Post of the Day
‘The Last of Us’ is right. Our warming planet is a petri dish
Neil Vora
Scientists like me worry that climate change and ecosystem destruction may be creating opportunities for fungal pathogens to grow more infectious, spread over larger distances and reach more people.
On This Day
Feast Day of Vincent Ferrer – Catholicism
Passover (Pesach) – Judaism
Ecological Observance
Sikmogil (Arbor Day) – South Korea
Climate Change
Revealed: UAE plans huge oil and gas expansion as it hosts UN climate summit
UAE’s fossil fuel boss will be the president of Cop28, making a mockery of the summit, say campaigners
Lashed by solar flares and rising CFCs, the ozone layer isn’t safe yet
Five ozone-depleting CFCs, banned under the Montreal Protocol, are rising in concentration as the sun approaches an 11-year peak of activity.
Limiting warming to 2°C may avoid 80% of heat-related deaths in Middle East and North Africa
Over 80% of predicted heat-related deaths in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) by the end of the century could be prevented if global warming is limited to 2°C, according to a modelling study.
The Great (World) Bank Robbery
The way to think of what is going down in respect of climate change is as a slow-motion stickup in broad daylight.
National
Young people urged by federal resources minister to work in mining to help the environment
Madeleine King calls on young people in Australia to consider employment in the resources sector to help the world decarbonise, saying the commitment to net zero emissions needs more mining, not less.
Liberals must shake off ‘nastiness’ to win back voters: Birmingham
The Liberal Party must ditch the culture wars and embrace action on climate change to stay relevant, one of its most senior figures says.
‘Bigger threat than China’: Defence leaders urge release of ‘scary’ climate report
Former Defence Force chief Admiral Chris Barrie says the effects of climate change are Australia’s greatest security risk.
Call for border tariff on carbon imports [$]
A key carbon market adviser to successive governments is calling on Anthony Albanese to move quickly to implement a border tariff on imported carbon-intensive products.
AAP fact check: Fishy figures underpin minister’s ocean plastic warning
Tanya Plibersek has revived an unproven claim that can be traced back to a 2016 report.
Gas is essential to clean energy transition [$]
West Australian editorial
The climate wars are over — the debate is done. The executives of Australia’s biggest mining companies all agreed that net zero was the goal and technology will get us there.
Wishful thinking on emissions risks investment exodus [$]
Judith Sloan
The safeguard mechanism is a clear case of wishful thinking based on theory rather than hard-nosed analysis and real world considerations.
“Swimming between the flags” on Climate policy threatens our future
David Shearman
At the last election, the Labor Party adopted a climate policy of “Swimming between the Flags”. This resulted in electoral success but it represented an unthinkable future for humanity.
The Liberal MP is on the brink of extinction – satire
The Shovel
An important conservation message
Victoria
Fat-tailed marsupials, wingless flies: The unique Victorian animals scientists want protected
They’re fierce, carnivorous and store energy in their tail like a camel’s hump. But despite their feisty nature, when researchers looked in grasslands where the fat-tailed dunnarts were common, they found none.
Moonee Valley Racecourse closer to opening up to public – but some locals push back
The racing club’s chief hopes its long-planned redevelopment will safeguard its future as it faces dwindling race attendance figures, but the community remains torn on the proposal.
New South Wales
Riverina irrigator fined $150,000 for illegally extracting $1.1m of groundwater
The Natural Resources Access Regulator is also prosecuting the alleged theft of water by another irrigator near Wentworth on the Murray
Toll roads review to start as Minns vows to deliver fairer system for drivers
Competition expert Allan Fels will be commissioned on Wednesday to lead the promised overhaul of Sydney’s controversial road tolling system.
‘Nature prescriptions’ can improve physical and mental health
Imagine that your doctor prescribes you a new treatment. It’s pleasant and enjoyable, and you can have as much as you want. Potential side effects include spontaneous euphoria and being in a good mood. Not to mention, it’s free and available all around you.
Offshore gas explorer presses its case with new NSW Labor government [$]
Asset Energy, which controls the PEP-11 offshore exploration zone off Newcastle, is amping up its bid to continue exploring the site under a new NSW government
Sinkholes are so common in the Hunter they have a mascot. Why does it happen?
From the surface, you might never know much of Newcastle in New South Wales has been built on top of mines — some more than 100 years old.
ACT
ACT cancels EV charger contract over concern ads will create ‘visual clutter’
The government says it’s still on track to deliver 50 chargers this year.
Tricky Territory: ACT fails to act on Mr Fluffy asbestos victims
Kim Wingerei
The scourge of Asbestos remain for some Canberrans, as owners of ‘Mr Fluffy’ homes are still waiting to be properly compensated.
Queensland
Glencore plans to leave $7b coal project in the ground, switches sights to hydrogen
Glencore has put a nail in the coffin of the massive $7 billion Wandoan coal project, but the mining giant has another plan to use a small section of the 1.2 billion tonnes of thermal coal to produce hydrogen.
Li-S claims a monster improvement in battery technology
Shares in Brisbane battery company Li-S Energy soared as high as 58 per cent on Tuesday morning after it announced it had made a major breakthrough in its development of a lightweight alternative to dominant lithium-ion alternative.
Queenslanders back to creating 540kg of waste each per year [$]
Queensland households are throwing out increasing amounts of rubbish as recycling rates dive, with a new waste report revealing meagre improvements during Covid-19 have been undone.
South Australia
Electric furnace deal paves way for green steel production in Whyalla
The company behind the Whyalla steelworks signs a $485 million deal that could end the use of coal in making steel in Whyalla.
Tasmania
Tassie’s ‘insane’ offshore wind farm potential [$]
A Tassie pair who helped bring to life the world’s first underwater restaurant in Norway now have their sights set on offshore wind farms back in their home state.
‘Carbon bomb detonated’ at Kooparoona Niara
Media release – Wilderness Society Tasmania
Hundreds of tonnes of wasted wood at an area of high conservation value forest at Quamby Bluff on the boundary of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area have been torched by Forestry Tasmania (trading as ‘Sustainable Timber Tasmania’ (FT/STT)).
Northern Territory
Uranium miner ERA hopes to raise $369 million to fund Ranger mine rehabilitation
Mining company ERA is hoping to raise $369 million to continue funding the rehabilitation of a uranium mine in Kakadu National Park.
Tiwi Islands traditional owners lodge human rights complaint against banks over $1.5b Santos loan
Traditional owners of the Tiwi Islands have lodged human rights grievances against 12 banks for their involvement in a $1.5 billion loan to Santos for its Barossa offshore gas project.
Next steps in push for action on buffel grass revealed [$]
A Red Centre environmental organisation is urgently fundraising for a buffel grass campaigner after three years of La Nina contributed to ‘very high’ fuel loads in Central Australia.
Western Australia
Twiggy’s $85m Ningaloo resort clears major hurdle
Billionaire Andrew Forrest’s plan for an $85 million eco-resort along the heritage-listed Ningaloo Coast has been given the go ahead by the environmental watchdog.
First Nations Elders win campaign to change name of Lake Monger
The Town of Cambridge council has unanimously supported a motion to investigate changing the name of Lake Monger in Wembley to Galup.
Claims fishing ban will lead to tourism boom a red herring [$]
Colin de Grussa
Several weeks ago, I called out the McGowan Labor Government for not releasing the socioeconomic impact studies it had undertaken to help it justify the establishment of the South Coast Marine Park.
Sustainability
England’s top beaches faced 8,500 hours of sewage dumping last year, study says
Many blue flag beaches were covered in waste, and Brighton was among the worst-hit, Lib Dem report shows
3 reasons why bidets are better than toilet paper
The typical person in the United States uses about 24 rolls of toilet paper per year. That’s roughly three times more than Europeans — and among the highest per capita consumption of any country.
European backsliding on electric vehicles is bad news for the climate
Attempts to put a brake on the transition to electrification and allow ‘climate neutral’ fuels after 2035 ignore the science — what’s needed is policy clarity now.
Ecotherapy: Find a nice, quiet spot where you can be alone with your thoughts
We’re experiencing disastrous climatic events because we treat the land – metaphorically speaking – like dirt.
Nature Conservation
Innovative method predicts the effects of climate change on cold-blooded animals
Statistical model shows how warming may affect distribution, abundance of amphibians, reptiles, fish, insects
Arctic geese rapidly find new migratory route to cope with climate change
Pink-footed geese have adapted quickly to a changing Arctic by radically shifting their breeding grounds and migration routes
A turning point for estuaries worldwide
As estuarine barriers are built in response to sea level rise, flooding, and salinization, more research is needed to better understand their implications for human activities and ecosystems.
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