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New Zealand’s new government has vowed to explore ‘blue carbon’ options for removing atmospheric CO₂ to meet net zero goals. But first we need a national strategy for this developing field of science. Rebecca J McLeod, Senior Research Fellow in Marine Ecology, University of Otago Cliff Law, Principal Scientist, National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), University of Otago Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Until now, planning and housing regulations have stood in the way of using tiny houses as permanent homes. That’s starting to change as councils look for solutions to the housing crisis. Hing-Wah Chau, Course Chair in Building Design & Senior Lecturer in Built Environment, Victoria University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

2023 is first year of potential pair of El Niño years and since 1997, every instance of these pairs has led to mass coral mortality

Record-breaking land and sea temperatures, driven by climate breakdown, will probably cause “unprecedented mass coral bleaching and mortality” throughout 2024, according to a pioneering coral scientist.

The impact of climate change on coral reefs has reached “uncharted territory”, said Prof Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, from the University of Queensland, Australia, leading to concerns that we could be at a “tipping point”.

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Effective governance of Britain’s nuclear industry is critical to saving a hazardous industry from itself

There will be many reasons why Britain’s energy secretary, Claire Coutinho, went public with her unease about “serious and concerning” allegations raised by the Guardian this week over cybersecurity, site safety and a “toxic” workplace culture in Sellafield. There was the “longstanding nature” of the matters in question, raising questions over the site’s management. Neighbouring governments have had serious concerns. The plant holds enough plutonium to potentially make thousands of atomic bombs of the size that obliterated Japan’s Nagasaki in 1945. By asking for assurances from its state-controlled owner and its regulator, Ms Coutinho emphasises that effective governance of Britain’s nuclear industry is a critical issue.

This is a sensible response to these scandals. The cabinet minister is right to publicise her concerns about a hazardous industry that can inflict catastrophic environmental damage and deaths. She has sent a helpful signal about valuing public safety over secrecy. Sellafield in Cumbria, and about 20 smaller sites, need to be monitored and protected, as the waste stored can remain radioactive for tens of thousands of years. Yet the nuclear establishment is at best opaque. Britain’s postwar development of nuclear weapons grew alongside the construction of nuclear energy reactors. The industry’s military connections have influenced its approaches to corporate governance for the worse.

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A twice-weekly summary of our biodiversity news plus bite-sized updates from around the world. All articles in this edition are free to read (no subscription required).

Canada unveiled plans on Thursday for a cap-and-trade system for its oil and gas sector, with the government aiming to introduce reporting requirements from 2026 and setting out a 2030 emissions cap but giving no clear indication on when the market would launch.

A pact has been launched at COP28 to address biodiversity, climate and pollution with the goal of slowing down ship speeds globally by 25% by 2030.

Democrat lawmakers on Wednesday reintroduced a bill for the US to impose a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) on energy-intensive imports to help cut CO2 emissions and protect domestic manufacturing, only a month after Republicans put forward similar proposals.

Rwanda will take a share of carbon credits rather than a share of the profits generated from Article 6 projects that will be correspondingly adjusted (CA) against the country’s NDC climate pledge, it was revealed Thursday by a cookstove developer in the advanced stages of such a deal.  

Private landowners are increasingly pushing for the EU to clarify how and to what extent Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) will be part of the bloc’s biodiversity strategy, a European Commission official told a webinar this week.

The perceived injustice of industrialised countries propping up their own clean technology industries with protectionist measures and subsidies is being seized on by emerging economies as a negotiating chip that is complicating COP28 UN climate talks in Dubai, sources at the summit told Carbon Pulse.

EU nations on Thursday adopted a unified position on the Net Zero Industry Act, advancing the bloc's proposed response to green industry legislation worldwide and in particular the US Inflation Reduction Act.

A record 84,000 people are in attendance at the UN climate summit in Dubai, including thousands of activists and members of civil society

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However the Albanese government has not contributed to a newly created global loss and damage fund at Cop28

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The Australian government has pledged A$150m climate finance for Pacific countries, but has not contributed to a newly created global loss and damage fund.

Nearly 200 countries reached an historic consensus agreement on the first day of the Cop28 climate summit in Dubai to set up the loss and damage fund to help the world’s poorest and most vulnerable countries pay for the irreversible impacts of climate disaster.

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Australia’s two largest oil and gas companies confirmed Thursday they are in talks about a potential merger that would create a massive exploration and production major.

Two Australian carbon project developers are partnering with a research group that will soon bid for government funding, the former announced this week.

Groups seek more time to comment on US Forest Service proposal to store carbon dioxide amid fears over safety and impact

A proposal that would allow industries to permanently stash climate-polluting carbon dioxide beneath US Forest Service land puts those habitats and the people in or near them at risk, according to opponents of the measure.

Chief among opponents’ concerns is that carbon dioxide could leak from storage wells or pipelines and injure or kill people and animals, as well as harm the trees in the forests and their habitat, said Victoria Bogdan Tejeda, attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity.

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Exclusive: Five IPCC report authors say scientists should be allowed to make policy prescriptions and potentially oversee implementation

Senior climate experts are calling for an overhaul of the structure and powers of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in despair at the slow pace of climate action.

Five lead authors of IPCC reports told the Guardian that scientists should be given the right to make policy prescriptions and, potentially, to oversee their implementation by the 195 states signed up to the UN framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC).

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European carbon was steady on Thursday morning after bears beat back an effort to boost prices in mid-morning after a modestly bullish auction outcome, while energy markets were firmer for a second day as weather forecasts showed slightly lower temperatures in the offing.

Governments and the private sector must improve incentives to invest in nature to help bridge the financial gap, accounting firm KPMG has said.