Environment & Energy
Browse the latest environment & energy news, comment and stories in Oxford and across Oxfordshire.
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Labour’s Planning Bill slammed as a catastrophic licence to trash nature
Forty leading economists, conservationists, and former government advisors have warned MPs that Labour’s flagship Planning and Infrastructure Bill could devastate England’s natural environment and harm economic growth.
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Iffley Meadows sees fivefold increase in Snake’s-Head fritillary count
An annual count at Iffley Meadows in Oxfordshire recorded nearly 30,000 snake’s-head fritillaries, a dramatic recovery from a 30-year low of just over 6,000 in 2024. The rare wildflower, Oxfordshire’s county flower, blooms in one of the UK’s few remaining floodplain meadows.
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BBOWT and RHS launch campaign to protect hoverflies across the UK
The Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust and the Royal Horticultural Society are urging gardeners to help save hoverflies as these vital, yet overlooked, pollinators face steep population declines.
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New planters bring flowery facelift to Cornerstone Arts Centre in Didcot
Cornerstone in Didcot has received a vibrant makeover with the installation of colourful planters, thanks to South Oxfordshire District Council and funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Volunteers from Didcot Train helped set up the planters, which included seating to encourage social interaction.
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Wildlife Trust urges public action against Planning and Infrastructure Bill
The Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) warns that the Government’s proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill poses a major threat to UK nature. The bill allows developers to bypass essential environmental protections by paying into a centralized Nature Restoration Fund.
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Airport expansions threaten nature and climate, say Wildlife Trusts
The Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) and other Wildlife Trusts oppose airport expansions at Heathrow, Gatwick, and Luton, citing climate, biodiversity, and community concerns.
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Stable brown hairstreak butterfly populations defy climate and habitat threats
A recent egg count by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) found stable numbers of brown hairstreak butterfly eggs at its Oxfordshire site, despite threats from climate change and habitat loss.
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Oxford Bus Company’s transition to Green electric buses improves air quality
The new fleet of 104 electric buses, introduced over the first half of 2024, prevented burning approximately 1,255,000 litres of diesel fuel and saved more than 3,175 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
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Hundreds of Oxfordshire homes to get solar panels in energy-saving trial
Homeowners who participate in the scheme will have their solar panels fitted for free and would pay a small monthly fee for maintaining them, instead of paying thousands of pounds upfront.
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As the festivities come to an end, here’s what to do with your Christmas tree
Gone are the days of dragging the tree into the garden to decompose naturally. Proper disposal is now essential, as recycling Christmas trees will significantly reduce their environmental impact.
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People in Oxfordshire urged to have their say on local nature recovery
Oxfordshire residents, landowners, businesses, farmers and other organisations are being offered the chance to help shape the priorities for recovering areas of nature and wildlife across the county.
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Oxford University researchers record wettest month in 250 years
Data from the station this week confirmed that September 2024 saw an extraordinary 193.3 mm of rainfall, making it Oxford’s wettest month since 1774 and the second wettest of any month since rainfall records began in 1767.
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Fen restoration project in Oxfordshire awarded £77k nature recovery funding from SSEN
The funding from SSEN will be put towards the restoration and rewetting of eleven hectares of fen bordering a Site of Special Scientific Interest under the care of Freshwater Habitats Trust.
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BBOWT’s 30 Days Wild challenge celebrates its tenth anniversary
This year is the tenth anniversary of BBOWT’s 30 Days Wild challenge, which calls on the public to do one wild thing to connect with nature every day for an entire month this summer.
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voco Oxford Thames Hotel team members embark on tree planting and litter picking initiatives
Team members at voco’s Oxford Thames Hotel have undertaken a dual effort of fruit tree planting and an environmental clean-up – collecting and removing over 42 kilogrammes of waste.
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Residents in South Oxfordshire are officially the best recyclers in the country
South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils were placed in the top three of the recycling tables for English local authorities by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).