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Date: 4 September 2023 at 8:57:40 am AEST
To: Undisclosed recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Sep 4
Post of the Day
There’s a battle over carbon emerging from the war in Ukraine
Putting a figure on the carbon emissions tied to Russia’s invasion might help people outside of Ukraine understand the massive stakes of the conflict and care more about it.
On This Day
Ecological Observance
National Wildlife Day – USA
Climate Change
World falls behind on climate targets, but there’s better news on emissions [$]
The world is falling behind on targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, a new analysis finds.
Vivek Ramaswamy is teaching the GOP to weaponize climate
The candidate is demonstrating a new way of Republican campaigning: with climate change front and center.
As the UN designs a new carbon market, experts call for a different approach
“The time for offsetting is over.”
IPCC models wrong again on impact of farm dams [$]
Australian editorial
Fresh research a reminder that the climate science is never settled.
The climate doesn’t care who builds batteries
Editorial Board ANU
Like it or not, the structure of global trade in green technologies and the raw materials required for their manufacture is being decided in an era when geopolitics trump markets, and the WTO’s credibility to check the abuse of national security exceptions is near rock bottom.
Maui disaster sees off the climate-change ambulance chasers
Holman W Jenkins Jr
Nothing is funny in the aftermath of the Maui wildfire, which swept through a town and killed at least 115. But it’s noteworthy that Joe Biden refrained from his usual clamour about a climate crisis.
National
Do ‘wildlife ahead’ signs actually prevent collisions between cars and animals?
Scattered across the country are iconic yellow diamonds with the silhouette of a native (and some feral) animals. Many of these signs don’t have any words on them, yet drivers and the public understand what they represent. But that doesn’t mean we act on it.
Covid cycling boom has ended with just one-third of Australians riding in 2023
Riding most popular in Victoria and the Northern Territory with Tasmania at the bottom of the pile, new survey suggests
Farm dam emission claims spring a leak [$]
Carbon emission estimates for some Australian dams have been massively overestimated, new research reveals.
Tesla upgrades its cheapest electric car in Australia
The second most popular electric vehicle in Australia has scored a makeover after Tesla revealed upgrades to its entry-level car.
Snowy 2.0 executive bonuses scrapped [$]
Snowy Hydro chief executive Dennis Barnes has revealed the board will not pay millions in dollars in bonuses to top executives this year, after mega pumped hydro’s cost blew out to $12bn.
With bees responsible for pollinating much of the food we find at the supermarket and green grocer, authorities remain committed to trying to eradicate the recently introduced varroa mite before it gains too much of a foothold.
After Australia’s warmest winter on record, the government approves more coal mining
The government’s decision to expand a coal mining project has appalled environmental groups, as Australia’s emissions rise and its climate targets slip further out of reach.
Coalmine approvals in Australia this year could add 150m tonnes of CO2 to atmosphere
Expansion of metallurgical coalmine in Queensland will add 31m tonnes alone with activists accusing Albanese government of being reckless
How long can Australia wait to introduce new car pollution limits?
While traditional car makers, electric vehicle manufacturers and green groups alike support changes to limit vehicle emissions, how quickly they should be implemented is a different story.
US clean energy drive fuels shortage of engineers in Australia
Australia has to make the case it is an attractive place to live with a solid commitment to renewable energy to counter America’s Inflation Reduction Act, experts say
Green tape, IR shake-up threatens critical minerals boom: miners [$]
A report by the mining industry warns Australia risks missing out on billions of dollars unless it makes investment in critical minerals more attractive.
Voters are distressed by the ‘moral blindness’ of corporate Australia, says Roy Morgan
Australians have never been more distrusting of corporate Australia. That’s what researchers at Roy Morgan have found.
New plastic bans in Australia to reduce landfill and waterways pollution – video
New plastic bans come into effect across three Australian states today as the phase-out of single use items continues across the country. The federal government estimates around 130,000 tonnes of plastic leaks into waterways and the ocean every year. Environmental advocates are calling for more to be done.
No mow: is Australia’s long love affair with lawn ending?
James Bradley
Over centuries lawn has come to dominate not just Australian cities, but cities around the world. Might we be ready for something else?
The cheapest reliable energy system to meet Australia’s climate targets? Solar and wind, no question
Graham Readfearn
There has been a lot of commentary about how to measure the cost of renewables – but much of it misses the point
Memo to ABC: on climate, stick to the facts [$]
Chris Kenny
This week Paul Barry studiously ignored the ABC’s catastrophism and was dismissive of what we are doing to our children. We should explain to our kids they will not face an unliveable planet.
Mental ill health taking a toll amid dual climate change and cost of living crises
Melanie Poole
Concerns about climate change have apparently been crowded out by the cost of living. The ACT Council of Social Service (ACTCOSS) reported last month that people are struggling to transition to renewable energy sources. But cost of living and climate change are not opposing crises to rank higher or lower on your list of worries. These two issues are fundamentally linked, even if our capacity to care about both is being stretched right now.
Fewer of us are cycling – here’s how we can reverse the decline
Matthew Mclaughlin and Peter McCue
Rates of cycling are falling in Australia, a national report released today shows. More people started riding bikes early in the pandemic, but that hasn’t lasted. The percentages of people who cycle are lower now than in 2011.
The humble spotted gum is a world class urban tree. Here’s why
Gregory Moore
Most of us find it very difficult to identify different species of eucalypt. You often hear people say they all look the same.
Australia’s greenhouse emissions are still rising [$]
Mike Seccombe
New figures show Australia has little chance of meeting its emissions targets. After a period of flatlining figures, the numbers are going up sharply.
John Hewson
Most governments don’t think, plan and manage with a view to the longer term – but Treasurer Jim Chalmers has claimed the latest intergenerational report is the basis for action. These reports, typically published every five years to provide an outlook on the next few decades of economic challenges, are pointless if their conclusions aren’t reflected in annual budgets and other policy initiatives.
How to respond faithfully to climate change
Simple steps you can take today
2023-24 bushfire season is building like the 2011 Northern Territory fire season
Stephen Sutton
2011 was the worst year of my life. I was living in the Northern Territory, working as chief fire control officer and that year, 67 per cent of the territory burnt.
Victoria
Enviro-vandals target ‘gas guzzler’ cars in wealthy enclave
SUV owners in an exclusive Melbourne suburb have been targeted by an extremist environmental group on a tyr
Climate activists let down this Toorak driver’s tyre. He sees their point
The Tyre Extinguisher activist group say they will let down more tyres across Melbourne soon, having first chosen Toorak because of its reputation for big cars.
Most extreme climate protestor disruptions in Melbourne [$]
From gluing hands to paintings to laying down in front of traffic, environmental activists have disrupted Melbourne in many ways. Here are some of the most bizarre.
How Melbourne’s dream of a grand Southern Cross Station faded
When the new Southern Cross Station opened in 2006, it was touted as a new gateway to the city, but 17 years later that optimism and sense of purpose has all but vanished.
The Suburban Rail Loop faces a funding hole. This group could be forced to pay for the shortfall
Economists and property tax experts say the revenue measures proposed in the SRL East business case would raise billions of dollars less than what the government needs.
Fury as Yarra Council axes 25 mature trees [$]
Residents are angry that the Greens-leaning Yarra council has chopped down dozens of healthy native trees at Burnley Golf Course as part of its $2.2m revamp of the site.
The congestion-busting change that would transform school pick-ups [$]
Traffic around schools nearly doubles on average during morning and afternoon pick-up and drop-off times compared with the rest of the day.
Why Millennials, migrants are ditching Melbourne [$]
Millennials and migrants are leaving Melbourne to live in the regions with few if any regrets — but their escape to the country is straining resources in some towns.
New South Wales
Water management is in the spotlight after the NSW Chief Scientist’s office handed down its findings and recommendations into a mass fish kill in Menindee.
Residents disgusted after litter hunt provides roadworks update council refused to give
A hinterland resident collecting rubbish has found construction company documents with the estimated completion date for major works on Black Mountain’s damaged access road, details residents say they have been unable to get from Noosa Shire.
Minds were blown’: These scientists were stunned at what’s happening on the NSW North Coast
Labor promised to create the Great Koala National Park. Critics fear government loggers are destroying it before they are locked out.
‘A massive step forward’: Rare glossy black cockatoo nests discovered in bushfire-damaged country
For the first time in more than 20 years, glossy black cockatoo nests are discovered on the NSW Mid North Coast, in an area ravaged during the Black Summer bushfires.
How feeding ‘little fat balls’ to coral could combat damage from climate change
A team of scientists are getting creative about how to provide these underwater gardens with the best chance of survival against global warming, starting with coral found in Sydney Harbour.
‘Gift to developers’: Missing rescue data casts doubts on plans to protect wildlife in NSW
Leading wildlife organisations estimate about 400,000 records of rescues are missing, including about 28,000 threatened species rescues from the government’s tracking database.
Sydney’s running out of water, and we haven’t been paying attention
Greater Sydney’s population will grow to 8.3 million people by 2056, with an estimated increase in annual water demand of 50 to 65 per cent, or up to 360 gigalitres per year – that’s 144,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Keep coal power station partially open, says Minns government review
A report says that keeping Australia’s largest coal-fired power station partially open for an extra two years would boost the reliability of the state’s energy supply.
Minns reckons ‘CoalKeeper’ will keep our lights on. They weren’t going out [$]
Matt Kean
Premier Chris Minns is preparing to squander about $3 billion of taxpayers’ money to extend the life of the coal-fired Eraring power station.
ACT
A temporary and permanent park planned for Acton waterfront [$]
Canberrans are being asked for their views on the future of west basin with consultation opening on the development of a park on the Acton waterfront.
Canberra’s top growth suburbs revealed by Australian Bureau of Statistics
The centre of Canberra’s population is continuing to edge further north and west as families flock to high-growth areas on the fringe of Gungahlin and the Molonglo Valley.
Queensland
Albanese govt slammed for ‘reckless’ mine approval
Environmental groups have accused the Albanese government of recklessness and hypocrisy after it approved a major coalmine expansion in central Queensland.
Clearing of trees ‘remains too high’ [$]
Tree clearing in the Great Barrier Reef catchment has peek bodies concerned, five years on from a Palaszczuk government’s crack down on tree clearing.
South Australia
Bird breeding boom as Murray River flood plains explode with colour
Native bird species went on a breeding frenzy during the Murray River flood and increased flows from upstream are feeding even more new life.
Tasmania
An insidious cancer has ravaged Tasmanian devil populations in recent decades but researchers are now optimistic devil numbers can bounce back.
A mining company wants to explore Nick’s farm for rare earth elements — but he’s worried about what would happen to his farm if exploration turns into actual digging.
Feds step up funding for Tas power link to the mainland
The federal government will now shoulder a larger share of the financial burden to complete the Marinus Link energy project connecting Tasmania to the mainland.
‘Ripper deal’: Marinus Link rethink lauded, but pitfalls remain [$]
Business and energy market players such as Hydro Tasmania and TasNetworks have lauded a new plan to lock in at least one of two undersea interconnector cables, but Labor say hidden costs remain.
Allowing Tassie to host nuclear vessels would make state a ‘target’: Woodruff [$]
The Port of Hobart could host nuclear-powered vessels, after a safety agency gave it the go-ahead. But Greens leader Rosalie Woodruff has warned of potentially disastrous consequences.
Greens promise free bus transport [$]
Media release – Vica Bayley MP, Greens Transport spokesperson
In the wake of the successful 2022 trial of free public transport, the Greens will this week table a Bill in parliament that will lock in cost-free fares for all journeys on Metro busses into the future.
Bass Strait test drilling oil spill fears
Media release – Australian Marine Conservation Society
An oil spill from American fossil fuel giant ConocoPhillips’ test drilling program west of Bass Strait could have major impacts as far north as Jervis Bay on the New South Wales coast, the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) said today after the company released part of its draft Environment Plan to start its public consultation.
Northern Territory
Land clearing fine for major NT station labelled ‘a slap on the wrist’
Tarwoo Station, where a major cotton gin is due to open this year, will be fined more than $7,000 after it was found to have committed land clearing offences.
NT chief minister faced expulsion from Labor’s Left faction over pro-fracking stance
Natasha Fyles faced a motion to expel her from Territory Labor’s Left faction over the NT government’s decision to green-light a full-scale fracking industry.
Western Australia
This park is home to millions of ancient artworks. But development is closing in
Traditional owners charged with protecting the world’s largest collection of rock art are travelling to Sydney to endorse an application for potential United Nation’s World Heritage Listing.
Parasite leaves billionaire Andrew Forrest’s Carnarvon oyster business on the rocks
The detection of a parasite native to north-west waters has halted development of an oyster industry in Carnarvon, with Australian food company Harvest Road removing its baskets and infrastructure as a result.
This award-winning photo isn’t of a dragon’s eye — it’s a fungus growing through concrete
A photography exhibition in Manjimup, Western Australia, helps highlight the ecological importance of what some say is a forgotten part of the planet’s biodiversity.
Woodside, Chevron say WA faces gas supply crunch as scientists warn of ‘climate time bomb’
Government and industry say gas is needed to fill the gaps as the state transitions to renewables, as climate scientists push for “smart and clean” over “dumb and dirty”.
‘Walking billboard’ for Woodside: parents want end to fossil fuel company sponsorship of WA Nippers
New campaign supported by Greenpeace urges Surf Life Saving WA to scrap $5m naming rights deal
Perth couple dedicated their lives to protect our forests
In more ways than one, Andrew Thamo and his late partner of 43 years, Chrissy Sharp, have dedicated their lives to trees.
Forrest’s wild green hydrogen dream doesn’t hold water [$]
Nick Cater
Few in the cosily woke world of corporate investment have been prepared to call out Andrew Forrest’s reckless bet on his ‘miracle molecule’.
Sustainability
Fragments of spent rockets and other debris are clogging up the area above the stratosphere. As tensions ratchet up on Earth, some space agencies fear the next frontier of conflict could be above us.
Many Pacific nations face similar conditions to Maui, where flammable African grasses have overtaken land cleared for agriculture. In New Caledonia, communities are now planting fire-resistant trees that can act as green fire breaks and slow the spread of blazes.
How do we get urban density ‘just right’? The Goldilocks quest for the ‘missing middle’
Elek Pafka and Merrick Morley
Debates over densities in our cities divide between advocates of low-rise detached housing and supporters of higher-density towers. Both offer little diversity.
Labor’s new Murray-Darling Basin Plan deal entrenches water injustice for First Nations
Grant Rigney et al
Once again, First Nations in the Murray-Darling Basin have been shortchanged in water reform and shortchanged in the water market. It’s time to listen and actually deliver tangible outcomes.
Environment: Eat more plants to save the world
Peter Sainsbury
Vegans and vegetarians do less damage to the environment than meat-eaters. TotalEnergies and World Rugby team up in Paris to play a dirty game. Tips to become a better recycler.
Nature Conservation
Iceland allows whaling to resume in ‘massive step backwards’
Activists say that whales will still suffer agonising deaths despite new regulations and monitoring
Seven new ‘walking leaf’ insect species discovered
Researchers used genetic analysis to identify species that cannot be distinguished by appearance alone
New research shows direct link between greenhouse gas emissions and polar bear decline
Scientists say their findings could help close a legal loophole that enables the federal government to avoid considering greenhouse gas emissions impacts on threatened and endangered species.
The Tories watering down protections for polluted rivers? I smell a rat
Stewart Lee
One thing the Conservatives have achieved: the comprehensive choking to death of our waterways
Maelor Himbury | Library Volunteer
Australian Conservation Foundation | www.acf.org.au
p | 1800 223 669 t | @AusConservation
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Maelor Himbury | Library Volunteer
Australian Conservation Foundation | www.acf.org.au
p | 1800 223 669 t | @AusConservation