Feed aggregator

The UK government must not carry its surplus of emissions over to the next carbon budget, as the focus of decarbonisation shifts from electricity to tougher-to-abate sectors, the independent Committee on Climate Change (CCC) warned on Wednesday. 

The implementation of a carbon fee alongside the continuation of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credits would yield the most significant and cost-effective emissions reductions for the US, according to modelling results published Tuesday by a DC-based think tank.

New York's legislature should assert more authority by setting supply and price limits itself under the state's future cap-and-invest programme, to help ensure that overall climate efforts sufficiently consider the affordability and reliability of energy, according to a report from a think tank published Tuesday.

Extreme winds from thunderstorms have downed transmission towers from Victoria to Western Australia in recent years. What’s going on? Andrew Dowdy, Principal Research Scientist, The University of Melbourne Andrew Brown, Ph.D. student, The University of Melbourne Andrew King, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science, The University of Melbourne Claire Vincent, Senior Lecturer in Atmospheric Science, The University of Melbourne Michael Brear, Director, Melbourne Energy Institute, The University of Melbourne Pierluigi Mancarella, Chair Professor of Electrical Power Systems, The University of Melbourne Todd Lane, Professor, School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne, The University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A startup that lets investors buy digital tokens backed by physical EU carbon allowances has shut down due regulatory and financial difficulties.

The European Parliament approved on Tuesday a revision of the bloc’s long-term budget, with some lawmakers warning the European Commission against an excessive deployment of capital to support Ukraine that would leave a shortage of funding for industrial decarbonisation.

Exchange operator ICE confirmed on Tuesday the delayed launch next month of carbon unit futures contracts eligible for compliance under Alberta’s Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) programme.

Huge open-cut mining pits would be turned into reservoirs to hold water for renewable energy storage. It would give the sites a new lease on life and help shore up our low-emissions future. Timothy Weber, Research Officer for School of Engineering, Australian National University Andrew Blakers, Professor of Engineering, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A French NGO is looking to develop a methodology to create offsets from installing eco-friendly housing in West Africa, and is recruiting a carbon expert to work towards its approval by a voluntary carbon standard.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will evaluate and list voluntary carbon ecosystem players in 2024, as part of its Congressionally-approved programme to facilitate farmer, rancher, and private forest landowner participation in the market, according to government documents published Tuesday.

Waste flowed into Hampshire stream for 20 hours because of faulty equipment at pumping station

A water company has been fined £330,000 after raw sewage escaped into a stream in Hampshire for up to 20 hours, killing about 2,000 fish including brown trout.

Waste flowed into Shawford Lake Stream on the edge of the South Downs because of faulty equipment at a pumping station.

Continue reading...

A bill to restore at least 20% of the EU’s land and seas by 2030 got the final green light by the European Parliament on Tuesday, amid tensions within the centre-right European People's Party (EPP) group, which is seeking to portray itself as the farmer's party as EU elections approach on 6-9 June.

The geopolitical fallout of Russia’s war in Ukraine is forcing Moscow and Central Asian countries to look more seriously at renewable energy than ever before, a long-time advisor in the region said on Tuesday.

Governments and companies have been urged to conduct nature risk assessments when identifying sites for renewable energy plants, to minimise biodiversity impacts while enhancing investments, by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

Climate risk is affecting a growing number of actors across the economy as supply chains become more interconnected around the world, according to a climate insurance company offering specialised products for the carbon, energy, and agricultural industries.

The European Parliament has become the first international body to criminalise large-scale ecosystem destruction, introducing sentences of up to 10 years for CEOs, following a vote on Tuesday.

The clean energy industry may need to speed up, but the economy isn't yet ready to quit oil and gas, and won't be for decades to come, oil and gas executives said on Tuesday.

Six airports put UK capital ahead of Tokyo and Dubai, with Heathrow second-worst global airport for climate impact

The planes taking off and landing at London’s six airports expose the city’s inhabitants to the equivalent of 3.23m cars’ worth of harmful nitrogen oxides and particulate matter emissions every year. In Tokyo and Dubai, residents are exposed to 2.78m cars’ worth of emissions from air traffic.

These three cities are the world’s worst affected by air pollution from aviation, according to new research tracking the air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions of cargo and passenger flights from airports around the world.

Continue reading...

Environment Agency objects to plans for 1,450 new homes, saying Thames Water’s Oxford plant cannot cope with more demand

A major housing development should be blocked because underinvestment by Thames Water in the sewage system means it is unable to cope with the pressure of an increased population, the Environment Agency has warned.

Thames Water’s treatment plant in Oxford has been illegally discharging sewage for six years, causing significant risk to the rivers and environment from pollution, the EA has said.

Continue reading...

Heat pump sales across the EU fell by around 5% last year compared to the previous year, data from an industry group show, putting the EU’s climate and energy targets at risk.