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Polluting facilities covered by Australia’s Safeguard Mechanism (SM) will have to cut emissions by 170 MtCO2e between now and 2030 in order to align with a net zero emissions trajectory by 2050, according to research laying out the ways the policy could be designed. 

EUA prices rose to their highest in more than a month early on Wednesday as traders followed a technical breakout, while some continued to hedge forward power generation as energy prices continued to advance amid ongoing supply worries.

To avoid ‘youth-washing’ politicians and corporations, young people now are more likely to coalesce around radical policies or campaigns

Between 2016 and 2020, children were the vital force at the centre of the climate movement. Youth strikers organised record-breaking mass mobilisations and protests between geography and double maths. In the US, young people from the Sunrise Movement occupied Nancy Pelosi’s office demanding climate action. Youth activists got extraordinary media attention, invitations to speak at climate summits, and to address the UN. Teenagers such as Vanessa Nakate and Greta Thunberg became household names; both of them appeared on the cover of Time magazine, the latter as person of the year in 2019.

This coincided with a moment in climate politics that was awash with ideas around children, the future, and intergenerational justice. Extinction Rebellion activists used the next generation as a proxy for the future: climate action in the present was a moral necessity for our children and grandchildren. Politicians also adopted this framing. At the same time, young people were taking matters into their own hands. For a time, it seemed that a climate movement was emerging in which children acted simultaneously as the spark, inspiration and energy. This wave seemed unstoppable.

Eleanor Salter writes about climate, culture and politics

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A company that launched a new voluntary carbon credit on Tuesday paused trading and new issuances on Wednesday amid questions regarding the additionality of the units.

Japan has begun recruiting participants to the trial run for its voluntary carbon market with test trading slated to begin in September on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, initially limited to the domestic J-credits, though fundamental questions as to how the scheme will operate remain.

Sir Colin Blakemore received death threats for defending medical research on animals.

Voluntary carbon market business association ICROA will be “soft launching” its accreditation programme for non-IETA members, aiming to maintain relevancy amid a swathe of new entrants.

South Korea’s greenhouse gas emissions rose 3.5% in 2021 as the economy begun its post-Covid recovery, but remained significantly below the levels seen before the pandemic.

Australia’s energy and climate minister has announced the government will introduce a Climate Change Bill when parliament resumes next month, while outlining his priorities surrounding domestic and international offset use to meet the country’s nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Remaining curbs on food imports imposed after 2011 nuclear disaster to be scrapped

Food from Fukushima will be freely available in the UK from Wednesday, weeks after Boris Johnson snacked on popcorn from the Japanese prefecture hit by a triple nuclear meltdown in March 2011.

Britain restricted Fukushima imports after the disaster, the world’s worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl, but has gradually lifted them, even as other countries limit or ban produce from the region.

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Philadelphia, where I live, is nicknamed Filthadelphia and I’m getting more disgusted by the day

I have been having some very dirty thoughts lately, and it’s been driving my wife bonkers. “Just look at all the litter!” I’ll exclaim numerous times a day. “Why is there so much rubbish on the street? Why aren’t there more bins in this city? Why does Philadelphia [where I live] have such a subpar municipal waste management system?” These are all valid questions (there is a reason Philly has the nickname Filthadelphia), but my wife doesn’t want to hear about city sanitation any more. “Please,” she keeps saying, “get over it!”

The thing is, I can’t get over it. Is it a function of middle age? Am I losing my mind? I don’t know what has precipitated it, but I am hung up on waste management. I have gone full disgusted-of-Tunbridge-Wells about it, as we all should, really. Litter isn’t just unsightly and unhygienic, it is associated with more crime and antisocial behaviour: cleaning up neighbourhoods makes them safer. Sanitation workers are the unsung heroes of the streets: the US should be diverting some of the money it gives to its bloated police departments to street cleaners. If I was going to run for mayor (I’m not), that would be at the top of my policy platform.

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In our writer’s garden, and across the country, the scourge of Dutch elm disease has not been entirely eliminated

Look up. If you do, you’ll almost certainly see butterflies where you’ve never noticed them before.

The hairstreaks are hugely overlooked mostly treetop-dwelling butterflies. Two species are active now: the white-letter hairstreak and the purple hairstreak.

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UK government put under ‘considerable pressure’, says chair of all-party parliamentary group on banning trophy hunting

The US hunting lobby has spent £1m putting pressure on the government to delay the trophy import ban, a new report by MPs has found.

Boris Johnson promised to ban the imports of these trophies three years ago, but the legislation has still not gone through parliament. Because of the delay, the Conservative MP and animal welfare campaigner Henry Smith has put forward his own private member’s bill to ban imports of hunting trophies.

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Five New South Wales solar and battery recycling initiatives receive combined total of $7.4m in state government funding.

The post NSW backs three solar and battery recycling plants in new state funding round appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Anthony Albanese says Scott Morrison's recalcitrance on climate change almost scuttled a major trade deal with the European Union.

The post Europe saw Morrison’s Australia as “handbrake” on global climate action, Albanese says appeared first on RenewEconomy.

G7 western economies reaffirm commitment to climate goals while tackling ongoing energy crisis. But climate activists are not happy.

The post G7 says no compromise on climate goals despite global energy crisis appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Singapore-based Climate Impact X (CIX) has formed a strategic technology-based partnership with US exchange operator Nasdaq to enable price transparency and liquidity in its voluntary carbon market operations, it was announced on Wednesday.

Labor will seek to legislate its 2030 target, EV tax cuts and a revival of the Climate Change Authority during the first week of the new parliament.

The post Labor to introduce legislation for climate targets and EV tax cuts in first week of parliament appeared first on RenewEconomy.

MGA Thermal says it hopes to be producing 1MWh a day of stackable thermal storage blocks by year’s end at its new commercial facility in Newcastle.

The post Australian thermal storage start-up nears production at Newcastle plant appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Australia's LNG exporters are contributing to an ongoing energy crisis, by diverting gas away from the domestic market, AER data confirms.

The post Gas exporters sucking gas out of domestic market in middle of crisis, data shows appeared first on RenewEconomy.