Post of the Day
Gloomy 1970s predictions about Earth’s fate still hold true
Four decades ago, the Club of Rome predicted looming economic collapse in its iconic ‘Limits to Growth’ report.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07117-2
Today’s Celebration
Belgrade Day – Serbia
Kenyatta Day – Kenya
Revolution Day – Guatemala
Birth of the Bab – Baha’i
Climate Change
So what’s the climate change/asthma connection?
Warming temperatures worsen ozone pollution. Excess carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas) causes plants to grow faster and release more pollen — extending the “allergy” season.
https://whyy.org/segments/so-whats-the-climate-change-asthma-connection/
Could oil nation Norway help save the climate?
The world may not be able to make necessary changes in time to limit rapid global temperature rise, the UN climate panel has warned. Existing emissions must also be captured and stored. Norway thinks it has the answer.
https://www.dw.com/en/could-oil-nation-norway-help-save-the-climate/a-45905132
Bioenergy carbon capture: climate snake oil or the 1.5-degree panacea?
Paul Behrens
Delays on climate action to reduce emissions means that we may have to consider technologies that strip carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. But that will come at a cost.
Climate change: Dispelling the myth of the one-man-army
Simon Black
In terms of saving the world from environmental damage, it’s time to stop thinking individually
Dingo dinners: what’s on the menu for Australia’s top predator?
Tim Doherty et al
The dingo, Australia’s largest mammalian carnivore, has a broad diet that varies across the continent.
https://theconversation.com/dingo-dinners-whats-on-the-menu-for-australias-top-predator-103846
IPCC can’t ignore science crisis [$]
Judith Sloan
Many of the UN climate change findings released recently are based on data that cannot be supported.
National
Should Australia be turning its rubbish into electricity?
Harry van Moorst is a veteran community activist. In the 1960s, he protested against the Vietnam War. In the ’70s and early ’80s, he was active in the anti-uranium movement. In the ’90s, he helped lead a successful campaign against a toxic dump proposed for Werribee, in Melbourne’s outer-western suburbs. https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/environment/sustainability/should-australia-be-turning-its-rubbish-into-electricity-20181018-p50aih.html
Cream of the crop
Her critics say she’s risen far too quickly, but farmers’ federation president Fiona Simson insists she’s just telling it like it is.
Switch from coal ‘abominable’ [$]
Qantas chairman Leigh Clifford has taken a parting swipe at the way governments have mismanaged the transition from coal.
Pacific nations aren’t cash-hungry, minister, they just want action on climate change
Katerina Teaiwa
Environment Minister Melissa Price has been trending on Twitter this week – and not for any good environmental reasons.
The power of one person taking action
Age editorial
As Clean Up Australia has grown over three decades, so has our awareness that reducing rubbish is as important as cleaning it up.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/the-power-of-one-person-taking-action-20181019-p50atr.html
Libs to confront religion flashpoint
Paul Kelly
The Liberal Party faces a moment of truth about its deepest beliefs, with the Attorney-General pushing a Religious Discrimination Act.
Victoria
Porsche dealer charged over Vic oil spill
A Melbourne Porsche dealer has been charged with polluting the Yarra River following investigations into an oil spill.
Does Melbourne have enough water for its growing population?
In the lead-up to the Victorian election on November 24, we wanted to get your thoughts on what we should be investigating. You responded with some great questions and we’ve answered a few of them here.
‘Melbourne’s bursting’: why the population boom is dictating Victoria’s election
Gay Alcorn
Population growth was barely an issue at the 2014 election. Now, it permeates almost every policy challenge
New South Wales
‘Bought us time’: Welcome rains but ‘green drought’ far from broken
Much-needed rains will sweep across NSW this weekend but farmers warn that significant falls are still needed before the state-wide drought can be declared over.
Howard and Sharma face a changing climate in Wentworth [$]
Kishor Napier-Raman
Climate change has run up the list of priorities for voters in Wentworth. Will a hail mary appearance by John Howard secure the Libs?
https://www.crikey.com.au/2018/10/19/howard-sharma-climate-change-wentworth/
Dear Wentworth Voters: Here’s 123 Things Our Leaders Did To ‘Confront’ Climate Change
Liam McLoughlin
A recent ReachTel poll commissioned by Greenpeace Australia found that for the voters of Wentworth – former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s old seat – tackling climate change was their number one priority. With the Wentworth by-election to be staged on Saturday, Liam McLoughlin thought it timely to help the good voters of the eastern suburbs focus their minds on the Liberal Party’s action on climate change over the last five years.
Queensland
Brisbane developer delivers inner-city West End park
The developer of a controversial West End housing project has delivered on its promise to create an inner-city public park the size of Brisbane’s Post Office Square.
Far North mining operations need major discoveries to survive
Long-term horizons for mining projects in the Far North may be dim, according to an expert from the Australian Geoscience Council. https://www.cairnspost.com.au/news/major-discoveries-needed-to-keep-northern-mines-ticking-over/news-story/25722476c365017a9e81824e8f01c9aa
Toxic waste ‘shouldn’t leave base’
Construction giant Laing O’Rourke allowed tonnes of potentially contaminated sludge to leave a Queensland military base.
South Australia
Film blamed for reduced roo harvest
A South Australian MP is blaming a film for the kangaroo industry’s failure to process its commercial harvest quota.
Same monster, different master at power switch [$]
Daniel Wills
Energy has become probably the most divisive area of public policy in the state, and the most impossibly complicated. But all that really matters to the public are results.
Tasmania
Air Services Australia releases PFAS report into Hobart Airport contamination
An investigation into levels of perfluorinated compounds at Hobart Airport has found low levels of risk to the public.
https://www.examiner.com.au/story/5712316/pfas-levels-low-risk-to-community-at-hobart-airport/?cs=12
Privatisation of Tasmania’s National Parks
Gordon Bradbury
A powerful cartel of business interests now controls National Parks policy in Tasmania.
https://tasmaniantimes.com/2018/10/privatisation-of-tasmanias-national-parks/
New buses enter the Launceston fleet
Jeremy Rockliff
The first of 100 new buses has now entered the Metro fleet in Launceston as part of the single biggest public transport investment in Tasmania’s history.
https://tasmaniantimes.com/2018/10/new-buses-enter-the-launceston-fleet/
Northern Territory
Central Australian phosphate mine gets ‘milestone’ EPA approval
The Ammaroo phosphate mine, slated to become one of the largest phosphate mines in Australia, receives approval from the Northern Territory Environmental Protection Authority.
Uluru climber ready for legal fight [$]
Australia could face divisive legal action over a decision by bureaucrats and traditional owners to close the Uluru climb.
Western Australia
WA environment minister talks tough on plastic ban, then votes it down
Environment Minister Stephen Dawson has voted in Parliament against a ban on fruit and vegetable plastic bags despite telling reporters this week he was “ready to act” and shoppers should just stick their apples in baskets instead.
Sustainability
Gloomy 1970s predictions about Earth’s fate still hold true
Four decades ago, the Club of Rome predicted looming economic collapse in its iconic ‘Limits to Growth’ report.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07117-2
Researchers use AI to predict outbreak of water wars in the future
There’s a prominent idea in political science known as the resource curse.
Airs and disgraces: how city pollution is killing residents
Dirty air accounts for the premature deaths of people in London, New York, Paris and Beijing.
https://www.ft.com/content/dd61fa98-d05e-11e8-a9f2-7574db66bcd5
Can a city’s water infrastructure produce hydropower?
Micro-hydropower technologies are beginning to harvest the energy from cities’ water networks using specially designed in-pipe turbines.
https://www.power-technology.com/features/city-water-infrastructure-hydropower/
Plant-based diet: These are the benefits for you and the planet
Why a plant-based diet – or at least being “flexitarian” – is good for you and the planet.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/18/health/plant-based-diet-climate-change-food-drayer/index.html
Nature Conservation
Why Australia and southeast Asia’s coral reefs became so rich in species
The building of biodiversity of coral reefs has taken tens of millions of years to but could take only decades to be undone.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/why-australia-and-southeast-asia-s-coral-reefs-became-so-rich-in-species
Four exciting dam-removal projects to watch
From California to Maryland, dams across the United States are being removed to help fish, improve safety and boost recreation.
https://therevelator.org/dam-removal-projects/
Tropical deforestation now emits more CO2 than the EU
Analysis finds tropical forests could potentially provide 23 percent of the climate change mitigation needed to keep warming under 2 degrees by 2030 but political will is lacking
https://news.mongabay.com/2018/10/tropical-deforestation-now-emits-more-co2-than-the-eu/
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