16 universities have written to the New South Wales premier, Mike Baird, to […]
Conjoined baby turtle saved by Italian marine biologists
Survivor from twin endangered loggerheads is separated by scientists and freed in Mediterranean Sea Marine biologists in southern Italy have separated conjoined twin loggerhead turtles and released the surviving newborn into the Mediterranean Sea. The release occurred this week along the beaches of Campania where the endangered loggerheads nest every year. Continue reading… Source: Guardian […]
'Secret' gas contracts hurting competition, Josh Frydenberg says
Coag meeting will agree on a significant suite of reforms, federal energy and environment minister says • If energy ministers bow to gas industry they’ll be deciding in the dark A meeting of state and territory energy ministers will tackle secret long-term gas contracts in an effort to make the sector more competitive, the federal […]
If energy ministers bow to gas industry they'll be deciding in the dark
Coag meeting could spark a run on exploration and development – yet do nothing to increase competition • Secret gas contracts hurting competition, Josh Frydenberg says Friday’s meeting of every energy minister in Australia is looking to be at risk of bowing to gas industry demands and sparking a run on gas development around the […]
Business chiefs attack UK government failure to secure energy supply
Poll shows strong support among IoD to tackle climate change, a bigger push for renewables and for PM’s move to review Hinkley Point The Institute of Directors (IoD) has backed Theresa May’s decision to review the £18.5bn Hinkley nuclear scheme but launched a savage attack on successive government policies for failing to deliver energy security. […]