Daily Links Mar 7

Climate changing more rapidly than many believe, says expert
People who understand and live in the outdoors such as farmers or ranchers will agree that something’s different.
http://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/climate-changing-more-rapidly-than-many-believe-says-expert-at-edmonton-conference

New report predicts rising tides, more flooding
The report, obtained by NPR, shows that so-called “sunny-day flooding” may be a regular occurrence in some areas.
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/03/05/590901652/new-report-predicts-rising-tides-more-flooding

Enhanced Weathering of Rocks Can Help to Pull CO2 out of the Air — A Little
Weathering of huge amounts of tiny rocks could be a means to reduce the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180306101711.htm

Making climate models open source makes them even more useful
Martin Jucker, University of Melbourne
The creation of climate models with open source code, available for anyone to use, has improved scientific collaboration and helped research get more efficient.
https://theconversation.com/making-climate-models-open-source-makes-them-even-more-useful-90929

Controversial kangaroo culling film slammed as ‘beat-up’ by industry and minister
With 45 million kangaroos in Australia, they are hardly facing extinction, but a controversial new film about our national emblem which is gaining traction overseas tells a very different story.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-06/kangaroo-film-beat-up-industry-says/9517506

Scorched country: the destruction of Australia’s native landscape
Less than 50% of Australia’s original wilderness still exists, thanks to the colonialist view that development of land means eliminating native vegetation
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/07/scorched-country-the-destruction-of-australias-native-landscape

Land clearing in Australia: see how cleared areas compare with your home town
This map shows the scale of land clearing in Australia by visualising the extent of clearing in states where data is available
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/datablog/ng-interactive/2018/mar/06/land-clearing-in-australia-see-how-cleared-areas-compare-with-your-home-town

Making dirty water clean to drink
Australian scientists have discovered a new way to turn dirty water into clean drinking water using vegetable oil commonly used on the BBQ
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/kids-news/csiro-scientists-discover-new-way-to-filter-dirty-water-into-clean-water-using-cooking-oil-commonly-used-on-bbqs/news-story/d4782b48102fe86633b805ddfda7c01a

5 quick fixes for Turnbull and Frydenberg to change energy debate
Giles Parkinson
A series of 28 consecutive News Polls show the Coalition is trailing Labor. So perhaps it’s time to dump the right wing policies on energy and climate Turnbull promised to cherish, and set a new path. Here are some quick and easy fixes, offered free, and without retainer.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/5-quick-fixes-for-turnbull-and-frydenberg-to-change-energy-debate-76810/

Australia’s large scale solar ranking worse than Winter Olympics
Giles Parkinson
Australia has a natural advantage in solar, but its global ranking in utility-scale solar is worse than its Winter Olympics medal tally.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/australias-large-scale-solar-ranking-worse-than-winter-olympics-51416/

Bananas in plastic packaging, now let’s unpack that
Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Pre-packed bananas are the perfect symbol of our warped attitude to waste.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/consumer-affairs/slipping-on-the-banana-peel-now-let-s-unpack-that-20180306-p4z32v.html

Melbourne: a city in danger of being loved to death
Many of the apartment towers that now fill Melbourne’s skyline are “trashing” the city’s streets, warns the architect credited with kick-starting the city’s resurgence three decades ago.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/melbourne-a-city-in-danger-of-being-loved-to-death-20180306-p4z33e.html

Hunting grounds fade
Bill Paterson
What’s happened to the 200 State Game Reserves established with money from shooters’ licences
https://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/news/opinion/bill-paterson-state-game-reserve-hunting-grounds-fade/news-story/a40c3d452142c7e72c49f64b62e0bebb

‘Cracker’: Solar surge starts to get buy-in from big shopping centres
https://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/cracker-solar-surge-starts-to-get-buy-in-from-big-shopping-centres-20180305-p4z2ud.html

Shorten drops threat against Adani licence but still ‘does not support’ mine
Labor leader’s position on proposed Queensland coalmine shifts again
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/mar/06/shorten-drops-threat-against-adani-licence-but-still-does-not-support-mine

Premier does not echo Bill Shorten on Adani
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/queensland/premier-does-not-echo-bill-shorten-on-adani-20180306-p4z31i.html

Land owners demand answers [$]
Traditional owners of Adani mine site have some hard questions for Bill Shorten.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/indigenous/adani-site-traditional-owners-demand-a-meeting-with-shorten/news-story/bbb3918ce8cffcf99c9de8bed9d0eccb

Bill keeps digging himself a deeper hole [$]
Shadow ministers and Queensland Labor MPs are desperately trying to talk Bill Shorten “off the ledge” as he continues to declare his opposition to Adani’s job-creating megamine – but some say the messages simply aren’t getting through.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/queensland-government/bill-shorten-at-odds-with-his-party-on-adani-as-batman-vote-could-cost-queenslanders-jobs/news-story/283c9237e8c62fdd6d9a6b421fdd7eb7

Coal is back – at least for making steel
Japanese trading giant Itochu has signed a deal with Queensland exploration company Vitrinite to develop a new coking coal mine in central Queensland.
http://www.afr.com/news/politics/coal-is-back–japanese-giant-itochu-backs-coking-coal-mine-in-the-bowen-basin-20180305-h0x25l

Bill Shorten’s tactical flip-flopping on Adani
Charlie Lewis
Don’t worry, Bill Shorten is happy to think whatever you think when it comes to Adani.
https://www.crikey.com.au/2018/03/06/bill-shortens-clear-and-decisive-policies-on-adani/

Adani stance is two-faced opportunism or worse [$]
Courier Mail editorial
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten’s flip-flopping on the Adani megamine shows why he’s having trouble turning his popularity with voters around.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/opinion/adani-mine-labor-leader-bill-shorten-fails-character-test/news-story/fcf37eca8b0d60c0920d4b11cb0c07a9

Turn your rubbish into electricity
A new bioenergy plant in Adelaide will turn farm and household waste into electricity. And the idea came from a Hollywood movie.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/kids-news/adelaide-plant-will-turn-everyday-rubbish-into-electricity-to-power-our-homes/news-story/c04b00927c68c26115e83c678eb134f1

Push to speed up native title case ‘entirely inappropriate’ [$]
A judge has denied a push to have an 18-year-old native title claim over Adelaide resolved before the state election to avoid involving a new government in the settlement.
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/messenger/east-hills/federal-court-judge-push-to-speed-up-native-title-case-before-state-election-entirely-inappropriate/news-story/23843c08489897403ca498253cd8785b

The myth about South Australia’s high electricity prices
Giles Parkinson
The myth that SA renewables are responsible for their high electricity prices keeps on keeping on. So here’s another reason why it should be debunked.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/myth-south-australias-high-electricity-prices-46061/

Kings Park’s banksia woodlands could become ‘museum piece’
Scientists fear Kings Park’s banksia woodlands may have to be irrigated in the future, making them “completely artificial” and effectively a museum piece for the species as heatwaves and droughts take their toll.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-06/fears-for-future-of-wa-banksia-woodland/9520006

Fact check: Does a Toyota Corolla emit less than a Tesla?
Government backbencher Craig Kelly says that a petrol Corolla emits less over its lifetime than an electric Tesla. RMIT ABC Fact Check checks his comparison.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-07/fact-check-does-corolla-emit-less-than-tesla/9461096

Scientists modified a plant to use 25pc less water
Early tests have shown it’s possible to tweak the genes of a tobacco plant so it grows with 25 per cent less water.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-03-07/gm-crop-uses-quarter-less-water/9510362

World’s largest deposit of mercury is in permafrost, study suggests
Mercury toxicity can cause neurological problems such as motor impairments or birth defects if it enters the food chain.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/permafrost-mercury-north-1.4562596

Running on Renewables: How Sure Can We Be About the Future?
A variety of models predict the role renewables will play in 2050, but some may be over-optimistic, and should be used with caution, say researchers.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180306115759.htm

Mending the errors of bygone polluters
Until at least the 1970s, policies regarding buried petroleum toxics could be best described as “out of sight, out of mind.”
http://www.dailyastorian.com/editorials/20180305/our-view-mending-the-errors-of-bygone-polluters

Fertility rate of Saudis declining, claims report
Population structure in the Kingdom has shown a decline in fertility rate of Saudis with the Kingdom’s total population including expatriates is expected to reach 33.54 million in 2020 and 38.5 million in 2030. Statistics have showed that population stood at 32.28 million by 2016.
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/529888/SAUDI-ARABIA/Fertility-rate-of-Saudis-declining-claims-report

Thousands of dead starfish wash up on British beaches after snow storms
Beach-goers are ankle-deep in crabs, starfish, mussels and lobsters in parts of England after after a week of freezing weather and winter storms.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-06/dead-starfish-freeze-wash-up-on-english-beaches-in-cold-weather/9519986

Waterfalls Offer Insights Into How Rivers Shape Their Surrounds
The amount of water flowing through a river has little influence over long-term changes to its course and the surrounding landscape, research into waterfalls has …
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180306115744.htm

Current Deforestation Pace Will Intensify Global Warming, Study Alerts
Scientists affirms the prolongation of an annual deforestation of 7,000 square km can nullify the efforts for reducing GHG emissions.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180306141559.htm

Why UN goal of protecting 10 percent of oceans won’t be met by 2020
Protecting 10 percent of the ocean by 2020 was a baby step toward creating a healthier ocean. One study found we’re not even half way there.
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/02/marine-protected-areas-assessment-environment-conservation-spd/