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The California fires are just the most recent in a series of major wildfires. Together, they suggest we need to look at alternative ways of living with fire. David Bowman, Professor, Pyrogeography and Fire Science, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The farming system, lauded as a solution to drought, involves slowing water flow in streams using 'leaky weirs'. Ian Rutherfurd, Associate Professor in Geography, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

We talk to newly appointed Momentum Energy CEO Amy Childs, and look at the Coalition’s ham-fisted intervention in energy markets, and some good news on solar and batteries.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Momentum Energy CEO Amy Childs appeared first on RenewEconomy.

How the World Solar Challenge led to a solar-powered trip around the world and the development of light-weight solar taxis that will save lives in Africa.

The post The Driven Podcast: Saving lives with solar taxis appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The California-Quebec November auction will likely settle within a few cents of the secondary market, most traders predict, but there did not appear to be consensus view as to whether it would be at a discount or premium.

The world cannot afford to build any more fossil fuel-based infrastructure without increasing warming by more than 2C, the global energy watchdog IEA warned Tuesday in its annual World Energy Outlook.

Ambitious scheme also aims to fully decarbonise country’s economy shortly after

Spain has launched an ambitious plan to switch its electricity system entirely to renewable sources by 2050 and completely decarbonise its economy soon after.

By mid-century greenhouse gas emissions would be slashed by 90% from 1990 levels under Spain’s draft climate change and energy transition law.

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A study of beetles could explain global decline in insects - and how heat can damage male fertility.

German utility Uniper continued to hold back on its EUA hedging in Q3, but said it intends to catch up to its normal rates when margins are fatter.

Quebec’s former environment minister and a key architect of the province’s cap-and-trade scheme is joining the energy and climate practice of a major Canadian law firm.

Japan’s biggest business lobby group on Tuesday reiterated that it wants to stick to its voluntary approach to cutting emissions despite growing calls for the government to put a price on carbon to help meet its Paris target at lower cost.

South Korean carbon prices are at their highest since July, but could go even higher as rising emissions in some of the biggest ETS sectors are set to further deplete available supply in the market, according to analysts.

Study of beetles could explain global decline – and also be a warning to humankind

Heatwaves severely damage the fertility of male beetles and consecutive hot spells leave them virtually sterilised, according to research.

Global warming is making heatwaves more common and wildlife is being annihilated, and the study may reveal a way in which these two trends are linked. The scientists behind the findings said there could also be some relevance for humans: the sperm counts of western men have halved in the last 40 years.

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University of Technology Sydney inks deal with Epuron to buy the output of its 32MW Walgett Solar Farm in northern New South Wales.

The post UTS to source half its elecricity needs from new Walgett solar farm appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Victoria Labor says it will extend its rooftop solar rebate to the state’s tens of thousands of renters, if re-elected in the state poll two weeks from now.

The post Victoria Labor promises to extend rooftop solar rebate to renters appeared first on RenewEconomy.

An all-electric passenger airplane called Alice could reshape regional air travel in Australia.

The post How this electric airplane could reshape regional air travel appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Queensland and ACT push federal government to embrace a national policy for electric vehicles.

The post Coalition should get “head out of sand” on electric vehicles, say states appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Wet wipes sold as "flushable" are failing the water industry's disintegration test, the BBC finds.

Decades after it became part of the fabric of our lives, a worldwide revolt against plastic is underway. By Stephen Buranyi

Plastic is everywhere, and suddenly we have decided that is a very bad thing. Until recently, plastic enjoyed a sort of anonymity in ubiquity: we were so thoroughly surrounded that we hardly noticed it. You might be surprised to learn, for instance, that today’s cars and planes are, by volume, about 50% plastic. More clothing is made out of polyester and nylon, both plastics, than cotton or wool. Plastic is also used in minute quantities as an adhesive to seal the vast majority of the 60bn teabags used in Britain each year.

Add this to the more obvious expanse of toys, household bric-a-brac and consumer packaging, and the extent of plastic’s empire becomes clear. It is the colourful yet banal background material of modern life. Each year, the world produces around 340m tonnes of the stuff, enough to fill every skyscraper in New York City. Humankind has produced unfathomable quantities of plastic for decades, first passing the 100m tonne mark in the early 1990s. But for some reason it is only very recently that people have really begun to care.

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Two new solar farms in Queensland to be developed on merchant basis, rather than through contracts.

The post Eco Energy gets financing for two “merchant” solar farms in Queensland appeared first on RenewEconomy.