Feed aggregator

Traders deliberated the impact of President Donald Trump’s first few weeks of unravelling US environmental policy on subnational carbon markets, as outsized option positions underpin participants’ hedging against negative outcomes, while longer-term policy shifts are yet to emerge after LA wildfires delayed California’s ETS rulemaking.

A public database of approximately 1,000 early-stage nature technology companies was launched on Tuesday by Paris-based organisations Motherbase and CDC Biodiversite.

A Brazilian carbon developer is planning to explore biodiversity credit opportunities in the Amazon and Atlantic forests, amid increasing corporate interest in nature-related claims, the company project director told Carbon Pulse.

Shipping companies are grappling to find the best way to comply with the EU's new fuel intensity regulation, as the sector's exposure to carbon policies more than doubles this year, and biofuels emerge as the most popular option.

A London-headquartered travel company has clinched a deal to acquire a batch of biodiversity credits generated through a nature restoration project in Portugal.

A European financial exchange operator has entered into an agreement with a specialised CDR marketplace and infrastructure provider that will develop a multi-year durable carbon portfolio, the companies announced on Tuesday.

The UK's solar power purchase agreement (PPA) market has thrived in recent years due to a rare alignment of market prices and seasonal conditions, but this 'lucky streak' is unlikely to continue, according to new analysis released on Tuesday.

European carbon traded largely sideways on Tuesday morning, after forecasts for milder weather triggered early weakness across the energy complex that was recovered by midday.

A high-level initiative led by governments and financial institutions should be established to expand insetting beyond just carbon, as deep transformation across supply chains is unlikely to happen unless businesses address their impacts on nature, a member of the International Platform for Insetting (IPI) has told Carbon Pulse.

The UK government has kicked off a second consultation on its guidance for future nuclear energy policy, seeking views on how to expand the policy's scope to enable small and advanced modular reactor technologies, it announced on Tuesday. 

The EU has an obligation to submit a 2035 climate target to the UN “well before” the COP30 climate summit in November, said a senior European Parliament member from the ruling European People's Party (EPP) – putting pressure on Brussels to deliver “as soon as possible”.

The oil giant is widely expected to say it will scale back on renewables later this month.

Scientists observe decreased motor function in rodents exposed to microplastics

Microplastics can move through mice brains and block blood vessels, essentially mimicking blood clots that could potentially be fatal or otherwise disrupt brain function.

The findings are detailed in a peer-reviewed paper for which researchers for the first time used real-time imaging to track bits of plastic as they moved through and accumulated in brain blood vessels. When one piece of plastic got stuck, others accumulated behind it, like a “car crash”, the authors reported.

Continue reading...

Two technology companies on Tuesday announced a partnership to scale UK water quality monitoring in a bid to confront the industry's pollution impact on nature.

Spain's Acciona Energia - which is building Australia's biggest single wind project - is seeking solutions for the full recycling of turbine blades.

The post Builder of Australia’s largest single wind project seeks solutions for blade recycling appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Social media storm of misinformation about Bovaer has drawn in Reform UK, the dairy industry and even Bill Gates

Scientists say a recent methane-related conspiracy theory was “a wake-up call” for the industry, reminding them they need to communicate better and more directly with the public.

Over the last few months, Bovaer, a cattle feed additive that is proven to reduce emissions of the greenhouse gas, has been at the centre of a swirl of misinformation, drawing in Reform UK, the dairy industry and even the billionaire Bill Gates.

Continue reading...

Industry says ‘pavement tax’ due to disparity in VAT rates is holding back transition away from fossil fuels

Electric vehicle drivers will spend an extra £85m on UK tax when using public car chargers this year because of a disparity in VAT rates that the industry has said is holding back the transition away from fossil fuels.

Home users of electricity pay just 5% VAT compared with the 20% rate that applies to businesses – including electric car charger operators. That means that people charging a car using public chargers face higher costs.

Continue reading...

Weaknesses in governance, planning and economic efficiency in the NEM are historic, but completely inadequate for the revolutionary transition to green energy.

The post “A thin veneer of governance:” Senate inquiry identifies critical failings in energy transition appeared first on RenewEconomy.

How does renewable energy firming work, how are we tracking with it in Australia and globally, and can it be applied to consumer energy resources too?

The post Explainer: What does it actually mean to “firm” renewables? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

If Starmer and Reeves really want a greener, cleaner, wilder nation, then why attack vital state bodies that are already on their knees?

This might sound astonishing, but the UK government’s core programme now appears to be the same as Donald Trump’s: dismantling the administrative state. There’s less theatre, but the results could prove harder to contest. Absurd? Consider the evidence.

Take the government’s brutal expulsion of the chair of the Competition and Markets Authority, Marcus Bokkerink. His crime, it seems, was to take his role seriously, seeking to prevent the formation of corporate monopolies. He has been replaced with the former manager of Amazon UK, a company widely accused of monopolistic practices. This is pure Trump: kick out the regulator and insert someone from a company they were seeking to regulate.

Continue reading...