Post of the Day
Climate crisis is suffocating the world’s lakes, study finds
Falling oxygen levels harming already struggling wildlife and drinking water supplies, say scientists
On This Day
Corpus Christi – Catholicism
Ecological Observance
Climate Change
Carbon capture: A critical tool in the climate restoration toolbox
A new generation of technologies can actually reduce the amount of carbon dioxide already released into the atmosphere, helping to reverse climate change.
Russian parliament approves law to curb greenhouse gas emissions
Russia’s lower house of parliament approved a law that would limit greenhouse gas emissions in an initiative described as a first step towards carbon regulation in the country.
A ‘jolt’ for ocean carbon sequestration
Electricity-eating bacteria in marine sediments may play role in combating climate change
The feasibility of transformation pathways for achieving the Paris Climate Agreement
What drives the feasibility of climate scenarios commonly reviewed by organizations like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)? And can they actually be achieved in practice? A new systematic framework can help understand what to improve in the next generation of scenarios and explore how to make ambitious emission reductions possible by strengthening enabling conditions.
Less aviation during the global lockdown had a positive impact on the climate
High levels of aviation drive global warming, not only through greenhouse gas emissions, but also through additional clouds. This is the conclusion reached by scientists at Leipzig University, Imperial College London and the Institut Pierre-Simon Laplace in Paris.
“Running dead on renewables:” Albanese slams Morrison in clean energy pitch to Minerals Council
Labor leader Anthony Albanese tells Minerals Council it needs to focus on technologies that support transition to renewables, not fossil fuels.
Australia’s monster coal exports emit more C02 than entire German economy
Coal shipped out of Australia’s ports last year carried 897 million tonnes of embedded CO2 emissions, almost double Australia’s domestic emissions.
We will need more wind than solar for 100 pct renewables, and lots of storage
Here’s some new scenarios for 100 per cent renewables. We will need more wind than solar, but gas won’t be needed if we have green hydrogen.
Approved coal mines will all but lock in deadly climate temperature rises
Australia is the only OECD country to propose new coal mines on a scale so large that it will effectively double our emissions output, a new report has revealed.
Morrison will warn G7 nations not to put carbon tariffs on trade
Prime Minister Scott Morrison will warn against the use of carbon tariffs to force action on climate change at a global summit that will also confront security concerns over the rise of China.
The countries that could save Aussie coal production [$]
With China continuing its trade freeze and demand for our coal falling in key markets like Japan and Korea, Australian miners are looking to other markets to save production.
Thermal coal prices soar on China demand, weak supply [$]
Thermal coal prices have surged to a three-year high as Labor leader Anthony Albanese lunches with the nation’s biggest producers of the unfashionable commodity.
Tesla boss says Australia is missing out on big climate opportunities
Tesla chairwoman Robyn Denholm has urged Australia to embrace the world’s accelerating transition to clean energy and turn its focus from exporting planet-warming fossil fuels to becoming a renewable energy superpower.
Jessica Allen and Tom Honeyands
Steel is a major building block of our modern world, used to make everything from cutlery to bridges and wind turbines. But the way it’s made – using coal – is making climate change worse.
Australia’s nuclear waste policy shambles
Noel Wauchope
The Government is scrambling to figure out a solution to Australia’s nuclear waste problem with a new bill being passed before the Senate.
Another gross failure: Australia trails on electric vehicle uptake
Paul Budde
As with the Government’s energy policy and its NBN rollout, its plans for electric vehicles – or rather the lack thereof – is another disaster
Queensland best, WA worst: mine exports soar to $100 billion yet royalties static
Callum Foote
Mining exports rose $100 billion in a decade, yet they now contribute proportionally less to government coffers. And if WA had the same royalty rate as Queensland, WA citizens would have gained an extra $47 billion over the decade. Callum Foote reports.
Is everyone really leaving the city? The numbers fall short of the hype [$]
Robert Harley
New research shows that despite the pandemic, the strong gravitational forces of Australia’s cities remain intact. So what could drive a city exit of significance?
The sleeper election issue that could bite Morrison and Albanese
John Hewson
The world is moving ahead of Australia – and both its major political parties – on climate change. It’s an opportunity for independents at the next federal election.
EnergyAustralia may build pumped hydro plant next to Mt Piper coal generator
EnergyAustralia says it may build pumped hydro storage facility next to Mt Piper coal generator in NSW.
State and federal politicians are putting the pressure on a Western Sydney recycling facility to temporarily shut due to a “rotten egg” odour that continues to seep across multiple suburbs despite the operator spending more than $1 million to fix the issue.
Mechanics to be retrained for electric vehicles as diesel buses phased out by 2030
The state government is developing short courses to train mechanics to work on electric vehicles as it prepares to phase out diesel buses by 2030.
Public transport fares to increase for NSW commuters
Commuters who catch public transport in one Australian state will find themselves out of pocket when fares receive a price hike soon.
‘Trying to exert political pressure’: State-funded sporting complex jeopardises Sydney dam
Plans for a sporting complex half-funded by a controversial NSW government grants program pose several structural, security and access risks to a critical part of Sydney’s water supply.
Labor would accelerate Sydney’s net-zero emissions goal if elected
Labor has vowed to bring forward Sydney’s carbon neutrality goal by another five years to 2030 if the party takes office in September’s council elections, boosting tree canopy and electric vehicle use.
Cutting edge plan to breed out mouse plagues [$]
Mice are notorious breeding machines but new research which will get NSW government cash aims to cut populations with genetic modification.
Mouse plague hits new level: ‘I had one fish spew up 10 mice’ [$]
The mouse plague has hit the water in NSW with fish found to be consuming scores of the rodents, causing them to swell in size.
What’s the business case for the Kurri Kurri gas plant and why can’t taxpayers see it? [$]
Georgia Wilkins
It comes with a $600m price tag, but it will be months before taxpayers learn about the energy project they’re helping to bankroll.
ACT
SBS series Trail Towns to feature Canberra cycling tracks
Canberra this weekend features in the premiere of Trail Towns, the new SBS-TV show revealing the best way to have a holiday with your bike.
Ampol coughs up for environment groups after Holt petrol station leak [$]
Two ACT environmental groups will receive a share of $200,000 from a petrol company that was forced to pay up after nearly 80,000 litres of petrol leaked from a corroded underground tank at a service station in West Belconnen.
Queensland
Photo reveals ‘catastrophic’ damage to Callide Power Station that blacked out Queensland
A 300-kilogram piece of shrapnel is removed from the roof of the Callide Power Station in central Queensland after a recent explosion that blacked out more than 470,000 homes and business across the state.
Hell or high water: Climate change behind plan for longer household restrictions
The Queensland Government wants households to prepare for longer water restrictions so it can avoid having to build “unnecessary” infrastructure.
Back in the hunt: Miners start to dig for green economy minerals
The mining industry is back in the hunt for new projects with spending on exploration for minerals used in transition to at its highest level since the end of the mining boom.
Failed Callide generator will be replaced, but could money be better spent?
CS Energy has confirmed the Callide power station generating unit that caused last week’s black outs will be replaced.
New organic waste bins could cut landfill, create jobs [$]
A third bin for food scraps and organic waste will be rolled out to 900 households west of Brisbane under a trial that if successful could be rolled out across the state.
Callide’s future is a test of climate ambition and urgency for Queensland
Ketan Joshi
Why breathe life back into one of Australia’s most heavily polluting technologies? Queensland’s big broken coal plant should be replaced with new tech.
South Australia
Timber shortage ‘domino effect’ could lead to ‘valley of death’, summit told
Australia’s timber shortage isn’t just hurting the building industry but is having flow-on effects for tradespeople whose livelihoods depend on it, an emergency summit in SA is told.
Council approves marina access to fish farm after ‘hand forced’
Whyalla Council has approved Point Lowly Marina access to Clean Seas Seafood, paving the way for the aquaculture company to set up a major kingfish farm in nearby Fitzgerald Bay despite concerns about the impact on a famous Giant Australian Cuttlefish population.
Tasmania
Tamar River dredging could face problems from lack of silt ponds capacity, documents show
Siltation ponds on the West Tamar Highway would struggle to store one years’ worth of dry material from a targeted dredging program in the upper kanamaluka/Tamar according to tender documents, but could be the only available option.
Tasmanian concession card holders to get cut in power bill
Concession card holders in Tasmania will automatically receive a $125 discount on their Aurora power bill from June 30 as the state government attempts to provide some relief during winter.
New tourism plan for the Wilderness World Heritage Area [$]
A new tourism plan for the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area has revealed a masterplan for Mt Field, review of air access and the recognition of Aboriginal cultural values.
AJP condemns ‘govt-approved slaughter of native wildlife’
Media release – Animal Justice Party Tasmania
The Greens Beach Golf Club are choosing to ignore the public outcry around the planned killing of wildlife this coming week. It is our understanding that they are also refusing media interviews.
Northern Territory
Lithium miner launches major NT drilling campaign [$]
The proponent of a lithium mine near Darwin has kicked off the most extensive exploration and resource expansion drilling campaign in the company’s history.
‘It was great to see the site and the hard work going on’: Empire’s Beetaloo basin gas hunt begins
Gas explorer Empire Energy has fired up an extended fracture stimulation program at its Carpentaria-1 site in the Beetaloo Sub-basin.
19 NT mining projects working towards Final Investment Decision [$]
Mining and Industry Minister Nicole Manison said there were currently 19 mining projects working towards a Final Investment Decision in the NT.
Western Australia
Shell believes it will never pay resource tax on gas from its $55bn Gorgon project, hearing told
Fossil fuel company won’t recognise plant as an asset because it doesn’t think it will be used in the future, tax official says
Former WA treasurer joins board of gas giant Woodside
The retired politician has been appointed a non-executive director following similar new postings at the West Coast Eagles and Telethon Kids Institute.
Heat pumps may cause dangerous water pollution, report warns
Heat pumps are regarded as a miracle of low-carbon heating technology, but a new report suggests the refrigerants they use carry environmental risks.
“Like putting a bus on a tall pole:” GE unveils 12MW floating wind turbine
GE unveils concept for a 12MW floating wind turbine, comparing the challenge to putting a bus on a tall pole, and then sticking it in the ocean.
Explainer: So far, low risk of human spread of H10N3 bird flu
A 41-year-old man in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu has been confirmed as the first human case of infection with a rare strain of bird flu known as H10N3, Beijing’s National Health Commission (NHC) has said.
The car makers betting on hydrogen power [$]
Batteries are not the only option when internal combustion engines become a thing of the past, but options are limited.
Green banks are the smartest way to finance clean energy that you’ve never heard of
In the United States, financing infrastructure and clean energy projects is often contingent on the quirks of partisan dealmaking in Congress. But there may be a better way.
Raw sewage pours into ocean near Gaza
In Gaza City, many look to the sea for respite from the summer heat, but recently beachgoers have been mostly staying on the sand to avoid contact with the murky, polluted water as raw sewage has been pouring into the ocean.
The risk of corporate reputation in 2021
Save the Children Australia CEO Paul Ronalds on why corporations can no longer, and should no longer, do the bare minimum when it comes to corporate social responsibility.
China warns of ‘nuclear showdown’ with the United States
China has launched a blistering attack on the West threatening it with a “high intensity showdown” possibly involving nuclear weapons.
Indian coal giant’s $6.5b wage bill set to rise amid rocky outlook [$]
Coal India, the world’s biggest producer, is expected to begin talks this month that could result in pay cheques climbing 20 per cent or more.
Major advance in fabrication of low-cost solar cells also locks up greenhouse gases
Engineers have created a means of vastly increasing the speed and efficiency of a key doping process for perovskite solar cells, one that also sequesters CO2.
Current global environmental law and policy are failing, experts say
In ‘Our Earth Matters: Pathways to a Better Common Environmental Future,’ spanning two special issues of Environmental Policy and Law (EPL), leading scholars from more than five continents call for an honest introspection of what has been attained over the last 50 years relating to regulatory processes and laws and explore future trajectories with new ideas and frameworks for environmental governance in the 21st century.
The origin of COVID: Did people or nature open Pandora’s box at Wuhan?
Nicholas Wade
If the case that SARS2 originated in a lab is so substantial, why isn’t this more widely known? As is now obvious, there are many people who have reason not to talk about it.
Chemical cargo ship sinks off Sri Lanka, fouling rich fishing waters
A cargo ship carrying tonnes of chemicals sank off Sri Lanka’s west coast, its navy said on Wednesday, and tonnes of plastic pellets have fouled the country’s rich fishing waters in one of its worst-ever marine disasters.
US President Joe Biden suspends Trump-era drilling leases in Alaska wildlife refuge
President Joe Biden reverses Donald Trump’s drilling program, suspending several gas leases as part of his pledge to protect the 7.9 million-hectare Arctic refuge that’s home to polar bears and other wildlife.
Climate crisis is suffocating the world’s lakes, study finds
Falling oxygen levels harming already struggling wildlife and drinking water supplies, say scientists
Hundreds of fishing fleets that go ‘dark’ suspected of illegal hunting, study finds
Vessels primarily from China switch off their tracking beacons to evade detection while they engage in possible illegal fishing
Key species at risk if planet heats up by more than 1.5C, report finds
WWF report finds puffins, penguins and many other species will face issues such as habitat loss and food insecurity
Why the world’s only alpine parrot fled to the mountains
The urge to take off and live out the rest of your life as a hermit in the mountains is a well-documented storyline that, it turns out, isn’t limited to humans.
Salps fertilize the Southern Ocean more effectively than krill
The iron released by the tunicates’ fecal pellets is more bioavailable than that from krill pellets
Plastic waste in the sea mainly drifts near the coast
A study provides new insights into the pollution of the world’s oceans with plastic waste. The modelling shows that most of the plastic does not end up in the open ocean, but beaches or drifts in the water near the coast.
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