The Guardian

As governments prepare to negotiate a Paris-style UN agreement on nature, 23 former foreign ministers have issued a call for urgent action

Humanity’s ongoing destruction of nature threatens the survival of our species, a group of former foreign ministers has warned, calling on leaders to step back from “the precipice” of irreversible ecological ruin and protect the planet.

The planet’s rapidly warming oceans must be the focus of increased conservation efforts due to their importance in producing oxygen and food for billions of people, the former ministers added, as governments prepare to begin negotiations for a Paris-style UN agreement on nature next week.

Morrison would not confirm reports of technology investment target but said emissions reductions are not achieved through ‘meetings’

Scott Morrison has described a report he may adopt a technology investment target to avoid signing up to a commitment of zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 as speculation, but confirmed his government will take a “technology over taxation” approach to climate change.

On Tuesday, Morrison told reporters in Melbourne the report in the Australian was “very speculative”, but said it was true that emissions reductions were achieved through technology, not “meetings”.

Government pledges to spend £20m turning canals, mines and rail lines into heat sources

The canals of the West Midlands may seem an unlikely source of warmth, but these waterways could soon be used to heat hospitals and tower blocks under a plan to harness Britain’s hidden heating sources.

The government has promised to spend more than £20m on nine schemes across the country to exploit cheap, renewable heat from canals, old mineshafts and in London tube lines.

Drop from level 2 to level 1 restrictions announced after the ‘biggest rain event in 20 years’

Water restrictions will be relaxed across Sydney in a fortnight following the boost to dam levels from the “biggest rain event in 20 years”.

The change from level 2 to level 1 restrictions will take effect from 1 March when water quality in the catchment’s dams is expected to have improved.

Government pledges to spend £20m turning canals, mines and rail lines into heat sources

The canals of the West Midlands may seem an unlikely source of warmth, but these waterways could soon be used to heat hospitals and tower blocks under a plan to harness Britain’s hidden heating sources.

The government has promised to spend more than £20m on nine schemes across the country to exploit cheap, renewable heat from canals, old mineshafts and in London tube lines.

The mitigation measures promoted by ministers are important, but a new focus on climate and energy policies is needed

When Sue Marshall was evacuated from her home in Fishlake, near Doncaster, after the town was flooded in November, she told the Guardian: “What we need to know is that in two months’ time, the MPs will revisit this and look at what has been done to stop it happening again.” Barely three months have passed since rains described by experts as a once-in-60-years weather event. Yet parts of Britain are once again underwater.

Some of the worst-hit areas, such as Rotherham, were also badly affected in November. The latest heavy rains, brought by Storm Dennis, have also devastated parts of Wales, with a “major incident” declared at the weekend after more than a month’s rain fell in 48 hours, leading to landslides and people being trapped in their homes. Pontypridd town centre was underwater and surrounding villages were told by the Met Office they could be cut off for days. Hundreds of warnings remain in place, while thousands of homes have been flooded. At least three people have been killed in storm-related incidents, including a woman who disappeared after her car got stuck in water near Tenbury Wells in Worcestershire.

Climate protesters have dug up the lawn in front of Trinity’s 16th-century great gate, saying the Cambridge college must ‘cut ties with fossil fuel companies’.

A spokeswoman for Trinity said a statement would be released later, as the week-long series of demonstrations gets underway

• Extinction Rebellion protesters dig up Cambridge college lawn

A similar set-up broke the political deadlock in Ireland, but the Tories don’t want to hear bold recommendations

When MPs announced a citizens’ assembly on the climate emergency last June, two crucial things hadn’t yet happened: Boris Johnson’s takeover of the Conservative party; and the subsequent general election campaign where the main opposition parties each offered radical plans to address the climate crisis, and then lost to Johnson, who had offered no plan at all.

For everyone hoping for action on climate, the election was a particularly bruising experience. First throwing open the door to a previously unthinkable possibility – immediate, concrete plans to fight the crisis, far beyond anything proposed by the inadequate Paris Agreement – and then, just as quickly, slamming that door shut. Perhaps even more tightly than before, given Johnson’s disinterest in all things climate-related. And because now the party without an apparent serious climate plan is in charge of taking the critical first steps towards Theresa May’s government’s goal of hitting net-zero by 2050, while the parties willing to commit to action are shut out of power by the enormous Tory majority.

Photographer and Mallacoota resident Rachel Mounsey documented the Australian bushfires that destroyed some 150 houses in her Victorian town and its surrounds. ‘When the New Year’s fire bore down on my town of Mallacoota I began to imagine the fire as a type of medieval dragon – heavy-footed and angry – coming towards us to destroy everything in its way,’ she says. Weeks after the catastrophe, Mounsey sits with neighbours who lost their homes, and asks: how do you move on mentally when all you own has turned to ash?

Engineers at the University of Queensland say technology could be used to power small devices, such as a phone, within two years

A flexible solar “skin” that could be used to generate power on homes, cars and phones is a step closer to development after the technology was used to break a world record for electricity conversion, researchers say.

Engineers at the University of Queensland have been working with nanoparticles known as quantum dots that pass electrons and generate an electrical current when exposed to solar energy.

Action at Trinity part of week-long protests over ties between colleges and fossil fuel industry

Extinction Rebellion protesters have dug up the lawn of Trinity College, Cambridge, as part of a week-long series of demonstrations.

The climate activists dug channels into the turf in front of the college’s 16th-century great gate with shovels and pitchforks and planted Extinction Rebellion flags.

Reductions in air and water pollution are most likely reason, say scientists

Freshwater insects, mosses and lichens are bucking the trend of wildlife losses in the UK and have expanded their ranges since 1970, according to a new study. Reductions in air and water pollution are the most likely reason.

Scientists say their new analysis shows that amid big declines in wildlife, action can help to reverse the trend for some species. The work analysed millions of sightings of 5,000 different invertebrate species by volunteers over 45 years.

Decision concerns two ships regularly transporting live animals to the Middle East, prompting questions about monitoring of fleet

The Irish government revoked approvals for the operator of two regular livestock carriers, the Atlantic M and the Express 1, last week, following questions from the Guardian and Irish farm animal welfare organisation Ethical Farming Ireland (EFI).

Internal emails appear to show that Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) was unaware that the performance ratings for the ships’ operator was below the required standard until a campaigner from EFI got in touch last year.

Cars were swept away by flooding in the town of Hay-on-Wye as Storm Dennis brought heavy rain and winds to the UK on Sunday. Footage posted on social media showed vehicles half-submerged and floating away after a nearby river burst its banks

Explorer says halting imports would recognise the devastating impact of colonialism on wildlife

Banning the import and export of big game hunting trophies would recognise the destructive impact European powers have had on wildlife in former African and Asian colonies, Sir Ranulph Fiennes has said.

Speaking to the Guardian, the veteran British explorer said hunting endangered species such as rhinos, elephants and lions to keep their body parts as trophies should be viewed with the same scepticism as Chinese traditional medicine in terms of the damage it does to biodiversity.

Five-year study of animals in Devon finds measurable benefits to wildlife and people

Beavers have alleviated flooding, reduced pollution and boosted populations of fish, amphibians and other wildlife, according to a five-year study of wild-living animals in Devon.

The report, which will help the government decide whether to allow wild beavers to return to England after being hunted to extinction more than 400 years ago, concludes that the species has brought measurable benefits to wildlife and people.

Use of ‘scrubbers’ to cut air pollution increases pollutants pumped into sea, UN report says

New shipping pollution regulations introduced earlier this year could harm humans by contaminating fish and crustaceans with toxins, according to an internal report compiled by the International Maritime Organization and obtained by the Guardian.

In the report the IMO, the United Nations agency responsible for regulating shipping, says that there is insufficient “toxicity data” to be able to assess the risk to humans caused by the increased use of exhaust gas cleaning systems, which are also known as “scrubbers”.

Proposed route slices through a major drinking water source and an important stop for migratory birds

To the west of Istanbul, between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea, lie diverse landscapes of forest, farms, marshes and ancient settlements. Following a curving line from north to south would connect you through the Terkos Lake, Sazlıdere stream and reservoir and Küçükçekmece lagoon, important water sources for migratory birds – not to mention the city’s residents.

This line, however, is also the path of Kanal İstanbul, a $12.6bn(£9.7bn) mega-infrastructure plan described by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as his “crazy project” when he first mentioned the idea in 2011.

In the second episode of The Frontline, a major series on how Australians are already experiencing the climate crisis, we show what daily life looks like in one of dozens of Australian towns that have run out of drinking water

Storm Dennis has hit England and Wales creating severe flooding, especially in south Wales where officials have warned conditions are ‘life-threatening’.

Streets have been evacuated by lifeboat in some of the worst-hit areas and people moved to emergency rescue centres after their properties and businesses were devastated by water from overflowing rivers

• Storm Dennis: six severe flood warnings in place across England and Wales – live updates