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The warming of the planet – including the most up-to-date data for 2023 – is entirely consistent with what climate modelers warned decades ago

Thirty years ago, the world’s nations agreed to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. But what is “dangerous climate change”? Just turn on the television, read the headlines of the morning paper or view your social media feeds. For we are watching it play out in real time this summer, more profoundly than ever before, in the form of unprecedented floods, heatwaves and wildfires. Now we know what dangerous climate change looks like. As has been said of obscenity, we know it when we see it. We’re seeing it – and it is obscene.

Scorching temperatures persist across Europe, North America and Asia, as wildfires rage from Canada to Greece. The heat is as relentless as it is intense. For example, Phoenix, Arizona, has broken its record of 18 consecutive days above 110F (43.3C). Even the nights, generally relied upon as a chance to recover from the blistering days, now offer little relief: for more than a week, nighttime temperatures in Phoenix have exceeded 90F (32.2C). Meanwhile, severe and deadly flooding has stricken South Korea, Japan, and the north-east United States, from Pennsylvania to Vermont.

Michael E Mann is a professor of earth and environmental science and the director of the Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media at The University of Pennsylvania. He is author of the forthcoming book Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth’s Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis

Susan Joy Hassol is the director of Climate Communication. She publishes Quick Facts on the links between extreme weather and climate change

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James Hansen, who testified to Congress on global heating in 1988, says world is approaching a ‘new climate frontier’

The world is shifting towards a superheated climate not seen in the past 1m years, prior to human existence, because “we are damned fools” for not acting upon warnings over the climate crisis, according to James Hansen, the US scientist who alerted the world to the greenhouse effect in the 1980s.

Hansen, whose testimony to the US Senate in 1988 is cited as the first high-profile revelation of global heating, warned in a statement with two other scientists that the world was moving towards a “new climate frontier” with temperatures higher than at any point over the past million years, bringing impacts such as stronger storms, heatwaves and droughts.

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Bayer and Syngenta accused of breaching legal obligations and unethical behaviour over brain toxicity studies

The pesticide companies Bayer and Syngenta have been excoriated in a European parliament hearing after failing to disclose studies on the brain toxicity of their products.

European regulators said the companies had breached legal obligations and behaved unethically. MEPs questioning executives from the companies said their actions had been “outrageous” and represented a “scandal”. The companies rejected the accusations and said they had provided all relevant studies.

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Trade in EUA futures on Germany's EEX platform plunged by 59% in the first half of the year even as the volume of business in power surged by 12% and gas grew by 20% overall, the bourse reported on Wednesday.

Twenty-three of Italy’s 27 main cities expected to be under red alerts as searing temperatures continue; wildfires north and west of Athens force residents to flee

• Italian hospitals report sharp rise in emergency cases as Rome hits 41.8C

Here are some more images form the wires of the wildfires that swept through forestland and towns north-west of Athens for a second day. The fires forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 children close to a Greek seaside resort.

Tourists flocked to China’s scenic Flaming Mountains to experience searing high temperatures amid punishing heatwaves that have scorched much of the Northern Hemisphere.

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An Australian biochar industry could be worth A$1-5 billion by 2030, however a dedicated method to earn Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) from the practice is at least two years away, a conference heard Wednesday.

Get used to it humanity! The planet you thought you lived on is gone

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The Tokyo Electric-owned company has started all of the initial work it will need to undertake -- if it gets a licence.

The post Flotation Energy starts Gippsland offshore wind work – before getting a licence appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Transgrid says it is seeking services from two separate battery energy storage systems following a “thorough assessment” of options for NSW network growth areas. 

The post Big batteries chosen over poles and wires to shore up grid in “doubly significant” tender appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia has the pieces for a local PV panel industry but needs to find out how to put them together in the right way.

The post Can Australia manufacture the billion solar panels it needs to be a renewable superpower? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The popular weekly podcast has been announced as co-winner of the CEC's 2023 Media Award for its "meaningful impact" on Australia's energy conversation.

The post RenewEconomy’s Energy Insiders podcast wins prestigious industry award appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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A global group of securities regulators has published a final report summarising responses to a recent consultation, supporting the establishment and enhancement of compliance carbon markets across its member jurisdictions.

At least 97% of the blood samples contained a type of PFAS known as PFOS, associated with multiple serious health problems

California researchers have found new evidence that several chemicals used in plastic production and a wide array of other industrial applications are commonly present in the blood of pregnant women, creating increased health risks for mothers and their babies.

The researchers said their findings add to a growing body of evidence showing that many chemicals people are routinely exposed to are leading to subtle but harmful changes in health. The work should be a “wake-up call” to policymakers, they said.

This story is co-published with the New Lede, a journalism project of the Environmental Working Group

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Turnbull rounds on Dutton, the Snowy Hydro management and Coalition climate deniers, while ACT energy minister Shane Rattenbury has a special put-down for Angus Taylor.

The post “It’s bonkers:” Turnbull slams Dutton nuclear push, says Snowy 2.0 has been mismanaged appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Two new big batteries win planning approval from NSW government, which flags more than 5GW of storage capacity in the planning pipeline.

The post NSW gives planning OK to two new big batteries in key renewable zones appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Global non-profit The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has opened offices in Singapore with plans to hire at least 20 staff members in order to roll out nature-based projects and activities across the Asia-Pacific region to address climate change and biodiversity loss.

Enel X Australia will recruit 440 commercial refrigeration facilities to deliver flexible demand capacity to support Australia’s renewable energy transition.

The post Arena trial taps 20MW of flexible demand from commercial refrigeration appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The MEG HP1 Hydrogen project will consist of two 5MW electrolysers and use electricity generated from the nearby 11MW Northam solar farm.

The post WA solar to hydrogen project wins $5m government funding boost appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A US-based start-up working with Indigenous small farmers in the Amazon on conservation initiatives has begun pre-sales of its fair trade biodiversity credits, while expecting its indicator species biodiversity methodology to earn its first market standard certification by October.