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New study: changes in climate since 2000 have cut Australian farm profits 22%

The Conversation - Wed, 2019-12-18 05:04
For crop farmers, the risk of low profit years has doubled. Neal Hughes, Senior Economist, Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) Steve Hatfield-Dodds, Executive Director, Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
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Climate explained: which countries are likely to meet their Paris Agreement targets

The Conversation - Wed, 2019-12-18 05:03
Under the Paris Agreement, countries have registered plans to meet emissions reductions, but the current pledges, if fully realised, would take us to 2℃ by the 2050s. Robert McLachlan, Professor in Applied Mathematics, Massey University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
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TCI jurisdictions outline emissions target ahead of draft MOU

Carbon Pulse - Wed, 2019-12-18 02:36
The Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) will aim to cut fuel sector emissions by a quarter over a 10-year period, with the 13 US jurisdictions slated to give more details on Tuesday about its proposed cap-and-trade scheme.
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Why cutting cattle can’t solve the climate crisis | Letters

The Guardian - Wed, 2019-12-18 02:25
Stuart Roberts, vice-president of the NFU, makes the green case for maintaining cattle grazing in the UK, while Simon Fairlie thinks cutting meat production is a distraction

It is too simplistic to say that cutting livestock numbers everywhere is the most efficient way of reducing emissions, as your article suggests (Governments urged to set deadlines for cutting livestock production, 12 December). The world’s livestock systems differ too significantly for them to be generalised, and doing so hinders the countries that are practising sustainable farming methods and which have an ambition to do even more.

Compared with the mass-scale intensive systems in the US or Brazil, our livestock systems are unrecognisable. British farmers do not clear rainforest to make way for beef production. Our meat does not come from the ashes of the Amazon. We value our carbon sinks.

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DNA from Stone Age woman obtained 6,000 years on

BBC - Wed, 2019-12-18 02:01
Ancient DNA extracted from a tooth print in ancient "chewing gum" reveals new clues about our ancestors.
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Giant prehistoric caiman had extra hip bone to carry its weight

BBC - Wed, 2019-12-18 01:11
Purussaurus mirandai could grow to 10m in length and was able to move on land, scientists believe.
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Inquest to determine if London air pollution caused child's death

The Guardian - Tue, 2019-12-17 23:56

Ella Kissi-Debrah, nine, who lived near South Circular Road in south London, died in 2013

A fresh inquest into the death of a nine-year-old girl who suffered a fatal asthma attack will examine the role of the government as it looks at whether air pollution caused or contributed to her death.

Ella Kissi-Debrah died in February 2013 after three years of seizures and 27 visits to hospital for breathing problems.

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EU Midday Market Brief

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2019-12-17 23:45
European carbon prices jumped on Tuesday as the year-end auction pause began, with technical buying building on yesterday’s big gains.
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Clean water group denounces Tucker Carlson's 'racist' litter comments

The Guardian - Tue, 2019-12-17 23:39
  • Fox News host blames immigrants for littering Potomac River
  • Potomac Conservancy calls remarks ‘racist plain and simple’

Tucker Carlson, the Fox News host denounced as a white supremacist sympathiser by prominent liberals, is facing the ire of a new set of detractors: water conservationists.

Related: Steve Bannon: 'We’ve turned the Republicans into a working-class party'

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Regulator corrects errors to Australia’s Safeguard cap changes

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2019-12-17 19:24
Errors in the Clean Energy Regulator data released last week wrongly suggested some big emitters had had their CO2 caps backdated to 2016, including some that had used carbon credit to meet their targets for that year, according to an agency spokesperson.
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Rainwater in parts of US contain high levels of PFAS chemical, says study

The Guardian - Tue, 2019-12-17 19:00

Levels high enough to potentially impact human health and trigger regulatory action, which only targets two of 4,700 variants

New data shows that rainwater in some parts of the US contains high enough levels of potentially toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to possibly affect human health and may, if found in drinking water, in some cases be high enough to trigger regulatory action.

PFAS chemicals appear in an array of everyday items, such as food packaging, clothing and carpeting. Chemicals in this family are the subject of the film Dark Water, which chronicles the real-life efforts of a lawyer seeking to hold a polluting factory to account in West Virginia.

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Why rural voters in Australia are frustrated with politics.

ABC Environment - Tue, 2019-12-17 18:05
Extreme voter patterns in rural areas of Australia is bringing about some interesting and unexpected results.
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Rio Tinto’s plan to clean up Ranger uranium mine in doubt after hedge fund objects

The Guardian - Tue, 2019-12-17 16:12

Company’s plans for remediating mine surrounded by Kakadu national park amid fears of uranium leakage are in disarray after Singapore-based fund’s complaint

Mining giant Rio Tinto’s plans to clean up the controversial Ranger uranium mine have been thrown into doubt after objections from a Singapore-based hedge fund.

The mine is owned by ASX-listed Energy Resources Australia (ERA), which in turn is 68% owned by Rio Tinto.

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Ten amazing new plant and fungi discoveries in 2019 – in pictures

The Guardian - Tue, 2019-12-17 16:01

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew has chosen its top 10 species discovered in 2019, celebrating the diversity of plants and fungi. From a bamboo-dwelling medicinal fungi to a snowdrop spotted on Facebook, this year’s picks represent the breadth of discoveries made by Kew and its collaborators around the world every year

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Superglue plant and ‘miracle berry’ among 2019’s new finds

The Guardian - Tue, 2019-12-17 16:01

Other species identified by Kew experts include a snowdrop and cancer-fighting fungus

A snowdrop discovered on Facebook, a miracle berry that tricks your tastebuds and a rubbery shrub that oozes its own superglue are among new plant species that were discovered in 2019.

Others identified by experts at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, include a ylang-ylang tree of which just seven individuals are known to exist, a new candy-striped violet and a fungus with pink fruiting bodies that can fight cancer and viruses.

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LG Senior Delegation visit GoodWe Headquarters

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2019-12-17 14:52

The past month of November, GoodWe was delighted with the visit of LG Chem Vice President and members of its R & D department to the new headquarters in Suzhou.

The post LG Senior Delegation visit GoodWe Headquarters appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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Time-of-use electricity tariffs could hit vulnerable households with high costs

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2019-12-17 14:50

Meter for electricity consumption to calculate electricity costs - optimisedA new study has warned that mandating a shift to time-of-use electricity tariffs could leave vulnerable households paying even more for their power.

The post Time-of-use electricity tariffs could hit vulnerable households with high costs appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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“Fault” declared in Victoria grid as solar farm constraints drag into summer

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2019-12-17 14:31

As heavy curtailment of Victoria's solar farms drags on, AEMO declares a "fault" shortfall that will allow for coordinated response, and puts forward new transmission ideas.

The post “Fault” declared in Victoria grid as solar farm constraints drag into summer appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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Energy retailers get $70 million tax break on refunds for LGC shortfalls

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2019-12-17 14:01

The federal government has granted big retailers and other obligated parties a $70 million tax break by removing the tax on refunds of large scale certificate shortfall charges.

The post Energy retailers get $70 million tax break on refunds for LGC shortfalls appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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Why the battle over ‘Kyoto carryover’ is such a big deal for the climate

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2019-12-17 12:39

Push for Kyoto carryover led by Australia could dilute Paris ambition by 25 per cent, at a time when targets need to be raised.

The post Why the battle over ‘Kyoto carryover’ is such a big deal for the climate appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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