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IRU, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) and T&E urge the European Commission to ensure continuity of EU funding for heavy-duty vehicle charging and hydrogen refuelling infrastructure, warning that a break in support in 2026–2027 would risk slowing the deployment of zero-emission vehicles. In a joint letter addressed to European Commission President ... [continued]

The post EU Cannot Afford to Pause Zero-Emission Heavy-Duty Charging Deployment appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Buxton, Derbyshire: Others are taller, wider, older, but our varied stock of willows have a generosity that sets them apart

Usually in this country when we think about important trees, we focus on height, girth, age, visual impact – in short, their material properties. Few therefore would probably name willow as a number one British species.

Willows often have no central trunk as in our archetypal tree model, and few specimens are more than 7 metres tall. Yet there is a sphere in which willows are pre‑eminent: more invertebrates live on them (452 species) than any other trees, including oaks, their closest contenders (423). In his glorious guide Trees of Britain and Ireland, Jon Stokes points out that 160 lichens thrive on willows too.

Spain increased its total number of public EV charging points by about 10% in 2025, bringing the total number to 50,000. The number of high-power chargers (50–250 kW) doubled, and the number of chargers able to charge at over 250 kW increased by about 85%. (The source says the range ... [continued]

The post 50,000 Public EV Charging Points Operating In Spain Now appeared first on CleanTechnica.

As Labour shakes up regulation, suppliers are finally investing – but face problems such as contractor shortages and inflation

• Water firms could be let off pollution fines as part of government overhaul

When a sluice gate failed 24 metres below the water’s surface at Thames Water’s Queen Mother reservoir near London’s Heathrow airport, there were no easy fixes available. Emptying 37m cubic metres (1,307m cu ft) of water was not an option, meaning that helmeted divers were limited to 98-minute stints in the high-pressure environment.

The risky project required a team on a floating platform with a crane to cut out the broken equipment with thermal lances, bolt a plate on to the reservoir wall, and install the new equipment. It took more than a year until last October to complete, according to Glenfield Invicta, the contractor that carried out the work for Thames Water.

Rio Tinto has energized a new 25-megawatt solar plant at its Kennecott copper operations in Utah, showcasing a circular critical-minerals supply chain in which tellurium produced at the site is used to manufacture the panels now powering it. Together with the 5MW solar plant completed in 2023, Kennecott now has ... [continued]

The post Rio Tinto Expands Solar Power Capacity at Kennecott appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Inter Partes Review applications denied as First Solar lawsuits continue to progress. First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) (“First Solar”) today announced that the Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) denied three separate Inter Partes Review (IPR) applications seeking to invalidate the company’s Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact (“TOPCon”) ... [continued]

The post US Patent & Trademark Office Rejects Attempts by Canadian Solar, JinkoSolar, and Mundra Solar to Challenge Validity of First Solar TOPCon Patents appeared first on CleanTechnica.

We’re in the midst of the worst political climate and political situation I’ve seen in my lifetime in the United States. I could go into all of those problems, but that would be counter to the actual point of this article. Yesterday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and I ... [continued]

The post MLK Jr. — The Type of Leader We Need appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Over a thousand electric buses will be introduced to Malaysia’s road network, starting with the capital Kuala Lumpur, as the country’s long-stalled push to decarbonize public transport is finally breaking out of pilot mode. In a report by the Malaysian Transport Ministry, Prasarana Malaysia Berhad, the country’s dominant public transport ... [continued]

The post Malaysia Starts Initial Phase of Electric Bus Re-fleeting, Targeting 1,100 Units by 2030 appeared first on CleanTechnica.

On January 8, XPENG dropped some interesting news about its product roadmap that actually reveals something bigger than just two new extended-range models. The company is doing something different with extended-range EVs — instead of treating them as a workaround for charging infrastructure problems, XPENG is building them as electric-first ... [continued]

The post Op-Ed: XPENG’s New Extended-Range EVs Are Actually About Ultra-Fast Charging & AI appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Experts call for tighter regulation as GPS tracking reveals how people’s behaviour affects the lives of some of the world’s largest birds

Many people look up to admire the silhouette of raptors, some of the planet’s largest birds, soaring through seemingly empty skies. But increasingly, research shows us that this fascination runs both ways. From high above, these birds are watching us too.

Thanks to the development of tiny GPS tracking devices attached to their bodies, researchers are getting millions of data points on the day-to-day lives of these apex predators of the skies, giving us greater insight into where they hunt and rest, and how they die.

A return to nuclear power is at the heart of Japan’s energy policy but, in the wake of the 2011 disaster, residents’ fears about tsunamis, earthquakes and evacuation plans remain

The activity around the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant is reaching its peak: workers remove earth to expand the width of a main road, while lorries arrive at its heavily guarded entrance. A long perimeter fence is lined with countless coils of razor wire, and in a layby, a police patrol car monitors visitors to the beach – one of the few locations with a clear view of the reactors, framed by a snowy Mount Yoneyama.

When all seven of its reactors are working, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa generates 8.2 gigawatts of electricity, enough to power millions of households. Occupying 4.2 sq km of land in Niigata prefecture on the Japan Sea coast, it is the biggest nuclear power plant in the world.

Even 25% increase in meat and dairy consumption would require 100m more acres of agricultural land, analysis says

The Trump administration’s new dietary guidelines urging Americans to eat far more meat and dairy products will, if followed, come at a major cost to the planet via huge swathes of habitat razed for farmland and millions of tons of extra planet-heating emissions.

A new inverted food pyramid recently released by Donald Trump’s health department emphasizes pictures of steak, poultry, ground beef and whole milk, alongside fruits and vegetables, as the most important foods to eat.

The state of New York is supporting legislation to require intelligent speed assistant systems for repeat speeding offenders.

The post Lloyd Alter Advocates For Intelligent Speed Assistance appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Changing temperatures may be behind change in behaviour, which experts fear threatens three species’ survival

Penguins in Antarctica have radically shifted their breeding season, apparently as a response to climate change, research has found.

Dramatic shifts in behaviour were revealed by a decade-long study led by Penguin Watch at the University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University, with some penguins’ breeding period moving forward by more than three weeks.

The Andaman coast was one of very few places in the world with a viable population but then dead dugongs began washing up. Now half have gone

A solitary figure stands on the shore of Thailand’s Tang Khen Bay. The tide is slowly rising over the expanse of sandy beach, but the man does not seem to notice. His eyes are not fixed on the sea, but on the small screen clutched between his hands.

About 600 metres offshore, past the shadowy fringe of coral reef, his drone hovers over the murky sea, focused on a whirling grey shape: Miracle, the local dugong, is back.

At CES, I didn’t get the chance to attend as many panels and discussions as I had hoped. When I made it, I was often pulled away partway through by another commitment. However, I had the chance to attend “Competing in a Trade-Disrupted World,” moderated by Ed Brzytwa, Vice President ... [continued]

The post We All Pay For Protectionism appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Intense rainfall has caused the water to go murky in some areas, making them attractive spots for fish and sharks to feed

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Four people have been attacked by sharks in New South Wales in 48 hours, including three incidents at Sydney beaches.

Any shark bite incident is traumatic and Sydney swimmers have been warned to stay out of the water.

Studies detecting microplastics throughout human bodies have made for alarming reading in recent years. But last week, the Guardian’s environment editor, Damian Carrington, reported on major doubts among a group of scientists about how some of this research has been conducted.

Damian tells Ian Sample how he first heard about the concerns, why the scientists think the discoveries are probably the result of contamination and false positives, and where it leaves the field. He also reflects on how we should now think about our exposure to microplastics

Clips: Vox, Detroit Local 4

BEVs represented 35% of the total Chinese car market in December. We saw plugins score another million-plus sales in December, reaching a record 1.34 million units (in a 2.26-million-unit overall market, down a harsh 14% YoY). Last month’s result put plugin vehicles’ market share at 59%, with BEVs reaching 35% ... [continued]

The post (Another) Record Month for EV Sales in China! appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Exclusive: Campaigners claim changes will let companies ‘off the hook’, as government prepares to unveil new white paper for water industry

Water companies could be let off fines for polluting the environment under changes announced in the government’s new white paper.

The environment secretary, Emma Reynolds, hailed the changes as “once-in-a-generation reforms” featuring “tough oversight, real accountability and no more excuses”.