New research warns that climate change and habitat loss from intensive agriculture “are combining to swat down global insect populations, with each problem making the other worse”, the Associated Press reports. The study, published in the journal Nature, uses more than 750,000 samples of 18,000 different species of insects, AP explains, finding that the interaction of habitat loss and climate change “really smashes bug populations”. Sky News says: “The research found the number of insects was 49% lower in areas with high-intensity agriculture – characterised by low crop diversity or high livestock intensity – and substantial climate warming, than in the most natural habitats with no recorded climate warming, while the number of different species was 29% lower.” Dr Charlie Outhwaite – joint lead author on the study – tells the Independent that “many insects appear to be very vulnerable to human pressures, which is concerning as climate change worsens and agricultural areas continue to expand”. She adds: “Our findings highlight the urgency of actions to preserve natural habitats, slow the expansion of high-intensity agriculture and cut emissions to mitigate climate change.“ Writing for the Conversation, Outhwaite and another author note that “insect declines are greatest in high-intensity farmland areas within tropical countries – where the combined effects of climate change and habitat loss are experienced most profoundly”. The i newspaper, New Scientist, Evening Standard, BBC News and MailOnline all have the story.

In other new research, the Guardian covers a study that suggests using solar geoengineering as a way to limit global warming “could expose up to a billion more people to malaria”. The Atlantic and Independent also have the story. Agence France-Presse, via the Guardian, reports that climate change “could lead to more small-bodied bees but fewer bumblebees, according to research warning of potential ‘cascading’ effects on plant pollination and across whole ecosystems”. And BBC News reports that the “largest ever study of protected areas – places “set aside” ostensibly for nature – has revealed that most do not actively benefit wildlife”. The analysis of 1,500 protected areas in 68 countries – focusing on wetlands and waterbirds – suggests that “success varied hugely around the world and depended a great deal on how an area was managed”.

Germany has said it will stop Russian oil imports by the end of the year, reports Sky News. Annalena Baerbock, the country’s foreign minister, said Germany is “completely phasing out” energy imports from Russia. Following a meeting with her Baltic counterparts, she said: “We will halve oil by the summer and will be at zero by the end of the year, and then gas will follow.” Germany currently buys a quarter of its oil and 40% of its gas from Russia, Sky News says, and it “has previously resisted calls for the EU to impose a swift embargo on Russian oil and gas, warning of a recession if supplies suddenly stopped”. Baerbock said Germany would follow a “joint European roadmap” because “the complete exit of the European Union is our common strength”. Reuters adds another of Baerbock’s quote: “I therefore say here clearly and unequivocally yes, Germany is also completely phasing out Russian energy imports.“ Spiegel also has the story, while BBC News speaks to Germany’s foreign minister Christian Lindner, whose stance is “at odds with” the statements from Baerbock. He tells the outlet that Germany is moving “as fast as possible” to end its reliance on Russian energy, but it will take time. Lindner said he was concerned about the macroeconomic effects an overnight shut-off of Russian energy would cause, the outlet explains. “I don’t fear [the] economic costs [of buying less Russian energy]. I fear the physical scenario, if you have to stop the supply, for a complete production line, this causes more than economic costs,” Lindner said, adding: “I think it’s preferable to have sanctions, which we can stand for months, for years.”

Meanwhile, the Financial Times has a “big read” on Germany’s preparations for a Russian gas embargo. Politico says that “European Union officials are fine-tuning a phaseout of Russian oil imports, which could be presented to EU countries as early as next week, but it’s still unclear how hard they will dare to squeeze President Vladimir Putin’s core revenue stream”. And Reuters reports on quotes by Italy’s ecological transition minister Roberto Cingolani in an Italian newspaper where he says their government “believes that by the second half of next year, [Italy] could start being almost totally independent” from Russian gas.

In more energy news, Tagesspiegel Background reports that renewables covered more than half of the electricity consumption in Germany over Easter, noting that “a total of 2,329 gigawatt hours of electricity were fed into the grid”, according to the statement of Federal network agency in Bonn. Handelsblatt reports that the wind power subsidiary of Siemens Energy reported an operating loss of €304m for the second quarter of 2021-22. And Bild reports on a €4,000 fine given to a German university teacher, Wolfgang Ertel, for organising a protest with other climate activists. It adds that, in May 2021, they occupied a tree on the Ravensburg university campus and protested against wasting energy in the lecture halls.

The European Commission is assessing whether the European Union could achieve a higher target of a 45% share of renewable energy by 2030, instead of its proposed 40%, reports Reuters, as it seeks to “accelerate its shift from Russian fossil fuels following the invasion of Ukraine”. Mechthild Woersdoerfer, deputy director-general of the Commission’s energy department, told a meeting of EU lawmakers yesterday that “we are working on it full speed to take account, first of all the proposal of going from 40% to 45%, but also in the context of higher energy prices”. Acceptance of the new target “will depend on EU countries and the European Parliament, which are negotiating it as part of a major package of climate change laws to cut EU emissions faster”, the newswire says. It adds: “The Commission will publish a plan in May to quit Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Woersdoerfer said this would include a legal proposal to make it easier for renewable energy projects to get permits.”

Bloomberg reports that China “more than doubled” imports of coking coal – which is used to make steel instead of generating electricity – from Russia in March. The outlet says that China is “taking advantage of steep discounts” to Russian coal as other nations “move to ban imports of the fuel”. It notes that China’s coking coal imports from Russia “jumped to 1.4m tonnes” in March, compared to “550,000 tonnes for the same month last year and 1.1m tons in February”, according to Chinese customs data. The New York Times analyses China’s recent push for coal production in the latest edition of its “subscriber-only” climate newsletter. Somini Sengupta – the newspaper’s international climate reporter – gives a roundup of the recent developments of coal in China and their implications on the country’s economy and climate agenda.

Meanwhile, China’s state broadcaster CCTV reports that a high-level meeting hosted by Chinese premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday called on the nation to “ensure” and “increase” energy supply so as to increase its ability to “guarantee economic and social development”. The meeting instructed the country to “enhance” energy supply based on its “national reality” and in the face of “external challenges”, CCTV says.

Additionally, Bloomberg focuses on a “new roadblock” facing China’s “weak” carbon market, which it puts down as “accusations of data fabrication and questions over verification methods”. Another Bloomberg report says that China’s “nascent” national carbon market has been in “gridlock” as power firms “await policy clarity amid soaring commodity prices and government concerns about energy security”. The 21st Century Business Herald – a Chinese financial outlet – reports that China’s development of green finance still faces “many challenges”, according to a number of “industry insiders”. Separately, Sha Fu – director of the Low Carbon Economic Growth Program of Energy Foundation China (EF China) – pens a piece titled “How should China improve climate disclosure in the finance sector?” for China Dialogue.

Elsewhere, the state-run Global Times picks up a new study on Antarctic sea ice, conducted by a group of Chinese researchers. The study reported “record low” Antarctic sea-ice extent in February, the newspaper notes. Finally, the South China Morning Post reports that Beijing and its neighbouring provinces could face “15 extra days of extreme heat and ozone pollution annually by 2050”, according to a new study.

The US government is planning to authorise an additional 10 gigawatts of renewable energy projects on US public land by the end of 2023 – nearly doubling current permitted capacity, reports Bloomberg. The outlet continues: “The Interior Department made the projection in a report to Congress that shows regulators and developers moving rapidly to advance new wind farms and solar arrays in Arizona, California, Nevada and other western states. The effort is part of the administration’s push to make the US power sector emission-free by 2035 and permit some 25 gigawatts of solar, wind and geothermal energy production on public lands by 2025.” The department’s Bureau of Land Management said it is processing proposals for 48 solar, wind and geothermal projects on public lands, with an anticipation to permit 4,703 megawatts by the start of the next fiscal year at the beginning of October, Bloomberg explains, adding that “staffing constraints and environmental reviews are limitations on the pace”.

Meanwhile, the Hill reports that “the Biden administration, under fire from climate activists over its move to restart oil and gas leasing on federal lands, is seeking to shift blame to a court ruling as it seeks to navigate duelling climate and energy pressures”. The US government has “emphasised that its Friday decision to open up about 144,000 acres of publicly-owned lands for oil and gas drilling was caused by a court order”, the outlet explains, and “has indicated in recent days that its preference would be to not hold any lease sales at all”.

The UK government’s chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, will brief MPs on climate change after a protester’s hunger strike campaign, reports the Guardian. The paper continues: “Angus Rose, 52, refused to eat for 37 days during his vigil outside parliament as he demanded the scientific adviser give a public address to MPs and ministers about the climate crisis. He has now ended his hunger strike, 17kg lighter, after the all-party parliamentary group on climate change said it would host Vallance for an address on the issue.” A spokesperson for the group, which is led by the Green MP Caroline Lucas, told Rose they “will be happy to host a briefing on climate change for MPs and cabinet members, from the government’s chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance. This event would be held in the new parliamentary session, likely May-June…the briefing will also be recorded, sent to all MPs after the event and made publicly available”. The paper notes that Vallance was part of a group that briefed Prime Minister Boris Johnson on climate change science in January 2020 – as revealed in a freedom-of-information request by Carbon Brief earlier this year. Speaking at the end of his hunger strike, Rose said: “This is a really important step to try and secure a liveable future for my nephews and niece,” reports the Independent.

British broadcaster and author Sir David Attenborough has been named a “Champion of the Earth” by the UN’s Environment Programme (UNEP), BBC News reports. The “prestigious award recognises the 95-year-old’s commitment to telling stories about the natural world and climate change”, including documentaries The Green Planet and A Plastic Ocean, the outlet says. UNEP executive director Inger Anderson said: “If we stand a chance of averting climate and biodiversity breakdowns and cleaning up polluted ecosystems, it’s because millions of us fell in love with the planet that he captured on film and writing, in his voice.” Responding to the news of the award, Attenborough said that environmental success stories offer hope that change is possible. He said: “Fifty years ago, whales were on the very edge of extinction worldwide. Then people got together and now there are more whales in the sea than any living human being has ever seen…We know what the problems are and we know how to solve them. All we lack is unified action.” The Press Association and Independent also have the story.

A Guardian editorial argues that “proper economic support is imperative” in helping UK households with “truly alarming scale and implications of spiralling fuel costs”. Protecting people “from the consequences of a broken market” could include “some kind of deficit fund to help poorer households…or another form of subsidy”, the paper says. At the same time, it adds, “if the country is to meet its net-zero obligations, the government must be more proactive in shaping a green transition that can cut bills by reducing energy use”. The paper continues: “Labour’s promotion of a £60bn scheme to insulate homes shows what could be done by a government without ideological hang-ups regarding state intervention. In Italy, where the government has offered a 110% tax credit on energy-efficient home renovations, 150,000 new jobs have been created since 2020.” However, the editorial says, “there is no evidence that [Prime Minister Boris] Johnson or his beleaguered chancellor, Rishi Sunak, wish to engage with any of this”. The government “has chosen to offer minimal support to vulnerable households, and temporary rebates based on the flawed assumption that the fuel price rises amount to a short-term spike”, the paper says, adding that it needs to “get ahead of this crisis before it is too late”. Also commenting on soaring energy prices, a Daily Mail editorial criticises energy companies for suggesting “wealthier families cover the cost of £1,000 discounts for the poorest households” rather than stepping in themselves to “ease their pain” even after years of making “fat profits”. It says: “Middle England is already struggling with tax rises, wage squeezes and soaring food prices. Why should they get shafted again?”

Elsewhere, the Financial Times Lex column by research editor Alan Livsey looks at the options for easing the UK’s reliance on fossil gas for heating. Livsey writes: “Building up non-hydrocarbon energy sources, such as nuclear power, will take time. Rolls-Royce’s small modular reactors are years away from operational use. Nuclear accounted for only 6% of total energy supply over 2019 and 2020. Fracking? Only for optimists. The English government has explored this option before. The nation’s high population density makes fracking hard to pursue.” He adds: “The dilemma for all governments is whether to spend many more billions on new infrastructure to harvest and transport hydrocarbons. This could become a new set of stranded assets in the decades ahead.”

Finally, a Daily Telegraph editorial says the Germany’s decisions “to end nuclear power production and become excessively dependent on Russian gas and oil, together with cuts in the defence budget, have left the EU’s biggest and wealthiest country the weak link in the western response to Putin’s aggression”.

A Washington Post editorial argues in support of US president Joe Biden’s decision to open new federal lands to oil and gas leasing. It says: “The world will kick fossil fuels only when the economy no longer demands them. Even under an ambitious emissions-cutting program, that would take a very long time. The US should not continue to consume enormous amounts of oil while offshoring the risk of producing it. Many other oil-producing countries lack the regulations and safeguards drillers must meet in this one. Declining to tap US resources would also deprive the US government of royalty revenue and American workers of jobs.” The paper suggests that the “best way” to cut demand for fossil fuels is by putting a “hefty charge” on them for their environmental impact. It adds: “A second-best approach – the one that Mr. Biden is pursuing with congressional Democrats – is to make cleaner fuel cheaper, green goods such as electric cars more plentiful and the economy more efficient, using government subsidies and spending programs.” A plan reflecting this latter strategy “still has a chance of passing Congress this year”, the paper notes, but adds: “Even if it does, the US will require lots of oil for many years, and the government should seek to keep the market stable and predictable. Careful oil and gas production on federal lands can and should be a part of that.”

Elsewhere, a Wall Street Journal editorial criticises the US government’s move to revise rules under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for permitting major construction projects. It says: “The rule’s obvious intent is to make it harder to build pipelines, roads and other infrastructure that would enable more US oil and gas production, even as the Administration makes phony gestures to reduce energy prices. Last Friday the Administration announced it would comply with a court order to hold oil and gas lease sales on public land. Those leases won’t matter if energy companies can’t get federal permits for rights-of-way.” The article concludes: “While fossil fuels may be the rule’s political target, don’t be surprised if green energy is snagged in this trip-wire. Environmental groups have used NEPA to block new mineral mines and transmission lines that connect distant renewable energy sources to population centres. In this Administration, the left hand doesn’t seem to know what the far left hand is doing.”

Reducing global temperature rise through solar geoengineering may raise malaria risk in some parts of the developing world, according to new research. The authors project transmission suitability of malaria and the population at risk from the disease under moderate and extremely high greenhouse gas emissions scenarios – both with and without solar geoengineering. They find that “if solar geoengineering deployment cools the tropics, it could help protect high elevation populations in eastern Africa from the encroachment of malaria, but could increase transmission in lowland sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia”. The study adds that “geoengineering strategies designed to offset warming are not guaranteed to unilaterally improve health outcomes and could produce regional trade-offs among global south countries”.

The combined effects of global warming and “intensive agricultural land use” have driven reductions of 49% and 27% in insect abundance and species richness, respectively, within insect groups, a new study finds. These patterns are particularly evident in the tropics the study says. The authors combine 20 years of data on temperature changes and land-use changes with data on insect biodiversity in more than 6,000 different locations around the world. The results show that “insect biodiversity will probably benefit from mitigating climate change, preserving natural habitat within landscapes and reducing the intensity of agriculture”.

The onset, intensity and duration of marine heatwaves – periods of exceptionally warm ocean temperature lasting weeks to years – can be predicted by as much as 12 months ahead of the event, new research finds. The authors use a large group of global climate forecasts to assess the skill of marine heatwave forecasts that cover the world’s oceans with lead times of up to a year. The results “highlight the potential for operational marine heatwave forecasts, analogous to forecasts of extreme weather phenomena, to promote climate resilience in global marine ecosystems”, the authors say.