The Independent - Environment RSS Feed

€400bn energy plan to harness African sun

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

The world's most ambitious green energy project is about to take shape. It is a plan for a chain of mammoth sun-powered energy plants in the deserts of North Africa to supply power to Europe's homes and factories by the end of the next decade.

Councils blame supermarkets for £1.8bn cost of excess packaging

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Supermarkets were blamed yesterday for wasteful packaging, adding an estimated £1.8bn to council tax bills.

The planet's future: Climate change 'will cause civilisation to collapse'

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

An effort on the scale of the Apollo mission that sent men to the Moon is needed if humanity is to have a fighting chance of surviving the ravages of climate change. The stakes are high, as, without sustainable growth, "billions of people will be condemned to poverty and much of civilisation will collapse".

Nothing like a dame: How Vivienne Westwood traded a couture lifestyle for the front line of the eco war

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

It's a war," says Vivienne Westwood, thumping out the syllables on her tartan-clad leg. "It's a war for the very existence of the human race. And that of the planet." The inimitable British fashion designer is on board a plane bound for New York to celebrate Virgin Atlantic's 25th anniversary, but it isn't a birthday greeting she has for Richard Branson. Rather, she is here to interview him about his green policies and find out how his company is reacting to what she sees as an imminent threat to our cosy, and often excessive, lifestyle. And she's ready for battle, in an army cap from her own collection and a badge emblazoned with the logo of her Active Resistance movement.

Summer break – the time to spot the browns

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

They are the butterflies of high summer and of long hot dusty days – the ones that small children run after on their holidays; the ones we set flying whenever we walk through a grassy field.

UN chief: G8 must go further on emissions

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Developing countries agreed last night to limit the rise in global temperatures due to climate change but rejected pleas by rich nations to sign up to a specific target to cut their carbon emissions.

The Big Question: Will it really be possible to meet the G8's climate change targets?

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Grace Boyle: The Riverkeeper, the factories, and the daily battle to quell 170m litres of toxic effluent

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:59:44 GMT

Jose is the Riverkeeper, the first in Asia. His guard is the Periyar River.

New boiler on the horizon for Bono

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:51:22 GMT

Bono has been given the go-ahead to instal a wood-pellet boiler to heat his Victorian mansion.

Just 96 months to save world, says Prince Charles

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Capitalism and consumerism have brought the world to the brink of economic and environmental collapse, the Prince of Wales has warned in a grandstand speech which set out his concerns for the future of the planet.

Just 96 months to save world, says Charles

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

US agrees landmark pledge to slash emissions

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

The world's richest nations agreed last night to cut their carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 in a dramatic attempt to secure a new global deal to combat climate change.

To be spotted again: India wants to bring back the cheetah

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

They appear in portraits and carvings and the Mughal Emperor Akbar was said to have kept more than 1,000 for hunting. But the cheetah – prized for its speed and its ability to be trained – has not been seen in India for at least 60 years.

Major nations drop goal of halving C02

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:03:39 GMT

Major nations have failed to agree to set a goal halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, according to a draft document ahead of talks tomorrow - a setback to efforts to secure a new UN climate pact.

U2's 'massive carbon footprint' called into question

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:15:07 GMT

U2 and Bono’s long-held commitment to “save the planet” has come into question after it emerged they have a carbon footprint big enough to fly the band to Mars and back.

Michael McCarthy: Look closely into the depths of a river ...

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Just watching life go by is not an activity with an awful lot of social sanction attached; admit to it and the commonest reaction will probably be that you're a lazy sod. But last week, for the first time in what seemed like years, I engaged in just sitting and watching, and I found it could open your eyes to a lot of life you might otherwise be missing.

England's wildlife sites 'better protected now'

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Huge improvements have been made in protecting England's best wildlife sites in the past decade, a powerful all-party group of MPs said yesterday – but still more needs to be done.

The butterfly only visible at 1,500ft

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Trying to see all Britain's 58 species of butterfly in a single summer is not easy – quite a few are found only in isolated localities – but only one really involves the sweat of your brow and the ache of your leg muscles.

The wombat: back from the brink

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

One of the world's most endangered mammals, the northern hairy-nosed wombat, has stepped back from the brink of extinction, with its numbers undergoing the biggest jump for more than two decades.

Bugs! The critters eating America's forests

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

America's 4 July bonfires served a dual purpose yesterday. They burned the wood of trees destroyed by a trio of bugs that are devastating parts of the nation's forests.

What lies beneath: Plastics threat to UK beaches

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

At first glance Porthtowan beach looks like an advert for British Tourism. With white sand and turquoise sea bathed in bright sunshine, it appears to be the best seaside Cornwall has to offer. But just below the surface of this picture-postcard perfection is a darker and, at times, dangerously toxic scene.

How global warming shrank St Kilda's sheep

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

It was the curious case of the shrinking sheep. For nearly a quarter of a century the wild Soay sheep on the windswept Scottish island of Hirta have been getting smaller when evolution should have made them bigger.

Heatwave continues

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:13:24 GMT

With two disappointing summers behind us, members of the public are making the most of the sunshine as they take time out to enjoy the hot weather.

Flood warnings issued as heatwave continues

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:05:34 GMT

Britain's hottest week in years is threatening to become a wash-out, as parts of the South West were put on flood alert.

Grace Boyle: Pollution is choking the beating heart of Bangalore

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:52:22 GMT

"I am not against development", said the filmmaker I met with today. "Of course not. "But the question we must ask ourselves is, development for whom, and at whose cost?"