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The unprecedented heatwave in the Pacific north-west risks becoming the new normal if we don’t act now

On Sunday, the small mountain town of Lytton, British Columbia, became one of the hottest places in the world. Then, on Monday, Lytton got even hotter – 47.9C (118F – hotter than it’s ever been in Las Vegas, 1,300 miles to the south.

Lytton is at 50 deg N latitude – about the same as London. This part of the world should never get this hot. Seattle’s new all-time record of 108F, also set Monday, is hotter than it’s ever been in Miami. In Portland, the new record of 116F would beat the warmest day ever recorded in Houston by nearly 10 degrees.

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Japan’s environment ministry has selected 11 new carbon-cutting projects for co-funding under its Joint Crediting Mechanism, picking schemes in Indonesia, Mexico, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The European Commission is planning to bring international shipping into the EU ETS from 2023, with a transition period ramping up emissions coverage for the sector thereafter, according to a leaked draft.

Chinese steel giant Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Union Co. has agreed to buy 50 million Chinese Certified Emissions Reductions (CCERs) over 25 years from a domestic forestry and paper company, a deal that could be worth up to 1 billion yuan ($155 mln).

Nigel Morris test rides the all-new electric Evoke, and talks to its distributors.

The post Video: New electric motorcycle launched in Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Via an unprecedented wave of lawsuits, America’s petroleum giants face a reckoning for the devastation caused by fossil fuels

• Are you a fossil fuel industry insider? We want to hear from you

After a century of wielding extraordinary economic and political power, America’s petroleum giants face a reckoning for driving the greatest existential threat of our lifetimes.

An unprecedented wave of lawsuits, filed by cities and states across the US, aim to hold the oil and gas industry to account for the environmental devastation caused by fossil fuels – and covering up what they knew along the way.

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Fossil fuel companies lied for decades about climate change, and humanity is paying the price. Shouldn’t those lies be central to the public narrative?

• Are you a fossil fuel industry insider? We want to hear from you

Every person on Earth today is living in a crime scene.

This crime has been going on for decades. We see its effects in the horrific heat and wildfires unfolding this summer in the American west; in the mega-storms that were so numerous in 2020 that scientists ran out of names for them; in the global projections that sea levels are set to rise by at least 20ft. Our only hope is to slow this inexorable ascent so our children may figure out some way to cope.

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This is serious enough for the 1% to start building bunkers ready for environmental collapse

A few years ago, the author and academic Douglas Rushkoff got invited to a swanky private resort to talk to a bunch of obscenely rich hedge fund guys about the future of technology. He thought they were going to ask him how technology was going to improve the world, but they were far more interested in discussing the “Event”, their cutesy term for the collapse of civilisation. “How do I maintain authority over my security force after the Event?” one CEO, who had just finished building an underground bunker system, reportedly asked. The rest of the conversation, detailed by Rushkoff in a Guardian feature, continued in that vein.

That Rushkoff piece was published in 2018, but I’ve found myself thinking about it a lot over the past few days. Why? Because the Event is starting to feel imminent. If that sounds alarmist, just take a look at the weather. Severe storms have caused extensive flooding in Detroit. Canada just set its highest temperature on record: a village in British Columbia reached 46.1C (115F) on Sunday. The US’s Pacific north-west also broke heat records over the weekend, with Portland, Oregon, reaching 44.4C (112F). Seattle, which isn’t exactly known for its sunshine, just had triple-digit temperatures for three days straight, breaking another record. The US National Weather Service in Washington has called the current heatwave “historic, dangerous, prolonged and unprecedented”.

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The cash injection comes after the British government and Bharti Global bailed out the company last year.

AGL confirms details of planned business split, an emergency response from a business caught off guard by the pace of the clean energy transition.

The post “Inflection point:” Is AGL demerger too late to save the fossil fuel behemoth? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Fossil fuel levy can be avoided by buying carbon offsets that may have no benefit for climate

Forest protection carbon offsets that may have no benefit to the climate have been used by polluters to avoid paying carbon taxes in Colombia, according to a report.

In 2016, a levy of about $5 (£3.60) was introduced in the South American country to cover the use of some fossil fuels. However, companies that emit carbon dioxide can avoid paying the tax by buying carbon offsets from Colombian emission reduction projects, including those that conserve threatened natural carbon banks such as peatlands, forests and mangrove swamps.

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The demise of the freshly emerged swallowtail makes me ponder all butterflies’ chances of survival

Last week, I witnessed a wondrous and slightly horrifying spectacle of nature.

I was admiring a swallowtail, Britain’s largest native butterfly, as it jinked over a waterway on the Norfolk Broads. Suddenly, an emperor dragonfly cruised in and grabbed the butterfly. There was a mid-air tussle for five seconds, before the iridescent blue dragonfly dropped into the reed bed with its prize.

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The broad-toothed rat rarely, if ever, gets its own story, so I want to introduce you properly to this fascinating, unique and beautiful species. It really needs our help. Chris Wacker, Postdoctoral Research Fellow - School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Investigating how the fossil fuel industry contributed to the climate crisis and lied to the American public

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All our journalism follows GNM’s published editorial code. The Guardian is committed to open journalism, recognizing that the best understanding of the world is achieved when we collaborate, share knowledge, encourage debate, welcome challenge, and harness the expertise of specialists and their communities. You can read more about content funding at the Guardian here.

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Covid outbreak forces Clean Energy Council to cancel Clean Energy Summit, which had been due to take place in Sydney in mid July.

The post Clean Energy Council cancels annual summit due to Sydney Covid lockdown appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Conservative group says Germany could reach 100 pct renewables by 2030, and save $100 billion a year on energy imports.

The post Conservative group says Germany could reach 100% renewables by 2030 at low cost appeared first on RenewEconomy.

We interviewed 5 solar business owners and asked "what are the top 3 issues affecting your business?" Featuring Troy Ryan from the Solar Depot.

The post Great Solar Business Podcast: Three biggest challenges for solar businesses appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The vehicle runs on regular fuel and can travel up to 1,000km while airborne, its creator says.

A genetic study shows wild boar are thriving and breeding with domestic pigs from abandoned farms.

MPs say that the government's plans for nature are wholly insufficient to stem the losses of plants and species.