Feed aggregator

Thames Water’s £250m desalination facility out of action amid supply capacity doubts

A £250m desalination plant launched 12 years ago to increase drinking supplies during long dry spells has been put on hold, as water companies in England and Wales face growing political pressure over their management of the supply crisis.

The Thames Water plant at Beckton, east London, opened in 2010 with plans to supply up to 1 million people during emergencies, but that ambition has been scaled back amid doubts as to when the facility can begin operating.

Continue reading...

Crypto carbon group KlimaDAO has teamed up with a start-up Web3 company to work out how the blockchain carbon market can address know-your-customer (KYC) requirements from offset standards such as Verra.

An Australian gas producer has entered into a three-year partnership with a Victorian university to restore critical coastal wetlands, as private-sector interest in blue carbon continues to grow.

Spot prices for NZUs have drifted sideways in the week following its dramatic price rise in reaction to the ETS reform recommendations, holding firm around the highest levels seen in the market since early March.

Veteran diver struck by ‘intricate detail’ sent footage to be uploaded to Jellyfish app

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcast

A diver has captured footage of an unusual-looking jellyfish off the coast of Papua New Guinea, sparking interest among researchers.

The video was captured by Dorian Borcherds, who owns Scuba Ventures in Kavieng, in the New Ireland province of PNG.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Australia’s environment minister says billionaire Palmer’s Central Queensland Coal proposal would likely have ‘unacceptable impacts’ on reef

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcast

The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, has said she intends to block a coalmine project backed by mining billionaire Clive Palmer that would have dug for the fossil fuel just 10km from Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef coastline.

Palmer’s Central Queensland Coal project would have mined up to 18m tonnes a year from two open-cut pits near Rockhampton.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Passage of the climate bill is important but largely symbolic. Now it's time to go in hard and make sure it matches the science.

The post Climate target will soon be law, the task now is to go hard to catch up with science appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Plans for a huge wind farm and big battery in Victoria’s south west have resurfaced, as developers await development approval following environmental effects statement.

The post Massive new Victoria wind farm and battery awaits assessment after environmental checks appeared first on RenewEconomy.

"Makes little sense:" Even the coal generators are unhappy with ESB capacity market proposal.

The post Too slow, too coal: ESB capacity market proposal slammed by nearly everyone appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A change in governance and a rapid shift to renewables should ensure this is the last energy crisis for Australia, says Simon Corbell, the head of the Clean Energy Investment Group.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Why this should be Australia’s last energy crisis appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Parts of the reef see the most coral growth in 36 years - but it is highly vulnerable to threats.

ACT joins Victoria with a commitment to phase out the use of gas in homes and businesses by 2045, and shift to electrification backed by solar and storage.

The post ACT to quit gas by 2045, shift to all-electric homes and business appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Photographs from every continent except Antarctica show birds nesting or tangled in rubbish.

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

The Greens backed Labor’s moderate emissions cuts to avoid being seen as unwilling to compromise. But it’s only the start of a new wrestle over climate ambition. Kate Crowley, Adjunct Associate Professor, Public and Environmental Policy, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Seeing Japanese parents send toddlers out on their own to do errands has shocked viewers. But not that long ago our neighbourhoods were also child-friendly, and we can make them so again. Rebecca Clements, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, University of Sydney Elizabeth Taylor, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning & Design, Monash University Hulya Gilbert, Lecturer in Planning and Human Geography, La Trobe University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

I am a veterinarian with over 30 years experience. I believe this procedure must not continue, especially when safer alternatives are available. Sarah Pollard Williams, Adjunct lecturer, Charles Sturt University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The Bahamas is letting the developed world avoid addressing its disproportionate responsibility for climate change by creating a ‘blue carbon’ market to protect the Caribbean islands' large seagrass meadow, a scientist has warned.

This may become more common as the number of rockets sent to space increases, an expert said.

Fast-growing species of branching and plate-like corals push cover up but are also the preferred prey for crown-of-thorns starfish

• Get our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcast

Marine scientists monitoring the Great Barrier Reef say they have recorded the highest levels of coral cover in 36 years in the north and central areas, but warned any recovery could be quickly overturned by global heating.

The Australian Institute of Marine Science’s annual long-term monitoring report says the fast-growing corals that have driven coral cover upwards are also those most at risk from marine heatwaves, storms and the voracious crown-of-thorns (COTS) starfish.

Continue reading...