Post of the Day
How plants and animals are teaching scientists to fight climate change
In the emerging field of biomimicry, scientists and inventors take inspiration from trees, whales and coral.
Today’s Celebration
Creole Day – Dominica
Naming Day Tanzania
National Youth Day – Liberia
Republic Day – Cyprus (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus), Turkey
Climate Change
How plants and animals are teaching scientists to fight climate change
In the emerging field of biomimicry, scientists and inventors take inspiration from trees, whales and coral.
We’re scientists. We know the climate’s changing. And we know why.
Andrew Dessler and Daniel Cohan
Decades of research have demonstrated that human activities, primarily the emission of carbon dioxide from the combustion of fossil fuels, are driving climate change.
National
Origin seeks clarity over hydro [$]
Origin Energy’s wants clarity from the federal government on its energy policy before committing to a $235 million project.
Sensible electricity rules await the next government
Ross Gittins
You can call it populism or you can call it desperation. In the case of Scott Morrison’s recent problem-solving efforts, desperation fits better. And wouldn’t you be?
It’s time for free public transport
Kayla Dickeson
Free public transport would benefit everyone, especially those on low incomes.
Why car sharing had a slow start in Australia – and how that’s changing
Jennifer Kent Private cars with built-in sharing technology will soon be available in Australia.
Victoria
Competing solar and fast rail schemes economically wasteful: report
Labor has been urged to abandon its plan to subsidise rooftop solar installation for 650,000 Victorian homes.
Billions wasted on hasty Victorian approvals [$]
Victoria’s key infrastructure projects are not rigorously assessed before billions in taxpayer funds are committed, a respected think tank has found.
Great Ocean Road to get ‘game-changing’ revamp [$]
An overhaul of facilities at the Twelve Apostles will go ahead under a suite of projects along the Great Ocean Road to be unveiled by Scott Morrison today.
Andrews leads on infrastructure [$]
Kim Carr
It is no accident that Victoria’s population growth has occurred on Labor’s watch.
New South Wales
‘Scam’: Developer to use parkland to offset koala habitat destruction
Housing project on Sydney’s south-western fringe will remove koala habitat with the developer using existing council parkland to compensate for the destruction.
ACT
ACT govt needs to decide on its light rail priorities, say planners
The Planning Institute of Australia has criticised the proposed dog-leg route in the plan to extend Canberra’s light rail system.
Queensland
Your trip to the Great Barrier Reef could be the thing that saves it
A citizen science program is urging thousands of tourists visiting the Great Barrier Reef to gather data on the health of the world heritage site, as weather forecasting indicates another mass bleaching event could be imminent.
Push for ban on straws and balloons across Qld councils
Plastics could be not so fantastic at council events across Queensland, thanks to a push see the end of plastic drinking straws.
‘Reef survival is time critical’ [$]
The Great Barrier Reef Foundation will tomorrow announce a major new initiative aimed at building resilience in the face of climate change.
Pedestrians and cyclists must learn to get along [$]
Jane Fynes-Clinton
An ugly incident in Brisbane’s CBD has shone the light on a war taking over our streets. Pedestrians and cyclists are not playing nicely and that must change
South Australia
Power meters complaints soar after retailers take over [$]
Complaints about electricity retailers have surged by almost one-third, because a new system of replacing and installing meters is keeping some homeowners out of their new properties for months and others are facing financial hardship.
Home battery scheme goes live in SA, with local battery builders to get head start [$]
Local battery builders will be given a head start under a new $200 million State Government scheme that aims to halt blackouts and cut power bills by adding storage to up to 40,000 home solar systems.
Is it time for BHP to sell Olympic Dam?
Peter Ker
How did this very complex, unreliable and expensive mine survive the chop that claimed so many other BHP assets in recent years?
Tasmania
Dying art of ‘old-timers’ in peril, with Tasmanian wilderness hut heritage future uncertain
Scattered across Tasmania’s wilderness are old shelters built by the tough-as-nails characters who preferred life in the bush to the city — now, a group dedicated to protecting and restoring the huts fear the construction methods of the “old-timers” will fade way.
Northern Territory
$10m plan to clean up city [$]
Some of Darwin’s ugliest streetscapes will get a makeover, as the council plans to spend millions “beautifying” the city
Western Australia
Joondalup modifies water fountains to flush lead threat
Drinking fountains at two parks in our northern suburbs have been retrofitted with stainless steel parts to ensure there is zero lead in the water.
Marine pests tackled by award-winning surveillance program
A scientific program that identifies potential marine biosecurity risks in WA ports wins the Golden Gecko environmental award.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-29/wa-statewide-array-surveillance-wins-gecko-award/10437062
Sustainability
Italians protest in Rome saying their once great city ‘has become an open sewer’
Protesters in Rome say they have had enough of the garbage on the streets, broken infrastructure and crime in the country’s capital.
He’s turning lights on in war-torn rural Somalia, one panel at a time
Somali-American Guled Wiliq battles financial restrictions and safety concerns to bring power to his home country.
Spain will close nearly all its coal plants in 2018
Under its new strategy, the country is ensuring that the over 1,000 miners who stand to be affected will be able to transition into new jobs in renewables and environmental restoration.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90257736/spain-wants-to-phase-out-coal-plants-without-hurting-miners
People are living inside landfills as the world drowns in its own trash
While the oceans fill up with plastic waste, a horrifying crisis unfolds on land.
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