Post of the Day
Addressing climate change will not “save the planet”
Christopher Ketcham
The dismal reality is that green energy will save not the complex web of life on Earth but the particular way of life of one domineering species.
On This Day
Saint Nicholas Day – Western Christianity
Climate Change
Mo Ibrahim on impact of climate change in Africa and global COP27 talks
Sudan-born billionaire Mo Ibrahim talks about the impact of “loss and damage” compensation and his foundation’s work in documenting the impact of climate change on the continent.
How Greenland’s ice streams could have major impact on sea level rise
New radar technology allowing scientists to examine the Greenland ice sheet has revealed that major flows of ice across the continent can change much more rapidly than was previously thought.
National
PM says he’s conscious states may demand compensation for coal price cap
Anthony Albanese says he understands the states’ concerns that introducing a price cap on coal may hurt their royalties, but something must be done to lower energy prices.
Albanese postpones energy market intervention meeting with states after testing positive for Covid
PM urges state and territory leaders to agree to cooperative intervention to halt climbing electricity prices
Could we see more Indigenous foods in our diet as the climate changes?
As climate changes, researchers are advising farmers to grow bush foods to improve drought resistance.
Nuclear off the table as states seek power fix
A state premier is preparing to make some powerful enemies over their “ill-founded” opposition to nuclear energy.
Many Australian businesses will scale back climate action when economy slows, survey finds
The 2022 Climate Check international survey also found support in Australia for a crackdown on ‘greenwashing’
Australians strongly support price caps on energy as states push back
Almost 80 per cent of voters back energy price caps to tackle soaring bills, polling has found, as the states push back against the plan over lost royalties.
Greenwashing crackdown continues
ASIC issues a second fine for alleged greenwashing, as a new report finds Australia is lagging behind in ESG transparency.
High energy costs drive surge in demand for EVs, solar panels: NAB
The country’s biggest business bank says business loans for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids have ballooned by 900 per cent since 2020
Volvo is shipping over Australia’s first two electric prime movers, but driving them is illegal
The transport industry is the second-biggest polluter in Australia and its decarbonisation is critical to meet lagging climate change targets, but industry insiders say simple changes to regulation could be made now to charm the freight industry into making the switch.
Exploitative gas pricing is causing debt and distress for many Australian households
Gerard Brody
It is not fair for people to be paying such wildly varied prices for the same level of gas consumption – equity must be central to any market intervention
Why energy price caps have set off another squabble between the states, Canberra and producers
Elizabeth Knight
There is violent agreement between all Australian governments about the need to curb runaway energy prices. But the debate around who foots the bill is less simple.
Power price hikes to be ‘extremely awful’ or ‘horrifying’
Nick O’Malley
Whatever Anthony Albanese achieves when national cabinet next meets, it is unlikely to result in lower energy prices for families.
Recycling failure leaves us drowning in plastic [$]
Peter Boyer
For a while there we thought we had banished a demon: someone wanted our plastic bags, those poster children of human excess and a trashed environment. Millions of Australians dutifully gathered together all their soft plastic detritus and every month or so delivered a bulging bagful to their local supermarket.
Clashing laws need to be fixed if we want to live in bushfire-prone areas
Phillipa McCormack
It’s almost bushfire season. Yes, even though floods are still racing through parts of eastern Australia. Fire conditions are above average including in inland New South Wales and Queensland.
Change the government, or the reef gets it!
Graham Young
One lot of grifters has won their way into government, but a whole lot of others have to keep grifting, and that means the reef can never be allowed to be free.
Not acting on climate change has a lot to do with our supply chain and productivity issues now
Rob Lee
The cost of not acting on climate change 16 years ago when Sir Nicolas Stern and many others were arguing for strong action to reduce emissions is now very apparent in the central west of NSW, where I farm.
A gas price cap — tragically — won’t curb investment in fossil fuels [$]
Bernard Keane
Fossil fuel companies say they’ll stop investing if there are gas and coal price caps. They’re lying.
No cheap or easy fix for high energy prices [$]
Judith Sloan
There is no doubt that the best solution to higher prices always is more supply.
Economics 101 warns us against energy price caps [$]
AFR editorial
Federal Labor is rushing to ‘do something’ to bring down gas and electricity prices. But it could make the problem worse.
Long term fix to fossil fuel crisis is faster switch to renewables, not price caps
Rachel Williamson
Putting in motion already-proposed plans combined with targeted green energy policies is the route out of the current crisis.
Victoria
This filtered tap water is within the requirements of the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines
Moama residents are turning on their household taps only to find dirty, brown-coloured water. And it’s even getting into washing machines.
New South Wales
The South Coast has a huge housing problem, but if locals are reluctant to have new houses built on much-loved bushland, where are the new houses going to go?
Kosciuszko mountain bike trail completed ahead of summer season [$]
The final stage of an ambitious mountain bike project in Kosciuszko National Park is now complete.
Collapse of contractor puts more question marks over giant Snowy 2.0 project
Snowy 2.0 project – already steeped in controversy – faces further question marks after collapse of one of its two main contractors.
Why was climate activist Violet Coco given a jail sentence and what are the laws against protesting?
Deanna ‘Violet’ Coco will spend at least eight months in jail for her role in a Sydney protest. Her supporters have labelled her sentence “outrageous”, but the NSW premier said it was “pleasing to see”.
Documents reveal ‘scramble’ to rubber-stamp NSW bill targeting climate protests
Emails show how NSW premier Dominic Perrottet’s advisers, along with several other ministers, sought to fast-track bill after media furore
Last week, a NSW court jailed me for 15 months for a peaceful climate protest. Hear my story
Violet Coco
If you are reading this, then I have been sentenced to prison for peaceful environmental protest. I do not want to break the law. But when regular political procedure has proven incapable of enacting justice, it falls to ordinary people taking a stand to bring about change.
It’s not just Albanese who’s stuck in an energy price mess [$]
Jennifer Hewett
Divisions between NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and his treasurer and energy minister also demonstrate the contradictions in Australia’s energy ambitions.
ACT
‘The economics do not add up’: Why the Canberra Liberals plan to dump light rail to Woden if elected
The Canberra Liberals say stage two of light rail is likely to cost more than $3 billion and the money should instead be spent on hospitals, schools and roads.
Queensland
This farming technique could help Australia feed the world in uncertain times
Mangoes ripening year round, indoor flowers and lettuce crops immune to weather and pests — unpredictable weather is pushing more producers to high-tech solutions.
Outback town says ‘police have lost control of the streets’ as property crime spikes
Cars were seen driving dangerously through a rural community after a spate of vehicle thefts over the weekend.
This island is defying the odds and showing all is not lost amid a sea turtle ‘man drought’
An island where 80 per cent of turtle hatchlings are born female is more of a level playing field when it comes to breeding than researchers initially feared.
Brisbane Metro ‘is no Metro’: rail lobby says name must change
Brisbane’s coming Metro needs to be renamed because it’s a not a rail service like Metros in other capital cities and confuses people, a Queensland rail lobby group says.
Labor out of touch with loud and proud heritage
Courier Mail editorial
Kneejerk reactions from the Premier and Speaker to a harmless protest in parliament appear to be incongruous for two people who owe their livelihoods to the Labor movement, writes the editor.
South Australia
Single bin photo stuns Australians
An Adelaide woman has shocked hundreds of Australians with one simple photo of her bin – the reason why will surprise you.
Flood warning for Renmark residents after levee breach
A levee breach on a private property has prompted a flood warning for parts of Renmark, as authorities monitor rising River Murray flows that appear higher than forecasts.
More water to come down river daily than SA consumes in a year [$]
Emergency access routes for residents of river communities will be created as the Mid Murray Council looks to minimise the impact on day to day lives as peak flows approach.
Tasmania
Lost remains of last-known Tasmanian tiger found at museum, solving ‘zoological mystery’
The remains of the last-known thylacine — thought lost for more than 85 years — were kept in a cupboard in a Tasmanian museum for decades, with their significance only recently being realised.
Northern Territory
NT government reveals details of plan to keep at-risk children off Alice Springs streets
The Alice Springs community is waiting to see whether a new NT government plan to keep at-risk children off the streets of Alice Springs will be effective.
Western Australia
Phil Edman is handed a suspended jail term and fined $12,000 for obstructing a secret corruption investigation into his misuse of his taxpayer-funded electoral allowance for travel and sex, as well as tipping off others about it.
Hydrogen to Perth homes a pointless distraction on the road to net-zero
Peter Milne
Putting a sliver of hydrogen into a tiny fraction of Perth’s gas network has no practical benefit but allows its owner to appear acceptably green, just don’t look too close.
Sustainability
The world’s insurance bill from natural disasters this year: $115 billion
That’s 42 percent higher than the 10-year average according to Swiss Re, the Zurich-based reinsurance giant.
Nature Conservation
The COP15 UN conference in Montreal will be a massive moment for nature
One of the most important events for life on Earth, ever, is about to begin. This week and next, delegates from more than 190 countries will come together in Montreal, Canada, for a conference known as COP15, or the UN Biodiversity Conference, to hash out a plan to halt the decline of ecosystems, wildlife, and the life-supporting services they provide.
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