Post of the Day
Don’t despair: use the pandemic as a springboard to environmental action
Carlos M Duarte
This is the moment for the equivalent, in conservation terms, of the #MeToo or Black Lives Matter movements
On This Day
Coronavirus Watch
Confirmed cases: 12,069. Deaths: 123
Coronavirus update: WHO warns Indigenous people especially at risk
Indigenous communities comprising half a million people around the world are especially vulnerable to the new coronavirus pandemic due to often poor living conditions, the World Health Organization warns.
Can I reuse a single-use face mask?
From washing them to microwaving them, here are five things you need to know about your reusable face mask.
Oxford coronavirus vaccine is safe and triggers strong immune response, human trials show
The vaccine prompted no serious side effects and elicited antibody and T-cell immune responses, according to trial results published in The Lancet medical journal.
Climate Change
Plant roots increase carbon emission from permafrost soils
A key uncertainty in climate projections is the amount of carbon emitted by thawing permafrost in the Arctic. Plant roots in soil stimulate microbial decomposition, a mechanism called the priming effect. An international research team shows that the priming effect alone can cause emission of 40 billion tonnes carbon from permafrost by 2100.
Geoengineering is just a partial solution to fight climate change
The technology’s regional impacts depend on how much greenhouse gas emissions are reduced
Negative-emissions tech helps, but it’s no magic bullet for the climate crisis
Tamsin Edwards
Sprinkling rock dust on fields can suck up some carbon − but reducing emissions must be the mainstay of our efforts
National
A landmark review into Australia’s national environment laws calls for a major overhaul, including establishing an “independent cop” to oversee them.
Major environmental review critical of ‘tokenism’ when consulting with Indigenous communities
New national environmental standards will be developed to provide clear rules for the states.
Reform for Australia’s environment laws
Minister for the Environment Sussan Ley will prioritise the development of new national environmental standards, further streamlining approval processes with State governments and national engagement on indigenous cultural heritage, following the release of an interim report into Australia’s environmental laws.
Climate Council unveils plan to create 76,000 jobs in three years
The federal government could create 76,000 jobs within three years if it invests more in renewables, a new report has found.
Bushfire devastation leaves almost 50 Australian native species at risk of becoming threatened
Habitat untouched by the fires, which were five times as large as those in the Amazon last year, is critical for their survival, report finds
Minister to review $10b green energy bank’s bias probe
Auditors have wrapped up a four-month investigation into concerns Australia’s government-owned green bank improperly awarded lucrative contracts to fintech RateSetter, with Energy Minister Angus Taylor set to review the findings shortly.
Gas companies dominate shortlist for ARENA green hydrogen funding
Gas companies dominate the shortlist of seven projects seeking a share of $70m in ARENA funding for renewable hydrogen production facilities.
Solar PV panel waste will not become a significant problem
Managing solar PV modules at end of life will not be a limitation on the replacement of fossil fuels by renewable energy. Here’s why.
Motor vehicle fumes kill 1700 a year, says electric car lobby [$]
The Electric Vehicle Council’s claim that 1700 Australians are dying every year from “air pollution from motor vehicles” relies on five-year-old international modelling and exceeds last year’s national road toll by more than 500 deaths.
Rooftop solar is the biggest generator in the market, but no one is in charge
Australia’s rooftop solar capacity is set to be 25 times bigger than the grid’s biggest remaining coal generators by 2025. But currently, no one is overseeing this huge resource.
Explainer: Why is Australia a global leader in wildlife extinctions?
Plant and animal species in Australia are becoming extinct as fast as ever. Why is it happening? And what would it take to reverse the decline?
Australian researchers squeeze more energy from sunlight in world-first breakthrough
UNSW researchers unlock a way to convert otherwise wasted light into electricity, in world-first breakthrough that could boost solar panel efficiencies.
Coalition must not abandon federal role in environment
SMH editorial
Cutting ‘green tape’ without national safeguards and independent oversight leaves Australia’s fragile environment in a precarious position.
The world is heading for a population crisis but not the one it was expecting
Peter Hartcher
We’ve been told many times the ever-growing population of the Earth will end in catastrophe.
Labor forced to walk back from fantasy emissions targets [$]
Judith Sloan
There is a forlorn sign on the fence of a house around the corner from us. It shouts out “2019 The Climate Election”. It’s still there, fading as the months pass.
Peter Burnett
The Morrison government has seized on environment law reform proposed on Monday. I was a federal environment official for 13 years – and I know these things cannot be rushed.
Strike a better balance for project approval and land [$]
Australian editorial
There’s no love for the creaky, bloated 20-year-old Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
Cars rule as coronavirus shakes up travel trends in our cities
Neil G Sipe
Car use and cycling have soared to above pre-pandemic levels in our biggest cities (Melbourne is an obvious exception). Walking is not far behind, but public transport is being shunned.
Black Summer whitewash – a preview of Armageddon
Vic Jurskis
Instead of sustainable management by mild burning across the landscape, ‘education’, emergency warnings and evacuations are the new deal.
Food insecurity: could Australia really be set to run out of food? [$]
Kurt Johnson
While debate around Australia’s food security continues to rage, one thing is clear: water policy and food security are inextricably linked.
Victoria
Greening City reaches first milestone
More than 50,000 plants have been planted along Park Street in Royal Park as part of a City of Melbourne and Victorian Government initiative to green our city with 150,000 new trees, shrubs and grasses.
New South Wales
Santos meets storm of opposition on Narrabri gas
Santos’ claims of a potential safe and economically beneficial development of the Narrabri gas resource have met with strong opposition on the first day of public hearings on the project.
Solar farm and big battery approved for Parkes in NSW
Renewable Energy Developments plans to build an 80MW solar farm in Parkes, NSW, given the green light by the state planning department.
New ideas are all very well, but Sydney’s green spaces need some old-fashioned protection
Jeff Angel
In the last few years more than 70 parks and green canopies have been destroyed or threatened.
Unlocking Narrabri’s energy potential [$]
Kevin Gallagher
The science says that the NSW gas field can supply half the state with lower-cost gas, with no risk to water resources.
We should follow the science on coal seam gas [$]
AFR View
Letting the science drive the decision to start Narrabri will also mean letting the properly regulated private sector provide energy to keep the lights on and factories working while protecting the natural environment.
ACT
Don Aitkin
A few years ago the ACT Government declared that it would so organise things that the ACT would be carbon-neutral before very long.
Queensland
Our $70 billion gas industry sinking as export ships ‘steaming around in circles’
Queensland’s $70 billion LNG industry is in strife with prices collapsing, export revenue slashed and cargoes at anchor or “steaming in circles’’.
Vast plans $600m “baseload” solar thermal plant for Mt Isa
Australian solar thermal developer Vast Solar has unveiled plans to take its technology into the mainstream, unveiling a $600 million proposal to build a “baseload” solar plant in Mt Isa that will combine solar thermal, solar PV, battery storage and fast-acting gas generators.
Extra 1000 bus, train services to spread out commuters in COVID-19 recovery
The additional services will create an extra 28,875 seats on trains and 28,800 seats on buses every week, starting on August 10.
South Australia
Green tape cut for new uranium mines [$]
New laws South Australia will get “single touch” approvals power to sign off on big developments including uranium mines. But the review is intended to keep protection for vulnerable environments.
Big battery added to Aurora solar project could triple its earnings, says report
Adding battery storage to 70MW solar PV plant planned for development in South Australia would more or less triple the project’s annual revenue, a new report says.
Tasmania
Water quality throughout the Tamar River system is improving according to a new report [$]
Results from the latest Tamar estuary water report card show water quality throughout the river system is improving.
Northern Territory
New NT Forest industry Association will help top end operations expand
The Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA) has welcomed the formal announcement of the Forest Industry Association Northern Territory (FIANT).
Western Australia
400 tuart trees planted in Booyeembara Park
Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt has joined local MPs, representatives of Main Roads, conservation group Trillion Trees and community volunteers to plant almost 400 tuart trees in Fremantle’s Booyeembara Park over the weekend.
WA’s resources sector contributes $67.1 billion to Australia’s economy
A survey of 53 Western Australian resources sector companies found that the State’s mining, oil and gas, energy and contractor industries contributed more than $67.1 billion to Australia’s economy in 2018-19 and directly created more than 71,000 full-time jobs.
Locals defend Margaret River beach from clifftop hotel raid [$]
Sasha Pol grew up swimming at the sheltered Gnarabup beach below a prime piece of clifftop real estate where a resort and houses are now planned.
Sustainability
Africa can become a renewable energy superpower – if climate deniers are kept at bay
Mohammed Adow
Nigel Lawson’s thinktank is pushing dirty energy on the continent with the greatest capacity for creating clean fuel
Don’t despair: use the pandemic as a springboard to environmental action
Carlos M Duarte
This is the moment for the equivalent, in conservation terms, of the #MeToo or Black Lives Matter movements
The US is headed for climate disaster – but Joe Biden’s green plan might just work
Art Cullen
Biden’s $2tn green agriculture plan is ambitious but realistic. That’s important, because everything is riding on it
The Azores: Exotic insect species increase on islands through human impact
A new study reveals that the diversity of exotic species of insects, spiders and other arthropods in the Azores is increasing. This pattern has also been observed in other islands around the world, which can contribute to aggravate the current biodiversity crisis. The study also point to a slight decrease in the abundance of endemic species in the archipelago – species that are not found anywhere else on the planet.
Maelor Himbury
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