Environment

Nearly half of Finns prepared to pay more to combat climate change

Almost half of people in Finland approve of measures to mitigate climate change – even if it means additional costs for themselves, according to a survey published by the newspaper…

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Protecting 1.2% of Earth would prevent most extinctions

Setting aside an additional 1.2% of the world's land as nature preserves would prevent the majority of predicted plant and animal extinctions and cost about $263 billion, according to a…

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The fossils being formed today will show how humankind disrupted life on Earth

Mark Williams, University of Leicester; Anthony D. Barnosky, University of California, Berkeley; Elizabeth Hadly, Stanford University, and Jan Zalasiewicz, University of Leicester When we think of fossils it is usually…

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Ensuring That All Sectors Abide To Environmental Vision Is Crucial

By Alfred Camilleri, Director of EVPoint The recently announced incentives for Maltese businesses by Malta Enterprise to encourage investment in electric charging infrastructure is indeed another very important step…

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Wet wipes containing plastic to be banned from sale in UK

Wet wipes containing plastic will be banned from being sold in the UK, with legislation expected to be announced by Environment Secretary Steve Barclay on Monday. The government is planning…

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World leaders call on nations to swiftly ratify U.N. ocean treaty

The European Union and the governments of 13 countries urged nations to prioritise the ratification of a U.N. treaty to protect the world's oceans from overfishing and other human activities.…

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EU countries split over nature law in latest blow to green agenda

By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS, March 25 (Reuters) - The European Union's flagship policy to restore damaged nature is hanging in the balance, with a vote to pass the law on…

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Germany on track to reach 2030 targets, environment agency says

BERLIN, March 15 (Reuters) - Germany's Federal Environment Agency (UBA) confirmed preliminary projections that Europe's biggest economy's greenhouse emissions fell by around 10% year-on-year in 2023, putting the country on…

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Hundreds of guillemots, exhausted by storms, dead on French beaches

BRETIGNOLLES-SUR-MER, France, (Reuters) - Hundreds of guillemot seabirds have been found dead on French Atlantic beaches, exhausted by unusually heavy winter storms that prevent them from feeding, environmentalists said. Over…

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Banks mask lending to polluters with PR greenwash, ECB blog says

FRANKFURT, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Euro zone banks talking the most about climate change are the biggest lenders to polluting industries and use public relations noise to mask their support,…

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In UN talks for a global plastic treaty, delegates to face off over production limits

By Valerie Volcovici Nov 12 (Reuters) - As the world's nations enter another round of talks this week on creating a first-ever treaty to contain plastic pollution, officials are bracing…

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EU agrees on contested law to restore nature

By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS, (Reuters) - The European Union agreed on Thursday to pass a fiercely contested law to restore degraded natural ecosystems, salvaging measures some lawmakers had campaigned to…

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World on brink of environmental tipping points, UN says

By David Stanway SINGAPORE, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The world is heading towards a series of environmental "tipping points" that could cause irreversible damage to water supplies and other life-sustaining…

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Dozens of nations to sign U.N. ocean treaty but implementation still awaits

By Daina Beth Solomon Sept 20 (Reuters) - A new U.N. treaty to protect the world's oceans is expected to be signed by dozens of countries on Wednesday, another step…

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Pope decries ‘terrible world war’ on environment, announces new writing

By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Pope Francis, announcing that he will issue a new document on the protection of nature, said on Wednesday he was doing…

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Pope Francis pledges updates to landmark document on world environmental crisis

Pope Francis said on Monday that he was writing a follow-up to his landmark 2015 encyclical on the protection of the environment and the dangers of climate change "to bring…

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Italy earmarks 2.9 million euros to tackle blue crab invasion

ROME, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Italy's government has earmarked 2.9 million euros ($3.2 million) to tackle the spread of a particularly aggressive crab species that is threatening the country's role…

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Italy’s clam industry under threat from blue crab ‘invasion’

By Alvise Armellini ROME, (Reuters) - A particularly aggressive crab species from the western Atlantic is threatening Italy's role as one of the world's top producers of clams - as…

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Deep-sea mining could impact tuna fisheries, study says

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Deep-sea mining could interfere with migration of tuna that is expected to be driven by climate change to areas of the Pacific Ocean currently slated for mining…

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EU Parliament passes nature law after political backlash

By Kate Abnett and Marine Strauss BRUSSELS, July 12 (Reuters) - The European Parliament voted to pass the EU's flagship law to restore nature on Wednesday, salvaging the environmental measures…

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EU nature law on knife-edge after losing first vote

European Union Parliament committee on Tuesday rejected the bloc's landmark law to protect nature, which the Parliament's biggest lawmaker group is leading a campaign to block in a decisive vote…

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Mexico says mass bird deaths likely caused by El Niño’s hotter waters

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The deaths of hundreds of wild birds along Mexico's Pacific coast were likely caused by the El Niño climate phenomenon, local authorities said, as the country…

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On the road to 2030: Microsoft’s 2022 Environmental Sustainability Report

2022 marked the sixth warmest year in history. Extreme weather caused devastating droughts, wildfires, famine, floods, and heat waves with alarming frequency. Microsoft felt the effects of climate change like…

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Plastic consumption on course to nearly double by 2050 – research

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Plastic use in G20 countries is on course to nearly double by the middle of the century unless a comprehensive and legally binding global treaty to curb…

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ESG tops regulatory demands in finance as UK, EU rules diverge – KPMG

Financial firms in Britain and the European Union remained under significant pressure to comply with diverging environmental, social and governance (ESG) rules over the past six months, KPMG's Regulatory Barometer showed…

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Single-use plastic production rose between 2019 and 2021 despite pledges

Polluting single-use plastic production rose globally by 6 million tonnes per year from 2019 to 2021 despite tougher worldwide regulations, with producers making "little progress" to tackle the problem and…

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EU to promote ‘buzz lines’ to help reverse decline of bees by 2030

BRUSSELS,(Reuters) - "Buzz Lines" for bees and other pollinators where they could move across Europe and find food and shelter were among measures laid out by the EU's executive body…

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Mass crab deaths leave British experts baffled

By Sachin Ravikumar and William James Mass crab, lobster deaths began in October 2021 Expert panel finds more questions than answers New pathogen 'as likely as not' the cause, but…

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Environment risks dominate in “polycrisis” world – WEF survey

Failure to tackle climate change and environmental degradation dominate the ranking of top risks facing the planet in the next decade, a World Economic Forum (WEF) survey of global risk…

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ECB must step up efforts to ‘green’ monetary policy, board member says

The European Central Bank must adjust its monetary policy to make it more climate-friendly, even as it shrinks its bloated balance sheet to fight runaway inflation in the euro zone, ECB board…

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COP27: Sustainable standard setters close in on regulatory gap

Sustainability standard setter chief Emmanuel Faber said he was hopeful of reaching in the coming weeks a "big milestone" towards aligning the European Union's corporate disclosures with his board's global…

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MFA accepts football coach Devis Mangia resignation / Malta News Briefing – Monday 7 November 2022

Updated 1650 MFA accepts resignation of Malta football coach: The Malta Football Association has accepted the resignation of football coach Devis Mangia. The association said that in his letter of…

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COP26 a year later: Where do last year’s climate pledges stand?

(Reuters) - A year ago at the U.N. climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland, countries, banks and business leaders announced a slew of climate plans and pledges. Here is an update…

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UK financial watchdog proposes rules to stamp out ‘greenwashing’

Britain's financial watchdog proposed new rules on Tuesday from 2023 to stop consumers being hoodwinked by 'greenwashing', or exaggerated claims regarding environmentally friendly investments. Trillions of dollars have flowed into…

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Italian Alpine lakes at all-time low

Italy's Alpine lakes are at an all-time low in their water levels amid the worst drought in northern Italy in 70 years, the Po observatory said this week. Lake Como…

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Drought is killing Kenya’s endangered wildlife

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya's worst drought in four decades has killed almost 2% of the world's rarest zebra in three months, and 25 times more elephants than normal over the…

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UK must continue to use water wisely as drought remains -drought group

LONDON, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Most of England remains in drought and careful management of water resources will be needed throughout the winter, Britain's National Drought Group said. England had…

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EU plans to upgrade its Paris Agreement climate target

The European Union plans to raise its target to tackle global warming under the Paris climate agreement, although the upgrade is unlikely to happen in time for this year's U.N. climate…

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U.S. is seriously underestimating the consequences of CO2 – study

The U.S. government is drastically underestimating the social cost of carbon dioxide emissions, which is 3.6 times higher than the estimate currently used to inform many of Washington's key climate…

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‘Staggering’ rate of global tree losses from fires

Around 16 football pitches of trees per minute were lost to forest fires in 2021, a new report says. Data from Global Forest Watch suggests that across the globe, the…

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Thousands of dead migrant seabirds wash up on Canada shore, avian flu suspected

TORONTO, (Reuters) - The carcasses of thousands of migrant seabirds have washed up on the shores of eastern Canada this week and preliminary findings showed that the birds died of avian flu.…

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Glaciers vanishing at record rate in Alps following heatwaves

MORTERATSCH GLACIER, Switzerland (Reuters) - From the way 45-year-old Swiss glaciologist Andreas Linsbauer bounds over icy crevasses, you would never guess he was carrying 10 kg of steel equipment needed…

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Climate change tops priority in Catholic Education’s Secretariat new environmental policy

The Secretariat for Catholic Education has approved its wide-ranging environmental policy, placing climate change as its key priority for the years ahead. Echoing Pope Francis’ belief that the world faces…

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EU parliament backs labelling gas and nuclear investments as green

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Parliament on Wednesday backed EU rules labelling investments in gas and nuclear power plants as climate-friendly, throwing out an attempt to block the law that has…

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EU’s green gas and nuclear investment rules head for final vote

BRUSSELS, July 5 (Reuters) - The EU's plan to label investments in gas and nuclear power plants as climate-friendly faces a final vote on Wednesday when European lawmakers decide whether to accept…

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Only severe emissions cuts will avoid climate extremes -U.N. report

Drastic cuts to fossil fuel use. Growing forests and eating less meat. These are just some of the actions needed in this decade to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees…

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No country met WHO air quality standards in 2021 – data

Not a single country managed to meet the World Health Organization's (WHO) air quality standard in 2021, a survey of pollution data in 6,475 cities showed on Tuesday, and smog…

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Europe seeks breakthrough on climate change plans amid energy crisis

BRUSSELS, March 17 (Reuters) - EU environment ministers will assess their progress on negotiating a raft of new climate change policies on Thursday, with countries divided over whether soaring energy prices should…

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EU proposes law forcing large firms to check suppliers for environment, human rights issues

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission on Wednesday proposed a law to make large companies operating in the EU check that their suppliers around the world respect environmental standards and…

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Express Trailers Plants 270 Trees, A Tree For Every Employee

Express Trailers has planted 270 saplings in Burmarrad’s Santa Katarina Valley, an initiative made possible following an agreement with Parks Malta who supplied the 270 saplings – representing the 270…

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EU draft law would require firms to check suppliers for human rights, environmental ethics

The European Commission will unveil on Wednesday a proposal to make large companies operating in the European Union check that their suppliers from around the world do not use slave…

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75% of people want single-use plastics banned, global survey finds

Three in four people worldwide want single-use plastics to be banned as soon as possible, according to a poll released on Tuesday, as United Nations members prepare to begin talks…

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Italy makes protecting environment part of Constitution

Italian parliament approved a law on Tuesday making protection of the environment part of the Constitution in a vote politicians and activists hailed as significant for the country's future. The…

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Swiss wind park ordered to scale back to protect birds

A new wind park in Switzerland must scale back its plans to deliver renewable energy in order to protect vulnerable bird species, the country's supreme court ruled this week. Plans…

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Britain seeks ban of single use plastic plates and cutlery in England

LONDON, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Single-use plastic plates and cutlery and polystyrene cups could all be banned in England as the British government seeks to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste,…

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EU proposes law curbing import of goods linked to deforestation

LONDON, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The European Commission on Wednesday proposed a law aimed at curbing the import of commodities linked to deforestation by requiring companies to prove their global…

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Congo to ban log exports to reduce pressure on its forests

Democratic Republic of Congo's environment minister said the country intends to ban all log exports and implement other measures to lessen threats to its carbon-absorbing tropical rainforest, a major bulwark…

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