Breaking Waves: Ocean News

The White House seems committed to ecocide. The EU should harness the power of the single market to force it to change course Are we understanding it yet? As Europe burns in the west, the south and the north, are we grasping the fact that our economies, food systems, political stability and even our ability to plan for the future, will all be charred in a world on fire? Paris got a taste of what is in store for us Europeans when, weeks ago, fire ripped through Fontainebleau forest, a bouldering paradise and one of the world’s first natural reserves. But the wildfires currently threatening Bordeaux and Madrid, which experts are calling the most extreme seen in Europe, are apocalyptic in comparison. In the Gironde region around Bordeaux, tens of thousands of hectares have burned, creating an unpredictable “thunderstorm of fire” as the region’s chief administrator called it. More than 200,000 people have been displaced in the largest peacetime evacuations in France’s history. Only the bravery of firefighters, dozens of whom have been injured, is keeping the fires within mere kilometres of Bordeaux and its more than a million inhabitants. Alexander Hurst writes for Guardian Europe from Paris. His memoir Generation Desperation is out now Continue reading...

Major incident declared, with Sizewell B power station monitoring blaze and RSPB nature reserve badly hit Hundreds of people have been evacuated and a major incident declared after a wildfire spread over more than 80 hectares (200 acres) on the coast of Suffolk, just a few miles from the Sizewell B nuclear power station. The fire – which had been described by one witness as “apocalyptic” – was said to be stabilising on Thursday night. The statement was posted by Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, which said at least 12 fire crews were remaining overnight in the area. Continue reading...

Forty hectares of Oaken Wood could be razed after it was identified as potential site of expansion by Reform-run council It was at the confluence of seven forest paths that Allison Sweetman came to a stop. Trees rose on all sides, save for a recently coppiced section to the north-east. The noon heat had silenced most birds, but the quiet was peaceful. “This is what they call Seven Wents,” she said. For centuries, the people of Kent had travelled this way, from East Malling to Barming, from Ditton to Teston, for church, commerce and friends. “It’s on maps going back 400 years.” Continue reading...

Clean Energy Council calls for a national, legislated scheme to funnel benefits of hosting renewables projects back to local councils Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Organised campaigns against wind and solar energy have proved “extremely effective” in undermining community support for renewable energy but enthusiasm for electric vehicles has jumped after Donald Trump’s attack on Iran, according to a detailed snapshot of Australian attitudes to the clean energy transition. The survey found levels of “deep support” for clean technologies were highest for home batteries and rooftop solar and also improving for major infrastructure projects such as transmission lines, which have been a target for critics of renewables. Sign up to get climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as a free newsletter Continue reading...