Following a break for Christmas, we’re back this month with an environment news round-up. We’ll look at a few of the biggest stories from December, including a series of key climate records broken in 2024 and the collapse of talks aimed at introducing a global plastics treaty. There have also been some key government announcements regarding both energy and development in the UK over the last two months. We’ll also look at what the return of Donald Trump to the White House means for the environment. Our regular research round-up, meanwhile, looks at some recent studies published as we head into 2025.
Environmental Groups Disappointed by Latest Government Plans
Following some positive signs regarding climate and nature loss during their first months in office, the last two months saw Labour introduce some less environmentally positive plans. In December, they released details of changes to planning rules via the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). The key aim is to ease the way for a huge increase in house building in order to meet Labour’s target of 1.5 million new homes over 5 years. Changes include mandatory housing targets for local councils and a requirement for councils to review their greenbelt boundaries to potentially open up new land. Environmental groups greeted the announcement with caution. While they recognise the need for more affordable housing, there are concerns that loosening the rules regarding greenbelt development could result in a free-for-all. Wildlife and Countryside Link said in their response that nature shouldn’t be seen as a ‘blocker’ to development. It added that with the high levels of nature loss in the UK necessitate greater protections as part of the planning process, not less.
There was further unease in January as Keir Starmer revealed that the government was considering changing rules to prevent ‘excessive’ legal challenges to major infrastructure projects. Starmer said that too often, challenges to projects including airports, railways and nuclear power stations held vital economic growth back. He added that ‘This new common-sense approach doesn’t allow newts or bats to be more important than the homes hardworking people need’. If implemented, the plans would mean that campaigners would be unable to appeal judicial reviews on such projects. Critics of the plans say that appeals can currently only be given the go ahead if the case is deemed to have merit. This means that cases with no justification are already weeded out. Environmental campaigners also say that projects that contribute to nature loss and climate change will cost us more in the long run. Planning changes could also mean developers will not have to submit an Environmental Impact Assessment in future and focus less on mitigation than on contributing to a ‘nature recovery fund’.
Towards the end of the month, Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed she would support expansion plans for Heathrow Airport despite opposition within the Labour Party. Reeves said that economic growth was the government’s main priority and more important than net zero. In similar language to Starmer, she said that when it comes to planning rules, developers should be able to stop worrying about ‘the bats and the newts’. A number of environmental organisations and charities, including the Wildlife Trusts, issued responses highlighting how little environmental impacts actually hold up planning decisions. Green campaigners were also dismayed as Labour pushed their members to accept a delay to voting on a landmark private member’s bill on the environment. The Climate and Nature Bill, put forward by Liberal Democrat MP Liz Savage, would have made commitments made at the various COPs and other international summits legally binding. Following behind the scenes negotiations, supporters of the bill accepted a vote delay until July on the understanding they would have some input into future environmental law making. In the same week, the government responded to a petition brought by campaign group Wild Justice calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting by saying they had no plans to do so.
UK Energy News
On the energy front, energy secretary Ed Miliband launched the government’s Clean Power 2030 Action Plan. The plan aims to boost renewable energy production in the UK, increasing the country’s fuel security. Miliband said plans would also lead to more affordable energy as a result of less reliance on volatile fossil fuel markets. The plans include further changes to planning rules, this time to speed up energy infrastructure projects and prioritise work on the most viable. While environmental groups welcomed the emphasis on renewables infrastructure, there are still concerns the government is planning to invest too much in unproven carbon capture technology. Campaigners say the money would be better spent clean energy production. Meanwhile, analysis by climate news service Carbon Brief found that UK energy production in 2024 was the cleanest ever. This was largely as a result of the nation’s phase out of coal and doubling of renewable generation. Gas-fired power stations, however, remained the biggest source of energy over the year.
Research published towards the end of 2024 showed that potential North Sea drilling sites with early-stage licences would produce as much CO2 as three decades of emissions from all UK homes. A number of drilling sites have been earmarked for development and have had some level of permissions granted. Larger projects include the controversial Jackdaw and Rosebank fields but there are also dozens of smaller sites awaiting final permits. Climate campaigners say the government should reverse its decision to allow these already licenced projects to go ahead. Although Labour says it won’t issue any new licences for oil and gas drilling in the North Sea, so far, they have refused to revoke any granted under the previous administration. Campaigners were, however, celebrating at the end of January. A court in Edinburgh ruled that consent for both Rosebank and Jackdaw should not have been granted under the previous government. Ruling on a case brought by campaign groups Greenpeace and Uplift, Lord Ericht said that the original environmental assessments should have taken into account emissions produced when the extracted oil and gas is eventually burned, not just those produced as part of the extraction process. New assessments will have to be carried out before any extraction can begin.
Extreme Weather Events in the News
In mid-December, the French overseas territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean was struck by a devastating cyclone, the most powerful in the region for nearly a century. Winds reached speeds of more than 200 kph. The island group is one of France’s poorest regions, with many of the 300,000-population living in shacks that were unable to withstand the cyclone conditions. Whole settlements were flattened and at least 39 people died. The islands’ isolation impeded rescue efforts but there was also criticism from locals at a perceived lack of response from the French Government. Climate scientists said that unusually warm ocean temperatures contributed to the cyclone’s intensity. Sea surface temperatures along its path were on average between 1.1 and 1.2°C warmer than they would have been without human-induced climate change.
Meanwhile, in January, multiple large-scale wildfires ignited in the greater Los Angeles area of California. The first fire took hold on January 7th, but firefighters were still battling to contain some blazes over two weeks later. At least 28 people lost their lives. Over 10,000 buildings have been damaged or destroyed. Although much of the focus was on the homes of the rich and famous, the city’s poorer citizens were also affected and are less likely to be able to rebuild their lives. Thousands of people remain under evacuation orders. While there was continued speculation about the initial causes of some of the blazes, the fires’ size and speed were attributed to ongoing drought conditions in the state combined with strong offshore winds that fanned the flames. By mid-January, the financial cost of the fires was already being estimated at over $200 billion. It could become the most expensive wildfire event in US history. There were also concerns that the urban nature of the fires would lead to more health issues, particularly for first responders, from toxic fumes.
Global Records Broken in 2024
As 2024 ended, researchers released details of various climate records from the previous 12 months. There was confirmation that the global average temperature breached the threshold of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for the first time in 2024. This threshold was set by the Paris Agreement of 2015. Although climate models are determined by data from a longer period of time, there are concerns that if sufficient action is not taken, this breach could be the first of a long-term trend. A new study also showed that average global ocean temperatures were the highest on record in 2024. Ocean warming is not only a result of human-induced climate change, but it is also a contributory factor in many extreme weather events as warm seas fuel hurricanes and cyclones. Research by charity Christian Aid, meanwhile, shows that the worst climate disasters of 2024 killed approximately 2,000 people and cost $229 billion in damages.
These temperature rises are firmly linked to increased CO2 levels in the atmosphere. So, it was unsurprising when scientists revealed this month that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels rose at their fastest rate ever last year. Continuing use of fossil fuels, drought conditions, wildfires and land use changes have all contributed to the rise. Another factor is the weakening of some of the planet’s carbon sinks. Some of this diminishing ability to store carbon was a result of the periodic El Niño weather phenomenon that affected parts of the globe towards the end of the year. However, human-induced climate change is the biggest factor. The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said that the Arctic tundra, an important carbon sink for millennia, emitted more carbon than it stored in 2024. Much of this is down to increased wildfires in the region. These release carbon via vegetation loss and permafrost melt.
Donald Trump Returns to the White House
As January headed towards its end, Donald Trump took office for the second time as President of the United States. The potential environmental impacts of his return were highlighted even before his inauguration on January 20th as six of the US’ largest banks withdrew from the Net Zero Banking Alliance. This United Nations initiative aims to get financial institutions to adopt measures in line with the 2015 Paris climate agreement. Trump himself signed an executive order on his first day in office withdrawing the US from the Paris deal. Although Joe Biden rejoined the treaty on taking office in 2021, Trump had promised to exit again during his election campaign. The new president also declared a national ‘energy emergency’ aimed at ramping up fossil fuel extraction and production and fulfilling his ‘drill, baby, drill’ slogan.
Whether his plans will be able to overcome some likely legal challenges remains to be seen. One key piece of legislation he will struggle to overturn was passed by Biden in his last weeks in power. The ruling banned offshore drilling across all of continental USA’s coastline. Further executive orders from Trump as he took office included a pause on both onshore and offshore wind energy leases and permits for federally owned land or waters. Part of Trump’s battle against renewable energy, there could be little impact, onshore, at least, as most onshore projects are on private land and cannot be stopped by federal legislation. Despite election support from Tesla boss Elon Musk, Trump also revoked a Biden-introduced electric vehicle target, aimed at achieving 50% of car sales being EVs by 2030.
News in Brief
Our round up of the rest of the biggest stories over the last two months kicks off with the collapse of talks on dealing with global plastic pollution in early December. Representatives from nearly 200 nations gathered in Busan, South Korea for the talks. The main issues preventing a historic agreement were differences on financing sources for less developed countries, limits on plastic production and binding rules on hazardous chemicals. Attempts to pass a weakened treaty were met with opposition from those nations most affected by pollution. Petro states such as Saudi Arabia were especially opposed to production caps, saying that managing waste more effectively is their goal. Talks will restart later in 2025. There was some good news regarding plastics in the UK, however. The government confirmed they would be introducing a deposit return scheme for plastic bottles and cans in England and Northern Ireland. The scheme will launch in October 2027.
Campaigners were celebrating in Norway in December after it was announced that the government would be halting its plans for deep-sea mining for the life of the current administration, at least. In January 2024, the country became the first to approve deep-sea mining for minerals despite the risks it poses to marine environments. The government was forced to cancel its plans as the Socialist Left Party refused to approve their budget unless it changed tack on the issue.
There was less good news for Europe’s wolf populations in December. The Bern Convention, which aims to conserve nature partly by assigning various levels of protective status to species and habitats, voted to downgrade the status of wolves in signatory nations. The move is widely regarded as a result of pressure from the European Commission to increase wolf management across the continent. The downgrade effectively means that wolves can be legally shot and lose their former protections as a species recovering from extinction in many European countries. Critics say the move sets a dangerous precedent for removing other environmental protections as well as failing to recognise the wolf’s still precarious nature. The following month, Sweden began its annual wolf hunt with the government saying it aims to halve the current population of just 375 individuals. Conservationists say the level of hunting will bring the population down to an unsustainable level.
Meanwhile, four illegally released lynx were discovered in the Cairngorms in Scotland. Two animals were initially found before another pair were discovered a day later. All the animals were quickly caught by specialist staff from the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland. There was much speculation about the source of the release with some estate managers and farmers blaming rogue rewilders. The fact that the animals were malnourished (with one of the lynxes sadly dying shortly after capture) and fairly habituated to humans makes this scenario unlikely, however. Police continue to investigate the releases. One line of enquiry is the possibility of criminal gang involvement in the exotic pet trade.
Research Round-up
Our round-up of the latest research is dominated by some new findings on the devastating effects of pesticides on the natural environment. First up, an analysis of Environment Agency data on the presence of bee-harming neonicotinoid pesticides in English rivers found them in 85% of tested locations. As well as fatally affecting bees’ nervous systems, the pesticides also harm a host of other invertebrates, including aquatic species such as mayflies. There are concerns that they could seriously impact species further up the food chain, as well. An EU ban on neonicotinoids came into effect in 2020. The previous Conservative government, however, issued emergency exemptions for use in the sugar beet industry from 2021 on an annual basis. In more positive news, as promised before the election, Labour confirmed they would not be granting similar emergency authorisation.
A different, but equally dangerous pesticide, was highlighted by research made public towards the end of January. Scientists have known for some time that the insecticides used in pet flea treatments can negatively impact aquatic life via animals swimming in water courses or entering river systems in other ways. However, the latest study shows that where blue and great tits lined their nests with pet fur, 100% of the nests showed the presence of the pesticide fipronil and 89% contained imidacloprid, both used in pet treatments. Where levels of either insecticide were higher, there was a correspondingly high level of unhatched eggs or dead chicks. The former chemical is banned for agricultural use in the UK while there are plans to extend the ban to the latter. Both are, however, used widely in pet tick and flea treatments and campaigners are now calling on the government to ban them from these products, as well. In the meantime, the scientists are urging pet owners to only use the products for actual incidences of fleas or ticks rather than as preventative measures.
Finally, we move from pesticides to fertilisers. New evidence from a long-running study of grassland strips in Hertfordshire shows that high fertiliser use dramatically affects pollinator numbers and reduces the number of flowering species. The paper, published by the University of Sussex and Rothamsted Research, reveals that pollinator numbers are halved and flowers reduced by a factor of five where fertiliser use was increased. The likely reason for the losses is the way fertilisers enable aggressive grass species to force out less dominant flowering plants. When this diversity of plant species is lost, specialist pollinators disappear, too. These losses in turn not only have implications for species higher up in the food chain but they could affect our ability to produce food.