Emma Howard

@emmahoward.bsky.social

Freelance environmental journalist. Mostly plastics, water, biodiversity Previously at Unearthed and the Guardian.

No hint of irony here - funny to see the water industry using this kind of rhetoric towards other companies. "The problem with PFAS will only get worse until chemical companies are forced to stop their manufacture and sale and clean up the mess they've already created" www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

'Forever chemical' testing to be ramped up amid growing concerns.

Increasing testing for PFAS is part of the UK's first ever national plan for tackling the substances.

bbc.co.uk

Water companies have borrowed over £10bn in 'green' bonds - and keep borrowing more. We analysed Bloomberg data & found that the industry issued a third of the UK corporate green bonds so far this year. And still the sewage crisis goes on. unearthed.greenpeace.org/2025/11/30/w...

Water companies have borrowed over £10bn in ‘green’ bonds

The water industry issued a third of UK corporate bonds this year, according to a new Unearthed analysis - but the sewage crisis continues

unearthed.greenpeace.org

This is a rare and amazing environmental success story & we really should be shouting more about it. In 2019, KCL estimated that without action, it would take 193 years for London to meet the legal limit. Birmingham, Manchester & Liverpool all recorded worse results. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

London Ulez reduced nitrogen dioxide to legal limit, mayor says

The mayor of London says the fall in airborne toxins is due to the Ultra low emission zone expansion.

bbc.co.uk

Environment minister Mary Creagh has announced the government will make it harder for farmers to apply for emergency authorisations of a group of bee-killing pesticides known as neonics Says guidance today will require applications to take full account of the risks pesticides pose to pollinators

Bild

Lush setting for a conference I must say - by the capital's only chalk stream, the River Wandle At UK River Summit - lots of talk about the government's review of the water sector, in coming weeks and about the unfolding drought. Hmu if you're hear & want to chat! #UKRiverSummit

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📢Good news: The 200-year-old Vagrancy Act is finally to be repealed, meaning rough sleeping will no longer be treated as a crime in England & Wales. CIH have long called for an approach that tackles the root causes of homelessness—not punishes people for it. This is a welcome & long overdue change🧵⬇️

Rough sleeping to be decriminalised after 200 years

The Government has confirmed it will repeal the outdated Vagrancy Act 1824 by Spring next year, to ensure rough sleeping is no longer a criminal offence.

gov.uk

That's "3.4 million wet tonnes" of literally toxic sh*t with "nowhere to go" to be exact. Folks at home in the Shire will also be interested to know that the Midlands is where the landfill space is, so if there's a sudden shortfall of land, it's likely coming your way....

Zach Boren@zdboren.bsky.social · last yr.

water comanies are freaking out that they're about to have millions of tonnes of toxic sewage sludge with 'nowhere to go' my latest for @unearthednews.bsky.social with @ellieodonnell.bsky.social unearthed.greenpeace.org/2025/06/09/s...

Really enjoying nature getting one over on Big Tech here... One source familiar with the construction told the Guardian "it had been a rolling three-year saga & said some foxes had begun to dig burrows in the perfectly manicured grounds." www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Google battling ‘fox infestation’ on roof of £1bn London office

Foxes have ‘begun to dig burrows’ in soil of rooftop garden at the as yet unopened King’s Cross headquarters

theguardian.com

"[It's] largely underground, changes in volume depending on whether it’s rained recently & tries to swallow you up every time you set foot in it" The government wants you to know that mapping the biggest carbon store on UK land was not easy - & it's not healthy. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Eighty percent of England’s peatlands are dry and degraded, mapping shows

Healthy peatlands can help tackle the climate crisis but degraded peat emits carbon and contributes to global heating

theguardian.com

BREAKING: Brazil meat giant JBS has received approval from the SEC for its plan to list on the New York Stock Exchange. The new comes days after we revealed its pledge to rid its vast Amazon beef supply chain of deforestation by January is likely to be broken www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Brazilian Meat Giant JBS Gets SEC Approval for New York Listing

Brazil’s JBS SA has received approval from the US Securities Exchange Commission for its proposed share listing in New York, clearing another hurdle in the meatpacker’s pursuit to boost its market val...

bloomberg.com