Date: 3 October 2023 at 9:02:24 am AEDT
To: Undisclosed recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Oct 3
Peter Boyer
Last week was a big moment in my life. I have long thought that no sane person could ever advocate for nuclear energy, given its undeniable connection to devastating weaponry, catastrophic operational failures and permanently toxic waste. Yet I did.
On This Day
Climate Change
Under2 Coalition and Regions4 join forces to catalyse regional climate change action
The Under2 Coalition and Regions4 Network, representing over 200 ambitious states and regions around the world, have signed a new agreement to improve communications and advocacy for subnational governments.
Report claiming net zero will cost UK trillions retracted due to ‘factual errors’
Rightwing thinktank Civitas mistakenly cost onshore wind power 10,000 times higher than reality and claimed bill would be £4.5tn
Slow route to net zero will worsen global climate crisis, IPCC chief warns
Even if the 2050 goal is still met, postponing action – as the UK has done – will cause more heat and damage
Climate solutions are necessary. So we’re dedicating a week to highlight them
Climate change is here. And this week, NPR is doing something new. We’re dedicating an entire week to focus on the search for climate solutions, with stories across our network.
Researchers propose a unified, scalable framework to measure agricultural greenhouse gas emissions
Increased government investment in climate change mitigation is prompting agricultural sectors to find reliable methods for measuring their contribution to climate change. With that in mind, scientists have proposed a supercomputing solution to help measure individual farm field-level greenhouse gas emissions.
The big idea: can we predict the climate of the future?
David Stainforth
We’re pouring money into computer models – but could they lead us astray?
The climate fight will be won in the appliance aisle
Robinson Meyer
Why I’m worried about the next phase of the Inflation Reduction Act’s rollout.
Young people! It’s not their job to save the world but they are suing Europe anyway – cartoon
First Dog on the Moon
There are court cases like this one happening all over the place now
National
Australia has more rooftop solar than coal power. What’s going wrong? [$]
Energy regulators and retailers are failing to manage the explosion of rooftop solar power and co-ordinate demand by users to stabilise the power grid.
Coal export values slide faster than expected, but volumes to rise [$]
But the latest Industry Department forecasts show an improvement in overall resource exports compared to a pessimistic view published earlier this year.
Solar power and a compostable toilet: what it takes to live off the grid in regional Australia
There are no electricity bills but also nobody picks up the rubbish. So why are off-the-grid homes growing in popularity?
How a classic computer game is giving native ants a fighting chance against invasive species
Scientists use Age of Empires to simulate ant warfare, with the aim of helping native ant species better fight their invasive counterparts.
The heat won’t stay: Temperatures to drop by as much as 20 degrees in 48-hours
The frequent spells of early spring heat resulted in Australia’s third warmest September on record since 1910, with a national temperature 2.4C above the climatological average.
‘The boss of Country’, not wild dogs to kill: living with dingoes can unite communities
Euan Ritchie et al
Aside from humans, dingoes are Australia’s largest land-based predator. They are arguably our most maligned, misunderstood, and mismanaged native species.
Making a mess of energy is starting to take its toll [$]
Australian editorial
It takes special powers to achieve it but Australia’s energy policy is a mess across all fronts.
Wind, solar investment crucial to cheaper energy [$]
Kate Thornton
Even if you love nuclear power, it would take decades for it to move its first electron by which time renewables has crossed the finish line and replaced coal before nuclear pulls on its sneakers.
Fire authorities are better prepared for this summer. The question now is – are you?
Graham Dwyer
Last year, campers had to evacuate because of floods. This year, they’re evacuating because of fire. Over Victoria’s long weekend, campers and residents in Gippsland had to flee fast-moving fires, driven by high winds.
Victoria
Evacuations ordered as bushfires ignite eastern Victoria
Raging fires in Victoria’s east have prompted emergency warnings for residents and campers amid unseasonably hot spring weather conditions.
From fire to floods: Emergency warning for parts of Gippsland [$]
Communities in the state’s east that were hit by bushfires at the weekend are now at risk of flash flooding in what’s been described as a “mixed weather phenomenon”.
‘There’s nothing like this’: Firefighters unleash new bushfire war machine
Dozens of fires are burning as the state braces for a potentially terrifying bushfire season. The RFS is firing up a new weapon to help save homes and lives.
William Cooper, John Batman and a single bend in the Maribyrnong [$]
Charlie Lewis
A brief history of a river, and two men who sought to shape its banks.
New South Wales
5,000 koalas saved: Koala hospital celebrates 50 years of conservation and research
The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, which began in the garage of its founders and went on to become a leading force in national research and conservation efforts, is celebrating 50 years.
Coogee Beach covered in rubbish after long weekend [$]
Council collected an estimated 4 tonnes of rubbish from Coogee Beach on each day of the long weekend
ACT
How to manage anxiety through Canberra’s next bushfire season [$]
Burra resident Rachel Clarke, who lives hours 20 minutes south of Canberra, started off the 2019/20 bushfire season by giving birth at an abandoned petrol station.
Queensland
New solar wind farm approved in Central Queensland
The Federal Labor Government has approved a new solar farm in Smoky Creek, Central Queensland, that will generate enough energy to power 200,000 households, while cutting carbon emissions by a million tonnes, each and every year.
Qld coal royalties take a hit as exports to plummet by $58bn [$]
While slowing European demand for Aussie coal is bad news for Queensland’s royalty billions, it’s being offset by growing demand in developing Asian nations.
Power bills to surge as copper thieves cost Qld $4.5m each year [$]
Skyrocketing rates of copper theft across Queensland have cost about $20m over five years, with Energy Australia confirming costs are passed onto the customer.
South Australia
Zero emission trucks exempt from weight limit laws in SA trial
Trucks weighing more than the current weight limit for heavy vehicles will be allowed to drive on specified South Australian roads under a new trial of low and zero emission vehicles.
Riverland grass fire will burn for days, CFS says [$]
It comes as the CFS responded to five other grass fires burning across the state amid hot and dry weather.
Tasmania
Fire permits now required in Southern Tasmania
Tasmania Fire Service (TFS) has declared that fire permits will be required for southern municipalities from 2am on 3 October 2023.
Boags Brewery cleans up weedy problem at Greens Beach
Around 50 Boags Brewery staff put their gardening gloves on and tackled a weed infestation at Greens Beach on Monday.
Northern Territory
Fears for popular hot springs as project could extract 2,300 Olympic pools of water a year
A lucrative water licence held by a station near Mataranka Hot Springs, which ignited a political scandal a decade ago, has never been used in full. But its new owners say they’ll need the full amount for a new project.
Western Australia
With a grunt, a coo and a wheeze, echidnas recorded communicating for the first time
Some of the most elusive sounds in nature — echidnas talking to each other — have finally been recorded. Could this be how the spiky creatures flirt during breeding season?
Toxic PFAS leaches into groundwater near waste facility in Perth’s south
Damaged concrete has resulted in contaminated water leaching into groundwater in Henderson, according to the state’s environmental regulator.
Bushfire downgraded as firefighters work to contain blaze
An emergency-level bushfire in WA’s Great Southern region has been downgraded to watch and act as firefighters work to contain the blaze, about 20 minutes from Albany.
Sustainability
‘I’ve picked up 1.2m cigarette butts!’: five litter loathers who refuse to let it lie
Sex toys, handbags and the occasional gun – the rivers, beaches and streets of the UK are covered in discarded waste. But every day, people are fighting back
We’re missing a critical opportunity to prevent childhood cancer
Since health officials began collecting data in the 1970s, charts tracking cancer in children and young adults are distressingly uniform, with diagonal lines steadily climbing upward.
Nature Conservation
‘Happy news’ as endangered Sumatran rhino, the smallest and hairiest species, is born in Indonesia
Indonesia’s government says the rare Sumatran rhinoceros was born last week and stood up 45 minutes after her birth.
Sara Labrousse and Michelle LaRue
The long-term future looks bleak for Emperor penguins, but our new research shows some birds may be able to survive in certain conditions, depending on where they live, at least for the next few decades.
Redonda: Tiny Caribbean island’s transformation to wildlife haven
Once a desolate rock, the island of Redonda is now a protected area bursting with biodiversity.
Seaweed is piling up on beaches. This robot might be its match
Blooms of sargassum, a leafy brown seaweed, have increased in size and number over the past decade. As the blooms have grown, so too has their impact on coastal communities.
Sustainable protection of rapidly subsiding coastlines with mangroves
Along the Asian coast lines there are many areas where rural communities experience alarming rates of sea level rises due to land subsidence up to 10 cm per year. This causes tremendous challenges on how to live there and protect these coasts. Scientists have now investigated the potential and limitation of mangrove restoration as a cost-effective and sustainable solution for coastal protection in rapidly subsiding areas.
Maelor Himbury | Library Volunteer
Australian Conservation Foundation | www.acf.org.au
p | 1800 223 669 t | @AusConservation
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