Date: 30 April 2021 at 8:59:26 am AEST
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Apr 30
Post of the Day
Male fertility ‘precariously close’ to climate change extinction limits
Belinda van Heerwaarden
The loss of fertility in males as a result of climate change, particularly in the tropics, may be a better predictor of vulnerability to extinction
On This Day
Good Friday – Eastern Christianity
Lag Ba’Omer – Judaism
Ecological observance
National Arbor Day – USA
Germany must tighten climate change law, top court rules
Germany’s top court sided on Thursday with a young woman who fears that rising sea levels will engulf the family farm, in a ruling that gives the government until the end of next year to tighten a 2019 climate change law.
EU Green Deal could phase out European coal by 2030
Potsdam Institute says new EU climate targets will result in elimination of coal generation from Europe, and a sharp decline in gas power.
Causes of extreme weather and climate events in China during 2020/21
After a volatile weather year, scientists are finding answers as to why the past year of 2020 featured so many extreme weather and climate events in China.
John Kerry is relentless and annoying but might just save the planet [$]
The US climate envoy’s flaws – being “obsessive” and “messianic” – may be the key to achieving what will be a daunting emissions reduction task.
The top 11 climate actions of Joe Biden’s first 100 days
An unprecedented effort to thwart humanity’s greatest threat.
Poland clinches ′historic′ deal to phase out coal by 2049
The deal marks the first time the powerful coal mining sector has agreed to reduce its presence. With this pledge, Poland can meet EU climate goals by 2050.
‘Historic’ German ruling says climate goals not tough enough
Germany’s supreme constitutional court has ruled that the government’s climate protection measures are insufficient to protect future generations, after a complaint brought by environmentalist groups.
Evangelicals are losing their climate skepticism
White evangelicals have clearly become more willing to acknowledge anthropogenic climate change over the past decade.
Male fertility ‘precariously close’ to climate change extinction limits
Belinda van Heerwaarden
The loss of fertility in males as a result of climate change, particularly in the tropics, may be a better predictor of vulnerability to extinction
Renewable energy is suddenly startlingly cheap
Bill McKibben
Now the biggest barrier to change is the will of our politicians to take serious climate action.
National
Another coal generator CEO heads for the door as EnergyAustralia’s Tanna retires
EnergyAustralia announces a new managing director, the third coal generator to announce changes to the top in the past week.
AEMC dumps “do no harm” rule to end chaotic response to system strength issues
AEMC dumps “do no harm” rule that caused chaos in the grid and forced many wind and solar farms to install expensive machinery.
Fastest change in the world: coal’s demise sparks call for energy market reforms
The future of coal power is being buried under the rise of cheaper renewables and the Commonwealth’s energy adviser says urgent reform is needed for the transition.
Warning: Black outs, high power prices on road to renewables [$]
A new report has found large-scale wind and solar investment was “spreading so fast the system is reaching its technical limits”.
Backstops proposed to prevent coal power shocks [$]
Extra measures are on the cards to close loopholes that could see coal power plants suddenly shut early, causing prices to spike and threatening electricity supply.
Study of marine noise highlights need to protect pristine Australian waters
New Curtin research has found urgent action is needed to ensure man-made underwater noise in Australian waters does not escalate to levels which could be harmful to marine animals, such as whales, and negatively impact our pristine oceans.
PM’s half a billion dollars for hydrogen hubs [$]
Scott Morrison has announced that this year’s federal budget will contain half a billion dollars in funding aimed at reducing carbon emissions.
‘A recipe for disaster’: Readers respond to Morrison’s speech on climate at leaders’ summit
Much of the reader reaction to Scott Morrison’s speech alternated between embarrassment and alarm, with some stressing the importance of setting emission targets. Others praised the Prime Minister, saying he was on the right path.
Joanne Chory is harnessing plants to stop climate change
Plants are Earth’s original carbon capture machines. Can they be engineered to stop climate change?
It’s okay to have kids despite climate change, says scientist Kimberly Nicholas
In 2017, climate scientist Kimberly Nicholas coauthored a study trying to answer this question: What are the most effective changes you can make to your lifestyle if you want to reduce your carbon footprint and help save the planet?
The climate solution actually adding millions of tons of C02 into the atmosphere
New research shows that California’s climate policy created up to 39 million carbon credits that aren’t achieving real carbon savings. But companies can buy these forest offsets to justify polluting more anyway.
California hit 95% renewable energy, but challenges remain
Something remarkable happened over the weekend: California hit nearly 95% renewable energy.
Facts matter, and so does the size of tariffs proposed for solar export tax
Bruce Mountain
The AEMC continues to ignore the evidence that fixing the solar export problem (whatever it may be) involves trivial amounts of expenditure.
Risky business: 54% of Australian companies plan to slow ‘green’ initiatives due to COVID
Sukhbir Sandhu
Businesses have long been a big part of the climate problem. They shouldn’t scale back environmental initiatives when it all feels too hard.
A health check on Australia’s grid transition shows it must go faster
Ketan Joshi
Australia’s NEM emissions reductions are accelerating, but how long until the grid is fully decarbonised?
Victoria
Melbourne City Council considers $300m green trail along Yarra
Melbourne lord mayor Sally Capp’s major election promise to create a $300 million continuous green trail on the Yarra River’s north bank will be considered by councillors on Tuesday night.
‘Living giants’: Conservationists urge government to protect oldest and largest trees
Forest areas close to some of the largest trees in Australia will be logged by VicForests and conservationists say these changes could damage or kill the trees.
Celeste Young and Roger Jones
Overcoming the odds is second nature to the Gippsland community. The people in this region have seen it all — fires, floods, droughts and extreme weather. And every time, these capable, resourceful and independent communities bounce back.
New South Wales
Government’s gas plant move is risky and unnecessary
In response to news reports suggesting the federal government is set to build a taxpayer-funded gas-fired power station in the Hunter region of NSW, Gavan McFadzean, the climate program manager at the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), said, “Building a gas-fired power plant with public money would be a counter-productive, risky and unnecessary intervention in Australia’s electricity market.”
Blue Mountains City Council first in Australia to adopt ‘Rights of Nature’
Council has become the first government entity in Australia to integrate Rights of Nature (RON) principles into its operations and practices, boosting its commitment to becoming a Sustainable City.
NSW opposition calls for wider inquiry into state’s environment offsets scheme in wake of Guardian Australia revelations
NSW signals renewed focus on privatisation, will go it alone on fast rail
Premier Gladys Berejiklian says NSW will go it alone on fast rail instead of waiting for consensus from state and federal governments and she signalled a renewed focus on privatising public assets to finance future infrastructure projects.
‘Are you turning green?’ : Neighbours’ relief as radioactive land to be shipped overseas
Up to 1800 tonnes of contaminated land affecting six waterfront properties in one of Sydney’s wealthiest suburbs will be sealed up and shipped to the US in a NSW government resolution that ends decades of anxiety over the harbourside blight.
Fewer cars, more trees: Sydney’s traffic-choked roads are set to go green
Four major arterial roads coursing through the heart of Sydney could be transformed over the next three decades into “green avenues” characterised by fewer cars, wider pedestrian spaces and more trees.
There have been calls for greater protection of the sandstone pagodas of the Gardens of Stone, including curbs on new coal mining approval to prevent further damage to remaining swamplands.
Morrison to ignore massive big battery plans and greenlight new gas plant in Hunter
Michael Mazengarb
The Morrison government is expected to sign off on a new gas fired generator in the Hunter, ignoring critics who argue there’s no clear need for it.
ACT
Senior Canberra students still want fun and excitement in their outdoor spaces
Senior school students still want the fun, colour and excitement in their open spaces that they might have enjoyed in their primary school playgrounds, according to new Canberra research.
Queensland
The ‘great wilderness’ of Cape York braces for a deluge of 4WDs as winter tourists eye adventure
A COVID-driven surge in domestic tourism is driving adventure-seeking travellers to Cape York, where tourism operators say they’re expecting hundreds of vehicles to trundle through over winter.
Report reveals the big winners from coal seam gas companies
More than $700 million has been paid by resources companies, mostly coal seam gas, to landowners in compensation for the use of their land, according to a report from the Gasfield Commission.
‘Cloud brightening’ technology can save Great Barrier Reef
Widespread pollution and climate change has caused great damage to corals in oceans around the world. This is especially true in case of the Great Barrier Reef.
South Australia
Blood-sucking fish numbers spike
An ancient fish that feeds ‘on blood, fluids and even chunks of flesh’ was thought to be extinct. But scientists in one state have noted a record comeback.
SA’s light speed solar coup gives old coal a new shock [$]
The state’s love for renewables has it at the head of a charge towards putting coal into early retirement but that’s prompting a scramble for our system to catch up.
Enough trees to fill 1100 Adelaide Ovals destroyed [$]
Conservationists are demanding an end to the “destruction” after issuing a stark warning over how quickly SA is cutting down its trees.
Tasmania
Flanagan’s anti-salmon push growing, as EPA emails to Tassal revealed
Tasmania’s environmental watchdog told a salmon farming giant he “didn’t provide a detailed response” to questions from the ABC about a mass death event in February — as Richard Flanagan’s push against the industry gains momentum.
Grassroots Action Network Tasmania board ship in Hobart to raise climate awareness
Environmental political protesters boarded a ship in Hobart on Thursday loaded with Tasmanian native forestry logs bound for Malaysia, attaching themselves to the vessel and uploading political videos to social media in hopes to raise awareness.
The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has concluded its assessment of a proposal by Tartana Resources Limited for the Zeehan Zinc Project – Stage 1 on Henty Road, Zeehan, in West Coast Council.
Greens release plan for strong, independent EPA
Lutruwita/Tasmania deserves an independent Environment Protection Agency, with the resources and teeth to put this island’s precious environment first.
Candidates’ stances on Lake Malbena & parks privatisation
The Wilderness Society Tasmania has released a Lake Malbena ‘candidate checker’ that shows where the parties and independent candidates stand on arguably the biggest environmental issue of the 2021 State Election: Lake Malbena and parks privatisation.
Northern Territory
NT opens up secret swimming spots, new campsites
Hidden swimming spots and dozens of new camping sites will open this dry season in Litchfield National Park, one of the Northern Territory’s top tourist destinations.
Sustainability
Study Finds Green Spaces Linked to Lower Racial Disparity in COVID Infection Rates, Study Finds
More green spaces in an area is associated with a lower racial disparity in COVID-19 infection rates, according to the first study to examine the relationship between the supply of green spaces and reduced disparity in infectious disease rates.
Childhood Air Pollution Exposure Linked to Poor Mental Health at Age 18
Childhood exposure to air pollution, such as nitrogen oxides and fine particulate matter, is a risk factor for mental illness at age 18.
Household Aerosols Now Release More Harmful Smog Chemicals Than All UK Vehicles
Aerosol products used in the home now emit more harmful volatile organic compound (VOC) air pollution than all the vehicles in the UK, new research shows.
Inactive oil wells could be big source of methane emissions
Uncapped, idle oil wells could be leaking millions of kilograms of methane each year into the atmosphere and surface water, according to a new study.
Socially just population policies can mitigate climate change and advance global equity
Socially just policies aimed at limiting the Earth’s human population hold tremendous potential for advancing equity while simultaneously helping to mitigate the effects of climate change, researchers say.
Research gives trees an edge in landfill clean-up
Matching the capability of different tree species with the types of contaminants present in soil and water is critical in phytoremediation. A research team has developed a new contaminant prioritization tool that has the potential to increase the effectiveness of phytoremediation in landfill clean-up.
How to get salt out of water: Make it self-eject
Researchers have uncovered a mechanism by which dissolved salts can crystallize in a way that makes it easy to remove them from surfaces, potentially helping to prevent fouling of metal surfaces.
Using microbes to remove microplastics from the environment
Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms have been modified to capture microplastics from water, trapping them for release and recycle.
Coal plant insurance faces green hurdles
Thermal power plants are finding it difficult to obtain reinsurance cover in international markets as global giants tighten their environment, social and governance (ESG) policies.
Amcor develops breakthrough recyclable healthcare packaging
New AmSky™ blister system, the latest in Amcor’s recent innovation breakthroughs, has the potential to transform the sustainability of healthcare packaging
Shut U.S. coal plants seen as potential sites for small reactors
Recently shut U.S. coal-fired power plants could serve as sites for a new generation of small nuclear reactors, the head of the nation’s largest public power utility and a U.S. senator from West Virginia said on Wednesday.
Tires are big emitters. EVs could worsen their pollution
The tire industry has a sustainability problem and electric vehicles could make it worse, experts say.
Why is the sky above us brighter? Astronomers say it’s because of space junk
Light pollution isn’t just a problem here on Earth anymore. Scientists are now finding that space debris orbiting around our planet is noticeably brightening the sky – and making it more difficult to study the cosmos.
Chinese officials plan next steps in oil spill clean-up off Qingdao
Chinese officials were considering siphoning the remaining cargo at sea from a huge tanker that spilled hundreds of tonnes of oil into the Yellow Sea after it collided with a bulk vessel in thick fog two days ago.
Human Antibiotic Use Threatens Endangered Wild Chimpanzees
Nearly half of the fecal samples from wild chimpanzees in Gombe National Park contain bacteria that is resistant to a major class of antibiotics commonly used by people in the vicinity of the park.
Spring Forest Flowers Likely Key to Bumblebee Survival
For more than a decade, ecologists have been warning of a downward trend in bumble bee populations across North America, with habitat destruction a primary culprit in those losses.
Tool to track marine litter polluting the ocean
In an effort to fight the millions of tons of marine litter floating in the ocean, researchers have developed a new virtual tool to track this debris. Their work will help provide answers to help monitor and deal with the problem of marine litter.
New report highlights the benefits of bringing nature into our cities
Cooling our streets, reducing air pollution and improving our wellbeing, nature can provide a host of solutions to the issues facing our cities, according to a new report by the British Ecological Society.
Is forest harvesting increasing in Europe?
Is forest harvesting increasing in Europe? Yes, but not as much as reported last July in a controversial study published in Nature.
What happens when there is an oil spill at sea?
Here are some facts about oil spills and their impact on the environment.
The newly installed Chair of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization’s (UN FAO) Advisory Committee on Sustainable Forest-based Industries (ACSFI), Ross Hampton, has made it clear that increasing sustainable forestry and timber industries is key to achieving the global ‘Carbon Neutral by 2050’ goal.
Why 99% of ocean plastic pollution is “missing”
A lot of it is probably hiding in plain sight.
Feral desert donkeys are digging wells, giving water to parched wildlife
Erick Lundgren et al
In the heart of the world’s deserts – some of the most expansive wild places left on Earth – roam herds of feral donkeys and horses. These are the descendants of a once-essential but now-obsolete labour force.
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