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The fossil fuel industry has been able to use its ties with the university sector in multiple countries to fund research that promotes its own interests and acts as a form of climate obstructionism in ways that have yet to be fully realised, a recently published study has found.

Genie Energy founder on why local energy hubs are so important for regional communities – and where renewables developers are going wrong.

The post SwitchedOn Podcast: What the “shiny shoes” brigade is getting wrong in the regions appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The maximum instantaneous share of renewables on the NEM has hit a new all-time high – and pushed the share of coal to a new low.

The post Share of renewables hits record high on Australia’s main grid, sends coal to new low appeared first on RenewEconomy.

An Australian agtech company has formed a strategic alliance with a local carbon project developer in a bid to expand its presence in the market, it announced Monday.

Plans to build a massive 600MW solar farm and 1200MWh big battery have cleared their final hurdle, after being cleared for construction by the federal environment minister.

The post Huge solar farm and battery project to go ahead after securing federal green tick appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Federal parliament has quietly passed new legislation to increase and standardise greenhouse gas reporting for Australia’s largest companies. Is this a win for climate?

The post New legislation on corporate emissions reporting has made it through parliament. Will it lead to real action on climate change? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Report says opening up tenders and changing how new lines are paid for would radically alter delivery timelines for the transmission upgrades Australia so urgently needs.

The post Competition the key to unlock transmission: Report urges fresh approach to critical grid upgrades appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Big Three gentailer tips more money into Australian redox flow battery hopeful whose up to 12-hour energy storage technology is being trialled at Origin's Eraring coal plant.

The post Origin Energy boosts its bet on the 12-hour battery technology that could help kick out coal appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Investigations underway after small turbine blade parts detached and fell from turbines at the 756MW stage one of Golden Plains wind farm.

The post Investigations underway after turbine blade parts detach at Golden Plains wind farm appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The UK's nuclear waste needs a permanent home - but finding a community willing to take it is tricky.

Group praises nearly 70% of UK adults who bought Fairtrade products in past year despite cost of living crisis

Nearly 70% of UK adults have bought Fairtrade products such as bananas, tea or coffee in the past year despite pressure on personal finances, as concern that the climate crisis could push up the price of imported food drives “conscious consumerism”, the charity said.

Against the backdrop of this year’s big spikes in the price of coffee and cocoa, a YouGov poll, commissioned by the Fairtrade Foundation, revealed that 79% of Britons were concerned that climate breakdown could affect the price of food while 69% were worried it could disrupt supply to the UK.

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Uluru, the Daintree and Bondi beach among iconic Australian locations that could be impacted if planet hits even 2C of warming by 2050

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South Australia’s wine regions shrouded in bushfire smoke, the Daintree rainforest cut off by flooding and tourists marooned at major airports because of violent storms. This snapshot is the potential chaotic future for Australia’s tourism industry, a new report has warned.

At least half of 178 tourism assets around the country – from national parks to city attractions and airports – are already facing major climate risks, the analysis showed. And as the heat rises, so do the disruptions. Many of the country’s 620,000 tourism jobs will be under threat, according to the report from insurance group Zurich and economic analysts Mandala.

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Exclusive: Government warned ‘unobtainable targets’ being used to dismiss migrant fruit pickers at short notice

• Sacked fruit picker tells of treatment on Kent farm

The number of farm workers seeking help with dismissal after travelling to work in British fields and orchards has soared over the past year, according to research.

The trend is thought to be in part because of pressure to meet picking targets, the challenges faced by farmers trying to stay profitable and an unintended consequence of new laws guaranteeing minimum hours.

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Environment minister lambasts opposition leader over vow to overturn her rejection of tailings dam at McPhillamys goldmine

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Tanya Plibersek has accused Peter Dutton of planning to ignore evidence of historical Indigenous cultural practice and trash heritage protection laws to greenlight certain mining projects and companies based on “the vibe”.

The environment minister told Guardian Australia that Dutton’s vow to overturn her determination rejecting the proposed site of a tailings dam at the $900m McPhillamys goldmine development in central-western New South Wales showed he had no respect for research or official advice.

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China will add several major industrial sectors to its national emissions trading scheme by the end of this year, its environment minister told a conference in Beijing on Saturday according to state media.

National species list expands, with orb spider named after Tom Hardy’s Marvel character, Venom, also included

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A laughing frog and an intertidal marine worm named after Sir David Attenborough are among 750 animals, plants and other organisms that have been newly recognised on Australia’s list of species.

The western laughing tree frog Litoria ridibunda, which laughs rather than croaks, the David Attenborough worm Marphysa davidattenboroughi, and the cracking-clay Pilbara marsupial Planigale tealei were added to the Australian National Species List in 2023.

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If coal and gas were extended to 2040 for Peter Dutton's nuclear plan, the extra emissions created would be the same as having the nation's most polluting plant - Hazelwood in Victoria - run for 106 years.

Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the government was working to

The post Like running Hazelwood for 106 years: Labor says Dutton’s nuke plan will be akin to a carbon bomb appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Experts say the state’s approach could provide a template for what can be achieved elsewhere

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Eight years ago, South Australia’s renewable energy future was in doubt as an extraordinary statewide blackout saw recriminations flow.

On 28 September 2016, a catastrophic weather event sent the entire state into system black. Around 4pm, some 850,000 homes and businesses lost power as supercell thunderstorms and destructive winds – some travelling up to 260km/h – crumpled transmission towers, causing three major power lines to trip.

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The problem: a fence that protects eastern quolls threatens long-necked turtles in Booderee national park at Jervis Bay. The solution? Turtle tunnels. Nine water-filled tunnels were built beneath a 82-hectare fence that surrounds the botanic gardens which keep out feral predators, providing a safe passage for the reptiles to go between watering holes. Over a period of 123 days, conservationists recorded 73 successful instances of the turtles using the tunnels

• ‘A symbol of our nation’: waratah among 20 more species added to Australia’s threatened wildlife list

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Burning with unquenchable resentment, Restore Trust is making another attempt at taking over the institution

The leaves are starting to change and there’s autumnal coolth in the air. Which means that the opaquely funded private organisation called Restore Trust is once again making its annual attempt to take over one of the country’s most successful and best-loved institutions, the National Trust. Burning with unquenchable resentment about a 2020 report that truthfully stated that Winston Churchill opposed Indian independence; armed with inflated stories about mushroom bans, cancelled Easters and vote-rigging; and furious about a single disco ball in one room of one of the National Trust’s 230 historic houses, Restore Trust has once again put up a slate of candidates for the National Trust’s council, with a view to turning their grievances into policy. If you’re a member of the National Trust, and you’d rather not see it turned into a platform for an angry minority, vote now for its recommended candidates.

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