Around The Web

My campaigning colleague Jerry Pearlman, who has died aged 84, left his legal mark on landscapes and paths from Yorkshire to Devon through his role as honorary solicitor for the Ramblers’ Association (now the Ramblers) for more than 30 years.

A leader in the campaign for the right to roam, Jerry drafted the bill that formed the basis for the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. In the appeal court in 2002 he helped me in the campaign to reopen the heavily blocked path across land belonging to the businessman Nicholas van Hoogstraten in East Sussex.

Continue reading...

First batches appear on shelves before the start of the traditional season and despite cold snap

UK supermarkets have begun stocking the first batches of British-grown asparagus this year, despite the impact of the recent “beast from the east” cold weather system.

Marks & Spencer was first off the block with British asparagus on sale in selected branches last week – nearly three weeks before the traditional start of the eight-week season on 23 April – while Waitrose put the first spears on sale on Wednesday. Sainsbury’s is likely to stock small quantities from the weekend.

Continue reading...

The chemical fog used to hide the Tirpitz battleship in WWII stunted the growth of trees.

A new early warning satellite system reveals countries where shrinking reservoirs could lead to the taps completely drying up

Shrinking reservoirs in Morocco, India, Iraq and Spain could spark the next “day zero” water crisis, according to the developers of a satellite early warning system for the world’s 500,000 dams.

Cape Town recently grabbed global headlines by launching a countdown to the day when taps would be cut off to millions of residents as a result of a three-year drought. Drastic conservation measures have forestalled that moment in South Africa, but dozens of other countries face similar risks from rising demand, mismanagement and climate change, say the World Resources Institute (WRI).

Continue reading...

EUAs hit a one-week high on Wednesday as a stronger auction prolonged bullish momentum while traders played down prospects of a near-term correction.

Australia’s Environment and Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg wants the final rules of the National Energy Guarantee (NEG) agreed by August and legislated by the end of the year, he said Wednesday, showing little interest in compromising on issues that critics have identified as shortcomings of the scheme.

Pharmaceutical drug waste is causing unexpected changes in aquatic wildlife.

Next week, state and federal energy ministers will meet to discuss the government's National Energy Guarantee.

Annual monitoring shows many native species suffered further falls, and two declining species had their worst seasons on record

Last year was the seventh worst on record for butterflies in Britain, and for two declining butterfly species it was their worst since records began.

Fewer grayling and grizzled skippers took to the skies than in any year since the scientific monitoring of butterflies began more than 40 years ago.

Continue reading...

This is a speech made by energy minister Josh Frydenberg to the National Press Club in Canberra on April 11th, 2018

Chocolate production generates a lot of pollution and consumes precious resources. So how can you indulge, and keep a clear conscience?

Frydenberg calls for an end to ideology and culture wars on energy, while presenting - with breathtaking cynicism - a policy that panders to right wing ideology and culture wars. It's the NEG or nothing, he warns. Many might suggest that nothing is more attractive.

Sustainable catch limits on key species after Brexit would also boost the economy by more than £300m a year as stocks recover, analysis shows

Moving to sustainable catches of the most important species of fish would generate 5,000 new jobs and add more than £300m a year to the economy, after the UK leaves the EU’s common fisheries policy, a new report has found.

Sustainable management of fish stocks would require limits on fishing for several years, as the current EU policies allow catches greater than populations of some key species can readily recover from, but within about seven to 10 years of setting its own policies the UK could be reaping the benefits, according to Oceana, a non-governmental organisation that focuses on fishing.

Continue reading...

Survey finds 62% of businesses plan to invest in battery storage in next 18 months. But can governments and regulators keep up?

Clean Energy Regulator sees industrial and commercial solar adding a combined 100MW-plus to grid in 2018, as it sets off on a “j-shaped” growth curve.

Super fund Cbus and DIF join Synergy to underwrite investment in new solar farm extension and two new wind farm investments.

A large national poll of 1,557 Australians, conducted by The Australia Institute, has shown strong support for an increase in Australia’s emissions reduction target to at least 45% by 2030.

The subtle warping of the land surface across Britain is fully mapped in detail for the first time.

Behind-the-Meter, Self-Consumption Solar Installation is U.S. Air Force's Largest.

 LONGi Green Energy Technology set a new solar industry R&D expenditure record in 2017, not only surpassing the two historical leaders, First Solar and SunPower, but also spending more in one year than any PV manufacturer to date.