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Plot twist: how giving old graveyards new life as parks can improve our cities
Almost 68% of Australia’s tourism sites at major risk if climate crisis continues, report says
Uluru, the Daintree and Bondi beach among iconic Australian locations that could be impacted if planet hits even 2C of warming by 2050
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South Australia’s wine regions shrouded in bushfire smoke, the Daintree rainforest cut off by flooding and tourists marooned at major airports because of violent storms. This snapshot is the potential chaotic future for Australia’s tourism industry, a new report has warned.
At least half of 178 tourism assets around the country – from national parks to city attractions and airports – are already facing major climate risks, the analysis showed. And as the heat rises, so do the disruptions. Many of the country’s 620,000 tourism jobs will be under threat, according to the report from insurance group Zurich and economic analysts Mandala.
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Continue reading...Number of seasonal workers seeking help after being sacked by UK farms doubles in past year
Exclusive: Government warned ‘unobtainable targets’ being used to dismiss migrant fruit pickers at short notice
The number of farm workers seeking help with dismissal after travelling to work in British fields and orchards has soared over the past year, according to research.
The trend is thought to be in part because of pressure to meet picking targets, the challenges faced by farmers trying to stay profitable and an unintended consequence of new laws guaranteeing minimum hours.
Continue reading...Tanya Plibersek accuses Peter Dutton of intent to ignore Indigenous heritage for mining projects
Environment minister lambasts opposition leader over vow to overturn her rejection of tailings dam at McPhillamys goldmine
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Tanya Plibersek has accused Peter Dutton of planning to ignore evidence of historical Indigenous cultural practice and trash heritage protection laws to greenlight certain mining projects and companies based on “the vibe”.
The environment minister told Guardian Australia that Dutton’s vow to overturn her determination rejecting the proposed site of a tailings dam at the $900m McPhillamys goldmine development in central-western New South Wales showed he had no respect for research or official advice.
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Continue reading...China to add major industries to ETS this year, minister says
Laughing frog and David Attenborough worm among 750 new species recognised in Australia
National species list expands, with orb spider named after Tom Hardy’s Marvel character, Venom, also included
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A laughing frog and an intertidal marine worm named after Sir David Attenborough are among 750 animals, plants and other organisms that have been newly recognised on Australia’s list of species.
The western laughing tree frog Litoria ridibunda, which laughs rather than croaks, the David Attenborough worm Marphysa davidattenboroughi, and the cracking-clay Pilbara marsupial Planigale tealei were added to the Australian National Species List in 2023.
Continue reading...Like running Hazelwood for 106 years: Labor says Dutton’s nuke plan will be akin to a carbon bomb
Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the government was working to
The post Like running Hazelwood for 106 years: Labor says Dutton’s nuke plan will be akin to a carbon bomb appeared first on RenewEconomy.
South Australia is aiming for 100% renewable energy by 2027. It’s already internationally ‘remarkable’
Experts say the state’s approach could provide a template for what can be achieved elsewhere
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Eight years ago, South Australia’s renewable energy future was in doubt as an extraordinary statewide blackout saw recriminations flow.
On 28 September 2016, a catastrophic weather event sent the entire state into system black. Around 4pm, some 850,000 homes and businesses lost power as supercell thunderstorms and destructive winds – some travelling up to 260km/h – crumpled transmission towers, causing three major power lines to trip.
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Continue reading...New tunnels allow turtles to migrate while keeping foxes at bay - video
The problem: a fence that protects eastern quolls threatens long-necked turtles in Booderee national park at Jervis Bay. The solution? Turtle tunnels. Nine water-filled tunnels were built beneath a 82-hectare fence that surrounds the botanic gardens which keep out feral predators, providing a safe passage for the reptiles to go between watering holes. Over a period of 123 days, conservationists recorded 73 successful instances of the turtles using the tunnels
Continue reading...The National Trust must again resist the group trying to turn grievances into policy | Rowan Moore
Burning with unquenchable resentment, Restore Trust is making another attempt at taking over the institution
The leaves are starting to change and there’s autumnal coolth in the air. Which means that the opaquely funded private organisation called Restore Trust is once again making its annual attempt to take over one of the country’s most successful and best-loved institutions, the National Trust. Burning with unquenchable resentment about a 2020 report that truthfully stated that Winston Churchill opposed Indian independence; armed with inflated stories about mushroom bans, cancelled Easters and vote-rigging; and furious about a single disco ball in one room of one of the National Trust’s 230 historic houses, Restore Trust has once again put up a slate of candidates for the National Trust’s council, with a view to turning their grievances into policy. If you’re a member of the National Trust, and you’d rather not see it turned into a platform for an angry minority, vote now for its recommended candidates.
Continue reading...‘Citizen scientists’ to check UK rivers for sewage and pollution
Big River Watch scheme asks general public to help monitor state of rivers after years of deregulation
Rivers will be checked for sewage and other pollution by the general public this month in an attempt to assess the health of British waterways.
Cuts to the UK regulators and a change in the law to allow water company self-monitoring of pollution in England mean there is little independent monitoring of the state of rivers in the UK.
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