Environment News
River Stour runs dry in drought in Constable Country
Image copyright Patrick Byrne Image caption Local people have been commenting on social media about the dry river bed Low rainfall, blockages and diverted flows are blamed for sections of the river drying out on the border between Essex and Suffolk. The Environment Agency hopes heavy rain this weekend will provide enough water to partly …
Russia alarmed by large fall in bee populations
Image copyright AFP Image caption Bees pollinate many essential crops and are vital for fruit-growers Large areas of central and southern Russia have seen a major decline in their bee populations in recent months. The head of the Russian beekeepers’ union, Arnold Butov, said 20 regions had reported mass bee deaths. The affected regions include …
Painted lady butterfly influx needs people to count them
Image copyright Butterfly Conservation/PA Image caption Travelling at speeds of up to 30mph, the painted lady butterfly migrates 7,500 miles a year A potential mass influx of butterflies to the UK has led to calls for volunteers to help count them. The painted lady butterfly commonly flies to the UK during the summer months, but …
Should I offset my summer holiday flights?
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The airline industry produces a substantial amount of carbon dioxide Flying off somewhere nice this summer? Now feeling guilty? You wouldn’t be alone. The continuing campaign by teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg to get everyone to reduce their carbon emissions has prompted some soul-searching over when, and whether, it …
Red List: Extinction threat to overlooked species
Image copyright Chong Chen Image caption The scaly-foot snail lives only at hydrothermal vent sites A deep-sea snail, many of Europe’s fungi and half the freshwater fish in Japan are just some obscure additions to a list of threatened species. The Red List, a conservation status catalogue of more than 100,000 species, is compiled by …
Russia’s Sirius Moon project leaves crew hungry for steak
Image copyright NASA Image caption The Sirius crew (L-R): Reinhold Povilaitis (USA); Daria Zhidova (Rus); Yevgeny Tarelkin (Rus); Anastasia Stepanova (Rus); Allen Mirkadyrov (USA); Stefania Fedyai (Rus) What do you crave after spending four months cooped up in a mock spaceship? “A tasty steak!” was Anastasia Stepanova’s swift reply, when she emerged from her Sirius-19 …
Vast sand scheme to protect Norfolk coast
Image caption The sand dune will take about five weeks to create – but could last for 15 to 20 years Nearly two million cubic metres of sand is being shifted to a stretch of eroding Norfolk coastline in a radical plan to save it from the sea. The 6km-long dune will protect Bacton Terminal, …
Electric car models to triple in Europe by 2021
Image copyright iStock / Getty Images The number of electric car models available to consumers in Europe is expected to triple by 2021, says a European environmental lobby group. The uptake of electric cars has been stalling, blamed on a lack of charging infrastructure and higher prices. Latest data shows carmakers will offer 214 electric …
Johnson and Hunt told no-deal Brexit ‘threat to research’
Image copyright Getty/EPA/Will Oliver Image caption Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt urged to consider the impact of a no-deal Brexit on UK research. The president of the Royal Society has warned the Tory leadership candidates that UK research could be damaged by a bad deal or no-deal Brexit. Prof Sir Venki Ramakrishnan has presented them …
Elon Musk reveals brain-hacking plans
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The aim of the firm is to find ways to stimulate the brain in paralysed humans to allow them to control computers NeuraLink, a company set up by Elon Musk to explore ways to connect the human brain to a computer interface, has applied to US regulators to start …
