We've made concrete the most destructive material on Earth
28 Feb 2019
AFTER WATER, concrete is the most widely used substance on Earth. If the cement industry were a country, it would be the third largest carbon dioxide emitter in the world with up to 2.8 billion tonnes, surpassed only by China and the US.
What will happen to the legal status of ‘sinking’ nations when their land is gone?
Tue 2 Sep 2025
Small island nations such as Tuvalu, Kiribati, the Maldives and Marshall Islands are particularly vulnerable to climate change. Rising seas, stronger storms, freshwater shortages and damaged infrastructure all threaten their ability to support life.
UK Conservatives pledge to get all oil and gas out of North Sea
Tue 2 Sep 2025
Opposition leader Kemi Badenoch has said her party will remove all net zero requirements on oil and gas companies drilling in the North Sea if elected.
Underserved communities are reaping the benefits of London’s solar microgrids
Tue 2 Sep 2025
Thanks to a change in regulations, residents in social housing can now access the clean, affordable energy coming from their own roofs.
Darwin methane leak ‘covered up’ by gas companies and regulators
Tue 2 Sep 2025
At the heart of the project that heralded northern Australia’s gas boom — Darwin’s first liquefied natural gas plant — was a storage tank that operators hailed as a major feat of engineering.
Liberia has a new plan to protect its rainforests. Can it work?
Tue 2 Sep 2025
Half of West Africa’s remaining rainforests are in Liberia, but in 2024, it lost more than 38,000 hectares (94,000 acres) of humid primary forest, according to Global Forest Watch.
A controversial fishing method may dredge up a climate time bomb
Tue 2 Sep 2025
Bottom trawling is a fishing practice that is notoriously destructive to seafloor ecosystems. Now there’s growing evidence that it might unleash planet-warming carbon.
Australia’s biggest gas advocates are quietly swapping out peaking gas plans for big batteries
Mon 1 Sep 2025
Big batteries are rapidly displacing plans for gas peaking plants, as cost and commercial factors prompt a rethink on how much the owners of these sites want to spend.
The climate case for planting trees has been overhyped — but it’s not too late to fix it
Mon 1 Sep 2025
The climate benefits of planting trees may have been greatly overestimated, but swift action could ensure reforestation meets its potential to curb dangerous emissions, new research has found.
EU’s record wildfire emissions highlight threat to forest carbon sinks
Mon 1 Sep 2025
As carbon emissions from forest fires spike in Europe, experts warn that wildfires pose a growing risk to national efforts to meet climate goals.
If farmers play the long game, biochar will pay off for crops and climate
Mon 1 Sep 2025
Turning 70% of waste straw into biochar could lock away an amount of carbon equivalent to almost 5% of global emissions.
