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Vietnam and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) have extended for five years a cooperative framework on climate action and carbon pricing designed to put the Southeast Asian country on track to meet its ambitions under the Paris Agreement.

An area nearly a third larger than India turned permanently arid in past three decades, research shows

An area of land nearly a third larger than India has turned from humid conditions to dryland – arid areas where agriculture is difficult – in the past three decades, research has found.

Drylands now make up 40% of all land on Earth, excluding Antarctica. Three-quarters of the world’s land suffered drier conditions in the past 30 years, which is likely to be permanent, according to the study, by the UN Science Policy Interface, a body of scientists convened by the United Nations.

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In a week that saw UN civil aviation body ICAO publish its technical report on the flagship CORSIA offsetting scheme, which is being incorporated into national regulations around the world, this and other compliance carbon pricing initiatives posed diverse challenges and opportunities around the LATAM region – from Trinidad to Guyana, and Mexico to Brazil.

The New South Wales Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is looking to strengthen GHG emissions regulations at its coal mines, based on feedback on how licences are governed.

In an Australian first, Quinbrook proposes to add a giant battery to its proposed polysilicon plant in Queensland to "firm the grid as well as the manufacturing facility."

The post Quinbrook adds huge 750 MW battery to polysilicon plant sent for federal approval appeared first on RenewEconomy.

CSIRO’s Paul Graham on the findings of the latest GenCost report, which proves yet again that integrated renewables are by far the lowest cost option, even after responding to all the Coalition complaints about its modelling methods.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: CSIRO slaps down Coalition nuclear power play appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Data confirms 2024 is now certain to be the hottest year on record, and the first year in which average global temperatures exceed 1.5°C above the pre-industrial period.

The post 2024 will be world’s hottest year on record, and the first above 1.5°C target appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Average global temperature in November was 1.62C above preindustrial levels, bringing average for the year to 1.60C

This year is now almost certain to be the hottest year on record, data shows. It will also be the first to have an average temperature of more than 1.5C above preindustrial levels, marking a further escalation of the climate crisis.

Data for November from the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) found the average global surface temperature for the month was 1.62C above the level before the mass burning of fossil fuels drove up global heating. With data for 11 months of 2024 now available, scientists said the average for the year is expected to be 1.60C, exceeding the record set in 2023 of 1.48C.

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Federal government delays decision on controversial Robbins Island wind farm for fourth time, this time because of concerns about the Tasmanian Devil.

The post Tasmanian Devil cited in another delay on decision on Australia’s most contentious wind farm appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The price of NZUs has slid back noticeably since last week’s auction, as market observers note the healthy volumes traded in the lead up to the sale means the market is well-stocked.

Solar breaks the 20,000 megawatt output barrier for the first time on Sunday to complete a week of records, mostly in the southern states furthest from Equator.

The post A week of record-breaking solar and rooftop PV across main grid – and most of it far from Equator appeared first on RenewEconomy.

In 2019, the giant mountain ash Centurion narrowly escaped death by fire. But other giant trees were not so lucky. Gathering genetic material from giants is vital Daniel Bar Ness, Research associate, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Latest CSIRO GenCost report confirms integrated renewables - including storage and transmission - easily the cheapest option for Australia.

The post GenCost: Falling costs of solar and batteries confirm integrated renewables are cheapest option appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Italian energy giant giant Enel Green Power and its Japanese partner Inpex have rebranded their Australian renewable energy joint-venture and announced plans to build more than 7 gigawatts (GW) of projects. The new name Potentia Energy will apply only to the Australian operations and will be formally unveiled at an event at the Sydney Opera […]

The post Italian and Japanese energy giants rebrand Australia j-v and aim for 7 GW of renewables appeared first on RenewEconomy.

CSIRO slaps down major nuclear talking points promoted by Coalition leader Peter Dutton in its latest GenCost report, which confirms - yet again - that integrated wind and solar are easily the cheapest option.

The post CSIRO patiently and methodically slaps down Peter Dutton’s nuclear nonsense appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Male players must step up and add their voice to the campaign to stop our sport being sold out to the big polluters causing climate change

At the Cop29 climate conference last month Sofie Junge Pedersen and Katie Rood again called for Fifa to drop its sponsorship deal with the Saudi Arabian state oil company Aramco. They were among more than 130 female players who signed an open letter in October that described the partnership as a “middle finger to women’s football” that will do real damage to people and our planet.

After the letter was published, I spoke out in support of their initiative. I hoped other professional male players would join me. The women were widely applauded for speaking out but their male counterparts have not followed suit. On Wednesday, Fifa is poised to confirm Saudi Arabia as the host of the 2034 men’s World Cup.

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Hot, dry conditions bring numerous species into contact with people and pets, and not just in the bush. It’s good to know which is which

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The quickest way to tell the difference between an eastern brown snake and a copperhead is to nearly step on it. If it strikes, it’s an eastern brown. If it stays still as you jump back, it’s a copperhead.

Thankfully, the snake I nearly stood on this week as I walked distractedly through the horse yard was a copperhead. Lowland copperheads are the seventh most venomous snake in Australia, but they are also shy and only bite when severely provoked. They are pretty common here in the Macedon Ranges. This is the second time I’ve nearly stepped on this particular snake. I also didn’t see it when carrying washing out to the line last month. Both times it skedaddled.

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The Tokyo Stock Exchange will introduce two new trading categories for agricultural carbon credits under Japan’s J-Credit scheme, as it seeks to enhance market liquidity and efficiency amid increasing project registrations and certification volumes.

UN civil aviation body ICAO late on Friday published reports outlining its Technical Advisory Body’s (TAB) assessments, recommendations, and public comments made during the 2024 cycle for applications by carbon credit standards seeking eligibility under the airline offsetting programme.

Emitters in California's carbon market more than halved their use of offsets during the 2021-23 compliance period, driving overall utilisation under the scheme to below 4% despite an uptick in WCI partner Quebec, government data published Friday showed.