Ed Miliband seems happy to see the landscape blighted. We value townscape – everywhere else has to fend for itself
Does Labour believe in beauty? The energy secretary, Ed Miliband, celebrated his arrival in office this summer by permitting three of the largest solar panel arrays in Britain. One, a Suffolk array covering nearly 2,800 acres, was described by a county councillor as “the poorest infrastructure application that I have ever dealt with”.
Now Miliband is demanding a procession of pylons filling the glorious Amber Valley in the Derbyshire uplands. Another parade of 420 pylons, each nearly as tall as Nelson’s column, will run down the east of England from Grimsby to Walpole, near King’s Lynn in Norfolk. The government also wants to allow the return of onshore wind turbines, overriding local objections.
Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
10/18/2024 - 07:00
10/18/2024 - 07:00
Government accused of ‘shocking’ choice to dilute protection standards in first animal welfare policy
Labour is using its first animal welfare policy since entering government to dilute standards by legalising the harmful practice of carrying chickens by their legs, charities have said.
European transport regulation 1/2005, which still applies in the UK, prohibits lifting chickens by their legs on farms and during loading and unloading, but the government is going to change the law to permit the widespread but illegal method, according to the Animal Law Foundation.
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10/18/2024 - 05:00
High blood concentrations of ‘forever chemical’ compound PFOS linked to problems falling asleep and waking up
Some of the most common types of PFAS may cause sleep disorders in young adults, new research finds, and the study’s authors for the first time identified how the chemicals probably impact the brain to cause disruptions.
The peer-reviewed University of Southern California (USC) study looked at PFAS levels in the blood of adults between 19 and 24 years old, and found those in the highest one-third slept an average of about 80 fewer minutes nightly than those in the lowest third.
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10/18/2024 - 04:28
Exclusive: Data on number and nature of wildfires at odds with claims of landowner seeking to ban wild camping
Wild camping is not a significant fire risk on Dartmoor, data shows, despite claims by a wealthy landowner who has been trying to ban the practice.
The supreme court is deciding on a case brought by the hedge fund manager Alexander Darwall, who is seeking to remove the right to camp on Dartmoor without landowner permission.
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10/18/2024 - 04:09
Hail swath estimated at 120 miles damages crops in western Victoria as winds break windows and rip tiles from roofs
On Wednesday, the Australian state of Victoria was hit by thunderstorms. The town of Casterton was particularly badly affected, receiving 21mm of rain in just 30 minutes, followed by large hailstones.
Vehicles and properties were severely damaged, with reports of broken windows and tiles blown off roofs due to strong winds.
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10/18/2024 - 02:00
The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world
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10/17/2024 - 23:00
Thinktank says government should set up arm’s-length company to buy Harland & Wolff site, which is in administration
The UK government should set up an arm’s-length company to buy the Harland & Wolff naval shipyard in Belfast as part of a drive to repurpose arms manufacturing towards producing green infrastructure, according to a report.
The study from the thinktank Common Wealth is launching what it describes as a “Lucas Plan for the 21st century” setting out how the UK’s military industrial capacity can be transformed into a supply pipeline for green energy, benefiting workers, communities and the environment.
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10/17/2024 - 21:45
Scientists examining petroleum-based balls believed to have come from an oil spill off Sydney as Bondi beach reopens
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Scientists analysing the black debris that closed Sydney beaches this week believe the “tar balls” are likely from an oil spill but have not ruled out a link to a nearby sewage treatment plant.
Bondi, Bronte and Tamarama beaches reopened on Friday after they were closed along with several other eastern suburbs beaches when the mysterious dark spheres washed up on the sand. The balls were first spotted at Coogee beach on Tuesday afternoon.
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10/17/2024 - 17:31
Survey of young people aged 16-25 from all US states shows concerns across political spectrum
The overwhelming majority of young Americans worry about the climate crisis, and more than half say their concerns about the environment will affect where they decide to live and whether to have children, new research finds.
The study comes just weeks after back-to-back hurricanes, Helene and Milton, pummeled the south-eastern US. Flooding from Helene caused more than 600 miles of destruction, from Florida’s west coast to the mountains of North Carolina, while Milton raked across the Florida peninsula less than two weeks later.
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10/17/2024 - 10:11
Only baby formula, expressed milk and prescription medicines will be allowed with large bags also prohibited under new measures
The National Gallery has announced a raft of increased security measures after protesters attacked paintings including Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers, John Constable’s The Hay Wain and Diego Velázquez’s The Rokeby Venus.
From Friday morning there will be a ban on bringing into the London gallery any liquids except for baby formula, expressed milk or prescription medicines.
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