Date: 10 July 2023 at 8:02:46 am AEST
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Jul 10
Post of the Day
Australia’s annual plastic consumption produces emissions equivalent to 5.7m cars, analysis shows
Plastics consumed nationally in 2019-20 created 16m tonnes of greenhouse gases, report says
On This Day
Martyrdom of the Bab – Baha’i
Ecological Observance
Global Energy Independence Day
Climate Change
Global heat record: Where was it hot this week?
The records that were broken were another reminder of how vast and interconnected the Earth is as climate change effects pile up.
The planet heats, the world economy cools – the real global recession is ecological
Larry Elliott
Governments focus on the climate when they have few other economic worries. That can no longer be the case
Germany’s sobering lesson for Albanese on climate ambitions
Rob Harris
The unfortunate truth for progressive leaders around the world is that populist politics is alive and kicking when it comes to efforts to decarbonise economies.
David Stern and Khalid Ahmed
Carbon emissions from China are growing faster now than before COVID-19 struck, data show, dashing hopes the pandemic may have put the world’s most polluting nation on a new emissions trajectory.
National
Call to cut emissions by almost three-quarters by 2035
A jet fuel emissions trading scheme for domestic airlines and a new regime for heavy vehicles could help slash emissions more than 70 per cent by 2035.
Underground coal mines the ‘clear losers’ as pollution caps tighten
Australia’s underground coal mines will be among the polluters worst-affected by a federal government clampdown on industrial emissions as new analysis shows the decision to use a single “industry average” to set legislated limits will have an unequal impact across the mining sector.
Electric vehicle sales accelerate, but not fast enough
Electric vehicle sales in Australia are accelerating as drivers get behind the wheel of zero or low emission models, but they are not being adopted quickly enough for the carbon-intensive transport sector to meet NSW, Victoria and Queensland’s 2030 targets of EVs being half of all new car sales.
Caps on plastic use needed as recycling not enough
Australia is second on the world’s list of worst offenders for plastic consumption.
Immigration is at breaking point [$]
Andrew Bolt
The sheer size of our legal immigration intake is a challenge when housing is scarce, our cities are bursting, real wage growth is stagnant and our cultural elites preach a toxic hatred of Australia.
Politicians have run the basin plan like a scam for too long [$]
Richard Beasley
During the last federal election campaign, the now Albanese government made a commitment to “deliver” an extra “450GL of water for the environment” that has been overdue under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan for more than a decade. It was a welcome pledge to steer the plan away from years of neglect and unlawfulness.
Why electric cars are almost cheaper than petrol peers
Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson
The sticker price of electric vehicles is falling in Australia, with one-third slipping under the $40,000 barrier this week and one of the country’s most popular models reduced to its lowest cost to date.
Mining is our once-in-a-generation net zero opportunity [$]
Tania Constable
Australia must remain internationally competitive at attracting mining investment to play a lead role supplying critical transition minerals, metals and energy.
Victoria
Lake Eppalock set to spill as anxious residents call for more help
Worried residents gathered at Lake Eppalock in central Victoria are calling for the state government to release more water, fearing more flooding if there is significant rain.
Indigenous mentors help rare quolls beat extinction
Traditional owner groups have emotionally returned a previously-extinct carnivorous marsupial to land in western Victoria.
‘Overcrowded’: Cheap train tickets a hit, but passengers forced to stand for hours
In May, Public Transport Minister Ben Carroll encouraged commuters who had to stand on V/Line trains to “use the hand holds available”.
New South Wales
Road to renewable ruin: NSW turbines unable to be transported [$]
A bridge and a railway underpass will have to be demolished or bypassed – at a cost of upwards of $340 million – to give trucks transporting massive wind turbines access to new renewable energy zones in country NSW.
First look at the park that will transform the final stage of Barangaroo
The state government has selected the First Nations-led winning design for the park that will almost complete the controversial Barangaroo mega-project.
ACT
Projects to tackle algae-plagued waterways [$]
The ACT government is hopeful water quality at the algae-plagued Lake Tuggeranong will be improved through a series of projects and upgrades to stormwater drains.
Queensland
‘Russian roulette’ for Great Barrier Reef as El Nino heats up coral-bleaching risk
Fears of further damage to Australia’s living underwater wonder are rising due to looming weather conditions and the underlying trend of global warming.
Insurer walks away from Adani’s Carmichael coal mine
But the company says Lloyd’s of London’s exit will not leave it “beleaguered” and that operations are “running like clockwork”.
Revealed: Great Keppel’s future takes shape under new master plan [$]
A draft of the Great Keppel Island redevelopment master plan includes options for new eco resorts and precincts, a village centre, along with locations for a barge or jetty.
Western Australia
New Aboriginal heritage laws ‘shut down’ tree planting event [$]
A well publicised event to plant trees at Wonthella Bush Reserve was cancelled due to confusion caused by WA’s new heritage legislation.
Dunsborough residents sound alarm over fears of ‘toxic’ tip leak
It’s a tourism hub lauded for its pristine beaches and culinary credentials, but a group of residents in the state’s South West fear a toxic tip leak could threaten their way of life.
The town that landed a gold mine but wishes it hadn’t
A decade after Newcrest opened its gold mine the people of of Cadia are worried. And the EPA has the mine in its sights.
Sustainability
Anxiety grows across Asia Pacific nations ahead of planned Fukushima wastewater release
Worries about the safety of Japan’s planned release of Fukushima’s wastewater is sparking protests and boycotts in China and South Korea, but experts say the anxiety is not based in scientific facts.
Shoppers with a conscience driving demand for ethically farmed wool
Do you like to know where the fibre in your clothes comes from before you buy? If so, you’re not alone.
Japan sits on top of a huge reserve of clean, cheap power. Some call it ‘devil energy’
There’s nothing quite like soaking in one of Japan’s natural hot springs. But resort owners are refusing to share the geothermal energy reserves that could transform this resource-poor nation.
Study: US domestic oil and gas production responsible for $77 billion in health impacts yearly
Texas Standard reporter Raul Alonzo writes about a new report that tallied thousands of excess deaths and health impacts tied to pollution, with Texas among the most impacted states.
Your car’s tires are swirling donuts of pollution
Planning a summer road trip? What to know about two major sources of pollution coming from your car: tires and brakes.
Climate change: Could daffodil diet for livestock help?
Daffodils have long been seen as a symbol of Wales – but could they also be used to save the climate?
Nature Conservation
A Cairns-sized area of the Amazon was felled, and yet there’s optimism. This is why
Deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon intensified under former president Jair Bolsonaro. Now, there are signs of hope for the rainforest.
Lake Okeechobee’s toxic algae blooms threaten Florida and could get worse
Electric green algal blooms are spreading, threatening wildlife, pets, people and cities. And algae season is only getting started.
Nations call for cooperation in use of Nile waters as climate change threatens flow
The Nile, Africa’s longest river, may have quenched the thirst of millions of people and animals for years, amid quarrels on which country should have more or less, but now even those who felt they got little water compared to counterparts should expect even less because of climate change.
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