Feed aggregator

Deforestation and forest degradation in Australia is being overlooked by overseas investors to their peril, a report released Monday warned, as biodiversity and nature loss becomes an increasingly material risk for companies and their financiers if not managed effectively.

Archaeologists fear dangerous precedent if court approves new beach facilities at site of Phaselis on the Mediterranean coast

The construction of tourist facilities on two beaches that were part of the ancient city of Phaselis – a tentative nominee for Unesco world heritage status – has caused outrage at what is claimed to be the latest example of the Turkish culture ministry sacrificing heritage for tourism.

The Alacasu and Bostanlık beaches, on Turkey’s southern Mediterranean coast in the province of Antalya, were part of Phaselis, a Greek and Roman settlement thought to be the birthplace of Plato’s student Theodectes. Despite having ruins dating back to the second century BC, the beaches have never been subject to an archaeological dig.

Continue reading...

The nation relies on tourism, yet many local people feel the right to enjoy these timeless places is being denied them

It was mid-August 1997; I was in my 20s and heading from Athens to the Aegean island of Sifnos with three friends. We hopped on a ship at the port of Piraeus and sailed out into the blue waters. Arriving late in the evening, we spent that first night on the beach, close to the port of Kamares.

It was bliss: the lapping of gentle waves a few metres away and the distant music from the bars as we gazed at the stars and the blazing meteors crashing through the atmosphere. You felt you were shedding your old skin like a reptile; it was painful and liberating; it was existential.

Elias Maglinis is an author and the arts editor of the Sunday edition of the Greek newspaper Kathimerini. His most recent book is a nonfiction novel, The Very Last Voyage of Their Lives: Asia Minor, a Travelogue in Times of Peace and Times of War

Continue reading...

EnergyAustralia's new climate action plan leaves the closure date for the Mt Piper coal plant at 2040, but says it might operate as a kind of "battery" in its dotage.

The post EnergyAustralia won’t retire Mt Piper coal before 2040, but may run it like a battery appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Osmi Australia proposes final tweaks to planning permits for 200MW Delburn wind farm, as it seeks to reach financial close and start construction.

The post Latrobe Valley wind farm seeks final permit tweaks as construction date nears appeared first on RenewEconomy.

In the desert town of Rancho Mirage, close to Palm Springs, a city that typically gets around 4.6 inches (12 cm) of rain in an entire year could receive 6-10 inches from this one storm. "It's quite amazing. I've never seen anything like this. And the tropical storm hasn't even hit us yet," said one resident.

• Hilary live updates

Continue reading...

New Zealand is in a 'development cycle' for electricity as a rapid rise in demand requires speedy solutions.

The post New Zealand’s biggest energy retailer signs up for three big solar farms appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia is approving coal mine expansions because of their “very small” impact on global heating. It doesn’t stack up. Simon Campbell, Senior research fellow and lecturer, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

After reaching financial close on a merchant basis, the massive Golden Plains wind farm has snared its first power purchase agreement – and it's a big one.

The post Australia’s largest wind project seals energy offtake deal with Snowy Hydro appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A deal between AGL and the Victoria government to lock in a 2035 closure date for Loy Yang A kills hopes that the country could accelerate its path to 100 pct renewables.

The post Closure deal on Australia’s dirtiest power station kills hopes of early 100pct renewables appeared first on RenewEconomy.

In some cases, adding a battery to your rooftop solar system will pay off. But to be sure of this, households need information about many factors – and there’s no single reliable place to find it. Asma Aziz, Lecturer in Power Engineering, Edith Cowan University Daryoush Habibi, Professor and Executive Dean, School of Engineering, Edith Cowan University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A group of NGOs are calling for funding to jump-start a global biodiversity fund at an international environmental assembly week, a move that they see as essential to stem biodiversity loss.

EnergyAustralia teams up with global consortium to propose a giant 5W offshore wind project in Victoria.

The post EnergyAustralia joins rush to offshore wind with massive 5GW project appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Thinking about getting your home off gas, but don’t know where to begin? Here’s a few handy tips to get you on your way. Trivess Moore, Senior Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT University Alan Pears, Senior Industry Fellow, RMIT University Nicola Willand, Senior Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

CEFC invests record amount in wind, solar and storage in last year, but in coming years the big ticket items will be on the grid.

The post CEFC spends record $1.2 billion on renewables, as focus turns to the grid appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Kemi Badenoch wants gender-specific lavatories in new venues, but is it wise to release more excrement into our fatally compromised sewage systems?

There are important questions to be asked about lavatories, and Kemi Badenoch is certainly the Tory best suited to answering them. A report in the government’s Daily Telegraph mouthpiece announced that a new government initiative would see the equalities minister, Kemi Badenoch, appoint a Tory lavatories tsar, a task that would doubtless make her flush with pride. But the Independent then reported that the government had “distanced” itself from this appointment, for fear of increased bureaucracy, and also, presumably, across-the-board toilet tsar-based ridicule.

Apparently, Kemi Badenoch’s Tory lavatory tsar would have ensured that all new offices, schools, hospitals and entertainment venues have separate male and female lavatories; a big job and a massive piece of business. But our children’s generation seem largely ambivalent about gender identity, and the practical lavatorial considerations that come with it; first-wave feminists, in contrast, are understandably anxious that women’s hard-won recognitions are not, as they see it, eroded; meanwhile, some young women tell me they fear the loss of certified spaces in nightclubs and pubs for crying, vomiting up alcopops and avoiding young men; most young men, however, seem comfortable with the idea of urinating indiscriminately on the floor, while simultaneously passing wind, in any toilet, however Kemi Badenoch choses to designate the toilet’s gender.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 250 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at observer.letters@observer.co.uk

Continue reading...

Countries with the greatest biodiversity richness are the ones spending the least on nature, the UNEP Finance Initiative (FI) has found, urging investors to identify whether they are contributing to the trend.

Remote sensing technology shows 70% of tree coverage moved uphill between 2000 and 2010

Mountain treelines are rising in response to the climate crisis, a study has found.

Scientists from the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China, used remote sensing to map the highest points of patches of tree coverage on mountains. They found that 70% of mountain treelines had moved uphill between 2000 and 2010.

Continue reading...

Exclusive: Assessment that used to happen annually will now take six years despite rising concerns

Continue reading...

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