Date: 19 June 2023 at 8:54:43 am AEST
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Jun 19
Post of the Day
Grattan Institute analysis recommends governments help households transition to electric, and ban new gas connections for homes and businesses
On This Day
Ecological Observance
Arbor Day – Paraguay
Climate Change
World needs to offer trillions, not billions in overseas support, says leading climate economist Avinash Persaud
IAG turns VC firepower onto AI climate start-ups [$]
The insurance giant has a new partnership with two Israeli firms as it attempts to mitigate the rising cost of disruptions related to extreme weather events.
Nearly 100 die as India battles sweltering heatwave
At least 96 people die in two of India’s most populous states over the last several days, with swaths of the country reeling from a heatwave.
Climate change takes a toll on island communities
The Federal Court has wrapped up on-country hearings in the Torres Strait Islands and Cairns for the Australian Climate Case, hearing stories of destruction.
Hopes launch of new electric car could spark price war in Australia
China’s BYD says the Dolphin will be ‘the most affordable, high-quality EV’ launched in the country
The Outback Way: Sealing the final stretches of Australia’s longest shortcut – video
The bone-jarring Outback Way from Laverton in Western Australia to Winton in Queensland is about to change with a commitment to seal the road by 2031.
Switching from gas to all-electric is better for your budget and the planet
Esther Suckling
Switching from gas to all-electric has significant financial and environmental benefits, but many households face hurdles that make it hard or impossible to do. Here’s how governments could make it easier
Higher power bills mean more questions about Origin Energy takeover [$]
Jennifer Hewett
While households and business face sharply higher power bills, stockbroker Angus Aitken is questioning the validity of Brookfield’s takeover offer.
Hydrogen is too far off to replace gas power [$]
Tony Wood
Electricity already does the same job as natural gas in millions of homes and small businesses and is steadily becoming net zero emissions.
Victoria
Labor infighting ramps up over Airport rail link [$]
Tensions have flared at a Labor Party conference amid calls for the government to get on with the stalled $10bn rail project.
One of Melbourne’s second cities could become a second-rate Surfers Paradise
There’s a great wall threatening to divide the bayside suburb, as the community splits over plans for towering luxury apartments on the foreshore.
New South Wales
Sound recordings give rare insight into mating habits of endangered bird
Recordings of the mating calls of male Australasian bitterns have sparked hope for the endangered bird.
Service boost to meet tram demand in inner west
Inner west commuters will get more than 100 extra weekly services with the introduction of four new trams to the light rail line.
The Cooks River once ran free and it should again
SMH editorial
Sydney has five rivers, and they course through our history like main arteries. Yet, we self-destructively neglect our most polluted waterway.
Queensland
An unwelcome visitor has ‘hitchhiked’ to Queensland’s idyllic Whitsundays
As the Whitsundays region battles a growing crazy ant problem, the cause of the outbreaks has been identified.
Tasmania
From powerline tragedy to cultural treasure: How art is being used to help endangered eagles
Each year more than a dozen endangered wedge-tailed eagles are killed in powerlines in Tasmania. An Aboriginal artist hopes her latest creations will raise awareness about the issue, and potentially help protect them from harm.
Tasmania’s green road resurfacing gets a new layer with a bitumen blend plant
One of the state’s major civil construction contractors is continuing its mission of reinventing road surfaces by expanding its operation of taking old tyres and turning it into bitumen.
Western Australia
Billions on the line as ego trumps ‘logic’ in race for Australian energy prize
Off Australia’s north coast, two of the world’s energy titans are entwined in a fierce duel. How it came to pass is as much a story about corporate egos as it is flawed strategies.
Indigenous group emerges as ally for miners fighting heritage law [$]
Resources groups, explorers and farmers say the West Australian proposal, due to start on July 1, is “shambolic” and will hold up new projects.
Cultural Heritage Act to be Roger Cook’s first real test [$]
West Australian editorial
He’s forged a career out of being the Mr Nice Guy of politics. Premier Roger Cook is by nature a consensus builder and wants to bring a more ‘collegiate’ approach to governing than that of his predecessor.
Sustainability
The best way to raise cows sustainably? Set them free
An old farming technique called silvopasture, which allows cows to graze on a variety of plants in forests and tree-filled pastureland, is seeing a resurgence across the world
Fifty years since I wrote ‘Animal Liberation’, here’s what has changed
Peter Singer
In interviews I gave while touring the US and UK to publicise an updated version of the book, the most frequent question was: have we made progress in our treatment of animals since 1975?
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