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Bohai Bay: the Chinese region disappearing inch by inch – in pictures
Farmland, abandoned seaside resorts and salt fields are slowly being claimed by the rising waters, with 100 million people predicted to be affected in China by 2050
All photographs by Sean Gallagher for the Guardian
Continue reading...We have a chance to halt biodiversity loss. The stakes have never been higher
Negotiations over a 10-year agenda for nature are about to begin. Our ecological future depends on the engagement of every global citizen
The year 2020 has been designated a “super year for nature”, when the global community will rededicate itself to halting biodiversity loss with a 10-year action agenda, scheduled for agreement at the conference of the parties to the UN Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) in Kunming in China in October.
On 13 January we published an initial “zero” draft of an action framework, which will be considered at negotiations being held in Rome from 24 February.
Continue reading...Greens seek laws to block Adani, Clive Palmer’s Galilee coal mines
Senate debates Greens legislation that would ban new coal mines in Galilee basin, as Albanese says Australia could still be exporting coal in 2050.
The post Greens seek laws to block Adani, Clive Palmer’s Galilee coal mines appeared first on RenewEconomy.
'It is quite startling': 4 photos from space that show Australia before and after the recent rain
The toxic political culture that makes good policy impossible in Australia
Nothing will end the climate and energy policy crisis in Australia unless you change the toxic culture of its main political parties.
The post The toxic political culture that makes good policy impossible in Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Morgan Stanley says 47GW of US coal capacity could be uneconomic by 2024
New Morgan Stanley report claims nearly 50GW of US coal-fired power capacity will be unable to compete against renewables by 2024.
The post Morgan Stanley says 47GW of US coal capacity could be uneconomic by 2024 appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Windlab flags big write-down on Kennedy wind-solar-battery project
Windlab flags big write-down of its wind, solar and battery Kennedy energy project, but it won't derail a potential $68 million acquisition offer.
The post Windlab flags big write-down on Kennedy wind-solar-battery project appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Labor’s climate policy is too little, too late. We must run faster to win the race
Massive turbine blades en route to W.A.’s biggest wind farm
Massive wind turbine blades begin 200km journey to site of Western Australia’s largest wind farm.
The post Massive turbine blades en route to W.A.’s biggest wind farm appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Australia's carbon emissions fall just 0.3% as industrial pollution surges
Emissions from electricity generation and agriculture decline, but tiny overall decline shows shortcomings of Coalition policy
Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions have dipped slightly on the back of new clean energy and a sharp fall from agriculture due to the drought, but the decline was almost entirely wiped out by surging industrial pollution.
Official data released on Monday revealed national emissions were down 0.3% in the year to September.
Continue reading...Australia’s emissions flat, but climate politics hit new low over zero carbon target
New government data show Australia's emissions flat, as Angus Taylor argues emissions are falling if you ignore the sectors where they went up.
The post Australia’s emissions flat, but climate politics hit new low over zero carbon target appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Climate change: Schools failing us, say pupils
Victoria to introduce container deposit scheme to tackle recycling crisis
State trails the rest of the country in offering such a program but it will be part of ‘massive overhaul of recycling industry’
Victoria is set to get a container deposit scheme to tackle its recycling and waste crisis, just months after the state government rejected the idea.
It is the only Australian jurisdiction not to offer such a program and has resisted calls by the public, the opposition and the Greens to implement one.
Continue reading...Buzz off honey industry, our national parks shouldn’t be milked for money
The dead sea: Tasmania's underwater forests disappearing in our lifetime
The sea along the Tasmanian east coast is a global heating hotspot -- temperatures there have risen at nearly four times the global average. One man has watched entire sea forests disappear in his lifetime
Continue reading...What happens when the oceans heat up?
As we continue to see impacts from global heating around the world, research in the places first affected becomes increasingly more important. Off the coast of Tasmania the oceans are heating and it’s one of a handful of places around the world that have seen an increase of 2C in a short time. In this episode of Full Story, we go to Tasmania to see how this has impacted on fishing industries and marine ecosystems
Continue reading...Tories ignored expert flood advice and courted austerity. Behold the results | Simon Wren-Lewis
It has become an almost annual event. Heavy rain leads to widespread flooding, and people claim that we didn’t see it coming. Except we did. In 2007 the UK experienced a series of floods and the government commissioned a report from Michael Pitt, which stated: “The scale of the problem is, as we know, likely to get worse. We are not sure whether last summer’s events were a direct result of climate change, but we do know that events of this kind are expected to become more frequent. The scientific analysis we have commissioned as part of this review (published alongside this report) shows that climate change has the potential to cause even more extreme scenarios than were previously considered possible. The country must adapt to increasing flood risk.”
The Labour government acted on the report’s recommendations. Central government spending on flood defences increased by 10% in the financial year 2008-09, with an additional 10% increase in 2009-10. But then austerity happened. In 2011-12 and 2012-13, spending on flood defences was cut sharply.
Continue reading...“Remarkable”: ESB hails switch to renewables, gives brickbats to Coalition policy
Energy Security Board says switch to renewables has been remarkable, but warns that lack of policy and serious emissions goals could affect price and reliability.
The post “Remarkable”: ESB hails switch to renewables, gives brickbats to Coalition policy appeared first on RenewEconomy.
More than 11,000 homes in England to be built on land at high risk of flooding
Exclusive Guardian and Greenpeace analysis finds areas hit by recent storms are planning houses on floodplains
More than 11,000 new homes are planned to be built on land at the highest risk of flooding in the regions battered by the worst winter storms in a generation, the Guardian has learned.
An analysis of planning documents reveals that 11,410 new homes have been planned for land the government considers high-risk in the seven English counties where thousands of properties have been devastated by flooding since November.
Continue reading...Believe the hype - budget 2020 is very important
Chancellor Rishi Sunak needs to satisfy competing audiences – but there is a way he can do it
Every budget is billed in advance as the most crucial in recent times, but are then instantly forgotten. The one Rishi Sunak will deliver in just over two weeks time may be one of the few that justifies the hype.
The reason so much is resting on the shoulders of the tyro chancellor is that the budget needs to satisfy a number of different audiences: the voters in the Midlands and the north of England who gave Boris Johnson his 80-seat majority; traditional Conservative voters; the financial markets; and foreign governments looking to see whether the UK will take a lead ahead of the COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow in November.
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