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The threat of poaching by foreign trawlers has eased for the nation’s 33,000 local fishermen, who are hauling in the rewards of a coastguard crackdown

Photographs: Nicole Schafer/Sea Shepherd

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Exclusive: Natural England struggling to protect important sites after suffering budget cuts

Thousands of environmentally important sites across England are coming under threat as the government body charged with their care struggles with understaffing, slashed budgets and an increasing workload.

Natural England has wide-ranging responsibilities protecting and monitoring sensitive sites, including sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) and nature reserves, and advising on the environmental impact of new homes and other developments in the planning stages. Its work includes overseeing national parks, paying farmers to protect biodiversity, and areas of huge public concern such as air quality and marine plastic waste.

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By driving such extreme distances, Wiebe Wakker hopes to bust Australian anxieties about electric vehicles

A Dutch man who has driven 89,000km from Amsterdam to Adelaide in a small electric car says he is proving to Australians that electric vehicles are a viable alternative.

Since March 2016, adventurer Wiebe Wakker has driven across 33 countries from Europe to the Middle East to south-east Asia and finally to Australia in a 2009 Volkswagen Golf, converted to electric.

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Outrage at withdrawal of capacity and bidding practices in lead up to last week's heat-wave. Did the fossil fuel generators go too far?

The post Fury over generator bidding: “This time they have gone too far” appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Lacour Energy appoints Goldwind to build major wind and solar hybrid project in W.A. wheatbelt that will likely also include battery storage.

The post New wind-solar-battery power plant wins approval in Western Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Corporate demand for wind and solar projects more than doubled across the globe in 2018, and Australian companies also turned to renewables.

The post Corporate clean energy purchasing reached record 13.4 GW in 2018 appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Queensland government-owned Yurika to manage a Tesla big battery in Townsville to allow more solar, defer network spending, and add to virtual power plant capacity.

The post Yurika! Queensland to install Tesla big battery in Townsville appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Analysis of last summer's heatwaves shows it killed farmed salmon and decimated kelp forests, as well as shifting grape harvests and fish spawning times forward by several weeks. Jim Salinger, Honorary Associate, Tasmanian Institute for Agriculture, University of Tasmania James Renwick, Professor, Physical Geography (climate science), Victoria University of Wellington Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

People living on the Far South Coast of New South Wales will benefit from cleaner and cheaper renewable energy that will help cut the cost of power bills, with Labor’s plan to establish a Community Power Hub in the region.

The post Labor supporting community renewables in the South Coast appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Investors are calling on KFC, McDonalds and others to cut warming gases from their dairy and meat supply chains.

How much do you know about the iconic symbol of science pinned to every classroom wall?

As Sydney turns on its desalination plant for the first time in seven years, the way Australia manages its water resources has come into stark focus.

Adam Lovell, the executive director of the Water Services Association of Australia, discusses the challenges of climate change and population growth to the country's water supply – and how these are being met through a combination of techniques, including desalination, dams, water recycling and improved efficiency

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National park saw ‘irreparable’ damage including vandalism, ruined trails and trees cut down, says former superintendent

The former superintendent of Joshua Tree national park has said it could take hundreds of years to recover from damage caused by visitors during the longest-ever government shutdown.

“What’s happened to our park in the last 34 days is irreparable for the next 200 to 300 years,” Curt Sauer said at a rally over the weekend, according to a report from the Desert Sun. Sauer retired in 2010 after running the park for seven years.

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Anna Bergstrom runs a shopping mall in Sweden where everything for sale is recycled. Her goal is to make sustainable shopping fashionable.

If adopted by government, the proposal would make Germany the largest economy with concrete plans to end use of coal to produce electricity.

The post Germany eyes coal exit by 2038 in bid for climate-friendly economy appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Store to sell pasta and granola bars made from ground buffalo worm and cricket flour

Pasta, protein bars and granola bars made from insect flour are to go on sale in Selfridges to highlight alternative proteins for inclusion in mainstream diets.

Amid growing awareness of the environmental impact of livestock farming – and the benefits of reducing meat consumption – the British department store is the latest retailer to tap into the rising recognition of the benefits of eating insects on both nutritional and environmental grounds.

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

Former CEFC boss Oliver Yates to take on Josh Frydenberg in traditionally safe Coalition seat of Kooyong, as Tony Abbott and Greg Hunt also face competition from climate and energy focused independents.

The post Yates joint independent push to dethrone Coalition’s climate and energy failures appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Numerous environmental groups urged New Jersey to adopt a more stringent RGGI cap at its first stakeholder meeting on Friday in order to further strengthen the environmental performance of the regional carbon programme.

Hawaii state legislators put forth two different carbon tax proposals last week, with one seeking to swap out the state’s fuel tax and the other allocating a portion of the revenue to taxpayers.