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Multiple impediments that are holding back demand for credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM) include a lack of education on the part of potential buyers, the impact of bad press, the current economic climate, and buyer reluctance to sign up to ongoing carbon credit purchases, according to the head of carbon markets at a UK-based bank.

The Uxbridge byelection victory should have bolstered the Tory campaign – instead, it’s triggered a battle over green policy

What’s the biggest mistake Keir Starmer has made this year? Given that the Labour leader enjoys a 19-point poll lead, you could argue there aren’t many to pick from. Figures on the left of the party cite policy decisions such as sticking with the two-child benefit cap. But Downing Street would point you back to four months ago and Labour’s attack ads. The springtime offensive saw Starmer fight dirty as his party accused Rishi Sunak of not believing adults convicted of sexually abusing children should go to prison.

They were designed as a stress test (with mixed results) for the shadow cabinet and parliamentary party on the need to hold a difficult line in an election campaign. But in No 10 they were seen as a green light for the Tories to go further. “His strategic mistake was to step in the gutter,” argues one senior government figure. With the polls showing little sign of improvement, No 10 is now planning to join Starmer there. The Tories are going into fight mode.

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Project in Friesland aims to draw on residual warmth from Zuidwal volcano for sustainable energy

Heat from an extinct volcano could be piped into homes under a plan in the Dutch city of Bolsward.

The Netherlands may be known for windmills but Ynze Salverda is no fan of the wind turbines proliferating across the country. He believes sustainable energy could be generated underground using residual warmth from the Zuidwal volcano deep under the Wadden Sea.

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Caribbean Development Bank head urges help for countries classed as developing but not among poorest

Middle-income developing countries hit by devastating climate disaster risk missing out on rescue funds, the head of one of the world’s development banks has warned.

Hyginus Leon, the president of the Caribbean Development Bank, told the Guardian that some developing countries with per capita incomes that would disqualify them for some forms of overseas aid could be made ineligible for climate funds.

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Fertiliser use on key crops down more than a quarter on 2010-19 average, while yields increased 2.4%

Britain’s farmers increased their yields of major crops last year despite significant reductions in fertiliser use, according to research.

Making artificial fertilisers relies on natural gas, the price of which rose sharply last year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Fertiliser prices almost tripled, from £233 a tonne in 2020 to £766 a tonne in 2022, which farmers say led to a reduction in their use.

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EUAs continued their retreat from a mid-week five-week high on Friday and were on course for a 3% weekly loss by midday, even as the August halving of auction supply looms.

Liquidity improved in China’s carbon market over the past week along with an uptick in prices thanks to the contribution of three block deals, while offset developers are placing bets on forestry projects ahead of the relaunch of the national voluntary programme.

You’re more likely to die taking a selfie than in a shark attack: as oceans warm, we need to get used to close encounters

Silly season is upon us and sharks are dominating the headlines again. As a marine conservationist, if I see another headline along the lines of “Menacing man-eating shark lurking off the coast of Britain” accompanied by a photo of a basking shark – a species that exclusively consumes plankton – I think I might scream.

It seems all a shark needs to do these days is push its dorsal fin above the ocean waves and panic immediately ensues. Just this week, that’s exactly what happened off the French coast. A blue shark – a species typically found in the open ocean with an extremely low record of unprovoked attacks on humans – was spotted close to the shoreline. Instant drama ensued, with lifeguards closing the beach and swimmers watching on from the water’s edge. What is it about sharks that makes us lose our minds?

Hannah Rudd is the author of Britain’s Living Seas: Our Coastal Wildlife and How We Save It, a marine scientist at Shark Hub UK, and policy and advocacy manager at the Angling Trust

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Pro-car campaigns fail to cut through in Britain. Labour must dare to stand firm in defence of green policies

Once so clogged with noxious fumes that it earned the nickname the Smoke, London has been battling pollution for more than a century. From the Great Stink to the Great Smog, successive public health emergencies have for decades prompted ambitious anti-pollution measures, gradually transforming the capital for the better.

The Victoria Embankment containing Joseph Bazalgette’s pioneering sewer system, the magnificent Abbey Mills pumping station and the groundbreaking Clean Air Act 1956 stand among other initiatives as testaments to the unflinching conviction of past leaders in tackling London’s pollution problems head-on.

Phineas Harper is chief executive of the charity Open City

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The best of this week’s wildlife photographs, including deer in Greece, busy ants and the return of the kākāpō

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The Australian state of Victoria has announced it will ban gas connections in new homes and public buildings from next year as it races to meet its ambitious 2035 and 2045 emission reduction targets, while the spread between generic and human-induced regeneration (HIR) Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) widens.

The Malaysian government has released the first part of its Energy Transition Roadmap, identifying 10 flagship projects that it says will help generate major investment opportunities to help the country achieve its climate goals.

Some baby sharks eat their unborn siblings in utero, while others spend 100 years in childhood. Sink your teeth into the weird world of these juvenile wonders of the deep. Jaelen Nicole Myers, PhD Candidate, James Cook University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

One of the world's leading solar inverter makers has responded to Coalition claims that China made inverters pose a serious security risk to Australia's energy grid.

The post “We operate independently:” China inverter giant answers Coalition PV scare campaign appeared first on RenewEconomy.

July was the planet’s hottest month ever recorded – and may have been the hottest month in 120,000 years.

The post “It is terrifying:” July confirmed as planet’s hottest month on record appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Shell and Eku Energy kick off early works at the Rangebank big battery to be built on the outskirts of Melbourne.

The post Shell and Macquarie’s Eku begin early works on big battery in Melbourne appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A man in the US has filmed three humpback whales breaching in almost perfect synchronisation off the coast of Massachusetts.

AEMO to model "extremely rapid" switch to renewables, but dials down green hydrogen exports. It also releases new "conceptual" transmission map, even as costs rise.

The post AEMO to model “extremely rapid” green energy switch, even as transmission costs soar appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Anna Skarbek from Cimateworks on why renewables will play central role in getting big industry to net zero. First, the grid. Plus: Big battery boom.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: The path to net zero for industry appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Planning permits for new homes will only connect to all-electric networks in 2024, marking a major about face for the state with the highest residential gas use in Australia.

The post Fossil gas ban: Victoria calls time on gas connections for new homes appeared first on RenewEconomy.