Environment

Scientist develop way to break down oils so they can be converted into methane

When plastic bags break down on beaches, in parks - or even in the sea - they emit the greenhouse gases methane and ethylene, say scientists

Ultraviolet (UV) filters added to lotions and cosmetics getting into food chain and damaging fish embryo

Worrying news has emerged from a Tory-run Local Authority, who might be forced to slash its services to vulnerable children and adult social care. Northamptonshire County Council said their budget issues were of an “extremely serious nature.” This meant that there needs to be spending controls to try and balance the books. It is thought the budget shortfall is £60-70m for this year. Council leader Matthew Golby warned the council may face having to decide "what we can realistically provide...

A study suggests that if people cannot adapt to future climate temperatures, deaths caused by severe heatwaves will rise in tropical and subtropical regions

A damning report has concluded that charities reactions to sexual abuse by aid workers is “reactive, patchy and sluggish.’ Shockingly abuse by charity staff is endemic and the organisations that are supposed to helping people in disadvantaged parts of the world are actually, in some cases, making their lives even worse. The document, by MPs, was produced in light of the claims of sexual abuse by Oxfam staff on Haiti, after a natural disaster on the island. The 120-page report...

While night-time lighting is good for parasitoid wasps, who find food far more easily, aphid populations are decimated by them as they are so much more visible.

Humour is universal - with no 'cultural barriers', say psychologists.

Scientists say that if CO2 levels continue to rise the consequences will be “catastrophic”