Post of the Day
Fewer than 20 extinctions a year: Does the world need a single target for biodiversity?
Next year, all eyes will be on Kunming, China, as talks resume on a new set of global goals to protect biodiversity.
On This Day
Ecological Observance
National Festival of Tree Planting (Van Mahotsav) in India
Coronavirus Watch
Confirmed cases: 7,836. Deaths: 104
All the coronavirus restrictions being lifted around Australia from July 1
From July 1, a series of sweeping restrictions will be eased around the country
Saliva testing explained – how many cases does it miss and why now?
Spitting into a cup sounds like a walk in the park compared to having a swab stuck down your throat or up your nose so here’s what you need to know about the new saliva testing that’s taking place in Melbourne.
Be careful what you claim at tax time when working from home. There are hidden tax risks
Dale Boccabella
There are risks to claiming tax exemptions for working at home during COVID-19. If the tax office knows you have used your home to earn an income, it has every right to deny you some capital gains tax benefits if and when you sell later on
Climate Change
‘Nowhere to hide’: South Pole warms up with climate change a factor
The South Pole, the most remote part of the planet, has been warming at triple the global average, as natural variability joins with climate change to produce an abrupt shift in temperature trends.
Global warming will cause ecosystems to produce more methane than first predicted
New research suggests that as the Earth warms natural ecosystems such as freshwaters will release more methane than expected from predictions based on temperature increases alone.
Climate explained: will the COVID-19 lockdown slow the effects of climate change?
Simon Kingham
The drop in traffic during COVID-19 lockdowns reduced global emissions. If we keep encouraging cycling and working from home beyond the pandemic, our climate goals may become more achievable.
Sorry for misleading you, but I cried wolf on the global dangers of climate change [$]
Michael Shellenberger.
On behalf of environmentalists everywhere, I would like to formally apologise for the climate scare we created over the past 30 years. Climate change is happening. It’s just not the end of the world. It’s not even our most serious environmental problem.
Sorry for the scare campaign, the planet is fine [$]
Miranda Devine
When a climate activist apologised for how environmentalists had misled the public over climate change threats, the fearmongers were not happy, especially when Greta is upping her fight.
National
Priming our Basin for drought recovery – 2020-21 priorities for environmental watering
The prolonged drought across the Basin means in the next 12 months environmental water will be used strategically to protect our wetlands, floodplains and river ecosystems from further damage, and place them in the best possible position to recover from the drought when it breaks, according to the latest Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) report.
Call for $4bn stimulus that would create 50,000 jobs and care for the environment
Land groups say plan could lift economic output by $5.7bn and focus on areas hit hardest by coronavirus shutdown
Australia’s environment laws: how do they work and what needs to be done to fix them?
Ten-yearly review of Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act comes at time of growing crisis
Environmental Approval for Snowy Hydro 2.0
Australia’s largest ever renewable energy project, Snowy 2.0, has been given the green light to create thousands of new jobs and put downward pressure on electricity prices.
Snowy Hydro 2.0 wins final federal ‘thumbs-up’ – despite environmental fears
$100m to be spent on conservation after critics expressed concerns for Kosciuszko national park
AGL to offer customers carbon neutral options, but coal generators to stay
AGL, the country’s biggest emitter, to offer customers carbon neutral options on all energy products, but won’t fast-track the closure of its coal generators.
The fight for a greener (financial) world
As the director of distribution at U Ethical, David Brennan is aiming to give everyone the option and knowledge to invest ethically.
World’s first “plug-in” home battery set to be tested in Australia
US start-up Orison, backed by Origin Energy, hopes to unveil its “plug and play” battery storage that it describes as just another appliance that can be plugged into the…
Reviews and audits ignored as environment faces existential crises
Sue Arnold
The Federal Government, along with state governments, have failed to implement recommendations designed to protect the environment
Coal case: renewables will destroy our economy and lifestyle [$]
Graham Richardson
Renewables have a big future, but in a land with 400 years of coal readily available, it is logical to expect we will rely on that cheap source of power for some time to come.
Is AGL virtue signalling by linking exec pay to carbon cuts? [$]
John Durie
AGL’s boss Brett Redman will be the first top-50 company boss to have his pay linked in part to carbon reduction progress as the country’s biggest emitter attempts to fast-forward changes.
Victoria
Ex-premiers call for fast, direct airport rail route
Former premiers have called for a fast, express rail link to the airport, warning that a slow, stopping-all-stations service will simply not be used.
Big Melbourne corporates sign up to renewable future
Melbourne’s deputy lord mayor says renewable energy investments can and should play a big part in the economic recovery from COVID-19
Graph of the Day: Victoria blows past South Australia as top wind producer
Victoria has now overtaken South Australia as the state which usually has the largest volume of wind generation.
New South Wales
Koalas face extinction in NSW within 30 years, report warns
Koalas could be extinct across New South Wales within 30 years unless urgent action is taken, according a report by a parliamentary committee
Shared vision for public transport corridor a win for community
Transport for NSW has committed to greater collaboration with the community to deliver a top-quality public transport link between the Liverpool CBD, Western Sydney Aerotropolis and Western Sydney International Airport.
Delay to export ban on waste glass fails to reduce squeeze on councils
A delay to a ban on exporting waste glass will not allay financial pressures on local communities urgently in need of funding to pay for recycling, councils have warned.
Fight looms between Commonwealth and NSW over water-sharing plans
A dispute between NSW and the federal agency overseeing the $13 billion Murray-Darling Basin Plan is likely after the state government submitted water sharing plans that challenge how environmental flows are counted.
Queensland
Anglo American’s Grosvenor mine has plagued by serious safety problems since it started operating
Mining giant Anglo American’s Grosvenor mine was plagued by safety problems as soon as it started operating, including three roof collapses in three months, an electric shock, a fire underground and injuries so serious miners had to be hospitalised.
Why coal remains deadly weapon of Queensland politics
Dennis Atkins
Labor’s inability to fight back effectively when the LNP weaponised coal during last year’s federal election campaign underscores the role resources continue to play in federal politics.
Justin A. Welbergen et al
Up to 8,000 spectacled flying-foxes, around 12% of the species’ population, will be forced to leave their home in central Cairns.
South Australia
Defence torpedos nuclear facility suggestion [$]
A radioactive waste dump can’t be built at Woomera because it would hinder testing weapons, Defence says as an inquiry probes the decision to build the site at Kimba.
Smelter company ‘turned Port Pirie creek waters toxic’ [$]
A Port Pirie smelter company is being prosecuted for polluting the environment, and officials say its 700-litre acid spill left a creek toxic for four days.
Nine new solar farms and two big batteries proposed for South Australia
Nine new solar farm proposals and two new big batteries unveiled in flood of applications to South Australia energy regulator.
City of Adelaide reaches 100 per cent renewables through Flow Power deal
City of Adelaide reaches 100 per cent renewables target under deal with Flow Power that will combine wind and two new solar plants.
Tasmania
It doesn’t get much more ‘wilderness’ than this, but social distancing will still apply
Despite Tasmania’s Overland Track being emblematic of “the great outdoors”, social distancing requirements and visitors limits due to the coronavirus pandemic are expected to slash revenue in half — but the park managers have a plan.
‘Not effective’: environment groups unsurprised by scathing audit of department
A scathing auditor’s report into the administration of federal environment laws has come as no surprise to environmental groups in Tasmania, which say recent court decisions have proven how ineffective the government handles the laws.
Westbury bird haven worth saving [$]
Sarah Lloyd
Fallen trees, messy understorey — the new prison site has exactly what birds need to survive as habitat declines.
Northern Territory
Wakefield rubbishes Terry Mills’ fracking backflip [$]
Member for Braitling Dale Wakefield has labelled the Territory Alliance party’s backflip on fracking as untrustworthy, slamming the party leader Terry Mills’ ‘appalling’ record on the environment
Western Australia
WA orca populations could extend beyond deep-sea hotspot, researchers say
Marine scientists release new findings into why killer whales are drawn to deep-sea canyons off WA’s south coast.
Sixth community Tesla battery installed in W.A. PowerBank trial
Sophie Vorrath30 June 2020 1 Comments
Western Australia trial that will offer virtual home energy storage installs 464kWh Tesla battery system in Top 20 Perth solar suburb of Port Kennedy.
Sustainability
Environmental experts dismayed by details of Johnson’s ‘New Deal’
Critics say UK PMs promise to ‘build back greener’ is not delivered by plans revealed so far
Democrats to unveil bold new climate plan to phase out emissions by 2050
Report to outline aim to reduce emissions to 88% of 2010 levels
Huge sums for public transport and proposals for green vehicles
Russia tells IAEA it is incident-free after nuclear particle increase [$]
Russia has told the U.N. atomic watchdog there have been no nuclear incidents on its territory that could explain elevated but still harmless levels of radioactive particles detected on the Baltic Sea last week, the U.N. agency said on Tuesday.
Plastic recycling from Europe is being dumped in Asian waters
Up to 31 percent of plastic exported for recycling not recycled at all
Removing toxic chemicals from water: New environmentally-friendly method
Researchers have developed a new environmentally friendly method for removing toxic chemicals from water. A newly invented machine, called the Matrix Assembly Cluster Source (MACS), has been used to design a breakthrough water treatment method using a solvent-free approach.
Size matters for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage
New research has shown that Drax power station in North Yorkshire is the optimal site for the carbon capture and storage facilities that will be needed reduce carbon emissions and achieve the targets of 2016 Paris Climate Agreement.
It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood … or is it?
Contrary to what many would think, characteristics of your neighborhood have little to do with how satisfied you are with it.
Ethnolinguistic diversity slows down urban growth
Where various ethnic groups live together, cities grow at a slower rate. That is the conclusion based on worldwide data that shows how the diversity of language groups in 1975 has influenced urban growth 40 years later.
How business can thrive and look after the planet at the same time
Nikki Stefanoff
Nikki Stefanoff from Harvey sits down with Patagonia’s environmental and social initiatives manager for Australia and New Zealand, Shannon Bourke, to find out how businesses can lead the way when it comes to environmental change.
Wild bees depend on the landscape structure
Research team investigates flower strips, organic farming and small crop fields
Researchers look for answers as to why western bumblebees are declining
The decline of the Western bumblebee is likely not limited to one culprit but, instead, due to several factors that interact such as pesticides, pathogens, climate change and habitat loss.
Fewer than 20 extinctions a year: Does the world need a single target for biodiversity?
Next year, all eyes will be on Kunming, China, as talks resume on a new set of global goals to protect biodiversity.
For investors concerned about deforestation, there’s a guide for that
Climate change threatens ecological and economic systems. That is why investors are increasingly looking to invest in companies with a plan to address one of the largest drivers of climate change: deforestation.
The bees are dying. Can we replace them with flies?
Flies aren’t as efficient as bees, often getting distracted before they can carry pollen between plants, but the common hoverfly could help us out of a food crisis.
Florida manatee deaths up 20% as Covid-19 threatens recovery
The apparent environmental upside of Covid-19, such as lower pollution and emissions, isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Just ask manatee conservationists in Florida.
Maelor Himbury
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