Feed aggregator

The Portuguese government has unfrozen a tax on CO2, previously suspended, in an attempt to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and obey recommendations by the European Commission, national media reported on Monday.

Thin liquidity continued to plague the voluntary market last week although news of some big ticket tenders brightened the outlook.

The UK is importing electricity from Europe at record levels, with the country now spending over £250 million each month, according to new analysis commissioned by power producer Drax. 

Poland is asking the European Commission for 30% more free EU ETS allowances for district heating networks, and that they be allocated while implementing climate investments rather than at the end of the period, as stated in EU regulation.

The EU needs to bring down energy prices for industry and ramp up investments to meet its climate goals, Mario Draghi recommended in a widely awaited report on the future of the Union's competitiveness.

Eels use tail-first technique to back up digestive tract of fish towards oesophagus before coming out of gills

It sounds like the plot of a horror movie – a predator swallows its prey only for the creature to burst out of its captor’s body. But it seems Japanese eels do just that.

Scientists in Japan have discovered that when swallowed by a dark sleeper fish, the eels can escape.

Continue reading...

The last time the National Farmers’ Federation marched on Canberra politicians were carefully controlled. This time the agenda looks more useful for politicians than farmers

• Sign up for the Rural Network email newsletter
• Join the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the community

In country circles, WhatsApp groups and emails have been pinging. As Tuesday dawns on the first rally endorsed by the National Farmers’ Federation since 1985, there has been a bit of chat about its merits.

The 1985 rally descended on the Hawke government. It numbered 40,000 to 45,000 people and was duplicated at some state parliaments. In Victoria, according to the journalist Martin Flanagan, 30,000 people protested, holding placards such as “farmer the new poor”, “Agricultural Income Deficiency Syndrome” and, my personal favourite, “wife home working”.

Sign up to receive Guardian Australia’s fortnightly Rural Network email newsletter

Continue reading...

Carbon pricing is easier to put in place with social policies backing it, according to new research.

Carbon Pulse rounds up developments in Latin American and Caribbean carbon markets for the week ending Sep. 8, characterised by a surge of biodiversity pricing news intimately connected to Amazon rainforest carbon projects.

As Japan has begun preparation work for the design of a compliance carbon market, the government should clarify some key legal issues to remove doubts when embedding the concept of emissions trading in the domestic legal framework, according to experts.

A Nigeria-based software startup is aiming to generate 400,000 tonnes of carbon removals in three years’ time by helping farmers sequester soil carbon through the application of biochar, in partnership with a commercial bank.

An Australian Senate committee has recommended the Nature Positive Bill 2024 be passed by the Senate, the nation’s upper house of parliament, subject to several recommendations it has made.

The Nigerian state government of Lagos has launched a carbon registry so that corporates can voluntarily document their emissions, as part of efforts to achieve net zero, according to local media.

A Mexican investment firm has partnered with a France-based environmental company to pre-purchase biodiversity, water, and carbon credits worth $25,000, Carbon Pulse has learned.

The hotly contested wind farm has been cleared for development by the Independent Planning Commission with enough turbines to ensure the project is commercially viable.

The post Hills of Gold wind farm wins state development consent – and fight for more turbines appeared first on RenewEconomy.

European carbon prices reversed early losses on Monday morning to reach midday marginally higher as natural gas continued to lead the way, with participants reporting an uptick in dip-buying.

A UN agency and the government of the Philippines announced today the launch of an over €100-million project to support local farming communities and protect the country's fragile ecosystems.

Cement, steel, and aluminium will be brought into China's emissions trading scheme this year with the first compliance deadline for the new participants set for the end of 2025, according to a policy draft released Monday.

Solar power could enable 400m Africans without water to tap into groundwater aquifers. However, we must ensure smaller projects do not lose out in the rush for new technology

It’s a truly dreadful irony: for many of the 400 million people in sub-Saharan Africa who lack access to even a basic water supply, there is likely to be a significant reserve in aquifers sitting just a few metres below their feet.

Groundwater – the water stored in small spaces and fractures in rocks – makes up nearly 99% of all of the unfrozen fresh water on the planet. Across the African continent, the volume of water stored underground is estimated to be 20 times the amount held in lakes and reservoirs.

Continue reading...

Methane leaks from Queensland’s many coal mines are not being adequately addressed by the government or Australia’s beefed up Safeguard Mechanism, driving emissions up that should be falling, according to a report from an environmental law firm.