Post of the Day
The small patch of bush over your back fence might be key to a species’ survival
Brendan Wintle and Sarah Bekessy
It may not look like a pristine expanse of Amazon rainforest or an African savannah, but the patch of bush at the end of the street could be one of the only places on the planet that harbour a particular species of endangered animal or plant.
Today’s Celebration
St. Lucy’s Day – Sweden
National Day – St. Lucia
Republic Day – Malta
Climate Change
UN chief attempts to revive flagging climate change talks
António Guterres returns to Katowice to urge China to intervene as world is ‘running out of time’
El Nino events to become ‘stronger’ and more intense, study finds
Big El Nino events will increase in intensity and frequency as the planet warms, worsening their related extreme weather impacts, new research has found.
Climate talks hit wall [$]
Climate talks in Poland have reached their end game without a deal.
The road from Paris … China’s climate U-turn
While leaders of western countries fret about their greenhouse gas emissions in Katowice, China is forging ahead with new projects and investments in coal and gas. According to a new paper from the Global Warming Foundation (GWPF), the Communist Party’s survival depends on delivering economic growth and cleaner air.
https://tasmaniantimes.com/2018/12/the-road-from-paris-chinas-climate-u-turn/
2018: The year in climate change
From dire climate reports to ravenous urchins and vanishing heritage sites, here are the climate stories you shouldn’t miss from this year.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/12/12/climate/year-in-climate-change.html
Trump can’t actually exit the Paris deal until the day after the 2020 election. That’s a big deal
The Trump administration can withdraw from the Paris climate agreement next year, but it still takes another year for the process to be complete. Which brings the whole matter to Election Day in 2020.
Investors warn of severe financial crash if climate action isn’t taken
A group of more than 400 investors managing $32 trillion in assets warned governments to take more aggressive steps to address climate change or risk a financial crash several times worse than the 2008 global recession.
https://e360.yale.edu/digest/investors-warn-of-severe-financial-crash-if-climate-action-isnt-taken
We can’t know the future cost of climate change. Let’s focus on the cost of avoiding it instead
Jack Pezzey
Economists have searched for the mythical balance between the cost of climate action, and the future cost of doing nothing.
Climate change is not up for debate
John Haly
The full effects of climate change are nearly upon us. We can’t afford to keep arguing about it.
National
Coalition signals it will provide taxpayer support for new and existing coal plants
Morrison government specifies generation projects will need to be coal, gas, batteries or pumped hydro to be eligible for underwriting
Snowy 2.0: Malcolm Turnbull’s pet project given go-ahead by board
Snowy Hydro board approves expansion of scheme to add 2,000MW of new generation capacity
‘I don’t see any evidence’: Minister rejects CEOs’ carbon price push
Growing demands from some of the nation’s biggest miners for the Morrison government to set a price on carbon have been emphatically rejected, as federal Resources Minister Matt Canavan insists “taxes ain’t the answer”.
Yes, you are spending more on your power bill
You were right. Australians are spending far more keeping the lights on.
Solar electric vehicle with swappable bodies unveiled in Australia
Australian company breaks cover with a solar-powered Applied Electric Vehicle that seeks to re-imagine the future of transport.
US manufacturing giant Flex to quit Australian solar business
US manufacturing giant Flex to withdraw from Australia wholesale and retail solar business, adding to the dramatic shake-up in the industry.
https://reneweconomy.com.au/us-manufacturing-giant-flex-to-quit-australian-solar-business-21941/
10 days of solar: Australian rooftops can host up to 61GW of rooftop solar
New report finds there is potential for up to 61GW of solar PV installations on Australia’s residential rooftops.
Alcoa in gas supply deal [$]
Alcoa and Alumina’s energy-hungry refining business has locked in three gas supply deals.
Scott Morrison fails to persuade states to lower migration rate at COAG
The next migration cap likely to remain
‘Huge win on population pact’ [$]
Gladys Berejiklian has hailed the fact the federal government has agreed to give the states major input on migration levels.
Morrison backs big Australia [$]
Scott Morrison has indicated he will resist any significant cut to Australia’s intake of permanent migrants, saying he envisages the level staying close to 160,000.
https://www.afr.com/news/scott-morrison-backs-big-australia-at-coag-20181211-h190id
Leaders plan for population framework
States and territories have agreed to work towards creating a framework for managing population issues across Australia.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/leaders-plan-for-population-framework
PM knows that migrants mean growth [$]
The AFR View
The problems of building bigger cities should not be confused with all the benefits of growth — just ask Daniel Andrews
https://www.afr.com/opinion/editorials/scomo-knows-that-migrants-mean-growth-20181212-h190uu
Annus horribilis for Big Australia [$]
Judith Sloan
Migration doesn’t work for all us. Residents of larger cities in particular are hit by excessively rapid population growth.
Leaders ignoring the obvious on migrants [$]
Andrew Bolt
Population control Ordinary Australians are talking about our immigration problems, but it seems our leaders would rather look the other way.
Regulator smashes Canberra’s energy rhetoric [$]
Matthew Stevens
Australia’s electricity challenges have now been laid bare by three regulators but the federal government continues to fight a problem that doesn’t exist.
Know your NEM: Wind and solar is boosting competition
David Leitch
The wind and solar boom is clearly adding to competition, but 5GW of battery storage in coming years will really focus the minds of incumbent utilities.
https://reneweconomy.com.au/know-your-nem-wind-and-solar-is-boosting-competition-15452/
Australia’s problem with Aboriginal World Heritage
Ian Lilley and Celmara Pocock
Journalist Stan Grant once compared our Indigenous cultural heritage to the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel. Ironically, though Grant pointed to the Lake Mungo site in the Willandra Lakes as an example, Aboriginal people are poorly represented by Australia’s World Heritage sites. Torres Strait Islanders are not represented at all.
https://theconversation.com/australias-problem-with-aboriginal-world-heritage-82912
Your drinking water could be saltier than you think (even if you live in a capital)
Ian Wright et al
Of Australia’s capital cities, Perth has the saltiest tap water, while Melbourne, Hobart, Darwin and Canberra have the least salty. And while all are within guidelines, the variation is striking.
The small patch of bush over your back fence might be key to a species’ survival
Brendan Wintle and Sarah Bekessy
It may not look like a pristine expanse of Amazon rainforest or an African savannah, but the patch of bush at the end of the street could be one of the only places on the planet that harbour a particular species of endangered animal or plant.
‘It doesn’t have to be this way’: how Australia fell behind the US on energy [$]
Margot Saville
Political infighting over climate change and carbon pricing has cost the Australian public dearly in terms of reducing carbon emissions and the cost of energy.
Victoria
Overland train to continue after getting Victorian funding
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says he is “puzzled” at the attitude of the South Australian Government for withdrawing funding for the Overland train service, as Victoria pledges $200,000 to keep it going.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-12/overland-to-continue-after-getting-victorian-funding/10609648
Grassfires pose major risk this summer warns Victorian CFA
Emergency services in Victoria are warning that last week’s damaging grassfire at Little River is a sign of things to come, with most of the state’s grasslands dry and flammable.
Decades of rage over Victoria’s ‘Surfers Paradise lost’ set to be probed
Landholders who say they’ve been ripped off by a Victorian council over plots of prime coastal land will finally have their cases investigated.
The fix for Melbourne’s crowded train station carparks [$]
Motorists are choosing to clog up railway station car parks rather than go for a stroll, with a third of people who drive to their train living within 800m of the platform. But there is a way to fix it.
Unhappy new year as public transport fares to rise on January 1
Public transport fares will rise by 2.2 per cent from January 1 next year, although that increase is slightly smaller than previous years.
State could see a month’s rainfall in a day amid flash-flood warning
Wild weather and rain could cause flash flooding in much of Victoria on Thursday.
Parts of Victoria could see localised rainfall totals of up to 100mm as thunderstorms and heavy rain lash the state, prompting a severe weather warning due to a ‘zombie cyclone’.
New South Wales
How high-speed rail would affect prices and spark investment in regional centres [$]
A high-speed rail network out of Sydney would spark significant investment and population growth driving up property prices by up to 25 per cent, say developers and business interests already positioning themselves for the growth.
Case for light rail lines in NSW takes a battering once again
Weeks after warning that Sydney’s $2.1b light rail line was set to blow its budget, the state’s Auditor-General has criticised the state’s other light rail project.
Cyclone, humidity and a scorching Test all part of an ‘extreme weather week’
A “zombie cyclone” that is reviving into a powerful storm, thunderstorms threatening Sydney and the east coast and another scorching start to a Test match will be among the highlights of wild early summer weather.
ACT
New plan to get ACT public servants on their bikes
The low effort required to ride the e-bikes allows users to travel in their suits.
Queensland
Flesh-eating bacteria could be spread by mosquitoes, scientists warn
Researchers working to stop a flesh-eating bacteria say they are closer to understanding how it spreads as several cases emerge in far north Queensland. Warning: this is a condition you don’t want to Google.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-12/flesh-eating-disease-spread-by-mosquitoes/10610500
Controversial Mt Coot-tha project gets state’s zip of approval
The controversial Mt Coot-tha zipline project has been given approval by the state government’s assessment and referral agency, meaning Brisbane City Council will move to the final decision-making process once public feedback concludes on Friday.
Adani ‘must be opposed at ALP conference’
Protesters have targeted the offices of Labor MPs in three states over the impending start to the controversial Adani coal mine in Queensland.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/adani-must-be-opposed-at-alp-conference
‘Sprint to the election’: Anti-Adani groups target Labor
Dozens of groups opposed to the proposed Adani coal mine are stepping up their national campaign, targeting Labor leader Bill Shorten.
More green space could combat Brisbane’s ‘silent killer’ in the suburbs
Reducing heat-related deaths in Brisbane could be easily done with careful planning and more green spaces.
Giant man-made lake takes shape [$]
Enough dirt to fill two Olympic swimming pools was excavated every day for the past three years in order to build southeast Queensland’s newest lake.
State warned to brace for big wet [$]
Queensland is a tale of two states, as a reborn cyclone brings heavy rain and destructive winds, while there is no relief in sight for drought zones.
South Australia
City Council turns its back on fossil fuel divestment
Adelaide City Council has voted against becoming the first council in South Australia to divest from the fossil fuel industry after some councillors warned the policy was too broad and potentially costly.
https://indaily.com.au/news/local/2018/12/12/city-council-turns-its-back-on-fossil-fuel-divestment/
Council considers seeking compensation over PFAS contamination
An Adelaide council considers seeking compensation from the Federal Government after two of its wetlands were contaminated by run-off from the nearby Edinburgh RAAF base.
1414 Degrees’ molten silicon biogas energy storage system set for trial in S.A.
A world-leading, Adelaide-made 10MWh molten silicon energy storage system is on its way to Glenelg, where it will be tested at an SA Water treatment plant.
Union calls for toxin testing to be expanded [$]
Firefighters who have been tested for potentially deadly toxins are being urged to provide their test results to their union so it can try to map any other contamination clusters.
Is South Australia’s second big battery trying to do too much?
Giles Parkinson
The Tesla big battery may have taken just 10 months from tweet to commissioning, or just 6 weeks from connection agreement to full production, but the going has not been so easy for the state’s second big battery, located to the south on the Yorke Peninsula
https://reneweconomy.com.au/is-south-australias-second-big-battery-trying-to-do-too-much-73042/
Tasmania
Launch of Furry Feathered Friends Campaign #Watchoutforwildlife
In a significant move to help protect Tasmanian wildlife, Hobart Airport and Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary have teamed up to put a spot light on the protection of wildlife while using Tasmanian roads, for both tourists and Tasmanians alike.
https://tasmaniantimes.com/2018/12/launch-of-furry-feathered-friends-campaign-watchoutforwildlife/
Rare fish really needs a helping hand [$]
Handfish found in Tasmanian waters are so close to extinction an urgent fundraising appeal has been launched to save them.
Energy Minister Angus Taylor chooses Hydro Tasmania’s Poatina power station for important announcement
Hydro Tasmania will be able to take the next step in realising its Battery of the Nation ambitions when federal Energy Minister Angus Taylor visits the Poatina power station in the Central Highlands on Thursday.
https://www.theadvocate.com.au/story/5808727/feds-call-for-bids-to-boost-power/?cs=12
Western Australia
Bike paths fail lighting test
Research commissioned by the RAC examined 67km of inner-city bike paths and found almost 60 per cent had substandard lighting.
Discovery of plant thought extinct highlights importance of flora conservation
It was pure curiosity that lead botanist Libby Sandiford to rediscover a plant species that had not been seen for almost 90 years.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-13/seed-bank-holds-the-forgotten-conservation/10610418
Sustainability
How farmers are turning to tradition as they face climate change
Farmers are seeing the effects of warming firsthand – and here’s what some are doing to save our food supply.
https://grist.org/article/how-we-are-facing-climate-change-on-the-farm/
Study finds cheap water bottles pose contamination risk
An Australian scientist has identified which water bottles are safest to drink from, and which ones should never be reused.
Environmentalists alarmed over Trump’s plan to reclassify nuclear waste
In an effort to dispose of radioactive waste more cheaply, the Trump administration is reclassifying some of it at a lower threat level.
African desert to power initiative to provide 10 GW by 2025
The project will seek to bring reliable electricity to 250 million people – including to 90 million people who will be connected for the first time.
https://reneweconomy.com.au/african-desert-to-power-initiative-to-provide-10-gw-by-2025/
Environmental (in)justice coverage grows, as more media take note
Environmental justice will be a bigger story in 2019 than it has been for a long time, but not because poor, minority and marginalized people in the United States will get better protections from the federal government.
The EPA is planning to jeopardize the water quality for 117 million Americans
“I don’t hear any mention of science.”
The most potent symbol of our time? The chicken
Chickens are the actual and symbolic product of humanity’s influence on the planet, scientists have established.
https://cosmosmagazine.com/biology/the-most-potent-symbol-of-our-time-the-chicken
Nature Conservation
How Native American tribes are bringing back the bison from brink of extinction
The continent’s largest land mammal plays crucial role in spiritual lives of the tribes
Trump administration to strip pollution protections, harming vital wildlife
List of waterways land users must obtain permits to pollute to be scaled back, which could also allow pollution in drinking water
Now for something completely different …
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