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Independent MP Helen Haines introduces legislation to establish a new Australian Local Power Agency to support community ownership of renewable energy.

The post Haines proposes $483m Local Power Agency to help communities buy in to wind and solar appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A rare Amazonian cactus called the moonflower has bloomed for what botanists believe is the first time in the UK. Experts at the University of Cambridge's   Botanic Garden kept a night watch throughout the week so they did not miss the flowering of Selenicereus wittii – an event that usually begins at sunset and is over by sunrise.

The moonflower actually bloomed earlier on Saturday afternoon at about 3pm, and the garden said it was 28cm (11in) long. The flower produces a sweet-smelling scent that turns 'rancid' after just two hours, as the plant begins to die

• Rare Amazonian cactus flowers for first time in UK
• Ready, steady, bloom! Botanists wait for rare cactus to open for one night only

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The Lone Star State is aptly named. If you’re not part of the Republican oil elite with Cruz and Abbott, you’re on your own

Texas has long represented a wild west individualism that elevates personal freedom – this week, the freedom to freeze – above all else.

Related: Why the cold weather caused huge Texas blackouts – a visual explainer

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Director Martin Scorsese says streaming algorithms demean cinema and treat viewers as consumers.

We break down the facts around one of the Coalition’s five priority areas in its ‘technology, not taxes’ response to the climate crisis

The Morrison government is backing soil carbon – drawing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in the land – as a major part of its response to the climate crisis.

The idea isn’t new, and at times has been derided as “soil magic” due to exorbitant claims about what it could achieve. But it is receiving renewed focus after the government listed it as one of five priority areas under its so-called “technology, not taxes” approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

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Moonflower Selenicereus wittii blooms for just 12 hours, with start at botanical garden brought forward

Thousands of people around the world tuned into a live stream of a rare cactus this week as it prepared to bloom – thought to be the first such event in the UK.

Now, horticulturists say the event has begun, and will be over by sunrise on Sunday.

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Exclusive: Prof Sir Robert Watson says backing of Cumbrian mine refutes claims of climate leadership

One of the UK’s most eminent environmental scientists has called the government’s failure to block a new coalmine in Cumbria “absolutely ridiculous”.

Prof Sir Robert Watson said the UK’s commitment to net zero emissions by 2050 to tackle the climate crisis was “wonderful”, but that there had to be a focus on immediate actions. The UK is hosting a UN climate summit, Cop26, in November and Boris Johnson has pledged to lead a green industrial revolution.

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The Senior Sustainability Consultant will be responsible for supporting the Company’s sustainability technology and product offering across Europe and will partner with a broad range of business to business customers to develop long term and innovative sustainability solutions which supports their Company strategy.

The Renewable Energy specialist, (PPA/On-Site solar) will assume responsibility for working with Europe wide business clients to assist with the implementation of Kinect’s on-site solar and  Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) strategies. 

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

The EU carbon market’s MSR urgently needs to be redesigned to use allowance prices rather than circulating volumes to manage supply, researchers argue, as the mechanism in its current form risks destabilising the ETS and undermines the bloc’s emissions reduction targets.

Speculators bolstered their California Carbon Allowance (CCA) holdings this week ahead of the first WCI auction of the year, as compliance entities kept their length mostly unchanged, according to US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data published Friday.

A summary of legislative and regulatory action on carbon pricing, clean fuel standards, and clean energy at the US subnational and federal level this week, including developments related to the national interim social cost of carbon (SCC), Connecticut, and Virginia.

Electricity generator Capital Power is choosing to pay the excess emissions charge under Alberta's Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) for one of its coal-fired units rather than surrender carbon credits for its 2020 obligations, the company said Friday.

Washington state lawmakers tweaked the emissions baseline, offset utilisation limits, and phase-in of fuel suppliers in an amended WCI-modelled cap-and-trade bill this week, while making additional changes to address environmental justice and equity concerns.

California electricity sector emissions declined in 2020 due to lower overall consumption amid the COVID-19 pandemic, while CO2 output appeared slightly lower to begin 2021, according to California Independent System Operator (CAISO) data.

Nasa releases an astonishing image of its new Mars robot taken just moments before touchdown.

EUAs dipped towards €37 on Friday, falling further from the all-time high levels earlier this week as observers were mixed as to where they thought carbon would go next.

Ukrainian state energy producer Naftogaz announced a 2040 carbon neutrality target on Friday, as the country advances mandatory emissions reporting as a “first step” towards a full-fledged ETS.

John Kerry made remark as US officially returned to climate agreement on Friday, 107 days after it left under Donald Trump

The US has marked its return to the Paris agreement by urging countries to do more to confront the climate crisis, with America’s climate envoy, John Kerry, warning that international talks this year are the “last, best hope” of avoiding catastrophic global heating.

On Friday, the US officially returned to the Paris climate accord, 107 days after it left at the behest of former president Donald Trump. Joe Biden moved to reverse this on his first day in office and Kerry conceded that the US is returning “with a lot of humility, for the agony of the last four years”.

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