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‘Wicked problem’: Coalition doesn’t rule out EV road user tax as fuel excise falls with uptake of greener vehicles

The Guardian - Sun, 2024-09-29 15:04

Bridget McKenzie tells Insiders she is working on the opposition’s transport policy ahead of the next federal election – including EV plans

Liberal senator Bridget McKenzie has again left the door open for a Coalition government to level a road user charge against owners of electric vehicles, indicating concern about decreasing fuel excise and the impact on budgets for road repairs.

But the shadow transport minister also said the Coalition wouldn’t follow the US in banning Chinese-made EVs, which put her at odds with comments on Sunday from Nationals colleague, Barnaby Joyce. He invoked last week’s Hezbollah members’ pager explosions in raising his concern about technology he claimed could be made with a “malevolent purpose” by a “totalitarian state”.

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Australia’s magpie swooping season is here – but they aren’t the only birds to watch out for

The Guardian - Sun, 2024-09-29 10:00

Noisy miners, butcherbirds and masked lapwings will also go on the offensive to protect their eggs and young

Australia’s infamous magpies have started to attack – but they’re not the only birds you might fall victim to this swooping season.

Lesser known suspects including noisy miners, butcherbirds and masked lapwings also swoop to protect their eggs and young, typically between August and October.

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SpaceX on mission to return two stranded astronauts

BBC - Sun, 2024-09-29 08:42
A capsule heads to the International Space Station, where two crew are spending months longer than planned.
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New York asset management firm launches $25 mln carbon credit fund

Carbon Pulse - Sun, 2024-09-29 08:10
A New York City-headquartered asset management firm has launched a $25 million fund to offer individual investors access to early-stage carbon projects.
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Canada awards $15 mln globally for sustainable forestry projects

Carbon Pulse - Sun, 2024-09-29 07:10
The Canadian government has awarded C$20.6 million ($15.4 mln) to 31 projects across the globe aimed at promoting sustainable forestry.
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The world is shifting away from using animals in research. Will Australia get left behind?

The Guardian - Sun, 2024-09-29 06:00

Australia’s lack of transparency and funding leave it on the outer as researchers worldwide explore alternatives for training, study and testing

A global shift in scientific and medical research is under way as countries hope to phase out experimentation on animals – but Australia risks being left behind.

The transition from using animals to alternatives based on human cells, tissue and data is driving multibillion-dollar growth in new technologies and methods. However, industry leaders and insiders warn Australia will miss those opportunities due to a lack of funding, opaque record keeping and national inconsistencies.

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Burning rubbish to create energy could end landfills. But some worry where Australia’s new path is leading

The Guardian - Sun, 2024-09-29 06:00

Some conservationists believe the ‘incineration industry’ is trying to gain a foothold in Australia and say the trend will end up damaging the environment

Australia’s first major waste-to-energy power plant has begun accepting rubbish, marking the start of a contentious nationwide shift towards burning household refuse to generate electricity.

At least 10 developments are under way across the country, sparking concern from some conservationists who argue the trend will be environmentally damaging and at odds with plans to develop a circular economy.

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An 'abomination' of a sub – and the boss convinced Titan was safe

BBC - Sun, 2024-09-29 02:39
A damning picture emerges from a public hearing into the failure of Oceangate’s Titan submersible.
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Cows help farms capture more carbon in soil, study shows

The Guardian - Sat, 2024-09-28 23:07

Research also reveals that a mixture of arable crops and cattle helps improve the biodiversity of the land

Cows may belch methane into the atmosphere at alarming rates, but new data shows they may play an important role in renewing farm soil.

Research by the Soil Association Exchange shows that farms with a mixture of arable crops and livestock have about a third more carbon stored within their soil than those with only arable crops, thanks to the animals’ manure.

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‘It’s hugely moving’: record numbers of sea turtle nests recorded in Greece

The Guardian - Sat, 2024-09-28 17:00

Conservationists celebrate as efforts to save the Caretta caretta sea turtle, which has existed for 100m years, pay off

After nearly a quarter of a century observing one of the world’s most famous sea turtle nesting grounds, Charikleia Minotou is convinced of one thing: nature, she says, has a way of “sending messages”.

Along the sandy shores of Sekania, on the Ionian island of Zakynthos, what she has seen both this year and last, has been beyond her wildest dreams. The beach, long described as the Mediterranean’s greatest “maternity ward” for the Caretta caretta loggerhead sea turtle, has not only record numbers of nests, but record numbers of surviving hatchlings as the species makes an extraordinary resurgence.

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UK climate envoy to keep role at charity whose founders invest in fossil fuels

The Guardian - Sat, 2024-09-28 16:00

Supporters rally to Rachel Kyte after criticism of appointment over link to investment firm Quadrature Capital

The UK’s new climate envoy will retain her role on the board of a charity whose founders made a multimillion-pound donation to the Labour party and have investments in fossil fuels, the Guardian has learned.

Rachel Kyte, the former World Bank climate chief who was announced as the UK’s special representative on climate this week, is on the climate advisory board of Quadrature Climate Foundation, a charity set up by the founders of the Quadrature Capital investment company.

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CFTC: Shift to V25 CCAs extends, traders reduce RGGI exposure

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 12:00
An ongoing build-up of V25 California Carbon Allowance (CCA) holdings comes at the expense of V24s, while RGGI traders reduce exposure as allowance prices in the secondary market decline from summer peaks, according to this week's data released Friday from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
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US DOE plans to fund up to $1.3 bln carbon capture projects

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 10:30
The US Department of Energy (DOE) plans to fund up to $1.3 billion in carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) projects, according to a Notice of Intent (NOI) issued on Friday.
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Final Oregon CPP reinstatement discussions explore potential refinements on stringency, costs

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 10:20
Industry opposition to Oregon’s proposed Climate Protection Program (CPP) remained muffled amid strong voices of support for the scheme, although the state’s Environmental Quality Commission (EQC) continues to explore potential avenues for revisions as the programme regulator concluded its final discussions ahead of the rule proposal.
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Penguin chicks survive tearaway iceberg

BBC - Sat, 2024-09-28 09:56
For months a huge iceberg blocked the path of hundreds of penguin chicks but somehow they survived.
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Brazil’s Amazonas REDD+ recommendation to suspend activities halted as prosecutors defend effort

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 08:44
Brazil's Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) recommendation to suspend REDD+ activities in the state of Amazonas has been temporarily halted by an oversight committee despite MPF objections.
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CWNY24: BRIEFING – COP29 to encourage private sector role crucial to decarbonisation

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 07:33
The private sector is poised to take an increasingly important role in achieving global decarbonisation tasks, according to speakers at the New York edition of the World Climate Summit 2024 on Wednesday, in line with Climate Week NYC programming.
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US House introduces bill to lift EPA’s summertime ban of E15 fuel sales

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 06:57
A bipartisan group of representatives in the US House of Representatives introduced legislation Friday that would enable the year-round sale of E15 fuels at retail gas stations across the nation.
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CWNYC24: Canadian carbon markets brace for shifting political, investment landscape

Carbon Pulse - Sat, 2024-09-28 06:48
Impending federal elections and investment enthusiasm for carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) are weighing on Canadian emissions trading systems, experts discussed during Climate Week NYC on Thursday.
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