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A US commercial-scale direct air capture (DAC) plant will hold its groundbreaking ceremony this week, a panel heard Wednesday, with the facility slated to capture up to one million tonnes of CO2 a year once fully operational in coming years.

Digitally-linked biogas clean cookstove projects could pay for themselves in five years despite the high set up cost, according to an industry-commissioned paper that outlines how technological advances could build buyer confidence in a carbon credit sector shaken by over-crediting concerns.

The European Parliament’s environment (ENVI) and industry (ITRE) committees on Wednesday voted to strengthen a law to curb methane emissions from the energy sector, seeking to include imports while demanding a future proposal to reduce output of the potent warming gas in other sectors.

Modelling shows how good policy and regulation can put the famous solar duck curve to sleep and share the benefits of rooftop solar with everyone.

The post Dead duck curve: Rooftop solar saturation can be big win for consumers and grid appeared first on RenewEconomy.

‘Unprecedented’ warming indicates climate crisis is taking place before our eyes, experts say

Temperatures in the world’s oceans have broken fresh records, testing new highs for more than a month in an “unprecedented” run that has led to scientists stating the Earth has reached “uncharted territory” in the climate crisis.

The rapid acceleration of ocean temperatures in the last month is an anomaly that scientists have yet to explain. Data collated by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), known as the Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature (OISST) series, gathered by satellites and buoys, has shown temperatures higher than in any previous year, in a series stretching back to 1981, continuously over the past 42 days.

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EU ETS trading volume dropped year-on-year by 26% in 2022 compared to the 2021 record of nearly 10 billion allowances, a report revealed on Wednesday.

The public-private LEAF Coalition on Wednesday announced it has approved two jurisdictions in South America to supply REDD credits issued from a global offset standard, as it unveiled the next call for governments to submit proposals.

Consultancy KPMG and ESG information provider Context Labs have announced a partnership aimed at assisting companies measure and reduce their environmental footprints through the use of distributed ledger technology, advanced climate data, and analytics powered by machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI).

Standards body SocialCarbon is broadening its remit away from nature-based solutions (NBS) and will cut down on its list of eligible methodologies derived under the UN's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), it announced Wednesday following a public consultation.

The co-chair of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) has said that he does not expect the final recommendations on nature-related financial disclosures to substantially change from the draft published at the end of March, with firms already starting to implement the guidelines.

EUAs extended their losses for a sixth consecutive session as the market continued to liquidate long positions amid declining natural gas prices and worsening sentiment, though the market pulled back some of its earlier decline after the daily auction cleared in line with prevailing spot prices.

Aviation industry representatives believe the provisional deal reached overnight between EU legislators on the sector uptake of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) is achievable, with the legislation key to kickstarting the decarbonisation of the sector among other measures including the EU ETS.

Liberating trees from woody vines, or lianas, is a cost-effective "climate no-brainer" that enhances the economic value of managed forests while helping to fight climate change, according to new research, which estimated that the practice could help remove 800 million tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere over 30 years.

Pesticide use is still widespread in Europe and on the rise in some countries, and EU lawmakers must do much more if the bloc is to meet its targets on hazardous pesticides that damage ecosystems and public health, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said Wednesday.

South Korea has cancelled plans to auction off a combined 3.7 million CO2 permits before the June 30 annual compliance deadline due to low allowance prices and poor market liquidity.

New Zealand must find a way for its emissions trading scheme to rely less on forestry credits if the market is to drive sufficient carbon reductions elsewhere in the economy to meet national climate goals, the independent Climate Change Commission said Wednesday.

Spanish utility Iberdrola posted a strong rebound in hydro output during the first quarter of the year in a signal that reservoir stocks in Iberia have recovered despite ongoing drought-like conditions, also reducing the firm's ETS-covered fossil power generation as a result.

Weeds protect the soil and nurture insects and birds – now they are finally having their time in the sun at the Chelsea flower show

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has declared that this year’s Chelsea flower show is all about weeds, but not as we know them. Four of its 12 show gardens will feature plants traditionally regarded as weeds, which are now being rebranded as “resilient” and “heroes”. Weeds are no longer flowers in the wrong place, according to this year’s organisers, but exactly where they should be, softening the designer’s edge and adding a wild note to far corners. I do love an about-change from the marching band. It’s so full of fanfare and drama.

Except it’s not really new, wild things have been creeping into Chelsea for many years now. Just ask Mary Reynolds, the Irish environmentalist and author of We are the Ark whose gold-winning show garden in 2002 was noted for its “subversive use of weeds”, plants that she is still very much using today in her design work.

Alys Fowler is a gardener and Guardian columnist

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A carbon removals venture has announced the advance purchase of nearly 200,000 tonnes from a portfolio of direct air capture, biochar, and biomass projects, aiming to hit 1 Mt in forward deals by 2025 at "an average target price" of $200 per tonne, it said in a release Wednesday.

European Environment Agency says Ukraine crisis cannot be used to justify delay

The EU’s environmental watchdog has hit back at calls to stall a 50% cut in the use and risks of synthetic pesticides and a 20% cut in fertiliser use by 2030, arguing that the Ukraine crisis provides scant justification for delay.

EU states with the backing of powerful farm unions and centre-right parties have blocked the proposed pesticide reform unless the European Commission completes a second impact study by 28 June to assuage food security fears.

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