Category Archives: News

Environment Agency launches major investigation into sewage

The Guardian reports water companies are at the centre of a major investigation by the financial and environmental watchdogs after they admitted they may have illegally released untreated sewage into rivers and waterways.

The Environment Agency and Ofwat said they had begun an investigation into sewage treatment works, after new checks led to the admission from the water companies.

This investigation will involve more than 2,000 sewage treatment works, nearly a third of the total number in England and Wales, with any company caught breaching their legal permits liable to enforcement action, including fines or prosecutions. 

Algae grows into £11bn industry as seaweed farms emerge along British coastline

The Daily Mirror reports never mind agriculture – algae-culture is the future as seaweed farms spring up along the British coastline. The slimy brown stuff is among the most eco-friendly raw materials as it does not need fresh water, land or fertilisers. Considered a superfood, kelp is also one of the most versatile and fast-growing organisms on the planet. Growing at up to two feet per day, it also feeds fish and other creatures, while capturing carbon emissions in the same as trees and helping to de-acidify the world’s oceans.

It is even a potential cure for farting cattle, whose emissions add to global warming. Studies show changing their diet to seaweed can cut methane by 80%. And a trial to feed them supplements is being backed by supermarket Morrisons. 

Dolphins living off the coast of Wales that have developed their own ‘Welsh accent’

Bottlenose dolphins photo by Gregory “Slobirdr” Smith under creative commons

The Mail Online reports dolphins living off the coast of Wales that have developed their own ‘Welsh accent’ whistle at higher frequencies than those recorded anywhere else in the world, scientists say. Frequency of clicks used by dolphins are also faster than anywhere else in world. 

Biodiversity loss risks ‘ecological meltdown’ – scientists

BBC News reports the UK is one of the world’s most nature-depleted countries – in the bottom 10% globally and last among the G7 group of nations, new data shows. It has an average of about half its biodiversity left, far below the global average of 75%, a study has found. A figure of 90% is considered the “safe limit” to prevent the world from tipping into an “ecological meltdown”, according to researchers.

The assessment was released on the eve of the UN Biodiversity Conference, COP 15, hosted by China, a mega-diverse country with nearly 10% of plant species and 14% of animals on Earth.