Government blamed as third UK solar power installer goes bust
Southern Solar’s 22 employees will lose their jobs as chief executive Howard Johns blames government cuts to feed-in tariffs Another solar company has gone out of business, blaming the government for “killing off” support for the industry. Southern Solar, which has offices in areas including London and south Wales, has gone into administration. The Guardian […]
Is it fair to accuse the pharma industry of neglecting tropical diseases?
From snake bites to TB, big pharma is pulling out of investment into diseases affecting the poorest, but many argue non-profit medicines aren’t their job When pharma company Sanofi Pasteur was criticised last month for ceasing its production of Africa’s only snakebite anti-venom, the spotlight fell once again on the industry’s apparent lack of interest […]
National Grid winter capacity is lowest in a decade
The grid says electricity margins will be ‘tight but manageable’ and has asked companiesto be ready to cut output at peak times National Grid has said it is more likely to draw on additional sources of power to keep the country’s electricity running after the chance of blackouts rose to its highest in a decade. […]
Bloomberg Says Solar and Wind Has Passed Another Turning Point
New analysis by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) suggests that solar and wind sources of energy have passed another significant turning point in terms of the development towards an economy powered by renewables, both in Europe and the U.S.. BNEF’s work found that for the first time, wind energy is the cheapest form of electricity […]
RePhone: The Next Mobile Phone “Renaissance”?
RePhone is a new modular DIY mobile phone kit. The creators of it describe it as the next ‘Renaissance’ of the phone industry. We’ll let others be the judge of that, but it is a fascinating product concept, especially in a period of time where the design of our products is coming under increasing scrutiny. […]
Bill Heffernan castigates all parties for 'playing politics with water'
Liberal senator says promising farmers more water ‘is complete garbage’ unless the science is right: ‘Put the politics to bed, for god’s sake’ A Liberal senator has accused all parties – including his own – of “playing politics” with water policy and making promises to rural communities that were the equivalent to offering “free beer” […]
Britain’s forests, soil and rivers worth £1.6tn, says environment secretary
Liz Truss says putting price tag on environment would help decision-making by businesses and government Britain’s forests, soil and riversare worth at least £1.6tn and should be quantified in the same way as the country’s man-made infrastructure, the environment secretary, Liz Truss, has said. In a move which embraces the natural capital agenda, Truss said […]
Leading solar entrepreneur to put business into liquidation
Southern Solar is industry’s third high-profile casualty this month and founder Howard Johns is expected to blame government policy One of Britain’s leading solar entrepreneurs is set to announce that his business has gone into liquidation, in the third high-profile casualty for the sector this month. Howard Johns, the former chairman of the Solar Trade […]
Aviation industry claims it can meet pollution limits in pitch for new runway
Enlarged industry can stay within legal limits with government help, director of Sustainable Aviation tells MPs as they meet to discuss Heathrow expansion A bullish aviation industry seeking a new runway in south-east England has argued it can meet stringent carbon, noise and pollution limits if the government helps with incentives, provided aircraft engine and […]
Antarctic ice sheets face catastrophic collapse without deep emissions cuts
Study finds that a global temperature increase of 3C would cause ice shelves to disappear, triggering sea-level rise that would continue for thousands of years A team of researchers has found that steep cuts to emissions during the next decade are the only way to avoid a catastrophic collapse of Antarctic ice sheets and associated […]