Date: 11 October 2018 at 09:17:54 AEDT
To: Undisclosed recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Oct 11
Post of the Day
Why we keeping ignoring climate change warnings
Jeffrey Kluger
A new U.N. report should sound alarms that climate change is far closer than most people realize. It probably won’t.
http://time.com/5418690/why-ignore-climate-change-warnings-un-report/
Today’s Celebration
Antifascist Uprising Day – Macedonia
National Coming Out Day – United States of America
Revolution Day – Palau
International Day of the Girl Child
Climate Change
UK ‘will have to intervene in market to meet climate obligations’
Top climate adviser says UN warnings will force the government to act in ways that will be controversial and politically fraught
5 things you can do right now to reduce climate change
More sustainable consumption patterns are recommended in the choices on transportation, diet and the use of household goods.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/5-things-you-can-do-right-now-to-reduce-climate-change
Nobel award recognizes how economic forces can fight climate change
Andrew J. Hoffman and Ellen Hughes-Cromwick
William Nordhaus argues markets can help curb climate change.
Why we keeping ignoring climate change warnings
Jeffrey Kluger
A new U.N. report should sound alarms that climate change is far closer than most people realize. It probably won’t.
http://time.com/5418690/why-ignore-climate-change-warnings-un-report/
National
‘Let’s pretend this is WWIII’: Richard Branson hits out at Australia over climate change
The billionaire criticises the Australian Government for failing to do more to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions and says coal “should be a thing of the past”.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-10/richard-branson-climate-change-hits-out-at-australia/10361330
Australia’s love of stone kitchen benchtops is killing workers
Stonemasons who cut engineered stone into a popular type of kitchen benchtop are contracting accelerated silicosis at alarming levels, with doctors warning of the “largest occupational lung crisis since the peak of asbestos use”.
Your food may be sustainably grown, but what about your flowers?
Demand for environmentally friendly flowers is on the rise thanks to a greater awareness of the effects chemicals and long-haul transport can have on the environment.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-10-10/sustainable-flower-bouquets-on-the-rise/10351556
Poor countries urge Australia to honour Green Climate Fund commitments
UN group responds to Scott Morrison’s statement that Australia won’t be ‘throwing money’ into fund
Renewable subsidies phased out by 2030
Labor leader Bill Shorten says coal will be part of Australia’s energy mix for the foreseeable future, but wants renewable energy to be more accessible.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/renewable-subsidies-phased-out-by-2030
Renewables ‘could unsettle grid’ [$]
AGL and Origin have raised concerns over a surge of wind and solar generation creating a new wave of volatility.
Energy policy designer rallies behind NEG
The government is hoping to salvage reliability mechanisms from its abandoned National Energy Guarantee, as a creator of the policy grieves the plan’s demise.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/energy-policy-designer-rallies-behind-neg
Aussies betrayed in issue that matters to all
It was Australia’s big hope for cutting your electricity bills and ending the climate wars but today it’s been confirmed that’s not going to happen.
Household batteries are not the best bet, says grid chief
Australia’s energy future lies in households sharing access to larger-scale batteries and not defecting from the grid with single home batteries, energy experts say.
‘Greater uncertainty’: Renewable investment boom tipped to slow
One of the world’s biggest lenders to green electricity projects says rapid growth in Australia’s renewable energy investment is likely to slow, as banks become more cautious about the financial impact of electricity grid congestion.
Andrew Forrest’s virtual gas plan pitted against Dow Chemical’s pipeline dreaming [$]
The man who would introduce Andrew Forrest to the east coast gas business will go head-to-head with Dow Chemical in challenging the proposition that a massive new $5 billion west-to-east gas pipeline makes more economic sense than “virtual” links proposed by the likes of Australian Industrial Energy.
Business to go it alone on climate policy [$]
The nation’s energy companies and big electricity users have given up on federal politics and begun talks about a package of measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.afr.com/news/business-to-go-it-alone-on-energy-climate-policy-20181010-h16gbv
‘We are not bandits’, industry hits back [$]
EnergyAustralia chief executive Cath Tanna is leading the energy industry’s rejection of government labelling of them as “bandits” and “fat cats”.
In a canter? Climate experts say Australia will not meet emissions targets
Australian politics
Guardian Australia spoke to 12 economists and scientists – almost all reject government’s claim to be on track
While my island nation sinks, Australia is doing nothing to solve climate change
Anote Tong
The inaction and recalcitrance of Australia’s federal politicians is making Kiribati despair
Renewable energy is firming up as the future [$]
Jennifer Hewett
As minister for “Getting Electricity Prices Down”, Angus Taylor has to deliver in an energy market politely described as “anarchy” by Kerry Schott, chair of the Energy Security Board.
Solar PV boom amid the anarchy [$]
Chanticleer
The boom in rooftop solar installations brought home the weird combination of factors behind the country’s headlong rush towards a profound energy transition.
Industry should take the lead on fixing crisis [$]
The AFR View
Business needs to show leadership in minimising the costs of the nation’s decade-long political climate wars.
How a $US1 move is making millions for Australian miners
Stephen Bartholomeusz
The US tariff war on China and sanctions on Iran might be damaging for China and for global trade but is producing windfall gains for commodity producers, including BHP and Rio Tinto.
Australia moves to El Niño alert and the drought is likely to continue
Skie Tobin, Catherine Ganter and Robyn Duell
After the warmest month on record, it looks like Australia will have an El Niño event – which means the drought is likely to continue.
What’s behind the green door? The Power Producers’ Club
Geoff Carmody
Once upon a time, renewables were touted as a way of preventing extreme depletion of scarce fossil fuels that would drive their prices to destructively high levels.
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=19982
Absurd ban would stunt our growth [$]
Ed Gannon
The campaign against the herbicide glyphosate is unscientific and if it succeeds will be dangerous to our economic health.
Victoria
The $100 million project to get 1000 houses on top of an old quarry
It will take five years and cost $100 million to fill an enormous quarry pit in Melbourne’s outer east before up to 1000 houses are built on top of it.
Angry debate over toll rollout to pay for North East Link
Tolls on the North East Link could be extended to other roads, according to tender documents released on Tuesday.
Water forum: Candidates to share their positions on river management ahead of Victorian election
Sunraysia residents will hear the position of local state election candidates on the region’s water issues during the Matter of Water Forum and Q&A on Thursday night.
Cooper Energy signs gas deal for Victorian asset
Cooper Energy’s Casino Henry gas project off the Victorian coast has contracted all of its gas for next year after the company signed a deal with glass producer O-I Australia.
Why Melbourne still doesn’t have an airport train
Suggestions for an airport train line date back 60 years. So why is Melbourne still stuck in the planning stages on this seemingly vital project?
New South Wales
Construction to begin in NSW on two of country’s biggest solar farms
Construction of two of Australia’s biggest solar farms will begin in western New South Wales in the next month, with much of the labour for the hundreds of jobs created to be sourced locally.
NSW Premier calls for immigration to the state to be halved
Gladys Berejiklian says the number of new arrivals in NSW is “through the roof”, and that her Government is struggling to keep up with infrastructure demands like hospitals and schools.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-10/nsw-premier-calls-for-immigration-rethink/10358696
Flaws in NSW dam wall plan: expert
A flood risk management expert says there are alternatives to the NSW government’s plan to raise Warragamba Dam which he believes would make people safer.
https://au.news.yahoo.com/flaws-nsw-dam-wall-plan-expert-101416944–spt.html
Dave Sharma says Liberals ‘doing enough’ on climate after Hewson attack
The Wentworth candidate rejects former leader’s view that party’s policy on emissions is inadequate
‘On another planet!’: MPs rebuke IPART for saying electricity prices are going down
Families can see electricity prices are going up and the ACCC says prices have shot up by 52 per cent in the past decade. But NSW’s regulator claims prices have gone down, confusing everyone.
Energy retailer slammed for pushing poorer customers to a competitor
Complaints about energy retailers in NSW have increased for the first time in five years, jumping by 12 per cent, with some related to a retailer pushing struggling customers to a rival.
Queensland
ABF ship left 990sq metre scar on Great Barrier Reef
Australia’s senior transport watchdog questions a new electronic guidance system involved in a grounding.
Brisbane City Council’s $100 million creek project takes shape
The $100 million transformation of the Oxley Creek corridor into a gigantic 20-kilometre parkland is starting to take shape – at least on paper – with a bird sanctuary, adventure park and shaded walking paths identified in Brisbane City Council’s master plan.
Super rich Asian couple buys Great Keppel Island for more than $50m
An ultra high-net worth couple from Singapore and Taiwan has agreed to buy Great Keppel Island from property tycoon Terry Agnew in a deal understand to be worth well in excess of $50 million.
Adani granted 20 per cent boost to annual coal exports through Abbot Point terminal
Adani has been given the green light to increase its north Queensland coal exports by 20 per cent, meaning about 60 million tonnes of the resource could be transferred through its Abbot Point terminal each year.
Electricity costs prevent farmers accessing water [$]
Precious irrigation water is languishing in Queensland’s state-owned dams because high electricity prices are preventing growers from running their pumps, jeopardising efforts to prepare farms for looming dry conditions
Where’s our missing link? [$]
It was a key element to a blueprint which has largely guided much of Brisbane’s development over the last 10 years. But it’s constantly been ignored despite its success elsewhere and “massive potential” to boost the city’s transport system.
South Australia
SA’s “train wreck” climate change outlook
The State Government has published a series of damning report cards on South Australia’s climate outlook, with key climate change indicators including sea level, rainfall and temperature showing a worsening trend line.
https://indaily.com.au/news/2018/10/10/sas-train-wreck-climate-change-outlook/
Solar tradies forced to find other jobs [$]
Workers building the Bungala solar plant near Port Augusta are facing three weeks without a pay cheque after an industrial dispute left the project at a virtual standstill.
Tasmania
Land ‘as dramatic as any dreamt up by Tolkien’ [$]
Tourism groups on Tasmania’s rugged West Coast are making their formal pitch to be home to the state’s next iconic wilderness walk as submissions from other regions compete for attention.
Sustainability
We label fridges to show their environmental impact – why not food?
Mandatory environmental labels would change how we produce and consume in three far-reaching ways.
Huge reduction in meat-eating ‘essential’ to avoid climate breakdown
Major study also finds huge changes to farming are needed to avoid destroying Earth’s ability to feed its population
Coca-Cola and Nestle among worst plastic polluters based on global clean-ups
“These brand audits offer undeniable proof of the role that corporations play in perpetuating the global plastic pollution crisis.”
We add it to drinking water for our teeth — but is fluoride hurting us?
Three new studies released today link fluoride exposure to ADHD and thyroid problems — and point to drinking water as the major source of exposure.
Wind turbines a potential health risk: WHO
This update not only adds wind turbine limits to existing thresholds for aircraft, rail and road traffic. It now also makes recommendations about leisure noise.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/wind-turbines-a-potential-health-risk-who
A waste mountain to climb: Can Africa make plastic recycling pay?
Coupled with unprecedented population growth, ballooning waste is likely to pose major problems even as local recycling initiatives multiply, environmental activists say.
https://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL8N1WK4QN
The informal water markets of Bangalore are a view of the future
Georgina Drew, Amalendu Jyotishi, and Deepika M G
On the outskirts of Bangalore, families must piece together drinking water from communal supplies, intermittently available tap water, and “water ATMs”.
https://theconversation.com/the-informal-water-markets-of-bangalore-are-a-view-of-the-future-103684
Does your workplace need more light?
Tony Featherstone
Time to see the (natural) light for a happier office environment.
New Americas Treaty Boosts Environmental Rights
Marcos Orellana
A new treaty to deepen the link between environmental protection and human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean has the potential to reduce the conflicts that lead to the murders of so many environmental defenders in the region.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/10/10/new-americas-treaty-boosts-environmental-rights
Nature Conservation
Jair Bolsonaro’s Brazil would be a disaster for the Amazon and global climate change
The far right frontrunner promises a brazen anti-environmental strategy.
Now for something completely different …
Five lifestyle changes to enhance your mood and mental health
Jerome Sarris and Joe Firth
Beyond medication and psychological treatments, there are steps all of us can take to alleviate stress, improve our mood and take care of our mental health. Here are five to get you started.
https://theconversation.com/five-lifestyle-changes-to-enhance-your-mood-and-mental-health-102650
6 Florence St Niddrie 3042
93741902
0432406862