Post of the Day
In an era of extreme weather, concerns grow over dam safety
Experts are increasingly worried that as extreme precipitation events increase, dams are at greater risk of failure, threatening lives and posing environmental risks.
Today’s Celebration
Gospel Day in Kiribati
Independence Day in the Bahamas
Battle of Poltava Day in Russia
Climate Change
Paris Agreement does not rule out ice-free Arctic
IBS research team reveals a considerable chance for an ice-free Arctic Ocean at global warming limits stipulated in the Paris Agreement.
A clearer picture of global ice sheet mass
Fluctuations in the masses of the world’s largest ice sheets carry important consequences for future sea level rise, but understanding the complicated interplay of atmospheric conditions, snowfall input and melting processes has never been easy to measure due to the sheer size and remoteness inherent to glacial landscapes.
Sir David Attenborough stresses ‘radical’ change needed to combat climate change
Sir David Attenborough faced questions from British MPs during a parliamentary committee on climate change.
Tiny creatures play a big role in climate change
Microorganisms, tiny creatures invisible to the naked eye, play a “central role” in our climate crisis, more than 30 microbiologists contend in a new report.
How solar heat drives rapid melting of parts of Antarctica’s largest ice shelf
Craig Stewart
The ocean that surrounds Antarctica plays a crucial role in regulating the mass balance of the continent’s ice cover. We now know that the thinning of ice that affects nearly a quarter of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is clearly linked to the ocean.
National
“Enough is enough”: Domestic gas reserve may be only answer to high gas prices
IEEFA says domestic gas reserve could dramatically reduce both gas and electricity prices for Australian consumers.
Strike for climate movement wants workers to down tools and demand emergency action
Hundreds of thousands of students have walked out of school to protest for action on climate change, now workers are being urged to do the same.
Indonesia set to send more than 210 tonnes of rubbish back to Australia
More than 210 tonnes of rubbish will be sent back to Australia from Indonesia, after opposition in Asia to imports of waste from industrialised countries.
Australian gulls found to carry antibiotic-resistant superbugs
Researchers say ‘eye-opening’ findings that 20% of silver gulls nationwide carry pathogenic bacteria should be a wake-up call
Parts of Australia to be hit by Antarctic blast
Parts of the country to be battered by triple Antarctic blasts bringing strong winds and freezing temperatures.
Carbon pricing vital for financial stability: Westpac [$]
Banking giant Westpac says the government must play a role in accurately pricing carbon if the financial risks of climate change are to be understood and mitigated.
Fresh calls for inquiry into Murray-Darling Basin plan
Huge sums of money are being wasted with no guarantee more water is reaching the environment, former commissioner warns
$13b rescue plan for Murray-Darling Basin doesn’t pass the pub test
Richard Kingsford
Taxpayers are spending as much as twice as much for water as they need to – and too often it’s not returning to the rivers.
The Murray-Darling Basin scandal: economists have seen it coming for decades
John Quiggin
The failure of infrastructure subsidies is no surprise to economists that have studied the problems of the Murray-Darling Basin for decades.
Steady trickle of fibs on ABC’s Four Corners [$]
Fiona Simson
ABC’s Four Corners offered a distorted picture of Murray- Darling Basin Plan challenges.
A big stick is not an energy policy [$]
The AFR View
An era of “random, uncontrolled” intervention in energy must come to an end in this government’s term
Australia’s recycling waste time bomb
Peter Fisher
Waste that Australia must better manage (image via Twitter).
There’s much to be done if Australia is to solve its waste management crisis
Why developing nuclear weapons is an unrealistic option for Australia
Heiko Timmers
In his latest book, strategist and defence analyst Hugh White has gone nuclear, triggering a debate about whether Australia should develop and maintain its own nuclear arsenal.
Houses for a warmer future are currently restricted by Australia’s building code
Kumar Upadhyay et al
Australians need better solutions for coping with the warmer climate of the future (and present).
Victoria
Would you be willing to give up your normal weekly bin collection?
More councils believe fortnightly bin collections could help save money and cut back greenhouse emissions.
Mortlake Power Station could be at half capacity for months
An explosion has shut down half of Victoria’s largest gas-fired power station and it could be months before it is back to full capacity.
Victoria’s role in Murray-Darling river rorts deserves scrutiny
Jono La Nauze
“Pink batts for farmers” is how one earthmover described the irrigation subsidy program he benefited from.
New South Wales
NSW would welcome new coal plants, despite zero emissions target
NSW energy minister says he would welcome new coal generator, apparently forgetting his government’s commitment to zero emissions by 2050.
$600,000 for Aboriginal organisations to protect their local environment
Michael Dine of the NSW Environmental Trust, said the grants support activities that benefit local environments including bush regeneration, weed management, revegetation, pest animal management, erosion control, habitat creation, ecological and cultural burning, fencing, track works, educational and interpretive signage and resources.
Byron Bay schoolboy the eco-hero of the war against plastic
A 13-year-old schoolboy is slowly capturing the eco-ideas of his generation and asking his parent’s generation to open the doors to new ideas to reduce plastic.
The first underground section of Sydney’s WestConnex motorway could open on Friday.
ACT
Saving endangered Northern Corroboree frogs, a spoonful at a time
It’s May in the Brindabellas and conservation wildlife officer Rachael Loneragan is kneeling in fresh snow, loading plastic takeaway containers and spoons into a tote bag.
Queensland
‘Safety reset’ at all Queensland mines and quarries following deaths
About 70 people from unions, mining companies and the government will meet at Parliament House following the deaths of six workers.
Half Indigenous employment for new Gulf of Carpentaria mine
A Queensland zinc refinery is set to employ 50 per cent Indigenous workers in an industry first for Australia.
South Australia
‘Yuppy activism’: Disability advocates condemn plastic straw ban
Advocates for people with disabilities condemn SA’s proposed ban on single-use plastics, saying items such as plastic straws are “absolutely essential” for accessing food, drink and medication.
Tasmania
Creating ‘Liveable Communities’ on West Coast
The West Coast Council in partnership with KPMG is pleased to present the draft copy of the new Liveable Communities Strategy, now open for public comment.
Legislative Council’s North-East Rail Trail report delayed to August to analyse engineer advice
The release of a Legislative Council report into the future of the North-East rail corridor has been delayed until Parliament returns in August so the committee can analyse a safety report into the disused railway line.
Taking climate change seriously
Peter Boyer
In preparing Tasmania and its people for the transition to clean transport and industrial energy, the Hodgman government has a huge task on its hands.
Sustainability
Jakarta has some of the worst air pollution in the world — so citizens are suing their president
The pollution in Indonesia’s capital has become so dire that Jakarta is among the world’s most polluted cities, prompting a group of residents to sue Government officials for not taking action.
Weatherwatch: heatwaves test limits of nuclear power
Global heating is threatening supplies of water needed in large volumes to cool reactors
A sunken one-of-a-kind Soviet nuclear sub appears to be leaking radiation into the sea
The sinking of the Soviet nuclear submarine Komsomolets 30 years ago was one of the worst submarine disasters of all time, and the lasting damage may be far from over.
In an era of extreme weather, concerns grow over dam safety
Experts are increasingly worried that as extreme precipitation events increase, dams are at greater risk of failure, threatening lives and posing environmental risks.
Rising seas imperil the delicate web of cables and power stations that control the internet.
Sir David Attenborough has compared changing attitudes over plastic to the abolition of slavery, as he claimed 20 years of warnings about the issue had gone unheard.
How can city dwellers protect against air pollution?
Wear a cycle mask, avoid exercising in polluted areas and restrict car use in the city.
Lead pollution in Arctic ice shows economic impact of wars and plagues for past 1,500 years
A research team used 13 ice cores from Greenland and the Russian Arctic to measure, date, and analyze lead emissions captured in ice from 500 to 2010 CE. They found that increases in lead concentration in the ice cores track closely with periods of expansion in Europe, the advent of new technologies, and economic prosperity. Decreases in lead, on the other hand, paralleled climate disruptions, wars, plagues, and famines.
Improved model could help scientists better predict crop yield, climate change effects
A new computer model incorporates how microscopic pores on leaves may open in response to light — an advance that could help scientists create virtual plants to predict how higher temperatures and rising levels of carbon dioxide will affect food crops.
Global warming: The real-time cost of climate change and the needed real-time response
Changes in agricultural productivity patterns could cost India’s farmers an estimated 15 to 18 percent of their incomes.
Air pollution speeds up aging of the lungs and increases chronic lung disease risk
A study of more than 300,000 people has found that exposure to outdoor air pollution is linked to decreased lung function and an increased risk of developing COPD. Lung function normally declines as we age, but the new research suggests that air pollution may contribute to the ageing process and adds to the evidence that breathing in polluted air harms the lungs.
Plastic-free July is showing me how hooked we are on convenience
Cat Rodie
The reality of my plastic-free pledge hit me in the snack aisle of my local Woolies.
Let’s separate the urban myths from Chernobyl’s scientific facts
Gerry Thomas
A professor of molecular pathology, who has studied the effects of the Chernobyl nuclear accident for 27 years, confronts the “scaremongering”.
Iran’s nuclear program breaches limits for uranium enrichment: 4 key questions answered
Martin Sevior
Iranian officials this week revealed that the country’s nuclear program will break the limit for uranium enrichment, set under the terms of the deal struck in 2015 between Iran and world powers including the United States under former president Barack Obama.
Nature Conservation
Global cooperation key to strengthening fisheries compliance
The Sixth Global Fisheries Enforcement Training Workshop in Bangkok, Thailand attracted representatives from 63 countries, including Australia.
‘Inside, the fish are black’: the pollution tainting Tunisian beaches
Across the Gulf of Tunis, domestic and industrial waste is pouring into the sea, rendering stretches of coastline ‘unusable’
Coral reefs shifting away from equator
Coral reefs are retreating from equatorial waters and establishing new reefs in more temperate regions, according to new research in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series. The researchers found that the number of young corals on tropical reefs has declined by 85 percent – and doubled on subtropical reefs – during the last four decades.
Breaching a ‘carbon threshold’ could lead to mass extinction
Carbon dioxide emissions may trigger a reflex in the carbon cycle, with devastating consequences, study finds.
Decades-long butterfly study shows common species on the decline
The most extensive and systematic insect monitoring program ever undertaken in North America shows that butterfly abundance in Ohio declined yearly by 2%, resulting in an overall 33% drop for the 21 years of the program.
A new wave of environmentalists want to give nature legal rights
Ships and corporations have legal standing. Should ecosystems?
How we start planning for a global mission to replant trees
A new study found that a massive reforestation effort could be a huge weapon in the climate fight. So where do we put all the trees?
Study identifies nine research priorities to better understand NZ’s vast marine area
Rebecca Jarvis and Tim Young
The islands of New Zealand are only the visible part of a much larger submerged continent, known as Te Riu a Māui or Zealandia. Most of New Zealand’s sovereign territory, around 96%, is under water – and this means that the health of the ocean is of paramount importance.
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