Daily Links May 28

Ah yes, this is repeating what has oft’ been said, but how many senior bureaucrats and tourism executives have been yoyoing between their big corporations and the upper echelons of the public sector? The fossil fuel industry has many well-placed shills to ensure that coal keeps the upper hand and they have the pollies to do their bidding. 

Post of the Day

Study: World’s rivers are contaminated with antibiotics

The world’s rivers are widely contaminated with antibiotics, according to a new global study, the first of its kind.

 

Today’s Celebration

National Flag Day – Philippines

Overthrow of the Dergue Regime – Ethiopia

Republic Day – Azerbaijan

Republic Day – Nepal

Restoration of Armenia’s Statehood Day – Armenia

Youm-e-Takbir – Pakistan

International Day of Action for Women’s Health

Amnesty International Day

More about May 28

 

Climate Change

Spain proposes EU carbon tax on energy imports

Spain’s acting government has called on the European Union to assess a potential carbon tax on power imports to protect the bloc’s interests and help it to pursue its environmental targets amid growing public concern over climate change.

 

Shareholders want oil companies to show they care about climate change

Shell and BP annual meetings demonstrate the shifting priorities of investors and the wider industry should take note.

 

The climate emergency is under-reported

John Scales Avery

Only immediate climate action can save the future. If we don’t take action, the collapse of our civilisations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon.

 

National

Oil and gas majors could lead Australian renewables development by 2020

Rystad Energy report says oil and gas majors may be dominant renewable developers in Australia by 2020.

 

‘We now have a clear mandate’: Coalition holds the line on climate plan

Energy Minister Angus Taylor has insisted his opponents recognise the will of the people and back the government’s climate plan.

 

Coal industry tightens embrace with Coalition as ex minister becomes MCA chair

The links between the Coalition and the coal lobby grow ever tighter, as new Minerals Council chair Helen Coonan seeks to fast-track new coal mine approvals.

 

Albanese calls for unity on energy policy

Nationals backbencher Barnaby Joyce is pushing the government to get on with backing a coal-fired power station and new laws to deal with big energy companies.

 

Tourism turns up heat on climate change action

Tourism employs 15 as many people as the coal mining industry – and they deserve a bigger voice in any climate change discussion, says a visiting professor.

 

Murray a priority: Littleproud [$]

David Littleproud has promised Murray-Darling communities he will equip them with tools to “recover and restructure’’.

 

Coal attack ‘tone deaf’ [$]

Richard Marles says he was wrong to call a potential collapse of global coal markets “a good thing”.

 

Know your NEM: Good policy destroyed by a crap sales job

David Leitch

Labor’s good policy suite was destroyed by a crap sales job; but now that he is returned, will Angus Taylor listen to key institutions?

 

Taylor has failed on energy prices, let’s hope he does better on emissions

Giles Parkinson

When Angus Taylor was first appointed energy minister after the dethroning of former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull last August, he really only had one policy remit – to cut prices.

 

Want to feel better about where you put your money? Learn to ethically invest

Rebecca Hyam

The establishment of compulsory superannuation in Australia means every single worker in this country is effectively an investor. But what if, without realising it, you are giving money to things you have major moral objections to?

 

Australia isn’t doing its part for the global climate. Sooner or later we’ll have to pay our share

John Quiggin

But the cost of responding to climate change is trivial compared with the benefits

 

Australia, now is the time for climate action

Mark Gardner

Take a drive out of Dubbo and don’t let the green tinge highlighting the neighbouring paddocks fool you. We’re sitting at 40 per cent below our average rainfall for the year as we head into our second consecutive tough winter.

 

Victoria

Sonnen’s battery + solar fixed price energy deal launched in Victoria

German battery manufacturer Sonnen has launched its “bill shock” busting solar and storage energy package, SonnenFlat, in Victoria.

 

Australia’s first fully electric rubbish trucks begin collections in Victoria

The first 100% electric hard waste collection trucks in Australia hit the streets in Melbourne’s outer city council of Casey.

 

Vic’s $27 billion transport budget blitz

An upgraded rail line, new trains and cash for roads are a part of a $27.4 billion transport spend outlined in Victoria’s 2019/20 budget.

 

Tempo shares still suspended as it seeks deal on solar farm cost blowout

Listed contracting company Temp Australia has extended the trade suspension in its shares for another two weeks as it continues negotiations over cost blowouts at the Cohuna solar farm in Victoria.

 

Recycling fixes get $35m in Vic budget

Victoria is spending $35 million to help fix its waste and recycling crises after a string of toxic waste fires and the discovery of several illegal stockpiles.

 

Responses to Victoria’s budget

What interest groups, unions and political parties have to say about Victoria’s 2019-20 budget.

 

Victoria to write its own ticket for ambitious transport agenda

No state government money has been assigned to the airport rail link over the next four years, the Victorian budget reveals.

 

Fossil fuel’s win may be Coalition’s loss

Richard Denniss

The Coalition’s tension over the definition of its base became clear on election night.

 

Victoria’s road and rail splurge

Age editorial

The Andrews Labor government is doubling down on debt.

 

New South Wales

Byron Bay bypass awarded with environmental protection

Byron Shire Council has awarded the contract for the construction of the Byron Bay bypass. The decision to award a $14 million contract for the project to Hazell Bros was made at the May Council meeting

 

More commuters than expected ride Sydney’s new metro line in first test of peak-hour services

The integration of a $7.3 billion new metro line into Sydney’s broader rail network passed its first test on Monday despite a greater number of commuters than expected riding on the driverless trains.

 

Walk out threat on gas delays [$]

NSW gas users have threatened to pull $2 billion in planned investmen­t from the state over delays.

 

Existing rail system shouldn’t be forgotten in rush to shiny new train lines

Matt O’Sullivan

The journey to fast, reliable public transport is a delicate balancing act.

 

Queensland

Queensland looks to extra hydropower from water storage after reboot of Somerset Dam

Queensland explores potential to convert state’s water storage dams into hdyro-power generators, after switching back on Somerset Dam and Hydro Electric Plant.

 

Queensland voters send two climate change deniers to Senate

Get ready for six more years of mind-numbing arguments, as two climate change deniers gain a public platform thanks to their election to the Australian Senate.

 

‘Slur’ allegations in Adani court battle

The Federal Court in Brisbane is hearing an appeal over a land use agreement from a group of traditional land owners opposed to the Adani coal mine.

 

Adani to argue case in Qld land battle

Adani will fight accusations it didn’t try hard enough to verify whether people were traditional owners before a vote on an agreement about its mine.

 

Recycling helps lessen State Government waste levy hike

Logan City Council is urging businesses and residents to increase their recycling efforts as the State Government’s waste levy is introduced on July 1.

 

Warren Entsch declares war on plastic in new Great Barrier Reef envoy role

Veteran Liberal MP is aiming to rid beaches of plastics, micro and nano plastics, but won’t commit to a ban

 

Queensland unionist urges Labor to put climate action ahead of coal jobs

The Queensland secretary of the left-wing Maritime Union of Australia has broken ranks with the CFMMEU, of which it is a part, to urge Labor to put climate action ahead of coal jobs.

 

Albanese’s mine craft just doesn’t add up [$]

Anthony Albanese has questioned the “economics” of opening the Galilee Basin and refused to publicly back Adani.

 

Palmer seeks Adani piggyback [$]

Clive Palmer’s Waratah Coal is trying to piggyback on Adani’s fast-tracked path into the Galilee Basin.

 

What’s stopping Adani?

The Australia Institute

This briefing paper argues that Adani is not “ready to go” with its Carmichael coal mine.

 

The big swing to George Christensen should be where the lesson for the election is

Greg Jericho

There are blue-collar jobs in a post-coal world. That’s the message that needs to be heard by Adani supporters

 

Ready to round on our arrogant ALP [$]

Peter Gleeson

The Adani mine may now be approved within weeks but the regions are waiting with baseball bats for Labor because they believe they have let them down, particularly on jobs.

 

South Australia

Great Australian Bight drillers must learn from BP

A number of legal academics have cautioned against an ‘overconfident’ plan for oil drilling in the Great Australian Bight, citing catastrophic environmental impact.


Tasmania

Island could become eco-tourism gem [$]

One of Tasmania’s most important islands could become a small eco-tourism development under a plan suggested by the owner of a nearby island.

 

Western Australia

Philanthropy powerhouses go public with donation to save WA reefs

Andrew and Nicola Forrest have revealed they were behind an anonymous multi-million dollar pledge, in a bid to raise awareness of a project aiming to restore the country’s most threatened marine ecosystems in Western Australia.  

 

Tourism Australia boss on the quokka train

The nation’s tourism supremo says social media success has shown why the quokka should be given an official role promoting the State

 

Feds put WA’s green boffins on notice

The newly elected Morrison Government has fired its first shots in the climate wars, warning WA’s environmental watchdog against going it alone to impose industry-destroying carbon rules.

 

Why Big Brother is watching Perth’s bins

A Perth council wants to be the first in Australia to weigh and digitally record the waste its residents are throwing out.

 

EPA to kick off consultation on carbon emissions

The State’s environmental watchdog will next month start the process of developing new rules for carbon emissions after a controversial guideline was withdrawn in March due to an industry backlash.

 

Sustainability

‘Green wave’ in European vote amid climate crisis

The Greens have made record gains in the European elections, doubling its support from the last EU election in 2014.

 

Waste food may help cut fossil fuel use: Study

“People like me, environmental biotechnologists, look at food waste as a tremendous resource,” said Hyung-Sool Lee, an engineering professor at University of Waterloo in Canada.

 

Adani Solar aims at 50 per cent market share in 2 years, says Official

With a marketshare of 10 per cent and expected growth, the company was sure to capture 50 per cent market share in another two years.

 

India’s coal imports rose 13 per cent to 21 million tonne in April

Of the total imports during April 2019, non-coking coal or thermal coal shipments were at 15.08 MT, according to provisional data by mjunction services.

 

Asian renewable investment to overtake upstream oil and gas spending in 2020 – Rystad

Total capital expenditure in renewables will rise above $30 billion in the region by 2020, just overtaking investment into exploration and production for oil and natural gas, the consultancy said.

 

What food and nutrition will look like in 50 years

We wanted to know: in the face of climate change and innovation, how will food fare? Top food experts weigh in.

 

WA’s first timber-framed office building proposed for Freo

Fremantle residents are being encouraged to have their say on a proposal to build WA’s first timber-framed office building in the heart of the Fremantle city centre.

 

In store or online — what’s the environment-friendly way to shop?

If we can shop better, can online retailers deliver better too?

 

Major step forward in the production of ‘green’ hydrogen

The first thermodynamically reversible chemical reactor capable of producing hydrogen as a pure product stream represents a ‘transformational’ step forward in the chemical industry.

 

Ammonia Utopia Or Nuclear Nirvana: Digging Ourselves Out Of A Climate Disaster

Geoff Russell

The ‘next big thing’ in the environmental movement appears to be ammonia, or rather a more efficient way to make it. Geoff Russell crunches the numbers, and they’re not particularly encouraging.

 

China succeeds in greening its economy not because, but in spite of, its authoritarian government

Sung-Young Kim et al

China has invested hundreds of billions of dollars in renewable energy.

 

Nature Conservation

‘Hearts filled with sadness’: Malaysia’s last Sumatran male rhino dies

Iman, a female captured in 2014, is now the only surviving member of the subspecies left in the country, but the male’s genetic material has been preserved for future efforts to reproduce the species.

 

The butterfly effect: what one species’ miraculous comeback can teach us

The Duke of Burgundy is back from the brink – and the work to conserve it has helped other declining species. Does this mean there is hope in the face of Insectageddon?

 

Right whale population decline linked to ocean warming, research says

A report shows that the animal’s food supply shifted, causing them to travel farther for food and moving them closer to shipping lanes

 

Seabird plastic consumption underestimated, study finds

Researchers used a new method to count previously undocumented ‘ultrafine’ particles.

 

Study: World’s rivers are contaminated with antibiotics

The world’s rivers are widely contaminated with antibiotics, according to a new global study, the first of its kind.

 

‘Death blow’: Corals, algae don’t acclimatise to more acidic seas

The new study’s results suggest vulnerable reefs may not be able adapt fast enough to cope with climate change.

 

Big animals face extinction as habitats evolve

Big mammals including the elephant, rhino and hippo could vanish in the next 100 years as smaller creatures, able to adapt to more confined habitats, flourish.

 

 

Maelor Himbury

6 Florence St Niddrie 3042

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