Environment | The Guardian
- ‘I didn’t realize the role rice played’: the ingenious crop cultivation of the Gullah Geechee people December 21, 2024Researchers in North Carolina used underwater sonar to map a system created by enslaved people centuries agoAs a former deputy state underwater archaeologist, Mark Wilde-Ramsing can’t help but look down. While rowing around North Carolina’s Eagles Island, at the tip of the Gullah Geechee corridor, he noticed signs of human-made structures, visible at low tide. […]Adria R Walker
- ‘We’re still in survival mode’: anger persists in Valencia weeks after floods December 21, 2024Wreckage from Spain’s worst natural disaster this century may have been cleared but life for many remains in disarrayThe warm Valencia air, still thick with dust and carrying a residual note of mud and damp concrete, begins to reek on the approach to the roadside dump where diggers toil, gulls scavenge and the detritus of […]Sam Jones in Valencia province
- UK to ban bee-killing pesticides but highly toxic type could still be allowed December 21, 2024Ministers set out plans for outlawing neonicotinoids but considering application by farmers to use Cruiser SBBee-killing pesticides are to be banned by the UK government, as ministers set out plans to outlaw the use of neonicotinoids.However, the highly toxic neonicotinoid Cruiser SB could be allowed for use next year, as ministers are considering applications from […]Helena Horton Environment reporter
- Don’t be a beach bum: how to reduce your environmental footprint in the sand December 20, 2024Here are the simplest ways to have a sustainable summer holidayMore summer essentialsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastWith Australia’s love of an annual beach holiday comes a revolving door of new “must have” gear: sunshades, blow-up toys, fold-out chairs and endless gadgets to keep us entertained.But how much of it […]Maddie Thomas
- Guardian Australia’s best photos of 2024 – in pictures December 20, 2024From break dancing to nude bathers and the country’s best mullets, here’s a selection of our photographers’ finest work Continue reading...Guardian Staff
- ‘You won’t find the real criminals here’: a Just Stop Oil activist in jail at Christmas December 20, 2024Protester Anna Holland says their shock at being behind bars was quickly followed by a stronger feeling of powerRecord number of protesters will be in UK prisons this ChristmasAnna Holland, 22, was one of two young people from Just Stop Oil who threw tomato soup over a sunflowers painting by Vincent van Gogh – one […]Anna Holland
- The facts about a planet facing climate disaster are clear. Why won’t this Labour government face them? | Jeremy Corbyn December 20, 2024Labour seems gripped by a form of denialism. The danger is real and incremental change won’t avert itJeremy Corbyn is independent MP for Islington North and was leader of the Labour party from 2015 to 2020There is no need to overcomplicate things: a rise in global temperatures of 3.1C is not compatible with human survival. […]Jeremy Corbyn
- Ash dieback experts identify shoots of hope for Britain’s threatened trees December 20, 2024As the deadly fungal disease tightens its grip, scientific efforts to protect ash trees are advancingThe UK is home to more than 100m mature ash trees, and every spring tells the same grim story: leaves emerge, wither and drop within weeks, as ash dieback disease tightens its grip.Millions stand dead in woodlands and hedgerows across […]Ben Martynoga
- Week in wildlife in pictures: a dangling marmoset, rare leopard babies and an eyelash snake December 20, 2024The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...Joanna Ruck
- CO2 emissions from new North Sea drilling sites would match 30 years’ worth from UK households December 20, 2024New research comes as dozens of small potential fields have received some form of license from the governmentPotential new North Sea oil and gas fields with early stage licences from the UK would emit as much carbon dioxide as British households produce in three decades.The finding has led to calls to the government to reject […]Fiona Harvey Environment editor
- Country diary: This ‘unprofitable land’ could hardly be richer | Phil Gates December 20, 2024Teesdale, North Pennines: In this stretch between farmland and riverbank, the plant life is thick, and harbouring legions of insects and larvaeThe poet Molly Holden celebrated edgelands like this footpath, where the passage of the plough never quite reaches. “The pieces of unprofitable land,” she wrote, “are what I like best.” The narrow path, between […]Phil Gates
- Blob-headed fish and amphibious mouse among 27 new species found in ‘thrilling’ Peru expedition December 20, 2024Scientists surprised to find so many animals unknown to science in Alto Mayo, a well-populated regionResearchers in the Alto Mayo region of north-west Peru have discovered 27 species that are new to science, including a rare amphibious mouse, a tree-climbing salamander and an unusual “blob-headed fish”. The 38-day survey recorded more than 2,000 species of […]Graeme Green
- Time to be shellfish: why the UK should go back to feasting on oysters and mussels December 19, 2024Popular in Victorian times, they are sustainable, a good source of protein and brilliant for biodiversity, say those championing the bivalvesA splash of white wine, a handful of basil leaves and a few minutes preparation are all it takes to transform mussels that 24 hours ago were filtering seawater off the south Devon coast, into […]Karen McVeigh
- ‘If 1.5m Germans have them there must be something in it’: how balcony solar is taking off December 18, 2024Balcony solar panels can save 30% on a typical household’s electricity bill and, with vertical surface area in cities larger than roof space, the appeal is clearThey are easy to install, and knock chunks off electricity bills. It may not be Romeo and Juliet, but Spain’s balcony scene is heating up as the country embraces […]Stephen Burgen in Barcelona
- Dear Santa, please bring back the plastic lids on yoghurt pots | Adrian Chiles December 18, 2024Gone are the pleasures of licking the foil cover on yoghurts and soft cheese. Plus no one consulted me about this dismal change to my home routinesAll I want for Christmas is the return of yoghurt pot lids. And not just for me, for everyone. In this season of goodwill, I want everyone to get […]Adrian Chiles
- ‘Ridiculous’ ban on exotic animal skins at London fashion week criticised by experts December 18, 2024Trade can help protect species – and real skins are often more sustainable than synthetic alternatives, say conservationistsConservation experts have criticised a decision by London fashion week to ban exotic animal skins from its 2025 shows as “ridiculous”, warning that it is ill-informed and could harm the protection of many snakes, crocodiles and reptile species.Last […]Patrick Greenfield
- Whaling activist Paul Watson celebrates release from jail after Denmark refuses extradition to Japan December 17, 2024US-Canadian pioneer member of Greenpeace, who was arrested in Greenland in July, will now spend Christmas with his sonsPaul Watson, the anti-whaling campaigner, has spoken of delight that he will be reunited with his young children for Christmas after Denmark rejected Japan’s extradition request and released him from prison in Greenland.After 150 days in jail […]Daniel Boffey
- A sea anemone: I have pronounced their name incorrectly most of my life | Helen Sullivan December 16, 2024It is probably wrong to touch, even gently, these creatures. But even now I find it difficult to resistIn her book Theatres of Glass, Rebecca Stott writes about the Victorian craze for home aquariums – which swept London in the 1850s, with people taking animals from the seaside and making miniature rock pools at home […]Helen Sullivan
- Farming has always been gambling with dirt – but the odds are getting longer | Gabrielle Chan December 16, 2024Rainfall patterns are changing, crops are ripening earlier and the normal rhythms of farming have fallen off – exactly as climate scientists warnedSign up for the Rural Network email newsletterSmell is the most evocative sense. I lit a mozzie coil this week and a flood of childhood memories came back. The great long, dry days […]Gabrielle Chan
- ‘Like a giant bird box’: the volunteers building huge snowdrifts for Finland’s pregnant seals December 16, 2024As warmer winters melt the snow drifts that endangered Saimaa ringed seals use to raise their young, humans are giving them a helping handWords by Phoebe Weston. Photographs by Samuel BlochEight hours shovelling snow in -20C might not sound like the ideal day out, but a committed team of volunteers in Finland are working dawn […]Guardian Staff