Daily Links Oct 27

” … the world cannot afford a missed opportunity at COP26.” And what will Australia do, apart from brandish a brochure, sorry, a plan, that has fudged figures, billions to CCS, offsets that aren’t emission reductions and all sticky-taped by hope.

… and the hits keep coming.

Post of the Day

If all 2030 climate targets are met, the planet will heat by 2.7 this century. That’s not OK

Andrew King and Malte Meinshausen,

If nations make good on their latest promises to reduce emissions by 2030, the planet will warm by at least 2.7 this century, a report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has found. This overshoots the crucial internationally agreed temperature rise of 1.5.

 

On This Day

October 27

 

Climate Change

As global warming forces millions to flee home, here are the stories of climate refugees

Families in Bangladesh, Peru, Somalia, the United States and beyond are just some of the victims of climate change forced to flee their homes due to natural disasters.

 

‘COVID has bought us three weeks’: The grim reality of our global warming situation

The world is on track to hit 2.7 degrees Celsius of warming by 2100 despite stronger emissions reduction target, says the United Nations on the eve of global climate talks

 

The Queen cancels plans to travel to Glasgow climate summit on doctors’ advice

The announcement comes after The Queen held virtual audiences at Windsor Castle, the first since revelations that her doctors ordered her to rest last week.

 

Centre right politicians from around the world to meet at Glasgow COP26 [$]

Several hundred Conservative politicians from around the world are preparing to sign a pledge at the United Nations conference on climate change, Cop26, initiated by a NSW Liberal party member.

 

Climate talks could fail, Boris Johnson tells schoolchildren [$]

The British Prime Minister has staked his global political standing on the Glasgow COP26 summit and is now trying to manage expectations.

 

How much do marine heatwaves cost? The economic losses amount to billions and billions of dollars

Alistair Hobday et al

Marine heatwaves are catastrophic impacts of climate change many of us are already familiar with. But how much do they cost society?

 

If all 2030 climate targets are met, the planet will heat by 2.7 this century. That’s not OK

Andrew King and Malte Meinshausen,

If nations make good on their latest promises to reduce emissions by 2030, the planet will warm by at least 2.7 this century, a report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has found. This overshoots the crucial internationally agreed temperature rise of 1.5.

 

National

Government facing lawsuit over climate change in the Torres Strait

Australia’s northernmost islands, Saibai and Boigu are on the frontline of the crisis. 

 

‘Maybe one day we’ll be under water’: Pabai and Paul fear they’ll be Australia’s first climate refugees

In a case never before seen in Australia, Paul Kabai and Pabai Pabai’s legal team will argue the Federal Court should require Australia to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to a level that will prevent Torres Strait Islanders from harm.

 

Morrison’s 2050 plan ‘handicaps’ Australia

Australia’s target to cut emissions to net zero by 2050 has been labelled a missed opportunity threatening to handicap government negotiators at COP26 climate talks.

 

‘We still don’t know what the policy is’: Regional Australians still in the dark on net zero

Australia’s mining and farming communities have differing views on net zero. But they are united in wanting more detail from the federal government on how we will achieve it.

 

What is the government’s plan to reach net zero?

The government has committed to reaching net zero by 2050, and says it is on track to beat its 2030 emissions targets. But what will it take to turn Australia green?

 

The new finance resource pushing First Nations cultural protection to the front

The toolkit will assist investors in their understanding of best practice approaches to encourage better heritage management processes for sacred sites

 

‘Clean’ hydrogen and cheap solar power at centre of government’s net zero commitment

Australia joins the world in promising to reach net zero on carbon emissions by 2050 — a policy it opposed two years ago — ahead of the upcoming global climate change summit in Scotland.

 

Why is the coal industry making more money than ever before?

As the world tries to lower emissions the price of coal has hit unprecedented heights. But will it last?

 

‘A con’: Malcolm Turnbull blasts key part of government’s net-zero plan

net zero

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says his long-awaited net-zero plan will lower power bills, create 100,000 jobs, and leave Australians thousands of dollars better off by increasing the gross national income by 1.6 per cent. But his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull has been scathing of a key pillar of the plan, calling carbon capture and storage – which the government is relying on to cut emissions in manufacturing and mining – as a “con” and “distraction” by the coal industry.

 

Projecting Australia’s emissions: 2021 report

Australia remains on track to meet and beat its 2030 Paris target according to new data released today.

 

Morrison Government’s net zero “plan” is to let others do hard work on emissions

The Federal Government’s climate plan announced today is based on repackaged state commitments, fantasy, and unverified projections, says Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

 

Plantation forestry method: have your say

The Australian Government is inviting input on a new plantation forestry method for the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF).

 

Australia aims for “ultra-low cost” solar to drive green energy transition

Australia announces a new stretch cost target for solar power of just $15/MWh, to help cut cost of green energy, green hydrogen, and green steel.

Wind farms don’t work in the dark, says Nationals MP

Nationals MP says wind farms don’t work in the dark. No wonder they are scared of net zero.

 

Billions more in spending to come on Scott Morrison’s road to net zero

The PM is promising billions of dollars in further spending on climate policies to reach a new official target to slash greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050.

 

Economists warn against the $20b technology bet at heart of net zero policy

The government’s plan to spend billions on new technology to reach net zero greenhouse emissions is a risk to taxpayers, economists say.

 

Australia cops it in international headlines

Environmentalist David Attenborough has taken aim at Australia as the nation copped it in headlines over its plan to tackle major targets.

 

Morrison defends climate plan

Scott Morrison has sought to alleviate concerns over his newly announced net zero target in a late night interview.

 

Mission to save nation’s at-risk marine habitats

A growing band of recreational fishers have taken it upon themselves to put back into the lakes much more than they will ever take out.

 

Angus Taylor reveals trade-offs with Nationals for net zero support not yet approved by cabinet

Coalition’s 2050 plan also faces widespread criticism from climate advocates as a ‘political scam’

 

Future of coal jobs under net zero plan revealed [$]

Scott Morrison says his net zero deal is an evolution and not a revolution, vowing to protect those with mining jobs. Here’s how.

 

Australians willing to pay for climate action, but say government not doing fair share

More than half the community is willing to accept a personal cost to reduce emissions, while many believe the federal government should do more.

 

Rio Tinto weighs up plans for more ‘green energy’ metals

Jakob Stausholm has signalled Rio Tinto is open to the idea of a push into new metals standing to benefit from the accelerating clean-energy transition

 

Business groups insist on climate plan modelling, economists doubt jobs claim [$]

Economists and business groups say the Morrison government’s refusal to release modelling underpinning its net-zero emissions by 2050 plan makes it impossible to judge whether Australians will be better off under the plan.

 

Climate blueprint: Production of gas and coal to drop 35pc by 2050 [$]

Australia’s gas and coal production will be 35 per cent lower in 2050 as global demand for the commodities decline in a decarbonising world, with exports of lithium, nickel and copper to reach as much as $84bn a year.

 

Coalition has net-zero unity, says ALP [$]

Anthony Albanese has attacked the government’s 2050 emissions reduction plan as having “net-zero modelling, net-zero legislation and net-zero unity” as climate groups expressed alarm that a more ambitious 2030 target was not being taken to the Glasgow climate summit.

 

Taylor adds ‘ultra low cost’ solar to energy winners’ list [$]

Taxpayer funds and private sector investment will attempt to drive down the cost of solar power to less than $15 per megawatt hour, less than half the current price.

 

Bring it on: PM taunts Labor to fight election over climate action [$]

Scott Morrison has challenged Anthony Albanese to battle him on the environment after unveiling a net zero plan that relies largely on unproven technologies.

 

The plan to deliver net zero the Australian way

Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (Australia)

Australia is setting a target to deliver net zero emissions by 2050. This plan outlines responsible and practical actions towards that goal that are in Australia’s national interest.

 

Morrison’s climate plan has 35% 2030 emissions reduction ‘projection’ but modelling underpinning 2050 target yet to be released

Michelle Grattan

The government claims Australians would be nearly $2000 better off on average under its plan to reach net zero by 2050 compared with taking no action.

 

Between the lines, Morrison’s plan has coal on the way out, with the future bright

John Quiggin

The most striking feature of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s long-term emissions reduction plan outlined on Tuesday is not the long-telegraphed commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050, or the promise of a A$20 billion clean energy program (around 0.2% of national income annually).

 

National Farmers Federation needs to embrace climate adaption

David Paull

Australia’s farming sector lobby group is siding with the National Party and its reluctance to co-operate with emissions targets.

 

Nationals ridiculous net zero deal doesn’t even matter

Andrew P Street

While the National Party holds Australia’s future to ransom with climate demands, Scott Morrison’s future as Prime Minister looks increasingly dim.

 

Scott Morrison’s net zero pivot is about winning an election, not getting serious on climate change [$]

Kishor Napier-Raman

It also means the PM can save face with AUKUS buddies Boris Johnson and Joe Biden when he goes to Glasgow this week.

 

The government wants to reduce emissions with technology. Will it work? [$]

Kishor Napier-Raman

How well do these five technology solutions actually work, and can the government rely on them to reduce emissions?

 

The man with a ‘Plan’

Rachel Withers

Listening to Morrison describe his net-zero “plan” was a deeply unsettling experience

 

Reaching net zero carbon emissions to require Herculean effort

Ian Verrender

Ordinary Australians and impatient business leaders years ago abandoned all hope of any kind of coherent energy and climate policy and went it alone. Now the government is stepping in with its plan to take us to net zero.

 

PM’s net zero emissions plan is good news but we need more details

SMH editorial

The lack of specific new policy detail in the government’s plan makes many of the promises about technology sound too good to be true.

 

Taxes, rabbits and blank pages – no costed plan to net zero yet

Shane Wright

Taxes will pay for the government’s plan to cut emissions. But the plan is short on detail and relies on magic boxes to deliver key elements.

 

Morrison delivered the pledge voters wanted but not the plan they needed

David Crowe

There was no new measure on Tuesday to explain what would take Australia from its old target to the new one. Old policies were dressed up to look like climate action.

“A joke:” Morrison’s net zero plan has net zero detail, and no change to policies

Michael Mazengarb

Morrison commits Australia to net zero emissions by 2050 that will not be law but will depend on unknown technologies, offsets and no new policies.

Coalition’s $13m “positive energy” campaign makes no mention of wind power

Giles Parkinson

Coalition spends $13M promoting growing share of renewables, but makes no mention of the biggest source of renewables in Australia – wind energy.

 

‘Net zero’ is a political win, but it has entrenched a climate policy stalemate

Melissa Clarke

The Prime Minister stared down a multitude of requests for cash and concessions from the Nationals in return for support of a plan to turn the country carbon neutral by 2050. But he has also entrenched a stalemate on climate change.

 

As Australia continues to fail on climate, those on the frontline are running out of options, and time

Tessa Khan

Court action from Torres Strait leaders over Australia’s failure to cut emissions comes with an urgency that is impossible to overstate

 

We’ve spent a year waiting for this 2050 climate plan and it’s actually just the status quo with some new speculative graphs

Katharine Murphy

To change course radically, the Coalition would have to admit that for a decade it traded the national interest for a handful of regional Queensland seats

 

Informer: Net-zero idea of how this plan is going to work

Kayla Osborne

Well, there it is. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has finally unveiled the country’s long-awaited Net-Zero by 2050 plan.

 

Coalition’s last-minute shift on net zero beggars belief

Ian Bayly

In August 2020, I published an essay entitled 40 Years of Climate Warnings Ignored by Australian Politicians.

 

Net-zero deal has greater protections for farming, mining

Barnaby Joyce

Politics is a tough game and anyone who stands at a pre-selection clearly understands it can be football in a suit.

 

Net zero sum game: Morrison’s tech-based plan emits hope but lacks detail

Tony Wood

The plan’s overreliance on unproven technology is a weakness.

 

Australia’s clean hydrogen revolution is a path to prosperity – but it must be powered by renewable energy

John Mathews

Days out from the United Nations climate summit in Glasgow, the Morrison government on Tuesday announced a “practically achievable” path to reaching its new target of net-zero emissions by 2050.

 

PM facing new net zero test [$]

Tom Minear

Scott Morrison’s net-zero plan is a welcome ambition, but it paints an overly rosy picture of the structural change to come in Australia’s economy.

 

‘Heroic’ Australia sets new tone for Glasgow meeting [$]

Australian editorial

After adopting a net-zero target for 2050, Scott Morrison has attempted to flip the narrative about Australia for the Glasgow climate summit from laggard to one of enabler in the global journey to decarbonisation.

 

The real test for Scott Morrison’s net zero ‘plan’ [$]

Dennis Shanahan

Scott Morrison has finally released his “plan” for a net zero carbon emissions future to 2050 and its political thrust, rural and regional assurances, economic outlook and simple appeal to families and business is all built on the traditions of past success.

 

PM reshapes the climate message for election [$]

Paul Kelly

The message from Scott Morrison’s new emissions plan and his bringing the Coalition to net zero at 2050 is the reinvention of climate change as an economic policy – if climate action is about morality the progressives win, but once it becomes an economic challenge Morrison has a fighting chance.

 

Cost of decarbonisation demands big investment reforms [$]

Robert Gottliebsen

Irrespective of particular targets, the adaptation of the Australian economy to a substantial rate of decarbonisation is going to accelerate dramatically and it will require many billions to be invested.

 

Morrison walks fine line to retain electoral trust [$]

Simon Benson

Scott Morrison believes he has ­delivered a credible plan that seeks to balance community ­expectations on climate change against the global economic ­disruption he claims is inevitable.

 

Failure to increase 2030 target disingenuous

Letters

Demonstrating a charming concern for democratic fastidiousness, Scott Morrison is now parroting what federal right rising star Tim Wilson preciously stated in an interview last week; that any accelerated 2030 emissions targets could not possibly be entertained as they weren’t presented on the Liberal Party platform that was taken to the 2019 federal election.

 

A prayer, not a plan, for net zero [$]

Steven Hamilton

A road map without a single new policy leaves us to wonder what exactly has been going on behind closed doors in Canberra amid the 2050 target machinations

 

Morrison’s ‘magic pudding’ climate plan plays bluff with Labor [$]

Jennifer Hewett

Scott Morrison believes he now has the plan he needs to sell to the electorate on climate change, trusting in his own political instincts to find the Opposition’s jugular.

 

The Australian way – cartoon

David Pope

 

Victoria

The power switch that could save you hundreds [$]

Making this one major change to their household energy supply could save Victorians hundreds of dollars a year on their power bills.

 

New South Wales

NSW sought to have Narrabri gas project removed from Scott Morrison’s fast-track approvals list

FoI documents reveal state government feared rapid approval of Santos project would ‘undermine public trust’

 

Environment Minister admits NSW not doing enough for koala population

Matt Kean is grilled at budget estimates over his plan to manage the state’s “massively under threat” koalas.

 

NSW environmental offsets to be reformed after ‘appalling practices’ revealed, minister says

State environment minister, Matt Kean, has launched internal review after Guardian investigation revealed major problems with offsets schemes

 

Massive NSW outback stations turned into national parks to save flora and fauna

The 120,000-hectare Avenel Station north of Broken Hill is the latest in a series of acquisitions by the state government designed to reshape the state’s far west.

 

‘Unnecessary and disgusting in the extreme’: Two-million-year-old cave formations vandalised in Kosciuszko National Park

Police appeal for information after ancient stalactites and stalagmites in a cave in Kosciuszko National Park are vandalised.

First Tesla big battery in NSW ready for testing and trials as “virtual machine”

The first big battery in NSW is registered and ready for testing and to accelerate the shift away from traditional fossil fuel technologies.

Australia’s oldest open cut coal mine to be transformed into major renewables hub

Large-scale solar, battery storage and green hydrogen production have been added to pumped hydro plans for Australia’s oldest open-cut coal mine.

 

The shocking images that warn of destruction to come [$]

The NSW coast could be increasingly battered by tropical storms if action is not taken on climate change. That’s the warning from a leading expert as new aerial images reveal the devastating impact of recent storms.

 

The Narrabri gas project was inevitable — and finally released emails prove it [$]

Georgia Wikins

FOI has given Australians just one more example of the Morrison government’s lack of transparency and respect for due process.

Eleven lessons from the blow out in costs for HumeLink transmission line

Bruce Mountain et al

The HumeLink debacle highlights why transmission projects need far more scrutiny, far earlier in the development process.

 

ACT

ACT government household sustainability scheme gathers momentum

Canberra-based installers are reporting a major lift in demand and customer inquiry as the ACT government’s $150 million household sustainability scheme gathers momentum following a successful pilot.

 

Extinction Rebellion threaten to blockade Canberra streets in Parliament House protest

Controversial protest group Extinction Rebellion appear to have threatened to blockade Canberra streets at a protest on Wednesday afternoon.

 

Queensland

Indigenous man on trial over alleged mining deal without consent of other traditional owners

Judge hears the accused Cape York man, a traditional owner, did a multi-million-dollar deal without the community’s consent and siphoned off hundreds of thousands of dollars for his own use.

 

‘No such thing as a koala-safe road’: Study reveals ineffectiveness of wildlife corridors at $1.6b bypass

Researchers spotted only one koala using wildlife corridors at Toowoomba’s bypass in the past year, the majority using the crossings being feral cats, wild dogs, and foxes.

 

‘The weeds were taking over’: Volunteers remove infestation threatening turtle habitat

Volunteers clear a large infestation of weeds threatening a vital turtle habitat off the coast of Mackay ahead of the nesting season.  

 

New coal-fired power station still on cards despite emissions pledge

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has left the door open for a new coal-fired power station in Queensland, despite endorsing a new climate policy.

 

In detail: What ‘net zero’ deal means for you [$]

A number of Queensland cities are set to capitalise on the federal government’s plan to hit net zero emissions by 2050, but the fate of at least one power station looks grim. Here’s what it means for you.

 

South Australia

Greens fire up over rocket-launch complex ‘bang in the middle’ of sensitive site

Senator Sarah Hanson-Young grills SA government officials in a Senate estimates hearing over the location of Southern Launch’s controversial blast-off development

 

WCH U-turn leaves more room for parks [$]

An SA Health operation to improve the design of the car park for the new WCH has solved the problem which sent it back to the drawing board.

 

Beach Energy facing second potential class action [$]

Beach Energy’s Cooper Basin production forecasts are the subject of a second potential class action.

 

Love-struck roos causing bounce in crashes [$]

Kicked-out male kangaroos on the hunt for love are causing a sharp rise in collisions with cars across Adelaide.

 

Minister faces complaints, legal threat, over comments [$]

Comments made by the Environment Minister about an Adelaide scientist Labor says is used by his own department could come back to haunt him.

 

Vermin complaints nearly double in Adelaide’s east [$]

Reports of vermin in eastern businesses have almost doubled over the past two years, with an industry expert blaming Covid-19 restrictions and a lack of regular inspections.

 

Tasmania

Sale of Tasmanian salmon farmer ‘a certainty’ but opponents remain bitterly disappointed

Institutional investors expected to vote in favour of sale, giving Brazilian meat processor JBS the minimum support needed to take control of Huon

 

EPA approves Wynyard sawmill expansion

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has concluded its assessment of a proposal by CLTP Panel Products Pty Ltd for Deep Creek Sawmill and Kiln, Wynyard in the Waratah-Wynyard Council municipality.

 

Carbon credits scheme set to expand across Tasmania

Plantation forests across most of Tasmania will now be eligible under the nation’s carbon credits scheme.

 

Tasmanian tiger devotees feed Australia’s guilty obsession with a deliberate extinction – podcast

The last known thylacine died in 1936, but many are still fixated on proving it lives on. Assistant news editor Rosemary Bolger recommends Gary Nunn’s story about why some are still searching for this animal

 

Northern Territory

Sun Cable welcomes Singapore plan to import 4GW of electricity by 2035

Owners of what would be world’s biggest solar project welcomes Singapore plan to import up to 4GW of low-carbon electricity by 2035.

 

Clan members say they have been excluded from negotiations over the McArthur River Mine

After years of struggle negotiations to broker a deal between Aboriginal custodians and the McArthur River Mine are edging closer. But some clan members in the Northern Territory’s Gulf region have expressed frustration they won’t be at the bargaining table.

 

Western Australia

Perth protests Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Bill

Perth streets flooded with protestors standing in solidarity against the West Australian Government’s draft Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Bill.

 

Sustainability

Polluting cars now have to pay to drive within 140 square miles of London

The city is expanding its ultra low emissions zone to 18 times its current size. Here’s how the program is getting real results and saving lives.

 

How Paris will become ‘100% cyclable’

The French capital is dramatically expanding its network of segregated bike lanes and more than tripling bicycle parking spots as part of a massive new investment.

 

Environmental justice is essential in the workplace and at home

No worker should be forced to choose between an unsafe job and unemployment.

 

The West is running out of magnesium – all because of China’s power crunch

European industry groups fear that the remaining magnesium stocks will run out by the end of November as China’s power crisis has affected the global supply.

 

One of world’s biggest pension funds to stop investing in fossil fuels

ABP says it will no longer invest in sector and will sell €15bn of holdings by first quarter of 2023

 

‘Woefully unprepared’: World lacks capacity to end pandemic, warns WHO panel

The global body established by the World Bank and the World Health Organisation in 2018 to prepare for pandemics says that the world does not have the capacity to end the current pandemic or prevent the next one.

 

US can have solar supplies and stand up for human rights, says White House

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the United States could have strong solar energy supply chains while standing up for human rights, following criticism that solar imports from China are linked to forced labor.

 

Solar’s growth stumbles just as the world needs it most [$]

The industry is being slammed by a barrage of obstacles, with rising materials costs, forced labour accusations and a worsening trade war all hitting at once.

 

Nature Conservation

New sanctuary in Kyrgyzstan welcomes snow leopards

A new wild animal rehabilitation center that has opened in Kyrgyzstan is hoping to reverse the damage climate change has done to the country’s population of snow leopards.

 

Expansion of meat and soy pushes deforestation and threatens survival of Indigenous Peoples in Brazil

New data from forest monitoring and overflights conducted by Greenpeace Brazil, the Karipuna Indigenous People and the Brazilian NGO Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI), exposed a new wave of forest destruction on the Karipuna Indigenous Land in Rondônia, Brazil.

 

Maelor Himbury
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