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A tropical low known as 18U will bring strong winds, heavy rain and storm surges to the north of the country

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a tropical cyclone alert for the north coast of Western Australia. This alert concerns a tropical low known as 18U, which has been spotted near the coast of Kimberley, situated in the north-west of the state. Strong winds, heavy rain and storm surges will affect northern Australia starting on Sunday night, with a flood warning also being issued. Under current forecasts, 18U will continue to push south-westwards along the warm water off Western Australia into the new week and is expected to strengthen to a tropical cyclone, which will be named Zelia. By the end of the week, the cyclone is expected to make landfall around the Pilbara region, bringing about 150mm-250mm (5.9in-9.8in) of rain locally, alongside wind gusts of about 100mph.

Meanwhile, Canada has once again been experiencing a severe cold spell after polar air moved in from the north, allowing temperatures to fall 5C-10C (41C-50F) below the seasonal average. Western Canada is particularly badly affected, with the cities of Calgary, Edmonton and Saskatoon potentially experiencing maximum daytime temperatures of between -10C and -15C this week, while overnight temperatures will often reach -20C to -30C. Temperatures as low as -35C are possible, which is around 10-15C below the seasonal average. For more context, the town of Saskatoon lies at the same latitude as Cambridge in the UK, which has a record low temperature of -13C.

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A Germany-based nature tech company has raised €5 million in seed funding to advance its platform aimed at enabling companies to assess and manage their environmental impacts.

Switzerland has rejected the proposed Environmental Responsibility Initiative to rein in the country’s consumption levels in line with planetary boundaries, with a strong majority of almost 70% in a popular vote held Sunday.

The European Commission says its forthcoming 2040 climate plan will "inform" the bloc's next Paris Agreement commitment for 2035, but questions persist on how the figure will be decided, as no method has yet been agreed or even discussed publicly.

The government has agreed a new subsidy arrangement with the controversial wood-burning Drax power station in north Yorkshire.

China has integrated on-grid renewables into the nation's electricity market as its latest attempt to deepen the country's power sector reforms, a process expected to make the market more sensistive to carbon pricing signals.

Heavy winds detach another piece of serrated edging from a turbine at the country's biggest wind project earlier this month.

The post High winds detach another serrated edge from turbine at Australia’s largest wind project appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The Supervisory Body for the Article 6.4 mechanism (SBM) will meet for the first time this week since the historic carbon markets agreement at COP29 in Baku, with implementation on the agenda as the UN body seeks to push forward with key methodological work for Paris Agreement carbon crediting.

Activity on Indonesia’s National Carbon Exchange (IDX Carbon) saw a jump in January, partly thanks to the commencement of international carbon credit trading on the platform, however questions linger over key elements of the scheme.

Jesse Noakes, 36, and Matilda Lane-Rose, 20, and Emil Davey, 23, fined a total of $6,500 after pleading guilty to unlawful damage and trespass

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A group of climate activists have been fined over a foiled protest at the Woodside Energy boss’s family home.

About 10 counter-terrorism police were waiting for Jesse Noakes, 36, and Matilda Lane-Rose, 20, when they arrived at the Perth home of Woodside chief executive, Meg O’Neill, in August 2023 with paint, water balloons and a bicycle lock.

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The mass death of once-endangered olive ridley turtles in January has prompted an increase in wildlife patrols and a crackdown on fishing boats

More than 1,100 dead olive ridley sea turtles have washed ashore on the beaches of Tamil Nadu state in southern India this January.

“I never heard [of] such large numbers of turtles stranded at any beaches of Tamil Nadu at least in the last three decades,” Kuppusamy Sivakumar, an ecology professor at Pondicherry University said.

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Storm brings hail to Harden in NSW – video

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Australia's oldest commercial wind farm will be decommissioned in 2027 as it owner says the cost of repowering is not financially viable at this site.

The post Australia’s oldest commercial wind farm to close as cost of repowering is too high appeared first on RenewEconomy.

AusNet seeks approval to spend $3.5bn on upgrading its network over a five-year period it says will bring "significant changes" to the electricity market.

The post Flexible exports and solar soaks: Network shoots for “flat bills” as electrification era takes off appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia, as expected, has missed the official but largely symbolic deadline for its 2035 emissions targets. Only one country submitted a target close to 1.5°C goal.

The post Australia formally misses UN climate deadline, only one country makes pledge close to 1.5°C appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Workers cut transmission lines to Russia grid and hand out chopped wire to bystanders in dramatic switch to join EU network.

The post “Freedom from blackmail:” Baltic states cut their link to Russia grid in dramatic switch to EU network appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Managed well, golf courses can bring nature back to our cities. Here’s how to balance the good and bad for urban biodiversity. Jacinta Humphrey, Research Fellow in Urban Ecology, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New BNEF report expects the cost of clean power technologies to fall by between 2-11% in 2025, breaking last year’s record and sending batteries below major benchmark.

The post Battery costs plunge, solar and wind undercut new coal and gas “in almost every market” appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Bureau of Meteorology warns severe conditions will continue as parts of NSW coated in hail

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Thunderstorms across New South Wales and eastern Victoria on Monday brought flash flooding, destructive winds and hail, as the Bureau of Meteorology warns severe conditions would continue.

A major storm rolled across the Sydney CBD around midday on Monday, bringing dark skies and heavy rainfall. The city had recorded 40.6mm of rain at Observatory Hill since 9am, according to the BoM.

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The latest price blowout for Transgrid's EnergyConnect project begs the question: when will transmission companies be held to account for cost underestimates, false assurances and poor project delivery? 

The post Déjà vu on transmission project cost blowouts as price of EnergyConnect doubles appeared first on RenewEconomy.