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These exotic birds are common in the UK now. That raises many questions, some fears, and a fair few myths

• Tim Blackburn is professor of invasion biology at UCL

What links a film starring Katharine Hepburn, Jimi Hendrix, bits of a plane falling on to Syon Park in London and the great storm of 1987? The answer is that they’ve all been proposed as the origin of one of Britain’s loudest, most colourful and recognisable birds: the ring-necked parakeet.

Parakeets are unusual among British birds in that they actually need an origin story. A century ago, there were none flying free in Britain and, as recently as the early 1990s, parakeets were relatively hard to find in the country. There were only a couple of reliable sites – the leafy Berkshire village of Wraysbury, or the trees around Esher rugby club in Surrey – where they would roost on winter evenings. Since then, their population has exploded into the tens of thousands. They’ve spread across the country from Plymouth to Aberdeen, and even over the water to Northern Ireland. London is their stronghold, though, and it’s increasingly rare to venture outside without hearing their raucous cries or seeing their long-tailed silhouettes skimming the rooftops.

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Australia’s carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry will struggle to scale and be part of achieving the country’s climate goals without further political support, an expert told a conference Wednesday.

The newly connected Broken Hill battery has helped NSW beat a short-lived record for battery charging and discharging.

The post New big battery breaks habit, goes for morning stretch and takes state to new record appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Head of Andrew Forrest's Squadron Energy says cost of developing onshore wind energy projects has jumped by up to 50 per cent as it works to deliver tens of gigawatts of new capacity in Australia.

The post Squadron says innovation needed to overcome jump in wind costs, but nuclear not the answer appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The New Zealand government on Wednesday announced the main pillars of a new climate strategy that will rely on the emissions trading scheme and nature-based solutions as two of five major focus areas.

ClearVue Technologies says it has landed a repeat order for its clear solar glass solutions for greenhouses from the United States.

The post Australian solar glass company lands another US greenhouse order appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Queensland Hydro is setting up three different consultation avenues for locals to weigh in on the 2GW/24h Borumba project.

The post New consultation round opened for giant pumped hydro project appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Practical tips on electrification from an electrician.

The post SwitchedOn podcast: The electrician who swapped his diesel guzzling ute for a Tesla appeared first on RenewEconomy.

These cheap daytime tariffs match the time when solar panels pump out the most energy and households use the least electricity

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When our ageing immersion hot water system needed replacing, I wanted to install an energy saving heat pump.

They cost more but consume far less power, and I calculated we would get the money back by trimming $270 off our annual bills. Plus we’d be doing our bit to cut greenhouse gases and reduce demand on a stressed electricity grid.

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South Australia locks in funding deal with Canberra to ensure it can become first grid in world to reach 100 per cent net renewables via wind, solar and storage.

The post South Australia locks in federal funds to become first grid in world to reach 100 per cent net wind and solar appeared first on RenewEconomy.

British Columbia and Quebec have emerged as leaders in Canada’s “fragmented” energy transition that is driven by provincial actions, while Saskatchewan largely remains behind other jurisdictions in advancing climate goals, webinar participants heard Tuesday.

A South Dakota carbon pipeline law faces a petition with tens of thousands of signatures that could send the measure to a vote in November, as a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) industry-backed campaign has emerged to defend the regulation.

Lara Lewington searches for the tech secrets that researchers hope will unlock eternal youth.

Lara Lewington searchs for the tech secrets that researchers hope will unlock eternal youth.

After a successful launch, the upper-stage of the rocket goes on to experience an anomaly.

A coalition of green groups have signed letters to the 10 RGGI states, urging their environmental authorities to clarify the schedule of anticipated changes to the power sector carbon market, now six months overdue its targeted conclusion date.

Antarctic Treaty nations agree to a plan to preserve one of the world's greatest shipwrecks.

The government of Alberta signed Monday a carbon sequestration agreement with the Canadian subsidiary of oil major Shell and a global energy firm, as the province continues its efforts to expand carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS).

A federal appeals court on Tuesday denied an attempt from several US states and industry groups to block recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules to limit methane emissions from the oil and gas sector.

The CopperString project has been described as the region's "most transformative project since steam locomotives" in the 19th century.

The post Construction begins on $5 billion transmission line to open up wind, solar and minerals appeared first on RenewEconomy.