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Drone footage shows huge Antarctic ice crack
Green Investment Bank’s assets must be protected | Letters
The Green Investment Bank is a real success story. Publicly owned, it has helped fund innovative new smart green technologies to fight climate change and attracted capital to UK infrastructure.
It is widely rumoured that Australian investment bank Macquarie is set to purchase the bank (Is May being green about Macquarie? 10 January). Yet, it makes absolutely no sense to sell it off, least of all to a company with Macquarie’s record of buying assets, stripping them, paying itself huge dividends and selling off what’s left. It has a similarly been criticised over its tax strategy. Press reports suggest Macquarie is already making plans to offload projects and assets after it has taken control of the bank, and the government would be powerless to do anything about it if the deal goes through. In last Wednesday’s exchange in the House of Commons, where I flagged up my concerns about Macquarie, the minister also refused to rule out investment in fracking projects by the future owner of the bank.
Continue reading...Murky waters: why is Japan still whaling in the Southern Ocean?
A photo from Sea Shepherd allegedly shows a Japanese whaling vessel with a dead minke whale on board. EPA/GLENN LOCKITCH / SEA SHEPHERD HANDOUT Photographs allegedly showing Japanese whaling operations in the Southern Ocean emerged this week. Coinciding with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to Australia, critics have called for greater action from the Australian government on the issue.
Japan has stated that, despite various resolutions at the International Whaling Commission and criticism from many governments about its so-called “scientific” activity, it abides by its own interpretation of the Whaling Convention – the international agreement that governs whaling. This interpretation focuses on Article VIII of the convention, which allows a country to issue its own permits to kill whales for research.
The same issues are raised each summer when Japanese whaling fleets head south. But the apparently obvious questions have complex answers.
Didn’t the International Court of Justice ban Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean?The 2014 International Court of Justice (ICJ) whaling decision was quite narrow. It ruled that the old JARPA II scientific program was not for the purposes of scientific research.
Therefore, the court deemed that Japanese whaling was a commercial operation, something that had been banned under the Whaling Convention since 1985.
Labor’s former attorney-general, Mark Dreyfus, noted that the court had not completely ordered cessation of whaling for all time. And this is correct.
While the judgment gave guidance on what is and what isn’t “for the purposes of scientific research”, it did not ban Japan from conducting further scientific research activity under the convention.
In response to the judgment, the Japanese government abandoned the JARPA II program. The current and very similar NEWREP-A program took its place. This program, in all likelihood, is “not for the purposes of scientific research” either.
Should Australia take Japan back to court?Following the ICJ case, Japan ruled out the jurisdiction of the ICJ in “any dispute arising out of, concerning, or relating to research on, or conservation, management or exploitation of, living resources of the sea”.
Therefore, Australia could not take Japan back to the ICJ on this issue.
Is the whaling fleet operating in Australian waters?The waters below 60 degrees south fall under the Antarctic Treaty, to which Australia and Japan are both parties. The treaty was a peaceful territorial compromise between countries (like Australia) that claim parts of the Antarctic continent, and other countries (like Japan) that do not recognise those claims.
Australia claims about 5.9 million square kilometres of the Antarctic continent, and the adjacent ocean out to 200 nautical miles.
However, the treaty “freezes” any arguments over the sovereign claims by Australia, New Zealand, France, UK, Chile, Argentina and Norway, and has developed a complex web of instruments that protect the Antarctic environment and maintain the continent as a place of peace and science.
While Australia does not relinquish its claim to Antarctica under the treaty, it agrees to comply fully with the treaty’s rules and obligations. In turn, this means countries that don’t recognise claims are free to go about scientific research and peaceful activities.
Japan does not recognise Australia’s claim to the Antarctic continent. As such, it views the waters off the Australian Antarctic Territory as the high seas, which are governed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The Antarctic Treaty’s Environment Protocol also explicitly states that it does not affect the rights of countries under the Whaling Convention.
In almost all cases, only Australian citizens are bound by Australian law in Antarctica. If there are any issues of jurisdiction under the provisions of the treaty, countries must resolve them peacefully, or refer them to the ICJ.
Didn’t the Australian Federal Court say whaling is illegal?In 2008, the Humane Society International took Japanese whaling company Kyodo Senpaku Kaisha to court over whaling in Australia’s Antarctic waters, which Australia calls the Australian Whale Sanctuary.
The Federal Court held that whaling in Australia’s maritime claim was illegal under Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity (EPBC) Act.
It’s not up to the Federal Court to question Australia’s claim to Antarctic waters, so it applied Australian law in a consistent manner. The EPBC Act is also one of the few that extends to non-Australian citizens in Australian-claimed waters in Antarctica.
But remember that Japan does not recognise Australia’s claim to Antarctic waters. Even though the Federal Court recognised this, it held that this was not a reason to withold judgment. In 2015, Kyodo Senpaku Kaisha was held in contempt of court orders by continuing to kill whales, and was fined A$1 million.
The Japanese government responded to the case, stating that “this issue relates to waters and a matter over which Japan does not recognise Australian jurisdiction”. Therefore, the restraining orders and injunction on further whaling are still outstanding and will likely remain so.
Should we send Australian ships to confront the whalers?The Australian and Japanese governments are under an obligation to prevent Antarctica becoming a place of discord. Any confrontation on the high seas would be seen as an incredibly aggressive and potentially illegal act.
The Australian vessel Oceanic Viking was sent to monitor the fleet in 2008 to compile evidence for the ICJ case. It did not intervene physically with the whaling fleet, likely due to its potential illegality, aggressiveness, concern for the safety of lives at sea, and environmental reasons.
Japan is transparent about its catches and reports all its activities (including the number of whales it kills) to the Whaling Commission as part of its self-issued scientific whaling permit. Countries that are members of the commission therefore have access to all the information on Japanese activities.
The Greens are calling for the Australian Border Force to be sent to Australia’s Antarctic waters, but, for the reasons above, this is likely to be futile.
What now?Australia appears to have exhausted most legal options. Professor Tim Stephens noted, however, that the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea could be a forum where Japan is challenged over its activities.
Obligations under the Law of the Sea Convention include mandatory dispute resolution, the protection and preservation of the marine environment, and duties to cooperate.
Several alternative courses of action have been suggested and new resolutions at the Whaling Commission have yet to be implemented. However, the decision to stop Japanese whaling is, in reality, likely to come only from the Japanese people themselves.
Indi Hodgson-Johnston receives scholarship funding from the University of Tasmania's Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre.
Parts of United States are heating faster than globe as a whole | John Abraham
A new study shows the Northeast USA will reach the dangerous 2°C warming threshold faster than most of the rest of the planet
Global warming obviously refers to temperature increases across the entire globe. We know the Earth is warming, we know it is human-caused, we have a pretty good idea about how much the warming will be in the future and what some of the consequences are. In fact, when it comes to the Earth’s average climate, scientists have a pretty good understanding.
On the other hand, no one lives in the average climate. We live spread out north, west, east, and south. On islands, large continents, inland or in coastal regions. Many of us want to know what’s going to happen to the climate where we live. How will my life be affected in the future?
Last man to walk on the Moon, Gene Cernan, has died
An object lesson in thrush hunger
Rockland, Norfolk It’s not uncommon to see two fight over fruit for minutes on end, each lunging alternately at the other
Our neighbours grow apples commercially and their five acres supply both the community in autumn and the thrushes during winter. Recently I fulfilled a long-held promise to erect a hide and watch the birds among the windfalls there. First I had to gather several barrowfuls of my own, which was itself a memorable exercise. While I raked the wasp-mined Bramleys my boots mulched down the flesh, sending up a sweet foetor and leaving geometrically patterned cakes of apple mud underfoot.
Once I’d tipped 100lb of fruit in a sunlit heap by the hide, I retired to steep the whole scene in silence, before returning next day.
Continue reading...Australia should invest in coal power to reduce emissions, minister says
Economists and energy analysts question environmental and economic case for Matt Canavan’s coal push
Research touted by the resources minister that reportedly suggests Australia can rely on coal to meet emissions reduction has been attacked by experts and appears to have been misreported.
The Australian reported on Tuesday that research conducted by the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science – and commissioned by Matt Canavan, the federal minister for resources – showed Australia could cut its emissions by 27% if it replaced its existing coal power stations with the more efficient “ultra-supercritical” technology.
Continue reading...NSW government to assist companies aiming to go 100% renewable
Australian renewables investment bucks global trend to grow 49% in 2016
Trump warming to reality of climate change, says senior Chinese official
Beijing’s chief climate negotiator, Xie Zhenhua, talks down fears that joint leadership shown by China and the US will be reversed under new president
China’s chief climate negotiator has attempted to calm fears that Donald Trump’s arrival in the White House will spell disaster for the fight against climate change.
Trump, who has dismissed climate change as “bullshit” and a Chinese hoax, will become the first climate sceptic to occupy the highest office in the US when he is sworn in on Friday.
Continue reading...Australia rooftop solar market recovers late in 2016, but falls short of target
Leopard shark makes world-first switch from sexual to asexual reproduction
Leonie the shark astounds researchers by producing live hatchlings after being separated from her mate in 2012
A leopard shark in an Australian aquarium has reproduced asexually after being separated from her mate.
It is the first reported case of a shark switching from sexual to asexual or parthenogenetic reproduction and only the third reported case among all vertebrate species.
Continue reading...No Minister, Australia doesn’t need last century’s expensive, outdated energy
Renewable energy production stagnates in Germany in 2016
Concerns over first snow and common leopards found in same area
Giant alligator strolls past tourists in Florida – video
A video posted by Kim Joiner to Facebook shows an enormous alligator crossing in front of a group of tourists waiting with their smartphones ready
Continue reading...Australia's bees and wasps revealed to be as dangerous as its snakes
More than half of deaths from bites and stings between 2000 and 2013 the result of anaphylactic shock, analysis shows
Of all Australia’s venomous animals, bees and wasps pose the biggest threat to public health, causing more than twice the number of admissions to hospital as snake bites and the same number of deaths.
The first national analysis of 13 years’ data on bites and stings from venomous creatures has found that just over one-third (33%) of almost 42,000 admissions were caused by bees and wasps, compared with 30% by spiders and 15% by snakes.
Continue reading...Broken Hill solar plant viewing platform poses a $10,000 challenge
Energy innovators invited to join world first accelerator program
Households cash in on solar during heatwave
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