naturalfeature:thames estuary

#Greenpeace boards ship in bid to halt delivery of UK-bound #VW #diesel cars
▻https://www.reuters.com/article/legal-volkswagen-emissions-britain/greenpeace-boards-ship-in-bid-to-halt-delivery-of-uk-bound-vw-diesel-cars-i

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Greenpeace activists boarded a ship arriving in Britain on Thursday to stop the delivery of more than 1,000 Volkswagen cars from Germany while others sought to immobilise vehicles at a port in anti-diesel protests.

VW admitted cheating diesel emissions tests in 2015, triggering political and consumer pressure that has caused a slump in sales of diesel cars in major markets, with governments announcing plans to ban vehicles powered by conventional combustion engines.

Greenpeace said its volunteers had boarded the ship in the Thames Estuary in an attempt to stop it unloading at the port of Sheerness in the southeast of England.

The ship had moved to an anchorage point off the coast of Margate on Thursday afternoon, VW said.

Two Greenpeace activists were still on board, having unfurled a banner with the words “Ditch Diesel” alongside an image of a young girl suffering from a respiratory illness, a spokesman for the environmental pressure group said.

Le navire, non cité dans l’article est le Elbe Highway, sous pavillon des Bermudes, annonce un trajet retour de Sheerness à Emden, mais est en route vers le sud devant Margate.

http://photos.marinetraffic.com/ais/showphoto.aspx?photoid=115971#.jpg

The Evolutionary Pull of Ocean Tides - Issue 46: Balance
▻http://nautil.us/issue/46/balance/the-evolutionary-pull-of-ocean-tides

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In winter, the knots come by the thousands to feast on the riches in the intertidal mudflats of the Wash. These medium-size wading birds are rather dull and unprepossessing in appearance, white underneath and sandy on their backs. During the breeding season their plumage turns a rich russet, but this happens in the Canadian Arctic and other colder climes where the birds spend the summer, and we seldom see it. In Britain, knots are more remarkable for their sheer numbers. Vast flocks of them put on a mesmerizing aerial performance over their feeding grounds: here in my county of Norfolk, in the Severn and Thames estuaries, in Morecambe Bay, and in other areas where sufficiently broad stretches of mud are exposed by the tide. The birds then pass the hour or two of high tide hidden in (...)

BBC News - Seals in London ? Sightings ’quite common’ say scientists
▻http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23751906

Scientists have carried out the first large-scale survey of grey and harbour seals in the Thames estuary.

They found there are more than 700 seals living along the river, which they say is an indication of improved water quality.

Avec vidéo ( british accent inside )