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Date: 25 March 2024 at 08:44:19 GMT+11
To: Undisclosed recipients:;
Subject: Daily Links Mar 25
Post of the Day
‘Planting a tree is hope in action’: the people regenerating urban habitats and growing community
Volunteer-led rewilding projects are helping restore degraded habitats in Australian cities, providing opportunities to connect with the planet and others
On This Day
Shushan Purim – Israel
Feast of the Annunciation – Western Christianity
Holi – Hinduism
Holy Week – Christianity
Hola Mohalla – Sikhism
Climate Change
‘Climateflation’ tipped to drive up food prices, new study finds
Food prices and overall inflation will rise as temperatures climb with climate change, a new study by an environmental scientist and the European Central Bank finds.
Scientists struggle to explain ‘really weird’ spike in world temperatures
Extreme temperatures have shattered the grimmest expectations of a warming world and tested climate models.
Geologists reject declaration of Anthropocene epoch
Critics say it is a missed chance to recognise that the planet irrevocably left its natural state in the mid-20th century
Thousands of people in Ladakh demand action from the Indian government to protect the region’s ecology and greater autonomy over how their land is used.
Have we entered an era of global cooling?
Tom Harris
With all the sound and fury about global warming, an important, and many scientists now assert, more likely scenario is usually ignored-the possibility of far more dangerous global cooling.
A Republican victory in 2024 will be a climate disaster
Lucy Hamilton
After the Super Tuesday results signalled Trump would become the Republican presidential candidate in November, a first promise was that “We’re going to drill baby drill.” One of the most important reasons to watch American politics this year is that a Trump victory will push the world faster towards catastrophic climate heating.
How do climate scientists look after themselves? – cartoon
Fiona Katauskas
National
Renewable targets lost in transition [$]
Australia’s biggest energy companies have delivered a brutal verdict on the green power switch, conceding big project delays are inevitable amid community opposition.
Audi issues second electric car recall due to fire risk
More than 100 electric vehicles have been urgently recalled in Australia due to a serious battery fault that could “lead to a vehicle fire”.
Renewable land grab leaves prime paddocks in production
A renewable energy land agent says farmers are happy with projects on paddocks they can’t see from their porch, as long as it’s their land making the money.
AAP FactCheck: Climate funding claim way off the money
A self-styled “income acceleration coach” claims climate activists are being handed tens of billions of dollars of taxpayer money.
Anjali Sharma on lobbying parliament from her dorm room – 7am podcast
Today, climate activist and contributor to The Saturday Paper Anjali Sharma, on her campaign to legislate a duty of care and taking the fight to Parliament House.
Carbon Hopes: The tree planting project improving lives – video
A plan to plant millions of trees on two rundown farms has attracted a big investment from a global cosmetics company wanting to offset its carbon emissions.
Battery storage the next green energy frontier
James Curtis
As government and large organisations grapple with the realities of delivering renewable energy as part of the energy transition and meeting the net zero targets, its essential that we leave no one behind.
Justine Bell-James
Australia has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to halt and reverse biodiversity loss through ambitious law and policy reform.
Eric Vanderduys et al
Flying foxes, or fruit bats, are familiar to many Australians. So it may come as a surprise to learn two of the four mainland species, both grey-headed and spectacled flying foxes, are threatened with extinction.
How fake gas frights and fanciful forecasts keep fossil fuels burning for longer
Michael West
High prices have crushed the consumption of gas, yet government and industry forecasters claim gas use will triple over the next 20 years. Michael West checks out this extraordinary ‘leap of faith’ in the expectations for fossil fuels and the latest gas scare campaign.
Green policy car crash complicates Labor’s election outlook [$]
Jacob Greber
A series of competing and interlinked priorities are colliding in Labor’s Senate, where all eyes are turning to the next election.
‘May take 10 years’: Since 1952, Australia’s attempts to go nuclear have failed again and again [$]
Anton Nilsson
The Coalition wants Australia to go nuclear. Perhaps it’s time for a bit of a history lesson.
Labor’s chance to protect youth over fossil fuels [$]
Anjali Sharma
The duty of care bill currently before the Senate gives this government a chance to put the interests of young people before those of the fossil fuel industry.
How to create your own backyard rainforest [$]
Jackie French
I spent half of my life assuming that soft tree ferns (Dicksonia antarctica) needed deep, rich, well-drained rainforest soil to survive and a botanist in a white lab coat and specialist growing mix to propagate them … and I didn’t bother to find out any more.
Joint deforestation investigation exposes broken national environment law
A joint investigation by three of Australia’s leading environmental organisations has uncovered multiple instances of large-scale deforestation which were not referred to the federal government for approval.
Climate-conscious investors put nuclear dead last on list of desirable Australian ventures
Fewer than one in 10 investors exploring new investments in the technology, with most preferring renewables
‘Recycling tax’ fear as industry urges fund audit [$]
Recyclers are pushing for a full audit into the $1bn Recycling Modernisation Fund, warning it is not sufficiently helping to reduce the volume of recyclables being exported overseas
More fuel efficient vehicles? Aussies are behind that, poll shows [$]
Fresh polling suggests that the majority of Australians back the idea of new standards that would require carmakers to bring more fuel efficient vehicles into the country
Not in my backyard: Liberals, Nationals go cold on nuclear
Coalition MPs are strongly in favour of nuclear energy – but they’re not so sure about where to put the power plants.
Labor dissent sees Plibersek’s veto on offshore gas project rules restored
Paul Karp
Internal lobbying has added safeguards to a power for the resources minister to water down consultation requirements
Green policy car crash complicates Labor’s election outlook [$]
Jacob Greber
A series of competing and interlinked priorities are colliding in Labor’s Senate, where all eyes are turning to the next election.
The best plan for the Murray Darling Basin is clear [$]
Bill McClumpha
Time is fast running out for the degraded Murray Darling system, but 2024 brings a crucial window of opportunity to finally deliver in full the reform necessary for its sustainability – the Murray Darling Basin Plan.
Victoria
Overhead powerlines the preferred method for connecting offshore wind to grid, agency announces
The government agency planning the route of transmission lines for offshore wind in Gippsland rules out putting the lines underground because of the high cost.
The clandestine exploits of Melbourne’s tyre dumpers – and the squad hunting them down [$]
Illegal tyre dumping is soaring in the city’s outer suburbs following a ban on exporting waste tyres, and regulators are scrambling to catch the perpetrators.
Solar farm ‘threat to winery region’ [$]
Heathcote locals fear Victoria’s new planning regime will see their objections to the solar farm ignored, despite their belief that it contravenes state and local government planning guidelines.
Months-long delays send $4bn regional rail project off the rails [$]
Three country rail line upgrades that are part of Victoria’s $4bn Regional Rail Revival project have veered off track, with delays of more than a year and huge cost blowouts expected.
How rising sea levels could sink a grand plan to transform Frankston
Melbourne Water will not back a masterplan to densify Frankston’s city centre over a lack of consideration of flood risks and coastal inundation caused by climate change.
Victorians missing out on bill relief [$]
Victoria’s Energy Ombudsman says she is concerned that people aren’t getting support as they feel the cost of living crunch
New Victorian government amendments will see councils prohibited from allowing houses to be built on less than 40ha of farmland within 100km of Melbourne.
New South Wales
This natural phenomenon happens 60cm below the beach. Now scientists have found a way to unveil it
From the beach to the world stage, these baby turtles inspire a love for the endangered species after being plucked from their nests at night to be hatched in incubators.
Researcher warns of killing zones inside new koala park
NSW’s proposed koala park will be full of holes and won’t protect the state’s dwindling population from deadly logging threats, a new research paper warns.
Here comes another busload of broken promises [$]
Transport unions and the opposition have pounced on the Minns government’s failure to bring its commitments to build locally to reality.
ACT
Many cycling deaths are preventable
Canberra Times editorial
Queensland
The state rescinded its decision over Carmichael mine fly-in, fly-out jobs but it’s unlikely to be the end of the dispute
‘Tourists ask a lot of questions’: Great Barrier Reef guides face up to bleaching tragedy
Tour boat divers have long borne witness to mass bleaching events. Once reluctant to wade into discussions about global heating, they are now opening up
‘Large site’: Minister tries to quell koala death fears in QSAC upgrade [$]
The environment minister has responded to criticism over the impact to koalas in the controversial upgrades to Brisbane’s athletics stadium in time for the Olympics.
‘Equivalent to sewage’: Qld island contaminated with dangerous sludge [$]
Dangerous amounts of muddy sludge are contaminating the once pristine waters off popular Moreton Bay with experts warning of health risks to swimmers and marine life.
Bushcare warrior invents the ‘asparagus assassin’ to fight one of our worst weeds
Queensland man Ron Gooch has been at war with the asparagus fern for decades. He hopes a tool he’s created for removing the invasive species will help to turn the tide.
Brisbane dugong habitat now a muddy ‘dead zone’ thanks to human interference, scientists say
When a strong easterly wind blows across Moreton Bay, its crystal waters can quickly become awash with mud. Experts say the issue is killing sea plants and the vulnerable species that feed on them.
South Australia
Quest for cleaner energy: More hydrogen to power SA households [$]
Renewable hydrogen will help be a part of powering nearly 4000 South Australian homes and businesses – reaching an Australian-first benchmark.
South Australia’s world-leading renewable transition is attracting flood of new industry
Giles Parkinson
Will a grid based around wind and solar kill manufacturing and industry? It’s what the naysayers – the Coalition and conservative agitators – want you to believe, but the experience in South Australia, which leads the world in the uptake of wind and solar, proves the opposite.
Tasmania
Labor concedes Tasmanian election, leaving Liberals to negotiate with new crossbench
It is the third election loss for the party under Rebecca White’s leadership, who says it is clear the Liberal Party will be asked by the governor to form a government.
Nearly 800 trees axed after pest infestation
Hundreds of trees have been felled at Hope Valley Reservoir and a Tea Tree Gully reserve amid an insect infestation of giant pine scale.
Tassie’s rich power exports damned by hydro hypocrites [$]
Nick Cater
Reducing Tasmanian retail power prices relative to other states would help an incoming government attract new investment, particularly in the power-hungry digital economy.
Western Australia
The electricity network operator began the private power pole inspection program in 2021 after a fallen pole on private property in the Perth Hills sparked the 2014 Parkerville bushfires, leading to the loss of 57 houses.
Almost a million bees poisoned by insecticide at hives in WA’s far north
Broome beekeeper Ryan Leavitt is devastated — and thousands of dollars out of pocket — after 960,000 bees from his hives were poisoned with insecticide in a single night.
As Australian sea lion populations plummet, a war of words about a solution never ends
Environmental groups are calling for the architects of a new West Australian marine park to expand protections for the country’s most endangered seal species.
Out-of-control WA fire threatens lives and homes
The emergency warning area for an out-of-control bushfire threatening lives and homes south of Perth has been extended.
Surge in WA emissions puts Australia’s net zero targets in doubt
State’s 2024 total on track to reach about 20% above 2005 levels, modelling obtained by Guardian Australia shows
Sustainability
The global increase in electronic waste
A recent report highlights a significant rise in discarded electronics, known as e-waste, with low recycling rates worldwide.
Johannesburg grapples with severe water shortage
Johannesburg is facing a critical water crisis, leaving millions scrambling for essential supplies.
Policy is an effective tool in reducing chemical exposure, study confirms
A recent study published in Environmental Health Perspectives examined the outcomes of various dietary, clinical, and regulatory strategies to reduce exposure to two groups of harmful chemicals, bisphenols and phthalates.
Troubling labor and environmental issues uncovered in India’s shrimp industry
A recent investigation into India’s shrimp industry reveals widespread labor abuses and environmental damage, with implications for American consumers.
Environment: Booming oil and gas profits mainly benefit shareholders
Peter Sainsbury
The oil market is twice as large as all ten largest metal markets combined. Most oil and gas profits go to shareholders, not reinvestment in the industry. Since 2001 only 5 months have been cooler than the average for 1981-2010. Extinction Rebellion perform at the National Gallery of Victoria.
BYD says plug-in electrics will exceed 50 pct of new car sales in China in next 3 months
Daniel Bleakley
The CEO of BYD, the Chinese giant challenging Tesla as the world’s biggest electric vehicle maker, says sales of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs), including battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), will make up more than half of all new cars sold in China within the next three months.
Nature Conservation
UK genetics project looks for lost apple varieties to protect fruit in climate crisis
Heritage orchard at RHS Rosemoor to be sampled this spring as part of search for previously unrecorded ‘survivor’ cultivars
Plastic spreads beyond known waste patches in Pacific waters
The Pacific Ocean harbors widespread plastic pollution that exceeds known waste areas, posing a significant threat to marine ecosystems.
Peru’s court extends legal rights to the Marañón River
A Peruvian trial court’s recent ruling acknowledged the Marañón River’s rights to exist freely and without pollution, marking a historic recognition of nature’s rights within the country.
‘Paddington’ bears spotted in Bolivian forest raise hopes for species’ survival – video
A Bolivian conservation programme has identified at least 60 ‘Paddington’ bears in areas where they had not been spotted before.
How humans are taking whale food and feeding it to cats and dogs [$]
Caitlin Fitzsimmons
“It’s like a dystopian, post-apocalyptic David Attenborough documentary where you have penguins swimming on one side and a massive trawler on the other.”
Maelor Himbury | Library Volunteer
Australian Conservation Foundation | www.acf.org.au
1800 223 669
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