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The pernicious, oppressive era of arresting people for holding signs or merely walking down the street must come to an end

How do you know when protest tactics are working? When governments ban them. The oppressive laws introduced by the previous government – the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and the Public Order Act 2023 – are a tick list of effective political engagement. Everything from locking on and digging tunnels to actions on roads, at airports, oil refineries or newspapers, even marching down a street, has been criminalised. Why? Because these methods work. If they didn’t, the government wouldn’t have bothered.

The Conservatives justified their draconian measures with the claim that they prevented “disruption to the public”. But had they cared about disruption, they would have done all they could to prevent climate breakdown. Nothing is more disruptive than the flickering and eventual collapse of Earth systems. If you believe a few people sitting in the street is a major impediment to traffic, take a look at what a sea surge, a flash flood, a windstorm or a rail-buckling, road-melting, bridge-jamming heat event can do to transport infrastructure.

George Monbiot is a Guardian columnist

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Fortescue announcement reinforces fact that one company can’t do it alone – Australia needs a coordinated approach to future green industries – including renewable hydrogen.

The post Forrest’s ambitious green hydrogen target is on hold – but Australia should keep powering ahead appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia’s largest operational solar farm will soon help power residential aged care and the production of iconic beer brands, as part of two new energy offtake deals.

The post Australia’s largest solar farm inks major new deals to power aged care and beer appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Our cities are full of obstacles and hazards for native wildlife but also contain many valuable patches of habitat. Creating green spaces to connect these patches improves their lives and ours. Thami Croeser, Research Officer, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University Holly Kirk, Research Fellow, Interdisciplinary Conservation Science Research Group (ICON Science), RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

What we learned from Ted O'Brien, Chris Bowen and everyone else at the CEC summit. Plus: Hydrostor's Jon Norman on why advance compressed air storage is beating pumped hydro, and why even nuclear needs lots of storage.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Ted, Chris, nuclear and long term storage appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Japanese trading house Marubeni has taken a stake in a Danish company whose biochar technology can reduce carbon emissions from sewage sludge treatment by 80%.

Investor view effective climate policies as crucial for "green steel", which most say can not be produced by burning fossil fuels.

The post Renewables crucial for green steel, but policy must call time on coal-fired furnaces appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Clean energy industry gets its first Ted Talk and rather wishes it hadn't.Plus: Chris Bowen's power play, regulators pan nuclear, Forrest drops hydrogen hype, and some awards.

The post Five things we learned this week from Ted’s Talk and people who actually know stuff appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Renewable energy covered 57 per cent of Germany's electricity consumption in first half of 2024, a nearly 10 per cent jump, year-on-year.

The post Renewables cover nearly 60 pct of Germany’s electricity consumption in first half 2024 appeared first on RenewEconomy.

With a high turnover in futures and options trade, California Carbon Allowance (CCA) prices have slipped below Washington Carbon Allowances (WCA) in the aftermath of ARB's ETS workshop fallout.

The 1GW-plus project being developed by Alinta Energy and Parkwind – and intended to help power Portland aluninium smelter – has applied for a feasibility licence.

The post Alinta seeks licence to progress huge offshore wind plans in tiny Southern Ocean zone appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A California-based biotech firm that utilises captured CO2 for protein production announced this week it has raised $18 million in Series A financing.

A large Canadian bank unveiled plans on Thursday to install heat pumps through its retail branch network across the country, which it estimates would reduce emissions by 70% from these locations.

State agencies need to improve their planning practices if New York is to reach its statutory clean energy goals, according to an audit released Wednesday by the state comptroller that provides a series of recommendations to do so.

Flagship carbon markets legislation may soon be joined by a bill to weigh in on digital assets, with experts interviewed Thursday expecting liftoff for a market in Bahamian credits owned and managed by the state.

A Vancouver-based global methanol producer and a Calgary-headquartered carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) project developer have announced a partnership to study reducing as much as 400 tonnes of CO2 per day from industrial production.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) announced Thursday that it would fund C$89.1 million ($65 mln) across ten nature-based emissions reductions projects, which also aim to conserve biodiversity.

The digital twin software can calculate how billions of rays of light – including light reflected off the ground – will affect solar panel output.

The post ARENA lobs $2m at hyper-accurate solar yield software appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Koalas in trouble, land clearing at speed – nature in New South Wales is not well. Now the government is proposing significant changes to its ineffective biodiversity laws. Hugh Possingham, Professor of Conservation Biology, The University of Queensland Carolyn Hogg, Deputy Director, Sydney Environment Institute; Co-Lead Australasian Wildlife Genomics Group, University of Sydney Jaana Dielenberg, University Fellow in Biodiversity, Charles Darwin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

With buyers securing expensive, large-scale advance purchase agreements for engineered and nature-based carbon removals (CDR), carbon insurers are thinking beyond non-delivery policies and cash payouts to begin guaranteeing credit durability.