Post of the Day
Andrew Macintosh et al
The federal government has launched an independent review of Australia’s central climate policy, the Emissions Reduction Fund, after we and others raised serious concerns about its integrity.
On This Day
Ecological Observance
Climate Change
Millions more at risk from dangerous summer temperatures if climate goals aren’t met
Health-threatening heatwaves will become more intense due to climate change, putting millions more people at risk from dangerous summer temperatures, new research has revealed.
Pioneering climate change research reveals long-term global carbon cycle impacts
As research uncovers more about Earth’s distant history, going back millions of years before human life, past climates are increasingly relevant for understanding how key elements of the climate system are affected by high greenhouse gas levels.
Coastal glacier retreat linked to climate change
The world’s coastal glaciers are melting faster than ever. New research from the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics (UTIG) and Georgia Tech gives scientists a way to unravel the causes of glacial retreat, and in turn, reveal how much can be attributed to human-caused climate change.
How do we teach young people about climate change? We can start with this comic
Gemma Sou et al
We know young people are “angry, frustrated and scared” about climate change. And they want to do more to stop it.
Climate change is a bigger threat to Pakistan than terrorism
Hamid Mir
Pakistan has more glaciers than almost any country on Earth. Urgent action is required to protect these glaciers.
National
Greens founder blasts PM’s ‘Rudd mistake’ [$]
Bob Brown has claimed Kevin Rudd’s reluctance to negotiate with the Greens was the real reason an emissions trading scheme did not pass parliament in 2009.
A major cleanout of Coalition-appointed members of a committee overseeing emissions reductions in Australia has seen three resignations, including the chair.
Oxfam Australia welcomes government support for climate justice case
Oxfam Australia has welcomed the Australian government’s in-principle support at the Pacific Islands Forum for a Vanuatu-led campaign for climate justice.
As power prices rise, Michael is making money selling back to the grid. Here’s how
Some households are installing multiple batteries to make more money selling back to the grid.
Greens call for moratorium on new oil and gas projects as some independents urge Labor not to rush major policy for political reasons
Liberal MP Bridget Archer open to crossing floor to vote for government’s emissions target bill
Moderate Liberal says if Anthony Albanese wants to end climate wars, he must tone down ‘inflammatory’ rhetoric
Labor to reshape carbon credit committee as Coalition-appointed members resign
Climate change minister Chris Bowen has accepted the resignation of three members of the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee
Labor’s plan to cut carbon pollution faces major integrity test
The government’s plan to allow companies buy carbon offsets for protecting trees is being questioned by the expert who set up the rules of a $4.5 billion fund.
Boosting copper output ‘the biggest contribution Australia could make’ to hitting net zero
Global energy experts have called on Australia to urgently boost copper output, as shortages of the industrial metal threaten the ability of major economies to electrify transport and develop enough clean energy to hit net zero emissions targets.
Labor climate bill guarantees ‘weak’ emissions target: Greens [$]
The Albanese government’s climate bill would lock-in a “weak” emissions reduction target which would be hard to raise, Greens leader Adam Bandt has warned, as a standoff which threatens to torpedo Labor’s climate agenda continues.
UN climate summit in Australia: Game changer or expensive ‘talkfest’? [$]
Each year, thousands of diplomats, negotiators and political leaders converge on a city for a round of international climate talks.
Labor ‘demonising’ nuclear power: Nats [$]
Nationals leader David Littleproud has accused Anthony Albanese of ‘demonising’ nuclear energy after the PM formally rejected his push to convene a national energy summit.
The clever invention making money out of recycled plastics
Inventor Louise Hardman says she feels great joy watching communities go from feeling shame about their plastics problem to feeling pride in their solution.
Forget 43% — Labor’s commitment to gas and coal are our big climate problem [$]
Bernard Keane
A 43% or 50% emissions reduction target will be of little consequence if the government continues to approve new coal and gas exports.
Geoff Carmody
Are renewables the cheapest power? Only when available? How about 24/7? What’s the evidence?
Greenpeace
The following statement can be attributed to Kate Smolski, Program Director at Greenpeace Australia Pacific: “Labor’s move to enshrine its 43% emissions reduction by 2030 in legislation is an important first step in tackling Australia’s climate pollution, but it’s important to remember that it is just that – a first step. In order to ensure a safer climate, Labor needs to vastly increase its climate ambition, which includes stopping dangerous new gas developments like Woodside’s Scarborough and Browse projects.”
Why this Spanish energy tycoon is Australia’s fortune teller
David Crowe
José Manuel Entrecanales is putting his money where his mouth is – and that includes in Australia’s vast renewable energy bounty.
Pacific family is looking to allies for better outcomes [$]
Australian editorial
A joint bid for a climate change conference will not be cost-free.
Why Albanese should stare down the Greens [$]
John Black
If Labor’s 2030 target is blocked by the Greens, most would expect Anthony Albanese to crab walk away. But a double dissolution could give Labor a majority in the Senate with the support of 19 teals.
Andrew Macintosh et al
The federal government has launched an independent review of Australia’s central climate policy, the Emissions Reduction Fund, after we and others raised serious concerns about its integrity.
Victoria
Frydenberg gets $350,000 after bankruptcy bid
A climate activist has paid $350,000 in legal fees owed to former federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg after the ex-MP started bankruptcy proceedings against him.
Brimbank works towards 100% recycled roads
Brimbank Council is working with the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB) on an Australian first project to trial finely crushed recycled glass in asphalt on two residential streets in Deer Park.
Anger e-scooter boom is turning city into ‘wild west’
The rise in the popularity of e-scooters has turned footpaths into the “wild west”, prompting urgent calls for more regulation and enforcement.
Here’s why we must build the Suburban Rail Loop now
Frankie Carroll
By 2050, we’ll be a city of nine million people – the size of London today. Unless we pursue this major project to recalibrate how we grow in the decades ahead, it’ll be a never-ending cycle of catch-up.
New South Wales
Lydia McGrady
For First Nations people, land is the most important aspect of life and well-being. Successful land rights claims for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the result of years of protest and advocacy.
ACT
Office for Water will ‘improve outcomes’: Rattenbury [$]
A new Office for Water will be tasked with managing all of the ACT’s water policy areas, which the territory government hopes will enhance its handling of water issues.
Queensland
Japan’s attack on coal royalties the ‘tip of the iceberg’ says BHP
Mining giant BHP has stepped up its attack on the Palaszczuk Government’s new royalty regime calling it the antithesis of good policy that would mean companies would no longer invest in the state.
Racist Queensland creeks set to be renamed
The Queensland government says Blackfellows creek and Black G** Creek are set to formally return to Indigenous names as a dark history of the area is attempted to be diminished.
Hydro Tasmania locks in new CEO to lead battery of the nation project
Hydro Tasmania says new CEO will lead battery of the nation project in midst of “most critical transformation our industry has ever experienced.”
Refreshed Tasmanian Game Council to advise on hunting and browsing animals
The membership of the Tasmanian Game Council has been refreshed with the appointment of nine new members.
Western Australia
The Shark Bay community is working to preserve seagrass and encourage its growth by deploying hessian sacks filled with sand in the hope it will also create a feeding zone for a wide array of marine species.
‘Heart of Nedlands’ triple-tower project up for decision again – now with giant waterfall!
An amazing carbon-neutral vertically-integrated community that will transform our city or a huge folly that will cause traffic chaos? Only time will tell.
Sustainability
Urban environments with more vegetation are associated with better health behaviors in children
Urban areas with more vegetation, higher density of buildings and facilities, lower population density and without major roads are associated with better health behaviors in children
New wind and solar saved $82bn in fossil fuel costs in 2021, but supply pressures loom
Renewables achieved double-digit cost reductions in 2021, and saved tens of billions in fossil fuel costs, but IRENA warns of supply chain and commodities crises.
Tourism statistics inform UN reports on Sustainable Development
A United Nations global assessment of progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) makes clear the important role that tourism must play in achieving the ambitious agenda for change.
Why heat pumps are a cost-effective and climate-friendly solution for extreme heat waves and frigid winters.
Nuclear power provided secure and reliable low-emission electricity amid evolving global crises in 2021, notching its second highest annual output of the last decade as the world emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to annual data released by the IAEA Power Reactor Information System (PRIS).
Strategy for zero emissions trucking backed by industry leaders
In a new report, “Making Zero Emissions Trucking possible: An industry-backed, 1.5°C aligned Transition Strategy,” backed by industry leaders, the Mission Possible Partnership (MPP) has released a transition strategy outlining how the heavy-duty trucking sector can reach zero emissions by 2050.
Even low levels of air pollution contribute to increased health risk
Levels of air pollution well below national and international air quality guidelines are associated with an increased risk of death, according to a new Canada-wide study led by researchers at the University of British Columbia.
Jail water firm bosses over ‘appalling’ pollution, says UK Environment Agency
Report shows English water and sewage firms’ performance on pollution has declined to worst in years
‘People are waking up’: fight widens to stop new North Sea fossil fuel drilling
From trade unions to a bishop, activists are uniting to keep the UK government to its North Sea climate commitment
Limiting the environmental impact of pharmaceuticals
Humans consume more pharmaceuticals than ever, which has led to increased pharmaceutical pollution of global ecosystems.
Electric cars aren’t guilt-free yet
Digging up minerals for rechargeable batteries has a high initial cost, but eventually those minerals can be recycled indefinitely.
Fact check: Meme regenerates false claims about oil creation
Facebook posts try to dispel the notion oil is a finite resource, claiming it can replenish itself faster than it is extracted.
Heat yourself, not your house: how to survive winter with a 15℃ indoor temperature
Robert Nelson
How high should you put the heating up over winter? If you don’t mind the bills and ecological impact, you have the encouragement of the World Health Organization to keep the house warm.
The madness of cutting down forests to grow food crops for supersonic aircraft biofuels
Dan Rutherford
The idea that the US government would subsidise the feeding of supersonic jets, rather than people, beggars belief.
What is ‘renewable gas’ and is it really just around the corner?
Graham Readfearn
The green gas nirvana touted by industry is hydrogen made using renewable energy and biomethane produced from organic waste – and it’s decades away
How organics left Sri Lanka in a mess [$]
Claire Lehmann
The massive failure in Sri Lanka provides a warning to other nations as to what can happen if overambitious green policies are pursued too rapidly.
Ying Ian Chen and Srikanth Mateti,
In 2016, experts writing in Nature listed seven breakthroughs in how we process chemicals that could change the world for the better. We believe we’ve just ticked one of those off the list.
Nature Conservation
Gabon trials electric fences to keep elephants out of farmers’ fields
Destructive forest elephants are forcing farmers in Gabon to take drastic action. But the two sides could live together peacefully if a new scheme gets off the ground.
Historical roots of contemporary groundwater crisis
For well over a century the immense biodiversity of the lands that constitute Spain’s Doñana National Park has attracted the attention of hunters, nature-lovers, and natural scientists from across the western world. Iberian lynx, fallow and red deer, wild boar, badgers, and vast flocks of migratory and endemic birds thrived in wetlands, dunes, and forests, which have collectively long been considered one of the wildest and most ecologically significant spaces in Western Europe. Beginning in the 1960s, however, large-scale groundwater exploitation by local strawberry farmers dramatically drew down the local water table, desiccating the sandy soils and decimating wildlife populations.
Ecological restoration priorities must be informed by marginalized people
The United Nations has declared the 2020s as the decade of ecosystem restoration, a call for countries around the world to dedicate resources towards healing the earth.
North American birds not fully adjusting to changing climate
Some species of birds in North America have not fully adjusted their distributions in response to ongoing climate change.
Bristlecone pines, world’s forests are imperiled by climate change
The West’s worst drought in at least 1,200 years had critically weakened bristlecone pines. Voracious bark beetles — a threat to which bristlecones were previously thought immune — delivered the death blow.
Bison are climate change heroes in Oklahoma
Indigenous tribes are leading the effort to bring back the bison — a victory not only for the sake of biodiversity, but for the entire ecosystem they nurture.
Can planting a trillion new trees save the world?
To fight climate change, companies and nonprofits have been promoting worldwide planting campaigns. Getting to a trillion is easier said than done.
‘Soil isn’t forever’: Why biodiversity also needs protection below the ground
We know more than ever about the abundance of life in the soil. Now we have to step up to save it.
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