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UN Food Waste Index report says food wastage is major contributor to climate crisis

More than a billion meals are thrown away every day, in poor countries as well as rich ones, despite more than 730m people living in hunger around the world.

About a fifth of food around the world is wasted, sometimes through profligacy or poor planning, sometimes from a lack of access to refrigeration or storage, according to the UN Food Waste Index Report, published on Wednesday, at a global cost of about $1tn a year.

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Federal Labor puts its money on Australian made solar, pledging $1bn to kickstart the supply chain in regions like the NSW Hunter.

The post Solar Sunshot: Albanese pledges $1bn to take Australia from “pit to panel” appeared first on RenewEconomy.

EU carbon prices were little changed at midday along with natural gas, after weekly commitment of traders data showed a fourth consecutive reduction in net short positions held by investment funds.

Boats had been barred from landing since July 2022 owing to virus, which has ravaged populations of seabirds

The puffins started arriving two weeks ago – and now there are thousands of them fizzing around in a mad frenzy. They have joined kittiwakes, guillemots, razorbills, fulmars and shags. Soon Arctic terns will arrive after their epic journey across the world from the Antarctic.

This week humans arrived after a two-year ban from the Farne Islands in Northumberland, one of the UK’s most important sanctuaries for breeding seabirds.

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An online tool to help small developers comply with biodiversity net gain (BNG) laws has launched, ahead of the legislation coming into force for them on Apr. 2.

Australia on Wednesday released its second public consultation on Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs), saying they might be approved for biodiversity crediting under the nation’s Nature Repair Market (NRM).

The Brazilian and French presidents have announced a €1 billion investment plan to address climate change and deforestation in the Amazon, as Brazil strives to boost international funding for environmental protection under its G20 Presidency.

Call for environmental emergency to be declared after data reveals 105% rise in raw sewage discharges over past 12 months

Water companies in England have faced a barrage of criticism as data revealed raw sewage was discharged for more than 3.6m hours into rivers and seas last year in a 105% increase on the previous 12 months.

The scale of the discharges of untreated waste made 2023 the worst year for storm water pollution. Early data seen by the Guardian put the scale of discharges at more than 4m hours, but officials said the figures were an early estimate.

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IFRC and USAid staging conference to draw attention to risks and share best practice in disaster alerts and response

Two of the world’s biggest aid agencies will host an inaugural global summit on extreme heat on Thursday as directors warn that the climate crisis is dramatically increasing the probability of a mass-fatality heat disaster.

The conference will highlight some of the pioneering work being done, from tree-planting projects to the development of reflective roof coverings that reduce indoor temperatures.

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Conserving natural areas and promoting biodiversity are "efficient methods" to prevent future pandemics, a study has shown.

Seoul has become the first local government in South Korea to secure certified carbon emissions credits through its public bike-sharing programme. 

Adding a price on mortality caused by carbon emissions might help change consumption patterns for items such as red meat and 4WDs. Smoking laws provide a template.

The post If we properly priced death caused by carbon emissions, we might get to net zero a lot quicker appeared first on RenewEconomy.

An Australian coal miner got its Scope 1 emissions assessment under the Safeguard Mechanism wrong, according to a conservation group that lobbied for documents filed to the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) via Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, but this is just the beginning of coal mining's emissions issues, the group said.

Environment Agency data shows sewage spilled into England's waterways for over 3.6 million hours last year.

The owners of the largest gas plant in South Australia have been hit with a heavy fine for the role it played in a major blackout in early 2017, when it sat idle and failed to comply with market rules.

The post Gas plant owner hit with big fine for sitting idle in major blackout first blamed on renewables appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Japan's voluntary domestic carbon market has recently added almost 200 new participants, further expanding the share of national emissions covered, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced on Wednesday.

International research has found that a warming climate will turn Australia’s soil into a net emitter of carbon dioxide.

One of Australia’s most noted retired statesmen and politicians has co-signed a letter asking the environment minister to reject Woodside Energy’s plan to extend the life of a 40-plus year old LNG export plant to 2070, a move seen to result in several billion tonnes of CO2e emissions.

Can Alice Springs switch off fossil fuels in the middle of the day? Lyndon Frearson from Ekistica on the options and lessons for the NEM. Plus: Eraring and NVES.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Managing solar ducks in the middle of Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.

An assessment of marine protected areas (MPAs) in 34 countries has revealed that ocean conservation can generate significant economic benefits to the fishing and tourism industries, with some profits in the billions.