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Africa's critical minerals mining boom could wipe out more than one-third of the continent's ape population, with short-term offset plans failing to compensate for negative impacts, researchers have found.

European carbon prices showed little reaction on Thursday morning to the publication last night of verified emissions data for 2023, despite a larger-than-predicted drop, with prices garnering support from a firmer TTF gas market, and a modest reduction in investment funds' short positioning also failing to trigger a definite price reaction.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Thursday announced the allocation of $20 billion in grants from the $27-bln Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) to mobilise private investment in clean energy and other climate action, with the funding awarded to eight initiatives selected from two nationwide competitions.

Japan has issued a call for business proposals under the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) with a total budget of 12.8 billion yen ($84.37 mln) for projects starting from this year, as the government aims to boost the supply of carbon credits under the bilateral framework.

Matt Kean quits Coalition-based charity that once supported renewables but is now totally obsessed with nuclear, a switch that coincided with involvement of Trevor St Baker.

The post “No feasible pathway:” Kean quits Coalition-based charity because of its obsession with nuclear appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Governments across region grappling for response as temperatures soar to unseasonable highs

Thousands of schools in the Philippines have stopped in-person classes due to unbearable heat. In Indonesia, prolonged dry weather has caused rice prices to soar. In Thailand’s waters, temperatures are so high that scientists fear coral could be destroyed.

A “historic heatwave” is being experienced across south-east Asia, according to Maximiliano Herrera, a climatologist and weather historian. In updates posted on X, he said heat that was unprecedented for early April had been recorded at monitoring stations across the region this week, including in Minbu, in central Myanmar, where 44C was recorded – the first time in south-east Asia’s climatic history that such high temperatures had been reached so early in the month. In Hat Yai, in Thailand’s far south, 40.2 C was reached, an all-time record, while Yên Châu in north-west Vietnam hit 40.6C, unprecedented for this time of year.

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Lending to meat, dairy and feed corporations led to ‘significant proportion’ of banks’ emissions, Friends of the Earth found

American banks are “sabotaging” their own climate commitments by financing meat, dairy and feed corporations, according to a report.

The report analysed funding from 58 US banks to animal protein and feed companies in the form of loans and underwriting, such as share and bond issuance guarantees.

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The co-founder of a voluntary carbon market ratings agency has stepped down from their role at the firm to focus on other tools to fight climate change.

Mining company hit with accusation it contaminated waterways with harmful levels of uranium and lead

In a letter of claim, a document that is an early step in a lawsuit, the villagers accuse Rio Tinto of contaminating the waterways and lakes that they use for domestic purposes with elevated and harmful levels of uranium and lead, which pose a serious risk to human health.

This story was published in partnership with The Intercept. The reporting for this investigation was supported by a grant from Journalists for Transparency, an initiative of Transparency International.

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France has opened a consultation on proposed revisions to its 'low-carbon label' methodologies, concerning afforestation, reforestation, and the restoration of degraded agricultural land in French Guiana.

South Korea is planning to allocate a budget of up to 10.9 billion won ($8.09 mln) to subsidise domestic companies that plan to develop emissions reduction projects abroad this year, as the government seeks to secure more international carbon credits. 

Despite major progress in Brazil and Colombia, deforestation led by farming still cleared an area nearly equal to Switzerland

The destruction of the world’s most pristine rainforests continued at a relentless rate in 2023, despite dramatic falls in forest loss in the Brazilian and Colombian Amazon, new figures show.

An area nearly the size of Switzerland was cleared from previously undisturbed rainforests last year, totalling 37,000 sq km (14,200 sq miles), according to figures compiled by the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the University of Maryland. This is a rate of 10 football pitches a minute, often driven by more land being brought under agricultural cultivation around the world.

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Schemes to replace EU subsidies will not plug gap left by loss of EU subsidies for most farmers

Farmers are calling for the government to grant them a universal basic income, saying the post-Brexit agriculture subsidy scheme has left many poorer.

Delays to the sustainable farming schemes put in place after the UK left the European Union, to replace the common agricultural policy (CAP), have meant that in England many farmers have been left out of pocket. The new regime initially suffered from low subscription rates, and the government has underspent hundreds of millions from the £2.4bn farming budget each year due to lack of sign-up.

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AEMC makes good on promise to fast-track universal smart meter uptake, with draft determination it says will help put consumers at the forefront of the shift to net zero.

The post Smart meters for all? New reforms could put 2030 target in reach appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Brazil and Colombia curbed logging in 2023, but other countries wiped out many of the gains.

A number of stakeholders are urging the Australian government to reign in broad ministerial call-in powers being proposed under its reforms to the country’s environment and biodiversity protection laws.

Australia used public monies to build coal power plants and subsidies diesel imports, so why not back local solar production.

The post Solar Sunshot puts Australia in global cleantech race, and Liddell is the perfect venue appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The majority of global CO2 emissions released into the atmosphere since the Paris Agreement was adopted in 2015 can be traced to a small group of fossil fuel and cement companies, according to analysis published on Thursday.

China is delivering stunning reductions in the cost of wind and solar. Will it flow through to Australia?

The post With luck, China’s stunning cuts in the cost of wind and solar will feed through to Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Arena boss Darren Miller on the Solar Sunshot, and why Australia needs a stake in the supply chain. Plus: Households lead renewables charge, and the growth of solar balconies.

The post Solar Insiders Podcast: Can Australia make its own solar? appeared first on RenewEconomy.