Feed aggregator

California Carbon Allowance (CCA) prices fluctuated throughout the week, ending with minimal gains as traders await next week's workshop on potential programme amendments, while Washington Carbon Allowance (WCA) values crawled higher amidst limited activity in the under-fire scheme.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday unveiled $8 million in funding for 14 projects that convert CO2 emissions from industrial processes into useful products.

Negotiations on Article 6 of the Paris Agreement are expected to be influenced by the private sector and geopolitics, as parties prepare for a 'bridge' climate conference in Azerbaijan, a UN advisor said on Thursday at IETA’s annual European Climate Summit in Florence said.

Sometimes it seems the night is just buzzing with insects. But are there really more insects out at night? We analysed all the evidence on insect activity across the day–night cycle to find out. Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Raphael Didham, Professor of Ecology, The University of Western Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

UK energy firm Drax Group has made another step in becoming a US leader in carbon removals through bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) after firming up a reported $600,000 deal with an environmental consultancy.

Extracting ground water for growing urban populations causes half of China's big cities to sink.

Noreen and Antonia, born last May, are among first cloned offspring of a native endangered species in the North America

Two more black-footed ferrets have been successfully cloned in an attempt to save the endangered species, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced.

The national agency shared news about the births of ferrets Noreen and Antonia, who were both born last May.

Continue reading...

Scientists estimate Vasuki indicus was up to 15m long, weighed a tonne and would have constricted its prey

Fossil vertebrae unearthed in a mine in western India are the remains of one of the largest snakes that ever lived, a monster estimated at up to 15 metres in length – longer than a T rex.

Scientists have recovered 27 vertebrae from the snake, including a few still in the same position as they would have been when the reptile was alive. They said the snake, which they named Vasuki indicus, would have looked like a large python and would not have been venomous.

Continue reading...

Farms in England are set to see substantial falls in business income due to dwindling commodity prices, sharper subsidy cuts following Brexit, and increased competition from cheaper imports, while uptake of natural capital payment alternatives is still lacklustre, industry experts said on Thursday.

Carbon removal experts expressed frustration this week at news that the EU’s carbon removal methodologies will not yield carbon removal units with the bloc’s stamp of approval until likely 2027.

Brazil should lead G20 efforts in developing globally recognised standards for nature-related disclosures, non-profit CDP has said, as the country considers mandating compliance with target 15 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

Voluntary carbon attendees at an industry event held in Florence this week struck an optimistic note in light of imminent market developments that are expected to boost demand, but multiple sources highlighted a lack of tangible impact so far, with buyers still said to be holding back on offset investment due to reputational risk.

A project developer plans to distribute 600,000 energy-efficient clean cookstoves in Africa as part of a multi-million dollar grant to decarbonise the electrical grid in Uganda.

Bill would stop private investors, including hedge funds, farmers and municipalities, from profiting off water scarcity

With private investors poised to profit from water scarcity in the west, US senator Elizabeth Warren and representative Ro Khanna are pursuing a bill to prohibit the trading of water as a commodity.

The lawmakers will introduce the bill on Thursday afternoon, the Guardian has learned. “Water is not a commodity for the rich and powerful to profit off of,” said Warren, the progressive Democrat from Massachusetts. “Representative Khanna and I are standing up to protect water from Wall Street speculation and ensure one of our most essential resources isn’t auctioned off to the highest bidder.”

Continue reading...

South Korea is planning to develop a fund to support carbon offset projects globally to generate Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs) that the East Asian nation can use to meet its climate goals, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

The government of England should invest more in advising farmers on how they can deliver effective change in transitioning to more sustainable practices, experts have said.

The UK remains interested in linking its emissions trading scheme with other markets, but needs to determine how this would work in practice to ensure that it makes sense for the market and businesses involved, a government official said on Thursday.

EU carbon prices were modestly firmer at midday after a volatile morning saw levels fluctuate in a nearly €3 range, following significant swings in natural gas prices as traders considered supply issues in the US Gulf.

BHP chooses to add fast start gas generators to Pilbara grid, rather than long duration storage, to support its big renewable energy plans.

The post BHP chooses fast start gas over long duration storage to support wind and solar for huge Pilbara mines appeared first on RenewEconomy.

An international standard-setting body on disclosures has been urged by its staff to ramp up efforts in researching biodiversity, as companies are showing an increasing interest in improving assessments of nature-related risks and opportunities.