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Tim Flannery returns to the Great Barrier Reef after coral bleaching – video
The Australian conservationist travels back to the Great Barrier Reef with the Climate Council after witnessing extensive coral bleaching in the area in May. An estimated 30% to 40% of the previously bleached sections of the reef have now died, which Flannery attributes to ‘the burden of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere causing these unprecedented underwater heatwaves’
Continue reading...US tests reveal major TV manufacturers may be manipulating energy ratings
Natural Resources Defence Council claims Samsung, LG and Vizio have designed sets that perform well in testing but disable energy-saving features in real-world conditions, causing energy consumption to soar
Independent tests in the US have found that the energy consumption of Samsung and LG TV sets nosedives under test conditions but can soar by up to 45% in real-world use, raising questions of manipulation by software devices.
TVs from the top three best selling US brands - Samsung, LG and Vizio - have also been found to be switching off power-saving features without warning, as soon as consumers make “out of the box” changes to their main picture menu settings, which can double the TV sets’ energy usage.
Greenland's huge annual ice loss is even worse than thought
Ice cap is disappearing far more rapidly than previously estimated, and is part of a long-term trend, new research shows
The huge annual losses of ice from the Greenland cap are even worse than thought, according to new research which also shows that the melt is not a short-term blip but a long-term trend.
The melting Greenland ice sheet is already a major contributor to rising sea level and if it was eventually lost entirely, the oceans would rise by six metres around the world, flooding many of the world’s largest cities.
Continue reading...DNA hints at earlier human exodus from Africa
Paris climate agreement poised to come into force
UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, predicts global climate deal will be fully ratified by the end of the year after 31 nations officially sign up in New York
The Paris climate agreement is on the brink of coming into force after 31 nations officially joined the landmark accord, with the United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, predicting it will be fully ratified by the end of the year.
On Wednesday, 31 countries formally signed up to the Paris deal at the UN general assembly in New York. They include Brazil, the world’s seventh largest emitter of greenhouse gases, Mexico, Argentina and Sri Lanka. Oil-rich United Arab Emirates also ratified the deal, as did nations considered particularly vulnerable to sea level rise, such as Kiribati and Bangladesh.
Continue reading...China space station to fall to Earth in 2017
Search on for the Asian hornet queen
Fearnley-Whittingstall on ivory trade 'ban'
Aberthaw power station breached emissions limit, rules EU court
UK ordered to pay European commission’s legal costs after ruling that coal plant was wrongly granted higher pollution threshold
A coal-burning power station in Wales repeatedly violated pollution controls for nitrogen oxide emissions, the European court of justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg has ruled.
It ordered the UK to pay the European commission’s legal costs after ruling that Aberthaw power station, near Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan, should not have been allowed to exceed specially negotiated pollution limits.
Continue reading...375 top scientists warn of 'real, serious, immediate' climate threat | John Abraham
375 National Academy of Sciences members sign an open letter expressing frustration at political inaction on climate change
Yesterday, 375 of the world’s top scientists, including 30 Nobel Prize winners, published an open letter regarding climate change. In the letter, the scientists report that the evidence is clear: humans are causing climate change. We are now observing climate change and its affect across the globe. The seas are rising, the oceans are warming, the lower atmosphere is warming, the land is warming, ice is melting, rainfall patterns are changing and the ocean is becoming more acidic.
These facts are incontrovertible. No reputable scientist disputes them. It is the truth.
Continue reading...Indonesia dismisses study showing forest fire haze killed more than 100,000 people
Authorities from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have rejected recent research on the number of early deaths caused by last year’s fires
Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean authorities have dismissed research that suggested smoky haze from catastrophic forest fires in Indonesia last year caused 100,000 deaths. Some even contend the haze caused no serious health problems, but experts say those assertions contradict well-established science.
Last year’s fires in Sumatra and the Indonesian part of Borneo were the worst since 1997, burning about 261,000 hectares of forests and peatland and sending haze across the region for weeks. Many were deliberately set by companies to clear land for palm oil and pulpwood plantations.
Continue reading...UK to crack down on illegal ivory sales
New initiative closes loophole allowing dealers to claim ivory from recently killed elephants is antique without providing proof of age
Britain is to ban all sales of ivory which are not backed by proof that the item is over 70 years old.
Although it is already illegal to sell ivory from elephants killed after 1947, a loophole allows dealers to claim items are antique without providing documentary evidence of their age.
Maroochydore adopts a high-speed underground waste disposal system
Video of the Day: World’s first manned solar helicopter flight
Late-summer contentment on the Dorset coast
Lyme Regis, Dorset Morning sun highlights the cliffs, visitors stroll along the Cobb and little boats dip and roll across the open sea
From Uplyme, shady paths beside the river Lim lead to the renovated mill in the middle of old Lyme Regis; the waterwheel is geared to millstones that grind wheat into flour, and a micro hydro system generates 32,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a year. Before 10.30am, the associated tearoom, galleries and workshops remain quiet, but the nearest car park is already full. Sun sparkles on the sea; a flotilla of sailing dinghies is heading out and a gig cuts across the bay.
Land and cliffs on the eastern side of town have been stabilised and protected by a new seawall; beyond this, towards the Spittles, morning sun highlights dangerous cliffs, made of alternating layers of slippery grey clay and pale, lumpy limestone that overhang the rough and muddy shoreline. Farther up the coast, Golden Cap is cloud-free, and visibility extends to the hazy Isle of Portland.
Continue reading...Australia could, should make wind turbines, says Suzlon chief
UK advertising watchdog admits it was wrong to ban Greenpeace fracking advert
Advertising Standards Authority concedes it erred in upholding a complaint against the advert last year, which claimed fracking would not cut energy bills
The UK’s advertising watchdog has admitted it made the wrong decision when it banned a Greenpeace advert last year which claimed fracking would not cut energy bills.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) originally ruled in May 2015 that the advert was misleading due to the green group’s statement that experts agreed fracking would not reduce energy costs.
Continue reading...AGL encourages community to have their say on Coopers Gap Wind Farm
EthosEnergy successfully completes $2m overhaul for Origin Energy
Male redback spiders evade cannibalism by mating with immature females
Survival tactic also increases chances of successful insemination, with the immature females able to store sperm until they reach adulthood
Male redback spiders at risk of being cannibalised by their sex partners have developed a survival tactic: mating only with females too young to eat them.
New research has identified the adaptive behaviour among some males of the widow spider genus. Adult females of the genus regularly cannibalise their partners during or after mating.
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