Feed aggregator

The suggestion that nets prevent bites is an oversimplification of a complex story, a misrepresentation of technology and data

Mike Baird has this week announced a plan for a six-month trial of shark nets off the beaches of northern New South Wales. This would extend the state’s shark net program from the 51 beaches now netted between Wollongong and Newcastle.

The premier’s announcement was triggered by a surfer receiving minor injuries on Wednesday after he was bitten by a shark at Sharpes beach near Ballina.

Continue reading...

ARENA provides $18 million to solar, wind and battery storage project in north Queensland which could provide much of north Queensland's electricity needs.

According to folklore there could be several distinct spells of good weather in autumn, each named after a saint’s day

Spells of fine autumn weather used to be known as gossamer, a contraction of “goose summer”. The name was applied because this was when geese were eaten, having been fattened up in the previous months.

These spells were notable for gossamer threads, the mass of fine spider webs which catch the sun in stubble fields on a bright autumn morning. Now gossamer is used only to describe fine threads rather than weather.

Continue reading...

A group of Vienna-based scientists is working on plans to create a pacifist nation state, called Asgardia, in space.

Upper Coomera is one of those fast-growing fringe suburbs that are hotter because of tightly packed housing with less greenery. Daryl Jones/www.ozaerial.com.au/

Australian cities are getting hotter. The many reasons for this include urban densification policies, climate change and social trends such as bigger houses and apartment living, which leave less space for gardens and trees. But some areas and some residents of cities are more exposed to heat than others.

The concentration of poorer people in hotter places is known as “thermal inequity”. Our recently published research has found this is a real concern on the Gold Coast, one of Australia’s fastest-growing urban regions.

Urban heat is known to increase rates of injury, death and disease. This is why the federal government recently established an urban greening agenda.

The central city tends to be hotter than surrounding suburbs and rural areas – the urban heat island effect. Perhaps because of this, much of the research focus has been on the urban core. But what about heat effects in the suburbs?

What is thermal inequity?

Research from North America and Australia shows people who live in greener, leafier suburbs tend to be wealthier. We know that urban greening can cool ambient air temperatures.

Plentiful street trees, well-designed parks and other types of green space also tend to increase residents’ physical activities and social interactions. This makes greener neighbourhoods healthier and happier.

Unfortunately, the opposite often occurs in poorer suburbs, meaning residents suffer more heat stress. This is a consequence of fewer street trees, less green space and denser urban design. Our research found thermal inequity is a real concern in Upper Coomera, a suburb in the northern growth corridor of Gold Coast city.

The Gold Coast has been coping with explosive rates of growth. The population is expected to double to more than 1 million in the next two decades. Growth-management policies are increasing densities in many suburbs.

On the suburban fringe in places like Upper Coomera, land clearing for development typically removes much of the native vegetation. This in turn increases heat.

The trend in the Gold Coast, like many cities, is for comparatively disadvantaged people to seek more affordable housing in outer suburbs. Less affluent householders become concentrated in suburbs where housing is packed tightly with fewer trees and less greenery.

Hotter houses and neighbourhoods lead to residents paying more for electricity to keep cool. Excessive heat can also increase healthcare expenses and reduce productivity.

Research shows residents are struggling

As we explain in the video abstract for our article, we used a mail-back survey of 1,921 households to examine three questions:

1) Are residents aware of climate change?

2) Are residents concerned about climate change?

3) Do residents understand the potential of green infrastructure to help neighbourhoods adapt to climate change?

Video abstract for Environmental Research Letters article on thermal inequity.

We found more than 90% of residents were aware of climate change and almost 70% were concerned about it. Residents living in townhouses were particularly worried. Paradoxically, those living in dwellings with dark roofs were less worried, as were those with larger families.

We also found that more than 90% of respondents had air conditioning. Using statistical analysis, we determined that renters are especially vulnerable to associated energy costs, as are those with kids.

Interestingly, we found that people living in townhouses were less likely to consider buying energy-efficient devices to lower household energy expenses, as were those with more children. This could be because renters and those with larger families may be struggling financially.

In sum, we found that more disadvantaged households with less disposable income were living in dwellings that were more vulnerable to heat.

Next, we examined the attitudes of residents to urban greening to help combat heat in their neighbourhood. We found almost two-thirds favoured tree planting. More than half felt local streets lacked shade.

Few trees to be seen: residential landscapes in Upper Coomera. Jason Byrne

While 90% of surveyed residents saw that shade was a key benefit of trees, just over half understood that trees can lower air temperatures. Although most residents recognised maintenance costs of trees as a disadvantage, they still favoured more urban greening.

So what can be done?

Our findings have important repercussions for urban policy. As we have previously noted, urban greening has many advantages for climate change adaptation. It is comparatively inexpensive and is politically palatable.

However, higher-density neighbourhoods like Upper Coomera often have less land available for greening. Yards are smaller and verges are typically dominated by on-street parking.

We advocate for education campaigns about the benefits of urban greening and better urban design guidelines to make it easier for developers to increase neighbourhood greenery. Better knowledge about species selection is needed to reduce maintenance issues.

Urban greening initiatives should also use technologies like permeable paving to limit pavement uplift and capture rainfall on-site.

Thermal inequity exists but it can be reduced. After all, if urban greenery can benefit all residents, why should the poor miss out?

The authors wish to acknowledge the contribution of Chloe Portanger, Information Analytics Specialist with Climate Planning, to the research on which this article is based.

Jason Byrne undertakes research consultancy work for the City of Gold Coast Council. Jason has been funded by the Australian Research Council for research into climate change adaptation, green space and social equity. He contributes to the Australian Conservation Foundation. Jason is a member of the Planning Institute of Australia, Society for Human Ecology and Institute of Australian Geographers.

Tony Matthews undertakes research consultancy work for the City of Gold Coast Council. He receives funding from the Australian Research Council for research which examines the nexus between urban planning and climate adaptation. Tony is affiliated with the Planning Institute Australia and the Royal Town Planning Institute.

Christopher Ambrey undertakes research consultancy work for the City of Gold Coast Council. Christopher's research is situated within the economics of happiness and also reflects a keen interest in the environment and social justice. Christopher is funded by St Vincent de Paul and the Institute for Social Science Research at The University of Queensland for research into homelessness and disrupting disadvantage.

Monitoring wild birds on their long migrations may provide early warning of bird flu outbreaks, say scientists.

Government proposals to tackle air pollution in five UK cities could see electric vehicle drivers using bus lanes and getting priority at traffic lights

Drivers of electric vehicles could be allowed to use bus lanes in five UK cities and even go first at traffic lights, to tackle illegal levels of air pollution, the government has suggested.

Launching its consultation on clean air zones to be introduced in Birmingham, Leeds, Nottingham, Derby and Southampton, the environment department said air pollution killed 50,000 people each year at an annual cost to society of £27.5bn.

Continue reading...

Researchers say forecasting tool will stop coastal plants from being shut down by swarms blocking cooling water intakes

Invasions of jellyfish have proved adept at shutting down power plants in recent years. But an early warning tool is now in development to alert power stations to incoming swarms which block the cooling water intakes of coastal plants.

EDF’s Torness nuclear power plant in Scotland was closed for a week in 2011 after a mass of moon jellyfish invaded and the company is now working with researchers from the University of Bristol to tackle the problem.

Continue reading...

As Brexit puts the future of EU laws protecting the environment in doubt, Greenpeace sent photographer Vanessa Miles to Blackpool to recreate a series of images she took in 1990 when just one in five UK beaches met bathing guidelines

Continue reading...

Ogwen valley, which allows easy defence against grey squirrels, is selected for new colony

Conservationists have turned to military strategy to ensure a new wild colony of red squirrels is protected from its bushy-tailed grey adversary in Wales.

A site at Ogwen valley, five miles from Bangor, has been selected because it is ringed by mountains and cut off from grey squirrels.

Continue reading...

Banning the cooling gases currently used in refrigeration and air conditioning could save half a degree of global warming if a deal can be agreed in Rwanda.

The end-of-season classic is not only among the oldest races, but also one of the toughest. Peter Kimpton delves into its course, kit and culture

Snaking down forested hairpin bends towards the finish, just 61 riders remain from 201, most beaten down by a gruelling 240km and multiple climbs across some of Italy’s most challenging but beautiful terrain. Dubbed “la classica delle foglie morte” (the race of the falling/dying leaves), the Giro Di Lombardia recently completed its 110th edition.

This year it traversed the glimmering waters of Lake Como before climbing up through cobbles into the ancient walled section of Citta Alta in Bergamo, where buildings glow orange, brown, red and in the autumn light. A sprint finish in the town’s main square saw Italy’s Diego Rosa tearfully beaten to the line by the ever-smiling Colombian Esteban Chaves, the first non-European ever to triumph here.

Continue reading...

Land Speed Record holder Andy Green reflects on the partnership the Bloodhound supersonic car project has forged with Chinese auto group Geely.

The New South Wales government is proposing controversial shark nets on the state's north coast.

Four scientists are awarded the 2016 World Food Prize for crop work that delivers health benefits in developing nations.

China leads EU and US in market size, with Nissan Leaf taking the top spot for best-selling model followed by Tesla’s Model S and two Chinese-made models

The number of plug-in electric cars on the world’s roads is set to pass the landmark of two million vehicles by the end of 2016, with industry observers saying the electric car revolution is finally underway.

A surging market in China is leading the way and Chinese-made models have pushed into the top five best-selling models. Europe is the second biggest market, followed by the US, but their traditional car manufacturers face a stern challenge from China and from Tesla, whose much-anticipated Model 3 is expected to go into production in 2017.

Continue reading...

Report from the Committee on Climate Change says a government strategy to deploy new, radical technologies at scale by 2050 must begin now

The UK government needs to kickstart technologies to suck carbon dioxide from the air if it is to play its part in meeting the goals of the Paris climate change agreement, according to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), the government’s official advisers.

The global climate deal, which the prime minister, Theresa May, says the UK will ratify by the end of 2016, pledges net zero emissions by the second half of the century, in order to avoid the worst impacts of global warming. Given that some emissions, such as those from aviation and agriculture, will be very difficult to reduce to zero, that means removing some carbon from the atmosphere.

Continue reading...

Environmentalists furious that 2020 moratorium on 400,000ha of Tarkine forests could be reversed to help Forestry Australia ‘stand on its own feet’

Old growth forests in the Tarkine could be logged by private companies under plans being considered by the Tasmanian government to reverse a moratorium on harvesting 400,000ha of high conservation value forests.

The forests were part of 500,000ha protected under the forest peace deal signed by the former Labor government in 2013, which would have seen them eventually gazetted into national parks.

Continue reading...

Ouse Fen, Cambridgeshire There is a looseness, a jauntiness in an off-duty fox, an actor out of costume, performance over. But why was this one stopping so often?

Halfway through the morning, with fog rising from the fen, a fox was caught out at the end of its night shift. It had opted to cross an open field of winter wheat, whose short, narrow blades offered no cover at all. Plenty saw the fox coming. A pair of Egyptian geese that had been grazing at the fringe made a precautionary lift off. A clamour of crows well and truly outed the predator by swirling in an umbrella of flaps and raucous jeers.

The fox paused to sit out the overhead commotion, then traipsed a little further before squatting down to swivel its eyes, ears and snout, and stare intently in the direction of my glinting binocular lenses. It was not the only animal that had been found out.

Continue reading...

Long-running YouGov poll shows support for shale gas extraction at 37.3% – just as industry gears up to begin drilling

The British public’s support for fracking has fallen sharply in the last year and is now at the lowest level ever, according to a long-running poll published as the industry gears up to begin drilling.

New polling by YouGov for the University of Nottingham, which has been tracking attitudes towards shale gas extraction for more than four years, shows support for fracking in the UK is now at 37.3%, down from 46.5% a year ago and 58% in the summer of 2013.

Continue reading...