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Queensland Competition Authority directed to investigate the potential benefits – for both networks and consumers – of introducing of time-of-use solar tariffs.

Ford, Devon For some, the figures are the crowning glory of a roof – and a chance to show off a thatcher’s skill and imagination

At the end of the roof I’m working on, the peacock sits, still as a bookend. Two pheasants eye each other coyly on the ridge of the thatched cottage opposite, while on a house further down the lane, a fox prowls between the chimneys. Up among the rooftops of this village near Plymouth, I am surrounded by a shadowy cast of creatures: straw animal finials.

Today I am repairing the ridge with the straw peacock. Typically the ridge on a thatched house needs to be replaced at least once during the roof’s lifetime – that much all thatchers can agree on. More controversial is the question of whether to add a straw animal.

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Coalition wants CEFC to be able to invest in carbon capture and storage, despite no evidence that it can cut emissions and lower costs as claimed.

CEC report says 2017 shaping up to be biggest year for renewables since Snowy Hydro 1, as industry shakes off Abbott-era uncertainty and state governments take the lead.

Combination of carbon emissions and ‘urban heat island’ effect of concrete and asphalt gives rise to worst-case scenario by end of 21st century

Under a dual onslaught of global warming and localised urban heating, some of the world’s cities may be as much as 8C (14.4F) warmer by 2100, researchers have warned.

Such a temperature spike would have dire consequences for the health of city-dwellers, rob companies and industries of able workers, and put pressure on already strained natural resources such as water.

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Studying the catastrophe that has been Australian climate and energy policy these past 30 years is thoroughly depressing. Why were we so stupid, so unrelentingly shortsighted?

THAWING PERMAFROST: Arctic peatlands may become a substantial source of nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide, when they thaw, a new study suggests.

National eNews - COALlapse, Eco-Circus, Climate Chaos webcast, National Conference abstract submissions close soon

Drought, excessive construction and a water cartel are all adding to Bangalore's woes.

Leading global environmental lawyer James Thornton says President Trump will ultimately fail to wind back US environmental laws.

Solar accounted for 3.2% of total generation in Australia last year, and its big rise will continue to 30% by 2030 and more than 50% by 2050.

A reality check on some of the big claims made to justify the proposed new mine, which would be the biggest in Australia. From ‘tens of thousands of new jobs’ to ‘good for the environment’, we unpack several of the most common claims to see if they stand up to scrutiny
• The new coal frontier: Australia’s carbon bomb
• Indian solar power prices hit record low

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Leading economists, including Joseph Stiglitz and Nicholas Stern say taxes of $100 per metric ton could be needed by 2030

A group of leading economists warned on Monday that the world risked catastrophic global warming in just 13 years unless countries ramped up taxes on carbon emissions to as much as $100 (£77) per metric ton.

Experts including Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz and former World Bank chief economist Nicholas Stern said governments needed to move quickly to tackle polluting industries with a tax on carbon dioxide at $40-$80 per ton by 2020.

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European commission given more powers to monitor testing and fine firms after Germany’s initial objections are overcome

The European Union has moved towards cracking down on carmakers who cheat emissions tests by giving the EU executive more powers to monitor testing and impose fines.

The European council overcame initial objections from Germany and agreed to try to reform the system for approving vehicles in Europe in the wake of the Volkswagen emissions scandal.

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Under ‘rigs to reefs’ idea, oil firms asked to consider turning decommissioned platforms into artificial reefs for marine life

Conservationists want oil companies and regulators to consider leaving more old rigs in the North Sea rather than removing them, with the savings paid into a fund to protect sealife.

After the Brent Spar debacle in 1995 when Shell provoked public outrage with plans to sink an old storage buoy, international regulations were imposed that work on the presumption that operators will remove rigs. Exemptions can be granted but are rare and on limited grounds.

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Terry Selwood, 73, from New South Wales, Australia, describes the moment a great white shark launched itself into his boat while he was out fishing on Saturday afternoon. Speaking to Australia’s ABC News Selwood says the coastguard initially didn’t believe his story when he called them for help

• Fisherman says great white shark jumping in his boat was ‘just a mundane thing’

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Kabwe in Zambia has been left with extreme levels of lead pollution after almost a century of metal mining and smelting, harming generations of children

• Read more: The world’s most toxic town: the terrible legacy of Zambia’s lead mines

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Air pollution adds to the global burden of disease.

SA energy minister Tom Koutsantonis is still weighing up how much faith he can put into battery storage to manage the grid.

Adani Power's latest big loss underlines the fact that its Carmichael coal project makes no sense. One myth is that the local economy would be devastated if the mine doesn't go ahead. But it's simply not true, given the huge pipeline of solar, wind, storage, biofuel and battery manufacturing projects.