Around The Web
‘Certainly life-threatening’: 80-year-old Australian survives 30-minute boat ride with tiger snake
Fisherman Bob Thatcher was a long way from shore when he noticed a one-metre tiger snake was sharing his tiny tinnie
Most people would back well away at the site of a potentially deadly tiger snake – one of the world’s most venomous snakes.
But when 80-year-old Australian retired banker Bob Thatcher saw a one-metre tiger snake he had nowhere to go.
Continue reading...Nature can be a cure – but we shouldn’t misjudge its destructive power | Julian Sheather
The natural world is a place of both bluebells and deadly viruses. Over-sentimentalising it is dangerous
It was a near-perfect day on the south coast – blue sky, blue sea, enough breeze to offset the heat of the sun. The beach may have been a little full, but it wasn’t long before I was in the water. I’m an OK swimmer and struck out easily for a couple of hundred yards. With an offshore breeze, there wasn’t much in the way of waves. It was lovely being away from people, at ease in the undemanding, light-shot sea, my body moving in the slight surge of an old swell.
Related: Scottish countryside visitors urged to be mindful of wildlife as lockdown lifts
Continue reading...Portfolio Manager, Climate Change Fund, NSW Dept of Planning, Industry, and Environment – Sydney
Paying Australia’s coal-fired power stations to stay open longer is bad for consumers and the planet
Morrison government confirms clash with AEMO over “gas recovery” assumptions
Morrison government confirms it clashed with AEMO over gas price assumptions.
The post Morrison government confirms clash with AEMO over “gas recovery” assumptions appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Westpac takes ‘small first step’ towards oil and gas divestment
Westpac has told oil and gas producers it will no longer accept them as new customers unless they have clear strategies aligning them with the Paris goals.
The post Westpac takes ‘small first step’ towards oil and gas divestment appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Labor probes Snowy Hydro gas plant land deal with Liberal party donor
Officials deflect questions on land deal for proposed Snowy Hydro gas plant, with the Kurri Kurri block owned by Liberal party donor Jeff McCloy.
The post Labor probes Snowy Hydro gas plant land deal with Liberal party donor appeared first on RenewEconomy.
‘Tsunami’ of renewables to sweep gas and coal out of market, and drive prices lower
'Tsunami' of new renewables to supply majority of electricity in Australia's main grid by 2030, as market share of coal and gas collapses, Reputex predicts.
The post ‘Tsunami’ of renewables to sweep gas and coal out of market, and drive prices lower appeared first on RenewEconomy.
French nuclear giant EDF unveils first wind and battery project in Australia
French nuclear giant EDF buys 280MW wind project in central Queensland, the first of a major pipeline of wind, solar and storage projects in Australia.
The post French nuclear giant EDF unveils first wind and battery project in Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Gas customers to pay more for pipelines ahead of mass exodus and stranded assets
Regulator allows gas network to hit customers with higher charges to pay for pipelines before an anticipated mass exodus and a switch to renewables.
The post Gas customers to pay more for pipelines ahead of mass exodus and stranded assets appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Carbon: How calls for climate justice are shaking the world
Running the numbers on Victoria’s climate plan – the leader in state climate action
Victoria has raised its climate ambition - but has it raised it far enough? There seems to be plenty of low hanging fruit left strangely unpicked.
The post Running the numbers on Victoria’s climate plan – the leader in state climate action appeared first on RenewEconomy.
The 1.5℃ global warming limit is not impossible – but without political action it soon will be
The Guardian view on German politics: is green the new normal? | Editorial
Global heating is now setting the parameters of political debate
These are heady days to be a German Green. Last month, Die Grünen chose 40-year-old Annalena Baerbock as their candidate for chancellor in September’s federal election. Since then there has been a huge influx of new members excited by the prospect of what is shaping up to be a generational shift in the country’s politics. According to the latest polls, the party is either fighting for first place with or is ahead of the Christian Democratic Union, which is mired in Covid-related difficulties, including a corruption scandal and dissatisfaction at the slow rollout of the vaccination programme.
There have been green awakenings in the past which proved ephemeral. In the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster 10 years ago, the party enjoyed a historic surge in support, only to slump disappointingly at the 2013 election. This time feels significantly different. The Greens already form part of coalition governments in 11 of Germany’s 16 states. Their poll ratings have comfortably eclipsed those of the centre-left Social Democrats over the past 12 months, and a pragmatic leadership has been careful to court the political mainstream on foreign policy issues such as commitment to Nato. One striking survey for a German business magazine found that more company executives preferred the idea of Ms Baerbock as the next chancellor to the 60-year-old Armin Laschet, the somewhat lacklustre CDU candidate.
Continue reading...Soaring EU carbon price stifling low-carbon investment, creating “live and let die” business environment
‘It’s like a rotting carcass of its former self’: funeral for an Oregon glacier
Worried researchers hold ceremony for Clark glacier to illustrate how climate crisis is eroding icepacks
The funeral was a suitably solemn affair. The small casket was placed on a table covered in a black drape, a maudlin yet defiant speech quoted a Dylan Thomas poem, a moment’s silence was held.
Inside the casket, however, was not a body, but a vial of meltwater from Clark glacier in Oregon, once an imposing body of ice but now a shrivelled remnant.
Continue reading...Nasa astronauts splash-land on Earth in SpaceX capsule after ISS mission
Glacial lakes threaten millions with flooding as planet heats up
More than 12,000 deaths have already been attributed to glacial lake outburst floods worldwide
An increasing number of people are being threatened by flooding caused by glacial lakes bursting, scientists have warned.
As the planet warms and glaciers recede, meltwater accumulates and forms lakes, often as a result of ice or moraine acting as a dam. Since 1990, the volume, area and number of these glacial lakes has increased by 50% globally. When these lakes become too full there is a risk that they may breach or overflow, releasing huge volumes of water and causing catastrophic flooding.
Continue reading...Redirect harmful subsidies to benefit the planet, UN urges governments
Head of the Kunming biodiversity summit asks nations to review destructive support for fishing, agriculture and other industries
Billions of pounds of environmentally harmful government subsidies must be redirected to benefit nature, the United Nation’s biodiversity chief has said, before the restart of negotiations on an international agreement to set new targets for protecting nature.
Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, said states must review and adapt support for agriculture, fishing and other industries that are driving the destruction of the natural world, and adopt policies that meet human needs while also conserving the health of the planet.
Continue reading...Victoria ramps up climate target, but stays at lower end of recommended range
Victoria increases 2030 emissions reduction target to up to 50 pct. The reaction shows the deep gulf between environmentalists, investors and employers.
The post Victoria ramps up climate target, but stays at lower end of recommended range appeared first on RenewEconomy.