https://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=22271
Date: 15 December 2022 at 9:06:03 am AEDT
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Dec 15
Post of the Day
Australia needs much more solar and wind power, but where are the best sites? We mapped them all
Cheng Cheng et al
Renewable energy’s share of Australia’s main electricity grid has more than doubled from 16% to 35% in five years, and the federal government wants this figure to reach 82% by 2030.
On This Day
Climate Change
Paris Agreement temperature targets may worsen climate injustice for many island states
Justice-focused policies are needed to minimize impacts of sea-level rise, which will be borne disproportionately by island nations
Mountain glacier melting is linked to shifting westerlies and likely to accelerate
A study found that a combination of global atmospheric warming and westerly winds shifting toward the poles will likely speed up the recession of mountain glaciers in both hemispheres.
Fact check: Climate sceptic muddles his maths with emissions claim
A post relies on some questionable calculations to suggest humans are being unfairly blamed for the planet’s rapid warming.
The coming crash of the climate cult
Viv Forbes
Green worship is the state religion of all western nations. It is promoted by billionaires with other agendas, and endlessly repeated by the UN.
National
Plan to cap gas and coal prices wins enough support to pass parliament
The federal Greens are lending their support to a plan to cap coal and gas prices and provide energy bill relief in return for a funding package to help households and businesses get off gas faster.
Task force call to fuel electric cars
Australia’s multimillion dollar electric vehicle investments could leave some regions without enough charging stations while others are swamped with too many, a federal politician has warned.
Replacing 250km of steam-age railway with straighter track would allow tilting trains to reduce the trip from 11 hours
Gas industry attempts to block price caps on fossil fuels shrugged off by Australian government
Crossbenchers express surprise at lack of direct lobbying from resource companies who may have been blindsided by ‘reasonable pricing’ test
Gas price cap doesn’t go far enough: manufacturers [$]
Australian aluminium extruder Capral is facing the biggest gas price increase in its 86-year history from January 1.
PM pushes residents to get off the gas [$]
Anthony Albanese will offer households financial incentives to switch from gas to electricity in an uncosted deal with the Greens to wave through legislation to intervene on power prices.
‘Ruthless’: Clean energy group launch campaign against gas companies [$]
A leading clean energy group will unleash an advertising blitz to counter the gas industry’s attempts to undermine government interventions to bring down soaring prices.
Pocock to join Plibersek at key UN environment conference [$]
Independent ACT senator David Pocock will fly out with Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek as she leads the Australian delegation on the final days of the COP15 UN biodiversity summit in Montreal.
“No regard” to market outcomes: Regulator savages generator behaviour
Regulator says generators withheld capacity and deliberately acted to inflate prices. The actions may not have been illegal, but they showed “no regard” to market outcomes.
Fossil Australia at risk of “domino effect” as EU moves ahead on carbon border tax
As Europe edges closer to implementing a carbon border adjustment mechanism, the risk to Australia of being edged out of some major export markets becomes more real.
Endangered greater gliders move into special boxes – video
Greater gliders have been moving into specially designed boxes after the 2019-20 fires devastated their habitat.
Labor’s true spots are now on show [$]
AFR editorial
The verbal battering of the gas companies means business now surely has the measure of the business-unfriendly way the Albanese government does politics.
We can’t afford the true price of market meddling [$]
Dimitri Burshtein
The objective is to reduce carbon emissions, not for government to run private enterprise by proxy. This will only lead to a slowing economy and ultimately higher power prices.
Bill to set gas prices a power grab by stealth [$]
Henry Ergas
The government’s gas price legislation ignores every principle of good regulation and completely lacks safeguards against the abuse of power.
Greens force Labor’s hand on gas [$]
Australian editorial
Concessional loans for electric appliances would burden taxpayers.
Success may be elusive in bid to relieve power price stress [$]
John Warhurst
The recall of Federal Parliament today is both a finale for the parliamentary year and just one stop along the way in the battle against high energy prices
Here’s why you can’t afford an electric vehicle
Adam Triggs
Imagine having a regulation that allows foreign companies to dictate what Australians can and can’t buy, even when those companies don’t make anything in Australia.
Energy cost relief must come swiftly [$]
Canberra Times editorial
With the Albanese government’s long-awaited energy cost relief package now certain to be passed at Thursday’s special parliamentary sitting, the onus is on the relevant federal and state ministers to begin implementing it immediately.
Bad fire science can kill our threatened species. It’s time to cooperate with nature
Philip Zylstra
For four years, naturalist Allison Dixon regularly walked from dusk until dawn at the Warrungup Spring bush reserve south of Perth, carefully documenting every western ringtail possum she saw.
How a scientific breakthrough could kickstart Australia’s nuclear energy rebrand [$]
Julia Bergin
Science has crossed a new green threshold with fusion energy. What does it mean, and why might it trigger a nuclear rebrand in Australia?
Trains or planes or buses! Which is best and why?! – cartoon
First Dog on the Moon
Whatever we choose we need a comprehensive national climate-focused transport policy that ahahaaaha who am I kidding it will never happen
Victoria
This trial could be key to solving Victoria’s soft plastics recycling problem
Following the collapse of REDcycle, a small Victorian town is forging ahead with a trial program that removes the need to go in-store to recycle old plastic bags.
Otway Basin gas project at risk due to federal energy policy fight
Adelaide-based gas producer Cooper Energy last month signed a deal with AGL, the nation’s largest power and gas retailer, to supply it with up to 10 petajoules of natural gas a year for six years.
Big build could be headed for big budget speed humps
Age editorial
At a time when the state budget is already under enormous strain, one has to ask whether Labor’s “big build” needs to be slowed down.
New South Wales
Climate activist Deanna ‘Violet’ Coco reveals why she was prepared to risk jail time
In her first interview since being released from prison, Coco recalls how bushfires three years ago sparked her epiphany
The fight to save patches of land from zombie developments
Patches of land known as “zombie” development applications have been lying dormant for years but are being brought back to life by developers as land values keep rising.
ACT
Canberrans to wait a long time for cut bus services to return [$]
The government will consider reinstating some of the cut bus services in the second half of next year if disruptions due to light rail works are not as significant as feared, the Transport Minister says.
Queensland
Great Barrier Reef sharks that can walk on land ‘genetically unique’, study finds
Researchers are investigating the possibility that a population of epaulette sharks on Lady Elliot Island could qualify to be named as a new species.
War in Ukraine responsible for half the jump in local coal profits, says left leaning think tank
Coal companies enjoyed windfall profits of between $39 billion and $45 billion in 2021-22, according to the left leaning Australia Institute.
Trains will delay less traffic under Brisbane overpass plans
A design has been chosen for a long-awaited Brisbane rail overpass and construction could begin as early as next year.
Scooter law could free up blocked footpaths as govt floats fines
People who leave e-scooters and e-bikes blocking Queensland footpaths could be fined.
Anti-coal activists sentenced for stopping Adani coal train
Six environment activists, who stopped a trainload of coal from Adani’s Carmichael mine and climbed machinery at Abbot Point coal terminal two weeks ago faced court today
This popular holiday spot is now surrounded by a 7km dingo fence to stop attacks
Authorities hope a new dingo fence encompassing the K’gari (Fraser Island) township of Orchid Beach will help keep both humans and dingoes safe, as wild dog numbers on the island continue to grow.
Adani’s Carmichael coal mine is not alleviating energy poverty in Asia, it’s making it worse
Carmichael coal was supposed to alleviate energy poverty in south Asia, but instead Bangladesh will be paying twice as much as forecast.
South Australia
North-South Corridor to now cost $15.4 billion and 524 homes and properties
The cost of South Australia’s biggest infrastructure project has blown out by billions of dollars, with more properties to be acquired to make it happen.
South Australia’s primary industries department is investigating the deaths of thousands of bees and freshwater crayfish at a farm south of Adelaide.
Tasmania
Could this be an answer to Tasmania’s deer problem?
Deer numbers in Tasmania are soaring. A new trial will see specialist sharp shooters taking to the sky in helicopters next year to cull feral deer in Tasmania’s world heritage wilderness areas. But how will it work?
Campfire restrictions coming in for parks and reserves
Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service (PWS) will introduce campfire restrictions across high-risk campgrounds in a number of parks and reserves from 02:00 on December 20 until further notice.
Electric Bob’s green ferries plan for Tassie [$]
Tassie catamaran pioneer Bob Clifford has vowed to turn Incat green and at least double his workforce in a transition to electric ferry building.
Northern Territory
Beetaloo basin aquifer annual refill rate doubled by NT Government, no explanation given for why [$]
The NT Government’s recently announced water allocation figures have been called into question by scientists after it inexplicably doubled the estimated annual re-filling rate provided by a hydrologist for one aquifer, then created its own figure for another aquifer which it attributed to his model despite the consultant not providing an estimate for the recharge.
$8.3 million announced for recycling facilities across NT [$]
Territorians will soon benefit from seven projects that will offer improved access to recycling facilities across the Northern Territory that will mean better overall waste management, the Federal and Territory governments say.
Western Australia
“Epic stuff:” Renewables reach 84 pct share of world’s biggest isolated grid
WA grid hits new record of 84 per cent renewables share on Monday, mostly from rooftop solar.
Sustainability
Single-use plastic items to be banned in England — reports
Cutlery, plates and polystyrene cups reportedly set to be banned in England after a consultation
‘Tis the season to be eco-conscious (fa la la la la)
Christmas doesn’t have to be the most wasteful time of the year. Follow our ideas for a more eco-friendly festive season.
Not everyone aware sustainable diets are about helping the planet
A new study has found that young Brits would be willing to change to a more sustainable diet, but a lack of understanding about what that actually means is preventing many from doing so.
Producing ‘green’ energy — literally — from living plant ‘bio-solar cells’
Though plants can serve as a source of food, oxygen and décor, they’re not often considered to be a good source of electricity. But by collecting electrons naturally transported within plant cells, scientists can generate electricity as part of a ‘green,’ biological solar cell. Now, researchers have used a succulent plant to create a living ‘bio-solar cell’ that runs on photosynthesis.
Inadequate pollination has led to a 3-5% loss of fruit, vegetable, and nut production and an estimated 427,000 excess deaths annually from lost healthy food consumption and associated diseases, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and certain cancers, according to new research. It is the first study to quantify the human health toll of insufficient wild (animal) pollinators on human health.
Humans and nature: The distance is growing
Humans are living further and further away from nature, leading to a decline in the number of our interactions with nature. The researchers highlight that human experience of nature is crucial for developing pro-environmental behavior and thus facing the global environmental crisis.
The overlooked benefits of real Christmas trees
The environmental pros and cons of Christmas trees go far beyond the climate impact of “real or plastic”, scientists say. So what’s the best choice for a green Christmas?
Nature Conservation
Walkouts and tensions as row over finance threatens to derail Cop15 talks
Delegates from developing nations leave discussions as divisions grow over who should pay to protect biodiversity
Transplants can save dying coral reefs, but genetically diverse donors are key
Study uses lab-grown coral clones to determine why some coral thrive when transplanted onto coral reefs and others die.
Factbox: Biodiversity finance options grow, but pace of investment still slow
Global talks on protecting nature continue in Montreal, with the theme of Wednesday’s session dedicated to finance.
Biodiversity: Can we set aside a third of our planet for nature?
Will a plan to protect 30% of the planet for nature by 2030 be agreed and how will it work?
Can the U.N. save the world from ecological collapse?
At this week’s summit, delegates will consider ambitious new conservation targets—even though the old ones have yet to be achieved.
The Secret Negotiator
In Montreal, progress on biodiversity issues has been slow. We cannot go on like this
Philipp Bayer et al
You’ve seen the art AI image generators can create, and you may have played with natural language AI chatbots. You’ve benefited from artificial intelligence tools recommending you music and suggesting your next streaming show.
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