Feed aggregator

California, Vermont and Colorado push for ban after slow federal response to research finding forever chemicals in period products

State lawmakers in California, Vermont and Colorado are working to ban the sale of period products containing highly toxic “forever chemicals”, or PFAS, nearly a year after a report revealed the chemicals were found in everything from tampon applicators to period underwear.

Despite a growing awareness of the dangers and ubiquity of PFAS, federal regulators have been slow to respond to the bombshell 2023 report from the University of Notre Dame, in which researchers found forever chemicals in various menstrual products including those mentioned above and more. Federal bills designed to address PFAS in everyday consumer items – including period products – stalled last year in large part due to chemical industry lobbyists.

Continue reading...

The forestry department of the People’s Democratic Republic of Lao has put a temporary halt on all current and upcoming applications for REDD+ carbon projects, according to documents seen by Carbon Pulse.

If you are not lucky enough to live along the route in North America, you can still follow its journey here.

Singapore-based carbon exchange Climate Impact X (CIX) has launched two standardised contracts for nature-based removal credits in the afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation (ARR) market, it announced Friday.

Sydney expected to be badly affected as further downpours and strong winds forecast to lash New South Wales coast

South-eastern Australia has been experiencing heavy rain since Thursday night, which will continue until Saturday morning local time. New South Wales will be particularly badly affected, with cumulative rainfall totals of 150-200m along coastal stretches.

Hourly totals are expected to reach 10-20mm at times, with the worst-affected areas potentially receiving 50mm within three hours. Strong winds are expected to accompany the heaviest downpours, with gusts of about 45mph (72km/h) at times.

Continue reading...

From wearing eclipse glasses to using your hands as a projector, here are ways to avoid an eye injury.

The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world

Continue reading...

A CCS joint venture has partnered with a fertiliser producer to consider CO2 capture in a major industrial region in Australia, using a depleted gas field for storage.

An Australian company has secured a 30-year lease agreement in New Zealand where it intends to build a NZ$300 mln ($180 mln) plant producing wood pellets that when burned emits 95% less carbon than coal.

TS Conductor CEO Jason Huang on reducing line losses for renewables and storage. Plus: All the news of the week.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Is there a smarter way to transmit power? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A lack of human activity in the Southern Ocean is just one reason why the air is so clean. Clouds and rain play a vital role in scrubbing the atmosphere, removing natural airborne particles too. Tahereh Alinejadtabrizi, PhD student, Monash University Steven Siems, Professor in Cloud Microphysics, Monash University Yi Huang, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science, The University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New study finds annual variations in wind power production, globally, falls within a very small range of plus or minus 3 per cent.

The post “Very predictable:” Study shows global wind energy production is stable appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The largest offshore wind project in the world has been given environmental approval off the coast of Sweden.

The post World’s biggest offshore wind project wins environmental approval appeared first on RenewEconomy.

We thank China for dramatically driving down the price of solar panels. Australia missed that trillion-dollar opportunity and now it’s time to get back in the game.

The post Australia has the best solar resources in the world: We should learn how to make our own panels appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Generic and human-induced regeneration (HIR) Australian Carbon Credit Unit (ACCU) spot prices have converged in recent days, in part due to integrity concerns stemming from last week’s Nature study as well as the shift to a compliance market, according to traders and analysts.

You might be wondering: what is a ‘Black Nor'easter’, what’s causing all this rain and does it have anything to do with climate change? Here’s what you need to know. Kimberley Reid, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Atmospheric Sciences, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Nuclear power in Australia would be too slow, too expensive, and unable to supply a 21st century power grid that will have moved to flexible power sources.

The post Nuclear energy is an ugly duckling in every possible respect: Too late, too costly, too toxic appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Presenters at a meeting hosted by California’s Environmental Justice Advisory Committee (EJAC) on Thursday raised concerns about risks of CO2 capture and storage (CCS) measures, and also recommended alternative revenue distribution options for the cap-and-trade scheme to lower cost burdens on consumers.

A panel of experts agreed on the need for increased federal regulation of the relatively young voluntary carbon market (VCM), but expressed different views on how and to what extent US authorities should tackle the VCM, in a webinar Thursday.

A network of green groups has filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Energy (DOE) claiming that the agency’s decision to fund the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant extension in California was based on a faulty environmental review.