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As conservative media and politicians pit farmers against renewables, we talk to a sheep grazier who is building Tasmania's first large-scale solar project.

The post Solar Insiders Podcast: Can panels, farmers and sheep get along? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia’s federal government has shortlisted six projects to submit full applications for it’s A$2 billion ($1.35 bln) Hydrogen Headstart Program, as the price for Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) has crept up in recent days.

All 54 drownings on the Australian coast last summer occurred in locations not patrolled by professional lifeguards or volunteer surf lifesavers. That is a stark statistic. Rob Brander, Professor, UNSW Beach Safety Research Group, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, UNSW Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

US-based Powin obtains its first GPS connection agreement for a battery project in Australia - no mean feat for suppliers not used to the strict local requirements.

The post New player in battery storage market cuts its teeth with first Australian connection deal appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Canada’s C$15 billion ($11.2 bln) public investment vehicle will purchase up to one million tonnes of carbon credits per annum over 15 years at fixed prices, coupled with a $200 million investment into an Alberta-based carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) tech firm, the pair announced Wednesday.

Benchmark prices based on avoided deforestation credits tumbled to fresh multi-year lows on Wednesday, continuing a lengthy decline as the voluntary carbon market awaits a shake-up from the ICVCM's integrity labels.

Grassfires are normal in central and northern Australia. But fast-growing invasive grasses are supercharging grassfires – and this summer looks like it will be big. Andrew Edwards, Research Fellow Bushfires, Charles Darwin University Christine Schlesinger, Associate Professor in Environmental Science, Charles Darwin University Ellen Ryan-Colton, PhD candidate, Charles Darwin University Greg Barber, PhD student, Charles Darwin University Peter Jacklyn, NAFI Service Manager and Knowledge and Adoption Coordinator, Charles Darwin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The smokescreen generated by recent carbon-offset setbacks should not blind us to the simple truth that we must protect our intact forests and bring back those we have lost

Some have recently questioned whether forests really are the climate solution they have long been held to be. This is because some emit great quantities of carbon, while the markets set up to finance them have stumbled. But there is no pathway to a livable climate without saving our intact forests, regrowing some, and finding a more straightforward way to pay for them than carbon offset projects.

A 2021 study led by Brazilian scientists established that the Amazon was emitting more carbon dioxide than it was absorbing. The great carbon sink had seemingly become a smokestack. The paper mirrored a 2019 analysis of Canadian forests, which showed they had been net emitters since 2001.

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In the wake of the breakdown in talks on key Article 6 texts at this month's COP28 UN climate conference, some negotiators and observers have been quick to assign blame and many now struggle to see consensus forming ahead of next year's summit, as bridges are seen to have been burned almost beyond repair between certain parties.

Commission’s proposal to downgrade animal’s ‘strictly protected’ status not based on scientific evidence, say conservationists

Wolves could be hunted again across western Europe after the European Commission proposed to reduce their protection, in what lawyers said was an ominous move against effective environmental laws.

The commission has proposed that EU member states downgrade the wolf’s status under the Berne convention from “strictly protected” to “protected” after two decades in which the species has returned to many countries from which it has been extinct for decades, including Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark.

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A new study raises concerns about the reliance on CO2 removal (CDR) strategies like reforestation in national net zero plans, warning that many stakeholders are overly optimistic about this uncertain approach.

A US technology behemoth and a New York-headquartered project developer have signed a 15-year offtake agreement that will eventually equate to millions of tonnes of CO2 removed, they announced on Wednesday, in the latest in a series of moves to acquire nature-based removals credits.

The upcoming launch of EU ETS2 should improve the economics of installing heat pumps for households across Europe by increasing CO2 taxation on gas and levelling the playing field with the unit cost of electricity, according to a clean tech startup.

The EU is channeling an additional €2 billion of ETS revenues to decarbonise energy systems in nine EU member states, the Commission said on Wednesday, though some of that funding will go towards natural gas projects.

Germany became the first EU member state to involve itself in the European Hydrogen Bank’s ‘auctions-as-a-service’ scheme on Wednesday, adding money to top up existing ETS-sourced Innovation Fund grant funding, all of which will be allocated via a competitive bidding process to renewable hydrogen producers and awarded to those with the lowest subsidy needs.

Scotland has moved a step closer to introducing emissions levies on visiting cruise ships and large landowners as part of plans to meet its net zero target of 2045, although added a note of caution about assessing the impact of the measures.

Phenomenon whereby moisture condenses around particles of pollution was noticed near Heathrow in January

A rare phenomenon known as “industrial snowfall” appears to have occurred near Heathrow airport earlier this year, according to a study.

Satellite imagery shows three large, white bands on the ground in parts of Surrey despite relatively dry conditions in the area at the time. The snow, which was recorded on 23 January, was distributed near industrial facilities south-east of Heathrow airport.

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Indigenous campaigners, human rights defenders and climate activists say they are being silenced by fear of reprisals

Incidents of harassment, surveillance, threats and intimidation are creating a climate of fear at UN events including the recent Cop28 climate conference in Dubai, experts have said.

Indigenous campaigners, human rights defenders and environmental activists say they are increasingly afraid to speak out on urgent issues because of concerns about reprisals from governments or fossil fuel industries.

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A crude oil refinery in Finland will be gradually transformed into a renewables and circular solutions refining hub, according to plans announced on Wednesday that would eventually eliminate demand for EU ETS allowances at what is currently the nation's second-biggest emitter.

Tasmania wind farm dumps its original "bird radar" and upgrades it to a more sophisticated model after disappointing results in past year.

The post Tasmania wind farm ditches bird radar for new technology to avoid eagle collisions appeared first on RenewEconomy.