Simon Pickstone

The European Commission seems to be taking steps to close the loophole -- provisionally by mid-2026 -- on the back of a French proposal submitted back in 2022. But there's still a long way to go...

ec.europa.eu/info/law/bet...

Narrator's voice: no, they were not ideal for steps, raised beds, decking, patios, borders, lawn, paver & driveway edging

Snippet from the REACH Regulation restriction entry for creosate stating: "3. Treated wood referred to under paragraph 2(b) and (c) shall not be used: — inside buildings, whatever their purpose, — in toys, — in playgrounds, — in parks, gardens, and outdoor recreational and leisure facilities where there is a risk of frequent skin contact, — in the manufacture of garden furniture such as picnic tables, — for the manufacture and use and any re-treatment of: — — containers intended for growing purposes, — packaging that may come into contact with raw materials, intermediate or finished products destined for human and/or animal consumption, — other materials which may contaminate the articles mentioned above."

A sales listing for creosote-treated railway sleepers stating that they are "Ideal for Steps, Raised beds, Decking, Patios, Borders, Lawn, Paver & Driveway Edging"

A thing I genuinely can't get my head around is that you can still buy old railway sleepers for your garden. Like, the EU specifically bans the use of creosote-treated wood in parks and gardens, and specifically mentions plant containers, because it contains such a nasty bunch of chemicals...

this is absolutely crackers!

They paved paradise and put up medium density housing served by light rail

I would simultaneously be fascinated to read a microbiological analysis of the average kitchen sponge & also want to preserve my pristine ignorance

Two small kids crawling on top of a large white thermal storage unit in the corner of a wood-paneled room. Adorably, the unit has little stairs so you can easily get up and lie down on top of it. There's also a little trap door in the ceiling so you can climb up directly into the bedroom above without going through the rest of the unheated house...

Spent the weekend in a house with a simply incredible thermal storage unit -- that big white box with the babies on it. We burned a few logs in a stove next door, which was enough to keep this thing warm for a good 12 hours. Amazing stuff.

Fresque murale récente qui prolonge l'effet de la végétation Rue d'Aubervilliers dans le 19ème

The effect of battery-electric vehicle ownership on transport demand and substitution between modes Transport decarbonization is a key part of moves to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. A major component of this involves shifting private car us…

What has been the impact of Norway’s shift to electric vehicles?

New study finds: “… BEV ownership leads to an overall increase in car trip demand in the order of 10–20%. This reflects shifts from ICEV to BEV use, but also sizeable shifts away from public transport use, cycling and walking.”

A section of an AI generated image ostensibly showing European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, horribly disfigured, bowing down before Donald Trump, dressed as an emperor, whose sandal cuts through her arm. For some reason von der Leyen is wearing an EU flag as a kind of toga(?) that is randomly dotted with extra yellow stars.

🙈

Aside from anything else, this article is a good reminder that AI image generators are still terrible!

A wooden box in a cafe in Zurich with the label 'Geschirrrückgabe' intended to hold used cups and plates

Humbly submitting Geschirrrückgabe for consideration as one of the top German compound nouns, partly for its precision + elegance (what do we even say for this in English? 'used crockery here'?) -- but mainly for the incredible triple r

Ea-Nasir is a lesson to all merchants about downsides of preserving records beyond statutory minimums

Ea-Nasir's reputation has suffered significantly despite passing of relevant statutes of limitation

Une entrée / sortie de parking condamnée en plein 10ème arrondissement de Paris, les temps continuent de changer.

Image shows a walkway across the former storage pits, now filled with greenery, with sunlit blast furnaces behind

Here's another nice pic of it

A view from the top of the blast furnace in Duisburg-Nord, showing the crane formerly used to load coke and iron ore into storage pits, plus a landscape of trees, steeples, chimneys and slag heaps beyond

You can climb up one of the blast furnaces in Duisburg, where you get amazing views across the Ruhr -- smoke stacks and slag heaps, but also water towers, church steeples and lots and lots of green

Picture shows part of the old steel mill in Duisburg Nord, now converted into a park, with a cluster of trees growing within the complex

People sometimes think I'm winding them up when I recommend going to visit a bunch of old blast furnaces, but they really are incredible

It's nice to see the Ruhr get a bit of love in the Guardian today. There's so many great places to visit -- Duisburg's Landschaftspark (pictured below) alone makes a trip there worth it

‘Like fly-tipping’: ministers ignoring pleas to cut sludge fertiliser use Exclusive: Defra warned three years ago of farmland contamination by water firms’ sewage-derived product

🚨EXCLUSIVE🚨

After obtaining reams of internal docs, I have a new story out revealing how govt has sat for three years on plans to tighten rules letting water companies SELL sewage sludge contaminated with PFAS & microplastics.

Read it in @theguardian.com, and..

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

just the worst -- overnight indoor room temp didn't drop below 27 for me. Already back up at 28 🫠

Time series of temperatures in Western Europe showing the warming during the average summer day and the warming in the hottest summer day from 1950 to 2022. Data from ERA5.

One of the challenges to understanding climate change is that extremes don't necessarily change in the same way as averages.

In Western Europe, for example, the hottest day of the year is warming noticeably faster than the average summer day.

Email reads: Petrol apocalypse: UK to run out of petrol and diesel stations by 2038 Petrol and diesel stations numbers have decreased by over 75% in the last 50 years, and if this rate continues there’ll be none left before 2040 Rapid/ultra-rapid EV charging hubs are stepping up to fill the gap, and are estimated to outnumber petrol and diesel stations by 2032 23 June 2025, Manchester: UK petrol and diesel stations are facing extinction, with research revealing that there will be nowhere to fill up ICE vehicles by 2038, according to national EV charging network Be.EV.

A screengrab from the Simpsons showing Disco Stu pointing to a chart showing exponential growh of disco record sales, saying "if these trends continue... ayyy!"

Can't read press releases like this without thinking of Disco Stu

I have such a visceral reaction to walking past cars — in London!! — with wheels that are taller than my toddler. Nobody needs them and they are so much more dangerous than smaller cars.

honestly would greatly help if journalists could be given a bit of a primer about what the grid is and how it works!

Image shows an ECJ opinion by advocate-general Kokott on Pesticide Action Network Europe vs the European Commission, which starts with a quote from Britney Spears' Toxic

Citation reads: Karlsson, C., Winnberg, P., Dennis, C., and Jonback, H., Toxic, 2003 (originally interpreted by Britney Spears).

Probably fair to say this is the first time Britney has been cited in an ECJ opinion??

To better coordinate and scale up existing initiatives aimed at increasing water retention on land, the Commission will develop a “Sponge Facility”, providing a coherent framework for new and existing initiatives to increase water retention on land.

You may not like it, but this is what peak European Commission performance looks like

Cockatoos are the absolute best. They’re hilarious too - complete clowns. Years ago, one used to visit my balcony daily. S/he would comically pretend to sneak up to the window to say hello. Never failed to make me laugh.

Avant / Après la végétalisation de la contre-allée Rue de Meaux dans le 19ème arrondissement de Paris. Je vois bien que les arbres récents paraissent différents des arbres anciens sur la photo, mais ce n'est pas de l'IA, je le jure ! ;)

recently had an eye-opening conversation with two middle-aged professionals (in HR and the charity sector) who use it for *absolutely everything*. Made me feel like I'm living on another planet...

Tired: Keith
Wired: Rodney