Two colonies of age-old and endangered tadpole shrimps discovered alive and well near Solway coastA field near Gretna in Dumfriesshire might not be an obvious place to find the world's oldest living creatures, but a team of scientists has done just that.Two colonies of a prehistoric shrimp that evolved when the dinosaurs ruled the Earth have been found alive and well in the Caerlaverock nature reserve on the Solway coast.The discovery has led experts to think there could be more of the little c ...Read more

The Magnum photographer Stuart Franklin visits Louisiana where the Grand Isle community is dealing with the aftermath of the spill ...Read more

The gulf has been suffering for decades before the rig explosion, with the oil industry, farming and lax oversight contributing to a dead zone in the gulf. ...Read more

photo: Todd Woody I wrote this story for Grist, where it first appeared. Judging by the comments on my previous post comparing the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid and Nissan Leaf electric car, more than a few readers are suffering sticker shock at the price of greening their rides. Now there’s another option for those wanting [...] ...Read more

Enbridge was warned in January by federal regulators about insufficient monitoring of the pipeline that officials say leaked more than one million gallons of oil into a major waterway this week. ...Read more

A Canadian company whose pipeline leaked hundreds of thousands of oil into a Michigan river boasts on its website of being "an industry leader in pipeline safety and integrity." Lake Michigan - Oil spill - Environment - Kalamazoo River - Energy ...Read more

Photo via Tom Nord The planet is short one centenarian this week after Hector, the world's oldest condor, passed away in Algeria at the ripe old age of 100. Experts say Hector's long life was quite a feat considering that the scavenging birds generally don't live past 50. But as impressive as his longevity was, Hector's entire species of condor has a place in the record books, too, for having the longest wingspan of any land bird on the planet. Perhaps those magnificent wings came in... Re ...Read more

Dozens of bioengineering laboratories are trying to create superalgae that can be used to make diesel or jet fuel. ...Read more

Water gurgling from a well is flooding Craig Gautreaux's rice and crawfish fields, turning the farm into a wetland for migratory birds whose usual Gulf of Mexico wintering grounds are threatened by the oil spill. Oilspill - Gulf of Mexico - Bird migration - Wetland - Environment ...Read more

By halving sulfur levels in No. 4 heating oil, New York City could make a dent in air pollution and respiratory illnesses. ...Read more

A great climate scientist is defined by his successful forecast of warming and his acceptance that another forecast was flawed. ...Read more

National Wildlife Federation says catalogue of oil industry accidents proves BP disaster in Gulf of Mexico is not a one-offThe oil industry has been responsible for thousands of fires, explosions, and leaks over the last decade, killing dozens of people and destroying wildlife and the environment across America, according to a report published today.None of the individual incidents catalogued by the National Wildlife Federation comes close in scale to BP's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the w ...Read more

Dr. Sterling and a team of researchers are trying to understand why there is a higher biomass of predators than prey at Palmyra Atoll. ...Read more

Two colonies of age-old and endangered tadpole shrimps discovered alive and well near Solway coastA field near Gretna in Dumfriesshire might not be an obvious place to find the world's oldest living creatures, but a team of scientists has done just that.Two colonies of a prehistoric shrimp that evolved when the dinosaurs ruled the Earth have been found alive and well in the Caerlaverock nature reserve on the Solway coast.The discovery has led experts to think there could be more of the little c ...Read more

Raging forest fires encircled a southern Russian city and tore through provincial villages Thursday, forcing mass evacuations as Moscow suffered through a record, weeks-long heat wave and smog cloud caused by peat-bog fires. Russia - Moscow - Temperature - Wildfire - Administrative Regions ...Read more

Federal officials believe an oil spill that has contaminated a major Michigan river was larger than first estimated, and the governor is warning of a "tragedy of historic proportions" should the oil reach Lake Michigan. Lake Michigan - Oil spill - Environment - Kalamazoo River - Energy ...Read more

A Princess Cruise ship operating in Alaska has fatally struck a whale near Juneau. Alaska - Juneau Alaska - Travel - Cruise ship - Recreation ...Read more

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The Galapagos Islands are among the most stunning places on earth. The unparalleled biodiversity and spectacular wildlife makes it a travel destination the world over. But it's also in big trouble. When I traveled there two years ago, I saw firsthand how a number of factors are putting the islands' delicate ecosystems in danger: invasive species threaten the local animal populations, more and more tourists are tromping through, and a burgeoning immigration from the mainland is straining the ...Read more

Photos: Weitzner Limited From papier mache beads to your own homemade kitty litter, there's reams of clever ways to reuse that huge pile of old newspapers, but what about wallpaper? "Newsworthy" is this upcycled newspaper wallcovering from New York-based company Weitzner Limited - made from 100 percent recycled newsprint.... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

CNET Car Tech spent some time with the Mitsubishi i-Miev in San Francisco. Originally posted at The Car Tech blog ...Read more

Bird numbers plunge to 44-year low after dramatic habitat loss and harsh winterPopulations of breeding birds on farmland in England are at their lowest levels since formal attempts to monitor them began in 1966, the government said today. The figures suggest overall populations have fallen by more than half in the past 44 years.Although the most recent annual decline of 5% might be down to a cold winter and recent changes to farming practice, experts believe the long-term trends caused by contin ...Read more

The disaster in the gulf has strengthened opposition to oil drilling in California. ...Read more

Adam Joseph Lewis Center, William McDonough + Partners Voted Greenest Building since 1980 When covering Vanity Fair's World Architecture Survey I asked "Where's The Green?" and wrote that there was a "profound disconnect between the architecture shown and the problems that architects have to solve today." Lance Hosey, formerly a partner at William McDonough+ Partners and now a writer at Architect magazine, thought the same but didn't just whine, he organized his own survey, the G-list ...Read more

Will half of BP's spill escrow fund come out of government coffers? ...Read more

Increased numbers of flights and larger aircraft will threaten birdsName of projectLydd Airport ExpansionDescribe the site currently, including details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesDungeness to Pett Level SPA and Dungeness SAC- unique shingle habitats threatened by excessive nitrogen deposition from aircraft. Airport adjacent to RSPB Dungeness reserve with many bird species that would be threatened by bird-strike control methods.What development is proposed?"Expansion of Lydd A ...Read more

Photo: White rhinoceros (Digital Vision) How far would you go to stop rhino poaching? Constantly outgunned by poachers' high-tech helicopters, machine guns, night-vision binoculars, bullet-proof vests and insane arsenal in the illegal trade of "medicinal" rhino horns that are worth more than gold, one pissed-off game manager outside of Johannesburg, South Africa wants to do the unthinkable: inject poison into horns as a deadly warning to would-be poachers and the consumers who would buy the ...Read more

It’s a laudable vision for Massachusetts: Work toward a “zero waste” future that maximizes recycling, minimizes waste and reduces consumption. Such a garbage goal for the next decade is now being vetted in a draft solid waste master plan that... ...Read more

Nissan Leaf battery. Photo: Nissan Matching the Chevy Volt As predicted here, Nissan has decided to match GM and offer a 8-year/100k miles warranty on the battery pack of its LEAF electric car. It will be great for early adopters who will have one less thing to worry about (at least for the first 8 years or 100k miles), and it will be great for the transition to electrified transportation.... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

The Asiatic cheetah once ruled that plains in India and the Middle East, but now its population is estimated to be 100 individuals or less. Image credit: Wikimedia Commons Pursued by trophy hunters and herdsman, the Asiatic cheetah was brought to brink of extinction under the rule of the Raj and finally disappeared from India in the 1940s. Today, the species survives only in the remote grasslands of Iran but, if a conservation plan already in progress is a success, that may change.... Read th ...Read more

International scientists have injected fresh evidence into the debate over global warming, saying that climate change is "undeniable" and shows clear signs of "human fingerprints" in the first major piece of research since the "Climategate" controversy. ...Read more

Trotting out experts in medicine and forestry to argue that biomass generation could endanger human health. ...Read more

Increased numbers of flights and larger aircraft will threaten birdsName of projectLydd Airport ExpansionDescribe the site currently, including details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesDungeness to Pett Level SPA and Dungeness SAC- unique shingle habitats threatened by excessive nitrogen deposition from aircraft. Airport adjacent to RSPB Dungeness reserve with many bird species that would be threatened by bird-strike control methods.What development is proposed?"Expansion of Lydd A ...Read more

Ryan Lingard Design Ryan Lingard designed and built this lovely litte cabin near Joseph, Oregon in a couple of weeks for under $10,000. Preston at Jetson Green tells us that it has a wood stove, metal roof, cedar rainscreen, reused windows, portable toilet, and operable shutters.... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

The disaster in the gulf has strengthened opposition to oil drilling in California. ...Read more

Bianca Jagger delivers a plea from indigenous people who say mine threatens their way of lifeAnger erupted at mining company Vedanta's annual shareholder meeting today as protesters attacked its management for alleged human rights abuses and "crimes against the environment".While campaigners chanted slogans against the company outside the London gathering, senior executives faced criticism from shareholders, celebrity activists and charities inside the meeting hall.The firm, which is listed ...Read more

Over the coming months we hope to feature many of these local groups, and advice from seasoned activistsThe Guardian's Piece by piece project wants to alert people to the scale of piecemeal development, and its impact on the natural world. What we very much do not want to do, however, is make those same people feel overwhelmed or disempowered. Instead we hope that the website can become a forum for local campaigners to swap tips and tactics, help gather evidence and be encouraged to keep fighti ...Read more

An area ouf outstanding natural beauty at the end of the Cotswolds WayName of projectSave Woolley Valley (SWVAG)Describe the site currently, including details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesAONB, Article 4 protected, end of the Cotswolds Way, greenbelt in valley leading to Bath - world heritage city. What development is proposed?Residential property/Alpaca farm/chicken farm/packing unit-barn/tracks over 1 km long/ hard standings & concrete aprons. Altered access slope from narr ...Read more

Soot from vehicle exhaust, power generation and burning biomass is the second most important contributor to global warming. Photo: euthophication & hypoxia via flickr. More on the high, but heretofore largely neglected, role that soot plays in increasing global warming: Research from Stanford University shows that soot is... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

Time magazine's Michael Grunwald, a fine environmental reporter who knows the region well, writes that it's turning out that the damage from the BP spill may not be as great as (nearly) everyone feared:Yes, the spill killed birds — but so far, less than 1% of the birds killed by the Exxon Valdez. Yes, we've heard horror stories about oiled dolphins — but, so far, wildlife response teams have collected only three visibly oiled carcasses of any mammals. Yes, the spill prompted harsh restriction ...Read more

Image credit: kevindooley/Flickr There are enormous opportunities to use energy more efficiently. Investing in energy efficiency is often far cheaper than expanding the energy supply to meet growing demand. Efficiency investments typically yield a high rate of return, saving consumers money, and can help fight climate change by avoiding carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from burning additional fossil fuels. Just as compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) offer great elec... Read the full story on TreeHu ...Read more

Meat is important in Middle East religious and social culture but giving it up could solve economic and environmental concernsWhen the Jordanian activist Amina Tariq took to the streets of Amman clad in lettuce leaves, she captured the attention of the Middle East's media. With a sign in Arabic that read "Let vegetarianism grow on you", she was trying to spark interest in a diet without animal products.Jordan was the final stop on a tour of the region by the global animal rights group People ...Read more

Though Manhattan experiences similar daytime temperatures to surrounding areas, it simply doesn't cool off nearly as much at night. Photo: Jakob Montrasio via flickr. If you thought the heatwaves we've already experienced this summer in New York City and all along the East Coast were bad, there's definitely more sweating in your future. A new study coming out the City College of New York shows that continued warming temperatures, combined with the well-known (and growing) urban heat is... R ...Read more

Evatran introduces a "hands free" EV charging station that eliminates the need to remember to recharge at the end of the day--or dirty your hands. Originally posted at The Car Tech blog ...Read more

Pavemart.com John previously wrote about how rural roads are going back to the stone age because of the cost of asphalt. The sticky black liquid was the bottom of the barrel in the oil industry, often sold at a loss, to be mixed with aggregates and used for paving. (5% asphalt to 95% aggregate, the asphalt is the glue that holds it together). ... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

New evidence shows country's largest palm and pulp group is breaking its environmental commitments by destroying critical habitatsGreenpeace said today it had fresh evidence that palm oil firms linked to Indonesian agribusiness giant Sinar Mas have bulldozed rainforest and destroyed endangered orang-utan habitats in Kalimantan.The charges were denied by palm oil firm PT SMART Tbk, part of Sinar Mas, which has already said it would stop clearing critical forests.The accusations, levelled by Gre ...Read more

Ben Darvill and Bob Dawson of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust on the importance of conserving Britain's declining bumblebee population ...Read more

Ben Darvill and Bob Dawson of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust on the importance of conserving Britain's declining bumblebee population ...Read more

George Monbiot should be calling the IPCC to account for its unreferenced rainforest claims, rather than attacking its critics• George Monbiot: Who's to blame for 'Amazongate' story?• Sunday Times apologises for false climate story in a 'correction'• Forests expert officially complains about 'distorted' Sunday Times articleIn what has become the long-running saga of the unsubstantiated claim by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) about the potential effects of global war ...Read more

Owner of north London Budgens says squirrel tastes lovely and is a sustainable way of feeding peopleThe owner of a local Budgens supermarket has defended selling squirrel meat as a sustainable way of feeding people and says it has a "lovely" taste.Andrew Thornton, started selling the meat about five months ago after requests from customers at his Budgens store in Crouch End, north London."There too many squirrels around, we might as well eat them rather than cull them and dispose of them," h ...Read more

Royal Mail distribution centre and lorry park threatens brownfield site that is refuge for endangered wildlifeName of project Save West Thurrock Marshes What type of habitat is the site?Wildlife rich brownfield land (Open Mosaic Habitat on Previously Developed Land) Describe the site in more detail, including details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesWest Thurrock Marshes, on the Essex shore of the Thames Estuary just west of the Dartford crossing, is a classic example of a brownfiel ...Read more

Site adjacent to open heathland that is part of an internationally important area for the woodlark, Dartford warbler and nightjar Name of projectTransport Research Laboratory (TRL) site or Crowthorne Business Estate mixed use developmentThe RSPB is contenting the development on the grounds that it will threaten vulnerable wildlife on the Thames Basin heaths.Describe the site currently, including details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesThe application site is a previously developed s ...Read more

The planned route would disturb wildlife habitats and result in the loss of trees, hedgerows and agricultural landName of projectShrewsbury North West Relief RoadDescribe the site, and details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesMix of wooded landscape, river (Severn) and arable. The real objection to the NWRR is on landscape grounds, as it cuts through the Berwick Estate and will inevitably lead to the development of this area of open countryside that comes so close to the centre of Sh ...Read more

Two golf courses planned for Dall, Scotland, threaten the habitat of red squirrels, pine martens and wildcatsName of projectDall DevelopmentWhat is proposed?The outline planning application is for the "redevelopment of estate to provide exclusive private members club incorporating a luxury hotel development with health spa, clinic, leisure and retail facilities, two 18-hole golf courses, clubhouse and ancillary facilities broch development and loch-side restaurant, lochside housing and club mem ...Read more

Protected species displaced would include water voles, bats and hedgehogs and, in addition, 94 per cent of bird species presently found there would goName of projectUpper Thames ReservoirDescribe the site currently, including details of protected or threatened habitat or speciesThe four square mile development site is currently occupied by prime agricultural land, 70 per cent of which is very high quality productive farmland which is protected by national planning policy.Some studies have shown ...Read more

Foodprint was founded in New York last summer by Sarah Rich (of Worldchanging fame) and Nicola Twilley (of Edible Geography) as a series of international conversations about food and the city....a truly cross-disciplinary discussion that explores the past, present, and future of food and the city." Sarah and Nicola have gathered a stellar list of local and international moderators and panelists for this year's event in Toronto, Canada. ... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

Photo by Anne Toal You're likely familiar with the way a caterpillar works its way up a stem or across a leaf -- that move-the-front-then-move-the-back process is one of their charms. But what you might not know is that a caterpillar actually moves its internal organs forward before moving its legs. A team of researchers at Massachusetts' Tufts University is working on soft-bodied robots and has looked to this quirk of caterpillars as biomimetic inspiration for their designs. The future of r ...Read more

New book claims western-style schemes to protect animals damage the environment and criminalise local peopleEcotourism and western-style conservation projects are harming wildlife, damaging the environment, and displacing and criminalising local people, according to a controversial new book.The pristine beaches and wildlife tours demanded by overseas tourists has led to developments that do not benefit wildlife, such as beaches being built, mangroves stripped out, waterholes drilled and forests ...Read more

Solar thermal plants to retain heat and produce power even on sunless days. ...Read more

With more mouths to feed and increasing demands on land, Duncan Graham-Rowe looks to see if high rise city blocks will be the source of tomorrow's supperThe vaults rose up as high as the city walls, bearing reeds richly bedded in bitumen and gypsum. The layered galleries peered each beyond its neighbour to reach the sunlight, and water drawn from the river was pumped through conduits up to the highest level. The topsoil was thick enough to root even the largest trees...These were the renowned H ...Read more

Lakota squash just harvested from vines which had recently become overgrown with weeds. Image credit:J. Laumer This time of year, garden pathways and borders can become over-grown with weeds in a matter of days - especially if it's been raining a lot. The first challenge is to keep weeds in these areas cut low enough to enable passage and to prevent them from going to seed. Food growing areas of the garden also may have to be 'wacked' at this time of year to prevent weeds from taking ...Read more

Water supplies cut to Jilin as floodwaters carry thousands of barrels from chemical plant down the Songhua riverWater supplies were cut for a time to part of the north-eastern Chinese city of Jilin, after a flood washed thousands of barrels of a dangerous chemical from a factory into the area's main river, state media said today.A "small quantity" of two pollutants produced by the plant were found in the Songhua river, and a reporter smelt a strange odour as he watched dozens of the metal con ...Read more

The new technology could move the United States away from its dependence on fossil fuels--if it can overcome the high price tag for the massive plants needed. ...Read more

Image via BBC The warming temperatures of the ocean are problematic for many species, but especially worrisome is the impact hotter water has on cornerstone species upon which many other marine animals rely. Usually we hear about changes in ocean temperature impacting coral reefs, but now scientists are finding that across the globe, phytoplankton -- the food for zooplankton which is food for many other ocean species -- is in decline, and that will have m... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

Image via New Scientist Japan's IKAROS spacecraft is a pioneering technology for solar sailing. The ship launched in May and is the first one to be propelled entirely by sunlight. It manages to steer itself by using just the pressure of sunlight on "smart glass." Check out a video of the sail in movement. ... Read the full story on TreeHugger ...Read more

Photo by Mark Craemer Tucked into the financial reform bill that passed this week is a provision many sustainable electronics advocates will be happy about. Publicly-traded companies and electronics corporations will now be required to reveal whether or not they use "conflict-free" minerals. Even though that means they can still use the materials, they have to be forthright in stating such, which will put a serious damper on any new product releases that have to state, "Yep, materials in th ...Read more

Federal officials now estimate that more than 1 million gallons of oil may have spilled into a major river in southern Michigan, and the governor is sharply criticizing clean-up efforts as "wholly inadequate." Michigan - Oil spill - Environment - Pipeline transport - Kalamazoo River ...Read more

In 1969, Sen. Gaylord Nelson was so moved after seeing the devastation of an oil spill off the California coast near Santa Barbara that he called for a national teach-in on the environment. The resulting "Earth Day" the following year kick-started the modern environmental movement and shaped the way Americans thought about their air, water and soil. California - Earth Day - United States - Santa Barbara - Gaylord Nelson ...Read more

Motorists frequently ignore protected bike zones at junctions. Even the police give out mixed messages about whether they are breaking the lawA couple of days ago I blogged about my encounter with an Addison Lee minicab driver who drove into the protected bike zone at a red traffic light.This happens frustratingly frequently and is clearly contrary to the Highway Code. (Point 178 states: "Motorists, including motorcyclists, MUST stop at the first white line reached if the lights are amber or re ...Read more

Oil, natural gas and water are still spewing from an abandoned well hit by a barge on a Louisiana waterway near the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf of Mexico - Louisiana - Natural gas - Energy - Oil and Gas ...Read more

An exhibit at the Museum fur Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg in Germany presents some odd-looking and provocative concepts for adapting to climate change. Originally posted at Crave ...Read more

A showcase for local campaigns that aim to save biodiversity from development projects ...Read more

Photo via Flickr Homeowner Mary Beth Parkinson came home to quite a surprise, a black bear had been rifling through her kitchen before it fled the house taking a stuffed toy bear with it. The bear had entered her home through an unlocked door, helped itself to some pears and a bunch of grapes, and even took a few swigs from the family fishbowl. She believes the garage door opening is what scared it off. ...Read more

Rising temperatures have helped the marmot population, at least for now. ...Read more

Michigan's governor on Wednesday sharply criticized attempts to contain a large oil spill making its way down the Kalamazoo River after the company responsible for the spill said it had redoubled its efforts to clean up the mess. Michigan - Oil spill - Environment - Pipeline transport - Kalamazoo River ...Read more