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Modelling points to ‘huge’ soil emissions in interior rangelands, which are more sensitive to a warming climate

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Intensifying extreme heat and drought due to climate change will make Australia’s soil a net emitter of carbon dioxide, impeding the country from reaching its climate goals, new analysis has found.

Soil carbon sequestration has been identified as a way to help Australia meet its greenhouse gas emission reduction targets of 43% by 2030 and net zero by 2050.

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The Commonwealth of Nations is looking to help member countries implement a carbon tax based on a model law designed to make it easy to administer, ensure a just transition, and reduce the impact on low-income and vulnerable groups.

Recent $74m investment made alongside assessment that 10% of electricity could be generated by geothermal by 2050

A limitless supply of heat exists beneath our feet within the Earth’s crust, but harnessing it at scale has proved challenging. Now, a combination of new techniques, government support and the pressing need to secure continuous clean power in an era of climate crisis means that geothermal energy is finally having its moment in the US.

Until recently, geothermal has only been viable where the Earth’s inner heat simmers near the surface, such as at hot springs or geysers where hot water or steam can be easily drawn to drive turbines and generate electricity.

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Swedish steel producer SSAB plans to turn one of its steel plants fossil-free, shaving an estimated 7% off the country’s CO2 emissions, the company announced on Tuesday.

European carbon prices tumbled by more than 4% on Tuesday morning as traders began to anticipate the publication of verified data for 2023, expected to show a sharp drop in emissions last year, while demand in the daily auction was among the weakest yet seen.

Letters revealed under FoI laws show council asked environment secretary to investigate plan

The government has been accused of quietly shelving a delayed plan to restore the polluted River Wye after letters from the government show it is incomplete with no publication date in sight.

Letters revealed to the Guardian under freedom of information (FoI) laws show the then environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey, told stakeholders in August that the government was “close to finalising” the plan to save the Wye and measures would be published within three months.

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The Chilean government has presented the board of a national fund tasked with mobilising resources for the conservation and restoration of biodiversity, seeking to raise efforts on bridging the financial gap that hampers protected areas (PAs) preservation in the country.

The Biden-Harris administration has restored a series of rules for protecting threatened and endangered species and their habitats in the US under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), rolled back by the previous Trump administration.

A UK-based remote sending firm has partnered with a Japanese project developer with an eye to generating carbon units under the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) and voluntary schemes, starting with a large rice project in Japan.

Chinese state owned energy giant buys Australian energy retailer to advance the growth of its renewables business.

The post State-owned Chinese company buys Australian energy retailer to boost local renewable plans appeared first on RenewEconomy.

One of the two Callide C coal units has finally returned to service, after being taken offline due to a cooling tower failure.

The post Callide coal unit returns to service after multiple delays with new cooling tower appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Reducing cattle populations and restoring native ecoystems is our best chance to tackle global heating. Here’s one way to do it

There is a simple, cost-effective and scientifically sound way to turn back the clock on global warming and reverse the catastrophic collapse of biodiversity: pay ranchers to raise trees instead of cattle.

By mass, the world’s 1.7 billion cows are the dominant animal species on Earth, far outweighing the human population, and outweighing all the wild terrestrial mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians left on Earth by more than 15-fold. More than a third of Earth’s land is used to feed livestock.

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The road to net zero and clean energy will be long, but the chief of Australia's newly created Net Zero Authority believes the target is entirely achievable despite such a large chunk of the nation’s GDP made up of exports of fossil fuels, he said Tuesday.

Combet says the new Net Zero Authority will be focused on transitioning coal workers into new industries, and he has just about recovered from the wounds of the carbon price repeal.

The post Net Zero Authority to play job angel for coal workers appeared first on RenewEconomy.

One of the world’s first trials of a large amount of ammonia to be used in a coal-fired power plant began this week, and if successful could help pave the way to further decarbonisation.

China has given the green light to the country's first industrial-use nuclear energy steam supply project, which could significantly reduce the coal consumption and carbon emissions of a major Chinese economic hub.

Facilities covered under the Safeguard Mechanism have for the first time been asked to provide explanations for heavy reliance on Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to meet their obligations, giving reasons ranging from unexpected production increases to limited carbon abatement technologies being available.

Environmental pledges are being shredded to please agribusiness and appease extremists. It’s a terrible mistake

The EU’s great green deal cave-in has been nothing less than spectacular. As aggressive lobbying and violent farmers protests ramped up in the last year, Brussels has killed plans to cut pesticide use by half, to green farming practices, to ban toxic “forever” chemicals, to rein in livestock emissions and, last week, to restore nature to 20% of Europe’s land and seas.

The aim may have been to create breathing space. Predictably, that hasn’t worked. The bloc’s anti-deforestation regulation seems likely to be the next green reform for the chop, with 20 agriculture ministers reportedly calling for it to be pared back and suspended on Monday, citing “administrative burdens”.

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The New Zealand ETS saw a new volume record in the secondary market thanks to the surge in trading activity in the lead up to and aftermath of last month’s NZU auction, a broker told Carbon Pulse Tuesday.

A Japanese project developer has teamed up with a listed real estate company in the Philippines to promote a carbon removal project featuring rice husk biochar, as it seeks to continue expanding its presence in Asia's voluntary market.