Daily Links Oct 3

Most Americans want the government to combat climate change, some willing to pay a high amount
The largest shares of Americans say they oppose the repeal of the Clean Power Plan and the withdrawal from the Paris Agreement.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/natu-maw100217.php

How many big storms before people abandon coastal cities?
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1251925125133572178

Stark evidence: A warmer world is sparking more and bigger wildfires.
The increase in forest fires, seen this summer from North America to the Mediterranean to Siberia, is directly linked to climate change, scientists say. And as the world continues to warm, there will be greater risk for fires on nearly every continent.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1251925125133572671

China moves to put a price on carbon
China’s move to a national ETS will directly affect Australia’s energy intensive exporters, says Carbon Market Institute CEO.
http://www.afr.com/business/mining/coal/china-set-to-launch-ets-putting-more-pressure-on-australian-coal-exports-20171002-gysle0

Kids suing nations over climate change wildfire links are right
Richard Schiffman
A group of children is aiming to take 47 nations to court over links between climate change and forest fires. Science is on their side
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2149197-kids-suing-nations-over-climate-change-wildfire-links-are-right/

Russia should love climate-change deniers.
Mark Whitehouse Bloomberg View
Research suggests the country could gain from higher temperatures.
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/1195107355338416617

Why the 97% climate consensus is important.
Dana Nuccitelli, John Cook, Sander Van Der Linden, Tony Leiserowitz, Ed Maibach The Guardian
Some have argued that consensus messaging is counter-productive. Here’s why they’re wrong
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/1195107355338416616

Nationals MP rejects idea GST be used to make states develop gas
Andrew Broad says untapped reserves are not creating gas shortages and government should fix exports, which are to blame
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/oct/02/nationals-mp-rejects-idea-gst-be-used-to-make-states-develop-gas

The Pears Report: Energy pricing demands a response
Alan Pears
When energy assets were being sold off, many politicians thought that people would blame the industry for any problems, not governments. Sorry guys. Everyone knows you write the rules and supposedly enforce them.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/pears-report-energy-pricing-demands-response-34863/

Stuck in traffic: we need a smarter approach to congestion than building more roads
Marion Terrill, Grattan Institute and Hugh Batrouney, Grattan Institute
https://theconversation.com/stuck-in-traffic-we-need-a-smarter-approach-to-congestion-than-building-more-roads-84774

Mercury from the northern hemisphere is ending up in Australia
Jenny Fisher, University of Wollongong; Dean Howard, Macquarie University; Grant C Edwards, Macquarie University, and Peter Nelson, Macquarie University
For the first time research has shown that mercury released in the northern hemisphere ends up in Australia’s tropics.
https://theconversation.com/mercury-from-the-northern-hemisphere-is-ending-up-in-australia-83710

Plenty of fish in the sea? Not necessarily, as history shows
Anna Clark
Australia has had tens of thousands of years of fisheries exploitation. That history reveals a staggering natural bounty, which has been alarmingly fragile without proper management. The current debate over the federal government’s new draft marine park plans is the latest chapter of this story.
https://theconversation.com/plenty-of-fish-in-the-sea-not-necessarily-as-history-shows-84440

Are Victoria and NSW really going to be forced to start fracking?
Bernard Keane
https://www.crikey.com.au/2017/10/02/are-victoria-and-nsw-really-going-to-be-forced-to-start-fracking/

We have enough cheap, easy-to-extract gas to last 100 years. There’s just one problem.
Mark Ogge
Australia has plenty of cheap gas. The problem is private companies are selling it all overseas
https://www.crikey.com.au/2017/10/02/we-do-not-need-more-gas-fields/

Lower electricty bills are on the cards if Senate bill passes
Cole Latimer
http://www.theage.com.au/business/energy/power-cut-to-energy-networks-may-lead-to-lower-bills-20171002-gysmy8.html

There are 23.9 billion reasons to love a ‘Big Australia’
Michael Pascoe
http://www.theage.com.au/business/the-economy/forget-the-population-surge-there-are-239-billion-reasons-to-love-a-big-australia-20170929-gyr4yh.html

Recycling is a load of rubbish
Nick Cater
Guilt-suppressing eco-fad nothing more than an exercise in futility.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/opinion/columnists/nick-cater/lets-face-it-recycling-is-just-a-load-of-old-rubbish/news-story/a987dbab72b4330a9f2f87718ec67f6e

Plugging into the battery boom
Robert Gottliebsen
The coming global battery boom will explode demand for lithium but will also be a big boost for copper and high-grade nickel.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/opinion/robert-gottliebsen/plugging-into-the-battery-boom/news-story/b4641b3e3a108b5774e6ae457b15b663

Call for driver charge to ease peak-hour traffic
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/call-for-driver-charge-to-ease-melbournes-peakhour-traffic-20171002-gysva6.html

Bass gas in Exxon’s frame
ExxonMobil has declared itself back in the hunt for Bass Strait gas.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/mining-energy/bass-gas-in-exxons-frame-due-to-onshore-constraint/news-story/d9e889a0d41f01d336e4f27a75452fc4

Our traffic is enough to make you snarl
Marion Terrill
DRIVING on Melbourne’s roads is now more of an ordeal than driving in Sydney, and we can learn from the harbour city.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/marion-terrill-melbournes-traffic-is-enough-to-make-you-snarl/news-story/03bfde127596ed47479f79bf5339f54d

Sydney’s worst CBD commutes revealed
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/sydneys-most-congested-cbd-commutes-revealed-20171002-gysvky.html

Sydney’s cleanest and dirtiest beaches revealed
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/state-of-the-beaches-20162017-report-reveals-sydneys-cleanest-and-dirtiest-beaches-20171002-gysi5c.html

Discoloured water in Wright, Duffy, Holder and Weston
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/weston-creek-residents-report-discoloured-water-since-sunday-20171001-gysgxm.html

Adani’s track record in India ‘leaves a lot to be desired’, ex-minister says
India’s former environment minister Jairam Ramesh says he is “absolutely appalled” by the Australian Government’s approval of the Adani Group’s massive coal mine in North Queensland, adding it will threaten the survival of the Great Barrier Reef.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-02/former-minister-sounds-alarm-on-adanis-track-record-in-india/9005596

Adani needs Carmichael mine to stave off income crash, report says
The Indian mining giant faces plummeting revenue and risks losing the Abbot Point coal terminal, while new questions have arisen about its ownership structure
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/oct/03/adani-needs-carmichael-mine-to-stave-off-income-crash-report-says

Queensland council saves $1.9m in grid costs from single Tesla Powerpack
A Queensland local government council has installed what is believed to be Australia’s first off-grid solar and battery storage system to use a Tesla Powerpack, to maintain local drinking water quality around the clock.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/queensland-council-saves-1-9m-grid-costs-single-tesla-powerpack-90623/

Who pays for wallaby heading
A “DEVELOPER-PAYS” scheme could be used to deal with urban sprawl pushing wallaby colonies into residential neighbourhoods.
http://www.cairnspost.com.au/news/wallabies-die-as-development-takes-habitat-so-who-should-pay/news-story/663c355d6bdba2e10fc2e01b96d7699f

One Nation opposing non-existent CSG threat, conservation group says
Queensland party’s platform also includes steps that have already been legislated, including ‘no body, no parole’ laws
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/oct/03/one-nation-opposing-non-existent-csg-threat-conservation-group-says

Gas plan would be ’economic vandalism’
Rhys Turner
ONE Nation’s proposal to ban future gas extraction in western Queensland will hit jobs and investment and result in higher energy prices
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/opinion/opinion-one-nation-policy-restricting-gas-drilling-is-economic-vandalism/news-story/4b3b06c57b21605d7530d20930dca59f

The amazing fixes that could help save the reef
Emma Johnston
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/comment/the-amazing-biological-fixes-that-could-help-save-the-great-barrier-reef-20170930-gyrzad.html

A year since the SA blackout, who’s winning the high-wattage power play?
Marc Hudson
It’s a year to the day since the entire state of South Australia was plunged into darkness. And what a year it’s been, for energy policy geeks and political tragics alike.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/year-since-sa-blackout-whos-winning-high-wattage-power-play-50429/

Coca-Cola increased its production of plastic bottles by a billion last year, says Greenpeace.
The increase puts Coke’s production at more than 110 billion single-use plastic bottles a year, according to analysis by the green group.
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/1195107355338416610

Asphalt helps lithium batteries charge faster
Rice University lab finds asphalt-nanoribbon anode more efficient, resistant to dendrites
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/ru-ahl100217.php

Irish Scientists Discover Method to Produce Electricity from Tears
A team of scientists at University of Limerick has discovered that applying pressure to a protein found in egg whites and tears can generate electricity.
http://www.enn.com/sci-tech/article/52718

Carbon capture plans relit as Government warms to CCS.
The Government is preparing to reignite Britain’s plans to develop a technology that can strip harmful carbon dioxide out of industrial emissions.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1195107355338416638

Scientists find new source of radioactivity from Fukushima disaster
Scientists have found a previously unsuspected place where radioactive material from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant disaster has accumulated–in sands and brackish groundwater beneath beaches up to 60 miles away.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/whoi-sfn092717.php

How lakes can generate electricity
Scientists develop new ways to harness energy from evaporation.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/lakes-can-generate-electricity-12495/

Scale of human impact on planet has changed course of Earth’s history, scientists suggest
Anthropocene Working Group scientists publish recommendations for formalising new geological epoch
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/uol-soh100217.php

Why the world needs more global citizens
Paul Sherman, University of Guelph-Humber
The world needs to cultivate a global citizenship sensibility, particularly in the education of our university and college students, to ensure the harmonious survival of planet Earth.
https://theconversation.com/why-the-world-needs-more-global-citizens-84680

This forest in Myanmar has survived a 68-year civil war. Now its future is uncertain
A “peace park” run by the Karen ethnic minority is on the brink of disaster — or perhaps an unusual kind of success.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-02/this-forest-in-myanmar-has-survived-a-68-year-civil-war/8984068

Coral restoration program to address bleaching.
Coral reefs can take thousands of years to develop and build but can vanish in an instant impacted by climate change.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1195107355338416618

As seas warm, whales face new dangers.
Scientists are worrying that many humpback and right whales are dying.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1251925125133572667

Companies’ ‘zero deforestation’ pledges: Everything you need to know.
Corporations globally have made hundreds of commitments on deforestation. But what do these pledges really mean and why do scandals keep happening?
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1251925125133572169

What scientists are learning about the impact of an acidifying ocean.
The effects of ocean acidification on marine life have only become widely recognized in the past decade. Now researchers are rapidly expanding the scope of investigations into what falling pH means for ocean ecosystems.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/1195107355338416637

How to work out which coral reefs will bleach, and which might be spared
Clothilde Emilie Langlais, CSIRO; Andrew Lenton, CSIRO, and Scott Heron, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Regional variations in sea temperature can make all the difference between a coral reef suffering major bleaching or surviving as a refuge for corals, new research shows.
https://theconversation.com/how-to-work-out-which-coral-reefs-will-bleach-and-which-might-be-spared-84842