International: Europe
Poland to phase out coal-mining by mid-century
29 Sep 2020
Poland is moving closer to ending its heavy reliance on coal as the Government and miners’ unions agree a landmark plan to phase out mines by 2049.
EU under fire for including carbon sinks in climate goals
21 Sep 2020
The European Commission is defending its plan to bring carbon removals from agriculture, land use and forestry into the EU’s updated climate target for 2030, saying this is in line with UNFCCC standards.
Energy companies keep right to sue states in private courts
17 Sep 2020
Negotiators have ruled out an overhaul of private courts that allow energy companies to sue national governments when climate change policies hurt their profits.
EU lawmakers vote for 60% climate target for 2030
14 Sep 2020
The European Parliament's environment committee has voted for a new EU-wide target to reduce carbon emissions 60 per cent by 2030, setting the stage for tough negotiations with EU countries and the European Commission, which is expected to propose a 55 per cent goal next week.
France seeks German collaboration on hydrogen in EU green recovery
11 Sep 2020
France hopes to collaborate with Germany on clean hydrogen projects as part of Europe’s green recovery from the pandemic, the country’s finance minister has said ahead of a meeting with his German counterpart today.
‘Obsolete’ treaty must be reformed or ditched, lawmakers say
10 Sep 2020
The 1991 Energy Charter Treaty must be profoundly overhauled in order to remove all “obsolete” provisions protecting fossil fuel investments and hindering climate action, lawmakers from Europe across say.
Germany's CDU/CSU seek new ‘climate man’ as Greens rise in polls
8 Sep 2020
Germany’s conservative CDU/CSU Union has admitted to its own shortcomings when it comes to climate policy and is now searching for a new chairman and candidate for the chancellor’s spot, which will shape the union’s course on environmental policy.
Europe's tough 2030 plan achievable
26 Aug 2020
A European Union plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions up to 55 per cent below 1990 levels by 2030 is technically and economically possible, researchers say.
Bigger EU ETS more effective than carbon tax at the border
21 Aug 2020
Europe is planning a border tax to stop carbon leakage in the energy sector, but energy advisers say expanding the bloc's Emissions Trading Scheme would be more effective.
EU climate talks enter decisive phase
20 Aug 2020
The European Commission will table proposals next month to raise the EU’s climate target for 2030, amid warnings from Eastern countries to safeguard jobs and growth from the coronavirus fallout.
EU and Swiss carbon markets to link
11 Aug 2020
A planned link-up of the European Union and Swiss carbon markets will be operational from September, the European Commission says, giving companies a broader pool of potential partners with which to trade emissions permits.
Paris weathers one of worst heatwaves in a century
10 Aug 2020
Paris is facing one of its worst heat waves in more than a century, with daily average temperatures hovering around 30deg over a seven-day period and hitting a maximum of 39 degrees on Sunday, according to forecaster Meteo-France.
EU can and must cut emissions by more than 55% by 2030
6 Aug 2020
The European Commission is proposing strengthening its 40 per cent greenhouse gas emission reduction target to 50 per cent or 55 per cent on 1990 levels in the next 10 years, but this doesn't meet the minimum level of ambition that climate science, and the EU’s own climate-neutrality goal, say is needed.
Ireland's Supreme Court damns country's climate policies
5 Aug 2020
In what’s being seen as a landmark judgement, Ireland’s Supreme Court has ruled that the Dublin Government's policies on climate change are inadequate and has called for more action and clarity on the issue.
France to ban heated terraces in cafes and bars
31 Jul 2020
France's government has announced new environmental measures, including a ban on heated terraces for cafes and bars.
Dutch city redraws layout to prepare for heating effects
30 Jul 2020
The Dutch city of Arnhem is digging up asphalt roads and creating shady areas around busy shopping districts after concluding that the consequences of global heating are unavoidable.
Deutsche Bank to cut ties with coal companies
29 Jul 2020
Deutsche Bank will end business worldwide with the companies most exposed to coal mining by 2025 at the latest, as part of a revamp of its policies on financing the fossil fuel industry.
Renewables overtake fossil fuels in EU power generation
24 Jul 2020
Renewable sources have overtaken coal, oil and gas in EU electricity generation for the first time, new analysis shows.
Is corona a crisis too far for far-right outsiders?
22 Jul 2020
In recent years, far-right political parties in Europe have capitalised on crises to build their support bases.
Island states urge EU to link to tougher target
20 Jul 2020
VULNERABLE COUNTRIES are urging the EU to link its coronavirus recovery funds and seven-year budget to a tougher 2030 climate target.
Portugal ends coal burning two years ahead of schedule
20 Jul 2020
Portugal is the third EU country this year to announce early closure of its last coal plants, as rising carbon costs and competition from gas and clean energy bite.
EU spent lots on fossil fuels during energy crisis
16 Jul 2020
France, Germany and Italy have collectively spent $44 billion on fossil fuels during the coronavirus crisis, compared to $29 billion for clean energy, according to fresh data released yesterday.
Melting glacier yields newspapers from 1966 plane crash
14 Jul 2020
COPIES of Indian newspapers onboard an Air India jet that crashed into Mont Blanc in the 1960s have been revealed by melting ice on the mountain’s Bossons glacier.
Marseille turns green with election of first woman mayor
8 Jul 2020
Marseille has become the latest French municipality to elect a green mayor in a wave that has swept the country since local elections at the end of last month.
Spain to close half its coal-fired power stations
1 Jul 2020
Spain is on track to become a coal-free country in record time. All of its remaining coal-fired thermal power plants started shutting down yesterday, a year-and-a-half after the closure of the coal mines.
How Europe can be carbon-neutral by 2040
30 Jun 2020
The European Union can reach climate neutrality as early as 2040, according to a group of environmental NGOs which have mapped out a scenario to move the bloc towards a 100 per cent renewable energy system by then.
Ireland latest country to set net-zero target
30 Jun 2020
Ireland’s new coalition government has set itself a goal to deliver steep greenhouse gas emissions cuts every year to reach neutrality by 2050.
Extremists exploit rural nostalgia and farmers’ anger
29 Jun 2020
The poster advertising an evening of debate and organic canapés looked familiar to environmentally conscious Germans - a rugged pair of hands, cupping fertile brown soil, underneath the slogan “Farms instead of agricultural factories”, written in a font mimicking that of a popular biodynamic food brand.
Glacier gets the tarp treatment
25 Jun 2020
Workers lay out huge geotextile sheets on the Presena glacier in northern Italy A vast tarpaulin unravels, gathering speed as it bounces down the glacier over glinting snow. Summer is here and the alpine ice is being protected from global warming.
Siberia heat wave sets alarm bells ringing
18 Jun 2020
A prolonged heatwave in Siberia is “undoubtedly alarming”, climate scientists have said. The freak temperatures have been linked to wildfires, a huge oil spill and a plague of tree-eating moths.
This job will take more than a few more cycle lanes
17 Jun 2020
The coronavirus lockdown gave a glimpse of what cleaner cities can look like, but as people turn to private cars for safety from infection, pollution could soar.
Carbon-neutral coffee arrives by schooner
16 Jun 2020
The French schooner De Gallant has docked in Falmouth harbour three months after leaving Santa Marta in Colombia laden with tonnes of sustainably sourced coffee beans.
LOVE IS BLIND: Germany's affair with the car
12 Jun 2020
A world leader in cutting emissions from electricity production, the German government, in thrall to the auto industry, "overlooked" pollution from cars and trucks.
Germany unveils plans for €40bn climate splurge
8 Jun 2020
The German government has unveiled plans for a massive €130 billion stimulus package that features at least €40 billion climate-related spending.
Siberia dries out as forests burn
8 Jun 2020
A huge swathe of Arctic Russia is changing rapidly as oil leaks, the climate warms and Siberia dries out.
European Green Deal needs strong methane rules
4 Jun 2020
Oil and gas companies throughout the supply chain need to do much more to bring down methane emissions immediately, says Shell's new-energies director Maarten Wetselaar.
EU recovery fund has green strings attached
28 May 2020
It’s now official: the EU’s updated seven-year €1 trillion budget proposal and €750 billion recovery plan will both be geared towards the green and digital transitions.
Denmark proposes two huge ‘energy islands’
21 May 2020
Denmark plans to build two “energy islands” totalling 4GW of offshore wind capacity, under plans to reduce emissions by 70 per cent from 1990s levels by 2030 and become a green energy exporter.
Europe plans for three billion trees in 10 years
20 May 2020
The European Commission this week will launch a sweeping effort to tackle the global biodiversity crisis, including a call for three billion trees to be planted by 2030 and a plan to better protect the continent’s last primeval forests.
Spain sets out to cut gas emissions by 2050
20 May 2020
Spain’s Cabinet is set to approve a bill setting out a path to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050, putting it on course to join a handful of wealthy nations that have written the target into law.
How Dutch were forced into emissions cuts
6 May 2020
Last month, the Dutch government announced a bold set of climate policies designed to reduce annual carbon emissions by nearly 10 megatons.
VW set for Dieselgate legal showdown
30 Apr 2020
Germany’s main court for civil and criminal matters will hear a diesel emissions scandal case for the first time next week.
Germany defends €10 billion airline bailout
30 Apr 2020
Germany’s environment minister has defended a planned bailout of the country’s largest airline to protect jobs in the short term, insisting the next phase of post-coronavirus recovery will be green.
Germany and Britain call for green recovery
29 Apr 2020
Germany and Britain say that efforts to revive the global economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic must ensure a ‘green recovery’ that helps the world to tackle climate change.
Dutch to act on emissions after court ruling
28 Apr 2020
The Dutch government has announced measures including huge cuts to coal use, garden greening and limits on livestock herds as part of its plan to lower emissions to comply with a supreme court ruling.
It’s a galloping goodbye to Europe’s coal
28 Apr 2020
The energy that has powered Europe for several hundred years, driving its industry, fighting its wars and keeping its people warm, is on the way out, fast.
France wants public buildings to be 50% wood
23 Apr 2020
The French Government is set to require that all new public buildings must be made at least 50 per cent from wood or other sustainable materials from 2022 as it pushes for sustainable urban development.
France, Germany join call for green recovery
21 Apr 2020
Paris and Berlin have added their names to a growing list of EU capitals asking for the European Green Deal to be placed at the heart of the EU’s post-pandemic recovery plan.
Norway's a-ha moment made electric cars the answer
21 Apr 2020
Norway, a country fuelled by hydropower, has become the world’s electric vehicle leader.
EU hires BlackRock to advise on green bank rules
15 Apr 2020
BlackRock, one of the world’s largest investors in banks and fossil fuel companies, has been hired by the EU to work on potential new environmental rules for banks.
Datacentres should be forced to invest in wind and solar energy, all states agree – except Queensland
Wed 13 May 2026
Power hungry datacentres that are growing to meet the demands of artificial intelligence could be forced to invest in enough new solar and wind generation to completely cover their electricity needs.
US EPA moves to speed clean air permits for power plants, industry
Wed 13 May 2026
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it would speed up the process for large polluters to obtain clean air permits, the latest move by the Trump administration to ease regulatory burdens on American power plants and industry.
China’s leadership calls for ‘strict control’ of fossil fuels
28 Apr 2026
Chinese government leaders published a policy document on 22 April – Earth Day – calling for stricter controls on fossil-fuel consumption and greater oversight of heavy emitters.
Nature recovery zones inspired by Attenborough
Tue 12 May 2026
A wildlife trust has been inspired by Sir David Attenborough's climate change mantra to designate 11 nature recovery zones in honour of the broadcaster's 100th birthday.
Carbon capture ‘doesn’t work’: Former British Columbia premier
Fri 8 May 2026
Former British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell warned the costly, troubled technology has failed to deliver, undercutting a central justification for billions in public subsidies and new oil infrastructure.
Climate change, socioeconomic shifts threaten Nepal’s yak herding traditions
7 May 2026
According to the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), warming temperatures are fundamentally altering Himalayan high-altitude ecosystems.
How climate change threatens the economic backbone of the Pacific
4 May 2026
The vast Pacific Ocean and the islands dotted within it produce more than half of the world's tuna.
‘Triple whammy of climate chaos’: Why Antarctica's sea ice collapse is no longer a mystery
Mon 11 May 2026
Scientists have finally identified the ‘triple whammy’ behind Antarctica’s dramatic collapse, shedding new light on the chain reaction that has pushed its sea ice to record lows.
With its first marine reserve, Ghana protects its ocean to secure its future
5 May 2026
Comment: Last month, Ghana made news when it declared its first marine reserve and sited it in one of the nation’s most ecologically and biologically significant marine environments.
The country where lethal hantavirus cases are on the rise. Experts blame climate change
Wed 13 May 2026
Experts believe environmental degradation caused by climate change and human activity is contributing to its spread by allowing the rodents that transmit the virus to thrive in new areas.
UN methane alert system expanded to coal and waste sectors after Indian landfill named among world’s top emitters
6 May 2026
The United Nations is expanding its methane monitoring system to cover coal mines and waste facilities, after satellite analysis identified a landfill in India among the world’s three largest methane-emitting sites.
