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It’s not as sensational as recreating long-dead species, but conserving modern-day fauna is far more pressing

The parable of the Mars mission: we’d rather spend trillions sending ourselves to a yet unlivable planet than look after the one we have. And swiftly on its heels, the parable of the dire wolf. We’d rather resurrect a 12,500-year-old species from the dead than save our existing wild animals. Of course we would. Recycling is boring; doing the very thing 90s science fiction movies warned us not to do is fun.

We are not quite on the verge of bringing back ancient species. But last week the PR campaign for doing so began in earnest. Colossal Biosciences – a company known for trying to revive the dodo, the mammoth and the thylacine – has unveiled three large adorable white puppies, claiming it has created “the world’s first successfully de-extincted animal”: the dire wolf, made famous by Game of Thrones. It invited author George RR Martin to look; he duly burst into tears.

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Part two of the debate: Coalition's energy future is lazy and retrograde. Labor's is ambitious, but that only means something when people are checking on its progress.

The post Down in the weeds of the energy debate: Are Australia’s renewable and emissions targets on track? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A new US Senate bill introduced Friday would set emissions limits on electricity consumed by data centres and cryptomining facilities.

The Illinois Senate unanimously passed a bill Thursday that would ban carbon sequestration in primary sources of drinking water, prompted by a CO2 pipeline leak in the state last year.

Investors slashed their V25 California Carbon Allowance (CCA) length and instead boosted Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LFS) holdings on a net basis, while producers built their V25 CCA length and reduced LFS exposure ahead of a massive selloff across US compliance markets following recent federal action against climate policies, data published Friday by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed.

A major multi-state CO2 pipeline developer has less than two weeks to show it can get its project moving, or South Dakota regulators may take permitting off the table.

A new bipartisan bill introduced in the US Senate aims to restrict eligibility for the federal clean fuel production tax credit to feedstock produced or grown in the country.

Maria Matthes, a lifelong koala conservationist, says loss of habitat and the climate crisis have threatened the endangered species in eastern New South Wales. Almost 2m hectares of forests suitable for koalas have been destroyed since 2011. They are one of more than 2,000 Australian species listed as under threat in what scientists are calling an extinction crisis

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Southeast Asia has the potential to slash aviation emissions by becoming a net exporter of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by 2040, but only if it gets the carbon calculus right, an analysis said this week.

The integration of climate indicators into banker’s pay is one of the key requirements in recently-adopted EU prudential legislation, even though the practice may face resistance, according to a think tank.

Compromise deal falls far short of carbon levy poor countries were hoping for

Shipping companies will have to pay for the carbon dioxide produced by their vessels for the first time under new rules agreed by the world’s maritime watchdog.

The regulations agreed on Friday fall far short of the levy on CO2 that poor countries were hoping for, which would have funded their efforts to combat the climate crisis.

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The Council of EU member states agreed on Friday to amend the bloc's gas storage regulation, extending by two years the storage targets introduced in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine while adding some flexibilities.

Countries break ten-year deadlock to agree measures to reduce commercial shipping emissions.

Countries break ten-year deadlock to agree measures to reduce commercial shipping emissions.

Technology company Microsoft has signed another deal for more than 3 million carbon removals (CDR) credits, it was announced Friday.

A flagship Swedish power plant running on bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) received the green light for a €1.1 billion final investment decision last month, as remaining uncertainty over the outcome of talks on the EU’s Green Claims Directive seemed to narrow, sources told Carbon Pulse.

A price index for carbon removals has jumped 11% since January, climbing above €150 per tonne.

Some farmers recovered from president’s first-term trade war and a fresh one is estimated to cost the state $6bn a year

California’s $59bn agricultural industry is bracing for disruption as Donald Trump’s tariffs continue to spike tensions and trigger economic turmoil with China – one of the state’s biggest buyers.

California is the country’s breadbasket, supplying roughly one-third of US vegetables and 75% of its fruits and nuts. But it also exports much of its produce – close to $24bn worth in 2022. This means farmers in the state could lose out significantly as China imposes retaliatory tariffs on American goods.

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Conservation and restoration finance initiatives, including biodiversity credit projects, must prioritise investor needs over ecological considerations during the design phase to attract buyers and avoid economic loss, a US-based non-profit has said.

Permit prices in China's national emissions market barely moved over the past week, with observers expecting compliance demand likely to emerge this month with the pre-allocation of allowances.