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A crow that survives only in captivity has been found to adapt and use tools to find food, according to scientists.

A crow that survives only in captivity has been found to adapt and use tools to find food, according to scientists.

Astronomers have discovered signs of a baby planet developing around another star.

Some 15,000 people responded to the mayor’s air quality consultation, with 79% backing plans to bring forward restrictions on polluting vehicles, reports BusinessGreen

Londoners are backing Sadiq Khan’s plans to crack down on air pollution in the capital, with more than 70 per cent of residents supporting plans to bring forward measures to restrict polluting vehicles in the city, according to the results of the Mayor’s air quality consultation.

Some 15,000 people responded to the Mayor’s office air quality consultation this summer - the highest number of responses to a City Hall consultation ever. Nearly 80 per cent of respondents said they supported Khan’s plans to bring forward the introduction of the Ultra Low Emission Zone - currently due to enter force in 2020 - to 2019, while 71 per cent said the zone should be expanded to encompass the north and south circular.

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The health of the countryside varies depending on how it is measured.

Brexit is an opportunity to refine legislation to match UK’s needs, says conservationist, speaking at the launch of a major report that shows Britain is one of the world’s most ‘nature-depleted countries’

David Attenborough has urged the government to use Brexit to better protect the UK’s nature and wildlife.

“Like it or not Brexit has happened. All agriculture and environment treaties for nature and wildlife will have to be rethought. It’s a great opportunity to refine the legislation to match our part of the world,” he told conservationists at the launch of the 2016 State of Nature report.

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Life-sustaining sea ice needed for hunting, resting and breeding is declining in all 19 regions of the Arctic inhabited by the species

Polar bears are losing life-sustaining sea ice crucial for hunting, resting and breeding in all 19 regions of the Arctic they inhabit, a study warned on Wednesday.

As climate change pushes up Arctic temperatures, ice is melting earlier in spring and refreezing later in autumn, a team of researchers reported in the Cryosphere, a journal of the European Geosciences Union.

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The European Space Agency has released details of the position and brightness of more than a billion stars.

An anonymous note chiding a retired funeral director for hanging her frillies outside has gone viral. But it’s just the latest incident in the global war on drying

In the US, they would call them “freedom panties”, which sounds terrible. In the tiny Devon village of Stokeinteignhead, they are known as Rozamund Perrin’s controversial smalls. The retired funeral director is at odds with her prudish neighbours in the latest skirmish in a global war on washing lines.

“It is totally inappropiate [sic] for this type of garment to be displayed opposite the village primary school,” reads an anonymous note posted through Perrin’s letterbox with the offending knickers. “There are member [sic] of this community that would welcome a halting of this.”

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Fifteen stunning images from the Royal Photographic Society's International Images for Science competition

The opening of data sources in agricultural research is needed to deliver the global goal of delivering zero hunger by 2030, say campaigners.

All of the other 51 countries voted in favour of an international ban, including big mining nations China and Russia

Norway and Turkey were the only two of 53 countries to vote against an international ban on the dumping of mining waste at sea, at a major conservation summit in Hawaii last week.

Even big mining nations including China and Russia voted in favour of the resolution at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) congress.

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The fossil fuel industry is dictating Republican Party actions on climate change in attorney generals offices, Congress, and for its presidential nominee

The GOP has become the Grand Oil Party. The fossil fuel industry has now managed to dictate Republican Party actions on climate change in attorney generals offices, Congress, and for the party’s presidential nominee.

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Satellite data shows ice was close to last year’s record low confirming a long-term downward trend towards ice-free Arctic summers

Arctic sea ice cover could be confirmed within days as the second lowest ever recorded, the latest data suggests.

According to the US national snow and ice data centre (NSIDC) the ice which forms and disperses annually has been close to its minimum extent for the year for several days and has begun to grow again as autumn sets in.

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Europe's Gaia space telescope releases its first batch of data as it builds the most precise map ever made of the night sky.

Water companies warn of the likelihood of more shortages due to climate change and lack of investment in infrastructure

Londoners face a one in five probability of queuing in the street at standpipes for their water for days or weeks during a sweltering summer in the coming 25 years, owing to drought brought about by climate change and a lack of water infrastructure, new data suggests.

As the UK basked in unaccustomed September heat, with temperatures topping 30C on Tuesday, a report commissioned by water companies found that the likelihood of droughts was increasing, while investment in water supplies failed to keep up with likely demand.

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The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) will suffer a A$500 million funding cut, after being saved from a far worse fate during negotiations over the government’s proposed budget savings package. So does this mean the ARENA funding glass is half full, or half empty?

The 2014 Abbott/Hockey budget aimed to destroy ARENA altogether. Thankfully it was blocked by Labor, the Greens and the crossbench in the Senate. In March this year the Turnbull government claimed to have saved ARENA but intended to divert most of its funds and prevent it from offering grants. The ALP supported that position before the election.

The government’s omnibus savings bill, which in its original form would have chopped A$1.3 billion from ARENA, would have doomed Australian renewable energy research and development (R&D) – despite our country’s recent pledge “to double government clean energy research and development investment by 2020”.

The Greens and Nick Xenophon Team opposed the cuts to ARENA. Labor compromised with the government, allowing A$500 million to be diverted elsewhere and leaving ARENA with A$800 million over the next five years.

The axe that previously hung over ARENA’s granting process has been lifted. So to answer the earlier question, our glass is now half full, because substantial funding will still flow to renewable energy R&D, this time with bipartisan political backing which hopefully confers greater funding stability. But it is also half empty, because clean energy innovation has taken another huge cut.

International support

Two weeks ago, some 200 Australian solar energy researchers signed a letter of support for ARENA, amid a groundswell of community support for the agency – not just here but from abroad too.

Australian solar energy R&D is held in very high regard within the international community. Nearly 300 overseas scientists, engineers and company executives signed a petition calling on Australia’s parliamentarians not to axe grants for renewable energy research, innovation and education. Many included complimentary comments, such as:

The Australian renewable energy program is an international treasure. It would be a disaster worldwide for the Australian government to end the program. These are world-renowned scientists.

For decades Australian scientists have been world leaders in the critical area of renewable energy research and development … the legacy of Australia’s great scientific contributions must be saved and their future excellent work supported.

The ARENA funding program has helped Australia lead the world in photovoltaics for decades, which enabled the worldwide economic boom from manufacturing and installing solar panels.

The quality of the work done by Australian researchers in this field is outstanding… to cut back on funding for ARENA is to cut back on the future of Australia’s science and Australia’s economy.

I have been involved in solar research for 35 years in the United States. Solar technology, including advances made at UNSW and ANU in Australia, have made [a] great impact on the world’s energy infrastructure.

Australia has some of the finest PV research on the planet and has been an inspiration to us all.

Where next for ARENA?

ARENA’s role is to support a rapid transition to renewable energy. So what should it do with its reduced funding of A$800 million over the coming five years?

Given that energy use accounts for three-quarters of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, with the electricity sector the biggest contributor, the fastest way to make deep cuts to emissions is to accelerate the introduction of renewable energy into the electricity system. This is the route successfully pioneered by the ACT government, which will reach 100% renewable electricity by 2020.

Other important energy goals will be to electrify road vehicles and trains, and to encourage the use of electric heat pumps in place of natural gas for building heating and hot water systems.

Reducing the emissions from other sectors such as shipping, aviation and high-temperature industries will be more difficult. But these sectors are less important in terms of overall emissions, and if we can push ahead with decarbonising electricity, transport and heating, that will give us more time to devise low-cost solutions for these remaining sectors.

It is important for ARENA to provide strong support at the grassroots level; help universities support undergraduate, postgraduate and postdoctoral training as well as research itself. These young people are the future of research, education, engineering and start-up companies.

Consistent grant support for new companies allows entrepreneurship to flourish, encouraging bright people in universities to commercialise their ideas. With the right backing, these people can often cycle back and forth through universities, completing a virtuous circle.

Success stories

Efficient silicon cells have been by far the greatest success story of Australian renewable energy research. With silicon cells now making up 95% of the worldwide solar market and likely to dominate for at least the next decade, improving their efficiency still further should be a prime research focus.

ARENA’s new large-scale solar energy program announced last week represents an outstanding success: A$92 million of ARENA funding has leveraged A$1 billion of investment to construct 0.5 gigawatts of solar farm capacity in three states. Another A$100 million to bring the total capacity to 1GW would give this nascent industry a great start.

Solar PV and wind now constitute virtually all new generation capacity in Australia and half of new generation capacity worldwide. They are being installed at more than 100 times the rate of the other non-hydro renewables because of their lower cost, and are growing much faster.

Soon PV and wind will constitute more than half of annual generation in many states and regions, and so attention has to be paid to managing their variability. Options include detailed integration studies, demand management, mass storage (using both the 99% market leader pumped hydro and the newcomer, batteries), and high voltage powerlines to move energy between regions – all of which will benefit from ARENA support.

It is time for all politicians to recognise that the faster we move to renewable energy, the cheaper it will be to cut emissions and adapt to climate change. ARENA has an important role to play in a rapid and sustained shift to renewable energy – and we look forward to a doubling of ARENA funding before the next election.

Andrew Blakers will be online from 9.30-10am AEST on Thursday September 15. Leave him a question in the comments below.

Andrew Blakers works for the Australian National University, which receives research grants from ARENA.

Richard Corkish is the chief operating officer for the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics, which is primarily funded by ARENA.

Plastic wrapping, mobile phones and disposable coffee cups top the list of items people are uncertain about, poll finds

British consumers admit that they are confused about exactly what household waste they can recycle, a new poll reveals, with plastic wrapping, mobile phones and disposable coffee cups at the top of their list.

Frustrated by what they can and can’t recycle, 63% of householders are puzzled that different councils collect waste in different ways - for example, using different colour bins - while 43% say they are not sure which days to put their bins out.

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That both sides of politics came so close to gutting ARENA is of major concern, but it's also an opportunity to reflect on our priorities.

State of Nature reveals the destructive impact of intensive farming, urbanisation and climate change on plants, animals and habitats

More than one in 10 of the UK’s wildlife species are threatened with extinction and the numbers of the nation’s most endangered creatures have plummeted by two-thirds since 1970, according to a major report.

The abundance of all wildlife has also fallen, with one in six animals, birds, fish and plants having been lost, the State of Nature report found.

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