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The EU saw record investments in clean technologies in the first few months of 2024, part of an economic wave that shows signs for optimism in the 27-nation bloc, data showed on Monday.

The UK will tax sales of some voluntary carbon credits (VCCs) at 0% and others at 20% by bringing them under the umbrella of the country’s ‘value-added tax’ (VAT) on goods and services, though others will remain entirely outside the scope of the scheme.

Over 140 civil society organisations have penned an open letter sounding the alarm over the recent rollback of environmental measures in the EU ahead of the European Parliament's elections scheduled for next month.

The first scheme allowing UK homeowners to more easily afford energy efficiency retrofits partially aided by the sale of voluntary carbon credits will be piloted among at least 1,000 homes, with potential to engage a huge number of citizens via partnerships with their mortgage providers.

The ancient fish were successfully hatched by scientists in Tasmania using two adults and 50 eggs. The Maugean skate is thought to be found only in the vast harbour on the state’s west coast. Numbers have fallen sharply due to the impact of salmon farms, hydro power stations altering upstream river flows, gillnet fishing and rising harbour temperatures due to the climate crisis, studies have found

• Politics and science: Tasmanian leaders back salmon farms ‘at all costs’ while researchers work to save endangered Maugean skate

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The state-owned UK Infrastructure Bank and Scottish National Investment Bank are putting £100 million into the redevelopment of a Scottish port to handle offshore wind turbines, helping to scale up wind capacity in the North Sea, they announced on Monday.

EU countries on Monday signed off on a law aiming to cut the CO2 emissions of new heavy-duty vehicles by 90% as of 2040, concluding a legislative journey that began in February last year.

A US report argues that to move away from a disposable culture, businesses need robust, efficient reuse systems

For several months last year, patrons of a Seattle coffee shop called Tailwind Cafe had the option of ordering their americanos and lattes in a returnable metal to-go cup. They could borrow one from Tailwind, go on their way and then at some point – perhaps a few hours later, perhaps on another day that week – return it to the shop, which would clean it and refill it for the next person. If the cup wasn’t returned within 14 days, the customer would be charged a $15 deposit, although even that was ultimately refundable if the cup was returned by the end of 45 days.

But the system quickly ran into trouble. It was “overwhelming” trying to explain the return system to every interested customer, said Tailwind’s head chef, Kayla Tekautz. Many were hesitant to participate after learning that they could only return the cups to Tailwind or the other drop-off location, six miles away. Plus, Tailwind’s QR code reader kept malfunctioning, requiring repeated visits from a mechanic. At the end of last summer, Tailwind quietly ended the scheme. “It just didn’t work,” Tekautz said.

This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

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An ESG-focused British investment group has launched a natural capital strategy that will see it acquire land in the UK.

Remaining members of the long-criticised Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) are looking to modernise the international trade agreement to better support climate action, despite the departure of a growing number of European countries citing failed attempts to revamp it.

More than 4,000 species are targeted by trafficking, with illegal trade active in 80% of countries

More than 4,000 species around the world are being targeted by wildlife traffickers, causing “untold harm upon nature”, a UN report has warned.

Wildlife crime is driven by demand for medicine, pets, bushmeat, ornamental plants and trophies. Out of all the mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians seized, 40% are on the red list of threatened or near-threatened species, the report found.

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Andrew Forrest's Squadron Energy wins planning approval for a gas firming generator near Dubbo to support its planned wind and solar projects.

The post Squadron gets approval for gas generator and electrolyser to back up Forrest’s wind and solar plans appeared first on RenewEconomy.

European carbon prices fell away on Monday morning, extending the profit-taking sell-off that began on Friday and dropping below a key level amid a pick-up in trading volume, while energy prices also retreated as renewable generation was forecast to rise strongly this week.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime's (UNODC) has released its third World Wildlife Crime Report, unveiling that, despite some positive progress, wildlife trafficking overall has not been substantially reduced over the last two decades.

Half of UK institutional asset owners have already invested in natural capital or will do so within the next 18 months, and are far more interested in developing their own carbon or biodiversity credits than purchasing offsets in the secondary market.

The Bursa Carbon Exchange (BCX) will soon auction carbon credits generated from a forestry project in the state of Sabah – the first auction of nature-based credits generated within the Malaysian territory, the exchange announced Monday.

Onshoring the electric vehicle supply chain to Europe would cut the emissions of producing a battery by at least 37% compared to a China-controlled supply chain, with potential CO2 savings as high as 62% if renewable energy is used, according to a study released on Monday.

The cement industry is currently over-investing in carbon capture and storage (CCS) and is failing to appreciate just how big the shift to low-carbon concrete will be, according to the CEO of the World Cement Association (WCA).

Phasing out coal in the world’s two most populous nations with the kind of financial support offered to coal-dependent communities in Europe and Asia would cost 10 times as much and exceed current international climate financing, a study has found.

The government of South Korea has proposed to launch a trading programme exclusively for blue carbon, following a national strategy aimed at improving the marine sector's carbon sequestration capacity.