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A third of Brits throw away Christmas turkey and sprouts

The Guardian - Tue, 2016-12-20 17:01

New research finds householders more likely to bin food over festive season due to lack of culinary knowhow

One in three UK consumers admit to binning turkey and sprouts for their Christmas dinner before it even reaches the table because of their lack of culinary knowhow, a new report has revealed.

Official figures show that UK households throw away 7m tonnes of food every year, but the new research from supermarket chain Sainsbury’s shows householders are more likely to bin food over the festive season because they don’t know how to prepare and cook it.

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This is the polar bear capital of the world, but the snow has gone

The Guardian - Tue, 2016-12-20 17:00

Canada’s Hudson Bay is as ice-free in November as on a summer’s day and polar bears could be extinct here by mid-century. If the bears are in trouble, so are we

Churchill, on the banks of the Hudson Bay in Canada, is known as the polar bear capital of the world. Hundreds of bears gather there each year before the sea freezes over in October and November so they can hunt seals again from the ice for the first time since the summer.

I first went there 12 years ago at this time of year. The place was white, the temperature was -20C, and the bears were out feeding.

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Banksia Woodlands of the Swan Coastal Plain

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2016-12-20 15:50
A guide is now available for this nationally listed endangered ecological community.
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The endless joy of logs

The Guardian - Tue, 2016-12-20 15:30

Claxton, Norfolk I recall the circumstances of the cut, how it was stored and then the moment it was sectioned to fit the fire

The garden task that gives me greatest satisfaction is the cutting of our winter wood stack. I like to joke that our logburner consumes only hand-prepared organic “food”, and there is even a sense in which each piece is an individual.

Over the years I’ve learned that the secret to preparing logs is not some fancy axe or equipment. It is time. I have thus worked out a four-stage process that spans two years, beginning with the moment when the live trees are felled.

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You are 16, going on 17 – part 1

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2016-12-20 13:56
The year that was: Donald Trump, soaring temperatures, mass-market EVs, and price parity - even in NSW - for solar and storage.
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Broadcast Australia wins award for Photon Energy solar battery system

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2016-12-20 13:52
IABM has given its International Award for Excellence in Sustainability to Broadcast Australia for installing a solar battery solution designed and delivered by Photon Energy.
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In 2017, regulators should fight for consumers, not incumbents

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2016-12-20 13:30
Despite predictions that consumers – households and businesses – will be supplying half of all electricity needs within a few decades, the automatic reflex of the institutions that govern our electricity market remains to protect the incumbents. This needs to change.
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Spain looks to re-boot renewables as economy recovers

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2016-12-20 13:22
Spain has been the subject of some myth-making and stereo-typing about its renewable energy industry and its overall economy.
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Brexit uncertainty 'corrosive' for science

BBC - Tue, 2016-12-20 12:02
Uncertainty over the nature of the UK's future relationship with the EU is having a "corrosive" effect on science.
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Soil carbon capture: Great loamy hope or bandaid?

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2016-12-20 11:39
What exactly is biological carbon capture and sequestration, and is it any sort of a viable climate fix? Reasonable questions, so here are some answers...
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Prostate cancer laser treatment 'truly transformative'

BBC - Tue, 2016-12-20 11:13
Surgeons describe a new treatment for early stage prostate cancer as "truly transformative".
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No new coal fired power plants for India

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2016-12-20 10:51
India’s new draft National Electricity Plan concludes India does not require any new coal-fired power stations and its energy minister says it must look beyond fossil fuels.
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Draft plantation forestry method now open for public consultation

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2016-12-20 09:59
A draft plantation forestry method and proposed rule amendment to the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Rule 2015 is open for public comment until Friday 30 December 2016.
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Draft plantation forestry method now open for public consultation

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2016-12-20 09:59
A draft plantation forestry method and proposed rule amendment to the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Rule 2015 is open for public comment until Friday 30 December 2016.
Categories: Around The Web

CER announces fourth emission Reduction Fund auction results

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2016-12-20 09:56
The Clean Energy Regulator has announced the results of the fourth Emission Reduction Fund (ERF) auction.
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CER announces fourth emission Reduction Fund auction results

Department of the Environment - Tue, 2016-12-20 09:56
The Clean Energy Regulator has announced the results of the fourth Emission Reduction Fund (ERF) auction.
Categories: Around The Web

Solar cooling systems take heat out of summer’s hottest days

The Guardian - Tue, 2016-12-20 08:48

A few Australian businesses are exploiting the searing heat of summer to create purpose-designed solar cooling systems whose benefits extend far beyond electricity savings

As Australia settles in for another long hot summer, the demand for air-conditioning is set to surge. In fact, with the World Meteorological Organisation stating that 2016 is likely to be the hottest year on record, it’s no surprise an estimated 1.6bn new air conditioners are likely to be installed globally by 2050.

Powering all these units will be a challenge, especially on summer’s hottest days. In Australia, peak demand days can drive electricity usage to almost double and upgrading infrastructure to meet the increased demand can cost more than four times what each additional air-conditioning unit costs.

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Reasons to put insects on the Christmas menu

The Guardian - Tue, 2016-12-20 07:30

Rearing animals for meat is bad for the planet. Insects, on the other hand, are both nutritious and environmentally friendly

If you’re looking for a novelty Christmas dinner that will help curb greenhouse gases, why not try eating insects? Conventional meat farming produces massive amounts of greenhouse gases, especially from sheep and cattle belching methane – a gas roughly 20 times more powerful as a heat-trapping gas than carbon dioxide.

Add to that other culprits, such as nitrogen oxides given off from fertilisers and carbon dioxide created in transport and refrigeration. All told, the livestock industry gives off 18% of all manmade greenhouse gases. Insects, though, give off far less greenhouse pollutants for the same weight of food.

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Laser helps unlock antimatter secrets

BBC - Tue, 2016-12-20 05:16
Scientists at Cern have found a new way to unlock the secrets of antimatter.
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'Casper octopod under threat from deep sea mining'

BBC - Tue, 2016-12-20 05:14
A deep sea octopod, dubbed Casper after the film ghost, may be at risk from mining, scientists say.
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