Post of the Day
Now we know the flaws of carbon offsets, it’s time to get real about climate change
Declan Kuch
Last month former carbon market watchdog Andrew MacIntosh blew the whistle on Australia’s carbon offset market. He described the scheme as a “rort” with up to 80% of carbon offsets “markedly low in integrity”.
On This Day
Easter Monday – Eastern Christianity
Ecological Observance
Arbor Day – Germany
Climate Change
Major increase in airborne pollen, study finds
According to new research from Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences regarding climate change and pollen seasons, there has been a significant increase of pollen in the air in recent years.
Lower-level ozone is responsible for warming of the Antarctic ocean, reveals new research
Researchers have identified a lesser-known form of ozone playing a big role in heating the Southern Ocean—one of Earth’s main cooling systems.
Climate activists rally at the White House to demand action
Environmental activists, distraught by the government’s slow pace of action on climate change, amassed in front of the White House Saturday afternoon, calling on President Biden and Congress to swiftly pass a climate bill that has been stalled in the Senate since December.
16 Canadian cities projected to have the most extreme heat in the future: Report
As climate change continues to be felt across Canada, a new report details which areas are set to be the hardest hit by extreme heat, according to a new report from the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation in partnership with the University of Waterloo.
Climate activist dies after setting himself on fire outside of US Supreme Court
A climate activist has died 24 hours after setting himself on fire on the steps of the Supreme Court on Earth Day. Colorado photojournalist Wynn Alan Bruce, 50, suffered critical injuries in the incident at 6.30pm Friday on a plaza in front of the court.
How to address healthcare’s climate emergency
Is sustainability in healthcare the missing piece in the climate jigsaw? While the focus over the last few years has been on the corporate sector going green, have we all missed the opportunities that are emerging as the global healthcare community confronts the size of its carbon footprint?
Impacts of climate change in the U.S.
The impact of climate change isn’t vague or hard to grasp and it’s probably changed the decisions you make about what to do on any given day.
National
Warnings of dramatically escalating extinctions in Australia over the next two decades seem to be falling on deaf ears
Barnaby Joyce refuses to use term energy ‘transition’ because it ‘equals unemployment’
Deputy prime minister made comments in coal community of Gladstone in Queensland as Scott Morrison makes $300m NT energy and jobs announcement
Labor’s smoke and mirrors on coal
Coalminers won’t know how Anthony Albanese’s climate change policies will apply to them until after the election, amid mixed messaging in Labor.
Labor can’t have it both ways on emissions policy
Graham Lloyd
Labor has to decide – either it wants to cut emissions faster than the Coalition or it does not.
Power claims and counterclaims overloaded by rhetoric [$]
Ticky Fullerton
Forces driving the electricity market seem too confounding to predict prices. For an election, this allows claims to escape proper scrutiny.
Now we know the flaws of carbon offsets, it’s time to get real about climate change
Declan Kuch
Last month former carbon market watchdog Andrew MacIntosh blew the whistle on Australia’s carbon offset market. He described the scheme as a “rort” with up to 80% of carbon offsets “markedly low in integrity”.
Victoria
‘We’ve had an audit – it’s called an election’: Andrews backs rail loop
The opposition wants to audit the Suburban Rail Loop over concerns it was “cooked up” to win marginal seats.
Growth versus green space: Local environment key in must-hold ALP seat Corangamite
“It’s good to be in an electorate where your vote could make a difference,” says Chris Blake, who moved to the ultra-marginal seat from Melbourne.
New South Wales
Lord Howe Island’s biodiversity recovering thanks to rodent control
The recovery of one of Australia’s rarest birds is on track thanks to a rodent control program developed to protect the unique wildlife on World Heritage listed Lord Howe Island.
Coal, hard facts about the future [$]
Hundreds of workers at a NSW power station, due to be out of a job in three years, are angry the federal government has been reluctant to even admit there is a problem.
Queensland
Queensland plan to build cabins in beachside national park angers communities
State government proposes ‘eco-tourism’ accommodation in Sunshine Coast national park
‘Deeply troubling’: Labor accused of betting each way on coal [$]
Labor has been accused of saying one thing to mining communities and another to the rest of Australia, with Adani throwing down the gauntlet to political parties.
Tasmania
Composting facility under fire for ‘environmental nuisance’ [$]
A composting facility near the Plenty River that deals with liquid fish waste, human sewage and paper sludge is again under fire – this time due to a number of complaints over “offensive odours”.
Northern Territory
Scott Morrison promises Northern Territory cash splash, $130 million to go to gas giants
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has headed to the Northern Territory to detail a $300 million energy spend that would see more than a third handed to gas giants to invest in carbon capture and storage.
PM invokes ‘quiet’ Australians to play down climate heckling
Scott Morrison has invoked “quiet” Australians to play down anti-fracking protesters causing havoc during a trip to Alice Springs, where he announced a splurge to combat outback crime.
Western Australia
Linda Davies, a researcher with WA’s Notre Dame University, started analysing the rubbish she and others collected while combing Perth’s coastline. The results were astonishing.
Sustainability
Could Anglesey’s tidal energy project drive a new energy revolution?
Experts say Wales has huge potential for generating renewable marine power, yet, so far, ambitious schemes have been ignored
How safe is my make-up kit? You are not going to like the answer
New documentary Not So Pretty casts a sharp focus on the safety of hair, make-up and skincare products found in supermarkets and department stores.
European Union ask citizens to reduce fossil fuel reliance to beat Putin
Work from home, lower your speed on highways and take the train instead of a plane if you want to save energy and beat Russian President Vladimir Putin, the European Commission advised citizens, as part of recommendations to reduce reliance on Russian oil.
The treatment of reclaimed water (treated wastewater) and its reuse has become a significant area of interest because of its potential to address many pressing urban challenges.
Ten new environmental books offering inspiration, insight and ideas
April’s best new eco-books look toward solutions to the extinction crisis, climate change, water shortages, environmental justice and more.
Take uranium contamination off our land, Navajos urge federal nuclear officials
The gale-force winds that swept across New Mexico on Friday, driving fires and evacuations, gave Diné residents in a small western New Mexico community an opportunity to demonstrate first hand the danger they live with every day.
Denim set to be disrupted by ecofriendly indigo dyeing
Sonovia, an Israeli company specializing in ecofriendly ultrasonic textile technology, is collaborating with Italian denim manufacturer PureDenim to transform indigo dyeing.
Environment: IPCC lays out the gruesome climate facts
Peter Sainsbury
Three years to turn the carbon supertanker around. ‘Fortress conservation’ of forests is killing local communities. Cats and foxes destroy 3 billion Australian native fauna every year.
Nature Conservation
Researchers set to determine ocean pollution through African rivers
Scientists on Saturday began a five-month mission to study how plastic pollution in Africa’s main rivers and climate change stresses are impacting microorganisms in the Atlantic ocean, they announced.
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