“Fifteen pine martens are darting through the woods of Dartmoor for the first time in 150 years after the rare but recovering species was reintroduced into south-west England.
The nimble, tree-climbing mustelids were released last month at secret locations in the steep, tree-lined valleys of Devon in what conservationists are hailing as a historic step in the restoration of the region’s woodlands.”
From The Guardian.
“Solar energy is booming in Niger, one of the world’s sunniest countries, with sales of increasingly cheap solar panels going up and new projects coming online.
An unprecedented energy shortage in 2023 proved a turning point.
Neighboring Nigeria suspended much of its electricity exports to the west African nation as part of regional sanctions against the ruling junta that toppled civilian president Mohamed Bazoum in July 2023.
Haoua Amadou, Niger’s energy minister, said the measure led the country’s electricity production to fall by 30% to 50% and forced state-owned power company Nigelec to impose planned power cuts that can last several days, especially in Niamey.
Nigeria has since resumed delivering electricity ‘but only providing 46 megawatts instead of the usual 80 megawatts,’ Amadou said.”
From TechXplore.
“The Cape vulture (Gyps coprotheres) is Southern Africa’s largest and only endemic vulture species. Beginning in the 1970s, Cape vulture colonies across the region shrank and many disappeared. It’s estimated that between 1992 and 2007, the species’ population in South Africa dropped by as much as 70%.
But in 2021, the Cape vulture’s conservation status improved from endangered to vulnerable on the IUCN Red List…
Today, the bulk of the Cape vulture’s estimated global population of between 9,600 and 12,800 mature individuals resides in South Africa. Breeding colonies are also found in Botswana and a ‘tiny’ population straddles the border of Mozambique and eSwatini, according to a review published last year.
‘With a stable to increasing population at present, the Cape vulture does indeed provide hope for our conservation efforts focused on other species,’ says André Botha, co-chair of the Vulture Specialist Group at the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority.”
From Mongabay.
“The new German government has signalled to France it will no longer object to treating nuclear power on a par with renewable energy in EU legislation, French officials said, confirming a published report.
The EU’s two largest economies have long been at loggerheads over whether to promote atomic power to achieve CO2 emissions targets, delaying policymaking on tackling climate change in the bloc.
France, which gets around 70% of its energy from atomic power, is nuclear energy’s main champion in Europe. Germany, which has phased out its nuclear plants, has viewed it as low-carbon but not renewable.
However, new German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has called exiting nuclear energy a mistake, has promised a reset in relations with France. Berlin was also becoming increasingly isolated, with many European countries planning to revive nuclear power to replace gas flows from Russia.
Germany’s new stance left Austria as the only major holdout left in Europe.”
From Reuters.
“For the first time, the growth in China’s clean power generation has caused the nation’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to fall despite rapid power demand growth.
The new analysis for Carbon Brief shows that China’s emissions were down 1.6% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025 and by 1% in the latest 12 months.
Electricity supply from new wind, solar and nuclear capacity was enough to cut coal-power output even as demand surged, whereas previous falls were due to weak growth.
The analysis, based on official figures and commercial data, shows that China’s CO2 emissions have now been stable, or falling, for more than a year.
However, they remain only 1% below the latest peak, implying that any short-term jump could cause China’s CO2 emissions to rise to a new record.”
From Carbon Brief.
