Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Neoprene is made from toxic chemicals, hard to recycle and, with 400,000 tonnes made a year, a growing problem. So can surfers and swimmers find green wetsuits? I have been hesitating for months. The wetsuit I swim in every week to keep me toasty warm in the winter and safe from jellyfish stings in the summer is riddled with holes. Yet I can’t bring myself to buy a new one because I’ve learned that comfortable, flexible and insulating neoprene is manufactured using some of the most toxic chemicals on the planet. Neoprene, a synthetic foamed rubber, is made from the petrochemical compound chloroprene. Exposure to chloroprene emissions, produced during the manufacturing process, may increase the risk of cancer, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Continue reading...

Sir John Armitt urges ministers to act swiftly or risk impeding growth and jeopardising climate targets Rishi Sunak’s U-turns over net zero have delayed progress on vital infrastructure that is needed for economic growth, the government’s advisers have said. Sir John Armitt, the chair of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), said good progress had been made on renewable energy in the past five years, but changes to key policies, including postponing a scheme to boost heat pump takeup, had created uncertainty and delay. The government will fail to meet its targets on heat pump rollout. The promised lifting of a ban on new onshore windfarms has not gone far enough. Massive investment is needed in the electricity grid. There is no proper plan for rail in the north and Midlands now that the northern leg of HS2 has been cancelled, severely inhibiting economic growth in those regions. Water bills will need to go up to fix the sewage crisis, and more reservoirs are needed to avoid drought, while water companies have done too little to staunch leaks. The UK lacks a coherent strategy on flooding, with more than 900,000 properties at risk of river or sea flooding and 910,000 at risk of surface water flooding. Good progress has been made on the rollout of gigabit broadband around the country. Continue reading...

Cold and wet weather also thought to have led to more lambs dying in early season, as Morrison drops 100% British lamb pledge The price of British lamb has hit an all-time high as cold weather and disease in the UK and difficulties with imports have combined with a surge in demand. Wholesale prices have soared by more than 40% year-on-year to more than £8.50 a kg , while the amount of lamb expected to be produced in the UK this year is forecast to shrink by 1.4%, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB). Continue reading...

Footage on social media showed roads full of cars evacuating the suburbs of Fort McMurray in the western Canadian province of Alberta. A growing blaze threatened the city and its surroundings, which experienced devastating fires in 2016. Local officials have ordered thousands to evacuate as the fire grows in size and strength, with winds fanning the flames. 'We’re seeing extreme fire behaviour. Smoke columns are developing and the skies are covered in smoke. Firefighters have been pulled from the fire line for safety reasons,' Josee St-Onge of Alberta Wildfire told reporters Canada city devastated by 2016 wildfire faces evacuations as new blaze nears Continue reading...