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European carbon prices sank back toward €23 on Wednesday in cautious trade that saw sentiment weighed down by a weak clearance in today’s large auction.

Once a year in freezing cold winter waters, a gathering happens off the coast of South Australia. Hundreds of thousands of giant cuttlefish come to mate but this natural wonder comes at a great cost. In this episode of Guardian Australia’s new podcast we learn a lesson on life and death from these amazing cephalopods.

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Australian Photography magazine has named Brisbane ecologist Jasmine Vink as the overall winner in its 2018 Photographer of the Year awards – the largest amateur photography competition in the southern hemisphere

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The $300 million Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) Fund has invested $12 mln in a carbon credit-generating agroforestry project in Peru as its first investment towards restoring degraded land worldwide.

The New Hampshire legislature is considering a carbon tax proposal that could potentially work around the northeast US state’s refusal to join a regional transportation sector carbon programme.

A farmer recently took his lambs to a sanctuary instead of the slaughter – and these sudden turnarounds are not uncommon

A farmer was recently on the road to the abattoir when he changed direction and drove his trailer full of lambs 200 miles to an animal sanctuary instead. Sivalingam Vasanthakumar, 60, from Devon, now plans to grow vegetables.

Vasanthakumar is not the only farmer to perform this kind of reversal. In 2017, Jay Wilde, of Bradley Nook farm in Derbyshire, took his cattle to a sanctuary and decided to become a vegan farmer (the film telling this story, 73 Cows, has been nominated for a Bafta). In the US, the Illinois-based charity Free From Harm has gathered tales of many farmers who have had epiphanies and switched to veganism.

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Japan’s environment ministry has agreed to fund another six projects under its Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) that are expected to generate more than a million carbon credits by 2030.

European Chemicals Agency draft law aims to cut 400,000 tonnes of plastic pollution

A wide-ranging ban on microplastics covering about 90% of pollutants has been proposed by the EU in an attempt to cut 400,000 tonnes of plastic pollution in 20 years.

Every year, Europe releases a bulk amount of microplastics six times bigger than the “Great Pacific garbage patch” into the environment – the equivalent of 10bn plastic bottles.

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Sales of electric cars are growing rapidly in Europe, Asia and North America, but their uptake in Australia has been slow.

Senate report into EVs falls short after Labor and Coalition reject chairman Tim Storer's push for specific targets and incentives.

The post Coalition, Labor, throttle Senate proposals to boost EV uptake in Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Senate committee urges government to create policies to encourage use or risk missing out on a transport revolution

Australia is “on the cusp” of a transport revolution but the country will miss out if it doesn’t end the policy vacuum that has so far kept the electric vehicle industry from growing, according to a Senate committee report released on Wednesday.

“[Electric vehicle] uptake in Australia lags behind that of other comparable countries due to a relative absence of overarching policy direction from Australian governments,” the report said.

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Supersonic aircraft would bring noise and greater CO2 emissions, report says

Heathrow airport could be hit by a sonic boom every five minutes as a new class of supersonic aircraft come into service, research suggests.

It is predicted that by 2035 there could be demand for up to 2,000 supersonic passenger jets, which could knock hours off long-haul trips.

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Take a first line of defence against the cold with these coats and accessories to keep you feeling toasty

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Researchers say effects will be felt beyond molluscs as reefs shelter other marine life

Mussels start to lose their grip when exposed to microplastics, research has found, in the latest example of the damaging effects of plastic pollution on marine life.

When blue mussels were exposed to doses of non-biodegradable microplastics over 52 days, they lost about half their power to stick to surfaces. The weakening of their attachment appears to be the result of producing many fewer byssal threads, the thin fibres produced by mussels that enable them to attach to rocks, ropes and other undersea environments.

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Young people more likely to have depression at 18 if exposed to dirtier air at age 12

Children who lived in areas with higher air pollution when younger are significantly more likely to have developed major depression by the age of 18, according to research.

In the first analysis of how common air pollutants affect teenage mental health, researchers found young people were three to four times more likely to have depression at 18 if they had been exposed to dirtier air at age 12. Comparison with earlier work indicates that air pollution is a greater risk factor than physical abuse in raising the risk of teenage depression.

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350.orgAustralia will today premiere a crowdfunded feature-length film – Accelerate.

The post 350.org Australia releases feature-length climate film appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia has made some progress replacing coal with natural gas and renewables in electricity generation yet remains one of the most carbon-intensive OECD countries.

The post Australia needs to intensify efforts to meet its 2030 emissions goal, says OECD appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Yurika may add another 9 big batteries across Queensland after identifying a new market for batteries in supporting local networks.

The post Queensland’s Yurika eyes another 9 big batteries as new market emerges appeared first on RenewEconomy.

New estates in communities such as Mount Barker are being forced to depend on gas. This is imposing un-necessary costs, and pollution.

The post New estates are being forced to install gas pipelines. This is wrong appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Paris agreement target will not be met without changes to policy and threatened species at risk unless funding increased

Australia is not on track to meet its 2030 emissions targets under the Paris agreement and needs to bring its environment policies into line with the “scale of the challenge” the country is facing, one of the world’s pre-eminent economic institutions says.

In a major report on Australia’s environmental performance, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development also finds the status of Australia’s biodiversity is “poor and worsening” and the government’s national threatened species strategy will fail unless it is expanded and funding increased.

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