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

Latest Rystad Energy data reveals new big solar output records for December. Meanwhile, the wind blew strongest in the West.

The post Big solar records round out the year for NSW and Queensland appeared first on RenewEconomy.

California Governor Gavin Newsom proposed on Wednesday funding cuts to climate programmes by 7% to make up for the state’s $37.1 billion projected budget shortfall, following last year’s 3% climate spending cutbacks.

As Victoria's Challicum Hills wind farm turns 20, it's worth reflecting on what a pioneering and pivotal project it was for renewable energy in Australia.

The post Happy birthday Challicum Hills: The wind farm that launched an industry appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Kew scientists discovered nearly 100 new plants and fungi last year - but some may already be extinct.

Squadron Energy breaks ground on Uungula Wind Farm and announces multi-billion dollar turbine supply deal to underpin giga-scale project pipeline.

The post Forrest turns sod on NSW biggest wind farm, firms 14GW plans with major turbine deal appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The US can better mobilise the global funding response to the impacts of climate change, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) experts said in an opinion piece published Tuesday.

While running it briefly and intermittently at a very low temperature may feel thrifty, it will not be the most energy efficient choice. Here’s what to do instead. Mark Goldsworthy, Senior Research Scientist, CSIRO Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Allowance budget cuts could bring down WCI market surplus bank by over 200 million, a conference heard Wednesday, but California Carbon Allowance (CCA) values will likely remain below the price ceiling.

Volcano-top orchid also named by scientists contending with extinctions caused by the human destruction of nature

Two types of tree and a palm that live underground are among the new plant species named in 2023 and highlighted by scientists at the Royal Botanical Garden Kew in the UK.

The palm is unique, as the only species known to flower and fruit almost exclusively underground, and was discovered in Borneo. The trees were discovered in the deep Kalahari sands of highland Angola, where the free-draining terrain has led a number of species evolving to live at least 90% underground.

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Ministers hope to build fleet of reactors to meet quarter of electricity demand by 2050 but critics highlight long delays and rising costs

The government has set out plans for what it claims will be Britain’s biggest nuclear power expansion in 70 years, despite concerns about faltering nuclear output and project delays.

Ministers published a roadmap on Friday that recommits the government to building a fleet of nuclear reactors capable of producing 24GW by 2050 – enough to meet a quarter of the national electricity demand.

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Scientists warn further spread could threaten fragile ecosystem, as tests show seals died of H5N1 on South Georgia island

A UK virology team has confirmed the first bird flu infections in elephant and fur seals in the sub-Antarctic region, as the highly contagious H5N1 virus continues to spread around the world.

Researchers previously reported the mass deaths of seals and that a number of elephant seals on South Georgia island – a UK overseas territory in the southern Atlantic Ocean – had been exhibiting symptoms of avian flu. But while seabird cases were confirmed, the seal infections were classed as suspected, pending lab results.

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The UK government is set to bolster its long-term ambition to quadruple nuclear energy output by 2050 with a new roadmap to ease the regulatory process and include next steps for exploring a large-scale plant that could be capable of powering six million homes, in addition to a push to build Small Modular Reactors (SMR).

Preliminary analysis estimates that US greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fell by almost 2% year-on-year (YoY) in 2023 driven largely by a cleaner power sector and lower energy use in buildings, breaking two consecutive years of rising national emissions, despite increases in emissions from the transport and industrial sectors, research published Wednesday showed.

South Australia sets new renewables benchmarks with two significant big solar records, while the NEM reveals some of the unique challenges it is facing.

The post Utility solar steps up: South Australia’s new record-breakers appeared first on RenewEconomy.

California did not issue any compliance-grade offsets for the first bi-weekly distribution of the year, marking the first instance of zero issuance in years as a number of credits were voluntarily retired and taken out of circulation, according to data published by the state regulator ARB on Wednesday.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced Wednesday an investment of $17 million in GHG emissions reduction research projects, with funding directed toward underserved communities at historically black colleges and universities and other minority serving institutions.

Proximity to renewable energy sources is shaping a new paradigm in the steel sector. What does this mean for Australia?

The post “No green power, no project:” Can Australia compete on green steel? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Critics call cattle-raising project on Hawaii ranch ‘a billionaire’s strange sideshow’ and bad for the environment

The social media tycoon Mark Zuckerberg’s latest business venture raising “world-class” beef cattle on his sprawling luxury Hawaiian hideaway has been derided as out of touch and environmentally irresponsible.

The Meta billionaire posted a picture of himself on Wednesday eating a steak – medium rare, no sides – from his Ko’olau ranch, a 1,400-acre compound on Kauai, Hawaii’s oldest island.

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The Science-based Targets initiative (SBTi), considered the gold standard of voluntary emissions target-setting, is provoking divided reactions from industry, NGOs, and academia as actors across the board contest the future of Paris-aligned corporate emissions targets.