Around The Web

Bringing together key local and global energy-storage innovators, the Australian Energy Storage Conference and Exhibition (AES 2020) is returning to Adelaide. Registrations to exhibit and sponsor have opened.

The post Clean-energy hub Adelaide a drawcard for local and global innovators appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Lyon Group says it strikes a deal with leading Chinese group as it seeks to bring its solar and storage proposals to market.

The post Lyon Group says it strikes solar and storage deal with China Huadian appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Clean Energy Council says nuclear power would need "minor miracle" to get up in Australia, and inquiry distracts from “much more pressing and worthwhile topics.”

The post CEC slams nuclear inquiry as “distraction” from real energy challenges appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Federal Greens MP Adam Bandt present legislation to ban coal use by 2030 as Liberals seek to pressure Labor over internal divisions over policy.

The post Greens seek to outlaw coal use by 2030, pushes climate emergency as Labor wavers appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Southern and eastern Australia need to prepare for heatwaves and increased fire risk this summer, as forecasts predict hot, dry weather. Jonathan Pollock, Climatologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Andrew B. Watkins, Head of Long-range Forecasts, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Catherine Ganter, Senior Climatologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Paul Gregory, BOM, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

UK climate body says policy would target heavy users but not penalise occasional flyers

Air miles schemes should be axed as they encourage jetsetters to take extra flights in a bid to maintain “privileged traveller status”, according to a report commissioned by the government’s climate change advisers.

An “escalating Air Miles Levy” should also be introduced to rein in the number of trips taken by frequent flyers, without penalising those taking an annual holiday, with the income raised to be invested into low-carbon aviation technology.

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US climatologist and geophysicist Professor Michael E. Mann talks climate change and the new economy.

Water Minister David Littleproud discusses the Government's new plan to protect native fish in the Murray-Darling Basin.

As summer approaches, communities along the Murray-Darling River system are again preparing for mass fish kills like those of last summer.

While antique traders argue otherwise, campaigners say removing ban would hamper global efforts to fight poaching

The high court will hear an attempt to block a total ban on ivory trading this week, ahead of the imminent Brexit deadline and amid fears from conservationists that any change could revitalise elephant poaching.

Antique traders, who argue that sales of “cultural heritage” objects have no impact on the market for illegally-plundered tusks, are challenging the government over the 2018 Ivory Act which attracted cross-party support.

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On 15 October, the European Investment Bank meets to decide its policy on fossil fuels. The hand of history is on its shoulder

Millions of people marched against climate crisis over the past two weeks, in some of the largest demonstrations of the millennium. Most people cheered the students who led the rallies – call them the Greta Generation. But now we’ll start to find out if all their earnest protest actually matters.

Related: EIB plans to cut all funding for fossil fuel projects by 2020

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New AEMC blueprint ignores bulk of expert submissions and overseas experience, and may make Australia's transmissions problems worse for new generation rather then better.

The post Analysis: AEMC road map ignores advice, and could make things worse appeared first on RenewEconomy.

AEMC unveils complex new market signals for new wind and solar generation and network investment, but many question the design, and the rush to implement them.

The post AEMC proposes complex new market signals for wind and solar networks appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Europe’s manufacturers face $250m-a-year hit as rising demand drives up price

The battle to reduce Europe’s plastic waste could become a quarter of a billion dollars more expensive every year as the cost of recycled plastic soars.

In recent months, the price of recycled plastic flakes, used to make goods from soft drink bottles to glitter, has become more expensive than virgin plastic for the first time.

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After almost 1,000 days camping out in a field near Blackpool and obstructing fracking operations, the ‘Nanas’ have seen off energy company Cuadrilla. James Cartwright meets the fearless female activists behind the yellow pinnies

While the world applauds the child protesters taking to the streets, fewer eyes are on their mums and grandmothers, whose activism is altogether quieter. In August 2014, gangs of older women in yellow tabards and headscarves started to become a common sight on Preston New Road in Lancashire. They call themselves the “Nanas”, though not all are grandmas. They took the name as a nod to trust, family and tea, leaning into stereotypes of northern matriarchy. Their first project was to capture a field under planning application by Cuadrilla, a UK fossil fuels company seeking exploratory drilling rights for shale gas. They hopped over the fence, set up tents and claimed squatters’ rights, staying for three weeks. By the time they left, the Nanas had earned the support of 14,000 local residents and appointments at Manchester’s High Court, and their action, along with that of other campaigners, led to Lancashire County Council rejecting Cuadrilla’s fracking application, a decision later overturned by the then secretary of state, Sajid Javid.

In the years since, the Nanas have mounted an often good-humoured war of attrition against Cuadrilla, whose drilling has caused tremors in the area. At the Bell Mouth, the entrance to the Preston New Road site, they sing, dance, knit, pray, read poems and monologues, and obstruct fracking activity wherever possible. They even have their own stage show and samba band. And every Wednesday, dressed in white, they stage a call for calm at a site where tensions between protesters and police often erupt into violence.

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Exclusive: analysis reveals lenders provided $700bn to expand sector since Paris climate pact

The world’s largest investment banks have provided more than $700bn of financing for the fossil fuel companies most aggressively expanding in new coal, oil and gas projects since the Paris climate change agreement, figures show.

The financing has been led by the Wall Street giant JPMorgan Chase, which has provided $75bn (£61bn) to companies expanding in sectors such as fracking and Arctic oil and gas exploration, according to the analysis.

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Bank of England governor warns of financial collapse linked to climate emergency

Companies and industries that are not moving towards zero-carbon emissions will be punished by investors and go bankrupt, the governor of the Bank of England has warned.

Mark Carney also told the Guardian it was possible that the global transition needed to tackle the climate crisis could result in an abrupt financial collapse. He said the longer action to reverse emissions was delayed, the more the risk of collapse would grow.

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Carlton Ward’s photographs chart survival struggle of one of America’s last remaining big cats

The discovery of a female Florida panther lying with a broken leg on a verge outside the town of Naples, south of Tampa, triggered a widespread rescue dash.

Conservationists, who had previously fitted a tracking collar to the animal, were aware she had recently given birth. The kittens would not survive long on their own, they realised, and so an urgent search for them was launched.

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More and more young people are feeling the thrill of fresh air, flashing wings and the sound of birdsong

Look up! Is that a kestrel? A swallow? Take note. These sightings are getting rarer. A recent RSPB report blamed the climate crisis for dwindling bird numbers in the UK. But as the number of birds decreases, the number of young bird enthusiasts in the UK is on the rise. Birdwatchers have long endured an unfair reputation for being anorak-sporting “twitchers”, lumped into the same category as their equally derided cousins, the trainspotters. But times have changed. Now, as a young person, it is becoming acceptable – cool, even – to show the world the mental and physical benefits of getting outside and observing wildlife.

Today, young “birders” are using social-media platforms to form positive communities and share their sightings and experiences. Amusingly, most of it happens on Twitter, where birders pledge allegiance to certain species in their bios and discuss rare species with some of the world’s foremost experts. They use apps and spreadsheets, often photographing their finds and uploading pictures to their social channels instantly. Instagram accounts have been created. WhatsApp groups have formed.

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Outlawing the sale of internal combustion engine vehicles will help tackle the climate emergency, says shadow business secretary

A Labour government will aim to end the sale of cars with internal combustion engines by 2030, as part of its plans to tackle the climate emergency.

The party is to begin talks with the car industry and trade unions to explore the policies needed to achieve the goal. It says it wants to help an “under siege” industry switch to electric car production.

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