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Climate contrarians appear to be running damage control in the media before the next IPCC report is published

The fifth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report is due out on September 27th, and is expected to reaffirm with growing confidence that humans are driving global warming and climate change. In anticipation of the widespread news coverage of this esteemed report, climate contrarians appear to be in damage control mode, trying to build up skeptical spin in media climate stories. Just in the past week we've seen:

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Environment movement is in 'deep denial' over the right ways to tackle climate change, says Canadian author

Canadian author Naomi Klein is so well known for her blade-sharp commentary that it's easy to forget that she is, above all, a first-rate reporter. I got a glimpse into her priorities as I was working on this interview. Klein told me she was worried that some of the things she had said would make it hard for her to land an interview with a president of the one of the Big Green groups (read below and you'll see why). She was more interested in nabbing the story than being the story; her reporting trumped any opinion-making.

Such focus is a hallmark of Klein's career. She doesn't do much of the chattering class's news cycle blathering. She works steadily, carefully, quietly. It can be surprising to remember that Klein's immense global influence rests on a relatively small body of work; she has published three books, one of which is an anthology of magazine pieces.

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In the first case concerning impacts on a matter of National Environmental Significance under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), the Federal Court ruled in favour of the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources.

Gwydir Ramsar Wetlands - Penalty decision

Between 1 March 2007 and 17 April 2007 Hardies Hill took an action that damaged habitat for an important population of the Striped Legless Lizard (Delma impar) which is listed as Vulnerable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

V/Line will pay more than $188,000 after undertaking clearing works that affected the population of a listed critically endangered species.

On 17 July 2009 the Federal Court declared by consent that Rocky Lamattina & Sons Pty Ltd took an action likely to have a significant impact on the South-eastern Red-tailed Black Cockatoo in contravention of section 18(3) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

Bridge and Marine must pay $200,000 towards the remediation of grasslands, purchase of offsets and recovery actions for a nationally protected species after it cleared an important grassland site for storage of heavy materials.

An enforceable undertaking was accepted on 8 February 2010 from Holcim Australia-formerly Cemex Australia-following an incident in late 2008 where work at the company's quarry damaged part of the National Heritage place.

An investment company will pay $62,000 towards conservation research and protect up to 13 hectares of threatened species habitat after breaching national environment law.

The City of Greater Geelong Council approved works that resulted in the removal and disturbance of approximately 0.8 hectares of a critically endangered ecological community

A departmental investigation found that Singleton Council had allowed the clearing of part of a critically endangered ecological community.

A departmental investigation found that Douglas Edward Rutledge had allowed the clearing of an endangered ecological community protected under national environment law at Warren in the NSW Central West.

The department's investigation found that Centennial Coal's long wall coal mining operations on the Newnes Plateau, near Lithgow, New South Wales, had caused a significant impact on the endangered Temperate highland peat swamps on sandstone ecological community.

The Australian Government secured a legally enforceable $305,000 pledge from plantation timber company Hancock Victorian Plantations Pty Ltd to repair damage done to a critically endangered grassland in south western Victoria

An enforceable undertaking has been agreed to by the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities to the sum of $80,400 after Coppercats Pty Ltd and Gallivantour Super Pty Ltd were found to have wrongfully cleared vegetation.

An enforceable undertaking was accepted on 31 October 2012 from Goodman Property Services following an incident in early 2011 where work at the company's Bungarribee Industrial Estate cleared 3.4 hectares of a critically endangered ecological community

An enforceable undertaking was accepted on 31 October 2012 from Marloelle Pty Ltd following clearing between late 2008 and mid 2011.

A quarry owner will pay $100,000 in compensation after clearing eight hectares of habitat for listed black cockatoos at Nowergup in Western Australia without authorisation.

SENG are in Canberra at the National Conference in September