Date: 28 May 2021 at 9:08:47 am AEST
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links May 28
Post of the Day
Climate change will cost a young Australian up to $245,000 over their lifetime, court case reveals
Liam Phelan and Jacquie Svenson
The Federal Court today dismissed a bid by a group of Australian teenagers seeking to prevent federal environment minister Sussan Ley from approving a coalmine extension in New South Wales.
On This Day
Ascension of Baha’ullah – Baha’i
Climate Change
Climate change activists score two wins against ‘big oil’
Investors are taking action to force “big oil’ to clean up its act, as top management at Exxon Mobil and Chevron get a shakeup and a Dutch court rules that Shell must cut its carbon emissions.
‘Cataclysmic day’ for oil companies sparks climate hope
Court and investor defeats over carbon emissions a historic turning point, say campaigners and lawyers
Global carbon pricing schemes raised $53 bln in 2020
The world’s seven largest advanced economies last week recognised the role carbon pricing can play in driving innovation and new technology to hit net zero emissions.
New framework to enhance national climate action and achieve global goals
With the COP Climate conference in Glasgow only a few months away, the ambitions of the Paris Agreement and the importance of taking action at the national level to reach global climate goals is returning to the spotlight. IIASA researchers and colleagues have proposed a novel systematic and independent scenario framework that could help policymakers assess and compare climate policies and long-term strategies across countries to support coordinated global climate action.
The economic cost of climate change and how cyclones exacerbate it
Cyclone Amphan, which wreaked havoc in several eastern Indian states in May 2020, earned the notoriety of being the world’s costliest natural disaster at an estimated economic loss of over one lakh crore rupees.
Rapid heating of Indian Ocean worsening cyclones, say scientists
Rising ocean temperatures caused by climate crisis increasing number of cyclones and intensity of storms, say experts
Greta Thunberg has managed to get under the skin of the Chinese government after being targeted by the state media in an article that mocked her weight and described her as an “environmental princess.”
Climate skeptics not easily persuaded by available evidence, now or later
Climate skeptics who aren’t persuaded by the existing evidence from climate change are unlikely to change their minds for many years, according to a newly published quantitative study by a University of Oregon environmental economist
Follow Indigenous peoples’ lead on climate
Phil Glynn
This month, President Biden vowed to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030. It’s an ambitious, eleventh-hour effort to meet our climate goals and stave off catastrophe. To succeed we must follow the lead of Indigenous people in the U.S. and around the world.
National
‘It’s blown it open’: Australian teens force global first with climate change class action
The Australian Federal Court rules that Environment Minister Sussan Ley has a legal duty not to cause harm to young people of Australia by exacerbating climate change when approving coal mining projects.
AGL urged to drop Greenpeace lawsuit
Over a dozen of Australia’s leading NGOs and environmental advocacy groups have written an open letter to AGL urging them to drop their lawsuit against Greenpeace.
Big Oil’s climate defeats deepen risks for Australian producers
A dramatic escalation of climate pressure facing the world’s biggest oil giants has sparked warnings for the sector in Australia.
Report finds holes in Murray water recovery scheme
A plan to return 450 gigalitres of environmental flows to the River Murray will fall short and is on track to return just 13 per cent of the required water by the 2024 deadline, a study has found.
Andrew Forrest is defying sceptics to wrangle a green energy future [$]
Australia’s second-richest person is chasing the next big dream: a carbon neutral world.
Solar energy batteries made from seawater on the way [$]
A top Aussie scientist thinks the two can make an affordable alternative to lithium batteries with seawater and blue pigment.
Fundraising regulations are ‘stopping charities from doing their job’
Millions of dollars are being wasted each year as charities seek to meet “ridiculous” fundraising regulations that need to be scrapped, says advocate in light of new report
The false dawn for Australian atomic power [$]
AFR editorial
From the archives: as part of our Platinum 70 Year, we take a look back at the AFR View on significant domestic and international events over the past seven decades.
We’re all little green frogs boiling in the pot of climate change
Fleur Connick
Have you ever heard of the urban myth that you can place a frog in a pot of boiling water, and it will instantly leap out? But if you place the frog in a pot of lukewarm water and gradually heat it, the frog will remain in the water until it boils to death. Pretty grim, right? But this saying has been simmering away in the back of my mind for a while now and I can’t quite shake it.
‘More than a word’: practising reconciliation through Indigenous knowledge-sharing in tourism
Nicole Curtin et al
The theme for National Reconciliation Week 2021 is ‘More than a word: reconciliation takes action’. Engaging with Aboriginal knowledges is a way to pursue reconciliation as more than a buzzword.
Laura Schuijers
This morning, the Australian Federal Court delivered a landmark judgement on climate change, marking an important moment in our history.
Climate change will cost a young Australian up to $245,000 over their lifetime, court case reveals
Liam Phelan and Jacquie Svenson
The Federal Court today dismissed a bid by a group of Australian teenagers seeking to prevent federal environment minister Sussan Ley from approving a coalmine extension in New South Wales.
Astroturfing: “alliance of timber workers” or alliance of timber corporate executives?
Tasha May
Forest & Wood Communities Australia purports to be a grassroots organisation of timber workers but it is founded by the chairman of private forestry company Pentarch and other influential timber industry players. Tasha May reports on a classic case of astroturfing.
New South Wales
Birth of Tassie devils could be first step to having them back on mainland after 3,000 years
A group of Tasmanian devil joeys have been born in a “wild sanctuary” in Barrington Tops, just north of Sydney. But is it a good idea to rewild them on the mainland?
Australian mouse plague isn’t coming to Sydney, with city slickers told to calm down
CSIRO research officer Steve Henry points out mice have ‘tiny little legs’ and they won’t move far in search of more food
ACT
Environment Minister Rebecca Vassarotti won’t meet kangaroo cull protesters
Environment Minister Rebecca Vassarotti says she cannot meet kangaroo cull protesters in good faith, because they fundamentally disagree and it would not be possible to stop the cull.
Push for ACT to sign fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty [$]
A Greens backbencher in the ACT’s parliament will push for the territory government to sign an international fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty.
New home for endangered grassland earless dragons at Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve
Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve welcomes six endangered grassland earless dragons into a new $60,000 breeding facility, complete with burrows, “basking platforms” and a predator-proof ring tank.
Radioactive trash – a tale of two Sydney suburbs
Noel Wauchope
Australia does have radioactive waste problems in the lingering concerns over historic atomic bomb test sites in South Australia., and in both the functioning and the closed uranium mines. But there is only one uranium-processing facility producing radioactive wastes, the Opal nuclear research reactor at Lucas Heights in Sydney.
Queensland
Parks and Wildlife refused water bombing of Fraser Island (K’gari) bushfire just days after it began
Why an offer to water-bomb the Fraser Island bushfire was refused by the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service just days after it began, and continued to burn 85,000 hectares.
Campers’ rego plates and phones may be tracked in wake of Fraser Island fire
Thirty-eight recommendations were tabled by the Queensland government in its review of the bushfire that razed 87,000 hectares of the World Heritage-listed island.
Tarong coal generator to add 150MW big battery in Queensland “battery blitz”
Queensland government reveals the Tarong coal plant would become host of new big battery, as it deals with the fallout of recent coal plant failures.
“Virtual machine”: Hornsdale battery steps in to protect grid after Callide explosion
Expanded Tesla big battery at Hornsdale stepped into market after Callide coal explosion with successful real-world test of its “virtual machine mode.”
Output restricted at 11 Queensland solar farms after Callide coal explosion
Some 11 solar farms in north Queensland have output limited in response to Callide coal explosion, but limits quickly relaxed.
Bulimba to Teneriffe pedestrian bridge ‘feasible’, says secret government report
The 2016 report for the transport department shows a pedestrian and bike bridge that opens to let boats through is viable and would be used by 3600 people daily.
South Australia
The wetlands were once ‘our chemist and supermarket’. Now we hope to restore them with traditional knowledge and science
Ngarrindjeri elders are teaming up with scientists to relearn lost Indigenous knowledge and help save the critically endangered swamps of SA’s Fleurieu Peninsula.
Tasmania
North East Bioregional Network wins International Award for Restoration Excellence
An environmental project from the North East Bioregional Network has won a prestigious international award.
Northern venison farmer speaks against Senate recommendation
A Northern Tasmanian venison deer farmer fears for the survival of his niche industry if wild deer were allowed to be shot and its meat sold to the public as part of any new state deer management strategy.
Call to Premier for 2-week moratorium on mine dam
The Bob Brown Foundation wants Premier Peter Gutwein to call a halt to mining company MMG’s clearing for a toxic waste dam in the Tarkine rainforest until 8 June.
‘True visual impact’ of cable car
Media release – Tasmanian Conservation Trust
The Tasmanian Conservation Trust has opened its online guide for those wanting to make a representation on the Mt Wellington Cable Car proposal.
Tasmanian Alliance for Marine Protection
Show these facts to your fish retailer
Northern Territory
NT lithium miner inks deal at Darwin Port [$]
The company planning to build a world-class lithium mine near Darwin has inked a five-year Darwin Port operating agreement.
Western Australia
Aboriginal and European names for places and landmarks
Reconciliation WA has backed dual Aboriginal and European names for places and landmarks and challenged West Australians to turn positive sentiment for Indigenous people into direct action.
Explainer: When can I charge my house from my EV?
The ability to use your car as a mobile energy storage and supply device is on our doorstep – or should we say, in our driveway.
Four-day working week would slash UK carbon footprint, report says
Study finds change would shrink emissions by 127m tonnes, helping country meet climate targets
Unwitting accomplices: Endocrine disruptors confounding clinical care
The role of healthcare in exposing individuals to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) is grossly underappreciated.
Could these ultra-low-cost batteries be the lithium-free energy storage to power the renewable grid?
Noon Energy is building a rechargeable battery using cheap materials that it says will provide 100 hours of power.
Ford expects 40% of global vehicle volume to be fully electric by 2030
The No. 2 U.S. auto maker plans to increase spending on electric-vehicle development as part of a strategy to reverse years of declining profits.
Can removing highways fix America’s cities?
Highways radically reshaped cities, destroying dense downtown neighborhoods. Now, some cities are starting to take them down.
Can tiny forests breathe fresh air into our cities?
After gaining popularity across Asia, small, dense ecosystems are taking root in Europe’s urban areas. Advocates say they improve biodiversity, air quality and even our well-being. But do they live up to the hype?
Climate policy that relies on a shift to electric cars risks entrenching existing inequities
Alistair Woodward
At the end of this month, the Climate Change Commission will deliver its final advice to government, outlining how New Zealand can reach its climate targets.
The guitar industry’s hidden environmental problem — and the people trying to fix it
Chris Gibson and Andrew Warren
Following scandals over illegal logging, and with an appetite for rare, old-growth wood, the guitar industry is rethinking its environmental footprint. Australian companies are leading the way.
The idea of ‘green growth’ is flawed. We must find ways of using and wasting less energy
Michael (Mike) Joy
There is no doubt we need to stop emitting fossil carbon. But if we fixate on replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy and don’t also reduce consumption and energy waste, we risk failure.
Big oil companies are driven by profit – they won’t turn green by themselves
Brett Christophers:
Renewables are getting cheaper, but fossil fuels are still more lucrative. To reach net zero, we’ll need radical intervention.
Nature Conservation
Investing 0.1% of global GDP could avoid breakdown of ecosystems, says UN report
Nature’s financial value must be considered to avoid ‘irreversible’ degradation to biodiversity and land
Nature can save humanity from climate doom—but not on its own
By restoring ecosystems, conservationists can help the land sequester carbon. But it’s still no substitute for drastically cutting emissions.
Human rights must be at heart of new biodiversity framework, experts say
A new study by the ICCA Consortium, an international conservation association, says human rights must be included in conservation policies to save the world’s vanishing biodiversity.
Sri Lanka braces for beach pollution as vessel burns
Three Indian vessels yesterday joined efforts to contain a major fire on a container ship off the Sri Lankan coast amid fears that it could break up and spew out hundreds of tonnes of oil.
Bolsonaro’s environment minister bulldozed the Amazon. Now he’s under investigation for corruption
Brazil’s Supreme Court granted search warrants for the homes and financial records of Ricardo Salles, who accelerated deforestation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Seabirds are today’s canaries in the coal mine – and they’re sending us an urgent message
David Schoeman et al
Just as caged canaries once warned coal miners of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning, free-flying seabirds are now warning humanity about the deteriorating health of our oceans.
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